List Hidden Taxation in the American Enterprise System If there is any question about the top tax bracket being 70% or more, think again. Hidden taxes are the culprit.
Inflation as a “Hidden Tax”: What It Is, Who Pays, and Why It Matters Economists have long referred to inflation as a hidden (or stealth) tax because it reduces the purchasing power of money without a vote or new legislation. Milton Friedman put it bluntly: “Inflation is a form of taxation without legislation.” He argued that it acts directly on cash balances and—through unindexed tax rules—quietly raises practical tax burdens as prices rise.
The Power of Repetition: How Lies Become “Truth” and How to Fight Back Propaganda, a potent force that thrives on a simple yet powerful principle: repeat a lie often enough, and it begins to feel true. This isn’t just a political tactic—it’s a psychological phenomenon deeply rooted in how our brains process information. Understanding why repetition works—and how to counter it—is not just important, but urgent in today’s media-saturated world.
The 2025 PACE Regulatory Reset — What Lenders, Program Administrators, and Property Stakeholders Need to Know Residential Property Assessed Clean Energy (R PACE) financing will operate under a materially new federal regime beginning March 1, 2026, following the CFPB’s December 2024 final rule applying TILA/Regulation Z to PACE and adding Ability to Repay (ATR), TRID, and other mortgage-like obligations to PACE transactions.
Church and Non-Profit Owners Can Now Unlock Hidden Value in California Real Estate Through Entitlement Arbitrage: California’s evolving land use laws have created a rare window of opportunity for church and non-profit corporations. With the state now overriding local municipalities in the approval process, properties once constrained by zoning limitations can now be repositioned for high-density residential development—dramatically increasing their value.
Will lenders allow PACE/HERO loans to encumber the property when the lender has a first trust deed? Commercial lenders do not automatically allow PACE (Property Assessed Clean Energy) or HERO loans to be placed on properties when they hold a first trust deed.
The Distinction between truth and Illusion in American Politics: An Analysis of facts, Frames, and the Post-Truth Challenges. In an era where the battle between objective facts and manufactured narratives is shaping American politics, understanding the difference between truth and illusion is more crucial than ever.
Police State, Tyranny, Authoritarianism, and Totalitarianism: Understanding the Differences and Lessons for Modern Governance
The Social Security Trust Fund Illusion: What Americans Should Know For decades, Americans have been told that the Social Security Trust Fund is a reserve of assets set aside to pay future benefits. In everyday language, “trust fund” evokes an image of money invested and waiting to be drawn down.
Entitlement Arbitrage: Property Owners Unlocking Hidden Value in California Real Estate California’s evolving land use laws have created a rare window of opportunity for real estate property owners and investors. With the state now overriding local municipalities in the approval process, properties once constrained by zoning limitations can now be repositioned for high-density residential development—dramatically increasing their value.
California’s Entitlement Feed Back Loop: When Good Intentions, Bureaucracy, and Market Reality Collide California prides itself on protecting consumers, tenants, and communities. However, as “I’m entitled to some of yours” expectations harden into mandates, the machinery required to deliver on those expectations grows—rules multiply, compliance becomes a business line of its own, and costs cascade through housing, insurance, and everyday enterprise.
Why Mutual Cooperation Is Breaking Down—and What’s Driving It For decades, commerce and civic life rested on an implicit social contract: cooperation and mutual respect.
Lies, Damned Lies, and Statistics: The Origin, Evolution, and Real-World Lessons The phrase “lies, damned lies, and statistics” is not just a cultural shorthand for skepticism toward data-driven arguments, but a powerful reminder of the potential for manipulation in numerical data. How would we feel if we realized that government statistics were one giant reservoir of lies and misstatements? So, what do you think?
Systemic Ignorance: Why So Many Americans Know So Little History—and Whether It’s by Design If people remain ignorant from one generation to the next, then change and exploitation can easily be introduced. Each subsequent generation remains unaware of the preceding generations and only holds a frame of reference of their current generation. Manipulation and exploitation are easy because people know no difference; Ignorant people think that is the way it has always been.
