Updating . .   

COVID-19 surge fueled by unvaccinated children in U.K., a warning for California -- Unvaccinated adolescents have been the driving force behind a stubbornly persistent Delta surge in Britain, a potential warning sign for California if inoculation rates don’t improve considerably among this age group, health experts warn. Rong-Gong Lin II, Luke Money in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/14/21

Here’s why new COVID-19 anti-viral pills could be our ‘penicillin moment’ -- Until now, antiviral drug research has been a place of broken dreams and abandoned efforts, with few success stories to rival the miracle cures of antibiotics. But with the creation of pills to kill the COVID-19 virus, the field may be nearing its “penicillin moment.” Lisa M. Krieger in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 11/14/21

Arellano: Column: L.A.'s unvaccinated public workers go Ayn Rand, throw fit over city’s vaccine mandate -- The big tantrum happened in front of L.A. City Hall. Thousands gathered to protest the city’s mandate that all public employees vaccinate themselves against COVID-19, or lose their jobs. Gustavo Arellano in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/14/21

Extremists  

Angry, violent, toxic: How extremists are drowning out local California governments -- Three of Shasta County’s elected supervisors have the sort of conservative credentials that would normally guarantee a long political career in this Republican stronghold, where cowboys still drive cattle through the smaller towns and Blue Lives Matter flags are stickered across the back of pickups. Ason Pohl, Ryan Sabalow, and Lydia Gerike in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 11/14/21

Read indictment of California men charged in bombing plot at Democratic Party building -- This summer, a San Francisco grand jury indicted two Northern California men, Ian Benjamin Rogers of Napa and Jarrod Copeland of Vallejo, on charges of plotting to blow up the Democratic Party headquarters in Sacramento. Ryan Sabalow and Jason Pohl in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 11/14/21

72 hate groups operated in California last year. Here’s where and what they are -- In California last year, 72 hate groups and 51 extreme anti-government groups operated in the state, according to the Southern Poverty Law Center, which compiles lists of such groups annually. SPLC tracked 838 hate groups and 566 anti-government groups across the U.S. in 2020. Mila Jasper in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 11/14/21

Kaiser  

Kaiser reaches tentative deal with unions, but Monday Bay Area pharmacy strike still possible -- But in Northern California, members of the Guild for Professional Pharmacists — which is not among the 22 unions comprising the Alliance of Health Care Unions subject to the agreement — were still expected to strike starting Monday, causing shutdowns of Bay Area outpatient pharmacies, a Kaiser spokesperson confirmed. Fiona Kelliher in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 11/14/21

Workplace   

As American Workers Leave Jobs in Record Numbers, a Closer Look at Who Is Quitting -- The nation’s high turnover trend has maintained momentum over the past several months as factors like plentiful job openings, a continuing child-care crisis and increased household savings have made job-hopping—or simply quitting—more attractive to some workers. Kathryn Dill in the Wall Street Journal$ -- 11/14/21

Policy and Politics  

Two new California Democrats on how they're courting rural voters: By listening to them -- Max Steiner didn’t need to see Terry McAuliffe whacked in the Virginia governor’s race to learn that Democrats have problems connecting with rural voters. He’s living the dream every day as a Democrat running in California’s most rural — and conservative — House district. Joe Garofoli in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/14/21

Emails show LA commissioner used influence to help win $3 million COVID-19 contract, union alleges -- An embattled Los Angeles fire and police pensions commissioner accused of ethics violations by a law enforcement union over a $3 million contract to test unvaccinated city employees for COVID-19 began lobbying Mayor Eric Garcetti’s office nearly a year ago on behalf of his company, raising questions from critics about potential influence peddling, emails obtained by the Southern California News Group reveal. Scott Schwebke in the Los Angeles Daily News$ -- 11/14/21

Gas  

'Bit of a double whammy': California gas prices hit new high -- As the Thanksgiving travel season is inching closer, residents heading out of town via car may balk at what they’re seeing at the pump. Gas prices are hitting record prices across California, hitting an average price of $4.676 a gallon on Sunday, according to AAA. Tessa McLean in the San Francisco Chronicle -- 11/14/21

Oil  

State committee hearing on OC oil spill set for Monday -- State legislators holding a special committee hearing in Costa Mesa on Monday, Nov. 15, hope it will point them toward any changes to laws and procedures that could help prevent future oil spills and improve the response to those that do happen. Alicia Robinson in the Orange County Register -- 11/14/21

