Free Republic

Those hoping to ride the state's high-speed train next decade will have to dig much deeper into their wallets than officials originally thought, a harsh reality that will chase away millions of passengers, according to an updated business plan released Monday. The average ticket on the bullet train from San Francisco to Los Angeles is now estimated to cost about $105, or 83 percent of comparable airfare. Last year, the state said prices would be set at 50 percent of comparable airfare and predicted a ticket from San Francisco to Los Angeles would cost $55. As a result of the...

The California Air Resources Board gave truckers a break Wednesday on the state's tough diesel emissions rules, acknowledging that the bad economy has both improved the state's air quality and made anti-pollution upgrades unaffordable. After a nearly seven-hour public hearing in Sacramento that featured more than 80 speakers including truckers, health and environmental advocates and even high school students from Oakland, the air board ordered modifications to the rules drawn up for consideration in April. Those changes could include significant delays in enforcement of the rules, depending on how quickly the economy recovers. The board also could add new exemptions...

Reporting from Washington -- While President Obama has made development of cleaner energy sources a priority, an effort is underway to close off a large swath of the Southern California desert to solar and wind energy projects. In a move that could pit usual allies -- environmentalists and the solar and wind industries -- against each other, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) is preparing legislation that would permanently put hundreds of thousands of acres of desert land off limits to energy projects. The territory would be designated California's newest national monument. The move has triggered cries of NIMBY-ism on Capitol Hill....

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- One vote shy of a budget deal, California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Sunday pressured reluctant Republicans in the Legislature to pass a complex plan to close the state's $42 billion deficit.Many Republicans are unwilling to raise taxes to deal with the state's historic deficit, but at least three GOP votes were needed in each house for the two-thirds majority required to pass the budget."My guess is everybody's arm is getting twisted," said Sen. Dave Cox, a Republican who had been among the Democrats' best hopes for a deal. "My answer is no, and I'm not looking for...

<p>The Department of Environmental Health cites an obscure law banning food businesses in private homes.</p> <p>Jack Melton of Redding gave away many of his pecan-filled fruitcakes. But health officials saw a small handmade window sign offering some for sale.</p> <p>Health specialist Fern Hastings says Melton must use a commercial bakery that has passed a health inspection even if he gives his cakes to the public.</p>

Earlier this month, a California activist began gathering signatures to put a state wealth tax on the ballot. The measure would impose a new 35% income surtax (in addition to federal taxes and the existing 10.3% top state rate), and penalize people who leave the state by seizing 55% of assets exceeding $20 million. The money raised would be used to eliminate the state's budget deficit and for purchasing controlling shares in large corporations. The 17.5% surtax is unusual because it would be on a taxpayer's total (not marginal) income whenever it exceeds $250,000, with another additional 17.5 percent tax...

I Have Had Enough Of You! ...that corrupt, Marxist, pro-infanticide, terrorist-connected, Chicago con-man whom they’re backing for the Presidency... Written by Bridget Geegan Blanton There’s a scene in a Star Trek movie where Captain Kirk is all-out stomping on the desperate grasp of a Klingon, while the space thug claws the side of a cliff in an attempt to hang on. When Kirk finally delivers a fatal blow and knocks the Klingon off the precipice and into a fiery pit, Kirk says, with obvious pent up anger and frustration: “I have had enough of you!” Exchange ‘Klingon’ with ‘Liberal’ and...

California is poised to become the first state in the nation to ban restaurants and other food facilities from using trans fats, which are known to increase the risk of heart disease, under a bill approved by the state Legislature Monday and sent to the governor. The measure, passed with a bare majority, comes two weeks after a similar ban in New York City became fully effective. California doctor and consumer groups support the law, while restaurant groups have offered a lukewarm response. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has not taken a position, a spokesman said. Assemblyman Tony Mendoza, D-Artesia (Los Angeles...

A mountain lion attacking a small animal was spotted by students living near Gerhart Hall on the Bethany University campus in Scotts Valley Monday night, the second such sighting in as many days... Students reported seeing the cougar on both Sunday and Monday nights... Students are also being advised to avoid jogging or walking alone during the early morning hours or at dusk to avoid coming into contact with a mountain lion.

Stoked by surging natural-gas prices, San Diego's Sempra Energy has completed its new Baja California liquefied-natural-gas terminal – opening the first LNG import facility on the western coast of North America. JOHN GIBBINS / Union-Tribune Sempra Energy's new Baja California liquefied-natural-gas terminal, known as Energia Costa Azul, was completed at an estimated cost of $1 billion. JOHN GIBBINS / Union-Tribune The startup of Energia Costa Azul is part of Sempra Energy's corporate strategy that has placed a premium on being one of the top players in natural-gas infrastructure. The isolated docking facility known as Energia Costa Azul, 14 miles north...

