Archive By Section - Columnists
John Rosemond: Living With Children
Q: My 12-year-old grandson has become obsessed with things he wants, including a cell phone (the most expensive, mind you), an iPad, and expensive designer jeans. He begs, throws tantrums, pouts, refuses to speak to his parents, and the like. When told not to say another word, he leaves them notes, draws pictures, or comes to us or the other grandparents. These obsessions and his very manipulative behavior are a mystery because he's never been ...
Peter Funt: Americans’ pressing questions need answers
For some reason - be it post-election syndrome, pre-holiday jitters, or maybe climate change - the nation has been hit by a tsunami of Pressing Questions. Among them:
Michael Stafford: Progressive-conservatism best forward option
The great American conservative thinker Russell Kirk once observed that some disasters are so catastrophic they require a re-examination of first principles. On Election Day, the Republican Party suffered such an existential shock.
Steve Lunetta: It’s time for a change conservatives
I respectfully request that all liberals and Democrats skip this column and read the political cartoon at the top of this page. Or flip over to the next page and read the story about the latest problems at Whittaker-Bermite.
David Hegg: Shakespeare gives voice to ethical living
In Act 1 Scene 3 of "Hamlet," Lord Polonius delivers one of the more memorable lines in the history of theater: "This above all: to thine ownself be true." This Shakesperean sentiment has traveled through the years to the point where few actually realize it came from the bard. We simply know it because it has been so widely used and believed. But what does it mean?
Richard Hood: Presidents remark on Thanksgiving
Editor's note: With Thanksgiving nearly upon us, columnist Richard Hood searched through presidential Thanksgiving proclamations to share these quotes with our readers.
Marsha McLean: City transit adopts ‘on-the-go’ technologies
Times are changing and so has technology. When using public transportation, we want to know where to board the bus or when the next one will arrive. The city of Santa Clarita has invested in a variety of new, high-tech tools to reduce waiting and boarding times and help passengers get to where they need to go.
Tim Myers: SCV schools outnumber students
In 2011, I appreciated it a great deal when Heather Davis, an earnest charter school math teacher from Canyon Country, ran for the William S. Hart Union High School District board against the two incumbents.
Susan Stamper Brown: Military scandals may have bigger impact
Everyone is preoccupied with the events surrounding the juicy sex scandal involving now-former CIA Director David Petraeus to the point they may not have noticed a pattern - a shake-down - that is taking place in our military top brass, much like the one currently happening in Russia under President Vladimir Putin.
Alice Khosravy: State taxes increase: Now what?
As California voters surface from the frenzied atmosphere of the recent election cycle, the ramifications of our choices are already beginning to prove that we will not escape the consequences of ignoring the simple truths of basic economics.
David M. Shribman: Obama win not the same this election
More than a half century ago, after he defeated Richard M. Nixon in one of the closest presidential races of all time, John F. Kennedy was persuaded to fly from his Palm Beach retreat to the vice president's Key Biscayne redoubt as a symbol of national unity. The two men were far closer than Barack Obama and Mitt Romney are, but still there was some awkwardness in the gesture, which had been cooked up by former Ambassador Joseph P. Kennedy and former President Herbert Hoover.
Jim Mullen: The first family feud on Thanksgiving Day
Historians agree that the Pilgrims really did celebrate a first Thanksgiving. But it wasn't turned into a regular yearly celebration until Abraham Lincoln made it official during the middle of the Civil War, some 250 years later.
Donna Brazile: What this election shows about the GOP
Election night was a good night for moderates. It was a bad night for conservatives. It was the worst night for partisanship.
Tom Purcell: More dependence? C’est la vie, America!
Bonjour, America! It was a great week last week, no? President Barack Obama won a second term. The transformation into a French-style democratic model shall commence! Comment allez-vous? You are not doing so well? Be happy, my friends! It is true that America was founded on a very simple idea: liberty! Liberal thinkers of that time distrusted government and saw its expansion as an encroachment on freedom. When America's founders declared their independence from Britain, ...
Stop and say ‘thanks’ even after Veterans Day
Citizens of Santa Clarita Valley, "I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; and that I will obey the orders of the President of the United States and the orders of the officers appointed over me, according to regulations and the Uniform Code of Military Justice. So help ...
Articles by Section - Columnists
Tom Purcell: Are humans getting dumber?
The report said people are getting dumber - at least I think that's what it said, but the big words kept throwing me off."
Diana West: Setting the record straight on Joe McCarthy
Freshman Republican Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas is just the latest in a long series of public figures to be reviled for "McCarthyism" following his recent questioning of Chuck Hagel, President Obama's nominee for secretary of defense.
Joe Guzzardi: Obama pushes amnesty
After President Obama left for a three-day Florida golf vacation that included a round with Tiger Woods, the White House announced his latest immigration plan.
SCV Voices: From SignalSCV.com
Editor's note: On last Tuesday's Kevin Buck column "Straw men live in glass houses," one poster on SignalSCV.com asked the question, "In your opinion, what are the five biggest problems America faces right now?" Here are some responses from his fellow posters.
David Hegg: What makes right, right?
I recently met a man who was the epitome of post-modern thought in that he did not believe in absolute truth.
Tim Myers: No money, no county
I love history. I plan to purchase the Blu-Ray of the recent film "Lincoln" and rewatch certain key scenes 100 times in a row, unapologetically.
Bob Kellar: Live from City Hall
In Santa Clarita, the arts influence our community's quality of life. Without even realizing it, the arts act as an economic driver - creating and supporting jobs, generating revenue and serving as a cornerstone of the tourism industry.
Steven and Cokie Roberts: Voting reform
"Obama's proposed voting commission under partisan fire from both sides."
Alice Khosravy: California is at bottom for business
Just a few short days ago the lanterns fell, bringing an end to Chinese New Year season for 2013.
Joe Gandelman: America’s poop deck politics
It's the ultimate stomach turner: how Carnival's 893-foot-long cruise ship Triumph, along with its 4,200 passengers, was stranded due to a fuel engine leak for five days with no food, little water and few working bathrooms.
Kevin Bayona: China's rise is challenge to U.S.
The start of the 21st century has brought with it an avalanche of international problems such as war, economic recession, nuclear proliferation, and rising global competitors. Although all these issues merit individual attention and consideration, I think the unrelenting rise of China presents the largest and most significant global challenge to the United States.
