38 Comments
User's avatar
LT's avatar
Sep 29Edited

Thanks Andy for again exposing the hypocrisy and dishonesty of our local government officials. The three amigos, Capps, Hartman and Williams seem to be at the core of this cabal of leftist schemes. Since when is it the role of the BOS to mandate or set minimum wages? Of course, higher wages in agriculture will affect food prices at the grocery store. Further, why should a lame duck like Das Williams be aloud to affect policies which the middle class will be dealing with for years?

This is not to suggest that local farms don’t have culpability in our current immigration crisis. Hey, if you plan to bring in hundreds of migrants to pick your crops, plan on housing them on your property!

As for Transitory Occupant Tax, yet another lefty ruse to stick it to out- of-towners in order to extract money for their pet projects. There comes a point when touristas will choose other places to vacation.

Lastly, these not-for-profits which seem to pop up everywhere, seem to be overwhelmingly supporting leftist causes need to be scrutinized or investigated as to who is actually running these multi million dollar shell corporations to find out are they actually charities or fronts for lefty political agendas.

Expand full comment
Mr. Bluetarski's avatar

Bat Shit Crazy is not a political or economic plan. Harris and her BSC followers are nothing but Little Red Book carrying stooges “untethered by what was” or whatever in a blind march for open socialism/ outright communism. Voters for Harris under proper legal review could properly be determined “enemies of the Republic” as they seek the overthrow of our constitution. They are saying this openly now. You know, “unburdened by the Constitution and laws.”

Expand full comment
TheotokosAppreciator's avatar

Good. Let liberals destory the republic and constitution. It was liberal revolutionaries who created these godless, modernist constructs, let their succesors destroy it in another revolutionary act.

As a Carlist I too have no allegiance to an immoral society like America, this nation has killed over 63 million unborn children - we are evene worse than Sodom, and we rightfully deserve what happened to that place. Consider me a proud "traitor" to this godless nation, long live the counter revolution!

Expand full comment
Earl Brown's avatar

Z z z z z

Expand full comment
TheotokosAppreciator's avatar

I am not surprised by you comment Earl, you love liberalism and so for it to disappear would be a dreadful to imagine liberal contructs fading away.

Expand full comment
Earl Brown's avatar

Love liberialism? I'm about 2 steps to the right of Ronald Reagan or John Wayne.

Expand full comment
TheotokosAppreciator's avatar

No, you are culturally liberal. You have little regards for sexual morality as based on your support for pornographic content. And Ronald Reagan is a modernist, he might seem conservative compared to progressives, but his ideals are culturally liberal and he enshrined no fault divorce, another attack on the sanctity or marriage and the family.

Expand full comment
Earl Brown's avatar

Sexual morality . . . what's that?

Expand full comment
Brent's Journal's avatar

The differences between the political parties is being shown by Republican leader President Trump' s economic plans to depend on free enterprise, private industry, by lowering taxes, regulations and restrictions on energy, while the Democrat's leader V.P. Harris's plans, to the extent she has any, are raise and extend the amount they take through taxes which, of course, requires more gov't employees. As Sonny and Cher sang "The beat goes on, and on..."

Expand full comment
Pat Fish's avatar

“Happiness comes from understanding one basic principle. Some things are within our control and some things are not. Our opinions, ambitions, desires, and aversions are in our control. We can change the content of our inner character. Our body, wealth, fame, and social status are not in our control. They are external to us and not our concern."

“Although we cannot choose what happens to us, we can choose how we respond.”

Epictetus was a famous Greek Stoic philosopher from the First Century AD

Expand full comment
Monica Bond's avatar

Interesting quote from a great philosopher. I would imagine that his life experience of having been a slave molded some of those thoughts. Nice quatation.

Expand full comment
Earl Brown's avatar

Andy, did I miss a fact that the prices for vegetables will double? I like string beans, but not at $5.00 / lb!

Ok, they have CAUSE and MICOP, I suggest another project called PAOMA - Piss All Our Money Away. We pay everybody and anybody $50 an hour just for being alive. Hell, make it $100! Comrade Kamala would be proud of these 3 stooges - Das Williams, Laura Capps, and Joan Hartmann.

Expand full comment
J. Livingston's avatar

Bye bye Williams after Jan 2025.

How will local businessman Roy Lee representing District One change this long dysfunctional three district county tyranny going all the way back to the infamous Twisted Sisters - Schwartz, Rose and that 3rd District landscaper.

