close video San Francisco activist exposes drug crisis at city bus stops
San Francisco drug abstinence advocate Ricci Wynne discusses the open-air drug market unraveling in one of the country’s largest cities.
The San Francisco Chronicle's editorial board put out a dire warning about San Francisco's economy, emphasizing that the city needs to evolve as fast as possible to avoid a ‘doom loop’ from employees transitioning to remote work.
"Experts say post-pandemic woes stemming from office workers staying home instead of commuting into the city could send San Francisco into a 'doom loop' that would gut its tax base, decimate fare-reliant regional transit systems like BART and trap it in an economic death spiral," the editorial warns.
The editorial board also drew a comparison between San Francisco after COVID-19 and New York City after 9/11, as commuters feared returning to New York skyscrapers after the terrorist attacks.
But with enough subsidies, the article argues, Manhattan bounced back thanks to new train stations, public parks, malls and residential buildings in the Financial District. But San Francisco has yet to make structural changes.
SAN FRANCISCO MAYOR TORCHED FOR SEEKING FEDERAL ASSISTANCE TO CURB CRIME CRISIS: ‘YOU NEED TO DEAL WITH IT’
A view shows the downtown skyline of San Francisco, Calif., June, 29, 2022. (REUTERS/Carlos Barria / Reuters Photos)
"Despite our housing crisis, it was years into the COVID pandemic before our leaders meaningfully questioned the logic of reserving some of the most prized real estate on Earth for fickle suburbanites and their cars," the editorial said.
"And so we wasted generous federal COVID emergency funds trying to bludgeon, cajole and pray for office workers to return downtown instead of planning for change," the piece continued. "We’re now staring down the consequences for that lack of vision."
CONCERNS ESCALATE OVER SAN FRANCISCO'S RISING CRIME HURTING BUSINESS
In this March 28, 2020, file photo, a small group of people walk in front of the Golden Gate Bridge at Baker Beach in San Francisco. ((AP Photo/Jeff Chiu, File) / AP Newsroom)
The editorial board suggested investing in office-to-housing conversions and demolishing office buildings for new projects, which would require financial help from the state government.
Last year, San Francisco topped a list of cities that homebuyers wanted to move away from. 24% of buyers in a Redfin report were looking to leave San Francisco.
Alexandria Real Estate Equities founder and CEO Joel Marcus had told Fox Business in January that redeveloping older office buildings into multifamily homes could solve the housing crisis.
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"This sits as a monumental opportunity, I think, for this country to take this stock of older office buildings," Marcus said on "Mornings with Maria." "Almost 996 million square feet by current account, and move that into a stock of housing because it sits there, and it just needs to be redeveloped."
An aerial view of the San Francisco city skyline in California, Oct. 28, 2021. (REUTERS/Carlos Barria / Reuters Photos)
Yungblud has told Sky News he hopes he can keep Ozzy Osbourne’s “spirit and energy” alive after performing at the metal legend’s final gig.
The singer-songwriter paid tribute to his hero at the premiere of his upcoming documentary, Are You Ready, Boy?, which he admitted had been an “uncomfortable” watch as it shows him at his most vulnerable.
It gives fans a glimpse behind the curtain during the process of recording live tracks from his fourth studio album, Idols, which topped the charts in June.
Image: On stage at Back To The Beginning. Pic: Kazuyo Horie
Just a few weeks later, he was on stage at Back To The Beginning – Ozzy Osbourne‘s “final bow” reunion gig with Black Sabbath, held at Villa Park in Birmingham. The metal pioneer died less than three weeks later.
Yungblud, whose real name is Dom Harrison, performed a cover of Osbourne’s song Changes, and went on to release his version as a single, raising funds for the same charities as the concert.
Afterwards, Ozzy gifted him a cross which he keeps around his neck.
Image: Ozzy on stage during his final performance. Pic: Ross Halfin
“Ozzy is everything to me, always has been,” he says. “And to be able to go on stage and honour my hero and sing that song to him, without knowing that they were his final days, was everything to me.
“I will try my best to keep that spirit and keep that energy alive. I love that guy. I got to know him personally at the end and I love that family. I’ve got nothing but love, always.”
