Breather

I'll be taking a little breather to make up for the posting pace of the last two weeks.  Don't panic, I'm not gone.

The 2009 Hermosa Beach City Council Election Results Are In

Thank God it's over.  Congratulations to Howard Fishman, Jeff Duclos, and Kit Bobko.  If my calculations are correct, something like 75% of the voters voted for Howard Fishman.  That is a mandate. 

Here are the official results: http://rrccmain.co.la.ca.us/0019_CityContests_Frame.htm

Michael Keegan lost.  Or did slimy politics win?  It's not possible to tell yet.  If the three winners now bow down to Roger Bacon and rubber stamp everything he says, then we will have our answer.  If none of the candidates will consider bringing the Hermosa Beach business tax rates into alignment with similar local towns, then we will have our answer. 

For commenter "Hermosa", and anyone else who thinks that I am ignorant of economic issues, I will be updating my profile, and doing some posts to show you that I have made an attempt at understanding something about this difficult subject.

Now it is my job, for which I have volunteered and for which I receive no car allowance, or health insurance, to make sure everything stays clean.  I look forward to working with Jim at www.VivaHermosa.com, Marianne at www.ThisIsHermosa.com, and of course Joy at Pure, Unadulterated Joy, to cover the issues and uncover the ulterior motives.  All three of them have proven themselves to be dedicated to Hermosa Beach.  I am the new kid on the block, and I am deeply grateful for how willing they have all been to reach out and help me.  If it weren't for the dog and pony show of the elections, these three people should be the new city council.

Thanks for voting!

Roger Bacon's Change of Heart?

The strangest thing happened this morning.  At 6am I received a phone call.  The confused excited voice on the other side of the line said, "Keith?"  I said, "Yes."  He said, "This is Roger Bacon, what day is it?"  Confused, I said, "What?"  He said, "What day is it, boy?"  I said, "Why, it's Tuesday.  Election Day, Sir."  He said, "Of course.  Yes, of course!  They did it all in one night."  I said, "They?  It?"  And then he explained how he had been visited by ghosts in the night.  One ghost took him back 60 years to Hermosa Beach and to Torrance Beach and showed him what he looked like and how he acted back then.  Another ghost showed him how all of his antics were perceived by the voters of Hermosa Beach today.  And the last ghost pulled a mile long chain, with each link representing a lost opportunity to do good.  And it was then that Roger saw how he would be seen in the future.  Not as a person who had worked for the improvement of the community and people around him, but for a petty vengeful person who let greed and vendettas rule his every waking minute.  And when he awoke, he knew he had to undo all the evil he had set in place.

Does Roger Bacon now support Michael Keegan and Democracy?  He didn't say.  But I hope the ghosts have pointed him the right direction.  And I am thankful for the enormous goose that he left for my family's dinner.

Josh Ochs - cont.

This post has been stripped of its original content in response to a request by Josh Ochs.  The election is over, and it is not the purpose of this blog to punish people for running for office.  Josh is no longer in the political arena, and he felt that this post might hurt his Hermosa Beach based business.  The material was relevant only while Josh sought public office.  It took courage to approach me in an open and forthright manner, and I will respect his wishes.

Josh Ochs

I sent this letter to Josh Ochs yesterday.  I have not heard back.  (I noticed what might be an error in my letter - I believe he was registered to vote, but not in Hermosa Beach, though he says he has lived here for 5 years.)

Hello Josh,

I have some questions for you. 

1. Joy Kennelly, on her blog Pure, Unadulterated Joy, said that you were not registered to vote before you decided to run.  Is this true?
2. HermosaFamily.com has its first event listed as August 16, 2009, one month after the letter on your site, dated July 19, 2009, announced your candidacy.  Was HermosaFamily.com set up specifically for your campaign?
3. Why did you remove your entire LinkedIn profile, as Joy reported on her blog?
4. Tell me about what you did at The Oak Tree Group, and why is it based in Wisconsin?  I could not find any real estate projects related to that company.
5. What was your title and job at the Gordon Brothers Group?
6. Your LinkedIn profile says you spent 2 years at USC.  Where else did you go to school?
7. Please feel free to tell me anything else you would like to tell me about your education, work history, and credentials.

