.

THE PEOPLE'S REPUBLIC OF CALIFORNIA - This site is dedicated to exposing the continuing Marxist Revolution in California and the all around massive stupidity of Socialists, Luddites, Communists, Fellow Travelers and of Liberalism in all of its ugly forms.


"It was a splendid population - for all the slow, sleepy, sluggish-brained sloths stayed at home - you never find that sort of people among pioneers - you cannot build pioneers out of that sort of material. It was that population that gave to California a name for getting up astounding enterprises and rushing them through with a magnificent dash and daring and a recklessness of cost or consequences, which she bears unto this day - and when she projects a new surprise the grave world smiles as usual and says, "Well, that is California all over."

- - - - Mark Twain (Roughing It)

Wednesday, April 30, 2014

Racist Democrats Attack Asian-Americans



Racist Democrats
  • Black and Latino Democrats have withdrawn their endorsements of Chinese-American Senator Ted Lieu because he refused to back a racial quota bill that would prevent thousands of Asian-Americans from attending college.


Racist Democrats in the People's Republic of California are frightened to death that Asian-American students are enrolled at many of California's top schools in numbers far greater than their proportion of the state's population. 

Heaven forbid that they are enrolled in schools based on their ability instead of race.

In an act of pure racism Democrat State Senator Ed Hernandez authored a bill to effectively install racial quotas and prevent thousands of Asian-Americans from attending college.  See our original story - Calif. Dem Latinos Push Spanish in Schools and Racial Quotas.  College admission would now be based on skin color not ability.


Currently Asians make up 36% of the University of California's students compared to their 13% of the general population.

But there was an unexpected pushback from families of Asian descent who mobilized through Chinese-language media, staged rallies and organized letter-writing campaigns has all but killed the measure this year reports ABC News.

Three Asian-American Senators, all Democrats who were seeking higher office at the time, withdrew their support of the bill after being bombarded by public criticism.

  • Six black and Latino lawmakers have since withdrawn their endorsements of Sen. Ted Lieu, who is Chinese-American, in a Los Angeles-area congressional race where he faces another Democrat in the primary.
  • Other black and Latino Assembly members this month withheld votes from unrelated legislation about the state's carpool program by Assemblyman Al Muratsutchi, D-Torrance, who is Japanese-American.

The Senate's Democratic leader, President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, acknowledged the animosity. He said in a statement that he wanted "a serious and sober examination" of affirmative action, adding "I am deeply concerned anytime one ethnic group turns on another."

Republicans are now capitalizing on the controversy by targeting upwardly mobile Asian-Americans.

Peter Kuo, a Republican candidate for state Senate, has been outspoken on the issue during his campaign for an eastern San Francisco Bay Area district that is 40 percent Asian-American.

"The Democratic Party is the party using the name of equality and diversity to lower the standard and preventing us from going into higher education," said Kuo, who came with his family from Taiwan when he was 14.
 
"I can't go and tell my kids, 'Hey, because you're Asian you can't get into the school you want,'" he said.


Republican Peter Kuo
GOP State Senate candidate Peter Kuo said, "I can't go and tell my kids, 'Hey,
because you're Asian you can't get into the school you want.'"
.
Kuo was born in Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
.
Peter Kuo for Senate.com

.
Now Democrats want us to be judged
by the color of our skin.

Monday, April 28, 2014

Toyota & 5,000 Jobs To Leave California For Texas



Welcome to Socialism
Toyota's Los Angeles area headquarters and its
5,000 jobs are moving to Texas.


(Forbes.com)  -  For Japanese auto brands, the logic of keeping their U.S. sales and administrative arms in California is breaking down under the outrageous penalties of conducting business in the Golden State and the changing dynamics of the North American automotive industry. So Toyota is leaving, according to Automotive News.

And where is Japan’s biggest automaker relocating its sales and marketing operations in America? Why, North Texas, of course. The to Plano, Texas, will involve most of the 5,000 managers and employees at Toyota’s current Torrance, Calif., headquarters, the magazine said.

Texas Gov. Rick Perry apparently didn’t even have to make a recruiting trip to southern California to get Toyota to do this, although he has helped lure plenty of companies with that gambit over the last several years.


And yet Texas has scored one of the biggest prizes so far in its very focused, state-on-state battle with the administration of Gov. Jerry Brown to get plum companies now headquartered in California to abandon the bluest state for the reddest one.

Clearly, Perry caressed a trump card in the fact that Toyota has enjoyed a deep relationship with Texas through its $2.2-billion truck-assembly complex near San Antonio.

