California's environmental goals if the US leaves the Paris climate accord, snowmelt making rivers more dangerous, LA Pride Parade shifts to political protest.
Paris climate accord: How California could fill the gap
The announcement came down Thursday: The US is out of the Paris Climate Accord.
The international agreement links nearly 200 countries in a global effort to reduce the causes and impacts of climate change.
But now, California is uniquely positioned to become the flag bearer in the fight against climate change.
For more on California's possible role, Take Two spoke to Cara Horowitz, co-executive director of the Emmett Institute on Climate Change and the Environment at UCLA.
California policies go global
California has one of the most ambitious statewide goals for reducing its climate emissions and it has policies in place already that it has developed from scratch to help meet those goals. It has the first cap and trade program in the country. It has clean car standards, so when you drive a car now in the United States it's subject to an emissions standard for greenhouse gases that was developed first here in California.
It's doing so to be a model for others so that others can come here, look at our policies and adopt them back home if they want to.
International coalition work
California has partnered with cities and provinces from around the world to set and meet certain emissions standards. It's called the Under2 Coalition and it could now be expanded.
I think California is working to expand it regardless of whether we pull out. As it stands, the members of the Under2 Coalition represent more than one-third of the world's GDP. It continues to expand, and those countries share things like pathways to 2050 decarbonization and tools to track their greenhouse gas emissions.
Research and development
I think one of the things we're likely to lose at the federal level... is robust funding for research and development to help us create technological solutions to the problem of climate change. Those might be renewable energy breakthroughs, or ways to store energy in batteries or other technologies that make the pathway to decarbonization much less expensive and much easier.
If we're not getting that funding from the Feds, I think it's possible that California may step up to the plate. It certainly doesn't have the deep pockets of the Feds, but it could do a lot to backstop that funding.
Press the blue play button above to hear the full interview.
This post has been updated.
Transparency and the LA Sheriff's Department
Last week the Sheriff Civilian Oversight Commission renewed efforts to make incidents involving use of force and discipline more transparent.
The resolution was passed unanimously by the newly created 9-member commission, and it included recommendations like publishing information about the number of times deputies are disciplined, and what kinds of actions warranted the discipline.
The commission also sought to have a more complete picture of the events that might be related to deputy involved shootings.
But in an unexpected turn, the union that represents rank and file deputies responded by saying that they'd like even more information collected.
We talk about it with KPCC’s Frank Stoltze.
Rivers are more treacherous because of snowmelt
Over the past several months, California amassed a record snowpack.
But as temperatures rise and that snow melts, the state's rivers are turning into more treacherous waters.
Just last weekend, three people died and 24 more needed to be rescued at Kern River in Central California.
Mike Mohler, battalion chief for CalFIRE, joined Take Two with some advice if you plan to have fun near a river this summer.
Sports Roundup: Golden State and the Cleveland Cavaliers set to battle... Again
This week, the Golden State Warriors and the Cleveland Cavaliers meet for the third time in the NBA Finals.
This is what most basketball fans thought would happen, and maybe even WANTED to happen. Right?
We'll get a preview, and also talk about how the dominance of the Cavs and Warriors affect the rest of the league.
A Martinez talks about that and a lot more with Andy and Brian Kamenetzky.
Resist March replaces LA Pride Parade — and some resist the change
June is Pride Month, and one of the marquee events is the parade where people line the streets of West Hollywood to watch floats, dancers and celebrities go by.
But this year, the tone of the celebration is shifting from pride to protest.
"We’ve converted the parade, floats and fun to a march for civil rights," says Brian Pendleton, organizer of what's now called the Resist March on Sunday, June 11th.
Instead of staying within the boundaries of West Hollywood, like parades in past years, this time it’s starting off at Hollywood Blvd and Highland Ave.
"It’s where The Oscars happen now and, serendipitously, that’s where LA Pride was born in 1970," he says. One of the world's first LGBT Pride marches took place at the same location.
People will weave through Hollywood before ending at the LA Pride Festival grounds in West Hollywood.
The Resist March is in coordination with protests in more than 50 cities around the world, all taking place under the banner, "Equality March for Unity and Pride."
