Archive By Section - Editorial
Break the glass, douse the flames
As everyone who watches the evening news knows, in the western United States wildfires and forest fires are common enough in the late summer. Young people work diligently on fire-crews here in the West, fighting one of nature's great forces. Out-of-control blazes in our National Forests are all but an annual event, with only the number and intensity of the fires varying from year to year.
Stanislaus students finally speak out
When I came into work on Thursday at the Turlock Journal, I was surprised to hear that there had been a protest at California State University, Stanislaus that morning. I had spent the last three hours in class at Stanislaus and I hadn't heard a word about it. I took a look at photos and a cutline by Meagan Martens, and found that a group of about 30 students had organized a morning march to the president's office. That's pretty out of character for CSU Stanislaus.
Our vigilante past
While today's criminal justice system can, at times, seem to favor the guilty and punish the innocent, all one needs to do to get the proper perspective is read the history page published every Saturday in the Journal.
A delicious heat wave
My 84-year old mother bent over the cookbook one day recently and read aloud to me as I wolfed down a chicken sandwich I'd made at lunchtime. The reading was a lesson in how to make a traditional - and very fine as it turned out - pork roast.
A shadow for debate
I'll be the first to admit that I do my best to avoid national news, despite being absolutely fascinated by the intricate politicking that goes on in Washington.
Getting an education almost out of reach
I am a strong believer in going to college and getting a degree. It is essential to progress in a professional career and most companies require a bachelor's degree at minimum. But with the increased tuition prices, it is making a bachelor's degree almost unattainable let alone getting a master's degree or a doctorate.
Water package is more litigation, less irrigation
Last week, the California Legislature passed a water package that many lawmakers are lauding as the solution to our state's problems. What this dysfunctional legislature really passed is three more layers of unneeded bureaucracy along with a bond that will not create a drop of water for at least 15 years - if at all.
A decision for change
Turlock voters made a statement on Tuesday: They want change. And change they will have, as it looks as if almost half of the Turlock Unified School District Board of Trustees will be replaced. There are 13,000 to 15,000 mail-in ballots that still have to be counted and could potential change the election results, but I doubt it. I must admit that I was a little shocked at the outcome of Tuesday's TUSD board election. ...
‘Hard Candy Christmas’
The countdown has begun. There are only 51 days until Christmas. "Christmas," you say, "How can that be? It seems like just last week I was sweltering in Indian summer heat." I know what you mean. How can it possibly be time to bring out the holly and tinsel again when I haven't even had time to put away my summer clothes? On top of the seemingly supersonic season changes, finding the extra money for ...
What would you do if...
I like to think of Turlock as a caring community. There are dozens of service clubs, places of worship and volunteers who give of their time and money all year long to make our town a little bit nicer place to live. But I'm sure that the majority of people living in Richmond, Calif. also thought they lived in a caring community - until last Saturday that is. The Contra Costa Times reported that up ...
Who wants to be an idiot?
I, along with many of my co-workers, took time out of the busy workday on Thursday to watch a giant helium balloon float over the Colorado countryside while it was chased by a plethora of emergency vehicles.
New eyes and new ideas
This year is the 400th birthday of science and engineering. It's an occasion worth noting and giving thanks for because each day those twin disciplines improve the lives of billions of people around the world. (Beyond that, science and engineering are awfully fun, so their total effect is sort of like combining doing good all around the planet with the pure joys of playing chess.)
Our right to know
Democracy is a great thing. A government by the people, for the people sure beats a system that caters to a dictator or a royal family. But like many good and wonderful things in this world, democracy must be nurtured, watched over and protected by everyone involved in order to maintain its greatness.
Do the right thing
As a manager, I have the usually frustrating and always time-consuming job of interviewing candidates for open job positions. This is one of my least favorite aspects of my job.
$1 goes a long way in fighting auto theft
With over 700 bills sitting on Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's desk waiting to be signed or vetoed in the latest version of partisan politics between the Governor and the State Legislature, sheriffs and other law enforcement leaders from around the state have joined forces to urge the Governor to put aside political haggling and sign a critical yet obscure bill, Assembly Bill 286. Frankly, there are a dozen or so bills of importance to day-to-day operations ...
Articles by Section - Editorial
Power of the pedal
Lately, I've been encouraged to see more bicyclists pedaling their way around town. With the Valley's air quality issues, the increasing childhood obesity rates, and a country-wide emphasis on "greener" power, bicycling is a beneficial activity. Around the U.S. new bike lanes and paths are all the rage, helping cash-strapped cities simultaneously green operations and trim budgets-adding bike lanes is far less costly (to taxpayers and the environment) than building new roads. Also, ...
Sign of the times: To twirl or not to twirl
It is a sign of the times. The Great Depression had men walking around in A-frame signs. The Great Recession has young people twirling signs. Employing them are businesses vying for a commodity that seems as scarce at times as common sense in Sacramento - consumer dollars. I haven't come across anyone who said they were prompted to visit a particular business because of someone head banging to i-Pod music ...
