Live Theater in Pacific Palisades

Posted on November 2, 2022 by Sue Pascoe

Missing Broadway and don’t have a trip to New York City planned? Can’t stand the drive downtown – and parking – at the Music Center?

Good News, Covid is over and theater is alive in Pacific Palisades. The cost is minimal, the talent great and ranges from middle school one-act plays to a high school drama to a comedy at community theater.

PAUL REVERE MIDDLE SCHOOL – One Act Plays

Long-time youth director Laura Ganz announced that students at Paul Revere Middle School will present four one-act plays: “Junie B. Jones,” “Jingle Bells,”  “Batman Smells” and “Little Women” on November 4, 5, and 6.

“The shows are based on beloved children’s classics. Our young actors are essentially bringing books to life on stage,” Ganz said. “The shows demonstrate how the holidays should inspire us towards selfless generosity as well as the theme of belonging and the powerful need we all feel to belong.

“These stories and characters are so relatable, which is what makes them so lovable,” Ganz said. “Our students were incredibly enthusiastic to play these endearing character roles and have had so much fun at rehearsal preparing for our production.”

PALISADES HIGH SCHOOL – “These Shining Lives”

The play written by Melanie Marnich is based on a true story of four women who worked for the Radium Dial Company, a watch factory based in Ottawa, Illinois in the early 1920s. The play shows women getting a chance for a well-paying job, which in those days, was uncharacteristic of the time.

The job involves painting hour markings on different-sized watch dials using radium, which is a compound that glows in the dark. The women are told that there is no evidence that radium is harmful – and it might even have health benefits.

The play premiered in 2008 in Baltimore and parallels a similar tragedy knows as the Radium Girls. The talent at the high school is deep and under the direction of Monique and Cheri Smith, this promises to be a highly entertaining evening.

The play runs November 3, 4, 5 and 10, 11 and 12 at 7 p.m.

 

 

THEATRE PALISADES – “The Sweet Delilah Swim Club”

Every year in August, five Southern women, all former members of a college swim team, converge on the outer banks of North Carolina. The play documents four different times over five years, as the five catch up. Although they have gone different directions, the bond and love for each other remains strong. The cast includes: Mary Allwright, Laura Goldstein, Martha Hunter, Maria O’ Connor and Michele Shultz.

Laurel Busby will review the play for Circling the News. Look for a review next week. The play opens November 4 and runs Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sunday at 2 through December 11.

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Dolphins Lose to Venice 60-14

Posted on November 2, 2022 by Sue Pascoe

 

Quarterback Roman La Scala runs the ball.

It was supposed to be a good game against the Western League leaders, both 4-0, both vying for the championship, and the opportunity to play in the Open Division of the city playoffs.

Palisades was first on the score board. Seven minutes in the first quarter, Venice punted from its own end zone. The ball landed on the 35-yard line and Amari Yolas ran it in for a touchdown.  The PAT by Kellan Ford was good.

Venice quarterback Paul Kessler (220 lbs. 6’5”) a senior, who is averaging 195.4 passing yards per game, made a spectacular pass from his own 10-yard line to the Palisades 35 and two minutes later the score was tied.

Palisades only other score came with a minute left in the first quarter, when quarterback Roman LaScala faked to Christopher Washington and ran it in from the Venice two-yard line. The PAT was good.

It only took Venice twenty seconds to respond with two passes from Kessler and the quarter ended tied.

Then Palisades called it a day, as Venice “stepped on the gas.”

The Goldoliers scored three touchdowns in the second, and two in the third and two in the fourth quarter.

Kessler had 14 completions for 331 yards. Running back Robert Lamar had 16 carries and 218 yards with one touchdown and Rashawn Jackson had five receptions, 159 yards and two touchdowns

“We ran into a really good football team tonight and we weren’t ready for them,” Palisades coach Chris Hyduke told his players after the game.  “They kicked our butts all over the field. They were a good team, but they shouldn’t have won 60-14.

“Come Monday, the slate is clean, we can still win a championship,” he said.

Hyduke told Circling the News, “We didn’t play that well, there was no competition, it was like they were scared and not having fun.”

Palisades, which has competed in the open division previously (it was started in 2017 and there were no playoffs in 2020 because of Covid), will be in Division One playoffs this year.

The Dolphins are ranked third, and in the first round will play at home against the 14-ranked Huntington Park on November 4. Granada Hills is ranked first in the 16-team division.

Venice, which is ranked second in the eight-team open division, will face Birmingham, the two-time defending champions on November 10. This year San Pedro is undefeated and ranked first. Last year Birmingham beat San Pedro 24-14.

According to the L.A. Times Eric Sondheimer “The most influential game of the regular season turned out to be on Sept. 1 when San Pedro defeated Venice 20-7. Venice has since won seven consecutive games, including a 60-14 win over Palisades on Friday night.

“‘We definitely had our best game of the year in our last regular-season game, and every coach likes that,’ Venice coach Angelo Gasca said.”

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Letters: Mystery Solved, But Permanent Resolution Needed

Posted on November 1, 2022 by Sue Pascoe

These tables, chairs and a mailbox were left on parkland. A memorial is just beside the blue chair.

 

“Furniture Illegally Placed” was the headline for a musing that read: “A table, chairs, mailbox and a memorial sign were placed in the restricted entry area of the upper Via Olas bluffs on the Lombard trail going down the hill. The beach detail was asked to remove the articles, to deter homeless folks from using that area.  A fire on October 8 was south of this area, but all Palisades hillsides are off limits for camping.”

Circling the News ran the photo of the memorial and the furniture and then looked up the name on the memorial and was able to track down this obituary.

