RLn 11-21-19

Wilmington NIMBYs oppose Bridge shelter p. 4

Dos and don’ts of charity giving p. 17

By Paul Rosenberg, Senior Editor

For 50 years—beginning with Nixon’s subversion of the Paris Peace Talks in 1968—Republicans have repeatedly engaged in covert foreign subterfuge, and Democrats have fecklessly failed to hold them accountable. Will this time be any different?

In early 2017, comedian John Oliver described the emerging Russiagate scandal as “stupid Watergate,” meaning a scandal with all the potential ramifications of Watergate, but where everyone involved is stupid and bad.

Ultimately, Trump got away with it, because Democrats—following a 50year pattern—pulled their punches. After Attorney General William Barr lied about the content of the Mueller Report, pretending that it exonerated Trump, they failed to press forward and demand a full public presentation of all the [See Stupidest Watergate, p. 8]

The Legends Car Club is a classic car club known for its annual Car Show By the Sea and raising thousands of dollars for charitable organizations throughout the Harbor Area.

The club’s founders, David Lomeli and Pat Califano started the club in 2002 with the intention of giving younger generations a glimpse of the San Pedro in which they grew up, while also supporting local charities.

To navigate the permitting and insurance process to host such major events intended to benefit local charities, nonprofits like the Legends Car Club could count on the District 15 council office for help. The Legends Car Club was able to do just that— until 2016.

For years, Car Show By the Sea drew more than 4,000 spectators to San Pedro’s Point Fermin Park to enjoy a view of the ocean and classic cars. The show raised funds by charging more than 500 participants — some from as far away as Texas and Oregon — $40 to display their retro rides for the day. The sum collected from all of the displayed cars, along with food and [See Legends, p. 5]

November 21 - December 4, 2019

Retro Retail Shop Local p. 12 - 13

Will Democrats Finally Wise Up?

By Pratyush Shukla, Editorial Intern

The Trump impeachment: Will Democrats wise up? p. 6

The Stupidest Watergate:

Real News, Real People, Really Effective

Legends Car Club founder Pat Califano and his wife Irene.

Photo by Betty Gueverra

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Neighborhood Council Round Up

CeSP Neighborhood Council President Resigns

November 21 - December 4, 2019

Real News, Real People, Totally Relevant

By Hunter Chase, Reporter

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Board President Maria Couch resigned in the middle of the Nov. 12 meeting of the Central San Pedro Neighborhood Council.

“I’m just going to remove myself to stop all of this nonsense,” Couch said. “To me, my character means a lot, especially in my public service.” Couch said she had held her tongue as she listened to the other board members insult her and that it was obvious she was not wanted.

Her resignation came on the heel of a conflict that had stretched out for months over the issue of the council employing Moore Business Results to redesign their website. Moore Business Results locked the council’s website vendor, The Mailroom, out of the website, preventing the Mailroom from posting up the agendas.

It appeared this conflict was in the past, as the council had control of the website once more, and the council paid Moore Business Results $1,500 at the previous meeting, half of what was requested for services.

However, the conflict on the board returned at the November meeting because of an item on the agenda to pay Moore Business Results $828.12 for outreach services. Earlier in the year, the board decided not to pay Moore Business Results for these services, said Linda Nutile, treasurer of the board. The board chose to only pay for redesign of the website. Couch authorized the outreach services for July, August and September, Nutile said. Nutile said she hoped they could pay the bill and move on.

She would have no such luck.

Board members Matt Garland and Jeffrey McBurney openly opposed paying the bill.

Garland said the will of the board was absolutely ignored and disregarded when these services were authorized.

Board secretary Lou Caravella said it was an abuse of public funds. The council still did not have full access to the website and Moore Business Results was holding it hostage over money, Caravella said.

Nutile said the second half payment of the payment for Moore Business Results’ redesign of the website would only be given to Moore Business Results after it reset the password for the website and gave it to The Mailroom.

However, the board lost quorum when Garland left and the board was not able to vote to pay The Mailroom the second half.

Couch said she was cc’d on emails from The Mailroom on losing access to the website but was not involved with taking access away from The Mailroom. Couch asked The Mailroom to send her a list of services The Mailroom provides, but she did not receive such a list.

Board member Linda Alexander called the behavior by the board members opposing Couch “vicious” after the meeting finished. She said that Couch’s resignation was pending an official resignation letter.

Coastal SP Neighborhood Council

At the Oct. 21 meeting of the Coastal San Pedro Neighborhood Council, the board voted 8-1 to oppose a motion by the Los Angeles City Council asking Gov. Gavin Newsom to declare a state of emergency on homelessness in the state of California. The city should instead focus on the Los Angeles City Controller Ron Galperin’s suggestions in his latest audit of Proposition

HHH, said 11th District Councilman Robin Rudisill. This includes large-scale emergency shelters and addressing the homelessness crisis more quickly and efficiently. The council also asked that the city provide access to more hygienic facilities, the council’s motion said.

Amber Sheikh Ginsberg, chair of the Homelessness committee, said that Proposition HHH and the declaration of a state of emergency are two separate things, and that a comparison between the two was illogical. She said this during the council’s discussion of the motion to better explain the differences between the two. The point of the declaration of a state of emergency is to use emergency funds and bypass red tape to provide shelters and other services faster.

Harbor Division’s senior lead officer for the Los Angeles Police Department, Paul Winter, reported that burglaries in the coastal San Pedro area went up in September 2019. They were down during the summer. The biggest targets were on 18th Street, Walker and Gaffey. Six or seven houses were burglarized in that area by a group of professional burglars. In 80 percent of the burglaries, the burglars entered through open or unlocked windows or doors. The burglaries were pulled off by teams of three or four between the ages of 20 and 30 years old.

The council unanimously approved a statement supporting the investigation of a natural gas storage facility in Playa Del Rey owned by the Southern California Gas Co. There was no environmental impact report prior to the facility being built in the 1970s, said board member Richard Havenick. Mike Bonin, the councilman who represents Playa Del Rey, submitted a motion to the Los Angeles City Council asking for an investigation into the facility to ensure it is compliant with current regulations and not a danger to surrounding residents.

Northwest SP Neighborhood Council

At the Nov. 11 meeting of the Northwest San Pedro Neighborhood Council, the board unanimously approved letters supporting two developments in San Pedro. The first was a proposed three-story self-storage facility at 2215 North Gaffey Street. It will operate from 6 a.m. to 10 p.m., and all the storage will be indoors, and it will be temperature controlled, said Diana Nave, chair of the Planning and Land Use Committee. The second one was an apartment building at 448 W. 5th St. It will include 99 units, eight of which will be for low-income residents.

It will include two ground-floor retail spaces, both facing 5th Street. It will have 124 resident parking spaces and five commercial parking spaces. On the roof it will have a garden, a pool, and a jacuzzi. It will also include a recreation center and a gym. The lot will run from 4th to 5th streets. The developers requested augmented bonuses, one was to increase the height from the required 75 feet to 86 feet, and the other was reduced setbacks, which means the restriction on how close to the curb the building can be.

The board also approved 11-1 a letter of support of the construction of an apartment building at 336 W. 7th St.. It was already entitled, because it was an override project, so it did not [See Round Up, p. 3]

Community Announcements:

Harbor Area Learn the Latest on the Port’s Pier B Facility

Hear an update on the Pier B On-Dock Rail Support Facility Program during a community meeting Dec. 4.

The Pier B On-Dock Rail Support Facility is the centerpiece of the Port of Long Beach’s $1 billion capital improvement program for rail. It will shift more cargo to “on-dock rail,” where containers are placed directly on trains at marine terminals, reducing trips by trucks throughout the region. No cargo trucks would visit the facility. Instead, smaller train segments would be brought to the facility and joined together into a full-sized train.

Time: 11 a.m. Dec. 4 Cost: Free Details: RSVP, https://tinyurl.com/port-pier-b Venue: Long Beach Multi-Service Center, 1301 W. 12th St., Long Beach

Committed to Independent Journalism in the Greater LA/LB Harbor Area for More Than 40 Years

Dem Candidates Gather in Long Beach

Left, South Bend, Ind. Mayor Pete Buttigieg reacts to the news that his polling in Iowa jumped up a whopping 25 percent in a late-breaking poll in the “Spin Room” of the California Democratic Party Fall Endorsing Convention.

Neighborhood Purpose Grants

The Northwest San Pedro Neighborhood Council is now accepting applications for Neighborhood Purpose Grants which are open to schools and 501 (C3) organizations. Projects should benefit the Northwest San Pedro area.

Submit applications to melanie.labrecque@ yahoo.com before the Dec 16 deadline.

Details: www.nwsanpedro.org/wp-content/ uploads/2019/10/NPG-Application-2019.pdf

Free Household and E-waste Collection

Open to Los Angeles County residents, no business waste accepted. Bring items in a sturdy box. Limit of 15 gallons or 125 pounds of hazardous waste per trip. No explosives, ammunition, radioactive materials, trash, tires, large appliances, or controlled substances.

Be prepared to leave containers and boxes, remove all other items from your trunk. Please remain in your vehicle during collection.

Time: 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Nov. 23 Cost: Free Details: 310-325-7110 Venue: Lomita City Hall parking lot, 24300 Narbonne Ave., Lomita

11th Annual Thanksgiving in the Harbor

Monthly Harbor Sail, Explora la Costa! en un Barco de Vela Gratis!

[Round Up, from p. 2]

Round Up

need to have a hearing, Nave said. It will have a restaurant on the first floor. It will not have as much parking as the Planning and Land Use Committee would like, but they cannot change it as the city has already approved it, Nave said. The project received a Transit Oriented Community approval, allowing it to have one parking spot for every two units.

Wilmington Waterfront Development Update

November 21 - December 4, 2019

Planning and Land Use committee member, Russell Mohberg, gave an update on the Wilmington waterfront project explaining that the project does not currently have a developer. The project will be built at Banning’s Landing. Initially, the plan was to shut down Avalon to prevent access to the waterfront. The council requested for controlled access, meaning that the community will be able to reopen it on special occasions. The port did not agree to this, but the council will continue asking.

The port wanted to add a sundial to the focal point at the entry of the plaza, but they are open to suggestions for something else. Mohberg said they are looking for suggestions from the community, and suggested a statue of a plane, or potentially an anchor or a statue of a horse pulling a stagecoach.

The port approved putting up a gateway monument sign welcoming people to the Wilmington waterfront, but as part of the second phase of development. Mohberg said this did not make sense and compared it to opening a store but not putting up a sign for the store until later.

The plan also includes a working lavender farm or some other type of micro working farm, and a grand pavilion.

Los Angeles Maritime Institute, with the support of the California Coastal Commission invite the public to join a coastal awareness educational experience and exploration sail on a tall ship during a three-hour round-trip excursion around the harbor and coastline.

The goal is to raise environmental awareness that leads to personal action to reduce marine plastic pollution and human impacts to our local coastline and its marine organisms with engaging bilingual materials and trained bilingual docents.

On-board hands-on and scientific activities. Families and children welcome.

All minors must be accompanied by an adult and children must be 10 years or older.

First sail is Nov. 30 and every month afterwards on Saturdays. Call office to sign up.

Time: 1 to 4 p.m. Nov. 30 Cost: Free Venue: Ports O’ Call Harbor, Berth 73, San Pedro Details: 310-833-6055

Above, former Obama administration Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Julian Castro says, "I would actually like to see a process that makes sense," when asked about why he had stated earlier in the week that he felt the focus on New Hampshire and Iowa was a bad idea for the Democratic primaries due to their "lack of diversity." Castro's polling numbers in Iowa and New Hampshire were extremely low.

Real News, Real People, Really Effective

Formerly Thanksgiving Feast for the Needy, this collaborative community effort brings together organizations, companies,individuals and families from both inside and outside of the community to collect, prepare and serve a hot Thanksgiving meal to help those in need.

In addition, clothing, toys and toiletries are donated and distributed to those that attend as well as giving a Thanksgiving basket and extra food for the holiday break for families and students of Banning High School that could not attend the event.

Time: 1 to 4 p.m. Nov. 28 Cost: Free Details: bit.ly/the411thanksgivingintheharbor Location: D Street between Avalon Boulevard and Marine Avenue, Wilmington

Many activists and organizers attended the California Democratic Party Fall Endorsing Convention held at the newly renovated Long Beach Convention Center Nov. 15 through 17. This included the Long Beach Suffrage 100, above, who took a vow of silence while dressed as classical Suffragettes in honor of the 100th anniversary of the passage of the 19th Amendment.

Sen. Kamala Harris, right, dodged tough questions about her campaign staff in the “Spin Room” at the convention. “I am very supportive of my campaign, the people who are working it,” she said. “They’ve done great work which has gotten us to the point where we are today, and we are focused on what we need to do to move forward.” Earlier in the week a piece in Politico stated her campaign was “in meltdown” after she fired her manager. Photos by Raphael Richardson

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Wilmington NIMBYs Oppose Bridge Shelter and Supportive Housing Project

By Hunter Chase, Reporter

November 21 - December 4, 2019

Real News, Real People, Totally Relevant

At the Oct. 22 meeting of the Wilmington Neighborhood Council, the board unanimously approved a motion to oppose the construction of a permanent supportive housing project for homeless seniors at 1424 Deepwater Ave., Wilmington. The board also unanimously opposed a proposed bridge housing development at 828 Eubank Ave., just a few blocks away from the Deepwater project.

The reason for the bridge housing shelter, which includes services similar to supportive housing, such as substance abuse recovery and mental healthcare, is because of a mandate from Mayor Eric Garcetti’s office, said Councilman Joe Buscaino’s Director of Communications Branimir Kvartuc at a demonstration in September 2018. Bridge home housing shelters are placed in the areas with the largest concentration of homeless people, and there are 540 homeless people in Wilmington.

One of the reasons for the council’s opposition to the Deepwater project was a lack of parking, with eight spaces for 56 units, said Gina Martinez, treasurer of the board.

In addition, only 50 percent of the housing is reserved for seniors. However, it is all permanent supportive housing, which is housing that includes services such as healthcare, training and job placement assistance.

