One’s been a social justice careerist; the other a commercial dynamo. Karen Bass and Rick Caruso are half-complete candidates – for Mayor of their own halves of LA
The two candidates for Mayor of the city of Los Angeles, we must acknowledge, are fully mature: Rick Caruso is 63 until January; Karen Bass turned 69 October 3rd. If these ages, presented to an LA whose median age is 35.9 years, tell you anything about our present city, it’s that to get to be a mayoral candidate, you can’t rely on youthful charm alone.
But even at this late point of the open seat race for hegemony of the world’s most polyglot city, I care less about this choice than you might think. As is yours, I’m sure, my enthusiasm for the LA that I have known these past 65 years is presently at its most diminished point ever. For, as with our past two presidential elections, one candidate represents a certain disaster, and the other an incalculable risk, neither one capable of delivering much to anentire city. No, each is presently only capable of being Mayor to half of it.
Karen Bass, a career agitator+legistator whose campaign consists of promising more of the same on nearly every failed policy that helped blight the blighted half of LA, is the certain disaster. But here is no clear-cut choice for taking the riskier proposition: Rick Caruso, the deeply-invested, home-grown mall developer is a man of many conflicting, nearly schizoid guiding principles – just the kind of schizoid guiding principles it takes to become a billionaire and a highly successful commercial developer – is an incalculable risk even for his own half of LA, the commercial half, for as many reasons as I can find telling disappointments in Bass’s past.
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1 Comment
The sad truth for those of us impacted by our proximity to Los Angeles is that while the LA City Council does not represent us their decisions significantly impact us.
The reality is Whatever the Los Angeles City Council does impacts the entire County.
With regard to an appointed or hired by council attorney all spectators need to do to see how that doesn’t work is observe Inglewood.
Yep an independent elected by the community attorney if carefully considered rather than a high schoolesq popularity contest should provide residents with someone unafraid of losing their income when giving advise to the dictator who thinks he is God.
There is wisdom in independent and the opportunity to publicly share in the public’s best interest the foolishness of having city vehicles used as personal privilege, the complete stupidity of hiring based on friendship and family rather than skill set/education/experience.
Most of us would gasp or choke if we were to discover how many dollars we have paid to outside attorneys for hours spent dealing with workplace/ sexual/ harassment claims even without the many settlements and pending claims….ALL OF WHICH COULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED .
Unfortunately Los Angeles residents have a very difficult decision to make. Neither option is “clearly to best” .The saving grace for Los Angeles is their councilmembers understand their role is to debate and discuss pros and cons publicly (as the Brown act requires), and the each votes independently.
…yes their have been those who sold their souls for extra dollars, but unlike Inglewood NO LOS ANGELES COUNCIL MEMBER has threatened to have some one expressing themselves with arrest !!