’Tis the season

Is it primary season already? I know time flies, but I still have a New Year’s Eve champagne bottle on the counter—can’t believe it’s June …

Oh, that’s right, we vote in February this year. And June. And November. Good thing we got our primary moved ahead of most other states …

Oh, wait, seven precede us and 21 mirror us. Let’s see: 7+22, carry the one, divide by two, subtract three hours from Eastern time … we’re still back in the pack.

So we’re spending money for the early election why, exactly?

Oh, yeah, to grandfather legislators into longer terms, via a proposition for term limits. And to vote for other initiatives that their initial backers don’t even want passed.

Somehow, this makes total sense.

Sigh.

If you think I’m cynical, get a load of what Nick Miller has to say in our Primary Primer package. I’ll seem downright Obama-like.

Speaking of Mo-bama (or is is O-mentum?): I’m not quite ready to ditch my Edwards-Obama prediction, even if an Obama-Edwards ticket is chic at the moment. I’ll decide in a week or so, when our editorial board makes presidential endorsements. Barack has a lot of buddies in this building, and most aren’t latter-day converts, so I’ll give a hard second look at their hero.

As for Clinton: Thanks for the autograph, Pres, but I’m not such a fan of your wife.

I’m not sure if anyone here is registered Republican (labor law prevents me from asking), but we’ll make a recommendation from that slate, too. I wish Ron Paul had been more convincing last weekend in the one debate he was allowed to attend …

Anyway, Feb. 5 is coming up fast, so look for a fair share of stories with our Election ’08 button. And make sure you’re registered, or you’ll have no right to complain.

Forum: The League of Women Voters provides a noble service to the electorate by bringing together candidates to discuss the issues. (Don’t call it a debate.) The Butte County league is holding a different sort of forum next week (which I hope isn’t a debate, because I’m going to be on the panel).

Chico City Attorney Lori Barker and two of my counterparts—Enterprise-Record Editor David Little and Valley Mirror Editor-Publisher Tim Crews—also got invited to discuss the importance of California’s open-meeting and public-records acts. The program begins at 7 p.m., after a 6 p.m. potluck dinner, Wednesday (Jan. 16) at the First Baptist Church in Chico.

For more information, check www.lwvbuttecounty.org or call 895-VOTE.

CN&R news: Jen Donnell has moved to a new spot in the staff box. Our former intern-turned-contributor joined Chico News & Review sales team this week as an advertising associate. We on the editorial side will miss her contributions, but at least we’ll get to see her more often.

Meanwhile, our intern list has a new addition (since “mentee” doesn’t have the same snap to it.) Angela Lashbrook comes to us via the Chico High Academic Mentoring Program. She’ll gain newspaper experience, and we’ll get to have an award-winning poet in our midst (she placed first in the teen category of our inaugural Poetry 99 contest last fall).