Opinion

June 21. 2011 — The news at both the county and the city level this summer centers on two issues that go hand in hand — economic development and budget issues. When it comes to budget issues, the same mantra is heard year after year, there is not enough revenue to meet the demand of expenses. Therefore, when all unnecessary cuts have been made, the next step is cut personnel.

June 14, 2011 — The last two weeks we have been attending various high school and junior high graduation ceremonies throughout Lassen County. It is a time of the year that we look forward to as a community newspaper because we can rejoice in the academic accomplishments of the youth of the county.

At this moment, you are beautiful, talented, invincible and immortal.

We also need to recognize the efforts of all school personnel — from the bus drivers to the librarians, the maintenance workers to the administrators — who, each year, do more with less.

May 31, 2011 — Recently, Lassen County and neighboring Plumas County has been plagued with multiple structure fires, the latest causing extensive smoke damage. Young Sing restaurant was only saved because citizens saw smoke coming from the building and firefighters were able to get to the scene before the building was engulfed in flames.

Unfortunately, a much liked employee of the city of Susanville, Chivon Nelson, did not survive after a fire consumed the mobile home she and her fiancé and his children and brother were living in out in Standish. While the actual fire investigation is still ongoing, stories of the early morning May 21 blaze state Nelson was instrumental in saving the lives of two small children and her fiancé Jim Shively.

May 24, 2011 — You have heard us defend the Brown Act on more than one occasion in these pages. That’s because it is among the most powerful tools the public has to hold government officials accountable.

That is why Feather Publishing has joined more than 90 other newspapers, led by the First Amendment Coalition (FAC), in filing an amicus brief last week in an appeal of a Brown Act lawsuit involving the Tulare County Board of Supervisors. The suit challenges the supervisors’ practice of holding lunchtime meetings — regularly and often — that were nonpublic and held without notification to the public or media.