Vox Populi, our weekly live chat about the week’s events begins tonight at 7:00pm PT. Hope to see you then!
AdLib4 hours ago
Howdy good people!
choicelady
an hour ago
Hey CL!
AdLiban hour ago
Hi, AD! How was your birthday celebration?
choicelady
an hour ago
Along with everything else preoccupying us is tracking the fires around the city.
AdLiban hour ago
Hope they aren’t near you. Worrisome.
choicelady
an hour ago
Thanks for asking, had a very nice birthday. My wife took me for a spa massage then to lunch and nice gifts and cake. Who wouldn’t like that day?
AdLiban hour ago
Wow – how cool is THAT?
choicelady
an hour ago
I trust you are not in the fire zone anywhere and not holed up at Motel 6 in Bakersfield.
choicelady
an hour ago
There was one fire within a couple of miles of us, that was the closest but it was contained pretty quickly. The Palisades fire is moving north over the Hollywood Hills, generally in our direction but since our house is in the flats, not close to the hills or foothills, we’re pretty safe from it coming too close to us.
AdLiban hour ago
Wow , that is scary anyway. We realized that no matter what, where we are – 6 blocks north of where you, your daughter and I had lunch, we could not be safer. Sometimes the less grand your surroundings, the safer you are. I wish you all well and that they get this all under control soon. I know a LOT of those areas. It makes me ill.
choicelady
an hour ago
We fear that Greg’s brothers’ childhood home in the Palisades is gone. No way to know yet.
choicelady
an hour ago
Here’s a map, we are roughly below the “M” in “Tamarack” but while it looks like we’re surrounded, they’re quite a distance away and all in the hills.
AdLiban hour ago
AdLiban hour ago
OMG – you live in the VALLEY and yet your daughter doesn’t do Valley Girl. You cannot appreciate my appreciation!!!
choicelady
an hour ago
Our organization has lost dozens of churches – all providing social justice to those in need and kicked out of society. We are devastated by the loss.
choicelady
an hour ago
So true, there is a long running caste system in LA where the folks who live in the hills or on the other side of the hill from the Valley looked down on people who lived there. Now they are flocking here to have a place to stay as the hills burn.
AdLiban hour ago
I always wanted to live up the coast in the trees but with an ocean view. I think now I am fine with the flatlands. We have NO earthquake faults, municipal utilities, no major risks of fire, flood, tsunamis, nothing. Quit while you’re ahead.
choicelady
an hour ago
CL – Hate to say but most likely, Greg’s brothers’ childhood home is likely gone. We have friends who live out that way, they may be among the rare lucky ones whose homes haven’t burned down but it’s just a small sliver of the Palisades that hasn’t been burned. Palisades Village which is where all the stores, markets, and a lot of housing was, is burned to the ground. SO even if your home was among the few left standing, there is nowhere close to buy things and who knows if utilities will be working for a while.
AdLiban hour ago
Do you and your wife intend to open a “fire tourist” room for rent? You could freaking clean up in the Trumpian “no emergency is too small to exploit” way.
choicelady
an hour ago
CL – Oh my God! My daughter totally doesn’t talk like a Valley Girl. I mean, yeah!
AdLiban hour ago
Good evening everyone
twilson117
an hour ago
I think that’s right, Ad. They grew up on Radcliffe, and I think it’s all gone. They don’t live there anymore, but it was a place Greg had not yet seen – and now he never will.
choicelady
an hour ago
TW!!! We Californians are mourning the horrors of the LA fires and hoping AD and his family are OK
choicelady
an hour ago
CL – SO sorry to hear that. Tomorrow night, we’re hoping to have our friends who had to evacuate and are staying with friends in the Valley to come over for dinner. It’s scary, a massive pillar of smoke can be seen.to the South of our house where the Palisades fire is burning.
AdLiban hour ago
Hey TW!
AdLiban hour ago
CL I was talking with Ad the other day he seems to be ok
twilson117
an hour ago
Ad I trust you and yours are still ok
twilson117
an hour ago
CL – I always imagined how wonderful it would be to live near the beach. In a city like Santa Monica, you’d be fine but Palisades has the hills come right to the shore so they are vulnerable to this kind of destruction all the way to the sea.
