An anti graffiti ordinance was started by Thomas “Tom” Gordon in Denver back in 2006, to combat some weird graffiti!
The article did a good job of praising a group of Santa Ana activists for writing an anti-graffiti ordinance. But The O.C. Register reporter, Doug Irving, blew the story. He should have just read our blog. We wrote about this awhile ago.
Our former blogger, Thomas Gordon, owns homes in both Denver, CO and Santa Ana. And he has served on the Denver Anti-Graffiti Task Force. It turns out they have had an ordinance on the books for some time. But now Gordon has failed to mention that to Irving.
Instead, Gordon is taking credit for launching the Santa Ana ordinance, along with his pals in Santa Ana’s “Usual Suspects.”
Irving wrote that “The idea came not from a city attorney or City Council members, but from residents and business owners who had just had enough. The city is now reviewing the proposed graffiti ordinance they wrote over coffee and law books.”
Really? Well, click here to see what Denver came up with, way back in 2006. And click here to see Gordon’s name noted as one of their commissioners.
The proposed Santa Ana anti graffiti ordinance “allows for fines of up to $1,000 – plus restitution for any property damage, plus community service. It allows the city to seize cars, bicycles, skateboards or any other property used in committing a graffiti crime.”
The problem is that this ordinance does nothing to address why graffiti and gangs have grown to be such a problem in Santa Ana.
Poverty is the problem her, not ethnicity, but many of those involved in this ordinance flat out hate Mexicans. To them the problem is one of race. They will use this law to harass young people – mark my words.
Santa Ana has only one library – and one learning center. We are woefully short on park space. Two of the Usual Suspects serve on the Santa Ana Parks and Recreation Commission. Ask them when Santa Ana last opened a new park.
This new law is a band aid – but it does nothing to cure the disease. It does however mollify the Usual Suspects – who have had quite a banner year. They also got the Phil Bacerra Bicycle Rack Act passed recently – which will kill jobs by forcing many new businesses to pay for and install bike racks. Of course if half the bikes in town get seized, I don’t know what those racks will be good for…
I feel that recently I have read this same post a dozen times or so…All of Art’s posts basically have the following script…as follows:
Usual Suspects bad…anyone who has any problem with anything that may involve a Mexican is a hateful racist…Mexicans are all victims…every white person in Santa is evil…blah…blah…blah…and more blah.
Ya se Art que tu vas a decir que eres mas blanco que Casper el pinche friendly ghost…nos vale madre. Pero ya no necesitamos tu apoyo cabron! Tal vez estamos contentos por los “bike racks” que te causan tanto dolor. Tal vez nosotros odiamos los mugrosos que pintan su graffiti en todos lados de nuestro querido pueblo. Eres un “patronizing” hijo de la chi….
And what a joke that this ordinance is bad because it doesn’t address the root problem! What the hell! So we shouldn’t make drunk driving illegal because, you know, it really doesn’t address the root cause of why people drink too much. And gosh, murder shouldn’t be prosecuted or illegal because that doesn’t address why these people became angry or the hurt they carry! Of course I could go on and on. If you follow Art’s reasoning and logic regularly, you’ll notice how it leads to nonsense 90% of the time. That’s a veiled compliment Art. I actually think 10% of the time you actually make some sense!!
Now…it this is all about entertainment…and driving traffic to the blog…well Kudos cuz it works. Keep the more interesting SA posts coming. They always seem to get the most comments and be the most interesting.
#1,
We always strive to be entertaining.
Be careful not to speak in Spanish in front of Usual Suspect Debbie McEwen, who was quoted in the Register article.
A couple years ago I attended a screening of a movie at French Park. The event was running late and Debbie made an announcement to that affect.
I offered to translate what she said, as the audience was mostly Latino. No, she said emphatically. This is America.
So there you go. Even when these people try to do good things they do so with hatred in their hearts.
