Marching Orders Delivered!

LISTEN UP!
Attention, you "improver" council members and members-elect! (You can listen, too, Katrina)

"THE MOUTH" SPEAKS!
The keeper of all knowledge, your guiding light of the so-called "improver movement", The Mouth From Mesa North, has issued his marching orders for you in his blog entry over at the CM Press. Normally, I don't link to his drivel, but it's important for you to have a song book for your next term of office so you don't stray from the path he has laid out for you. Here's the link.

PAY ATTENTION!
Your leader, The Mouth, has presented his game plan - 15 items for you to follow, whether you like it or not. I recommend that you pay close attention because there will be consequences if you don't. More on that later...

AN ARCHITECT HE AIN'T
At #5 on the list is his architectural preference for new homes on the Westside Bluffs - something he calls "industrial modern" - and he provides a photograph just in case those of you that are just a little slow can have a nice picture to help you understand. I'm sure he will provide a coloring book if you need it. Of course, his example is located out in the wilds somewhere, with the closest neighbor about a quarter mile away. I look at that piece of corrugated metal, slab-sided, tin roofed junk and try to figure out why anyone would even consider putting something like that on Costa Mesa's Westside. I guess architecture is just another of the many careers at which he didn't excel - like acting.

LATINO EXPULSION BLUEPRINT
I find number's 3, 8 and12 to be interesting. These items - "Increase ICE in Costa Mesa and remove even more illegal alien criminals", "Thin out dense slum 'blocks' by removing individual slum buildings and replacing them with parking lots or pocket parks." and "Stop spending citizen money on programs that attract and maintain illegal aliens in Costa Mesa."- are clearly directed at the Latino population of our city. No surprise here - he's anti-anything but white, so this fits his ongoing program of expulsion of Latinos from our city.

NO AUTHORITY
Number 9 in a real hoot. He says he wants you to "Ensure that whatever happens on Banning Ranch doesn't harm Costa Mesa." Now, how - exactly - would he have you do that? The City of Costa Mesa has no authority over Banning Ranch, thanks to that wonderful one-foot lasso of land that Newport Beach threw around it decades ago. Banning Ranch is private property, presently located in the County of Orange and within the sphere of influence of the City of Newport Beach. We get no vote on what happens there, one way or the other. Of course, you could vote to build a wall on our contiguous property lines there, but that would fly in the face of yet another of his instructions - number 6.

GOOD LUCK WITH THAT!
Number 6 instructs you to "Increase cooperation with Newport Beach on as many fronts as possible." I guess Banning Ranch wouldn't be one of those fronts, just as the annexation issues are not one of those fronts, either. And, history shows us that the new council isn't eager to achieve harmony with our neighbors. Quite the contrary, at least three of the members that will be on the dais following the election have demonstrated hostility toward our neighbors.

STAGGERING AROUND TRIANGLE SQUARE
Number 13, "Work to make the downtown area around Triangle Square a pedestrian friendly destination." This just makes me just shake my head. How about using whatever influence the council has to make Triangle Square the vibrant retail center once envisioned, for goodness sakes! Right now the only businesses that are holding on are gin mills. Maybe The Mouth has a vision of a place that's friendly for the drunks that stagger out of those places in the wee hours of the morning.

WHAT?
Number 14 is another curious one. He directs you to "Work more with individual neighborhoods on neighborhood specific programs to improve those neighborhoods." What the heck does that mean? Does that mean we all get together for a group hug? Some might say that it means, for example, working with the folks in Mesa North to find a way to encourage a certain resident to move to Idaho - I'll buy the ticket.

REGRESSION LESSON
There are many more, but I'll leave you with his instruction Number 11, " Consider changing our city's motto back to "Hub of the Harbor". What a crock! This one is the perfect example of what this guy wants for our community - to turn back the clock a half-century.

SHAPE UP! TOE THAT LINE!
So, council members, you've got your instructions, so get with it. Yes sir, you'd better follow his "guidance" because you know what happens if you don't. I'll remind you with two words - Chris Steel.



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THE LATEST ELECTION NUMBERS
On a happier note, the following is the chart showing the most recent election numbers. Not much has changed except Katrina Foley widened her lead on Eric Bever. Every candidate picked up a few votes in the past 24 hours, but not enough to change their relative positions.


WHO WILL LEAD?
I guess now we just wait for the election to be certified - maybe as early as the meeting of December 2nd, and to watch to see who is elected Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem. I'll go out on a limb here and bet that Katrina Foley will not be nominated for either position - what do you think?

BUBBLE, BUBBLE...
I'm turning the Cauldron down to simmer for the weekend, so comments might be slow to get posted. Be patient...