Boohooism Archives - Page 22 of 28 - Friends For Fullerton's Future

October 23, 2010October 23, 201047th Congressional District

It Gets Worse

As a change of pace and for those who live in that portion of Fullerton that is included in the 47th Congressional District, I present ruminations on the pathetic choice presented to you in the 2010 election.

LorettaNBill — The 007 Motel is right up Anaheim Boulevard!

First, let us speak about the unspeakably stupid, insipid, and yes, truly trashy Loretta Sanchez, the Democrat, who from her home in Palos Verdes has been our representative in Congress for 14 years. Her lame squeaking about things she evidently knows nothing about remind you of the proverbial fingernails on the chalkboard. Her suggestive Christmas cards used to inspire salacious merriment but even those are now useless.

Sanchez has accomplished absolutely nothing in Congress in all those years, and the only saving grace I can think of is that nobody ever expected her to.

On the other side of the aisle we behold the pustulific image of Van Tran, one-time refugee who has taken to the seamier side of American politics like a duck to water. Apart from building a political machine of dubious probity, he has also gouged the taxpayers for an unnecessary housing per diem, as a member of the State Legislature, and his wife was convicted of insurance fraud. And if all that wasn’t bad enough, he was the Dr. Frankenstein that helped created a hideous creature that takes delight in pulling the wings off insects.

Well, what are ya gonna do? You have to vote for somebody. Or not. Some woman named Cecilia Iglesias (related to Julio?) is running as an independent and the deviant hacks over at the unintentionally comical Blue County blog thinks she’s just a troll whose job it is to draw votes away from Sanchez. And you know, that sort of makes me want to do it.

But instead, I recommend a write-in vote. For whom, you ask? Jan Flory’s Dog, that’s who. It’s true that I don’t live in the District; but you could do worse than electing a dead dog to Congress. A lot worse.

October 9, 2010October 11, 2010Boohooism

The “Honorable” Jan Flory, et al.

by Jan Florys Dog28 Comments

Looking down from doggie heaven on you folks I get some interesting perspectives on things. Like right now Fullerton has not a single female liberal running for the city council.

Back in 1982 & 86 it was everyone’s fave featherhead, Molly McClanahan; in 1988 it was Maryevelyn Bryden, a humorless old bat who was trounced by the still marginally cogent Bankhead; in 1992 it was my former broomstick wielding mistress, Jan Flory, who was chain-whipped by the incomprehensible Julie Sa; in 1994, 1998, and 2002 Flory ran again and actually won a couple of times. In 2004 and 2006 Sharon Quirk and Pam Keller emerged, right on cue to claim their liberal XX chromosonal birthright. In 2008 it was the hapless Karen Haluza.

But now, in 2010? Nobody. The closest thing the Fullerton liberal crowd can point to is Doug Chaffee. And he isn’t a woman.

But wait! All is not lost! There’s always the hand-picked Ed Royce candidate and darling of the Dick Ackerman/dim-bulb Federated Republican Women crowd: Patrick McKinley.

On September 7, Jan Flory gave McKinley $200 – more than she spent on dog food for me in ten years. McKinley’s website also boasts the endorsement of McClanahan, too. So what gives?

Are the Fullerton Dems so sad and pathetic that they have to go along with Royce and Ackerman tools, the same repuglican goons who have worked so tirelessly for decades to undermine Democrat candidates and electeds? Remember that Ed Royce was the sole creator of Leland Wilson who knocked off the liberal beloved Flory in 2002.

And you know, now that I come come to think of it, I have to wonder if these endorsements don’t say just as much about McKinley as they do Flory and McClananhan. Hmm.

October 4, 2010November 4, 2010About Us

Cops Love us!

by Joe Sipowicz9 Comments

Well, some cops, anyway, and not in Fullerton!

santa-barbara-mission — That is bee-u-tee-ful.

It transpires that the police union in the beautiful and high-toned town of Santa Barbra are unhappy with their city manager. “Joe” sez you, “so what?”

hot_steamin_manure — A man discovers his true vocation...

Well, it turns out that the City Manager of Santa Barbara is none other than James L. Armstrong, who used to occupy that job description here in Fullerton. The union has discovered our humble blog and shared some of our history lessons.

