By Rene Kraus

My buddies and I have been meeting every morning at the local coffee house, from what I can remember, since the mid 90s.

It’s a good way to start your day.

Most of the time we  discuss world affairs for 20 minutes a pop, before we move on to one of  the most talked about topics….the old days versus the new days.

What I call gangsters vs. yuppies.

These days some of my friends are mesmerized by the huge number of good looking chicks. That goes for the New Days….

The only problem is… they  don’t care much about a bunch of crusties  (old guys) sitting on the bench.

“Good Morning”, is met with no interest. Glued to their IPhone screens, there is NO Smile for you today buddy.

So there goes the argument for the New Days.

And that brings me to why I like gangsters better than yuppies!

First of all you knew the guys, they were your neighbors. If you respected them and didn’t stick your nose in their business, try to pick up on their girlfriends and left their families alone, you had no problems from them. They would never try to take away your livelihood or evict you, nothing like that.

Well, the yuppies, knowingly or not, hand in hand with developers, are dislodging you.

Their money and cluelessness are a perfect match. Knowingly or not, they are going for the jugular. They are buying the cool Venice Vibe but the problem is, they do not know much about it.

Just walk around Venice to see the atrocities being built.

I see an absolute disregard for the 108-year-old community of Venice.

In fact, the Venice Neighborhood Land Use and Planning Committee is allowing it by rubber-stamping  building projects all day long.  They are not Venetians, nor do they care about Venice.

When the gangsters were numerous here, the developers would not cross Lincoln Blvd.  Even the  cops wouldn’t come after sunset. Now  they have to protect the yuppies, I guess, from the homeless.

So, if you feel just a little bit like me, please sign the petition….and say no to box development,  small lot subdivisions,  blocking our views, moving  our people out, and ruining our community: bitly.com/1ixg333.