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Local: In its 40th annual “Trouble in Toyland” report, consumer advocacy group PIRG Education Fund investigated four new toys on the market that are run by AI chat bots. Although the toy featuring Grok’s Curio avoided discussing unsafe topics, the teddy bear run by OpenAI’s GPT-4o informed researchers how to locate potentially dangerous objects, including “knives, pills, matches and plastic bags.” [KRON4]California Governor Gavin Newsom has been quoting scriptures with great frequency over the past few months. Presumably it’s a strategic effort to appeal to potential voters in swing states as he considers running for president in 2028. [Chronicle] The San Francisco school board is scheduled to vote Tuesday about offering Superintendent Maria Su a two-year contract, despite vocal criticism from the teacher’s union, which wants someone with more education experience. [Chronicle]Local Vietnamese fave, Turtle Tower, has tentative plans to open a second San Francisco location in February at 3145 Fillmore Street in San Francisco’s Marina District. [SF Standard]National:The United States Army is conducting an investigation of one of its gynecologists, Dr. Blaine McGraw, who’s accused of sexual misconduct by dozens of patients. Investigators set up a hotline and have so far received about 85 complaints from the 1,400 patients they contacted — at least 30 of whom were filmed or photographed without their knowledge, with calls still coming in. [NBC News]The bird flu may be back, as someone in Washington state tested positive in a preliminary test. If it ends up being officially confirmed, this would be the first human case in nine months, but officials say the risk to the public is low since there has still never been any documented human-to-human transmission. [ABC News]In response to pushback over the skyrocketing cost of living in the US, the Trump administration reversed tariffs on several food products, including coffee, bananas, mangoes, and avocados — effective immediately, while also announcing a reduction in import taxes on coffee and bananas. [BBC]Video of the Day:Earlier this month, the Warriors’ Steph Curry was featured “shooting the moon” on this creative billboard in Los Angeles in promotion of his new book, Shot Ready. As part of the book’s campaign, photographer Noah Graham told fans to head to the billboard’s location on West Pico Boulevard on November 4 at 4:45 pm to watch the supermoon shoot from Curry’s outstretched hands, which extended beyond the edge of the billboard. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Squint (@iamsquint) Image: Leanne Maxwell/SFist

Gavin Newsom’s ex-wife Kim Guilfoyle was unexpectedly complimentary towards Gavin in her first TV interview as the sitting US ambassador to Greece, but she oddly had nothing nice to say about her more recent fiancé Donald Trump Jr.Former Gavin Newsom spouse and current plastic surgery disaster Kimberly Guilfoyle was recently named the Trump administration’s US ambassador to Greece. Guilfoyle had gone full Trumper after she and Newsom divorced, becoming a Fox News personality (until the sexual misconduct allegations), and then Donald Trump Jr.’s fiancé. Though Don Jr would dump Guilfoyle for someone younger and blonder shortly before the 2024 election, and the tabloids speculated (not unfairly) that Guilfoyle's ambassadorship was a reward for keeping her mouth shut about the younger Trump having an affair while the two were engaged. Now all set in Greece as their US Ambassador, Kim Guilfoyle gave her first Greek TV interview on the job which aired Thursday night on the network ANT1. And the Bay Area News Group reports that in that interview, Guilfoyle was surprisingly complimentary toward Newsom, saying she has “a very good relationship with Governor Gavin Newsom.”She also said lovely things about her post-Gavin husband Eric Villency, a marriage this blog was perhaps a little obsessed with back about 2006 or so. "I have a wonderful relationship with Eric Villency, the father of my son Ronan,” Guilfoyle added. “It’s a wonderful experience. We have 20 years of friendship. What people need to understand about me is that I don’t give up. I will stay with you, I will be loyal. I will always be here — you can count on me. And I am proud of that.”Ummm, about that loyalty. Despite heaping praise on her two ex-husbands, Guilfoyle made absolutely no mention of Donald Trump Jr in that interview. This feels like a conscious choice in the vein of “If you can’t say something nice, don’t say anything at all.” And if Guilfoyle continues to avoid dishing dirt on the Trump family, she may end up getting that Trump administration private jet treatment that so many of Trump’s cabinet members enjoy. Related: Gavin Newsom’s Ex-Wife and Don Jr.'s Ex-Girlfriend Kimberly Guilfoyle Is Now the US Ambassador to Greece [SFist]Image: WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 24: Kimberly Guilfoyle, President Trump's nominee to be the U.S. ambassador to Greece, speaks alongside U.S. President Donald Trump during a Greek Independence Day celebration at the White House on March 24, 2025 in Washington, DC. Trump recognized Greek members of his staff and cabinet and thanked "Greeks For Trump" while recognizing Greek Independence Day. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