Plus, the fact is that, as Toyota has become a more U.S.-centric company with important assets all over the country, it makes sense for the Japanese market leader to distribute its operations in a new way. Toyota’s 14 North American manufacturing facilities now build 71 percent of the vehicles the company sells in the United States, up from 55 percent in 2008.

A half-century ago, Toyota and other Japanese brands clustered in southern California when they began their assault on the U.S. market because California offered the single best market opportunity for Asian brands coming to America and because the state’s location closest to Japan made logistics easiest.
For most of the time since then, California’s justified reputation as America’s automotive, societal, cultural, and economic bellwether continued to ratify the Japanese brands’ focus there. Consider how Toyota was able to grow its Prius hybrid line into the segment’s dominant brand by starting with an emphasis in California.

Fleeing California
In 2006 Nissan North America moved its headquarters from
Gardena, California (above) to Nashville, Tennessee.

But now Toyota and most of it Japanese rivals are treating North America like their domestic market — meaning that a California lens isn’t always the best one. Maybe a new headquarters in Flyover Country will be.

Toyota’s oldest U.S. manufacturing operations, for example, are in Georgetown, Ky. The company now is making Corollas in Mississippi and exporting them to Latin America. It produces vehicles from Indiana to Alabama. And Toyota performs much of its engineering work in Michigan.

Plano is closer to all of those places than Torrance is. And while there’s still a significant divide between Toyota’s engineering and manufacturing operations, and the sales and marketing folks, the changing nature of the auto business means they need to get closer all the time.

Nissan made the first such move anyway, leaving its U.S. sales headquarters in California and relocating Nissan North America to Nashville in 2006.

Besides, California’s business climate is becoming an even bigger downer. California has become infamous with business executives and owners there not only for high tax rates and complex taxing schemes but also for overzealous regulations and regulators that have managed to stifle the entrepreneurial energy of thousands of companies.

Even Hollywood movie studios have been souring about producing flicks in California, increasingly reckoning that the sweet tax breaks and assistance packages now offered by so many other states offset the legacy advantages and ideal production climate in California.

About the only vast remaining pocket of dynamism in the California economy is Silicon Valley.


The Sheeple of California.
The meek, brainless and ball-less Sheeple of California continue to vote for the Socialist Democrats who live to kill jobs and tax people into poverty.
 

Friday, April 25, 2014

Democrats ram oil tax through Senate committee



More Democrat Taxes
  • Leftist Democrats want a new oil tax . . . and take a guess who will really be paying the bill at the pump as the tax is passed on.


A Democrat proposal to charge a tax on oil pumped from the ground in California was approved Thursday by a state Senate panel on grounds that it would help fund higher education in the state.

The Senate Education Committee voted, 5-2, to advance the bill that would levy a 9.5% tax to raise $2 billion annually to be divided among state universities and colleges, state parks and human service programs.

“California is the only major oil producer in the world that does not collect taxes on oil production,” Sen. Noreen Evans (D-Santa Rosa) told the panel. “As a result, California is losing out on billions of dollars in revenue amounting to a massive subsidy to big oil companies, and as a result our children are suffering.”

Wow - The "think of the children" bullshit.  Nothing ever changes.


Committee member Sen. Marty Block (D-San Diego) said the education panel, with its narrow purpose, had to approve SB 1017: “There can be no question that higher education needs additional funding,” Block said in the Los Angeles Times.

The measure was backed in testimony by dozens of students from systems that would benefit: University of California, California State University and California Community Colleges. Money would also go to the State Department of Parks and Recreation and the California Health and Human Services Agency.

The measure was opposed by the Western States Petroleum Assn. and some local elected officials, including from Kern County, a major oil-producing area.

“We depend on petroleum to move goods and people around California,” said Kern County Supervisor David Couch. He said unemployment in his county was already 13%. “A nearly 10% oil severance tax would cost thousands of jobs in California,” Couch said.

The California Chamber of Commerce called the bill a “job killer.” Eloy Garcia, a lobbyist for the Western States Petroleum Assn., said the measure would discourage oil production in California, where he said many people don’t want it. “We don’t want it, but we want the revenue,” Garcia said to summarize a viewpoint of some backing the tax. “You can’t have both.”

Senate Republican leader Bob Huff of Diamond Bar said the goal of the U.S. should be energy independence. “This is obviously a bill that would fly opposite of that,” Huff said.



Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Democrats Fund Planned Parenthood Using Obamacare



Backdoor Abortion Funding
  • Comrade Governor Jerry Brown and his lackeys are paying Planned Parenthood workers $58 each to sign up people for Obamacare. 
  • Random Thought  -  The Center for Disease Control released statistics on abortion and found that almost one third of all African American babies are aborted.  So the question of the day:  "Are Democrats trying to abort African Americans out of existence?" 