Develop  

Proposed S.F. Amazon warehouse overshadows potential of neighborhood site -- When you walk around the site where Amazon wants to build its largest outpost yet in San Francisco, don’t be surprised if you feel a vague sense of disappointment. John King in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/14/21

Housing  

Fremont pumping millions into affordable housing projects -- In a city where the average home sells for about $1.4 million, and where hundreds of homeless people sleep each night in tents, RVs, and cars, city officials have put up more than $27 million to help create more than 400 affordable apartments in three different proposed housing projects. Joseph Geha in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 11/14/21

Guns  

‘Ghost Guns’: Firearm Kits Bought Online Fuel Epidemic of Violence -- They are untraceable, assembled from parts and can be ordered by gang members, felons and even children. They are increasingly the lethal weapon of easy access around the U.S., but especially California. Glenn Thrush in the New York Times$ -- 11/14/21

Also . . .   

10 years removed from battle, Marine veterans grapple with the worst of the Afghanistan war in new podcast -- In the podcast, the Marines grapple with the moral injuries of their time in combat and how a series of deadly incidents a couple months into their tour sent the men spiraling down a dark path where many said they stopped viewing Afghans as people and started viewing them as targets. Andrew Dyer in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 11/14/21

 

 

California Policy and Politics Sunday Morning  

A winter COVID surge is coming unless California vaccination rates improve. Here’s where we stand -- Gov. Gavin Newsom in recent days has warned that Californians will need to keep on their masks ahead of an anticipated winter surge. He points to Europe, once again the epicenter of the pandemic as hospitals flood with COVID-19 patients. Hannah Wiley in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 11/14/21

Could COVID-19 end up being worse than the flu year after year? -- There is a growing consensus among experts that the coronavirus will likely be with us for many years to come, popping up in pockets even when most people across the globe have immunity through vaccination or natural infection. Paul Sisson in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 11/14/21

Policy and Politics  

Recovered from COVID-19, Mayor Garcetti scheduled to return to L.A. on Tuesday -- Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, recovered from a bout of COVID-19, will travel from Glasgow, Scotland, to Washington, D.C., on Sunday, and then will return to L.A. on Tuesday, according to his office. Howard Blume in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/14/21

Panel picks San Diego boundary map that boosts minority voting power without severe changes -- A volunteer panel took a key step toward redrawing San Diego’s City Council boundaries Saturday when they approved a preliminary map that boosts voting power for racial minorities and unites some previously divided neighborhoods. David Garrick in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 11/14/21

Walters: California’s high unemployment rate may be too low -- Each month, federal and state officials release employment data for the preceding month, basically telling us how many Californians are employed and how many aren’t. Dan Walters CalMatters -- 11/14/21

Kaiser  

Kaiser settles Southern California labor dispute — why Northern California protest still on -- Kaiser Permanente has averted strikes in Southern California, Oregon and Hawaii after reaching a tentative four-year contract with 50,000 employees, but its Northern California operations will still face mass walkouts over stalled talks with 700 engineers. Cathie Anderson in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 11/14/21

Supply Chain  

Ports of LA, Long Beach to hit cargo that lingers too long with fees – that you may have to pay -- The Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach on Monday, Nov. 15, are set to begin levying fees against ocean carriers whose containers linger too long at terminals, among the most significant initiatives they’ve undertaken to alleviate the unprecedented supply chain bottleneck that threatens the nation’s economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic. Chris Haire in the Orange County Register -- 11/14/21

Street  

Family, SFPD honor officer slain in 1994 shooting rampage that led to changes in law -- As two dozen police officers stood at attention, the mournful strains of a bagpipe echoed at the corner of Pine and Franklin streets on Saturday night at a memorial for a San Francisco Police Department officer killed at that spot 27 years ago during a horrific gunbattle with a heavily armed carjacking suspect. Carolyn Said in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/14/21

Education  

How will San Diego’s school districts spend hundreds of millions in COVID money? -- San Diego County’s largest school districts are spending their hundreds of millions in COVID aid dollars on everything from pay raises for substitute teachers to Chromebooks for kids, to cultural competency training for teachers, to new roofs for schools, their spending plans show. Kristen Taketa in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 11/14/21

