Archive By Section - Columnists
Kevin Bayona: Are we ready for an encore in the Falklands?
When economic times are bad, what better than to reclaim your sovereignty over a small archipelago located in the frigid waters of the South Atlantic Ocean?
Donna Brazile: Immigrants are a blessing for the U.S.
We've known for years that our immigration system is broken, and reform has been near the top of the national agenda since at least 2007. But Congress addressed neither conservative anxieties - unsecured borders, people staying with expired visas - nor liberal concerns, such as treatment of immigrants (legal or not), paths to citizenship, etc. Now, however, we may be reaching consensus.
The Village Idiot: Where’s Gutenberg when you need him?
I've heard for years that "no good deed goes unpunished," but it seemed like a clever phrase being passed off as wisdom, something you might get in a fortune cookie on an off night.
Danny Tyree: Smoking penalties? What other surprises?
According to The Associated Press, many smokers were caught off guard by an obscure provision in The Affordable Care Act (a.k.a. "Obamacare") allowing health insurers to charge smokers buying individual policies up to 50 percent higher premiums starting next Jan. 1.
Tom Purcell: A Joe Biden presidency could be good for comedy
Maybe he's just what America needs. Then again, maybe not. I speak of Vice President Joe Biden - who, according to Politico, is "intoxicated" by thoughts of being inaugurated as president in 2017. He'd be delighted to "finish what Barack Obama started." Well, who better to finish what President Obama started than Uncle Joe? I'll bet he'd be even better at runaway government spending, lack of budget discipline and total disinterest in addressing entitlement growth, ...
Jonathan Kraut: Background checks are not ‘universal’
A lot of politicians are clamoring for mandatory "Universal Background Checks" for all gun buyers nationwide. There is no harm to anyone's privacy if gun buyers are screened for criminal records, a history of domestic violence, mental health risk, or other criteria that indicate having a weapon could put others at risk. After all, past behavior helps predict future conduct. I believe that it is the human mind that is the danger and not the instrument that is used.
Maria Gutzeit and B.J. Atkins: NCWD has success with enterprise model
Newhall County Water District has just closed out 2012, and the year was marked by accomplishments reflecting its enterprise model of operation.
Steve Lunetta: Stopping gun violence at the source
In the first two installments of the series, we examined gun control and the potential impact it would have on school violence. We also looked at President Obama's initiatives and rated each one on effectiveness.
NCWD has success with enterprise model
Newhall County Water District has just closed out 2012, and the year was marked by accomplishments reflecting its enterprise model of operation.
Steve Lunetta: Stopping gun violence at the source
In the first two installments of the series, we examined gun control and the potential impact it would have on school violence. We also looked at President Obama's initiatives and rated each one on effectiveness.
Tina Dupuy: Dear GOP - newflash - Cubans are not Mexican
Due to an act of Congress, Cuban nationals who arrive in the U.S. after 1959 cannot be illegal immigrants. They're automatically refugees. It's amnesty! The federal government has spent billions to assist those who've fled Castro's regime. It was a Cold War policy, signed by President Johnson. If they can get to our shores (many have died in the process), they have an instant pathway to citizenship. They just have to get here. And since ...
David Hegg: Passivity and perseverance
At the end of a long day I can often be found mentally exhausted, lounging on our family room couch with a television remote in my hand. They are wonderful things, these remotes. How did we ever get along without them? Imagine having to actually get up and manually change a channel, or turn up the volume.
Nat Hentoff: Sweet Land of Liberty
Having reported on small but growing numbers of public school students who are eagerly learning to be actively knowledgeable citizens, I must now turn to a much larger, growing problem within public education.
Tim Myers: The two Franks of Santa Clarita
The Myers family moved to California and Santa Clarita during the second week of June 1996 - a mere two months after Frank Ferry, current principal of Alemany High School and Santa Clarita City Council member, failed (narrowly) to dislodge an incumbent to capture a seat on the City Council in the then-relatively young city.
Bob Kellar: Live from City Hall
Providing a wide variety of avenues for residents to communicate with their city has long been a hallmark of Santa Clarita.
Articles by Section - Columnists
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. ..."
Danny Tyree: Is the free ride over?
es, I dutifully affix my copyright notice to my column each week, and I've been known to notify the syndicate of suspected unauthorized use; but I haven't gotten anywhere near as persnickety (or creepy) as the entertainment industry.
Rick Jensen: Obama sequester two-step
Watching from the cheap seats, Obama's "Sequester Two-Step" is quite entertaining. While not nearly as graceful as Charles Durning's classic political footplay in "Best Little Whorehouse in Texas," only fellow Democrat Bob Menendez puts in a better performance of the beleaguered innocent these days.
Kevin Korenthal: The politics of pain
I am often stunned when I hear people, some of them friends, confess that they do not follow politics.
Cher Gilmore: Just say no to Keystone XL tar sands pipeline
More than 50,000 people traveled to Washington, D.C., from as far away as California on Feb. 17 to demand that President Obama block the Keystone XL pipeline and move forward on climate action.
Phil Kerpen: Government spending hurts people
We should not accept the statist premise that most government spending helps people.
