In a letter to the editor, a representative of the PETA Foundation takes issue with California’s decision to open salmon fisheries this spring.
Opinion from Community Voices
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
Letter to the editor: Panetta deserves our respect
In a letter to the editor, an Aptos resident pushes back on a recent op-ed’s criticisms of Rep. Jimmy Panetta.
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When home insurance fails, California’s families and communities feel the fallout
After seeing her home insurance policy not renewed because of wildfire risk, Marcella Cranford writes that homes that lose coverage can become un-mortgageable. Property values decline. Communities that stood for decades begin to be hollowed out.
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Vote for peace: Jimmy Panetta’s record supporting Israel and war is on the ballot
Local peace activists say Rep. Jimmy Panetta’s continued support for U.S. military aid to Israel has helped shield the policies of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as war spreads across the Middle East. They argue that this funding has contributed to devastating consequences in the Gaza Strip and beyond. The authors say Panetta’s record reflects a growing disconnect with constituents calling for accountability and Palestinian human rights. They urge voters to turn their concern into support for candidates who prioritize peace and to attend an April 25 forum featuring candidates running for Congress in California’s 19th District, currently represented by Panetta.
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UCSC’s college system and core courses are humanities’ best defense
UC Santa Cruz historian Kiva Silver is worried about the future of the university’s college system and the core courses at UCSC. He believes the courses, usually taken in students’ first year on campus, are essential to preserving a human-centered liberal arts education as a bulwark against AI. The courses, he writes, should not be sacrificed as the campus works to overcome a structural deficit of about $87 million. The courses and living-learning communities are part of UCSC’s original 10-college system and, he argues, foster critical thinking, belonging and the type of intellectual community that has always nurtured humanity. If students never ask “who am I?”, he writes, how will they be able to differentiate themselves from machines?
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When leniency fails: The cost of ignoring repeat violence in Santa Cruz County courts
One year after she was attacked near her home close to Wilder Ranch, Amanda Timoney has lost faith in the justice system. Repeated judicial leniency toward her attacker has left her frustrated and afraid. It has also, she argues, allowed preventable harm to continue. She says the courts repeatedly released the same person despite a pattern of violent crimes. She emphasizes that homelessness is not a crime, but contends that public safety must take priority when someone repeatedly commits violence. Here, she calls for more judicial accountability.
Posted inOpinion from Community Voices
Letter to the editor: Community Bridges affirms our neutrality in District 4 supervisor race
In a letter to the editor following the entry of Community Bridges’ marketing and communications director, Tony Nuñez, into the race for District 4 county supervisor, the nonprofit’s CEO writes that the organization will honor its longstanding commitment to neutrality among candidates.
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Steve Trujillo: Let me explain myself
In a letter to the editor, Cabrillo College trustee Steve Trujillo explains his conduct at recent meetings of the school’s governing board.
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What feminists get wrong about clickbait
Chelsey Hauge-Zavaleta spends a lot of time with clickbait. She thinks about it often, and also uses it in her viral TikTok posts about parenting. A recent meeting of the Santa Cruz Feminist Society made her question the ethics of using clickbait hooks – even if the point is to promote feminist ideas online. Here, she questions whether adopting the attention tactics of social media platforms reinforces the very systems feminists hope to resist. Used thoughtfully, she believes attention-grabbing hooks can invite deeper reflection and conversations that help parents raise critically thinking, empowered children.
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Letter to the editor: Help us recognize Metro employees
In a letter to the editor, a Santa Cruz Metro board member urges residents to share messages of appreciation for the county transit agency’s employees.