| What we do here is link to items with the option of pithy commentary. Good for the reader, good for the writer. Win-win!
• The Fresno Democratic Central Committee endorsed Chris Finnie for Party Chair, depriving John Burton of one more email crowing about an endorsement that he can send out to his list. Money quote from an attendee: "If we end up with a horse's head in our bed, it'll be more than we've ever gotten from the CDP in the past."
• Tomorrow will be the final furlough Friday - until the next budget crisis, of course, when the Governor will find this to be a useful tool to screw public employees and the unions who represent them. It set a really bad precedent and I fully expect for it to be used again.
• There was an EPA hearing today about granting a waiver to California and several other states to set their own tailpipe emissions reduction targets. It's a matter of time before they rule on the matter in the affirmative - but the auto industry is still pulling out whatever it can to block it. They ought to focus on their own survival at this point.
• A scary incident in a courtroom in Stockton today, as the defendant in a murder trial stabbed the judge and was eventually shot.
• Stimulus package good news: the legislature is fast-tracking changes to unemployment law to make the jobless eligible for an extra $839 million. Stimulus package bad news: officials are mostly pessimistic that the state will hit the trigger of federal money that would have reduced some of the worst budget cuts and also some taxes. Really bad news for those who rely on the state for health care - almost all of the cuts are in that sector.
• The terrible Metrolink crash in Chatsworth that killed 25 is forcing new inquiries into rail safety. Especially when rail and transit are set to become a larger part of America's transportation needs, this is desperately needed and I'm glad it's happening now, although the circumstances are grim.
• There are indications that Sacramento is coming out of its subprime mortgage crisis, but of course now, with housing prices cratering, the problem is much bigger than subprime. |
