I live in LA. It's a sensitive subject. My district concilwoman sends out mailings that extoll her ability to get repavements done. To me, it's absurd to claim credit for merely doing her job. Maybe she does perform miracles, but the situation described in the article is not accurate.
The article is dated Jan 27 2026. The following claim is not true, "The Bureau of Street Services (StreetsLA) has not repaved a street since last June." That would be June 2025. There have been repavements in my neighborhood since June 2025, and before Jan 27 2026. At least one other repavement was completed nearby in the last month.
To me this is another article in a right-wing publication promoting the right wing view that blue states don't work, and only fascists will repave streets and make the trains run on time.
I agree that city funds are not managed efficiently, but as are as I'm aware, it's no different from any other large city in the US. I believe the culture that mismanages government funding can be improved through citizen advocacy, supported by proactive, accurate journalism.
Accurate financial information, such as has been published by LA City Controller Kenneth Mejia, is essential as well. See his report on LAPD Helicopter use, for example. https://controller.lacity.gov/landings/lapd-helicopters
On July 23, @CJHandmer provided an update on Terraform Industries' hardware and process to produce synthetic natural gas from solar power and air. "Other than plants and some cyanobacteria, I believe this is the first ever commercially useful capture and production of CO2 at scale." This is very exciting, clearly more than a minimum viable product.
> While the original Macintosh was by no means cheap, it was about half the cost of the Apple III
Made me look it up! I was developing Apple ][/III/Lisa/Mac software at the time. I used the Apple III to write Apple Pascal for the Apple ][, and the Lisa to develop for the Mac. I'd completely forgotten the initial pricing of the Apple III, which was stratospheric. The $7,800 config was 256K I think (~$31K in today's dollars).
"It sold initially for between $4,340 and $7,800, depending on the configuration. The original Apple III had many problems, and was replaced by a revised model in mid 1981, which featured 256K RAM, updated system software, and a lower price ($3495). A 5 MB external hard disk was also made available. The Apple /// sold very poorly and was replaced by the Apple ///+ ($2995) in Late 1983. The Apple ///+ was discontinued in 1985."
I can hide my home-based observation locations, but others usually do not. People who post observations in my front yard cause other iNat users to visit. This hasn't been a problem in that there have been only a few additional visitors, and they are friendly. Still, I don't like my yard being publicized.
People who walk by the yard might tell their friends, but ordinary word-of-mouth can't be queried online. Not yet.
EDIT: We did have what turned out to be a significant invasive species observation. It was published in my SO's account with the location obscured. I looked up the species online and realized it might be a concern, so I killed it and put it in the freezer. In the meantime, the California Agricultural Inspectors got wind of it and contacted iNat to obtain the email address associated with the account. After making contact, they sent someone to pick up my specimen, and the later, 4 inspectors (yes, really, 3 inspectors and a supervisor) were sent to look for additional specimens. None were found.
Unrelated to this incident, I posted endangered species (not on our property) in my account, and iNat automatically obscures the location. Later on, I got an ~~email~~ message via iNat from the California Department of Fish and Wildlife asking for access to the precise locations, which I gladly provided.
I didn't mean to suggest that iNat is proactive, they may well be.
IIRC, the exact chain of events was: Invasive Species Observation posted -> a curator at the LA Natural History saw the post and notified the CDFA (Agriculture Inspectors) -> CDFA contacts iNat to get email address -> CDFA contacts my SO. I don't recall whether iNat had a built-in messaging service at the time (they do now).
Regarding endangered species, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife evidently joined iNaturalist, in part to enhance their data collection. They seem to be monitoring iNaturalist and contacting users who have relevant observations. They seem very sensitive to privacy concerns, and cooperation is voluntary. I'm thrilled a state agency is engaging the public in protecting our natural resources.
Benj Edwards wrote a nice profile on arstechnica[0] (Feb 11).
"Tinney went on to paint more than 80 covers for Byte, working almost entirely in airbrushed Designers Gouache, a medium he chose for its opaque, intense colors and smooth finish. He said the process of creating each cover typically took about a week of painting once a design was approved, following phone conversations with editors about each issue’s theme. He cited René Magritte and M.C. Escher as two of his favorite artists, and fans often noticed their influence in his work."
> In his later years, Tinney grew philosophical about the future of illustration as a profession, noting that stock image databases had changed the economics of the field. But he remained upbeat about the value of artistic talent, comparing it in that 2006 interview to the skill of public speaking: “It’s a nice talent to have, but it isn’t easy to find someone who’ll pay you just to do it. You need to combine that basic talent with another skill to really have a marketable service.”
Perhaps something to ponder as AI stirs up what constitutes a marketable service.
Off-topic, but I was interested to read Carl's Twitter bio[0], "I’ve spent a lifetime switching my Special Interest every year or two. By now I’m surprisingly knowledgeable in a lot of fields— a skill now obsoleted by AI."
The article is dated Jan 27 2026. The following claim is not true, "The Bureau of Street Services (StreetsLA) has not repaved a street since last June." That would be June 2025. There have been repavements in my neighborhood since June 2025, and before Jan 27 2026. At least one other repavement was completed nearby in the last month.
To me this is another article in a right-wing publication promoting the right wing view that blue states don't work, and only fascists will repave streets and make the trains run on time.
I agree that city funds are not managed efficiently, but as are as I'm aware, it's no different from any other large city in the US. I believe the culture that mismanages government funding can be improved through citizen advocacy, supported by proactive, accurate journalism.
Accurate financial information, such as has been published by LA City Controller Kenneth Mejia, is essential as well. See his report on LAPD Helicopter use, for example. https://controller.lacity.gov/landings/lapd-helicopters
reply