Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/810552
ChipThompson, Editor 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: Daily News 728Main St., Red Bluff, CA 96080 Facebook: Leave comments at FACEBOOK.COM/ RBDAILYNEWS Twitter: Follow and send tweets to @REDBLUFFNEWS ItisrodeotimeinRed Bluff. I know a lot about the rodeo because I have resided in this com- munity my en- tire life, and it is impossible to live in Red Bluff for seventy years and not know a lot about the Red Bluff Round-Up. Let me tell you what I know about the Round-Up. If there are gaps in my story, I will fill them in with information that I make up as I go along. My stories are of- ten more interesting if I take that approach. That said, I think some of what I am writ- ing may actually be true. The first Red Bluff Round- Up took place nearly 100 years ago when it was held on the Clough Ranch in the Los Mo- linos area. Many of you readers out there are likely acquainted with Candy Owens, who is married to John Owens. Candy is either a fifth or eighth gener- ation Clough, and John is part of the almost legendary Owens cattle ranching family. Each, along with other family mem- bers, has played a major role in making the rodeo the success it enjoys today. •••• My first memory of the Red Bluff Round-Up actually doesn't center on the action at the Round-Up, but rather the action at the Round-Up street dance. I am not sure how I got there, but I remember sitting on a Pine Street curb at age 10-12 and watching the wild and wooly Red Bluff Round- Up street dance. Those were the days when a fight broke out every 15 min- utes. Trede Bros. and later the Iron Horse served as party central, and the only rules were that there were no rules. Fortunately, today's Thursday Night Mixer held every year at Reynolds Ranch Supply is in no way related to the street dances of my youth. •••• The Round-Up parade has long been an important part of the Red Bluff Round-Up ex- perience. I should know, be- cause I have attended about fifty of them over my lifetime. To truly enjoy the parade, one should start their morning by first attending the world-fa- mous Kiwanis Club Pancake breakfast, held every year at the Elks Lodge. Proceeds from this event assist in sending Te- hama County children to sum- mer camp. The Kiwanians, in spite of other glaring weak- nesses, do an amazing job flip- ping flapjacks. As far as the parade is con- cerned, I remember the days when every school band in the county marched down Main Street in a regimented but to- tally rag-tag formation. I remember two or three de- cades when the highlight of every parade was June Hobbs and her baton-twirling Ste- pettes. I would pay good money to see all of those for- mer members of the Stepettes march in the parade one more time. How about it ladies? Of course no parade would be complete without the par- ticipation of politicians and Pooper Scoopers. Like all those horses in the parade, most politicians are experts at spreading crap, and the Pooper Scoopers do a great job cleaning it up. Other than the Pooper Scoopers, the most important participants in the parade are undoubtedly the Grand Mar- shalls. Let me tell you a bit about this year's Grand Mar- shalls. I first met Clay and Lilly Parker about 30 years ago when I worked for the Pro- bation Department and they were employed at the Sheriff's Department. Clay served as Tehama County Sheriff from 1999-2011, and since that time has served as a voice of reason on the Red Bluff City Council. Consummate volunteers, a few years back Clay and Lilly, with the support of the Round- Up Board of directors, imple- mented a Ride Share program where they and a small group of additional volunteers offer every single patron who con- sumes alcohol at the Round- Up, a free ride home. Hundreds and hundreds of folks have been spared a po- tential drunk driving arrest or accident by taking advantage of this wonderful program. The next time you run into Clay and Lilly Parker, take a minute to say thank you. They are simply the best. •••• I would be remiss if I failed to put a plug in for the 22nd annual Red Bluff Rotary Club Chili Cook-off. Red Bluff's re- nowned World Champion chili cooks Ron and Shirley Jud- son first brought the Chili Cook Off to Red Bluff in 1995. In addition to an internation- ally sanctioned competition, our cook-off features a peo- ple's choice division featuring some of the best (and worst) chile ever prepared by a cou- ple dozen local businesses and service clubs. If you have the stomach for it, come on down to Washington and Pine this Saturday, April 15, and join the fun. It's going to be a party, for sure. •••• There is one other Round- Up associated event that ben- efits a special segment of our community. For the past dozen years, the Red Bluff Round-Up and Director Jolene Kemen have partnered with the good folks at St. Eliza- beth