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1. “The California-Mexico Relationship: Creating Green Economies”
Ricardo
Room 355 at
Center for Environmental Public Policy Speaker Series
2. ECOPOLIS, Discovery
Channel’s series hosted by Prof. Dan
Kammen, premieres on Monday, Dec. 8 at
Nobel Prize-winning scientist Dr. Daniel Kammen investigates visionary, technology-driven solutions to future mega-city challenges such as food production, water access, energy, waste management and transportation. [More info.]
3.
“International, National, and Regional Climate Change Policy Issues”
Dr. Karl Hausker (MPP 1981/PhD 1985)
Vice President and Climate Change
Expert, ICF International
Room 250 at
Presented by the Center for
Environmental Public Policy at the
4.
“Our Environmental Destiny: Mario Savio Memorial Lecture”
December 4 |
The 12th annual Mario Savio Memorial
Lecture will feature leading environmental defender Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. Doors
open at
Sponsor: Mario Savio Memorial Lecture Fund
The evening includes a presentation
of the Mario Savio Young Activist Award, which recognizes young people engaged
in the struggle to build a more humane and just society. Event Contact:
510-642-3394
5.
GSPP hosts the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs &
Administration Annual Career Director’s Conference on
6. NETWORK
The 4th Annual Network San
Francisco reception provides students with the opportunity to meet and talk
with prospective employers and
7. 2009
UC Berkeley Campus, Martin Luther King Jr. Student Union, Pauley Ballroom West (wheelchair accessible).
Event details and online registration
8.
2009 ANNUAL AARON WILDAVSKY FORUM
Dean Rebecca Blank, Ford
Topic & location TBD
9.
AARON WILDAVSKY PANEL DISCUSSION
Panelists TBD
ALUMNI AND STUDENT NEWSMAKERS
1. “How Will Obama Harness Powerful Economic Team?”
(Washington Post,
2. “Does Losing A Job Mean Losing Your Health Care?” (Morning Edition, National Public Radio (NPR)
3. “Obama’s fiscal balancing act. Obama says he’ll rein in
spending, lift economy” (San Francisco Chronicle,
4. “In switch, Obama emphasizes belt-tightening. Once the
economy starts growing again, he wants to cut programs that have ‘outlived
their usefulness.’” (Christian Science Monitor,
5. “UN: Governments face challenges fighting sex abuse” (The
Associated Press,
6. “Obama: Need for stimulus trumps deficit fears - May forgo
spending cuts and tax increases on rich” (Washington Times,
7. “Report cites USDA millionaire subsidies that break rules”
(Sacramento Bee,
8. “
9. “A Permanent Bailout. Fifty years of EU farm aid ought to make us fear too much state intervention” (Wall Street Journal, November 24, 2008); op-ed by JACK THURSTON (MPP 1999); http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122755917999454051.html
10. “In his own words: Richard Halkett, MPP ‘05, Goldman School of Public Policy” (Grad Spotlight, Graduate Division, UC Berkeley, November 2008); story featuring RICHARD HALKETT (MPP 2005) and citing DAVID DEMING (MPP 2005), EUGENE BARDACH, MICHAEL NACHT, and DAVID KIRP; http://www.grad.berkeley.edu/spotlight/halkett.shtml
11. “A Hole In Our Hopes - Federal deficit could top $1
trillion” (Boston Globe,
12. “Holocaust survivors mark 70th anniversary of
Kristallnacht” (Oregonian,
13. “Hoping Not to Repeat the Mistakes of the Past” (New York
Times,
14. “Obama’s plans for US and global health” (The Lancet,
15. “Gov. Schwarzenegger Appoints Maxwell-Jolly as Director
of Department of Health Care Services” (US States News,
16. “In
17. “A Costly Row to Hoe” (Day to Day, National Public Radio
(NPR)
18. “Solano has got to think regionally” (The Reporter (
19. “Economy focus of summit” (The Reporter (
20. “Mayor Nutter Announces Series of Town Hall Meetings on
City’s Response to Financial Crisis” (US States News
21. “Oil-price dip is fueling some discontent - The
alternative-energy industry fears cheaper gas may hurt business. At least 10
firms have filed for bankruptcy” (Philadelphia Inquirer,
22. “Obama-Biden Transition Announces New Review Team
Members” (CongressNow,
23. “Foundations - A Q&A with Barbara Chow” (Hewlett Foundation Newsletter, November 2008); story featuring BARBARA CHOW (MPP 1980); http://www.hewlett.org/HewlettDev/NewsletterTemplateWithFeedback.aspx?NRMODE=Published&NRORIGINALURL=%2fAboutUs%2fNews%2fFoundation%2bNewsletter%2fFoundations%2bwith%2bBarbara%2bChow%2ehtm&NRNODEGUID=%7b9BB6FF74-7052-4CCA-9379-F7EC43EC4C1F%7d&NRCACHEHINT=NoModifyGuest
24. “Some areas of S.F. voted to ban same-sex marriage” (San
Francisco Chronicle,
25. “Prop. 8 supporters duped” (Oakland Tribune,
26. “Immigrants’ Rights Organizations Sue Department of Homeland Security for Public Accountability about Deportation Program that Sidesteps Legal Process for Immigrants” (Business Wire, November 12, 2008); newswire citing KAREN TUMLIN (MPP 2003/JD 2004).
27. “$2.40 in Costs to Deliver $1 of Benefits: Your SDI
Deductions Subsidize Workers Compensation in
28. “MBAs Take the Mommy Track” (US Fed News,
29. “Is our Internet future in danger?” (InfoWorld
Daily News,
30. “Space, Telecom Policy in National Spotlight from Nov.
13-14 in
31. “Obama’s promises face a rough road ahead” (Christian
Science Monitor,
32. “Drivers get charged up about plugging in cars - Many
install extra battery in hybrid vehicles” (Boston Globe,
33. “A tough blueprint to stem red ink” (Sacramento Bee,
34. “Coming of age in 1938” (The Jerusalem Post,
35. “To Face Economic Crisis, Obama Moves Quickly”
(All Things Considered, National Public Radio (NPR),
36. “New lineup of S.F. supervisors” (San Francisco
Chronicle,
37. “Prop. 8 defeat could cost Newsom
in long term” (San Francisco Chronicle,
38. “S.F. voters surprisingly conservative on issues” (San
Francisco Chronicle
39. “S.F. ranked-choice voting slow, confusing” (San
Francisco Chronicle,
40. “State and Local Election Results” Post election (Forum,
KQED Radio,
41. “CLIMATE: Obama admin in position to take lead on cap-and-trade
bill” (Environment and Energy Daily,
42. “The Bizz: $200,000 in grants to promote green technology
in the I.E.” (Inland Valley Daily Bulletin,
43. “A flier’s plea to the new president” (The Associated
Press,
44. “Few options remain when job insurance disappears” (The
Associated Press,
45. “PBM Services Agreement with Health Plan of San Mateo”
(Market News Publishing,
46. “AARP questioned on health plans; Lawmaker says policies
mislead about costs of catastrophic care” (
47. “Analisis: Obama y la paradoja
48. “Costs for new prison health program called ‘staggering’”
(Sacramento Bee,
49. “ADB targets coordinated water management in
50. “Abogados demandan a fiscales de inmigración” (El Nuevo
Herald (
51. “Drive collects items for homeless children; News and
notes from the real estate community” (Atlanta Journal-Constitution,
52. “USPS facility fight costs $240,000. Aliso
Viejo uses general-fund revenue for legal consultation and publicity against
mail-processing plant” (Orange County Register,
53. “Council votes to keep park rangers” (Oakland Tribune,
54. “Rhode Island Department of Corrections Announces Brown
Education Link Lecture Series: Brown Professors to Lead Weekly Discussions with
Medium Security Inmates” (US States News,
55. “Inaugural National Summit on Personalized Health Care Outlines Vision, Strategies for Bringing Patients Personalized, Genetic-Informed Care” (Biotech Business Week, October 20, 2008); story citing ROBERT MITTMAN (MPP 1984).
56. “Preparan demanda por la ciudadanía” (La Opinión,
57. “Questions emerge about solar deal” (Idaho Press-Tribune,
58. “Professor Weimer
Elected to National Academy of Public Administration” (Targeted News Service,
59. “The Urban Institute and the
60. “Comcast’s straw drinks your bandwidth” (Blast Magazine,
61. “Cannery business park makes
sense” (Davis Enterprise,
62. “Governor Paterson Rings in New Era to Combat Climate
Change” (States News Service,
63. “
64. “A New Philadelphia Story” (The School Administrator, January 2008); commentary by SCOTT JOFTUS (MPP 1994); http://www.edstrategies.net/Philly.pdf
FACULTY IN THE NEWS
1. “
2. “Paying Off Credit
Debt Should be No. 1 Priority” (KCBS Radio,
3. “General Motors should get bailout, too” –
Commentary by ROBERT REICH
(Marketplace [NPR],
4. “We need more government spending” –
Commentary by ROBERT REICH
(Marketplace [NPR],
5. “Uncertainty on Strategy in Citi Rescue” (Wall
Street Journal,
6. “Obama Names Congressional Budget Expert to
Head Federal Budget Office” (CNN Newsroom,
7. “MSNBC Interview with Obama Economic Advisor Robert Reich. Subject:
Obama Economic Team” (Federal News Service,
8. “
9. “College for the Few. Charles Murray aims to
provoke. This time, it’s with four broad-brush, simplistic claims about higher
education” (American Prospect [*requires registration],
10. “Top 10 Best Cabinet Members” (TIME Magazine,
11. “
12. “Recession’s Grip Forces U.S. to Flood World
with More Dollars” (Bloomberg,
13. “Countdown with Keith Olbermann” (MSNBC,
14. “
15. “Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer” (CNN,
16. “Interview with Robert Reich” (CTV Television (
17. “California, still the climate leader” (San Francisco Chronicle, November 21, 2008); op-ed by Visiting Scholar CEPP ROBERT COLLIER and citing program developed by CISCO DEVRIES (MPP 2000); http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/11/21/EDTU148TMN.DTL&type=printable
18. “The Rachel Maddow Show” (MSNBC,
19. “
20. “Economy taking a break, along with investors” (San Francisco Chronicle, November 19, 2008); column citing CEPP Visiting Scholar ROBERT COLLIER; http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/11/19/BUCF146VQU.DTL
21. “
22. “AUTOS: Would a federal bailout mean clear
skies for
23. “The New Liberalism. How the economic crisis
can help Obama redefine the Democrats” (New Yorker,
24. “Up Next for Debate: Carbon Costs” (Dot
Earth, New York Times Online [*requires registration],
25. “Revolutionaries: Solar Bubbles” (Forbes Magazine,
26. “Automakers push for bailout over bankruptcy”
(KGO TV,
26. “GM: The Threat of Bankruptcy; GM’s senior management, business experts, and some members of Congress think letting the automaker go Chapter 11 would be a disaster” (Business Week Online, November 13, 2008); story citing ROBERT REICH; http://www.businessweek.com/lifestyle/content/nov2008/bw20081111_141573.htm
28. “Homes and Businesses Go Solar With No Upfront Cost, Repay on Property Tax Bill” (MarketWatch, Nov. 13, 2008); story citing DAN KAMMEN and CISCO DEVRIES (MPP 2000); http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/Homes-Businesses-Go-Solar-With/story.aspx?guid={B4B7BD2F-E913-4F38-9470-4FD00CA126D8}
29. “US ready for spending spree” (Australian
Financial Review [*requires subscription],
30. “Debate: The Ripple Effects of Biofuels”
(Green Inc. Blog, New York Times Online (*requires registration),
31. “Energy Experts Offer Policy Advice for New
Administration at Nov. 17 CU Symposium” (States News Service,
32. “Obama victory spins a web of tears” (Los
Angeles Times,
33. “President-elect Barack Obama is about to
inherit an economy in crisis” (Hardball, MSNBC,
34. “UC Berkeley faculty members advise Obama”
(Politico,
35. “Plants: The Fuel of the Future?” (Morning
Edition, NPR,
36. “Obama likely to tap fresh faces, old hands”
(San Francisco Chronicle,
37. “
38. “Using superpowers for the greater cleantech good:
Is Nancy Floyd joining the blue wave? Should Elon Musk start pinching his
pennies? Can one blogger really bankroll another? Find out in the latest
installment of ... the Cleantech Avenger!” (Cleantech Group News,
39. “Summers, Rubin,
Schmidt to Attend Economic Meeting With Obama” (Washington Wire Blog, Wall
Street Journal Online (*requires registration),
40. “Green Inc.: Biofuels Debate. Point,
Counterpoint” (New York Times Online (*requires registration),
41. “Weathering the post-election emotional
storm. How to cope with raw emotions and be cheerful, even if you loved McCain”
(MSNBC,
42. “Obama’s Climate Policy Will Give
43. “Obama win paves the way for big changes in
energy, environment debate” (Environment and Energy Daily,
44. “AIR POLLUTION: Bush NSR regs would get
‘bounced back early on’ -- Obama adviser” (Environment and Energy Daily,
45. “A Splash of Green for the Rust Belt” (New
York Times,
46. “Back to the Ramparts in
47. “‘Bradley Effect’ possible but unlikely,
experts say” (Reno Gazette-Journal,
48. “Bernanke Endorses Some U.S. Backing of Home
Loans” (Washington Post,
49. “Political Economy: Trick or Treat”
(Congressional Quarterly, CQ Weekly,
50. “How to fix the mortgage business”
(Salon.com,
1. “How Will Obama Harness Powerful
Economic Team?” (Washington Post,
By David Cho and Alec
MacGillis,
Barack Obama’s appointment yesterday of former Federal Reserve chairman Paul A. Volcker to the growing team advising him on the nation’s deepening financial crisis only heightens a central leadership challenge the president-elect will face: how to manage a stable packed with big brains and bigger personalities—and how to make decisions when those high-powered experts disagree….
Volcker, 81, meanwhile, adds an elder statesman to Obama’s team, but his position is not expected to carry as much weight as the NEC or CEA in the White House. A Democrat who was appointed Fed chairman in 1979 by President Jimmy Carter and reappointed in 1983 by President Ronald Reagan, Volcker has long been credited with stamping out the era’s high inflation. He may provide Obama with alternate views, as the only leader within the new team who was not a disciple of Robert E. Rubin, President Bill Clinton’s Treasury secretary.
“Not only does this get Volcker—who the markets love—inside the tent, it allows for discussions to take place without agency [and] department politics,” said Stan Collender, a federal budget expert and the managing director of Qorvis Communications, a public relations firm. “It also rents some of Volcker’s credibility until the president-elect can further establish some of his own.” …
2. “Does Losing A Job
Mean Losing Your Health Care?” (Morning Edition, National
Public Radio (NPR)
STEVE INSKEEP, host: ... Many Americans are facing the tough reality of life after a layoff. But losing your job does not necessarily mean you have to lose your health insurance. NPR’s Julie Rovner has more.
JULIE ROVNER: Greg
Secrest’s story is all too familiar these days. The father of five from rural
Professor KAREN POLLITZ (Research
Professor, Health Policy Institute,
ROVNER: Karen Pollitz is a health insurance expert
at
Professor POLLITZ: Middle of the year, you can come in. And if your kids would have been eligible for coverage, they can come in too.
ROVNER: If that’s not an option, she recommends COBRA next. It allows anyone in a company with 20 or more workers to continue their coverage for 18 months if they pay the premium themselves. Yes, it’s often very expensive, says Pollitz. But it’s often the best coverage you’re going to find, and particularly valuable if you’re already getting health care.
Professor POLLITZ: You don’t have to start a new annual deductible. You don’t have to change doctors in a different network. All of your benefits are the same, so - especially if you’re in the middle of making claims for something. When you become eligible for COBRA, if there’s any way to swing it, it’s often your best bet.
ROVNER: One thing to know about COBRA, is that every member of your family has an individual right to coverage. So if money is tight and only one person in the family has ongoing medical needs, you can take COBRA for just that one person. If you’re not going to take COBRA, or if your company’s going out of business, so there’s no health plan left to continue, it’s important that before you leave your job, your employer gives you something called a certificate of creditable coverage. Pollitz says that’s important to have for when you do get new insurance.
Professor POLLITZ: You get a new job, and they offer a group health plan. And if that health plan excludes coverage for pre-existing conditions, you can show your certificate of creditable coverage that proves that you had other coverage….
3. “Obama’s fiscal
balancing act. Obama says he’ll rein in spending, lift economy” (San Francisco
Chronicle,
--Carolyn Lochhead,
Chronicle
President-elect Barack Obama set out on Tuesday to reassure Americans that he intends to restrain spending despite the staggering bills for financial rescues and emergency government spending that seem to mount by the day.
“We are not going back to business as usual when it comes to our budget,” Obama said in naming Peter Orszag, director of the Congressional Budget Office, as his White House budget chief. “Budget reform is not an option. It’s a necessity.” …
The economic crisis promises to consume Obama’s presidency and define its success. And while providing opportunity to enact bold programs in the name of recovery, all the spending, both already undertaken and yet to come, will leave a monster budget hangover that could imperil future prosperity….
“You cannot and you
should not worry about deficits in the current environment,” said Stan Collender, a longtime budget expert
and managing director at Qorvis Communications, a
4. “In switch, Obama
emphasizes belt-tightening. Once the economy starts growing again, he wants to
cut programs that have ‘outlived their usefulness.’” (Christian Science
Monitor,
By Ron Scherer | Staff writer of The Christian Science Monitor
Once the economy starts growing again – his first priority – he will get out the knife and start to cut programs that have “outlived their usefulness.” In short, he wants to also be known as a budget reformer….
In a press conference Tuesday … [h]e promised that Peter Orszag, whom he has picked to run the Office of Management and Budget, will go through the $2.9 trillion US budget line by line, page by page, looking for better and less expensive ways to do things….
If Obama is successful
at reinvigorating the flagging economy, he will have the political capital to
make budget cuts, says
“He’s saying we’ll pay attention to the deficit when we can, and until then, we’re focused on the economy,” he says….
Although Obama has not been very explicit in terms of possible program cuts, on Tuesday he specifically mentioned a farm subsidy program that he claimed sent $49 million in crop subsidies to “millionaire” farmers, despite them earning more than the $2.5 million cutoff….
“No doubt, the farm community will be up in arms,” Mr. Collender says….
