In online voting that ended at 5 p.m. Wednesday, Gunukula finished with 56.9% of the votes. Dougherty Valley basketball player Keira Tom took second at 27.1%.
Gunukula, a senior, led Leland with 19 points and added two rebounds, two steals, an assist and a block as the Chargers beat Santa Teresa 64-30. She went 4 for 9 from 3.
To nominate an athlete for next week’s poll, email highschools@bayareanewsgroup.com by Monday at 11 a.m. Please include stats and team results.
Votes by email do not count. Only votes submitted through the online poll on the Mercury News and East Bay Times websites will count.
Winners are announced each Friday on the Mercury News and East Bay Times websites and in the print edition of the Mercury News and EB Times sports sections.
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SANTA CLARA — Robert Saleh has been through this before so he knows what’s coming.
And while the natural inclination would be to begin casting an eye on which NFL coaching vacancy would be the best opportunity, for now he’ll leave that up to the Wasserman Group. The agency, which includes Bay Area native Doug Hendrickson as vice president, posted on the social media platform X that it is representing Saleh during the upcoming round of coaching musical chairs.
Saleh isn’t eligible to speak to other teams until next week, and interviews, whether remote or in person, are limited to three hours. Forty-Niners coach Kyle Shanahan knows the drill. He lost Saleh to the Jets after the 2021 season, DeMeco Ryans to Houston after 2022 and Mike McDaniel to Miami after 2023.
“The league has done a really nice job with structuring the interview process to allow people to focus on the job at hand so I haven’t thought about any of it,” Saleh said Thursday. “I know things come in, but it’s not something I have to deal with until next week so I’m completely focused on Philly.”
The 49ers (12-5) visit the Philadelphia Eagles (11-6) Sunday (1:30 p.m., Fox) at Lincoln Financial Field in an NFC wild-card game.
Saleh figures to be choosy about which jobs to pursue. He already worked more than three seasons for the New York Jets. The dysfunction of the franchise from ownership down is so ingrained that Saleh’s 20-36 record from 2021 and into 2024 isn’t likely to be held against him.
The Miami Dolphins dismissed McDaniel Thursday. The other seven openings and the coaches who were relieved are Baltimore (John Harbaugh), Cleveland (Kevin Stefanski), the New York Giants (Brian Daboll), Las Vegas (Pete Carroll), Tennessee (Brian Callahan), Arizona (Jonathan Gannon) and Atlanta (Raheem Morris).
The Cardinals, Titans, Falcons and Ravens were reportedly the first to reach out to the 49ers for permission to talk to Saleh, according to Sports Illustrated and ESPN, and more are likely to follow. A year ago, Saleh was a finalist in Jacksonville (the job went to Liam Coen) and was under consideration by Dallas and the Raiders.
Robert Saleh was 20-36 as head coach of the New Yok Jets from 2021 into 2024. A.P. Photo
Although the regular season ended in hail of missed tackles in a 13-3 loss to Seattle which put the 49ers into the wild-card round rather than drawing a first-round bye, Saleh has been credited with keeping a defense together despite heavy losses due to injury that included star edge rusher Nick Bosa (ACL), linebacker Fred Warner (ankle) and first-round draft pick Mykel Williams (ACL).
The 49ers were 13th in scoring defense and despite some obvious problems in rush (20 sacks) and coverage (six interceptions) and made enough plays in the red zone to give up just 53 percent touchdowns as opposed to 68 a year ago under Nick Sorensen.
The first order of business will be to devise a way to defend a Philadelphia team that has slumped offensively in 2025 but still has a dangerous pass/run quarterback in Jalen Hurts, the defending NFC Offensive Player of the Year in running back Saquon Barkley, two 1,000-yard receivers in A.J. Brown and Devonta Smith and a tight end in Dallas Goedert with 11 touchdowns.
The 49ers missed as many as 18 tackles against Seattle, including a galling 19-yard run on a simple pitch play to Kenneth Walker on a third-and-17. During the game Tatum Bethune, who replaced Warner, was lost for the season with a groin tear. The starting linebackers in Wednesday’s practice included Eric Kendricks, who signed on Nov. 26, and Garret Wallow, signed on Dec. 8.
It was the third game in 13 days for the 49ers, which included three post-bye night games, one in Indianapolis and home games against Chicago and the Seahawks.
“It was definitely a touch stretch, not to give anyone an out, but you’re talking three nationally televised games with the emotions and all that stuff,” Saleh said. “But it doesn’t matter. Your number is called, you’ve got to answer the bell. It’s as simple as taking the proper angles and the extra step . . . we’ve got to be our best when our best is required and we weren’t that on Sunday.”
Some other observations from Saleh Thursday:
On the Eagles’ short-yardage tush-push: “I’m for it. I think if you do something good and the rest of the league hates on that, it’s a good thing, right? If it was easy to do every team in the league would be doing it . . . I always say the best way to stop it is don’t give ’em third-and-1, but they’ll probably get to that eventually.”
Defending Hurts: “He’s got arm talent to make every single throw. Elite deep ball thrower, can get it behind the defense pretty good. He’s good in the pocket. He’s very aware from a pressure standpoint being able to escape, then obviously the QB runs. They don’t do it often, but when they do it’s effective.”
Barkley’s reduced effectiveness: “I know his production isn’t what it was a year ago but he’s still a damn good football player, a threat to break it and any time he touches the ball, they can still run the ball as good as anybody.
The addition of LB Kyzir White: “He’s got familiarity with the system. He was with Gus (Bradley) over at the Chargers and I think we were hoping he’d get to the fifth and the Chargers took him in the fourth. One of those prototypical safeties you could move to linebacker. He knows our system, he can step in if needed to and give us minutes.”
Cornerback Upton Stout’s progress: “For a rookie, especially a guy who plays his play style the violence with which he plays, it’s just getting reps and how he feels the game and where he needs to put his body . . . I don’t think he’s close to done. I think he had his best game Saturday night. He’s a good little player, man. He’s going to be good in this league for a long time.”
Klint Kubiak gaining interest
Klint Kubiak, the Seattle offensive coordinator and brother of Klay Kubiak, has reportedly piqued the interest of five teams that have asked the Seahawks for permission to interview him: Baltimore, Las Vegas, Atlanta and the New York Giants and Arizona.
Klay Kubiak, who could be on the radar of teams next year depending on how the 49ers fare, said he and his brother didn’t make concrete plans as youths to join their father, Gary Kubiak, in aspiring to be a head coach. Gary Kubiak was a head coach in Houston and Denver, winning the last Super Bowl at Levi’s Stadium over Carolina.
“I don’t think I ever got into this, either of us, and said we’re doing this to be head coaches,” Klay Kubiak said. “That’s something that would happen naturally if you had success and you were a part of winning teams . . . I’m happy for him that he’s getting some opportunities too. But, I think when it was all said and done and we were done playing and kind of moved on with our lives, we were like, all right, we need to coach. It’s what we’re kind of born to do.”
The Sneak Peek post goes up on (or before) Thursday, February 5 and Artist Claims open on Saturday, February 7.
A 10,000-word big bang for small fandoms!
Please don’t be worried if you aren’t familiar with many of the fandoms listed; since the challenge is both multi-fandom and small fandom, we expect that you might not be. For that reason we have given artists 6 weeks to complete their fanart, and are charging authors with assisting their artists with character descriptions, screencaps, etc. Also, the types of fanart we accept is pretty broad and not limited merely to cover art and icons.
So, if you like to create fanart, including graphics, fanmixes and podfic, please check us out!
Tony La Russa can trace his relationship with Dave Stewart all the way back to the very first game he managed for the Oakland Athletics, when he pulled the recently acquired right-handed reliever out of the bullpen to start against Roger Clemens in the summer of 1986.
Stewart beat Clemens and went on win three World Series while becoming “like a brother from another mother,” according to La Russa.
Along the way, the Hall-of-Fame manager learned of a hidden talent that Stewart only revealed when the clubhouse doors closed, or maybe after a couple drinks at dinner. He has kept the secret closely guarded for nearly 40 years. Until now.
You could say “Smoke” has pipes. That’s right: Stewart can sing.
“We’ve always kidded that when he gets excited, he sounds like the Bee Gees,” La Russa said of Stewart, now 68, who is better known for his imposing stare and impressive fastball that led him to a no-hitter and a World Series MVP. “I’m confident that he’s got — what’s the word? He’s got good range.”
Stewart will show off that range publicly for the first time next Saturday with a band that includes members of Santana, the Who, Huey Lewis and the News, and the Doobie Brothers, unveiling his vocal stylings at the Lesher Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek for La Russa’s annual fundraiser to support his nonprofit for animal welfare.
La Russa can remember “many, many times, if we were at a social event and there was music, he’d be next to me and I could hear him singing the lyrics from the songs, especially if they were Motown.” His debut performance will lean more soft and soulful: Two songs by Chris Stapleton and one Bill Withers number.
A longtime East Bay resident, La Russa has put on the fundraiser for years, often involving Stewart in one way or another. He had stepped on the mound for La Russa so many times, but never had Stewart stepped on stage with a band, in front of an audience.
Like many good stories, it began with a pair of old friends on a golf course.
La Russa and Stewart don’t hit the links often, but they found themselves in a foursome in the Phoenix area one day last spring. La Russa, now 81 and fully recovered from cancer treatment, was entering his third season as a senior advisor for the White Sox, while Stewart was working for the A’s.
“We made a bet, and there were some consequences for whoever lost,” La Russa said. “If Stew lost, he was going to have to sing at this event. I actually told him in October, I said, ‘Look man, I’m not going to ruin our friendship over a stupid bet. You don’t have to do it.’ And he said, ‘I’m singing.'”
Commendable as Stewart’s insistence is to hold up his end of the bargain, the punishment is far more preferable — and probable to pull off — than what La Russa hypothetically would have had to endure.
“At the next A’s-White Sox game, I would have had to kiss his (expletive) at home plate before the first pitch,” La Russa said. “I would have found a way to avoid that. Stew is more honorable than I am.”
Dusty Baker, Jose Canseco and Dennis Eckersley are expected to attend the event, which also includes performances by Tony Lindsay of Santana and “Phantom of the Opera” singer Franc D’Ambrosio, as well as a panel discussion looking back on big moments from the careers of Stewart and others.
Walter Haas, the former A’s president, purchased a group of tickets so that some former club employees could attend, La Russa said.
“It’s going to be a kind of reunion,” said La Russa, whose career in baseball now spans seven decades. Debuting at 18 years old for the Kansas City Athletics, his relationship with the franchise dates back even further than its tie to Oakland. He was there when the A’s arrived at the Coliseum in 1968 and spent parts of five seasons as a part-time middle infielder. He returned to manage in 1986 and led the “Bash Brothers” era A’s to three straight American League pennants.
That history occurred in Oakland. The A’s play in West Sacramento now, en route to Las Vegas.
“We always felt like the success of the franchise and the support of the fans was as good as any place, so there’s a disappointment” in the A’s leaving Oakland,” La Russa said. “There was all that talk about going to San Jose. I wish that had happened. We always thought that if Oakland didn’t work we could move to Pleasanton or Livermore, just because the fan base is so strong. Now it’s Las Vegas, and I can’t say that we’re not disappointed. But we’re still with the A’s wherever they go.”
Heart problems forced La Russa to retire from his 35-year managerial career midway through 2022, and he began undergoing treatment for cancer shortly thereafter. He had surgery in January 2023 and that spring began his new advisory role with the White Sox. That summer, he attended the Hall of Fame ceremony in Cooperstown, “and I remember, I saw pictures of me and thought, ‘I should’ve stayed home.’ …
“That first year was (difficult),” La Russa said. “But I’m feeling better.”
Less than a month after the fundraiser, pitchers and catchers will report to Arizona for spring training. So will La Russa. He plans to be in camp with the White Sox in the first part of February. Recently, he exchanged texts with Joe Torre, who now works in the league office, about the upcoming labor negotiations.
“It’s been my life forever,” La Russa said. “It’s the only thing I know how to do, so it’s fortunate I’ve been able to stay connected to (the game).”
When Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen, San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan and a coalition of prosecutors, public defenders and law enforcement officers endorsed a county sales tax hike, it was a political turning point for last fall’s Measure A campaign.
“It said protect public safety on the ballot,” Rosen says. “I, as the DA, along with the prosecutors and the deputy sheriffs supported Measure A because it would help prevent cuts to public safety.”
Some members of the group had threatened to campaign against the measure. They say they reversed course only after seeing new ballot language that included public safety support and after securing agreements that left them feeling County Executive James Williams understood their funding concerns.
“I feel double-crossed,” says Rosen. “I don’t understand it given that I worked very hard to get this measure passed. It’s a funny way to say, ‘thank you.’”
The fight highlights the deep political split over years of ballooning county health care funding at the expense of public safety agencies; the ambiguity of deals cut during the campaign; and continuing use of misleading ballot language by California local governments to pass new tax measures.
Mahan says he would not have endorsed Measure A if Rosen hadn’t.
“I’m deeply concerned with an approach that would put all of the (Measure A money) into the hospitals, disproportionately concentrating the cuts in the criminal justice system,” he says. “I already feel we’re not doing enough on criminal justice.”
Santa Clara County, when compared to six other similarly sized California counties between 1.5 million and 3.5 million people, has the largest per-capita general fund budget and spends the smallest portion on public safety and criminal justice, according to analysis by Peter Jensen, the district attorney’s finance manager.
As county leaders battle over how to spend the new sales tax revenues that they will begin collecting April 1, voters and public safety advocates have good reason to feel deceived.
The ballot wording
Measure A will add five-eighths of a cent for five years to each dollar of taxable goods, pushing the total rate to 10% or more in most of Santa Clara County. The sales tax increase is expected to raise $330 million annually and cost each county resident at least an average $113 a year.
The ballot wording for Measure A.
In late August, during a court challenge by taxpayer advocates, county officials agreed to change the ballot wording to explicitly state that public safety would be among critical local services that could be funded by Measure A.
