\(The following letter was addressed to the Malibu mayor and City Council.)

I have written many times regarding Charmlee Wilderness Park. This time, my concerns are regarding the “controlled burns” which have been occurring much too often.

Upon investigation, it seems that these controlled burns are Fire Department training. It seems that the City of Malibu was allotted money from FEMA and that “part of the deal” was to use Charmlee as a “guinea pig” to see the effect of controlled burns, etc. This, apparently, was initiated when Los Angeles County still owned the park. Since Malibu now owns Charmlee, it is up to the Malibu City Council to realize the effect upon the park due to these burns and to stop them.

Enough is enough! The Fire Department is trashing a natural wilderness area and it has to stop. This area is for the animals and an educational tool for the children.

As I mentioned in my past letters, Malibu does not realize the value of owning a wilderness area. The quick pace of daily life and the overuse of technology, adds stress to already overburdened lives. The depletion of natural resources, multiplication of endangered species, overdevelopment of rural areas, overemphasis on money and competition, are only a few of the reasons we need quiet, natural areas.

The crushing and burning of Charmlee is rape. It’s wonderful to know that the Fire Department is developing new ways to combat fire. However, life is balance. Nature endured the natural fires that have occurred for years. So perhaps more research is needed but the time has come to find another area.

Please investigate this and see what needs to be done to curtail further action from the Fire Department.

I await your reply.

Alessandra DeClario

The following letter was sent to Tom Fakehany. I enjoy reading your e-mails to the editor to The Malibu Times. Your recent true-life story of Michael O’Brien and the Lemonade Stand Turf War was pleasant reading. You may get a giggle from a true-story of my life. In 1953 I attended Easter Mass with my Aunt who had helped me pick out my Easter outfit at Bullocks-Wilshire in Los Angeles. We bought a yellow linen suit, great hat with a huge yellow floral arrangement and all the matching attire. I thought I was really something in this new outfit. The suit had a straight skirt and a boxer type jacket and was flattering to a chunky figure.In March of 1954 my friend Bonnie invited me to attend Easter services with her family at the local Catholic Church. Her brother who was a Marine was coming home with his buddy, Paul. I had a huge crush on Paul.

I rooted in my closet to find the suit and discovered that my mother had washed and shrunk the skirt. There weren’t funds to be purchasing a new outfit. My grandmother was visiting on this particular day and volunteered her Playtex girdle as a solution to the shrunken skirt problem. The following week she comes over with the promised girdle and a small can of baby powder. The Playtex girdles were like very large rubber bands with small holes about every half-inch for ventilation or whatever. Grandmother’s instructions were to apply lots of powder and tug on the girdle. My friend Bonnie was at the house and we decided to do a dress rehearsal. Bonnie administered the powder and I managed to tug the girdle that was many sizes too small onto my bare bottom. It took the entire can of baby powder to get it on and without a slip we got me into that skirt. The skirt had a half lining sewn in the back with a center seam and the linen in the skirt also had a center seam.

Bonnie and I agreed that I could get away with this outfit and she would come over early on Easter morning to help get me back into the girdle. Easter morning we proceeded with our plans and got me dressed, using another can of baby powder and off to church we went. Her family was seated in about the third row from the front of the very large Catholic Church. We, younger folks, were seated together, in the second row from the front, and Paul would follow me when leaving the pew. When it came time for Communion those that were going to partake rose and moved to exit the pew, as each entered the isle they genuflected before moving toward the front of the church to receive Communion. I exited the pew, genuflected and the skirt BLEW with huge puff of baby powder and there I was bare bottomed, with much powder in the crack and in full view of the entire congregation that began to giggle. Paul removed his jacket and shielded my backside and said “make it to the car.” In retrospect I think I originated the K Mart waddle during that walk, in high heels that I had not mastered. The busted girdle and nylons crept to my ankles way before I got to the back of the church. With each step there were more puffs of powder emitting and I was to the point of stumbling midway out. It somehow didn’t matter that Paul was shielding my bare backside I was fourteen years old, mortified by the sound of folks trying to muffle their laughter and hysterical midway down that isle. I only remember him saying “you’ve got to step out of all that paraphernalia in order get down the steps and make it to the car.” I wouldn’t go out of the house for days.

Carole Brazda, Dallas, Tx.

In the years I was practicing law, every once in a while I’d get a case where someone was badly injured doing something that was, by any definition, incredibly stupid. They stuck their hand under a drop hammer, or around a saw blade, or didn’t bother to put on their goggles, and when tragedy struck, it was typically devastating.