LOS ANGELES, March 5, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Thousands of homeschoolers in California are left in legal limbo by an appeals court ruling that homeschooling is not a legal option in the state and that a family who has homeschooled all their children for years must enrol their two youngest in state or private schools. Justice H. Walter Croskey in a written opinion said, "California courts have held that under provisions in the Education Code, parents do not have a constitutional right to homeschool their children."The sweeping February 29th ruling says that California law requires "persons between the ages of...

A three-judge panel of the California Court of Appeal has determined parents in that state have no legal right to home school. A Christian attorney in Sacramento says unless the ruling is reversed, literally thousands of students in the Golden State will be subject to criminal sanctions. (click here for special webcast starting at 2 p.m. CST) California Justice H. Walter Croskey has stated in an opinion that "parents who fail to [comply with school enrollment laws] may be subject to a criminal complaint against them, found guilty of an infraction, and subject to imposition of fines or an order...

Daly backs move to ground Blue Angels show Joshua Sabatini, The Examiner 2007-06-07 10:00:00.0 Current rank: # 165 of 6,519 SAN FRANCISCO - The annual aerial show by the U.S. Navy’s Blue Angels — a San Francisco tradition dating back to 1981 that pumps millions into the local economy — is running into opposition from three local peace advocacy groups that are calling for a permanent halt to the popular Fleet Week flyover. CodePink, Global Exchange and Veterans for Peace, Chapter 69, are working with Supervisor Chris Daly on a Board of Supervisors resolution to address concerns over the Blue...

Belmont moved a step closer Tuesday night to adopting a sweeping ordinance that would ban smoking in multiunit housing, including all apartment buildings. The Belmont City Council instructed the city attorney to draft an ordinance that, when passed at a later date, would be the most far-reaching effort in the nation to protect residents from the dangers of secondhand smoke. "Belmont is the first to say, 'We want to ban smoking in all multiunit housing,' " said Serena Chen, policy director for the American Lung Association in the Bay Area. "These are the pioneers."

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has boosted his environmental profile by signing global warming agreements with states and foreign governments, most recently one this month with the Australian state of Victoria. Schwarzenegger officials say the agreements are intended to force the federal government to take a more stringent approach to tackling global warming. But some critics note the signings have given Schwarzenegger opportunities for photo-ops with foreign leaders, and Democrats have raised concerns that the Republican governor is using the deals to predispose California to a market-based system in which companies can buy their way out of emissions reductions. Each of the...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Monday proposed to extend health coverage to nearly all of California's 6.5 million uninsured people, promising to spread the cost among businesses, individuals, hospitals, doctors, insurers and government. The plan contains elements that are likely to provoke opposition from a wide range of powerful interests, including doctors, hospitals and insurers, as well as employers and unions. But it also contains incentives for each of them. All children, regardless of their immigration status, would be covered through an expansion of the state and federal Healthy Families program. "I don't think it is a question...

Court Restores Inmates' Voting Rights Thursday, December 28, 2006 A state appeals court is restoring the voting rights of about 100,000 local jail inmates across the state who are serving a year or less for felony convictions. The state said it would not appeal the decision from the 1st District Court of Appeal. The affected inmates were eligible to vote until last year, when the state disenfranchised them. For three decades, California's secretary of state had interpreted that the state Constitution barred voting by those in state prisons and those on parole. The appeals court said in it's decision last...

TWO years after lending star power to George W Bush's re-election campaign, Arnold Schwarzenegger has distanced himself from the US president ahead of upcoming polls, analysts say. The Hollywood actor turned Republican politician is a strong favourite to win November's race in Democrat dominated California, where Mr Bush's approval ratings have slumped to record lows. But as Mr Schwarzenegger enjoys a commanding lead over his Democrat rival Phil Angelides in recent polls, analysts say the incumbent is wary of being associated with Mr Bush. Mr Schwarzenegger did not meet Mr Bush during his trip of California today. A spokesman for...

In his bid for re-election as governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger has a comfortable lead over Democratic challenger and state Treasurer Phil Angelides among the state's "high propensity" voters, according to a report released on Tuesday. These voters also back two of four general obligation bond measures that lawmakers put on the November 7 ballot that seek billions of dollars in debt issuance for public works. The celebrity governor, a Republican, has the support of 53.6 percent of high-propensity voters, compared with 31.4 percent backing Angelides. Another 11.4 percent of these voters favor other candidates and 3.6 percent are undecided,...

