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California Bar Taking On City Hall Over Sign Supporting Veterans

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Photo Credit: Fox News A California bar owner is asking veterans to rally behind him after claiming that the city of Huntington Beach is ordering him to remove a sign on his roof that salutes those who served.

The city says it’s all a big mistake — that the issue really is about permits, not wording. But the bar’s co-owner, in turn, claims the city is not being truthful and says there’s “something fishy” about the whole situation.

The center of the dispute, an illuminated sign on the roof of Johnny’s Saloon, proclaims, “THANK a VETERAN for your FREEDOM” and is popular among the bar’s clientele–a lot of former soldiers.

But an anonymous person reportedly complained to the city and the bar owners now say the city is forcing them to take it down.

According to local reports, the owners of Johnny’s, John Marovic and Johnny Kresimir, say they received a letter in the mail this week from the city ,stating that they were required to remove the sign within two days or face nearly $1,000 in fines.

Read more from this story HERE.

Video: Sharks Swim Just Feet Away from Surfers

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Photo Credit: Jay Dohner/YouTubeIt’s not exactly beach season in Southern California.

But even with small surf to feast on surfers are enjoying glassy waves on recent sunny mornings. And ocean temps relatively warm for this time of year.

The folks in the water off El Porto in Manhattan Beach have company:

Sharks.

A local paddle boarder, Jay Dohner, grabbed his GoPro camera after seeing the creatures swimming off El Porto.

Read more from this story HERE.

Solar Firm Linked to Obama Donors Could Be ‘Next Solyndra,’ top GOP Sen. Warns

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Photo Credit: REUTERSA California-based solar company backed by several Obama supporters has been receiving millions in federal tax credits while losing $322 million since 2008, raising concerns about the company “becoming the next Solyndra.”

Among SolarCity Corp.’s biggest investors is Elon Musk — the high-profile donor and fundraiser who co-founded PayPal and whose companies SpaceX and electric-car company Tesla Motors have received at least $846 million in loans and startup money from the Obama administration.

Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions, the top Republican on the Senate Budget Committee, warned about SolarCity’s financial standing in a letter Monday to the Treasury Department.

“There is concern that SolarCity might become the next Solyndra — a company propped on the back of the taxpayers,” Sessions wrote.

The company fired back Tuesday, specifically against the Solyndra comparison.

Read more from this story HERE.

Man Tased, Arrested Over Leash-Law Violation

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Photo Credit: Opposing Views California resident Gary Hesterberg was running the trails with his two dogs at Rancho Corral de Tierra in San Mateo County last year when he was stopped by a park ranger for not leashing his terrier (his other dog, a beagle, was on a leash). When the ranger, Sarah Cavallaro, would not let Hesterberg walk away after a verbal warning, he accused her of unlawful detainment and attempted to leave anyway. She tased him, and he collapsed to the ground. Then police came to arrest him, and detained him for eight hours.

Hesterberg is suing for violation of his Fourth Amendment rights as well as battery. The 9th Circuit could not decide his case in a summary judgment , so the plaintiff is now headed for trial.

Witness John Bartlett described the scene to the San Francisco Chronicle: “He said something about ‘are you going to arrest me,’ something like that, and the next thing I heard was a shot and a scream of agony from him as he fell on his back. He seemed to be out for two or three minutes.”

Bartlett also said, “It did rattle me. I’ve never seen anything like it. I’m 77 years old, never had such an emotional reaction to something. I didn’t know if the guy was dying. For a leash on a dog…”

Read more from this story HERE.

Democrat Senators Co-Sponsoring Bill To ‘Keep Your Healthcare Plan’

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Photo Credit: KAREN BLEIER/AFP/GettyBy CBS Sacramento/AP.

Health insurer Anthem Blue Cross of California has agreed to a two-month extension of about 104,000 individual policies after failing to give the required 90-day cancellation notice, state Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones announced Tuesday.

The policies had been set to expire on Dec. 31 but will be extended until Feb. 28 for those who choose to re-enroll. Notices informing customers of the extension will be sent out this week, Anthem said.

Read more from this story HERE.

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Photo Credit: APDianne Feinstein joins push to keep health plans

By Seung Min Kim.

It’s not just red-state Democrats who want to take aggressive steps to mend controversial provisions in Obamacare.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) said Tuesday that she will co-sponsor a bill by Sen. Mary Landrieu (D-La.) to require insurance companies to continue offering their existing health care plans — a way to make good on President Barack Obama’s promise that consumers can keep their current coverage if they like it.