Democrat run California’s Obamacare exchange Covered California is paying Planned Parenthood employees for each person that they enroll in Obamacare.


“Certified Enrollment Entities are paid a flat-fee of $58 per successful application and $25 per successful annual renewal. The Enrollment Entities compensate the individual Enrollment Counselors,” according to California Health Benefit Advisers.

Thirty-eight different Planned Parenthood clinics in the state are listed as certified enrollment entities, according to state exchange records.

Twenty-three affiliates of Planned Parenthood Mar Monte, Inc. are certified to earn money for enrolling people in Obamacare. Eight affiliates of Planned Parenthood of Orange and San Bernardino are also certified, in addition to five affiliates of Planned Parenthood of SB, Ventura and SLO Counties, and two affiliates of Planned Parenthood of the Pacific Southwest.

Certified Enrollment Entities can include “non-profit community organizations,” labor unions, tax preparers, community clinics, and other kinds of groups.

Read more:   Daily Caller


Monday, April 21, 2014

California disenfranchises 1.2 million voters - It's called "reform"



You are so Screwed
  • An L.A. Times article is circulating through different formats and newspapers of the People's Republic about the corrupt top two primary in June.
  • The GOP and the Democrats cut a corrupt deal to ban all smaller opposition parties and independent candidates from the November general election ballot. 
  • In addition all write-in votes have been declared illegal and will not be counted by the corrupt two party Oligarchy in Sacramento.


With the approach of only the second election since the enactment of the “jungle” primary — the first featuring candidates for statewide office — some argue that the change has had a decidedly undemocratic effect, muzzling the voices of small-party candidates.

  • The Green Party, the American Independent Party and other minor groups will now rarely — if ever — appear on the general election ballot, even though they represent 1.2 million people. And they could eventually find themselves out of existence in California, the critics fear.
  • “It’s just a violation of voting rights,” said Richard Winger, a Libertarian and publisher of the San Francisco-based Ballot Access News, “because the right to vote includes the right of the choice.”
  • Anti-war and social justice activist Cindy Sheehan, running for governor as a member of the Peace and Freedom Party, paints a more dire picture. “It seems designed to kill our parties,” Sheehan said.

The occasional third-option candidate has won in California. The Green Party’s Audie Bock won a state Assembly seat in a special election in 1999. Another Green Party member, Gayle McLaughlin, was elected mayor of Richmond in 2006 reports the Redding Record Searchlight.

In other states, Angus King won a U.S. Senate seat in Maine in 2012, and Lincoln Chafee won the Rhode Island gubernatorial contest in 2010, without party affiliations. Reform Party candidate Jesse Ventura won the Minnesota governorship in 1998.

Such candidates can shape campaigns even if they don’t win, Hasen said, citing the effect of an unaffiliated Ross Perot on the 1992 presidential contest.

“His mantra was deficit reduction, and it became a major factor in the campaign,” Hasen said. “In fact, it became something Bill Clinton adopted as one of his priorities. It never would have happened if not for Perot. ... Losing minor parties does make the debate less rich.”

The Green, Libertarian, and Peace and Freedom parties are pressing a lawsuit on appeal in state court alleging disenfranchisement and other harms, with a new argument filed April 3. And an Assembly bill that would reduce the level of support required for a minority-party candidate to be recognized by the state will be the subject of an upcoming hearing.


Governor Jesse Ventura (Reform Party)
In recent history third parties and independents have been elected Governors of five states: Minnesota, Maine, Alaska, Connecticut and Rhode Island. 
.
But these free multi-candidate elections have been banned in California by order of the Democrats and Republicans.  The corrupt major parties want to prevent any competition to their Rule of, by and for the Elites.  Under California's corrupt rules Jesse Ventura would have never even appeared on the November ballot.

The people of California are only be able to vote for the major parties and all write-in voted have been declared illegal and will not be counted.
.
Elections have no meaning in the People's Republic.
(Minnesota Gubernatorial Election)

A Free Election in Minnesota

 

Gubernatorial Election, Minnesota
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
ReformJesse Ventura773,71336.99%n/a
RepublicanNorm Coleman717,35034.29%-29.04%
DFLHubert H. "Skip" Humphrey III587,52828.09%-6.02%
GreenKen Pentel7,0340.34%n/a
LibertarianFrank Germann1,9320.09%-0.80%
GrassrootsChris Wright1,7270.08%-1.12%
People's ChampionFancy Ray McCloney9190.04%n/a
Socialist WorkersThomas Fiske7870.04%-0.14%
Write-ins776n/a
Majority56,3632.69%
Turnout2,091,76660%
Reform gain from RepublicanSwing

 

The National Assembly of Quebec

Free Elections in Canada - Not California


A few days ago Quebec, Canada held their provincial elections. 

