Commentary
Quit Overreacting
By Eamonn Rockwell (June 4, 2005)
Before we get out of this prison of learning, I have just one more thing to rant about for this school year. Over the months, I have written many angry, hypocritical, whiny, pointless and hilarious commentaries (rants) that have infuriated the masses and given hope to many others.

Commentary
Beyond Fear and Loathing
By Ashleigh Luthman-Hackett (June 2, 2005)
Like Mark Twain, with his revolutionized free-flow style of writing, the notorious Hunter S. Thompson, inventor of Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas (1971), possessed a free lance and innovative writing style, Gonzo.

Commentary
Scopes Trial Revived
By: Eliot John Hagen (May 14, 2005)
In the final scene of Inherit the Wind, Henry Drummond picks up two books before leaving the courtroom: Darwin’s Theory of Evolution and the Origin of the Species and The Holy Bible

Commentary
Online Diaries are Pointless and Hypocritical
By Eamonn Rockwell (May 13, 2005)
For many years, people have had personal diaries that they used to reflect on events in their lives with. This was all fine and dandy, until personal computers, combined with Internet access, came along and unintentionally ruined the practice.

Commentary
Senior Slump Beckons,
But Work Doesn’t Cease
By Rachel Miller (May 13, 2005)
I’m about to get down on my hands and knees and kiss this cold floor goodbye. 


Music Review
Listen to Good Hip-Hop
By Eamonn Rockwell (May 9, 2005)
Hip-hop replaced Rock music (or what passes for it these days) as the most popular music on radio and album sales about a year ago.

Commentary
My Residual Consequence for Procrastinating
By Adam Knudsen (May 6, 2005)
As high school comes to an end and excitement is in the air over which colleges people got into, my story is slightly different. I only applied to three colleges and didn’t get into any of them.


Commentary
Put Your Cell Phone on Silent
By Rabita Aziz (May 6, 2005)
Remember the fad toys we all used to play with and show off to our friends during fourth and fifth grades, like beanie babies and electronic pets like Tamagachis? 

Commentary
Public Transportation: Use It!
By: Eliot John Hagen (May 6, 2005)
One thing that has become ingrained in the American mind is that public transportation is for poor people. 

Commentary
A Compare/Contrast Essay:
IB Versus CP Classes
By Olga Belinskaya (May 3, 2005)
I went into my senior year eager to learn as much as possible about The System. Recognizing that George Mason is a public high school, and is in and of itself a mini-society with all its rules, groups, norms and routines, I decided to take it as an example of the structure of life in the mainstream society.

Commentary
Smoking: The Cool Carcinogenic
By Eamonn Rockwell (April 23, 2005)
Over the years, it has been widely accepted in American culture that the act of smoking does two things: 1. Gives the smoker cancer. 2. Makes the smoker look cooler.

Commentary
How Could No One Have Helped?
By Adam Knudsen (April 23, 2005)
Last week, at Mifflin High School, in Columbus, Ohio, a 16 year-old girl was sexually assaulted, forced to perform sexual acts on at least two boys in a high school auditorium as dozens of students watched, according to student witnesses.

Commentary
The Power of Foresight: The Real Anti-Drug
By Adam Knudsen (April 21, 2005)
Foresight in the dictionary is defined as, “Perception of the significance and nature of events before they have occurred.”

Commentary
Our New Baseball Team Shows Promise;
But Needs Fans’ Patience to Develop
By Robert Kuhn (April 7, 2005)
With all of the prayers that the arrival of the new baseball team in DC has answered, I hope that this team of familiar veterans and fresh young players can deliver on a season that holds much magnitude to so many. 

Commentary
Dear GM Students: Drink Water!
By Ashleigh Luthman-Hackett (April 7, 2005)
As a student, I know how hard it is to avoid that stinging sensation in your eyes when trying not to fall asleep, head on desk. As a girl and a teenager, I know how discomforting it is having acne in unwelcome places, not to mention at inconvenient times.

Commentary
How Important Is Small Talk?
By Adam Knudsen (April 6, 2005)
Have you ever stopped and listened in on what people talk about these days?  I will confess that I have recently and it seems that most of what people talk about has no greater purpose, no sense of knowledge being shared from one individual to the next.

Commentary
If You’re Going to Drink, Drink with Style
By Eammon Rockwell (April 5, 2005)
Legal Disclaimer: This article does not endorse underage drinking, which is known to cause car crashes, liver/brain damage, ugliness, and things that are filmed that people regret later.

Commentary
Nation’s ‘Ho-Hum’ Response to Red Lake
Shows Lack of Concern for Native Americans
By Margaret Lipman (March 29, 2005)
On Monday, March 21, Jeff Weise, a 16-year old student at Red Lake High School on Minnesota's Red Lake Indian Reservation, shot and killed his grandfather, his grandfather's girlfriend, a security guard, a teacher, five students and finally, himself.

Commentary
Poetry Is Even Worse than
The Novels I Wrote about Earlier
By Eamonn Rockwell (March 22, 2005)
In my last rant about articles relating to literature, some of the many readers of this online newspaper threw a hissy fit about how I should read more because it's good for me and blah blah cheaper/better than movies and blah blah blah.

