This series reports on the backgrounds of the board members and officials ofthe ALRB. Part 1 ishere.

The Agricultural Labor Relations Board is made up of five members, the board was created when the Agricultural Labor Relations Act was signed into law in June 1975 by Gov. Jerry Brown.

With two vacancies, the board currently hasthree members:

* Chairwoman Genevieve A. Shiroma, who has served on the board since 1999, was… Read More

This is Part 1 of a series.

Obamacare’s computers aren’t the only government systems struck by major glitches.

Two months after a California Employment Development Departmentcomputer crashcut off tens of thousands of Californians from their unemployment benefits, the EDD remains overwhelmed by overdue unemployment claims from thousands of people looking for jobs.

State Labor Secretary Marty Morgenstern, an appointee of Gov. Jerry Brown, quicklyordered EDDofficials to pay the unemployment claims immediately, and check eligibility later. Yet today thousands of… Read More

Anti-Walmart protestsstruck across Californiaand the rest of America on Black Friday. The protesters demanded that the giant retailer pay its worker higher wages and benefits.

As part of the protests, Robert Reich is pushing apetitionon Facebook. The former… Read More

This holiday season, nothing says Happy Holidays like health insurance. And nothing says health insurance like government health care, according to the Obama administration.

“This holiday season, millions of Americans have a chance to get quality, affordable health insurance—many for the first time,”barackobama.comsays.

“If you have family members who are uninsured, you can play a big part in helping them find coverage that works for them. It might not always seem like it, but your family listens to you. So have the talk.”

To help you “have the talk,” Barackobama.com has put out a new video called, “… Read More

I received my notice of cancellation from Anthem Blue Cross October 14, stating my company’s health insurance plan will no longer be available Jan. 1, 2014. But as a 20-year former Human Resource professional, panic did not set in.

Instead, I was angry.

I have a really good PPO plan. My annual out-of-pocket is high, but my coverage is good. It makes doctors smile when they see I have a PPO. Cha-ching $$.

I like my insurance plan. I like my family doctor — we have a 23 year relationship. Skin cancer and San Joaquin Valley allergies have plagued me for years, so my two favorite docs are my dermatologist of 25 years, and my ear, nose, throat doctor of nearly 28 years.

The cancellation of my plan means Anthem Blue Cross agreed to what Covered California forced on them, to cancel all employer plans by December 31, 2013.

Tuesday, Anthem Blue Cross of California announced it has agreed to a two-month extension of more than 100,000 individual policies. This was supposedly after they failed to give the required 90-day cancellation notice, state Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones announced this week.

The policies had been set to expire on Dec.… Read More

Legislators in Sacramento typically fall in line behind party leadership, but freshman Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia, D-Bell Gardens, appears to have a pronounced independent streak.

I had a chance to talk with Garcia about her experiences as a political reformer, and her recent call for a fellow Democrat, state Sen. Ron Calderon of Montebello, to resign amidFBI allegations of corruption.

Garcia has a solid record fighting political decay. She took on the corruption in Bell, volunteering her time with the city’s recall campaign, which ended with every Bell council member being voted out of office.

Garcia said her co-volunteers then wanted her to run for office.

Running as a government reformer, Garcia beat Democrat Tom Calderon, a former Assemblymanand Sen. Ron Calderon’s brother, in the June 2012 primary. She then went… Read More

Having faith in freedom, Igor Birman is hoping voters “hire” him for Congress. “I’m here on a job interview asking you to hire me,” Birman tells voters he meets.

Birman, a Russian Jewish Immigrant and Republican, announced in September he is running for Congress against Rep. Ami Bera, a Democrat from Congressional District 7. At 32, Birman has a unique ability to reach young and ethnic voters who historically have been wooed by Democrats. At a Sacramento coffee shop, he sat down to talk to me.

“I was defined by freedom,” Birman said when we met this week. “But that freedom now… Read More

It’s over…….for now.

The mainstream media (MSM) would have you believe that this was a “bipartisan agreement”. It was…..in the same way that Lee and Grant reached an agreement at the Appomattox Courthouse in 1865. It was a complete surrender on the part of Republicans. All that was “negotiated” were the terms of that surrender.

President Obama, Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi got what they wanted. They employed an admittedly risky strategy a month ago centered on the basis that they would not negotiate, not compromise and not talk. Taking this position and holding it meant that it was certain the country was going to go close to “the brink” of the debt ceiling. Boehner repeatedly said that “default” was not an option. The Democrat troika never said that. They were willing to risk the future of this nation in pursuit of their socialist dreams. Their strategy left only two possible outcomes: Republican surrender or we find out what happens if a modern government runs out of money. They got the former.

The battle is lost. But, the war is far from over. The nature and timing of future battles… Read More