Opinion

Penelope Houston, along with guitarist Greg Ingraham, of the Avengers perform in October 2019. Courtesy Deb Frazin

Avengers vs. Blondie: Why the wrong punk band made it big

Sometime in 1983, my good friend Will heard of a record party…

  • Jul 21, 2021
As President Joe Biden travels the country pitching his plan for spending trillions of dollars to reshape the American economy, he is facing a rhetorical reality that has long plagued many of his predecessors: There’s a vast difference between explaining and inspiring. (Sarahbeth Maney/The New York Times)

Krugman: How big spending got its groove back

By Paul Krugman NYTimes News Service The way it was: Some years…

  • Jul 16, 2021
The tired narrative that people are fleeing San Francisco surfaced again this week. Shouldn’t we focus on those who stayed?<ins></ins>

Let’s stop focusing on ‘the exodus,’ and start focusing on our backyard

Californians are pissed off. Here’s some common sense.

Larkin Street Youth Services Executive Director Sherilyn Adams, pictured at a Youth Advisory Board meeting in 2018, says agencies need to work together toward reaching a common goal.<ins>(Courtesy photo)</ins>

Relationships are the most important resource for SF’s homeless youth

‘Change happens at the speed of trust’

  • Jul 9, 2021
Larkin Street Youth Services Executive Director Sherilyn Adams, pictured at a Youth Advisory Board meeting in 2018, says agencies need to work together toward reaching a common goal.<ins>(Courtesy photo)</ins>
Many influential thinkers visited the Alan Watts library at Druid Heights in the 1960s-70s. (Courtesy Michael Toivonen)

The hush-hush bohemian enclave that bred San Francisco legends

Druid Heights was ‘a vortex of social and artistic energy that bloomed out of nowhere’

  • Jul 8, 2021
Many influential thinkers visited the Alan Watts library at Druid Heights in the 1960s-70s. (Courtesy Michael Toivonen)
Bishop Robert McElroy, pictured at the Pastoral Center Roman Catholic Diocese of San Diego, is the former pastor of several Bay Area churches. <ins>(Hayne Palmour IV/San Diego Union-Tribune/TNS)</ins> Bishop Robert McElroy, pictured at the Pastoral Center Roman Catholic Diocese of San Diego, is the former pastor of several Bay Area churches. (Hayne Palmour IV/San Diego Union-Tribune/TNS)

Hunting heretics or seeking converts: Analyzing the split between two California Bishops

San Diego’s McElroy sees things much differently than San Francisco’s Cordileone

  • Jul 7, 2021
Bishop Robert McElroy, pictured at the Pastoral Center Roman Catholic Diocese of San Diego, is the former pastor of several Bay Area churches. <ins>(Hayne Palmour IV/San Diego Union-Tribune/TNS)</ins> Bishop Robert McElroy, pictured at the Pastoral Center Roman Catholic Diocese of San Diego, is the former pastor of several Bay Area churches. (Hayne Palmour IV/San Diego Union-Tribune/TNS)
Union Square Community Ambassadors are taking part in a city program designed to bring visitors downtown. (Kevin N. Hume/The Examiner, 2021 )

Downtown’s recovery is The City’s recovery

Public being welcomed back with new businesses, safe nightlife, exciting storefronts

Union Square Community Ambassadors are taking part in a city program designed to bring visitors downtown. (Kevin N. Hume/The Examiner, 2021 )
Many employees in Pinterest’s San Francisco office are working on a hybrid schedule.<ins> (Shutterstock)</ins>

Big Tech goes back to the office, and a worker shares her perspective

‘I thought everyone would be itching to come back. But I was wrong.’

  • Jul 2, 2021
Many employees in Pinterest’s San Francisco office are working on a hybrid schedule.<ins> (Shutterstock)</ins>
Transgender activist Elle Moxley took a different surname after transitioning, and it had a powerful effect. <ins>(Courtesy Irvin Rivera)</ins>

Changing my name after my transition may seem like a simple act—it was anything but

By Elle Moxley This spring, as new life began to emerge and…

Transgender activist Elle Moxley took a different surname after transitioning, and it had a powerful effect. <ins>(Courtesy Irvin Rivera)</ins>
Pride month is the time for the LGBTQ community to reach out to others and to celebrate who we are.