The new wording indicated the money would “support critical local services such as trauma, emergency room, mental health, and public safety; and reduce the risk of hospital closures at Santa Clara Valley Healthcare and other service cuts.”
But, despite the ballot wording, county supervisors are under no legal obligation to use the money to support the listed services. That’s because of the byzantine rules for local tax measures.
California has generally two types of local tax measures. A “special” tax requires two-thirds voter approval, and the use of the money is restricted to a specific purpose. A “general” tax, like Measure A, requires only majority approval, and the money can be used on any legally permissible government purpose.
While a general tax allows supervisors to spend the money on any of the services mentioned on the ballot, it does not require them to do so. They are free to spend the money just for health care, even if that’s not clearly disclosed.
That spending flexibility is only hinted at in the middle of the voter guide “impartial analysis,” written by Deputy County Counsel Nick De Fiesta. He writes that Measure A money could be used “to support Santa Clara Valley Healthcare hospitals and clinics, provide social services, promote public safety, or for any other legitimate governmental purposes.”
Nothing on the ballot or in the voter guide clearly states what Williams says was intended — a new sales tax entirely to bail out the county’s health care system.
Fiscally ‘unsustainable’
Further deceiving voters, county officials pitched the measure as critical to, as the ballot wording said, “address severe federal cuts enacted by the President and Congress.”
Santa Clara County Executive James Williams says all the money from the Measure A sales tax increase will go toward health care services. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
The biggest cause of that increase has been health care, which includes the county’s network of hospitals and clinics. The county, which already ran Santa Clara Valley Medical Center in San Jose, rescued O’Connor Hospital in San Jose and Saint Louise Regional Hospital in Gilroy from bankruptcy in 2019, and purchased Regional Medical Center in San Jose in 2025. The county now operates a much larger health care system per-capita than any other California county.
But health care losses rapidly increased, from about $97 million in 2017-18 to $532 million expected in the current fiscal year, before Trump’s budget bill made it much worse. It’s a shortfall that the county has been making up with increasing general fund subsidies, money that could otherwise go to other county services, including public safety.
In 2024, before the county purchased its fourth hospital, the Board of Supervisors’ outside auditing firm warned that “large increases in subsidies for the hospital system are not sustainable indefinitely.”
“The system will never generate enough money to cover its costs,” warned Harvey M. Rose Associates. “Subsidies will always be required. The larger the system gets, the larger the subsidies will need to be.”
Then, when Congress passed Medicaid cuts as part of Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill,” which would significantly affect Santa Clara County’s health care system, a local problem that had been mounting for eight years got much worse.
Ballot politics
It’s against that background that public safety advocates were threatening to mount a campaign against Measure A. They had seen hospitals subsidies drain general fund revenues from public safety.
The Sheriff’s Office had 34% fewer deputies in 2024 than in 2020, according to county data analyzed by Tom Saggau, a contract negotiator and political strategist for deputies and criminal attorneys. Response times for urgent calls had increased as much as 73% in some parts of the county.
Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen, left, and San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan announced their support for Measure A at a press conference Oct. 1 in San Jose. (Grace Hase/Bay Area News Group)
The union representing prosecutors and public defenders had prepared a 30-second television commercial against the tax increase. “What is the spending plan for Measure A?” the ad asks. “… (W)ill the county keep buying hospitals it can’t afford and gut public safety to pay for it? You should know before voting on Measure A, the county’s massive tax increase.”
Rosen, Mahan and the public safety labor unions unified to ensure key demands would be met before they considered supporting the sales tax increase. Polling then showed a strong opposition campaign might have defeated Measure A, Saggau says.
But then the county reached agreement with prosecutors, public defenders and sheriff deputies on contracts with raises in line with other county employees; Mahan received promises of county health services at San Jose-funded homeless shelters and interim housing; and Rosen received permission from Williams to fill eight prosecutor positions that had been budgeted but frozen.
“It looked like folks were committed that public safety is protected in some way, so we all endorsed,” Saggau said. With the new ballot language and what they thought were assurances from Williams, the coalition supported the sales tax, Rosen, Mahan and Saggau said.
Rosen explained in an interview when the endorsement was announced that he had not received county commitments to directly fund public safety with Measure A money, but expected it would free up county money to protect law enforcement. “If the sales tax measure doesn’t pass, then it’s clear to me that there’s going to be cuts to law enforcement in the county, cuts to the DAs Office and cuts to the Sheriff’s Office,” he told reporter Grace Hase.
The opposition ad was shelved. Instead, the government attorneys and deputy sheriffs’ association spent about $625,000 on digital ads and mailers featuring county Sheriff Bob Jonsen, Mahan and, most prominently, Rosen.
The ads targeted conservative and swing voters, and touted the measure as a way to reduce crime and homelessness. “Without Measure A, our safety takes another hit,” reads one of the mailers. “Public safety leaders we trust support Measure A to reduce crime and homelessness,” reads another.
But if Williams gets the cuts he’s suggesting and directs all the new sales tax money to the county health care system, the promises in the mailers and in the ballot language will turn out to be empty.
For example, the roughly $18 million Rosen is now being asked to trim from next fiscal year’s budget dwarfs the roughly $2 million annual cost of the eight entry-level prosecutor positions unfrozen before he endorsed Measure A.
It certainly won’t be the first time voters have been deceived by local government officials’ ballot wording. I’ve been writing for years about such electoral dishonesty.
What makes this case different is that key backers of the measure got conned, too. The question now is whether they will spend political capital trying to reform the broken election system.
Reach Editorial Page Editor Daniel Borenstein at dborenstein@bayareanewsgroup.com.
MEDLEY, Fla. — Walnut Creek’s Sabrina Ionescu will not play in the second season of Unrivaled because of an injury sustained during the WNBA season.
The 3-on-3 women’s basketball league, which began its second season on Monday, announced the news Thursday, saying that Ionescu will still be involved with off-court initiatives and partnership opportunities. The former Miramonte High star suffered an undisclosed injury during the WNBA season.
The four-time WNBA All-Star with the New York Liberty played for Phantom BC during Unrivaled’s first season and averaged 18.2 points and seven rebounds.
“While I’m disappointed I couldn’t play this season, I’ll be rooting for the Phantom,” Ionescu said in a statement. “I’m looking forward to working with Unrivaled through content and broadcast opportunities and continuing to support the league’s success.”
Ionescu joined Napheesa Collier as stars who have been ruled out for Unrivaled’s second season. Collier, an Unrivaled co-founder and the league’s 2025 MVP, was set to have surgery on both of her ankles and will be sidelined four-to-six months.
Most years, when storms roll through Southern California during the winter holiday, local mountains transform into a wonderland blanketed in snow.
But instead, the recent storms featured relentless rains, bringing a downpour of destruction — and disappointment.
A woman sits near the North Shore Lookout Point next to Big Bear Lake as Snow Summit is seen in the distance in Big Bear on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Codie Keay, 21, finds some busy work straightening out beanie caps at Le Roys Snowboard Shop in Arrowbear on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. Keay said they only had 15 rentals last weekend and on this day had none. Keay added, “ its been the worst year ever.” The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Little to no snow is seen on the slopes of Snow Valley Mountain Resort in Running Springs on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Normally crowded lift ticket sales booths sit closed as a short line purchases tickets at Bear Mountain in Big Bear on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Skiers and snowboarders head down a hill at Bear Mountain in Big Bear on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. Only 35 percent of the mountain is open due to lack of snow. The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Visitors to the Coyote Creek Tube Park at Snow Valley Mountain Resort enjoy a short run on man made snow down a hill in Running Springs on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Hotels in Big Bear have plently of empty rooms this winter due to the lack of snow so far this season as seen on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Though the Snowdrift Snow Tubing Park in Running Springs received a dusting of snow overnight Tuesday it still wasn’t enough to open on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Visitors to Bear Mountain enjoy a sunny day on the near empty sun deck in Big Bear on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
A ski and snowboard rental business sits open with no customers in Big Bear on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Ski lift chairs sit idle at a closed Snow Valley Mountain Resort in Running Springs on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026 as the resort remains closed due to lack of snow. Though they received a slight dusting overnight Tuesday it had melted by the end of the day. The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Chaining up signs sit turned away from traffic across the street from Snow Valley Mountain Resort in Running Springs on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Though the Snowdrift Snow Tubing Park in Running Springs received a dusting of snow overnight Tuesday it still wasn’t enough to open on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Le Roys Snowboard Shop employees, from left, Codie Keay, Emma May and Tori Keay wait for customers in Arrowbear on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. As of 11a.m. they only had $25 in sales and no rentals. The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Codie Keay, 21, waits for customers near racks and racks of unrented snowboarding gear at Le Roys Snowboard Shop in Arrowbear on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. Keay said they only had 15 rentals last weekend and on this day had none. Keay added, “ its been the worst year ever.” The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Normally full picnic benches sit empty on the sun deck during lunch time at Bear Mountain in Big Bear on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Normally crowded lift ticket sales booths sit closed as a short line purchases tickets at Bear Mountain in Big Bear on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Employees at Snow Valley Mountain Resort walk an empty parking lot in Running Springs on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026 as the resort remains closed due to lack of snow. The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Snow making machines at a closed Snow Valley Mountain Resort sit idle in Running Springs on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Snowboarders head up a lift at Bear Mountain in Big Bear on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. Only 35 percent of the mountain is open with man made snow. The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Snowboarders wait at the bottom of a lift as the mountain side has little to no natural snow at Bear Mountain in Big Bear on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Codie Keay, 21, stands near racks and racks of unrented snowboarding gear at Le Roys Snowboard Shop in Arrowbear on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. Keay said they only had 15 rentals last weekend and on this day had none. Keay added, “ its been the worst year ever.” The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Though the Snowdrift Snow Tubing Park in Running Springs received a dusting of snow overnight Tuesday it still wasn’t enough to open on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Remaining floodwaters stream through Wrightwood on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, as contractors work to prevent further damage. Highway 2 has since reopened following a closure. (Photo by Anjali Sharif-Paul, The Sun/SCNG)
Contractors work in Wrightwood on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, after recent floods ripped through the town. Highway 2 has since reopened following a closure. (Photo by Anjali Sharif-Paul, The Sun/SCNG)
Remaining floodwaters stream through Wrightwood on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, as contractors work to prevent further damage. Highway 2 has since reopened following a closure. (Photo by Anjali Sharif-Paul, The Sun/SCNG)
Contractors work in Wrightwood on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, after recent floods ripped through the town. Highway 2 has since reopened following a closure. (Photo by Anjali Sharif-Paul, The Sun/SCNG)
Contractors work in Wrightwood on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, after recent floods ripped through the town. Highway 2 has since reopened following a closure. (Photo by Anjali Sharif-Paul, The Sun/SCNG)
Remaining floodwaters stream through Wrightwood on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, as contractors work to prevent further damage. Highway 2 has since reopened following a closure. (Photo by Anjali Sharif-Paul, The Sun/SCNG)
Uprooted plants press against a railing in Wrightwood on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, after recent floods ripped through the town. Highway 2 has since reopened following a closure. (Photo by Anjali Sharif-Paul, The Sun/SCNG)
Contractors work in Wrightwood on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, after recent floods ripped through the town. Highway 2 has since reopened following a closure. (Photo by Anjali Sharif-Paul, The Sun/SCNG)
Contractors work in Wrightwood on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, after recent floods ripped through the town. Highway 2 has since reopened following a closure. (Photo by Anjali Sharif-Paul, The Sun/SCNG)
Carlos Drinkard, a Caltrans bridge supervisor, inspects a bridge in Wrightwood on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, after recent floods ripped through the town. Highway 2 has since reopened following a closure. (Photo by Anjali Sharif-Paul, The Sun/SCNG)
Contractors work in Wrightwood on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, after recent floods ripped through the town. Highway 2 has since reopened following a closure. (Photo by Anjali Sharif-Paul, The Sun/SCNG)
Remaining floodwaters stream through Wrightwood on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, as contractors work to prevent further damage. Highway 2 has since reopened following a closure. (Photo by Anjali Sharif-Paul, The Sun/SCNG)
Remaining floodwaters stream through Wrightwood on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, as contractors work to prevent further damage. Highway 2 has since reopened following a closure. (Photo by Anjali Sharif-Paul, The Sun/SCNG)
Remaining floodwaters stream through Wrightwood on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, as contractors work to prevent further damage. Highway 2 has since reopened following a closure. (Photo by Anjali Sharif-Paul, The Sun/SCNG)
Contractors work in Wrightwood on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, after recent floods ripped through the town. Highway 2 has since reopened following a closure. (Photo by Anjali Sharif-Paul, The Sun/SCNG)
Carlos Drinkard, a Caltrans bridge supervisor, inspects a bridge in Wrightwood on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026, after recent floods ripped through the town. Highway 2 has since reopened following a closure. (Photo by Anjali Sharif-Paul, The Sun/SCNG)
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A woman sits near the North Shore Lookout Point next to Big Bear Lake as Snow Summit is seen in the distance in Big Bear on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. The mountain resorts in the San Bernardino Mountains only received one inch of snow in December and have yet to have anything measureable since the first of the year. (Photo by Will Lester, Inland Valley Daily Bulletin/SCNG)
Local mountain towns bank on the cold-weather months to generate the bulk of their business for the year, and snow is the key ingredient to a successful winter season.
But worry is growing as snow remains scarce and the forecast calls for sunny skies in the near future.
In Wrightwood, the recent torrential rainfall delivered devastating mudslides that have crippled the mountain town. The road in reopened late Tuesday following a weeks-long closure to tourists who were expected to fill in through the Christmas and New Year’s holiday break.
The popular ski resort Mountain High, the biggest draw for the tucked-away town, remains closed after rivers of water overtook the slopes on Christmas Eve. Dozens of homes and businesses were damaged in the massive flooding, some still digging out from the muddy debris.
