Category Archives: Glendale-Burbank

My Sunday Column: Water (wars) provide a lesson in government — and the reason why cynicism has won

Posted on June 14, 2013 by

Many government meetings are broadcast live and archived with a vast array of official records posted online. Mainstream media may be on financial life support, but more than half the adult population still reads a newspaper daily, in print or … Continue reading →

Posted in DWP, Glendale-Burbank, Hot Topics, Los Angeles | 11 Comments

Why Government Robs You Blind: Because It Can — They Make and Enforce the Laws and Frighten You into Submission

Posted on June 10, 2013 by

Between pass-throughs and rate hikes and surcharges and transfers to other uses, you might have noticed your bills for water and power have been soaring for years. You ain’t seen nothing yet — utilities are the certain cash cow for … Continue reading →

Posted in City Hall, DWP, Glendale-Burbank, Hot Topics, Los Angeles | Tagged , , | 24 Comments

My Sunday Column: Giving into IBEW Blackmail or Fighting It — With Rates Soaring, the Moment of Truth Is Near

Posted on June 8, 2013 by

In Glendale, utility workers found their paychecks a little smaller last week — the price of the inability of their union, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 18, to negotiate an initial contract two years after winning the right … Continue reading →

Posted in City Hall, DWP, Glendale-Burbank, Hot Topics, Los Angeles | 11 Comments

My Sunday Column: The Valley’s Missed Opportunity

Posted on June 1, 2013 by

The meeting started late and it started badly, with a 10-minute argument about approving the minutes of the last meeting. Then it headed downhill. Issues that were raised were sent to committees for further study, though no one was quite … Continue reading →

Posted in City Hall, Community Activists, Glendale-Burbank, Hot Topics, LA County, Los Angeles, The Valley | Tagged | 11 Comments

My Sunday Column: Memorial Day’s Lost Meaning Relevant Again — Healing the Wounds of a Nation Divided Against Itself

Posted on May 25, 2013 by

In the dismal Los Angeles election cycle that mercifully concluded on May 21, much was made about the lack of women in high places if Wendy Greuel didn’t win the mayor’s race. Greuel herself played the gender card over and … Continue reading →

Posted in 2013 Election, 2013 LA Elections, City Hall, Glendale-Burbank, Hot Topics, Los Angeles | 30 Comments

My Sunday Column: Brains, talent, too much ambition — Paul Krekorian Angers Many in Little Armenia by Role in CD 13 Race

Posted on May 19, 2013 by

In the costliest and most vicious City Council race of the Los Angeles election season, the battle for Hollywood has shattered beliefs about Armenian solidarity, with Paul Krekorian‘s role seen as causing deep rifts in the community. Little Armenia in … Continue reading →

Posted in 2013 Election, 2013 LA Elections, City Hall, Community Activists, Glendale-Burbank, Hot Topics, Los Angeles | Tagged , , , , , | 8 Comments

Happy Days Are Here Again for City Treasuries So Bureaucrats Are Padding Their Paychecks

Posted on May 17, 2013 by

Here we go again — at the first sign of recovery from the worst recession since the Great Depression, government officials are gearing up to line their pockets with taxpayer money. The Burbank City Council took the lead last week … Continue reading →

Posted in Glendale-Burbank, Hot Topics | Tagged , | 9 Comments

My Sunday Column: An idea whose time hasn’t come — Assembly Democrats Want Legal Immigrants to Serve on Juries

Posted on May 10, 2013 by

My head spun when I heard Democrats with their super-majority in the state Assembly slammed through a bill that would make California the only state in the nation to let immigrants, legal ones, sit on juries. I thought, “What has … Continue reading →

Posted in Glendale-Burbank, Hot Topics | Tagged , , , , | 37 Comments

My Sunday Column: Standing up to the town bully — Glendale Just Says ‘No’ to the IBEW and Union Bully Brian D’Arcy

Posted on May 4, 2013 by

The sparse front page of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 18 website expresses exactly the message Brian D’Arcy wants his members to get: Rotating photos of protesting workers waving “A DEAL IS A DEAL” signs. It also features … Continue reading →

Posted in City Hall, DWP, Glendale-Burbank, Hot Topics, Los Angeles | Tagged , , , | 30 Comments

My Sunday Column: Glendale and the Armenian Community — Sinanyan admits racist remarks, expresses regrets

Posted on April 20, 2013 by

  It was a week Zareh Sinanyan will never forget. The man who left the Soviet Republic of Armenia as a 14-year-old a quarter century ago took his seat as a Glendale City Councilman on Monday, faced harsh criticism from residents … Continue reading →

Posted in Glendale-Burbank, Hot Topics | Tagged , , | 14 Comments