A view of the sky on Sept. 9, 2020, from a home in Berkeley.(Photo: Eric Furth)The sky was rust-colored, ashy, Blade Runner-esque, the result of northern state wildfires that had drifted for days into the Bay Area. It was Sept. 9, 2020 in south Berkeley. Six months into the pandemic, the joy of simply walking outside and escaping domestic confinement was suddenly stripped away.
Police officers on the street providing security during a parade in downtown Los Angeles. (Photo: Beto Rodrigues, via Shutterstock)OPINION: No one wants to see bad officers removed from law enforcement more than good officers do. When officers act in a way that is grossly inconsistent with the missions and goals of our profession, it only harms our ability to build trust between officers and the communities they have sworn to serve.
Graduation ceremonies, pre-pandemic, at Santa Monica City College. (Photo: Joseph Sohm, via Shutterstock)OPINION: The COVID-19 pandemic has taught us the hard way that too many Californians face barriers to opportunity. As California looks to recover, it’s time to reexamine our old institutions and programs to determine if they meet today’s needs and serve residents as intended. One such program in need of reform is the Cal Grant system.
A student in class during the pandemic. (Photo: Siday Productions, via Shutterstock)PPIC: One year after the state’s schools halted in-person learning due to COVID-19, more than eight in ten Californians think children are falling behind academically during the pandemic. Most Californians approve of how Gov. Newsom is handling the state’s K–12 public education system, though six in ten are concerned that California’s K–12 schools will not be open for full-time in-person instruction this fall.
The Harbor Freeway at rush hour in Los Angeles. (Photo: Joseph Sohm, via Shutterstock) OPINION: The California Department of Insurance, having identified a disparity, has established a worthy goal of expanding auto insurance discounts to more low-income consumers and communities of color. But as it pursues that goal, the department must keep in mind a foundational principle in healing problems: Do no harm.
Workers install solar panels on a southern California home. (Photo: Joseph Sohm, via Shutterstock)OPINION: All Californians deserve not only a clean energy future, but assurance that the programs we invest in will achieve this goal equitably and at the least possible cost. This is particularly important for seniors living on a fixed income and working families already struggling to make ends meet.cThis is why it is critical that reforms are made to the state’s rooftop solar subsidy program called Net Energy Metering (NEM).
An illustration of cloud computer linkages over L.A. at night. (Photo: TierneyCJ, via Shutterstock)OPINION: COVID-19 has tested our mettle and shined a light on long-held systematic deficiencies, forcing a re-prioritization of our “policy to-do list. “While the lack of equitable broadband accesshas served as a barrier to innovation, opportunity and connection among Californians for more than two decades, this inequity has caused more harm in one year of a pandemic than in the previous 25.
A hospital patient experiencing pain . (Photo: jeep5d, via Shutterstock)OPINION: Although science and innovation are the cornerstones of the California economy, patients living with chronic pain have been largely left behind when it comes to significant medical breakthroughs. Beyond opioids, which can be effective but are also addictive, the choices that patients have available to treat pain remain limited to non-clinical options that only provide so much relief.
A view of the east side of the state Capitol in Sacramento. (Photo: ZikG, via Shutterstock)OPINION: As legislators reconvened this month, they returned to a relatively empty Capitol building. Why, then, are they pursuing a $1.3 billion Capitol Annex “renovation” project? Cognitive dissonance is the most charitable explanation I can conjure for this costly boondoggle proceeding amidst the COVID-induced economic disaster that’s destroying the lives of Californians and plunging countless in the state into poverty
A check-cashing outlet in Los Angeles, often used by low-income families. (Photo: image_vulture, via Shutterstock)A solid majority of Californians say children growing up in the state today will be worse off financially than their parents, while more than two-thirds say the gap between rich and poor is widening. In the past year, more than four in ten households with annual incomes below $40,000 had work hours or pay reduced, and an equal share had to cut back on food.