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# Columnist needs to hug a tree
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/columnist-needs-to-hug-a-tree-editor/
- Published: 2008-01-11T16:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-24T17:53:56.000Z
- Author: Guest Author
- Tags: Opinion, Santa Monica, #archive-import

*By Cecilia Rosenthal Santa Monica*

It is always with a feeling of distaste that I face reading (Bill) Bauer’s columns. But I must read them, because I want to learn what he has against ficus trees. He only writes nasty things about the Treesavers, not the trees.

I suggest he try to know some of us before getting any nastier. To do this, he would have to skip his dinner, give up an evening or several hours on a weekend, in order to meet us. (Can you imagine anyone doing this to get his name in a newspaper, Mr. Bauer?) I, for example, first learned the importance of trees in the early ’50s, when we owned a pine grove. On the hottest, most humid days, it was the only place to be comfortably cool. It became a haven for all the neighborhood children, to the delight of my son, the host. It also was home to all kinds of birds, including a fascinating owl and a magnificent family of cardinals. Now, like the other Treesavers, I have learned how necessary they are for a healthy future.

I would also like to chide Bauer on his choice of a Sammy for (Councilman Kevin) McKeown — only an acknowledgment of loss of weight for the one coun-cilmember who listens to the people and votes for the people! For shame, Mr. Bauer!

I also think that Bauer deserved a Sammy. Is there anyone out there who can suggest an appropriate one? The only one that comes to my mind immediately is “Treesaver Hater” Sammy!

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on January 11, 2008.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/011108.pdf?ref=smdp.com)