Community, Diversity, Sustainability and other Overused Words
Community, Diversity, Sustainability and other Overused Words
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Since last Tuesday's shocking defeat of the popularly chosen presidential nominee Hillary Clinton by the electorally chosen Donald Trump, thousands of protestors have poured into the streets in major cities across America – and that's exactly the right thing for them to do. The electoral college system has devalued the votes of populated states to such an extent that twice in the last five elections the candidate with the most popular votes has lost the presidency. An e...
It's morning in America. America won last night. Our system worked. The American people instinctively believed the country was going in the wrong direction and yesterday they said so. I don't believe we elected Donald Trump as our next President as much as we rejected a Hillary Clinton Presidency. Those who know me know I've not been a Trump supporter. He has said and done many things that concern me greatly. Yesterday, I didn't vote FOR Trump, I voted AGAINST Hillary...
As a former management consultant with clients that ranged from small companies to large Fortune 500 companies, and the largest company in Canada, one principle stood out when trying to understand a business: Follow the money! So, let's unwrap the "No on LV" package: First some basics: Increased height, plus density, equal higher land values; this often translates into what is called economic rents, that is, profits beyond what is needed to justify a project. Another basic is...
For months now rational Americans have been both bewildered and amused that the pigheaded adolescent rebellion of GOP leaders during the Obama administration led to a presidential nominee who is, to say the least, well out of his depth. At first, no one really believed that this blowhard businessman might actually ascend to the Whitehouse. People aren't that silly, are they? Then, sometime mid-summer, a dangerous and sinister alliance took place. After a series of private...
I am voting NO on 65 and YES on 67. If passed, Prop 65 will require the mandated fee (minimum of 10 cents per law) charged to customers for alternative bags (recycled paper, compostable, or reusable) to be deposited into the "Environmental Protection and Enhancement Fund" (EPE Fund) to be established in the State Treasury and administered by the Wildlife Conservation Board. The sole purpose of Prop 65 is to confuse voters. It would only serve the interests of plastic bag compa...
1/24: A short while ago, I learned that the Santa Monica Firefighters Local 1109 had given its support to the "No on LV" effort. As a 38-year veteran of the Santa Monica Fire Department and lifelong resident of Santa Monica, I was shocked and confused as to why they would do that. Knowing how overwhelmed and understaffed our Fire Department currently is, with extremely high call volume, and how difficult it is to respond to life-threatening emergencies due to extreme and...
"The budget should be balanced, the Treasury should be refilled, public debt should be reduced, the arrogance of officialdom should be tempered and controlled and the assistance to foreign lands should be curtailed lest Rome become bankrupt. People must learn to work, instead of living on public assistance." Cicero-55BC We'll all miss this raucous election season, but isn't the bigger problem what priorities to set, rather than which personality to run it. Here's the five bigg...
Well it's that time of year again, on hyper-drive. In this craziest of all elections, here are the Observer's recommendations when you go to the polls: US SENATE: Kamala Harris. What a lame choice for an incredibly important political post. Kamala Harris is cautious and always poll-tested and surprisingly unaccomplished, Loretta Sanchez comes across as a cooky flake. Harris does seem smarter, and we do give her kudos for her negotiation with the banks over the foreclosure...
Threatening to undermine the separation of powers that is fundamental to our free society, John McCain says that a Republican Senate would not confirm any potential Supreme Court Justices nominated by Hillary Clinton. This obstreperous partisanship is unprecedented in American history. Responsible politicians know that a complete court is fundamental to the review process necessary to ensure that laws are being carried out in a fair and just manner. While past Senators may hav...
Mr. Zinner: Your recent article about new development being good for the earth was terrific! I agree: Single family residences are inefficient and should be banned. More retail/residential structures should be built to make the entire city look like a modern strip mall. If four stories is good, eight stories is twice as good. Let's build to the sky! They should all be painted white in order to reflect the heat. Your premise that people live where they work is also brilliant!...
What do you do when you are waiting outside the classroom door (or presidential debate) and suddenly realize that you didn't read the mandatory pages for today's discussion? This 10-step formula is fairly simple and easily mastered: 1. Flip through the book, and select a couple of easy-to-understand charts or graphs. If it is a novel, choose some quotes from a main character. Mark the pages. 2. Always allow others to speak first. Let at least one do-gooder, prepared, student s...
WASHINGTON, DC, Oct 14 - This year marks the 25th anniversary of Clarence Thomas' appointment to the Supreme Court and the National Museum of African American History and Culture, which opened last month in Washington, has seen fit to "honor" the jurist by completely ignoring the event and Thomas, himself. Dan Weber, president of the Association of Mature American Citizens, calls the museum's "snub" a deliberate insult. "What else can it be when a prestigious institution...
Dear SMO Observer, While I am not a resident of Santa Monica itself, I have worked at the airport for over Three years now and in that time I have been keeping careful track of the ongoing battle for control of the airport. Recently Measure LV appeared on the radar screen in Santa Monica and I started examining the Measure itself, who its supporters are and a plethora of other important public information. What I have discovered leaves me a bit confused and honestly, alarmed....
