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6A Daily News – Tuesday, January 17, 2012 Opinion Shuffle the deck – not stack it 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. 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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 Last Tuesday Wally Herger announced that he will retire after finishing out his 13th term as rep- resentative of the 2nd Congres- sional district of California. This marks the second retirement in recent days from a longstanding GOP member of California's con- gressional delegation. Three days earlier, U.S. Rep. Elton Gallegly, who faced a tough re-election bat- tle because of redistricting, also bypassed another term. Although our district is still considered a safe Republican seat, I believe it is beneficial to shuffle the deck rather than let the power brokers stack the "good ole boy" deck to their liking. As a senior member of the powerful House Ways and Means Committee Herger has been a staunch conservative that has been highly critical of the health care overhaul, a feckless climate change denier, and a parrot of the Republican Party line. After 25 years of service he has become the fourth wealthiest member of Congress but has a paltry record of initiation or sponsorship of sig- nificant legislation. By stepping down we lose any benefit that his seniority could proffer upon our district, which for the most part has been wasted. Wally has precipitated a shuf- fling, or ne'er I say stacking, of the deck by northstate politicians after endorsing Sen. Doug LaMalfa to succeed him. Wally describes Doug as a conservative who fully understands and appre- ciates the district's economy, which revolves around agricul- ture, timber and tourism. LaMal- fa, now in his first term in the state Senate, is a wealthy rice farmer that benefits from large agricultural subsidies so at least on that score I suppose Wally's characterization is valid. Doug previously served in the state Assembly from 2002 until he was termed-limited out in 2008. As a consequence of Wally's endorsement Assemblyman Jim Nielsen has suspended his cha- rade as a resident of Gerber by not seeking re-election and will instead help Doug settle into Wally's seat in Congress. Should they succeed Nielsen will then pursue Doug's vacated seat so as to further stack the deck in a Republican quid-pro-quo. Although Nielsen has already served three terms in the Senate this was before term limits were enacted so those years don't dis- qualify him. Nielsen claims he decided not to seek re-election to the Assembly because the two special elections that would have been required are too costly for taxpayers. However I suspect his decision has more to do with embarrassment surrounding his alleged registration fraud and a desire to once again circumvent the will of the people. Since Nielsen's return to the Senate depends on LaMalfa win- ning the Congressional seat left open by Herger many would like to throw a monkey wrench into their plans by electing a different Jim to Wally's seat, thereby throwing Nielsen to the curb out- side his Woodland home since there are no curbs outside his alleged Ger- ber residence. The dif- ferent Jim I speak of is Jim Reed, the moderate Democrat from Fall River Mills in Shasta County that garnered a strong 43 percent of the vote when he ran against well funded incumbent Herger in 2010. Richard Mazzucchi Positive Point These "good ole boy" political moves make me feel squeamish and manipu- lated by power brokers and pro- fessional politicians that appear to focus more on their personal careers than the constituents they serve. By sending Jim Reed as our representative in Washington we will fill Wally's ineffectual seat with fresh ideas, new energy and considered moderate posi- tions to get Congress working again. This will help to reverse the abysmally low performance and favorability ratings of the least effective Congress in histo- ry. Jim is not a strident liberal as his conservative opponents would have you believe, but a long time farmer and country lawyer with a true yearning to serve all of us with his bril- liant intellect and deep roots in the northstate. Wally says he had no idea 35 years ago when he ran for school board that he would eventually serve as a member of the state Assembly from 1980 to 1986 and then have a 25- year career in Wash- ington representing the largest congres- sional district in Cali- fornia. I say too many of his supporters apparently have no idea how ineffective career politicians become by padding their savings accounts, insulating themselves from the people they serve, and playing partisan politics all day long. It is proper, beneficial, and now imperative that voters sup- port moderate candidates like Jim Reed to end congressional intransigence and shuffle the deck – not stack it. Richard Mazzucchi is a retired research engineer specializing in energy efficiency and renewable energy. He makes his home in Los Molinos and can be reached at living-green@att.net. 