@THE GUSS REPORT-While Eric Garcetti, LA’s lame duck Mayor, keeps foolishly Tweeting #MayorsGetThingsDone, the phrase does fit if the subject is LA’s booming homelessness across the city and literally at the front doors of City Hall, imperiling the health and safety of thousands of people who work, visit or pass by the complex each weekday. 

HOLIDAY COLUMN--(Editor’s Note: This being national President’s Day, we went in search of a story that might honor the occasion. We headed for the Oval Office and found the US had experienced a change in leadership. Robert Reich explains.) 

GELFAND’S WORLD--It's a national disgrace that two unrepresentative states -- Iowa and New Hampshire -- once again get to lead the way in deciding who will be the next president of the United States.

DONE WATCH--The crew has been working on the HCNC subdivision story which this is a part of, but given we are going into an election, we thought we’d share this gem to get you warmed up for the epic saga. 

HUNTINGTON BEACH RIDES WAVE OF HATE AND LITIGATION--Who says you can’t build anything in California? Huntington Beach is busy constructing a wall of denial around whatever is left of its soul. (Photo above--Four people cooling off at Huntington Beach on a hot summer day.)

VOICES-There are plenty of people in LA who want to see housing costs come down. Anybody who's renting an apartment or looking to buy a home in the area has felt the sting of sky-high prices.

TRANSIT TALK-The excuse is given repeatedly: some will not ride buses or trains because they do not feel safe. They are afraid. Yet, they seem to have no second-thoughts about driving. 

ALPERN AT LARGE--I was, still am, and always will be a promoter of high-speed rail, if not higher-speed rail, when it works and makes cost-effective sense.

BCK FILE--California Attorney General Xavier Becerra has become one of President Trump’s most formidable legal opponents since Trump took office and he does not appear to be slowing down.

DONE WATCH--Throughout 2018 nearly every LA neighborhood council had their bylaws surreptitiously changed.  Most of them still don't know anything about it.  Does yours? 

If you haven't cross-checked your most recent bylaws against the new "official" versions hidden found here, you may want to do that, like right away. 

ANIMAL WATCH-Based upon the Best Friends Animal Society announcement last year that LA Animal Services' shelters were almost "no kill" and the entire U.S. is moving toward that same goal by 2025, veterinarians should be anticipating a positive future with increased clientele and revenue and a growing demand for quality pet care.

DC DISPATCH--Every 3rd week in January, the “.02%” take over Washington DC to host their annual dinner at the Capital Hilton. Established in 1913, the Alfalfa Club cultivates its membership of elite powerbrokers from all over the United States. 

PROMOTING THE ISLAMIC AGENDA-Over the past year, I had the opportunity to speak to many Turkish scholars and former government officials, the majority of whom left your country because they feared for their lives and their loved ones.

ONE MAN’S OPINION-Forget what they told you in kindergarten and over the next 12 years of public school and through college and grad school, the Declaration of Independence and the U.S. Constitution are not the foundation of America. We are based on Pogoism. 

MY TURN-If you think Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez is new to the political scene, you are only half correct. “AOC” as she is known on social media pages is part of what is being called “fauxgressives” who have been carefully planning a takeover of the Democratic Party for a few years.