Friday, April 4, 2008

'Center' of Attention

So what's it gonna be, Angelenos?

Who knew the response to the Militant's be-all,end-all treatise on the whole Eastside-Westside-Something-In-Between dealio would be so huge? To date, 37 replies (okay, so some of those were the Militant's responses to previous replies), a new record here (Props to Blogging.la, Ryan J. Bell and Big Action for all that linkage goodness).

He thought the lot of you would be irate gentrohipsters trying to state their case for all Eastsidedom into the depths of futility but it wasn't the case (They probably don't read Miliant Angeleno anyway...). So it looks like Rev. Militant got a chorus of "Amen"s from the choir that he was preaching to. Testify, Angelenos!

As the Militant mentioned, he is entertaining names for our urban center, as illustrated above.

Suggested names include:

- The Center
- Da Center
- Central Los Angeles
- The Base
- The Capital (Sacto people would take issue with that)
- The Core
- The Cynosure (?!?)
- The Eye
- The Focus
- The Heart
- The Hub
- The Mecca (In post 9/11 America?)
- The Nucleus (Jam on it)
- The Seat
- The Middle
- The Creamy Middle
- Middle Earth
- El Corazon
- The Core Zone (get it?)
- H.O.L.A. (Heart of Los Angeles)
- The West Eastside
- The East Westside
- Center City
- The 21323
- The City (F.U. San Franciscans!)
- Bullseye!
- __________?

Got a name? Post it in the comments. The Militant will find a way to buy some Diebold voting machines and rig, er, determine which moniker will be the name of the center of the City. Either that, or you can text in your votes to see which dancer gets booted off the island
@

26 comments:

  1. bgfaApril 5, 2008 at 2:37 AM

    "The Creamy Middle" works for me. I sent your original post as a tip to Curbed LA but they ignored me. Jerks.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Militant AngelenoApril 5, 2008 at 3:30 AM

    Thanks, Bert. But don't worry bout it -- Maybe their heads asploded when they read it.

    ReplyDelete
  3. pdApril 5, 2008 at 5:28 AM

    I know it's basic (and maybe even a little boring), but I like the simplicity of "Central Los Angeles". With a straightforward and direct name like that, there shouldn't be much room for confusion as to where it is.

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  4. The Hollywood JediApril 5, 2008 at 10:15 AM

    I suppose I shoulda voted earlier but I say you call it Scoops.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Alex ThompsonApril 5, 2008 at 1:25 PM

    KHAOS!

    ReplyDelete
  6. UnknownApril 5, 2008 at 8:29 PM

    Sorry to be late to the party, but the Militant is WRONG. The westside begins at Western Ave. The eastside begins at Eastern Ave. That's what their names mean. Everything in the middle is central LA.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Militant AngelenoApril 5, 2008 at 8:42 PM

    Chris: Eastern and Western avenues were named so because they were once the eastern and western boundaries of the city of Los Angeles. Not so anymore.

    But the Militant will still give you credit for not calling Silver_Lake or Echo Park "The Eastside."

    ReplyDelete
  8. Robert90033April 5, 2008 at 9:14 PM

    I would say that what you call "The Center" is actually the near westside of Los Angeles. The actual "center", The Central City, is none other than Downtown Los Angeles itself. All points radiating east, west north and south of it are "it's sides" So it doesn't matter if you are on Alvarado and Sixth Sts. or La Cienega and Pico Blvds. they are both on the City's "westside". By the way my selection for a proper name for the area is West Central Los Angeles. Thank you for keeping this debate alive. I just love it! = )

    ReplyDelete
  9. UnknownApril 5, 2008 at 9:18 PM

    Eastern and Western avenues were named so because they were once the eastern and western boundaries of the city of Los Angeles.

    Yes, and they remain the eastern and western boundaries of central Los Angeles. Or was there some ceremony that I missed. The burden is on the Militant to prove that the boundaries have moved.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Militant AngelenoApril 5, 2008 at 9:38 PM

    Chris: Um, there is no burden. The boundaries moved years ago. The western boundary of the City of Los Angeles is the Pacific Ocean (or the Santa Monica City Border); The eastern boundary of the City of Los Angeles is a jagged line that runs from Pasadena down to Commerce. The City keeps no official regional boundaries. In fact many City departments have regional service areas (i.e. DWP, Public Works, Mayor's Office, etc) and many of them differ from each other slightly. The Militant has never seen one demarcating Western or Eastern avenues as regional service area boundaries.

    You lose, good day sir!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Militant AngelenoApril 5, 2008 at 9:41 PM

    Robert 90033: If your logic is correct, then why is Midtown Manhattan (regarded as "the center of NYC") located close to the western side of the New York City Boundary?

    Hmmm?

    ReplyDelete
  12. Robert90033April 6, 2008 at 12:20 AM

    That's precisely the point! It's not necessarily a geographic center. But rather a Center that is define as the City's Heart by virtue of it being the Core of the City, and home of the City's Civic Center as well as the Central Business District. In short it IS The City! The Heart of The City! The City's Center, hence Central City! By defineing the area on your map as "The Center" you ignore the heart of the City and you take on the perspective of the transplant that sees that area as one whole region with no individuality within the various communities that exist there, but rather a continuation of Downtown Los Angeles and the Urban Core. They call it the Eastside you call it Center, both terms deny the City's Historical, Cultural and True Center. True, terms become invalid and boundaries change with time but Downtown Los angeles is, has always and hopefully will always be the Center of the City of Los Angeles!

