Bank of America slashes fees for account overdrafts
By Ken Sweet
Associated Press Business Writer
NEW YORK (AP), Jan. 11 — Bank of America is slashing the amount it charges customers when they spend more than they have in their accounts and plans to eliminate entirely its fees for bounced checks.
It's the latest move by the nation's biggest banks to roll back the overdraft fees they long charged customers, fees that often amount to hundreds of dollars a year for frequent overdraft users.
The bank based in Charlotte, North Carolina, will cut the overdraft fees it charges customers to $10 from $35 starting in May. It will also stop charging fees for non-sufficient funds — which are levied when it rejects a transaction — better known as bouncing a check.
While checks are no longer widely used, NSF fees can come from automated payments like utility bills. Bank of America, the nation's second-largest bank, says roughly 25% of its overdraft/NSF fee revenue each year came from NSF fees.
Altogether, Bank of America estimates the steps will cut its overdraft-fee revenues by 97% from where they were in 2009, the year before it started taking incremental steps toward reining in overdraft-fee revenues. “This is the final step in the journey we've been on,” said Holly O'Neill, president of retail banking at BofA, in an interview. “We have good financial solutions for clients without them having to rely on overdraft, but we will still have overdraft if it is needed.”
For years, it was common that one large bank would increase the fee it was charging for overdraft, which would cause other banks to respond in kind. It remains to be seen whether the decision by BofA — a leader in the retail banking industry — to cut overdraft fees will pressure other banks to take similar measures.
The bank is also eliminating two smaller fees as well. It will no longer allow customers to overdraft their accounts at the ATM and will eliminate a $12 fee it charged customers when the bank automatically moved money from one account to another to cover an overdraft, often moving money from a long-term savings account into the customers' primary checking.
Overdraft has its origins in banks providing a service for a fee to customers who may have not balanced their checkbook correctly and wanted a bank to honor a purchase. But the widespread use of debit cards changed this courtesy into a routine source of revenue for banks. If a customer lacked funds in their account, a $5 coffee could end up costing $35 because of overdraft fees.
Overdraft fees became lucrative for the industry but at the same time made banks a target for consumer advocates and regulators. After the financial crisis, Democrats put the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and other regulators in charge of reining in overdraft fee revenue.
For years, BofA has slowly cut back on its overdraft fee practices. It got rid of overdraft fees tied to debit card purchases in 2010 and created a checking account in 2014 that did not allow customers to overdraft. The SafeBalance account is now the bank's most commonly opened account.
But BofA and the broader industry were not ready to get rid of overdraft fees altogether until recently. Many banks froze the fees they charged customers during the first year of the pandemic and industry still booked record profits.
So, starting in 2021, some larger banks started announcing they were dropping overdraft fees entirely. Ally Bank, PNC, Santander and Capital One were among the bigger regional banks to effectively eliminate overdraft fees.
Will Elizabeth Holmes' conviction sober up Silicon Valley?
By Michael Liedtke
AP Technology Writer
SAN JOSE, Calif. (AP), January 4 – The fraud conviction of former Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes could do more than just send a once-celebrated ex-billionaire to prison. In theory, it could also deliver a sobering message to a Silicon Valley culture that often gets lost in its own hubris and swagger.
Will it? Don't hold your breath.
For that change to happen, entrepreneurs would have to dial down their own hype, which could mean losing potential investors to louder startups with fewer qualms. Meanwhile, venture capitalists and other startup investors – always on the lookout for the next big windfall – would need to get a lot more skeptical about the ambitious pitches they're hearing, despite the Valley's decades-long habit of throwing money at a variety of sketchy startup ideas. Most fail, but the rare successes can more than make up for a passel of losers.
“I think it will generate some more caution among entrepreneurs, but for the most part, human nature being what it is, there is still going to be a tendency to exaggerate, especially when you know you might not get funded if you don't,” said Richard Greenfield, a lawyer who represents investors in startups. “And I don't think it will change many investors' attitudes,” he added. “People are still going to want to reach for the moon.”
Holmes got slapped down hard for going overboard with her relentless sales pitch while running Theranos, a blood-testing startup she founded as a 19-year-old college dropout in 2002. A jury found her guilty on January 3 of duping investors into believing that Theranos had developed a revolutionary medical device that could detect a multitude of diseases and conditions from a few drops of blood. She could face up to 20 years in prison for each of those four convictions, although legal experts say she is unlikely to receive the maximum sentence. The jury also acquitted Holmes of four felony charges accusing her of trying to defraud patients that paid for Theranos blood tests.
Federal prosecutors depicted Holmes as a charlatan obsessed with fame and fortune. In seven days on the witness stand, she cast herself as a visionary trailblazer in male-dominated Silicon Valley who was also a young woman emotionally and sexually abused by her former lover and business partner, Sunny Balwani.
The trial also laid bare the pitfalls of one of the go-to moves of Silicon Valley entrepreneurs – conveying a boundless optimism regardless of whether it's warranted, known as “fake it `til you make it.” That ethos helped hatch groundbreaking companies such as Google, Netflix, Facebook, and Apple – the latter co-founded by one of Holmes' heroes, Steve Jobs.
As soon as Holmes was indicted in 2018, the U.S. Justice Department made it clear they hoped to use her case as a prod that would jolt Silicon Valley – not to mention Big Tech companies that continue to extend their dominance in everyday life – back to reality.
“They wanted to send a message,” said Carl Tobias, a law professor at the University of Richmond who followed the Holmes trial. “Now we shall see whether it's enough to change some of the risky behavior we have been seeing for years.” Few expect the Holmes conviction to lower the wattage on the brash promises and bold exaggerations that have become a routine part of the tech industry's innovation hustle.
The Holmes verdict “will send a message to CEOs that there are consequences in overstepping the bounds,” suggested Ellen Kreitzberg, a Santa Clara University law professor who attended the trial. On the other hand, she said, “investors are still going to want to make more money on a promising idea. They will always go in for the golden ring.”
The bold dream Holmes pursued when she founded Theranos had become a nightmare by the time she was indicted on felony charges in 2018. She set out to create a less painful, more convenient and cheaper way to scan for hundreds of diseases and other health problems using just a few drops of blood instead of filling vials with blood for each test. She aimed to upend an industry dominated by giant testing companies such as Quest Diagnostics and Labcorp, starting with setting up “mini-labs” in Walgreens and Safeway stores across the U.S. that would use a small Theranos device called the Edison to run faster, less intrusive blood tests.
The concept – and the way Holmes presented it – enthralled wealthy investors eager to buy an early stake in a game-changing company. It helped Theranos raise more than $900 million from savvy billionaires such as media mogul Rupert Murdoch and software magnate Larry Ellison, as well as well-to-do families such as the Waltons of Walmart and the DeVos clan behind Amway. “Some people like to throw money at things and have too much unfounded optimism, and Elizabeth Holmes took full advantage of that,” Greenfield said.
Holmes also wooed a well-connected board that included two former U.S. secretaries of state, Henry Kissinger and the late George Shultz: two former secretaries of defense, Gen. James Mattis and William Perry; former Sen. Sam Nunn; and former Wells Fargo CEO Richard Kovacevich. She charmed former President Bill Clinton in an on-stage presentation and impressed then-Vice President Joe Biden, who effusively praised her during a 2015 tour of a Theranos lab.
But investors and board members were both surprised to learn that Theranos' blood-testing technology kept producing misleading results. Evidence showed that Theranos took great pains to conceal that fact, including forcing patients to undergo regular blood draws instead of the promised finger sticks and secretly testing those samples with conventional technology.
Evidence presented at the trial also showed that Holmes lied about purported deals that Theranos had reached with big drug companies such as Pfizer and the U.S. military. The deception backfired in 2015 after a series of explosive articles in The Wall Street Journal and a regulatory audit of Theranos uncovered potentially dangerous flaws in the company's technology, leading to its eventual collapse.
During her testimony, Holmes occasionally expressed contrition for the way she handled a variety of issues. But she also often avoided answering pointed questions, saying she had forgotten the circumstance surrounding key events spotlighted by the prosecution. She insisted she never stopped believing that Theranos was on the verge of refining its technology.
“Let's face it: Silicon Valley is based on dreams,” Greenfield said. “And you need people to keep stoking the fire to help keep those dreams alive.”
Associated Press Business Writer Marcy Gordon contributed to this story from Washington.
Thinking of Quitting Your Job?
By Anne Chan, PhD, MFT
The Great Resignation continues – the number of resignations hit yet another record high in November, and some experts are predicting that this trend will continue in 2022. Given that this trend has yet to lighten up, I suspect quite a few of you are going to be part of the Great Resignation this year. Perhaps your new year’s resolution was to have a better job. You’ve been sending out your resumes, been invited to several interviews, and voilà! You made it to the Promised Land and have been offered an irresistible job. You immediately start visualizing a better tomorrow . . . with your new and improved salary, you can now move to a nicer apartment, buy that new phone you were eyeing, and upgrade your car. But wait . . . before you drift off into the lovely honeymoon stage of your new job, the cold reality of having to tell your current boss that you are leaving sets in.
Parting is such sweet sorrow – Shakespeare nailed it when it comes down to saying goodbyes, even in our high tech Bay Area work culture. But Shakespeare’s words are worth remembering because there will likely be sweet sorrow for your boss, your colleagues, and even for you when you announce your resignation. In a work setting, it can be tricky and delicate to say “So long, farewell, auf Wiedersehen, adieu.” However, no matter what language you are using to say goodbye, the most important point to keep in mind is to stay professional and leave a positive impression. In order to achieve this, keep the goal in mind to make the parting more sweet and less sorrowful. Remember, you are in control of how you leave your job. Here are some tips for how to leave on a good note:
First, be gracious and professional when you leave. Do not take advantage of your last few weeks to goof off, gossip or badmouth your work enemies. Suppress the urge to tell your boss what has been in your heart for ages. Even if there has been bad blood in the past, now is the time to build a bridge and to leave the last memory of you a positive one. With this in mind, try to ease the transition for your boss and co-workers by finishing up a project with aplomb, or creating a guide to make it easier for your replacement to on-board.
I do recommend having a one-on-one with your boss instead of shooting an “I QUIT!” email. However, it is a sound practice to have your resignation letter on hand when you have your one-on-one. The good news is that the letter does not have to be lengthy or overly descriptive. In fact, I would counsel you to keep it short, sweet, and succinct. The following pieces should be in the letter:
- Your last day of employment
- One (or more) positive reasons for leaving. Again, no griping please. Take this opportunity to leave in a professional, dignified manner that will benefit you. If you can’t think of any positive reasons, you could say something along the lines of “I was offered a job that I could not pass up.”
- A short line of thanks to your employer for giving you the opportunity to work with the company.
- This last bit is optional but highly recommended – offer to smooth over the transition with one or two specific final action steps. You do not want to offer too much here – e.g. don’t say you are willing to be on-call for as long as it takes. Be very specific in what you will do and the time-frame in which you will do it.
Lastly, consider writing thank-you letters to your boss and to HR to leave on a positive note. Even if the years have been nothing but pure misery, it would still behoove you to say “I appreciate the opportunity to have worked for you.” I realize this is hard for those of you who have been mistreated at work, but this isn’t the time to address your grievances. Instead, focus on creating positive energy for the process of leaving one job and starting another.
Here's to a happier New Year and new work life for all of us in 2022!
Anne Chan is a career counselor and licensed psychotherapist in Union City. She specializes in helping people find happiness in their careers and lives. You can reach her at annechantcv@gmail.com. © Anne Chan, 2022
EARTHTALK
Is handwashing or using dishwasher better?
By Roddy Scheer and Doug Moss
Dear EarthTalk: My husband thinks it's better for the planet to hand-wash dishes in the sink, but it seems to me using the dishwasher is more eco-friendly. Can you settle this debate for us?
— Chris B., Bowie, Maryland
Hands-down, the dishwasher is the way to go, not only from the standpoint of water waste and energy use but also to preserve your own sanity. Who needs to be scrubbing, rinsing and drying dishes all day when an efficient machine can do the work? Modern dishwashers use much less water and energy than their forebears, so you can clean up after your meals and snacks quickly and without guilt just by filling up the dishwasher and hitting the “start” button.
It’s not surprising that many of us still think hand-washing is better, given that the dishwashers of yesteryear used 10-15 gallons of water per cycle. But dishwashers sold today in the United States can only use a maximum of five gallons per cycle per the mandate of the U.S. Department of Energy. And to qualify for one of the federal government’s EnergySTAR labels identifying especially efficient appliances, dishwashers must max out their water use at 3.5 gallons per cycle.
Meanwhile, handwashing the same number of dishes, pots and pans as you can fit in the dishwasher typically “consumes” some 27 gallons of water, according to a study by researchers at Germany’s University of Bonn. (They also found that some people can handwash a load of dishes with as little as 8.7 gallons of water while others use as many as 116 gallons!)
“The average kitchen faucet has a flow rate of 2.2 gallons per minute, meaning that you’d only have two minutes to wash an entire dishwasher’s worth of dishes to match a dishwasher’s water efficiency,” reports Savannah Sher on BobVila.com. “It would be nearly impossible to use less than five gallons of water to hand wash a full load of dishes.”
And if you’re going to use the dishwasher anyway, save yourself even more hot water by skipping the sink pre-rinse and just loading those dirty dishes right into the bottom rack.
“Scrape big chunks of leftover food into the trash, but pre-rinsing isn’t necessary with modern dishwashers because they have sensors that adjust the wash cycle based on how dirty the dishes are,” says Consumer Reports’ Perry Santanachote. In fact, unnecessary pre-rinsing can waste about 6,000 gallons of water per household per year.
These efficiency gains only apply to running your dishwasher when it’s full. Rather than running the dishwasher with a half-load, wait until it fills up before hitting start. (Some units have a “rinse and hold” feature that pre-rinses what’s in there so it’s easier to clean when it does fill up later.) Of course, some items — cutting boards, silver flatware, cast iron cookware, non-stick pans — will still require handwashing, but you can always try to minimize your use of them accordingly.
Contacts:
- Dishwasher vs. Hand Washing: When to Use Each Cleaning Method: https://www.bobvila.com/articles/dishwasher-vs-hand-washing/.
- Nine Tricks That Save Tons of Water: https://www.nrdc.org/stories/9-tricks-save-tons-water.
