Prop 27 is Evidence Politicians Deserve Those Low Ratings
This election season gives understanding to observers of the electoral process why politicians seem to score so low with the public when tested in polls. Sure, many people give a thumbs down to politicians for their performance in office, but looking at the standards they set during election campaigns only strengthens the negative feeling toward politicians.
What is sleazy is that politicians use this anti-politician attitude to their advantage.
Meg and Jerry Prolong the Agony
One of the curiosities of the gubernatorial campaign involves the public relations competence of both candidates. Jerry Brown and Meg Whitman are supposed to be smart people, so why do they keep turning p.r. brush fires into roaring infernos?
The two most recent examples are instructive. Jerry Brown, by not identifying the campaign aide who suggested portraying Whitman as a "whore" on an accidentally recorded voice mail message, turned what should have been a one-day story into a week-long drama.
Yes “Oui” Can
You may not know it with all the activity in California leading up to Election Day, but a storm has been brewing across the pond.
Weeks of protests have led to overturned cars and fires burning on the outskirts of Paris. Nearly half of France’s gas stations are bone dry – stranding motorists and bringing commerce to a standstill. According to the Associated Press, protestors have blocked hundreds of ships at the crucial Mediterranean port of Marseille, cutting off access to the nation’s main oil terminal. And they have shut down train service and access to major highways – virtually holding the nation hostage. Even the fearless Lady Gaga has cancelled multiple shows there, fearing for her safety and the safe passage of trucks carrying her stage and lighting equipment. (Listen, you know it’s serious if Gaga is afraid.) Nevertheless, the incidents are a serious matter, and they are becoming increasingly violent by the day as they move into the neighborhoods of Paris. These radical protesters make the Tea Parties look like Mothers’ Day Out.
Public Pay Study Seems Bogus
Cross posted www.calwatchdog.com.
The media have been providing serious reporting about a "UC Berkeley" study https:> showing that public employees earn a total salary and benefit package that’s about the same as those in the private sector. This counter-intuitive study is being championed by government advocates as a rebuttal to the public upset over public pay and pension scandals in cities such as Bell and San Diego.