AdLiban hour ago
Ad – be sure you wear masks out. N95s if you can get them. Years ago in the Lake County fires, Rick’s co-pastor died of particulate pneumonia that is almost impossible to treat: kind of like Black Lung. Don’t be foolhardy. MASK!
choicelady
an hour ago
TW – so far, so good for Ad.
choicelady
an hour ago
Ad – seriously. Fire will be our ever-present issue in S. CA.
choicelady
an hour ago
Fire is a problem INLAND CA in the north. Less so on the coast due to persistent fog and much more rain.
choicelady
an hour ago
Yes, we’re fine and despite the natural concern my wife has about the potential for the fires to come near us, the facts and logic of the situation show that the fires need the dry brush in hills and foothills to be fed and grow. Not much of that in the flats, making it far easier to stop the growth and advance of a fire.
AdLiban hour ago
CL I heard Trump was coming to Cal with rakes to help rake up the under brush he said the you all should be doing
twilson117
an hour ago
As you know, this past year plus has been my “year of loss” – people I loved now gone. To see it extend into places I loved really pisses me off.
choicelady
an hour ago
It’s really a tragic thing that is taking place in your beautiful state and to have an idiot such as
twilson117
an hour ago
Tw – He is bringing rakes but giving them to homeless white guys to do the actual raking.
choicelady
an hour ago
To have an idiot like Trump trying say it’s because of the smelt fish is stupid
twilson117
an hour ago
CL – I was out for an hour on the third day of the fire without a mask, mostly in a market but the walk to the car had me taking shallow breaths until I got to the car, in which we have N95s and surgical masks. The thing is, the strong winds had kept the smoke away from us for days, we were lucky in this area. Then when the winds died down, the smoky air creeped into our area for a day and a half. Today it’s fine.
AdLiban hour ago
Sorry about the partial message hit the wrong key
twilson117
an hour ago
I try to tell his cult – no way can anyone “send water” to L.A. Between N. and S. CA lie several mountain rangers. Nobody has figured out how to get rivers to flow UPHILL. We are two very different ecosystems.
choicelady
an hour ago
Murph is in the House!!!
twilson117
an hour ago
Ad – glad the smoke is not awful there. Our niece and her husband and kids are in S. L.A and need maskes
choicelady
an hour ago
TW – It is clearly the lack of raking forests and Newsom not agreeing to a fictional bill that is to blame for the fires. And Judge Merchan’s sentencing of Trump made God and space lasers mad.
AdLiban hour ago
Hey Murph!
AdLiban hour ago
MURPH! Murph – we’re debating the LA fires. If you have any GOOD news, we’d love it!
choicelady
an hour ago
Ad 
twilson117
an hour ago
CL – It is at least a year of loss we’re all dealing with one way or another.
AdLiban hour ago
Ad – I knew Marchan would screw us over.
choicelady
an hour ago
Well, Ad – you, too. This is just all very hard.
choicelady
an hour ago
TW – The smelt fish BS comes from decades ago, it hasn’t been an issue since then and no bill like Trump made up exists or was passed because…you can’t magically make water appear because you pass a bill saying “Make more water!”
AdLiban hour ago
CL I think Marchan did what he could, but the bottom line for me is Trump is a Convicted Felon and that doesn’t go away.
twilson117
an hour ago
Actually, to be clear, I think Marchan did a very good job. You can’t do what you can’t do. He did his very best.
choicelady
an hour ago
CL – Can we order lakes and ground water reserves from Amazon?
AdLiban hour ago
TW – he’s been convicted for some time. Now he is SENTENCED, and I betcha a lot of ketchup is flying at MAL tonight!
choicelady
an hour ago
Ad – well, Amazon has everything else. Why not?
choicelady
44 minutes ago
Ad – this WOULD be the time to raise your water transport ideas again!
choicelady
44 minutes ago
Ad I think we all know this, Trump is a total idiot and ass and has no idea of what he is talking about. But, since those who follow him make rocks and door knobs look smart what can one say.
twilson117
44 minutes ago
CL – On the side of the hills where your neice and her husband are, there is a lot of smoke. Since we’re on the other side of the hills and the winds generally blow East, we’re very fortunate. When fires have been in the mountains North of us, we’ve gotten smoke and had ash raining down, even from far away.
