latimes--2020-02-29--California sees third case of 'community spread' coronavirus as first U.S. death is reported near Se

California sees third case of 'community spread' coronavirus as first U.S. death is reported near Seattle

A Washington state man has become the first person in the U.S. to die from the coronavirus , state and federal public health officials confirmed Saturday .
He was not one of the two coronavirus patients the state had previously announced .
Public health officials in California on Saturday announced another coronavirus patient , a woman described as “ a household contact ” of a Santa Clara County woman whose diagnosis was made public Friday .
There are at least 30 coronavirus patients in California , many of them from repatriation flights , with the number changing often .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his 50s and had underlying health conditions , and he is believed to have contracted the virus from “ community spread , ” not travel , officials said .
He died at EvergreenHealth Medical Center in the Seattle suburb of Kirkland .
“ It is a sad day in our state as we learn that a Washingtonian has died from COVID-19 , ” Gov .
Jay Inslee said in a statement .
“ Our hearts go out to his family and friends .
We will continue to work toward a day where no @ @ @ @ @ @ @ officials also announced two new coronavirus patients associated with a skilled nursing facility in the same community , Life Care Center of Kirkland .
One of the patients is a woman in her 70s who lives at the facility ; she was in serious condition at EvergreenHealth Medical Center .
The other is a woman in her 40s who works at the facility and is in satisfactory condition at Overlake Medical Center in Bellevue .
About 27 of the 108 residents at the facility and 25 of the 180 staffers have symptoms of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ health officer for Public Health Seattle and King County , said Saturday in a telebriefing with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention .
“ We are very concerned about an outbreak in a setting where there are many older people , ” he said .
A CDC team was slated to arrive Saturday night to help assess all of the possible patients .
Residents will remain at the facility unless they need hospitalization , Duchin said , but will be segregated according to symptoms .
“ No mixing people who are sick @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” he said .
Officials have so far found no link between the man who died and the nursing facility , but they are continuing to investigate , Duchin said .
The governor declared a state of emergency to respond to the outbreak .
“ Our priority now is to slow the spread of this virus , ” Inslee said .
“ Our healthcare professionals say the easiest way to do that is to practice good hygiene — wash your hands often , sanitize frequently touched surfaces and stay home when you ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ require the work of all of us.
” Speaking at a news conference Saturday , President Trump described the man who died as “ a medically high-risk patient.
” He emphasized that “ there is no reason to panic ” and that the risk to the general public remains low .
At the same time , he announced new restrictions on travelers from Iran as well as additional screenings of people coming from Italy and South Korea , where there has been a jump in infections .
He discouraged people from traveling to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the director of the National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases , appeared alongside Trump and said it was important for people to limit travel to the most affected countries .
He sought to reassure the public that the government is marshaling all available resources to combat the spread of the virus in the U.S. “ The country as a whole still remains at low risk , but this is an evolving situation , ” Fauci said .
“ There will be additional cases , but we should not be surprised by that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with it.
” The newest diagnoses bring the total number of U.S. coronavirus cases to 70 , with 47 of them among travelers who were either evacuated from the Diamond Princess cruise ship off Japan or on government-chartered flights from Wuhan , China , the epicenter of the outbreak .
With new coronavirus cases reported in California , Washington and Oregon , officials are trying to accelerate testing to stem what experts and officials believe is an inevitable spread of the virus into communities .
“ We are still early in the investigations @ @ @ @ @ @ @ however , this preliminary information raises our level of concern about the immediate threat of COVID-19 for certain communities in the United States , ” Dr. Nancy Messonnier , director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases at the CDC , said Saturday .
Still , officials say that most people who contract COVID-19 experience only mild illness and that the virus is usually severe only in people who are older or have underlying health problems , such as cardiac or respiratory conditions or diabetes .
The California Department of Public @ @ @ @ @ @ @ can handle coronavirus cases , in Los Angeles , Orange , Ventura , San Diego , Contra Costa , Alameda , Santa Clara and Tulare counties .
Officials also announced the arrival of 1,200 testing kits from the federal government .
“ The availability to test at California ’ s public health laboratories is a significant step forward in our ability to respond rapidly to this evolving situation , ” Dr. Sonia Angell , director of the California Department of Public Health and state health officer , said in a statement .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ transmission here in California , having this resource where we need it is essential to better inform public health response and protect our communities.
” The Food and Drug Administration also announced new policies aimed at helping hospitals speed up testing of potential virus patients .
The move comes amid complaints about the slow pace of processing tests .
In Seattle , Duchin said public health officials learned that the man who died had been diagnosed with the coronavirus after he was reported as a presumptive positive by Washington ’ s Public Health @ @ @ @ @ @ @ coronavirus test kits , and the man did not become eligible for testing until the CDC updated its guidelines to include those who had no recent history of overseas travel or exposure to another coronavirus patient , he said .
“ If we had the ability to test earlier , ” Duchin said , “ I ’ m sure we would have identified patients earlier in the community .
`` e Dr. Frank Riedo , EvergreenHealth medical director of infection control , said that the diagnosis of the man who died there occurred @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
On Thursday , he said , “ we opted to look at our most critically ill patients.
” The man had contracted the illness before being admitted to the hospital with serious respiratory symptoms , he said .
Riedo says it ’ s likely that there are more coronavirus cases in the Seattle area .
“ What we ’ re seeing is the tip of the iceberg , ” he said .
“ In all likelihood , there is ongoing low-level transmission.
” California now has three coronavirus patients , all women @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the U.S. or come in contact with someone who did .
That raised concerns that the virus was spreading in communities and prompted health officials to find and quarantine anyone who came in contact with them .
The patient announced Saturday , who officials said was not ill and was isolated at home , is “ a household contact ” of a Santa Clara County woman with chronic health conditions whose physicians requested coronavirus testing after she was hospitalized for a respiratory illness .
Officials said more California cases were inevitable .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” Dr. Peter Beilenson , Sacramento County ’ s director of health services , said .
“ You shed virus before you are symptomatic , so it ’ s already out of the bag in a lot of ways .
It ’ s going to spread , it ’ s just going to spread.
” The ongoing efforts in Northern California had already led to the voluntary quarantining of dozens of people , including students at UC Davis and other college campuses , and workers at the two hospitals where the country @ @ @ @ @ @ @ links to foreign travel was treated .
The patient , a Solano County woman , was hospitalized for three days at NorthBay VacaValley Hospital in Vacaville before being moved to UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento .
She was not tested for several days because she did not fit CDC screening criteria at the time .
This time gap concerns officials because it could have allowed her to infect others she came in contact with .
To identify such individuals at the hospital , NorthBay officials reviewed the woman ’ s medical records @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to identify all the clinicians , visitors and hospital workers who entered her room .
Sacramento County health officials said dozens of people might be quarantined at home as a result .
UC Davis Health spokesman Steve Telliano disputed reports that the number could be higher than 70 but refused to say whether more or fewer people were quarantined .
Steve Huddleston , vice president of public affairs of NorthBay Healthcare , said that the hospital has a staff of about 200 and that the quarantine affected dozens of people connected to the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for co-workers who have been sent home , he said .
Three UC Davis students were under 14-day isolation as one awaited test results after showing mild coronavirus symptoms , officials said on Thursday .
On Saturday , it was determined that the student did not have the virus .
Two students at Palo Alto Unified School District , which is in Santa Clara County , were sent home after officials learned that one of their parents might have been exposed to the coronavirus , the school district announced Friday .
One is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ; the other attends Jane Lathrop Stanford Middle School , officials said .
In Oregon , an employee of a Washington County elementary school was diagnosed with the coronavirus Friday after first experiencing symptoms Feb. 19 and could have exposed others at the school , officials said .
In Washington , in addition to the patient who died , a Snohomish County high school student tested positive after seeking care at Seattle Children ’ s North Clinic on Monday , officials said .
Officials also announced that another King County woman in her @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had contracted the virus .
Neither the Oregon patient nor the Washington high school student had a recent history of international travel or contact with another coronavirus patient , officials said .
They and the Santa Clara County women tested positive for the virus in laboratories in their respective states .
They are considered presumptive positive cases until the results are confirmed by CDC testing .
“ We are facing a historic public health challenge , ” Messonnier said .
“ We will continue to respond to COVID-19 in an aggressive way to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ virus .
While we still hope for the best , we continue to prepare for this virus to become widespread in the United States.
” Wigglesworth , Shalby and Chabria reported from Los Angeles .
Read reported from Seattle .

