With budget cuts and tuition increases in the University of California system over the past several years, students have made significant sacrifices. One sacrifice they should not have to make is the quality of their education. But consider my experience at UC Berkeley.

In my final semester in spring 2013 I took a class taught by Robert Reich, former U.S. Secretary of Labor. I majored in political economy and thought his class would be a good fit. Even if I didn’t agree with his political ideologies, I thought Reich would provide insight on policy issues from his days working with President Clinton. But the celebrity professor didn’t deliver.

In an auditorium that holds 800 students it was nearly impossible to find a seat unless you arrived early. The classroom consisted of several hundred enrolled students but also many outsiders not affiliated with the university. On several occasions, I walked into class with all the seats filled, folding camping chairs set up in the back, and the aisles crowded with students. Paying students who are taking the course for academic credit should not be forced to sit in the aisles.

I understand that Reich wants to… Read More

Notice: Undefined index: file in /srv/www/blog.flashreport.org/releases/20130218155602/wp-includes/media.php on line 1676

If it’s spring then it must be time for the California Teachers Association (CTA) to make another one of its frontal assaults on charter schools, the independent public schools that promise better results in exchange for greater freedom to operate. The CTA’s chosen vehicle this time around is Democratic Assembly Member Ed Chau’s AB 1531, which eliminates the autonomy of charter school governing boards and gives control of charter boards to local school boards that are often dominated by the teacher unions.

Under the state’s current law, charter schools appoint the members of their governing boards. AB 1531 would radically change this process.

Under the bill’s provisions, the chartering authority, which in most cases is the local school board, “shall appoint a majority of the members of the board of directors,” which would be drawn from a pool of nominees contained “in the charter petition, charter renewal, or material revision application.” Thus, school boards, many of which are grudgingly supportive or openly hostile to charter schools, will have the final say on the composition of the decision-making majority on charter school governing… Read More

The list of businesses leaving California for greener pastures is long and growing. And now we can add Toyota to it.

The word ‘leakage’ is the new politically correct term used by legislators, the Governor, bureaucrats and the California Air Resources Board, to describe what happens when California businesses leave the state because of tax increases and stupendous regulations… as if any of them really know what it means for a business to make the difficult decision to close a location, terminate hundreds of employees, and physically move equipment, machinery, offices and records. And, the CEOmust figure in the cost of business interruption, as a business’s productivity will be undoubtedly be reduced after a move.

Who is “leaking?”

Apparently California is ‘leaking’ businesses… as if businesses and middle class families are dribbling away, or… Read More

Some of you may know that I have been a lifelong U.S. Civil War buff. I read every book I could as a kid and even did some re-enacting as an adult. Much of my interest in the war comes from the fact that the issues and outcome of that conflict shaped America for the next 100 years.

I now believe that we are at the cusp of a second “War Between the States”. In this case, I do not expect one side to take up arms against the other. Nor do I expect states to secede from the Union. There is also not a nice, clean Mason-Dixon Line to separate those states on one side from those on the other. But, I do expect it to be a “war” that will drag on for some time and I believe its issues and outcome will shape the country for decades or longer.

In my “Laptop Report” to you a couple of weeks ago entitled “Frustration”, I said that I did not expect, “…the principles and causes for which I have stood,” to find their resolution in Washington. That’s because I expect that resolution to come at the state level…but, not until after the “war” between those states. Allow me to explain.

I am often asked why things… Read More

Recently, news of yet ANOTHER state senator being indicted for corruption sent shockwaves throughout California. When I heard the charges against San Francisco’s Leland Yee, I shook my head in disbelief. Could a man known for his gun control efforts be part of an international gun trafficking ring? We do not know all the facts, but I do know that the charges against him are so serious that the Legislature cannot pretend that it should conduct business as usual.

The troubles of three state senators now mean that more than 10 percent of the Democrat members of the State Senate are either under indictment or have been convicted of a felony. Senator Yee joins two other senators who are also facing serious legal trouble. One senator is facing bribery charges while another was recently convicted of a felony for lying about his residency – as he resides outside the district he represents.

And how did the Senate respond? They voted for Senate Resolution 38, which gave all three senators paid vacations. The Resolution also plans to give all senators and their staff additional ethics training. Presumably they will be told that trafficking rocket launchers, taking bribes… Read More

Another Earth Day has come and gone, and with it, a great deal more environmental hypocrisy. Most of the practicing Earth Day disciplesare largely hypocritical, and are just as likely to be as significant consumers of the Earth’s resources as anyone else.

But hell hath no fury like a righteous environmentalist with a big budget and a… Read More

The title of this post expresses what is probably the greatest example of a monstrous hypocrisy – that public employee unions, and the pension funds they control, are supposedly helping the American economy, and protecting the American people from “the bankers.” Overpriced “bubble” assets caused by banks offering low interest rates hurt ordinary working people in two ways – they cannot afford to buy homes, and they are denied any sort of viable low risk investment opportunity. But without an endlessly appreciating asset bubble,every public employee pension fund in the United States would go broke.

The inspiration for this post is a guest column published on April 27th in the Huffington Post entitled “The Real Retirement Crisis,” authored byRandi Weingarten, the president of the American Federation of Teachers. The totality of Weingarten’s column, a depressing plethora of misleading statistics and questionable assertions, compels a response:

Weingarten writes:“America has a retirement crisis, but it’s not what some people want you to… Read More

On April 30 Californians can finally celebrate Tax Freedom Day, a full six days later than last year.

Tax Freedom Day, calculated annually by the Tax Foundation, is the day Americans have earned enough money to pay their annual tax obligations at the federal, state and local levels. This year’s national Tax Freedom Day arrived on April 21. According to the Tax Foundation, Americans total tax bill comes to $4.5 trillion in 2014.

Compared to other states, California’s Tax Freedom Day is the fourth latest in the nation. Only Connecticut, New Jersey and New York have later dates.

Unfortunately, Californians must work 120 days this year to pay their full tax bill. California’s burdensome tax climate continues to stifle its citizens, creating a difficult economic environment in which to live and work.

Learn more about Tax Freedom Day at www.taxfoundation.org/taxfreedomday.… Read More