Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/26403
6A – Daily News – Friday, March 4, 2011 Opinion A more honest discussion with the community D NEWSAILY RED BLUFF TEHAMACOUNTY 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 It was with great joy that the 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 Daily News shifted its online com- menting this week from the anonymous Topix platform to Facebook Connect, which requires registration and identity to back up reader comments. For some, there will be no joy in Mudslingingville. As with many things in life, a handful of bad apples spoiled it for the rest of us. I’m speaking of those with a need to lash out anonymously with no consequence. Blame it on anger issues, inse- curity or just an adolescent mind- set, it was not good for civil dia- logue. So we’ve been looking for alternatives to the Topix forum to allow readers to chime in online on local news and issues. A few months back I stumbled across a story in my hometown paper, the Marin Independent Journal, explaining that the paper’s website had switched to Facebook Connect, a commenting platform hosted by the most popular social networking site on the Web. I quickly forwarded a link to my boss and that got the wheels turn- ing. Tuesday we began the shift from Topix to Facebook Connect, which allows readers to comment and share comments with their Facebook friends and even sorts comments according to each user’s friends and interests. Big Brother? Not quite. The only information other com- menters will see is what you allow in your privacy settings – i.e., only your name and profile photo will be visible to others who are not your Facebook friends, if that’s what you choose. Others, eager for wider recognition, will be able to allow all to see their information. Think of it as whispering versus shouting your opinions. Your choice. Why was I so happy to find an alternative to anonymous posting? Aside from the obvious distaste for inflamed rants that anonymity invites, it’s because I know from experience the positive affect reg- istration has on community dia- logue. After years of moderating read- er comments at another newspa- per, I welcomed the opportunity to require registration once it was made available. It was light regis- tration, meaning commenters could still use a fictitious screen name, but they were required to provide true identities to our sys- tem. Other commenters wouldn’t know who these folks were, but somebody would. It was as though a switch was flipped from inflammatory rant to constructive discourse. Sure, com- ments dropped off dramatically for a few days as users test- ed the waters. But soon we were back to roughly the same number of comments each day, and nearly every one was civil, constructive and respectful and con- tributed to the communi- ty conversation. This is a newspaper’s dream come true. Putting the facts before the public and watching a conversation develop that might lead to the improvement of life for all in the community. What about those who didn’t return to the brave new world of responsible commenting? A fel- low editor a few months back described the change as an “idiot filter.” It left behind the couple of dozen rabble-rousers who soiled online commenting with their rants in the first place. While it’s tempting to say “good riddance,” I encourage these people to continue taking an active role in our community dia- logue. Just do so in a manner you would face to face. And for those who claim they worry about losing a job or facing some other retaliation for their opinions – it’s called “courage of your con- victions” for a reason. There is nothing in the First Amendment that guarantees you the right to spout off with no responsibility for your words. Chip Thompson 545 Diamond Ave. Finally, I read one comment about the change that reminded me of a fundamental misunderstanding I experienced at a previ- ous paper. An angry caller screeched at me, “my taxes pay your salary.” This time around it was a com- menter claiming our change amounted to “More gov- ernment control and personal spy- ing…” Guess this person needs to take another look at privacy controls, because being identified with pub- lic assertions you opt to make is no invasion of privacy. I think in the old days we called it accountabili- ty. Chip Thompson can be reached at527-2151, Ext.112 or by email at editor@redbluffdailynews.com. Your officials STATE ASSEMBLYMAN — Jim Nielsen (R) State Capitol Bldg., Room 6031 Sacramento, CA 95814 (916) 319-2002; Fax (916) 319-2102 STATE SENATOR — Doug LaMalfa (R) State Capitol Bldg., Room 3070 Sacramento, CA 95814 (916) 651-4004; Fax (916) 445-7750 GOVERNOR — Jerry Brown, State Capitol Bldg., Sacramento, CA 95814; (916) 445-2841; Fax (916) 558-3160; E-mail: governor@gover- nor.