Letters To The Editor

In support 
of MM

   To the editor:
   Re: Proposition MM: If our City of Santa Monica is on the cutting edge of environmental protections then it only makes sense that we come out of the dark ages and vote for MM. Our residents have found one of those lame laws that dates back to the turn of the previous century and we have got to make substantive changes to the unbelievable barage of environmental noise events that surround our Airport. The City has managed to wiggle their way out of responsibility for the crude jet traffic yet we residents are getting smarter by the day as to why......we let them in and we allowed them to build museums and jet centers. We (the airport staff & City) sought federal grants to overlay the runway with new asphalt for the jets to be able to land and take off on a smoother surface; the City even hired an airport manager with a specific duty to acquire the grants. The airport director lied to council members when asked at a budget session "what, if anything, have we done as a city to encourage the jets?"....answer "nothing." This statement was a complete lie and the residents have had to live with the mismanagement of the Airport on a daily 24/7 basis. I encourage all residents to vote for MM.
   Brian H. Ouzounian
   Santa Monica

Big Blue 
is a hit

   To the Editor:
   While local political "leadership" is bogged down with potholes and wage squabbles, the Big Blue Bus and UCLA quietly instituted a simple but dynamite transportation experiment ("Big Blue Bus Teams Up With UCLA," Oct. 4). Someone is doing something to face off the over-automobilization around us.
   The UCLA community can now just flash their IDs for travel anywhere on the Blue lines, thus reducing the insatiable demands of the auto culture for the likes of parking and parking structures.
In fact if they wanted, the City Council could mandate that corporate entities like the...RAND Corporation, which brings throngs of smog spewing cars onto Santa Monica and LA streets, institute this transit fare program.
   Local politicians can call themselves be Green, Red, or White and Blue but this idea is being instituted by the community at large. This transit approach to increase bus use and reduce car presence directly reduces traffic, pollution, danger to human and other life and property, saves fossil fuels, and spares people from the burdens of what owning an auto brings: isolation, fuel costs, insurance, and upkeep. 
   This year I kicked the auto habit and just said no. I gave my car away to charity, and stepped up to a luxury vehicle: the Big Blue Bus. With my enormous savings, I joined the Los Angeles Bus Riders Union, got a new tire for my bike, bought some good walking shoes, and opened a savings account. I am out smelling the roses as you read this seeing these steel chariots whiz by, operators with cell phones firmly in hand and Starbucks in the other.
   Expand the ID program to Santa Monica College, add bike racks to the Blue Buses and now you're talkin.
   Sincerely,
   Andrew Kay Liberman
   Beverly Hills

Libertarian 
candidate 
challenges
opponents

   To the editor: 
   I would like to point out the hypocrisy of the two major party candidates for the 41st State Assembly District (Pavley (D) and Shapiro (R)) in claiming to be pro-choice candidates. It has become the politically correct rally cry of all office seekers to favor "choice," despite the fact their very platforms call for legally or practically limiting the choices of women in a variety of important and personal areas. While Ms. Pavely and Ms. Shapiro support a woman's right to choose to terminate a pregnancy, they do not believe that same woman should have the right to freely choose how best to spend her income, how to care for her own and her family's health, how to plan for her retirement, or how to educate her children.
   As to the latter point, take the example of Proposition 38, the school voucher initiative on this November's ballot, opposed by both Ms. Pavley and Ms. Shapiro. While far from a perfect solution, Proposition 38 takes a step toward freeing children from a failed public school system that consumes more and more tax dollars each year to produce fewer and fewer results. The government monopoly in education provides a great living for administrators and well-connected bureaucrats, but the outlook for the children stuck in the system is far less bright. The sad fact is that the children who need the most help, those with the least support at home, are forced to attend the worst schools. While my two opponents have the luxury to afford where and how to educate their children, parents with less means must watch as their children are legally forced to attend failing schools marked by violence, overcrowding, and disinterested administrators and educators. For many of these children, the future will be one of illiteracy, unemployment, and lives surrounded by poverty and crime. For the mothers of these doomed children, there is no choice.
   A school voucher would allow mothers to put their children into schools that offer much higher chances for a decent education in a decent learning environment. It would allow these women choice in possibly the most important decision in their lives: how and where to educate their children. Contemporary, major party politics has become slogan politics; voters will hear the "pro-choice" slogan uttered repeatedly by both Ms Pavely and Ms. Shapiro in this coming election. I would ask that voters hold these candidates to their slogans and insist they allow women the right to choose in ALL decisions important to them and their families.
   Sincerely,
   Colin Goldman
   Santa Monica, CA
   Ed. note: Goldman is the Libertarian candidate for the State Assembly 

Yes to
Target

   To the editor:
   My husband and I would greatly appreciate the convenience of having Target located in downtown Santa Monica. It would greatly benefit Santa Monica residents, and we hope that a Santa Monica branch of Target becomes a reality soon!
   Thank you very much.
   Kate and Tom Runyan
   Santa Monica 

A Clarification

   To the editor:
   Re: Target Article/October 11-17
   I want to clarify some of the statements in the above referenced article. 
   1. 80% of the cars currently on the Henshey parking lot are monthly parkers per the operator of the lot, Standard Parking. 
   2. The $100 million refers to retail sales "leaking" from Santa Monica in the general category of affordable shopping, not just Target shoppers. 
   3. Mr. Catoe never said to me, "This will not happen right now," but rather that there was too much resistance to the parking structure and that it would not happen. 
   Craig B. Johnson
   Senior Vice President 
   Pacifica Capital Group
   Marina del Rey
   Ed. note: While the Mirror is happy to print the foregoing clarification, it stands by its story which was based on interviews with Johnson, and a Target official, as well as a packet of facts and figures assembled by Target.

In Favor of 
Homeless
Programs 

   To the Editor:
   As a board member of the Ocean Park Community Center (OPCC), I am proud of the constructive solutions this agency makes available to our community's homeless population. Through extensive outreach, OPCC connects with approximately 200 homeless individuals daily, making emergency services available as well as providing long-term case management. Many members of the homeless population are unable to care for themselves, either because of mental illness or Substance abuse. OPCC directs these individuals to rehabilitation and health programs that can assist them in getting off the streets permanently. Because of the decrease in affordable housing and the historic lack of state-wide services for the mentally ill, our community will continue to witness an increase in homelessness. OPCC is in the trenches each day, as a compassionate connection for providing these people the services they so desperately need. Many of the homeless are from this area, some are low-paid service workers, and many are eager to re-join society. OPCC offers creative, caring programs and guidance to people in need. Homelessness is a national problem, and it is increasing as a result of the growing gap between the rich and the poor. This problem will not simply "go away," unfortunately. The homeless are not on the streets because the Santa Monica service agencies "attract" them. They are on the streets of every city in this country, and Santa Monica is a very densely populated urban environment. With support from the community, OPCC can effectively reach those most in need and begin to get even the long-term homeless off the streets and into safe, healing environments. Homelessness could happen to any of us, or to someone we love. As a long-time Santa Monica citizen, I am grateful to OPCC for its hard-working staff, energetic outreach, and highly effective, compassionate programs.
   Diana Attias
   Santa Monica