Archive By Section - Columnists
Jan Uberstine: Insurance freebies not so free
Today I got an E-pamphlet touting all the wonderful new benefits, such as "free" well-woman services, that my insurance now covers.
Jim Mullen: We went to the fiscal cliff; all I got was this stupid T-shirt
It seems we are about to fall off the "fiscal cliff." Didn't we already do that? What happened in 2007 and 2008 when the value of our homes got cut in half? What was that? A fiscal speed bump? A fiscal slap on the back of the head?
CORRECTION: Steve Lunetta: Modification affects many properties
Editor's note: Due to technical problems on our end, Steve Lunetta's column did not make it to The Signal in time for Monday publication. With apologies to Steve, we offer it up today.
Steve Lunetta: Modification affects many properties
Editor's note: Due to technical problems on our end, Steve Lunetta's column did not make it to The Signal in time for Monday publication. With apologies to Steve, we offer it up today.
Ted Aquaro: Who is in charge?
In recent weeks, we have seen the news flooded with "Zippergate" involving Gens. David Petraeus and John Allen, who have both had questionable relationships with some kind of military
Gil Mertz: Count on the fickle American electorate
One of the lingering questions from the recent election is if this signals a turning point of the American electorate, as we are now hearing from both sides. I think it's too early to tell for sure, but if we look at our recent past, we'll find that our politics have been quite fickle.
Jonathan Kraut: In season of giving, keep charity local
You are watching the late night news. At the commercial break you witness a young, barefoot girl in some Third World country standing on a smoldering trash heap. Her younger naked brother is at her side.
Tom Purcell: Shopping for a Christmas tree taught valuable lessons
It was one of my favorite rituals every year. One evening after dinner - a few weeks after Thanksgiving - my father and I would shop for a Christmas tree. My father wore his rattiest coat as he prepared to do battle with strangers who would attempt to part him from precious family resources. He instructed me to remain silent as he executed his negotiation strategy - one he'd refined and perfected over the years ...
Kathryn Lopez: Let’s talk about sexual health responsibly
Have you heard about the holiday gift some American girls could be getting? Emergency contraception!
Michael Reagan: Republican suckers are going to be duped again
Republicans had better learn from history - and from Ronald Reagan's mistake. President Obama and his fellow big-spenders in Congress are promising if they get higher tax rates today they'll make even higher spending cuts tomorrow. It's an old sucker's game. Republicans - and the rest of the country - should know it by now, because for three decades we've all been suckers. If history is our guide, and Republicans in Congress don't grow a ...
Joe Guzzardi: Welfare soars as immigrant use skyrockets
Across America, officials in nearly bankrupt cities and states are outraged by the Department of Homeland Security's new website that explains to recently arrived immigrants how they can receive the entire federal welfare benefit cornucopia. The site, Welcome to USA.gov, maintained by DHS' U.S. Citizen and Immigration Services (USCIS), promotes itself as the "primary gateway for new immigrants to find basic information on how to settle in the United States." Included is a comprehensive section ...
David Hegg: Society needs to focus on spiritual health
Our society is obsessed with health. Or maybe it is better said that we are obsessed with the idea of health. All around us new discoveries and formulas call us to eat better, stay away from decaying agents, exercise and visit our doctors and dentists regularly. Our political system has become enamored with health and with the right everyone has to be healthy. And, since health has become an inalienable right, health care must be available and affordable if we are to be a healthy nation.
Laurene Weste:
There's nothing like the holidays to bring family and friends together. Whether it's decorating a tree, cooking special dishes or watching a movie, the holidays are a time for sharing and friendship.
Will Durst: Fiscal cliff traffic report
So, expect showers and gale-force winds over the next couple of days and don't forget that high-surf advisory is in effect throughout the weekend.
Tim Myers: Placerita: The 800-pound gorilla in room
One of my absolute favorite sayings relates to the "800-pound gorilla in the room." According to Urban Dictionary, which accomplishes much in the definition of vernacular speech, the term references "an overbearing entity in a specific industry or sphere of activity. A seemingly unbeatable presence always to be reckoned with; whose experience, influence, and skill threatens to defeat competitors with little effort."
Articles by Section - Columnists
Frank Ferry:Live from City Hall
The city of Santa Clarita's annual Teen Scene Unplugged is back, but with a new name and theme for local teens and parents.
Tim Myers: A decline in enrollment hits the SCV
When we moved to the SCV in 1996, the big educational news of that time revolved around over-strained elementary and secondary school facilities.
Danny Tyree: Taking a break from the pollsters
According to a Politico story titled "GOP Looks For Answers," the National Republican Congressional Committee is taking major steps to prevent a repeat of the misleading poll results that embarrassed the party in the 2012 election cycle.
Joe Guzzardi: The Gang of Eight backs off amnesty
The Senate's notorious Gang of Eight, a small cadre of amnesty advocates who hope to pressure Congress into passing disastrous immigration reform legislation, has developed a new game plan.
Alice Khosravy: Signs of life emerge in California GOP
Each year people across the country wait for Groundhog Day and hope that spring will come early.
Steve Lunetta: Dirty deeds done for dirt cheap
One of the strangest songs ever written by the Young brothers and Bonn Scott was a little ditty that talked about a gentleman who was willing to do anything for a small fee.
Gary Horton: Helmets may not be cool but staying alive is
Just put a lid on it!
Kevin Buck: A Whig and a prayer for understanding
From the early 1830s until 1852 - when they refused to re-nominate Millard Filmore, their own incumbent president - the Whig Party was a dominant political force in America.
Steve Lunetta: Obama's new 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.
Edward Headington: Last call to release the Kraken!
Apple pie, "Bye Bye Birdie" and Beverly Cleary are all things most Americans would admit to liking. You could also throw in DVRs, shorter commutes and the warm-and-fuzzy title of the proposed "Clean Water, Clean Beaches" measure before county property owners.
David Hegg: Ethically Speaking
For several years between my graduate studies and my first ministry position I was in the corporate world. Providing for my family while serving as a lay minister meant being immersed in the world of business. I owned and ran a small business, transitioned to a home office marketing position in a multi-state financial institution, and ended up as a sales manager for a national company.
Donna Brazile: Demand to know, 'Where's the beef?'
In an iconic commercial, two old ladies, after looking inside a nearly empty hamburger bun, demand of the hapless fast-food clerk, "Where's the beef?" The phrase expresses outrage at false advertising - pretending there's something of substance in the sandwich when there's really nothing there.
Laurene Weste: Live from City Hall
One of the hallmarks of our city is its commitment to sustainability, state-of-the-art recycling and diversion programs, and community support to work together for the environment.
Tim Myers: A lesson in the industry of self preservation
I would commend to anyone with an ironic sense of humor the cable TV series "Portlandia," from the minds of Fred Armisen of Saturday Night Live and Carrie Brownstein of indie music fame.
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.
