The Mercury News

Converting from Christian Rock to Indie Rock

Are you a musician? Is your group having issues? Ask Fan Landers! Critic Jessica Hopper has played in and managed bands, toured internationally, booked shows, produced records, worked as a publicist, and is the author of The Girls' Guide to Rocking, a how-to for teen ladies. She is here to help you ... More >>

In-N-Out Cuts Ties With Slaughterhouse

In-N-Out will no longer use beef from a Central California slaughterhouse that is being investigated for cow abuse, the AP and the San Jose Mercury News reports. Central Valley Meat Co. of Hanford is being investigated to see if beef from sick cattle entered the human food supply. In-N-Out Burger ... More >>

Will Felipe Fuentes and Gov. Jerry Brown Water Down Teachers' Evaluations?

California's education reform wars are popping up again -- this time over a controversial bill called AB 5, which reform activists say will water down teachers' evaluations. The grassroots group EdVoice has taken a full-page ad in today's A section of the Los Angeles Times to sound the alarm and g ... More >>

Dan Richards Loses War to 'Enviro-Terrorists': Mountain Lion Killer No Longer President of Fish and Game

Dan Richards, former president of the California Fish and Game Commission ("former" as per a commission vote this afternoon), killed and ate a mountain lion in Idaho last winter. "I'm glad it's legal," he told Western Outdoor News at the time. He sent the conservative site a giant photo of himself ... More >>

Completely Useless New California Law Says You Can Use Siri to Text While Driving

In a time-wasting attempt to earn back an ioda of public approval, California Governor Jerry Brown just OKed a new law that (sort of, not really) allows texting while driving. The law, proposed by L.A.-area Assemblyman Jeff Miller, says that you can now send and receive texts on the road -- as long ... More >>

The Wednesday Edition: A Roundup of Newspaper Food Stories

You can't replace the feeling of lounging on the couch with a scrunched-up newspaper. But with the web, at least you don't need to worry about getting ink on your hands and bagel. Here's a roundup of some food-related stories from our country's newspapers this week. Lucky for us, it's mostly free. F ... More >>

The Wednesday Edition: A Roundup of Newspaper Food Stories

You can't replace the feeling of lounging on the couch with a scrunched-up newspaper. But with the web, at least you don't need to worry about getting ink on your hands and bagel. Here's a roundup of some food-related stories from our country's newspapers this week. Lucky for us, it's mostly free. F ... More >>

The Wednesday Edition: A Roundup of Newspaper Food Stories

You can't replace the feeling of lounging on the couch with a scrunched-up newspaper. But with the web, at least you don't need to worry about getting ink on your hands and bagel. Here's a roundup of some food-related stories from our country's newspapers this week. Lucky for us, it's mostly free. F ... More >>

Apple to Build Employee-Only Restaurant to Keep Out Spies and Competitors

Say your company has top-secret information that it would like to contain within the confines of its campus. But, your employees eat, as people do, at public restaurants. And at these public restaurants, they, as people unfortunately do, talk about their work, which often includes inadvertent disc ... More >>

The Wednesday Edition: A Roundup of Food Newspaper Stories

You can't replace the feeling of lounging on the couch with a scrunched-up newspaper. But with the web, at least you don't need to worry about getting ink on your hands and bagel. Here's a roundup of some food-related stories from our country's newspapers this week. Lucky for us, it's mostly free. F ... More >>

CHP to Crack Down on Eating, Applying Makeup While Driving (Not Just Cellphones)

The California Highway Patrol has had some trouble, in the past, explaining where the no-texting law ends and dialing a number into your phone (which is technically legal) begins. "When you look for loopholes, the whole issue of cellphone use, texting or distracted driving becomes confusing, if no ... More >>

Trent Arsenault, Sperm Donor Extraordinaire, Also Happens to be One-Man Porn Star

XtubeTrent.​We tried to stay away from the story of Trent Arsenault. We really did. With both hands. It's an icky tale. He's the Bay Area guy who mass-donates sperm to women and couples who want to have children. He does so on his own, outside the white coats of sperm labs. And so he was rece ... More >>

Black Friday Mayhem: Pepper Spraying, Fighting And Shooting, Oh My (Video)

Updated at the bottom: As cops tell the Weekly charges will be recommended, details emerge about the number of witnesses (victims?). First posted at 8 p.m. Friday. Ah, the season of giving is upon us, a time when we celebrate family, our nation and, yes, peace on earth. Wait, was that pepper spray ... More >>

iPhone's Siri, a Virtual Assistant, Could Get You a Ticket if You Follow Her Directions While Driving

Siri's a bad girl.​Cops in California say using iPhone's new personal assistant feature called Siri on the road could still get you a traffic ticket even though she works through voice commands. That's because if you touch your phone to, say, explore a map of directions she brought up for you ... More >>

Three Strikes Law: Stanford Law Professors Try to Soften Harsh Sentences for Some Offenders

