Mensinger's View Of The Rabble Before Him
VIDEO OF THE COUNCIL MEETING AVAILABLE
As anticipated, Dane Bora and Brad Long of CMTV have managed to get the streaming video of Tuesday's City Council meeting up and available for viewing. You can view it HERE.
MENSINGER'S COMMENT...
In my previous post I mentioned a comment that non-elected City Councilman Steve Mensinger made at the end of the meeting. I had failed to tape the meeting so didn't have the ability to quote him directly, but paraphrased him. Now that the streaming video is available I have gone back and reviewed his comment. I've also isolated his comment from the rest of the video and present it below my transcription of his comment, so you can read the text or simply listen to him, in his own, unedited, words.
THE TEXT
"I hear clearly a lotta people out there, some people that are employees and some people that are not employees , some are residents and some are folks just from our town. The people that live here, your opinion matters to me, clearly. OK, I wanna make that clear. The people that don't live here, your opinion is important but it really is noise, because this is our community, and I want to make that clear to the folks from the unions, and the folks that are friends of the unions and the folks that come in here and parade their ideas on the microphone, it's noise. You can speak every single meeting. You have a perfect right to do it, but your opinion does not really matter as much as a person that lives in our community. So, while I appreciate it, a lot of the people in my community are beginning to complain a lot about this particular issue. And that is outside interference in our internal city politics."
THE VIDEO
If you choose to view Mensinger actually articulating these words go to the video (above) and drag the scroll bar over to just before the 2:12:00 point.
MY QUESTIONS FOR MENSINGER
So, let me g
et this right, Steve. If you live in the city your opinion counts, but if you DON'T live in the city - but work in the city, or for the city - your comments are just "noise". If you're in a union or are "friends of unions" your opinion doesn't really matter, right? What about business owners in the city, Steve? Do their opinions count? What about your former boss at Arnel? He doesn't live in the community - does his opinion count?
"OUTSIDE INTERFERENCE"?
About that "outside interference", Steve. Do you mean those employees who live elsewhere? Are those the people that folks "in my community" are complaining about? Or, are they complaining about the interference in our internal city politics by the leadership of the Orange County Republican Party, who have decided that Costa Mesa should be - as Wendy Leece stated last night - a Petri dish for pension reform? Is that the "outside interference" the members of "your community" are concerned about? Nah, I didn't think so.
YOU DON'T LIKE TO BE CHALLENGED - BY ANYONE!
I actually think what you're concerned about is ANYONE who challenges your authority, which is truly ironic, since ONLY THREE residents of this city voted for you to sit up there on the dais. You WERE NOT ELECTED to your office, Steve. You were appointed by your pal, who anointed you with the right to sit there, smirking at the speakers before you while you text away with your buddies.
SOME SUGGESTIONS FOR MENSINGER
Here's a suggestion for you. How about acting like you are actually worthy of the
job you've been appointed to. How about trying to go through a meeting without any of your not-very-subtle zingers aimed at Wendy Leece and those who speak before you? Think you can do that? How about learning the rules of the game and following them instead of trying to reinvent our city into some kind of fantasy world with you as the king. Think you can do that? I sure hope so.
As anticipated, Dane Bora and Brad Long of CMTV have managed to get the streaming video of Tuesday's City Council meeting up and available for viewing. You can view it HERE.MENSINGER'S COMMENT...
In my previous post I mentioned a comment that non-elected City Councilman Steve Mensinger made at the end of the meeting. I had failed to tape the meeting so didn't have the ability to quote him directly, but paraphrased him. Now that the streaming video is available I have gone back and reviewed his comment. I've also isolated his comment from the rest of the video and present it below my transcription of his comment, so you can read the text or simply listen to him, in his own, unedited, words.
THE TEXT
"I hear clearly a lotta people out there, some people that are employees and some people that are not employees , some are residents and some are folks just from our town. The people that live here, your opinion matters to me, clearly. OK, I wanna make that clear. The people that don't live here, your opinion is important but it really is noise, because this is our community, and I want to make that clear to the folks from the unions, and the folks that are friends of the unions and the folks that come in here and parade their ideas on the microphone, it's noise. You can speak every single meeting. You have a perfect right to do it, but your opinion does not really matter as much as a person that lives in our community. So, while I appreciate it, a lot of the people in my community are beginning to complain a lot about this particular issue. And that is outside interference in our internal city politics."
