We talk differently to people depending on circumstances, and how we anticipate they'll respond to us.
With
the way Compton has received an infusion of cultural capital in the
past year because of the movie re-hashing NWA's rise and fall and
Kendrick Lamar everything, you'd think it'd always be something to
proudly declare, but not always so, particularly with people I don't
know.
Generally in everyday conversation with
acquaintances and people I don't immediately know, I try to show
"alignment." That is, I just try to see where they're coming from and
then "show" how similar I am to them.
With "people whom
I've met only briefly", the conversation is all about getting to know a
person, and "where I live" would be a primary question.
By
"showing alignment", I am likely not going to mention that I am from
Compton, unless they ask, but in a way that doesn't seem like they'd
think any less of me and/or disregard any of my future opinions.
For
example, when meeting new people, for me it's really difficult to tell
white people who are generations before me because either they are
outside of California and do not know the reference to Compton, they are
from California and are probably likely to associate Compton with
negativity.
In contrast, "people with whom I am in
regular contact", we have an
established certain pattern of interacting. Were beyond introductions
and more about talking about whatever we've established talking about
and updating each other on aspects of our lives. "Where I live" would
usually be a
question embedded within an established history of conversation.
So,
here's a sampling of different people I've encountered over the past
three years, their demographics, the circumstance in which I've
introduced my town, and my relation to them divided by race. I divide
on race, because in one-to-one interaction, it is the one attribute you
can't really do anything to hide unless you're talking to a room of
blind.
I don't think that we are inherently
"different" as peoples of different races. I don't think "white people
are a certain way, black people are a certain way etc.", but depending
on your race (as well as class-gender-ethnicity-etc.), you will have
associations, knowledges, and behaviors ascribed to your race. We as humans all carry very arbitrary, imperfect associations, knowledges, and behaviors of different races and ethnicities.
As you will read, those associations, knowledges, and behaviors constrain how both any given individual views and is viewed.
TO WHITE PEOPLE WITH WHOM I AM IN REGULAR CONTACT (OR USED TO BE): With these older people, I haven't really talked about
where I live. I avoid it, or were too deep into the relationship
talking about other things that where I live hasn't come up. With
younger folks, I talk about it and it's not an issue after that.
To a blue-collar male co-worker in his mid-50s living in Orange County:
I wrote about this guy here.
Though I've developed a pretty good working relationship with him, I
still avoid the topic as much as possible. I have not mentioned at all
that I
live in Compton. He thinks that I live in Long Beach, because I'd
mentioned that I was "still" in Long Beach when I was running late one
day.
To a college-educated male co-worker in his mid-50s formerly living in Culver City: Unlike
the guy above, I would actually talk to this guy. He'd even met my
wife and has seen my baby. He would talk about old Los Angeles, things
he'd done on our job around LA, and trips he'd taken across the country
and abroad. I never mentioned living in Compton, but it wasn't because I
did not want to tell him; the topic just never came up.
To a graduate-school educated male lawyer in his mid-30s living in New England: Last time I saw this guy was my wedding. I warned him, told him, he drove in with his wife. Great times had.
To a some college female co-worker in her 40s-50s living in West Covina:
I trained this person on a project. She was friendly and asked about
my baby. I met her for the first time right after the shootings in San
Bernardino and she said that she had ties to the facility. I was trying
to feel her out based on how she was reacting. She never really asked
so I never mentioned that I live in Compton.
To a some college male co-worker in his mid-20s living in Venice:
This guy I'd actually consider my friend. I actually had him visit the
house in Compton, on a Friday night. The first thing he did was call
his brother and ask him, "hey guess where I am?"
TO WHITE PEOPLE WHOM I'VE MET ONLY BRIEFLY:
I'm very guarded against older white people and try to get a feel for
their political leanings. With younger people, I usually just try to
lay cultural references thick on the "millennials."
To a college-educated female "co-worker" in her early 30s visiting from Washington, DC:
She was there to observe me for a job, specifically for jobs in
Compton. I told her that we'd be visiting the area. She seemed
somewhat indifferent even as I was trying to make the rap references
which seemed only vaguely familiar to her. She had the company-rented
car and didn't mind leaving her car in a Compton neighborhood, a very
suburban-Lakewood-ish-appearing area south of Rosecrans on the West
side.
To a some college immigrant realtor in her 50s living in Upland: She
was curious about the job I was doing. I explained my job. We got
into a deeper conversation about children as she was carting around her
grandson.
I initially told her I live in "Los Angeles."
As the conversation snowballed and knowing her realtor sensibilities, I
got comfortable enough to reveal that my wife. As I expected, she
remarked that "buying" and "owning" is better than renting.
TO BLACK PEOPLE WITH WHOM I AM IN CONTACT REGULARLY (OR USED TO BE)
By "black people", I mean "black Americans." Black Americans usually know what Compton is and what it means. Despite living in Compton, I don't run across many from outside
who would really question the experience. I think I garner more of an
"oh really? Cool" sentiment from the very few that I know.
To a college-educated male former roommate and postman in his early 40s living in Long Beach: This guy was a transplant from the Midwest, whom I described on my former other blog. When I first told him bout my new digs in Compton, he told me to invite him over.