Alex Wigglesworth, Richard Read, Anita Chabria, Colleen Shalby

A Solano County resident with the country’s first confirmed case of “community acquired” COVID-19 has been held in isolation at UC Davis Medical Center for the last week.
A Washington state man has become the first person in the U.S. to die from the coronavirus, state and federal public health officials confirmed Saturday. He was not one of the two coronavirus patients the state had previously announced.
Public health officials in California on Saturday announced another coronavirus patient, a woman described as “a household contact” of a Santa Clara County woman whose diagnosis was made public Friday. There are at least 30 coronavirus patients in California, many of them from repatriation flights, with the number changing often.
The King County patient who died was in his 50s and had underlying health conditions, and he is believed to have contracted the virus from “community spread,” not travel, officials said. He died at EvergreenHealth Medical Center in the Seattle suburb of Kirkland.
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“It is a sad day in our state as we learn that a Washingtonian has died from COVID-19,” Gov. Jay Inslee said in a statement. “Our hearts go out to his family and friends. We will continue to work toward a day where no one dies from this virus.”
Washington officials also announced two new coronavirus patients associated with a skilled nursing facility in the same community, Life Care Center of Kirkland. One of the patients is a woman in her 70s who lives at the facility; she was in serious condition at EvergreenHealth Medical Center. The other is a woman in her 40s who works at the facility and is in satisfactory condition at Overlake Medical Center in Bellevue.
About 27 of the 108 residents at the facility and 25 of the 180 staffers have symptoms of the virus, Dr. Jeffrey Duchin, health officer for Public Health Seattle and King County, said Saturday in a telebriefing with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“We are very concerned about an outbreak in a setting where there are many older people,” he said.
A CDC team was slated to arrive Saturday night to help assess all of the possible patients.
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Residents will remain at the facility unless they need hospitalization, Duchin said, but will be segregated according to symptoms. “No mixing people who are sick with people who are not sick,” he said.
Officials have so far found no link between the man who died and the nursing facility, but they are continuing to investigate, Duchin said.
The governor declared a state of emergency to respond to the outbreak.
Science & Medicine How this coronavirus kills its victims The new coronavirus spreading rapidly around the globe can be deadly because it targets a very vulnerable and essential part of the body — the lungs.
“Our priority now is to slow the spread of this virus,” Inslee said. “Our healthcare professionals say the easiest way to do that is to practice good hygiene — wash your hands often, sanitize frequently touched surfaces and stay home when you’re sick. Preventing future cases will require the work of all of us.”
Speaking at a news conference Saturday, President Trump described the man who died as “a medically high-risk patient.” He emphasized that “there is no reason to panic” and that the risk to the general public remains low.
At the same time, he announced new restrictions on travelers from Iran as well as additional screenings of people coming from Italy and South Korea, where there has been a jump in infections. He discouraged people from traveling to those countries.
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases, appeared alongside Trump and said it was important for people to limit travel to the most affected countries. He sought to reassure the public that the government is marshaling all available resources to combat the spread of the virus in the U.S.
“The country as a whole still remains at low risk, but this is an evolving situation,” Fauci said. “There will be additional cases, but we should not be surprised by that. The challenge is how we deal with it.”
The newest diagnoses bring the total number of U.S. coronavirus cases to 70, with 47 of them among travelers who were either evacuated from the Diamond Princess cruise ship off Japan or on government-chartered flights from Wuhan, China, the epicenter of the outbreak.
With new coronavirus cases reported in California, Washington and Oregon, officials are trying to accelerate testing to stem what experts and officials believe is an inevitable spread of the virus into communities.
“We are still early in the investigations in California, Oregon and Washington; however, this preliminary information raises our level of concern about the immediate threat of COVID-19 for certain communities in the United States,” Dr. Nancy Messonnier, director of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases at the CDC, said Saturday.
Still, officials say that most people who contract COVID-19 experience only mild illness and that the virus is usually severe only in people who are older or have underlying health problems, such as cardiac or respiratory conditions or diabetes.
The California Department of Public Health has announced eight testing labs that can handle coronavirus cases, in Los Angeles, Orange, Ventura, San Diego, Contra Costa, Alameda, Santa Clara and Tulare counties. Officials also announced the arrival of 1,200 testing kits from the federal government.
“The availability to test at California’s public health laboratories is a significant step forward in our ability to respond rapidly to this evolving situation,” Dr. Sonia Angell, director of the California Department of Public Health and state health officer, said in a statement. “As we face the likelihood of community transmission here in California, having this resource where we need it is essential to better inform public health response and protect our communities.”
The Food and Drug Administration also announced new policies aimed at helping hospitals speed up testing of potential virus patients. The move comes amid complaints about the slow pace of processing tests.
In Seattle, Duchin said public health officials learned that the man who died had been diagnosed with the coronavirus after he was reported as a presumptive positive by Washington’s Public Health Laboratories. The laboratories only recently acquired coronavirus test kits, and the man did not become eligible for testing until the CDC updated its guidelines to include those who had no recent history of overseas travel or exposure to another coronavirus patient, he said.
“If we had the ability to test earlier,” Duchin said, “I’m sure we would have identified patients earlier in the community.”e
Dr. Frank Riedo, EvergreenHealth medical director of infection control, said that the diagnosis of the man who died there occurred after the CDC changed its guidelines Tuesday. On Thursday, he said, “we opted to look at our most critically ill patients.”
The man had contracted the illness before being admitted to the hospital with serious respiratory symptoms, he said.
Riedo says it’s likely that there are more coronavirus cases in the Seattle area. “What we’re seeing is the tip of the iceberg,” he said. “In all likelihood, there is ongoing low-level transmission.”
California now has three coronavirus patients, all women, who did not recently travel outside the U.S. or come in contact with someone who did. That raised concerns that the virus was spreading in communities and prompted health officials to find and quarantine anyone who came in contact with them.
The patient announced Saturday, who officials said was not ill and was isolated at home, is “a household contact” of a Santa Clara County woman with chronic health conditions whose physicians requested coronavirus testing after she was hospitalized for a respiratory illness.
Officials said more California cases were inevitable.
“Definitely we will have more cases here,” Dr. Peter Beilenson, Sacramento County’s director of health services, said. “You shed virus before you are symptomatic, so it’s already out of the bag in a lot of ways. It’s going to spread, it’s just going to spread.”
The ongoing efforts in Northern California had already led to the voluntary quarantining of dozens of people, including students at UC Davis and other college campuses, and workers at the two hospitals where the country’s first patient without any known links to foreign travel was treated.
The patient, a Solano County woman, was hospitalized for three days at NorthBay VacaValley Hospital in Vacaville before being moved to UC Davis Medical Center in Sacramento. She was not tested for several days because she did not fit CDC screening criteria at the time.
This time gap concerns officials because it could have allowed her to infect others she came in contact with.
To identify such individuals at the hospital, NorthBay officials reviewed the woman’s medical records and three days of security camera footage to identify all the clinicians, visitors and hospital workers who entered her room.
Sacramento County health officials said dozens of people might be quarantined at home as a result. UC Davis Health spokesman Steve Telliano disputed reports that the number could be higher than 70 but refused to say whether more or fewer people were quarantined.
Steve Huddleston, vice president of public affairs of NorthBay Healthcare, said that the hospital has a staff of about 200 and that the quarantine affected dozens of people connected to the hospital. Other employees are filling in for co-workers who have been sent home, he said.
Three UC Davis students were under 14-day isolation as one awaited test results after showing mild coronavirus symptoms, officials said on Thursday. On Saturday, it was determined that the student did not have the virus.
Two students at Palo Alto Unified School District, which is in Santa Clara County, were sent home after officials learned that one of their parents might have been exposed to the coronavirus, the school district announced Friday. One is a student at Palo Alto High School; the other attends Jane Lathrop Stanford Middle School, officials said.
In Oregon, an employee of a Washington County elementary school was diagnosed with the coronavirus Friday after first experiencing symptoms Feb. 19 and could have exposed others at the school, officials said.
In Washington, in addition to the patient who died, a Snohomish County high school student tested positive after seeking care at Seattle Children’s North Clinic on Monday, officials said. Officials also announced that another King County woman in her 50s who had traveled to South Korea had contracted the virus.
Neither the Oregon patient nor the Washington high school student had a recent history of international travel or contact with another coronavirus patient, officials said.
They and the Santa Clara County women tested positive for the virus in laboratories in their respective states. They are considered presumptive positive cases until the results are confirmed by CDC testing.
“We are facing a historic public health challenge,” Messonnier said. “We will continue to respond to COVID-19 in an aggressive way to contain and blunt the threat of this virus. While we still hope for the best, we continue to prepare for this virus to become widespread in the United States.”
Wigglesworth, Shalby and Chabria reported from Los Angeles. Read reported from Seattle.


latimes--2020-02-29--Four injured or sick passengers on cruise ship at Port of L.A. are taken to hospital

Four people aboard a cruise ship docked in San Pedro were hospitalized in unknown condition Saturday morning and the ship @ @ @ @ @ sea later in the day .
The Los Angeles Fire Department received a call at @ @ @ @ @ passengers on a cruise ship docked at the Port of Los Angeles , according to @ @ @ @ @ At least two of the patients were taken to a hospital with injuries , Humphrey @ @ @ @ @ clear what caused the injuries or their exent , or if they occurred while the @ @ @ @ @ The other two people were taken to a hospital with unknown illnesses , according to @ @ @ @ @ was no indication the illnesses were tied to the coronavirus .
Passengers still aboard the @ @ @ @ @ and the ship is scheduled to return to sea Saturday , Los Angeles Port Police @ @ @

Four people aboard a cruise ship docked in San Pedro were hospitalized in unknown condition Saturday morning and the ship was scheduled to return to sea later in the day.
The Los Angeles Fire Department received a call at 7:55 p.m. Friday about injured passengers on a cruise ship docked at the Port of Los Angeles, according to department spokesman Brian Humphrey.
At least two of the patients were taken to a hospital with injuries, Humphrey said. It was not clear what caused the injuries or their exent, or if they occurred while the ship was at sea.
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The other two people were taken to a hospital with unknown illnesses, according to multiple media reports. There was no indication the illnesses were tied to the coronavirus.
Passengers still aboard the ship will remain there overnight and the ship is scheduled to return to sea Saturday, Los Angeles Port Police told KCBS-TV.


