California passed a “hands free” cellular phone law almost two years ago, but it hasn’t gone into effect yet. That’ll change on July 1, a little less than seven weeks from today. Neither my wife nor I have purchased a hands-free headset yet, but it’s probably about time for me to look into it.
The California Department of Motor Vehicles has a helpful hands-free FAQ on their web site. High points (IMO):
- Minors are prohibited from using any device, hands-free or not, while driving. (Neither of my children drive yet, but I’m looking forward to pointing this out to them anyway. Insert evil parental laugh here.)
- The law is equally applicable to out-of-state drivers.
- The fines are pretty minor, and no violation “points” will be added to your driving record for an infraction.
I don’t drive much, but I’ve missed several calls while commuting on my bicycle. A hands-free device would have allowed me to hear my phone ringing over the traffic, probably–Watt Avenue can be very noisy! If I’m going to use my phone while riding, I’ll need to find a headset with good noise cancellation to block wind and traffic sounds from the mic.
It’s been a while since I had something good to say about a Republican official, but California State Assemblyman Roger Niello earned a few points by introducing Assembly Bill 394 during the 2005-2006 session. According to a recent article in the Sacramento Bee, this law will make it easier for homeowners to strike discriminatory language from their CC&R’s.
Assemblyman Niello’s interest was caught by a January 2005 article in the Sacramento Bee. (I can’t find the original article on the Bee’s website, but the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reprinted the Bee article and still has it available online.)
(From the Bee article:)
Gregg Fishman and his wife moved into Sacramento’s upscale Arden Park neighborhood in 2001, enchanted by the shady Modesto ash, lush parks, large lots and friendly atmosphere.
They didn’t realize that, along with their 1950s-era California ranch-style home, they were buying a piece of America’s racist past.
Tucked into their property records, in tiny type, is the “Racial Occupancy” clause:
“No persons of any race other than White Caucasian race shall use or occupy any building or any lot except . . . by domestic servants of a different race domiciled with an owner or tenant . . .”
AB 394 was passed unanimously by both the California Senate and Assembly. It was signed into law by the Governor on 22 September 2005. (The full text of the Bill is available on the Official California Legislative Information website.)
When we moved into Arden Park earlier this year, I had noticed that we have a similar clause in our CC&R’s. There is another clause which allows for the CC&R’s to be revised or amended every decade, so I was planning on getting the discriminatory clause stricken when the CC&R’s were up for renewal in 2010. But the current situation is preferable because, a) it applies to the whole state, not just my neighborhood, and b) it frees up my time and energy for other causes!
The Governator put his political life on the line in the lead-up to yesterday’s special election. Unfortunately for him, every one of his propositions was defeated. (Arnold was pushing Props. 74, 75, 76, and 77.)
There’s been much talk that the Governor veered hard to the conservative side in this election (mostly by liberals), and nearly as much talk about how the Guv is a centrist (mostly by conservatives). Consider that three initiatives (74, 75, & 76) are targeting public employees (traditionally Democratic), while Prop. 77 is politically neutral — I have to wonder how this stance could be interpreted as anything other than pro-Republican.
On the non-existant chance that the Governor wants my advice, I offer the following:
- Nobody trusts a hypocrite. Back when you were running for Governor, you claimed to be immune from special interest money because you already had plenty of cash. You unseated former Gov. “Pay to Play” Davis by (justly) going after his fundraising, but now you make him look like an amateur!
- Next time, if you want to appear centrist, make a point of backing some liberal initiatives (e.g. pro-consumer ones such as 79 and 80 on yesterday’s ballot).
- Need an easy fix for California’s perennial budget problem? Simply do away with the 2/3 supermajority needed to pass a budget! A simple majority might err in the other direction, but how about approving the budget if 55% of Legislators pass it? The radical right won’t be happy about this, but see previous point.
- Next time you feel like going after a public-employee union, start with the prison guards’ union.
- Allowing the Legislature to draw their own districts is foolish, and we all know it. But we need a better plan than Prop. 77 to correct this problem.
An aside: I was on an out-of-state phone call a few days ago, and the person on the other end asked why Californians are so informal that they refer to the Governor by his first name. I told her it was because nobody could spell “Schwarzenegger”