To a college-educated female birthing midwife in her late 40s-early 50s living in Upland: We
told her kind of hesitantly that we lived in Compton, attempting to
hint at the fact that it was a more Latino neighborhood in which there
had been a hate crime. She responded in a way that said, "really, you
think I'd be scared of Compton?"
TO ASIAN PEOPLE WITH WHOM I AM IN CONTACT REGULARLY (OR USED TO BE):
This is pretty much family members and friends, so on one hand, I know
they're supportive, but sometimes they might drop subtle cues. Also,
since they're family and friends, I likely told them some two years ago
in 2013-2014.
To a college-educated female immigrant nurse in her early 60s living in Santa Clarita: This is one of the aunties from my mom's class who seems to like me a lot. She actually visited me one time.
To a college-educated female nurse in her early 30s living Culver City: I went to grade school
with her, she was a year behind me. We both ended up graduating from
the same college, though I transferred from Slug Nation. She's a nurse
now, and is still close to one of my close family friends. When I told her that we were living in Compton, she asked, "straight up?" The kicker is that
she is going to marry a guy with whom I went to high school with and
also was a year behind me, and also ended up at the same college. So I
had to explain further, "yeah, it's the cheapest place to buy a house!"
To a college-educated female teacher in her early 30s living in Eagle Rock: This is the "close family friend" whom I mentioned in the synopsis previous to this one.
She's been more like an older sister. She was supportive, after all
she'd worked very close to the area. Though she did wonder, if I'd ever
be able to sell the house that we'd bought.
To a college-educated male counselor in his early 30s living in the San Fernando Valley: This
is my best man. He's a big fan of the wire and hip-hop, and especially
Kendrick Lamar. I try to let him know about significant locations
here.
To a college-educated male engineer in his early 30s living in Orange County: One of my groomsmen whom I've grown up with and told to visit, but he hasn't visited. But I think it's mostly because he's busy.
A graduate school educated female pharmacist in her early 30s living in West Covina and a graduate school educated counselor in her her early 30s living in Pasadena: I
remember the conversation when I revealed to her and another friend
that we were living in a house. I came off already apologizing for our
location. I said something like "It's Compton, but..." They replied at different times saying essentially, "...but it's a house!"
TO ASIAN PEOPLE WHOM I'VE ONLY MET BRIEFLY: Like with older white people, I also am guarded and try to get a quick read on their political leanings.
To a blue-collar male welder in his late 60s living in Torrance: I
met this guy while on a job in a beach city. He was seeing me doing my
job, and was bragging at how he had been a veteran, and for a long-time
an expert welder. He talked about his trips to different places. He
encouraged me to go to school for welding at El Camino College so I
could "better myself." I did not mention the city I live in to him.
To a college graduate female graduate student in her mid 20s living in LA: I
met this girl while doing a big project. We found similar academic
interests. She was from San Jose. I was kinda trying to get a feel for
how she'd react but I let out that I live in Compton...but for economic
reasons. She appeared to show alignment and understanding of my
reasoning.
TO LATINO PEOPLE WITH WHOM I AM IN CONTACT REGULARLY (OR USED TO BE):
Similar to the situation with black folk, I don't really have any
issues telling any of them regardless of education, class, gender, or
age that I'm from Compton. Usually I can joke with them about it,
and/or comfortably invite them over with no issues.
To a blue-collar male co-worker in his early 30s living in South LA: Dude I'd consider the homey. He regularly comes to drop work off. He even has a girlfriend in the area.
To a blue-collar male co-worker in his early 30s living in East LA: Dude I'd consider the homey. He doesn't come to drop work off. We still joke a bit.
To a blue-collar male barber in his early 70s living in Gardena:
This guy's my barber. He collects clocks and stuff from the '50s,
which is displayed prominently all over his barber shop. I only
recently started really getting close with him after my 3rd or 4th
haircut, especially after I found that he's actually Mexican (thought he
was some Italian guy from New York), and after a roving vendor with
socks tried to sell me socks and called me a "verga" for pretending to
be interested, when I was just trying to be nice. Anyhoo, I didn't
really have much issue telling him that I was living in Compton. He
told me he was from Watts, and the conversation went on and on from
there.
To a some college female immigrant superior in her early 30s living in West Covina:
Now this person is kind of my boss, but she's pretty cool. After a few
projects under our belt, we've developed a pretty close working
relationship. Our conversations are really always about work, but
sometimes we deviate and talk about our families. I'd never really
mentioned the city to her, except for job purposes. I don't really talk
about it because I don't know how familiar she would be with any of the
cultural references.
TO LATINO PEOPLE I'VE ONLY MET BRIEFLY
To a blue-collar male in his mid 20s living in South LA: I
was working with this guy who had some punk rock T-shirt on all the
time and was supposed to work with the company. He told me that he
lived in South LA. I told him I lived up the street.
My Secret to Escaping the Sunset-Barrington Intersection That Everyone Is Complaining About
And by "Everyone", I mean some residents of Brentwood.
Other than a taxi, Uber, or Lyft driver, I don't know how many people drive the variety of routes that I do in and around Southern California.