Why Jesus Created the Most Profound Movement In History. He Was The Original Great Influencer. • Scale of Impact: Christianity grew from a small Jewish sect in the 1st century to the world’s largest religion, influencing billions of people across 2,000 years. • Enduring Movement: Few movements have endured with such continuity and global reach as Jesus’s, leaving a lasting impression and earning respect across the world.
How to Spot Manufactured Illusions: A Practical Guide (with Real World Examples) Manufactured illusions don’t usually look like lies. They feel true, familiar, emotionally satisfying, and endorsed by sources we trust, or that we foolishly trust. That’s by design.
Entrenched Bureaucracy and Legislative Burden: A Compounding Threat to Profitability in California’s Real Estate and Insurance Markets Bureaucracy, onerous laws, and regulations are the economic cancers that continue to metastasize, inflicting severe damage to organizational efficiency and profitability.
What’s Killing Your Profitability? 10 Hidden Counter Forces (with Practical Examples, Metrics, and Fixes)
The Remote-Work Reset: How Hybrid Work Is Rewriting the Commercial Real Estate Playbook Remote and hybrid work have shifted from emergency measures to a durable operating model. The result is a structural re-rating of U.S. office demand, vacancy, valuations, and city finance.
California Property Inflation and Insurance Stress: Multiple-Torpedoed-Whammies Against the People and Private Property Rights. California is experiencing a multitude of counter-economic forces that undermine the dream of homeownership and significantly add to the stresses of current property owners and renters alike.
AB-3108: California, A Game-Changer for Mortgage Lending Compliance I call this new law a convenient mechanism to accuse mortgage brokers of fraud.
AB-3108: California, A Game-Changer for Mortgage Lending Compliance I call this new law a convenient mechanism to accuse mortgage brokers of fraud.
SB-9: California: The objective is two dwellings on one single-family lot, or one single-family lot subdivided into two parcels. SB 9 and the Fight for Housing in California: The State Takes Over the approval authority, Municipalities left with Ministerial Approvals Only, Court Rulings, and What It Means for You.
Legal vs. Equitable Ownership in Real Property: Why Is This Critical? As It Relates to a “Due on Sale,” and “Due on Encumbrance” Provision in a Deed of Trust
The Seemingly Smart Borrower Refuses to Pay for Adequate Property Insurance Fools Rush in Where Wise Men Never Tread
Non-Profits and Churches: A Real Estate Lender’s Guide In California, the Attorney General’s office plays a critical oversight role for nonprofit and religious organizations, particularly those classified as charitable entities.
AB-1893, California: Builder Remedy Here’s a comprehensive summary of California Assembly Bill (AB) 1893, which significantly reforms the Housing Accountability Act (HAA) and its Builder’s Remedy provisions, effective January 1, 2025:
Streamlined approval process to accelerate housing development (California). In California housing legislation, a streamlined approval process—often referred to as a streamlined ministerial approval process—is designed to accelerate housing development by removing discretionary barriers and simplifying local review procedures.
AB-2243, California: Housing on Commercially Zoned Land Here’s a detailed summary of California Assembly Bill (AB) 2243, which significantly expands the scope and impact of AB 2011 and SB 6 to promote housing development on commercially zoned land:
Why Should the State of California Require All Above-Ground Electrical Lines to Be Replaced with Underground Lines? Having electrical lines underground offers several key benefits, especially in terms of reliability, safety, and aesthetics. Here’s a breakdown of the main advantages:
AB 2243: Streamlined Housing Approvals for Residential Developments on Commercially Zoned Property. Assembly Bill (“AB”) 2243 expands the existing streamlining process for residential developments on commercially zoned properties. The law took effect January 1, 2025.
SB-1123, California: Tiny Lots- Allows Ministerial approval for 10 or Fewer Parcels on Lots of 5 Acres or Less Here’s a comprehensive summary of California Senate Bill 1123 (SB 1123), which builds upon and expands the provisions of SB 684 (2023) to streamline housing development further:
California Senate Bill 35 (SB-35) Tiny Home Subdivisions SB-35 was enacted in 2017 and is a key piece of legislation aimed at addressing the state’s housing crisis by streamlining the approval process for certain residential developments.
