Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/5786
4A – Daily News – Thursday, January 7, 2010 A MediaNews Group newspaper 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 Opinion The start of a new year often brings with it a resolve to try something new, fix something old, or tackle a problem too long left unsolved. Imagine what the start of a new decade could offer. A specific problem that has long suffered from vast national equivocation has been one that involves the health and safety of young people: underage drink- ing. Curious given a concerted federal effort to curb underage drinking. The Interagency Coordinating Committee on the Prevention of Underage Drink- ing (ICCPUD), which is chaired by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Admin- istration, supports a range of programs. That effort, among others, seems to have made some progress. But progress may be slowing – meaning it's time to revisit the issue and the role all adults play (or don't play) in realizing the goals set out in a report from the National Research Council and Institute of Medicine of the National Academies (Reducing Under- age Drinking: A Collective Responsibility) — a critical research-based book and call to action that got the ball rolling. According to new Monitor- ing the Future data from the University of Michigan, a long- term gradual decline in alcohol use among 8th-, 10th- and 12th- graders has leveled off, with the trend continuing for only the 8th-graders. Similar results were found for binge drinking, defined as the consumption of five (for men, four for women) or more drinks in a row at least once in the previous two weeks. Not encouraging news given what we know about youth and alcohol. For example, the Academies estimate the annual cost of underage drinking at $53 billion in losses from traffic deaths, violent crime and other destruc- tive behavior. When it comes to older adolescents, Teens Today research from SADD (Students Against Destructive Decisions) reveals that by 12th grade more than 3 in 4 teens are drinking. The Center for Substance Abuse Research (CESAR) notes that 85 percent of 17-year-old drinkers get drunk at least once in a typical month. And then there's college. In February 2009, a survey of 6,608 students at the University of Wisconsin revealed: • 33 percent of respondents reported that they have missed classes due to alcohol, • 24 percent of respondents reported they had unprotected sex due to alcohol, and • 49 percent of respondents reported doing something while drinking alcohol that they later regretted. So pervasive is college drink- ing that teens in SADD-related focus groups cite preparing for it as a primary reason for drink- ing in high school. Ralph Hingson of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism points out some of the same as well as other alcohol-related conse- quences for college students: Death: 1,700 die each year from alcohol-related uninten- tional injuries, includ- ing motor vehicle crashes. Injury: 599,000 are unintentionally injured under the influence of alcohol. Assault: More than 696,000 are assaulted by another student who has been drinking. Sexual Abuse: More than 97,000 are victims of alcohol-related sex- ual assault or date rape. Unsafe Sex: 400,000 have unpro- tected sex and more than 100,000 report having been too intoxi- cated to know if they consented to having sex. Academic Problems: About 25 percent of students report academic consequences of their drinking, including miss- ing class, falling behind, doing poorly on exams or papers, and receiving lower grades overall. Drunk Driving: 2.1 million drive under the influence of alcohol each year. And yet the problem of alco- hol use on or around college campuses continues to be a polarizing issue, with some in higher education advocating for lowering the minimum legal drinking age (poof … the "prob- lem" then disappears) while prevention experts insist that the law saves lives and serves as an effective deterrent (SADD research points to the 21-year- old minimum legal drinking age as the number one reason those younger don't drink). S i m i l a r l y , researchers at the Washington Universi- ty School of Medicine credit the current law for a decline in binge drinking among 12- to 20-year-old males (females are not doing as well), although they found that col- lege students of both genders are binge drinking more. Knowing the scale and the cost of the problem, all Ameri- cans can begin the new decade with a renewed sense of urgency to pursue proven effec- tive strategies to reduce under- age drinking at college … and before. A good start, as with other problems, is acknowledg- ing that one exists. Many col- leges that have cite declines in underage and high-risk drinking among students. The time to equivocate ran out when the ball dropped at midnight on