70 Comments
User's avatar
Mike's avatar

Lou- I agree 100%! It is simply astounding how moronic the populace is in this city, county and state.

Expand full comment
Montecito93108's avatar

Mike: Any suggestions how to get “moronic” tax and spend voters to vote to decrease our invasive, costly state, county and local governments?

Expand full comment
Earl Brown's avatar

Decrease our taxes and run a conservative government? Advertising and publicity - it elected Reagan and Arnold Snotslinger. With the right PR I bet we can make Steve Hilton into a folk hero!

Expand full comment
Montecito93108's avatar

I’m 100% AGAINST supporting a 50% naturalized , dual citizen who was raised, educated, acculturated in a foreign country to be Govenor of CA the world’s 5th,6th or whatever largest economy. I hope Republican voters wise up. No Party Preference voters need to halt Hilton.

Expand full comment
Howard Walther's avatar

No Mike THE WORD is not "MORONIC" it is CORRUPT and they all know it.

Expand full comment
Bill Russell's avatar

People get adapted to the "same-old-stuff." Speaking of being adapted to stuff, I've been working on our 29-year-old Sub-Zero frig. One problem was a vibrating condenser fan that in turn vibrates and causes ticking noises to occur from the attached frig cosmetics used to blend the frig to the rest of the kitchen cabinets. From what I can tell, this noise has occurred for the lifetime of the frig. We moved into this house and after four years I decided to get the icemaker and door access of ice cubes and water all working again. In the process, I came across the condenser fan motor power wiring vibrating ... it appeared the fan blade assy. was unbalanced. Yes, the fan blade wasn't centered on the motor shaft. This is my example how humans simply get used to crap, just like a noisy refrigerator for decades. After I recentered the fan blade on the motor shaft, the frig is quiet as a mouse ... just the sound of a gentle breeze. Solution: Just fix it and the problem will go away.

Expand full comment
Jenn's avatar

Come on.. it’s fraud, cheating or dominion

How many people in this group voted for More taxes?

It took them 1 month to count the presidential votes in California

They rig everything

Expand full comment
Howard Walther's avatar

Hello JENN ..... Oh you are EXACTLY over the NAZI BOMBING TARGET

"They rig everything"

Like our Old B-27's Bombing the NAZIs during WWII weblink below>

https://www.americanairmuseum.com/archive/aircraft/42-29807

Expand full comment
Chuck White's avatar

I continue to marvel at the fact that city, county, and state pensions are rarely discussed as out-of-control costs compared to private industry.

Expand full comment
Howard Walther's avatar

Chuck White it is way beyound "rarely discussed" to criminal activity

minimally Honest Service Fraud and should be RICO RACKETEERING.

You are rigth about ONE THING OUT OF CONTROL SANTA BARBARA

has become in fact CORRUPT TAMMY HALL see my post above...........

Expand full comment
CarsAreBasic's avatar

How about them apples.

The same people who wanted State St. open for traffic, voted for more taxes. The same people who voted for a council that continues to waste tens of Millions of tax dollars to shut down the streets voted for more taxes.

The same people who drive to Goleta to shop at their open and thriving centers that have more the great access from the freeways, open 4 lane surface streets to allow them to get to the shops, vote for people who have squandered tax dollars to shut down the streets and take away needed parking for the retail shops.

So where is the rational planning that increased retail and vitality in Santa Barbara? It is gone because these same idiot voters who vote for high taxes, also vote for Sacramento high density buildings that will in the next few years crush what is left of Santa Barbara and open streets.

Now how do we clone more Mr. Segal's for votes?

Expand full comment
Howard Walther's avatar

CarsAreBasic you may not be totally acurrate that DA PEOPLE VOTED FOR ALL THIS

CORRUPTION. Me Thinks the Votes On Passing HUGE LOCAL TAX INCREASE MAYBE

SUSPECT. Whada Think?

Expand full comment
CarsAreBasic's avatar

The votes had to come from some where.

It would be interesting to see where the largest concentration of pro tax votes came from. How did this voting compare with Democrat more wealthy and over 50 crowd.

Expand full comment
Howard Walther's avatar

TrucksAreBasic, to CarsAreBasic you miss the entire Corrupt Point

Those VOTES maybe manufactured a common scheme of vote-rigging

in Democratic Countries. Oh I come from a Trucking Family>

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Walther_Sr.

