PUBLIC FORUM.Never free Re ``Bombshell! A trash fee?'' (May 14): Whoa! Trash pickup has never been free in the San Fernando Valley San Fernando Valley Valley, southern California, U.S. Northwest of central Los Angeles, the valley is bounded by the San Gabriel, Santa Susana, and Santa Monica mountains and the Simi Hills. . In 1955, when we moved to the Valley, we paid a fee of $7 per month for trash pickup. Sometime between that year and 1963, we voted to have that fee incorporated into the property tax and our taxes went up accordingly. To my knowledge that bill was never revoked and our trash pickup has continued to be covered in our property tax. It would be interesting to do some research and find out just when and how those fees were converted so that they no longer show the purpose for which they were intended. Believe me, we're paying for those services one way or another. - Marilyn Sims Reseda Politics of trash Re ``Bombshell! A trash fee?'' (May 14): Your article quotes Sherry Bebitch Jeffe from USC An abbreviation for U.S. Code. as saying ``that the politics of trash go back to mayoral battles between former Mayors Sam Yorty and Tom Bradley Noun 1. Tom Bradley - United States politician who was elected the first black mayor of Los Angeles (1917-1998) Bradley, Thomas Bradley over whether trash should be combined or separated into recyclable bins.'' While the Yorty-Bradley battles of 1969 and 1973 were characterized by much ``trash talk trash talk n. Disparaging, often insulting or vulgar speech about another person or group. ,'' the politics of trash separation surfaced in 1961 when Sam Yorty accused incumbent Mayor Norris Poulson C. Norris Poulson (July 23, 1895 – September 25, 1982) served as mayor of Los Angeles, California from 1953 to 1961, after having been a California state assemblyman and then a member of the United States Congress for eight years. of ``forcing Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. housewives to perform coolie labor coolie labor, term applied to unskilled laborers from Asia, especially from India and China. With the discontinuance of slavery, the use of Chinese and Indian contract labor in British and French colonies increased. for a salvage firm.'' - Rexford Olliff Mission Hills Usurous rental fee Re ``Bombshell! A trash fee?'' (May 14): I checked my bill today and found that I'm paying $22 per month to rent my trash cans from the city. That means that I have paid about $1,320 for trash can rental over the past five years. Only one can has broken in five years and I can go to the hardware store and buy a new can for about $150. I don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. how many trash cans the city bills for each year, but this seems to show that the city is making a huge profit on trash can rental alone. With that in mind, any attempt to add a huge hauling fee on top of this usurious usurious adj. referring to the interest on a debt which exceeds the maximum interest rate allowed by law. (See: usury) rental charge will turn this citizen from angry to activist. - Bill Johnson Bill Johnson may refer to:
Granada Hills All I got ... Re ``Bombshell! A trash fee?'' (May 14): I though that property taxes were for city services, roads, police, fire protection, etc. (And trash collection so we can keep the city beautiful.) What I get instead is potholes, rough roads, poor response to criminal activities (great fire protection, however), and two pandering and crazy mayoral candidates. - Rupert Stechman Northridge Extremists Re ``Extremists at the border'' (Their Opinions, May 16): While I was reading the article by Amanda Susskind and Joanna Mendelson, I couldn't help but notice that they spent a good amount of time defaming anyone who is against illegal immigration. Do these two employees of the Anti-Defamation League Anti-Defamation League B’nai B’rith organization which fights anti-Semitism. [Am. Hist.: Wigoder, 33] See : Anti-Semitism understand what the word hypocrisy means? - Dennis Wilkinson Canoga Park No other point of view Re ``Universities need a little Limbaugh'' (Viewpoint, May 15): I think we have had enough of Rush and his cronies both on the radio and TV and in our current governments. It seems to me when his people take over they do their best to change America's famous diversity. They oppose filibusters, want to change the Constitution to ban gay marriage, bow and scrape to the Christian right wing and seem to think no other point of view should be considered. They lie and cheat as good as the best of them and they have cost untold thousand of deaths in the Middle East and show very little sorrow for that. No, Leonard Adelman, we need as much balance as we can find in our society and Rush would be the last to stand up for that. - Albert Cohen Sherman Oaks Immigration reform? Re ``McCain, Kennedy co-sponsor immigration reform bill'' (May 13): ``And we need to modernize our broken immigration immigration, entrance of a person (an alien) into a new country for