“Any person in an apartment can leave, they can rent, they’re mobile, but what about the homeowners?” Martinez said. “Their single largest investment is their home.” There is not

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The proposed 1424 Deepwater Avenue housing project would be built between Public Storage on Pacific Coast Highway and a collection of single family homes south of Sandison Street. Photo Satellite view of Google maps

much that homeowners can do when property values go down, Martinez said.

Martinez said the Deepwater project goes against the Wilmington and Harbor City Community Plan. She quoted the plan, which includes among its issues the need to preserve low-density areas of neighborhoods whose residents are primarily single families.

Wilmington is an R1 zone, which means that single-family homes are built there, with one unit per residence.

Their biggest reason for opposing the Eubank project was that the community received very little notice on the project, as a revocable, 42-month permit for the project was granted to the city of Los Angeles General Services Department at a special meeting of the Board of

Harbor Commissioners on Tuesday, Oct. 8. The permit granted the General Services Department the use of 1.08 acres of land owned by the city of Los Angeles Harbor Department. The meeting was in the morning when most people were at work, and it was held in San Pedro, instead of in Wilmington, Martinez said. Martinez said the council is asking for the community to have a say in the project, as they will be impacted by it.

“We’re asking the port commissioners to repeal that revocable permit until the people of Wilmington have an opportunity to have their say,” said Martinez. “We have never been given the opportunity as a community to say one way or another.”

Councilman Joe Buscaino can pull the plug on the projects if he wants to and he chose Wilmington, Martinez said.

At least 40 people came to the meeting to protest both projects, and many spoke at length regarding their opposition to it.

“I help those that are hurting and homeless every day,” said Lupe Lopez, a resident of Wilmington who works at another homeless shelter, the Long Beach Rescue Mission. “I don’t want to come home and see that in my backyard as well.”

Lopez asked why the authorities chose to “gut out and ruin” one of the quietest neighborhoods in the community when there are plenty of other land available.

The shelters will be using the Housing First model, which means that homeless people will be given housing before they are given help with any other problems, Lopez said.

According to Endhomelessness.org, homeless people that are housed in the Housing First model are more likely to stay in said housing, as other services can be provided to them while they are housed.

She criticized the decision to place the Eubank shelter so close to John Mendez Baseball Park, where her children play.

Residents of the community also held a public hearing to protest the Deepwater project’s location on Nov. 8. In an email advertising the protest, Lopez said the local council office should work with residents to decide where the facility should be placed.

Instead, the shelter will be placed in one of the quietest areas of the city, as Wilmington mainly consists of single-family homes, Lopez said in her email. She said this will involve a rezoning of the area, but neither Buscaino or the Board of Harbor Commissioners have spoken about rezoning.

The Eubank shelter’s permit only allows it to run until August 2023.

LABOR Notes

Port and Rail Drivers Win Court Decision Over Misclassification

Forty-one misclassified XPO Logistics port and rail drivers recently filed $2.3 million in wage theft claims with the California Labor Commissioner demanding for management to hand over their payroll records to which they are entitled to as employees and mandated under California law. These drivers haul cargo for Toyota, BMW, Sony and have won misclassification decisions against XPO Logistics finding them to be employees. These drivers recently won a $800,000 misclassification judgement, yet XPO continues to misclassify their drivers. In light of this, these drivers are joining their coworkers in filing new claims for unpaid wages and meal and rest break premiums.

Misclassification of workers as “independent contractors” is a hot topic with the passage of California’s Assembly Bill 5 (AB 5) and subsequent push by U.S. corporations like Uber, DoorDash, and XPO Logistics to undermine the law so they can continue to dodge payroll taxes and increase profitability by exploiting their workforce. Long before AB 5 was introduced in the California Legislature, port and rail drivers have consistently been proven to be employees under the current laws, yet deep-pocketed companies like XPO Logistics have continued to flagrantly break employment, labor, and tax laws by persistently misclassifying their port and rail drivers.

Ralph’s Pharmacists Authorize Strike

United Food and Commercial Workers at Albertsons and Vons accepted a contract but 200 members at Ralph’s rejected it. The three chains have 600 pharmacists. In September a contract agreement was reached between 60,000 Southern California grocery workers.

Walkout at UC Over Outsourcing Union Jobs

Patient care and service workers staged a statewide unfair labor practices strike Wednesday, Nov. 13 protesting the school systems outsourcing of jobs. Strikes took place at five UC schools, organized by the American Federation of State and County Municipal Employees. The union explains that UC has secretly expanded its outsourcing of AFSCME represented jobs to lowwage contractors.

Local 3299 represents 26,000 UC employees ranging from cooks, custodians, truck drivers, technical employees, radiology and respiratory therapists, technicians, etc. Over the past five years the number of AFSCME represented employees has grown significantly while management has expanded contracts to outside vendors at lower wages.

“The outsourcing problem has been around the University for years,” said Monica De Leon at UC Irvine Medical Center. “We’ve mostly seen it in service units but in the past year it’s come into patient care areas too.”

Asarco Copper Strikers Gain Broad Solidarity

More than 1,700 workers from eight unions at the copper complexes went on strike October 13 after voting by 77 percent to reject the company’s “last, best and final” offer. Asarco’s proposal left “two-thirds of the workers without any pay increase for the next four years,” Terrazas said. Most workers have not had a wage increase in 10 years.

“The support’s been nonstop,” Alex Terrazas, president of United Steelworkers Local 937 and a utility worker at the Mission open pit mine, told the media. “The best has been the tons of common people coming by to drop off food or just hang out with us on the picket line.

[See Labor Notes, p. 5]

[Legends from p. 1]

Legends Car Show By the Sea clothing sales by vendors, was distributed among a plethora of community organizations.

Harbor Interfaith, Little Sisters of the Poor, Clean San Pedro and the Boys and Girls Club were among those to see a piece of the pie.

Before 2016, the Legends paid around $3,000 to the Department of Recreation and Parks to rent the park grounds of Angels Gate and conduct the event. That was reasonable because the profits of the event would amount to as much as $20,000 in some of its best years.

In a 2016 meeting at the Los Angeles Police Department Harbor Division office, the Legends encountered novel exorbitant fees demanded by heads of the city entities responsible for overseeing community events. Car Show By the Sea saw the first loss in its history.

Department of Recreations and Park almost doubled its park rental fees; from a cost of $3,000 in the past 14 years, to almost $6,000 in 2016.

The Los Angeles Fire Department was always present to respond in case of an emergency. For 14 years, they enjoyed the show with civilians and provided their services in exchange for meals. In 2016, they charged the Legends $1,200.

Traffic control provided by the Department of Transportation cost the group $1,300; a great increase from a bill of $700, which they paid from 2002 to 2015.

Appointing private security in the past shows, in 2016 the Legends were required to hire cityauthorized security, upping the cost from $400 to $1,350.

The result was a $2,000 loss; not a single dollar was raised for charity. The car club was in awe, given that they raised almost $20,000 in 2015.

These city departments were aware that Car

LABOR Notes [Labor Notes from p. 4]

Real News, Real People, Really Effective

November 21 - December 4, 2019

Members of the teacher’s union, the nurses’ union, and the Pima Area Labor Federation, as well as the sheet metal, carpenters and machinists’ unions have donated food and money as well as walking the picket lines, which are up around the clock.

And that’s on top of Asarco’s demands to freeze pensions — which had been slashed for new hires in 2011 — and jack up the cost of health insurance. “When you add it all up, we would be taking a steep pay cut,” he said. Similar attacks are faced by millions of workers in industries across the country.

The bosses also want to get rid of a neutrality agreement with the unions, “which protects our right to be able to organize and speak about the union,” Terrazas said. “They want to get rid of the union. That’s why we’re not going to quit.”

The strike has forced Asarco to shut down its smelters in Hayden, Arizona and Amarillo, Texas.

Some union members have been talking to the scabs. “Some workers have been asking about coming back out. Their conscience is eating at them,” he said.

The Pima Area Labor Federation has set up a food pantry for the strikers at the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 570 hall in Tucson. The IBEW organized a solidarity day at the Mission and Silver Bell Mine picket line Nov. 13. The Arizona AFL-CIO is urging everyone to “stand in solidarity with our brothers and sisters on strike against Asarco and Grupo Mexico!”

The company is owned by Grupo Mexico, which owns mines in Mexico, Peru, Argentina, Chile, Ecuador and Spain. It reported a profit of $1.3 billion in 2018.

—Compiled by Mark L. Friedman

Stackhouse sent the Legends an email citing a new city law that prohibits the parking of vehicles on park grass. Stackhouse couldn’t provide the date that this policy was put in effect.

“For 15 years, we never had a problem,” Califano said. “We have been parking on grass and hosting this event since 2002, and now they tell us there is a new policy that we can’t park on grass anymore.”

Just when the Legends sought financial help from the district office, a new law was put into action. Tippet has called Buscaino’s office several times since that email to inquire about the new policy. He has not heard back from him yet.

Pat Califano (left) with Legends Car Club President Mark Tippet, and club secretary Ambrose Russo. Photo by Steven GuzWhen Random Lengths man News asked the council office Show By the Sea is for charity. Nevertheless, the understand that it was, and still is, the new city for comment, Field Deputy Ryan Ferguson echoed prices stayed intact. requirement.”

Plows’ comments regarding Los Angeles’ full cost Previously, this event did not require the The full cost recovery policy was initiated recovery policy. closing down of any San Pedro street. At a in 2008 at the start of the last recession when From the deficit in 2016 to the unfathomable 2017 meeting with the LAPD Harbor Division, the city was staring down the barrel of a $400 sum required for the bureau permit in 2017, the then Sgt. Catherine Plows asked the Legends to million budget deficit. The city’s leadership Legends Car Club is left yet again with the feeling acquire a Bureau of Street Services permit — reviewed all departments, programs, and of charity work in San Pedro being harder than it street closures authorized by the city for special services to ensure departments were achieving should be. events. full cost recovery through fees, fines and Califano keeps a heavy three-inch binder full Bureau of Street Services is a city entity that penalties. What was not made clear by either of thank you letters from organizations that have provides event organizers with the cost of LAPD Ferguson or Plows was what could be done if received donations from the Legends since their patrol officers, vehicles and fire trucks that would the Legends scaled back the size of the event to foundation. The letters go as far back as 2002, and be needed for the event. The organizers pay the pre-2016 levels. have empty sheet-protectors in the 2019 tab — to cost and continue with the event.

Nevertheless, the Legends Car Club decided be filled in with new letters of appreciation.

However, the permit is approved only if 51 against acquiring the bureau permit, due to Six members of the Legends Car Club have percent of street residents or businesses sign the the heavy estimated costs of up to $10,000. died since its foundation in 2002. They would’ve petition.

Without city-help, the Legends determined they never thought that their biggest event, Car Show Due to the throng that the annual show wouldn’t have a dime to give to charity. That By the Sea, would see an end, but that is the reality. brought to the Point Fermin area, the people was the end of the 15-year-old Car Show By living on Paseo Del Mar street were not going the Sea. to sign the petition; that much the Legends Car “These charities are the ones that lost,” Club and Sgt. Plows knew.

Califano said while pointing to a long list of “We never had to close off the streets before organizations that continue to receive their 2017, why all of a sudden?” said the Legends Car donations today.

Club President Mark Tippett.

Hopes for a Revival Crash “The BOSS [Bureau of Street Services] In hopes of reviving Car Show by The Sea, permit would cost us about $8,000 to pay for all the Legends had a meeting with 15th District the cops that Sgt. Plows requested. We would Councilman Joe Buscaino in January of 2019. have nothing left to give to our charities, and The car club asked for reduction of fees by that’s the goal of the whole event.” pleading that the event is for charity. Buscaino The Legends, being a 501(c)(3) organization, assured help and urged the Legends to proceed could’ve received help from the 15th council with submission of paperwork to Point Fermin district office in order to waiver or reduce the Park, and the Department of Recreation and cost of the bureau permit, but they didn’t.

Parks, before returning to his office.

Plows, who heads the Harbor Division’s They complied, gathering information Community Relations Office, said Los Angeles about the staff, estimated amount of spectators, was losing money and had a full cost recovery number of display cars, proof of insurance on policy floating among departments responsible those cars — all of the paperwork asked of the for handling community events. She said that all Legends. organizations, whether they are nonprofit or not, In April, Point Fermin Park Director Joseph stopped receiving financial help from the city to reduce special event permit fees.

“We love the Legends and what they do for San Pedro,” Plows said. “When Janice Hahn was councilwoman [15th District], the Legends Divorce $159-$289 + Filing Fee received help with these fees. But in 2015 and Bankruptcy $695 + Filing Fee 2016, Car Show By the Sea started to outgrow Living Trust $375 its venue. We started finding open cans and Will $175 • Probate $299 alcohol everywhere, so we asked them to get a bureau permit. That would bring out 60 LAPD Basic Prices for Simple Cases patrol officers to actually enforce the law. They weren’t used to such fees and were unable to 5

Gaslighting America and Congress The left and right continue to act as if Trump’s fake narratives and conspiracy theories will bring him down

By James Preston Allen, Publisher

November 21 - December 4, 2019

Real News, Real People, Totally Relevant

Listening to the Trumpster’s endless rebukes, Twitter attacks and denials are enough to make one question the sanity of it all. As President Trump moves past his 1,000th day in office, it’s become almost passé to accuse him of actually lying even as he significantly steps up the pace of his favorite pastime of spouting exaggerated numbers, unwarranted boasts and outright falsehoods. By Oct. 9, his 993rd day in office, he had made 13,435 false or misleading claims, according to the Washington Post’s fact checker. Lies by any other name.

The former Ted Cruz staffer and avowed “Never Trumper” CNN contributor, Amanda Carpenter, revealed the shocking truth in her recent book, Gaslighting America: Why We Love It When Trump Lies to Us—they enthrall us—and she explains how we can avoid falling for them.

Carpenter breaks down Trump’s formula, showing why it’s practically foolproof, playing his victims, the media, the Democrats, and the Republican fence sitters perfectly. She traces how this tactic started with Nixon, gained traction against Bill Clinton and exploded under Trump. If you think Trump is driving you crazy, it’s because he is.

I recently began asking people to tell me what they think about the impeachment hearings, and left, right and center people tell me “it’s just crazy.” And, when I ask them if they’ve heard the word “gaslighting” only about four in 10 could tell me what it actually means.

