LOS ANGELES

EIGHT MOST READ - GELFAND’S WORLD--The 2018 neighborhood council congress has come and gone, an event in which we were treated to views that were outrageous, insightful, carefully thought out, and sometimes all of the above.

GUEST COMMENTARY-At the Congress of Neighborhoods on Saturday, September 22, 2018, there was a cannabis session at which most of the focus was on what the rules are for retailers. Plenty of questions were asked. 

HOUSING POLITICS-Zoning used to be a total snooze. Arguments about building heights and density were the eye-glazing preserve of planning wonks and people whose next-door neighbors were contemplating two-story additions. In 2018, zoning got sexy. 

LEANING RIGHT--Proponents of Proposition 10 are trying to convince voters that the effort to repeal the Costa Hawkins Housing Act would simply give local officials in Los Angeles County and other communities another tool to deal with California’s housing crisis. 

CORRUPTION WATCH-No one likes to admit to being mentally deficient. But denial is not the best response to a gross inadequacy. Nonetheless, it may be the most common response.

@THE GUSS REPORT-A bill of attainder is a law that unconstitutionally singles out an individual or group for punishment without a trial.

BELL VIEW--Republicans and their mouthpieces in the mainstream and fringe media have long sought to make the case that Republicans serve the interests of minority voters better than Democrats because they believe in the core dignity of all people -- without regard to color. 

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.