The Rose Report

Volume XII, Issue I, Fall 2008 The Rose Report The Newsletter of the Rose Institute of State and Local Government DIRECTOR ’S REPORT : DR. RALPH A. ROSSUM As readers of The Rose Report and ply comes from NEWater; 10% from de- clients and friends of the Rose Institute salination). This same concern has also know, we have done extensive work and prompted the PUB to control demand have held several conferences on such through a pricing structure where the critical issues facing Southern Califor- more water a customer uses, the more nia as water availability and quality, progressively expensive it becomes. As solid waste disposal, traffic congestion water availability will be an increasingly and goods movement, and education. challenging issue in Southern California This past spring, I was fortunate enough (the result of population growth here, as to be invited to join a delegation of ad- well in Nevada and Arizona – thereby ministrators and faculty members from depriving California of the opportunity treatment plant. With a landfill capac- the Claremont Colleges on a trip to to use their Colorado River surpluses ity of approximately 85 million cubic Singapore, Hong Kong, Shanghai, and as it has in the past), both serious recy- yards, it will provide for Singapore’s Beijing. The primary purposes of the cling efforts and desalination in South- need for landfill space to the mid-cen- trip were to increase the visibility of ern California will become increasingly tury. As it has developed, it has become the Claremont Colleges in Asia and to necessary. a bird sanctuary and recreational desti- establish closer relationships with the nation, complete with a golf course. major universities of the region. But Concerning solid waste: The other purposes were also served. An im- Rose Institute has worked closely with Concerning traffic and goods portant one for me was gaining a com- the Los Angeles County Sanitation Dis- movement: We who live in Los An- parative perspective on how these cities tricts to help secure both a short-term geles are aware of traffic congestion are dealing with these same critical is- solution to solid waste disposal (the re- and its impact on goods movement. sues. I was particularly impressed with permitting of the Puente Hills Landfill) Over 15,000,000 containers enter the the success Singapore and Hong Kong and a long-term solution (“waste by rail” Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach have achieved in dealing with them; – shipping solid waste by rail to aban- annually and are moved by trains (of- their bold endeavors are sobering and doned iron ore and gold mines in remote ten blocking traffic at grade crossings) occasionally encouraging. areas of San Bernardino and Imperial or heavily-polluting trucks through Counties). Given its limited land mass, the city before heading east; the Rose Concerning water: Singapore Singapore has had to find a different Institute has worked closely with the is a water-scarce nation because of its solution: Semakau Landfill. Semakau is Los Angeles Economic Development small land mass and population den- a man-made island off the coast of Sin- Corporation on these issues. Singa- sity. Provision of clean water is a critical gapore. This U.S.$435,000,000 facil- pore is famous for its solution to traf- governmental concern. This concern ity was commissioned by the National fic congestion: congestion fees, a tax on has prompted the Public Utilities Board Environment Agency in Singapore’s vehicles equal to its purchase price, and (PUB) of Singapore’s Ministry on the Ministry on the Environment and Wa- the COE (the Certificate of Entitlement, Environment and Water Resources to ter Resources in 1999; it has a 4.5 mile which is required to purchase a motor increase supply through extensive use of rock perimeter enclosing close to 1000 vehicle – the current minimal bid for recycled waste water (derisively known acres. It is lined with an impermeable a COE to buy a car with an engine dis- here as “toilet to tap” but marketed there membrane and a layer of marine clay placing less than 1.6 liters is currently as NEWater) and desalination. Approx- to ensure that leachate from the refuse U.S.$12,700); as a consequence, a new imately 30% of Singapore’s water sup- is contained, and it has its own leachate 1.5 liter Toyota Corolla costs residents continued on the next page Also in the News: Page 2..... Student Managers’ Notes Page 6.......... Dr. Adams Receives CMC Honorary Alumni Award Page 3..... Kosmont Update Page 7.......... Summer at the Rose Institute Page 4..... Redistricting Page 8-10..... Meet the New Hires Page 5.....A Special Trip to Sacramento: Page 11-12....Back from Abroad The Inaugural Rose Institute Award Rose Institute of State and Local Government Claremont McKenna College 340 E. Ninth Street, Claremont, California 91711 909.621.8159 | rose.cmc.edu The Rose Report Page 2 Fall 2008 continued from the previous page of