Now, Harrison is getting ready for the release of Are You Ready, Boy?, which was filmed at the famous Hansa Studios in Berlin, the birthplace of albums including David Bowie’s Heroes and U2’s Achtung Baby!.
Image: Are You Ready, Boy? is released later in August
Making music and all of his creative output he sees as “life or death”, he says in the film. “I mean, 100%,” he adds while on the red carpet. “I think that’s how I like to play, you know? I mean, red or black, every time.
“I love taking risks and this film is the most vulnerable I think I’ve ever been. It’s pretty uncomfortable for me to watch. I’ve seen it once, I’ll watch it tonight and probably never watch it again…
“I think in this day and age, it’s very easy for us to cut around things and make them palatable and digestible. I wanted to do something that would be raw and uncomfortable, and this is what came out.”
The film comes during an intense period for the star, who has just opened his own music venue and shop in London, and is also planning a world tour and the return of his own festival, Bludfest, in 2026.
“I think it’s important for [fans] to know who I really am,” he says, of why he wanted to make the film. “I think 30 seconds on an Instagram video doesn’t quite cut it. It’s a fly-on-the-wall documentary… we didn’t have an overarching narrative at the start of it.
“I said, come with me for two weeks, roll the cameras and see what happens.”
The star also spoke about Bludfest, which he launched in 2024. The third event next year will be “bigger and better,” he says.
“I had something to prove,” he says. “I think this festival was important… It made me sick, the price of tickets. And a lot of promoters, I don’t think, took me seriously.
“We made a massive statement and I will continue to do that. I love my community, I love my fanbase. They’re all I care about.”
Are You Ready, Boy? is out in cinemas on August 20 and 24
Jeremy Clarkson has joined a backlash in the Cotswolds after US vice president JD Vance arrived at a picturesque hamlet in the region for his summer holiday.
Mr Vance and his family are staying at Dean Manor, a Grade II-listed country home in the tiny hamlet of Dean, during a trip where they also stayed with the Foreign Secretary David Lammy in Kent and will later travel to Scotland.
Local residents reportedly expressed their frustrations after Mr Vance’s enormous motorcade, consisting of 18 vehicles, caused a lockdown in the countryside on Monday.
People in the Cotswolds faced road closures and security checkpoints overseen by police with sniffer dogs as Mr Vance made his way to Dean Manor on Monday, according to GloucestershireLive.
It came before a “Vance Not Welcome Party” protest was organised by the groups “Everybody Hates Elon” and the “Stop Trump Coalition” in Charlbury, close to where Mr Vance is staying, today.
Image: People attend the ‘Vance not welcome party’ protest as JD Vance spends his holiday nearby. Pic: Reuters
Image: Pic: Reuters
The demonstrators held banners mocking the US vice president and calling him a “war criminal”, in an apparent reference to America’s support for Israel.
Several protesters held images of a widely shared meme depicting Mr Vance with a bald head. The meme went viral after a Norwegian tourist claimed he was not allowed into the US after immigration agents saw it on his phone.
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One protester in Charlbury held a banner reading “JD Vance’s Netflix password is ‘password'”, while another held a sign which said: “JD Vance claps when the plane lands.”
Image: Pic: Reuters
Meanwhile, a van displaying the image of a bald Mr Vance was seen driving through Charlbury.
A large sign outside a property in nearby Chipping Norton read: “Gaza starves, Vance not welcome.”
Image: Pic: Reuters
Image: Pic: Reuters
The demonstrations took place as former Top Gear presenter Clarkson shared an image on Instagram which highlighted how his farm is under a no-fly zone over the Cotswolds areas of Chadlington and Spelsbury.
In an apparent reference to filming for the fifth series of his show Clarkson’s Farm, the 65-year-old wrote: “The JD Vance no fly zone. We are the pin. So on the downside, no drone shots today. On the upside, no annoying light aircraft.”
However, he later sarcastically shared a video of a peaceful Cotswolds scene and wrote: “Utter chaos caused by Vance. How will we ever manage?”
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Kaleb Cooper, a farmer who is Clarkson’s co-star on the Amazon Prime show, said some of his “wheat got wet” after he got stuck behind Mr Vance’s convoy.
