A few random thoughts over the long weekend…..
Issues of the week: Porn tax and gay marriage. This is not your father’s and mother’s California. What happened to infrastructure and water? I guess we solved those problems.
The Recall of Senator Denham has been recalled by the measure’s sponsor, Senator Don Perata. At least he says he called it off. However, it is still on the ballot. Voters can still vote Denham out and a replacement in. Doesn’t this remind you of any number of government programs? The reason behind it is over; the author has abandoned it; but it goes on and on like the Energizer bunny.
Speaking of the Energizer bunny and also thinking about the AFLAC duck, the animal kingdom seems to have a positive branding effect on certain products. So what happened to the GOP elephant? Stories about branding and re-branding the GOP are popping up everywhere, including on the pages of Fox and Hounds Daily
The question is, does the GOP elephant need a personality re-do or does he have to get back being his old self. Maybe a session on the couch will help. Calling Dr. Doolittle. Or is that the problem for the GOP in a nutshell: Do little?
The background noise at CalPERS
When legislatures and governors make big mistakes, it’s often because they are focused on the wrong thing. The state’s budget shortfall of $15 billion is at the center of attention these days. But that problem would pale in size to the hidden troubles of unfunded pension liabilities in the state.
That brings me to CalPERS. I can barely balance my checkbook, so look for financial expertise elsewhere. But each day seems to bring unsettling news about the pension fund. A month ago, there were a string of resignations of top executives. This week, we’re hearing more about a $1 billion land investment gone bad. The Wall Street Journal recently has turned up examples of conflicts of interest among actuaries in other states (though not California). In the face of all this news, CalPERS hums along, its officials saying that there’s nothing for taxpayers to worry about.
But we should worry. And so should the governor and state legislature. If CalPERS fails to perform, this state faces a fiscal disaster that would make us forget the current budget predicament. But the legislature is not being persistent enough in holding hearings and asking questions. When the pension fund gets attention, it’s usually during political debates over legislation requiring divestment from this country or that. One reason for the lack of scrutiny, unfortunately, is that CalPERS is an important source of power for the state’s labor movement, which dominates the politics of the state’s Democratic party.
Distasteful timing of strike will disrupt exams at UC schools
In a piece of news that has not been widely reported, the AFSCME union that represents workers on all University of California campuses has approved a strike in an effort to seek a 20% wage increase. The union last held a UC-wide strike in April of 2005.
The kicker — unlike their previous strikes, this one would coincide with final exams at the vast majority of UC schools. They have already demanded that both Students and Teachers not cross their picket line, without regard for what effect this might have on those individuals’ academic standing. Even without such a demand, the strike would nonetheless prove extremely detrimental to student life during final exams by shutting down on-campus services like dining halls and shuttles, as well as severely limiting public transit access to and from campuses.
Know When to Walk Away
As Governor Schwarzenegger’s analysis notes, California ranks "dead last" in terms of per capita lottery sales. Several east coast states, including Massachusetts, New York and Pennsylvania do far better. Interestingly, the independent Legislative Analyst’s analysis reports that the average revenue of lotteries in states west of the Mississippi are significantly lower than those east of the Mississippi.
While a thorough analysis of the states’ games, demographics, and marketing could help explain this difference, a simple explanation occurred to me: lotteries have just been around longer in many eastern states.
Maybe playing the lottery, like many other behaviors, is passed on from parents to their children, and there just aren’t as many age groups, and therefore as many people, playing the lottery in California – too many of today’s lottery players don’t have children old enough to play, never mind grandchildren.