Although this stuff occurred a few years before my time, this blog has had some great fun recounting the myriad disasters that occurred during the reign of King James I. Things like Redevelopment boondoggles, general unaccountability, high-handed behavior, and the sort of arrogant bullshit that is normally reserved for those who can pull of the Divine Right of Kings gig.

Here’s the post on the website, just in case you’re interested in enjoying the SBPD union’s take on their beloved leader.

Well, we got rid of him, at least.

Update – the link is broken. Here is a back up copy.

September 25, 2010September 25, 2010Boohooism

Fullerton Is Doomed!

by The Desert Rat9 Comments

Out here on Screech Owl Road, east of Twentynine Palms you can see things pretty clearly. Sometimes the heat causes shimmer mirages; sometimes the wind kicks up some devilish sand storms – the kind that can strip the chrome off your Hummer. But most of the time you get used to seeing a long way. Even as far away as my former home, Fullerton.

McKinley2 — Banacek called. He wants his clothes back.

The City Council race of 2010 is already over. You will re-elect the brain dead sea cucumber known as Don Bankhead – pension spiker, staff stooge, abysmal decision maker. And you will also elect Pat McKinley – poster boy for pension abuse, supporter of the hideous Ackerwoman, repuglican de-jour, and yet another retired cop. And it won’t even be close.

Bankhead, Dick Jones, McKinley; please contemplate that triumverate of septuagenarian, lint-headed, RINO back washers and tell me why you aren’t in deep shit. Can anyone say gerontocracy?

In the two-year seat Bruce Whitaker has a chance, but let’s face it: he’s up against a bankrupt and a carpetbagging food poisoner. Really, I don’t see how he can pull it off.

roland-chi-079-200x300 — Aw, none of those folks died...

Fullerton, the Education Community, has a special knack for electing the weak, the feeble-minded, the incomprehensible. Jeez, do I have to draw you a diagram? Molly McClanahan, Buck Catlin, Julie Sa, Peter Godfrey, HeeHaw Jones, Mike Clesceri, Leland Wilson, Pam Keller. This rougues gallery of incompetence even starts to make Jan Flory look good. Well, no, cancel that.

Yes, I believe you are doomed.

September 17, 2010September 17, 2010Arts & Architecture

And Now for Nothing Really Different: Yellowing Observer Bemoans Loss of Fox Block Boondoggle

by Mr. Peabody20 Comments

The folks who write stuff for the Fullerton Observer are either really dumb, or really….

Aw, Hell I can stop right there.

Here’s a bit from page 5 of the recent edition of the bird cage liner noting the reconstruction of the McDonald’s outlet on Chapman and noting that the Council’s failure to blow six million bucks to move it a couple hundred feet has caused the Fox Block project to go belly up and implies that somehow this put the renovation of the Fox Theater in jeopardy.

Wrong! The council finally acted responsibly last summer when they pulled the plug on an emergent disaster of their own creation. And wrong about the “renovation” bullshit, too. Notice how the Observer casually insinuates the idea of “renovation” into the “Fox Block.” Apart from the theater there is nothing to renovate, of course. But the two things were never tied together – except to manipulate the under intelligent.

The whole monstrosity was tied to the Fox Theater restoration to tap into the emotional support for that and gin up support for another downtown monstrosity of corporate welfare. Of course the crew of the S.S. Observer is devoted to the idea that keeping Redevelopment bureaucrats and parasites employed is job one, and common sense be damned.

the-observer-ostrich4-300x225 — What? I can't hear you.

Added to the unintentional high-larity is the writer’s assertion that the developer “spent hours” designing a new Mickey D’s that matched the FHS architecture. Well, he may very well have spent a few hours. The product looked like it.

Instead of bewailing the loss of a sure-fire failure, the Observer should be asking what sort of accountability is going to be demanded of the idiots who cooked up the Fox Block mess in the first place – bureaucrats and electeds, alike.

August 31, 2010August 31, 2010Boohooism

Testosterone-Challenged Hysteria of LiberalOC Reaches Ridiculous Crescendo

by Joe Sipowicz43 Comments

Or maybe Chris had a stranglehold on poor Dan’s nutsack. Hard to tell – there was so much distressed screaming, here.