THE VIDEO
If you choose to view Mensinger actually articulating these words go to the video (above) and drag the scroll bar over to just before the 2:12:00 point.
MY QUESTIONS FOR MENSINGER
So, let me g
et this right, Steve. If you live in the city your opinion counts, but if you DON'T live in the city - but work in the city, or for the city - your comments are just "noise". If you're in a union or are "friends of unions" your opinion doesn't really matter, right? What about business owners in the city, Steve? Do their opinions count? What about your former boss at Arnel? He doesn't live in the community - does his opinion count?"OUTSIDE INTERFERENCE"?
About that "outside interference", Steve. Do you mean those employees who live elsewhere? Are those the people that folks "in my community" are complaining about? Or, are they complaining about the interference in our internal city politics by the leadership of the Orange County Republican Party, who have decided that Costa Mesa should be - as Wendy Leece stated last night - a Petri dish for pension reform? Is that the "outside interference" the members of "your community" are concerned about? Nah, I didn't think so.
YOU DON'T LIKE TO BE CHALLENGED - BY ANYONE!
I actually think what you're concerned about is ANYONE who challenges your authority, which is truly ironic, since ONLY THREE residents of this city voted for you to sit up there on the dais. You WERE NOT ELECTED to your office, Steve. You were appointed by your pal, who anointed you with the right to sit there, smirking at the speakers before you while you text away with your buddies.SOME SUGGESTIONS FOR MENSINGER
Here's a suggestion for you. How about acting like you are actually worthy of the
job you've been appointed to. How about trying to go through a meeting without any of your not-very-subtle zingers aimed at Wendy Leece and those who speak before you? Think you can do that? How about learning the rules of the game and following them instead of trying to reinvent our city into some kind of fantasy world with you as the king. Think you can do that? I sure hope so.Labels: Jim Righeimer, Steve Mensinger
posted by The Pot Stirrer at 4/20/2011 01:34:00 PM
17 Comments:
Costa Mesa now has the worst City Council in Orange County. Mensinger and Righeimer are openly contemptuous of the California Constitution, with its insistence on public meetings and public records. Their two person working group subcommittees clearly fall under the definitions of a legislative body with the requirement that their meetings be public, and they it is long established that you can't evade public records requests by using your personal email for public busisess.
Did it really mean nothing when each of them put his hand on a bible and swore an oath?
Geoff!
As I read your transcript of Menssy's rant, I felt myself getting more and more agitated and offended by this pompous, pseudo-intellectual dragging our city through the mud.
A response started forming in my mind. Then I read yours. After doing so, I concluded that I can't do any better, even with my advanced degrees and decades of business experience.
You see this guy for what he is and have been consistently calling him out on it.
One thing I've learned these last couple of months is that there's a large group of rational Republicans in Costa Mesa like yourself and Wendy Leece who are standing up to the extremism emanating from certain elements of that party.
Thank you.
Mensinger is absolutely right. Don't know why you are making an issue of it. Of course, our elected officials should be listening to the residents here. It is clear from the meetings I have watched that a number of angry speakers are not residents. Why would he care. His job is to advocate and legislate for the residents of Costa Mesa. Pretty simple.
I sound like a broken record... but I have lived here most of my 44+ years, I don't work here, I'm not a 'union thug,' etc.
In act, I was born and raised here, attended NMUSD schools from grades 1-12 here, have bought two homes here, and live a stone's throw from Steve Mensinger...
YOU DO NOT REPRESENT ME, BECAUSE YOU WERE NOT ELECTED, YOU DON'T LISTEN TO ME - you only listen to those with your same views.
When all the dust settles after all this, hopefully Costa Mesa will be a better place. It certainly will be, though, the day Righeimer and Mensinger (and Der Mayor and The Beav) are no longer a part of the council.
That Charlie Sheen haircut should have been the first clue..
(Apologies to Charlie)
It's starting to become so clear why very few use their real names on this blog or the Daily Pilot blog. It's because they don't live here. Sure, a few of you do, but the vast majority are non-residents. Why would Steve care about those folks who just complain, offer no solutions and spew hate. They return home to nicer places than Costa Mesa at night.
