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AN ANGRY ANGELENO -
So much to talk about, so little time. Where do we start?
Let's start with the animals, since they're so important to many Angelenos like me. According to the City Controller's recent Twitter post, “This fiscal year [which starts in the middle of the year], the Mayor...cut the Animal Services department's operational budget by $1.4 Million...” I recently bashed City Controller Mejia in my October 7 column “The Betrayal of LA Dogs and Cats by City Controller Mejia”. Since then, it seems like he has suddenly been focusing a lot more on animals suffering and being killed at the City's half dozen “shelters”. There was also the KTLA article “Dogs in LA Shelters Being Euthanized at Historic Rate, Audit Shows” on October 11. The article states that “In August...226 dogs were [killed] in LA [City] shelters – the highest total since at least January 2022. More than 250 cats were [killed] in July, also the highest since then.” Article also mentions that “In May, June and July, City shelters [killed] more than 300 kittens each month.” Also, “Only 22 cats and 47 dogs were fostered in August”. That seems ridiculously low and their fostering program should be audited closely. Seems like it's being mismanaged. The article also describes massive overcrowding at the “shelters”. Of course, Mejia, instead of advocating for a higher budget for the financially starved department and more space to house the animals (which wouldn't be that expensive), “encouraged readers on social media to contact the LA City Council and Mayor Karen Bass to bring the startling numbers to their attention”. As if they didn't already know. As for Bass, a lot more dogs and cats are gonna be killed because of the relatively HUGE cut to the department's already measly and meager budget.
Speaking of the City Budget, more mismanagement by Mayor Bass. According to the April 20 edition of the LA Times' “LA on the Record” City Hall newsletter, the LAPD package of pay increases negotiated last year is “expected to consume an extra 1 Billion dollars Over 4 Years” [emphasis added] While that sounds large, as you'll see below, it was needed and is still not enough. However, the following is ridiculous and just full out pandering to OTHER City employee Unions: “set of raises, this time for CIVILIAN city employee unions...[that] are expected to consume an extra 3.5 [Three and A Half] Billion Dollars over 5 years.” [emphasis added] A “third of [the workers getting these raises are] part-timers”. The anti-police Council Members Nithya Raman (who Mayor Bass recently endorsed and campaigned for, helping her win a close election), Eunisses Hernandez, and Hugo Soto-Martinez of course did not have a problem with the Non-Police pay increases. The Fire Department and its Union are not discussed, although our City Controller should scrutinize that department, which has a MASSIVE budget, at least as closely as he scrutinizes the LAPD.
There's been a recent effort to blame the City's Budget Problems on “liability” and lawsuit settlements by politicians like City Controller Mejia and the head of the City's Budget Committee Bob Blumenfield and the LA Times Editorial Board (funny how it seems like a coordinated effort between the progressive politicians that are in charge and the progressive newspaper that helps them win, like they're in cahoots). That's absolutely ridiculous. It's these raises and other financial mismanagement by the City that are the cause of our budget problems, not lawsuit settlements and liability. These politicians and the LA Times are counting on the public not remembering the raises for the NON-police workers earlier this year. Don't let them get away with it.
Since there's so much feigned concern about liability these days, why did the LA Times endorse Measure HLA. There's a David Zahniser article from February 16 of this year: “LA Bus and Bike Lane Measure Will Cost [OVER THREE] Billion [Dollars], A New Report Says...” That report is by City Administrative Officer Matt Szabo. He had the courage to warn the public about HLA, while Mayor Bass did not. Aside from the HUGE cost to the City going forward, there are MAJOR liability issues. Bob Blumenfield quietly stated his concerns about liability, perhaps because his Legislative Director (who was at his side at the big HLA meeting in City Council Chambers) has historically been a bicycle activist. HLA creates a right to sue if the City does not build expensive bike lanes as required...so, the City's hands are tied. There is another liability issue. Once you build all those bike lanes, they have to be very well maintained (including keeping homeless people and their belongings off) or some bicyclist not wearing a helmet takes a spill and sues the City. It happens. It'll happen even more. If Bass had told the public to vote No, HLA would not have passed. But she likely feared upsetting the progressive LA Times. She's gotta worry about her reelection.
