Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/333833
HIT Thetemporaryrestrain- ing order issued Thursday prohibiting firearms on the grounds of Rolling Hills Casino. We understand the tribal rift involving the Paskenta Band of Nomlaki is a complex matter and far from over, but armed security details, some masquerading as police, fac- ing off in the parking lot was a dangerous situation and we're glad a judge finally saw fit to put a stop to it. We applaud Chairman An- drew Freeman for disarming his security officers June 10 and the ousted members for calling off their "Tribal Po- lice" force June 16. Let's hope the casino re- mains a safe place for the public and employees thanks to the judge's order. MISS June 7 was a bad day to stay home in Tehama County, at least for two residents who were robbed in their homes in unrelated incidents. A 92-year-old woman was robbed on Johnson Road af- ter a man forced his way into her home, threatened her with a hunting knife and stole jewelry and the wom- an's last $10. The suspect went so far as to take the woman's phone so she couldn't call for help. Of course that also meant she couldn't call for anything else, which could have been deadly at her age. Robert Michael Lonsberry, 29, was arrested as a suspect about two hours after the woman reported the crime at around 8 a.m. June 7. A 57-year-old man told po- lice he had been in a fight with three other people the eve- ning of June 7. He said they assaulted him in his Paynes Creek home and demanded he hand over his wallet. He suf- fered minor injuries. Three suspects, all from Paynes Creek, Garr Jessie Midgett, 22; James Jonathon Midgett, 28; and Dereck Ray- mond McCoy, 25 were ar- rested at a separate residence on Vanguard Avenue. HIT Around 200 people gath- ered Thursday evening at the Cone and Kimball Plaza to cel- ebrate the life and community involvement of Una Jordan. "She was a great addition to this community," said retired Tehama Superior Court Judge Richard Scheuler of his friend Jordan. Having covered her in- volvement in so many cor- ners of our community, we couldn't agree more. She will be missed by many. MISS Cottonwood's Hunter Edward Harris, 18, who stole a car from the parking lot of CVS just six hours after being released from county jail and led police officers on a pur- suit that ended shortly after he rammed a fence near Wil- cox Oaks Golf Course. Having been convicted in December for vehicle theft and driving under the influ- ence, Harris would appear to prove that there is no intelli- gence requirement for being a car thief. HIT Joshua Jefferson pur- chased a $20 Scratchers ticket Sunday at the Chevron station on South Main and claimed the $5 million jackpot. It goes to show that dreams can come true, but we were impressed with Joshua's re- sponse to lottery officials when asked what he planned to do with the windfall. Jefferson told lottery officials he plans to use his winnings to help his mother and take care of his young daughter. We're also pleased the gas station will receive a $25,000 bonus for selling the winning ticket. MISS Something is rotten in the state of Walbridge. Like residents of the Wal- bridge Street neighborhood, we were sad to learn Tuesday that the city doesn't appear to be much closer to discovering the source of intermittent sew- age odors emanating in the area, despite years of requests from residents to do some- thing about it. We're glad the city nar- rowed the list to line treat- ments, filters and other po- tential remedies, but sym- pathize with residents who wonder what took so long. Hits and misses Judge bans guns at casino The refrain has echoed across the globe our entire lives: "The World Cup is the most exciting sporting event on the face of the planet. Bigger than the Super Bowl, Stanley Cup and World Series combined and go ahead, throw in the next Star Wars movie especially with Car- rie Fischer and Harrison Ford dragging their walkers through it." We Americans should be con- gratulated for finally growing up and stopping with the mocking, "Oh, really. Soccer? So what's the second most exciting sport- ing event on the planet then, the Norwegian Army Widows Seal Clubbing Tournament? Does the Desert Tricycle-Built-for-2 Mar- athon Relay Seniors Tour come in third?" No. We're sophisticated now. Look at the huge leaps Ma- jor League Soccer has made in the last couple years, easily pro- pelling itself to 8th or 9th most popular team sport in the coun- try: right behind football, bas- ketball, baseball, hockey, bowl- ing, beach volleyball, polo and lacrosse. And maybe badminton. Jai Alai. And in some regions, cow tipping and pie eating. But whether you call it soccer, futbol or boring, Pele got it right when he called it: "O jogo bo- nito." The Beautiful Game. We oc- casional spectators from the Es- tados Unidos just need to learn how to watch the darn thing. HOW TO WATCH THE 2014 WORLD CUP Choose a team to root for. Every match. Pick the land of your ancestors. Or the land next to the land of your an- cestors. Teams from your own hemisphere. Orange is your fa- vorite color. Been there. Al- ways wanted to go there. But always root for the underdog, because that could include us. Choose teams to root against. Hiss and boo the squads whose victory would impede your favorite's prog- ress or just root against over- bearing bullying countries. Which again, could include us. Root against the country that invaded the land of your ancestors. Or go traditional, and root against the Axis pow- ers. Or some of the more ob- streperous Allies. The World Cup should be watched with people. Preferably at a bar frequented by the coun- trymen of the team you're root- ing for. But do some research. You don't want to show up at a French bar in Italian colors. As simple as wearing green instead of blue. If you must watch it at home, turn on Univision, not ESPN. The announcers are much more en- tertaining. You know the guy who goes "GOOOOOAAL" when some- one scores? He screams like that all the time: at a penalty, when someone almost scores, even when players trip and fall, clutch- ing their face like they were sliced by a machete. Which is not flopping. Its injury simulation. You need a big ass TV. The bigger the better. 