Opinion
No one wants to talk about cardiovascular disease around the holidays, but what better time to bring up the conversation than when you are with the people you love the most?
“I mentioned to a Dundalk native that I was falling hard for the country’s green rolling hills. He had a typically poetic Irish response, positing it was up to me to decide if the landscape was in fact ‘bleak or beautiful.’ I chose the latter.” Courier photo/Mick Rhodes
As my 60th birthday approached this week I was thinking about writing on how though I am now officially careening toward geezerdom, I still feel like a kid. But that would be a lie. I feel my age, and that’s okay.
“My union, the California Faculty Association, is preparing to go on strike. The CFA represents all 30,000 or so faculty (instructors of all ranks, counselors, librarians, and coaches) from across all 23 California State University campuses. Ninety-five percent of union members who voted on whether to authorize a strike or not said yes!”
On October 3, 1863, three months after more than 50,000 Americans died in the battle of Gettysburg, President Abraham Lincoln did a remarkable thing: he called upon the nation to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving.
“Isn’t Israel, in how it is conducting its campaign to destroy Hamas, combined with the steady stream of images of dead innocent Palestinian children flooding our social media feeds, very likely creating a far more dangerous enemy?”
“It has been challenging, sad, anger filled, fearful, and heartbreaking, all of those emotions, for the community. So many in our community have strong and deep connections to Israel, whether they lived there, are from there, or have family there, friends. All of the attention and thoughts are with the people of Israel.” Photo/courtesy of the Jewish Federation of the Greater San Gabriel and Pomona Valleys
“This last month has been traumatic for the Jewish community around the world. For many of us, the attacks on October 7th triggered painful memories of Jewish history — antisemitism, pogroms, and the Holocaust. Many of us know people (or know people who know people) who were killed or taken hostage. The Jewish people see themselves as part of an extended family, so it feels as if our family members were attacked and murdered.” Courier photo/Steven Felschundneff
The decline in local news coverage is particularly troubling. Local news plays a crucial role in informing communities about issues that directly impact their daily lives. Without access to local news, citizens may be unaware of important developments in their communities, leading to a lack of civic literacy and disengagement, and opening the door to political corruption. The Pew survey is quite sobering, especially concerning is these are not old figures, with major changes starting just seven years ago. In 2016, 51% of U.S. adults followed the news “all or most of the time.” That fell to 38% in 2022, Pew found.
The 12-word title of Mick Rhodes’ column [“Israel-Hamas war is a teaching moment, but what is the lesson?” October 13] tells you all you need to know about what’s next. This is absolutely a teaching moment. However, your difficulty in grasping the lesson results from you misunderstanding the actual teaching moment.
“The title of Mick Rhodes’ column [“Israel-Hamas war is a teaching moment, but what is the lesson?” October 13] tells you all you need to know about what’s next. This is absolutely a teaching moment. However, your difficulty in grasping the lesson results from you misunderstanding the actual teaching moment.
As the Mayor of the City of Claremont, I feel compelled to address a recent incident that has shaken our community and prompted us to take a strong stand against hate speech. During a recent City Council meeting conducted partially over Zoom, we were confronted with an egregious act of intolerance: a Zoom “bombing” that unleashed a torrent of antisemitic, racist, and homophobic comments. Such behavior is not only offensive but fundamentally contrary to the values and commitment to inclusiveness that Claremont holds dear.
At the Claremont City Council’s recent meeting, several people used remote comment to make antisemitic and racist rants. This was outrageous and justifies protective action. In response, our city manager and Mayor Ed Reece announced that remote comments via Zoom or phone will no longer be allowed at meetings. This will exclude anyone who cannot attend in person: the elderly, caregivers, those who are handicapped, parents with small children, commuters, etc.
“I was really hoping the final updated guidelines for breast cancer screening would be published before this went out, but we can’t always get what we want. The 2016 recommendations are what we have as we find ourselves in the middle of breast cancer awareness month, so I am going with it.”
How to talk about this with our kids? These are the humans we’ve raised to be kind, to “use your words,” to stand up to bullies and help the helpless. How to square those lessons with what they’re seeing and hearing from Israel and Gaza? Again, this is a privileged position, one I am grateful to be in. But it’s also an important teaching moment in American parents’ lives, one I am loathe to fumble. I write this not in retreat or to hedge, nor to resort to “bothsidesism” to avoid taking a stand. I’m not Jewish. I’m not Israeli. I’m not Muslim. I’m not Palestinian. I am human, and I am not sure about the best way forward.
by Janice Hoffman This is a dog tethered to her person on the last walk they will take together. When is life and death real and when is it abstract? […]