“It’s been raining non-stop here and there, and everywhere. It was a terrible holiday for all of Southern California resorts,” said Mountain High Vice President of Marketing John McColly. “We had no idea how bad it was going to get, and there’s nothing you can do with giant rivers running down the trails.”
The first step has been to repair the slopes, where the rushing water caused major erosion on the runs.
“Imagine the biggest amount of rain you’ve ever seen come through,” McColly said. “The erosion turned little rivers into giant ravines. There was so much, so fast. It had a mind of its own.”
Thanks to the efforts of the resort’s crew, most of those repairs are done, McColly said.
But with no help from Mother Nature, the resort needs to make snow to entice people to return.
The temperatures, finally, turned cold enough this week to crank the machines on to put more snow onto the slopes, with hopes of being able to reopen in the coming days.
In San Bernardino, while spared major flooding and landslides in this latest bout of rain, Highway 38, a major road into Big Bear, is still under repair following a massive mudslide in September.
And the lack of snow is putting a damper on the tourism business.
While Snow Valley has sledding and snow play open, the resort has yet to open up its runs for the season.
Leroy’s Ski & Snowboard Shop in Arrowbear Lake only did 15 rentals last Saturday. On a good weekend at the height of the season, it could pull in $15,000. On Wednesday, the shop had only three rentals by noon, said employee Codie Keay.
Snow flurries were a hopeful sign in the early-morning hours on Wednesday, covering the road and giving a light, white blanket to the slopes.
“But nothing stuck,” said Keay, 21. “It’s a bummer. I’m born and raised up here, I’ve never experienced a winter like the last two winters.”
Never in her lifetime can she remember Snow Valley not being open for Christmas.
“It’s hard because a lot of people use Snow Valley. Locals, everyone works there,” she said. “It’s taking a lot of jobs from the community. A lot of people are jobless or waiting to start working. But there’s nothing we can do, because there’s no snow.”
Aga Leroy, part owner of Leroy’s shop in Big Bear, said there are still some tourists around town. The shop, instead of just renting snow gear, is also renting bikes and fishing gear as warm weather lingers.
“There’s definitely things to do,” she encouraged.
Many businesses are reporting being 20% to 30% down from last year, Leroy noted, which also wasn’t a great year due to the 330 Highway shutdown for months from fire damage and a late start to the snow season.
“It’s tough, I think unfortunately some shops are laying people off,” she said. “I think it’s difficult for everybody.”
A temporary reopening of Highway 38 helped crowds get to Big Bear during the holidays.
“We were hoping we would see some snowfall over the holiday season, but unfortunately, that didn’t turn out to be the case,” said Big Bear Mountain Resort spokesman Justin Kanton.
The lack of snow impacts not just the resorts, but the entire valley, when it comes to employment, Kanton said, noting the resort has had to cut hours and make adjustments.
Still, thankfully, the town is seeing visitors, he said. Grocery stores have been filled with people and even the slopes, kept snowy with machines that crank out the white fluffy stuff, are still drawing crowds.
The lack of snow also means people can access the mountains more easily, not having to hassle with chains or sketchy roads.
“The demand and interest is there, we just need Mother Nature to get with the program, to get cold enough to make snow or if she wants to make natural snowfall, we’ll take that too,” he said.
“For anyone who is writing off the season completely, I would caution that it is premature,” he said, noting that the last few years have had later-than-usual starts. “Once they do come, they come in strong. We’re hoping that’s the case.”
While there’s no natural snow forecast for the near future, the good news is that temperatures are dropping enough for the resorts to keep making man-made snow – and resorts are blasting their guns to cover ski runs with snow every chance they get.
“We’re doing our best to make it happen for folks, we’ll keep hammering it up as best as we can,” Kanton said. “If it was up to us, we’d be wide open with 3 feet of snow on the ground — but we don’t get to make that call.”
Lake Perris resident Edwin Morales took his family, including three young daughters, to Big Bear to finish off their school break this week, hoping to play in the snow.
“We came prepared with jackets and everything, but it didn’t work out that way. But we made the best out of the situation, so it’s all good,” he said.
On their last day, Wednesday, they opted to visit the Alpine Slide and Big Bear Snow Play to “at least touch a little snow.”
National Weather Service meteorologist Kyle Wheeler said the “ingredients” for snow just aren’t lining up. While the low-pressure system hovered over the area the past few weeks, instead of bringing in colder air from the north, it drew from warmer air from the south.
“The same pattern was just stuck over us for around Christmas time up through a couple of days ago, a solid two weeks,” he said.
Wrightwood got more than 16 inches of rain, with similar readings in the San Bernardino mountains — not totally unprecedented, but definitely unusual, Wheeler said.
Now, there’s a transition happening into a dry pattern, drawing air from the colder areas, but without the moisture needed for natural snowfall.
“We’re losing one ingredient and gaining another. Unfortunately, we can’t get the two of them to line up,” Wheeler said.
Dan McKernan, spokesman for Big Bear Guide, which helps promote businesses in the area, notes that Big Bear sits in the middle of a desert, and throughout the years, the community has learned to adapt to weather patterns.
“Of course, natural snow is always alluring and welcome with wide open arms,” he said. “However, we are cognizant of the environment in which we live.”
Like the ski resorts, local snow tubing parks can create snow when the weather doesn’t.
Big Bear Snow Play and Alpine Slide Big Bear have “a significant role in providing snow for those who just want to play in the snow,” he notes.
“Both snow tubing areas guarantee snow-covered hills for tubing all winter long and into spring break, even when nature is a little slow to deliver,” McKernan said. “Whether there’s natural precipitation or not, Big Bear’s snow tubing parks can blanket the tubing hills with plenty of snow for families to have a great winter experience.”
McKernan noted that the town’s lure isn’t just the snow, but also the village and Big Bear Alpine Zoo. Unique events such as an upcoming “Climate & Cocktails,” the first of three events happening on Jan. 17, also help draw visitors to the area.
Wrightwood Chamber of Commerce President Janice Quick also said she hopes people will continue to visit, even without snow. She issued a plea to the community to support local businesses, rather than shop online from big-box retailers. People down the hill who want to support can buy gift cards or come up to shop and enjoy the town, she said.
Without support, many of these businesses will not survive, she warned.
“Our local businesses are facing another difficult period. Many are seeing little to no traffic, and quite honestly, some are hanging by a thread,” she said. “These are the same businesses that support our local events, employ our neighbors, sponsor our kids’ activities, and give Wrightwood its heart and character. If there was ever a time to shop local, this is that time.”
Owen Hanson’s body was in FCI Englewood, a low-security federal correctional facility in Colorado, but his mind was elsewhere.
While a correctional officer was proctoring an exam that counted toward Hanson’s master’s degree, Hanson was thinking about USC. When he was working out, he mentally was at Equinox. The protein shake he made in a mop bucket? That was from Earthbar.
But regardless of where he placed his mind and body, one thought recurred for the former USC athlete.
“I was worried about it the whole time I was in prison,” Hanson said. “Like, are any of my Trojan brothers, my teammates, going to welcome me? Or are they gonna just write me off? Now that I’m a conviction felon, are they going to accept me?”
Hanson has had many names — California Kid, O-Dog, Cocaine Quarterback. But today, he’s just trying to be Owen while doing all he can to make up for mistakes that can’t be taken back.
In December 2017, the Redondo Beach native was sentenced to 255 months in prison for a drug trafficking, gambling and money laundering enterprise that spanned the United States, Central and South America and Australia.
Sports were at the center of it all. Not only did Hanson traffic myriad drugs and even sell performance-enhancing drugs to professional athletes and teammates, he also oversaw a high-stakes illegal gambling operation focused on sports betting.
“Once I crossed that path of bookmaking or gambling, it just grew,” said Hanson, who co-wrote a memoir titled “The California Kid” and is the subject of an Amazon Prime three-part docuseries. “And you’re chasing a rush. As an athlete, we’re adrenaline junkies, and you want to keep chasing and chasing.”
He was released from prison in 2024 after cooperating with Australian authorities on an investigation into the drug ring and returned to the Coliseum for the Trojans’ game against Iowa this fall to spend time with his former teammates.
Aside from a 2024 visit to campus, it was his first time back at USC in 20 years.
He committed to play volleyball at USC as an outside hitter in 2000 and later walked on to the football team as a tight end. He joined Beta Theta Pi fraternity. Anything to help him, with his working-class family background, blend in at USC.
“I was the son of a construction worker. Obviously, I didn’t fit in,” Hanson said. “Everyone had the American Express Black Card. Everyone had their mom and dad’s Mercedes.
“I’m around all these people, and I want to be like them. I want to be able to have a nice cocktail, to go out with a sorority girl and be able to pay for it and drive a Mercedes because everyone around me is doing it. And if I don’t, then I don’t fit in and I’m not welcome.”
That insecurity led to a willingness to get involved with drugs and gambling that only deepened as time went on. It’s a cycle that Hanson fears can still be repeated today, and it’s inspired him to reach young athletes in any way he can.
“I’m not going to hide behind excuses for my crimes,” Hanson writes in the opening pages. “I’m not going to pretend I was a good person in doing what I did, because I wasn’t. When you’re sentenced to two decades behind bars, you get a lot of time for self-reflection. This book is my self-reflection.”
His goal is to speak to the USC football team and he’s already spoken to the men’s basketball team as well as the coaching staff.
USC men’s basketball coach Eric Musselman, left, invited former Trojans athlete Owen Hanson to speak to the team about his experience with sports gambling and the consequences of it. (Courtesy Owen Hanson)
“I met Owen at a football game, and we started talking,” USC men’s basketball coach Eric Musselman said in a statement to Southern California News Group.
“I brought him to talk with our players as I felt like his story would resonate with them. I admire how he is using his story to make a positive change.”
Money management and sports gambling are central themes when he talks with athletes – both of which are timely.
The NCAA released a statement Nov. 7 about an NCAA investigation that revealed six student-athletes from New Orleans, Mississippi Valley and Arizona State were involved in separate cases of gambling activity related to college basketball.
Players had manipulated games or provided information to known bettors. They are now permanently ineligible to play college sports.
There was a similar occurrence in September, when three Fresno State and San Jose State men’s basketball players bet on their own games or one another’s games. Two of them altered their own performances to guarantee bets were won.
The Dayton men’s basketball team is currently withholding Adam Njie, an Iona transfer, from participation due to possible involvement in college basketball gambling activity that may include illegal gambling, game-fixing and performance manipulation.
“I feel like it’s just the tip of the iceberg,” Hanson said. “It’s so easy for someone to go down the path I once went down. With NIL, these athletes are getting paid money where now they have disposable income, where they can go bet on a sporting event.”
Former USC athlete Owen Hanson spoke to the Trojans men’s basketball players and coaches this fall to discourage them from engaging in sports gambling or performance manipulation for the purpose of gambling. (Courtesy Owen Hanson)
Hanson doesn’t see himself as a motivational speaker, but more of a “preventative speaker,” as he calls it. He spends his time sharing his message wherever he can while also managing his protein ice cream company, California Ice Protein, that was inspired by the protein shakes he made in a mop bucket while in prison.
Going to USC was a dream for Hanson. His mom attended the school and his dad was an avid Trojans football fan. He drove the luxury cars and raked in the cash, just like he wanted to do in order to be part of the “in” crowd.
But it was prison that gave him a perspective that he’s spreading to others – as well as living out himself – as he mends his connection to USC.
“Just be yourself,” Hanson said. “People should accept you for who you are. If they don’t, oh well. Guess what? You’ll find someone that will.”
A select group of Disneyland Magic Keyholders will soon be able to upgrade their annual passes and get into the Anaheim theme parks for an extra 33 days this summer for less than a dollar a day.
The new $999 Explore Key will go on sale Tuesday, Jan. 13 no earlier than 9 a.m. as a replacement for the $974 Enchant Key that will be discontinued starting on the same date.
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The new Explore Key will offer similar blockout dates as the Enchant Key, but with an additional 33 days of reservation availability during weekdays in June and July.
The existing Enchant Key blocks reservations around Christmas, Spring Break, Halloween weekends and most of June and July. Current Enchant Keyholders can continue to use their passes until they expire.
Enchant Keyholders can upgrade to the Explore Key for just $25 more starting on Jan. 13.
Visitors to Disneyland enter Sleeping Beauty castle during the 70th anniversary Disneyland on July 17, 2025,  in Anaheim, CA.  (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Your new Explore Key would still have the same expiration date as your old Enchant Key after the $25 upgrade. It’s an easy decision to make if you have an Enchant Key with a summer, fall or winter expiration date, according to MousePlanet.
The $25 upgrade from the Enchant Key to the Explore Key works out to about 76 cents a day for access to Disneyland and Disney California Adventure on those 33 extra days of summer.
The Pixar Pal-A-Round ride at Disney California Adventure. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Getting into Disneyland for 76 cents a day is cheap even by Magic Key standards.
The new Explore Key will cost $3.87 per day for 258 days of park access compared to the retiring Enchant Key that costs $4.33 per day for 225 days of access.
The Enchant and Explore Keys are a better bargain on a daily basis than the more expensive Inspire Key ($5.35 per day for 355 days of access) and Believe Key ($4.55 per day for 324 days of access).
The most restrictive Imagine Key remains the best deal at $3.59 per day for 167 days of park access.
Aaron Banaga kisses his wife, Kelly Banaga, in front of Sleeping Beauty Castle inside Disneyland Park at the Disneyland Resort on Friday, November 14, 2025, in Anaheim, CA. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Fewer restrictions and greater access comes at a higher daily cost. The most expensive Inspire Key costs 49% more per day than the least expensive Imagine Key.
Magic Key passes are a relative bargain compared to the single-day, single park ticket to Disneyland and DCA that costs $104 to $224 depending on the day of the week and time of year.
The passage from Pacific Wharf to Cars Land inside Disney California Adventure Park at the Disneyland Resort on Friday, Sept. 2, 2022, in Anaheim, CA.
(Photo by Jeff Gritchen, Orange County Register/SCNG)
Disneyland raised prices in October on two tiers of Magic Key annual passes — with the Inspire pass increasing to $1,899 and the Believe pass climbing to $1,474.
