Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/600501
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 Has talk radio really become like hate radio? It sometimes feels like the propaganda is running amuck doesn't it? Boy oh boy, if ra- dio is not hate filled, I think it may certainly be on the precipice. RushLimbaugh,Sean Hannity, Michael Savage and others come to mind. I think they don't do much except make today's news negative, with a sizzle. Do you re- member when President Obama took that selfie of himself and the good look- ing lady ambassador America has stationed in Denmark? I watched Fox News that same day and they were reflecting on whether or not that pic- ture would cause some kind of domestic rift between Barack and Michelle. Re- ally? I think that is, to say the least, very disrespectful. Recently I heard El Rush Bo say that President Obama was taking his beautiful daughters to a Broadway show in New York, when he should have been with the families of the five victims who were killed at that mili- tary base in Tennessee. Recently, Limbaugh also used his Excellence In Broad- casting Network to come to Donald Trump's defense, which to me, seemed unneces- sary. All you have to do is fac- tor in The Donald's person- ality to know that. Rush sug- gested we should admire a man who is telling all his crit- ics to go to hell. Again, that sounds like hate radio to me. In my world, Sean Hannity sings his same song every- day, just to mention one talker. I am afraid talkers, as we broadcasters usually call them, are mostly blowhards. It must be great fun to be syndicated with your own ra- dio show and tell everyone what's up and what's down. It is very lucrative also. I won- der if they believe what they say, or just find ways to say it more provocatively so they can gain a larger audience. I bet Walter Cronkite is rolling over in his grave. I think America's anchors and news reporters have deteri- orated from the days when we got most of our informa- tion from Huntley, Brinkley, Cronkite and Jennings. That is most unfortunate, since information will always be the cornerstone of democ- racy. I think many talkers on ra- dio should either take a break or simply shut the hell up. Who made them the nation's political therapists. People like Limbaugh do have the gift of gab, but I we must all recognize that ratings is actu- ally their game. I think they are celebrities in their own right, trying to convince all of us that America and its representatives are going to hell, and quickly in a hand basket. Hogwash, I say. Since I spent a good num- ber of years as a very minor radio celebrity myself, peo- ple would often ask me for the good news for a change. Tragically, good news does not sell that well, and in truth good news is quite bor- ing. You have not doubt heard some newscaster in your life say "When news breaks out, KXYZ breaks in." The worst news translates into higher ratings. That is because we all find it almost impossible not to rubber neck a traffic accident. I am quite certain most of these talk- ers get the news each day and then immediately think of ways that they can articulate it to make it more exciting that it really is, such as Me- gan Kelly of Fox News. Mytakeonthemovies This week's movie review is easy. It's the 23rd look at Bond, James Bond. I always preferred Sean Con- nery in that role, but I have se- riously bought into British ac- tor Daniel Craig now. Go and enjoy Spectre. StanStathamserved1976- 1994 in the California Assembly and was a television news anchor at KHSL-TV in Chico 1965- 1975. He is past president of the California Broadcasters Association and can be reached at StanStatham@ gmail.com. My take Talk radio or hate radio? I am quite certain most of these talkers get the news each day and then immediately think of ways that they can articulate it to make it more exciting that it really is, such as Megan Kelly of Fox News. Thoughts on Veterans Day Editor: In honor and remembrance of all the veterans who have served in the armed forces of our country I attended the an- nual Veterans Day parade in Corning and the lunch time program at the Veterans Me- morial Hall. Once again I ap- preciated and enjoyed the out- pouring of patriotism exhib- ited by Corning citizens. My good friend Bucky Bowen, the perennial VFW Master of Ceremonies for an- nual Veterans Day and Memo- rial Day events honoring our veterans and fallen heroes, did double duty this year by serving as the event's keynote speaker. At more than 90 years old Bowen, a WWII Army vet- eran of the campaigns in the South Pacific, once again did a masterful job in honoring our veterans. Thinking of the veterans that I have the honor of per- sonally knowing in Corning encouraged me to put words to paper to acknowledge them. A few of these living heroes in- clude Thad Blanchard, WWII senior paratrooper — Bronze Star, Purple Heart, Combat In- fantryman Badge and Med- als from France, Belgium and Luxembourg; Vic Dicki- son, who recently turned 100 years old, served in the Army Air Corps in the Pacific dur- ing WWII; Jim Darrow, WWII and Korea — CIB and Pur- ple Heart; Bob Lester, Korean War, CIB and Purple Heart; and last but not least, John Larson, Vietnam War combat helicopter pilot — 29 awards of the Air Medal, a Bronze Star, and the Army Commendation Medal with Oak Leaf Custer. An interesting side note is that the only Congressional Medal of Honor winner bur- ied here in Tehama County is France Silva, US Marine Corps. Silva was awarded the Medal of Honor for his heroism dur- ing the 1900 Boxer Rebellion in China. In 1951 he was in- terred in the Veterans Section at Corning's Sunset Hill Cem- etery. It's vitally important that we all remember and take time to thank veterans for their ser- vice while they're still with us. WWII veterans, once number- ing 8 million men and women, are passing away at the rate of one every two minutes. Veter- ans from all eras from WWII up to and including Afghan- istan, Iraq and ongoing con- flicts are living among us. If you know or come across a vet- eran — or a serving member of the military — please take the time to shake their hand and thank them for their service. — Dean Cofer, Corning Walnut traffic needs to be controlled Editor: As the new County Court- house project