(San Diego)(September 20, 2006) Trying to take the pulse of the nation in California is like fighting with a down pillow. There's a lot of bulk but not much weight.

Gertrude Stein wrote of her home town Oakland that there is "no there, there." Her celebrated comments have been interpreted to mean she didn’t feel at home any longer, in her home town.

On the contrary, California and San Diego are easy places to feel at home. They are casual to the core.

I am a San Diego regular. It's great to come here. No need to pack a tie, suit, sport coat. Khakis and a short-sleeve short or jersey will suffice for most daily activity. Days are warm and sunny, evenings mild and dry.

I first became aware of San Diego over forty years ago, when a Champaign, Illinois-based media baron, August C. Meyer, purchased Channel 8 in San Diego for the massive sum of $10 million. San Diego was a far off place of which I knew little.

Since then, San Diego has grown from nowheresville to probably the 25th national media market. And Channel 8 is still owned by the same quiet billionaire family. Yes, billionaire. The KFMB station complex is probably worth close to a billion dollars, more or less.

San Diego was in the news in the 1970's when the U. S. National Bank, controlled by a crony of President Richard Nixon, failed. Very embarrassing. And the city has been a laughingstock recently because of its pension deficits and kooky mayoral elections. What else is new?

But beneath the surface San Diego and California increasingly mirror and track the old cities of the East and Midwest. There is massive corruption; the Daley family would feel right at home. San Diego's mayor says the city's infrastructure is "crumbling." (SDUT, p. B1, 9/9/06) Well, maybe that's not Chicago. At last with our corruption we get a modern metropolis.

There is a massive public employee pension deficit. Good grief. The place feels more and more like Illinois in the sunshine. Or New York without Mayor Bloomberg.

Politics is where you see the real difference: in Washington and New York, and Chicago, there is white hot politics. Media saturation. Sharp elbows. Bad guys. Intense feelings and rivalries.

Here, there is scant evidence of a momentous national and state election, only seven weeks away. In a year when the Republican Party's "Bush Martyrs" are likely to be slaughtered nationally, California will probably reelect a Republic governor, who is endorsed by Democrats. The state legislature is already so Democratic there is scant prospect for change. Republican congressional seats may fall, but not more than one or two, if that. In sum, when it comes to politics, there's no there, there in San Diego and California.

On November 8th the state and city will probably be little changed. Whether you look at the war in Iraq, or other national issues trumpeted in Washington (Iran, anyone?) there is a deficit in political energy as well. Speaker Pelosi? Yawn. (With the notable exception of the San Francisco Bay Area, Baghdad on the Bay that is, to be sure).

The Chinese Navy sent a ship into San Diego harbor on Monday. Maybe that's an omen. Maybe not.

California is a great nation in its own right, based on the size of the state's economy and the relentlessly expanding population. But them, once the infrastructure of a region starts to crumble, it crumbles. And the trend is costly and difficult to reverse. San Diego mirrors California and California increasingly is mirroring the nation: underinvestment in basic services and infrastructure is catching up with politicians everywhere. Ostrich feathers should be in fashion for every elected official.

I just hope the sun keeps shining, glowing golden. And the nights stay warm and dry. Because in the end that may be all they have in San Diego. Maybe there really is no there, there.