Archive By Section - Columnists
Staying connected in the event of an emergency
With Southern California being home to not only movie stars, but earthquakes and wild fires as well, it is imperative that residents throughout have the means to stay informed in the event of a local emergency. The city of Santa Clarita is constantly preparing for any possible disasters and has recently launched a new addition to the city's Emergency Notification System that will allow residents to update their own contact information through the city's Web ...
Pressure is on: L.A.'s Special Order 40
I had the pleasure of attending the Ignacio Ramos/Jose Compean Fundraiser, earlier this month at the Skirball Cultural Center. The fundraiser for imprisoned U.S. Border agents was a sell-out. I was delighted to see many Santa Claritans there who contributed the $25 per ticket to see Chris Burgard's Border, the spellbinding movie about illegal immigration, revealing the plight of those who illegally cross the border.
Support federal Wilderness Bill to preserve SCV
In my teenage years my parents decided to move to Los Angeles. Having seen the beautiful beaches of Santa Barbara and the luscious trees of Beverly Hills in soap operas, I was expecting to be blown away by California's nature.
Oh, to be a cool, hooker-rolling thug
Like bloodthirsty spectators at the Colosseum in ancient Rome, many Americans today seek their jollies through carnage and depravity. But instead of lions and slaves going at it for the crowds, now it's violence and titillation-steeped virtual reality video games. One new "adventure" game that has captured the retail marketplace is Rockstar's Grand Theft Auto (GTA) IV. A financial blockbuster, it has raked in a whopping $500 million in its first week alone.
A short history of Hillary’s lies
"Hillary has always been a liar - why all the fuss about her sniper kerfuffle?" Why, after a lifetime of lying (oops, excuse me - misspeaking), is Hillary Clinton's whopper with respect to her Tuzla airport landing creating such a stir? I suppose the real question is: Why, all of a sudden, is the media exposing her mendacity when they have buried it on every previous occasion? The answer is quite simple - she's running ...
It's a bird, it's a plane ... it's dad!
Family men are action heroes. We face a horrible, treacherous nemesis, far worse than other super heroes must face. We must stand up against the dreaded Domestic Gremlin, a creature not seen, but one that endangers our precious domesticated lifestyle, causing kitchen appliances to malfunction, allowing critters and other unsightly creatures to enter wife- and kid-inhabited living quarters.
High rises and CEQA
Did you buy into an older, established neighborhood in the belief that you would be safe from bulldozers and houses abandoned to subprime mortgages? Did you check the city zoning ordinances and thought you knew what was planned for this neighborhood? Or have you just lived there for 20 or so years in the belief that life would go on as it had been planned when you moved in?
Who to choose for Republican Central Committee
The comedian Yakov Smirnov once said, "In America, its always easy to find party. In Soviet Union, Party always finds you."
More appreciative of the goodness we have around us
Last Friday was a rough one. I'm in the landscape business - married to the housing industry - and as most know, housing isn't the cheeriest spot in the economy right now. It's akin to tap dancing atop a minefield. There's stress, and then more stress - like a "super-unglue" against healthy living. So, limping home from work, I looked forward to soul-replenishing relaxation with Carrie. We'd light up the fireplace. Pop open the Sauvignon ...
Media Vultures and Rev. Wright
Most parents will recognize a common excuse used in childhood: "Johnny told me to do it." And the parents' rebuttal, "If Johnny told you to jump off a cliff, would you do it?" This lesson is usually lost on the young child, but it manages to sleep within his consciousness until he is old enough to understand its wisdom. Now that the talking heads on 24/7 news outlets have a new victim to slay - ...
Young conservatives unite!
It's no secret that Ronald Reagan is my hero. For as long as I can remember, I have appreciated the ideals of the conservative movement, and I sincerely believe that if more voters my age (the coveted Gen-Xers) truly understood those values and the long-term implications of the policies generated by those positions, more would support conservative causes and candidates.
No need for so-called code of ethics in SCV
Puls•kamp•er•ie –noun 1. the ability to make the people believe you addressed a problem while actually doing nothing. 2. actions taken by a group of people to prevent the true nature of their endeavors from escaping their group, or becoming well know to the public: "The staff members used Puskamperie to keep the facts from reaching the newspapers."
