He is the creator of the unforgettable characters Ebenezer Scrooge and Oliver Twist. He crafted tales about cities and poverty. His pet bird, Grip, even inspired a famous poem by Edgar Allen Poe. He is British author Charles Dickens. He is also the first global celebrity author, and Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2012 marks his 200th birthday. During [...]

The Congressional Digital Research Collection is a database that includes comprehensive coverage of Congressional Research Service reports from 2004 to present. The Congressional Research Service (CRS) is a legislative branch agency that conducts policy research for members of Congress. Reports are prepared by nationally recognized experts on a wide variety of topics. The LexisNexis Congressional [...]

When federal circuit courts are divided in their opinions an issue may be “ripe” for review and taken up by the U.S. Supreme Court.  This also means the issue might be a great subject for legal research or publication.  Until fairly recently, if you wanted to track splits of opinion in the federal circuit courts [...]

Seattle’s snowpocalpyse was a breeze compared to the lethal cold snap Europe is dealing with. Temperatures as low as -33 degrees Fahrenheit have taken more than 200 lives in central and eastern Europe since the cold front began more than a week ago, according to BBC News. Today, BBC News reported that 131 people have frozen to [...]

TV sets look forward to one Sunday in particular every year. It is the day they feel the most love. Super Bowl Sunday. For one reason or another, America loves the Super Bowl. But why? What is so enticing about hours of stop and go ball playing? What makes this day a day to be in front [...]

As states continue to look for money, it appears that Washington has come up with a plan that may soon come into effect. According to KOMO News, Lawmakers are currently contemplating a plan to make residents of Oregon pay sales tax when they shop in the state of Washington.  Usually, Oregonians can show businesses in Washington [...]

Watch the journey of one of America’s most influential black leaders, Malcolm X. Directed by Spike Lee, this is the film dramatization of Malcolm X’s life, played by Denzel Washington, from a criminal life to civil rights leader through his religious conversion to Islam.

SU Students, The Spectator wants your hot n’ steamy anonymous love letters so we can print them in next week’s Valentine’s Day issue. Please submit your anonymous love letters to collection boxes at Spectator stands in the 2nd Floor of the Student Center, Campion, Bellarmine, Chardin, Xavier and The Murphy offices. You may also submit your [...]

The Seattle Times reports that Rep. Joe Fitzgibbon, D-Burien, is working to remove a law from 1951 that penalizes subversive people and organizations. The law was part of Washington’s un-American activities committee led by late state Rep. Albert Canwell, R-Spokane. Read the full article here. Read the text of the bill here.

For Senator Debbie Regala the vote represented the next shift in the institution of marriage. For her, the approval of same-sex marriage by the senate only showed that marriage is a static institution as exemplified by the passage of interracial marriage – a vote that allowed her husband and her to marry. Now Regala waits for the [...]