Letters to the Editor

A short story on leadership, generosity, and vision about City Council candidate Mehaul O’Leary:

Last spring I was the coach of a Sally Ride (first female USA astronaut) Toy Challenge contest team from the Culver City Middle School. (Sally Ride encourages middle school students to study math and science).

The S.R. Toy Challenge, a national contest with strong engineering focus, added a new rule to 2007 in that all teams needed to raise funds from the community.

Since Gov. Schwarzenegger presented his 2008 – 2009 state budget, his “Year of Education” has turned into a year of painful, across-the-board cuts for public education.

The School District faces a projected $3.5 million gap of which $2.7 million is a direct result of the Governor’s proposed budget.

The School Board started addressing this gap by making cuts approaching $ 2.2 million in 33 areas on Feb 26.

I am a senior Culver City resident, and my family at this time is my precious little dog.

If he were to get lost, I would have no way to get to the Carson animal shelter to search for him because I do not drive freeways or long distances.

Culver City needs a local animal control officer whose duties include returning lost pets to their owners.

Christopher Armenta is committed to Culver City having a local animal control officer.

I truly hope other candidates follow his lead.

Last Tuesday, the city of Culver City held a public workshop to discuss its updating of the Housing Element portion of the city’s General Plan.

The stated purposes of this workshop were to introduce this activity and to solicit public input.

Reflecting on this afterward, I believe that the city employees and John Douglas, a planning consultant from Conexus, did a thorough job explaining what the Housing Element is and means, and why it is letimportant or useful to review and revise this document every six years.

Re: ‘He Says Last Night’s Candidates Forum Fell Flat,’ Feb. 21, Op-Ed.

Charles Deen writes that the format of the Candidates Forum on Feb. 20 in Sunkist Park didn’t work. Maybe it didn’t.

I don’t know because I wasn’t there.

But I do know that the existing formats don’t work that well, especially with nine candidates.

As I have been reading the newspapers over the past few months, I have become worried about the financial future of our fair city. Our Mayor, City Council members and City Manager have continued to tell us that vital city services may have to be cut in order to balance the budget.

It worries me that we may have to cut Police and Fire services and programs for our seniors and youth, or repairs to our infrastructure.

I have attended a few of the debates in recent weeks to see what solutions the candidates for City Council have developed..

The Sunkist Park Forum was not a well- hatched plan that laid an egg.

The neighborhood forum for City Council candidates last night at El Marino Language School was a complete disservice to all nine candidates.

They were only allowed two miserly minutes to speak at a well-attended event.

If Mehaul O'Leary (a Decline to State registered voter) had been allowed to speak on Wednesday night at the Culver City Democratic Club public forum, open free of charge to the public — in a public building no less — he would have absolutely stole the show by revealing that Mehaul [and his wife, Susan] had voted in the Democratic Party primary of 2008 !!!!!

Is Ari Noonan really Floyd of the old Andy Griffith television show? For those old enough to remember or fortunate enough to see reruns of the old Andy Griffith show about life in the fictitious town of Mayberry, you will recall the town barber, Floyd, the fount and source of all rumor and innuendo leading to the hilarity that ensued. Our own Ari Noonan is much like Floyd.

Editor’s Note: Two Culver City Democratic Club members protested last night when City Council candidate Mehaul O’Leary showed up at the club’s Endorsement Party but was not allowed to participate because he is not a registered Democrat.