Letters for October 9, 2014

About Chapmantown

Re “Welcome to the neighborhood” (Cover story, by Robert Speer, Oct. 2):

Maybe a more accurate answer to the final question [Will annexation and sewers lead to gentrification?] would be: Annexation and sewers already is gentrification.

Olivia Schmidt
Chico

‘Start looking within’

Re “Oh, the irony” (Letters, by Sherri Quammen, Sept. 25) and “Hear, hear” (Letters, by Linda Clark-Borre, Oct. 2):

Sherri Quammen and Linda Clark-Borre are in agreement: the masculine “dominator” qualities of “lust for power, greed and complete lack of foresight” must be replaced or balanced with the feminine: “cooperation, communication, empathy and altruism.” Clark-Borre adds that we should eschew “incivility” in language—whatever that may be—lest we “polarize” people.

I wonder if Quammen or Clarke-Borre have any idea how polarizing their characterization of masculinity might be. It’s really the worst kind of sexism masquerading as “insight”—very similar to a Victorian claiming that the “feminine” should be equated with physical frailty and emotional instability.

Men have never had a monopoly on vice, nor have women ever had a monopoly on virtue. But, humans are certainly a rogue species threatening life on earth.

If women are serious about revolutionary change, they might take a break from theorizing cartoon versions of masculinity and start looking within. War and environmental destruction are driven by excessive material consumption—all else is a sideshow. Affluent American women—across the political spectrum—are the most voracious consumers in the history of the planet. Even if one were to take the leap of stipulating a set of “feminine values,” how could they possibly be credible in the context of rapacious female behavior?

Patrick Newman
Chico

Schools need protection

I am very disturbed about the lack of safety at our Chico schools. The city of Chico can no longer afford school safety officers for our children. I believe that the police chief has asked the school board to help pay for these trained officers, but that request fell on deaf ears and they rejected the proposal.

I think that this is a huge risk taken by the board by not paying for protection of our children. I have a daughter who is a teacher and two grandchildren who attend Chico schools and I want them and all other children to be safe. There are drugs and weapons being brought onto the two high schools and continuation school.

You say you don’t have the money, but I guarantee that if some child was killed or kidnapped, you would find the money. You should do whatever it takes to protect our children from a Columbine incident! This is not a city issue, it’s a school board issue. Parents should be asking the board to bring back officers and pay for this protection of our children—now.

Dave Donnan
Chico

Say no to senator

Jim Neilsen doesn’t believe humans are causing climate change. And if re-elected, he will block legislation that tries to address it. This, despite the fact that 97 percent of scientists who study it disagree with him. Ninety-seven percent!

Why would Mr. Neilsen’s stance be so contrary to what the professionals who’ve spent their whole careers studying this are saying? Ignorance and money. Neo-conservatives vehemently deny man’s role in this unfolding disaster because they are the very people allowing it to happen. The corporations they own (or those that own them) are making huge profits from the same industries that are destroying our fragile ecosystems. There’s money to be made in denial, lots of it!

But who do you believe—the wealthy politicians with no scientific background and lots of money at stake or the environmental scientists who’ve dedicated their lives to studying the climate? Please, please, please vote on Nov. 4! There are enough of us to remove Jim Neilsen and his cronies from office if only we’d actually vote. But often liberals and progressives stay home on Election Day, and simply through lack of action, allow poisons like Mr. Neilsen to become our voice in government. No more! Vote!

Jake Davis
Chico

Down on Measure B

You can protect patients’ rights to access and growing of medical marijuana and also protect your environment, property values and way of life in this beautiful foothill community. Measure A is OK—it protects the rights of patients. Your supervisors support it unanimously. It will stop abuses and protect residents from violence.

Measure B is bad—it allows large commercial growers to profit at the expense of your community by allowing grow areas clearly meant for profit in other states. It repeals public-safety protections against grower abuse; allows grows near schools, parks and neighborhoods; and eliminates local controls. It already has led to polluting the environment, water theft, threats and violence.

We must stand together and reject the deception of those who wish to destroy the reasons we chose to live here or we will regret the day we remained silent. It’s about quality of life and protection of environment. Vote yes on A and no on B. Talk to your neighbors and get them to vote, or the legacy we leave our children and our environment will be a sad one. We can’t afford to get this one wrong.

Jeanne Cecchi
Oroville

Measure B will hurt roads, resources and the rest of us. The ordinance contrived by commercial marijuana growers to line their pockets does not contribute to county revenue.

Growers burden roads and trigger soil erosion. They are culprits in water shortages. Winter to summer: D-8 CATS with rippers move into rural Butte County. The bulldozers shove and tear up properties. Roads are carved; clear-cut slopes are terraced for giant grows; eroded soil with an array of chemicals flush into streams.

We are at risk along with water, soil, wildlife and fisheries. Winter through summer, dump trucks haul valley-made soil to growers. Seven days a week, dawn to dusk, they swarm into neighborhoods, beating up roads to deliver soil. Residential and recreational traffic are disrupted. Spring through fall: growers barrel back and forth to plant, squat at, guard, trash and water grow sites. Trucks with tanks drain residential wells, dry up streams and steal water. Cannabis flourishes for a black market. In the fall, harvesters and trimmers pour in. Skunk-odor rigs multiply overnight moving the bud out. No tax revenue for the overburden. Vote no on B. Vote yes on Measure A to mitigate abuses.

