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After lagging on reform, Berkeley changes city policy on psychedelics

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:26 GMT

Berkeley has long been a center around which psychedelic culture swirls, which is why it’s surprising that the city has lagged on reforming local laws around them, even as more than a dozen other local governments around the U.S. have already moved to do so.But yesterday, city leaders finally agreed to make it easier to use such substances for recreational, medical and spiritual purposes without fear of prosecution.Berkeley police will officially scale back criminal enforcement against personal use of some psychedelic plants and fungi, such as magic mushrooms and ayahuasca. The Berkeley City Council unanimously approved the new policy during Tuesday’s meeting, coinciding with a swell of research into psychedelic-assisted psychotherapies for treating mental health conditions such as depression and substance abuse.This does not mean these drugs are technically “decriminalized;” rather, easing penalties for these naturally occurring psychoactive chemicals is as close as a l...

Single family residence sells for $6.4 million in Saratoga

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:26 GMT

19852 Park Drive – Google Street ViewA 3,826-square-foot house built in 1955 has changed hands. The spacious property located in the 19800 block of Park Drive in Saratoga was sold on June 23, 2023. The $6,380,000 purchase price works out to $1,668 per square foot. This single-story home offers a spacious layout with four bedrooms and five baths. Inside, a fireplace adds character to the home. In addition, the house provides a two-car garage, granting ample space for parking and storage purposes. The lot size of the property measures an impressive 0.6-acre and features a pool for added enjoyment.Additional houses have recently changed hands nearby:A 1,665-square-foot home on the 15000 block of Park Drive in Saratoga sold in February 2023, for $3,700,000, a price per square foot of $2,222. The home has 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.On Mendelsohn Lane, Saratoga, in August 2022, a 3,770-square-foot home was sold for $5,250,000, a price per square foot of $1,393. The home has 4 bedrooms and...

Rising desperation as millions flee war in Sudan

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:26 GMT

By Ingrid Formanek and Lindsay Isaac | CNNMore than 3.1 million people have been forced to flee their homes amid an increasingly desperate humanitarian situation in war torn Sudan.Human rights groups are warning of widespread ethnic violence, attacks on civilians and rampant sexual violence against women and girls as the warring factions – the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF) – continue to battle for control of the northeastern African country.The International Organization for Migration (IOM) reported Wednesday that more than 2.4 million have been internally displaced in Sudan while 737,801 people have crossed the border into neighboring countries.The toll on civilians continues to grow, according to the latest report from the UN’s Office for Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) which states that 414,625 individuals comprising 483,672 households, have been displaced, an increase of 183,102 individuals compared to last week.The number of refugees fle...

‘Unprecedented’ ocean heat around Florida has scientists worried

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:26 GMT

By Eric Zerkel | CNNA sudden marine heat wave off the coast of Florida has surprised scientists and sent water temperatures soaring to unprecedented highs, threatening one of the most severe coral bleaching events the state has ever seen.Sea surface temperatures around Florida have reached the highest levels on record since satellites began collecting ocean data. And the warming is happening much earlier than normal – yet another example of ocean heat being amplified by the human-caused climate crisis and the extreme weather it brings.“We didn’t expect this heating to happen so early in the year and to be so extreme,” Derek Manzello, a coordinator at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Coral Reef Watch, told CNN. “This appears to be unprecedented in our records.”The exceptional temperatures – close to 97 degrees Fahrenheit in some areas – are more than just another alarming climate record; extreme ocean heat and its duration are critical in deciding the survival of...

Livermore police were called to Walmart to help man being harassed, but then learned he had allegedly arrived to meet 15-year-old girl

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:26 GMT

LIVERMORE — On the night of April 15, a security guard at a Walmart store called police, reporting that a half-dozen teenagers were assaulting a man and screaming “pedophile” at him outside the store.After an officer arrived and separated the teens from 31-year-old Vivek Agrawal, he offered no specific reason when asked if he thought he had been targeted in the attack, according to police.“I was browsing through the shoe section and these guys came and attacked me,” authorities say Agrawal told the Livermore police officer.But the investigation took a drastic turn when the officer spoke with one of the teens.Two months later, after a review of digital evidence found an online profile Agrawal allegedly used to chat with people he thought were underage, the Alameda County District Attorney charged him with a misdemeanor count of meeting a child for lewd purposes.The case is another example of a social media trend that involves a person posing as a minor a...