Art,
Fair enough…but I believe this ordinance is definitely a good thing. Can’t we look beyond who’s idea it was or if the Usual Suspects have hatred in their hearts? The bottom line is that this is a good thing for the community. I think graffiti makes all of us crazy. Yes, we want more libraries and parks, etc. But we really want to also stop seeing so much damn graffiti.
If the Usual Suspects had a blog…I’m sure i’d be on it and drilling them if they are indeed anti-Spanish, anti-Mexican, etc.
the tragedy of Santa Ana is the inability for the various cultures, language groups, colors, etc to see how great this city is and that there is room for all. And oh, the other tragedy is current city leadership and the COMPLETE lack of vision. A good mayor, a man or woman who could lead and cast vision (I’m not aware of a single candidate that impresses me) could really make this city sing. But who is that individual? any thoughts?
We need our local version of Obama!
Yes, I urge all of you to please go find substantial candidates for the next election to replace the ones you have now!
Trust me, they’ve been out there (the candidates)- but as usual
mexicanos/latinos are too busy
envidiandose uno al otro y siendo tan ignorantes jumping the gun/ in otherwords, jumping to conclusions/ acting on impulse and destroying each other. Cierto lo que dice este fulano “curioso” this is a more concrete starting point—
de que sirve la inteligencia si siempre estamos como nos quieren ver – comiendose y destruyendosen entre nosotros mismos. If you are a real humanitarian who represents the ppl and not your own personal interests / fighting your own personal feuds, one will take the best out of the situation- such as this anti-graffiti parade and improve the avenues being taken.
Now, if you dislike Thomas Gordon – ridicule him with presenting a better solution, or tear up his “autocratic” endorsing write up- because it is not yet an ordinance by all means, dissect it, refute it, and either fix it, scrap it, or use it as a piece of brainstorming chicken scratch/thinking map put together by caring community groups in order to move forward with the premise at hand-
subsiding this human-mutant form of expression since its done on others’ personal property- whether public or private.
curious said : “the other tragedy is current city leadership and the COMPLETE lack of vision. A good mayor, a man or woman who could lead and cast vision … could really make this city sing. But who is that individual? any thoughts?
We need our local version of…”
curious – You lost me after “of.”
curious said: “We need our local version of Obama!”
ROFLMAO – We do NOT need our local version of a man who has accomplished NOTHING other than to get himself elected.
We need our local version of Ronald Reagan.
City Commissioner in Denver??? Is that why Tommy Boy leaves work early? To catch a plane?? Hmmmm. Does LAUSD know this???
Our neighbor city Anaheim does a better job with the social problems that plauge Santa Ana.
The static populatons are similar as is the population size and their demographics.
The difference and the reason for Anaheim having better control of social ills is that they incorporate economic development city wide.
Santa Ana neglects it’s Hispanic communities in regards to economic development.
This is the problem as urban social problems are a result of poverty.
The disease is poverty. the symptoms of the disease are social ills( one examople is grafitti).
Adressing a disease requires placing attention on the symptoms(social ills) while eliminating the disease.
Not addressing the cure of the didease will continuously present symptoms, that is, grafitti will never be eliminated.
The ordinance does not address the disease only the symptoms. If the intention is a cure then economic development in the poverty strcken communities needs to be planned and inplemented.
The ordinance in it’s findings does not address the cause.
Ignoring the cause and setting a cure for the disease then illuminates the real political and self interests nature of such and undertaking like this ordinance. Not that this ordinance is sinister, just that it can be interpreted as such.
The point is:
THE ORDINANCE WOULD ONLY BE PART OF THE SOLUTION AND NOT THE SOLUTION.
“THE ORDINANCE WOULD ONLY BE PART OF THE SOLUTION ..”
The Graffiti Ordinance sounds like a really good start on the the solution to me.
#10,
Part of the solution, yes but only a bandaid without the cure.
I agree with you. My concern is if the solution gets ignored then the part of the solution is irrelevant. Do not loose focus.
