When the tantalizing prospect of voting for Prop 13 meant some tax relief for homeowners, the background story about the long term affects of the change were virtually ignored by the local examples of America's free press. In the Sixties, a college education in California was one of America's greatest educational bargains. Prop 13 was hailed as democracy in action. What wasn't mentioned was that it took away money used to fund the low cost higher education and gave tax breaks to businesses.
Forty years later, the families of local homeowners can not afford the tuition bills that are used to finance the state's colleges and universities. Many of the Golden State's famous institutes of higher learning are forced to fill the classrooms with students from wealthy foreign families.
California voters got played and fell for the ruse. Isn't tricking voters into approving measures which will eventually punish them and reward the corporations one of the more appealing and hilarious aspects for Republicans who run for office?
[Photo Editor's note: For a column on Santa Monica, the best quickly available shot was a file photo taken about three years ago on the Third Street Promenade.]
Now the disk jockey will play Santa Monica's official song (with vocals by Gloria Wood) Kay Kyser's "When Veronica plays her harmonica (down on the pier in Santa Monica)," the theme music from "The Sting," and Cheryl Crow's song "All I wanna do (AKA the "Santa Monica Blvd." song)." We have to go check and see if we can find where Raymond Chandler's old office on "Oregon" Street was. Have a "Let's go shopping at Henshey's" type week. Since Saturday is National Train day, have a good one.
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