In truly free elections the voters had 19 political parties and independents to select from.  Four parties gained enough support to elect them members to the National Assembly.
. 
All over the world voters have democracy.
  • Japan  -  11 parties on their last election ballot and 9 parties elected to their House of Representatives.
  • Brazil  -   24 parties on their last election ballot and 21 parties elected to their Chamber of Deputies.
  • Germany  -  24 parties on their last election ballot and 5 parties elected to the Bundestag.
  • United Kingdom  -  58 parties on their last election ballot and 11 parties elected to the Parliament.
  • Israel  -  32 parties on their last election ballot and 13 parties elected to the Knesset.

You get the idea . . . . Democracy everywhere, except in California.


Warning to American Readers
.
Please do not be frightened.  The Quebec election chart below is typical of democratic nations all over the world from South Korea to Poland to Mexico to India.

All over the world voters have many different real political parties to choose from on their ballots.  That is called freedom.  While in the U.S. you are only allowed the choice of two corrupt Washington D.C. funded parties.

Don't worry.  Soon you will forget this article and go back to your dream-world thinking that you live in a democracy.
 
Summary of the April 7, 2014, National Assembly of Quebec election results
PartyParty leaderCandidatesSeatsPopular vote
2012Dissol.Seats won#%
LiberalPhilippe Couillard1255049701,757,07541.52
Parti QuébécoisPauline Marois1245454301,074,11525.38
Coalition Avenir QuébecFrançois Legault122191822975,60723.05
Québec solidaireFrançoise David
Andrés Fontecilla
124223323,1247.63
Option nationaleSol Zanetti11630,6970.73
GreenAlex Tyrrell4423,1630.55
ConservativeAdrien Pouliot6016,4290.39
    Independent/No designation11215,3610.36
Parti nulRenaud Blais247,5390.18
Bloc PotHugô St-Onge142,6900.06
Marxist–LeninistPierre Chénier242,0160.05
EquitablePatricia Domingos51,6450.04
Party without a partyFrank Malenfant5*1,2910.03
Mon pays le QuébecClaude Dupré6*5210.01
Autonomist TeamGuy Boivin54000.01
Unité NationalePaul Biron32410.00
Quebec – Democratic RevolutionRobert Genesse11630.00
Parti indépendantisteMichel Lepage11260.00
Quebec Citizens' UnionMarc-André Lacroix1580.00
Total8151251251254,232,261100
 

  • Voter turnout: 71.43%

See more Quebec general election, 2014

Thursday, April 17, 2014

Sriracha hot sauce maker considers moving to Texas - Democrats drive jobs out of California



Texas state Rep. Jason Villalba, Republican-Dallas

Gone to Texas?
  • Insane California big government regulations can bankrupt a small business just with the legal fees to defend yourself from harassment.
  • In the Sriracha case, data provided by the AQMD showed the majority of complaints came from four households
  • Officials from Alabama, Philadelphia, Louisiana, Kansas, Ohio, Georgia, Iowa, Arizona, New Mexico, West Virginia and Washington offered a potential relocation.


Sriracha hot sauce may leave the Los Angeles area city of Irwindale for a new home in the Lone Star State.

Huy Fong Foods CEO David Tran Wednesday invited a Texas lawmaker into his Azusa Canyon Road manufacturing plant to observe the facility’s operation before he considers moving the popular hot sauce factory to Texas.

“(I) would first like to cordially invite you to come visit (the) facility in Irwindale so you can observe firsthand our operations as well as to assess whether there is any potential issues that may affect your residences before the company considers moving to Texas,” said a letter Tran addressed to Texas state Rep. Jason Villalba, R-Dallas reports the Pasadena Star Mews.


Villalba released a press release Monday  extolling the virtues of doing business in Texas and implored Tran to consider relocating his facility there.

“Just meet with us. Let us tell you what is possible by moving your operations to Texas. You will not be disappointed,” Villalba wrote.

The exchange came on the heels of the Irwindale City Council’s vote last week, which declared the Sriracha factory has created a public nuisance. Residents began filing complaints with the city last fall of a strong chili odor emanating from the factory that caused their eyes to burn, nosebleeds and induced coughing fits.

Huy Fong’s Executive Operations Officer Donna Lam said Tran was “disappointed and discouraged” by the Council’s decision.

Lam said Tran is also extending his invitation to any other municipalities that are interested in having Sriracha call their city its home.

