Good morning. It’s Monday, Sept. 15.
- Some educators face outrage over Charlie Kirk remarks.
- The Golden State Valkyries captivate Bay Area fans.
- And a spectacular, uncrowded alternative to Yosemite.
Statewide
1.
Several California teachers found their jobs at risk over remarks about the death of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. The Mariposa County school board said it opened an investigation after a high school teacher was accused of telling students he was glad Kirk died and that MAGA-supporting kids could “go home and cry.” At a community college in Visalia, an instructor was placed on leave for saying he hoped Kirk’s family dies as well. And in Redding, a middle school teacher was placed on leave for posting, “You reap what you sow, Mr. Kirk.” KSEE | KSEE | KRCR
- Extremist groups appear to be mobilizing around Kirk’s killing. In Huntington Beach, video captured men in masks marching down a street chanting, “White men, fight back!” Ryan Sánchez, a far-right activist, suggested they were just getting warmed up. “Nothing can stop what is coming,” he wrote. L.A. Times | WIRED
2.
California lawmakers wrapped up the 2025 legislative session on Saturday. Some notable developments:
- In a win for Gov. Gavin Newsom, legislators approved a package of six measures sold as a way to ease gas and electricity prices. They would permit more oil drilling; extend California’s cap-and-trade program for greenhouse gases; and connect the state’s electricity grid more closely to neighboring states. Politico | CalMatters
- A pair of Democratic lawmakers introduced a plan to effectively create a state version of the National Institutes of Health that would restore funding slashed by the Trump administration. The bill won’t come up for consideration until January, and there is no certainty that it will pass. The funding proposal is huge: $23 billion. N.Y. Times
- Other bills advanced by legislators would ban “ultraprocessed” foods in school lunches; prioritize college admissions for descendants of slavery; boost dense housing near transit; and require tech companies to verify users’ ages before they can download apps.
3.
Yosemite and Lake Tahoe, many complain, are madhouses. But wedged right in between those destinations is the Emigrant Wilderness, a High Sierra landscape with much of the same natural beauty. On a recent two-night journey through the region, outdoors journalist Gregory Thomas found soaring peaks and stunning alpine lakes — and almost no other people. He recalled camping under a thicket of tall pines: “The morning revealed the place as a castle of rolling white granite terraces, the rock inflected with an orange hue.” S.F. Chronicle
4.
Some daydreaming fodder from California’s latest property listings:
- In Carmel Highlands, many of the homes seem pulled from the pages of a fairy tale. This 1925 Tudor Revival, perched on a knoll just above the Tickle Pink Inn, has a curved roof, English-style gardens, and windows facing the Pacific Ocean. Asking price: $4.8 million. Wall Street Journal
- The modernist architect Craig Ellwood designed three homes for the celebrated Case Study House program. Only one remains in its original form. Completed 1952, the Bel Air residence with exposed steel framing and floor-to-ceiling glass walls is yours for $5.4 million. dwell
- The far Northern California city of Yreka grew out of the Gold Rush, a period of prosperity reflected in its magnificent old buildings. Near the charming downtown, this 1895 Queen Anne Revival includes a wraparound porch and a third floor that once served as a ballroom. Asking price: $995,000. N.Y. Times
Northern California
5.
“This is a historical tipping-point moment in women’s basketball.”
Expectations were low for the Golden State Valkyries, the WNBA’s first expansion team in 17 years. But they’ve been a huge hit. The Valkyries, who play at San Francisco’s Chase Center, became the first WNBA team to sell out every home game. They became the league’s only expansion team to make the playoffs in its first season. And most remarkably, they became the first professional women’s team in any sport to be valued at $500 million. N.Y. Times
6.
In 2018, a well-known Bay Area chef named Valentino Luchin was arrested for robbing $18,000 from a bank before speeding off in a Mercedes. A restaurant he owned in Walnut Creek had closed in 2016, pitching him into financial distress. In a jailhouse interview at the time, Luchin told a Mercury News reporter he was desperate. “I thought it was a good plan,” he said. “But it was not.” Seven years later, Luchin, 62, was arrested again last week and accused of robbing three more banks in San Francisco, all in a single day. S.F. Chronicle | SFGATE
7.
A teenager died early Saturday after falling roughly 75 feet from an Oakland freeway on-ramp as police responded to reports of a sideshow, a screeching gathering of cars doing donuts in the road. According to witnesses, the boy fell as he was trying to leap between ramps, presumably to catch a better view of the cars. He was just 16. California enacted several laws this year aimed at cracking down on sideshows, which officials and residents say have grown increasingly common and menacing. CBS Bay Area | KTVU
Southern California
8.
“I know it’s a war zone, but I just want to go home.”
“I love Altadena. But I’m okay with letting go of Altadena, moving forward with my life, putting all this behind me.”
“It breaks my heart. But I can’t be sentimental now. I’ve got to go on the path of least resistance.”
The Washington Post chronicled the journeys of three families on a single burned block in Altadena as they made agonizing choices on whether to stay and rebuild or sell and move on.
9.
Long Beach announced the cancellation of its annual Día de los Muertos parade, which was scheduled for Nov. 2, out of fear of immigration raids. Mayor Rex Richardson noted that another carwash was hit over the weekend. “These federal raids are cruel, discriminatory, and unacceptable,” he wrote on X. Roberto Carlos Lemus, a Long Beach marketer who promoted the 2024 parade, said the decision was unfortunate. But he added, “I get why they’re doing it.” Long Beach Post | KCAL
- Mexican Independence Day parades, however, went on as scheduled in Los Angeles and San Diego over the weekend. See pictures. 👉 L.A. Times | Times of San Diego
10.
A San Diego Navy doctor was fired after right-wing activists found pronouns listed in her bio on social media. On Sept. 4, the Libs of TikTok X account tagged Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in a post that included a screenshot of Cmdr. Janelle Marra’s LinkedIn profile, which apparently noted a “transgender healthcare” specialty and the preferred pronouns “she/her.” “Yikes,” the account run by Chaya Raichik wrote. Hegseth responded hours later: “Pronouns UPDATED: She/Her/Fired,” he wrote. Marra had served as a Navy physician for 21 years. KPBS
11.
Asked about Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, a senior Trump administration official told a reporter “he does what Stephen [Miller] wants him to do.” Other Republicans close to President Trump and the White House whisper unofficial titles for Miller: “Prime Minister Miller,” “The REAL Attorney General,” “The DHS boss,” “President Miller.”
In an opinion piece, Rolling Stone charted Stephen Miller’s rise from Santa Monica teenager to America’s most powerful unelected bureaucrat.
12.
“Adolescence,” the intense British drama about a teenage boy accused of murdering a female classmate, dominated the Emmys with eight wins on Sunday evening in Los Angeles. Among the other big winners were the comedy series “The Studio” and the drama series “The Pitt.”
The nation’s heated politics and the Trump administration’s attacks on cultural institutions were themes of the evening. Hannah Einbinder, who won a best supporting actress award for “Hacks,” capped her speech with: “Fuck ICE and free Palestine.” Stephen Colbert, whose show was recently canceled by CBS, was greeted by rapturous applause when he collected the award for best talk show. “Sometimes you only truly know how much you love something when you get a sense that you might be losing it,” he said. “Ten years later in September 2025, my friends, I have never loved my country more desperately. God bless America.” L.A. Times | Washington Post
- See the full list of winners.
- Looks from the red carpet. 👉 N.Y. Times | Hollywood Reporter
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