What has happened over time, is that from doing the same thing 10,000 times, even the most dangerous activities begin to seem ordinary and you forget how quickly the ordinary can turn into the extraordinary.

The fact is, most accidents are extraordinary events, occurring relatively infrequently, but still, they occur.

I can virtually guarantee you that sometime in the future, I don’t know when or where, you most probably will have a serious car accident. If you drive on Pacific Coast Highway everyday, you have a reasonable chance that’s where it will occur because Pacific Coast Highway is a traffic engineer’s nightmare.

Within the last two weeks we have had two fatalities on the highway; one, allegedly occurring when a vehicle spun out of control, crossed over into oncoming traffic and was struck broadside on the driver’s door, killing the driver. The other happened Friday when a pedestrian was hit and killed, allegedly while walking on the side of the road. Both matters are under investigation.

The picture of last week’s accident is not easy to look at. We thought long and hard before deciding to run it. We decided to run it because death is blunt and stark and it’s important not to sugar coat that fact.

If we don’t slow down and drive more carefully, the toll will continue to rise. I must confess, I’m no better than most drivers when it comes to slowing down. I’m always in a hurry and I’m always running late. Also, like many of you, I am an honors graduate of several distinguished traffic schools over the years.

And it isn’t as if I don’t know better. Over the years I’ve heard, and put onto the witness stand, many an accident reconstruction expert. I know how dangerous PCH really is, and yet, like the guy with the drop hammer, I keep forgetting it.

So let me give you some basic observations as to what I mean when I say this is a very dangerous road.

Pacific Coast Highway is our main street and it is also a freeway — a freeway where traffic is intersected directly from private driveways. No sane traffic engineer would ever voluntarily design a highway that way.

To enter this highway, you generally have to accelerate because of the heavy traffic, which means first, you look ahead to see that it’s clear, and then back over your left shoulder toward oncoming traffic. Then you gun it, and God help anybody who suddenly pops out in front of you. There are certain intersections where this is particularly bad like PCH at Topanga Canyon, and at Las Flores Canyon Road, at Rambla Vista, at Serra Road, at John Tyler Drive, at Zumirez Drive, at Kanan Dume Road, and on and on. I’m sure you all have your favorites. Trying to make a right turn on a red signal is generally an adventure.

The geometry of the highway is bad. It is relatively narrow, it twists and turns, and the surface is uneven from both traffic volume and land movement. In early mornings and late evenings you can generally count on having the sun in your eyes for part of the time. Because of the geometry of the highway, the sighting distances are short, which means there isn’t a lot of time to decide on depth perception.

To give you an idea, generally speaking, a car moving at 50 miles per hour moves about 75 feet per second. It takes a typical person about three-quarters of a second to react, which means at 50 miles per hour, a car moves about 56 feet in the time it takes a person to react. With decent brakes, it used to be calculated that a car could slow down at about 15 miles per hour for each second the brakes are applied; at 50 miles per hour, it will take about three-plus seconds and 125 feet to come to a complete stop. But perception time also has to be added, which is the time it takes to see and figure out that danger exists before hitting the brakes. And perception time is the big variable. It’s harder to see at night than in daytime, it’s harder to make an accurate judgment if an oncoming vehicle is small, like a bike or a motorcycle. And, most of all, alcohol just plain kills perception time.

So here are some simple survival rules:

• At some intersections, it’s better not to make a right turn on a red signal.

• Never turn left in front of a motorcycle, because no matter what you think, it’s probably closer and moving faster than it appears to you.

• It’s harder to judge the speed and distance of anything coming toward you, so if you’re in the left lane turning left, and the other guy is in the left lane, your speed and distance perception is probably off.

• Watch it, especially on weekends, when all the bike clubs hit the highway because they often have their feet strapped onto the pedals and are trying not to stop.

• Stay away from driving little teeny cars because your survival rate goes down significantly, particularly now with SUVs getting bigger.

• Wear your seat belt. The research is clear that seat belts increase survival rates significantly.

• And then, even if you follow all the safety rules, it’s not going to work if you have a cell phone in one hand and a coffee mug in the other.

So this week, let’s all work at staying alive.