OBITUARY: Wilber Allen “Jess” Sweeters

Long-time Palisadian Wilber Allen “Jess” Sweeters passed away at age 101 at home surrounded by his family on Sunday evening, December 30.

Jess was born on July 30, 1917, in Anaheim, where he spent his childhood roaming his parents’ orange groves, driving a tractor, running a paper route and as a member of the first graduating class at St. Boniface.

At Loyola High School, Jess was the school’s first boarder, and earned his keep answering the switchboard and washing cars for his beloved Jesuits. As a high school track star in the 1930s at the same time Jesse Owens was winning Olympic gold, Jess earned his life-long nickname.

At Loyola University, Jess played basketball with eventual Hall of Famers and majored in journalism and philosophy.

After graduation, Jess worked for a welding company that did big projects in LA before landing a job with the LA City Fire Department in the early 1940s.

Wartime brought his enlistment in the Coast Guard, training at the academy in New London Connecticut as an officer and navigator, and submarine-hunting in the North Atlantic. He was the only officer to see his ship, the U.S.S. Grand Rapids, both commissioned and decommissioned.

Jess returned from the war, with his lively new wife Helen Boyce from NYC, whom he met on a blind date at the Waldorf Astoria, and to the fire department.

In 1950, the couple and young family moved into the Pacific Palisades home Jess built himself with the help of his firefighter friends—and he never left.

Jess and Helen were founding members of Corpus Christi Parish. Using the G.I. bill, Jess earned a law degree on his off days.

He retired as a fire captain on a day in 1961 and started the next day as a trial attorney with the LA County District Attorney’s Office.

After retiring in 1982, Jess served several years as president of the Exceptional Children’s Foundation, and enjoyed watercolor, woodworking, travel, Loyola High alumni lunches and the company of many, especially Helen (deceased), his five children, Hank (deceased), Steve, Jim, Julianne Carney, and Maryclaire Buchanan, and his four grandchildren, Noah and Nathaniel Sweeters and Boyce and Finlay Buchanan.

Jess lived long and joyfully, and his gentle presence will be forever missed. His life was celebrated January 11 at 11 a.m. at Corpus Christi Church in Pacific Palisades.

 

Circling the News sent the obit to members of the Pacific Palisades Task Force on Homelessness. They alerted the beach detail to remove the furniture, but to leave the memorial.

One of the taskforce members said they had gone to school with Maryclaire, and CTN asked if there was someway to reach the family to alert them that the land was part of a park and that the memorial could be removed at any time. It was also suggested that the L.A. Parks Foundation could place a bench with a plaque for the Sweeters at the location, which would not be removed.

Then Circling the News received two letters:

You Owe an Apology:

My attention has been drawn to an article recently published on your website. The article is about a memorial plaque and some chairs that are located on the bluffs of Pacific Palisades.

First of all, I knew Helen and Jess Sweeters quite well; they are the parents of my very best friend. They built their house on the bluffs, raised their five children there, and lived as kind and generous Palisades residents for seventy years, as the plaque commemorates. I find this discrete memorial a touching tribute to their lives.

Somehow, you have conflated this gentle reminder of lives well-lived with your fear and/or dislike of the homeless. I am sure that odd conglomeration of chairs has nothing to do with the homeless. Look at the photo: where is the tent? Where are the mattresses? Where, indeed, are the homeless people? No, some Palisades residents have taken two folding chairs and a clapped-out office chair to the bluffs to enjoy the views Helen and Jess treasured for all those years. The low table? I see them enjoying themselves with a picnic and maybe a bottle of wine at sunset. And exactly how far apart are these chairs from the memorial plaque? A moment’s reflection will show you that there is no connection. Any cub reporter or junior editor would has asked these questions.

The mailbox is a bit puzzling, but I think it is just a fairly elaborate joke, perhaps about the amount of time the visitors spend basking in the beautiful bluff views. Did your ace reporter determine if mail is delivered to that box?

I think you owe the Sweeters family an apology, and a correction on your website, making clear that there is no connection between a dignified memorial plaque, a bunch of lawn furniture, and the unhoused.

–Robert Barrett

 

CTN Responded:

“Robert—I asked our homeless task force if they had information about how to contact the Sweeters, because I was able to access the obit online, and realized they had probably been bluff residents. No one had contact info.

“The land where the memorial plaque is located (and where the furniture sits) belongs to the City – it is a City park governed by Rec and Parks. No one can put a memorial on City land, without gaining permission from the City. I suggested that if the family could be reached, they might consider a donation to put up a bench to honor the Sweeters – with a plaque through Los Angeles Parks Foundation (https://www.laparksfoundation.org/).

“There was no intention to tie the Sweeters to the homeless. The local task force (Pacific Palisades Task Force on Homelessness) scours the hillsides to make sure there is no furniture or other objects that might be welcoming to the unhoused. The nonprofit has cleaned out so many areas, filled with all sorts of objects, that they have learned one way to discourage people moving in is to make sure that the environment is left pristine.

 

CTN also received a letter from daughter Maryclaire, which was forwarded to the taskforce member who knew her.

 

Shocked by the Reporting

We were shocked and incredibly disheartened when a family friend forwarded us the clip of our homemade family memorial that is quietly tucked away under the brush on the bluffs in Pacific Palisades. The photos in the article looked edited together with a staged looking living room set complete with a post box.

My husband and I go to those bluffs at least twice a month to think about my wonderful parents and clean up the area. We have never seen a furniture setting like that. Whatever is occasionally left around is usually left by local kids who have thrown their left over McConnell’s ice cream containers over the cliff.

