In this month's Tu Ciudad, Rep. Loretta Sanchez and Mrs. Kobe Bryant contribute their favorite spots in Orange County and, to stay in the theme, OC Weekly writer Gustavo Arellano is profiled. Ciudad staffer Dennis Romero calls Arellano "America's leading Mexican-American provocateur" and a "post-Chicano journalist warrior," a reputation mostly but not solely due to the celebrity Arellano has gained through mainstream attention given his ¡Ask a Mexican! columns. L.A. Times writer Agustin Gurza says "Gustavo is being used" by talk show hosts and others who take off from the satirical columns to poke fun at Latinos, but Arellano says "if you're not willing to take on everything, then you're not going to be a good reporter....I want to be the H.L. Mencken of Orange County." The most disturbing observation to me in the piece is when Arellano, who is 28, boasts that "if you try to do something to me, if you piss me off, I will not stop until I destroy you" — as if lacking a sense of proportion or fair play are attributes rather than flaws. The story gives OC Weekly editor Will Swaim credit for thinking up ¡Ask a Mexican!. Last year, by the way, Tu Ciudad named Arellano one of the 25 Angelenos We Love.

Previously:
¡Ask a Mexican!™ and get suspended
'Ask a Mexican' on 'Colbert Report'
'Chicano All-Stars'

Photo: Robert Trachtenberg via Tu Ciudad