LOS ANGELES

THE DOCTOR IS IN--Lots of tough questions remain as we enter the vaccination phase, with political and irrational nonsense blocking the way to our collective peace of mind, and with both "pandemic fatigue" and human nature that will test both our patience and understanding of our fellow Americans: 

A LOCAL STATE ELECTION-Los Angeles County’s Central Democratic Party Committee has focused lately on single-payer healthcare. This is a good thing.

PUBLIC HEALTH-According to the American Lung Association, the Los Angeles – Long Beach area has the worst air quality in the Nation.

GELFAND’S WORLD--It's a striking pair of photos. Here is Nikolai Yezhov standing next to Joseph Stalin as they view a Moscow canal. [photo 1]

MINIMUM WAGE-Opponents of raising the minimum wage have seized on a recent report by the Congressional Budget Office that estimated that increasing it to $15 an hour by 2025 would cause 1.4 million Americans to lose their jobs.

PLANNING WATCH-Political pundits have found a path to job security.

TALKING TRANSIT-I began riding buses in 1992 to reduce my share of pollution-producing driving

EASTSIDER-First, we have another Superior Court Judge requiring the City to do something about sheltering LA’s homeless.

LESSONS FROM CLIMATE CHANGE-As Texas battles a severe snowstorm and mass power outages this winter, Tim Boyd, the now-former Republican mayor of Colorado City, revealed his party’s plan for the deadly extreme temperatures linked to climate change.

THE DOCTOR IS IN--Sometimes I wonder if this nation really does want to get on with our lives and past this pandemic...or at least whether its political leadership wishes to resolve and move on from this dreadful interruption in all of our lives. 

FALLING THROUGH THE CRACKS-If you are wondering how your tax dollars are spent on addressing the homeless crisis in Santa Monica, do not ask the City as they would likely not be able to answer.

MY TURN--America is plagued by two similar phenomena, corruption and Corruptionism, and it is important for voters to distinguish between the two. 

POLITICS AND THE COURT--Donald Trump’s disgraced lawyer, Roy Cohn famously said, "F*** the law, who’s the judge!"

CALBUZZ-Recent focus on the deranged views voiced by U.S. Rep Marjorie Taylor (Marge) Greene has elevated “QAnon” to a household word.

EDUCATION POLITICS-Teachers unions are under attack, as our well-founded concern for our students, their families, and yes, ourselves, is being portrayed as a political powerplay, or worse.

HELP FOR HOMELESS-At tomorrow’s Board of Supervisors meeting, Supervisor Kathryn Barger will introduce a motion, coauthored by Chair Hilda L. Solis, that looks to identify commercial real estate property across Los Angeles County that could be repurposed for critically needed temporary housing for people experiencing homelessness as well as for long term affordable housing.

EDUCATION POLITICS — On Feb. 10, Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer rejected District 15 Councilman Joe Buscaino and District 1 Councilman Gil Cedillo’s motion to sue the Los Angeles Unified School District to force the unsafe reopening of school campuses (“in-person instruction immediately”) even as more variants are found spreading in the community that are far more contagious than the original coronavirus. 

THE DOCTOR IS IN--Is it possible to demand our schools reopen while being adamantly pro-teacher/education?

MY TURN--Fund raisers on the Right and on the Left know that the best way to raise vast sums of money is to claim an existential threat to their base.

CLIMATE POLITICS-Ecocide is the destruction of large areas of the natural environment as a consequence of human activity. 

EASTSIDER-Best explanation of how overnight parking on LA City Streets has been enforced was given to me by a fellow journalist who blogs at michaelkohlhaas.org.