Though we have a building boom in Glendale, we don’t need to suffer through increased congestion. Some working adults in the Los Angeles basin could telecommute from home. High-speed broadband connections and the increased availability of fiber-optic lines into homes and businesses could help us reduce the use of the car significantly. But to implement that concept, we need real visionaries in government with the mettle to make such policies a reality.
But the policies this city often promotes do not tackle the source of the problem. A large immigrant population often means old-world habits. If Grandma or Grandpa are still smoking, it would be difficult for those families to discourage their grandkids not to smoke or for those kids not to have ready access to cigarettes. We could have more long-term improvements in our public health budgets if we tackle the problem at the source. Those victims of heart attacks who get picked up by paramedics or have heart surgery paid for by Medicare or any future national insurance will have a severe impact on our state and federal budgets.
