Business | Fog City Journal

The Remarkable Model
of the Commonwealth Bank of Australia

Today there is renewed interest in reviving a publicly-owned bank in Australia on the Commonwealth Bank model. The United States and other countries would do well to consider that option too. Any proposed legislation should contain careful checks for accountability. The Commonwealth Bank served Australia brilliantly well for its first 11 years under the stewardship of one honest man, Denison Miller. When he passed away in 1923, the bank was delivered into the hands of a board of businessmen more interested in serving their own interests than the nation’s. Legislation would need to be drafted that prevented that from happening again.

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Filed under: Business, Economy, Opinion, Politics

Board Notes

Turning to the other flashpoint of the day, Supervisor Sean Elsbernd, acting in accordance with the mayor’s wishes, attempted to pull a rabbit out of his hat with a parliamentary trick in a transparent effort to upend efforts by progressives to place a foot patrol ballot measure, sponsored by District 5 Supervisor Ross Mirkarimi, on the November ballot.

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Filed under: Business, Economy, Environment, Land Use, News, Opinion, Politics

Gonzalez and Leigh Request Release
of Fatal Night Club Shooting Police Reports

In a letter dated July 23 to SFPD Chief George Gascón, Gonzalez and Leigh attorney Whitney Leigh requests the release of the reports to correct “serious and false allegations that have appeared in recent media reports.” At issue is whether the incident began inside or outside Jelly’s.

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Filed under: Arts and Entertainment, Business, Culture, Law, Media, News

What Real Financial Reform Looks Like

Still a work in progress, the Senate bill will be as bogus as the House one, so whatever reconciliation produces will be another promise made, another broken. Business as usual will persist so don’t be fooled – on this measure or any other, including the appalling health care bill that made a dysfunctional system worse, and took a giant step toward ending Medicare, one of the main reasons it was enacted, besides enriching corporate providers.

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Filed under: Business, Economy, Opinion, Politics

Tenderloin Allure on the Rise:
Newsom Announces Historic Preservation Initiative

The initiative, which includes $15 thousand to fund the design, purchase and installation of historic building plaques, is aimed at revitalizing and restoring the Tenderloin’s historic identity. The program funds will be used to create an historic museum as well as neighborhood banners and brochures with guides to historic buildings and restaurants in the area.

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Filed under: Business, Culture, Environment, News, Politics

Sit-Lie Dog and Pony Show

For me, the most powerful moment in over four hours of testimony was one that probably passed almost unnoticed for most people. Representatives from the police and the district attorney’s office had just finished over 100 minutes of testimony during which time they got all the time they wanted to tell the supervisors how they all thought this would be the greatest thing since sliced bread. SFPD Chief George GascÃ³n was a no-show, but Assistant Chief Kevin Cashman was ready with a slick PowerPoint presentation (more on that later), followed by a parade of captains in full regalia whose sole purpose seemed to be to show solidarity across the SFPD, as if this was ever in doubt.

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Filed under: Business, Homelessness, Law, Opinion, Politics

Proposition D: A Catastrophe for San Francisco

Former San Francisco Mayor Art Agnos. Photo by Luke Thomas By Art Agnos, former Mayor of San Francisco October 29, 2009 Proposition D on this Tuesday’s ballot would force a new electronic billboard zone on both sides of mid-Market Street between 5th and 7th streets. The last thing San Francisco needs is a Las Vegas [...]

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Filed under: Business, Environment, Land Use, Opinion, Politics

The Remarkable Model of the Commonwealth Bank of Australia