The Shredder Story

When bloggers sit around the blogger campfire, one tale about Phil Angelides inevitably makes its way into the hushed blogger conversation. Some say it's a myth, too incredible to be true. Some claim they saw it with their own eyes. Others contend a great spirit carried the story on the winds, only to watch it vanish in a flash of fire.

But today folks, The Shredder Story can be told. Many people know that Angelides, the candidate for California governor, tends toward micro-managing his office. So much so, in fact, that staff members have quit in frustration. But few people know that Angelides once personally supervised the purchase of an office shredder -- from a remote location. But there is more. According to Jordan Rau's profile of Angelides:

"Since January, Angelides has shed half a dozen high-level political consultants, several of whom said privately that they were driven away by the candidate's overbearing control. Once, when staffers were choosing a shredder for the office, two sources said, Angelides — then traveling on the East Coast — insisted that aides express mail him samples of minced paper to make sure they were sufficiently pulverized." (emphasis added)

OK, so Angelides didn't murder anyone. But as anecdotes go, it sure satisfies.

(Photo: Robert Salladay / LAT)