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Putin will seek another presidential term in Russia, aiming to extend his rule of nearly 25 years

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 13:32:43 GMT

By JIM HEINTZ | Associated PressVladimir Putin on Friday moved to prolong his repressive and unyielding grip on Russia for at least another six years, announcing his candidacy in the presidential election next March that he is all but certain to win.Putin still commands wide support after nearly a quarter-century in power, despite starting an immensely costly war in Ukraine that has taken thousands of his countrymen’s lives, provoked repeated attacks inside Russia — including one on the Kremlin itself — and corroded its aura of invincibility.A short-lived rebellion in June by mercenary leader Yevgeny Prigozhin raised widespread speculation that Putin could be losing his grip, but he emerged with no permanent scars. Prigozhin’s death in a mysterious plane crash two months later reinforced the view that Putin was in absolute control.Putin announced his decision to run in the March 17 presidential election after a Kremlin award ceremony, when war veterans and others pleaded with him to...

While Oakland’s 911 system was dangerously understaffed, 1,000 operator applications went unprocessed

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 13:32:43 GMT

OAKLAND — Applications from hundreds of prospective 911 dispatchers who could have helped speed up Oakland’s notoriously slow response times to emergency calls piled up at the city’s Human Resources department, and some went unprocessed for months, city officials acknowledged this week.Between April 2022 and April 2023, the applications were all but ignored, further stressing a glitchy emergency dispatch system that earlier this year led California to threaten to have an outside company handle Oakland’s emergency calls.The problem was first detected by a city audit amid a transition between the administrations of Mayor Libby Schaaf and Mayor Sheng Thao, months before a report by the Alameda County Civil Grand Jury pilloried the city’s disproportionately slow 911 response.But vacancies have nonetheless climbed each month of this year within the dispatch ranks, represented by SEIU Local 1021 and officially employed by the Oakland Police Department. There ...

Pearl Harbor survivor recounts day of infamy, honoring veterans at Mount Diablo beacon lighting

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 13:32:43 GMT

CONCORD — At the ripe age of 99, Earl “Chuck” Kohler is among the last of a quickly vanishing generation that personally remembers the terror that rained down on Pearl Harbor the morning of Dec. 7, 1941.The Concord resident — who turns 100 in January — is among an estimated 25 remaining survivors of the attack on the U.S. Naval base in Honolulu that propelled the U.S. into World War II when the Minnesota farm-boy-turned-sailor was only a teenager.“Suddenly and simultaneously, there was a tremendous roar, and bomb fragments, debris and window glass came crashing into the back of my head, ears, neck and onto my shoulders,” Kohler said. “Believe you me, folks — something like that can kind of upset your best-laid plans for the day.”Related ArticlesLocal News | Pearl Harbor survivors return to honor those who perished Local News | Date of infamy: A look back at the Pearl Harbor attack Local News | Sunnyvale teen wins int...

Is Millbrae using a ‘racist’ amendment in the state constitution to block homeless housing?

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 13:32:43 GMT

When San Mateo County supervisors agreed in September to buy a Millbrae motel to convert to homeless housing, neighbors were furious that the county had pushed through the plan over their safety concerns.Now Millbrae is suing to halt the project, alleging the county’s $33 million purchase of the La Quinta Inn violated a 73-year-old amendment to the state constitution that requires local governments to get voter approval before developing, buying, building or funding “low rent housing.”The amendment, the result of a successful 1950 ballot initiative spearheaded by the state’s real estate industry, drummed up fears about public housing and neighborhood integration to rally support for the measure. Housing advocates have condemned Article 34 for its racist origins and will ask voters to repeal next year.Although cities have found some ways around the law, experts and advocates say it’s responsible for halting thousands of affordable homes and creating cost...

Photos under Redwood Creek Bridge caused alarm but Caltrans tests show bridge is safe: Roadshow

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 13:32:43 GMT

Q: I sent photos to you that were taken recently by Dave Menche in Redwood City from his kayak under the Highway 101 bridge at Redwood Creek. He shared these photos in a post he wrote on Nextdoor. By now, that post has many comments. Some people said that they had reported the problem to Caltrans.Here’s some of what Dave described in his post, “Many columns are damaged, rebar is corroding, concrete is cracking and spalling off the columns. Caltrans was notified, our State Senator Josh Becker’s office, also. It has been four weeks since, yet no reply has been received. Is this bridge safe?” And, “The failing columns are on both north and south directions, in both the outside lanes, and in the inside (carpool) lanes.”I know I don’t have to tell you how well-traveled 101 is on the Peninsula. Any chance you can talk to one of your contacts and find out how safe/unsafe this is and when this might get fixed?A. Nichols, Redwood CityA: Thanks for sharing this i...