5. “UN: Governments face
challenges fighting sex abuse” (The Associated Press,
By Alan Clendenning, Associated Press Writer
SAO PAULO, Brazil -- More poor children may be driven into the sex trade as a result of the world financial crisis and the spreading use of the Internet by predators to find victims, participants at a U.N.-backed conference said Wednesday.
Those factors pose new challenges for governments, which must do more to combat abuse and growing child prostitution, said Ann Veneman, executive director of UNICEF.
“Poverty contributes to
it,” Veneman said in a telephone
interview from
“You are more likely to have demands on children to drop out of school, and if they are young girls, they are very likely to end up in prostitution or being sexually exploited.” …
The conference also
focuses on children who are forced to have sex but are not involved in
prostitution or pornography issues such as the rape of girls during conflicts
in
A recent U.N. survey estimated that 150 million girls and 73 million boys under age 18 were forced to have sexual intercourse or experienced other forms of sexual violence in 2002.
“There is a growing problem around the world of more girls on the streets,” Veneman said. “You have to look at the demand side of the equation: Men are a big part of the problem and they have to be part of the solution.” …
6. “Obama: Need for
stimulus trumps deficit fears - May forgo spending cuts and tax increases on
rich” (Washington Times,
By Christina Bellantoni
and Stephen Dinan, The
President-elect Barack Obama (right) arrives, trailing Vice President-elect Joseph R. Biden, to announce (from left) New York Federal Reserve Bank President Timothy F. Geithner for Treasury secretary, Christina D. Romer for the Council of Economic Advisers, Lawrence H. Summers for the National Economic Council and Melody C. Barnes for the Domestic Policy Council. AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE/GETTY IMAGES
President-elect Barack Obama’s campaign promise to cut spending has been waylaid by the reality of the economy, and he warned Monday that the deficit is going to grow and spending cuts will have to take a back seat now to stimulating the economy.
He also signaled he may forgo immediate tax increases on high-income families and instead wait for the Bush tax cuts to expire….
… He also said he would announce “meaningful cuts and sacrifices,” though it was not clear whether that would include specific line items or broad principles.
But with the deficit possibly reaching $1 trillion, or about 7 percent of gross domestic product, for fiscal 2009, budget analysts said cuts would be next to irrelevant.
“What we’re going to be doing is what I call a budget two-step. The first step is stimulus—don’t worry about the deficit. The second, whenever we recover, will be don’t worry about the economy, worry about the deficit,” said Stan Collender, a former congressional budget staffer who founded the Federal Budget Report.
Mr. Collender said the playing field for budget cuts is so small—possibly as little as $20 billion in a federal budget that should well exceed last year’s $3 trillion—that it doesn’t make sense in the short term for Mr. Obama to get into a fight with his former congressional colleagues over small-ticket items they want to protect.
“Why bother?” he said….
7. “Report cites USDA
millionaire subsidies that break rules” (Sacramento Bee,
By Michael Doyle - McClatchy Newspapers
WASHINGTON – Millionaire farmers continue to pluck crop subsidies they don’t deserve, federal investigators say.
At least 2,702 farmers nationwide received subsidies between 2003 and 2006 even though they were making more than the $2.5 million gross income cutoff. The unwarranted payments totaled $49 million and exposed enduring Agriculture Department management problems, investigators concluded.
“USDA cannot be assured that millions of dollars in farm program payments it made are proper,” the Government Accountability Office investigators noted in the report issued Monday.
In one case, investigators noted, “an individual with ownership interest in a professional sports franchise received a total of more than $200,000 in farm program payments for 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2006.”
Other rich and unjustified crop subsidy recipients identified by investigators included “a top executive of a major financial services firm,” a “founder and former executive of an insurance company” and a “former executive of a technology company.” …
But the critical findings do not entirely surprise activists who tried with minimal success last year to restrain crop subsidies in the latest $286 billion farm bill….
“You have to have the right management team in place,” former Agriculture Secretary Ann Veneman said Monday….
8. “
By Chris Bowman
California is building a second line of defense
against global warming, one that will prepare the state for a harsher
environment while the other continues to cut climate-changing emissions.
The two-front approach acknowledges that rising sea levels, bigger floods, greater loss of species and other harsh effects of warming are inevitable, if not already occurring – no matter the state’s success in slashing greenhouse gases….
On Nov. 14, Schwarzenegger issued an executive order to identify the state’s biggest vulnerabilities to rising sea levels and draft an “adaptation strategy.” State, federal and local managers of transportation, public health, wildlife, water and power supplies are being tapped for this task, along with business and public-interest groups….
Some major projects under way already account for climate change.
A 50-year, $1 billion effort to restore thousands of acres of former Cargill Inc. salt evaporation ponds to tidal marsh in San Francisco Bay will have levees to prevent flooding from rising seas anticipated with global warming….
Likewise, state water planners are adding an extra foot of water depth in designs for a weir to control flows important to fish and drinking water quality in the south Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta.
“Hopefully, this will extend the life of the project,” said John Andrew, executive manager for climate change at the state Department of Water Resources….
9. “A Permanent Bailout. Fifty years of EU farm aid ought to make us fear too much state intervention” (Wall Street Journal, November 24, 2008); op-ed by JACK THURSTON (MPP 1999); http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122755917999454051.html
By JACK THURSTON | From today’s Wall Street Journal Europe
The global financial crisis is raising profound questions about the role of the state in economic affairs. For some, the nationalization of the banking titans and a more activist industrial policy constitute the welcome new reality emerging from the ruins of a discredited “market fundamentalism.” As Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi put it last month: “State aid, which until yesterday was considered a sin, is now absolutely essential.”
But before lurching
headlong into this new era we might want to examine the case of one economic
sector that has seen more government intervention over the past half-century
than any other: agriculture. Since the late 1950s,
Since 1992, the European Union has been moving—albeit at a glacial pace—toward a more market-oriented model. Last week, in a review of the Common Agricultural Policy, EU members took only a few more baby steps in this direction. The skeptics prevented more sweeping reforms, seizing on the recent volatility in global food prices as evidence of the failure of markets. The evidence, though, points in the opposite direction….
What is needed is a more dependable global trading system in foodstuffs and policy reforms that neither shut out nor undercut farmers in poor countries by heavily subsidizing rich-world farmers….
Bailouts might be in vogue right now, but EU farm subsidies amount to a permanent bailout with a twist….
Mr. Thurston is a trans-Atlantic fellow of the German Marshall Fund
of the
10. “In his own words: Richard Halkett, MPP ‘05, Goldman School of Public Policy” (Grad Spotlight, Graduate Division, UC Berkeley, November 2008); story featuring RICHARD HALKETT (MPP 2005) and citing DAVID DEMING (MPP 2005), EUGENE BARDACH, MICHAEL NACHT, and DAVID KIRP; http://www.grad.berkeley.edu/spotlight/halkett.shtml
“My first impression of Berkeley was of its sheer size and intellectual power.”
Richard Halkett photo courtesy of NESTA
Throughout
his career, Richard Halkett has
focused on technology, innovation, and education, in relation to foreign
policy. He currently serves as the Director of Strategy & Research for
Cisco Global Education. From 2006 to 2008, he was the Executive Director of
Policy & Research at the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the
Arts (NESTA) in London, where he developed programs to enrich and strengthen
innovation policy in the U.K. Before NESTA, he worked at the Center for
Strategic and International Studies (CSIS)….
… “The Goldman School has a real sense of community about it—not in a ‘touchy-feely’ way but as a learning community. I sensed a real ethic of public service about the school—from the faculty and from the students. There were people passionate about pleasingly unsexy, but very important, aspects of public policy—not just people getting a necessary qualification on their way to Capitol Hill or who saw policy school as an easy back door into law or business….
It’s odd to think that a voluntary endeavor turned out to be one of my most important experiences. When I was at the Kennedy School admit day, I met this great guy called Dave Deming. He was very bright and a little iconoclastic with an easy way about him. We met again at Berkeley and struck up a friendship that has lasted until this day. We both agreed that GSPP was best for us and decided to take the plunge, but we also realized that we wanted to raise its profile, and to have some fun doing it….
Three professors at Goldman have had a profound effect on my work. Gene Bardach advised on my IPA and APA and through that became something of a mentor. He’s helped me out several times and is always a source of sound strategic advice. Michael Nacht, Dean until very recently, taught me a few of the political intricacies that are essential to developing good policy and gave me a deep understanding of the machinations of Washington. He was so good that I took his course twice! Finally, David Kirp was not only a great source of insight into law and education policy but also a source of energy and support throughout my career at Berkeley (and beyond). He was the original faculty sponsor of PolicyMatters, for instance, and I still tap him for advice when he isn’t absorbed in his latest policy bestseller.
My MPP from Berkeley has
been enormously important. I really think that the three great jobs I have had
since—CSIS, NESTA, and now Cisco—have all depended upon it. It’s helped in four
main ways. The first has been the specific skills that it taught me:
microeconomics, statistics, memo-writing, research, political analysis and the
like. Those have been very valuable. As Gene
Bardach predicted, after graduating I knew ‘just enough to be dangerous’.
The second way was to provide insights on the policy and research culture of
the
11. “A Hole In Our Hopes
- Federal deficit could top $1 trillion” (Boston Globe,
By Michael Kranish; Globe Staff
WASHINGTON - President-elect Barack Obama will enter office in January facing an unprecedented budget deficit that will probably top $1 trillion, more than twice the previous record, further limiting his maneuvering room as he tries to boost the beleaguered economy and follow through on hundreds of billions of dollars worth of campaign promises, according to estimates by congressional officials and budget analysts.
Even as he faces the skyrocketing deficit, Obama is considering a massive stimulus package that is intended to boost the economy but is expected to further increase the deficit by as much as $300 billion.
While the deficit had been expected to rise since the most recent official projection, $421 billion in September, the estimates provided to the Globe by the Senate Budget Committee and independent analysts painted the starkest picture yet of how the nation’s financial crisis will affect the start of Obama’s presidency.
“A trillion-dollar deficit is not only something you wouldn’t have seen in an economic textbook, it is something that even a science fiction writer would not dare mention,” said Stan Collender, one of the nation’s most respected budget analysts, who was a budget staffer for both the House and Senate and now works for a Washington corporate communications company.
“What it tells you is that the next four years are going to be four of the roughest fiscal years in the history of the United States.” …
12. “Holocaust survivors
mark 70th anniversary of Kristallnacht” (Oregonian,
By Erik W. Carter, adult services librarian, Tigard Public Library
On
… For more information, visit the library’s Web site at tigard-or.gov/library. Here are other resources to check out.
BEST BETS - BOOKS
“48 Hours of Kristallnacht: Night of Destruction/Dawn of the Holocaust: An Oral History” by Mitchell Bard – This minute-by-minute, hour-by-hour account outlines the horror of Kristallnacht and its consequences….
13. “Hoping Not to Repeat
the Mistakes of the Past” (New York Times,
By Matthew L. Wald
Harry Pearce, a General Motors vice chairman, introducing the
Precept fuel cell-powered vehicle at
As Congress looks
skeptically at lending taxpayer money to the auto companies, specialists said
that the last big effort to help
Beginning in late 1993, the federal government contributed more than $1.25 billion to the program, an effort that began in late 1993 to make the automakers more competitive by assisting them in developing, by 2004, a prototype midsize sedan that would go 80 miles on a gallon of gas, with no loss of acceleration, size or carrying capacity.
“I don’t think the government got much out of that,” said Joan Claybrook, a former administrator of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and the longtime president of Public Citizen, a consumer advocacy organization. She said the technical gains were small and probably would have been made anyway….
At the Natural Resources Defense Council, Roland Hwang , a vehicles expert, said the main effects of the
program were to deflect pressure on
Mr. Hwang said other policies could help the companies and move them in the right direction. The tax break of up to $4,000 per vehicle given to buyers of high-mileage hybrids is “as good as cash in the bank” for the car companies, he said….
14. “Obama’s plans for
US and global health” (The Lancet,
By Nellie
Tough economic times
will hamper the ability of
Expanded health coverage for children, reversal of the Bush Administration’s policies on stem-cell research, and the removal of funding restrictions for international family-planning agencies are among health policies likely to be enacted quickly by Barack Obama when he takes office in late January, 2009, say experts….
Karen Pollitz, of Georgetown University’s Health Policy Institute, also called for better insurance access for young adults aged 19-29 years, who make up 29% of uninsured people and often lose coverage when they become ineligible for their parents’ plans….
15. “Gov. Schwarzenegger
Appoints Maxwell-Jolly as Director of Department of Health Care Services” (US
States News,
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger today announced the appointment of David G. Maxwell-Jolly, Ph.D. as the director for the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS)….
The Governor also announced the appointment of Toby Douglas as chief deputy director of health care programs for DHCS.
“Toby’s experience makes him the perfect individual for this position and I am confident that he will help to build a better health care system for all Californians,” said Governor Schwarzenegger. “…I congratulate Stan [Rosenstein] on his retirement and applaud him for his foresight in recruiting Toby Douglas.”
Douglas, 36, of Davis, has served as assistant deputy director and
deputy director for health care programs at HHS since 2005. From 2001 to 2005,
he served as senior manager and later as deputy director of activities related
to health access, policy and planning at the San Mateo County Health
Department. Previously, Douglas was senior analyst for Kaiser Permanente in
2000, implementing an innovative pharmacy utilization management pilot program
for pharmacy operations. He also served as a research associate for the Urban
Institute from 1996 to 1999, a non-partisan social policy research organization
in
“I am honored to serve Californians and look forward to working with David Maxwell-Jolly,” said Toby Douglas. “I am sure that together we will be able to accomplish great things for health care in California.” …
16. “In
By James Kanter
Under changes agreed to Thursday, farmland will no longer be kept out of production and milk quotas will be phased out. (Darren Staples/Reuters)
But some critics said the measures did not go far enough and risked skewing markets further.
The measures, which
cover a period from now to 2013, represent the biggest reform of European
farming policy in five years. They are aimed at revamping the decades-old
system in which farmers automatically earn money for farm products whether
there is demand for products or not. The system has been criticized before the
World Trade Organization for blocking potential farm imports from outside
The Common Agricultural Policy absorbs more than 40 percent of the annual European Union budget of more than 100 billion euros, or $125 billion, although the bloc’s 13 million farmers represent only about 3 percent of its population….
The measures also are positive for European trade relations, although the system still could distort markets by affecting prices and the way farmers work, said Indhira Santos, a research fellow specializing in European agriculture at the Bruegel research organization….
But Jack Thurston, the co-founder of Farmsubsidy.org, which campaigns for budgetary transparency in European farm spending, said the reforms’ significance would be lessened because most of the international trade friction around European farming concerned tariffs, rather than quotas or spending….
Ms. Fischer Boel, the agriculture commissioner, had sought to reduce direct payments to the biggest subsidy recipients by up to 9 percent. But governments scrapped that plan, agreeing instead to reductions of 4 percent for payments above 300,000 euros a year.
‘‘The changes will not
get the queen, the duke of
17. “A Costly Row to
Hoe” (Day to Day, National Public Radio (NPR)
ALEX COHEN, host:
Finding inexpensive healthcare isn’t quite as easy as snatching fashion
bargains at the Snooty Fox. Many families are struggling with rising healthcare
costs, especially farming families. A survey from the non-profit Access Project
found that farmers paid twice as much for healthcare than non-farmers do. From
member station KXJZ in
KELLEY WEISS: Meet Paula Floriano…. Floriano has two teenage kids and runs a modest farm with her husband, Paul. They work seven days a week starting at the crack of dawn tending to their 125 cows. She says health insurance costs eat into their limited income, and she says her coverage pays for only a few doctor visits a year. Beyond that, it’s out of pocket…. Right now, she pays about $1,000 a month for her family’s health insurance. She says that doesn’t include dental or vision coverage, and on top of the monthly premium, Floriano has a $10,000 deductible for medical care. With all of these costs, she says, sometimes, other bills have to wait.
Many small business owners like the Florianos buy their insurance as individuals. Scott Leavitt works with the insurance industry. He says there’s a reason individual coverage is so expensive. First of all, he says, it’s a small pool of people, and that makes it harder for the insurer to spread out risk....
Regardless of why it’s
so expensive, a professor at the Health
Policy Institute at
Dr. KAREN POLLITZ: (Public Policy Institute,
WEISS: And Pollitz says there’s one area in
particular that worries her. She says small business owners, like so many
farmers who buy their insurance as individuals, are at risk of paying higher
prices when they have pre-existing conditions like cancer or diabetes. She says
a few states, including
Dr. POLLITZ: So, your protections in this market are much less compared to group plans, where federal law says, it’s just not allowed to discriminate against people based on their health status. In this market, you always get discriminated against based on your health status….
18. “Solano has got to
think regionally” (The Reporter (
--Doug Ford
A few weeks ago, I participated in an extremely valuable and interesting conference at the new Mission Bay campus of the University of California, San Francisco….
The conference on “The Innovation-Driven Economic Development Model” was presented by the Bay Area Council Economic Institute. The keynote speaker was Doug Henton, president of Collaborative Economics, who this Thursday morning will be presenting an assessment of Solano County’s strengths and opportunities at the Solano Economic Summit 4 event….
19. “Economy focus of
summit” (The Reporter (
By Danny Bernardini
Solano County is outpacing the Bay Area and the state as a whole in the growth of specialized industries, but nearly a third of its high school students aren’t graduating.
That information, along with several other trends in the county, will be discussed Thursday at Solano Economic Summit 4, sponsored by Solano Economic Development Corporation….
The report, titled “Solano County 2008 Index of Economic and Community Progress” was created by Doug Henton, CEO of Collaborative Economics….
Looking at the economy, the community, and areas that connect the two will be the focus of this week’s summit. Henton said that overall, Solano’s per capita income grew 15 percent from 2000 to 2007, which is double the Bay Area rate. He also said the growth industries like Life Science and advanced food production have exceeded that of the Bay Area.
“We think that’s important. We will look into that more in-depth and see how it can grow even more,” Henton said. “Each one of those areas grew and grew faster than the Bay Area as a whole. And cluster industries create higher wage jobs.”
While job opportunities are growing, Henton said the available candidates coming out of local schools isn’t as positive of a subject. He said in 2007, 31 percent of students in Solano County didn’t finish high school.
“If you are going to have the higher skilled jobs, you need to prepare the workforce,” he said.