"Walther developed the first practical cast steel wheel for solid rubber tires. This was a basic but critical contribution to the evolution of the early trucking industry and the U.S. Army trucks in World War I"

Expand full comment
Jeff barton's avatar

Billed as guaranteeing maintenance of essential services, measure I was sold on lies. Amoung those lies are that fire stations would close, libraries would shutter, 911 service would end and Santa Barbara would be unable to retain local businesses and jobs. This is of course all bullshit. As Lou points out, by far the largest part of Santa Barbara's budget goes to salaries and pensions but it was not even mentioned. Did anyone really believe that essential services were at risk without a sales tax increase? Apparently yes, that or their paycheck comes from the city.

Expand full comment
User's avatar
Comment deleted
May 5, 2025Edited
Comment deleted
Expand full comment
Jeff barton's avatar

So if the ballot description of measure I explained that the city was having difficulty paying 300k firemen salaries or 500k payouts to librarians would it still have passed?

Expand full comment
User's avatar
Comment deleted
May 5, 2025Edited
Comment deleted
Expand full comment
Earl Brown's avatar

JL - love your little nuggets - 'Stick around', 'You get the drift.'

Expand full comment
Monica Bond's avatar

Lou,, I think your article speaks for a good portion of us. If what you write about were only an April Fool's joke and not a reality!

Expand full comment
Brian MacIsaac's avatar

As always, you clearly state so many of our current problems Lou. My greatest fear is that so many of us that were taught by our parents/teachers and others a strong distrust of government, will be dying out without passing on this important trait to the next generation. Unfortunately, the school system and absentee parenting, coupled with the Internet, seems to have taught subsequent generations to put their soul trust into government. i’m not sure how we get these people to read posts such as this on a regular basis to see the inherent dangers of blind trust in a government, but I think it’s very important to work as hard as we can to make sure they do. I hope all of you have instilled this VIRTUE into all of your children, and make sure they stay actively involved in local, state and national politics. I fear too many are distracted by technology, and are now currently living in their own little worlds that they hold in their hands. As those wonderfully talented nitwits once sang “teach your children well“

Expand full comment
Howard Walther's avatar

I read this article by Lou Segal titled "Foolish Santa Barbara Taxpayers"

and I quote from same >

"I would like to blame the politicians, including everyone on the city council and the mayor (who should know better) for pandering to overpaid and self-serving city workers and their corrupt labor unions at the expense of the people they are supposed to serve."

Has anyone done FOI Act request against the County and City for What Is Really Going Down

in this Lil Ole Beach Den of Thieves Town. Think CORRUPT BOSS TWEED of TAMMY HALL.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tammany_Hall

Any "Honest Service Fraud" Cases or worse filed against SB County or the City???

Just How Many Other Lawsuits are Filed Against the County or City??????

Come on Folks be like JUDICIAL WATCH GET FILING YOUR FOI REQUESTS

https://x.com/TomFitton/status/1918656004503253385 (Obstruction of Justice In SB???)

Howard Walther, Member of a Military Family.

PS1 - "Boss Tweed is chiefly remembered for the cronyism of his Tammany Hall political machine, through which he bilked the city of New York of massive sums of money."

SOUND FAMILIAR IT SHOULD WELCOME TO SANTA BARBARA ..............

Expand full comment
Emmett's avatar

The Voter majority likes paying high taxes and then complaining they have no money to pay rent.

Then they blame landlords, not government.

They like seeing homeless people left out in the cold foraging for food and drugs while they applaud spending $24 Billion ($2,000/tax payer) to support people who broke our laws seeking a better paying job than in their home country.

They defend people who choose to break the law from illegal aliens to Democrat rioters.

They applaud those who stand for terrorist organizations and do not condemn violence here or abroad.

They like having the worst academic schools in the country.

The Democrat tax payer enjoys this world of poverty and high taxes and poor education.

It allows them to claim the noble status of “victim”

They’ve made it clear.

They will only vote for who ever they are instructed to.

Despite seeing and acknowledging these truths.

Expand full comment
Harold J. Baer,  M.D.'s avatar

Accurate and extremely well articulated. What a sorry state of affairs. Inexplicably, voters vote for these ridiculous proposals. If we want different results we need to elect different people with common sense values who can offer common sense solutions.

Expand full comment
Emmett's avatar

People who choose to not vote also enjoy paying high taxes and watching the humanitarian crisis of homeless Americans foraging through trash for food and giving $25 Billion/year to illegal aliens who choose to break our laws to seek a better paying job.

