July 12, 2025
July 12, 2025
MacArthur Park, once a vibrant community hub in the heart of Los Angeles, has become a flashpoint in the national debate over immigration enforcement. A recent large-scale Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operation targeting the park has drawn sharp criticism from Democratic leaders, with Representative Eric Swalwell (D-CA) at the forefront, accusing federal authorities of turning a family-friendly space into a militarized zone. Critics, however, argue that Swalwell...
LOS ANGELES - California Governor Gavin Newsom announced a $101 million state investment on July 8, 2025, to develop low-income housing on land devastated by the Palisades Fire earlier this year. The January blaze, which razed 6,837 structures across 1,500 acres in Pacific Palisades, has left the affluent community grappling with recovery-and now, a contentious redevelopment plan. The funding, managed by the California Department of Housing and Community Development, targets...
Ducklings’ Daring Dash Across Wilshire Blvd Captivates Santa Monica *By Clara Evans | Santa Monica Observer | SANTA MONICA — A heartwarming yet tense wildlife drama unfolded on Tuesday, July 8, 2025, at the intersection of Wilshire Boulevard and Chelsea Avenue near Douglas Park, as a family of ducks attempted a perilous cross. Longtime resident Melanie Martin witnessed seven ducklings struggling to follow their mother across the busy road, thwarted by a high concrete...
**Philadelphia, PA - July 7, 2025** - A violent shootout erupted in the heart of Philadelphia late Monday evening, leaving three people dead and nine others injured, including three children, according to local authorities and eyewitness accounts. The harrowing incident, captured on a Ring doorbell camera, has reignited concerns about the escalating gun violence plaguing urban areas across the United States. Original ring camera footage may be seen on X.com at:...
NEW YORK — In a report released late Sunday, July 6, 2025, the Department of Justice (DOJ) and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) concluded that disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein did not maintain a “client list” of powerful figures, did not blackmail prominent individuals, and died by suicide in his Manhattan cell in August 2019. The findings, touted as a definitive debunking of long-running conspiracy theories, aim to put to rest...
4 expiring tax breaks for homeowners in 2025 Several significant tax benefits that homeowners have relied on for years will disappear on December 31, 2025, reports NewHomeSource. Why it matters : These expiring tax breaks could mean thousands of dollars in additional taxes for homeowners across the country. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA), passed in 2017, was designed to reduce taxes for most Americans by simplifying the tax code and lowering rates. Many of its key...
When building sandcastles and tunnels, beware collapsing sand While millions of Americans vacation on beaches every year to seek out sun, sand and the sea, many might not realize how dangerous digging holes in the sand can be. In February 2024, a 7-year-old girl died after an approximately 5-foot (1.5-meter) hole she and her brother dug in the sand collapsed in on her, burying her alive. Stephen P. Leatherman, a coastal science researcher who’s been studying beaches for...
When tenants have a right to counsel in eviction cases, but there aren’t enough lawyers to help Icy snow crusted the sidewalks outside the Bronx housing courthouse on a Thursday in late January, a bitterly cold day in a string of bitterly cold days. Inside, spread out over three floors, dozens of people in puffy coats, some cradling babies or hunched over canes, waited to find out whether they would be kicked out of their homes or what it would take to stay housed. Every...
Use it or lose it: How age affects cognitive skills Conventional wisdom tells us that cognitive skills continue developing until people reach their early 30s and then begin a long fall. However, that conclusion does not come from following individuals as they age. Instead, it comes from comparing the math and reading skills of individuals of different ages at a single point in time. The problem is that people of various ages have different educational experiences, different...
Top 20 US places where homes sell fastest When the time comes to put your home on the market, a host of questions need to be answered. The most pressing question is, “How long will my house take to sell?” This is also an interesting talking point from a home buyer’s perspective. It’s important to know how much time you’ve got to put an offer in on your dream property before it’s snapped up by someone else. The key statistic that matters in this context is Days on...
Where homes are sitting on the market the longest and why In recent years, the only certainty in the housing market is uncertainty. From the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic to unprecedented economic shifts, today’s market has seen plenty of changes. Early in the pandemic, for instance, many buyers sought to take advantage of low mortgage rates, leading to a seller’s market. Today, sellers still have a great deal of leverage in many places thanks to relatively low...
The 10 most affordable and most expensive US cities to buy a house For many people, buying a house is simply out of reach today. Housing costs have reached record highs, pricing buyers out and leaving more homes on the market than there have been in years. The data backs this up: Nationwide, just 35% of homes are affordable to the average homebuyer — down from 60% in 2022. Affordability has dropped since the pandemic because house prices and mortgage rates rose in tandem....
Santa Monica's City Council thinks the city is just fine. One councilmember called the homeless residents our neighbors, their wants and desires equivalent to those of people who pay rent and pay taxes. The 'freedom' of some, most of whom suffer from drug addiction and mental illness, to live in filth, disease and to commit crimes with impunity, is valued over the ability of the rest of society to live healthy lives in law and order. Watch the videos shot and distributed by...
