This morning the Enterprise Record has two front page stories – more surveys blaming the Camp Fire evacuees for an uptick in crime and council votes to fund a “cooling center” at the Jesus Center.
Are you hearing what I’m hearing? Paradise residents, be damned! But you bums, you come with a stipend that goes directly into the salaries and benefits, so come on down!
The last letter I wrote about it is still sitting in “the queue” at the ER. New editor Mike Wolcott, already on two weeks vacation after less than six months on the job, tells me, “we are running about a week behind right now. We will run some extras later this week to catch up!”
That was last Saturday, and I still haven’t seen the letter. The ER didn’t run any new letters for three days after that. Gee, too much criticism of the city manager? I got this comment yesterday:
Janet Thorup Paradise, CA March 19, 2019
I too take offense with the constant implications that the people from Paradise are somehow the cause of the increase in crime in Chico. I would like to see proof the increase has been from Paradise residents. Also, the increased traffic have caused the roads of Chico to be in disarray, they were in disarray before the Camp fire. The people of Paradise have gone through, and are still going through an horrendous ordeal. I understand we have impacted your city but believe me would have rather not. You have a large homeless population which increased because people from all over the state were benefiting from our loss. I understand that Paradise residents have inconvienced Chico, but please don’t add to our nightmare by pointing fingers and casting blame for everything that is negatively happening in Chico.
One letter to the ER also pointed out, most Paradise residents already shopped here and many work in Chico. Those people already drove to Chico almost daily. Like Ms. Thorup says, Chico streets and roads were already a mess. Street maintenance was already a hot topic, with long time residents in older neighborhoods all over town complaining of potholes, flooding, tree hazards, etc.
One entire neighborhood went up in arms over sewer connections that had ripped up the surface of their street, the city telling them there was not enough money to resurface. Sewer connections cost 10’s of thousands each, but no money for street repairs?
We’ve been calling the city staff on their bullshit for years – now they throw the fire victims up like a shield?
Enough. If the newspaper won’t print your complaints, first send them here:
mark.orme@chicoca.gov
and then send them to me, and you’ll see them here before you see them in the Enterprise Record.
Chico Taxpayers Association 
I think what Orme is doing is building a case for state or FEMA money. Claiming that Chico is also a victim of the Camp Fire.This money will of course go directly into the pension fund.
I believe you are right Jim, but Orme is still demanding a revenue measure.
I taped the meeting, I’ll have to listen to it again – I think I heard him threatening to quit if council doesn’t put a measure forward.
Dear Juanita There is an old saying that, paraphrasing, a politician should never let a tragedy go to waste.
Police Chief O’Brien, for example, is lobbying for more cops due to the out of control crime in Chico as a result of the swarm of people from Paradise. He is not offering improved training or more effective policing but simply demanding more money from taxpayers for increased staff. Unconscionable from my point of view. *Scott Rushing*
*Ventura*
On Wed, Mar 20, 2019 at 6:45 AM Chico Taxpayers Association wrote:
> Juanita Sumner posted: “This morning the Enterprise Record has two front > page stories – more surveys blaming the Camp Fire evacuees for an uptick in > crime and council votes to fund a “cooling center” at the Jesus Center. > Are you hearing what I’m hearing? Paradise residents, b” >
Thanks for saying Scott, I agree.
Our police chief position is just for spiking to a higher pension. We haven’t had a good police chief since Mike Dunbaugh’s first term, and he left after a few years to get a bigger salary in another city.
So if we defeat the revenue measure Orme will quit? Sounds like a win-win to me. We haven’t had a good city manager since Fred Davis.
I believe we need more police in Chico, and I want them well paid so we can attract top quality officers. However I think we can fund it by getting rid of useless management personal at City Hall. We also need to contract fire to Cal-fire since that would also save money. The fire dept is all about pension spiking and we need to hire a fire chiefs almost every year.
Thanks Jim, we need to start offering solutions with our complaints.
*Scott Rushing*
The Chico tax increases that the city council and CARD will put on next year’s ballot are just the beginning. The one thing we can count on is that our local and state politicians will tax us into oblivion if we let them.
Commentary: Are big tax increases coming to California?
https://www.sacbee.com/opinion/california-forum/article228203804.html
Remember Juanita
Mark Twain, (Samuel Clemens), said the following:
“*There are lies, damn lies, and statistics”*
Please keep this in mind when Orme and O’Brien talk about the budget, arrests, public safety, etc., Mark Twain had it right.
It appears to me O’Brien never talks about the quality of the CPD officers in crime-fighting he is always asking for more quantity, Quantity gives him more authority over more patronage jobs and gives him the negotiating the ability to ask the city manager for a higher salary. More officers allow O’Brien’s image to be enhanced due to this increased supervisory responsibility as he goes on the job market for a larger city. I say he is using taxpayer money to embellish his self-image under the guise of increasing public safety. A scandal from my point of view.
On Wed, Mar 20, 2019 at 6:45 AM Chico Taxpayers Association wrote:
> Juanita Sumner posted: “This morning the Enterprise Record has two front > page stories – more surveys blaming the Camp Fire evacuees for an uptick in > crime and council votes to fund a “cooling center” at the Jesus Center. > Are you hearing what I’m hearing? Paradise residents, b” >
Thanks for coming by Scott. Yeah, Twain had it right. I think he would agree with me – real numbers don’t end in “000”.
I believe police officers should have a minimum four year degree instead of two years at community college. I think they should have real teachers instead of retired cops. I think they need more extensive education, more psychology, more health science, and a whopping dose of sociology. I also think that before they are promoted beyond officer, they need to go back to school and take classes in business and employee management.
We don’t hire the best and the brightest, we hire those who agree to go along with what’s already going on. Chuck Norris and his “Code of Honor” are very much alive – did you know Chuck came to town in the wake of the Camp Fire to congratulate “first responders”? Too bad they weren’t first, being as some 88 people were burned alive up there.
We hire those who agree to bow down to the union, and support their “brothers,” and to a lesser extent, their “sisters.” I also believe they consider themselves to be above the law, and not only better than the rest of us, but at odds with everybody who is not a cop.
I believe the salaries don’t attract better people – evil people are attracted to money like flies are attracted to shit.
We need to start from the top down, and get rid of the bad apples. When will that happen? When we refuse their outrageous salary demands and tell them to pay their own pensions.
I don’t know if O’Brien plans to move along to another agency – in Chico, the biggest suck-up is promoted to chief before he retires to spike his pension.