Opinion

In early May 2025, the Los Gatos Town Council introduced a proposed Boards, Committees, and Commissions (BCC) Code of Conduct Policy designed to set expectations for commissioners’ behavior, public communications and interactions with Town staff and the public. The intent is reasonable: to promote...

From the Inbox... Do your homework Dear Mr. Penner, I give you a C- for your latest journalistic effort in the Los Gatan. You should validate your information before releasing your stories for publication. Your article titled “ACLU threatens legal action against town” is devoid of...

(In response to “Los Gatos man must face trial on charges of murder, false imprisonment”) Thank you, Drew, for your diligent reporting and for keeping this case in the public eye. May Dawn (Yingying Yu) rest in peace, and may justice be done. Shannon —via LosGatan.com Article sends reader...

They say you don’t know what you have until it’s gone. We hope that won’t be the case for the West Valley of Santa Clara County, where many of us who rely on private insurance don’t realize how much the County’s hospital system does...

The recent article on Sahr Fania by Drew Penner (Los Gatan, Nov. 2-8) was wonderful! Thank you so much for sharing the story of a Los Gatan who does not fill the profile that is often told about “important” people in other Los Gatos publications. Please...

Last year, the California Journalism Preservation Act (CJPA), legislation that recognized the important role played by the state’s local news outlets, passed the California Assembly by 55-6. It also cleared the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Senate Appropriations Committee, but never came to a...

It strikes me that the major reason for allowing cannabis dispensaries in Los Gatos would be to generate more revenue. Assuming for argument’s sake that this is correct, there are options for generating revenue other than from allowing cannabis dispensaries in town. I often...

Back in the 1970s, then–California Governor Jerry Brown earned the nickname “Governor Moonbeam” for his forward-thinking and unconventional ideas. Among them was a now-famous mantra: “Small is beautiful.” Brown’s vision championed conservation, thoughtful planning, and development that respected the natural landscape and community character. Los...

“Where are you from?” It’s a common question, and one that can be quite loaded for people of diverse ethnicities. On its face, it’s a plain question based on curiosity, filled with nostalgia, or awe. But it could also carry covert racism and hatred, carrying the connotation...

Urban planning thrives on informed decision-making. However, the increasing influence of game theory—a branch of mathematics that studies strategic interactions—can be a recipe for disaster in the messy world of governance. While game theory offers insights in some areas, relying largely on its models...