latimes--2020-02-29--First woman of color elected to lead L.A.'s largest teachers union

The L.A. teachers union has elected the first woman of color , Cecily Myart-Cruz , to lead the organization , part of a familiar and experienced team that will include outgoing union President Alex Caputo-Pearl , who was elected as a vice president .
“ I ’ m proud of the way we have worked with members to create a union that is inclusive , that is a fighting union , that cares not only about educators , but about parents , the community and students , ” said Myart-Cruz , 46 , who as union president assumes a role @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Angeles Unified School District , the second-largest in the nation .
Myart-Cruz received nearly 69 % of the vote to represent some 31,000 Los Angeles teachers , school nurses , counselors and librarians .
The next closest was Marisa Crabtree , with nearly 11 % of the vote in the five-candidate field .
Crabtree had proposed to turn the union more toward classroom and teaching issues , while deemphasizing politics .
But Myart-Cruz said she sees the fight for political influence as essential to improving teaching and classroom learning conditions .
A little @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Los Angeles went on strike for six days , bringing a focus to overcrowded classrooms and staffing shortages .
While Caputo-Pearl headed that effort , Myart-Cruz was a key advisor .
Caputo-Pearl is barred by term limits from seeking a third three-year term .
“ The work is not done .
Our educators need the resources and our babies need the resources as well , ” Myart-Cruz said .
“ By almost any measure , Caputo Pearl has been a strong and effective leader , ” said Charles Kerchner , professor emeritus of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Studies .
“ The plan to swap offices with Cecily Myart-Cruz would essentially keep the leadership regime in place .
That creates stability in ideas and agenda.
” All the same , Myart-Cruz emphasized that she will be fully in charge when she takes office in July .
The momentum from last year ’ s strike carried over into the May election of Jackie Goldberg , a union-backed candidate , to the school board .
But soon after , L.A. voters defeated Measure EE , a parcel tax that would have increased local @ @ @ @ @ @ @ currently engaged in a high-stakes , big-money battle with supporters of charter schools for three contested seats on the seven-member Board of Education .
If even one union-endorsed candidate loses , the direction of the board could shift away from some union priorities .
These include limiting the expansion and spread of nonunion , privately managed charter schools and pushing for higher pay and increased school staffing .
Myart-Cruz , a district parent and single mother who identifies as biracial , black and Latina , has 25 years of teaching experience in elementary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been part of the union ’ s activist wing and helped lead a campaign to remove principals whom the union felt treated teachers unfairly .
As a regional chair she also helped organize a yearlong boycott against some standardized testing to take on what the union described as the “ overtesting ” of students .
Union leaders argued that students took too many standardized tests and wanted the number reduced because they take away from learning time .
The new president also has been active at the state and national level in teachers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , but that ’ s been a consistent recent pattern in union internal elections .
Close to 5,300 union members cast ballots out of about 31,000 eligible voters .

Cecily Myart-Cruz, speaking during a 2019 news conference on union negotiations, was elected president of the United Teachers Los Angeles union.
The L.A. teachers union has elected the first woman of color, Cecily Myart-Cruz, to lead the organization, part of a familiar and experienced team that will include outgoing union President Alex Caputo-Pearl, who was elected as a vice president.
“I’m proud of the way we have worked with members to create a union that is inclusive, that is a fighting union, that cares not only about educators, but about parents, the community and students,” said Myart-Cruz, 46, who as union president assumes a role of influence and power in the Los Angeles Unified School District, the second-largest in the nation.
Myart-Cruz received nearly 69% of the vote to represent some 31,000 Los Angeles teachers, school nurses, counselors and librarians. The next closest was Marisa Crabtree, with nearly 11% of the vote in the five-candidate field. Crabtree had proposed to turn the union more toward classroom and teaching issues, while deemphasizing politics.
But Myart-Cruz said she sees the fight for political influence as essential to improving teaching and classroom learning conditions.
A little over a year ago, United Teachers Los Angeles went on strike for six days, bringing a focus to overcrowded classrooms and staffing shortages. While Caputo-Pearl headed that effort, Myart-Cruz was a key advisor. Caputo-Pearl is barred by term limits from seeking a third three-year term.
“The work is not done. Our educators need the resources and our babies need the resources as well,” Myart-Cruz said.
“By almost any measure, Caputo Pearl has been a strong and effective leader,” said Charles Kerchner, professor emeritus of the Claremont Graduate University School of Educational Studies. “The plan to swap offices with Cecily Myart-Cruz would essentially keep the leadership regime in place. That creates stability in ideas and agenda.”
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All the same, Myart-Cruz emphasized that she will be fully in charge when she takes office in July.
The momentum from last year’s strike carried over into the May election of Jackie Goldberg, a union-backed candidate, to the school board. But soon after, L.A. voters defeated Measure EE, a parcel tax that would have increased local resources for schools.
The union is currently engaged in a high-stakes, big-money battle with supporters of charter schools for three contested seats on the seven-member Board of Education. If even one union-endorsed candidate loses, the direction of the board could shift away from some union priorities. These include limiting the expansion and spread of nonunion, privately managed charter schools and pushing for higher pay and increased school staffing.
Myart-Cruz, a district parent and single mother who identifies as biracial, black and Latina, has 25 years of teaching experience in elementary and middle schools. She has long been part of the union’s activist wing and helped lead a campaign to remove principals whom the union felt treated teachers unfairly.
As a regional chair she also helped organize a yearlong boycott against some standardized testing to take on what the union described as the “overtesting” of students. Union leaders argued that students took too many standardized tests and wanted the number reduced because they take away from learning time.
The new president also has been active at the state and national level in teachers unions.
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The election turnout was low, but that’s been a consistent recent pattern in union internal elections. Close to 5,300 union members cast ballots out of about 31,000 eligible voters.


latimes--2020-02-29--Ethnic communities don't have a 'unified voice.' It's a challenge for 2020 candidates

