on second thought, it's actually not so bad

Those of us who attended good ol' FHS have been under the impression that our school has a pretty lame and/or bizarre mascot. You see, we're the Flushing Raiders. According to my good buddy Merriam-Webster, a raider is:

one that raids: as a: a fast lightly armed ship operating against merchant shipping b: a soldier specially trained for close-range fighting c: one that attempts a usually hostile takeover of a business corporation

However, our mascot is not the sort of pirate-y, soldier-y, or business-y type person that the above definition would seem to imply. Oh, no. Our mascot is in fact an orange and black bird known - very creatively - as the Raider Bird. Because, you know, ornithologists everywhere recognize that species.

Or not.

(As an aside, wouldn't it be hilarious if the mascot was a vicious businessman?? I think that's even better than the Raider Bird.)

But I have good news! I am pleased to say that Flushing does not in fact have the strangest mascot on the planet. Check out these bizarre high school mascots, courtesy of mental_floss! I hope my next teaching job can be at the school whose mascot is the Winged Beavers. That pretty much redefines awesome.