Jack's is making a comeback as a semi-private event space, Quik Dog debuts at Mission Rock, and Goose & Gander calls it quits, all in This Week In Food.The Chronicle brings word that the former Jack's, and more recently Jeanty at Jack's (615 Sacramento Street), is coming alive again, but the public won't have access to it. Lord Stanley/Wolfsbane chef Rupert Blease and chef and business partner Tommy Halvorson have partnered with Skylight, the national venue development firm that worked on the Ferry Building as well as NY's High Line, to reopen Jack's as a private "civic salon" beginning November 18. This may or may not be "the most storied resturant space" in the city, as the Chronicle has it, but it is old, dating back to 1864. And for the near future, it will be more of a clubhouse for local entrepreneurs, or something — the details about the project and its other partners remain under wraps. A semi-public "power lunch" service may be available down the line.We mentioned yesterday that there's a new, 20-seat sake tasting bar situated in the plaza just outside Michael Mina's PABU, and it's called Pabu-Chan. It's only open weekdays until 6 pm right now, and it is doubling as a private event venue.Quik Dog, the new standalone burger, hot dog, and chicken sandwich spot from the Trick Dog team, has opened at the Mission Rock development — at 1023 Third Street, right at the foot of the Third Street Bridge and the entry to China Basin Park. The new location is the first food-focused outpost from Trick Dog, which is known for its cocktails but has always served good-quality bar food as well — and Quik Dog was born during the pandemic, when they started doing more takeout. The menu includes the signature burger dog on a hot dog bun, as well as a double smashburger, hot dog, fried chicken sandwich, Beyond beef burger, as well as a separate veggie burger and veggie dog, Baja-style fish tacos, and a new grilled cheese and tomato soup you see in the photo above.In other sandwich world news, Tablehopper brings us word of Jerry's Roast Pork, a new East Coast-style hoagie shop at Two Embarcadero Center has opened for weekday lunch indulgences. The menu features a South Philly-style roast pork hoagie, on a semolina and sesame bun, topped with garlic broccoli rabe. He's also serving Roman-style pan pizza with seasonal farmers' market toppings, and croissants. Hours are Tue–Thu 11am–3pm, but hoagies are reportedly selling out by 12:30.After 14 years serving as a casual hangout, brunch spot, burger destination, and cocktail spot in St. Helena, Goose & Gander is calling it quits. The Chronicle had the news Friday, with the wine country restaurant saying it will close on December 20. "Since 2012, we have been honored to be known as the local favorite, the hidden gem basement bar and the go-to spot for the best burger and cocktail in town," the owners write. They did not give a reason for the closure.For those who are fans of the Phoenix Hotel and the multiple iterations of bar and patio, Tablehopper has a great and nostalgic walk down her memory lane there, including photos from decades past, as we prepare for the hotel and its bar to close for good January 1.And while it's been weeks since we've had a full restaurant review from the Chronicle, the team did offer up this roundup of the best chilaquiles to be found in San Francisco.

Legendary local football coach and Laney College athletic director John Beam died from his gunshot wounds Friday morning, after being shot Thursday at Laney College, tragically ending his 43 years as an Oakland sports father figure.The whole Bay Area was shocked by Thursday’s news that former Laney College football coach and current athletic director John Beam was shot on campus. At around 3 am Friday morning, police arrested 27-year-old Cedric Irving Jr for the shooting. The Chronicle reported that Irving "allegedly told police that he knew Beam and confessed to the shooting," while Beam himself remained in critical condition.Breaking News: John Beam, a football coach who was profiled in the Netflix series “Last Chance U,” died on Friday from gunshot wounds, one day after being targeted in an attack at Laney College in Oakland, California, the authorities said. https://t.co/wzOsnXJwEP— The New York Times (@nytimes) November 14, 2025 But the Chronicle reports that John Beam was pronounced dead at about 10 am Friday morning. He was 66.Murder charges are likely soon to come.The Bay Area News Group details how Beam had served as an inspiration to generations of Oakland-area athletes, from his 22 years coaching football at Oakland's Skyline High School where the team had four undefeated seasons, and won 15 league championships (Beam’s overall record at Skyline was 160-33-3). He moved on to Laney College in 2004, and in 2018 guided them to a community college national championship. He coached future NFL Pro Bowlers like running back C.J. Anderson, who transferred from Laney College to Cal, and Skyline High grad Marvel Smith. John Beam was also featured on the 2020 season of the Netflix docuseries Last Chance U, which documented community college students with troubled backgrounds trying to redeem their reputations to move up to Division 1 schools.The last two days have been incredibly heavy for our city.My thoughts are with Coach John Beam and his loved ones. We are praying for him.Coach Beam is a giant in Oakland - a mentor, an educator, and a lifeline for thousands of young people. For over 40 years, he has shaped… pic.twitter.com/bqJ0JGmEcF— Barbara Lee (@BarbaraLee_CA) November 14, 2025 Per the Chronicle, acting Oakland Police Chief James Beere said at a Friday press conference that the alleged shooter Irving “was on campus for a specific reason. This wasn’t related to a robbery — this was a very targeted incident.” Beere added that Irving had “played football at Skyline High School but not for coach Beam,” and that “To the best of our knowledge, [Irving] was never a Laney student and did not work there.”Coach John Beam was the best of us. After all the work he put in over 4 decades, all the unpaid assistance he - and his family - provided to those in need, his murder is a massive tragedy and a colossal loss to the greater Oakland community. So irrational and so infuriating.