Holiday shorts

Holiday hours today so no Morning Buzz, but stuff has still been piling up on my desk.

City Council members are lining up to object to Controller Laura Chick's move to put anti-gang programs under the mayor's office. Rick Orlov. Plus: The Times Q-and-A's Jeff Carr, who would be the mayor's gang czar.
Los Angeles County has been using the double-bubble ballot since 2002 even though officials knew votes were not being counted. LAT
Federal auditors called for the ouster of Los Angeles County Housing Authority director Carlos Jackson, citing poor management of $200 million in housing funds. LAT
Nikki Finke speculates online that John Montorio, one of the Times' managing editor, will be fired. He is meeting with section editors this morning.
Today's New York Times does a short piece on Sam Zell's salty language and mentions the LA Observed coverage. NYT
Former Times publisher Jeffrey Johnson gets top billing in the United Way house ad on pg. B9 of the paper, showing up in more pictures than current publisher David Hiller.
Pseudonymous LAPD cop "Jack Dunphy" argues against placing video cameras in patrol cars, saying they could inhibit officers from making arrests if the brass uses video to nitpick. Sunday Opinion
In a major break between the two ports, Long Beach will not require that short-haul truckers be employees of motor carriers. LB previous had a deal with Los Angeles to apply the same rules as an environmental move. LABJ, P-T
Professional skeptic Michael Schermer reacts to the "Anonymous" campaign against Scientology, writing "I'm a scientist who studies belief systems for a living, so take it from me: Scientology is unlike any other religion in history....no other religion I know of considers theological doctrines and core religious tenets to be intellectual property accessible only for a fee." LAT Op-Ed
Sneak peek inside the Grammy Museum under construction at L.A. Live. DT News
Melville C. Branch, an urban planning pioneer who taught at USC and headed the city planning commission in the 1960s, died at age 94. "He was a giant in the field," said Tridib Banerjee, USC professor of urban and regional planning. LAT