August 1, 2008 by PT Rothschild.

PEYTON PLACE POLITICS DRIVES NEED FOR LOCAL CITIZENS TO UNITE

So Cali, CA – July 14th marked the opening of hunting season for new city politicos to get into the election process. Paperwork must be filled out and names of registered voters who reside within the city limits of each election must be collected on the petition which is then to be returned by August 14^th to the city of the election. As I write this piece it is with hope in my heart that some new blood will come forth to challenge and defeat the current status quo, gaining the free insurance the city elected officials receive. Why (?), you ask, when everything here looks so much like the home of ‘Father Knows Best’ and ‘Leave It To The Beaver’? Where Maggie’s biggest gripe in her column (Country Review) is “Plastic Packaging!” (hey Maggie, can you whistle ‘It’s so nice to have a man around the house’?). Pretty innocuous it would seem until you realize that this area is one of the best looking places in Hell. You see, ‘looks’ are deceiving and ‘all that glitters ain’t gold’. Of course, being so close to Hollywood (and having been in a movie myself), I’m aware of camera magic. Being a part of the ‘underground’ where people are exposed, warts and all, is opposite of goody-two-shoes ‘image’ you find above ground presented by the local MSM (main stream media). I think we’re all aware of how Jesus felt about ‘goody-two-shoe images’ (see Mark 12:38-40). Let’s see how this plays here in wine and horse country. We’re start with the cutest (sort of) story, freezer pups!

·       Every week there are ads for fundraisers and cute animals ready to be adopted from a place called Animal Friends of the Valley aka LEAF (Lake Elsinore Animal Friends). Even the Southwest Communities Financing Authority (SCFA) shouted “Hallelujah” when the last hurdle was cleared for construction of new facilities for the shelter. Sounds cool, doesn’t it? That is until you read the Review story, ‘How much is that doggy in the freezer?’ and see that this is the shelter that Stephen King could have built.

·       The ‘let’s make this a teen friendly town with our Youth Master Plan’. Well if you read the preceding story, you know that was a farce to hire another mouth to feed clothed in a feel-good political promise.

·       Trevi Entertainment of Lake Elsinore is now getting the ‘Riccardo/The Vault two-step’ as his 200 video games stand idle in a vacant shopping center building, for months, after thinking or believing Temecula was ‘teen-friendly’ to the common, non-BMX/Motorcross, non-jock teens that live here. “Foolish human.”

·       Cuppy’s coffee house was harassed by law officials from a city that has a Grand Jury indicted (on 17 counts) person running the city council, after an illegal search revealed the fact that the owner was an approved medical marijuana patient, but no one ‘official’ disapproves of the many MSM events put on by Coke Johnson*, the biggest liner between LA and SD, that support his habit.

·       Handsome magazine cover boy and recently re-elected county super Jeff Stone, who man-handled a group of lovely, defenseless little old ladies’ Chamber of Commerce out of the way so his cronies could open a counterfeit chamber (and reported in only one other zine besides the Review), lost no time in drafting up an amendment to ‘squeeze the grapes’ of small businesses in wine country so the Rancon Group, a $10,492.99 contributor to Stone’s campaign, will be able to build three large wineries (in their place?). Temecula Valley Winegrowers Association exec director Arbogast asked all reporters to leave the meeting before Stone spoke favorably about other aspects of the Citrus/Vineyard Rural Area Policy concerning roads and trails though he never brought up the changes that would end competitive smaller businesses in the area. That surprised TVWA member Charles Peltzer when “he didn’t make one mention of (the changes to special event facilities)” Arbogast, whose TVWA kicked in approximately $7800 for their Stone, announced proudly, “We’re finally speaking the same language.” Well Charlie, welcome to the Image Zone (and not the business).

·       And speaking of Stones, a younger Stone was arrested (nothing felonious) and the news was kept out of the MSM for three weeks, so take that, Dick ‘a shot & a beer’ Cheney, your 15 hours of ‘stonewalling’ ain’t Jack Squat to these here sodbusters.

There are more news stories that appear to be innocent and necessary printed up every day in the local MSM, but if you thought that taut political drama and its undertow only happened inside the Beltway, guess again Poindexter. They don’t call it the ‘wild, wild west’ for nothing, Homes. (*not his real name)

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August 1, 2008 by Bill Gould, Publisher.

I have to weigh in on the subject just posted by my fellow writer, PT Rothschild. I happen to have a very different opinion on this matter, even if I agree with some of the points he makes. His latest article about the unfortunate closing of Tony Romas here in Temecula seems to infer that somehow the City Council and Planning Commissions in Temecula have something to do with some of the businesses closing their doors recently. I think this is an absurd assertion.

