PUBLIC FORUM BELMONT LEARNING CENTER.

Build it. The lowest, closed-in floors can be occupied by the Board of Supervisors, the City Council, the Board of Education, the mayor and a visiting room for Jackie Goldberg.

Upper floors can be used as a parking lot for City Hall or government buildings (whichever is more difficult) and have a private low cost shuttle service to those points. All occupants of lower floors must sign releases as to any future lawsuits against the city.

- Mortie Goldman

Mission Hills

Don't bet on it

Re ``Crime-fighting gamble'' (Dec. 1):

Regarding the cutbacks on LAPD's special units, sure makes you feel secure knowing crime-fighting units such as DARE, EODD and Personnel Backgrounds and others aren't being affected in the cutback of such nonessential units as CECAT (auto theft prevention unit), and COBRA (criminal surveillance teams). Good moves, chiefs.

- Doug Hamilton 

Santa Clarita 

A bad ending

Graceful ending? When and if Al Gore concedes this election, he'll have been about as graceful as Glenn Close in ``Fatal Attraction.''

- Michael Guetzow

Woodland Hills

True colors

No matter who wins the presidential election the votes in Florida are tainted and will continue to be tainted, even after the election. I don't believe how these politicians are acting. Or should I say they're acting true to their colors?

- Neal M. Graney

Los Angeles 

Way too far

I feel that Al Gore is going way too far with him maybe becoming president. We have been waiting for almost a month now. He is doing some unnecessary things - such as bringing this matter to court. I want to know why this has gone as far as it has. I mean someone is going to be unhappy anyway.

- Alisha Lorson

Lake Hughes

The bitter end 

Florida is a state with a history of voting irregularities. While Jeb Bush has recused himself and may have done nothing wrong, there are probably friends of Jeb who wanted to make things happen for his brother.

From the very beginning Gore has offered to recount the entire state, not just the three counties being contested. Bush refused. The only reason for Bush's refusal to do so must have been his belief that a recount would lose him the election. I think Gore should fight til the bitter end (and bitter it will be if Bush wins) until all questionable votes have been counted.

- Sheila Cooley

Van Nuys

Concede graciously

On the death of President Franklin Roosevelt in 1945, Harry S Truman succeeded to the presidency. He came up for re-election in 1948. His Republican opponent was Thomas E. Dewey. After a hard-fought, vigorous campaign, the Chicago Daily News in bold headlines read ``Dewey Defeats Truman.'' Truman, acknowledging defeat, went upstairs to his hotel room and went to sleep. However, the next morning, much to his surprise, after a narrow victory, he became our 33rd president. Thomas Dewey graciously conceded.

Al Gore, if George Bush wins by a narrow margin, can't you also concede graciously?

- G. McClish

Sylmar

Evil genius

Don't blame Al Gore for the upheaval in Florida. Neither he nor Lieberman have the brazen, shameless, cast-iron guts to persist in this daylight robbery. Gore would have conceded weeks ago were it not for the evil genius driving him.

President Clinton has said that he would leave the White House kicking and screaming. The debacle in Florida proves him to be true to his word.

Clinton needs a Gore win so he can remain in power - albeit the power behind the throne. He has made no secret of the fact his goal is to change the world. His success in this endeavor can be observed in America today, which is well on its way to becoming the most populous Third World country in history.

- R. Ginter

Simi Valley

Bush in National Guard

Re M. Bigelow's letter (Public Forum, Dec. 5) that states: ``The American people voted for a draft dodger and he was elected president.'' Neither Clinton nor Reagan were draft dodgers, but Reagan was trading with the enemy.

And, by the way, if reporters aren't in combat, how come so many get killed covering combat?

- Alex Kwechansky

Sherman Oaks

The important part

Regarding Louis Robins' latest humorous contribution (Public Forum, Dec. 5): He claimed Mona Charen should have told George W. Bush (instead of Al Gore) to quit the race since Gore received 300,000 more votes. I was going to ask Robins: What part of the Constitution do you not understand?

But given his past letters, I will rephrase it as, Is there any part of the Constitution you do understand?

- Geoff Teare

Castaic

Where the fault lies

Your cartoonist, three letter writers and your poll respondents of the Nov. 30 Daily News have it all wrong. The Boy Scouts of America put the noose around their own necks; the BSA leadership could have simply ignored the statement by the Eagle Scout that he is gay. After all, he was only telling the truth.

Instead, they took action against him and won the right to discriminate after a U.S. Supreme Court decision earlier this year. And now they're suffering the consequences. The fault lies squarely at their feet.

- Richard P. Meisel

Santa Monica

We've had it

The unanimous decision of the L.A. City Council to deny facilities for the Boy Scouts was a despicable political act that will only hurt innocent children. It's about time the voters stand up and say to the council members, we have had enough.

Without question L.A. is the worst-run major city in the nation. I have several suggestions. Since term limits do not work, reject all politicians who run for another office. Some good people will be lost, but the message that we expect better performance from our elected officials is more important. Second, redistrict the city to break up the fiefdoms, which allow council members who do not represent the best interests of the city to prosper in office.

- Sion Colvin

Woodland Hills

Granada Hills parade

What a shame your story on the Granada Hills Holiday Parade was so negative. Three paragraphs provide a very meager outline of the parade while 10 paragraphs relate to the towing of vehicles.

The Granada Hills Holiday Parade, which is youth-oriented, provides an outlet for both children and adults to usher in the holidays. Some of the positive aspects of the 2000 parade were: 4,000 young people expressing themselves creatively in the parade; just under 1,000 adults joining them; more than 150 units in the parade - bands, drill teams, equestrians, youth groups, homemade floats, service clubs and automobiles; a crowd of at least 25,000 spectators; a dozen and a half young actors and actresses from a variety of television shows who came out to meet their fans; participation by Police Chief Bernard Parks; and a glorious day that matched the parade theme, ``Holidays California Style.''

Also evident in this parade: the Granada Hills Chamber of Commerce, which puts on what is at best a break-even event to give back to the community that supports it and its members; a group of volunteers who devote a significant amount of their time each year to organize the parade; local businessman John Ciccarelli, who has brought these volunteers together for all 17 years of the Holiday Parade and is the heart and soul of this event; and the support of both businesses and residents for this event. The Granada Hills Chamber of Commerce is responsible for the organization of 28 straight years of parades, commencing in 1973 as a Youth in Action Parade and becoming a holiday parade in 1984.

Instead of providing your readers with any of these facts about the event or its background, the story focused on the complaints of a few individuals who could not be bothered to read and comply with the hundreds of conspicuously placed no parking signs posted by city officials days before the event.

- John F. Weitkamp

Granada Hills