I've actually had to go directly to Brentwood on Sunset before 7 AM on a number of occasions.
It's about 20-24 miles from me, so I leave my house in Compton at about 5:30 AM and usually get there with plenty of time to spare, sometimes at 6:15 - 6:30. Coming from the 405, I don't experience such a crush of traffic, especially when it's still dark outside, and that's just my point.
When I absolutely need to, I leave early and get to where I need to, including that Sunset-Barrington, corridor. That's the secret!
But then again, that's just my own thing, which probably won't make for a good broad design solution to the problem for everyone. Also, I'm coming Eastbound from the 405, usually childless, as opposed to Westbound from the 405, which seems to bear the brunt of the complaint.
On the way home, usually at around 9AM, I also have been subjected to this "one-mile, one-hour" traffic in the morning, but it never registered as seismically different from my many other traffic experiences on the 605 North in the morning or the 605 South in the Evening, the 105 East during rush hour, even getting to the airport when you think people are away at work.
I don't know of any other viable-all encompassing solution.
Though tolls "might" work because theoretically demand is high but supply is low, but I'd think the affluent who probably make up most of the drivers will probably still pay to go on without any second thought. The poor people like me, who work there, will be the ones feeling the hit.
After that solution, I'm not sure how much changing traffic signal timing and street markings will do.
I've read the comments on the Facebook pages of KPCC and LAist about how they should've allowed transit to be built or how they should just bike.
Yes, they should have allowed transit, but not much they can do about the situation now.
A fraction of them can bike (though biking Sunset west of West Hollywood is really scary), but that won't work for those who carry cargo and/or kids.
I guess the only real solution is to make that area very unpopular and undesirable so no one will traffic the area; that's the thinking behind writing this blog here!
Other than a taxi, Uber, or Lyft driver, I don't know how many people drive the variety of routes that I do in and around Southern California.
I've actually had to go directly to Brentwood on Sunset before 7 AM on a number of occasions.
It's about 20-24 miles from me, so I leave my house in Compton at about 5:30 AM and usually get there with plenty of time to spare, sometimes at 6:15 - 6:30. Coming from the 405, I don't experience such a crush of traffic, especially when it's still dark outside, and that's just my point.
When I absolutely need to, I leave early and get to where I need to, including that Sunset-Barrington, corridor. That's the secret!
But then again, that's just my own thing, which probably won't make for a good broad design solution to the problem for everyone. Also, I'm coming Eastbound from the 405, usually childless, as opposed to Westbound from the 405, which seems to bear the brunt of the complaint.
On the way home, usually at around 9AM, I also have been subjected to this "one-mile, one-hour" traffic in the morning, but it never registered as seismically different from my many other traffic experiences on the 605 North in the morning or the 605 South in the Evening, the 105 East during rush hour, even getting to the airport when you think people are away at work.
I don't know of any other viable-all encompassing solution.
Though tolls "might" work because theoretically demand is high but supply is low, but I'd think the affluent who probably make up most of the drivers will probably still pay to go on without any second thought. The poor people like me, who work there, will be the ones feeling the hit.
After that solution, I'm not sure how much changing traffic signal timing and street markings will do.
I've read the comments on the Facebook pages of KPCC and LAist about how they should've allowed transit to be built or how they should just bike.
Yes, they should have allowed transit, but not much they can do about the situation now.
A fraction of them can bike (though biking Sunset west of West Hollywood is really scary), but that won't work for those who carry cargo and/or kids.
I guess the only real solution is to make that area very unpopular and undesirable so no one will traffic the area; that's the thinking behind writing this blog here!
I Just Attended My First LAPD Officer-Involved Shooting...
Yesterday, my mother-in-law went to good ole trusty UCLA Harbor Hospital. She felt pains in her chest, and that she couldn't breathe.
She was supposed to have surgery about a week ago but backed out last minute. Now, since she hasn't had the surgery, she's been anxious about not having it. To the emergency room, she went.
My wife happens to be the most available offspring. The moment she stepped in, she took on translation duties for incoming nurses and doctors, explaining everything from commands to the implications of surgery.
We waited for hours. There was talk about fears of surgery, reminiscing about our sons growth. Things were OK. After a restroom break, I found my father-in-law at the room.
What I was able to get was just pretty much audio and whatever my father-in-law told me, as he moved towards the action and witnessed it first hand.
My Account
A few resident cardiologists happened to be surveying her condition. She was going to be moved to the cardiology section, when all of a sudden, I heard a really loud argument.
That couldn't be good.
There was screaming; people scrambled every which way. There were what sounded like shots (my father-in-law said they were tasers) and someone screaming. It was unintelligible to me. I was just hoping the action would not come our way.
My father-in-law and the two cardiologists walked towards the action, which made me want to see the action. My wife yelled get away from the door.
Fearing the worst but also kind of curious, I compromised by staying by the door and kind of ducking down. So all I could do was hear.
And then BOOM. Even more screaming and scrambling! After recent events, I didn't know what the hell was going down.
All this time, my mother-in-law, a heart patient, was panicking and crying. She was wondering why this was happening. Her blood pressure rose to 150, which was a situation in itself.
