Live from Los Angeles
Riots and fires
Live from Los Angeles: Riots and an update on the January Fires
Roses blooming on what's left of the house where my daughter was born. After the fires in Pacific Palisades, California
In Los Angeles recording for a week. Downtown LA is, and is likely to remain, a danger zone of rioting and police/national guard/ US Marines response, for the foreseeable future. One of the talk show comedians joked that since downtown is so far away from other neighborhoods of Los Angeles, it went unnoticed. I was in LA for the January fires and while it's true that life went on as usual while the fires raged just a few miles away, both the fires and the riots have had/are having a profound effect on life in LA and reverberations worldwide.
As with everything in Los Angeles (and beyond), the disparity between the haves and have-nots is a blaring uncrossable gap. The workforce servicing the haves, mostly Hispanic, is now seen as the enemy of the state. They mow the lawns, build, repair, and clean the houses, work in the hotels, restaurants, hospitals, and more. They now must live in fear and on the run from the rhetoric of political agendas. The ruthless brutality being unleashed against the people who are the backbone that keeps the economy afloat is unthinkably tragic. We are living in a low point in American history.
I've lived most of my life in Los Angeles. There are some positive aspects to the city. When winter rages in the the rest of the USA, the weather, or lack of weather, can be very seductive. Much has been written about the traffic, the blaring sun, the exorbitant price of real estate, and more. Add the war zone atmosphere of the remnants of the January fires, and there is a somber mood over LA at this time. Pacific Coast Highway has a 25 mph speed limit. Driving along the ocean slowly, in the evening light, passing by the ruins or total absence of beach houses that were landmarks for a very long time is very eerie and unsettling. What was, will not be coming back. I hope that's not true, as well, regarding the safety and calm in the communities that are the lifeblood of Los Angeles.