EarthTalk is produced by Roddy Scheer & Doug Moss for the nonprofit EarthTalk. See more at https://emagazine.com. To donate, visit https//earthtalk.org. Send questions to: question@earthtalk.org.
Park It
By Ned MacKay
The Environmental Education Center at Tilden Nature Area near Berkeley has hosted a Fungus Fair annually for the past five years. However, due to COVID-19 concerns, this year’s fair will be virtual. It will be livestreamed on the Nature Area’s Facebook page and on YouTube channels from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday, January 29 and 30. The virtual event will feature presentations from local mycologists, the Bay Area mycoblitz, a cooking demonstration, and other attractions. No registration is required.
This is also a good time to point out that mushroom gathering is against the rules in all the regional parks. The parks are essentially wildlife preserves, where plants and animals must be left alone. “Take only pictures, leave only footprints” is the mantra.
Besides being illegal in the parks, mushroom collecting can be dangerous unless you are knowledgeable. Several mushroom varieties are extremely poisonous, though they may resemble other kinds that are edible. So it’s best to leave harvesting to the experts and do your own mushroom hunting at the supermarket.
Also virtual this year is the East Bay Regional Park District’s Youth Job Fair from 10 a.m. to noon on Saturday, January 29. Designed for applicants ages 15 through 24, it’s an opportunity to learn about the variety of paid summer and year-round jobs available at the regional parks, whether you like spending time outdoors, working with kids, or lifeguarding at district swim beaches.
For registration and information, visit ebparks.org/youth-job-fair.
History buffs will enjoy a stroll through the site of the long-vanished town of Somersville at Black Diamond Mines Regional Preserve, led by naturalist Ashley Adams.
The program is from 9:00 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, January 22. Ashley will use historic photos and maps to bring the town site back to life. It was once one of the most populous settlements in Contra Costa County, home to hundreds of miners who worked the coalfields.
The history stroll is free of charge, though Black Diamond Mines has a parking fee of $5 per vehicle when the kiosk is attended. All ages are welcome. Registration is required. For information and registration, call (888) 327-2757, option 2.
Nearby at Contra Loma Regional Park in Antioch, naturalist Kevin Dixon will anticipate Groundhog Day by leading a leisurely stroll around the reservoir from 10 a.m. to 12 noon on Sunday, January 23, in search of ground squirrels and wintering birds.
It’s free of charge, all ages are welcome, and registration is required. Contra Loma is at the end of Frederickson Lane off Gold Course Road. Meet Kevin at the main parking lot. There’s a $5 parking fee. For registration and more information, call (888) 327-2757.
Down at Sunol Regional Wilderness in southern Alameda County, Nature’s Stories is the theme of a drop-in program from 10 to 11 a.m. on Sunday, January 23. At the visitor center, naturalist Betty Villalta will read from a nature-themed storybook, then lead an activity or craft. The program is free of charge and registration is not necessary.
Sunol Regional Wilderness is located at the end of Geary Road off Calaveras Road about five miles south of I-680 and the town of Sunol. There’s a parking fee of $5 per vehicle. For information, call (510) 544-3245.
This is just a sample of what’s available in the regional parks. For full information, visit the website, www.ebparks.org.
NASA’s next telescope is set to be on-board a balloon
Kailash Kalidoss, Aerospace Enthusiast
Antarctica is a hot spot for scientific balloon research because of the region’s circumpolar winds. High stratospheric level winds are prevalent during the Antarctic summer and circulate around the South Pole in a counterclockwise direction. This means NASA's giant scientific balloons—the largest being nearly 40 million cubic feet—can ascend to 120,000-plus feet, to the edge of space. They sail the circumpolar wind around the continent for months on average, and in some of the most successful instances, flights can be terminated and the balloon and payload recovered within a hundred miles of where they were launched. Incidentally, this environment is best suited for a telescope placed high up in our atmosphere.
A unique partnership has formed between the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the NASA balloon program. While NASA funds the science, NSF provides support to scientific teams. Their latest balloon-borne telescope is called “GUSTO.”
NASA’s Galactic/Extragalactic ULDB Spectroscopic Terahertz Observatory (GUSTO) mission will fly an Ultralong-Duration Balloon (ULDB) carrying a telescope with carbon, oxygen, and nitrogen emission line detectors. The mission is scheduled to launch in 2022 from McMurdo Station, Antarctica, and is expected to stay in the air between 100 to 170 days, depending on weather conditions. It is designed to address a key problem in modern astrophysics: understanding the life cycle of star-forming molecular clouds in our Milky Way galaxy.
The telescope looks at specific emission features from carbon and nitrogen atoms within our galaxy. In doing so, GUSTO will map our galaxy with the world’s most sensitive high-frequency radio receivers, essentially listening in on how clouds of gas and dust permeating Milky Way fuse to ultimately spawn new stars and planets.
The science team has developed a way to capture and focus this far-infrared light using a conventional optical telescope and associated high-cooled optical instruments on a high-altitude balloon platform flying far above most of Earth’s obscuring water vapor. As in most telescopes, light comes in, hits a primary mirror, goes up to a secondary mirror, and exits through a hole in the bottom of the telescope. From there, it goes through another optic system consisting of infrared specific high-cooled instruments.
Now, the cutting edge of science questions can be answered on balloon platforms. If the GUSTO mission is successful, it could be the most cost-effective way of going after these questions.
Kailash Kalidoss is an aerospace enthusiast and educator serving the Bay Area. Kailash first fell in love with aerospace as a teenager when he learned about aviation from his father’s role as a Ground Operations Manager. Kailash has since spent his efforts sharing knowledge about aerospace, astronautics, aviation, science and technology, and of course, the night sky. Kailash also represents the Civil Air Patrol and NASA as a volunteer.
Beat a Cyberbully: Here's How Parents Can Help
Submitted by Jehovah's Witnesses
While remote learning during the COVID-19 pandemic lowered reported instances of bullying, parents fear that, for some students, going back to school will mean going back to being bullied.
“We are very concerned as parents,” said Sevana, a mother of three in the Bay Area.
“With social media, it's like having the bullies in your pocket,” Sevana's oldest son said. “You carry them around with you.”
Now 15 years after the inception of National Bullying Prevention Month in October, technology's ever-greater presence in children's lives has given bullying a new outlet. With just a click, cyberbullies can taunt, harass and threaten relentlessly, even reaching into the home via cellphone or computer. As a result, victims report feeling hopeless, isolated and even suicidal.
What can parents do to protect their kids? Taking an interest in their children's online world can make a difference, says the National Parent Teacher Association.
This interest does not necessarily require parents to become tech experts. Instead, the federal stopbullying.gov site advises parents to watch for subtle clues that something is wrong, such as their child becoming withdrawn, hiding their screen when others are nearby or reacting emotionally to what is happening on their device.
For Sevana and her husband, Andre, that has meant being keenly aware of what “normal” looks like for their three kids, ages 18, 15, and 12. “We've developed a really good relationship with our kids,” Andre said. “By spending so much time together, we really get to know our children as individuals,” added Sevana. “We both can tell if something is off.”
Talking with kids openly – and often – helps too. “The more you talk to your children about bullying, the more comfortable they will be telling you if they see or experience it,” UNICEF says in its online tips for parents.
As their two daughters enter their teens, Houston parents Thiago and Auboni have found that talking less and listening more works best. “We try to focus on being approachable and listening actively without reaction,” Thiago said. Beyond talking, listening and observing their kids, parents should not be afraid to make and enforce rules for online activities, experts say.
Thiago and Auboni's girls are allowed to play online games, but they are expected to turn off the live chat feature to limit interactions with strangers. “We reassure the girls that we trust them and respect their privacy, but they have to stay within the boundaries we've set,” Auboni said.
Sevana and Andre make an effort to set an example for their children when it comes to their personal use of technology. “We don't live our lives closed off to each other. We have our individual devices, but it's very open,” Sevana said.
Both families cited the tips and reminders they have considered together with their kids from free resources available on jw.org, the official website of Jehovah's Witnesses. Sevana and Andre's daughter, age 15, especially recommends the whiteboard animations featured on the site. One such video is entitled, “Beat a Bully Without Using Your Fists.” “If someone's being bullied, going to someone to talk always helps,” she said. “Keeping it all inside just doesn't feel good.”
City of Fremont Appoints Rafael E. Alvarado, Jr. as City Attorney
Submitted by The City of Fremont
FREMONT, Calif. – On January 11, Fremont City Council approved Rafael E. Alvarado, Jr.'s contract during a regularly scheduled council meeting, officially appointing him as the fourth city attorney since Fremont's incorporation.
“The City of Fremont shares a warm welcome to Rafael Alvarado and will certainly benefit from the vast experience he brings to our organization,” said Mayor Lily Mei. “His past legal work overlaps with many of our City priorities, including affordable housing, public-private partnerships that provide community benefits, and more. Our City team, including my fellow Councilmembers, look forward to working with Rafael for years to come.”
For the past five years, Alvarado has served as city attorney for the City of East Palo Alto, providing advice on matters including land use and development (affordable housing, residential, and commercial office projects), the acquisition of 1.5 MGD (million gallons per day) of new water supply, land use and election litigation, and negotiation of an agreement with a prominent technology company to create a $10 million housing fund, a $2.5 million traffic improvement fund, and approximately $1 million in other community benefits for East Palo Alto and its residents.
Prior to East Palo Alto, he served as a deputy city attorney and assistant city attorney for the City of Hayward from 2009 to 2016, where he defended over 50 lawsuits in state and federal court, including civil rights, wrongful death, personal injury, and code enforcement cases. He also served as lead counsel to the planning commission and administered Hayward's rent control ordinances and rent dispute resolution process.
“I am honored to have been selected to serve the City of Fremont as city attorney,” said Mr. Alvarado. “I would like to thank the Mayor and City Council for their confidence in me, and I look forward to working with the Council and staff to serve the residents of Fremont.”
Born in Nicaragua, Mr. Alvarado immigrated to the United States at a young age and his family settled in San Francisco. He received an undergraduate degree from the University of San Francisco and his law degree from Santa Clara University.
Alvarado will begin work on Tuesday, February 22, 2022, taking the reins from Interim City Attorney Debra Margolis, who has supported Fremont since longtime City Attorney Harvey Levine retired in May 2021.
Hayward City Council meetings to be held online only
Submitted by The City of Hayward
Hayward City Council meetings during the month of January will be held entirely online on the Zoom webinar platform as a precautionary measure in response to the current increase in coronavirus infections.
The City of Hayward resumed in-person Council meetings on Sept. 28, 2021, while still continuing to offer members of the public, city staff and Council members the ability to attend and participate remotely on Zoom.
The City is reverting back to an online-only format for its scheduled Jan. 18 and Jan. 25 Council meetings or until the current of wave of infections driven by the omicron variant of the virus subsides as anticipated by public health officials.
For information on how to join Council meetings on the Zoom platform, go to the upcoming events calendar on the City of Hayward website (https://www.hayward-ca.gov/discover/calendar) and click on the listing of the meeting of interest. Council meetings also are broadcast and streamed live on KHRT cable TV channel 15 and on the City's YouTube channel.
For additional information – including Council meeting agendas and staff reports – go online to the City of Hayward's legislative website (https://hayward.legistar.com/Calendar). Or call the Office of the City Clerk at (510) 583-4400.
Age Well Centers Open for Lunch Pick-Ups
Submitted by the City of Fremont Human Services Department
The Age Well Centers are both closed until at least the end of January. Starting January 18, both Lake Elizabeth and South Fremont will be open for hot lunch pick-up. Meal costs will be 50 cents more to cover the cost of the to-go containers.
Hot lunches at Lake Elizabeth will be available Monday – Friday. For South Fremont, hot lunches will be available on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The cost is $5.50 for members and $7.50 for non-members. Special meals will be $6.50 and $8.50.
Meals can still be purchased 1 week at a time. You can start ordering your hot meals for both Centers on the Friday prior to the week you are ordering for.
Meals need to be picked up each day you have a meal ordered.
Pickup will be available between 12 noon – 1:00 p.m.
1 pick-up meal per person per day.
Meals can be reserved and membership can be purchased at: http://bit.ly/AgeWellClasses
Frozen meals will be available at Lake Elizabeth only starting on Wednesday, January 26. The cost is $20 for 5 meals for members and $24 for 5 meals for non-members. Please note that frozen meals will be available on Wednesdays only and can still be purchased 1 week at a time on the Friday prior to the week you are ordering for.
Pick up on Wednesdays will be available between 12 noon – 1:00pm.
2 sets of 5 meals per person per week.
If you have any questions or need help ordering, email: agewellcenters@fremont.gov or call: (510) 790-6600 and leave a detailed message. We do have staff in both buildings answering phones and returning messages Monday – Friday, 8:30am – 1:00pm.
Is dark chocolate good for you?
By John Grimaldi
News about your health can be quite depressing — especially these days — but the news that eating dark chocolate, the kind that contains lots of cocoa, can be good for your health, can come as a deliciously delightful surprise, says Rebecca Weber, CEO of the Association of Mature American Citizens (AMAC). In fact, each year around this time, in the weeks before Valentine’s Day, news outlets seem to besiege us with the “chocolate is good for you” message. But, suggests Weber, it would be wise to consult with your doctor before going on a chocolate binge.
“It used to be a no-no, particularly for seniors, but research in recent years suggests that, if you don’t overdo it, eating dark chocolate can be good for you. Numerous studies show that regularly treating yourself with about half an ounce of dark chocolate can lower blood pressure, reduce your levels of bad “LDL” cholesterol and increase your levels of HDL, the good cholesterol. And some researchers believe that it can improve cognitive function,” says Weber.
According to the National Institutes of Health [NIH], up until the medical community began conducting deep scientific research into the negative and positive effects of chocolate, health care providers warned their patients of the potential health hazards of consuming large amounts of chocolate. Patients were told that, while it is indeed a tasty treat, it could also have ill effects on your health such as acne, obesity, high blood pressure, heart disease and diabetes.
“However,” reports the NIH, “the recent discovery of biologically active phenolic compounds in cocoa has changed this perception and stimulated research on its effects in ageing, oxidative stress, blood pressure regulation, and atherosclerosis. Today, chocolate is lauded for its tremendous antioxidant potential. However, in many studies, contradictory results and concerns about methodological issues have made it hard for health professionals and the public to understand the available evidence on chocolate's effects on health.”
