LOS ANGELES

GELFAND’S WORLD--This week, a Democrat won a special congressional election in a solidly red Pennsylvania district. It wasn't by much, but it was equivalent to at least a ten point turnaround. Trump won the district by twenty points in 2016. 

CAL MATTERS--Should an organization that opposes abortion be required to tell women where they can seek an abortion? It’s a question the U.S. Supreme Court will face this month as it considers a challenge to a California state law.

GUEST WORDS--On January 3, 2018, Senator Scott Wiener, representing Senate District 11 (San Francisco and environs), introduced two statewide housing bills, Senate Bill 827 and Senate Bill 828.  SB 827 had two principal co-authors – Senator Nancy Skinner representing Senate District 9 (Contra Costa and Alameda counties along RTE 880, including Berkeley and Oakland) and Assembly Member Phil Ting, representing Assembly District 19 (San Francisco and Daly City).  Because SB 827, but not SB 828, acquired a co-author from Southern California, it was sent to the Senate Committee on Transportation and Housing. 

TRUMP MEETS THE RESISTANCE--The usually hyper-manicured Beverly Hills Park seemed oddly juxtaposed with the bohemian drum circle and a rowdy crowd of hundreds that gathered in the wake of President Trump's Los Angeles March 13 fundraiser. Unlike the smoky air rising from some corners of the event, their message was clear: Trump not welcomed here. With all the chanting, you would be forgiven for wondering if the messaging memo was prepared by Vitruvius – no, not the famous Roman who gave us perfect proportion theory, but the Lego Movie character voiced magically by Morgan Freeman who defended his prophecy thus: "... all this is true because it rhymes." 

BELL VIEW-I became a liberal during the first Bush Administration. Everything about George H.W. Bush – as quaint as that now seems – appalled me. I disliked him, his upbringing, his ancestors, his wife, and his kids. I became enamored with Bill Clinton (and blind to his many faults) for the simple reason that he could beat Bush. When Bush’s frat-boy son ascended to the presidency, my loathing filled every molecule of my being. 

GETTING THERE FROM HERE-The behavior of some on Metro buses and trains, and indeed within Southern California transit agencies, has so disturbed some people who are shocked that there is rudeness on public transportation. This type of rudeness is not restricted to Metro and other SoCal transit agencies but is found throughout the country. 

CAPITAL & MAIN REPORT--Up to a million Californians have been convicted of crimes that may no longer exist. Those convictions remain on their records, however, and removing them — especially in Los Angeles County — may take years. Proposition 64, the voter-approved 2016 ballot measure, legalized the recreational use of marijuana and reclassified most state-level felony cannabis offenses as misdemeanors. Some misdemeanors were reduced to mere infractions.(Photo above: Los Angeles District Attorney Jackie Lacey with interim L.A. County Sheriff John Scott, in 2014)

GELFAND’S WORLD (BRIEFLY TOLD)--I had suspected that Trump would find some way to walk back the tariffs. He went part way, as he is now claiming that Mexico and Canada will be exempted. But even here, there are strings attached.

ALPERN AT LARGE--Ours is a nation united in our revulsion against violence, terrorism (domestic or foreign), and bigotry.  Only the bizarre fringes are accepting of such divisive and dangerous paradigms or actions, but what prevents us from true unity is our willingness (and, perhaps, choice) to hear things that are not being said, and being guilty of focusing on what truly divides us. 

TRASH TALK--What began in the back rooms of LA City Hall between Special Interests Groups, allies on City Council and the Mayor’s Office hit Housing Providers, HOA’s and all Commercial Business in Los Angeles like a 100-foot Tsunami. 

PRESERVE LA--“Getting It Right,” a stunning report by Berkeley Law and Columbia University researchers, drives a stake in claims by Gov. Brown and legislators that the California Environmental Quality Act, CEQA, has worsened the housing crisis.

SUPPLY-SIDE SHENANIGANS-The real estate research firm CoStar caused a stir in 2017 when it reported a 12.4% residential vacancy rate in Downtown LA. But Steven Sharp published a piece in the LA Times saying that the rate has subsequently dropped considerably. ("Downtown has a high apartment vacancy rate? The rest of LA should be so lucky." LAT, 2/13/2018) Sharp notes that CoStar's data showed a drop to 10.3% in January 2018. He also states the vacancy rate has since declined further to 8.1%, and 4.7% for buildings that have been open for one year or more. 

@THE GUSS REPORT-In a move that could ultimately backfire on the city’s ongoing legal efforts to keep boisterous critics away from Los Angeles City Council meetings, its president Herb Wesson was caught on video – twice – verbally and physically taunting one of his loudest ones. 

CORRUPTION WATCH-In 1962 when Hannah Arendt wrote about the Jerusalem trial of Adolf Eichmann, she pointed out that great evil can flow from banal, everyday activities, e.g. repetitions of small lies. The Banality of Evil does not deny the individual’s sadistic nature, but rather shows how others fail to see the potential enormity of the evil lurking behind everyday actions. 

MARCH WITH FLORIDA’S KIDS--I am ashamed of My LAUSD! 

FIRST PERSON-If you want to stop the criminal behavior by those running the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) and other sabotaged public school districts like it around the country, I think you will need to consult sections of the California Penal Code as well as the belated enforcement of criminal felonies described therein against LAUSD administrators. LAUSD Board member Dr. Ref Rodriguez’ illegal behavior at LAUSDis not an isolated case. In fact, he is small potatoes when compared with other felonious actions systematically carried out throughout the District. 

RANTZ & RAVES--The City of Los Angeles and its Department of Transportation has for many years neglected to follow the law when it comes to surveying the thousands of miles of city streets for radar speed enforcement.  The law in California requires all cities to routinely survey streets in order for the police to use radar when enforcing speed laws.  

CORRUPTION WATCH-The sorry saga of the Hollywood Target store continues. Rather than allow Target to construct its store, Eric Garcetti has pushed Target into eternal litigation. On February 21, 2018, Target filed its opening brief in the current round of appellate cases case (# B283480 Target v CCLA). 

ALPERN AT LARGE--As mentioned in my last CityWatch piece, California and its cities have grabbed a lot of money from its taxpayers, thrown away laws that it finds inconvenient, and ranks last in a few metrics as a state that has a nice quality of life.

BELL VIEW-One of the continuing sources of bafflement for my liberal friends involves the persistence of support for Donald Trump among his hard-core supporters. Have you had enough yet? They seem to ask with every snarky tweet. Here he is separating children from their mothers. Here, he’s taking healthcare away from millions of Americans. 

PLATKIN ON PLANNING-It is a major achievement to politically unite Angelenos across all demographic categories: the rich, poor, and those in between; those who live in the Valley, East LA, South LA, and Westside; all major racial and ethnic groups; and finally, those who live in houses, duplexes, four-plexes, and apartments. But, hats off to Senator Scott Wiener for this impressive political feat.