Hana Baba

Earlier today Governor Jerry Brown announced that he had reached a deal with state lawmakers that would mean sweeping changes for California’s public pensions system, and affect hundreds of thousands of state workers. The new rules would cap pensions while increasing the amount employees pay in; they would also increase the retirement age by up to seven years.

The California Department of Health has issued a scathing report about a board-and-care home for people with disabilities in Sonoma County.

The Sonoma Developmental Center houses about 500 patients in the city of Eldridge. California Watch obtained a copy of the nearly 500 page document which details numerous citations of neglect and abuse by staff, including sexual abuse and violence, as well as lack of action on these cases by on-site law enforcement.

You might remember the TV program “Whose Line Is it Anyway?” where four comics get on stage with no script or plan whatsoever, take suggestions for skits from the audience, and then see what happens. 

New legislation has reached the Governor’s desk that would change the way juveniles are sentenced. Senate Bill SB9, introduced by State Senator Leland Yee of San Francisco introduced the legislation ,which would allow people who are serving life without parole for crimes they committed when they were juveniles, to ask for sentences of 25 years to life instead.

To many Americans, Falafel is a fried ball of mashed up garbanzo beans that you can put in a sandwich. But to me, falafel reminds me of where I’m from – Sudan. Until recently, I thought there was really only one way to make it. But it turns out, there are many ways to fry a falafel, depending on where you’re from – and of course, everyone thinks their way is best. So I headed out around the Bay on a falafel shop hop.