It’s taken nearly 75 years since George Orwell’s “1984” was first published for Orwell’s dystopian nightmare to finally take root. It all starts with the manipulation of language and the telling of so many big lies that the lies eventually become the truth—and the truth becomes the lies. Homeless people are now “the unhoused.” Criminals are “the unlawful.” And vagrants sleeping in parks and at our beaches are merely “utilizing alternative sleeping locations.” Is there an end to this madness before Malibu becomes like crime-ridden Venice? It’s a fact that the overwhelming majority of homeless people have mental health issues or are addicted to drugs. That’s a human tragedy but an ever-expanding homeless population is never an asset to any community. Just the opposite. The LACoFD recently estimated that over 50 percent of all fires in the county have been started by the homeless, yet city officials are working on a plan that will make living “unhoused” in Malibu a lot more comfortable and welcoming. Winston Churchill said in a democracy the people get the government they deserve. If our politicians roll over and agree to this insanity we only have ourselves to blame for electing them in the first place.
Austin Hardy