L.A. Times - Points West | Steve Lopez

Serenade in the key of glee

Sun, 12 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Steve Lopez takes Nathaniel Anthony Ayers to San Francisco, where he is honored for helping decrease the stigma of mental illness.

He was so eager to make the trip, he called several times to make sure it hadn't been canceled.

Michael Jackson's memorial was not our proudest moment

Wed, 8 Jul 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Everyone -- including the media and myriad opportunists -- sought to cash in on the death of the pop star, with scant mention of the scandals that tainted his legacy.

I got to Staples Center some time after the parade of Ringling Bros. elephants and just before a bikini-clad woman who held aloft a sign that said, "Go Vegetarian for the Man in the Mirror." I suppose it goes without saying that not all memorial services draw the same crowd.

Lives change when determination joins a desire to help

Sun, 28 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Relatives and strangers have a hand in bringing a young burn victim from Zimbabwe to Los Angeles for treatment.

Here's one of those small-world stories, the kind that shrink the world down to a village and give you a little faith in the power of goodwill.

Student's video puts school cuts on personal level

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0700

David Vera took up an L.A. school board member's challenge, using images to portray the harm caused by slashed budgets. Education advocates hope his work gets a wide audience.

David Vera, 18, has his young heart set on becoming a film editor or an actor. So the challenge posted on the door of his film arts class at Monroe High School in the San Fernando Valley held obvious appeal.

Student's video puts school cuts on personal level

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0700

L.A's mayor getting schooled

Wed, 24 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Teachers at eight of the 10 L.A. Unified schools run by Villaraigosa's team give him a resounding thumbs down.

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has had a rough enough week. First he took a beating in a poll on his performance, and then, his star tarnished, he announced he would take a rain check on a run for governor.

Antonio Villaraigosa has himself to blame in bowing out

Mon, 22 Jun 2009 14:58:00 -0700

Right now, he knows he can't win, given all the self-inflicted damage he's done.

Of course L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said no to a run for governor.

Adventures in endoscopy and fatherhood: lots of reasons to celebrate

Sun, 21 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0700

The nurses came and grabbed my gurney, wheeling me toward a grim date with a doctor whose specialty is one I wouldn't have chosen.

The case of the vanishing horse

Thu, 18 Jun 2009 00:00:00 -0700

My colleague George Skelton is on a break today, and I'm a last-minute fill-in, which gives me a chance to clear a few things off my desk, beginning with the mysterious story of a missing horse.

What's triggering gun sales?

Tue, 16 Jun 2009 21:07:00 -0700

Columnist Steve Lopez visits gun shop owners in Riverside and Corona to discuss their booming business.

The gun crowd has a saying: Guns don't kill; people do.