The Chief – Page 17 – Really Right

Sacramento County is Voting on a Sales Tax in 2020

By Chief

Well folks Measure B was defeated in 2016, by the slimmest of margins—talking fractions of a percent here people! So, we were spared from a county-wide sales tax increase, which actually resulted in a decrease believe it or not. Sales tax measures here at the Sacramento County level require a 2/3 vote of all voters to go into effect, I believe it may be different for just local governments.

Editor’s note: the percentage needed for passage of sales taxes depends on whether funds are dedicated which needs 2/3 voter approval or just going to the general fund which requires a simple majority.
Legislative Analyst’s Office

Politicians hate tax decreases, it’s actually one of few bi-partisan things both parties can agree on. William has explained this better than I ever could but in essence: say there is a fund for a new overpass for 20 million. Money has already been set aside, but the general fund is running low due to lower than expected holiday shopping, so a tax hike is proposed to “pay for road condition improvements.” It passes and the government gets more tax revenue. The voter approved money goes into the transportation fund as promised, but since transportation is now fully funded by dedicated funds, other money that was being spent on transportation, is now freed-up and re-directed into the general fund to pay for pet projects. The net result of the tax hike is often that no additional funding increase—in real dollars—ever happened for transportation; money just got freed-up to be spent for other purposes. This bait and switch is a bi-partisan approach because everyone can find a project in their district to direct monies to, and when it’s completed, the elected can nominate himself for sainthood and give voters a reason to re-elect him/her/it. The City of Sacramento actually just did this saying the funds were needed for additional police/fire but re-directed it saying they had a “surplus.” Cities never have surpluses, trust me, it’s called creative accounting.

But I digress. There is a task force, the Sacramento Transportation Authority, made up of 16 elected members of this county (all 5 supervisors) (5 Sac City Councilmembers) (1 member from Folsom, Citrus Heights, Rancho Cordova, Galt/Isleton) and (2 members from Elk Grove). So, in essence, your tax dollars are funding a committee of your electeds to find ways to tax you even more on a countywide basis. To be clear, I have no problem with the mix of elected officials on a board, as they were elected by us the voters; however, I do have a problem with obvious conflicts of interest. Here is a glaring one: Sacramento’s Regional Transit (RT) is the local bus/light rail service in the county and of these “members” look how many reside on the RT board as well: Kennedy/Serna/Nottoli all Sac County Supervisors, Hume (Elk Grove), Howell (Folsom), Miller (Citrus Heights), Hansen/Harris/Schneier (Sac City).

Nine of 16 members sit on both boards. Thus, the Sacramento Transportation Authority has a vested interest in raising the local sales taxes and directing the money to RT which will be given a large slice of this new tax money. While you cannot do much about the supervisors, I find it hard to believe the other cities couldn’t find other city councilmembers to replace them due to a conflict of interest. RT is slated to receive a very large split of this money, I’ve been told upwards of 30%!!! No wonder Regional Transit took over/bought out Transit in Elk Grove and Citrus Heights last year, now they have a monopoly over the transit monies from this tax!

City and county leaders in Sacramento are in the midst of debating a sales tax measure for the November 2020 ballot that would fund a long list of projects transportation projects, from freeway interchanges and bridges to sidewalks near schools.
Measure A could raise more than $8 billion through a half-cent sales tax over the next 40 years.
The decision to place a measure on the ballot will be made next year by the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors, if the project list is approved in coming weeks by the Sacramento Transportation Authority board. The STA board is made up of council members from cities around the county as well as members of the county board of supervisors.
Here’s what your community will get if you vote for Sacramento’s transportation sales tax

There is a whole list of projects this additional money will go towards, and while some of it seems like worthwhile ventures; widening bridges, replacing old ones, repaving roads, it’s also chock full of waste. Expanding bike lanes, creating one way streets downtown, making bus only lanes, making Interstate 5 add carpool lanes (this is occurring already by the way), walking trails, and creating a four lane mini-connector highway from Elk Grove to Folsom! It includes a slew of wasteful transit spending, everything from newer hybrid electric buses to expanding light rail to Elk Grove in the south county and the airport in the north county. Basically, the money is divvied up proportionally and the projects are already in the planning stages. Of course, it’s California so combating climate change even worked its way into the conversation.

I call these projects “wasteful” because we as a county have not maintained these assets since they were constructed. I call it the “plug the holes and pretend all is well plan.” I drive a couple roads to get from my house to my job, the roads are horrifically maintained. When a pothole appears, the City tosses some asphalt in it, hammers it down with a shovel and moves on; only for said pothole to reappear a couple days later. When a re-seal or re-pavement should be done, we put it off in the name of saving money. Same goes for our bridges and overpasses, we ignore them entirely. I know this for a fact as a former Cal-Trans engineer told me no one even inspects them anymore, and if they do its more of a drive-by affair. This is not called a needed tax, it’s called fixing a bureaucratic time bomb waiting to blow up. Also what irks me is these planned “traffic easements” are total bunk, that mini-highway on Grant Line is only being proposed and funded because Folsom is building 10,000 new houses not far from there. Ditto with the new highway on ramp at Whitlock Road in Elk Grove. We are adding a casino and about another 8,000 homes there. I have heard rumors of a paid toll road on the 80, I thought toll roads paid for themselves? This wild looking bridge we are replacing at “I” Street seems necessary, but how come West Sacramento isn’t sharing in the cost? The street enhancements for autonomous cars seems very forward thinking but shouldn’t we wait until this becomes a bigger thing in the Bay Area…like you know, where all this tech seems to originate from?

I’m down on the transit funding for a couple reasons. First, I already fund transit whilst filling my vehicle with gasoline. The truth is that the Legislature is diverting money from gas, diesel, and other transportation taxes for use in other areas. Instead of fighting this diversion of funds, local government is trying to establish their own revenue stream to replace money diverted from them at the state level. Second, transit is required to recover so much of their operating costs at the fare box, and it seems like every year they are cutting stops, consolidating routes and raising fares, the business model seems very un-user friendly. Third, public transit just seems to constantly miss the mark. There is rampant fare-evasion, crime (including; violent, sexual, and petty), and in general people do not feel safe.

