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City Hall transport staffers want to hear from you about proposed changes to the Glendale Beeline bus system. Among the route changes is the "Buzz" -- a runabout connecting the Metrolink station and Stocker by way of Brand and Central -- Glendale's answer to Downtown LA's DASH, scheduled to run during peak times. Download a meeting flyer and the proposed route map here.
Public meeting begins tonight at 6 p.m. at City Hall council chambers.
A note in Burbank's showbiz history -- excerpt via AP.
PORTSMOUTH, Va. - Tommy Newsom, the former backup bandleader on "The Tonight Show" whose "Mr. Excitement" nickname was a running joke for Johnny Carson, has died. He was 78.Newsom died of cancer Saturday at his home in Portsmouth, the city of his birth, according to his nephew, Jim Newsom.
Newsom, who played saxophone, joined "The Tonight Show" in 1962 and rose from band member to assistant music director. He retired along with Carson in 1992.
Update 4 p.m. -- Here's an article by Jim Newsom on his uncle from 2003, and a wikipedia entry.
Another day, another leaked memo to LAObserved about the whole Times-Arax-Armenian Genocide flap -- this time from Mark Arax, the Armenian-American senior staff writer at the center of this mess.
BURBANK -- A fire at John Burroughs High School has led to a campus-wide evacuation, fire officials said.
The fire at the basement of the school auditorium was reported about 11:30 a.m. at 1920 Clark Avenue, Burbank Fire Capt. Ron Bell said.
No injuries have been reported. Firefighters were working to extinguish the flames, and the preliminary cause of the blaze appears to be electrical, Bell said.
Update 1:47 p.m. -- Fire's out, but students are being held on campus until the end of the school day. The auditorium basement contains electrical equipment and backup batteries for the school's computer systems, and so a Hazmat crew has been notified. Power remains out in parts of the campus.
A couple more items from the weekend:
Relive Burbank on Parade at this Daily News Photo Gallery.
New week, new distractions...
Otherwise, fairly quiet so far -- why don't we take a look back at our Armenian Genocide multimedia coverage last week here -- videos, words, pictures and more! Happy Monday.
Grand View Memorial Park blogger Lisa Burks talks to Bob Garcin, who served on the City Council from 1975 to 1983, about disintering his father and stepmother from the troubled cemetery. Edwin Thomas Garcin died on May 20, 1954 and Lucille Norman Garcin followed Jan. 2, 1966.
"I'm thankful that they are in urns and not caskets," Garcin said. "I don't know if I'd be doing a disinterment if it was a casket. I don't think I could go through that."
More here at valleynews.com.
Daily News columnist Dennis McCarthy attends the wedding of Howard Hull and Kristen Word, who went through with their nuptials despite a recent accident involving 4,000 volts of electricity...
Howard, the groom, was standing outside in the hallway with his best man, an IV line carrying medication into his left hand to keep the circulation going.The apprentice line mechanic for the Burbank Water and Power Department touched a couple of electrical lines a week and a half ago that were supposed to have been de-energized. They weren't.
More than 4,000 volts of electricity entered Howard's body through his chin and exited through his left hand, basically blowing off two fingertips.
...
The couple could have postponed the wedding until Howard got out of the hospital in a week or so. But when you've been zapped by 4,000 volts and are still around to talk about it, it puts things in perspective, Howard says.
"It makes you realize some things are important; others are not. Kristen showed me incredible love and strength through all this."
You mean I have to do one of these every (week)day?
Buena Vista, of coruse, is the street in Burbank where Disney is headquartered.
And it's really the congressman blogging back there, according to his press secretary Sean Oblack -- "It is still a work in progress but I think it is working out pretty well so far. The challenge for me is pushing him to post
regularly enough."