We have tolerated fiscally ruinous Democrat political majorities for far too long in this state. Support those who support change, even when they are not in our district. District One now reaches into the city of Santa Barbara.

Support Roy Lee when he helps change the county’s path of failure and creates a new county majority coalition with north county.

Expand full comment
Jenn's avatar

Theses people are being funded by the Agenda

The redistribution of wealth, does this only apply to the middle and upper middle classes..? Is Oprah and the Kim K’s part of this plot as well

It’s ridiculous and unfair in the first place could say .., insane but seriously is Pelosi and the crew with above mentioned included in that scheme..

how is it that people are numbly agreeing ..

reminds me of the movie Dr. Zhovago

Where the communist took his father in laws house and put 25 families inside all still impoverished and miserable

Sounds like a great plan

How anyone thinks this is ok

I just can’t fathom

Expand full comment
CarsAreBasic's avatar

It doesn't take a genius to get what has happened in the fast food market with unrealistic minimum wages. You have to wonder about who figures out these new names.....cannot continue to use the Democrat Party backs this....let's get a new name.

Expand full comment
Victoria Valente's avatar

The jobs that hotels and motels provide are low wage jobs, and they need a lot of employees - a number far greater than the number of "affordable" units planned within these new hotel projects. This puts further strain on our housing shortage. Building more hotels in SB means even greater demand for affordable housing in Santa Barbara, and more commuter traffic from places like Oxnard.

Expand full comment
J. Livingston's avatar

No, VV, it puts a strain on the employers and those who want to purchase their products. Not us.

Forcing new housing demands on the rest of us should never be part of any one’s new business plan.

Expand full comment
Polly Frost's avatar

Thank you, Andy. I'm not at my sharpest when it comes to this aspect of politics because I just don't understand why the Democrats say they want to raise the minimum wage, but they're in favor of growth in this county that does nothing to supply jobs and everything to raise real estate prices. A case in point. I'm against STRs. And I don't understand why any responsible person would stay in them. I personally would never stay in one, unless it was a bed and breakfast where the owner lives on the property. Motels and hotels mean jobs for locals. STRs mean investments often by out of town owners who are able and willing to pay higher prices for houses and who employ clean up labor in questionable ways. If the Dems really wanted to solve this affordable housing situation they run campaigns on, one thing they'd do is ban STRs. But then they wouldn't get all those great real estate campaign contributions,

Expand full comment
Bill Russell's avatar

Polly hit the nail-on-the-head with "... WHY the Democrats say ..." because it is without the "whys" we don't understand anything. Mr. Tye, a brilliant Russian electronic lab instructor at my college once said in class:

"The difference between a technician and an engineer is the technician knows "how" something works, but an engineer knows "and why" something works.

I have my "whys" and will return with them later. Hint: Dem politicians are looking for anyone that "loves" them and when they have an opportunity to get something for themselves. Dems know they are unpopular.

Update: The Dems belonging to City and County and State politics know they are doomed (1) because of their out-of-control spending, (2) given a 59-year-old Presidential going on 13-years-old that knows nothing about anything ... because she has never had to do anything and (3) the Dem's importation of immigrants was a total blunder for so many reasons. (I noticed tonight when Kelce caught a pass there was no more shots of Taylor Swiftless jumping up and down with joy.) The last-ditch effort of the Dem commentators excusing Harris for being so vague or simply diverting from answering anything was a total failure. The local Dem politicians have had a grand old time while it lasted and now know it's doom for them. All they have is waiting for the uncovering of all their scams with their dealings with businesses, charities, etc. Think about it: The Dems have portrayed Harris as being the best Dem around which means she's considered above all other Dems. Therefore, all the Dems under Harris are considered REALLY stupid, by both Dem and Repub. The Dems are spiraling into the ground, and they know it. They got their money which is what politics is mostly about anyway and I suppose many will laugh all the way to the bank ... but they sure have to watch their backs! Don't believe the polls that place Harris ahead. People know Harris is clueless and will have a difficult time at the polls. My "whys" simply are derived from observations. Engineers can perform calculations to determine why something works, but people have to be observed, such as in the art-of-falling. Someone falling out of a first-floor window might survive. Someone falling out of a fifth-floor or greater is certainly as good as dead. Harris could be standing on the highest building in the world, and she believe she'll be caught by someone on the ground. But Harris isn't even smart enough to know the results; anyone with half a brain realizes the probability is very high there will be two dead ... figuratively speaking, of course. She's falling, right now ...

Expand full comment
J. Livingston's avatar

Democrats don’t yet grasp they ran out of spending OPM.

