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Newsom knocks Target CEO for pulling LGBTQ merchandise from stores

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:42 GMT

California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) on Tuesday slammed Target’s chief executive for pulling LGBTQ and Pride Month merchandise from store shelves after facing backlash and threats of violence from some customers.“CEO of Target Brian Cornell selling out the LGBTQ+ community to extremists is a real profile in courage. This isn’t just a couple stores in the South. There is a systematic attack on the gay community happening across the country,” Newsom wrote in a tweet Tuesday night. “Wake up America. This doesn’t stop here. You’re black? You’re Asian? You’re Jewish? You’re a woman? You’re next,” the California governor continued. On Tuesday, Target announced it was making “adjustments to our plans” to promote and sell Pride Month merchandise, which has been on sale since the beginning of May, ahead of Pride Month, which is June. Target attributed the decision to “volatile circumstances” that were impacting staff’s “sense of safety and well-being while at work.”Target did not say w...

I got schooled in EV's at Electrify Expo

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:42 GMT

Rich DeMuro visits the Electrify Expo in Long Beach, where various EV's are not only on display, but you can demo them, too. The show will travel to seven cities across the U.S. in 2023.

Hoodoo Gurus Revisit Their Scene on Sunset

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:42 GMT

Hoodoo Gurus Revisit Their Scene on Sunset: It’s been a while single Australian college rock band the Hoodoo Gurus were last in these parts, and you could tell at the Roxy on Tuesday. The place was packed — their no-longer-college-age fanbase seemingly not put off by the $100+ ticket price. And the sense of anticipation in the air prior to showtime was tangible.The band was sensitive to their aging fans too; there was no opening act, the Hoodoos went on stage at 8:15 and were done at 10 p.m. With work in the morning, being in bed by 11 was welcome on a Tuesday. Mock all you want.That said, not a single minute of that hour and three quarters was wasted. The Gurus, obviously looking less jangly than they did in their ’80s heyday but still full of life, played one infectious alt-rock ditty after another, spanning their illustrious career.We got eight songs from their ’84 Stoneage Romeos debut, including the singalong “I Want You Back” and the hyper-p...

SSA Releases the 2022 Top 10 Baby Names for Boys and Girls

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:42 GMT

As parents, we want to name our kiddos something that will resonate with their personality when they grow up. As individuals, we want our names to be unique and fitting. Sometimes, some baby names become trendy. While other names decrease in popularity. Recently, SSA released the 2022 top 10 baby names — and parents are giving their babies such beautiful names!2022 Top 10 Baby Names for Boys and GirlsThe 2022 Top 10 Baby Names for Boys:1. LiamLiam is the 2022 most popular name for boys. Liam is a popular name in the United Kingdom. Some people named Liam are named this as a nickname for “William.” The name has Irish and Old Germanic roots — it’s the shortened form of the name Ulliam. One famous person named Liam is the former Oasis frontman, Liam Gallagher.2. NoahNoah is a name with biblical roots (aka Noah from the story, Noah’s arc). The name Noah has Hebrew origins which means “to comfort.”3. OliverOliver is one of the 2022 top 10 baby names for boys. But the name has remained po...

Marilynn Asch Killed after Two-Vehicle Crash on Soldin Lane [El Cajon, CA]

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:42 GMT

70-Year-Old Woman Dies Weeks After Traffic Crash in El CajonEL CAJON, CA (May 24, 2023) – A two-vehicle collision on Soldin Lane in early May claimed the life of Marilynn Asch.The collision occurred on May 3rd, at around 1:00 p.m. along Northbound Soldin Lane.According to the report, an Infiniti sedan traveling north on Soldin collided with another vehicle going west on Olde Highway 80.Paramedics eventually arrived at the scene and found the Inifiti sedan driver unresponsive and suffering from serious injuries.Unfortunately, the woman’s health only continued to decline at the hospital until she was pronounced dead on May 16 at around 1:00 a.m.It was unclear if the driver of the westbound vehicle sustained any injuries.San Diego Officials later identified the deceased driver as 70-year-old Marilynn Asch of El Cajon. The Medical Examiner described her cause of death as blunt force injuries.At this time, the California Highway Patrol continues to investigate the cause of the two-...