And guess what, they’re going to build them housing too.

By not voting they agree to everything the Democrat run government is doing.

If you are upset by these events you have two choices; leave CA or start waking your friends, family and neighbors up. Be persistent with your lazy, defeated friends who choose to not to full out the ballot sitting on their kitchen counter.

Expand full comment
Pat Fish's avatar

One correction: In California, personal care services like haircuts, manicures, and tattoos are generally not subject to sales tax, as they are considered nontaxable services. Sales tax in California primarily applies to the sale of tangible personal property (physical items like products or goods).

I am thankful that I do not have to calculate and pay a percentage of my service wage income back out as a sales tax, to support the ones the Brits would call WOGs, Wards of the Government. Meaning the ineffectual employees and the n'er-do-wells combined. Every time I drive by a "We Stand With Teachers" sign I cringe, knowing how abysmally the school system is doing, indoctrinating while ignoring the essentials of learning.

The juggernaut advances as individual debt soars.

The American spirit of can-do individualism is crushed beneath the weight of supporting the System that serves itself.

George Bernard Shaw wrote:

"The reasonable man adapts himself to the world: the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man."

So it goes.

"We the unwilling, led by the unknowing, are doing the impossible for the ungrateful. We have done so much, with so little, for so long, we are now qualified to do anything with nothing."

Expand full comment
Lisa Dabbs's avatar

I loved every single word spoken here. Perfect summation of my thoughts.

Expand full comment
Lisa Dabbs's avatar

@Pat Fish but also everyone else. Thank you.

Expand full comment
Lou Segal's avatar

Pat, it's complicated when it comes to personal services like haircuts. The barber or hair stylist must pay sales tax for the purchase of the shampoo/conditioner or coloring agent used in the course of the haircut. Although they do not charge you separately for the sales tax, they will have to recoup the sales tax charge in the price of the haircut.

Expand full comment
Stephen H Siemsen's avatar

"They will have to recoup the sales tax [and tariff] charge in the price of the haircut." The same is true of automobiles, shoes, clothing, etc. Tariffs are a form of taxation, which only Congress can impose (it's in the Constitution); not an authoritarian wannabe dictator by executive fiat. BTW, the price of your "Made in China" MAGA hat will also go up.

Expand full comment
Robert Johnson's avatar

Mr. Segal, you posit that "It’s hard to wrap my mind around the fact that a majority of voters (who you term "fools") wanted to increase the cost of almost everything they buy... (by approving the local sales tax increase)...."

Fair enough. But if you expand your Santa Barbara based "micro" rhetorical question to the national "macro" you might understand why so many of us ("libtards") are gobsmacked as to why so many of you (MAGAs) voted for Trump, who is, by act of his tariffs, similarly increasing the cost of almost everything they buy.

Did you not see these cost-of-living increases coming despite the forecasts of all those Nobel laureate economists? Or are you cleverly suggesting that the preponderance of 2024 voters are, likewise, "fools"? If so, I would concur!

Expand full comment
Montecito93108's avatar

RJ: Tariffs are not a tax. No need to pay for cost of any tariff; avoid buying imported goods with an added tariff. Too many major US corporations are enablers. China pirateers, has been allowed to abuse its citizen workers while contributing to the destruction of our private sector working and middle classes. Some US companies have been forced out by over regulation from environmentalists, government and/or tax policies. Some countries have become tax avoidance destinations for our former major employers.

Some of us agree with and voted for “The Master Plan”. We accept tariffs hoping to bring back business and job creation to our country. Moreover, we’re tired of being taken advantage of by too many foreign countries, while ours is heavily indebted, our infrastructure crumbling, our poor demographic increasing (70% poverty in SB County), while we’re being increasingly burdened by enriching their foreign countries.

So far the Administration’s tariff plan appears to be working in our favor. Negotiations take time.

Expand full comment
Lisa Dabbs's avatar

You just lost the argument at ‘Nobel Laureate’ but anyway, I digress. You’re being presumptuous-

not everyone you disagree with vote for Trump. Should I assume you wrote in Bernie Sanders?

Expand full comment
Lisa Dabbs's avatar

*voted

Expand full comment
User's avatar
Comment deleted
May 5, 2025
Comment deleted
Expand full comment
Lisa Dabbs's avatar

ok. Got it. Thx

Expand full comment
Earl Brown's avatar

I was just going to suggest that - I use it a lot!

