Let the games begin, but let someone else foot the bill

pchallis — Sun, 12 Feb 2012 04:10:01 +0000

Gov. Gary Herbert announced Wednesday he is forming an exploratory committee to look into bidding for the 2022 or 2026 Olympic Winter Games because, really, weren't the 2002 Games grand?

Main purpose of an editorial cartoon is visual comment on issues

pchallis — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 05:19:11 +0000

The editorial cartoon by Cal Grondahl in Wednesday's paper drew some strong and, in my opinion, unwarranted negative reaction from several readers.

Honors on the way for many Utah legends

mgerrish — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 04:45:01 +0000

Lots of Hall of Fame induction ceremonies straight ahead.

The University of Utah will induct two former Ute athletes and a pair of former coaches into the Crimson Club Hall of Fame on April 23 at Energy Solutions Arena.

Super PAC man Obama

dgibson — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 21:52:02 +0000

During campaign appearances in 2008, Americans were swept off their feet (some quite literally if you take into account the swooning women) with the idea of "hope and change." In almost childlike faith, people grabbed on to the promise that then Senator Barack Obama was a different kind of politician who promised to be the proverbial tie binding us together in unity. Red and Blue would fade away into purple as we laid down our individualism in pursuit of "the greater good." Believing a new day had dawned on American politics, the awestruck responded to one of the greatest marketing ruses in American history with a hearty: "Dude, this whole hope and change thing is definitely the way to go."

Obama's assault on faith

dgibson — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 21:50:02 +0000

The latest embarrassment from President Barack Obama is more than an embarrassment. It's an assault on faith that begins with a 2,500-page health care bill enacted with no one expected to read it except the bureaucrats paid to translate its obscurities into thousands more pages of regulations.

After a prolonged look at a phrase that could have been interpreted multiple ways, the president and the masters of your life in the Department of Health and Human Services bypassed the sensible and decreed we are now in the age of mandated contraception coverage, one step closer to Utopian bliss.

Gingrich's Alinsky obsession

dgibson — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 21:50:11 +0000

Saul Alinsky never met Barack Obama. The activist died suddenly of a heart attack at age 63 in California when the future president was 11 and living in Hawaii. Yet, GOP presidential candidate Newt Gingrich works tirelessly to link their names, probably to the confusion of his audiences, many of whom probably have no idea who Alinsky was.

Komen, Planned Parenthood furor can help donors rethink criteria for giving

dgibson — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 19:05:01 +0000

Too bad the brief but seismic split between Komen for the Cure and Planned Parenthood didn't explode in time for the Jan. 22 anniversary of Roe v. Wade.

Promising developments in Raul Castro's Cuba

dgibson — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 18:19:01 +0000

Yet another intimate portrait has just emerged about one of the most prominent and pivotal world leaders of the early 1960s, arguably the most dangerous and highly charged years of the Cold War.

An iconic hero for many, thanks to his charismatic personality and demonstrated courage, this former head of state is also controversial thanks to personal behavior, which can only be described as reckless.

Gay marriage is a dead political issue

dgibson — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 16:57:01 +0000

Eight years is an aeon in politics. Witness the waning potency of the gay-marriage issue.

During the 2004 campaign, Republican strategists put gay marriage on referendum ballots in key swing states, as a "wedge" issue to unnerve Democrats and gin up the conservative base for President George W. Bush. The Massachusetts high court had just ruled for legalization, and hostility toward the concept was the centrist position in America.

This is no longer true.

911 response to call about family killer Josh Powell seems dense

dgibson — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 19:30:04 +0000

Listening to the 911 tapes now, after we know what was about to happen at family killer Josh Powell's house, the 911 call takers seem agonizingly dense and rude.

They ask questions that seem bizarrely off point, constantly interrupting and speaking over callers as they try to explain themselves.

As Powell is about to strike his children with a hatchet and set his house on fire, a 911 call taker asks Powell's case worker, who is calling from her cell phone in the driveway in front of his house, "Are you in a vehicle now or on foot?"

Hypocrisy on voter ID cards abounds

dgibson — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 17:10:01 +0000

NEW YORK -- A bunch of racists in South Carolina is trying to hold down blacks by forcing them, and everybody else, to show photo identification before they can vote.

Astonishing!

Persistence is the key to having a successful business

pchallis — Thu, 09 Feb 2012 05:32:01 +0000

How many of us are fearful to start a new business, change career directions, retire or... The list could go on forever.

Truly revolutionary: Arabs speaking well of Israel

dgibson — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 17:33:01 +0000

JERUSALEM -- With violent political winds battering their Arab neighbors, Israelis have watched with a mixture of nervousness and hope, wondering what the changes will mean for them. Will the end of dictatorships mean a better chance for peace and good relations, or will they usher in even more instability and insecurity?

The many shades of lovely at this year's Black and White show

pchallis — Tue, 07 Feb 2012 05:10:02 +0000

When I retire, I want to learn printmaking from Joe Dixon.

The income classes according to Mr. Romney

dgibson — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 21:53:01 +0000

Mitt Romney's ill-considered remark about the destitute, "I'm not concerned about the very poor," and his subsequent awkward explanation of it represented something more noteworthy than a rich man's gaffe. The question raised by the episode is not simply whether the candidate can articulate his views more clearly but whether the dire economic circumstances of tens of millions of Americans are truly understood, or can even be acknowledged, by the GOP.

Komen for the Cure needs more than PR

dgibson — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 21:53:09 +0000

Talk about closing the barn door after the animals have fled. The Susan G. Komen for the Cure has hired a big-time public relations firm to improve its now-tattered image among millions of American women.

Rethinking paths to wealth

dgibson — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 21:51:06 +0000

If one ambition for your children is to see them join the 1 percent, you might want to re-evaluate their career paths.

Who reviews the U.S. 'kill list'?

dgibson — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 19:26:01 +0000

When it comes to national security, Michael V. Hayden is no shrinking violet. As CIA director, he ran the Bush administration's program of warrantless wiretaps against suspected terrorists.

But the retired air force general admits to being a little squeamish about the Obama administration's expanding use of pilotless drones to kill suspected terrorists around the world -- including, occasionally, U.S. citizens.

Safe to say Lillard's 'slump' is behind him

mgerrish — Mon, 06 Feb 2012 01:55:01 +0000

Damian Lillard's scoring demands notice.

After averaging 37.5 points per game in two contests last week against Portland State and Northern Colorado, expect the explosive Weber State point guard to be in line for his fifth Big Sky Conference player of the week honor Monday, and likely some national recognition as well.

Drug screening an intrusive way to make government bigger

pchallis — Sun, 05 Feb 2012 03:48:01 +0000

A letter to Rep. Brad Wilson, R-Kaysville: