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This State May Be Using Water With Chemicals Linked to Cancer

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According to a new study, 7.5 million Californians may be using water contaminated with PFAs, chemicals that never break down and have been associated with cancer. Although the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) advises a cap of 70 parts per trillion (ppt) PFAS in drinking water, the survey found that over 40% of the 74 water systems that were studied had at least one sample with a level of total PFAS over 70 ppt. . .

The Environmental Protection Agency explained where PFAS can be found:

Food packaged in PFAS-containing materials, processed with equipment that used PFAS, or grown in PFAS-contaminated soil or water. Commercial household products, including stain- and water-repellent fabrics, nonstick products (e.g., Teflon), polishes, waxes, paints, cleaning products, and fire-fighting foams (a major source of groundwater contamination at airports and military bases where firefighting training occurs). Workplace, including production facilities or industries (e.g., chrome plating, electronics manufacturing or oil recovery) that use PFAS. Drinking water, typically localized and associated with a specific facility (e.g., manufacturer, landfill, wastewater treatment plant, firefighter training facility). Living organisms, including fish, animals and humans, where PFAS have the ability to build up and persist over time.

On the effects of these chemicals, the EPA stated, “Studies indicate that PFOA and PFOS can cause reproductive and developmental, liver and kidney, and immunological effects in laboratory animals. Both chemicals have caused tumors in animals.” They added, “The most consistent findings are increased cholesterol levels among exposed populations, with more limited findings related to: low infant birth weights, effects on the immune system, cancer (for PFOA), and thyroid hormone disruption (for PFOS).”

The EWG study noted, “PFAS contamination has been found in more than 800 communities, military bases, airports and industrial sites nationwide. EWG’s analysis of unreleased EPA-mandated test data estimates that more than 100 million Americans may have PFAS in their drinking water. Because PFAS are ‘forever chemicals’ that never break down once released into the environment, they build up in our blood and organs.” The study the cited the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: “virtually all Americans have PFAS in their blood.” (Read more from “This State May Be Using Water With Chemicals Linked to Cancer” HERE)

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California Police Officer Forced to Abandon Chase After Tesla Patrol Vehicle Runs Low on Battery (VIDEO)

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A Tesla electric patrol car fizzled out on an officer in the middle of a police chase in Fremont, California, last week, when a low battery caused the officer to drop his pursuit. . .

“I am down to six miles of battery on the Tesla, so I may lose it here in a sec,” the officer can be heard telling dispatch, according to police radio transmissions obtained by KPIX-TV. “If someone else is able, can they maneuver into the number one spot?”

Other patrol officers were able to jump in and continue chase on the suspect, but ultimately abandoned their pursuit after the situation became dangerous when the suspect began driving erratically. CNN reported that the suspect’s car was later found abandoned in San Jose. . .

The Fremont Police Department is taking part in a six-month pilot program, testing out the using of 2014 Tesla model S 85 vehicles, according to Fox News, “as part of Fremont’s push to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 25 percent from its 2005 baseline by 2020.” (Read more from “California Police Officer Forced to Abandon Chase After Tesla Patrol Vehicle Runs Low on Battery” HERE)

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Federal Judge Hands President Trump a Big Victory Against California

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A federal judge knocked down a new Californian law requiring presidential candidates to disclose their tax returns in order to appear on primary ballots, which was clearly targeting President Donald Trump.

U.S. District Judge Morrison England Jr. issued the temporary injunction on Thursday and said he would put out a final order soon, according to the Los Angeles Times.

The law was seen as a swipe against Trump, who has resisted releasing his tax returns. His critics have accused him of covering up damaging information, but he is not required by law to release them, only by convention. . .

Judge England said that the law would cause “irreparable harm without temporary relief” for candidates including Trump. . .

California’s liberal lawmakers have emerged as some of the more vehement opponents of the president. On Wednesday, Gov. Newsom angrily denounced the president over his decision to end their waivers on federal automobile emission standards. (Read more form “Federal Judge Hands President Trump a Big Victory Against California” HERE)

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California Lawmakers Pass Resolution to Force Churches to ‘Embrace’ Homosexuality

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California lawmakers passed a resolution this month telling “religious groups” — including Christian pastors and churches — to “embrace” the LGBTQ worldview, even if it contradicts the moral values of those religious groups.

Assembly Concurrent Resolution 99, introduced by Democratic Assemblyman Evan Low, also mentions what many believe are problems with so-called “conversion therapy,” or counseling for people struggling with same-sex attraction.

The resolution calls on “all Californians,” including religious groups, to “embrace” the “individual and social benefits of family and community acceptance” of LGBTQ people.

“[T]he Legislature calls upon religious leaders to counsel on LGBTQ matters from a place of love, compassion, and knowledge of the psychological and other harms of conversion therapy,” the resolution states. . .

“The stigma associated with being LGBTQ often created by groups in society, including therapists and religious groups, has caused disproportionately high rates of suicide, attempted suicide, depression, rejection, and isolation amongst LGBTQ and questioning individuals,” the resolution declares. (Read more from “California Lawmakers Pass Resolution to Force Churches to ‘Embrace’ Homosexuality” HERE)

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‘Like a “Dawn of the Dead” Scene’: Shopkeeper Bitten by Homeless Man in California

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A San Francisco business owner is recounting a second run-in with the city’s homeless population that ended in him being bitten.

Gilles DeSaulniers told Tucker Carlson Wednesday about his encounter earlier this month with a homeless man that left him with muscle damage in his arm from the bite wound. . .

“In the process, he decided to bite me, and one of the statements he made was, ‘Why are you even calling the police — they’re not going to do anything — they’re just going to let me go’.”

Carlson said it is unbelievable something like that could happen in an American city.

“This is like a ‘Dawn of the Dead’ scene — you were bitten,” he said. (Read more from “‘Like a “Dawn of the Dead” Scene’: Shopkeeper Bitten by Homeless Man in California” HERE)

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California Adds State to ‘Travel Ban’ Over Refusal to Fund Gender Transitions

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California announced last week that it has added Iowa to the list of states on its ever-expanding “travel ban” list because of that state’s new prohibition against funding gender-transition surgeries under Medicaid.

The announcement by state Attorney General Xavier Becerra means that as of Oct. 4, California will no longer offer taxpayer-funded trips to Iowa for any public employee or student at a state-run university. . .

“The Iowa Legislature has reversed course on what was settled law under the Iowa Civil Rights Act, repealing protections for those seeking gender-affirming health care,” Becerra said in a statement. “California has taken an unambiguous stand against discrimination and government actions that would enable it.”

The brouhaha began after the Iowa Supreme Court ruled in March that taxpayers could be forced to pay for gender reassignment surgery. Republican Gov. Kim Reynolds signed a law effectively overriding that ruling two months later.

“This narrow provision simply clarifies that Iowa’s Civil Rights Act does not require taxpayer dollars to pay for sex reassignment and other similar surgeries,” Reynolds spokesman Pat Garrett said in a statement at the time. “This returns us to what had been the state’s position for years.” (Read more from “California Adds State to ‘Travel Ban’ Over Refusal to Fund Gender Transitions” HERE)

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Disgusting: Activist Throws Menstrual Blood on Lawmakers Amid Protest Over State’s New Vaccination Laws

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The California state Senate was evacuated on Friday, after a protestor in the chamber threw a red liquid — reportedly menstrual blood — onto several lawmakers. The identity of the alleged perpetrator has not been released, but the incident occurred while hundreds of protestors descended on Sacramento to demonstrate against new laws cracking down on vaccine exemptions.

Protestors were reportedly watching the Senate from the upstairs balcony when a woman threw the liquid while yelling at lawmakers. Sen. Scott Weiner (D) wrote on Twitter, “A few minutes ago, the anti-vaxxer stalkers — who’ve engaged in harassment campaign all week — dropped a red substance onto the Senate floor from the elevated public gallery, dousing several of my colleagues. The person who committed this assault screamed it was baby blood.”

Weiner added, “These anti-vaxxers are engaging in criminal behavior. They’ve now repeatedly assaulted Senators & are engaging in harassing & intimidating behavior every single day, as we try to do the people’s work. They’re a cancer on the body politic & are attacking democracy.”

The Sacramento Bee quoted Sen. Steve Glazer (D) as tweeting out, “Senators Galgiani, Hurtado, Skinner, Mitchell, Rubio and me were all hit by red liquid thrown from the Senate gallery. I’m told the person has been arrested. Senate in recess.”

The Senate chambers were evacuated to allow law enforcement to investigate. The California Highway Patrol told Politico the substance was menstrual blood, which was what the activist claimed. The suspect was arrested. (Read more from “Disgusting: Activist Throws Menstrual Blood on Lawmakers Amid Protest Over State’s New Vaccination Laws” HERE)

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Federal Judge Reinstates Order Blocking Trump Immigration Policy Nationwide

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A federal judge in California has disregarded a higher court’s ruling to reinstate a nationwide injunction against one of the Trump administration’s new immigration rules.

On Monday, U.S. District Judge Jon Tigar issued a court order for a nationwide halt to enforcement of a Trump administration rule requiring asylum-seekers who come through multiple countries to apply for refuge in a safe “third country” along the way.

