Community, Diversity, Sustainability and other Overused Words

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  • BREAKING NEWS: "Center for Excellence in Public Education" Engages in Open Anti-Semitism as it Tries to Take Down Oscar de la Torre

    Anna M. Rogers Ph.D., Medical-Legal Ethics|Nov 6, 2024
    1

    Jewish families and individuals in the city of Santa Monica were callously targeted with antisemitic propaganda this past Monday, October 28th. Shocked recipients stated that their non-Jewish spouse or partner were spared the hateful election hit piece which caused heightened concerns. The fabricated defamation came from an organization hiding behind the name "Center for Excellence in Public Education" operating as a 501 (c) (4) but also utilizing PAC 527 status. Prior to the shocking singling...

  • SMRR's Desperate Tactics

    Arthur Jeon, Special to the Observer|Nov 6, 2024

    Well, this exhausting season is almost over. No matter what the result, I trust that we will muddle on and things will settle down. But I want to comment on last week's City Council meeting, which reached new lows, disrupted by two members of our community: Jon Katz and Jason Mastbaum, who left right before being escorted out by the police. Both are out-of-touch SMRR dead-enders and Santa Monica Democratic Club stooges, and they, like all people defending the indefensible in terms of policy, res...

  • Defending Oscar de La Torre From a Last Minute False SMRR Election Attack

    Tricia Crane, Northeast Neighbors|Nov 4, 2024

    Dear friends and neighbors, I want to be sure you read Councilmember Oscar de la Torre's letter published in the Santa Monica Daily Press, which is below. Oscar writes in response to an accusation by a political figure - school board candidate Jon Kean - that he is antisemitic. I have known Oscar for decades, beginning when I was a reporter for NPR and I interviewed Oscar, fresh out of college, about his work with the youth of the Pico neighborhood. Oscar then created the Pico Youth & Family...

  • Ballot Recommendations for California, Los Angeles County and Santa Monica Elections, November 2024

    Observer Staff|Nov 4, 2024

    October 27, 2024 - The following are our common-sense, law-and-order, family-value recommendations for how to fill out your Santa Monica ballot before election day, November 5, 2024: Santa Monica Member of the City Council (4 votes): Oscar de la Torre Vivian A. Roknian John Putnam Phil Brock The Safer Santa Monica slate are the only candidates who have all the correct answers to questions about funding the police, getting rid of needle distribution to addicts, keeping our neighborhoods intact...

  • Women For Safer Santa Monica Will March on Sunday, October 27th 11AM-2PM

    Kelly Smith and Friends, Women For Safer Santa Monica|Oct 29, 2024

    As everyone is aware, we are in a critical time to change the trajectory of Santa Monica. We need to make sure the right people are in office to run our city council and course correct the path our city is on to bring it back to its glory. There are basically two PACS (contingencies ) running and we want to VOTE in the SAFER SANTA MONICA PAC. It will really take the entire PAC being voted in to implement real change. This is who we want to vote for: SAFER SANTA MONICA includes: John Putnam,...

  • Santa Monica Crime Keeps Getting Worse. Vote For Phil Brock, Oscar de la Torre, Vivian Roknian and John Putnam to Reverse the Trend.

    Faustino Garza, 37-year resident of Santa Monica|Oct 25, 2024

    It seems anymore like not a week goes by without news of a stabbing, shooting, assault, rape or home invasion. And there are undoubtedly countless more less-serious crimes, many of which go unreported, like car break-ins, store theft, public drug usage, and harassment of residents and visitors by homeless wanderers on our streets. Santa Monica wasn’t like this 10 years ago. Crime continues to get worse and clearly we need to make changes in order to reverse this trend. The causes of increasing c...

  • Response to Ted Winterer's letter: "The Great Santa Monica Safety Debate"

    Arthur Jeon, Special to the Observer|Oct 25, 2024

    Wow, it's a bore to keep deconstructing the desperate confabulations of SMRR and their puppeteers. But somebody's got to do it! The latest is from Ted Winterer, who presided on the City Council from 2012-2020 (and as the Mayor 2016-2018), and has written a truly hilarious SMDP op-ed in which he wonders why the two incumbents running (Phil Brock and Oscar de la Torre), haven't yet created safer streets in their 3 years in office when they've been in control for 40. This is also a theme in SMRR...

  • Bill Ackman Accuses Biden-Harris Administration of Undermining America With 33 Policy Choices

    Bill Ackman, Hedge Fund Manager|Oct 17, 2024

    A number of my good friends and family have been surprised about my decision to support @realDonaldTrump for president. They have been surprised because my political giving history has been mostly to Democrats, my voting registration has typically been Democrat (in NY, you must be registered to the party in order to vote in the primary, and usually the Republican candidate has no chance to win), and many of our philanthropic initiatives have supported issues that are consistent with Democratic...

