Jews from the Old Country could never make up their minds. It’s common to hear one say to the other, when discussing almost any topic: “On one hand…but then on the other hand….” That ambivalence saved one from getting boxed into a corner of definitiveness or failing to see the near-infinite choices and permutations existing in the universe. Perhaps that attitude of intellectual flexibility is one of their secrets of survival. Or perhaps it’s a way of demonstrating that we always have choices. Now that we’ve survived the first decade of the 21st century it’s an appropriate time to add up the pluses and minuses of Our Valley and the city we’re (sometimes reluctantly) a part of. On one hand…We have just about the best climate in the world (this year’s El Niño rainfall notwithstanding). My New York friends Alan Capper and John Goodman detest – and dread – the gloating phone calls from me when it’s below freezing there and above 75 degrees here. On the other hand…We have earthquakes, as the Northridge Earthquake of January 17, 1994, amply demonstrated. With 72 deaths, nearly 10,000 injuries, and an estimated $20 billion in damage, it was no laughing matter. On one hand…We have a City Attorney who is actually willing to take on the billboard companies and some of the larger corporations that expect favorable treatment from the city in return for campaign donations. On the other hand…We have a City Attorney who’s unwilling to have his department audited by the City Controller, and who’s willing to sue to prevent it, despite the costs to the city for doing so. On one hand…We have a free and open society, with never a fear of a midnight knock on the door as the result of loudly criticizing the government or any public officials. Money, money On the other hand…We have a municipal government that can’t live within its means…or ours, even though we boast (if that’s the right word) the highest-paid City Council members in the nation ($171,648 each annually, plus perks). On one hand…We have a great university, CSUN, with several departments and programs in the world-class category, more than 35,000 total students, and 3,200 total employees. And if you want to identify a world-class university president, they don’t come much better than one with the initials JK. On the other hand…The only initials of any Los Angeles-area universities that draw recognition from people north of the Oregon state line and east of the Colorado River are UCLA and USC. On one hand…We have a well-educated, highly diverse Valley workforce and a broad base of entrepreneurial companies flexible enough to survive difficult economic times. That diversity is complemented by the world’s leading concentration of entertainment industry firms – and people will never stop spending money on entertainment. On the other hand, like the rest of the country – in fact, the world – we’re suffering through the toughest times since (and aren’t we tired of hearing it?) the Great Depression (as if there’s something “great” about a depression). Things aren’t much better, or worse, nationally. On one hand…Dysfunctional is probably the kindest thing one could say about our nation’s legislative branch in Washington, D.C. The Democrats want to provide more services and are willing to raise taxes and increase the national debt to achieve to do so. The Republicans ignore the mess we’re in and resist raising taxes for any reason. And both sides are more interested in scoring points and making their political opposition look bad than they are in governing through this mess. Too much partisanship On the other hand…There isn’t another hand. Things are just as bad – and disgustingly partisan – in Sacramento. On one hand…Thanks to State Senator Abel Maldonado (R-Santa Maria) we actually have an opportunity to deal the extremists of both parties a blow by voting for Proposition 14, which will allow the two top vote-getters, regardless of party, to face off in the subsequent general election. On the other hand…For strictly partisan reasons, neither the Democrats nor the Republicans will get behind Senator Maldonado to confirm him as the interim lieutenant governor, as appointed by the self-proclaimed Governator. And speaking of California’s Governor… On one hand…In our democracy, anyone can run for governor. On the other hand…Look who’s running for governor. But enough about politics (it’s too depressing). Let’s talk about something important: food. On one hand…Our Valley boasts a dazzling array of gastronomic opportunities: Indian food, Chinese food, Middle Eastern food, Russian food, Greek food, Italian food, Mexican food…and that’s just from the restaurants along Ventura Boulevard in Encino. On the other hand…We all eat too much. On one hand…Things couldn’t be worse. On the other hand…I wouldn’t want to live anyplace else. That’s my choice. My mother’s menu consisted of two choices: Take it or leave it.– Buddy Hackett Martin Cooper is President of Cooper Communications, Inc. He is President of the Los Angeles Quality and Productivity Commission, Founding President of The Executives, Vice Chairman-Marketing of the Boys & Girls Club of the West Valley, and a member of the Boards of the Valley Economic Alliance and of the LAPD’s West Valley Jeopardy Program. He is a Past Chairman of VICA and Chairman of its Board of Governors, Past President of the Public Relations Society of America-Los Angeles Chapter and of the Encino Chamber of Commerce. He can be reached at [email protected]