The Daily Aztec

Let’s play word association. Name the first five things that come to mind that symbolize San Diego. Mine are the beach, zoo, SeaWorld, San Diego State and even the Chargers. It’s a safe bet the Padres would appear on few lists. They are poised to drop further, now that the 22 percent of San Diego [...]

The minimum financial cost for my indiscretion is $48,000. That’s money not going to my son, who is fighting leukemia, or to my family’s college fund. I lost those wages because I was an idiot. I agreed to a relationship forbidden by my former employer. And when it was discovered, it essentially ended my career. [...]

A motorist driving anywhere in San Diego County is likely to meet at least one police car. Usually, this makes drivers check their speed. But drivers have more things to worry about than just receiving moving violations. They have to worry their privacy is being compromised. San Diego law enforcement agencies, like many across the country, [...]

In “The Princess Bride,” our hero, the man in black, receives sage advice from his enemy, Vizzini. By proclaiming that one should never get involved in a land war in Asia, Vizzini makes an apt analogy to the folly that was America’s involvement in Vietnam. America’s leaders are either poor history buffs or inattentive students [...]

It’s sad when a once-proud institution is reduced by bad management into a punch line. Such is the fate of U-T San Diego since its purchase by Doug Manchester. On March 3, the newspaper featured the kind of ridiculous editorial we’ve come to expect. What makes it galling is this one was penned by its [...]

It was at the start of class when my ears honed in on ageism springing from the lips of a classmate. He was describing to his friend an encounter he had with a group of “really old” people, with what I can only describe as youthful derision. He said the fossils fouling the very student [...]

America’s reaction to the rising sea level is even more disappointing than the San Diego State’s men’s basketball season. Or I should say, our non-reaction to rising sea levels. When we were young and scared of monsters under our beds, we’d close our eyes and pretend the monster wasn’t there. Our wishing made the monster [...]

The American bison and the bald eagle are two animals emblematic of the U.S. Yet, both were almost exterminated from the country because of egregious human behavior. Their population has recovered but the bison finds itself threatened again—this time by Montana politicians. The Montana state legislature is considering two bills designed to destroy any bison [...]

Earlier this month, U.S. Navy Secretary Ray Mabus unveiled two individual alcohol abuse monitoring programs designed to “deter and educate” Marines and sailors. It’s a laudable goal, resulting from a September 2012 Institute of Medicine report documenting a rise in binge drinking service-wide. According to the report, binge drinking increased from 35 percent in 1998 [...]

T he idea behind legalized abortion is a woman’s right to choose. Alternatively, she can receive living expenses while placing her unborn baby up for adoption. So, why is it illegal for her to profit from the act of sex itself? Let’s end the double standard and legalize prostitution. The face of prostitution is changing. [...]

I was wrong. I don’t admit this often. This college semester—my first in a traditional campus since (gulp) 1989—nears its end and I’m forced to admit it was more difficult than I expected. I figured it was going to be easy. After all, I began the year after a successful naval career. Plus, this wasn’t my [...]

The Washington Post’s Nov. 22 issue includes an article about Chief Warrant Officer Charlie Morgan of the New Hampshire Army National Guard. Morgan has terminal cancer. Unfortunately, Morgan’s wife, Karen, will be denied survivor benefits almost every spouse is entitled to when their military spouse dies.