President George W. Bush is supposed to visit Redding this afternoon for his "does anyone care I'm still President" tour of the impacts of California fires.

I don't think he's fitting any gay marriage ceremonies into his California schedule.

By now, even most Republicans would agree with Democrats that President Bush has been one of the worst Presidents in history.

People are encouraged to show up to the corner of Knighton Road and Airport Road outside the Redding Municipal Airport from 12:30-2:30 pm for a donation drive to support the American Red Cross.

Organizers indicate the American Red Cross "has asked for water, snack (granola bars, nutra bars, trail mixes, dried fruit) supplies individually wrapped, toilet paper, paper towels, office supplies (paper, pens, markers, notes), diapers."

By the way, below is the E-R "reluctant" editorial endorsing Bush in his 2004 re-election. It's hard to imagine the last four years have been any better under Bush. And it's equally hard to imagine the country any worse in totality under Al Gore or John Kerry as the E-R editorial suggests..

Oct. 22, 2004 E-R: Bush flawed, but better than Kerry

"Aside from party loyalists, we can imagine many voters feel as conflicted as our editorial board in deciding whom to endorse for president.

We are forced to choose between two major-party candidates who appeal only to true believers, two men whose principles are shaped by their largest campaign contributors and the fringes of their political parties. The other option is hardly a good one a bunch of third-party candidates who are just too radical in their ideas.

We endorsed Republican George W. Bush four years ago but, despite bright spots in his presidency, believe he has made too many major errors. Everything he has accomplished has a "but" attached to it.

He deposed a brutal, genocidal dictator, but he did it under false pretenses, either because of bad intelligence or a narrow-minded focus. He performed admirably in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks, then shepherded the Patriot Act through Congress, a law that tramples freedom more than it preserves it.

He cut taxes for all Americans to help stimulate the economy, then oversaw reckless spending even discounting the war, which has led to the largest federal deficit in history. The spending belies his claim to being a fiscal conservative. He has never vetoed a spending bill. He vowed to make the government smaller, then made it larger. He vowed to be a uniter, not a divider, then displayed an unwavering my-way-or-the-highway attitude.

On the other hand, there is Democratic nominee John Kerry, whose record in the Senate creates much concern and confusion over what he would do as president.

Kerry has plans for billions, or even trillions, of dollars in programs, and he'll have little choice but to raise taxes to pay for them all. That certainly won't help the economy, and it won't help the average American.

Most disconcerting of all, Kerry's stance on the war in Iraq and foreign policy is inconsistent and alarming. He
supported the war, but opposed adequate funding for the troops. Now he advocates withdrawal. Or seems to.

We'd all like to see the troops come home, but we must finish the job in Iraq and Afghanistan or risk having to do it all again years later. We cannot put the citizens of those countries at risk by abandoning them now. We must help the countries achieve stability, which is a painstaking process, then leave.

And Kerry's idea of trying to reach a world consensus on foreign policy matters makes him sound like a Pollyanna. If the United Nations couldn't agree on action against a man who consistently thumbed his nose at its resolutions, there may never be consensus. We need a firm leader as president when it comes to foreign policy, not a mediator who sends mixed messages.

Four years ago we gave a reluctant endorsement to George W. Bush for president reluctant because he was the best choice in a poor field. We still believe an Al Gore presidency would have been worse for the nation.

This year we give another reluctant endorsement to George W. Bush. He's not a great candidate but and this is a sad indictment on our political system he's the best one."

Today's Scrabble word is cricoid, a cartilage of the larynx.

Are you confused by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac and their impacts on the housing market, mortgage industry and general US economy?

The NY Times provides an excellent "Making Sense of Problems at Fannie and Freddie" diagram.

The Chico housing market is not suffering as greatly as the Sacramento market where there is an abundant supply of new and resale homes of the market.

But there's definitely a lot of more people feeling the mortgage and housing crunch.

Today's Scrabble word is zooks, used as a mild oath.

The Onion's hilarious headline: Most Children Strongly Oppose Child Health Care

Nice.

Today's Scrabble word is schuit, a Dutch sailing vessel.

Former PVHS and Butte College standout Aaron Rodgers has been getting a lot of national publicity lately since he's part of the sports saga called Brett Favre.

Once again, Rodgers seems to be handling a very awkward situation with grace and professionalism.

Today's Scrabble word is huic, used to encourage hunting hounds.

Libertarian Presidential candidate Bob Barr making his case.

It's saying a lot that former Clinton impeachment manager Barr thinks President George W. Bush has been a greater threat to "liberty" than Bill Clinton.

Today's Scrabble word is slue, to cause to move sideways.

This 1902 photograph by Churchman Bros is Chico Engine Company No. 1 standing in front of old firehouse on Second Street between Main and Wall.

Image Courtesy of Chico Fire Department and Special Collections Dept. Meriam Library, CSU, Chico.

Today's Scrabble word is sizy, or viscid.

Minneapolis or Denver?

Even though he doesn't sound too excited, RNC Chairman Mike Duncan wants you to join him at "the most exciting political event of the summer."

I don't think most people can sound interesting or exciting with that lousy background music playing in both videos.

Today's Scrabble word is gleed, a glowing coal.

John McCain's not important time line.

Today's Scrabble word is sclera, the white, fibrous outer coat of the eyeball.

Click on the image above to view the State's Department of Forestry and Fire Protection's map of Northern California fires as of 7 am this morning.

