Good morning. It’s Tuesday, Sept. 2.
- El Dorado County is “overrun” by mountain lion attacks.
- Meta creates chatbots of celebrities without permission.
- And Burning Man takes a turn toward the biblical.
Statewide
1.
California’s high-potency cannabis has become so renowned that airplane passengers are smuggling it into Britain, where the drug is illegal. British dealers call it Cali weed and sell strains on Telegram at prices far higher than those of cannabis grown elsewhere. Rob Ralphs, a criminologist, said an analysis found that cannabis traditionally sold in Britain contained around 4% of the psychoactive ingredient THC. The levels for Cali weed were as much as 10 times that. N.Y. Times
2.
At Yosemite National Park, some employees are doing the jobs of three people after cuts to the workforce earlier this year, the park’s former top official said. Staff members, however, have been told to hide signs of strain while avoiding questions from tourists about staffing, employees said. If pressed, they’re to say something like: “I’m just really happy to be here.” Some are thinking about quitting. “I think it is my last year,” one staffer said. “I mean, I love it, and this is my dream job, and the shadow of Donald Trump is over everything I do.” Politico
3.
Dispatches from the deportation crackdown:
- The Border Patrol sector chief Gregory Bovino responded to criticism of his immigration raids in Los Angeles, which have primarily targeted people with no criminal history: “You may say, ‘Well, hey, don’t you feel bad?’ Well, no, I don’t. I’m not trying to be callous here, but it’s because we are giving them an out.” N.Y. Times
- Census data showed that more than 1.2 million immigrants disappeared from the U.S. labor force between January and July. In the Inland Empire, where thousands of construction jobs evaporated, contractors said immigration sweeps were making it harder to find workers. A.P.
- Kristi Noem, the Homeland Security secretary, said on Sunday that the National Guard saved the 500-square-mile city of Los Angeles from annihilation during June protests that were confined to a few downtown blocks. “L.A. wouldn’t be standing today if President Trump hadn’t taken action,” she said. When challenged, she doubled down. Politico
Northern California
4.
Surging numbers of mountain lion attacks on domestic animals are putting El Dorado County on edge. For years, the county used to record about 30 such attacks annually. In 2023, the number jumped to 97. In 2024, it was 202. The big cats are killing goats, sheep, llamas, and household pets. Calls to respond with lethal means are growing louder. “A lot of people are of the thought that the mountain lions will only kill what they’re going to eat, and that’s not true — they also kill for sport,” said LeeAnne Mila, the county’s agricultural commissioner. S.F. Chronicle
5.
Meta appropriated the names and likenesses of celebrities such as Taylor Swift, Scarlett Johansson, and Selena Gomez to create flirty chatbots, without the actresses’ permission. Reuters tested the bots’ behavior:
“The avatars often insisted they were the real actors and artists. The bots routinely made sexual advances, often inviting a test user for meet-ups. … Asked for intimate pictures of themselves, the adult chatbots produced photorealistic images of their namesakes posing in bathtubs or dressed in lingerie with their legs spread.”
6.
Glenn County, a rural region about 100 miles north of Sacramento, is losing its only emergency room. Despite a passionate campaign to save Glenn Medical Center, the hospital said it was left with no choice after the federal government revoked its “critical access” designation in April. New Medicaid cuts, supported by the region’s Republican congressman, are another burden. Hospital leaders said more people will die from strokes and heart attacks. “It’s not just a health crisis — it’s an economic and social crisis,” Dr. Jared Garrison, Glenn County’s health officer, told CalMatters in June. North State Public Radio
7.
Burning Man seemed to take a biblical turn this year. The art festival in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert began last month with a powerful windstorm that toppled the Orgy Dome in what some took to suggest the act of a wrathful God. Days later, a woman who didn’t know she was pregnant gave birth to a 3-pound, 9-ounce baby girl. “It’s an absolute miracle,” the new father told the L.A. Times. Then on Saturday, a man was found dead lying in a pool of blood. As of Monday, the authorities still didn’t know his identity. L.A. Times | Reno Gazette Journal
- Burning Man wrapped up on Monday. See pictures.
8.
“Tiburon Still Boring.”
“Marin Parents Arrested for Not Taking Kids to Tahoe.”
“Marin to Be Hit Least-Hard by Whatever Happening in World, Experts Say.”
Marin County is a place of charming towns, natural beauty, and perfect weather. But a new publication focuses on the flip side of all that perfection. In the pages of Marin Lately — a sort of The Onion for a Bay Area audience — life in Marin is cloistered, bland, and pompously liberal. Many locals love it, the New York Times reported.
9.
Before Disneyland, there was Children’s Fairyland. America’s first storybook theme park, located along the shore of Lake Merritt in Oakland, celebrated its 75th birthday with a parade, puppet show, and cake on Monday. Children’s Fairyland opened on Sept. 2, 1950, with child-sized play sets that used themes such as Pinocchio, Thumbelina, and the Three Little Pigs. Walt Disney took a tour, borrowing ideas that made it into his “magic kingdom” in Anaheim five years later. Mercury News
- Watch a fun fairy’s-eye tour of the park. 👉 YouTube
Southern California
10.
A few years ago, Alec Mackie bought a 1.2-acre lot in Yucca Valley with plans to build a home to retire in. Then California enacted the Western Joshua Tree Conservation Act, which added an unforeseen cost to his project: $32,961.75 in “mitigation fees” for the removal of eight Joshua trees. While environmentalists have hailed the new law, leaders of high desert towns where Joshua trees are plentiful say the protections are inhibiting housing under the mistaken belief that the plant exists only in isolated wilderness areas. L.A. Times
11.
The owners of Malibu’s Reel Inn, which burned down in the Palisades fire, have been told that they won’t be able to rebuild. For more than 36 years, the storied seafood restaurant built a loyal following of customers drawn by its easy vibe and location along Pacific Coast Highway. But it was located on land leased from the California Department of Parks and Recreation; in August, the agency told the owners their lease would not be renewed. “Would we like to revive it? Yes, we would,” said Teddy Seraphine-Leonard, a co-owner. Wall Street Journal
12.
In a travel piece, the Wall Street Journal declared that a flurry of new openings had made the resort city of Coronado Island cool again:
“Tidy rows of houses with wide porches and billowing flags channel classic Americana, residents zip around the streets in golf carts, and Orange Avenue, the central drag, is lined with charming homegrown businesses where everybody seems to be a regular.”
The California Sun, PO Box 6868, Los Osos, CA 93412
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