Los Angeles Gadfly and Mayoral Hopeful Walter Moore Has High Hopes for 2009

LOS ANGELES - The City of Angels is gradually turning into a slum where the homeless are not sheltered but instead referred to as urban campers and under the watchful eyes of the ACLU and the L.A. City Council permitted to sleep in front of your homes. If you are one of the fortunate ones who do not have to deal with the homeless when leaving home or arriving at work, you or your children may still be forced to run the gauntlet that are the MS-13, 18^th Street, Avenues 43 or Vineland Boys gangs.

Drive-by shootings, gang warfare in failing schools held hostage in the death grip of an infighting teachers' union, sanctuary city policies giving all but a green light to illegal immigrants to come and work, and the Governator who has announced far reaching budget cuts that are sure to cause grave problems for both schools and social services, the job of mayor might not be something that your average successful attorney might aspire to.

Currently held by former MEChA member Antonio Villaraigosa - less reverently known as Mayor Photo Opp - the job is a tough one that demands an individual who has the time to devote to the unique problems faced by L.A. while at the same time not worrying about the next step up the ladder (did I mention that Clinton groupie Villar has been known to make some noise about running for the governor's job?) or biting off more than can be chewed.

Walter Moore, gadfly and persistent thorn in the sides of the L.A. City Council, is thinking of taking on the Mayor in 2009 and making a run for office. What is holding him back? Well, he is a Republican - which pretty much disqualifies him from holding higher office in the City of Angeles - and apparently he appeals primarily to those who are either tight fisted or dirt poor, since up to date he has only raised about $80,272 for his run. On the other hand, he has distanced himself sufficiently from fellow Republicans by stating unequivocally his pro-choice, pro-gay, and pro-unreligious stances that his party affiliation may not be the albatross around his neck many have considered it to be.

Of course, given the blunders of the Villar reign - a failed takeover of the LAUSD, failure to implement the no-kill pledge for Animal Services, repeated rate and tax hikes to supposedly put more police officers onto the streets, and out of this world water usage while browbeating Angelenos to conserve the liquid in a time of drought - and his almost proverbial ability to insinuate himself into even the most unlikely photo opportunities, and it appears that a challenger stands a good chance.

Walter Moore's platform is surprisingly simple: he proposes to do away with the favoritism currently enjoyed by cronies, end government waste as we know it and instead cut redundant and downright ridiculous city programs instead of raising taxes, raise the standard of living, wrestle neighborhood control out of the tattooed hands of gang members, deal with L.A. freeway gridlock (and not in the way that lawmaker Mike Feuer is envisioning with - you guessed it - a tax hike on gasoline) and permit the LAPD to uphold federal laws when it comes to the enforcement of immigration legislation.

Yet before you give way to an enthusiastic hallelujah, may I remind you that for all the good ideas and bravado gadfly Moore is displaying, he is mighty thin on actual factual proposals, putting him in danger of becoming the right of center carbon copy of current Mayor Villaraigosa who has demonstrated what happens when big promises are made but specific plans for follow up and follow through are lacking.

Then again, considering the vast amount of research that Walter Moore has amassed and offers interested parties to peruse on his site, it does appear like this mayoral hopeful has not only done his homework but expects you to do the same.

Sources:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HjmB1y3ZPqg&feature=related
http://web.mac.com/waltermoore/WalterMooreForMayor/Home.html
http://www.lacitybeat.com/cms/story/detail/?id=1590&IssueNum=86
http://www.bruinalumni.com/antonio/antonioindex.html
http://www.hillaryclinton.com/news/release/view/?id=1864
http://www.lacity.org/mayor/
http://mayor.lacity.org/budgetmessage/index.htm