The reason people are shuttering their mom-n-pop businesses is simple, all of the the people that were out every night of the week with the kids living their ‘mortgage-rich’ lifestyles have no home and no money now. Many of them have moved back to the towns they came from, with family members that would give them a place to live. Now this issue of this money vacuum has even begun to take down corporate businesses like Tony Romas, a chain of restaurants with over 200 locations on five continents. This is not an issue that the city has anything to do with, other than the fact they are the recipient of flack because this is an election year for two city council seats.

PT brought up the issue of the ‘Grandpa Kitsch’ hanging on the Overland Road overpass. While I might agree that this was not the best idea, there are hundreds of locations all over Temecula that ‘Art in Public Places’ money would have been better spent. I am all for art and the beautification of Temecula in all ways possible.

I think that another subject that PT touched on was slightly misguided. He spoke of ‘parking garages and pathways being constructed as if there was no recession’ - however many of the construction items going on in town are not of the cities doing like The Promenade Mall. It is built by Cleavland Ohio based developer, Forrest City, who by the way are in the process of getting the new additions to the mall LEED certified. Some have been planned for a long time like the Murrieta Creek Trail System near Diaz Road. The trail is set to accommodate cyclists and pedestrians when it is completed. Being that PT travels by bike, I would figure this to be near and dear to his heart. Many of the curbs and medians that have been constructed lately have been done by the developers who are building near there or built in conjunction with other agencies.

My point here is that is the burden of the business owner to properly look into codes, building rules and location before starting a business. I have made that same mistake in my very few years of doing business. I have been at odds with the City of Temecula over their shutting down Madlins Coffee House because I didn’t have the correct permits for live music. I remedied the situation by getting the said permits and doing so in a non-confrontational way with the people who are in charge, the City. In business you live and you learn. My guess is that Tony Romas satisfied the remainder of their lease at that location and made a smart business choice to leave because the location they had, while very viable when built almost 20 years ago, is now on the wrong side of the freeway for nighttime ‘neighborhood’ business that a restaurant like that needs to survive.

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August 1, 2008 by PT Rothschild.

T-TOWN SPEEDS TOWARD IMMACULATE PERCEPTION IN GHOST TOWN IMAGE

Temecula, CA – The steak and rib restaurant, Tony Roma’s, long a watering hole and eatery for Temecula’s more upscale epicureans, has closed down. The ‘official’ story for the closure is probably the economic downturn but one look at the spending habits of the current incumbent city council may give you a different perspective. The focus on city ‘image’ put forth by members as a reason for certain projects gives you a clue to the superficial context the city coffers are raided for.


Let’s look at the much touted YOUTH MASTER PLAN first. After many meetings and a multitude of paper questionnaires inquiring about all sorts of pie-in-the-sky scenarios done to the tune of $87,000 in city funds, what is there to show for it? A person from the state of Massachusetts has been relocated from the ice and snow of his home state to this sunny ‘image’ of Temecula. That is the YOUTH MASTER PLAN, Sports fans. No change in policy toward the general youth of the valley, no plan to back teen-friendly businesses, no scaled down or graduated permit cost structure for all ages venues, just another mouth at the city trough gobbling down limited revenue.

How about that nifty ‘grandpa kitsch’ wall hanging on the Overland overpass that cost the city $170K? Could that money have been put to better use by maybe saving some businesses from closing? Of what use is ‘image’ when businesses are shutting down everyday but pathways, parking garages, and cement street dividers are still being constructed as if there is no recession? Who will pay tax revenues to the city when all the small businesses are either driven out by disproportionate permit fees, double-talking bureaucratic requirements, or competitive monopolizing through cronyism?

Like a mini version of Hitler’s rise to power done T-town style, first it was the kids’ music scene that was done away with (in Germany it was the Gypsies first), then the local Tribe took a hit with the closings of their two popular urban hangouts (in Germany it was the Socialists next). And now other legit businesses are in line to be squeezed out by official declaration. Soon the ‘image’ city caretakers are seeking to instill for outsiders and tourists may be complete, a squeaky clean paradise devoid of anything not ‘whitebread’ and ordinary, a true Stepford Wives city environment.

But it’s an Olympic year and Hitler thought he had an ‘image’ locked up too, until a fellow named Jesse Owens showed up for the race. With elections just around the corner in our two towns, will the common folk get their ‘Jesse’ on? Stay tuned for the next exciting episode, ‘Volunteers Needed For Salvation’.

PS: Welcome to the trenches, Lance. It’s gonna be a hellava last five months.

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