  • Gascon Abandons Rape Victims at Parole Hearings

    Kathy Cady|Oct 17, 2024

    In 2002 a man broke into Gloria G.'s home. He raped her at knife point and committed several other types of horrific sexual assaults. He threatened to kill her son. He was convicted and sentenced to over 100 years to life in prison. However, because of a change in the law, the man who raped Gloria, who is now over 50 years old, qualified for an elder parole hearing. Because George Gascon has banned prosecutors from attending parole hearings, Gloria, like so many other victims, had to attend the...

  • Santa Monica Observer Endorses the Safety Slate for City Council: Phil Brock, Oscar de la Torre, John Putnam, and Dr. Vivian Roknian

    Observer Staff|Oct 17, 2024

    As Santa Monica faces rising concerns about crime and public safety, it's more important than ever for voters to understand which candidates genuinely prioritize safety and security for our community. This election, we strongly endorse the slate of Phil Brock, Oscar de la Torre, John Putnam, and Dr. Vivian Roknian for Santa Monica City Council. These candidates have consistently shown a commitment to tackling the city's safety challenges head-on, standing in stark contrast to their opponents...

  • Jared Kushner: "Anyone who has been calling for a ceasefire in the North is wrong. There is no going back for Israel."

    Jared Kushner, Former Special Advisor to Pres. Trump|Oct 7, 2024

    September 27th is the most important day in the Middle East since the Abraham Accords breakthrough. I have spent countless hours studying Hezbollah and there is not an expert on earth who thought that what Israel has done to decapitate and degrade them was possible. This is significant because Iran is now fully exposed. The reason why their nuclear facilities have not been destroyed, despite weak air defense systems, is because Hezbollah has been a loaded gun pointed at Israel. Iran spent the la...

  • Don't be fooled by SMRR: The Safer Santa Monica slate is the only Change Slate

    Arthur Jeon, Special to the Observer|Oct 1, 2024

    There seems to be a laughable attempt by SMRR to intentionally muddy the waters this election. In a case of moral confusion and cynicism, SMMR is trying to position themselves as the "change slate," because after 40 years of their establishment politics, affecting everything from overdevelopment to the destruction of the downtown, they are saying the Change Slate elected 4 years ago needs to be... um... changed by them! You see, anti-police SMRR, which appointed our city manager and almost the...

  • Democrats Plan to Steal this Election Using Overseas Ballots, Elon Musk Retweets

    Stan Greene, Observer Staff Writer|Oct 1, 2024

    The Dems plan to steal the 2024 Presidential Election for Kamala Harris through the use of overseas ballots. This according to a X.com post from Joel Berry, Managing Editor of the Babylon Bee. Elon Musk retweeted the post. The post appears below: "Some fun facts about the Democrat plan to steal elections using "overseas" ballots: -Through the UOCAVA/overseas program, you can register to vote online without providing ID, SSN, or proof of citizenship/address. -You can register in any state, at...

  • How the Homeless See Santa Monica

    Michael Meyer, from Nextdoor|Sep 23, 2024

    DEAR SANTA MONICA If housed residents knew what's it like to be homeless in Santa Monica, they'd be pissed off and lose any respect you might have for the everyone in control, and the police don't help homeless people, they lie, intimidate, criminalize and ignore them but voters already know it's only getting worse regardless of who they vote for Same old bs, nothing new to see here folks The city approved nonprofits like " step up" move the worst of them into luxury apartments, yet leave the vu...

  • Santa Monica Democratic Club, A Clueless Group Supporting a Clueless SMMR Slate

    Arthur Jeon, Special to the Observer|Sep 23, 2024
    3

    September 16, 2024 - Since I was called out personally, I'm finally writing in response to the letter Jon Katz, President of the Santa Monica Democratic Club, wrote in the SMDP on August 20th about my "Anybody But SMRR" letter. Jon titled his response "Playing Politics," which was appropriate, because it was full of half truths, outright lies, straw man arguments, and misrepresentations of my views-in short, a case study of playing politics from the president of an organization completely out of...

  • Gascon Keeps Top Staffer Who is Charged with 6 Felony Counts

    Michele Hanisee, Association of Deputy District Attorneys|Aug 26, 2024

    As Ryan Erlich highlighted in April, George Gascón's administration continues to reveal a troubling double standard regarding accountability. This double standard is particularly evident in the case of Diana Teran. Diana Teran, who was appointed by Gascón to serve as the "Ethics and Integrity Advisor" to the largest local prosecutorial office in the nation, is currently charged with six felonies. Despite a judge finding probable cause to support these charges, Teran remains on the public p...

  • Here's Why to Vote No on Proposition 33

    Joseph Ebin, Turnkey Holdings|Aug 26, 2024

    LEGISLATIVE ALERT: MULTI-FAMILY, SINGLE FAMILY AND CONDOMINIUM HOUSING There is one statewide proposition on the California November 2024 ballot that I am very concerned about. It is Proposition 33, which enables extremely restrictive rent controls on a state-wide basis. These Proposition 33 proposed rent controls, including homes, condominiums, as well as multifamily complexes, could turn California into a nightmare scenario like NYC after WWII or Santa Monica or West Hollywood for the period...

