Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/635712
Wouldn't it be cool if we were able to relive certain portions of our lives? Don't get me wrong; life has treated me very well. I am very appreciative of everything I have. Most of all, I am thankful for my wonderful family, each of whom is healthy and thriving in their own special way. TheonlypersonIwould change is the person who is writing this column. If you read my column, you are aware that I love sports, and with tongue in cheek I often boast about my past ath- letic accomplish- ments. If I were to be completely honest, I would admit that any self-described success I have enjoyed as an athlete is due to practice, practice and prac- tice. Or, more likely, to my own over-inflated sense of how good an athlete I really was. What I know for certain is that my par- ticipation in sports caused me to miss out on some really im- portant opportunities as a par- ent and as a spouse. In keeping with the Ameri- can dream, within three short months in 1968 I graduated from Chico State, married the cutest girl in Redding, and be- gan my 30-year career at the Tehama County Probation De- partment. In 1970 Billie gave birth to son Cabe and, with careful planning, we provided him a sister, Cori, in 1973. While the addition of chil- dren normally necessitates changes and sacrifices on the part of both parents, I can ashamedly admit that I don't recall changing my behaviors much with the birth of our chil- dren. Upon graduating from col- lege, I switched from playing baseball to fast pitch softball, which at that time was a highly popular sport. For the next de- cade or so I played for teams that played in as many as three different leagues at the same time, along with a tournament in some far off town virtually every weekend. As soon as the softball sea- son ended, I transferred my questionable athletic talents to the basketball court. There I played in two different leagues and several tournaments every year. I spent well over 100 days per year playing some kind of ball with the boys. I remember the year my lovely wife, who was eight months pregnant with our daughter, attended her highly important ten-year Shasta High School reunion, while I chose to travel to Stockton for a softball tournament. Probably not the wisest choice I ever made. About the time my ema- ciated old body finally broke down, I was handed the job of running the Probation Depart- ment. I changed my focus: from playing too much, to working too much. While folks tend to think I am a happy-go-lucky, class clown kind of person, the truth is that for the most part I am more insecure than most, so early on in life I learned to use humor as a defense mecha- nism. For the 16 years I served as Chief Probation Officer, I survived pretty well when it came to the day-to-day oper- ational stuff that came with the job. While it may have ap- peared that I handled my job without feeling undue stress, the opposite was often much too true. I am the kind of per- son who keeps things inside. The kind of person who spends far too much time trying to see both sides of every issue and the kind of person who chooses to own things that I cannot control. Too often I went home in the evening with a black cloud hanging over my head. Too of- ten I said things to my children, and especially to my wife, that were really meant for some is- sue or problem that should have been handled at work. Too of- ten I failed to leave my work- related problems at the office where they really belonged; and too often I took for granted that I would always have to- morrow to enjoy the company of my family. I was not a bad father. I love my children and grandchil- dren more than anything in the world. Having said that, I sort of took my role for granted. I spent too much time play- ing silly games and sometimes put more into my job than I put into my family. I think most of all I failed to realize how quickly my children would grow up. They were here — and then they were gone. Unfor- tunately, sometimes we don't truly appreciate what we have until it is gone. I love you Cabe and Cori, and I thank Billie for the wonderful job she did rais- ing all three of us. ••• Speaking of raising children let me go out on a limb and say nice things about a family I have never even met. I am talk- ing about the Bushnell family. I feel like I should know momma Donna Bushnell, as we are Facebook friends, and she is not shy about posting information concerning her two extremely talented children, Chelsey and Chad. I wouldn't be able to pick father Wade out of a line up of midgets, but I would guess he would just as soon have it that way. Though I am not person- ally acquainted with either par- ent, it is clear to me that they have done a terrific job in rais- ing two exceptional children. Daughter Chelsey is the ath- lete of the family. A student at Feather River College, Chelsey is an excellent student, a na- tionally ranked college rodeo star and plays on the college basketball team. I am acquainted with son Chad as a result of introducing him at various events for the past decade or so. Chad Bush- nell is the nicest, most polite, most talented young man you will ever meet. Chad has grown from a local kid who more than anything wanted to be a coun- try music star, to a talented young singer who is destined to realize his lifelong dream. If you have yet to hear Red Bluff's own Chad Bushnell, you can do so when he opens for country music superstar Collin Raye on Feb. 11 at the historic State The- atre. For more information, call 529-2787. WilliamTells What I would do differently as a husband, father Cartoonist's take While the addition of children normally necessitates changes and sacrifices on the part of both parents, I can ashamedly admit that I don't recall changing my behaviors much with the birth of our children. GregStevens,Publisher Chip Thompson, Editor EDITORIAL BOARD 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 Bill Cornelius Passage of Senator Mitch Mc- Connell's authorization for war against ISIS will not only lead to perpetual US wars across the globe, it will also endanger our civil and economic liberties. The measure allows the presi- dent to place troops anywhere he determines ISIS is operat- ing. Therefore, it could be used to justify using military force against United States citizens on U.S. territory. It may even be used to justify imposing mar- tial law in America. The