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@governor.ca.gov. U.S. REPRESENTATIVE — Wally Herger (R), 2595 Ceanothus Ave., Ste. 182, Chico, CA 95973; 893-8363. U.S. SENATORS — Dianne Fein- stein (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 Francisco, CA 94111; (510) 286-8537. Fax (202) 224-0454. ML King, Jr: An American, Christian hero Commentary Writing on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, I remember the cause of civil rights and equal, fair treatment for all under the law, as well as how that movement was an inspira- tional part of my young life in the 1960s. Christian churches were an integral part of my, and the move- ment's, experience; my church, and its Luther League youth group, very actively tried to dispel racism in Gary, Indiana. Many residents had relocated from the South over the decades and many white trans- plants brought racist beliefs with them. An east-west freeway, I-80 as I recall, was a physical barrier between where the black residents lived, on the north side, and the south, white, side of that city. I heard tales that there had been some Ku Klux Klan around, but I couldn't swear to it. I remember starting a little youth outreach group for racial openness and har- mony, as well as working to help elect Gary's first black mayor, a man named Hatcher, I recall. Going back for my dad's funer- al in the 90s, as well as subsequent visits to relatives, revealed that things had not gone well economi- cally for Gary, with formerly tidy and well-kept neighborhoods sur- rounding the large cemetery hav- ing deteriorated to trash-strewn, poorly maintained hovels. It was a little creepy and unnerving. Also unsettling was sensing a nearly antagonistic attitude from a young, African-American fast-food counter cashier, who'd been noticeably smiling and welcoming to African-American customers. Was it a race-based coolness that bordered on rudeness? Having spent ten years training cashiers to always give a smile and cheery greeting, and seeing black cus- tomers so treated, I couldn't help but wonder. Gary, Indiana, was the home- town of Michael Jackson's family, I believe, so there is that. And the steel mills provided my first pay- checks and first doses of (proba- bly) toxic air pollution to breathe. However, I don't want to forget the role churches played in those efforts to advance the cause of racial equality. I remember travel- ing to the deep South, sleeping in African-American churches, singing in those churches, going to local dance clubs, all for organized civil rights-related activities, the details of which I can't remember. I guess a point in all this to me is that it was the Reverend Martin Luther King, Jr. with emphasis on "Reverend." Christian churches, both black and white, were instru- mental, even essential, for the cause of racial equality, civil and legal rights, and eliminating race- based discrimination. Also, it has always been a part of American tradition that denial of constitution- al rights, while agonizingly slow to correct, are nonetheless rectified. The roster of nations that have failed to stop oppression of minori- ties, or dragged out rectifying pun- ishing hardships, is a long list, indeed. So, regarding the MLK monu- ment, I read that quotes from Rev. King's speeches avoided 1) his Christ-based faith in his cause and 2) any mention of America except that he opposed America's war in Vietnam. I could not help but bemoan the apparent political cor- rectness involved. It is, in my opin- ion, by design that Chris- tianity, biblical refer- ences and even the men- tion of God are deleted from newer monuments. It is, in the case of the King monument, a rewriting of his mission and work; it is, in the case of other monu- ments, an atheism-cen- tric scrubbing of Almighty God and America's Judeo-Christ- ian heritage. Moving to another subject, I found it curi- ously revealing when a writer attempted to dis- pute my contention that they used "Big Lie" pro- paganda when asserting that Republicans want, and are act- ing to achieve, a bad economy to help defeat President Obama this November. They stated "nothing can better assure their goal than for unemployment to remain high, the economy to sputter, and Ameri- cans to suffer until 2012 … (and that they) caused a downgrade of our national credit rating (and were) posturing to again force a fabricated financial crisis…." The writer acknowledged that such rhetoric was "hyperbole" meaning, literally, exaggeration; good to clear that up. Such Obama/Democrat- inspired talking points ignore state- ments by credit agencies that downgraded our rating, statements that the sheer quantity of deficit Don Polson The way I see it spending prompted the down- grade, spending passed into law by the Democrats, spending which Republicans have futile- ly tried to reduce. Republicans in the House of Representa- tives have passed many bills to specifically reduce unemployment, spur private economic growth and thereby reduce the suffering of Americans. It should be admitted that they acted in good faith for the good of the country, but I expect too much. Another argument- by-assertion-without- proof was that "conser- vatives do all they can to maintain deadlock and economic misery," as a "sad sell-out of the American people," in hopes of beating Obama. The "deadlock," such as it is, results as much from Obama and Democrats insisting on their way or the highway, as the Republicans refusing to sign on to deficits and taxes most peo- ple don't support. Without citing any source, the writer simply insisted that it was "no leap of logic that many wealthy conserv- atives would prefer that the econ- omy continue to tank" to beat Obama. I suppose, in some liber- al minds, such so-called logic is inarguable. Don Polson has called Red Bluff home since 1988. He can be reached by e-mail at donplsn@yahoo.com.