LOS ANGELES

THORNBURG’S HAMMER—In the rigged game of Los Angeles city planning, where well-meaning urban planners refuse to acknowledge the power relations existing between them and LA’s neighborhoods and residents,

THE CLOCK IS TICKING-Rachel Carson’s famous and brilliant book Silent Spring (1962), which single-handedly ignited the environmental movement, has never been more relevant than it is today. 

GELFAND’S WORLD--The late-night TV news shows were suggesting -- dare we say it -- that the House of Representatives could withhold pay from Trump administration staffers who refuse to cooperate with congressional inquiries. This is a good start.

PLATKIN ON PLANNING-It’s rare that I use my CityWatch column to praise a City Hall official for doing the right thing. But, Councilmember David Ryu and his staff deserve compliments for their clear and critical letter to the Director of Planning, Vince Bertoni, posing their many criticisms of the Purple Line “Transit Neighborhood Plan (TNP)” as tough questions.

ONE MAN’S OPINION-What does “Liar, Liar, pants on fire” mean? We know it’s not literally true. If it were, then all politicians would be burnt to a crisp.

AT LENGTH-Sitting in my office on 13th Street, I have gotten used to the sirens routinely screaming up and down Pacific Avenue.

CAPITAL & MAIN REPORT--Brian Levin is a criminologist, civil rights attorney and the director of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism at California State University, San Bernardino, a nonpartisan research and policy center, where he specializes in analysis of hate crimes, terrorism and legal issues.

ALPERN AT LARGE--Funny how transportation, public health, and affordable housing advocates who are educated, mature, and focused on problem-solving ALL oppose the proliferation of homeless encampments (or as some law enforcement officers and other Angelenos call them, "Garcettivilles").

VOICES-Community activists and enlightened officeholders are raising the alarm about a huge threat to our neighborhoods. A bill now barreling through the California legislature would override virtually all local zoning and land use decisions under the cover of “affordable housing.” 

@THE GUSS REPORT-Watching things go on at LA City Hall is like watching a vacuous reality show that has little if any basis in reality. 

DEEGAN ON LA-Old school political methods merged with new political-reality social media to unexpectedly sweep the Silver Lake Progressive slate to a big victory in the recent Silver Lake Neighborhood Council elections. 

MEASLES POLITICS--I love my children. And, if I’m in a gracious mood, I believe that parents who do not vaccinate their children love theirs as much as I love mine. 

NC POLITICS--"In Chinese, the word 'crisis' is composed of two characters.  One represents danger and the other represents opportunity." - John F. Kennedy 

BCK FILE--California joined New York, Illinois, Washington, and 15 other states to require presidential candidates to provide five years of individual tax returns in order to appear on the primary ballot. Since President Nixon began the practice of submitting tax returns, no other president has failed to release his returns. 

ONE MAN’S OPINION-Poway’s Chabad Center’s Rabbi Yisroel Goldstein asks why? The same is asked about the murder of Blaze Bernstein by Sam Woodward. Likewise, people ask why Omar Marteen murdered 49 people at the Gay nightclub in Orlando, Florida. 

ENVIRONMENT POLITICS--Why are responses to comments from the City of Los Angeles not publicly available in the associated City Council files? 

HOMELESS HOUSING--The bustling sounds of rush-hour traffic weren’t heard inside the cozy multipurpose room of the Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH), Works, USA at 4260 Eagle Rock Boulevard in Los Angeles, where a tour of the site would soon be taking place. 

NC BUDGET ADVOCATES-Los Angeles has not yet achieved No-Kill for cats. I think the main reason is because of the Trap, Neuter, Return (TNR) Injunction against the City. TNR is the program for controlling the feral cat population by trapping them, neutering them, and returning them to the place where they were trapped, to live out their lives but not produce additional off-spring.

CAL MATTERS--Gun control, school spending, curbs on greenhouse gases: With Democrats holding more power at the Capitol than they’ve had since the 19th century, California’s legislative pipeline is full this year with big, blue-state ideas.

ALPERN AT LARGE--Last night, a group of ethnically, politically, and socioeconomically diverse individuals discussed briefly what to do with the segment of the northern side of the 405 freeway along Venice Blvd.

PLATKIN ON PLANNING-Senate Bill 50, Scott Wiener's proposed “More Housing” bill, is barreling through the California State Senate in Sacramento.