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Posts Tagged “
Los Angeles
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american airlines
lawsuits
Los Angeles To Sue Time Warner Cable For Sucking
Today, the city of Los Angeles plans to give a little gift to Time Warner Cable—a lawsuit! From the LA Times:
More »The 25-page lawsuit, a copy of which was reviewed by The Times, claims the company violated its franchise agreement with the city by having subscribers spend hours on hold with customer service representatives and allowing excessive repair work delays.
"Hundreds of thousands of Los Angeles residents were ripped off," Delgadillo said in a statement. "Time Warner must be held accountable for its promises."
competition
L.A. County Tells Taco Trucks To Keep Moving
Peter writes to let us know that taco trucks in Los Angeles county now have to move to a new position every hour: "The county of Los Angeles has enacted some new legislation to prevent taco truck owners from staying in one spot, with penalties of a fine of up to $1000 or jail for failures to comply." Why such a weird law? Because area restaurants say they're stealing away customers. If you like your carne asada from the side of a truck, be prepared to start chasing them down as they circle through L.A. county in a weird Mexican-food carousel. More »
urban blight
In 2002, LA banned any new billboards from going up in the city. Since then, an estimated four thousand have been put up by advertising companies who have ignored the law, which obviously the city's billboard inspectors—"a tiny, and some say incredibly inept, group"—have never bothered to enforce.
More »
LA Has 4,000 Illegal Billboards, But City Looks On Helplessly
In 2002, LA banned any new billboards from going up in the city. Since then, an estimated four thousand have been put up by advertising companies who have ignored the law, which obviously the city's billboard inspectors—"a tiny, and some say incredibly inept, group"—have never bothered to enforce.
More »
videos
Ex-Sub-Prime Borrowers Live In Tent Cities On LA Outskirts
[via Boing Boing]
travel
LAX Terminal Evacuated Due To "Suspicious Comment"
20 Southwest Airlines and 2 U.S. Airways flights were delayed after a LAX terminal was evacuated for two hours due to a "suspicious comment" made by a passenger on SWA Flight 1182 from El Paso. We were unable to find out what exactly the "suspicious comment" was, but UPI suggests that it had something to do with explosives in his luggage. The LAPD bomb squad was called, but no explosives were found. More »
best buy
Best Buy Still Embracing Deceptive In-Store Kiosks
Best Buy still uses a secret internal website to deceive customers, according to the L.A. Times. The website appearing on in-store kiosks resembles Best Buy's official site in every way, except for the prices. Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal was surprised to hear that his investigation failed to end Best Buy's bait-and-switch, telling the L.A. Times: "We thought Best Buy had addressed this. That's what they said to us. Apparently that's not the case." A tipster in Virginia also reports the continued existence of the secret website. More »
The lawyer for the family whose daughter died after CIGNA declined to pay for her liver transplant said that he will urge the DA's office to press manslaughter charges against CIGNA for having "maliciously killed her." [AP]
advertising
Firebrand, The TV Show That's Just Commercials
Firebrand is a new TV show is just 60 minutes of commercials. "CJs" will introduce the ads, interview the stars, and provide banal banter. The show was started by an MTV co-founder, who said, " "We're changing the model again... We took promotion videos no one wanted and ran them." The show runs late-nights on the ION network in LA, the place where all things devoid of substance are born.
Firebrand [Official Site]
Show pitches ads as entertainment [LAT via Stay Free! Daily]
insurance
As CIGNA Insurance Waffles On Liver Transplant, Girl Dies
CIGNA denied a girl's liver transplant, saying it was "experimental," then changed it's mind after 150 family, friends, and nurses association members protested outside CIGNA headquarters. But the reversal was too late, Natalee Sarkisian, 17, died last night at UCLA medical center. The insurance company had initially agreed to pay for the liver transplant, but then after Natalee developed a lung infection, then got a bone marrow transplant from her brother, delayed, and then denied coverage, the family says. She was in a vegetative state, battling leukemia. In an email sent out shortly before Natalee died, the insurance company wrote, " ... CIGNA HealthCare has decided to make an exception in this rare and unusual case and we will provide coverage should she proceed with the requested liver transplant." Score another one for the bean counters.
Philly Insurance Company Changes Decision Hours Before Teen's Death [NBC10]
Girl dies while awaiting liver transplant [ABC7] (Thanks to Dan!)
success stories
Local Franchise Authorities Keep Cable Operators In Line
Cable companies must constantly prove their worth to local franchise authorities. The authorities grant the cable providers permission to operate, and can whip them into action for failing to meet basic customer service standards, as reader Darren shows. More »
travel
The Best Alternate Airports In America
Flying to one of America's numerous satellite airports can be faster and easier than charging into a congestion clogged airport that suffers delays on the sunniest days. Travel guru Peter Greenberg and his staff compiled a list of unlikely airports that can save you from the long lines and endless waits that plague traveler's nightmares. More »
subprime meltdown
Report Says Property Values Could Decline By $1.2 Trillion
An especially gloomy report by the U.S. Conference of Mayors says that property values across the U.S. could decline by $1.2 trillion next year, slashing tax revenue by $6.6 billion. More »
videos
Landlord: Quick, The 90-Year-Old Kicked The Bucket, Lock Up Her Stuff So We Can Rent Her Apartment!
Landlord Clears Out Apartment Day After Tenant Dies [KTLA via Metroblogging Los Angeles]
time to upgrade
LAX Meltdown Caused By A Single Network Interface Card
According to the LA Times, the LAX computer meltdown that stranded 20,000 international passengers was the work of a single malfunctioning network interface card on a single desktop computer in the LAX international terminal. From the LA Times:The card, which allows computers to connect to a local area network, experienced a partial failure that started about 12:50 p.m. Saturday, slowing down the system, said Jennifer Connors, a chief in the office of field operations for the Customs and Border Protection agency.More »
delicious aromas
AMC Theater Apparently Smells Indescribably Bad
Mike, who writes a blog called plasmasplasm, is upset about the smell of the AMC Century City 15 in Los Angeles. Here is how he describes the smell:Yes, you are a great theater. You have large, new accommodations that really make the 7.50 I spend on a showing feel different from watching it on my laptop or friend's TV. Your parking is usually free and you constantly have showings for stuff I'm into.More »
clips
20,000+ International Passengers Stranded In LAX
media whoring