My folks were one of the founding members of Corpus Christi Church and built their house two houses up from that bluff, in 1948.

They were, as Midwesterners say, pillars of the community for 70 years in every way and they deserve to be remembered with love and respect.

Maryclaire Sweeters Buchanan

Sunset from the Via de las Olas Bluffs.

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Viewpoint: Group Think and Scapegoating: Seek Truth

Posted on November 1, 2022 by Sue Pascoe

A scene from the “Ox-bow Incident.”

In high school, we were shown “The Ox-Bow Incident” (1943 black and white film), more than once. This editor hated the Western because of the ending – if only people had stopped to seek the truth, it could have been different.

Ellen Tucker writes about the movie on Teaching American History, that “I found myself fascinated by the efforts of a few of the characters to persuade the others to stop and think. The pastor of the town’s only church lectures his fellow citizens, ‘Let us not act hastily; let us not do what we will later regret.’

“When none are persuaded, he retreats into piety, saying, ‘I am sorry for you, all of you.’ Due to the temporary absence of the sheriff, the local judge appeals for restraint, threatening to try those who go ahead—but the lynch mob, already impatient with the law’s slow working, feels the judge will not follow through. Showing greater psychological awareness, the elderly owner of the only store in the town quietly works the crowd.

“To the rougher men he points out practical difficulties in their plan—they are riding into the hills in late afternoon, as a snowstorm is brewing. To the more thoughtful, he talks about the corrosive effect of extra-judicial procedures on the public’s respect for the law. He decides to accompany the lynching party so as to continue making his arguments.

“His efforts fail. The party find three men sleeping near cattle suspiciously branded with the mark of a rancher they know. The young man who claims to have just bought them is a newcomer, unknown to any, and has no bill of sale to show. Circumstantial evidence is taken as definitive, and a triple hanging occurs.

“It is no further spoiler to say that this climax is swiftly followed by the party’s discovery of their mistake. The reader senses from the outset that this novel isn’t a typical western. But author Walter Van Tilburg Clark keeps the story going long enough for post-mortem examinations of conscience.”

The question Circling the News poses to readers, are you willing to seek the truth before you condemn someone? Or is repeating what you heard or going along with “herd mentality” or “group think” easier?

Psychologist Irving Janis coined the term “group think” in 1972, with seven identifying marks:

  • Rationalization – that the decision being presented is the best one.
  • Peer Pressure – makes it hard for individuals to state a difference of opinion.
  • Complacency – means individuals don’t feel the need to do something.
  • Moral high ground – means one feel superior to the person or situation being discussed.
  • Stereotyping – always so dangerous because once someone is stereotyped they become less than human. It allows for the demonizing of an “out-group” member.
  • Censorship – doesn’t allow anyone outside to express a different opinion.
  • Illusion of unanimity – one believes everyone feels the same or should feel the same.

Group think is a negative phenomenon that results in faulty thinking and decision making – and can lead to scapegoating.

One example of scapegoating is when a group of people single out and blame one person for all of the problems.

History is rife with examples of scapegoating from the Spanish Inquisition to the Puritan-Indian wars of 1636, to the burning of women as alleged witches, and to the rise of fascism after the Great Depression.

One of the most blatant and tragic examples of scapegoating in modern history is the Holocaust.

What does that have to do with Pacific Palisades? Tomorrow, look for a Park Advisory Board story.

There are issues over the usage of the park, particularly in Veterans Gardens.

Posted in Community, Parks | Leave a comment

Viewpoint: Here’s Who’s Funding The Los Angeles Elections and Why You Should Care

Posted on October 31, 2022 by Sue Pascoe

(Editor’s note: This article first appeared in the Westside Current on October 31 and is reprinted with permission.)

BY: MICHAEL JENSEN

map of donations

Over the last few weeks, my mailbox has been inundated with campaign mailers for our local elections. My routine practice in the past was to toss these directly into the recycling bin next to my mailbox. But this year, some of the mailers have caught my attention with the message that “Progressive” candidates—Karen Bass, Erin Darling, Eunisses Hernandez, Hugo Soto-Martinez, and Katy Yaroslavsky—are a “grassroots” campaigns while only their respective opponents—Rick Caruso, Traci Park, Gilbert Cedillo (now defeated), Mitch O’Farrell, and Sam Yebri—are funded by “big donors” and “special interests.” A recent email from my Councilmember, Mike Bonin, had the same message.

Is that true, I wondered? I’ve seen Darling and Bass ads on Monday Night Football. Those can’t be cheap ad buys. So, I began a journey of many, many hours reviewing public campaign filings on ethics.lacity.org only to uncover a tangled web of “special interest” money backing these “Progressive” candidates.

After mapping my findings, I have concluded that, contrary to what these “Progressive” candidates in Los Angeles claim about their supposed “grassroots” campaigns, they are largely supported by donations and independent expenditures made by labor unions, homeless housing developers, extremist Progressive groups and their respective well-financed PACs (i.e., special interests).

And these are the same groups that have been funding Democratic candidates and elected officials in the past several election cycles. This is important because I think there is a general consensus that politics and government in Los Angeles is an abject failure and has been for some time.

Part One: The Union-Funded Campaign Mailers

For starters, the recent mailers accusing Traci Park of being a racist are paid for by Neighbors and Workers for Erin Darling and Opposing Traci Park for Council 2022, Sponsored by Labor Organizations, an innocuous name (of course). This “Labor PAC” was formed in October and in just two weeks blew $180,000 in independent expenditures (on primetime TV ads and glossy mailers).

