In this city, crime is up and morale is down. It's clear at this point that what Los Angeles needs is Batman. I've been wondering who L.A. Batman would be if there was one. It would have to be someone with more than loves of style, culture and justice; he or she would also need awesome physical strength and the audacity to wear the rubber suit. I briefly considered some of the city's political figures... [continue]

Photo of Tom LaBonge by Greg Katz for LAist If you missed Tom LaBonge talking with Patt Morrison on KPCC Tuesday, you missed hearing the charismatic council member for Silver Lake, Miracle Mile, and North Hollywood say that he sleeps with his lights on. The subject of their chat was the latest DWP rate hike. When asked whether he thought the DWP should use a carrot-and-stick strategy to compel energy conservation, LaBonge went off... [continue]

M.I.A. struts her stuff at the Echoplex, July 31 UCLA's online student radio station UCLAradio.com has released its list of top 10 most-played albums of 2007. Looks like it was a good year for hip-hop at the station, with the above-pictured third-world jetsetter M.I.A. taking the number one spot. The station also recently put out favorite record lists from many of its managers. Longtime Promotions Director Jason Stern describes his favorites using only lyrics... [continue]

Why is the Red Line running a little slow Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday nights? Probably because these orange-vested types are cleaning out the pipes under the tracks. Metro's repair guys and gals send a little camera snaking down the pipes to look for gunk – I'm not sure if "gunk" is the technical term for it, actually – and they follow it with what looks to me like a giant vacuum cleaner. "The water... [continue]

In a story today about the possible departure of the John Wayne statue from the front of Flynt Publications –- it may go to Newport Beach, the Glendale-raised Duke's longtime home -– LAT's Bob Pool gets this euphemized gem from porn magnate Larry Flynt:From his publishing headquarters above the statue, Flynt said he wouldn't miss the Duke and his horse if they headed south. He said the entryway to the Flynt Building would be better... [continue]

The sun sets on Lincoln Place Looks like the tenants and former tenants of Lincoln Place can, at long last, declare victory. The short-short version of the Lincoln Place ordeal: Over the last few years, Denver-based apartment management megalith AIMCO has succeeded in evicting nearly all the residents of Venice's Lincoln Place, a 700-unit, post-World War II affordable housing complex. They were hoping to bulldoze the place and build condos....... [continue]

There I was, minding my own on the Red Line, screeching along toward Hollywood and Western, reading the ad copy on the walls. I'd seen the cross-promotional Metro-Wicked ads before, but I noticed something different this time: the witch is reading a copy of the Los Angeles Tribune. (Hed: "Metro Named America's Best Transportation Agency.") Two questions: First, why isn't she reading the Times? It's probably because Metro's marketing department wanted badly to include...... [continue]

If you happened to miss the December 3 Downtown News, you haven't seen the personal ads Jon Regardie suggested to help Mayor Villaraigosa get a New Year's Eve smooch. They're pretty hysterical from top to bottom. My favorite one begins with the perfectly awkward hook: "Looking for My Energizer Lady Bunny: Hot bilingual mayor has an opening on his staff - for love!" In the same edition, peep Evan George's report on the uneasy relationship...... [continue]

Bunch of savages in the OC Not everyone in Orange County is a rich white racist, but I'd wager that every rich white racist in Orange County passes his weekend at OCregister.com. Case in point: Clicking through my RSS – gotta keep up with our neighbors to the south – I read a long-enough-for-the-Register blurb about a stabbing in Fullerton. Then I scrolled down to the comments section, where I found the doozy posted... [continue]

Free at last! Starbucks has taken up the guise of responsible community membership by making its T-Mobile wireless access free in some Southern California stores through October 31. The reason for the change? No, they didn't realize that the 11th Commandment is "Thou shalt have free wireless" – they want to help out those who've suffered as a result of the recent rash of wildfires. T-Mobile HotSpots are ordinarily a princely fee of $6...... [continue]

These dudes didn't make the list. The year is already over for L.A. Times pop critic Ann Powers; in a piece dated tomorrow, she lays out an unremarkable top 10 albums of 2007. Maybe Powers gave up on 07 when she couldn't get on OiNK anymore. Or perhaps, like Christmas decorations and presidential primaries, top 10 lists are just going up earlier than ever this year. Either way, I guess she's not waiting on...... [continue]

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