Mother's Day ramblings and beauty tips
What makes a mother feel beautiful? A pre-Mother's Day TV commercial promoting (what else?) Mother's Day commercialism is currently attempting to answer that question. In doing so, that particular jewelry store ad is venturing into some potentially dangerous psychological territory. In the commercial, a pretty, smiling woman is seen with her two little girls. They have just polished their Mommy's nails. Not a perfect job, but it's the thought, right?
What do you want for Mother's Day?
'What do you want for Mother's Day?" I asked my wife earlier this week. "I don't need anything," she said. "Do you want to do something for Mother's Day?" I asked. "Anything you want to do, we'll do it."
The first Mother's Day I'm alone
There is not a day that goes by when I do not think about the one person who made all the difference in my life. And at this time of year, the days seem to be strung together by a seamless, bittersweet preoccupation with yesterday. "Bitter" because death brings the weight of days lost; "sweet" because it somehow refines yesterday's memories to help one see just how good things really were. Those memories then become ...
Articles by Section - Columnists
Helen Harwood: SCV Voices
I do wish sometimes that some of your regular contributors to The Signal's Letters to the Editor would spend less time writing unsubstantiated clichés and more time reading up on economics.
Danny Tyree: Candy capitulation: say it ain’t so!
According to ABC News, you should probably get ready for a take-no-prisoners "This is your brain on nougat" campaign.
Byron York: Has Obama overplayed his hand in sequester?
Nine months ago, Barack Obama likened his Republican opposition to an illness. If he could just defeat Mitt Romney, Obama said, then the illness might subside. "I believe that if we're successful in this election - when we're successful in this election - that the fever may break," Obama told a fundraiser in Minneapolis last June.
Tammy Messina: Defending the Second Amendment
Most of us have never had to fight for our freedom. We don't even know what that looks like. In our lifetime, we've always had the right to say what we want and do what we want, as long as we operate inside the law. Many of those who've emigrated from other countries do know what it's like to live without those freedoms and how precious they are once obtained.
Joe Gandelman: Political gridlock
An old vaudeville joke went like this: "Do I look like an idiot? Do I look like a jerk who doesn't know what's going on? Do you think I'm dumb? Don't answer that!"
Kevin Bayona: Is the red menace back?
We don't hear much from Russia these days, but rest assured the Russian Federation is on the move across Eurasia and the world as its pugnacious leader, Vladimir Putin, vies to return Russia to the glory days of the Soviet Union.
Gary Horton: Incompetent staff make it a bad cruise
Cruise ships have become popular vacation scenes over the past decade. A chance to leisurely enjoy freedom of the open seas as ship's staff cater to whims and needs!
Tom Purcell: My parents school the Senate
"All right," said my mother, standing before the members of the U.S. Senate, "it's time for you to get your act together."
Jonathan Kraut: Heroes or vicitms?
I am having a problem with associating the term "hero" with every law-enforcement officer and government employee who has been harmed or died on duty.
Steve Lunetta: Obama's folly
The irony is astounding. The sequestration plan that appears to be a machination by President Obama's White House is now coming back to haunt him big time.
Donna Brazile: Right to vote isn't a racial entitlement
The Supreme Court heard oral arguments in the case of Shelby County v. Holder - a challenge to the Voting Rights Act of 1965, specifically Section 5, which requires states and localities with a history of voting discrimination against racial and language minorities to get "pre-approved" by the federal government before changing how elections are conducted or voters are registered.
David Hegg: Choosing Chastity
I may be asked to turn in my man card for this, but here goes. On a getaway for my wife's birthday, I joined her to watch an episode of The Bachelor.
Kathryn Pisaro: Protect music programs in Newhall School District
On Tuesday, the school board for the Newhall School District is going to be asked to cut a music teacher from our already-reduced music program.
Frank Ferry: Live from City Hall
"Government, at its core, is about doing together what we can't do alone. It's why we believe that citizen engagement is vital. ..."