William Shatner's Wells Fargo Hollywood Charity Horse Show enters its 17th year of fundraising with a roof-raising, spectacular affair on Saturday April 28, 2007 at the Los Angeles Equestrian Center, 480 Riverside Drive, Burbank, California. Guests will be treated to an exciting professional event by Equine Extremist, Tommie Turvey and Karen Turvey-Marshall, followed by an entertaining western dinner with a special LIVE performance by Grammy-winning recording legends, Riders In The Sky. ...
Proceeds from the event will benefit special-needs children across the City of Los Angeles through local charities: Ahead With Horses and Camp Max Straus Foundation. ...
Doors open at 4 p.m.
And how could another day go by without more on the Times-spiking-Mark-Arax's-Armenian-Genocide-story-community-outrage hulabaloo?
Frantz was a longtime correspondent based in Istanbul for both The New York Times and the L.A. Times. As Sassounian noted, Frantz is scheduled to be back in Istanbul next month to moderate a panel for the International Press Institute’s World Congress that is titled, “Turkey: Sharing the Democratic Experience.” Among the panelists is Andrew Mango, who Sassounian describes as a “notorious genocide denialist.”And then there’s the matter of Frantz’s coverage of the Armenian genocide while at The New York Times. In January 2001 the paper ran a correction on Frantz's reporting, for downplaying the genocide. A month later, the Armenian National Committee of America put out an action alert again accusing Frantz of downplaying the genocide and casting it as merely an Armenian allegation. The paper never ran a second correction. Frantz joined the L.A. Times as a reporter in Istanbul, brought on by his friend, then-managing editor Dean Baquet, who left the paper in spectacular fashion late last year and then rejoined The New York Times.
Excerpt from the O'Shea memo:
First of all, the allegation that the story was killed is not true. Doug Frantz did place a hold on the story about a pending congressional resolution in which the Congress would recognize as genocide the massive deaths of Armenians at the hands of Ottoman Turks. The editorial policy of this paper is to recognize the Armenian genocide as a historical fact, although the Turkish government does not.
The story in question was sent back to the department from which it emanated for additional reporting and because of concerns by Doug that the story, as written, might be in violation of the ethics policy of the Los Angeles Times. This was not because of the ethnicity of the reporter but because the policy prohibits reporters from covering stories if they have taken a position or some action that could appear to compromise their objectivity. There is no implication here that Armenians can't cover the Armenian community or that other ethnic groups can't do likewise.
Excerpt from letter rebutting Hernandez' piece, from Times Asst. Managing Editor Simon K.C. Li:
Daniel: May I please set the record straight on one portion of your article about The Times, the repetition of a nasty innuendo from Harut Sassounian's piece urging that Managing Editor Doug Frantz be fired over Mark Arax's accusations.I refer to this passage: "As Sassounian noted, Frantz is scheduled to be back in Istanbul next month to moderate a panel for the International Press Institute's World Congress that is titled, "Turkey: Sharing the Democratic Experience." Among the panelists is Andrew Mango, who Sassounian describes as a "notorious genocide denialist."
...
The facts are these: As one of three vice chairmen of the International Press Institute, I put Doug's name forward last spring as a journalist who might help us by taking part in the program of the organization's annual world congress, precisely because of his knowledge of Turkey. I specifically suggested that we invite novelist Orhan Pamuk, who was later awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature, and ask Doug to interview him one-on-one.The IPI host committee in Turkey, at the strong urging of the IPI Secretariat in Vienna, accepted the basic idea, adding another Turkish writer Elif Shafak for the congress' opening session. Doug duly received an invitation to act as interviewer of these two writers. Both of them, it's relevant to note, have been subject to legal action and personal threats precisely because they have written or spoken urging their countrymen to change the majority view about the Armenian genocide. Doug graciously agreed.
But then that panel failed to materialize, for what reasons I don't know. Doug agreed to moderate the opening session with a different panel, consisting of Shafak, a Lebanese broadcaster and Shirin Ebadi, the Iranian lawyer who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2003. Then that idea fell apart, too. I was later told that after the murder of Armenian journalist Hrant Dink in January, both Pamuk and Shafak had safety concerns about returning to Turkey from their temporary domiciles abroad.