Singapore approximately U.S. $65,000 – purchase ROSE INSTITUTE BI D S FAREWELL price plus tax plus COE. Singaporeans accept these harsh remedies with more equanimity than would Southern Cal- O URRAY ESSETTE ifornians if they were to be tried here. T M B At the end of the summer, the Rose Institute said fare- Finally, concerning education: The Rose well to Graduate Research Assistant Murray Bessette. He is Institute has conducted numerous fiscal analyses of the moving with his wife, Lee, and year-old daughter, Cassie, to San Diego County school system and published studies Tallahassee, Florida, where Lee will begin teaching at Flor- exploring educational effectiveness. Singapore and Hong ida A & M. While Murray is living in Florida, he will contin- Kong annually rank among the very highest (typically in ue his graduate work with Claremont Graduate University, the top three) of all countries on the performance of their where he is currently earning his Ph.D. in philosophy. His students on international tests measuring competence in dissertation should be finished by next summer and discuss- mathematics and reading. Sadly, the United States does es the philosophic heterodoxy of Friedrich Nietzsche, which not make it into the top 10 on these tests. Los Angeles Uni- he explains as “an examination of his philosophic thought fied School District is especially dysfunctional, with drop- insofar as it can be distinguished from the prior history of out rates in excess of 50%. Singapore is known for its ra- thought in Western history.” This study is a continuation of cial, ethnic, and religious diversity; so is Los Angeles. But, the study of Nietzsche that Murray began while earning his while diversity works in Singapore, it has not produced the Master’s degree. Murray enjoys Nietzsche’s work because same positive educational effect in Los Angeles. By con- he thinks that it contains the best and most accessible an- trast, Hong Kong is racially homogenous; however, 80% of swer to the Problem of Socrates. After finishing his disserta- its elementary and secondary education schools are oper- tion, he hopes to someday teach philosophy at a university. ated by nonprofits (half of which are Christian churches in Murray is originally from Edmonton, Canada and a city where Christians are only 5% of the population – its graduated with honors from the University of Alberta with lingering British colonial traditions are unencumbered by a bachelor’s degree in political philosophy. While at the our First Amendment and our Supreme Court’s interpre- Rose Institute, he was especially active with work involv- tation of the Establishment Clause to mean “separation of ing the Southern California Association of Governments, church and state”). Both diverse and homogeneous school the Kosmont-Rose Institute Cost of Doing Business Sur- districts have much to learn from these islands (literally vey, fee studies, and survey projects. ~Riley Lewis ’11 and figuratively) of educational success. s Student Managers’ Notes By Ritika Puri, Ian Johnson, and Peter McGah The student man- working as consul- agement is excited for tants, completing a great year at the Rose market analyses, Institute. After a com- and interning in Sac- petitive application ramento and Wash- process, we welcome ington D.C.. Two twelve new hires to the juniors are spend- Institute. Our new stu- ing this semester dents come from New abroad—Abhi Ne- York, Alaska, California, mani at Oxford and Hong Kong, Minnesota, Raghav Dhawan in and Hawaii, and they Budapest. bring diverse perspec- tives as computer pro- Over these past grammers, campaign few months, return- organizers, athletes, ing students have real estate enthusiasts, committed to fine- Ian O. Johnson Ritika P. Puri Peter T. McGah debaters, and journalists. Assistant Student Manager Student Manager Assistant Student Manager tuning their research Other students returned SStEmily Pears, Assistant Student Manager skills as Girard Fel- from busy summers con- and Pierce Rossum, Student Manager lows. This summer’s ducting research abroad, continued on the next page Rose Institute of State and Local Government Rose Institute of State and Local Government Claremont McKenna College Claremont McKenna College 340 E. Ninth Street, Claremont, California 91711 340 E. Ninth Street, Claremont, California 91711 909.621.8159 | rose.cmc.edu 909.621.8159 | rose.cmc.edu The Rose Report Page 3 Fall 2008 ROSE INSTITUTE BI D S FAREWELL Kosmont Survey Update By Keith McCammon ’10 TO MURRAY BESSETTE This Fall marks the beginning of another year of list of questions to be included in the Survey this year. This the Kosmont-Rose Institute Cost of Doing Business Survey, new feature will not only provide greater publicity to the fi- now in its fifteenth year of publication and its seventh year nal product, but will also allow our clients to make choices as a production of the Rose Institute.

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