MAY 31, 2010 The Australian radio announcer interviewing me last week about the dreadful state of California's budget and economy wanted to know what she would find if she landed at LAX and drove around the state. It's not like "Blade Runner," director Ridley Scott's 1982 film depicting a dystopi...
Columns-May, 2010The Unserious StateMonday, May 31st, 2010State is always hiringFriday, May 28th, 2010MAY 28, 2010 “The California Government is Always Hiring,” boasts an advertisement in Capitol Weekly newspaper. “Even during recent hiring freezes, the state hired 3-4000 new employees EVERY MONTH and accepting applications for over 1000 job titles at any one time,” stated the advertiseme... Arnold goes homeThursday, May 27th, 2010MAY 27, 2010 It’s nice to see Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger get back to his true constituency now and then. That constituency is, of course, Hollywood, that wonderful factory of dreams and fantasies that turned an Austrian body-builder who could barely be understood when speaking English into an a... Grab redevelopment cashMonday, May 24th, 2010MAY 24, 2010 Few things are more ironic, and infuriatingly funny, than listening to California's notoriously ham-fisted redevelopment agencies complain about the state's "theft" of redevelopment funds. Last week, California cities had to comply with a Sacramento Superior Court judge's ruling ... Workers comp needs market reformFriday, May 21st, 2010MAY 21, 2010 The subject of workers compensation reform appears on the surface to be an issue only pertinent to employers and business owners. However, nothing could be further from reality. If more employees paid attention to employer regulations, fees and taxes and the cost of all insurances, t... An ode to our Golden GuardianThursday, May 20th, 2010MAY 20, 2010 Not sure if you’ve noticed lately, but terrorism warnings are increasingly like car alarms. We all hear them, and know what they mean, but when they go off we just go about our business as though nothing unusual is happening. They’re invisible, just background noise. Even an atte... Forget pension reformMonday, May 17th, 2010MAY 17, 2010 "One cannot be both a progressive and be opposed to pension reform," argued Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's top pension advisor, David Crane, during a hearing Monday. "The math is irrefutable that the losers from excessive and unfunded pensions are precisely the programs progressive ... Capitol denialWednesday, May 12th, 2010With Greece in total upheaval, it’s not difficult to imagine California in such a place. We are after all, not far behind in our policy and politics, and state legislators seem to be in a serious state of denial about their denial. While economic experts predict that Portugal, Spain, Italy and ... Meg’s problemWednesday, May 12th, 2010 I admit I'm jaded about political campaigns. I've been watching them closely since 1964, when I was nine and supported the great Barry Goldwater against the ogre LBJ, who lied his way into re-election with a cynical campaign, especially the infamous "Daisy" ad in which LBJ painted Barry as a warmong... Democrats dreamingMonday, May 10th, 2010MAY 10, 2010 California's Assembly Democrats want you to be part of the state's budget solution, which is how they are touting a series of live budget forums across the state. One took place Saturday in San Diego and the next one is scheduled May 13 in the Bay Area city of Albany. While the Ca... |