Epicatechin is a flavanol found in a number of foods we eat including cocoa. But it is said that the amount of epicatechin in cocoa is particularly high. In a paper produced by researchers María Ángeles Martin and Sonia Ramos of the Department of Metabolism and Nutrition at Spain’s Institute of Food Science and Technology, they found that: “Cocoa is a source of flavanols (epicatechin), and these phenolic compounds exert beneficial effects on health and aging and reduce the risk of suffering chronic diseases (cardiovascular diseases, metabolic disorders, cancer). An increasing body of evidence has emerged to suggest that cocoa flavanols potentially are important chemo preventive natural agents.”
Many researchers around the world have come to the same conclusion, suggesting that if you have a craving for chocolate, you should avoid processed chocolate treats that contain additives and have low cocoa content. What you’re looking for, they say, is chocolate with a high content of cocoa, namely dark chocolate that contains 70% to 85% of cocoa.
As the Mayo Clinic puts it: “Healthy chocolate sounds like a dream come true, but chocolate hasn't gained the status of a health food quite yet. Still, chocolate's reputation is on the rise, as a growing number of studies suggest that it can be a heart-healthy choice … cocoa itself, unlike chocolate, is low in sugar and fat while offering potential health benefits. If you enjoy chocolate flavor, add plain cocoa to your low-fat milk or morning oats.”
— The Association of Mature American Citizens is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization representing membership in Washington, D.C. and in local congressional districts nationwide. More information is available on its website at www.amac.us.
US Mint begins shipping quarters honoring Maya Angelou
By Martin Crutsinger
Associated Press Economics Writer
WASHINGTON (AP), Jan. 12 — The United States Mint said on Jan. 10 it has begun shipping quarters featuring the image of poet Maya Angelou, the first coins in its American Women Quarters Program.
Angelou, an American author, poet and Civil Rights activist, rose to prominence with the publication of “I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings” in 1969. Angelou, who died in 2014 at the age of 86, was honored with the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2010 by President Barack Obama. The quarter design depicts Angelou with outstretched arms. Behind her are a bird in flight and a rising sun, images inspired by her poetry.
The mint's program will issue 20 quarters over the next four years honoring women and their achievements in shaping the nation's history.
Additional honorees in 2022 will be physicist and first woman astronaut Sally Ride, and Wilma Mankiller, the first female principal chief of the Cherokee Nation. Also honored this year will be Nina Otero-Warren, a leader in New Mexico's suffrage movement and the first female superintendent of Santa Fe public schools, and Anna May Wong, the first Chinese American film star in Hollywood.
Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto, D-Nevada, the Senate sponsor of legislation directing the mint to issue the quarters honoring women, applauded the Mint's selection of Angelou for the first coin. “This coin will ensure generations of Americans learn about Maya Angelou's books and poetry that spoke to the lived experience of Black women,” she said in a statement.
Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, the nation's first female Treasury secretary, said: “Each time we redesign our currency, we have the chance to say something about our country. … I'm very proud that these coins celebrate the contributions of some of America's most remarkable women, including Maya Angelou.”
The Biden administration announced soon after taking office a year ago that it planned to replace Andrew Jackson's portrait on the $20 bill with abolitionist Harriet Tubman, a leader in the Underground Railroad. However, since that announcement the administration has provided no further details on its plans.
Size, mass estimate of New Year's Day meteor released
Associated Press
PITTSBURGH (AP), January 3 – Scientists have released a size and mass estimate of an exploding meteor believed to have caused a loud boom and shaking of the ground across portions of suburban Pittsburgh on New Year's Day.
NASA's Meteor Watch social media site says a nearby infrasound station registered the blast wave from the meteor as it broke apart – and the data enabled an estimate of the energy released as equivalent to 30 tons of TNT.
Officials said a “reasonable assumption” of the speed of the meteor at about 45,000 miles per hour would allow a “ballpark” estimate of its size as about a yard in diameter with a mass close to half a ton. If not for the cloudy weather, they said, it would have been easily visible in the daytime sky – maybe about 100 times the brightness of the full moon.
National Weather Service meteorologist Shannon Hefferan told the Tribune-Review that satellite data recorded a flash over Washington County shortly before 11:30 a.m. Saturday and officials believed it was due to a meteor “falling through the atmosphere.” Hefferan said a similar event occurred Sept. 17 in Hardy County, West Virginia.
Residents in South Hills and other areas reported hearing a loud noise and feeling their homes shaking and rattling. Allegheny County officials said they had confirmed that there was no seismic activity and no thunder and lightning.
American Kennel Club adds 2 dog breeds
By Jennifer Peltz
Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP), Jan. 4 — An athletic Hungarian farm dog and a tiny pet of bygone Russian aristocrats are the latest breeds in the American Kennel Club's purebred lineup.
The club announced Jan. 4 that it's recognizing the Russian toy and the mudi. That means they're eligible to compete for best in show at many U.S. dog shows, including the AKC's big annual championship and the prestigious Westminster Kennel Club show.
The mudi (whose American fans pronounce its name like “moody,” although the vowel sound in Hungarian is closer to the “u” in “pudding”) descended from long lines of Hungarian sheepdogs before a museum director took an interest in the breed and gave it a name around 1930. Fans say the medium-size, shaggy dogs are vigorous, versatile and hardworking, able to herd sheep, hunt boars, snag rats and compete in canine sports such as agility and dock diving.
“They're very perceptive, and they have a subtle quality” and are very trainable, but they need things to do, said Kim Seiter, an Oak Ridge, New Jersey, dog agility trainer who has four of them. “They're not for the inactive person.”
The dogs — the proper plural is “mudik” — were featured on postage stamps in their homeland in 2004, as were some other Hungarian breeds. The Russian toy developed from small English terriers that gained the fancy of Russian elites by the early 1700s. The diminutive dogs — supposed to weigh no more than 6.5 pounds — have a leggy silhouette, perky expression and lively demeanor, breeders say.
“They're extremely affectionate” with their owners but can be reserved with strangers and need to meet plenty of new people as pups, says Nona Dietrich of Minnetonka, Minnesota, a breeder and member of the Russian Toy Club of America. “And they're funny. They have quite an attitude.”
The AKC is the United States' oldest purebred dog registry. It recognizes 199 breeds, including the two newcomers, and acts as a governing body for many dog shows.
Recognition requirements include having at least 300 dogs of the breed spread around at least 20 states and promulgating a breed standard that specifies ideal features, from temperament to toes. Many popular hybrid or “designer” breeds, such as Labradoodles and puggles, aren't recognized, but it's possible they could be someday if breeders decide to pursue it.
Some animal rights and welfare advocates deplore dog breeding and the market for purebreds, saying they spur puppy mills and strand adoptable pets in shelters. The AKC says breeding can be done responsibly and preserves somewhat predictable characteristics that help people find and commit to the right dog for them.
Virgin Orbit launches 7 satellites into orbit
By John Antczak
Associated Press
LOS ANGELES (AP), Jan. 13 — A Virgin Orbit rocket released from a jet flying off the California coast carried seven small satellites into space on Jan. 13 as the company kicked off a year in which it plans to ramp up the pace of launches, including two originating from Britain.
Virgin Orbit's modified Boeing 747 took off from Mojave Air & Space Port in the Southern California desert, flew out over the Pacific Ocean and dropped the LauncherOne rocket from its left wing. The 70-foot-long booster ignited at an altitude of about 35,000 feet and hurtled skyward. The company later confirmed that all of the satellites were successfully deployed into the proper orbit. “Another fantastic day for the Virgin Orbit team, and a big step forward for our customers,” the company tweeted.
The payload included satellites for the U.S. Defense Department, the Polish company SatRevolution and the international company Spire Global.
It was Virgin Orbit's third launch carrying satellites for customers. Two previous launches carried multiple satellites into orbit in January and June 2021. The company's first launch, a demonstration flight, failed in May 2020.
Virgin Orbit, founded in 2017 by British billionaire Richard Branson, went public last month. The company is targeting the market for launching small satellites. It touts the mobility of its air-launch system compared to the limitations of fixed launch sites. “The tremendous thing about using a 747 is we can put them into any orbit from anywhere in the world,” Branson said from the British Virgin Islands during the company's launch webcast.
“There's only I think a couple of handfuls of countries in the world that have the capability of sending satellites to space from their own countries and now 480 countries can use Virgin Orbit,” he said. “You just need to ring us up.”
The company plans six launches this year, including two for the United Kingdom's Royal Air Force that will originate from Cornwall in southwestern England. RAF test pilot Mathew “Stanny” Stannard flew the 747 from the main pilot seat on Jan. 13.
“This is going to be just a banner year for us,” Chief Operating Officer Tony Gingiss said in a preflight briefing this week. Gingiss said there has been continuous improvement flight-over-flight. “I think we're seeing not only the kind of rigor we expect but just really getting highly confident in our processes,” he said.
The mission was dubbed “Above the Clouds,” a title taken from a track on hip hop duo Gang Starr's album “Moment of Truth,” which was released by Virgin Records in 1998.
Branson noted during his interview that his family got COVID-19 over Christmas. “Fortunately, we were vaccinated and boosted and therefore none of us got it badly,” he said.
Fact checkers say YouTube lets its platform be ‘weaponized’
Associated Press
SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 12 — A group of more than 80 fact checking organizations is calling on YouTube to address rampant misinformation on its platform. In a letter to CEO Susan Wojcicki published Jan. 12, the groups said the Google-owned video platform is “one of the major conduits of online disinformation and misinformation worldwide.”
YouTube's efforts to address the problem, they say, are proving insufficient. “What we do not see is much effort by YouTube to implement policies that address the problem,” the letter says. “On the contrary, YouTube is allowing its platform to be weaponized by unscrupulous actors to manipulate and exploit others, and to organize and fundraise themselves.”
The problem, these groups said, is especially rampant in non-English speaking countries and the global south.
The fact checkers are all members of the International Fact Checking Network and include Rappler in the Philippines, Africa Check, Science Feedback in France and dozens of other groups. They lambasted YouTube, saying it frames discussions about disinformation as a “false dichotomy” of deleting or not deleting content.
Displaying fact-checked information is more effective than deleting content, the fact checkers wrote. They propose that YouTube focuses on providing context and debunks that are “clearly superimposed” on videos. They also called for YouTube to act against repeat offenders and beef up efforts against misinformation in languages other than English.
In a statement, YouTube spokesperson Elena Hernandez said the company has “invested heavily in policies and products in all countries we operate to connect people to authoritative content, reduce the spread of borderline misinformation, and remove violative videos.”
Hernandez called fact checking “a crucial tool to help viewers make their own informed decisions,” but added that it is “one piece of a much larger puzzle to address the spread of misinformation.”
East Bay cities kick off 2022 with a transition to 100% renewable energy
By Anushka Vasudev
Hayward, among several other East Bay cities, committed to making 2022 the year they fully transition to renewable energy sources. The main electricity provider in this area, East Bay Community Energy (EBCE), hopes to complement the city’s efforts in their climate action plan by offering a clean and green electricity source.
Prior to this year, EBCE was offering two electricity options for customers: Bright Choice (40% renewable energy) and Brilliant 100. The latter option was sourced from wind, solar, and hydro power facilities, which are all carbon free sources. Previously, Hayward had selected Brilliant 100 as the default option for their residents. However, due to the costs and in an effort to go fully green, the EBCE board decided to stop offering that option and created Renewable 100, which would become the default electricity source for customers.
Erik Pearson, the Environmental Services Manager of the area, said that the motivation for transitioning was “that the City Council wanted to continue to make progress on emissions related to electricity.” The city’s goal to make Hayward run under clean energy sources was what fueled them towards using Renewable 100, which is sourced by wind and solar energy from California.
Going forward, some main changes for customers under Renewable 100 will be a $5-$7 increase per month in pay. However, contributors to this plan assure that profits are going towards a beneficial cause. Dan Lieberman, the marketing director at EBCE says they “will have seven cities out of the 14 [they] serve now that use Renewable 100 as the default service, and it really gives [them] as an agency leverage to procure more renewable energy and build more renewable energy projects.”
Both Pearson and Lieberman agree that the main benefit of choosing Renewable 100 is supporting renewable energy. Lieberman also adds that “Energy procurement activities are really at the core of what [they] do, and it may not be that exciting for customers because it’s not really tangible, but having customers on Renewable 100 gives [EBCE] a greater ability to go out and focus on [their] core mission of getting renewables that are clean and emissions free.”
Pearson and Lieberman emphasize that customers can still choose whether they want to stay with Renewable 100 or switch over to Bright Choice. However, Lieberman notes that by going with the new product, it is “a small price and a lot of benefit for the environment.”
Lieberman adds that “Hayward has been on the forefront from the beginning, and they’ve been really supportive of making sure that energy is clean for businesses and residences in Hayward.”
Throughout the rest of the year, cities including San Leandro, Berkeley, Dublin and many others will also be making the jump to fully renewables. These are all small steps that cities and their residents can take to be in charge of their carbon footprint.
Learn more at: https://ebce.org/hayward/
Lunar New Year
By Stephanie Gertsch
Photos via Pixabay
Missed out on making a New Year’s resolution? You’ll have another chance to make a 2022 resolution next month. While Western countries traditionally use the sun-based Gregorian Calendar, many Eastern countries traditionally use the moon; a new year begins on the second new moon after the winter solstice. 2022’s Lunar New Year is Tuesday, February 1.
Lunar New Year is also a celebration of spring, beginning the growing season—an important time in agricultural societies. The holiday dates back to at least the 14th century B.C.E. in China. According to legends, a mythical beast called Nian, with the body of a bull and the head of a lion, would come down from the mountains searching for crops, livestock, and even young children to devour. Villagers would appease the beast by placing offerings of food on their doorsteps. However, people also discovered that Nian was afraid of three things: fire, noise, and the color red. Thus, began the custom of firecrackers, red lanterns and scrolls for New Year.
One of the most popular aspects of Lunar New Year is the 12-year cycle of animals, often called the “Chinese Zodiac.” Which year you’re born in determines your personality, lucky colors and numbers, and even dating compatibility.
According to legend, the Buddha invited all the animals to a special banquet, and the order of their arrival determined the order of the 12-year cycle. Although Ox was the fastest, Rat was the most cunning—it hitched a ride on Ox’s back and hopped off just in time to arrive first. Tiger, although proud of its speed and vigor, was forced to settle for third place.
Below is a guide to all 12 animals. But consider carefully: If your birthday is in January, it may fall before the Lunar New Year. In that case, your zodiac sign is the animal for the previous calendar year. (For example, 2021 babies born before February 1 are Oxen rather than Tigers.)
