A Short History of Proposition 13
(Editor’s Note: Proposition 13, the 1978 property tax measure, continues to be in the news in California with talk of reforms in some quarters. Just this week, the Public Policy Institute of California polled some issues related to Prop 13. The poll found that 66% of likely voters found Prop 13 to be a good […]
Will Ethnicity Trump the Gender Advantage in the Upcoming US Senate Race?
Some of the most fascinating focus groups I’ve ever conducted were of Democratic women in the 2008 Presidential primary. For the first time we were able to gauge women voters sentiment simultaneously on race and gender with both the first female and African-American candidate for President on the ballot. White women overwhelmingly supported Hillary Clinton […]
Governments’ Oil Windfall
We are reading a lot about the windfall coming to consumers due to falling gas prices now that oil is under $50/barrel. But cheap energy also represents a windfall for governments, including governments who are hard pressed for cash. The US uses nearly 20% of the world’s energy consumption every year. That spending includes households, […]
Assisted Suicide Issue is Back
Physician-assisted suicide has returned to California’s political agenda. After years off the table, the issue gained new life in the wake of Brittany Maynard’s high-profile decision to end her life. Maynard, 29, an assisted-suicide activist living in Oregon, advertised her impending death as a dignified response to the “aggressive” form of terminal brain cancer that […]