16 lagunabeachindy . com SEPTEMBER 15 , 2023
GUEST OPINION :
The George Problem
BY BILLY FRIED
Every politician has a mentor , a sounding board , a guiding presence . Nelson Mandela had Walter Sisulu , Winston Churchill had Bourke Cockran , and John F . Kennedy had Ted Sorensen . When wondering about councilman George Weiss , only
GUEST OPINION :
I Invite You to Life ...
BY SUSAN VELASQUEZ
Today , we are looking for a lost part of you that is holding back from fully participating in your life . This part is hidden in the dark and is waiting for permission to step out into the light of today .
Imagine that you are spiraling back into your childhood to recapture that feeling of true excitement about life . Remember when you couldn ’ t wait to get up in the morning and were never ready to go to bed at night ? Remember getting new sneakers and knowing that you really could run faster . Remember shrieking and yelling , jumping and running . Remember laughing while making up crazy games and elaborate plans with your best friend of the moment . Remember star light , star bright and making wishes you knew would come true .
Now , come back to the you of today . Bring that remembered exuberance one name comes to mind : Yosemite Sam . Yes , the proud cartoon cowboy , the mean-spirited and aggressive gunslinger with the hair-trigger temper and an intense hatred of rabbits - whose “ shoot first ” efforts always seemed to backfire . Substitute common sense for rabbits , and we have our doppelganger .
You see , George came into office with a sworn enemy : developers . He produced an ad campaign with pictures of Huntington Beach high-rises and the headline “ Think this can ’ t happen here ? Think again .” Well , I thought about it . And it can ’ t . Nonetheless , his fear tactic succeeded , and George vowed to get business interests out of City Hall , fight for transparency and crusade for fiscal responsibility .
Only , he wasn ’ t going to do it the normal way , through reason , persuasion and vote-getting . He would do it the Yosemite George way , with bombast and belligerence . Let ’ s examine the track record in the three years he ’ s wreaked havoc on city council .
When he didn ’ t agree with the direction of a closed-door session to discuss the Hotel Laguna , he snuck surreptitiously to the office
along with you as you answer these questions . What is missing from your life at this time ? What would you love to do that would be out of the ordinary for you but would lighten and brighten your life ?
Can you even entertain giving yourself permission to honestly answer those questions ? If not , it may be that your inner critic is firmly established as your own internal , critical parent . Discipline gone haywire .
The reasons for squelching things that interest and attract us are many . “ It ’ s not practical . No time . No money . Too frivolous . I ’ d feel too uncomfortable , silly and irresponsible . I already have too much to do .”
The real issue is that we have forgotten how to be fun or have fun . We are boring , bored , numbed out , and on automatic pilot , trudging through our endless lists of roles and responsibilities . We are locked into being adults . High rollers . Big impact people who are only about big changes . We are waiting for just the right time . Our inner longing says : “ When can we ?” And we reply : “ Not just yet .”
This is where a shift in perception must be made . Profound shifts come in small and seemingly inconsequential ways .
Once again , remember . Teenage years . The thrill of simply holding hands . Tender kisses . Walks on the beach . Slow dancing . The electricity of attraction . Being flooded with emotions . The experience of really listening and being listened to while trying to first time talk about new , of the city ’ s prime nemesis - the litigation-as-sport Mark Fudge - and disclosed confidential information . A Brown Act violation . I guess he hoped Mark would ride to the rescue by suing our town for the umpteenth time . That ’ s like planting a bomb and then locking yourself in the room . City council didn ’ t take kindly and censored him .
Then George was caught on a hot mic , disparaging a resident and his permit application , essentially objecting to his wealth . This , of course , was met with a complaint to the Fair Political Practices Commission .
We all know about the debacle George caused with the purchase of our library from the County . George heard an offhand comment by his antagonist Peter Blake saying that , once acquired , we could do anything with the property . Even a parking garage , as an example . Well , George saw an opening to cast himself as a hero of preservation and started a mendacious “ Save our library from becoming a parking garage ” campaign that , much like his Huntington Beach deceit , was a pure
unexplored feelings .
Remember the exquisite , tumultuous experience of first love ? And remember the pain when the rocket of heightened sensing and experience fueled by impossible expectations came crashing down and landed in a rubble of dreams turned to ashes .
Why would I ask you to recall the pain ? Here is why . The key to our disowned passion for life is hidden in the ashes of our worst disasters .
When we truly face head-on the heart hurts of our lives , we have a chance to grab the elusive brass ring . When we can admit that we are vulnerable to exquisite heartache when we can directly face and own that we are vulnerable and have been hurt , a miraculous thing happens . We start to realize that we are still here . We are still whole . We are not damaged , used up or unable to . When we acknowledge that we are whole , we can begin to own our wisdom . Our intuition becomes a full partner in the creation of the next phase of our lives . The task before us is to become an awake , aware person with new choices to make .
Life invites us to participate , and we can accept or decline . We each have the right to say yes or no to life . The truly miraculous gift is that life continues to ask , moment by rich , potent moment .
Susan has been writing and producing personal development seminars since the 1970s . She is the author of Beyond Intellect : Journey into the Wisdom of Your Intuitive Mind . susanvelasquez . com . fear tactic and moored nowhere near reality . This resulted in the signing of a beyond-dopey 25-year lease with the County to continue to operate it , thereby obliterating any opportunity to improve upon the tired , shoddy relic . A true loss to our residents .
Finally , there was his anti-development baby , Measure Q , which would take all commercial development decisions away from council and into the hands of residents . Because he felt professionally trained staff couldn ’ t be trusted and were somehow in the pocket of developers . Anyone who ’ s lived here knows the opposite is true . And George , wasn ’ t that the job you signed up for ? The Measure got demolished , and George needed a scapegoat to blame . So , he zeroed in on City Manager Shohreh Dupuis , knowing that as a public employee , she couldn ’ t defend herself from bullying . He could have pursued normal channels and waited for the end of her contract for a performance review . But no , George campaigned non-stop to smear her over a simple moving violation , with claims that she did something so improper ( mentioning she was on the phone with the police chief to the citing officer ) that it was a criminal act and grounds for termination . He even published a compilation of anti-Shohreh letters on his website that are still there .
The cartoon irony is of course that , in the midst of all this , George himself was pulled over on Laguna Canyon Road for avoiding slow northbound traffic by riding his scooter down the middle lane . The officer recognized him and gave him a warning . But shouldn ’ t this pillar of righteousness have asked for the ticket since he violated the law as a councilmember ? Instead , he fist-bumped the officer for letting him off . Wait , what ’ s that smell ? Oh yeah , hypocrisy .
George Weiss , self-proclaimed beacon of transparency , here ’ s your moment of truth . You fervently assert that you never bullied , harassed , or unjustly tarnished the reputation of our esteemed city manager . This is all one grand misinterpretation , correct ? Well , let your actions speak louder than words . Advocate now for the public unveiling of those confidential sessions concerning Shohreh and her potential lawsuit against the city for a hostile work environment .
Your very website proclaims , “ Residents deserve complete and total transparency in their city government .” So , with the same vigor you applied to Shohreh ’ s traffic incident , rise to the occasion and demand transparency about the allegation against you . Shohreh , a leader who , in her budding tenure , garnered the respect and admiration of her team , deserves as much . Clear not just your name but the looming cloud of doubt . Let ’ s see the true George Weiss , unburdened by the shadows of Yosemite .
Billy is the CEO of La Vida Laguna , an outdoor adventure company , and the host of “ Laguna Talks ” on KXFM radio – Thursdays at 8 p . m . Email : billy @ lavidalaguna . com .