Christopher Hoofnagle Comments on Former FTC Employee’s Suit Against Google

The Wall Street Journal, Digits Blog, October 7, 2010 by Jennifer Valentino-DeVries
http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2010/10/07/former-ftc-employee-files-complaint-over-google-privacy/

A former Federal Trade Commission employee has filed a complaint with the agency accusing Google Inc. of not adequately protecting the privacy of consumers’ search queries…. “I think what is interesting about his complaint is not the legal theory. It’s the machinations and the colloquy between Google and advertisers that no normal person would ever know about,” he said.

Barry Krisberg Opines on Attorney General Candidates’ Debate

KCRW FM, Which Way, L.A.?, October 6, 2010 Host Warren Olney
http://www.kcrw.com/news/programs/ww/ww101006the_state_budget_and

I was struck with, and, I guess, disappointed with District Attorney Cooley’s focus on the death penalty. This is sort of old-school California politics that cycles again and again. Quite frankly, the hundred and twenty-five thousand prisoners who are being released every year to our communities with obscenely high rates of recidivism is more important to the safety of Californians than whether or not we end up putting one or two people to death every five years.

Richard Frank Sets Record Straight on Fox

Fox Business, Varney & Co., October 6, 2010 Host Stuart Varney
http://bit.ly/cnMeH9

The energy prices may increase as a result of climate change laws; they may increase only incrementally, or not at all, but … as a result of California refinery and energy laws and conservation laws, per capita energy use in California is 18% less than it was 40 years ago, while per capita energy use in the 49 other states continues to rise substantially.

Barry Krisberg Challenges Idea that Immigration Leads to Crime

-The Grio, October 5, 2010 by Monique W. Morris
http://www.thegrio.com/politics/new-study-on-immigrant-criminality-theory.php

“Important conversations about education, employment, and immigration policies are being trivialized by the myth of a ‘crime wave,’ and that’s manifestly wrong,” said Krisberg. “We have to ask, how much of our policymaking is still based on myths?”

-The Crime Report, October 11, 2010
http://thecrimereport.org/2010/10/11/immigrants-and-crime-in-california/

Violent crime in California dropped dramatically during the same period of intense immigration to the state, found a new study by Barry Krisberg of the Berkeley Center for Criminal Justice, which is based at the School of Law.

-California WatchBlog, October 13, 2010 by Louis Freedberg
http://californiawatch.org/watchblog/immigrants-underrepresented-californias-crime-rates-5604

During precisely the period that California experienced the biggest immigrant population increase in its history, the state also experienced a precipitous drop in crime rates, according to a report by Barry Krisberg…. “There is no evidence that California is in the midst of a crime emergency as a result of substantial migration of persons born in other nations. To allow this myth to guide public policy discussions about newly arrived noncitizens and future American citizens is harmful.”

-KPCC-FM, October 15, 2010 Host Steve Proffitt
http://bit.ly/cjxHAd

Researcher Barry Krisberg combined immigration numbers with data from the Department of Justice. He found that over the last 18 years, over three million foreign born immigrants moved into the state of California. Meanwhile, Krisberg said, “violent crimes rates were down dramatically, serious property crime was down dramatically, and those were the statewide figures.”

Wayne Brazil Says It’s Premature to Comment on Upcoming UC Protest

The Daily Californian, October 4, 2010 by Katie Nelson
http://www.dailycal.org/article/110602/ucpd_and_uc_officials_prepare_for_thursday_s_prote

According to Wayne Brazil, Police Review Board chair and UC Berkeley School of Law professor, there is only so much the campus can do to implement the recommendations prior to any future protests, and it would be unwise to make “pronouncements on the topic in advance” because the day’s events have yet to occur.

Daniel Farber and Richard Frank Note Pitfalls of Prop. 23

Los Angeles Times, October 4, 2010 by Daniel Farber and Richard Frank
http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-farber-prop23-20101004,0,551916.story

In an era when California government is often called a model of dysfunction, our state’s climate change and renewable energy policies stand out as one example of visionary, effective public policymaking. Proposition 23, if passed in November, would substantially undermine California’s impressive leadership and progress on the climate change, green jobs and renewable energy fronts.

James Rule Says Banks Disregard Consumer Auto-Pay Rights

The New York Times, October 4, 2010 by Tara Siegel Bernard
http://bucks.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/10/04/how-to-stop-rogue-automatic-payments/

James B. Rule … recently explored the issue in this article after his bank branch told him it could not cancel a regularly scheduled deduction from his checking account. Though his issue was ultimately resolved, he said he couldn’t help wondering: What would happen if the company refused to stop pulling money from his account?

Christopher Edley and David Gamage Discuss Treasury Fellowship

The Daily Californian, October 3, 2010 by Nina Brown
http://bit.ly/aW1929

“He will be one of the principal architects of tax policy positions taken by the Treasury Department and the executive branch, especially regarding the personal income tax,” said Christopher Edley, dean of the UC Berkeley School of Law.

“It’s an exciting opportunity to work on important issues,” Gamage said. “Particularly with the health care reform legislation, this is a unique opportunity to work on tax regulatory problems.”