http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/ca-news/ en-us Mon, 6 Jul 2009 13:32:02 GMT Focus Forum 15 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2286446/posts Amid the vacation rentals and used cars for sale, browsers of the website Craigslist will now find a unique offer: for California IOUs. “If you are receiving a Cali­fornia IOU and you need cash immediately, please contact me. I may be of assistance,” reads one posting. Wall Street, quick to spot an opportunity, is also gearing up to trade the payment promises. “We have a whole team working on it,” said Barry Silbert, chief executive of Second­Market, a company that trades illiquid assets such as bankruptcy claims, private company stock and toxic assets. Mr Silbert said hedge funds, municipal bond... Financial Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2286446/posts#comment Mon, 6 Jul 2009 13:32:02 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2286217/posts LOS ANGELES — Firefighters are battling a wildfire that has burned about 130 acres in the Angeles National Forest northwest of Los Angeles. Forest spokeswoman Dee Dechert says the fire was burning Sunday afternoon in the Little Tujunga Canyon area. She says it is 60 percent contained, with full containment expected Sunday night. Officials say there have been no injuries or evacuations. Moderate winds in the area are pushing the fire away from any structures. The blaze is burning near the site of October's Marek fire, which burned more than 4,800 acres. foxnews http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2286217/posts#comment Mon, 6 Jul 2009 01:35:23 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2286194/posts Slideshow here Photobucket http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2286194/posts#comment Mon, 6 Jul 2009 00:52:40 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285668/posts I went to the Tulare Ag-Center Tea Party today and saw JimRob. Jim, it's always a pleasure! Here's a few pics I took. The one of the main assembly was long after people were leaving. I didn't get there until 2:00pm, which was closing time. I wish I could have seen it when it was rocking! MarineBrat Vanity http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285668/posts#comment Sat, 4 Jul 2009 23:36:32 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2286011/posts Television networks planning Jackson coverage NEW YORK (AP) -- NBC executives changed their minds Sunday and decided to join other networks that will televise Michael Jackson's memorial service live this week. NBC joins ABC, CNN, MSNBC and E! Entertainment in offering the ceremony live. It's set for 10 a.m. PDT at Los Angeles' Staples Center. NBC had initially planned only a one-hour prime-time special on Tuesday night, but said Sunday it would also cover the event live. It was not immediately clear who would anchor. Charles Gibson will anchor coverage for ABC, which is setting aside its typical daytime programming.... AP via The Columbus Dispatch http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2286011/posts#comment Sun, 5 Jul 2009 17:50:52 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285959/posts When I heard Assemblyman Chuck DeVore in a radio interview saying a never-discussed part of the budget debate was how California's failure to aggressively implement the 1996 federal welfare reform act had kept its welfare rolls far bigger than other states, I asked him to show me where he was getting his info. He pointed me to a federal web site detailing the program created by the 1996 law to help get people off government assistance and into jobs: SNIP 32 percent were from California! 1,226,362! California has 36.8 million of the nation's 304 million people -- 12 percent. (I'm... San Diego Union Tribune http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285959/posts#comment Sun, 5 Jul 2009 16:04:06 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285833/posts SANTA MONICA, Calif. -- California's campaigns introduce candidates not only to the state's voters but to its immensity. In Bakersfield, Meg Whitman, 52, the former CEO of eBay who is campaigning for the 2010 Republican gubernatorial nomination, learned about carrots. In 1968, the Grimm brothers were selling vegetables at a roadside stand in Anaheim. They moved to Bakersfield and today Grimmway Farms and one rival provide 80 percent of the nation's carrots, partly because the brothers figured out how to make the vegetables pleasingly uniform in shape. Who knew? Whitman didn't, and the story, which she tells enthusiastically and at... Townhall.com http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285833/posts#comment Sun, 5 Jul 2009 11:19:19 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285795/posts TEMECULA: Protesters line intersection Obama, government were the subjects of much of the criticism By CRAIG SHULTZ - Saturday, July 4, 2009 8:28 PM PDT TEMECULA ---- Some of the people lining the corners of the Rancho California and Ynez roads intersection during a tax protest Saturday afternoon said their beef isn't only with President Barack Obama. "I don't think anyone here will tell you it's a Republican versus Democrat thing. It's an American thing," said Mike Horan of Poway. "It isn't so much politically motivated. People want to make sure they're being heard." A crowd estimated by organizers to... The Californian/North County Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285795/posts#comment Sun, 5 Jul 2009 07:01:48 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285785/posts Fresno, CA (KFSN) -- Before setting off fireworks Saturday night, a few thousand Central Valley residents met in Tulare to rally against the use of