For example, look at the newly completed light rail extension to CRC junior college in my hometown. If I wanted to ride RT’s light rail to the Kings game, I must drive my car 20 minutes to the RT station, leave my car in a questionable area, and ride the train through quite a few downright rough parts of town on my way to the game and back. RT services are predicated on the expectation of leaving my car at a lot where everyone knows my vehicle will be unattended for many hours. RT just expects me to put my trust in the good citizens lurking in and around their parking lot.

Since I have lived, here everyone has talked about RT going to the airport. (I remember Joe Serna talking about light rail going to the airport back in the 1980’s when I was at Sac State—editor.) At one point they started work on the green line…but due to low ridership it was halted, now they want to use this tax hike to revive the idea yet again. Furthermore, they want to expand RT further south into Elk Grove. That seems all good and well, but land will be at a premium as much of that Bruceville Road route is built up already. This idea just seems like a boatload of waste. In addition, this light rail expansion…. completely skipped over our shiny new upscale mall built out at Delta Shores…just saying.

The task could be tough: Sacramento County transportation officials would have to persuade voters to agree to what would be a third ongoing transportation tax. The county already collects a half-cent sales tax for transportation projects, approved by voters in 2004 and set to last 30 years. Meanwhile, California state officials raised the gas tax in 2018 to provide more money for state and local transportation projects.
A 40-year sales tax to tackle climate change is likely headed to Sacramento’s November ballot

I predict a very close ballot box result next November, but don’t be shocked to see ballots “found” after counting ends.

Chief

McClatchy News Corp Waives the White Flag

By Chief

McClatchy Corporation, parent of our local rag the Sacramento Bee, is teetering on the brink of insolvency, so I figured I would explain to their employees and writers how this occurred. Basically, McClatchy is headquartered downtown and is, in a sense, a newspaper conglomerate. It grew over the years from a small family owned (McClatchy family) paper into a large publicly traded company.

Over the years, they bought a few other daily papers and in 2006 they purchased a company far larger than them; Knight-Ridder–owners of about 20 daily papers; thus, forming a company with 30 daily newspapers. McClatchy is now the second largest newspaper chain in the US. However, the deal was ill fated; so much so that many analysts called it akin to a dolphin swallowing a whale. We entered a large recession soon after the purchase and by 2008 the company had lost 98% of its value. McClatchy’s stock was trading for less than a dollar! The executives did some financial engineering, stock splits, private investment, and sold some assets (the headquarters building) and stemmed a little of the bleeding. The company had layoffs and buyouts offered to employees every year, they even tried to grow digital (currently $129.99 yearly), but it’s been a slow climb. Finally, these past couple weeks, the company has finally realized the fate lies in a Chapter 11 bankruptcy restructuring.

Suddenly, it seems, everyone is talking about McClatchy’s future. A week ago the Sacramento-based company, the nation’s second-largest newspaper chain, said it’s facing a potential cash shortage. The news touched off speculation about the publisher’s future, including a potential sale of the company.

And, for the first time since its finances began deteriorating more than a decade ago, the company is publicly contemplating the possibility of filing for Chapter 11 reorganization.
Sacramento sheriff attacks McClatchy, as company’s pension and debt burdens pile up

McClatchy stock for Oct 23 – Nov 22, 2019 Current share value 36 cents

How bad did things get at McClatchy? They haven’t made a pension payment since 2009, and to remain compliant they must pay in 124 million by next year…more cash than the company has on hand. So, the answer is to foist this payment on the taxpayers!

… (McClatchy) has approached the federal Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp. about taking over its pension plan — a move that, if successful, would alleviate the need to contribute $124 million into the plan next year.

McClatchy said it approached the government about the pension plan after the Internal Revenue Service rejected McClatchy’s request for a three-year waiver on its required pension contributions. Without the waiver, McClatchy is due to pay $124 million into the plan next year, a sum that “greatly exceeds the company’s anticipated cash balances and cash flow,” McClatchy said in a prepared statement.

McClatchy also needs to work out a deal with their largest creditor Chatham Asset Management. McClatchy currently owes 708 million in debt and they have no means by which to even cover the interest anymore. Essentially, they need Trump impeached and Obama re-instated in the White House and to hope for an automaker-esque government bailout. Because as two Standard & Poor’s (S&P) analysts on Wall Street say, McClatchy will run out of cash by September next year. If you are wondering, the company will likely file Chapter 11 early next year after the Pension Guarantee Corporation declines the request to take over their pensions. To further their arrogance, McClatchy approached the Tribune, a larger company, about a merger to, in a sense, continue to delay the inevitable. Just adding more debt and more cash flow to service the debt into the future…sound familiar?

… a deal with Tribune would make a lot of sense for McClatchy because it could spread its debt over “a much larger cash flow. The (combined) company would be in much better shape than McClatchy is.”

Those talks fell apart.

This company is toast and they did it all to themselves.

Allow me to explain. They bought Knight-Ridder, which was a mistake. The family (McClatchy) owns 80% of the voting rights so what they want/say goes and no one can object. Currently, papers are dying and real journalism is going down with it. To say not a soul foresaw this should be criminal. To be fair Warren Buffett was buying papers and everyone likes to mimic the Oracle of Omaha. The debt pile was manageable for a while, but circulations decreased every year, the gig economy took away the need for classified ads, the wanted ads were replaced by Craigslist and the like. Worse yet, the papers decided to go on a war path criticizing any politician on the right, and openly rooting for any left-wing loon…hence the rise of Obama. This caused a huge readership decline, yet they doubled down on their arrogance. So, they helped push Obama over the finish line to a second term while denigrating Mitt Romney and his supporters. This caused another decline in readership. The rise of the smartphone and smart technology was never dealt with, people stopped needing a daily reader, as most updates on a third-party news app would make the paper pointless. None of this mattered. McClatchy continued doubling down on an ever-shrinking audience, Trump won, and the paper changed its tune, saying now they would hold all politicians accountable…. that’s laughable and everyone saw through it. Recently having pushed false narratives such as; Russian collusion, Ukraine quid pro quo, and a slew of other garbage not fit for print.

