Funny Business

Published: Friday, 10 Jul 2009 | 3:21 PM ET

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Rick Newcombe, President of Creators Syndicate, has an op-ed piece in today's Wall Street Journal called, "Why We'll Leave LA", in which he says the City of Angels "is fast becoming a job-killing machine".

I'm not ready to leave yet. I'm a native Angeleno. My kids are fourth generation Californians. I have a job (hurray!), and the weather is just so darn good, along with the Mexican food. California, you sure do make it hard to love you, but I always look for the upside.

Today's slice of life in the Golden State.

—Most state offices are closed today as the first of three "Furlough Fridays" every month. Upside: traffic on the freeways is delightfully light!

—The University of California is considering furloughs for "tens of thousands" of employees to cut costs 20 percent. Upside: fewer degree programs in ridiculous, money-losing pursuits.

—This is the last day most major banks will cash IOUs, which the SEC now consider securities, meaning you'll need a license to trade them. Upside: free market capitalism with protections.

Photo by: scazon

—The state Franchise Tax Board is allowing Californians to pay their taxes with IOUs, which defeats the purpose of issuing IOUs while bringing in cash...from taxes. Upside: if they don't have to pay me money, I don't have to pay them money.

—There have been no budget talks since Monday, when Assembly Speaker Karen Bass stormed out, accusing Governor Schwarzenegger of not negotiating seriously. When Schwarzenegger's office accused Bass of boycotting meetings, her office replied, "Staying off buses in Montgomery to bring down Jim Crow is a boycott. Missing a photo op to prop up Arnold Schwarzenegger is not." (Update: KCRA reports both sides will meet, finally, this afternoon.) Upside: each day without a budget is one more day my taxes don't go up.

—While efforts to close a $26 billion budget gap go nowhere, state lawmakers prove this is the land of fruits and nuts, meeting this week to debate important legislation to regulate blueberries, pomegranates, and to define "honey" as a natural food. Upside: we haven't lost our sense of humor.

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