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Los Angeles Loves Drag – A Guide

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:20:32 GMT

The relatively new conservative agenda to quash drag shows and performers is dumbfounding to anyone who understands the ethos behind it. Drag is about joy, laughter, beauty, imagination and a bodacious celebration of life. Far from harming children or family values, it actually promotes them, specifically the unconditional love that is their essence. “Drag” families usually exist precisely because performers’ own relatives banished them simply for being different. It promotes the kind of positive energy any parent would want their kids to experience. Yes, sometimes it gets bawdy and risque, but so do straight and gender-conforming performers — that’s what adult environments and 21+ nightclubs are for.We’ll just call the current war against drag what it is: bigotry. And bigotry is about fear. Legislators trying to kill it are scared of what they don’t understand and, in some cases, in denial about what they actually might be interested or attracted...

Balloon seen over Hawaii last week? Not China’s, US says

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:20:32 GMT

By Lolita C. Baldor | Associated PressWASHINGTON — The Defense Department and the Federal Aviation Administration have been tracking a balloon that was flying off the coast of Hawaii last week, but a defense official said Tuesday there’s no indication it is connected to China or any other adversary, and it presents no threats to aviation or national security.The balloon was first detected by radar on Friday and “Pacific Air Forces launched three F-22s to assess the situation and visually identified a spherical object,” U.S. Indo-Pacific Command said. “We monitored the transit of the object and assessed that it posed no threat.”The defense official said the balloon was floating at about 36,000 feet (11,000 meters), and it did not fly over any critical defense infrastructure or sensitive sites. After determining that the balloon presented no threat to people on the ground or to aviation over Hawaii, the military took no action to bring it down, said the o...

Sale closed in Saratoga: $4 million for a four-bedroom home

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:20:32 GMT

20231 Blauer Drive – Google Street ViewA 2,311-square-foot house built in 1955 has changed hands. The spacious property located in the 20200 block of Blauer Drive in Saratoga was sold on April 3, 2023, for $4,000,000, or $1,731 per square foot. The property features four bedrooms, three baths, a garage, and two parking spaces, as well as a pool in the backyard. The unit sits on a 0.3-acre lot.Additional houses have recently been purchased nearby:On Pierce Road, Saratoga, in January 2023, a 3,566-square-foot home was sold for $4,800,000, a price per square foot of $1,346. The home has 4 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.In December 2022, a 2,798-square-foot home on Blythe Court in Saratoga sold for $3,859,000, a price per square foot of $1,379. The home has 5 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms.A 3,565-square-foot home on the 19900 block of Via Escuela Drive in Saratoga sold in February 2023, for $4,350,000, a price per square foot of $1,220. The home has 6 bedrooms and 5 bathrooms. 

2 San Francisco Nordstroms closing this summer

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:20:32 GMT

(KRON) -- Two San Francisco Nordstrom locations are set to close this summer, store officials announced Tuesday. Officials said the company decided not to renew the leases on the San Francisco Centre Nordstrom location and the Market Street Rack location."Decisions like this are never easy, and this one has been especially difficult," Jamie Nordstrom, chief stores officer, said in a news release. "But as many of you know, the dynamics of the downtown San Francisco market have changed dramatically over the past several years, impacting customer foot traffic to our stores and our ability to operate successfully." Questions remain in Bob Lee homicide case The Market Street Rack location's last operational day will be July 1, officials said, while there are plans to close the SF Centre location at the end of August. Downtown San Francisco has been home to Nordstrom since 1988. Officials said the changing dynamic of foot traffic to brick-and-mortar stores has made it difficult to stay ...

San Rafael office evacuated due to suspicious package, bomb squad requested

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:20:32 GMT

(KRON) -- An office building in San Rafael's Terra Linda area has been evacuated due to a suspicious package, according to the San Rafael Police Department. Santa Rosa PD and Santa Rosa Fire Department units are currently on the scene and the UC Berkeley Police Bomb and EOD unit has been requested. Security guard accused of killing man at SF Walgreens will not be charged with murder, DA says Upon initial inspection, an unusual odor was detected around the package. Office employees have been safely evacuated to the parking lot and the building has been closed off, according to police. No one has been injured as a result of the incident and authorities are taking precautions to keep the public safe.This is a developing story. Check back for updates.