Harry Barovsky

The late Councilmember Harry Barovsky was a significant figure in Malibu civic affairs for many years. He was elected to the Malibu City Council as the top vote getter in 1998 and served until his untimely death on March 25, 2000, midway through his term of office. While on the council, he also served on the Recreation and Parks Subcommittee and was a strong proponent of expanding recreational opportunities for the city’s children and seniors. He was also a principal sponsor of the city’s Youth Commission, which advises the council on issues facing teenagers. It was renamed the Harry Barovsky Youth Commission after his death. He also worked on the Telecommunications and Public Safety subcommittees.

Barovsky previously served for three years as one of the original members of the city’s Planning Commission. His public service followed many years on the Board of Directors of the Malibu Road Property Owner’s Association, with several terms as president. He was also involved in major land-use and sewer battles over the years.

Born in Pittsburgh, Pa., Aug. 20,1937, he was an only child and joined the U.S. Army after graduating from high school, serving as a paratrooper in Germany. After his tour, he began a successful career as a financial consultant, rising to become a senior vice-president at Morgan Stanley Dean Witter.

He and his wife, Sharon, were married in 1971 and raised four children together. He and Sharon were long a political team involved in national and state politics and, after Malibu became a city in 1991, also in city politics. Sharon was voted onto the council to finish her husband’s term and, as she describes it, “to finish Harry’s political legacy.”

Harry Barovsky was an energetic, courageous man. Even toward the end of his life, with his lung disease rapidly worsening, he was still his usually smiling, ebullient self, laying in his hospital bed reading City Council reports, phoning people, and planning to attend the upcoming meeting on the Monday before he died.

— By Arnold York

Leland O. Brown

Fire Capt. Leland O. Brown has been contributing to the welfare of the Malibu area for 27 years. Presently stationed at Fire Station 71 on PCH, Brown joined the L.A. County Fire Department 35 years ago, fighting fires in all areas, including the inner city.

But when the opportunity came to work in Malibu, he chose it, and has never regretted it.

Brown has always made himself available to educate the members of the community on fire safety, having recently given talks at the Point Dume Mobilehome Park, the Point Dume Homeowner’s Association and the Paradise Cove Homeowner’s Association.

“It has been rewarding to work in a community where the residents are always watching for fires,” he says, “And there’s a lot of community spirit.”

He also has volunteered on programs to educate children on the danger of playing with fire.

Captain Brown has three sons and one daughter, and it is with no small amount of pride that he mentions all three sons are firemen and his daughter is an emergency room nurse in Northridge.

When he retires, at the mandatory age of 60, Capt. Brown plans to travel with his wife in their large motor home. “We’ve covered the Western states,” he says, “but there’s still a lot to see.”

Battalion Chief Steve D. Leavitt, of the County’s Carbon Canyon station, said of Brown: “I have great respect for Capt. Brown’s knowledge, expertise, integrity and professionalism. With his retirement in March, Malibu will be losing one of its finest.”

— By Wally Wyss

Wayne and Beverly Estill

Together, Wayne and Beverly Estill are more energetic and enthusiastic than many who are 50 years their junior. Now in their ’70s, these dedicated Malibu residents continue to be actively involved in the community.

Over the years, they participated and presided over several local organizations for the benefit of Malibu’s lifestyle as a whole.

“As together as they are in every sense of the word, they don’t do everything together,” said Ann Fulton, a Malibu Realtor, who has seen the couple at work. “They go on their own tracks and intersect as a team for the mutual benefit of their causes.”

The Republican couple has always been politically active and decided to get involved in the Malibu Lion’s Club when they saw an ad looking for people to join.

Wayne later became president of the club and he also presided over the Malibu Navy League and the Malibu Republican Club.

“Delegation is the name of the game,” said Wayne of his efforts to keep everyone happy when he led the various organizations.

While Beverly was always at his side supporting him in his endeavors, she also led an independent volunteer career of her own, and Wayne acted in a supporting role for her when she presided over the Malibu Republican Women’s, Federated Club.

Aside from volunteering and working, Beverly is also a talented painter and gardener. Wayne plays handball and enjoys fishing.

The couple met through a community theater in Bakersfield where they were actors. Wayne, who continues to work to this day, has a degree in geophysics from Stanford University. He also served in the Navy during World War II.

The couple say they enjoy living in Malibu because of the people, the climate and the rustic atmosphere the city has to offer.

— By Sylvie Belmond

Jo Fogg

Active and energetic are two adjectives that describe this Malibu resident to a T.

Jo Fogg, who has been a resident here for 40 years, is the president of the Malibu Senior Citizen’s Club and has been the main driving force behind pushing for a senior-teen community center here in town.

