In the fourth grade, my friend Michael would sneak a pack of Kents from his mother’s carton and, after school, a bunch of us would go to the woods by Nichols Park and light up. We used the code word “Superman” to refer to the Kent cigarettes, with Superman being Clark Kent. I stopped smoking […]
Opinion
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What’s your favorite thing to do at the beach?
Morgan Martinez unemployed “Walks on the beach. It is relaxing and keeps my mind off of things.” Luis Ojeda construction “Being out in the sun playing sports. It’s how I grew up—playing sports with family.” Andrew Hawkes student “Surfing. It’s really nice getting out in God’s world to ride the waves of the Central Coast.” […]
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Smaller school districts can combine to better survive
Los Alamos
It has been my observation that during these very trying times many people, businesses, organizations and educators are and have been looking for new and innovative ways to maintain their level of work ethic, and quality of their product. Here in Los Alamos, we work hard every day to be certain that every school age […]
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We’ve survived recessions because we’re not stupid
Santa Maria
As any reputable economist will explain, recessions have only one basic cause: a fall in “aggregate demand,” or, in English, people stop spending money. There are many reasons why people stop spending, like too much debt, not enough income, lost job or belief they will lose a job, etc. Nearly every advanced government in the […]
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Put yourself in a firefighter’s shoes
Arroyo Grande
As the wife of a firefighter, I can no longer sit silently and listen to the public and the media trash my husband’s profession. These public servants work 24-hour shifts and sometimes are away from their family for 48 hours, 96 hours, and even two weeks at a time. They may work Christmas, Thanksgiving, and […]
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How do Santa Barbara and SLO counties compare?
Vandenberg Village
I’m with Mike Stoker on this: We have got to break the circle of government employee union dues going to finance the campaigns of politicians. The politicians award the employees grandly with wages and benefits. The taxpayers pay the bills. There have been lots of assertions about the public employees’ work schedules being shorter than […]
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Fight back, now: It’s urgent
Help defeat attempts in Congress to eliminate funding for Planned Parenthood reproductive health services
I had my “I’m mad and I’m not gonna take it anymore!” moment last week. The day had started with a high purpose: Representatives from the world’s governments, along with members of non-governmental organizations and global researchers, were meeting at the United Nations to discuss their country’s progress toward eliminating gender inequality. At one session, […]
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At what age should drivers lose their driver’s license?
Derek Deleon sales associate “At 75. That seems to be the age where they start to lose their health and vision.” Ashley Frugee sales associate “There isn’t a specific age, but whenever somebody starts to lose their vision.” Greg Dorroh pizza delivery man “Depends on the person. I’ve seen some older people drive bad, but […]
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We can’t really buy safety
Atascadero
The budget has been submitted to congress, and the debate begins. We would all like a budget that will save taxpayer money and reduce the deficit. To accept a budget that will cost us billions in interest is foolish and wasteful. But whose back do we balance the budget on: the rich or the poor? […]
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What planet are you from, Republicans?
Los Osos
The Republicans in Congress have such an elitist perception of what their fellow Americans desperately need. Their proposed cuts to health care, Planned Parenthood, Social Security, Americorps, etc., combined with their poisonous votes to shield greenhouse gas polluters, only make sense to me if I conclude that they are from some vengeful human-hating planet and […]
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Tea Partiers, consider learning Egyptian
Atascadero
As a registered Democrat, I was sent “The White House Weekly Address” that includes a YouTube video of President Barack Obama giving a speech about the demonstrations in Egypt. He told of the passion and dignity of the Egyptian people who were demonstrating against the government of Egypt and that this had been an inspiration […]
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Liberals need to grow into responsible adults
Orcutt
While one opinion page contributor was bragging about how proud he was to be liberal because they’re so tolerant, compassionate, and care so much about people, I was wondering: Why, then, all the hostility, hatred, and rage directed toward conservatives? Liberals don’t have a problem with multiculturalism, illegal immigrants who refuse to assimilate, Muslims who […]
