Doug Ross @ Journal

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2012-01-19T10:34:00.000-08:00

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2011-11-01T16:52:00.000-07:00

Biff Spackle located the secret guide used by Politico journolists Jonathan Martin and Kenneth Vogel to determine whether a political scandal is newsworthy:

Please check all that apply:

Did the politician emit spooge on a young intern's blue dress?
Did the politician drive drunk into a pond, leaving his passenger to helplessly drown, flee the scene, and fail to report the incident to authorities in time for a rescue?
Did the politician spend decades as a Ku Klux Klan member, rising to the level of Kleagle (recruiter) and Exalted Cyclops
Did the politician have a three-decade history of sexual violence against women?
Did the politician accept sweetheart loans and donations from the very organizations he was supposed to be regulating?
Did the politician steer billions in contracts to companies controlled by her spouse?
Did the politician's gay lover run a bisexual prostitution ring out of the politician's apartment?
Did the politican use campaign funds to support a mistress and love child while his wife was dying of cancer?
Was the politican accused of inappropriate behavior by two unnamed persons

Please select the politician's party affiliation: Democrat Republican

Press button to determine this story's scandal status:

The 10 Most Terrifying Proposed Cigarette Warning Labels From the FDA

2010-11-10T20:22:00.000-08:00

Whoa:

This is what happens when you get too many bureaucrats, making too much money, spending all of their time dreaming up new ways to regulate you and control your life.

Just wait 'til you see the Happy Meal warning labels in California.

Bloodcurdling Tales of Horror: How the Teachers' Unions Are Destroying California's Economy

2010-02-21T12:03:00.000-08:00

Nearly 10,000 California state retirees pull down more than $100,000 a year, thanks to public sector unions and the Democrat politicians who support them. For just this tiny group of retirees, the expense represents almost $1.5 billion a year for California's taxpayers.

Of this total, 3,090 retired educators in California receive more than $100,000 a year.

The Capistrano Unified School District (CUSD) is but one example of the dysfunction. The district is nearing complete insolvency thanks to the teachers' unions. 85% of CUSD’s budget already goes to salaries, pensions and benefits; but that's apparently not enough for the unions.

Expenditures:
Total Expenditures per year, 2009-2010, $381,716,882

Salaries:
Certificated Employees, 2009-2010 - $193,507,709
Classified Employees, 2009-2010 - $57,262,822
Employee Benefits, 2009-2010 - $72,388,03
Total Salaries, pensions and benefits - $323,158,586

Meanwhile, the teachers' union (CUEA) has not yet negotiated a new contract, which means the old contract remains in force. Thus, the union has not agreed to a single cut in salaries, pensions, or benefits and even have projected salary increases.

The cuts that are being proposed instead target the kids and parents.

$1.66 million: Eliminate funding for all extra-curricular activities, and all stipends for department chairs
$1.30 million: Eliminate funding for all sports programs
$1.20 million: Capture savings from lower-than-anticipated costs for employee health insurance
$1.20 million: Eliminate 25-to-1 pupil-teacher ratio in the first grade
$1.00 million: Eliminate elementary school block music
$1.00 million: Remove money from fund for facilities maintenance, leaving only $2.6 million over next four years
$0.70 million: Close two small elementary schools
$0.50 million: Delay purchasing new textbooks per the standard textbook adoption cycle
$0.25 million: Eliminate all summer school in grades K-8
$0.21 million: Reorganize the district's business services department
$0.14 million: Eliminate the college-level International Baccalaureate program in high schools
$0.10 million: Eliminate resident substitutes at high schools, use district list instead

The recent history of the district is enlightening. Union officials have fought school choice, sensible compensation models and other necessary reforms tooth-and-nail. And the tale of a former CUSD superintendent provides a glimpse into the failures of the system.

Convicted and sent to jail? Not to worry: you'll still get to keep your pension

Retired Capistrano Unified School District Superintendent James A. Fleming could face jail if convicted on a felony indictment over the use of school resources to track his political enemies. But conviction won't stop Fleming from receiving his pension funds: $141,000 a year from California and $64,000 from his 27-year stint in Florida.

While overseeing the school district, Fleming and other board members were accused of violating open meeting laws, retaliation against political opponents and creating "enemies" lists, which contained the names of his critics, their children and even the schools they were attending.

