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MY THOTS - I haven't written in a while because sadly the events I have been predicting/warning about for the last 4 or 5 years are coming to pass. Only fools or, in this case, our elected officials failed to see it coming.
Before I get to the substance of this column, there are a few points I need to make. As I sit at my computer, I think of Eric Church's song which is totally appropriate today for all Angelino's "All I need is a drink in my hand". And to further that thought is the quote from Gideon J. Tucker--a 19th century newspaper editor, lawyer and politician --who wrote in 1866--- "No man's life or property are safe while the legislature is in session"--today that would include our County Supervisors, City Council and both our current and former Mayor--and while I'm leaving out the State, they get honorable mention. If you question what I'm about to write--these are irrefutable facts---the City is broke ($1B deficit), the County is financially strapped and the competence, executive ability and clarity of our elected officials can fit in a thimble with room for a car, a sofa and 2 armchairs. Common sense and pragmatism are nowhere to be found----progressivism and socialism have been an incurable cancer and burden for our city....and we are LOST Angeles.
Before I get to the headliners and supporting acts of LOSERPALOOZA, there is a significant point that needs to be made---one reason the city gets these losers for elected office is that we may have the most apathetic voter base in America. As they say, let’s go to the tape---there are 2.2 million registered voters in Lost Angeles--in the Presidential election, 1,340,000 ballots were counted--for Mayor-last election--929,974 and for the ballot initiative ULA---approximately 887,000 of which 512,808 voted for it--that's one-quarter of the citizens who could actually vote--most of whom had no idea what they voted for--the real estate industry was asleep, the Chamber of Commerce was busy having lunch and "Nothing" Ramen was busy intentionally misleading the meaning of this initiative to her constituency who she can motivate to vote-- ballot harvesting?---she called it a mansionization tax---so in her distorted socialistic, leechy mind she was going to sock it to the rich--failing of course to mention that this law impacted all property development both commercial and residential--if she did that in the private sector, she would have found herself as a defendant in a multitude of lawsuits. Today, commercial building permits are less that 30% of what they were 10 years ago--because who would build and risk capital under these circumstances---example--you build a strip mall or housing development and spend more than $10M--let’s call it $100M--and you lose money when you sell it--say you only get $80M and lose $20M--you still pay the 5 1/2% transfer tax---increasing your loss---that's no incentive to make anyone risk their capital---the City and the building trades are paying for that --in loss of jobs and revenue--and weakening the economic base of the city. Ramen doesn't get a stage---but she should get an Exit. One more dishonorable mention here should be brought up---this idiocy was devised by Peter Drier--a recently retired socialist professor at Accidental--oops Occidental University--who, in conversations with me, told me this ballot initiative would be great for the city--my only comment--typical of what's happening on campus these days---is that he has no understanding of the real world---and not to say it politely, he has his head so far up his derriere that he hasn't smelled fresh air in years.
Festivals happen all over America from Lollapallooza, Coachella, SXSW to others--but they all have limited time spans--a weekend, 2 weekends or even a few weeks. In Lost Angeles, LOSERPALOOZA is a daily occurrence led by group of clueless, ineffective politicians and its year-round. Before we get to the main acts, let’s see who are on the satellite stages:
Janice Hahn--County Supervisor---Current Chair of Metro's Board---who admitted to me in a conversation that getting information out of Metro is not easy and not always accessible-which makes no sense as she is the Board Chair and smart--simple in the world I live in--no answer--no clarity--no transparency--no job!--she knows their track record of 25 years of incompetence----her solution--getting a state senator to sponsor a bill on the 2026 ballot to approve a $20B bond offering for Metro---more drugs for the addict---and more burden and debt for the state and taxpayers-----The Board has the Power to replace the executives at Metro--but not the will---which begs the question--why have a Board??? This is a quote from New York as it pertains to their Metro--"The MTA spends taxpayers’ dollars with reckless disregard and then turns around and asks the city-county-state to bail them out every year." It seems we have all heard that before---if I have anything to do about it, the bond measure is DOA---it’s not there isn't enough money that Metro receives, it’s using it effectively--which is not possible with the group of buffoons that work there--although, I do understand they spent a fortune on their offices.
