Down the coast with Dana Parsons

Should we be outraged that Anaheim city officials have access to such cushy perks as free tickets to the Angels’ upcoming league playoff series?

You bet.

Am I?

Nah. Jealous? Maybe.

But for reasons that may not stand a “consistency” test, I’m much more put out that members of the Orange County Fair Board get freebies to its shows. It just seems to me that Anaheim council members do a lot more for their perks than Fair Board members do for theirs.

Whatever. The thing is, the state Fair Political Practices Commission is likely to change the rules on free tickets for public officials in California. It wouldn’t ban them, but would require they be reported as “gifts” or “income” unless it could be shown how the official’s attendance at the event served a public or governmental purpose.

Off the top of my head, I can’t figure how getting a free ticket to the World Series serves the public, but perhaps creative minds at City Hall could.

Anaheim is arguing against the change, saying potential conflict-of-interest issues could arise that might gum up future council votes. Suspicious minds also know the Angels are playoff-bound and who knows, might win the whole darn thing at Angels Stadium. Who wouldn’t want to watch all that for free?

The 20 or so tickets available for Angels home games are legitimate perks, according to City Atty. Jack White. But he was taken aback when informed that 15 former nuns in a Montebello retirement home had signed a form letter referring to the practice as immoral and unethical and asking that the “pillaging” be stopped.

“Pillaging, oh, my,” White said Wednesday. “OK, we have a difference of opinion.”

White said the city is on firm legal footing against the commission, but noted: “If they’ve got God on their side, then that worries me.”