So here’s a working definition for you: It is a form of psychological manipulation in which a person seeks to sow seeds of doubt in a targeted individual or in members of a targeted group, making them question their own memory, perception, and sanity. Using persistent denial, misdirection, contradiction, and lying, gaslighting involves attempts to destabilize the victim and delegitimize the victim’s beliefs.

If you or people around you have been thinking that, “all this is just too crazy” or you have begun to question your own sanity– you have been successfully gaslighted.

And, you can see this at play in the current congressional impeachment hearings when the Republicans, in complete denial of the testimony presented are offering up a completely different reality of Trump’s Ukrainian explanation on investigating Joe Biden and corruption. At every juncture

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Trump turns an accusation against him into a pejorative attack against his opponents.

“Where some people see lies,” Carpenter writes, “Trump’s fiercest followers see something different. A commitment to winning at all costs.”

There is nothing he could say that would erode their support as long as it’s in the name of taking down his political enemies.

If you take the entirety of his three-year-old presidency and the fake narratives and conspiracy theories he has built up over that time, you’d think his presidency would have imploded by now. Instead what has happened, Carpenter argues, is that the president’s trickery have raised him up. This does seem to make sense in a perverse kind of way.

Are the congressional Democrats buying it?

Well, at the beginning, when the spin machine was pushing that the impeachment process would actually help Trump get reelected, Speaker Nancy Pelosi hesitated and moderate Dems started pulling back from the Mueller Report.

This allowed the false narrative spun by Attorney General William Barr, who claimed the report “exonerated the president” to take root. It did not.

The president called the Mueller investigation a “witch hunt.” Well, consider this: Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation has put six Trump associates behind bars with a cast of defendants that include Trump’s former campaign chairman, ex-national security adviser and one time personal fixer and lawyer.

In all, 34 people and three companies have been criminally charged as a result of the probe.

Mueller was named special counsel in May 2017

by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, and was directed to investigate “any links and/ or coordination between the Russian government and individuals associated with the campaign of President Donald Trump ... and any matters that arose or may arise directly from the investigation.”

All of the U.S. National Security agencies have confirmed Russian interference. Yet, Trump is spinning the Ukrainian subplot to distract us once again.

Trump continues to rail against anyone who claims he did anything wrong, accuses his accusers and unleashes his rightwing attack dogs against Adam Schiff the chairman of the house impeachment committee, any of the numerous witnesses who have testified under penalty of perjury to his actions and fires anyone he has appointed who hasn’t sworn loyalty to him instead Publisher/Executive Editor James Preston Allen james@randomlengthsnews.com Assoc. Publisher/Production Coordinator Suzanne Matsumiya

“A newspaper is not just for reporting the news as it is, but to make people mad enough to do something about it.”

—Mark Twain Vol. XL : No. 24

Published every two weeks for the Harbor Area communities of San Pedro, RPV, Lomita, Harbor City, Wilmington, Carson and Long Beach. Distributed at over 350 locations throughout the Harbor Area.

Managing Editor Terelle Jerricks editor@randomlengthsnews.com Senior Editor Paul Rosenberg paul.rosenberg@ randomlengthsnews.com

of to the U.S. Constitution. Clearly Trump needs to be taught a lesson that no one is above the law.

Still he fights on, claiming immunity from having his bogus tax returns subpoenaed by Congress or by the Southern District of New York with the false claim that Presidents can’t be investigated or indicted while in office. House Democrats are in the process of slowly, if not methodically and meticulously, challenging that defense. That premise has been overruled by two federal courts and may be settled finally by the U.S. Supreme Court — if the five Republican justices haven’t themselves fallen victim to the president’s gaslighting.

Still there seems to be growing anxiety that no matter how often Trump is exposed as a fraud and

if he’s impeached by the House of Representatives, he will not be convicted in the U.S. Senate based upon party-line votes —at least that’s the common sense of it now. However, what the Democrats may have done with all of these investigations is to provide an immunization to the American public against an October Surprise virus landing in the media just weeks or days before the November 2020 elections. Will facts win over fiction?

American voters just now seem to be yawning in their easy chairs waiting for the next shoe to drop. I don’t have a great deal of confidence that the citizens will put on their slippers to walk their dogs in the morning before the lies of the most corrupt president in the history of our nation make their way halfway around the internet.

National News Analysis

Biden and Bloomberg Want Uncle Sam to Defer to Uncle Scrooge

By Norman Solomon

The extremely rich Americans who are now frantically trying to figure out how to intervene in the Democratic presidential campaign makes me wonder how different they are from the animated character who loved frolicking in money and kissing dollar bills while counting them. If Uncle Scrooge existed as a billionaire in human form today, it’s easy to picture him aligned with fellow plutocrats against the “threat” of Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren.

The exceedingly wealthy are usually content to stay in the shadows while their combined financial leverage and media power keep top government officials more or less in line. But the grassroots strengths of the Warren and Sanders campaigns have jolted some key oligarchs into overt action.

Columnists/Reporters Hunter Chase Reporter Adam R. Thomas Reporter Andrea Serna Arts Writer Melina Paris Staff Reporter Send Calendar Items to: 14days@randomlengthsnews.com Photographers Terelle Jerricks, Betty Gueverra, Steven Guzman, Raphael Richardson, Chris Villanueva Contributors Mark L. Friedman, Greggory Moore, Ari LeVaux, Pratyush Shukla, Norman Solomon

“At least 16 billionaires have in recent months spoken out against what they regard as the danger posed by the populist Democrats, particularly over their proposals to enact a ‘wealth tax’ on vast fortunes,” The Washington Post reported over the weekend. Many of those billionaires are “expressing concern” that the populist Democrats “will blow the election to Trump by veering too far left.”

But are those billionaires more worried about a wealth tax that will curtail vast fortunes, or about Trump winning re-election? Are we supposed to believe the far-fetched notion that voters will opt for Trump over the Democratic nominee because they don’t want billionaires to pay higher taxes?

Cartoonists Andy Singer, Jan Sorensen, Matt Wuerker Design/Production Suzanne Matsumiya, Brenda Lopez Account Representative Benjamin Garcia Editorial Intern Joshua Samuel Display advertising (310) 519-1442 Classifieds (310) 519-1016 Fax: (310) 832-1000 www.randomlengthsnews.com 1300 S. Pacific Ave., San Pedro, CA 90731

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All contents Copyright 2019 Random Lengths News. All rights reserved.

RANDOMLetters Lewis Wright Remembered

I’ve recently learned of the sudden death of Lewis Wright.

Lewis was a good friend of mine, and was my idea of a progressive longshoreman and Union brother.

I met Lewis when ILWU President Dave Arian sent a delegation to Mexico, to develop a relationship with Pacific Coast dockworkers. I went along to help, and we became friends for the rest of our lives. Here’s a photo of what Lewis loved doing the most—traveling the world with his wife, making friends with other workers, and weaving a network of longshore solidarity.

And of course you had to eat and have a drink or two on the way.

The Wrights welcomed me into their home, a ranch in the winemaking valley north of Ensenada.

Together we tried to help that city’s longshoremen when they were devastated by privatization of the

docks. Lewis loved Mexico and Mexicans, and believed that we are all brothers and sisters despite that ugly wall.

Lewis was always in touch with the news of the day. When I had a labor radio show on our community station in Berkeley, KPFA, Lewis called me from the cab of his crane in Long Beach, and we talked on the air about what it was like working on the docks and belonging to the ILWU. He was a proselytizer for the credit union. In his last year he got me to join, and I’m proud to be a member. He helped me get the resources for going to Iraq to meet longshoremen there, to put photographs of Iraqi dockworkers into ILWU union halls, and to bring over the workers themselves to meet ILWU members up and down the coast. His commitment to getting the voice of workers into the world is carried on by his daughter Pilar, and it guided his

[Billionaires from p. 6]

Billionaires

San Pedro High School Student Letters

Re: Avoiding Trump’s Twitter Trap My name is Diana Aguilar and I attend San Pedro High School Olguin. I have just read an article called “Avoiding Trump’s Twitter Trap” by Paul Rosenberg from Random Length News [Aug. 8-21,

presidents hateful tweets make journalists less safe.” The words being used in that are extreme which is great. Reason being is because it shows how the tweet makes others feel. There could have been a better example of emotion for example the reporter being attacked by Trump could have been interviewed to ask how he felt about Trump’s tweet. If the interviewer would have been interviewed than it would show his point of view in the article which would make the article more interesting. Although I do believe

But even if it turns out that Biden has outlived his usefulness to the billionaire class, no one should doubt his unwavering loyalty.

Biden offered reassurance during a speech at the Brookings Institution last year. “I love Bernie, but I’m not Bernie Sanders,” he said. “I don’t think 500 billionaires are the reason why we’re in trouble. . . The folks at the top aren’t bad guys.”

The first chief justice of the U.S. Supreme Court would have agreed. John Jay liked to say:

this article is fantastic and that the community can stop these hateful tweets from Trump by reading this article and following the steps that Rosenberg recommended.

If we don’t read and follow these rules than many people would be accused of being “disrespectful” towards Trump and Trump’s followers will attack those people. After reading this article story I do believe that i’m going to start looking into more newspapers by RLN. Diana Aguilar San Pedro

“Those who own the country ought to govern it.”

Now, the rhetoric is quite different. But the reality is up for grabs in the realm we call politics.

Norman Solomon is cofounder and national coordinator of RootsAction.org. He is currently a coordinator of the relaunched independent Bernie Delegates Network. Solomon is the author of a dozen books including War Made Easy: How Presidents and Pundits Keep Spinning Us to Death.

November 21 - December 4, 2019

Alexandria was just saying, the fossil fuels industry makes billions [and] billions of dollars in profits every single year, and the people who suffer the most are often lowest-income people.

But it’s not just low-income people. Family farmers in Iowa and agriculture in Iowa is going to be suffering.”

News of Bloomberg’s looming entry into the Democratic presidential race elicited massmedia awe because of his wealth. A Republican until 2007, Bloomberg didn’t become a registered Democrat until October 2018. His record as New York City mayor included hostility toward labor unions in the public sector, support for stop-and-frisk targeting racial minorities and vocal antipathy toward the Barack Obama administration’s minimal Dodd-Frank regulations. Bloomberg is a mismatch with most Democrats.

For most of this year, Biden seemed the best bet for moguls like Bloomberg. But confidence receded as Biden’s campaign lost ground—not only because of his continuing “gaffs” and stumbling syntax but also because more information kept surfacing about his actual record while in the Senate from 1973 through 2008.

Further erosion of support for Biden can be expected due to a pair of powerful articles in the current issue of The Nation magazine. An “antiendorsement” editorial summarizes his career as a servant of establishment power, concluding: “On issue after issue, Biden’s candidacy offers Trump a unique opportunity to muddy what should be a devastatingly clear choice. The Nation therefore calls on Biden to put service to country above personal ambition and withdraw from the race.”

And an investigative piece breaks new ground in documenting how Biden and his immediate family have been enmeshed in scarcely legal conflicts of interest and pay-to-play corruption for several decades.

These days, for billionaires trying to line up a new Democratic president, good help is hard to find. Biden is willing as ever but perhaps not able. In effect, seeing Biden falter, Bloomberg is on the verge of cutting out the middleman. At this point, why hope that activation of pro-Biden Super PACs will be sufficient, when Bloomberg can step in and hugely outspend everyone out of his own pocket?

2019] After reading the story I have encountered that Trump uses tweets to “expose” and put other people in danger. I have no experience with being accused by Trump. But I have witnessed Trump’s Twitter attacks from social media and I do agree that from the tweet Trump posted on July 31, 2019 about Don Lemon is putting the CNN reporter in danger.

There were many fascinating facts in the story, For example it gives many tips on how to avoid falling for Trump’s Twitter traps.

One example Rosenberg suggests, “The media can stop Trump’s Twitter traps by simply suspending normal relations with the Trump government.” I personally 100 percent agree with Rosenberg because we keep giving Trump power by caring and interacting with what he says so what we can do is simply ignore him.

The story uses many forms of strong powerful words. For example there is a picture shown that shows Brian Stelter replying to Trump’s tweet saying, “the

Real News, Real People, Really Effective

The biggest fear among the billionaire class is not that a progressive Democratic nominee will lose against Trump. The biggest fear is that such a nominee will win, thus gaining presidential muscle to implement measures like a wealth tax that would adversely affect the outsized fortunes of the 0.1 percent.

Such fears are causing a step-up of attacks on Sanders and Warren, and even some early indications of trauma. “Piling on against the wealth tax have been corporate celebrities from Silicon Valley and Wall Street,” The Post reported on Saturday. Facebook head Mark Zuckerberg “suggested Sanders’s call to abolish billionaires could hurt philanthropies and scientific research by giving the government too much decision-making power … Appearing on CNBC, billionaire investor Leon Cooperman choked up while discussing the impact a wealth tax could have on his family.”

Sanders often points to the fact that just three individuals—Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos and Warren Buffett—own as much wealth as the entire bottom half of the U.S. population. Gates has publicly denounced Warren’s proposal for a wealth tax.

It shouldn’t surprise us now to learn that earlier this year Bezos urged Michael Bloomberg to run for president. We might call it ruling-class unity, which is a point that Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez quickly made while campaigning alongside Sanders in Iowa when the news broke.

“Of course!” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez told a Des Moines Register reporter. “They’ve got class solidarity. The billionaires are looking out for each other. They’re willing to transcend difference and background and even politics.

The fact that Bill Gates seems more willing to vote for Donald Trump than anyone else tells you everything you need to know about how far they’re willing to go to protect their excess, at the cost to everyday Americans.”

Moments later, Sanders jokes: “Jeff Bezos, worth $150 billion, supporting Mike Bloomberg, who’s worth only $50 billion—that’s real class solidarity.” And Sanders tied in the climate emergency: “When you talk about class warfare within the context of climate change, like

work with the Diane Middleton Foundation and the Harry Bridges Institute.

So here we are, eating and drinking and building solidarity with longshoremen in Salina Cruz, on the coast of Oaxaca, with some other ILWU brothers who are no longer with us — Doug Getschell (a fellow photographer), Norm Parks and Robert Osornio. I remember you all, and especially Lewis, who made the world a much better place. I am glad to be his friend.