20. “Mayor Nutter
Announces Series of Town Hall Meetings on City’s Response to Financial Crisis”
(US States News
At each session Mayor Nutter will make opening remarks and run the audience through a short overview presentation and then open up for approximately an hour-long Q&A session. The Managing Director, Deputy Mayors, Finance Director Rob Dubow, Budget Director Steve Agostini … and other department and agency heads will all be available to answer questions….
21. “Oil-price dip is
fueling some discontent - The alternative-energy industry fears cheaper gas may
hurt business. At least 10 firms have filed for bankruptcy” (Philadelphia
Inquirer,
By Jeff Gelles, Inquirer Staff Writer
Oil prices are up to $145 a barrel. No, they’re down to $55.
The roller-coaster ride
may be making
Or
worse. At least 10
Even T. Boone Pickens is feeling a pinch. The billionaire oilman, who peppered the airwaves this summer and fall with commercials touting his proposals to promote wind power and natural gas to help wean the United States from imported oil, says his plans for a huge Texas wind farm may be slowed by reduced access to credit.
“He’s certainly not alone. This is an economy-wide credit crunch,” said Rob Gramlich, policy director of the American Wind Energy Association….
22. “Obama-Biden Transition Announces New Review
Team Members” (CongressNow,
The transition team for President-elect Barack Obama and Vice President-elect Joe Biden today announced a new list of individuals charged with reviewing federal departments, agencies and commissions, as well as the White House itself….
Executive Office of the President Team Leads:
Sally Katzen
Antony Blinken
Ivo Daalder
Mara Eve Rudman
Audrey Choi
Michele Jolin
George Frampton
Thomas Soto
Brad Kiley
Al Lenhardt
Todd Stern
Mark Lindsay
Barbara Chow
Bowman Cutter
Christopher Putala
Donald Vereen
Thomas Kalil
Mario Molina
Anna Gomez
Peter Cowhey
Rick Stamberger
23. “Foundations - A Q&A with Barbara Chow” (Hewlett Foundation Newsletter, November 2008); story featuring BARBARA CHOW (MPP 1980); http://www.hewlett.org/HewlettDev/NewsletterTemplateWithFeedback.aspx?NRMODE=Published&NRORIGINALURL=%2fAboutUs%2fNews%2fFoundation%2bNewsletter%2fFoundations%2bwith%2bBarbara%2bChow%2ehtm&NRNODEGUID=%7b9BB6FF74-7052-4CCA-9379-F7EC43EC4C1F%7d&NRCACHEHINT=NoModifyGuest
… Barbara
Chow is the new director of the Foundation’s Education Program…. Chow comes
to the Foundation from the Budget Committee of the U.S. House of
Representatives, where she was policy director. Earlier in her career, Chow
served in the Clinton White House. From 1993 to 1997, she was a special
assistant to the president for legislative affairs, in which capacity she was
White House liaison to Congress on economic, budget, and appropriation matters.
From 1997 to 2001, she worked in the Office of Management and Budget, where she
was associate director for Education, Income Maintenance, and Labor.
Chow has a bachelor’s degree in government from Pomona College and a master’s degree in public policy from the University of California, Berkeley.
… And what’s philanthropy’s role in facing those challenges [the most pressing issues in U.S. education]?
I’m a policy person, so I tend to think in terms of leverage. The amounts that state and local governments spend on education outstrip what the federal government or philanthropy can spend to an amazing degree. State and local governments spend something like $500 to $600 billion a year on K-12 education. The federal government spends maybe $40 billion. When you consider that, I think the most successful thing we can do is try to move the larger system. Sometimes we can do this by supporting our grantees’ efforts to address state and local policy; sometimes it’s more indirect. But putting pressure on that system to move is the most important thing philanthropy can do.
The conditions for reform involve several factors. One is having models that are successful. This incredibly important effort is where philanthropy spends a lot of its time. If you can’t prove something works and can be scaled up, you can’t get policymakers to pay any attention to you. So this piece is necessary, but not sufficient. The work is far from done.
You also need a very sophisticated advocacy effort. You need a grassroots element, so that those making education decisions start hearing about reform from multiple constituencies, and then you need a sophisticated communications strategy. Policymakers listen to their constituents, they listen to the media, and they are interested in the substantive aspects of an issue….
24. “Some areas of S.F.
voted to ban same-sex marriage” (San Francisco Chronicle,
--Heather Knight, Chronicle Staff Writer
For all the talk of San Francisco values, a
Chronicle analysis of how the city voted on the state’s same-sex marriage ban
shows a city geographically divided on the issue - and voting trends that turn
San Francisco’s typical political spectrum on its head….
Voters in 54 of San Francisco’s 580 precincts supported the ban, with a high of 65 percent of voters favoring it in parts of Chinatown and downtown. More than half of voters in large swaths of Bayview-Hunters Point, Visitacion Valley, the Excelsior and areas around Lake Merced also voted to ban same-sex marriage.
Neighborhoods including the Marina, Laurel Heights and Mission Bay - which almost always vote more conservatively than neighborhoods such as Bayview and Chinatown - voted overwhelmingly against Prop. 8.
“With the racial and religious overprint that we’re seeing, the standard San Francisco politics get thrown out the window on this one,” said political consultant David Latterman, who further crunched the precinct-by-precinct voting results that The Chronicle obtained this week from the Department of Elections.
“This issue is very separate from what we usually think of as liberal and conservative,” he said.
Latterman said the issue played out in San Francisco the same way it plays out everywhere else: Race, age and education were big influences in one’s vote on Prop. 8. Latterman did not factor in religion, but exit polls throughout California showed a strong church affiliation correlated with a vote in favor of the ban among all racial groups.
In San Francisco, the more white people living in a precinct, the more likely it was to vote against the proposition. The opposite was true for precincts with many Asian or African American residents….
Income did not correlate with San Franciscans’ votes on Prop. 8, Latterman said. For example, 65 percent of voters living in the few blocks around Bloomingdale’s downtown - including posh condos inside the Four Seasons and St. Regis Hotel - voted to ban same-sex marriage.
But only 35 percent of those living in the stately mansions of St. Francis Wood and 24 percent of those in Sea Cliff voted for the ban. Latterman guessed that businesspeople moving downtown are newly arrived from other places, whereas the others have been “part of the city’s fabric for a long time.”
Speaking of St. Francis Wood, the neighborhood was the most conservative of any in the city, according to Latterman’s Progressive Voting Index, which looks at how the city’s precincts have voted on a variety of controversial ballot measures. That includes a measure that called for impeaching President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney and an initiative to ban firearms.
Where a precinct fell on Latterman’s index had very little correlation with how it voted on Prop. 8.
Only 35 percent of St. Francis Wood voters favored the same-sex marriage ban, which is not too far off from the precinct around BART’s 24th Street Station. That Mission District precinct is considered the city’s most liberal, and 1 in 5 voters there supported the ban….
25. “Prop. 8 supporters
duped” (Oakland Tribune,
LAST TUESDAY, Californians voted to extend protections to livestock while eliminating equal protection for same-sex couples. Those results are not only embarrassing; they exemplify the harm caused by a flawed initiative process that puts minority groups and our state Constitution at risk.
How did this happen? Paid signature gatherers put Proposition 8 on the ballot, and some estimates show more than 70 percent of yes on 8 funds came from the Mormon Church and its followers.
Through a series of
deceptive ads, including a mailer to African Americans falsely implying Barack
Obama favored Proposition 8, and television
commercials that lied about the impact on teaching in schools while exploiting
two children whose parents demanded the ad be removed, they were able to get
over 50 percent of voters to insert their religious views into
So what have we learned? With enough money, anyone can change the constitution. This time, Mormons targeted the gay community and eliminated our fundamental right of marriage. But with California’s current system that doesn’t even require involvement of the Legislature, who’s next?
The California Supreme Court must invalidate Proposition 8; it can’t be that easy to change our constitution and eliminate equal protection for one group of Californians.
Pamela Brown
Marriage Equality USA Policy Director
Kensington
26. “Immigrants’ Rights Organizations Sue Department of Homeland Security for Public Accountability about Deportation Program that Sidesteps Legal Process for Immigrants” (Business Wire, November 12, 2008); newswire citing KAREN TUMLIN (MPP 2003/JD 2004).
SAN FRANCISCO -- Today a coalition of immigrants’ rights organizations asked a federal judge to compel the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to disclose information about a program under which it removes non-citizens from the United States without hearings before immigration judges. The program, called “stipulated removal,” has resulted in the removal of over 96,000 non-citizens since its inception.
The Stanford Law School Immigrants’ Rights Clinic (IRC), together with the National Immigration Law Center (NILC), the ACLU of Southern California (ACLUSC) and the National Lawyers Guild of San Francisco (NLGSF) filed the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) to gain access to agency records about stipulated removal from DHS and its sub-agencies, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE)….
Stipulated removal allows the Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security to remove a non-citizen, even one with valid defenses against deportation, as long as the non-citizen signs an order. DHS appears to target non-citizens in immigration detention for stipulated removal, and does not allow the non-citizen to appear before a judge prior to being deported. Advocates have expressed concerns that immigrants signing these orders do not realize they are giving up their rights to challenge their deportation….
Karen Tumlin, Staff Attorney at the National Immigration Law Center, observes: “DHS has revealed close to nothing about a program that impacts thousands of immigrants’ due process rights. The stipulated removal program gives detained immigrants an impossible choice: sign away your rights or stay in detention.” …
27. “$2.40 in Costs to
Deliver $1 of Benefits: Your SDI Deductions Subsidize Workers Compensation in
By Julius Young
Is
Yes, according to an important report unveiled this week by CHSWC (the
California Commission on Health, Safety and Workers’ Compensation). Although
the report is a draft at this point, it is posted on the State of California
Division of Workers Compensation website.
This study finds that 8.4% of work injuries and two-thirds of occupational
diseases (66.2%) are being misclassified as non-industrial....
Frank Neuhauser, the study’s co-author, noted that he
was surprised by the results. He had expected to find that workers were over
utilizing the comp system, putting many non-industrial claims through the comp
system. He expected to find workers’ comp was subsidizing SDI....
The Neuhauser-Mathur study should eventually be peer reviewed. It may be subject to arguments on its methodology. But for now, the draft report serves as a provacative argument for further workers’ comp reform.
The report argues for integration of SDI and workers’ comp TD into one system….
[T]he UC Berkeley study projects net savings to both employees and employers by integrating the systems. Specifically, the authors make the following claim:
“Employers could fund the current portion of SDI that workers are subsidizing and still save $750 million annually by integrating all temporary disability under the SDI program instead of retaining separate temporary disability programs under SDI and workers’ comp”….
The draft by Frank
Neuhauser and Anita K. Mathur of the UC
Berkeley Survey Research Center is titled “The Impact Of Occupational Injury and Ilness on Pricing
an Integrated Disability Benefit“ .
28. “MBAs Take the Mommy
Track” (US Fed News,
In her study, “Opt-Out Patterns Across Careers: Labor Force Participation Rates Among Highly Educated Mothers,” Wolfram conjectures that the business world is less female friendly than the fields of medicine and law. “Women who are in family friendly environments are more likely to stay working,” says Wolfram, who co-authored the study with Jane Leber Herr, Ph.D. 08, UC Berkeley’s Department of Economics.
Wolfram and Herr used Harvard College reunion surveys for the 1988 to 1991 graduating classes to mine for their initial data. The women surveyed were approximately 37 years old and had at least one child. Fifteen years after graduating from Harvard College, 28 percent of the women who went on to get MBAs were stay-at-home moms. By comparison, only 6 percent of MDs stopped working outside of the home….
The study sought to account for the value of a mother’s time at work and at home. It also considered a spouse’s occupation and degree, children, minority status, and the influence of the family’s earnings on the women’s professional decisions.
Notably, 42 percent of the sample group held the same graduate degree as their husbands. “MDs, with the highest labor-force participation ... have higher earning spouses than any other group,” Wolfram notes in the paper. Since Wolfram and Herr find that women are less likely to work the more money their husbands make, this does not explain the high labor force participation of MDs, but does help to explain why MBAs are less likely to work than, for example, Ph.D.s. However, for the Harvard moms, their own higher wages provide another reason to continue working. Surprisingly, the researchers found highly educated mothers are more responsive to their spouse’s earnings than mothers in the general population….
29. “Is our Internet
future in danger?” (InfoWorld Daily News,
By Galen Gruman, Tom Kaneshige, InfoWorld.com
The digital
To be fair, some analysts say there is no bandwidth crisis looming, that there is plenty of capacity available. Derek Turner, research director of the anti-”big media” advocacy group Free Press, says if there were a looming shortage, most carriers would have already imposed tiered pricing or explicit caps; the fact that only a few do points to weaknesses in their specific infrastructure, not to a general shortage of capacity….
Broadband cable providers are also trying to open the pipe. A technology called wideband, whereby cable operators bond several channels together to increase Internet-access speeds, is gaining momentum. This technique can provide speeds of 150Mbps.
But such large investments have been slow in coming, mainly because Wall Street dislikes them. Every dollar on capital improvements reduces carriers’ profits, and investors tend to punish capital investments by reducing carriers’ stock prices, notes the Free Press’s Turner. Because most broadband providers have little or no competition, he says, the Wall Street pressure usually prevails….
Now, Time Warner Cable is testing metered-usage pricing…
As Time Warner Cable turns back the clock, Free Press’s Turner complains, “Its overage fees with rates are completely divorced from what it actually costs Time Warner to provide that data. I don’t think you’ll see a shift to caps and overage fees—consumers really don’t like surprise bills.” …
Consumers do in fact pay for the bandwidth they use, at least partially, notes Free Press’s Turner. Content providers pay their Web hosts (or dedicated Internet providers if they host their own Web servers) based on the traffic they use, so customers pay them based on usage….
30. “Space, Telecom
Policy in National Spotlight from Nov. 13-14 in
LINCOLN, Neb. -- “Space and Telecommunications Law and Policy: Looking Back at the Past Eight Years, Looking Toward the Next Four” is the theme of a conference Nov. 13-14 in Washington, D.C., where experts and policymakers in communication and space will hear and discuss legal issues and policies in the industry….
Telecommunications topics include wireless issues, network neutrality, international issues, broadband policy and universal access. Space law topics include the legal and policy aspects of government space programs and private space travel and tourism, as well as the launch and satellite insurance and the controversial issue of the International Traffic in Arms regulations as applied to space activities….
Speakers dealing with universal access and broadband policy include … Derek Turner, research director, Free Press….
31. “Obama’s promises
face a rough road ahead” (Christian Science Monitor,
By David R. Francis
President-elect Barack Obama warned in his Chicago victory speech that the “road ahead will be long.” His goals, he said, may not be reached “in one year or even one term.”
Budget experts say, “Amen.”
A deeply troubled economy, they hold, won’t allow Mr. Obama to raise taxes in 2009 to start paying for his ambitious plans to improve healthcare, education, infrastructure, and other areas.
“No one will raise taxes in times of an economic downturn,” notes Stan Collender, a veteran fiscal analyst with Qorvis Communications in Washington. He doubts that a tax hike will even be talked about much in 2009….
During the Great Depression, after the 1932 election, Franklin D. Roosevelt refused President Herbert Hoover’s offer to be involved in economic policymaking before Inauguration Day, apparently for political reasons. In those days, inauguration wasn’t until March 4.
But Mr. Collender expects Obama to be involved in budget affairs, maybe even other economic matters, before being sworn into office Jan. 20. Obama won’t want to “appear weak, indecisive, and unwilling to govern,” he notes. Second, the turmoil in global financial markets “will virtually demand” the president-elect to be very visible. And, third, Collender argues, the Democratic majorities in Congress will want to know Obama’s views on an economic rescue package. After all, many Democrats owe their re-election or election to Obama’s popularity….
32. “Drivers get charged
up about plugging in cars - Many install extra battery in hybrid vehicles”
(Boston Globe,
By Bina Venkataraman ; Globe Correspondent
Kevin Curran had a battery produced by A123 Systems installed in his
Toyota Prius, making it a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle, at Westborough
Toyota. (
For some people, driving a hybrid is not enough.
A growing cadre of energy-conscious drivers is leapfrogging auto makers by turning Prius hybrids into plug-in cars, installing an extra battery that comes with a hefty price tag….
The batteries allow drivers of the Toyota Prius, already the most fuel-efficient car sold in the United States, to plug in their cars just as they would their cellphones or laptop computers. When fully charged, the battery ratchets fuel efficiency up to 100 miles per gallon for as much as 40 miles at a time….
But for these drivers, saving money is not the point.
Kevin Curran, an electrical engineer from Hollis, N.H., whose son recently returned from his second tour of duty in Iraq as a US Marine, bought the extra battery so he could use less oil. “We have to reduce our oil imports,” he said. “This is my small contribution to reduce demand.”
Steve Stevens, 64,
curator of a Victorian bicycle museum, bought the battery because he wanted to
decrease his carbon footprint; he uses solar panels to recharge his car. Philip
Urso, a yoga teacher in
For plug-in cars to
reduce carbon dioxide emissions significantly, the electricity that charges the
battery must be fueled largely by clean energy, such as wind or solar. Given
the typical mix of sources in the
“If we’re going to solve global warming, we have to clean up the electricity [generation] sector ...” said Luke Tonachel, vehicles analyst for the council. “Those clean plug-in hybrids only get cleaner as the grid cleans up.” If an electrical grid is supplied entirely by coal-fire power plants, he said, plug-ins would provide no reduction in greenhouse gases relative to a regular hybrid….
33. “A tough blueprint
to stem red ink” (Sacramento Bee,
By Kevin Yamamura and Jim Sanders
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger leaves Thursday’s Capitol press
conference where he spelled out his plan to address the deficit, and called a
special legislative session on the issue. Finance Director Mike Genest is at
the podium. BBAER@SACBEE.COM
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on Thursday proposed a temporary 1.5-cent sales tax increase and new levies on everything from sporting events to alcohol, as well as deep cuts in education and social services, to help close an estimated $24.2 billion state budget deficit through June 2010.
In a move that would
especially hit the
The Republican governor now enters the most challenging budget negotiations of his five-year tenure. His plan relies on GOP legislators voting for $4.7 billion in taxes less palatable than those they rejected this summer during a record 85-day budget stalemate. It also asks Democrats to accept a $4.5 billion round of cuts in education and social services.
Even then, the plan falls $2 billion short of closing the entire projected $11.2 billion gap through June 2009, said Department of Finance Director Michael Genest….
