ListenPolitical Fix
A Special Burden for Politicians: Liars
- Nov. 6, 2009
- By Gloria Penner
Why hasn't President Obama hauled people into court who accuse him of outrageous acts? He's been the target of a range of charges including allegations about his birthplace, religion, political affiliations, patriotism, tax policies, terrorism, infanticide and attitude toward seniors. Read more →
Furloughs And Overtime = Doubtful State Savings
- Oct. 29, 2009
- By Gloria Penner
It’s not hard to understand the desperation Governor Schwarzenegger must be feeling. After all, his approval rating at 27 percent is just five points higher than the 22 percent earned by Governor Gray Davis just before Davis was recalled from office. In fact, the current governor’s disapproval rating at 65 percent is identical to the percentage of Californians who approved of his performance in 2004. What a rapid descent! He certainly didn’t add to his stature this week when he included an encoded vulgar message in his veto letter to a Democratic assemblyman. Read more →
Three Grand Civic Projects With Room For The Homeless
- Oct. 21, 2009
- By Gloria Penner
As I’m writing this, an online news item tells me that two meetings are about to take place in San Diego to discuss what might be in the city’s future. One deals with municipal bankruptcy. That’s not my subject today. The other envisions three new municipal developments – huge, luxurious, and paid for by public funds. That interests me since those are the same three proposals that could provide the answer to San Diego’s growing homeless problem. Read more →
Why Is Socialism Scary Again?
- Oct. 8, 2009
- By Gloria Penner
Last week, one of my guests on San Diego Week, the TV program I host, took aim at the media’s “conservative white talk show hosts,” Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck. Her complaint was that their inflammatory rhetoric contributed to the recent escalation in hate crimes in the U.S. After the show, I was approached – or perhaps reproached is a better word here - by a long-time associate who complained that the critical remarks about Limbaugh and Beck were unfair since both men were doing the nation a service. They were warning us about the danger of socialism taking over the federal government. Read more →
'Frugged' By The Republican National Committee
- Oct. 1, 2009
- By Gloria Penner
It happened to me a few days ago and was totally unexpected. There, in my daily mail stack of incredibly boring bills, coupon offers, and disgustingly early holiday catalogues, was a goldenrod envelope, addressed to me and warning me in large-font bold letters: “DO NOT DESTROY.” The Republican National Committee had sent me, according to the return address, the 2009 Obama Agenda Survey. Read more →
ACORN: The Politics Of Poor Choices
- Sept. 23, 2009
- By Gloria Penner
This is not in defense of ACORN, and I want to be clear about that. A 40-year-old community organization with 1,200 chapters across 40 states and more than 400,000 member families should have more principle, professionalism and savvy than several of its employees apparently demonstrated recently in at least five different cities. Read more →
Political Peccadilloes Aplenty
- Sept. 16, 2009
- By Gloria Penner
Illicit or unsavory sex committed by public political figures is not a modern or strictly American phenomenon. But there’s something about what’s going on with U.S. politicians recently that feels more disturbing than simply caving into carnal temptations. Read more →
From Big Business to California Politics: Whitman and Fiorina
- Sept. 2, 2009
- By Gloria Penner
It certainly looks as though 2010 will be an exciting election year for Californians. As noted in my last blog, both Meg Whitman and Carly Fiorina are headed for history, as the first Republican women potentially to be nominated for governor and U.S. Senator from the Golden State. Read more →
The Sarah Palin Effect in California Politics
- Aug. 26, 2009
- By Gloria Penner
Sarah Palin's famously-dramatic and fashion-filled days on the media-rich campaign trail, running as the first-ever female Republican vice presidential candidate, opened a very important window for attractive, accomplished Republican women to try for other high offices. Read more →
The Turbulent Tides of Health Care Change
- Aug. 19, 2009
- By Gloria Penner
Would it be hyperbolic to say that Americans grappling with the health care change proposals are more tightly engaged with this issue than with any other domestic issue in the last 50 years? The emotions that charge town hall meetings, radio programs, newspaper editorials, blogs and kitchen table conversations seem stronger and more universal now than they were even during Lyndon Johnson’s Great Society makeover. Read more →
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