Walter Moore for Mayor of Los Angeles
Walter Moore's On-Line L.A. Budget Survey
By Walter Moore -- December 23, 2008
You may have heard how Mayor Villaraigosa has set up an on-line survey,
ostensibly to let L.A.'s citizens -- along with anyone else on the internet --
tell City Hall where to make budget cuts.
Villaragosa's "survey" however, is not a survey at all. Instead, it is a classic
"push poll," right out of Spinology 101. The poll's goal isn't to survey
opinion, but to shape it, by subjecting participants to a series of false
dilemmas. Here's an actual example:
"In the area of Community Safety, what program or service would you reduce to
help balance the budget: crime control, fire control, ambulance services, city
attorney services, or animal control services?"
The purpose of the question is to mislead you into thinking those are the only
types of choices: less fire protection, or less police protection.
However, as those of you familiar with my essays on City Hall's neverending
parade of boondoggles already know, we have much better ways to cut spending. We
could, for example, try to muddle through with fewer than 93 mayoral aides to
hand Listermint breath strips to Villaraigosa during photo-ops, for example.
So I have prepared an on-line survey of my own. It is completely scientific,
insofar as a wore a white lab coat when I drafted it, and is based on the metric
system because it comprises 10 questions. I think you'll enjoy it, because,
well, you're just that kind of person.
Merry Christmas and happy Hannukkah! I truly appreciate your support and
encouragement. Sending money is always a nice gesture, too, and it will help pay
for more ads so we can reach our fellow voters. And thanks but no thanks on the
fruitcake.
