"My solution starts at the top: firing the whole board who presided over Trump and DeJoy's wrecking of USPS," said Rep. Bill Pascrell, Jr.

By Jake Johnson, staff writer, Common Dreams

Originally published by Common Dreams under a Creative Commons license

February 8, 2021 (Washington, D.C.) - With Postmaster General Louis DeJoy reportedly preparing to unveil plans for another round of service cuts and operational changes as soon as this week, President Joe Biden is facing growing calls from lawmakers, mail carriers and others to take urgent steps to protect the U.S. Postal Service from further damage, pave the way for DeJoy's removal, and shore up the agency's finances for the near and distant future.

Source: Poway OnStage

In Poway OnStage’s Virtual Field Trip celebrating Black History Month, Jazzy Ash will introduce students to the musical stylings of zydeco, jazz, blues and swing in her energetic and engaging concert. The free virtual concert is ongoing from now until February 26, 2021[days & times]

Ash draws out the roots of West African song traditions, rhythms and games. Extension activities include interactive Instrument Match game, a storybook reading and a visual art lesson.

February 7, 2021 (San Diego's East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

• US children will 'hopefully' get vaccines in late spring or early summer, says Fauci (Guardian)
• The Differences Between the Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson Coronavirus Vaccines Explained (KQED)
• Sociopathic traits linked to not wearing a mask or social distancing during pandemic: study (CNBC)
• J&J files COVID-19 vaccine application with U.S. FDA (Reuters)
  
  5 Hacks And Tips To Make Your Face Mask More Protective (NPR)
• Trump White House donated 8,700 ventilators to other nations. Officials now don’t know where many of them are, watchdog finds. (Washington Post)
• South African scientists discover new chemicals that kill malaria parasite (Reuters)
  
  While COVID is raging, flu cases remain unusually low (Healthline)
• Gut bacteria tied to disease severity, immune response; high mental health toll seen in ICUs )Reuters)
• Hackers leak "manipulated" Covid-19 vaccine data to undermine public trust (Techspoit)
• Three Most Dangerous Underlying Conditions for COVID-19 (AARP)
• In pandemic, more people choose to die at home (AP)

SCIENCE

• As Jeff Bezos steps down, Amazon stakes its future on the cloud (CNN)
• Exclusive: Suspected Chinese hackers used SolarWinds bug to spy on U.S. payroll agency – sources (Reuters)
• Fast-Growing Alternative To Facebook And Twitter Finds Post-Trump Surge 'Messy' (NPR)

For excerpts and links to full stories, click “read more” and scroll down.

By Sam Bowman, EarthTalk

February 7, 2021 (San Diego) - The housing market has never been in a greater state of flux. The pandemic has lowered interest rates and increased home values in never-seen-before ways. In addition, in spite of the coronavirus — and at times because of it — many have made moves for both professional and personal reasons.

By Alexa Oslowski

February 7, 2021 (La Mesa) – In response to community concerns following several controversial police use-of-force incidents, the La Mesa City Council selected members for the 11-person Community Police Oversight Board at the Jan. 12 Council meeting. 

Reprinted from Times of San Diego, a member of the San Diego Online News Association

Photo: Congregants worship at South Bay Pentecostal Church in Chula Vista in June 2019 photo. Image via foursquare.com

February 6, 2021 (San Diego) -- The Supreme Court on Friday overturned judges who supported California’s pandemic-driven ban on indoor church services, ruling that the state’s health orders violate the Constitution’s religious protections.

By Laurel Rosenhall, CalMatters

CalMatters is an independent public interest journalism venture covering California state politics and government.

Photo:  Recall Newsom volunteer Pat Miller holds up a sign during petition-signing event at SaveMart in Sacramento on Jan. 5, 2021. Photo by Anne Wernikoff, CalMatters

February 5, 2021 (Sacramento) - “Recall Gavin Newsom” signs are popping up around California. At shopping centers and street protests, people fed up with the Democratic governor are asking voters to sign petitions. What began as a far-fetched effort by Republican activists has turned into a credible campaign attempting to throw Newsom out of office.

By Miriam Raftery

Photos, left:  Campo Wind's turbines hae been fire-prone, causing multiple fires in the past. Residents worry that more turbines raise the risk of a catastrophic fire, if a blaze should begin during Santa Ana gusty winds.

February 5, 2021 (San Diego’s East County) – A vote by County Supervisors on a Renewable Energy Overlay plan has been postponed until Wednesday, Feb. 10. If approved, the measure would designate vast swaths of rural East County for industrial-scale wind and solar energy projects.

The aim is to make it easier to get approval of projects that provide clean energy to meet state renewable energy mandates amid a climate crisis.  But the measure has also drawn strong opposition from some rural residents, including Donna Tisdale, who advise East County residents to contact Supervisors to voice opposition so that “Supervisors know how East County really feels about being thrown under the bus as a renewable energy sacrifice zone.”

Click on this link to register your  opinion with Supervisors on the Renewable Energy Overlay before the Feb. 10 hearing, which begins at 9 a.m.  The item is the second item on the agenda.

Tisdale is Chair of the Boulevard Planning Group and founder of Backcountry Against Dumps, a nonprofit that has sued the County over several major energy projects in the region. Residents living near existing wind turbines have complained of noise, sleep disruption and other health problems, flashing lights, visual blight from towers hundreds of feet tall, killing of birds, safety concerns from blades whirling off,loss of rural character and loss of property value for homes nearby. Solar projects have generated concerns over glare, loss of wildlife habitat and potential depletion of scarce groundwater for construction and cleaning of panels.

By Suzanne Potter, California News Service

Photo via Pixabay

February 5, 2021 (Pismo Beach, CA). -- The Western Monarch butterfly population that overwinters in California has dropped to devastating levels, with only 1,914 individuals spotted in this year's winter count.

They've been declining for decades, but experts say they may have reached an extinction threshold in 2018 when volunteers only counted 30,000.

Angela Laws, endangered-species conservation biologist for the Xerces Society, said the population appears to be collapsing.

"It's a 99.9% drop from the '80s, when there were an estimated four million monarchs overwintering along the California coast," Laws outlined. "It's a big drop in their population. It's very worrying."

East County News Service

February 4, 2021 (San Diego) - Verizon is offering $10 million in grants to help small businesses impacted by COVID-19.  The applications will go live on Monday, Feb. 8 and applications must be completed by Tuesday, Feb. 9.

By Miriam Raftery

February 4, 2021 (Santee) – Hikers found  human remains yesterday on a trail in the Fanita Ranch area.  The identity of the deceased is unknown, says Lt. Thomas Seiver with the Sheriff’s homicide unit.

Sheriff’s deputies responded shortly after 4 p.m. yesterday near Summit Ave. and Summit Crest Drive.

According to Fox5, the hikers said they were looking for snakes off the trail when they spotted a skull and numerous bones.

The Sheriff's Homicide Unit is investigating and coordinate with the Medical Examiner's Office, which is working to identify the remains and determine the cause and manner of death.

Source:  goaztecs.com

Photo courtesy goaztecs.com

February 3, 2021 (San Diego) - The Aztec women’s basketball team (5-11, 3-7) fell to New Mexico (8-2, 5-2) 84-48 Wednesday evening inside Viejas Arena. SDSU led by one at the half but the Lobos caught fire in the third quarter to pull away.

By Miriam Raftery

Photo: Creative Commons by SA-NC via Bing

February 3, 2021 (La Mesa) – The La Mesa-Spring Valley School District is establishing a Citizens’ Bond Oversight Committee, as required by state law. The application form is available here and must be submitted by Feb. 19.