Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/104469
4A Daily News – Saturday, January 19, 2013 Opinion DAILY NEWS RED BLUFF TEHAMA COUNTY T H E V O I C E O F T E H A M A C O U NTY S I N C E 1 8 8 5 Greg Stevens, Publisher gstevens@redbluffdailynews.com Chip Thompson, Editor editor@redbluffdailynews.com An illegal tax Editor: I would like to express my appreciation to our fire-fighters. The Cal-fire crews and those crews that are outside contractors. These crews do their best to halt and contain minor and major fires. I'm speaking about those on the lines. The Grunts. Not those in the rear with the gear. The ones that do the hot tiring, dirty thirsty work, sometimes frightened, sometimes brave, but they are the ones on the lines. Thank you. For all the effort given by these grunts, there are the others who are in rear with gear. The administrators, the people whose office's stand to gain by the Cal-Fire fee. This fee was voted and passed by our legislators in 2011. Passed without any viable information and no explanation to the 850,000 to 1,000,000 home owners that this fee affects. This is being called a fire prevention fee not a tax, apples and oranges as I see it. This vent fires while sitting at their $150 dollar fee pertains to every desks. This fee money is habitable dwelling in going to either enlarge rural California, not the existing bureaucrathe cites. If your habitYour cy or create a new one. able dwelling is one Neither with any tenth of one mile or accountability. What is fifth miles from a city to stop Cal-Fire from limit, you will pay. All well and good, if this increasing this fee once it is in money was actually going for place. This is nothing more than an fire prevention — can't prevent a lightning strike — I for one illegal tax. If it looks like a would like to know how the duck... Joseph Ostrowski, Red administrators, and there is a pile of them, are going to pre- Bluff Turn Your officials 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. STATE ASSEMBLYMAN — Dan Logue, 1550 Humboldt Road, Ste. 4, Chico, CA 95928, 530-895-4217 STATE SENATOR — Jim Nielsen, 280 Hemsted Dr., Ste. 110, Redding, CA 96002, 530223-6300, Fax: 530-223-6737, senator.nielsen@senate.ca.gov GOVERNOR — Jerry Brown, State Capitol Bldg., Sacramento, CA 95814; (916) 445-2841; Fax (916) 5583160; E-mail: governor@governor.ca.gov. U.S. REPRESENTATIVE — Doug LaMalfa 506 Cannon House Office Building, Washington, DC 20515, 202-2253076. U.S. SENATORS — Dianne Feinstein (D), One Post Street, Suite 2450, San Francisco, CA 94104; (415) 393-0707. Fax (415) 3930710. Barbara Boxer (D), 1700 Montgomery St., Suite 240, San Francisco, CA 94111; (510) 286-8537. Fax (202) 224-0454. Letter policy The Daily News welcomes letters from its readers on timely topics of public interest. All 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 cannot exceed two double-spaced pages or 500 words. When several letters address the same issue, a cross section of those submitted will be considered for publication. Letters will be edited. Letters are published at the discretion of the editor. Mission Statement We believe that a strong community 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 vehicles. The Daily News will reflect and support the unique identities of Tehama County and its cities; record the history of its communities and their people and make a positive difference in the quality of life for the residents 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 Commentary Finding a new tone about Newtown Editor's note: This is the second in a three-part series. In last week's commentary I wrote of my concern that the simple solution approach to preventing Newtown like events preclude an in depth discussion about the issues involved. I wrote a little about some of the reactions, and the debate over the Second Amendment. This week I will write some more about gun issues. The Assault Weapons "Ban" In spite of the vigorous opposition by the NRA, there was an assault weapons ban passed by Congress in 1994. That law was designed to last only ten years. Some might chortle that Congress, in its inestimable wisdom, thought the need to restrict assault weapons would miraculously disappear after a decade. Others might think that our Congressional Representatives figured that they would need to replenish their treasure chest from special interest groups about the time the law would expire. Or, others still might comment that Congress may have been kicking the proverbial can down the road again. Go figure! The assault weapons ban did expire on schedule in 2004, and little seems to have been done to reinstate it, except verbally at tragic times like this. Unfortunately "times like these" happen more frequently than we would like. That expired law only applied to defined assault weapons manufactured after the date of the bill's signing, September 13, 1994. Apparently those which were manufactured before that date were considered okay for each of us to have. There were various criteria about what constituted an assault weapon; one included clips that could hold more than ten rounds. Whether that ten year ban was successful is subject to various interpretations, but, from my point of view, it was a half hearted and cosmetic attempt to satisfy some constituencies. In a recent radio interview with a gun control specialist who has dedicated much effort and time to study the issue, that expert could not determine if the weapon used in Newtown