I guess Santa Ana Council Members, the City Attorney and City Staff aren’t clever enough to prepare or propose solutions to fix the graffiti problems in the City. It seems the usual suspects and Philis are now dictating city ordinances and all the while City Staff continue to collect their over inflated paychecks.
Why don’t the Mayor and Council just create positions at city hall for the Usual Suspects and get rid of some the lazy and ineffective staff.
Frosted Flakes,
You are 100% right.
The city keeps the usual suspects busy spinning their wheels with this problem, code enforcement, Vendor trucks and other issues correctable with proper economic development and management.
The usual suspects have been convienced that the problem is the Hispanic residents and the government is there to protect them from the Hispanics only if they keep them elected.
The usual suspect’s solution to correct the social issues of poverty is to form strategy on eliminating the Hispanics.
City Government is concerned with keeping the Hispanics and keeping central Santa blighted in order to keep the usual suspect’s loyalty(fear of Hispanics) and obtain state and Federal grants to fight blight which never reaches the blighted neighborhoods.
It is a brilliant strategy. City government stays in power, the usual suspects spin their wheels while supporting city government and the general appearance of the city remains blighted for more political and grant manipulation.
I do not think the ordinance will be adopted because it will improve blight.
The remedy is removal of the city’s current leadership.
Well, it appears that there is some unanimous agreement here…Every single one of us agrees that current leadership in Santa Ana is PATHETIC!! Now if we only had better options!!
curious,
There are many better options. All that is missing-necessary is an organised recruitement and voter-financial support of a selected candidate.
Santa Ana can be the jewel of the county with proper management.
It’s diversity and history is it’s wealth.
Drrr. Lomely,
In contrast to your socialistic drivel about the poverty causing a crime; how do you explain crime committed by rich Mexicans like the 19-year-old son of former California Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez?
Gave us more of your affirmative action primitivism.
Why don’t we switched SA City Council with Denver’s City Council. Hell, let’s switch SA City Attorney and City Employees with Denver’s and let’s see how long it takes SA’s New Council to clean up the city.
The current knucklehead May or needs to go too.
The council does not run the city currently. They understand the Mayor and City Manager with support from the Police union, the Fire union, Labor union, high paid staff union, other special interest groups and uninformed voters will keep them elected if they support the Mayor’s and City Manager’s agenda.
Independent expenditure committees controlled and funded by the above special interest groups fund the Mayor’s campaigns that up to now overspend and defeat the Mayor’s apponents.
All city business and questionable management is the product of the Mayor and City Manager.
City Council currently are there to rubber stamp.
Current Council could become effective if the residents asked them to be effective by being independant of the Mayor and City Manager.
This can happen if the voters publicaly and energetically express their support of council acting independant resulting in their re-lection.
art l,
I agree with your comments up and including the City Council is a “rubber stamp.”
After that – not so much. This City Council has no huevos. They will NEVER stand up to the alcade or dave ream. This council is the “castratti.”
Who cares where the ordinance came from? We have to start somewhere. And, who cares what color or race of the community? The problem needs to be addressed. Kids of all races write graffiti. Stopping this blight on the city will only help the residents, no matter the color or race.
Stop nit picking and let’s stay with the issue.
# 16 Fiala,
I see you are not as sharp as you claim to be.
My comments were specific to poverty driven social conditions including specific types of crime and not general crime.
Your racist ignorant brain infers in your comment that Mexicans are predisposed to crime?
You spent time in the Orange County Jail for beating your Mexican wife.
You fit into that general crime slot that includes all races and economic levels,in your case those with psychiatric problems.
You are a sick man in need of medication.
Isn’t Stanly Fiala Mexican? He sure looks like a Mexican. In fact, he looks like he’s related to Jose Solorio. Is Stanly Jose’s uncle????
I think Graffiti is awesome. Those who believe it’s “A disgrace upon our community” should look around at the people wearing pajama pants as a typical daytime outfit or gigantic beigey/grey strip malls. Now THAT’S a disgrace.