The price of the lowest-tier $599 Imagine pass available only to Southern California residents did not increase during the October price hikes.
SAN JOSE — Community advocates in Santa Clara County on Thursday denounced the fatal shooting of a woman by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent in Minnesota, warning that what happened there reflects a broader pattern of federal immigration enforcement they say is increasingly dangerous — and already visible in the Bay Area.
At a press conference hosted by the Santa Clara County Rapid Response Network, speakers called the killing of Renee Good in Minneapolis part of an escalating national crackdown they believe threatens immigrant communities and those who document federal operations. They urged state and local governments to expand funding for legal services and community protections and encouraged residents to join the network, a coalition of 10 nonprofit organizations and thousands of trained volunteers who monitor ICE activity and assist people detained in the region.
Mimi Nguyen, a network member, said the shooting was “horrific and escalating,” saying the Department of Homeland Security deployed thousands of agents in Minneapolis in what she described as an effort to “terrorize the Somali community.” The use of force, she said, was “not an accident” but what she called a “deliberate escalation.”
“What we’re witnessing in Minnesota should outrage every person in this country, regardless of your political affiliation, geography or immigration status,” Nguyen said. “Masked, armed federal agents flooding neighborhoods, operating with impunity, violently suppressing community presence and silencing witnesses is unacceptable.”
Nguyen said the episode sends a “chilling message that the federal government is willing to treat entire communities as enemy territory.”
“Our rapid response networks exist because our communities refuse to be isolated, disappeared or terrorized in silence,” she said. “We exist because collective community care and response is an essential tool of protection when government power is abused.”
Yesenia Campos, with the Rapid Response Network, speaks during a press conference to show solidarity with Minneapolis in San Jose, Calif., on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
Yesenia Campos, a San Jose resident and network member, said she was detained by ICE in October while observing agents taking people into custody.
“These agencies have a long and documented history of terrorizing communities, and today, that terror took Renee’s life,” Campos said. “Anyone who is involved in these agencies who carries out or defends this violence has abandoned all moral responsibility.”
Stephanie Jayne, another network member, said local communities have experienced what she called the consequences of aggressive enforcement tactics — including hospitalizations, broken car windows and medical needs being disregarded during arrests.
“This violence has happened here in our county, in our cities, in front of families, children, neighbors and witnesses,” Jayne said. “While we mourn the murder of Renee Good, we also mourn the 32 people who have died in ICE custody in 2025.”
Stephanie Jayne, with the Rapid Response Network, speaks during a press conference to show solidarity with Minneapolis in San Jose, Calif., on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
“While deadly force has not yet been used here in Santa Clara County, the warning signs are unmistakable,” she added.
The rapid-response network reiterated its commitment to continuing its work protecting the community and encouraged community members to volunteer.
“We know that what we’re doing is lawful, and we will continue to do so while keeping each other safe,” Haro added.
Other speakers focused on policy and funding. Jeremy Barousse called on local governments to invest more heavily in immigrant protection to counter what he described as the Trump administration’s “massive machine” for deportations, including expanded detention centers and aggressive recruitment of ICE agents.
Rebeca Armendariz, with Working Partnerships and the Rapid Response Network, praised California for passing legislation supporting immigrant communities — like limiting local cooperation with federal immigration enforcement — but said the state is “not immune” from federal enforcement in local neighborhoods. She urged lawmakers to expand protections and allocate an additional $50 million for immigration legal services.
Marina Haro, with the Rapid Response Network, speaks during a press conference to show solidarity with Minneapolis in San Jose, Calif., on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
The network reiterated its commitment to continuing its work and encouraged community members to volunteer.
“The Rapid Response Network in Santa Clara County is here to protect, empower and serve,” said Mariana Haro, a member of the group. “The tactics of terror, intimidation and violence we are seeing will not deter our work or weaken our commitment to protecting the rights of all Santa Clara County residents.”
Nguyen closed by urging public action.
“This moment demands more than silence,” she said. “It demands public outrage, it demands accountability, and it demands a community across the country to say clearly and loudly and collectively, ‘This violence is not accepted, tolerated and will not be ignored.'”
The killing of Renee Nicole Good — the Minneapolis woman shot Wednesday by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent — is reverberating far beyond Minnesota, heightening fears among Bay Area legal observers and immigrant-rights advocates who regularly document federal immigration enforcement and monitor whether agents treat people humanely.
For members of the Santa Clara County Rapid Response Network, a coalition of nonprofits that operates a hotline for reports of ICE activity and connects residents with legal and community support, the risk is not theoretical. They have lived it.
Yesenia Campos was only a few months into volunteering with the network when she was detained by ICE on Oct. 30 while observing agents in San Jose.
Campos said she was collecting contact information for people being detained so their families could be notified when an agent ordered her to step back. When she did not move quickly enough, she said, the agent detained her. Other volunteers were present and documented the encounter.
Yesenia Campos, with the Rapid Response Network, speaks during a press conference to show solidarity with Minneapolis in San Jose, Calif., on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
“As responders, we know that there’s a risk,” Campos said at a news conference Thursday. “We know that we may potentially confront ICE. Now we know that they are unpredictable. We know that some of them are untrained, so we don’t know how they’re going to react in our presence.”
Campos and her colleagues stress that their role is strictly observational — never to interfere. In civil-rights circles, that work falls under the broad definition of legal observing.
“A legal observer is any member of the community who intends to observe and document police behavior,” said EmilyRose Johns, president of the National Lawyers Guild San Francisco Bay Area chapter.
While organizations such as the National Lawyers Guild and the American Civil Liberties Union offer training and guidance, Johns said there is no formal certification required. The right to observe and record law enforcement activity in public is protected by the Constitution.
“You are documenting, as dispassionately as possible, what is occurring,” Johns said. “And the reason that that is so valuable … is demonstrated in the awful murder of Ms. Good,” Johns said.
People hold up signs while The Rapid Response Network holds a press conference to show solidarity with Minneapolis in San Jose, Calif., on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
Johns pointed to what she perceived was a stark disconnect between the federal government’s initial account of the shooting and what video recorded by bystanders and other legal observers appears to show.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem described Good as a “domestic terrorist” on Wednesday, saying she attempted to run over an ICE agent as she tried to drive away. President Donald Trump echoed that characterization in an interview with the New York Times, saying she “behaved horribly” and “ran him over.”
But videos captured by other observers and members of the public show an ICE agent approaching a Honda Pilot that was stopped on a snowy road and ordering the driver — later identified as Good — to open the door before grabbing the handle. When the vehicle began to move forward slowly, another agent standing in front of the SUV drew a firearm and fired at least two shots through the windshield while stepping backward.
After the shots, the SUV veered into two parked cars. The agent who fired left the scene, and the videos do not clearly show whether he was struck by the vehicle, though multiple major news organizations Thursday reported that he was not.
A bullet hole and blood stains are seen in a crashed vehicle on at the scene of a shooting in Minneapolis on Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2026. (Ben Hovland/Minnesota Public Radio via AP)
Minnesota officials have said the footage contradicts the federal government’s initial version of events.
“What was very clear,” Johns said, “is the other legal observers, the other people who were observing and video recording that interaction with ICE, their video is critical at dispelling the false narrative.”
She added: “It’s unclear how this would even have been covered, how Ms. Good would even get a sliver of justice, how her three children would get a sliver of justice, if there weren’t other legal observers out there at the same time. But it is more critical than ever and people should do everything they can to take care of each other, take care of themselves, and protect themselves in the face of this.”
For immigration advocates in the Bay Area, Good’s death has intensified long-standing concerns about intimidation and retaliation against those who monitor federal agents.
Stephanie Jayne, with the Rapid Response Network, speaks during a press conference to show solidarity with Minneapolis in San Jose, Calif., on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. (Shae Hammond/Bay Area News Group)
Stephanie Jayne, another member of the Santa Clara County Rapid Response Network, said ICE agents have pulled her over, photographed her license plate and documented her movements while she was doing observer work.
“This intimidation is intentional,” Jayne said. “It is meant to make us afraid to show up, but we continue to show up anyway.”
She said the network exists because ordinary residents choose to act — by getting trained, documenting encounters and standing with immigrant families during enforcement actions.
“You do not need to be fearless to be a responder,” Jayne said. “I know I’m not. You need to be committed to the belief that what is happening is wrong and that silence only allows it to continue.”
When Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen, San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan and a coalition of prosecutors, public defenders and law enforcement officers endorsed a county sales tax hike, it was a political turning point for last fall’s Measure A campaign.
“It said protect public safety on the ballot,” Rosen says. “I, as the DA, along with the prosecutors and the deputy sheriffs supported Measure A because it would help prevent cuts to public safety.”
Some members of the group had threatened to campaign against the measure. They say they reversed course only after seeing new ballot language that included public safety support and after securing agreements that left them feeling County Executive James Williams understood their funding concerns.
“I feel double-crossed,” says Rosen. “I don’t understand it given that I worked very hard to get this measure passed. It’s a funny way to say, ‘thank you.’”
The fight highlights the deep political split over years of ballooning county health care funding at the expense of public safety agencies; the ambiguity of deals cut during the campaign; and continuing use of misleading ballot language by California local governments to pass new tax measures.
Mahan says he would not have endorsed Measure A if Rosen hadn’t.
“I’m deeply concerned with an approach that would put all of the (Measure A money) into the hospitals, disproportionately concentrating the cuts in the criminal justice system,” he says. “I already feel we’re not doing enough on criminal justice.”
Santa Clara County, when compared to six other similarly sized California counties between 1.5 million and 3.5 million people, has the largest per-capita general fund budget and spends the smallest portion on public safety and criminal justice, according to analysis by Peter Jensen, the district attorney’s finance manager.
As county leaders battle over how to spend the new sales tax revenues that they will begin collecting April 1, voters and public safety advocates have good reason to feel deceived.
The ballot wording
Measure A will add five-eighths of a cent for five years to each dollar of taxable goods, pushing the total rate to 10% or more in most of Santa Clara County. The sales tax increase is expected to raise $330 million annually and cost each county resident at least an average $113 a year.
The ballot wording for Measure A.
In late August, during a court challenge by taxpayer advocates, county officials agreed to change the ballot wording to explicitly state that public safety would be among critical local services that could be funded by Measure A.
The new wording indicated the money would “support critical local services such as trauma, emergency room, mental health, and public safety; and reduce the risk of hospital closures at Santa Clara Valley Healthcare and other service cuts.”
But, despite the ballot wording, county supervisors are under no legal obligation to use the money to support the listed services. That’s because of the byzantine rules for local tax measures.
California has generally two types of local tax measures. A “special” tax requires two-thirds voter approval, and the use of the money is restricted to a specific purpose. A “general” tax, like Measure A, requires only majority approval, and the money can be used on any legally permissible government purpose.
While a general tax allows supervisors to spend the money on any of the services mentioned on the ballot, it does not require them to do so. They are free to spend the money just for health care, even if that’s not clearly disclosed.
That spending flexibility is only hinted at in the middle of the voter guide “impartial analysis,” written by Deputy County Counsel Nick De Fiesta. He writes that Measure A money could be used “to support Santa Clara Valley Healthcare hospitals and clinics, provide social services, promote public safety, or for any other legitimate governmental purposes.”
Nothing on the ballot or in the voter guide clearly states what Williams says was intended — a new sales tax entirely to bail out the county’s health care system.
Fiscally ‘unsustainable’
Further deceiving voters, county officials pitched the measure as critical to, as the ballot wording said, “address severe federal cuts enacted by the President and Congress.”
Santa Clara County Executive James Williams says all the money from the Measure A sales tax increase will go toward health care services. (Nhat V. Meyer/Bay Area News Group)
The biggest cause of that increase has been health care, which includes the county’s network of hospitals and clinics. The county, which already ran Santa Clara Valley Medical Center in San Jose, rescued O’Connor Hospital in San Jose and Saint Louise Regional Hospital in Gilroy from bankruptcy in 2019, and purchased Regional Medical Center in San Jose in 2025. The county now operates a much larger health care system per-capita than any other California county.
But health care losses rapidly increased, from about $97 million in 2017-18 to $532 million expected in the current fiscal year, before Trump’s budget bill made it much worse. It’s a shortfall that the county has been making up with increasing general fund subsidies, money that could otherwise go to other county services, including public safety.
In 2024, before the county purchased its fourth hospital, the Board of Supervisors’ outside auditing firm warned that “large increases in subsidies for the hospital system are not sustainable indefinitely.”
“The system will never generate enough money to cover its costs,” warned Harvey M. Rose Associates. “Subsidies will always be required. The larger the system gets, the larger the subsidies will need to be.”
Then, when Congress passed Medicaid cuts as part of Trump’s “One Big Beautiful Bill,” which would significantly affect Santa Clara County’s health care system, a local problem that had been mounting for eight years got much worse.
Ballot politics
It’s against that background that public safety advocates were threatening to mount a campaign against Measure A. They had seen hospitals subsidies drain general fund revenues from public safety.
The Sheriff’s Office had 34% fewer deputies in 2024 than in 2020, according to county data analyzed by Tom Saggau, a contract negotiator and political strategist for deputies and criminal attorneys. Response times for urgent calls had increased as much as 73% in some parts of the county.
Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen, left, and San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan announced their support for Measure A at a press conference Oct. 1 in San Jose. (Grace Hase/Bay Area News Group)
The union representing prosecutors and public defenders had prepared a 30-second television commercial against the tax increase. “What is the spending plan for Measure A?” the ad asks. “… (W)ill the county keep buying hospitals it can’t afford and gut public safety to pay for it? You should know before voting on Measure A, the county’s massive tax increase.”
Rosen, Mahan and the public safety labor unions unified to ensure key demands would be met before they considered supporting the sales tax increase. Polling then showed a strong opposition campaign might have defeated Measure A, Saggau says.
