CA: Crisis of governance now official, but Rx falls way short (CPR- political chicanery?)

Sac Bee ^ | 8/17/04 | Dan Walters

[NormsRevenge]

Californians were in denial for many years about the deterioration of their state and local governments, but no reasonable person can now deny that the state is afflicted with a massive crisis of governance at all levels - one that has become, in fact, official dogma. The opening passages of a voluminous report by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's California Performance Review Commission are devoted to a diagnosis of the state's governmental ills, citing a "chaotic and cumbersome" organizational structure, "outdated and ineffective" management systems, useless but costly programs, outmoded technology and other maladies.

Alas, the too-wordy report itself is a disappointment, not because its recommendations are not, in the main, valid, but because it devotes too much attention to trivia down to the paper-clip level and not enough to the larger relationship of a sclerotic governmental structure to the needs of a rapidly growing, rapidly changing society.

Even if Schwarzenegger, the Legislature and voters were to adopt every one of the report's dozens of specific recommendations, and they had precisely their predicted effects, the state's larger crisis would remain largely untouched.

All right, one might ask, California needs more, but wouldn't the performance review report be a good starting place? No - because it approaches the issue backward, and its fate, either positive or negative, would preclude action on the larger dilemma.

[NormsRevenge]

If it's largely enacted, Schwarzenegger and others involved will pat themselves on the back and declare the job of governmental reform to be done. And if it's a failure, which is more than likely, it will poison the political well for more fundamental, meaningful change.

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poisoning the well, huh?

In much the same way the 'unified' new CA GOP has been poisoned over the years and has made its own old core supporters out to be the 'bad guys'..

[forester]

Real reform that would restore public confidence and encourage political participation would blow up boxes on a far grander scale. It would replace counties with regional governments,

Walter's thinks that installing socialism will restore public confidence?!? Delusion runs deep at the Bee.

[Mister Baredog]

In much the same way the 'unified' new CA GOP has been poisoned over the years

There's a CA GOP?????

You could have fooled me, I thought there was just the 3 or 4 of us left. LOL.