Issue link: http://www.epageflip.net/i/742749
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@ redbluffdailynews.com Fax: 530-527-9251 Mail to: P.O. Box 220, 728Main St., Red Bluff, CA 96080 Facebook: Leave comments at FACEBOOK.COM/ RBDAILYNEWS Twitter: Follow and send tweets to @REDBLUFFNEWS Theysay,"You'vecomea long way, baby." Isn't it funny when one says, "they say," one normally has ab- solutely no idea who "they" is. I guess the only thing for sure is more than one person said it; and what "they" said was worth remembering to the person who said, "they say." But I digress. What I really want to write about is the brand spanking new shiny spit and polished 380,000 square foot Tehama County Courthouse complex that sits at 1740 Walnut Street, smack dab on top of the site that from 1967 to 2001 was home to Curtiss E. Wetter Ju- venile Hall. To be honest, I really can't tell you that much about the new Court complex. Like most of you, all I know is what I read in the newspaper. One might think that a life-long member of this community— who served with humility for 30 years as an officer of the court, with almost 20 years in the really big-deal leadership role as chief probation offi- cer; who is an exceptional ath- lete; who is now the highly re- spected and influential fourth most-read columnist of a highly regarded major news- paper—would be at the top of any guest list worth its salt when it comes to dedicating a brand spanking new spit and polished 380,000 square foot hometown courthouse. Well, one would be wrong. Retirement is a funny thing. If you are worth your salt, your job becomes a part of who you are. After I retired from the county probation department at age 53 — silly me, I thought I was old at 53 — I accepted a position with the California Board of Corrections. I lived and worked in Sacra- mento for five long years. My job came with a great deal of responsibility. I, along with oth- ers, had oversight responsibility for the implementation of train- ing, detention practices and multimillion dollar grant pro- grams within virtually every probation department, sheriff's department and police depart- ment throughout California. I was compensated very well while working for the State of California. While my respon- sibilities were significant, the level of stress attached to that position in no way approached the level of stress that came with running a small county probation department and ju- venile detention center. That said, I saw my time working for the State of California as my re- ward for hanging in there for two decades — at an embarrass- ingly low salary rate, by the way — as this county's chief proba- tion officer. While I enjoyed my stint as a regulator, inspector and over- seer of state-funded programs, I fully realized that, for the most part, that position was my means to transition into full time retirement. Don't get me wrong. My responsibilities at the State were important, and I took my assignment seriously. That aside, I was raised a proba- tion professional, and it had be- come an important part of who I am. Let me tell you why. I, along with my sister and brother, was raised in this com- munity by the best single parent in the entire world. My mother found it necessary to work full time as a maid at the iconic Tremont Hotel. Because hotel maids were not compensated at a level commensurate with their workload, our family, for the time she worked at the Trem- ont, was simply put, poor. It was years later that I realized that in terms of those things that really matter, we might have been the richest family in town. At any rate, being raised by a single mother who worked out- side of the home allowed me freedoms that most traditional family children likely never en- joyed. As a child, there was not a street or alley in Red Bluff that I did not explore. While my mother served as my con- science, I was anything but the perfect kid. While I was too afraid to commit any real crime, I was then, and continue to be today, anything but Mr. Goody Two Shoes. Perhaps that is why I related to my probation clients reasonably well. After graduating from Red Bluff High School in 1963, I at- tended Shasta College and then Chico State, mostly to avoid be- ing drafted and jettisoned off to Vietnam. While at Chico State, some- one informed me that Social Welfare and Corrections was the easiest major in college. That was good enough for me, and in 1968 I graduated with a degree in that impressive sub- ject matter. Two weeks later I interviewed for a position at the Tehama County Probation Department and as they say — that term again — the rest is history. I started out this column in- tending to discuss the brand spanking new shiny spit and polished 380,000 square foot Tehama County Courthouse. As I am wont to do, I have di- gressed and wandered a bit from my intended subject mat- ter. It is my intention in the next few columns to carry on with my meandering thoughts about the corrections system and those involved, from the time I stumbled into the probation de- partment in 1968 through last week's courthouse dedication ceremony. If this sounds like it will be boring to you, let me know— and I will instead consider re- running my column about the wife's summer activity calendar that hangs on the wall by the kitchen stove. ••• Because I am an exceptional athlete, I tend to hang out with other exceptional athletes. Con- gratulations to son Cabe, who, during a round of cocktail golf, recently made a hole-in-one on the tough #3 golf hole at the Al- manor West golf course. ••• Congratulations to good friend Tom Amundson, who re- cently returned from a nation- wide softball tournament held in Las Vegas, as a member of the United States Over-65 Na- tional Slo-Pitch Championship team. ••• Why not honor someone spe- cial in your life by sponsoring a brand new seat at the historic State Theatre? Obtain details at www.statetheatreredbluff.com or by calling 529-2787. 