So Goes California, So Goes the Nation?

I have been a California resident for the past 23 years.  During that time, I have seen the best of times and worst of times.  Prior to this economic disaster, the only serious recession in those 23 years was in 1991-1992.  At that time, myself and many others in similar situations faced economic turmoil.  However, nothing comes close to what is happening now in what used to be the greatest State in the union. 

According to the most recent reports, the unemployment rate in California has reached 12.2%.  The rate in Los Angeles County is at 12.7%.  Some cities within the county such as Compton and Commerce are over 20%.  These are all far worse than the national rate of 9.8%. 

What makes these numbers even scarier is that they have not hit rock bottom according to economic estimates at both the state and federal level.  In fact, the State Government estimate of a maximum unemployment rate of 12.8% seems like it is going to be topped shortly, probably by early winter.  Is it possible that California’s unemployment rate will top the number in 1940 of 14.7% which is the highest recorded on record?  (more…)

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Tags: boxer, California, Feinstein, foreclosures, Obama
Posted Oct 24th 2009 at 5:53 pm in Featured Story, Politics | 250726172 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/fdemartini/2009/10/24/so-goes-california-so-goes-the-nation/So+Goes+California%2C+So+Goes+the+Nation%3F2009-10-25+00%3A53%3A09Frank+DeMartini

Interview: Jerrol LeBaron of InkTip, Part Three

In Parts One and Two of this interview, Mr Lebaron described the many legal, moral and ethical problems plaguing the California legislative process. In Part Three, Mr. LeBaron describes how We The People can begin to bring the long-hallowed and honorable traditions of enlightened American lawmaking back to the State House in Sacramento.

Q: How could such a law as the Honor In Office Act be enforced?

JERROL: There are some legislators who will perjure themselves day in and day out. There is no hope for them, unless someone reports the violation. However, we are dealing with partisanship. That means that 45-55% are Democrats and 45-55% are Republicans, typically. The Honor In Office Act plays very nicely into that. Newly elected lawmakers might be far more conscious of the new rules. There are other lawmakers in office who have lost their way, because they have had no way to protect themselves from the less scrupulous. (more…)

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Tags: ballot referendum, California, government reform, Honor In Office, Honor In Office Act
Posted Aug 23rd 2009 at 6:57 am in Classic Hollywood, Featured Story, Politics | 2055786 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jtsimpson/2009/08/23/interview-jerrol-lebaron-of-inktip-and-honor-in-office-part-three/Interview%3A+Jerrol+LeBaron+of+InkTip%2C+Part+Three2009-08-23+13%3A57%3A35John+T.+Simpson

Interview: Jerrol LeBaron of InkTip, Office, Part Two

In Part One of this interview, Mr. LeBaron provided background on his own classic American and Hollywood success stories, and why he started the Honor In Office campaign. Today, Mr. LeBaron tells us what Honor In Office is all about, and why real reform is so badly needed in Sacramento.

Q: Can you describe for me, specifically, what Honor In Office is all about?

JERROL: If you look at the header at the Honor In Office homepage you will see the phrase, “There was a time in this country when our leaders’ signatures meant more.” Be it the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, or bills passed by Congress to conduct the People’s business, our Founding Fathers and early members of Congress drafted, read in full, debated at length, and either passed or rejected whatever legislation was before the Congress. (more…)

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Tags: California, government reform, Honor In Office, Honor In Office Act, InkTip
Posted Aug 22nd 2009 at 2:49 pm in Classic Hollywood, Law, Politics | 2065463 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jtsimpson/2009/08/22/interview-jerrol-lebaron-of-inktip-and-honor-in-office-part-two/Interview%3A+Jerrol+LeBaron+of+InkTip%2C+Office%2C+Part+Two2009-08-22+21%3A49%3A30John+T.+Simpson

Interview: Jerrol LeBaron of InkTip, Part One

THE BACKSTORY

From all appearances, Jerrol LeBaron’s life is both a classic American and Hollywood success story. Having started out in the construction industry in and around Los Angeles, Mr. LeBaron became restless and purchased a small jewelry business, which he owned and ran for seven years. In 2000, after dabbling in screenwriting and discovering just how difficult it was to market scripts in Hollywood, Mr. LeBaron sold his jewelry business and started the online Writers’ Script Network, now known today as Inktip.com.

