Issue link: http://www.epageflip.net/i/488902
GregStevens,Publisher Chip Thompson, Editor EDITORIALBOARD How to have your say: Letters must be signed and provide the writer's home street address and home phone number. Anonymous letters, open letters to others, pen names and petition-style letters will not be allowed. Letters should be typed and no more than two double-spaced pages or 500words. When several letters address the same issue, a cross section will be published. Email: editor@red bluffdailynews.com Fax: 530-527-9251 Mail to: P.O. Box 220, 545 Diamond Ave., Red Bluff, CA 96080 Facebook: Leave comments at FACEBOOK.COM/ RBDAILYNEWS Twitter: Follow and send tweets to @REDBLUFFNEWS Talktoanyofthe couple dozen read- ers with lives so bor- ing that they actually read my column from beginning to end and they will tell you that for the most part the State Theatre appears to be flourishing. While these folks are mostly correct, I would be less than honest if I reported that all is perfect at the State. Five years ago a decision was made to purchase, restore and operate the theater. Today, thanks to the support from an amazing community, we own the the- ater. One look at both its exte- rior and interior will tell you that restoration is proceeding nicely. While the number of con- certs and attendance increases each year, it is a challenge to get folks out of their Barcalo- ungers to attend these en- tertaining events. For exam- ple, this past Friday the Ro- tary Club of Red Bluff brought to the Haleakala stage the ex- tremely talented High Street Band. The couple hundred folks who attended the con- cert were dancing in the isles and I believe the vast major- ity would tell you that if you failed to attend, you missed a special evening, indeed. Back to State Theatre his- tory: with the beginning of cal- endar year 2010 came a sig- nificant decision by the ST- FTA Board of Directors that will hopefully ensure the fu- ture of this wonderful commu- nity treasure for future gener- ations. At that time the board was comprised of Venita Phil- brick, Ken Brown, Linda Mc- Cay, Maggie Murray, Michael Graves, Jeri Hamlin, Fran Galantine, Bob Brainerd, Chris- tine Wyman, Michelle Carlson, Carol Wood and Leah Gott. While these hard-working members of the community had for over a decade done an amazing job of providing a performing arts venue for the community, they came to un- derstand that building their product and restoring the the- ater was impractical without ownership of the building it- self. While making the diffi- cult decision that the State Theatre for the Arts would not renew its rental agreement with private ownership, they also made a decision to inves- tigate the seemingly unlikely idea that, with support from the community, STFTA might actually purchase the historic State Theatre. In early 2010, long-time friend and then STFTA Trea- surer Bob Brainerd asked if I would be willing to assemble a community steering commit- tee to investigate the possibil- ity that STFTA could realisti- cally buy, restore and operate the State Theatre. Because I am always interested in personal attention, adulation and positive acknowl- edgment, I quickly ac- cepted the assignment. It was my thought that the group would likely meet three or four times and then come to the logi- cal conclusion that buying a 60-year-old theater in the mid- dle of the worst economic re- cession since the great depres- sion was ludicrous at best. I assumed that in no time at all I would be back on the golf course where I have spent countless hours perfecting the perfect golf swing, which inci- dentally, is admired by most if not all who have seen me play. Boy, was I wrong. At that initial meeting there were also two retired superin- tendents of the Tehama County Department of Education. Those who knew the late Dr. Marvin Locke know that not only was he one of the most in- telligent men in this commu- nity, he was also a gentleman of the highest order. Between you and me, the other superin- tendent, Bob Douglas, does not appear to be as intelligent, nor is he quite the gentleman that Marv was, but I am very much aware that he is both smarter and a better citizen than I, so I listened closely when either had something to say. In early March, 2010, Mr. Brainerd, Mr. Locke, Mr. Douglas and I began com- piling a list of stakeholders within the community who might logically have an inter- est in the future of the State Theatre. Our list was very di- verse, to say the least. Partic- ipating in the