La Sombrita and America’s Pervasive Band-Aid Problem

How an L.A. bus stop program reflects cross-country policy dysfunctions.

By
41
A pedestrian walks past La Sombrita, a prototype bus stop structure to provide shade during the day and solar-powered lighting at night, in Los Angeles, California on May 25, 2023. (Photo by PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty Images)

Dear Capitolisters,

A couple weeks ago, the internet enjoyed a rare moment of consensus when everyone—right and left; dog people and cat weirdos; etc.—came together to make fun of La Sombrita. For those of you who aren’t terminally online, La Sombrita (“little shade”) was trumpeted by the Los Angeles Department of Transportation as revolutionizing local bus stops by providing much needed shade and light to local public transit riders, especially women in low-income areas who have long been forced to suffer heat and safety (at night) issues while waiting for the bus. One tiny problem: La Sombrita provided little actual shade or light and did (didn’t do?) so at the low, low price of $10,000 (though subsequent models would be cheaper).

After the unveiling, the internet did what it does best: uncover a slew of uncomfortable facts about La Sombrita’s design, construction, and cost (which, even at $2,000, is really expensive)… and then make fun of it. Lots and lots of fun of it.

This content is available exclusively to Dispatch members
Try a membership for full access to every newsletter and all of The Dispatch. Support quality, fact-based journalism.
Start Your Free Trial
Already a paid member? Sign In
41
By
Comments (41)
Join The Dispatch to participate in the comments.
 
  1. Avatar photo
    Ben Connelly

    Every word of this had me nodding along and going, “Amen!” This was my original reason for disliking Trump’s trade policies, and it’s one of my primary bits of contention with the “market failure” crowd. We pile scaffolding on scaffolding, creating new solutions to solve problems we created which only create new problems (requiring new solutions…), rather than getting rid of the sources of problems.

    Student loans is a great example. I’m totally with you.

    And finally:

    “ A government spread too wide, by contrast, will inevitably prove too thin—especially in the core, constitutionally authorized areas where it should actually be acting.”

    Exactly! People think libertarians just hate the government (some do). I’m in favor of having a federal government that works well - at doing ONLY those things which it is supposed to do, and which coincidentally it will do better if it focused on exclusively.

    Collapse
  2. Mary Stine

    One of the things rarely discussed, but crucial to small government is the interference with citizen funded initiatives.
    What if the locals who needed shade and safety had been allowed to buy their own shade system and safety monitors, with the only government expense being safe and secure installation and occasional safety maintenance? The problem with a government entity hiring a private company is that the private company is always going to do what is best for their profits. Usually that will disallow quality or delivering the right product if the company has agreed to do this for a very low price. If something must be done for the public good, especially where mostly low income people will be served, then that community needs to be involved in both the planning and the payment. Only in this way can they be certain they will not be cheated, because they will be the client. And it is far more likely that a citizen committee could find a local company that would employ local people to build the thing, rather than a faux contractor with bad intentions.
    A corollary of this is the "leetle man with the beeg stamp" problem. Too many citizen initiatives get quashed at the door by the self-important gatekeeper and holder of the stamp. Sometimes that's a blessing, but more often it just seems like a curse.
    A friend who is a licensed physical therapist just related an example. She had offered, at her own expense, to provide injury prevention training to high school athletes and musicians. In spite of being asked to offer this by parents and students, she was turned down on the "it's not necessary" ground by the powers that be.
    The galling irony of this is that for most students it was a necessity, but one which their health insurance, if they had any, would not cover.

    Collapse
    1. Avatar photo
      Ben Connelly

      Great insight. Too often we divide everything into either “business handles it” or “government handles it,” ignoring the efforts of private citizens to come together in philanthropic institutions or civic associations or even informal gatherings to solve problems in their local communities.

      Collapse
  3. JG

    Mr. Lincicome,

    I am a huge fan, but I have one simple request.
    Could you please change the way you do links so that the actual website shows up rather than the mirror site or whatever it is that you use that is often something along the lines of t.co/mgbshdjetc..?

    Collapse
  4. Frank Lee

    "La Sombrita actually serves as a small example of a big problem affecting local, state, and federal policy."

    This is exactly the reason for the appeal for limited government. Too many cooks in the kitchen and the meal is terrible... especially when the cooks are government employees with substandard talent.

    On the "Drink Wine and Spirits at Home". I own a family business that produces beverages in these categories and the reason for the increase in price is that all the increase in everything needed to produce them: grains, fruits, packaging material, labor, energy. And much of that inflation has to do with the Biden Administration policies related to energy and also general business regulations.

    Collapse
  5. Avatar photo
    David Chen

    Me: Sometimes I get tired of my state being a punching bag for Scott.
    My state: I didn't hear no bell.

