Portside

“Since the election of Barack Obama, the Republicans have been more serious about trying to showcase the diversity within the Republican Party. And Mia Love is potentially the poster child for diversity in the party.”

“I didn’t expect a full slate victory, but it’s a clear statement. I hope it means that this kind of money won’t be spent the same way again, that maybe it will change how corporations buy elections.”

It will likely be months before we have the data to assess the full impact of new voting restrictions on yesterday’s elections. But we already do know that their impact is far more than the number of hot races they could have turned.

Why vote for someone hesitantly and semi-apologetically tacking toward the right when you can just vote for someone who goes balls-to-the-wall rightward and is damn proud of it? At least that person gives off the sense of actually enjoying his own beliefs.

San Francisco voters approved Proposition J. This will increase the minimum wage to $15 by July 2018.

San Francisco and Oakland pass minimum wage propositions.

The jobless recovery means massive speedups for many workers you depend on.

It’s no surprise that WellPoint and its affiliated Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies are the biggest contributors in a $37.5 million campaign to stop Proposition 45, which would require the insurers to get state approval to raise rates. The measure would require approval by the elected state insurance commissioner for changes in health insurance rates or anything else that’s part of a policy.

National Nurses United may be proof that unions are not all on their way out: Some are very much alive, although they may look a little bit different than they used to. “Nurses United is among the most innovative and bold of U.S. unions,” said Harley Shaiken, a labor expert at Berkeley. “They’ve emerged as a powerful voice in defense of people who receive health care treatment.”

Beware of Social Engineering; Secret World Content Scrubbing; Racist History of Ebola Coverage; Culture Wars I: GamerGate; Culture Wars II: Progressives Break Through with Pop Culture; Zuckerberg Sez Who You Are; Verizon Knows Where You Go and Wants to Give You the News