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Thursday, February 07, 2008

Damn out of towners


JM, No space problems here, Playa del Rey shoal, 2.05.08


Joseph Mailander a guy in laelsewhereemail

I'll admit it, sometimes folks get on me about Zuma---even as they get on MayorSam about me. But I can't imagine Zuma (or me, for that matter) writing what Patt Morrison came up with this morning at the former fishwrap of record.

Space is purportedly tight on the Times op-ed page--too tight to cover local news adequately, they say---but the paper this morning had adequate space to lend to Patt Morrison pitching the "fun" of Rudy Giuliani as prospective Mayor---of LA.

I won't speak for myself, but I do know that Zuma shows way more restraint and sound editorial judgment than that.

Whatever her column meant to accomplish is unclear, but whatever it is, it looks like a big waste of space. Patt, in fact, is going way off in the wrong direction, if recent City history serves to inform.

So forget Rudy, Patt. I'll give you three out-of-towners, already here with the Mayor's blessing, who you should be writing about:

Ed Boks. Enough said. The guy recently took down a poll from his personal blog that wasn't going his way. He has pissed off nearly every corner of the City's various animal rights communities.

Gail "GPS" Goldberg. "Growth is inevitable" by Goldberg's book, even though both New York City and her hometown of San Diego have been managing its population with considerable stability and healthy economies for over a decade. She pleads "My hands are tied" when any issue gets tough; she caves to every re-zoning request. Literally thousands of million-dollar condos have been built under her watch, and not one of them for anyone who actually lives here (it's simple math, Gail: if you live here, you can't buy a million-plus condo without already owning something, and who would trade a million-plus property they already own here in LA for a million-plus condo?). And certainly: anyone who needs a map to get from Downtown to Los Feliz should not be the City's top planner. D'Oh!

Gloria Jeff. She's come and gone, mercifully, but---why on earth would you bring in a traffic czar from outside of the city? The majority of residents, who have lived here five years or more, all ramble around LA with long-ago established knowledges of how the City is supposed to flow; we project our expectations onto our commutes, our meet-ups, our late-night boogie routes. The idea that an out-of-towner could tap into this collective traffic consciousness and start solving things was completely preposterous.

Here's a worthwhile op-ed, Nick: when a Mayor brings someone in from out of town, they're easier to lead around by the nose, and that's what the Mayor's people knew in 2005 when they brought in these people. But our City has too much legacy for an out-of-towner to penetrate in a short time; these out-of-towner internships are typically are busts that don't work in the City's interests, only in the Mayor's.
Nobody talks much about these people,who are failing LA's citizens daily, and nobody assigns their failures to the Mayor. But Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa appointed them all, and the Mayor should answer for them all.

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10 Comments:

Anonymous Anonymous said:

Ed Boks did not just piss off the animal groups. He also pissed off the employees, councilmembers, different department heads such as personnel, the city attorney, district attorney, environmental groups, Audubon Society and now the Mayor's office. Deputy Mayor Jimmy Blackman has warned Boks about his behavior many times, yet the behavior continues. The end is near.

February 07, 2008 12:40 PM  

Blogger Mayor Sam said:

Patt's column has got to be one of the dumbest things ever to grace the pages of the Fishwrap of Record.

First off, she totally ignores that IF Hillary were to win and IF she appointed Tony Villar to a post, its not like we hold auditions for Mayor. The new Mayor would be the President of the City Clowncil, right now, Eric Garcetti.

Secondly, she forgets that LA government is notoriously suspicious of out of towners and that the embrace of Bratton is primarily 1) a fluke and 2) a sign of relief from the fatigue of the iron dictatorship of Bitter Bernie, relief than anyone other than the Bitterman!

Besides, there's a post waiting for Rudy - Attorney General for President McCain.

February 07, 2008 12:50 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said:

They hired Gloria Jeff because she was a black female. She had no experience being the manager of a traffic department for a large city. LA with many freeways, hiways, congestion, huge traffic problems is very different than a small city with one highway going through it. On top of that she didn't get along with people in City Hall.

February 07, 2008 12:50 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said:

Gloria Jeffs shows how much someone from Chicago, coincidentally another black person, knows about L A. Obama can pander all he wants to the Latinos and he sure did, but they still went for Hillary, a tough city girl who knows her way around in more ways than one.

Notice how the L A Times couldn't bear to admit she won California? Their headlines just screamed that is's still "undecided," but imagine if Obama had won, what victories they'd have been proclaiming.

The Times is now even more desperately spinning anti-Hillary stories, hoping to cut her ability to raise funds by screaming she's broke.

Remember how her loyal Hollywood "friends" were jumping ship to Obama already after Iowa, then came back right away "loyal as ever" after New Hampshire, where they've scrupuously stayed on the fence.

The American people are no more loyal, just a little slower to act two-faced and see which way the wind is blowing. Let by the media.

As for Patt: She is so gross in person, and so filled with herself, no wonder her opinions are imploding into self-referential nonsense. Shows how much the Times knows about the pulse of L A these days -- can't tell it apart from New York and is pushing for its homeboy from Chicago Trib, Obama.

February 07, 2008 1:08 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said:

Isn't Patt's piece just supposed to be humorous?

February 07, 2008 3:07 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said:

Joe,

Do you think I would post in a main thread that people complain to me about you?

How's this? "People complain to me about Mailander, but even Joe wouldn't post something as meaningless as this..."

Not really a compliment, is it?

February 07, 2008 7:30 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said:

Zuma, you're finally catching on. After all, Joe's the one who posts all the anonymous comments that bash you.

February 07, 2008 9:52 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said:

I wouldn't use the word, "finally."

February 07, 2008 11:13 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said:

I too thought that Patt's column was supposed to be humorous.

I think some of you are just cranky because you can see that you're not going to get a Republican.

February 07, 2008 11:41 PM  

Anonymous Anonymous said:

Geezeeee...dumb hats. I lost respect for Pat Morrison several years ago the day I saw her in person at the Los Feliz Good Will and she cut in line proporting privilege and stating she was in a hurry.

February 08, 2008 8:17 PM  

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