Here we go again. Another Fourth of July and the OPD will do nothing about illegal fireworks.
When the melee began, we took a ride to see how widespread it was. When we arrived at Yolo near the fairgrounds, we saw there were 8-10 people in the fairgrounds parking lot, shooting aerial fireworks and cherry bombs, so we placed a call to the OPD.
Their response was, “We can’t do anything. That’s state property so you have to talk to the Highway Patrol,” at which point they transferred the call. However, we won’t know if anybody ever arrived to deal with the illegal fireworks on the fairgrounds, because after about a 20-minute wait, we left.
The OPD cannot respond to anything on the fairgrounds? And, of course, the Glenn County Sheriff’s staff is busy in Willows. Didn’t anybody ever think that if the law enforcement in Glenn County would clamp down on illegal fireworks, maybe the charity fireworks stands that sell LEGAL fireworks might fare a lot better? Make more money if illegal fireworks went away?
I know all our four-legged friends in our neighborhood would appreciate the law being upheld and adhered to … policed?
At present, there are only three constitutional requirements for holding the office of President of the United States:
He or she must be “a natural born Citizen” (a term that is undefined); (2) he or she must be at least 35 years old; and (3) he or she must be “fourteen Years a Resident within the United States.”
As the 2024 presidential campaign clearly demonstrates, more than the above is necessary to prevent unqualified candidates from occupying the most powerful office in the world.
Hell, most commercial truck drivers must meet more requirements than this – which is not intended to disparage truck drivers in any way, but merely to emphasize the point that we demand more from truck drivers than we do from someone who literally possesses the power to blow up the entire world.
I have been thinking about this for months, but only began composing my ideas for a constitutional amendment the day after the presidential debate of Thursday, June 27.
I don’t expect my specific amendment to be taken so seriously that it would ever become part of the highest law of the land. My hope is simply that it will get citizens, including members of Congress and state legislatures, talking and writing about the need for such an amendment.
This, of course, assumes that our Constitution survives the next four and a half years.
Our Presidents should come from the ranks of the best and the brightest, not the worst and the dullest.
I realize my proposal is a long one, but something similar to it is sorely needed. So, for your consideration:
Amendment
Section 1: No person except a natural born citizen shall be eligible for the office of President or Vice President. No person who is a natural born citizen of the United States of America shall be eligible for the office of President or Vice President if he or she is or ever has been a citizen of another nation; that is, held dual citizenship. Natural born citizen shall be understood to mean a person born in what is or was at the time of the person’s birth a state, territory, commonwealth, concession, district, or other place in which the government of the United States has or had full or primary legal jurisdiction.
Section 2: No person shall be eligible for the office of President or Vice President who has not attained the age of thirty-five years; nor shall any person be eligible for the office of President or Vice President who has attained the age of eighty years or greater prior to the beginning of the term of office for which he or she is otherwise eligible; nor shall any person be eligible for the office of President or Vice President who shall attain the age of eighty years during the term of office for which he or she is otherwise eligible.
Section 3: No person shall be eligible for the office of President or Vice President who has not resided principally within the United States for the fourteen years immediately preceding the beginning of the term of office for which he or she is otherwise eligible.
Section 4: No person shall be eligible for the office of President or Vice President who, as an adult, has been convicted of one or more felonies, unless said conviction or convictions have occurred in the two years immediately preceding the beginning of the term of office for which he or she is serving, assuming he or she won election or appointment to the office, and the conviction or convictions are currently under appeal. Should all appeals be exhausted and the conviction or convictions upheld, the person serving as President or Vice President shall immediately be removed from office and he or she shall be replaced in the same manner in which the President or Vice President is replaced whenever he or she is unable to fulfill his or her duties for any other reason.
Section 5: No person shall be eligible for the office of President or Vice President if he or she owns or has ever owned, in any single nation outside of the United States, property or any other financial asset or assets valued at five-hundred-thousand dollars or more.