the purpose of establishing permanent residence. Motives for immigration, like those for migration generally, are often economic, although religious or political factors may be very important. system to meet the 21st century.'' So say Sens. Ted Kennedy and John McCain. So I read in the paper their bipartisan ``sweeping proposal.'' Problem is it is the same plan President Bush was raked over the coals for a couple of years ago. I guess the press and two dinosaurs that have been in the Senate a total of 62 years think we don't pay attention to what is going on. Too bad McCain and Kennedy aren't journalists; at least we could charge them with plagiarism Using ideas, plots, text and other intellectual property developed by someone else while claiming it is your original work. . - Robert Gardner Sylmar I was there Re ``Remember the '30s?'' (Your Opinions, May 15): I remember the '30s and even the late '20s when our family sat down for dinner and my father said, ``You can put all you want on your plate, but whatever you put on your plate you must eat.'' This was my lesson in self- responsibility and discipline. The writer assumes that I didn't invest outside of SS and that I chose to spend my money on something else. Because I did invest, I am now a firm believer that all workers should be given a chance to invest part of their 6.2 percent FICA FICA abbr. Federal Insurance Contributions Act Noun 1. FICA - a tax on employees and employers that is used to fund the Social Security system income tax - a personal tax levied on annual income (tax) in private accounts, which they would own. Poor and middle-class workers may not have any additional funds to invest. - William R. Zelenka Granada Hills Family-friendly venue I find it unnecessary to hire uniformed police officers to patrol the Dodger Stadium stands. It is a family-friendly venue; people like to go watch a baseball game in peace. With all the cops around, it's going to feel uncomfortable and only add more tensions. Let's not make a fun place like Dodger Stadium a replica of modern-day airports. - Christy Reyes Sun Valley Ribbons and flags Re ``Really support troops'' (Your Opinions, May 15): James Gotcher is in over his head. I am the commander of Post 507 American Legion American Legion, national association of male and female war veterans, founded (1919) in Paris. Membership is open to veterans of World Wars I and II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War. Newhall-Saugus. We wear our ribbons with pride. Last year for Christmas we had a party for returning veterans and their families. We fed them and gave their children presents. We also sent care packages to Iraq. We plan on doing the same thing this year. We have contacted all our representatives to see why our troops don't get a pay raise when we send billions to other nations and pay for the medical insurance of illegal aliens. We will continue to fly our flags at home and put the ribbons on our cars until all these men and women come home. - Edward Elks Panorama City Then and now Re ``Now that's a lie'' (Your Opinions, May 9): Although I did not condone of Bill Clinton's sexual actions while in our White House, the reason for his impeachment impeachment, formal accusation issued by a legislature against a public official charged with crime or other serious misconduct. In a looser sense the term is sometimes applied also to the trial by the legislature that may follow. was lying under oath Noun 1. lying under oath - criminal offense of making false statements under oath bearing false witness, perjury infraction, misdemeanor, misdemeanour, violation, infringement - a crime less serious than a felony about his sexual encounters and nothing else. Kenneth Starr and the religious right wing wanted him out of office the day he was first voted in. They tried to get him on corruption with the Whitewater scandal and could not find any evidence. So they went for his weak spot - womanizing wom·an·ize v. woman·ized, woman·iz·ing, woman·iz·es v.intr. To pursue women lecherously. v.tr. To give female characteristics to; feminize. - and they got him, knowing he, as they themselves, would lie about his infidelity. That cost the taxpayers millions of dollars - just to satisfy Starr and his religious groups. And now we have a president who lies to the American people every day and there is plenty of evidence of that. - Nina Trotta-Sutton Simi Valley Ridicule this When abortion was legalized in 1973, right-wing nuts said abortions would soon be legal right up to the moment of birth, that children would have abortions without parental notification, that the federal government would fund abortion and that a good part of the world would follow America's lead. The left ridiculed them. Now, the right-wing nuts are saying that the inconveniently handicapped, injured, and aged will soon be lethally injected on a regular basis. Anyone feeling nervous? - Michael J. Nowland Simi Valley |
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