Kerry Kills Keystone; LA Times On Rising Crime In California -- November 6, 2015

Kerry Kills Keystone XL

AP says "Obama Administration" kills Keystone XL. It only took seven years to review. The "Obama Administration" still has no strategy on Syria, either.

SecState John Kerry (who served in Vietnam) kills the Keystone XL pipeline. President Obama says regardless of climate change issues, oil is so inexpensive now, the Keystone is not needed for national security. Very, very clever. Sort of a "present" vote.  

Based on the amount of oil flooding this country, the Keystone XL is not needed.


Based on the type of oil the Keystone XL would have delivered to the Gulf Coast, one could make the case for the Keystone XL.

But then the data doesn't support the argument. More Canadian oil is reaching the US today than what would have been moved by the Keystone XL.

The question becomes: has the Keystone simply become a decision on who gets to move oil to the US: TransCanada or Enbridge and the railroads?

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Stories That Caught My Attention 

In The Print Edition Of The Wall Street Journal

Almost missed; at the very bottom of page 2, section A: first-time home buys near 1987 level.

The share of US homes sold to first-time buyers this year declined to the lowest level in almost three decades, a potential sign that young people are being left out of an otherwise strong housing market. 

First-time buyers fell to 32% of all purchasers in 2015 from 33% last year, the third straight annual decline and the lowest percentage since 1987, when it was 30%. The historical average is 40%, going back to 1981.

Take a look at the graphic at this link: Europe sees slower growth. Pay particular attention to Greece. Deep doo-doo. Again. Is bail-out hypenated?

House passes highway bill, along with restoring Ex-Im Bank. No link; reported everywhere. Another stimulus package. Senate already passed a highway bill; they will be reconciled. Call it "great."

Syria regime opens Aleppo supply route. When did Russia first become actively involved? A few weeks ago. Shock and awe.

Kurdish militants take war stance. Okay.

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Top Story Over At Los Angeles Times

Lead story over at The Los Angeles Times: most non-violent crimes in California are now misdemeanors and many are saying that is why crime rate is rising in the state.

Semisis Sina has kept sheriff's deputies busy in the last year.

The 30-year-old has stolen bicycles from his Hacienda Heights neighborhood. He has skipped out on drug treatment and kept up his meth habit.

He has racked up 16 arrests, earning himself a place near the top of the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department's list of repeat offenders picked up for theft or drug use. And he says a new law has made it easier for him to commit crimes.

"Now, you can get away with it because of Proposition 47," Sina said recently in an interview at his parents' home.

One year after voters approved the landmark ballot measure, Proposition 47 has dramatically altered California's criminal justice landscape.

The proposition, which downgraded drug possession and some theft crimes to misdemeanors, made good on its pledge to reduce prison and jail populations by thousands of inmates. Tens of thousands more people with older felony convictions have been able to wipe their records clean, giving them the chance to qualify for new jobs and other benefits.

But law enforcement officials and others have blamed Proposition 47 for allowing repeat offenders like Sina to continue breaking the law with little consequence.

Crime has risen in the state's largest cities, setting off debate over whether the proposition is responsible. In some areas, street cops are making fewer narcotics arrests.
And without the threat of a felony conviction and a lengthy stint behind bars, fewer drug offenders are enrolling in court-ordered treatment in Los Angeles and other counties.

"Proposition 47 was good and bad," said Thomas Loversky, a Manhattan Beach-based criminal defense attorney who has clients in drug court. "The good part is we have people who shouldn't be spending time in jail not spending time in jail. The bad part of Proposition 47 was there was no hammer to force people who needed treatment to get it."

Along with theft (excluding auto theft), the following are now simply misdemeanors: these offenses include shoplifting, writing bad checks, and drug possession.

Of course, sending folks to jail didn't change anything anyway; it simply took them off the street for six months to a year or so.