In solidarity, David Bacon CWA Local 39521 Oakland

7

[Watergate from p. 1]

Stupidest Watergate

November 21 - December 4, 2019

Real News, Real People, Totally Relevant

wrongdoing uncovered—including multiple counts of obstruction of justice—fearing that a mythical Trump base backlash would help reelect him in 2020.

Now, Oliver has dubbed the Ukrainian spin-off, “Stupid Watergate II: The Stupidest Watergate.” The name is well-earned. Topping it all off, Trump released smoking gun evidence of his own guilt almost immediately—a record of him extorting a bribe in a call memorandum he laughably described as a “perfect call.” In it, Trump uttered 10 words that showed him corruptly seeking a thing of value (i.e. bribery): “I would like you to do us a favor, though.”

That’s how he put the squeeze on Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky in their July 25 call that resulted in the whistleblower complaint that brought the whole story to light.

With the smoking gun in plain sight from the get-go, the resulting chaos has GOP senators and representatives defending him with Russian conspiracy theories, blaming Ukraine for interfering in the 2016 election—which was part of what Trump asked Zelensky to investigate, along with Joe Biden’s son. “The Kremlin is having a ball,” Russian propaganda expert Julia Davis wrote in the Daily Beast. “Instead of disseminating their usual conspiracy theories, the Russians watch gleefully as the Republicans do that for them.” In fact, Republicans are clinging to the Russian conspiracy theories for dear life. They even played a key role in the Republicans’ opening statement at the first impeachment hearing.

With no facts to support them, Republicans keep shifting main themes of distraction and denial. For weeks, the House Intelligence

8

Committee heard testimony behind closed doors—the normal way to begin investigations, to prevent witnesses from fallaciously coordinated their testimony—and Republicans screamed bloody murder, pretending it was nefarious and demanding open hearings.

Then, when Democrats began open hearings on November 13 and 15, Republicans screamed again, claiming that the testimony was all hearsay, not eyewitness testimony about Trump himself.

But they were eyewitnesses to how Trump’s machinations played out, and they were ideally positioned to tell the big picture story, setting the stage for more narrowly-focused first-hand witnesses to come. Now that those witnesses have started to testify, Republicans are scrambling furiously, looking for yet another misdirection to settle on.

But the basic facts are simple. “I would like you to do us a favor, though” is corruptly seeking—if not demanding—a thing of value. That’s bribery under federal law and unlike the vague term “high crimes and misdemeanors,” bribery is a specifically named cause for impeachment.

Rather than hide it, Trump proudly released the call memo just one day after House Speaker Pelosi announced the beginning of a formal impeachment inquiry on Sept. 24. The memo also destroyed his cover story that he was just trying to fight corruption (for the very first time in his life). Trump didn’t even mention the word “corruption”—not even once—but he did mentioned “Biden” five times.

But Democrats, once again, have been a bit stupid, too, and it’s taken them some time to figure out just how simple it is. Fortunately, as the public

Roger Stone, Political Operative Guilty in False Statements Trial Roger Stone, a veteran Republican political operative and longtime confidant of Donald Trump, was found guilty by a federal jury in Washington, D.C. on Nov. 15, in his false statements and obstruction trial.

The verdict, announced after two days of deliberations by the jury, adds another chapter to Stone’s long and colorful history as a self-described dirty trickster. It also means Stone, who is 67, likely faces prison time, even as a first-time offender.

Stone stood as the verdict was read on all seven counts in this case but did not speak.

Stone was arrested in January at his home in Florida on charges brought by former special counsel Robert Mueller as part of the Russia investigation. Stone pleaded not guilty to making false statements, obstruction and witness tampering.

He did not take the stand during the trial.

—Ryan Lucas, NPR

impeachment hearings have begun, they’re finally catching on.

The Perfect Call

“What the president has admitted to and says it’s perfect. I said it’s perfectly wrong,” House Speaker Nancy Pelosi said at her weekly news conference at the Capitol on Nov. 14. “It’s bribery.”

Specifically, 18 U.S.C. § 201, “Bribery of public officials and witnesses” states that any public official is guilty of bribery who “directly or indirectly, corruptly demands, seeks, receives, accepts, or agrees to receive or accept anything of value personally or for any other person or entity, in return for being influenced in the performance of any official act.”

You don’t actually have to get what you’re after. It’s enough to seek and demand. Under federal law, bribery and attempted bribery are one and the same.

What did Trump corruptly demand and seek?

First, investigations of the Russian conspiracy theory, and Joe Biden’s son, Hunter, who served on the board of Burisma, a Ukrainian energy company. Second, coordination with Trump’s team, including his personal attorney, Rudy Giuliani, who was named in the call. Third, it was later made clear, Trump demanded a public presidential announcement of the Biden/ Burisma investigation. After all, what’s the good of a ginned-up phony investigation, if you don’t publicize it to the hilt?

The Damning Facts

These are the damning facts at the core of case. But the July 25 phone call wasn’t made in a vacuum. It was months in the making, with Giuliani leading the way with the political machinations that cleared the way for the “three amigos” (Kurt Volker, Rick Perry, and Gordon

Nixon dirty trickster Roger Stone was found guilty on all charges related to Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation. File photo

Sondland) to hijack Ukraine policy on Trump’s behalf. Then the call had weeks of follow-up by this same sleazy crew before the whistleblower complaint became known to House Intelligence Chair Adam Schiff on Sept. 9. The White House released its hold on the aid two days later. The jig was up.

Now, the hearings have begun to tell the full story—including how it was necessary to smear and get rid of our Ukraine ambassador, Marie Yovanovitch, in order for Trump’s corrupt scheme to play out. Pointedly, when Yovanovitch testified on Friday, on the second day of hearings, Rep. Jim Himes asked her if she would have gone along with Trump’s crooked shenanigans.

Would she have recommended Trump ask the new Ukrainian president to investigate the Russian conspiracy theory blaming Ukraine for election interference in 2016? “No,” she said, “I would repeat, once again, that the U.S. intelligence community has concluded that it was the Russians.” Would she have “supported a three-month delay in congressionally mandated military aid to Ukraine?” Himes asked. Again, Yovanovitch said, “No.” Would she have recommended Trump ask for an investigation into Joe Biden’s son? Once again, her answer was “No.” Before Yovanovitch, the hearings started with Bill Taylor, the acting ambassador who replaced Yovanovitch, and George Kent, the deputy assistant secretary of state for Eastern Europe and the Caucuses. They set the stage by telling the larger story of what they saw unfolding on their watch, both directly and via information gleaned from others working for or with them.

Since Trump has already effectively confessed, by releasing the smoking gun phone call memo, House Republicans had no motivation [See Stupid, p.19]

E

By Greggory Moore, Curtain Call Columnist

Real News, Real People, Really Effective

xactly one year ago, Long Beach Playhouse was staging a superfine adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. Now comes Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley, which catches up with four of the five Bennet girls two years after the close of Jane Austen’s classic. Talk about timing!

Of course, when we’re talking about good theatre, timing isn’t everything. But good timing is the least of the many reasons to see this show.

It’s December 1815, and we find Lizzy (Nori T. Schmidt) at Pemberley very happily married to Mr. Darcy (Micah Lee). The pair await the arrival of Bennet clan — including Mr. Bingley (Timothy Voytek), still in the midst of connubial bliss to a now very pregnant Jane (Briana Christine), but minus Kitty, who can’t get away from London (for reasons that don’t concern us in the play) — plus Arthur (Michael Kaye), a recent Oxford grad and newly minted lord of Rosings now that Lady Catherine has kicked the bucket.

But this is primarily Mary’s (Gabi Jones) story. “We do not receive many visitors now that my charming sisters are no longer at home,” the bookish, oft-overlooked middle sister writes to Lizzy in the play’s opening scene. “[...] And I? I read. Of things beyond myself. And I wonder: Can one live a large life in mind alone?”

Because there’s no doubt that everything will work out for the best — it’s romantic comedy and a Christmas play, for fuck’s sake — the artistic success or failure is all in the journey to the (pre)destination. And getting there is good fun from beginning to end.

For a start, playwrights Lauren Gunderson and Margo Melcon have created a surprisingly legitimate sequel to Pride and Prejudice. I say “surprisingly” because to some extent Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley is fan fiction; [See Curtain Call, p.15]

November 21 - December 4, 2019

9

T

hanksgiving marks the start of the winter holidays, and a parallel season of enhanced leftovers consumption. It can be a freewheeling, chaotic time, when pieces of feasts and roast beasts are combined and reheated. But amid improvisations like refried mashed potatoes and microwaved kale salad, the most sacred act of leftovers season remains constant: bird bone soup.

The process begins when the table is cleared.

As the uneaten sides and desserts are wrapped for the fridge, the motivated host will cut the remaining meat off the carcass, pluck leftover turkey bones from the returned plates, and add the bones and sinew to the stock pot. If you get started like this before the dust settles, that’s one less large object to cram into the fridge.

The first step in cooking a bird bone soup is to prepare a stock from the carcass, herbs and aromatic vegetables. What you do with that stock is up to you. I recommend turkey noodle soup.

For me, bone broth soup isn’t just a holiday ritual. It’s a way of life. Whether it’s from a deer, cow, pig, fish or a rotisserie chicken in a plastic bag from the supermarket, I’m loath to throw away a bone without simmering it first to extract its goodness.

After Thanksgiving:

Glorious Leftover Turkey Noodle Soup

By Ari LeVaux, Contributor

If you have a pasta pot with a removable insert drainer, I recommend using it. That way you can keep simmering your bones in the soup for as long as possible, even after you’ve added veggies and meat and other ingredients that will be in the finished soup. If you don’t have a pasta pot, use a colander to strain the finished stock before making soup.

When I make bone stock, I try to cut, break, smash and otherwise reduce the size of the bone pieces as much as possible. This facilitates the release of marrow and other beneficial bone particles.

But going to such lengths, admittedly, is not absolutely necessary. If you aren’t up to bone breaking, don’t sweat it. And definitely don’t hurt yourself. There is, in fact, a decent argument against breaking the bones: leaving them intact creates a more clear and delicate stock.

But we are making leftover turkey noodle soup, which like leftover season itself is a raucous affair. It may be clouded by dissolved roast potatoes. There may be little bits of stuffing. Everything suspended in a glorious semi-solid matrix of bird-broth-bloated egg noodles.

Real News, Real People, Totally Relevant

Turkey Bone Soup

If you can, make this recipe without a single trip to the store, even if it means skipping the parsnips, mushrooms or hoisin sauce. If you don’t have wine, use a little vinegar for the acid. But, if you don’t have onion, carrot and celery, then you are going shopping. Ditto for the noodles.

1 turkey (or other bird) carcass 6 sticks celery: 3 chopped finely (about 2 cups), 3 cut in half, plus the leaves 6 medium carrots: 3 chopped (about 2 cups), 3 cut in half 2 onions: 1 chopped finely (about 2 cups),

1 sliced in half 4 sprigs fresh thyme 4 sage leaves 1 (14 oz.) can diced tomatoes (or rough equivalent in other tomato form) 2 cups mushrooms, cut into quarters 1 parsnip, chopped Leftover veggies and pan drippings if available 1 cup wine ½ cup soy sauce Salt

November 21 - December 4, 2019

Fill a pasta pot or stock pot three-fourths full of water, and place on high heat.

Pull apart the carcass, bones and everything in between, yanking off the bits of cartilage and connective tissue while stripping the good pieces of meat. Keep the meat in the fridge.

Cut the bones and connective tissues into small pieces with a pair of kitchen shears, including the soft ends of the long bones. Smash what you can’t cut if you are up to it, but don’t hurt yourself.

Broken or not, add the bones, along with all of the cartilage, skin, onion halves, large sections of celery and carrot, thyme and sage to the pasta insert or stock pot. Simmer for as long as time permits, up to 10 hours.

When it’s time to make the soup, remove the bones. If using a pasta pot, do so slowly so they drain into the pot, and set the insert in a container to catch further drainage. If not using a pasta cooker, strain the bones in a colander.

Add the chopped celery, carrot, onion, tomato, mushrooms, parsnip, wine, soy sauce, pan drippings, bite-sized leftover veggies and meat to the pot, on medium heat. If using a pasta boiler, and if space permits, put the bones back in the soup while it cooks. Sip the broth every half hour or so to check the seasoning, and adjust the salt and pepper and wine as necessary.

About 30 minutes before serving time, add the celery leaves, hoisin sauce and garlic.

Now it’s time for the noodles. You can either add them directly to the soup, or cook them separately and add them. Neither is a perfect solution, as cooking the noodles in the soup means leftovers will be soggy, while cooking the noodles in water deprives them of the opportunity to get bloated by bone broth.

If using a pasta boiler, you don’t have to choose, because you can dump the bones and use the insert to cook the noodles in the soup, and then add them as needed to each bowl at serving time.

Harbor Area Restaurants Give a Cooking Hand

By Terelle Jerricks, Managing Editor

Preparing Thanksgiving dinner for the whole family is a challenge some embrace and others do not. If you’re not gathering with an extended family and friends for the traditional feast here are a few options for dining without the stress Here are a few Harbor Area restaurants Random Lengths News recommends for those who want to shirk this traditional workload.

The Whale & Ale

10

Pepper Egg noodles 1 tablespoon hoisin sauce 3 cloves garlic, minced

San Pedro’s traditional holiday standard bearer will be serving the Thanksgiving essentials: freshly carved roast turkey with vegetables, mashed potatoes, stuffing, country gravy and cranberry sauce. But there’s also plenty to choose from for anyone who prefers a less-traditional dinner. Expect to see beef Wellington, The Whale & Ale roast prime rib au jus, an 8-ounce choice filet mignon, roast rack of New Zealand lamb, shepherd’s pie, curry, glazed twice-roasted quarter duckling in Cumberland sauce and baked Scottish salmon. Featured on Thanksgiving evening is 2019’s beaujolais nouveau, which is annually shipped from France around the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. The Whale & Ale tends to get busy so reservations are a must.

Time: 1 to 7 p.m. Nov. 28 Details: 310-832-0363; www.whaleandale.com Venue: The Whale & Ale, 327 W. 7th St., San Pedro

Conrad’s Mexican Grill

Conrad’s Mexican Grill will be preparing roast turkeys to go for those who dread cooking the bird. And they have lots of side dishes too. Make sure to place your orders well in advance.

