No one would dispute that California’s diversity extends to the wide political gulf between conservative Californians and those who see themselves as liberal. From strong Tea Party interests in the more rural areas to the “Occupiers” in San Francisco, the balkanization of our body politic is well recognized. But there should be, if there isn’t already, a consensus that the rules that apply to voting and the electoral process should not be manipulated for political gain.

Regrettably,… Read More

Every disaster brings with it the predictable hysterical 24/7 news cycle.

The OJ Simpson trial of 1995 was a classic example of the news media turning the trial into a circus. The pundits and commentators described everyday’s events like a football game, notedGerald Uelmen,Santa Clara professor of law, and co-counsel for the defense in the O.J. Simpson trial.

The entertainment factor won out over reporting events. ”Once they came to a conclusion as to the appropriate outcome, they tended to attach greater weight to the evidence supporting that outcome and lesser weight to the evidence undercutting it,” Uelmen said. “We all wear tinted lenses, but we don’t all wear blinders.”

News rooms of the Left

Today, entire newspapers and newsroomsact likearms of theleft, while still claiming to be unbiased. A friend in the newspaper business for 40 years slightly disagreed with my assessment, and explainedmost of them aren’t purposely left-biased in the sense that they deliberately and consciously distort. He said,… Read More

Heads up! This November there will be scores of new local school bonds on the ballot in California, each raising property taxes. We have seven such bonds in just San Diego County alone. But this year most of the school bonds will be different – and not in a good way.

Anyone remember how Prop 30 was going to provide the needed funding for education? Apparently it’s not enough. It’s NEVER enough.

Sadly, I predict that most such California bonds will not even have an opposition argument in the ballot books. I’m doing what I can to get some arguments submitted in my county – fortunately our county GOP stands firmly with the taxpayers in this matter.

NOTE: Submitting an opposition argument will force proponents (mostly the unions) to spend considerably more money to get their bonds passed – itself a good thing. And you can win – it’s NOT a hopeless quest to stand tall against such tax increases. Witness our June effort against the Coronado school bonds for operating budget money – the prop was crushed with a resounding 58% “NO!” vote.… Read More

In 1960 the State Legislature and Governor Pat Brown took a visionary step forward by approving plans for a vast water infrastructure investment called the State Water Project. It would provide California with a series of reservoirs and conveyance systems that Californians rely upon today.

While this project successfully served the needs of California’s 16 million residents for many decades, it can no longer handle the demands of the 38 million people who call California home today. That’s why I’m pleased the Legislature took action this week to place a $7.5 billion bond on the November ballot. This is an important… Read More

Destroy the middle class in America, and Socialism takes over – economic growth is killed, people turn on each other, free speech is attacked, the government grows and becomes more tyrannical, and individuals are not treated equally under the law.And, subsidies grow as it becomes more “profitable” not to work, and trade effort for leisure.

Are we there?

Corporations and special interest groups fund politicians in return for favorable treatment by government, which leads to regulations on the rest of small businesses and working society.

The Obama… Read More

It is crunch time again. The time when things turn ugly in Sacramento and the Capitol sausage factory cranks into gear.

With only three weeks left in the 2014 legislative session and hundreds of bills yet to review, we can’t expect state legislators and staff fully vet, evaluate, and get a clear understanding of every bill that comes up for a vote. This is the time of the year, when deceptive and special interest language gets inserted into bills that inevitably come to bite the consumer for years to come.

One such example is Senate Bill 270, by State Senators Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima), Ricardo Lara (D-Huntington Park/Long Beach) and… Read More

SACRAMENTO — Saddling consumers into paying extra for plastic bags at the grocery store is becoming an wildly unpopular idea. Facing formidable opposition because of the thousands of jobs which will be lost, Senate Bill 270 by Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Pacioma, isnot just about the extra cost to shoppers anymore.

SB 270 would ban the 100 percent recyclable, multi-use plastic retail bags while allowing grocers to charge and keep fees for paper, and new thicker plastic bags. Padilla and supporters call the current plastic grocery bags “single use.”

Plastic bag representatives,… Read More

Turns out the Los Angeles Fire and Police Pension system return rate was 17.3 percent for 2013-2014, and other public pension funds reported similar double-digit returns and five-year returns exceeding their assumed rates. –LAPPL Board of Directors on 08/07/2014, in their post “Misuse of statistics behind erroneous LA police officer salary claims.”

The above quote was made in response to last week’s article “How Much Do Los Angeles Police Officers Make?” that analyzed total compensation for LAPD officers. The substance of their overall response was to challenge two assumptions made in that editorial, (1) that the annual rate-of-return projection of 7.75% used by the LAFPP (Los Angeles Fire & Police Pensions system) is too optimistic, and (2) that the employer’s “unfunded contribution” – that annual sum paid to LAFPP by the City of Los Angeles towards reducing the plan’s unfunded liability – mustbe considered part of an… Read More