Her commitment to helping seniors in Malibu to have a place to gather and enjoy each other’s company led to Fogg being named the Senior Citizen of the Year by the City Council last year.

Mayor Tom Hasse met Fogg in the early 1990s. She was very active in the Paradise Cove neighborhood, said Hasse.

“I am very amazed at her energy,” he said. “When I’m a senior, I want as much.”

Fogg is originally a Bostonian and has a background in accounting. She was married for more than 50 years to her husband, Clay, who died several years ago. With Clay she had two daughters and a son, a designer and builder, who built three homes on Point Dume at the age of 25. She also has “grandchildren everywhere.”

“You’ve got a wonderful family like that, that’s what makes life worth living,” said Fogg.

With her husband she pushed through the Dial-a-Ride program that serves seniors without transportation. It took them six years to accomplish, which may have taught Fogg the determination and patience to work on establishing a center for seniors as well as teens.

“I find a great joy in what I do,” said Fogg, who said her main goal is getting the center built in her lifetime.

Another project Fogg would like to see is to have hot, inexpensive meals for the seniors’ club meetings.

The meals are a very important aspect for the members of the club, said Fogg. “I’ve got to give them a reason to get up, dressed and out,” said Fogg. “It’s so hard because many of us are alone now. It’s no fun eating alone. If we have our lunches, at least we can be together for lunch.”

About winning a Dolphin Award Fogg said: “I’m very excited. It’s acceptance right in your own home field.”

Anne Hoffman

In early 2000, Anne Hoffman’s efforts brought Malibu’s enforcement methods into the foreground. She inspired the city to implement a Code Enforcement Taskforce, which reviewed the current city code and attempted to ease the process of inspection and enforcement for homeowners.

“She is definitively making a contribution to the city and to its homeowners,” said Jeannette Maginnis, a Malibu resident, who served on the taskforce.

Hoffman, a native of New England, who has degrees in urban studies and real estate, became vocal about the city’s code enforcement methods when her friends, who were facing complicated mandates from the city regarding their home, needed help. “What they were being asked to do seemed really heavy handed,” said Hoffman, who wants the rules revised.

“I enjoy researching property laws,” she said, as part of the reason for her involvement. Moreover, the best way to make changes is by bringing some new blood into the system, she said.

But relaxing code enforcement is not synonymous with paving all of Malibu in Hoffman’s mind. Hoffman moved to Malibu because the vast areas of parkland and the rural nature of the area attracted her. She enjoys running on the beach and gets in the water on a surfboard once in a while.

She is a dedicated mother who wants to help the city build a better future for residents and nature alike.

— By Sylvie Belmond

— By Laura Tate

Deirdre Roney

She gave up a professional life as a prosecutor for the L.A. County District Attorney’s office to devote it to her two children, son Colin, 9, and daughter Camille, 6.

And one of the main reasons she devotes her time to a variety of causes, such as serving on the board of the Malibu Community Labor Exchange, working as the Webster PTA president, and helping out with the Children Helping Poor and Homeless People projects, is so her children will be raised as activists themselves.

Deirdre Roney, born and raised in Detroit, Mich, was an undergraduate at the University of Michigan and a graduate of Harvard Law School. She came to live in Malibu after meeting her husband, John Cadarette. She also did pro bono work in refugee law.

As Oscar Mondragon, director of the Malibu Community Labor Exchange Center, puts it: “I know she is known as a leader in the education community, but we at the labor exchange know her for appearing when we need something, bursting with energy, a giving spirit and a generous heart. Also, she is always teaching her children the importance of sharing with those who have little.”

Indeed, Roney has taught her children well. Her daughter Camille came up with the idea to help make labor exchange workers’ Christmases brighter by bringing and helping to decorate a tree last year as well as set up a luncheon, and this year the family helped organize and decorate gift packages for workers.

“It’s really easy for kids to do stuff,” said Roney. “If parents can empower them and say ‘yes, let’s do it.”

“If you learn at a young age that you can change the world, it feels so good, you’re never going to stop.”

As for what her overreaching goal in life is, Roney said: “To really make a difference. I really want to live a life of purpose and meaning and not waste it. For me, that means helping people and changing things for the better.”

— By Laura Tate

Laureen Sills

Malibu resident Laureen Sills is the type of compulsive volunteer who has never learned not to raise her hand when someone needs help. It is reflected in her work for parks, ballfields, schools, church and charities.

