Daily Business Report: February 6, 2026
‘Lot of gumption’ – blind Japanese sailor to launch solo trans-Pacific crossing from San Diego
By Dave Schwab | Times of San Diego
In 2013, blind Japanese sailor Mitsuhiro “Hiro” Iwamoto’s first trans-Pacific sailing attempt failed when a whale struck his boat, sinking it and forcing his rescue.
He returned with even greater resolve in 2019, this time completing a non-stop Pacific Ocean crossing from San Diego to Fukushima, Japan, with the aid of a sighted navigator.
Now in 2026, Iwamoto announced at a Jan. 28 press conference at Point Loma Marina that he’s preparing to attempt a second such crossing, leaving in early 2027. Only this time, he’ll be doing it alone, aided only by technical assistance from a specially designed smartphone.
New transit housing bill revives California’s Democratic divisions over local control
by Nadia Lathan | CalMatters
Just months after lawmakers enacted major reforms to speed up home and apartment building, a new proposal seeks to force even more cities to allow housing near major transit hubs. It has reignited divisions among Democratic lawmakers who are wary of the state telling cities how and where to build.
San Francisco Democratic Sen. Scott Wiener’s Senate Bill 677 seeks to close a loophole that backers of the bill say some cities are using to get out of last year’s reforms intended to allow more apartments to be built near major bus and train stations.
A small group of Democrats who opposed last year’s law refused to support Wiener’s new bill seeking to force cities to comply with the new transit-related building requirements. The bill widens the definition of what a passenger rail is. It passed and advanced to the Assembly despite their objections.
Deepak Chopra: New Age Guru, UCSD Prof – and Epstein Confidant
By Jakob McWhinney | Voice of San Diego
He’s known the world over as a bestselling author, a guru to stars like Oprah, a practitioner of new age medicine that has bordered on pseudoscience, the founder of the Chopra Center, a holistic wellness center once based out of Carlsbad and a onetime University of California, San Diego professor.
But the U.S. Justice Department’s recent release of 3.5 million documents related to Jeffrey Epstein, adds one more accolade to Chopra’s resume — friend of one of the most notorious sex-trafickers of minors in history.
In emails and text messages, he and Epstein muse on consciousness, the game of life and dogs. Their conversations are loose and casual. In one, Epstein urged Chopra to find him a “cute Israeli blonde.” Chopra responds he would, but warned they were “militant aggressive and v=sexy.” In another, Chopra quipped that “only sinners are invited,” to a Vatican event he was attending.