Officials from Alabama, Philadelphia, Louisiana, Kansas, Ohio, Georgia, Iowa, Arizona, New Mexico, West Virginia, Washington and other cities in California have also courted Tran and offered a potential relocation, Lam said.

Tran has already surveyed his employees to see who would be willing to relocate if the company did move.


The city of Irwindale filed a lawsuit against Huy Fong Foods in October because of the odor, which neighbors say is heightened during the chili grinding season that began in late August and lasted through mid-November.

A Los Angeles County Superior Court judge denied the city’s request for a temporary restraining order, which would have shut down operations at the facility, but instead issued a preliminary injunction that prohibits Huy Fong from any operations that create the odor. The case is expected to go to trial in November.

Court records show the complaints began with City Councilman H. Manuel Ortiz’s son and about a dozen other residents submitted testimony. Data from the South Coast Air Quality Management District showed that it has received 61 complaints from residents since October, the majority of which came from four households.

Meanwhile, Huy Fong has been working with the AQMD to test air quality inside the facility. Huy Fong’s attorney John Tate told the council last week the company would have carbon filters installed at the plant by June 1.


The Sriracha Factory
Driving jobs out of California


GOP Governor Rick Perry Welcomes Sriracha
and Their Jobs to Texas.

Tuesday, April 15, 2014

GOP Congressman Skips Incumbent Label on California Ballot



Ballot designations matter for candidates
  • Many incumbents try to mask that they are incumbents by claiming on the ballot that they are "Doctor/Teacher/Congressman" or "Congressman/Emergency Physician" (yeah, I bet he spends lots of time in the emergency room.)


(Roll Call)  -  California Republican David Valadao is running for re-election to the 21st District — but you wouldn’t know he’s the incumbent from his ballot designation.

In the Golden State, candidates can choose a short description to accompany their name on the primary and general election ballots. The ballot designation is generally three words, unless it is an official title, and it’s considered an important opportunity to leave a lasting impression on voters before they make their final selection.

[Here is a brief explainer from the Riverside Press Enterprise from last year.]

In 2012, Valadao ran as “Small Businessman/Farmer,” even though he was also serving in the state Assembly at the time. This year, Valadao adjusted his designation slightly to “Farmer/Small Businessman,” but makes no mention if his current office.

On one hand, it’s not surprising considering the historically low job approval ratings of Congress. But Valadao’s decision puts him at odds with the 46 other congressional incumbents running for re-election in California who do mention their office in some form.

“Usually, our thinking is to make the ballot designation as close as possible to the office that you are seeking,” said one Democratic consultant who does extensive work in California. “People like putting a round peg in a round hole.”

Democrat Congressman Raul Ruiz of Palm Desert claims as his
ballot occupation "Congressman/Emergency Physician".  
Somehow I doubt he spends very much time in the emergency room. 

But even though 46 members mention their current office, they do it in at least a dozen different ways.

Seven members list “United States Representative,” including two that include their district number, as their ballot designation. Nine members went with “U.S. Representative,” including four with district numbers. Nine other members chose “Member of Congress.” Four used “United States Congressman” and five used a form of “Congresswoman,” including freshman Rep. Julia Brownley’s very specific “Ventura County Congresswoman.”

Republican Kevin McCarthy went with the basic “Representative,” while Republican Darrell Issa and Democrat Susan Davis are using the long, “Member, United States House of Representatives.”

The final batch of nine incumbents couple their current office with another occupation:

  • U.S. Representative/Farmer Doug LaMalfa (1st District)
  • Congressman/Rancher John Garamendi (3rd District)
  • Doctor/Teacher/Congressman Ami Bera (7th District)
  • Businessman/Farmer/Representative Jeff Denham (10th District)
  • Farmer/Representative Jim Costa (16th District)
  • Farmer/U.S. Representative Devin Nunes (22nd District)
  • United States Congressman/CPA Brad Sherman (30th District)
  • Congressman/Emergency Physician Raul Ruiz (36th District)
  • United States Representative/Teacher Mark Takano (41st District)

For Bera, he just tacked on “Congressman” to his ballot designation after he won his race in 2012. Denham adjusted his designation from a couple of years ago, dropping “Businessman” and going with “Farmer/U.S. Representative” for this year.

Candidates can adjust their ballot designation between elections as well.

Last cycle, Republican Rep. Gary G. Miller ran as “Member of Congress” in the 31st District primary, but switched to “Congressman/Small Businessman in the general election. In both races, he faced “Independent Small Businessman” Bob Dutton, a Republican who also happened to be a sitting state senator who represented a sizable portion of the congressional district.

Of course, incumbents aren’t the only candidates who get to choose a ballot designation.