IPI then asked Doug, somewhat apologetically, whether he was still game to moderate a panel. I believe they offered him the title of the session in question and a description of it, without specifying the participants. The description, incidentally, does not mention the Armenian question.
Complete memos are posted at LAObserved.
From Glendale City Hall this afternoon:
Glendale City Manager Jim Starbird announced today that Dan Waters will serve as interim Director of Glendale Water and Power. Waters will replace outgoing Director Ignacio Troncoso who announced last month that he is retiring. Waters, 72, is scheduled to begin working April 30.This is the second time Waters has served as interim Director of GWP. He replaced former Director Bernie Palk in September 2000 and remained with the City until Troncoso was appointed in April 2001. Starbird says Waters brings extensive experience to the position. “Dan is well respected by those who work in the industry,” says Starbird. “We’re fortunate to have someone of his caliber serving as our interim Director.”
Waters has an extensive background in the area of water and power. He worked for the LA Department of Water and Power from 1962-1994 including four years as General Manager and Chief Engineer. Waters also served as Executive Director of the Southern California Public Power Authority (SCPPA) from 1994-2000. He was also hired in 2001 by the cities of Glendale, Burbank and Pasadena to serve as Project Manager for a series of electric generating units in partnership with the State of California.
Waters has a Master of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of Southern California and a Bachelor of Science in Engineering from the University of California Los Angeles.
Government in action...
Burbank Water and Power is recruiting for high-paying jobs! -- screams the press release...
Contact information: Lianne McGinley Burbank Water and Power 818-238-3661 Burbank Water and Power is recruiting for high-paying jobs!Burbank, CA April 24, 2007 — Burbank Water and Power (BWP) is a community owned public utility serving Burbank businesses and residents with electricity and water. BWP employees pride themselves on providing the community with the highest degree of reliable and safe electric and water service.
We are currently looking for candidates to fill several openings in four different positions: Power Plant Operator Trainee; Power Plant Maintenance Trainee; Pipefitter Apprentice; and Line Mechanic Apprentice. These are all trainee positions requiring only a High School diploma and an interest in earning lucrative wages while working for a great employer! The City provides a great benefit package, and BWP will provide all the training and tools.
If you think you’re right for a rewarding career with our utility please apply by June 29, 2007 by contacting the City of Burbank’s Human Resources Department at 818.238.5021 or visit us online at BurbankWaterandPower.com where we encourage you to download the City of Burbank job application form.
Larry Mantle of KPCC's Airtalk discussed the issue this morning with guest Harut Sassounian, publisher of the California Courier, who broke the story, reported earlier by LA Observed.
And here's another take on the whole affair from USA Armenian Life Magazine's Appo Jabarian -- scheduled to be published in Friday's edition. Excerpts:
In recent years, the Los Angeles Times officially adopted a journalistically accurate editorial policy regarding the veracity of the Armenian Genocide. Readers welcomed Times’ highly commendable editorial position. In fact, the Times illustrated how much it values its professional integrity. Over the next few years, the common expectation that Times will no longer question the veracity of the genocide, metamorphosed into a sigh of relief. But alas, that sigh of relief turned out to be a false sense of security when a very disturbing development emerged only recently.
