Like father, like son

Jan 29, 2018

A Brown -- father or son -- has been California governor for 40% of the last six decades

 

LA Times' GEORGE SKELTON: "The best way to characterize Gov. Jerry Brown's final State of the State address last week is that it marked the end of an era — a very, very long era."

 

"It signaled the approaching end of the Brown family era in California politics."

From the LA Daily News' NIKIE JOHNSON: "Hurricane-force wind gusts and record-setting temperatures hit Southern California on Sunday, Jan. 28, and the fire danger will stay elevated until Monday night when bout of Santa Ana winds are expected to die down."

 

"A red-flag warning covering much of Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino and San Diego counties through 7 p.m. Monday indicated that wind gusts could hit 90 mph in remote locations in the mountains and canyons; a separate warning for Los Angeles and Ventura counties said gusts could reach 70 mph on wind-prone mountain peaks."

 

“A combination of strong winds, low relative humidity and warm temperatures can contribute to extreme fire behavior,” the National Weather Service said in the warnings. People were urged to not set open fires, keep vehicles off dry grass, follow safe towing practices to avoid sparks, properly discard cigarettes and obey all burn bans."

 

Chief ousted in cheating flap vents about Cal Fire's 'secret police'

 

Sacramento Bee's ADAM ASHTON: "A high-ranking state firefighter with 24 years of experience was compelled to resign last month because his department believed he helped a fire captain cheat on a test that the captain failed."

 

"Jeff Isaacs’ ouster as an assistant chief for the department’s Fresno unit is a sign of the tough line Cal Fire has taken on discipline since a 2014 investigation revealed sex-related misconduct and inappropriate drinking at its fire academy. It’s building up a professional standards program while simultaneously enhancing its resources for internal investigations."

 

"For a moment, the charge that Isaacs helped someone cheat also threatened promotions for dozens of captains who had taken an exam in November 2016 to promote to battalion chief. Cal Fire last year sought to void the entire test – throwing out scores for 289 successful candidates on the cusp of summer fire season – when a group of chiefs from Mariposa and Merced counties accused Isaacs of tainting the exam by coaching a single applicant."

 

READ MORE related to Public Safety: Will the next LAPD chief build on Charlie Beck's community policing approach? -- Daily News' BRENDA GAZZAR

 

New lounges planned for both Sacramento International Airport terminals

 

Sacramento Bee's BENJY EGEL: "Sacramento International Airport is soliciting bids to design pay-for-entry lounges in each of its two terminals."

 

"Customers can pay an upfront fee to use lounges offering amenities such as complimentary food and drinks service, secluded work areas, upgraded seating and a private bar, said Laurie Slothower, airport spokeswoman. Terminal A’s lounge is expected to be up to 2,151 square feet, while Terminal B’s will max out at 1,397 square feet."

 

"Each lounge will be beyond the terminals’ Transportation Security Administration checkpoints in areas currently partially occupied by businesses with leases expiring in November 2018 or January 2019, according to a request for proposals issued Thursday."

 

READ MORE related to Transportation: BART police arrest man in fire extinguisher attack on agent's booth -- The Chronicle's BENNY EVANGELISTA; Pilot lands plane on Costa Mesa freeway: 'I saw an opening on the highway and I went for it right away' -- LA Times' ALENE TCHEKMEDYIAN; 210 Freeway project closing in on completion, as workers turn toward eastbound lanes in Pasadena -- SGV Tribune's STEVE SCAUZILLO

 

White nationalists hang banner opposing sanctuary city on Bay Bridge tunnel

 

The Chronicle's SARAH RAVANI: "A sign mocking San Francisco’s sanctuary city policy was hung early Sunday over the Yerba Buena Tunnel in San Francisco by a white nationalist organization."

 

"The sign read “Danger” in red letters and “Sanctuary City Ahead” with a skull and crossbones on both sides of the poster. It was visible to Bay Bridge motorists driving west on Interstate 80 but was quickly removed, said Officer Vu Williams of the California Highway Patrol."

 

"It’s my understanding it was only up there very briefly,” Williams said."

 

READ MORE related to Immigration: Worried about Trump-stoked exodus of immigrants, Canada discourages illegal crossings -- LA Times' CINDY CARCAMO; 'This can't be the end': For this Salvadoran family, LA feels like it has always been home -- LA Times' ESMERALDA BERMUDEZ; Why one former immigrant detainee says detention centers should be called prisons -- Daily News' ALEJANDRA MOLINA

 

This school program tries to empower girls and keep them away from sex trafficking

 

Sacramento Bee's DIANA LAMBERT: "Thumping music, balloons, and young women in boas and fairy wings greeted a line of schoolgirls as they filed into the cafeteria."

