Forum
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On Tuesday, we celebrate progress on Hwy. 46
James Dean made it famous when his speeding silver Porsche 550 Spyder collided with an unsuspecting farmer on Sept. 30, 1955, killing the rising star and building him a decades-long cult following.
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It's time to get involved in redistricting, but why is the auditor calling the shots?
Now that the Legislature has adjourned for the year, many Californians are ready for a break from the rough and tumble world of state government and politics.
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Health-care post cards from Europe
Health care reform has the potential to make a dramatic impact on American lives. But how can we sort truth from fiction when it is such a politically polarized subject?
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While we debate, millions still excluded
My perspective on the current health care system comes from four vantage points.
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End foreclosure profiteering by banks
During the real estate bubble, older urban neighborhoods across the nation, from Atlanta to Baltimore to Cleveland to Sacramento and countless communities in between, fell victim to a devastating plague of predatory lending and mortgage fraud.
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Back to the Future for energy policy
Too much heat and too little light are being generated right now inside the Washington, D.C., Beltway on the issue of global warming. Some electric utilities and allies in the coal and nuclear industries claim that only coal or nuclear reactors can meet future energy needs and combat global climate change. They say there is no other way.
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Local congressman goes halfway toward H. Res. 554's mandate for transparency
Rep. Jim Costa, D-Fresno, is a co-sponsor of House Resolution 554, also known as the "Read the Bill" resolution. This is a bipartisan resolution that would amend the rules of the House of Representatives to require the Internet posting of all non-emergency legislation for 72 hours before it can be considered on the House floor. This is not only necessary; it is common sense.
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Members of Congress deserve chance to consider bills without all the rush
Not surprisingly, Congress has a different take on common sense.
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Do we really need an overhaul of Legislature?
Remember Y2K and all the scams people were selling to protect you from the millennium bug? That same logic of a solution in search of a problem is alive and well with the proponents of a part-time Legislature initiative.
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Still waters, flooded state
Twenty-five million beleaguered Southern Californians have welcomed the arrival of autumn this year with the relief of knowing that while the worst is hardly over in the long term, the region will cool down and stop burning at least for a little while.
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Energy savings can be achieved without PG&E's disastrous SmartMeter devices
President Obama made it a cornerstone of his economic stimulus package. Thomas Friedman wrote about it in his bestselling book "Hot Flat and Crowded." And now even Google is getting in on the act. They believe a "smart" electricity grid is key to stopping global warming and reducing our energy dependency. Consumer advocates are not convinced.
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Legislature pitting one part of state vs. another
Each of us is familiar with our state's grim economic situation. Indeed, no Californian is unaffected by the financial upheaval we have experienced in recent years. One of the areas hit hardest is one that has the ability to pull us out of this mess: education.
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Obama needs to channel his internal LBJ
Following President Barack Obama's speech on health care, several pundits compared his performance to President Harry "give 'em Hell" Truman. Following his election, they compared him to Presidents Abraham Lincoln and Franklin Roosevelt. But for the upcoming health care battle, Obama needs to step into the shoes of President Lyndon Baines Johnson. Especially when it comes to lining up votes from recalcitrant members of his own party, LBJ's brawling, southern style of trench politics is best suited for Obama's challenge.
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Tough times demand a strong work ethic, and not every kid has that today
Heather Ijames' Sept. 5 column about the current lack of a strong work ethic was right on. ("Won't do your job? Let someone else.")
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Dem health care would mean a bonanza for unions
Buried within the thousands of pages of proposed health care insurance reform proposals by the Democrats are provisions that would greatly expand forced unionism in America, give Big Labor $10 billion of the taxpayers' money, and pay for it all by taxing non-union workers.
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A word on health care from front lines: Fix reimbursement
I am not a health care expert, just a single soldier living in the trenches of that American battlefield known as the emergency room. I can't list endless statistics about one system vs. the other, only my perspectives on what I think needs to be done.
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Keep the standard high for Medal of Honor recipients
On Sept. 17, President Obama will present the Medal of Honor to the parents of Army Staff Sgt. Jared C. Monti for "conspicuous gallantry." Monti, 30, was serving with the 10th Mountain Division when he was killed in a battle at Gowardesh, Afghanistan.
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Costa: Modify health care bill and maybe I'll support it
Over the past three months, Congress has been working on legislation to overhaul our nation's health care system. Regardless of political party or where one may fall on the political spectrum, I believe we can all agree that the health care system is broken and needs repairs.
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Dissent within the right
George F. Will, the elite conservative commentator for The Washington Post, is calling for U.S. ground troops to leave Afghanistan in his latest column.
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Emergency uncertainty under Obamacare
Emergency physicians who staff the last line of defense for health care are feeling quite a bit of angst regarding the current health care crisis and the feeling our voices aren't being heard.