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Marijuana might finally be reclassified in the U.S.: What that would mean

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:07:39 GMT

The news lit up the world of weed: U.S. health regulators are suggesting that the federal government loosen restrictions on marijuana. Specifically, the federal Health and Human Services Department has recommended taking marijuana out of a category of drugs deemed to have “no currently accepted medical use and a high potential for abuse.” The agency advised moving pot from that “Schedule I” group to the less tightly regulated “Schedule III.” So what does that mean, and what are the implications? Read on.FIRST OF ALL, WHAT HAS ACTUALLY CHANGED? WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?Technically, nothing yet. Any decision on reclassifying — or “rescheduling,” in government lingo — is up to the Drug Enforcement Administration, which says it will take up the issue. The review process is lengthy and involves taking public comment.Still, the HHS recommendation is “paradigm-shifting, and it’s very exciting,” said Vince Sliwoski, a Portland, Oregon-based cannabis and psychedelics attorney who runs well-known le...

From Beyonce to Bad Religion — the New LA Weekly Playlist is Live

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:07:39 GMT

From Beyonce to Bad Religion: The 172nd LA Weekly playlist, reviewing the musicians that we’ve been writing about all week, is live now. There’s electronic music from Arnold & Lane, hip-hop from Lil Kayla, R&B from Beyonce, punk from Bad Religion and DFL, metal from Metallica and Pantera, and so much more.Find us on Spotify here,or on Soundcloud here.Don’t forget to “Like” the playlists and “Follow” the profiles.Sofia Valdes (Olivia Parker and Parker Hao)From Beyonce to Bad ReligionAlso this week:Print star Sofía Valdés told us of her new album that, ““Silvia was the thing that connected all of it without me even knowing it. This entire time, I would go back to listening to my great grandparents’ music, thinking what am I doing, why am I doing this, is this worth my mental health? But it was super interesting for me that they dedicated their life to music. It was something bigger than them. And I do think that going through that, they also understood that whatever they...

Timothy McFarland Killed in Motorcycle Collision on West Seventh Avenue [Kennewick, WA]

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:07:39 GMT

40-Year-Old Motorcyclist Dies in Collision with Vehicle on South Vancouver StreetKENNEWICK, WA (August 31, 2023) – Late Wednesday evening, police responded to a crash that claimed the life of Timothy McFarland.The collision happened on August 23rd, at around 11:20 p.m, involving a motorcycle and a passenger vehicle.According to reports, a passenger vehicle was headed westbound on Seventh Avenue when it entered the intersection at Vancouver Street. There, McFarland, on a motorcycle, traveling south on Vancouver Street, struck the passenger vehicle.The impact of the collision caused the motorcyclist to sustain serious injuries. Officials at the site of the collision pronounced the rider, 40-year-old Timothy McFarland, dead at the scene.Meanwhile, the driver of the passenger vehicle did not sustain any injuries.No other details were added by the investigators. and the Kennewick Police Department Traffic Unit took over the investigation.The Sweet James team sends their warm and si...

Former California high school water polo players allege sexual abuse by ex-coach

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:07:39 GMT

Former El Segundo High School water polo coach and teacher George Harris Jr. sexually harassed and molested minor-aged male high school players between 2002 and 2010, three former El Segundo players allege in a lawsuit.Harris routinely sexually harassed players at practices and at school and in late night telephone calls in which he encouraged them to masturbate, pressured them to share details about their sexual relationships with their girlfriends, and provided them with alcohol, marijuana and pornography in attempts to induce them to having sex with him, according to the lawsuit filed against Harris and the El Segundo Unified School District in Los Angeles Superior Court.A former player who attended El Segundo High between 2005-09 alleges in the lawsuit that a parent of another student complained to the school’s principal about Harris’ continued sexual harassment and grooming, but that the school district took no action “to monitor, supervise or otherwise investigate Harris and p...

What to play: ‘Starfield’ dominates the weekend, but there are other RPGs to explore

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:07:39 GMT

“Starfield” doesn’t officially come out for another few days, but those who purchased the Premium or Constellation edition will have an early jump on the epic space-faring role-playing game. It’s an ideal time to jump in because the long three-day weekend offers ample opportunity to take a bite out of the adventure.But if weeks-long adventures aren’t your thing, there are other titles coming out this week that can keep you occupied. Here’s a roundup of what to play this weekend.“Starfield” — Bethesda Game Studios’ first new universe in 29 years will have you hooked from the get-go. Players create a character, and through a mining job on a distant moon, they touch an artifact and become the protagonist in a mystery that will take them to more than a 1,000 planets and tackle adventures big and small throughout the cosmos.“Starfield” is such an enormous game that I’ve played 20 hours and I still haven’t...

