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Experts raise new doubts about essential Bay Bridge rods -- Yun Chung, a retired engineer and metallurgist, read the official report explaining why massive, high-strength steel rods on the new San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge broke last March and was stunned – then alarmed. Charles Piller in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 12/8/13 Special interest groups look to shape 2014 California ballot -- Propositions on malpractice lawsuits and tobacco taxes, among other issues, could lead to multimillion-dollar campaigns. Anthony York in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/7/13 Sacramento firm represented Arab sheik while partner gave to Obama inauguration -- Before his 2009 inauguration, newly elected President Barack Obama made a public pledge not to accept money for the celebration from representatives of foreign interests. Laurel Rosenhall in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 12/8/13 Homeless shelters had open beds when homeless men died of exposure in Santa Clara County -- Even as four homeless men died of hypothermia in Santa Clara County during cold weather that has gripped the area in recent days, there were open beds at the county's overnight emergency shelters for most of the past week. Paul Rogers in the Contra Costa Times -- 12/7/13 Dublin: Frigid weather may have caused homeless man's death -- A homeless man found dead in Dublin early Saturday may have died from exposure to the cold and rainy conditions the night before, and forecasters are predicting it is about to get even colder in the East Bay. Katie Nelson in the Oakland Tribune -- 12/7/13 Walters: Brown’s overhaul of California school finances sparks infighting over details -- Gov. Jerry Brown’s landmark overhaul of public schools’ finances was aimed at their most vexing issue – chronically low academic achievements among poor or “English-learner” students. Dan Walters in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 12/8/13 Rescue leaders at SFO crash lacked training -- Three Fire Department commanders who directed firefighting and rescue efforts after the crash of an Asiana Airlines jetliner at San Francisco International Airport in July had never taken a training course required of rank-and-file first responders at aircraft disasters, The Chronicle has learned. Jaxon Van Derbeken in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 12/7/13 Federal panel to hold hearing on San Francisco Asiana crash -- Federal investigators will interview dozens of experts and witnesses in a two-day hearing this week to try to come closer to determining what caused an Asiana Airlines jet to crash at San Francisco International Airport in July, and why rescuers ran over a survivor with a fire rig. Kevin Fagan in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 12/7/13 Palo Alto's Merrill Newman arrives back in California's Bay Area after detention in North Korea -- After six weeks in North Korean detention, an 85-year-old Palo Alto man returned home to the Bay Area on Saturday and declared himself "tired but ready to be with my family." Brandon Bailey, Tracy Seipel and Julia Prodis Sulek in the San Jose Mercury David R. Baker in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 12/8/13 'Big Soda' set to outspend foes over tax -- The San Francisco Board of Supervisors is still cobbling together details of a proposed ballot measure to tax sodas and other sugary drinks, and voters won't have their say for another 11 months. Heather Knight in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 12/8/13 Southern California Gas Co. urges conservation during cold snap -- With recent record-setting cold weather across the country putting a strain on the natural gas supply nationwide, the Southern California Gas Co. is urging customers to conserve, and beware of carbon monoxide risk. Brian Day in the Los Angeles Daily News -- 12/7/13 Rackauckas Drops Demand for Video Feed of Thomas Trial -- Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas has reversed his demand for access to TV and radio feeds of portions of the Kelly Thomas trial and will ask the judge to restore pool camera and audio coverage, KFI radio news director Chris Little said Friday. Tracy Wood VoiceofOC.org -- 12/7/13 Sebastopol's new mayor puts city on medical marijuana map -- Left-leaning Sebastopol has elected Green Party candidates to the City Council, fought PG&E SmartMeters and declared itself a nuclear-free zone. Matt Brown in the Santa Rosa Press -- 12/7/13 What Filner’s probation could look like -- When disgraced ex-Mayor Bob Filner pleaded guilty in October to false imprisonment and battery charges, he and the state