Section 6: All nondisclosure agreements, if any, for civil or criminal cases entered into by a candidate for the office of President or Vice President, whose name qualifies for the ballots in at least half of the states or whose name qualifies for the ballots of those states the combined electoral votes of which are equal to or greater than those needed for election to office, shall be null and void, and shall be released to the public no less than one year before the candidate would start serving in the office he or she is seeking. Appropriate redactions to help protect the identity or identities of the party or parties with whom the candidate has entered into a nondisclosure agreement or agreements are allowable, so long as the meaning of the agreement or agreements and all parts therein remain entirely clear to the understanding. No party involved in such a civil or criminal case shall be accused or charged with violation of said nondisclosure agreement or agreements. No person who fails to provide said agreement or agreements shall be eligible for the office of President or Vice President.
Section 7: Approximately one year prior to the start of the term of office being sought, all candidates for the office of President or Vice President, whose names qualify for the ballots in at least half of the states or whose names qualify for the ballots of those states the combined electoral votes of which are equal to or greater than those needed for election to office, shall be administered a cognitive screening test and shall undergo a general psychological evaluation. The doctors involved shall have no more than one month to review their findings, then the complete results of both the test and the evaluation shall be released to the public. No person who fails to take the cognitive test or undergo the psychological evaluation shall be eligible for the office of President or Vice President; however, the results of neither the cognitive screening test nor the psychological evaluation shall, in and of itself, make the person ineligible for the office of President or Vice President.
Section 8: No less than one year prior to the beginning of the term of office being sought, all candidates for the office of President or Vice President, whose names qualify for the ballots in at least half of the states or whose names qualify for the ballots of those states the combined electoral votes of which are equal to or greater than those needed for election to office, shall release to the public the following documents:
Birth certificates and any other records regarding the birth of the candidates;
Documents regarding places of residency for the fourteen years prior to the start of the term of office being sought;
All civil and criminal court records for the fifteen years prior to the start of the term of office being sought;
All local, state, and federal tax records, regardless of audit status or appeal status, for the fifteen years prior to the start of the term of office being sought;
All records regarding financial investments and other financial activities for the fifteen years prior to the start of the term of office being sought;
All military service records, if applicable;
All higher education records, if applicable; and
All medical records for the ten years prior to the start of the term of office being sought.
Appropriate redactions can be made to the above records only if the release of the material deemed to be in need of redaction would likely make a candidate, his or family, or any other third party the victim of a crime, or if release of the material deemed to be in need of redaction would likely pose a threat to national security. If a candidate is elected to the office of President or Vice President, and takes office, and it is then learned that he or she failed to release to the public one or more of the above records, then a congressional investigation shall commence, and, if it is learned and agreed by at least half of the members of the full Congress present that the unreleased record or records were both willfully withheld and of significant political importance, then impeachment proceedings shall be initiated.
Section 9: This article shall have ten years for ratification following its submission to the states by the Congress of the United States. Upon ratification, Section 4 shall take effect immediately; Sections 1, 2, 3, and 5 shall take effect immediately prior to the first full term of office following ratification; and, if ratification by the states takes place less than two years prior to the beginning of the term of office for President or Vice President, Sections 6, 7, and 8 shall take effect prior to the next term of office. The Congress shall have the power to enforce this article by appropriate legislation.
Longtime Orland and Glenn County community leader Tracey Quarne died following a vehicle collision in North Dakota on Sunday, June 30.
According to the North Dakota Highway Patrol, Quarne, known to many as “Mr. Q,” was driving south on U.S. Highway 83 in northern North Dakota. About four miles south of the city of Minot, Quarne, 68, of Bismarck, North Dakota, driving a 2023 Mitsubishi Outlander, began to slow in the driving lane to check on a vehicle stopped on the west shoulder.
A 2014 Grand Cherokee Jeep, driven by Geoffrey Vannerson, 36, of Underwood, North Dakota, was behind the Mitsubishi and rear-ended it as it slowed. The Jeep came to rest in the center divide and the Mitsubishi came to rest on the shoulder.