In his weekly commentary yesterday, titled “Los Angeles Times Must Dismiss Managing Editor Douglas Frantz,” Harut Sassounian, the Publisher of The California Courier, wrote: “When a company discriminates against an employee on the basis of his or her ethnic origin, it violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 which prohibits ‘employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex and national origin.’ It appears that such a breach of the law took place when Douglas Frantz, the Managing Editor of the Los Angeles Times, blocked the publication of an article on the Armenian Genocide written by Mark Arax, a distinguished journalist of Armenian origin, who has worked at the Times for 20 years. On April 11, 2007, in an e-mail to Arax, Frantz accused him of having ‘a conflict of interest that precludes you from writing about the Armenian genocide, and particularly about an ongoing congressional debate about it. …Your personal stance on the issue, in my view, prohibits you from writing about the issue objectively.’"Sassounian continued: “To justify his discriminatory action, Frantz used the pretext that Arax and five other reporters at The Times had signed a joint letter in September 2005, reminding the editors that the newspaper was not complying with its own policy of calling the Armenian Genocide, a genocide. The editors, at that time, had no problem with that letter. On the contrary, they thanked all six reporters -- five Armenian-Americans and one Jewish-American -- for the reminder and pledged to comply with the paper’s policy on this issue. To make matters worse, in his e-mail, Frantz falsely referred to the above-cited letter as a ‘petition,’ and on that basis accused Arax of taking ‘a position’ on the Armenian Genocide. He thus implied that all six letter-writers -- Mark Arax, Ralph Vartabedian, Robin Abcarian, Greg Krikorian, Chuck Philips, and Henry Weinstein -- were political activists rather than independent journalists. By ‘prohibiting’ Arax from writing on the genocide issue, Frantz, by implication, was also prohibiting all six journalists … of ever reporting on this subject,… thus practically issuing a gag order that silences all Armenian Americans working at the Times.”
Sassounian added: “By the same logic, Frantz is implying that Latinos will be barred from writing on illegal immigrants, African American journalists from covering civil rights, Jewish-American reporters from writing about the Holocaust and Asian-Americans covering issues peculiar to their community. … Jim O’Shea, the top editor of the Los Angeles Times, in a meeting with this writer last week, said that the letter signed by the six journalists was not a ‘petition’ at all, and that there was nothing improper about it. In fact, he admitted that the letter upheld existing L.A. Times policy. Amazingly, even after discovering the truth, rather than reversing themselves and publishing the Arax story, The Times’ editors continued to endorse Frantz's censorship and compounded the discrimination. They did this by assigning their Washington reporter, Richard Simon, supposedly to update Arax's story.”
Having completed an in-depth investigation in this matter, Sassounian further outlined the employment discrimination problem created by Frantz expressing his belief “that rather than Mark Arax having an ethnic bias, Douglas Frantz himself seems to be the source of the problem. … It appears that he has strongly held personal views on Armenian-Turkish issues which have clouded his professional judgment, causing him to take actions which are improper and
possibly illegal:1) In a discriminatory e-mail, Frantz falsely accused Mark Arax and five other Times’ reporters of signing a "petition" on the Armenian Genocide.
2) Frantz … reportedly … personally opposed the congressional resolution on the Armenian Genocide.
3) Frantz was stationed for several years in Turkey … during which he may have developed very natural friendships with Turkish individuals and officials.
4)The Turkish Consul General in Los Angeles has reportedly bragged about his close friendship with Douglas Frantz and said that he turns to him whenever he has a problem with The Times.
5) This writer was told by the editor of The Times, Jim O’Shea, who has known Frantz for many years … that Frantz has a very abrasive personality. No wonder he was short-tempered and abrupt during a phone conversation that he initiated, falsely accusing this writer of threatening him, when in fact he was simply being told that the controversy regarding the Arax article might upset the Armenian community, if it turned out that the story was blocked due to the Armenian background of the journalist.
6) Frantz is scheduled to moderate a panel at a conference in Istanbul, May 12-15, on "Turkey: Sharing the Democratic Experience." The panelists are asked to discuss: "Can the Turkish experience be emulated by other countries in the region and beyond?" … the conference does not cover the lack of freedom of speech in Turkey, the jailing and killing of journalists such as Hrant Dink, and draconian laws on ‘denigrating turkishness.’“
Instead of being belligerent against journalists that are being guided by the truth about the facts of the Armenian Genocide, Frantz should have acted fairly and professionally. On the contrary, he chose to act with a denialist’s Turkish Chutzpah and shamelessness!One wonders if the Times is trying to fool its readers by giving them a simple lip service through an editorial policy regarding the facts of the Armenian Genocide that is blatantly ignored by Frantz. Or has the Times lost its authority on an individual employee like Douglass Frantz who has all too willingly allowed his denialist position to interfere with his duties as Managing Editor?
