Afternoon Briefs on the Los Angeles Political Machine for Thursday

A Partnership in Educational Misconduct? Boyle Height's Roosevelt High School students find "extra-curricular uses" for new Apple-LAUSD iPads.

 The home of the "Easy Cyber-breaching Riders"

A past Roosevelt Graduate (under 2.0 GPA) Tony Villar.

As a proud Abraham Lincoln High School Tiger Graduate, Class of 1984,  the recent media disclosures regarding the extra-curricular uses of LAUSD-Apple iPads at the high school that graduated former Mayor Antonio "Tony" Villar, is worthy of a bloggin inch, or more of commentary.

First, why should anyone be surprise (LAUSD School Board Member Steve Zimmer wasn't) that the current Easy Riders Student Body, would circumvent education standards and conduct, by showcasing their cyber-comprehension skills, in breaching the virtual security walls of the Apple iPads? After all, they share the same educational institution DNA as their former Partnership in Education Promoter Mayor Villar, who knew a thing, or two, about breaching walls of local schools in his youth.

Second, this proud Tiger can only ponder what if the likes of distinguish Roosevelt Grads, such as CD 1 City Councilman Gil Cedillo, Rolando "The Big O" Cuevas and Tony Villar, had assess to iPads during their Easy Riders years. Think organizing a Dream Act Facebook Page for fellow Easy Rider Dreamers, creating a Facebook Page for promoting the East LA Classic Game After-Party and in Tony's case, "like" every Facebook Page of news-reading Telebimbos, respectively.

But seriously, this Tiger cannot ignore the irony that "iPadgate" is taking place on the same campus that was suppose to be the Legacy School of Mayor Villar's Partnership in Education, but is now a glaring example of what happens when the fiscal bottom line for campaign contributors, is more paramount than teaching civics ....... and ethics.

** With the annual Neighborhood Council Congress coming up this Saturday, we can surmise that the paramount issue will be the latest scandal regarding the DWP. As the likes of Mayor Eric Garcetti, City Controller Ron Galperin, along with City Clowncil Central Committee Members Mitch O'Farrell and Felipe Fuentes pledge to investigate, DWP IBEW "Goon Boss" Brian D'Arcy, gets thuggish with a female Daily Valley Moldy Green Sheet Reporter.

Its time for "Another Soulvine Thursday" via LA Wave Newspaper Columnist Betty Pleasant

In this week's exercise in Yellow Journalism, the longtime South LA Scribe directs her caustic ire at Transit Advocate Damien Goodman. This is the byproduct of a cranky Betty.

The one that just passed was really a bad weekend for me. First, at my high school reunion, I learned of the pending closure of the beloved Proud Bird Restaurant to which the city still has not responded, and secondly, I received copies of three online articles, written by Ari Noonan, that notorious right-wing writer of “The Front Page Online,” in which Damien Goodmon excoriates Mark Ridley-Thomas for, basically, being a powerful politician who is chairman of the Board of Supervisors who appears to have not ever performed in a manner that pleases him.
In these three interviews, the one-issue activist holds the supervisor solely responsible for everything he perceives has not gone (or is not going) the way he, Damien, wants. He attacks Ridley-Thomas for not getting him the Crenshaw Subway tunnel he desperately wants, for the “unsatisfactory” work the supervisor has done to reopen the Martin Luther King Jr. Hospital, for not being forceful enough in dealing with the Baldwin Hills oilfields, etc. Basically, according to Damien, the life-long legislator and politician hasn’t done a damned thing! According to Damien’s interview, he’s just been sitting up there, holding all this power and doing nothing of value for the people

The irony in all of this is that Damien and Ridley-Thomas have been close allies and friends until now. Before Damien went crazy in the Front Page pieces, the supervisor treated him with special regard and protected him when another politician was out for his blood. They had always seemed to like each other.So, I talked to Damien (well, actually, I yelled at him) to find out several things: 1. When did he and Ridley-Thomas fall out? 2. Who put him up to saying these awful things about the supervisor? 3. For what purpose did he do it? What is his end game? 4. Are we at war now? Did he just release a salvo that will end in his own demise? 5. Has he lost his mind?

Link above to the rest of "Cranky Betty".

 

Your thoughts ..............

Scott Johnson in CD 14