Thank you,
Keith Hemstreet

To my critics who say I am not focusing on taxes enough, and that looking at details is unimportant, I  will reiterate that if the voters of Hermosa Beach are told the truth and the whole truth, they can make their own decisions about for whom to vote.  I just want full honest disclosure.

NOI TO TAYMAN KEEGAN

(Thank you to Gigi for the heads up on the banners)

Oh, Good Lord.  Does anybody else find all of this to be embarrassing?  How grimy and petty can the Hermosa Beach City Council Election get?  I took this picture at about 2pm Sunday, Nov 1st.

I wonder who paid to have TWO AIRPLANES pulling anti-Keegan banners on this fine Sunday?

Why?  Why is this necessary?  If there were actual issues at hand, isn't it possible that there might have been a better way to spread the word than Uni-bomber style diatribes, and giant banners hung from strip malls and airplanes?  What can we look forward to tomorrow, the day before the election?  Will there be dancing bears and fire eaters walking in procession around Ralphs parking lot? Barbershop Quartets?  25 Clowns in a really tiny car?

What is truly pathetic about this, is that if he believed for a second that there were facts that needed to get out, and that these facts would defeat Keegan, then with the $10,000 or $20,000 or more that he and his 6 man Coalition, and any other unfiled coalitions have spent, he could have built a fantastic web site for the education of the Hermosa Beach Voters.  The site could have listed every vote done in the last decade, and how every Hermosa Beach Councilman voted.  It could have made available every Form 460 for every candidate and special interest group that has been active in Hermosa Beach, to disclose where all the money has come from.  It could have had videos of all of the debates.  It could have archived every letter to the editor and every political article by every Southbay newspaper.  And it could have fact checked every claim by every candidate to keep everybody honest and put everything into the light of day.  It could have been the sort of thing that Bacon would have received awards for.

But no.  We get sky writers and dancing bears.  Because Bacon doesn't want disclosure, or educated voters.  He wants to stick more pennies in his sweaty little pocket.

I hope you choke on your pennies, Roger.

Marc Schoonover

Marc Schoonover pulled out of the Hermosa Beach City Council Elections.  He did so after the ballots were printed, so his name will appear on the ballots.  But he is no longer a candidate, so if you vote for him you will be truly throwing away your vote.

Josh Ochs

*** Thanks for the quick response Josh***


Josh, I wanted to email you before I posted about you, but I could not find an email address on your www.SupportJosh.com site.  The Hermosa Beach City Council elections are next Tuesday, so I really can't wait.  Please email me at SmallTownHermosa@gmail.com so I know where to email you.

Thank you,
Keith

The Coalition - Form 460

I finally got my hands on the Form 460 for The Coalition.  I got it yesterday, October 29th and it was filed late on October 28th.  Roger Bacon bragged in a comment on this blog that he wasn't fined, which I find odd.  The City of Hermosa Beach is having major budgetary problems, but Roger Bacon who inherited land worth a fortune doesn't have to pay a late fee for not filing his legal paperwork on time.  You should all remember this the next time you get a parking ticket in Hermosa Beach for an expired meter or a forgotten street sweeping day.  Being a dime short on the meter is more serious than concealing political contributions in Hermosa Beach.  I would like to see the next city council raise the fine from $10/day to $1000/day and make it a felony to not file this paperwork at least 1 week before an upcoming election.  And the fine should no longer be discretionary, it should be mandatory.  Let's make it a real crime to subvert democracy.

