Valley Residents Defend Their Turf

Having lived in Studio City almost exclusively since 1952, I have long been aware of the opinions of Westsiders. I must admit that I was tempted to read your issue about “the Valley” (“The Valley Reconsidered,” Nov. 12), so designated as if there were no other valleys. But I could not find my way past the faulty central premise: that anyone living here beyond a handful of fools is concerned with your fashionable opinions. Like snobs everywhere, Westsiders base their put-downs on their own insecurities. Most of us here in “the Valley” just don’t care.

Carl Slate

Sherman Oaks

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The article by Marlene Adler Marks (“Changing the Context,” Nov. 12) missed the analogy of Calabasas to the Valley. The question is not how Calabasas relates to the Valley. The analogy is how Calabasas relates to its two selves: the Valley side and the canyon side.

Marks should have observed that the city is geographically divided by a mountain range. There lies the difference. Politically, those on the Malibu Canyon side get everything nobody wants, such as the Ahmanson Ranch project. Those on the Valley side get the things people want, such as the Calabasas Commons.

We are not the Valley. On that the author is right. Some high school kids call this area “the bubble.” It’s a term that fits well. We’re a place between here and there, partially in geography and totally in mind-set.

Robert Conlee

Calabasas