My Father-in-Law's Account
My father-in-law said that a young, skinny, Hispanic-whitish tall man was tasered. Twice to apparently no effect.
He then attempted to grab the TASER.
That's when the cops shot him. How this suspect was positioned, I'm not 100% sure, but it sounded like the cops had him down, but that he was not complying. Father-in-law said that they shot him in the back near the chest-area, and that was that.
In his conversation with me, he kept wondering why that guy would not listen to the officer's commands.
Media Accounts
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-officer-involved-shooting-20151219-story.html?145057780155310
http://ktla.com/2015/12/19/authorities-investigating-officer-involved-shooting-at-harbor-ucla-medical-center-in-torrance/
http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/shooting-harbor-ucla-medical-center-officer-involved-torrance-363043351.html
The Aftermath
The Hospital was under code triage. I heard the nurses at the front desk call other law enforcement agencies informing them of the situation.
After the melee, which lasted about 30 seconds to a minute (VERY FAST), the resident cardiologists returned to our room and calmly took us into our room. They continued surveying and coached her breathing to lower her blood pressure back to a more manageable level.
After they left, we were stuck in our room for about an hour or two. It seems that we didn't talk much about the situation because we'd all seen how anxious it had made mother-in-law. But I could tell that it was something my father-in-law was aching to talk about.
The code triage alert was canceled about 30 minutes or hour after the shooting.
Sometime afterward my father-in-law announced, "hey why don't we get hot chocolate and coffee?" She still had coffee from my trip to In-N-Out.
We made our way to the cafeteria. On the way there, immediately outside the door about 20 feet away was yellow tape blocking off a hallway, and cops in LAPD black milling about. It was a crime scene, but there was an air of casualty about it as we took a look and walked towards the exit for the cafeteria.
A few of the workers at the cafeteria knew we were on alert but not the reason why. Of course my father-in-law had all the information and he would share what he saw.
We got our hot chocolates and coffee and attempted to get back into the emergency room. We still had our nametags and assumed that we could get back in but they were not allowing any visitors to the Emergency Room. We tried explaining that we were just there! He had seen everything! But to no effect.
We waited for about 3-4 hours checking in with the receptionists often. We won some sympathy, but that still did not get us in.
My Father-in-Law kept wondering aloud to me why they needed so much space for the investigation. To him, the case was over when they shot him. The only place they would transfer him was the freezer.
My Interpretation of Events
Everything happened really quickly in rapid succession.
Part of the scariness of the situation is that I didn't know or see where anything came from. I didn't know if it was multiple shooters, what other weapons were there.
I just thought and hoped it wasn't a San Bernardino situation.
Was the cop right to pull the trigger?
It's hard to make any credible comment without seeing the situation.
After hearing my father-in-law's account and reading the news reporting, I'm still kind of unsure, but my opinion will ultimately hinge on whether or not the guy was restrained.
IF they had him "restrained" after swinging the metal chair, but not complying, I'd say probably not because the cops probably are not fearing for their lives. It seems like they shot him just because that was just the more efficient tool given a long day with him.
IF he was "unrestrained" this whole time and possibly out there to cause havoc on civilians, patients in an ER room, guests, and doctors, then I'd probably lean towards saying that some kind of use of force was definitely justified, but a deadly use of force questionable.
She was supposed to have surgery about a week ago but backed out last minute. Now, since she hasn't had the surgery, she's been anxious about not having it. To the emergency room, she went.
My wife happens to be the most available offspring. The moment she stepped in, she took on translation duties for incoming nurses and doctors, explaining everything from commands to the implications of surgery.
We waited for hours. There was talk about fears of surgery, reminiscing about our sons growth. Things were OK. After a restroom break, I found my father-in-law at the room.
What I was able to get was just pretty much audio and whatever my father-in-law told me, as he moved towards the action and witnessed it first hand.
My Account
A few resident cardiologists happened to be surveying her condition. She was going to be moved to the cardiology section, when all of a sudden, I heard a really loud argument.
That couldn't be good.
There was screaming; people scrambled every which way. There were what sounded like shots (my father-in-law said they were tasers) and someone screaming. It was unintelligible to me. I was just hoping the action would not come our way.
My father-in-law and the two cardiologists walked towards the action, which made me want to see the action. My wife yelled get away from the door.
Fearing the worst but also kind of curious, I compromised by staying by the door and kind of ducking down. So all I could do was hear.
And then BOOM. Even more screaming and scrambling! After recent events, I didn't know what the hell was going down.
All this time, my mother-in-law, a heart patient, was panicking and crying. She was wondering why this was happening. Her blood pressure rose to 150, which was a situation in itself.
My Father-in-Law's Account
My father-in-law said that a young, skinny, Hispanic-whitish tall man was tasered. Twice to apparently no effect.
He then attempted to grab the TASER.
That's when the cops shot him. How this suspect was positioned, I'm not 100% sure, but it sounded like the cops had him down, but that he was not complying. Father-in-law said that they shot him in the back near the chest-area, and that was that.
In his conversation with me, he kept wondering why that guy would not listen to the officer's commands.
