Marking A Milestone

THE BEST LAID PLANS...
Thursday afternoon, July 9th, my sweet and very patient wife and I slipped quietly out of town for a couple days of very much needed decompression.  We had intended to make this little journey to our favorite place on the Central Coast for the Independence Day holiday, but the traffic was so thick - it took us 4 hours to travel a mere 90 miles - that we chucked that plan and returned home to the war zone known as Costa Mesa for that weekend.

...AND WE ALMOST FORGOT
And, because we decided to resurrect our plans this weekend, a special milestone slid right past me, so I'll mention it now.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO A BUBBLING CAULDRON
Ten years ago - July 9, 2005 - I launched this blog using another host.  From that date until November 1, 2006 I published my little rants unimpeded by comments because that host didn't accommodate that function.  You can find all those entries HERE.

HERE'S THE FIRST ONE
Here's what that very first entry looked like:

Saturday, July 9, 2005
EMINENT DOMAIN AND THE WESTSIDE

The potential redevelopment of Westside Costa Mesa got a whole lot more interesting recently. On June 23, 2005 the United States Supreme Court ruled in a Connecticut case that eminent domain can be used to force property owners off their land so another entity can replace it to generate more tax revenue. However, the Fifth Amendment of the Constitution states, in part, "nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation". In this case that term, "just compensation", is just another way of saying, "way below market value".

If I were a business property owner on the Westside of Costa Mesa I would be shaking in my boots about now. It was bad enough when the residential overlay was approved for the entire area that will permit a willing industrial property owner to sell to a developer and facilitate the integration of residential units in the present industrial area. This recent ruling makes it a whole new ball game. Now eager developers can sweet talk our City Council into using the sledgehammer of eminent domain to oust even the most reluctant of property owners. Do I hear the jingle of campaign finance coins in the air?

You're probably saying to yourself, "Nah, our council members would never do that." Well, don't be too sure. It takes lots of money to successfully run for public office. Eric Bever, for example, managed to round up over $50,000 for his war chest in his slim victory last November. He and his pal, Mayor Allan Mansoor, seem likely to run again - Mansoor in 2006 and Bever in 2008 - so developers with jingling pockets will probably start showing up on their doorsteps pretty soon with plans for the "mansionization" of the Westside.

Ambitious Mayor Pro Tem Gary Monahan, who theoretically is termed out of a council seat after his current tour, might be looking forward to higher office - perhaps County Supervisor. I imagine he will have his ear cocked for the sound of jingling coins, too.

Lest you think the ladies on the dais will be left out, I suspect Katrina Foley and Linda Dixon can expect the developers to come calling, too.

If you're thinking to yourself that this won't affect you, think again. If you own a one of those little, old homes on the Westside in an area that falls under the shroud of the residential overlay, you might be getting a queasy stomach right about now. If you had a cocky smirk on your face a couple months ago when the Westside Redevelopment Oversight Committee's recommendations were usurped by Bever's sleight of hand that put the residential overlay over virtually the entire Westside because you thought it would rid you of obnoxious industrial neighbors, think about this: As I understand this ruling, it would be entirely possible for a residential property owner living in a redevelopment zone to be forced to sell his home for "just compensation" so a new, larger one could be built that would generate more property tax. If your little bungalow just happens to sit on a sliver of land that might be a key acquisition for a larger development, we could soon be seeing your taillights as you head out of town, because you sure won't be able to afford another place in Costa Mesa with the proceeds of your "just compensation". 

Are you nervous yet? You should be - especially in this city, where the ruling troika on the City Council has already demonstrated a smug willingness to play fast and loose with the rules.

I, for one, expect to have more than a few sleepless nights about this issue.

2:48 pm pdt

A LOT HAS CHANGED...
There's been a lot of water under the bridge since that time.  A lot has changed in Costa Mesa since then.  The governance has devolved from the inept bumbling of Chris Steel and the deer-in-the-headlights incompetence of Allan Mansoor to our current condition, with the devious, manipulative, ego-centric, heavy-handedness of the carpetbagging political opportunist, Jim Righeimer and his faithful sidekick, Steve Mensinger.  About the only constant has been Gary (What's in it for me?) Monahan.

