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[ Have Your Say on Torrance Traffic ... ]

Posted on: Friday, 3 March 2006, 12:00 CST

Have your say on Torrance traffic

The citizens of Torrance have the opportunity to impact the most perplexing problem facing cities today. Simply put, it's our turn to have a say in the development of the future traffic flow within our city.

As a Torrance police officer for almost 32 years, I fought many battles concerning the safety and quality of life here in Torrance. After my career, I volunteered for the city's Traffic Commission, mainly in response to the issue of traffic, its effect on our community and our very way of life. After dealing with problems ranging from individual neighborhood complaints to the recreational vehicle issue, I realize we are now being given the opportunity to impact our future as it deals with traffic in our city. As master plan reviews only come along every 10 years or so, it is up to us to now get involved.

If you ever thought, "I could do better than those guys," I invite you to attend our next Traffic Commission meeting 7 p.m. Monday at the City Council Chambers at City Hall. The greatness of democracy will be demonstrated at this meeting when we roll up our sleeves and work together for solutions. Those attending will begin to lay the plans for our future by addressing the traffic circulation component, which is a segment of the Circulation Element of the General Plan for our city. In simpler terms, we all will have an impact on the future of traffic in Torrance.

In the near future, I plan to be discussing this very issue at as many homeowners meetings as I can attend. For now, I ask only that residents attend our next meeting with an open mind, determined to address traffic issues in Torrance. Residents' thoughts and proposals should be directed to solving traffic issues in their individual neighborhoods, at various troubled intersections within the city and all the major arteries that serve us and our neighbors.

Come, bring ideas and solutions as we all get involved.

-- JIM ULRICH

Traffic commissioner, Torrance

Port security funding inadequate

Recent focus on the delayed purchase by Dubai Ports World of operations contracts for certain Eastern U.S. port terminals has finally cast a spotlight on port security. But Congress is again missing the real point: The ports will never be secure until security is adequately funded.

Over the past few years, Congress has seriously neglected port security while dispersing limited funds to many states with a lower risk of attack at the expense of states with a greater risk. For instance, land-locked states Wyoming and Oklahoma received more port security funding on a per capita basis than we did in California. In the first five rounds of port security grants, the Port of Long Beach applied for $89 million in total grants and received only $32.7 million while the Port of Los Angeles applied for $131.8 million and only received $26.6 million.

Our ports carry more than 40 percent of the nation's cargo, but we clearly have never received our fair share of port security grants. Any successful terrorist attempt to shut down the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles would reverberate through the local economy and have a devastating national impact while putting port area residents and workers in harm's way.

Homeland security is one side of the coin. Disaster preparedness is the other. We must not wait for a catastrophe of either kind to show the foolishness of inaction.

Although Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed Assembly Bill 1406, a bill I authored last year to beef up the state's role in port security, I will continue my fight for greater port security with a new package of legislation this year.

I also call on the president and Congress to do their part to keep ports safe. Unless each level of government meets its responsibility, no company, whether it's based in this country or another, will have the tools it needs to protect our ports and our people.

-- BETTY KARNETTE

54th District Assembly memberLong Beach

Foreign-operated terminals common

Finally, the Daily Breeze (on Feb. 24) has stated the facts correctly.

The British shipping company being sold to United Arab Emirates includes contracts at terminals in six East Coast ports. As your article clearly states, the company would take over only the terminal operations in these ports.

For about a week, every television reporter, talk show host and most major newspapers have incorrectly stated that Arab companies would be taking over the operation of the entire port, not just a terminal. This is a big difference.

The sad part of this story is that every U.S. major container terminal engaged in foreign trade is operated by a foreign company. American-operated terminals are still in existence, but for only bulk cargo such as steel, lumber and other commodities that don't fit in containers.

The United States no longer has a merchant marine that is engaged in foreign container traffic to speak of. It now consists of approximately 100 ships.

The only reason these ships are still operating is because of the Jones Act. This law states that all cargo and passengers transported between American ports must be in American-built ships. Cruise ships bound for Alaska usually depart from Vancouver, British Columbia.

American policy for the last several decades has avoided subsidizing the U.S. Merchant Marine. Billions have been spent subsidizing American farmers. Some even do not farm their land.

I guess farmers have more political clout.

-- JOHN MARINKOVICH

San Pedro

Tax funds for mosque building?

Regarding the bombing of the Golden Mosque in Iraq, the Daily Breeze wrote, "President Bush pledged American help to restore the mosque after the bombing."

This is political speak for "we will pay to rebuild it."

So now our government is in the mosque-building business overseas using the U.S. taxpayers' money while simultaneously trying to erase the Ten Commandments from every public building in this country?

I will try to put this out of my mind when I write those checks on April 15.

-- PETER JENSEN

Rancho Palos Verdes

Source: Daily Breeze

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