Photos: Surfing sea otter steals surfboards, eludes capture

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:26 GMT

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. (KRON) -- Steamer Lane in Santa Cruz has been known as a "locals only" surf spot for decades. This summer there's a new wave rider in the lineup who's aggressive like locals, but also very cute and fuzzy. A wild sea otter has apparently discovered a pirate passion for commandeering surfboards from surfers on the westside. The otter has stolen half a dozen longboards in the water."She's one smart little otter," local photographer Mark Woodward told KRON4. The female otter even caught a few waves after hopping on top of one board.(Photo by Mark Woodward / Native Santa Cruz)The otter committed its first longboard larceny on June 18 at Cowells, a popular and crowded surf spot for beginners. "I'm 60 and I've been in Santa Cruz my whole life. I've never seen an otter get close to a surfboard, let alone, get on it. It shocked me," Woodward told KRON4. Woodward has spent this summer documenting the surfing sea otter on camera, as well as unfortunate surfers who struggled ...

Messi, Hard Rock Cafe launch new chicken sandwich named after soccer star

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:26 GMT

(KRON) -- Perhaps you'll become a better soccer player after eating this. Probably not.Nonetheless, Hard Rock Cafe launched its newest chicken sandwich Wednesday. "Made For You by Leo Messi" is named after the soccer superstar.Lionel Messi, who made a historic move last month and signed with MLS club Inter Miami, is a Hard Rock Cafe brand ambassador. The "Milanese style" sandwich is inspired by the Argentinian's favorite dishes from his home country, according to Hard Rock Cafe. The sandwich is now available in participating Hard Rock Cafe locations and Hard Rock Hotels and Casinos. In San Francisco, a Hard Rock Cafe is located at Pier 39.Hard Rock Cafe already has a burger named after the soccer sensation "Messi Burger." It is listed at $19.99 on its menu. A’s protest: ‘Sell the Team’ chants break out at MLB All-Star Game "Made For You by Leo Messi" chicken sandwich (Photo courtesy of Hard Rock Cafe)As of Wednesday afternoon, there is no listed price for the Messi chicken sandwi...

Police investigating sexual battery in Palo Alto neighborhood

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:26 GMT

(KRON) -- A woman tells police that she was groped by a man in a Palo Alto neighborhood in June, and police are investigating if the incident is connected to a July assault in Mountain View. Musk announces new AI company, and it's based in the Bay Area The woman, who is in her 50s, called the Palo Alto Police Department on Monday after she saw a separate news release about a teenage girl being assaulted by an unknown suspect on a Mountain View hiking trail on July 5. The woman told PAPD that on June 15, around 5:30 p.m., she was walking on Waverley Street in Palo Alto when a man approached her from behind before he shoved her. She said that's when he wrapped his arms around her and groped her chest. Close Thanks for signing up! Watch for us in your inbox. Subscribe Now KRON4 Breaking News SIGN UP NOW ...

Bicyclist killed in Oakland hit-and-run

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:26 GMT

(BCN) -- A bicyclist died in a hit-and-run in Oakland's Fruitvale District on Wednesday morning, according to police. Officers responded just after 9:30 a.m. to the collision reported in the area of 29th Avenue and International Boulevard and arrived to find the bicyclist, who was taken to a hospital and was pronounced dead, Oakland police said. More Bay Area tech layoffs on the way Investigators have not released any details about the driver or vehicle that hit the bicyclist and are asking anyone with information to call the Police Department's traffic investigation unit at (510) 777-8570. The name of the bicyclist killed in the collision was not immediately available. Copyright © 2023 Bay City News, Inc.

House Republicans Accidentally Released a Trove of Damning Covid Documents

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:55:26 GMT

House Republicans on the subcommittee probing the origin of the Covid-19 virus appear to have inadvertently released a trove of new documents related to their investigation that shed light on deliberations among the scientists who drafted a key paper in February and March of 2020. The paper, published in Nature Medicine on March 17, 2020, was titled “The Proximal Origins of Sars-Cov-2” and played a leading role in creating a public impression of a scientific consensus that the virus had emerged naturally in a Chinese “wet market.”The paper was the subject of a hearing on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, which coincided with the release of a report by the subcommittee devoted to the “Proximal Origins” paper. It contains limited screenshots of emails and Slack messages among the authors, laying out its case that the scientists believed one thing in private, that lab escape was likely, while working to produce a paper saying the opposite in public. The newly exposed documents ...