Articles Posted in the Opinion Category

  • The Real State of the Union: Capitalism Sucks

    Of course, Forbes goes on to make the preposterous claim that the Real Problem with the economy is government intervention and over-regulation. Sure, Steve. But the fact that this bellwether publication of the corporate world is forced to elucidate an indictment of capitalism and acknowledge that it is having serious problems in the court of public opinion, should give pause to the high priests of the temple.

  • Mayor Ammiano: Really? Seriously?

    Mayor Ammiano: Really? Seriously?

    See, Hennessey was the fallback to avoid a Mayor Agnos, who the Newsom team had concluded had reached six votes by Sunday. And Agnos was not wearing their jersey. In fact, he wasn’t even in the stands for them. Nope, he represented a game change they couldn’t accept because it would jeopardize everything from key commission appointments like Planning to policies like community policing to public power to local hire laws to sanctuary city.

  • Undressing Obama’s State of the Union address

    There are concerns. The deficit will require sacrifices and cuts (but not the ending of the wars); the overblown threat of global terror is still alive and well, and our educational system needs a jump-start to catch up to other countries. It’s not as if we haven’t heard all of that before.

  • This is currently a hot topic

    False Advertising: Making a Federal Case out of Heinz Chili Sauce

    I know that both Heinz and the federal government will have long rambling explanations for this anomaly, but we need to cut to the chase: Either Heinz broke the law and should be held financially accountable, or the law allows Heinz to deceive and the law should be changed.

  • China’s Hu Arrives to Look Around

    The right to petition is guaranteed by the Chinese Constitution — yes, China has a Constitution, but it is unevenly enforced like our own. Falun Gong first tried, but failed, to bring its human rights claims to a Petition office like the bureaucratic centers shown in the film as do a small army of individuals who every day, bravely — sometimes fanatically — insist it is their human right to be heard.

  • Why Did Baby Doc Duvalier Return to Haiti?

    In 1991, five years after Baby Doc fled, Haitians elected a priest, Jean-Bertrand Aristide, who resisted the IMF’s austerity dictates. Within months, the military, with a wink and a nod from George HW Bush, deposed him. In 2004, after Aristide was re-elected President, he was kidnapped and removed again with a wink and nod, this time, from George W. Bush. He is now in exile in South Africa. As a simple matter of justice, we owe Haiti billions, not just the $1.5 billion promised by President Obama. We helped break it, therefore we must fix it.

  • Time for Progressives to Move On

    Time for Progressives to Move On

    There’s an election in November for a permanent replacement for Lee and Gascón. It’s not too late to be thinking of progressives who can win those seats. A cast of thousands may well run for mayor (many names have already been tossed into the hat). Probably not as many will enter the race for DA.