Leads:
- An FDA health panel is endorsing Merck's COVID-19 pill for emergency use authorization. It could become the first U.S. authorized at-home treatment for COVID. It would treat adults with mild to moderate COVID symptoms who are at risk for severe disease or hospitalization. The FDA will likely follow the committee's advice. It could be authorized in the United States within days, and available within weeks. However, there's no official word yet on when the pill will be available.
- Tickets are going on sale next week for the Bottle Rock Napa music festival. The three-day event is scheduled for May 27th through the 29th of 2022. There will be a special presale Monday for Napa residents before tickets go on sale to the general public on Tuesday. After cancelling the 2020 event, Bottle Rock returned last September with a music lineup that included Foo Fighters, Miley Cyrus, and Guns N Roses.
- A federal appeals court in San Francisco is upholding California's ban on high-capacity weapon magazines. A majority of judges on the 9th Circuit ruled that SB 1446 and Proposition 63 were constitutional. Both laws were passed in 2016 after a series of mass shootings in the state. To decrease gun violence, the state enacted bans on high-capacity magazines that could hold more than 10 bullets. The laws also required gun owners to sell their high-capacity magazines to buyers in other states or turn them into local law enforcement officials. California Attorney General Rob Bonta said the ruling was "a victory for public safety in California."
- While Seattle has its wettest fall on record, Sacramento is not going to see significant rain anytime soon... Meteorologist Eileen Javora tells KFBK the current atmospheric river will not pass-through Sacramento. Things look pretty dry this week, but next week, the farm-to-fork capital could see some cooler, unsettled weather. Northern California has seen more than 7 inches of rain this season. Javora says California needs more rain... but she's hopeful, saying December through February are the wettest months on average.
Extra Links:
- A new book looks inside Hunter Biden's laptop and what China knows about the Bidens, by the New York Post journalist who brought it into the open.
- Thorium explained - the future of cheap, clean energy?
- Dr. Lembke is a psychiatrist expert in treating addictions of all kinds, including social media addictions.