Robert StGenis Voice empowered

Los Angeles had been beaten and battered in the few years leading up to my arrival. Starting in 1991, the Los Angeles basin shed over 200,000 jobs, primarily in the aerospace industry. Military bases were closed throughout Southern California. I've later learned much more about how this largely changed Southern California's "landscape" and diminished our middle class. The  Northridge earthquake of 1994  was one of the most costly natural disasters in US history.  I remember watching coverage on television. While there are cracks and shifts in buildings from the earthquake to this day and I remember noting some minor damage on trips to LA in 1996 prior to my moving, in reflection I have to say it was amazing how quickly things overall were repaired. But, it's impact did contribute to people leaving the region and a decline in prices. The earthquake occurred less than 2 years following the  1992 Los Angeles riots , which arguably was far more devastating to ...

In the beginning of 2019, we had a series of "blackface" incidents that came under the spotlight in the United States. One recent, but the other two, of US politicians no less, are history coming to surface. Most bothersome to me, though, was that these were people of my generation. Governor Ralph Northam increased the insult with fumbling through his apology, initially saying the photo does not represent who he is now. That, along with a track record he can point to, one might take as genuine. A day later, he denied the initial photo but said he wore blackface as a part of a costume as Michael Jackson and was about to demonstrate his moon-walking skills before his wife stopped him, suggesting it was inappropriate. Some defenders suggested that it was the sentiment of the time. It was the 1980s. That is my time as well. That is the time of Michael Jackson and the Cosby Show (we will just focus on all the positives of the show). I grew up watching The Jeffersons, Good Times, a...