Expand full comment
Polly Frost's avatar

Brilliant take on the DimDems, Bill.

Expand full comment
J. Livingston's avatar

Local hospitality industry in the past depended on part time student workers from UCSB/SBCC. Handing out “college loans” these past few decades eliminated that steady supply of low-skill, low wage and temporary employment.

Anyone else here who remember Working Your Way Through College, and happy to get those flexible hour jobs with tips and even some free meals thrown in too? While gaining real Iife working skills. Law of unintended consequences strikes yet another progressive vote-buying smoke screen.

Expand full comment
Polly Frost's avatar

You are so right, J.

Expand full comment
J. Livingston's avatar

Put the brakes on this out of control Democrats nanny-state. Was not that long ago, it was Fight for the $15 minimum wage. Remember that failed Democrat promise?

Then Biden-Harris unleashed this wild inflation, while protecting their own government employee union member voters with tax dollar funded automatic COLA, and hoped we would not notice this self-serving rip-off.

So now Democrats yet again play cover-up with this latest private sector………and inflationary…… nanny state incursion. Get off this Democrat train wreck. No new taxes and no more Democrats anywhere in any elected office, ever again.

25 years ago Democrats passed huge retroactive government pension increases for their union buddies, after voters passed term limits with the intention of stopping bad government. This state has been in free-fall ever since.

What Democrats did to our state over the past 25 years goes well beyond just politics. It was a rape, and we need to pay a lot more attention to these small but devastating shifts in the state power balance Democrats inflicted and continue to inflict on us.

And yes, RINO Arnold Schwarzenegger sealed the deal, after also lying to us promising reform. Kackling Kamals Harris was right there too as state Attorney Gerneral enabling this wretched Democrat state train wreck.

Expand full comment
DLDawson's avatar

Thanks again Andy for a look at the corruption in our politics… MICOP had a budget of over $10 million in 2022 & CAUSE limped along with a measly $5 million, according to their IRS filings. Where did they get this much money? Most of these monies can be traced back to GeorgeSoros & his Open Society Foundation…Sorosfunds runs/funds the human organizations.

What is Soros’ history? How many countries have expelled him? Assault on America. Ask yourself, why are [D] party leaders refusing to condemn the violence? Ask yourself, why are [D] party leaders refusing to seek a unified republic? Was the Nazi party ever truly destroyed (eradicated)? Did the belief carry-on [re-deployed]? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wzp2rpe06j8

History repeats itself (today).

RE: IRREGULAR WARFARE

RE: TACTICS DEPLOYED v AMERICA

Compare & Contrast

Then v Now

https://www.britannica.com/topic/SA-Nazi-organization

Then: methods of violent intimidation deployed by SA

Now: methods of violent intimidation deployed by Antifa?

Then: battles raged in the streets [book burning, flag burning, destruction, hate, anti-police, etc]

Now: battles raging in the streets controlled by [D] party sympathizers [anti-republic]?

Then: physical assaults of political opponents

Now: physical assaults of political opponents?

Then: voter intimidation in National and local elections

Now: voter intimidation in National and local elections?

Then: project anti-fascist platform: reality: conform/obey strong-arm tactics deployed to silence opposing views

Now: project anti-fascist platform: reality: conform/obey strong-arm tactics deployed to silence opposing views?

Then: radical anti-capitalistic platform (socialism)

Now: radical anti-capitalistic platform (socialism) push?

Then: force economic destruction as recruiting [division] tactic to drive enlistment rate

Now: [D] party gov/mayor(s) close state(s) force economic hardships [C19]?

Then: SA carried out unchecked street violence against Jews and Nazi opponents

Now: [D] gov/mayor(s) carried out unchecked [deliberate non_prosecution orders 24-hour release] of Antifa rioters arrested [street violence – block-by-block takeover(s)]?

[D] gov/mayor(s) release of violent criminals [many thousands] from prison(s) under guise of C19?

https://encyclopedia.ushmm.org/content/en/article/nazi-propaganda

Use of propaganda by Nazi Germany

Use of propaganda by MSDNC / Social Media (control of narrative – terminate opposing message (censorship-kill))

The hole runs deep…

Expand full comment
Thomas John's avatar

The NAZI party was totally pro capitalists. You really ought to read up before saying they had anything to do with socialism (Yes, I know, dispite their name) The Nazis vehemently opposed socialism, Marxism, and communism, viewing them as Jewish conspiracies. They banned socialist and communist parties, imprisoned their members, and purged leftist elements from their own party in the Night of the Long Knives. I could go on but comparing the SA to Antifa might serve simple "now and then" narratives - its' totally out of scale.

