Leaving SDCTA is Hard to Do… I absolutely detest when I have the info before the “other media,” yet can’t do anything with it. San Diego County Taxpayers Association board member first, blogger second, and good soldier all the way around, apparently. My venting now out of the way…
In the wake of former CEO and President Lani Lutar’s fairly recent departure from Taxpayers, the organization has announced a replacement. Lani Lutar.
From SDCTA Chairman John O’Neill:
We are pleased to announce that Lani Lutar will be rejoining the Association as president and chief executive officer in early November … As our CEO, Lani demonstrated her ability to bring objectivity and intelligence to our analysis of issues. She provides important continuity as we scrutinize whatever steps local governments take in response to the international fiscal crisis … A comment from a recent communication to me from Lani says volumes: "There’s a lot of work ahead, but I’m prepared to roll up my sleeves and do what the Taxpayers Association does best – shed light on government waste and provide an honest assessment of taxpayer-funded projects." … Like Lani, we will each need to do our part in these interesting times. We hope you will join us in welcoming her back to the Association next month.
Voice of SD has it first, while I have to sit in it. (Sorry, venting again.) Lani was – and is – a great choice to lead the organization. I absolutely welcome her back!
Girl Scouts Supporting $2.1 million local bond measure… Any good consultant knows to build coalitions and get big names behind their issues. The sheriff, the D.A., the mayor, the Taxpayers Association, and a county supervisor or two can never hurt a cause.
The Girl Scouts, too. Pat Flannery of Blog of SD asks the question, “Why is the Girl Scouts organization actively promoting the (SD Unified) School District’s $2.1 billion Bond measure?”
Although Flannery uses an apples-to-oranges comparison to question the Girl Scouts, by asking why the Taxpayers Association is weighing in on bond measures (it’s the very mission of the organization to do so, and its IRS status allows advocacy), his base query is legit: Since when does Scouting promote tax increases?
Read the Flannery post here.
Yet, if the Girl Scouts can push for higher taxes, why can’t the CTA promote gay marriage?… Of course, it’s expected that the California Teachers Association would be supporting higher taxes – especially a school bond – but a $1 million buck donation to oppose marriage between a man and a woman?
Of all the reactions to the move, perhaps OC Assemblyman Chuck DeVore says it best:
(Almost) Unbelievable – the pro-tax, pro-big government, teachers’ union just gave $1 million to oppose traditional marriage … In 27 years of political involvement, I’ve come close to seeing it all. Today, I think I have.
Read it on the DeVore blog.
And, if Mike Aguirre can act like the Mayor of San Diego, why can’t he act like a Federal banking regulator?… The City Attorney again last week stuck his nose where it doesn’t belong for the sake of some media attention, suing WaMu for predatory lending. Voice of SD covers the issue.
Republican Jan Goldsmith, challenging the incumbent for the attorney spot, said of the story, “Mike Aguirre has been caught pulling one over on the San Diego media. The Voice of San Diego has published the truth.”
San Fran Visits San Diego… PolitickerCA.com notes the CRP’s 78th AD mailers in support of Rep John McCann, which tag Dem Marty Block as “just plain wacky like a San Francisco politician.” Read it here.
If you missed it, you may also view a recent McCann TV ad here.
Google “Joel Anderson” and you’ll find him – fighting Google… Excerpted from the team Anderson missive:
Assemblyman Anderson has sent a letter to the Department of Justice asking that they “conduct a rigorous investigation” of the proposed Google-Yahoo! business transaction … (He) joins a growing chorus of groups and organizations who have asked the DOJ to continue its investigation … In June and July he successfully waged a campaign to have Google comply with California’s Privacy Protection Act of 2003. Then, Anderson was joined by 14 separate privacy groups including the ACLU and demanded that Google link to its privacy policy from its homepage as required by state law. After initially resisting, Google acquiesced.
“Google’s proposed a partnership with Yahoo! that would give it an unprecedented position—90+% control of the search advertising market. This anti-competitive market power would allow the search giant to unilaterally develop ‘online privacy policies’ related to search and other forms of online advertising,” Anderson stated. “Google is not entirely transparent about the type of personal data it collects like search terms, YouTube viewing habits, web browsing habits, and other online behavior. Policymakers at all levels should be concerned that another implication of this market power means that Google’s privacy policies will become de facto national standards created to serve their business interests … We are on the brink of having a national privacy policy—except that it’s really Google’s privacy policy.”
Here’s a video of Anderson on CNET discussing the issue.
All that said, have a great week!
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