News

  • | |

    Travel Focus Misses the Money Train

    Byadmin

    You may have seen the article in yesterday’s Daily Bruin about UCLA tightening up its rules on travel reimbursements.  Why the tightening up? …Public records documenting the travel expenses of the university’s top brass, obtained and published by the Center for Investigative Reporting in August, drew national scrutiny last summer for the luxurious travel accommodations of UCLA’s leadership, sometimes in violation of University policy. The accommodations and pricy travel arrangements bloated the university’s travel budget by hundreds of thousands of dollars… Full story at http://dailybruin.com/2014/02/04/months-after-controversy-ucla-clarifies-travel-guidelines/ The problem with the original story is that it focuses on budget dust compared to…

  • | | |

    Actually, battleships can turn around but it depends on the captain giving the order

    Byadmin

    We’ve all heard the expression about how hard it is to turn a battleship around.  Giant ships moving forward have momentum to keep going in a straight line.  But they can be turned around. Yesterday we posted about the Judge Cunningham case.  It is symptomatic of a larger problem in Murphy Hall.  What should have occurred in that case is a prompt apology by the chancellor and appropriate internal action.  If you were reading this blog at the time of the event, you would have found that suggestion.  Instead, what occurred was defensive legalism which is still going on.  So…

  • | |

    Anti-Pension Group Opens the Door to ID Fraud

    Byadmin

    That’s a harsh headline.  But it applies to any group that publishes info on the web – because it is technically legal  to obtain and publish it  – that identifies incomes of individuals.  And the same harsh headline applies to govt. salary data, not just pensions.  It applies whether there is a political objective, as in the pension case, or just a way to get eyeballs to a commercial website.  While there may be a case for such disclosures for top executives and elected officials, wholesale publication deserves harsh headlines.  For details on the latest such development, see: http://www.sacbee.com/2014/02/04/6125543/government-reform-group-launches.html And,…

  • |

    $10 Million

    Byadmin

    Faithful blog readers will recall that last November we reported on the case of Judge Cunningham, an LA Superior Court judge and former head of the LA Police Commission, who made the mistake of DWB (driving while black) in Westwood – not on campus – and had an encounter with the UCLA police because his seat belt was unfastened. We suggested some quick abject apologies from the chancellor at the time before the lawyers got hold of this matter.  Like many of our suggestions, however, it was… well, you know, not given much weight. Anyway: An African-American family law judge…

  • Follow Up: Harvard B-School Says It is Improving Itself

    Byadmin

    Some loyal blog readers may recall our earlier posts (back in September) on attempts to reform a reported frat house climate of the Harvard Business School.  We carried this quote from the NY Times: (M)any Wall Street-hardened women confided that Harvard was worse than any trading floor, with first-year students divided into sections that took all their classes together and often developed the overheated dynamics of reality shows. Some male students, many with finance backgrounds, commandeered classroom discussions and hazed female students and younger faculty members, and openly ruminated on whom they would “kill, sleep with or marry” (in cruder terms). Alcohol-soaked…

  • |

    ‘Tis a Pit

    Byadmin

    As can be seen above, in the “cloud” on Google Earth the old parking structure #6 and the bus turnaround still are smack dab in the center of the UCLA campus.  But in fact the great pit for the Grand Hotel is underway, as seen in the recent photos below: Unfortunately, if we want to be “on the level” about the great pit, it is difficult to see due to the wall around it.  Apparently, someone has decided that its vast size is something of a secret.  But there is a little hole in the wall to peep through: Of…

  • |

    Charge!

    Byadmin

    Up to now in the UCLA parking facility where the photo above was taken, yours truly has seen only campus “golf cart” type electric vehicles used by service staff plugged in.  Now that hybrid electric and all-electric vehicles are being sold for regular street use, scenes like the one above will become more common.  (The car shown is a Honda model.)  However, most parking spots do not have nearby electrical outlets.  Presumably, UCLA is ok with such charging where a nearby outlet exists.  But will there be more of them installed?

  • | | |

    Pension Initiative Seems to Be Out of Gas (for Now)

    Byadmin

    Earlier posts noted a pension initiative drive – fronted by San Jose Mayor Chris Reed – that would have swept in UC.  For now, the effort seems to have stalled.  The proponents have decided to litigate the title and summary by the attorney general of the initiative.  Effectively, that will take enough time so that they will not be able to gather the signatures needed to get the initiative on the November 2014 ballot.  The decision to litigate may just be a polite way to bow out for now.  See:http://www.sacbee.com/2014/01/30/6116016/public-pension-measure-likely.html Of course, if your car stalls for whatever reason, you…