U.S. Citizens Warned of Bahamas "Rogue" Jet Ski Vendors

Above, yours truly jet skiing at Great Stirrup Cay in 2024.

Two years ago, a friend and I rode jet skis at Great Stirrup Cay, an island owned and operated by Norwegian Cruise Line.

Our activity on the jet skis went without incident and we had a good time. 

Unfortunately, others haven't had good experiences with jet ski operators as reports of injuries, deaths and sexual assaults. Many of the operators involved are rogue vendors who are unlicensed and uninsured.

According to Fox 11 News:

Americans are being urged to steer clear of jet ski rentals in the Bahamas as U.S. officials warn of sketchy operators linked to deaths, injuries and reported sexual assaults.

In a Monday statement, the U.S. Embassy in the Bahamas said that "rogue operators" are soliciting tourists on Nassau's most popular beaches, including Cabbage Beach, Junkanoo Beach and Saunders Beach.

The rogue operators are often "unlicensed, uninsured, and operating unsafe watercraft," the embassy said — and officials noted that law enforcement oversight is "sporadic at best."

 To read more, go here.

FireAid Hires Law Firm To Review Dispersal of Funds From Benefit Concert

Above, the famous Moonshadows restaurant before and after the fire.

It looks like those behind the FireAid benefit concert that raised over $100 million, purportedly to help those who were affected by the wildfires in January in Los Angles County, has hired a law firm to review the disbursements made. Many noted that organizations having nothing to do with the fires are getting the funds.

They have taken much criticism over the past few weeks by victims of the fires. They are also angry at the foot-dragging by Los Angeles and California officials over rebuilding permits. L.A. Mayor Karen Bass and Gov. Gavin Newsom had promised expedited permitting, but have failed to do so.

Variety posted an article on FireAid and it begins with:

FireAid has hired a law firm, Latham & Watkins, to review the dispersal of roughly $100 million in funds that were raised in conjunction with a massive benefit concert earlier this year, the charitable organization announced Monday. FireAid released a letter it sent to Rep. Kevin Kiley of California about the internal review, shortly after the congressman posted it on his X account.

Some congresspeople and journalists have hit the organization with questions in recent weeks about how the money was given out, with stories picking up particular traction among conservative-leaning news outlets. FireAid has every reason to take the skepticism seriously, as Kiley and others have brought their issues or questions to the attention of President Trump, who on Friday posted a message that began, “‘FireAid’ is a total disaster. Looks like another Democrat inspired scam.”

To read more, go here.

From Fox 11 News:

Palisades Fire

Above, Gladstone's 4 Fish. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

The news coming out of Southern California is a grim one.

Many homes, businesses and landmarks have been destroyed by the three wildfires ravaging the region.

Moonshadows, a restaurant in the Pacific Palisades/Malibu area on Pacific Coast Highway has been destroyed. I used to dine there back in the 1980s.

So far, Gladstones 4 Fish in Pacific Palisades has been destroyed or damaged, according to a report in the Daily News. Another one report I saw said that it was "smoking". I dined there quite often before moving to New Mexico. Fox 11 News said it was not damaged. I hope so.

Above, Asya Lipovetckaia and I at Gladstone's in 2016.

Villa de Leon, mis-reported as the Getty Villa in the media, had brush burned around it, but the structure itself has been spared. 

Here's a photo of it:

Thoughts and prayers for those affected.

Southern California Getting Soaked

So far, many areas of Southern California is getting soaked by rains totaling five inches and more.

The last tropical storm of any significance to hit Los Angeles was in 1997, according to the news report. I don't remember that one.

California Loses Half Million Residents In Two Years

Gov. Gavin Newsom and the Democrat Party in California should be named salespersons of the year for U-Haul.

The once "Golden State" lost 500,000 residents during the past two years. 

From Fox 11 Los Angeles

California's population fell by 500,000 people between April 2020 and July 2022 as residents fled the state in droves to find greener pastures.

Census data showed migration out of the state surpassed those coming into the state by more than 700,000 throughout the two-year period, according to the Los Angeles Times. California's major cities have been plagued with homelessness, crime and skyrocketing housing costs, causing many residents to flee to nearby states like Utah, Nevada and even Texas.

Despite the shrinkage, California remains the most populated U.S. state with some 38 million residents.

Californians who remain in the state are also likely to face frequent power outages and failures in the coming years as state leaders continue to push for renewable energy.

You can also add that people who are leaving are fed up with the radical left-wing politics of the Democrats who have a stranglehold on the state's government. It is a one-party state.

To read more, go here.

9 National Parks To Require Reservations In 2023

Above, Bridalveil Fall in Yosemite National Park. Photo by Armand Vaquer.

Our national parks are more popular than ever. 

Over the past several years, people have been visiting them in higher numbers. The pandemic made attendance even higher.

This exposed them to overcrowding. This is a problem as it is the National Park Service's duty to protect them and having more people to contend with makes that duty more difficult.

Nine of our national parks are instituting a permanent reservation system to manage the influx of visitors.

From Fox 11 Los Angeles:

The COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns resulted in millions of stir-crazy Americans getting out of their houses the first chance they got and actually spending quality time outdoors, including at national parks. 

But the sudden influx of visitors at the nation's most historic natural sites caused a huge strain on the entire National Park infrastructure. The requirement of reservations soon became the new norm in order to handle the record-breaking traffic. 

