The Freedom Minute

Another Paul Koretz Bombshell

If you’ve been following the Paul Koretz saga , you’ll know that last week I confronted this Los Angeles City Council member regarding his Nazi Germany analogy when referring to Arizona’s illegal immigration law. Here’s what he originally said:

“If this was being proposed at the Federal level, I would think we were absolutely at the beginning of what went on in Nazi Germany. It’s not much different. Fortunately it’s a State, but this State needs to be stung in every possible way until they stop this behavior. We can’t let this advance any further, this is absolutely dangerous.”

Koretz has been extensively criticized for playing the Nazi card, including this rebuke from Rabbi Abraham Cooper, associate dean of the Simon Weisenthal Center. “We don’t need on top of everything else invoking imagery that is inappropriate. This type of language is toxic, is not accurate and makes the whole issue more difficult, not less difficult, to resolve.”

Koretz, aware of this criticism, admitted to me that “I learned something. But that was my gut, from the heart, response, and I probably wouldn’t say it again. I mean even my friends at the Simon Wiesenthal Center… even they took a shot at me – and maybe appropriately so”.

From this, one might believe that Koretz truly didn’t realize how insensitive his words might be and that he was somewhat regretful; that he really didn’t know any better and that he’s now learned his lesson.

However, I’ve uncovered some truly astounding information that I believe casts Paul Koretz’s entire behavior in this matter in a new light. So, as Paul Harvey used to say, here’s the rest of the story:

Two years ago, the City of Pomona, California was embroiled in a similar controversy. The police department had set up a DUI checkpoint near a large Cinco De Mayo celebration. While the department claimed that the location and timing of the checkpoint was entirely based on the fact that Cinco De Mayo is known for large alcohol consumption (and presumably intoxicated driving), they came under fire from Latino citizens who felt they were being unfairly singled out. Specifically, claims were made that illegal immigrants were being targeted, with the subsequent impounding of their vehicles, since illegals cannot obtain driver’s licenses in California (which the Supreme Court has ruled may legally be required to be shown at DUI checkpoints).

The next Monday, at the Pomona City Council meeting, one of the council members who had witnessed the police action stated that it reminded them of movie scenes depicting the Gestapo. (For those of you not up on your WWII history or who’ve never watched “Hogan’s Heroes”, that’s the secret police of Nazi Germany.) Over the next few weeks, a public uproar ensued as this council member was widely criticized for injecting Nazi imagery into the debate. In fact, the head of the Western Region of the Jewish Labor Committee (a group formed in 1934 in response to the rise of Nazism in Germany) attended the July 21st council meeting and lectured this council member on their use of the word, “Gestapo”, proclaiming “This is a blood-curling analogy. I would ask you to consider even some sensitivity training”. He added, “I just thought that what was said was insensitive enough and painful enough that someone needed to say something.”

And now the kicker –

The council member who made the “Gestapo” reference was named Cristina Carrizosa. The representative who found her remarks so painful and insensitive as to require her to consider attending sensitivity training? – Paul Koretz!

That’s right, the same Paul Koretz who just two years later, at a Los Angeles City Council meeting, thought it was perfectly acceptable for him to state that Arizona’s enforcement of Federal immigration law meant that “we were absolutely at the beginning of what went on in Nazi Germany”.

The only word to describe this behavior is hypocritical.

Did Paul Koretz somehow forget than just two years earlier he drove over an hour out to Pomona to lecture a city official about how the use of the word “Gestapo” is a “blood-curling analogy”? Did something happen in that two years that now makes it ok to invoke the specter of Nazi atrocities when criticizing government actions toward illegal immigrants without drivers licenses? Is it somehow ok only when Paul Koretz does it?

What this new information says to me, is that Paul Koretz knew exactly what he was doing when he compared Arizona to Nazi Germany. How could he not? Just two years earlier he called such language “a blood-curling analogy”. And told Cristina Carrizosa she needed “sensitivity training”.