Now a closer examination of the leftist rag in McClatchy’s own backyard the Sacramento Bee. This paper hasn’t been worth anything in years, several scandals involving Democrat elected officials in our capital (literally blocks from the paper) went unreported (by the way they have an entire Capital Bureau mind you). Hard news became unchecked opinion pushed as fact. They no longer have a beat writer for the NBA team (again they play just down the street) and all the columns are now Associated Press as opposed to local journalists. They attack our elected sheriff yet ignore our Legislature and District Attorney when they decline to prosecute criminals or release them early . They criticize a super minority of Republicans in the Legislature, yet they have ignored the rampant malfeasance of Democrats in the Legislature and elected office such as our Insurance Commissioner’s scandalous pay-to-play policy. They employ Marcos Breton and allow local sewer rat, Bruce Maimon, to spew their stink daily; yet told Dan Walters, their last good reporter, to take a hike. Rumor has it, Walters does a periodic column, but he is happily retired, and I am happy for him! The local section disappeared; the food critic changes over more frequently than The Troll stalks Hope Hicks. Memo to the Bee, there is an app called Yelp; look it up. Your food critic is dead weight, and no one cares. Your sports section stinks, very little local coverage, not many people care about high school football. Recently the Bee announced that the Saturday paper will cease and be replaced with an expanded Friday and Sunday editions.

To support these shifts, starting on Feb. 22, we will no longer produce a printed newspaper on Saturday and will launch with a Weekend Edition that includes expanded newspapers on Fridays and Sundays. Many of the features that you enjoy on Saturday such as comics, puzzles, TV listings, real estate, home and garden and local sports coverage will now appear in expanded editions in print on Friday and Sunday. On Saturdays, we will continue to publish breaking local news to our website and social media platforms and we invite you to visit our website or eEdition, which replicates the experience of a printed newspaper online.
The Sacramento Bee is replacing Saturday print edition with expanded Friday, Sunday papers

The Friday edition no one reads and the Sunday version you finish after your 8th cup of coffee all while ignoring the Saturday folks who read the comics or the puzzles, I’m sure the circulation won’t drop farther. When you get a papercut, chopping off entire limbs is not how I learned how to take care of myself.

Folks I feel compelled to make this point as well, McClatchy has been cooking the books on their circulation numbers for years. Papers like the Bee have two numbers that they use in order to sell advertising; namely, weekly circulation and the Sunday paper. Did you know that as a loss leader, the Sunday paper is given out to subscribers of other newspapers not owner by McClatchy? For the better part of a decade, here in Elk Grove, subscribers to the Laguna and Elk Grove Citizen are given the Sunday Bee for free? Its not just the paper that’s free but McClatchy pays for deliver to these homes too. As mentioned in the delivery article, AB-5 affects newspaper carriers too.

We also have an additional challenge in California. With the recent passage of AB 5, delivery costs for the printed newspaper will increase dramatically by 2021.

Fear not, leader of the slugs who operate and work for this corporation, Gary Wortel, had this to say after Sheriff Scott Jones lit into McClatchy, “What Sheriff Jones and the Deputy Sheriff’s Association say about our watchdog journalism is wrong. The Bee has been a leading independent local news organization and credible news source since 1857 and will continue to serve this community for decades to come.” Ah yes, Gary, “independent” is not a word I would use to describe your paper. The only chance you have of being around for a decade is if bankruptcy buys you more time.

Concerning the 20,000 people currently drawing a pension from McClatchy, Eliane Lintecum, the CFO and another leader of the slug brigade is banking on a Federal bailout of the pension plan. She had this to say about the company’s pension plans “we don’t believe their … pension benefits will be adversely affected” … if they get the bailout. Folks, would such a hope make you feel more secure in your retirement? What slugs!!!

Lastly chew on this trash which is conveniently listed atop each article of the Bee online:

Local news is more important than ever. Reporters are out in our communities each day, bringing you the latest news and holding leaders accountable. Subscribe — and encourage others to support local journalists with a digital subscription to The Sacramento Bee by using this link.

Thank you. And #ReadLocal

Hey McClatchy, you have hardly any reporters, you write very little about the local community, you hold no one accountable, and what the hell is the hash tag read local about? I guess it makes sense when you see a photo of McClatchy CEO Craig Forman, who may need a thicker pair of glasses to see through the mess he created.

The company is toast. The readers have either assumed room temperature, can no longer eat solid foods, live in assisted living, or don’t know which pro-noun to refer to themselves as. You were too late to digital, advertising is dropping, and the end is in sight. The best hope you have is that many still major in state sponsored journalism at the local university and don’t know any better. The last part being key, you control a group of slugs, they keep doing as told unaware they are trudging through a field of salt, watching their friends lose jobs and hoping for a turnaround…. No chance!

Hence the reason we here at Really Right refer to these journalists as “those with an IQ of a piece of meat” …as you leave them out too long, they spoil.

Chief

Quid Pro Joe Needs to Drop Out

By Chief

As predicted in this space, Joe Biden is toast. His poll numbers drop every week, his debate performances have been panned; there is no more saving grace. He has nothing left to prove and now national Democrats are sending his campaign a warning he may be embarrassingly defeated in Iowa! You hate to see it. Here is why Quid Pro Joe became a national laughing stock.

First Joe has always tried to maintain a “moderate, I’m one of you image.” He has worked hard to cultivate this blue collar political persona. He is from Scranton. He rode Amtrak. He never allowed Washington to change him. To his credit he carried and acted like a common man. Biden has tried to be the guy one could have a drink with after work and talk local issues. He parlayed this narrative into a 36 year career in D.C. as a Senator. He became known as a foreign policy wonk and when chosen to be Obama’s VP, the people said “OK. Joe is a moderate. He won’t let Obama get to far off course.” In effect, Biden gave Obama the gravitas which the junior Senator lacked in his bid for the White House in 2008. In many ways this image worked just fine for Biden and in truth, if he ran last go round, he may have gotten the nomination (assuming Obama endorses him, over Hillary).

