How PG&E Can Apologize
PG&E owes an apology to virtually everyone in the state – save the broadcasters that made out on all the advertising it bought – for sponsoring the monstrosity that was Prop 16.
The measure embodied much of what’s wrong with California’s governing system — in how it sought to limit local control, impose supermajorities, and change the constitution without real deliberation or consultation with the legislature.
PG&E’s offense was so great that the apology it owes us has to consist of much more than simply words. The company should pledge to bankroll the major constitutional revision the state needs.
L.A.’s Economy Is Not Dead Yet
Cross posted at NewGeography.com
"This is the city," ran the famous introduction to the popular crime drama Dragnet.
"Los Angeles, Calif. I work here." Of course, unlike Det. Sgt. Joe
Friday, who spoke those words every episode, I am not a cop, but Los
Angeles has been my home for over 35 years.
To Sgt. Friday, L.A. was a place full of opportunities to solve
crimes, but for me Los Angeles has been an ideal barometer for the city
of the future. For the better part of the last century, Los Angeles has
been, as one architect once put it, "the original in the Xerox
machine." It largely invented the blueprint of the modern American
city: the car-oriented suburban way of life, the multi-polar metropolis
around a largely unremarkable downtown, the sprawling jumble of ethnic
and cultural enclaves of a Latin- and Asian-flavored mestizo society.
Illinois or California?
Hello from Illinois — or is it California?
Quite a bit of the troubles and quarrels occurring in California seems to be repeated here in Illinois.
The Chicago city council voted not to do business with Arizona because of that state’s new immigration law. But the council decided not to break all contacts with Arizona. Seems the Windy City gets its photo street enforcers from Arizona and the city needs the revenue because its finances are in a mess.
Meanwhile, a local talk radio host blasts the council for spending time on the Arizona issue while ignoring the many problems of financially stressed Chicago.
City Hall Needs to Hear From You
Three
months ago, the City of Los Angeles teetered on the edge of insolvency.
City leaders appeared unable to eliminate the $500 million budget
deficit and lead Los Angeles out of its budget morass. Since then,
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and the City Council made the tough
decisions that will prevent another near-term fiscal crisis.
However, City Council members have come under increasing pressure to
back down from making many of the tough cuts. Now it’s time for the
business community to speak up in support of their efforts and help
keep Los Angeles on the right financial track.
The recent budget deal demonstrated that Mayor Villaraigosa and the
majority of the City Council are serious about facing down our deficit.
With the help of Chief Administrative Officer Miguel Santana and City
Controller Wendy Greuel, City officials cut $500 million in spending.
More than three-quarters of this amount represents long-term annual
savings.