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Photos: President Biden pardons 2 Thanksgiving turkeys in White House tradition

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:58:07 GMT

Liberty and Bell can spread their wings without fear.Related ArticlesNational Politics | This is the season for holiday … leftovers National Politics | Bay Area to see biggest Thanksgiving travel weekend since pandemic National Politics | ‘A really big help’: Hundreds receive Thanksgiving turkeys at food pantry giveaway in Livermore National Politics | Best days to drive, fly during Thanksgiving travel season National Politics | Thanksgiving 2023: These chain restaurants will be serving turkey dinners The Thanksgiving turkeys played their part Monday in an annual holiday tradition at the White House: a president sparing them from becoming someone’s dinner.“I hereby pardon Liberty and Bell. Congratulations, birds,” Biden said after one of the National Thanksgiving Turkeys was placed on a table near him.The event, held on the South Lawn this year instead of the smaller Rose Garden, marks ...

Disneyland lamppost falls and injures visitors during high winds

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:58:07 GMT

Several Disneyland visitors were injured when a lamppost on Main Street U.S.A. fell during high winds and toppled onto a walkway near the entrance to the Anaheim theme park, according to published reports.The lamppost in Disneyland Town Square fell just before 8:45 a.m. on Monday, Nov. 20 amid strong Santa Ana winds with gusts up to 90 mph, according to WDW News Today.Emergency personnel transported an elderly woman by stretcher who was struck on the head by the lamppost while another visitor sat on a park bench with a bandaged head, according to WDW News Today.BREAKING: Lamppost Falls Over on Main Street U.S.A. at Disneyland, Guests Injuredhttps://t.co/2eJdvwVFGt— Disneyland News Today (@dlnt) November 20, 2023Related ArticlesCrashes and Disasters | Man jumps to his death at Disneyland parking garage; Third incident in less than a year Crashes and Disasters | Look inside Frozen land pitched for Disneyland expansion Crashes and Disasters | ...

Israel battles Hamas outside another Gaza hospital

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:58:07 GMT

By Wafaa Shurfa, Samy Magdy and Jack Jeffery | Associated PressDEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip — Israeli forces pressed their offensive against Hamas in northern Gaza on Monday, battling militants around a hospital where thousands of patients and displaced people have been sheltering for weeks, and where health officials began planning the possible evacuation of dozens of wounded.A medical worker inside the facility and the Health Ministry in Hamas-run Gaza said a shell struck the second floor of the Indonesian Hospital, killing 12 people. Both blamed Israel, which denied shelling the hospital, saying its troops returned fire on militants who targeted them from inside the 3.5-acre compound.The advance came a day after the World Health Organization evacuated 31 premature babies from Shifa Hospital in Gaza City. At least 28 were transported to Egypt on Monday. More than 250 critically ill or wounded patients remain stranded at the compound that Israeli forces stormed days ago.Gaza’s h...

San Jose hotel is poised to benefit from SJSU student housing deal

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:58:07 GMT

SAN JOSE — A landmark downtown San Jose hotel is poised to benefit from the sale of one of its two towers for SJSU student housing — and a new restaurant, lounge and other amenities are also in the works after the deal.The Signia by Hilton San Jose, now a 541-room hotel, is eyeing significant upgrades in the wake of a $113 million deal whereby a Bay Area real estate firm bought the hotel’s former southern tower as a crucial step to transform the highrise into housing for San Jose State University students.The hotel, which is owned by a group headed up by Bay Area business executive Sam Hirbod, now has a greatly improved occupancy level after dropping in size from the previous 805 rooms to a smaller — yet still very large — hotel with 500-plus rooms at 170 South Market Street in downtown San Jose.Signia by Hilton San Jose hotel at 170 South Market Street in downtown San Jose. (Dai Sugano/Bay Area News Group)“We believe the Signia is right-size...

San Mateo County: Man found guilty of murder in connection to deadly 2018 shooting

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:58:07 GMT

REDWOOD CITY — A jury returned a guilty murder verdict against a man Friday, more than 5 years after a Menlo Park man was discovered shot to death in a dirt parking lot on Highway 1 south of Tunitas Creek, according to prosecutors.Omar Villagomez Meza, 31, was arrested in April 2020 after a lengthy investigation into the mysterious death of 25-year-old Luis Alberto Diaz-Lopez. Diaz-Lopez was found dead with multiple gunshot wounds and with his belongings missing just before 7 a.m. on Oct. 2, 2018.According to the San Mateo County District Attorney’s Office, Diaz-Lopez was a gang member, and was recruited by Meza to commit a burglary with the aid of a woman. The woman was driving the pair when Meza instructed her to park in a dirt turnout on Highway 1. The two men exited the vehicle and without warning, Meza pulled a gun on Diaz-Lopez and shot him multiple times.Related ArticlesCrime and Public Safety | Woman sentenced to 18 years in prison for 1993 murder of San Car...