Quarne was taken to a hospital in Minot, where he succumbed to his injuries. His passenger, Cynthia Batchelder, 63, of Orland, Calif., sustained minor injuries, as did Vannerson, the driver of the Jeep.
All of those involved in the accident were wearing their seat belts.
In March of this year, Quarne narrowly escaped death when he underwent life-saving emergency surgery for an abdominal aortic aneurism. Upon returning home from the hospital, he posted a “selfie” on Facebook showing his bare abdomen and its large surgical scar.
For many years, Quarne was a much-respected educator, teaching Independent Studies for the Orland Unified School District and music at Orland High School and Butte College. In November of 2004, he was elected to the Orland City Council.
A couple of years later, he became a member of the Glenn County Board of Supervisors. Then, in 2010, he was elected as the Glenn County Superintendent of Schools, an office he held for more than a decade.
Friends, former students, and others began expressing their condolences and paying their respects on Monday and Tuesday. Bryana Kelly posted the following on Quarne’s Facebook page:
“I have never met anyone as selfless as you, Tracey. It not often that you find people in this world who care as much for others like you did. There have been many times that I have tried to thank you for everything you’ve ever done for me and you refused to take credit but it’s through your passion to see everyone succeed that I and many other kids from Glenn County have achieved the things we have in life. It’s because of you that we were given the chances to see that there is a world outside of Glenn County. Anyone who has ever been graced by your passion for education or music is eternally grateful.
“Thank you for believing in me and being a huge part of the reason to continue pursuing music in my own time. Thank you for sharing your gift of kindness and musicianship with the world. I can’t wait until our paths cross again but until then, I’ll look for you in music and reminisce on all that you’ve taught me over the years.”
Robin Graff wrote:
“… it just doesn’t seem fair! But Tracey made such a huge impact on so many lives and changed their trajectory in such a positive way! He was so passionate about the Pipeline2Success program and the positive impact it made on so many lives! He will not be forgotten for all the good he did for the youth in Glenn County! Prayers and hugs to his family and everyone who was touched by his kindness!”
Graff further stated:
“Our Pipeline 2 Success leader is no longer with us, but his legacy will live on forever! The passion he had for this program was infectious and he made such an impact on so many young lives! We will never forget his famous saying, ‘What will you learn on this trip?’ And all the students would reply in their loudest voices, ‘You can go to college!’ Thank you, Tracey, for sharing your passion and caring so much about the students you served! You will be missed!”
Monica Schweinfurth said:
“Just saw all the RIPs, Mr. Q. I’m shocked and saddened to hear of your passing. You were and always will be an inspiration. I remember how the district wanted you out because you shook the boundaries of what was the status quo back then. You took a tiny band of, I think, 16 musicians on a parade tour all the way to Victoria, British Columbia. This small-town girl would’ve never experienced that had you not fought for me, for all of us. Personally, I was facing a lot of trials in those last two years of high school, teen mom and all, and you believed in me. Thank you for who you are and all that you accomplished. I look forward to the day that we get to play trumpet together in heaven!”
Gloria Manjarrez commented:
“I’m glad to have known Tracey. He lived big, and I think he died big. He left a positive mark on so many of us. May he be remembered for all the good he did.”
Ginny Kirkpatrick posted:
“Rest in Peace, Tracey. You had a major impact on our community through music education. Your memory will live on.”
And Colleen Carter Watkins wrote:
“Thank you, Tracey, for your friendship, the great music discussions when we went to DCI, your dedication and passion for improving children’s lives, for making it possible for Emily to write and publish the book, for bringing the gift of music to many, and countless other cherished memories. Yours was a life of service to others. You brought light and humor wherever you went. So sad today for the loss of you in our lives, but just know that you did good while you were here. Real good.”
Plans seem to be in the works for a memorial service for Quarne, but nothing definite has yet reached The Glenn County Observer. Check back here for an update.
The Glenn County Observer 