Occupy Wall Street: All bite, no apple
As Occupy Wall Street activists clogged New York's Zuccotti Park protesting "corporate greed" and Occupy SF hit San Francisco's Financial District on Wednesday protesting "corporate greed," the world learned that Steve Jobs, perhaps America's most beloved modern capitalist, had died at age 56. The protesters claim to represent the working people, the 99 percent of Americans who, according to their blog, are getting kicked out of their homes, must choose between groceries and ...
A big, blue, acid ocean
Our deep blue has always been engulfed in a rich and remarkable legacy. After all, its Portuguese name "pacifico" was chosen by explorer Ferdinand Magellan to mean peaceful, steady, pacific. But such times are quickly changing. The Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory, as a part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, has affirmed that the oceans are truly the prisoners of our pollution– adapting to increasing carbon-dioxide emissions by swallowing one-fourth of ...
The other side of death
"Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything - all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking ...
High speed rail means quicker trip to poor house
The Central Valley Water Project implemented during the Great Recession helped lift the lot of the poor in the San Joaquin Valley by providing the means to turn fields into fertile farmland. There are those who believe launching the California High Speed Rail will do the same thing for the San Joaquin Valley and help it shake poverty that is rooted deep especially in the valley's southern part. Unlike the CVP that brought construction ...
Nothing heroic about same old, same old
If your business was failing, would you keep doing the same thing, or would you try something new? Or would you even know what doing something new would look like, having spent so long mired in an unworkable business model? Just recently, DC Comics was forced to answer those questions, opting to fight falling sales with a "new" tactic which, sadly, ends up being more of the same old thing. For ...
Not too long ago …
One hundred years seems like a long time in most situations. When someone turns 100 years old, I can't help but marvel at all the technological changes that one person has seen just in his or her lifetime. In 1911, automobiles were a novelty and many people still traveled by horse and carriage. Radios were only in the homes of the rich, but entertainment was something that many families didn't have much time ...
Real VIPs
Today I had the honor of meeting some impressive VIPs and I don't think I will ever forget the time we spent together. They were patients at Emanuel Cancer Center. As I tell you about some of them, I'm going to use fake names because of patient privacy, but they were anything but phony. These were real men and women involved in a major battle for life. First I met "Sally." She was ...
Season of new beginnings
According to my desk calendar, Friday was the start of autumn. I usually don't like to argue with inanimate objects, but I made an exception when temperatures reached 98 degrees Fahrenheit on what was supposed to be the start of a cooler season. I'm not sure if my calendar was trying to make up for the sizzling hot end of last week with two days of mild weather conditions on Sunday and Monday, ...
Worried about America? Visit a Boys & Girls Club
The political world is so toxic that I needed some relief, so I tuned into a reality show more real than anything on television. I wasn't disappointed. The stories I heard were at once harrowing and inspirational. And they were deeply connected to the future of the country. This week, I served as one of five judges in the Boys & Girls Clubs of America National Youth of the Year competition. This is ...
MacGyver to the rescue — most of the time
For those of you too young to remember the television show "MacGyver," allow me to share about the 1980s American action-adventure series. The show was about a secret agent, Angus MacGyver, who employed his resourcefulness and knowledge of chemistry, physics, and technology, and often a little duct tape and a Swiss Army knife, to resolve what were often life or death situations. I'm married to a MacGyver kind of guy. I've nicknamed my ...
Want a job? Stay in college as long as you can
With the unemployment rate hovering above 9 percent, today's job market is bad for everyone. One group does seem to fare better than the rest, however: The jobless rate for workers with a bachelor's degree or better is just 4.3 percent, compared with 14.3 percent for high school dropouts. But among college grads, the outlook is gloomier for one critical segment: recent graduates. A study this year put their unemployment rate at 10 ...
Newspapers: A bridge to the community
I am one of the fortunate people who do not fear public speaking. When you put me in front of a captive audience and ask me to talk about one of my passions - like community newspapers - watch out, I might just talk your ear off. California State University, Stanislaus professor Elizabeth Breshears offered me just such an opportunity this week. I was asked to speak to her graduate social work students ...
Can you live without it?
For those of you who don't know me well, you may be surprised to read that I grew up on an almond ranch. My two sisters married almond farmers and have lived happily ever after in what I refer to as "the dirt." I, however, fled to suburbia as soon as I turned 18. As Eva Gabor used to chant during the Green Acres theme song, "Dah-ling I love you but give me Park ...
Sections:
- NEWS |
- SPORTS |
- OPINION |
- ARTS/LEISURE |
- LIVING IN 209 |
- HOME SCENE |
- SPECIAL SECTIONS |
- CELEBRATIONS |
- MOVIES |
- OBITS |
- REGIONAL NEWS
Services:
Submit News:
Online:
Contents of this site are © Copyright 2011 The Turlock Journal, CA. All rights reserved.