Today, InkTip is the most successful venture of its kind in Hollywood, matching spec screenplays with prospective studios, producers, and other film industry insiders looking for new material. An average of twenty films a year are made from scripts discovered on InkTip. Mr. LeBaron’s bi-monthly magazine, containing the loglines of hundreds of screenplays in the InkTip database, is distributed industry-wide. Having optioned a script off of InkTip myself, I can personally testify to its success. (more…)

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Tags: ballot referendum, California, government reform, Honor In Office, Honor In Office Act
Posted Aug 21st 2009 at 11:58 am in Classic Hollywood | 20642217 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jtsimpson/2009/08/21/interview-jerrol-lebaron-of-inktip-and-honor-in-office-part-1/Interview%3A+Jerrol+LeBaron+of+InkTip%2C+Part+One2009-08-21+18%3A58%3A10John+T.+Simpson

Throwing Down With the Governator

Before all of you Californians get upset, be sure to ask yourself… Is there anything being said in this video that’s untrue? Besides, Arnold is the one telling it like it is, so you’re beef is with the big Austrian… Not with me.

“If California goes, so does the rest of the country.” – Dear God, I hope not. (more…)

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Tags: Arnold Schwarzenegger, California, deficit spending, I.O.U.s
Posted Aug 6th 2009 at 5:04 pm in Political Humor, Politics, Video | 20134634 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/scrowder/2009/08/06/throwing-down-with-arnold-schwarzenegger/Throwing+Down+With+the+Governator2009-08-07+00%3A04%3A15Steven+Crowder

Another Reason to Like Chris Isaak

Red-blooded males aren’t supposed to stock their CD shelves – or iPod Shuffles – with songs by handsome crooner Chris Isaak. But I’ve got plenty of Isaak’s music spread throughout my eclectic collection – being a fan of both Dwight Yoakam and the Monkees qualifies the “eclectic” label.

It isn’t just Isaak’s retro music, a heady crush of rockabilly and no-nonsense pop that endears him to me. It’s his attitude. He’s hopelessly self deprecating, a singer with talented pipes and a movie marquee mug who never gets lost in his own hype.

He’s also smart enough to know his limitations. Just listen to him dodge a baited question from a Washington Post interviewer over the weekend. (more…)

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Tags: California, celebrity, chris isaak, Politics, Washington Post
Posted Jul 30th 2009 at 8:58 am in Celebrity News, Politics | 19225888 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/cftoto/2009/07/30/one-more-reason-to-like-chris-isaak/Another+Reason+to+Like+Chris+Isaak2009-07-30+15%3A58%3A09Christian+Toto

‘NewsBusted’ 7/24/09 — Fake News from the Right

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Tags: 2010 Census, Al Gore, bailout money, California, Democrats
Posted Jul 24th 2009 at 8:02 pm in Political Humor, Video | 19121810 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/newsbusters/2009/07/24/%e2%80%98newsbusted%e2%80%99-72409-%e2%80%94-fake-news-from-the-right/%E2%80%98NewsBusted%E2%80%99+7%2F24%2F09+%E2%80%94+Fake+News+from+the+Right2009-07-25+03%3A02%3A52NewsBusters

Fans Flock to Mourn California, 1849-2009

LOS ANGELES – Millions of fans from around the globe gathered along Sunset Boulevard to pay final respects to California today, as a slow moving funeral procession transported the eccentric superstar state’s remains to its final resting place in a Winchell’s Donuts dumpster in Van Nuys. The self-proclaimed ‘King of Pop Culture’ died last week at 160, in what coroners ruled an accidental case of financial autoerotic asphyxiation. The death sent shock waves across the world and sparked an outpouring of grief by rabid fans.

“I don’t care what the tabloids and the Wall Street Journal say,” said a weeping Illinois. “I still love you, Cali!”

The 640-mile long funeral parade route was lined with flowers, candles, teddy bears, and IOUs from millions of mourners and debtors who made the somber journey to watch the passing of the state that had once ruled the box office and industrial charts. Among them were current chart-toppers who cited California as a key influence.

“If it wasn’t for California, I wouldn’t be where I am today,” said Arizona of Westside 3, the popular Sunbelt trio who recently benefited from the late state’s generous gift of fleeing taxpayers and businesses. As a tribute to their mentor, Arizona vowed the group would start spending money “like crack-addled hip hop stars.” (more…)

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Tags: 'King of Pop Culture', Arnold Schwarzenegger, autoerotic asphyxiation, California, deficit
Posted Jul 8th 2009 at 3:08 pm in Featured Story, Political Humor | 179458131 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/dburge/2009/07/08/fans-flock-to-mourn-california-1849-2009/Fans+Flock+to+Mourn+California%2C+1849-2009+2009-07-08+22%3A08%3A19Iowahawk

California Govt. Targets Child Actors

With California swimming in $24 billion of red ink, many of the peoples’ elected representatives are seeking to raise scores of fees and taxes to close the gap.  So, after voting to raise the highest income tax in America even higher, the highest state sales tax rate in America even higher, almost doubling the car tax, and cutting the child tax credit by $200, Sacramento Democrats now want to charge children $100 a year to work in Hollywood.  