Attorney General’s Office had agreed to terms of his sentence. Kristina Davis UT San Diego$ -- 12/7/13 Morain: John Arnold is a Texas billionaire who worked for Enron, but doesn’t seem to have horns -- John Arnold is a Texas billionaire who worked for Enron when electricity trading pirates were chortling about stealing “Grandma Millie” blind. That makes him a rich target, or so organized labor hopes. Dan Morain in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 12/8/13 Legendary Sacramento builder ‘Buzz’ Oates is dead at age 90 -- Marvin L. “Buzz” Oates, who built a $2,000 investment in a locksmith shop into one of the nation’s great fortunes through building and commercial development, died Saturday at his Sacramento home. He was 90. Sam Stanton in the Sacramento Bee$ Ben van der Meer Sacramento Business Journal -- 12/7/13
MLB deals setback to San Jose bid to lure Oakland A's -- For more than four years, San Jose officials have been asking Major League Baseball to decide on the Oakland A's plan to move to a new downtown ballpark in the city over the San Francisco Giants' territorial objections. Howard Mintz in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 12/7/13 Frequent flier miles worth less as airlines roll back benefits -- James Dozer didn’t understand what all the fuss was about. He had a simple request. He wanted to use 140,000 United frequent flier miles to fly from Los Angeles to Shanghai, and he wanted to fly in first class as often as possible. Brian Sumers in the Inland Daily Bulletin -- 12/7/13 Big players dominate Sonoma County vineyard holdings -- The top five vineyard owners in Sonoma County control nearly a fifth of the county's grape supply, according to an analysis by The Press Democrat of county property tax records. Cathy Bussewitz in the Santa Rosa Press -- 12/8/13 The True Cost of a Higher Minimum Wage -- It's clear that income inequality is a crisis worth addressing. It's not clear that a higher minimum wage would address it. Zachary Karabell The Atlantic -- 12/7/13 Bank of America accused of mortgage discrimination -- The city of Los Angeles has filed a lawsuit against Bank of America, the third banking giant accused of mortgage discrimination in minority communities that in turn led to a wave of foreclosures, reduced property tax revenue and increased costs for city services. Anh Do in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/8/13 The Open Secret Of iBeacon: Apple Could Have 250M Potential Units In The Wild By 2014 -- Yesterday, Apple began a small press push on its new iBeacon technology, pushed an Apple Store app update to support them and turned the feature on in 254 U.S.-based stores in an initial rollout. Matthew Panzarino Techcrunch -- 12/7/13 Here’s why the House patent bill won’t put a stop to patent trolling -- In March 2006, a lawsuit came within days of shutting down the network for BlackBerry, which at the time was the preferred mobile device of the suit-wearing crowd. Timothy B. Lee in the Washington Post$ -- 12/8/13
Lee's vehicle-fee hike for Muni opposed in new poll -- A centerpiece of Mayor Ed Lee's just-released Muni upgrade appears to have gone into a ditch. Phillip Matier and Andrew Ross in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 12/7/13
Lopez: Narbonne High teacher stopped this run at a football prospect -- When soon-to-be USC coach Steve Sarkisian visited Veronica Bennett's class to check on a star student, she made the right play. Steve Lopez in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/8/13 School librarian helps students struggling with reading -- Program aims to help young children, most with Spanish-speaking parents, whose reading scores aren't where they should be. Paresh Dave in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/8/13
An effective eye drug is available for $50. But many doctors choose a $2,000 alternative -- The two drugs have been declared equivalently miraculous. Tested side by side in six major trials, both prevent blindness in a common old-age affliction. Peter Whoriskey and Dan Keating in the Washington Post$ -- 12/7/13 Health reform auditions in Hollywood -- Before her injury, dancer Chisa Yamaguchi could catapult 12 feet in the air from a towering stage structure, but Hollywood’s brass ring of health insurance was always out of reach. Then came Obamacare. John M. Gonzales in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 12/8/13
Imperial Valley agencies develop plan to save ailing Salton Sea -- After 2017, the Salton Sea could be at risk of receding further. The new goal is to raise funds for restoration through the sale of geothermal energy. Tony Perry in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/8/13
