Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/47906
6A Daily News – Friday, November 18, 2011 Opinion The man who lost and laughed 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 this man identified by Gen. George Patton, Jr., in the opening speech delivered by George C. Scott to the 3rd Army in the seven-Oscar-winning film "Patton," as being a man for whom Patton "wouldn't give a hoot in hell." 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 The point being America loves winners and hasn't much use for losers. "Because the very thought of losing is hateful to Americans." A similar tone framed an arti- cle in the New York Times Sun- day about the new CEO of Medi- aNews Group John Paton, which laid down the gauntlet for the sec- ond largest newspaper chain in America and parent company of the Daily News. You can read the full article at http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11 /14/business/media/paton-pre- pares-his-newspapers-for-a- world-without-print.html. Granted, Gen. Patton was delivering a pep talk to soldiers about to enter combat and CEO Paton is trying to light a fire under an industry that has been painfully slow to react to forces beyond its control, but the messages resonate for both. The daily newspaper that hits your doorstep or driveway each morning, no matter where you live, is living on borrowed time. When things were good, newspa- pers made a handsome profit, but those days are long gone. Newspapers in America are fighting for their very survival. Our ace in the hole is reporters on the ground providing accurate, insightful, in-depth and relevant news to our communities. In smaller markets, such as Tehama County, this is amplified, as Chico and Redding radio and television outlets provide sparse coverage for truly local issues in our county. Around the nation, newspapers have more feet on the pavement than any other news organizations. That's simply what it takes to pro- duce the coverage we deliver. Paton's challenge, though, seeks to leverage that advantage while adapting to a platform that is more economically viable – the Internet and other electronic media. Attempts have been made at this for more than a decade, including some successful mod- els. Mostly we have pushed print content onto the Web and hoped that users would value it at the same level they do the print edi- tion. Regardless of advertising support, this isn't the case. Paton's model involves much of what we're already doing, to some degree, at the Daily News – employing simple video updates to the site, pub- lishing more reader-sub- mitted content and including more relevant local blogs on our site. That said, we're not doing any of these things as well as we should. It's very easy, when everyone in the newsroom is wearing three or four hats, to argue that putting out a print edition each day is plenty to keep us busy, and that's true. But I've been guilty of using this as an excuse to not adapt more quickly to new platforms and Web-only content. newspapers must learn to change ahead of it, rather than scramble to catch up. Chip Thompson 545 Diamond Ave. Compounding the problem is the simple fact revenue from the Web is a fraction of what the Daily News generates from print publi- cations. Another handy excuse to concentrate our resources on print and ignore new media. Paton's take away is that the revenue dynamic is changing and When the big boss declares that new media is the future and someday soon print newspapers will be vanquished to mere memories, there are two ways for journal- ists to react: Panic and curse those forces beyond our control or charge forward with optimism that being proactive may just save the industry to which we have dedicated our careers. Gen. Patton's men on the eve of battle were scared but ready to battle for something they believed in and held dear. The arti- cle on Paton should have an impact on journalists that, too, find themselves frightened about the unknown but willing to fight for our industry. Chip Thompson can be reached at 527-2151, Ext. 112 or by e-mail 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), 2595 Ceanothus Ave., Ste. 182, Chico, CA 95973; 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; (510) 286-8537. Fax (202) 224-0454. Sold to American Commentary I noted a rather alarming trend lately, regard- ing signage. On a gas station/convenience store on north Main, a sign proclaiming proudly it is owned and operated by an American. What is the significance of this? Does it mean that the money generated therein stays in the communi- ty? Or does it mean something more insidi- ous...that the owner/operator does not kneel on a prayer rug twice a day? This "Real Americans" business is confus- ing to me. The folks that stand on street corners insinuate that they have a corner on the "real Americans" market. That their stand, their reac- tion, is that of the true patriot. They suggest