Palos Verdes Estates; Anthem’s premiums; city layoffs; Afghanistan policy
Eyesore, or classic?
Re “2 dreams, 1 lot,” July 1
A homeowner paid $2.5 million for a tear-down in Palos Verdes Estates and says he’s “just a regular guy from the area.” That -- and the fact that it is a Lloyd Wright house toward which the bulldozer is aimed -- speaks volumes.
So does the photo of the magnificent house with an array of about a dozen homes above it, none of which have the grace or creativity of that 1958 design.
A neighbor labeled the house a “laughingstock” and an “embarrassment.” Really! At least when the house is gone, the neighbors won’t have to think outside their multimillion-dollar boxes.
Jack Fenn
Montecito Heights
Is it possible that neither the owner nor any of his neighbors recognize the significance and beauty of the Moore house? Apparently the leveling process has come full circle — even pervading “upper class” enclaves where one would expect a modicum of aesthetic and historical awareness. To destroy that majestically soaring structure would be barbaric.
John B. Johnson
Huntington Beach
The city of Palos Verdes Estates doesn’t have a preservation law for historical homes and a homeowner wants to build his dream home, so the America Dream turns into a nightmare.
I lived in the neighborhood for 18 years and yes, the existing home is embarrassment. Plus it was designed by Frank Lloyd Wright’s son, not the great architect himself. There is no historical value here.
Chris Bredesen
Redondo Beach
Anthem’s next rate hike
Re “Anthem revives plan to raise rates,” July 1
Math was never my strong suit, so maybe I am missing something. Without raising rates, Anthem Blue Cross’ profits have increased 51% over the same period last year. It only stands to reason that a substantial hike in premiums is necessary now to protect their viability.
WellPoint CEO Angela Braly deserves her 51% pay raise if she can sell this to the American people.
I find it hard to believe that a 20% premium hike is warranted. But maybe that is why Braly earns $13.1 million per year and I don’t.
Elizabeth Weinberger
Los Angeles
Well, so much for healthcare reform.
Kim Righetti
Upland
Why L.A. is going broke
Re “Necessary pain,” Editorial, July 1
Surprise! After years of profligate spending, Los Angeles is essentially bankrupt. The lifeboat is only so big. At some point it will sink if you try to keep a bloated organization of some 50,000 employees afloat.
When I worked as an architect for the city, we used to joke that supervisory staff and management did essentially nothing. Almost everyone above our level was a “manager” or glorified paper-pusher — highly paid clerks who did little actual work, even at salaries of $200,000 to $350,000 and up.
Who in the real world makes that kind of money? Their assistants delegated work to their subordinates, most of which was busywork, make-work or pretending-to-work that made it look like something was getting done.
The budget shortfall was caused by years of indifferent city management, empire building and business as usual. Is anyone surprised that Los Angeles is broke?
Richard Deight
Orange
Bolton’s flawed analysis
Re “A flawed Afghanistan policy,” Opinion, July 1
Former Ambassador John R. Bolton has an odd understanding of the meaning of a “good war” in Afghanistan. It has nothing to do with building a nice society in the place with liberty and justice for all. It is a war that is justified because our national interests are threatened. It is the opposite of Iraq, which most Americans view as a “bad war” because our government was not justified in starting it.
How strange that Bolton bashes the Obama administration for following a policy that was formulated by our military and initiated by Bush’s government. Our military leaders have said that we can’t kill our way to victory, yet that seems to be the only thing Bolton is proposing.
Our troops and our people will not put up with the “long war” he envisions. We need a victory that removes the major threats to America. We won’t fight for and don’t need a victory that goes beyond that.
James Wilterdink
Marina del Rey
Bolton’s delusion is comical. Apparently he forgot that he was part of an administration that not only waged this war but mismanaged it from the start — an administration that had no leadership, no policy and no clue about what to do in Afghanistan once the boots hit the ground.
He wants us to commit to a “long war.” That’s funny considering his vast amount of combat experience: none. He avoided Vietnam, only serving himself to earn a law degree. What a joke.
Sabrina Skacan
San Pedro
Pakistan’s policies
Re “The Taliban effect,” Opinion, June 30
Rajan Menon’s essay on Pakistan’s dual policies toward Afghanistan — half-hearted support of the Afghan government while angling for future advantages in event of its failure — offers nothing new in the way of analysis. In fact, it is an apologia for the nefarious policies of Pakistan’s security establishment.
When has Pakistan ever been “outflanked” by pro- India governments in Afghanistan? Pakistan’s integrity has been undercut not by the devious strategies of purported enemies but by Afghanistan’s continuing internal chaos.
Elements in Pakistan’s military clique have used the cover of a proxy battle with India to sustain cynical and counterproductive policies toward its Afghan neighbor. Menon’s assertions only give comfort to that deeply flawed approach.
Galen Van Rensselaer
Los Angeles
It’s time to boycott BP
Re “Boycott BP? Not so simple,” June 28
No one in power even pretends that those responsible for the Gulf disaster will be brought to justice. Yes, BP’s shareholders took a hit, and three or four company heads will roll, and there’ll be another gutless wonder of a reform bill. But no one will fully answer for the millions of tons of dead sea life, hundreds of miles of toxic beach, and thousands of lost livelihoods. And it will happen again.
Personally I’d like to see BP’s brass fitted with ankle weights and sent for a mandatory swim in the gulf.
Second-best would be destruction of its U.S. operations through an act of consumer will. Heck, it may even be a constitutional right.
Friends, join me in making this vow: I will never, ever again buy Arco gas, Castrol oil or AM/PM junk food.
You don’t mess with my beaches and expect to make a profit.
Brett Miller
Laguna Hills
A gorilla of an ad
Re “Supervisors protest Times ad sections,” July 2
I was a journalism major back in the day of manual typewriters, pica sticks and journalistic integrity, so I couldn’t help but wonder what the Los Angeles Times was thinking when they ran the King Kong ad.
Of course, I know what they were thinking — ka-ching, ka-ching. And judging from the size of the average issue (I still get daily and Sunday!), they need the dough.
However, though I completely disagree with The Times’ decision, where in the world does the Board of Supervisors get off telling a newspaper how to be a newspaper?
Nancy Kaneshiro
Woodland Hills
