Opinion

“This week marks 10 years for me here at the Claremont Courier. Over that time I’ve written hundreds of columns, hundreds more stories and obituaries, edited more than 10,000 individual bits of writing, and consumed a metric ton of coffee. I was 52, sweaty, and a little nervous when I wrote my first Courier story about the Webb Schools’ Alf Museum in March 2016. I’d been away from journalism for 22 years, but muscle memory kicked in and I managed a passable if overly verbose bit of fluff. It was far from memorable, but it was a start.”

“When I heard the publisher of the Minneapolis Star Tribune was speaking this week at Claremont McKenna College, I jumped at the chance to attend. I spent eight years in the Twin Cities working at the St. Paul Pioneer Press, competing directly with the Star Tribune — often referred to locally as the Strib — one of the largest and most influential newspapers in the Midwest.”

by Lynn Forester In 1979, President Jimmy Carter addressed the country regarding the growing trend of individuals and institutions pursuing their own interests at the expense of others. “I want to talk to you right now about a fundamental threat to American democracy,” he said. “It is a crisis of confidence. It is a crisis that […]

“If you love trains, you understand the big difference between knowing a train is due soon and actually seeing the massive engine rounding the bend. For months or even years, artificial intelligence experts have told us to prepare for the arrival of an AI that builds ever more powerful versions of itself. Well, now it’s in sight, horn blaring and ground shaking.”

“After more than four years, the day has arrived: Larkin Place, the much debated 32-unit permanent supportive housing facility for formerly homeless people with special needs is complete. On March 11 Larkin Place’s owner Jamboree Housing will host an invite only grand opening for  mucky-mucks from the state, county, city, and supportive housing community and cut the ribbon at 731 Harrison Ave.”

Claremont High School’s Theatre Department’s mid-year show, “Six” (teen edition), written by Toby Marlow and Lucy Moss, is essentially a 90-minute rap showdown. It is performed without an intermission and with minimal props between the six wives of Henry VIII competing to see who had the worst time in their marriage, and ultimately reclaiming their own stories and identities. It is often funny and sometimes risqué as the queens, who never actually met, compare notes on putting up with the tempestuous, jealous, demanding and, at least later in life, not-so-attractive monarch.

“I know some of the kids who protested February 4 and why they were there. They have the same concerns we do; they stand against what the Trump administration is doing to our immigrant neighbors and those who are putting their bodies, livelihoods, and reputations on the line to protect them and document the abuses. Further, the Claremont kids are part of a long line — a grand tradition even — of American high school student protesters who have been maligned by adults as insignificant and unserious, unworthy of anything but derision and often, violence.”

“We have all heard of ‘Letter from Birmingham Jail,’ Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s 1963 letter written while he was in jail for participating in nonviolent acts of civil disobedience. But have we ever taken the time to read the whole thing? It is long. MLK acknowledges as much at the end. But it is brilliant. It is a treatise on civil disobedience. It is passionate, but clear headed. As you read it, ask yourself, is Dr. King writing to me? It makes me yearn for such leadership now. And it is free on the internet.” Photo/courtesy of Micheal Avedon

“Here’s the uncomfortable truth: when a newsroom as storied and resourced as The Washington Post takes an axe to sports, books, and foreign coverage, it’s not just “another media layoff story”; it’s an admission that the old package — big footprint, broad coverage, high fixed costs — is getting harder to sustain even for brands with national reach, deep talent benches, and billionaire ownership. And the Post is not alone in wrestling with the same set of structural forces.”

“Though these horrific killings — some have called them executions — took place in Minneapolis, we are all in mourning. Many people turn to their faith in times like these. Here in Claremont and the surrounding communities, religious leaders are feeling their congregations’ pain, and some are mobilizing to be of service to our immigrant neighbors.”

Two Minnesotans are dead after encounters involving federal immigration enforcement, and the country is watching a familiar pattern unfold: what people can see on video versus what officials say happened. On January 7, 37-year-old mother Renee Nicole Macklin Good was shot and killed by ICE agents. On the 24th, ICE agents shot and killed ICU nurse Alexander “Alex” Pretti, also 37 (above). Those are facts. The deeper issue is what followed: a tug-of-war over reality itself. Photo/Wikimedia Commons

My interest in loss and grief began soon after my marriage disintegrated in 2013. A “conscious uncoupling” it wasn’t; it was ugly, and a heartbreaking by-product was an intensely strained relationship with my middle daughter, who was 11 at the time.