Now, on to the Coalition.  First a list of people who are not contributors to the Coalition:
- Dr. No
- Dr. Evil
- Dick Cheney
- Roger Eldon Bacon

You read that right, Roger Bacon is not listed as having given any money.  There are only 6 people or businesses listed as having given money to the Coalition, and Roger is not one of them.  And the Coalition lists only $3900 in cash receipts, and $3856.40 in cash payments.  I'm no marketing / media expert, but it seems that sending a mailer to the voters of Hermosa Beach, and running at least 3 full page ads in the Easy Reader must cost more than $3856.40.  Now this form is for activity through 10/17/2009, so was there major activity after this, or were the ads run by a different Coalition that isn't legally registered at all?  If anyone understands the legal nuances of all of this, I would love to hear it.

And now I have to go Trick or Treating at my son's school.  Democracy will have to wait.

Jeff Duclos' Response to My Previous Critical Post

Please see my post on Duclos to get the history.  In a nutshell, I sent him an email with questions and received no reply.  I sent similar information to Joy at Pure, Unadulterated Joy.  Jeff Duclos then responded on her blog to the email he never received.  The first I heard about Jeff Duclos' response was from Joy about 90 minutes ago in a post she made on this blog.  As I added to my original post on Jeff Duclos, I was wrong in my speculation on his receiving tax payer paid health insurance from CSUN or from his wife's job as a teacher, and I apologize for that.  The mystery of why Ron and D Williams Groups shows up when I try to sign up for his newsletter still stands.  And the issue of him citing a 2006 Daily Breeze endorsement when the Daily Breeze does not endorse him in this election still stands (Daily Breeze Endorsements).

Below is Jeff Duclos' response:


"Thanks for the opportunity to respond.

I did not get your email, Keith. If you don't mind, please resend it to my jeff@jeffduclos.com address so I can make sure there is not a problem there.

To your questions: I currently have basic HMO coverage which I pay for. I am only a part time instructor, so I don't get the health care package offered full time Cal State staff. I'd love to have fully paid health care for myself and my family. I do not give this benefit up lightly. I can assure you, my wife is not happy about my decision. But it is not right to do so. To accept these overblown benefits at the taxpayers expense would make me another part of the problem, of a system that is over-compensating senior staff and attracting people to city government for the wrong reasons. My pledge to serve my community has nothing to do with acquiring paid benefits or political career building. It's about contributing to building a better city and giving back to Hermosa Beach for the life it has afforded my family for 30 years. That's the way the best of our council members from the pat looked at the job. We are about to have three new School Board members taking on a very tough and often thankless job. They are receiving no compensation. But I should ask for paid health care, a car allowance and retirement benefits for a position that is not, by definition, a career job?

As to your last question, I use a system called Constant Contact to distribute my email newsletters and messages. It is very efficient and affordable, but you do have to accept some advertising. I'll look into this company you mention. I was not aware of it on the email and thanks for bringing it to my attention.

Jeff"

Roger Bacon

I really hope that Joy doesn't mind me linking to her blog.  If you do let me know.  But this is very interesting.  In her post Big Business in Hermosa Beach, Who Knew it was so Ugly?, she points out a local dirty secret:

That's what I feel like after what I learned yesterday. When I realized that part of the reason poor, poor, poor Roger Bacon of the Ralphs shopping center is so against the tax hike isn't just because his store would get taxed, but all of a sudden the entire office complex that he collects rent from tax-free would incur a tax. No wonder this man is so upset.
He stands to actually have to pay for services he receives from the city for free right now. What a novel concept. Every other non-commercial landlord in this city pays a very small fee PER APARTMENT to the city for the privilege of being a landlord.
Why shouldn't poor, poor, poor Roger? I feel so sorry for him. Oh no, we won't pay more taxes. I'm making so little money from AN ENTIRE SHOPPING CENTER WITH NUMEROUS OFFICES that I can't afford to pay for my fair share of the city's services. ROGER - GIVE ME A BREAK!

 Bacon has what, $5000 or $10,000 or $20,000 (we don't know because as of a couple days ago he hadn't come clean and filed his "Coalition's" disclosure Form 460 - but don't worry, he may be fined up to $70 for hiding this information) to spend on kicking out one Councilman for trying to get him to pay his fair share of taxes.  So how much is he sucking out of the City of Hermosa Beach and it's tax payers every year?  If anyone has an idea of what he should be paying, let me know.  I'll post it.