process were educators, business peo- ple, bankers, engineers, sym- phony conductors, newspaper editors, saints, sinners, right wing nut jobs, bleeding heart liberals, soccer moms, really old people, really young peo- ple, Rotarians and even a cou- ple of dreaded Kiwanians. This unlikely group of soul- mates met every single Thurs- day for the entirety of calen- dar year 2010 doing due dili- gence regarding the potential and advisability of purchasing the State Theatre. Because of arbitrary and capricious word count limits placed on me by Mr. Big Deal Editor, due diligence results will be included in a future column. ••• Coming attractions include the April 10 Heritage Film Festi- val, presented by Shasta College. BillCorneliusisalifelong resident of Red Bluff, a retired Chief Probation Officer, a champion of the State Theatre and an exceptional athlete. He can be reached at bill. cornelius@sbcglobal.net. William tells More recent history of the State Theatre Cartoonist's take A responsible financial in- stitution would not extend a new loan of between $17 and $40 billion to a borrower al- ready struggling to pay back an existing multi-billion dollar loan. Yet that is just what the International Monetary Fund (IMF) did last month when it extended a new loan to the government of Ukraine. This new loan may not make much economic sense, but propping up the existing Ukrainian gov- ernment serves the foreign policy agenda of the U.S. gov- ernment. Since the IMF receives most of its funding from the United States, it is hardly surpris- ing that it would tailor its ac- tions to advance the U.S. gov- ernment's foreign policy goals. The IMF also has a history of using the funds provided to it by the American taxpayer to prop up dictatorial regimes and support unsound economic policies. Some may claim the IMF does promote free markets by requir- ing that countries receiving IMF loans implement some positive economic reforms, such as re- ducing government spending. However, other conditions im- posed by the IMF, such as that the country receiving the loan deflate its currency and imple- ment an industrial policy pro- moting exports, do not seem de- signed to promote a true free market, much less improve the people's living standards by giv- ing them greater economic op- portunities. The problem with the IMF cannot be fixed by changing the conditions attached to IMF loans. The fundamental problem with the IMF is that it is funded by resources taken forcibly from the private sector. By taking re- sources out of private hands and giving them to IMF bureaucrats, government distorts the mar- ketplace, harming both Ameri- can taxpayers and the citizens of the countries receiving the IMF loans. The idea that the IMF is somehow better able to allo- cate capital than are private in- vestors is just as flawed as every other form of central planning. The IMF must be repealed, not reformed. The IMF is not the only U.S. institution that manipulates the global economy. Over the past several years, a mysteri- ous buyer, identified only as "Belgium," so named because the buyer acts through a Bel- gian-domiciled account, has be- come the third-largest holder of Treasury securities. Bel- gium's large purchases always occur at opportune times for the U.S. government, such as when a foreign country sells a large amount of Treasuries. "Belgium" also made large pur- chases in the months just af- ter the Fed launched the quan- titative easing program. While there is no evidence this buyer is working directly with the U.S. government, the timing of these purchases does raise sus- picions. It is not out of the realm of possibility that the Federal Re- serve is involved in these pur- chases. The limited audit of the Federal Reserve's actions during the financial crisis that was au- thorized by the Dodd-Frank Act revealed that the Fed actively in- tervenes in global markets. What other deals with for- eign governments is the Fed making? Is the Fed, like the IMF, working to bail out Greece and other EU countries? Is the Fed working secretly to aid U.S. foreign policy as it did in the early 1980s, when it financed loans to then-US ally Saddam Hussein? The lack of transpar- ency about the Fed's dealings with overseas central banks and foreign governments is one more reason why Congress needs to pass the audit the fed bill. By taking money from American taxpayers to sup- port economically weak and oftentimes corrupt govern- ments, the IMF distorts the market, enriches corrupt gov- ernments, and harms