Dan Coonan: what's important to me

One of Kim Kardashian's latest tweets reads: "I just ate breakfast & read LA Confidential magazine! I saw my column Confidentially Kim, it turned out GREAT!" While viewing her Twitter page, I don't know what was worse: seeing her background made up of a collage of countless pictures of her scantily-clad self, reading her insignificant tweet on what she had for lunch or noting that she currently has two and a half million followers.

As Santa Clara students enter week four of the fall quarter, anxiety is high and tension is in the air.

President Barack Obama went to bed Thursday knowing NASA would crash a module into the moon's surface in the middle of the night. He woke up Friday morning to hear that another event rocked the world while America slept.

Why is there not a Nobel Prize for sports? In a world coming together more and more through globalization, it's important to recognize the profound impact that sports has on us as a global culture.

I voted for Barack Obama due to his fine oratory skills, his distinct juxtaposition to President Bush and his message of hope. Like most Americans, I am not terribly impressed by what the man has done yet, but more by what he could do. It seems that the Nobel Committee has done the same thing. And while I still have faith in the man, he has not yet done anything worthy of earning the Nobel Peace Prize.

When you have someone's social security number, you have access to their entire life. Financial records, family history, employer information and medical records are some of the main areas where you can retrieve information. If you wanted, you could find out the name of their second grade teacher. It's fascinating how a simple nine-digit number can provide a wealth of information and essentially define a good portion of that person's life.

To celebrate National Coming Out Day which was on October 11, SCCAP organizations teamed up to encourage students to "come out of the closet", whether it be in regard to sexuality or another aspect of their life they may feel the need to conceal.

The San Jose Earthquakes of Major League Soccer wrapped up their 2009 home schedule at Buck Shaw Stadium Oct. 7 with a 2-1 defeat to FC Dallas. The loss ended a season-high four game unbeaten streak.

Nickelback may be one of the most important bands of our time. I know it may not seem that there are many good arguments to support this statement, but I encourage all of you to keep an open mind. The few reasons that do exist should be enough to convince you that allowing Nickelback to continue playing their music is a good thing.

Rain didn't deter an unexpected number of guests from attending an evening honoring Francisco Jiménez, the Fay Boyle professor of modern languages and literatures.

For the past couple of days, my ears have been ringing with the relentless banter of upset citizens who feel disappointed and even outraged at the fact that Obama has won the highly coveted Nobel Peace Prize. I get it: Obama has only been in office for a good nine months, which is too little time to make any significant changes in this damaged country. And according to CNN, he was nominated for this prize just 12 days after his inauguration.

Santa Clara my have earned a "B" on the Sustainability Report Card, but the new composting program has yet to make the grade.

With his laid back melodies and artful lyrics, sophomore Austin Pidgeon has gained a loyal following.

Although only three years old, the Santa Clara club ice hockey team has spread interest throughout the university. According to senior defender and Co-President Charlie Clark, the team has grown minimally in size, but largely in reputation.

It is the fourth most popular alternative sport in the United States. It is played in 105 countries, and 104 colleges have a team. Santa Clara has a team -- a really good team.

Balcony safety measures are sensible