Keith Richman, the Mayor of the San Fernando Valley
Keith Richman was my assemblyman and my friend. He was a passionate man. His passions focused on health care — both as a physician and the head of a health care provider service — and for his desire to see a healthy California through a government that worked for the people.
Richman was not afraid to take on fights to achieve his goals whether it was against the powerful public employee unions who opposed his pension reforms or members of his own Republican Party who objected to his budget votes.
Anchoring the you-could-fit-‘em-in-a-broom-closet Moderate Caucus with Northern California Democrat, Joe Canciamilla, the Southern California Republican did his best to find common ground solutions to California’s problems.
Losing Our Base: Why Film Flight is Important to All Californians
There are very few industries in California that not only drive the
state’s economy but make up a seminal part of its identity. The
entertainment business fits that bill-and from an economic standpoint,
the most significant part of the industry is production, whether the
medium is feature films, television or commercials.
But California’s employment base in film production has been eroding
for more than a decade. Between 1997 and 2008, the state lost more than
10,000 direct jobs in the industry and 25,000 more indirect jobs; all
told, that’s a loss of $2.4 billion in wages and $4.2 billion in real
output.
Although these losses pale in comparison to California’s overall
unemployment numbers, they’re still significant because they represent
an ongoing structural erosion, not just collateral damage from the
recession. And the losses haven’t been limited to Los Angeles.
California has also been bleeding post-production jobs in specialties
such as special effects and animation, trends that have had a big
impact in Silicon Valley and other parts of Northern California.
A New War Between The States
Cross posted with NewGeography.com
Nearly a century and
half since the United States last divided, a new "irrepressible
conflict" is brewing between the states. It revolves around the
expansion of federal power at the expense of state and local
prerogatives. It also reflects a growing economic divide, arguably more
important than the much discussed ideological one, between very
different regional economies.
This conflict could grow in the coming years, particularly as the Obama
administration seeks to impose a singular federal will against a
generally more conservative set of state governments. The likely
election of a more center-right Congress will exacerbate the problem.
We may enter a golden age of critical court decisions over the true
extent of federal or executive power.
Some states are already challenging the constitutionality of the
Obama health care program. Indiana, North Dakota, Mississippi, Nevada
and Arizona joined a suit on March 23 by Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum to overturn the
law. And Arizona’s right to make its own pre-immigration regulations
has gained support from nine other states: Texas, Alabama, Florida, Nebraska, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota, Michigan and Virginia.
L.A. to Eli Broad: ‘Stick ’em Up’
It’s sickening to see the way Eli Broad is being mugged by Los Angeles.
Here’s a statesman who’s trying to make a gift to the city, and one
that’s exceedingly generous. So you’d think the so-called leaders of
Los Angeles County and the city would have the decency to say thank you.
Instead, they’re leveling the blued-steel barrel of government power at him and saying, "Stick ’em up."