both the American taxpayer and the residents of the counties re- ceiving IMF "aid." It is past time to end the IMF along with all instruments of Amer- ican interventionist foreign policy. Ron Paul is a former Congressman and Presidential candidate. He can be reached at VoicesofLiberty.com. Ron Paul Repeal, don't reform the IMF Another view "America and the West have a historic op- portunity to negotiate a nuclear agreement that will promote peace in the Middle East and the world. It will give your country, Iran, a brighter future. What do you say to that?" "Death to America!" "Some of us in America un- derstand why you're a lit- tle sore. Thirteen years of eco- nomic sanctions have crippled your oil exports and devastated your economy. Are you finally ready to cut a deal to get those sanctions eased?" "May your sewage pipes run slower than Iranian oil!" "Look, you have to ad- mit, your country's leaders have done a poor job honor- ing their past promises. They have flouted many resolutions. They don't appear to be sincere in their negotiations and have only cut deals to buy them- selves time — time, many intel- ligence experts fear, that will allow them to advance the de- velopment of a nuke!" "May the flatulence of a thou- sand camels linger over your bedroom window!" "Everyone knows you have funded terrorism that has tar- geted U.S. troops and American allies for more than 30 years — you continue to maim or kill U.S. servicemen and women in Iraq and elsewhere." "May a camel-intestine hose go up your nose!" "Some in America say it's a fool's errand to even try to ne- gotiate with Iran's leaders — that President Obama is desper- ate for a deal to shore up his failing foreign policy. You've got to admit, he left quite a void by pull- ing out of Iraq — ISIS wasn't as much of a 'jay- vee' team as he said it was. And his swap of Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl, an al- leged deserter, for five terrorists sure doesn't validate his creden- tials as a negotiator. So, yeah, his administration appears to be eager for a deal! " "May a million cockroaches visit you for Sunday supper!" "Look, the sanctions have been in place to inconvenience your people, so they will pres- sure the hard-liners running your country to give up all am- bitions for a nuclear bomb — but we still fear your country is developing a nuke." "May a thousand crows leave droppings on your fedora!" "Sure, your leaders insist they only want to enrich ura- nium to produce energy and for medical and research purposes, but much of the world fears you will use the process to eventu- ally produce the fissile core of a nuclear warhead. Besides, if you really do just want to use your civilian nuclear program to produce energy, we can ship you the uranium you need." "May a flock of overweight pigeons collapse your roof while you sleep!" "All we want is for your coun- try to scale down your civilian nuclear program and allow rig- orous inspections — so we can make sure you aren't secretly using your centrifuges to make bomb-grade uranium." "May your mother be fitted for the boots of an army cadet!" "You've got to admit, if Iran gets a nuke, things will really go haywire in the Middle East. Goodness knows what some of your hard-liners might do with that kind of power. An arms race would get ugly. The whole world would be put at risk." "May an angry camel spit in your morning coffee!" "That's why the U.S. and our five negotiating partners — Britain, China, France, Ger- many and Russia — have been trying to cut a deal with Iran." "May Shamu the Killer Whale soil your living room carpet!" "True, there is lots of disa- greement with the approach Obama has taken. Some ar- gue his eagerness for a deal will essentially give Iran cover as it continues to flout more resolutions. It's also true that a proper treaty requires the blessing of the U.S. Senate, but Obama is pursuing this deal solo. Nonetheless, we are where we are. Despite many loose ends, my country's lead- ership is determined to cut a deal with your country. So what do you say?" "Death to America." "Great! We'll send over the paperwork!" Tom Purcell, author of "Misadventures of a 1970s Childhood" and "Comical Sense: A Lone Humorist Takes on a World Gone Nutty!" is a Pittsburgh Tribune-Review humor columnist. Send comments to Tom at Purcell@ caglecartoons.com. Reasoning with Iran Tom Purcell Bill Cornelius OPINION » redbluffdailynews.com Wednesday, April 1, 2015 » MORE AT FACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS A6