Hospital in support of a Tough Enough to Wear Pink campaign at the Sunday rodeo performance. Proceeds from this event are dedicated to reducing the incidence and impact of can- cer within this community; to date, nearly a half million dol- lars has been raised as a re- sult of this wonderful pro- gram. About a decade back, the Rotary Club of Red Bluff joined that effort, and began sponsoring the annual Tough Enough to Wear Pink Barbe- cue and Auction at the world- famous Growney Ranch. This event has grown every year, largely because guests are able to mingle with the likes of legendary rodeo contrac- tors, John Growney and Don Kish, as well as Hall of Fame Bull fighter Joe Baumgartner and the directors of the Red Bluff Round-Up. If you buckaroos would like to enjoy some pre Round-Up action while listening to John Growney spin a yarn, why not wander on down to the Cor- nerstone Bank or Tehama Vis- itors Center, where for only $15 you can purchase a ticket to attend the one and only Tough Enough to Wear Pink Barbecue to be held on Tues- day, April 18. See y'all there for sure. 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. WilliamTells Rodeoisjust around the corner Cartoonist's take "Bugs? They want us to eat bugs?" "Ah, yes, you refer to an in- creasing num- ber of reports and studies that are encouraging hu- mans to consume edible insects, rather than meat." "Consume in- sects? The wife goes ballistic ev- ery time she sees an ant or a spi- der. She'll never put one in her mouth." "Well, the Food and Agricul- tural Organization of the United Nations suggests that she and millions of others must get over it. According to a 2013 FAO study, our current farming and food production practices can- not keep up with the Earth's rap- idly growing population. Insects, however, which are both nutri- tious and plentiful, can feed a lot of people." "Cow dung is plentiful, but that doesn't mean I'll ever eat it!" "The FAO and other organi- zations also argue that our cur- rent farming and food produc- tion practices are bad for the en- vironment." "I get it: Another attempt by elitists to make Americans feel guilty about the grub we eat!" "Here's how the argument goes: Unlike cows and pigs, rais- ing insects requires a fraction of the land, water and other re- sources. Bugs are cold-blooded invertebrates. They are efficient. Much more of the food they eat is converted into edible bug body parts than is the case with our friends the cows." "True, but a juicy steak is less likely to hop off your plate." "Cows and pigs are warm- blooded vertebrates. They need to consume lots more food just to keep their body tempera- ture steady. Their food is grown on farms. Fossil fuels must be burned to harvest, process and transport it. Farming re- quires lots of land and water. And let's not forget that these animals produce a lot of flatu- lence, which contains methane, a greenhouse gas that, some ar- gue, is a key driver of global warming." "Hey, politicians in Washing- ton produce lots of methane gas, but too few people are complain- ing about that." "Also, bugs are good for our health. A 3.5-ounce portion of caterpillars contains 1 ounce of protein. Water bugs have four times as much iron as beef. Many cultures have enjoyed eat- ing insects for years." "If bugs are so tasty, why have we never heard of delicacies such as bug Wellington or Salisbury spider?" "More companies are entering the bug-nutrition market. Cricket powder, which can add protein to any dish, is enjoying increased sales. Here are three newer bug- food products you can buy on- line right now: Chile-Lime Crick- ets and Pumpkin Seeds, Whole Roasted Mealworms and BBQ Mealworms." "Oh, brother, what's next? Fly of round? Bug tartare? McMag- gots?" "Where global warming is concerned, I'm with syndicated columnist Charles Krautham- mer — I'm a global-warming ag- nostic. It can't be good that we're pumping so much carbon diox- ide into the environment — and our activity may be having an ef- fect on the climate." "Here's one bug treat that will surely be a winner down south: really short short ribs." "On the other hand, de- spite what many global-warm- ing alarmists are saying, sci- ence doesn't know for certain how much our current farming practices may be contributing to climate change. The fact is, the science surrounding climate change is not settled." "Here's something equally un- settling: General Mills may soon launch an advertising blitz with its new spokesperson, Betty Cricket." "The point of all this bug talk is this: As the climate-change frenzy continues, you will see more studies and articles that encourage Americans to give up beef, pork and chicken in favor of edible insects." "I'll give up my chuck roast, pork chops and fried chicken when they pry it from my dead, grubby fingers! Bugs! I can't be- lieve they want us to eat bugs!" Tom Purcell, author