49ers safety Talanoa Hufanga suffers torn ACL Sunday in win over Bucs

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:58:07 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- San Francisco 49ers safety Talanoa Hufanga suffered a torn ACL on Sunday during the Niners game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Hufanga left the game in the second half with a knee injury.At the time, 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan suspected it was a torn ACL. Perfect Brock Purdy throws 3 TD passes to lead the 49ers past the Bucs 27-14 On Monday, KRON4 Sports Anchor Kate Rooney confirmed the player had suffered a torn ACL. ACL injuries require typically require surgery and several months of rehab, meaning Hufanga will likely be out for the remainder of the season.In Sunday's win, 49ers quarterback Brock Purdy threw three touchdown passes to lead the Niners past the Bucs, 27-14.The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Settlement reached after woman's hijab removed in Milpitas jail

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:58:07 GMT

(KRON) -- Santa Clara County will pay a Muslim woman, Asia Aden, $90,000 after she was asked to remove her hijab while she was being booked into a county jail, attorneys said.Aden was represented by the Council on American-Islamic Relations San Francisco Bay Area Office of the Council (CAIR-SFBA), which announced the settlement on Monday. According CAIR-SFBA, Aden was booked into Elmwood Correctional Facility in Milpitas in October of 2022. Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office deputies asked Aden to remove her hijab "to conduct a pat search for safety purposes. The hijab was removed and returned when she was released from custody a few days later," the council wrote. Aden previously said she felt "humiliated and disgraced" from removing her hijab in jail.Since the incident, jails changed their inmate search and mugshot photography policies to balance safety precautions -- such as pat searches -- with a person's right to religious expression.Under the new policies, Aden would have bee...

Fired OpenAI CEO and former company president hired by Microsoft

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:58:07 GMT

Microsoft on Monday hired two leading executives from the company that created ChatGPT after one of them was abruptly fired by OpenAI, the startup whose chatbot kicked off the era of generative artificial intelligence.The developments followed a weekend of drama that shocked the AI field and fueled speculation about the future of OpenAI, which named a new chief executive on Friday and then replaced her on Sunday. The newest CEO vowed to investigate the firing of co-founder and CEO Sam Altman, one of the world's most sought-after experts on AI.Microsoft, which has been a close partner of the company and invested billions of dollars in it, announced that Altman and OpenAI's former president, Greg Brockman, would lead its new advanced AI research team. Brockman, also an OpenAI co-founder, quit in protest after Altman was fired.Many more OpenAI employees threatened to join them at Microsoft in an open letter addressed to OpenAI's board that called for its resign...

Linda Yaccarino tweets support for X's 'vision' amid reports she's being encouraged to quit

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:58:07 GMT

SAN FRANCISCO (KRON) -- X CEO Linda Yaccarino tweeted Monday that she believes "deeply" in the company's vision amid multiple reports she's being encouraged to resign by advertising industry colleagues. The reports, and Yaccarino's statement, come on the heels of a mass exodus of advertisers from the social media platform, spurred in part by X owner Elon Musk's tweeted response supporting an antisemitic conspiracy theory."What we're doing at X matters and has everyone's attention," Yaccarino tweeted Monday. "I believe deeply in our vision, our team, and our community. I'm also deeply committed to the truth and there is no other team on earth working as hard as the teams at X." Will San Francisco streets remain clean even after APEC? "When you're this consequential, there will be detractors and fabricated distractions, but we're unwavering in our mission. Thank you for standing with us!" her tweet concluded.Yaccarino's tweet follows reports from CNN, Forbes and Axios that the forme...

Why it’s hard to tell if Amazon HQ2 is driving up Arlington home prices

Published Sun, 29 Dec 2024 12:58:07 GMT

To date, Amazon has staffed up HQ2 with about 8,000 employees, enough of an influx that it should have registered on the housing market radar screen on sales, prices and rent. It may have, but it is unclear.(Courtesy Amazon) To date, Amazon has staffed up HQ2 with about 8,000 employees, enough of an influx that it should have registered on the housing market radar screen on sales, prices and rent. It may have, but it is unclear.(Courtesy Amazon) It was five years ago this month that Amazon officially announced Arlington, Virginia, as it’s selection of its HQ2 campus. In addition to elation about the big economic win, there was also hand-wringing about Amazon’s impact on local housing affordability.“Amazon was brin...