A GOOD DAY WITH THE NEWS

1. California Department of Transportation has given up on a surface connection between the end of the 710 Freeway now near Alhambra and the 210 Freeway in Pasadena. However, there is SOME discussion of a 4.5 mile tunnel connecting the two.

MY TAKE: NO WAY! Not in earthquake-prone Los Angeles, where we are vastly overdue for another big one. We had major earthquake in the 70s (Sylmar), the 80s (Whittier Narrows), the 90s (Northridge) – and no biggies since.

I consider myself, as a native California, not all that concerned about earthquakes, but I do admit to being nervous whenever I am caught at a red light while under a freeway overpass. There is NO WAY would I ever travel in a 4.5 mile tunnel in the L.A. area.

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2. Headline: Porn studios weigh fleeing or fighting L.A. condom law.

MY TAKE: GO! GO!

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3. Story about what Republicans need in a candidate: “We need to have somebody who brings us back to the basics of home and family” – spoken by a middle aged woman.

MY TAKE: Whoa! Our country is not looking for a PTA president or a church leader. Parents, not Presidents, are in charge of home and family.


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4. OP ED: “The risk factors are well known: potential Iranian retaliation in the Levant, the Persian Gulf and perhaps against Israeli and American interests abroad….”

MY TAKE: There is lots of thought-provoking material on an Op-Ed page. I’m not saying writers need to talk down to readers, but let’s face it, the use of “Levant” will cause many readers to skip over it because it is NOT a common word in today’s vernacular. Not knowing the huge area covered by that term lessens the very impact the writer is trying to make. (Or maybe she’s only aiming at the educated elite.)


Thanks to Wikipedia for image above.

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AND FINALLY --

5. Family ties in governmental departments: City policies on nepotism are in place but no one pays attention to them. Professor of Political Science calls it “Political incest.” Case in point was 12 positions available, nepotism policy on the books, 40 applications for those jobs; 12 picked – one was son of the Mayor and another was the husband of a councilwoman.

MY TAKE: Ah yes. I know someone who works in a government department of 12 employees, of which two are blood relatives to higher-ups and two are related by marriage. Is a nepotism policy in place? You bet. Is it ignored? You bet. Not good, not good, but apparently everyone all the way up can't say no because they might want a piece of the pie at a later date.

NOW AS POGO SAYS: WE HAVE SEEN THE ENEMY AND IT IS US.