Posts by Take Back San Jose

Image courtesy of Salvation Army Silicon Valley, used with permission. Major Daniel Freeman in Silicon Valley discusses how drug-free environments promote security and recovery for homeless individuals, while saving (a lot of) money on operations. An Opp Now exclusive. Opportunity Now: How do you make a sober homeless living environment work in San Jose? Major…

Image by San Jose Public Library David J. Johnson, chairman of the Santa Clara County Republican Party, calls on Mayor Mahan to strengthen his Reform agenda in his 5.17 State of the City address. Specifically, by pushing forward on permit deregulations, congregate shelters, sustainable fire/police depts—and (finally) corralling costs on the nonsensical BART-to-DTSJ extension. An…

Dear Fellow Conservative, I’m Steve Hilton, and I’m running to be the next Governor of California to bring back freedom, opportunity, and common sense. To make California Golden Again. Our grassroots movement is already gaining steam, and some of the strongest leaders in the conservative movement have already endorsed my campaign. There’s nowhere better than…

Image by Wikimedia Commons An independent auditing agency found it impossible to track the $2.3 billion the County and City of Los Angeles spent (mostly via unaccountable nonprofits) on homeless services last year, according to a report filed with a federal district court on March 6. OpenTheBooks.com explains on RealClearInvestigations. Key facts: Auditors from Alvarez & Marsal Public…

SJUSD proposes to extend its $72 parcel tax—originally touted as temporary back in 2016—to “maintain and improve” English, math, and science programming. But Silicon Valley Taxpayers Association’s president Mark Hinkle questions if the tax even makes sense, with the district’s dropping enrollment, failing academic standards—and how they just got $1.15B from taxpayers in November. An…

mage by Todd Berman State legislators tend to favor more oversight (big surprise), but can they find common ground with local homeschooled families? And what should we expect going forward re: CA education? Part 2 of an Opp Now exclusive Q&A with HSLDA’s Will Estrada, Esq., and Family Protection Ministries’ Nathan Pierce. Opportunity Now: From…

‘s Housing Dept has often characterized its strategy with clever alliteration: “PPP”—shorthand for Production, Preservation, and Protection. But as homelessness and affordability get even worse, it’s clearly time for a pivot. Irene Smith of SJ’s United Housing Alliance suggests reforms—and a greatly increased role for local rental vouchers. From Medium.  The first P, Production, we all…

Image by Elvert Barnes SCOTUS’ Grants Pass decision in 2024 appeared to empower municipalities to enforce no-camping zones. But activists in Sacramento are trying to reverse Grant’s Pass in CA, potentially banning cities like SJ and Fremont from pursuing legal action against trespassers and bivouacking. SJ’s Mayor Mahan says SJ doesn’t criminalize homelessness and just…

Petrus Van der Velden: A student, c. 1860 Why are Silicon Valley families flocking to homeschooling? How do (even well-meaning) Sac legislators end up restricting homeschooling? And, um, how’s the Dept of Pesticides involved? An Opp Now exclusive Q&A with Home School Legal Defense Association’s senior counsel Will Estrada, Esq., and Family Protection Ministries’ executive…

Image by Public Domain Vectors Concerns about non profit accountability in SJ have a long history of being ignored. Irene Smith of the Independent Leadership Group and United Housing Alliance suggests that the blistering State Audit report on SJ’s out-of-control homelessness expenditures means it’s finally time to get serious about managing non profits that receive…