Author: Alfredo Casuso

BAY AREA HEALTH OFFICIALS URGE MEASLES VACCINATION AND AWARENESS AS CASES RISE NATIONALLY 

Risk of exposure to measles in the Bay Area is currently low. However, with rising cases in the United States, getting the safe and highly effective vaccine is strongly encouraged for those not fully vaccinated.  

SAN FRANCISCO – With the recent rise of measles cases nationally, San Francisco joins Bay Area health officials in urging everyone to get the measles vaccination if they are not sure if they got it or if they did not have measles as a child, and to be aware of the signs and symptoms of measles after travel or exposure.    

Measles is a highly contagious virus that can cause serious illness and death, and the safe and highly effective measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine offers the best protection against the virus. Protect yourself by making sure each member of your family who is 12 months to 3 years old is vaccinated with one dose of MMR vaccine, and each person who is age 4 or older has gotten two doses of MMR vaccine. 

Over 300 measles cases have been reported in the United States as of March 14, 2025. This includes a large outbreak among primarily unvaccinated children in Texas and nearby states. At this time, there have been two deaths. These were the first measles deaths in the United States since 2015. 

There are five reported measles cases in California as of March 11, 2025.  All five cases were separately reported after international travel, and there is no evidence they are connected to the outbreak in Texas. 

“Measles is one of the most contagious viruses in the world, but it is preventable with the MMR vaccine, said San Francisco Health Officer Dr. Susan Philip. “If children in your family are not fully vaccinated, or if you did not have measles as a child, please get the vaccine for the best protection.” 

How Measles Spreads and Symptoms  

Measles spreads easily through the air when an infected person breathes, talks, coughs, or sneezes. If an infected person coughs or sneezes, the virus can linger in indoor air for several hours. Symptoms include fever, cough, runny nose, and conjunctivitis (pink eye), followed 2-4 days later by a rash.   

About one in five unvaccinated people in the United States who get measles are hospitalized, and nearly one to three of every 1,000 children who become infected with measles will die from respiratory and neurologic complications, according to CDC. Measles presents the greatest risk to children under five years of age, adults over 20 years of age, those who are pregnant, and people with compromised immune systems.  

MMR Vaccine  

The safe and highly effective MMR vaccine is recommended for children aged 12-15 months, with a second dose administered between ages 4 and 6 years. Children can receive the second dose of MMR vaccine earlier than 4 through 6 years, as long as it is at least 28 days after the first dose. Infants 6-12 months of age can start vaccination early prior to international travel or travel to an outbreak area. Teenagers and adults with no evidence of immunity should be vaccinated right away. Your medical provider can order a simple blood test to check whether or not you are immune. 

One dose of the MMR vaccine is 93 percent effective against measles, and two doses are 97 percent effective. Individuals born between 1957 and 1969 are likely to have received only one dose and should consider getting a second dose. The MMR vaccine protects you for life and is widely available at provider offices, clinics, health systems and pharmacies.  

Measles and Travel 

Home to three major airports, the Bay Area is a hub for international travel and tourism, increasing the potential for exposure to this highly contagious virus. For individuals or families that plan to travel, anyone who is not vaccinated against measles is at increased risk of getting infected.  

Plan early before international travel and check your destination and the CDC Global Measles Travel Health Notice for more travel health advice, including where measles outbreaks have been reported. Parents should consult with their child’s health care provider prior to travel. The CDC offers accelerated vaccination guidelines for children and adults who plan to travel internationally. 

For questions about the MMR vaccine and immunization records, check with your health care provider and access your digital vaccine record. 

Health Officers from the Counties of Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Monterey, Napa, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz, San Benito, San Francisco, San Mateo, Solano, Sonoma, and the City of Berkeley encourage the public to take the above easy steps to protect themselves and others. 

Media  Desk

Department of Public Health Communications
City and County of San Francisco
Twitter: @SF_DPH
Facebook: @sfpublichealth

Week Seven: No Time For Weakness

—- David Eugene Perry

Lenin was right (at least on this): “There are decades when nothing happens, and there are weeks when decades happen.”

In seven weeks, our 47th president has undone seven decades of the world order: a world order that frankly has greatly benefited not only Democracy but also the U.S. economy. One would think that DJT would at least appreciate the latter. However, unlike Dolly Levi, Donny Lemme’ has not a talent for arranging things: his is a talent for breaking things. To quote one of his faves, Hannibal Lecter, “it’s in his nature.”

Make no mistake (although I certainly did), his is a natural talent, a charism, a gift. His entire life has been a vacuum hoovering up attention and then vomiting it back out on tabloids, TV and now through a new testament of daily TikTok tyrannies — large and small — designed to torture a so-far-tenuous and terrified opposition. He’s good at breaking things. He lives up to Winston Churchill’s adage about former Secretary of State John Foster Dulles: “the only bull who brings his own china shop with him.”