COMPETENCE AND COOPERATION
During that time we've seen the economy tank and force our municipal leaders to make some difficult decisions.  Fortunately, under the steady hand of City Manager Allan Roeder, they had laid the groundwork in the form of cautious, conservative fiscal management, so there was enough money in the kitty to help the city survive those difficult time.  Everyone in the government pitched in to help.

THINGS ARE NOT BETTER TODAY
Today, though, it's a different story.  Those leaders are being vilified by the current leaders for building up excessive reserves, and for making careful, thoughtful decisions regarding staffing to help bridge those tough times.  We've gone from a time when the employees and the leadership worked as a team, working together to find solutions, to the current situation where the elected leaders consider the employees their adversaries.  They've tried to layoff - illegally - more than 200 employees and the two top elected leaders have sued the men and women charged with keeping us safe - the CMPD.  They've created such a toxic atmosphere at City Hall that several dozen employees have opted to retire earlier than planned or have left to work at other jurisdictions. 

PUBLIC SAFETY SLIPPING...
Today we don't have enough police officers to effectively protect our city.  Crime statistics are up dramatically.  Today we see political opportunism interfere with the implementation of a new fire department deployment model that would dramatically improve that part of our public safety equation and save us a lot of money at the same time.  We see a government willing and eager to put potholes before public safety.  We see leaders willing to change the rules and create ordinances with which to bludgeon long-time businesses so they will reevaluate their operations with an eye to make it easier for their developer-friends to snatch up those beleaguered properties for pennies on the dollar.

STIFLING FREE SPEECH
And, of course, those current elected leaders don't take criticizm very well, so they've found ways to insitutionalize the stifling of critics by bifurcating public comments and barking chiding remarks during and after they speak.  They interrupt and intimidate speakers who offer an opposing viewpoint.  Free speech is an alien concept to them - except when applied to themselves.

LEGAL COSTS HAVE SOARED!
Their actions have resulted in legal challenges unheard of in decades past.  Through those capricious and sometimes malicious acts the City Treasury has been forced to squander millions of dollars on legal fees - money that could have been used to rebuild public safety, for example.

AND WE REPORT...
And through it all we've been here, trying to present our views of these issues for your consideration.

LOTS OF WORDS...
I didn't begin to count the entries at the beginning, but the current blog host does that for me. This will be my 2,715th entry on this site and we've generated almost 2.3 million page views.  Thanks to all of you for that.  And, along the way other organizations have recognized the meager efforts here.  The OC Weekly has named A Bubbling Cauldron as it's Blog Of The Year a couple times and the Daily Pilot has recognized our efforts in their DP 103 list several times.  We are very grateful for that.  In hindsight, I should have figured a way to get paid by the word...  Oh, well...

MISSION ACCOMPLISHED
My goal when I began writing this blog was to get a few more folks in the community interested in what was happening in their government.  I think it's safe to say that we've met that goal - and then some.

ONWARD...
So, off we go on our second decade.  Thanks, again, to all of you who take the time to read what appears on this site, and especially to those of you who have taken the time over the years to offer your opinions and/or suggestions.  I'm not sure how much longer the old Cauldron will continue to boil - events involving friends and neighbors continue to remind us that life is short and to make every day count.  But, as long as we think it makes a difference, we'll just keep throwing logs on the fire and continue to stir...

A Sad State Of Affairs

QUITE A ROLLERCOASTER RIDE

For more than a decade I've written on this blog and elsewhere about Costa Mesa and the politics of this city.  During that time there have been many, many highs and certainly a few lows, too.  For example,

EVEN CLOWNS ELECTED
We've seen people like the chronically-inept Chris Steel elected to City Council after trying nine times before.

THE SEWER OF RACISM
We've seen the political discourse driven, from time to time, by a notorious racist.

BENITO ACOSTA
We've seen a Latino activist dragged from a City Council meeting and arrested.  The costs for the ensuing lawsuit continue to show up on Warrants to this day, ten years later.

THE LEADER OF THE TAKEOVER
We've seen a carpet-bagging political opportunist move to town and almost immediately be appointed to a prestigious commission in repayment for campaign support by a re-elected council member.  That provided him with the political platform to be elected and re-elected (barely) to the City Council.

