I picked up the most recent edition of The Black Sheep, a student newspaper that claims to be “actually about college.” In its recent “Best and worst of summer” newspaper edition, it highlights some of the best and worst things around town.
If there is anything I have learned as a student of public policy, it is that most large problems have complicated solutions. There are many independent variables that not only interact with a dependent variable but also play off themselves. We sometimes forget that when we hear the one-liners used in political campaigns.
Last session, the East Lansing City Council did a great job protecting children from the dangers of alcohol. Unfortunately, no one told them that the children are already well protected in that respect. By a 3-2 vote, the council decided to deny an application that would have allowed the East Lansing BP gas station, 504 Michigan Ave., to sell packaged beer, wine and spirits.
I am writing in response to opinion writer Lazarus Jackson’s column “America’s unhappy birthday” (SN 7/7). In my opinion, history is not a prologue, but a precedent for our country’s current state. Despite the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln ordered that the construction of the nation’s capital dome continue as a symbol of unity, sending the message that although the country was in a state of open war, the Union still would survive. Our country has seen greater challenges and worked through them, and our current state is no exception.
A recently passed law in Georgia designed to deter illegal immigrants is having the desired effect — much to the displeasure of Georgia farmers.
Should the city try to find a way out of or around any agreement with Strathmore Development Co. when it comes to City Center II? It’s starting to look more like the answer to that question is, “Yes.”
Lawmakers and the governor are attempting to send ineffective teachers to the principal’s office, but it’s the legislators who need the time-out. Four separate bills, all approved by the state Legislature June 30, would change the tenure process for teachers in an attempt to retain more quality teachers.
When I was walking back to campus from St. John’s Student Center last weekend, I noticed an interesting juxtaposition on the corner of M.A.C.
Thanks to Gov. Rick Snyder, we’ll soon see if “three strikes, and you’re out” is better for the job market than “one and done.”
On Monday, America turned 235. Normally, this would be a cause for celebration, but I had trouble setting off my fireworks and eating my normal double-digit amount of hot dogs this year. Why? Because this year doesn’t feel very celebratory.
If you build it and price it for them, they will come. And in numbers large enough for twelve stories worth of buildings.
My parents came to the U.S. in 1991. They left their friends and family for a country known to them as the “land of opportunity.” It was hard when they first came. They started from scratch and had to work long hours in order to pay for their education.
In the future, consumers soon will be more aware of the health effects of late-night hamburgers and fries. As part of federal health care reform, the Food and Drug Administration is expected to create federal regulations requiring any chain restaurant with 20 or more locations to post a calorie count for their menu items.
When living in Snyder Hall for the summer semester, one can’t help but notice the gargantuan piece of modern art called Funambulist rising out of the grass on the quadrangle. It’s visible from the windows in the Gallery at Snyder and Phillips halls and from both Bogue Street and Physics Road and invokes — in this writer’s humble opinion — influences both avian and Asian.
The partisan brawl over cutting the deficit soon will come to a temporary end. By Aug. 2, Congress must strike a deal to cut government spending to ensure our government does not default on its debt. Although it will be a rare and important policy achievement, there is much more work to be done to get people back to work.
The Michigan Dr. Ron Davis Smoke-Free Air Law is in danger of choking to death. The Smoke-Free Air Law, which went into effect over a year ago, prohibited smoking in most public areas in Michigan, including local businesses.
Do we see the world objectively? Or do our perceptions transform a black-and-white world into a subjective fantasy differently viewed by every eye on the planet? The human mind is the most complex computer on Earth.
The crime of providing alcohol to minors is an important issue to address, especially in a college community such as East Lansing. No one is quite sure how to stop teens from drinking while underage. But a recent case provides an example of the costs of providing alcohol to minors.
Last Friday’s nationwide protests — one of which occurred in Lansing — of the “war on drugs” on its unofficial 40th anniversary were a bit misguided. When there’s talk about ending the war on drugs, it’s mainly focused on the legalization of recreational marijuana and the high cost of fighting a war against a noun.
Have you wondered recently about your future? Have you really wondered about your future and the future of the state, the country or the planet? Last year, we were treated to the fairly innocuous movie “2012” — dramatically presented and poorly acted — in which the prediction for the future was pretty bleak.