Archive By Section - Columnists
Tim Myers: Avoid real estate bust: Own property the city wants!
I serve various Boy Scout troops in the Santa Clarita Valley instructing Scouts on the Eagle required merit badges of Citizenship in the Community, Nation and the World.
Cameron Smyth: Keys to budget solutions
Last week, the state's Employment Development Department released data showing that California's unemployment rate stood at 9.3 percent for the month of December - our highest in almost 15 years.
Laurie Ender: Do your shopping in Old Town Newhall
As the design, appeal and overall atmosphere of Old Town Newhall develop into a beautiful pedestrian-friendly development, new businesses continue to emerge and existing businesses continue to thrive despite current economic challenges.
Dan Rhys: Dems taste their own medicine
In recent days, I have heard the two most popular conservative radio hosts, Sean Hannity and Rush Limbaugh, take criticism from Democrats for what they have said - or not said - on their radio shows. Yet, in both cases, these hosts are only echoing Democratic sentiments during President Bush's eight years in office and giving Democrats a bit of what they gave to the former president.
R.J. Kelly: On the local water front
Like many organizations, here at the Castaic Lake Water Agency we view the end of one year - and the beginning of the next - as a time of transition and an opportunity to take stock of where we've been and where we're headed.
Howard P. 'Buck' McKeon: Unexpected support for secret ballot
When three of the top policymakers in Washington voice explicit support for a particular viewpoint, it merits notice.
Lynne Plambeck: A green stimulus package for Santa Clarita
While Washington and Sacramento Republicans continue to vote against stimulus packages and budgets, we have been putting on our thinking caps about where such money should go, when and if we get it.
Phil Rizzo: Take a role in philanthropy
If ever there was a time for all of us to participate in philanthropy, this is it. What better way to support President Obama's call for individual sacrifice, personal responsibility and acknowledgement of the pain others may be suffering? There's a lot of need out there. You do not have to be rich to give. The best approach is to employ your intuition. What is it that moves you, that hits your heart? My wife ...
Response to Dan Walters
Dan Walters' article "California is incapacitated" (Jan. 17) is right on. Yes, we need a constitutional convention in California. I was closely involved in the effort to create a Constitutional Revision Commission in 1993, but saw the Wilson administration's bipartisan commission's work shot down by politicians who lack vision and feared for their own hides. Our state constitution, modeled on that of Iowa in 1879, has been amended more than 500 times and is a ...
TimBen Boydston: Please don’t dissolve the dream
In 1999, dreams were coming true all over Santa Clarita. The folks running College of the Canyons had long dreamed of a real theater to better accommodate the needs of its fine arts students. Local arts groups dreamed of a beautiful venue in which to produce performances for our community. Even the city of Santa Clarita was in on the dream, looking for a Performing Arts Center to attract touring groups to our increasingly popular ...
Jay Ambrose: Bush’s environmental record
When it came to the environment, George W. Bush as president was not just a flop, but a maelstrom of menace, and the worst of it was his motivation - an intent to please evangelical nutcases who thought the apocalypse was coming soon anyway, and the sooner the better.
Steve Lunetta: The choir conundrum
Even when things seem dark and dreary, it is still possible to find bright rays of sunshine in our culture and society. The other night was a perfect example.
Tim Myers: Inauguration Day diary
First days on the job excite me. During my 24 years of "real" work, I only enjoyed this excitement seven times (not including transfers or promotions in the same company).
John Boston: The origins of good legislation
"The best remedy for those who are afraid, lonely or unhappy is to go outside, somewhere where they can be quiet, alone with the heavens, nature and God. Because only then does one feel that all is as it should be and that God wishes to see people happy, amidst the simple beauty of nature."
Tony Strickland: Higher taxes cost Calif. jobs
Pink slips and going-out-of-business signs are becoming all too common in our communities. With Los Angeles County's unemployment rate at 9.5 percent in December, the severity of this economic downturn is becoming even more visible in our neighborhoods. Already, hundreds of vital infrastructure projects - everything from highway expansions, school construction and levee repairs - have been stopped, putting even more Californians out of work. The nation's economic picture is grim, and some proposals to ...
Articles by Section - Columnists
Tom Purcell: How not to celebrate St. Patrick's Day
Ah, St. Patrick's Day is upon us.
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.
