Unfinished bullet train will be monument to state’s hubris
“Sticking with bullet train fiasco a bad look for Democrats” (Jan. 10): As the three-hour Los Angeles to San Francsco bullet train ride was always a pipe dream, why not call it for what is really is: a commuter line from affordable housing options in the Central Valley to our major metropolitan areas. Position it […]
![We all knew a Republican Party sweep at the federal ballot box could mean big changes for the country, but reality feels a bit different when it’s just a few days away. Residents, businesses, community organizations, government agencies and elected officials are all waiting on pins and needles to figure out exactly what the Trump […]](https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/SUT-L-TRV-2024-23.jpg?w=398 "We all knew a Republican Party sweep at the federal ballot box could mean big changes for the country, but reality feels a bit different when it’s just a few days away. Residents, businesses, community organizations, government agencies and elected officials are all waiting on pins and needles to figure out exactly what the Trump […]")
![Everyone wants to feel better, live longer and enhance their overall wellness. What many don’t realize is that one of the keys to doing these things may be found in what you drink if you are consuming alcohol. We live in a society where millions are spent on ads to influence people to drink alcohol, and […]](https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/LDN-L-DODGERS-FANS-1031-KB03.jpg?w=399 "Everyone wants to feel better, live longer and enhance their overall wellness. What many don’t realize is that one of the keys to doing these things may be found in what you drink if you are consuming alcohol. We live in a society where millions are spent on ads to influence people to drink alcohol, and […]")
![Re “Don’t believe misconceptions about rodeo. It unites people with shared values.” (Jan. 3): As someone with firsthand rodeo experience, I applaud the animal welfare standards upheld by the San Diego Rodeo and can attest to the care that goes into keeping these animals safe. The City Council’s yearlong review of rodeos has demonstrated the […]](https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/SUT-L-Petco-Rodeo-4.jpg?w=365 "Re “Don’t believe misconceptions about rodeo. It unites people with shared values.” (Jan. 3): As someone with firsthand rodeo experience, I applaud the animal welfare standards upheld by the San Diego Rodeo and can attest to the care that goes into keeping these animals safe. The City Council’s yearlong review of rodeos has demonstrated the […]")
![Rebuilding Los Angeles will require at least 50,000 new construction workers. Meanwhile, at least half of workers in the building trades are Hispanic, many with questionable immigration status. President-elect Trump wants to start a massive deportation effort, which will vastly reduce the number of our workforce who actually build things. Instead of deporting people, we […]](https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/IDB-L-A2-HOTEL-0108-DA.jpg?w=400 "Rebuilding Los Angeles will require at least 50,000 new construction workers. Meanwhile, at least half of workers in the building trades are Hispanic, many with questionable immigration status. President-elect Trump wants to start a massive deportation effort, which will vastly reduce the number of our workforce who actually build things. Instead of deporting people, we […]")
![Like so many people across the county, I am facing the rising cost of food, housing and everyday living, which brings a lot of uncertainty, doubt and concern. After a tough election where everyone picked sides, each believing theirs was right and the other wrong, many of us continue to struggle, holding onto the hope […]](https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/SUT-L-LEMONGROVE-COUNCIL_0011.jpg?w=397 "Like so many people across the county, I am facing the rising cost of food, housing and everyday living, which brings a lot of uncertainty, doubt and concern. After a tough election where everyone picked sides, each believing theirs was right and the other wrong, many of us continue to struggle, holding onto the hope […]")
![The day after Christmas, I awoke to an additional gift in my inbox. I had to read the email several times: “Congratulations! The U.S. Department of Education has forgiven your federal student loans as you successfully met the requirements of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. Thank you for your public service!” The government issued […]](https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/OCR-L-BIDENLOANSREAX-0825-01-01.jpeg?w=390 "The day after Christmas, I awoke to an additional gift in my inbox. I had to read the email several times: “Congratulations! The U.S. Department of Education has forgiven your federal student loans as you successfully met the requirements of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. Thank you for your public service!” The government issued […]")
