Gonna make it a blue day

Michael Gill (Boys Model, Belfast)

I have been a Chelsea fan all my life, well since I can remember liking football anyway. 

The first time I saw them, that I can remember, was a live televised match. I think it might have been against Arsenal back in 97’. 

The goalkeeper played an outstanding game, he was making saves covering all aspects of the nets, left, right and centre, keeping them in them in the game. 

Since then I can remember old managers, trying their hardest to bring the club into high succession within the premier league and Europe. 

The earliest manager with the best record that I can remember is Italian based Claudio Raneri. He bought the club from mid-table to 3rd and 4th in the seasons he was appointed manager.

The employment of Russian billionaire, Roman Ibromivich, has brought high standards to the club after the departure of Ken Bates. 

He has had the power over three managers. Claudio was the first to fall. 

He had the money power but did not bring the club to the standards that the fans and the owner were looking for.

Then the powerful Portuguese, Jose Mourinho came into the power. It all started in 2004-2005, when the big ego showed. 

He vowed to bring success and trophies to the bridge. In his first season he was invincible. He had cleared his squad and bought in a whole new level of talent. 

Players such as Drogba, Cech and Wright Phillips showed what they were capable of and won Chelsea the title for the first time in 50 years.

During the seasons that he stayed at Chelsea he won 6 trophies and that was only in seasons!

Fall out with the owner had seen him pack up and leave at the start of the 07-08 seasons. Appointment of backroom coach Avram Grant was quick and he was soon Chelsea manager. 

He has yet to show his honours but has started off with the same record as Mourinho. He is in his first cup final, Carling Cup, against Spurs at Wembley. Hopefully it is his first of many!

Good luck to the boys and hope Avram is a success.

NORTHERN IRISH IS WHAT I AM

Kyle Pott (Boys Model, Belfast)

Well being brought up in a loyalist area I was told by my parents and family that I was British however I began to challenge this almost forced identity and began to search for heritage. This lead me to a YMCA Youth and Government Course which was advertised in my AS level politics class. I have really enjoyed myself at the course and on the 1st till the 3rd of Feb 2008 we went on a trip to Londonderry to learn about the Bog Side and the Troubles which went back to the Plantation of Ulster, which saw the Native Irish driven from the land and homes and saw them replaced with Protestant British citizens.

More recently the formation of N.I Civil Rights Campaign leading to marches and Riots, then the RUC being forced out of the Bog Side of Derry. We saw colourful murals across many a wall and one which really got to me was a mural of a young girl who was shot on Bloody Sunday while walking home from school. There is a butterfly, which was painted in black and tied down to stop it flying until there was peace and now it has been repainted in bright colours and is flying high. However our guide had a Republican agenda and had a hostile view towards Britain and this made me a several others feel unwelcome. Luckily for me the group has a strong dynamic so I told the leaders how I felt and they reassured me that his view was a dying one and I was welcome in Londonderry.

Education Maintenance Allowance

Graeme Greenwood (Boys Model, Belfast)

I am a year 13 pupil in a secondary school in Belfast. I decided to come back this year to sit my A levels as after thinking it over and with the grades I got in my GCSEs I thought it was probably the right choice.

When you come back in year 13 pupils can be paid up to the amount of £30 a week depending on their parent’s incomes. EMA (Education Maintenance Allowance). Unfortunately not everyone can receive this, which is my point.

Schools make a big point of saying that this is a reason to come back to school but it’s not for everyone. People’s parents could be bringing in a big income but that’s not to say that their kids are going to benefit from it. Not everyone’s parents believe in giving their kids money at the end of the week. Another point is that not everyone can find the time to fit in a part time job. So there are pupils who are in full time education without receiving EMA and without a job.

What are they meant to do? Although I’m not affected by this I believe it’s a point that needs to be raised - its not fair on everyone either no one should get it or we should all receive it!

Discrimination in today’s society

Chris Millar (Boys Model, Belfast)

Why is discrimination accepted in today’s society? Why should people get away with saying what they want and putting people down because they are different? There are all-different kinds of discrimination in today’s society for many it is because of the way they dress or of the music they listen to.

For others it is the background they come from or even the colour of their skin. But mainly in today’s society it is because of their sexual preferences. But why are these things just accepted even in our schools by just walking down a corridor or passing a room you can hear the abuse being yelled towards people and figureheads ignoring the problem?

These are the main issues that should be addressed - not the state of uniforms or hair styles. Attention should be directed towards stopping the abuse and discrimination around today.

Understandably discrimination doesn’t just take place in schools, its in the streets and around everywhere but I believe that it is up to the schools to put an end to the abuse and discrimination as they can get the message through and keep pushing it.

There are lots of different ways in which the schools can help - there are many different organisations such as the rainbow project who can help with acceptance and even places like Samaritans are willing to help with the issues so why not get them involved?

What is an extreme hair cut?

Chris McDowell (Boys Model, Belfast)

I go to a secondary school in the North Belfast area and it can be like prison sometimes. They have this rule that says you’re not allowed extreme hair cuts although What is an extreme haircut?! I have a bit of blue in the front of my hair. It isn't alot nor is it all over my hair and I was told it was extreme (even though who ever is reading may think it isn't) but to me it isn't an extreme hair cut. Now, I don’t know but is that wrong? Who knows?