Time: 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

Details: 424-264-5452 Venue: 367 W. 6th St., San Pedro

Queen Mary

Enjoy first-class dining aboard the world-famous Queen Mary and celebrate Thanksgiving in style by reserving a table at Sir Winston’s Restaurant & Lounge or Chelsea Chowder House. Otherwise, walkins are welcome at the Promenade Cafe’s award-winning brunch until all tables are full.

The award-winning cuisine at Sir Winston’s features a menu of traditional favorites served while pianist Scott MacDonald tickles standard tunes from the ivories. Hours are 12 to 7 p.m. Prices range $74 and $24.95 for children ages 4 to 11. For reservations call 562-499-1657. Parking is $8 with restaurant validation.

People whose Thanksgiving tradition includes NFL football can catch the televised games with roast turkey and other delicious [See Thanksgiving, p. 15]

DEC 5 Brought to you by the artists and restaurants of the Downtown San Pedro Waterfront Arts District

Michael Stearns Studio@The Loft

Cannery Row Studios

FAREWELL: ASSEMBLAGE, INSTALLATION AND PAINTING

SCHISMN / ROBI HUTAS

5-9 pm

Pinta*Dos Philippine Art Gallery

RECUERDOS ~ SOUVENIRS: ELISEO “EL1SY” ART SILVA

Eliseo “EL1SY” Art Silva, Spectre of Comparisons

Work by Robi Hutas is on display through Dec. 5.

Closing reception Dec. 5, 6 to 9 p.m. Cannery Row Studios@The Loft, 401 S. Mesa St., San Pedro.

Details: 310-291-5316; canneryrowstudios.com Ben Zask, D Flat

Studio Gallery 345

Peggy Silvert’s current work explores the symbolic parallels of the horse to our evolving civilization. Ben Zask’s assemblages of recycled materials are installed in three rooms representing war, music and climate crisis. The pieces are intended to have the viewer connect on an emotional level, with each room having a different impact on viewers’ sense of urgency. See the show on First Thursday Art Walk, Dec. 5, 6 to 9 p.m. Through Dec. 22. Michael Stearns Studio@The Loft, 401 S. Mesa St., San Pedro. Enter the Loft at the loading dock on 4th Street.

According to curator Edwin Ramoran, Silva’s paintings “… constantly remind us that our own ‘recuerdos’ have been shaped and overdetermined by so many factors and realities … We can own objects that may jog our memory of a particular personal event, but what memories can produce powerful objects capable of releasing potentiality, focus and transformation?

The strength in these new paintings is how they present resistance on many levels.” The show closes with an Artist’s Reception, Dec. 5, 5 to 8 p.m., artist talk 6:30 p.m. Pinta*Dos Philippine Art Gallery, 479 W 6th St., Suite 108, San Pedro.

Details: 310-514-9139; www.pintadosgallery.com

Details: 562-400-0544

Details: 310-545-0832 or 310-374-8055; artsail@roadrunner.com or www.patwoolleyart.com.

40% Off Watercolor Paints

10% Student Discount on Art Supplies

(310) 519-7381 Mon. - Sat. 11 a.m. - 7 p.m.

1701 S. Gaffey St., San Pedro

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Pat Woolley

Studio 345 presents paintings by Pat Woolley and Gloria D Lee. Open 5 to 9 p.m. on First Thursday and by appointment. Studio 345, 345 W. 7th St., San Pedro.

Art supplied

$65 (plus tax)

RLn BRINGS YOU DEDICATED COVERAGE OF THE ARTS IN THE HARBOR AREA. FOR ADVERTISING, CALL 310. 519.1442

November 21 - December 4, 2019

1ST THURSDAY SPECIAL 1,000 FULL COLOR POSTCARDS 4 x 6”

11

November 21 - December 4, 2019

Real News, Real People, Totally Relevant

The idea of a notion is the preconceived assumption about a subject, something you thought you knew, but maybe not. In Local Notions, the exhibition of San Pedro artists at the Angels Gate Cultural Center,notions of community art are shattered.Since the mid-20th century, when Jay Mueser set up his studio in the heart of downtown, San Pedro has nurtured local arts. As time progressed the town began to attract a wide variety of professional and amateur artists to the cloistered peninsula where they could count on available studio space and a sense of isolation where creativity could be cultivated.

Four years ago, Amy Eriksen became director of Angels Gate Cultural Center, located on the site of the World War II-era 1 Fort MacArthur. When the U.S. Army relocated the old fort across the road, they discarded a breathtaking location high on a hill above the Pacific Ocean overlooking Catalina Island.

A group of artists recognized an incredible opportunity. The Cultural Center emerged in the 1970s from a group that created an artist’s studio and exhibition space within the 1940era Army barracks in Ft. MacArthur’s Upper Reservation.

Eriksen’s vision was to attract local talent to an exhibition that would reflect the range of artistry within the boundaries of the community.

This show represents not just the artists working in Angels Gate studios, but a collection of artists throughout the entire art colony that exists here.

“We are here for the community,” said

12

Angels Gate Cultural Center’s Got Local Notions

said Newhouse. “As a curator, normally I am responding to a specific artist or group of artists, delving into what philosophical, historic, formal or conceptual ideas come to the fore, and examining that in order to make decisions about

By Andrea Serna, Arts and Culture Writer the makeup of an exhibition and to ascertain my curatorial premise.

Eriksen. “Community art can look like this.

“I worked closely with We don’t have to go to other places to see Sara Pilchman at Angels Gate,” contemporary art. We were lucky enough to Newhouse said. “And it took the have a juror who could see the vision for a better part of the day to organize 3000-square-foot space.” the artworks so that they would 110 submissions were received and 54 ‘speak with’ one another to create works were chosen. meaningful conversations for The works exhibited in this vast show cover visitors to the gallery.” efforts by the best of San Pedro artists who Newhouse said that because of submitted 110 works, of which 54 were chosen. the open nature of the exhibition, The roster includes such as Eugene Daub, Ann the conversations had to be fairly Webber and Ron Linden. Daub, a contemporary broad and were mostly formal figure sculptor, is known across the country for (style, color palette, level of creating the Rosa Parks statue that sits in the expressiveness) or narrative.

U.S. Capitol building. Award-winning Michael “There were many affinities Davis is known for his public art design, among that revealed themselves during which is the L.A. Metro Red Line Vermont/ the install—colors or patterns, Sunset station, recognized as one of the eight which brought about satisfying most beautiful subway stations in America. connections between objects,” As you walk through the galleries at Angels Newhouse said.

Gate you will be introduced to artwork by “It is the most fun to create familiar names but you will also see work by these juxtapositions, which often younger artists who you most likely have never Heading Southie by Audra Graziano. Photo by Ray Carofano come as a surprise to the artists heard of. The task of choosing the work to be who make the work. In this respect, it hopefully included was taken on by Kristina Newhouse, a University at Long Beach.

“Jurying a community exhibition is quite a helps them to open up their practice, to consider San Pedro resident, who is the chief curator of different process than curating an exhibition,” showing with other artists with whom the the Kleefeld Contemporary at California State

connections or affinities are not necessarily selfevident on the surface of things.”

Among the younger artists is Audra Graziano, an MFA graduate of California State University Long Beach in 2014. Graziano is an abstract artist. Her large canvas, titled Heading Southie, covered in wild brightly colored sharp diagonal lines delves into the layering of light and color, while also serving as a metaphor for the occasional uncontrolled free thoughts we experience.

She has exhibited her work in group, solo and two-person exhibitions in various international locations, including New York City, Los Angeles, and Berlin. She is a professor of drawing and painting at Cerritos College. She was the recipient of the Windes and McClaughry Corporate Gallery Award, the Elizabeth Vyse Scholarship, and graduated with the College of the Arts Distinguished Achievement in Creative Activity Award in 2014.

Another Cal State MFA graduate is Gloria Sanchez, founder of the FA4 artist’s collective.

FA4 Collective is a group of artists who follow their creative calling as individuals and work together to establish a network of support, education, and personal growth. Sanchez submitted a multimedia piece called Home Grown 3 utilizing found objects, sometimes from local swap meets, to create a braided multi-dimensional wall hanging. The piece in this show incorporated fake hair and plastic

flowers to elicit a sense of memory or nostalgia.

“My work is a representation of the Harbor area community I grew up in,” said Sanchez. “I get inspiration from the philosophy of rasquache which is from Mexican art. It literally translates to the lower class.”

Rasquache art uses the most basic, simplest, quickest, and crudest means necessary to create the desired expression, in essence, creating the most from the least.

Sanchez states that she strives to maintain softness and beauty in her presence, despite growing up in harsh circumstances. She points to a verse by Tupac Shakur: “A rose that grew from the concrete.” She works to transcend the circumstances of her early environment.

Angels Gate is a nonprofit with a mission to To provide space for artists to work and to engage the community through arts education, exhibitions of contemporary art, and cultural events. Many of the 54 works in the show are available for purchase, with proceeds going towards the center.

Local Notions runs through Dec. 14 and will be open during the popular Open Studios Day on Dec. 7.

Time: 12 to 4 p.m. Dec. 7 Cost: Free Details: www./angelsgateart.org Venue: Angels Gate Cultural Center, 3601 S. Gaffey St., San Pedro

Support Your Community! Shop Local!

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November 21 - December 4, 2019

13

A MUSIC Nov. 22

Baby Gramps and Cowboy and Indian Baby Gramps has created a highly developed and original musical concoction that is easily the most intriguing synthesis to come out of the roots revival of the late 20th century. Cowboy and Indian represent the beauty and whimsical nature of bygone days, when a guitar, a drum and a song could unite two seemingly opposite cultures.

Time: 8 to 11:30 p.m. Nov. 22 Cost: Free Details: 562-584-6233; w w w. m a d e b y m i l l w o r k s . c o m / pages/elinordrinkery Venue: Elinor, 250 N. Tribune Court, Long Beach ECC Studio Jazz Band The El Camino College Studio Jazz Big Band performs arrangements from the great composers, arrangers and band leaders from the jazz tradition.

Time: 8 p.m. Nov. 22 Cost: $10 Details: www.elcaminotickets. universitytickets.com Venue: Marsee Auditorium, 16007 Crenshaw Blvd., Torrance

Nov. 23

November 21 - December 4, 2019

Real News, Real People, Totally Relevant

Preservation Hall Jazz Band The band’s A Tuba to Cuba documentary chronicled the group’s life-changing visit to Cuba in 2015. The septet’s album So It Is, explores modern-day New Orleans music and connects the sounds back to the city’s AfroCuban roots.

Time: 8 p.m. Nov. 23 Cost: $50 to $75 Details: 562-916-8500; www.cerritoscenter.com Venue: Cerritos Center for the Performing Arts, 18000 Park Plaza Drive, Cerritos

14

Precious Precious invades Long Beach with the sound of the Pretenders at DiPiazza’s.

Precious is on the same bill as Janes Addicted, paying an amazing tribute to Jane’s Addiction.

Time: 8 p.m. Nov. 23 Cost: Free Details: 562-498-2461 Venue: Dipiazza’s, 5205 E. Pacific Coast Highway, Long Beach Bruce Baker Bruce Baker & The Altered Presence Jazz Band is both an original jazz music project and a contemporary jazz standards performance band.

The Bruce Baker Trio is an evenly balanced collective of wonderful improvisational conversations.

Time: 8 p.m. Nov. 23 Cost: $20 Details: www. alvasshowroom.tix.com Venue: Alvas Showroom, 1417 W. 8th St., San Pedro The Glass Family Electric Band Original and new members of the psychedelic rock band, Glass Family play their songs plus tunes from The Doors, The Rolling Stones and others from the great era of rock’n’roll to a psychedelic

NOV 21 - DEC 4 • 2019

ARTS CULTURE ENTERTAINMENT light show.

Time: 8 p.m. Nov. 23 Cost: $22 to $32 Details: www.grandvision.org Venue: Grand Annex, 434 W. 6th St., San Pedro Randy Coleman The Los Angeles-based singer and songwriter performs a variety of timeless hits. Coleman has unparalleled passion for music, with influences like Freddie Mercury, Otis Redding and Jeff Buckley.

Time: 7 p.m. Nov. 23 Cost: Free Details: www.whaleandale.com Venue: The Whale & Ale, 327 W. 7th St., San Pedro La Posada Saints Peter and Paul School presents its annual fundraiser concert featuring world-renowned Latino musicians and comedy acts. A great kick-off to the holiday season.

Time: 7 p.m. Nov. 23 Cost: $50 to $100 Details: 310-834-5574; www.grandvision.org/ Venue: Warner Grand Theatre, 434 W. 6th St., San Pedro

Nov. 24

Acoustic Asylum Acoustic Asylum is what happens when you take some of LA’s best recording and touring musicians and turn them loose in an organic setting. No electronic tricks, no stylistic limits, just having fun and making incredible music.

Time: 4 to 6 p.m. Nov. 24 Cost: $20 Details: www.alvasshowroom.tix. com Venue: Alvas Showroom, 1417 W. 8th St., San Pedro Welsh Choir of Southern California The Whale & Ale is hosting a pub sing with the Welsh Choir of Southern California with special British pub fare menu.

Time: 6:30 p.m. Nov. 24 Cost: Free Details: 310-832-0363; www.whaleandale.com Venue: 327 W. 7th St., San Pedro

Nov. 25

Open Mic with Shy But Flyy In an atmosphere of honesty and sharing people show their unique perspective artistically, through comedy, drama, music and poetry, demonstrating the rich textures that make up our community in a welcoming environment.

Time: 7 p.m. Nov. 25 Cost: Free Details: 562-426-4777; www.roxanneslounge.com Venue: Roxanne’s, 1115 E. Wardlow Rd., Long Beach

Nov. 29 An Evening of Siouxsie!

It’s time to pay homage to the Queen All Siouxsie All Night with DJ’s Dave Bats and Andy Smith.

Time: 9 p.m. Nov. 29 Cost: Free Details: 562-599-6170; www.thequesera.com Venue: Que Sera, 1923 E. 7th St., Long Beach

Nov. 30

Heartbeat City Come out to enjoy and celebrate

a tribute to The Cars.