But then the county reached agreement with prosecutors, public defenders and sheriff deputies on contracts with raises in line with other county employees; Mahan received promises of county health services at San Jose-funded homeless shelters and interim housing; and Rosen received permission from Williams to fill eight prosecutor positions that had been budgeted but frozen.
“It looked like folks were committed that public safety is protected in some way, so we all endorsed,” Saggau said. With the new ballot language and what they thought were assurances from Williams, the coalition supported the sales tax, Rosen, Mahan and Saggau said.
Rosen explained in an interview when the endorsement was announced that he had not received county commitments to directly fund public safety with Measure A money, but expected it would free up county money to protect law enforcement. “If the sales tax measure doesn’t pass, then it’s clear to me that there’s going to be cuts to law enforcement in the county, cuts to the DAs Office and cuts to the Sheriff’s Office,” he told reporter Grace Hase.
The opposition ad was shelved. Instead, the government attorneys and deputy sheriffs’ association spent about $625,000 on digital ads and mailers featuring county Sheriff Bob Jonsen, Mahan and, most prominently, Rosen.
The ads targeted conservative and swing voters, and touted the measure as a way to reduce crime and homelessness. “Without Measure A, our safety takes another hit,” reads one of the mailers. “Public safety leaders we trust support Measure A to reduce crime and homelessness,” reads another.
But if Williams gets the cuts he’s suggesting and directs all the new sales tax money to the county health care system, the promises in the mailers and in the ballot language will turn out to be empty.
For example, the roughly $18 million Rosen is now being asked to trim from next fiscal year’s budget dwarfs the roughly $2 million annual cost of the eight entry-level prosecutor positions unfrozen before he endorsed Measure A.
It certainly won’t be the first time voters have been deceived by local government officials’ ballot wording. I’ve been writing for years about such electoral dishonesty.
What makes this case different is that key backers of the measure got conned, too. The question now is whether they will spend political capital trying to reform the broken election system.
Reach Editorial Page Editor Daniel Borenstein at dborenstein@bayareanewsgroup.com.
Last month, as required by law, State Auditor Grant Parks published an annual report on state programs and agencies that his office deems to be at “high risk” of costly inefficiency, waste or fraud.
The report reiterated concerns about seven situations, two of which have been on the list since 2007, including the bureaucracy’s chronic inability to successfully employ information technology — embarrassing for a state that is the global center for digital tools.
Parks has added a new program in his latest overview, the Department of Social Service’s food aid for poor families, once called food stamps but now known as CalFresh.
The federal government primarily finances supplemental food benefits, but the state’s share is determined, in part, by its management, as indicated by its rate of error when determining people’s eligibility.
President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill tightens the error rate thresholds. Thus, Parks notes, California’s 11% error rate, if not improved, could require the state to “spend about $2 billion annually to maintain CalFresh benefits.”
The most disturbing item on Parks’ list is the continuing inability of the Employment Development Department to effectively manage unemployment insurance benefits, which first came to light during the COVID-19 pandemic. Billions of dollars in fraudulent benefit claims were approved, almost all of which came in a federally financed expansion of the program.
By happenstance, the high risk report was released just as a scandal was erupting in Minnesota over widespread fraud in a program meant to keep children fed during the pandemic.
Dozens of people, mostly in Minnesota’s substantial Somali population, have been charged with looting the program by setting up companies that billed the state for supplying food that was never delivered.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, whom Kamala Harris chose as her running mate in her campaign for president in 2024, felt the political fallout from the scandal — generated mostly in right-leaning media outlets — and this week dropped his bid for re-election.
Meanwhile, those same outlets — blogs, podcasts and YouTube videos — have been making an accusatory connection between the Minnesota scandal and the Parks report, suggesting the report proves the same kind of fraud was even more rampant in California and laying the blame on Gov. Gavin Newsom, who’s a likely 2028 candidate for president.
This week, Steve Hilton, a Republican candidate for California governor, and Herb Morgan, a Republican running for state controller, cited the Parks report, their own research and tips from whistleblowers in a broad assertion, dubbed “CALIFRAUDIA,” that “California’s exposure to fraud, waste, and abuse across major state programs is likely to reach $250 billion,” adding that it “underscores the urgent need for formal investigation and audit, as a matter of basic fiscal responsibility.”
However, the allegations of widespread fraud and mismanagement during Newsom’s governorship is not confined to those on the starboard side of the political balance beam.
Ro Khanna, a progressive Democratic member of Congress from Silicon Valley who could be a rival to Newsom in the 2028 presidential sweepstakes, issued a similar blast in a posting on X, albeit with a smaller $72 billion pricetag, citing Parks’ report and other data.
Khanna told Politico, “I don’t know what the specific number is” of dollars lost to fraud or mismanagement. “It’s not particular to any person,” Khanna said. “It’s making government more effective. Tackling the mismanagement and waste and some fraud will build more credibility for asking for higher taxes.”
Newsom’s staff responded by accusing Khanna of making a “MAGA made-up claim.”
There’s a reason why veterans of political wars refer to election years as the “silly season,” when political figures seeking media attention are prone to convert anthills of fact into mountains of rhetorical fantasy.
On Monday evening I had the BEST time being repeatedly summoned by someone who (it gradually became clear) was wildly lost in the Duke's Archives.
Context: in Dark Souls, you can put down a summon sign so that other players can* summon you into their game to help them out (at the risk of also opening themselves up to potential hostile invaders).
You can only be summoned by people in the same rough level range as you, so if I don't feel like moving on yet from an area after I’ve completed it, I often put down my summon sign and hang around for a bit before I level up out of the usual range for that area. It’s been a lot of fun.
VERY IMPORTANT CONTEXT: there is no channel for voice or text communication. There's a very limited menu of gestures, and a few signals (e.g. repeatedly tapping the block button to jiggle your shield or weapon, which generally seems to communicate "I'm here, let's go!") which the fandom has evolved by default.
This makes communication challenging. But it also means it makes zero demands on my capacity for verbal conversation or pretending to be a semi-normal human being.
Renee Nicole Good. George Floyd. Different tragedies, but the same grief for a community betrayed by the people who were supposed to protect and serve.
Crowds gathered again in Minneapolis on Wednesday, marching through the same streets where some of them were protesting 5½ years ago after Floyd’s murder.
The full force and fury of the federal government had landed on Minnesota.
“You will be held accountable for your crimes,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said Tuesday, as the largest immigration enforcement action in agency history surged into the state. It felt like she was addressing all Minnesotans, not just the handcuffed man she paraded before the cameras.
Minnesotans reeled as masked ICE agents descended on the state. They said they’d come to root out fraud. They tackled people to the ground in city parks and harassed parents and children on the way to school.
They shot and killed a 37-year-old woman who would still be alive if ICE had never come to town.
“Get the f**k out of Minneapolis,” said Mayor Jacob Frey, who remembers Memorial Day 2020 when a police officer murdered a man on camera as neighbors pleaded with him to stop kneeling on the helpless man’s neck.
Five and a half years ago, police tried to pass Floyd’s murder off as a “medical incident.”
On Wednesday, Noem accused a dead woman — killed by an agent who fired into her vehicle, on camera, at point-blank range — of being “a domestic terrorist.” The president claimed on social media that Good had run over the agent who shot her, despite clear video evidence from other angles that this was untrue.
But this is the same administration that once tried — and failed — to level a felony assault charge against a man who hurled a salami sub at a Customs and Border Enforcement agent in D.C.
Five and a half years ago, protesters gathered and law enforcement pushed back with mace and foam bullets. The crowd marched from 38th and Chicago to the Third Precinct police station. For days, the violence escalated until the precinct was in flames, until Lake Street was burning, until the whole city smelled like smoke and tear gas and grief.
Minneapolis rebuilt. Minneapolis was trying to move on. Until the president of the United States started calling Minnesotans “garbage.” Until the federal government put the city in its crosshairs.
But the killing of George Floyd didn’t end in the smoldering rubble of the Third Precinct. It ended in a courtroom.
Derek Chauvin, who knelt on George Floyd’s neck for 9½ minutes, was put on trial and convicted of murder. He went to jail, along with three other officers who stood by and did nothing to stop him. He’s still in jail. Killing a Minnesotan on camera is a very bad idea.
On Wednesday, Minneapolis marched. On the long, cold walk down Portland Avenue, from the site of the killing toward downtown, they cried out against the administration that thought Minneapolis would make a fun backdrop for a new round of Trump memes.
But Minneapolis is 5½ years older and wiser. Minneapolis knows that violence is exactly what this administration craves. Trump deployed the National Guard to quell protests in Los Angeles and deployed troops to Chicago and Washington, D.C., for no reason in particular.
“I feel your anger. I’m angry,” Gov. Tim Walz said Wednesday. “They want a show. We cannot give it to them. We cannot.”
The killing of a woman by an ICE agent in Minneapolis on Wednesday has reignited a national debate over the appropriate use of force by federal agents in carrying out immigration raids.
By making sweeping changes to the nation’s childhood vaccine schedule, America’s top health leaders are recklessly maximizing the threat from previously common diseases and dismissing our collective role in preventing them.
The new policy, which cuts the number of recommended vaccinations by more than a third, sends a not-so-subtle message that something was broken in the previous approach to keeping American kids healthy — despite decades of evidence to the contrary. It marks a striking escalation of Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s decades-long project to amplify doubt and confusion about the safety, necessity, and availability of vaccines — one that will ultimately put everyone at risk from preventable diseases as more parents turn away from routine shots.
Rather than a broad recommendation for all children, vaccines against meningitis, hepatitis A and B, dengue, and RSV will now be recommended only for high-risk groups. Meanwhile, parents can consider several other shots, including the flu and COVID vaccines, through a “shared decision-making” process that involves consulting with a health care provider. It’s an extraordinary departure from the days when Americans received clear public health guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
This decision, with profound implications for Americans’ health, was also made without input from experts within the Department of Health and Human Services, and without the CDC’s typically deliberate, evidence-based process for evaluating vaccine policy.
Why Denmark?
The overhaul had been telegraphed for weeks. Last month, President Donald Trump directed HHS to amend the U.S. childhood vaccination schedule to better align with those of peer nations. And by peer nations, he really meant Denmark, which bizarrely has become the North Star for these health officials on vaccines. Why, they asked, was the U.S. doing things so differently from the Scandinavian nation?
For starters, the U.S. has roughly 56 times Denmark’s population. And, unlike the Nordic country, we don’t have universal health care. That lack of access to free, quality care has a range of consequences for the overall health of our population that change the financial calculus for vaccination. Pregnant women and children are more likely to miss out on routine care, for example, or delay a visit to the doctor when they are sick, increasing their risk of complications from — and of spreading — vaccine-preventable illnesses.
And the idea that Denmark has it right on vaccines — even for its own population — is debatable. For example, each year, an estimated 1,300 Danish children become so dehydrated from rotavirus that they require hospitalization. Meanwhile, in 2006, the U.S. introduced a vaccine against the virus, which the CDC credits with preventing more than 50,000 hospitalizations among babies and toddlers each year. The vaccine campaign has been so effective that today, many pediatric medical residents have never encountered an infant hospitalized because of the infection, which can cause days of diarrhea, vomiting, cramps and fever.
One could tell similar stories for all the other childhood vaccines Denmark has opted out of. “You can’t just copy and paste public health,” Sean O’Leary, head of the American Academy of Pediatrics’ Committee on Infectious Diseases, said at a press briefing.
“A lot of the decisions they make about vaccine schedules are not based on the burden of disease, but rather on cost,” the pediatrician said. “These differences matter because vaccine schedules are designed not in isolation, but they’re part of the broader system of care.”
Health officials argue that they aren’t taking away vaccines but rather resetting the U.S. approach to give parents more power in making medical decisions for their children. HHS was careful to note that government programs will continue to provide the immunizations at no cost. Indeed, Kennedy posted on X that the decision “protects children, respects families, and rebuilds trust in public health.”
Sowing doubt and confusion is an odd way to rebuild trust. That shift to shared decision-making, for example, might sound like a good way to empower parents, but it is fraught with problems. Pediatricians already have these kinds of detailed conversations with parents “all day, every day,” O’Leary said, but now those discussions will become far more confusing.“When the evidence is clear that the benefits outweigh the risks, the guidance should be clear,” he added.
‘Everyone at risk’
Eventually, preventable diseases will become more common, just as we’re already seeing with measles, pertussis, and even tetanus. What makes this especially infuriating is that the worst damage is likely to occur long after Trump and Kennedy have left office. At first, it might be a handful of additional cases here and there. But over time, as more and more people become susceptible to disease, “they can fuel future epidemics of these diseases like kindling leading to a forest fire,” said Jesse Goodman, who leads a Georgetown University program that focuses on vaccine access.
To be clear, that puts everyone at risk. Routine immunizations not only protect children, but they also help shield other vulnerable people around them. When babies in the U.S. began receiving a vaccine against pneumonia in 2000, overall hospitalizations for the infection fell. One study found that a decade in, vaccination was keeping nearly 170,000 people out of the hospital.
Similarly, evidence suggests that when children receive their flu shot, fewer people overall — and particularly the elderly — become gravely ill.
The shift away from recommending that all children six months or older receive an annual flu shot is particularly indefensible on the heels of last year’s flu season, which was the deadliest for kids in two decades, and amid a severe flu season this year that is straining hospitals nationwide.
Health leaders are unilaterally making far-reaching decisions that will erode hard-won public health gains. The consequences might not be immediately visible and could take years to surface fully — but there’s no doubt that this latest move has broken something monumental, and its effects will eventually reach us all.
Ugh, the news out of the last couple of days is just...horrifying. A woman dead, her wife and child left to mourn, and now two more people shot in Portland, plus the rest of the horrible abuses by ICE. I hate it, and I wish there was more that I could do to improve things. But as there is not, I will watch and stand witness. It's what I've got. For my mental health, I tend not to comment here on current news. That doesn't mean that I'm not angry and scared--I am. I just prefer not to bring it over here.