Tigar had already blocked the rule once before in mid-August, but — after the case was appealed — the injunction was dialed back by the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals, which limited to the injunction to areas within their geographic territory. In effect, this meant that the new policy would only have gone into effect for the time being in Texas and New Mexico, but not in Arizona and California, which are within the 9th Circuit’s territory.

“While nationwide injunctions are not the ‘general rule,’ ” Tigar — an Obama appointee who is a judge for the Northern District of California — concluded in his latest decision, “they are appropriate ‘where such breadth [is] necessary to remedy a plaintiff’s harm.'” . . .

“While a small number of suits present matters and settings for which nationwide injunctive relief is appropriate, federal district court judges have issued nationwide injunctions in situations far beyond that set,” writes Ronald Cass — dean emeritus of the Boston University School of Law — in a 2018 academic paper. “Expanded use of nationwide injunctions—especially broad injunctions against the United States—undermines rule-of-law values, threatens the operation of courts as impartial arbiters of disputes over legal rights, erodes the Constitution’s careful separation of functions among the branches of government, and is at odds with basic aspects of the federal judiciary’s design, including its geographic divisions.” (Read more from “Federal Judge Reinstates Order Blocking Trump Immigration Policy Nationwide” HERE)

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You Just Can’t Make This Up: This Is What California Dems Are Proposing to Address Its Rat Problem

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California’s decades-long affair with liberal politics has brought disease—literally. Rats are overrunning parts of the state. It’s only amplified by the rising homelessness crisis. For a region of the country that is smug, wealthy, and condescending to no end about how great they are—they do have a lot of bums in the street, fecal matter in the street, and hypodermic needles in the street. San Francisco is covered in crap. And the solution is quite simple: clean up the damn cities. But that would mean be mean to homeless people or something. Well, they’re ground zero for the rat infestation, which has brought back diseases we haven’t seen on such a daily basis since medieval times. Typhus has broken out. Police stations in Los Angeles were forced to pay fines that soared into the thousands of dollars due to the unsanitary conditions. City hall is running wild with rats. And now the state EPA office in Sacramento was forced to close its outdoor playground due to their rat problem; they were worried about kids getting sick. And what is the state proposing now? Oh, they want to ban rat poison (via WSJ):

Democrats in Sacramento are now moving legislation to ban “second-generation” rodenticides that are more potent than earlier poisons against which rats have developed immunity. “Predatory species, such as raptors, bobcats, and foxes, regularly consume rodents as part of their diet. Poisoned rodents also become more lethargic and exhibit abnormal behavior,” a bill analysis notes. But “data are less conclusive in pointing to [anticoagulant rodenticides] as the specific cause of death in necropsied animals.”

(Read more from “You Just Can’t Make This Up: This Is What California Dems Are Proposing to Address Its Rat Problem” HERE)

[Image credit belongs to: Jared Belson]

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Gang Members Involved in Cop Shooting Laugh While Receiving Life Sentences

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On Monday, two men who reputedly belonged to a California gang that saw police as “the enemy” and honored the murder of police officers as a badge of pride reportedly smiled and laughed as they were sentenced to life in prison for the 2015 shooting of a Merced police officer.

As the Merced Sun Star reported, Jaime Caudillo and Steven Rincon were convicted in late May, with the jury finding Caudillo guilty of shooting Merced Police Officer Ryan Rasmussen and Rincon guilty of serving as the getaway driver. Rasmussen lost the little finger on his right hand; he has been hired as an investigator with the Merced County District Attorney’s Office.

On February 28, 2015, when Rasmussen stopped their vehicle, Caudillo opened fire, hitting Rasmussen; Officers Brian Rinder and Joseph Opinski returned fire and hit Caudillo. Rincon fled with the car but crashed in an alley, then fled on foot, prompting a ten-hour search before he was found.

On Monday, Rasmussen read an impact statement, stating, “(Caudillo) stripped me of my career.” Rasmussen’s mother Judith commented that neither of the defendants showed remorse; Merced County Judge Carol Ash echoed the same perspective. When Judith Rasmussen stated of the defendants, “I pray that they ask God for forgiveness,” Rincon could be seen laughing.

Caudillo received 50 years and eight months to life; Rincon was sentenced to 80 years to life in prison as this was his third strike. The Merced Sun Star added. “Rincon already was sentenced this summer to more than 50 years to life in prison for the jailhouse murder of Aaron Bonilla, according to court records. Rincon and fellow gang members Reyes Carrillo and Alfonso Martinez attacked Bonilla for ‘a long period of time’ and killed him, authorities said.” (Read more from “Gang Members Involved in Cop Shooting Laugh While Receiving Life Sentences” HERE)

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