Expand full comment
Jeff barton's avatar

There you go again putting your Johnson in your mouth. Tariffs are a tool which will ultimately bring us more equitable trade deals. I am gobsmacked, utterly gobsmacked by your vocabulary.

Expand full comment
User's avatar
Comment deleted
May 5, 2025Edited
Comment deleted
Expand full comment
Peter Scott's avatar

JL, Tariffs are not a tax? Conservatives such as Ted Cruz, Rand Paul along with respected investor, Warren Buffet, appear to disagree with your “focused partisan claptrap” claim.

https://www.yahoo.com/news/republicans-and-a-conservative-think-tank-sound-the-alarm-over-trumps-tariffs-203200197.html

Expand full comment
User's avatar
Comment deleted
May 5, 2025
Comment deleted
Expand full comment
Peter Scott's avatar

JL, Sounds like your’e in conflict with the following;

Free Markets:

Conservatives generally support free markets and free trade, believing that they lead to innovation and economic growth.

Limited Government:

A core tenet of conservatism is the belief that government should have limited powers and should not interfere unduly in the lives of individuals or the economy.

Expand full comment
Julia Gonzales's avatar

Call tariffs whatever you want. Tariffs will raise the cost of many of the products we buy. This is not a bold move, it’s the action of a bully pulling percentages out of his butt. As for the rocky path, you can bet trump and his cronies won’t be traveling that path. Remember, “watch your pennies and the dollars will take care of themselves”.

I for one would rather go back to the Biden/Democratic mess, than to be in this present unpredictable corrupt chaotic shambles.

trump is trying to distract us with his tariffs and deportations, away from his corrupt businesses. The biggest one is his crypto business, the Mrs., Jr and Eric also happen to have their own crypto business. Supposedly it’s being run by his two sons as presidents are not supposed to have their own business while in office. I guess trump forgot about that. After his inauguration, what a surprise, he issued an executive order that upped the price of crypto. He made over $3 million in one day, he even made the announcement while giving a speech. And let’s not forget another executive order established a cryptocurrency reserve, again, who benefits from that the rich, of course

Expand full comment
DLDawson's avatar

Yes, voters are foolish, BUT are limited to candidates that serve the same machine. Are taxpayers funding the destruction of Santa Barbara? Are taxpayers funding the destruction of America? (See DOGE findings re USAID). Unfortunately, it’s been going on for far too long at the federal, state, and local levels.

Who controls [wields significant influence] re: the 'Clinton' [D] party?

https://wikileaks.org/clinton-emails/emailid/22919

https://wikileaks.org/clinton-emails/emailid/24651

Who controlled [wields significant influence] re: the 'Hussein' [D] party?

https://wikileaks.org/clinton-emails/emailid/30480

Different factions of foreign control?

Who paid _Hussein's Harvard Law Degree? Who financed _Hussein's political life? Who is Prince Al-Waleed bin Talal? Why are Hussein's school records under seal?

Competing factions [each with a horse in the race] seeking direct WH control [+USMIL][+Trillions _overseas transfer of US TAXPAYER funds]? All working together [coordinated][infiltration not invasion][Valerie Jarrett, and Huma Abedin] What happens to US TAXPAYER funds transferred overseas under guise of AID, MIL, CLIMATE, etc.?

Were US TAXPAYERS funding the destruction of America?

Expand full comment
Howard Walther's avatar

Nice DLDawson Dig Deep for Sheep Dip!

Expand full comment
User's avatar
Comment deleted
May 5, 2025
Comment deleted
Expand full comment
DLDawson's avatar

You don’t understand using the term racist. His name is Barack Hussein Obama, aka Barry Sotoro…using someone’s name is not racist…like I said, I remember you, the lady who gets off on casting dispersions…

Expand full comment
User's avatar
Comment deleted
May 6, 2025
Comment deleted
Expand full comment
User's avatar
Comment deleted
May 6, 2025
Comment deleted
Expand full comment
DLDawson's avatar

his name was Barry Soetoro in his early years, for legal use aka Barack Obama, Barry Durham, Barack Durham, Barack Hussein Obama…third generation CIA…by any name, he’s a traitor to Our Country…

https://rumble.com/v5nbkv5-candace-owens-drops-major-revelationobama-stepdad-was-cia-op-per-judge-joe-.html

https://rumble.com/v41c0mg-obamas-fake-birth-certificate-exposed-is-going-viral.-judge-joe-brown-has-m.html

Expand full comment
User's avatar
Comment deleted
May 5, 2025
Comment deleted
Expand full comment
DLDawson's avatar

I remember you…everyone who criticizes non-whites are racists?

