Guest Columns

ROMANO: Extension could be good news

Robert Romano

At the end February, the payroll tax holiday will expire, along with the last extension of unemployment benefits up to 99 weeks. That event could provide Republicans an opportunity to have the Obama Administration put its money where its mouth is on...... Full story

SANCHEZ: Community-driven priorities

BY H.T. SANCHEZ

A team of parents, business leaders, teachers, principals and district administrators met from September 2008 to May 2009 to craft a powerful vision for the future of K-12 public education in Odessa. The process was facilitated by the Cambridge...... Full story

HART: Hope for Hip-Hop-ocrisy at Grammys

Ron Hart

It was another first for this Forrest Gump-like life of mine: I went to the Grammys. A college fraternity brother, who has won many Grammys for producing country music videos, chaired the Board of Trustees this year. Not bad for a graduate of an...... Full story

CHANDLER: When parting is such sweet sorrow

Charlena Chandler

The social act of visiting one’s friends at said friends’ home is fine, courteous and civil. However, there are rules to be observed and they vary from place to place. It’s the arrival and departure, rather than the in-between,...... Full story

WARREN: MISD looks to fund change

Ryder Warren

For more than a year, I have been writing articles and speaking to community groups about the impending MISD Improvement Initiative. With the guidance of dozens of Midland leaders, community members, and parents, we have developed a plan to...... Full story

H.T. SANCHEZ: Students are first focus

H.T. Sanchez

Over the past year, the Ector County Independent School District (ECISD) School Board has been on a journey. The journey has come at an ideal time. The Texas Education Agency (TEA) has raised the bar by introducing the Texas’ new state test,...... Full story

CHANDLER: Searching for greatness on the moors

Charelna Chandler

I’m making my debut — my very first day of teaching in my hometown, situated on the moors of West Texas. (See Bronte, Emily.) I had been given a textbook called Adventures in Appreciation published by Harcourt Brace and Jovanovich....... Full story

HART: Super Bowl XLVI recap

Ron Hart

“Why did football so bring me to life? I can't say precisely ... It smacked of something old, something traditional, something unclouded by legerdemain and subterfuge. I gave myself up to the Giants utterly. The recompense I gained was the...... Full story

WILSON: Default poses systemic risk

Bill Wilson

How is it that a hard Greek default — a tiny country that comprises less than two percent of Europe’s Gross Domestic Product — poses such a systemic risk to the European and, indeed, the global financial system? The American...... Full story

GUEST COLUMN: Duncan legacy will live on in Odessa

Gene Powell

When I was fortunate enough to work at the Odessa American, I often had the chance to write my column about people. If you read my columns on a regular basis, then the name John Duncan is familiar to you. I’ve tried — probably in vain...... Full story

CHANDLER: Child labor not such a bad idea

Charlena Chandler

My candidate Newt Gingrich was dealt a severe blow in the Sunshine State last Tuesday. Sorry I wasn’t there to help him out. Unfortunately, I am not an eligible voter in Florida. Or in Iowa, New Hampshire or South Carolina. Mr. Gingrich is...... Full story

HART: Captain 'Chicken of the Sea'

Ron Hart

The Captain of the Italian Carnival Cruise Lines ship that turned over has to be one of the most hapless chaps of the decade. He ran aground his cruise ship, which carried many gluttonous cruise-crazed passengers. I think the ship was called...... Full story

FIELDS: Race and racists

Suzanne Fields

Presidential campaigns are notorious for unleashing scurrilous rhetoric. Only George Washington was elected as an uncontroversial reflection of the nation’s will. Then we got political parties, and it was downhill after that. By 1800, when...... Full story