[Editor’s Note: A poetic tribute to Mayor Mehaul O’Leary last night at his first meeting in charge of the City Council.] I couldn’t attend the City Council reorganization meeting on April 2. Here is a revision of the poem I prepared: Two weeks ago we learned who will be our mayor next year We’ve elected excellent Councilmembers, so we should … Read More
Poetic License Plate Spells Di-s-a-p-p-o-i-n-t-m-e-n-t
Long before the sleepy-eyed City Council adjourned at 12:30 this morning, a keen and unusual wave of disappointment rolled across Council Chambers. Perhaps the most personalized item on last night’s agenda was the intended selection of Culver City first poet laureate. Councilperson Meghan Sahli-Wells nominated Dr. Janet Hoult, a popular choice who just completed her second book of poetry. New … Read More
Our New Heroes: 4 Firefighters and ‘Friends of Animals’
Last Saturday we brought home a 10-month-old puppy, an eight-pound fluff-ball. On Sunday at 7 a.m., 30 seconds into his first walk, he slipped out of his harness and ran and ran and ran . . . until he got within the barbed-wire fencing of the Inglewood oil fields. We discovered him cowering under a large bush at 10 a.m. … Read More
Will Culver City Feel Pain of Drought?
Photo: Wikimedia Commons
Second in a series. Charles Herbertson paused and exhaled before answering a sensitive question: Are Culver City residents likely to feel pain from the about-to-be-enacted water restrictions stemming from the drought? “In addition to tracking our own water usage (in city buildings), we also are going to try and track data on overall use in the city,” said the Public … Read More
Strictly Personal: Take a Breath – and Live Longer
Photo: alterra.cc
Dateline San Francisco – We were driving down Bush Street yesterday morning after our monthly appointment at an ALS research clinic, admiring the tall, slender, century-old Victorian homes. “I would hate to be living in one of them during an earthquake,” Diane remarked. Nature aside, living was the main subject of our conversation during and after our consultation visit with … Read More
Wave Bye to Signage – Outcome is ‘Pragmatic’
Even newborns are saying goodbye to billboard-type signage. Photo: developachild.net
In a moment of triumph for City Councilperson Meghan Sahli-Wells and her anti-billboard campaign, plans for an economic makeover of a south Culver City neighborhood – briefly in doubt — will proceed, but without a signage component. Midnight was nearing at Monday night’s City Council meeting when Vice Mayor Andy Weissman made a unanimously approved motion directing city staff to … Read More
Why Is Everyone Mum About PUC Bump in Electric Rates?
If a committee of legislators or U.S. senators whose most influential members were under criminal investigation ever considered raising taxes on Californians by significant amounts, protests would be non-stop and cacophonous. But with the seriously sullied state Public Utilities Commission about to raise electric rates for the bulk of this state’s residents, the silence from the public and from consumer advocates … Read More
Obama, One of America’s Greatest Presidents
President Obama. Photo: SAUL LOEB/AFP/GETTY IMAGES
I get so tired of hearing black critics of President Obama claiming that the black community only supports him because he is black. If I hear it one more time, I will throw up all over the person. I have said some of this before. I am utilizing a lesson I learned from Fox News: Repetition is the key to … Read More
Correcting a DMV Error in Taxing Customers
Dateline Sacramento — Car buyers no longer should be overcharged taxes after a discrepancy was discovered last year by Board of Equalization Vice Chair George Runner. Under a new contract with the Dept. of Motor Vehicles, the Board of Equalization now will have more oversight of motor vehicle private party use tax collection. “Taxpayers should have confidence that their government … Read More
Bully for You – Know How to Defend Yourself
My daughter asked me to write a few lines on bullying for an event she was arranging. I would post the article to her Facebook Events page where people would go to find out what others have to say on the topic. I was reminded of a 12-year-old girl who came to see me. She was very large and was … Read More