His problems started not long after he left the White House. He tried to mold himself after the cool uncle of yours who let you have an extra soda or extra candy over mom and dad’s objections.

The problem is Father Time is undefeated and Joe has a long history of elected politics. Joe was elected Senator in 1974. This blogger and several new generations of voters were born in 1985 or later! To us, Joe is seen as a try hard; trying to be all things to all people, which is fine, but his record is his own worst enemy! He supported the war in Iraq, then opposed it, then supported it again. He went from being tough on crime and drugs to essentially decriminalizing and legalizing most crimes. His role as Obama’s VP also clouds his record further. It’s hard to claim policy differences when you served in the White House and ran for re-election on the same ticket as Obama. Biden in many ways is a liquid whose beliefs and policies take the shape of which ever mold he is poured into. The bottom line is while he may be trying to impress the younger voters, the older ones know Joe!

Joe Biden announced his presidential run and he figured the field would clear out for him…incorrect. He isn’t the Clintons who are still well liked (mostly due to fear of reaching room temperature) or the Obamas who will be loved forever. In fact, more Democrats jumped into the race because Joe has a penchant for gaffes and has a long political history that isn’t very favorable to him. Bernie is scared of no one, Liz Warren feels she will be the first female president, Sparatacus still thinks Kathleen Blasey Ford is telling the truth about Kavanaugh, Buttiegieg thinks he will be the first gay president, Tom Steyer has $$$ to burn and thinks he can influence the race. No one feels a need to drop out. Worse yet for Biden, those in the Democrat presidential field all view Trump as a failed president who is easily beatable.

Truth be told, Biden should still be the frontrunner, but he cannot get out of his own way! You see the primary is not one filled with moderate voters, so Joe had a small piece of the electoral pie to start with, He tried to tack left, but; Sanders, Warren, Buttigieg, Harris, Booker and others have that wing accounted for. Then he tried to outflank everyone and get Obama to endorse him…didn’t happen, I am sure he told the Clintons to stay away, and I guess that worked. Truth is, moderate Joe always could get about 28% in a national poll, and if he stayed free of scandal while the others hammered each other he could have won…then the death knell came.

His son, Hunter, was discovered to be on the board of directors of a Ukrainian Gas company, paying him $50,000 a month. Month….not a year….he makes in one month what the average “middle class” worker makes in a year. The news media tried to provide him cover saying that a Clinton, Romney, and Kerry were on the board as well….then Joe became gaffe prone Joe again. At the most recent debate he addressed the issue saying “neither his son, nor himself did anything wrong” and essentially pulled an Obama in saying, “Move along! Nothing to see here.”

However there was something to see. Joe showed his true colors in a sense; he thumbed his nose at the public, specifically the working types who he tried to emulate. Hunter Biden knows nothing about how a utility operates, try getting on to any company’s board of directors with similar knowledge…it doesn’t happen. This is the real reason his numbers have dropped so bad. Biden likely finishes fourth in Iowa. He showed his whole act was phony from the get go. In the end, he is just another politician trying to advance his and his children’s wealth, not doing what is best for the country.

Unfortunately for Joe, this is a gaffe he can’t come back from.

The Chief

Insider Alert: PG&E could be sold to Buffett!

By: The Chief

A rare Sunday alert coming from me, but I have inside information regarding a phone call placed by CA Governor Gavin Newsom. My sources tell me in the wake of the utility’s continued “zombie apocalypse,” shutting the power off for days with little or no warning, has irked our supreme leader so much he placed a call to Warren Buffett late Saturday night. No official word yet if this is the same “red line” phone Ronald Reagan installed to communicate directly with the Russians, alas here is what I have been told. Newsom has told Buffett he is fed up with PG&E’s lack of competence and morals, to the point that he wants the entire company sold and a new leadership team in place. Buffett has more than enough cash as his investment vehicle “Berkshire Hathaway” to make the purchase. My sources, (notice that’s plural) tell me Newsom wants Berkshire to buy the utility and be taken private. This will cut out as William likes to say the 90-day calendar and other reporting requirements with both Wall St, and the SEC.

Here in lies the problem, as corrupt and incompetent as PG&E is, the governor is acting illegally. He is not a shareholder, or an executive of the troubled utility. The decision to be made about a sale is up to the executives, and then voted on by the shareholders not the Governor. Why is he reaching out before another company has the chance? Is this because the city of San Francisco, where he used to infest as mayor, was rebuffed at their attempt to buy the company last week?

It’s not out of the question as Berkshire owns utilities in Iowa, Illinois, South Dakota, Nevada, and in the United Kingdom. There is no doubt he could be a qualified buyer, but why is the governor contacting him? Were prices discussed? What about concessions from the California Public Utility Commission? Since the governor appoints that board. I am sure a ton of SEC violations are occurring right now. If you are a shareholder…well, you’re getting wiped out, bondholder? Same. Union? You’ll be just fine.

Stay tuned but prepare to see movement on PG&E stock Monday, as this story will leak.

Chief

Local City Goes on Shopping Spree

By : The Chief

The editorial staff was having lunch at the salsa bar this past Monday and we discussed the goings on in a city which the Blog Father calls his adopted hometown. We discussed a myriad of different topics, arguments ensued, battle lines were drawn, red lines were crossed, and parties had to be separated. However, there was one thing we could all agree on; the City of Elk Grove, California in the Year of our Lord 2019, has finally decided to emerge from its status as a bedroom community and joined the ranks of becoming a real city. After 20 years, we were finally tired of living in the shadows of Sacramento, and with their announcement of a Soccer team coming in, we had to one up them. Boy did we ever, showing nary a regard for the taxpayers or future generations in the process.