Figure 1 – Neighbors and Workers for Erin Darling and Opposing Traci Park Contributions and Expenditures

The Labor PAC’s funding ($180,000 in October alone) comes from the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Local 721, its affiliated Dignity CA SEIU Local 2015 and SEIU United Service Workers West Candidate PAC, and Unite Here Local 11 PAC. These labor unions and their affiliated PACs have poured hundreds of thousands of dollars elsewhere into local races (now and in the past).

The Labor PAC decries a moderate candidate as a racist and, previously, cast Park as something so egregious as Republican (omitting that this was 20 years ago). Much has already been written on the substance (or lack thereof) in those arguments. What bears noting is that these special interest groups have no qualms aligning with several DSA-endorsed or recommended candidates like Darling, Soto-Martinez and Hernandez, who are asked to pledge to defund and disband the police and boycott travel to Israel, a different brand of racism.

Essential Workers in Support of Karen Bass, a PAC sponsored by the Los Angeles Federation of Labor (whose President Ron Herrera recently resigned after the infamous audio leak in which he tacitly endorsed the blatantly racist comments made by then LA City Council president Nury Martinez and her colleagues) received $300,000 from SEIU Local 721 and $250,000 from SEIU Local 2015. In 2019, a PAC controlled by the now-indicted Mark Ridley-Thomas received $26,000 from SEIU Local 721 and $65,000 from SEIU Local 2015.

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Figure 2 – SEIU Local 721 and LEIU Local 2015 Expenditures

In addition to funding alleged racists and corrupt elected officials, SEIU Local 2015 also sent $75,000 to an Essential Workers PAC that ultimately spent over $100,000 of it towards Katy Yaroslavsky’s CD5 election. Yaroslavsky works in outgoing Supervisor Sheila Kuehl’s office and by most indications is the establishment candidate. Her opponent is Sam Yebri, who is a Democrat being cast as a Republican because he wants to restore public safety and build market rate, middle-income housing.

SEUI even got its out-of-state affiliate in New York to send $100,000 to Worker Power for Bass for Mayor, Soto for Council PAC.

Another union PAC, Unite Here Local 11 PAC has dropped even more cash than the two others.

It sent $555,000 (2022 YTD) to a Working Families PAC that ultimately spent on three progressive candidates, including Katy Yaroslavsky, Hugo Soto-Martinez, and Lindsay Horvath (County Supervisor Candidate), and a related Working Families for Erin Darling 2022 PAC that lists about $100,000 in independent expenditures towards Erin Darling in October alone.

The PAC even spent hundreds of thousands of dollars this year supporting persona non grata, Kevin De Leon, for his City Council re-election. Last year, Unite Here sent $25,000 to Mike Bonin’s PAC to defeat his second attempted recall.

The bottom line is that the money recently infused to the new pro-Darling, anti-Park PAC originates with the same group of unions that have funded Mike Bonin, Mark Ridley-Thomas, and much of the political power in this city in the past.

Now, these same groups are teaming up with Progressive activists, like Imagine Justice, a part of California Donor Table, to endorse only far-left City Council candidates (more on that in Parts Two and Three). To be clear, the entire field of candidates in this election lands on the Democratic side of the spectrum, yet “Progressive” campaigns would try to make us believe otherwise.

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Figure 3 – SEIU and Unite Here Expenditures

Part Two: The Homeless Housing Industrial Complex

During my research, I discovered that there are many special interests—unions, corporate homeless housing developers, and well-financed (albeit unregistered) “Progressive” activist groups spending in this election. The main destination of this funding is United to House LA. In this year alone, it has received some $1.6 million from these groups.

Citizens for a Better Los Angeles 2020 serves as a second large depository for campaign funds, with over $1 million received from Unite Here Local 11 and about $170,000 received from United to House LA in 2022 alone. The web of financial connections grows exponentially from there. (See Figure 7.)

These developers and unions land multimillion-dollar contracts from the city for affordable housing projects. Critics dub this symbiotic relationship the “Homeless Housing Industrial Complex.” Because of this, as you would expect, the PAC to support Yes on HHH (a 2016 homeless housing measure) had many of the same union donors as United to House LA. Interestingly, Ridley-Thomas appears again, here as the recipient of money from Continental Development Corp. and donor to Yes on HHH. Continental, along with a few other developers, also sent large donations to Mike Bonin’s PAC to defeat his first recall in 2017.

High on their success in having voters approve $1.2 billion for Measure HHH housing, which has built 1,142  units at an average cost of $500,000 over the past five years since it was passed, the Homeless Housing Industrial Complex is teaming up with “Progressive” activist PACs (LA Voice Action, Liberty Hill Foundation, and Common Counsel Foundation) using United to House LA to push Measure ULA. Measure ULA is estimated to raise $923 million from large real estate sales, so taxpayers can fork over another $500,000+ per unit that includes rich development fees and prevailing wage contracts to our unions.

Meanwhile, we continue to try and bail out the Titanic homeless crisis with a bucket. It should come as no surprise that the PACs funding the measure are the same union and corporate housing groups  that funded Yes on HHH, United to House LA, and Citizens for a Better Los Angeles 2022. As they say, there is no money in a cure, only in treatment.

The most troubling fact is that United to House LA has spent $2 million in 2022, and despite California’s robust transparency laws requiring disclosure of how PAC money is raised or spent, the public data available with the Ethics Commission is scant as to what campaigns it was actually spent towards or against.

Similarly, Citizens for a Better Los Angeles 2020 has spent $1.78 million in 2022, yet public filings contain little discernible information as to the expenditures’ purposes. (See Figure 4.)

