Tag Archives: city government

Strange Election – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Marianne Fong

Posted on March 31, 2016 by Mike

Strange Election

The police and fire unions are endorsing and campaigning for the three challenger candidates because they want incumbents Marie Fellhauer and Dave Atkinson off the City Council. This makes for a strange election, because Fellhauer and Atkinson should be off the City Council, and challengers Carol Pirsztuk and Don Brann should be elected. The unions usually endorse the worst tax-and-spend candidates.

We must judge the incumbent City Council candidates by their voting record, especially when they had a majority with Bill Fisher and ran amok, not by their campaign rhetoric, false accomplishments, and campaign promises.

Fellhauer and Atkinson have been tax-and-spend politicians. They voted for at least a dozen tax hikes, on residents and businesses, and fee increases, to pay for excessive police and fire union raises handed out by their allies Eric Busch and Bill Fisher.

They played a financial shell game to claim they balanced the City budget. They spent down the City’s Reserve Account, and borrowed large sums from the Equipment Replacement Fund, which is used to save up money over the years to pay for everything from new computers to new police cars and fire engines.

Fellhauer and Atkinson continued the Chevron Shakedown started by Busch and Fisher, and effectively extorted an additional $8.5 million average per year for 15 years from Chevron, without justification.

They are talking like conservatives, and padding their campaign literature, taking credit for accomplishments of the current fiscally conservative majority. Fellhauer is even quoting Ronald Reagan in this masquerade.

– Marianne Fong

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Posted in California, Doug Willmore's Great Chevron Shakedown, Economy and Economics, El Segundo, El Segundo Election Coverage, El Segundo Herald Letters, El Segundo News, El Segundo Tax and Fee Increases, Elections, Firefighter and Police Union Compensation and Pensions, Firefighter Union Corruption, Fraud Waste and Abuse, Government Employee Compensation and Pensions, Letters to the Editor, Police Union Corruption, Political Corruption, Politics, Tax Policy and Issues, Union Corruption | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Strange Election – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Marianne Fong

Cut their compensation – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Michael D. Robbins

Posted on August 16, 2012 by Mike

Hermosa Beach need not and should not contract with L.A. County for fire and police services. Ninety percent of El Segundo voters rejected Measure P, the fire union initiative to force El Segundo to contract with L.A. County for fire/paramedic services.

The real problem is wildly excessive and unsustainable firefighter and police total compensation (salaries, benefits, and pensions). That is the greatest cause of the city’s financial problems. … Continue reading →

Posted in Beach Reporter Letters, Firefighter Union Corruption, Government Employee Compensation and Pensions, Hermosa Beach, Letters to the Editor, Police Union Corruption, Union Corruption | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Cut their compensation – Letter to The Beach Reporter by Michael D. Robbins

Sour Grapes – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Marianne Fong

Posted on July 12, 2012 by Mike

The following letter to the editor was submitted to the El Segundo Herald newspaper on Thursday, July 12, 2012 well before their 12:00 noon Thursday deadline, and it meets their 250-word limit including the title.

However, El Segundo Herald CEO and President Heidi Maerker arbitrarily rejected this letter without explanation. Maerker has arbitrarily rejected other letters without explanation since the April 10, 2012 city election, including letters that had nothing to do with the election.

There are a number of very interesting possible explanations for this strange behavior, which will be discussed in a future post.

Visit the Public Safety Project web site frequently for important information updates you will not get from the El Segundo Herald or other news sources.

Sour Grapes

Scott Houston’s letter (7/5/12, “Foxes Guarding Henhouse?”) was full of falsehoods, just like his city council campaign.

Houston wrote, “Since when is the Mayor executing agreements on behalf of our City? I thought that was the job of the City Manager.” As a two-time city council candidate (and loser), Houston should know the city council votes to approve ordinances, resolutions, contracts, and agreements, and the mayor signs them.

Houston wrote, “Where is the outrage that was expressed when our previous City Manager was acting as chief negotiator with the employee labor groups last year? … no one paying attention to what’s going on at City Hall. I guess the foxes are guarding the henhouse.”

Had Houston been paying attention, he would know Mike Robbins submitted a written Public Communication for the 5/1/12 council meeting citing SIX reasons why the city manager should not be negotiating city employee union contracts. It has been posted on the city web site (elsegundo.org) since 4/30/12, under agendas. … Continue reading →

Posted in El Segundo, El Segundo Election Coverage, El Segundo Herald Letters, Measure P - Firefighters Union Initiative | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Comments Off on Sour Grapes – Letter to the El Segundo Herald by Marianne Fong