It's Friday and I am already tired. The coughing and snot is giving me acid reflux like whoa. Or at least something that feels like it--a rawness and burn at the back of my throat. It's annoying.
I seem to be back to coughing a lot at night. I did not sleep well at all. But here I am upright and ready for the day.
Yesterday was...interesting. I was chatting with the department manager, who I'm friends with. We'll chat through the day with a combination of work and personal stuff. I asked her if we had gotten a raise this year, sice I hadn't heard anything. She forwarded me my letter. Up to just about $58k now. But then, she sent me a message letting me know that it was on the way, and then told me that "There should be an opportunity for another (pay) bump rather soon."
Which, yay, but I have questions. First, what does "rather soon" mean? Second, how much are we talking here? And last, does this come with a title change? Enquiring, impatient minds want to know! My ability to wait patiently is not particularly good.
I get the feeling that she's like me at Christmas. She couldn't wait to give me a tidbit, but she can't give me the whole yet. I know they've been working on the head of radiology to upgrade me, but I didn't think it would happen this quickly. They're notoriously cheap. But we had a banner year and I contributed to that by filling in at least a hundred Cardiac CTs and MRIs that would have otherwise gone to waste. They're worth several thousand dollars each, so I've more than earned my keep. I've covered the PET queue when people have been out, and I've played the part of a Patient Access specialist III on multiple occasions, so I do feel I'm due, but the ghost of IKEA and 911 linger, so I really didn't think I'd ever be promoted.
Even if I have to wait to find out the particulars, it's nice to know that they're not putting me into the "too valuable to promote" trap, but instead in the "too valuable to lose" category.
Aside from that, it was a day. My voice continues to be craggy and drops out here and there.
Tonight, we have Frostmaiden, and I am going to play that, even if I cough in my player's ears. I am not pushing that another week. We'll see how Saturday's games go. I'll probably try to butch through them. We cancelled Sunday's, so I'll have the afternoon to rest and relax. We do have a game on Sunday morning, but that one is run by coyotegestalt so I don't have to talk much.
Tomorrow, if my body (and the cat) would be so kind, I'd like to sleep in a bit. I'm not asking for miracles, 7am would be lovely. Then, I'll follow my sister over to the oil change place, so she can get her car done. We'll just leave it there, and I'll take her back over between games or on Sunday afternoon.
Okay, time for me to consider getting in the mindset for work. Ew. First, I'm going to make sure that I have Frostmaiden ready and prepped for tonight. Everyone have a fabulous Friday!
Do you think your cat would share your interest if they have the mental capacity to do that?
We know that most cats only have one brain cell, which they are not even always in possession of. They space out, stare into nothing, and appear to have zero thoughs behind their adorable eyes, but we obviously still love them. That being said, we still enjoy including them in different activities, even if they don't really know what is going on around them.
For example, if you own a cat, you must find yourself putting them down from your kitchen counter after they demand to see what you're cooking and how exactly it's going along. We all let them sniff an occasional onion from time to time and enjoy their reaction to different steps of the cooking process. Cats are curious creatures, so while they may not understand what you're doing with an oven, they will still try to go inside it and look at everything themselves.
We also really enjoy gossiping with our cats, another activity they involuntarily take part in while having no clue what is actually going on. We have no problem sitting in bed for hours and telling our fluffy felines all about what's going on in the office, who is dating whom in our friend group, and all about the most recent celebrity scandal. Our cats have no idea what we're saying, but they are good listeners, and if we give them some good scratches as we yap, they may very well stay like this for years.
Recently, we have been wondering if our cats would have enjoyed the same TV shows and movies we do, if they had the ability to understand them like hoomans. Would they have also gotten mad about the last episode of Stranger Things, or enjoyed the show about the two hockey players? Who knows… We just hope that these fur babies enjoy our quality time together on the couch as we cuddle and watch TV.
If we could choose one interest we could fully share with our feisty feline, the first thing we would do is show them these hissterical cat memes. They would absolutely love them, as surely you will as well if you just scroll down.
Here is my 2025 Year-End portfolio update that includes all our combined 401k/403b/IRAs and taxable brokerage accounts but excludes our house and small side portfolio of self-directed investments. Following the concept of skin in the game, the following is not a recommendation, but a sharing of our actual, imperfect DIY portfolio.
“Never ask anyone for their opinion, forecast, or recommendation. Just ask them what they have in their portfolio.” – Nassim Taleb
How I Track My Portfolio
Here’s how I track my portfolio across multiple brokers and account types:
The Empower Personal Dashboard real-time portfolio tracking tools (free) automatically logs into my different accounts, adds up my various balances, tracks my performance, and calculates my overall asset allocation daily. Formerly known as Personal Capital.
Once a quarter, I also update my manual Google Spreadsheet (free to copy, instructions) because it helps me calculate how much I need in each asset class to rebalance back towards my target asset allocation. I also create a new sheet each quarter, so I have a personal archive of my portfolio dating back many years.
2025 Year-End Asset Allocation and YTD Performance
Here are updated performance and asset allocation charts, per the “Holdings” and “Allocation” tabs of my Empower Personal Dashboard.
The major components of my portfolio are broad index ETFs. I do mix it up a bit around the edges, but not very much. Here is a model version of my target asset allocation with sample ETF holdings for each asset class.
35% US Total Market (VTI)
5% US Small-Cap Value (AVUV)
20% International Total Market (VXUS)
5% International Small-Cap Value (AVDV)
5% US Real Estate (REIT) (VNQ)
20% US “Regular” Treasury Bonds and/or FDIC-insured deposits (VGSH)
10% US Treasury Inflation-Protected Bonds (SCHP)
Big picture, it is 70% businesses and 30% very safe bonds/cash:
By paying minimal costs including management fees, transaction spreads, and tax drag, I am trying to essentially guarantee myself above-average net performance over time.
I do not spend a lot of time backtesting various model portfolios. You’ll usually find that whatever model portfolio is popular at the moment just happens to hold the asset class that has been the hottest recently.
The portfolio that you can hold onto through the tough times is the best one for you. I’ve been pretty much holding this same portfolio for 20 years. Check out these ancient posts from 2004 and 2005. Every asset class will eventually have a low period, and you must have strong faith during these periods to earn those historically high returns. You have to keep owning and buying more stocks through the stock market crashes. You have to maintain and even buy more rental properties during a housing crunch, etc. A good sign is that if prices drop, you’ll want to buy more of that asset instead of less. I don’t have strong faith in the long-term results of commodities, gold, or bitcoin – so I don’t own them.
Performance details. Here’s an updated YTD Growth of $10,000 chart courtesy of Testfolio for some of the major ETFs that shows the difference in performance in the broad indexes:
Nearly everything went up in 2025. I doubt 2026 will be boring. I’ll share about more about the income aspect in a separate post.
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Launched in 2024, Italy’s elaborate ‘Piracy Shield‘ blocking scheme was billed as the future of anti-piracy efforts.
To effectively tackle live sports piracy, its broad blocking powers aim to block piracy-related domain names and IP addresses within 30 minutes.
While many pirate sources have indeed been blocked, the Piracy Shield is not without controversy. There have been multiple reports of overblocking, where the anti-piracy system blocked access to legitimate sites and services.
Many of these overblocking instances involved the American Internet infrastructure company Cloudflare, which has been particularly critical of Italy’s Piracy Shield. In addition to protesting the measures in public, Cloudflare allegedly refused to filter pirate sites through its public 1.1.1.1 DNS.
1.1.1.1: Too Big to Block?
This refusal prompted an investigation by AGCOM, which now concluded that Cloudflare openly violated its legal requirements in the country. Following an amendment, the Piracy Shield also requires DNS providers and VPNs to block websites.
The dispute centers specifically on the refusal to comply with AGCOM Order 49/25/CONS, which was issued in February 2025. The order required Cloudflare to block DNS resolution and traffic to a list of domains and IP addresses linked to copyright infringement.
Cloudflare reportedly refused to enforce these blocking requirements through its public DNS resolver. Among other things, Cloudflare countered that filtering its DNS would be unreasonable and disproportionate.
Cloudflare’s arguments (translated)
The company warned that doing so would affect billions of daily queries and have an “extremely negative impact on latency,” slowing down the service for legitimate users worldwide.
AGCOM was unmoved by this “too big to block” argument.
The regulator countered that Cloudflare has all the technological expertise and resources to implement the blocking measures. AGCOM argued the company is known for its complex traffic management and rejected the suggestion that complying with the blocking order would break its service.
€14,247,698 Fine
After weighing all arguments, AGCOM imposed a €14,247,698 (USD $16.7m) fine against Cloudflare, concluding that the company failed to comply with the required anti-piracy measures. The fine represents 1% of the company’s global revenue, where the law allows for a maximum of 2%.
AGCOM’s conclusion (translated)
According to AGCOM, this is the first fine of this type, both in scope and size. This is fitting, as the regulator argued that Cloudflare plays a central role.
“The measure, in addition to being one of the first financial penalties imposed in the copyright sector, is particularly significant given the role played by Cloudflare” AGCOM notes, adding that Cloudflare is linked to roughly 70% of the pirate sites targeted under its regime.
In its detailed analysis, the regulator further highlighted that Cloudflare’s cooperation is “essential” for the enforcement of Italian anti-piracy laws, as its services allow pirate sites to evade standard blocking measures.
What’s Next?
Cloudflare has strongly contested the accusations throughout AGCOM’s proceedings and previously criticized the Piracy Shield system for lacking transparency and due process.
While the company did not immediately respond to our request for comment, it will almost certainly appeal the fine. This appeal may also draw the interest of other public DNS resolvers, such as Google and OpenDNS.
AGCOM, meanwhile, says that it remains fully committed to enforcing the local piracy law. The regulator notes that since the Piracy Shield started in February 2024, 65,000 domain names and 14,000 IP addresses were blocked.
—
A copy of AGCOM’s detailed analysis and the associated order (N. 333/25/CONS) available here (pdf).
From: TF, for the latest news on copyright battles, piracy and more.
Donemax Data Eraser offers military & government level data erasure algorithms to wipe data permanently. Once the data is erased by Donemax Data Eraser, the data is gone forever, can't be recovered by any data recovery software.
This data erasure software is 100% safe. It will not cause any logical or physical damage to your hard drive or device. The software offers 3 modes to wipe data flexibly:
Shred Files - permanently and securely erase files/folders from any hard drive or storage device.
Erase Hard Drive - securely wipe an entire hard drive to completely erase all data.
Erase Free Space - wipe free disk space to permanently erase deleted/lost data from the hard drive without affecting the existing data.
Woke up this morning at 9:00, when my alarm was set for 9:30. I got up anyway and had breakfast and coffee, then showered and dressed, and went to my hair appointment.
I was early but they took me then, and I got my hair cut rather short, and in layers that brings out the curls. I like it.
Then I went by bus to Flushing and went to the salon where I've been getting my face waxed. I had waxing again, and then I got a manicure. My nails, which I usually have rather long, had broken short over the last few weeks, so obviously she had to cut them quite short to be even. I had them done in a nice purple.
After that I went next door to Duane Reade to ask them what was going on with my glp 1 prescription. I had to wait while they finished their half hour meal break but eventually I asked, and it turns out that they need a prior authorization from the insurance company before they can fill it. So I don't know if I'll bother proceeding with it.
Anyway after that I went to meet mashfanficchick. I took the subway from there, and we met at the bank, where I did some stuff. Then we went to lunch at the Japanese restaurant where we got sushi, of course.
Then we went to the Russian grocery store by bus to get food.
We came back to zer place and watched the new episode of Will Trent. It was nice catching up with it after the hiatus.
Then I Teamed the FWiB from my phone. We talked til 8:00 when we watched 911, and 911: Nashville. Again, it was very nice to see them again after the hiatus.
After that we had dinner, the food we got from the Russian grocery. I had beef stroganoff. It was delicious.
Then we started talking about Arisia. We go in a week from now. We had food to plan, and things to discuss. And the time slipped away, and finally it got to the point where there was no point in me going home so I'm spending the night here.
I texted the Kid earlier with a picture of my haircut, and she likes it. We exchanged a few texts.
I have asked RK to drive me to the oncologist on the 21st, and he has indicated that it's possible if I can get the appointment moved earlier in the day. So I will call tomorrow and try to do that.
BRENTWOOD — The ball kissed the glass, the horn screamed and Liberty’s gym detonated.
Senior guard Dante Vigil’s layup dropped at the buzzer, punctuating a furious fourth-quarter comeback and sending a usually stoic scorekeeper – Vigil’s father, Steve Berendsen – sprinting up the home bleachers with a fist raised as pandemonium swallowed the floor.
Liberty erased a 10-point deficit in the final five minutes, and a 15-point hole earlier in the second half, to stun Weston Ranch 70-69 at home, riding Vigil’s game-high 32 points and his final, fearless drive to the rim for the win.
“I knew I had to go get a bucket,” Vigil said. “I did a hopstep and got the layup. I just thanked God that I made it.”
Liberty’s Dante Vigil (3) shoots the game winning layup to defeat Weston Ranch in the fourth quarter of their game at Liberty High School in Brentwood, Calif., on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. Liberty defeated Weston Ranch 70-69. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
Vigil came off the bench and scored 20 of his 32 points in the second half. Junior point guard Jaiden Miller scored nine points and Jacob Fullard chipped in with eight.
Liberty – ranked 11th in the latest Bay Area News Group rankings – looked lackluster for most of Thursday’s contest, turning the ball over while allowing Weston Ranch to get open looks on nearly every possession.
The comeback was so improbable that even Liberty coach Rich Morton thought his team was cooked.
“I’m gonna be honest, I was thinking that it was not our night,” Morton said. “It was just about pushing different buttons, trying to get different guys in there to make a play. It was just one of those games.”
Weston Ranch opened the game with an 11-0 run, but a strong second quarter from Liberty helped the Lions take a one-point lead at halftime.
Liberty’s Brendan Beresford (24) steals the ball from Weston Ranch’s Damarcus Cobb (5) in the fourth quarter of their game at Liberty High School in Brentwood, Calif., on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. Liberty defeated Weston Ranch 70-69. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
But that lead quickly evaporated.
