Columns

No Black Friday deal is worth fighting over

By Jess J. Salisbury · Sunday, Dec. 1, 2013

Like many Americans, I indulged in that beloved tradition of Black Friday shopping over the past weekend. Before the sun even peeked out over the horizon, I was running frantically from shop to shop trying to find the best deals on sweatpants and whatever else I needed to stock up on for winter.

Modern hip-hop no longer motivational but racist, sexist

By Olivia Jackson · Sunday, Nov. 24, 2013

Before Lil Wayne and Rick Ross made a big deal of hustling the streets of ghettos and slinging rocks, Afrika Bambaataa made our planet rock with his crew Soul Force. In the 1980s, hip-hop was a way for musical artist to connect with people who mutually understood the struggles of living in the ghetto and who had dreams of making a way out.

Muslim students need prayer space on EMU campus

By Fatma Jaber · Sunday, Nov. 24, 2013

A designated space for prayer, meditation and reflection is an essential aspect of any well recognized and highly regarded university. This room is intended not only for Muslim students, but for all members of EMU, and its purpose is to give everyone a safe place to pray, reflect inwardly and meditate.

Veterans and Swiss cheese; rethinking tax code

By James Tatum · Sunday, Nov. 24, 2013

Gov. Rick Snyder, Republican of the Great Lakes State, recently made law a bill that offers property tax relief to veterans. More specifically the law now allows former members of the armed services who are fully disabled to qualify for an exemption from state and local property taxes.

Human sexuality just part of nature

By Anthony Alaniz · Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2013

Everyone has experienced nights where our drive to do some homework succumbs to the wonders of the Internet. We are all fallible and can fall victim to the most adorable of cat videos and BuzzFeed.

Household spending looks promising, evidence suggests

By Tommy Barker · Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2013

Money is such a crucial variable for both survival and leisure, though it always appears as though there’s never enough. However, in recent years we have seen a drop in how much we need to spend, namely in the household.

Ypsilanti needs more heavy industry jobs

By James Tatum · Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2013

“More than 2 million manufacturing jobs disappeared during the 2007-09 recession,” said a recent report by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. A fraction of those jobs disappeared from the city of Ypsilanti when the ACH (Visteon) auto-plant owned by Ford Motor Company closed in 2008.

Bin Laden isn’t America’s only terrorist

By John G. Fike · Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2013

In September 2001 Osama bin Laden launched a terrorist attack on the heart of capitalism, when al-Qaida operatives flew passenger airliners into the World Trade Center. That horrendous disaster stunned Americans with more than 3,000 deaths, allowing George W. Bush to grab his chance to start the “War on Terror.”

Eastern Michigan’s art, music need attention too

By Jess J. Salisbury · Sunday, Nov. 17, 2013

Did you know that I have the approximate athletic ability of a tree stump? If you’ve read pretty much any of my editorials, you do. I tend to rant about that a lot.

America and the war on everything: a love story

By Anthony Alaniz · Sunday, Nov. 17, 2013

America loves war. We may complain about the costs, why we are putting soldiers in harm’s way and even the reasons why we are going, but in the end, our country’s policies enjoy showering the disenfranchised with democracy bombs. Nothing screams freedom like blowing up a country.

As auto industry crumbles, Ypsi must find a new ‘castle’

By James Tatum · Sunday, Nov. 17, 2013

The World Bank has devised a way to assess the urban competitiveness of a city, a rubric that uses four elements: economic structure, territorial endowment, human resources and institutional milieu.

Al Willman can be heard every week on the Eastern Echo Sports Podcast with Sports Editor Eugene Evans. The podcast can be found on SoundCloud or by searching for the podcast on iTunes.

COLUMN: EMU football will rise again

By Al Willman · Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2013

The Eastern Michigan University football team just fired its head coach, the last thing the fans need are people calling for the team to drop down a division or, even worse, cut the program altogether.

COLUMN: Eastern should drop its football program

By Eugene Evans · Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2013

There comes a time in life where one must realize when a situation is so inoperable that you have to pull the plug on even if you do not want to.

Katie's Craft Corner: Remedies for treating your skin with kindness this winter

By Katie Remski · Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2013

The coming of winter brings cozy sweaters, fun in the snow and the risk of dry, chapped, flaking skin that’s so damaged it seems as if it will never return to normal again.

College life gives students opportunities to explore

By Jumanah Saadeh · Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2013

I love college. You know why? Because of the opportunities it gives those of us fortunate enough to be here. Students should actively take advantage of the possibilities this time offers.

Two are better than one: Consider a double major

By Professor Abdullah A. Dewan · Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2013

Indubitably, a single major with a minor is no match for a double major in terms of job prospects, higher salary expectations and opportunities for graduate studies with financial support.

Society must find new ways to ‘do good’

By John G. Fike · Wednesday, Nov. 13, 2013

Ever notice how difficult it is now to do good? Many do what’s politically expedient, or what they calculate is in their own self-interest. But doing good, especially working with others to stop the effects of economic violence on our citizens, can earn a pretty sharp rap on the knuckles from the boss, the police and the media.

American education not providing desired results

By Anthony Alaniz · Sunday, Nov. 10, 2013

America is facing an education crisis. As a country, our ranking in the world as an educational powerhouse is slowly slipping away. Finland and South Korea are current beacons of educational might. Those two countries produce some of the best students in the world, yet America, one of the most prosperous and wealthiest nations, struggles with the concept of quality public education.

Mayoral power over metropolitan economies

By James Tatum · Sunday, Nov. 10, 2013

After the financial crisis, if it was not clear that we live in a worldwide economy, it is clear now. Stories about auto plant closures have been replaced by hysteria over Greece’s debt burden and our own fiscal crises. Local unemployment rates have been put in the context of data from the International Monetary Fund. The whole affair can make local politics seem trivial. And even mayors with considerable renown like Michael Bloomberg of New York, Julian Castro of San Antonio and Mitch Landrieu of New Orleans can seem inert.

COLUMN: English lost his team's respect, then his job.

By Al Willman · Sunday, Nov. 10, 2013

Ron English proved me right. That was going to be my lead for the column I had planned on writing, after the Eastern Michigan University football coach was fired Friday. I was going to applaud his firing, though curiously timed, because I thought it should have been done a year ago.

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