A 10-year-old California law makes parents of children desiring to work in the entertainment field gather information from one part of government to present to another part of government to obtain a permission slip to work.  Now, this paper shuffle adds little to nothing of value – no added safety for children or oversight of employers.  But, rather than terminate this self-perpetuating paperwork drill, Democrats what to charge for it – taxing minors who want to work before they even work an hour. 

This Kafkaesque scenario is almost reality in the form of Assembly Bill 402 (AB 402) in Sacramento.  As summarized by the Assembly Republican Caucus bill analysis, AB 402, “Requires a fee of $50 to be submitted at the time a minor applies for an Entertainment Work Permit in order to offset the costs of administering the Entertainment Work Permit program.”  In other words, AB 402 is the ultimate in self-sustaining bureaucracy.  You need government permission to work and the government will only give you permission if you pay for it. 

The stated purpose of the bill, curiously supported by the Screen Actors Guild, is to increase protections for children working in the entertainment industry.  The main intended protection is to ensure compliance with the Coogan Act, a 1999 law designed to set aside a portion of a minor’s earnings until age 18.   (more…)

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Tags: Assembly, California, child actors, Coogan, Democrats
Posted May 31st 2009 at 12:03 pm in Entertainment, Politics | 1482662 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/cdevore/2009/05/31/california-govt-targets-child-actors/California+Govt.+Targets+Child+Actors+2009-05-31+19%3A03%3A37Chuck+DeVore

Craig T. Nelson’s Ready for a Tax Revolt

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Tags: California, Craig T. Nelson, Glenn Beck, Gov. Schwarzenegger, taxes
Posted May 28th 2009 at 6:21 pm in Entertainment, Politics | 146358One Commenthttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/bighollywood/2009/05/28/craig-t-nelsons-ready-for-a-tax-revolt/Craig+T.+Nelson%27s+Ready+for+a+Tax+Revolt2009-05-29+01%3A21%3A18Big+Hollywood

A Harvey Milk Holiday?

Inspired in part by the Academy Award-winning Milk, California’s senate has passed a bill making slain San Francisco city supervisor Harvey Milk’s May 22 birthday a Golden State holiday. But the celluloid hero portrayed by Sean Penn bears little resemblance to the genuine article, who lashed out at political opponents as “Nazis,” purportedly staged a hate crime to engender support for a lagging campaign, and promoted Jim Jones to President Carter “as a man of the highest character” just a few months before the Peoples Temple leader orchestrated more than 900 murder-suicides. My City Journal article shows how Sean Penn’s Harvey Milk is as real as Toby Maguire’s Spider-Man. Only people so ignorant as to get their history from Hollywood would place the formerly obscure San Francisco city supervisor alongside the likes of Jesus Christ, George Washington, Christopher Columbus, and Martin Luther King in celebrating a holiday in his honor.

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Tags: California, Harvey Milk, San Francisco, sean penn
Posted May 22nd 2009 at 11:04 am in Politics | 1408303 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/dflynn/2009/05/22/a-harvey-milk-holiday/A+Harvey+Milk+Holiday%3F+2009-05-22+18%3A04%3A38Daniel+J.+Flynn

So Goes California, So Goes the Nation

California voters just put four rounds in the tax propositions yesterday. As they should have.

Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger had this to say:

“I respect the will of the people who are frustrated with the dysfunction in our budget system,” Mr Schwarzenegger said in a statement from Washington, conceding defeat. “In order to prevent a fiscal disaster, Democrats and Republicans must collaborate and work together to address this shortfall.”

