Every morning when I walk into my kitchen, I think of my mother, and I'm sure that busy as she must be in culinary heaven, she'd be happy about that. At the ready near breakfast makings is a worn, slightly battered tin measuring cup that she gave me decades ago. It was probably one I used when working with her in cooking and baking back home in St. Louis. Full story »

Almost three years ago, my mother was diagnosed with colon cancer and survived it. But this year, she developed a condition in the colon wall that needed to be excised. Today, Mother is home after almost three months of hospital and rehabilitation care and recovery. However, in between, she survived a savage staph infection she got in the hospital. Full story »

I was a typical high school teenager until the day I found out I was pregnant — the worst day of my life. I went to the doctor with my mom because I had been throwing up for almost a month and we wanted to figure out why. My doctor came back with some test results. She listed everything it was not, before she dropped the bomb: "Well, it's not cancer, thankfully, and it's not diabetes," she said, and continued until, finally, I heard the words: "But you are almost eight weeks pregnant." Full story »

For three-and-a-half weeks over winter break, I embarked on a journey that changed me and my entire outlook on life. Along with 13 other California Lutheran University students, I went for a trip to India led by professors Dr. Paul Hanson and Dr. Druann Pagliassoti. The previous semester of studying the country and seeing slides could never have prepared me for what was to come. Full story »

I am sitting on a bench in the chilly winter sunlight with a fellow teacher at Bilkent University, where I teach English conversation skills. Around us, the treeless steppes of Anatolia are blanketed in snow. A student walks by, her head wrapped in a scarf of purple silk. My friend, her own head exposed to the wind, takes a drag on her Winston. Full story »

We care deeply about our students and the quality of education they are provided. After reviewing the facts, it is clear that Measure B could severely impact the ability to educate Conejo Valley Unified School District students and poses a real threat to the future of public education in our district. Full story »

Thousand Oaks has come to a crossroad for the future development of the city. At this critical juncture rests Measure B — the initiative allowing the people to vote on a project larger than 75,000 square feet that lowers traffic service below our general plan minimum. Traffic at this level of service, according to the Highway Capacity Manual, varies from "noticeable to frequent intersection failures" and "significant rates of delay." Full story »

I strongly disagree with the "Committee to Keep Thousand Oaks Traffic Moving" that wants Thousand Oaks citizens to vote on all large development projects. Full story »

The recent hoopla by those against Measure B, the Thousand Oaks traffic initiative, set for the June 3 election, fails to explain what is really behind their motivations. Full story »

Earlier this year, the governor proclaimed a state of fiscal emergency. Our state budget is estimated to have a deficit of at least $16 billion. Needless to say, a fiscal crisis of this magnitude affects everything we do in the state and can be detrimental to school funding. Full story »

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Question posed by The Star on the Opinion Pulse page: "Do you approve of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger considering suspending Proposition 98, which ensures a minimum percentage of the state budget is spent on K-12 and community colleges?" Full story »

I am 21 years old and I was sentenced to life without parole when I was 17. I was residing in Ventura County at the time of my arrest. I was convicted of murder and robbery in 2006. I support Senate Bill 999 (the Juvenile Life Without Parole Reform Act) because I think juveniles are not adults mentally. I believe that no juvenile is very mature because I remember when I was one. Full story »

Tony Throop recently voiced his opinion in these pages that a 14-year-old child is not an adult and should not be tried in adult court (March 9, "Discarded souls"). One could say he wrote as an expert — he himself has firsthand knowledge of the grievous crimes that a juvenile can commit, as well as the result of applying adult sanctions to juvenile offenders. He was the first juvenile from our county, and perhaps in the state, to be sentenced to die in prison — the most severe adult sentence, short of execution. Full story »

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