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GregStevens,Publisher Chip Thompson, Editor EDITORIALBOARD 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@ redbluffdailynews.com Fax: 530-527-9251 Mail to: P.O. Box 220, 545 Diamond Ave., Red Bluff, CA 96080 Facebook: Leave comments at FACEBOOK.COM/ RBDAILYNEWS Twitter: Follow and send tweets to @REDBLUFFNEWS Goodmorning,RedBluff.Idonotknow Kim Berry, but I think I like her a lot. As a child growing up in Red Bluff, the first day of school was always one of the most impor- tant days of the entire year. Whilemyfamilywasnot flush with cash, my mother always found enough money to buy me a new pair of Levis, a new pair of LCBC (low-cut black Converse) tennis shoes and a couple of shirts that were the fashion of the day. I remember laying out my new school clothes the night before the first day of school. I remember brushing my teeth until blood formed on every part of my gums. I remember taking a bath and scrubbing body parts that I didn't know existed. I remember opening a brand new jar of Dixie Peach Pomade hair gel that gave me the best flat top hair cut in the entire eighth grade. Mostly, I remember the sense of pride I felt as I headed off to school knowing that I looked just as good as—no, make that bet- ter than—the richest kid in my class. Unfortunately, I also re- member working with hun- dreds of abused, neglected and delinquent children for over thirty years as part of my probation officer job assign- ment, children who were not as fortunate as I. While I be- lieve I could write a margin- ally acceptable doctoral the- sis regarding the root causes of crime and delinquency, it is my simple belief that ensuring success as an adult is most de- pendent on experiencing suc- cess as a child. If you feel good about your- self, you are more likely to feel good about the world around you; and if you feel good about the world around you, you are more likely to strive to con- tribute to that world in a posi- tive manner. Simply put, being well scrubbed, well groomed, and well-dressed on the first day of school can only enhance the potential for a child's suc- cess as they exit on the last day of school. A decade or so ago Kim Berry decided that grooming and clothing children was im- portant enough for her to ini- tiate a mostly one-woman campaign to send every child to school with a new haircut, a new backpack, and a new set of threads. She sent out letters, stood on street cor- ners with a cup in hand and advertised in every conceiv- able fashion. Generally speak- ing, she became the prover- bial pest for her cause. Be- cause of her persistence and understanding of the impor- tance of her mission, the Back to School Project now serves as a model for other commu- nities throughout the State Of California. Under her lead- ership, and with the assis- tance of scores of commu- nity volunteers, hundreds of kids from lower-income fami- lies will soon be heading back to school looking as good as I did way back in 1955. That's a good thing, indeed. To learn more about the Back to School Project or to donate or volunteer, call 529- 4074, or visit backtoschoolpro- ject.com •••• Speaking of people doing good for their community, how about Eagle Scout candidate Anthony Aviles? As his Eagle Scout project, young Mr. Aviles is spearheading the creation and installation of a very im- pressive Tehama County peace officer memorial at the Te- hama County Fairgrounds. I began my career as a pro- bation officer in 1968. During those days most of my deal- ings were with runaways, tru- ants, and petty thieves. While I was required to demonstrate a level of proficiency on the shooting range, I was much more likely to shoot myself in the foot than I was to bring a bad guy to justice. Boy, how things have changed. It is my personal belief that the use and abuse of drugs and alcohol are a pri- mary cause for the deterio- rating world we live in today. While one might argue cause and effect, the fact is that as you drive down Main Street you will pass folks who are us- ing and abusing drugs and al- cohol; folks who are giving or selling drugs to our children; folks who are stealing from all of us in order to support their own insidious habits. A few years ago the Cali- fornia Legislature passed a law called AB 109. This law mandated that tens of thou- sands of state prison inmates be immediately released to go back to their local com- munities, and required thou- sands more to be dealt with locally rather than be com- mitted to state prison. For- tunately, Tehama County law enforcement administrators have implemented highly ef- fective programs, and are to be congratulated for their ef- forts. Nevertheless, there are still folks on our streets who pose a clear and present dan- ger to our community in gen- eral, and to law enforcement in particular. Add to that a new social me- dia world where misguided de- cisions by a very few members of law enforcement are offered up as proof that every cop on the street is out to get you ev- ery time he or she turns on a light or siren. How would you like to walk up to a vehicle several times a day, not know- ing what you might find on the other side of the door? A decade or so ago some crazed nut job snuck up on a good young Red Bluff police officer by the name of Dave Mobilio and shot him dead as he was filling his cruiser with gas. Today young Mr. Aviles is attempting raise $8,000 for a memorial wall to honor Officer Mobilio and five other Tehama County peace officers who died while on duty. If you would like to honor and thank those who protect and serve you every single day, please join me in sending a check to Peace Officer Memo- rial, 2550 Main St., Red Bluff, 96080, Attention Lt. Aviles. It's the least we can do. •••• On August 28 the World Fa- mous Glenn Miller Orches- tra will return to the State Theatre. Tickets may be pur- chased at the Tehama Country Visitor Center, or call 529-2787. Please join us in thanking our sponsors: Dignity Health, Rolling Hills Casino, Mill Creek Ranch, Tehama