Patch Blog: When Parenthood Trumps Politics

Last Wednesday evening I went to my final Studio City Neighborhood Council board meeting. I'd resigned from the Board since we are moving to La Cañada and went to make a public comment thanking the Board and Studio City for letting me serve.

My wife, Joy had to work late so I had to bring my daughter Grey with me.  Now Grey is a very active 13-month-old little girl and she's been walking since 9 months so if any parents are reading this they are going -- "WOW, walking since then!"  That's been the general reaction.

Why do I bring up Los Angeles City Council President, and candidate for Mayor of Los Angeles, Eric Garcetti?  As I'm waiting to make my comment Grey starts twisting, squirming and making to much noise so I have to step out into the hallway.  Just when Grey has finally calmed down in walks the featured speaker of the evening, Eric Garcetti. The Councilman and Candidate for Mayor sees me with Grey's head on my shoulder and walks right up to me with a big smile and his hand extended.

We shake hands and he says, "How old is she?  I have a 5 week old!"  With that exhausted yet overjoyed look of a new father.  I immediately noticed when he walked in that he was exhausted yet had his "game-face" on to wow the voters. His aide standing off to the side watched us talk for a couple of minutes and then later after I made my 2-minute public comment we spoke further and we wished one another the best.

I walked away and thought what a good guy.  He's not well thought of within Studio City whenever I spoke to people as the general consensus was he was in bed with developers and the Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA).  Whatever those two entities wanted he gave in, especially in his district which included Hollywood using the basis of global warming as his reasons for further densification without thoughts to traffic and infrastructure.  I'd further heard fairly nasty things about the man from other board members and stakeholders through my years on the Neighborhood Council and after my encounter with Councilman Garcetti I must confess I don't know how much of it I believe.

Have I sat with him and discussed his policy views on global warming, European densification or the "Manhattan-ization" of Los Angeles, transit-oriented developments, etc and my answer is a resounding, NO I have not.  I only met a warm, kind, tired man who wants to be Mayor.  Now I will be transparent when I say I generally do not agree with his policy views on much of anything as evidenced by my last sentence but here's my point.

Continually we hear about civility in our public discourse but let me take it a step further.  Councilman Garcetti is a man of the left and generally I'm not yet we connected as men and fathers so while I probably disagree with him on a host of issues it's time to away the anger and hostility.  Get mad for good reasons and stop attacking politicians.  They are not the problem, frankly we are.  We are the ones who vote them into office.  Most polls show people hate Congress yet they have an over 95% chance of being re-elected.  Ask yourself why that's the case?

I don't know if it can happen but the next time you overwhelmingly disagree with a public official don't get mad and speak vile, putrid hatred over them; instead become engaged in the civic process and vote.  Either vote for the Eric Garcettis of the world or vote them out.  In a republic it really is that simple.

As for the Councilman I wish him all the best as fatherhood -- it is the greatest office he'll ever hold next to being married.