Rat
1936, 48, 60, 72, 84, 96, 2008, 2020
Hardworking. Rats are very creative, sociable people who have a flair and charm. They’re also hard workers, and – out of all the signs – have the best chance of being wealthy and professionally successful. Most compatible with: Dragon, Rabbit, Ox. Avoid: Goat, Horse, Rooster.
Ox
1925, 37, 49, 61, 73, 85, 97, 2009, 2021
Dependable. If you’re an ox, then your friends, family, and co-workers are probably very, very grateful for you. You’re the dependable one, and you’re known for your honesty and patience. The Ox will pursue their goals with great determination, and won’t be deterred. Most compatible with: Rat, Snake, Rooster. Avoid: Dragon, Horse, Goat, Dog.
Tiger
1926, 38, 50, 62, 74, 86, 98, 2010, 2022
Passionate. Tigers are the most passionate and confident of the bunch. They have a strong spirit, love a good challenge, and are natural born leaders. They’re also endlessly ambitious and very trustworthy. Most compatible with: Horse, Dog. Avoid: Snake, Monkey.
Rabbit
1927, 39, 51, 63, 75, 87, 99, 2011
Sensitive. If you’re looking for someone who is sensitive and empathetic, look no further than the Rabbit. The Rabbit is a kind soul who dislikes conflict and values strong bonds with family and friends. Most compatible with: Goat, Dog, Rat, Pig. Avoid: Ox, Dragon, Rooster, Horse.
Dragon
1928, 40, 52, 64, 76, 88, 2000, 2012
Powerful. Unsurprisingly, Dragons are fierce leaders who are chock full of adventure, knowledge, and power. They’re filled with energy, and they’ve got plenty of charm and glamour to boot. Most Compatible with: Tiger, Snake, Rat. Avoid: Ox, Rabbit, Dog.
Snake
1929, 41, 53, 65, 77, 89, 2001, 2013
Wise. Snakes are known for their immense wisdom. They’re very intuitive people, great thinkers, and fight hard to achieve their goals. They seek security, and will smooth over conflicts before they start. Most Compatible with: Ox, Rooster. Avoid: Tiger, Pig.
Horse
1930, 42, 54, 66, 78, 90, 2002, 2014
Optimistic. You can count on Horses to bring on the cheer. They’re known for being eternally optimistic with a romantic streak. Horses are also very independent and fight hard against injustice. Most compatible: Tiger, Goat, Dog. Avoid: Rat, Ox, Rabbit, Horse.
Goat
1931, 43, 55, 67, 79, 91, 2003, 2015
Creative. Goats are creative, smart, and dependable. They are nurturing, calm individuals who enjoy socializing in groups but don’t like being the center of attention. Most compatible with: Rabbit, Horse, Pig. Avoid: Rat, Ox, Dog.
Monkey
1932, 44, 56, 68, 80, 92, 2004, 2016
Curious. Monkeys bring the spunk and the smarts. This zodiac sign represents curiosity, bravery, and positivity. Monkeys are also extremely intelligent and very popular with their peers. Most compatible with: Rat, Dragon. Avoid: Tiger, Snake, Pig.
Rooster
1921, 33, 45, 57, 69, 81, 93, 2005, 2017
Honest. Roosters are blunt—but not because they’re trying to be mean. This group just wants to be honest. They’re known for enjoying the spotlight, having a ton of confidence, and being extremely loyal. Most compatible with: Ox, Dragon, Snake. Avoid: Rabbit, Dog.
Dog
1934, 46, 58, 70, 82, 94, 2006, 2018
Loyal. Much like their animal counterparts, Dogs are loyal and easy-going. This zodiac sign is cautious, kind, and will do just about anything to help their loved ones. Most compatible with: Tiger, Rabbit. Avoid: Ox, Dragon, Goat, Rooster.
Pig
1935, 47, 59, 71, 83, 95, 2007, 2019
Kind. Pigs are the kindest of the bunch. They’re warm-hearted, tolerant, individuals who have lots of friends. They get along very well with others and are happy to share what they have. Most compatible with: Goat or Rabbit. Avoid: Snake, Monkey.
New Year Events
Lunar New Year
Saturday, Jan 29
6:00 p.m. – 8:30 p.m.
Cultural performances, food, kids’ crafts, firecracker finale
Milpitas Community Center
457 E. Calaveras Blvd., Milpitas
(408) 586-3210
Tet Festival
Saturday, Jan 29 – Sunday, Jan 30
11 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Lion dance
Viet Tu Te Charity
765 Story Rd., San Jose
Lunar New Year celebration
Friday, Feb 4
4 p.m. – 6 p.m.
Cultural performances, arts and crafts, discounts
377 Santana Row, San Jose
Lunar New Year Celebration
Saturday, Feb 5
12 noon – 3 p.m.
Lion dances, live music, food trucks, story time with author Oliver Chin
Oakland Museum of California
1000 Oak St., Oakland
(510) 318-8400
https://museumca.org/2022/lunar-new-year-celebration
Tickets: $10-16
Oakland Zoo Centennial
Submitted by Isabella Linares
January 1, 2022 marked the launch of Oakland Zoo’s centennial year. Since June 6, 1922, the Zoo has evolved from a single building in Snow Park near downtown Oakland, to Joaquin Miller Park in 1926, to its current location in the hills of Knowland Park since 1939. Oakland Zoo now attracts almost 900,000 guests per year, and at 100 acres is one of the four largest zoos in California.
While growing in size, Oakland Zoo has also become a pioneer in animal welfare, and partners with animal rights organizations. Some of their techniques, such as “protected contact” management for elephants, are now practiced by zoos worldwide. The Zoo is a leader in animal rescue by providing care, rehabilitation, and sanctuary for animals rescued from human-wildlife conflict, the exotic pet trade, or natural disasters. Oakland Zoo is also dedicated to youth education and partners with over 25 species and habitat conservation organizations globally.
“It’s with enormous pride to serve as CEO during this incredible milestone,” said Nik Dehejia. “I’m honored to lead Oakland Zoo into the next 100 years. So much has evolved in the past century in the world – and in the role of zoos and their purpose – Oakland Zoo is fully committed in doing our part and leading the next generation of conservationists to blaze the trail ahead.”
In early years, from 1922 to 1950, Oakland Zoo was founded by and under management of naturalists Henry A. Snow and his son Sidney Snow. Although the Zoo is longer privately owned, and is managed by the Conservation Society of California, the Snow family legacy remains active today through great-granddaughter of Henry Snow and granddaughter of Sidney Snow, Nancy Clark.
“As great granddaughter and granddaughter of the Zoo’s founders…and as current Co-Chair of the Board of Trustees, I am thrilled…at how much the Oakland Zoo has accomplished and grown these 100 years. Our family is certain that Henry and Sidney would be beyond proud at what the Oakland Zoo has become,” says Nancy Clark, Co-Chair of the Board of Trustees.
While Oakland Zoo takes pride in its animal-focused efforts, much was undertaken in recent decades to evolve and improve Zoo facilities, programs, and public reputation. When Dr. Joel Parrott began his tenure as CEO and President in 1984, the Zoo was virtually bankrupt and branded as one of the ten worst zoos in the U.S. Parrott made significant changes to improve animal care and welfare, habitats and infrastructure. Conservation work and education programs were created. In 1988, Oakland Zoo received accreditation from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums (AZA). With Dr. Parrott’s vision, the Zoo grew from 25 acres to 100, 15 employees to 240, and is the award-winning, progressive, conservation- and education-focused Zoo it is today.
One of the most significant Oakland Zoo projects in the past decade is the opening of the California Trail. A 45-acre project, the trail spotlights the significance of the State’s unique environmental history and what we can all do to ensure the future of California’s wildlife and the nature that surrounds us.
To celebrate with the community and Zoo guests throughout the year, new and exclusive events are planned, such as a birthday celebration festival on June 5 at the Zoo’s original birthplace, Snow Park, in downtown Oakland. The special day will be free to the community and filled with festivities for all ages to enjoy.
As the Zoo reflects on its history, it invites the community to share their Oakland Zoo memories, and Zoo visits this year by tagging them on social media using #OZ100. For more information on the Zoo’s Centennial Celebration and other 2022 events, please visit: oaklandzoo.org/centennial.
California lawmakers debate universal health care proposal
By Adam Beam
Associated Press
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP), Jan 11 — Frustrated with partisan stalemates in Washington, California's overwhelmingly Democratic Legislature Jan. 11 was to begin debating whether to create its own universal health care system — a move that will test how far the state's progressive politicians are willing to go to fulfill their campaign promises.
Government-funded health care for everyone has been a staple of California political rhetoric for decades. Gov. Gavin Newsom promised to do it when he ran for governor in 2018, and voters elected him in a landslide.
But it's not been easy to accomplish in the nation's most populous state, where nearly half of people pay for private health insurance through their jobs. In 1994, voters overwhelmingly rejected a ballot initiative that would have created a universal health care system. Another attempt passed the state Senate in 2017, but it never got a vote in the state Assembly.
This year, Democrats in the state Assembly are trying again with a new strategy. First, they want to pass a bill that creates a universal health care system and sets its rules. Then, they want to ask voters to approve a major tax increase to pay for all of it. The plan, which would require voter approval, would raise taxes on businesses and individuals who earn at least $149,509 per year. The California Taxpayers Association, which opposes the plan, estimates it would raise taxes by about $163 billion per year.
“If we can agree on a policy and get that policy passed, then it becomes more real. Then you are actually telling the voters what they are voting for. That's really important” said Assembly member Ash Kalra, a Democrat from San Jose who is the author of the proposal.
Questions about how to pay for a universal health care system have doomed previous plans. In 2011, Vermont enacted the nation's first universal health care system in the country. But state officials abandoned it three years later because they said they couldn't afford to pay for it.
California's 1994 proposal also relied on a tax on employers and individuals, and it failed after strong opposition from the insurance industry. Insurers, doctors and business groups are again lining up to oppose the latest proposal, arguing it would cost too much and limit people's choices.
In his first three years in office, Newsom has focused more on making sure everyone in California has health insurance. He has expanded the state's Medicaid program to cover low-income 26 and younger and 50 and older regardless of their immigration status. On Jan. 10, he proposed covering everyone else at a potential cost of $2.7 billion per year.
Also, on Jan. 10 Newsom reiterated his support for a universal health care system, but declined to say if he supported the plan in the Legislature because he said he had not read it. Asked if he had “given up” on a universal health care system in California, Newsom pointed to a commission he founded that is examining such a system and how much it would cost.
He also said he's working with President Joe Biden's administration on the “flexibility” required for California to implement such a system. “The difference here is when you are in a position of responsibility, you've got to apply, you've got to manifest the ideal. This is hard work,” he said. “It's one thing to say. It's another thing to do. And, with respect, there are many different pathways to achieve the goal.”
On. Jan. 11 the Assembly Health Committee was scheduled to debate the bill that would create the universal health care system. They are not scheduled to debate the bill that would pay for it. But opponents of the plan will likely still highlight the cost.
“In the Health Committee, I look forward to a robust discussion on the impacts of socialized medicine in California, including: how much taxes will increase on the middle class,” Assembly Republican Leader Marie Waldron said.
Tax season begins two weeks early due to virus, IRS funding
By Martin Crutsinger
AP Economics Writer
WASHINGTON (AP), Jan. 10 — This year's tax filing season will begin on Jan. 24, 17 days earlier than last year, the Internal Revenue Service announced on Jan. 10.
The IRS is warning that a resurgence of COVID-19 infections on top of less funding authorization from Congress than the Biden administration had requested could make this filing season particularly challenging. “The pandemic continues to create challenges, but the IRS reminds people there are important steps they can take to help ensure their tax return and refund don't face processing delays,” IRS Commissioner Chuck Rettig said.
Avoiding a paper tax return will be more important than ever this year to avert processing delays, Rettig said. He urged taxpayers to file their returns electronically and to get their refunds by direct deposit. It is also import for taxpayers who received a COVID-19 relief Economic Impact Payment last year or who got an advance Child Tax Credit payment to make sure they report the correct amount on their tax returns to avoid processing delays, Rettig said.
The IRS will send letters to recipients of the impact payments and the advance Child Tax Credit payments and taxpayers can also check for the amounts they received on the website IRS.gov.
The deadline for tax returns to be filed is Monday, April 18 this year, three days later than the normal April 15 deadline for filing taxes. The later date is a result of an Emancipation Holiday in the District of Columbia. By law, Washington, D.C., holidays impact tax deadlines for everyone the same way federal holidays do.
April 18 is the deadline for filing tax returns or requesting an extension. which gives taxpayers until Oct. 17 to file their returns for 2021.
New county education trustee boundaries set
Submitted by Emmy Zack, Alameda County Board of Education
At a special meeting on Thursday, January 13, the Alameda County Board of Education (ACOE) approved new trustee area boundaries. The changes are effective immediately.
Redistricting, the process of adjusting trustee district lines, takes place every 10 years based on the latest U.S. Census data. Initially there were three maps under consideration by ACOE board members, which quickly ballooned to nearly 20 possibilities after initial discussions and suggestions from the public. The board narrowed the options to two before conducting its final vote and selecting Map Plan A4.
To view the map selected, and various versions of it, including school districts and cities, visit the ACOE website at www.acoe.org/alameda, then type “redistricting map 2021” into the search field and follow the link and look for Draft Map Plan A4.
Criteria used for each boundary during the selection process included:
- Relatively equal size: population.
- Contiguous: districts should not hop/jump.
- Keep district compact: appearance/function.
- Maintain “communities of interest,” (includes ethnic and language minorities and other groups).
- Follow city/county/local government lines.
“I am so appreciative of ACOE staff, Redistricting Partners and our board for their tireless efforts to prepare, identify and carefully analyze all of the draft map options,” said Aisha Knowles, Alameda County Board of Education President. “Though this process was daunting and exhaustive, I’m confident that the boundary map we selected will best serve all students throughout Alameda County for the next decade.”
Hayward apologizes for role in past discrimination policies
Submitted by City of Hayward
In conjunction with the opening of the new Heritage Plaza in downtown Hayward, city officials recently issued a public apology for the city’s role in racial discrimination in the past.
The plaza, at 835 C. St., opened in July 2021 with a community celebration and will feature an increasing array of interpretive signs and art pieces speaking to Hayward’s diverse cultures and cultural histories from the Muwekma Ohlone through the World War II experience of interned Japanese-Americans to today.