70 inches is a good start. Because soccer is fond of cameras fastened to the inside edge of the International Space Station. Make your own red and yel- low cards and hold them up when you need snacks or beer. Really makes non-watchers feel part the game. Complain about the referee- ing. Every knowledgeable fan does. These guys don't speak the same language as the play- ers. But they do have spray paint. Which is so cool. Something the NFL might want to consider. And go USA. And anybody who plays the country that in- vaded the land of your ancestors. Which, once again, could be us. WillDurstisanaward-winning, nationally acclaimed political comic. Go to willdurst.com to find about more about his new one- man show "BoomeRaging: From LSD to OMG," info about the up- coming documentary film "3 Still Standing," and a calendar guide to personal appearances. Email Will at durst@caglecartoons. com. Will Durst How to watch the World Cup's 'Beautiful Game' Cartoonist's take By Joe Gandelman Wither Iraq? That's actually a two-pronged question. First, where will Iraq wind up when it completes its latest, chaotic chapter? Second, will Iraq's next incarnation be as a cohesive nation-state, or will it literally wither and splin- ter into two (or more) parts? There are many points and twists to ponder as Iraq (again) dominates the news. Here's a partial list. And I'm sure that in keeping with how our 21st century 24/7 politics operates, I'll get more of those charming weekly emails containing sug- gestions on where I should put my computer. Some thoughts: 1. Baby Boomers apparently learned nothing from Vietnam. Even though it was a bitterly divisive issue in the 1960s, the overriding historical and politi- cal consensus today is the Viet- nam War was a massive, costly- in-terms-of-lives-and-treasure foreign policy mistake. The Greatest Generation's "Best and the Brightest" mis- calculated on Vietnam, and the "Mediocre and Ideologically Blinded" Baby Boomers failed to learn from their elders' mis- takes, despite possessing count- less history books, studies and news articles. 2. Discount conservatives' current "I told you so" on Iraq today. They were the ones who sold the Iraq War to Americans and to the British under what turned out to be false pretenses. They offered Polyanna-ish analy- ses on how long the war would last, wrongly characterized how Iraq's population would receive victorious Americans and mis- calculated on how a toppling Saddaam Hussein would re- shape the Middle East. In retro- spect, they were brimming with — and acting on — almost wish- ful thinking. 3. Discount liberals "I told you so on Iraq" today. A segment of the Democratic Party rooted in the George Mc- Govern wing opposes most mil- itary ventures almost immedi- ately. They argue we shouldn't be the world's policeman, the gov- ernment is lying (usually before there is any concrete evidence of that) and/or that military action is being propelled by the mili- tary-industrial complex. Yes, some liberals did pres- ent specific, thoughtful reasons for opposing the Iraq War. But many merely repeated old recy- cled anti-war riffs. It's like a psychic who makes 200 predictions and then touts the one that comes true as proof of special powers. 4. Televised or reported anger doesn't necessary mean wide- spread support. Senator John McCain and what some call the "conserva- tive political entertainment me- dia" have been blaming Presi- dent Barack Obama for Iraq's woes and suggesting it's time for stronger military action. McCain is screaming "I told you so," contending the U.S. shouldn't have withdrawn and should have left a residual force in Iraq. But Politico reports: "More Americans agree with Presi- dent Barack Obama's views on Iraq than those of Sen. John McCain, a new poll says. According to a Public Policy Polling survey released Tues- day, 54 percent of voters say they agree more with the pres- ident on Iraq, compared with 28 percent who said they agree more with McCain." McCain is as knee-jerk in his constant calls for military action as many Democrats are in their calls to avoid it. 5. The Weekly Standard's editor Bill Kristol (as usual) needs a reality check. Kristol, increasingly the na- tional symbol of a neocon po- litical pundit, argued on MSN- BC's "Morning Joe" that Amer- icans could be convinced to support renewed military ac- tion in Iraq. And VHS tapes and pay phones are the wave of the future. 6. Former Vice President Dick Cheney needs to look up the meaning of the Yiddish word "chutzpah." In an op-ed co-written with his daughter Liz, the former Vice President, who left office with a poll approval rating a tad above jock itch, delivered Iraq war criticism and all blame to Obama. Cheney offering sound Iraq strategy and accurately assess- ing blame is like Mel Gibson teaching a course to rabbis on the meaning of Judaism. 7. The world is a dangerous place and what happens in Iraq does matter. Serious policy makers and thoughtful Americans have to be concerned over what Al Jazeera calls the rise of "Syraq." Whatever happens in Iraq could create significant ripples throughout the region and in the U.S. There are more aspects to ponder so this list is just a be- ginning. P.S. to those who plan to email: My computer won't fit up there. Joe Gandelman is a veteran journalist who wrote for news- papers overseas and in the United States. He can be reached at jgandelman@themoderatev- oice.com. Joe Gandelman 7 thoughts about failure in Iraq Having been convicted in December for vehicle theft and driving under the influence, Harris would appear to prove that there is no intelligence requirement for being a car thief. GregStevens,Publisher Chip Thompson, Editor EDITORIAL BOARD How to have your say: 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 no more than two double-spaced pages or 500words. When several letters address the same issue, a cross section will be published. Email: editor@red bluffdailynews.com Phone: 530-527- 2151ext. 112 Mail to: P.O. 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