It seems Dan Chmielewski took great affront (or, as is more likely, really pretended real hard) at 4th District Supervisor Shawn Nelson’s attempt to do something appreciative for US troops in battle zones – have folks send cigars over in honor of a couple of soldiers from OC who were killed in Afghanistan recently. It appears some soldiers really like to smoke a relaxing cigar.

Cue the hysterical emanations from Mr. PC.

Oh! The horror! Lung cancer (you don’t inhale cigar smoke, idiot), lip cancer, “moth” cancer, ovarian cancer, hungry children, wahhhhhhhhhh….

What a sad, pathetic excuse for a man.

Jesus H. these tools should just stick to regurgitating Voice of OC(EA) posts and call it a day.

July 30, 2010July 30, 2010Boohooism

Fullerton Observer Takes Dump On Self. Again.

by The Fullerton Shadow15 Comments

In its page one retelling of events at the last Fullerton School Board meeting, Yellowing Observer Jan Youngman spun out this yarn about the District’s unconscionable arrangement with The Fullerton Collaborative for the services of FSD employee and soon to be ex Fullerton Councilwoman Pam Keller:

Five spoke in opposition to
continuing the relationship,
including the president of FACT
(Fullerton Association of
Concerned Taxpayers), a group
responsible for vicious hit mailers
in past school board and council
campaigns. (The group’s major
funding comes from Bushala
Brothers Inc. Tony Bushala heads
the group FFFF (Friends for
Fullerton’s Future) which has
made both Pam Keller and the
Fullerton Collaborative frequent
targets. FFFF is currently suing
the City of Fullerton.).

Hoo boy! Now there’s a mouthful of tripe, even for one of the Observer crew who can’t discern the difference between editorial and news reporting. We haven’t made Keller or her illicit arrangement with the Collaborative a “target.” Oh, no. That was all her doing – by a multiplicity of conflicts of interest as a councilmember, by skipping out without having to account to anybody for her time, and by remaining an FSD employee with the attendant benefits without having to set foot in a classroom. We only shed some light on the whole rancid deal.

Bad girl. Bad, bad girl.

But back to the egregious Youngman. Important fact, hon. FFFF sued the Redevelopment Agency, not the City. I know it’s next to impossible for you people, but next time do please try to get your facts right. By the way, why is that even relevant to your story?

July 30, 2010May 29, 2011Arts & Architecture

“Public Art” on the Lemon Street Overpass; Are The Inmates Running The Asylum?

by The Desert Rat15 Comments

No, that’s not just crazy talk.

I was just sent the next Public Art Commission’s agenda in which City Staff is proposing that over $100,000 be spent “restoring” those dubious murals that adorn the Lemon Street pedestrian overpass. Here’s the text of the staff report:

ATTACHMENT A
Staff Recommendation for Public Art

After reviewing reports and treatment proposals from contracted professional art historians and conservators, staff has a recommendation for how to proceed with the Lemon Park Murals. The goal of this recommendation is to make progress on the restoration of these important historical pieces of public art in a way that is fiscally responsible and takes into account the directive of the Public Art Committee to continually produce new works while maintaining the City’s rich existing collection. We therefore propose that restoration take place over 5 years. The proposed preliminary plan is as follows:

Year One:

Fall, 2010

Work with the Public Art Committee to revise the list of potential locations for new/restored work to be produced over the next 5 years.

Spring, 2011

Restore “Zoot Suit Riots.” using the services of a professional mural restoration team. The cleaning, consolidation of paint and coating layers, graffiti removal, reintegration (touch-ups) and protection is estimated to total $18,000. “Zoot Suit Riots” is an ideal starting place for mural restoration because the historical significance of the subject matter and its strong aesthetic appeal, and key location.

NOTE: Lemon Park and Maple Community Center renovation project will be under construction in the period beginning between summer – fall 2011. The construction period is estimated at 9 months. The start date for construction will be pending Lemon Park Committee review/recommendation, although it is likely to start in the fall of 2011, to avoid disrupting summer youth programs at the park.

Spring – Summer (production), 2011

Neighborhood youth will be recruited (coordinated with City summer youth programs at Maple Center) to design and execute a new mural that expresses the themes of cultural pride and community solidarity originally intended by the mural entitled “Fullerton.” The existing mural, which is much degraded and heavily vandalized, will be thoroughly documented and covered with a protective varnish, then painted over. The new mural will be processed through the standard application and review procedure by the Public Art Committee. It will be produced by neighborhood teens under the supervision of a professional artist and with input from the Lemon Park Ad Hoc Advisory Committee, and will take its place thematically and visually in the suite of paintings that makes up the entire park.

