Brian Greenspun

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Better have a good reason if you forgot Mother’s Day: Sunday, May 12, 2013; Hank Greenspun was well-known for taking his life in his hands by forgetting such important dates as Mother’s Day, his wedding anniversary, an important birthday and the like. He compounded the problem by writing about these matters in his “Where I Stand” column. I know that Las Vegans — both newcomers and those who have been here forever — enjoy reliving some of the good old days through Hank’s words. So I have chosen a column he wrote on Mother’s Day 1954 to republish today.
Anger after the explosion’s fallout: Sunday, May 5, 2013; On this weekend’s 25th anniversary of the explosion at the PEPCON industrial plant — a mighty blast that killed two people, injured several hundred and blew out windows throughout the valley — I am ceding my normal column space to my late father, Hank Greenspun, who was the editor and publisher of the Sun at the time.
Smatresk’s leadership elevates university: Sunday, April 28, 2013; How do we evaluate Neal Smatresk? Employee evaluations are supposed to be private — mostly, I assume, because candor is important when deciding whether a person has done or is doing a good job. People who talk about others want protection from any reprisals, and protecting a person from too much candor — an opinion laced with bias — is also good policy.
Kudos to NV Energy for helping our health: Sunday, April 7, 2013; If you have your health, you have everything.
We have a right to feel safe: Sunday, March 31, 2013; In the end, they just didn’t feel safe. Assembly Majority Leader William Horne expressed that sentiment after the very sad saga of Assemblyman Steven Brooks during the process that led to his being expelled by the legislative body to which he was duly elected.
Gag order obscures the real fight: Sunday, March 24, 2013; I think I know why Nevada voters, like so many others, are getting sick of politics.
Promising signs for the future: Sunday, March 17, 2013; In a world that has seen a dearth of positives over the past five years, I think the signs this past week around the world and here at home give us reason for hope.
Continue the good work CCSD chief started: Sunday, March 10, 2013; Thank you, Dwight Jones.
Kids will be ready to take torch: Sunday, March 3, 2013; I’ve always enjoyed getting haircuts — even if I only needed a little trim — because it was an opportunity for pleasant conversation with Tony.
Las Vegans continue giving: Sunday, Feb. 24, 2013; The power of love in Las Vegas is a reason for celebration.
Drones play an important role in keeping us safe: Sunday, Feb. 10, 2013; I believe in baseball, hot dogs, apple pie, the American dream, Jack Bauer, the U.S. Constitution and, yes, drones.
We won’t have to scream if the Legislature does its job: Sunday, Feb. 3, 2013; Where are the pitchforks? Where are the torches yearning to burn? Where is the angry mob?
For some people, it's all about red meat: Sunday, Jan. 27, 2013; I spent a little time last week at the movies and in front of the television learning about the benefits and detriments of red meat. My experience included a wonderful two hours at the movies watching “Life of Pi” and many hours watching or listening to the congressional hearings with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
Our children shouldn’t have to live in a savage world: Sunday, Jan. 20, 2013; Let’s not get emotional about our guns. After all, they are just a bunch of shiny objects that shoot bullets and other projectiles with only one ultimate purpose — killing.
Gun debate's slippery slope isn't reality: Sunday, Jan. 13, 2013; We need to take aim at the problem of gun violence in this country. And then we have to pull the trigger.
Much work to do as we say goodbye to 2012: Sunday, Dec. 23, 2012; It is hard to dampen the Christmas spirit, no matter how hard we try.
Urgency for sanity in gun culture: Sunday, Dec. 16, 2012; There are 20 dead children in Connecticut. We can no longer throw our hands up in the air and do nothing.
Waking up to what, exactly? Not actual statehood: Sunday, Dec. 2, 2012; Just stating the obvious. This morning, the Arab population woke up in the West Bank and in Gaza the same way they have awakened for decades. Some will awake with plans for war, but most will plan for the day when their children can grow up in peace with their neighbors so they can seek education and the jobs they need for happiness and prosperity in the coming years. The difference this morning, unlike last Sunday, is that today they awoke knowing that the United Nations General Assembly has conferred upon them the status of a nonmember observer state. They are just like the Vatican! Sort of.
A new generation and changing times: Sunday, Nov. 25, 2012; I know the future. And if you pay attention to the students from this year’s Las Vegas Sun Youth Forum, you can, too.
Real problems deserve our focus: Sunday, Nov. 18, 2012; There are still people freezing back East. They still are sitting in the dark, waiting for someone to turn the power back on. And there are new, potentially deadly, storms on the way.
The lesson of a life well-lived: Thursday, Nov. 8, 2012; Rachel Smith was a very quiet woman. Unless you were her husband, Arnold.
What do I think? Glad you asked: Sunday, Oct. 28, 2012; “What do you think about the election?” Who hasn’t heard that question asked in the last month.
The real effect of the election: Sunday, Oct. 21, 2012; Health care is an important issue this campaign season, and it goes beyond the rhetoric in the debate.