AdLib43 minutes ago
TW – I like MSN stories. I am retreating from interacting on them. Too many MAGA jerks who believe what HE says and not facts.
choicelady
43 minutes ago
Ad – I lived in Long Beach from 1973-77 and remember vividly getting ash on my car from a fire in the Santa Monica mountains. The basin just is a logical dump for it all.
choicelady
42 minutes ago
Merchan succeeded where everyone else failed. I don’t blame Jack Smith, he was a hero but he was sabotaged by the morons in this country who swallowed Trump’s lies and propaganda and voted for him.
AdLib41 minutes ago
CL I find it truly amazing how people are so gullible and willing to accept what he says because they are too damn lazy to do research. It’s not going to be fun times in the country with him back in the WH.
twilson117
40 minutes ago
CL – SO true, I think the regional water distribution proposition I wrote up would be very important to consider now.
AdLib40 minutes ago
THE big issue for me is the deliberate manipulation of the “clock” by SCOTUS. From 2018 on with Kavanaugh, the fix was in for Trump. Garland handed Smith complete cases in Nov. 2022. No matter what happened from there, NO WAY was SCOTUS or Trump appointees going to let cases come to trial. Marchan did us a solid.
choicelady
40 minutes ago
Ad – go for it. More important now than ever.
choicelady
40 minutes ago
CL – Yes, about the Basins being a logical dump site for fires but it’s all about what direction the fires are from the basins on either side of the Hollywood Hills.
AdLib39 minutes ago
TW – SO many people are coming out with complicated reasons for why Trump won. Aside from bigotry and misogyny, stupid and lazy voters are surely the main difference in his winning and Kamala losing. I will never forgive stupid people for this.
AdLib37 minutes ago
Absolutely. Wind is the determinant, isn’t it?
choicelady
36 minutes ago
Ad and TW -stupid voters are the reason no “third party” will help. Not to mention that multi party systems aren’t a lick better. Weird and unworkable coalitions form, fail. But stupidity and laziness are the bane of democracy.
choicelady
35 minutes ago
CL – You’re right, the Corrupt Six on the SCOTUS literally rigged the system to protect their philosophical favoirite. They truly are crooks and unAmerican anti-constitutionalists. The fact that 4 of them voted to protect “their guy” from state prosecutions of his crimes…committed BEFORE he was president. They have ZERO jurisdiction over that, a massive violation of the 10th Amendment, and yet nothing stops those crooks in black robes.
AdLib34 minutes ago
Amen, Ad – Amen!
choicelady
34 minutes ago
CL you are so right about stupid people. They are more interested in who is divorcing who as that will have any real impact on their lives. When it comes to being up on current events well we know how that goes.
twilson117
33 minutes ago
TW – and it’s Left as well as Right. I’m sick of them all.
choicelady
33 minutes ago
CL – I am actually angered by all of the pundits declaring that Dems went to liberal and need to pull back as the reason why Kamala lost. No matter how great the economy was, no matter how true it was that less people were coming over the border, he just lied about it all and the morons out there just swallowed his lies whole without seeking to confirm any of the lies. I truly despise the ignorant.
AdLib32 minutes ago
CL we have to keep doing what we do, read, inform, stay true to our belifs and communicate here on Vox 
twilson117
31 minutes ago
The American paranoid style of politics is as old as the nation. But today it’s coupled with narcissism – if I’m not immediately gratified by a candidate, then I will stomp my food and go home. INSANE!
choicelady
30 minutes ago
Tw -definitely agree!
choicelady
30 minutes ago
CL – Trump ran on having a magic wand, that if elected he would wave it and egg prices would drop, inflation which was only up two years ago and is low now, would be low. Immigrants would magically stop coming into the country, on and on, such enormous lies and all that is needed is for morons to believe obvious con men. The reason many of us didn’t see that Trump would win is because his lies were so obvious to intelligent people, we assumed the dumb people would at least have that much sense. Nope.
