I was, like the millions of you out there, glued to my television set during the State of the Union address earlier this week. But there was something missing from President Obama’s speech. There was a word that he refrained from using and that word was climate. It was as if not mentioning it made it not a problem we are facing as a nation or brushes it under the rug with all the other problems we have turned our… Read more

The CSUN mathematics professor accused of urinating on a colleague’s door was granted a 30-day arraignment extension today in San Fernando Superior Court. Mathematics professor Tihomir Petrov, 43, faces two misdemeanor counts of urinating in public. “We’ve requested this extension in order to engage in informal discussion with the prosecutor and gather further evidence,” said Garret Weinrieb, one of the two defense attorneys. Petrov was allegedly caught on surveillance camera urinating on an office door in Santa Susanna Hall. “We… Read more

In the State of the Union address Tuesday evening, President Barack Obama challenged the American people to look beyond partisan lines and work together on issues such as clean energy, health care and of course, the economic status of our nation.  But the issue of education hit closest to home for me. The United States needs higher standards for the performance levels of both students and teachers in our public school system and a strong, solid education should be available… Read more

-       Moscow airport bombed Whatever the intentions were of the supposed suicide bomber who detonated a bomb in Moscow’s Domodedovo Airport on Monday, killing at least 35 people and injuring more than 100 others, a few things are sure: the Russian government will swing into a frenzy of look-busy action, actual politics and policy are unlikely to change and air travel in Russia will become an exercise in misery and futility. As in the U.S., voices will be raised, money… Read more

Harvard University law professor Amy Chua’s book “Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother,” tells the story of how she raised her two daughters, “the Chinese way,” meaning under extremely strict rules. Chua has been accused by many of cruelty in her unusual parenting methods, which include denying her daughters play dates, sleepovers, and participation in school plays. She writes in her book, “the only activities your children should be permitted to do are those in which they can eventually win… Read more

A class of fourth graders circled the art gallery at CSUN. For the 9 and 10-year-olds scattered across the room, this was just another field trip. Their teacher, however, was hoping to get something more out of it. “I’m trying to inspire the kids to go to college,” said Kelly Baker, a fourth-grade teacher at Erwin Street Elementary School in Van Nuys. Baker and her students were visiting the university to take a campus tour and came across the 14th… Read more

Strong performances by Ryan Gosling and Michelle Williams highlight a controversial marital story in “Blue Valentine.” Multiple nominations in different film festivals and award ceremonies, including the Golden Globes, made “Blue Valentine” one of the most talked about movies of 2010. Director Derek Cianfrance, who is not well known among most moviegoers, will most certainly put his name on the map of Hollywood’s most promising directors. The movie made the headlines last year when it was announced that it would… Read more

Writer/Director duo The Coen Brothers (Joel and Ethan) show their understanding of what “True Grit” really is with their marvelous adaptation of Charles Portis’ 1968 novel “True Grit.” The Coen brothers (“No Country for Old Men” and “Fargo”) mix their style of violence and humor with Portis’ dialogue in such a way that the novel is truly brought to life on the big screen in all the ways the 1969 version wasn’t. The film stars Jeff Bridges as tough-as-nails Federal… Read more

The Oviatt Library is extending its exhibit of the work of Richard Fish, a prolific, California-based photographer. Fish (1919-2005) is known for photographs that covered a variety of subjects for publications like the Los Angeles Times Home magazine, Sunset magazine, Better Home and Gardens and Chicago Daily Sunset magazine. “Richard had such an interesting career photographing gardens and movie stars,” said Marie Fish, his widow.  She donated Fish’s work to the Oviatt Library’s permanent collection. The library is displaying Fish’s… Read more