Behrang Barzin stood at the back of Sen. Bernie Sanders ’ downtown Oakland campaign office , waiting to address the “ Iranians for Bernie ” gathered to learn more about supporting the presidential contender .
The mostly young crowd made small talk as they reached for Middle Eastern sweets and buzzed around the tea station .
But the upbeat mood over Sanders ’ candidacy belied Barzin ’ s feeling that many politicians overlook California ’ s Iranian American community .
“ We ’ re underrepresented , ” Barzin said .
“ We have resources .
We have money .
But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ re here .
We don ’ t know the game well enough to get involved , and that ’ s why people don ’ t reach out to us.
” The February forum , organized by grassroots Iranian and Muslim groups in California , offered a rare chance for the more than 120 people gathered there to participate in a tailored discussion hosted by a presidential campaign .
Several attendees said they hadn ’ t heard of a similar event during previous election cycles .
To come out on top in California @ @ @ @ @ @ @ appeal to a patchwork of ethnic constituencies , among them the large Iranian American population that spans San Diego , Los Angeles and the Bay Area .
This year ’ s shift in the state ’ s primary election calendar from June to next week ’ s Super Tuesday blitz has incentivized candidates to ramp up their efforts to attract not only liberal voters writ large , but also the diverse pockets that compose much of the state ’ s electorate .
Barzin backed Sanders in 2016 , but the 38-year-old business owner @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this time around .
Then , about a month ago , a volunteer canvassing for Sanders knocked on the door of his Berkeley home and invited him to an antiwar protest in San Francisco .
The rally came on the heels of the Jan. 3 U.S. drone strike that killed Iranian Gen. Qassem Suleimani and the subsequent military escalation between the two nations .
Following the strike against Suleimani , Sanders posted a message on social media in multiple languages , including Persian : “ End endless wars.
” After attending that protest @ @ @ @ @ @ @ events , Barzin cast his ballot for the senator several days ago .
Yet his vote wasn ’ t based solely on Sanders ’ antiwar stance .
Earlier this month , Sanders had posted another photo , with a Persian text that outlined what would be covered under his “ Medicare for all ” plan , including dental work and devices such as hearing aids .
“ I don ’ t just look at it through an Iran window , ” Barzin said .
“ I think he ’ ll be great for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ small-business owner , and if my employees get healthcare I don ’ t have to pay $ 500 each for them .
I can put that money toward raises and back into my business.
” Although some presidential hopefuls are beginning to court this increasingly politically active community , divisions within the diaspora pose a challenge to those aiming to capture Iranian votes — especially in L.A. An estimated half a million Iranian Americans live in Southern California alone .
Like other ethno-national groups , their political views reflect a complex calculus ; @ @ @ @ @ @ @ one-size-fits-all pitch to attract Iranian American voters .
Sahar Sadeghi , an assistant professor of sociology at Muhlenberg College in Pennsylvania who researches the Iranian diaspora emphasized that Iranian Americans are not monolithic in their political leanings .
Some , like those attending the Sanders forum in Oakland , identify as progressives , while others see themselves as moderate Democrats who would support a candidate closer to the center .
The southern half of the state — centered on enclaves of Orange County , Los Angeles and San Diego — is home to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ back President Trump , his withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal and his tough talk against the Islamic Republic .
“ Iranians in L.A. have much more polarized views than those in Northern California , ” Sadeghi said .
“ The Iranian diaspora in L.A. tends to have a few demographics that Northern California does not have as much of .
One is the presence of Armenian Iranians and Iranian Jews .
That in and of itself adds a new dimension.
” Amy Malek , an anthropologist and researcher at Princeton University studying @ @ @ @ @ @ @ there ’ s not a unified voice ” that speaks politically for all Iranian Americans .
That lack of cohesion , both on domestic issues and U.S. foreign policy toward Iran , tends to prevent the diaspora from aligning in a solid voting bloc , Malek added .
At least one other Democratic candidate is considering reaching out to Iranian American voters : billionaire Michael R. Bloomberg , who has spent more than $ 124 million on advertising in the 14 Super Tuesday states .
Democratic strategist Bill Carrick said that appealing to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ including Iranian Americans , requires politicians to develop a nuanced knowledge of the communities that live here .
“ Most people campaigning for the first time here in California don ’ t understand the depth and complexity of the diversity here , so there is a tendency to think of it as Latinos , African Americans and Asians , and that ’ s sort of it , ” he said .
“ But we have communities like the Iranian community that have come here fleeing a government they didn ’ t like ; @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Anna Bahr , the Sanders campaign ’ s California communications director , said the candidate ’ s staff has relied on its diverse volunteers and supporters “ to help us tap into communities that don ’ t often get attention from presidential campaigns.
” The 78-year-old Vermont senator has a team of more than 250 “ language justice volunteers ” from across the country who translate tweets and graphics , according to his campaign .
“ Iranian Americans care about a lot of different issues , ” Bahr said .
“ They care @ @ @ @ @ @ @ They want to make sure their grandchildren have a planet to live on.
” Nazli Parvizi , Bloomberg ’ s California lead for constituency groups , said that his team is exploring running Persian-language ads in local media , such as Jewish outlets read by the state ’ s large Persian Jewish community .
They also are looking at placing ads in regional newspapers in an effort to reach other diverse communities , such as the Chinese and Vietnamese diaspora , she said .
“ We have Latino outreach , we have African @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ We don ’ t need money , but we want your influence.
” Political divisions within the Iranian diaspora often also reflect generational differences among those who fled the 1979 Islamic Revolution , immigrated after the 2009 Green Movement or were born in the U.S. Those distinctions can also inform levels of civic engagement : Younger Iranian Americans are more likely to run for public office or work in politics , experts say .
During the 2018 midterm election cycle , three women became the first Iranian Americans elected to the New @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Afshine Emrani , a 52-year-old cardiologist , sees this generational gap play out every day , whether through his children ’ s eyes or by listening to the patients who step into his Tarzana office .
“ I ’ m more to the right of center , ” said Emrani .
“ My kids , going to a Jewish school , are being taught mostly liberal values .
They get some conservative values from me and my family because we are older , but their education tends to be mostly liberal.
” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only recently become more politically active .
“ We have a lot of opinions , but don ’ t act on them , ” he said .
“ I think the people who actually show up are younger people .
They have gone out of that mentality of ‘ I have to be a doctor or lawyer or engineer to make a living or make my mom happy.
’ ” Having initially supported Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton in 2016 before voting for Trump , Emrani believes the current president can help restore Iran @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” through his unconventional , “ cowboyish ” approach to politics .
Despite that , he doesn ’ t support all the Trump administration ’ s policies , such as the travel ban that restricts the entry of visitors from more than a dozen countries , including Iran , to the U.S. “ It ’ s not what happens to Iran so much as it ’ s the general policy toward the Middle East that makes a difference , ” Emrani said .
“ Is this somebody who is going to appease whatever @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they want to make them our friends like Obama did , or is it someone who says , ‘ This is my policy and I ’ m going to stand my ground.
’ ” A 2019 poll commissioned by the Public Affairs Alliance of Iranian Americans ( PAAIA ) found that foreign policy , including the U.S.-Iran relationship , ranked first among issues that the community will consider when voting in federal elections , outranking the economy and jobs , national security , education and healthcare .
“ You see circumstances where liberal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Iranian government than a Republican , and I think it ’ s just based on their own personal perceptions and views and not party politics , ” said Morad Ghorban , PAAIA ’ s director of government affairs and public policy .
Hoda Parvinchiha and her husband aren ’ t as politically active as they ’ d like to be .
Her activism comes in waves , she said , when tensions in the community reach a fever pitch , or world events put the focus on Iran .
After the Trump administration @ @ @ @ @ @ @ effect in 2017 , she joined others in protesting at Los Angeles International Airport .
She took her daughter , then 7 months old , with her .
Sitting inside her Mission Viejo home on a recent weekday , Parvinchiha said she hopes to become involved not just when the spotlight is on Iran .
The 38-year-old is thinking of volunteering for Sanders ’ campaign , spending some of her spare time phone banking for the candidate with friends and family .
“ It ’ s not just about international politics ; it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , like healthcare for all , ” she said .
“ He ’ s super consistent .
If it wasn ’ t him , I like Elizabeth Warren.
” Parvinchiha said she ’ s noticed Sanders ’ social media posts in various languages , but it wasn ’ t the Persian messages that stayed with her — it was the act of posting in other languages in general .
The move , she said , showed that the candidate “ acknowledges that America is a melting pot.
” But that type of outreach @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Persian voters .
“ We fight amongst ourselves .
It gets so heated , even in the family , ” Parvinchiha said as her daughter flopped onto the couch and sat in her lap .
“ Some things they say bring up so much , and that ’ s how it plays out in the community too .
”

