Gov. Brown's massive water delivery project gets scaled back, for now, shopping online in your car, Sacramento in the limelight following "Lady Bird's" success.
California's WaterFix has slimmed down but SoCal will still gets its water, says MWD GM
Governor Jerry Brown's Delta tunnel plan is moving ahead but on a smaller scale. The project, officially known as the California WaterFix, would use a tunnel to bring water to Southern California from the San Joaquin River Delta.
Brown's administration said late Wednesday that for the time being it would build only one tunnel, instead of two.
The second tunnel isn't certain but it's likely to follow in the future, according to Jeffery Kightlinger, the general manager of the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California, which has long supported the project.
Kightlinger said Southern California will have water whether or not the second tunnel is built, but other areas may be affected, and that should be a concern for all Californians.
"We are one state, our economies are intertwined, our agriculture economy is a huge sector... so we have to start thinking of this not as regions abut as one state."
He explained that a funding shortfall led to the project being downsized. The WaterFix requires buy-in, and financial support, from the state's local water districts, and not all were willing to pay for it.
"You had a group of farmers in the Central Valley that took a look at this project and decided while they supported it, they liked the idea, they felt they simply couldn't afford it on the types of crops they grow."
Even with the project scaled down to one tunnel, there isn't enough cash to pay for the plan, but Kightlinger said he was confident the extra funds would be found.
Kightlinger's MWD has already pledged to pay a little more than $4 billion for the project but consumers won't be hit hard by the tunnel's costs, Kightlinger said. The average household will only see a $2 increase on their monthly bill.
What's next for Democrats hoping to find a fix for DACA recipients?
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi held the floor for about eight hours Wednesday, in an attempt to rally Democrats ahead of a vote on a new, two-year spending deal.
Democrats in the House aren't happy that the budget package contains no fix for DACA — the so-called Dreamers who were brought to the US illegally as children. A vote could happen as early as Thursday.
So what's next for Democrats hoping to find a fix for DACA recipients?
USC's Manuel Pastor says finding the leverage to move the debate forward could be a challenge:
Many feel that the fear that [Democrats] are losing their leverage right now. I believe that Senate Democrats have gotten some degree of leverage from their previous shut down — that is, they secured the promise to be able to debate bi-partisan legislation. In fact, it was a pretty significant move last week when Senator Coons and Senator McCain put forward a bipartisan bill that's pretty close to a clean Dream Act.
The fact that something more open is going to be part of the debate moves the center of the debate within the Senate to probably what the Graham and Durbin legislation was. So I think there's a deal to be made in the Senate. The problem is that that deal will die when it goes to the House of Representatives.
How do Democrats in the House peel off Republican support?
It's not going to be the Democrats in the House necessarily; it's going to be the activists in the congressional districts of vulnerable Republicans — particularly in California.
Manuel Pastor is the Director of the Center for the Study of Immigrant Integration at the University of Southern California.
Answers have been edited for length and clarity.
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Now you can shop, and order up an Egg McMuffin, while you drive
Already, people can use their cell phones through their cars' built-in infotainment systems. They can get directions, find gas stations and, for better or for worse, they can shop. All from the comfort of a driver's seat.
General Motors announced recently that McDonald's is now a part of the Marketplace app built into many of its cars' touch screens. About 2 million General Motors vehicles from the 2017 and 2018 model years currently have the feature, which lets drivers place food orders, reserve tables and perform other shopping functions through the car.
GM's partnership with Dunkin Donuts, for example, links drivers' Dunkin Donuts account with the Marketplace app in their cars, so they can place an order and pay for it with a tap on the touchscreen. They can then pick up the order at the drive through, or inside the store, having been navigated there -- also through the Marketplace app.
"As we went out and talked to folks, the things we heard back about what they could get in a connected car that would make a connected car a better car or a better experience -- value, productivity and safety were all on people's minds," said Rick Ruskin, senior manager for General Motors' Marketplace app.
By value, Ruskin means the deals GM's partner companies offer through the app.
With the average American spending 46 minutes commuting, drivers want to be able to complete things in their cars while they're behind the wheel -- a potentially dangerous mix.
Marketplace, Ruskin said, "is to bring you some of the same productivity that you'd get if you were standing still with your mobile app, but we're doing it in a way that's no more complex than changing a radio station."
Still, safety researchers have concerns.
"It's really important to understand the demands these are incurring on drivers because that has implications on how drivers are able to respond and react to critical road situations," said Dr. William Horrey, with the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. "If you have systems imposing high demand, they're less likely or less capable of responding appropriately when the traffic situation dictates."
