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rpannier

(24,329 posts)
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 02:20 AM Nov 2018

How about some appreciation for the man as he rides off into the sunset

That man is Jerry Brown.
His 8 years as Governor of California (for a second time) has seen California rise from the disaster that was thirty years of pseudo-Republikkanism. He was able to persuade the voters to support sidelining prop-13, to raise taxes to fund badly needed improvements and to keeping voters from repealing the gas tax. California now has a budget surplus, that the republikkans have promised, if they got in control, to eliminate -- kind of like Georgia Bush II did in 2001 with the national surplus. California is now the 5th largest economy on the planet.

His time as Governor has not been perfect. But given he took over a state that was considered a basket case and ungovernable in 2010, he accomplished quite a lot in 8 years. He was aided by the super-majorities in the state legislature, of that there is no doubt; unlike Gov. Arnold's lack of assistance from the Nordquistan wing of the republikkan party when he was governor; remember when Arnold explained, with visuals, that California could not just keep cutting everything to get out of the budget crisis and the republiks still wouldn't vote for raising any state revenue?

Jerry will leave the state on much better footing than when he took office. The state has a lot to do to get people into affordable housing, protecting its most vulnerable, etc and here's hoping Govelect Newsom has as much success as the man he replaces.

Gov. Brown deserves a lot of respect from people. And if you want proof of his success -- faux spews almost never, never ever mentions anything about him because he has shown that taxes and protections (regulations) are NOT a hindrance to growth

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How about some appreciation for the man as he rides off into the sunset (Original Post) rpannier Nov 2018 OP
A toast to Jerry Brown. He will be missed. Hekate Nov 2018 #1
The biggest issue facing CA now is climate change lapfog_1 Nov 2018 #2
California can always shut off the water it pumps to Arizona... IthinkThereforeIAM Nov 2018 #12
The Colorado river is almost dry as it reaches Mexico...and that was a few years ago I read that. libdem4life Nov 2018 #15
What has happened to the Colorado river is tragic... IthinkThereforeIAM Nov 2018 #16
A truly great governor. California owes him a debt of gratitude dalton99a Nov 2018 #3
Excellent assessment. Proud to say I voted for him four times! calimary Nov 2018 #4
I voted for him in the 1992 Democratic primary for President. LuvNewcastle Nov 2018 #36
I'm an Illinoisan my entire life but I also voted for Jerry Brown in the '92 primary jcgoldie Nov 2018 #49
Cali better wise up; can't keep bringing Jerry back to fix things Hermit-The-Prog Nov 2018 #5
Not Cali, that's a city in Colombia. Small-Axe Nov 2018 #18
huh? maybe you clicked the wrong button Hermit-The-Prog Nov 2018 #21
Not a bit. Small-Axe Nov 2018 #22
I guess "Moonbeam" confuses you, too. Hermit-The-Prog Nov 2018 #23
Not a bit. It is a perjorative nickname for Jerry Brown. Small-Axe Nov 2018 #24
pejorative only on the right Hermit-The-Prog Nov 2018 #25
"Cali" is despised by Californians Small-Axe Nov 2018 #31
first I ever heard of it Hermit-The-Prog Nov 2018 #34
Glad to be the one to set you straight. Small-Axe Nov 2018 #35
not necessarily Hermit-The-Prog Nov 2018 #40
We also hate it when people say Frisco. And there are songs about that name, too. displacedtexan Nov 2018 #38
Spot on! Small-Axe Nov 2018 #41
The late, great bon vivant, Herb Caen, Haggis for Breakfast Nov 2018 #47
Whatever shanti Nov 2018 #39
I'm from Oakland originally Algernon Moncrieff Nov 2018 #51
Born on the Hill at Providence, myself ... mr_lebowski Nov 2018 #52
Guys in the Service used to call it Frisco Algernon Moncrieff Nov 2018 #53
I should've said 'the city where my alma mater is' ... mr_lebowski Nov 2018 #54
Slang for California Dyedinthewoolliberal Nov 2018 #26
No, it is not. Small-Axe Nov 2018 #32
As In "Going Back To Cali" ProfessorGAC Nov 2018 #33
I'm aware of two songs with the title... Small-Axe Nov 2018 #37
How About, No! ProfessorGAC Nov 2018 #43
Snoop Dogg isn't exactly the authority in spelling. LOL. Small-Axe Nov 2018 #44
Thanks for the reminder. Jerry Brown deserves high praise. oasis Nov 2018 #6
Jerry would be a great Supreme Court justice! Liberty Belle Nov 2018 #7
What a great idea. I'll pass that along to my son, a huge Jerry fan. byronius Nov 2018 #8
Yes but we need to put someone who is like 50 years old in Quixote1818 Nov 2018 #9
Newsom got in? Attaway! sprinkleeninow Nov 2018 #10
Gov. Brown is one of my heroes. BadgerMom Nov 2018 #11
k&r Demovictory9 Nov 2018 #13
Here here! Silver Gaia Nov 2018 #14
I voted for Brown when he ran for President. kentuck Nov 2018 #17
Yes, he ran in 1992. I also voted for Jerry Brown for president in 1976. VOX Nov 2018 #27
One of the great political tragedies of my lifetime Mr.Bill Nov 2018 #30
I voted for him in '92 as well rpannier Nov 2018 #48
Thank you Jerry! Small-Axe Nov 2018 #19
Yes sir! That's my governor! California_Republic Nov 2018 #20
K & R to infinity... dhill926 Nov 2018 #28
I adore that man as a person and a Governor. Tikki Nov 2018 #29
Amen to that. 2naSalit Nov 2018 #42
Love him wryter2000 Nov 2018 #45
I always find it amusing drmeow Nov 2018 #46
On balance, more good than bad Algernon Moncrieff Nov 2018 #50
One of the great "quiet" comebacks of the era... regnaD kciN Nov 2018 #55

