Former Santa Barbara Mayor Harriet Miller was memorialized as a fearless and, at times, fearsome public servant whose direct, no-nonsense approach made the city a better place for all. What I remember most about Harriet is her determination and dedication to getting things done, period.  When Harriet gave you her word or support, you could take it to the bank.  And...

The election victory and nationwide coverage of Senator Scott Brown from Massachusetts had me revisiting a piece I wrote in July, 2008.  In light of the current fuss and fracas between Republicans and Democrats in Congress, the lesson from this commentary is more timely than eve Whom can we trust? Who has the credibility to lead? These are just two...

Sam Adams, world-class decathlete, coach and mentor to numerous athletes passed away Tuesday, January 12. “The finest decathlon coach in American history,” wrote Frank Zarnowski for The Decathlon Association newsletter.  “The decathletes, pentathletes and heptathletes who trained under Sam’s watchful eye read like an American Who’s Who. You start with Bill Toomey and Jane Frederick, and Russ Hodge, and, well the list would...

“Human progress is neither automatic nor inevitable… Every step toward the goal of justice requires sacrifice, suffering, and struggle; the tireless exertions and passionate concern of dedicated individuals.” – Martin Luther King, Jr. The words of Dr. King were meant to inspire us to grow beyond hatred, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that. Hate cannot drive...

One of the things I like most about the writing of conservative columnist Peggy Noonan is the way she engages both the intellect and the emotions.  Nowhere is that more evident than in an essay about President Ronald Reagan.  Noonan was Reagan’s speech writer, and looking back at many of those speeches it’s easy to see how effectively the Great...

There’s a scene early in the film Bull Durham where the Kevin Costner character is being sized up by the Susan Sarandon character. She’s making a choice between two minor league ball players as to whom she’ll guide and girlfriend throughout the season. Up to this point, Sarandon – by virtue of her charismatic charm, not to mention an incredible body –...

There’s a scene late in the film The Emperor’s Club when William Hundert, a teacher who believes that character is the path to true success, dispenses a final lesson to an errant student. “All of us, at some point,” Hundert tells an older but no wiser Sedgewick Bell, “are forced to look at ourselves in the mirror and see who we really...

Most people may not recognize Carl Muscarello by name but are probably familiar with his picture. He’s the sailor kissing the nurse in Alfred Eisenstaedt’s iconic, 1945 photograph on V-J Day in Times Square. However, Carl describes himself as, “an Italian-American kid from Brooklyn, New York who has been fortunate in that happiness in my life has come from my...

Sitting in a Chinese restaurant, I remember opening a “fortune cookie” which read:  Confucius say… Wealth and renown gained without honor are nothing but drifting clouds. More than 2,500 years later, the Chinese philosopher and social thinker would probably laugh to discover that much of his wisdom has been distilled and tweaked to fit inside the modern invention of a cookie which...

A weekend conversation with a friend prompted the following: “Why be ethical?  What’s the payoff?” The standard fall-back:  “Virtue is its own reward.” Another might be the adage by Louis Armstrong when asked the definition of Jazz: “If you have to ask… you’ll never know.” The reality is that most of us face issues that challenge our ethical integrity on a regular basis.   » Read...