AdLib29 minutes ago
Nope. No sense at all.
choicelady
28 minutes ago
CL – I wonder how all those purist lefties who attacked Kamala and Biden and insisted people vote against them, will be feeling a year from now when the issues they claimed to be fighting for are demolished by Trump. How does that go, about cutting off your nose to spite your face?
AdLib27 minutes ago
CL it truly is insane. It’s going to interesting to see what the public will say when the price of eggs and bacon go up again under Trump and they have to a who lot more for their washing machine and dryer combo under Trump tariffs
twilson117
27 minutes ago
I challenged them on Bluesky about – what now? The hate rolled down like thunder on me. Had to block a dozen jerks who refuse to admit they screwed up and that Palestine is done for.
choicelady
26 minutes ago
TW – You nailed it. Inflation will soar under Trump’s tariffs and the American economy will decline as the countries hammered with tariffs apply theirs to US goods. Trump did this the first time around and ended up raiding the treasury and sending billions to farmers who couldn’t sell their crops.
AdLib25 minutes ago
CL – Nose Cutters to Spite Face howl when told their sunglasses will always slide down their face for the rest of their lives.
AdLib24 minutes ago
Ad I think we know it’s not going to be fun moving forward.
twilson117
23 minutes ago
Tw – I have been shopping at a discount outlet. For several years 5 chicken breast halves haver been $7-9 a package ($17 at Safeway). Now it’s already creeping up. This is bird flu, but we need to get ahead of it. I have bought egg replacer AND powdered eggs to get us through. Trump tariffs require other strategies. Asshats, every MAGA alive.
choicelady
23 minutes ago
Ad – these Nose Cutter can’t even see the SHORT Term much less the long.
choicelady
22 minutes ago
CL – Indeed, the Pro-Palesinian/Anti-Democrat group has now helped the ally of Palestinian genocide in the White House. And this is better because…why?
AdLib22 minutes ago
CL I’m not the shopper in the house but the wife lets me know things are expensive. For those individuals who have large families it’s going to be some tough years. But as long as the fat cats get their tax cuts Trump doesn’t give a damn.
twilson117
21 minutes ago
Ad – NO explanation just that I’m a neo liberal jerky anti Palestinian. They will never admit they screwed up.
choicelady
21 minutes ago
TW – it’s why I am shopping bargain basement outlet stores. I can’t think what people will do who DO have big families. Yikes
choicelady
19 minutes ago
Folks…I have been reading along….very long days….quite tired….we had a major snow even….four days worth and digging out is a huge challenge because so much of the snow is now ice. I am heading to bed.
MurphTheSurf3
18 minutes ago
CL folks with large families will clearly feel the pinch.
twilson117
18 minutes ago
Murph take care
twilson117
17 minutes ago
CL – But doesn’t it make sense that these same people can’t recognize that they sabotaged their own goals? From the start, they were blind to the obvious outcomes we all saw coming. Yes, they are morons too and I despise stupid people. They are dangerous.
AdLib17 minutes ago
Starting tomorrow, we are tearing up the backyard for a garden. Can’t do meat, but we can do basics for salads, stews, etc. Even the guys – meat and potatoes basics – get why this is important.
choicelady
17 minutes ago
Seeya Murph!
AdLib17 minutes ago
Ad the entire idea for Trump followers is just ‘owning the lib’ while Trump was and is playing them for the fools they are.
twilson117
16 minutes ago
I totally missed Murph! I can see why he needs rest. Snow – heavy snow – is not for the faint of heart.
choicelady
16 minutes ago
CL – We talked about this, I plant a veggie garden every spring and have fruit trees all around. Right now, the tangerines, oranges, avocados, and grapefruit are ripe as well as some strawberries and we will have great veggies in the Spring. Great to have and tastier than the store too.
AdLib15 minutes ago
Tw – I hope you live somewhere that shovels out for you. I used to love doing it, but that WAS 30 years ago!
choicelady
14 minutes ago
Would both of you agree that it is inevitable that economic conditions will get worse this year and the morons and MAGAs who voted for Trump will either have to accept things are worse under Trump when they lose their jobs, get evicted, can’t afford groceries or gas and have their safety nets slashed or just believe Trump that everything’s great and anything bad they’re going through is Biden’s fault.