“This bill provides a simple fix to a complex problem,” Feinstein said in a statement Tuesday, calling Landrieu’s proposal a “commonsense fix” and urged Congress to pass it “quickly.”

But Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) has no plans to bring Obamacare delay bills to the floor, and most Senate Democrats appear to be waiting until the end of the month — the date by which the administration has promised to fix the problematic health care website — to demand major delays to the law’s implementation.

Read more from this story HERE.

Massive Barge On San Francisco Bay Likely Secret Google Facility (+video)

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Photo Credit: CBSThe U.S. Navy had its share of secrets on Treasure Island, but few were better kept than what’s taking place on a mysterious barge just off the island.

The barge, with a four-story stack of shipping containers, is out in the open for all to see. But the project’s purpose has been kept under wraps, and virtually no one wants to talk about it for the record, from the harbor office at Clipper Cove to the Treasure Island Development Authority to the U.S. Coast Guard.

“I don’t know anything about it, honestly I don’t,” a voice on the intercom at the Clipper Cove told KPIX 5. “It’s a complete mystery to me.”

There has, of course, been speculation about the barge’s purpose, much of it centering on the belief that it’s a water-based data center for Google.

KPIX 5 has learned that Google is actually building a floating marketing center, a kind of giant Apple store, if you will — but for Google Glass, the cutting-edge wearable computer the company has under development.

Read more from this story HERE.

Timeline: Decision to Shoot Boy Made in 10 Seconds

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Photo Credit: Conner Jay/APThat’s how much time passed after a California sheriff’s deputy reported a suspicious person to dispatch then called back to say shots had been fired.

The shots killed 13-year-old Andy Lopez on Tuesday afternoon in a blue-collar neighborhood in Santa Rosa. Police say Lopez was carrying a pellet gun that looked like an AK-47 assault rifle.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation announced late Friday that it is conducting its own investigation of the shooting, which has outraged many local residents who are demanding to know whether the shooting was justified.

More than 100 angry middle and high school students walked to City Hall on Friday, the Santa Rosa Press Democrat reported. Hundreds of people protested earlier in the week.

City police and the Sonoma County district attorney’s office are also investigating.

Read more from this story HERE.

Police Officer Who Pepper-Sprayed UC Davis Protesters Awarded $38,000 Settlement (+video)

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Photo Credit: Wayne Tilcock, The Davis EnterpriseA former University of California-Davis police officer made famous after being filmed pepper-spraying seated activists during a Nov. 2011 protest has been awarded a $38,059 workers’ compensation settlement, The Guardian reports.

John Pike, a 40-year-old former lieutenant on the university police force, claimed he suffered from depression and anxiety after receiving death threats following the incident.

A judge approved the settlement between Pike and the university on Oct. 16, according to KCRA.

Read more from this story HERE.

Los Angeles School District Wants Teachers to Wear Pro-Gay Badges

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Photo Credit: John Deasy/CBS screenshotLos Angeles public schools are encouraging teachers and staff to wear badges that identify them as “LGBT allies” and supporters of the pro-gay movement.

Superintendent John Deasy kicked off the effort Thursday, which he said was necessary to prevent gay kids from being bullied.

“We want all our youth and staff to know that it is safe to be you in LAUSD,” said Deasy in a statement to the Los Angeles Times.

The move is part of the L.A. Gay and Lesbian Center’s “Out for Safe Schools” initiative….

Because nothing deters bullies like having their victims’ specialness publicly praised by authority figures, the L.A. Gay and Lesbian Center applauded the school district for its “groundbreaking” work in applauding gay students.

Read more from this story HERE.

California Gov. Vetoes Semi-Automatic Rifle Ban

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Photo Credit: Townhall Gov. Jerry Brown vetoed a bill Friday that would have imposed the nation’s toughest gun ownership restrictions on Californians, saying it was too far-reaching.

The legislation would have banned future sales of most semi-automatic rifles that accept detachable magazines, part of a firearms package approved by state lawmakers in response to mass shootings in other states.

It was lawmakers’ latest attempt to close loopholes that have allowed manufacturers to work around previous assault weapon bans. Gun rights groups had threatened to sue if the semi-automatic weapons ban became law.

“I don’t believe that this bill’s blanket ban on semi-automatic rifles would reduce criminal activity or enhance public safety enough to warrant this infringement on gun owners’ rights,” the Democratic governor wrote in his veto message.

He also noted that California already has some of the nation’s strictest gun and ammunition laws.

Read more from this story HERE.