Why is it so hard to hire employees in California?

Rick Moran  "The "official" rate of unemployment in California is a sparkling 4.7%, and according to state labor experts, the job market is tightening.

"But how many more people would be employed if it weren't so darned expensive to hire and keep new people on the payroll?

"How expensive?  Here are the real-world consequences of government policies that make it so easy for employees to sue their companies for a variety of imaginary offenses." . . .

. . . 

"California is not likely to follow Missouri's lead, but the state illustrates how out-of-control lawfare against companies has gotten.  It's no wonder that most companies settle employee lawsuits when the alternative is not only a long legal battle, but potentially millions in damages.

"The system is rigged against companies.  The idea that they are innocent until proved guilty is out the window.  A company doesn't even have to intend to discriminate.  It can be held liable if the number of minorities it employs is below that of similar businesses with a similar number of employees.

"When it becomes so easy to file a lawsuit alleging discrimination or sexual harassment with a good chance of winning, why bother to work when you can reach into the deep pockets of a company for a big payday?"

Rated ‘R’ For Violence, Language, and… Traditional Gender Roles?

NTK
A new movie rating system could age-restrict movies because they portray traditional gender roles.

"For decades, organizations like the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) have assigned films a rating (i.e. G, PG, PG-13, etc.) based on their age appropriateness level.

"Screening films for themes like violence, sexuality, and language that could be considered inappropriate for certain age groups, the MPAA has made sure that parents can protect their children from age-inappropriate topics.

"But one group is seeking to add a new criteria to those age-inappropriate themes: gender roles." . . .

"One person who’s happy, though? None other than Chelsea Clinton."

Chelsea Clinton‏Verified account @ChelseaClinton

Thank you @CommonSense for your work helping parents choose films for our kids with positive gender representations:

CNBC’s John Harwood Calls on White House Staffer to Illegally Leak Trump/Putin Call

Weasel Zippers

"Potentially a crime in and of itself. Is it not clear that some in media view themselves as the opposition? They don’t care about violating the law or endangering the United States in their quest to get Trump.

"Via Free Beacon:

New York Times and CNBC journalist John Harwood called on a White House staffer to illegally leak classified information in a Thursday tweet.

After a White House source leaked transcripts of President Donald Trump’s phone calls with the leaders of Mexico and Australia to the Washington Post, Harwood called on the leaker to do the same for Trump’s call with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Keep reading…

Professor Mike Adams resigns from UNC-Wilmington

My Resignation from UNC-Wilmington

"On August 12, 2017, I will get in my car and make my annual cross-country trip from my summer home in Colorado to my other home in North Carolina. After I arrive in the Tar Heel State and get settled I will sit down at my computer and do something the leftists at my university have been wanting me to do for years: I will pen my letter of resignation to the Board of Trustees at UNC-Wilmington. 

"However, before I submit that letter, I thought it would be a good idea to write a brief letter of explanation to all of the supporters who have stood by me in the UNC free speech and cultural wars in which I have been engaged over the last 15 years. That is the purpose of today’s column.

"In a nutshell, as of last week, I have now accomplished the five main objectives I have set out to accomplish since the administration started to aggressively fight against the free speech and due process rights of professors and students in the UNC system. Having accomplished all of those goals, I have decided that it is time to start enjoying life instead of fighting against my employers in federal courtrooms and state legislative halls. For those unaware of the struggles that have consumed my time in recent years, here are some of the highlights:"

Oops-sorry, but:

. . . I will decide on my ride home to North Carolina exactly when it will take effect. I promise it will be no later than August 1, 2050. In the meantime leftists, feel free to start another of your annual petitions to fire me. If you ever do succeed, it will mean more time on my hands to write the things that make you angry and keep sane people entertained.

Turn Off the Cameras!

Jonathan S. Tobin  

"Jim Acosta, and others like him, are hurting journalism."

"The debate between Stephen Miller and CNN’s Jim Acosta proved that turning the daily White House press briefing into a TV show is a dangerous thing for journalism. 

"When the Trump administration temporarily refused permission for televising the daily White House press briefing, journalists howled. They claimed that conducting the briefing without the cameras turned on hurt the public and diminished the government transparency that is needed in a democracy. There was some truth to that, especially since the daily presser has become something of an institution in the last few administrations. 

"But after Wednesday’s televised press briefing, it is now clear the cameras need to be turned off. That’s not because it might aid the Trump administration’s efforts to evade accountability. Rather, it is to protect the press from further damaging their credibility in a way that injures not only journalism but also the fabric of American democracy." . . .   More here.

Charles Krauthammer: Once Again, the Guardrails Hold

The Trump presidency is a stress test, and America is passing.

National Review  "A future trivia question and historical footnote, the spectacular ten-day flameout of Anthony Scaramucci qualifies as the most entertaining episode yet of the ongoing reality show that is the Trump presidency. (Working title: “The Pompadours of 1600 Pennsylvania.”) But even as the cocksure sycophant’s gobsmacking spectacle stole the show, something of real importance took place a bit lower on the radar.

"At five separate junctures, the sinews of our democracy held against the careening recklessness of this presidency. Consequently, Donald Trump’s worst week proved a particularly fine hour for American democracy:

"1) The military says no to Trump on the transgender ban.

"Well, not directly — that’s insubordination — but with rather elegant circumspection. The president tweeted out a total ban on transgender people serving in the military. It came practically out of nowhere. The military brass, not consulted, was not amused. Defense Secretary James Mattis, in the middle of a six-month review of the issue, was reportedly appalled.

"What was done? Nothing. The chairman of the Joint Chiefs simply declared that a tweet is not an order. Until he receives a formal command and develops new guidelines, the tweet will be ignored.

"In other words, the military told the commander in chief to go jump in a lake. Generally speaking, this is not a healthy state of affairs in a nation of civilian control. It does carry a whiff of insubordination. But under a president so uniquely impulsive and chronically irrational, a certain vigilance, even prickliness, on the part of the military is to be welcomed.

"The brass framed their inaction as a matter of procedure. But the refusal carried with it a reminder of institutional prerogatives. In this case, the military offered resistance to mere whimsy. Next time, it could be resistance to unlawfulness." . . .
. . . 

Whatever your substantive position on the various issues involved above, we should all be grateful that from the generals to the Scouts, from the senators to the cops, the institutions of both political and civil society are holding up well.

CNN's Zakaria Admits Trump Won Because People Were Tired of Cultural Elites

PJ Media  "CNN's Fareed Zakaria has admitted something that most of the mainstream media were too afraid to say out loud -- that they may have caused Trump to win the presidency. Listen to him say, "The election of Donald Trump is really a kind of class rebellion against people like us-- you know, educated professionals who live in cities, who have cosmopolitan views about a lot of things. And I think there's a whole part of America that is sick and tired of being told what to do by this over-educated professional elite (that Hillary in many ways perfectly represented). And that's way they're sticking with him." What an outrageous statement for a CNN contributor!" Video at the link.

That is indeed a surprise, especially after you see how well documented Zakaria's near-hatred of Donald Trump is.