Mailbag: Activist-candidate will stand up for Newport Beach

Love them or hate them, Donald Trump and Bernie Sanders have seized on the growing disdain of corruption and crony politics that have flourished on both sides of the aisle over the last two decades.

No better a display of this has been made locally than with our own Newport Beach activist, Mike Glenn. Dragged into politics after his business partner had his property rights attacked, Glenn has been an ally of average citizens and local business owners struggling to fight big government since he began as an activist many years ago.

He fought to elect people who promised change. They said they would “Stop the Dock Tax,” and then they affirmed one. They said they would “Save the Fire Rings,” and then they got rid of just as many as the previous council suggested.

They said they would stop the assault on property rights, and proceeded to attempt to increase regulations on our historic bars and restaurants. They said they would promote small businesses, and then attempted to shut down our newest harbor operators. Then they came after Dog Beach.

All of these new council people were promoted by resident Bob McCaffrey, who seemed strangely absent when all of these events were occurring, and who then touted in the papers about the supposed-successes of his candidates.

When Glenn wrote in to document the truth, he was removed from his volunteer position on the GOP Central Committee. Political retaliation by the GOP is hardly surprising, but it’s a precise example of the type of behavior that the average citizen is sick and tired of.

If you are looking for someone who will truly look after our city and stand up to the establishment, look no further than Glenn. He’s been doing it on his own time, and on his own dime, for more years than I can count.

He knows the city inside and out, and perhaps most importantly, he’s not in it for the money or political favors. He’s in it for Newport.

Brent Barbata

Newport Beach

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Get educated about proposed merger

I attended a meeting recently, and I’d like to share the information discussed with my Costa Mesa neighbors regarding the possible merger of Mesa Water District with the Costa Mesa Sanitation District.

One of the topics that caught my attention was the discussion of dissolving the millions that currently sit in reserve to issue a refund to every household if this merger is approved. I sat in my seat last night asking myself, is this a bribe for our vote? Does this make sound financial sense? Is this prudent planning?

I compare it to this: If a homeowner has money in a savings account for home repairs, does it make financial sense for that homeowner to spend all their money only to have to borrow that same money later and end up paying interest instead of keeping it in reserves?

Costa Mesa’s aging sewer infrastructure was acknowledged last night and regardless of how this refund is packaged, I believe we will all pay more in the end.

Really, when has anyone ever given you money for free? I was informed that a video of this meeting will be available on the Costa Mesa Brief website https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCIkdW4i7qzhxGhSSHtb38VA, and I urge every resident to view it and then to follow up and ask some questions about all this.

Laurene Keane

Costa Mesa