Dear Editor, I find it alarming the level of untruths Santa Monica's City officials will tell in their effort to rationalize their illicit actions aimed at strangling and/or closing the airport ("Health Protected by Eviction of Airport Tenant, Santa Monica Official Says," October 3, 2016). Nelson Hernandez (senior advisor to the City Manager on Airport Affairs) raises the issue of "Safety of residents" yet neglects to include the fact that closure of the only two providers of...
If you follow what goes on in Santa Monica City Hall, it's really been pretty much the same since 1982. The City grants massive development permits to favored developers. The City Staff grant developers permits to build huge buildings that are not in the best interest of residents, because they generate traffic, noise, density, trash, without generating jobs or money for local residents. Every 4 years, residents return the same City Council members to office, because they...
Oscar, I adore you. I think you're a great guy. I've voted for you to serve on the Santa Monica Malibu Unified School District Board every time you have run for that office because I think you are honest and sincere about wanting what's best for the students. But when you knelt during the Pledge of Allegiance at the opening of the school board meeting on September 22, I think you were out of line. Mr. Craig Foster, I don't know you very well, but I think you were off base in...
The New York Times' Nicholas Kristof published last month a column with the stomach-turning headline, "Anne Frank Today Is a Syrian Girl." Last week, he continued with this analogy, asking his readers, "Would You Hide a Jew From the Nazis?" Kristof goes into detail about the many nations of the world that refused to provide refuge to the Jews. He then tells the stories of a few brave souls – Martha Sharp, Witold Pilecki, Jozef and Wiktoria Ulma, Aristides de Sousa Mendes ...
Donald Trump's effort to woo black voters has gotten off to a rocky start. The GOP nominee's main argument -- that black communities have been poorly served by Democratic leaders -- is certainly powerful. But, as recent polls have shown, this strategy has yet to move the needle with African Americans. What's missing from Trump's appeal is a positive vision for how he will improve the lives of black Americans. And a Republican proposal for creating stable inner-city jobs is exa...
While the American people are demanding drug peace and self-ownership, the DEA is headed in the wrong direction with kratom. The DEA is losing the war on drugs with state after state softening stances on marijuana. 8 states will be voting on legalizing marijuana for recreational AND medicinal purposes in November. Americans are overwhelmingly seeing that prison and government violence are terrible ways to solve the problems of addiction and drug abuse, and they are demanding...
I can't recall a single project proposed by developer NMS that was not approved by our city staff or our City Council. As of September 7, NMS has already contributed $225,000 to the anti-LUVE developer PAC called "HOME." With this war chest, HOME is showering every voter in Santa Monica with mailers full of lies, attempting to confuse them. Their goal is to trick residents into voting against their own interests by opposing LUVE - Measure LV. In 2012, NMS and Chicago based dev...
WASHINGTON, DC, Sep 2 - There won't be an October surprise prior to the 2016 Presidential Elections, at least not as far as Obamacare is concerned, says Dan Weber, president of the Association of Mature American Citizens. "The cat's already out of the bag. In fact, Lamar Alexander, often described as one of the most responsible Senators sitting in Congress, says that when the 2017 enrollment period begins on November 1 - seven days before voters are to pick the next president...
It is my great pleasure to forward City Council actions that we demanded for over 4 years!! The "FBO policy" which authorizes the eviction of Atlantic Aviation – which accounts for 90% of jet flight operations – is attached. This vote represents nearly 100% victory by Sunset Park Anti-Airport (SPAA), dedicated activists such as David Klass, Ben Wang, David Goddard and Alan Levenson, and outraged residents such as yourself. Here are the key points. First, we have fought to evi...
Oil imports could soon be a thing of the past. That's the main takeaway from a new report from Nordic consulting firm Rystad. Researchers estimated the total recoverable oil reserves still buried under American soil. The final figure is astonishing: 264 billion barrels -- more than any other nation in the world. Unlocking these reserves would generate tremendous benefits for the economy and move America towards full energy independence. Yet the White House has repeatedly...
Legislation authored by Senator Ben Allen (D – Santa Monica) that he says will transform the way elections are conducted in California passed the state Assembly today on a vote of 42 - 28. "Our current system of limiting voters to one polling location on a single day has failed. It is time to implement a new voting model that allows people to vote conveniently, close to where they work, shop and congregate," Allen said. Under the new system, every voter will receive a vote b...
Democrats may publicly chide Aetna from pulling out of all but four states in the ACA exchanges, but privately they're breaking out the champagne, led by Nancy Pelosi, the Democrat representative from San Francisco who's credited with pushing the ACA, aka Obamacare, through a bitterly divided congress. Many observers of the health insurance reform have been convinced that Obama and his like-minded left-wing allies presented Obamacare as a "first step," a step expected - and qu...
