Don's Tuesday Column

THE WAY I SEE IT by Don Polson         Red Bluff Daily News 2/11/2024

        From pure snow to ugly politics

Forgive my annual ode to a back yard covered with a pristine, white layer of “pure-as-the-wind-driven snow.” The fun and elation fades the minute you go from the driveway to the street—heck, it stops as soon as you realize the car in the driveway has 3 inches of snow on it, windshield included.

The brush end of those car scraper is quickly replaced by a broom, which leads to the snow shovel clearing the driveway just to use the car that’s been sheltered in the garage without a flake of snow on it. Two days later, a grocery run is the first chance to put rubber to pavement, or slush, and find out if drivers still remember winter driving skills. All went well, but that wet, brownish stuff will freeze solid by morning; no matter, as the early drive up the mountain won’t have much company, anyway.

As of Sunday morning, the official rain total on the Daily News weather page, and the Weather Service stats, has passed 20 inches, 5 or so inches more than when we left town. Photos show the usual flood-prone, low-lying areas. It reminds me of the many years of driving for real estate purposes; gas prices back then were an afterthought to a little sightseeing. Then, there were those “Flood Zone” disclosures.

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Nothing noteworthy happened state-wide, did it? Well, there was that little Executive Order proclaiming it the official position of the United States of America that there are only two sexes, male and female; and that men and boys shall not compete in women’s and girls’ sports. It has been rather noncontroversial since, well, “Male and female, He created them” was handed down somewhere.

That E.O. has nothing to do with our state, except that—California being the political outlier representing every wack-a-doo concept to come out of the “woke” intelligentsia—we in the “normal” hinterlands get to shake heads and groan over the idiocy down south. Be grateful the lunacy of “sex change” and alphabetized “pick your gender” ideology has not appeared locally.

California is officially devoted to “resisting” the Trump E.O. and diminishing and insulting female sports by allowing male athletes pretending to be female to compete, to the detriment of awards and trophies, and physical injuries to young women from bigger men and boys. I sincerely hope the weight of federal enforcement prevails against the sick, regrettable “transgender” (a term I won’t use elsewhere) sports fad.

San Diego County Supervisor Jim Desmond: “It should not be a controversial statement that men should not be allowed to compete in women’s sports—but unfortunately, this is where we are. Female athletes are losing scholarships, opportunities, and even facing injuries due to unfair competition.

“Just last year, a high school girl in Riverside lost her varsity cross-country roster spot to a biological male who hadn’t consistently attended practices or met the team’s varsity requirements. When she and a teammate spoke up by wearing “Save Girls Sports” shirts, school officials forced them to remove them—one administrator even compared their stance to hate speech.”

Our state government is rife with, shall we say, “insurrectionist” sentiment, now that all branches of federal power are politically aligned on the right. “EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: CA Leg Aide Describes How They Plan to Get Around Trump's Title IX Rule and H.R. 28” by Jennifer Van Laar, Redstate.com, Feb. 4. Between that and the mindless, lawless devotion to sheltering illegal aliens—even protecting vicious criminals—California’s “immovable rock” may find itself yielding to the “irresistible force” of federal power.

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We do not escape DEI (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion—sounds innocent?) and other “woke” nonsense upon occupying our Bend, Oregon, home. Together with the charming burg of Sisters, Deschutes County is kind of the Berkeley of Central Oregon. Having voted for Harris by over 53 percent, and surrounded by counties that voted 70 to 80 percent for Trump, Deschutes County is not included in the “Greater Idaho” effort to bring more of conservative Oregon into an Idaho more in line with its politics. Can’t say as I blame them.

Bend even has positions on an “equity and justice” council; God forbid I should ever seek position on boards or councils anywhere. Bend’s Mayor Kebler has proudly stated the council’s position that they are a Welcoming City, in vehement opposition to the Trump administration’s efforts to deport illegal aliens—“immigrant residents” in their lingo.

“Welcome” to criminals; not so much to patriotic federal law enforcement charged with removing “the worst, first” while the rest sponge off our school, housing and medical systems and economy. They should put their efforts into improving their home countries. Our elected officials should have respect and adherence to America’s Constitution, and either assist in reversing the “invasion” of tens of millions from elsewhere—or admit to being fine with having no borders while the world’s masses march solidly into our nation’s towns.