By Fire Chief Sam DiGiovanna

November 10, 2016 (San Diego) -- Veterans Day is an important day for showing appreciation to members of our military, past and present. If you're looking for an appropriate way to honor a veteran in your life, here's a list of suggestions to start you off:

By Miriam Raftery

November 10,  2016 (San Diego) – Voters countywide resoundingly defeated Measure A and Measure B on Tuesday’s ballot. 

East County News Service

November 10, 2016 (San Diego’s East County) -- Our Health and Science Highlights provide cutting-edge news that could impact your health and our future.

HEALTH

• Zika therapy 'works in the womb' (BBC)
• Drug-resistant TB rates in west Africa much higher than previously thought (Guardian)
• Food Pantries Try Nutritional Nudging to Encourage Good Food Choices (NPR)
• Middle school suicides double in past decade: What can be done? (CS Monitor)
• Male Birth Control Study Killed After Men Report Side Effects (NPR)
• Laughing Gas Gives Women Another Option to Manage Labor Pain (NPR)
• Warning over non-lump breast cancers (BBC)

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

• Rise in atmospheric CO2 slowed by green vegetation (BBC)
• Mount St. Helens surprise: There's no magma in the volcano's peak (Christian Science Monitor)
• Thousands of baby turtles released into Peruvian Amazon (BBC)
• San Diego Scientists Create Electronics Material That Can Heal Itself (KPBS)
• An Experiment Shows How Quickly the Internet of Things Can Be Hacked (NPR)
• Adobe Voco 'Photoshop-for-voice' causes concern (BBC)
• U.S., 35 states to boost electric vehicle charging stations (Reuters)
• Google Chrome is going to crack the whip on unprotected websites (Marketplace)
• Deutsche Telekom to launch drone defense system: report (Reuters)
• Smart motorways catch more than 1,000 speeding drivers a week (BBC)
• Polish minister accuses Facebook of censorship over right-wing symbol (Reuters)
• Facebook Lets Advertisers Exclude Users by Race (ProPublica)

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

Council members elected, marijuana measure fails

By Miriam Raftery

Update November 10, 2016:  This evening George Gastil has retaken the lead by a slim 19-vote margin as counting of mail-in and provisional ballots continues.

November 9, 2016 (Lemon Grove) — The race to fill Lemon Grove’s mayoral seat vacated by retiring Mayor Mary Sessom is still too close to call.  Councilman George Gastil jumped into an early lead, but today Councilmember Racquel Vasquez has pulled into the lead by a mere 12 votes.  If elected, she would be the first African-American mayor in San Diego County.

East County News Service

November 9, 2016 (San Diego's East County) -- East County Roundup highlights top stories of interest to East County and San Diego’s inland regions, published in other media. This week’s top “Roundup” headlines include:

LOCAL

• How much of your paycheck goes to rent? (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Lemon Grove Mayor says goodbye to politics after 22 years (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Divisions emerge in wake of transportation tax defeat (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• What now for Lilac Hills Ranch? (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• San Diego Police Seize Family’s Bank Accounts Because the Dad Ran a Medical Marijuana Business (Reason)
• San Diegan Meb Keflezhigi to run final marathon in New York (NBC 7)
• Federal Funding Available to Address Tree Mortality On Private Forestlands (KPBS)
• Bond Support Raises Ethics Question for San Diego County School Officials (KPBS)
• Two Cases of Tuberculosis Reported in San Diego County (KPBS)
• San Diego Port Commissioners Vote in Favor of 'Seaport' Development  (KPBS)

STATE

• California faces major reversal if Trump scraps health law (Orange County Register)
• California scrambles to implement new recreational pot law (Los Angeles Times)
• Calexit? Some California voters reject Trump, advocate ‘secession’ (San Diego Union-Tribune)
• Kamala Harris is elected California’s new U.S.  Senator (Los Angeles Times)
• Percentage of Registered Voters in California Hits 20-Year High (KPBS)
• Playboy model charged over locker room 'body-shaming' image (BBC)

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

UPDATE:  CLICK READ MORE TO READ STATEMENT FROM CHARGERS CHAIRMAN DEAN SPANOS

By Liz Alper

Photo courtesy chargers.com

November 9, 2016 (San Diego) - Proposition C, the measure that would allow the Chargers to build a new downtown stadium and convention center near Petco Park in the East Village and raise the hotel tax to 16.5 percent from its current 10.5 percent, failed to garner the two thirds it needed to pass last night, with a vote total of 56.96 percent (168,677) no and 43.04 percent (127,433) yes. 