Pride, pageantry, and the long road to acceptance

‘Maybe it’s a luxury to be able to pick it apart for its faults’

Pride month is the time for the LGBTQ community to reach out to others and to celebrate who we are.
In July 2020, protesters in Fresno gathered signatures to recall Gov. Gavin Newsom, supporting former President Donald Trump.<ins> (John Walker/Sacramento Bee/TNS)</ins>

How to reform the recall process and make it work for California

Regardless of whether you think Gov. Newsom should be recalled, we can all agree the process is a mess

  • Jun 25, 2021
In July 2020, protesters in Fresno gathered signatures to recall Gov. Gavin Newsom, supporting former President Donald Trump.<ins> (John Walker/Sacramento Bee/TNS)</ins>
San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone supports denying communion to President Joe Biden. (Courtesy Catholic Voice)

Weaponizing the wafer: Why San Francisco Archbishop opposes communion for Biden

By Don Lattin Given the chance, would San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone…

  • Jun 23, 2021
San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone supports denying communion to President Joe Biden. (Courtesy Catholic Voice)
Father Paul J. Fitzgerald is president of the University of San Francisco. (Kevin N. Hume/S.F. Examiner)

USF’s president reflects on what universities learned during the pandemic

By Rev. Paul J. Fitzgerald, S.J. The relief is palpable. With vaccination…

  • Jun 21, 2021
Father Paul J. Fitzgerald is president of the University of San Francisco. (Kevin N. Hume/S.F. Examiner)
The remains of the Paradise Skilled Nursing home that was destroyed by the Camp Fire in Butte County are pictured on Nov. 17, 2018, more than a week after the fire broke out. (Kevin N. Hume/The Examiner)

Real solutions to California’s wildfire problems

By Dan Walters CalMatters Physicist Albert Einstein is widely, albeit erroneously, thought…

  • Jun 21, 2021
The remains of the Paradise Skilled Nursing home that was destroyed by the Camp Fire in Butte County are pictured on Nov. 17, 2018, more than a week after the fire broke out. (Kevin N. Hume/The Examiner)
Mano Raju, San Francisco Public Defender along with other city officials unveil “Jeff Adachi Way” at Gilbert Street to honor the late San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi on Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2020. (Amanda Peterson/Special to S.F. Examiner)

Opinion: If you want to work towards justice, fund your local public defender

By Mano Raju Special to The Examiner About one year ago, public…

  • Jun 17, 2021
Mano Raju, San Francisco Public Defender along with other city officials unveil “Jeff Adachi Way” at Gilbert Street to honor the late San Francisco Public Defender Jeff Adachi on Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2020. (Amanda Peterson/Special to S.F. Examiner)
Hackers used online weapons, including malware and brute force password attacks to try to get into Lacombe County���s systems only to be stopped by security measures. (Blogtrepreneur/Flickr photo)

How SF companies can defend against hackers as workforce returns to the office

By Sai Venkataraman Special to The Examiner As portions of San Francisco’s…

  • Jun 14, 2021
Hackers used online weapons, including malware and brute force password attacks to try to get into Lacombe County���s systems only to be stopped by security measures. (Blogtrepreneur/Flickr photo)
Many small, independent restaurants rely on DoorDash deliveries to stay in business.<ins> (Shutterstock)</ins>

Latino restaurants are on the brink of disaster

SF shouldn’t limit their options to stay open

Many small, independent restaurants rely on DoorDash deliveries to stay in business.<ins> (Shutterstock)</ins>
May 26, 2021, San Jose, California, USA: People enter the reunification center for VTA Employees and Family. As police and investigators work at the scene of a mass shooting. Nine people including the suspect were dead and at least one person was injured Wednesday morning after a shooting at a Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) yard north of downtown San Jose in the U.S. state of California, according to the local authorities. (Credit Image: Dong Xudong/Xinhua via ZUMA Press)

San Jose massacre analysis: Thoughts, prayers but nothing approaching gun control

Santa Cruz Sentinel Innocent people massacred. Click. Thoughts and prayers. Click. Weeping…

  • May 28, 2021
May 26, 2021, San Jose, California, USA: People enter the reunification center for VTA Employees and Family. As police and investigators work at the scene of a mass shooting. Nine people including the suspect were dead and at least one person was injured Wednesday morning after a shooting at a Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) yard north of downtown San Jose in the U.S. state of California, according to the local authorities. (Credit Image: Dong Xudong/Xinhua via ZUMA Press)
A permanent supportive housing apartment building in the works in the South of Market Area is an example of the kind of project that should be developed with new city funding. (Kevin N. Hume/S.F. Examiner)

Good news for recovery: $68 million for affordable housing

Budget surplus offers money that can be allocated to acquire hundreds of units

A permanent supportive housing apartment building in the works in the South of Market Area is an example of the kind of project that should be developed with new city funding. (Kevin N. Hume/S.F. Examiner)
A Muni M-Ocean View bus recently headed up West Portal Avenue; underground service on the route is not being scheduled to return this summer. (Kevin N. Hume/S.F. Examiner)

Let’s get loud about the future of Muni

We must demand transparency and a return to full service

A Muni M-Ocean View bus recently headed up West Portal Avenue; underground service on the route is not being scheduled to return this summer. (Kevin N. Hume/S.F. Examiner)