And by the way, Roger.  If you hadn't sent me that ridiculous unsigned junk mail, I would not be doing any of this.  I got your junk mail last Tuesday or Wednesday, and laughed at it.  Then I saw the same thing printed in a full page ad in the Easy Reader, and I decided I was sick of slimy greedy special interests screwing up my country and my town.  That is when I started investigating and writing.  You brought this upon yourself.  I really hate junk mail.

More to come

I am researching, digging and writing as much as time allows.  I have not covered all the issues and candidates yet, but we still have 5 days to go.  I have received some great suggestions from Joy Kennelly at Pure, Unadulterated Joy, and from others, and I will be turning those into words ASAP.

When you are done reading what is here check back soon, or follow the site with one of the links on the right side of the screen.

Here's to fair elections, honest politicians, and an educated electorate!

Jeff Duclos Fails the Smell Test

*** This is an addition to this post, with the original post below after the asterisks.  Jeff Duclos posted a response to a comment that I made on Pure, Unadulterated Joy which criticized him along the lines of what I posted here below. He said that he never received my email, and I never received anything from him.  I don't know why that would be, as my account says that it was sent, but such is life.  I have just seen Duclos' response on Joy's blog to the letter he never received.  In his response, which I will post it in its entirety as its own post, he says that he does in fact pay for his own health insurance, that he doesn't Lecture enough at CSUN to qualify for insurance, and that he pays for his own HMO coverage (Jeff, you should check with CSUN, because my research indicates that you only need to Lecture 6 hours per year to qualify for health insurance).  My speculation to the contrary below is incorrect and I apologize to Jeff Duclos for that.  I wish our emails hadn't vanished into the ether so that we would not have had this misunderstanding.  

He said he does not know why Constant Contact references the Ron and D Williams Groups when I go to sign up for his newsletter through his site.  My comment about his citing a 2006 endorsement from the Daily Breeze, when the Daily Breeze does not endorse him in this election was not answered.  As the Daily Breeze does not endorse him, I hope he will put a prominent clarification on his site.***

  (original post follows)

I sent this letter to Duclos asking him to clear up a couple points.  I have not received a response:

    I was on your election site and I have two questions.  I tried to sign up for your newsletter, but it asked if I wanted info from RonandDWilliamsGroups.  I did a search on the name and found political contributions from that name all over the country.  Who is that?

Secondly, you make a point of saying that you don't accept health insurance from the Hermosa Beach taxpayers.  Do you pay for your own health insurance, or do you get it from your job as a Professor?

I am very curious who pays for Jeff Duclos' health insurance.  He makes a big point of not accepting tax payer supplied health insurance.  But I have found that people are very willing to give up benefits they don't need.  If he already has insurance from some other source, then making a big point of not accepting different insurance, which would have no benefit to him, would seem like disingenuous grandstanding.  But he has not replied, so I don't know the answer.

His site says that he is a Lecturer for California State University, Northridge, and that "His wife, Christine Duclos, has taught at our schools for more than 20 years."  Does Jeff Duclos get his health insurance from CSUN or from the Hermosa School District?  If so, then he already gets health insurance from the tax payers, which would mean that he is lying when he says he won't accept health insurance from the tax payers.  Again, I emailed him on this question, and he has not responded. 

Next, on his site he lists his 2006 Endorsements for the City Council runoff election, one of which is the Daily Breeze.  But the Daily Breeze does not endorse him in this election. Here is the link to their actual endorsements for this election:
http://extras.mnginteractive.com/live/media/site577/2009/1022/20091022_050831_HBENDORSEMENTS.gif  .   This is totally deceptive.

So far, Duclos does not pass my smell test.  He is evasive, deceptive, and possibly a flat out lair.  And this I can say without even looking at his stands on anything.  Call me old fashioned, but once I decide that someone isn't trustworthy, I am not interested in anything else he has to say.

If any of this is wrong, please tell me, and I will correct it and apologize.