    Collapse
  6. PShea4496

    Re: Drink Wine and Spirits At Home

    I knew it...thanks for posting the data. Time to refill my "ice ball" molds & open a T. Sowell book. Great article.
    Best,
    Pat
    P.S. - We have our own "train to no where" in Jax, FL.

    Collapse
  7. Avatar photo
    Earl King

    One of the most biggest boondoggles is the High Speed Rail project in CA. The price has skyrocketed, the timeline broken many times. A high speed rail line to two cities nobody, and I mean nobody wants to go to. Modesto and Fresno. Yes, a San Diego to LA to SF rail is proposed. I won’t even say it is not needed or wouldn’t be use. An LA to Vegas line has often been proposed and would likely be very successful. but here is the issue delays cost money. You have lawsuit your way to get the land, the environmental process is mind numbing long and expensive. NIMBY is everywhere. Building in an earthquake zone is expensive. This thing won’t be ridden, won’t make any money...and I doubt at this point the SD to LA to SF line will every be made. Why? because governments add a lot of unnecessary requirements to their projects.

    For example, you could have built the high speed rail line above existing roads or below existing roads limiting the need for eminent domain. Disneyland has a fine monorail system that could of course be bulked up. Prefab structures that could be linked together like legos could have been made. Instead of something simple, government screws it up. It can a decade or more to build a new road....this is insane and folly.

    Collapse
    1. Cantbreakpar

      Hey, I live in Modesto. Everyone wants to come here! 😀

      But a high speed train to get here is absurdity.

      Collapse
      1. Avatar photo
        Earl King

        Other than a relative, nobody is going to Modesto....LOL I go so far back I remember the bracero program with the green buses. The little shacks down closer to Bakersfield where they grow cotton. They never should have gotten rid of that one. We need a worker permit program that matches employers and workers. We wouldn’t need social services. I have a quasi relative...big big farm family. They can sell their water rights to the Irvine Co. in Orange County for more than than farming will make them.

        Many have switched to Almonds due to the getting Labor. I remember Jerry Brown called many in the Valley “luxury crop farmers”. Despite their growing healthy fruits and vegetables. He thought corn and wheat were more noble. The ignorance of CA Democrat politicians surrounding one of the most efficient food producers in the world is deeply saddening and angering. A whole slew of those farmers bought in to Mexico. Of course the land has sunk due to the taking of the aquifer. That would have been mitigated if we use Delta water instead of saving the snail darter.

        I say this with tongue in cheek, have a great summer. LOL I’ve been there in the summer.

        Collapse
        1. Cantbreakpar

          I’ve clocked 49 years here. Not a bad place but has its downsides.

          The actual first leg of Browns bullet train scam will connect Madera and Bakersfield, which is even more absurd than Modesto to Fresno. It’s a boondoggle of the highest magnitude.

          Collapse
          1. Avatar photo
            Earl King

            It’s been unbelievable. On a par with Bostons Big Dig in terms of cost overruns.
            Masers to Bakersfield. Good grief.

            Collapse
  8. Avatar photo
    Jhc

    We should remember what Jonah Goldberg wrote years ago:
    "I’m no libertarian but I think no major government decision should ever be made unless there’s a libertarian in the room explaining to people why he thinks it’s a bad idea. The libertarian won’t always be right, but he’ll be right often enough that he should always be listened to."

    I never expect to see a libertarian majority government, but the Ds and the Rs could maybe save us all a lot of grief if they only followed Goldberg's advice.

    Collapse
    1. Mary Stine

      Yes! Sadly, right now only the libertarians see reality and pragmatism as absolute necessities to good governance. The left is trying to live in the high tech future, while the right is trying to return to the romantic "moral" past.

      Collapse
    2. Andrew W.

      Arguably every significant management decision everywhere should have a "red team" trying to pick holes in it. I'd suspect that less than 5% ever do.

      Collapse
  9. Avatar photo
    Phil

    I'm probably wrong, but wasn't one of the purposes of the Jones Act to subsidize US owned and crewed merchant ships and US commercial shipyards so that there would be some US Merchant Ships available in case of war? The Military Sealift Command has some active and reserve vessels but no where near enough in a full blown war against Chine, Russia or another modern military with submarines and modern missiles.

    Collapse
    1. NYZack

      You've stepped in a hornets' nest. Scott Lincicome (who wrote this piece) has written a ton about why the Jones Act has failed in its goals and caused a lot of other mischief along the way. Very easy to find some of his writings about this.

      Collapse
  10. Michael Westervelt

    Thomas Sowell has a great book on this: "Applied Economics: Thinking Beyond Stage One".

    Also, the incentive structure is not there for politicians to actually make good economic decisions with regards to construction projects.

    They aren't spending their money, so they don't really care about financial returns, and their time horizon for caring about opinion of things only extends to the next election.

    Collapse
Load More