Gloria Molina’s anti taco legislation has been overturned by forward-thinking, pro-taco judge Dennis A. Aichroth. Taco trucks in unincorporated areas of the city are now free to remain parked in their usual spots, much to the consternation of Molina’s anti-taquero forces, who vowed to not give up their fight against the taco lifestyle.
The battle has been won, but the war is not over. Molina’s forces are regrouping and have publicly stated that community outrage over the legislation will not sway them one way or another. They pledge to keep using every weapon at their disposal, and taco lovers around the Southland will meet them at every turn, equally determined to preserve the taco lifestyle.
It’s a sick, sad world and you don’t have to look under too many rocks to find slimy things crawling around. Peruse these stories at your own risk, but be warned that what you don’t know… can kill you.
The federal No Child Left Behind Act made a requirement for high schools to provide military recruiters with access to campus, and forces schools to turn over students’ names, addresses and phone numbers unless parents opt out. The military spends $3.5 billion annually on recruitment and enlisted more than 181,000 people for active-duty forces in the 2007 fiscal year and more than 138,000 for the reserves. Los Angeles County ranked third in the nation in raw numbers of Army recruits in 2007.
According to the LA Times, an activist group wants the same access to counter the military’s message:
Troubled by military recruiting at Los Angeles high schools, activists are seeking equal access to students on campus to provide what they say is unvarnished information about the armed forces and information about nonmilitary careers.
The Coalition Against Militarism in Our Schools, a Southern California group of educators, volunteers and veterans dedicated to promoting nonviolent alternatives to military service, is taking the proposal to the Los Angeles Board of Education, saying it is vital that students have the truth about military enlistment.
Rapper Warren G, whose hits include “Regulate” and a hip-hop remake of “I Shot the Sheriff,” was arrested in Hollywood on Sunday on suspicion of possession of marijuana with intent to sell, police said.
Warren G, whose real name is Warren Griffin III, was riding in a car driven by Ryan Butler, 29, when they were pulled over about 1:40 a.m. on suspicion of running a red light near Hollywood Boulevard and Wilcox Avenue, said Los Angeles Police Officer Sara Faden.
Was this really a huge surprise? The only mistake is that the cops said Warren G had enough illegal marijuana pot weed that he must have planned to sell it. Anyone who knows the words of Mr. G knows he’s a buyer, not a seller and a pound is not for sale, it’s for personal use. The police can peep the “Indo Smoke” lyrics for proof:
Ahh, Indosmoke
Pass me the joint so I can take a toke
1 puff, 2 puff, 3 puff, 4 puff, 5 I’m feelin real high
Leaning to the side in my muthafuckin ride
With the OG gangsta glide
Woo!, hey now ya know
Inhale, exhale with my flow
Breakaway, come again like this
The LB to the C two times to miss
Cuz if you do, you break you get broke
Me and Mista G and the indosmoke
Remember this YouTube video we linked to back in October? Well it looks like Bucket, who is allegedly the dude bombing the 101 in the video has found both internet celebrity and police attention. According to LATIMES.com:
Authorities say Buket’s moniker had adorned hundreds of freeway overpasses, concrete walls and transit buses across the state and southern Nevada. He is believed responsible for upward of $150,000 in property damage along the Los Angeles River and in the areas patrolled by the Los Angeles Sheriff’s Department.
But sheriff’s deputies said today that “Buket,” whose real name is Cyrus Yazdani, could be out of commission for quite a while. The 24-year-old man was detained this morning when he showed up to meet his probation officer. He is expected to be booked on multiple charges of felony vandalism, sheriff’s officials said. Law enforcement deals with hundreds of taggers across the city. But it is how and when Yazdani chooses to vandalize property that has earned him special attention from law enforcement, said Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Sgt. Augie Pando. “It’s blatant disregard for other people’s property,” Pando said.
Rather than work clandestinely or under cover of darkness, sheriff’s deputies say Buket prefers an in-your-face approach.
In case you thought the new anti-taco lifestyle ordinance enacted last month was a cruel joke, HOY reports today that the first tickets are being issues– without even a warning:
Ya comenzó la pesadilla para varios dueños de “loncheras” del Este de Los Ángeles, después de que las autoridades multaran, al parecer por primera vez, a uno de los dueños de estos negocios rodantes por permanecer por más tiempo de lo permitido en un solo lugar.
“Toda la semana había estado trabajando normal, cada que pasaba la ‘ticketera’ me movía y luego regresaba al lugar”, dijo a HOY Alejandro Valdovino, dueño de la “lonchera” La Flor de Sahuayo, quien fue infraccionado por agentes del Departamento del Sheriff.
Valdovino explicó que él estaciona su “lonchera” justo al frente de un restaurante de su propiedad que lleva el mismo nombre. “Ayer ni siquiera tuve tiempo de moverme, nomás llegó el policía con la infracción en la mano. No me dijo que me moviera, solamente llegó y me entregó el ticket”, añadió Valdovino y agregó que desconoce la cantidad que tendrá que pagar ya que la multa no especifica la cifra, solamente indica que se tendrá que presentar en corte.
The cartoon above is by Al Guerrero, one of our city’s up-and-coming cartoonists and a blogger at our new favorite site laeastsise.com. We also heard from our pals at York Blvd. who send along a “Save the Taco Trucks” online petition: www.saveourtacotrucks.org.
Meanwhile, our poll results are overwhelming– 88% of our readers, who represent a cross section of the taco lifestyle, are against Gloria Molina’s anti-taco truck law. So, vote in the poll, sign the petition, visit the pro-taco truck sites above.
(5 tacos)
