B.A.2 is here and by all estimations we are going to be dealing with COVID for a long time.  How do we move forward and still protect the most vulnerable among us?

Pacific Gas & Electric has agreed to pay more than $55 million to avoid criminal prosecution for two major wildfires started by its aging power lines in Northern California, prosecutors announced Monday. PG&E does not admit wrongdoing in the two settlements reached with prosecutors for last year's Dixie Fire - one of the largest wildfires in California's history - and the 2019 Kincade Fire in Sonoma County. The deals expedite damages payments to the hundreds of people whose homes were destroyed.

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National security advisor Jake Sullivan said U.S. intelligence discovered that “there was a plan from the highest levels of the Russian government to target” civilians in Ukraine.

Appearing on ABC’s “This Week,” Sullivan told host Jon Karl that the “horrifying” images of mass casualties in Ukraine were “downright shocking,” but they were “not surprising.” He said U.S. intelligence presented the information before the war began.

“We, in fact, before the war began, declassified intelligence and presented it indicating that there was a plan from the highest levels of the Russian government to target civilians who oppose the invasion, to cause violence against them,” he said. “To organize efforts to brutalize them in order to try to terrorize the population and subjugate it.

“So this was something that was planned.”

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San Francisco crime rates drastically shifted in the pandemic. These charts show what’s happening now 

Robbery, Larceny or Burglary - What Are the Differences?

 

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Legislators in California are considering a law that would change the definition of a workweek. The idea is a better work/life balance.  But, are there unforeseen consequences?

Could California mandate a four-day workweek? A state bill is pushing for the change 

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(CNN)Will Smith will not be allowed to attend the Academy Awards for the next 10 years, as a result of his slapping comedian Chris Rock on stage during this year's Oscar ceremony, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences announced in a statement obtained by CNN.

"The Board has decided, for a period of 10 years from April 8, 2022, Mr. Smith shall not be permitted to attend any Academy events or programs, in person or virtually, including but not limited to the Academy Awards," Academy President David Rubin and CEO Dawn Hudson said in a statement on Friday.The decision was made during a Board of Governors meeting held earlier in the day in Los Angeles. The meeting, initially scheduled for April 18, was expedited after Smith announced his resignation from the Academy last week.

Smith issued a quick, concise statement on his ban from the Oscars for the next decade.

https://www.cnn.com/2022/04/08/entertainment/will-smith-academy-sanctions-decision/index.html

 

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Baseball starts today and the Giants toss out their first pitch at home tomorrow.  Adam Copeland breaks down the outlook for the Giants.  

A Pew Research Center poll found 70% of Americans now consider Russia an enemy of the United States.

That figure is up from 41% in January.

The opinion is relatively bipartisan in nature as well, with 72% of Democrats and 69% of Republicans believing Russia is an enemy.

Public opinion of Russia is overwhelmingly negative, according to the survey, which found 92% of Americans say they have an unfavorable view of the country, including 69% who have a very unfavorable view.

The survey was conducted between March 21 and 27, about a month after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

It also found that 7% of U.S. adults have an overall favorable opinion of Russia.

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The Police Department declined to elaborate on the gang affiliation of the individuals suspected to have been involved in the shooting in a statement released Wednesday, but said “gangs and gang violence are inseparable from the events that drove these shootings.”

“This tragedy downtown is a very public example of what families in many of our neighborhoods know too well,” Police Chief Kathy Lester said in a statement.

“The suffering inflicted by gang violence does not limit itself to gang members. It spills over to claim and shatter innocent lives and harm our entire community,” Lester said.

Police said the investigation was ongoing and that the number of identified shooters could grow beyond five people.

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The Senate confirmed Ketanji Brown Jackson to the Supreme Court on Thursday, shattering a historic barrier by securing her place as the first Black female justice. 

Jackson will take her seat when Justice Stephen Breyer retires this summer, solidifying the liberal wing of the 6-3 conservative-dominated court. 

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene says she has filed a complaint against Jimmy Kimmel with the Capitol Police over a joke, and she apparently isn’t kidding. The Georgia Republican tweeted a clip of Kimmel from the late-night host’s Tuesday monologue on Jimmy Kimmel Live! in which the comic said of Greene, “This woman, Klan mom, is especially upset with the three Republican senators who said they’ll vote yes on Ketanji Brown Jackson, who’s nominated for the Supreme Court. She tweeted, ‘Murkowski, Collins, and Romney are pro-pedophile. They just voted for KBJ.’ Wow, where is Will Smith when you really need him?”

Greene’s tweet included her written message, “@ABC, this threat of violence against me by @jimmykimmel has been filed with the @CapitolPolice.”

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The CCSF Board of Trustees has approved sending layoff notices advising 50 tenured and tenure-track faculty they are about to lose their jobs. If finalized at the end of April this will result in further decimation of the school. CCSF Math Faculty and a key member of the faculty union (AFT 2121) bargaining team Clare Heimer joins John to discuss this major issue.

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Rothmann and Kim McCallister dive into a new study that found Bay Area counties with the highest COVID rates in CA, though medical professionals don't think the numbers pose any risk. Later in the hour, John and the issue of inflation with energy prices.

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