​Under California's current Three Strikes law, you can get life in prison for stealing a pair of socks if you're a repeat offender. Three strikes and you're out. But as of now, it looks like a dedicated group of Stanford law professors are trying to change the law - often viewed as draconian - ... More >>

Worst Legislator in California, Part II

Charles Calderon lets special interest groups ghostwrite his laws

What Race is a Latino? Some Mexican-Americans in California Aren't Even Sure (Neither Are We)

RCALatina? White? Both?​Have you ever looked at your light-skinned, green-eyed Latino neighbor -- or perhaps he's kinky haired and the color of cinnamon -- and asked, What the hell are you? It's a question Latinos even ask themselves, apparently, especially when filling out a U.S. Census form ... More >>

Bryan Stow Assault Suspects Arrested: Bald Man With Neck Tattoos, Possible Female Getaway Driver in LAPD Custody, Reports Say

LAPDAn assault suspect arrested in East Hollywood today is reportedly one of these two. Witnesses say he was bald, possibly making him the one on the left.​Update: 31-year-old Giovanni Ramirez is under arrest for the beating. According to KTLA, "he was booked for assault with a deadly weapon, ... More >>

Texting While Driving in California is Illegal, But Nobody Seems to Know Exactly Where the Law Starts and Using Your Phone to Make a Call Begins

amber 10Don't do this. You could be pulled over.​When it is okay for drivers to punch in characters -- dial a phone number, say -- now that texting behind the wheel is illegal in California, which still happens to be the texting-while-driving capital of the nation? No one seems to know. And t ... More >>

Barry Zito, SF Giants Pitcher, Crashes in West Hollywood Night Before Opening Day

Barry Zito: Golden Gate bumpkin in the big city​Looks like someone was getting a little overexcited before the big game. In what we're hoping is an omen for the San Francisco Giants' luck on the Dodger Stadium diamond today, pitcher Barry Zito got himself into a bit of a crunch in West Hollyw ... More >>

The Thursday Edition: A Roundup of Newspaper Food Stories

Flickr/dubh​ What's the country reading today food-wise? Here's a roundup of some of the food-related stories from other newspapers, many of which print their food sections mid-week. And remember, even if you don't actually buy papers these days (or not; this paper is free), it's where most of ... More >>

Food News Roundup: Nutella Cakes, Desert Food, Papa Cristo's New Look Pot Soda

-- Papa Cristo's finally renovating their old (and beloved) space. [Eater LA] -- Pot meets pop: Soquel entrepreneur plans medical-marijuana soft drinks. [Mercury News] -- Molten Chocolate-Nutella Pudding Cakes. Nutella. Need we say more? [Noble Pig] -- Palm Springs eats: What's new in the desert. ... More >>

$20,000 buys California laws: Felipe Fuentes, Charles Calderon, dozens of legislators take cash from special interests who ghost-write laws

Assembly Felipe Fuentes: is he selling California laws?​We've already reported that Los Angeles' State Assemblyman Felipe Fuentes is "The Worst Legislator in California," putting his name on laws that are actually ghostwritten by corporations, unions -- and anyone else Fuentes thinks he can sq ... More >>

Corporate Sponsors May Be Coming to LAUSD Campuses

Roaming Vegas/FlickrNot coming to a school near you--well, not into a school near you.​ The Los Angeles Unified School District is so poor it is entertaining the notion of accepting corporate sponsors on school campuses. There's no chance of the Malboro Man's visage being emblazoned on a socc ... More >>

Proposition 8: Ted Olson Argues Gay Marriage Can't Harm Straight Folks, U.S. Ninth Circuit Judge Stephen Reinhardt Wonders How Far Court Should Go?

Pro-gay marriage lawyer Ted Olson​Nearly a year after court proceedings first started for the Proposition 8 federal lawsuit, attorneys for both sides argued their cases in front of a three-judge panel at the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco today. Pro-Prop. 8 lawyers seek ... More >>

1,000 L.A. Rats Kept By 'Hoarders' Show Subject Saved By San Jose Animal Rescuers

San Jose Mercury NewsL.A.'s rats go up north. So what else is new.​When neighbors discovered that a nearby L.A. resident had a serious rat problem they didn't call animal control. They called producers of the television show Hoarders. What the show's people found was 1,000 rats. Turns out the ... More >>

Journos Dan Walters, Dan Morain Have Dueling Takes On 'LA Weekly's' Story About Felipe Fuentes -- 'Worst Legislator In California'

Felipe Fuentes: The worst or just the norm?​There's a small debate brewing in media circles about whether LA Weekly's story this week on "The Worst Legislator in California" -- San Fernando Valley Assemblyman Felipe Fuentes -- constitutes true news. The story is based on a San Jose Mercury Ne ... More >>

The Worst Legislator in California

San Fernando Valley Assemblyman Felipe Fuentes takes Sacramento bill-peddling to a new low