A Year After Newtown, Rift Over Guns Deepens -- In the moment, Newtown's children became our own. Adam Geller Associated Press -- 12/8/13
BART police earn high marks in second audit -- Outside law enforcement experts are giving BART police high marks for changes the transit agency has made since one of its officers fatally shot a man at an Oakland station on New Year's Day 2009. Lisa Vorderbrueggen in the Oakland Tribune -- 12/8/13 Oakland must shell out millions for new police radios -- Fixing Oakland's much criticized public safety radio system is going to cost at least $15 million more than first anticipated after a study showed it's not just the city's radio infrastructure that's substandard -- the radios are, too. Matthew Artz in the Oakland Tribune -- 12/8/13 San Jose to take new shot at limiting medical marijuana shops -- Bolstered by new legal authority, San Jose leaders are trying again to impose rules that would sharply shrink the number of medical marijuana dispensaries that have proliferated across the city in recent years as officials struggled to regulate them. Mike Rosenberg in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 12/7/13 Making sure the Rose Parade entries will float safely along -- Long before the parade's 46 floats make their way down Pasadena's Colorado Boulevard, each will have been inspected three times. Hailey Branson-Potts in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/7/13 The World's Largest Vessel Is Bigger Than the Empire State Building -- The world's largest vessel just set sail off the coast of South Korea. The Prelude is 1,601 feet long — that's 150 feet longer than the Empire State Building is tall. Owned by Shell, the vessel's massive size has earned it the title of largest object currently afloat. Samantha Dean Mashable -- 12/8/13 NASA's E.T. smartphone satellite has phoned home -- The 4-inch-square satellite, PhoneSat 2.4, which uses an off-the-shelf Samsung Nexus S phone running Google's Android operating system, transmitted data back to its Santa Clara University ground station, the space agency announced last week. Geoffrey Mohan in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/8/13 Paul Walker tribute is expected to attract thousands, organizers say -- A tribute to "Fast & Furious" actor Paul Walker scheduled for Sunday in Valencia is expected to draw thousands of auto enthusiasts and fans who will participate in a memorial rally and car cruise. Anh Do in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/8/13
Obama says Iran could be allowed a modest nuclear enrichment program -- President Obama says that it isn't realistic to try to force Iran to dismantle its entire nuclear complex, but that strong monitoring would be needed. Paul Richter in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/7/13 Balz: Obama and the politics of economic inequality -- Weakened by problems with his health-care initiative, President Obama turned back to the economy last week to rebalance his presidency with a speech about income inequality. Dan Balz in the Washington Post$ -- 12/8/13 Filibuster rule's end should help Obama reshape a key court -- A Senate filibuster rule change should help Obama reshape the key D.C. Circuit Court, but Republicans have other tools to block nominees. Timothy M. Phelps in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/7/13
NSA morale down after Edward Snowden revelations, former U.S. officials say -- Morale has taken a hit at the National Security Agency in the wake of controversy over the agency’s surveillance activities, according to former officials who say they are dismayed that President Obama has not visited the agency to show his support. Ellen Nakashima in the Washington Post$ -- 12/7/13
Deal or no deal? Once again, congressional Republicans and Democrats try to bridge budget differences -- 'Twas two weeks before Christmas, and all through the Senate and House, not a budget deal was stirring, so the country's citizens did grouse ... Josh Richman in the San Jose Mercury -- 12/7/13 Sugar protections prove easy to swallow for lawmakers across political spectrum -- Washington politicians facing a year-end deadline to cut billions in agriculture spending are feuding over the future of food aid for the poor and crop subsidies for farmers. There is, however, one area of agreement in the contentious negotiations: sugar. Peter Wallsten and Tom Hamburger in the Washington Post$ -- 12/7/13 GOP starts a tough struggle to win back Asian American voters -- Asian Americans, a rapidly growing part of the electorate, have shifted solidly behind Democrats – and Republicans face a tough fight to win them over. Mark Z. Barabak in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/8/13 |
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