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Bloodhound, a cocktail bar in San Francisco's SoMa neighborhood, closed for good on Jan. 18, the owner said. | Source:Courtesy BloodhoundA San Francisco bar has permanently shut its doors after the pandemic slashed business in the neighborhood and emptied out Downtown offices, the owner said.The SoMa watering hole Bloodhound shut its doors for good on Thursday, according to co-owner Mike Goebel.Goebel said that since reopening after a one-year closure during the pandemic from March 2020 to March 2021, sales have been down 70% compared with before the pandemic."The business wasn't making money," Goebel said. "The neighborhood is just so...

Coronavirus numbers in California have fallen almost back to levels observed before omicron became the state's dominant variant, the latest COVID-19 infections and hospitalization data show. California and many counties last Wednesday ended their mask requirement in indoor public places for the fully vaccinated, while Los Angeles and Santa Clara counties kept their mandates in effect. Masks remain mandatory throughout the state in several settings, including on public transit, in health care settings, at long-term care facilities such as nursing homes and at K-12 schools.

The San Francisco Bar Owner Alliance, a group of nearly 300 bars, made the decision to require either proof of COVID-19 vaccination or a negative test in order to enter, the Associated Press reported.

UCSF infections disease expert Dr. Peter Chin-Hong, on the other hand, said that he thinks that with travelers coming into the Bay Area from other parts of the country and with different levels of circulating virus and vaccination rates, it makes increasing sense to don masks indoors, particularly as cases rise locally. "The point is that we want to protect the unvaccinated as there are increasing reports of vaccinated persons getting infected," Chin-Hong said. "This is still a rare circumstance, and vaccinated persons will rarely get ill after infection, but nonetheless a moving target. It would still be a bummer...

And so it begins. With organizers of the recall effort to oust Gov. Gavin Newsom on the cusp of triggering a special election, a colorful cast of hopefuls who want to replace the Democratic leader has started to emerge — including a few familiar faces. Former porn star Mary Carey and Los Angeles billboard icon Angelyne, both of whom ran in the 2003 recall election to replace then-Gov. Gray Davis, have announced they will run to succeed Newsom as governor should the recall effort qualify for the ballot. “I have big plans for California, and it is time for someone...

Protesters attend a rally to have airline and airport workers considered essential and eligible for a Covid vaccine. Photograph: Étienne Laurent/EPA He was hailed as a national hero in the early months of the pandemic, but Newsom’s job rating has plunged in recent weeks Criticism has come from all sides. Legislators have been divided over his decision to lift regional stay-at-home orders a week after the state surpassed 3m coronavirus cases. Health workers have been dismayed that some of his recent health directives have diverged from established and emerging scientific research. He has bickered with teachers unions and parents...

State lawmakers are set to consider a bipartisan bill that would allow Disneyland, Six Flags Magic Mountain and other theme parks to reopen ahead of the current California guidelines.

The California High-Speed Rail Authority is asking Gov. Gavin Newsom and state legislators to release about $4.1 billion in state bond funds to ensure that there is enough money to complete construction that’s now underway on the bullet-train route in Madera, Fresno, Kings, Tulare and Kern counties. If the governor, the state Assembly and the state Senate ultimately concur this spring, the money would come from Proposition 1A, a $9.9 billion high-speed rail bond approved by California voters in 2008. The rail authority’s board unanimously approved the request in a Zoom video meeting Tuesday. Still pending in the state’s 3rd...

Los Angeles police responded after a mass of maskless demonstrators forced their way into an Erewhon Market in the Fairfax district Tuesday afternoon in protest of coronavirus restrictions. “We’re not here coughing everything, smearing everything,” Jason Traver said. “We just want to shop, we want to take our own precautions that we’ve been doing all of our lives, and we’ll be fine.” Officers stayed on scene to monitor the situation and ensure it didn’t escalate, but police said no arrests were made. After leaving Erewhon, some protesters walked to a nearby Trader Joe’s and claimed medical reasons for being maskless....

Stop listening to talk radio and watching TV. They push Fear Porn to keep your eyes on your phone, TV and Computer, as well, your radio or streaming all in their selfish and greedy desire to enrich themselves at the expense of America and their fellow human beings. Fear Porn of the phony PCR test creating "Cases" and we never hear the good news about "Recovery". Both are contrivances anyway. This is how they sell ads by keeping you "Tuned In". Every 15 minutes they profit from givernment PSA’s and they are hurting our country. They use local stations and...