Sounding Board -- Geoff West

As I perused my accumulated Daily Pilots after a weeklong vacation, I

found several very interesting articles and columns -- some very

fortuitously juxtaposed -- that require my response.

I was delighted to see Byron de Arakal’s May 29 column summarizing the

probable candidates for City Council in November (Between the Lines,

“Early handicapping in Costa Mesa council race”).

I was especially encouraged by his inference that Councilman Gary

Monahan may, in fact, reconsider his plan to not run again. His loss and

the probable defeat of Mayor Linda Dixon would leave us with a council

totally under the thumb of Councilwoman Libby Cowan.

She and carry-over newcomers Karen Robinson and Chris Steel would be

joined by two new people with almost no experience. Contemplating a

“Mayor” Chris Steel is almost more than I can take. Heather Somers,

abrasive as she may be, understands the process and brings important

experience that must be considered. Of course, there is still the chance

that Steel’s seat may be vacant by that time, so we might have an

opportunity to elect three council members, not just two.

George Margolin’s Sounding Board on June 2 was an interesting echo of

letters written by others recently (“Just who is the council

representing?”). Apparently Margolin chose the comfort of his home in

Newport Beach from which to lob his well-aimed comments at three members

of our City Council.

I then discovered the May 31 issue containing Lolita Harper’s

Reporter’s Notebook column, in which she takes to task some critics of

the City Council as being gender-biased (“Council critiques too often

play on gender”). I’m afraid I must respectfully disagree with her

conclusion. I’ve tried to stay up with letters published on the subject,

and have written a couple myself, but I don’t recall any specific

references to the gender of members in critical comments. I did refer to

the “three-woman majority” in a recent letter, but only in the context of

identifying which way that particular vote went.

The issue here, as I see it, is not gender but competence. It’s not a

matter of “the boys against the girls,” but one quite simply of

leadership -- or lack thereof. In my April 11 letter, I outlined my

opinion of each council member and nothing has caused me to change those

opinions at this time (“Columnist perfectly sums up Costa Mesa”). Dixon

still comes across as a lightweight who lets Cowan -- the strongest

member of the council -- control her moves. Robinson has too much on her

plate. Monahan is still trying and is still frustrated. Steel is still a

clueless empty suit. On Monday, for example, he actually cast his vote on

several issues before the motions had even been made.

Harper was apparently also offended by my reference to Cowan as a

bully. One only had to watch Monday’s council session to understand my

opinion.

Very early on in the meeting, Martin Millard -- a frequent speaker

before the council -- used his three minutes in the public comments

portion to address the presence of gangs in his neighborhood. He

expressed concerns he and neighbors had shared about this activity, and

specifically mentioned people with “gang tattoos on their arms” wandering

past his house, checking out his cars. He spoke his piece clearly,

passionately and firmly, without showing disrespect to the council. As he

returned to his seat at the end of his allotted time, a smirking Cowan

asked him, “Mr. Millard, can you explain to me what is illegal about

walking down the street?”

This kind of in your face reply to a concerned citizen with valid

comments is a perfect example of Cowan’s style. It is exactly what she

did in another recent council meeting when she berated proponents of a

lawsuit on the El Toro airport, referring to their process as “stupid.”

By the way, I found it quite ironic that, on May 27, the Pilot ran a

piece on the presentation author Rachel Simmons was scheduled to give the

next day on her book, “Odd Girl Out: The Hidden Culture of Aggression in

Girls,” which apparently addresses the subject of bullying among girls

(“Author will discuss bully side-effects”). How fortunate we are to be

able to watch this kind of behavior live on Channel 74 every other Monday

evening.

Most of us are very grateful for the Daily Pilot’s coverage of the

City Council. I’m sure Harper, the author of much we read on city

activities, does the very best job she can, undoubtedly has established

valuable relationships with each council member and knows them much

better than I ever will. That does not change the perception that I, and

apparently many others, have of this council’s performance.

I then read editor Tony Dodero’s column on Monday and shared his

disgust and dismay at the anonymous caller who apparently left a very

vicious, tasteless message on Harper’s voice mail (From the Newsroom,

“Anonymous critics are just plain cowardly”). Certainly, we are all

entitled to our opinions and many of us are grateful that the Daily Pilot

gives us a venue in which to express them. The kind of innuendo Dodero

described may be fine for the caller to scream at wrestling performers on

her television screen, but is totally out of place in any kind of

civilized discourse. I hope the caller, after some time to reflect, may

find the courage to pick up the phone and at least leave an anonymous

apology for Harper.

However, despite Dodero’s explanation of many of the criticisms

leveled at Cowan, the fact remains that many of us perceive it otherwise.

I, for one, am not convinced that her position with the city of Irvine

did not influence her performance as mayor and council member when it

came to issues involving the proposed El Toro airport. As the old saying

goes, “If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck and quacks like a

duck...”

So, as I have said before, the November elections are just around the

corner.

* GEOFF WEST is a Costa Mesa resident.