RANDOMLetters

Toberman Shake-up

(Online at www.randomlengthsnews.com)

Thanks to Random Lengths

News for getting this hot news item out so early.

Our community holds a vital and urgent need to know about the Toberman Center’s hiring of a gang intervention director with a history of racist acts and speech.

Former Beverly Hills Police Chief Sandra Spagnoli’s past racist behavior was outlined in scores of allegations contained in the 24 lawsuits that cost that city $8 million.

It’s truly an insult to the community, and especially to the young people, to hire a white racist cop for a gang prevention post.

It’s an insult to minority youth who already know how to spy a racist; just how effective can she be with that particular subset of our community? As I understand things, minority kids don’t exactly love racist cops, especially the white ones.

It’s an insult to the donor community to hire somebody with such a long list of liabilities — amounting to $8 million. I know that there’s insurance for that sort of thing, but do donors to Toberman really want to see the institution spend more on insurance? Is that in the donor community’s best interest?

Finally, about rumors, Ms. Kiyan...

Rumors did not get her fired. Rumors did not cause the City of Beverly Hills to cough up $8 million in settlements.

The multitude of allegations of her racist behavior toward a multitude of different ethnicities and religious groups contained in 24 lawsuits weren’t rumors. They are a matter of public record, not water cooler scuttlebutt.

I will say this, though. Rumor has it Toberman will find a less contentious post for Ms. Spagnoli’s second, or is it 25th, chance.

Ryan Gierach Retired editor, publisher [WeHo News]

San Pedro

Re: Striking Local Bakery Workers

(Online at www.randomlengthsnews.com)

In regard to the subject line referenced article, after reading the text of the piece at your website, I’d bet the rent money that Mr. Friedman has never — himself — set up and run a business enterprise of any type. However, he shouldn’t consider himself “alone” in this respect as the same can be said of Janice Hahn, Maria Elena Durazo, Bernie Sanders, Kevin DeLeon, Joe Biden, Eric Garcetti and approximately 92% of the California Legislature. By the way, Rich Corporation pays 90% of the medical benefits for these rank-and-file workers. Any idea of what that costs?

As for Cristina Lujan the question(s) I’d asked: Why didn’t she quit her factory job and seek out higher wages elsewhere? After 19 years? Come on, I’d seek out a better paying job after a year or two!

Alas, two things come to mind 1) The type of people who do that have hit their employable capability ceiling, either by way of functional illiteracy or very simply, because the factory is close to her home and she hasn’t the drive within her, to venture outside her comfort zone and or get some training with which to earn a higher income. Teenagers do that, not heads of household. This too, is blatantly obvious.

Further, not one of these type(s) of factory positions was nor were, ever intended to supply a family of 6 or 8 with lifetime salary and benefits, to include college for the kids! There is no free lunch.

And you and your local readers had best get it through your collective heads, that government “officials” who back this type of labor action — again — have never themselves, set up and run a business enterprise of any type — they’re after these peoples’ vote(s), period!

The only reason the ILWU is still empowered in the port area is because the bay and the port itself is non-transferable by its very nature and thereby, cannot be relocated. This is a fiscal fact, just ask Elon Musk who decided against bringing his Falcon 10 assembly ops to the east side of the main channel.

Lastly, when the Rich Products Corporation decides it has had all the fun it can stand in California and with Los Angeles County in particular, they’ll pack it up, and move out of state, just like 10,000 other businesses have since 2009. The “officials” backing this strike will suffer no consequences, and when that move happens — and it will if taxation and the cost of operations continue to climb — the wages of the rank-and-file, regardless of their complexion, will be zero, no matter what union organizers, these nincompoop “officials” or anybody else says.

Paul C. Christian San Pedro

Dear Mr. Christian,

For far too long large corporations have taken advantage of minorities and women of color working in production jobs. It is easy for you to tell them that they should just move on to a better job somewhere else or go back to school to get an education, but that however is beyond the reality of most workers raising a family on low wages. What is within their ability is to organize a union and negotiate a better wage contract. And contrary to your belief about Elon Musk and his billionaire buddies packing up and leaving the 5th largest economy in the world, you might want to consider exactly why all of these other Fortune 500 companies are sticking with California. Sure you can move your business to a right-to-work state like Texas and have the entire power grid frozen by a winter storm or your operations flooded by the next hurricane, but California has the weather, the market and the location among other things like the best public universities.

The issue is the economy is doing just fine here but only if you are not in the lower working class making less than $32,793 a year. According to the LA Almanac a family of four needs to make $65,587 to $196,760 just to be in the dwindling middle class.

James Preston Allen,

Publisher

Capital Insurrection

RLN, Jan. 6, 2022

In reviewing our unfortunate Jan. 6, 2021 insurrection I have needed to prioritize my activities and attitudes.

Despite the flaws in our former slave state that clings to capitalism and greed as if to a last dying breath, I do not want to lose the elements of fair elections such as one person one vote and truthful leaders. From now until election day in November, I will work for the election of reasonable, hard working politicians.

I will not allow the rabble, who are too fixed on fear and grievance politics to make a shambles of this nation. The John Lewis Freedom to Vote Act is essential to our democracy! The fecal remnant of slavery, the filibuster must go as well. Robin Doyno Mar Vista

From Dark to Light

If the U.S. returns to a pattern of greater competency and responsibility in Statesmanship, its soft power and prestige will probably once again prove resilient. Although, if the U.S. chooses a course of narrow economic nationalism and gratuitous provocation of its closest allies, then the balance of possibilities may well tip in favor of the darker scenario.

The quality of U.S. global leadership is above all, the caliber of the President. We can remember how the Covid spread here in the U.S. and the contradictory edicts that followed with unproven medicine and conspiracies that were without any science. We know China was hiding the true nature of the Covid pandemic, although we were shocked when the Donald Trump administration was praising Beijing for doing a good job.

To bring about the positive future in America, it will require good leadership as well as our country to sacrifice narrow selfinterest for pursuing a larger global good for the country and the world.

What was lacking in the past presidency is a reminder of just how dramatically U.S. performance will have to change to tip the balance from a dark future to a brighter one.

John Winkler San Pedro