Free Republic

If the banking industry had a “biggest losers” award, Bank of America Corp. (B of A) would win – and that’s not a good thing. B of A comes by its image problem honestly, and this may be the only way that “honesty” and “Bank of America” can be paired in a sentence without prompting laughter from bystanders. The company’s sins have been widely reported. B of A essentially crafts laws, much to the chagrin of its customers and taxpayers in general, that are protected in court by well-funded trial lawyers and enforced by the politicians they help keep in...

Crooks are breaking into banks and stealing money. But it’s not Baby Face Nelson or Jesse James doing the robberies. Today’s thieves and crooks don’t have cool sounding names. These are nameless, faceless, anonymous cyber thieves. There is a growing epidemic of online financial transaction theft from American banks and financial institutions. Just since 2008, cyber thieves have stolen millions of dollars from small businesses, school districts, churches, public libraries, municipalities, water districts and nonprofits. If your personal bank account is hacked and money is taken, your money is safe from cyber theft. But that’s not the case with commercial...

Proposition 29, a nearly $1 billion tax hike slated for the June ballot, has already stumbled into an ethical gray area. Before voters even cast their first ballot, the San Francisco Chronicle exposed Don Perata, the career politician who wrote the measure, for paying out a long time political crony who he was also simultaneously lobbying [http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/03/28/BA3N1NR09G.DTL]. Yet, read the nearly 4,500 words that comprise Proposition 29, and one will find that the conflicts-of-interest seen on the campaign trail would pale to the insider dealing permitted by this flawed measure. Proposition 29’s sole safeguard against sweetheart deals is the nine...

A friend of mine from California is alarmed at this AB32. He says that Prop 23 is their only short term hope to stave this global warming nonsense off at lest for a while. He sent me this email talking about an LA Times piece... We are getting killed out here, man. This AB 32 thing is the sort of one-hand-washes-another dealing that causes unnecessary cynicism in the minds of voters. Despite past claims that they'd not support it, the California energy commission is suddenly offering millions in state subsidies to the ethanol industry and one of the bailout recipients...

<p>Most everyone supports a clean environment.  But many environmentalists fail to recognize the need for balance.</p> <p>One of the latest examples of environmental extremism is the campaign to punish or even ban the use of plastic bags.   The Philadelphia City Council has turned down a proposal to ban plastic bags, but proponents promise to try again.  A bill pending before the state legislature would outlaw plastic bags statewide.</p>

Moe Lane has a disgusting post. Oh. it isn't disgusting because of what HE wrote, but because of the disgusting graphic that makes fun of tea party goers.

How is it that California’s unemployment rate can be at 11.6% and still soaring yet California’s public employees unions are getting more jobs? How is it that those taxpayers paying the bills are losing jobs by the thousands yet those taking taxpayer dollars are being hired right and left? On August 4th, the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association wondered this same thing noting that “During the 12 months that ended in June, state government added 3,600 jobs in California, a 0.7 percent gain.” "I don't know how this can happen," said David Kline, a spokesman for the California Taxpayers Association. "A...

Californians are soon to begin the process of deciding what Republican they’ll ask the voters to elect to the governor’s office. Apparently Insurance Commish Steve Poizner is claiming his right to that nomination. But what sort of “Republican” is he? Why don’t we let him tell us? "I am a frustrated moderate Republican, said Poizner.” “I don’t think either party in Sacramento does a very good job of representing people like me.” The Stanford Daily October 28, 2004 Poizner says, “I am not beholden to any party." That sure sounds like the making of the next Ahnold-Republican, doesn’t it? Well,...