In the shadow of Newsom & Co.'s efforts to remove from 2024's ballot the Taxpayer Protection and Government Accountability Act, the Wall Street Journal fact-checks ridiculous claims that upholding Prop 13 would prevent cities from, yep, doing their jobs. Like Newsom, SJ's City Council has deemed the Act “one of the most egregious ballot measures” (CM Cohen) and voted to oppose it earlier this year.
Read More
SJ City votes to accede to union demands for a gold-plated contract—even without a strike. Now the big question raises its head: What gets cut to fund union demands? Pat Waite of Citizens for Fiscal Responsibility sees choppy waters ahead. An Opp Now exclusive.
Read More
The County is dipping its toes into “contingency management” techniques for substance abuse, which reward abstinence via tangible rewards (usually vouchers). But research hedges on long-term benefits of gov't cash incentives for sobriety. Two widely cited meta-analyses excerpted below.
Read More
Stanford University economics professor and Hoover Institution fellow John Cochrane scrutinizes Ellenberg's guaranteed income program for homeless SCC students. Whereas some subsidies encourage private sector participation, Cochrane doubts if SCC's—arbitrarily targeted and dismissive of underlying trammels—will indeed make positive change. An Opp Now exclusive.
Read More![Opinion: Guaranteed income inevitably “cannibaliz[es] existing welfare programs”](https://images.squarespace-cdn.com/content/v1/5cc724c90490797bcbc46ffe/1690319015757-Y371FTEXRK6NT4CEY53G/bills-dollars-pile-crumpled-wallpaper-preview.jpg)
PR-wise, SCC lefties have been in seventh heaven since Ellenberg announced a guaranteed income trial run for homeless high schoolers. But pol science prof Alyssa Battistoni can't help but point out the obvious in Dissent, despite herself supporting universal basic income (UBI) laws: UBI is a compassionate ideology but a not-so-pragmatic idea. Obtaining the funding involves more wealth taxes and/or pulverizing arguably helpful welfare programs.
Read More
Sheridan Swanson, Research Manager of the California Policy Center, analyzes the big trends informing SJ's recent labor impasse—why cities are perpetually squeezed by unions, and why strikes are so temporary. An Opp Now exclusive.
Read More
Local universities are expected to continue gaming the system when it comes to sidestepping the Supreme Court's ban on affirmative action. Journalist Christopher Rufo's recent tweet highlights a video of UC Berkeley's law dean Chemerinsky. In it, Chemerinsky brags to students that though Berkeley appears to align with Prop 209, he—and others—make hiring decisions based on “diversity.”
Read More
Steve Heimoff of Coalition for a Better Oakland addresses the enduring myth of “Care not Cages” (to nod to Supe Ellenberg): the idea that quickly releasing criminals back into society, coupled with reform programs, is a more humane approach for the community. On the contrary, says Heimoff, making public spaces unsafe for local families (and devaluing and failing to prevent tragic losses) isn't kind to anybody.
Read More
Continuing an exclusive Opp Now series, constitutional law expert Dr. Margaret Russell parses CA'n Education Code provisions to answer a hot question about opt-out programs: Can parents opt their kids out of content they're morally opposed to, such as controversial sexuality-based lessons? Unlike CRI's Karen England, Russell concludes (below) that students can legally withdraw from “instruction in human development and sexuality” but not community-specific teachings.
Read More
Gabe Guidarini explains in American Greatness that the Right as a whole isn't attracting young folks—because its narratives are too-often jaundiced by cynicism and impending danger, leaving opportunity and excitement on the back burner.
Read More
Even the Wall Street Journal concedes that billions of taxpayer dollars later, CA's efforts to ease its homelessness plight have barely scratched the surface. While cities like SJ prioritize developing barrier-free housing, the WSJ's Christine Mai-Duc and Jim Carlton remind that unhoused individuals often also need comprehensive treatment—for mental health and substance abuse disorders—to break free from the cycle.
Read More
Earlier this year, Dr. Tabia Lee—the Foothills-De Anza Community College's Equity, Social Justice and Multicultural Education faculty director—was fired for, yep, not being Woke enough. This is just one of many incidents of local Leftists ousting moderate allies. The Cato Institute breaks down how this Black professor's earnest challenges to anti-racist orthodoxy got her the boot.
Read More