that our guard has been let down and that only the eternally vigilant can save the day. How they (and the Occupy Movement people) plan to save our asses is not spelled out. It apparently is not enough to vote our unre- sponsive leaders out of office. Shutting down the system and interrupting the status quo is quicker and more news worthy than the due process. If it is the proper response to proclaim and demonstrate to save America, it is still law- ful to do so in our free country and I guess they should have at it. But count me out. There may be windmills, but I don't have the energy to tilt. * * * How's that again? Department: AP headline reads: "Medicare premiums to increase less." * * * At a time when demonstrators are demand- ing less money and perks for Congressmen, bankers and other incompetents, my father wrote in 1958, "County business is no different than private business, and requires the same management and efficiency. Either hire a Coun- ty manager, or pay each of our Supervisors $10,000 a year. By paying this amount, the County will be able to attract men of proven management ability. In the past, Supervisors have shunned even the idea of a County man- ager as an infringement upon their authority. Such reasoning is petty indeed, and it is time they took another long look at the subject. "The moral to the story may be that we should put people in office who have run a suc- cessful business rather than those with only a developed political acumen. However, it would seem there is little correlation these days between what a person earns...and what his labor is worth. Some men and women are coin- ing money, so to speak, while others will strug- gle to put a turkey on the table next week. Tsk, tsk." * * * If all goes well, the Red Bluff Garden Club will once again be making wreaths for the holidays, and their place of industry will be the former Holiday Market on Madison. L. Bonham made the arrange- ment with the help of a local broker, who shall go name- less. * * * The citizens of the great state of Mississippi have wisely defeated the "Person- hood" constitutional amend- ment that would have declared that life begins at the moment of conception, which would have banned all abortions. Sixty percent of the voters at least must have read recently of the birth of the 7th billion person on this crowded earth. * * * The ever fascinating police logs: A caller from an AM/PM station reported seeing a "thin, long brown-haired woman mixing a cocktail into a cup of coffee and fumbling for her keys while in a grey Toyota automobile. Officers approached the woman in the 1985 auto with Washington plates and discovered she was merely mixing maple syrup into her green tea drink...and no odor of alcohol was detected." One would think there were more important I do not think that advice will fly with the mis- sus. * * * Robert Minch I Say Last week's quiz was answered successfully by L. Brown, J. Angelo and F. Boest, who knew that the song "You Are My Sun- shine" was sung and recorded by Jimmie H. Davis, who was governor of the great state of Louisiana at the time, that the Green Hornet comic book character can be ren- dered impotent by the color yellow and that the "House that Ruth built" was Yankee Stadium in the Bronx in 1923, since demolished, of course. This week's quiz: What individual and what module was dubbed "The Yankee Clipper," what university was attended by the mythical Flash Gordon and Frank Merriwell characters and did Wrigley Field in Chicago ever get equipped with lights for night baseball? As of 1974 they did not. * * * An old joke: A blonde was out with her investigations to be carried out by our local police than an innocuous maple syrup and green tea fix by thin, long brown-haired women from the state of Washington. This exercise, along with citing a pickup driver for having his un- tethered stock dog loose in the back, suggests the lack of priority when it comes to our gen- darmes. * * * Sources say that the liquid inside a coconut can be used as a substitute for blood plasma, that oak trees do not produce acorns until they are 50 years old or older, and that apples are more efficient in waking you up in the morning. boyfriend when his car broke down. He asked her to check to see if the warning lights were working. She got out and walked around to the back to take a look. "Are they on?" he called. She answered, "yes, no, yes, no, yes, no...." For once in his life, a particular real estate agent decided to be honest with his prospective lady house-buyer. "This property is bordered on the north by the gas works, on the south by a rubber factory, on the east by a brewery and on the south by a feedlot." "My goodness!" said the woman. "It sounds absolutely appalling! Doesn't it have any redeeming features?" "There is one," said the agent. "You can always tell which way the wind is blowing." 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.