Opinion

The world witnessed twin milestones last year. Barack Obama was elected the first African-American president in the history of the United States and, for the first time, over one-half of the world's population lived in the city.

If all goes according to plan, Elizabeth Watkins will graduate at the end of spring quarter with a degree in studio art. It will have been her fourth year as a transfer student at UC Irvine and her seventh as an undergraduate. Along with her degree, Watkins will also walk off stage with a $6,000 student loan. In many ways, at first glance, she is lucky...

If you drove to a local elementary school, the kids you would be staring at are the first generation of children expected to die at a younger age than their parents. Medical technology is quickly advancing every year, but remains unable to counteract the growth in American waistbands. Rising trends in obesity and a lack of exercise are predicted to decrease the American lifespan.

Interrogations, temporary detainment or warm welcomes. Sometimes you can decide your form of reception, though it often comes down to repressing one identity in favor of another. The selective use of a passport from multiple choices, for those able to obtain more than one, may be a matter of self-identification, depending on the circumstance and the location. For many living in the era of transnational terrorism, the process of traveling has become as much a matter of security as racial profiling. In some places, they are one and the same.

Fox News scores douchebag of the week; United States to begin pursuing foreign policy involving actual diplomacy?

Boxer tries to cheat; internet entrepreneur writes bull castration memoir; internets fraudster gets off, 'cause of "the insanity"; UCSB archeology student discovers pygmy mammoth tusk.

We all get those pesky e-mails at the end of the quarter that remind us to fill out five different faculty evaluations for our professors and teaching assistants. And frankly, a lot of us don't. As a result, a great flurry of e-mails collect in our inbox, many rife with exclamation points reading, "Window Closing!" However, with a couple clicks of the delete button, we continue on our way with final papers and exams. For a moment, imagine that your professors anxiously await your feedback. They're not just pleasantly interested; they are twiddling their thumbs in excited anticipation to read what you write about them. Why, you might ask? Perhaps they are motivated by a personal desire to improve their teaching skills. Now, add the additional motivation of a $10,000 bonus...

Ann Coulter; Russian gas; Czechs.

Chesley B. "Sully" Sullenberger III is full of win; California Legislature full of fail; English bulldogs to get makeover?; Spike.com impales self; American voters finally not full of fail.

Is California the golden paradise it once was? Would the state that at one time had the eighth largest economy in the world be lucky to have just the eighth largest state economy in the United States? Should you even be living here anymore?

When I look into the eyes of a dog dressed in a princess outfit complete with tiara and who calls Paris Hilton's handbag a home, all I can think of is how desperately that animal must seek the sweet embrace of death. Sure, it is supremely groomed and fed on a budget the common working-class citizen cannot make in a year, but money never brings happiness. A dressed pooch is essentially the most miserable breed of dog. Finally, our British friends across the pond are setting an excellent example for how to conduct ourselves.

They're everywhere. No matter how hard we try to avoid them, we just can't. "Twilight" author Stephenie Meyer's Edward Cullen and J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter are all over our Facebook walls, newsfeeds, quizzes, groups and bumper stickers. Especially those damn bumper stickers...