LOS ANGELES

NEW GEOGRAPHY--California likes to think of itself as the brain center of the universe, but increasingly much of that intellectual content comes from somewhere else. Once a leader in educational innovation and performance, California is now toward the bottom of the pack.

ALPERN AT LARGE--When I first heard about City workers laying down infrastructure for the homeless encampment on Venice Blvd., and when I first heard about used needles and human feces at the Farmers Market location on Venice Blvd., my first reaction was one of revulsion and anger.

GELFAND’S WORLD--Most of us have gone on the assumption that at some point, a new president can and will undo the Trump trade war with China by abolishing the tariffs and promising that the lapsed tariffs won’t be brought back.

CLIMATE POLITICS-A decade ago, several prominent climate scientists discussed the prospects of a 4C Earth.

OTHERWORDS--This August, a phony controversy erupted over wealthy donors to President Trump’s campaign and political action committee being publicly named.

DEEGAN ON LA-Cattle rustling and Texas have been “pardners” in so many movies and stories about the wild west with thieves often brought to justice is a way that’s bigger than life, much like the Lone Star State itself. 

OTHER WORDS-As another school year starts, I look forward to heading back to the classroom. I love class when I’m teaching it. I hate it when I’m there as a student.  

URBAN PERSPECTIVE--In a move that’s raising eyebrows from workers and patients across the country, healthcare giant Kaiser Permanente is one of only a handful of the nation’s nearly 200-largest corporations that refused to sign

DEVELOPERS’ DREAM COME TRUE-Look at the map above. Here we can see the decades-long project to attract rich people and maximize property values.

GILROY SHOOTING FOLLOWUP--California has some of the country’s strictest gun laws, but a mass shooting at the Gilroy Garlic Festival last month has lawmakers looking across state lines in hopes of creating a stronger buffer zone.

IMMIGRATION POLITICS--Days after the Aug. 7 immigration raids in which approximately 680 people were arrested in poultry plants across Mississippi,

ALPERN AT LARGE--Contrary to what the Mayor and his erstwhile City Council allies are promoting, affordable housing and related issues, such as homelessness and mobility, are getting worse under their watch. 

EASTSIDER-On August 30, ballots go out for an important election for Retiree Member of CalPERS Board of Directors.

WORLD WATCH-Much has been said and written about Trump’s disgraceful pointed “advice” to Prime Minister Netanyahu not to allow two duly elected Muslim Democrat congresswomen, Rashida Tlaib and Ilhan Omar, to enter Israel.

ELECTION POLITICS--Members of the youth-led Sunrise Movement protested at the Democratic National Committee's summer meeting after the Resolutions Committee voted against holding a climate-specific 2020 debate.

PLATKIN ON PLANNING-For Angelenos who are true believers in the supposed “law of supply and demand,” LA’s worsening housing crisis remains a mystery.

ONE MAN’S OPINION-After mass murders occur, a lull is to be expected. Wall Street’s swings and the blathering about tariffs on China permit the average person to slumber.

@THE GUSS REPORT-A friend in the health field wrote last week to advise of a gnarly encounter on the way to work: 

OTHER WORDS-When I teach about race in sociology classes, I often begin by asking students how and when the idea of race came about. 

DIGITIZED NEIGHBORHOODS--The most recent meeting of the Planning and Land Use Management Committee of the City Council did not move the ball forward.

DEEGAN ON LA-Several days ago, an iconic figure in American life and lore turned 75: Happy Birthday, Smokey the Bear!