No on O

It's a big day for Hermosa Beach. The much debated Measure O, to allow oil drilling, goes to the vote today.

No prizes for guessing how our street is going to vote. Of the twenty or so houses on our block, fully fourteen have 'No on O' signs. One has a 'Yes on O' sign and the other three are undeclared. Which probably means they're voting Yes but too embarrassed to admit it.

Our street is pretty typical. The weight of public opinion seems overwhelmingly against Measure O. I guess everyone was convinced by this compelling presentation of the arguments, currently popping up on my Youtube feed:

Oh wait, no, that's just a bunch of surfers saying 'No on O'. Possibly not the strongest case to make.

To be fair, the facts are being published and debated and interpreted elsewhere. There are thousands of pages of reports and yards and yards of reasoned (and otherwise) arguments available online should you wish to get clued up on the details. The New York Times covered the story yesterday, if you want an objective, New York liberal's view (I usually do).

When all's said and done, the argument against does boil down to the vibe of this town, and the question of what makes Hermosa 'hermosa' (not just beautiful, but quirky and smalltown). In fact, what those surfers said. Just, vote No on O, man. Keep Hermosa Hermosa. Keep surfing, keep playing volleyball, keep running with your dog along the greenbelt, keep drinking at the Mermaid with sandy feet and beachy hair, and keep oil out.