Africa, graveyard of hope
Rick Martinez:Confronting the nuclear ambitions of North Korea and Iran is relatively easy compared to solving the chronic poverty, disease, civil war and corruption that envelop too much of the world's second-largest continent.
A barrier to fixing the border
Rick Martinez:Any time an intellectual argument comes up against an emotional one, bet on the heart beating out the brain.
Scooting along with downtown Savanna
Rick Martinez:Be careful what you say around 10-year-old Savanna Nelson. The kid takes just about everything literally. And you can't fool her with words or concepts she doesn't know.
Lien on them? Sure
Rick Martinez:The law and the hospital bill.
Art should light up the Triangle
Rick Martinez:Since the establishment of the Research Triangle Park more than 50 years ago, the Triangle region has become a great place to work. But the unwillingness of local leaders to think outside the Triangle, so to speak, has left the area culturally just a so-so place to live.
We should be ashamed
Rick Martinez:Winston-Salem is thinking of launching its own version of reality television. The show would be called "John-TV" dedicated to broadcasting photos of men and women arrested for prostitution-related crimes. Think of it as sort of a "Larry Kin
Enrolling efficiency on campus
Rick Martinez:I'm glad Erskine Bowles isn't my U.S. senator. He's much more valuable to the state as the president of the University of North Carolina system.
Cheer on the Devils - and no losses yet!
Rick Martinez:It's bowl time, baby! Tonight, Richmond and Duke will be playing for the Wallace Wade Bowl college football championship. Kickoff is at 6 p.m. Based on precedent, plenty of tickets will be available.
Refresh our strategy in Iraq
Rick Martinez:The United States has now been waging the war in Iraq for as long as it was engaged in Europe during World War II.
Our chance to rethink mass transit
Rick Martinez:The greatest benefit emerging from the Triangle Transit Authority's admission that its dog of a regional rail system won't be able to hunt down federal dollars is that mass transit will once again be a locally determined issue.
Shrinking cell phones signal even more annoyance
Rick Martinez:Gov. Mike Easley has signed a bill that prohibits teenagers under 18 from operating a vehicle and a cell phone at the same time. Great, but the law doesn't go far enough.
Schooled by the feedback
Rick Martinez:Now I know what some teachers did on their summer vacation: they took me to task for columns I wrote on how they should be doing their jobs.