Behrang Barzin stood at the back of Sen. Bernie Sanders’ downtown Oakland campaign office, waiting to address the “Iranians for Bernie” gathered to learn more about supporting the presidential contender.
The mostly young crowd made small talk as they reached for Middle Eastern sweets and buzzed around the tea station. But the upbeat mood over Sanders’ candidacy belied Barzin’s feeling that many politicians overlook California’s Iranian American community.
“We’re underrepresented,” Barzin said. “We have resources. We have money. But people don’t acknowledge that we’re here. We don’t know the game well enough to get involved, and that’s why people don’t reach out to us.”
The February forum, organized by grassroots Iranian and Muslim groups in California, offered a rare chance for the more than 120 people gathered there to participate in a tailored discussion hosted by a presidential campaign. Several attendees said they hadn’t heard of a similar event during previous election cycles.
To come out on top in California’s primary, Democratic contenders must appeal to a patchwork of ethnic constituencies, among them the large Iranian American population that spans San Diego, Los Angeles and the Bay Area. This year’s shift in the state’s primary election calendar from June to next week’s Super Tuesday blitz has incentivized candidates to ramp up their efforts to attract not only liberal voters writ large, but also the diverse pockets that compose much of the state’s electorate.
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Barzin backed Sanders in 2016, but the 38-year-old business owner had debated supporting former Mayor Pete Buttigieg this time around.
Iranian-American activist Hoda Katebi speaks during an “Iranians for Bernie” meeting at democratic Presidential candidate Bernie Sanders’ Oakland campaign office. (Josh Edelson / For the Times)
Then, about a month ago, a volunteer canvassing for Sanders knocked on the door of his Berkeley home and invited him to an antiwar protest in San Francisco. The rally came on the heels of the Jan. 3 U.S. drone strike that killed Iranian Gen. Qassem Suleimani and the subsequent military escalation between the two nations.
Following the strike against Suleimani, Sanders posted a message on social media in multiple languages, including Persian: “End endless wars.”
After attending that protest and a couple of other Sanders campaign events, Barzin cast his ballot for the senator several days ago. Yet his vote wasn’t based solely on Sanders’ antiwar stance. Earlier this month, Sanders had posted another photo, with a Persian text that outlined what would be covered under his “Medicare for all” plan, including dental work and devices such as hearing aids.
“I don’t just look at it through an Iran window,” Barzin said. “I think he’ll be great for the economy. I’m a small-business owner, and if my employees get healthcare I don’t have to pay $500 each for them. I can put that money toward raises and back into my business.”
Although some presidential hopefuls are beginning to court this increasingly politically active community, divisions within the diaspora pose a challenge to those aiming to capture Iranian votes — especially in L.A. An estimated half a million Iranian Americans live in Southern California alone. Like other ethno-national groups, their political views reflect a complex calculus; there’s no single issue or one-size-fits-all pitch to attract Iranian American voters.
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Sahar Sadeghi, an assistant professor of sociology at Muhlenberg College in Pennsylvania who researches the Iranian diaspora emphasized that Iranian Americans are not monolithic in their political leanings. Some, like those attending the Sanders forum in Oakland, identify as progressives, while others see themselves as moderate Democrats who would support a candidate closer to the center.
The southern half of the state — centered on enclaves of Orange County, Los Angeles and San Diego — is home to a conservative Iranian contingent that tends to back President Trump, his withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal and his tough talk against the Islamic Republic.
Saida Adem (right) and Irene Nexica (left) review forms during an “Iranians for Bernie” meeting in Oakland. (Josh Edelson / For the Times)
“Iranians in L.A. have much more polarized views than those in Northern California,” Sadeghi said. “The Iranian diaspora in L.A. tends to have a few demographics that Northern California does not have as much of. One is the presence of Armenian Iranians and Iranian Jews. That in and of itself adds a new dimension.”
Amy Malek, an anthropologist and researcher at Princeton University studying the Iranian diaspora, agreed that “there’s not a unified voice” that speaks politically for all Iranian Americans. That lack of cohesion, both on domestic issues and U.S. foreign policy toward Iran, tends to prevent the diaspora from aligning in a solid voting bloc, Malek added.
At least one other Democratic candidate is considering reaching out to Iranian American voters: billionaire Michael R. Bloomberg, who has spent more than $124 million on advertising in the 14 Super Tuesday states.
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Democratic strategist Bill Carrick said that appealing to California’s many ethnic groups, including Iranian Americans, requires politicians to develop a nuanced knowledge of the communities that live here.
“Most people campaigning for the first time here in California don’t understand the depth and complexity of the diversity here, so there is a tendency to think of it as Latinos, African Americans and Asians, and that’s sort of it,” he said. “But we have communities like the Iranian community that have come here fleeing a government they didn’t like; we have a large Armenian community.”
Anna Bahr, the Sanders campaign’s California communications director, said the candidate’s staff has relied on its diverse volunteers and supporters “to help us tap into communities that don’t often get attention from presidential campaigns.”
The 78-year-old Vermont senator has a team of more than 250 “language justice volunteers” from across the country who translate tweets and graphics, according to his campaign.
“Iranian Americans care about a lot of different issues,” Bahr said. “They care about affordable healthcare, accessible housing. They want to make sure their grandchildren have a planet to live on.”
Nazli Parvizi, Bloomberg’s California lead for constituency groups, said that his team is exploring running Persian-language ads in local media, such as Jewish outlets read by the state’s large Persian Jewish community. They also are looking at placing ads in regional newspapers in an effort to reach other diverse communities, such as the Chinese and Vietnamese diaspora, she said.
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“We have Latino outreach, we have African American outreach,” she said. “We don’t need money, but we want your influence.”
Behrang Barzin speaks to other attendees at an “Iranians for Bernie” meeting at Bernie Sanders’ Oakland campaign office on Sunday. (Josh Edelson / For The Times)
Political divisions within the Iranian diaspora often also reflect generational differences among those who fled the 1979 Islamic Revolution, immigrated after the 2009 Green Movement or were born in the U.S.
Those distinctions can also inform levels of civic engagement: Younger Iranian Americans are more likely to run for public office or work in politics, experts say. During the 2018 midterm election cycle, three women became the first Iranian Americans elected to the New York, Georgia and Florida state legislatures.
Afshine Emrani, a 52-year-old cardiologist, sees this generational gap play out every day, whether through his children’s eyes or by listening to the patients who step into his Tarzana office.
“I’m more to the right of center,” said Emrani. “My kids, going to a Jewish school, are being taught mostly liberal values. They get some conservative values from me and my family because we are older, but their education tends to be mostly liberal.”
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The community, he added, has only recently become more politically active.
Iranian Americans gathered at Bernie Sanders’ Oakland campaign office where they discussed foreign policy on Iran, President Trump’s travel ban and domestic policies such as healthcare and student loan forgiveness. (Josh Edelson / For the Times)
“We have a lot of opinions, but don’t act on them,” he said. “I think the people who actually show up are younger people. They have gone out of that mentality of ‘I have to be a doctor or lawyer or engineer to make a living or make my mom happy.’”
Having initially supported Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton in 2016 before voting for Trump, Emrani believes the current president can help restore Iran “to the greatness it had before” through his unconventional, “cowboyish” approach to politics.
Despite that, he doesn’t support all the Trump administration’s policies, such as the travel ban that restricts the entry of visitors from more than a dozen countries, including Iran, to the U.S.
“It’s not what happens to Iran so much as it’s the general policy toward the Middle East that makes a difference,” Emrani said. “Is this somebody who is going to appease whatever regime is there and give them what they want to make them our friends like Obama did, or is it someone who says, ‘This is my policy and I’m going to stand my ground.’”
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A 2019 poll commissioned by the Public Affairs Alliance of Iranian Americans (PAAIA) found that foreign policy, including the U.S.-Iran relationship, ranked first among issues that the community will consider when voting in federal elections, outranking the economy and jobs, national security, education and healthcare.
“You see circumstances where liberal Democrats might be more hawkish toward the Iranian government than a Republican, and I think it’s just based on their own personal perceptions and views and not party politics,” said Morad Ghorban, PAAIA’s director of government affairs and public policy.
Hoda Parvinchiha and her husband aren’t as politically active as they’d like to be. Her activism comes in waves, she said, when tensions in the community reach a fever pitch, or world events put the focus on Iran. After the Trump administration’s travel ban first went into effect in 2017, she joined others in protesting at Los Angeles International Airport. She took her daughter, then 7 months old, with her.
Sitting inside her Mission Viejo home on a recent weekday, Parvinchiha said she hopes to become involved not just when the spotlight is on Iran. The 38-year-old is thinking of volunteering for Sanders’ campaign, spending some of her spare time phone banking for the candidate with friends and family.
“It’s not just about international politics; it’s other things he believes in, like healthcare for all,” she said. “He’s super consistent. If it wasn’t him, I like Elizabeth Warren.”
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Parvinchiha said she’s noticed Sanders’ social media posts in various languages, but it wasn’t the Persian messages that stayed with her — it was the act of posting in other languages in general. The move, she said, showed that the candidate “acknowledges that America is a melting pot.”
But that type of outreach may not be enough to hook all Persian voters.
“We fight amongst ourselves. It gets so heated, even in the family,” Parvinchiha said as her daughter flopped onto the couch and sat in her lap. “Some things they say bring up so much, and that’s how it plays out in the community too.”


latimes--2020-02-29--'Scarlet letter statute': L.A.'s adult performers strike back against state registry bill

Adult film actress Riley Reyes was preparing for a “ particularly physical ” scene last week when she received word of a proposed state measure that would impose strict new rules on her industry .
“ I was completely shocked , ” said Reyes , who is among “ hundreds of thousands ” of performers the bill initially sought to have fingerprinted , background-checked and mandated into education programs under a new licensing scheme .
“ It was weird to have to go to work and act sexy and normal after finding out.
” Reyes shoots hardcore sex scenes on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Valley , long dubbed the “ porn capital of the world.
” She also heads the Adult Performer Advocacy Committee , one of a small number of organized labor and workers ’ rights groups that meet regularly with lawmakers on industry issues .
None of them knew about Assembly Bill 2389 until after it was introduced .
The snub has renewed a bitter fight over who speaks for adult performers in a state where legislators have long sought to assert some control over the industry .
After a decade of proposed porn czars @ @ @ @ @ @ @ adult film actors and webcam performers say Sacramento is looking for novel ways to police them .
“ It is my goal that the training required by AB 2389 will result in a certification process similar to that of other industries , ” Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia ( D-Bell Gardens ) wrote in a statement on Feb. 20 , two days after she introduced the bill .
“ For example , the food service industry requires a food handlers training course , in which workers complete a training course and at the end take @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , they are then certified food handlers in this state.
” On Thursday , Garcia introduced amendments to scrap fingerprinting requirements and scale back the business license mandate in favor of a certificate program .
But experts said such a scheme “ misunderstands how the industry works.
” “ The industry simply isn ’ t comparable to other jobs which require permitting , ” Heather Berg , assistant professor of women , gender and sexuality studies at Washington University , wrote in an email .
“ There is also a long history of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ state.
” Garcia said the bill was proposed by the International Entertainment Adult Union , an umbrella organization for industry guilds .
But those guilds represent a small fraction of adult entertainers — most of whom are nonunion — and their leaders said it was drafted behind their backs by a “ rogue officer.
” The officer , union secretary Amanda Gullesserian , told The Times she went to the lawmaker alone .
“ Who would draft a bill without talking with us ?
” said Mike Stabile of the Free Speech Coalition @ @ @ @ @ @ @ regularly with state officials .
“ No one had consulted us at all — we spoke to the other major performer groups , and no one had any contact with the legislators who drafted this .
Everyone was pretty outraged.
” “ This does not protect performers — it basically treats us like criminals , ” said Alana Evans , president of the Adult Performers Actors Guild .
“ We ’ re coming to the adult industry because we need to buy diapers , we need to feed our kids .
...
They @ @ @ @ @ @ @ scare people away.
” She and other performers were particularly alarmed by requirements that appeared to create a statewide database of adult entertainers while doing nothing to combat the stigma and discrimination many face .
Many likened AB 2389 to SESTA/FOSTA , a 2018 federal law aimed at online sex trafficking that adult entertainers and sex workers say has destroyed labor protections and upended their lives .
“ AB2389 is a bill that , like SESTA/FOSTA , is dressed to look like it seeks to protect adult entertainers , when in fact , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” wrote Antonia Crane , founder and director of Soldiers of the Pole , a stripper labor movement in California .
“ The bill allows the state to ‘ register , ’ meaning to fingerprint , record , ID and to police , the most vulnerable workforce in the world.
” Others worried the bill would stigmatize gig workers who rely on erotic labor as a side hustle .
“ This isn ’ t just the porn stars in the Valley anymore , this is your neighbors , ” said Jennifer Allbaugh , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Guild .
“ Good luck having this license and trying to get a straight job after you decide you want to retire.
” Following an industry outcry , Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez ( D-San Diego ) said she would pull her name from the legislation , which she initially co-sponsored .
Even the bill ’ s architect has sought to distance herself from the proposal .
“ It ’ s written completely wrong , ” said Gullesserian , who first approached Garcia with bullet points for what became AB 2389 .
“ It just @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and it ’ s going to be.
” Indeed , Garcia amended the bill , promising “ a collaborative process with all stakeholders.
” But critics say that process is already long overdue .
Many see AB 2389 as part of a pattern of legislative efforts to restrict California ’ s adult entertainment industry .
Several compared it to L.A. ’ s 2012 mandatory testing statute and 2016 ’ s failed Proposition 60 , which would have required condoms in all adult content filmed in the state .
Similar proposals have each died @ @ @ @ @ @ @ workers to take classes and be fingerprinted and be identified ?
Come on !
No sex worker is going to want this ridiculous law , ” said Corey D. Silverstein , a prominent industry lawyer .
“ I do believe that ultimately this bill is going to fail , but California has been doing everything they can to make the production of adult content impossible .
They are chasing people out of the state , and they are forcing adult content production to go back underground.
” Gullesserian , the International Entertainment Adult @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an education bill that would help protect young performers from abuse and manipulation .
And while most want the legislation pulled from the state Assembly , others see value in a more limited program .
Several pointed to the recent dust-up over an explicit clip involving a young performer that appeared to have been filmed in the Santa Monica Public Library ’ s Ocean Park Branch while unsuspecting patrons browsed in the background .
Public sex is a misdemeanor in California .
“ As the barriers to entry in adult film have decreased @ @ @ @ @ @ @ things to attract a [ paying ] audience , ” said David Schieber , an assistant professor of sociology at Northwestern and a scholar of labor in the adult entertainment industry .
“ Someone more experienced might say , ‘ This is illegal , I ’ m not doing this.
’ ” Reyes , the workers ’ advocate , cautioned that a legally mandated education program could only do so much in such cases .
“ The things models need most are education about their rights , their sexual health , and financial @ @ @ @ @ @ @ But people ’ s work is so varied , you start to wonder if you can standardize an education packet ... and if that is something that should be state mandated.
” It ’ s unclear if the ill-starred Assembly bill can be reworked to fit that goal .
But whether it ’ s pulled or passed with amendments , experts say , its effects are likely to be felt well into the future .
“ No one would do this to teachers or nurses , ” Reyes said .
“ I think @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this time for sure .
”