General Hermosa Beach Election Information

Though this project started as a direct reaction to the negative campaigning that I have seen here in Hermosa, my goal is to provide more information than I can find in the very limited sources currently available.

Here are some links to information about the candidates for city council and school board:

Election Info Links

Hermosa Beach Elections:
City Council:
http://www.hermosabch.org/elected/elections/election20091103.html
http://www.smartvoter.org/2009/11/03/ca/la/race/01780000/

City Council Candidate Debate Video:
http://hermosabeach.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?view_id=4&clip_id=927

Here is a brief writeup about the City Council candidates in the Daily Breeze:
http://www.dailybreeze.com/elections/ci_13646237

School Board Candidates
http://www.smartvoter.org/2009/11/03/ca/la/race/01420000/

Here is a brief writeup about the School Board candidates in the Daily Breeze:
http://www.dailybreeze.com/elections/ci_13613663

I am looking for more info, and I will update this page as I find it.

Update on Consequences of Not Disclosing Information

The City Clerk's Office has informed me that the fine for filing the Form 460 late is $10/day, and is enforced at the discretion of the City Clerk.  Remember that the Form 460, which is the Recipient Committee Campaign Statement, discloses who is involved in a political committee, including who has given money to that committee.

Here is a link to that form: http://www.fppc.ca.gov/forms/1-05forms/460.pdf

This means that this committee can conceal who is involved and where it gets it's money, and risk a fine of $70, since there are 7 business days between the filing deadline and the election.  Yes, you too can subvert the democratic process for the low low price of $70.  And you will only have to suffer that harsh consequence IF the City Clerk decided to fine you.

What is interesting is that it is my understanding that some of the candidates have not filed their Form 460.  Who, and what are they hiding?

Legal Filings

I spoke with the Hermosa Beach City Clerk's office today. The Clerk is out of town, and I am expecting a call back from the Deputy Clerk, but I was told The Coalition of 20 Words did not file its Form 460 by the legal deadline last Thursday.  The Form 460 discloses the individuals involved and money contributions to groups that get involved in politics.  I asked what the consequences were for not filing by the legal deadline, and I was told that there can be a small fine, but that the person may or may not get fined.  If I park on the wrong side of the street on street sweeping day, there is a 100% chance that I will get a ticket.  But apparently subverting the Democratic process of American Elections doesn't rise to the level seriousness of Obstructing a Street Sweeper.  I guess the City has to choose it's battles.

And I have confirmed that Roger Bacon, stripmall owner, is behind the Coalition.  More to follow on him.

Wow

 
This is less of a mystery now.  A picture says a thousand words.  Though the COALITION OF PACIFIC COAST HIGHWAY HERMOSA BEACH BUSINESSMEN AND RESIDENTS OPPOSING THE ELECTION OF MICHAEL KEEGAN FOR CITY COUNCIL 2009 (or the Coalition of 20 Words as I will abbreviate it) gives no information about itself in its mailings or full page newspaper ads, the telephone number leading to the Ralphs Shopping Center and this not-too-subtle banner indicate to me that maybe I'm on the right track.

Does Hermosa Beach not have any sign ordinances?  It seems that in the middle of a recession, Hermosa Beach businesses should not be telling people from Chicago to go home.  Does somebody hate Michael Keegan because he is from Chicago?  I do not know what to make of this.  So do businesses from Hermosa Beach hate all people who are not from Hermosa Beach?  If so, just say so.  We can add it to the little Hermosa Beach signs around town.  

As far as I can tell, this group hates Michael Keegan, Manhattan Beach, Redondo Beach, and Chicago.  But wait, the Coalition of 20 Words' mailing address is in Redondo Beach.  I do not know what to make of this at all.  This is a puzzle.  If anyone would like to enlighten me, I would love to hear the story.

 

While We Wait for the Hermosa Beach City Clerk ...

