We had a dream……that there was trouble in River City!

.

.

.

The Trumpster years are yielding some very interesting results.  The OC is actually having to come to grips with itself.  Issues which may have been a carriage return from off the grid are suddenly being brought to the fore.  The old days of Fire Rings and Beach erosion, having to add Berm Sand to sustain beach property from winter storms seems so quaint.  Those days of Red Light Cameras being the greatest threat to freedom and a constant police state threat…seem so far in the past…though they still are not completely eradicated.  How about homeowners on the beaches of Newport Beach….that didn’t want to extend the sidewalks in front of their property near the River Jetty, because it might encourage more surfers to visit there and relieve themselves on their rose bushes?  Yeah, the Obama years were pretty demur compared to what is going on right now….in the towns and villages of The OC.  Remember when every Republican seat in Congress was firmly a Reagan Country Republican (or so they said they were!)?  Remember when rents and home prices were affordable enough to have your kids live in town after they graduated from high school….with roommates of course?  How about complaining about the traffic on the 91 Freeway?  Yep, tough times in The OC!

As we recall there were may have been 40 people Homeless and sleeping around the Board of Supervisors Building in Santa Ana, 15 years ago. Then, they seemed all pretty docile, compliant and indifferent in nature.  The streets of Santa Ana and certain parts of Anaheim were dangerous, but mostly at night.  You could still drive to Fullerton from Newport Beach to visit your sick Aunt in the evening without being that worried about your safety.  Gasoline was expensive, but the water was cheap,  Huntington Beach still had great Surf Events and a great July 4th Parade.  Nobody got busted for “drinking in public”, unless of course they were obvious trouble makers from out of town.  Kids went to school and weren’t bullied that badly.  Teachers complained they weren’t making enough money, but kept going!  The Police were tough, but not brutal.

Ah, but now:  There is every good chance that every Congressperson from The OC will soon be a Democrat!  Ed Royce is going to retire this year.  Darrell Issa is going to retire this year.  Dana Rhorabacher is being challenged by a member of his own party Scott Baugh and both will probably be defeated by whatever Democrat runs against them.  Mimi Walters is being challenged by a very tough little Katie Porter, also a Democrat and there is every good chance that Katie is going to squeak a win out or perhaps even do better than that. And what about Diamond Bar and Miller?  Our Homeless Problem in The OC is at epic proportions and our Board of Supervisors have chosen the wrong road again.  This time removing folks from the Santa Ana Riverbed and taking their pets away….and then thinking they could place some of them in Motel rooms for 30 days, and then moving all of them to temporary Tent Cities in the Communities of Laguna Niguel, Anaheim, Irvine and Fountain Valley – and then getting huge blow back from those targeted cities – and now becoming political statues of indecision…..they too may all face challengers and be replaced.  Some issues at the State Level concerning Water, Rapid Rail, Immigration, Opioid Abuse, Firearm Laws and Census Issues….has the OC, all in a flub-a-dub.

Does The OC need more water?  Are they willing to pay for it?  Why does Desalination strike terror into their hearts? How many rentals and old or new homes buys in The OC are being lived in by Illegal/Non Documented immigrants?  How many immigrants buy vehicles, gasoline and food at Walmart and Costco?  How many Homeless are there really in The OC?  Is there a serious Housing Shortage in The OC?  How many owners are using their properties as Air/B&B or Short Term Rentals?  What about High Speed Rail?  What effect will the Census have on our Federal Funding in The OC and the Golden State?  Are eight story buildings for Renters in The OC really a solution?  Are 24/7 Toll Roads for every street and highway in The OC….really a solution?  Will The OC become the first Matrix Society?  Everyone at birth will be given a cyber box to live in and all will all be stockpiled at a cyber warehouse?  Our cyber box will be transported by a Uber or Flyt Drone to wherever we need to go to visit someone in person, when we can’t utilize our virtual teleportation device?  Surfers will be able to ride any wave in any country of the world virtually.  Every race car fan will be able to drive every race course with any auto of their choosing…..as fast as they want….virtually.  Gun owners will be able to hunt, go to war, fight insurgents or go on Safari……virtually, without having to leave the comfort of their cyber mod-bud!  All the Honeymooners will be able to take any Sea Cruise, Beach, Mountain or Valley Vacation – virtually.  They also will be able to have sex any way they want – Virtually!

Yeah, we will all be able to look back on 2018 and say:  “Remember when?”  As Alan Jackson might say!  The days before “Driverless Cars and Planes”, the Days before Artificial Intelligence running our country and the Globe, the Days before we really didn’t need to make any more decisions at all.

Back in the 1960’s, Bob Dylan came out with a song:  “Talkin World War III Blues!”  One of the great lines in that song was:  “I’ll let you be in my dream if I can be in yours!”

“We had a dream……that there was trouble in River City!”  …and we said that!