Opinion: For Left of Center

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The Language of Politics

By Jean Hastings Ardell

You can tell it’s high-pitch in campaign season from the stack of candidates’ flyers arriving in our mailboxes daily. I won’t dignify their messages by quoting who says what about whom – just want to say that many have descended to the level of kids’ trash talk – though that’s an insult to the kids who are taught at home and in school that that kind of talk won’t fly.

Maybe that’s why I’ve turned to reading from my childhood to see me through till Nov. 4. Specifically Chapter VI of “Alice in Wonderland,” in which Alice finds herself with Humpty Dumpty, whom author Lewis Carroll has lifted from the old nursery rhyme and inserted into his story. Here Alice and HD debate the meaning of words:

“‘When I use a word,’ Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, “`it means just what I choose it to mean – neither more nor less.’”

“`The question is,’ said Alice, `whether you can make words mean so many different things.’

“`The question is,’ said Humpty Dumpty, `which is to be master – that’s all.’”

What a clear reflection of the current state of our electoral rhetoric – who is to prevail in defining systemic racism, a response to the COVID-19 pandemic, or the restoration of our economy? Who is to define the future of Laguna Beach?

Here are my thoughts:

48th Congressional District Democrat Harley Rouda’s moderation, common sense, and collegiality have attracted numerous of his former fellow Republicans who are tired of the lack-luster politicians the GOP has traditionally put forward. This time around his opponent is Republican Michelle Steel, whose weak performance as an Orange County supervisor does not recommend her for higher office—she worked to undermine the Affordable Care Act. Steel seems to lack the imagination to deal with the demands of our new reality. She has ties to Trump—and yes, I hold that against her. It’s notable that even the conservative Orange County Register endorses Rouda.

74th Assembly District: Democrat Cottie Petrie-Norris has worked hard for our district since her election in 2018. Rather than lock-step ideology, she brings a solid business background and a balance to her work in Sacramento—no surprise since she double-majored in majored in Economics and English at Yale University. I serve on her Education Advisory Committee and have found her willing to listen to all sides of an issue. She has advocated for not only traditionally Democratic causes, such as the environment, but also for small business and job opportunities. She has earned another two years as our assembly member.

37th Senate District: Democrat David Min is best suited to serve the needs of our district. His opponent, incumbent John Moorlach, a long-time conservative Republican and a Trump supporter, now claims to be “bringing Democrats and Republicans together.” However, Moorlach is supported by the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association. Those of us with long memories remember that Jarvis helped sell Californians a bill of goods in 1978 with Prop. 13’s promise to keep grandma in her home. Most of those grandmas are now gone, but Prop. 13 continues to enable corporations like the Irvine Co. and Disneyland in perpetuity to avoid paying their fair share of property taxes. I’m voting for Min.

As for our city council candidates, first, who is best for our town’s future? We lived in Corona del Mar on the edge of Buck Gully for 25 years and watched as private property interest-friendly city councils enabled developers to tear down cottage after cottage and replace them with oversized houses. The neighborly character of our community waned. So has the commercial character: These days Newport’s “historic” stretch of Mariners’ Mile has little to do with the city’s boating tradition. I belong to Village Laguna and support well-thought-out change. Even so, sometimes it’s best to do nothing rather than jump into change (witness the recent decision to study a massive parking structure). The initial design of Mo Honaker’s hotel development along an entire block of Coast Highway appalled me. So I do not support candidates like Larry Nokes who are closely aligned with developers. So often the council votes 4-1 for such projects, with Toni Iseman standing alone. I very much want to see a more balanced council. I support George Weiss and Ruben Flores.

Second, who is going to step up and restore civility to our civic discussions? More than a year has gone by since the council felt obliged to enact rules of civility at its meetings, but it has yet to act on them. The resulting acrimony has poisoned the atmosphere, and it must stop. Weiss and Flores are most likely to ensure that happens.

And for the Laguna Beach School Board, I endorse Kelly Osborne and Jan Vickers as being best able to work effectively for the good of Laguna’s students.

Jean lives and writes in Laguna Beach. She is a member of Third Street Writers.

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2 COMMENTS

  1. More Village Laguna propaganda. Ruben and George have no place on council, both are unqualified. One has never owned real estate and the other can’t even balance a checkbook.

  2. And for the biggest surprise of this year’s election season, Jean Hastings Ardell, our local race-baiting, cop-hating liberal loon has endorsed only radical Dems for election 2020. Although her political views are hardly worth a mention, I will comment on her choices for our local Council race. She states that George Weiss or Ruben Flores, if elected, will somehow bring civility to our community. Really? For starters, they are the street dogs that Village Laguna unleashes onto Nextdoor, Facebook, and Council meetings to be disruptive and promote and forment incivility. They’ll be the ones who end “the resulting acrimony that has poisoned the atmosphere”? Please advise how either of them, or anyone for that matter, is in a position to do that? Maybe you or fellow political predator Johanna Felder, can call in Village Laguna board member and two-bit lawyer Kurt Wiese to re-write the Constitution? Jean, for the record, I was elected on incivility and will continue to express my views as I see fit. If you, or any of of your fellow Luddites has an issue with that, then I suggest you attempt to recall me. We both know that the silent majority wont allow that to happen. Dont we?

    Jean, please spare us your self-righteous bullshit and stick to your literary endeavors (dumb books about baseball) and your “column” in this publication. While you’re at it, I suggest you follow your own advice “sometimes it’s best to do nothing rather than jump into change” instead of trying to “define the future of Laguna Beach” via your skewed and outdated partisan vision for our community.

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