lapfog_1

(29,198 posts)
2. The biggest issue facing CA now is climate change
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 02:34 AM
Nov 2018

and it's not just the fires.

It's going to be / already is... water.

Lower amounts of snow pack every year and a declining aquifer are going to make for some very uncomfortable choices (flushing your toilet may become a once daily event).

The central valley farmers show little sign of changing to low water consumption crops... the central valley is dropping a few inches every year because of the pumping of ground water.

Massive amounts of desalination may be required like Israel but larger scale.

I don't envy anyone having to follow Jerry Brown... he solved just a whole bunch of issues with pragmatic and sensible solutions.

IthinkThereforeIAM

(3,076 posts)
12. California can always shut off the water it pumps to Arizona...
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 05:04 AM
Nov 2018

... was discussing the fires in California with a friend earlier this morning, and how the, "200 year wet cycle for the southwest", was over about 8 years ago. There is a reason why throughout history, people have tended to not live in deserts.

 

libdem4life

(13,877 posts)
15. The Colorado river is almost dry as it reaches Mexico...and that was a few years ago I read that.
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 03:15 PM
Nov 2018

The Central Valley needs huge amounts as it feeds up to 25% of the nation's food. The Oroville Dam is also aging poorly as they try and repair it. After the fires, the lack of ground brush and parched ground lets it flow away and flood smaller waterways or just run off.

Had forgotten about Arizona. Food before Snowbirds...that's Arizonan for folks who come there to either retire or spend the winters from the northern states. They add nothing but their retirement money for consumption.

LuvNewcastle

(16,843 posts)
36. I voted for him in the 1992 Democratic primary for President.
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 08:03 PM
Nov 2018

Some people made fun of him then, but he made more sense to me than anyone else running. Clinton did a decent job considering the circumstances at the time, but I wish Brown had made it back then. I think this country suffers a lot because some of our best problem-solvers get sidelined by people who are only out for themselves.

jcgoldie

(11,627 posts)
49. I'm an Illinoisan my entire life but I also voted for Jerry Brown in the '92 primary
Fri Nov 16, 2018, 01:31 AM
Nov 2018

I was 19 and that was the first election I ever voted in. My Dad thought Reagan was the devil and he loved Bill Clinton... He passed away 10 years ago and I will never forget the awesome political debates we had that spring about the democratic primaries focusing on pragmatism and elect ability vs idealism and ideology.

Hermit-The-Prog

(33,309 posts)
5. Cali better wise up; can't keep bringing Jerry back to fix things
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 02:55 AM
Nov 2018

There are a lot of folks not in California who look up to Governor "Moonbeam" and California. Don't think for a minute that Limbaugh and the deplorables are the majority.

Hermit-The-Prog

(33,309 posts)
25. pejorative only on the right
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 07:14 PM
Nov 2018

Even Linda Ronstadt used the nickname for Gov. Brown. Every Californian I've ever talked to (admittedly not a statistically significant number) was proud of "Moonbeam" and, at one point or another, referred to California as "Cali".

