COVID PM & BEYOND: Fukushima wonders where it’s golden Olympic moment went; what to make of the Delta variant
Happy Thursday evening, folks.
To the headlines of the day we go, some COVID and some not-so COVID...
The Delta variant: How worried should I be?

Making some sense of it: The Delta variant, the fourth most-often identified variant in California, may be twice as transmissible as the conventional strain. Unvaccinated people are most at risk. More from the LA Times here.
RELATED: Delta variant is spreading in California as COVID-19 battle enters an uncertain phase (LAT)
PREVIOUS: The new coronavirus Delta variant: Why some are worried, and some are not (LAT)
Everything you want to know about COVID-19 booster shots

No guarantees: If scientists discover that immunity to the coronavirus starts to wane months or years after vaccination, a booster shot could be deployed. More from the Times here.
RELATED: 3 in 5 Californians now at least partially vaccinated against COVID-19 (LAT)
Kaiser Permanente gives back: providing local residents equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines
Kaiser Permanente gives back: providing local residents equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines

Kaiser Permanente’s Santa Cruz County service area is building partnerships with community and government organizations...
Far from Olympic limelight, the waves of Fukushima are ‘healing’ for local surfers

Ten years later: Fukushima was hoping the Olympics would make people forget the 2011 nuclear disaster. But the best surfers in the world will not be riding the waves along the region’s coast. More from the Times here.
A U.S. town marooned at the tip of a Canadian peninsula

Caught between a border and a hard place: Point Roberts, Wash., long prospered as an appendage of Canada. But pandemic restrictions cut it off from civilization. More from the Times here.

In recognition of UC Santa Cruz’s 2021 commencement, we present a few of our amazing grads. These scholars represent the...
Some disabled Californians feel abandoned by Newsom’s Golden State Stimulus

Here’s why: Gov. Gavin Newsom sent $600 Golden State Stimulus checks to some Californians with disabilities, but passed over others. As the Legislature negotiates with Newsom over his proposal to expand the program, Californians who receive Social Security Disability Insurance say they’re fed up with being overlooked during the pandemic. More from CalMatters.
See you all again tomorrow night as we head into the weekend.
Mark Conley
Deputy Managing Editor