Reason for optimism in San Francisco // The Michael Jordan of speedcubing

Good morning. It’s Friday, June 16.

The ripple effects of reparations for Japanese Americans.
AI gold rush fuels sense of optimism in San Francisco.
And a Californian breaks Rubik’s Cube world record.

Please note: The newsletter will pause Monday. Back in your inbox Tuesday.

Statewide

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A California commission on policing standards estimated that as many 3,500 police officers would lose their badges each year under a new law that empowers the state to decertify bad cops. The finding surprised some criminal justice professionals. “If we have that many officers who have committed these very serious harms against the public, that’s really serious,” said Lizzie Buchen, a criminal justice reform advocate. “They’re basically anticipating that 4% of officers in California fit into that category, which is pretty staggering.” S.F. Chronicle

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Morgan Ome’s grandfather, second from left, and other family members when they were incarcerated at Tule Lake. (Morgan Ome via the Atlantic)

The reporter Morgan Ome investigated what receiving reparations meant to Japanese Americans who were incarcerated during World War II.

“What surprised me was how intimate the experience turned out to be for so many. They didn’t just get a check in the mail; they got some of their dignity and agency back. Also striking was how interviewee after interviewee portrayed the monetary payments as only one part — though an important one — of a broader effort at healing.” The Atlantic

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Some bills getting attention in the state Legislature:

Assembly Bill 957 would require judges to consider parents’ affirmation of their child’s gender identity in child custody cases. The bill’s author said it was about ensuring the dignity of LGBTQ people. A Republican lawmaker was so galled by what he saw as an attack on parental rights he vowed to leave the state. Sacramento Bee | The Signal
California could become the first state to ban caste discrimination. Supporters say the fiercely contested Senate Bill 403 targets a form of prejudice that is both pervasive and hidden. Opponents say it’s unnecessary and disparaging to Hindus. CalMatters
Also moving through the legislative body are measures that would rein in onerous security deposits, add media literacy to public school curricula, exempt Sikhs from having to wear motorcycle helmets, and allow Amsterdam-style cannabis cafes.

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On this week’s California Sun Podcast, host Jeff Schechtman talks with retired Navy Capt. Brett Crozier, the commander who sacrificed his career by raising an alarm about a coronavirus outbreak on the aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt. Crozier said he knew speaking out might elicit a political backlash, but he couldn’t sit still as more and more members of his crew fell sick. “Leadership is about taking care of your people,” he said.

Northern California

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“We urgently need to discuss Westfield.”

Mall executives and store tenants had been complaining about crime at San Francisco’s troubled Westfield shopping center in the months leading up to the owner’s announced departure. In emails obtained by reporter J.D. Morris through a public records request, mall personnel recounted a bathroom sexual assault, the stabbing of a security guard, armed thefts, and an “increase in violent activity from homeless people on the streets coming in the mall.” S.F. Chronicle

Another day, another closure. AT&T said Thursday that it would shutter its flagship downtown store. SF Standard | SFGATE

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As San Francisco stumbles, some leaders believe the artificial intelligence gold rush may offer the city’s best hope. “Venture capitalists have funneled nearly $2 billion in San Francisco-based AI start-ups this year alone, a frenzy of activity that market researchers say could help usher in another tech boom for the beleaguered city, salvage its reputation as the epicenter of innovation — and finally get more people back to the office.” Washington Post

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The logger convoy carrying the Orick Peanut pulled into Denver en route to Washington in March 1977. (Steve Larson/Denver Post via Getty Images)

In 1977, Humboldt County loggers upset over a plan to expand Redwood National Park carved a redwood into the shape of a peanut and drove it to Washington. They presented the 9-ton “Orick Peanut” to President Carter as a mock gift, a reference to his peanut farming days. “It might be peanuts to you, but it’s jobs to us,” a placard read. Carter’s aids refused it, the park expansion went forward, and in time the lumber mills of Orick fell quiet. For years, the peanut was parked outside a gas station along Highway 101, where it became a minor tourist curiosity. Then earlier this month, a hit-and-run driver smashed it to pieces — a fitting coda perhaps for the symbol of a town fallen on hard times. Times-Standard

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Ian Gil, an outdoor guide, was fishing on Lake Tahoe’s Emerald Bay this week when he spotted a young bear starting his way up a tree. The animal’s target appeared to be an osprey nest perched at the very top. Gil captured harrowing video as the branches cracked under the bear’s paws roughly 80 feet off the ground. “At that point he made the wise decision to turn around,” he wrote. @vivachile (~1:30 mins)

Southern California

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Annie Malloy, in poor health and on the brink of homelessness, became among the first Californians to get rental assistance through the state’s public healthcare program. Known as CalAIM, the $12 billion initiative expands the idea of medical care to include other parts of people’s lives, including food and housing. Malloy, 60, received $5,000 to cover a security deposit. “I couldn’t have gotten this place without that help,” she said as she prepared to move into a home in northern San Diego County. KFF Health News

10.

A couple from Newport Beach vacationing on Mexico’s Baja California peninsula were found dead in their hotel room on Tuesday, the authorities said. The suspected cause of death was inhalation of gas, the Associated Press reported. There have been several reports of such deaths in Mexico due to carbon monoxide poisoning. The victims were identified as Abby Lutz, 28, and John Heathco, 41. CNN | L.A. Times

11.

The Michael Jordan of speedcubing is from Cerritos.

Max Park, who is autistic, was handed a Rubik’s Cube at the age of 7 or 8 and never looked back, practicing nonstop and eventually toppling multiple records. Now 21, Park broke his biggest record yet during a competition in Long Beach on Sunday: solving a 3x3x3 cube in a blistering 3.13 seconds. He now holds the fastest times to solve a 3x3x3, 4x4x4, 5x5x5, 6x6x6, and 7x7x7 cube. Guinness World Records | The Guardian

“The atmosphere was electric.” See Park’s record-breaking effort. 👉 @GWR

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Northern California

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Southern California

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In case you missed it

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