Prior to his retirement in 2006, Fleming's total compensation was more than $348,000 a year. After moving to California from Florida, the district agreed to add five years to the 15 he'd worked. In addition, the district agreed to cover Fleming's medical expenses in retirement though he hadn't worked the requisite 20 years.

Even if he is convicted on all of the 2007 charges, both his pensions will remain in force.

California State Teachers' Retirement System: Double- and Triple-Dipping

Rudy Castruita is a typical double-dipper: he's currently the Professor of Clinical Education at the University of Southern California. But, having served as the San Diego County Superintendent of Schools for 12 years, his pension payments are also a quarter of a million dollars a year. The fact that he's gainfully employed as a professor appears not to affect his extremely rich defined-benefit pension.

Karen Colby, former superintendent of the Ocean View School District, received a "golden parachute" pension of $134,515 a year despite issues raised concerning her performance. Likewise, retired Orange County superintendent Thomas Godley pulls in over $210,000 a year despite an extremely troubling career. He served as a budget chief for a school district when a finance worker stole $3.7 million.

Retired school superintendent Theresa Daem receives $235,000 a year, though she ran a small, four-school district with less than 4,000 students. Cameron McCune, the retired superintendent of the Fullerton School District, lives in Palm Springs pulling down a cool $244,000 a year.

Chaos and Misery Await Californians Thanks to the Unions

In the Capistrano district, teachers earn an average of around $82,000 a year in salary, which does not include extra assignments or benefits. Because of the state's immense problems, the CUSD budget shortfall has risen to $34 million since the first of the year.

Despite all of these issues, the teachers' union hasn't formally offered a single real concession to the district.

It's time that California officially banned the public-sector unions. The choice is clear: complete insolvency and disaster -- or survival. Right now, the unions represent a cinder-block tied to the state's feet as it tries to stay afloat.

Larwyn's Linx: Obama declares legislative war

2010-02-21T08:55:00.000-08:00

Have a great link you'd like me to review? Drop me an email. You can also install a Larwyn's Linx blog widget.

COTD: The obvious next step is to simply mount government owned speed and movement sensors right in the car. A dashboard mounted printer can spit out infraction notices as required... Once a Police State is out of control there is no limit to how far out of control it will go. We the people, formerly called Citizens but now known only as Consumers, have been swindled into surrendering our Sovereign power to a cabal of corporate thugs. They will do anything required to hold onto power.

Let me ask you this. Twenty years ago would you have believed that the US government would ever take ownership of GM, or that they would give 100 billion dollars to an insurance company, or that they would purchase 90% of all new mortgages or that they would run a 2 Trillion Dollar deficit while funneling hundreds of billions to Wall Street? All of this would have seemed inconceivable to me. Except for the vestiges of civil rights we still possess we are literally turning into the old USSR where our entire economy is run by central government command. -- 'Steve'

The World Looks Different to the Editors of the Gray Corpse

2010-02-20T21:21:00.000-08:00

Dan from New York:

Report clears Bush officials of misconduct over 'torture' memos (CNN)

Lawyers Cleared Over 9/11 Memos (WSJ)

Report Faults 2 Authors of Bush Terror Memos (NYT)

Got no time for the corner boys,
Down in the street makin' all that noise,
Don't want no whores on eighth avenue,
Cause tonight i'm gonna be with you.

--Tom Waits, "Jersey Girl" (Click. As good as it gets.)

Andrew Breitbart has the final call.

Welcome to Doug Ross @ Journal

2006-12-16T08:12:00.000-08:00

For now, please see the original Doug Ross @ Journal website!

Doug Ross @ Journal

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Test

The 10 Most Terrifying Proposed Cigarette Warning Labels From the FDA

Bloodcurdling Tales of Horror: How the Teachers' Unions Are Destroying California's Economy

Convicted and sent to jail? Not to worry: you'll still get to keep your pension

California State Teachers' Retirement System: Double- and Triple-Dipping

Chaos and Misery Await Californians Thanks to the Unions

Larwyn's Linx: Obama declares legislative war

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The World Looks Different to the Editors of the Gray Corpse

Welcome to Doug Ross @ Journal