on Walnut Street nears completion, nothing has been done to address the traf- fic congestion that will un- doubtedly increase as more cars travel to and from the new facility. Residents of sub- divisions and apartment com- plexes currently have diffi- culty crossing Walnut Street when Bidwell School is in ses- sion. Drivers park along Wal- nut when dropping off or pick- ing up children, limiting visi- bility for drivers coming off of adjacent streets. The expected increase in traffic caused by the new courthouse will certainly add to the current congestion. Businesses and residents along Walnut Street and adja- cent streets were not advised of meetings pertaining to traffic control before final decisions regarding the construction of the County Courthouse. Our in- put was not solicited, despite the fact we are the ones who will be directly impacted by the increase in traffic. The concept that the result- ing traffic will have a zero im- pact on the environment and community is puzzling, to say the least. Traffic congestion is already a problem; more traffic will obviously add to the prob- lem. Because the courthouse is a county building in the city lim- its, it is reasonable to believe the two entities will squabble over which pays for an inevi- table traffic study and eventu- ally puts in traffic control mea- surements. As it stands now, neither the city nor the county has given any thought to the residents who live here. — Henriette Lindeman, Red Bluff A bus driver's perspective Editor: I have driven the city bus route down Walnut Street and encountered high visibil- ity vest-wearing construction workers crossing the road and had to brake for them. The next day I was looking for the high visibility vests and once again they crossed the street, I had to brake abruptly even knowing about the previ- ous day. What's going to hap- pen when the general public crosses the street wearing ci- vilian clothes? I believe we need a traffic light on Walnut Street. Also saw numerous near miss accidents on Walnut Street at Paskenta Road. — Larry Bonds, Red Bluff Stop sign needed on Walnut Editor: Please for the sake of the children of Red Bluff, put a stop sign at Walnut Street and Dumosa Drive. — John Ferretti, Red Bluff Your opinions Cartoonist's take Last week Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen hinted that the Federal Reserve Board will increase interest rates at the board's December meeting. The positive jobs report that was re- leased following Yellen's re- marks caused many observers to say that the Federal Reserve's first interest rate increase in al- most a decade is practically in- evitable. However, there are several reasons to doubt that the Fed will increase rates anytime in the near future. One reason is that the official unemployment rate understates unemployment by ignoring the over 94 mil- lion Americans who have either withdrawn from the labor force or settled for part-time work. Presumably the Federal Reserve Board has access to the real un- employment numbers and is thus aware that the economy is actually far from full employ- ment. The decline in the stock mar- ket following Friday's jobs report was attributed to many inves- tors' fears over the impact of the predicted interest rate increase. Wall Street's jitters about the ef- fects of a rate increase is another reason to doubt that the Fed will soon increase rates. After all, ac- cording to former Federal Re- serve official Andrew Huszar, protecting Wall Street was the main goal of "quantitative eas- ing," so why would the Fed now risk a Christmastime downturn in the stock markets? Donald Trump made head- lines last week by accusing Janet Yellen of keeping interest rates low because she does not want to risk another economic downturn in President Obama's last year in office. I have many disagree- ments with Mr. Trump, but I do agree with him that the Federal Reserve's polices may be influ- enced by partisan politics. Janet Yellen would hardly be the first Fed chair to allow pol- itics to influence decision-mak- ing. Almost all Fed chairs have felt pressure to "adjust" mon- etary policy to suit the incum- bent administration, and almost all have bowed to the pressure. Economists refer to the Fed's pro- pensity to tailor monetary policy to suit the needs of incumbent presidents as the "political" busi- ness cycle. Presidents of both parties, and all ideologies, have interfered with the Federal Reserve's con- duct of monetary policy. Presi- dent Dwight D. Eisenhower ac- tually threatened to force the Fed chair to resign if he did not give in to Ike's demands for easy money, while then-Federal Re- serve Chair Arthur Burns was taped joking about Fed indepen- dence with President Richard Nixon. The failure of the Fed's poli- cies of massive money creation, corporate bailouts, and quantita- tive easing to produce economic growth is a sign that the fiat money system's day of reckoning is near. The only way to prevent the monetary system's inevitable crash from causing a major eco- nomic crisis is the restoration of a free-market monetary policy. One positive step Congress may take this year is passing the Audit the Fed bill. Fortu- nately, Senator Rand Paul is us- ing Senate rules to force the Sen- ate to hold a roll-call vote on Au- dit the Fed. The vote is expected to take place in the next two- to-three weeks. If Audit the Fed passes, the American people can finally learn the full truth about the Fed's operations. If it fails, the American people will at least know which senators side with them and which ones side with the Federal Reserve. Allowing a secretive central bank to control monetary policy has resulting in an ever-expand- ing government, growing in- come inequality, a series of ever- worsening economic crises, and a steady erosion of the dollar's pur- chasing power. Unless this sys- tem is changed, America, and the world, will soon experience a ma- jor economic crisis. It is time to finally audit, then end, the Fed. Ron Paul is a former Congressman and Presidential candidate. He can be reached at VoicesofLiberty.com. Ron Paul Does the bell toll for the Federal Reserve? Stan Statham OPINION » redbluffdailynews.com Thursday, November 12, 2015 » MORE AT FACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS A6