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8A Daily News – Tuesday, September 25, 2012 Opinion DAILYNEWS RED BLUFF TEHAMACOUNTY 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 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. 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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 Jim Reed posits positive points ative ads this political season I trust that you will appreciate some positive comments for change. It wasn't long ago office holders were valued for skills of negotia- tion and compromise, rather than praised for adherence to party pledges and platforms. All of us were better served then because while we lost some battles, we won others and had a sense that our governance was improving. Unfortunately for all this evolution has ceased as the Tea Party draws lines in the sand, and cow-tows Republican leaders to make blan- ket pledges to reduce the size of government, fight affordable health care legislation, abortion rights, immigration reform, and most notably oppose any increase in federal revenue by closing tax loopholes or stymieing fraud despite mounting deficits. Only one candidate for our 1st Congressional District (the seat now held by Wally Herger) is ready, willing, and able to break legislative gridlock and get things done for the people of the north state. This man is Jim Reed, a tax attorney, farmer, and private pilot from Fall River Mills whose mod- erate views reflect those of the majority of people in the district. In a nutshell this is what Jim hopes to accomplish for us: 1) promote fairness to the middle class by sav- ing Social Security and Medicare, equalizing income tax rates for working men and women with investors making more than $200,000 and promoting investing With the record volume of neg- in American companies while lim- iting gambling on the stock mar- ket; 2) speak in Washington for the people of the District, rather than taking political party pledges and serving special interest groups; 3) create local jobs by ensuring that a fair portion of our federal tax dol- lars are reinvested in our area; 4) help end bipartisan bickering and find middle ground to get our gov- ernment working again; 5) re-cre- ate a Civilian Conservation Corps; 6) defend our right to bear arms; 7) protect a woman's right to make decisions regarding her body and fetus; and 8) ensure that all Amer- icans have access to affordable health care. I had the pleasure of hearing our prematurely resigned State Senator Doug LaMalfa debate with Mr. Reed on September 10 at an event organized by the Redding Tea Party. venue, the event was well attended by a cross-section of regional vot- ers and offered opportunities for the candidates to ask questions of one another and rebut responses to questions proffered by the moder- ator. Despite the partisan year the LaMalfa family divided their farm into eight pieces held by siblings and in-laws to increase their annual dole to as much as $1,440,000. Such a move seems somewhat hypocritical since Mr. LaMalfa espouses he is one of us and that we should cut, not increase, federal entitlements to reduce the deficit. While Mr. Reed is personally opposed to abortion, he firmly sup- ports a woman's right to decide what is best for her during the first two trimesters of pregnancy, and to permit abortions in the event of rape and health risks. In contrast Mr. LaMalfa wants to ban abor- tions in deference to his view of the sanctity of life, the emotional trauma he perceives, and a now retracted claim that abortions increase the likelihood of breast cancer. deficit, Jim discussed how the fed- eral tax system is riddled with loopholes and sweet-heart provi- sions for moneyed special interests that he is well equipped to reign in. He described other federal pro- grams that are subject to abuse such as the farm bill which since 1996 has limited crop subsidies to $180,000 per farm each year. It is interesting to note that in that same With regard to the federal "Unaffordable Health Care Act" but soon thereafter caught his Freudian slip and correctly identi- fied it as the Affordable Health Care Act, aka Obamacare. Mr. LaMalfa expressed concerns about "death panels" pulling the plug on grandma because the leg- islation requires that doctors dis- cuss advanced care directives with elderly or critically ill patients. This "death panel" fiction is despite the fact that such direc- The moderator asked about the Richard Mazzucchi Positive Point tives simply ensure that patients' end of life decisions are docu- mented and honored should health erosion render them unable to form or indicate them in the future. Mr. Reed explained that under Obamacare millions of additional young peo- ple are now insured on their parent's plans and millions more will be added as the individual mandate is implement- ed to lower premiums and ensure those with pre-existing conditions and limited incomes have access to afford- able coverage. In summary, Jim Reed posits positive points on how to better manage government to satisfy north state needs while Doug LaMalfa prof- fers partisan pledges and apparent- ly wishes to keep the government out of our lives except when it comes to farm subsidies, vaginas, and limiting access to affordable health care. Richard Mazzucchi is a retired research engineer specializing in energy efficiency and renewable energy. He has travelled extensively and now makes his home in Los Molinos, where he is striving to manifest a sustainable and spiritual lifestyle and operate a BBQ equipment and supply business. He can be reached at living-green@att.net. Your officials STATE ASSEMBLYMAN — Jim Nielsen (R) State Capitol Bldg., Room 6031 Sacramento, CA 95814 (916) 319-2002;Fax (916) 319-2102 STATE SENATOR — Doug LaMalfa (R) State Capitol Bldg., Room 3070 Sacramento, CA 95814 (916) 651-4004;Fax (916) 445-7750 GOVERNOR — Jerry Brown, State Capitol Bldg., Sacramento, CA 