Letters to the Editor

City & Mayor Watch

Many thanks to Jay Beeler and Gerrie Schipske for the new column, “City Watch Long Beach.” Somebody needs to be watching this city!

Speaking of which, I wish to also thank our new mayor, Rex Richardson, for giving us a stunning preview or what his tenure as mayor will look like when, at the Feb. 7 council meeting, he announced that four and a half new staff members would be added to the mayor’s office, payment for which will be coming out of the city’s budget “surplus.” This is not in reality a “surplus.” The fact, rather, is that the budget deficit is slightly lower than expected – but it is still in deficit.

Buried in a seemingly innocuous agenda item about the budget in general – the good ol’ bait and switch – these positions were announced with no job descriptions, no financial accountability, no transparency and no public input, continuing in the time-honored Long Beach tradition of vote first, ask questions later.

I would like to thank those councilors who voted no: Daryl Supernaw, Kristina Duggan, and especially Al Austin, who aptly stated at the meeting that “never once has someone from the public said, ‘we need a bigger budget for the mayor’s office.’”

The rationale for this mayoral vanity project – a ludicrous, unnecessary expense, coming out of a deficit budget and citizens’ pockets at a time of the widespread and ever-increasing financial oppression of life in Long Beach – is that hiring these “deputy mayors” will allow the city to be more responsive to citizens.

What? The way to be more responsive to citizens, Mr. Mayor, is to pick up the phone when it rings! Being hired to fulfill a city leadership role and then demanding more money before actually performing that role’s duties is tantamount to extortion.

Again, I thank Mr. Richardson for an early warning as to what we can expect from his administration: probably more of the same, or possibly, for variety, something a little worse. And the beat goes on.

Merry Colvin

Coyote Den

I’m disgusted by the lack of response by the city. [Coyotes Turn Empty LB Home into Den, 2/10/23] Not only regarding the danger or the coyotes themselves, but the predicament the neighbors have been put in. If they were planning to sell their home or now forced to by the circumstances, who’s going to want to buy it?

These people are being held hostage not only by the coyotes, but by the city officials whose salary they are paying. This is criminal.

Diane (via website)

Animal Control can certainly find time to knock on my door and tell me my dogs need to be on a leash in my front yard, yet coyotes can run our city spreading mange, ticks and every other disease.

Do something about the coyotes before we the people will do it our way. Hire more agents.

Hazel Zaccardo

Thankful Childhood

I am sharing this with you because it very accurately describes my life. I grew up in Indiana. I never thought we were poor, neither did any of my neighbors. We came from hard-working, honest, decent families that shared when needed, depended upon each other as necessity arose, and all of us kids played together without jealousy, hate, discrimination nor any sort of concept of difference. We had all races in our town and all levels of economic achievement. None of that mattered to us.

Oh, we knew the Broderick’s were Catholic and had the largest house in the neighborhood and I was thrilled to make friends with their children. I got asked to go inside and see the grand piano. We only had a spinet. They were lovely kind and cultured people who actually had met Rubenstein. We played together regardless.

Frankly I never heard about racism until much later in life. We simply did not live a life that permitted such idiocy. It never occurred to me to treat anyone differently ever. I was taught to respect my elders and never to treat anyone with disrespect. To share what I had with anyone who needed it and to split my lunch at school with any kid who “didn’t have or forgot “ to bring a lunch.

I am sharing this so that others can see the utter criminal mistake we have made by allowing disrespectful behavior to gain hold of children. Children want direction and love. That is all. I learned the value of work because I was praised and rewarded for working. I learned the value of community by participating and being praised for my kindness.

Please rethink how you are dealing with your children. All they will become is due to what you present them.

I grew up and never once questioned my parent’s income; it was never a discussion. We didn’t eat a lot of fast food because it was considered a treat, not a food group. We drank Kool-Aid made from water that came from our kitchen sink with real sugar. We ate bologna sandwiches, or even tuna (which was in a can, not a pouch), PB&J and grilled cheese sandwiches, hot dogs, but mostly homemade meals consisting of meat, potatoes and vegetables.

We grew up during a time when we mowed lawns with a push mower, pulled weeds, babysat, helped neighbors with chores to earn our own money. We by no means were given everything we wanted.

We went outside a lot to play, ride bikes, run with friends, play hide and seek, climb trees or swim. We rarely just sat inside. We drank tap water from the water hose outside, bottled water was unheard of. If we had a Coke, it was in a glass bottle, and we didn’t break it when finished. We saved it and cashed it back in at the store for a refund.

We watched TV shows like Leave It To Beaver, Gilligan’s Island, Happy Days, Bewitched, The Brady Bunch, Looney Tunes, The Flintstones, The Jetsons, Sanford and Son, Disney on Sunday night, Dukes of Hazard, Hee haw, Dallas, Andy Griffith, and I Love Lucy. Mom and dad decided everything we watched or didn’t watch. After school, we came home and did homework and chores, before going outside or having friends over. We would ride our bikes for hours. We had to tell our parents where we were going, who we were going with and be home when the streetlights came on!

You learned from your parents instead of disrespecting them and treating them like they knew nothing. What they said was law, you did not question it and you had better know it!

We watched what we said around our elders because we knew if we disrespected any grown-up, we would get our bottoms slapped. It wasn’t called abuse, it was called discipline!

We held doors, carried groceries and gave up our seat for an older person without being asked. You didn’t hear curse words on the radio in songs or TV. If you cursed and got caught you had a bar of soap stuck in your mouth.

“Please, thank you, yes please, no thank you, yes ma’am, no ma’am yes sir, and no sir” were part of our daily vocabulary!

The world we live in now is full of crooked people, hate and disrespect for others.

Share if you’re thankful for your childhood. I will never forget where I came from and wish children nowadays had half the chance at the fun and respect for real life we grew up with. And we were never bored! If we even said we were bored, our parents gave us plenty to do; we didn’t say we were bored ever again.

Robert Fox (via Facebook)