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Figure 4 – United to House LA and Citizens for a Better Los Angeles Contributions

Similarly, the Ethics Commission informed me that Working Families for a Better LA County and Gascon for District Attorney 2020, both of which were sponsored by LA Voice Action (an unregistered donor that also funded Unite to House LA), are not registered with the city, nor are either registered with the County Clerk.

From campaign finance filings I was able to retrieve, LA Voice Action is responsible for $25,000 towards Hernandez and $50,000 towards Bass, and between $160,000 and $480,000 in spending towards District Attorney candidate, Gascon, in 2020.

Apparently, LA Voice Action and Liberty Hill Foundation are funded by California Donor Table, a Progressive group that prides itself on unseating not just Republicans but moderate Democrats, too.

To that end, an affiliate of CDT, Imagine Justice PAC has dropped some $200,000 towards electing Maria Brenes, the DSA-endorsed candidate who is running against Rocio Rivas (endorsed by teacher’s union), Miguel Segura (current LAUSD teacher), and Erica Espinosa (Los Feliz Neighborhood Councilmember). In the last election cycle, Imagine Justice donated more than $200,000 to Gascon for District Attorney 2020, sponsored by LA Voice Action. (See Figure 5.)

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Figure 5 – California Donor Table Expenditures 

What public records also shows is that a major source of independent expenditures towards Erin Darling have come from Building a Stronger California, Sponsored by the Southwest Regional Council of Carpenters, to the tune of about $175,000 in September and October alone. This group also spent $71,000 in April towards Gil Cedillo’s re-election campaign (unsuccessfully, since he lost in the primary to the Progressive, Hernandez). Cedillo was another sitting elected official recorded making racist comments on the infamous leaked audio recording.

Next, the Carpenters PAC has dropped $1.45 million on a newly formed PAC for Karen Bass—Building a Stronger Los Angeles. A mysterious Working for Working Americans PAC from Nevada sent another $800,000, opening this new Bass PAC with a war chest of $2.25 million. Interestingly, the Carpenters PAC also sent some $26,000 to the Ridley-Thomas in 2019 (do we see a pattern here?). (See Figure 6.)

The reason we see a pattern is that these unions and corporate housing developers will be presenting large development opportunities to the City Council, with millions (or billions) of dollars in developer fees and contracts flowing to construction unions.

Some will even involve the gifting of public land to private developer hands. It has been said that lobbying dollars have one of the highest returns on investment you can make, and these special interest groups are clearly investing wisely in their future, to the detriment of Angeleno taxpayers.

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Figure 6 – Southwest Regional Council of Carpenters Expenditures

Part Three: The Machine That Always Wins

Peeling back the layers of interest groups in this election illuminates a trail of cross-funding by unions, corporate homeless housing developers, and “Progressive” activists into PACs whose only plausible purpose is to obfuscate the “special interests” really behind the so-called “grass roots” campaigns.

What is revealed is The Machine that runs our local politics and ensures transferring money from the public coffers to private pockets remains the status quo.

In 2020, Jose Huizar and Mitch Englander were indicted on public corruption charges for pay to play schemes. Just a year later, Mark Ridley-Thomas was indicted on some 11 counts of public corruption, making a full 20% of our City Council indicted by the U.S. Department of Justice within two years. Apparently, campaigns and PACs receiving large sums from unions and developers is insufficient grift. But The Machine grinds on, continuing to push millions in expenditures into this election cycle.

In the CD11 primary earlier this year, Greg Good was the union-backed candidate. But then a younger, more progressive Darling took first in the primary, and The Machine since redirected its campaign dollars to the front runner candidate, like water finding new cracks in the earth to exploit.

If you go back further, you’ll see some of the same players that funded PACs for Mayor Eric Garcetti are now shoveling money to Bass for Mayor. We even have incumbents and alleged racists de Leon and Cedillo benefiting from large amounts of independent expenditures this year.

Meanwhile, these PACs have found harmony joining forces with the far left, “Progressive” brand of Berkeley politics. Together, they are funding a renaissance of Marxist politicians—Darling, Hernandez, Soto-Martinez, and Yaroslavsky—who are now odds-on favorites to be our next leaders.

If elected, I predict that these activists will accelerate the redistribution of wealth from the middle class to the ruling class in the form of lucrative development contracts and transfer of public lands utilized by middle class Angelenos, all while patting themselves on the back for being true social justice warriors. The Machine will again win, having assured it will be the recipient billions in public contracts to build the future institutionalized projects all but the wealthiest are relegated to live in.

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Michael Jensen is a volunteer for the Venice Land Use and Planning Committee and is a Venice attorney.

Posted in Viewpoint | 3 Comments

Dinner with Eugene Levy Raised $10,000 for Local Youth

Posted on October 31, 2022 by Sue Pascoe

(Left to right) Perry and Methal Akins, Eugene Levy, Maryam Zar, Deb Levy and Steve Cron dine at The Draycott.

Palisades Honorary Mayor Eugene Levy, comic and Emmy winner for Schitt’s Creek, agreed to dine for charity, helping raise money for local youth causes. Last year, the Palisades Rotary Club sold 100 tickets ($100 each) for the opportunity to share a meal with the star.

At a drawing, Maryam Zar, the current Pacific Palisades Community Council President, was the lucky winner.

Zar received a special coffee-table book, “Best Wishes, Warmest Regards: The Story of Schitt’s Creek,” written by Eugene and his son Daniel. Now almost a year later, she sat down with Levy and his wife Deb at The Draycott, in Pacific Palisades. She was joined by Highlands’ resident Steve Cron, and Rotary representative Perry Akins and his wife Methal.