Just to bring you up to speed, our city has a renegade history. Upon separating from Sacramento County and incorporating, we formed our own bus service (since rolled back into Sac Regional Transit), formed our own police department (now on its 5th chief of police now), subbed out the trash services because the county was overcharging us (we now pay more for services than the county customers do), built our own dog pound (again county was overcharging us), etc. But a series of moves this past several weeks have us even more flummoxed.

Our city bought a warehouse for $1.7 million, and even paid an additional $200K in relocation costs to expand the police department…the question here is why? They tell us crime is decreasing, why the need for expansion? Also why buy? Leasing can be a far better option, and if the property falls into disrepair, you look for a new building, alas our city council knows better than we do.

Not to be outdone, we also are now the proud owners of a $70k ribbon tree for the holiday season. That’s funny because we have a Dickens Faire where we light a tree in old Elk Grove. I guess this makes sense because old town has a stigma of being racist (all our council members let this go unchallenged) and I guess we believers get an old Christmas Tree while the non-believers get a $70k ribbon tree. We all know how this story ends, the tree gets vandalized or broken over the next couple years and we have to buy another one or face a certain lawsuit.

But it gets even better. This past week, our city decided to purchase a 15-acre parcel on the corner of Big Horn Blvd and Bruceville Road in what I would call a rapidly deteriorating part of town. (If you doubt me, drop in at WinCo Foods and check out the clientele.) This property will be used for low income housing, which I am sure is funded by grant money from the state and comes with a threat of build the units or face a fine.

City buys N.E. corner lot for $2.9 million

The biggest problem we, on the editorial staff, have is the process and the price. Local Psycho Lynn Wheat tried to halt the process for further discussion when she was overruled by the entire council, who by the way “allegedly” has two Republicans on it, who claim to be fiscally responsible, allegedly. So, we are going to pay $2.9 million for this plot of land…at the height of the real estate market…for vacant land. However, even more troubling is the purchase price. The current owner bought this plot for $1 million in October of 2017. Check my stats if you want, I’ve attached links. These reeks of a government corruption issue. How can the price of vacant land more than double in 2 years? And not a single one of our council members or our beloved mayor have an issue? Not throwing any accusations, but one member, who doubles as a PG&E Vice President has a spouse who is the best-known realtor in the Sacramento County area. Surely, she would have objected right? My house appreciated in value by, call it $100K in 5 years, but for a blank piece of property to more than double in value I think an investigation should be in order.

Add these to our aquatic center opening earlier this summer to major fanfare only for the City to increase entrance fees after deeming then inadequate after 1 weekend. Speaking of inadequate, the same center is up to its armpits in litigation because of defective workmanship. Cost effectiveness and fiscal savvy are clearly not on display.

I guess you can say it pays to be an elected official.

Welcome to the big time Elk Grove, thankfully as William pointed out, our city is “green” according to the auditor’s website meaning our financial health is fine, who knows where this spending puts us. Soon we’ll catch up to everyone else.

The Chief

The Democrats Fell Right into Trumps 2020 Trap

Congrats Democrats, Elizabeth Warren is the leader in the club house. William eulogized Joe Biden’s failed campaign earlier, and thus it seems inevitable at this point that Warren will be their nominee. I talked to some Democrat friends of mine from time to time and they are overjoyed, as they feel any of their nominees could easily best Trump. To be honest, you have a decent stable of candidates, all have different pluses, but have major question marks that accompany them.

Actually, after some reflection, it looks like 2012 all over again. As a Conservative, I thought for sure that any candidate we had would destroy Barack Obama…and I am man enough to admit I misread the election 100%. I thought for sure Mitt Romney could do it. He was a seasoned businessman and a former governor to boot, talk about a perfect candidate! Then election night came and well, Romney got demolished. I miss read that election as badly as the Democrats are misreading this one. Allow me to explain.

Conventional wisdom says Trump wants to face Biden or Sanders. Biden has a ton of baggage, especially now with his son being wrapped up in this Ukrainian pay to play scheme, or Sanders for being an out of whack socialist whose health is failing. (We here at Reallyright.com wish him a speedy recovery). However conventional wisdom is not always reliable. Trump and many Republicans want to face Liz Warren, for the very same reasons Trump beat Hillary. Warren, like Clinton, has a ton of baggage, from lying about her nationality…this will become a very big deal, to her odd story about being fired from her job when she was pregnant. (Keep in mind no one has corroborated this story, which is odd based on the environment we live in.) She is openly hostile toward Wall St. and very hostile toward CEO types, and the top 1%; keep in mind that quite a few of the wealthy vote overwhelmingly Democrat! She is radical on the environment, wants a very high salary floor, and rent control.

Additionally, she will be running against the “Broad Squad” who are pretty much out to set fire to any Democrat politician or nominee who doesn’t agree with everything they say. The Broad Squad are the power brokers in today’s Democrat Party. Lest you doubt me, just look at the way they have Nancy Pelosi so scared she is afraid to speak publicly.

This leads me to Warren’s biggest problem, she is a committed leftist, who during the primary must kowtow to the far-left quasi socialist types. Then upon being nominated, she must try to track back toward the center to reach out to the independent types…problem is the Broad Squad is not going to stand for it! Ditto for Sanders supporters. They will do what they did in 2016; not vote or choose to vote for Trump! Sanders supporters are analogous to the Ron Paul supporters on the right a few years ago.

This brings me back to my original point. The Democrats don’t realize it yet, but they are the unsuspecting fly who is caught in the Venus fly trap. They didn’t want “Sleepy Joe” or old, crazy Bernie, so they settled on Liz Warren. Much like Republicans in 2008, they are caught in the trap. They think the trap will eventually release them, but their fate is settled. They, like the fly, will be slowly digested until come election night, they realize their dreams are over. This, folks, will be fun to watch, as Trump is salivating at the chance to take on Pocahontas in 2020, just trust us on this one. William has spoken until blue in the face in this space saying it’s CA vs the rest of the country in 2020, he will be proven correct.