The impetus comes from a resolution approved by the City Council on November 18 that apologizes to Black, Indigenous, Californio, Mexicano, Latino, Latinx and other community members of color for racially disparate impacts and inequities resulting from past city policy and decision-making. The intent of the resolution formally acknowledges the existence of institutionalized racial bias and racism and the role municipal government has played in its creation and legacy of inequities and disparate impacts.
In particular, the resolution cites past city, real estate and banking industry participation in the discriminatory practice of redlining, which prevented Black, indigenous and people of color from owning property within Hayward limits. The resolution also cited Hayward’s participation in federally sponsored urban renewal initiatives, which often resulted in the mass displacement and dislocation without fair compensation of largely Black households, neighborhoods and entire communities across the country during the 1960s and 1970s.
To read details about the resolution, visit the online Hayward Meeting & Agenda Center at https://hayward.legistar.com/Calendar.aspx, then scroll to the City Council meeting link for November 16, 2021 and follow the “Meeting Details” link.
See a video tour of the Heritage Plaza on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tLdXZ8masU.
Low-income micro apartments coming to Hayward
Submitted by City of Hayward
As part the city’s “Let’s House Hayward” program adopted last year by the City Council, construction of 125 micro apartments for formerly homeless residents and very low-income households in need of housing assistance is underway.
The residential project, at 2595 Depot Road, is being built in partnership with Abode Services, a nonprofit and supportive housing operator. It is aimed at formerly homeless people and very low-income households in need of housing assistance. When completed, the project will include units ranging from 281 to 296 square feet in an L-shaped building rising three and four stories. Services will include on-site social workers, case management, classes and workshops for residents.
Another component of the city’s program to move cooperative people off the street and into temporary shelter and transitional housing, is the Housing Navigation Center which celebrated its two-year anniversary on November 18. During that time, city officials said 153 people have gone through and exited the center with 98 of them, — 64% — moving directly into permanent housing. This occurred despite the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
For details about the program, visit the City of Hayward’s website at www.hayward-ca.gov, then type “Let’s House Hayward” into the search field and follow the links.
Milpitas City Council
January 11, 2022
Announcements:
- County of Santa Clara COVID testing is being offered at Milpitas Sports Center, and at Milpitas Community Center
Consent Calendar:
- Approved execution of Amendment to the Funding Agreement between the City of Milpitas and the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) for the State Route 237 Near Term Improvements Project.
- Approved Amendment to Cost Share Agreement between the Milpitas Unified School District and the City of Milpitas for the McCandless Park and Mattos Elementary School Joint Use Areas.
- Approved Mayor Tran’s recommendations for the appointments to City Commissions.
Community Services:
- Amended various sections of Milpitas Municipal Code – Traffic.
Leadership:
- Reviewed list of agenda item requests from individual Councilmembers and provided direction to staff, through a prioritization process.
- Received an Update on and approved American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA), including compliance and reporting requirements.
Item Removed from Consent Calendar:
- Gave directions to Staff on the proposed City Council Procedures and Protocols Handbook.
Rich Tran (Mayor) Aye
Carmen Montano (Vice Mayor) Aye
Anthony Phan Aye
Karina Dominguez Aye
Evelyn Chua Aye
Newark City Council
January 13, 2022
Presentation:
- Introduction of new chief building official Matthew Farrell
- Promotion of Matthew Warren to Sergeant
- Promotion of Nick Cuevas to parks and recreation manager
Consent Calendar:
- Approval of audited demands
- Approval of December 9, 2021, minutes
- Adopt a resolution to execute a purchase order with ePlus Technology, Inc., in an amount not to exceed $62,000 and approving a budget appropriation of $62,000 from the equipment replacement reserve fund to Information Systems Division contractual services for Rubrik. Passed unanimously.
Other Business:
- Adopt resolutions authorizing the application for Homekey Grant Funding and allocation of American Rescue Plan Act Recovery Plan and Housing Impact Fee Funds for the TownePlace Suites Homekey Project at 39802 Cedar Boulevard. Passed unanimously.
City Council Matters:
- Condolences to the family of Luis Cortez family, the first Latino elected to the Newark City Council.
Mayor Alan Nagy Aye
Vice Mayor Michael Hannon Aye
Suzy Collazo Aye
Michael Bucci Aye
Luis Freitas Aye
Biden sending COVID tests to schools to keep them open
By Zeke Miller
Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP), Jan. 12 — The Biden administration is increasing federal support for COVID-19 testing for schools in a bid to keep them open amid the omicron surge.
The White House announced Jan. 12 that a dedicated stream of five million rapid tests and five million lab-based PCR tests will be made available to schools starting this month to ease supply shortages and promote the safe reopening of schools. That's on top of more than $10 billion devoted to school-based tests authorized in the COVID-19 relief law and about $130 billion earmarked in that law to keep kids in school.
Education Secretary Miguel Cardona said students need to be in their classrooms and the announcement shows the administration's commitment to helping schools stay open. “We're doing everything we can to make sure that our children have an opportunity to stay in school,” Cardona said on “CBS Mornings.” “That's where they need to be, and we know we can do it safely.”
States are applying to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for the tests, Cardona said, adding that he expected distribution to begin as early as next week. “We recognize that schools are the hubs of the community” and they should be open for instruction, the secretary added, saying it is “vital for our students.”
The push is part of the Biden administration's wide-ranging efforts to expand supply and accessibility of COVID-19 testing as it faces mounting criticism over long lines and supply shortages for testing nationwide. The White House on Jan. 12 announced that Dr. Tom Inglesby, the director of the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security at the Bloomberg School of Public Health, is joining its COVID-19 response team to oversee its testing initiatives.
Starting on Saturday, Jan. 15, private insurers were required to cover the cost of eight at-home COVID-19 tests per month for covered individuals, and the administration is nearing the roll-out of a new website to allow Americans to request what will eventually be 500 million free tests that can be shipped to their homes.
The increased supply testing, though, will likely be too late for many Americans trying to safely navigate the omicron-fueled case surge, which is already showing signs of cresting.
The school testing initiative announced Jan. 12 comes after the nation's third-largest public school system, in Chicago, closed for days after an impasse between teachers and officials over reopening policies. The closure was a black eye for President Joe Biden, who made reopening schools — and keeping them open — a priority.
“We have been very clear, publicly and privately, that we want to see schools open,” White House press secretary Jen Psaki said on Jan. 10. She cited the massive amount of funding for schools as evidence of the administration ensuring “we were prepared and had resources needed to address whatever may come up in the pandemic.”
The new crop of tests is enough to cover only a small fraction of the more than 50 million students and educators in the nation's schools. The administration hopes the tests will fill critical shortfalls in schools that are having difficulty securing tests through existing federal funding or are facing outbreaks of the more transmissible COVID-19 variant.
The administration also is working to target other federally backed testing sites to support school testing programs, including locating Federal Emergency Management Agency sites at schools. Additionally, the CDC is set to release new guidance soon to help schools implement “test-to-stay” policies, in which schools use rapid tests to keep close contacts of those who test positive in the classroom.
Associated Press writer Darlene Superville contributed to this report.
Smoking ordinance approved in Alameda County
Submitted by Alameda County Board of Supervisors
At its Tuesday, January 11 meeting the Alameda County Board of Supervisors adopted an ordinance prohibiting smoking in multi-unit residential buildings in unincorporated areas in the county.
The ordinance, from the Alameda County Public Health Department (ACPHD), will go into effect July 1, 2022 and apply to areas inside the county’s Urban Growth Boundary which includes the communities of Ashland, Cherryland, Fairview, Hayward Acres, Castro Valley, and San Lorenzo.
Under the new rules, smoking will be prohibited inside apartments, townhomes, condominiums, senior/assisted living/long-term care facilities, hotels, and any other residence with two or more units. Smoking will also not be allowed in common areas indoors and outdoors, or within 25 feet of any doorway, window, vent, or other opening into a residence.
In addition to tobacco, the ordinance prohibits smoking, cigars, cigarillos, pipes, hookah, electronic smoking devices and cannabis/marijuana.
According to text in the ordinance, the new rules are designed to protect people from secondhand smoke, which in multi-unit housing contributes to tobacco-related health inequities. For example, in California, studies show that when compared with adults who live in single-family homes, adults who live in multi-unit housing are more likely to be people of color; lower income or below the poverty line; lacking a high school diploma; and uninsured.
When the ordinance goes into effect, landlords, homeowner’s associations, condominium boards and others in charge of multi-unit housing will have several new responsibilities, including:
- Providing notice to tenants, prospective tenants, and buyers of the smoke-free housing requirements by June 1, 2022.
- Posting “No Smoking” signs in areas where smoking is prohibited by July 1, 2022.
- Including “no smoking” requirements in any new or continued lease going into effect after July 1, 2022.
Tenants who violate the smoking ordinance will receive up to three notices from the ACPHD offering information and smoking cessation resources. If violations continue, they may be hit with a $100 fine for a first violation in a three-year period, $200 for a second violation, and $500 for a third. As a last resort, landlords would be permitted to evict a tenant who has received three educational warnings from ACPHD and three notices of violation from the CDA.
Permanent and continued transitional housing for homeless
Submitted by City of Hayward
City of Hayward and nonprofit supportive housing operator and developer Abode Services celebrated the start of construction on November 15, 2021, of 125 micro apartments for formerly homeless residents and very low-income households in need of housing assistance.
The new residential project at 2595 Depot Road will consist of 125 living units 281 to 296 square feet and services including on-site social workers, case management, classes and workshops. This project is one way the City of Hayward is responding to increasing homelessness as part its “Let’s House Hayward” strategy.
Another component of the city’s strategy is to move willing individuals off the street and into temporary shelter and transitional housing—an initiative that began two years in November 2019 with the opening of City of Hayward’s Housing Navigation Center.
The Center, which celebrated its two-year anniversary on November 18, 2021, has moved nearly two-thirds of its residents into permanent housing while at the same time weathering and adjusting to the COVID-19 pandemic. Through December 2021, 153 individuals have exited the Center, with 98, or 64 percent moving directly into permanent housing.
Union City City Council
January 11, 2022
Proclamations and Presentations:
- Introduction of new and promoted employees.
Consent Calendar:
- Approve minutes from the December 14 and December 20 City Council meetings.
- Second reading and adoption of an ordinance adding a “Campaign Reporting Requirements” section of the Union City Municipal Code to require electronic filing of campaign statements.
- Adopt a contract amendment to extend the Union City Transit Fixed-Route and Demand Response Operations and Maintenance Agreement with MV Transportation for an additional six months through June 30, 2022.
- Adopt a consulting services agreement with Mark Thomas & Company, Inc. for preliminary engineering of phases 1 and 2 for Quarry Lakes Parkway (East West connector) in the amount of $1,200,000.
- Enter into an agreement in an amount not-to-exceed $160,000 with TBWBH Props and Measures, including public polling with Godbe Research, to provide professional services regarding the consideration of future tax measures.
- Resolution extending the proclamation of State of Emergency authorizing remote teleconferenced legislative body meetings in Union City for another 30 days beginning January 11 because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
City Manager Report:
- Informational report and receive City Council direction regarding tobacco retail license update.
Mayor Carol Dutra-Vernaci Aye
Vice Mayor Pat Gacoscos Aye
Emily Duncan Aye
Jaime Patiño Aye
Gary Singh Aye
The sweet truth about maple syrup
Article and photos by Daniel O’Donnell
Beijing will host the XXIV Winter Olympic Games next month. The best athletes from around the globe will give their all but only the best will experience the sweet taste of victory and win a gold medal. While the Olympics only come around every four years, it would be devastating if Grade A maple syrup, the gold medalist of all syrups, was available so rarely.
Maple syrup is a sweet viscous liquid harvested most commonly from Sugar, Red, and Black Maple trees. It has a clean pungent flavor with hints of caramel, vanilla, and prune. Almost all pure maple syrup comes from the northeastern region of the North American continent; however, New Zealand is trying to create a viable industry. Canada supplies 71% of the world’s maple syrup, with 91% of that coming from the province of Quebec. Vermont leads the United States in production, followed by New York, Maine, Michigan, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Massachusetts, and Connecticut.
Maple syrup had historical ties to northeast United States and Canada before they were countries. Indigenous peoples living in the area had been producing and consuming maple syrup long before the first Europeans arrived. When groups of settlers did arrive, indigenous people taught them how to harvest the sap and turn it into the sweet delicacy. Maple syrup is as much a part of regional culture now as it was centuries before. The Sugar Maple leaf is the symbol on the Canadian flag as well as the name of one of the oldest professional Canadian ice hockey teams, the Toronto Maple Leafs. The new design for the Vermont quarter depicts a sap harvesting. Vermont, New York, Wisconsin, and West Virginia list the Sugar Maple as their state’s official tree while Rhode Island has the Red Maple as theirs.
Mature maple trees over 30 years old can be tapped for their xylem sap. This is the sugar that is transported through the tree’s vascular system from the roots to the rest of the tree during the winter. A normal sized tree can be tapped healthfully for an average of 10 to 12 gallons of sap per season, seven percent of the tree’s total. Most Sugar, Red, and Black Maples can continue to produce this quantity until they are 100 years old. Sap starts flowing when daytime temperatures rise above freezing and nighttime temperatures fall below freezing. This can make the window for tapping a tree as small as 20 days depending on weather conditions and geographical location.
The process of making maple syrup begins with drilling a hole in the tree when conditions are right. A spile or tap which allows sap to drain out is then inserted into the hole. A hook on the spile allows a bucket to be hung directly from the tree to catch oozing sugary sap. The sap in the bucket, once full, will then need to go through a heating process to evaporate much of the water content. When the sap is 67% sugar and 33% water, it is deemed maple syrup.
In the past, pure maple syrup in U.S. was divided into two primary grades, A and B, as well as some inferior hybrids. Many assumed that Grade B was inferior, but it merely had a darker and deeper flavor. The U.S. Department of Agriculture changed the labeling system in 2015 to end the confusion by modeling it after Canada’s grading policy for pure maple syrup based on color and flavor. The categories are:
Grade A Golden Color Delicate Taste
Grade A Amber Color Rich Taste
Grade A Dark Color Robust Taste
Grade A Very Dark Color Strong Taste (Grade B maple syrup in the U.S. before 2015)
The other grades of maple syrup which are deemed inferior still have culinary uses. Processing grade maple syrup is derived from the same sap as any of the Grade As, but fails to meet the requirements of taste, clarity, or water content levels. Its primary use is in cooking. Blended maple syrups are often made from processing grade maple syrup combined with less expensive sugary syrups. However, some products may actually be blended with Grade A syrups so they can claim to have a percentage of real Grade A maple syrup in them for marketing purposes. These might be labeled as good for cooking or as less expensive options for tabletop breakfast syrup.
