As I write this column I’m reminded of a weekend some time ago when – then a lobbyist for homebuilders – I set out to write a regular commentary but was distracted by the news of Ronald Reagan’s death. Seventeen years have ensued since I heard of the great man’s passing but I remember the moment vividly.

I’m not far now from where I sat that day, watching the ceremony celebrating the 60th anniversary of the D-Day invasion, when the television broadcast was interrupted by the news from Los Angeles. Ronald Reagan was dead. I was initially writing about a growing cultural bias against new housing among state lawmakers (regrettably, little has changed) then immediately shifted gears.

I remember I couldn’t get over the irony of the greatest cheerleader of the fight for freedom in Europe dying just before the day in June when we commemorate the heroics of the men and women who liberated France in 1944. The moment was vastly too great a part of our history for me not to write about it so I kept on writing. I wrote:

As sad as it was, President Reagan’s death fittingly coincided with the remembrance of a signal event in American history. Some… Read More

Breaking Bad:California vs. the Other States

by Richard Rider – Chairman, San Diego Tax Fighters

Version 3.43 Revised: 2 June, 2021

Online version at:www.TinyURL.com/CA-vs-other-states Email:RRider92131@gmail.com

Phone: 858-530-3027

Rider Blog:… Read More

There are several pandemic scams out there. Cure promises, fake virus tests, Medicare rip-offs, phony PPP applications and price gouging (for everything from hand sanitizer to toilet paper) are just some of the frauds.

But, few compare to the banality of the WELL Health building certification by the International WELL Building Institute (IWBI). The IWBI, which was established ten years ago – at the apex of the “greenbuilding” era (an anti global-warming brainchild of the past) – says its building certification affirms, on the basis of satisfying ten criteria, the building is safe to the public.

Those ten criteria are 1) air quality; 2) water quality; 3) nourishment; 4) lighting; 5) movement; 6) thermal comfort; 7) materials; 8) mind; 9) community; and 10) innovation. Huh?

The certification is the latest in a decades-long campaign by environmental activists to dictate the building or retrofitting of business facilities and residences according to a strict “greenbuilding” formula.

It would understandable if the IWBI certification was the only game in town. Unfortunately, it’s not. There are several certifications and, not… Read More

When rioting, looting and murder was being endorsed last year by many elected officials in the name of equity, a little noticed phenomenon happened. Jewish facilities were being defaced in anti-Semitic attacks. Throughout this period, my synagogue (led by Rabbis Yoshi Zweiback and Ron Stern) was putting out regular pronouncements about matters in the Black community. When I pointed out that as a Jewish Temple that we should always focus on the needs of the Jews first, Zweiback, the head rabbi, told me “This is their time.” Maybe the Jewish Left has come to realize this is the Jews’ time. It seems to always be the Jews time.

Unfortunately, little is heard from Democrat elected officials about the blatant violence against Jews. Part of that may come from the fact their elected leader, Joe Biden, is in the direct line of fire for causing this recent outbreak. In the Democrats’ universe where the need is to do exactly the opposite of the previous administration, they have cozied up to Iran and their surrogates Hamas by negotiating with the first and funding the second.

After the success of the Abraham Accords, I had stated there remained just two… Read More

The operation of the IRS is something with which I am vaguely familiar having dealt with them regularly for over 40 years. President Biden wants to give the agency more money on the proposition that rich people and corporations cheat on their taxes. He apparently believes that greater enforcement will bring in $700 billion (Treasury Dept estimate) over the next decade. And Santa Claus and the Tooth Fairy are my personal friends.

Let’s start with how the agency got in this fix. President Obama used the agency to squash applications for non-profit groups during his first term. Remember his henchman, Lois Lerner? The Republicans said if the agency has money for that garbage, then they have too much money. Thus, the agency lost funding and never got it back.

The Washington Post decided Biden’s plan made sense; thus, they were going to try and convince the world. They worked with five prior IRS Commissioners to produce an Opinion piece endorsing Biden’s plan. Three of the Commissioners were from the last century. In tax terms, these three may as well be Fred Flintstone given how frequently radical tax changes occur. At least they are still alive and are tax… Read More

As “critical race theory” (CRT) seeps into more and more into school curricula some state governments are fighting back. Capital cities all across the nation have been busy the past month introducing and passing legislation that discourages the practice of teaching divisive theories like CRT in public schools.

CRT began as a training exercise for school teachers and asserts that the U.S. has a despicable racial past that needs to be systemically corrected. It also says if you’re white you are inherently racist. The controversial and dissonant theory got a significant boost when a writer for New York Times Magazine, Nikole Hannah-Jones, originated a doctrine dubbed the “1619 Project” (the Project).

The Project postulates, among other things, that the history of the U.S. began not in 1776, when the Declaration of Independence was published, but in 1619 when the first slave ship arrived. Americans wanted to begin the nation not to form a more perfect union, the Project says, but to preserve slavery.

The dangerous, Marx-inspired CRT affirms this. It too proclaims America is inherently and systematically racist. It promotes the idea that it’s… Read More

We have just one shot to put California on a better path, restore checks and balances to our state government, and put an end to one party rule in our state.

Gavin Newsom’s inept response to the pandemic and its economic consequences led everyday Californians to step forward, exercising their rights under the state constitution to trigger a recall election this fall.

Kevin Faulconer, the Republican former mayor of San Diego, is the one Republican candidate who can make this recall effort a success.

There is little margin for error in the campaign now underway to elect new leadership in our state: California’s partisan makeup favors the incumbent much more than was the case when we recalled Gov. Gray Davis (D) in 2003.

That’s why I’m strongly supporting Kevin Faulconer, who has solid Republican and reform credentials, while demonstrating repeatedly he can win in jurisdictions favoring the other party. No other candidate for governor can meet this test.

No… Read More

You know you are truly on vacation when you are walking around with nothing in your pockets.

Americans are not known for their cuisine. French, Italian, Mexican or Chinese yes, but American no. But we did give the world one iconic dish that is more ubiquitous than even pizza. That is a hamburger and French fries. Not only are there McDonald’s and Burger Kings everywhere, but you can also go to the most remote place and find the meal on the menu. Assuredly, Americans are not the only ones eating this fabulous meal. It is best to add cheese, check first in other countries because they certainly don’t have American cheese.

At the excellent Qatar airport (and excellent airline), we were awaiting another flight. The country has created some controversy for treatment of its foreign workers building stadiums for the 2022 World Cup.

We encountered workers from all over the world at the airport, but not one was from Qatar. It was a virtual United Nations as we spoke to employees from far flung locales. Whether they were from Nepal, Bangladesh or Kenya, they all spoke English clearly. Only in the United States is it not a requirement to speak clear English to get… Read More