Barb France

Managing Editor

bfrance@lassennews.com

Nov. 16, 2010 — I was recently asked the question, “Why do I always have to be the one to pay for my mistakes?” I answered, “Who do you expect to pay for them?” The reply was the person did not have a job. I didn’t feel like arguing about something that was irrelevant. Some how the person I was conversing with would have to pay for the mistake made. Figuring out how will be the hardest thing this person has done in a while, but in the long run, I think it will be beneficial.

I come from the school of learning the hard way. My parents were there for me and bailed me out from time to time, but most times it was up to me to come up with a solution to my problem. My dad told me that I usually came up with a tougher plan than he or Mom ever thought of. They held me to it too. I pulled weeds, cut grass, cleaned out the garage and got jobs doing horrible things like babysitting. I really hated babysitting. Fortunately, I never repeated most incidents because I hated the repercussions. One of my best learning tools was watching my friends get in trouble. I told myself that there was no way I wanted to go through what they were going through.

What struck me the day after that question, at the beginning of this story, was posed to me was how so many people don’t believe they should have to pay for their mistakes. It also struck me how many people think they need to help those poor misguided souls with social programs and laws. Take the hands free cell phone law. It has been proven that text messaging while driving can cause injury or death due to not paying attention to the road. Laws have been passed to make the act illegal in hopes to save lives. Fine. However, a friend told me the other night it can be just as dangerous to be drinking a cup of hot coffee while driving. I laughingly said that the government would probably try to pass a law that people can’t drink or eat while driving. When will the government fixing our mistakes or trying to prevent mistakes stop?

San Francisco recently banned McDonald Happy Meal toys because it induces children to eat fast food. I tell you that when my children were toddlers, Happy Meals were my friend. A plain hamburger, a few fries, a carton of milk and a toy kept them entertained. Once we needed to make a long road trip and Hardees© was giving California Raisin men with their kid’s meals. We collected nearly all of them and they kept my oldest quiet between stops. I still have them in a box. I love California Raisin men. It can be debated if choosing Happy Meals for your children is a mistake, but I can tell you that there is food I know I served my children that was a mistake and I paid for it with being up all night with tummy aches. Who would have thought that too many bites of healthy food could also be overindulging?

So, where am I going with this? Recently, there has been a lot of back and forth whispering and accusations between Fort Sage Unified School District and Long Valley Charter School parents about how the HVAC system went to bid. It is also he said/ she said. I know the District Attorney is looking into the matter. I know people want  the paper to look into the matter more than we have, but it is a mistake to think that I will assign a reporter to continue to cover the story based on mean letters to the editor that I can’t print because they are not only slanderous but they are sent anonymously. This past week, I have received four anonymous pieces of correspondence on the matter. Anonymous letters carry no weight. I can’t verify who or why they were written. We keep sources quiet when asked. As for the school issue, we have written about the issue. If in the parents’ minds a problem is there, I encourage you to call or write and leave me your name and number. Otherwise your correspondence goes into to my can’t use file.