Connecting California

Why California Should Let Pandas Vote

Two Immigrants From China Have Taken Up Residence at the San Diego Zoo, and They Have Thoughts on Golden State Governance

Why California Should Let Pandas Vote | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

Nǐ hǎo, jiāzhōu!

Hello, California!

We are the Golden State’s two giant pandas, the first to enter the United States in two decades. And while it’s only been a few months since we departed southwest China for the San Diego Zoo, we’ve already met the governor, celebrities, TV broadcasters who love puns (“Panda-monium”), and thousands of everyday people, some of whom pay $115 to enter the zoo in the early morning and walk around with us for an hour. We now feel so at home in California that we’re wondering how we might …

by Yun Chuan and Xin Bao |

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More In: Connecting California

California’s Greatest Scourge? Camping

Bipartisan Leaders Are Bravely Going to War Against Unhoused People in Tents and Students in Sleeping Bags

by Joe Mathews |

Lock up your tents, California!

Toss out your old camping gear!

Hide your pillows and blankets where the cops will never find them!

Because the people who run California have finally seen clearly …

My Late Uncle Jim’s Life of Tomorrows

He Found Meaning and Wisdom in Looking Ahead

by Joe Mathews |

When I think of my Uncle Jim, I often remember him as Franklin Delano Roosevelt.

Jim Mathews, who died earlier this summer at age 77, loved to perform in community theater …

It’s the Best and Worst of Times in Oakland

As Presidential Hopeful Kamala Harris Reaches New Heights, Her Hometown Is Filled With Despair

by Joe Mathews |

If Dickens were to rise from the grave tomorrow, I bet he’d head straight to the East Bay.

Because we are watching a tale of two Oaklands.

One Oakland is advancing on …

California Officials Can’t Build By Their Own Rules | Zocalo Public Square • Arizona State University • Smithsonian

California Officials Can’t Build By Their Own Rules

An Addition to the Capitol Is Over Budget and Behind Schedule—While Sacramento Keeps Exempting Itself From State Law

by Joe Mathews |

At the very center of state government, you’ll find a hole in the ground demonstrating that the people who make California laws can’t live by them. 

That hole is, for now, …

Who Will Defend Us From the Body Snatchers?

The Pod People Are Back. This Time, Our Overworked Local Officials Are Even Less Prepared to Protect Us

by Joe Mathews |

Maybe I’ve been watching too many old movies.

Or maybe the body snatchers are back.

We’ve seen them twice before in my home state of California. Both invasions—of pod aliens, who secretly …


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