Riley Reyes said she was shocked to learn about a bill that would require licensing, fingerprinting and background checks for people like her who perform in adult films.
Adult film actress Riley Reyes was preparing for a “particularly physical” scene last week when she received word of a proposed state measure that would impose strict new rules on her industry.
“I was completely shocked,” said Reyes, who is among “hundreds of thousands” of performers the bill initially sought to have fingerprinted, background-checked and mandated into education programs under a new licensing scheme. “It was weird to have to go to work and act sexy and normal after finding out.”
Reyes shoots hardcore sex scenes on the storied sets of the San Fernando Valley, long dubbed the “porn capital of the world.” She also heads the Adult Performer Advocacy Committee, one of a small number of organized labor and workers’ rights groups that meet regularly with lawmakers on industry issues.
None of them knew about Assembly Bill 2389 until after it was introduced. The snub has renewed a bitter fight over who speaks for adult performers in a state where legislators have long sought to assert some control over the industry. After a decade of proposed porn czars and failed condom codes, strippers, adult film actors and webcam performers say Sacramento is looking for novel ways to police them.
One industry lawyer called it a “scarlet letter statute.”
“It is my goal that the training required by AB 2389 will result in a certification process similar to that of other industries,” Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia (D-Bell Gardens) wrote in a statement on Feb. 20, two days after she introduced the bill. “For example, the food service industry requires a food handlers training course, in which workers complete a training course and at the end take a quiz. Upon passing the quiz, they are then certified food handlers in this state.”
Advertisement
On Thursday, Garcia introduced amendments to scrap fingerprinting requirements and scale back the business license mandate in favor of a certificate program.
But experts said such a scheme “misunderstands how the industry works.”
“The industry simply isn’t comparable to other jobs which require permitting,” Heather Berg, assistant professor of women, gender and sexuality studies at Washington University, wrote in an email. “There is also a long history of sex workers resisting mandated registration with the state.”
Garcia said the bill was proposed by the International Entertainment Adult Union, an umbrella organization for industry guilds. But those guilds represent a small fraction of adult entertainers — most of whom are nonunion — and their leaders said it was drafted behind their backs by a “rogue officer.” The officer, union secretary Amanda Gullesserian, told The Times she went to the lawmaker alone.
“Who would draft a bill without talking with us?” said Mike Stabile of the Free Speech Coalition, an industry trade group that works regularly with state officials. “No one had consulted us at all — we spoke to the other major performer groups, and no one had any contact with the legislators who drafted this. Everyone was pretty outraged.”
The backlash was sudden.
“This does not protect performers — it basically treats us like criminals,” said Alana Evans, president of the Adult Performers Actors Guild. “We’re coming to the adult industry because we need to buy diapers, we need to feed our kids. ... They’re going to use this to scare people away.”
She and other performers were particularly alarmed by requirements that appeared to create a statewide database of adult entertainers while doing nothing to combat the stigma and discrimination many face. Many likened AB 2389 to SESTA/FOSTA, a 2018 federal law aimed at online sex trafficking that adult entertainers and sex workers say has destroyed labor protections and upended their lives.
Advertisement
“AB2389 is a bill that, like SESTA/FOSTA, is dressed to look like it seeks to protect adult entertainers, when in fact, it seeks to further criminalize them,” wrote Antonia Crane, founder and director of Soldiers of the Pole, a stripper labor movement in California. “The bill allows the state to ‘register,’ meaning to fingerprint, record, ID and to police, the most vulnerable workforce in the world.”
Others worried the bill would stigmatize gig workers who rely on erotic labor as a side hustle.
“This isn’t just the porn stars in the Valley anymore, this is your neighbors,” said Jennifer Allbaugh, vice president of the Adult Performers Actors Guild. “Good luck having this license and trying to get a straight job after you decide you want to retire.”
Following an industry outcry, Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez (D-San Diego) said she would pull her name from the legislation, which she initially co-sponsored. Even the bill’s architect has sought to distance herself from the proposal.
“It’s written completely wrong,” said Gullesserian, who first approached Garcia with bullet points for what became AB 2389. “It just needs to be erased and fixed — and it’s going to be.”
Indeed, Garcia amended the bill, promising “a collaborative process with all stakeholders.”
But critics say that process is already long overdue.
Many see AB 2389 as part of a pattern of legislative efforts to restrict California’s adult entertainment industry. Several compared it to L.A.’s 2012 mandatory testing statute and 2016’s failed Proposition 60, which would have required condoms in all adult content filmed in the state. Similar proposals have each died in the Legislature.
“Requiring sex workers to take classes and be fingerprinted and be identified? Come on! No sex worker is going to want this ridiculous law,” said Corey D. Silverstein, a prominent industry lawyer. “I do believe that ultimately this bill is going to fail, but California has been doing everything they can to make the production of adult content impossible. They are chasing people out of the state, and they are forcing adult content production to go back underground.”
Gullesserian, the International Entertainment Adult Union secretary, said she had envisioned an education bill that would help protect young performers from abuse and manipulation. And while most want the legislation pulled from the state Assembly, others see value in a more limited program.
Several pointed to the recent dust-up over an explicit clip involving a young performer that appeared to have been filmed in the Santa Monica Public Library’s Ocean Park Branch while unsuspecting patrons browsed in the background. Public sex is a misdemeanor in California.
“As the barriers to entry in adult film have decreased, producers have to do more extreme things to attract a [paying] audience,” said David Schieber, an assistant professor of sociology at Northwestern and a scholar of labor in the adult entertainment industry. “Someone more experienced might say, ‘This is illegal, I’m not doing this.’ ”
Reyes, the workers’ advocate, cautioned that a legally mandated education program could only do so much in such cases.
“The things models need most are education about their rights, their sexual health, and financial planning,” Reyes said. “But people’s work is so varied, you start to wonder if you can standardize an education packet ... and if that is something that should be state mandated.”
It’s unclear if the ill-starred Assembly bill can be reworked to fit that goal. But whether it’s pulled or passed with amendments, experts say, its effects are likely to be felt well into the future.
“No one would do this to teachers or nurses,” Reyes said. “I think we’ve made our voices heard this time for sure.”


latimes--2020-02-29--Bullet train plan for Tehachapi passage would cost $18.1 billion over 82 miles