Expand full comment
User's avatar
Comment deleted
May 6, 2025
Comment deleted
Expand full comment
DLDawson's avatar

You also called me antisemitic for criticizing George Soros…had enough of your slanders…get some counseling

Expand full comment
User's avatar
Comment deleted
May 6, 2025
Comment deleted
Expand full comment
DLDawson's avatar

More conjecture/slander…shows you love to hate others…are you reading Tarot cards?

Expand full comment
User's avatar
Comment deleted
May 5, 2025
Comment deleted
Expand full comment
RF's avatar

I would venture to guess you hate all people who ARE white.

Expand full comment
User's avatar
Comment deleted
May 6, 2025
Comment deleted
Expand full comment
DLDawson's avatar

There, you said it Julia…haters got to hate

Expand full comment
Stephen H Siemsen's avatar

Lou writes, "So now I am paying more for the cup of coffee I buy every day at the nearby shop, the restaurant I like to go to, the clothes I buy either at the store or online and myriad other stuff like furniture, toys, giftware, car repairs, haircuts, sporting events, concerts, and hundreds of other things. The list is endless."

You are not the only one paying more, Lou, so am I and everyone else - and I don't even live in Santa Barbara! The sales tax increase you are so concerned about pales to insignificance when it is compared to the price increases on just about everything all of us must now pay as a result of Trump's self-imposed Tariff tax. You assert that Santa Barbara residents who approved the sales tax increase were "foolish." If so, what do you call those Americans who chose to send a convicted felon and failed businessman back to the White House to destroy what only 4 months ago was the world's strongest and healthiest economy? Get ready to pay even MORE for that cup of imported coffee. Welcome to Trump's Turd Reich.

Expand full comment
User's avatar
Comment deleted
May 5, 2025Edited
Comment deleted
Expand full comment
Stephen H Siemsen's avatar

Yawn. J. L., I saved you the time of looking it up:

Tax /taks/. noun. 1. a compulsory contribution to state revenue, levied by the government on workers' income and business profits, or added to the cost of goods, services, and transactions.

Sounds like a "tariff" qualifies as a "tax" to me, especially since I have to pay the added cost imposed on the goods by the government. Yes, by all means, Lou should avoid buying tariffed "cheap crap" from Temu; he can do that at Walmart, Target and Harbor Freight until the shelves go empty.

Expand full comment
Thomas John's avatar

Stephan, I think her reply post with the off-topic response is her way of saying, yes, she was wrong, and tariffs are a tax. I didn't think we were discussing business as usual - I thought we were discussing the definitions of tariffs and taxes. Yawn.

I agree with most posters here that our sales tax in SB is too high, and they should work on reducing the city's costs and budget. I just get irked when we get this off-camber BS spin that "tariffs aren't taxes" crud.

Expand full comment
Thomas John's avatar

Yawn. Tariffs are taxes. Scoll down to the second bullet Kellyanne. You're marketing skills are loosing their edge.

https://www.trade.gov/import-tariffs-fees-overview-and-resources

But I'm sure you're a bigger fan of this link https://x.com/WhiteHouse/status/1919053040734072844

Expand full comment
User's avatar
Comment deleted
May 5, 2025
Comment deleted
Expand full comment
Thomas John's avatar

I'm just looking at what the governmennt website on trade has has to say - and they call tariffs a tax. I'm not sure how that's semantic.

Expand full comment
Julia Gonzales's avatar

Sorry off topic again. It seems president bone spurs, draft dodger, wants a military parade to celebrate his upcoming birthday, under the guise of celebrating the 250th anniversary of the June 14, 1775 establishment of the United States Army.

Is he going to have a military parade for the United States Navy established October 13, 1775 that’s also a 250th anniversary and what about the United States Marine Corps established November 10, 1775 also 250th anniversary, another parade?

Why doesn’t he do it on November 11, 2025 to celebrate the establishment of these three branches of our military 250 years ago and to honor all the people that have served and died for our country. Veterans Day would be a great day for this event. Oh, he also wants to rename this holiday to something he likes better. I forget what it is.

Expand full comment