He wrote: “I could have easily went on my way and got it in the shed without getting in the way.”
Cooper also joked that if Mr Vance simply “drove around in a VW Polo nobody would know who he was”.
Clarkson’s “Diddly Squat Farm” in Chadlington is around three miles from the hamlet of Dean where Mr Vance is staying.
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Well known for being popular with members of the British elite – former UK prime minister David Cameron lives in Dean – the Cotswolds is also becoming increasingly popular with wealthy Americans.
Some of them moved to the region after the election of Donald Trump last year. TV presenter Ellen DeGeneres is among those who has relocated to the area.
Not all of Dean’s residents appreciate its growing popularity. Jonathan Mazower, the head of communications for NGO Survival International, who owns one of Dean’s 15 homes, said he had to speak out against Mr Vance’s presence, adding: “It’s a massive intrusion and it’s not just the fact our lives are disrupted but it’s who he is.”
Image: A police officer and a member of US security man a checkpoint and where a road closure was in place as JD Vance spends his holiday nearby. Pic: Reuters
Pic: Reuters
Image: Pic: Reuters
Vance’s UK tour
The US vice president is expected to host shadow justice secretary Robert Jenrick during his holiday – but not Tory leader Kemi Badenoch.
Mr Jenrick has been invited to meet Mr Vance before a drinks event on Tuesday, it is understood.
A Conservative spokesman said the party leader’s team had spoken to Mr Vance’s but that “scheduling” had proved difficult.
Both sides have played down the notion of a snub, the Telegraph reported.
It comes as the US vice president will travel to Scotland later this week in a trip that could see up to 1,000 police officers deployed as part of security efforts.
Sky News understands the Vance family are likely to visit Ayrshire but are not thought to be planning to stay at Mr Trump’s Turnberry resort in the area.
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1:22
Lammy-Vance Bromance: Will it last?
In Kent, Mr Vance said he had a “love” for the UK but joked he had committed a diplomatic faux pas as he began his holiday.
“Unfortunately, the one strain on the special relationship is that all of my kids caught fish, but the foreign secretary did not,” he said.
He also said he doesn’t want the UK to go down a “very dark path” of losing free speech.
Mr Vance described Mr Lammy as a “very, very gracious host”.
It says human rights in the UK “worsened” in 2024, with “credible reports of serious restrictions on freedom of expression”, as well as “crimes, violence, or threats of violence motivated by antisemitism” since the 7 October Hamas attack against Israel.
On free speech, while “generally provided” for, the report cites “specific areas of concern” around limits on “political speech deemed ‘hateful’ or ‘offensive'”.
Sir Keir Starmer has previously defended the UK’s record on free speech after concerns were raised by Mr Vance.
In response to the report, a UK government spokesperson said: “Free speech is vital for democracy around the world including here in the UK, and we are proud to uphold freedoms whilst keeping our citizens safe.”
Image: Keir Starmer and JD Vance have clashed in the past over free speech in the UK. Pics: PA
The US report highlights Britain’s public space protection orders, which allow councils to restrict certain activities in some public places to prevent antisocial behaviour.
It also references “safe access zones” around abortion clinics, which the Home Office says are designed to protect women from harassment or distress.
They have been criticised by Mr Vance before, notably back in February during a headline-grabbing speech at the Munich Security Conference.
Ministers have said the Online Safety Act is about protecting children, and repeatedly gone so far as to suggest people who are opposed to it are on the side of predators.
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5:23
Why do people want to repeal the Online Safety Act?
The report comes months after Sir Keir bit back at Mr Vance during a summit at the White House, cutting in when Donald Trump’s VP claimed there are “infringements on free speech” in the UK.
“We’ve had free speech for a very long time, it will last a long time, and we are very proud of that,” the PM said.
But Mr Vance again raised concerns during a meeting with Foreign Secretary David Lammy at his country estate in Kent last week, saying he didn’t want the UK to go down a “very dark path” of losing free speech.
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The Trump administration itself has been accused of trying to curtail free speech and stifle criticism, most notably by targeting universities – Harvard chief among them.