I didn't really like Mensinger in the beginning. I thought he was a bit of a bully. Now I'm getting him; he cares about US and not THEM. Way to go Steve. I'm becoming a fan!
No one who doesn't live in CM or work in the city really cares what's happening. The city has become the biggest joke around. The employee representatives have a right to speak to council regarding the layoffs. And where is the CEO during all of this? Isn't it his job to "manage" the elected officials and manage the city? Haven't seen much of that happening - yet.
Phil: I have lived here for 41 years and I want to be heard! I'm a resident with concerns, and I'm tired of being characterized as a "union sympathizer" or a city employee, simply because I have the audacity to ask legitimate questions about the future of our services and because I want safety to be a number one consideration.
This city has been wonderful to reside in but, I have to say, with the evolution of this particular Council, I have never experienced such rancor among residents, with four Councilmen who refuse to improve the situation.
I tried to give them the benefit of the doubt by attending meetings and hearing their point of view, but they appear to have zero respect for anyone who may disagree with them; it's their way, or the highway. What a sorry state of affairs; I am literally sickend that this has happened here. It was unnecessary.
This really should surprise no one. Anybody who has dealt with Mensinger (and Righeimer) when they were on the planning commission could bear witness to the fact these guys are single minded in purpose and refuse to even listen to any opinion contrary to theirs. And Phil and Barry I'm sure you like the current council and they will surely tolerste you, until the time comes when your opinion or your voice differs from theirs. The sad fact is Mensinger was NOT elected, he was appointed by his friend, neighbor and failed business partner. We deserve better
Geoff,
I second Joe's comment with one hundred exclamation points! I wouldn't have even known where to begin to write a response that you so efficiently do. I am also glad to see all the employees at the council meetings that are taking an interest in the city of their employment. Any person who has a vested interest in this city deserves their time speaking, and deserves the undivided attention of everyone on the dais. That includes residents, employees, and business owners. Yes, appointed councilman, only three residents appointed you, and until we can replace you with someone that has a brain AND a care for our city, we have to continue to listen to your NOISE! Loud noise is all we hear when you open your mouth to lecture us, you pompous piece of work.
I do agree with Mensinger. A resident of Costa Mesa should have more say than someone from outside the city. However, I wish Mensinger would follow through with that when it comes to Scott Baugh. Last I checked, he lives in another city. Scott Baugh's influence on Righeimer and Mensinger has ruined what would otherwise be great Republican leadership.
How is it that people like Mensinger and "Phil" seem to "know" that all these people are from out-of-town? "Phil" seems to be able to divine that "the vast majority of" people who don't identify themselves are non-residents. If he can know these things without any evidence, maybe he can tell us what the PERS costs will be for the next 10 years. Or, maybe he and others who try to perpetuate this belief in "outsiders" are just trying to deflect attention from the fact that they (Phil and friends) don't have anything more relevant to say.
Mensinger's right about the outsiders. You've got malcontent slobs like Gus Ayer, the former Fountain Valley Council Member and one-time (only) Mayor who was voted out in 2008 -- the only incumbent in the County who lost a seat that year out of 34 cities, five Supervisorial District and dozens of other board and committee positions. Ayer was instrumental in crafting FV's current deficits and fiscal problems. He thinks he's a an expert on municipal finance, but you won't want to believe a word he says. He's easy to find -- look for the big belly trailing behind Sandra Genis.
We need to daft the likes of Jay Humphrey and Sandra Genis to run again.
stick to the facts, done... thanks for the head slap..
For anyone who may think the post by "Fisla" came from me I want to clarify it was not from me. I do not use terms like "slobs" or refer to "big bellies" on people. These kind of personal attacks poison any discussion and hinder progress on issues. But Ayers is an outsider, turned down by the voters in his city of FV. The associations have members who live and/or work here and the OCGOP has many members (leece included perhaps)who live here and neither are outsiders. Both are entitled to their opinions. I align myself with the OCGOP and am a fan of their political platform so I guess the name calling towards me can now begin.
Within OCGOP code of ethics is it ok for public/rate payer funds to be used for public employee bonuses? Is it ok for a publicly elected official to solicit his/her personal business within that agency that he/she serves?
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