Media Accounts
http://www.latimes.com/local/lanow/la-me-ln-officer-involved-shooting-20151219-story.html?145057780155310
http://ktla.com/2015/12/19/authorities-investigating-officer-involved-shooting-at-harbor-ucla-medical-center-in-torrance/
http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/shooting-harbor-ucla-medical-center-officer-involved-torrance-363043351.html
The Aftermath
The Hospital was under code triage. I heard the nurses at the front desk call other law enforcement agencies informing them of the situation.
After the melee, which lasted about 30 seconds to a minute (VERY FAST), the resident cardiologists returned to our room and calmly took us into our room. They continued surveying and coached her breathing to lower her blood pressure back to a more manageable level.
After they left, we were stuck in our room for about an hour or two. It seems that we didn't talk much about the situation because we'd all seen how anxious it had made mother-in-law. But I could tell that it was something my father-in-law was aching to talk about.
The code triage alert was canceled about 30 minutes or hour after the shooting.
Sometime afterward my father-in-law announced, "hey why don't we get hot chocolate and coffee?" She still had coffee from my trip to In-N-Out.
We made our way to the cafeteria. On the way there, immediately outside the door about 20 feet away was yellow tape blocking off a hallway, and cops in LAPD black milling about. It was a crime scene, but there was an air of casualty about it as we took a look and walked towards the exit for the cafeteria.
A few of the workers at the cafeteria knew we were on alert but not the reason why. Of course my father-in-law had all the information and he would share what he saw.
We got our hot chocolates and coffee and attempted to get back into the emergency room. We still had our nametags and assumed that we could get back in but they were not allowing any visitors to the Emergency Room. We tried explaining that we were just there! He had seen everything! But to no effect.
We waited for about 3-4 hours checking in with the receptionists often. We won some sympathy, but that still did not get us in.
My Father-in-Law kept wondering aloud to me why they needed so much space for the investigation. To him, the case was over when they shot him. The only place they would transfer him was the freezer.
My Interpretation of Events
Everything happened really quickly in rapid succession.
Part of the scariness of the situation is that I didn't know or see where anything came from. I didn't know if it was multiple shooters, what other weapons were there.
I just thought and hoped it wasn't a San Bernardino situation.
Was the cop right to pull the trigger?
It's hard to make any credible comment without seeing the situation.
After hearing my father-in-law's account and reading the news reporting, I'm still kind of unsure, but my opinion will ultimately hinge on whether or not the guy was restrained.
IF they had him "restrained" after swinging the metal chair, but not complying, I'd say probably not because the cops probably are not fearing for their lives. It seems like they shot him just because that was just the more efficient tool given a long day with him.
IF he was "unrestrained" this whole time and possibly out there to cause havoc on civilians, patients in an ER room, guests, and doctors, then I'd probably lean towards saying that some kind of use of force was definitely justified, but a deadly use of force questionable.
The Problem With "If You See Something, Say Something": The Inevitable Selective Application of It After The San Bernardino Shooting
First off, on the shootings in general. As the father to a 9-month old, I can't understand how anything could drive you to commit an action that would take you away from an offspring. I don't care to judge, but all I'm saying is these actions are infathomable and overwhelmingly tragic. But yeah. Damn. Fuck.
After the mass shooting in San Bernardino, law enforcement has aggressively encouraged the public with a sign I've seen at Disney Studios in Burbank "if you see something, say something." I generally don't have a problem with that as a general idea applied to any situation. Its a constant reminder, and upon seeing it, people will always be on the look out in general.
But the mass call by law enforcement in the context of just this shooting bugs me a little bit.
Only in this shooting, out of the 350 or so this year, have I seen/heard law enforcement, people more aggressively say, "if you see something, say something." The more 'radicalized' conservative version of people commenting on this situation is people saying "I don't care if I offend Muslims, let's profile the crap out of them!" Meanwhile, we'll still have about 348 of those other mass shootings.
The fact that law enforcement is more vocal to "see something, say something" particularly around this shooting involving Muslims is that now your right-wing radical as well as your average moderate will wonder a lot more about the Arabic, Middle-Eastern-ish garb-wearing people for nothing other than the way they look and dress. I say "Middle-Eastern-ish" because just as after 9/11 we saw idiots harrass Sikhs for the headscarf, they will probably do the same.
The fact that the San Bernardino shooter has been constantly described as "quiet", that co-workers couldn't remember any conflicts, and that even his own family didn't suspect anything, gives those who want to "see something, say something" even more reason to scrutinize anything they associate to be "Muslim" to the exclusion of any other person who also may be doing something suspicious.
After the mass shooting in San Bernardino, law enforcement has aggressively encouraged the public with a sign I've seen at Disney Studios in Burbank "if you see something, say something." I generally don't have a problem with that as a general idea applied to any situation. Its a constant reminder, and upon seeing it, people will always be on the look out in general.
But the mass call by law enforcement in the context of just this shooting bugs me a little bit.
Only in this shooting, out of the 350 or so this year, have I seen/heard law enforcement, people more aggressively say, "if you see something, say something." The more 'radicalized' conservative version of people commenting on this situation is people saying "I don't care if I offend Muslims, let's profile the crap out of them!" Meanwhile, we'll still have about 348 of those other mass shootings.
