Opinion
“Christy loved intensely. If you were in her circle, she had your back. She always had mine, and I hers. She gave the most frank, clear-eyed advice. She was there for me through every trauma and triumph, and I for hers. She was my first call for 38 years and knew everything about me. I like to think I knew her as completely.”
“After more than two years of working diligently as our advertising director, Anna Hoy has been named the first-ever general manager of the Claremont Courier. Yes, she will continue to sell advertising, but she will also partner with me to help keep the Courier publishing.”
Hamza El Lahib’s decision to join student government at Citrus College was spontaneous. After graduating early from Claremont High School — while simultaneously finishing his first year of college, thanks to dual enrollment — he overheard a classmate talking about the Associated Students of Citrus College. “I’ve always had a desire to be active in local government,” Hamza said. “Once I heard more about ASCC, I knew attending college meetings and representing student interests was the type of civic engagement I had always been interested in.” Photo/courtesy of Citrus College
“How about this for a New Year’s resolution: don’t let anyone steal your money. Simple as it sounds, avoiding financial scams gets more challenging by the day. Our electronic financial lives create a bonanza of opportunity for bad actors to separate us from our cash. The scams get ever more clever and sophisticated, with AI opening still new avenues of fraud.”
“The hardest discipline, especially now, is resisting the urge to declare truth before it exists. That patience — demanding facts, waiting for verification, and accepting uncertainty — may be the most important civic act left to us.”
“OK 2026, how about a heads-up about what’s to come? You must have some insider info, right, being the new year and all? What do you mean it doesn’t work that way? Look, it’s crazy out here. The norms don’t apply. Is there anything you can do for us? Speak up, love thy neighbor, and vote? That’s all you have? Actually, that’s pretty good advice.”
“Hope you all had a merry and jolly holiday and New Year’s celebration. I’ve written numerous times about the lengthy and costly production process behind publishing a newspaper. As we enter the new year, here’s a brief roundup of the people who actually make the Claremont Courier happen …”
“Suffering doesn’t have to shut us down. We can be in crisis and still do good work. We can be in mourning and still help. In fact, any act of service or kindness works to mend our sorrow, even if only for that moment. It all matters; even the smallest action propels hope forward for us and the people it impacts.”
“It’s been a challenging year for fact-based journalism as misinformation continued to spread at both the national and local levels. For the Courier, that meant chasing stories that affected Claremont but originated elsewhere, forcing us to localize broader national issues for our readers.”
“To be honest, my stridently godless stance has become a drag. I used to align with boorish atheists like Bill Maher, and the late Christopher Hitchens. I felt smug along right along with them. I don’t feel that way anymore. Being holier than thou about not being religious just feels like a bad fit for this aging white dude, like skinny jeans.”
by Dr. Paula Izvernari As a dentist in Montclair, I have heard the same heartbreaking story from too many Latino parents. Their child wakes up crying from a toothache, unable to eat, sleep, or concentrate at school. In desperation, families spend days calling clinics, only to hear that the office doesn’t accept Medi-Cal or that […]
According to a recent Los Angeles Police Department news release, there has been a disturbing rise in “distraction thefts,” where thieves steal valuables through a sleight-of-hand trick.
“As we were saying goodbye it occurred to me once again that my version of contentment, safety, and happiness does not apply to anyone else. When we first met, I was on a crusade to get Cash healthy and housed. He had other ideas. I didn’t understand it then, but I do now. My version of his happiness was an invention of my own making. Who was I to try to convince him I was right?”
“I walked away encouraged. I’m not saying I wasn’t still seething with anger — I don’t see that changing as long as Trump’s in office — but spending an hour listening to two guys disagree on most things without resorting to insults was refreshing. It wasn’t hope, but it was glimmer of something like that, and that’s a welcome something to be cherished in today’s gruesome political hothouse.”
by Drew Ready, Char Miller, and Fred Roth It is vital to acknowledge the trauma and fear that recent windstorms and wildfire events have generated in Claremont. The instinct to protect our families, homes, and neighbors is universal. However, the recent call to preemptively remove 207 pines in Claraboya — based on the fear that […]
“As we pulled up to the restaurant there he was: ‘The Corral Kid’ in all his cartoonish cowboy glory, just as I remembered him. A good sign! Stepping inside, I was overwhelmed by an orgy of 1970s kitsch; the chuck wagon, the western paraphernalia — rifles, lassos, posters, old-timey lamps, steer horns, horseshoes, and various farm implements — all remained. It appeared largely unchanged from its 1965 beginnings. I could not believe what I was seeing. It was the best kind of flashback.”