Fox and Hounds Daily Says Goodbye
With this article, we end publication of Fox and Hounds Daily. It has been a satisfying 12½ year run. When we opened in May 2008, our site was designed to offer an opportunity to those who wished to engage in public debate on many issues, especially in politics and business, but found it difficult to get placed in newspaper op-ed pages.
Co-publishers Tom Ross, Bryan Merica and I have kept F&H going over this time investing our own time, funding, and staff help. Last year at this time we considered closing the site, however with an election on the horizon we decided to keep F&H going through the election year. With the election come and gone, and with no sense of additional resources, we have decided to close the site down.
Fox and Hounds will live on, at least, with my articles collected in the California State Library.
On a personal note, I have spent over 40 years in California policy and politics. There have been some incredible high moments and some difficult low points. It pains me that politics too often is a blood sport, frequently demonizing the motives of opponents and using the legal system as a weapon in public discourse. At Fox & Hounds, we tried to adhere to the practice of giving all a voice in the debate, yet keep the commentaries civil and avoided personal attacks.
F&H offered the opportunity to publish different perspectives (even ones that criticized my writings!). We had success as indicated by the Washington Post twice citing Fox and Hounds Daily one of the best California political websites and many other positive affirmations and comments received over the years.
Tom, Bryan and I want to thank our many readers and writers for being part of our journey. The publishers of Fox and Hounds Daily believe that we added value to California and its people. We hope you agree.
Falling Gas Prices Mask Hidden Tax
So why is it that while other states are now enjoying gas prices of less than $2 per gallon, California is still paying higher prices?
Due to high taxes and costly regulations, our state’s gas prices are higher than other states. It’s been that way for years.
But what’s new is that the gap between California’s and other states’ gas prices has grown.
To get a sense of the change, compare California gas prices with those of the nation as a whole. According to GasBuddy.com, even while overall prices have fallen, the gap has grown from about 32 cents per gallon just a month ago to as much as 47 cents this January. (more…)
Tracking the 5 Major Employment Indicators in California
Last week the latest Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) was issued by the Bureau of Labor Statistics (for data through November 2014). It includes key employment indicators of job openings and job openings per job seeker. It builds on November 2014 data released earlier for the key state employment indicators of unemployment rate, payroll job numbers, labor force participation rate, and the little-known but important indicator of involuntary part-time employment (chart below).
Think Big, California
In today’s California, we set big, ambitious goals for improving energy efficiency, fighting climate change, and, well, not much else.
Gov. Jerry Brown’s inaugural address this month was a case in point. The governor again expressed his famous skepticism of big plans and big spending, then made an exception for energy and climate change, proposing three ambitious goals for the next 15 years: to derive 50 percent of electricity from renewables; to reduce petroleum use in cars and trucks by half; and to double the efficiency of existing buildings and make heating fuels cleaner.
All three are important goals, and they build on more than a decade of similar policies. But why is our vision so feeble when it comes to other subjects? (more…)
Free Ontario International Airport
The Cities of Los Angeles and Ontario are butting heads in court over Ontario’s effort to purchase the under-performing Ontario International Airport at a reasonable price.
Ontario International is situated on 1,700 acres in the heart of the distribution hub of Southern California, 50 miles east of LAX on the 10 Freeway and several miles west of the I-15, a major north south interstate. This strategically located airport serves a population base of more than 4 million people. This is slightly larger than the Phoenix metropolitan area.
Importantly, Ontario International has two world class parallel runways with lengths of 10,200 feet and 12,200 feet. This compares to LAX’s longest runway of 12,091 feet. (more…)
Will Top Two Ruin Our Senate Fun?
The retirement of a four-term Senator should open a breath of fresh air into California politics. But the stench of the top two system is fouling things up.
It’s rare to have a moment full of possibility. So many qualified people could run. And the sheer numbers of possible candidates provide the opportunity for an outsider with a novel approach to get heard, maybe even slip through and win. And California’s ossified elite sure could use some freshening up.
Except that the top two creates huge incentives to limit the number of candidates and outsiders. How’s that, you ask? In a couple ways. With a crowded ballot and two highly competitive rounds of voting, money is even more important than usual to compete. Candidates who don’t go in with their own money or a fundraising structure have little chance of being given a shot. There’s no possibility of building slowly through a primary season, because there are no longer primaries under the top two—and then having the party and its donors to come to you if you swipe the nomination. (more…)
Where Will Business Turn in All-Dem Senate Final?
Anthony York’s conjecture in his Grizzly Bear Project column that the 2016 U.S. Senate primary could deliver two Democrats in the general election begs the question, in such a circumstance, which Democrat would most likely pick up Republican and business support?
As York notes, two Democrats dueling for the senate seat in the November election could “give the business establishment and other traditionally Republican constituencies a meaningful voice in a top-of-the-ticket race for the first time since the recall of Gray Davis.”
Of course, at this stage we do not know what the field for the senate seat will look like, whether a Republican with name ID and stature will enter the race, and certainly who the two finalists would be if Democrats go one-two on primary Election Day. Such uncertainties have not stopped pundits, including yours truly, from filling up a notebook full of horserace possibilities for the contest. (more…)