In 2012, Democrats were stuck with “Small Business Advocate” John Hernandez in the general election in the 21st District after he finished ahead of Democratic strategists’ preferred choice in the primary. That candidate, Blong Xiong, put “Fresno City Councilman” as his ballot designation, even though it’s not a Fresno district.

Liar, Liar?
Since 1975 Democrat Congressman Jim Costa of Fresno has served full
time in government posts, the State Assembly, Senate and then Congress. 
But on the ballot he is listed as "Farmer/Representative".  Hey Jimbo,
how many crops have you personally harvested lately?

This year, Hernandez is running again, but national Democrats have coalesced behind “Farm Policy Advisor” Amanda Renteria. Renteria is former chief of staff to Michigan Sen. Debbie Stabenow and former aide to California Sen. Dianne Feinstein who moved back to California in order to run for Congress in a district dominated by agricultural and water interests.

“Basically, we all just do whatever we can get past the county clerk or the [secretary of state] and if it goes to court, we never have any idea how they are going to rule until they rule,” according to one Democratic consultant who does extensive work in California.

There are a few other ballot designations of note.

In the 25th District, 2012 Democratic nominee Lee Rogers slimmed down his ballot designation to “Doctor” from “Doctor/Educator/Author” two years ago. He’s vying for a general election slot against two top tier Republican candidates. “Senator/Small Businessman” Steve Knight and “Business Owner” Tony Strickland are running running in the open seat. Strickland ran in the neighboring 26th District last cycle as “Senator,” when he was serving in the state Legislature. Now that he’s no longer an incumbent, he switched his ballot description.

In the 31st District, Democrat Pete Aguilar is making his second run at the seat. This year, he is “Mayor/Business Owner,” which is a slight change from “Business Owner/Councilmember” in 2012.
 Former Rep. Joe Baca is also running on the Democratic side, but his ballot designation is “Public Policy Educator.” Candidates are not permitted to include former offices in their designation, so it’s not just an attempt to avoid an establishment label. (In the 7th District, former Rep. Doug Ose is running as “Small Business Owner.”)

Also in the race is Danny Tillman, who may win the award for longest ballot designation. Normally limited to about three words, Tillman is listed as “Member, Governing Board, San Bernardino City Unified School District.”

Out of all the congressional races and ballot designations, I think my favorite is the 2nd District, where Supermarket Cashier Dale Mensing is running as a Republican.


Sikh Congressional Caucus
No ballot occupation can replace face to face relationships and campaigning.
.
Representative Judy Chu (D-CA) and Representative David Valadao (R-CA) announced the launch of the first-ever American Sikh Congressional Caucus.  Representatives Chu and Valadao are the Co-Chairs of the Caucus.
.
 Congressman Valadao noted, “The Central Valley is home to more than 25,000 Sikhs, the largest population in the United States. Just in my district, California’s 21st congressional district, there are at least seven Gurdwaras,” adding, “I am excited and honored that I will be able to represent the Sikh community in Washington and am looking forward to working with my colleagues to address the unique issues this community faces.”
(Saldef.org/news)

Sunday, April 13, 2014

After losing ground to California tribes, Reno casinos regroup



Reno is Coming Back
  • California businesses are getting competition again from our neighbor in Nevada as Reno is making a comeback.
  • Reno and Nevada is attracting businesses, jobs and the tax income they generate away from the People's Republic of California.


The signs of decay linger on Virginia Street, the main casino corridor in “The Biggest Little City in the World.”

Pawn shops and cut-rate motels line up alongside the high-end hotel towers. The strip is still pocked with shuttered casinos, victims of the recession and burgeoning competition from Northern California’s Indian tribes.

But signs of comeback – slow and steady – are evident as well. Construction crews are turning the old Fitzgeralds casino, closed since 2008, into the outdoor-themed Whitney Peak Hotel. A small slot-machine parlor called Siri’s Casino soon will open next door reports the Sacramento Bee.

In nearby Sparks, the Grand Sierra Resort is pouring $30 million into new amenities, including a chic $15 million nightclub. The new owners of the venerable John Ascuaga’s Nugget are spending $50 million on a honky-tonk entertainment venue, a new sports-betting operation and other upgrades.

Closer to the California border, Boomtown Casino is putting $20 million into an overhaul.

Truckee River in Reno
Increasingly, casino executives and tourism promoters push the
concept of a Reno-Tahoe outdoor vacation with casinos as part
of the package. The area also is relying heavily on special events
such as Hot August Nights, the annual classic-car festival.

Add it up, and Reno appears to be recharging. Nobody is predicting a return to the pre-2000 glory days, before full-fledged Indian casinos became legal in California. Instead, local leaders are working to reinvent the city as an all-encompassing travel destination; the Whitney Peak won’t have a casino.