34. “Coming of age in
1938” (The Jerusalem Post,
HIGHLIGHT: In this
excerpt from 48 Hours of Kristallnacht,
survivors narrate their bar mitzvah experiences in the aftermath of the Night
of Broken Glass. © 2008 by
Mitchell G. Bard, PhD. Used by permission of The Lyons Press,
48 Hours of Kristallnacht By Mitchell G. Bard (The Lyons Press 256 pages; $19.95)
One of the most important life cycle events for a young Jewish boy and his family is the celebration of his bar mitzvah. Ordinarily the bar mitzvah is one of the happiest days of a boy’s life, but for these Jews it was a nightmare they will never forget….
Arnold Fleischmann lived
in
“We woke up to the sound of crashing. These huge Brownshirts with exposed daggers walked into our bedroom. We pretended to be asleep even though they turned the lights on. They didn’t bother us. They walked back out. They smashed all the kitchen dishes and china closets, turned over the furniture and made sure just about everything was broken. Then they discovered that Mr. Bloom had a collection of Sefer Torahs [Torah scrolls] and a group of scrolls like the Megillah and they rolled the carpet back and started to burn them on the living room floor. To this day I will never forget the smell of burning parchment. Then they grabbed Tisha Bloom and took him away and left us crying in the middle of this total disaster.
“When I realized there
was nothing I could do for the Blooms, I realized that something similar could
have been happening at my house. They had ripped out the telephone. So I got
dressed and took what money I had and went to a public telephone. This all
happened at
“They took them to the
slaughterhouse and they were convinced they were going to be hung on meat
hooks, something that did happen as you may know in
“They took my father to the city prison because he was a leader of the Jewish community at that point. As the leader of the Jewish community, they wanted him locked up.
“I took the first train
I could find and went to
Arnold’s 13th birthday
had been on November 7th. His bar mitzvah was supposed to be November 12th in
35. “To Face Economic
Crisis, Obama Moves Quickly” (All Things Considered,
National Public Radio (NPR),
… JOHN YDSTIE: Even President Bush, who will meet with his successor on Monday, said, today that the country faces economic challenges that will not pause to let a new president settle in. Obama is being urged to name his economic team quickly, especially his choice for Treasury secretary….
Others say Obama’s team
could get involved in working with the Bush administration on focusing the $700
billion financial rescue plan, as well as working with Congress on the stimulus
package. Today, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said she envisioned a two-staged
stimulus, one bill from the lame duck Congress and another early next year
after Obama is in the White House. That one will likely include a permanent tax
cut, says Pelosi. And a tax cut for the middle class was, of course, at the
heart of Obama’s economic proposal says Mickey
Levy, chief economist at Bank of
Dr. MICKEY LEVY (Chief Economist, Bank of America New York): So, the fiscal stimulus, now that it moves to the top of the priority list, that stimulus package will include some of the components of Obama’s economic platform, including tax cuts for the middle and lower income households.
YDSTIE: And ironically, there are some other elements of Obama’s plan that might move more easily through the Congress because of the recession. Obama’s proposals for spending on infrastructure and alternative energy could also be moved forward to provide stimulus and job creation for a faltering economy, says Levy….
36. “New lineup of S.F.
supervisors” (San Francisco Chronicle,
--Wyatt Buchanan, Chronicle Staff Writer
(11-05) 14:20 PST SAN FRANCISCO -- San Francisco
voters seem to have kept the current political makeup of their Board of
Supervisors, as they chose new leaders in three critical races, while two
incumbents who faced no significant opposition held onto their seats….
Incumbent Supervisor Carmen Chu was just above the 50 percent mark with 100 percent of precincts counted. Challenger Ron Dudum had 36 percent of the vote….
37. “Prop. 8 defeat could cost Newsom in long term” (San Francisco
Chronicle,
--Erin Allday, Chronicle Staff Writer
Mayor Gavin Newsom listens to questions from the media regarding Tuesday’s election and the passing of Proposition 8 during a press conference Wednesday at San Francisco City Hall. (Lance Iversen / The Chronicle)
(11-05) 20:29 PST -- Election night was not kind to Gavin Newsom, who may end up one of the biggest losers after suffering a potentially crushing loss with Proposition 8 and at best breaking even in the local contests he had a stake in….
Newsom was the primary target for the statewide campaign to ban same-sex marriages, featured prominently in radio and TV advertisements. He’s the one public figure most attached to the proposition, and he’s the politician most likely to lose face now that voters have approved it….
The mayor said it was too soon to call the supervisor races, but he pointed out that two candidates he appointed to the board - Carmen Chu, who is holding on to a slim majority, and Sean Elsbernd, who had no serious challengers - won their seats, a victory that he said was especially important….
38. “S.F. voters
surprisingly conservative on issues” (San Francisco Chronicle
--Heather Knight, Chronicle Staff Writer
It sounds like a stereotypical San Franciscan’s dream: spend big on affordable housing, explore public power, decriminalize prostitution, vote against the military in schools - and, like icing on the political cake, name a sewage treatment plant after George Bush.
But none of that happened.
Despite the city’s far-left reputation, San Franciscans defeated a host of liberal ballot measures and voted in favor of keeping JROTC in the public schools. And perhaps even more surprisingly, 1 in 4 voters voted to ban same-sex marriage….
The outcomes for the Board of Supervisors races, however, appear to have gone the exact opposite way. In the three swing districts, the more left-leaning candidates … are all winning….
Political consultant David Latterman said voters want “neighborhood guys, their man on the street” to represent them at the Board of Supervisors, but look at citywide ballot measures with a more centrist bent - especially in tough economic times.
“Citywide, it’s not the time to tinker,” he said….
39. “S.F. ranked-choice
voting slow, confusing” (San Francisco Chronicle,
--C.W. Nevius, Chronicle Columnist
(11-05)
“I have had so many people come up to me today and say, ‘I’m so sorry you lost,’ “ said supervisor candidate Mark Sanchez.
Actually, Sanchez hasn’t lost - at least not yet.
Two days after the election, he’s still locked in a close race with opponent David Campos in District Nine…. Because of the city’s complicated ranked-choice voting procedures, in which voters pick a second and third candidate to avoid costly runoff races, election officials aren’t expected to have results in some supervisor races until Friday.
Is this really the best way to run an election? Although experts say ranked-choice voting is here to stay, it has so many negatives that it is hard to believe this is the best we can do. The system encourages wheeling and dealing among candidates, allows someone who did not gain a majority of the votes in the first round to win, and doesn’t create a head-to-head runoff between the two top candidates….
In 1984, former Supervisor Ed Jew won the election in the heavily Asian Sunset District even though he trailed Ron Dudum after the second round….
But the reality is Jew’s comeback was unusual. In most situations, the person who gets the largest number of votes in the first place ends up winning.
“The reality is, in ranked-choice elections,” said political consultant David Latterman, “the way to win the election is to get the most votes.” …
40. “State and Local
Election Results” Post election (Forum, KQED Radio,
We review the results of state and local election measures and races with a panel of journalists. Host: Michael Krasny
Guests:
• Anthony York, editor of Capitol Weekly
• Damien Bulwah, staff writer for the San Francisco Chronicle
• Dan Borenstein, columnist and editorial writer for the Contra Costa Times
• Rachel Gordon, reporter for the San Francisco Chronicle
Dan Borenstein: “The opponents of Prop 8 will continue to fight, but the the fight will be tougher, there will be a higher legal threshold, if the ban on same-sex marriage is voted into the state constitution.” …
“When you have something like a high-speed rail, it’s not only the riders who benefit, it’s those who do not ride on it who benefit….”
“Bonds are sort of like the credit card of government. Voters were willing to spend money with bonds, but not spend money from the general fund.”
41. “CLIMATE: Obama
admin in position to take lead on cap-and-trade bill” (Environment and Energy
Daily,
--Darren Samuelsohn, E&E Daily senior reporter
Proponents of a major overhaul to U.S. global warming policy scored a big victory yesterday with Barack Obama’s election to the White House and larger Democratic majorities in the House and Senate.
But the sheer complexity of the climate issue and the country’s continued economic problems do not make it any easier for Democratic leaders who hope to craft a cap-and-trade package that Obama can sign into law….
Obama energy adviser Dan Kammen yesterday said cap-and-trade legislation will be a top priority for the incoming administration, one that will require significant expansions and perhaps many changes across government agencies and at the White House. “If we’re really going to develop a new currency, globally and in the U.S., around carbon, then we’ll all need to work together in a new way,” he said. “It involves the people who are on the traditional environmental side, the EPA, integrated with the people doing the books.” …
According to Ned Helme, president of the Center for Clean Air Policy, Obama does not need to have a final cap-and-trade bill signed into law come Copenhagen. On the diplomatic front, it is more important for Obama to “put a target on the table” and then let U.S. lawmakers haggle over the details of emission allowances and other controversial components of the new system.
“The biggest incentive will be whether the U.S. is taking real action,” Helme said. “It’s all about if we move the ball down the track. The target is what’s important.” …
42. “The Bizz: $200,000
in grants to promote green technology in the I.E.” (Inland
Valley Daily Bulletin,
The Green Valley Initiative recently announced it has received grants and pledges totaling nearly $200,000 to help fund future efforts to bring clean and green technologies to the Inland Empire…. The Morgan Family Foundation, a nonprofit benefitting youth, education, environment and stewardship, has pledged a $50,000 matching grant to help fund a detailed action plan developed by economist Doug Henton of Collaborative Economics Inc. The study will pinpoint strategies and approaches to take when GVI is formally launched as an independent entity in January….
43. “A flier’s plea to
the new president” (The Associated Press,
By Scott McCartney, The Wall Street Journal
Dear Mr. Next President,
Your “To Do” list is obviously quite long, what with war, recession and other problems awaiting attention. But there’s one problem vital to the nation’s well-being that can be improved relatively quickly and comparatively cheaply.
Fix the nation’s air-traffic-control system.
It doesn’t have to take decades; you can make a lot of progress now when air-traffic congestion is in a lull, and boost capacity before the next presidential election in 2012. Millions of Americans who travel by air would appreciate the help….
Delays cost airlines $8.1 billion in direct operating costs in 2007, mostly burning extra fuel and paying crews for the extra time. That’s more than the U.S. industry has ever earned in a year. Cutting delays can boost productivity, help the environment, reduce foreign oil imports and make the airline industry more financially stable….
Many industry watchers would like to see the FAA split into two parts: a safety regulator for airlines, airports and air-traffic controllers, and a separate air-traffic-control system run in a business-like manner by a not-for-profit entity, not government.
One major reason to split the FAA is that the agency today is both the safety regulator and the operator. In air-traffic control, the FAA regulates itself, leading to potential conflicts of interest.
Dorothy Robyn, a principal of Brattle Group and the White House transportation adviser in the Clinton administration, says the U.S. is one of the few industrialized nations in which air-traffic control is still operated and regulated by the same agency. This summer she proposed that a split would enhance safety and at the same time yield faster progress on modernization.
“The problems of the air-traffic-control system are the predictable result of flawed public policy,” Dr. Robyn says.
Air-traffic control is a high-technology business these days, requiring lots of investment in new equipment and lots of focus on productivity and service. Traditional government agencies aren’t particular good at that, especially when constrained by federal budget rules and sometimes micromanaged by Congress….
To be sure, air-traffic control is a vital service that must be regulated. But other countries like Canada, the United Kingdom and Australia have found that a corporate-like agency can deliver better air-traffic-control services than the government can. As quasi-corporations, they can buy or develop technology faster and become more focused on meeting the needs of airlines and the traveling public with less focus on politics and bureaucracy….
[Dorothy Robyn’s paper, “Air Support: Creating a Safer and More Reliable Air Traffic Control System,” is available for download at http://www.brookings.edu/events/2008/0725_infrastructure.aspx .]
44. “Few options remain
when job insurance disappears” (The Associated Press,
By Tom Murphy, Associated Press Writer
Among the jobless, Smith is one of the lucky few with solid health insurance that she can afford. And it covers thousands of dollars in prescription drugs she could never pay for herself.
Health problems forced the 55-year-old to leave her job as a human resources director several years ago. She takes medication to help cope with spine problems, multiple sclerosis and high blood pressure, among other ailments.
She’s covered under the Indiana Comprehensive Health Insurance Association, a state-backed safety net program, and pays $2,198 every three months….
The first and best option for people who lose their employers’ insurance is switching to coverage through a spouse or family member. Then there’s COBRA, the Consolidated Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act. The cost of extending this employer’s insurance, however, usually rises about fivefold once you leave the payroll.
“You would go from paying 20 percent to paying all of it,” said Karen Pollitz, a research professor at the Georgetown Health Policy Institute. She said the cost of a COBRA policy quickly becomes a “conversation stopper” for those who have just lost their income….
45. “PBM Services
Agreement with Health Plan of San Mateo” (Market News Publishing,
SXC Health Solutions Corp. announces that its pharmacy benefit management (PBM) division, informedRx, has signed a five-year agreement with the Health Plan of San Mateo (HPSM) valued at more than $50 million annually. Based in San Francisco, California, HPSM provides health care benefits to 59,000 members….
“SXC’s PBM services come with full transparency that will enable us to track and manage our prescription drug program much more closely,” said Maya Altman, Executive Director of HPSM. “Armed with this information and SXC’s innovative technology platform, we can take control of our benefit programs to ensure that they are cost effective and delivering a superior level of care to our members.” …
46. “AARP questioned on
health plans; Lawmaker says policies mislead about costs of catastrophic care”
(
By Julie Appleby
Some health plans offered by AARP, an advocacy group for older Americans, mislead consumers into thinking they’re protected from catastrophic health costs but leave them vulnerable to paying tens of thousands of dollars, Sen. Chuck Grassley says….
The AARP plans, backed by UnitedHealth Group, one of the largest insurers, cap what the insurer pays but not what policyholders might owe. Such policies, often called “limited benefit plans,” are a small but growing segment of the market offered by many insurers. They generally cost less than traditional coverage….
One plan pays $3,928 for a coronary artery bypass. Yet that surgery averaged $33,000 in hospital costs in 2006, reports the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. The plans don’t cover the first day of hospital care.
Karen Pollitz of Georgetown University’s Health Policy Institute in
47. “Analisis: Obama y
la paradoja
By Ian Bremmer y Sean West
“Cuál de los dos candidatos
a la presidencia estadounidense, Barack Obama y John McCain, es más probable
que acometa una política activa en favor
A punto de terminar la campaña electoral, a los observadores podría perdonárseles que concluyan erróneamente que el presidente es el único que decide la política económica de Estados Unidos y, por este motivo, que John McCain es mejor en dicha materia….
La agenda comercial de un eventual presidente McCain se enfrentaría a la oposición
decidida de un Congreso demócrata, particularmente cuando las probables
discusiones sobre impuestos, sanidad y la guerra de Irak generen hostilidad en
ambos lados. Sin embargo, hasta los congresistas demócratas puede que no se
muestren tan reticentes a los tratados de comercio
El Congreso habría tenido muy fácil cerrar la puerta a los acuerdos comerciales de hace unos meses con Colombia y Corea del Sur.Al demorar las votaciones sobre estos asuntos, en lugar de simplemente rechazarlos, es posible que se llegue a tales acuerdos una vez hayan amainado las presiones del año electoral sobre todo si los legisladores demócratas pueden compartir el mérito con un presidente de su mismo partido. Se puede contar con que la mayoría de los republicanos favorables al libre comercio apoyarán la liberalización independientemente de qué partido se aloje en la Casa Blanca.
Sólo
Nixon pudo ir a
Ian Bremmer es
presidente
48. “Costs for new prison health program called ‘staggering’”
(Sacramento Bee,
By Andy Furillo
If they ever get built, the prison medical czar’s long-term care facilities for inmates will cost $2.3 billion a year to run, mostly due to staffing increases that will include art therapists and beauticians.
Those are among the key findings of a corrections agency draft analysis of federal receiver J. Clark Kelso’s plan to build the seven facilities for 10,000 inmates. The annual operation costs would come on top of the receiver’s $7 billion plan to build them, financed with lease revenue bonds.
The unsigned Oct. 11
report obtained by The Bee called the $230,000 per-inmate cost “staggering.” It
is nearly five times the average $46,104 needed to house a run-of-the-mill
“While the development of a comfortable, decorated living space with outdoor courtyards, private rooms, and overnight visitation, may indeed promote healing, it appears to be an extraordinary step by the federal government to impose a ‘Class A, State-of-the-Art’ facility design on what has been characterized to date publicly as an effort to achieve only ‘a minimum standard of care,’ deemed necessary to prevent unnecessary deaths,” the report said.
“It is also unclear what the reaction of the public will be to providing this extensive ‘enhanced universal health care’ model to convicted felons when (law abiding citizens) are not afforded this same service, especially ... in ... fiscally uncertain times.”
Details in the report drew a sharp response Friday from Assemblyman Todd Spitzer, R-Orange, who led the opposition that derailed Kelso’s efforts to fund his construction plan through the Legislature.
“He has never defined what is constitutional health care,” Spitzer said. “Now I know. It’s obviously having barbers and beauticians for prisoners. He’ll probably want them to do hair weaving next.” …
49. “ADB targets
coordinated water management in
The
“The lack of regional
cooperation on water resources poses a major threat to economic integration and
growth in
ADB has approved a $998,000 regional technical assistance grant which will be used to support knowledge-sharing on water resources in the region and strengthen the capacity of institutions tasked with managing them….
50. “Abogados demandan a
fiscales de inmigración” (El Nuevo Herald (
By Ketty Rodriguez/ El Nuevo Herald
Una coalición de
abogados de derechos civiles de
La información la dio a conocer ayer el Centro de Leyes Nacional de Inmigración (NILC), la Unión Americana de Libertades Civiles (ACLU) de Carolina del Sur y el Gremio Nacional de Abogados de Los Angeles.
La demanda contra el gobierno federal alega que se viola la Ley de Libertad de Información.
Los tres grupos aseguran haber solicitado hace siete meses información al Departamento de Seguridad Interna (DHS) y al Servicio de Inmigración y Control de Aduanas (ICE) y afirman que “el gobierno ha fallado en proporcionar siquiera un solo documento”.
“El gobierno ha desaprovechado una oportunidad de apaciguar las preocupaciones en la comunidad sobre la forma en que realiza estas redadas. Si cree que está haciendo las redadas en forma humana y siguiendo la ley, debe dar los documentos que esta demanda persigue”, Karen Tumlin, abogada de NILC….
