I love and hate Facebook. I love it because I have used it for years to keep in touch with my family and oldest friends—many of whom I hadn’t heard from much before we all became FB friends. By facilitating instant two-way communications, Facebook became and remains the Internet’s killer app. I hate Facebook because, having studied it closely for years, I do believe that it is literally deadly.
For this week’s newsletter, Jonathan Vankin looks at the lawsuit that California Attorney General Rob Bonta and AGs across the country have filed against Facebook’s and Instagram’s parent company, Meta. The lawsuits allege that Meta exhibited a pattern of behavior in which it purposely caused children to become addicted to its products. (Duh.) The lawsuits describe various profound harms being experienced by our kids, and alleges that Meta’s own documents show that its executives knew that children were getting hurt, and continued these practices anyway.
Scott Galloway, NYU business school professor, offers a succinct analysis of the situation:
“I think when we look back on this era of big tech, we’re gonna feel bad about monopoly abuse … we’re going to feel bad about the weaponization of our elections, vaccine misinformation—we’re gonna regret all of it. And I think that’s all gonna be dwarfed by this one regret, and that’s “how the [expletive] did we let this happen to our children?”
• Capitola Housing Element Readied for Final Approval
Capitola leaders are expected to cap off a year-long effort to update the city’s housing element before the state-mandated deadline in December.
(11/06/2023) → Santa Cruz Sentinel
• Local Couple Fights for Walnut Avenue’s Iconic Redwood Tree
Like silent guardians standing sentry on Walnut Avenue near Santa Cruz High School, two intertwined redwood trees, technically considered one, have inspired reverence in passersby and nearby residents for close to a century, possibly longer.
(11/04/2023) → Santa Cruz Sentinel
• Capitola Police Relaunch Community Committee Effort
Capitola law enforcement leaders will restart efforts to form a community policing committee after a previous attempt failed to recruit a representative group of local residents.
(11/02/2023) → Santa Cruz Sentinel
• Retired Journalist Peggy Townsend Is Living the Novelist’s Life
Former Santa Cruz Sentinel writer Peggy Townsend has shifted her storytelling skills to the realm of fiction. Her latest novel, “The Beautiful and the Wild.” draws from her experiences as a journalist.
(11/02/2023) → Read the full Lookout Local report
• What’s Next for Seymour Center’s Iconic Whale Skeleton?
After taking a beating from the elements at UC Santa Cruz’s Seymour Marine Discovery Center, the structure supporting the blue whale skeleton known as Ms. Blue has been deemed unsafe. But the bones are staying, and the center wants input on Ms. Blue’s next chapter.
(11/02/2023) → Read the full Lookout Local report
• Gali Debuts First Wines Made by Former Ridge Winemaker
Janice and Joseph Gali of Gali Vineyards in Watsonville still have fruit hanging. There’s good news and bad news, as with anyone trying to ripen coastal syrah this season.
(11/01/2023) → Edible Monterey Bay
• State Assemblymember Gail Pellerin Running for Second Term
Gail Pellerin filed election paperwork for most of her adult career as the chief elections officer in Santa Cruz County, but now she’s getting used to the process from the other side of the desk.
(11/01/2023) → Santa Cruz Sentinel
• Aromas Residents Work With County to Get New Ballot Dropbox
Living in a town that straddles Monterey, Santa Cruz and San Benito counties can sometimes be a challenge for people living in Aromas.
(10/31/2023) → Benito Link
• Saratoga Restaurateurs Causing a Stir in Santa Cruz Mountains
Angelo Heropoulos, owner of Hero Ranch Kitchen and Flowers Restaurant in Saratoga, has taken over the storefront most recently occupied by Pasta Armellino, which shuttered in October.
(10/31/2023) → Santa Cruz Sentinel
• UC Irvine-Led Science Team Shows How to Eat Our Way Out of the Climate Crisis
In a study published in Nature Sustainability, scientists assessed the potential for wide-scale synthetic production of dietary fats. The raw materials are the same as those used by plants: hydrogen in water and carbon dioxide in the air.
(11/06/2023) → YubaNet
• A Proposed Development Might Threaten California’s Oldest Tree
A shrubby Palmer oak tree in Riverside County is around 13,000 years old, making it California’s oldest tree and one of the longest-lived organisms on earth. Some people are concerned that a proposed development could threaten the tree.
(11/06/2023) → Los Angeles Times
• Newsom Taking New Approach to California’s 10,000 Homeless Veterans
California’s population of homeless veterans has plateaued despite billions of dollars in state spending to create housing for former service members. Now, Gov. Gavin Newsom wants to shift resources to focus on veterans with serious mental health conditions.
(11/05/2023) → CalMatters
• What a Theme Park Giant Merger Means for California
Two theme park giants, Six Flags and Cedar Fair, announced they are merging. It could have potential impacts on California theme parks like Six Flags Magic Mountain, Knott’s Berry Farm and Six Flags Discovery Kingdom.
(11/05/2023) → SFGate
• UC Berkeley to Relinquish More Than 4,000 Ancestral Remains
Tribes like the Muwekma Ohlone have been asking UC Berkeley for decades to give back ancestral remains from burial sites around the Bay Area. The school is in the process of repatriating 4,400 remains and 25,000 tribal items.
(11/03/2023) → ProPublica
• Lakes Are Reappearing in Death Valley
California's Death Valley is Earth’s hottest place and North America’s driest place. Intense rains, though, are causing lakes to briefly reappear.
(11/03/2023) → Newsweek
• Open Enrollment for Covered California Runs Nov. 1 to Jan. 31
It’s that time of the year again when people can get health insurance through Covered California. Here’s more information on how to apply.
(11/03/2023) → Sacramento Bee
• America’s Low-Carbon Transition Could Improve Employment Opportunities for All
The USA is likely to see consistent job growth from the transition to net zero, but the gains will be unevenly distributed, shows a new analysis conducted by Imperial College London researchers and published in Nature Climate Change.
(11/03/2023) → YubaNet
• Tech Layoffs Continuing in California
Four technology companies, including Google, have announced they're laying off close to 1,700 workers in California. This follows tech layoffs that have been underway since last year.
(11/02/2023) → San Francisco Chronicle
• Schiff Gets Endorsement From CA Assembly Speaker in U.S. Senate Race
California Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas has endorsed Rep. Adam Schiff in a crowded U.S. Senate race. Other candidates include representatives Barbara Lee and Katie Porter.
(11/02/2023) → Los Angeles Times
• Australian Wine Conglomerate Spends $900 Million for Daou Vineyards
The acquisition includes the Daou brand, Daou Mountain Estate, four luxury wineries, and around 400 acres of vineyards in Adelaida District of Paso Robles in San Luis Obispo County.
(11/01/2023) → San Joaquin Valley Sun
• A Big Year of Snow in California Was Horrific for Endangered Sheep
Researchers tell LAist that half of California’s population of Sierra Nevada bighorn sheep, which are endangered, died last winter due to record weather. Causes of death include avalanches, starvation and getting eaten by mountain lions after moving to lower elevations for food.
(10/31/2023) → LAist
• UCLA Scientist: California’s Redwoods Might Not Last Another Century
A UCLA climate scientist says California’s redwoods might not last in their current groves for another 100 years. An effort is afoot to plant redwoods elsewhere in more potentially hospitable climates, such as the Pacific Northwest.
(10/31/2023) → New York Times
