The room is dark, subdued, the weak lighting comes only from partially obscured wall sconces. em>La Wally performed by Wilhelmenia Wiggins Fernandez is playing softly from a stereo system tucked…
Schrödinger’s housing crisis
Economics is in many ways like meteorology: Being wrong in one’s predictions is considered par for the course. However, economics has the added element of requiring a basic understanding of…
Republicans: Do your job!
I would like to suggest that, for the next 11 months, President Obama veto every single bill that lands on his desk. He should make it clear that he wants…
Republican Party Woes
Donald Trump was the front-runner in the campaign for the Republican presidential nomination, as of Jan. 5. Let’s stop and think about that for a minute. A xenophobic, racist demagogue…
Don’t feel like attending a Vikings game? You’re not the only one
Five thousand people saw Casey strike out that day in Mudville. Five thousand people cheered on their small-town team, despite the ups and downs of nine innings, only to leave…
Protest, debate with caution and rationality
So often, free speech is interpreted as “the right for someone to say what I want to hear, in a manner that I approve of.” Let me give a couple…
Grief and healing go hand in hand
It’s been 30 days. Thirty days since my former school, my friends and my community were transformed by one single act of unimaginable violence. The shooting at Umpqua Community College…
Capstones: not as bad as they seem
When I first arrived at Portland State, I was a bit taken aback by the University Studies requirements. As a transfer student, I wasn’t required to subject myself to the…
Violence comes home
My typing is a little slow today. My hands, my arms—they’re heavy, like a great weight is pressing down on them, slowing their productivity. I’m having trouble seeing the screen…
Paying students to play sports: A bad idea for everyone
Let’s say, for the sake of this column, that you, dear reader, are a currently enrolled college student. If that’s the case, you’re likely strapped for cash and struggling on…
PSU’s desperation and the $100 million that never showed up
Portland State President Wim Wiewel has a lot of egg on his face after the recent cause célèbre regarding a Portland citizen’s fake promise of a $100 million donation to PSU….