Well, anyway I think they should tell us in more detail what’s expectable if they want us to run about like marines then we would have joined the marines. Why should an hair cut decide whether you should be thrown out of school till it comes out when there is pupil stopping others from learning and going on the beak and not coming to school and yet I get told I have to get it out. I think our school are taking hair cuts too seriously and I would recommend that they lightened up a bit on it after all I am a big Senior School pupil lol.

Brad and Angie

Sonya Gorman (17)

Usually when a couple decides that it is time to take the plunge and get married the first thing that pops into their mind is how happy they will be or where they were to go on their honeymoon, well not if you a celebrity. If you’re a celeb the first thing that pops into your mind is “Oh no were going to have to get a pre-nup.” And that’s to surprise because in Hollywood marriages don’t really last that long anyway. So usually a pre-nup is the norm.
Welcome to the world of Brad and Angelina, they seem very happy together they have four kids. And loads of money Brad earns £25 million per movie. However you would be wrong to think that Angie is a little stay at home wife who has no money of her own she does £14 million per movie in fact. They are they king and queen of Hollywood and they seem to love each other very much however they seem to still feel that they need to sign a pre-nup.
This maybe this is no surprise as they have had three failed marriages between them. They have always said that they have no plans to get married again however it has been reported that in past days they have signed a 160million pre-nup agreement and they are said to be planning to walk down the aisle next spring.
It is said that the pre-nup is not about Brad and Angelina’s personal money worries, “When they get married they will have every last penny accounted for. They are responsible parents.” So if they ever do split their four kids are protected. They want to walk down the aisle knows that every little detail is ironed out.
And if they ever decide they also not that they have every little detail ironed out.

Final Cut

Sonya Gorman (17)

Getting your hair cut is fun and it makes you feel tons better... Yeah. It does but its not really about that is it? It’s about looking like you’ve just had your hair done and this is why it becomes a chore. It not fun anymore you only do it because you have to. If you’ve got your hair done you’re going to look pretty stupid if you aren’t wearing a cool top, and that top is going to look stupid if you haven’t got a new pair of jeans and you can see were I’m going with this blog.
Most young people now have part time jobs. I do, I don’t really like it all that much, well to be honest I don’t really like it at all. If I was an adult I could say that I only do this job because have responsibilities. But I’m not an adult so why do I keep the job? Its simple, I have fallen into the trap of relying on my monthly pay from my part time job. My job isn’t particularly horrible or bad it’s just I would rather be out having fun. Which I wouldn’t be able to do if I didn’t have a job. So im trapped in one of those vicious circle things you hear about.
I suppose your thinking save up your money... but it’s not really that easy is it. Every time I try something else comes up. Like a new pair of jeans or a top or my shade of blonde is completely out this season.
I guess you are wondering what I’m on about but the point to my story simply is that I spend all my money on stuff like DVDs, Clothes and things I won’t really need. Still, to be quite honest I don’t really care all that much because that’s what young people are all about going around and not really taking anything to seriously. So I guess that the true reason why I have a part time job, because I can go in behave like an adult for a while and then go spend my money like a young person.

Rock n Roll

Ruth Smyth (18)
Why does tabloid press concentrate on exposing the shaded lifestyle of celebrities? The casual drug-taking, promiscuous relationships and hedonistic backdrop to an otherwise mundane world are almost synonymous with what music magazines like to call “Rock ‘n’ Roll.”

Popular music as found in the UK’s Top 40 include hip-hop, dance, R ‘n’ B, boybands and now even reality show contestants. In following the new trends of an imprudent youth, music companies can now produce near carbon copy artists whose performance is next to insignificant. Although there is a marginal group of musicians throughout the years who manage to scratch through the surface of Britain’s mediocre music scene.

Society tends to hone in on these obvious “bad guys” within the morally corrupt industry such as co-frontman Pete Doherty of the London-based band The Libertines. In doing so, this disregards the exploitation of naïve singer/songwriters by big business. The sexualizing of pre-pubescent “talent.” The core message of sexism and violence as found in urban hip-hop. The erroneously trim face of teenage pin-ups and the artificiality of their management.
The premature split of The Libertines reinforces their success and legacy. With the formation of two new bands Dirty Pretty Things and Babyshambles, fans are able to argue freely the lyrical ability of Doherty and Carl Barat. However, Doherty’s life is focused on more heavily and not in any musical aspect but rather his personal relationships and drug habit. If the price of fame justifies such unwanted attention then why isn’t Barat as recognizable to hungry tabloid papers?

If lifestyles have trumped talent in some cases, does this not prove that the music industry isn’t just about music anymore? But even still, some celebrities are sympathized with more than others like the controversy surrounding Britney Spears. Seamus Craic, music journalist, tries to justify the snobbery in the pitfalls of fame: “If we can put ourselves in the mindset of The Sun for a moment: The British public loves a bad boy, but junkies are scum.”