The event raised nearly $10,000. Half of the money was given to the Palisades YMCA for scholarships and the other half is being used for community youth projects.

Rotary Youth Services chair Perry Akins said, “An area of particular interest for committee is the students in our public schools.” In addition to the YMCA, the club donated to the newly formed robotics club at Paul Revere Middle School and to help with purchasing band uniforms at Palisades High School.

 

Revere’s Robotic Team Receives Money

Rotary President Marie Tran (left) watched as the Revere Robotics team representatives Danny Moghnie and Sarah Wood accepted a check to aid the newly-formed  program. Rotary Youth Services Chair is Perry Akins ( second from the right). The meeting was held at Modo Mio.

The Rotary Club voted to fund two VEXIQ competition kits for the newly-formed Paul Revere Middle School Robotics team.

Rotary Youth Services chair Perry Akins said “The club is always on the lookout for opportunities to be of service in our community.”

The club’s founder Sarah Wood is the parent of a Revere seventh grader. She said that each kit costs $649 and allows a student to build a robot with sensors and a motor that can be driven remotely as well as programed with either block coding or Python programming language to move autonomously through the competition field to perform specific tasks.

“We have 19 students, including 6th, 7th, and 8th graders, and we have split them into 3 separate teams for the purpose of robot building and competition,” Wood said, noting that team registration for competition events also cost money.

“We registered for the LAUSD West VEXIQ League, which competes against other LAUSD schools,” she said.

Three qualifying competitions and one championships competition are held. “We missed the first competition mostly because the VEXIQ competition robotic kits were backordered, but also because it took me a time to research and learn about the program, recruit volunteer coaches, get funding, and get our team organized,” Wood said. “We should make the second competition, although our robots may be very basic due to the time crunch.

“I learned that if you really want something new at the school, you have to get involved and make it happen yourself,” said Wood, who continues to sort through the logistics.

Additional expenses that have occurred was a lockable storage cabinet for equipment and lockable robot carriers. Wood said that ideally, there would be five or less students on a team, but “we wanted to be inclusive,” and extra money would be needed for more kits.

“The real issue we have though is not simply funding, but that we are relying on parent volunteers for coaching,” Wood said, noting there are two dedicated parent coaches Danny Moghnie and Joe McKelheer, but another volunteer to help with coaching is needed.

“My hope is that someday, the Revere Robotics team can find a dedicated robotics lab or space on campus in which to store the robotics equipment so that it doesn’t have to completely broken down after use, as well as find and fund a dedicated staff member to supervise the students from the robotics team in that space during lunch and/or after school on the days in between the weekly team meetings,” Wood said and added that the program is important because “it draws in students with certain interests and skill sets, and offers a way for them to meet and get to know like-minded kids, while providing them with an opportunity to build their technical skills and confidence and work together towards a shared end goal of competing with and improving on their robots and code.”

Coach Danny Moghnie, who has a son in seventh grade said, “I’ve been programing since I was 14 years old and I’m lucky to have turned my hobby into a career.” He has a bachelor’s degree in computer engineering and a master’s degree in software engineering.

“Software is embedded in every aspect of our daily lives, and it is important to understand the technology that controls so much of the things we rely on,” Moghnie said. “The majority of people use technology as consumers, I try to encourage my kids to be creators.

“What’s important about robotics is that it encompasses many engineering fields and has obvious real life uses,” Moghnie said. “The importance of the club is a safe space for likeminded kids to work towards a shared goal.

“We have this idea that programming in particular and technology is a solo endeavor,” he said. “STEM is a team endeavor and communicating your ideas as well as collaborating with others to achieve a common goal is essential for any meaningful problem in the field. A club where kids are first taught to cooperate, divide tasks and resolve conflicts is an essential skill.”

Posted in Education, Kids/Parenting, Schools | Leave a comment

Leslie Lehr Addresses “A Boob’s Life” in a New Book

Posted on October 30, 2022 by Sue Pascoe

 

By ALISON BURMEISTER

The saying, “Don’t judge a book by its cover.” certainly applies to author Leslie Lehr’s latest book, A Boob’s Life, How America’s Obsession Shaped Me. . .And You.

With the word boob in the title, and the book cover of a curvy woman in a classic pin-up look wearing a red bra, it’s easy to see how one might assume this book is all about bras and boobs.

It is about bras and boobs . . . but it is so much more.

In A Boob’s Life, Leslie Lehr explores the truth about women’s most popular body part and its role in American culture.

Lehr’s is the story of a girl growing up in middle America and the different phases of her (and her boob’s) life from bikinis to beauty pageants. It is about hiding her boobs to get a job, to showing them to get a date, to breastfeeding, to breast implants and then experiencing breast cancer.

As Lehr connects the dots of her own life, she parallels her stories with the history of women in America.

In every chapter, she offers relevant historical information, myths and facts, current statistics, legal rights, healthcare, and thought-provoking lists, to justify why she feels this obsession with boobs needs to be addressed.

“Boobs are an issue,” Lehr said, explaining that the word boob reduces the female body part to a product that can be advertised, joked about and sexualized. “The word breast, until recently was more frequently used to describe a chicken recipe than a woman’s body.”

For many women, the size and shape of our breasts affect how we feel about ourselves. Body image, especially for girls today is ever more challenging to navigate as they scroll endless feeds of perfectly airbrushed bodies.

Body positivity, feeling good about how we look, depends so much on the individual support girls receive from family and friends in real life.

Lehr says she has been accused of having a feminist agenda, but said, “I care about women.”