Her initial involvement was with volunteer work on the Malibu Road Property Owner’s Association, which led her inevitably into campaign work and the cityhood election drive. She then was appointed to the Park Study Group for the high school pool, while pregnant with her son, now 10. Further work led to raising money for a Tot Park, which she did by producing a tape of Malibu kids singing Beach Boys songs, which raised $10,000 for the park. She was a part of the Park’s Study Group, which later became a commission. Sills and several others spun off and founded PARCS, an organization that now has 600 families and is a prime political mover and support group for the acquisition of parks and active recreation space.

Originally a native of Connecticut, where she was born and raised, Sills graduated from Cedarcrest College in Pennsylvania as a communications and theater major. She first took a short stop at the Yale Drama Program and then went to New York City, working as an account executive-suit in training for the Doyle Dane Bernbach Advertising Agency. Ever outspoken, she parted company after disagreeing publicly with the company’s handling of a South African mining account.

Sills moved on to the roughest, toughest of training grounds, the William Morris Agent Training Program and then went to work for Pierre Cossette of the Grammys, where she met her future husband, Greg Sills, a TV producer. They settled in Malibu and have three children; GT, age 10, Halli, age 8, and Danny, age 4, which led to her active involvement at Our Lady of Malibu. She is currently working on a media literacy course to help students dissect commercials and look at violence in the media.

— By Arnold York

Malibu Association of Contractors

Hammers and nails guys. Add a little cement, but don’t forget a whole lot of heart. That’s how you could describe the Malibu Association of Contractors, a group started in 1991 that counts roughly 50 members today, mostly Malibu residents, but also including contractors located in the Valley who work in Malibu.

“We formed with the goal of giving back to our community,” says Mark Armfield, age 46, a local contractor who has been president of the association for the last two years. “We were formed at the same time as Malibu became a city. A lot of us grew up here and we wanted to donate our time toward improving the environment here, making it safer, and healthier.”

The association has worked on several projects, donating members’ time, money and materials. Among them:

• Webster School Poet’s Park — This went from a field to a fully landscaped stage.

• Malibu High School Boys & Girls Club — A deck was built recently for the club.

• Point Dume Marine Science Elementary School Science Lab — Here, the association members built custom cabinets and aquariums.

• Malibu Canyon and Civic Center Way Intersection Island–Underground utilities, water and the Malibu sign.

• Malibu Emergency Services Trailer — This vehicle was remodeled and restored so it can serve as a rolling resource for emergency personnel during time of fire, flood or other catastrophes

The association members were able to pitch in when the Malibu fire came in ’93. When a fireman was burned, they raised money for him. They currently fund a scholarship at Malibu High School.

According to Armfield, the association is able to do its work because of the donations from many Malibuites in both time and money: “Giving is contagious — that’s the nature of Malibu,” says Armfield. “People really care here. No matter what project we work on, there are a lot of parents willing to help, to do hands-on work.”

— Wallace A. Wyss

I am responding to recent letters to the editor regarding the need for permanent senior citizen facilities. The present City Council has, as one of their major goals, the funding for a permanent space for senior citizen activities. Whether it is funded by agreements, bond proceeds, capital funding, grants, loans, donations, or other sources are the on-going responsibility of the council to review and approve. All available funding mechanisms are in place and have not been compromised.

Pete Lippman

City Treasurer/Auditor

(The following letter was addressed to Governor Gray Davis

Referencing the below:

1) Maybe we can’t get our money back from these overpaid CEOs, but perhaps we can hold them personally and financially responsible as well as criminally liable for every car crash, injury, lost hour of work, item of spoiled food, incident a resident has to spend time resetting his/her automatic sprinklers, thermostats, burglar alarms, etc. due to black-outs.

Remember personal responsiblity? We applied it to welfare recipients, so let’s apply it to people with real capacity to do damage. Arrest and extradite to California those responsible. Charge them each with at least three felonies so we can get some mileage out of the three-strikes law.

2) Don’t let Edison International play shell games by saying Southern California Edison is bankrupt. The only thing that’s bankrupt is Edison International’s morals.

3) The corporations and their apologists may not want this, but the people of California want electricity re-regulated. Power supply is too important to leave vulnerable to the financial shenanigans of multi-billion-dollar corporations that have no qualms putting human beings at risk and violating the law in their pathological persuit of profits.

