Yesterday our new Irvine blogger Luis Huang called and asked if I could publish his open letter to Councilman Larry Agran expressing his dismay at Larry being the one vote AGAINST the Council’s resolution against Anti-Asian Hate. So I’ll start by printing Luis’ letter, but the more I heard and thought about it, the more I realized I had to write about it myself; Luis’ letter will just be an introduction. Because extreme rudeness is called for here, and Luis doesn’t have that in him.
Councilmember Larry Agran,
Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to communicate my personal thoughts with you.
I wish to preface first before making my overall comment, I appreciate and I wish to personally thank you for your decades of public service, specifically to the City of Irvine. And I really appreciate you taking into strong consideration Tuesday evening’s City Council Agenda Item 4.2, and your thoughtful and thorough approach at taking the resolution very seriously and for your overall support of “the spirit of the resolution.”
However, with respect, I have to strongly state for public record, I am deeply disappointed in your lone No vote on April 14th. Furthermore, I am personally offended; as a unanimous vote shall state for public record; for the world to see, that the elected leaders of City of Irvine; the 72nd most populous city in the United States; and a city which cherishes, honors, and respects its rich AAPI community; and celebrating the diversity of its many residents’ of Asian descent.
Based on your public comments made Thursday evening, and your publicly released written statements made from your official social media and from your City Council office, is the overall symbolism that the 4.2 Resolution ultimately aims to address. For so many in our communities here in Irvine, AAPI community is SCARED. AAPI seniors are FEARFUL TO GO OUTDOORS. AAPI women are PERPETUALLY LOOKING OVER THEIR SHOULDERS.
AAPI and Asians are being harassed, beaten, sexually attacked, hurt and yes unfortunately some are murdered. Literally on our streets. You are entirely missing the overall point. You have failed in the overall goal of protecting your constituents. You have failed to protect the most vulnerable, e.g. seniors and many who are smaller in stature, and overall you have failed to be a leader on this very important issue.
I am available to speak on this topic, and I welcome any and all opportunities to discuss with you and with your City Council office, regarding the many shared experiences that I personally have lived while being Yellow in United States of America.
Respectfully,
Luis Manuel Huang, Northwood.
*********************
Agran
Luis is right – solely on account of this one cranky politician who passed his sell-by date around the turn of the century, Irvine can not say that their Council stands unanimously against Anti-Asian hate. And in SUCH a fucking Asian town! Larry gave his reasoning here, he wanted to change one paragraph, make it more “inclusive,” and it may actually have been a slight improvement, but this was not something that author and Vice Mayor #TammyKim could easily and quickly do – she had worked on it with too many different people. So, you just don’t vote NO on account of that.
But Larry can’t have anything not exactly his way. It’s on account of this doddering autocrat, Irvine, that you can’t have a Veterans Cemetery or a Great Park. And yet the good sheep of the City of Beige just keep electing this guy, so what can the rest of us say?
#TammyKim, the #ViceMayor
Even the two demonized Republicans on the Council, Mike Carroll and Anthony Kuo, had no problem voting for this resolution, which to be fair, didn’t bother them too much because it didn’t mention the source and aggravator for so much of today’s racist hate – Ex-President Donald Trump.
So does Larry’s no vote mean he’s anti-Asian? Well, not exactly, but it does seem to show that he feels NO URGENCY to the very real problem of Asian-American persecution, as compared to getting his own preferred prose. His cranky move has turned out to be pretty unpopular, except on the Very Far Right (Christina Shea) and the most hardcore Agranistas who will proffer up excuses for anything the Dear Leader does. He was already a controversial figure in Irvine’s Democratic circles, and we are now, finally, enjoying the spectacle of his excommunication from various groups he used to lead with an iron fist.
Well, pass the SchadenPopcorn, and enjoy some heated FB discussion between Larry’s most obsequious blog apologist Dan Chemical Lewinsky, Vice Mayor #TammyKim (from the generation which speaks largely in #hashtags which can be #irritatingAF), and various other Irvine pundits. I share a few screenshots from an Irvine friend (since Dan has had me blocked for a decade) – a friend who wants to remain anonymous because it’s still that kinda vengeful little town.
A Friday Afternoon in Irvine
Energized by this brisk repartee, and the thrill of repeatedly calling #TammyKim “racist” for using the common term “#whitesplaining,” our lumbering hack rushed to his ironically named “Liberal OC” blog to pen a fervent apologia for his idol, an apologia in which, as per usual, the cliches and the typos compete with each other in an endless marathon of disingenuous, malevolent mediocrity.