Time: 8 p.m. Nov. 30 Cost: $15 Details: www.alvasshowroom.tix. com Venue: Alvas Showroom, 1417 W. 8th St., San Pedro

Dec. 1

Happy Jolly Holidays!

Senior Comedy Afternoons presents “Happy Jolly Holidays” a comedy show and luncheon at the newly renovated Proud Bird.

Everyone is encouraged to wear red, green, blue and silver. A guided tour of the air park takes place post- show. Tickets include the show, a three-course served lunch and all taxes and tips.

Time: 12 to 3 p.m. Dec 1 Cost: $40 to $75 Details: 714-914-2565; www.seniorcomedyafternoons. com Venue: The Proud Bird, 11022 Aviation Blvd. Los Angeles

Dec. 5

Open Mic at the Grand Annex First Thursday Open Mic is dedicated to showcasing, connecting, and providing a creative outlet for artists from all walks of life. Share your talents from the Annex stage.

Time: 7 p.m. Dec 5 Cost: $5 Details: 310-833-4813; www.grandvision.org Venue: Grand Annex, 434 W. 6th St., San Pedro

THEATER Nov. 21

Embridge In Victorian-era England, love cynic Mabel Martin moves to a country estate with her eccentric family and meddling servants. But her doubts about love become tested when a charming man offers to help save her sister from a disastrous arranged marriage.

Time: 8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday 2 p.m.; Sundays, Nov. 21 to Dec. 15 Cost: $26 to $28 Details: www.tinyurl.com/ y2sewohw Venue: Little Fish Theatre, 777 S. Centre St., San Pedro Living On Love When a demanding diva discovers that her larger-than-life maestro husband has become enamored with the lovely young lady hired to ghostwrite his largely fictional autobiography, she hires a handsome young scribe of her own and sparks fly.

Time: 7 p.m. Thursday Nov. 21, 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday Nov. 22 to Dec. 8, 2 p.m. Saturday Dec. 7, 8 Cost: $30 Details: 424-243-6882; TorranceTheatreCompany.com Venue: Torrance Theatre Company, 1316 Cabrillo Ave., Torrance

ARTS

Nov. 21

Layer Upon Layer Join the artist’s talk with works by five artists. The exhibition is derived from the stacking of images to produce a multi-leveled view of our fluctuating, complex and increasingly rapidly moving world. Gallery hours are Monday, Tuesday 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday

and Tuesday; 12 to 7:30 p.m.

Wednesday and Thursday Time: 1 p.m. Nov. 26 Cost: Free Details: www.elcamino.edu Venue: 16007 Crenshaw Blvd., Torrance

Malo at the Waterfront Winter Dance

Art Show: Root Cause The gallery is showcasing sculptures by Long Beach City College Alumni.

Time: 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.

Nov. 21 Cost: Free Details: www.lbcc.edu Venue: Long Beach City College, 4901 E. Carson St., Long Beach

Nov. 23

Fathom—Bridging San Pedro Four artists will work at Angels Gate Cultural Center to foster a greater awareness and association between the Port of Los Angeles, life in San Pedro and art as a daily lived experience.

Join Blue McRight in creating suspended vertical sculptures that address projected sea level rise and the urgent problem of ocean plastic.

Time: 3 to 5 p.m. Nov. 23 Cost: Free Details: www.angelsgateart.org Venue: Angels Gate Cultural Center, 3601 S. Gaffey St., Building G, San Pedro

Nov. 24 The Lump Show: A Final UnNouning Join Cornelius Projects for the final viewing of all that will become Un-Noun, celebrating the return of our congloms to their original state: a reversion to Lump, preVOM, a dis-glomming. Hours for the remainder of the exhibition: Saturdays and Sundays 12 to 5 p.m. or by appointment.

Time: 12 to 5 p.m. Nov. 24 Cost: Free Details: 310-266-9216 Venue: Cornelius Projects, 1417 S. Pacific Ave., San

Dec. 7

Open Studios Day Angels Gate studio artists will open their doors to the public. See their space, hear about their arts practice, and view performances by our community classes. In the gallery, Angels Gate Cultural Center put the spotlight on San Pedro artists in Local Notions, juried by Kristina Newhouse.

Time: 12 to 4 Dec. 7 Cost: Free Details: www.angelsgateart.org Venue: Angels Gate Cultural Center, 3601 S. Gaffey St., San Pedro

DANCE Nov. 21

Fall Advanced Dance Concert This fall favorite features the choreography of one guest artist in the professional dance field, dance faculty members from El Camino College and original works from current ECC choreography students. Many genres of dance will be represented, including ballet, modern, contemporary, world, jazz and hip-hop.

Time: 1 p.m. Nov. 21, 8 p.m. Nov. 22, 23 and 3 p.m. Nov. 24 Cost: $10 to $15 Details: www.elcaminotickets. universitytickets.com Venue: Marsee Auditorium, 16007 Crenshaw Blvd., Torrance

FILM

Nov. 29 Willy Wonka & The Chocolate Factory The Roadium Drive-In is reviving its classic 1950’s drive-in this fall.

Malo, the original kings of Latin rock, is headlining a winter dance at the ILWU Memorial Hall on Dec. 6. This will be a night to remember as you rock out to Suavacito and other Malo hits. For the true fans who pay the $100 a ticket to join the VIP section will get to have a delectable dinner and engage in a meet-and-greet with the members of Malo.

The Santana tribute band Soul Sacrifice will warm up the crowd with its burning renditions of Santana’s Latin-infused rock classics such as Oye Como Va, Black Magic Woman, Jingo Lo Ba and Soul Sacrifice.

Juanito Ibarra, the show’s promoter, has been pounding the pavements in his hometown of San Pedro for years drumming up support for his World Youth Foundation and to build a 30,000-square-foot youth center that would offer mentoring, fitness classes, martial arts training and vocational trades.

Ibarra, a cutman who once trained world champion boxer Oscar De la Hoya and mixed martial arts fighter Rampage Jackson, has been putting on shows like this to raise money for the World Youth Foundation.

Time: Dec. 6, 7:30 p.m.

Cost: Pre-sale $30; $50 at the door; VIP $100 Details: ticketon.com; 424-337-9694 Location: ILWU Memorial Hall, 231 W . C St., Wilmington Each month, guests can enjoy a great film in this throwback retro setting, along with food trucks and movie concessions. Gates open at 5:45 p.m. One ticket per car is required. The fee includes $5 admission and $15 for parking and a charitable contribution to a local nonprofit.

Time: 7 p.m. Nov. 29 Cost: $20 Details: 310-532-5678; www.roadium.com Venue: The Roadium Open Air Market, 2500 W. Redondo Beach Blvd. Torrance

Dec. 1

The Biggest Little Farm This film is a testament to the immense complexity of nature, which follows two dreamers and a dog on an odyssey to bring harmony to both their lives and the land.

Time: 5 to 7 p.m. Dec. 1 Cost: $10 Details: www.pvplc.org Venue: Warner Grand Theatre, 478 W. 6th St., San Pedro

LITERATURE Nov. 24

Star Chasing New Poems by Thomas R. Thomas Announcing the book release of Star Chasing, a new book of poems by Thomas R. Thomas, who will read from his new book plus an open mic.

Time: 3 to 5 p.m. Nov. 24 Cost: Free Details: 562-208-5862; www.gatsbybooks.com Venue: Gatsby Books, 5535 E. Spring St., Long Beach

everything from sleep disorders to ADHD, followed by a sound bath meditation. Open to ages 16 and up.

Time: 2 p.m. Nov. 23 Cost: Free Details: 310-781-7599.

Venue: Torrance Public Library, 3301 Torrance Blvd., Torrance

Dec. 1

Meditation Join every other Sunday for an open meditation and book study. We will do either guided mindfulness, dakini or 4 Immeasurables practice each week, always guided so you do not need to know the practice already. Offered on a donation basis, suggested amount $5.

Time: 9 a.m. Dec. 1 Cost: Free Details: www.tinyurl.com/ meditationangelsgate Venue: Angels Gate Cultural Center, 3601 S. Gaffey St., San Pedro

COMMUNITY Nov. 22

Farmers Market

Every Friday of the month San Pedro residents have the opportunity to buy fresh Californian grown fruits,

WELLNESS

vegetables, plants and flowers.

They will also have the chance to buy fresh, hot food, as well as items from arts and crafts vendors.

Local musicians will also perform.

Time: 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Nov. 23 Cost: Free Details: https://tinyurl.com/ FarmersMarket6thMesa Venue: Historic Downtown San Pedro, 6th and Mesa streets., San Pedro

Meditation & Sound Bath Join Acoustic Therapist Ayamanatara for a discussion of the properties of sound as a tool to assist in the treatment of

Friday Night Lights Enjoy yummy refreshments while browsing the Cabrillo Marine Aquarium Gift Shop with hundreds of collectible ornaments, books, games, art cards, stationary and

Nov. 23

A curated ocean-themed gifts.

The gift shop will be open after hours for holiday shopping until Christmas.

Time: 6 to 8 p.m. Fridays through Dec. 20 Cost: Free Details: www.cabrillomarine aquarium.org Venue: Cabrillo Marine Aquarium, 3720 Stephen M. White Dr., San Pedro

Nov. 23 Docent Led Nature Walk to Tidepools Enjoy a guided tour of Abalone Cove, past the native flora and fauna and explore the tide pools teeming with fascinating marine life. The hiking difficulty is moderate to strenuous, about a mile and is a child-friendly hike.

Rain cancels a hike.

Time: 12:30 p.m. Nov. 23 Cost: Free Details: 310-544-5375; www.losserenos.org Venue: Abalone Cove Shoreline Park, 5970 Palos Verdes Dr. South, Rancho Palos Verdes Shibori, Japanese Tie Dye Workshop Shibori uses a variety of ways to embellish textiles by shaping cloth around elements like PVC pipe and rocks, then dying and shaping the material to create beautiful patterns.

Time: 1 to 4 p.m. Nov. 23 Cost: $30 to $35 Details: www.tinyurl.com/ shiborijapanesetiedie Venue: Torrance Cultural Arts

NOV 21 - DEC 4 • 2019

ARTS CULTURE ENTERTAINMENT Center, 3330 Civic Center Drive, Torrance

Nov. 30

Wine, Walk and Shop at Crafted Get all your handmade holiday shopping done with Crafted artists while enjoying unlimited tastes of dozens of wines from wineries curated by Off the Vine.The market is open 12 p.m. to 8 p.m. and wine tasting begins at 2 p.m.

Just $25 for unlimited tastes all afternoon and a take-home glass while supplies last. Live DJ in the house.

Time: 2 to 8 p.m. Nov. 30 Cost: 0 to $25 Details: www.craftedportla.com Venue: CRAFTED at the Port of Los Angeles, 112 E. 22nd St., San Pedro Shop Small Saturday Shop Small is a nationwide movement to celebrate small businesses every day and to help communities thrive and stay vibrant. The bar (Elinor) will be open 12 p.m. to 12 a.m., with champagne flowing and holiday movies showing all day in our theater room—perfect place for a break in your shopping day Time: 9 a.m. to 10 p.m. Nov. 30 Cost: Free Details: 562-584-6233; www.madebymillworks.com Venue: MADE by Lillworks, 240 Pine Ave., Long Beach

Dec. 1 39th Annual Spirit of San Pedro Holiday Parade This festive tradition brings

families, little leagues, scouts, students, high school bands, equestrian units, and volunteers to downtown San Pedro to celebrate the holiday season and our community. More than 9,000 individuals will line the streets to view the parade.

Time: 1 to 3 p.m. Dec. 1 Cost: Free Details: https://www. sanpedrochamber.com/ Venue: San Pedro Chamber of Commerce, 390 W. 7th St., San Pedro Holiday Shopping and Artisan Market On Museum Store Sunday, CMA hosts a local artisan market showcasing handmade gifts. Meet the artists and buy direct. The gift shop will be open, too.

Time: 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Dec. 1 Cost: Free Details: 310-548-7562; www.cabrillomarineaquarium.org Venue: Cabrillo Marine Aquarium, 3720 Steven M. White Drive, San Pedro

Dec. 5

Cocoa with Santa Bring the entire family and enjoy delicious cocoa and treats, make holiday crafts, listen to traditional holiday stories, and meet Santa and Mrs. Claus.

Time: 4 to 5:30 p.m. Dec. 5, 6 and 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Dec. 7 Cost: Free Details: www.rancholoscerritos. org Venue: Rancho Los Cerritos, 4600 Virginia Road, Long Beach

How We Stopped an Out of Control President

By Melina Paris, Arts and Culture Reporter

Director Charles Ferguson’s film, Watergate Or: How We Stopped an Out of Control President, is all just a little too familiar at this time in American consciousness.

Ferguson takes a deep dive into all the workings of the Watergate scandal, the breakin of the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate Hotel and the Nixon administration’s subsequent attempts to cover-up its involvement in the crime which sent over 40 people to jail.

Through this retelling with key players and dramatic reenactments, Ferguson provides a comprehensive view of the former president’s personal psychosis and the events that led to the articles of impeachment and subsequent resignation of President Richard Nixon.

In a Democracy Now! interview with Amy Goodman, Ferguson said what surprised him was the degree to which the successful resolution of the Watergate scandal depended on the unbelievable courage and commitment and high ethical standards of a relatively small number of people.

“I was astounded by what people in the media did, by members of Congress and what they did, by government officials who stood up to Nixon, refused to obey his orders in some cases,” he said. “It was quite remarkable to see that, to see the way that the government worked and people in the media worked.”

Ferguson has said that the events of 2016 [around the election] were quite shocking and made him change the nature of the film considerably. To make the political thriller he wanted to, like a real-life House of Cards would not have been appropriate.

[Curtain Call from p. 9]

Times: 8 p.m. Friday through Saturday, 2 p.m. Sunday through Nov. 30 Cost: $14 to $24 Details: 562-494-1014; LBplayhouse.org Venue: Long Beach Playhouse, 5021 E. Anaheim St., Long Beach [Thanksgiving from p. 10]

Thanksgiving The cast of Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley at the Long Beach Playhouse.

November 21 - December 4, 2019

alone a bibliophile like Mary in a time when you couldn’t just order a new one on Amazon, picks up a book by its front cover. Otherwise, though, Gitlin’s got her cast doing all the right things.