The Chief

Why Race Relations Will Never Be Repaired

There will be a lot to unpack in this article, but I want to highlight a few key issues as to why race relations will never get better here. I ask you set aside any preconceived notions and put aside your bias and take this in before jumping to a conclusion. It actually is painful to write this because race relations actually got a lot better up until Barack Obama took office in 2008. It can actually be argued he set us back several generations.

1 Police Bias:

This kind of cuts both ways, the Rodney King incident, as well as the war on drugs has put scores of minorities (black, Hispanic, Asian etc.) in jail for crimes some could argue are petty in today’s world. The Rodney King incident caused the black community as a whole to no longer trust police; and as a result they mostly do not cooperate, and in some cases even shield perpetrators from justice.

As a result police look skeptically on young black men, and in some neighborhoods police even refuse to patrol out of fear for their own safety. Bottom line, the bias cuts both ways. When JJ Clavo was murdered in Del Paso Heights, the community did not help assist in finding the murderer, and the same holds true when a young/old white man in Folsom or Granite Bay goes on a crime spree and is not shot…there will always be a bias. But neither community is helping the matter

2 False Narratives:

Think Sharpton, Jackson Jr., Marcos Breton, and Benjamin Crump (the prominent civil rights lawyer) these guys decide to take a narrative they think fits the crime and run with it, and worse yet some in the media are more than happy to run with it. Examples include; hands up, don’t shoot! He was reaching for his wallet…not a gun. You can add Barack Obama too this as well saying, “If I had a son he would look like Trayvon Martin!” This did nothing but fan the flames and like anything else in this country, the partisans took sides and a screaming match ensued. Members of Congress even took to the dais and spoke about how the deceased or the police were 100% in the right and if you viewed it any other way you were a racist, or you hated the police!

3 Creating a False Prophet:

In Florida, Trayvon Martin is viewed as a martyr. He attacked a night watchmen and ultimately paid with his own life. Regardless of what human piece of waste George Zimmerman (the watchman) did, we should not be honoring this kid. Michael Brown in Ferguson is getting a statue in his name and he is being compared to Martin Luther King Jr. Are you kidding me! This kid was hocked up on drugs and tried to steal a police officer’s service weapon to kill him. This guy is no civil rights icon and frankly he got what he deserved. Eric Garner in New York, he of “I can’t breathe fame.” He was a known criminal with a very long rap sheet to boot, including major drug usage. I will add, I think the police went too far, but at the same time when you have a record and a history, police treat you far different than someone with no record…check the stats. Stephon Clark in Sacramento? He had every drug in his body and quite a sum of alcohol, and now they are talking about naming a library after him? Huh?

This George Zimmerman did not found Men’s Warehouse

4 Hypocrisy:

In the cases of Martin, Brown, and Clark; those who defended them wanted to make sure their criminal histories, drug/alcohol abuse, and personal life info were not allowed anywhere near the trial, as to not cloud the judge/juries minds. However in the case of Amber Guyger (white police officer who entered wrong apartment and shot a black man), the prosecutor wanted all her texts/love life/history, everything you could think of included because…well somehow this was different. I guess justice for all, unless we wish to tip the scales!

5 The Amber Guyger Trial:

From the first minute, they made this into a racial crime, white police officer killing an unarmed black man, and in a sense it was true. Black Lives Matter did their usual, essentially portraying all white people as police sympathizers. Guyger, in the eyes of this young, white, male, made a major mistake that night. While I believe her testimony was a large steaming pile of crap, I feel bad for her in certain ways. First, her life is over. She, like the police officers in the other shootings, will be remembered as such for the remainder of her life. God may forgive but people do not.

Second, those clapping, whooping & hollering, and rejoicing after the guilty verdict should be ashamed. It is a courtroom not a local tavern or bar. Just remember, while Guyger may have been found guilty, her family was in attendance. Imagine the officers acting as such after being cleared of wrong doing??? Then BLM shouted and took to the streets after the sentencing phase the following day…there you go again, when you don’t get your way act out! While I will admit a sentence of 10 years, likely only being 5 years served seems a little light, just remember that the victim’s brother said he didn’t want the officer to go to jail. Also, a known police officer in prison has a target on their back for the duration of the prison stay. Lastly, this is Texas, where you are also sentenced by the jury, as opposed to a judge…most people do not want to send a peer away for a long time, especially someone with no criminal record.

6 The Guyger Trial Sentencing Phase:

I have mixed feelings about a lot of this as many of you probably do too. The optics of the bailiff stroking Guyger’s hair and comforting her do not look great; as anyone who wasn’t law enforcement would be getting handcuffed at this point. I have zero issue with the victim’s brother hugging Guyger, and the two of them showing raw emotion, actually this could have been a healing moment.

I also didn’t care for the judge (Mrs. Kemp) hugging the defendant either. In this case, I do sympathize with the victim’s family. They lost a loved one and what happens? A police officer is convicted of murder, gets a light sentence, and a hug from the judge?

Judge hugging Guyger after guilty verdict

I don’t think many defendants have ever gotten so lucky. I have no issue with the judge giving Guyger a copy of the Holy Bible, actually in most of these cases, I believe the defendant should read the good book in hopes they can turn their life around and be a change agent. Fear not, a group has already filed a complaint about this judge for her actions regarding the Bible. Glad to see the atheists and agnostics decide to weigh in, and now the judge will face a commission investigating her actions. Were this in California, the judge would get a harsher sentence than the defendant.

This leads me to my conclusion.

