Last month, in recognition of the annual celebration of Earth Day, it seemed appropriate to compile a list of ten common myths that constitute the major premises of modern environmentalism. That list, along with explanations of why each of these premises is unfounded and counterproductive, can be summarized as follows: 1 – There is no climate crisis....
President Trump has pushed aside Governor Gavin Newsom and driven the nation’s most populous state toward something approaching sanity. President Trump’s (second) first 100 days have generated some amount of horse excrement. It’s hard to see how it serves Trump’s interests to anger allies in advance of a trade war with China, to drive the economy into...
Although public opinion, most private organizations, and the federal government have turned against Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI), it remains deeply embedded in the culture of California state and local government. As a result, taxpayers and ratepayers are funding millions of dollars of government DEI-related expenditures annually, and the spending is likely to persist without...
Despite its status as an agricultural superpower, eclipsing every other U.S. state in farm output, California’s farming sector wields relatively little influence in Sacramento. When you evaluate the state’s GDP components, the sectors that dominate are financial, IT, and services, at around a half-trillion each, followed by manufacturing and government at around $400 billion and $300...
The California Air Resources Board has entrenched itself as one of the least accountable, least effective, and most costly bureaucracies in the history of California politics. The goal of CARB is simple: to lower the amount of greenhouse gas emissions in California. The way CARB aims to achieve this is primarily by adjusting the Low...
May 1, 2025 – Yesterday evening, SEIU 721 (a union representing government employees throughout Southern California) wrapped up their two-day strike consisting of more than 55,000 workers. Picketing, protests in Downtown LA, and sitting in the streets have characterized this union strike over a new labor contract with Los Angeles County. On April 29, the...
California’s state and local governments are struggling to find the cash needed to pay government employees the retirement benefits they promised. As the League of California Cities observed, pension costs for many of their members have been rising to “unsustainable levels”. Now, remarkably, the state Assembly is ready to make that problem far worse –...
There is a good chance that a Californian is going to be nominated to become the new Commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation. One source of opposition to his confirmation could be senators representing states that share with California the waters of the Colorado River, concerned that a Californian will not sufficiently take into account...
An overview of the bond measure and what it means for California’s budget. Voters were sold a shiny promise — now California is billions deeper in debt. Last November, California voters approved Proposition 4, which authorized $10 billion in bonds for “safe drinking water, wildfire prevention, and protecting communities and natural lands from climate risks.”...
Two imminent federal actions promise to greatly influence water policy in California for the next several years. The first arises out of an executive order from President Donald Trump to the secretary of the interior to restart the work “to route more water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta to other parts of the state for use by the people...
If he hasn’t done so already, Governor Newsom needs to demand the state legislature rescind the so-called “ABX2-1” passed on October 14, 2024 in an effort to prevent “price gouging.” If the legislature does not cooperate, Newsom needs to declare a state of emergency and suspend the law. Because if he does not, he will lose whatever...
There is a growing bipartisan consensus even here in California that environmentalist restrictions have gone too far. It would be a dishonest oversimplification to pretend environmentalists have outlived their usefulness, or that many of the accomplishments of environmentalists over the past 50 years weren’t magnificent and necessary. But when special interests define and exploit environmentalism...
The first Earth Day in 1970 was organized in response to growing public concern for the environment. Many of the calls to action were justified: polluted rivers were catching fire, and smog was so dense that in downtown Los Angeles, you couldn’t even see the hills a few miles away. We’ve come a long way...
The taxpayers are always the ‘deep pockets’ that public leaders depend on. There is nothing more infuriating to me than adult predators who exploit and sexually abuse children. As a former president of the board of a summer camp, I know that it had to pay high premiums for liability insurance. Not for the mud...