We had a shoplifter at our store just waltz out with a bag of chips, a peach (that he was eating) and a bottle of whiskey. I demanded the items back, he raised the bottle with “come and get it”. Now, my work has a strict no-physical-confrontation policy and I don’t want to risk getting fired. I told him that I just wanted the items back or I’d call the police. “Go ahead and call the police”, he said, and continued walking away. So I called Mesa’s non-emergency number and explained what was going on.

Buzz words such as “subsidies” and “loopholes” have been thrown around by politicians for decades. If you’re seeking to impose punitive financial policies, these words are certainly more appealing than terms like “tax” or “penalty.” The Obama Administration is currently pursuing tax increases on the oil and gas industry under the guise of ending accounting loopholes.

“Is the SRP monopoly spending thousands of advertising dollars (consumer electrical power payments) to promote SRP or to promote Mayor Scott Smith’s run for governor?”

America has always made a commitment to putting a good education within reach of anyone who is willing to work for it. The promise of a good education for everyone is part of what makes America great. As a person who works in the high tech industry, I am deeply committed and concerned about the success of all students.

School districts in the East Valley are working the numbers to figure how much they will have to pay utilities, pay teachers next year or spend on textbooks.

After years in the doldrums, the housing market appears back on track. Home sales and prices are up, and mortgage rates remain near historic lows, reinvigorating the appeal of home ownership.

American oil producers are in the crosshairs of the Obama Administration once again, this time the president is promising to force the Big 5 oil companies to pay their “fair share.” This begs the question: Who gets to decide who’s not paying enough? Who gets to decide which American taxpayers or businesses need to pay more?

At one time, the community of Gilbert had a great reputation. It had great schools and a proud economic future that led to Gilbert being one of the best communities to live in in the United States.

Selling your first home in a buyers’ market? You can get the best possible price if you know how to negotiate.

My mother submitted a letter to the editor back in 2003.

The plan to build a new 500 bed maximum-security prison is bad public policy and bad economics for Arizona. Every other state is downsizing or closing maximum security prisons because they have learned that they are inefficient (they cost much more than regular prisons) and they are ineffective (they cause more problems including violence and mental health issues).

Which one would be more hypocritical:

I am constantly amazed by how difficult it is for so many Americans to add two-plus-two and come up with four, and who continue to vote against their own economic self-interest. The facts are out there if they would only take a moment to consider the facts!

For most hitters a mistake pitch is something up and over the plate.

“Despicable, unconstitutional, ridiculous, immature, idiotic, and mendacious.” And that’s just how Tennessee newspapers characterized the state’s “ag-gag” bill now awaiting governor’s signature.

The Draft Environmental Impact Study (DEIS) for the South Mountain Freeway was released on April 26, but as the Arizona Department of Transportation (ADOT) continues to study putting the freeway down Pecos Road a group of Gila River Indian Community Landowners are stuck waiting for answers as their initiative — which could make it possible for the freeway to go on tribal land — is stalled by the Tribal Council.

So President Obama wants to end so-called “tax loopholes” for American oil and gas companies? Sounds like a good idea, until you learn that what the president is really asking. The “Close the Big Oil Tax Loopholes Act” essentially asks American taxpayers and businesses to shoulder the economic brunt of the Administration’s ambitious green energy objectives.

The fight to expand Medicaid in Arizona continues as Gov. Brewer pushes the Legislature to pursue legislation to expand coverage to include folks up to 133 percent of poverty guidelines.

As “Opponents of Brewer’s Medicaid plan speak out” it rapidly becomes obvious that they are obsessed with forcing their personal, misguided value systems on we citizens.

Any chance of cities or counties conducting future gun-buyback programs is about to evaporate.

I find it so routine, the negative comments regarding the recent “Mirandizing” letter to the editor. The comments as to which TV news reporting agency is the most biased is a banal and moot point which will never be put to rest. As are the comments about watching Law & Order, et al. Those readers have missed the issue; why isn’t the ‘suspected’ bomber being adjudicated as a terrorist instead of a poor Islamic refugee who enjoys blowing up his fellow citizens in the name of Allah? And yes, the shoe bomber was 2001; and again the issue was missed. That of, “Did the government learn nothing from it?” I sense people suffering political shame.

Apache Junction youngsters had the chance to see the Arizona Supreme Court in action live in their own community Tuesday, when the state’s high court held court on campus at Apache Junction High School.

Horrible, the loss of three innocent lives in the Boston bombing! Then what word could one use to express the fact that between 158,000 and 202,000 civilians have died as a result of the ongoing conflicts in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan? It is understandable that the attack in Boston is a national tragedy for the United States. Our sympathies and prayers go out to the victims. But why is it that the loss of innocent lives in the Middle East has been hardly worthy of a second thought, if any, on our part?

The Governor’s plan to add more than 300,000 Arizonans to the Medicaid rolls will do nothing more than facilitate and expand ObamaCare. Voters clearly expressed their will to reject implementation of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) via Proposition 106 in 2010. If this expansion goes through, nearly one fourth of all Arizonans will receive free taxpayer-paid medical care. This isn’t a ”safety net” for the poorest citizens. It is an incentive program for socialized medicine.