Expand full comment
DLDawson's avatar

hmmm…point is Antifa is the modern day street version of the blacked out thugs rioting in our streets…who funds?

Antifaschistische Aktion (German: [ˌantifaˈʃɪstɪʃə ʔakˈtsi̯oːn]) was a militant anti-fascist organisation in the Weimar Republic started by members of the Communist Party of Germany (KPD) that existed from 1932 to 1933.

Then, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antifaschistische_Aktion

Now, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antifa_(United_States)

Expand full comment
Thomas John's avatar

The SA were known as the Brown Shirts - The SS were the black. But I get your perspective. I think if link is found to modern antifa you'll be correct.

Expand full comment
Thomas John's avatar

More on the name. Yeah, "socialist" was part of the Nazi Party name, this was largely a propaganda tactic. Hitler redefined "socialism" to mean intervening in the economy for the benefit of capitalists and the "Aryan race". The Nazis' use of the term had nothing to do with workers owning the means of production or other socialist principles. The gross misuse of terms in many of the treads following Current essays drives me nuts. Like calling Harris a commie. Or any of the Cheney clan liberals. Words have meanings and using an incorrect one for little more than 'drama' muddles all the discussions and probably confuses some folks that don't have a better understanding to really thinking 1/2 the country are communists - or the other 1/2 fascists.......

Expand full comment
Jeff barton's avatar

Could you please tell me where you have read up on Nazi views on socialism, Marxism and communism. It reads like a lazy distillation of Google scholarship.

Expand full comment
Thomas John's avatar

It's actually kind of a hobby - since my family was involved and jailed. Like you and virology. But I spent more than 3 months on it. For the most part I just use google for shopping and looking at ideas travel. Oh, and plants and bugs. For history or numbers I go else were.

Expand full comment
Jeff barton's avatar

You should tell your story and unique insight into Nazi views on political organization. It would make for an excellent contribution to The Current. More importantly, I am completely baffled by your comment about spending more than 3 months on your hobby. And the reference to me and virology being jailed? Neither I nor virology have been jailed. Words have meaning and the first goal in writing should be to be understood by your reader. I do not understand your comment.

Expand full comment
TheotokosAppreciator's avatar

The conservative model is a non compassionate one that cares about profit and assumes "failure" to be materially prosperous is soley an individuals fault. "The Freemarkets will save you!" "Just work hard!"

The progressive is a secular humanist who while seeking to help the poor and vunerable does so from again, a secular, but also ampral framework. They fail to recognize any assistance for the poor must come from a moral and religious background, one which fully recognizes the dignity of the human person and thr value of their labor.

The Carlist realizes that the wealthy and government have a paternal duty to assist the poor, and while your graphic of a King wielding a sword saying "I'm from the govetnment and I'm here to help" is meant to illustrate a conservative talking point by Ronald Reagan, the governments of old did help. Rather than caring about materialism (material success) they cared for the working class and their labor, and they knew that wealth is not something to simply be accumulated, but used for holy purposes, to raise up those who have so little.

Expand full comment
J. Livingston's avatar

So wrong on your first point Theo, had to quit reading. Please widen your perspective on conservative political principles, and stop confusing politics with your own brand of personal morality.

They are wonderful for your own life, but we have potholes to fill and got stuck with only trying to fill Democrats budget holes. That is both unethical and political, because….we the people ….voted to stop filling potholes and spent the money elsewhere with little to show for it.

Expand full comment
TheotokosAppreciator's avatar

To say that I need to “widen” my perspective on conservatism (classical liberalism is rather ironic. I can see having evolved from a libertarian, to a “MAGA Republican” to a paleoconservative. Modern conservatism as advocated for by figures like Edmund Burke is nothing but a “sensible” revolution against tradition. Besides, who cares about filling potholes when people suffer from more pressing matters. Morality can never be divorced from any aspect of life, that would be anti Catholic. In politics, in home, heck even between the spouses in the marital act, if something is not moral than it had no alignment wirh God’s will.

Expand full comment
Bobbi McGinnis's avatar

Points well made Andy. If the county BOS wants to make more TOT funds rather than tax existing businesses just renew permits for all the short term vacation rentals that they shut down several years ago.

Bobbi

Expand full comment
J. Livingston's avatar

STRs are parasites, feeding off others pride of ownership neighborhoods.

Expand full comment