Develop  

Amazon keeps growing in San Diego and Tijuana. Chances are it won’t stop -- Retail giant Amazon has been leasing and buying space in San Diego more than any other business and, with competition at its heels, doesn’t appear to be slowing down — especially with pandemic-induced shopping. Phillip Molnar, Joshua Emerson Smith in the San Diego Union-Tribune$ -- 11/14/21

Wildfire   

What Does It Take to Build a Disaster-Proof House? -- When a massive wildfire swept through Paradise, Calif., three years ago this week, it killed 85 people and destroyed more than 13,000 homes. The wood chalet-style cabin where Mike and Jennifer Petersen lived — built by Ms. Petersen’s grandparents in the 1960s — was one of those homes. Candace Jackson in the New York Times$ -- 11/14/21

 

Saturday Updates   

Strike at Kaiser Permanente averted two days before deadline -- Hospital workers and management at Kaiser Permanente, one of the nation’s largest healthcare systems, reached a labor agreement Saturday, two days before nearly 32,000 employees were set to strike over a proposed pay system for future hires. Sam Dean in the Los Angeles Times$ Fiona Kelliher in the San Jose Mercury$ Kevin Smith in the Los Angeles Daily News$ -- 11/13/21

As infections rise, the San Joaquin Valley becomes the land of the eternal COVID surge -- This is what the COVID-19 pandemic looks like in the part of California where the Delta variant surge refuses to let up. In Fresno County, understaffed hospitals have been so clogged that ambulance crews have stopped transporting people unless they have a life-threatening emergency. Hailey Branson-Potts in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/13/21

Smith: The first time he died, it changed his life. Then he got shot in front of his church -- It was about halfway through the nearly three-hour funeral service for associate pastor and Sunday school teacher Joe Reginald Moore Sr. when his niece somehow got a hold of the microphone. “There was a time that I didn’t even like to look at him!” Erika D. Smith in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/13/21

Lopez: In Carson, the stink will go away soon. The bigger problems won’t -- On my way to check out the big stink in Carson, I felt like I was driving into a storm of environmental hazards. Refinery smoke rose and hovered over schools, businesses and homes. Traffic was bottled up on the Harbor Freeway between LAX and the Long Beach Airport. Big rigs hogged streets and highways, waddling to and from the nearby fume-spewing port. Oil tank farms sprouted and drill pumps by the dozens, active and abandoned, dotted the landscape. Steve Lopez in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 11/13/21

Street  

3-year-old boy recovered, kidnap suspect arrested after Sacramento Amber Alert -- A 3-year-old boy was recovered and a kidnap suspect arrested Saturday in Hayward, ending a manhunt that began Friday afternoon in Sacramento after the child was taken from his mother there, police said. Kevin Fagan in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Vincent Moleski in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 11/13/21

Earthquake    

Prepping for the Big One, California earthquake insurance agency looks to cut coverage -- Some day, a major earthquake causing damage on the scale of Northridge or Loma Prieta, or even worse, is expected to shake California. In the aftermath, anyone who owns or rents a home will be scrambling to see how much insurance they have to cover damages. It’s likely to be far less than they might have wanted. Dale Kasler in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 11/13/21

Also . . .   

Review: Michael Tilson Thomas makes an emotional return to lead S.F. Symphony -- Michael Tilson Thomas moves more slowly and haltingly now; his hair is grayer and thinner. But as he took the stage of Davies Symphony Hall on Friday, Nov. 13, to conduct the San Francisco Symphony for the first time in more than a year and a half, there was no mistaking that distinctive presence. Joshua Kosman in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/13/21

At 22, this Californian was one of the nation’s youngest elected officials. His new book tells the story -- Former Stockton mayor Michael Tubbs' 'The Deeper the Roots' arrives Nov. 16 with frank talk about racism, policy and owning his mistakes. Stuart Miller in the Los Angeles Daily News$ -- 11/13/21

Knight: All they wanted was to open a noodle shop. Their tangle with S.F. bureaucracy has them regretting they tried -- Yoko and Clint Tan taught themselves how to cook ramen that was hailed as “mind-blowing” by The Chronicle and recognized at the World Ramen Grand Prix in Japan. Heather Knight in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 11/13/21

John Wayne Airport records highest temperature in the nation – 98 degrees – on Friday -- Travelers flying out of John Wayne Airport on Friday, Nov. 12 may have breathed a sigh of relief after leaving the hottest spot on record in the nation. Those who flew in may have been surprised by near triple-digit heat in November. Nathaniel Percy in the Orange County Register -- 11/13/21