LOS ANGELES

LEANING RIGHT--To begin with, an apology: if you've already heard of and/or use Charity Navigator, then this is very old news. However, if you've not, and want to be generous this time of year (or any time of the year!), then please use this wonderful website and service.

TALKING TRANSIT-For my mobility, in 1992 I began the process of moving from complete vehicle reliance to a mixture of driving, mostly single passenger, to riding the buses of the many transit agencies in Los Angeles County.

AT LENGTH-Having defended free speech and freedom of the press for most of my life I understand a few things about the subject that the extreme right supporters of Donald Trump don’t quite get. 

LEANING RIGHT--While there are many Americans who are--first and foremost--thankful for the results of the long-awaited 2020 election, we're still entering a REAL "second wave" of the COVID-19 pandemic and a nation where huge numbers doubt or even reject the veracity of the election results.

OTHERWORDS--Let’s talk about turkey!

RANTZ & RAVEZ--I hope everyone enjoyed Thanksgiving 2020 this past Thursday.  Like many of you, I remember in past years when family and friends gathered together for the annual Thanksgiving Feast.

PLANNING WATCH--Even though Los Angeles has a nearly perfect climate, fall is best time to plant new trees and save LA’s existing trees. 

@THE GUSS REPORT-Yes, it’s another salacious and embarrassing Eric Garcetti lie debunked in broad daylight just as Joe Biden mulls over options for his Presidential Cabinet and close advisors.

GELFAND’S WORLD--Sunday, November 22, 2020 -- Los Angeles, California -- I wonder how many of my peers happened to glance at the date and got the cold chills.

GUEST COMMENTARY-In this age of Trumpistic double-speak and alternate facts, we need to take a closer look at our history and begin to understand how evil has come to be memorialized in our culture.

MY TURN-I have lived in the same house in the Miracle Mile section of Los Angeles for over 30 years, where up until now I have had little or no interaction with the Los Angeles Police Department.

LEANING RIGHT--What's in a word? What's in a concept? The terms "liberal" and "conservative" too often connote images of decades ago, when the term "conservative" meant not being open to new ideas, and "liberal" meant never preventing new ideas, and certainly not free speech. 

EDUCATION POLITICS- Under the current interpretation of PROP-39, charter schools can demand space from public schools to implement their programs.

MY TURN-Ecclesiastes’ list of things for which there is a season is more extensive than most of us realize, but is there ever a time to turn brother against brother? 

CLIMATE POLITICS-Roger Hallam, co-founder of Extinction Rebellion/XR recently interviewed Peter Carter, M.D., who has the distinguished title: Expert IPCC Reviewer for the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.

GELFAND’S  WORLD-This column is specifically addressed to neighborhood council participants, but it is also a message to any Los Angeles resident who cares about personal freedom and freedom of the press. 

ELECTION POLITICS--America owes its Black citizens so much. During a pandemic that has killed Black people at disproportionate rates, we still managed to save our democracy by getting out the vote in what may have been the most contentious presidential election in modern history. 

GUEST WORDS—(This is the second, and last, part of this perspective on whether America can ever unite again.)  While there were over 73 million votes cast for President Trump there were also over 79 million votes for Joe Biden.

EASTSIDER-At the November LANCC meeting, a number of interesting things came out as General Manager Beltran took questions

LEANING RIGHT-Many of the controversies, hype and debates (some spot-on, and some way over the top) surrounding the governance of our nation and world--and our state revolves around the handling of the COVID-19 pandemic.

PLANNING WATCH-If you forgot that history repeats itself, first as tragedy and the second time as farce, you only need to look at City Hall’s repeated efforts to update the Hollywood Community Plan.