Issue link: http://www.epageflip.net/i/6877
6A – Daily News – Monday, February 15, 2010 A MediaNews Group newspaper Greg Stevens, Publisher gstevens@redbluffdailynews.com Chip Thompson, Editor editor@redbluffdailynews.com Editorial policy The Daily News opinion is expressed in the editorial. The opinions expressed in columns, letters and cartoons are those of the authors and artists. Letter policy The Daily News welcomes let- ters from its readers on timely topics of public interest. All let- ters must be signed and pro- vide the writer's home street address and home phone num- ber. Anonymous letters, open letters to others, pen names and petition-style letters will not be allowed. Letters should be typed and cannot exceed two double-spaced pages or 500 words. When several letters address the same issue, a cross section of those submit- ted will be considered for publi- cation. Letters will be edited. Letters are published at the discretion of the editor. Mission Statement We believe that a strong com- munity newspaper is essential to a strong community, creating citizens who are better informed and more involved. The Daily News will be the indispensible guide to life and living in Tehama County. We will be the premier provider of local news, information and advertising through our daily newspaper, online edition and other print and Internet vehi- cles. The Daily News will reflect and support the unique identities of Tehama County and its cities; record the history of its com- munities and their people and make a positive difference in the quality of life for the resi- dents and businesses of Tehama County. How to reach us Main office: 527-2151 Classified: 527-2151 Circulation: 527-2151 News tips: 527-2153 Sports: 527-2153 Obituaries: 527-2151 Photo: 527-2153 On the Web www.redbluffdailynews.com Fax Newsroom: 527-9251 Classified: 527-5774 Retail Adv.: 527-5774 Legal Adv.: 527-5774 Business Office: 527-3719 Address 545 Diamond Ave. Red Bluff, CA 96080, or P.O. Box 220 Red Bluff, CA 96080 Opinion It was around 1990, during prime bicycling weather and the prime of my athletic life, for run- ning, biking or swimming. Rural, off-pavement trips being the most rewarding, I rode a marvelous and scenic route, a challenging 26- miler that started and ended at our Breakers complex apartment north of Denny's. From Denny's, it follows Ante- lope to Kaer Avenue to Paynes Creek Road, up Sunriver Drive to Hwy 36 E and the Hog Lake park- ing area. The gravel road goes down to Paynes Creek where, depending on the season, water levels require carrying the bike to the other bank. The gravel road on the other side of the creek then leads to a fork; a left turn goes past the pond and viewing platform and onto the one-lane paved Bend Ferry Road. Numerous turns later, at the inter- section with Jellys Ferry Road, a left leads to I-5. After that, there's no alternative to riding on the free- way shoulder to Wilcox Road, exiting and riding surface streets from Wilcox back to Main Street and then Antelope. Interestingly, at that spot where you cross Paynes Creek, there used to be bridge with a weight rating that allowed permit and loaded trucks to get into and out of Bend, the original Sacramento River bridge having limits. After the new bridge was completed, the Paynes Creek bridge apparently became inconsistent with the BLM plan for the area. I remember earlier bicycle trips included riding across the complete bridge, while later rides had less and less of the bridge to use. There are no longer even pil- ings, if I'm informed correctly. I told you that to tell you this: Were that bridge still standing, it would constitute the ideal alterna- tive for additional visitor traffic into the proposed Bend Recreation Area, requiring little further incon- venience and imposition to the people in Bend. I don't live there and have no personal stake in the matter, but I know people who do and they are literally scared of what it might mean to encourage increased traffic on their roads. As much as I respect the efforts of Mr. Goodwin and his fine work bringing the proposal this far, the Bend traffic would be nearly a non- issue if BLM hadn't torn down a perfectly serviceable bridge that would have allowed visitors an access point other than Bend Ferry Road. Unless the serious issue (to the people living there) of safety and disruption to Bend is remedied – by somehow bypassing the resi- dential streets, or building another bridge over Paynes Creek – the proposal, in my opinion, should be opposed. Many of us remember the humorous caricature of the dirty old man, the lecherous, leering guy who inevitably got pummeled by the Ruth Buzzi character's purse in the 60s and 70s comedy, "Laugh In." In real life, however, the advent of Internet porn and low- ered societal norms have removed all humor from the concept of women being taken advantage of sexually. The so-called sexual revolution, and the any- thing-goes attitude preva- lent in some quarters, has produced devastating consequences, especially to young women. Is not David Letterman the essence of the dirty old man for his crude joke at young Bristol Palin's expense and office affairs with younger subordi- nates? I also hold some prominent women responsible for the possi- bly sick and twisted mes- sages they have sent. Let's start with Whoopi Goldberg's despicable comment, regarding the rape of a drugged and drunk minor by direc- tor Roman Polanski, that "it wasn't rape rape." I don't recall a fraction of the outrage from the feminists that they had for the Focus on the Family commercial that aired dur- ing the Super Bowl – the one that simply praised Tim Tebow's moth- er for her decision to not abort her child. Exhibit B is the irritation dis- played by Oprah Winfrey when she interviewed Bristol Palin over Palin's stated vow to remain celi- bate until marriage, having learned a valuable lesson from her preg- nancy by a young man undeserv- ing of her devotion. Oprah said that she "bristled" upon hearing of Palin's commitment to chastity. Oprah's shock and dis- approval suggested to me that she had a deep aversion to, and disgust with, the very concept of a young woman not indulging her sexuality. I can think of no other reason for this famous and successful woman to express such disapproval than that she, and liberal women