That’s pretty strong language. You don’t just forget something like that.

After my initial conversation with Mr. Koretz, I was willing to give him the benefit of the doubt, but no longer. Not with what I know now. I believe he was being disingenuous when speaking to the Sherman Oaks Homeowner’s Association and to me directly.

Paul Koretz first tried to suggest that he was somehow being misunderstood or misquoted. Later, in response to my criticism of his actions, he said that he’d “learned something from this experience”; that he wouldn’t be repeating those remarks. Which makes it sound as though he didn’t realize that his words might be hurtful.

But this suggestion that he now realizes that maybe he shouldn’t have said it and is somewhat regretful, is impossible to reconcile with the fact that not two years earlier he was the one criticizing the use of Nazi metaphors – in an almost identical situation.

I believe that the only proper interpretation is that Paul Koretz cynically chose to use the deaths of 12 million innocent people to ingratiate himself to a group of constituents that he believed might be able to help him politically.

Paul Koretz owes an apology not only to me, but to the citizens of Los Angeles and to the Jewish community as a whole. I think he also owes an apology to the Latino community for having the nerve to criticize Ms. Carrizosa for daring to use the word “Gestapo” while reserving his right to pander to their community using the same type of hyperbole about the exact same subject matter.

Shame on Paul Koretz.

(The information regarding the Pomona controversy and the quotes attributed to Paul Koretz are from two articles by Monica Rodriguez which appeared in the Inland Valley Daily Bulletin in May and July of 2008. I have not been able to independently verify these quotes, but Ms. Rodriguez has confirmed with me that they are accurate.)

May 26th, 2010 Posted by freedomminute | Federal Government | 3 comments

The $100 Stop Sign Scam

Getting a traffic ticket is no fun. It stings, usually to the tune of hundreds of dollars. What can make the experience even worse, though, is the realization that you’ve just been caught in the latest government scam to separate you from your hard earned cash.

If you want to avoid falling victim to one of the most egregious abuses of government power, you’d best avoid the public parks under the jurisdiction of the Mountains Recreation and Conservation Authority, otherwise known as the MRCA. This little known state agency, which administers the lands belonging to the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, the Conejo Recreation and Park District, and the Rancho Simi Recreation and Park District is out to get your money. And they’ll use every dirty trick possible to do it.

Their latest scheme is the installation of automated ticketing cameras at stop signs within their parks.  Anyone who fails to come to a complete stop is hit with a one hundred one hundred and seventy five dollar ticket.  Now we can all agree that blowing through a stop sign, especially in a park where pedestrians are likely to be present, is not only dangerous, but deserving of severe punishment as well as the contempt of your fellow citizens.  But that’s not what we’re talking about here.  We’re talking about what is commonly known as the California Stop, where a driver slows to a crawl but doesn’t quite stop completely before proceeding.  Most drivers who engage in the rolling stop only do so when it’s clear that there’s no one around.  You know, like in a quiet neighborhood or secluded park. And if there does happen to be another vehicle or pedestrian present, there’s plenty of opportunity to come to a full stop without putting anyone in danger.  So, this is what is known as a technical violation.  It’s a little like going 5 mph over the speed limit.  Everyone does it at some point and no harm comes of it.

But regardless of the fact that this behavior puts no one at risk, the MRCA believes that if you engage in this practice on their turf, you deserve a $100 $175 fine.  And to ensure that they can nab you, they’ve flagrantly skirted the state law that forbids the use of this type of automated enforcement.  That’s right, this type of enforcement is not permitted under the California Vehicle Code, which is intended to be the law for all vehicles on the state’s roadways.  So how can the MRCA get away with this abusive practice?  They’ve simply declared that the law doesn’t apply to them.  They’re special; they’re above the law.  The arguments they make in support of this theory are extensive and I’ll leave that for another post where I’ll rebut them all.