PROFITS BEFORE SERVICE

He led a cadre of wrong-thinking individuals in a take over city government and attempt to "run it like a business", forgetting that a municipal government IS NOT a business - it exists only to provide services to the populace, not produce a product for profit.

ACTIONS RESULT IN LAWSUITS
That group immediately created chaos in City Hall by attempting to - illegally - layoff nearly half of the members of the Costa Mesa City Employees Association - the so-called Miscellaneous Employees.  That act resulted in one young distraught employee to leap to his death from the roof of City Hall and a lawsuit that remains unresolved to this day, more than 4 years later.

ANTI-PUBLIC SAFETY BIAS

We've seen the two top elected city officials actually sue the men and women of the Costa Mesa Police Department, while gutting that once-proud department by imposing unrealistic staffing levels and spending hard-earned tax dollars filling potholes instead of providing public safety.  The toxic atmosphere they created caused experienced officers to retire early and/or seek jobs with other venues.  They forced the delay in replacing those officers, putting public safety in jeopardy by reducing staffing levels unseen in this city in more than two decades.

UNNECESSARY COMMITTEES

We've seen those same men create a list of unnecessary new committees and stack them with cronies as payback for political support.  These unnecessary committees sucked up thousands of valuable staff hours performing analysis and reports at a time when their skills were required elsewhere.

THE CHARTER, TWICE!
We've seen them attempt to change the basic structure of municipal government by jamming a Charter down our throats, only to have that scheme overwhelmingly rejected TWICE by the voters.

PLACING BLAME, BUT TAKING NO ACTION
We've seen them vilify municipal employees because unfunded pension liabilities have created fiscal complications, but they refuse to take any positive steps to resolve that issue.

GREASING DEVELOPMENT SKIDS
We've seen ordinances passed that dissolve protections for the residents in favor of greasing the skids for developers, who will build projects then never been seen again, leaving residents to deal with the aftermath of overtaxed infrastructure.

SQUEEZING OUT BUSINESSES
We've seen ordinances passed that penalize business owners for calling public safety organizations to receive protection from unsafe and/or illegal situations at their establishments.  The goal, as stated unequivocally by elected officials, was to force those business owners to take a more "realistic" view of the value of their businesses by pummeling them with fines to encourage them to sell out to developers.

PITTING NEIGHBOR AGAINST NEIGHBOR

We've seen ordinances passed that almost seem designed to turn neighbor against neighbor.  Simultaneously, they have created and implemented a smart phone app that encourages that same behavior.  In fact, one of our top elected officials may be the biggest proponent of this app and regularly snaps photos and reports folks who have allowed their lawn to grow too long and other similar minor infractions.

SPECIAL ENFORCEMENT CADRE

They created a cadre of special Code Enforcement officers outside the normal structure who report directly to the Executive Offices, and they've been used as a personal enforcement unit by the City Council majority.

VILIFICATION AND THREATS

During recent years we've seen political discourse sink to, perhaps, the lowest level in any one's memory.  We've seen critics increasingly step up during meetings to present opposing views, only to be chided by members of the City Council.  We've seen members of the public admonished and threatened by officials for speaking out.  We've had members of the public warned against speaking out by staff members.

FREE SPEECH QUASHED

We've seen Freedom of Speech placed in jeopardy by procedures implemented which are specifically designed to discourage participation by the public.  They have institutionalized stifling of dissent.

STRANGLING DISCUSSION
And, this stifling of dissent has spread beyond the walls of City Hall.  A social media site has been created that crows about being the "best source of news about Costa Mesa" and invites all-comers to join in the discussion.  Several elected and appointed community leaders actively participate in the discussions, expressing their opinions on important issues and openly criticizing opposing views.  But the out-of-town rabble-rousers - with no vested interest in the future of Costa Mesa - who administer it block dissenting voices by either refusing to admit them to the site or by ousting those already on board if they dare to express an opposing viewpoint.  In addition, they troll other competing sites and expel members from their site if they dare to post a critical comment.  And, despite their claim of being a superior news site, non-members may not even observe and read that "news", much less particpate in the discussions.  It is a site for insiders only, where like-minded individuals chatter back and forth, agreeing with each other and presuming their views on important issues are the correct views.  This kind of strangulation of public discussion reeks of WWII Germany.  It shouldn't be too surprising, since the aforementioned racist is a major driver of conversations on the site.  How very sad for those folks who joined up expecting more, only to find discussions framed by an internationally notorious Nazi sympathizer.