Long Beach Playhouse Mainstage productions usually look good, and this one is no exception. With a little suspension of disbelief, Pemberley — the one room we get to see, anyway — is properly grand. Robert Richardson’s lighting is simple but luminous; the central role of Allison Mamann’s sound design is perfectly played; and Christina Bayer’s costumery is just about as good as what we saw when the Playhouse transported us back to the Regency Era last season.

I know it’s not Thanksgiving yet, but Miss Bennet: Christmas at Pemberley is a fine way

favorites at the Observation Bar and Chelsea Chowder House.

No trip to Chelsea’s would be complete without trying one of their signature chowders. Hours of operation are from 5 to 10 p.m. Costs are $48 and $19.95 for children ages 4 to 11. For details call 562- 499-1685.

The Promenade Cafe’s atmosphere of casual and friendly fun does not preclude a classic family Thanksgiving Day dinner overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Hours of operation are from 6:30 to 10 p.m. Costs are $49 and $19.95 for children 4 to 11.

The rest of the family can burn off holiday calories by visiting Chill, where there is ice skating, ice tubing, and marvelling at the incredible Ice Kingdom.

Details: www.queenmary.com Venue: Queen Mary, 1126 Queens Highway, Long Beach 15

professes to love at first sight. And you, Mr. Darcy? Well....

The Playhouse cast is perfect. Gabi Jones imbues Mary with all the intelligence and acerbic diffidence the role requires, and Michael Kaye is her maladroit match. Nora T. Schmidt is a natural Lizzy, and Micha Lee (Bingley in Pride and Prejudice last season) quietly steals scenes as Darcy, benefitting from getting to deliver most of the play’s wittiest laconicism.

For the most part director Phyllis B. Gitlin maximizes the play’s potential, although a bit too much of the action is blocked so that twothirds of the audience is looking at the actors’ backs. There’s also a minor yet unforgivable gaffe concerning how Mary discovers a letter tucked away in a book. No-one on Earth, let

Real News, Real People, Really Effective

to start your Yuletide season. So brush up on Pride and Prejudice, then enjoy a holiday reunion with a few fictional characters that feel like family.

Curtain Call

and while fan fiction might be enjoyable for some of the hardcore devotees of [fill in your favorite franchise here (Star Trek, Star Wars, etc.)] who like dressing up as their favorite fictional characters at Comic-Con, the more aesthetically-minded sort look down their nose at such stuff. Austen, after all, is no schlub, so getting weak in the knees over Darcy hardly qualifies you to add to the canon.

Thankfully, Gunderson and Melcon are no mere fangirls: they’re legitimate writers, and the story they tell scores points on its own merits rather than simply riding on Austen’s coattails. The words the duo puts in the mouths of Austen’s characters that might have come from the novelist herself. “[...] I grew up with the kindest, cleverest, and most beautiful elder sisters in the country; and with the loudest, silliest, prettiest younger sisters in the country,” says Mary. “This left few fair adjectives for me.

I find I still suffer from a lack of definition.”

With lines like that, I doubt the author is spinning in her grave over the dialog.

Naturally, Gunderson and Melcon do not shy away from their source material. Their focus on Mary’s plight is in perfect keeping with Austen’s proto-feminism. And the better you know Pride and Prejudice, the more you’ll be in on the several clever callbacks to the novel.

But perhaps my favorite moment comes when Arthur, well smitten by Mary but just as inept at matters of the heart, asks Bingley and Darcy when they knew they were in love. Bingley

But as events progressed, it became clear he had to make a different film, that showed what Watergate was like, but that also showed how the system works, and doesn’t work, when there’s a true constitutional crisis in the United States.

At just over four hours in length, Ferguson’s film is an absorbing, acute retelling of events.

He provides a narration that keeps you on the edge of your seat and a clear line to follow the increasingly strange and illegal events Nixon and his team orchestrated.

The United States, not unlike now, was embroiled in divisive times. But today, few members of Congress — Democrat or Republican— have any real integrity.

Republicans have a commitment to exonerate a president who has repeatedly broken US law and violated the US constitution. Democrats are content with using a low-fi impeachment process to win an election rather than remove a sitting president of multiple crimes. The closer we get to the 2020 general elections, Ferguson ‘s film shows just how different today is from the Watergate era on integrity alone.

This documentary series is important, not only because of the similarities between the two presidents but psychologically, we are reliving Watergate — almost on steroids. News and information comes at us all day every day versus just on the nightly news or in the newspaper as in Nixon’s time. With all of this and the benefit of an educated understanding, it’s as if you are watching this film in real time. In a sense, we are.

Watch episodes on the History Channel, available in the Vault, www.history.com/shows/ watergate?newexp=true

39th Annual Spirit of San Pedro Holiday Parade

2019 SPIRIT OF SAN PEDRO HOLIDAY PARADE PARTICIPANTS

AltaSea at the Port of Los Angeles

Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer Los Angeles Harbor Commissioner Anthony Pirozzi Los Angeles Maritime Institute Los Angeles Police Department - Harbor Cadets Los Angeles Port Police

Ballet Folklorico Alma de Oro

Mark Wallengren - KOST 103.5 FM

Beach Cities Shrine Club

Mary Star of the Sea High School Baseball

Beach Cities Shrine Club Motorized Camels

Mary Star of the Sea Pre-school & Elementary School

Beach Cities Shrine Club WWII Lifeboat

Mary Star Parish Fiesta 2019

Boys and Girls Club of the Los Angeles Harbor

Palos Verdes Junior Drill Team – Equestrian Unit

Bridge Cities Alliance CA Highway Patrol (South Los Angeles Area

Port of Los Angeles “Timmy the Duck”

CA Highway Patrol Motorcycles

Port of Los Angeles High School Cheer & Pep Squad

CA Highway Patrol Vehicle CA Highway Patrol Vehicle CA State Senator Steve Bradford

Pt. Fermin Marine Science Magnet Elementary School

Cabrillo Beach Marine Aquarium and Friends

San Pedro Bay Historical Society

Cabrillo Beach Polar Bears

San Pedro City Ballet - Nutcracker

Cabrillo Beach County & City Lifeguards

San Pedro Co-Op Nursery School

Cabrillo Beach Youth Watersport Center

San Pedro FC Drill Team

Carson High School Marching Blue Thunder

San Pedro FC Soccer Team

Charros de Jerez Zacatecas Equestrian Unit

San Pedro Girl Scouts

Chase Bank COMMUNITY GRAND MARSHAL Honorary Mayor Pam Costa Crowne Plaza LA Harbor Hotel Cub Scouts of San Pedro Pack 1203 Cub Scouts of San Pedro Pack 234 Cub Scouts of San Pedro Pack 500 Dana Middle School Marching Band Dana Middle School Pep and Cheer Squad

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Dance Tech Dodson Drama Boosters - SPAMALOT

LAFD Aerial Truck

Journeys Martial Arts Academy

LAFD Historic Bandwagon with Fire Chief Ralph Terrazas

San Pedro High School Drill, Flags and Cheer San Pedro High School Golden Pirate Regiment San Pedro High School Marine & Science Magnet San Pedro Lady High School Boosters San Pedro Packages for Patriots San Pedro Rotary Club Santa and Mrs. Claus Soul Movers The Hitchens Team

DoubleTree by Hilton San Pedro

Knights of Columbus Angels Gate Council 1740

Encore Theater Group - Little Mermaid

Kona Ice

Feed & Be Fed Garden Church

LA Airforce Base Color Guard

Groupo Folklorico Mizantla

LA City Councilman Joe Buscaino

Harbor Occupational Center

LA County Supervisor Janice Hahn

LAPD Harbor Community Police Station Captain McManus

Toberman Neighborhood Center

Hayley Clark Dance Company

LA Harbor Dragon Boat Club & Outriggers

Legends Car Club

International Children’s Peace Choir

LA Harbor Dragon Boat Club & Outriggers

Lions Club of San Pedro Vision Screening

Warren Chapel CME Church & Iglesia Cristo Viene

Janny’s Showroom at People’s Place

LAFD - Fire Truck Station 48 w

Little Italy Association of Los Angeles

The Los Angeles Harbor’s participation in spirited winter holiday festivities goes back to Dec. 24, 1934, when U.S. Naval ships in San Pedro were transformed into a fairyland of giant trees and scenery for the annual Christmas fiesta, foreshadowing a Christmas Day when Santa Claus traveled by seaplane between the ships in a Navy benefit for 1,500 low-income youth.

The first official Christmas Afloat parade was Dec. 23, 1963. An estimated 40,000 people came to see 57 boats compete for awards.

The 2019 holiday boat parade sponsored by the Port of Los Angeles celebrates 57 years with a theme of Holiday Magic, to mark the start of the holiday season in Los Angeles Harbor.

The Exy Johnson and Irving Johnson — the official Tall Ships and Maritime Ambassadors of the City of Los Angeles — will participate, along with vessels of all shapes and sizes, including power boats, sailboats, and harbor working craft.

The entries will be judged and trophies 16 awarded for a variety of classifications, including

November 21 - December 4, 2019

With an annual event like the Holiday Spirit Parade that’s been around for more than three decades, it’s pretty easy to get complacent about it. Fortunately, the San Pedro’ Chamber of Commerce has continued to find ways to draw more people to this annual holiday event. This year, more than 9,000 people are expected to line the streets to view this parade of holiday floats, little league teams, classic cars, boy and girl scouts, high school bands, equestrian units, and volunteers through downtown San Pedro to celebrate the holiday season. The parade lineup is in alphabetical order and is subject to change before the parade on Dec. 1.

Time: 1 to 3 p.m. Dec. 1 Cost: Free Details: 310-832-7272; www.spholidayparade.com Venue: Pacific Avenue to 6th Street through Downtown San Pedro

LAFD Historical Society Hummer LAPD Emerald Society Pipe & Drums & Honor Guard

The LA Harbor Holiday Afloat Parade and Harbor Area Holiday Cheer

By Melina Paris, Staff Reporter

originality, theme, and type of entry. Officials and community leaders will be judges or passengers on approximately 50 parade boats.

Parade route and view spots: Starts at East Basin near Banning’s Landing Community Center in Wilmington and takes approximately 90 minutes to cover the entire parade route up the Port’s Main Channel. Several viewing points along the Main Channel, including Banning’s Landing Community Center, 100 E. Water Street, Wilmington; the Los Angeles Maritime Museum, 600 Sampson Way, San Pedro; Ports O’ Call Village, 1100 Nagoya Way, San Pedro; the Cruise Ship Promenade at Harbor Boulevard and Swinford Street in San Pedro; 22nd Street Landing, 141 W. 22nd Street, San Pedro; and Cabrillo Marina, 200 Whalers Walk, San Pedro.

Time: 6 to 8 p.m. Dec. 7 Cost: Free Details: www.laharborholidayafloat.org Venue: Los Angeles Waterfront, 504 Harbor Blvd., San Pedro

More Local Holiday Festivities

Victorian Christmas at Banning Museum Visitors can enjoy entertainment, visit Santa Claus, go on Museum tours, enjoy refreshments, children’s crafts, a blacksmith, a horse-drawn trolley ride between The Banning Museum and Drum Barracks Civil War Museum, and local food and craft vendors. The holiday season is the one time during the year visitors can see the museum in its Christmas splendor. In addition to the authentically-

The Pines Christian School Warriors Pep Squad The Salvation Army San Pedro Corp Three Wheel Motion United States Sea Cadets

Wilmington Middle School Marching Jaguars decorated mansion, visitors will also enjoy visiting the Harlyne and Kenneth Norris Visitor Center, the Harlyne and Kenneth Norris Museum Shop, and the beautiful Howard Rose Garden’s “garden-withina-garden,” featuring antique roses of the Victorian era.

Time: 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Dec. 7 Cost: Free Details: www.thebanningmuseum.org Venue: The Banning Museum, 401 E. Main St. Wilmington Wilmington Winter Wonderland Before going to the holiday afloat parade later in the evening, a blanket of real snow will turn this park into a Winter Wonderland, courtesy of the Port of Los Angeles. It’s a cool opportunity for kids to make snowmen and enjoy other snowy fun.

Time: 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Dec. 7 Cost: Free Details: www.portoflosangeles.org/community/ events Venue: Wilmington Waterfront Park, 604 W. “C” St.

Why We Give And the Dos and Don’ts of Giving

By Terelle Jerricks, Managing Editor

Did you know the nonprofit sector contributed an estimated $985.4 billion to the U.S. economy in 2015, composing 5.4 percent of the country’s gross domestic product?

Or that the nonprofit sector is the third largest employer in the United States after retail and manufacturing?

Or that total private giving from individuals, foundations, and businesses totaled $427.71 billion (source: Giving USA Foundation 2019), a slight decrease from the 2017 high after adjusting for inflation?

How about that 30 percent of U.S. adults volunteered in 2018, contributing an estimated 6.9 billion hours, worth $167 billion in economic value based on the Independent Sector’s (a national membership organization that brings together the charitable community to advance the common good) estimate of the average value of a volunteer hour for 2017?

Nonprofit organizations are intended to preserve and protect things that are important, but surpass the scale of burden that any one individual, community or coalition of government agencies can handle alone. That includes the various battles to protect human life against disease, food and water insecurity, homelessness and dispossession.

That also includes battles to preserve and protect the environment and all life supported by it.

Just as there are nonprofit organizations intended to protect all life, there are nonprofits to preserve and protect our history and culture; they lift up and provide avenues of enrichment for our children across the spectrum of abilities, or they preserve and protect traditions and practices that would otherwise disappear as time passes.

With that said, there are a lot of scammers out there looking to take advantage of people’s good will. Below are warning signs, dos and don’ts when considering the nonprofits to which to donate.

Warning Signs

• Pressure to give right now. A legitimate charity will welcome your donation whenever you choose to make it.

• A thank-you for a donation you don’t recall making. Making you think you’ve already given to the cause is a common trick unscrupulous fundraisers use to lower your resistance.

• Promises that 100 percent of donations goes to the charity claims to help. All charities have fundraising and administrative costs.

Dos

• Do check how watchdogs like Charity Navigator, CharityWatch and the Better Business Bureau’s Wise Giving Alliance before you make a donation, and contact your state’s charity regulator to verify that the organization is registered to raise money there.