Some parks have decided to drop their reservation requirements, but some have decided to the new system maybe should have been in place a long time ago. 

Of the 63 major National Parks in the U.S., nine are requiring some type of reservation on top of entrance fees in 2023. 

1. Acadia National Park, Maine

2. Arches National Park, Utah

3. Glacier National Park, Montana

4. Haleakala National Park, Hawaii

5. Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado

6. Shenandoah National Park, Virginia

7. Yosemite National Park, California 

8. Zion National Park, Utah

9. Muir Woods National Monument, California 

To read more, go here. 

Protest Held At Disney H.Q. In Burbank

Protesters gathered at Walt Disney Studios in Burbank last evening to protest the company's woke stance on the Parental Rights in Education law in Florida.

Fox News 11 Los Angeles reported:

BURBANK, Calif. - Conservative groups are boycotting all things Disney over what they claim is the entertainment titan leaning too far left.

Hundreds protested outside of front gates of Walt Disney Studios in Burbank Wednesday evening.

The demonstration was organized by a group, Hold The Line.

The protest was tied to Disney’s response to Florida’s Parental Right’s Education Bill which is also known as the "Don’t Say Gay" bill by its critics.

The bill which became a law in March prohibits teachers from addressing gender identity and sexual orientation in certain classrooms.

To read more, go here. 

Rialto Paramedics Refuse To Treat Man In Cardiac Arrest In Acute Care Facility

The insanity that has taken over the state of California knows no bounds.

The latest is about Rialto Fire Department paramedics who refused to treat a patient in an acute care facility who was in cardiac arrest until he was brought outside, citing some coronavirus law or guideline.

The incident is under investigation and the paramedics involved have been put on leave.

Fox 11 News reported:

RIALTO, Calif - The city of Rialto is investigating paramedics who allegedly refused to enter a care facility to help a man who wasn't breathing, citing a COVID-19 guideline that doesn't seem to be in effect.

The 911 call came from the Rialto Post Acute Care Center at about 7:50 p.m. on Nov. 11. Video obtained by FOX 11 from a Rialto police officer's body camera shows two Rialto Fire responders at the open door of the center, wearing masks, but not entering. 

The officer walks in and his exchange with center personnel is clear. As he walked down the hallway, he tried to explain to them that the paramedics were not coming in because of some "state COVID" guideline. Inside the patient’s room, a registered nurse was on top of him, administering CPR, with the help of other certified nursing assistants at her side. It seemed they couldn't move the man’s bed, because it had no wheels. 

That’s when the officer got behind the bed and began to push. With the help of the personnel, the nurse still on top of the man, they steered the bed down the hallways. At one point, you hear him telling the clearly exhausted nurse that she is doing a great job and not to stop. 

They made it through the front door, to the waiting paramedics, who eventually took over the CPR. There was clearly some frustration in the exchange between the staff and the paramedic in charge, as they talked about the patient, who has been identified as 56-year-old Joseph Angulo. He was transported to a local hospital but did not survive. 

To read more, go here.

Snow In West Hollywood

Fox 11 News reported:

LOS ANGELES (FOX 11) - Snow was reported around Los Angeles on Thursday in areas such as West Hollywood, Malibu, Northridge and Pasadena.  

According to the National Weather Service, there have been multiple reports of small hail, graupel, and even a few snowflakes down to around 1500`. NWS said that this is expected to continue through the afternoon then start winding down in the evening as the air mass stabilizes.

Van Nuys Robbery Pursuit: A Suspect Looks Familiar!

While watching the news tonight on KNBC Channel 4 this evening, I saw a video of a police pursuit of a burglary suspect that took place in the Van Nuys/North Hollywood area.

Of course I watched it, but something stunning came on the screen towards the end.

But first, here's the story from ABC7.:

The suspect drove erratically through surface streets, narrowly missing other cars and pedestrians at times. 

Once the suspect ditched the car and started running, officers caught up to him and tackled him. 

A female passenger who jumped out of the vehicle during the pursuit ran into a construction area. She was eventually captured and taken away in an ambulance.

When the female suspect jumped (or fell) out of the Jeep, she was hanging onto the door and appeared to be dragged several yards on her knees (that must have been painful). No wonder she needed an ambulance later.

Here's a video from Fox 11 News (the female suspect is shown being carried to an ambulance at about 37 minutes into the video):




What caught my attention on the KNBC video was that the female suspect on a stretcher looked very familiar! I can't say with 100% certainty, but she sure as hell looked like my ex-fiancee!

The KNBC video that was broadcast had a much closer shot of her, but it was fleeting. I saw it twice and the woman did look like her (hopefully not, for her son's sake). Unfortunately, the KNBC video on their website does not include the shot of the female suspect on the gurney.

The Fox 11 video shows her, but it is too far away for me to make a positive identification.

My "honorary sister" said after I sent her a screen capture of the female subject:

It is not beyond belief with that one.  It may be possible to find out.  For her to even be up to anything illegal is not beyond reason, either.

 Here's two screen captures from the above Fox 11 video:

Maybe it's her, or maybe not. As my "honorary sister" said, it may be possible to find out. After arraignment, suspects are taken into custody by the Los Angeles County Sheriff. There, suspect information can be obtained from their website. The media will also post the names of the suspects.

If it is her, karma finally caught up with her!

(UPDATE 12/1/17): It wasn't her. They say "everyone has a double", and this gal sure has a close resemblance.