Roblox of San Mateo fails to protect child gamers from predators, sexual content, lawsuit claims

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 13:32:43 GMT

After Quisha Smith allowed her young daughter to open an account on the hugely popular gaming platform of San Mateo’s Roblox, she was surprised to see that when the girl went into a bathroom in a role-playing game, someone asked her to take off her pants, Smith alleges in a lawsuit against the company.Roblox claims more than 66 million daily users globally, with the fastest-growing age group 17 to 24, and estimated in 2020 that three-quarters of U.S. kids aged 9 to 12 had accounts. While its promotional materials tout a safe and “welcoming environment for all ages,” Smith’s lawsuit alleged the platform exposes children to “rampant sexual content, including the presence of child predators posing as innocuous avatars in an effort to groom child-users.”Such content, the lawsuit claimed, “is available — and, in some cases, recommended — to children of all ages on the platform, including the youngest of audiences who are barely old enough to be i...

Santa Clara County prepares to implement conservatorship changes

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 13:32:43 GMT

(BCN) -- Santa Clara County is expediting the implementation of new conservatorship rules for people suffering from severe mental illness and substance use disorders--the process will be complicated and costly.The Board of Supervisors on Tuesday unanimously approved establishing a timeline toward implementing changes to Senate Bill 43, a state law that expands the definition of "gravely disabled" under the existing Lanterman Petris Short (LPS) conservatorship. The bill provides no state funding, which will force Santa Clara County to shift dollars in its general fund. The county is looking at a potential $158 million deficit for the 2024-25 fiscal year. Hunter Biden is indicted on 9 tax charges, adding to gun charges in a special counsel investigation "Significant assets will be needed to implement SB 43 and the state has not yet made additional resources available," Deputy County Executive Ky Le said at the meeting.The law, which Gov. Gavin Newsom signed in October, becomes effec...

SF public defender invokes 'racial justice act' in case involving police shooting

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 13:32:43 GMT

(BCN) -- Jose Corvera, an unhoused man with mental health challenges and limited English proficiency was riding a bike in the Mission District in San Francisco in August of last year. As he rode, he held another bike in tow alongside him. He was also in possession of a replica handgun, which the San Francisco Public Defender's Office said he used to protect himself on the streets.On that same day, police said they received a report of a stolen bicycle. Officers said they wanted to stop Corvera to question him. What ensued resulted in a street being blocked off, multiple San Francisco police units arriving -- his attorney estimated nearly 80 officers-- the appearance of two military-grade armored vehicles, and Corvera being shot at approximately 15 times from four different officers, including one shot that nearly missed his head, his attorney said. Pleasant Hill neighborhood shelter-in-place lifted after shooting Corvera was never charged with being in possession of a stolen bik...

Stock market today: Stocks drift, yields jump as Wall Street weighs whether the economy is too hot

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 13:32:43 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Stocks are drifting Friday as Wall Street weighs how to read a report showing the U.S. job market isn’t slowing as much as expected.The S&P 500 was 0.1% lower in early trading and potentially on track for its first losing week in the last six. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 26 points, or 0.1%, as of 9:40 a.m. Eastern time, and the Nasdaq composite was 0.2% lower.Yields rose in the bond market following the report, which said U.S. employers added more jobs than economists expected last month. Workers’ wages also rose more than expected, and the unemployment rate unexpectedly improved.The strong data keep at bay worries about a possible recession, at least for a while longer, and stocks of some companies whose profits are closely tied to the strength of the economy were rising. Energy stocks had the biggest gains in the S&P 500 as oil prices rose amid hopes for more demand for fuel.Carrier Global jumped 5.1% for one of the market’s biggest gains afte...

Adele revela la “verdadera razón” por la que sólo ha lanzado cuatro álbumes

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 13:32:43 GMT

(CNN) — Adele dice que hay una razón por la que solo ha lanzado cuatro álbumes, y no es lo que piensas.Al aceptar el Premio al Liderazgo Sherry Lansing el jueves en el evento Women in Entertainment de Hollywood Reporter, Adele admitió en el escenario que se siente “un poco fuera de mi alcance” al recibir el premio considerando que solo ha lanzado cuatro álbumes en sus 17 años de carrera.“Se siente como si acabara de llegar”, dijo.Tras el éxito de su álbum debut de 2008, “19”, lanzó “21” en 2011, “25” en 2015 y “30” en 2021.Durante su discurso del jueves, Adele dijo que a veces se pregunta “si la gente piensa que soy calculada cuando desaparezco durante años” entre álbumes, o que es “evasiva” y cree que “menos es más”.Bueno, según Adele, no es nada de lo anterior.La “verdadera razón” por la que solo ha lanzado cuatro álbumes hasta la fecha se basa en una decisión que tomó después de “quedar embarazada” en el apogeo de su muy popular álbum “21” de 2011, que, según ella, muchos h...