John Muir Trail hikers rave about its extraordinary scenery, but perhaps for once we should rave about its extraordinary hikers. Among this year’s class are U.S. Army Sgt. Justin Bond…

Before Brian Johnson won the Giants’ biggest game of the 90s, Rod Beck saved it. And together the 1997 Giants put San Francisco on the baseball map in a way…

Barry Bonds will make a dramatic return to 24 Willie Mays Plaza when the Giants add him to their Wall of Fame on June 8. Thousands of excited fans will…

With Inauguration Day behind us, Republicans at last can embrace a president who promotes the ideals of their party: Barack Obama. Though Republicans reviled, opposed and obstructed him for eight…

Colin Kaepernick and the 49ers gave their fans a long-awaited gift on Christmas Eve: a rousing, comeback win over the Los Angeles Rams to snap their 13-game losing streak. The…

Alex Honnold wants us to know that there’s more to him than the difficult rock climbs he ascends without a rope. Then again, he titled his new book “Alone on…

When my wife and I carried our bags down the red carpet into a plush lobby, I could still hardly believe it. In all the years we had visited Yosemite,…

Common Core has changed public education in recent years as teachers revised practices to help students achieve greater “depth of knowledge.” But those who created a deeply flawed testing system…

Seven of us waited pensively for the sold-out program to begin. Our meeting was supposed to take place after it ended, but then word arrived that we were wanted backstage….

With one out to get for the 2014 World Series title, a colossally bad defensive play threatened to lose the Giants a championship. San Francisco center fielder Gregor Blanco missed…

During our national search for answers following the Sandy Hook massacre and the United States’ spike in mass shootings, the National Rifle Association contributed this surprising revelation: what schools need…

Like a starting pistol, the buzzer sounded at 10 a.m. and nine robed justices entered the chamber. Chief Justice John Roberts immediately called on his colleagues to announce the court’s…

NEW ORLEANS – Looks like I should have paid that street magician who promised to fix the game with a spell, but though the Niners lost the Super Bowl, the…

President Obama’s re-election and the Democrats’ generally good showing at the polls have caused the GOP a good deal of despair and anguish. But Republicans should take heart that many…

Giants of recent glory years are even better people than they are players, General Manager Brian Sabean says. That’s certainly true of Brian Wilson, the newest former Giant, who was,…

The outlook wasn’t brilliant as the Giants left the Bay. They trailed the Reds by two games in Division Series play. But they rallied in game three; in game four…

Coming soon to California schools near you: larger classes, fewer courses, and an end to sports and arts programs. All of this and much worse could come to pass after…

Tea Party activists have made history in recent years and our movement will continue to shape the nation’s future. To fully promote our conservative principles, the True Tea Party wishes…

Lord Voldemort killed Harry Potter’s parents and tried, many times, to slay him. Draco Malfoy only broke Harry’s nose and the two eventually made up. There’s a lesson here for…

Forcing Carl to focus through a week of STAR testing was harder than beating Darth Vader in a light saber duel. “Do I have to take the test?” Carl moaned….

Noelia could always make a teacher’s day, so I was glad to do the same for her. A 17-year-old who moved to the country just recently, she told me she…

Rousing hymns, stirring prayers, a candlelight procession and blissful smiles filled one of the most beautiful weddings I’ve ever attended. Happiness permeated the recent ceremony in Oakland  for my wife’s…

I’ve felt out of sync since the World Series ended, like a hitter swinging late at a fastball. Now that my pulse has finally slowed from a month of heart…

When the government bans homework, lowers the drinking age and prohibits senior citizens from driving all on the same day, there can be only one explanation: those yahoos in Congress…

When Captain James T. Kirk, the most heterosexual man in the universe, agrees to perform a gay wedding on the Starship Enterprise, the future bodes well for equality. As Mr….

Before the big race, my teammates and I huddled together, stacked our hands and cheered like the pumped-up teenagers we were. Twenty-five years later, I still hear the echoes. Castro…

Ascending a sea of knobs on the steep west face of Yosemite’s Fairview Dome, John Bachar was enjoying a fine autumn day, cool and quiet without another climber in sight….

Near the top of Mt. Diablo stands a challenging rock climb called Amazing Face. Climbers who wish to scale it had better go soon, as the state may close the…

As homosexual marriage spreads state by state, everyone knows the struggle is far from over. Now Americans must speedily unite to ban the unholy unions of … straight people. Why?…

Teachers face no shortage of adversity, from high-maintenance kids and parents to high-stakes tests and false fire alarms. Sometimes the good news seems rare, so this article tacked to my…

Fans of the television sitcom “WKRP in Cincinnati” may remember Dr. Johnny Fever’s funniest moment in the series. After he smashed a telephone to pieces in a fit of rage,…

Last Christmas I gave my friend Aaron a Barry Bonds “babooshka” doll. Aaron is only a casual fan, but he dabbles in the mystic arts, and I asked him to…

I picked up some bad habits lately: running over pedestrians for their pocket money, incinerating enemy gangsters with Molotov cocktails, and blowing up cops with a rocket launcher. But starting…

Campaign posters blanket the walls each election week at the high school where I teach. This year, some posters reflected a more unscrupulous election than usual. “Bob has no friends,…

Anyone who spends much time with teenagers has noticed their unfortunate use of the word “like” outside the parameters of affection or comparison.

Aaron and Travis didn’t even try to fake it. When the test started, they started bubbling in their answer forms without even reading the test questions. Choosing answer “A” for…