With the "hearts and minds" of 6.5 million schoolchildren on the line, a pro-family group has called a news conference today to protest a series of bills approved by the Legislature that would turn the California public school system into "sexual indoctrination centers." The event is being held by the Campaign for Children and Families, which has been active in lobbying against the changes in state law, at the state Capitol in Sacramento. "The simple message for (Gov. Arnold) Schwarzenegger will be: Veto these bad bills or turn off family-values voters," the group said in its announcement Monday. "(The bills)...

MEXICO CITY -- Mexico's attorney general said the arrest a group of corrupt cops along the border with California is imminent. Daniel Cabeza de Vaca told a Mexico City news conference today the cops protected a Tijuana cartel, the Arellano Felix gang, which smuggled tons of pot, cocaine and meth into the United States. Two were already arrested Saturday and charged with taking bribes to protect the gang. The attorney general said they worked at the Rosarito police department just over the border from San Diego border. The two are accused of decapitating three of their fellow officers. The news...

This has gotten zero attention in the MSM. Over the weekend, militant illegal alien activists marched onto a post office station in Maywood, Calif., and replaced the American flag with a Mexican flag while chanting anti-American epithets

Schwarzenegger Squashes Religious Freedom Thomasson: “Arnold Schwarzenegger has two faces. He speaks at churches and says he believes in religious freedom and family values, yet he’s stabbing pro-family Californians in the back.” Sacramento, California – Campaign for Children and Families is shocked and dismayed that California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has signed SB 1441 (Kuehl). Today’s disastrous action by Schwarzenegger means Christian and other faith-based colleges in California will be forced to promote transsexuality, bisexuality, and homosexuality if they accept students with Cal Grants. “People of conscience are appalled that Arnold Schwarzenegger has trampled religious freedom to satisfy hyperactive sexual activists,”...

2 Lodi residents refused entry back into U.S. Demian Bulwa, Chronicle Staff Writer Saturday, August 26, 2006 Jaber Ismail, 18, (right) is seen with his younger brothe... * Printable Version * Email This Article (08-26) 04:00 PDT Sacramento -- The federal government has barred two relatives of a Lodi man convicted of supporting terrorists from returning to the country after a lengthy stay in Pakistan, placing the U.S. citizens in an extraordinary legal limbo. Muhammad Ismail, a 45-year-old naturalized citizen born in Pakistan, and his 18-year-old son, Jaber Ismail, who was born in the United States, have not been charged...

AP) SAN FRANCISCO Police may enter Californians' homes without warrants to arrest those suspected of driving under the influence, the California Supreme Court ruled Thursday in a case testing the scope of the Fourth Amendment right to be free from unreasonable searches and seizures. The 6-1 decision follows similar rulings in about a dozen other states. A dissenting justice said the majority handed authorities a "free pass" to unlawfully enter private homes and arrest people without warrants. Under the Fourth Amendment, authorities are prohibited from entering a home and making an arrest without a warrant unless so-called "exigent" circumstances are...

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (BP)--A bill that would require California public school textbooks to include "gay history" is making its way through the state legislature, and experts warn it could have an impact nationwide. The bill, SB 1437, passed a state Senate committee April 4 by a vote of 3-1 and is expected to be debated in the full body in the coming days. It would require textbooks to include "the contributions of people who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, or transgender to the total development of California and the United States." The bill also changes state law to prohibit teachers from saying...

Cupcakes, Bake Sales May Be Banned At SchoolPOSTED: 11:44 am EST March 10, 2006 SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Cupcakes for kids' birthdays could become a thing of the past in Santa Clara, Calif. School district officials are considering a 24-7 ban on all junk food. That would mean no more PTA bake sales or classroom birthday parties with cake and ice cream. District officials said the proposal is prompted by the rise in fat kids. Students would still be able to bring junk food from home as part of their lunches, but wouldn't be allowed to share it. The school...

SAN FRANCISCO - The future of embryonic stem cell research could be shaped in a suburban courtroom where two taxpayer groups are challenging the legality of California's new agency dedicated to the controversial field. Opening statements were scheduled for Monday in a pair of lawsuits seeking to invalidate the law that created the California Institute of Regenerative Medicine, which is authorized to hand out $3 billion in research grants. The lawsuits allege — among other things — that it violates a state constitutional mandate that the spending of taxpayer dollars be under state control. "The act delegates the disbursal of...