— Monte Poole (@MontePooleNBCS) November 14, 2025 At that press conference, Beere also noted that when arrested, Irving had a firearm whose shell casings matched those found at the scene of Beam’s killing. In an added tragic irony, Beam was shot during a session when Skyline High School students were visiting Laney College. Those very same students had just endured a shooting at Skyline High the very day before. Coach Beam dedicated his life to helping the city of Oakland and the youthThank you for everything you taught me I will forever be grateful for my time at Laney and what you have given to me and to countless othersLong live John Beam and everything he stood for💚#2Claps🦅 pic.twitter.com/LdTrNBhbDF— Jackson Kink (@jackson_kink) November 14, 2025 The Chronicle’s report added a statement from Beam’s family saying that they were “devastated that John Beam — our loving husband, father, grandfather, brother, and uncle — has been taken from us far too soon. John dedicated his life to uplifting others through education, mentorship, and the game he loved.…

Costa Rica faces a growing crisis in the exploitation of minors and migrants, with criminal networks targeting vulnerable people for sex trafficking, forced labor and drug operations. The Global Organized Crime Index 2025 points to the country as a key source, transit and destination point for human trafficking, where cases involving children and adolescents have risen sharply. The report details how minors are drawn into sexual exploitation and used to move drugs in local and international circuits. Many victims come from neighboring Central American nations, as well as China and South America, often en route to the United States. Traffickers also bring people from Colombia, Venezuela, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic for sex work, household servitude and farm labor. In coastal areas like Jacó in Puntarenas, child sex tourism draws international visitors, making it a focal point for these crimes. Authorities note that victims often face threats if they try to speak out, which keeps them trapped in cycles of control. Beyond sex trafficking, labor exploitation occurs in rural zones, where workers cannot leave the farms that hold them. Migrants are sometimes forced into drug-related tasks, adding layers to their ordeal. Most migrants passing through Costa Rica hail from Venezuela, Haiti and Ecuador, heading north, while others from Nicaragua and Colombia arrive for jobs or travel. Criminal groups use both official and unofficial transport, aided by local helpers called “Talibanes” who dodge border fees. Despite pacts between Costa Rica and Panama to move migrants safely and curb traffickers, dangers persist on the path, leading to fatalities. In 2024, Costa Rican officials broke up a large smuggling ring linking Ecuador to the United States. This group charged steep prices and relied on intricate routes. Border efforts include the Integrated Control Center and the Border Integration Program, which aim to update facilities and tighten oversight of crossings. The Victim and Witness Protection Unit, run by the Public Prosecutor’s Office with support from the Judicial Investigation Agency, handles many of these cases. Yet the unit deals with a surge in reports, straining resources amid cuts in government funds. This hampers aid for trafficking survivors, especially in building stronger support networks. The U.S. State Department’s 2025 Trafficking in Persons Report echoes these concerns, noting that Costa Rican women and children suffer sex trafficking in Pacific coastal regions and near northern borders. Foreign perpetrators, mainly from the United States and Europe, contribute to extraterritorial child sexual abuse. The report calls for stepped-up probes into forced labor and child exploitation by outsiders. Recent data from UN agencies show Central America and Mexico grappling with child labor, with 40 percent of affected youth aged 5 to 17 working in agriculture. In Costa Rica, children fall into the worst forms of labor, including commercial sex tied to trafficking. A joint UN program in Costa Rica works to boost detection of trafficking and smuggling, improve data handling and prevent crimes. In March 2025, the CSAEM Project wrapped up after three years, reaching over 8,000 migrants, refugees and asylum seekers with job training and rights education to cut exploitation risks. The Regional Coalition against Human Trafficking and Migrant Smuggling met in San José in April 2025 to share data on victims, offenders and exploitation types. Emphasis fell on standardizing records to align with global norms, aiding better responses. Reverse migration adds complexity, with rising numbers returning south from the north. A commission from Costa Rica, Panama and Colombia reported unprecedented flows in August 2025, highlighting humanitarian gaps. Many returnees, including women and children, face abuse and lack safe channels to report it. Costa Rica’s new immigration law sets jail terms for smugglers, targeting those fueling sex…