 

"The mood was festive at Father Keith B. Kenny K-8 School in Oak Park, but the mission was serious: empower Sacramento girls and keep them out of the clutches of sex traffickers."

 

"It was the year’s first meeting at the school for the Shine Program, which was launched three years ago by the nonprofit City of Refuge."

 

READ MORE related to Education: After a baby suddenly dies, a 911 call from USC's former medical school dean sparks detectives' interest -- LA Times' MATT HAMILTON/HARRIET RYAN; More candidates for state superintendent raise odds of runoff in November -- EdSource's JOHN FENSTERWALD; Gov. Brown pushes online community college in his State of the State; faculty critic remains unmoved -- EdSource's MIKHAIL ZINSHTEYN; State of the State 2018: What Gov. Brown said about education -- EdSource's STAFF

 

Pico Rivera councilman and El Rancho high teacher Gregory Salcido caught on video degrading military

 

SGV Tribune's SANDRA T. MOLINA: "Three videos on social media of Pico Rivera Councilman Gregory Salcido, a teacher at El Rancho High School, making disparaging remarks about the military and berating a student for wearing a sweatshirt with a Marines logo have gone viral and created a backlash."

 

"El Rancho Unified School District officials confirmed Saturday, Jan. 27 that the person speaking is Salcido and that the incident took place on school grounds."

 

"We acknowledge it is his voice based on the research of the incident so far and knowing it came from one of our classrooms,” district Superintendent Karling Aguilera-Fort said in a phone interview."

 

Dennis Peron, pioneer of California's medical marijuana initiative, passes away at 72.

 

AP: "Dennis Peron, an activist who was among the first people to argue for the benefits of marijuana for AIDS patients and helped legalize medical pot in California, died Saturday at 72."

 

"The San Francisco Chronicle reported that Peron died in a hospital in the city."

 

"Peron was a driving force behind a San Francisco ordinance allowing medical marijuana — a move that later aided the 1996 passage of Proposition 215 that legalized medical use in the entire state."

 

READ MORE related to Cannabis: California marijuana purveyors go mainstream, except for the sacks of cash -- The Chronicle's PETER FIMRITE; OP-ED: I'm ready to get stoned again like I did 40 years ago -- LA Times' AMY KOSS

 

Anti-abortion vote in the Senate will, politically speaking, have something for everyone

 

McClatchy DC's EMMA DUMAIN: "The Senate’s abortion vote Monday is bound to fail, but its legacy will live on because the vote will conveniently have something for every politician to boast about."

 

"Officially, the vote is to limit debate on legislation that under most circumstances will make it illegal to obtain an abortion after 20 weeks of pregnancy. Sixty votes are needed to cut off a filibuster, and that’s probably unattainable, meaning the bill will effectively die."

 

"But Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., the bill’s lead sponsor, will score points with his conservative base — one that’s been grumbling in recent months over the return of “Lindsey Grahmnesty” and his crusade to find a pathway to citizenship for undocumented immigrants."

 

Prepare for a rare celestial trifecta: Super Blue Blood Moon

 

The Chronicle's KURTIS ALEXANDER: "For the first time in more than 150 years, the West Coast will have the opportunity to see a blue moon turn red this week — assuming the weather cooperates."

 

"The celestial show that NASA has dubbed a “super blue blood moon” is due to embellish the predawn sky on Wednesday, a rare convergence of three lunar spectacles: a blue moon, a supermoon and a total lunar eclipse."

 

"While none of these events is particularly unusual on its own — and though the result will add up to little more than a glorified eclipse — scientists say the trifecta may be a once-in-a-lifetime affair in North America."

 

READ MORE related to Energy & Environment: Litigator quits the fast lane for a life on the Sea of Cortez -- The Chronicle's TOM STIENSTRA; Midwinter looks like spring for eagles, trout, elk -- The Chronicle's TOM STIENSTRA; Water main break opens sinkhole in Hayward -- The Chronicle's BENNY EVANGELISTA; These signs at NASA's Jet Propulsion Lab use the Deep Space Network to point to missions in real time -- Daily News' JASON HENRY

 

LA homeless crisis grows despite political promises, many speeches and millions of dollars. How do we fix this?

