Clearing the Air

Sometimes our readers are compelled to either correct something written or voice their displeasure with a claim we’ve made. Case in point: in a recent edition of the paper (and always around election time) we print: “CV Weekly does not endorse or sponsor any candidate, political party, politician or the actions of any.”

In response to this claim, a reader (who wishes to remain anonymous by not having a return address on his/her envelope) wrote: “What a load of (hooey)” and attached the notice to a recent column written by Rep. Adam Schiff.

To be clear, we at CV Weekly feel it’s important to give a voice to our elected officials. Consequently, on our pages you’ll find monthly columns by Rep. Adam Schiff, Assemblymember Laura Friedman and Crescenta Valley Town Council President Harry Leon. Susan Bolan, who was instrumental in the No on the 710 Extension, also writes monthly for us, though her columns can include personal reflections and not just updates on what the Crescenta Valley Community Assn. is up to. (She is very active in the CVCA.)

Do I agree with these politicians, their views and everything they write? Heck, no! Anyone who knows me knows that it pains me sometimes to include their columns. However, these are folks who were voted into office and govern us. I think it is important that they share what is going on in their districts and how their decisions – whether or not they’re agreed with – are going to affect us.

So it’s not a load of (hooey) that CV Weekly prints these columns; in my opinion, it the responsible thing to do and, to be honest, I’m grateful that these people take the time to submit a column every single month. No doubt they’ve got other things that take up their time; thinking that sharing with our readers what’s going on in their areas is important is a testament to how valuable our readers are.

Finally, don’t mistake this column as a news item. From the Desk of the Publisher is simply my opinion (though others may share it) and my columns may contain critiques of elected officials. Like the Viewpoints section where readers can share their, well, viewpoints, this space is reserved for my thoughts and opinions. It is not a news piece. Hopefully after reading the news section of the CV Weekly the difference between a news story and an opinion piece will be obvious.

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I’ve said before that, although I love living in the Crescenta Valley, I also like traveling around. As most readers know, Cambria (for example) is one of the places that I love visiting.

This past weekend, my son and his girlfriend and Steve and I traveled to Long Beach for the LA Winefest. We had a blast, though it was hot as heck. Parking for the Winefest was in the lot designated for the Queen Mary, which I thought was odd knowing that the Queen Mary is a destination spot. It became apparent why we were parking there: the Queen Mary is closed! I think between COVID and needed repairs, public access to the ship is not available. Hopefully this is just a temporary situation.

I’ve been on the ship several times over the years and it is a guaranteed good time.