"You have the science march, the climate march, the women’s march, the immigration march," says Anika Simpson, co-organizer of the international effort. "I feel a sense of solidarity across these groups."
And Pendleton thinks the Resist March is taking the baton.
"We’re lending our giant iconic rainbow flag not just to the LGBTQ community, but to anyone who feels threatened," he says.
Some people are raining on the parade march
Major sponsors who’ve supported the LA Pride Parade in the past, like Nissan and Skyy Vodka, have bailed on the Resist March.
Wells Fargo was a longtime one, too, and a spokesman says it would have backed a parade. But as a policy, it won’t sponsor political or partisan rallies.
Pendleton is unaffected, and says he didn't want to reach out to companies about sponsorship, either.
"I think people would find that rather dubious and wonder if their messaging has been co-opted by corporate America," he says.
That sentiment is shared by transwoman Drian Juarez, who grew increasingly uncomfortable with the amount of branding and sponsorships at past Pride events.
"For me it’s not about these corporations usurping our movement," she says. "For me, the Resist March is really about coming back to our roots."
Then there are others who are resisting the Resist March because they’re conservative.
"It’s just very disappointing to me," says Matthew Craffey, head of the LA chapter of the Log Cabin Republicans, an LGBT group. "I feel this is the one weekend a year we really can put the politics aside."
He says that the Pride Parade welcomed everyone in the LGBT community, including conservatives. But Craffey is skeptical that he'd be greeted with open arms at the Resist March, even if organizers say the event isn't partisan.
"There’s no doubt in my mind it’ll be anti-Republican," he says. "Resist marches across the country have a pretty focused target and that is the Trump administration."
Craffey also argues that Trump, himself, has not done anything to rollback LGBT rights.
"There’s been a lot of panic about what President Trump might do," he says. "I would just say this: We still have the right to marry; we still have all the rights when he came into office we had."
Resist, but resist what?
Others are unclear about the march's goal.
Oliver Alpulche owns Redline, a gay bar in downtown LA. He leans more liberal but wants more direction about what he should be protesting against.
"What are the points that are going to resonate with the entire LGBTQ community to say, 'This is what we stand for and this is why we’re basically giving up the Pride Parade?'" he asks.
Plus, Alpuche believes organizers have not been clear in their messaging about what should happen when the Resist March ends.
"Doing a march and ending at the Pride Festival, is it to just get people to filter down into the Festival?" he wonders. "If no one knows what to do afterwards, the next day people are just going to move on to the next topic of conversation. When do we stop becoming activists and when do we start becoming leaders?"
But the leader of LA’s Resist March, Brian Pendleton, believes the event is taking a page from LGBT history to face the future of American politics.
"This idea that we’re getting back to our roots as a protest organization rather than as a parading organization felt right," he says.
And Pendleton hopes that when people participate in a march to resist, they can walk away proud.
California State Assembly bill would ban pet stores from doing business with puppy mills
New legislation on its way to the California Senate would require pet stores to only sell dogs, cats and rabbits obtained from a shelter or other non-profits.
At the heart of AB 485, which passed the State Assembly Tuesday, is the goal of ending so-called puppy mills and other large scale breeding operations that have been charged with unsafe and unsanitary conditions.
Assemblyman Patrick O'Donnell hopes the measure will discourage people from breeding them this way.
"I think the ultimate goal is to stop the puppy mills that are breeding animals, thousands of them in the Midwest, and then shipping them to California for sale and for profit, wherein at the same time we have thousands of animals that sit in shelters that go without a loving home.”
The Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council, which includes big chains like Petco, opposes the bill.
"Banning non-rescue, non-shelter pet sales of cats, rabbits, and dogs could close pet stores across the state," said PIJAC President and CEO Mike Bober. "This is going to simultaneously put hundreds of people out of work and reduce the state's protections for prospective pet owners."
He says the ban would do little to discourage puppy mills, citing that few people actually get their pets from pet stores.
The bill received bi-partisan support and builds on the work of the 33 cities and counties in California that have already banned the sale of such animals at pet stores.