Take-Two Interactive Software Inc. was sued by Los Angeles City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo, who said the video-game maker failed to disclose that its "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas" game contains "pornographic" content. Take-Two used "deceptive marketing practices and fraudulent manipulation of an industry rating system," to sell the game as "mature" rated while it should have been marketed as "adults only," Delgadillo said in a lawsuit..... "Grand Theft Auto," Take-Two's best-selling video game, received an adults-only rating in July after hackers discovered secret sexual content that could be unlocked with key codes distributed over the Internet. U.S. lawmakers have asked...

When one little company like Nissan North America pulls out of a great big city like Los Angeles, does anyone even notice? They do when Nissan is the 80th corporation to do so since 2002. The automaker's announcement that it will leave L.A. for Nashville, Tenn., may have been the straw that broke the camel's back. Just days after the announcement, the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp. fired off a letter to California's legislators, urging them to appoint a task force to consider changes in state tax and employment laws to help reduce business costs. The 80 departing corporations...

NOTE: this is the first in a series of posts in which we will discuss concrete steps to do battle with and ultimately substantially defund teachers unions. These unions are clearly a subsidiary of the DemocRATic Party, and they are a big part of what is wrong with public education. ========================================================================== Proposition 75 was defeated yesterday in California. The teachers union spent over a hundred million dollars to defeat it. They were quaking in their boots at the thought of actually having to ask permission of its members before spending money on partisan politics. Not surprisingly, they spend virtually all...

Nearly 100,000 California 12th graders — or about 20% of this year's senior class — have failed the state's graduation exam, potentially jeopardizing their chances of earning diplomas, according to the most definitive report on the mandatory test, released Friday. Students in the class of 2006, the first group to face the graduation requirement, must pass both the English and math sections of the test by June.

Senate just passed Cedillo's SB 60 - Drivers Licenses for Illegals. Assembly passed it last night. It now goes to the Governor

SACRAMENTO - Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger announced Wednesday that he will veto a bill seeking to allow gay marriages in California. Schwarzenegger said the legislation, given final approval Tuesday by lawmakers, would conflict with the intent of voters when they approved Proposition 22. That measure was put on the ballot in 2000 to prevent California from recognizing same-sex marriages performed elsewhere. "We cannot have a system where the people vote and the Legislature derails that vote," the governor's press secretary, Margita Thompson, said in a statement. "Out of respect for the will of the people, the governor will veto (the bill)."...

Poll: Most Voters Not Inclined to Re-Elect SchwarzeneggerBy Beth Fouhy Associated Press Writer Published: Sep 7, 2005 SAN FRANCISCO (AP) - A majority of California voters say they aren't inclined to re-elect Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, according to a poll released Wednesday. If the election were held today, the celebrity governor would face a close contest with two little-known Democrats hoping to challenge him in 2006. The nonpartisan Field Poll found that just 36 percent of voters would support Schwarzenegger, while 56 percent would not. In February, those numbers were almost reversed, with 56 percent saying they were in favor of...

SACRAMENTO -- Facing widespread opposition to his special election, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said Friday that if voters reject a proposed spending restraint on the November ballot, he might be forced to raise taxes. Schwarzenegger previewed a campaign theme in a morning radio interview, predicting that new taxes might be the only alternative if voters reject Proposition 76, the "Live Within Our Means" act. Asked on Sacramento station KTKZ-1380 AM what he might do to avert future budget deficits if the spending control is defeated, Schwarzenegger said: "Then we have to look at raising taxes, because this is the only option...

The Assembly just passed gay marriage 41-35. The bill now goes to the Governor. Updates, and who voted how to follow on this thread

SAN FRANCISCO – Today the California Supreme Court ruled that children can have two moms. Liberty Counsel filed amicus briefs in all three of today’s cases on behalf of Kristina Sica. Liberty Counsel urged the court to protect the right of a biological mother to direct the upbringing of her children without interference from a nonparent, former same-sex partner.

BURBANK, Calif. -- Burbank City Councilwoman Stacey Jo Murphy said Tuesday she will stay on the job despite her arrest on suspicion of cocaine possession and child endangerment. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- July 14 Images: Councilwoman Arrested June 29 Images: Vineland Boyz Arrests Police Arrest 22 During Operation Swift Intruder Burbank Councilwoman Accused Of Vineland Boyz Gang Ties -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- "I cannot comment specifically on the allegations made against me," Murphy wrote in a letter to City Manager Mary Alvord that was read at Tuesday's Burbank City Council meeting. "I intend to do the job you elected me to do, and I plan on...

