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School district rejects California's new social studies book, drawing ire of Gov. Newsom

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:38:31 GMT

The Temecula Valley Unified School District decided early Wednesday to reject California's controversial new social studies book and curriculum.The school board met for more than 5 hours on Tuesday hearing from parents, teachers, and even people outside the Temecula area about the state's curriculum for elementary school kids.“Keep the false religion of secular humanism and gender theory out of schools. Focus on reading, writing, and arithmetic. Let’s face it, this is a fight of good and evil,” one attendee said during the meeting.The cover of "Social Studies Alive!" is seen in this file image.The debate is over a new social studies book called "Social Studies Alive!"The textbook complies with 2011 state laws requiring that students get instruction about "the role and contributions of people with disabilities; lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Americans; and other ethnic and cultural groups."Conservative members of the board have complained that supplemental material for the c...

Three people fatally shot in Oakland

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:38:31 GMT

OAKLAND — Three people were fatally shot in different areas of East Oakland Wednesday morning including a woman and a man found inside a home and a woman discovered outside on a street, authorities said.The woman and man, both in their 40s, were found about 1:23 a.m. Wednesday in a home in the 1100 block of 89th Avenue, authorities said. They were both pronounced dead at the scene.Police have not yet released their names or confirmed what their relationship was.Investigators were working to determine what led  to the shooting.About 4:44 a.m. Wednesday a woman was found fatally shot outside in the 1200 block of 18th Avenue.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Shooting on I-980 sends one to hospital Crime and Public Safety | Suspect arrested on suspicion of attempted murder in East Bay shootout that killed 17-year-old Crime and Public Safety | Feds charge suspect in violent Oakland home invasion with trafficking meth and fentanyl ...

Concert series bring sounds of summer to Los Gatos

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:38:31 GMT

While one summer concert series has been heating up downtown Los Gatos for a month now, another is about to start highlighting cool local bands.Jazz on the Plazz kicked off its Etta James Summer on June 21; the series runs Wednesdays, 6:30-8:30 p.m., through Aug. 23 at the Town Plaza.The Music in the Park concert series starts July 23 with a Traveling Wilburys tribute band. The series continues on Sundays, 5-7p.m., through Aug. 27 on the Los Gatos Civic Center lawn.Here’s a look at the lineups for both series.Music in the ParkJuly 23 – Traveling Wilburys Revue plays music by all the members of the supergroup, which never played live.July 30 – Los Gatos-based Suburban Bliss plays four decades of hits from the ’70s to the 2000s.Aug 6 – Aardvark is a jam band in the spirit of the Grateful Dead.Aug 13– Ruth Gerson is a local singer/songwriter who has toured globally.Aug 20 – Tortilla Soup plays pop, R&B, Latin, country and the blues.Aug 27 – Accordionist Andre Thierry an...

California cars are most fuel-efficient in US. Where are the gas guzzlers?

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:38:31 GMT

Buzz: Californians own the most fuel-efficient vehicles in the nation.Source: My trusty spreadsheet analyzed estimates of average miles-per-gallon by state compiled by Iseecars. The study looked at vehicles in the used market and the manufacturer’s listed mpg for various models.ToplineCalifornia cars are getting an average 31 miles per gallon, easily the best in the nation.The rest of the top 10 for fuel use are No. 2 Hawaii at 28.4 mpg, then Washington state at 28.2, Oregon at 27.9, Nevada at 27.5, Arizona and Colorado at 27.2, Virginia and Maryland at 27.1, and Utah at 26.8.And the least efficient? North Dakota and Wyoming at 22.5 mpg, then Montana at 22.8, South Dakota at 23, Iowa at 23.7, West Virginia at 23.9, Nebraska at 24.1, and Michigan, Alaska, and Arkansas at 24.2.What’s driving this?I’ll use the extremes of these top and bottom states to suggest the forces behind these mpg gaps.Note that the high mpg states average 27.9 miles per gallon vs. 23.5 in low-efficiency states....

Salinas group will manage, operate historic East Bay theater

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:38:31 GMT

The city of Pittsburg has agreed to hire Entertainment Lane Inc. of Salinas to manage and operate the historic downtown California Theatre.Previously operated by the Pittsburg Arts and Community Foundation, the 500-seat beaux arts theater at 515 Railroad Ave. has offered a blend of films, theater, comedy, live music and other cultural programming over the years.The council approved the three-year agreement on a 3-to-1 vote with Mayor Shanelle Scales Preston and Councilwoman Dionne Adams absent. The council also allocated $350,000 for the entertainment company to provide services for the first year, 2023-24, with the city’s Pittsburg Power Company providing the funding.Kolette Simonton, director of recreation, said two groups, including Pittsburg Theatre Company, were interviewed as potential operators, with staff later recommending Entertainment Lane, which has 30 years of experience managing performing arts venues and booking entertainment. The company produced the Festa Italia in ...

