This School Board election, like the upcoming 2008 City Council election, is non-partisan. The definition of non-partisan, according to Websters Dictionary is: Not connected with any political party. One of the definitions of democratic, also according to Websters, is: of or for all of the people.
I have never seen the by-laws or organization documents of the Culver City Democratic Club, nor do I care to.
However, I am interested in how they can, in good conscience, call themselves Democrats. By limiting the right of all of the candidates to present their platforms in any given election, arent they subverting the whole idea of a democratic society? Perhaps this attitude is the reason so many of their long-time members are not renewing their memberships.
Weeks Pass, but the MTA Eventually Answers Queries
Written by Loni Anderson
[Editors Note: On Aug. 21, community activist Dr. Loni Anderson complained (see Answers, Answers Anyone Here Heard from the MTA?) complained that the MTA not only had been slow but non-responsive in providing answers to questions she posed a month earlier at a community meeting. Last week, on Aug. 29, Greg Starosky, spokesperson for the Expo Construction Authority, got around to providing Dr. Anderson with answers. He explained that the information came from Rachel Vandenberg, an Expo line engineer.]
1.) With respect to the temporary terminal at Wesley Street, how will the terminal be accessed during construction? Will riders enter off of Wesley? Or will some other accommodation be made along National to allow access safely?
Station access will be maintained during construction of the aerial station along the planned sidewalk on the north side of National between Wesley and Washington and from the Wesley cul-de-sac.
2.) How long will the temporary terminal at Wesley be closed during construction of the permanent station at Washington and National?
The interim station will remain open during construction of the aerial station. Construction will be staged to provide service to the station on one track at a time during construction.
3.) I understand that parking for the temporary terminal at Wesley will be along the right of way at Washington and National (where the permanent station will eventually sit). Where will the parking be for the temporary terminal at Wesley while construction of the permanent station at Washington and National is being constructed?
Parking for the permanent station would be located within the Metro right-of-way under the station and/or within adjacent property as part of a transit oriented development surrounding the station. Parking alternatives are currently under development.
Please contact me if you have any other questions that I might be able to assist you with.
Sincerely,
Greg Starosky,
Government/Community Relations Representative_Exposition Construction Authority
707 Wilshire Blvd., 34th floor, Los Angeles 90017
Email: gstarosky@exporail.net
There Are County Rules, and We Play by Them
Written by Ruth and David Weisman
School Board candidate Alan Elmont may be correct when he claims that party politics never entered the pictures in his head when he presented ideas to the School Board.
That is merely the limitation in his head.
However, many people recognize that our ideas about education involve our vision for the future of our nation. Many aspects of that future involve matters on which the major and the minor parties have significant differences: Sex education, evolution, percentage of children who can benefit from college, public education competing with private education, etc.
For many decades the Democratic Party (County Committee) of Los Angeles County (which charters the Culver City Demo Club) has conditioned club chartering to those clubs that will endorse only Democratic candidates for both partisan and non partisan offices.
For the past several decades, the Culver City Demo Club has followed these rules with the proviso that candidates of other political affiliations would be allowed to speak so that the members of the club could become aware that occasionally it may be desirable to refrain from endorsing a poor quality Democratic candidate when there was a high quality (non-Democratic) candidate in the competition.
(The Republican Womens Club of Fox Hills doesnt allow Democratic speakers at all.)
In recent memory, such occasions have become few and far between. So the members of the club decided to save time. Those members who wished to evaluate or calibrate non-Democratic candidates could do so but at the many other forums (real and virtual) available now in the internet era.
We look forward to Mr. Elmont continuing to avail himself of such forums..
Mr. and Mrs. Weisman are elected members of the County Central Committee of the Los Angeles Democratic Party
