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So the Iowa caucus has come and gone for the 2012 election.  Does it really mean anything in the overall grand scheme of things?  Not really.  The Iowa voters don't necessarily pick the candidate that will eventually be the nominee.  And when it comes to the voting demographic in Iowa, it does not come close to being an accurate representation of the overall national voting demographic.  Regardless, though, Iowa goes first... as it has since 1972.  And though it might not pick the winner all the

Barack Obama took the presidential oath of office January 20, 2009. The challenges he inherited on that historic occasion were as great as any president has faced – including Abraham Lincoln and Franklin D. Roosevelt; any assessment of Mr. Obama’s presidency not accounting for those challenges would be incomplete – and, more telling, dishonest. With that as preface let me note I have written before about our president and have done so absent undue praise – but I yield to no one in my personal r

In a move sure to be controversial and which has already received national attention, Arizona legislators have redrafted legislation to allow guns to be carried at public colleges and universities. Governor Jan Brewer vetoed a previous attempt, not because she was particularly opposed to the idea, but because it was unclear and murky. She hasn't voiced an opinion on the new bill but is known to be pro-gun. Existing Arizona gun law says colleges and universities can allow guns but, so far, none

In an era when data is steadily moving to the Internet and the cloud, the sad truth is that State of California websites are too often inadequate and archaic. Information should be easy to find on state websites. It’s not. Californians should be able to fill out forms online to be processed by the state. Too often, they can’t. Given that California is the most populous state and the home of Silicon Valley, you might think that state websites would be state-of-the-art, filled with easily accessib

Local McDonald's restaurant locations in Northern California will be kicking off 2012 with a kind gesture for California residents struggling in uncertain economic times. For a full two weeks, beginning on Monday, January 2, McDonald's restaurants throughout Northern California will be giving a "free small Premium Roast Coffee made with 100 percent fire-roasted Arabaca Beans to all customers during business hours with no purchase necessary." Steven Ramirez, a local McDonald’s restaurant owner f

On Monday, Secretary of State Debra Bowen officially certified Americans Elect to appear on California's ballots for the 2012 elections.  The addition brings the number of qualified political parties in the state to seven, including the American Independent, Democrat, Green, Libertarian, Peace and Freedom and Republican parties.  It is the first time a new political entity has been certified by the state since 1995. There are two ways in which a political body can achieve ballot access in the G

The Bureau of Reclamation has requested input from the public to resolve water supply and demand imbalances for the seven states, including California, using Colorado River water. The problem can be easily stated, the solutions not so easily. Using ten year running averages, the bureau shows that demand for Colorado River water has already outstripped supply and that this trend will continue and worsen. They emphasize multiple approaches and solutions will be needed to solve the problem of too

The Republican Party's presidential primary race may prove to be a breeding ground for third party and Independent presidential candidates in the 2012 election.  There are no less than four current contenders for the GOP's presidential nomination who may run for president as a third party or Independent candidate:  Ron Paul, Gary Johnson, Jon Huntsman and Buddy Roemer.  And, given the success of Americans Elect in its ongoing effort to obtain ballot access in all fifty states, we may see any num

Fresh off the heels of Bureau of Labor Statistics findings that slightly fewer Americans were jobless in November – reflecting an expected uptick in temporary and seasonal employment, as well as a mass exodus of over 300,000 would-be employees from the job hunt – the U.S. Department of Agriculture is sending conflicting signals about the state of our national economy.  More Americans than ever before are on food stamps, and that number is steadily increasing. Over 46 million U.S. Citizens have

In my view, the Republican Party’s only two serious candidates for President this weekend announced they had turned down the invitation to participate in the completely unserious Newsmax presidential debate, which is set to be moderated by Donald Trump.  Jon Huntsman, former Governor of Utah and Ambassador to China, and Ron Paul, Texas Representative and staunch libertarian, told Newsmax that they simply were not interested in participating in a reality TV show masquerading as a serious politica