After nearly 30 years, there’s movement in the case of Tupac Shakur’s 1996 killing. Here’s what we know

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:38:31 GMT

By JONATHAN LANDRUM JR. | AP Entertainment WriterLOS ANGELES — An investigation into Tupac Shakur’s unsolved killing has been revived. It took nearly three decades, but a new twist came when authorities in Nevada served a search warrant this week in connection with the rap star’s shooting death, they confirmed Tuesday.Here’s what to know about one of the most infamous fatal shootings in hip-hop history:FILE – Rapper Tupac Shakur attends a voter registration event in South Central Los Angeles, Aug. 15, 1996. Authorities in Nevada confirmed Tuesday, July 18, 2023, that they served a search warrant this week in connection with the long-unsolved killing of the late rapper Shakur. (AP Photo/Frank Wiese, File) Las Vegas police served a search warrant in connection to the killing of Shakur, who was gunned down Sept. 7, 1996.The warrant was executed Monday in the nearby city of Henderson. It’s unclear what they were looking for or where they searched.Citing the ongoing investigation, a...

Stanford doctors to rally during contract negotiations

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:38:31 GMT

(KRON) -- Stanford doctors, represented by the Committee of Interns and Residents, plan to hold a demonstration on Wednesday after seven months of contract negotiations. 3 dead in 2 separate early morning homicides in Oakland Residents and physicians are calling for a fair contract that prioritizes patient and physician well-being over profit. Some physicians say they are struggling to pay for everyday living costs in the Bay Area due to inadequate pay and lack of support.The demonstration will be held from noon to 1:30 p.m. in front of the Stanford Hospital located at Pasteur Drive and Welch Road in Palo Alto. KRON On is streaming news live now.embed-container { position: relative; padding-bottom: 56.25%; height: 0; overflow: hidden; max-width: 100%; } .embed-container iframe, .embed-container object, .embed-container embed { position: absolute; top: 0; left: 0; width: 100%; height: 100%; }The doctors will also be joined by Stanford graduate student workers.

British political candidate uses artificial intelligence to draw up election manifesto

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:38:31 GMT

LONDON (AP) — British voters face a crowded field of 13 candidates in an upcoming special election for a Parliament seat. One, independent Andrew Gray, used artificial intelligence to come up with campaign promises that he says reflect what residents want. Gray, who says he has no policies of his own, crowdsourced constituents’ sentiments and used machine learning to come up with his political manifesto. He calls the technology a faster and fairer way for politicians to widely reflect views of the people they represent. “We can interact with our constituents in a whole new way,” Gray said. “It doesn’t change necessarily the role of the representative. It just means that we kind of know what’s going on much more quickly and we can represent them more fairly.” Conservative lawmaker Nigel Adams’ abrupt resignation triggered Thursday’s parliamentary by-election in Selby and Ainsty, a mixed urban-rural district in northern England. It’s expected to be a hotly cont...

You can now list your blood type on your Virginia driver’s license

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:38:31 GMT

A sample Virginia driver’s license, showing what the icon indicating blood type will look like. (Courtesy Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles)Virginians now have the option to list their blood types on their driver’s license as a way to help first responders in case of an emergency.Customers who want to renew, replace or apply for a new driver’s license or ID card will be asked whether they’d like to have their blood type appear on the document. The inclusion of blood type is optional and will not be required.“The law was intended to aid individuals and first responders when every second counts in an emergency,” said Department of Motor Vehicles Commissioner Gerald Lackey in a news release. “DMV is proud to provide Virginians with options. On your driver’s license or ID, you can indicate not only your blood type, but also your willingness to be an organ donor, your veteran status and can even list important medical indicators.”...

Judge upholds $5 million jury verdict against Trump, rejecting the ex-president’s vindication claim

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:38:31 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — A federal judge on Wednesday upheld a $5 million jury verdict against Donald Trump, rejecting the former president’s claim that the award was excessive and that the jury vindicated him by failing to conclude in the civil case that he raped a columnist in a luxury department store dressing room in the 1990s.Judge Lewis A. Kaplan said the jury’s May award of compensatory and punitive damages to writer E. Jean Carroll for sexual abuse and defamation was reasonable.Trump’s lawyers had asked Kaplan to reduce the jury award to less than $1 million or order a new trial on damages. In their arguments, the lawyers said the jury’s $2 million in compensatory damages granted for Carroll’s sexual assault claim was excessive because the jury concluded that Trump had not raped Carroll at Bergdorf Goodman’s Manhattan store in the spring of 1996.Kaplan wrote that the jury’s unanimous verdict was almost entirely in favor of Carroll, except that the jury conclud...