Recently I was chatting with Assemblyman Mike Duvall. As has been the case many times since he was sworn in the legislature just over a year ago, he was sharing we met yet another story of how our state government bureaucracy seems to be specifically designed to be dysfunctional. In the case that the Assemblyman outlines below, he is actually going to try and do something about it. I asked him to pen something for FR readers, so here it is… While the topic of "grade separations" isn’t sexy, this is just one of a pile of examples of how messed up things are in Sacramento…

GRADE SEPARATION FUNDING GETS A FAILING GRADE By Assemblyman Mike Duvall (R-Yorba Linda) … Read More

Due to enough e-mails, I have decided to consent and once again start writing more about Governor Schwarzenegger’s appointments. So as they come out (usually weekly), I will look them over and pick one to highlight. I should add that I didn’t have enough fingers on my left hand to count the number of Democrats that he appointed to the bench (including one to the prestigious Court of Appeals) last Friday.

Anyways… Cythnia Dellums…

I don’t think there is a family that truly hates and despises the American system of capitalism more than the Dellums family of Oakland. As a longtime Member of Congress, Ron Dellums frequently trashed America, and openly considered himself to be a leader of the "socialist caucus" within the Democrat Party back there.

So it is comforting to know that Dellums, now the Mayor of Oakland, is celebrating the appointment by our Republican Governor of his wife, Cynthia, to the Commission on the Status of Women.

No doubt thrilling news for the fine activists of the Alameda County GOP…… Read More

If you want to make money in the stock market, you need to be in it.Times like thiscreate opportunitiesin investment. A sinking market signals a buying opportunity, just as a soaring market provides selling opportunities. Unfortunately, many investors will get nervous and sell all the way down into this falling market, just like many were misguidedly buying as the markettopped out.

My advice: dollar cost average into this market under the guidance of a financial advisor. That is, don’t plunk down all your investment cash at once.Rather, ease in gradually overtime. That way, you’re covered if prices continue to decline since you’ll buy more at reduced prices, and you’re covered if prices climb, since you’re getting in atthe low point.

Nobody knows the future, but don’t let that stop you from investing in it. Free market advise froma FlashReport blogger!

Now before Fleishman chews me out for not talking about politics… Actually this post concerns the housing market and the federal reserve and government’sresponse to it. The bubble popped, now… Read More

John McCain, the U.S. Senator from Arizona with a supposed lifetime rating from the American Conservative Union of 82.3 (even though in 2006 – the most recent rating – it was a very liberal 65), yesterday severely damaged his self-congratulatory character in … Read More

UPDATE: For those who have PowerPoint, you can download the attachment below and walk yourself through a slide-by-slide presentation of data.

Longtime FR Friend Jamie Fisfis is a principal with Chariot Research. His firm does work literally all over the globe. But they just came out of the field with a survey of California voters, giving us a glimpse of where things are in these final days before the Florida primary, to take place this Thursday.

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From Fisfis:

**There is more – click the link**

View Full Commentary… Read More

UPDATE: For those who have PowerPoint, you can download the attachment below and walk yourself through a slide-by-slide presentation of data.

Longtime FR Friend Jamie Fisfis is a principal with Chariot Research. His firm does work literally all over the globe. But they just came out of the field with a survey of California voters, giving us a glimpse of where things are in these final days before the Florida primary, to take place this Thursday.

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From Fisfis: "We have just completed a survey of 800 likely primary voters in an effort to gauge pre-Florida primary numbers. On the Democrat side, Hilary Clinton (38% dem) maintains a significant lead concentrated in the bay are an driven by a broad range of issues. By contrast, Obama (18% dem) and Edwards (12.4% dem) are gaining their numbers based upon their strengths among foreign policy and… Read More

Only one political mailer in the box today — amailer from the California Republican Party: Yes on 94 through 97. Proposition 93 isn’t mentioned.Features a letter by Republican State Senator Tom McClintock. Looks to me like a JohnsonClark piece… but if I’m wrong feel free to point it out.

Comment from Valerie ‘I liked it – I haven’t been able to figure out what the 94 through 97 were all about or how to vote. Having McClintock on the piece make it clear.’ She gave it a MAILERB. I thought it was clear and cleantoo:MAILER A-.I graded it up from a B+ because I asked myself what I would have done different and couldn’t think of anything except to usea picture of CRP Chairman Ron Nehring in an ascot instead of a tie.

Again, to make clear, we consider a C the average mail piece or slate mailer. There has been some pretty good work this time around.… Read More

Today was a big day for me. To go along with my guilt cleansing, super-nifty carbon credit certificate I bought the other day – LiveNeutral (my carbon credit vendor) also sent me a car decal!

Woot! Isn’t it "earth friendly" looking? ———————————————->

Now I can show the world my 2005 Lincoln Aviator is carbon neutral – and drive without a care in the world.

All this for $45 – what a deal.

Now this slick sticker got me thinking……how come when I’m driving my non-polluting, carbon free Aviator with my sticker on it, I can’t drive in the diamond lane like those polluting, non-carbon free Prius’ do?

That’s right, if you didn’t already know – the legislature passed a bill a couple of years back… Read More