LOS ANGELES

FIRST PERSON-If you compare predominantly minority filled and long-failed Detroit public schools with the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD), there is only one glaring difference -- LAUSD has been run by a better bunch of liars than Detroit. 

CHOICES--In his opening statement at his confirmation hearing, "calculated liar, "evidently repeat perjurer and alleged sexual assaulter Brett Kavanaugh  cited his time at Bethesda’s Georgetown Prep high school in the 1980s with reverence.

VOICES-With the announcement by the California High Speed Rail Authority (CHSRA) of SR14 as the Preferred Alternative,

EASTSIDER-Mr. Richard Costiganhas been front and center in defending all the recent goofy hiring decisions by the CalPERS Board, which raised some questions in my mind.

GUEST COMMENTARY--Neighborhoods are the backbone of every great city.

CORRUPTION WATCH-Except for rare instances like Sodom and Gomorrah, there is life after the Fall.

GUEST WORDS-At a time when freedom of speech and the right to protest are under unrelenting attack by the President of the United States,

CAL BUZZ--Kevin de Leon’s (above) campaign for U.S. Senate against Dianne Feinstein began, and continues, as an assault from the left, as he charges that she’s too soft on President Trump and too weak on liberal issues.

SPORTS POLITICS-There are few memories more vivid from my childhood than watching Monday Night Football.

TRUTH WATCH--If there’s one person in America who should want a full, detailed investigation of the sexual assault claim against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh, it’s Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.

ALPERN AT LARGE--Let's get something clear: we need as many roads, rails, sidewalks, bike lanes, and buses as possible to cost-effectively and conveniently get from point A to point B.

PLATKIN ON PLANNING-Take a good look at the photo above and you’ll see:

CAL MATTERS--The pipeline of women qualified to serve on corporate boards is overflowing with talented, smart, well-educated candidates.

CONNECTING CALIFORNIA--I wish California children were doing as well as California children’s hospitals.

FIRST PERSON-The Social Studies teacher in me says it would be a big mistake to try and figure out ...

CORRUPTION WATCH-Lawyers like the Law of Threes. You’ve heard them use it: “I hereby give, transfer, and grant to you my red Corvette.”

PRESERVING THE PAST-On Wednesday, September 12, the Los Angeles Conservancy and Miracle Mile Residential Association submitted an application to the Los Angeles Cultural Heritage Commission to nominate Tom Bergin’s Old Horseshoe Tavern and Thoroughbred Club (more recently known as Tom Bergin’s House of Irish Coffee) as an Historic Cultural Monument. 

BCK FILE-Last Wednesday, online news outlet The Intercept reported that Senator Dianne Feinstein was in possession of a letter detailing an attempted sexual assault by Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh.

GELFAND’S WORLD--Political purists like to talk about fundamentals that -- more than personalities or policies -- determine electoral outcomes.

@THE GUSS REPORT-If the government of the City of Los Angeles wanted to make its First Amendment troubles even worse than they were last week, it is doing a fine job of that as it seeks to tighten decorum rules on potty-mouthed critics at its public meetings. 

ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE-Anybody who's dealt with the Department of City Planning (DCP) in recent years knows that the quality of their environmental assessments is questionable.