Leif Chapin Killed in Scooter Crash near 36th Street [Phoenix, AZ]

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:42 GMT

34-Year-Old Rider Killed by a Hit-and-Run Driver on Thomas RoadPHOENIX, AZ (May 24, 2023) – Saturday night, Leif Chapin was killed in a hit-and-run incident on Thomas Road.The crash occurred at around 10:15 p.m., on May 20th, near 36th Street and Thomas Road.According to reports, the incident involved a Yamaha scooter ridden by 34-year-old Chapin and a hit-and-run vehicle.Investigations showed that Chapin was headed southbound on 36th Street when a vehicle attempted to make a left turn. The vehicle struck Chapin and caused him to sustain serious injuries. The involved driver of the vehicle then fled the scene without rendering aid to the victim.Emergency crews arrived to the site of the collision shortly after and transported Chapin to a local hospital for treatment. There, officials pronounced him dead, due to the extent of his injuries.At this time, official have not released any more information on the suspect. Any other witnesses are to call the Silent Witness at 480(WITNE...

Pick-your-own cherries season has arrived in the Bay; here’s where to go

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:42 GMT

It’s been a wait, thanks to the cold and foul weather, but the most joyful time of the year for fruit lovers is finally here: the annual start of the pick-your-own-cherries season.Two major cherry-growing orchards have released dates for self-picking late this May: the Borello Family Farms aka U-Pick Orchards location in Morgan Hill (opening May 26) and Mike’s U-Pick in Brentwood (opening May 31). Here’s the Facebook announcement and website for Mike’s, which has two locations, and the Facebook announcement and website for Borello, which is opening one of its many locations from May 25-May 29 (with other locations opening soon). A few other places recently announced openings, too, including G&S Farms and Nunn Better Farms in Brentwood, the latter which was the site of much pickin’ last weekend ($4 a pound, two varieties).“Our farming region has had weird weather this year – not doing exactly what’s needed to ripen the fruit as quickly as...

Trump, allies plan effort to steal DeSantis’ 2024 moment

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:42 GMT

By Kristen Holmes | CNNDonald Trump and his allies are planning a coordinated effort to upend the media cycle around the presidential campaign launch of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, which will include videos and a social media blitz leaning on high-profile, Trump-aligned conservative commentators, sources familiar with the plans told CNN.The messaging strategy will involve some Trump surrogates appearing in Miami, where DeSantis is set to gather with donors beginning Wednesday. Make America Great Again, Inc., the Trump-aligned super PAC, will also have a presence in the city. The group plans to have a box truck playing a new attack ad as it circles the Miami hotel where DeSantis will be. The 60-second digital ad hits DeSantis on his tenure as a congressman in Washington, painting the Florida governor as a Washington “swamp creature” who was trying to cut entitlements while Trump was entering the White House. The ad presents a side-by-side comparison of Trump’s and DeSantis’ time in DC...

Facebook’s parent company Meta caps rounds of job cuts, offering remaining staff a cold clarity

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:42 GMT

By Alex Barinka, Aisha Counts and Sarah Frier | BloombergMeta Platforms Inc. employees received news Wednesday of the final round of previously announced job cuts, which affected thousands of workers in the company’s business departments. Now, remaining staff are hoping an uncomfortable limbo at the company can end.The layoffs complete the bulk of the restructuring Chief Executive Officer Mark Zuckerberg announced in March to eliminate 10,000 positions. Initial reductions affected the company’s recruiting and human resources departments, and in late April jobs in Meta’s tech groups were slashed. Zuckerberg has said further cuts will come in only a “small number of cases” for the rest of the year, giving those people left a cold sense of relief.The company, which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, said the layoffs were necessary to improve efficiency, after over-hiring during the pandemic. Meta promised faster product development and decision-making that sent its shares up more t...

East Bay business owner didn’t pay over employment taxes, gets a year in prison

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:57:42 GMT

OAKLAND — A federal judge sentenced a Berkeley resident to one year in federal prison Tuesday for committing employment tax crimes, authorities said.U.S. District Judge Jeffrey S. White handed the sentence down to Larry Kudsk following Kudsk’s guilty plea last August to one count of willfully failing to pay over employment taxes, U.S. Attorney Ismail Ramsey of the Northern District of California said in a statement. A federal grand jury indicted Kudsk in February 2022.REALTED: Child labor, mayhem, lewd comments to teen girls alleged at Oakland PopeyesAccording to Ramsey, court documents showed that Kudsk operated two construction businesses — Kudsk Construction Inc., and M. Gutierrez Inc. — that served as general contractors or subcontractors on various construction projects, some of them for the government.Kudsk was responsible for filing quarterly employment tax returns on both businesses, Ramsey said, as well as collecting and paying to the IRS employment ...