The future California bullet train would barrel out of Bakersfield and shoot up 4,000 feet over the Tehachapi Mountains en route to Palmdale , an engineering feat that would cost $ 18.1 billion and impose significant impacts — including the loss of low-cost housing , a homeless shelter and a high school , according to new details .
The impacts are outlined in a draft environmental statement released Thursday by the California High-Speed Rail Authority .
It selects a preferred route that would include 9.3 miles of tunnels and 15.8 miles of elevated structures , representing about 30 % of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The rail segment is a crucial link in California ’ s ultimate plan of running bullet trains from the Bay Area to Los Angeles and beyond .
But this stretch of the route , as planned , would take out the R. Rex Parris High School in Palmdale , the Lancaster Community Homeless Shelter , the Solid Rock Bible Church , eight motels , 253 residential housing units , 311 businesses and 175 farm fields , according to the environmental documents .
Brian Hawkins , assistant superintendent for business services at the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said the site is an alternative high school that serves about 500 students , not a comprehensive campus with football fields and other athletic facilities .
Nonetheless , it does have chemistry and biology labs , along with other classrooms and offices .
Hawkins said he was not aware that the documents released Thursday could lead to the loss of the school , though several years ago he saw a map at a rail authority community meeting that showed the site in the way of the rail .
“ If they get around @ @ @ @ @ @ @ move , the question is who is going to pay for it , ” Hawkins said .
Rail authority spokeswoman Annie Parker said the authority has “ had several conversations with the school district about this and continue to work with them.
” The environmental documents also indicate that a section of the iconic Pacific Crest Trail , which runs from the Mexican to Canadian borders through mountain ranges , forests and deserts , would have to be relocated .
The resulting trail would run within sight and sound of the passing 220-mile-per-hour @ @ @ @ @ @ @ significant and unavoidable under CEQA , ” the report states , referring to the California Environmental Quality Act .
The housing losses would include 34 single family homes , 164 apartments and 55 mobile homes , the authority said .
When and if these impacts would occur is only a guess , since the state lacks the $ 18 billion to build the section .
The rail authority is working under a plan to build 171 miles of rail from Bakersfield to Merced for $ 20.4 billion , a cost that would consume @ @ @ @ @ @ @ can be completed on schedule by about 2028 .
But under its 2020 business plan , the rail authority still asserts it can complete the entire Los Angeles to San Francisco system by 2033 .
The new documents identify four alternative routes between Bakersfield and Palmdale , along with two options for the alternatives .
It selected so-called alternative 2 as causing the least environmental damage .
Some of the other options would have required rerouting Highway 58 , a major cross desert freeway that connects Barstow and the Central Valley .
One @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” to a “ historic ” Denny ’ s Restaurant .
One of the design options was developed to minimize impacts to the César E. Chávez National Monument .
The cost of building over the steep mountain range has grown much more rapidly than the entire project .
In 2012 , the Los Angeles to San Francisco construction was estimated to cost $ 68 billion and it has since grown 18 % to $ 80 billion under the 2020 business plan .
By contrast , the cost of the Bakersfield to Palmdale section @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2012 to the current $ 18.1 billion , an increase of 135 % .
In years past , high-speed rail experts , tunneling engineers and construction managers said the state was woefully underestimating the difficulty of crossing the steep grades that lead to Tehachapi Pass and then winding through Mojave Desert into urban Lancaster and Palmdale .
The modern route would include some massive structures , such as one viaduct extending 4,600 feet , nearly a mile , and another soaring 220 feet , roughly the height of a 20-story building , above @ @ @ @ @ @ @ authority .
The last attempted rail path through the area was in the 1870s , when Southern Pacific carved out a winding route with thousands of Chinese immigrant laborers , equipped only with dynamite and hand tools .
It is still the only rail route between the Central Valley and Southern California .
Since 2015 , the rail authority and its consultants have been refining the Tehachapi Mountain crossing and the preferred route identified Thursday has fewer miles of tunnels .
Five years ago , studies indicated that it would require 16 miles @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 9.3 miles .
In addition to the tunnels , the route would include 75 overpass or underpass structures as it crosses highways .
Another 49 roads in the way would just be closed .

The Tehachapi Loop was built in 1876 to allow trains to cross the Tehachapi Mountains and travel between Los Angeles and the Bay Area.
The future California bullet train would barrel out of Bakersfield and shoot up 4,000 feet over the Tehachapi Mountains en route to Palmdale, an engineering feat that would cost $18.1 billion and impose significant impacts — including the loss of low-cost housing, a homeless shelter and a high school, according to new details.
The impacts are outlined in a draft environmental statement released Thursday by the California High-Speed Rail Authority. It selects a preferred route that would include 9.3 miles of tunnels and 15.8 miles of elevated structures, representing about 30% of the entire passage between the two cities.
The rail segment is a crucial link in California’s ultimate plan of running bullet trains from the Bay Area to Los Angeles and beyond. But this stretch of the route, as planned, would take out the R. Rex Parris High School in Palmdale, the Lancaster Community Homeless Shelter, the Solid Rock Bible Church, eight motels, 253 residential housing units, 311 businesses and 175 farm fields, according to the environmental documents.
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Brian Hawkins, assistant superintendent for business services at the Antelope Valley Union High School District, said the site is an alternative high school that serves about 500 students, not a comprehensive campus with football fields and other athletic facilities. Nonetheless, it does have chemistry and biology labs, along with other classrooms and offices.
Hawkins said he was not aware that the documents released Thursday could lead to the loss of the school, though several years ago he saw a map at a rail authority community meeting that showed the site in the way of the rail. “If they get around to building this and we have to move, the question is who is going to pay for it,” Hawkins said.
Rail authority spokeswoman Annie Parker said the authority has “had several conversations with the school district about this and continue to work with them.”
The environmental documents also indicate that a section of the iconic Pacific Crest Trail, which runs from the Mexican to Canadian borders through mountain ranges, forests and deserts, would have to be relocated. The resulting trail would run within sight and sound of the passing 220-mile-per-hour trains. The impacts “would be significant and unavoidable under CEQA,” the report states, referring to the California Environmental Quality Act.
The housing losses would include 34 single family homes, 164 apartments and 55 mobile homes, the authority said.
When and if these impacts would occur is only a guess, since the state lacks the $18 billion to build the section. The rail authority is working under a plan to build 171 miles of rail from Bakersfield to Merced for $20.4 billion, a cost that would consume all of its available funding if it can be completed on schedule by about 2028. But under its 2020 business plan, the rail authority still asserts it can complete the entire Los Angeles to San Francisco system by 2033.
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The new documents identify four alternative routes between Bakersfield and Palmdale, along with two options for the alternatives. It selected so-called alternative 2 as causing the least environmental damage.
Some of the other options would have required rerouting Highway 58, a major cross desert freeway that connects Barstow and the Central Valley. One option would have had “significant impact” to a “historic” Denny’s Restaurant. One of the design options was developed to minimize impacts to the César E. Chávez National Monument.
The cost of building over the steep mountain range has grown much more rapidly than the entire project. In 2012, the Los Angeles to San Francisco construction was estimated to cost $68 billion and it has since grown 18% to $80 billion under the 2020 business plan. By contrast, the cost of the Bakersfield to Palmdale section shot up from $7.7 billion in 2012 to the current $18.1 billion, an increase of 135%.
In years past, high-speed rail experts, tunneling engineers and construction managers said the state was woefully underestimating the difficulty of crossing the steep grades that lead to Tehachapi Pass and then winding through Mojave Desert into urban Lancaster and Palmdale.
The modern route would include some massive structures, such as one viaduct extending 4,600 feet, nearly a mile, and another soaring 220 feet, roughly the height of a 20-story building, above the ground, according to the rail authority.
The last attempted rail path through the area was in the 1870s, when Southern Pacific carved out a winding route with thousands of Chinese immigrant laborers, equipped only with dynamite and hand tools. It is still the only rail route between the Central Valley and Southern California.
Since 2015, the rail authority and its consultants have been refining the Tehachapi Mountain crossing and the preferred route identified Thursday has fewer miles of tunnels. Five years ago, studies indicated that it would require 16 miles of tunnels, rather than the current 9.3 miles.
In addition to the tunnels, the route would include 75 overpass or underpass structures as it crosses highways. Another 49 roads in the way would just be closed.


latimes--2020-02-29--California's super-dry February raises specter of early fires and drawn-down reservoirs