California’s Centralized Development Approval Process: A Shift in Power A state-level bureaucracy has taken over the development approval process, leaving local municipalities with only ministerial approval rights, subject to the state standards.
AB-3108-Makes it a felony for any mortgage broker or loan originator to knowingly misrepresent the purpose of a loan. This law, which focuses on making loans to single-family owners of occupied properties, tightens accusations of fraud by a mortgage broker while simultaneously inviting borrowers and hungry lawyers to sue the lender and mortgage broker for fraud. This recent law was signed by Governor Newsom in California, amends Section 4973 of the Financial Code.
Caution, Zombies Ahead: Enter at Your Risks? The experience may be devastating, the outcome full of chaos, and the emotional aftermath will be long-lasting. Be fully aware of the potential dangers that may lurk ahead; an ambush may be lying in wait.
Shoplifting begets financial losses for the business owners Financial losses render the business unprofitable, and therefore, there is no motivation to continue operating.
SB-549: We Could Have Guessed That This Was Coming: The California government, using taxpayer dollars, gets into the development game in the Palisades and Eaton fire rebuilding efforts.
The California Shifting Real Estate Landscape: High-Density Housing on Steroids The California Legislature has passed laws that significantly alter the development approval process, shifting it from local municipal jurisdiction to the state level.
SB-326 and SB-721: Condo and Multifamily Inspection Laws: California 2024 These two new inspection and repair laws have added significant expense to associations, which must be paid by raising association dues. Some owners cannot afford the increase in dues.
SB-79: A Shocking Turn in California's Housing Laws, Where the Unthinkable Becomes Reality How about allowing multiple high-rise apartment buildings in your neighborhood up to 65 feet tall, for the simple fact that the property is within ½ mile of a bus stop.
The Housing Market Is in A Dripping Downslide, Cautioning Potential Buyers to Stay Out Of The Market Drip, Drip, Drip, a Very Sustained Slippage of Buyer's Interest to Take the Plunge to Purchase Owner-Occupied And Investment Properties.
California: Random vs Non-random Events. There are no random events in California. Dark forces tightly control everything. We are not allowed to question or obtain an entry pass to the elite club.
CEQA: A Major Hurdle for Real Property Development Projects in California Is Being Overhauled Behind the backdrop of California regulations are always the usual suspects: public employees, labor unions, and lawyers who want a piece of everyone's action. These entities often use their influence to shape policies and regulations in their favor. Growth in the size of government, as well as the expansion and consolidation of power at the top, are always at the forefront.
SB-1123: Planning and Zoning: Subdivisions: Ministerial Review. This new law was signed into law on September 19, 2024 by California’s Governor Gavin Newsom and became effective July 1, 2025.
The California Legislature allows the State to live with a backdrop of Marxist corruption. “Los Angeles is one of countless examples of how the public sector will virtue signal to rob Peter, not to pay Paul, but to pay themselves, as they are not hiding the corruption.”
AB -130: How it Damages Subordinate Financing in California, for Residential Property AB 130 was signed into law by Gavin Newsom on June 30, 2025
SB-4: A Legal Framework for Faith-Based Institutions and Non-Profit Colleges to Build Affordable Multi-Family Homes on Lands They Own SB-4: This California legislation is designed to expedite the development process for affordable housing on lands owned by religious and educational institutions, thereby significantly boosting the housing supply.
SB 1079: Modifies The Foreclosure Procedure of Residential 1 to 4 Properties In California Another Monstrocrity law on the books modifies the foreclosure procedure. It serves to remove protective equity rights from trust deed investors and lenders, transferring the financial benefits to a special class as dictated by the regulation.
AB-2424: The California Legislature Has Passed Another Monster Law, Making It More Difficult To Foreclose On 1-4 Residential Units AB 2424 is another law full of financial traps for lenders because it delays foreclosures, by extending the foreclosure period almost, almost, but not quite, idefinitely.
Condo and Multifamily Inspection Laws: California 2024 And the requirements to make recommended upgrades
The State Of California Took Over The Development Approval Process Leaving Local Municipalities with Only Ministerial Approvals