Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/208653
4A Daily News – Saturday, November 9, 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. 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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 Time for council to represent The recent makeup of the Red Bluff City Council has often shown its willingness to protect public safety through its support of the police department, despite the city's persistent fiscal woes. Yet, when it comes to public health the City Council has now twice looked the other way. In the spring the California Department of Public Health cited the city for violating the state's drinking water standard. Ignoring the advice of the Public Works Department and water consultants, the City Council chose not to put safety precautions in place and has since failed to even discuss the issue. That inaction was not just fiscally irresponsible, but showed negligence concerning the future well-being of residents. At Tuesday's meeting the City Council was once again presented an opportunity to create a healthier living environment for Red Bluff. This time an ordinance banning the outdated practice of leaf burning came before the council. The added bonus to this ordinance is that it would not cost the Yes, Red Bluff has enjoyed a city a penny. Despite multiple testimonials long history of not needing to treat its drinking water. from residents at the meeting, the council Editorial That history came to an end in the spring. It's once again failed to take action. What do time for our elected officials to deal with The excuse this time was the absence you think? the issue rather than of Mayor Wayne Let us know ignoring it and hoping it will somehow go Brown, who has been away. The financial away from Red Bluff and public health risks are too and the city since August. If the full council of five was great not to. Yes, some may miss the smell required for a quorum, the council would have accomplished lit- of burning leaves in the autumn. tle in the last almost six months, But all who addressed the counhaving an empty seat due to a cil Tuesday very much wanted resignation in June and now the practice stopped due to the health hazard it presents, espeBrown's extended absence. The four members of the cially to those with respiratory council present Tuesday were issues. To allow a single council elected to represent the people of member to delay a vote on a matRed Bluff, and they should have ter of public health is blatant indolence. taken a vote on the ordinance. We hope all council members That last point bears repeating — the council is elected to repre- take a moment between now and the council's next meeting on sent and serve the people. It seems some council mem- Nov. 19 to reflect on how they bers have forgotten this, as too have represented the people who often they use the dais to grand- elected them. In the meantime, those people stand their own political beliefs or vote based on nostalgia or will close their windows, cover their own personal interests their mouths and hope the counrather than the interests of the cil will do what they have asked it to do. population as a whole. Obama's lie Editor: For the umpteenth time, I'm hearing this President's lie that "if you like your plan, blah, blah, blah, you can keep it." President Obama said this over and over and over, but now that he's caught, he's adding his litYour tle addendum "if the plan wasn't this or that." That isn't what he ever said. And God forbid anybody in Congress calls him a liar. Now on Fox News, Lindsey Graham is explaining that the president needs to 'fess up if he wants to save his second term. This country is absolutely hopeless. It's run by liberals who cannot tell the truth about anything, and the Republicans just allow it, take it on the chin, do nothing. No wonder they're going down the tubes. No guts, no glory GOP. One party is criminal, the other are the victims, along with the rest of us. Bought and sold by big corporations just waiting to take over our very lives. Today I was reminded of how the rat situation in D.C. was voted in, you cannot kill the rats, you have to find all of that family and relocate it to Virginia. I'm not kidding. What a sad state we're in. Bernice Cressy, Cottonwood Turn Your officials STATE ASSEMBLYMAN — Dan Logue, 150 Amber Grove Drive, Ste. 154, 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 Waiting for Wayne Some of you may remember the absurdist play, Waiting for Godot, by Samuel Beckett. The play is about a couple of vagrants who use the pretense of waiting for a person named Godot so they can hang out. In the beginning of the play one character tries to take off his boot, but just can't do it. He exclaims, "Nothing to be done." Much of the rest of the play explores what it means to do "nothing." Our City Council seemed to be exploring that same theme on Tuesday night, while they played out the drama "Waiting for Wayne." After a mundane and almost dreary several minutes dealing with routine matters, the City Council erupted with a high energy flash as the matter of banning leaf burning came to the fore. More than a half dozen members of the public spoke to the City Council in favor of an ordinance to ban leaf burning. They urged the Council to make it an emergency ordinance, to take place immediately since their health and comfort were involved. They reminded the Council that their first priority was public safety, and there was no better time to act than that night. Four votes were needed to pass it; since only four council members have been present for several weeks now, it would require a unanimous vote Tuesday. It seemed to the presenters to be the obvious thing to do. The City Manager mentioned that the mayor had hoped he could be here for such a vote; apparently he had made his views for allowing leaf burning known in the past. The Mayor has been away from his duties since late August and is expected to return to his post at the Nov. 19 meeting; he has missed five meetings in a row. Councilman Schmid commented that it was not "fair" to take a vote without the Mayor present, although it only took four votes to pass an urgency ordinance. Schmid is the same councilmember who launched his reelection campaign with a statement against overly high city employee salaries and pension benefits last summer. He continued in that negative vein Tuesday with a statement that "Government is telling us we can't burn anything ever." It is unclear whether Schmid's remark was part of his reelection campaign or merely a political comment; in any case it had nothing to do with the issue at hand. When it came time to vote, he voted no twice. Councilmember Parker pointed out that the current ordinance regarding public burning was unenforceable and needed to be refocused and made clear. He endorsed the proposed ordinance as an urgency matter because it did protect the public health. Members of the public rein- Jackson, made it clear what she forced the need to make ban- had said, Jackson, continued to ning a clear and straightforward express her disappointment that she was being asked to issue so the public do her job, that is to understood the rules. vote on the measure, In a reprise of her Tuesday night. She role as a deer in the abstained on the two headlights in not votvotes taken on Tuesing either way to purday. chase chlorination There were two equipment and supvotes taken; both plies to protect our failed to garner public water system enough votes to pass. on July 16, Mayor Pro The first vote was on Temp Jackson tried to an urgency ordinance, explain why she wasJoe the second on "regun't ready to vote on an lar" ordinance, which ordinance to ban leaf would take effect 30 burning in Red Bluff. days after passage and Her explanation a public reading. became vaguer and Council members Eliggi and vaguer as she hemmed and hawed her way into embarrass- Parker voted for the ordinance. I am reminded of an old stanment. Jackson stated she wasn't dard, "Smoke Gets in Your prepared to vote on it Tuesday, Eyes." The lyrics go something and had hoped it would have like this: "They asked me how I been placed on the agenda for knew my city council was true; the Nov. 19 meeting instead; I simply replied, when Mayor apparently the full week she had Wayne is gone smoke gets in to study the agenda and the their eyes." Wayne will return on Nov. items it contained was not enough time for her to either 19; whether or not he can get understand the issues or to fully the Council to do its job is consider what might be the debatable. I urge you to attend implications if the real mayor that meeting. It should be a blast. weren't there for the vote. Jackson seemed to have misJoe Harrop is a retired understood a comment by a city employee at the last meeting educator with more than 30 when leaf burning was dis- years of service to the North cussed briefly. Even after that State. He can be reached at employee, upon questioning by DrJoeHarrop@sbcglobal.net. Harrop