Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/136564
6A Daily News – Thursday, June 13, 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 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 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 Sober Grad says thank you Editor: The Corning High Parents Club as well as the CUHS class of 2013 would like to thank everyone who helped make the 2013 Sober Grad Night event a huge success. Congratulations graduates. Thank you to the parents and all of our sponsors. Shondon Gregg, Corning Tea Party Editor: On May 16 Sharon Young's letter to the editor was slamming the Tea Party for using a 501(c)(4) status. I would like to extend an invitation to Sharon Young and anyone else that feels the same, come to a Tea Party meeting . The Tehama County Patriots meeting every Tuesday night at the Westside Grange Hall 20794 Walnut St., 6 p.m. The Corning Patriots meet every Thursday night at the Corning Senior Center 1015 4th Ave. at 6 p.m. No one in the Tea Party is getting paid. The majority of the money we bring in by donations from our patriots goes to pay for the use of the buildings we hold our meetings in and liability insurance. The Corning Patriots purchased signs to put along I-5 last year before the election. Those signs did not endorse or promote any candidates in any elections. We do not give money or make phone calls for any candidates. We invite all candidates to come speak at our meetings before elections, not all of them accept the invitations. We have been purchasing pocket Constitutions and printing educational flyers on the current legislation, health care, new taxes and our national debt. We give these away free of charge. Patty Smith, Paskenta Be creative Editor: The time was right to create a surge in law enforcement. Where have I heard that? This will keep us moving forward. Have I heard that before? Next is the "Mission Accomplished" banner. Please, chief, be creative. Sam Collins, Red Bluff Grab bag Editor: Let's talk about some things. Mostly from Polson's commentary. A train from Redding to the coast. Maybe. Amtrak from San Diego to the Canadian border? A better idea. A much better idea than the bullet train from LA to Sac proposed by our illustrated Governor. Every day get middle income Democrats. I see a bus on 99E with an We all know that. Good Lord. Oh my God, now I've mixed Amtrak sign in the window. church and state in the same What's that? Wolves. Ah yes. Beautiful sentence. Polson does serve one puranimals in their native habitat. But — we need to control the pose. He sure gets my blood population. Letting them run boiling when I can get through wild when they were ten million his whole column. Fred Boest, Red bison on the plains Bluff was one thing but letYour ting them propagate at will to the determent of the elk, deer and livestock isn't just wrong, it's stupid. I Editor: knew some sheep men and they The president is to be always let it be known if they saw a predator, coyote, puma or applauded on signing the act the neighbor's dog near their into law. His critics and many of flock they shot it. Period. I think his supporters call it Obamacare. it's still a good rule. Now, while congratulations Three, four people killed in are in order, we all must realize the Benghazi incident? Horrible. Stack it up against the thou- that the act in and of itself is not sands that died because of the new. It was first introduced weapons of mass destruction we under the most conservative "knew" were in Iraq. Denial a president to be seated in the criminal activity? Not like cov- White House — Herbert ering up a felony as in the Hoover. It was then introduced by Watergate. Perhaps some errors every succeeding president. in judgment, or possibly the While it may seem proper to total disrespect of our embassy assign responsibility to one by a foreign government, but impeachment? That requires the individual, credit to one individcommission of a felony first of ual, it must be remembered that all and none has been put for- it was through the preceding efforts that brought it to concluward. And finally, the "targeting of sion. So I again, Mr. President, the Tea Party Patriots and other wish to say thank you for bringconservative groups" by the IRS. Definitely an abomination. ing a noble effort to fruition. Robert Hogan, Red Bluff The IRS is only supposed to tar- Affordable health care Turn Your officials STATE ASSEMBLYMAN — Dan Logue, 1550 Humboldt Road, Ste. 4, Chico, CA 95928, 530-895-4217 STATE SENATOR — Jim Nielsen, 2635 Forest Ave., Ste. 110, Chico, CA 95928, (530) 879-7424, 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. Commentary Tom and Ray show After receiving whatever approval or authorization they were hoping for department heads trickled out one-by-one as they always do Tuesday at the Tehama County Board of Supervisors meeting. As the meeting neared an end just two people remained in the 100-plus chairs facing the dais — this faithful reporter and Tom Mohler. Granted the end of the agenda wasn't filled with the most pressing of affairs, with items such as awarding a backup oil service and approving continued membership in the National Association of Counties. Still, I couldn't help but ponder how a county of 63,000 residents was being represented solely by Tom. That's not a knock on Tom. Outside of a brief one-month self-imposed sabbatical from public meetings, Tom attends every board meeting from start to finish with a stack of papers in his lap so large it would knock over a small child. He has enough passion in his political beliefs that it could be divided between the 63,000 people in the county and still leave enough behind for Tom to easily fill his allotted three minutes of public comment time each meeting.. But in the end he is just Tom. The Board of Supervisors meetings are held Tuesday mornings at 10 a.m. The reason department heads scurry back to their offices is the same reason the meetings are lightly attended — it's the middle of the workweek after all. They'll never draw that large of a crowd unless there is a pressing issue. Thankfully the 63,000 have Tom . Red Bluff City Council meetings are held at 7 p.m. every other Tuesday. Similar to the supervisors', council meeting attendance swells on hot-button issues., but despite its time advantage it's usually as lightly attended. Police and fire staff make a point to trickle in-and-out of meetings. Fire Department Administrative Assistant Sherryl Arend even attends every meeting start to finish. So does resident Raymond Eliggi. He was recently named to the Parks and Recreation Commission, but he would be at the City Council meetings anyway. I have no idea what Ray's political beliefs are. He doesn't wear them on his sleeve as Tom does. I do know last year Ray took it upon himself to clean up the area of Breckendridge and Main streets. He did it because no one else had done it. I tend to think that's why he attends council meetings as well — one of the city's 14,000 resi- in Tehama County. There used to be a time when dents probably should. public meetings were Tehama County the only time those isn't alone in its recent opinions could be apathy toward local heard. Residents used government. their meetings to give The San Francisco voice to concerns and Chronicle reported this make their towns betweek that the city of ter before things went Vallejo allowed all resbad. idents over the age of That's not the case 16 to vote on how $3.2 anymore. million of its budget Technology has not would be spent. only led people to be Residents were more informed than allowed to pick Rich they were in yesterbetween 33 projects year, it's also granted that included such them more forums to things as pot hole express their opinions. repairs, community Like the saying about opingardens and small business ions goes, everyone's got one. training. Over time the desire for peoWhile the story focused on the uniqueness of the budget ple to share their opinions hasdecisions, I was drawn to some- n't changed, only the way they can. thing else. Outside of Tom and Ray it Of the 116,000 residents who could vote, only around 4,000 can be hard to find the public's did despite voting opportunities opinion at meetings these days. Granted you can find them everywhere across town from all across Facebook, Twitter and libraries to supermarkets. According to my calculator, the bottom of news stories about that's just 3.4 percent of resi- events that have already hapdents who bothered to weigh in pened, but when they're found how $3.2 million should be there after the fact — that's when they lose all their worth. spent. The other 112,000 residents Rich Greene can be likely have an opinion of how the money should be spent, reached at 527-2151, Ext. 109 by email at much like the 63,000 here or minus Tom and Ray likely have rgreene@redbluffdailynews.c opinions about what's going on om. Greene