would have been banned under the expired federal assault weapons ban, even though the children had been shot multiple times. There were too many technicalities about the weapon that needed to be examined. That expert seemed to be saying that there is no duck test for an assault weapon; you cannot simply say that if it shoots and kills like an assault weapon it is an assault weapon. Of course if the weapon had been manufactured before September 13, 1994 it wouldn't matter. That expert's analysis reinforced my feelings about the cosmetic nature of the Assault Weapons Ban. Was the assault weapons ban effective? There is no agreement about whether the Assault Weapons [AWs] Ban was effective. Data have been inconclusive. That fact has not prevented many to make judgments about the law's effectiveness, however. A study by the University of Pennsylvania stated: "Following implementation of the ban, the share of gun crimes involving AWs declined by 17% to 72% across the localities examined for this study (Baltimore, Miami, Milwaukee, Boston, St. Louis, and Anchorage), based on data covering all or portions of the 1995-2003 post-ban period. This is consistent with patterns found in national data on guns recovered by police and reported to ATF." The study went on to say: "The decline in the use of AWs has been due primarily to a reduction in the use of assault pistols (APs), which are used in crime more commonly than assault rifles (ARs). There has not been a clear decline in the use of ARs, though assessments are complicated by the rarity of crimes with these weapons and by substitution of post-ban rifles that are very similar to the banned AR models." "However, the decline in AW use was offset throughout at least the late 1990s by steady or rising use of other guns equipped with LCMs [large capacity magazines] in jurisdictions studied (Baltimore, Milwaukee, Louisville, and Anchorage). The failure to reduce LCM use has likely been due to the immense stock of costs of summer school or exempted pre-ban magazines, extended day programs.) Just imagine the disproporwhich has been enhanced by tionate budgetary cost of arming recent imports." such small schools as That conclusion is Manton, Plum Valley, probably related to the and Mineral. Other growing concern about practical questions pop more control of large up: Should larger capacity magazines. schools have more Armed Guards in than one guard? Schools? Should guards attend It is a sad commenall school events like tary on our times that traveling sports events, we live in a country field trips, and dances? where our young Should attendees to school children have to major school events, practice lock down Joe like football games or procedures. I rememgraduation, go through ber during the Cold metal detectors, preWar when we had to sent identification, spend time in the etc? Should entrances school hallways, supand exits be more posedly keeping sheltered from Russian bombs. We restricted? Assuming the large number did not have the sound of explosions or the clamor of headlines of school guards, there would about school bombings to con- need to be the creation of new tend with, and we found simple bureaucracies to assure proper things to do while we passed training, registration, standardtime in the hallways. Children ization of weaponry and prototoday may not be so sheltered. cols, and renewal of carry perThe media does not discriminate mits for school guards. The against children who listen or source of funding for that is a read; all our dirty laundry is out problem as well. Should the there, and it is difficult for par- guards be paid from new funding sources, or should money be ents to shelter children. Now, of course, the NRA is taken from education programs pressing for armed guards in to pay the guards? Should we every school at a time when our increase taxes to pay for this states, cities, and counties can- newfound safety? If the NRA's not even afford fully staffed law proposal is to be taken seriously enforcement agencies to deal many details would have to be with crime, when probation ironed out. Another proposal is to arm departments are overwhelmed, and, in California, when we are teachers even though it was also trying to cope with the not all that long ago that corredistribution of the inmate pop- poral punishment was banned ulation. There is also the serious in our public schools. Deterconcern about adequate educa- mining which teachers in each school are qualified to be tional funding in California. The NRA's rationale is deter- armed could be a thorny probrence; deterrence does not seem lem. Will mental health tests to work against irrational acts, if be developed to qualify teachers for carrying arms? What homicide statistics mean much. At last count there were over about the teachers who are 9,000 public schools in Califor- already fully qualified accordnia. Even paying the armed ing to state standards? How guards just $10 per hour, it will we be sure they are would cost Californians about trained properly? What will $120 million in wages alone if we pay them? Etc. To be continued. each school had one eight hour armed guard; of course, payroll Joe Harrop is a retired taxes, retirement plan costs, and most likely, benefits, would have educator with more than 30 to be added to that total, proba- years of service to the North bly bringing it to closer to $180 State. He can be reached at million. (I did not calculate the DrJoeHarrop@sbcglobal.net. Harrop