Ann Althouse of Althouse breaks down why scandals like the Stanford Law free speech incident continue to happen across the US: As the extremists get louder, the moderates—really, anyone with common sense—tend to get quieter. They seek “invisib[ility]” and avoid conflict, which only serves to encourage existing radicalism.
Read MoreThe more people look closely at the cozy relationship between local nonprofits and the city government entities that fund them, the more concerned people get. Local neighborhood coalition and planning group Families & Homes SJ extends the argument by wondering how it's okay that the city's Housing Director can sit on the board of a local housing nonprofit, and asks the Mayor and Council for greater transparency.
Read MoreNonprofit advocates and SJ Housing Department staff (oops, did we repeat ourselves?) have struggled for three years to get Council approval for their flawed proposal to privilege local nonprofits when it comes to buying up older properties (it's called COPA). Since a Council economic committee rejected the latest COPA version on 3/27, the spin machine from city staff and nonprofits has shifted into high gear in an effort to restart the broken-down concept. The Opp Now team examines their rhetorical maneuvers in this exclusive.
Read MoreThe Bay Area's transit system is considering batting its eyelashes and saying “pretty please” in future elections, as the favored solution to sinking ridership numbers is—ask taxpayers to cut more checks. Costs to run Caltrain keep rising, and post-pandemic passengers are both staying away and staying home. Bay City News reports on BART's proposed solution to a growing issue.
Read MoreIf the Left is truly for diversity, why aggressively label people who don't fit into their ideological mold? Stanford's Federalist Society student org president Tim Rosenberger, Jr. discusses how labeling all nonconformists as “far-right” is divisive, and in opposition to truly diverse representation (how ironic). A Washington Post excerpt.
Read MoreIt's a wonder that anyone with eyes and ears can label the recent violent SFSU ambush, of women's rights guest speaker Riley Gaines, as “peaceful.” Yet the university's VP of Student Affairs has praised the fiasco as being exactly that: peaceful, brave, and, laughably, insightful. The NY Post delineates peaceful vs. violent protests to provide actual insight on the latest local anti-free speech snafu.
Read MoreRemember all the confetti around upzoning reforms in SJ? How advocates claimed that Opportunity Housing/SB9 would relieve the housing affordability crisis? And ADUs would provide much needed density? Well, those proposals passed and... not much has happened. A new report from the Urban Institute explains why (spoiler: it's because the property deregulations were so narrow).
Read MoreWhat does it mean to criminalize homelessness? An expert concludes that Mayor Mahan's proposal to enact no encampment zones across the City doesn't violate unhoused individuals' rights, as some wonder. Jeff Rowes, senior attorney at the Institute for Justice, breaks it down in this Opp Now exclusive: Reasonably regulating public health/safety in no way penalizes homelessness, as long as people are offered alternative housing options (as is integral to Mahan's strategy).
Read MoreSteve Heimoff of Coalition for a Better Oakland chimes in on Newsom's CARE Court proposition, which is backed by local pols including former SJ councilmember Khamis. Here, Heimoff indicates that contrary to some dichotomous criticism, sheltering unhoused people who are mentally unwell will uphold individual rights—by keeping our public streets safe for everyone.
Read MoreAny local law school wanting to avoid similar mistakes as Stanford University's (read: to avoid hiring deans who publicly sympathize with anti-free speech protesters) need look no further. Campus Reform breaks down DEI Dean Steinbach's rampant—and easily accessible—history of opposing law enforcement, criminal justice systems, and, yes, the “patriarchy.”
Read MoreFor years, the growing power and influence of local nonprofits has troubled local politicians, legal experts, and everyday citizens. Recent revelations that local nonprofits act just like lobbyists (but retain their tax exempt status) and brazenly invite conflict of interest concerns (SJ's Housing Dept head also sits on the board of a huge local housing nonprofit that receives millions in city funds) have further raised eyebrows. Joel Kotkin provides the backstory (growing 1% wealth and a 9x-increase in NP funds since 1980) in Philanthropy Daily.
Read MorePrivately operated prisons are often mislabeled by rejoinders as greedy profit machines. Even historically pro-law enforcement SCC was pressured by Ellenberg and other jailbreak activists last year to abandon plans for a new, much-needed, jail. In City Journal, Devon Kurtz points to real-world benefits of performance metric-bound prison contracts, correcting the misconception that local gov't must be at the helm of all criminal justice efforts.
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