AdLib13 minutes ago
Ad – the part I’m looking forward to is harvesting outer leaves of greens and not buying them to rot in my bins because I forgot. We will do basics, nothing fancy (well, maybe a little) so the guys can do stews and soups w a little meat but lots of carrots, onions, potatoes. Meat is going to be a bitch.
choicelady
13 minutes ago
CL so far we have been lucky, no major snow storms yet. But there is still time. I expect to see something major in the way of snow in Feb and Mar. Then it’s ok.
twilson117
13 minutes ago
Happy never to have lived long term where there are heavy snows but this fire thing ain’t so great either.
AdLib12 minutes ago
Tw – glad to hear it. But as one from Buffalo, I did the shoveling. Liked it then. Not I suspect now.
choicelady
12 minutes ago
Ad – I don’t know if MAGA will ever admit Trump is a jerk.
choicelady
11 minutes ago
Ad – you can shovel your way out of snow. You can’t do that with fire.
choicelady
11 minutes ago
CL I grew up in Syracuse I know snow.
twilson117
11 minutes ago
CL – I grew romaine lettuce this year and it was fantastic. I may have mentioned, you can harvest a head and if you leave about four inches of the base, it can grow another head.
AdLib11 minutes ago
TW – I know! YOU know!!! Lake effect is in our bones!
choicelady
11 minutes ago
TW – Hoping you don’t have to deal with that kind of snow this year!
AdLib10 minutes ago
Ad – EXACTLY. Self propagating salads – my idea of heaven.
choicelady
10 minutes ago
Romaine is the starfish of salad greens.
choicelady
9 minutes ago
CL – But Murph has said that his MAGA neighbors are already showing signs of dissatisfaction and regret about Trump. When they’re jobless and homeless and welfare has been slashed for them, I have a feeling that some of them might not be too happy with their leader.
AdLib9 minutes ago
CL – Love it!
AdLib9 minutes ago
Ad I would agree those who support Trump will have a lot of thinking to when the tough times hit them
twilson117
9 minutes ago
Ad – I sure hope so, but the need to believe the guy who hates whom YOU hate is pretty powerful.
choicelady
8 minutes ago
CL I still have nightmares about walking to school with all that snow around me. O top of that it was damn cold as well.
twilson117
7 minutes ago
I am extrapolating the future and while I’m not perfect in my projections, it seems hard to argue that people who lose their jobs, home, health care, and welfare under Trump and Repubs, may actually blame their leaders who literally caused it all on purpose.
AdLib7 minutes ago
The current bill to cut all kinds of programs seeks to cut TANF which is a FOUR year, lifetime MAX program. They say it’s to prevent “eternal and inter-generational dependence on welfare.” You get FOUR YEARS once in your life. It’s pretty useless, but we ended AFDC in 1996. We do not HAVE welfare.
choicelady
6 minutes ago
Ad – I live in infinite hope that people will WAKE UP and see how they’ve been duped and abandoned.
choicelady
6 minutes ago
CL – Of course they will lie about every safety net program and argue that it needs to be cut for “principle”. But again, the end result is that rural MAGAs will be crushed harder than Dems in cities.
AdLib5 minutes ago
Guys – I am also fading. Very busy last few days, and I’m beat. Love to you both – see you next Friday I hope. TW – may there be now snow. Ad – may you be safe from fires. Hugs to you both.
choicelady
4 minutes ago
CL – I maStupid people don’t resort to the last thing they want to do, which is “think”, unless they’re suffering severely.
AdLib4 minutes ago
CL take care
twilson117
4 minutes ago
Get some rest, CL! Thanks!
AdLib3 minutes ago
Shall we chat?
AdLib3 minutes ago
Well it’s look like we closed the bar once again. You up fo futher discussio?
twilson117
3 minutes ago
Yes give me a moment and I will call
twilson117
2 minutes ago
Ok!
AdLiba minute ago
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