(4) If necessary, the state of California should engineer a take-over of the wayward power suppliers. You said in your state of the state address you would use the state’s power of eminent domain if necessary. I doubt I am alone when I say that rolling blackouts imposed by this artificial energy “shortage” is more than sufficient reason to use that power. It’s time to walk the walk, Gov. Davis.

Thank you for your consideration of these views.

Chris Ford

He adds the following: Southern California Edison’s CEO, Mr. John E. Bryson’s salary for 1999 was $999,000. His bonus for 1999 was $1,260,000. Robert D. Glen, CEO of Pacific Gas & Electric earned well over $2,000,000. in salary and bonuses for 1999. The parent company of Southern California, Edison International, has $71,800,000.00 in assets. (Reference: L.A. Times 12/30/00) Edison and PG&E want an increase of 79% in electricity rates starting January 4, 2001. In California we are paying more than the national average for electricity.The California Public Utilities will likely grant PG&E and Edison the increase of 79 to 80 percent increase

Editor’s note:Chris Ford is the former editor of The Malibu Times and clearly has not mellowed with age.

Like most of you, I’ve been following the so-called electricity crisis with a high degree of skepticism trying to make some sense out of volumes of seemingly contradictory information. The governor’s State of the State message said there are bad guys out there and we’re not going to take it anymore. That makes for a good sound bite, but I have the uneasy feeling that it might not do much to solve the problem if, in fact, there really is a problem. So let’s begin with what we know:

We deregulated the power market a few years ago and the free market was supposed to give us an ample supply of power at reasonable prices. It was pushed through the legislature by Democratic Sen. Steve Peace of San Diego, a very bright and highly respected senator. It had significant bipartisan support and was signed by Republican Gov. Pete Wilson, who also thought deregulation was a good idea. As part of the deal, the utilities, like Pacific Gas and Electric and Southern California Edison, were required to charge old retail customers at old prices for a few years until old debts were paid off, which didn’t seem like such an onerous burden since power was cheap and plentiful at the time. After deregulation, many of the utilities sold off their power plants to national energy companies, took the money and paid off their debts.

So far, so good. But then something happened, and it’s far from clear why it did.

The wholesale price of power began to rise and rise, and the utilities, like Edison and PG&E, found themselves in a terrible squeeze because they were paying skyrocketing prices for their power but couldn’t raise retail prices. And it appears they are rapidly going broke.

Assuming that’s what’s happening, the question is: What do we do about it?

At first, we tried to do nothing. Everyone ran from the problem, particularly the governor, the legislature and the Public Utilities Commission (PUC). A very nervous Wall Street looked to investors to see what they intended to do. It was like a big game of chicken. A week or two ago, the PUC gave the utilities a relatively small increase and within minutes all the money boys and girls of the street quickly rendered their judgment. They said, “You got to be kidding.” These venerable old companies, with venerable old stock, started heading into the toilet and their bonds were downgraded to junk bond status and we in California, knew we had a serious problem on our hands.

We all know what the answer is, both the short-term and the long-term answer.

The short term is simple. We are going to have to pay a lot more for our electricity–probably upwards double of what we’re paying now. It’s infuriating to think that the state, the governor and the legislature screwed up, that a group of energy companies, probably more like an energy cartel, manipulated the hell out of supply and prices, and that utilities like Edison and PG&E messed up major, and we’re going to rescue them all with our checkbooks. It’s infuriating, but, unfortunately, we don’t have much choice because there are lots of things we can do without in life, but power isn’t one of them.

None of the things the governor proposed — building new power plants, conservation by the state government, conservation by the public, putting more public members on controlling groups, setting aside state land for power plants — is going to produce a quick fix, because they’re really all long-term solutions.

Ultimately, the state is going to have to make deals with energy wholesalers and other suppliers against a backdrop of a new federal government that’s not going to be too terribly sympathetic and we’re going to pay more.

But there is something we can do. We have all sorts of state criminal law relating to conspiracies. We have a Federal Racketeering statute (RICCO). I think it’s high time some ambitious attorney general or district attorney convened a few grand juries and started subpoenaing records and taking the testimony of power company officials and suppliers under oath. If someone is playing fast and loose with us, we find out and do something about it. It will be expensive, so the legislature ought to allocate a few $100 million to fund it all. But so what, there are billions at stake. Besides, if we’re going to have to negotiate, it helps to negotiate with a hammer in your hand.

Steal a piece of third-strike pizza in this state and you can go to prison for life, but stickup every single citizen of this state with a pen and they give you the state’s hero medal.

If it’s hardball time, let’s all play hardball.