of "Misadventures of a 1970s Childhood" and "Wicked Is the Whiskey," a Sean McClanahan mystery novel, both available at Amazon.com, is a Pittsburgh Tribune-Review humor columnist. Send comments to Tom@TomPurcell.com. Tom Purcell We're being encouraged to eat bugs for dinner To truly enjoy the parade, one should start their morning by first attending the world- famous Kiwanis Club Pancake breakfast, held every year at the Elks Lodge. Proceeds from this event assist in sending Tehama County children to summer camp. Bill Cornelius Tom Purcell President Donald Trump's campaign promises to re-create immigration into a vehicle that helps, rather than hurts Amer- icans, catapulted him into the White House. More than repeal- ing and replacing Obamacare, more than withdrawing from the Trans-Pacific Partnership, and more than draining the swamp, enforcing immigration laws and securing the Southwest bor- der put President Trump in the White House., No surprise then that Presi- dent Trump's base watches his every immigration-related move. But almost three months into his administration, even some of President Trump's most ardent supporters shake their heads. To be sure, President Trump has earned outstanding grades on converting some of his campaign pledges into reality. But the pres- ident has totally failed on his other key campaign pledges., President Trump has been ful- filling his promise to rid the na- tion of criminal aliens. During the last two weeks, Immigration and Customs Enforcement ar- rested 84 aliens during a three- day Pacific Northwest sweep; 82 aliens in a five-day action in the greater Washington, D.C. area, and during April's first week ICE apprehended 368 criminals in seven states and the District of Columbia, a 250 percent increase over the previous week. The tar- gets included aliens that had out- standing final deportation orders and MS-13 transnational gang- sters charged with sex crimes against minors. Because of vig- orous enforcement, illegal bor- der crossings are, according to the Justice Department, down 60 percent., On enforcement, then, Pres- ident Trump earns a solid A grade. But, on the low-hanging fruit — ending deferred action for childhood arrivals (DACA) and mandating E-Verify, the free, on- line program which ensures that employees are legally authorized to work in the United States — President Trump has been curi- ously and infuriatingly silent., The Pew Research Center es- timates that eight million ille- gal immigrants have jobs, many of them outside of agriculture. If President Trump wanted to prove his sincerity about his "hire American" campaign vow, he'd sent a message to Congress that E-Verify is a top priority. In past Congresses, E-Verify sailed through the House Judiciary Committee, but didn't advance because Speakers John Boehner and Paul Ryan weren't on board, possibly because they knew then- President Obama would veto it. But with Republicans controlling Congress and the White House, E-Verify would be a cinch — as- suming President Trump put his muscle behind it. The miserable March Bureau of Labor Statistics report which reflected a measly 98,000 jobs created is all the in- centive President Trump should need., President Trump's DACA dith- ering may be an even deeper mystery than his E-Verify inac- tion. On the stump, candidate Trump promised repeatedly to end DACA and the employ- ment authorization documents it grants "immediately." Now that Trump is president, void- ing President Obama's unconsti- tutional executive action could be done in a matter of minutes. President Trump simply has to write a memo to U.S. Citizen- ship and Immigration Services advising that new DACA appli- cations and renewals are to be suspended immediately and in- definitely. Instead of decisive ac- tion to kill DACA that voters counted on, President Trump is content to continue with busi- ness as usual. According to US- CIS statistics, for the first quar- ter of fiscal year 2017 (Oct. to Dec 2016), there were 114,327 new ap- plications and renewals filed. Between today and the end of 2019's first quarter, three-quar- ters of a million DACA renewals will come due., On E-verify and DACA, Presi- dent Trump's grade is a well-de- served F. President Trump hasn't hit the 100-day mark yet, and he has plenty of time to make good. But a cautionary note to the chief executive: because vot- ers feel that previous presidents have betrayed them on immi- gration for decades, carrying out promises to enact E-Verify and cancel DACA must be done quickly or you risk losing 2020 votes. Joe Guzzardi is a Californians for Population Stabilization Senior Writing Fellow. Contact him at joeguzzardi@capsweb.org and on Twitter @joeguzzardi19. Joe Guzzardi Trump's immigration grade — A and F OPINION » redbluffdailynews.com Wednesday, April 12, 2017 » MORE AT FACEBOOK.COM/RBDAILYNEWS AND TWITTER.COM/REDBLUFFNEWS A4