    ReplyDelete
  13. AnonymousApril 6, 2008 at 12:19 PM

    I like Da Center or The Nucleus. You also might want to consider correcting the folks at wikipedia.com, Militant. They list the one of the boundaries of West LA as the 405, not La Cienega!

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/West_Los_Angeles%2C_Los_Angeles%2C_California

    Of course they are distinguishing the Westside as a community within West Los Angeles. Not sure if that itself is correct...please address if you have a moment.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Militant AngelenoApril 6, 2008 at 1:05 PM

    Robert 90033: You're arguing about nothing. The Militant, of all people, does recognize Downtown Los Angeles as the heart of the City, that is fact, not opinion. It's the seat of City government, it's where the tallest buildings are. That's not the issue here. The issue is that Downtown is part of a larger region which contains all the dynamics of the City. Outside that central region, everything else follows or purposely blocks itself out of the process.

    The human heart is not in the physical center of the human body, but it is part of a larger circulatory system, of which its individual parts play a different function than other parts of the body.

    But you are totally wrong about one thing: The Militant does not take on any transplant's perspective. A transplant does NOT consider ANYTHING to be the Center, as they have been spoon-fed the notion that "L.A. has no center" to begin with. They see an absolute Westside and an absolute Eastside, with nothing but a dividing line between them.

    And shame on you for thinking the Militant sees the region as having "no individuality." On the contrary, its the one region where each community within it has its own individuality and everything happens. You obviously do not read this blog on a regular basis as you have made the mistake of judging the Militant by one post.

    ReplyDelete
  15. UnknownApril 6, 2008 at 8:01 PM

    I guess I touched a nerve. Sorry :)

    ReplyDelete
  16. chicanaskiesApril 8, 2008 at 4:16 AM

    I like H.O.L.A. An acronym in Spanish, how appropriate in LA!

    ReplyDelete
  17. AnonymousApril 8, 2008 at 10:27 AM

    I'm with Chicana Skies, H.O.L.A is awesome! The hipsters can use it and still feel edgy and ethnic and freak out their suburban parents!

    ReplyDelete
  18. AnonymousApril 8, 2008 at 4:25 PM

    I like "West-Central"

    ReplyDelete
  19. Robert90033April 9, 2008 at 8:42 PM

    My apologies to you Militant if I insulted you. That was honestly never my intention. But I will say that the transplants do see a center in L.A. and that center is the westside or what is referred to as the westside by most. That to them IS L.A. or at least "the L.A. that counts". And there lies the very reason why they see everything east of that center as the eastside. Because they don't see themselves as being part of a greater westside that begins west of Downtown Los Angeles. They don't even acknowledge Downtown as the center of the City many times, but instead place it in their version of the eastside. It is their area of the City, "their westside",an exclusive region that, for them at least, along with Santa Monica, Burbank and the west San Fernando Valley makes up Los Angeles. So in essence the area you call The Center is actually the West Central part of the City. Because Central Los Angeles actually encompasses the entire inner City of Los Angeles, which includes the immediate eastside, westside, northeast/northwest and soutside of the Central City (Downtown Los Angeles). By the way there is a map of this area on page 45 of the MTA's current 2008 Long Range Transportation Plan.

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  20. soledad.en.masa.April 10, 2008 at 3:17 PM

    I just call it El centro

    ReplyDelete
  21. BusTardApril 10, 2008 at 8:48 PM

    I think Central L.A. is fine. When L.A. grows up, then we can call it Central Los Angeles.
    As for "The City," that is Manhattan; that is right out.

    ReplyDelete
  22. RezaApril 11, 2008 at 12:03 AM

    i've always called this area "the city", and just that. it's much easier than trying so hard to figure out a name. There is the Valley, the Westside, the Eastside, South LA, and, of course, "The City" itself in the middle.

    ReplyDelete
  23. hormiguitaApril 18, 2008 at 4:44 PM

    Middle Earth! hahaha

    But H.O.L.A. gets my vote.

    ReplyDelete
  24. UnknownJanuary 3, 2009 at 1:57 PM

    I like "Central Los Angeles". It is definitely the center of Los Angeles from a geographical perspective.

    It has four parts: Downtown, Uptown (Bev Center/Farmers Market), Midtown (Mid-Wilshire/Koreatown) and Hollywood.

    Downtown is definitely the important hub of the region, in many ways. But just because it is, doesn't mean only it can lay sole claim to the "Central" title.

    And just because some Westsiders have a mortal fear of passing east of La Cienega, doesn't give them any right to call their area "Central".

    ReplyDelete
  25. AnonymousMay 5, 2010 at 2:52 PM

    I've lived in Silver Lake 25 yrs but would probably be called a hipster by the people hear.

    Anyway I think there is a allot of misguided anger. The idea that the newcomers are trying to steal the term "eastside" is manufactured, The issue is pretty much unknown among people you're hating on and honestly not very many "hipsters"or residence really care if it called eastside or not.

    Why not do something constructive like get a city ordinance passed designating the area the official eastside instead getting your panties in a bunch about a bunch of people who have no idea what your talking about. It just makes you look like put upon victims instead of an capable citizens creating the situation you want.

    If your so passionate do something more significant than whining to your peers on a message board.

    ReplyDelete
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