LJ Parking Advisory Board is the tip of the iceberg
Who are these people who continue to claim to represent the taxpayers in government? Public officials, at every level, from La Jolla Parking Advisory Committee, to the City Council members, to the White House, have total disregard for public will. They ignore the people they are supposed to represent. They get elected or appointed to positions of public trust with flowery, bold platforms that lack substance or lasting intent, but appeal to citizens who want to feel good, or think that they can get benefit personally or financially.
They become masters of smoke and mirrors and rise to positions where their arrogance can be openly displayed, with no fears of reprisal, the untouchables. These representatives assume positions that offer menial pay and manage to ascend to lives of luxury and grandeur while their constituents’ standard of living and their cities’ infrastructures continue to decline. They are rarely held accountable for the hardships imposed on others in society, on the economy or the environment, unless they get caught with a prostitute.
Then there is unbelievable public outcry. Needless to say, this usually has nothing to do with their most serious offenses, such as betrayal, mismanagement of public funds, influence peddling, nor does it return the hundreds of millions and billions, misplaced, misdirected, hidden or outright stolen, to the American public.
I understand that Martin Mosier and Promote La Jolla passed a vote to submit their Parking Management Plan despite the overwhelming opposition from 85 percent of the business community and residents. What is going on in his head? For that matter, what is going on in the collective heads of Promote La Jolla? What happened to democracy? What happened to “No taxation without representation”?
These people are the elite, who have total disregard for and are not in the least bit interested in doing what is right for us, the tax payers. Their interest is in those who are in their camp. Their focus and energy are spent in back rooms making decisions, and fashioning legislation and laws with language that bury their schemes to siphon the wealth of this country into their pockets.
They give themselves outrageous pay raises, while laying off city workers and cutting services, to save money. Bettering human conditions and honest communications become forgotten campaign rhetoric. And the scary part is it is pervasive and never enough. The schemes become more elaborate and more costly to Americans.
We should look below the surface and ask ourselves, “What is really happening in La Jolla and America?” As with the current housing market, this is just the tip of the iceberg.
Michael DeClouet, La Jolla

Who will care for your pets when you are gone?
Daily massage, afternoon naps, warm laps, couch companions, belly rubs available.
Dr. Betty McKenna touched the lives of thousands in our community. After closing her medical practice in February 2008, she still retained 18 patients until her passing this month.
Dr. Betty’s beloved cats were a special part of her heart. Throughout her life, Dr. Betty adopted cats from patients who passed on, or who could not care for them. Today, there are five very special cats who would like to stay with people who loved Dr. Betty. All five have had the best medical care, are up to date with their shots and have been chipped.
If Dr. Betty touched your life, and you would like to honor Dr. Betty by adopting one of her beloved cats, now is the time to take action.
The beautiful cats include Smokey, the Grande Dame: all black, lean, very calm, very quiet, a really sweet lover. Elegance in motion. Smokey is low-maintenance cat. Like a buddha, she is mellow and loves human company.
Mickey, the most playful, is a pudgy Siamese. She is dark, dark tan with a black face and paws. Exquisite sepia color ” very pretty! She is playful and feisty.
Snuggling Jill is a calico, predominantly white. Very pretty, traditional calico markings and very affectionate. Very, very nice cat! Loves to sleep on a chair in Betty’s office. Jill is another of Dr. Betty’s success stories! Jill had a traumatic injury to her neck from a collar of some sort that had grown in and become infected when Betty found her. Betty healed the injury completely. Now Jill seems grateful for every day she is alive and with her human companions.
Classic Katy is a lovely, trim tiger cat with slight points to the fur on the tips of her ears. She is a sweetheart ” vocal, loves to talk to you! Katy is loving and loves being stroked and brushed while she eats ” and she asks for it. She slept at the far end of Betty’s bed, with Tweeney at the other end.
Sweet, shy Tweeney sleeps in the house and only ventures outside to the garden in front of the pool. Tweeney is looking for a home where she is the only best beloved and she will love you forever.
Who will care for your pets when you are gone? There are more than 73 million dogs, 90 million cats in the United States today. Shelters and animal rescue organizations are overwhelmed with animals, and thousands of beloved pets are euthanized every day.
To avoid this scenario, the movement to estate planning for the family pet is becoming an important part of wills and trusts creation for individuals and families who care about what happens to their pets when they pass on. In California, Senate Bill 685 is known as the Pet Trusts bill. This bill repeals current law on trusts for domesticated or pet animals and enacts new, more detailed provisions for the creation and enforcement of pet trusts.
Some people prefer to simply designate who will care for their pets in their will, without making monetary provisions. Oftentimes this will be a family member or good friend. It is recommended that at least three persons are named, in the event that circumstances change for the first named person.
Unfortunately, in Dr. Betty’s case, her wishes were not included in her written directions, and there is no clear information from verbal accounts. Friends and family are stepping up to help find “forever homes” for Dr. Betty’s beloved cats. If you have a place for one lovely kitty in your home, to schedule an adoption interview, call Victoria at (619) 606-4500 or e-mail [email protected]. And if you have not yet written down your wishes as to who will care for your pets when you are gone, please do it today and file it with your will and other important documents. If you wish to set up a pet trust, contact your estate planning attorney to do so.
Victoria Turner, La Jolla

Please don’t dredge
I’ve worked in numerous La Jolla restaurants since 2001 as a waiter and I’ve talked to thousands of people over the years; foreigners, San Diego locals as well as transplants, visitors from other states. Many tell me that they have visited the seals and are touched by the unique opportunity they have to view them so close, especially during pupping season. Many people ask me what to do in La Jolla and I always tell them to visit the seals as part of their walking experience along the coast from the Cave Store to Casa Beach/Children’s Pool.
People are impressed with the La Jolla Marine Reserve and the unique wildlife experiences it has to offer, from La Jolla Shores’ leopard sharks and rays, to the sea lions near the caves and the harbor seals at the beach.
Please do not dredge the beach at Children’s Pool; it is a truly unique environment and a rare opportunity to see a seal rookery so close. There are so many beaches around it is an act of extreme selfishness that so few people would want to have the beach cleared when so many people do not.

Christopher Riedy, Mission Beach

Sign of incompetence
If there was ever a sign of politicians’ incompetency to “rule,” the five who voted themselves a raise have shown it ” with vigor! (“Council members OK fat raises for 2009,” Village News, April 17, page B·4)! All this after bankrupting the hand that feeds them! They cannot get a better paying job because of their incompetency at solving problems!
But this “sign” should inspire the other three to lower their pay until they can make the city solvent. In addition, it will attract those, successful enough in their real careers, to apply their problem-solving skills as a challenge instead of looking for a better paying job!

Walter C. Tice, Pacific Beach