But the grossest and most revealing part is in the comment section, in which ghoulish homophobe ex-Mayor Christina Shea rears her head, agreeing with Larry for voting no on this, BECAUSE IRVINE HAS NO PROBLEMS WITH RACISM OR HATE … and then Dan practically does somersaults over the fact that Christina Shea agrees with him and Larry!
Oh, did I mention? Agran is TOAST.
“…an apologia in which, as per usual, the cliches and the typos compete with each other in an endless marathon of disingenuous, malevolent mediocrity.”
Goddam that’s good!
*Poetry
You did quite well representing yourself (and others) on that other site, Luis.
Wow.
You are the problem. Why do you and the left always have to bring in President Trump? You are just like the BLM folks, always crying about how bad you got it. Irvine, is the safest city in the country and majority are Asians residents. Just because someone in office doesn’t speak to you, you throw a hissy fit soy boy. Go try to have a conversation with Cheatin Biden while you are at it! My wife is Japanese and we don’t have a problem, seems to us that YOU are looking to have the problem. Life is not going to be about a particular race. Grow the fuck up and No one pissed off anyone.
So then, we can put you down as Another Trumpy For Agran?
Please refer to him as Ex-president Yamskin.
Thank you in advance for your cooperation.
*We do love Band-aid Legislation. NOT! Scream Race in a crowded room and watch what happens! The truth is that any City Resolution with teeth would have offered an Ordinance which stated succinctly: ” Any apparent race based physical attack in our Fair City will be met with an automatic referral to the FBI for Hate Crime Investigation, by our City Attorney.”
The Ordinance also could include a nominal fine: Like $10,000 dollars? No need to mention Asians, Hispanics, Blacks or Whites! Race based is Race Based! Proving it? Well, unless the attack was for collecting a bad gambling debt or drug buy……well. No need to single out any race – of the mix, again – in our opinion!
Actually your idea is good. But still, you don’t vote AGAINST the #StopAsaianHate resolution that’s in front of you.
Any criminal Hate toward any race is unacceptable, period. General legislative law is designed to prosecute for any criminal activity regardless if race, period. Unfortunately some media in certain biased areas infiltrate to mainstream media Nationwide.
The geriatric white “liberals” in Irvine are showing their true racist colors. The fact that ChmielewsKKKi resorted to tired old stereotypes of Asian women in his text messages to Vice Mayor Kim is a sign of desperation of white people losing their clout. As an Asian American who lives in Irvine, I am enjoying watching white people flop like fishes out of the water gasping for air as their influence in local politics is beginning to wane. Score one for BIPOC.
Good job Luis!
Thank you sir hope to meet you Gene in person someday soon.
BREAKING NEWS:
Larry Agran has officially renounced his No Vote, admitting his mistake in today’s Sunday DGI 2pm meeting at approx. 2:15pm, apologizing for his vote causing such a distraction from Anti-Asian Hate campaign.
All this because Tammy Kim was not able to think on her feet, again? She clearly said it was intentional to leave out certain groups and it was designed like that. If that isn’t racism by design then not sure what is. She is likely the second biggest hippocrite on that dius!
Haha, I never said Larry wasn’t smart. Now who looks stupid? All his followers who rushed to say how right he was, especially Dan C and Beth K.
“I could shoot somebody on Fifth Avenue…”
Oh also all the Trumpy racists who thought they had a new ally in Agran (see this comment thread) – how embarrassing.
BTW has Larry ever apologized or admitted he was wrong about anything before? Maybe he has, but I don’t know about it.
I tried to follow those comments and soon gave up. Like everything else in Irvine, boring, stupid and self-important.
Where is the official release from DGI? This puts ChmielewsKKKi to shame.
Chances of Agran renouncing his vote are greater than an apology from ChmielewsKKKi to Vice Mayor Kim.
ChemicalLewinskkki.
ChemicalLewinsKKKi
Need to emphasize the KKKs which he made clear in his response to Vice Mayor Kim
Boring, stupid, and self important is pretty much ChemicalLewinsKKKi to a tee
Thanks to Luis, I found this gem on Agran’s web site (www.theofficeofcouncilmemberlarryagran.org)
Statement & Apology (added April 21, 2021)
A message from Councilmember Larry Agran regarding his April 13th City Council vote on “A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF IRVINE, CALIFORNIA, AGAINST ANTI-ASIAN HATE”:
“At the April 13th Irvine City Council meeting, I voted against Vice Mayor Tammy Kim’s resolution regarding the City’s response to anti-Asian hate. I voted as I did right after my suggestions to make the resolution stronger and more inclusive were not accepted by Vice Mayor Kim.
