ALPERN AT LARGE-As I stated in my last CityWatch article, there is much that Democrats and Republicans--even in this election year--that they have in common.
So, during an election year that's sure to be divisive, here is a quick list of things that both sides of the political aisle almost certainly can agree upon:
1) Republicans have nothing to do with the failings and philanderings of former LA Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and San Diego Mayor Bob Filner, and Democrats have nothing to do with the failings and philanderings of former California Governor Arnold Schwarzeneggar.
2) Both Democratic and Republican Angelenos both hate the way the LAUSD spent their $1 billion on iPads out of construction/facility funds, and this will dramatically hurt the ability of the LAUSD to get more revenues for their facilities in the future.
3) A 25% raise for L.A. City employees since 2007 was by far too much, and former Mayor Villaraigosa was crazy to think these employees would forgo their last 5.5% raise, in the eyes of both Democratic and Republican Angelenos (who will now both have, for this and other reasons, a lot of difficulty voting in a $3 billion road measure for the City of LA).
4) Former President George W. Bush had nothing to do with the bankruptcy of Detroit, or the current crime wave tearing up parts of Chicago.
5) The "Knockout Game" is as repugnant when a white person does it as when a black person does it to an unsuspecting and innocent victim, but it's nice to see that the Obama Administration is finally taking note of it now that a white perpetrator was caught doing to it a defenseless and innocent elderly black man in Houston.
6) Pension reform is more likely to proceed with a Democratic Mayor (Chuck Reed of San Jose, in a proposed ballot measure this year) than when former Governor Arnold Schwarzeneggar tried it early in his first term (back when he was still a Republican and really stood for something...anything).
7) When quality and nonpartisan appointees in the Senate come up for a vote, there will be no obstructionism, as when former Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx was recently nominated to be Transportation Secretary and was approved by a 100-0 vote.
8) Democrats and Republican taxpayers want their transportation budget increased, and this budget prioritized, BEFORE other priorities that are NOT being spent so well (military, education, welfare), with a federal/state approach that focuses on defined and more bipartisan priorities (Metro Rail to LAX over California High Speed Rail).
9) The photos of President Obama and his wife at Nelson Mandela's funeral were priceless and entertaining...but Democrats and Republicans will both agree that it was the wrong time for President Obama to engage in a "selfie" with a hot Scandinavian blonde, head of state or otherwise.
10) Both Democrats and Republicans are infuriated at how Washington has let Wall Street crooks go unprosecuted, and both Democrats and Republicans are appalled at how "the 1%" have done so well under both Presidents Bush and Obama. Happy 2014, everyone!
(Ken Alpern is a Westside Village Zone Director and Boardmember of the Mar Vista Community Council (MVCC), previously co-chaired its Planning and Outreach Committees, and currently is Co-Chair of its MVCC Transportation/Infrastructure Committee. He is co-chair of the CD11 Transportation Advisory Committee and chairs the nonprofit Transit Coalition, and can be reached at [email protected] This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. He also co-chairs the grassroots Friends of the Green Line at www.fogl.us . The views expressed in this article are solely those of Mr. Alpern.)
CityWatch
Vol 12 Issue 2
Pub: Jan 7, 2013
