Newsletter: A deadly shooting in Gilroy
A mass shooting at the Gilroy Garlic Festival leaves at least three dead — and the question of “Why?”
TOP STORIES
A Deadly Shooting in Gilroy
A crowded gathering. Gunfire. Deaths and injuries. At the Gilroy Garlic Festival on Sunday, at least three people were killed and 15 others were wounded when gunfire erupted — in a scenario that has played out over and over again in the U.S. The festival in the “Garlic Capital of the World” was about to close about 5:30 p.m. when at least one gunman opened fire. Authorities said police officers fatally shot the assailant, but that they were investigating whether he had an accomplice. Festival-goer Vivian Zhang said one of her friends was at the 2017 Las Vegas music festival where a gunman killed 58 people, but that she never thought this could be her reality, especially at a community event in rural California. “It was getting closer and closer to home,” she said. “And now it happened to us.” Here is the latest.
Intelligence Matters
President Trump and Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats didn’t always see eye to eye, especially when Trump repeatedly cast doubt on the U.S. intelligence community’s conclusion that Russia interfered in the 2016 election. Now, Trump plans to replace Coats with Rep. John Ratcliffe, a Texas Republican and Trump loyalist who just last week cemented his role as a critic of former special counsel Robert S. Mueller III’s investigation. Trump tweeted that Coats will step down on Aug. 15. His departure will complete the near-total turnover of Trump’s national security team and comes as Atty. Gen. William Barr conducts a wide-ranging internal review of whether the Russia case was handled appropriately.
Decisions, Decisions
Democratic presidential hopefuls are preparing for their second round of debates, this time in Detroit, on Tuesday and Wednesday nights. As they do so, they’ll have this to consider: The latest USC Dornsife/Los Angeles Times nationwide poll finds that half of likely primary voters have changed their minds since the spring, highlighting how unsettled the contest remains. Former Vice President Joe Biden continues to lead, while three senators, Kamala Harris of California, Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Bernie Sanders of Vermont, are essentially tied for second place.
More Politics
-- Trump sent more than a dozen tweets over the weekend attacking Rep. Elijah E. Cummings, the powerful chairman of the House Oversight and Reform Committee, who is black. Acting chief of staff Mick Mulvaney insisted that Trump’s comments were not racist, but he said he understood why some people could perceive them that way.
-- A day after the Democratic debates take place in Detroit, a nearby GM factory will closing. Some workers, in a county and a state key to the 2020 presidential race, wonder whether elected officials can or will help.
Rare Earth’s Hidden Costs
Rare earth is a group of 17 elements critical to high-tech products including smartphones, electric cars and military equipment. They are called “rare” not because they are necessarily hard to find, but because the extraction process is expensive and toxic. China has cornered the market by selling rare earth at a cheaper price — the result of not enforcing adequate environmental safeguards. That has exacted a toll on villages in mineral-filled regions of China.
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OUR MUST-READS FROM THE WEEKEND
-- The Tate-LaBianca murders rocked California, drew international attention and came to symbolize the city of Los Angeles. And they continue to fascinate to this day, as their 50th anniversary nears.
-- What is a “concentration camp”? It’s an old debate that mostly started in California.
-- On fighting the ravages of Alzheimer’s and dementia with the beauty of baseball.
-- The best music to help you fall asleep.
CALIFORNIA
-- Off-duty LAPD Officer Juan Jose Diaz was fatally shot after he confronted a tagger while eating with friends near a Lincoln Heights taco stand.
-- The state’s biggest oil spill in decades has prompted some locals in the nearby town of McKittrick to worry more about their livelihood than their health.
-- Columnist Frank Shyong takes a look at all the labor that goes into a single meal of Korean barbecue and wishes it cost him more.
HOLLYWOOD AND THE ARTS
-- Did you see Quentin Tarantino’s “Once Upon a Time … in Hollywood”? If so, here’s a spoiler-filled discussion of the movie’s ending.
-- With the film “Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw,” Dwayne Johnson pays homage to his Samoan heritage
-- How Lil Nas X’s song “Old Town Road” became a record-breaking, gay-pride-celebrating, America-unifying pop-culture miracle.
NATION-WORLD
-- This Iranian opposition group was labeled a terrorist organization. Now it has supporters in the White House.
-- Police in Italy have launched an internal investigation after a young California man arrested in connection with the killing of a Rome police officer was handcuffed and blindfolded during interrogation.
-- In Hong Kong, authorities fired tear gas at protesters on Sunday for the second night in a row in another escalation of weeks-long pro-democracy protests in the semi-autonomous Chinese territory.
BUSINESS
-- A year ago, the outlook for Starbucks seemed as flat as a day-old latte. These days, investors are bullish about the company.
-- How Roland Spongberg turned one El Pollo Loco into a 192-restaurant empire based in Cypress, Calif.
SPORTS
-- In Japan, teenage baseball player Rouki Sasaki overcame a family tragedy. Now, he is being called the next Shohei Ohtani.
-- Chargers coach Anthony Lynn says he found his “game-changer” not on the gridiron but while opening a school in Africa.
OPINION
-- Columnist Virginia Heffernan writes that the Robert S. Mueller III hearings were heading nowhere, until Rep. Adam Schiff spoke up and outlined Trump’s betrayal of his country and the American people.
-- Professor Allen James Fromherz explains how the Strait of Hormuz, an ancient tinderbox, still sits at the center of global conflicts.
WHAT OUR EDITORS ARE READING
-- Under Brazil’s far-right leader, protections for the Amazon rain forest have been slashed and trees are being cut at an alarming rate. (New York Times)
-- “Fight Club”: Forget the rules. Has everyone forgotten the point? (Literary Hub)
ONLY IN L.A.
Topanga and Kanan Dume canyons. Descanso Gardens in La Cañada Flintridge. The Korean Friendship Bell in San Pedro. When columnist Steve Lopez asked readers where they would take a visitor who wants to see something other than the obvious sights in greater Los Angeles, dozens wrote in with their suggestions — including guitarist Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers. And then there was that one reader who recommends everyone just stay away from L.A.
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