Recently deceased former Mercury News journalist Phil Trounstine was a luminary journalist in a bygone era. Trounstine was a consummate professional, a cynical curmudgeon, fastidious, inquisitive, and a damn good writer. He was never intimidated by power and when he was wrong, he could good laugh at his own humanity. Trounstine thrived in the seemingly...
Sandoval: Volunteering means so much more than giving time
Homelessness is the issue of our time and PATH has been focused on addressing the issues from all fronts. From public policy, community engagement, and diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives, we are working to address the systemic causes and bring more solutions to the communities we serve. And we couldn’t do this work alone. We...
Shaw: Sunnyvale shelter donation policy makes no sense
Pasta. It’s what’s for dinner, and lunch and would be for breakfast, if hot breakfast was ever served at the Sunnyvale shelter. Eating pasta 45 times within a 30-day period has to eventually cause some negative health effects. It’s cheap, easy to prepare and serves a lot of people. Understood. What I can’t understand, is...
Zimmerman: The importance of environmental literacy
For decades, educators and legislators have failed students regarding environmental education. California’s Environmental Literacy Task Force noted in 2015 that, “K-12 students in California do not currently have consistent access to adequately funded, high-quality learning experiences, in and out of the classroom, that build environmental literacy.” The lack of education on climate change, and the...
Dewan: School COVID-19 vaccine mandate timeline delayed
With the current school year nearly over, many parents and community members have been asking about the status of the COVID-19 vaccine mandate announced last year for school children. The state of California had previously announced plans to require the COVID-19 vaccine for children to attend school sometime after the FDA fully approves the vaccine....
Kianerci: Will the real Sajid Khan please stand up?
As a career prosecutor, I have seen many people change their stories. Usually, I see it in court. Career public defender Sajid Khan, who is running for DA, is changing his story by deleting many of his personal blog posts. What these recovered posts reveal, in my personal opinion, is that Sajid is unfit to...
Silver Taube: The good, the bad and the ugly—some propositions and bills to look out for
A few years ago, the demand for $15 an hour was dismissed as unimaginable pie in the sky. Spearheaded by fast-food workers and a remarkable campaign punctuated by strikes, walkouts, media, lawsuits and brave worker leaders, and led by the Fight for $15 and a union, $15 an hour went from laughable to viable. On...
Roosta: Will San Jose champion gender equality, or turn its back against women?
San Jose made history on Dec. 19, 2017 as the first city in Santa Clara County that unanimously approved an ordinance recognizing the UN’s Convention on the Elimination of All forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), also known as the Women’s Bill of Rights. Following the successful passage of the CEDAW ordinance, San Jose once...
Bramson: A housing plan without a future
A few weeks ago, I was on a call with an elderly woman from Honolulu. She had lived in Hawaii her entire life, but her husband had recently died and due to a set of really terrible circumstances near the end of his life, almost all of their entire life savings had been depleted. With...
Philbrick: Driving autism acceptance—not just awareness—in April
Most of us know someone with autism, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows 1 in 44 children has been identified with an autism spectrum disorder. Individuals with autism face hurdles in opportunities and support when it comes to education, employment, housing, health care and—you guessed it—transportation. How can we make transportation equitable and...