Taxes already are sky-high By John Seiler, Calwatchdog,  12/14/12 California’s misled voters just increased taxes by passing two initiatives. Federal taxes are set to go up sharply on Jan. 1. And local taxes have gone up in many areas, including for bonds I’m going to be forced to pay for the failed school systems [...]

  Heroic actions earn Sanger father, son magazine honor By John Ellis The Fresno Bee, 12/14/12 TO SEE COMPLETE STORY CLICK ON BLUE HEADLINE The Bennetts were headed home after having dinner in Fresno when they came upon the accident. As they reached the van, they heard crying. Inside were Alenna Rose Rosales, 11 months [...]

  California jobless claims jump by 24,000 Sacramento Business Journal by Melissa Wiese, 12/13/12 California reported the largest increase in new jobless claims of 24,411. Layoffs were in the service, agriculture, forestry and fishing industries. Unemployment across the country dropped for the fourth week in a row, by 29,000 claims to 343,000, according to the [...]

  Pontiac’s Workforce Is Cut 86% as Michigan Makes City Obsolete By Chris Christoff, Bloomberg,  11/27/12 In five years Pontiac, Michigan, has seen its workforce slashed to 76 from about 570, its police and fire departments handed to surrounding communities and contractors hired for services such as building inspections and cemetery maintenance. State-appointed emergency managers [...]

  Will Health Coverage For Older, Sicker Patients Become A Target for Cuts? By Erin Mershon, National Journal,  12/14/12 As lawmakers search for ways to rein in chronic budget deficits, health coverage for people who are both old enough to qualify for Medicare and poor enough to receive Medicaid might end up as a target [...]

  City seeking better tenants for properties Officials hope reworking many leases can spur economic growth David Garrick, North County Times,   12/14/12 TO SEE COMPLETE STORY CLICK ON BLUE HEADLINE And selling some strategically located properties to the right developers could help Escondido achieve a few long-term goals, officials said. Those goals include creating a [...]

  Judge Rebuked for Saying Rape Victim ‘Didn’t Put Up a Fight’ Fountain Valley Patch,  12/14/12 When sentencing a rapist to six years instead of 16, Superior Court Judge Derek Johnson questioned the legitimacy of the rape, noting when “someone doesn’t want to have sexual intercourse, the body shuts down.” Orange County Superior Court Judge [...]

  Academic senate influence challenged at community colleges By Kathryn Baron, EdSource,   12/13/12 An Oakland-based policy and advocacy organization is alleging that the Board of Governors of the California Community Colleges drew up unlawful regulation more than two decades ago giving excessive power to faculty, in violation of state law. The nonprofit organization California Competes this [...]

  Regulations stalling power plant conversion By Wayne Lusvardi, Calwatchdog,  12/14/12 In George Orwell’s novel “1984,” “doublespeak“ meant the reversal of the meaning of words: “war is peace,” “ignorance is strength” and “freedom is slavery.” Ever since the California Electricity Crisis of 2000-01, California has been afflicted with what might be called “powerspeak,” where “deregulation is [...]

    Guess Who’s Paying for the Alarcon’s $7.5 Million Pet Project Written by Jack Humphreville, City Watch LA,  12/14/12 LA WATCHDOG – Councilmember Richard Alarcon and his 33 year old daughter, Andrea, the politically appointed President of the Board of Public Works, are hitting up our Department of Water and Power and the Bureau [...]