California Forum

It appears the National Security Agency's sweeping surveillance is not something only Verizon customers should be concerned about. The agency has also reportedly obtained access to the central servers of major U.S. Internet companies as part of a secret program that involves the monitoring of emails, file transfers, photos, videos, chats and even live surveillance of search terms.

The governor portrayed himself as a skinflint and wisely promised prudence after California taxpayers flooded state coffers with billions of dollars in unexpected revenue.

In the past five years, 29 states have imposed new restrictions on abortions. California headed in the opposite direction.

Last week's contest challenged readers to ponder what Seattle basketball fans were thinking after the NBA decided to keep the Kings in Sacramento, a victory for Mayor Kevin Johnson.

Recognizing that Sacramento faces more challenges than just keeping a basketball team does not demonstrate wanting Sacramento to fail.

As is now apparent, Gov. Jerry Brown is determined to build a pair of enormous water tunnels under the Delta to benefit Southern California and San Joaquin Valley agribusinesses.

Should the United States involve itself more in Arab Spring uprisings against dictatorial regimes?

First, let me say that we're thrilled to have you. Several of you are a part of the new Kings ownership group who helped save our team, and some of you are very experienced real estate developers, and some of you, like local developer Mark Friedman, are both.

The front-page story about the woman behind a proposed $2.8 billion film studio in Dixon shows why it matters if access to court documents in California becomes more expensive.

President Barack Obama, congressional Democrats and congressional Republicans have fallen into the usual tug of war over the nation's student loan program.

If you think you're knowledgeable about the Sacramento food scene, prove it! Take this quiz and see how much you really know.

Dr. Roger J. Foster's examination room is in a seedy office next to a boarded-up Sacramento city incinerator in a scruffy Alkali Flat lot of warehouses and used car dealers.

Three volleys of gunfire echoed. A lone bugler played taps. An expertly folded flag was presented on behalf of a grateful nation.

Back in the day, as the locals say, baseball was king in the hardscrabble North Sacramento neighborhood of Del Paso Heights.

California Republicans, who hope to make crime an election-year issue in 2014, ought to first show they're serious about protecting public safety by embracing legislation that would require people to undergo background checks before they buy guns.

Hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is a drilling technique used to extract oil and gas embedded in geologic formations thousands of feet below the surface of the earth.

NBA owners this month picked Sacramento over Seattle as home for the Kings. What might a disappointed Sonics fan be thinking?

The Bee's editorial board has gone off the rails in advocating for increased property taxes, which would be devastating to small businesses, renters and consumers.

California is blessed to have spectacular national parks that show off our country's most treasured landscapes, from the granite peaks of Yosemite to the remote deserts of Death Valley.

To the graduating class of 2013: You are now and forever part of this Valley. You have now earned your certificate of authenticity. You have successfully matriculated a Valley Diploma.

In the tense hours leading up to the identification of the Boston bombing suspects, a number of pressing questions swirled around their identities.

President Barack Obama bested Mitt Romney by portraying his Republican opponent as a rich businessman who used offshore tax havens and ran enterprises into the ground without regard for working people.

International travel is more than sightseeing, a planned itinerary or guide-organized interactions. It is about serendipity, experiencing the unexpected.

It's early morning on Point Reyes National Seashore north of San Francisco. Oystermen push an old wooden boat into low tide and leap aboard. Their leathered faces expressionless, lost in thought, their hoods pulled tight: it's cold. Their day will be long, their labor tedious, their futures uncertain. We head toward the sea, to the oyster beds.

Watchdog accountability of those in power takes many forms. So do the efforts to stop it.