Smirks and smiles, style and substance: Sunday, Oct. 14, 2012; Oh, the dreaded “S” word.
Is this the Romney we’d get if he wins?: Sunday, Oct. 7, 2012; Big Bird lost, Mitt Romney won. That’s the consensus of those who watched the presidential debate in Colorado this week, and I have to agree. Whatever President Barack Obama thought he was doing during the 90-minute debate at the University of Denver, what he did was allow those who tuned in to witness the Romney that so many of his friends and supporters have said he was all along, but whose actions and words on the campaign trail had screamed just the opposite.
Online gaming is more than political: Sunday, Sept. 30, 2012; The Day of Atonement has come and gone for another year.
Opening doors to the art world: Sunday, Sept. 23, 2012; The Las Vegas Art Museum has a new home at UNLV. Thank you, Steve Wynn.
Putting things in perspective: Sunday, Sept. 16, 2012; Happy New Year.
Passion, soul and conventional wisdom: Sunday, Sept. 9, 2012; It is all about conventional wisdom.
America could use a little fiction: Sunday, July 29, 2012; We need Andrew Shepherd.
Games bring more than sports: Sunday, July 22, 2012; The 2012 Olympic Games could make dreamers of us all.
A great birthday present for the U.S.: Sunday, July 8, 2012; Happy birthday, United States.
Time to change to another channel: Sunday, June 24, 2012; Where is the truth channel?
A Father’s Day gift for Dad, kids: Sunday, June 17, 2012; Make this Father’s Day a real celebration, as it should be, because a father’s life is not an easy one. He serves in many ways. Just taking out the garbage isn’t one of his primary functions. No one on earth can love a child more than a father, with the possible exception of a mother. So bring Dad a precious gift to show the love you bear him in return.
Cutting through the punditry: Sunday, June 10, 2012; I couldn’t help think about overthinking during the coverage of the Gov. Scott Walker recall vote last Tuesday in Wisconsin. As you can imagine, and if you were following the election shows you will understand what I am saying, there were all kind and manner of comments, opinions and surmises that attended the build-up and let-down of the evening’s purpose.
How a good argument for education falls flat: Sunday, June 3, 2012; Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is a smart and well-educated man.
There’s no debate about UNLV’s success: Sunday, May 20, 2012; The pros and cons of debate. It was just a few years ago — remember the university budget meltdown of 2008-09 and the redux in 2011? — that an up-and-coming debate program at UNLV found itself, along with many other excellent programs, on the chopping block.
Customs officials could learn from Las Vegas: An open letter to Janet Napolitano, secretary of Homeland Security; Sunday, May 6, 2012; Maybe it is just me, but ...
For everyone’s sake, it’s time to reach out to Cuba: Sunday, April 29, 2012; If you don’t like the word stupid, try foolish, ridiculous, nuts — or other words that describe the foreign policy of the United States toward Cuba for the past 50 years — because what we saw there just ain’t working.
There’s no need for a crisis, Senator: Sunday, April 15, 2012; Please forgive me. I am having a constitutional crisis! I have been around politics my entire life, so there is very little that I don’t understand about the motives of politicians or the methods they employ. There comes a time, however, even in my cynical world, that what is being done and said in the name of good government, well, defies good sense.
Examples of leadership lead up to Easter, Passover: Sunday, April 8, 2012; To my Christian friends, Happy Easter. To my Jewish friends, Happy Passover.
Political winds hit the court system: Sunday, April 1, 2012; Quick, our judicial system is drowning.
Culture plays well in Las Vegas: Sunday, March 18, 2012; The night culture came to Las Vegas.
Looking back to look forward: Sunday, March 11, 2012; I have spent considerable time this past week focusing on the future.
Making a ‘more perfect union’: Sunday, March 4, 2012; Getting back to work. I was saddened to hear that Sen. Olympia Snowe of Maine was retiring from the United States Senate.
Las Vegas is finding its way back: Sunday, Feb. 26, 2012; A sign of the times. For almost four years, Las Vegans have been struggling to: First, understand what hit us when the economic collapse almost destroyed the underpinnings of our entire financial structure; and, second, figure out how, when and why a recovery would take place in what was once the envy of the modern world of growing cities.
A wife's wisdom on D.C. fight: Sunday, Feb. 12, 2012; I asked my wife, Myra, her opinion about this latest dust-up about contraceptives and religious freedom. I was interested in what she believed was the right policy for women in America. After all, she is a woman.
A lesson from Gabby Giffords' resignation: Sunday, Jan. 29, 2012; In the end, they acted like Americans.
Nothing is free, even on the Internet: Sunday, Jan. 22, 2012; The Internet is free. Really?
We must demand clear answer from Romney on Yucca Mountain: Sunday, Jan. 15, 2012; It is no secret that our elections — especially presidential elections — have become contests in which what candidates don’t say is at least as important as what they do tell the voters.