All of this is also part of the Anti-Car movement. HLA will create MASSIVE Traffic Problems, by taking away driving lanes, as well as kill businesses by taking away parking lanes. And we all know that Angelenos LOVE Traffic. Even the Firefighter Union got involved, opposing HLA because it would make Traffic so bad that people would literally die because it would take them longer to get emergency help...think ambulances stuck in traffic.
More Mismanagement. Earlier this year, on July 30, I put in official requests with the City of LA for 3 streetlights to be fixed on my street in Beverly Grove. When streetlights are not working, that invites criminals and crime. Fixing streetlights that are out is a quick, cheap, and easy way to reduce crime. Here we are on October 24, and those 3 streetlights have STILL not been fixed. That's almost THREE months. In my over Two Decades of living here, I have frequently reported streetlights that were out. This is the longest I've ever had to wait...by far. Keeping streetlights working is arguably the most basic of City services, and Mayor Bass can't even handle that.
Speaking of streetlights, Steve Lopez, over at the Times recently wrote a column entitled “By MacArthur Park, the Lights Are Out and Residents Are Tired of Empty Promises.” Another Lopez column was entitled “Langer's Deli Owner is Starving for LA to Clean Up MacArthur Park, and Thinking of Closing”. Langer's was all over the news, including this Lopez column. So, of course, Bass showed up for a smiling photo-opp with the owner of the restaurant for Lopez' next column, which had the title “Langer's Closing? Mayor Bass Comes for Lunch and Vows to “Respond Urgently” to Neighborhood Problems”. That's typical Bass behavior. If you want her to respond to your problem, get it into the press. If you can get the newspaper, radio, and, best of all, local TV news to cover your problem, Bass will personally be all over it. Definitely NOT a proactive approach. I'm reminded of Sunset Sound with its homeless problems all over the news and a Hollywood area School with its homeless problems all over the news. Suddenly, after waiting so long, the City responded. If you create Bad PR for Bass' reelection effort, the City will finally respond to your problem.
Maybe Mayor Bass and her HUGE staff didn't read about the nexus of homelessness and fentanyl in Clara Harter's 4 part series for LA Daily News (LADN) in September of LAST year, including “In LA's Fentanyl Epidemic, MacArthur Park Community Bears the Heavy Burden”. If Bass had sufficiently responded THEN, wouldn't that have been better?
Speaking of that LADN series, it includes the reporter following a homeless druggy who takes Metro Rail for Free to steal and bring back his stolen goodies. We've all heard about all the violence on LA Metro, including stabbing and killing. It's been all over the news during Mayor Bass' time in office. Steve Lopez had a column “They Want to Ride Buses and Trains, But They're Afraid. For Riders Old and Young, Metro Must be Safer”. I would add “For Women”...a lot of women don't feel safe, either. Heck, I don't feel safe on Metro.
Anyway, are you sensing a pattern here, at least from Steve Lopez headlines? Bass is an incompetent Mayor.
You may be wondering what Mayor Bass has to do with LA Metro, which handles most public transportation for all of LA County including the City of LA. Mayor Bass sits on the Metro Board and she gets to pick 3 other Board members. So, she controls FOUR seats on the Metro board. Because of that, she has the most say at Metro, she becomes the public face of Metro, and, until recently, she was even the Board Chair at Metro.
Obviously, it is easier to protect riders on Metro Rail over riders on Metro buses. I would argue that Metro should have its own Police OR that LAPD should have officers that ONLY work policing Metro, instead of the current setup, which has LAPD officers moonlighting getting overtime policing Metro within the City of LA (Long Beach Police and LASD personnel, as well as Metro's own security, are used on the system, as well).
At the end of May of this year, a new pilot program began at the North Hollywood (known as NoHo) Metro Rail station called Tap-to-Exit, which requires you to Tap again to exit a station, with law enforcement waiting at the exit to catch you if the system notifies them that you didn't pay at all...you don't get charged twice. When I read about this, I thought NoHo also stood for No Homeless because it would keep homeless people that are riding for free from exiting at the NoHo station...they would just exit elsewhere.
