Comments
ERIC PREVEN’S NOTEBOOK - Congressman John Garamendi who like the current Insurance Commissioner, Ricardo Lara, is a Democrat, claims that the insurance market is “in chaos” — and that Mr. Lara should be holding public hearings and demanding insurance company executives testify to explain to Californians why their premiums are rising.
Smart Speaker: Thank you, next speaker.
Allowing insurance companies to drop and deny Californians' coverage, Garamendi reportedly said was a form of modern-day Redlining, a systematic denial of economic investment, largely based on race.
This is going to rattle the cages of the local Civil Rights Leaders, like Supervisor Janice Hahn who "got me" this week as she finally chose a secure and safe place to locate a bronze statue of Martin Luther King and Kenn Hahn, her beloved dad and inspiration.
In the sixties, when Martin Luther King Jr. was visiting the great city of Angels, Mr. Hahn and Dr. King spent the day together.
The Daily News had a mood-ruining double-d typo in the reporting, “The people in Watts did not have a hospital or health clinic,” the younger Hahn told the assembled. “They had to travel all the way Ddwntown for health care; many of them died not because of their injury or illness, but because of how far they had to travel.”
Hearing Supervisor Hahn on KNX, tell about how her dad called up Corretta Scott-King and told her "You probably don't remember me but I spent an afternoon with your Martin some year ago, and I'm calling to get your permission to name a Hospital after him--"
The Supervisor said Mrs. King stopped her dad right there and said, "Of course I remember you."
"This is the part that always gets me," Hahn said. [TEARS].
"Mrs. King told my father that not only did she remember him, she could never forget him because her Martin went on and on about how nice the only white official who came out to meet him was." [TEARS]
All this from the only woman brave enough to facilitate the greatest and most moving giveback of Bruce's Beach, followed by the super-creepy and shockingly legal... sell-back buyout--
[APPLAUSE]
Yuck. Speaking for myself, if I never hear another word about Bruce's Beach until the day I die, "I'm good."
To say that the Bruce's Beach story was over-reported is a gross understatement.
Neither the late Dr. King nor the late Supervisor Hahn would be happy that a statue of their likenesses would require 24/7 security and razor wire to deter metal thieves.
“Sometimes you have to do something that you know is right, even if it’s not popular, even if you’re going to be criticized for it,” Supervisor Hahn said of her father’s service.
Smart Speaker: Yes, and sometimes you have to settle for the good vibrations of yesteryear and onboard millions in free publicity.
[APPLAUSE]
[TEARS]
Ernest Hemingway was known as Papa by colleagues and admirers.
Stainless Steamer: Frequently Asked Questions:
Speaking of Insurance... is it rare for an insurance company to refuse to do the right thing for a customer?
Smart Speaker: Unfortunately, it is common and brings to mind the matter of Stainless Steemer or Stainless Steamer or We Clean Carpets. "Shameless Steamer" also works.
This group casts a wide digital net to ensnare customers looking for the folksy "Stanley Steamer" - who have always done a decent job - into calling their soundalike company instead. It appears they flout California law in the process.
To flout something, such as a law or rule, is to treat it with contemptuous disregard.
When you call Stainless by accident thinking that they are Stanley Steamer, they don't correct you, they simply take your order.
In the case that I am familiar with, they came out to do a job at my mother's residence that had previously cost under $1,000 with the real deal, Stanley Steamer.
With "Stainless," the soundalike company the bill came out to over $3,000! Red Flag.
Worse, the owner was shocked and surprised to discover that the men who did the work, dragged their large equipment over a stone step leading into the living room, causing over $2,000 worth of structural damage.
When the owner reported the damage to the company they seemed to take responsibility initially. A woman named Lauren said they would take care of it and we agreed to get a bid from a floor man to execute the repair.
Eventually, we executed the repair to mitigate the dangerous condition and the documentation was sent to the company for reimbursement.
If you can believe it, it's been seven months of waiting to speak with a manager or the owner.
Stainless Steemer: "I'm sorry I don't have a manager."
Why has a typically $700 job to clean a couple of chairs and carpets from Stanley Steamer, cost my mother over $5,000 (including the cost of repairs)?
The company in question is registered in San Bernardino County and claims to be Licensed, Insured and Bonded.
Stainless Steamer or Stainless Steemer or We Clean Carpets was given multiple opportunities to make it right.
Their actions and inactions are very very wrong.
Now the first responders at the County of Los Angeles Department of Consumer And Business Affairs have to get involved.
LA County residents and others throughout the region should know the truth...about Stainless Steemer.
Wes Edens Electric Train Set:
In a previous edition, I noted that Fortress Investment Group, whom I detest, was chasing Patrick Nelson a campus housing player in Denver to collect money from him as he implodes.
Hilda Solis will remember Fortress from when the owner Mr. Wes Edens was exposed on the front page of the New York Times for having pulled a bait-and-switch of unprecedented scale on the LA County Board of Supervisors as well on the elected officials of New York City, Ventura County, and San Dimas, California.
Like a wealthy kid getting into college by having someone take the SATs for him, Edens secured LA County golf course concessions worth tens of millions of dollars by having a qualified company (Fortress Investment Group LLC) go through the County vetting process for an unqualified company (Newcastle Investment Corp), with the result being that Newcastle, unbeknownst to the County, ended up with the contracts.
A company called the American Golf Corporation carries out the work for Newcastle. cc -- Matt Knabe & Don Knabe & Harvey Englander & Zev Yaroslavsky.
I was briefly taken aback recently when President Biden was cutting a baby ribbon of some kind on the Brightline West, a high-speed rail project intended to carry passengers between Las Vegas and Rancho Cucamonga with speeds of up to 200 mph (320 km/h) for an 85-minute trip.
Fortress's Wes Edens has stated that Brightline's service is modeled off of Eurostar's Paris-to-London commute. Its coach design includes white-and-blue interiors, roomy seating, and free Wi-Fi.
Rancho Cucamonga is not Paris, but Las Vegas is not London --
Brightline West has secured $3 billion dollars from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and $2.5 billion dollars of private activity bonds from the US Department of Transportation despite funding difficulties.
They plan to hire 11,000 workers and pre-construction for the 180-mile (290 km) just started.
Trains on this line will be fully electric and run mostly in the median of Interstate 15. Fun!
Smart Speaker: Will gambling be permitted on the trains?
Eunisses Hernandez: "Budget season is upon us, and our constituents deserve to have a say in where their tax dollars are allocated. My team and I stopped by the Glassell Park Improvement Association to facilitate a discussion about how the budgeting process works in the City of L.A. & ways to tap in."
Smart Speaker: Do you believe that the budget is comprised of one item? cc Bob Blumenfield, Paul Krekorian
Incident Free Events:
At Los Angeles Tourism they understand that while it is impossible for any destination to guarantee an incident-free event, implementing safety measures enables the community to proactively prepare for group gatherings.
"In addition, our city and county officials are laser-focused on mitigating the global homelessness crisis at a local level while simultaneously enhancing the quality of life for Angelenos and visitors alike."
Smart Speaker: Laser-focused?!
(Eric Preven is a longtime community activist and is a contributor to CityWatch. The opinions are of Mr. Preven and not necessarily those of CityWatchLA.com.)
