I’m still not convinced there even IS a future for journalism, at least not as we’ve known it (and heck I have a degree in it). Further, I won’t exactly miss what it’s become. But that’s not the point -

Should you wish to witness a spirited and entertaining discourse on this very subject, however, why not head out to The Warehouse in Marina Del Rey on Saturday, and catch The Lowdown?

Here’s what your host Jeff Norman has to say about it:

The Lowdown is a bold cultural revival fueled by unique collaborations between world-class artists, authors, activists and other public-spirited leaders. Presenters and performers connect the dots between media, government, national security, sustainability, psychology and the arts. By confronting disinformation, promoting civic engagement and having fun in the process, we help people cope with life in America.

The Warehouse Restaurant
4499 Admiralty Way
Marina del Rey, CA 90292
Hosted by JEFF NORMAN and featuring performances and a discussion with

music by I SEE HAWKS IN L.A. (Full set at 5 PM)
Author PETER RICHARDSON
Journalist ROBERT SCHEER
LA Weekly founder JAY LEVIN
Comedian ED CRASNICK
Musician-satirist GARY GORDON
Drinks and appetizers available – no minimum required.
Happy hour discounts from 5 to 6!
FREE admission
Seating is first come, first served.
The evening will conclude with a book sale and signing by Peter Richardson, author of A Bomb in Every Issue: How the Short, Unruly Life of Ramparts Magazine Changed America, hosted by Book Soup.

(Ow, my linking hand!)

I took a look at and snapped some photos of the latest construction project in Marina del Rey.  It’s the expansion of the Best Western Jamaica Bay Inn on Admiralty Way near Panay Way.  The old Jamaica Bay Inn was a quaint two-story place with approximately 42 rooms, where people liked to go for breakfast.  Renderings of the expanded four-story 111-room hotel, for which the neighboring Cafe Escobar was bulldozed to make way, can be found here.  The Inn’s PR company describes its project as (warning: get out your air sickness bag) one:

“that will transform the familiar Marina Del Rey property into a lush Caribbean-themed resort befitting its name. The new Jamaica Bay Inn will take advantage of the hotel’s unique location on the only beach inside the marina, an inviting arc of sand and calm water appropriately known as Mother’s Beach. The new hotel will have a colorful porte-cochere that will be a street-side landmark for the property and an elegant lobby with a sophisticated West Indies décor, rattan/wood/leather furniture and a large stone fireplace and chimney as a focal point. Gag on this

Taking a walk in my Marina del Rey neighborhood today, I ended up behind this orange-and-plaid-clad bloke with orange hair and multiple earrings.  He had just gotten off the bus with a few small bags of groceries.  I’ve seen him and his groceries here on the street before.  Although the beefier presence is deceptive, my grocery-toting neighbor is John Lydon, a/k/a Johnny Rotten, frontman for The Sex Pistols and the former Public Image Ltd.

Normally, I would never post about a “c-word” sighting.  What makes this newsworthy, however, is the incongruence of having Johnny Rotten, who made his name, his reputation, and his career on being angry and edgy more than on his musical talent or anything else, living in a place that is known for being laid-back and anything but angry and edgy.

The next time I run into John/Johnny, I will try to say hello, and ask him for an impromptu mini-interview.  I want to know whether he is now living an idyllic, anger-managed life by the sea.  Hopefully, he won’t lose his temper.

Things in Marina del Rey tend to take place at a laid back, civilized, even sleepy, pace. Unlike Mack’s experience in Silver Lake, today’s voting in the Marina was no exception. Although I have vote by mail status, I showed up at my local polling place, a nearby apartment complex, to cast my ballot and feel like I was part of the process.

Voting Marina style, after the jump