California has become a preview of where America is going under Obama. An insane political class has decided that you can spend your way out of debt. But California can’t borrow money anymore. They destroyed their credit, their bonds are poorly rated and they can’t print money like the Obama administration has. (more…)

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Tags: California, Deficits, federal budget, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, Obama
Posted May 20th 2009 at 12:38 pm in Politics | 1388268 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jhudnall/2009/05/20/start-terminating-arnold/So+Goes+California%2C+So+Goes+the+Nation2009-05-20+19%3A38%3A05James+Hudnall

Planet Dumbassnotion

The City of Riverside, California today announced a new plan, in light of the high volume of foreclosed homes, that it was going to start buying foreclosed home, fix them up, and resell them to ‘the needy’.  Isn’t that nice?  The city government in that lovely southern California town is going to do something to ‘make a difference’.  Using tax payers dollars, they are going to enter the house-flipping industry in the midst of possibly the most disastrous housing market on record.

Uh…say what??

Okay.  Here again I find myself having awakened on the parallel-universe planet of Dumbassnotion – a delightful world where reason and logic are turned upside-down and everything you know is completely wrong.  (more…)

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Tags: Barney Frank, California, Chris Dodd, Fannie Mae, Freddie Mac
Posted Apr 27th 2009 at 3:41 pm in Politics | 1181943 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/ggraham/2009/04/27/planet-dumbassnotion/Planet+Dumbassnotion2009-04-27+22%3A41%3A02Gary+Graham

Empty Suit, California Style

To the delight of California’s illegal aliens, socialists, unqualified minority job-seekers and militant bicyclers who blow up Hummer dealerships in the name of suffering polar bears, smarmy San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom announced on Tuesday he is running for governor in 2010.  Newsom chose San Francisco-based Twitter─the de facto, mandatory communication tool for hip celebs and gossipy high school girls─to officially reveal his plans.  Indeed, inexperienced, over-packaged, provincial narcissists with radical agendas, cocaine issues, elitism fetishes, an undeserved sense of entitlement and contempt for the American way of life aren’t just for the White House anymore.  California has found change it can believe in. 

At a time when reckless, lightweight, non-achieving ideologues are all the rage in American politics; when nary a meaningful accomplishment is needed to move up the political ladder; when substance takes a backseat to teleprompters and pedestrian, car salesman charms; Newsom is trying to parlay his overly-bleached smile, expensive suits and camera-ready prop wife (not pictured below) into the most visible governorship in the United States.   (more…)

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Tags: 2010, Antonio Villaraigosa, Barack Obama, California, Diane Feinstein
Posted Apr 27th 2009 at 10:27 am in Featured Story, News, Politics | 114682One Commenthttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/rhunter/2009/04/27/empty-suit%e2%80%a6-california-style/Empty+Suit%2C+California+Style2009-04-27+17%3A27%3A50Riley+Hunter

California To Ban TV: But Not For Good Reason (like there’s nothing decent to watch)

Why is it that many government agency names are oxymoronic?  How much new water has the California Department of Water Resources delivered in the past couple of decades?   How much energy has the federal Department of Energy or the California Energy Commission produced or encouraged?  

It should come as no surprise that in 2009, an era when the L.A. Basin’s air quality bureaucracy, the SCAQMD, wants to ban dark cars because they need more air conditioning in the summer, that the California Energy Commissariate is drafting an order to outlaw TVs.  (Perhaps if our TVs had one state-approved channel they would relent.) 

Why is the California Energy Commission (CEC), a Gov. Jerry Brown creation, wanting to ban television sets?  Well, it seems that a honking 48-inch plasma screen, that bright symbol of the bygone days of conspicuous consumption and purveyor of drooling vacuity, uses too much electricity, and electricity production makes too much greenhouse gas emissions (at least in America, where half of our electricity comes from coal – in France, a plasma screen would emit nary a CO2 molecule as the TVs there are nuclear powered).  (more…)

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Tags: ban plasma televisions, California, California Energy Commission, CEC, Global warming
Posted Mar 28th 2009 at 7:02 am in Celebrity News, Featured Story, Politics | 906587 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/cdevore/2009/03/28/california-to-ban-tv-but-not-for-good-reason-like-theres-nothing-decent-to-watch/California+To+Ban+TV%3A+But+Not+For+Good+Reason+%28like+there%27s+nothing+decent+to+watch%292009-03-28+14%3A02%3A20Chuck+DeVore

I’m a Middle-age Lobotomy: Liberalism and My Hollywood Road to Ruin

This is the story of how I got kicked out of Hollywood…and how I hope to kick myself back in again. 

From the late 70’s to early 90s I made my living as a Hollywood screenwriter. I’m best known as co-writer of cult film Rock ‘n’ Roll High School, which features the seminal punk band The Ramones. 