• Do your own research online. The FTC recommends searching for a charity’s name or a cause you want to support (like “animal welfare” or “homeless kids”) with terms such as “highly rated charity,” “complaints” and “scam.”

• Do pay attention to the charity’s name and web address. Scammers often mimic the names of familiar, trusted organizations to fool donors.

• Do ask how much of your donation goes to overhead and fundraising. One rule of thumb is that at least 65 percent of a charity’s total expenses should go directly to serving its mission.

• Do keep a record of your donations and regularly review your credit card account to make sure you weren’t charged more than you agreed to give or unknowingly signed up for a recurring donation.

Don’ts

Local Charities with known track records

Harbor Interfaith Services Inc. The mission of Harbor Interfaith Services is

Spay Neuter Project Of Los Angeles Inc. The mission of SNP LA is to substantially reduce animal shelter euthanasia and intake by providing high quality, low-cost veterinary services to underserved communities in the Los Angeles area.

Details: https://snpla.org/

Harbor Community Clinic Inc. The mission of Harbor Community Clinic is to provide low-cost and no-cost health services to residents with low incomes and those whose employers do not provide health insurance coverage.

Details: https://www.harborcommunityclinic. com/ Beacon House Association Of San Pedro The mission of the Beacon House Association of San Pedro is to help men recover from the diseases of alcoholism and addiction to other drugs.

Details: www.thebeaconhouse.org

Bettys Foundation For the Elimination of Alzheimer’s Disease The mission of Bettys Foundation For The Elimination Of Alzheimer’s Disease is to eradicate this disease by raising funds for the most innovative and progressive research programs in the country and raise overall awareness of the difficulties faced by those dealing with the disease.

Details: https://www.bettysfoundation.org/ Toberman Neighborhood Center Inc. The mission of Toberman Neighborhood Center Inc. is to assist the Harbor Area communities with life-changing services that encourage, inform, educate and empower our families to live healthy and purposeful lives.

Details: https://toberman.org Los Angeles Maritime Institute The mission of the Los Angeles Maritime Institute is to empower youth to discover their greater potential through extraordinary at-sea experiences aboard educational sailing vessels built to equip young people with 21st century leadership skills, and inspire maritime and STEM career paths.

Details: https://www.lamitopsail.org

Real News, Real People, Really Effective

• Don’t give personal and financial information like your Social Security number, date of birth or bank account number to anyone soliciting donations.

• Don’t make a donation with cash or by gift card or wire transfer. Credit cards and checks are safer.

• Don’t click on the links in unsolicited email, Facebook or Twitter fundraising messages; they can unleash malware.

• Don’t donate by text without confirming the phone number on the charity’s official website.

• Don’t assume pleas for help on social media or on crowdfunding sites such as GoFundMe are legitimate. The FTC warns that fraudsters use real victims’ stories and pictures to con people.

to empower the homeless and working poor to achieve self-sufficiency by providing support services including shelter, transitional housing, food, job placement, advocacy, childcare, education, and life-skills training.

Details: https://www.harborinterfaith.org/

November 21 - December 4, 2019

17

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PLEASE HELP! The animals at the Harbor Animal Shelter have ongoing need for used blankets, comforters, pet beds.* Drop off at Harbor Animal Shelter 957 N. Gaffey St.,San Pedro • 888-452-7381, x 143 PLEASE SPAY/NEUTER YOUR PET! *In any condition. We will wash and mend.

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Fictitious Business Name Statement File No. 2019269762 The following person is doing business as:(1) 911 Rooter & Sewer Specialist, 25029 Ver-

probably not.

mont Avenue, Harbor City CA 90710 County of Los Angeles.

Registered owners: 911 Rooter & Sewer Specialist,, Inc, 1180 W 7th Street Apt #1, San Pedro, CA 90731. This Business is conducted by a corporation.

The date registrant started to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above: 09/2018.

I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information which he or she knows to be false is guilty of a crime.) S/. Giuseppe Sanzone, President.

This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on Oct. 9, 2019. Notice--In accordance with subdivision (a) of section 17920. A fictitious name statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the county clerk, except as provided in subdivision (b) of section 17920 where it expire 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence address of the registered owner.

A new fictitious business name

© 2019 MATT JONES, Jonesin’ Crosswords

PERSONALS

424-347-7066

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11/7/2019, 11/21/2019

REAL ESTATE INVESTOR seeks to purchase commercial or multi-unit residential properties in San Pedro.

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Fictitious Business Name Statement File No. 2019267000 The following person is doing business as:(1) L.A. Urban Ballet, 1231 S. Pacific Ave, San Pedro, CA 90731, Los Angeles County. Registered owners: San Pedro City Ballet, 1231 S. Pacific Ave, San Pedro, CA 90731. This Business is conducted by a corporation.

The date registrant started to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above: N/A. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information which he or she knows to be false is guilty of a crime.) S/.

Patrick Bradley, CFO.

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This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on Oct. 7, 2019. Notice--In accordance with subdivision (a) of section 17920. A fictitious name statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the county clerk, except as provided in subdivision (b) of section 17920 where it expire 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence address of a registered owner.

A new fictitious business name statement must be filed before the expiration. The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a fictitious business name in violation of the rights of another under federal, state, or common law (see section 1411 ET SEQ., Business and Professions code).

Original filing: 10/10/2019, 10/24/2019,

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new fictitious business name statement must be filed before the expiration. The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a fictitious business name in violation of the rights of another under federal, state, or common law (see section 1411 ET SEQ., Business and Professions code).

Original filing: 10/10/2019, 10/24/2019,

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Fictitious Business Name Statement File No. 2019258767 The following person is doing business as:(1) RDS Consulting, 1180 W 7th Street Apt #1, San Pedro, CA 90731, Los Angeles County. Registered owners: Rodel Filio, 1180 W 7th Street Apt #1, San Pedro, CA 90731. This Business is conducted by an individual. The date registrant started to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above: 01/2012. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information which he or she knows to be false is guilty of a crime.) S/.

Rodel Filio, owner.

This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on Sept. 26, 2019. Notice--In accordance with subdivision (a) of section 17920. A fictitious name statement generally expires at the end of five years from the date on which it was filed in the office of the county clerk, except as provided in subdivision (b) of section 17920 where it expire 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence address of a registered owner. A

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ACROSS

1 “___ Can” (2008 campaign slogan) 6 Shoes in the 2015 “What are those?!” meme 11 Part of MRE 14 Word repeated on “Teletubbies” 15 Accounting inspection 16 FX in the Transformers series, e.g.

17 “Let’s change the subject” 19 Product of the mined?

20 Egyptian cross 21 Scratch or scuff 22 Oregon lake where you can drive around the rim 24 T-bone region 26 They may be pulled 27 “Baby Driver” actor Ansel 30 Private response?

31 ___ Laredo (city on the Rio Grande) 32 “Go on! Git!” 33 Perform like Migos 36 Instrument with a conical bore 37 Survey choice found in the four theme answers 38 Dash, for one 39 Pieces to be played 40 Breed like salmon 41 Symbol of Canada 42 State capital where Modest Mouse’s Isaac Brock was born

44 Declutter 45 Twain, actually 47 “___ n’est pas une pipe”: Magritte 48 Outcast 49 Half of a dance?

50 Ice melter 54 Magician Shin ___, “America’s Got Talent: The Champions” winner 55 Expression when someone suddenly needs help 58 One, in Italy 59 Sewing machine inventor Howe 60 Their work is often in anthologies 61 50-Across, in French 62 Send, as a payment 63 Chilean mountain range Down 1 When repeated, a “Seinfeld” catchphrase 2 “Ghostbusters” character 3 Did well at Battleship 4 Heartfelt sign-off 5 H.S. course 6 Settlers of ___ (board game) 7 Industrial region of Germany 8 Shelley work 9 Advertisement insert 10 Clavicle neighbor 11 Healing through nature, e.g.

12 “Hollywood Squares” option 13 Arena levels 18 Leave unmentioned

23 Show initiative 25 Gold, to Pizarro 26 Figure above a 9 or 0, for short 27 1961 space chimp 28 Auto maintenance task 29 Type of power in Iceland 30 Either side of Aruba, for instance?

32 Overdoes the fandom, slangily 34 “Because Freedom Can’t Protect Itself” org.

35 Squishy Easter candy 37 Reason to put up a “Danger” sign on a drilling site 38 Marriott competitor 40 ___-Kinney (band that formed in Olympia, Wash.)

41 Dropped item 43 Former Big Four record co.

44 Unwrap hastily 45 In the high 70s 46 Patrik of the Winnipeg Jets 47 X-ray area, maybe 49 It may be spiced with cardamom 51 Waltzed through 52 Troubadour’s instrument 53 Julia Roberts’s “Ocean’s Eleven” role 56 “I Think You Should Leave” star Robinson

DBA FILINGS

[Stupid from p. 8]

Stupid Watergate to bring out more evidence, all they could hope to do was sow confusion, hurl accusations, echo conspiracy theories and riff on Trump lies.

Republicans Respond

statement must be filed before the expiration. The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a fictitious business name in violation of the rights of another under federal, state, or common law (see section 1411 ET SEQ., Business and Professions code).

Original filing: 10/24/2019, 11/7/2019, 11/21/2019, 12/05/2019

12/12/19, 12/19/19

with Ukraine, about the Bidens’ dealings with Ukraine, about the whistleblower, about Schiff, about the impeachment process.

It’s all wrong, all the time,” Dale said in an on-air interview.

Deceit on that scale truly does undermine the very basis of our government. Nixon was charged for it. Trump should be, too.

Democrats want to tell a simple story—always a good idea, experienced prosecutors say. “But,” warned Elizabeth Drew, who covered Watergate, “the great danger is that the legacy of this period will be that Mr. Trump got caught doing one bad thing rather than that he abused power across the board and wantonly violated the Constitution.”

There is a way to make that a simple story, too. “Now that we’ve shown you how Trump abused his power for personal benefit with Ukraine, let’s examine some other examples.”

Congress doesn’t have to investigate every last example— that would take decades to do properly. It only needs enough to establish a pattern of abusing power, obstructing justice and undermining the basis of government, a pattern essentially of limitless abuse of power. It will only end if Democrats are willing to limit that abuse, once and for all.

Real News, Real People, Really Effective

Fictitious Business Name Statement File No. 2019301480 The following person is doing business as: Muslim Democratic Club of Southern California, 744 W. 9th Street, San Pedro, CA 90731, Los Angeles County. Registered owners: Najee Ali, 744 W. 9th Street, San Pedro, CA 90731. This Business is conducted by an individual. The date registrant started to transact business under the fictitious business name or names listed above: 10/1926. I declare that all information in this statement is true and correct. (A registrant who declares as true information which he or she knows to be false is guilty of a crime.) S/. Najee Ali Owner.

This statement was filed with the County Clerk of Los Angeles on Nov. 18, 2018. Notice--In accordance with subdivision (a) of section 17920. A fictitious name statement generally expires at the end of five years from

the date on which it was filed in the office of the county clerk, except as provided in subdivision (b) of section 17920 where it expire 40 days after any change in the facts set forth in the statement pursuant to section 17913 other than a change in the residence address of a registered owner. A new fictitious business name statement must be filed before the expiration. The filing of this statement does not of itself authorize the use in this state of a fictitious business name in violation of the rights of another under federal, state, or common law (see section 1411 ET SEQ., Business and Professions code).

Original filing: 11/21/19, 12/05/19,

Thus, in his opening statement the first day, ranking member Devin Nunes claimed, “We should not hold any hearings at all until we get answers to three crucial questions the Democrats are determined to avoid asking,” two of which revived Trump’s illicit demands—to investigate the Russian conspiracy theory blaming Ukraine for campaign interference, and to investigate Hunter Biden—and the third which involved investigating the whistleblower, whose warning touched off the inquiry. “These questions will remain outstanding because Republicans were denied the right to call witnesses that know these answers,” Nunes said.

Later, the GOP’s designated attack dog, Rep. Jim Jordan, temporarily added to the committee, doubled down on the last point. “Now, there is one witness, one witness that they won’t bring in front of us; they won’t bring in front of the American people, and that’s the guy who started it all: the

whistleblower,” Jordan said.

“I’d be glad to have the person who started it all come in and testify,” Rep. Peter Welch shot back. “President Trump is welcome to take a seat right there.”

Welch’s remark also pushed back against the Republican’s “hearsay evidence” canard, underscoring Trump’s strenuous efforts to prevent anyone with first-hand knowledge from testifying, himself included, of course.

But on Friday, Trump went one step beyond, tweeting an attack on Yovanovitch as she was testifying, echoing a threat he had made in his smoking gun “perfect” call, that “she’ s going to go through some things.”

“And now, the president in real-time is attacking you,” Schiff said to her. “What effect do you think that has on other witnesses’ willingness to come forward and expose wrongdoing?”

“Well, it’s very intimidating,” Yovanovitch said.

Witness intimidation is a crime of obstructing justice— and in this case, obstructing Congress in conducting a lawful impeachment investigation.

“I could shoot someone in the middle of Fifth Avenue

and not lose any votes,” Trump bragged during the 2016 campaign. Now, he was putting that theory to the test.

But Trump was also committing a high crime with his avalanche of lies, as noted former federal prosecutor Elizabeth de la Vega on Twitter.

“As Rep. Walter Flowers so eloquently put it back in 1974, a president who betrays the public trust through deceit undermines the very basis of our government,” de la Vega wrote.

“Such a betrayal, such a massive violation of the presidential oath of office, is an abuse of power that requires impeachment.”

And indeed, she pointed out, Section 8 of the Nixon Articles of Impeachment spoke directly to this.

That’s not to argue that every lie Trump tells is an impeachable act. But consider the sheer volume of lies Trump has mounted in this case.

On Nov. 16, CNN’s Daniel Dale, who’s been fact-checking Trump since 2015, posted “A list of 45 ways Trump has been dishonest about Ukraine and impeachment,” about the phone call (8 lies), the whistleblower (6 lies), Adam Schiff (8 lies), the impeachment process (8 lies), the Bidens (8 lies), dealings with Ukraine (5 lies) and polls (2 lies). “Everything he’s saying about his dealings

November 21 - December 4, 2019

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November 21 - December 4, 2019

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