state and the federal taxes. Organizers said 15,000 ralliers showed up in Tulare Saturday ... ABC 30 TV http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285785/posts#comment Sun, 5 Jul 2009 06:10:29 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285746/posts Several thousand people gathered at anti-tax “Tea Party” protests across Ventura County today celebrating Independence Day with a shot across the bow of big government. The demonstration at the Ventura County Government Center attracted a large crowd — organizers counted more than 3,500 with almost as many signing up to be part of an e-mail list, they said. Similar protests were held in Simi Valley and Thousand Oaks, but with smaller crowds. In Ventura, passing motorists honked as those gathered waved American flags and signs with messages like “We Are In Hot Water,” “One Nation Under God,” “You Can’t Fix... Ventura County Star http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285746/posts#comment Sun, 5 Jul 2009 03:35:20 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285734/posts Here are some pictures from today's Tea Party in Temecula, California. A couple hundred patriots stood in the hot sun and got a ton of support from thousands of people driving by. http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285734/posts#comment Sun, 5 Jul 2009 03:02:52 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285717/posts Jose Compean and his family were guests of the Temecula California Republican Assembly. The California Republican Assembly have been contact supporters of Ramos and Compean. http://www.californiarepublicanassembly.com/ Jose answered questions and expressed his gratitude for everyone's support. He noted the prison officials were as supportive as they could be. His mail was read by a supervisor and one day he got over 300 letters and it supervisor told him it took over six hours to read the mail. The supervisor told Compean it was good to see the American People rallying around him. He states that much happened in the trial... http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285717/posts#comment Sun, 5 Jul 2009 01:49:53 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285680/posts Homeowners across the country are challenging their property tax bills in droves as the value of their homes drop, threatening local governments with another big drain on their budgets. The requests are coming in record numbers, from owners of $10 million estates and one-bedroom bungalows, from residents of the high-tax enclaves surrounding New York City, and from taxpayers in the Rust Belt and states like Arizona, Florida and California, where whole towns have been devastated by the housing bust. “It’s worthy of a Dickens story,” said Gus Kramer, the assessor in Contra Costa County, Calif., outside San Francisco. “These people... New York Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285680/posts#comment Sun, 5 Jul 2009 00:14:56 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285681/posts Another wave of foreclosures is poised to strike Robyn Beck / AFP/Getty Images John Wayne, left, owner of California Realty in Victorville, is helped by an employee as he hangs a sign advertising for future business after California imposed a statewide 90-day moratorium on housing foreclosures. Mortgage defaults have surged to record levels amid rising unemployment and falling home prices. Lenders are expected to move quickly to clear up backlogs as moratoriums on foreclosures expire. Don Lee July 4, 2009. Reporting from Washington -- Just as the nation's housing market has begun showing signs of stabilizing, another wave of foreclosures... LATimes http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285681/posts#comment Sun, 5 Jul 2009 00:16:36 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285674/posts http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285674/posts#comment Sat, 4 Jul 2009 23:55:02 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285642/posts New UC Davis leader denies wrongdoing in inquiries about student in previous job Saturday, Jul. 4, 2009 Incoming UC Davis Chancellor Linda Katehi was involved in an e-mail exchange that may have helped the daughter of a prominent Greek family gain acceptance to the University of Illinois, according to published reports. A campaign adviser to state Treasurer Alexi Giannoulias e-mailed information about the teen to Katehi in February 2008 after being contacted by the Rev. Alexander Karloutsos, a politically connected Greek Orthodox priest, the Chicago Tribune reported Friday. Katehi then forwarded the details to a vice provost. After the student's... Sacramento Bee http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285642/posts#comment Sat, 4 Jul 2009 22:07:24 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2262598/posts As Defense Secretary Gates tours our missile defense site at Fort Greely, Alaska, Gov. Sarah Palin calls for restoration of the missile defense cuts. Meanwhile, North Korea points another missile at the U.S. Robert Gates' visit to our missile defense facility at Fort Greely on Monday was a pointed reminder to the North Koreans that while we have been talking softly, we still have a few big sticks in the ground ready to turn the North Korean missile program into so much scrap metal. Investor's Business Daily http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2262598/posts#comment Tue, 2 Jun 2009 02:00:19 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285522/posts If you're a teen in California, want to know about your "right to privacy" and "reproductive health care"? Do you need your parents' permission to get birth control pills? Can you get a pregnancy test