President does not have to deploy the U.S. military to turn America into a milita- rized police state, however. He can use his unlimited author- ity to expand programs that turn local police forces into ad- juncts of the U.S. military, and send them increasing amounts of military equipment. Us- ing the threat of ISIS to jus- tify increased police militari- zation will be enthusiastically supported by police unions, lo- cal officials, and, of course, po- litically-powerful defense con- tractors. The only opposition will come from citizens whose rights have been violated by a militarized police force that views the people as the enemy. Even though there is no ev- idence that the government's mass surveillance programs have prevented even a sin- gle terrorist attack, we are still continuously lectured about how we must sacrifice our lib- erty for security. The cries for the government to take more of our privacy will grow louder as the war party and its allies in the media continue to hype the threat of terrorism. A pres- ident armed with the authority to do whatever it takes to stop ISIS will no doubt heed these calls for new restrictions on our privacy. Following last year's mass shooting in California, Presi- dent Obama called for restrict- ing the Second Amendment rights of any American on the "terrorist watch list." The presi- dent also used the attacks to ex- pand the unconstitutional gun background check system via executive action. Can anyone doubt that President Obama — or a future anti-gun president — will use the absolute power to do whatever is necessary to stop terrorism as a justification for imposing new gun control measures? Using the war on ISIS to justify more gun control will be particularly attractive since even many pro-gun poli- ticians will support gun control measures if they are marketed as part of the war on terror. As the American economy faces continued stagnation, and as challenges to the dollar's sta- tus as the world's reserve cur- rency mount, an increasingly authoritarian government will impose new restrictions on our economic activities and new limits on our financial pri- vacy. In particular, our ability to move assets out of the coun- try will be limited, and new reporting and other require- ments will limit our ability to use cash without being treated as criminals or terrorists. Those who carry large amounts of cash will find themselves at in- creased risk of having the cash confiscated by government agents under civil asset forfei- ture laws. RON PAUL Is congress declaring war on ISIS or on you? TOM PURCELL Immoral Girl Scout cookies The Girl Scout cookie season is upon us — which means peo- ple with nothing better to do will criticize Girl Scout cookies. According to the International Business Times, one critic, a pro- fessor of medicine and public health at the University of Arizona, says it makes no sense for the Girl Scouts to "sell something so un- healthy." She told IBT there is a discon- nect between the sugary, fatty cookies the scouts sell and the organization's mission of "build- ing girls of courage, confidence and character who make the world a better place." Hey, if you don't think Girl Scout cookies make the world a better place, try dipping a sleeve of Lorna Doones into a pitcher of ice-cold milk. Look, the Girl Scouts orga- nization was founded in 1912 to help girls develop physically, mentally and spiritually. Its an- nual cookie sale has become a tasty part of American culture since it originated in 1917 — well before something as innocuous as a cookie could cause so much angst. True, America is awash in high-calorie, high-sugar pro- cessed foods that the human body can efficiently convert into fat. It's also true that human be- ings must educate themselves on what is and isn't good for our health in order to reverse the high levels of diabetes and heart disease in America. But Girl Scout cookies are still just cookies — an occasional treat. Vani Hari, a food critic and founder of the blog FoodBabe. com, doesn't see it that way. One of her blogs blasted the high- fructose corn syrup and partially hydrogenated oils found in some of the cookies. She writes: "It's important for the Girl Scouts organization to take a step back, look at these in- gredients and say, 'How can we continue to do this program in a way that's morally sound?'" Hey, people starving across the world is morally unsound. Millions of American kids who leave high school unable to read is morally unsound. Terrorists who murder women and chil- dren for going to the wrong church is morally unsound. Yet we're worried about the immorality of cookies? Apparently so. IBT reports that in 2014, "an NPR piece rounded up a slew of concerns from doctors and parents and ended with the question, 'Should the Girl Scouts find something more healthful to sell for their fundraising?'" How about tofu treats or low-energy-consump- tion light bulbs? Then again, why are we let- ting the Girl Scouts sell any- thing at all? Instead of teaching the girls the principles of capital- ism, why not teach them the art of government bureaucracy? As America keeps moving toward European-style socialism, that's where most of the jobs will be, anyhow. Hey, cookie shamers, Ameri- cans are making progress. They are finally beginning to read la- bels, eat better and understand what is and isn't healthful. Mc- Donald's sales are slumping as healthier offerings are growing. Besides, a cookie is now what it has always been: a treat. If Girl Scout cookies are your primary source of calories for breakfast, lunch and dinner, you have big- ger problems than Girl Scout cookies. When IBT asked the Girl Scouts if it contributes to child- hood obesity, the organization said it promotes a "healthy life- style for girls, which includes a well-balanced diet and plenty of exercise." It said Girl Scout cook- ies "should be enjoyed in moder- ation." Now there's a thought. The country is on the verge of $20 trillion in debt, the Mid- dle East is melting down, enti- tlement spending is about to ex- plode and Girl Scout cookies are the great moral issue of our time. I think I need to mull that one over — as I consume sev- eral sleeves of Thin Mints and wash them down with a bucket of fresh milk. TomPurcell,authorof "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 OPINION » redbluffdailynews.com Wednesday, February 3, 2016 » MORE AT FACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS A6