Archive for May 2024

Image by Wikimedia Commons National Review suggests that the clock is running out for far-left politicos, as the City of Roses joins SF and LA (and perhaps Oakland?) in bidding adieu to soft-on-crime prosecutors. The removal of Mike Schmidt, a feckless progressive prosecutor in the city of Portland, Ore., is the most dramatic of several…

Local pols always say they’re in favor of small business–that is, until their insatiable yen for new tax monies reveals their true leanings. National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) comes out in favor of CA’s Taxpayer Protection Act (TPA), contra SJ City Council (save Doan) and Gov. Newsom. Their formal statement below. The National Federation…

Image by Michaël Muraz  Has stack and pack zoning in the name of climate change strangled CA’s housing market? Outdated sustainability dogma belongs with the dinosaurs, says California Policy Center’s Edward Ring. He recommends CA expand suburban growth—it’s better for the environment than corralling us all into concrete jungles. Reform CEQA too, which is abused…

Gavin Newsom states he’s not seeing the results he wants from homeless spending. In the May Revise budget, he cut over 25% statewide from the Homeless Housing, Assistance and Prevention (HHAP) program. These funds helped San Jose build nearly 500 interim housing units, a crucial tool to reduce homeless encampments in the city. From Andrew…

Image by Espensorvik on Flickr Rather than flush $30 billion down the Delta Tunnel, why don’t Californians pump that money into big yield water projects? California Policy Center’s Edward Ring argues that with one project alone, half the Delta money could return twice as much water, with the rest of the cash spilling into reservoirs that produce hydroelectric energy. The point here isn’t to proclaim desalination as a more cost-effective…

Image by Wikimedia Commons There were 437 homelessness families tallied across the city, marking an alarming 94% jump since 2022. The data highlights the daunting challenge of tackling the crisis in an expensive city amid a lack of affordable housing, a surge in migrant families and a fentanyl crisis. Maggie Angst at S.F. Chronicle explores.…

Image by City of San Jose, CA. Echoing the blistering critique of SJ’s homelessness programs by the state auditor, District 7 CM Bien Doan, in a 5.14 Study Session, called out staff’s ongoing dissembling and evasions regarding the humanitarian crisis on our streets and creek beds (Edited for brevity) We talk about homelessness over and…

Image by CastorGirl on Flickr Last month, AG Rob Bonta charged LA DA George Gascón’s head of ethics Diana Teran with improperly using confidential police officer personnel information in court or before a trial. Gascón faced recalls in SF and LA for soft-on-crime policies. Despite an informational black hole from the AG’s office Thomas Buckley of California…

CA schools were supposed to work in tandem, from UC’s down to CCC’s like Santa Clara’s Mission College. Today, they suffer from “mission creep”—degree inflation, union power grabs, and administrative bloat now cannibalize resources and inflate tuitions. California Policy Center’s Peter Constant (not the former SJ CM) suggests revisiting the Master Plan. Once the envy of…

Image by Clackamas County Historical. Palo Alto CM and CA16 primary candidate Greg Tanaka reviews the primary season, primary vote, and recount drama. His conclusion: alternate, diverse voices aren’t heard in our election process, and maybe it’s time to consider reforms. An Opp Now exclusive. I always expected there was going to be a recount…