Angus Ranch, Haleakala Ranch, John Wheeler Logging, Growney Motors, and PJ Helicopters. BillCorneliusisalifelong resident of Red Bluff, a retired Chief Probation Officer, a champion of the State Theatre and an exceptional athlete. He can be reached at bill. cornelius@sbcglobal.net. William Tells Headingback to school with confidence Cartoonist's take Get this: Renting is the new American dream. And that doesn't bode well for America. According to a report by the Ur- ban Institute, American home- ownership rates are the lowest they've been in years and will continue to de- cline. Homeownership, which peaked in 2006 at 67.3 percent, now sits at 63.6 percent, accord- ing to the U.S. Census Amer- ican Community Survey. It's been dropping ever since the fi- nancial collapse of 2008. Between 2010 and 2030, the Urban Institute estimates, 22 million new households will form. The majority of them, 59 percent, will be renters, while just 41 percent will be home- owners. Which means more house- holds will vote for Democrats over Republicans. According to a University of Virginia Center for Politics study, you see, "homeowners are much more likely to vote for Republicans than renters (34 to 18 percent), while renters are more likely to vote for Demo- crats than homeowners (44 to 35 percent)." That's because the responsi- bility of homeownership — the continuous hassles, expenses and taxes — brings out the con- servative in even the most die- hard liberal. Boy, did I learn that lesson the hard way. I had my first taste of own- ership 17 years ago after buying a fixer-upper that made Her- man Munster's place look like the Trump Palace. The house nearly killed me. When I tore off a rickety porch enclosure, I was stung multiple times by angry hor- nets. It took me weeks to catch the mice in my attic, which woke me every morning at 3 a.m. as they scratched the ceiling, building their nests. I nearly died the day ground bees attacked me. I poured a big cup of gasoline down their hole and nearly burned my house down when, after light- ing it, flames shot out, 20 feet high. I haven't mentioned the snake incident, the electrical problem (I had to rewire most of the house) or how, every time it drizzles, the water in my basement makes Niagara Falls look like a lap pool. Nor have I mentioned the battle with the septic tank, or the moron who dug it up and broke the lid — causing me to hand-dig a couple of tons of earth surrounding it while straddling the stinky thing for three days. These are just some of the many miseries common to homeowners — miseries rent- ers don't know the first thing about. Add to these the con- stant trips to the hardware store to fix the things that break, as well as the taxes and other expenses that make homeownership a costly pain, and the typical homeowner will vote for more conservative prin- ciples. Homeowners are more likely to vote for people who won't raise our already costly utilities and property taxes. We'll vote for the candidate whose policies will lower, rather than increase, the cost of building materials. We want the person who will put an end to federally man- dated low-flow toilets and washers and dishwashers — toi- lets, washers and dishwashers that don't flush or clean very well. My vote is for the politician who initiates pro-growth poli- cies that will get homeowner- ship back up to 2006 levels. As homeownership increases, America will become much grumpier, thus much more likely to vote Republican. We'll demand simpler and lower taxes and other common- sense reforms. The economy will boom. Our property values will soar. Then we can sell our homes at great profit, become rent- ers and vote for Democrats — and finally start to enjoy life for once while we mooch off the people dumb enough to still own homes. Tom Purcell, author of "Misadventures of a 1970s Childhood" and "Comical Tom Purcell, author of "Misadventures of a 1970s Childhood" and "Comical Sense: A Lone Humorist Takes on a World Gone Nutty!" is a Pittsburgh Tribune-Review humor columnist. Send comments to Tom at Tom@ TomPurcell.com. Tom Purcell Renting, the new American dream Bill Cornelius Tom Purcell StateandNational President Barack Obama: The White House 1600Pennsylvania Ave. Washington, D.C. 20500 Comments: 202-456-1111 Switchboard: 202-456-1414 Fax: 202-456-2461 pr es id en t@w hi te hou se .g ov U.S. Senate Dianne Feinstein: Hart Senate Office Building Room 331 Washington, D.C. 20510 Phone: 202-224-3841 Fax: 202-228-3954 One Post St., Suite 2450 San Francisco, CA 94104 415-393-0707 Fax: 415-393-0710 Website: feinstein.senate.gov Barbara Boxer: Hart Senate Office Building Room 112 Washington, D.C. 20510 Phone: 202-224-3553 Fax: 202-228-3865 501I St., Suite 7-600 Sacramento, CA 95814 916-448-2787 Website: boxer.senate.gov U.S. Representative Jared Huffman: 1630Longworth House Office Building Washington D.C. 20515 Phone: 202-225-5161 Fax: 202-225-5163 3173rd St., Suite 1 Eureka, CA 95501 Eureka phone: 707-407-3585 Fax: 707-407-3559 Website: huffman.house.gov Governor Jerry Brown: State Capitol Building, Suite 1173 Sacramento, CA 95814 Phone: 916-445-2841 Fax: 916-558-3160 State Senate Mike McGuire: 130310th Street Sacramento, CA 95814Phone: 916-651-4002 Fax: 916-651-4902 710E Street Suite #150 Eureka, CA 95501 Eureka phone: 707-445-6508 Eureka fax: 707-445-6511 To email, visit http://sd02.senate. ca.gov/contact/email State Assembly Jim Wood: P.O. Box 942849 Sacramento, CA 94249-0002 Phone: 916-319-2002 Fax: 916-319-2102 Eureka phone: 707-445-7014 Fax: 707-445-6607 To email, visit http://asmdc.org/ members/a02/ Local Tehama County Supervisors, 527-4655 District 1, Steve Chamblin, Ext. 3015 District 2, Candy Carlson, Ext. 3014 District 3, Dennis Garton, Ext. 3017 District 4, Bob Williams, Ext. 3018 District 5, Burt Bundy, Ext. 3016 Red Bluff City Manager, Richard Crabtree, 527-2605, Ext. 3061 Corning City Manager, John Brewer, 824-7033 Your officials OPINION » redbluffdailynews.com Wednesday, August 12, 2015 » MORE AT FACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS A6