God bless President Trump for launching the Warp Speed program – accelerating the government’s approval of COVID-19 vaccinations. By all accounts, it was a major success. Some even described it as a medical miracle.

To do it, Trump and his team had to ride herd on federal workers, overcoming the one thing the bureaucracy uses to continuously stifle progress: time. Normally, it takes at least five years for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to okay – or not – a vaccine intended for use by the public. This one took less than 10 months. Think of the lives Trump saved – at least four years’ worth.

Even President-Elect Joe Biden lauded the accomplishment. “I credit this Administration with creating this success,” said Biden. He was right to say so. The onset of COVID-19 is a national catastrophe and deserves the leadership and emergency action like that of Trump’s.

And congratulations also go to the private companies that responded to the President’s appeal. Pfizer, Johnson and Johnson, Merck, Astra-Zeneca and newcomer Moderna are businesses that will all have permitted vaccines by around the first of the year, shattering the normal… Read More

2020 is a year most people would love to erase from the calendar. A worldwide pandemic caused shutdowns and premature deaths. Then there was our year-long contentious national election. Let’s end the year with a story that will bring a smile to your face and possibly a tear to your eye. While it recently came to my attention, it is not new so you may have heard the story. Regardless, it is well worth reading as we launch ourselves into a much brighter 2021.

It is about a poor Mexican American kid who grew up in a Southern California household with 14 family members. He struggled in school and had meager success learning English. He left formal education in the fourth grade and went to work at odd jobs and on farms for years. Then he had a chance to get a job that was a step up.

His wife had to fill out the application because of his weak English skills. He got a janitorial position and a big pay boost to $4 per hour (this was back in 1970’s). His grandfather understood something I taught my children as young adults. No matter what job you are doing be the best at it. Be proud of the job you do. His grandfather told him “Make sure that floor shines. And let… Read More

Remarks in Opposition to H.R. 9051,December 28, 2020:

Mr. Speaker:

Let’s get this straight: the small shopkeeper who’s just lost their entire savings because of the lockdowns will get the same $2,000 grant as the government bureaucrat who’s been enjoying a steady paycheck at home for the past ten months.

This money is whollyinadequatefor those who have been harmed by the lockdowns and whollyunnecessaryfor those who have not. And this free money doesn’t come from heaven — it comes from the future earnings of those who will be struggling to get back on their feet – making the post-lockdown recovery more difficult and prolonged.

Much of the burden of this debt will fall on the young, who have already borne the brunt of the lockdowns. It is in a very real sense, a massive wealth transfer from the future to the present, from the young to the old and from those who have been hurt by the lockdowns to those who have not.

There’s only one way to end the suffering caused by the lockdowns. END THEM.

House Floor Remarks delivered December 28th,… Read More

COVID-19 is a dangerous if somewhat overblown threat — especially lethal to those over age 60. As geezers, my wife and I (mid-70’s) have decided that we want to see our kids and young grandkids every couple of months in our home.

They stay overnight. Usually 2-3 nights each visit. My wife and I are functional, active senior adults with all our marbles. We are in reasonably good (far from perfect!) health who fully understand the very real risk to us both. And it DOES scare us.

There are steps that we take to significantly reduce the risk. But the risk remains. Here’s what we do:

We have a “whole house fan” that can draw air from outside and then blow it out through the attic. On full blast, it’s like being outside. Even at a lower speed, it still provides a healthy flow of fresh air. Originally installed to reduce A/C costs (cutting our A/C bills by about 85%), we find it’s a wise option to employ during this pandemic. Tough to use in winter, but we live in a temperate climate and dress for the discomfort when it’s … Read More

President Trump has spent a lot of time harping on voter fraud. He may be correct that there were inappropriate actions done by voters and election officials, but he and his team were unable to prove that to our courts in order to overturn the election. Our election laws will be dealt with in a future column. For now, we must address an issue that impacts our elections in an even more meaningful way. That is how our national press censors (suppresses) newsworthy stories that impacted the 2020 election and possibly beyond.

In a prior column, I stated that the Biden campaign skirted answering questions from the national press and they allowed Biden and his campaign to do such. It was obvious that Biden would continue in the same manner once he was president. So far in the transition he and his staff have continued in the same manner. His communications staff allows one opportunity a week for the press to answer questions and then handpicks friendly members of the press to ask a meager five questions. Biden gave his first full interview to a late-night TV host who at one time was funny. The peculiar aspect is they made such a big deal out of hiring a female-only… Read More

Vote Note on the Covid Relief and Omnibus Spending Package: When Its Too Good To Be True…

The covid relief provisions in this bill are immensely popular – they provide $600 direct cash payments to individuals earning up to $75,000, (plus $600 per child), a $1,200 per month bonus to unemployment benefits, and $325 billion in PPP forgivable loans to businesses.

But I cannot in good conscience vote for it. When something seems too good to be true, it usually is.

If the aid were targeted to those who have been devastated by the lockdowns, it might be justified. But the bill makes no such distinction. Neither the personal nor first-time PPP grants are contingent on the recipient being financially harmed by the lockdowns. (Although the second round PPP grants do to some extent). The aid is wholly inadequate for those who were harmed and wholly unnecessary for those who weren’t. In effect, this becomes a massive wealth transfer from victims to non-victims.

For example, the waiter whose income has been slashed will get the same $600 as the government bureaucrat who’s been enjoying a steady paycheck at home. A thriving law firm qualifies for… Read More

When I was younger, I was involved in various charities. I went to meetings, did fundraising calls and generally spent a lot of time involved in various nonprofit organizations. The endless meetings with people droning on became unappealing over time. We were still sending checks and donating our used goods, but some aspects of these organizations where people ruled by the size of their wallets and there were crosscurrent purposes became unattractive. It caused me to alter my path to helping people.

My journey started with a contractor from a major construction project. Near the end when we needed him most he took a leave due to medical issues. His substitutes failed us which ended up in a legal dispute. We were able to connect with him and found out that he had ALS (Lou Gehrig’s disease), a devastating progressive disease over which we have made little progress the last 80 years. He and I started having regular conversations and became fast friends while I tracked his situation. He made every effort to fully live his life with a positive attitude. Our conversations became a regular part of my life and we met for lunch when we could, even during the… Read More

Here’s a bizarre SAN DIEGO U-T story detailing how absurdly expensive the city’s homeless shelter is during this pandemic. It’s bizarre because the newspaper is actually acting like it’s a NEWSpaper!

The key point is the taxpayer cost per homeless person. It comes to a mind-boggling $210 per day per homeless person (presumably including feeding costs). That’s $76,650 a year! Apparently for couples, it’s DOUBLE that cost. A family of four? Don’t even think about it.

If it weren’t for the pandemic, it would be cheaper to book our homeless on luxury cruises — where the low-end cost can vary from $100 to $200 per person per day. Probably bigger group discounts could be negotiated. BTW, that cruise ship comparison is MY observation — not the U-T’s.… Read More