Medical pot measure also passes

By Miriam Raftery

November 9, 2016 (La Mesa)—Attorney and affordable housing advocate Colin Parent, a Democrat, has won election to the La Mesa  City Council,  narrowly defeating incumbent Ruth Sterling, a Republican.  Councilwoman Kristine Alessio,  an attorney, won reelection.  Parent will be the lone Democrat on the five-member Council.

Sterling has long been one of La Mesa’s most popular politicians, winning past reelections by wide margins. But she missed a key La Mesa debate this election cycle due to falling and breaking her arm.  Sterling had initially announced she would not seek reelection,  but later changed her mind after constituents urged her to run.

With 100% of precincts counted but late mail-in ballots and provisionals remaining to be tallied,  Alessio has 35.55% of the vote (6675 votes), Parent has 35.35% (6450 votes) and Sterling 30.11% (5654 votes).

School bond measure also passes

By Miriam Raftery

November 9, 2016 (San Diego’s East County) –The Grossmont Union High School District has been rife with controversies including efforts to parents to split the district apart after the board ignored admonishments by the County Grand Jury  and refused to build an Alpine High School promised in two past bond measures—voting to instead fund a lawsuit defending the district’s stance.   

Yesterday,  voters cast out incumbent  Jim Stieringer, the newest Board member in a wave of anti-incumbency that swept the nation on a day that saw Donald Trump capture the presidency.  His replacement in trustee district 2, the La Mesa-Mt. Helix area, is a teacher.  Voters also elected a teacher in district 1 in Lemon Grove-Spring Valley-La Prensa, carved out through redistricting as a majority-minority district. Here's what the public can learn from these races.

By Miriam Raftery

Photo,left:  Stephen Houlahan

November 9, 2016 (Santee) – With 36% of precincts counted,  Councilman John Minto,a retired police officer, is maintaining a 10 point lead over felow Councilman and realtor Rob McNellis in the race to become Santee’s next Mayor.  Current Mayor Randy Voepel tonight won election handily  to the State Assembly over Leo Hamel.

Though Santee’s Council has long been heavily influenced by developers and real estate interests, Stephen Houlahan,  running on an environmental platform,  appears likely to defeat  two pro-development opponents.

Update: CNN just declared Trump the victor. 

By Miriam Raftery

November 8, 2016 (San Diego)--In a stunning defeat for Hillary Clinton and the  Democratic Party,  business mogul/reality TV star Donald Trump is winning  key battleground states and appears likely to capture the presidency.  While there is celebration in key Republican circles, the stock market is reeling, with the Dow Jones dropping 827 points at the news.

Major networks have declared  Trump the winner in Ohio, Iowa, Florida and Pennsylvania.  As of 10:30 p.m.,  CNN projects Trump has 265 electoral votes and Clinton 215; 270 are needed to win. Of six states not yet called, Clinton leads only in Minnesota, New Hampshire and Maine—not enough to win unless Trump’s lead erodes in all of the remaining undecided states:  Arizona,  Michigan,  and Wisconsin, or unless the network's call proves wrong after all votes are counted, an unlikely scenario.

East County News Service

November 8, 2016 (San Diego’s East County) – The Heartland Foundation, publishers of East County Magazine, an award-winning community publication, recently served as a media partner of the 2016 Kids Care Fest, which featured free health care screenings for children on Nov. 5 at the Lakeside Rodeo Grounds.

East County News Service

By Jonathan Goetz

November 7, 2016 (New York) -- Major banks are making investment strategies for how to handle assets Wednesday, November 9, 2016.

JP Morgan and Barclays agree a Clinton win would bump the S&P 500 2-3%. In the event of a Trump win Barclays is prepared to buy back into the American stock market only after it has dropped 11-13%.

East County News Service

November 7, 2016 (La Mesa) — Last week, as we reported, deceptive hit piece mailers sent by a conservative out-of-town PAC targeted La Mesa City Council candidate Colin Parent.

Now the Democratic Party has fired back, sending mailers labeling Parent’s opponents, incumbents Kristine Alessio and Ruth Sterling, as “Trump Republicans in La Mesa.”  Both are Republicans, but Alessio’s campaign has said the flyer is false and that she does not support Donald Trump for president.

Source: Caltrans

November 7, 2016 (El Cajon) -- Lane and ramp closures are taking place along Interstate 8 (I-8) in El Cajon between Johnson Avenue and Lake Jennings Park Road Sundays through Thursdays from 7 p.m. to 5 a.m. until mid-December. According to Caltrans, the pavement rehabilitation project will also include lane closures on some adjacent surface streets.