Truth or ...

When the Captain asks for a report from the engine room he will tolerate no guff. Too bad you landlubbers have to put up with the slanted nonsense printed in that fish wrapper The Vallejo Times Herald.

The local press is not fair and accurate. The Times Herald is run by its publisher Ron Rhea. He, along with Pamela Pitts, Michael Wilson and Erin Hannigan, was on the Board of Directors of the Vallejo Chamber of Commerce. Rhea has said, to anyone who will listen, that Kurt Henke president of IAFF 1186 local is a survivor and he admires him for that. Henke and Rhea also worked with the Chamber of Commerce at the same time.

Rhea also has a golf date every Saturday morning with a group of seven other guys which includes none other than Fire Chief Don Parker, another Henke puppet. Parker arrives at these outings in his City of Vallejo car which he drives back and forth from his home in Danville.

So we have a publisher tied to the fire union influencing the news to help his friend Kurt Henke. How would he do that you might ask?

First J.M. Brown writes a fairly balanced story with no real bias which is supported by comments made at a Council meeting that is broadcast live to the viewing audience. Then Rhea rewrites the stories to water down the quotes and shade what has been said. Rhea has been doing the same thing with the editorial staff for several years by changing the editorials before they are printed. The invariable result is that what the public sees is a favorable view of the fire union's position.

You have to go to the meetings yourself and see what is said if you want to get the true facts. It would not be wise to rely on the Times Herald's reporting.