California Unemployment Rate Falls in November

California’s unemployment rate fell to 11.3 percent in November.

Non agricultural jobs increased by 6,600 during the month for a total gain of 211,400 jobs since January, according to data released December 16 by the California Employment Development Department.

The U.S. unemployment rate also fell in November to 8.6 percent.

In October, the California’s unemployment rate was 11.7 percent.    Read more »

More

Understanding Is Always Eased by Well-Defined Terms

For those Californians who think their tax dollars are squandered or ill-spent, visit the “Glossary of Legislative Terms” at www.leginfo.ca.gov/guide.html#Appendix_B.

It’s Appendix B but deserves far higher billing.

Among it’s “Across the Desk” to “Voice Vote” listings – no legislative terms worthy of inclusion apparently begin with W, X, Y or Z – is “lobbyist.”    Read more »

More

The Digital Story of Nativity    Read more »

More

Not Just Millionaires Affected by Governor’s Tax Increase Plan

Gov. Jerry Brown wants his next budget, which he will unveil in early January, to be largely balanced by increasing state income taxes on wealthier Californians and boosting the state sales tax by one-half percent.

The increases would bring an additional $7 billion into state coffers annually until they expire at the end of 2016.    Read more »

More

As Expected, Lower-Than-Hoped Cash Triggers $1 Billion Budget Cuts

Confirming what had already been predicted, Gov. Jerry Brown said Dec. 13 that lower-than-expected revenue estimates required imposing $1 billion in additional budget cuts on public schools, universities and aid for the developmentally disabled and the elderly.

But while the reductions won’t fall as heavily ion public schools as initially thought, the Democratic governor stressed this round of cuts, which mostly take effect January 1, is just the beginning.    Read more »

More

Today’s Latin Lesson Comes from The Governor of The Great State of California

Gov. Jerry Brown’s 1961 undergraduate degree from the University of California at Berkeley is in Classics.

Lest there was some doubt, at a December 13 Capitol press conference explaining that California must exercise fiscal disicpline and spend within its means, Brown said:

“Nemo dat quod non habet.”

Translated: “No man gives what he doesn’t have.”    Read more »

More

If California Is Going to Impose Trigger Cuts, How Come No Roy Rogers Cuts? Or Dale Evans Cuts? Seems a Little Disrespectful to the ‘King of the Cowboys’ and the ‘Queen of the West’

More

The Great Cost Cutter Cometh

Edmund G. Brown Jr., the Tight-With-a-Taxpayer-Dime Democratic governor hath issued an executive order, his signature affixed thereto, this day (December 12) in the Year of Our Lord 2011 ordering “agency secretaries and department directors (to) prepare a list of all reports that they are required to submit to the Legislature and identify those that may no longer be of significant value to the Legislature.”    Read more »

More

The Golden State: Trendsetter

In its December 5 edition, Time contains a briefing item titled “Failure is the New Normal.”

The subject is Congress.

“In today’s hyperpartisan era, ideological purity trumps problem solving,” Time says.

The failure of the apparently not-so-super-duper committee to shave $1.2 trillion off the federal government’s $15.1 trillion debt – over 10 years – is the most recent example.    Read more »

More

Happy Birthday Governor Knight!

Goodwin Jess Knight, the tap-dancing 31st governor of the 31st state in the union, was born December 9, 1896 in Provo Utah.

The genial moderate Republican, who spoke fluent Spanish, had more in common with his successor, Democrat Pat Brown, than his GOP rival, Cold War ideologue U.S. Sen. William Knowland.    Read more »

More