California
Blog
A California Homeless Christmas Carol
My brother’s phone was dead — really dead. But his exacting and obsessive nature wouldn’t permit him move on. A few days earlier, he had lost his phone along with several credit cards. Technology being what it is, his wife’s phone was able to pinpoint exactly where it was — ...
Rowena Itchon
December 23, 2022
Blog
CA’s Housing Crisis is So Bad That Families Are Now Taking in Their Child’s Teacher
“Do you have a room for rent?” asks the Rooms For Rent For MUSD Educators online form. “Please fill out this form and our MUSD educators who are seeking a room to rent will be notified. The rest is up to you.” “The continued loss of staff is what led ...
Kerry Jackson
December 21, 2022
Business & Economics
2022 All-Stars Year-End Awards
What you’ve all been waiting – PRI All-Stars Year-End Awards. The cast of PRI characters include Lance Izumi, senior director of education; Kerry Jackson, senior fellow on California Reform, Ben Smithwick, vice president of development, Tim Anaya, vice president of marketing and communications, and your host Rowena Itchon.
Pacific Research Institute
December 19, 2022
Animals
California’s Wiley Urban Coyotes
Last week, a home security camera in a suburban Woodland Hills neighborhood captured shocking footage of a coyote attacking a toddler girl. Having just returned home from preschool pick-up, the child’s father had turned his back for just a moment as he unloaded the SUV. When he heard his child ...
McKenzie Richards
December 19, 2022
Blog
Gaslighting California’s Crime Victims
“Gaslighting” is Merriam Webster’s Word of the Year for 2022. It is defined by Webster’s as the: “Psychological manipulation of a person usually over an extended period of time that causes the victim to question the validity of their own thoughts, perception of reality, or memories and typically leads to ...
Steve Smith
December 16, 2022
Blog
State Budget Update: ‘Nothing to See Here’
Back in 2003, Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf became a notorious figure in global media for his press statements at the start of the War in Iraq. Declaring that “Baghdad is safe” and “(American) infidels are committing suicide by the hundreds in the gates of Baghdad” as US tanks raced through the ...
Tim Anaya
December 13, 2022
athletes
Dottie Pepper – Letters to a Future Champion
Our special guest this week is golfing legend Dottie Pepper. Her book, Letters to A Future Champion – My Time with Mr. Pulver, caught Tim’s eye and he made it his book recommendation for last year’s Holiday Book guide. We chat with Dottie about her book, which is a tribute ...
Pacific Research Institute
December 12, 2022
California
Rush to get out of California is accelerating
California hasn’t changed much in quite a few years. Voters put the dominant party back in power in November’s elections while businesses continue to flee the state. What’s different, though, is the pace of the commercial outflow has picked up. Departures have been ongoing for more than a decade. Businesses ...
Kerry Jackson
December 8, 2022
Blog
U.S. land ‘shortage’ is result of artificial growth limits
Some of the social-media responses to a Wall Street Journal article in September headlined, “The U.S. is Running Short of Land for Housing,” were heated. They proved – for anyone who has yet to realize it – that Tweeters and Facebook users might not always read posted articles particularly carefully ...
Steven Greenhut
December 7, 2022
Blog
The Night Westwood Died and Crime in Cities
On January 31, 1988, 27 year-old Karen Toshima was enjoying an evening with her boyfriend in Westwood Village. She had just gotten a promotion at work and like thousands of other Angelenos did almost every weekend decided that Westwood was the place to be. After dinner, Karen and ...
Steve Smith
December 6, 2022
A California Homeless Christmas Carol
My brother’s phone was dead — really dead. But his exacting and obsessive nature wouldn’t permit him move on. A few days earlier, he had lost his phone along with several credit cards. Technology being what it is, his wife’s phone was able to pinpoint exactly where it was — ...
CA’s Housing Crisis is So Bad That Families Are Now Taking in Their Child’s Teacher
“Do you have a room for rent?” asks the Rooms For Rent For MUSD Educators online form. “Please fill out this form and our MUSD educators who are seeking a room to rent will be notified. The rest is up to you.” “The continued loss of staff is what led ...
2022 All-Stars Year-End Awards
What you’ve all been waiting – PRI All-Stars Year-End Awards. The cast of PRI characters include Lance Izumi, senior director of education; Kerry Jackson, senior fellow on California Reform, Ben Smithwick, vice president of development, Tim Anaya, vice president of marketing and communications, and your host Rowena Itchon.
California’s Wiley Urban Coyotes
Last week, a home security camera in a suburban Woodland Hills neighborhood captured shocking footage of a coyote attacking a toddler girl. Having just returned home from preschool pick-up, the child’s father had turned his back for just a moment as he unloaded the SUV. When he heard his child ...
Gaslighting California’s Crime Victims
“Gaslighting” is Merriam Webster’s Word of the Year for 2022. It is defined by Webster’s as the: “Psychological manipulation of a person usually over an extended period of time that causes the victim to question the validity of their own thoughts, perception of reality, or memories and typically leads to ...
State Budget Update: ‘Nothing to See Here’
Back in 2003, Mohammed Saeed al-Sahaf became a notorious figure in global media for his press statements at the start of the War in Iraq. Declaring that “Baghdad is safe” and “(American) infidels are committing suicide by the hundreds in the gates of Baghdad” as US tanks raced through the ...
Dottie Pepper – Letters to a Future Champion
Our special guest this week is golfing legend Dottie Pepper. Her book, Letters to A Future Champion – My Time with Mr. Pulver, caught Tim’s eye and he made it his book recommendation for last year’s Holiday Book guide. We chat with Dottie about her book, which is a tribute ...
Rush to get out of California is accelerating
California hasn’t changed much in quite a few years. Voters put the dominant party back in power in November’s elections while businesses continue to flee the state. What’s different, though, is the pace of the commercial outflow has picked up. Departures have been ongoing for more than a decade. Businesses ...
U.S. land ‘shortage’ is result of artificial growth limits
Some of the social-media responses to a Wall Street Journal article in September headlined, “The U.S. is Running Short of Land for Housing,” were heated. They proved – for anyone who has yet to realize it – that Tweeters and Facebook users might not always read posted articles particularly carefully ...
The Night Westwood Died and Crime in Cities
On January 31, 1988, 27 year-old Karen Toshima was enjoying an evening with her boyfriend in Westwood Village. She had just gotten a promotion at work and like thousands of other Angelenos did almost every weekend decided that Westwood was the place to be. After dinner, Karen and ...