There are several comments to my piece “Elections in California Are a Farce” that deserve a response: A common critique was that I am merely experiencing what progressive voters in some Red states experience, but in reverse, so stop my whining. To this I disagree—at least in part—on several counts. For example, Texas is—in theory—still a competitive state. In 2018, …
Elections in California Are a Farce
As another primary season wraps up, it is becoming ever more apparent that voting in California has become a form of playacting where we collectively pretend that The People participate in a legitimate system and thereby choose their rulers and get the laws they prefer. While it’s certainly true that The People, myself included, go through the motions of considering …
What is to be done?
Below is an excerpt from “Fragments,” my book of essays available at J.S. Scifo on Substack | Substack. This was written in February/March 2023. So what can save us from the obvious conclusion of my rantings, i.e., the near total collapse of a coherent, sane society. People seek a plan. A way forward. Sadly, like Churchill, I have nothing to offer …
California’s Post-Totalitarian Moment
California has become world renowned for its epic failures. And yet there are somehow never any repercussions, political or otherwise for these fiascos. Or to quoteth myself in commenting on the same phenomenon within the broader context of American politics: “We are left with a state of affairs [in California] where no matter how burdensome and idiotic the regulation, no …
A Conservative Reflects on January 6
Below is an excerpt from “Fragments,” my book of essays available at J.S. Scifo on Substack | Substack. This was written in January 2022. Well, the first celebration of the January 6 Insurrection has come and gone. For as much as I love the holidays—the lights; the tinsel; the music; the sanctimonious political grandstanding; the histrionics; the vilification of one’s fellow …
The Nature of the Threat
Below is an excerpt from “Fragments,” my book of essays available at J.S. Scifo on Substack | Substack. This was written in December 2022 and January-February 2023. These are dark times indeed. From pot smoking to cross dressing, behaviors that would once have been considered aberrant have been normalized. Perversity is so commonplace that the word has almost lost any …
Nightmares of Californication
Below is an excerpt from “Fragments,” my book of essays available at J.S. Scifo on Substack | Substack. This was written in November 2022. For decades, political observers could rely on certain truisms, or maybe rules of thumb is the better term, to prognosticate likely political outcomes. For example, that midterm elections favor Republicans because turnout is lower and Republicans …
The Limits of Christian Charity
“If only one man dies of hunger, that is a tragedy. If millions die, that’s only statistics.” Or so said Josef Stalin. The same can be said of the undocumented and the homeless. As the federal government dumps thousands of people who have crossed the border illegally in San Diego County, I find myself contemplating that sentiment. It’s easy to …
Understanding the Current State of Affairs
Below is an excerpt from “Fragments,” my book of essays available at https://jsscifo.substack.com/ September/October 2022 Talk of civil war is in the air these days. Elements of the Right see action, perhaps even violent, against the federal government and the ruling Left elites as necessary to protect individual rights and the Constitution as written. The Left views such notions as an …
The Unheavenly City
Although California faces many crises—housing, energy, affordability generally, public disorder bordering on mayhem—none is more vexing than homelessness. It is no accident that most of the problems referenced above have at their root some misguided government policy. However, unlike those problems, homelessness has the additional misfortune of resulting, to a large degree, from the dysfunction of an individual human. In …
The Guns of August
The president and his Department of Justice have unleashed forces they do not understand and cannot control. It will not end well. Having just finished watching the BBC miniseries 37 Days about the month or so leading up to WWI, I am newly reminded of how miscalculations, ambition, and “good intentions” can lead to calamity of biblical proportions. Barbara Tuchman’s …
Tyranny—California Style
We are constantly being told that California is a place of endless possibilities where a person can choose his identity, his gender, and who he loves all while living off the state’s generous social welfare, even if he (or she or ?) is in the country illegally. Or as Gavin Newsom said in his second inaugural speech: “Whether your family …
Celebrating Chula Vista Woman’s Club 110th Anniversary
The Chula Vista Woman’s Club has provided quality activities and support to charities in the Chula Vista community for over 110 years. The women have been extraordinary leaders in making Chula Vista a better place. The Chula Vista Woman’s club was founded on July 13, 1913 by a group of 26 women. By September 1913, the membership had increased to …
Supporting our Seniors in Chula Vista
Supporting our Seniors in Chula Vista I was excited to open two new Pickleball courts and do a ribbon cutting ceremony for the Norman Park Senior Center, which is located at 270 F Street. This was part of a $2.4 million investment in the Senior Center. It included adding three Bocce Ball courts and two Pickleball Courts for our seniors …
Getting Homeless Off the Streets in Chula Vista
I am pleased to announce that the City of Chula Vista opened Chula Vista Village at Otay, the first bridge shelter for the homeless in South County. The facility will be a transitional shelter that will provide a pathway out of homelessness for those living on the streets of our City. The new bridge shelter is located off of Main …
Supporting our First! First! Responders
As Mayor, public safety and keeping our communities safe is my number one priority. I have always been a fierce advocate for Chula Vista’s First Responders and the employees that are a critical component in supporting our first responders in doing their job well. When you call 9-1-1 for Chula Vista Police, the first person you will talk to will …
Hayley’s Comet
I’ve just finished reading LA Times reporter Hayley Smith’s apocalyptic telling of the coming El Niño, “El Niño is likely returning, bringing danger for California and the world. ‘We need to be prepared’”, and I’ll just say this: I hope we’re all still around this time next year. You remember El Niño, right? Used to be the subject of small talk at …
The Real Cost of Reparations
It’s hard to know what to say about the (now moribund?) plan to pay reparations to Black Californians other than the obvious: California was not a slave state; Neither did California have de jure segregation; and, Even if it did, few if any people alive today would have had anything to do with either one. The first two are not …
The Republican Road to the White House Goes Through the House
Author’s Note: This piece was originally published on May 7, 2023. Although not impossible, it is highly unlikely that a Republican could win the presidency in 2024 absent an extraordinary circumstance. Among those would be a contested election decided by the House of Representatives. The candidate most likely to benefit from that development is Donald Trump. Republicans, especially the consultant …
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