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Trench Warfare

It's a deadlock, alright. Miss P. calls for a compromise, but the business-averse Progressives are so convinced that they're in the right, they've become deaf (excuse, hearing challenged) to any disagreement. And why shouldn't they believe this? Liberal pundits have been writing since the mid-60's that any point of view other than theirs is ignorant, illegal or insane. Whatever else they may believe, the the "so-called" pro-development bloc understands that new construction can be taxed, as can completed buildings, sales, employment and other forms of commerce...and that commerce (not just taxes) are the life blood of communities.

By | February 10th, 2011|0 Comments

Petaluma’s Fiscal Shipwreck

Thanks the foot-dragging, log-rolling, perma-stall tactics so popular among local Progressives, and abetted by the City Mothers and Fathers, the long-awaited target store is not likely to open before fall 2012. The mayor's prediction that "Revenues will come," apparently didn't mean, "any time soon." I think it's safe to say that the proposed Deer Creek development will be held back by the same tactics. The result is that local folks will continue to drive north and south to spend their household budgets for food, clothes and other necessities...for the foreseeable future.

By | February 5th, 2011|0 Comments

California Public Employee Unions New Tool

Judging from his initial efforts to trim California's historically bloated budget, the California employee union's have a useful new tool in the governor the helped elect. It's a fair bet that he'll huff and puff and try to cut everything but the one, major thing that's breaking the Golden State's bank - public employee union pensions and entitlements. After all, last time he was governor he approved their efforts to organize with the consequence that public employees no longer serve the citizens of our fair state. Today, it's the other way around.

By | January 23rd, 2011|0 Comments

Governor Brown Upends Petaluma

Word is that Governor Jerry wants to eliminate Municipal Redevelopment Agencies as part of his efforts to clean up California's fiscal disaster. I believe this is akin to shutting off the water while trying to put out a fire. Can this be anything but further evidence that most career politicians don't understand business, finance, or economics. I guess they have to learn the hard way. Though it seems that when politicians are learning, the lessons are hardest on us, and not them. Eventually, when The Great Recession is receding in our rear view mirror, I hope that we'll all be a little wiser, and just just a little older.

By | January 20th, 2011|0 Comments

Balancing Act

To hear the so-called progressive faction tell it, their opposition on the board are a homogeneous group of shills for developers. Well, I know all three and I see a lot of difference between them, their experience with, and their goals for Petaluma. If there's any predictability among board members it's with the gang of three and their perpetual, unrepentant anti-business agenda. Oh yes, I can hear the voices. "The council approved Regency. See! They're not anti-business." Yah, yah...after (what) seven years of log rolling, stalling, repeated reports, and a fraudulent lawsuit. That's some record. So given their intransigence, I'm guessing the only candidate they'll consider for the seventh seat is a dyed-in-the wool NIMBY.

By | January 13th, 2011|0 Comments

Senator Reid (the Grey) Fights Off the Republican Balrog

I look forward to the forthcoming session of the Potomac Wind Ensemble and watching the Progressives struggle to avoiding the consequences of the drubbing they took in the last election as result of their determination to force ObamaCare down the country's throat. Seems that Progressives everywhere feel that their agenda, and theirs alone, represents the will of the people.

By | January 9th, 2011|0 Comments

Forecast Is For (Political) Storms

Gee. We were so hopeful too. Then came Monday night's City Council Meeting and the attempt to shoehorn Jason Davies into the still-vacant seventh Council seat by claiming their proposed action to be an expression of the will of the people. How charming for the Progressive bloc to claim to channel the "will of the people." As usual, they are high on their own gas.

By | January 7th, 2011|0 Comments

Zombie Ballot Measure

Now that the sewer rate rollback has been put to rest for the second, and hopefully last, time, the malcontents who hang around (and populate parts of) City Hall will need another goomswoggle to waste our time and eat up precious city resources. I'm speaking of course of the inevitable special election that we'll need to fill the seventh City Council seat, once the two diametrically-opposed camps of council members have exhausted their invective and our patience with the bickering over who best to fill the "swing" seat.

By | November 11th, 2010|0 Comments

It’s Only Mud Slinging If You Disagree

There are two schools of thought among folks who run political campaigns. One says that voters read and think, just not enough. The other school assumes that voters don't read, can't think for themselves, and is glad about it. (People who think Michael Moore produces documentaries and that Al Gore invented the Internet are proof that there's merit in the second school of thought.) As a result there are two types of political (hit-piece) mailers. One reminds voters of information - usually having appeared in media - that they may have overlooked (or ignored). The other distorts or invents facts to slander the opponent. Depending on which side of the aisle you sit, you likely believe that it's the other guys who distort the facts because yours is the side of Truth, Justice and the American Way. Unless, of course, you're a Progressive then it's Truth, Justice and the Marxist Way. One more thing. If a candidate calls for an end to mud-slinging it means that they have a comfortable lead in the polls. No doubt, as result of the success of their own hit-piece mailers.

By | October 29th, 2010|0 Comments

Petaluma: Where No Bad Idea Goes Untried – Repeatedly

Well kids, the Road Diet that not only failed to energize commerce but further clogged traffic west of Washington Blvd will now be inflicted on the downtown merchants. Our council majority must not have heard about all of the centrally-planned disasters (all done by the way in the name of achieving progressive, Utopian goals) that crippled the Soviet and Chinese economies and are now causing Venezuela to circle the drain. Or maybe they did, we're now learning that "progressive" really is synonymous with "anti-business."

By | October 16th, 2010|0 Comments