Democrats Whiff Again on Real Constitutional Reform
Democrats, among many others, are publicly pledging to take on racist systems. But they are not using their huge supermajorities to take on the original racist system in the state: our state constitution. Sure they are putting a few small amendments on the November ballot, including one permitting affirmative action. But the whole constitution is […]
Leadership Roles Go Through California
Los Angelinos—I was briefly one in my early years—can recall complaints about the persistent smog blackening much of the air and getting into lungs. On bad days the city’s skyline is still shrouded in thick layers. We are learning that this is but one manifestation of global climate changes along with environmental degradations that are […]
LA City Hall’s Embarrassing Corruption Scandal: Goes Way Beyond Jose Huizar
On Tuesday morning, the FBI arrested Councilman Jose Huizar on “a federal racketeering charge that alleges he led a criminal enterprise that used his powerful position at City Hall to solicit and accept lucrative bribes and other financial benefits to enrich himself and his close associates in exchange for Huizar taking official actions favorable to […]
SB 1383 Should Be Rejected
As part of the recent budget deal struck last weekend between the Legislature and the Governor, SB 1383 (Jackson) would create a massive expansion of protected leave under the California Family Rights Act (CFRA). The bill came into print at 9pm on June 23 and was heard about the same time a day later in […]
Scaled-Down Density Legislation Still not the Answer
Scott Wiener is at it again. The state senator from San Francisco wants to create denser neighborhoods as an answer to California’s housing crisis. In a recently introduced bill he seeks to force high-density multifamily housing on local governments. But, this latest effort is less a fix and more an accommodation. Wiener, as you recall, […]
Gascón Asked To Release His LAPD Personnel File
In a blistering commentary, former Los Angeles Police Chief Bernard Parks outlined George Gascón’s actions as an LAPD Command Officer and told the public, ” DA Candidate George Gascon is Not Who He Says He is.” In support of his conclusion, Parks specifically cited one particular casethat “horrified” him while he was serving as Chief […]
The Green Delusion continues to Perpetuate Costs upon the Poor
Those marketing the green delusion have convinced themselves and the public that intermittent electricity from wind and solar are somehow “clean, green, renewable and sustainable”. They have successfully kept transparency from those paying for the green delusion of any information that would damage their message. Facts about greater human and ecological impacts around the world […]
Tax Raisers Target Businesses—How Long Will Businesses Stay in CA?
Businesses, particularly corporations, are the targets of tax raisers in the legislature, at city hall and on the ballot. Piling on business taxes in a state notorious for its poor attitude toward business, one wonders how long businesses will put up with it before leaving. As Jim Wunderman, the president and CEO of the Bay […]
Neo-Feudalism in California
From the beginning, California promised much. While yet barely a name on the map, it entered American awareness as a symbol of renewal. It was a final frontier: of geography and of expectation. —Kevin Starr, Americans and the California Dream: 1850–1915 In the eyes of both those who live here and those who come to observe, […]