Crown Point High School - Excalibur Yearbook (Crown Point, IN)

Page 23 text:

LEFT—Fred Agabashian, a retired race car driver, came and spoke on the dan¬ gers of driving today. BELOW—John Donovan played a solo during the Jazz Band’s performance before their contest. LEFT—Earl F. Landgrebe, U.S. repre¬ sentative, presented Jeff Haynes with a flag that flew over our nation’s Capitol, in answer to his request. BELOW—Once a teacher at C.P.H.S., Mrs. Doris Dunn came back as a speaker for an assembly. 19

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ASSEMBLIES OCCASIONALLY ABATED BOREDOM The first speaker took the podium, and already you could see the waves of boredom sweep the bleachers. Through¬ out the first semester, scheduled assemblies contained the warmth of a newspaper, the humor of an old comic book, the entertainment value of a stick. And yet the result could not be totally blamed on the speakers, for they merely carry out the wishes of the administration. The problem consisted solely in a conflict between students and teachers, the students seeking entertainment while the teachers called for educational value and assigned seats. Luckily, though, the problem was quickly realized, and Mr. Sweigart, the assembly coordi¬ nator, sought student’s ideas for assemblies through the Student Council. Many replies to the school-wide search called for fewer speeches, more relevant speakers, more musical assem¬ blies, and unassigned seats. These ideas were incorporated into the programs soon enough to produce several fine assem¬ blies, most notably the Christ¬ mas Assembly during which the Symphony Band played, the Easter Assembly which featured the Ambassadors, the student exchange program with Munde¬ lein High School, and the Stu¬ dent Council Officer-Cheer¬ leader election assembly. ABOVE—Jay Dillion, as the cowboy, flirts with Trish Scaggs in a skit previewing Dramkhana. LEFT—Directed by Mrs. Tippins, Jeff Harvey of the Workshop Choir, Ambassadors”, sings a solo of “The Impossible Dream.” BELOW—The Barber Shop Quartet, consisting of Mr. Castronova, Mr. Owen, Mr. Stillwagon and Mr. Johnson, performed to the delight of the student body. 18

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NEWS BRIEFS Without a doubt, the surprise announcement of a soon-to-be-ended war aided Richard Nixon’s re-election efforts, but whether the boost was actually necessary became a popular topic of speculation. In the most lopsided Republican victory ever, President Nixon failed to carry only one state, a monumental victory but not wholly unexpected. While the Democrats retired to lick their wounds, an issue that initially seemed trivial then exploded into national prominence. Commonly known as the Watergate Affair, it con¬ cerned an alleged Republican bugging of the Democratic party national headquarters. The mat¬ ter received little attention until investigations disclosed that several of President Nixon’s close personal aides were directly involved in the affair. The air about the issue changed instantly from a small scale eavesdropping charge to an issue of nationwide political deceit. The fact that the Republicans had bugged the Democratic headquarters was fairly obvious, but why they had done so remained a mystery. Nixon was clearly destined as the presidential victor, making Republican knowledge of Democratic plans unnecessary. As the importance and reputation of those involved rose, critics asked how high in the national administration this deceit had stretched. Because rumors of President Nixon’s involvement in the bugging prevailed, a Senate hearing was held in order to clear up allegations and delve into the truth about the Watergate Affair. Most Americans found it hard to get concerned about the Watergate Affair because they did not realize the implications within it. However, many other social and economic events received critical inspection. Inflation increased at near record rates, especially in the area of food prices. As meat prices rose, housewives picketed stores and arranged local and national meat boycotts. Although the boycotts only caused farmers to withhold live cattle, it forced the situation enough into prominence so that President Nixon created a meat- price ceiling. Across the nation people turned to gardens and canning in order to keep their food bills low. Riots and campus disorders were almost nonexistent in the recent year, for while Americans are as concerned as ever about national affairs, they now tend to view the problems with practicality. Peaceful means to solve unfair practices were sought, with stress placed on useful remedies which could be applied effectively. With the end of the war, Americans are looking for a period of increased domestic prosperity. We will now be searching for an equal position in the world; we will no longer try to become policemen for the world; we will strive at home and abroad to help with our wealth, save with our resources, and lead with our people. In recent years, there has been heated debate on the legality and the morality of abor¬ tions. Both the women’s libera¬ tion and the planned parent¬ hood movements favor abor¬ tions in that they reduce the numbers of unwanted children, they allow women increased freedom, and they are much safer when performed in sani¬ tary hospital conditions. Oppo¬ sitely, many groups felt that life is God-given, and any mortal taking of another’s life is mur¬ der. Nevertheless, the U.S. Supreme Court has recently upheld the legality of abortions with certain specifications. Basically, the court said that during the first three months after conception, the decision to have an abortion lies solely with the mother and doctor; during the fourth through sixth month, the state may regulate procedures but cannot forbid the abortion; any time following the sixth month after conception, the abortion may take place only in order to aid the health or life of the mother. Even with this legal sanction, though, there is still much moral opposition to abortions, and loopholes within the law have prevented many clinics from opening. The turmoil and tension present for many years in the Middle East exploded and destroyed the recent summer Olympic Games in Munich. Several Arab guerrillas took advantage of reduced security measures and forcibly captured several Israeli athletes. Using them as hostages, the Arab terrorists escaped the Olympic dormitories and fled to a nearby airport. In a tragic and shoddily- planned attempt to free the hostages, Munich police opened fire on the guerrillas, who in turn killed all the captured Israeli athletes. The entire world recoiled at the violence which plagued even this display of international friendship.