A NEW LOW
This weekend, though, we may have seen the bar set at it's lowest point.  It has been widely reported that during what has historically been the City's favorite family event, the Lion's Club Fish Fry at Fairview Park, two prominent members of the public - one a former elected and appointed official and the other an activist and former candidate for City Council - got into a heated disagreement that ended with one spitting in the face of the other after being mocked about his disability.  The other man then retaliated with what was described as a "sucker punch" to the face.  We are told that it ended at that point.  To our knowledge, although there apparently were several witnesses to the event, no charges have been filed.

A SAD COMMENTARY

From what I know of this situation, there likely was fault on both sides and was the result of long-simmering animosity between the two participants, but there is no excuse for that behavior.  Unfortunately, this only further demonstrates how the political process and attendant discourse has declined in our city during this current regime.  The incivility on social media comment threads, including the threads on our two local newspapers, seems to have emboldened bad behavior on both sides of the important issues facing our city.  That bad behavior finally manifested itself in physical confrontation this weekend.  It's a sad, sad commentary on political life in our city.

Latinos And Election Of Council Members By District

AN INTERESTING ARTICLE
A long piece by Jill Cowan in the Daily Pilot Saturday afternoon titled, "At-large voting: Latino handicap?", HERE, will certainly generate some interesting discussion in Costa Mesa political circles.

CHANGE IN STATE LAW?
A bill proposed by Assemblyman Roger Hernandez, would force all General Law cities with populations over 100,000 to elect council members by district.  In my view, this is a major over-reach by the State government.  If the objective is to provide more "representation" to our large Latino community, perhaps it should begin by getting out their votes.  History shows us that the large mostly-Westside population of Latinos seldom turn out at the polls, nor do they put forward candidates for commissions or committees.

REPRESENTATION
If the goal is to have each geographic area of the city "represented", we don't need this new law to do it.  Wendy Leece, Eric Bever and Allan Mansoor have represented the Westside in recent years.

NOT LIKELY...
However, if the Hernandez bill is an attempt to guarantee that one particular ethnic group is "represented", then perhaps we need a law that requires EVERY ethnic group have proportional representation on the City Council.  Of course, I offer that as an example of the absurd...

NO GUARANTEES
While I agree that we have seen few Latinos run for office - Cowan mentions Mirna Burciaga's failed campaign a few years back - simply forcing the city to elect council members by district would not necessarily result in more Latinos participating in the process.

PANDERING TO RADICALS
I began paying attention to local politics about the time Chris Steel and Allan Mansoor were elected.  Mansoor became the darling of the far right radicals among us.  He was named an honorary Minuteman, for goodness sake.  He is notorious for tossing Benito Acosta out of a council meeting and having him arrested after cutting short his time at the speaker's podium.  We are STILL paying legal fees on the lawsuit that resulted from his hasty, ill-advised act.  During his tenure, with the urging of current councilman Gary Monahan, the Job Center was shuttered, forcing day laborers back onto street corners - and it generated even more legal problems.

THE MOUTH FROM MESA NORTH
For most of the last decade a big part of the political agenda in Costa Mesa was driven by the persistent drumbeat of one racist individual, who took credit for both getting Steel elected and then, later, rejected by the voters.  He crows about getting Paularino Park - in his Mesa North neighborhood - turned into a passive park, forcing mostly Latino soccer players to find another venue for their after work exercise.  Fortunately, that campaign stopped right there.  Although that person continues to spew racist views from his blog and elsewhere online, his influence in the city has diminished - a good thing for all of us.

OK, BUT...
I DON'T necessarily have a problem with Costa Mesa council members being elected by district.   But the votes should be limited to residents within each district, not at-large, the way it's done in Newport Beach.  Candidate Lee Ramos, (shown here with his campaign manager, Dennis Popp) quoted in Cowan's article, seems concerned that by doing so we might "limit the talent we have in the city."  Of course, since he's part of the cabal controlled by country club cronies Mayor Jim Righeimer and Mayor Pro Tem Steve Mensinger, having been appointed to two very influential committees by them, I'm not surprised at his reaction.  If we were electing council members by district today he might be running against Monahan, who has shown to be virtually unbeatable each time he ran.