What right does Frantz have to disobey the editorial policy of his employer? And to add insult to the injury, how can he shamelessly punish those who adhere to that policy by permanently denying them their basic right to write about any topic related to the facts of the Armenian Genocide?
This writer, along with several readers and community members is shocked that the Los Angeles Times is allowing a single individual to fail an entire institution unchecked.
We urge the Los Angeles Times to do the right thing by dismissing Frantz who has committed the very crime of having personal conflict of interest that he has grossly accused those journalists who continue to uphold the Los Angeles Times’ still-valid editorial policy.
I would like to encourage the readers to express their outrage on Douglas Frantz and his ill-treatment of Mark Arax by sending their e-mails to: Publisher David Hiller: David.Hiller@latimes.com, and Editor James O’Shea: James.oshea@latimes.com.
Two more items:
Running to standstill...
The City of Glendale will hold its 11th Annual Take our Daughters and Sons to Work Day. This program will also provide an opportunity for daughters/sons to gain a deeper understanding of employee’s role and contribution to the City of Glendale.At 9:30 am there will be a ceremony and presentation in the Council Chambers (City Hall) with Mayor Ara Najarian. After the ceremony, participants will be invited to the parking lot immediately behind City Hall where the kids will have an opportunity to interact with representatives from various departments, and learn about the challenging work they perform.
Not to detract in any way from the Armenian horror, but if you dig deep enough you'll find the FIRST of the 20th century genocides was the attempt to exterminate the Herero tribe by Von Trotha in German Southwest Africa (now Namibia) in 1904. About 50,000 died, exceeded by later events but just as evil.
Here's an extended interview with the 96-year-old Rev. Dulgarian conducted yesterday afternoon. Click here for the Daily News story on the 92nd anniversary of the Armenain Genocide.
The video also is available in a higher-quality stream, along with other genocide remembrance coverage at the Daily News Web site
Update 8:40 p.m. -- Jason interviews local Armenians on remembrance day.
LA Observed has this item on a brou-ha-ha between the Times and Harout Sassouian, publisher of California Courier -- an Armenian American paper -- and noted genocide activist. Apparently, Times editors have blocked publication of an Armenian genocide story by a staff writer of Armenian descent because of an alleged bias. Whoa.
KPFK is doing special coverage today about the anniversary of the Armenian Genocide. The station aired a special edition of "Uprising" earlier, and will have another special at 4 p.m., hosted by Serge Tankian, the lead singer of the rock band System of a Down, whose documentary, "Screamers," pushes to have the genocide acknowledged across Europe and the U.S. Our own reporter, Brad Greenberg, wrote earlier today about a conservative Encino synagogue that has begun pushing for Jewish recognition of the Armenian Genocide.
To listen to KPFK's report, click here.
I was informed that the station's audio archives were down earlier, but listeners can download audio from the archives later by clicking here.
Today, Armenians around the world remember the 1.5 million victims of the Armenian genocide.
"The garbage wagon - all the bodies just piled up - the blood was flowing for three days," Dulgarian, 96, said Monday as he recounted memories of a massacre of Armenians in Izmir in 1922. The city on Turkey's Aegean coast, then held by Greeks, was set ablaze by invading Turks.
More ...
The gavel came down today in a big way in the Vineland Boys federal racketeering case when a judge sentenced gang boss Rafael "Sneaky" Yepiz to life in prison without the possibility of parole, Eugene Tong writes. Yepiz, convicted of 21 charges, including violating the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, drug trafficking and money laundering, is the last of nine gangsters and associates to be sentenced in one of Los Angeles' biggest gang cases in recent history.