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2014/04/13/6319471/after-losing-ground-to-california.html#storylink=cpy

Even among casino executives, the optimism is growing. Many say they think Reno has withstood the worst that the California tribes can dish out. With the overall economy improving, combined casino revenue in Washoe County, including the north shore of Lake Tahoe, rose almost 4 percent last year. That was the first increase since 2006.

“All the indicators are looking good,” said Carlton Geer, the new president and chief executive of the Nugget, a casino with its origins in the 1950s. “Most of those Indian gaming impacts have been absorbed by the market.”

Notably, Reno executives say they’ve experienced surprisingly little fallout from last November’s opening of the $800 million Graton Resort & Casino in Sonoma County.

“So far our data would show we have not had a major impact,” said Gary Carano, general manager of the Silver Legacy in downtown Reno, which survived a recent stint in Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2014/04/13/6319471/after-losing-ground-to-california.html#storylink=cpy

Brian Bonnenfant, an economist at the University of Nevada, Reno, said community leaders understand a good chunk of the gambling business is likely gone for good. Although Reno drew 4.7 million visitors last year, the most since 2008, the head count was nearly 1 million below 2004 levels. Gambling revenue in Reno is about one-fourth lower than it was a decade ago, a loss of $250 million.

“Everybody is in full realization,” he said. “Reno is ... sober about gaming and how far we can take it.”

California Businesses to Reno
A Northern California canine services and training business will relocate its headquarters and training center to Reno later this spring.

In a news release Wednesday, Red Bluff-based Vigilant Canine Services International cited proximity to Reno-Tahoe International Airport for canine and handler transportation needs as well as the state’s business-friendly atmosphere as keys to its decision to move to Reno.
.
 The company employs about 150 people with operations in 18 states.
(Reno Gazette-Journal)


Increasingly, casino executives and tourism promoters push the concept of a Reno-Tahoe outdoor vacation with casinos as part of the package. The area also is relying heavily on special events such as Hot August Nights, the annual classic-car festival.

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2014/04/13/6319471/after-losing-ground-to-california.html#storylink=cpy

“We offer the total destination resort-casino experience,” Carano said. “That’s what Reno has to offer as a getaway that the Native American casinos in Northern California do not offer.”

Reno’s other advantage is an assortment of casinos within a few miles of each other. That’s certainly the draw for Ernest and Yolanda Herrera of San Jose, who were walking through the forest of slot machines at the Nugget one afternoon last week. The couple said they have sampled the Indian casinos but visit Reno three or four times a year.

“You have a variety of casinos, and not just one like Cache Creek,” said Yolanda, 61. “It’s almost like going to Vegas.”

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2014/04/13/6319471/after-losing-ground-to-california.html#storylink=cpy

For the full article go to the Sacramento Bee.

Lake Tahoe
“We offer the total destination resort-casino experience,” said Gary Carano, general manager of the Silver Legacy. Gary Carano, general manager of the Silver Legacy.  “That’s what Reno has to offer as a getaway that the Native American casinos in Northern California do not offer.”


Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2014/04/13/6319471/after-losing-ground-to-california.html#storylink=cpy


Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2014/04/13/6319471/after-losing-ground-to-california.html#storylink=cpy

 

Friday, April 11, 2014

California city declares Sriracha maker a nuisance

























He should have moved to Texas
  • The Sriracha  company was founded by Vietnamese immigrant David Tran, who began mixing up his distinctive sauce in a bucket at his home in 1980.   The company moved to Irwindale two years ago, opening a new $40 million plant.
  • Data provided by the AQMD showed the majority of complaints came from four households
  • A company can be driven out of business by legal fees or forced to spend buckets of cash to "improve" their process based on complaints from FOUR households.  Who says California has an anti-business climate.?


The Los Angeles County city of Irwindale has declared the factory that produces the popular Sriracha hot sauce a public nuisance.

The Irwindale City Council's action Wednesday night gives the factory 90 days to make changes to stop the spicy odors that prompted complaints from some residents last fall. Declaring a public nuisance will allow city officials to enter the factory and make changes if the odors persist after the deadline.

The decision came despite testimony by air-quality experts that progress was being made toward a resolution. The South Coast Air Quality Management District said its inspectors have taken air samples inside the plant, and believed the information gathered should allow the factory and the city to resolve their differences reports the San Francisco Chronicle.

In this Oct 29, 2013 file photo, Sriracha chili sauce is produced
at the Huy Fong Foods factory in Irwindale, Calif.
      Photo: Nick Ut, Associated Press

Attorney John Tate, who represents Sriracha maker Huy Fong Foods, Inc., said the company had been working with the AQMD on its filtration system since the complaints first arose and was committed to finding long-term solutions by June 1.