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 Mont- gomery St., Suite 240, San Francis- co, CA 94111; (415) 403-0100. Fax (202) 224-0454. Sign of the times? Commentary I was thwarted last Saturday morning in my attempt to visit my old friend Russ Frey at Tehama Estates. Having written recently about his late father, R.G., I was anxious to know if he approved. But, as he was not in his suite, I con- tinued south on David Avenue, wondering how I was going to pass the time until lunchtime. Suddenly, as I was approaching the Aloha intersection, I passed a church of which I was unaware. My discovery was fortuitous in that the name of this house of worship is “First Unit- ed Odist Church.” In case you are not familiar with the word, “Odist” is the stylish name for a poet. At last, an organized religion of which I can relate. No longer will PMJ refer to me as “that Godless broker who sits smugly in his office window.” Thinking I should seek out the pastor and see if they sprinkle or require total immersion to join, I pulled a U turn, but was crestfallen when I saw the intact sign from the south side on which it proclaimed it to be “The United Methodist Church.” What a letdown. Apparent- ly, in these rough tithing times, the letters had been allowed to fall from the sign facing north…and the flock had not gotten around to repairing… or locating a carpenter in the con- gregation. But they did recently observe their 150th year in Red Bluff, so they do have staying power. Anyhow, for the time being, we poets will have to seek salvation elsewhere. Sigh. * * * The new Dutch Bros Coffee kiosk on Ante- lope Boulevard knows how to stimulate busi- ness. On opening day they handed out free cof- fee. Cars queued up in long lines awaiting a taste of the brew. We had helped locate them several years ago on South Main for their first Red Bluff adventure, which features their wind- mill design. The present one appears to be more modest, but there may be renovation to come. You may be curious about the company name. They chose the shortened “Dutch Bros.” because there is apparently an “adult entertain- ment” site on the Internet named “Dutch Broth- ers,” where little coffee is served, but I could not possibly comment on that. * * * David Brooks, in an article titled “Social Animal” in the New Yorker, wrote, speaking of the ideal upscale couple today, “A few times a year, members of this class head to a mountain resort, carrying only a Council on Foreign Relations tote bag (when you have your own plane, you don’t need luggage that actu- ally closes). Once there, they play with hundred-and-sixty- pound dogs, for it has become fashionable to have canines a third as tall as the height of your ceilings.” Not realizing I was a member of the “upscale” by having such a pet, Murray Clyde confirmed this was indeed true. Ergo, those folks with little bow- wows may not advance far in life without sizeable canines. * * * Something else I didn’t know: In this sen- tence, “Harrington was a socialist who, to his subsequent regret, and much like Friedan, chose to elide that fact when he wrote his book.” I thought it was a typo and should have been “to hide that fact.” But the writer meant “elide,” meaning to “omit or strike out.” But you proba- bly knew that… * * * I am often fascinated by the first names of athletes. They are often spelled in bizarre fash- ion suggesting possible illiteracy of their par- ents. The misses says they are spelled that way for ethnic pride, or something. Maybe so. For example, how would you pronounce this child’s name? “L-ah?” The child attends school in Kansas City, Mo. Her mother is irate because everyone is pronouncing her name wrong. The mother says her daughter’s name is pronounced “Ledasha” and explains, “The dash don’t be silent.” Makes sense * * * Last week ye editor gave me a little slack in order to report that county employees apparent- Robert Minch I Say ly were a little “pissed off” regarding a recent Board of Supervisors decision. But that proba- bly is as far as we can go in this family oriented newspaper. However, we might be able to get more adventurous with coded spelling...and I have found just the right one for that vex- ing but popular four letter word. TIME has come to the rescue with the understand- able but acceptable phase as used in their headline, “Hey, Chicago, Say Hello to Your Next F#@*ing Mayor.” Explicit, yet non-offen- sive...unless you are a citizen of Chicago, of course. * * * Last week’s quiz received the most response from read- ers...and all were female except two fellows who shall remain anonymous. The ladies knew that Burt Reynolds was the center- fold for Cosmopolitan magazine and Helen Gurley Brown was editor at the time. Some responders say they still have a copy of the mag from years ago. Hmmm. There is a message there if we can just decipher it. This week’s quiz: Cotton Blossom was a floating theater. Who was the captain of this mythical ship, what was his wife’s name, and what are we talking about? * * * When loves fades... Last night I was sitting on the sofa watching TV when I heard my wife’s voice from the kitchen. “What would you like for dinner, my love? Chicken or fish?” I said, “Thank you, dear...I believe I will have chicken.” She replied, “You’re having soup, you moron. I was talking to the cat!” Robert Minch is a lifelong resident of Red Bluff and former columnist for the Corning Daily Observer and Meat Industry magazine.He can be reached at rminchandmurray@hotmail.com.