  • The Lie of "Boulevard Only" Development

    Arthur Jeon, Special to the Observer|Aug 19, 2024

    Dear Council, et al: I live on 9th street, a block from three boulevards-Wilshire, Santa Monica, and Lincoln. This means I'm literally surrounded by 8-story "stack and packs," while being told the fiction that this grotesque sop to developers "won't affect the neighborhoods of Santa Monica" and will help "solve homelessness." Ha! This is, like so much that we hear from SMRR, a lie flown in on the wings of money-in this case Hedge Funds (Cypress Equity, I'm looking at you). While we were sleeping...

  • Californians Must be Prepared for an Onslaught of Tax Increases this November

    Susan Shelley, Special to the Observer|Aug 19, 2024

    Your November ballot is going to be an orgy of tax increases that would make the Kama Sutra blush. In the main arena, we see that state lawmakers have unbuckled old restraints that have stopped local governments from taking on too much debt. The 1879 California constitution stated, "No county, city, town, township, Board of Education, or school district, shall incur any indebtedness or liability in any manner, or for any purpose ... without the assent of two thirds of the qualified electors...

  • RAND is Wrong about Homeless Encampment Cleanup: Venice Stakeholders Association

    Mark Ryavec, President Venice Stakeholders Association|Aug 19, 2024

    July 29, 2024 - An article in the Los Angeles Times this week highlighted a RAND Corporation study claiming that homeless encampment cleanups don't lead to a reduction in the number of homeless in an area. Mark Ryavec, President of the Venice Stakeholder's Association, took great exception to this conclusion, noting that such cleanups should be accompanied by "offers of shelter, enforcement of 24/7 no-camping zones and the installation of landscaping, fencing and physical barriers at strategic...

  • Dear Voter Regarding Santa Monica City Council Election: Anybody but the SMRR Slate

    Arthur Jeon, Special to the Observer|Aug 12, 2024

    Dear Santa Monica Voters, We are heading into the election season here in Santa Monica and our choices are becoming clear. If you ask any resident what their main concern is, they will respond that it's the crime, safety, and disorder perpetuated by the transient addicts and mentally ill who are using our city as either a toilet, or a pool to hunt victims. In the course of the past month we've seen stabbings, attempted rapes, attempted murders, and the horrific kidnapping of a toddler by a...

  • Santa Monica's Chief of Police Ramon Batista Has Failed To Protect Santa Monica

    Adnan Safadi|Aug 5, 2024

    August 1, 2024 - It's been almost three years since Santa Monica's Chief of Police Ramon Batista said he would provide Santa Monica with "unparalleled public safety." https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ups05Sdpv3U&ab_channel=CityofSantaMonica But I get yelled at by drug addicts almost every day. I'll be walking down Montana Avenue – Ocean, 7th Street, Idaho, 2nd Street, Santa Monica, Wilshire, 4th Street, Main Street, The Promenade, The Beach Strand – and some crazy drug addict yells at me agg...

  • Los Angeles County Supervisor Lindsay Horvath Lies About Santa Monica After Ending Up On "Mount Drugsmore"

    Adnan Safadi, Special to the Observer|Aug 5, 2024

    July 26, 2024 - Los Angeles County Supervisor Lindsay Horvath is lying About Santa Monica. She recently said in an emailed statement: "County partners with Venice Family Clinic to provide harm reduction services for up to three hours each week in Santa Monica. Through harm reduction and other efforts, deaths among people experiencing homelessness held steady for the first time since 2015, as opposed to continual increases the County had historically seen." Horvath added that since the County...

  • Santa Monica City Council Considers Bitcoin and Hemmati Says No Way

    Houman David Hemmati MD PhD, Special to the Observer|Jul 14, 2024
    1

    Dear Mayor Brock and Members of the City Council, I am writing to you today as a concerned citizen of Santa Monica and a PhD scientist and MIT-trained chemical engineer. Last night's decision to establish a Bitcoin Office within our city deeply concerns me, and I feel compelled to share the significant risks and adverse impacts associated with this initiative. My primary concerns revolve around the financial instability of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, as well as the severe environmental...

  • Santa Monica's Mayor Phil Brock Was Attacked On The Promenade, Now He's Pretending Like Santa Monica Is Safe

    Adnan Safadi, Special to the Observer|Jul 9, 2024

    Lots of news outlets are now covering how unsafe Santa Monica is because of the Santa Monica Coalition's sign on the promenade. The Santa Monica Coalition's sign says "Santa Methica Is Not Safe. Our City Manager Supports the Needle & Meth Pipe Distribution Program In Our Parks and Public Spaces." Santa Monica's Mayor Phil Brock recently did a TV interview where he said that "Most of Santa Monica is always safe." Here's the interview: (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AtxlbIBUxJQ) There's a big...

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