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 Meandering thoughts about corrections Cartoonist's take "I can't take it anymore. This stupid presidential election has turned into a lousy Jerry Springer show." "Ah, yes, you speak of a series of salacious sto- ries about Don- ald Trump, as well as Hillary and Bill Clinton. Story after story is being pub- lished daily. It's cer- tainly getting ugly out there." "You got that right. First we hear a recording of a boorish Trump talking about his weak- ness for beautiful women, and all of a sudden, nine women come out of the woodwork accusing him of groping them. If there is one word I hope to never hear again in a presidential election, 'grop- ing' is it." "I couldn't agree more. It is also disheartening that so many stories about Bill Clinton's peccadilloes keep making the news." "I thought I was burned out on Bill Clinton's alleged extracur- ricular activities when he retired from the White House in January 2001. Now that Hillary is running for president, various news outlets keep reporting his more recent al- leged activities — activities I don't want to know about." "What you say is true. Various gossip rags and other 'legitimate' news outlets are reporting that other women are coming forward, accusing Bill of untoward behav- ior or worse. One young man has come forward, claiming that Bill impregnated his mother, a lady of the night, and that he is Bill's son." "Stop. Please. We have so much at stake in this country. Our debt will soon pass $20 trillion. Entitle- ment spending is about to explode. Economic growth has been horri- ble. ObamaCare has driven insur- ance premiums through the roof for millions of middle-class Ameri- cans and is likely to collapse under its own weight. If we don't address these issues, a world of hurt awaits us. Yet our focus is in the gutter?" "Thenyousurelywon'twantto hearthelatestgossip-ragreporton Hillary.AccordingtotheNational Enquirer,Hillaryhadabagmanset uptrystsbetweenherand-" "Please. God. Stop. Look, one of the great tragedies of our time is that there is so little distinction between the gossip rags and the legitimate news outlets. Whether you like or dislike Trump, it is tragic that our allegedly objective press is clearly in the tank for Hill- ary. It's hard to know whose re- porting to trust anymore." "Your words evoke great sad- ness in me — sadness for our country. As you say, with all the challenges our country faces, why do we let the politicians and the press get us lathered up about var- ious allegations, when so many real issues and challenges are at stake?" "A better question is why do we keep falling for it? All of this 'got- cha' journalism is killing us." "Former Democrat presidential candidate Gary Hart agrees with your assessment. In 1984, every- one expected him to become the Democrat nominee, but his hopes were dashed when The Miami Herald reported his alleged extra- marital affair with a 29-year-old lady, Donna Rice." "I remember that story. It was a turning point in political report- ing in America." "Well, Hart says that as the me- dia have become more intrusive in people's private lives, 'an awful lot of people of quality choose not to seek public office. And that is re- flected in the decline in the caliber and quality of people in public ser- vice, unfortunately.'" "Which means only second-rate candidates like Trump and Hill- ary would have the gumption to put themselves through this cir- cus?" "Exactly. And the combination of our unreliable, gossipy press and second-rate candidates is the reason the presidential elec- tion has turned into a lousy Jerry Springer show." Tom Purcell, author of "Misadventures of a 1970s Childhood" and "Wicked Is the Whiskey," a Sean McClanahan mystery novel, both available at Amazon.com, is a Pittsburgh Tribune-Review humor columnist. Send comments to Tom@TomPurcell.com. Tom Purcell The Jerry Springer election While I was too afraid to commit any real crime, I was then, and continue to be today, anything but Mr. Goody Two Shoes. Perhaps that is why I related to my probation clients reasonably well. While the mainstream me- dia continues its obsessive re- porting on the mud-sling- ing campaign for the White House, a dramatic devel- opment in China last week brought President Obama's "pivot to Asia" to a sudden halt. Philippine president Ro- drigo Duterte, while in Bei- jing, announced his country's "separation" from the United States. He told his Chinese au- dience, "Your honors, in this venue, I announce my separa- tion from the United States ... both in military, but also eco- nomics." The State Department was stunned and asked for a clar- ification. The Philippines has been a virtual US protector- ate since 1898, when it became US property after the Span- ish-American war. Even af- ter gaining independence af- ter World War II it remained a close Cold War ally, hosting US military bases until 1992. Just this spring, as US ten- sions with China were heating up over a Chinese reclamation project in the South China Sea, the US signed a deal to open five military bases on Philip- pine territory. The deal was considered of major impor- tance in an increasingly con- frontational US approach to the region. Suddenly it appeared the deal was off. Was the Phil- ippines about to sever diplo- matic relations with the United States? Shortly after making the statement, the Philippine pres- ident walked back slightly from what appeared a break with the United States. He did not mean total separation, he said, but rather a desire to loosen his country from the firm grip of US foreign policy. But the point had been made. The Philippines was not happy in its current relationship with Washington. President Obama's "pivot to Asia" has turned out not to mean improved trade and dip- lomatic ties with the region, but an aggressive stance to- ward China over, among other issues, the South China Sea. The US has concluded military agreements with Vietnam and the Philippines, and maintains strong military ties with Japan and South Korea. The Philippines has been used as a US cat's paw in South China Sea dispute and Duterte's surprise statement signaled that he felt the rela- tionship was too one-sided. But the tension has been ris- ing and the mood souring for some time. The US State De- partment has been critical of President Duterte's admittedly brutal crackdown on illegal drugs, which has cost perhaps 2,000 or more lives. In August, Secretary of State John Kerry conveyed the US government's concerns. As elsewhere, such condemnation by the US likely seemed hypocritical to the Philippine president, as the US leads the world in prison pop- ulation with a large percentage serving long terms for non-vio- lent drug crimes. Last week a large protest was held in front of the US embassy in Manila in sup- port of the president's move toward a foreign policy inde- pendent from Washington. Demonstrators burned Amer- ican flags and demanded the departure of US troops from their country. Will US-Philippine relations continue to spiral downward? Or will Washington begin to see that its aggressive foreign policy, in Asia and elsewhere, is beginning to alienate allies? Or perhaps the next US admin- istration will decide that a CIA "regime change" is in order for the independent-minded Philip- pine president. A US pivot away from confrontation with China would go a long way toward re- pairing strained relations with the Philippines and beyond. Let's hope that's Washington's next move. Ron Paul is a former Congressman and Presidential candidate. He can be reached at the RonPaulInstitute.org. RON PAUL Obama's pivot to Asia hits a roadblock in the Philippines Bill Cornelius Tom Purcell OPINION » redbluffdailynews.com Wednesday, October 26, 2016 » MORE AT FACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS A4