Rights and LibertiesRDAs Hoisted On Own PetardThursday, December 29th, 2011 DEC. 29, 2011 By STEVEN GREENHUT Believers in property rights and limited government should be thrilled that when the toughest threat to redevelopment arose in California, the biggest defenders of these agencies -- the League of California Cities and the California Redevelopment Association --... Silencing Local Gov’t Truth-TellerMonday, October 17th, 2011 OCT. 17, 2011 By STEVEN GREENHUT Cities throughout California are facing tough economic times, the result of a down economy and chronic overspending on the part of city governments -- especially in the areas of salaries and retirement benefits for city employees. It's a challenging time in... Merck Bankrolled Anti-Parent BillTuesday, September 6th, 2011 SEPT. 6, 2011 By JOHN SEILER Key California legislators passing an anti-parent bill grabbed campaign financing from the gigantic Merck conglomerate, a CalWatchDog.com investigation revealed. The legislation is AB 499 by Assemblywoman Toni Atkins, D-San Diego. In the bill's language, it "autho... Noted Lawyer Slammed in Judicial GulagTuesday, July 5th, 2011 JULY 5, 2011 By RICHARD TRAINOR When I met Richard Fine in the summer of 2001, he was riding high. Shortly after that he was rotting in jail. A prominent attorney with a thriving practice in Beverly Hills, in the sunny days of 2001 Fine was a political insider with powerful connections to U... Court Decision Could Spur Prison ReformMonday, May 23rd, 2011 MAY 23, 2011 By JOHN SEILER Today's U.S. Supreme Court decision mandating California state prison reductions must lead to long-needed reforms. The decision upheld a lower court ruling that from 38,000 to 46,000 must be released due to overcrowding that violated the Eight Amendment's ban on "cr... Govt. Fights Citizens’ Right to KnowTuesday, April 12th, 2011Warning: imagecreatefromstring() [function.imagecreatefromstring]: Data is not in a recognized format in /var/www/vhosts/calwatchdog.com/httpdocs/wp-includes/media.php on line 258 Warning: imagecreatefromstring() [function.imagecreatefromstring]: Data is not in a recognized format in /var/www/vhosts/calwatchdog.com/httpdocs/wp-includes/media.php on line 258  APRIL 12, 2011 By TORI RICHARDS A recent appellate court decision could have far-reaching impact on whether citizens can successfully fight government agencies for documents under the California Public Records Act. Attorneys battling for public records only have one big hammer -- attorney... Stalking Law Hurts Small Claims CourtsTuesday, March 22nd, 2011 MARCH 22, 2011 By STAN BRIN California’s Small Claims Courts are in trouble. Every year, fewer people take their cases before the local Judge Judy. But no one seems to know why this is happening, or even that the problem exists -- or even if it is a problem at all. In 20 years, annual Sma... CA GOP Saves Eminent Domain!Friday, March 18th, 2011 Commentary MARCH 18, 2011 By STEVEN GREENHUT California Republicans love to talk about limiting government, fighting bureaucracy and keeping taxes low, but on Thursday they proved that this is nothing more than a rhetorical device. Given the opportunity to rein in the size and power of gove... Silicon Valley Flunks 6 ‘Killer App’ TestsMonday, March 14th, 2011 MARCH 14, 2011 BY WAYNE LUSVARDI Last month with Silicon Valley elites, President Obama raised a glass of wine to toast the area's success. He was repairing his self-damaged image with big business. But a symbolic Sword of Damocles hovered over the meeting. Apple Computer employs 30,000 ... The Real Meaning of the ConstitutionMonday, February 7th, 2011 By JOHN SEILER Writing recently in the Sacramento Bee, two professors mangled the actual meaning of the U.S. Constitution. Alan Gibson of Cal State Chico and James Read of the College of St. Benedict and St. John's University in Minnesota charged that while the newly elected Republicans in Co... |