According the State figures:

Location: Throughout Butte County
Acres Burned: 49,000
Containment: 40% contained
Structures Threatened: 3,800 residence
Structures Destroyed: 40 residence, 10 outbuildings & 10 unconfirmed
Injuries: 10 minor injuries

The E-R continues to provide an excellent public service with updated Google Maps for local fire locations and current information.

Today's Scrabble word is cuddy, or a donkey.

Hilarious. The Onion rocks.

Today's Scrabble word is revet, or to face with masonry.

Secretary of Service and Volunteering Karen Baker made a pitch for people to make a donation through North Valley Community Foundation.

Already $20,000 has been raised through NVCF to support people impacted by the fires.

Governor Schwarzenegger's visit was welcome, but he faced a tough question about how the State will pay for firefighting efforts stretched thin throughout California. Here's an transcript showing he clearly dodged the tough fiscal question:

But nevertheless, with all of those problems one thing we know; when it comes to public safety we don't even want to look at the budget, because public safety is our number one priority. So we will do everything that we can, all of the resources that we have will be poured into those fires. We're going to make sure that we use every engine that we have out there, every man that is fighting fires, any firefighter, everything will be out there, including, like I said, bringing in the National Guard and everything. We want to do everything we can to protect lives and to protect property. And I think that our firefighters have done an extraordinary job because of the great coordination between the locals and the state and the federal government and not only just the firefighting, but also law enforcement has come in, in a very strong way, which is very important for evacuating, that everyone's homes, when they move out, is protected and so on. So I think that public safety is the number one priority.

Today's Scrabble word is brevet, or to confer an honorary rank upon.

If you want to know what some of the real estate and development industry professionals in Chico think about the current and future local market, check out “The Market Opportunities and Land Absorption Projections Report” as part of the General Plan update.

The report includes this observation about the local residential housing market:

“As of January 2008, Chico had a residential vacancy rate of 3.3 percent.7 Although brokers acknowledge a surplus of single-family housing units in the current market due to marginal overbuilding during the housing boom, a majority of these units have transitioned into the rental market, either permanently or on a temporary basis, while the market corrects itself. Thus, a surplus of for-sale housing units has not corresponded to an increase in vacancy rates. This highlights the unique role of the local student population in moderating the for-sale housing market through their strong demand for rental housing. There is also a small market for student for-sale housing, primarily due to parents purchasing homes as investment properties.”

Some of the observations about downtown Chico demonstrate the tension or at least co-existence between chain and locally-owned businesses. Chico's downtown already has many chains, including Starbucks and Subway.

However, I know many long-time downtown merchants are concerned that having more chains in downtown Chico will simply push rents up and make it more difficult to operate a locally-owned downtown business. According to the report:

”Overall, local real estate professionals expressed the need to broaden the appeal of the downtown retail market by increasing the quality and selection of retail establishments. They felt that a mixture of both chain and local retailers is key to future retail development in downtown. Georgie Bellin, a real estate broker with The Chico Group, stressed the need for additional stores downtown given her recent trip to San Luis Obispo with other local real estate brokers. She noted that San Luis Obispo has stores like Victoria’s Secret and GAP, which do not exist in downtown Chico (but do have stores in the mall). Jeff Fararr, a developer with Ingram Commercial Real Estate, expressed a similar sentiment saying that there is an excess supply downtown of “C grade uses,” including antique stores, tattoo parlors, etc., and that attracting more quality stores downtown was essential. This renewed emphasis on quality would bring about higher downtown rents and limit the number of “C grade uses” in downtown. The idea is to have a stronger downtown economy through a combination of local retailers and chains. Chains currently exist in the downtown primarily as eating and drinking places, but an appropriate mix that includes chain “merchandising” retailers may better strengthen the market for locally based businesses, by bringing more shoppers into the downtown in general."

Today's Scrabble word is hurst, a small hill.

Local Democrats will open a headquarters for the 2008 election season this coming Saturday, July 12 on 5 pm at 600 Main Street (at 6th St).

The headquarters is a coordinated effort among many Democratic groups, including Congressional District 2 for Obama.

With this type of coordinated effort, I predict Democrats will do quite well in Chico and throughout Butte County. John Kerry beat George W. Bush in Chico in 2004 and Obama is a much stronger candidate than Kerry.

Jeff Morris, the presumptive Democratic nominee for CD2, will be a strong candidate and will actually put resources and time into Chico.

And even Lt. Col. Charlie Brown, CD4 candidate, has an organizer and volunteers working hard in Oroville going door-to-door trying to leave no Democratic-leaning voter behind.

Today's Scrabble word is weevil, a small beetle.

I actually think it's a pretty good entry full of interesting information.

My favorite is the list of notable Chicoans, or people who once lived in Chico. The list includes Saudi billionaire arms dealer Adnan Khashoggi who has a Queen song named after him.

And I love this historical tidbit: "On July 31, 1961 the first-ever hijacking on United States soil occurred at the Chico Municipal Airport. Two men were critically wounded and the hijacker was sentenced to more than 30 years in prison."

Is this true? I'm trying to locate the source of information.

Keep in mind that Wikipedia is not always accurate since it relies on the community to provide information and to fact check.

Greg Bard, who launched the Chico Wiki, is one of the main contributors to the Chico entry on Wikipedia.

Today's Scrabble word ablins, or perhaps.

Happy 4th of July!

Today's Scrabble word is gamay, a red grape.