like her, derive some vicarious satisfaction from the idea of young women having sex. By sending a message that it's expected for women to be sexually active, Oprah also sent a mes- sage to men that young women should be accepting of their advances. I think that makes Oprah and Whoopi dirty old women, or at least contributors to the irresponsible acts of young women who look up to them. Tea Party Patriots meet tomor- row at 6 p.m. as listed in Local Cal- endar; Corning Tea Party Patriots meet on Thursday at 6 p.m. at the Senior Center, Fourth Avenue and South Sreet. We're still waiting for that apol- ogy from Ms. Bernal. Don Polson has called Red Bluff home since 1988. He can be reached by e-mail at donplsn@yahoo.com. A bridge too far; dirty old women Commentary N EWS D AILY RED BLUFF TEHAMA COUNTY T H E V O I C E O F T E H A M A C O U N T Y S I N C E 1 8 8 5 STATE ASSEMBLYMAN — Jim Nielsen (R), State Capitol Bldg., Room 4164 P.O. Box 942849, Sacramento 94249; (916) 319-2002; Fax (916) 319- 2102 STATE SENATOR — Sam Aanestad (R), State Capitol Bldg., Room 2054, Sacramento, CA 95814. (916) 651-4004; Fax (916) 445-7750 GOVERNOR — Arnold Schwarzenegger (R), State Capitol Bldg., Sacramento, CA 95814; (916) 445-2841; Fax (916) 558-3160; E-mail: gover- nor@governor.ca.gov. U.S. REPRESENTATIVE — Wally Herger (R), 2635 Forest Ave. Ste. 100, Chico, CA 95928; 893-8363. U.S. SENATORS — Dianne Feinstein (D), One Post Street, Suite 2450, San Francisco, CA 94104; (415) 393-0707. Fax (415) 393-0710. Barbara Boxer (D), 1700 Montgomery St., Suite 240, San Francisco, CA 94111; (415) 403- 0100. Fax (202) 224-0454. Your officials Don Polson The way I see it The proposed expansion of the local Walmart to Supercenter sta- tus has once again been delayed by a lawsuit claiming deficiencies in the environmental impact assess- ment conducted as required by the city of Red Bluff, particularly with regard to added traffic, noise, and hydrocarbon emissions. These are only a few showstop- pers out of a long list of concerns with expansion of the largest cor- poration in the world that for the fiscal year ending Jan. 31, 2009, reported a net income of $13.6 bil- lion on $404 billion of revenue. Walmart Supercenters are hypermarkets with size varying from 98,000 square feet to 261,000 square feet, with an aver- age of about 197,000 square feet. These stock everything a Walmart Discount Store does, and also include a full-service supermarket, including meat and poultry, baked goods, delicatessen, frozen foods, dairy products, garden produce and fresh seafood. As of Decem- ber 2009, there were 2,737 Super- centers in the United States. Walmart has been criticized by some community groups, women's rights groups, grassroots organizations and labor unions, specifically for its extensive for- eign product sourcing, low wages, low rates of employee health insurance enrollment, resistance to union representation, sexism and management efforts to pressure employees to vote for specific par- ties during national elections. Conversely, others point out that Walmart's rapid growth and logistical efficiency has enabled it to bring lower prices to consumers and jobs to the communities in which it operates. In the past, Walmart has been accused of locking night-shift workers in at night, paying employees below minimum wage and exposing employees to health hazards. Walmart's own "Stan- dards for Suppliers" reports docu- ment extensive problems of this kind among the company's "direct- ly-sourced" factories. Full-time employees earn an average of $10.78 per hour, but critics point out that the starting pay can be far lower — placing some employees with children below the poverty line — and that pay rates do not rise as quickly as with unionized companies. Other grievances regard poor working conditions, limited bene- fits, unfavorable employer- employee relationships and anti- union policies. Many suggest that Walmart's high annual turnover rate of 70 percent shows that workers are dissatisfied and mal- treated. Walmart has opposed the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA), which would make it eas- ier for workers to unionize by removing the employer's ability to demand a secret ballot in union elections, and which would require mandatory arbitration of labor disputes. In mid-2008, the company required store managers and depart- ment heads to attend meetings at which oppo- sition to the EFCA was used as a fulcrum for criticism of Democratic candidates in the elec- tions for the US Senate and the House of Repre- sentatives, as well as of the Democratic Presi- dential nominee, Sen. Barack Obama. At these meetings, Walmart human resources man- agers warned that Demo- cratic victories might result in passage of the EFCA, hence more unionization. The city of Chico has put a stop to a Supercenter expansion based primarily upon the fact that it would likely force one or more of the existing grocery stores to close due to the competitive pressures in an already saturated food sales marketplace. They argued that additional Walmart associates would supplant higher paid employees of other grocers, caus- ing a net loss of jobs and employ- ment income. Walmart is already the only major retailer in Red Bluff offering clothing, toys, home entertainment products, fabrics or household items. Now it wishes to expand to capture the retail food sales market as well. With its massive size, Wal- mart can afford to use loss-leaders at particu- lar stores to take busi- ness away from com- petitors, ultimately forcing marginal local enterprises to close. Should this happen, the people of Tehama County could be left with fewer jobs, more limited product choic- es and less competi- tion to keep Walmart pricing and marketing practices in check. While I am attracted to the prospects of a shiny new store, the associated construction activity and the low prices offered by the proposed Walmart expansion, I think the negative impacts of increasing this huge corporation's hold over our local marketplace, its relatively poor treatment of employees and this project's adverse impact on neighbors will not serve the best interests of the people of Red Bluff and Tehama County in the long-run. Richard Mazzucchi can be reached at living-green@att.net. Walmart woes or whoa Richard Mazzucchi Positive Point