Joe Mathews, Author at GV Wire

Meet California’s Most Unlikely Philanthropist: 18-Year-Old Fabiola

September 14, 2019

This spring — as federal prosecutors announced charges against wealthy Californians, who paid bribes to get their kids into elite universities — a poor kid from a poor California town faced her own dilemma: How...

Photo of a bored student hiding his face

Why California Should Close Failing School Districts

Joe Mathews

August 17, 2019

School has begun for the 40,000-plus students of Sweetwater Union High School District. But the district’s crisis never ends. Sweetwater rarely makes the statewide news, but it’s California’s largest seconda...

Composite of President Donald Trump and the California Capitol

Sacramento Should Look in the Mirror While Fighting Trump

Joe Mathews

August 9, 2019

As California builds its capacity to fight the Leviathan that is the Trump administration, does it risk turning our state government into a Leviathan of our own? This unhappy question occurred to me while re...

Why UCLA Is More Important Than Cal-Berkeley

Joe Mathews

May 13, 2019

Berkeley. Schmerkeley. California’s most important educational institution is UCLA — and the contest really isn’t close. Opinion Joe Mathews Despite its late start, UCLA has come to embody...

Time for Yosemite and Humanity to Take a Break?

Joe Mathews

April 22, 2019

The road to Mariposa Grove in Yosemite National Park is closed to cars, and the shuttle bus wasn’t running. Would the Three Stooges—my sons, ages 10, 8 and 5—agree to a 2 ½ mile uphill hike to see Yosemite’s si...

Why Gavin Newsom Is No Fan of High-Speed Rail

Joe Mathews

March 28, 2019

How will California ever finish high-speed rail when it can’t finish San Francisco’s Downtown Rail Extension? Opinion Joe Mathews Twenty-three years ago, a restauranteur named Gavin Newsom ...

Should Google or Your Taxes Help Pay for Local News?

Joe Mathews

March 1, 2019

Whose job it is to revive local journalism in California? Our state’s elites have a clear, if dubious answer: themselves. Opinion Joe Mathews Philanthropists and foundations have invested i...

Photo of The Grand Lake Theatre in Oakland

So, Hollywood, Where Is the Oscar Love for Oakland?

Joe Mathews

February 8, 2019

The best California movie scene of recent vintage is the opening of the 2018 film Sorry to Bother You. A man and his girlfriend are getting intimate when his apartment suddenly fills with daylight, making their...

Immigrants Are Secret to California’s Good Health

Joe Mathews

February 1, 2019

What makes California the very picture of health? It’s neither sunshine nor silicone. Our health secret is immigration. While President Donald Trump blames immigrants for being sources of disease, Califor...

Are You a Californian Looking for a New Year’s Resolution?

Joe Mathews

December 25, 2018

You might be thinking about giving up sweets or going to the gym more. But, for the good of your state, the best thing you could do is swear off this phrase: “We want to protect the character of the community.”...

Life Under Virus Quarantine: Boxing, Chalk Art and Waiting

Florida ‘Red Flag’ Gun Law Used 3,500 Times Since Parkland

Facing Doctor Shortage, Will California Give Nurse Practitioners More Authority to Treat Patients?

Tiger Giving Closet Helps Edison Students Meet Wardrobe Needs

You’ve Been Named California’s Homelessness Czar. What’s Your First Move?

Facing Doctor Shortage, Will California Give Nurse Practitioners More Authority to Treat Patients?

Legislative Analyst Criticizes California’s Homeless Plan

Will This Be the Year California Tackles Its Waste Crisis?

Cheech And Chong Might Be Over But Cheech Marin Is Saving Chicano Art With An Exciting Art Exhibit

San Diego Aquarium Breeds Rare Weedy Sea Dragon in Captivity

Will MLB Make NASCAR’s Mistake in Cutting Off Its Minor League Roots?

Sticking to Script: Bregman, Astros Discuss Sign Stealing

Garry Bredefeld's Battle With Cancer

This Unsung Valley Hero Fought for the Dignity of America’s Farmworkers

Walters: Newsom’s Spending More, Saving Less

100 Years Ago, Congress Threw out Results of the Census

Video: Alonzo vs. Maxwell in GV Wire City Council Forum

ICYMI: ‘How Not to Die’ by Dr. Michael Greger

Video: Dyer vs. Janz in GV Wire Mayoral Forum

Rabbi Rosove: Two-State Solution Only Road to Peace for Israel, Palestine

Face-Off: Treisman vs. Egan for Fresno County Judge

Don’t Like Dyer or Janz for Mayor? Alternatives Include a Bill Gates.

Want to Switch Parties on Election Day? Now You Can.

Some Democrats Fear Fallout from Sanders Atop the Ticket

Joe Mathews

Meet California’s Most Unlikely Philanthropist: 18-Year-Old Fabiola

Why California Should Close Failing School Districts

Sacramento Should Look in the Mirror While Fighting Trump

Why UCLA Is More Important Than Cal-Berkeley

Time for Yosemite and Humanity to Take a Break?

Why Gavin Newsom Is No Fan of High-Speed Rail

Should Google or Your Taxes Help Pay for Local News?

So, Hollywood, Where Is the Oscar Love for Oakland?

Immigrants Are Secret to California’s Good Health

Are You a Californian Looking for a New Year’s Resolution?

Author Joe Mathews