Business & Economics
Blog
Businesses To Bear The Burden Of Another Government Mandate, Part II
Last month we covered the story of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors deciding it was within the scope of their duties to reward pandemic “front-line” workers with other people’s money. As we noted then, Long Beach was considering a similar mandate, which it eventually approved. Yes, some workers ...
Blog
Poor Communications Are Hurting the Governor on Covid
Last week, California should have celebrated an important step to help small business owners and Californians reclaim some sense in of normal. Instead, Governor Gavin Newsom’s announcement to lift stay-at-home restrictions across the state was met with surprise, confusion, and more questions. Late Sunday night on Jan. 24, 2021, Sacramento ...
Blog
Covid-19 Lockdowns Brings Rise in Black Market
Media reports that some California businesses have gone underground during the pandemic lockdown should surprise no one. When politicians ban activities, both those accepted by society and those considered less honorable, they drive them into black markets. The desires and needs of our nature aren’t easy to legislate. Humans are ...
Blog
Apple’s Superbowl “1984” Ad – Who’s Big Brother Now?
It was 38 years ago this weekend when during Super Bowl XVIII, Apple debuted one of the most powerful and provocative ads of all time. “1984” opens with an army of clone-like humans marching into a theater to watch on a giant screen a menacing Big Brother figure glorifying the ...
Blog
Businesses To Bear The Burden Of Another Government Mandate
On the second business day after the state’s higher minimum wage took effect, employers in Los Angeles County had another weight dropped on them. The County Board of Supervisors approved a $5 an hour increase in “front-line” workers’ wages. It applies to “stores located in the unincorporated areas of the ...
Business & Economics
PRI’s Wayne Winegarden in U.S. News and World Report, “What Is Universal Basic Income?”
By Maryalene LaPonsie, Contributor DURING THE 2020 Democratic presidential primary race, candidate Andrew Yang proposed sending $1,000 each month to all U.S. citizens age 18 and older. Dubbed a Freedom Dividend, his idea garnered him devoted supporters although the concept itself isn’t new. . . . . . The concept of ...
Business & Economics
Government-Mandated Hero Pay Fails To Achieve Its Lofty Goals
Offering a temporary pay increase to grocery workers, often referred to as “hero pay”, makes a lot of sense when grocers voluntarily provide this additional compensation to their employees. Grocery workers are taking on additional health risks, suffering additional stresses, and must work in more difficult environments, which all warrant ...
Blog
Californians Reverse the State’s Legislature Providing a Fighting Chance for Innovation
Last month, Californians may very well have begun the process of saving their state, reversing a move by the state legislature. They voted by a large margin via Proposition 22 to preserve the ability of people to pursue flexible working arrangements if they so choose. In September 2019, the California ...
Blog
A New Year, A Promising New Education Model
With the disastrous education landscape of 2020 now in the rear-view mirror, the New Year offers the opportunity to consider new ways of delivering effective learning to America’s children. Portal Schools is one such promising model. Confronted with student-learning catastrophes during the COVID crisis, some states, according to a new ...
Business & Economics
Michael Thom – Taxing Sin
Michael Thom, professor at USC’s Sol Price School of Public Policy, discusses his new book Taxing Sin. Prof. Thom reviews the history of sin taxes, which goes back for hundreds of years, and the traditional sin taxes, such as alcohol and tobacco taxes. He also discusses new 21st century sin ...
Businesses To Bear The Burden Of Another Government Mandate, Part II
Last month we covered the story of the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors deciding it was within the scope of their duties to reward pandemic “front-line” workers with other people’s money. As we noted then, Long Beach was considering a similar mandate, which it eventually approved. Yes, some workers ...
Poor Communications Are Hurting the Governor on Covid
Last week, California should have celebrated an important step to help small business owners and Californians reclaim some sense in of normal. Instead, Governor Gavin Newsom’s announcement to lift stay-at-home restrictions across the state was met with surprise, confusion, and more questions. Late Sunday night on Jan. 24, 2021, Sacramento ...
Covid-19 Lockdowns Brings Rise in Black Market
Media reports that some California businesses have gone underground during the pandemic lockdown should surprise no one. When politicians ban activities, both those accepted by society and those considered less honorable, they drive them into black markets. The desires and needs of our nature aren’t easy to legislate. Humans are ...
Apple’s Superbowl “1984” Ad – Who’s Big Brother Now?
It was 38 years ago this weekend when during Super Bowl XVIII, Apple debuted one of the most powerful and provocative ads of all time. “1984” opens with an army of clone-like humans marching into a theater to watch on a giant screen a menacing Big Brother figure glorifying the ...
Businesses To Bear The Burden Of Another Government Mandate
On the second business day after the state’s higher minimum wage took effect, employers in Los Angeles County had another weight dropped on them. The County Board of Supervisors approved a $5 an hour increase in “front-line” workers’ wages. It applies to “stores located in the unincorporated areas of the ...
PRI’s Wayne Winegarden in U.S. News and World Report, “What Is Universal Basic Income?”
By Maryalene LaPonsie, Contributor DURING THE 2020 Democratic presidential primary race, candidate Andrew Yang proposed sending $1,000 each month to all U.S. citizens age 18 and older. Dubbed a Freedom Dividend, his idea garnered him devoted supporters although the concept itself isn’t new. . . . . . The concept of ...
Government-Mandated Hero Pay Fails To Achieve Its Lofty Goals
Offering a temporary pay increase to grocery workers, often referred to as “hero pay”, makes a lot of sense when grocers voluntarily provide this additional compensation to their employees. Grocery workers are taking on additional health risks, suffering additional stresses, and must work in more difficult environments, which all warrant ...
Californians Reverse the State’s Legislature Providing a Fighting Chance for Innovation
Last month, Californians may very well have begun the process of saving their state, reversing a move by the state legislature. They voted by a large margin via Proposition 22 to preserve the ability of people to pursue flexible working arrangements if they so choose. In September 2019, the California ...
A New Year, A Promising New Education Model
With the disastrous education landscape of 2020 now in the rear-view mirror, the New Year offers the opportunity to consider new ways of delivering effective learning to America’s children. Portal Schools is one such promising model. Confronted with student-learning catastrophes during the COVID crisis, some states, according to a new ...
Michael Thom – Taxing Sin
Michael Thom, professor at USC’s Sol Price School of Public Policy, discusses his new book Taxing Sin. Prof. Thom reviews the history of sin taxes, which goes back for hundreds of years, and the traditional sin taxes, such as alcohol and tobacco taxes. He also discusses new 21st century sin ...
