Opinion

Memo from Rev. Mathews-Johnson While I was growing up, whenever we moved—which was often in those days because my dad was a Navy officer—my mother would find a job at the local United Methodist Church in our new town playing the organ and piano.  As...

Every year around this time, choirs perform Handel’s Messiah (including in my own congregation). What is it about a piece of music written 260 years ago that still captures hearts today––in fact, especially today, as we endure our long, strange journey through the pandemic...

The City of Watsonville received a presentation from the Regional Transportation Commission (RTC) at our council meeting on Oct. 23 regarding the Draft Unified Corridor Investment Study (UCIS).

Homelessness remains one of the most pressing social issues of our time, particularly in communities like Watsonville.  The latest 2024 Point-In-Time (PIT) count shows that Santa Cruz County has maintained gains from the previous year, recording the lowest number of people experiencing homelessness since counting...

Letters to the Editor, June 15, 2018

Since the 1960s, the U.S. has become a more inclusive country. This necessarily meant that white men lost some part of their privileged positions in education, employment and entertainment. By the 2000s, in the wake of the “Black Lives Matter” movement, anti-racism books were on...

It is widely accepted that our dependency on automobiles is a potent contributor to the climate crisis. What is not so well understood is how auto dependency initiated a new phenomenon: transportation poverty.  Prior to the automobile revolution, walking was how both rich and poor...

Letter to the Editor, Feb. 20, 2018

Immigration reform bill needed in the Build Back Better bill We have a once-in-a-generation opportunity to make life better for America’s families and boost our economy. Whether you have small kids or elderly family members, the positive impact of the Build Back Better Act will...