My first question is “Why did it take so damn long??” Next question: “Why aren't law enforcement there when you ENTER to make sure you pay your fare to enter the system, in other words, Tap-to-ENTER?” Next question: Why did we get all those green shirted ambassadors at a HUGE cost, if they're not enforcing fare payment? I believe LA County Supervisor Lindsey Horvath supported that army of well-paid green polo shirted youngsters. Next question: “Why a pilot at only one station?”
The Times' Uranga covered the introduction of the “...90-day [pilot] program...aimed at getting people to use their TAP card and discourage riders who use the system for drugs or shelter and often board the trains without paying”. The article mentions that “About HALF of all [LA Metro] Rail stations have NO fare gate...” [emphasis added] WHY? Also in the article: “Law enforcement says most of those arrested on the system haven't paid their fare. [Well, duh] It's not unusual to see passengers jump over turnstiles or use the emergency doors to get into the system.” I've also seen wide gates that have two triangular barriers with a gap inbetween. I believe these are for disabled riders. The low height of the barriers, the gap, and the delay when they open and close allow for fare evasion. These should be better designed to prevent that.
In July 24 and July 25 LADN (by Steve Scauzillo) coverage of the expansion of the Tap-to-Exit “program to 10 end-of-line stations on the 6 Metro Rail lines” [Why not ALL the Rail Stations, not just end-of -line stations?], “LA County Sheriff Robert Luna said...that the vast majority of people arrested or detained in connection with wrongdoing on the transit system had not paid the proper fare.” Again, duh. It's obvious, it's common knowledge, it's common sense. The Big Question is Why Didn't Mayor Bass Push For Full Fare Enforcement Much Sooner?? Why didn't she publicly talk about fare enforcement being the MAIN problem? It sure would have saved a lot of people from being victimized!
It's that Progressive Foolishness. It's also thinking you can get support and votes by letting everybody ride for Free, especially young people. Just look at DASH, which is FULLY controlled by Mayor Bass, HER Transportation Department (LADOT) and the General Manager (GM) she picks. If you go to the DASH website, you'll see an orange box at the top saying “ALL DASH BUS SERVICES ARE FREE”. Why?? DASH buses are neighborhood circulators. Over time, DASH lines have become less frequent or fully eliminated for lack of sufficient money. If fares were charged, that money could be used to restore service and prevent further cuts. It would also keep troublemakers off the DASH buses and make the buses more welcoming for paying riders who are avoiding DASH because it is free. DASH has been FREE for ALL the time that Mayor Bass has been in office! How much revenue has been lost because of this foolishness?
Let's talk about the number of cops protecting us at LAPD. I recently called for enforcement of an LAMC 41.18 No Camping Zone and was told that the police would not come out. Instead, the calls are now forwarded to an organization that sends somebody out to chat with the homeless. That's because we don't have enough cops.
How bad is the situation with Not Enough LAPD Cops? A week ago, City News Service reported that “...LAPD's numbers...dropped below 9,000 officers last year.” Also, “the department's sworn personnel currently stands at 8,795.” On August 1 of last year [2023], the LA Times reported that “about 3 months” earlier [that would be roughly May 1, 2023] “...Bass promised to increase LAPD staffing...to 9,500 officers by the middle of [2024]. Clearly, Bass is failing us in providing enough cops, which would explain the roughly Two Hour Wait Times I've experienced for LAPD response...after making multiple calls.
On February 15 of this year, David Zahniser reported that the City Administrative Officer expected the department to have 8,908 officers by June 30 of this year, which “would leave the LAPD with its lowest sworn staffing levels in Over Two Decades.” [emphasis added] 8,795 cops, the most recent number, is even lower than that. Again, having adequate police numbers is part of basic services that Angelenos expect.
(“The Angry Angeleno” is the nom de plume of Yuval Kremer. Yuval is a Registered Democrat; a Cali-Camp, Harvard-Westlake (pre-merger), USC, and Loyola Law School Alum; and a former ballot candidate for Mayor of LA (failing to prevent Mayor Garcetti's reelection) and LA County Supervisor (ran against Sheila Kuehl, Katy Yaroslavsky's former boss). The opinions expressed by Yuval are his and his alone (not those of CityWatchLA), but will likely be yours soon!)