Nancy Roybal
Oroville

He likes Coolidge

Oftentimes in elections, we do not get to know anything about the actual people who are running for office. We are usually given just sound bites about where the candidates stand on certain issues and never really get to know them as people.

I have had the pleasure of knowing Andrew Coolidge for the last few years. Andrew produces the Chico Home and Garden Show and works as the sponsorship coordinator for the Silver Dollar Fair. He routinely donates spaces at his shows to nonprofit organizations, he enlists the 4-H youth to sell the tickets (and gain a portion of the proceeds) at these shows as well as always making sure the children in the club do their very best to represent their organization. To further serve our community, Andrew created the Recycled Art Competition, which is proudly making a reputation as the “Science Fair” of art in our community with entries from almost every single school in Butte County.

If you want a councilman who leads by example, then Andrew Coolidge is the best choice.

Stephen Kenny
Chico

Water bond stinks

Gov. Jerry Brown wants taxpayers to spend over $50 billion to build tunnels that will ship North State water south in devastatingly large amounts. The deceptively titled Delta Bay Conservation Plan could bring a total collapse to salmon populations in the Sacramento River and dry wells to North State farmers and residents.

Even worse, Brown, and $5 million farm-subsidy recipient Congressman Doug LaMalfa, also support a natural gas extraction method called hydraulic fracturing (fracking) that requires 4.4 million gallons of water per well, every three to 10 days, 83 percent of it fresh water. This water is mixed with 15 percent reclaimed fracking fluid, sand and toxic chemicals (80-330 tons of chemicals per well) and injected into shale deep underground at extremely high pressure.

Nationwide, residents living near these fracked wells have filed thousands of complaints regarding contaminated groundwater, severe illnesses, air pollution, dead cattle and fish. As of 2012, there were over 63,000 hydraulically fracked wells in the U.S. That’s 277 billion gallons of fresh water a week poisoned by U.S. oil companies with U.S. government approval.

We must stop these politicians from allowing the shipping, selling and poisoning of Northern California water. Vote no on Prop. 1 and no on fracking!

Sherri Quammen
Chico

Tax hike, please

Some of our neighbors are calling for the creation of a new state because of the actions of the California Legislature and its effects on the economy and local governmental services. The town of Paradise alone has lost over $7.5 million to date and will continue to lose about $250,000 each year to meet the state’s obligation to fund schools.

California cities and towns are fighting back. Working together through the League of California Cities, they have convinced the voters to amend the state Constitution to block future state confiscation of local revenues. For Paradise, the next step in this fight is to pass Measure C this November. Measure C would increase the local sales tax by one-half cent for six years to provide for local revenue, protected from the state, to maintain our public safety and road services.

Let us join other communities in saying in a loud and clear voice that “I’m as mad as hell, and I’m not going to take this anymore!” by passing Measure C Paradise neighbors are a proud and independent community and will take charge of their own destiny by voting yes on Measure C.

Martin Nichols
Paradise

An expanding acronym

GLBTM? The next sexual civil rights movement will be for masturbators.

Stephen T. Davis
Chico

Faith renewed

Re “Read the charter” (Letters, by Phil Elkins, Oct. 2):

I am so relieved that you published Phil Elkins’ letter. After keying a more rambling, meandering letter that included his points, which was not published, and seeing the publication of a boiler-plate Patrick Newman letter condemning Israel, I was beginning to wonder if the CN&R I’ve known and loved since before it being named such was becoming a knee-jerk, publish-only-one-side rag. We have more than enough of that in today’s media.

Thank you to the CN&R and to Mr. Elkins for renewing my faith. It is too bad that I’m not aware of any locally strong medium that carries a dispassionate, more in-depth and contextual exploration of such complex, yet highly charged issues.

Abe Baily
Chico

Consult a dictionary

Re “He blames women” (Letters, by Mike Peters, Oct. 2):

Mr. Peters, can you say “misogynistic” and “ridiculous”? Look it up in the dictionary if you don’t understand the meaning of the former.

Ani Sky
Chico

A grateful volunteer

This community is full of wonderful, giving people. I want to express my gratitude to everyone who made KZFR’s 13th annual Touch of Chico benefit such an amazing event this year. Thank you to all the bodyworkers who gave massages all afternoon, thank you to the skills share teachers, thank you to the musicians, thank you to the vendors, thank you to all the KZFR volunteers and to the folks at the Chico Creek Nature Center for being such gracious hosts.

Plus a very special thank you to KZFR Programmer Diane Suzuki, host of One World Music every other Wednesday afternoon, for not only coordinating the bodyworkers and skills share classes but also for giving massages all afternoon at the event. You were a pleasure to work with, as always, Diane! KZFR 90.1 FM community radio appreciates the support of this wonderful community.

Leah McKean, KZFR volunteer coordinator
Chico