Sorted by date Results 301 - 325 of 585

December 28, 2021 - On December 23, Los Angeles County health officials ordered health care workers to obtain booster shots of the Covid vaccine. Citing an uptick in the rate of these highly vaccinated workers contracting Covid-19, the County Department of Public Health stated, "requiring booster doses for all healthcare workers is a key protective step aimed at reducing infections by increasing the numbers of workers with the optimal safety provided by the booster does [sic]....

December 3, 2021 - Smoke signals from health and political officials point to closings and lockdowns in the coming weeks and months over fear of the new Omicron variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus that was (unsurprisingly) detected in Los Angeles County on Thursday. Our local Health and Fear Czar, Barbara Ferrer, PhD, MPH, MEd, Director of Public Health, stated in a press release yesterday that "we have always known there would be more mutations, resulting in the possibility of a...

January 6, 2022 - As of the end of December, the percent of new Covid cases occurring among the vaccinated population of Los Angeles County was 66.4%, as calculated by the Observer using County Health Department data. This nearly aligned with the vaccinated percentage of the population as a whole at 68.5% at that time. In other words, the vaccinated are becoming infected with Covid-19 at approximately the same rate as everybody else. Given the prevalence of Covid - within the...

Russia has 175,000 troops massed along the border with Eastern Ukraine. But he has placed calls to US President Joseph R. Biden, offering peace talks. What exactly does he have in mind? This is clearly the size of an invasion force. The United States had only 120,000 troops in Saudi Arabia before she invaded Iraq in 1992. Vladimir Putin is a strongman, and his Country loves him for it. He has been in office for 20 years. At 68 he could win another 3 or 4 elections in Russia....

Craziest predictions for 2022: President Ron Paul has lifted the quarantine. Spirits are high. Joe Biden comes out as Bisexual, as a political move. The NFT of Biden’s podium stroke has sells for 2 million dollars. Chic-Fil-A begins to accept Crypto. Elon Musk Launches a new mission to Mars despite not knowing where the last crew went. Covid lockdowns begin in highly vaccinated countries. Lockdown protest continue and become more violent. Queen of England Dies, and Canada b...

I'm not sure about "overlooked." But I believe underplayed in some quarters are the continued illegal and criminal activity with the hot dog/corn/fruit vendors at the Santa Monica Pier. And the detrimental impacts of the 8,895 housing units now being constructed, to meet the State's RHNA requirements. On the other hand, I would note that no high rises were discussed or brought before the Santa Monica City Council this year. That is a milestone in our efforts to restore Santa...

To whom much is given, much is expected. And collectively, the ASPCA and Humane Society of the United States raise over $400 million a year in the name of helping animals. Using the latest tax filings and other sources, here's how each group spends donations. ASPCA Tax records show the ASPCA spends about half (48 percent) of its budget on overhead. The ASPCA has about $12 million offshore, mostly in the Caribbean. ASPCA CEO Matt Bershadker made over $950,000 in 2020–and got a...

UPDATE: On Wednesday afternoon, LA county health officials announced that, in the week ending December 18, of sequenced samples, 54% were Omicron. December 28, 2021 - Is Omicron now the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus in Los Angeles County? Officials aren't saying so, and it is doubtful if they even know. On December 23, the California Department of Public Health claimed that 50% to 70% of new cases were Omicron in at least three California health systems. However,...

Los Angeles (CA) Under the category of, "you can't make this stuff up", Los Angeles has become a surreal crime circus where it's perfectly normal for a pickaxe-wielding woman to stroll into a store and steal what she wants, a man is arrested for kidnapping and having sex with a minor and is cut loose with no bail, and Black Lives Matter hosts a Christmas-themed "Smash and Grab" rally that makes light of the dangerous and deadly crime wave crushing California' cities. "It's tim...

For the last year, District Attorney George Gascon has pursued two related goals. First, send as few people to prison or jail as possible. Also first, let as many people out of jail or prison as quickly as possible. When you view his first year in office through this lens, everything suddenly makes sense: his staffing picks; his permissive sentencing directives; his let-'em-out-now, ask-questions-later approach to re-sentencing and post-conviction litigation; his reckless...

In 1997 defendant Kenji Howard was convicted of murder of Arkett Mejia, attempted murder of Travon Johnson and two others, and shooting at an occupied vehicle. Recently, the conviction was overturned because of "new" evidence, essentially a statement by his co-defendant who has nothing to lose. On December 2, the Los Angeles District Attorney's office announced that they would not retry the defendant because of policy considerations and resource constraints. Wait. What?...

December 7, 2021 - In response to a direct media request, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health released information about the number of Covid-19 cases among vaccinated residents that throw into doubt the rationale for vaccine mandates. Over the span between November 15 and November 27, there were more Covid cases among the vaccinated than the unvaccinated. 64.9% of cases were in vaccinated individuals. The November 27 statistics from LACDPH show: Total...