Stephanie "Stonewall" Wiggins---Google the meaning of clueless---and her picture appears---she will be singing a few of her big hits--"If you're on the Metro Train, that's your problem"; " If You're Riding, Hold On To Your Phone" and my favorite "If You're Looking for Information and Transparency, Don't Ask Me". Added encore "It's My Photographer That the Public is Paying For And I can take her Wherever I Want". Under her watch and her responsibility, Metro circulated a survey in December 2022 entitled the Sepulveda Corridor Transportation Issues Survey prepared by FM3 Research---better name FM Minus 3 Research. The questions and information contained in it were provided by Metro and was clearly skewed to favoring the underground solutions. But the facts that were presented to the public were both intentionally misleading and inaccurate. To begin with, it states the "funding for the project is already in place." That's an absolute lie--in the private sector that intentional, major misrepresentation would generate, in my opinion, litigation against the executives for fraud in the inducement--to be clear all of the underground solutions are currently at least $20B underfunded--so the funding is clearly not in place. Secondly--in asking the public if they prefer the train over the monorail--the questions that weren't asked are telling---so if you want an untruthful survey, you ask which is your preference--perfectly acceptable---but then you need 2 follow up questions--which were never asked--1. Would your opinion change if the cost of the train is $20B more than the monorail and 2. Would your opinion change if one solution could be done in less than 10 years vs 20+ years in the other solution. Without fully understanding cost and time to build, all answers as to preference are meaningless--and misleading. One last point as to this useless survey, is that it listed of all the zip codes that were included for participants in their survey--interesting--no one from Bel Air's zip code 90077 was included--so the community most impacted by the underground train was never consulted--and that was intentional. If litigation occurs, will these serious misrepresentations and lies lead to personal liability for Metro's senior executives? I don't know the answer to that question --but I'm sure we are going to find that out--and should this type of behavior be shared with the appropriate legal enforcement agencies for them to explore if any laws have been broken by facts that are clearly meant to deceive the public.
Lindsey Horvath---the county's head cheerleader "Miss Pom Pom"-- all she's missing is the sash--is the most disingenuous and opportunistic politician that currently holds office--if you find a spotlight, she's probably under it. For years, she was proud of the fact that she was on the LA Homeless Authority--and advocated for making the 1/4 cent generated from sales tax for the homeless which was temporary to getting it codified to 1/2 cent--fyi it passed. She asked me to contribute to that campaign --which I did not and would not do. Although to be clear, I did donate to an initiative for her office. When I started writing that she was Queen of the Homeless and their cheerleader, she returned my contribution--somewhat thin-skinned-----just to keep the record straight, I have written that she is more concerned with the plight of the homeless than her constituency--the people who elected her--and now that the Federal Judge saw what a mess LAHSA is and has become--no financial controls--and investigation into waste and squandering funds--remarkable how quickly she is finding distance from her role in that mess----what exactly was she doing when she was on the Commission--blinders--credit for being on ---but total abdication of responsibility to know what was going on----the reason Billions are missing or squandered--no oversight--no serious questions--take the glory but not the responsibility. Her stage will have at least 10 spotlights--while she will give a talk on "How to Ignore Your Constituency and Build Your Career". She will also introduce her new single, "If Its A Stage, I'm On It"--and in life imitating art, I just received an email that at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs on Wednesday, April 16 Mayor Karen Bass will be speaking---and who else will be on the program--you guessed it Lindsey Horvath----never miss a spotlight when it’s there is one you stand under.
On the Main Stage----Mayor Karen Bass--a perfectly lovely human being, who's smile could light up any room--the problem is her legislative skills are not transferable to executive skills--she has neither the ability, instincts, courage, strength or knowledge to occupy this position----she's not a leader--and has little to no idea on how to handle the existing crisis. While I want her to resign--and impeachment movements are afoot--which is a waste of time and resources---she should make a courageous political statement--and state that she will not run for Mayor next year---the city can't afford another 4 years of her lack of leadership and alleged so-called decision making. That would make it easier for her to make the decisions she needs to make ---fyi since the horrendous fires, only 4 or 5 new building permits for homes have been issued--the bureaucracy is running the city and continues to find hurdles to work against the public --her voice must have laryngitis---not to mention, it’s not a surprise people are leaving LA---and what has she done to bring business back to the city. So--in my review--she may be the headliner--but clearly, she's not worth seeing.
In 2026, we need a new mayoral candidate to step up and start dealing with the existing problems in this city--and put the City on the road to recovery--otherwise we will be constructing more levels deeper in the basement.
(Fredric D. Rosen is a retired Businessman who has served on multiple corporate (both public and private) and charitable boards. He was Ticketmaster's CEO for 16 years and was responsible for making it the leading ticket company in the world.)