Breasts are biological signifiers of being a woman. They are the first thing men notice when talking to a woman and other women notice them too.

“I never intended to write this book.” she said, noting it came from a question she asked herself while getting ready for date night with her husband.

“Am I obsessed?” She wondered. Like so many women, Lehr was frustrated with the way she looked. Standing in front of the mirror, she noticed the cancer treatments, mastectomy and reconstructive surgery left her body looking and feeling less than perfect.

That same evening, as she and her husband watched a late-night comedy special, the host on the show cracked a boob joke on national television. Lehr knew then, she wasn’t the only one obsessed with boobs.

She realizes we can’t control our first biological thoughts, but we can control how we react to them. “Just because we have breasts, does not mean we should be treated differently or limited because of it,” said Lehr, who loves visiting book clubs to chat about the book—or to discuss specific topics.

“I hope to make a difference and help people,” said Lehr, who had her 10-year checkup scan last week. Just in time for “Pinktober,” Breast Cancer Awareness Month, Lehr received good news. “The doctors say there is no chance the tumor is coming back.”

Lehr encourages everyone to get routine mammograms and is forever grateful to the team of doctors who saved her life from cancer.

Not taking anything for granted these days, Lehr is humbled by all the attention she, and A Boob’s Life, are receiving.

People Magazine, Good Morning America and Glamour all placed A Boob’s Life, on their “must- read” lists, and Entertainment Tonight, refers to Lehr as a “trailblazer changing the world.”

A Boob’s Life is being developed as a comedy series by Salma Hayek’s Ventanarosa Productions for HBOMax. Leslie will serve as Executive Producer.

An accomplished screen writer herself, she wrote the original screenplays for the indie romantic thriller, Heartless, and the comedy-drama, Club Divorce.

Lehr explains she is ok with having someone else write for the show. “I’ve said all I wanted to say in the book and I’m excited to see what HBO’s team of writers does with my story.”

“My mission with this book is to make people aware of women’s lives and move forward,” Lehr said. She encourages everyone to find their voice and vote for change.

When Lehr is not writing or helping others as a novel consultant for Truby Writers Studio, she can be found talking to her two daughters; hiking Temescal Canyon; walking on the beach; doing yoga; hanging with her two cats; or going on dinner dates with her husband, John Truby, an American screenwriter, director, screenwriting teacher and author.

The couple met when Lehr was a single mom living in the Valley and John was living in Rustic Canyon. Their first dates were at Pearl Dragon where they still enjoy dining today.

A Boob’s Life is published by Pegasus Books and can be found at Collections Antiques and Books on Antioch in the Palisades or at Diesel Bookstore in Brentwood.

 

Leslie Lehr penned “A Boob’s Life.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted in Books | 1 Comment

CRIME REPORT: Two Kids Terrorized by Hot Prowl

Posted on October 30, 2022 by Sue Pascoe

At the Pacific Palisades Community Council zoom meeting, a crime which occurred on October 17, in the 700 block of Hartzell, involving a “hot prowl” was discussed.

Two kids were in the house around 7 p.m., while the parents were out. There were also two dogs in the home, when three suspects broke into the back door.

According to Senior Lead Officer Brian Espin, the kids opened the upstairs door and saw the suspects walking inside the house. One of the suspects was holding a kitchen knife.  Once the suspects saw the residents upstairs, the immediately fled with some property.

The suspect dropped the knife when running out. “The knife was recovered and booked as evidence,” Espin said. “They will usually flee once they realize somebody is inside.”

The young girl who was home said, “the dog was barking, and one grabbed a big knife.”

The girl called 911 and told members of the Community Council, “When I was on the phone it took a very long time for the police to come.”

She was told that a helicopter would be there, but one never came.

The initial 911 call for the “hot prowl” was made at 7:09 p.m. and from the moment it was placed, it was an 18 minutes response time.

West Los Angeles is one of the largest geographical areas in Los Angeles. The normal response time for Code 3 (lights and sirens) in West L.A. is 8 minutes, but “I can’t give you an average response time for the Palisades,” Espin said, but noted that if a police car were at the far end of the boundary for West L.A. it could take longer to get here.

Espin explained that almost always with a hot prowl a helicopter is sent up, but if there are conditions, such as a marine layer or other weather conditions, it doesn’t go up.

Espin praised the young girl on the Zoom meeting, “You locked yourself in the room, you did the right thing,” he said, and urged everyone to have a plan, which might include running out of a house to a neighbor.

The dad said they had eight cameras on the house and two dogs, but still their home was targeted.

Espin said that 99 percent of the time when burglars see someone in the house, they run out. He added that burglars are traveling groups of three and four, driving rented high-end cars. Neighbors need to be on the look out for neighbors, he said.

 

BURGLARY

October 17, 7:30 a.m. to 6:45 p.m., in the 17500 block of Tramonto Drive. A suspect used a hard object to smash rear glass door, ransack, removed victim’s property (gun) and then fled. Latent prints were requested.

October 17, 3 to 7:30 p.m. in the 500 block of Bienveneda Avenue. The suspect pried open a detached garage door. The inside of the garage was ransacked. House keys left by garage door were taken and possibly used to enter the home because the sliding glass door was unlocked. Nothing was taken from the house.

October 17, 6 to 7 p.m., in the 500 block of Las Casas Avenue. A suspect smashed a window, ransacked the house, and removed victim’s property, including a ring. Latent prints were requested. There is possibly a CCTV.

October 17, 6:50 to 7:10 p.m., in the 700 block of Hartzell Street. Suspects smashed rear glass door, entered locked property and fled location with property when suspects realized the victim was home. Suspect dropped kitchen knife when fleeing.