My writing partner and I worked every day on the set of the film, and we spent a lot of time with the band, including a 22-hour marathon Ramones concert at the Roxy on the Sunset Strip. As a souvenir of that day, I still carry around a 40% hearing loss and white-noise tinnitus in both ears. 

Over the years, I’ve been approached by many Ramones fans wanting to know what it was like to work with band members Joey, Johnny, Dee Dee and Ringo. Of the four, the most interesting, approachable and, yes, intelligent glue-sniffer was Johnny Ramone, and my partner and I would often spend time talking with him about his film collection and our shared affection for Buster Keaton movies.  (more…)

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Tags: Big Green Initiative, California, Conservative Blacklist, jane fonda, Joey Ramone
Posted Mar 26th 2009 at 5:05 am in Entertainment, Featured Story, Politics | 889542 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/rdvonch/2009/03/26/im-a-middle-age-lobotomy-liberalism-and-my-hollywood-road-to-ruin-by-russ-dvonch/I%27m+a+Middle-age+Lobotomy%3A+Liberalism+and+My+Hollywood+Road+to+Ruin2009-03-26+12%3A05%3A31Russ+Dvonch

“NewsBusted” 3/20/09 — Fake News from the Right

In this episode, “NewsBusted” covers: Pakistan, California, Gitmo, Nancy Pelosi, Global Warming, New York Times, Jimmy Kimmel, Sarah Silverman, Barbie, E! Network, Scarlett Johansson, and Gary Busey.

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Tags: Barbie, California, E! Network, Gary Busey, gitmo
Posted Mar 20th 2009 at 12:44 pm in Political Humor, Video | 8546218 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/epeterkofsky/2009/03/20/%e2%80%9cnewsbusted%e2%80%9d-32009-%e2%80%94-fake-news-from-the-right/%E2%80%9CNewsBusted%E2%80%9D+3%2F20%2F09+%E2%80%94+Fake+News+from+the+Right2009-03-20+19%3A44%3A34Eric+Peterkofsky

Fool’s Gold

There’s a new gold rush on but you don’t have to head to the hills of California to be part of it.  All you have to do is tune in to talk radio and jot down an “800″ number where a few of the big syndicated shows pimp for the gold merchants.  The ads for these companies are all over radio and television.

I have no problem with a host or show taking advertising from any product.  If Rush wants to run a few Obama ads, no problem. If Dr. Savage can sell ads to the ACLU, I say he should give his sales staff a bonus. I’m a capitalist all for making a nickel who believes in the old saying, caveat emptor – buyer beware.  Yet, it’s different when the host reads the commercial live.  This signifies a level of approval beyond “we let this guy buy ads on our show.” (more…)

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Tags: ACLU, Alaska, California, CNBC, DNC
Posted Feb 26th 2009 at 5:43 pm in Media Criticism, Politics | 6586258 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjena/2009/02/26/gold-pimps/Fool%27s+Gold2009-02-27+01%3A43%3A24Jeffrey+Jena

Burying California

With apologies to John Lennon, everybody in California sing along:

Imagine there is no Government,
It’s easy if you try,
Just essential services
No bureaucratic lies
Imagine all the people keeping more of their dough,
You may say I’m a dreamer…

(more…)

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Tags: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Californa Budget, California, Jobs, taxes
Posted Feb 20th 2009 at 4:27 pm in Political Humor | 5515451 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/jjena/2009/02/20/california-or-bust/Burying+California2009-02-21+00%3A27%3A30Jeffrey+Jena

The True Face of Hollywood

This week’s Washington Times column:

Sometimes I just don’t get the Republican Party.

Back in 2004, a smart, good-looking moderate Republican Hispanic ran for Congress. At the time Victor Elizalde was just under 40 years old and working as an executive at a big-time Hollywood studio. As an ethnic minority, a family man and a rare open conservative in an industry dominated by liberals, Mr. Elizalde represented hope and change for the Republican Party.

Yet because he was running for Henry A. Waxman´s safe seat, Mr. Elizalde got no support from the Republican Party . In fact, no one in the party´s leadership took notice of him. As a result Mr. Waxman trounced Mr. Elizalde with 71 percent of the vote. (more…)

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Tags: australia, Bush administration, California, Canada, Center For Entertainment Industry Data and Research
Posted Feb 1st 2009 at 6:39 pm in Entertainment, Featured Story, Politics | 3840673 Commentshttp://bighollywood.breitbart.com/abreitbart/2009/02/01/the-true-face-of-hollywood/The+True+Face+of+Hollywood2009-02-02+02%3A39%3A25Andrew+Breitbart