Music Commentary
There is Only One Great
Punk Band: The Ramones
By Eamonn Rockwell (March 11, 2005)
Upon hearing that the popular pop-punk band Blink-182 had broken up, I wondered, for a split-second, where I was going to get my fix of fast, loud punkish music.

Commentary
Crime and Punishment in the Halls of George Mason
By Danny Johnson (February 22, 2005)
“The principal or designee shall determine the appropriate disciplinary measures to be taken when appropriate in the case of student misconduct or violation of the rules or regulations.”-Falls Church City Public Schools, Student Section, Policy 9.34

Commentary
Ninth Graders Have ‘Mixed Reviews’
On First-Ever Exam Week Experience
By Meredith Kerrigan (February 22, 2005)
(Throughout the year Lasso Online reporter and freshmen Meredith Kerrigan is providing readers with an insider’s view of what the transition to high school is like. Here she discusses her fellow ninth graders’ views of exam week.)

Commentary
Why Reading Does Not Help Regular People
By Eamonn Rockwell (February 10, 2005)
As we have all been told, reading is the greatest thing people can do

Commentary
Stem-Cell Research: It’s Progress!
By: Eliot John Hagen (January 28, 2005)
Of all of the ongoing debates in our society, stem-cell research is one of the newest that pits science versus religion.

Commentary
What’s in a Name?
By Nora Hemphill (January 7, 2005)
Walking down the streets of Manhattan or through the shopping malls of Northern Virginia, I notice the reflexive glance of women scanning my outfit for designer labels.

Commentary
Art Club: Founding, Flourishing
By Ashleigh Luthman-Hackett (December 14, 2004)
Since my first year at Mason last year, I’ve noticed the avid promotion of the theatre and English department: posters, opportunities, contests, upcoming events, etc.

Commentary
There Any Reason Left To Live?
By Eamonn Rockwell (December 11, 2004)
Is there any reason left to live?
If you haven't heard about it, Rolling Stone Magazine has printed its "500 Greatest Songs of all Time" issue.

Commentary
‘Fresh Smelling Hair He’ll Notice
By Liana Camper-Barry (December 11, 2004)
My sister and I are waiting in the checkout line at Giant. Rows of magazines surround us. Seventeen, Teen, Elle Girl, Teen People. “Four Easy Steps to Perfect Eyebrows,” “Seven Ways to Get Your Guy,” “Sexy New Jeans,” “Your Ultimate Bikini Body Workout.”

Commentary
Gay Marriage: Let It Be
By: Eliot John Hagen (December 1, 2004)
Allow same-sex marriages!  Why is the religious right so afraid of this?

Commentary
Four More Years? I Still Can’t Believe It
By: Eliot John Hagen (December 1, 2004)
I went to bed on November 2nd, 2004, with the radio next to my bed tuned to NPR.

Commentary
SAT’s: A Student’s Worst Nightmare
By Andrea Genovese Soares (November 26, 2004)
(Andrea was a student at Mason last year and an editor of Lasso Online. She moved to Brazil to finish her education and may return to the states to go to college.)
I don’t think the abbreviation SAT should be capitalized.

Commentary
Suck, Tuck, Lift? I Don’t Think So
By Bridget Hatfield (November 26, 2004)
It has nothing to do with having low self-esteem, or a poor body image.

Commentary
Starbucks: Addiction or Trend?
By Sara Sugrue (November 24, 2004)
I am addicted to Starbucks coffee. It’s not just their regular coffee, or any form of espresso drink for that matter, but instead I am addicted to their tall Mocha Frappachino with no whip or chocolate drip.

Commentary
Let’s Find a Compromise on Cell
Phone Use and Restrictions
By Robert Kuhn (November 19, 2004)
All cell phones must be turned off COMPLETELY and stowed out of sight during the school day.  Emergency use of cell phones is permitted ONLY when students go to the main office to use their cell phones. –George Mason High School Agenda

Commentary
Attention Women: Stop Lying!
By Eammon Rockwell (November 17, 2004)
Throughout history, parents have told their children to not focus on outer beauty, but to see what kind of emotions and character a person has.

Editorial
Thanks to All Who Made the
Chilean Exchange Possible
By now our friends from Chile are home safe and sound in Santiago. While we’ll miss them, we hope to enjoy their company again in the future.

Commentary
An Insider's View of Ninth Grade
By Meredith Kerrigan (October 1, 2004)
(Throughout the year Lasso Online reporter and freshman Meredith Kerrigan will be providing readers with an insider’s view of what the transition to high school is like. Herewith are her first observations.)

Commentary
I Want Rock and/or Roll Back
By Eamonn Rockwell (September 30, 2004)
Over the past few years, I have noticed an unfortunate trend in the music community

Commentary
Dead Power: Should We
Bury Power Lines?
By Eliot John Hagen (September 28, 2004)
In the last weeks of summer, the southeast coast of the country has been laid to waste by a devastating series of hurricanes, leaving countless homeless; and even more without power.

Commentary
 Earth to Kerry: ‘Stand Up for Yourself’
By Sam Ehsani (September 19, 2004)
With just 48 days left till the election, I wonder what the outcome of the presidential debates will be. At this point the two candidates have been bickering about a war that started over 50 years ago.