Race in this country will continue to divide us, even long after all of us, the living are dead. To be very clear, America has a very rough history in regards to slavery and rights of others, but it is the year of our Lord 2019 and we are moving in the wrong direction. It will take leadership from all sides and making adults act like they have an IQ above that of a piece of lunch meat. I would like to see a citizen review commission created in place of the current internal affairs model that the police currently use. My reasoning is simple, “policing your own” pardon the pun will always be looked at through jaundiced eyes. Next we need so called “journalists” to quite the sensationalism. You are stoking the flames of hate and causing an unnecessary uprising. This goes for political types as well. So called leaders of the black community should focus on getting their people out of poverty and more importantly focus on the future. However none of this will happen. We no longer believe in the rule of law, instead we only believe in selective information that we deem to be factual. You have your “facts” and I have mine. You can look at any of the above examples and fallacies exist in every one….stoked by a media and partisans looking to push an agenda. Rather than trying to punish a white police officer, maybe take a page from the Jean family playbook, forgive and allow someone to move on? Except that is not in our DNA anymore. Everything now is “gotcha” and punishing one to atone for the sins of the whole. The charlatans such as Breton need to find real work and quit stirring up the natives. Also we need to be very wary of the prophet seeking profits (Sharpton, Jackson and Crump.) Race relations will never get better in this country until we try to move forward, and as I tell people, we must get into a car with a gas pedal, no brake pads, and no mirrors, the past is the past. Leave it there. We can never apologize enough, and frankly reparations are not a means to an end, just a temporary band aid.

Sadly Botham Jean was killed by mistake, and he will never come back to this earth, and Amber Guyger will go away to prison and will never be the same, as she will always be connected to this tragedy. Additionally how sad that we as a country used Botham Jean, Amber Guyger, and the judge as puppets in a sick, twisted game to litigate race relations.

Sound off in the comments!

Chief

State of our Healthcare System: A Firsthand Encounter

I was involved in a car wreck earlier this year. The following is my story and commentary about the goings on. It should serve as an eye opener as far as your opinion of our healthcare system. Due to litigation, no names of doctors/clinics or nurses will be used.

I went to a local urgent care clinic to get my back examined as I had been in extreme pain from a car accident (not my fault). You check in at the counter and are handed a clip board. Also, they request your insurance card, so I produced and surrendered mine to the lady up front.

I started filling out the paperwork and as I was completing the stack of paperwork, the counter lady came out and declared they needed that back. I paused and stated that I was not one filling it out yet and she shot back “your healthcare plan doesn’t cover this.” Adding “unless you have a credit card, we cannot see you here.” She is correct, I knew this going into this visit. I have what is called a garbage policy…sorry…the politically correct term is an Obamacare bronze plan.

If you rewind to pre-Obamacare, I had the same plan: 5k deductible, 20% co-pay, and it ran $75 a month. Keep in mind I buy my own plan as an employer sponsored one is not available to me as an independent contractor. Fast forward to today. The same plan costs me $450 a month. Keep in mind this; I am very healthy and active swimming a mile every morning, lifting weights in afternoon, I do not drink anymore and have never touched any tobacco/drug product. But I digress, back to my story.

Same plan: Before Obamacare $75, after Obamacare $450

The visit costs $100 and I had a valid credit card. William and I have both spoken about the dangers of credit card debt in this space, of which I have none. They swiped the card, and I was good to go. Keep in mind if my card didn’t work or I did not own one, they would have referred me to a very, very expensive doctor also known as the emergency room. Imagine that, going to the ER for a backache, which would have resulted in a chiropractor or physical therapy referral anyways. Keep in mind, that visit could very well have cost several thousand, and well I guess I could pay, or not pay.

I saw the doctor. She prescribed some pain pills and said see you in a couple days. A few days later, lather, rinse, repeat, additional pain killers, and come back in a couple days. On my third and final visit, they finally took x-rays, I was then referred to a physical therapist. Take note, it was $100 each visit, plus $115 for x-rays. Which they were happy to collect.

In conclusion, I have no hard feelings toward this clinic, they are for profit, and obviously cater to a crowd of people like myself who have healthcare plans that are not ideal but are required to comply with law. They, unlike traditional doctors, are under no obligation to see you. I harbor no ill will regarding their initial actions toward me, since, I firmly believe in no pay, no play. As far as I am concerned, I would endorse these clinics as the first stop for all Obamacare users. We need to keep our ER for what they were made for; emergencies, not as the only option for poor/illegal/horrible healthcare plans. That being said, it is disturbing they were willing to schlep me over there to pay quite a large sum of money, and take valuable time and a room at the ER due to a sore back.

I wish to offer a solution. The urgent care needs to be the first visit for those of us who cannot see a primary care physician. This holds especially true for those on zero cost Obamacare. We need to allow the ER to be used for real emergencies, my sore back is not an emergency. The Urgent Care should serve as a “gate keeper” and be a referral center, this will free up doctors elsewhere and lower the costs for everyone.

It may not be the perfect answer, but we need something, visiting the ER for a sore back is a horrible policy—both medically and financially.

Chief

$15 Minimum Wage has already Failed

About a month ago William sent me an article about the high turnover in minimum wage jobs, specifically the service sector. The numbers in it were staggering. Per this report, over 100% employee turnover is the norm at most restaurant chains! You read that correct. On average, the entire crew and then some turned over throughout the course of a year. Panera Bread, viewed by the left as a great establishment to work, saw just over 100%.

The case of Panera Bread shows just how deep the employee turnover issue is for restaurant companies. Panera loses close to 100% of workers every year, and by fast-food industry standards that’s considered good.

The official Bureau of Labor Statistics turnover rate for the restaurant sector was 81.9% for the 2015–2017 period, but industry estimates are much higher, reaching 150%, and the problem has gotten worse in recent years. “It’s definitely been going up,” said Rosemary Batt, chair of HR Studies and International & Comparative Labor at the Cornell School of Industrial Labor Relations.
Panera is losing nearly 100% of its workers every year as fast-food turnover crisis worsens

McDonalds and Burger King’s turnover is north of 130%!!!!! The Bureau of Labor Statistics puts this number around 150% annually. That is absolutely mind boggling.

Keep in mind we have raised the minimum wage to a now “living wage” so that these people could be happy and live long prosperous lives working at these entry level starter jobs. Why are they leaving? Well the answer is complicated so I asked a friend of mine who runs a theatre for their thoughts. Basically there is lots of competition at the lowest levels. There is a need to hire 4 people to actually fill one position. Of the 4, 1 will not show up, the 2nd one will be tired of it after a couple hours, the 3rd will finish the day and never come back, and you just hope the 4th will stick around a little while. People in these jobs are fickle. If the GAP is paying $0.05 an hour more…they are taking that job. They may be treated like dirt, but that comes with the territory for a minimum wage gig. This causes a nightmare for my friend since the theatre operates on a tight budget and even a $.50 an hour increase could put them up against a wall.