The price for pure maple syrup has a large range depending on its grade, scarcity and labor production intensity. The price can range from just over $20 to just under $80 per gallon. A gallon of pure maple syrup may seem expensive, but much like a gold medalist Olympian, it beats the competition.
Daniel O'Donnell is the co-owner and operator of an organic landscape design/build company in Fremont. www.Chrysalis-Gardens.com
IAD011822
CONTINUING EVENTS:
Mondays January 3 – February 7
Introduction to Drawing$
9:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m.
Increase your abilities to draw or render what you see
Age Well Center Lake Elizabeth
40086 Paseo Padre Pkwy, Fremont
Monday – Saturday, January 1 – January 31
From Bay to Coast – Celebrating Local Beauty
11:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Pastel painting exhibit by Jan Prisco
Portola Art Gallery at Allied Arts Guild
75 Arbor Rd., Menlo Park
http://www.portolaartgallery.com
Tuesday – Sunday, October 9 – February 13
Color into Line: Pastels from the Renaissance to the Present
9:30 a.m. – 5:15 p.m.
More than 80 works spanning five centuries
Legion of Honor
100 34th Ave., San Francisco
Legionofhonor.org
First Wednesdays, November – April
Talkin’ Dirt
7 p.m. – 8 p.m.
Free webinar on gardening, hosted by LEAF
Via Zoom
RSVP at Fremontleaf.org/talkindirt
Wednesday – Sunday, January 1 – February 27
Art of the Brick $
Wednesday, Thursday, Sunday 10 a.m. – 5 p.m., Friday, Saturday 10 a.m. – 7 p.m.
Over one million LEGO bricks transformed into over 70 sculptures
1 Grant Ave., San Francisco
https://artofthebrickexhibit.com
Wednesdays, January 12 – February 16
‘Train Your Brain’ Virtual Book Club
6:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.
Read and discuss books on Parkinson’s Disease
Via Zoom
(510) 675-5600
Wednesdays, February 2 – 23
Hayward PD Virtual Community Academy R
6:00 p.m. – 8:15 p.m.
Free 4-week course on how policing works
Deadline to sign up is January 28
https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/community-academy
(510) 293-5051
Second Thursdays, September 9 – June 9
Cafe Dad
6:00 p.m. – 7:30 p.m.
Hayward Unified School District program for fathers to support each other and obtain resources
Virtual meetings via Zoom
https://husd-us.zoom.us/j/91644497730
For more information contact: ep101@husd.k12.ca.us
Thursday, March 18 – Sunday March 6
Immersive Van Gogh$
9 a.m. – 11 p.m. (times vary)
Walk-in exhibit with digital projections and music
SVN West San Francisco
10 South Van Ness Ave., San Francisco
Tickets: $24.99 – $39.99
Friday-Sunday, January 14 – January 23
Frozen Jr.
Friday 7:30 p.m., Saturday 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m., Sunday 2 p.m.
Performance by Starstruck Theatre of true love and acceptance between sisters
Smith Center at Ohlone College
43600 Mission Blvd., Fremont
StarStruckTheatre,org
Fridays and Saturdays
Dance the Night Away
Live music and dancing
Bistro 880
Doubletree Hilton Newark/Fremont
39900 Balentine Dr., Newark
For more information call (510) 413-2300
Saturdays and Sundays in January
Paul Family Lego Model Train Exhibit
Local resident’s love of trains has set up running trains in his garage
1 p.m. – 4 p.m.
5007 Winsford Ct., Newark
https://www.facebook.com/NewarkLEGOTrain/
Every Day, January 22 – January 30
RV Super Sale $
Sat: 10 a.m. – 7 p.m.
Sun: 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
M – F: 11 a.m. – 7 p.m.
Gas and Diesel, Class A’s B’s and C’s, Travel Trailers, Truck Campers, 5th Wheels, etc.
Enter Gate 8 off Valley Avenue
Alameda County Fairgrounds, Pleasanton
https://rvshows.net/
UPCOMING
Tuesday, January 18
Covid and College: Test Optional Admission R
6 p.m. – 7 p.m.
Learn how to navigate new challenges in admissions and testing
Via Zoom
(510) 667-7900
Wednesday, January 19
Climate Science and Social Justice
7 p.m.
Two intersecting crisis that will define the coming decades on Earth
Via Zoom
Eventbrite.com/e/climate-social-justice-qa
Thursday, January 20
Sheriff Oversight Community Engagement Meeting
6 p.m. – 8 p.m.
Discussion about an oversight board for Districts 1 and 2
Via Zoom
Register at: https://bit.ly/3nlfC2A
https://acoversight.acgov.org/
(510) 272-6691
Thursday, January 20
Hayward Nonprofit Alliance
10 a.m.
Presenter Penny Peak talks about the donor cycle
Via Zoom: https://bit.ly/3K4ZjAG
Meeting ID: 892 5327 8528
Passcode: 218363
Thursday, January 20
Family Caregiver Education Series: Wellness Guide 2022
11:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.
Improve your wellness and live a healthy and fulfilled life
Via Zoom
Thursday, January 20
Animal Feeding
3:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Check for eggs and feed the livestock. Meet at the granary
Ardenwood Historic Farm
34600 Ardenwood Blvd, Fremont
(510) 544-2797
www.ebparks.org
Thursday, January 20
How to Apply for U.S. Citizenship
5 p.m. – 6 p.m. (English only)
4:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m. (English and Korean)
Free workshop presented by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services
Email sfsj.communityrelations@uscis.dhs.gov for sign on information
www.uscis.gov
Friday, January 21
Animal Feeding
3:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Check for eggs and feed the livestock. Meet at the granary
Ardenwood Historic Farm
34600 Ardenwood Blvd, Fremont
(510) 544-2797
www.ebparks.org
Friday, January 21
Jeremy Stolle’s No More Talk of Darkness R$
8 p.m.
The Phantom sings musical favorites
Tickets: $20-$68 ($20 student/military personnel)
Bankhead Theatre
2400 First St, Livermore
Saturday, Jan 22
Virtual Diamonds in Education Gala
Pre-show: 5:30 p.m.
Show starts: 6:00 p.m.
Online via YouTube and Facebook livestream
https://nhsfoundation.ejoinme.org/MyEvents/DiamondsinEducation2022
Saturday, January 22
Brazen Racing Coyote Hills R$
8:00 a.m. Half hikers
9:00 a.m. Half marathon
9:15 a.m. 10K
9:30 a.m. 5K
Registration: $45-95
Race or hike along the bayside views of Coyote Hills
Coyote Hills Regional Park
8000 Patterson Ranch Rd., Fremont
https://brazenracing.com/coyotehills/
Saturday, January 22
Discovery on Demand
10:30 a.m. – 3:30 a.m.
Hands-on activities, investigations, and crafts
Coyote Hills Regional Park
Visitors Center
8000 Patterson Ranch Road, Fremont
(510) 544-3220
www.ebparks.org
Saturday, January 22
Pollinator Power!
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 noon
Learn about creatures that help plants grow
Ardenwood Historic Farm
34600 Ardenwood Blvd., Fremont
(510) 544-2797
www.ebparks.org
Saturday, January 22
January FAW meeting
2 p.m.
Author Joselin Linder – dealing with a genetic illness.
Virtual via Zoom
For link, email: scottfrombayside@yahoo.com
Saturday, January 22
Nectar Garden Exploration
11 a.m. – 12 noon
Discover native pollinators and plants
Coyote Hills Regional Park
Visitors Center
8000 Patterson Ranch Road, Fremont
(510) 544-3220
www.ebparks.org
Saturday, January 22
Wonderful Wool
1 p.m. – 2 p.m.
Listen to a yarn about wool, then a visit with our fleeciest friends
Ardenwood Historic Farm
34600 Ardenwood Blvd., Fremont
(510) 544-2797
www.ebparks.org
Saturday, January 22
Animal Feeding
3:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Check for eggs and feed the livestock. Meet at the granary
Ardenwood Historic Farm
34600 Ardenwood Blvd, Fremont
(510) 544-2797
www.ebparks.org
Sunday, January 23
Victorian Fun and Games
1:00 p.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Enjoy games from days gone by
Ardenwood Historic Farm
34600 Ardenwood Blvd., Fremont
(510) 544-2797
www.ebparks.org
Sunday, January 23
Birds of the Farm
8:30 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.
Look for migratory birds
Ardenwood Historic Farm
34600 Ardenwood Blvd., Fremont
(510) 544-2797
Sunday, January 23
Nature’s Stories
10 a.m. – 11 a.m.
Learn about the wonder of nature through stories
Sunol Regional Wilderness
Visitor Center
1895 Geary Road, Sunol
(510) 544-3425
www.ebparks.org
Sunday, January 23
Discovery on Demand
10:30 a.m. – 3:30 a.m.
Hands-on activities, investigations, and crafts
Coyote Hills Regional Park
Visitors Center
8000 Patterson Ranch Road, Fremont
(510) 544-3220
Sunday, January 23
Nectar Garden Exploration
11 a.m. – 12 noon
Discover native pollinators and plants
Coyote Hills Regional Park
Visitors Center
8000 Patterson Ranch Road, Fremont
(510) 544-3220
www.ebparks.org
Sunday, January 23
Meet the Chickens
8:30 a.m. – 10:00 a.m.
Learn about these common birds while feeding them a snack
Ardenwood Historic Farm
34600 Ardenwood Blvd., Fremont
(510) 544-2797
Sunday, January 23
Animal Feeding
3:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m.
Check for eggs and feed the livestock. Meet at the granary
Ardenwood Historic Farm
34600 Ardenwood Blvd, Fremont
(510) 544-2797
www.ebparks.org
Sunday, January 23
Castro Valley Reads 2022 Virtual Kick-Off
1 p.m.
Live interview with N. Scott Momaday and Alameda County Youth Poet Laureate Zoe Dorado
Via Zoom
https://aclibrary.org/castro-valley-reads/
Monday, January 24
The History of the Alameda Creek Watershed & Fishery Restoration Projects
7 p.m.
Presentations explaining ACWD fish ladder projects
In person and via Zoom
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/76473734687
Washington Township Museum of Local History
190 Anza Street, Fremont
www.acwd.org/fishway
Honor Roll
Edinboro University, Pennsylvania
Fall 2021 Dean’s List
- Lahari Sajja of Fremont
Slippery Rock University, Pennsylvania
Fall 2021 Dean’s List
- Daniel Alexander of Castro Valley
DeSales University, Pennsylvania
Fall 2021 Dean’s List
- Diya Stephen of Fremont
Bradley University, Illinois
Fall 2021 Dean’s List
- Sarah Dove of Castro Valley
Southern New Hampshire University
Fall 2021 Dean’s List
- Edward Cendejas of Fremont
- Sana Nasiri of Fremont
- Alan Yoneda of Hayward
- Danielle Bargas of Hayward
- Harpreet Shahi of Hayward
- Natalie Libonati of Fremont
Watershed history presentation at historical society
Submitted by ACWD
Join the Washington Township Historical Society as it hosts the Alameda Creek Alliance and the Alameda County Water District (ACWD) for a joint presentation on “The History of the Alameda Creek Watershed & Fishery Restoration Projects.”
Alameda Creek Alliance's founder and executive director, Jeff Miller and board president, Pete Alexander present: The History of the Alameda Creek Watershed, the historical fishery habitat, and the multi-decade effort toward re-establishment of the watershed for migration of California Central Coast Steelhead and Chinook Salmon.
Alameda County Water District's project engineer, Shane O'Nesky presents: Lower Alameda Creek Fish Passage Improvements Projects
Synopsis of Presentations:
The Alameda County Water District's (ACWD's) Lower Alameda Creek Fish Passage Improvements will enhance the ability for threatened and federally listed steelhead to migrate through Lower Alameda Creek between the San Francisco Bay and rearing habitat within the Alameda Creek Watershed and its rivers and tributaries. This comprehensive program aims to restore the historic migratory corridor which has been largely obstructed since the 1970s.
ACWD has invested nearly $80 million in the program that involves multiple projects, including two innovative fish ladders, rubber dam foundations and structural improvements, new and upgraded water diversion structures with fish screens, enhancements to power and control systems and other major improvements. ACWD completed its Rubber Dam No. 3 (RD3) Fishway Project in May 2019. This project featured the construction of a new fishway around an existing inflatable rubber dam in Alameda Creek and replacement of the aging dam fabric.
ACWD's second major fish ladder project began in 2019 and is nearing completion after three seasons of major construction work in the Lower Alameda Creek channel. This final fish ladder spans both ACWD's Rubber Dam No. 1 (RD1) and a large flood control structure (the elevated BART train tracks foundational weir) which spans the width of Alameda Creek and forms an obstruction to migratory fish. This project also includes new water diversions that are operationally efficient and fish friendly.
While the program serves as an important restoration opportunity providing a significant impact on the ability of fish to migrate back and forth and re-establish threatened aquatic life, it also allows ACWD to continue management of water resources in the Alameda Creek.
Accounting for nearly 40% of ACWD's water supply, the Alameda Creek is a critical source for the local area, ensuring reliable water for over 357,000 people and numerous commercial, industrial, and institutional customers in Fremont, Newark, and Union City.
As founding members of the Alameda Creek Fisheries Restoration Workgroup, ACWD and the Alameda Creek Alliance have collaborated with multiple stakeholders since 1999 to benefit Central California Coastal Steelhead. The Workgroup includes members from advocacy, water management, consulting, environmental, government (federal, state & local) and educational groups interested in the Alameda Creek watershed and steelhead trout restoration. It is a testament that careful planning and meaningful partnerships can result in advancements for the environment while protecting our area's water supplies for generations to come.
Estimated Costs: $80M for fish ladders and all additional creek construction projects.
Offsetting grants to date: $33M (more expected). Ratepayer net: ~ $47M in water bills.
For more information on ACWD's fish passage projects, visit acwd.org/fishway.
Monday, January 24
The History of the Alameda Creek Watershed & Fishery Restoration Projects
7 p.m.
