Opinion

The sun shines 300 days a year. The climate is tropical without the humidity. Descendants of another century were known as "stone-slingers" and cultured black pearls are indigenous to these tropical islands.

In 1977, the South Valley was a much different place: a smaller, less diverse population meant fewer Jews living in Hollister, Gilroy and Morgan Hill. Stuart Blumberg, a Gilroy resident at the time, reflects back on "how alone South County Jews felt, transplanted from elsewhere and seeking spiritual support."

Q: I'm attending group classes to help me stop smoking. We all know that second-hand smoke is harmful to our health. The instructor insists that it also is very unhealthy for pets. Is this true?

The new year is ushering in the good, the bad and the ugly of wine trends. Some of the following will no doubt fall into more than one category.

Medical insurance used to be so simple. Expensive, but simple. We paid bucketloads in monthly premium dollars, and for that I got to go see the doctor where I deposited the "co-pay." How easy was that?

Bradley Manning is the 24-year-old Army intelligence analyst who has been in solitary confinement for more than 18 months. During the Christmas holidays the U.S. Army heard evidence as to whether this soldier should face a full court martial and serve a lifetime in military prison.

"An evil action cannot be justified by reference to a good intention." - St. Thomas Aquinas

Society and the media lead us to believe that having lots of money and material things is the ticket to happiness. Recent research suggests otherwise.  Let’s look at money as an example.