In hindsight, I should have voted for the resolution as it was — because, at the end of the day, I believe Vice Mayor Kim and I both wanted — and still want — the same thing: We both wanted to adopt a strong resolution condemning the escalating anti-Asian hate and violence we’ve all witnessed over the past year. I know my vote has become a source of distraction, disappointment, and even hurt for many. And for that, I am sorry. I apologize.
I want to reassure those who know me, and those who don’t, that I remain unwavering in my lifelong commitment to do all in my power, in whatever ways I can, in office and out of office, to build here in Irvine and across our country, what Martin Luther King Jr. called the beloved community — a society free of hate, free of violence, and free at last of any notions or vestiges of white supremacy.”
These remarks were originally delivered at the April 18, 2021 meeting of the Democrats of Greater Irvine and can be viewed at: https://youtu.be/lZSGs9RDYWQ?t=736.
Which begs the $10,000,000 question. Will he go out of his way to denounce the racist and misogynist statements of ChemicalLewinsKKKy? I’m sure Beth Krom and Harvey Liss are looking like fools being aligned with the xenophobic and homophobic gargolye known as former mayor Christina Shea.
Late to the game, given my general disdain for Irvine politics and players, but here’s my take as someone who has had to consider many resolutions posted by outside groups over the years:
When you get a resolution from an outside group, it can often be improved, and if it sent only to you (as opposed to going to various organizations, amending it is fair game — but is a bad idea under certain conditions. This, as Agran should have known, was clearly fell under one of those conditions.
When you have a seriously aggrieved group seeking public support for addressing their grievance, then (presuming you agree with its thrust) you should only change parts of it that are unjust to others. (For example, if an outside resolution on behalf of those who worship at synagogues or mosques were to unfairly single out for criticism those who worship, respectively, at mosques or synagogues, that might be fair game to change.)
Parliamentary rules do offer a way around this situation, which both allows passing the resolution as requested and also adding to it other consonant words that add to it. Agran could have offered an amendment to allow a separate resolution be approved as well, expressing the thoughts of the council in certain areas. (If the Chair rules that to be out of order, it could be presented as an amendment which could then, after dividing the question, be put into a separate vote. I’d say that it would fit within the agenda item.)
That would be respectful to the outside group presenting the resolution, which would want to present it as entirely their own work, and wouldn’t have to add to the Council’s separate offering to what they had to say. At any rate, even if the Council turned down the resolution, it would be no basis to vote against the underlying resolution itself.
Without getting to the merits of his change, this main problem here is that Agran gets cranky when he doesn’t get his way and is stubbornly reluctant to give way even when he should know he is wrong. (His having an “Amen Chorus” behind him is a separate problem.)
I don’t fault Tammy Kim, who explained why she would not vote for amendments to the proposal. Yes, accusing people of “whitesplaining” is generally a conversation stopper, but minorities have been shut out of conversations often enough that we whites should be able to swallow hard and handle it. This was just not that big of a deal.
Did Chumley deserve that insult? On at least two grounds, yes:
He was unnecessarily disrespectful in not valuing the desires of this aggrieved outside group to have a resolution approved in the form in which they wrote it.
When challenged about that, he should have, introspected and tried to figure out the basis of their criticism — but he did not.
Neither of these are huge deals. His reactions towards people who criticize him over his failure to recognize his privilege to decide what was and what was not a legitimate reaction to Agran’s tone-deaf decision and to his own slashing defense of it.
Agran’s cranky stubbornness, which he has recanted, bothers me less than Chumley’s unapologetic slashing attacks on Kim and others — including Vern — for daring to challenge his sense of privilege. Nothing new there: stubborn as Agran but twice as cranky.
The best part of that piece about bad behavior in liberal-male OC is the part that Dan C doesn’t want you to see:
“Liberal OC blogger Dan Chmielewski has been harshly critical of discriminatory and sexual misconduct by fellow liberals, leftists, and Democrats, but this appears to be a classic case of pot-and-kettle finger-pointing. He was recently called out by Melissa Fox for an extremely misogynistic and racist comment directed at Irvine Vice Mayor Tammy Kim, after criticizing her anti-Asian hate resolution for failing to include old white men like himself…”
“…Another OC Democrat confirmed, ‘I’ve personally witnessed him yell at, harass, belittle, and dismiss women so many times I’ve lost count. This man’s outdated misogynistic and racist views have no place in our party.’”
Cold comfort: they’re accusing me of “discriminating” against Lenore based on her and Dan’s famous “dossier” — when they still don’t know what the hell happened in the instance they mention of my reading out information (so that they wouldn’t endorse and Joel Block could run for the seat) she wanted hidden. (The deciding vote against the endorsement arrived moments too late; yes, I was stalling.) Plenty of people in AD-72 do know what happened, though, if TW is inclined to investigate.)