The Vineland Boys, originally a football team, are accused of growing into one of the worst and vicious gangs that had a hold on Burbank, North Hollywood and Palmdale for more than a decade. Their chief business was cocaine, methamphetamine and marijuana trafficking. The gang killed people, including rookie Burbank Police Officer Matthew Pavelka, who died senselessly in a shootout with David Garcia, a Vineland Boy, who still faces murder charges.
Update at 4:15 p.m. Here's the United States Attorney's press release.
Since I was more caught up in an evening of back-to-back Simpsons and The Sopranos...via NBC4
BURBANK, Calif. -- A Burbank defense lawyer is Donald Trump's new "Apprentice."Stefani Schaeffer was named the winner last night in a live finale at the Hollywood Bowl.
Web entrepreneur James Sun was the runner-up. He tried telling Trump that Stefani wasn't a true leader, but more of a behind-the-scenes player.
Trump wasn't convinced.
Stefani had the choice of working on Trump's new resort development in the Caribbean or a condo project in Atlanta. She choose the Caribbean.
According to Schaeffer's bio on NBC's Apprentice site, she's 32, born in Burbank and raised in Palm Springs.
She defends California employers against worker's compensation, subrogation and discrimination claims, and defends large real estate developers in construction defect litigation. In her spare time, she enjoys snow skiing, golf, tennis, scuba diving, karate, motorcyle riding and volunteering.
We now return you to your regularly scheduled program...
Granola goodness...
NEW YORK -- Barnes & Noble, Inc., the world’s largest bookseller, announced it has signed a lease agreement to open a new Barnes & Noble bookstore in Glendale, California, which is in the Los Angeles area. The bookstore, expected to open in April 2008, will be located in The Americana at Brand on Colorado Street between Central Avenue and Brand Boulevard. The day prior to the opening of the new store, the existing Barnes & Noble at 245 North Glendale Avenue in Glendale will close. The new store will stock close to 200,000 book, music, DVD and magazine titles and include a café serving Starbucks coffee.
Store features include a "giant" newsstand and pay as you go Wi-Fi. Wonder how rival Borders with react, with its two-story store just down the street in the Marketplace...
A tapas plate before the main course...
The theme -- Growth Spurt -- a story in two acts. Act One -- in which we follow Suzanne Knode's odyssey in getting her first ever screenplay made at age 63. Knode, a Colony resident, wrote the 10-minute short "Bandida" in a screenwriting class, and she's got big plans for it. The page here has a few clips.
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Mitch O'Farrell, the field deputy for Los Angeles Councilman Eric Garcetti, recently gave an overview of the Glassell Park Streetscape Masterplan, in case you missed it. Fletcher is going to get a makeover and the city wants your input. O'Farrell is encouraging residents to "dream big." The first workshop on the plan is to be held from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. Saturday, May 5 at Council District 13 Field Office, 3750 Verdugo Road, Glassell Park. Folks have already been weighing in on the project. At the Glassell Park Kick-off meeting April 11, Marie Conte stressed the importance of maintaining a neighborhood identity; Luis Lopez (whose auto shop is on Fletcher in Atwater Village) and Sandra Caravella asked about the project boundaries; and James Bond asked to have zoning issues clarified.
This photo is from Lopez's Web site, a historic shot of an earlier auto shop on Fletcher.
Note the meeting is scheduled Wednesday April 25, since April 24 is Armenian Genocide remembrance day.
Locke or Hobbes?
An analysis of the records found that close to $1 million has been given since January by donors who identified themselves as living in San Fernando Valley-area communities. And contributors who identified themselves as being from Los Angeles - which could include Valley residents - gave more than $3 million.Valley donors gave twice as much to Democrats as to Republicans, with Clinton easily leading the field. But Republicans - particularly former Massachusetts Gov. Romney - still have found pockets of strong support.
This handy contibutions table shows Romney withdrew more than $58,000 from Glendale donors, followed by Encino and Woodland Hills with about $14,000 each. Glendale's other pick is Illinois Democratic Sen. Barack Obama, who received about $7,997 from area donors.