The fact that law enforcement is more vocal to "see something, say something" particularly around this shooting involving Muslims is that now your right-wing radical as well as your average moderate will wonder a lot more about the Arabic, Middle-Eastern-ish garb-wearing people for nothing other than the way they look and dress. I say "Middle-Eastern-ish" because just as after 9/11 we saw idiots harrass Sikhs for the headscarf, they will probably do the same.
The fact that the San Bernardino shooter has been constantly described as "quiet", that co-workers couldn't remember any conflicts, and that even his own family didn't suspect anything, gives those who want to "see something, say something" even more reason to scrutinize anything they associate to be "Muslim" to the exclusion of any other person who also may be doing something suspicious.
Ralph's Closed in Compton, Yet Another Smart N Final Opened
On the evening drive home from working the more Eastern parts of the OC about a week ago, I was trying to get a cake to celebrate Mr. Boy's 9 months of life.
My mind was trying to imagine where I could get a super-market cake could be had. I wasn't necessarily thinking cake from specialty shop ala 85 Degrees as the price could be a bit much, I was just thinking something from one of the more "middle-class" supermarkets that tend to have a wider selection of baked goods: Ralphs, Vons, Albertsons.
The meaning of those supermarkets to us as a family is: "fresh", ready-to-eat food.
When I think of any of these, I think of donuts in the morning and chicken and potato wedges, or even salad. I also think of their endless selections of baked goods.
Taking Artesia all the way from La Habra, I passed up a bunch of Stater Brothers. Honestly, I didn't know enough about Stater Brothers to stop. They are actually around Long Beach-ish areas, and their commercial jingle has been permanently branded into my cortex (from a childhood of being subject to their commercials), but I've only gone once inside their stores.
I was trying to imagine where in/around Compton I could get this cake.
I know Food4Less, the lower-class subsidiary of Ralphs, might have some, but I've always been skeptical of the freshness of its baked goods and deli, which might be completely unfounded.
Then a thought sprung, the Ralphs on Compton Blvd, near City Hall! (El Super briefly crossed my mind, but typically I'd only go there for fruits or "paisa" baked goods)
Yes!
Only when I turned left, going North on Santa Fe, I didn't see anything.
It appeared that where Ralphs was, a Smart N Final had taken its place.
I'd only heard about the Smart N Final taking the place of the Fresh N Easy on Rosecrans and Central, but not a word about this Ralphs silently closing down, which according to Yelp comments closed down sometime in the summer.
What does it mean to have a Smart N Final instead of a Ralphs?
Immediately, at that time and place of celebrating my son's 9 months with my wife on a weekday night, I couldn't really get a cake at the Smart N Final in Compton.
There is no bakery or deli at the Smart N Final. They have baked goods, but not seeing any baked goods baking area, I kinda wondered where they got the limited selection of goods made. I think the bachelorized, younger, more cost-conscious version of me would've picked something, anything from the store. The married, still cost-conscious, but kind-of-aware-of-my-wife's-tastes led me out of the store.
Smart N Final isn't a bad store at all. They have the fresh veggies and fruits, which is a heck of a lot more important long-term than whether or not they have cakes or food at a deli. They're reasonably cheap on most things, though I haven't sat down to calculate exactly how much cheaper/expensive they are.
Ultimately, what it meant for me was a trip to another store, 4.5 Miles Westward into Gardena along Redondo Beach Blvd to Vons. There I was able to pick up not only a cake but also a pound of crab salad and potato wedges for our bellies. It also meant paying $3.99 for a kale salad kit that we could get much bigger at Costco for around $6-$7. For us as a family, having that Smart N Final instead of Ralphs meant that there wasn't immediate physical access to as much fresh, ready-to-eat things from a supermarket. Or at least catering to our middle-class-ish perceptions of what fresh, ready-to-eat is.
It's not that I'm making a demand, it's just, that's the way it is.
My mind was trying to imagine where I could get a super-market cake could be had. I wasn't necessarily thinking cake from specialty shop ala 85 Degrees as the price could be a bit much, I was just thinking something from one of the more "middle-class" supermarkets that tend to have a wider selection of baked goods: Ralphs, Vons, Albertsons.
The meaning of those supermarkets to us as a family is: "fresh", ready-to-eat food.
When I think of any of these, I think of donuts in the morning and chicken and potato wedges, or even salad. I also think of their endless selections of baked goods.
Taking Artesia all the way from La Habra, I passed up a bunch of Stater Brothers. Honestly, I didn't know enough about Stater Brothers to stop. They are actually around Long Beach-ish areas, and their commercial jingle has been permanently branded into my cortex (from a childhood of being subject to their commercials), but I've only gone once inside their stores.
I was trying to imagine where in/around Compton I could get this cake.
I know Food4Less, the lower-class subsidiary of Ralphs, might have some, but I've always been skeptical of the freshness of its baked goods and deli, which might be completely unfounded.
Then a thought sprung, the Ralphs on Compton Blvd, near City Hall! (El Super briefly crossed my mind, but typically I'd only go there for fruits or "paisa" baked goods)
Yes!
Only when I turned left, going North on Santa Fe, I didn't see anything.