I used to think it was Ronstadt who came up with the nickname, but the NYT says it was coined by a writer:

https://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/07/weekinreview/07mckinley.html

Hermit-The-Prog

(33,309 posts)
40. not necessarily
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 08:31 PM
Nov 2018

Your objection could be region-specific. Those whom I've heard use it with no offense intended could likewise be a regional subset of Californians.

I worked in a service station during my high school years (about the time Jerry Brown was in college) and there were some customers who made an annual trip from California to that little shop for tires and vehicle check-up. (One couple were related to the shop owner and the others came by invitation, the first time). They were the first people from California I ever met. Their speech was strange to my ears, but they were very willing to share their experiences travelling that giant state. It was fascinating to me to hear first-hand tales of the variety of landscape and people it has. At the time, the farthest I had travelled was Cincinnati to Miami, and never as far west even as the Mississippi. These visitors pretty much destroyed the local view that California was just a land of hippies. (This was late '60s, early '70s).

In college and later work environments, I met more people from California from time to time, but, of course, none ever impressed like those first. Times change and so does objectionable speech. As I said earlier, "Cali" was used by these folks and none used it with intent to disparage the place or the people.

displacedtexan

(15,696 posts)
38. We also hate it when people say Frisco. And there are songs about that name, too.
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 08:15 PM
Nov 2018

But we love Governor Brown. We topped the UK for 4th strongest economy in May of this year.

Haggis for Breakfast

(6,831 posts)
47. The late, great bon vivant, Herb Caen,
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 11:59 PM
Nov 2018

wrote the book, "Don't call it Frisco." It was a hoot.

Anybody who calls it "Frisco" has never lived there.

shanti

(21,675 posts)
39. Whatever
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 08:16 PM
Nov 2018

I'm a 3rd gen Californian and if someone wants to call it Cali, why the fuck not? I've even done so myself on occasion. This is petty.

Now what?

Algernon Moncrieff

(5,790 posts)
51. I'm from Oakland originally
Fri Nov 16, 2018, 01:42 AM
Nov 2018

Neither Cali nor Frisco offend me. Frisco offended my mom, tho - she was a big fan of a tiresome columnist named Herb Caen (pr. Kane). He started all of the "please don't call it Frisco" nonsense. Cali is the new Frisco. Pay them no mind.

I think of Governor Moonbeam as trading more than insulting, and it really referenced young, 1970s Brown. There wasn't much that was wacky in his 2nd governorship.

 

mr_lebowski

(33,643 posts)
52. Born on the Hill at Providence, myself ...
Fri Nov 16, 2018, 02:10 AM
Nov 2018

I have no issue with 'Cali', though ... just a convenient shortening of the word.

But 'Frisco', OTOH is annoying ... and definitely the signature of an outsider.

Though even that particular affront pales in comparison to calling my alma mater 'San LOOO-EEY Obispo' ... you want talk about a HATED nomenclature?

Lol ...

Algernon Moncrieff

(5,790 posts)
53. Guys in the Service used to call it Frisco
Fri Nov 16, 2018, 02:17 AM
Nov 2018

They'd call San Diego "Dago" - there seems to be an urge to shorten things.

My mom gets furious when I say "Frisco" - she's be less mad if I said the other F word. But there is a city in Texas called Frisco. I'll talk about it (a family member worked there) just to annoy her.

Back in the days when there was far more military presence in the Bay Area than there is now. It never bothered me like people calling Los Angeles La La Land doesn't bother me.

I always found simply saying Cal Poly was faster and easier.

 

mr_lebowski

(33,643 posts)
54. I should've said 'the city where my alma mater is' ...
Fri Nov 16, 2018, 02:26 AM
Nov 2018

This really is a case where the people there despise a certain pronunciation. If you're from there at all, you know it's 'San Loo-is', not 'San Loo-ey' ... Obispo. Regardless of whether the subject ... is the college there

Of course, to each their own ... but I think calling SF 'Frisco' pretty much marks you as a someone 'not from San Francisco' ... just as the SLO pronunciation thing does ...

ProfessorGAC

(64,967 posts)
33. As In "Going Back To Cali"
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 08:00 PM
Nov 2018

Written by a guy who was born and raised in SoCal!
And I agree, the other poster knows that!

