Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/29575
6A – Daily News – Tuesday, April 19, 2011 Opinion 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 The passing of 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 Walter Dodd Editor: Walter Dodd died in Mercy Hospital on March 30. May he rest in peace. Walter held a unique place in our county and statewide Democratic Party over many years. His activities ranged from Washington, D.C. to Oregon, to California and probably states I don’t know about. He was a wealth of information about things political. Walter attended many, many meetings in Tehama County Board of Supervisors, city councils, boards, commissions and districts. I think if we could count them all, we would be amazed. He spent a lot of time with the Elections Department, not just at election time. Walter served as moderator for the candidates’ nights held in Tehama County. Walter was chairman of the Tehama County Democratic Central Committee for 12 years. He was a member of the Cali- fornia Democratic Party execu- tive board and delegate to the CDP Convention for even more years. His absence will be felt across the state and beyond. I have received many inquiries about a service for Walter Dodd. My understanding is that it will likely be a month or more before there is formal notice of a service. Meanwhile, each of us can appreciate our connection to Walter and hold him and his remarkable service in high regard. Sue Gallagher, Los Molinos Noise warning Editor: The Reenactors of the Amer- ican Civil War and the 72nd New York Volunteer Infantry are holding the Seventh Annual Civil War Days ? Red Bluff encampment and reenactment at Samuel Ayres (Dog Island) Park on Main Street. Beginning on Friday, April 29, and continuing on Saturday, April 30 and Sunday, May 1, you will hear periodic cannon and musket fire coming from the direction of the park. The short thump you may hear is being made by our authentic Civil War cannons and it will be interspersed with volleys of musket fire. At your distance from the event, the musket fire may sound more like a string of firecrackers. All gunfire that you may hear is from blank rounds — there is no live ammunition being fired. Please do not be alarmed or concerned, as this is a normal part of the event. We have worked closely with the various city of Red Bluff departments, including police and fire offi- cials, to ensure that we are in compliance with all city regula- tions. We want to make sure that neighbors of Dog Island Park are aware of the event and the cause of the noises that you may hear between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. each of the three days of the event. As living historians, we are proud to bring to life the history of the Civil War for new gener- ations. On Friday, April 29, we will host some 500 local Tehama County and Shasta County eighth-graders at a school day, where the students learn first- hand about all aspects of the war. A cannon will fire at 15 minute intervals from 9-11 a.m. during the morning session and again from noon to 2 p.m. during the afternoon session. On Saturday and Sunday, the Still interested Editor: Your article reading city of Red Your Turn Bluff, broker join to fill dealership states, “A full scale campaign is just on the horizon for the former Red Bluff Ford property after a local businessman announced he was no longer buying the lot.” This would have been better said as I indicated to City Counsel and to the event is open to the public, with a $5 admission fee. Folks can tour the camps and talk to sol- diers and civilians to learn about life in the Civil War. Two 45- minute battles with intermittent cannon fire and musket volleys will be held at noon and 3 p.m. on Saturday, April 30 and two more battles will be held at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. on Sunday, May 1. Fife and drum music may be heard each day until about 4 p.m. Saturday only, there will also be a Civil War era brass band play- ing intermittently throughout the day until about 4 p.m. Many of our members live, work and attend school in Red Bluff. We want this to be an event that the community can be proud of and we want to be your good neighbors. Thank you for your support and understanding. Mark Richardson, Red Bluff writer of the article. I went into escrow Nov. 23, 2010, as the rezoning of the facility was taking place. I pulled out of escrow, to save initial refundable deposit of investors. The Red Bluff Ford Facility and location is ideal for this venue to promote visitors to our Main Street as it would also be used as a Welcome Center. Caltrans has provided the guidelines to install two signs for the proposed project. The city of Red Bluff and Highway 36 committee have been very supportive of this idea and venue. I continue my plans to bring in the North State’s first year- round ice rink, multi-function facility at this location before a retailer is aware of its availabil- ity, which could potentially deter traffic and retail sales on our main street. I would appreciate whatever clarification you can provide to your readers. Don Williams, Red Bluff 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: gover- nor@governor.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 Montgomery St., Suite 240, San Francisco, CA 94111; (415) 403-0100. Fax (202) 224- 0454. Armageddon at the D.C. Corral Commentary It’s way too early to sort out the winners and the losers in the big budget showdown on Capi- tol Hill the last couple weeks. They’re still extricating bodies from behind the hay bales of the Gunfight at the D.C. Corral, and will be for months. It’ll take even longer to identify the white-hatted good guys from the no-good rustlers of the public trust. All depends on your point of view. Everybody thinks he’s Wyatt Earp. Neither the Republicans nor the Democrats got exactly what they wanted, which normally indicates a win for the country, but the Tea Party is still madder than hell. The word compromise is not in their vocabulary. Then consider their plans to finance further tax cuts for the rich by laying-off Head Start teachers, and apparently neither are the words "community," "compati- ble" or "unanimity." This ideological strife did prove the perfect opportunity for President Obama to show off his abilities to accommodate, nego- tiate, placate and facilitate. He’s smoother than a baby’s butt dipped in a polyurethane bath. Like phlegm on Teflon. Flexibil- ity, never his Achilles Heel. Gumption, however, was. The question had less to do with the existence of a backbone, and more with the rigid ingredients in its makeup. The boniness, so to speak. What level of bonacity in his spine. How petrified the vertebrae. Was it the consistency of a Tupperware dish full of lime Jell-O with carrot shreds forgot- ten in the back seat of a station wagon in New Mexico on an August afternoon, or made of sterner stuff? The question cries out for the NSF to develop a scale of bone and organ density. On one end you’d have Charlie Sheen’s liver and on the other, Rand Paul’s skull. Above and astride the fray, the president exhibited unam- biguous signs of calcium aug- mentation signing a bill that calls for budget cuts of $38 bil- lion, 62 percent less than the symbolic ground of $100 billion the Tea Party staked their tent posts of revolution on last fall. Nevertheless, a figure signifi- cantly larger than the progres- sive wing of his party desired, which can best be measured in multiples of zero. But if you think the passage of this legislation signals a respite from these budget bat- tles, you’re more misguided than the poor sap trying to finance a new wing of Vegas condos with adjustable mortgages and no money down. The confronta- tions intensify from here on out. Just like the Broadway production of "Spider- man: Turn Off the Dark," this struggle was but a preview. Oh sure, choreogra- phy will be tinkered with and some higher flying rigging secured, and a few minor plot points might change but underneath it’ll be the same old cast mouthing the same tired dialogue. "We are good and right and true and just while they are attempting to destroy the country by killing the elderly with red hot forks to the eyes and blah, blah, blah." Next up: raising the national debt ceiling, then a long-term budget deal, both of which promise to make this encounter look like a slap fight in a Catholic school-girl’s locker room. Got to remember, approaching an election year, any war of words inevitably escalates from conventional into the nuclear exchange variety. Say hello to our old friend, Mutually Assured Destruction; back and tan and rested. As Doc Holliday exits left, Dr. Strangelove moves down stage front. 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