51. “Drive collects
items for homeless children; News and notes from the real estate community”
(Atlanta Journal-Constitution,
By Mary Booth Thomas ; For the Journal-Constitution
The Dan Sweat Community
Leadership Award was presented to Dr. Wayne Clough, former
52. “USPS facility fight
costs $240,000. Aliso Viejo uses general-fund revenue for
legal consultation and publicity against mail-processing plant” (Orange County
Register,
By Chris Caesar ; The
The Aliso Viejo City Council has appropriated or spent more than $240,000 while waging an “aggressive” campaign against a proposed postal-processing plant in the city, records obtained from the city’s financial services department reveal….
The campaign’s two-year cost of $240,114.43 exceeds general fund expenditures for elementary and middle after-school programs ($235,100), and is a little more than 60 percent of the city’s street maintenance expenditures ($380,000) in the 2007-08 fiscal year….
While
“There is a general authority for a city to express its views on something that the state or federal government is going to do, and that’s considered a legal, proper use of resources” said Joanne Speers, executive director of the League of California Cities’ Institute of Local Government. “Of course, the law is the floor – so something could be legal, but maybe it’s not the best practice to engage in.”
Speers added that ethical considerations – in particular, that such campaigns be “fair, relevant and truthful” – should be carefully followed in such situations.
While it may be frustrating for residents not supportive of such a campaign, she added, it would be no different than any other expenditure with which a resident may disagree….
53. “Council votes to
keep park rangers” (Oakland Tribune,
By Lucinda Ryan – Correspondent
The City Council voted Tuesday to keep the city’s remaining three park ranger positions that were marked for cuts in Mayor Ron Dellums’ budget recommendations.
The council’s vote
included a caveat to restrict rangers’ overtime for emergencies only, according
to Sabrina Landreth, legislative analyst to the
“The council felt the rangers are in a pretty specialized position,” Landreth said.
[Councilmember Jean] Quan said she was pleased about the three positions saved and that limiting overtime “may give us an opportunity to fill more ranger positions when the police academy has more graduates.”
Dellums’ proposal had
drawn fire from
54. “Rhode Island
Department of Corrections Announces Brown Education Link Lecture Series: Brown
Professors to Lead Weekly Discussions with Medium Security Inmates” (US States
News,
The schedule for the fall lecture series is as follows: 10/17 Joan Richards, Professor of History, The Light of Isaac Newton 10/22 Glenn Loury, Professor of Economics, Inequality in America 10/31 Ross Cheit, Associate Professor of Political Science, Children as Citizens 11/3 Seth Rockman, Assistant Professor of History, Black Citizenship on the Streets of Providence, 1800-1860 11/10 Cynthia T. Garcia Coll, Professor of Education, Immigration and Education 11/17 Barrymore Bogues, Professor of Africana Studies, How were Human Rights Invented? 12/3 Mark Cladis, Professor of Religious Studies, Caring Makes Us Human: Caring in and out of Prison 12/8 Lecture pending
... The Brown professors are volunteering their time and there is no cost to the state to offer the program….
55. “Inaugural National Summit on Personalized Health Care Outlines Vision, Strategies for Bringing Patients Personalized, Genetic-Informed Care” (Biotech Business Week, October 20, 2008); story citing ROBERT MITTMAN (MPP 1984).
The Organizing Committee
for the National Summit on Personalized Health Care (NSPHC) announced that its
inaugural event, held October 5 to October 7 in
Chaired and convened by
Utah Governor Jon M. Huntsman, the
Keynote addresses for the Summit were provided by honorary co-chairs Michael O. Leavitt, U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services, and Clayton Christensen of Harvard Business School, and U.S. Senators Bob Bennett and Orrin Hatch….
The NSPHC was designed
as a highly interactive, action- and outcomes-oriented gathering. Participants not
only contribute dynamically to the discussions and develop strategies and
action plans, as facilitated at the 2008
56. “Preparan demanda
por la ciudadanía” (La Opinión,
By Jorge Morales Almada
Organizaciones
defensoras de los derechos civiles están tratando de localizar a personas que han sido afectadas por los retrasos en los procesos de
ciudadanía para continuar una demanda colectiva que desde diciembre
De acuerdo con la
demanda, muchos inmigrantes que cumplieron con los requisitos para convertirse
en ciudadanos estadounidenses han quedado en el limbo
debido a los largos tiempos de espera en la revisión de los antecedentes de las
personas por parte
Los casos se refieren a
personas que han visto detenidos sus procesos debido a
que la revisión
Las organizaciones
señalaron que en el área de Los Ángeles y los condados de
Esos tiempos, que han tomado al menos más de un año, violan los límites impuestos por la ley, dijo Karen Tumlin, abogada del National Immigration Law Center (NILC), una de las organizaciones que impulsa la demanda.
“Por ley”, señaló ayer la abogada Tumlin, “el proceso para obtener la ciudadanía debe ser completado en un plazo no mayor de seis meses”….
Datos de la Oficina
Sin embargo, se dijo, en
los casos que tienen en espera más de seis meses el rezago
La abogada Tumlin indicó que hay mucha gente que no tiene dinero
“Por ello pusimos esta demanda”, dijo la abogada del NILC, que participa en la demanda junto con la Unión Americana para las Libertades Civiles (ACLU), el Asian Pacific American Legal Center y la firma de abogados Munger, Tolles & Olson….
57. “Questions emerge
about solar deal” (Idaho Press-Tribune,
By Michael R. Blood - The Associated Press
A
LOS ANGELES — A relative of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and one of his former cabinet secretaries are part of a private investment group that could score a lucrative payoff if regulators approve a sprawling solar-energy complex near the Mojave Desert Preserve.
The personal connections have raised questions about possible favorable treatment for a project being touted as a breakthrough in the development of solar power.
Robert F. Kennedy Jr., an environmental attorney who is the cousin of first lady Maria Shriver, and former state Environmental Protection Secretary Terry Tamminen were named senior advisers at VantagePoint Venture Partners last year.
VantagePoint has a
multimillion-dollar stake in startup BrightSource Energy, which plans to spend
up to $2 billion to construct solar-power plants on nearly 6 square miles of
cactus-studded land along the
If approved, the project would be the first solar-generating station on U.S. Bureau of Land Management property….
A company official said Kennedy and Tamminen are not working on the Bright-Source application submitted to the state a year ago, but they each could profit if construction gets green-lighted by regulators and Bright-Source prospers….
Schwarzenegger has been
pushing
Kennedy said he had not spoken directly to the governor or his cousin about the pending application.
“I’m not going to do anything that puts me in a conflicted position,” Kennedy said.
Vantage Point executives — including CEO Alan Salzman and managing partner Jim Marver — have given Schwarzenegger’s political committees nearly $30,000 in direct or indirect donations , records show.
58. “Professor Weimer Elected to National
Academy of Public Administration” (Targeted News Service,
Weimer is an expert on cost-benefit analysis, and his current research focuses on health policy issues, including the role of report cards in promoting improved quality of care, the social and fiscal net benefits of screening for Alzheimer’s disease, the organ transplant network as a model for medical governance, and the proper measurement of social costs associated with the regulation of addictive goods like tobacco. His other research addresses issues in energy security, natural resource policy, education, and research methods….
Weimer, who served as president
of the Association for Public Policy Analysis and Management in 2006, will
be inaugurated as a fellow in
59. “The Urban Institute
and the
PARTICIPANTS: David Brunori of George Washington University; Chri Edwards of the Cato Institute; Tracy Gordon of the University of Maryland School of Public Policy; Nick Johnson of the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities; and Kim Rueben of the Urban Institute and the Tax Policy Center
60. “Comcast’s straw
drinks your bandwidth” (Blast Magazine,
By Manuel Uribe
The day has come for all Comcast High-Speed residential Internet customers: You officially have a usage cap. The “customer-defined” usage limit is 250 GB a month….
So why should anyone who doesn’t live on the Internet care? The speed of technological advancement dictates that pretty soon, this “massive” usage cap will become a noose we so quickly placed on ourselves. With the advent of not only high-definition video on demand, and digital downloads, there are a score of other programs that use the bandwidth while people just check their email, or just check their networking sites. Even websites have become more content rich. Heavy text news sites have become a multi-media room. What 56K once could handle is a neanderthal-like usage now with higher speeds becoming standard. As Internet speeds rise, and our daily lives connect more to the Internet, the usage cap will seem more and more stringent.
“Though the proposed cap is relatively high, it will increasingly ensnare more users as technology continues its natural progression,” said Free Press Research Director S. Derek Turner….
61. “Cannery business park makes sense” (Davis Enterprise,
At last Monday’s joint
City Council/ Business and Economic Development Commission meeting, I was the
lone commissioner to speak in favor of a business park at the cannery site. I
did so because the recent Business Park Viability Study provides ample evidence
to support the development of a business park, leading me to believe that such
a business park would greatly benefit the city of
Developing a business
park at the cannery site will allow
In addition, a business park will increase city revenues, which will enable the city to continue to provide a high level of services to residents without imposing new taxes.
The bottom line is that a business park at the cannery site makes sense — and cents.
Anissa Nachman, Davis
62. “Governor Paterson
Rings in New Era to Combat Climate Change” (States News Service,
ALBANY, NY -- Governor David A. Paterson today opened the nations first-ever auction of carbon dioxide allowances when he rang the ceremonial bell at the New York Mercantile Exchange in Manhattan, and by doing so launched the nations most serious initiative yet to reduce emissions of greenhouse gases. New York and nine other Northeast and Mid-Atlantic states have come together to launch the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI), a mandatory program that covers more than 200 fossil fuel power plants, requiring the owners of those plants pay for the carbon dioxide they emit into the air….
Joe Kruger, Policy Director
Bipartisan Policy Center/National Commission on Energy Policy, said: The
RGGI states have shown great leadership as they have developed their cap and
trade program. The RGGI auction will provide valuable lessons to policymakers
addressing climate change in the
63. “
64. “A New Philadelphia Story” (The School Administrator, January 2008); commentary by SCOTT JOFTUS (MPP 1994); http://www.edstrategies.net/Philly.pdf
By SCOTT JOFTUS
Administrators and
policymakers considering changes to the governance of their districts would be
wise to study the experience of the
Admission: My consulting
firm, Cross & Joftus, was hired by
In December 2001,
In the roughly six intervening years, real change has taken place. Most importantly, student achievement in kindergarten throuogh 8th grade across the school district has increased steadily.
The district managed to make these changes with a level of funding significantly less than that of surrounding surburban districts and less than many other large urban systems across the country. The district achieved a significant bang for its educational buck.
However, serious problems remain….
How to make sense of the
Despite the attention brought by this effort, we concluded that the factors most likely to be responsible for the gains in K-8 achievement were the expansion of access to prekindergarten programs, implementation of a core curriculum and aligned periodic assessments across all schools, reduction of teacher turnover and absenteeism and the improved use of data to drive district, school and classroom decisions….
1. “
By Lisa Vorderbrueggen, Josh Richman, Matt Krupnick and Denis Cuff, Contra Costa Times
Speculation is practically an Olympic sport in politics and few events on the political calendar draw more buzz than the post-presidential election appointments scramble....
The Bay Area’s named and would-be named members of the Obama team hail from its elite universities, such as UC Berkeley and Stanford, congressional delegation, high-tech companies and law firms....
Here’s a list of Bay Area leaders whose names are prominently featured in new accounts as contenders for Obama administration assignments:
Robert Reich
UC Berkeley public policy professor Reich
is a former
A former Rhodes scholar, Reich, 62, has written 11 books and at least one play, “Public Exposure.”
His book “The Work of Nations” has been translated into 22 languages….
2. “Paying Off Credit Debt Should be No. 1 Priority” (KCBS Radio,
--Jane McMillan
San
Francisco (KCBS) -- With the economy in
tatters, some hard lessons on how to live on one’s means are hitting home—that
includes not dipping into home equity anymore and over-reaching for that
plastic in our wallets should be also be off limits, according to Professor Robert Reich of University
California, Berkeley, and former Labor Secretary under President
Clinton....
Professor Reich says credit card companies are taking fewer chances on new card holders and they’re cracking down hard on late payers.
“Part of the adjustment that people are going to have to make is to clean up their own personal balance sheets. Many people just don’t know how much money they’re paying on their credit cards; they just roll them over from month to month. They don’t know they’re paying a huge interest rate of 16, 18... even 23 percent.”
And time is of the essence, according to Reich. It will be at least another year or two of job losses and falling home values until things turn around. Reich says paying off your credit cards should be a top priority and one of your first New Year’s resolutions....
3. “General
Motors should get bailout, too” – Commentary by ROBERT REICH (Marketplace [NPR],
ROBERT REICH: Citigroup was once the biggest U.S. bank. General Motors was once the biggest auto maker in the world. Now, both are on the brink. Yet Citigroup got a $25 billion government rescue last weekend without anyone batting an eye. General Motors may not be rescued at all....
Yet General Motors has a far greater impact on jobs and communities than Citigroup. Add parts suppliers and their employees, and the number of middle-class and blue-collar jobs dependent on GM is many multiples of Citi. And the potential social cost of GM’s demise, or even major shrinkage, is much larger—including entire communities whose infrastructure and housing may become nearly worthless.
Now, I’m not arguing GM should be given a blank check. Its creditors, shareholders, executives, and workers should have to make substantial sacrifices before taxpayers are expected to sacrifice as well....
Robert Reich is a professor of public policy at the University of California, Berkeley. His most recent book is called “Supercapitalism.”
4. “We need
more government spending” – Commentary by ROBERT
REICH (Marketplace [NPR],
ROBERT REICH: The economy has just about come to a standstill—not because credit markets are clogged, but because there’s not enough demand in the economy to keep it going. Consumer spending is down. Investment is drying up. And exports are dropping.
Government is the spender of last resort. Which means we need a stimulus package of about $600 billion, this time focused on repairing the nation’s crumbling infrastructure, helping states maintain services, and investing in new green technologies to wean the nation off oil. It’s a whopping sum, but spending that puts Americans back to work and invests in future productivity. That’s exactly what the economy needs right now....
Meanwhile, Conservative supply-siders are calling for income-tax cuts, claiming that people with more money in their pockets will get the economy moving again more readily than can government. They are wrong, too. Tax cuts go mainly to upper-income people who tend to save rather than spend.
Even if a rebate could be fashioned for the middle class, it wouldn’t do much good because, as we saw the last time, people tend to use extra cash to pay off debts rather than buy goods and services....
Robert Reich is a professor of public policy at the University of California, Berkeley. His most recent book is called “Supercapitalism.”
5.
“Uncertainty on Strategy in Citi Rescue” (Wall Street Journal,
By Damian Paletta and Deborah Solomon
After trying to bolster the financial system with a broad-based plan of injecting capital into lenders, officials over the weekend reverted to their ad hoc approach of rushing to prop up a specific troubled institution. This came just days after Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson issued assurances that rescue programs to date had removed the dangers of a big financial institution toppling….
“The big enemy of capital markets is uncertainty
and this degree of nontransparency is potentially quite dangerous,” says Robert Reich, a liberal economist at the
6. “Obama Names Congressional Budget Expert to
Head Federal Budget Office” (CNN Newsroom,
Kyra Phillips: Well, my next guest calls the next
president’s economic brain trust a wonderful team. He is a former team player
himself as labor secretary under President Clinton. And today, Robert Reich is a [UC Berkeley] professor,
economic adviser to the Obama transition team and best selling author, most
recently of “Supercapitalism: The Transformation of Business, Democracy and
Everyday Life.” He joins us from the
Well I know you know a number of these players very well. Why don’t we start with Tim Geithner. What do you think? Obviously young, experienced—fits that whole fresh, new cabinet-type position.
Robert Reich: Yes, in fact, I think that there is a kind of consistency in vision here because most of the new additions to the economic team are pretty young. Now, from my standpoint, 47 is pretty young.
They also are fresh in the sense that they are not schooled in the same way. I think that Allan just pointed out Hank Paulson and other Treasury secretaries of recent vintage have been from Wall Street....
7. “MSNBC Interview with Obama Economic Advisor Robert Reich. Subject:
Obama Economic Team” (Federal News Service,
Andrea Mitchell: Joining us live now from UC
Berkeley in
MR. REICH: Well, it’s not an easy tightrope to walk, but at the same time, it’s very important, both economically and politically for the president-elect to walk it. That is, … he wants to lay the predicate for a very large stimulus package, and—in my view, and I’m not speaking out of school; it’s just my view—it ought to be about 600 billion (dollars), maybe $700 billion, about 4 percent of gross domestic product, in order to have any effect at all, given that consumers have basically cut way back on spending. Investment is down, and exports can’t be relied on, so you have to have something to keep the economy going now.
But in order to get public support and Democrats’ support and blue dog Democrats’ support and Republican support for that kind of a stimulus package, there has got to be some guarantee that waste is going to be monitored. It’s not going to turn into pork. He’s going to go through the federal budget line by line and eliminate things that just don’t work. In other words, fiscal rectitude has got to be combined with a sense that we may have to have a much larger budget deficit to just bolster the economy.
MS. MITCHELL: I’ve been hearing about getting rid of waste in government going back probably 30 years since I’ve been covering this stuff. Does it ever really happen?
MR. REICH: ... Andrea, I can tell you in 1993 I was there sitting with Bill Clinton and Al Gore and his economic team, and we did literally go through step by step, line by line almost every budgetary item. And we got rid of a lot of stuff that shouldn’t have been there. But did it make a huge difference? The answer is no. Is it important to do? Yes. Economically, partly, but mostly I think for the cameras.
I think the public … does need to understand and have trust that there’s not going to be a pork fest. Now, this is especially true when you’re talking about a big stimulus package because the public still remembers bridges to nowhere.
MS. MITCHELL: But, when you talk about the real money, isn’t it in the non-discretionary money, the money that’s built into the budget? ...
MR. REICH: Yes, Medicare and Social Security are the huge elephants in the room. But actually Social Security is not nearly the elephant that Medicare is…. Social Security, if you look at the projections and … you assume about a 3 percent growth of the American economy per year—which I think is fair—… with Social Security it really is not that much of a problem over the next 75 years. Medicare is a huge problem, and lest we get costs under control with regard to medical costs. And that’s going to be a huge issue for the Obama administration. If Tom Daschle becomes the head of HHS, that’s going to be his bailiwick. Health care reform has got to be focusing not just on spreading access to health care in this country and health insurance but also on getting those costs way down….
