Mailbag: Championing democratic ideals this November

The city of Huntington Beach has become known for politics which tend to lean toward extreme conservatism characterized most commonly today by MAGA followers or enthusiasts. And there are many people who feel sympathy for those residents who are embarrassed by the antics of their city council as expressed in their letters to the Daily Pilot.

Newport Beach is certainly not an example of participatory democracy either and by its latest actions, the city government seems to be veering more and more to the right, albeit a less overt form of conservatism. Recently the Newport Beach City Council has attempted to force its choice for the new location of the police department, Civic Center Park, upon the residents until a few months ago, when the citizenry demanded the right to get involved in the process of choice.

Slowly the council is acting as if it is including the community in the selection process, but proof of true democracy in action remains to be seen.

While outsiders might wonder if Newport Beach is leaning more to the right because of the current direction of our federal government, it is debatable. But it probably has a lot to do with the direction of city government in Huntington Beach.

As long as I have been a council watcher and sometimes a participant in Newport Beach politics, I have been dismayed quite often by the lack of professionalism among councilmembers and during council elections.

Until a lawsuit stopped the practice that went on for many years, there were candidates who put out highly distasteful and fallacious election fliers on the opposition candidates. And it seemed at times that election rules were not consistently followed.

What the future brings to the city governments in Huntington Beach and Newport Beach depends on how effectively the citizens can band together to elect candidates who support democratic principals. Newport Beach is working on that now, having encouraged two highly professional candidates to run in the next council elections.

Lynn Lorenz
Newport Beach

Patriotism can be defined as an emotional attachment, devoted love and loyal support of one’s country. In the United States, it also involves identifying with fellow citizens, upholding democratic ideals, and recognizing shared liberties and freedoms. This separates it from nationalism, which often allows the government to dictate what should be the shared interests of the nation state.

We can all be patriots without being nationalistic and bending to the will of those controlling the levers of power. This is true nationally, and it is true in Huntington Beach. It is patriotism and not nationalism which should be celebrated on Independence Day.

While all of us were patriotic on July Fourth, as I observed, many seemed to adopt a more nationalistic tone, including the MAGAs who both govern our city and try to impose their own definition of patriotism on our citizenry. If you did not subscribe to their brand of nationalism, you could not be considered patriotic. Worse, Christian Nationalists would condemn anyone not subscribing to their brand of patriotism as anti-American.

In November, it will be the true patriots of the Surf City 4 (Taryn Palumbo, Ben Davis, Erin Spivey and Brenda Glim) who should be elected to the Huntington Beach City Council and not the nationalistic MAGAs who have an authoritarian bent on governing and not a democratic one. All may consider themselves patriots, but not all embrace the democratic ideals and respect for the general public we should demand.

It is time that the entire community be effectively represented, and not just partisan supporters, special interests, and nationalist influencers. This can only happen when the Huntington Beach City Council has a new majority devoted to true patriotism. This can only happen in 2026 with the election of the Surf City 4. It is only then that we will all achieve our true independence.

Tim Geddes
Huntington Beach