LOS ANGELES

Despite protests from President-elect Joe Biden and other officials that the Capitol insurrection was “not who we are,” the U.S. government has a long track record of disrupting democratic processes elsewhere.

EASTSIDER-It is clear to everyone who lives here that Los Angeles (City and County) is the new national epicenter for COVID-19 and its variants. So how did we hunker down over the holidays? 

MY WAY--Every problem we presently face as a society has an historic context during which it was mistakenly allowed to start and continue to grow unchallenged.

PANDEMIC PARTY HOUSES-The list of problems our city government has left to fester is long and troubling, and party houses operating in short-term rentals sat far from the top of that list.

LEANING RIGHT-We can go on and on about how the second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic was predicted to be worse,  and  certainly was, as borne out by the evidence and everyday reports.

GUEST COMMENTARY-Freedom of speech is my writing this article. 

PLANNING WATCH-Whether you call it Reaganomics, neo-liberalism, trickle-down or supply-side economics, privatization, or deregulation, failure is certain.

RANTZ & RAVEZ-Hello and happy 2021 to all Rantz & RaveZ readers.

FASCIST POLITICS--As I write this, pro-Trump protesters have stormed the U.S. Capitol building seeking to impose Trump’s attempted coup on America.

GELFAND’S WORLD--I thought I was done with all of this, but I keep getting dragged back.

GUEST COMMENTARY-Stay positive and test negative. 

@THE GUSS REPORT-Social media is overflowing with videos from "The Drip Crib," where hundreds of young adults attended a jam-packed party believed to have been held on New Year's Eve in Encino and elsewhere across Los Angeles.

VOICES--The specter of 4’-11” Greta Thunberg (the alarmist environmental activist) casts a giant shadow in City Hall.

LEANING RIGHT--No, King Gavin, it's NOT about you. 

HOUSING THE HOMELESS-Bringing supportive housing stability to the homeless with special needs in times of COVID-19 is remarkable.

WORLD WATCH--On December 21, the United States Congress passed the COVID-19 Relief Package, as part of a larger $2.3 trillion bill meant to cover spending for the rest of the fiscal year. As usual, US representatives allocated a massive sum of money for Israel.

VIEW FROM HERE--The vast corruption which is destroying Los Angeles derives from the same ethos that supports Donald Trump, Mitch McConnell, Nancy Pelosi, and the hordes of others such as Qanon, who thrive upon lies, deceptions and frauds. 

NEIGHBORHOOD POLITICS-As a former Neighborhood Council Board member, I think a great deal about our local government and how the actions of the various elected officials who represent me impact our lives. 

VACCINE POLITICS-If the Trump administration's coronavirus vaccine distribution effort continues at its current sluggish pace, it would take nearly a decade for the United States to inoculate an adequate number of Americans to rein in the deadly pandemic.

PLANNING WATCH:  The many shortcomings of City government in Los Angeles include the inability of City Hall officials to make their cover stories for top-down gentrification programs stick. 

GELFAND’S WORLD--Sometime in 2021, we will be able to walk inside a restaurant, sit down at a table, and order a glass of wine and dinner.