8. “
Mika Brzezinski: President-elect Obama says creating two and a half million new jobs is a cornerstone of his economic recovery plan. Joining me now to go one on one is Robert Reich, secretary of Labor under President Clinton and the author of “Supercapitalism: The Transformation of Business, Democracy and Everyday Life.” …
I want to read from your blog, because you slammed
the Citi bailout on it. Here’s what you say. “If you had any doubt at all about
the primacy of Wall Street over Main Street, the utter lack of transparency
behind the biggest government giveaway in history to financial executives and
their shareholders, directors and creditors, and the intimate connections that
lie between the administrations, both Republican and Democrat, and the
heavyweights on Wall Street, your doubts should be laid to rest. The senior
executives of Citi, including those have served at the highest levels in the
You’re not mincing words. But then we’ve got Robert Rubin, who was extremely high up at Citi, played a huge role. And a lot of the folks on Barack Obama’s new economic team are Rubin acolytes.
MR. REICH: Well, Mika, I am certainly not in any way blaming Bob Rubin for what’s happened. And I think that the people who are on the team, from Larry Summers through Tim Geithner and Peter Orszag, are just about the best people in the business. It’s a … sterling team.
But there is a limited focus that Hank Paulson
has brought to this in terms of bailing out Wall Street and not bailing out
I think one of the big problems of the current administration, and one of the big failings of Hank Paulson, is a failure of transparency. I mean, Wall Street itself, not just the American people, not just our Democratic system, but Wall Street itself needs transparency. It needs to know what the Treasury is doing and why.
And Paulson originally started out one direction. He was going to buy back a lot of these toxic securities. And then he switched and he went in the direction of recapitalizing Wall Street, throwing a lot of money at Wall Street. And now he has announced a slight change again, trying to go after homeowners. Well, the trouble is, when nobody knows what direction the Treasury Department is going in, you create a lot of uncertainty on Wall Street. And uncertainty itself is a problem….
9. “College for the Few. Charles Murray aims to
provoke. This time, it’s with four broad-brush, simplistic claims about higher
education” (American Prospect [*requires registration],
David L.
Kirp
Real
Education: Four Simple Truths for Bringing
A quarter-century ago, a then-obscure social scientist named Charles Murray hit upon a surefire formula for creating a best-seller: 1) Pick a controversial topic like welfare (Losing Ground) or IQ (The Bell Curve). 2) Make an outrageous claim, adopting a tone of sweet reason and using (often misusing) elaborate social-science tools to impress the statistically unschooled. 3) Give those at the top of the heap license to believe they got there because of merit. 4) Await the brouhaha. 5) Watch the book climb to the top of the best-seller list.
In Real
Education,
No one would argue against truth No. 1, the
proposition that children have different abilities. What’s important is how
intelligence varies and what can be done to mitigate those differences. The
influential 1966 report, Equality of
Educational Opportunity, led many researchers to the dispiriting conclusion
that what happens inside the schoolhouse doesn’t affect achievement; the
decisive influences are the wealth of a student’s family and the wealth of his
or her classmates’ families.
DAVID L.
KIRP, professor of public policy and
law at the University of California, Berkeley, is the author of The Sandbox Investment: The Preschool
Movement and Kids-First Politics, and Shakespeare, Einstein, and the Bottom
Line: The Marketing of Higher Education.
10. “Top 10 Best Cabinet Members” (TIME Magazine,
Diana
Walker / Time Life Pictures / Getty Images
Robert Reich
Secretary of Labor, 1993-1997
A former Rhodes Scholar, Reich served as the 22nd
Labor Secretary under President Bill Clinton. Among his accomplishments
were helping to implement the Family and Medical Leave Act, raising the minimum
wage and leading a crackdown on sweatshops. He currently serves as an
adviser to President-elect Barack Obama and is a professor at the
11. “
By Mark Matthews
Christina Romer stands by as President-elect Barack Obama announces her appointment. (Pablo Martinez Monsivais / AP)
To guide the country through the current financial crisis, Mr. Obama has chosen a U.C. Berkeley professor to play a key role on his economic team.
Christina Romer, who has been in
She is a specialist in economic history, best known for her work on the economic recovery from the Great Depression….
[Alan Auerbach, Director of Berkeley’s
“She fits the job like a glove, she will love the job, and she’ll be enormously helpful to our president-elect and our president,” said Reich.
Reich and others say the first big hurdle for Romer will likely be access.
“The general rule is that proximity is 90 percent of influence,” said Reich…
12. “Recession’s Grip Forces U.S. to Flood World
with More Dollars” (Bloomberg,
By Rich Miller
(Bloomberg) -- The world needs more dollars. The
In an all-out assault on capitalism’s worst
crisis since the Great Depression, the
The Federal Reserve, which has already pumped out hundreds of billions of dollars, might formally adopt a policy of flooding the world financial system with even more money. The Treasury, on course to borrow some $1.5 trillion this fiscal year, may tap global capital markets for even more to finance a fiscal stimulus package of as much as $700 billion and provide additional bailout money for banks....
“Government may have to spend $600 billion to
$700 billion next year to reverse the downward cycle,” Robert Reich, another Obama adviser and a professor at the
13. “Countdown with Keith Olbermann” (MSNBC,
MR. OLBERMANN: Let’s turn now to one of Mr.
Obama’s economic advisers, the former
MR. REICH: Well, it could be monorails; not jetpacks, I don’t think. But, you know, the infrastructure—our roads and bridges and levees and ports—have been crumbling for years. There’s a lot of deferred maintenance that’s been going on, unfortunately. And what we have to do is rebuild that infrastructure—our electric grid, also green technologies, alternative fuels. There is a lot to do.
Now, it’s a double whammy for the
MR. OLBERMANN: And what about bailouts? I mean, does Mr. Obama think that we need Citigroup the same way that we need the big three automakers?
MR. REICH: Well, first of all, let me make sure you [and] the viewers understand, these are my views—not reflecting Obama’s views. But with regard to the automobile industry, the consensus … emerging seems to be that everybody, all stakeholders, the creditors and the shareholders and the big three automakers overall and the UAW, all have to put up something on the table.
All have to make sacrifices before taxpayers should be willing to put some taxpayer money up as well, and that it’s not a matter of simply tiding the automobile industry over during the recession until they can go back to making the same cars they were making before. No, it has to be a total restructuring of the industry, a new business plan, so that the big three can be competitive in the future, and fuel-efficient as well….
14. “
NEW YORK (Associated Press) - In the heart of southwestern Indiana’s coal country, Duke Energy Corp. crews are building what the company’s chief executive calls the power plant of the future—a $2.35 billion complex where coal will be turned into a gas, stripped of pollutants, then burned to generate electricity.
The project, one of the “clean coal” technologies supported by President-elect Barack Obama, will become by far the nation’s largest coal-gasification plant when it goes online in 2012, generating enough power to light more than 200,000 homes.
Duke Energy spokeswoman Angeline Protogere defends the plant and its higher cost, which she said did not become clear until Duke began negotiating with contractors after the project was approved.
She said the plant will produce about 75 percent less sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide and mercury than the traditional 160-megawatt coal-fired plant it will replace, even though that plant runs only about 30 percent of the time….
And she said Duke wants to study ways to equip the plant to “capture” some of the 4 million tons of carbon dioxide it would release annually. Such a step would help the plant comply with any greenhouse gas caps Congress might impose, but also boost its cost….
Energy expert Daniel M. Kammen said the Edwardsport plant could provide a key lesson for the coal industry, in which future plants will likely be those with low carbon dioxide emissions.
“The new economics of coal need to reflect the
price of holding down greenhouse gases,” said Kammen, director of the
Renewable and Appropriate Energy Laboratory at the
15. “Late Edition with Wolf Blitzer” (CNN,
BLITZER: Joining us now … Robert Reich was the secretary of labor during the
The Dow Jones Industrial average, a little bit more than a year ago, it reached a high of 14,164. Right now, it closed on Friday, 8,046. That’s, what, a 40 percent drop…. What’s going on here? Because people are losing their portfolios, their pensions, their 401(k)s. It’s an enormous, an enormous drain on the country’s wealth.
REICH:
... I think the major problem here is that consumers were responsible for 77
percent of the economic activity in the
But the minute that housing bubble burst, consumers had no more money in their pockets. And you cannot run an economy where median wages are dropping and most of the benefits of the economy are going to the very top….
… But most importantly, we have a new
president-elect who understands that it’s not just about finance, it’s not just
about credit, it’s about
Again, I want to emphasize… the whole credit market can be resolved and improved, but unless people have the power to actually borrow, you know, you’re whistling in the wrong direction….
16. “Interview with Robert Reich” (CTV Television (
CRAIG OLIVER: People close to Mrs. Clinton, her confidantes, are being widely reported … as being ready to take the job of secretary of state. Is she going to have a difficult time if she takes that, subordinating her strong views to the views of a man who she fought hard, one of the toughest campaigns in American history, and could have beaten? …
ROBERT REICH: Not at all. I’ve known Hillary Clinton for over 40 years. She is not only one of the most competent people I know, and one of the strongest and committed public servants, but she also knows very well what her role is. When she has been senator, she’s been junior senator from New York, she has distinguished herself not by grandstanding, not by kind of getting the spotlight as some senators try to do but, she has worked carefully behind the scenes. She’s respected the senate’s own hierarchy. She has been extraordinarily loyal and capable as a senator. I expect her to be no less loyal and capable as a secretary of state.
OLIVER: And what about a role for Robert Reich?
REICH:
Well, I have no present plans or expectations to go to
OLIVER: And what about your old pal Bill Clinton? Is he going to get in the way there? I mean it is a most unusual situation, is it not, for a former president who still carries a lot of power by that virtue to be part of an administration of another president?
REICH:
... Look, Bill Clinton is a great asset around the world. He is greatly
respected around the world. Hillary Clinton is enormously respected around the
world. I have heard rumours to the effect that Al Gore will also be a kind of a
roving ambassador with regard to the environment, although I can’t confirm
those rumours at all, and I think that these people have distinguished records
of public service that are recognized all around the world. One other point,
Craig, and that is that Barack Obama, I think, by the very nature of who he is,
his biography, his own personal being, is going to represent and establish a
new page in American foreign policy. It’s not going to be possible for people
around the world any longer to look to the
17. “California, still the climate leader” (San Francisco Chronicle, November 21, 2008); op-ed by Visiting Scholar CEPP ROBERT COLLIER and citing program developed by CISCO DEVRIES (MPP 2000); http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/11/21/EDTU148TMN.DTL&type=printable
--Robert Collier
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger
convened a two-day summit in
… California’s influence was amply demonstrated
this week at the
“We’re in terrible budget crisis, and this will
be a big challenge for climate-related programs,” said Nancy Skinner, a
longtime activist on global warming who was elected this month to the state
Assembly in the
“Some of these programs (at risk) are very basic. For example, on the table will be very significant cuts to funding for public transit. This will affect greenhouse gas emissions and air pollution. We need to expand transit, not cut it,” she said.
State legislators are hoping that in the next few months, Congress will pass an economic stimulus bill that includes plenty of funds for rescuing local governments as well as creating “green jobs” - everything from weatherizing homes to building solar and wind energy installations….
Skinner and other state legislators still hope to move forward in ways that don’t cost much money. “We have to be innovative,” she said, pointing to a plan to encourage Californians to replace their dark-colored roofs with light-colored roofs. This would save energy and help reflect the sun’s heat back into space, thus counteracting the effect of global warming.
The steps that are perhaps most important - and that would affect people most directly - are the innumerable land-use decisions by local cities that determine whether to keep growth sprawling or begin to kick the addiction to the automobile. State legislation passed earlier this year steers government funds away from developments that encourage sprawl.
So will
Here are the big decisions ahead on climate change:
Local
Solar power -
Robert Collier is a visiting scholar at the Center for Environmental Public Policy at UC Berkeley’s Goldman School of Public Policy.
18. “The Rachel Maddow Show” (MSNBC,
MS. MADDOW: … Joining us now is former secretary of Labor under Bill
Clinton Robert Reich. He is an economic adviser for Barack Obama and a professor of public policy at the
How significant is it that stocks went way up on news that Obama had tapped Mr. Geithner for Treasury? What can you tell us about Geithner and what sort of secretary he might be?
MR. REICH:
Well, Rachel, I think it’s very significant indeed. Look it, the market has
been not only worried about lack of leadership, but there’s been a complete
leadership vacuum. In fact, Hank Paulson, our current Treasury secretary, a
couple of days ago essentially punted. He said the big bank bailout, well, he’s not going to do any more on it. He essentially
said goodbye. President Bush, as you pointed out, is off to
Now, as you pointed out, there is limited amount
that Barack Obama, our president-elect, can do before he is, at
MS. MADDOW: I know the economy is not a
government program…. But this sense of a vacuum in
MR. REICH:
Well, first of all, I mean, there are two big issues on the plate right now
with regard to getting the economy back on track. One is this big bailout. Now,
the bailout has been directed at Wall Street, but so far nothing has trickled
down to
The number two item is the stimulus package. I mean, you’ve got to -- government has got to create a jobs kind of stimulus that will get the economy going again, because, frankly, consumers, investors, exports, all of the normal suspects with regard to generating demand for the economy, for the goods and services that are produced in the economy, they are on AWOL too. So you need government as the spender of last resort to do something. That’s going to be the second big agenda item after January 20th….
19. “
--Alok Jha, green technology correspondent guardian.co.uk
Hybrid
electric cars on display in front of City Hall in
California’s 36 million people have 21m cars between them, accounting for 40% of the state’s greenhouse gas emissions. So replacing 1m of those petrol cars with electric cars will make a big difference….
Yesterday, the mayors of
“The bay area mayors are looking to become the
electric vehicle capital of
Globally, cars generate about 20% of the world’s output of carbon dioxide. Cutting that figure would have a big effect on reducing emissions that contribute to global warming. Electric cars can also use energy to charge batteries at night when demand on the national grid is low….
Under California’s plans,
Dan Kammen,
director of the transportation
sustainability research centre at the
He added: “This initiative will help to put the Bay Area in the forefront of developing the science, engineering, and public policy innovations that simultaneously reduce greenhouse gas emissions and lead us to the next economic boom — the clean energy century.”
The
Kammen
said: “The international community is watching.
20. “Economy taking a break, along with investors” (San Francisco Chronicle, November 19, 2008); column citing CEPP Visiting Scholar ROBERT COLLIER; http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/11/19/BUCF146VQU.DTL
--Andrew S. Ross
We’ll take it from here: The idea is expressed in various ways and it has a wonkish title: technology transfer. Rather than have others implement the advanced green tech we need, why not just give it to us. After all, some assert, you started this global warming mess - it’s your obligation to help us clean it up.
Chinese Premier Wen Jiabo has suggested as much.
The idea may be anathema to many
In its July 2008 report on China’s carbon emissions, the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory said “a new approach is needed for sharing intellectual property for low carbon energy technology.”
“It’s like getting cheap, generic drugs to the developing world,” said Robert Collier, a former Chronicle reporter, now a fellow at UC Berkeley’s Goldman School of Public Policy, and author of the forthcoming book, “Too Hot: China’s Role in Global Warming.” “To get clean tech devolved throughout China’s economy, Silicon Valley and clean tech’s top lawyers are going to have to crunch a deal.” …
21. “
MR. GREGORY: … I remember, during the campaign, President-elect Obama criticizing President Bush after 9/11 for telling Americans to go shopping, when in effect he’s in the very same position…. Why shouldn’t President-elect Obama stand up and say to the consumer, “Look, Christmas is coming. Go shopping. It’s important for the economy”?
MR. REICH: Well, the interesting thing here—and it’s a paradox—you know, what’s rational for the individual right now is to hold back, to tighten your belt, not to borrow any more even if you could borrow, to basically stop all discretionary spending because you don’t know if you’re going to have a job….
But it’s irrational from society’s standpoint. What may be rational for the individual or the individual household, when millions of people, 200 million households do it, it becomes irrational because it means that there’s not enough demand in the system. There’s not enough people out there buying things to keep companies making things. That’s why government, as I said a moment ago, has to be the spender of last resort.
MR. GREGORY: Right. But at the same time, the president-elect has an opportunity and a responsibility to be straight with the American people about how much worse it’s going to get and what kind of sacrifice, if that’s the right way to look at it, that the American people have to be prepared for as this economy continues to worsen.
MR. REICH: … You cannot simply say, “We have nothing to fear but fear itself,” because there is a lot to fear out there right now. A lot of jobs are being lost. There’s likely to be even more jobs lost in the future. But things that the government can do—for example, extending unemployment insurance, making sure the people who are losing their job do have unemployment insurance to keep their families going; making sure that state and local governments, that are now being starved and are cutting all sorts of public services, making sure that they have enough money to keep those public services going at a time when those public services are critically important—there are things that have to be done, and government has to be, again, the one entity that is in existence that people can rely on to get these things done….
Deficits are dangerous when the economy is going full speed ahead, but when the economy is dead in the water, deficits are actually a good thing. Franklin D. Roosevelt understood this. Eventually most presidents understand it. Keynesian economics is not completely outmoded. You’ve got to keep the economy going, and government spending is the one thing that will do it. Deficits may be good in this kind of a situation….
22. “AUTOS: Would a federal bailout mean clear
skies for
--Colin Sullivan and Josh Voorhees, Greenwire reporters
A federal bailout for
In
“
Kammen,
who advised the Obama campaign on energy issues, said
“Right now is a moment of upheaval,” Kammen added. “The goal is not to
bankrupt
23. “The New Liberalism. How the economic crisis
can help Obama redefine the Democrats” (New Yorker,
By George Packer
Illustration: Richard Thompson
…
In September, the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library … held a forum on
Presidential leadership. Cass Sunstein was one of the participants; another was
Robert Kuttner, the co-founder of The
American Prospect and a liberal economics journalist. The two argued over
what it would take for Obama to be a great President. In Kuttner’s view,
nothing short of a return to New Deal-style government intervention will be
enough to prevent the dire economy from dooming Obama’s Presidency….
… But, beyond macroeconomics, Kuttner … thinks that the Democrats have a clear political agenda: “the reclamation of an ideology.”