LAPD Officers Stumble Upon 21 Guns (Yeah, Like The Green Day Song, You Cheese) In Search Of Much Lesser Stock

barjack via Flickr​At a West Valley raid on Wednesday, part of the LAPD's optimistically titled "Operation New Horizons," officers stumbled upon a cache of ridiculously illegal weaponry to make the little gangsters in them squeal with glee. Though they'd only been searching for two shotguns a ... More >>

Frat Boys Rejoice: California Legalizes Free Alcohol Samples At Grocery Stores

​Ah, the California legislature. It can't balance a budget to save the state's life. Nineteen million plastic bags in landfills, waterways and gutters each year? No prob for this bunch. And one-third of all bills in Sacramento have special-interest sponsors and are twice as likely to pass as t ... More >>

Check Your Eggs: Millions Recalled Due to Salmonella

Flickr/stevendepolo​An outbreak of salmonella in eggs has prompted a nationwide recall and lead to hospitalizations in counties across the U.S., including in California, the San Jose Mercury News reports. Since May, at least 266 people across the state have become ill after eating contaminated ... More >>

Prop. 8 Appeal Process Begins

​ As expected, lawyers fighting to protect Proposition 8, the California ban on gay marriage, have appealed Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker's ruling, which overturned the marriage ban Wednesday, the San Jose Mercury News reports. Walker's decision overturned Prop. 8, using strong lan ... More >>

Same-Sex Marriage: Ruling In Prop. 8 Challenge Due Wednesday

​A federal court ruling on a much-anticipated challenge to California's ban on same-sex marriage, known as Prop. 8, was scheduled for Wednesday. According to the San Jose Mercury News: Chief U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker will release the ruling without holding a hearing, typical in decidi ... More >>

Dr. Keith Richman near death: respected San Fernando Valley Jewish Republican formed rare bipartisan effort to force reform in Sacramento

Los Angeles Daily NewsKeith Richman ​ UPDATED: Keith Richman died Friday night at Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center, according to an extensive obituary by Kevin Modesti in the Los Angeles Daily News. This post is updated throughout. Dr. Keith Richman, a fascinating mix of Jewish doctor, Repub ... More >>

Apple Schedules Special Press Conference To Address Problems With iPhone 4

Gizmodo​Apple scheduled a press conference Friday to address a growing roar of discontent with its iPhone 4, which this week was found by Consumer Reports to have serious issues with reception. The San Jose Mercury News called the last-minute conference "unprecedented" for the normally quali ... More >>

Egg Bill Signed Into Law

​Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed legislation Tuesday that required that eggs sold in California come from hens that are not crammed in cages, according to the Los Angeles Times. The law, which follows the guidelines outlined in Proposition 2, requires all eggs sold in the state as of ... More >>

Proposed Bill Would Raise Kindergarten Age to 5

​In an effort to save California an estimated $700 million dollars in annual education spending, California legislators are considering changing the minimum kindergarten enrollment age from 4-years-old to 5. The state Senate approved the bill by Sen. Joe Simitian on Wednesday on a 28-4 vote. ... More >>

Prop. 8 Trial: Olson and Boies Expected to Rest Gay Marriage Case Today

Proposition 8 plaintiffs' attorneys Ted Olson and David Boies are expected to rest their case today in San Francisco.Patrick Range McDonaldProposition 8 protestor marches in Westwood in November, 2008.​Olson and Boies have spent nearly two weeks trying to persuade U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker ... More >>

The Cost Of Riding California's Bullet Train Has Nearly Doubled (And There's Not A Foot Of Track Yet)

​If you voted in 2008 to approve a high-speed rail line from San Diego to the Bay Area, we wouldn't blame you if you felt a little hoodwinked right now. While $55 one-way fare was touted as an alternative to $60 flights between L.A. and San Francisco, the San Jose Mercury News points out that ... More >>

Prop. 8 Trial: Republican Mayor Says Lesbian Daughter 'Deserves' to be Married

San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders, a staunch Republican who only recently became a supporter of gay marriage, took center stage at the Proposition 8 trial in San Francisco on Tuesday, telling the court that his lesbian daughter "deserves the same opportunity to have a wedding in front of family, friends ... More >>

Prop. 8 Trial: Cambridge Professor Says Gays Raise 'Well-Adjusted' Kids

Anti-gay marriage supporters aren't the only people who can succeed as parents.Patrick Range McDonaldPro-gay marriage marchers in Westwood in November, 2008.​At the Proposition 8 trial in San Francisco on Friday, Cambridge University psychology professor Michael Lamb told the court that gay and le ... More >>

In Defense of Defenders

Clueless Times

The hapless daily faces cuts and shearing of Scheer

The Back Story

Peace is patriotic

File This, Gray

The governor has a clever way of avoiding messy paper trails

The Big Kiss-off

Crack Cop

FBI memos released to the Weekly show ties of convicted dealer to former CIA official

Suing the CIA

Mom tackles the agency

Re-Hash

Cockburn and St. Clair's Clip Job on the CIA-Drug Paradigm

The Coke Machine

The Story behind the Contra-crack cocaine story