L.A. Assistance for Leningrad

As I look out of the window of the Criminal Courts Building in Los Angeles, I am reminded of the myriad problems facing the city: dirty air, crime, filthy streets, homelessness, poverty and depression in South-Central Los Angeles. Yet Mayor Bradley wants to render assistance to the city of Leningrad. Come on, Mr. Mayor, you are the mayor of Los Angeles. You were elected to serve the people of the city. Your record in South-Central Los Angeles is disgraceful.

Mr. Mayor, help your own fellow Americans. The homeless need shelter, the people in South-Central L.A. need supermarkets with competitive prices, more police are needed, homes in South-Central need to be upgraded and the Civic Center is a blighted area, not worthy of a major city.

Mr. Mayor, you were put into office to serve the people of Los Angeles, not to conduct self-serving foreign aid. Leave that to the federal government.

GEORGE SAUDI, Altadena