Burbankers favored Democrats -- New York Sen. Hillary Clinton led with about $35,000, while Obama trailed with $16,900. But Romney again led the Republican ticket here with $5,700 from donors, followed by Arizona Sen. John McCain with $2,100.
SAN FRANCISCO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Fitch assigns an 'A' rating to $53.9 million of Burbank Public Financing Authority, CA's revenue bonds, 2007 series A (Golden State Redevelopment Project). The bonds are scheduled to sell via negotiation with E.J. De La Rosa & Co., Inc. and Wedbush Morgan Securities on April 25. The Rating Outlook is Stable. Authority bonds are secured ultimately by tax increment revenue from the Redevelopment Agency of the City of Burbank's (the agency) Golden State Redevelopment Project Area. A portion of the bonds utilize a cross-over structure, in which part of the debt service will be paid by a government securities escrow though Dec. 1, 2013.The 'A' rating reflects the good debt service coverage and strength of pledged revenues, the project area's maturity, its strategic location in Burbank and within the Los Angeles County and the strong disincentive to further leverage project area tax increment. Credit risks are centered in the project area's large proportion of unsecured property and the low property tax collection rates. The concern regarding unsecured property is somewhat mitigated because the project area includes the Bob Hope Airport (Fitch rated 'AA-') and the majority of the unsecured property consists of commercial and private jets. Prospects for continued growth in secured assessed valuation (AV) are very good, although total AV growth will be moderated since unsecured AV is subject to depreciation, market values and mobility. Legal protections are strong, including the additional bonds tests of 1.25 times (x) maximum annual debt service (MADS) on senior and subordinate obligations. However, issuance of additional bonds would require a project area amendment triggering sizeable tax-sharing requirements offsetting much of the gain.
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Providencia Elementary in Burbank was among the first to raise the flag this morning in a ceremony with county Supervisor Mike Antonovich.
It was green. Feel free to inhale until tomorrow. Click here for a full-size PDF of the smog guide.
Burbank blogger (and photographer and mid-level bureaucrat trying to get by...) Dan Evans comes roaring back to life this week with an interesting idea:
The recent Burbank general election had a certain Lockean quality - nasty, brutish and (thankfully) short. From my perspective down in the flats, it seems odd that so much anger and vitriol would be spewed over a friggin' city council election. ...... You should be able to point out your opponents flaws, as much as you can (and must) tout your own ideals and credentials. But voters must know where those attacks are coming from. And to do that, the city of Burbank should create an Ethics Commission to oversee the local political process and make things more transparent.
As a guy whose job includes following the money in the last election (and doing a mediocre job, I might add), it would be great to have a body enforcing local election laws. Buddha knows the state Fair Political Practices Commission has had enough going on already.
What do you think, council? Gary? Anja? Berlins? Gordon? hello? anyone? anyone?
Atwater Village resident James Omahen started a new blog today, The Atwater Village Enquirer on valleynews.com.
Omahen tells us that carp can grow to 5 feet, weigh up to 80 pounds, and can live for more than 60 years. They spawn more than rabbits, laying 300,000 eggs at a time. They eat everything, the bottom feeders, even their own eggs and young. Here's the carp entry on Wikipedia.
A colleague here joked that he hoped dogs don't go missing ...
Omahen writes ...
Over the past few weeks, large numbers of sizable fish have been seen thrashing about in the LA River near Atwater Village - referred to as the Glendale narrows. Reports thus far have identified them as carp, and that they are spawning. Much to the surprise and delight of many, comments have ranged from, "that's great," to "it's really becoming a river once again." Even the pessimists are buzzed how terrific it is that there are fish in the LA River.Fish in the river - more specifically that's carp in the river, and that may not be so good. Although the carp have not yet been identified as to type, carp generally have a reputation as an invasive species to established ecosystems - invading and quickly dominating new ecosystems often with serious negative effects. They are also known for prolific reproduction and very rapid growth.