ProfessorGAC

(64,967 posts)
43. How About, No!
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 08:49 PM
Nov 2018

Snoop is from Long Beach
Need directions?
Been there dozens of times!!!
Check out the food at BBC!

oasis

(49,365 posts)
6. Thanks for the reminder. Jerry Brown deserves high praise.
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 02:57 AM
Nov 2018

Great American, one of our finest California governors, and a solid Democrat.

Liberty Belle

(9,533 posts)
7. Jerry would be a great Supreme Court justice!
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 03:01 AM
Nov 2018

If Dems retake the presidency in two years.....he has a law degree from Yale and was Attorney General before his second stint as Governor. Or he could get appointed to another judicial seat, or be named U.S. Attorney General, or run for congress.

I have a hard time envisioning him just retiring and idlling away his remaining years.

I hope we can take back the Senate in 2 years along with the presidency, and make Rep heads explode with a Jerry Brown appointment to the Supreme Court!

byronius

(7,392 posts)
8. What a great idea. I'll pass that along to my son, a huge Jerry fan.
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 03:04 AM
Nov 2018

As am I. I was going to vote for him in '92 but my wife talked me into Bill.

Quixote1818

(28,926 posts)
9. Yes but we need to put someone who is like 50 years old in
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 03:05 AM
Nov 2018

So they stay there for 30 to 40 years like Republicans have been pulling.

Silver Gaia

(4,542 posts)
14. Here here!
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 05:13 AM
Nov 2018

Jerry Brown is my hero! I will miss him! But he's been training Gavin Newsom to take over for him, and I think Gavin will do a fine job.

kentuck

(111,072 posts)
17. I voted for Brown when he ran for President.
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 04:19 PM
Nov 2018

I think he was running against Bill Clinton in the primaries?

VOX

(22,976 posts)
27. Yes, he ran in 1992. I also voted for Jerry Brown for president in 1976.
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 07:28 PM
Nov 2018

He was on the CA primary ballot that year as well.

In a way, I’m glad things worked out the way they did. He’s been a fantastic governor...both times!

Mr.Bill

(24,263 posts)
30. One of the great political tragedies of my lifetime
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 07:56 PM
Nov 2018

is that Jerry Brown was never President of the United States.

And I wouldn't be so sure about him riding off into the sunset, either.

Tikki

(14,556 posts)
29. I adore that man as a person and a Governor.
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 07:50 PM
Nov 2018

I wish he and his wife and extended family only the very best.
I remember the first time I voted for him and every time since.

To Sir With Love..

Tikki

2naSalit

(86,508 posts)
42. Amen to that.
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 08:49 PM
Nov 2018

He has been a good governor now and in the past. Most of my immediate family lives in California, I lived there during his earlier term(s?), was a while a go but I recall being relieved when I helped vote him into office.

One of the best governors ever, it's a yuge state and it's a hard one to steer.

wryter2000

(46,028 posts)
45. Love him
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 10:05 PM
Nov 2018

He was also mayor of my city, Oakland.

Jerry Brown fixed this state. Others could learn from him.

drmeow

(5,015 posts)
46. I always find it amusing
Thu Nov 15, 2018, 11:46 PM
Nov 2018

that my Mom dated him very (very) briefly before she dated and married my Dad.

Algernon Moncrieff

(5,790 posts)
50. On balance, more good than bad
Fri Nov 16, 2018, 01:34 AM
Nov 2018

He solved a huge budget crisis. He can't get enough credit for that.

I miss the first time, when he was dating Linda Ronstadt.

I voted for him in the '92 Presidential primary. Some guy named Clinton best him.

His dad was a great governor who we all wish had gotten a 2nd term.

California AG. Mayor of Oakland. Overall, an excellent career.

My bone to pick was that he was always right fisted with UC.

regnaD kciN

(26,044 posts)
55. One of the great "quiet" comebacks of the era...
Fri Nov 16, 2018, 05:08 AM
Nov 2018

I remember when he left the Governor's mansion the first time; less than a decade after hitting the national spotlight, and barely more than five years after his run for President (where, had he entered the race earlier than he did, he might well have grabbed the nomination from Jimmy Carter's grasp), he was a political laughingstock: derided nationally as "Governor Moonbeam" and as a past-his-prime celebrity, and defeated in his bid for Senate, it was assumed his time in the spotlight was over and that he'd retreat to a law partnership, political science chair, or ashram for a quiet future. Instead, he literally rebuilt his political career from the bottom up, this time without the glitz and glamor, slowly and steadily. And, in the end, his "second act" was far more a success than his first. Hail and farewell, Governor Brown!

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