It appeared that where Ralphs was, a Smart N Final had taken its place.
I'd only heard about the Smart N Final taking the place of the Fresh N Easy on Rosecrans and Central, but not a word about this Ralphs silently closing down, which according to Yelp comments closed down sometime in the summer.
What does it mean to have a Smart N Final instead of a Ralphs?
Immediately, at that time and place of celebrating my son's 9 months with my wife on a weekday night, I couldn't really get a cake at the Smart N Final in Compton.
There is no bakery or deli at the Smart N Final. They have baked goods, but not seeing any baked goods baking area, I kinda wondered where they got the limited selection of goods made. I think the bachelorized, younger, more cost-conscious version of me would've picked something, anything from the store. The married, still cost-conscious, but kind-of-aware-of-my-wife's-tastes led me out of the store.
Smart N Final isn't a bad store at all. They have the fresh veggies and fruits, which is a heck of a lot more important long-term than whether or not they have cakes or food at a deli. They're reasonably cheap on most things, though I haven't sat down to calculate exactly how much cheaper/expensive they are.
Ultimately, what it meant for me was a trip to another store, 4.5 Miles Westward into Gardena along Redondo Beach Blvd to Vons. There I was able to pick up not only a cake but also a pound of crab salad and potato wedges for our bellies. It also meant paying $3.99 for a kale salad kit that we could get much bigger at Costco for around $6-$7. For us as a family, having that Smart N Final instead of Ralphs meant that there wasn't immediate physical access to as much fresh, ready-to-eat things from a supermarket. Or at least catering to our middle-class-ish perceptions of what fresh, ready-to-eat is.
It's not that I'm making a demand, it's just, that's the way it is.
Yes, the LA Media Did/Has Ignored the Beirut Bombings
At least the media, I listened to and watched.
The media which I actually generally like and trust.
There's an article written on Vox, "Did the media ignore the Beirut bombings? Or did the media?"
The author says that "the media has covered [the Beirut bombings] extensively."
That only true if you have access to the internet AND know/knew where to look. The majority of what he cites are online publications, with the exception of CNN, which I don't have.
I wouldn't have had access to that knowledge if all I had was local FM radio and TV.
There are days when I'm on the internet all day, and get news really quickly thanks to Twitter, but that's not often.
On November 12 and November 13th, a Thursday and a Friday, I wasn't on the internet all day, so I was mostly getting news from radio and TV.
I was in the car listening to 89.3 KPCC around 1 PM, November 13th.
The BBC Newshour just began reporting about the attacks on Paris.
The severity and importance of the attacks didn't hit me until the coverage of the attacks bled over onto the next news hour during The World, and then onto All Things Considered. It was only after that continuous coverage that I got the idea, "oh shit, it's their 9/11."
Once I got home at around 6 PM, my wife was watching the KNBC News, incidentally KPCC's media partner.
My wife, also a KPCC listener, asked me, "did something happen in France?"
I said something to the effect of :yes, a few shootings." We watched NBC for more details. It was all jarring.
Leading up to this day, on Thursday, also in the car, all I could recall on KPCC was talk about the protests happening on campuses and the Officer Involved shootings in LA County, both important issues here.
But there was no continuous updating by the BBC nor The World nor All Things Considered. It was just a normal day, KPCC bringing up very interesting issues, but no alarm bells ringing.
I didn't have awareness of the Beirut bombings that had actually preceded the Paris bombings until Sunday morning while browsing Twitter and being curious about what Muslims had to say about the Paris bombings. I ended up re-tweeting what they said.
One of the Muslim Tweeters posted a link to the New York Times' story about the bombings in Beirut.
This past Monday, November 16th, I watched a little more of my local news on NBC. They made mention about progress on the investigations of the bombers in Paris. I go to the Today Show news website. Still no mention of Beirut. I go to the NBC News website, the World Section. Plenty of articles pertaining to the Paris Terror Attacks. Not one of Beirut.
The media which I actually generally like and trust.
There's an article written on Vox, "Did the media ignore the Beirut bombings? Or did the media?"
The author says that "the media has covered [the Beirut bombings] extensively."
That only true if you have access to the internet AND know/knew where to look. The majority of what he cites are online publications, with the exception of CNN, which I don't have.
I wouldn't have had access to that knowledge if all I had was local FM radio and TV.
There are days when I'm on the internet all day, and get news really quickly thanks to Twitter, but that's not often.
On November 12 and November 13th, a Thursday and a Friday, I wasn't on the internet all day, so I was mostly getting news from radio and TV.
I was in the car listening to 89.3 KPCC around 1 PM, November 13th.
The BBC Newshour just began reporting about the attacks on Paris.
The severity and importance of the attacks didn't hit me until the coverage of the attacks bled over onto the next news hour during The World, and then onto All Things Considered. It was only after that continuous coverage that I got the idea, "oh shit, it's their 9/11."
Once I got home at around 6 PM, my wife was watching the KNBC News, incidentally KPCC's media partner.
My wife, also a KPCC listener, asked me, "did something happen in France?"
I said something to the effect of :yes, a few shootings." We watched NBC for more details. It was all jarring.