While we wait for the Hermosa Beach City Clerk's office to open on Monday, here are some interesting questions:

Who is "Locals Rule", and why was this organization registering voters on Pier in front of Sharkeez?  And why was a young woman who said she works at Sharkeez, and claimed to be "volunteering" to register these voters, telling people that individuals and businesses from outside of Hermosa Beach, from faraway places like Manhattan Beach and Redondo Beach, are trying to influence the Hermosa Beach Elections?  And who is Keith Crenshaw and what is his relationship with Locals Rule and with Sharkeez?

And does a Hermosa Beach School Board candidate's wife really have a Palin Power sticker on her car?  Palin Power and education wouldn't seem to mix very well.

These are young mysteries.  I've only dug them up in the last day from some hot tips.  If anyone can shed any light on these issues, let me know.

COALITION OF PACIFIC COAST HIGHWAY HERMOSA BEACH BUSINESSMEN AND RESIDENTS OPPOSING THE ELECTION OF MICHAEL KEEGAN FOR CITY COUNCIL 2009

In researching this 20 word Coalition, the only information on the California Fair Political Practices Commission site about the Coalition is a Filer phone number.  This phone number turns out to be the phone number of Park Pacific Shopping Center, the home of Ralphs Groceries at the corner of PCH and Aviation in Hermosa Beach.  No other information is available on the state's site.  A phone call to the office, and I learned that since it is a city election, the required paperwork and legal disclosures have to be filed with the Hermosa Beach City Clerk.  The Hermosa Beach City Clerk told me, at 4:05pm on Thursday, October 22, 2009, that the 20 word Coalition had not filed its paperwork, but that they probably would that day because that was the deadline for filing.  The office closes at 6pm on Thursdays.  The City Clerk's office is closed on Fridays, so I do not know if anybody from the 20 word Coalition ran from Park Pacific Shopping Center into the Clerk's office in the last 2 hours before the legal filing deadline.  I'll be calling first thing Monday morning to find out.  If they have not, I will file a complaint.  If they have, then I will be getting a copy of the filing from the nice people at the Clerk's office, which anybody can do for 10 cents per page.  And this can be done anonymously if anyone so chooses.  Then we will all learn who is behind this mysterious 20 word Coalition that hates Michael Keegan.

Weasel Watch !!!

I received a large postcard in the mail from Coalition of Pacific Coast Highway Hermosa Beach Businessmen and Residents a couple days ago, and today (October 22) I see the same postcard reprinted as a full page ad in the Easy Reader on page 3.

My Google search on "Coalition of Pacific Coast Highway Hermosa Beach Businessmen and Residents" yielded ZERO results. To get zero hits, this group has no site and has also never been mentioned before. Interesting.

The group has a P.O. Box in Redondo Beach, which is also interesting since the group criticizes candidate Michael Keegan for doing business outside of Hermosa Beach. I guess this group doesn't feel obligated to support Hermosa Beach itself.

Who are these mysterious junk mailers? At the top of the postcard, right under the group's name which is clearly stated as Coalition of Pacific Coast Highway Hermosa Beach Businessmen and Residents, is the following: FPPC ID Number 1322096. A search on FPPC gives me the California Fair Political Practices Commission. I type in 1322096 and I get an entry for: COALITION OF PACIFIC COAST HIGHWAY HERMOSA BEACH BUSINESSMEN AND RESIDENTS OPPOSING THE ELECTION OF MICHAEL KEEGAN FOR CITY COUNCIL 2009.

This is not just a group of businessmen and residents. This is a group of businessmen and residents who don't want Michael Keegan on the City Council. I can honestly say that I do not know anything about Michael Keegan, and maybe I don't want him to win either. But this postcard and article are so over the top, the arguments so absurdly hyperbolic and heavy handed, and the style reeks so badly of the campaign that the owner of Sharkeez ran to bully the city into letting him build an even bigger and uglier bar (I am not opposed to bars, just cheap looking ugly stucco bars) that I am now looking into all of this more closely.

Please stay tuned.

The Elections are Coming

Hermosans,

We have two weeks until election day. Check in here for analysis of the issues.