In person and via Zoom
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/76473734687
Washington Township Museum of Local History
190 Anza Street, Fremont
Community meeting on Campus Drive safety concerns
Submitted by The City of Hayward
The City of Hayward Transportation Division will hold a public online community meeting on Thursday, January 20, to present and discuss Campus Drive safety concerns and traffic calming measures.
The Campus Drive Traffic Calming Project area will span .78 miles of Campus Drive between 2nd Street and Hayward Boulevard – an area served by multiple neighborhoods, California State University, East Bay, hiking trails, churches, a residential care facility for older residents and Fire Station 9.
The Campus Drive community meeting will be held online only on the Zoom video conferencing platform. Information on how to join the meeting will be posted on the City of Hayward website: https://bit.ly/33daYNr
The city is prioritizing Campus Drive for traffic calming improvements based on community concerns, traffic volume, speed and collision data, and other factors. The purpose is to identify pedestrian, bicycle and traffic-calming improvements and address safety concerns and mobility needs that have community support. Potential strategies include adding barricades at key locations to slow down traffic, improved signage, a continuous pedestrian walkway and bike lane, a safer crosswalk and trail connection at Oakes Drive, and restrictions on heavy truck traffic.
For additional information, questions, or concerns, please contact the project team at (510) 583-2134 or CampusDrFeedback@hayward-ca.gov.
Thursday, January 20
Campus Drive Community Meeting
6:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.
Via Zoom
www.hayward-ca.gov/campus-drive
Be on the lookout for home COVID-19 test price gouging
Submitted by Alameda County District Attorney
A statewide executive order from California Governor Gavin Newsom that prohibits sellers of home COVID-19 test kits from excessively boosting prices is now in effect through March 31.
The order was issued January 8 and generally prohibits anyone who sold at-home testing kits as of Dec. 1, 2021 from increasing the price of the kit more than 10% over the December 1 price. Sellers who have not previously sold at-home COVID-19 test kits may not sell them for a price that is greater than 50% of what they paid for the kit themselves, although there are some exceptions, the District Attorney’s office said.
“The law prevents businesses or individuals from profiteering when we are in a state of emergency. All residents of Alameda County must continue to have access to COVID-19 at-home test kits, especially with the heightened transmissibility of the Omicron variant,” said District Attorney Nancy O’Malley. “My office will ensure that businesses adhere to the law and do not exploit consumers that are trying to protect themselves and their families.”
Any violation of the executive order would be a violation of Government Code section 8665, which is a misdemeanor punishable by a fine of up to $1,000 or imprisonment up to six months, or both, O’Malley’s office said.
Anyone who has been the victim of price gouging, or who has information regarding potential price gouging, is encouraged to file a complaint with the District Attorney’s Office by sending an email to pricegouging@acgov.org or calling (510) 383-8600.
Crab lovers: get ready for a delicious feed
Submitted by City of Fremont
Officials at the Age Well Center at Lake Elizabeth (formerly the Fremont Senior Center) are asking for community support and participation in their 15th Annual Crab Feed: Safe at Home Edition 2022.
The popular event, set for Friday, February 18, is the center’s major fundraiser of the year. Funds raised help support the Age Well Center’s Lake Side Café, where affordable meals are prepared for older adults and needy community members who may be affected by the ongoing pandemic.
Since July 2021 the kitchen has served almost 9,000 meals to people 55 and older and almost 3,000 meals to unsheltered people. In partnership with Tri-City Volunteers, the Age Well Center also distributed 2,880 bags of groceries.
Because of the COVID-19 Omnicron variant, the crab feed is being held off-site with people asked to pick up their crab meals during a drive-through event at the center to take home and enjoy.
Meals will include 1.5 pounds of succulent crab, pasta, salad, garlic bread sticks and dessert. Meals will be placed inside a reusable tote bag that will be placed by volunteers in the trunk of diner’s vehicles. Individual crab dinners are $75 and meal tickets can be purchased in advance online at http://bit.ly/AgeWellClasses, then following the “AWC Crab Feed-DRIVE THRU” link and following the prompts. The deadline to purchase tickets is Thursday, February 10.
Curbside pickup for dinners is 12:00 noon to 1:30 p.m. Friday February 18 at the Age Well Center, 40086 Paseo Padre Parkway, Fremont. When picking up dinners, people are asked to stay inside their vehicles with a mask on; Age Well staff members will place food in the vehicle’s trunk or rear cargo area.
Meanwhile, during these difficult times the Age Well Center is in need of community support and is seeking sponsors for the event. Sponsorships are available from $175 to $5,000. For details, call Aisha Jasper at (510) 790-6606 or send an email to agewellcenters@fremont.gov.
AWC Crab Feed
Friday, Feb 18
12 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. curbside pickup
Fundraising crab dinner
Age Well Center, 40086 Paseo Padre Parkway, Fremont
$75 per dinner; purchase deadline is Feb 10
http://bit.ly/AgeWellClasses
Joselin Linder to speak to Fremont Area Writers
Submitted by Tish Davidson
What would your life be like if you knew what the cause of your death would likely be…a disease that’s so new it has no name and almost no one knows that it exists? You’ve watched the process in other family members, tested positive for it yourself, and have started seeing the signs in your own body. Would you be terrified? Would you write a book about it? Would you tell everyone who would listen? If you’re Joselin Linder, you would.
On Saturday, January 22, Joselin Linder, author of The Family Gene, will share the extraordinary tale of how she and her family discovered a mysterious, deadly genetic disease that seems to have originated with her paternal great-grandmother, Mae.
Linder, her sister Hilary, their cousin, and their deceased paternal grandmother all carry this gene. Known as an “orphan,” it’s a genetic mistake unique to their family. Armed with this knowledge, they are doing everything they can to defend themselves and the rest of the world, against this unique ailment that the medical establishment only knew as a set of seemingly unrelated symptoms—until Linder and her relations found it lurking in their family tree.
She’s not the only woman who’s faced this sort of problem. What makes her stand out is the way she uses her platform as a writer and internet personality to share information that could be life-changing, and even life-saving for her family members, as well as paving a path for her readers who recognize their own situation in her story. Linder’s family's discovery may have far-reaching implications for the field of genetics, as well.
A regular contributor to the New York Post, Linder has been featured on This American Life, Morning Edition and Life of the Law.
This FAW Zoom event is open and free to the public.
January FAW meeting
Saturday, Jan 22
2 p.m.
Virtual Via Zoom
For link, email: scottfrombayside@yahoo.com
New Year’s promise: get more exercise
By John Grimaldi
So, your kids got you to promise to exercise more in 2022 during the festivities of the holiday season. You couldn’t resist. After all, you agreed because you love them but now you either disappoint them and take it easy or you convince yourself to give it a try. Come on, you can do it whether you turn 60, 70 or even 80 years of age this new year, said Rebecca Weber, CEO of the Association of Mature American Citizens (AMAC).
“No one’s telling you to go to Olympic extremes. All you have to do is the basics such as going for a 15 to 30 minute walk every day. Once you get used to it, you’re bound to up the ante and start doing things like carrying a pair of dumbbells on your outings. Pretty soon you’ll find yourself doing sit-ups and push-ups. But be sure not to go to extremes, particularly if you have health issues. In fact, it is best to have a chat with your health care provider before you begin your exercise routine,” Weber advised.
The National Institute on Aging (NIA) recommends that you take it slow at first. You don’t want to overdo it. Over-exercising – particularly at the outset – can make you want to quit, or worse, cause injury.
The right way to get started, according to the NIA, is to:
- Begin your exercise program slowly with low-intensity exercises.
- Warm up before exercising and cool down afterward.
- Pay attention to your surroundings when exercising outdoors.
- Drink water before, during, and after your workout session, even if you don’t feel thirsty. Play catch, kickball, basketball, or soccer.
- Wear appropriate fitness clothes and shoes for your activity.
- If you have specific health conditions, discuss your exercise and physical activity plan with your health care provider.
The pandemic has been hard on all of us, but it has been a particularly difficult experience for senior citizens creating an additional disincentive to take it easy, if you can. However, said AMAC’s Weber, it can also be another good reason for working out. At the very least, it can take your mind off of the disease for a while on a daily basis, which can raise your spirits.
“When you consider what is required for someone to engage in exercise — time, motivation, goal, and willingness to put up with some discomfort — it becomes a little clearer as to why a person dealing with stress and anxiety would be less likely to engage … Despite having time on their hands, this person is struggling with psychological discomfort due to negative thoughts which saps away motivation and energy to engage in activities, let alone exercise,” said Dr. P. Priyanka.
In fact, a poll conducted by researchers from Canada’s McMaster University and Western University in April 2021 showed that participants who had work out regimens prior to the COVID outbreak were exercising less as a result of the pandemic.
“But don’t use the coronavirus excuse to get out of doing your exercises,” cautioned Weber. “Think of the benefits you’ll derive — the stamina and energy you’ll gain, not to mention the fact that it improves your mood and helps you fight off depression and not to mention the fact that you made a promise to your kids and your loved ones.”
— The Association of Mature American Citizens is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization representing membership in Washington, D.C. and in local congressional districts nationwide. More information is available on its website at www.amac.us.
News and notes from around the world
Submitted by The Association of Mature American Citizens
House fit for aging goths
The goth lifestyle was all the rage in the early 1980s among teens who focused on the dark side of life when it came to the music and the dark, depressing clothing they preferred, says the Association of Mature American Citizens (AMAC). They wore black clothing, black lips and black eyes. Some of them are still with us 40 or more years later and you can be sure that there are still some who would love to live in a goth house like the one up for sale in Lincoln, Illinois. Realtor Seth Goodman purchased the house last year and fixed it up goth style. Its exterior is all black as is its interior and, guess what? It is attracting a lot of attention. Goodman put it up for sale recently and the house is getting noticed, but Goodman says he is having second thoughts about selling it. See the house on YouTube at: www.youtube.com/watch?v=fQmi77MnUfU.
House for sale
Developer Nile Niami had high hopes for the 105,000 square foot mega mansion he built in the ritzy Bel Air neighborhood of Los Angeles, according to AMAC. He was hoping to find a buyer willing to pay half a billion dollars for it. The price has been reduced to $295 million and that still makes it the most expensive residential property in the U.S. But Niami needs a buyer soon or the property will end up on the auction block. He needs $180 million to cover the debt he amassed building the place. See the Bel Air house on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=dhEyjdJ3ffc.
Better late than never
Army Sergeant John Gonsalves penned a letter to his mom and mailed it to her from Germany at the end of World War II. It was found 76 years later in a U.S. Postal Service processing and distribution facility in Pennsylvania in December 2021 and delivered in January 2022 not to his mother, who had passed away in 2015, but to his widow, Angelina Gonsalves, who lives in Woburn, Massachusetts and who was overwhelmed, reports AMAC. Her late husband, Johnny, passed away in six years ago. And, in a local TV interview with Angelina she said, “I love it. I love it. When I think it's all his words, I can't believe it. It's wonderful. And I feel like I have him here with me.” See the TV interview on YouTube: www.youtube.com/watch?v=wJKu_Nutt0o.
— The Association of Mature American Citizens is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization representing membership in Washington, D.C. and in local congressional districts nationwide. More information is available on its website at www.amac.us.
Visibility kits improve safety for homeless at night
By Veena Kommu
Before the holiday closure, Fremont’s Human Services Department began the process of distributing 100 traffic safety kits among the unhoused members of the community at multiple access points throughout Fremont, including: BACS Wellness Center on Grimmer Boulevard, Compassion Network at the Family Resource Center on Liberty Street, and through outreach by the City’s Mobile Evaluation Team.
The safety kits, consisting of a reflective safety vest, flashlight, bicycle reflectors, and a reflective backpack, aim to make homeless more visible when walking or biking in the evenings, especially as there are fewer daylight hours in winter. Distribution was made possible through a partnership between the City of Fremont’s Homeless Services, Public Works Department, and Police Department to improve the safety of unhoused community members as an extension of Fremont’s Vision Zero program.
Vision Zero is a data-driven approach to traffic safety that collects data on the location and mode of crashes, demographics of impacted communities, citation data from police departments, and injury reports from area hospitals. According to Vision Zero Network, “Vision Zero is a strategy to eliminate all traffic fatalities and severe injuries, while increasing safe, healthy, equitable mobility for all.” Originally started in Sweden, Vision Zero has had success internationally and throughout Europe. In 2015, Fremont became the first midsize city in the United States to adopt the policy.
While Fremont’s program has seen significant success in lowering the number of traffic-related fatalities, a nationwide and local spike in traffic fatalities with specific concerning trends motivated the City of Fremont to distribute the kits. In October 2021, the U.S. Department of Transportation released an Early Estimate of Traffic Fatalities for January through June of 2021 and estimated the most significant six-month increase since 2006 in the projected number of traffic deaths nationwide (20,160 traffic fatalities).
At a local level, Fremont experienced nine traffic fatalities in 2021 – a number that exceeded the city’s annual average of fatal crashes from 2018-2020 but was still below the pre-Vision Zero levels. Six of the nine fatalities involved reckless speeding and/or homeless individuals, while six of the accidents occurred at night. Incidents involving unhoused members occurred on Lowry Road, Decoto Road near Mount Palomar Court, and the intersection of Peralta Boulevard and Dusterberry Way.
According to the city's transportation department, “major crashes involving reckless speeding have increased from 1 in 2019, to 2 in 2020, to 5 in 2021, while major crashes involving homeless individuals walking in the street have increased from 1 in 2019, to 2 in 2020, to 3 in 2021.” The city has previously invested in lighting fixtures to reduce the number of traffic incidents, including installing 14,000 streetlights with LEDs in 2016 to reduce energy costs and make pedestrians more visible at night. One of the streets that benefited from this upgrade was Fremont Boulevard, a street that according to analysis of 2015 data, accounted for 50% of Fremont's traffic fatalities.
However, more immediate action was needed to combat this recent spike. While many of these crashes are still under investigation, most involved reckless speeding (25 mph to 40 mph over posted speed limits) or intoxication. In addition to distribution of 100 traffic safety kits, as an additional measure of precaution, the Fremont Police Department has also placed officers at visible locations to ensure that drivers are following all necessary precautions to drive safely.