BURGLARY THEFT FROM VEHICLE

October 18 to 19, 8 p.m. to 8 a.m., in the 600 block of Bienveneda Ave. Suspect took property from victim’s vehicle parked in alley or driveway.

October 21, 11:25 p.m., in the 1700 block of Pacific Coast Highway. Victim secured vehicle in parking lot. The suspect entered the vehicle, through unknown means, took victim’s property and fled location.

October 22, 9:30 to 10:30 a.m., in the 17000 block of Pacific Coast Highway. Victim parked vehicle on PCH and left key in the wheel well while he went surfing. Unknown suspects found key, opened car, took victim’s property and fled location.

 

GRAND THEFT AUTO

October 19, 11 to 11:50 a.m., in the 800 block of Haverford Ave. Victim parked unsecured vehicle in parking lot. Suspect took vehicle.

October 20, 8 a.m., in the 17300 block of Sunset Boulevard. The victim parked vehicle to go surf. Unknown if the vehicle was secured. There were keys that had been left inside. Suspect took vehicle.

Posted in Crime/Police | Leave a comment

Mountain Lion Did Not Pay Greens Fees

Posted on October 30, 2022 by Sue Pascoe

State Department of Fish and Wildlife moved this mountain lion from the Brentwood Golf Club to a more appropriate area.

A mountain lion was discovered near the Brentwood County Club, that is bordered by San Vicente and Montana, around 10 a.m. on October 27. It appears the animal did not realize only members were allowed on the course.

The cat was next seen hiding in the wooded area between the DWP building off Gretna Green and the golf course.

Students at the Brentwood Science Magnet Elementary School were at recess, but at 10:20 a.m.  teachers and students were told to immediately return to the classrooms, lock the doors and remain inside until further notice.

About 10 minutes later school staff and students were told “There’s a mountain lion that has been spotted at the golf course.”

State Department of Fish and Wildlife were notified and called to the scene so the lion could be tranquilized and moved to a more appropriate location.

According to reports from the scene, the lion bolted when wildlife officials tried to approach it.

Around 1:25 p.m., the puma was seen running out of bushes towards the golf course,

Students inside Brentwood were kept inside for the duration of the school day, with lunches brought to the classroom – and no afternoon recess. Students are usually dismissed at Gretna Green, but on this day, they left off Bundy.

The mountain lion was later captured in the yard of a home, off San Vicente Boulevard and Carmelina Avenue, after it had been shot twice with tranquilizer darts.

The cat was healthy, and it had not been collared or tagged. It will be released into the Angeles National Forest.

Palisades Senior Lead Officer Brian Espin was on site, when the cat was being readied for transport and provided the picture.

Posted in Animals/Pets | 1 Comment

Captain Jonathan Tom Promoted: Bids Community Goodbye

Posted on October 27, 2022 by Sue Pascoe

(Editor’s note: It was with much joy that this editor learned that Captain Jonathan Tom had been promoted, because he deserved it. But his promotion also brought sadness. Tom went out of his way to try and work with this editor and the community. Tom was always available, even when he was on vacation, and he figured out a way to keep the beach detail here, even though funding and resources were scarce. CTN looks forward to working with his replacement,  Captain Craig Heredia.)

October 23, 2022

Captain Jonathan Tom

TO: The West Los Angeles Community

SUBJECT:    FAREWELL AND CONGRATULATIONS

 Many of you may have already heard, but I wanted to let you know that I will be getting promoted to Commander and assigned to Operations-West Bureau next week.

I’m happy to report that the West LA Patrol Commanding Officer, Captain Craig Heredia, has been promoted to Captain III and will be taking over from me as the Commanding Officer of West Los Angeles Area.

Replacing him as the West LA Patrol Commanding Officer is Captain Yasir Gillani, who is coming over from Hollywood Division. You are in good hands with both of these gentlemen and I have faith that they will do right by both you and our officers.

As the Commanding Officer of West Los Angeles Area, it has been my distinct pleasure to serve you over the last two and a half years. When I heard that I was going to be assigned to West LA, I was instantly happy. I knew the division from attending University High School and doing my probation at West LA. From my first day here I immediately felt like I was coming home. Not much had changed over the years including some of the same officers that I worked with while I was on probation. The thing that I remembered about working West LA held true this time around for me: West LA was and is a family.

The officers that serve this community are hard working and care about you. In turn, our officers enjoy a community that supports them like no other. In large part because of your support, our officers, detectives, supervisors, civilians, reserves and volunteers keep finding ways proactively address quality of life issues and make the community safer.

While we are currently 26 sworn officers under our authorized deployment, the men and women assigned to West LA Community Police Station have collectively made 22% more Part I Crime Arrests YTD and driven down Violent Crime by -4.2% YTD and Shots Fired Incidents by an incredible -47.6%. While these numbers are important, the numbers that can’t be counted are the hundreds of positive and professional contacts our officers make every week with community members.

Sometimes watching the news it seems that the world is a mess. While it is easy to fall prey to negative thinking, I encourage you to take a look around you and see the beauty and goodness in the world. Continue having faith in our officers. While no one is perfect, they each have a heart of service and are dedicated to serving this community. This assignment as your West LA Area C/O has been the most fulfilling of my career and I’m extremely grateful to have had the opportunity to serve the West LA community.

Very Respectfully,

Captain Jonathan Tom

After the Highlands Fire Captain Jonathan Tom (center) organized a task force so that all public safety officials were connected and introduced to each other.

Posted in Crime/Police | 1 Comment