A 19-6 burst from the Cougars to open the second half gave the Stockton school its largest lead of the night as the Cougars took a 57-42 lead late in the third.
Liberty made some headway in the first few minutes of the fourth quarter, but with Weston Ranch taking a 10-point advantage with five minutes left, the game looked all but over for Liberty.
But no one told that to Vigil.
The senior led Liberty on an inspired comeback, which included the 5-foot-11 point guard scoring the Lions’ final 10 points.
After getting a much-needed stop on Weston Ranch’s final possession, the Lions had 20 seconds to work with and opted not to call a timeout.
Vigil got a clean look at a 3-pointer at the top of the key, but the shot went in-and-out. Senior forward Brendan Beresford, who collected 12 rebounds on the night, tipped out Vigil’s shot back to him to keep the possession alive.
Liberty’s Dante Vigil (3) goes up for a layup past Weston Ranch’s Romello Bruhn (3) in the fourth quarter of their game at Liberty High School in Brentwood, Calif., on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. Liberty defeated Weston Ranch 70-69. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
Vigil found Fullard near the basket, but the junior couldn’t get a clean look and kicked the ball back out to Vigil. Vigil took one dribble toward the paint, jump stopped and elevated for a finger roll finish that iced the game.
“Tonight’s game was just about rolling the dice with him and seeing what he can do,” Morton said. “We hit lucky seven with him, that’s for sure. Tonight was his night.”
Liberty has now notched its 14th win of the season and improved to 14-2. The Lions are heavily favored to come out of the Bay Valley Athletic League, having won the last four BVAL titles.
Vigil snapped a cold shooting streak dating back to the winter break. He said he hopes a game like this can give him confidence going forward.
“Having 30 points and getting a buzzer beater is very hard to do in high school,” Vigil said. “I just feel accomplished that I was able to do it.”
Liberty’s Jaiden Miller (5) dribbles past Weston Ranch’s Jerimyah Owens (12) in the first quarter of their game at Liberty High School in Brentwood, Calif., on Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. (Jose Carlos Fajardo/Bay Area News Group)
No. 5 Clayton Valley 73, Mt. Diablo 21
Cannon Simpson scored the same amount of points that Mt. Diablo had the entire game to lead Clayton Valley to an easy Diablo Athletic League win at home. Chris Berry was second in scoring with 11 points and Jett Tran added nine. Clayton Valley is now 10-3, 3-0.
Campolindo 59, Miramonte 33
Noah Henry had a double-double with 11 points and 16 rebounds as the Cougars defeated rival Miramonte on the road in a DAL showdown. Aiden Wong was Campolindo’s leading scorer with 14 points and Noah Mesfin added 11. Davi Freitas scored 12 points for Miramonte, which dropped to 9-6, 1-1. Campolindo improved tp 11-5, 2-0.
Lincoln-San Jose 59, Harker 34
Senior guard Antonio Moreno had a game-high 23 points, Ameer Barnes chipped in 12 and Lincoln comfortably beat Harker on the road. Lucas Huang led Harker (5-8) with eight points. Lincoln will open Blossom Valley Athletic League Santa Teresa North Division play on Tuesday at Prospect.
Piedmont 73, San Leandro 49
Piedmont never trailed and eased past San Leandro behind 22 points from Dillon Casey. Senior PJ Brayer had 19 points and Beach Lorin had 17 for Piedmont (10-3, 1-0), which won its first WACC game of the season. San Leandro (9-6, 0-1) was led by Elijah Rubio, who had 12 points.
St. Mary’s-Berkeley 64, Bethel 56
The uber-athletic duo of CJ Baltrip and Donovan Mikel combined for 38 points to lead St. Mary’s to a Tri-County Athletic League Rock Division win. Baltrip had a double-double with 21 points, 10 rebounds and five assists. Mikel also stuffed the stat sheet with 17 points, 10 rebounds, four assists and three blocks. St. Mary’s improved to 6-6, 1-0 and will play Salesian at home on Saturday in the Rock Game. Bethel dropped to 8-6, 0-2.
Girls basketball
No. 13 Acalanes 68, Berean Christian 13
This one was never even close. The Dons won the first quarter 13-0 and didn’t look back as they cruised to a 55-point win over Berean Christian in a Diablo Athletic League matchup. Freshman Millie Jones had a game-high 18 points, Lexi Le added 12 and Sofia and Sienna Fernandez each had 10. Acalanes improved to 10-4, 2-0. Berean Christian dropped to 5-4, 1-2.
No. 14 Salesian 62, Pinole Valley 25
Salesian won its second consecutive game, this time beating Pinole Valley by 37 points on the road. Faith Thompson and Ezra Palec each had 13 points while Naomi Young chipped in with 10. Salesian improved to 7-5 and 2-0 in TCAL Rock Division play. Dannyae Turner had 15 points for Pinole Valley, which dropped to 6-9, 0-1.
Campolindo 42, Miramonte 33
It was all about efficiency for Becca Tanner as she scored 16 points on 5-for-8 shooting from the field to help lift Campolindo over Miramonte. Ally Rogin had 13 points to lead Miramonte.
College Park 37, Benicia 26
Taylor Ochoa scored a game-high 26 points and College Park defeated Benicia in a low-scoring DAL matchup. Ella Lum led Benicia with 11 points as the Panthers dropped to 9-3, 1-2. College Park improved to 10-3, 1-1.
Leigh 68, Del Mar 58
Senior guard Ashley Saban scored 23 points as Leigh defeated Del Mar in an interdistrict matchup. Sophomore point guard Demi Dobrilla added 13 points and hit three 3-pointers. Del Mar’s Zoey Hinkle led all scorers with 33 points.
Leland 38, Live Oak 25
In a defensive slugest, Leland found a way to put up more points by the end of the night. Lauren Law had a game-high 10 points and Emily Moen added nine for Leland, which improved to 10-3.
NASA officials said Thursday they have decided to bring home four of the seven crew members on the International Space Station after one of them experienced a "medical situation" earlier this week.
The space agency has said little about the incident, and officials have not identified which crew member suffered the medical issue. James "JD" Polk, NASA's chief health and medical officer, told reporters Thursday the crew member is "absolutely stable" but that the agency is "erring on the side of caution" with the decision to bring to return the astronaut to Earth.
The ailing astronaut is part of the Crew-11 mission, which launched to the station August 1 and was slated to come back to Earth around February 20. Instead, the Crew-11 astronauts will depart the International Space Station (ISS) in the coming days and head for reentry and a parachute-assisted splashdown in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of California.
REDWOOD CITY — A suspect is in custody following an armed confrontation last month at a Redwood City gym, police said.
The incident happened in the early morning hours of Dec. 15 at the Planet Fitness in the 200 block of Walnut Street, according to the Redwood City Police Department.
Two people were involved in a disturbance at the gym, which moved outside and culminated in one pointing a firearm at the other in a “threatening manner,” police said.
The victim retreated into the gym, and the suspect left the scene, according to police. The episode, police added, was captured by surveillance cameras in the area.
Detectives identified the suspect as a 38-year-old man with a last known address of Sharpsburg, Georgia. They obtained a search warrant for the suspect, his vehicle and a storage locker.
On Tuesday, detectives found the man in San Bruno and arrested him on suspicion of assault with a firearm. He was carrying a loaded firearm, police said, adding that a total of five firearms, two replica firearms, multiple high-capacity magazines and 1,500 rounds of ammunition were seized as a result of detectives serving the search warrant.
The man was booked into the Maguire Correctional Facility in Redwood City.
Anyone with information related to the case can contact the police department at 650-780-7100.
REDWOOD CITY — A suspect is in custody following an armed confrontation last month at a Redwood City gym, police said.
The incident happened in the early morning hours of Dec. 15 at the Planet Fitness in the 200 block of Walnut Street, according to the Redwood City Police Department.
Two people were involved in a disturbance at the gym, which moved outside and culminated in one pointing a firearm at the other in a “threatening manner,” police said.
The victim retreated into the gym, and the suspect left the scene, according to police. The episode, police added, was captured by surveillance cameras in the area.
Detectives identified the suspect as a 38-year-old man with a last known address of Sharpsburg, Georgia. They obtained a search warrant for the suspect, his vehicle and a storage locker.
On Tuesday, detectives found the man in San Bruno and arrested him on suspicion of assault with a firearm. He was carrying a loaded firearm, police said, adding that a total of five firearms, two replica firearms, multiple high-capacity magazines and 1,500 rounds of ammunition were seized as a result of detectives serving the search warrant.
The man was booked into the Maguire Correctional Facility in Redwood City.
Anyone with information related to the case can contact the police department at 650-780-7100.
What a year it's already been, right? Only a little over a week into 2026 and we're already exhausted. Were we ever not exhausted from 2025? Irrelevant. We are eepy little kitties and need a feline friend to cuddle and LOL with. That's the dream. Wouldn't 2026 be so much better if we were all just paired with a furry little friend that makes us happy and we care for them and love each other no matter what? That would be a beautiful year…
A girl can dream! Until that dream becomes a reality, these cat memes will have to hold us all over. Some of us are already a cat parent and some hope, wish, and work hard to become one. Either way, we can all agree that cat memes are powerful. They bring joy to everyone who sees them! They have been the rock that holds down the internet since its creation!
Well, maybe not since its creation, but definitely since it's popularity. Some of the first viral things online were silly little kitties and we love that! The internet doesn't have to be a dark and scary place. It can be a place full of laughter and memes of the most adorable cats you ever did see.
SACRAMENTO — A 51-year-old San Jose man wanted for five years for failing to register as a sex offender was finally arrested Tuesday in Sacramento, according to authorities.
In November, the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office shared information about the man as part of its “Wanted Wednesday” campaign, which in turn “generated an anonymous tip with crucial details” about his whereabouts, the sheriff’s office said in a news release.
The sheriff’s office followed up and confirmed the man was in the Sacramento area. Working with the U.S. Marshals Service, the sheriff’s office arrested the man in the city.
Sheriff’s office spokesperson Brooks Jarosz said the man was wanted on two warrants for failing to register as a sex offender. He also has a prior conviction for child molestation.
The entire encounter — a law enforcement officer standing briefly in front of a vehicle, then to its side while firing multiple fatal shots at its driver — lasted less than 30 seconds. Video captured it all, down to the motorist going limp and the vehicle crashing down the street.
It could describe the killing of Renee Good, a 37-year-old woman, by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent Wednesday in Minneapolis — an act that has already divided the nation, with critics denouncing it as an unlawful killing and President Donald Trump and his administration framing the encounter as “terrorism” by a woman who “weaponized her vehicle” against law enforcement.
Police tape surrounds a vehicle suspected to be involved in a shooting by an ICE agent during federal law enforcement operations on January 07, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. According to federal officials, the agent, "fearing for his life" killed a woman during a confrontation in south Minneapolis. (Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)
Yet to policing experts and civil rights attorneys across the Bay Area and California, the scene bears eerie similarities to a series of local police shootings involving moving vehicles — including one that sent a Contra Costa County sheriff’s deputy to prison. Others, while not resulting in criminal charges, still produced major settlements, such as BART’s $6.75 million payout after video showed a woman was driving away when she was shot.
“The Minnesota case is even more clear-cut” than the 2018 Contra Costa County police killing, said Adante Pointer, an Oakland-based civil rights attorney. “That woman should be alive today, and that officer should be swiftly facing criminal charges.”
Federal agents, including ICE officers, are generally subject to federal law and federal investigations, even when their actions occur inside a state. While states can pursue charges in some circumstances, federal jurisdiction and immunity doctrines often limit state authority — meaning cases are typically reviewed by the FBI and U.S. Justice Department rather than local prosecutors.
The footage from Minneapolis is disturbing, said Cathy Riggs, a retired Los Angeles police officer of more than 30 years who now consults on police use-of-force cases. While no law explicitly prohibits officers from firing at moving vehicles, the practice is widely discouraged.
The odds of hitting a moving target are low, experts say, and when a driver is struck, the vehicle itself can become a deadly, uncontrolled force before it comes to a stop.
“The fact that (the ICE agent) shot instead of getting out of the way, I don’t understand that,” Riggs said. “It seems like a huge escalation of force as to what’s warranted.”
“You don’t shoot at a moving vehicle — you avoid it,” said Robert Clark, a former Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy who has testified as a use-of-force expert. “You’re not going to stop two tons of steel coming at you with a 185-grain bullet.”
California’s standards governing deadly force are even stricter than in much of the nation. Since 2019, state law has required that lethal force be “necessary,” a higher bar than the federal standard, which generally permits force when it is “objectively reasonable.”
Even by that looser federal measure, several Bay Area civil rights attorneys said the Minnesota shooting appeared indefensible.
“It’s clearly an unlawful shooting and an illegal shooting and tantamount to murder in my point of view,” said John Burris, an Oakland-based attorney who has represented plaintiffs in numerous excessive-force cases. “This was just outrageously wrong conduct — a violation of just about every police standard that I’m aware of.”
Burris and others pointed to the 2018 killing of Laudemer Arboleda, who was fatally shot by Contra Costa County sheriff’s Deputy Andrew Hall as Arboleda attempted to flee a traffic stop in Danville. Though Hall initially stood in front of the vehicle, his position changed during the encounter, and at least two of the 10 shots he fired entered the car through the passenger side.
A jury later convicted Hall of assault with a firearm after deadlocking on a manslaughter charge, marking the first on-duty shooting conviction of a law-enforcement officer in Contra Costa County history. He was sentenced to six years in prison.
Police encounters involving moving vehicles are “very dynamic,” with officers forced to make split-second decisions in roadways while considering a vehicle’s position and the safety of other motorists and bystanders, said Tony Turnbull, who retired from the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office in 2020 after more than 30 years investigating cases in which police shot people.
“When you talk about best practices, you would be having to talk about a very sterile environment,” Turnbull said. “I know people want answers. Sometimes you just have to sit back and let the investigation play out.”