...THE STATE SHOULD BUTT OUT!
I DO have a problem with the State TELLING us how we must elect our council members.  Because of the strong liberal orientation in Sacramento, I won't be surprised if the bill proposed by Hernandez passes.  What I also have a problem with is that this bill will only add fuel to the fire for those in the community advocating a change to a Charter form of government.  Considering how the current council majority plays fast and loose with the existing rules, I shudder to thing of the damage they could do under a Charter form of government.

SHOULD BE INTERESTING
It's going to be interesting to 1) see what kind of discussion Cowan's article generates in the community and, 2) whether the bill Hernandez initiated gets passed by the state legislature.  It's an election year and his seat is up...

OC GOP Eats Their Own

OVERFLOWING LITERATURE
Today in my mailbox, stuffed with campaign literature and bills I found an interesting piece specifically addressed to my wife and myself. We assume it came from a list of Republican voters, which we both are, and was directed to us to influence our positions on the election Tuesday.


ANTI-WENDY LEECE HIT PIECE FROM THE OC GOP
This interesting piece was from the Republican Party of Orange County, and gave the address of the headquarters on Edinger Avenue in Santa Ana. It told us it was a "member communication". The front, which I did not copy for you, shows a fellow with his feet on the desk, hands folded behind his head and it has remarks criticizing Costa Mesa Mayor Pro Tem Wendy Leece for her part in approving contact amendments to several employee bargaining units last Tuesday. Leece approved those items as an attempt to balance the municipal budget, and was joined in the vote by fellow Republican Gary Monahan and Democrat Katrina Foley. No mention of Monahan was made in this piece. Oh, no... he cast the same vote, but he did disobey the OC GOP!

READ BAUGH'S MESSAGE FOR YOURSELF
The reverse side, which you see below, contains a message from Scott Baugh, Chairman of the Republican Party of Orange County. The message is clear, so I'll let you digest it yourself.


.In case the type is too small, Baugh gripes about rising pension costs and tells you that Wendy Leece promised weeks ago that she would no longer support these "unsustainable pensions.

He then tells me that she broke her promise when she voted last Tuesday to approve "lavish pensions". He states emphatically that "Wendy Leece is no friend of the taxpayer, and she does not keep her promises." He asks us to call Wendy to let her know how you feel about her promises and votes.

ANGER IS EVIDENT
It's obvious from this communication and others I've seen generated by Baugh since the council vote Tuesday that Baugh and his minions are really ticked-off at Wendy Leece for "breaking her pledge" to the OC GOP.


NOTE TO BAUGH...
Well, here's the deal, Mr. Baugh. Wendy Leece was elected four years ago - with your help, by the way - by the people of Costa Mesa to do the best job she could to help administer our city. When faced with the two bad choices - vote for the agreements to help balance the budgets (knowing she would face your wrath) or to vote against them and almost certainly guarantee a delay in addressing them until after the new city council was seated in January, which would cost the city at least $250,000 for each month of the delay. And, as we all know now, such a delay might actually cause our city to have to declare bankruptcy, which would toss out all the existing contracts, including the labor contracts.

PART OF THE OC GOP PLAN?
It is very likely that this is the plan of the Republican Party of Orange County all along. After all, this is the mantra chanted by their hand-picked and placed candidate for City Council, Jim Righeimer. For months he has told public employee groups that he was going after their wage and benefit packages. The ONLY way to do that is through bankruptcy. It's clear that Baugh and his cohorts plan to use Costa Mesa as an experiment - as former Mayor Sandra Genis put it - a petri dish for state-wide pension reform, and that Righeimer wants to use our city as a stepping stone to higher office.

SUMMONED BEFORE "ETHICS" COMMITTEE
Following her vote last Tuesday Leece was summoned before the OC GOP Ethics Committee - an oxymoron if I ever read one - to answer for her transgression. You'd think Baugh and his minions thought they were Gods, commanding Leece to appear before them. That meeting never did happen because Leece, wisely, chose to consult the City Attorney and to take an attorney with her to the inquisition. According to a communication from Baugh, that encounter had to happen within 24 hours of the original complaint. I've read their bylaws. It's unclear what kind of authority they have to hand out ANY kind of punishment to Leece since she's not a member of the Central Committee.