without your parents knowing? These are the messages the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California is giving teens on its Web site - assuring them of their "right" to unbridled sexual "freedom." Yet the consequences of this libertine philosophy are never mentioned. Sexually transmitted diseases are now so rampant, especially among 15- to 24-year-olds, that Los Angeles County just launched a textmessaging program to... Sacramento Bee http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285522/posts#comment Sat, 4 Jul 2009 17:35:54 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285473/posts Southern California's forest plan is in limbo following a recent court order declaring that it violates federal law, a finding that could impact measures being taken to manage the region's vast forestland and reduce the perennial danger of catastrophic fire. Last month, federal court Judge Marilyn Hall Patel in San Francisco said the plan governing operations and recreation on the San Bernardino, Cleveland, Angeles and Los Padres national forests lacks specifics about how activities such as off-road vehicle use and brush clearing might impact endangered plants and animals. The case remains open and the government is working to craft a... Riverside Press-Enterprise http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285473/posts#comment Sat, 4 Jul 2009 16:16:48 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285470/posts Reporting from Los Angeles and Washington -- The Maxine Waters Employment Preparation Center, a job-training facility in one of Los Angeles' poorest neighborhoods, is threatened with receiving no federal money at a time of high unemployment -- simply because of its name. The center has become a victim of a move on Capitol Hill to block funding for projects that bear the monikers of sitting lawmakers. "It doesn't seem fair that rich private entities can get funded and this poor school cannot," said Rep. Waters (D-Los Angeles), who had a heated confrontation with Appropriations Committee Chairman David R. Obey (D-Wis.)... LA Times http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285470/posts#comment Sat, 4 Jul 2009 16:07:56 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285398/posts BERKELEY, Calif. – Business consultant Katrina Kennedy has taken her young son out of preschool and put a family vacation on hold. Dairyman Mike O'Kelly is wondering whether he is going to have to let employees go. The problem? They rely on contracts with state agencies for much of their business and, cash-strapped California may start sending them IOUs instead of money until the state has enough cash to cover all payments. "I've dealt with the state for many, many years, and the failure of the state to come up with a budget has always caused problems for July and... Yahoo News http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285398/posts#comment Sat, 4 Jul 2009 13:40:16 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285325/posts Los Angeles will end use of coal-fired powerThu Jul 2, 2009 4:33pm EDT By Bernie Woodall LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Los Angeles will eliminate the use of electricity made from coal by 2020, replacing it with power from cleaner renewable energy sources, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said. Consumers of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power, the largest city-owned utility in the United States with 1.45 million electricity customers, will see higher power bills in the fight against climate change, he added in his inaugural speech for his second four-year term as mayor on Wednesday. California does not have any... Reuters http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285325/posts#comment Sat, 4 Jul 2009 09:59:01 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285220/posts Furlough Fridays are back at California's DMV offices. The California Department of Motor Vehicles announced Thursday that all its offices will be closed for three Fridays in July as part of Gov. CBS 5 http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285220/posts#comment Sat, 4 Jul 2009 01:59:05 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285194/posts Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has set Nov. 3 as the special election date to replace former 10th Congressional District representative Ellen Tauscher. The primary election will be held Sept. 1.Per special election rules, the primary is an open ballot, meaning that all candidates will appear on the same ballot regardless of party affiliation. The top vote-getter in each party plus the nonpartisan candidates will advance to the general election unless one candidate receives in the primary 50 percent plus one vote. If that occurs, the candidate will win the post outright. CoCo Times: Political Blotter http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285194/posts#comment Sat, 4 Jul 2009 00:52:21 GMT http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285154/posts California's such an easy target these days that even The Gray Lady is drawing a bead on the eighth-largest economy in the world. The New York Times is running a piece Sunday in its magazine on our fair state, titled "On the coast of crazy." The teaser uses words like "cataclysm" and "fiasco." It doesn't stop there: California always seems to produce more spectacle than anywhere else in the country, and that goes for its meltdowns too. Calamity is just part of the equation here, as if God gave California so much glamour and grandeur and great weather that he... SacBee: Capitol Alert http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2285154/posts#comment Fri, 3 Jul 2009 23:51:52 GMT