Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/6606
4A – Daily News – Friday, February 5, 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 Is it just me, or has anyone else around here noticed how "whimpy" some Americans have become? Trust me. Turn on the televi- sion or pick up the paper and somebody will be crying a river over some unfortunate situation. And, instead of shouldering the blame for their own personal misfortunes, they do what lawyers do: cast the blame on someone else. Isn't that what our society does better now more than ever – assign blame? Just ask our elected politicians. They do it better than anyone. Instead of getting up off our butts and doing something proactive to change our situa- tion, we prefer to play the victim while wallowing in self pity. I was reminded of this last week when I read a story in the Record Searchlight about an elderly woman in Mt. Shasta. When the power went out in her home, she decided to bundle up and walk down the street to a local business to get something to eat. She carried with her a long ski pole to help keep her balance in the snow. In order to reach her destina- tion, she had to crawl over the top of a large mound at the end of her driveway. The snow was so soft that she fell on her back into the drift. When she looked up, all she could see was blue sky. Surrounded by snow, she tried to climb out; but, the more she tried, the deeper she sank. She began calling for help, but no one heard. There she was, an elderly woman in her 80s, stuck in a snow bank outside of her home. The sun had already set. In that moment, I'm certain she could have figured her life was over. However, she didn't become angry, nor did she think of who to blame for her unthinkable predicament. Do you know what she first thought? "It was so beautiful out there. I figured I wasn't going to be there very long, so I didn't worry about it." She recalled nightfall coming on, and then falling asleep in the snow. She passed the time look- ing at the stars, and thinking how amazing they were. Somehow, she saw beauty in the midst of strife. How many of us can actually do that? Is it pos- sible to find serenity in the midst of suffering? What keeps us going when the walls of our life come crumbling down? Is there any will left in us? When she woke up some hours later, she saw daylight and real- ized she had fallen asleep while looking out into space. Not long after, the woman began waving her ski pole; a neighbor saw it, got help, and pulled her out of the snow to safety. Aside from a little frost bite, the woman is fine. How incredible. Talk about tough. Talk about wise. Instead of freaking out over being stuck in the snow, she accepted her situation for what she thought it was at the time: temporary. I'm not surprised. This woman comes from a time when Americans knew what it was like to be tough. The Greatest Generation sur- vived The Great Depression and World War II. They grew up serving causes larger than them- selves, and knew what it was like to survive on very little or, worse, nothing. Will our country follow in those same footsteps? Will we refuse to solve our own problems? With everything seemingly going wrong right now, America needs to get tough. I don't know exactly how that plays out, but our entire population needs to get a back- bone. Maybe it's time we stopped looking out for our own selfish interests, and realize our chil- dren are looking to us for answers. After all, how do we want them to remember us? It's something to think about. Have a great Friday. ——— Pat Gleason grew up in Los Angeles and has taught English at Red Bluff High School since 1990. He can be reached at phgleaso@rbuhsd.k12.ca.us. Are we turning into a nation of whimps? 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 Pat Gleason Simply Put 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 When I was a child my mother ingrained in me the impor- tance of writing thank you notes after receiving birth- day and Christmas gifts. That lesson was com- pounded when, at the age of 15, my aunt and uncle sent me a birthday card with a crisp $1 bill in it. The explanation in the card said something to the effect that they didn't know if I had received their much more generous gift the year before, so they worried it had gotten lost in the mail. That's when I realized the notes weren't merely a formality I was forced to complete to avoid getting in trouble — they were meant to be a true expression of gratitude for a kind gift. Because of this, I appreciate why folks often send letters to the editor thanking the community and local businesses who have recently sup- ported a charitable event or fundraiser. But thank you letters are tricky in the newspaper and generally I recommend those submitting them keep the letters general — i.e., "We would like to thank all the business- es and individuals who so generous- ly supported..." — rather than spe- cific. Invariably, the well-meaning lists of local businesses omit one or two donors and the person who submit- ted the letter asks us to rerun it in its corrected form. Obvi- ously space doesn't allow us to run letters repeatedly, so the person ends up with egg on his face for not rec- ognizing a particular donor. Over the years, many business owners have approached me to ask that I not list their businesses in thank you letters, because being listed leads too many good causes to their doorsteps. Space is always an issue, so we have to draw a line when it comes to the number of businesses we allow to be listed. But where should that line be? There are good arguments for 10, 25 and 100. So what do we do when we get a letter with 11, 26 or 101? Of course, groups are always welcome to purchase advertise- ments — at special rates for non- profits — and say as much as they want. But nobody likes to approach a worthy cause with his hand out. As I said, tricky. We take each letter case by case, so don't be discouraged from offer- ing proper thanks. Just know that we might ask for some discussion if the letter presents a problem. Chip Thompson can be reached at 527-2151, Ext. 112 or by e-mail at editor@redbluffdailynews.com. Many thanks Chip Thompson 545 Diamond Ave. College degrees are meant to be completed in 4 years Editor: In the Jan 21, Daily News, the front page statement by a student was "One of the things about being in college is that you get to pick what you want and you don't have to take the classes you don't want." That practice is certain to increase student debt by adding a fifth or sixth year to the four year degree. That is costly for taxpayers who fund most of public college costs. Every degree has prescribed core courses and electives to reach the 120 to 135 credit hour requirement. Taking all electives automatically means extended years to complete a degree. The recom- mendation is to take the required credit hours and divide by eight semesters to determine the load for four year completion. Since a majority of Californians must take one or more remedial high school courses in math science, and possibly English and lan- guages, and most students flunk at least one course and drop out without completing a course, this must be considered in the yearly course load. Extending the degree program past four years means new college entrants will be denied the necessary classes needed for a degree, since upper class students often have first priority for the limited classes. California will never increase tuition suffi- ciently to fully cover the taxpayer subsidy for a four-year degree, and certainly not for five- or six-year completion of a four-year degree. Students seem to have lost a personal sense of responsibility for the added costs of extending their degree programs. Have consideration for already overtaxed Californians. Joseph J Neff, Corning Your Turn