Last year, the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety partnered with the University of Utah on a study that looked into 30 different infotainment systems in cars to see what kind of demands they were placing on drivers in terms of distraction. None of them had a low level of distraction. Most of them were high, or very high, in terms of what they demand from a driver's attention.
AAA found that voice commands were slightly less demanding on the driver than touch controls and that the best placement for infotainment controls is higher up in the dashboard, instead of lower, where they take a driver's eyes further away from the road.
But like it or not, features such as Marketplace are likely to become more common in the future, especially as cars become more automated. Toyota, Lexus and Ford are among the car companies incorporating the digital assistant Amazon Alexa into their vehicles.
"The one thing autonomous vehicles will really get us that we can't get now is time back," said Kelley Blue Book executive analyst, Akshay Anand. "I think auto makers are starting to think about, hey, how can we get people time back in their day so we can think about or worry about other things, and this is just one small step toward that."
Bald Eagle eggs hatch in Big Bear Valley
UPDATE (Feb. 12): The bald eagle eggs have hatched; you can watch the chicks' parents caring for them below.
Previously (Feb. 8): Right now, it's good to be an eagle. And we are not just talking about football. Bald eagles are thriving. The U.S. national emblem is no longer listed as a "sensitive species" in Washington state, and its population count is booming in Kentucky and Illinois.
The same is true here in Southern California. Locals are on bald eagle birth watch because a pair of eggs are set to hatch this week in the forest near Big Bear Lake. The Friends of Big Bear Valley have set up a Nest Cam so that anyone can track the eggs' progress.
Eagles have not always thrived in the Big Bear area. Before 2012, they were only seen during the winter, while they visited to find food. But that year witnessed the first successful eagle nesting close to Big Bear Lake.
U.S. Forest Service wildlife biologist Robin Eliason says that the current pair of eggs were laid in early January and that the eagle who laid them is likely familiar with her nest:
We actually believe that the female who's on the nest - Jackie, we call her - was the first chick that was hatched in that nest, in 2012. She was the first eagle hatched in the San Bernardino Mountains. She was a groundbreaker for us.
Once the eggs hatch, Eliason expects that Jackie and her partner, nicknamed Mr. B, will devote themselves to providing for their young by catching fish and ducks from Big Bear Lake and bringing them back to the nest. Eliason says the chicks will grow remarkably quickly.
In about two-and-a-half to three months, they'll be the same size as their parents, and ready to leave the nest. And then, after that, they'll stay close to their parents for another few months while their parents help them with hunting and feeding.
This Saturday, the U.S. Forest Service will host a monthly eagle counting program, though Eliason says that the chicks will be too small and too far away from the counting sites to be seen with the naked eye. A spotting scope will be set up for those interested, but Eliason says that the Nest Cam will be the best way to see the chicks.
This story has been updated.
This is why Sacramento could be the new Hollywood
The movie “Lady Bird” has earned high praise and five Academy Award nominations, including Best Director for Greta Gerwig and actress nods for both Laurie Metcalf and Soairse Ronan. But the other star of the film is its location: Sacramento, California.
Gerwig, who also wrote the screenplay, is a native of the state's capital. In interviews, she has gushed about the city.
Sacramento officials and residents are more than happy to get the attention. Some think the state capital can woo more film work away from Los Angeles.
is one of them. The self-taught writer and director has shot four movies in Sacramento.
He had an unlikely beginning as a filmmaker. Taylor was recruited to play basketball in Germany and while he was playing there from 1999 to 2002, he had an idea for a movie.
I don't speak the language. I'm trying to do something to pass the time. So as a movie buff, I find myself going through six or seven movies in the course of two days. I became fascinated with the "making of." This is 15, 16, 17 years ago. Every movie would have the "making of" on a DVD. That was the whole thing. And I pretty much became a film student in my own apartment in Germany.
Taylor worked on a script, and came back to the U.S. to generate interest in the project. It wasn't easy. He was met with closed door after closed door.
https://soundcloud.com/user626880067/no-again
He self-financed his first film with the help of friends and family and in 2007, released the horror movie Dead Tone. That led to more projects like 2014's Supremacy, and Traffik, which hits theaters later in 2018.
Through it all, Taylor has maintained his base in Sacramento. For one, it's far less expensive to secure a permit to film there. He also cites the city's diversity, from its people to its landscape, as a major benefit.
When I go through Sacramento, not only is the capital beautiful, it has so many different looks. You can get on the 50 and you'll be in Tahoe, which is trees and wilderness. I can go downtown and get the buildings and the corporate world. I can go to South Sacramento, to what's called Oak Park, and get dilapidated buildings and project buildings. The city has so many different layers and looks, as a filmmaker you go, wow, this is pretty incredible.