December 31. Stephen Wallace, author of Reality Gap: Alcohol, Drugs, and Sex — What Parents Don't Know and Teens Aren't Telling, serves as national chairman and chief executive officer of SADD, Inc. — Students Against Destructive Decisions — and has broad experience as a school psychologist and adolescent counselor. For more information, visit sadd.org. Dithering on drinking puts youth at risk Commentary N EWS D AILY RED BLUFF TEHAMA COUNTY 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 Stephan Wallace SADD STATE ASSEMBLYMAN — Jim Nielsen (R), State Capitol Bldg., Room 4164 P.O. Box 942849, Sacramento 94249; (916) 319-2002; Fax (916) 319- 2102 STATE SENATOR — Sam Aanestad (R), State Capitol Bldg., Room 2054, Sacramen- to, CA 95814. (916) 651-4004; Fax (916) 445-7750 GOVERNOR — Arnold Schwarzenegger (R), 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. Your officials Budget helpers Editor: Because of higher pay and benefits costs associated with public employment, it makes sense to privatize Red Bluff's, and neighboring cities', sewage plants and similar county facili- ties. It does not make sense to pay a premium bid price to retain the terminated employees as part of the privatized contract. Job creation should not be a contract criteria. Retaining excess staff does not improve contract quality. California has a $20 billion deficit because public employ- ees receive pay and benefits almost 40 percent above their non-union civilian equals. Cali- fornia needs to cut public employment to match the 12 percent civilian level. Furloughs are ineffective because the excessive benefits, including early retirement and pensions double those of civil- ians continue. Public pensions need to be reduced to 1 percent of pay for each year of employment instead of the current 2 percent for some and 3 percent for oth- ers. Pensions should never be inflation-adjusted after retire- ment. Joseph Neff, Corning Response to response Editor: Wow. I got calls from my family asking if I'd read the let- ter to the editor that Ms. Lin- dauer wrote in response to mine. While I feel that the "arrival of the Global Village" is proba- bly not listed in the top 10 of "the biggest challenges we humans have ever known," I and many others are well aware of the world around us. After all I don't think a week goes by that an industrious West African tries very hard to part me with some of my spendable cash. Or the fact that in broad daylight you can see very profitable drug deals going down in any park- ing lot in town. Representatives of our won- derful neighbor to the south counting out bills from huge wads of cash. All the while talk- ing on the cell phone as if noth- ing illegal is going on at all. I guess I triggered an automatic response from you because of the word color? As in people of? Is it my great powers of observation that have you so confounded that you must label me an un-evolved racist? Judge not. The fact is that there are lot of motels and mini marts that are now operated and owned by people from India, who just happen to have a lovely deep golden hue to their skin, not just in Cali- fornia but all across the nation. My problem is not with these fine people but perhaps the fact that it doesn't seem like a coin- cidence that there isn't a lot of diversity in the mini mart field anymore. I remember when one of the mini marts was purchased not long ago here in Red Bluff at a price of $1.5 million. I hap- pen to be a naturally curious person, so I can't help but won- der if this is a government pro- gram funded with my tax dol- lars. If so I feel I have every right to object. Furthermore, being the mother of a white male, I have a problem with my government adopting affirmative action laws. I feel these laws discrimi- nate against white males in par- ticular. I have every right to crit- icize these laws without being named a racist. The definition of institutional racism is a form of racism that is structured into political and social institutions including cor- porations, governments and uni- versities. As even the private universities now receive so much of their funding from government grants and generous tax breaks, so long as they keep a high percentage of minority students enrolled. The fees have skyrocketed nat- urally, with all the free govern- ment cheese rolling in. Thus impeding the pursuit of many white middle class males on their journey to a higher education, and a better life. It almost seems like a form of financial genocide. This is a fact to which you seem to be opposed, if you find it offensive then please accept my apologies. I think that liberal guilt rewires the brain in such a way as it is almost impossible to discern factual truth in any mean- ingful fashion. Wishing you all the best and remember the bible says charity begins at home. Rhonda Rogers, Los Molinos Your Turn