Sunday, December 10, 2000 Ryan lawsuit Mean-spirited? Ill-targeted? Bad-faith? What exactly have I done to deserve those appellations directed at me in the editorial "A badly aimed lawsuit?" (Dec. 3)? Mean-spirited? Because I believe in reform? At the core of any meaningful change is the insistence on genuine accountability by those who are public stewards of our money. I'm no more mean-spirited than any citizen who expects his civic officials to follow both the letter and spirit of the law, and expects that when they fail, that there should be consequences. It is perplexing that the only defense the Press-Telegram offers on behalf of City Manager Henry Taboada's illegal actions is that "... nobody would be that dumb." But given the decided lack of checks and balances at City Hall it might have been accepted as common wisdom that no one would ever get caught. Ill-targeted? Well, who exactly am I supposed to file a claim against? The Press-Telegram suggests that the City Council is "... responsible for policy decisions." But that's the point. There is no evidence that the council ever directed Mr. Taboada to send out that illegal mailer. If the Press-Telegram has knowledge of a secret vote by the City Council to publish both mailers, which would be in violation of the Brown Act, then maybe they can tell me who voted for it and I can "target" my lawsuit more accurately. If the city manager is truly innocent, then this lawsuit will serve to compel him to identify the guilty. Wouldn't the editorial writers like to know who is responsible for this illegal waste of tax dollars? I know most of my neighbors would. Bad faith? I believe I am keeping faith with the taxpayers who voted for Measure J. The only bad-faith was exercised by a city manager who thought he could break the law and use our money to put out a "... thinly disguised propaganda piece ..." and possibly by editorial writers who assume that the only reason anyone would try to keep City Hall honest is to score political points for a possible City Council campaign. The next time you write an editorial questioning the source of public cynicism, please don't exclude yourselves too readily. Norm Ryan Long Beach   I held my cheeks with exasperation at your Dec. 3 editorial ("A badly aimed lawsuit"). Are you checking to see if the public is asleep? Are you saying it is OK for our city manager to break the law without consequences? What is going on? Just in the last year, Linda DiMario gets caught paying herself unearned raises, and she is rewarded with another three-year contract. Nobody seems to blink at the fact that Dan Baker, Jenny Oropeza, Laura Batts and Robert Shannon took huge campaign contributions from the downtown developers and voted their projects through. And just last week Doris Topsy-Elvord was rewarded an appointment while the public is left wondering why nothing was done about her lying about living in the Eighth District, and six of her family members, including herself, voted from an address where they don't reside. And I get arrested for trying to speak at City Council and stop an illegal process. Diana Mann Long Beach   It is time that the City of Long Beach and at least some of its employees be taken to task to account for what they have done, and such a timely lawsuit by Norm Ryan is exactly what is required. I have never met Norm Ryan, and do not know him, but it is with great relief that people like him, who authored Measure J, the utility tax-cutting proposition, passed by over 70 percent of our residents, now has the guts to stand up against the city and hold them accountable. Yes, contrary to this newspaper's opinion, Mr. Ryan does deserve to celebrate his victory and has every right to file a lawsuit against the city management employees who want to shaft the taxpayers of Long Beach. City Manager Henry Taboada must be held accountable, with others, for their wrongful acts against us and should pay from their own pockets. Accountability may be a new word for City Hall, but by accountability only will the civil servants become more responsible for their actions that they have imposed upon us. Josephine "Jo" Foch Long Beach