Norms are Karens
“Norm!” “How’s the world treating you, Mr. P?” “Like the media treats a conservative.” “Oof – I’ll have the second one on stand-by.” We all know who “Norm” is, but we can be forgiven for not knowing what “norms” are,...
Author: Thomas Buckley
Thomas Buckley is the former Mayor of Lake Elsinore and a former newspaper reporter. He operates a small communications and planning consultancy and can be reached directly at planbuckley@gmail.com. Read more of his work at his Substack ‘The Point.’
California’s EDD – Same As It Ever Was
This article has been updated to explain a correction. “In response to pandemic problems, EDD unveils massive reform initiative.” A headline that anyone has seen? Nope. A headline that should have been seen? Yup. A headline Governor Newsom and the legislature...
No More Words
Politicians and pundits like to sound smart, especially when they are not. Like the man who buys a Porsche to compensate for certain personal shortcomings, people in office and the people who talk about them throw around theoretically fancy terms...
From Sri Lanka to Salinas: Will California Learn Anything from Sri Lanka’s Green Apocalypse?
Ah, Sri Lanka. In 2020: a beautiful, agriculturally self-sufficient island nation full of tea and tourists and holder of the highest “Environmental, Social, and Governance” (ESG) investor rating in the world. And then, as part of the larger “green”...
What Else California Could Have Done With the High-Speed Rail Funds
First things first, let’s set some parameters for this article. One – California’s High Speed Rail network is not going to be built. At this point, that’s a given. Two – Even it were to be built and managed to hit...
Gavin ‘Orchis Hairgelia’ Newsom in 2024?
So Gavin Newsom is running for President (well, kinda maybe, probably pinky swear if he has no other way to save the country from itself possibly). He doesn’t stand a chance, though oddly enough it may not be totally his...
What the Third Congressional District Candidates Are Saying, Part 2
The newly re-drawn Third California Congressional district is big. It is bigger in square-milage than nine states and, if on the other side of the country, would – length-wise – stretch from Baltimore to Boston. While the local concerns may...