PUBLIC FORUM.

Two mayors

Re ``Two L.A. mayors?'' (Dec. 12):

Zev Yaroslavsky's proposal to create a county mayor is frightening. If this becomes a reality, it means that the voters of the city of Los Angeles, with a vastly greater population than the balance of the county, would effectively choose that mayor. Excuse me, but haven't the voters of L.A. packed their own City Hall with inept, indifferent and corrupt political hacks? Didn't they just finish letting these hacks scam them into extending their terms?

If there is a county mayor, it means that the concept of the inmates running the asylum will extend into Santa Clarita, Torrance, Glendale and every other community that has worked so hard not to be a part of this madness. Zev, thanks but no thanks.

-- John S. Soet

Burbank

One is enough

Re ``Two L.A. mayors?'' (Dec. 12):

It seems we can barely keep track of one globe-trotting mayor -- now two? Perhaps the supervisors could elect one of them to act as mayor. Or perhaps the addition of a position with staff for half a million dollars or so, is planned to be financed by each county supervisor's allocating one-fifth of his or her budget?

Or perhaps the excess of funds in the county coffers must be spent on something. (There is excess, isn't there?) Maybe there should be talk of reducing expenditures. I thing the supervisors are doing an excellent job in running the county, and the need for one central person to complain to is unnecessary.

-- Ron Spindler

Encino

Tokofsky bows out

Re ``Tokofsky departs'' (Our Opinions, Dec. 12):

Not all will miss David Tokofsky from the Los Angeles Unified School District board, as your article suggests. While touting his support of the LAUSD inspector general, the article ignores that reports from the inspector general are routinely covered up and concealed from the public.

A glaring example is Tokofsky's speech to a class of hundreds of graduating district intern teachers touting what great service LAUSD had done for them while the board was, at the same time, covering up an inspector general report on how the district had cheated those very same teachers, reneging on pay promises made to them and hoping they wouldn't find out.

-- Phil Pearson

Agoura Hills

Voting for David

Re ``Tokofsky departs'' (Our Opinions, Dec. 12):

While most members of the Los Angeles Unified School District community will look back fondly on David Tokofsky's years on the school board, I would like to point out some omissions in your editorial.

David was elected three times, not two. He represented portions of the east San Fernando Valley, generally not too far from San Fernando Road, from 1995 until the latest round of gerrymandering created current school board districts. In 1995, as well as in 1999 and 2003, he was supported by United Teachers Los Angeles. As a UTLA activist in 1995, I remember knocking on doors in the Sun Valley community of my youth, asking my neighbors -- not to mention my mother, then 78 years old -- to vote for David.

-- Ed Kaz 

Chapter chairman,

Reseda High School 

Voting travesty

Re ``End state travesty of a rigged system'' (Their Opinions, Dec. 12):

One hundred percent of the vote? Not in Xavier Becerra's district. I didn't vote for him. Yes, he had no opposition, but 100 percent of the district voters did not vote for him.

A better statistic would be the percentage of the total district vote that was cast for the unopposed candidate. This would more accurately determine the quality of the politician's mandate.

-- Gary D. Barry

Los Angeles

Alarcon's competition

Re ``Uncompetitive edge'' (Our Opinions, Dec. 13):

Regarding your editorial on Richard Alarcon, I am dismayed that you would accept only one candidate for the 7th District council office, someone whose only interest in running for the council is to secure his pension with the city of Los Angeles. His track record shows that he is not willing to complete anything.

Candidate Monica Rodriguez, who did not cut a deal to leave the race, will be competitive, engage the residents of the 7th District and address the issues confronting the 7th District.

-- Juan J. Rodriguez

Arleta

Boyle's curmudgeon 

Re ``Peter Boyle of `Raymond,'`Frankenstein' dies at age 71'' (Dec. 13):

Needless to say that we all will miss Peter Boyle, since he was a superb actor who was different from the ``Nancy boys'' he loved to describe in the Raymond series. Playing the part of a conservative curmudgeon, he warmed my heart every time he ridiculed his less-than-manly sons on the TV show.

In real life, the media and their supporters are packed with ``Nancy boys'' who like to take aim at conservatives without any real reason, except that they think differently. Now we have the real Nancy (Pelosi) who brings the gay-Bay philosophy to Congress. I predict that she will fail in a big way. Rest in peace, Peter. You made many of us old conservatives happy.

-- Sion Colvin

Woodland Hills

U.N. policy

Re ``U.N. ambassador'' (Your Opinions, Dec. 13):

Unfortunately, ``America bashers'' at the United Nations are growing in leaps and bounds, but Bolton was courageous enough to stand against them. The U.S. pours millions of dollars into the U.N. each year; yet, the U.N. stonewalls the U.S. all the time and never decides on a request in a timely manner.

Corruption is rampant in the U.N., but nobody is convicted or admonished. The only thing the U.N. has going for it is it's good for New York City's economy.

-- Pamela Franklin

Granada Hills

Slo-mo Bush

So, Bush is going to release his ``new direction'' for Iraq, but not until after New Year's Day? I wonder how many young Americans and innocent Iraqis will be killed or injured while he decides on a method to support his madness.

I see the reports every day. These are not sports scores. These are not just numbers. They are living, breathing souls whose lives are being snuffed out. Their blood is now and will forever be on the hands of this incompetent president and those who allowed it to happen. How much longer must we suffer this boorish bully? Congress, please wake up. Stop Bush. Now.

-- Eddie Johnson

Panorama City

Still exists

It's hard to believe that anti-Semitism still exists in the 21st century, but it does. Seattle-Tacoma International Airport is guilty of this. Rather than put up one menorah, airport officials chose to take down the Christmas trees. Their reason: They did not want to be exclusive. But they were. And when the rabbi said he would not sue, the airport promptly put the Christmas trees back. And so they still are exclusive.

Seattle-Tacoma International Airport owes its Jewish travelers an apology for its racist behavior. And it better get a menorah in the airport before Friday at sundown, the first night of Hanukkah.

-- Pauline Roth

Santa Clarita

Good all around

Re ``Helping others: Finding meaning through volunteerism'' (Dec. 13):

It's uplifting to see an article (no matter how small) reminding us that people still care about one another. The article reported a 34 percent increase in volunteering since 1974.

With the endless bombardment of hatred, killing and crime reported in the news we often forget that there is good in the world. Generous acts by kind people often are minimized or completely left out of the news and public sight. We have to be extremely vigilant to see them, nevertheless good things and people are all around us.

-- Andres Estrada

Woodland Hills