2 armed Norteno gang members arrested after Santa Rosa vehicle pursuit

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:20:32 GMT

(KRON) -- Two armed suspects who led police on a vehicle pursuit in Santa Rosa have been arrested and face multiple charges, according to the Santa Rosa Police Department. Both suspects are known "Norteno Gang Participants," police said.The incident occurred on Monday, shortly before 5 p.m. Officers with the Santa Rosa PD Special Enforcement Team attempted a traffic stop on a vehicle in the area of Mountain View Avenue and Santa Rosa Avenue. The vehicle refused to stop and fled south on Santa Rosa Avenue, police said. Security guard accused of killing man at SF Walgreens will not be charged with murder, DA says Several Santa Rosa PD vehicles pursued the suspect car south toward Rohnert Park, reaching speeds in excess of 60 mph. The suspects led police into Rohnert Park and turned east on Golf Course Drive and then south on Snyder Avenue.The suspect vehicle eventually led officers into the area around an apartment complex in the 6000 block of Kerry Road. After rounding a corner, th...

The Pentagon Uses Video Games to Teach “Security Excellence.” You Can Play Them Too.

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:20:32 GMT

In the 1983 movie “WarGames,” a young hacker played by Matthew Broderick inadvertently accesses a fictional supercomputer belonging to the U.S. military. Before realizing he has found a system the North American Aerospace Defense Command uses for war simulations, he searches for computer games. The list he gets back starts with classic games like checkers and bridge, but to his surprise, it also includes games called “Guerrilla Engagement” and “Theaterwide Biotoxic and Chemical Warfare.”Turns out the Department of Defense likes to play computer games in real life too.More than 40 “security awareness” games are available for anyone to play on the website of the Center for Development of Security Excellence, or CDSE, a directorate within the Defense Counterintelligence and Security Agency, the largest security agency within the U.S. government. The DCSA, which refers to itself as “America’s Gatekeeper,” specializes in security of government personnel and infrastructure as well as coun...

GOP’s Youngkin says no to presidential campaign — for now

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:20:32 GMT

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Asked whether he’s going to be campaigning for president this year, Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin said no.But what about beyond that? That part remains unclear. Specifically, Youngkin was asked Monday at a conference where he was speaking in California if he would be “getting out on the presidential campaign trail” in 2023. “No,” the governor said. “I’m going to be working in Virginia this year.”Speculation about a presidential run has followed the former private equity executive ever since his 2021 election, which made him the first Republican elected to lead blue-trending Virginia in over a decade. But Youngkin has long redirected those those questions, focusing instead on next November’s legislative elections, when all 140 state General Assembly seats will be on the ballot.Dave Rexrode, chairman of Youngkin’s Spirit of Virginia political action committee, said the governor’s remarks on Monday were no different.“Nothing has changed. He is focu...

UN chief urges all nations to stop targeting media and truth

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:20:32 GMT

UNITED NATIONS (AP) — The United Nations chief warned on the eve of World Press Freedom Day that the media is under attack in every corner of the world and urged all nations to stop the targeting of truth and those who report it. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called the 50% increase in the killing of media workers in 2022 “unbelievable,” stressing that freedom of the press “is the foundation of democracy and justice” and it is under threat.At least 67 media worked were killed in 2022. In addition, digital platforms and social media have made it easier for extremists to push false narratives and harass journalists. “Truth is threatened by disinformation and hate speech seeking to blur the lines between fact and fiction, between science and conspiracy,” Guterres said.Guterres said the collapse of the media industry, which has led to closures of local news outlets and consolidation of media “into the hands of the few” is threatening freedom of expression. So are threatening new la...

Revlon emerges from bankruptcy with new board and new owners

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 17:20:32 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Less than a year after filing for chapter 11, Revlon emerged from bankruptcy protection Tuesday as a privately held company with new owners, reduced debt and a new board. “Today marks an important moment in Revlon’s history and evolution,” said Debra Perelman, president and CEO of Revlon, in a statement. “We look forward to unlocking the full potential of our globally recognized brands and continuing to offer our customers the iconic products they have loved for decades.”The majority of the company’s reorganized equity is now owned by its former lenders, including affiliates of Glendon Capital Management, King Street Capital Management, Angelo, Gordon & Co., Oak Hill Advisors and Cyrus Capital Partners LP, among others.Revlon’s largest shareholder had been MacAndrews & Forbes, owned by Perelman’s father Ron Perelman. MacAndrew & Forbes held 85% of the company’s stock at the time of its bankruptcy filing in June 2022. He had acquired the compan...