Leading up to this day, on Thursday, also in the car, all I could recall on KPCC was talk about the protests happening on campuses and the Officer Involved shootings in LA County, both important issues here.
But there was no continuous updating by the BBC nor The World nor All Things Considered. It was just a normal day, KPCC bringing up very interesting issues, but no alarm bells ringing.
I didn't have awareness of the Beirut bombings that had actually preceded the Paris bombings until Sunday morning while browsing Twitter and being curious about what Muslims had to say about the Paris bombings. I ended up re-tweeting what they said.
One of the Muslim Tweeters posted a link to the New York Times' story about the bombings in Beirut.
This past Monday, November 16th, I watched a little more of my local news on NBC. They made mention about progress on the investigations of the bombers in Paris. I go to the Today Show news website. Still no mention of Beirut. I go to the NBC News website, the World Section. Plenty of articles pertaining to the Paris Terror Attacks. Not one of Beirut.
How Is Bike Commuting Unreliable and Inconvenient in LA?
At any opportunity I get, I will usually bike.
But that has not been a lot lately.
My job has me traveling all over LA County and LA-OC Metropolitan area every single day. Lancaster, Ojai, Tehachapi, the Third Street Promenade, Broadway in Downtown LA, Downtown Long Beach, Artesia. I probably take the car 99.9% of the time nowadays now that I'm focused on singular projects in Orange County cities, compared to about 70-80% in previous years with lots of projects within a train/bike ride away.
I like biking, but in the very few times I have a close job, I often have to get up really early even if the job is relatively close (think Compton to Downtown LA). Uncomfortably early. Like drag myself up a 4:30 AM early, which sounds awesome at 10 PM at night and when I'm wide awake. But after having woken up twice between 12 AM and 4 AM to help feed the baby, and still seeing the wife struggle, fuck that noise. Gotta help wifey out, gotta thesis to write, gotta sleep, so my logic goes...
My jobs generally last all day, or at least I have to be at a place late, in the darkness. Do I really want to do this?
Having this kind of schedule combined with the wildly varied distances, and having mixed up my social circles so wildly in five years, has allowed me to see how unreliable and inconvenient bike commuting in LA can be.
How can biking be unreliable and inconvenient?
But that has not been a lot lately.
My job has me traveling all over LA County and LA-OC Metropolitan area every single day. Lancaster, Ojai, Tehachapi, the Third Street Promenade, Broadway in Downtown LA, Downtown Long Beach, Artesia. I probably take the car 99.9% of the time nowadays now that I'm focused on singular projects in Orange County cities, compared to about 70-80% in previous years with lots of projects within a train/bike ride away.
I like biking, but in the very few times I have a close job, I often have to get up really early even if the job is relatively close (think Compton to Downtown LA). Uncomfortably early. Like drag myself up a 4:30 AM early, which sounds awesome at 10 PM at night and when I'm wide awake. But after having woken up twice between 12 AM and 4 AM to help feed the baby, and still seeing the wife struggle, fuck that noise. Gotta help wifey out, gotta thesis to write, gotta sleep, so my logic goes...
My jobs generally last all day, or at least I have to be at a place late, in the darkness. Do I really want to do this?
Having this kind of schedule combined with the wildly varied distances, and having mixed up my social circles so wildly in five years, has allowed me to see how unreliable and inconvenient bike commuting in LA can be.
How can biking be unreliable and inconvenient?
- Even as a Angeleno who has lived here almost my entire life and travels quite a bit, I don't know the nuances of bike routes/infrastructure in every neighborhood. On streets I don't know about, I've been stuck on some very bike unfriendly streets. COUGH Sepulveda en route to and from LAX COUGH.
- To be safe in neighborhoods I don't know, I usually just end up on the big avenues. But half the time that means battling for lane space/hoping I don't get hit either on the street or biking really slow on sidewalks.
- Map apps on the phones give you some really complicated directions. I do map out where I have to go, and now the phone can tell me, but I have to listen really hard to her voice. Even for a 13-mile trip from the casa to LAX by bike is complicated. I know that I can take a street like Compton Blvd/Redondo Beach Blvd or Rosecrans till I hit Sepulveda, but frankly I'm pretty scared of riding Sepulveda at the LAX area because of the density of traffic.
- Numerous mechanical problems with the bike. I've had numerous mechanical problems from a flat tire, to the chain falling off, when I needed to be on time for a job. It's a stark comparison to the car which :knock on wood: needs scheduled maintenance. A few solutions for this: that little piece of bike infrastructure that I blogged about, and/or Taxi Service for biking (ala UberPedal) to bail your freeloading biker ass out of there.
- For those who need to haul lots of cargo around. I used to know a guy who biked with lots and lots of trailers. He made biking with cargo work in his own way; he was very motivated to show the world all the things he could do without a car and biking. These days I'm around a lot of blue-collar-ish people with either families and/or work tools. They make good use of either mini-vans or pick-up trucks. Suggesting a bike would not make sense for them and their schedules taking them various places either.
- Too Far of a Commute. This is probably the main thing. People just come from all over based on housing that they can afford. A lot of people who come from my background are not going to want to live in Compton, but would rather tough out a commute from one of the Valleys.
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