Weekend shorts

Jim Beardsley, a local historian who is the archivist at Marymount High School, stopped by the old Marineland site on Palos Verdes Peninsula and found the demolition and clearing well along. Photo.
Times critic Christopher Hawthorne argues that Mayor Villaraigosa's wi-fi plan will be divisive and may be less about helping people than helping a private company gain advantage: "If you put a drinking fountain on every corner but allow a private company to charge for each sip, even if it's only a few pennies, can you really make a case that you're improving access to clean water?...what rings most hollow is the claim from the mayor and his allies that universal wireless is designed primarily to help the city's electronic have-nots. If that's the goal, why not take full advantage of the fact that L.A. owns its utility poles, turn this into a wholly public project and make access universal and free?"
LAT's Steve Lopez, noting that the $15 hot dogs at a downtown sports bar come from Chicago: "I almost choked on the coincidence: The Tribune-owned Los Angeles Times keeps flying wieners in from Chicago too."
DN's Dennis McCarthy sneaks onto the Sepulveda VA grounds in North Hills and finds studio location shooting taking over: "The only invitation I need is from the vets themselves. The VA was built for them. They paid a big price for it. Still do. If they want me there, I'm there."
Skunks are taking over in the South Bay city of Torrance: "It's throwing everything out of balance," says a naturalist.
Michael J. Robbins, an aide to Assemblyman Mervyn Dymally, apparently shot his wife, Kim Gehring, then himself after an argument at their Baldwin Hills home Friday. LAT
Metroblogging has completed a guide to the truthiness of what its bloggers deem the 25 biggest Los Angeles legends, from the story of the Elmer McCurdy "mummy" at the old Long Beach Pike (#25) to the demise of the Red Cars (#1).