Re: Update on California Shenanigans

[BLHamrick@AOL.COM]

In a message dated 2/16/2003 8:57:31 AM Pacific Standard Time, MOS3@pge.com writes:


> Does anyone know the CV of Dan Hirsch?
>
>  I can't understand how he wields so much power in Sacramento.
>
>  Does he deliver Hollywood money?
>
>  My understanding is that he has no academic or real work experience.  He's an activist.
>
>   
>
> Why do we kill ourselves to send our kids to college so they can get an education?
>
>  We should just deem them activists at age 18 and they'll be set for life.



I have never seen a CV for Mr. Hirsch.  I have heard him describe his degree as something like a study of broad-reaching topics, but my understanding from someone else is that he actually has a BA from Harvard in "Special Studies."  According to the Harvard web-site that's the degree that you put together yourself, when you haven't figured out what to major in, and graduation is looming.  To my knowledge he has no advanced degrees of any kind, nor any specific scientific education or coursework to speak of.


He often talks about being the former director of the "Adlai Stephenson Nuclear Policy Institute" at the University of California - Santa Cruz.  I believe they transformed to the "Stephenson Center on Global Policy," and are now merged into the "Center for Global, International and Regional Studies" at UCSC.  My understanding is that Hirsch's position was as a non-faculty member.


Other than that one tenuous connection to things nuclear, I have never heard him provide any substantive education, training, or experience that would qualify him to speak on radiation physics, nor on radiation protection.  I would be interested to see his CV as well.


I suspect he does deliver Hollywood money.  His organization's tax return from 2000 is available on-line at:  http://167.10.5.131/Ct0501_0600/0528/1QF1NWUF.PDF

In that year, he claims to have received $264,040.00 in "direct public support."  That's not chump change.  


He is a very effective speaker, and probably should have been a trial lawyer.  He can be very compelling to the uneducated lay-person, or ill-informed politician, as the case may be.  


I personally find it very disturbing that any one unelected person, without any apparent substantive background, can wield so much political power, and potentially do so much damage (fiscally, economically and from a public health perspective).  It discredits our system of government.


Barbara