Eventually, the U.S. electorate will remember they still like unbroken china, and the ability to afford eggs that are the same.

I say “why are we tenuous and terrified?” We are at least half the country, in likelihood a good deal more than that.  40% of eligible Americans didn’t vote in last year’s election. The current administration’s fetishistic obsession with MAWA (Make America White Again) ignores present and future demographics. The U.S. is on track to become a “majority-minority” nation by around 2045, meaning no single racial or ethnic group will be the majority. Hispanic and Asian populations will see the fastest growth due to immigration and higher birth rates. The non-Hispanic White population is expected to decline in both percentage and absolute numbers over the coming decades.

Mean spirited and moronic gestures such as “The Gulf of America”, “Mount McKinley” and the Kennedy Center purge are designed to upset us and drive internal dissension. Don’t let it. No matter legitimate views about transgender athletes, Trump’s punching down on a tiny, terrified and disenfranchised micro-minority is not only mendacious; it’s meant to minimize the greater LGBTQ community’s hard fought struggle for equality. Focus. Take a cue from actress turned AIDS activist Liz Taylor: “Pour yourself a drink, put on some lipstick, and pull yourself together.” 

Above all, keep on keeping on and DO keep on keeping track of Trump’s continuing and continuous assault on our values, our Constitutional separation of powers, our allies (please forgive us Canada, Mexico, Europe and Ukraine) and our peace of mind. Use it as ammunition for the fight ahead — the fight that is here.

Now is not the time for surrender. There are 201 weeks left of this dis-administration. Use them all, and remember: a country’s government is not the same as its people. We the People, WILL overcome. Make that drink a double, and the lipstick jungle red.

David Eugene Perry is the best-selling author of the award-winning mystery thriller Upon This Rock, currently being developed as a screenplay, in addition to being a journalist with over 100 articles in print. He and his husband, Alfredo Casuso, run a PR/design firm. Frequently travelers, they have visited over 70 countries.

“Orwell Was Right”

In reference to the news story (link below), I feel the need to speak out. It’s as if they Googled the word “Gay” and hit “Delete”:

https://www.yahoo.com/news/pete-hegseth-banned-images-enola-041104452.html

I am a San Francisco business man: openly gay, married, and a member of the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce board of directors and executive committee. What is going on at the national level is bad for business; bad for San Francisco; bad for my family. I will not sit idly by and just “observe”. I challenge my fellow business people and Chamber members to do the same. Now is the time for San Francisco’s corporate community to stand up and show true “San Francisco values.”

This current outrage would be funny if it wasn’t so stupidly tragic and — yes, I’ll use the word – evil. For this administration “DEI” means “Deliberate Erasure of Individuals”. This intended Orwellian rewriting of history will not end well, and is already impacting international business connections.

As a philosopher once observed: “For evil to succeed, all that is needed is for good men to do nothing”.
— David Eugene Perry

SAN FRANCISCO, March 6, 2025 /PRNewswire/ — The return of Spring and Summer in San Francisco’s Union Square will officially arrive on Saturday, March 22, when the Union Square Alliance hosts San Francisco Tulip Day 2025, an event that will transform Union Square into a tulip garden with 80,000 colorful American-produced flowers grown from Dutch bulbs.

“Union Square is the beating heart of downtown. Events like Tulip Day, that kicks off Union Square in Bloom, give people an opportunity to experience one of the unique annual community gatherings our city has to offer. I am pleased to have this beautiful event return for another year, so that we can continue to show the world what makes San Francisco so special,” said Mayor Daniel Lurie.

Held traditionally in honor of International Women’s Day, San Francisco Tulip Day kicks off San Francisco’s annual Union Square in Bloom initiative, in which businesses celebrate the arrival of Spring and Summer with floral displays, food, cocktails, and events, to celebrate Union Square’s rich floral tradition. A full list of Union Square in Bloom events can be found here.

“With the arrival of Tulip Day in Union Square, we are welcoming the changing seasons and celebrating San Francisco’s continued growth and revitalization at the heart of the city,” said Marisa Rodriguez, CEO of Union Square Alliance. “These flowers represent vitality and growth, and with Spring now here, we can look forward to the future with confidence and positivity. We are honored to host this event once again with our partners from the Netherlands, and we can’t wait to showcase another beautiful Tulip Day in Union Square.”

Tulips handed out in honor of International Women’s Day are grown in the United States but originate in the Netherlands. On Tulip Day, the public is invited to pick a free bouquet of tulips (eight tulips per person) for themselves or as a gift to a woman who inspires them. 

San Francisco Tulip Day 2025 is presented by the Union Square Foundation, Union Square Alliance, the Office of Mayor Daniel Lurie, the San Francisco Office of Economic and Workforce Development, Amazon, JPMorganChase, United Airlines, van Hoekelen Greenhouses, Inc., and the Consulate General of the Netherlands in San Francisco.