Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/31341
6A – Daily News – Wednesday, May 11, 2011 Opinion USS Carl Vinson Editor: 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 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 It figures. The National Day of Prayer was this past Thursday -- and I forgot to pray. I'm not very skilled at praying. Like a lot of folks, I don't pray until things go sour or I face some daunting challenge. I pray on Monday mornings when I'm way behind on projects that are due -- and I am behind every Monday. I pray every April 15 -- right after cursing. I pray when people I love are ill or worse. When I was younger, my best prayers followed long nights at the pub – what we call “praying to porcelain.” Plenty of folks struggle with prayer. It is something people of every religion and culture have felt the need to do since there have been people. One of the most extensive polls on prayer was conducted by U.S. News & World Report in 2004. Some respondents had wacky ideas about what prayer is about. One fellow prayed that his bro- ken car would heal itself; he claims it did. Another fellow prayed that a Our son, Matt Stroud, was also on board the USS Carl Vin- son that held bin Laden's body. Matt’s job in the Navy is avi- ation ordinance. He has been in the Navy since May 2008 and is a 2002 graduate of Red Bluff High School. Matt was born and raised in Red Bluff. He has been very silent about what went on, as loose lips sink ships. The Vin- son has been replaced by the USS Ronald Reagan in the Ara- bian Sea. Vicki Stroud, Red Bluff Moratorium Editor: I am asking for the board of Supervisors to consider putting a moratorium on all medical mari- juana dispensaries, as dispensaries are not explicitly recognized by State Law, according to my infor- mation. Sellers permit would be required and sales tax for dispen- saries would go to the State Board of Equalization. It would not stay locally. If they decide to allow a collec- tive/cooperative, I would suggest they consider using these guide- lines. 1. A collective/cooperative should use only marijuana grown or obtained by the members, with no purchases outside of their own members. 2. The members, including the patient, should own or rent/lease property to grow and manufacture only the amount of marijuana used by their patients. 3. As Supervisors they could allow a small number of patients per caregiver so they stay within the guidelines of the law for care- givers and their responsibilities to their patients. 4. As Supervisors they could regulate the size of land to be used, types and locations, hours of the day the members could work, so as to not disturb the neighbors. 5. They could regulate the num- ber of collectives/cooperatives by the populous of the area. 6. They could use the lottery system to decide who and how many would be allowed to operate at any given time. 7. As Supervisors, they could allow only caregivers whose patients have registered with the health department and who has an ID card stating they are a legal marijuana user. Those who opt out of registering could not belong to a collective/cooperative. If these people are truly a medical marijua- na user and can’t grow their own, they should not have a problem with these rules. 8. As Supervisors, they could hire a part time enforcement office, at the expense of the collec- tive/cooperatives, to enforce the rules and regulations. Primary caregivers mean; the individual designated by the per- son is exempt under this act who has consistently assumed respon- sibility for the housing, health and safety of that person. Caregivers see to it that the basic needs of food, clothing, cleanliness and shelter are met by the person in need. As a primary caregivers’ job does not just mean to grow mari- juana for people who have recom- mendations The collectives/cooperative should document all their activities and specifically keep track and record the source of their marijua- na. Under Civil Code Section 1714.45, Products Liability: Con- sumer products to be known by consumers to be inher- ently unsafe. My interpretation of this code means that a consumer has a right to sue the manufacture of a product if it in fact Your Turn causes health problems, mental problems and/or death; this even includes those who came in con- tact with this product. So every caregiver who grows marijuana for their patient should keep metic- ulous records on the chemicals used in growing and their proce- dures in processing. Examples; tobacco manufactures and second hand smoke. You should have caregivers post all health risks associated with the use of marijuana. Just like every other drug on the market. Kathy Nelson, Red Bluff Conservatives Editor: You can be social conservative or you can be fiscal conservative, you cannot be both. My last letter to the editor I complained about cuts in social programs such as head start and WIC. The reason I mentioned those cuts in that letter is that I was talking about abortion. Another reason I mentioned those cuts: I am a fiscal conservative. expensive/inexpensive programs let me explain. I call some social programs: Let’s talk Head Start. There are inner cities in this country were illiteracy levels are as high as 1 in 3. Now what are the job prospects of an illiterate young man? There is a correlation between illiteracy, crime and imprisonment. More than 40 per- cent of the prison population is illiterate. Am I giving an excuse? No, as the saying goes: you do the crime you do the time. It’s just that, as a potential victim I would rather the crime did not happen in the first place. As a fiscal conser- vative I would prefer not to have to pay for the time. So why are those people illiter- ate? Personal responsibility, in this case is not the answer. There is a reason one cannot enter a contract with a minor: they have no legal “personal responsibility.” Now, do you remember when you learned to read? 6 to 9 years old? If a child did not learn we should be holding people responsible, after all we, tax payers are paying for this edu- cation. The child however, cannot be blamed. A 7-year-old child does not have personal responsibility. What about the parents? Same argument used by many dis- cussing your teen parent series, by the way. Well some kids have par- ents, some, not so much. Should we punish children for their par- ents? Children are more likely to grow up illiterate if their parents were illiterate. It is difficult to give your child something you do not have. If we do the math, cutting those programs is much more expensive in the end. Just as an afterthought — cutting some programs not only is more expensive it also makes for a worse country. Cutting some of those social programs is not only fiscally irresponsible and unpatri- otic. Daniela Sartori, 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. Say your prayers Commentary couple who helped break up his marriage would also break up; he claims his prayers did the trick. The now-deceased Osama bin Laden had some nutty prayers. He prayed for America's destruction. He prayed, no doubt, before his boys struck the twin towers -- and after the towers fell. He prayed for the wrong rea- sons, of course. If you believe, as I do, that there is order in our conflicted universe -- that there is good and evil, at battle everywhere, every day -- then isn't the purpose of prayer simply to understand and embrace the truth? We pray to know the good. We pray to align yourself with it. We pray to root out dishonesty and evil from our being. Surely you agree there is good and evil in this world. Greek philosophers had names for good: prudence, temperance, courage and justice were virtues that all people longed to master. As we strive for good, we must fend off evil: excessive pride, envy, gluttony, lust, anger, greed and sloth. These are known as the seven deadly sins -- and as activities I usually save for the weekend! I'll leave it to the Almighty to judge bin Laden for his worldly acts, but to my feeble human mind, it is clear that bin Laden was blinded by the sin of excessive pride. He had it worked out in his mind that he and his small band had a direct line to God, who told them to slaughter innocent peo- ple. Didn't he see him- self as pious and sub- servient when he was really an egotist and narcissist who misused his religion to drape himself in power and the adula- tion of millions? religion, every political system -- and on and on. Tom Purcell Didn't he misuse prayer -- not to get closer to God, but to justify his own misguided ambitions? His was such a clever form of evil that the fool thought he was doing good! These terms sound biblical, but are they really? You need not be religious to agree that there is a battle regularly going on between good and evil. This battle rages in every human heart. It rages within every respect. Tom Purcell, a humor columnist for the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, is nationally syndicated exclusively by Cagle Cartoons newspaper syndicate. Visit Tom on the Web at www.TomPurcell.com or e-mail him at Purcell@caglecartoons.com. I sure pray that I get better at it. ——— This battle rages because we humans are mighty flawed and in continual need of improvement. If you believe there is order in the universe, then mustn't we continu- ally align ourselves with the good and root out the bad in our political sys- tems, our organizations - - ourselves? We must root out excessive pride and embrace humility. We must be more kind and charitable, less angry. We must be less greedy, more generous. Honest prayer is helpful in that