Fall, 2011
The Public Art Committee will oversee the production of a new, permanent public art piece at the main stage in the downtown plaza.

Year Two:

2012

Restoration of “The Virgin of Guadalupe” and “Girl with Car. Estimated cost (combined) of $32,000.

Based on progress on the Transportation Center Master Plan, we will install a new piece of public art in the pedestrian corridor between Spadra restaurant and the bus depot. Suggestions for this area include three-dimensional awning type installations that invite access to the transportation center and visually expand the downtown and event area south of Commonwealth.

Year Three:

2013

Restore “Calle Elm” and “Come Back Again” by a professional mural restoration team. Combined cost of $24,640

Produce a new piece based on Public Art Committee recommendations

Year Four:

2014
Restore “La Adelita” and “Cross with Crown of Thorns.” Estimate (combined) cost of $26,000

Produce a new piece based on Public Art Committee recommendations.

Year Five:

2015

After four years of restoration we will have some idea how the Lemon/Maple murals are faring and how the new mural produced in year one has been received by the community. With this experience the Committee can develop recommendations for “Brown Car.” This mural has been vandalized numerous times and sustained considerable additional damage since the November, 2008 preliminary report. Based on the current rate of destructive activity, staff does not believe that the estimated $21,000 required for a thorough restoration would be fiscally responsible. Two possibilities present themselves: we could invest in moderate restoration and additional anti graffiti coating to keep the mural intact for as long as possible despite what seems to be relentless vandalism. Or we could document the piece, cover it, and create a new mural under the direction of a professional artist and with the input of community groups such as the Lemon Park Ad Hoc Advisory Committee. Both options present obstacles and opportunities and it is hoped that our experience restoring the other pieces of the original suite over the preceding 4 years will equip us to make a wise choice in 2015.

Note: The murals “The Town I Live In” “Niños del Mundo” and “La Mujer Latina” are in relatively good condition at this time and are not included in this 5-year restoration plan. They will be maintained as needed (graffiti removed, coatings restored, etc.)

Public Art Committee Agenda
July 26, 2010

These paintings have been the source of some controversy for quite some time. Critics question the gang references as well as the deterioration and gang graffiti they seem to invite. Others doubt the artistic value.

Although some folks in the community have suddenly taken a proprietary interest in the murals, this interest doesn’t seem to extend to actually paying to clean them up.

In 1995 the restoration of the Kassler Mural on the side of the Plummer Auditorium only cost about $25,000 – of which half was made up of a matching Redevelopment grant. Hundreds upon hundreds of volunteer hours were spent stripping and cleaning that work of art. That participation proved the value to the community.

So the question is: who really wants to “restore” the Lemon Bridge murals, and what are they willing to pay for it?

July 25, 2010Big Brother

The Wishing Well, Once A Mayor’s Crib; Now A Bottomless Money Hole

by admin11 Comments

IMG00037-20100723-0855 — The Wishing Well Apartments. Someone's wish just came true.

For those interested in obscure Fullerton history, Louis Valasquez lived in the Wishing Well apartments at 466 West Valencia Dr. while serving as the Mayor of Fullerton in 1979.

Those more curious about modern-day Redevelopment Agency boondoggles, may be interested to learn that this past week the Fullerton City Council voted to sell the Agency owned Wishing Well Apartments to an out of town “developer” for $100.

The Fullerton Redevelopment Agency purchased the ol’ Wishing Well for $1,993,433 and paid an additional $60,930 to kick out (relocate) all the tenants that resided in the 16 unit building. On top of that the Agency is going to give the out-of-towners an additional $184,347 to “rehab” the apartments, provided the developer rents the apartments to low income tenants. Here in Orange County “low income” is 50% of the median income – which for a family of 3 is $70,890. This means that people that make around $35,445 will be living in the Brand Spanking New Wishing Well. I’ll bet ya the previous tenants made less than $35,445 per year. So in reality the city kicked out the poor folks in order to replace them with richer poor folks.

Now that’s not very good is it?

