Sounding Off:

The Daily Pilot published a “Sounding Off” column written by Costa Mesa resident Chris McEvoy (“Righeimer is not good for our city,” April 25).

In the column, McEvoy pointed out what, in his opinion, were a few reasons why citizens should not vote for Righeimer for City Council next year. “Do not vote for Righeimer in 2010,” reads the last line.

Among the reasons McEvoy urged Costa Mesans not to vote for a man who has not even declared his candidacy is that he is a “carpetbagger.” Here McEvoy wrote, “I recently looked up that word and, yep, I think Righeimer is a carpetbagger.” McEvoy’s source: Wikipedia. That McEvoy did not know the meaning of “carpetbagger” is of less concern than whether Righeimer deserves the label.

So, just how long does someone have to live in a community or have a stable presence somewhere before he is no longer a carpetbagger? Two years? Four years? Ten years? Perhaps in Righeimer’s case, McEvoy’s answer is “eternity.”

But that’s the least troubling aspect of the column. The more important part is the downright disturbing attitude displayed by otherwise good people since I moved here in 1985. That bothersome attitude is that Costa Mesa is not worthy of the likes of Righeimer, who may be able to live just about anywhere in the county he wishes, but who moved to Costa Mesa, according to McEvoy, only to take advantage of a political situation.

The attitude that the city may not be worthy of Righeimer is really an inferiority complex and it has held Costa Mesa back for decades. The inferiority complex manifests itself in writings such as McEvoy’s, in the recurrence of a silly attempt to carve out some sliver, some connection, to the Pacific Ocean, even if, as was once proposed, that path is just 12 inches wide, and in the trashing of the city over the presence of illegal immigrants by, among others, its current mayor.

So for those who believe that Costa Mesa is not good enough for the likes of Righeimer or anyone who could afford to live elsewhere, allow me to set you straight. Costa Mesa has four colleges or universities in its city limits, one of which is an accredited law school. Quick: Name another Orange County community with four colleges.

Costa Mesa is walking distance from some of the finest swimming beaches in the United States and it does not need any path or other frontage to maintain fabulous access to the ocean.

Costa Mesa is the home of one of the greatest retail enterprises ever developed in the world, a pioneering feat. If you haven’t been to South Coast Plaza lately, go there and discover why people have themselves bused in to shop in its stores.

Costa Mesa has million-dollar homes and an ethnic mix that many other cities envy, including three shopping centers catering to a Japanese clientele. But rising above all of these attributes are our world-class performing arts facilities. Between the Renee and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall, the Performing Arts Center, South Coast Repertory and the Pacific Amphitheater, the quality of live performance venues is exceeded in California only by the stages in Los Angeles.

The Righeimers are welcome in Costa Mesa. As long as they obey the laws of the city and pay their taxes, we may just let them stay.

STEVE SMITH is a resident of Costa Mesa who writes a weekly column in the Daily Pilot titled “Kids These Days.”