California is set to conclude one of its driest Februaries in recorded history , elevating fears the state ’ s always-unpredictable fire season could arrive early this year — if March doesn ’ t provide some wet relief .
February is typically a prime month for Pacific storms to produce much of the Sierra Nevada snowpack — moisture that sustains wildlife , delays wildfire season and serves as a water bank for thirsty cities and farms .
But those storms didn ’ t arrive in February , with a state survey Thursday showing the snowpack was 46 % of average @ @ @ @ @ @ @ year , many of California ’ s reservoirs are well above their season average , so state water managers have few fears about near-term shortages .
Yet if the coming months remain relatively dry , the state will be dependent on an uncertain future to prevent the state from swinging back into drought conditions .
“ All it takes is an extreme atmospheric river to end up in a high-water situation even if the broader season is dry , ” said state hydrologist Michael Anderson , who added that a storm is expected @ @ @ @ @ @ @ couple of weeks .
“ The two extremes can now coexist in a warmer climate.
” Historical data , however , suggests there is just a small likelihood of what some call a “ March Miracle.
” Over the last 14 decades , only five of the 20 driest Februaries in downtown Los Angeles were followed by Marches with above-average rainfall , said Bill Patzert , a retired climatologist for the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in La Cañada-Flintridge .
San Francisco follows a similar pattern , with only six of 18 relatively dry Februaries @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , said Jan Null , a meteorologist with Golden Gate Weather Services .
“ You ’ re running out of time , ” said meteorologist David Miskus , who authored the federal government ’ s most recent U.S. Drought Monitor report on Thursday .
“ It ’ d be nice to get a near-normal March , but it looks like you might have to wait until next season.
” For now , the effects of the dry February can be seen from space — in satellite photos that capture the barren Sierra , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ resorts , desperate for fresh powder .
They also can be seen across the state ’ s ranch lands — where cattle seeking fields of green grass shoots are finding dust instead .
It has not rained at all in downtown Sacramento in February , making it the driest February on record there in 153 years of record-keeping .
The second-driest February was in 1899 , when it rained four-tenths of an inch .
Though it did rain there in January , it amounted to less than half the monthly average .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ clouds , which can act as insulation for the region .
Without them , February ’ s average high temperature was 67.6 degrees , or more than 6 degrees warmer than normal for the month , said National Weather Service meteorologist Eric Kurth .
Conversely , fewer clouds have also made it colder than average at night .
The situation is similar in San Francisco , where the city ’ s downtown hasn ’ t had any measurable precipitation since late January , marking one of the longest streaks of dry winter days @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2015 .
“ It seems like you guys either get feast or famine , ” Miskus said from his Maryland office .
“ I guess the normal is to be abnormal.
” Because of the enduring dryness , Cal fire will probably begin staffing its seasonal firefighters and inmate hand crews earlier than last year , when an exceptionally soggy winter was capped with a surprise storm in May , said Mike Mohler , spokesman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection .
A new slate of fuel-reduction and fire break @ @ @ @ @ @ @ continue last year ’ s surge of work aimed at protecting rural communities and evacuation routes .
“ It ’ s a double-edged sword — lots of rain , lots of brush ; no rain , dry brush , ” Mohler said .
“ We hate to preach doom and gloom , but it ’ s the reality we live in.
” The writing of what could come is already on the wall , Mohler said .
A six-acre brush fire broke out at San Bruno Mountain State and County Park south of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ remnants of a prescribed fire in Mendocino County grew out of control earlier this week , and there was a 100-acre fire near Lake Tahoe in mid-February .
After back-to-back catastrophic fire years , 2019 ended up being the quietest year of wildfires in California since 2011 , possibly because the state ’ s largest utilities proactively shut down their power lines most vulnerable to wind events .
The strategy triggered blackouts for millions of customers but also potentially prevented some blazes from igniting during high winds .
In Southern California , where @ @ @ @ @ @ @ end of summer , the uneventful winter just gives the landscape that much more time to dry out , officials said .
When the month is over , this February will probably rank as the 10th-driest on record for downtown Los Angeles , said meteorologist Joe Sirard of the National Weather Service .
Though a small storm is forecast for the first week of March , experts say it ’ s nowhere near big enough to make up for the our liquid deficit .
Patzert says our water deficit and drought goes back @ @ @ @ @ @ @ many of California ’ s groundwater wells .
He pointed to the the Baldwin Park Key Well in the San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District , which hit an all-time low in 2018 and remains below its historic average .
Based on the 143 years of records available , Patzert says the wet winters of 2016-17 and 2018-19 were the exceptions , not the rule , for California ’ s rain future .
Over that time frame , the average annual rainfall in downtown Los Angeles has been 14.93 inches .
Based on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 1999 to 2019 was more than 2 inches below that .
Another disturbing trend is earlier melt-off of Sierra snow .
California ’ s snowpack melted an inch just in February because of warmer-than-typical weather , officials said .
“ What we see in California is the snowpack comes later , it leaves earlier , ” Patzert said .
“ We shifted the seasons .
Warmer falls , warmer springs .
And so droughts are now hotter .
They ’ re normal , but they ’ re hotter .
”

Satellite images released in February by the National Weather Service office in Sacramento show what a difference a year makes in terms of Sierra snowfall..
California is set to conclude one of its driest Februaries in recorded history, elevating fears the state’s always-unpredictable fire season could arrive early this year — if March doesn’t provide some wet relief.
February is typically a prime month for Pacific storms to produce much of the Sierra Nevada snowpack — moisture that sustains wildlife, delays wildfire season and serves as a water bank for thirsty cities and farms. But those storms didn’t arrive in February, with a state survey Thursday showing the snowpack was 46% of average.
After an unusually wet winter last year, many of California’s reservoirs are well above their season average, so state water managers have few fears about near-term shortages. Yet if the coming months remain relatively dry, the state will be dependent on an uncertain future to prevent the state from swinging back into drought conditions.
“All it takes is an extreme atmospheric river to end up in a high-water situation even if the broader season is dry,” said state hydrologist Michael Anderson, who added that a storm is expected to hit the state in the next couple of weeks. “The two extremes can now coexist in a warmer climate.”
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Historical data, however, suggests there is just a small likelihood of what some call a “March Miracle.”
(Paul Duginski / Los Angeles Times)
Over the last 14 decades, only five of the 20 driest Februaries in downtown Los Angeles were followed by Marches with above-average rainfall, said Bill Patzert, a retired climatologist for the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in La Cañada-Flintridge. San Francisco follows a similar pattern, with only six of 18 relatively dry Februaries leading to above-average March rainfall since 1852, said Jan Null, a meteorologist with Golden Gate Weather Services.
“You’re running out of time,” said meteorologist David Miskus, who authored the federal government’s most recent U.S. Drought Monitor report on Thursday. “It’d be nice to get a near-normal March, but it looks like you might have to wait until next season.”
For now, the effects of the dry February can be seen from space — in satellite photos that capture the barren Sierra, and at the region’s ski resorts, desperate for fresh powder. They also can be seen across the state’s ranch lands — where cattle seeking fields of green grass shoots are finding dust instead.
(Paul Duginski / Los Angeles Times)
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It has not rained at all in downtown Sacramento in February, making it the driest February on record there in 153 years of record-keeping. The second-driest February was in 1899, when it rained four-tenths of an inch. Though it did rain there in January, it amounted to less than half the monthly average.
The lack of rain has also meant fewer clouds, which can act as insulation for the region. Without them, February’s average high temperature was 67.6 degrees, or more than 6 degrees warmer than normal for the month, said National Weather Service meteorologist Eric Kurth. Conversely, fewer clouds have also made it colder than average at night.
The situation is similar in San Francisco, where the city’s downtown hasn’t had any measurable precipitation since late January, marking one of the longest streaks of dry winter days since the peak of the drought in 2015.
“It seems like you guys either get feast or famine,” Miskus said from his Maryland office. “I guess the normal is to be abnormal.”
Because of the enduring dryness, Cal fire will probably begin staffing its seasonal firefighters and inmate hand crews earlier than last year, when an exceptionally soggy winter was capped with a surprise storm in May, said Mike Mohler, spokesman for the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection.
A new slate of fuel-reduction and fire break projects are lined up for 2020 to continue last year’s surge of work aimed at protecting rural communities and evacuation routes.
(Paul Duginski / Los Angeles Times)
“It’s a double-edged sword — lots of rain, lots of brush; no rain, dry brush,” Mohler said. “We hate to preach doom and gloom, but it’s the reality we live in.”
The writing of what could come is already on the wall, Mohler said. A six-acre brush fire broke out at San Bruno Mountain State and County Park south of San Francisco on Friday, the smoldering remnants of a prescribed fire in Mendocino County grew out of control earlier this week, and there was a 100-acre fire near Lake Tahoe in mid-February.
After back-to-back catastrophic fire years, 2019 ended up being the quietest year of wildfires in California since 2011, possibly because the state’s largest utilities proactively shut down their power lines most vulnerable to wind events. The strategy triggered blackouts for millions of customers but also potentially prevented some blazes from igniting during high winds.
In Southern California, where the fire season typically begins at the end of summer, the uneventful winter just gives the landscape that much more time to dry out, officials said. When the month is over, this February will probably rank as the 10th-driest on record for downtown Los Angeles, said meteorologist Joe Sirard of the National Weather Service.
Though a small storm is forecast for the first week of March, experts say it’s nowhere near big enough to make up for the our liquid deficit.
Patzert says our water deficit and drought goes back further than people think, evidenced by many of California’s groundwater wells. He pointed to the the Baldwin Park Key Well in the San Gabriel Valley Municipal Water District, which hit an all-time low in 2018 and remains below its historic average.
Based on the 143 years of records available, Patzert says the wet winters of 2016-17 and 2018-19 were the exceptions, not the rule, for California’s rain future.
Over that time frame, the average annual rainfall in downtown Los Angeles has been 14.93 inches. Based on that average, the 20-year period from 1999 to 2019 was more than 2 inches below that.
Another disturbing trend is earlier melt-off of Sierra snow. California’s snowpack melted an inch just in February because of warmer-than-typical weather, officials said.
“What we see in California is the snowpack comes later, it leaves earlier,” Patzert said. “We shifted the seasons. Warmer falls, warmer springs. And so droughts are now hotter. They’re normal, but they’re hotter.”