Opinion

Editorials »

Pressing ahead for education: New superintendent makes a good start at CCSD, needs community; New Clark County School District Superintendent Pat Skorkowsky is no stranger to the task in front of him. He started his career as a teacher 25 years ago in the district and has seen the incredible growth in its size along with its struggles.

Redefining Nevada: Legislature, governor failed to see what the state really needs; If there’s any lesson to be learned from the 2013 Legislature, it’s this: Nevada needs to come face-to-face with some basic realities. Carson City seems to be stuck in 1980, when Nevada had a population of around 800,000 people, and the state didn’t need as much governing or government, and Nevada still was a small, Western state. But that’s no longer the case. Nevada has serious challenges that have grown because they haven’t been confronted. Instead, Nevadans gets incremental fixes and proclamations that things are great.

Past editorials »

Smith’s World

Latest editorial cartoon by Mike Smith, plus archives since 1998 »

Columnists »

Where I Stand »

Principles are worth the time, cost it takes to wage the fight

Where’s my lawyer? It turns out that my dear friend Larry Ruvo and I share the same lawyer. Normally, that wouldn’t cause a problem because one thing we learn in law school — yes, I did that a lifetime ago — is to multitask.
We can honor our fathers by applying the wisdom they shared
Again, legislators fail to stand up for Southern Nevada

J. Patrick Coolican »

For Tom Cunningham and most other stabbing victims, much pain, no justice

A few months ago, Tom Cunningham got into a brief argument with a man in a parked truck in one of the most run-down areas of Las Vegas, near the corner of Main Street and Washington Avenue. Cunningham says he regrets it more than anything he’s ever done.
Here’s why hundreds of wannabe murderers are roaming our streets
If Dems can’t beat Gov. Brian Sandoval in ‘14, at least have fun and pick Tick

Letters to the Editor

E-mail your submission. Letters to the editor should be no more than 250 words and include the writer’s name, address and telephone number. Anonymous letters will not be printed.

Time to re-evaluate Homeland Security: American history is filled with stories about villains and heroes. Good vs. bad. In this case, we are in the 21st century fighting a so-called war on people who are bent on sending others back to the 12th century for some reason.; Continues…; William M. Clarke, Henderson
The Pandora’s box of safety: Americans are at far greater risk of being victims of local crime than we are from a terrorist attack.; Continues…; Dave Newton, Las Vegas
Turns out ‘1984’ was not fiction: The predictions of “1984” were about 30 years premature.; Continues…; Lee Bernstein, Las Vegas
Congress will lead us to our slaughter: Any fear we the people have about governmental surveillance is minuscule and pales in comparison with the actual insidious cancer from within that is slowly killing us, our freedoms and our democracy.; Continues…; John Dombek, Santa Clara, Utah
U.S. must be more careful who we arm: I’m concerned about arming Syrian rebels.; Continues…; Sandra Miner, Las Vegas
Intrusion into our lives is too much: First the IRS targeting conservative groups, then the Justice Department snooping into the records of reporters, and now the government targeting all of us via the monitoring of our calls.; Continues…; Subhas Dhodapkar, Las Vegas
Our lawmakers are the real traitors: Every day new revelations come out about how big a dragnet our government has used in gathering private information from, on, or about American citizens; as well as how our government has violated not only our trust but our constitutional rights, and I for one am angry.; Continues…; Kathleen M. Stone, Pahrump
Question motives of Snowden, writer: Does Edward Snowden really believe his actions, as a whistle-blower, were leaked to make the public aware of our government’s abuse of our civil liberties?; Continues…; George Seminara, North Las Vegas

Letters archive »

Other Voices »

A defense of Big Data

Farah Stockman

A few years ago, New York City set up a “geek squad” to analyze vast amounts of data to improve the way the city runs.
This will not end well

Eugene Robinson

In Syria, the Obama administration seems to be stumbling back to the future: An old-fashioned proxy war, complete with the usual shadowy CIA arms-running operation, the traditional plan to prop up ostensible “moderates” whose prospects are doubtful and, of course, the customary shaky grasp of what the fighting is really about.
The other side of the story

Gail Collins

The deck is always stacked when we debate keeping the nation safe.
Principles are worth the time, cost it takes to wage the fight

By Brian Greenspun

Where’s my lawyer? It turns out that my dear friend Larry Ruvo and I share the same lawyer. Normally, that wouldn’t cause a problem because one thing we learn in law school — yes, I did that a lifetime ago — is to multitask.
Our children, sad future

Charles M. Blow

Now that high school graduation season is winding down, it’s worth taking a moment to remember that in the sea of flowing gowns lurk some unsettling statistical realities. On many measures of childhood well-being, the last decade in the United States has been one of stagnation. We remain an outlier in many ways among developed countries.