 

LA Times' STEVE LOPEZ: "They’re part of the Los Angeles streetscape, as familiar as the swaying palm trees and idling traffic, living under freeways, alongside riverbeds and on canyon hillsides. The mentally ill, the drug addicts, the economically disadvantaged, many with their life belongings in a backpack or shopping cart. Here, The Times launches Without a Home, a special endeavor to examine a crisis of homelessness in our region. It is a challenge for each and every one of us. Citizens voted twice to open their wallets to fund a solution. Now, city leaders and others must act to improve the plight of some 58,000 of the county’s most vulnerable residents."

 

READ MORE related to Housing & Homelessness: Montebello seeks solution to growing numbers of homeless -- SGV Tribune's MIKE SPRAGUE

 

Here's how to tell the difference between the flu and the common cold

 

Miami Herald's MONIQUE O. MADAN: "With 37 children nationwide dying from the flu this season as of Friday — including a seventh-grader in Palm Beach County who died Tuesday after his family thought he had a common cold — medical experts are advising parents to pay close attention to their child’s symptoms and to learn the difference between the flu and the common cold."

 

"This year’s flu outbreak is particularly virulent. Earlier this month, health officials said hospitalizations and visits to the doctor are on the rise because of flu symptoms; the H3N2 subtype of the virus appears to be the most predominant strain. At least 13 states have had school closures due to the flu; schools in Gulf County, Florida, closed Friday due to an outbreak."

 

"This flu season, pediatric deaths may even exceed the 148 deaths reported three years ago during the 2014-2015 flu season, according to the latest weekly report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention."

 

READ MORE related to Health & Health Care: Treating domestic violence as a medical problem -- California Healthline's ANNA GORMAN; Death in the family: an uncle's overdose spurs Medicaid official to change course -- California Healthline's EMMARIE HUETTEMAN; My grandmother was Italian. Why aren't my genes Italian? -- NPR's GISELE GRAYSON

 

Conservatives at Koch gathering worry economy won't be enough in 2018

 

McClatchy DC's KATIE GLUECK: "The economy is growing, the GOP-passed tax cuts are increasingly popular and take-home pay is set to spike for many workers."

 

"Conservatives are confident they have a good story to tell as the 2018 midterms cycle intensifies. Their only question: Is anybody listening?"

 

"That tension was on vivid display at a gathering of the billionaire Koch brothers’ political and policy network, held this weekend at a palm-studded resort surrounded by mountains."

 

Jim Kirk to replace Lewis D'Vorkin as editor in chief of the LA Times

 

LA Times' MEG JAMES: "In another dramatic shake-up at the Los Angeles Times, Chicago journalist Jim Kirk will be named editor in chief of the newspaper, replacing Lewis D'Vorkin, who will move to a position within the parent company."

 

'Don't talk to the FBI, never, ever.' Lodi man seeks to overturn terrorism conviction

 

Sacramento Bee's SAM STANTON/STEPHEN MAGAGNINI: "Hamid Hayat, a cherry picker from Lodi, was packed off to federal prison 12 years ago after being convicted in one of the Sacramento region’s first international terror cases following the 9/11 attacks."

 

"Today, Hayat is 35 and has served half of his 24-year sentence. But his attorneys maintain that he is innocent."

 

"Hayat’s case returns to federal court in Sacramento on Monday for another review of whether he was railroaded by the government prosecutors who also convicted his father, an ice cream vendor."

 

Trump responds to Jay-Z's criticism: Black people are better off because of me

 

KCStar's ADAM DARBY: "President Donald Trump is firing back at Jay-Z after the hip-hop star described Trump’s “s---hole countries” comment as disappointing and hurtful, spotlighting the problem of racism in America."

 

"Somebody please inform Jay-Z that because of my policies, Black Unemployment has just been reported to be at the LOWEST RATE EVER RECORDED!” the president tweeted on Sunday morning."

 

"Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter made his comments on the debut of “The Van Jones Show,” which was broadcast Saturday on CNN."

 

READ MORE related to POTUS45/KremlinGate: GOP senators: Trump needs to show restraint in Russia probe -- AP's HOPE YEN; Republican senators call for special counsel to be protected in wake of Trump's continued attacks -- LA Times' LAURA KING

 

Bruno Mars, Kendrick Lamar the big winners at Grammy Awards

 

LA Times' RANDY LEWIS: "It was supposed to be a night when political and social issues took center stage and the music industry fully embraced hip-hop. But when the 60th Grammy Awards were given out Sunday at Madison Square Garden in New York, it was a different tune."