Thank God (can I say that?) the legislature is on it when it comes to the big issues.  No cussing week is finally a reality in California.  About time, dammit.  Too many potty-mouth Californians are probably at the heart of our serious problems:  the budget crisis, poor educational results throughout the state, massive traffic jams.  If only that driver hadn’t cursed before he shot the guy who cut him off on the 5. 

It was only a year ago that President Obama was inaugurated in what some commentators hailed as a sweeping endorsement of socialism: more European-style central economic planning, federal regulation, and entitlement programs. But it would seem that the pundits misread the Democrats' victories in 2006 and 2008.  America didn't want more, it wanted less.

Last December, when several provisions of the Patriot Act were set to expire, Congress instead extended the sunset clause to the end of February.  With this extension, as with any extension, one would assume that further debate was their primary motive.  As with previous extensions of the Act, serious debate addressing public grievances was never undertaken. 

David Provost, former professor at Cal State Fresno, recently took on advocates who favor a one term limit in the state legislature.  In short, Provost isn’t fond of the one term notion.  Rather, he favors a 12 year limit system allowing for politicians to come back after sitting out a term.

Everyone is worried about the skyrocketing national debt, yet no one wants to cut spending. Both Republicans and Democrats warn of a national debt crisis just over the horizon, yet both parties continue to spend record amounts on the military and domestic entitlements.  China, formerly our biggest creditor, is slowly beginning to dump US bonds as it grows increasingly concerned with America's profligate policies.

Reforming the health insurance industry has occupied Washington lawmakers and dominated the news for a better part of a year.  Why we need reform has become all too obvious.  Forty-five thousand Americans die each year because they don’t have health insurance.  Each day, 14,000 people lose their health insurance coverage.  Insurance premiums have risen 131 percent over the past decade while the number of employers that offer health insurance to their employees has dropped to just 60 percent.   Workers have seen their contributions to their health insurance

John McCain has taken issue with it. Russ Feingold lent his name to it. Nary a day goes by without someone taking issue with it. What on earth is the “it” alluded to? Campaign contributions, of course! Whether an individual is agitating for stronger reform or cursing the day any sort of political and financial reform was put into law, the topic of campaign finance reform is never too removed from the day-to-day political debates.

The 550,000 students enrolled at the University of California and the California State University system have been served a steady diet of tuition and fee increases over the past few years.  In part to cope with a $350 million net cut in state support to both systems this year, a 32 percent increase for UC students -- $1,929 -- is scheduled to take effect in September – on the heels of a 9.3 percent increase in 2009. CSU increased tuition 30 percent in 2009. In September, tuition climbs another $403.  “It’s a tax increase on students.

Fox News lightning rod, Bill O'Reilly, criticized Republicans and Democrats in an interview with ABC's George Stephanopoulus.  Claiming that each side possesses a valid concern in the healthcare debate, O'Reilly urged both parties to reject partisanship and craft a plan that addresses the real needs of average Americans, though he doubts that will actually happen.  He also called out the "loons" on both sides of the political aisle and directed a few critical remarks toward Democrats Nancy Pelosi & Harry Reid, as well as Republicans Sarah Palin and John Boehner.

Ever since humans first understood the power that flowed from the sun, they have wanted to harness it for their own purposes.  It all seemed so simple – capture the sunlight, use it to warm our homes and power our communities.  The fact that solar power barely makes a dent in today’s mix of power grid sources is a testament to the difficulty of turnin