Well, Whaddya Know?

Arnold fathered a child with a member of the household staff 10 years ago, but he chose to withhold that information until after he completed his second term as The Govenator. Power of the Press trumps the Wife is the Last to Know. Arnold got what he wanted, in many more ways than the obvious, while his wife gets to live with his betrayal. Arnold is publicly proclaiming that "we love each other very much," while his soon-to-be ex-wife raises her chin, looks the cameras straight into the aperture, and keeps her mouth shut. See ya in court, Arnold.

And when it comes to media coverage, why is it that a person who is homosexual and pushes the "it's all about me" boundaries with the rest of the world is simply claiming his/her rights, while a person who is heterosexual and challenges the homosexual's commitment to changing the world to accommodate his/her lifestyle, is denying the homosexual's rights? If your rights end where my rights begin, then why cannot I say that I do not think the front page coverage of a lesbian high school couple attending prom together is ... appropriate? Young people try everything at least once, but sometimes find themselves living one of life's choices forever, perhaps with an unplanned pregnancy and, sometimes, with a sexuality label.

Homosexuals have made the Palm Springs area "theirs" to the exclusion of any other social/cultural/ethnic group, so the support for the lesbian high school couple is strong, while anyone who questions the front page photos and story is wrong. If I live in PS, shop in PS, eat in PS, vacation in PS, the assumption is made that I am gay! I'd rather simply be another resident, another visitor, another diner, another shopper, rather than be labeled by what someone thinks my sexual orientation may be. And, if I am a high school prom attendee, I'm not sure that I want the front page coverage of my current sexuality to be who I am for the rest of my life.

On another news front, someone inside a local home shot and killed a pit bull; police are investigating, but the media is sensationalizing. What possibly could have happened? Oh, let's think about that for a minute: perhaps the pit bull turned on someone living in the house. No one stops a pit bull on a rampage, so pulling a gun and shooting it might be the only alternative to save the lives of anyone inside the house. How come, within the huge circus of media coverage, no one hypothesized that scenario? How come the reporters on the scene were, instead, going with all kinds of Law & Order scenarios that included gangs, criminal activity, love triangles, and any other recent TV script possibilities. It is often true that the simplest reason is the correct reason, but that doesn't sell papers, as we used to say.

Last on the list this fine day is publicly flagellating the design idiot who not only decided, but then convinced the city to accept, a redesign of the streets wherein a triangle of cement borders for streetside planters jut into the traffic lanes!! The idea of adding the sidewalk foliage is okay, but designing diamond-shaped planters that cut off available street usage, as well as limit parking access, is sheer folly. Many, many local people have complained, especially after causing damage to their vehicles, but the city claims that "residents like" the upgrades and appearance of the recently-finished project.

Just because the local newspaper does not cover the controversy does not mean the controversy does not exist: it's simply ignored because huge amounts of redevelopment money were spent on another project that failed. These design elements channel storm water into the driving lanes, as well as into businesses that have never been bothered by the elements in the past. And, upon completion of this project, which drove shoppers from the construction zone for almost a year, there are empty businesses where thriving businesses used to be because no one can figure out how to park between the diamond-shaped dividers.

Progress? Perhaps, but the reality is that people who have money spend money, and the people who want money can come up with the most egregious ways to get the money that other people have to spend. Consultants designed the redevelopment plan -- and then took their money and ran. Residents, who were accused of not supporting "progress," are left to live with the aftermath, including the empty buildings wherein businesses used to thrive.

And isn't that what all of life is: learning how to live with the aftermath?