This is not an ambition that Obama has ever
publicly embraced. In “The Audacity of Hope,” he specifically rejects such
talk. “That’s not Obama,” Robert B.
Reich, who was Bill Clinton’s first Labor Secretary and now teaches at the
Reich,
who holds Obama in high regard … bears his share of scars from the
Nonetheless, in our conversation Reich kept returning to the many ways in which President Obama’s ability to act quickly will be compromised. “We are not in Hundred Days territory,” Reich said. “We may be, if the economy goes into free fall—the public may demand dramatic action. But there are so many constraints on dramatic action.” New Presidents make mistakes—in Clinton’s case, Reich said, they included the push to integrate gays into the military, the botched effort to reform health care, and a failure to establish priorities. Even with a solid majority in Congress, Obama will have to deal with the Blue Dog Democrats, who represent states and districts that are more conservative. Reich recently met with one Blue Dog, in the Southwest, who “felt that it was going to be very difficult politically to make the case” that increasing the deficit during a recession was the right thing to do. On the other hand, unions will likely pressure the Administration to curtail trade agreements, in the interest of preventing the further loss of industrial jobs to other countries.
Finally, there will be a Republican opposition…. Reich regarded them with the wariness of a crime victim whose assailant is still at large. “They are weaker,” he said. “They’re not dead by any stretch of the imagination. They’re in disarray and discredited, but that’s partly because they’ve not had a clear target, and, undoubtedly, an Obama Administration and a Democratic Congress will give them a very clear target.” …
The tremendous expectations that will accompany Obama to the White House practically guarantee that some of his supporters will be disappointed by the all-too-normal incapacities of a government founded as a system of checks and balances, and lately choked with lobbyists and corporate money. This disappointment will only feed what Reich called the “deep cynicism in the public about the capacity of government to do anything big and well.”
Obama, in order to break through the inherent
constraints of
With a movement behind him, Obama would have the
latitude to begin to overcome the tremendous resistance to change that prevails
in
24. “Up Next for Debate: Carbon Costs” (Dot
Earth, New York Times Online [*requires registration],
By Andrew C. Revkin
A sequel to the ballyhooed debate in 2007 over
the motion that Global Warming is Not a Crisis has
been scheduled in
Those against will be Daniel M. Kammen,
a professor at the University of California, Berkeley, focused on renewable
and appropriate energy technology and a senior energy adviser to the Obama
campaign...
25. “Revolutionaries: Solar Bubbles” (Forbes
Magazine,
--Kerry A. Dolan
Eric Cummings and Rob Lamkin of Cool Earth Solar.
Here’s an audacious bet: Cheap plastic balloons with solar cells inside can solve the world’s energy problem.
Behind a warehouse workshop in
Eric Cummings, the brainy scientist who dreamed up the balloon idea, dismisses flat solar panels as expensive to install and difficult to deploy. The curvature of his balloon concentrates more sunlight onto fewer photovoltaic cells. He envisions vast farms of his 1-kilowatt balloons strung on wires and producing gigawatts of power….
“This is scalable in a way that dwarfs other options,” [Cummings] boasts. “The goal is to be the 100% solution” to the energy crisis….
Whether solar balloons are viable has yet to be proved. “It’s definitely a nice idea, but this doesn’t appear to be a game changer,” says Daniel Kammen, a professor in the Energy & Resources Group at UC, Berkeley. Kammen says far bigger balloons up in the jet stream would generate more electricity….
26. “Automakers push for bailout over bankruptcy”
(KGO TV,
By David Louie
Former Labor Secretary Robert Reich, now a professor
of public policy at
“Maybe the best combination is Chapter 11 reorganization with some government help to restructure the industry, to make sure the people who are there don’t get fired, to get fuel efficient cars, to try to create a new auto industry that is really, truly competitive,” Reich said….
Detroit’s automakers survived the Great Depression, but now their fate is uncertain. Reich’s father witnessed that, and thinks he knows why the Depression was different.
“Well, the automakers didn’t have Japanese competition then,” Ed Reich, said.
27. “GM: The Threat of Bankruptcy; GM’s senior management, business experts, and some members of Congress think letting the automaker go Chapter 11 would be a disaster” (Business Week Online, November 13, 2008); story citing ROBERT REICH; http://www.businessweek.com/lifestyle/content/nov2008/bw20081111_141573.htm
By David Kiley
GM Chairman and CEO G.
Richard Wagoner Jr. Getty Images
Over
the past several days, while General Motors (GM) Chairman and Chief Executive
G. Richard Wagoner Jr. has repeated his mantra that “bankruptcy is not an
option,” the specter of a Chapter 11 reorganization is circling GM’s downtown
Detroit headquarters like vultures….
The worst-case scenario for GM, say most experts, is a spontaneous Chapter 11, like the one filed by electronics retailer Circuit City on Nov. 10. But a prepackaged filing could be set up to make sure that the vast majority of auto suppliers would continue to get paid on time….
Aides to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi [D-Calif.] said on Tuesday, Nov. 11, that the Speaker … is working up a bill with House leadership that would help automakers and suppliers with liquidity to avoid bankruptcy….
Robert Reich, former Labor Secretary under President Bill Clinton and a member of Obama’s economic transition team, said Tuesday: “The question [about bailing out the U.S. automakers] is what kind of conditions do you put on that bailout?” In an interview on MSNBC, Reich said that those conditions will likely center on job protections and commitments to green technology. A congressional staffer with knowledge of negotiations on Capitol Hill said limits on executive compensation at the automakers is “probably going to be a condition as well.” …
28. “Homes and Businesses Go Solar With No Upfront Cost, Repay on Property Tax Bill” (MarketWatch, Nov. 13, 2008); story citing DAN KAMMEN and CISCO DEVRIES (MPP 2000); http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/Homes-Businesses-Go-Solar-With/story.aspx?guid={B4B7BD2F-E913-4F38-9470-4FD00CA126D8}
OAKLAND, Calif. -- Renewable Funding is now providing a first-in-the-nation financial service allowing property owners to install solar panels and pay for them over 20 years through a voluntary line item on their property tax bills.
The company provides a complete financing and administration package to cities interested in offering this financial product to property owners. The City of Berkeley selected Renewable Funding to finance and administer its nationally recognized new solar and energy efficiency program.
This innovative financing program, known as CityFIRST, overcomes the principal obstacle that has hindered widespread adoption of solar and energy efficiency projects by homeowners and small businesses—the daunting upfront cost. With CityFIRST, owners can afford to install solar installations and major energy efficiency projects and pay for them over 20 years. If the property is subsequently sold, the repayment obligation transfer to the new owner.
“CityFIRST is a game-changer for solar and energy efficiency,” said Stephen Compagni Portis, Renewable Funding’s founder and chairman. “With CityFIRST, people are converting their homes and businesses to clean energy with little or no additional cost. We are making it as easy to go solar as it is to pay your utility bill.” …
“The CityFIRST program eliminates the most significant roadblock to widespread adoption of solar and energy efficiency. It turns a large upfront capital cost into small incremental payments. I expect hundreds of cities will quickly move to adopt this program,” said Professor Daniel Kammen, Director of the Renewable and Appropriate Energy Laboratory at UC Berkeley and an advisor to Renewable Funding. Kammen recently highlighted the CityFIRST program in testimony before the U.S. Congress.
Renewable Funding is led by an experienced management team, including Cisco DeVries, Mimi Frusha, and Stephen Compagni Portis….
29. “US ready for spending spree” (Australian
Financial Review [*requires subscription],
By Glenn Mumford
ABSTRACT: The US Government is developing a spending package aimed at bolstering the nation’s ailing economy. Economic adviser Robert Reich suggests that a stimulus package in the order of $US600bn to $US700bn may be necessary in 2009….
30. “Debate: The Ripple Effects of Biofuels”
(Green Inc. Blog, New York Times Online (*requires registration),
By Tom Zeller Jr. and Kate Galbraith
Forest in the Amazon is cut and burned in preparation for agriculture. Are such land use changes across the globe an inevitable upshot of the biofuels market in the United States? (Photo: Daniel Nepstad/Woods Hole Research Center)
What might appear to be a minor footnote to last
years energy legislation from Congress is proving to be a significant point of
contention between the expanding biofuels industry and environmental
advocates....
At issue is the concept of indirect land use changes, a quirky variable in the
calculus of an industry’s greenhouse gas emissions…. In its simplest form, the
question is this: If American farms divert a percentage of their food and feed
crops to the fuel market—corn for ethanol, say—will trees fall and savannas be
plowed elsewhere on the planet, so that the hole in the global food and feed
supply is filled?...
The [latest ethanol industry] report lashes out at the “unsupported
assumptions, imprecise economic models, and questionable logic” of critics who
say that ethanol and other biofuels cause a “significant conversion of forest
and grassland to agriculture in the United States and abroad.” …
Opponents of biofuels concede there is a lot of uncertainty surrounding the proper measurement of indirect land use changes, but insist that this alone is no reason to allow the industry to discount them entirely.
In a letter sent to the E.P.A. on
Monday, a group of 23 scientists, academics and energy researchers
led by Michael O’Hare, a professor of
public policy at the University of California at Berkeley [and including Dan Kammen], argue that the agency has
long regulated vehicle and stationary source emissions despite uncertainties
about how to quantify the precise impact of those emissions in any particular
place at any particular time.
They also argue that while the types of studies, known as life-cycle analyses,
that have implicated biofuels production in land use changes are still
evolving, failing to consider such changes at all just won’t do.
Ignoring an effect that may be large simply because it is uncertain is
unjustifiable, the group writes.
And while the globe’s large quantities of unused farmland might be used to expand biofuels production without spurring massive encroachment into previously uncultivated areas, this is by no means guaranteed, the group said — particularly if land use is not part of the up-front impact estimate….
31. “Energy Experts Offer Policy Advice for New
Administration at Nov. 17 CU Symposium” (States News Service,
BOULDER, Colo. -- President-elect Barack Obama won’t take office until January, but national energy experts are ready to give him their ideas on desirable new energy policies.
Daniel M. Kammen will be the keynote speaker at the University of Colorado at Boulder Energy Initiative’s research symposium on Monday, Nov. 17, at the University Memorial Center. Kammen is a professor in the Energy and Resources Group, professor of public policy and professor of nuclear engineering at the University of California, Berkeley. He also is the founding director of the Renewable and Appropriate Energy Laboratory at Berkeley.
“Dan Kammen is one of the most foresighted thinkers I know on the topic of our global energy and climate future, said Gov. Bill Ritter. “Colorado is delighted to host him.”
Kammen’s speech for the symposium, “Clean Energy Options for the 21st Century: Policy Advice for the New President,” will focus on what he says are an “ever-evolving resource of ideas and technologies that are at the disposal of the Obama administration.” …
“Our country has neglected a number of vital energy technologies and market support mechanisms, many of which can play a significant role in efforts addressing local and global environmental issues, as well as contributing to job creation,” said Kammen.
One example of the lack of significant support for alternative energy options, according to Kammen, is the relative scarcity of major wind energy companies based in the United States. A number of important innovations in wind energy technologies were developed in the United States, much of it at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden, according to Kammen.
“The lack of a technology pipeline in this
country has resulted in many missed opportunities,” said Kammen. “The next great, clean energy firm could and should be a
32. “Obama victory spins a web of tears” (Los
Angeles Times,
--David Sarno
Magic Johnson went on Larry King last Wednesday evening. King asked him what he thought of the election.
“Oh man. Last night I cried like a baby, Larry.” …
And then there was Jesse Jackson. And Colin Powell. And Michael Salerno….
I found
The Obama Crying thing was, as far as I was concerned, a full-blown epidemic. One worth further study and explication. I did the only thing I knew how: I went to SurveyMonkey.com….
Some hours later, my survey had attracted 133 respondents. And are you ready for this? Fully 75% of them said they had cried or “sort of” cried on election night….
More statistics: 33% of the criers/wellers were male. About half were between 15 and 25, a quarter 26 to 35, and another quarter were 36 to 45; 67% Democrats, 18% Republicans, 11% Independents. An impressive spread across all categories — perhaps this really was a phenomenon! …
I called Jack Glaser, a professor of public policy at UC Berkeley who has written extensively on race, politics, emotion and the Internet. Quite possibly he could help me publish my findings in some obscure academic journal. When I asked him what he thought of my results, there was a pause. He then told me my methodology was completely flawed and my results scientifically meaningless.
I nearly cried.
“Whenever you have a survey where people voluntarily participate, you tend to overrepresent people who feel strongly one way or the other,” Glaser said.
As a consolation prize, Glaser allowed that “it does look like there’s more expressed emotion after this election than there typically is. There’s a huge release on the partisan level,” he said, “And also a big exhilaration on the civil rights side. And the two sort of intertwine.” …
33. “President-elect Barack Obama is about to
inherit an economy in crisis” (Hardball, MSNBC,
CHRIS MATTHEWS: … Barack Obama will inherit an economy in crisis. With us now, one of President-elect Obama’s top economic advisers, former labor secretary Robert Reich. Mr. Secretary, it’s an honor to have you on in your new garb as a man of the future, someone of the new breed, the arrivals, the new kids on the block, if I will say so—dare to say.
Let me give you some numbers now that should breathe hope into every American. This is the hope that’s being expressed in these Gallup poll numbers just coming out today…. Sixty-eight percent have a favorable view of the new president. Sixty-five percent think the country will be better off in four years than it is now. How do you put those two numbers together, optimism and likability? Is it enough to get us out of this hole we’re seemingly falling into?
ROBERT REICH, OBAMA ECONOMIC ADVISER: Well, Chris, the management of expectations is going to be one of the big challenges for our next president because you know as well as I do, it’s very hard to get things done in Washington, even if you have a strong mandate, even if a lot of people want you to succeed, there’s separation of powers. There are interest groups. I mean, the public has got to be fully behind this man. The public’s got to take some responsibility in terms of mobilizing and being energized and pushing Congress. And even so, it’s going to be hard to turn around something that actually eight years took to almost destroy.
MATTHEWS: … Warren Buffett said a couple weeks ago … that the only person right now capable of investing, of really over leveraging the money they can borrow, is the federal government. They’ve got to be the ones to put people to work. Will that get done in the near future?
REICH: Well, Warren Buffett is exactly right. Over the next 10 weeks, though, Chris, George W. Bush is still president. It’s going to be very hard to have a stimulus package that is up to what needs to be done because I don’t think Bush is going to allow it. I think Bush will be vetoing it….
So the likely outcome, it seems to me, is that Barack Obama’s going to have his own … stimulus package come after January 20. And that’s going to have to be big enough. You’re absolutely right. Consumers can’t do it alone. Investment can’t do it alone. That leaves government to sort of get the economy moving again in a very Keynesian kind of major, major way….
And I’ll tell you something, Chris. I don’t think—and this is my view …I don’t think that all the bail-outs of Wall Street are the kind of spending that are going to get a lot of people... out to work….
34. “UC Berkeley faculty members advise Obama”
(Politico,
By: Samantha Sondag - The Daily California
Several UC Berkeley faculty members are helping Barack Obama prepare for the presidency and may assume permanent roles in his administration.
Laura Tyson, a professor at Haas School of Business, and Robert Reich, a professor at Goldman School of Public Policy, are both members of Obama’s 17-person Transition Economic Advisory Board. The board members — who will help Obama draft an agenda to ease the financial crisis — appeared fully assembled for the first time Friday at Obama’s first press conference as president-elect….
Reich, who was Secretary of Labor under Clinton, is currently teaching “Leadership, Management, and Social Change” at the [Goldman] school of public policy….
35. “Plants: The Fuel of the Future?” (Morning
Edition, NPR,
By Richard Harris
Dried Miscanthus, a plant
related to sugar cane, could be the fuel of the future. Researchers say it’s
possible to convert the cellulose in this and other plants into a fuel that
could replace diesel and gasoline. (Richard
Harris/NPR)
The recent run-up in gasoline prices was a
not-too-subtle reminder that there’s a limited amount of oil on Earth. Someday
soon, we’re going to need a new source of fuel.
Part of the answer could be fuels made from the plant material cellulose.
Researchers at the new Energy
Biosciences Institute at the University of California, Berkeley are working
on a recipe for this biofuel….
Converting plant cellulose into fuel could transform the economy with a less
damaging alternative to fossil fuels. Fuel made from cellulose is relatively
clean because the plants that it comes from actually get their carbon out of
the atmosphere. So, carbon cycles from the exhaust pipe into the air, back to
the plants and then to the fuel again….
To be competitive, [the Energy Biosciences] institute needs to develop not just a fuel but an entire industry — and the researchers want to make sure this new industry is green and socially responsible….
...Berkeley Professor Dan Kammen,
who helped found the institute, says the long-term government policy should try
to solve two problems at once: providing energy while taking steps to slow
climate change.
“Certainly, the ability to reduce carbon emissions has got to be front and
center on that list,” he says.
Kammen is not convinced that
cellulose-based biofuels will be the answer. But he says as long as the goals
are articulated correctly and funding for research is ramped up, people will
come up with recipes for fuels that move us around and that aren’t too hard on
our planet.
36. “Obama likely to tap fresh faces, old hands”
(San Francisco Chronicle,
--Carolyn Lochhead, Chronicle Washington Bureau
(11-09) 04:00 PST Washington -- Look for a mix of fresh blood and old Clinton hands in the Obama administration, with a handful of Bay Area Democrats in lead positions and many Californians throughout.
Insiders say the watchwords are “best and brightest,” or at least, “competence.” And President-elect Barack Obama’s transition team issued a code-of-conduct memo forbidding media leaks and financial conflicts….
Two prominent UC Berkeley academics and former Clintonites also on the economic team seem destined for big roles, too: Haas Business School dean and economist Laura D’Andrea Tyson and public policy Professor Robert Reich, former secretary of labor….
37. “
By Kathleen Maclay, Media Relations
BERKELEY
— UC Berkeley professors Laura Tyson and Robert Reich have been named to President-elect Barack Obama’s
advisory board for economics, and Chris Edley, dean of the UC Berkeley School
of Law, joins about a dozen people on an advisory board that will work with
Obama’s formal transition team….
Reich, former U.S. labor secretary in the Clinton administration, is a professor at the Goldman School of Public Policy and a regular contributor of commentary about economics and public policy on National Public Radio’s “Marketplace” program.
