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.
Angelenos Face $1.6 Billion Tax Bill … If All the November Ballot Measures Pass
We need to send a loud and clear message to Mayor Eric Garcetti, the Herb Wesson led City Council, the County Board of Supervisors, the Los Angeles Community College District, the Los Angeles Unified School District, Governor Jerry Brown, and our representatives in Sacramento that we are not their ATM.
If all the taxes on the November ballot are approved by the voters, our proportionate share will be $1.6 billion. To put this into everyday terms, this amounts to $400 for each of the City’s 4 million residents and over $1,100 for the average family. This increase is also the equivalent of ramping up our sales tax up to 11.7% or increasing our property taxes by 31%. (more…)
Four California Ballot Measures Worthy Of A ‘Yes’ Vote
Most of the oxygen in the room for this November’s election is being sucked up by the prolific and particularly vitriolic presidential showdown between Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump. You may be focused on that race because of your desire to make everything great again, or just a morbid fascination with reality TV-meets-American politics.
That said, if you’re from California and you look down-ticket, you’ll quickly encounter “Ballot-Measure-Palooza” – 17 different measures waiting for you to do some ballot box governing.
My default on ballot measures is to vote “no,” unless there is a compelling reason to vote “yes.” There are, in my opinion, four measures that are no-brainer “yes” votes – and so I wanted to run through them, and why I am voting for them. (more…)
Approaching 80, I Learned to Speak Millennial-ese
Ready for anything at the age of 78, I sold my home on the edge of Ventura County and moved into a downtown Los Angeles high-rise full of millennials and dogs.
A demographic poster child for DTLA I’m not, given that my neighbors are in their 30s. And 80 percent of them work downtown, making about $100,000, while I’m retired. But when it comes to gender I fit right in (57 percent of downtown residents are women, according to surveys). And my reasons for choosing to live downtown seem to be in tune with the millennials—being part of a rejuvenated, vibrant area; the luxury of using your car sparingly or not at all; the ubiquity of eclectic restaurants, bars and food trucks; a fantastic range of arts, music performances and sports venues; and the sheer diversity of the neighborhood. (more…)
Some Changes to Expect Under a Trump Administration
As the Trump team contemplates relocation to Washington it isn’t too early to look ahead to some of the changes he would institute.
While it is not possible to foresee all of them since the programs and solutions under a Trump Administration have yet to be revealed, and a few might not survive constitutional challenge, we already have some glimmers.
So here’s a peek at what’s likely to take place in the first 100 days:
Of course the first thing all new White House occupants do is to redecorate and renovate various rooms reflecting their personal tastes. As a legendary hotel and casino builder, Trump is likely to have some strong ideas. (more…)
Same Publication, Different Headlines on Prop 13
The Los Angeles Times ran columnist Michael Hiltzik’s story on the Legislative Analyst’s Office new report on Proposition 13 Monday but someone glancing at the print headline as opposed to the online headline would come away with a different impression.
The print headline read: Prop 13’s effects remain unclear.
The digital headline read: Four decades later, California experts find that Proposition 13 is a boon to the rich.
Hiltzik, no fan of Prop 13, discussed the many questions the Legislative Analyst Office attempted to answer about Proposition 13. His conclusion was that the “impact of Proposition 13 remains unknown.” That conclusion is consistent with the print headline. (more…)
A Very Dark U.S. Senate Debate
In saying the one and only scheduled debate of our Democrat-on-Democrat U.S Senate contest was dark, I’m not talking about the rhetoric or the visions of the future.
I’m literally talking about TV picture.
The debate took place on the lovely hillside campus of Cal State Los Angeles, a place with many beautiful event spaces. But the way that the debate room was lit made me wondered if they’d booked a Halloween haunted house. The lighting was off. The room seemed too dark, and there were all kinds of strange and distracting shadows, created by the moderator and the candidates. (more…)