Opinion

In November of 2008, three groups of men in Kandahar, Afghanistan rode by and sprayed burning acid onto the faces of about 15 young girls and female teachers in an apparent attempt to keep them from going to school.

The girls were badly burnt and scarred, one was even flown into India to treat her wounds. But I won't focus on that in this week's article.

During my short stint as a columnist, I've gotten some interesting responses to what I've written. I've had people go to great lengths to tell me how stupid I am. I had one reader say that he would rather stick a fish in a rather unusual spot than read my column again. I even had one angry man hope that I would be attacked. But I had yet to receive a response as passionate as the one sent to me in reaction to my last column.

"Obama! Obama! Obama!" Thousands of people roared their approval of the next president of the United States. The streets were filled with those eager to witness history. News helicopters hovered overhead and swanky entrepreneurs tempted the swirling crowds with every imaginable form of Obama memorabilia; t-shirts, hats and even condoms (labeled "Durability you can believe in").

I once read a study by Webster University Professor Monica Moore, about how women behave and nonverbally communicate with men while flirting. The things women do, either intentionally or unintentionally include subtlety touching the favorite part of their own body, leaning in closely, tossing their hair to expose the neck and glancing.

Since this country's inception, the ability to state one's views without fear of persecution from the government has been essential to the formation of a free and democratic society. With the exception of a few blemishes, (see the Alien and Sedition Acts of 1798) politicians have been wise enough not to tinker with the First Amendment, leaving citizens free to speak their minds and express their opinion publicly.

Newly formed ASUCD organization ACT faced controversy last week after it became apparent that members didn't fully disclose their intentions when interviewing students for a video to be posted online. After it was discovered that more than one interviewee wasn't aware the video was for an ASUCD group, ACT organizers removed it in order to get permission from everyone it featured.

Dear Aggie Readers,

The California Aggie has been forced to make several mid-year budget cuts in order to try and meet our mounting deficit. The most visible of these cuts, and the one likely to affect you the reader most significantly, is the decision to cease production of Friday's printed issue. The Friday issue will still be available online at theaggie.org. For Aggie sports fans out there, never fear, the Lineup will be moved to Thursday.

A recent discovery of a hazardous chemical near the site of the new Target store in Davis has some citizens calling for construction on the store to be delayed.

The chemical, trichloropropane, is considered to be a "probable carcinogen" by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. It has already been detected at the nearby Frontier Fertilizer Superfund Site, which the EPA has been monitoring and cleaning up since the mid-1990s.

Dear Aggie Readers,

Due to mounting budget losses, The California Aggie has found it necessary to make several mid-year cuts. The most visible of these is our decision to cease having a print edition of the newspaper on Fridays. Articles that would have run in the Friday issue of the newspaper will be posted online at theaggie.org. For those devoted readers of The Lineup, it will be moved to the Thursday issue.

In the Jan. 21 issue of The California Aggie, the article "Recyclemania comes to Davis" incorrectly stated that 100 universities nationwide are registered for Recyclemania when actually 503 are participating. The article also stated that the competition ends March 28, but it ends March 27. Additionally, UC Davis started participating in Recyclemania in 2005, not 2004. Last year's competition included Sproul Hall, Briggs Hall, Tupper Hall and the University Services Building, not just Student Housing as the article reported. The Aggie regrets the error.

No. 11 on my Cap and Gown List may seem like blasphemy for a psychology major. However, after class last week, I feel I must take a stand against good old Sigmund and his faithless opinion of religion.

The British Broadcasting Company has managed to put itself in a no-win position regarding the current escalation of the conflict in Gaza. Asked to broadcast a message from British charities urging citizens to contribute to aid for victims in Gaza, the BBC refused, citing a need for impartiality.

Dear Aggie Readers,

Due to mounting budget losses, The California Aggie has found it necessary to make several mid-year cuts. The most visible of these is our decision to cease having a print edition of the newspaper on Fridays. Articles that would have run in the Friday issue of the newspaper will be posted online at theaggie.org. For those devoted readers of The Lineup, it will be moved to the Thursday issue.

There is a myth. And like the myth that Columbus had the intention or effect of showing that the earth was round, it is discredited, yet repeated. This myth holds that the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA), Government Sponsored Enterprises (GSEs) Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and "unnecessary government intervention" are to blame for the financial meltdown; that government forced otherwise righteous and omniscient financial institutions to make subprime loans, and then securitize, tranche, leverage and triple-A rate those loans for sale to each other.

As mine is the last opinion column that is published each week, I assumed that everyone would be sick of hearing about President Obama - man, does it feel good to see those two words together! I considered various topics, but I found I could simply not disregard this momentous occasion and what it means for every man, woman and child in this great nation. This country is going through a major change, and the American people have a new spirit as we venture into this new chapter in our history.