Against the backdrop of struggling to hire and retain people for entry level jobs comes AOC plus 3, known here as “The Broad Squad.” These babes, voicing socialist and economic enlightenment, are now promising up to 100k a year to everyone. Surely this promise of universal income will fix the issue!

In addition to providing “economic security for those unable or unwilling to work,” the plan also promises to create “millions of good, high-wage jobs” for willing Americans.
AOC Green New Deal Promises ‘Economic Security for Those Unable or Unwilling to Work’

Never mind the accompanying price increases and inflation that go along with it! Have no fear, we will legislate our way out of this one; our country has always found a way. Under their tutelage, America may one day be as economically enlightened as Venezuela.

In reality, it must stink working at jobs like these; you are treated like trash, you work among some of the least desirable people, and worse yet, you have a manager that keeps telling you work harder. You literally see your job being automated with each passing day, be it mobile ordering, a touch kiosk, or an employee free kitchen.

However, in reality you have no one to blame but yourselves. Politicians goaded you into believing a $15 an hour wage would magically lift you from poverty, but instead it promises to doom you to a life of drudgery and servitude. Your job is being automated, and eventually eliminated. A high minimum wage means a higher required skill set, you won’t get 90 days to learn on the job, the franchisee or manager won’t stand for it. The 90 day calendar types are innovating constantly, looking to cut any expense…. news flash labor is the highest non-fixed cost. Now you are being told aim for higher wages and employer required health care, don’t fall for the bait, it will hasten your demise.

In closing, our country no longer views the college degree as a positive, it’s now required. In reality, a college degree nowadays means less than a high school diplomat did in the 1950’s. If you don’t have one, find a trade to work in, if you have a degree and are having a hard time finding work, get an MBA, but be forewarned this is a fake economy we are currently in….the crash will be rough. Oh, and you can’t file BK to get out of paying back your student loans.

You have been warned.

Chief

Do the Millennial’s Care about the Debt?

By Chief

William wrote a great article about the debt the other day and it got me thinking, which is quite dangerous by the way. The debt is absolutely insurmountable and as a millennial, it’s my future, so I asked quite a few friends of mine, for their thoughts. The answers will likely not surprise any reader of this site.

To put it bluntly, they do not care. Most of them work for the state/city/county and view their jobs and pensions are guaranteed. That should scare everyone, regardless of your thoughts on pension guarantees. The general approach by my generation to debt is one of apathy and compassion.

I’ll start with the latter first; it’s borne out of feelings and wanting to throw money at a problem in hope good will come from it. For example, healthcare for literally everyone and continued support of government run programs such as: food stamps, and other social justice programs into infinity. We want to give the homeless guy/girl/it a place to live, and 3 square meals a day along with spending money in hopes he will get a job…it doesn’t happen. However, we will keep trying because, we’ll just throw more money at it, and it eventually works itself out right?

Now to the apathy part; debt is already a large part of our lives, mostly via student loans. We just view all debt as, well it’s there and as long as I make the payment, I’m good till next month. We see ourselves in massive debt and just assume we will eventually take care of it…. or we petition the government to get rid of it. Much like the 65,000 people who have applied for their loans to be forgiven only to be rightfully denied by the government. We know it’s there and it’s a part of our lives, but we don’t take it seriously.

However, the ones most at fault are the older generations (55-75). They are responsible not just for running up the tab on generations not yet born, but for installing in us a belief that debt is not a big deal. They removed any personal finance/budgeting classes from our school system, and never really gave us an allowance or anything while we grew up. They also, claiming it was for our own good, outlawed minors from virtually every type of work they did when they were growing-up.

For my generation, our budgeting consisted of, hey dad I need $100 for jeans, and you gave it to us. We never had a checkbook just plastic, which again allows you to run up debt at an alarming pace under the guise of buy now, pay later. You told us college was an investment in our future, so we went to college and ran up six figure student loan debt. We needed a car and instead of getting an economical used vehicle, we got a sporty type car fresh off the lot, and a loan to boot. Credit card, auto loans, and student loans created a toxic cocktail that is just starting to show its affects.

Just to be clear here, I’m not placing the blame of the debt on anyone, just the attitude of the millennials. We do not view a paycheck as wages for services rendered, we view it as money to spend. We don’t view credit cards as for emergencies only, we view it as a means of satisfying ourselves with short term happiness. We do not see this as money being spent, it’s just the swipe of a card, then the bill comes. But that’s ok, because we only have to pay a very small portion of the bill, then we keep spending. Our debts? Well almost every liberal politician, and probably some so called Republican ones, talk about wiping out our debts…therefore we vote for them. Debt to us is just a way of life, and we see a paycheck and annual mandated cost of living raises as a way by which to pay for it.

In closing, I will add this, I am a 33-year-old millennial who has no student loan debt, never had any, and I have no credit card debt. I own a house so there is debt there; however, I see it as at least having equity as opposed to paying a landlord in exchange for nothing. I am very lucky but none of my friends choose to live their lives like me; instead, they have mountains of student loan debt, credit card debts, and expensive car payments to boot. They make minimum payments, and all have nicer stuff than me. Their attitude is the government will bail them out at some point, or just wipe away the debt.

Poof, your debt is gone
Lather, rinse, repeat

Owe money to the IRS just call a number…poof gone. Too much credit card debt…. personal bankruptcy…poof gone. Mortgage on a house you don’t like anymore…. walk away. Best of all regarding the last 2, (credit cards and mortgages), in several years you can do it all over again. However, my generation, like many others, is in for a real wakeup call soon because those rules do not apply to our nation’s debt. Your pension is not likely to be guaranteed–at least not at the levels they predict. Your government job may be cut, and Social Security for those of us in the private sector, is likely a figment of our imagination or soon will be.

Feel more secure yet?

Chief