THEY'RE OUT TO GET WENDY LEECE
It didn't take long to figure out what their punishment would be - they're going to pull out all the stops to keep her from being re-elected! Today's flier may be the first of more we'll see before Tuesday. Without giving her a reasonable opportunity to present her position they have chosen to attack her - to eat their own.

WHAT CRITTERS EAT THEIR OWN, AND WHY?
I thought I'd investigate just what kind of creatures actually do eat their own. I found an interesting article online written a few years ago in the New York Times entitled "They Eat Their Own; the Question is Why", which discusses that very thing. In it, while discussing what kind of societies and critters actually do eat their own, the author says "Chimps seem to do it as an act of revenge or in a burst of malice." Well, there you have it! Except for the spelling of one word, this seems to be exactly what has happened. The chumps of the OC GOP, in a burst of malice, have decided to devour Wendy Leece!

CAMPAIGN AGAINST BULLYING
Today, in our society there is an organized movement to identify and prohibit bullying, primarily in school settings. So pervasive has this behavior become that entire programs in school curricula have been established to combat it. This situation between Leece and the OC GOP is a perfect example of bullying - a trait usually attributed to young folks

ARE REPUBLICANS BULLIES?
In my circle of friends, family and associates there are many Republicans and Democrats and many for whom I have no clue of their political persuasion. None of those I know to be Republicans could ever be described as a bully. Nope, they're just nice folks - like my wife and myself. However, a few of the folks presently active in Costa Mesa politics who are identified as Republicans seem to lean toward bullying as a management technique. A few, but not all.

RIGHEIMER IS ONE...
Among those who I think demonstrate bullying behavior are current Planning Commission Chairman Jim Righeimer - part of the inner circle of the Orange County Republican Party and practically a conjoined twin with Scott Baugh. Some of Righeimer's close associates also use bullying to get their way - they've been mentioned here before.

TREATMENT OF MC EVOY IS AN EXAMPLE
A perfect example of this behavior in this election cycle is the treatment of Chris McEvoy, a man I've described as Costa Mesa's Everyman. Because he presents an impediment to Righeimer being seated on the City Council, Righeimer's supporters have gone after him with a vengeance, spreading lies about his background and ignorantly fabricating issues where none exist. There is nothing the least bit subtle about their actions, either - just as there is nothing subtle about the rage that Scott Baugh and his fellows at the OC GOP obviously hold for Wendy Leece.

JUST WHAT RIGHEIMER WOULD BRING TO THE DAIS
This behavior, in my opinion, is exactly the kind of behavior we can expect if Jim Righeimer is elected to the Costa Mesa City Council on Tuesday. He's demonstrated that characteristic over and over again while on the Planning Commission and during this campaign. He's failed at being elected anywhere before with good reason - other electorates saw him for what he is - an arrogant member of the OC GOP inner circle intent of having his way with our city. As I've said before, Righeimer and the OC GOP are like a swarm of locusts. They will land in our city, devour everything good and green, then fly off to greener pastures leaving waste and destruction in their wake.

TO OC GOP - BUG THE HECK OUT OF COSTA MESA!
Scott Baugh and the OC GOP should be ashamed of themselves for their treatment of Wendy Leece, who only did what she was elected to do by the voters of Costa Mesa - protect and serve our city to the best of her ability. Scott Baugh and his pals at the Orange County Republican Party should keep their grubby paws off Costa Mesa and stay the heck out of our politics! We may not be as urbane and sophisticated as other communities in Orange County (which may be why you've picked us as a target), but we were doing just fine until you morons decided to insert yourselves into our lives and infested us with folks like Chris Steel, Allan Mansoor, Eric Bever, Jim Righeimer and others. Leave us alone so we can sort out our problems without our elected leaders looking to you to provide the playbook. Some of us over here in Costa Mesa are actually smart enough to do that, you know. Unlike your boy, our current mayor, some of us are actually capable of generating an original thought or two and can actually build consensus within the community to get things done without the stench of your interference lingering in the air like a ripe outhouse. Go away, and take your band of bullies and their threats with you.