What I want to concentrate on in this post, is their self serving claim that this is not about revenue enhancement, but rather all about safety.  In fact, in response to the public outcry against this ticketing scheme, Joe Edmiston, executive director of the Santa Monica Mountains Conservancy, said: “I’m more worried about a law suit from somebody whose child is killed. We’d be sued for millions for not controlling the interface between visitors and cars.”  Wow, it sure sounds like there must have been massive carnage on the roadways within these parks. Joe Edmiston just had to implement these automated fines to save the children.

So how many accidents or injuries can be attributed to drivers failing to stop at the stop signs on the roadways within the jurisdiction of the MRCA?  Exactly zero.  Not one. Not ever.  When pressed, Joe Edmiston couldn’t cite even one accident or injury.  Yet it was necessary to install these automated cameras which extract tens of thousands of dollars from unsuspecting park visitors yearly all in an effort to save the children.  Of course, any reasonable person can see that safety has nothing to do with it.  On the contrary, this is clearly about filling the coffers of the MRCA and enhancing their power within their little fiefdom.

But if you’re still not convinced that this isn’t about safety, have a look at one of these stop sign installations enforced with an automated ticketing camera.

In this picture, taken at Marvin Braude Mulholland Gateway Park at the top of Reseda Blvd in Tarzana, you can plainly see that the stop sign sits pretty much in the middle of the road. There’s no cross street, no crosswalk, no intersection; no chance that any vehicle or pedestrian will cross your path. In fact, there’s absolutely no reason at all to have a stop sign here. And since there’s no common sense reason to stop, other than if you don’t, you’ll get a $100 $175 ticket; many motorists only slow down rather than come to a complete stop. Sure, it’s technically a violation, but only because the MRCA arbitrarily criminalized the behavior. What reason could the MRCA have for locating this sign in such a ridiculous and confusing location? Could it be purely in an attempt to collect as many $100 $175 fines as possible? It certainly isn’t to save the children.

And just to drive the point home, the reverse view of this idiotic photo enforced stop sign installation makes it even more obvious that it was placed in such a way as to ensnare the maximum number of park visitors and reap the greatest amount of revenue.

So be forewarned, the MRCA is out to rob you blind. Don’t get caught up in their revenue enhancement scheme. Photo enforced stop signs are also located in Temescal Gateway Park, Top of Topanga Overlook, Hollywood Bowl Scenic Overlook, and Franklin Canyon Park. There might be others coming soon.

And if you want to express your outrage at how a rogue government agency is engaging in highway robbery, call your city and state representatives. They’ll probably tell you it’s perfectly legal; it’s not. One field deputy for former state senator Sheila Kuehl told me, “Well if the government is doing it, it has to be legal”. Brilliant. But you don’t have to get into any legal debates. Just tell them you abhor this type of blatant revenue enhancement scheme. Tell them you want them to look into it. At the very least, they’ll be on notice that you’re keeping an eye on the actions of our public officials.

And if you happen to have gotten one of these tickets, I want to hear about it.  If you’re still fighting it, maybe you can be a test case to get this overturned.  If your case is already finished, you should know that there’s a class action lawsuit in the works.  I’ll post more about that when I have an update.

Finally, if you suspect that I’m so outraged about this because I’ve gotten one of these bogus tickets, you’d be wrong.  I’ve successfully avoided contributing to the MRCA’s stop sign fund, mainly because I refuse to visit and drive in their parks.  It’s my own little boycott.

After this article was posted, I found that the citation has recently been increased to $175.  Now we can all be doubly outraged.

If you’d like to be kept informed about lawsuits or other actions we’re taking to stop this illegal money grab by the MRCA, you can sign up for email alerts using the form under the heading “Subscribe to the Freedom Minute Newsletter” in the sidebar to the right of this post. Enter your name and email address and check the box for “MRCA Alerts” under “You can also sign up for specific lists” and you’ll always get the most up-to-date information.

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May 26th, 2010 Posted by freedomminute | State Government | 191 comments