Community members can also help achieve the Vision Zero goal. While the above numbers may feel abstract, these are real and life-changing for affected people and their families. Encourage family and friends to obey speed limits and watch for pedestrians. Pedestrians should also be careful, especially after dark when visibility is low: bring a device such as a flashlight or reflective vest to be more visible to oncoming traffic.
Community members can also contact the City of Fremont if a pedestrian crossing location is poorly illuminated, as Public Works is currently developing a project to improve lighting at select pedestrian crossing locations.
For information on Fremont's Vision Zero project, please visit https://www.fremont.gov/2594/Fremont-Vision-Zero.
Tshaka Campbell becomes seventh Santa Clara County Poet Laureate
Submitted by Alyssa Erickson and Diane Roche
The Board of Supervisors for the County of Santa Clara appointed San Jose resident Tshaka Campbell to the honorary post of Santa Clara County Poet Laureate for a two-year term ending December 31, 2023. Campbell was recommended to the Board following the call for applications, and a two-step review process organized by the County of Santa Clara, Silicon Valley Creates (SVCreates), and the Santa Clara County Library District (SCCLD). He is the seventh elected since the program’s inception in 2008.
“Poetry inspires us, as well as sheds light upon the emotional side of the human condition,” said County Librarian Jennifer Weeks. “The Library is a repository for the written word as well as a public space for poets to perform their work and future poets to learn the art form. We look forward to hosting poetry events with Tshaka during his term as County Poet Laureate.”
Tshaka Campbell is the curator of “Beautiful Black Books” as part of Poetry Center San Jose. He also conducts lectures, workshops in creative writings, spiritual verse, and other related topics. He is a talented poet, author, and musician. “I am standing on the shoulders of those who have held the post in the past, so I am both honored and humbled to be chosen,” said Campbell.
“Words hold great power to entertain, to inform, and to help us grow,” said Supervisor Mike Wasserman, President of the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors and Chair of the Library Joint Powers Authority Board. “The County of Santa Clara welcomes our new Poet Laureate and we look forward to the important contributions he brings to inspire a love and appreciation for poetry in our communities.”
Campbell looks forward to implementing programs aimed at furthering poetry within our communities. One of these initiatives, “In Our Words,” will invite local youth/students to write poems that capture the impact the last two years have had on them. Their work will be published in an anthology and displayed at select installments around the county.
A presentation will take place at 9:30 a.m. on Tuesday, February 8 during the Board of Supervisors' meeting to formally introduce Campbell. He will read a selection of his work as part of the invocation.
Learn more about the Poet Laureate program at sccld.org/poet/.
Sheriff Oversight Board
Submitted by the Alameda County Board of Supervisors
Board of Supervisors David Haubert, District 1, and Richard Valle, District 2, invite the community to provide feedback on the potential establishment of a Community Sheriff’s Oversight Board and/or an Office of the Inspector General.
The first round of community engagement meetings were held in December 2021 (more info can be found at https://acoversight.acgov.org/). This is an additional opportunity to hear about those meetings and provide input. Please feel free to share!
Community participation will be available via Zoom on January 20 from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Please access the following link in order to register and receive an email confirmation with additional details and a meeting link: https://bit.ly/3nlfC2A
Questions? Contact Supervisor Haubert’s Office at (510) 272-6691 or email Shawn.Wilson@acgov.org. You may also contact Supervisor Valle’s Office at (510) 272-6692 or Brenda.Gomez@acgov.org
Thursday, January 20
Sheriff Oversight Community Engagement Meeting
6 p.m. – 8 p.m.
Via Zoom
Register at: https://bit.ly/3nlfC2A
https://acoversight.acgov.org/
(510) 272-6691
BART Police Log
Submitted by Les Mensinger and BART PD
Sunday, January 9
- At 1:18 a.m. a man identified by police as Robert Villegas, 33, of Oakland was arrested at Bay Fair station in San Leandro on suspicion of trespassing on railroad property and resisting arrest. He was booked into Santa Rita Jail.
- At 6:41 p.m. a man identified by police as Forrest Lee Hahlbeck, 25, of Chico was arrested at Bay Fair station in San Leandro on an outstanding felony warrant charging robbery. Charges of possessing burglary tools, and false identification were also added. He was booked into Santa Rita Jail.
Tuesday, January 11
- At 8:43 a.m. a man identified by police as Matthew Turner, 41, of San Francisco was arrested at Fremont station on suspicion of possessing drug paraphernalia and a controlled substance. He was booked into Santa Rita Jail.
Chief justice: Judges must better avoid financial conflicts
By Jessica Gresko
Associated Press
WASHINGTON (AP), Dec 31 – Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts says the federal judiciary needs to do more to ensure judges don't participate in cases where they have financial conflicts of interest.
Roberts made the comments as part of his annual report on the federal judiciary released Friday evening.
Roberts pointed to a series of stories recently in The Wall Street Journal that found that “between 2010 and 2018, 131 federal judges participated in a total of 685 matters involving companies in which they or their families owned shares of stock.” Federal judges and Supreme Court justices are required under a federal ethics law to recuse themselves from cases where they have a personal financial interest.
“Let me be crystal clear: the Judiciary takes this matter seriously. We expect judges to adhere to the highest standards, and those judges violated an ethics rule,” Roberts wrote in the nine-page report.
Roberts is one of three justices on the nine-member Supreme Court to hold individual stocks. Those holdings sometimes result in the justices recusing themselves from a case or selling stock in order to participate. The other justices who own individual stocks are Stephen Breyer and Samuel Alito. In the past those holdings have occasionally resulted in issues.
In 2016, Roberts heard arguments in a patent case but discovered after arguments that he held more than 1,200 shares of stock in a parent company of one of the parties. He notified the parties that he would not continue to participate in the case.
In 2015, Breyer participated in a high-profile energy case involving a subsidiary of Wisconsin-based Johnson Controls Inc. A routine check Breyer's office does failed to flag that his wife owned stock in Johnson Controls. After the case was argued an inquiry from the news media brought the issue to Breyer's attention and his wife sold 750 shares worth about $33,000.
Alito took part in a case about curse words on television involving ABC Inc. and other networks. At the time the case was argued in 2008, Alito owned about $2,000 of stock in ABC's parent, Walt Disney Co. The case came out 5-4 with Alito voting with the majority and against ABC's interests. He later said his participation was an oversight.
Roberts did not write about recusals on his own court for financial or other reasons. He did note that in the instances the The Wall Street Journal identified, the paper did not find that any of the conflicts affected the judges' actions in cases. And Roberts underscored that conflicts were identified in “less than three hundredths of one percent of the 2.5 million civil cases filed in the district courts in the nine years included in the study,” a 99.97% compliance rate.
But Roberts said, “We are duty-bound to strive for 100% compliance because public trust is essential, not incidental, to our function.” The Wall Street Journal says subsequent reporting has increased the number of violations it found from 685 to at least 950.
Roberts said ethics training programs need to be more rigorous and “the information systems that help courts catch and prevent conflicts are due for a refresh,” among other things. He said officials are working to address the issue.
While coronavirus cases are surging, Roberts mentioned the pandemic only briefly. Last year, Roberts' annual report focused on the pandemic's impact on federal courts, with Roberts praising the work of judicial branch personnel during the pandemic.
Roberts and his colleagues are scheduled to return to the courtroom Jan. 7 for a special set of arguments to weigh challenges to two Biden administration policies covering vaccine requirements for millions of workers. The cases involve policies that affect large employers and health care workers.
Because of the pandemic the courtroom is not open to the public, and only the justices, lawyers, court personnel and journalists will be present. The justices spent nearly 19 months hearing arguments by telephone because of the pandemic but returned to the courtroom in October.
Traffic collision kills Newark man
Submitted by Newark PD
A 22-year-old Newark man was killed in a late-night traffic collision on Saturday, January 8 on Saint Isabel Avenue near Cedar Boulevard in central Newark.
The Alameda County coroner’s bureau identified the man as Juan Gonzalez-Ramirez. A Bay City News report said Gonzalez-Ramirez was a passenger in a vehicle that hit a parked car at 11:20 p.m. The driver and two other passengers sustained minor injuries. The driver, whose identity was not immediately released, was arrested on suspicion of DUI.
An investigation into the collision is continuing; anyone with information is asked to contact Newark Police Department Traffic Officer Anthony Piquette via email at Anthony.piquette@newark.org or call (510) 578-4953.
Navy captain becomes 1st woman to command US nuclear carrier
Associated Press
SAN DIEGO (AP), Jan. 4 — The USS Abraham Lincoln deployed the week of Jan. 2 from San Diego under the command of Capt. Amy Bauernschmidt, the first woman to lead a nuclear carrier in U.S. Navy history.
Bauernschmidt, who previously served as the Abraham Lincoln's executive officer from 2016 to 2019, took over command from Capt. Walt Slaughter during a ceremony last August, CBS 8 in San Diego reported. The carrier deployed Jan. 3 from Naval Air Station North Island as part of the Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group.
“There is no more humbling sense of responsibility than to know you are entrusted with the care of the people who have chosen to protect our nation,” Bauernschmidt said, according to a Navy news release. “Thank you, Capt. Slaughter, for turning over the finest ship in the fleet.”
Bauernschmidt previously served as the commanding officer of Helicopter Maritime Strike Squadron 70 and the amphibious transport dock San Diego. She has completed more than 3,000 flight hours during her career, the news station reported.
The Abraham Lincoln completed its maintenance period in April, following a 294-day, around-the-world deployment. The Carrier Strike Group is led by the command staff of Carrier Strike Group 3 and consists of Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln, Carrier Air Wing 9, the guided-missile cruiser USS Mobile Bay and the guided-missile destroyers of Destroyer Squadron 21 — USS Fitzgerald, USS Gridley, USS Sampson and USS Spruance.
The strike group is deploying with what the Navy is touting as its “most advanced air wing” and is heading to the Indo-Pacific region.
Longtime fire prevention inspector bids adieu to Fremont agency
Submitted by Fremont Fire Department
After nearly 39 years with the Fremont Fire Department (FFD), Senior Fire Prevention Inspector Bruce Chase recently retired. Chase joined the department in January 1983 as an Animal Services Officer and five years later was promoted to Code Enforcement Officer within the Building and Safety Department.
One of Chase’s first duties was to develop a coordinated vegetation management program for what was then known as the “Hazardous Fire Area” (now the Wildland Urban Interface, or WUI) and to build relations with Union Pacific Railroad. His efforts have helped to reduce combustible vegetation in the WUI and along the railroad right-of-way.
As infill development occurred and the WUI shrank over the years, Chase became a contributor to the FFD multi-family residential, school and business inspection programs, identifying fire hazards and working with each installation to improve their fire and life safety conditions.
More recently, as Senior Fire Prevention Inspector, Chase often shared his knowledge and experience with peers, co-workers and the public to ensure the continued success of the Fire Prevention Bureau. Throughout his tenure, he focused on the fire department’s mission of preventing and minimizing the loss of life and property, through public education, engineering, and enforcement.
Fire department officials, colleagues and friends recently gathered to thank Chase for his years of service and offer congratulations on his retirement.
Hayward Police Log
Submitted by Hayward PD
Thursday, January 6
- At about 6:13 a.m. officers responded to an automobile versus a pedestrian collision near the intersection of Hesperian Boulevard and Panama Street. A 21-year-old male pedestrian was pronounced dead at the scene by medical personnel. The driver of the vehicle was not injured and stayed at the scene and cooperated with investigators. Anyone with information about the incident is asked to call Sergeant Tasha DeCosta at (510) 293-7169.
Editorial
Virtual democracy
In an era of virtual reality, simulations offered to viewers are often touted as real experiences, but remain separate and distinct from actual reality. In the realm of entertainment, the advantages are obvious as physical limitations are removed… possibilities almost endless. Television shows, movies, computer generated games and activities can be based on extraordinary and fantastic situations that transcend the laws of physics and logical structure. Since an environment can be created without the need for additional physical or social interaction, isolation and separation from the corporeal world and its consequences is both an advantage and danger for those who invest vast amounts of time and energy in a virtual existence.
Star Trek: The Animated Series envisioned the concept of a “holodeck” as early as the 1970s. Followed by appearances in the series, Star Trek: The Next Generation, the holodeck user was totally immersed in an interactive program indistinguishable from the real world. Without reference to the electronic and digital signature of the program, there was little to separate the purported reality from voyeurism and hypothetical circumstances. In some instances, use of the holodeck served an important and valuable function of learning and relaxation, while in others, the danger of too much reliance on its alternate reality was also revealed.
Although the word “reality” is used in combination with the term virtual and is purported to convey a sense of importance and substance to what may be viewed in cyberspace, the truth of this depends on the context of its use. When communication is enhanced by virtual meetings and discussions, the effect of physical separation, even when the experience is enhanced by multi-dimensional immersion and interaction, is limiting.
As the COVID pandemic swirls around us for a third year, the technology associated with virtual reality has become more prominent and pervasive. The sight of people glued to electronic devises while walking, shopping, relaxing, even driving (?), is common, but raises the question of the strength of their attachment to the surrounding environment. Do these people acknowledge the atmosphere surrounding them? Or are they oblivious to all but what appears on a screen and in their ear buds? Does virtual become the sum total of reality?
The above questions have a direct impact on the basic process of democracy. Democracy at its most basic, local level, depends on the interest and influence of citizens and residents on those elected to represent them in political discussions and decisions. Without clear guidance from constituents, it is difficult for officials to gauge the tenor of the electorate, relying instead on the loudest and most strident. In some cases, this may represent the view of many others, but sometimes it does not.
In a technological environment defined by computer programs, camera angles and artificial horizons, a complete picture of who and what is portrayed can be skewed even if not purposeful. The answer to such limitations has been personal contact between the governed and the government. It is through representation and presence that, even without speaking, constituents can show their interest and support or disapproval in a clear and unequivocal manner.
Many council meetings have, understandably, been removed from in-person attendance for the past years. Fear of spreading COVID virus is real, but it is now time to consider the impact on our democratic system of government. Without adequate input, attendance and review of what transpires at virtual meetings is limited; separation between the elected and electors is increased. Dependence on meeting attendance through computer or television broadcast can be uncertain and, if uploads and replays are delayed, review of discussions, comments and decisions unavailable.
With deference to the inherent problems associated with the ongoing pandemic, it is time for our councils to reinstate, limited in-person meetings. Adequate precautions can be taken: provide adequate ventilation, limit attendance to fully vaccinated, require masks and, open alternative rooms for spillover attendance. Democracy is a full contact job, not virtual.