Tyson and Reich
join a group of big thinkers chosen by Obama from finance, business and
academia. That group includes former Federal Reserve Chair Paul Volcker, former
treasury secretary and former
Tyson and Reich
appeared with others in the economics advisory group alongside Obama during his
first news conference, held today … in
38. “Using superpowers for the greater cleantech
good: Is Nancy Floyd joining the blue wave? Should Elon Musk start pinching his
pennies? Can one blogger really bankroll another? Find out in the latest
installment of ... the Cleantech Avenger!” (Cleantech Group News,
--Exclusive by Cleantech Avenger, Cleantech Group
I like having friends in high places….
So the entire cleantech world should be rejoicing over the speculation that some of our own could be joining the ranks of the White House: within the U.S. Department of Energy, as green czar, or as the official White House dogsitter, a surprisingly dangerous job….
Despite persistent rumors, cleantech investor Nancy Floyd, contacted directly, won’t confirm or deny whether she’s been tapped by the Obama transition team for a post in the new administration….
Other scuttlebutt in the blogosphere is that the U.S. President-elect is courting cleantech investor Steve Westly and Google green czar Dan Reicher for high-profile energy positions. Republican California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has also been rumored to be a candidate….
One trustworthy cleantech insider has named Dan Kammen, director of the Renewable and Appropriate Energy Laboratory at the
39. “Summers, Rubin,
Schmidt to Attend Economic Meeting With Obama” (Washington Wire Blog, Wall
Street Journal Online (*requires registration),
President-elect Barack Obama will hold a news
conference Friday afternoon following a meeting at the Hilton Chicago with his
top economic advisers, aides said. Meeting attendees include former Treasury
secretaries Lawrence Summers and Robert Rubin, ex-Federal Reserve Chief Paul
Volcker and Google Chairman Eric Schmidt.
Heres the list of members from Obamas Transition Economic Advisory Board who
will participate in tomorrows meeting:
- Robert Reich (University of California, Berkeley; Former Secretary, U.S. Dept of
Labor, 1993-1997) …
[Another blog on this topic appeared in the <a
href=“http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/sfgate/indexn?blogid=14“>San
Francisco Chronicle</a>]
40. “Green Inc.: Biofuels Debate. Point, Counterpoint”
(New York Times Online (*requires registration),
By Tom Zeller Jr.
Does altering crop use in one part of the globe cause deforestation in another? (Photo: Monica Almeida/The New York Times)
Kate McMahon, a Green Inc. reader and an energy and transportation policy campaigner at the environmental group Friends of the Earth, writes to alert us to an appeal her group made, along with two other environmental organizations, to the Environmental Protection Agency last week....
From that letter:
A growing body of research is linking the production and consumption of biofuels to increased competition for land, water and agricultural commodities. Growing crops for energy in addition to food and feed requires the cultivation of additional land. In an increasingly globalized food market, the make-up food often will be grown where land and other agricultural inputs are the most inexpensive. The result is the conversion of forests, wetlands, grasslands and other areas in tropical countries — a process that typically leads to substantial releases of soil and plant carbon as land is cleared, drained and/or burned to make it suitable for farming or grazing. According to Alex Farrell and Michael O’Hare of the University of California at Berkeley, “There is no way around the effect unless we un-make the global economy.” …
[Memo from Alex Farrell and Michael O’Hare to John Courtis, “Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from indirect land use change (LUC)” (January 2008) (http://www.arb.ca.gov/fuels/lcfs/011608ucb_luc.pdf )
41. “Weathering the post-election emotional
storm. How to cope with raw emotions and be cheerful, even if you loved McCain”
(MSNBC,
By Diane Mapes - msnbc.com contributor
Duane
Hoffmann / msnbc.com
It’s the day after the election, and as usual, America’s come down with the world’s largest case of manic-depressive disorder. Half of the country is crying, calling in sick, or threatening, like conservative actor Stephen Baldwin, to move out of the country. The other half is dancing on their desks, buying drinks for strangers in bars, and gloating shamelessly every time a Republican walks by….
Barack Obama may have won the election, but that doesn’t mean the feelings of high anxiety have suddenly vanished. All presidential campaigns get rough, but this year’s election was historic on almost all levels — not only with regard to race and gender, but the intensity of voter passion….
Throw in the ongoing panic over the global economy and the lingering Democratic resentment about the last two elections and you’ve got what one political expert refers to as a “perfect storm” for election intensity.
“It’s the stuff that ulcers are made of,” says Jack Glaser, associate professor at the Goldman School of Public Policy at University of California, Berkeley….
42. “Obama’s Climate Policy Will Give
By The Climate Community
…
The election of Senator Barack Obama as president of the United States on
November 4 will change the strategic situation for the international climate
negotiations leading up to COP15. It will also give the U.S. a leading
international role in the negotiations, and it can change the way it
historically has addressed – or so far largely not addressed – the climate
crisis.
This analysis comes from Daniel M. Kammen, Professor in the Energy and Resources Group at the University of California, Berkley, a Copenhagen Climate Councillor, and Senior Energy and Environment Advisor to President-elect Obama.
Kammen’s optimism is founded in the energy plan put forward during the election campaign by then-Senator Obama. Under the plan, Obama aims to create a clean energy sector which will create 5 million new “cleantech” jobs, 1 million hybrid cars, and an economy-wide cap-and-trade program to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 80% by 2050.
Implementation of the Obama’s plan should help the U.S. play a more central role in the international climate negotiations, argues Kammen. “A new president has to push for the U.S. entering in a new and more leading international role when it comes to the climate negotiations.” …
There are plenty of votes (and money), Kammen believes, for whomever
pushes for positive action that frees the
“To achieve something as sweeping as a new climate policy government has to play a more active role in solving the climate issue. As they do in solving the global financial crisis. Ironically, this crisis shows that there is a need and an opportunity to invest in sectors like clean energy, because they do produce new jobs,” says Kammen….
43. “Obama win paves the way for big changes in
energy, environment debate” (Environment and Energy Daily,
--Darren Samuelsohn, E&E Daily senior reporter
… During a victory speech early this morning in Chicago’s Grant Park, Obama included global warming and energy among a list of thorny items that he planned to take on as president….
Obama has 76 days to prepare his new government, a job that likely will include a major expansion and integration of top posts in the White House and across various agencies that deal with global warming and energy issues, said Dan Kammen, a University of California, Berkeley, professor and key Obama adviser.
“You’re starting to see why this isn’t just elevating the EPA secretary to the Cabinet,” Kammen said. “It’s really a much bigger integration.”
The incoming Obama team is considering a “listening tour” around the country on energy and environmental issues before Inauguration Day in an attempt to build momentum for its policies and legislative plans. Kammen said details on the sessions remain in the planning stage….
As for details of Obama’s agenda, Kammen said he expected the new president to start with a close review of last-minute Bush administration regulations and other policies crafted over the last eight years.
“There’s a whole range of things that need to be corrected,” Kammen said. “Bad decisions by Bush and EPA Administrator Stephen Johnson. They weren’t just marginal. They were bad for the economy. They were bad for the environment.” …
And the president-elect would launch a “carbon
accounting” system that can help lay the groundwork for a much larger global
warming cap-and-trade program, Kammen
said. He did not have a timeline for how the Obama administration would try to
pursue cap-and-trade legislation with Congress, but he said the effort would
entail significant government reorganization while helping to restore
“The one thing none of us could say during the
campaign is how many calls we got from foreign leaders, ministers of energy and
finance, around the world who were hoping for an Obama win because they know
they can’t solve the problem without the
44. “AIR POLLUTION: Bush NSR regs would get
‘bounced back early on’ -- Obama adviser” (Environment and Energy Daily,
--Darren Samuelsohn, E&E Daily senior reporter
The Bush administration’s plan for a last-minute industry-friendly change to a major Clean Air Act program won’t get past President-elect Barack Obama, according to an Obama energy and environmental adviser.
“I think there’s no question those will be revisited day one,” Dan Kammen said last night of an upcoming U.S. EPA rule governing power plants and other major industrial sources.
Bush officials have been working for more than
two years on the New Source Review (NSR) regulations that would give industry
greater leeway before they are forced to install modern pollution controls. Kammen, a professor at
“NSR was a copout in terms of gutting one of the most effective environmental laws,” Kammen said. “I think that gets bounced back early on.” …
45. “A Splash of Green for the Rust Belt” (New
York Times,
By Peter S. Goodman
Maytag left Newton, Iowa,
but a maker of wind turbine blades has moved in. It has already hired about 225
workers. (Mark Kegans for The
New York Times)
NEWTON, Iowa—LIKE his uncle, his grandfather and many of their neighbors, Arie Versendaal spent decades working at the Maytag factory here, turning coils of steel into washing machines.
When the plant closed last year, taking 1,800 jobs out of this town of 16,000 people, it seemed a familiar story of American industrial decline: another company town brought to its knees by the vagaries of global trade.
Except that Mr. Versendaal has a new factory job, at a plant here that makes blades for turbines that turn wind into electricity. Across the road, in the old Maytag factory, another company is building concrete towers to support the massive turbines. Together, the two plants are expected to employ nearly 700 people by early next year….
… In the face of rising unemployment, renewable energy has become a crucial source of good jobs, particularly for laid-off Rust Belt workers….
The market is potentially enormous. In a report last year, the Energy Department concluded that the United States could make wind energy the source of one-fifth of its electricity by 2030, up from about 2 percent today. That would require nearly $500 billion in new construction and add more than three million jobs, the report said. Much of the growth would be around the Great Lakes, the hardest-hit region in a country that has lost four million manufacturing jobs over the last decade.
Throw in solar energy along with generating power from crops, and the continued embrace of renewable energy would create as many as five million jobs by 2030, asserts Daniel M. Kammen, director of the Renewable and Appropriate Energy Laboratory at the University of California, Berkeley, and an adviser to the presidential campaign of Senator Barack Obama….
46. “Back to the Ramparts in
By Jesse McKinley
Some audiences for the upcoming film “Milk,” about the slain San Francisco supervisor and gay politician Harvey Milk, will certainly be inspired by his fight against Proposition 6, a 1978 California ballot measure that would have expelled gay teachers from the state’s public schools. Others less entranced with Mr. Milk’s politics will, no doubt, be less impressed.
But, in California, both types of moviegoers will probably feel a sense of eerie familiarity. The state is embroiled in a fight over another numbered ballot measure aimed at gays that will be put to voters on Tuesday: Proposition 8, which would bar same-sex marriage….
One of the most obvious similarities is the role that children have played in both campaigns as political symbols….
“Schools are still there as part of the story
because whatever their politics, families are conservative when it comes to
their kids,” said David L. Kirp, a professor of law and public policy at the
47. “‘Bradley Effect’ possible but unlikely,
experts say” (Reno Gazette-Journal,
By Steve Timko
Polls show U.S. Sen. Barack Obama leads U.S. Sen
John McCain among
But nationally, there has been speculation Obama
could face the Bradley Effect, named for Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley. The
black Democrat led in the polls in the 1982 race for
The speculation was that people would not
publicly admit they could not vote for a black candidate, skewing the polls in
favor of Bradley. So, will Obama face a Bradley effect in
Assemblywoman Sheila Leslie, a Reno Democrat, is on the Obama leadership team.
“I think, unfortunately, there are still a group of people who refuse to vote for an African-American, but I feel the vast majority of Nevadans will not vote based on race,” Leslie said. She’s encouraged by what she said were early reports of Hispanics voting heavily for Obama.
“I have a question about how much race really played into the Bradley vote in the first place,” Leslie said. “I guess there’s a big question as to what extent it happened.”
Jack
Glaser, a social psychologist at the Goldman School of Public Policy at
UC-Berkeley, also wondered whether there really was a Bradley Effect in the
1982
“I think there is no question that white Americans have relatively negative attitudes towards African-Americans,” Glaser said. “It’s important to qualify that to say there’s a lot of variability across the people.”
Extreme racism is rare, Glaser said.
“We do know that lots of whites, at the subtle, implicit level, have a preference for whites over blacks,” he said.
Even some blacks can have bad feelings about other blacks, he said. In a culture dominated by whites, they’ll have more positive experiences with whites than whites have with blacks, Glaser explained.
“So they’re going to identify more with whites than whites identify with blacks,” he said.
The way the bias works is that people can have subtle, nonconscious beliefs or stereotypes, like that blacks are less responsible and more aggressive, he said.
“Every time (a black person) does something, if there’s any ambiguity to what he does, you’re going to interpret the action through the filter of your own stereotype,” Glaser said.
For more overt bias, the voting booth gives people a chance to express attitudes that they may not be comfortable expressing openly, he said. But it also appears that with more subtle bias, the chance to think things over and maybe even talking about it counteracts the bias, Glaser said….
48. “Bernanke Endorses Some U.S. Backing of Home
Loans” (Washington Post,
By Neil Irwin -
The government may need to back home mortgages indefinitely to keep the broader housing market from going into a tailspin every time there is a financial crisis, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said yesterday.
In a speech to a forum on housing finance, Bernanke argued that government-sponsored companies Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have played a crucial role propping up mortgage lending throughout the current financial crisis, even while purely private lending has shut down. But the Fed chairman said that, at some point, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac need to be overhauled.
Bernanke was offering an opening salvo in what is likely to be a long debate over what to do with the mortgage finance giants, which the government effectively took over in September. Bernanke made clear that a scenario in which Fannie and Freddie went back to their old structure—independent companies with implicit government backing—would be fraught with problems. He laid out several alternatives, without endorsing any of them….
Bernanke emphasized that during the financial crisis, very few mortgages have been issued that did not have implicit federal backing. This, Bernanke said, demonstrates the need for some government role in lending.
“At least under the most stressed conditions, some form of government backstop may be necessary to ensure continued securitization of mortgages,” Bernanke said in his speech, which was delivered by videoconference to a forum at the University of California at Berkeley [convened by John Quigley, interim dean of the Goldman School of Public Policy and director of the Berkeley Program on Housing and Urban Policy, and Stuart Gabriel, director of UCLA’s Richard S. Ziman Center for Real Estate]….
[Other stories on this topic appeared in the <a href=“http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122547596549288517.html“>Wall Street Journal</a>, <a href=“http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/11/01/AR2008110100649_pf.html“>Reuters</a>, and the <a href=“http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2008/11/01/BUF013S51J.DTL&hw=Berkeley+University+UC&sn=028&sc=177“>San Francisco Chronicle</a>]
49. “Political Economy: Trick or Treat”
(Congressional Quarterly, CQ Weekly,
By John Cranford, CQ Columnist
Ding dong. It’s Halloween and strange people are at the door. Let’s see, here’s Ben S. Bernanke dressed up just like Alan Greenspan. And there’s Sheila C. Bair pretending to be Barney Frank. Or maybe she’s Henry M. Paulson Jr. — it’s hard to tell in this light. There’s Paulson himself, lurching around a bit like Frankenstein’s monster. And over here’s Robert Reich playing a miserly old fellow. But wait, the costume of the night goes to Martin Feldstein, who’s a dead ringer for John Maynard Keynes….
The real surprises may be Reich, the liberal University of California-Berkeley economist who ran the Labor Department under President Bill Clinton, and Feldstein, the Harvard University supply-side economist who ran the Council of Economic Advisers under President Ronald Reagan. It’s almost as if they’ve traded places.
Reich should have been expected to endorse a full-bore stimulus package that includes lots of money for states and local governments to spend — on the theory that it would create jobs, stimulate consumer spending and induce companies to produce more goods and services. But no, he’s taking the pragmatic view that a lame-duck Congress will be more apt to erect a Christmas tree laden with goodies that will do the economy little good….
50. “How to fix the mortgage business”
(Salon.com,
By Andrew Leonard
Writing in The Economist’s Voice,
Quigley zeroes in on the screwed up incentives that allowed, nay, encouraged, the propagation of so many bad loans. Simply put, everyone involved was paid on the basis of generating loans, and not on whether the loans turned out to be good loans.
The incentive structure that arose for firms in this specialized industry set the stage for the collapse. The incomes and fees generated are all transactions-based, that is, payments are made at the time the transaction is recorded. The originator of the loan, typically a mortgage broker, is paid at the time the contract is signed. Brokerage fees have varied between 0.5 and 3.0 percent. The mortgage lender earns a fee, between 0.5 and 2.5 percent, upon sale of the mortgage. The bond issuer is paid a fee, typically between 0.2 and 1.5 percent, when the bond is issued. On top of this, the rating agency is paid its fee by the bond issuer at the time the security is issued. All these fees are earned and paid in full within six to eight months after the mortgage contract is signed by the borrower.
Italics mine. Although some subprime loans made in 2007 went into default almost immediately, usually 6-8 months is too short a time period to get a fix on whether the loan is likely to go into default.
Quigley offers one very simple fix: Extend the period over which the various parties get their fees, contingent on the performance of the loan. More provocatively, in the case of the ratings agencies, compensation could be paid “in shares of the bond being issued”—so remuneration would depend on whether the security actually deserved its high rating over the long run.
Too often, the debate between regulation and deregulation is treated as if it is a clash between matter and anti-matter, when in fact, smart tweaks can make a big difference. Quigley’s ideas sound smart. Barney Frank and Chris Dodd—are you listening?
Nov. 10 Robert Reich, as Obama’s economic
advisor, is interviewed on the presidential transition on Channel 4 TV in
Nov. 12 Harold Smith, “European Missile Defense: Why Now?” Governmental Studies Lecture, UC Berkeley.
Nov. 17 Dan Kammen gave the keynote talk on
“Clean Energy Options for the 21st Century: Policy Advice for the New
President,” at the
Nov. 19 Dan Kammen gave a talk on “GHG Impacts
of Biofuels Generation and Use; PHEV Vehicles as an Alternative” at the World
Wildlife Fund - Fuller Science for Nature 2008 Symposium,
D.M. Lemoine, D.M. Kammen and A.E. Farrell, “An innovation and policy agenda for commercially competitive plug-in hybrid electric vehicles” (Environmental Research Letters 3 [2008]); online at stacks.iop.org/ERL/3/014003
Daniel M. Kammen, Samuel Arons, Derek Lemoine and Holmes Hummel, “Cost-Effectiveness of Greenhouse Gas Emission Reductions from Plug-in Hybrid Electric Vehicles” (Brookings Institution report, 2008).
This December, UCTV
welcomes some of your favorite writers to TV and computer screens near you. Go
behind-the-covers as they explore not only their works but the nuances of their
craft:
Berkeley
Writers at Work with Robert Reich
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