In the quietly passed omnibus spending bill (say goodbye to billions and billions of your tax dollars!), more than a half million was dedicated to... research equipment for Los Angeles's very own Institute for Irritable Bowel Syndrome Research. FoxNews.com and a number of other voices quickly pointed to some of the outrageous projects being funded in the newest spending bill. It's almost as though lawmakers in Washington D.C.

Many in the GOP are calling for a return to the era of Reagan's fiscal conservatism, but do they have the right man?  Rush Limbaugh and Sean Hannity constantly tout themselves as "Reagan conservatives", and in the 2007-2008 primaries, the GOP presidential candidates frequently mentioned Reagan as the champion of conservatism.  Many Tea Party adherents mention Reagan as the paragon of fiscal conservatism, and Sarah Palin, a top figure in the Tea Party movement, prolifically touted Reagan's fiscally conservative record in her recent book, Going Rogue.

On Thursday, December 10, a California judge declared null a pact which would have allowed Imperial Valley water suppliers (such as the Imperial Irrigation District) to sell up to 100 billion gallons of water annually to San Diego, Coachella and Los Angeles water suppliers, such as the San Diego Water Authority and the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.

During the late evening hours of Friday, December 11, somewhere between 40 and 70 protestors rallied outside of UC Berkeley Chancellor Robert Birgeneau’s home, leaving such damage in their wake as smashed planters and broken windows and outside lights, and even and threw what UC Berkeley officials described as “incendiary objects at the house, which could have cause a major fire.” The anarchists also were reportedly shouting “No justice, no peace,” likely trying to rouse the chan

Why does California need an open primary?
The Top Two Candidates Open Primary will complement and enhance the redistricting reform approved by voters in November of 2008. The combination of redistricting and an open primary will bring more pragmatic leaders to Sacramento and enable them to focus on finding solutions rather than partisan finger-pointing.

Another one bites the dust. In tragic news for California, the state just lost another big-name business. EA’S Pandemic Studios was a beloved maker of video games, and will cease to function, at least physically, in California.

The Tea Party movement is at a crossroads.  It will either morph into a viable, third party by 2012, or it will fade away as most populist movements do.  It will either develop into a platform of credible fiscal conservatism and constitutional fidelity, or it will be co-opted by GOP bigwigs whose sole agenda lies in bashing President Obama, Speaker Pelosi, and Senator Reid.

Independent voters crave credibility in the political arena.  But, alas, credibility is hard to find these days.  Whether it's Republicans mocking Democrats for excessive federal spending, after adding $5 trillion of debt themselves, or Democrats castigating Republicans for an overly hawkish foreign policy, then repeatedly voting to continue funding in Iraq and massively escalating the war in Afghanistan, or Tea Party enthusiasts scolding President Obama, when they were nowhere to be found during the Bush debacles, independents recognize grandiose hypocrisy.

 California’s budget crisis has moved from a hemorrhage to a slow implosion, and now desperation is clearly setting in as the state slashes trademark programs. As of November, the state has slashed programs that made the state distinctive; first virtually eliminating the “public” part of its public education system, and now, dealing a blow that may take out one of the state’s most successful l--and cost effective-- recycling programs.