LONDON - In a British newspaper editorial, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger urged governments - including that of President George W. Bush - to face up the reality of global warming. "The debate is over," he wrote in Britain's Independent on Sunday newspaper. "We know the science. We see the threat posed by changes in our climate. And we know the time for action is now." Climate change is one of the major issues to be discussed at this week's summit of the G8 wealthy nations at Gleneagles in Scotland. But reports suggest that Bush is blocking a deal on action to...

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has alienated a lot of different interest groups with his ambitious plans to overhaul state government, but a host of experts agree with him on one big point. By taking on teachers, unions, pensions, legislative redistricting and Democrats all at once, he's transformed what would have been an off-election year in California into a fierce political battlefield with potentially profound national implications. "It's huge on the national radar screen," said Kevin Spillane, a Republican political consultant in Sacramento. "There's no doubt the special election will be the biggest political story this year." Democrats and organized labor accuse...

A suicidal California man could face the death penalty for triggering a rail crash that killed 11 people, authorities said on Thursday, and they described a possible copycat attempt by another depressed driver. Police said Juan Manuel Alvarez, 25, who has a history of mental, family and drug problems, slashed his wrists and stabbed himself in the chest shortly before parking his sport-utility vehicle on rail tracks on Wednesday. He jumped clear at the last moment but one commuter train hit his car and derailed into the path of another train. Almost 200 people were injured in the collision north...

MEXICO CITY - Mexico may turn to international courts in an effort to block a new Arizona law limiting services to illegal immigrants, Foreign Secretary Luis Ernesto Derbez said Wednesday. He said in a radio interview that Mexico might take such a step after it has exhausted all possibilities under U.S. law to halt Proposition 200. "We are seeking all the legal opportunities that exist, first using the legal capacities of the United States itself and ... if that does not work, bringing it to international tribunals," Derbez said. advertisement He did not specify to which international bodies Mexico could...

Western Service, Sacramento Bee Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger speaks passionately about California companies fleeing for greener pastures. But we have yet to hear him speak in the same fashion about another exodus Californians who can't afford a roof over their heads. In a recent poll of state residents, nearly one-fourth of those surveyed said they were considering moving elsewhere because of high rents and dim prospects of finding an affordable home. Three-fourths said they were worried that their children and grandchildren will never be able to buy a house, according to the survey by the Public Policy Institute of California. The...

June 30, 2003 Chairman, Public Safety Committee State of California Sen. Bruce McPherson Via: Fax (916) 445-4688 Dear Senator McPherson, United States defense contractors such as Barrett Firearms Manufacturing, Inc., Murfreesboro, TN USA rely on orders from the US Military as a primary source of income but this government income for most contractors is only part of the necessary income for long term survival. Commercial or civilian product sales are also a main source of income that makes payroll and for good working conditions for their employees. We must support these defense contractors in both peace and war and allow...

www.gunowners.org May 2003 Descent Into Madness: 48 Hours In The California Legislative System by Michael Marks Stereotypes are a common part of American culture. Often as not they are based on a grain of truth wrapped in a mile of exaggeration. While most of us enjoy a good laugh at the wacky world of California politics, a rational man might think that accounts of strange thinking on the Left Coast, like any good bass fishing story, were a little larger than life. After spending two days in the halls of California state government in Sacramento, it is apparent that the...

One Reason California Earned The Title “Worst Business Climate in America” How one local government forces businesses that don't do business in their city to to buy business licences. La Mirada, CA (PRWEB) April 21, 2004 -- It was a tough town in which to do business, a town where even yard sales required city licenses. It was the kind of town that has earned California the title of “Worst Business Climate in America.” We are a couple of maverick Magicians, eager to make our mark on the Southern California Entertainment scene. My name is G. Brady Lenardos, my...

NORWALK -- He pulled his election papers Thursday after shaking hands in a swarm of worshipful fans at the Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder's Office, getting the kind of rock-star welcome a youthful Mick Jagger would have received. But Californians know very little about this man whose private persona is far more guarded than the fun-loving but highly disciplined movie star people see when he's out promoting his hit movies. They know even less about his ability to govern. "He's got to prove he can govern and he's got only 60 days to do it," said Ray McNally, a Republican campaign...

The California economy will continue to struggle through the rest of the year primarily because of distractions at the state government level, according to an economic impact report to be released today. Such uncertainties could result in little or no job growth in California's job market during the year. That, in turn, could impact consumer spending and the housing industry, according to the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp., which issued the forecast. Statewide, the LAEDC predicts only 76,700 new jobs will be created this year, a 0.5-percent increase from last year. The forecast was down from the firm's January...