California Transportation: A New Way of Thinking, Not New Taxes
Earlier this month, Assembly Speaker Toni Atkins of San Diego made a bold proposal – add another vehicle fee to the books. Californians typically punish their elected officials for tampering with their vehicle fees. Just ask former Governor Gray Davis, whose tripling of the vehicle license fee became a central argument for his eventual recall. […]
Is There A Connection Between California’s Recent Low Voter Turnout And The Top-Two System?
California had the greatest drop in voter turnout of any state in the November 2014 election, compared to the November 2010 election. According to the voter turnout statistics gathered by Political Science Professor Michael P. McDonald, available at www.electproject.org, California’s turnout went from 45.8% in November 2010, to 30.8% in November 2014. Professor McDonald calculates […]
Who Was that Man in the Taxi in Mayor Garcetti’s Favorite Movie?
(Editor’s Note: Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti chose the comedy Airplane! as his favorite movie for the Zocalo Public Square/KCRW film series. It will be shown tonight at the Million Dollar Theater in Los Angeles, open to the public. After the showing, KCRW’s Madeleine Brand will talk about the film with Garcetti and the trio […]
Pope Francis, Skipping California is a Big Mistake
Dear Pope Francis, You may be infallible, but your scheduler? Not so much. The itinerary for your highly anticipated trip to the United States this September defies belief: You are only visiting the Northeast. I guess it’s understandable that you’d attend a major conference on families in Philadelphia, and no one can begrudge you a […]
Will School Board Ever Learn?
That nutty L.A. school board is at it again. Nearly five years ago, the school board passed a resolution saying local car washes should support any unionizing efforts by their employees. I opined back then that since the Los Angeles Unified School District had such a dismal record of running its own business (the graduation […]