He called the public nuisance declaration a demonstration of "the city flexing its muscle and thumbing Huy Fong in the eye."

A call to Irwindale City Attorney Fred Galante was not immediately returned.
David Tran, company founder

Irwindale sued Huy Fong Foods last October, asking a judge to halt production at the company's factory, saying residents downwind complained that fumes from the grinding of red hot chili peppers was stinging their eyes and giving them headaches and coughing fits.

In November a judge ordered the company to stop producing the annoying odors, but by then the annual pepper-grinding season, which runs from August through October, had ended.

In the meantime, several residents complained that the smell was persisting as Huy Fong Foods workers continued to bottle the popular hot sauce that is a staple in Asian restaurants and homes. Data provided by the AQMD showed the majority of complaints came from four households.

Huy Fong Foods moved to Irwindale two years ago, opening a new $40 million plant in the largely industrial city of 1,400 residents.

The company was founded by Vietnamese immigrant David Tran, who began mixing up his distinctive sauce in a bucket at his home in 1980. As business boomed, he opened a plant in Rosemead, moving to Irwindale when his company outgrew that facility.

He said the privately held company took in about $85 million last year, adding it employs about 200 workers during the pepper-grinding season and 60 year-round.

The flaming hot sauce is contained in distinctive green-tipped bottles, each with a drawing of a rooster on the side.


Bottles of the Sriracha hot sauce travel down a conveyor belt to be boxed for shipment at the Huy Fong Foods Inc. facilty in Irwindale, California, U.S., on Monday, Nov. 11, 2013. A judge denied the city of Irwindale's request for a temporary restraining order and set a hearing for November 22 to determine whether the hot-sauce factory should be shut down while it fixes alleged odor problems.
Photographer: Patrick T. Fallon/Bloomberg Photo: Patrick T. Fallon, Bloomberg

This Tuesday Oct. 29, 2013 photo a worker unloads chili peppers for making of
Sriracha chili sauce at the Huy Fong Foods factory.

Wednesday, April 9, 2014

Jerry Brown looks to rig California elections



Crooked Bastard Alert!
  • Socialist Democrats are frightened to death of free elections and passed a bill allowing government agencies to raid the offices of their opponents during and election campaign.
  • Nothing to see here.  Move along.  This is only a needed "reform" of the law.


The People's Republic of California's ethics and tax agencies now have more power to conduct campaign finance investigations under a law signed by Comrade Governor Jerry Brown.

The law gives the Fair Political Practices Commission and the Franchise Tax Board the ability to begin audits during an election campaign.  The campaigns only need to be "suspected" of illegal activities, even if campaign statements or finance reports have not yet been filed.

TRANSLATION  -  The corrupt power broker Elites in Sacramento are going to fuck over their political enemies at election time.  Imagine the visual image of cops raiding the office of a candidate two weeks before election day and walking out with files on live TV.


It also explicitly allows the commission to seek an injunction in Superior Court to compel disclosure.

Brown signed the bill, AB 800, into law "to strengthen the public’s right-to-know in California political campaigns,” said Jim Evans, a spokes-hole for the governor.

Assemblyman Rich Gordon (D-Menlo Park), the bill's author, said the measure improves the commission's effectiveness in the current campaign finance landscape, particularly the increasing involvement of nonprofit groups in elections spending. The law makes changes to the Political Reform Act, a 1974 initiative that set rules for disclosure of money in politics.

"This bill will give the FPPC the tools to make sure voters get what they asked for when they approved the Political Reform Act," Gordon said.

TRANSLATION  -  Dare to oppose your Masters and we will do an IRS-Tea Party screw job on you that you will remember for the rest of your life.
 
Erin Peth, executive director of the Fair Political Practices Commission, hailed the law as "a big step towards ensuring that campaign laws are followed before the election, when it matters."
 
Opponents had argued the measure gave the commission too much authority during the election season. Jason Kaune, president of the California Political Attorneys Assn., said last month that the measure allows the agency to "insert itself into the political process before an election and before an alleged violator has even filed a disclosure form."
 
The bill, which required a two-thirds vote, cleared the Legislature last month, in the narrow window when Democrats had a supermajority in both houses.

See more at the Los Angeles Times.

.
Democrat Corruption
Comrade Obama directed his boot-licking lackeys in the IRS to crush political opposition, end free speech and rig elections at the Federal level. 
.
The corrupt one-party controlled California legislature saw their marching orders.  They used their temporary two-thirds majority in the legislature to ram through a bill making it "legal" to use the police power of the state to rape their political opponents during an election.