And if the units were so dilapidated, why didn’t City Code Enforcement simply cite the landlord and require the units to be standard units?

I think I’ll do a follow-up post and focus on code enforcement failures under Don Bankhead’s and Dick Jones’s years of “leadership.”

July 24, 2010Arts & Architecture

“Would you support our efforts to make our neighborhood historic?”

by admin20 Comments

I received this post from a Friend who wishes to remain anonymous for reasons that you may understand after you read this post.

Think historic neighborhoods. Immediately, one’s mind goes to such places such as Bungalow Heaven in Pasadena, Harper’s Ferry, West Virginia and others where houses, landscape, and layout reflect a distinct architectural coherence.

What we don’t think of is the hodgepodge of homes built over a span of more than fifty years within the boundaries of Skyline, Frances, Luanne, Canon and Lemon here in Fullerton. True, the neighborhood has a sort of charm. But this four block area (oddly denuded of trees) doesn’t fit the definition as historic.

Yet, for over twenty years, this neighborhood has been besieged by a small but persistent group to designate itself as such. The original movement came about when a neighbor (who has since moved away) decided the mix of 60’s ranch homes, 30’s Spanish Mediterranean and 80’s boxes needed to be protected.

Why? Because the empty lot behind her house, which she had enjoyed as her own personal open space, was going to have a house built upon it. This led to a movement asking for historical designation, with one very vociferous neighbor putting out a letter decrying such crimes as pink flamingos in yards. It ended when a flock of roving pink flamingos went from yard to yard, to rebuke this snobbishness. It was clear then, as it is now, that the historic designation is more to control everything from the color of homes, the installation of skylights, solar panels, to pink flamingos in yards.

In more recent years, the issue was raised again when a member of the Fullerton Heritage group moved into the neighborhood. This woman could often be seen taking photographs of her neighbor’s homes. She personally crossed the boundaries of neighborliness by posting a photo of one on their website as an example of “muddled and conflicted” architecture. Battle axes were raised when during a neighborhood meeting, an argument ensued. This busybody sat in the back, mute –rendering herself all but invisible. At no point did she offer any explanation why this issue meant so much to her that she was willing to pit neighbor against neighbor.

The reasons for not wanting this ridiculous designation are simple.

1. There’s no consistent architectural coherence in the boundaries of Lemon, Skyline, Frances, Luanne and Canon. While there are individual examples of historically significant architectural styles, as a neighborhood – it lacks consistency and coherence.

2. It would give Fullerton Heritage – and the City Planning Department far too much power over our neighborhood. Note, they already have ultimate veto power over designs submitted to the city for everything from new development to remodeling in other neighborhoods designated as a historical zone. In one neighborhood, they vetoed the homeowner’s request to install a skylight. Such oversight is petty, and subject to the changing whims of the board.

3. This will lead to more “fake old” McSpanish architecture. Another uninformed member of the Fullerton Heritage group noted at a meeting at Hillcrest Park that she thought the predominant style in the neighborhood should be “Spanish Mediterranean,” whatever that means.

4. The $1000 fee for the designation doesn’t even begin to cover the costs of actual staff time. In addition, this doesn’t cover the costs of ordered revisions by the owner’s architects or engineers. Fees like this are never gotten rid of, rather, the fee could be raised and the neighborhood would have no control over the amount they have to pay.

5. The city of Fullerton has a permit process already in place. This is an added layer of bureaucracy with not only more additional staff time needed, but oversight from an outside organization (Fullerton Heritage).

6. A small cadre of neighbors has already been vociferous to the point of rudeness about things they don’t like: the color of a neighbor’s home, plantings, flamingos, and more. Worse, their gossip has hit people in ways that have become personal. While we realize they are voicing their opinion, we’d hate to give them permission to authorize or disapprove on any official level.

At some point one must work with and trust the neighbors. Most of the neighbors who support this notion have lived in the area for 40 years without the intervention of the city. Why they think they should leave future generations with a law to be enforced long after they have enjoyed their own latitude –is for reasons of ego. While the notion of a historic neighborhood seems appealing, in reality it is cumbersome, vague and will leave future homeowner’s with no choice but to deal with more government and bureaucracy. It was clear twenty years ago as it is now: these people need to get a life.

All we can do is work with one another, and be neighborly but not meddlesome.