California Roundup: What's the one thing we need in 2010? More Unions!

Tim Cavanaugh | August 13, 2010

Mikael Moore * The University of California system is now a closed shop for postdocs. Researchers at the 10 UC campuses (campi?) have signed a union contract that will hike pay by 1.5 percent to 3 percent and aim for compliance with NIH-suggested pay scales. Larry Gordon of the Los Angeles Times is unable to find any potential downside in this "success" that one source tells us will "breed success." Gordon also wins today's Arabic award, in which written information is delivered precisely backward. Here, for example, is how he explains that despite a four-year organizing campaign, the union was unable to attract a majority of researchers to vote for its takeover: "[A]lthough less than half of the posdocs voted, 95% of those who did vote supported the contract."

* Elsewhere at the LAT, Lisa Mascaro falls in love with Mikael Moore, the 32-year-old grandson of and chief of staff to the embattled Rep. Maxine Waters. And what's not to love? He's a young, "politically gifted" take-charge man who "brought order to a sometimes tangled office" (while allegedly setting up a sweetheart deal for Waters' husband's bank); he's pulling down $129,000 a year; he looks damn well in a suit with one of those hanky-thingees peeping out of the breast pocket. And obviously he knows the importance of family.

* Sadly, the L.A. Times' lawyers have not been as successful at breaking the prior restraint of a judge who barred the paper from running a photograph of a defendant in a murder case, on the grounds that publishing a photo of the defendant in prison garb would violate his right to a fair trial. The case is before L.A.'s 2nd District Court of Appeal, and though Superior Court Judge Hilleri Merritt overstepped the bounds of the court (and the paper will almost certainly prevail in the case), it's interesting to see a peevish judge pit First Amendment and Sixth Amendment guarantees against each other.

* Digital divas deliver a one and a zero for Republicans: HP's Carly Fiorina pulls ahead of Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer in polling; eBay's Meg Whitman can't make a dent in gubernatorial opponent Jerry Brown.

* Bob Rizzo -- is there no end to this man's evil? LA Weekly's J. Patrick Coolican explains how the disgraced former Bell city manager came up with a policy so vicious even the cops hated it: a three-a-day quota for impounding cars.

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Admiral Ackbar|8.13.10 @ 1:32PM|#

LA Weekly's J. Patrick Coolican explains how the disgraced former Bell city manager came up with a policy so vicious even the cops hated it: a three-a-day quota for impounding cars.

Like the Mafia, the police appear to have SOME Rubicons that they will not cross.

Pope Jimbo|8.13.10 @ 1:38PM|#

The problem was not that the cops thought it was morally wrong to target residents for car impounds, but rather that they might pick on the wrong guy and get their asses shot off.

Officers had another term for all the impound work: "Impound roulette." As in Russian roulette. The push to impound cars required more stops, and each stop brought the risk of something going awry or turning violent.

"You never know when you're going to stop that one guy. You're rolling the dice," Owens said.

"It sacrificed officer safety," said the second officer.

Hard to feel any sympathy for them.

Brett L|8.13.10 @ 2:09PM|#

What is the deal with the "officer safety" fetish? Is there any way we can convince the FOP/PBA that fewer laws is the key to officer safety?

cynical|8.13.10 @ 4:44PM|#

See, hard proof that arming citizens does deter would-be robbers.

Jeffersonian|8.13.10 @ 2:08PM|#

Holy shit, I just read that article. It's hard to make much of a distinction between organized crime and this fist-fucker, Rizzo. Unbelievable.

Spartacus|8.13.10 @ 2:27PM|#

He probably forgot to share the impound fees with the police dept.

Almanian|8.13.10 @ 1:44PM|#

Also, just for the record: fuck California.

BakedPenguin|8.13.10 @ 1:48PM|#

...it's interesting to see a peevish judge pit First Amendment and Sixth Amendment guarantees against each other...

I guess my 1A cred goes out the window. I think perp walk pictures are a fucking gift to unscrupulous DAs, which is about 90% of them. Nobody should be involuntarily photographed in jail garb until they are convicted. The number of ways those photos could be abused by DAs as well as enemies of those photographed is hard to count.

Paul Krugman|8.13.10 @ 1:57PM|#

Larry Gordon of the Los Angeles Times is unable to find any potential downside in this "success" that one source tells us will "breed success."

Have I explained the multiplier effect lately?

Christina Romer|8.13.10 @ 2:49PM|#

Already seen it in action. The results are all around us! Summer of Recovery FTW!

Upgrayyed|8.13.10 @ 2:01PM|#

Seriously, the impound lot is the worst place on earth. Worse than Darfur. They're like little bizzaro worlds where logic and reason cease to exist.

LarryA|8.13.10 @ 2:14PM|#

Researchers at the 10 UC campuses (campi?) have signed a union contract that will hike pay by 1.5 percent to 3 percent

Less what, 5% union dues? Losers.

Spartacus|8.13.10 @ 2:29PM|#

"[A]lthough less than half of the pos[t]docs voted, 95% of those who did vote supported the contract."

That's because most postdocs are in the sciences, where they are busy working and don't have time for this stuff.

Paul|8.13.10 @ 2:34PM|#

eBay's Meg Whitman can't make a dent in gubernatorial opponent Jerry Brown.

Color me surprised. You Californian's ready for the next governor of the failed state of California: Jerry Brown?

|8.13.10 @ 5:56PM|#

Something tells me he won't be anywhere near as good of a governor this time as he was last time...

On the other hand, don't believe everything you read about this race.

Never underestimate the overwhelming subconscious desire to snub those championed by elitist pricks. It sometimes strikes at the last moment.

This may not be a good election cycle to be seen as something of an Obama-lama-ding-dong. ....and I don't know if Brown's thought of as a student or a mentor that way, but he's guilty by association.

He's guilty of somethin'!

|8.13.10 @ 3:37PM|#

Privatize the UC system already!

Brian Sorgatz|8.13.10 @ 3:39PM|#

Researchers at the 10 UC campuses (campi?)...

Let's get our Latin plurals right. Let's not be doofi, or we might get our penes chopped off.

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