95814; (916) 445-2841; Fax (916) 558-3160; E-mail: governor@gover- nor.ca.gov. U.S. REPRESENTATIVE — Wally Herger (R), 2595 Ceanothus Ave., Ste. 182, Chico, CA 95973; 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; (510) 286-8537. Fax (202) 224-0454. Futile advocacy over mostly settled race Commentary ing their first forum for local candi- dates tonight at 6 at the Westside Grange. This meeting will be devoted to the Red Bluff Joint Union High School District Gov- erning Board, with a total of 5 can- didates slated to speak. Local school boards and offices are very influential ground level positions for shaping the future of our citi- zen-governed nation. How can these candidates influence young minds and characters? Show up and find out. Also, be sure to stop at the Republican booth when you go to the fair. page have little actual impact on the races for Congress and the Presidency; more so for state and local races as readers consider sup- porters' or opponents' comments. The two-party county voting ratio has been around 60 percent Repub- lican and 40 percent Democrat. However, 1) the total share is dif- ferent due to other parties and inde- pendents, and 2) incorporated parts of Tehama County have the highest proportion of Democrats. My point is that, whether here Letters and columns on this The Tea Party Patriots are hav- up and nothing I or any other advo- cates write will change that. Tehama County will vote over- whelmingly for Romney and LaMalfa, and against Senator Diane Feinstein, even if they've never heard of her Republican challenger, Elizabeth Emken. Con- versely, our state will make oppo- site electoral choices, effectively reducing our efforts, columns, let- ters and votes to a futile asterisk. That doesn't make our advocacy on this page completely irrelevant; we all take pride in cheering our guy (or gal) and critiquing, even lambasting, someone we oppose. Consider the execrable ad hominem attacks and character assassination hurled my way. Readers might be surprised to in Tehama County, throughout California or the nation, polling reveals a very hard-core split: Vir- tually all Democrats will vote to reelect President Obama and any Democrat running for House or Senate; and Republicans will simi- larly vote to replace Obama with Governor Mitt Romney, as well as any Republican for the other races. Preferences have been decided for a long time in that regard; if the election were held before the con- ventions, now, or in 6 weeks, peo- ple have already made their minds know that, despite media attempts to paint Obama in the lead, the race has been a mostly neck-and-neck dead heat, aside from minor bumps after conventions. You might also be surprised to know that Obama's lead in many polls is achieved by polling, or sampling, 5 to 13 per- cent more Democrats than Repub- licans; they assume a 2008 turnout, when 7 percent more Democrats voted, rather than the 35 to 35 per- cent voting split from 2 years ago. Some of those skewed polls make it difficult to find the over-sampling of the President's party. When you adjust the results to reflect the like- ly turnout (based on 2010 results and party excitement) Romney usually leads. Reality (as of Satur- day): Gallup has Obama and Rom- ney tied at 47 among registered voters; Romney probably wins. Rasmussen has Obama and Rom- ney tied at 46 among likely voters, meaning a likely Romney win. Assigning swing states based on state polls produces a near Electoral College tie; Vir- ginia, Ohio and Colorado appear to be the deciding states. (RasmussenRe- ports.com, RealClearPoli- tics.com) You see, Obama only polls in the mid-40s, which translates to an electoral loss; historically, an incumbent's final share reflects the final polls. Undecided voters (unde- cideds) usually choose the challenger; they already know this incumbent thor- oughly. What often moves them (think of Reagan vs. Carter) is the "presiden- tial" quotient: Does the challenger come across, in appearances, ads and debates, as someone they feel is qualified to replace the incumbent? Bear in mind that presidential incumbency carries tremendous advantages; even President Jimmy Carter led candidate Ronald Reagan in polls by 4 to 8 percent through October, 1980, only to lose resoundingly when voters saw in Reagan a com- petent, serious and capable leader who could improve things. In Obama's case, he has three overlapping advantages among wavering voters. First, many voters chose Obama in 2008 based on the appeal of electing the first African- American to that office; many were relatively poorly informed, based on actual interviews after casting their votes. Secondly, some voters are reluctant to cast a vote to fire the first African-American Presi- dent; these voters are swayed by Don Polson The way I see it Democratic appeals to give Obama more time to fix the mess he inherited (set aside actual fault for the recession; the recovery began June, 2009, before any of Obama's measures took effect – this mess is his own making). Thirdly, some voters willing to make a change are subject to the quandary of choos- ing "the devil they know, or the devil they don't know." weeks of decision-making and advertising appeals. Obama's mouthpieces are lowering expecta- tions for the debates; the MSM will do their best to give Obama nothing less than a draw. I believe Mitt Romney's resounding victory on November 6 will leave many liberals, residing in their bastions and cocoons, scratching their heads over not knowing anyone who voted for the guy. I could be wrong. "better off" question, what I wrote four years ago about candidate Obama, and some fascinating things I gleaned from vacation reading. There's more to come over the Don Polson has called Red Bluff home since 1988. He can be reached by e-mail at donplsn@yahoo.com. Since a majority of those identified as "Independents" in most polls select Mitt Romney, "undecid- eds" face the final