Good morning. It’s Monday, Aug. 28.
- SoCalGas uses ratepayer funds to fight climate action.
- Billionaires aim to build a new city in the Bay Area.
- And El Segundo wins the Little League World Series.
Statewide
1.
SoCalGas, the primary provider of natural gas to Southern Californians, has billed customers at least $36 million for political lobbying to undermine California’s move toward electrification since 2019, a journalism investigation found. In one case, the utility sought to use ratepayer funds for legal fees to fight Berkeley’s natural gas ban. In another, it billed customers for a lawsuit that accused state regulators of anti-gas bias. An independent watchdog called the spending an “ongoing and historic misuse of ratepayer funds for political activities.” Sacramento Bee
2.
In an article on California’s shrinking population, UCLA economist Chris Tilly argued for a more modest interpretation of the California Dream. “Maybe it’s time for us to grow up and realize we live in a world of limits,” he said. “That could be a level of maturity. If California is in a position to lead the country and come to terms with its limitations on growth, that could be a way California could still be in the lead. Which could really be an interesting twist.” N.Y. Times
3.
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s plan to debate Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Fox News has angered members of President Biden’s camp, NBC News reported. Advisers to the president have said the debate could enhance the impression that Newsom is running a shadow campaign at a time when polling shows most Democratic voters don’t want Biden to run again. Allies of Vice President Kamala Harris have also taken umbrage. “It’s disrespectful,” an outside adviser to Harris said. “Joe Biden is running with Kamala Harris. That’s the Democratic ticket.” NBC News
4.
At Deep Springs College, the students feed cows, irrigate fields, and cook meals in between classroom study. Founded in a lonely valley on the outskirts of Death Valley in 1917, the tiny liberal arts college blends academic and manual labor to “prepare young people for a life of service to humanity.” It also connects them to what founder Lucien Nunn, a mining and electricity baron, believed was the spiritual quality of the desert, removed from the seductions of city life. Tashroom Ashan, a photographer who graduated in 2022, captured the beauty of Deep Springs. Tashroom.com | Outside Magazine
Northern California
5.
The mysterious company that bought up large tracts of land around Travis Air Force in Solano County is backed by some of the biggest names in tech, the N.Y. Times revealed. They include Michael Moritz, a venture capitalist; Reid Hoffman, the LinkedIn cofounder; Marc Andreessen, a tech investor; Patrick and John Collison, the sibling cofounders of Stripe; and Laurene Powell Jobs, the philanthropist. According to the Times, Moritz pitched the idea as an opportunity to create a city from scratch that would be as walkable as Paris. N.Y. Times | Wall Street Journal
6.
In 2004, a Vallejo police officer fired his Taser at Andrew Lamar Washington 17 times, administering 2 minutes and 54 seconds of near-continuous electric shock. But the authorities did not rule Washington’s death a homicide. They cited “excitement during police chase” as a factor. Vallejo, home to one of the most violent police departments in the U.S., was forced through a public records lawsuit to disclose the circumstances around the deaths of Washington and others after fighting to keep them secret for years. Open Vallejo
- In Antioch, a few towns over, police scandals have jeopardized thousands of criminal cases. Mercury News
7.
Simone Biles won her eighth all-around title before an ecstatic audience at the U.S. Gymnastics Championships in San Jose Sunday night. Her victory came just weeks after her return to elite competition following a two-year hiatus after the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, when “the twisties” forced her to withdraw from several events. She is the first American gymnast, man or woman, to win eight national all-around titles. At 26, she’s the oldest woman to win the event. Washington Post | A.P.
8.
Point Reyes is trying to become a certified dark-sky reserve. The widely popular initiative aims to unveil the cosmos by nudging homeowners to favor softer lights and penalizing businesses that flood the night with excessive light for no good reason. If successful, it would make the cape 30 miles north of San Francisco only the third dark-sky reserve in the U.S. and the closest to a major city. Esquire
- Find the darkest skies near you. 👉 Lightpollutionmap.info
Southern California
9.
The boys from El Segundo, a close-knit community along Santa Monica Bay, are the Little League world champions. The 11- and 12-year-olds jumped out to a big early lead, 5-1, against Curacao during their championship game on Sunday, only to give up a grand slam that tied the game. The win was clinched in dramatic fashion, with a walk-off homer by young Louis Lappe in the bottom of the sixth and final inning. Fans crowded around big-screen TVs in the bars and restaurants of El Segundo erupted in cheers and spilled into the streets. L.A. Times | A.P.
- “And a bat flip for the ages!” See Lappe’s home run. 👉 @MLB
10.
David Zaslav has become a leading villain of the Hollywood strikes. In 2014, his pay package as head of Discovery was $156 million. In 2021, he was announced as the CEO of a new company called Warner Bros. Discovery, a conglomerate that includes HBO, Warner Bros. film and television studios, and CNN. He immediately began slashing costs and laying off hundreds of workers. His compensation that year was valued at $246 million. New Yorker
11.
Andrea Smith, a prominent ethnic studies professor who was accused by colleagues of falsely claiming to be Native American, agreed to resign from UC Riverside next year. The unusual separation agreement allows the university to avoid legal battles that could come from firing Smith, who is tenured and has complained of being subjected to “violent identity policing.” Some Native American scholars lamented that the agreement included no acknowledgement of deception. “She deflects, angles, and wriggles — and here it is again,” said Philip Deloria, a Harvard scholar of Indigenous history. N.Y. Times | Inside Higher Education
12.
Bob Barker died at his home in Los Angeles on Saturday. The courtly host of “The Price Is Right” was a passionate animal rights advocate who refused to allow furs on his show and reminded viewers for more than 20 years to “have your pet spayed or neutered.” His foundation funded low-cost spay-neuter clinics across the country, anti-whaling efforts, and a donkey sanctuary in Riverside County. PETA named its West Coast headquarters in Los Angeles for him after he donated $2.5 million. He was 99. N.Y. Times | L.A. Times
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