Pointer, the Oakland attorney, criticized the notion that the Minnesota woman’s vehicle had been “weaponized,” calling it “a political term to make a legal justification for, what looks to me, like an unlawful and inexcusable use of deadly force.”
Past initial assessments of such killings have proven to be wrong. He cited the 2024 shooting of Jasmine Gao, 32, who was shot while driving away from officers in the parking lot of BART’s Union City station.
Police body camera video shows Jasmine Gao, 32, struggling with BART Police during a Nov. 18, 2024, traffic stop. Officer Nicholas Poblete shot Gao as she drove away from officers during the stop. BART ultimately paid Gao $6.75 million in a settlement while acknowledging she had not harmed any officers. The officer who shot her was later fired. (Frame from police body cam footage/ BART Police)
Since then, and in the wake of a 2019 state transparency law, California police agencies have increasingly turned to public relations firms to produce slick, persuasive videos explaining police shootings. While agencies and the firms they hire defend the practice as adding necessary context, critics say the highly edited videos omit key details and cast officers’ actions in an overly sympathetic light.
The latest shooting comes in a markedly different climate from the last police killing in Minnesota to galvanize the nation. In 2020, the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer sparked nationwide protests and ultimately led to the officer’s conviction.
But police-reform advocates say the momentum for change after Floyd’s death has stalled — and in some cases reversed — as transparency by law-enforcement agencies across the Bay Area and the nation has steadily eroded.
Police departments across the region have restricted access to radio traffic, while in Oakland, city leaders recently withheld body-camera footage of a former NFL player who died in police custody, arguing that a state law requiring its release did not apply.
“There was a lot of progress that was made after George Floyd got killed that’s been undone,” said Melissa Nold, a Vallejo-based civil rights attorney. “People need to be very, very mindful that we’re reverting back.”
Jakob Rodgers is a senior breaking news reporter. Call, text or send him an encrypted message via Signal at 510-390-2351, or email him at jrodgers@bayareanewsgroup.com.
The Pitt continues to know what it's doing, while my own accomplishments largely consist of having cooked a pilaf for some upcoming lunches and arranging a short-term gig for a few days next week. Not too much editing, largely on account of global events and flashbacks to 2020 and a little bit on anticipation for the new episode. Hopefully more soon would be nice.
Also, since tagging on Tumblr is the new version of fandom icons, I decided on a Pluribus tag: we'll eat you up we love you so.
SACRAMENTO — A 51-year-old San Jose man wanted for five years for failing to register as a sex offender was finally arrested Tuesday in Sacramento, according to authorities.
In November, the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office shared information about the man as part of its “Wanted Wednesday” campaign, which in turn “generated an anonymous tip with crucial details” about his whereabouts, the sheriff’s office said in a news release.
The sheriff’s office followed up and confirmed the man was in the Sacramento area. Working with the U.S. Marshals Service, the sheriff’s office arrested the man in the city.
Sheriff’s office spokesperson Brooks Jarosz said the man was wanted on two warrants for failing to register as a sex offender. He also has a prior conviction for child molestation.
The entire encounter — a law enforcement officer standing briefly in front of a vehicle, then to its side while firing multiple fatal shots at its driver — lasted less than 30 seconds. Video captured it all, down to the motorist going limp and the vehicle crashing down the street.
It could describe the killing of Renee Good, a 37-year-old woman, by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent Wednesday in Minneapolis — an act that has already divided the nation, with critics denouncing it as an unlawful killing and President Donald Trump and his administration framing the encounter as “terrorism” by a woman who “weaponized her vehicle” against law enforcement.
Police tape surrounds a vehicle suspected to be involved in a shooting by an ICE agent during federal law enforcement operations on January 07, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. According to federal officials, the agent, "fearing for his life" killed a woman during a confrontation in south Minneapolis. (Photo by Stephen Maturen/Getty Images)
Yet to policing experts and civil rights attorneys across the Bay Area and California, the scene bears eerie similarities to a series of local police shootings involving moving vehicles — including one that sent a Contra Costa County sheriff’s deputy to prison. Others, while not resulting in criminal charges, still produced major settlements, such as BART’s $6.75 million payout after video showed a woman was driving away when she was shot.
“The Minnesota case is even more clear-cut” than the 2018 Contra Costa County police killing, said Adante Pointer, an Oakland-based civil rights attorney. “That woman should be alive today, and that officer should be swiftly facing criminal charges.”
Federal agents, including ICE officers, are generally subject to federal law and federal investigations, even when their actions occur inside a state. While states can pursue charges in some circumstances, federal jurisdiction and immunity doctrines often limit state authority — meaning cases are typically reviewed by the FBI and U.S. Justice Department rather than local prosecutors.
The footage from Minneapolis is disturbing, said Cathy Riggs, a retired Los Angeles police officer of more than 30 years who now consults on police use-of-force cases. While no law explicitly prohibits officers from firing at moving vehicles, the practice is widely discouraged.
The odds of hitting a moving target are low, experts say, and when a driver is struck, the vehicle itself can become a deadly, uncontrolled force before it comes to a stop.
“The fact that (the ICE agent) shot instead of getting out of the way, I don’t understand that,” Riggs said. “It seems like a huge escalation of force as to what’s warranted.”
“You don’t shoot at a moving vehicle — you avoid it,” said Robert Clark, a former Los Angeles County sheriff’s deputy who has testified as a use-of-force expert. “You’re not going to stop two tons of steel coming at you with a 185-grain bullet.”
California’s standards governing deadly force are even stricter than in much of the nation. Since 2019, state law has required that lethal force be “necessary,” a higher bar than the federal standard, which generally permits force when it is “objectively reasonable.”
Even by that looser federal measure, several Bay Area civil rights attorneys said the Minnesota shooting appeared indefensible.
“It’s clearly an unlawful shooting and an illegal shooting and tantamount to murder in my point of view,” said John Burris, an Oakland-based attorney who has represented plaintiffs in numerous excessive-force cases. “This was just outrageously wrong conduct — a violation of just about every police standard that I’m aware of.”
Burris and others pointed to the 2018 killing of Laudemer Arboleda, who was fatally shot by Contra Costa County sheriff’s Deputy Andrew Hall as Arboleda attempted to flee a traffic stop in Danville. Though Hall initially stood in front of the vehicle, his position changed during the encounter, and at least two of the 10 shots he fired entered the car through the passenger side.
A jury later convicted Hall of assault with a firearm after deadlocking on a manslaughter charge, marking the first on-duty shooting conviction of a law-enforcement officer in Contra Costa County history. He was sentenced to six years in prison.
Police encounters involving moving vehicles are “very dynamic,” with officers forced to make split-second decisions in roadways while considering a vehicle’s position and the safety of other motorists and bystanders, said Tony Turnbull, who retired from the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office in 2020 after more than 30 years investigating cases in which police shot people.
“When you talk about best practices, you would be having to talk about a very sterile environment,” Turnbull said. “I know people want answers. Sometimes you just have to sit back and let the investigation play out.”
Pointer, the Oakland attorney, criticized the notion that the Minnesota woman’s vehicle had been “weaponized,” calling it “a political term to make a legal justification for, what looks to me, like an unlawful and inexcusable use of deadly force.”
Past initial assessments of such killings have proven to be wrong. He cited the 2024 shooting of Jasmine Gao, 32, who was shot while driving away from officers in the parking lot of BART’s Union City station.
Police body camera video shows Jasmine Gao, 32, struggling with BART Police during a Nov. 18, 2024, traffic stop. Officer Nicholas Poblete shot Gao as she drove away from officers during the stop. BART ultimately paid Gao $6.75 million in a settlement while acknowledging she had not harmed any officers. The officer who shot her was later fired. (Frame from police body cam footage/ BART Police)
Since then, and in the wake of a 2019 state transparency law, California police agencies have increasingly turned to public relations firms to produce slick, persuasive videos explaining police shootings. While agencies and the firms they hire defend the practice as adding necessary context, critics say the highly edited videos omit key details and cast officers’ actions in an overly sympathetic light.
The latest shooting comes in a markedly different climate from the last police killing in Minnesota to galvanize the nation. In 2020, the murder of George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer sparked nationwide protests and ultimately led to the officer’s conviction.
But police-reform advocates say the momentum for change after Floyd’s death has stalled — and in some cases reversed — as transparency by law-enforcement agencies across the Bay Area and the nation has steadily eroded.
Police departments across the region have restricted access to radio traffic, while in Oakland, city leaders recently withheld body-camera footage of a former NFL player who died in police custody, arguing that a state law requiring its release did not apply.
“There was a lot of progress that was made after George Floyd got killed that’s been undone,” said Melissa Nold, a Vallejo-based civil rights attorney. “People need to be very, very mindful that we’re reverting back.”
Jakob Rodgers is a senior breaking news reporter. Call, text or send him an encrypted message via Signal at 510-390-2351, or email him at jrodgers@bayareanewsgroup.com.
Twenty years ago, I wrote a short challenge story -- The Honor of Friendship. I named one of the OCs "Lilianna" -- the daughter of one of Jim Ellison's men who died in Peru.
Today I'm writing a note for Aly's profile on AO3; we so seldom get word of "what happened to" the people behind our fave stories, and I thought other fans might like to know. Aly was a big promoter of Moonridge Zoo, which Garett donated to, and, to a lesser extent, the Pacific Marine Mammal Center, which Richard donated to. But I had forgotten the name of the charity Richard was connected to, so I went searching. Found it, obviously, but while I was searching, I discovered that Richard's wife is (or was; I didn't check dates) named "Liliana."
Sometimes a cat shows up and quietly changes the plan. On a night that was way too cold for comfort, this sweet girl showed up and made it very clear she wasn't going back outside. With freezing temperatures, coyotes nearby, and no answer from the neighbors she was believed to belong to, bringing her inside was a simple decision. You don't leave an animal out in conditions like that.
Once indoors, she did what cats often do when they finally feel safe. She relaxed. She cuddled. She played. She chose warmth and people over the outdoors without hesitation. That choice says a lot. Cats who truly want to be outside usually make it known. This one seems to have decided she's done braving the elements and would rather nap, be pet, and exist peacefully indoors.
Her condition adds another layer. Long claws, constant scratching, and scabs suggest she hasn't been getting regular care, even if she once had a home. Being unchipped and unfixed doesn't automatically mean she was abandoned, but it does mean she's been falling through the cracks. And four days without anyone asking about her feels telling.
This is one of those moments where kindness matters more than perfect answers. Until someone steps forward, she's warm, safe, and clearly loved. That counts. Sometimes the Cat Distribution System doesn't deliver with fanfare. Sometimes it just places a gentle soul in front of someone who's willing to listen. And for now, she's exactly where she needs to be.
MORGAN HILL — One person was killed and three others were injured in a crash Wednesday morning in Morgan Hill, police said.
The two-vehicle collision happened just before 6:10 a.m. at the intersection of Condit Road and Diana Avenue, the Morgan Hill Police Department said in a news release.
One person died from their injuries at the scene, police said, adding that three others were taken to area trauma centers “with varying degrees of injuries,” police said.
The Santa Clara County Medical Examiner-Coroner’s Office will release the identity of the person who died after it is confirmed and their next of kin is notified.
The crash is under investigation, but police said preliminary findings suggest that alcohol and drug impairment did not play a role.
“The department extends its deepest condolences to the family and friends of the decedent,” police said. “We remind all motorists to remain vigilant, wear seatbelts and exercise heightened caution at intersections, particularly during low-light, early morning hours.”
Anyone with information related to the case can contact Detective Sgt. Sean Bayard at 408-607-3032 or sean.bayard@morganhill.gov, or the anonymous tip line at 800-222-8477 (TIPS).
SUNNYVALE — A woman was shot and killed Wednesday night in Sunnyvale, and police are searching for a suspect who fled before officers arrived.
The shooting was reported around 9:40 p.m. on Vienna Drive, near Lawrence Expressway and Tasman Drive, according to the Sunnyvale Department of Public Safety. Officers found the woman inside a vehicle suffering from gunshot wounds. She was pronounced dead at the scene.
The Santa Clara County Medical Examiner-Coroner’s Office will release her identity after it is confirmed and next of kin are notified.
Police have not released a suspect description.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Detective Eugene Rosette at 408-730-7110.
Terrible things are happening. I’m upset. And I’m angry. And I’m so sad.
While I am looking for the helpers, I am also doing my best to be a helper.
I have to be honest: when a domestic terrorist organization, created and unleashed on us by our own government, are terrorizing, tear-gassing, kidnapping, and murdering with impunity, the way I help feels pretty pointless.
It feels woefully inadequate to me, but I entertain, I tell stories, I help you recover your hit points. It’s what I know how to do, and it’s what I do best. And I keep reminding myself that if I can make something that helps someone else create the space I have when I read a book or listen to an album, or whatever I’m doing to rest, then I have to do that. I can’t not do that. This is my purpose. I entertain, especially when it feels like entertaining is less important than something other people need entertainment to get a break from doing.
I want to be crystal clear: I am not comparing myself to anyone, or suggesting that what I do is equivalent, but we all do what we can, right? I’m doing my best, I think.
What I do right now, and what I hope to do until I retire, is tell you stories that help you create a bit of safe space to just … be … for a minute, a place where you can recover some hit points, while you listen. Today, I went to the studio, and told you a story that you will hear next week. I was so grateful to have a break of my own. I loved doing this story. It was so satisfying to focus on how I chose the narrator’s emotional point of view, to find my own narrative pace, to notice something in the narrative that I hadn’t, before. To feel that indescribable thing performers only feel in our bodies when we perform.
It was a privilege and a blessing, all made possible by authors who said yes, a team of people who believe in me, and so many people I will never meet, who trust me with their time and attention, week after week.
I am so grateful. I will continue to do my best.
As I was about to click publish, I noticed that there are 1000 new subscribers to my posts. Welcome. If you’d like to get my posts in your email, here’s the thing:
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