We have all gone through collective trauma as a result of COVID. In August the SMMUSD School Board approved the COVID Surveillance Program that included the required weekly PCR test along with the indoor and outdoor masking of our children in order for them to receive in person public education. Many parents felt coerced to consent to the PCR test in order to have their children return to in-person schools. The Covid Surveillance Program was put together quickly to address...

December 7, 2021 - Los Angeles County District Attorney George Gascon proudly announced yesterday the charging of a Los Angeles man with the murder of Jacqueline Avant. This particular press release was a vast departure for the "criminal justice reform" DA, whose press releases rarely involve boasts about catching violent criminals. His more recent press releases include information about a restorative justice project, an anti-racism initiative, and moves to reform juvenile...

The following letter was sent to the entire city council, the city manager, and police chief. Chief Batista and City Manager White both replied with thanks to the author. A. SHORT TERM (IMMEDIATE) Objective: Stabilize safety 1) Update the current requirement of property and/or business owners having to renew the NO SITTING OR LYING IN THE ENTRANCE NOTICE from every 30 to 45 days, to INDEFINITELY. This would immediately create a uniform enforcement environment which would...

December 6, 2021 - The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health announced today they have discovered a second individual in the area who is infected with the new Omicron variant (B.1.1.529). The infected individual is a college student returning from holiday travel to the East Coast. This person is fully vaccinated and experiencing mild symptoms. County officials have concluded, "based on travel history," that it is "likely" the infection was acquired outside of Los Ange...

UPDATE:The Los Angeles Police Protective League (LAPPL) is offering a $20,000 reward leading to the arrest and conviction of the murderer of twelve-year-old Alexander Alvarado who was shot and killed in Wilmington on Monday. Los Angeles (CA) Yesterday, a young boy was shot and killed, and a 4th-grade girl and a 20-year-old woman were shot in Los Angeles in the same incident. This is the just the latest example of the rampant gun violence gripping our city. Despite the...

December 7, 2021 - The third case of Omicron infection has been detected in Los Angeles County, according to health officials. We predict they will stop telling us about each new case detected by the beginning of next week because there will be too many of them. This particular case is in a person who recently traveled in West Africa. The individual is fully vaccinated, as were the other two Omicron cases in the county. Mild symptoms are reported. Of the other two cases, one...

Los Angeles and San Francisco have been hammered by a brazen crime trend: the "smash-and-grab" robbery. A pack of thieves, armed with sledgehammers, smash their way into a high-end store, grab tens of tens of thousands of dollars of merchandise, and flee with the loot. Retailers are doing what they can to protect themselves and their customers. They have hired extra security, put up barriers, and created "checkpoints" to regulate access. Some people have blamed this crisis on...

Artist Ed Massey's statue titled "In the Image," of a seven-foot-tall homeless homeless man was knocked down by vandals around November 30, almost exactly three years after the supposedly temporary statue was erected at the corner of Wilshire Boulevard and 26th Street. The artwork took the place of a sculpture of a family of mother, father, and children dancing in a fountain, a work that stood for decades in front of the one-time bank building on that corner. Mayor Lou Ellen...

When the World Health Organization held a press conference regarding the latest variant of concern, Omicron, on November 26, every health department in the country knew they had to issue a response to the most recent panic trigger. Los Angeles County's Department of Public Health was no exception. Like every other official health organization, their reaction is irrational, based on nothing more than the preservation of their reputations and power. "We have uncertainty about...

November 17, 2021 - On Monday, the Los Angeles County Department of Public Health allowed the public one of its sporadic looks at the data regarding Covid-19 infections and deaths among the fully vaccinated. This extremely relevant data is not on the health department's otherwise transparent and extensive Covid data dashboard. The last time such data was released was 10 days ago. As of November 15, 2021, the statistics from the LA County Department of Public Health show:...

November 17, 2021 - On Saturday, two patrons of Dagwoods Pizza were robbed during the lunch hour by a man claiming to have a gun. The two men were seated on the outdoor patio of the restaurant located just east of Lincoln Boulevard on Wilshire when they were approached by what the surveillance video shows to be a heavyset black man with a backpack. The man, later identified as Jamar Daniels, 39, allegedly told the two men he had a gun. After robbing them of an undisclosed...

Public seating has been removed from the Third Street Promenade from Monday through Thursday. The chairs are replaced over the weekend when more actual shoppers arrive to spend time there. "Unhoused individuals...appeared to be monopolizing the chairs," Downtown Santa Monica Inc spokesperson Kevin Herrerra reportedly told The Santa Monica Sun. The move was suggested originally by business and property owners along the Promenade, according to property owner John Alle. "The...

Saving the United States Postal Service and stopping disingenuous forces from dismantling and privatizing it must be a national priority. We have witnessed the destruction of our post office and that must end, service levels must be restored and expanded, postage rates reduced; PO box rental prices slashed and new PO boxes added, local post offices re-opened, mail boxes that this postmaster general blatantly confiscated weeks before a national election must all be returned;...