![Since electrical transmission lines have been the cause of many of our recent fires, why doesn’t the state of California provide the funds to put the transmission lines underground and then charge the electrical utility companies 10% of their profits until the cost is fully repaid? This would probably cut down the amount of future […]](https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/LDN-L-SYLAMR-FIRE-1011-2.jpg?w=396 "Since electrical transmission lines have been the cause of many of our recent fires, why doesn’t the state of California provide the funds to put the transmission lines underground and then charge the electrical utility companies 10% of their profits until the cost is fully repaid? This would probably cut down the amount of future […]")
![Someone needs blood every two seconds in the U.S. More than half of the population is eligible to donate blood, yet only 3% do. This January, during National Blood Donor Month, I invite you to change that by becoming a blood donor. I’ve seen the need firsthand in my work at San Diego Blood Bank over […]](https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/RPE-L-SUPPLY-0720-06-WL.jpg?w=382 "Someone needs blood every two seconds in the U.S. More than half of the population is eligible to donate blood, yet only 3% do. This January, during National Blood Donor Month, I invite you to change that by becoming a blood donor. I’ve seen the need firsthand in my work at San Diego Blood Bank over […]")
![When SDG&E shut off Ramona’s electricity in a Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS), it was a lesson in how important electricity is. In a mere century, electricity has changed almost every human activity. It doesn’t just light the darkness. We use it to communicate and entertain. Our electric servants do our laundry, wash our dishes, […]](https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/SUT-L-SDGE-POWERLINEWORK-1127-01.jpg?w=397 "When SDG&E shut off Ramona’s electricity in a Public Safety Power Shutoff (PSPS), it was a lesson in how important electricity is. In a mere century, electricity has changed almost every human activity. It doesn’t just light the darkness. We use it to communicate and entertain. Our electric servants do our laundry, wash our dishes, […]")
![When it comes to the state’s intertwined problems of housing and homelessness, the glib assumption that the latter problem is primarily due to addiction and mental illness is still common. But years of research shows otherwise. For example, a comprehensive 2023 UC San Francisco study concluded the cost of shelter is the single largest factor in homelessness — with the insight that being forced onto the streets makes many folks’ relatively minor problems with mental illness and/or substance abuse far worse. Lead researcher Margot Kushel memorably called this a “personal doom loop” stemming from California’s “toxic combination of deep poverty […]](https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/09/SUT-L-blue-line-trolley-017.jpg?w=499 "When it comes to the state’s intertwined problems of housing and homelessness, the glib assumption that the latter problem is primarily due to addiction and mental illness is still common. But years of research shows otherwise. For example, a comprehensive 2023 UC San Francisco study concluded the cost of shelter is the single largest factor in homelessness — with the insight that being forced onto the streets makes many folks’ relatively minor problems with mental illness and/or substance abuse far worse. Lead researcher Margot Kushel memorably called this a “personal doom loop” stemming from California’s “toxic combination of deep poverty […]")
![The value of a college education is increasingly scrutinized by a public weary of debt and questioning its real-world application. However, for many students from low-income backgrounds, a college education empowers them to break generational cycles of poverty and the suffering it entails. As a proud, underrepresented college graduate from a low-income background, I know […]](https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/SUT-L-USD-first-day-8.jpg?w=523 "The value of a college education is increasingly scrutinized by a public weary of debt and questioning its real-world application. However, for many students from low-income backgrounds, a college education empowers them to break generational cycles of poverty and the suffering it entails. As a proud, underrepresented college graduate from a low-income background, I know […]")
![The Saturday comic by John Darkow had Smokey the Bear saying “Only you can prevent climate change.” That’s something I used to believe but no longer do. My family has been doing all the right things for years: We’ve reduced our use of electricity, replaced a fossil-fuel furnace with heat pumps, charge our EV with […]](https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/LDN-L-HANSENDAM-SR-01.jpg?w=525 "The Saturday comic by John Darkow had Smokey the Bear saying “Only you can prevent climate change.” That’s something I used to believe but no longer do. My family has been doing all the right things for years: We’ve reduced our use of electricity, replaced a fossil-fuel furnace with heat pumps, charge our EV with […]")