Stanford, UC Berkeley to join Atlantic Coast Conference in 2024

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:07:39 GMT

(KRON) -- Stanford University and University of California Berkeley announced Friday morning they will be joining the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2024.Stanford says the academic success of its student athletes as well as their wellbeing remained an important factor throughout the process following an invitation from the ACC. The university is working with the ACC on scheduling in order to ensure travel does not hinder the academic success of their athletes.Stanford anticipates 22 of its 36 sports will see little to no scheduling impacts. "Student-athletes come to Stanford to pursue their highest academic and athletic potential, and joining the ACC gives us the ability to continue offering them that opportunity at a national level. We appreciate the dedicated efforts of Commissioner Jim Phillips and the leaders of the ACC member institutions to create this promising path forward," said Stanford University President Richard Saller.UC Berkeley said they accepted ACC's invitation after...

Santa Rosa apartment fire leaves 3 people without a home

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:07:39 GMT

(KRON) -- A loud "boom" was heard at a two-story apartment complex prompting fire crews to respond Thursday afternoon, according to the Santa Rosa Fire Department.SRFD arrived in under four minutes and located a fire in the backyard of an apartment that had spread to both floors of one unit and into the attic. The blaze had broken all sliding glass doors on both floors which made easier access for crews to enter, the fire department said. Driver in Vallejo police chase crashes into car, kills occupant before escaping: police Firefighters climbed to the roof to cut ventilation openings while crews inside the apartment as well as in the backyard worked to extinguish the blaze. The fire was contained within 20 minutes of crews arriving, SRFD said.The fire did not spread to the other two apartments. Crews searched all three apartments and found no occupants. It was later learned, a neighbor had knocked on the door of an apartment to alert the occupants of an exterior fire. The occupa...

Company behind mysterious Solano County land acquisitions launches website after criticism from lawmakers

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:07:39 GMT

(BCN) -- A group of Silicon Valley investors behind a land acquisition company called Flannery Associates LLC launched a website Thursday previewing plans for building a new city in Solano County, days after California lawmakers at the state and federal level urged more transparency from the company. The California state Senate's agriculture committee held a hearing Tuesday that covered threats to California's agriculture industry and heard testimony on the land acquisitions, which have included 400 parcels bought up over the last five years by a company that had no identifiable officers or investors. San Jose women charged after infested langsat fruit seized Flannery Associates has bought 55,000 acres of land since 2018, much of it owned by family farmers, but investors in the company remained hidden because it was registered in Delaware, which does not require a corporation's officers to be public. "Just last week, Aug. 22, Flannery Associates finally revealed, afte...

Stolen truck crashes into SUV in Sonoma County hit-and-run, injures 74-year-old woman

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:07:39 GMT

(KRON) -- A 74-year-old woman was injured after a hit-and-run Wednesday morning in Sonoma County, CHP Santa Rosa said on Facebook. The driver of a stolen septic truck lost control and crashed head-on into a Mercedes-Benz SUV near Calistoga Road and Alpine Road around 11:38 a.m. The septic truck rolled onto the roadway before crashing into the SUV. The 74-year-old female driver suffered major injuries, CHP said. ‘Sick and tired’: Oakland restaurant acquires parking lot, hires security to prevent car break-ins The male driver of the stolen truck ran away from the scene before authorities arrived. Photos of the crash were posted by CHP (below).(CHP Santa Rosa)(CHP Santa Rosa)As of Thursday evening, CHP has not reported that the suspect driver was located. Anyone with information about this crash or the suspect who left the scene is asked to call 707-588-1400.

Disney Lists $330,000 Crisis PR Job After CEO Insults Striking Actors and Writers

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 11:07:39 GMT

Amid the Hollywood strike, Disney is looking to hire a senior executive to “lead crisis communications response efforts,” as well as other senior communications experts to “retain” and “motivate” employees, according to company job postings reviewed by The Intercept. One posting offers up to $337,920 for a vice president of public affairs to lead a “communications team to assist senior executives in preparing for media events” and “interviews.” The posting follows a disastrous July 13 interview by CNBC of Disney chief executive Bob Iger, in which he called the actors and writers strikes “very disturbing,” their demands “not realistic,” and coming at “the worst time in the world.”The interview was widely panned as a catastrophe, with the Hollywood Reporter calling it “infamous” in an article titled “Unpacking Bob Iger’s Terrible, Horrible, No Good PR Week.” The same week, one day prior to the interview, Disney announced that his contract was being extended to 2026, raising his t...