The end of a sad, unfortunate chapter Late professor emeritus grew culture’s knowledge

Donald J. Trump is a dishonest con man, plain and simple. He managed to pull off his greatest con job by convincing the conservative Christian right that he was one of them. He claimed that he, and he alone, could “save” America.

Now, after four years of his administration, filled with constant turnover, chaos, lies, and scandals, reasonable American voters said “Enough” and voted him out. The election results are clear — Joe Biden won the popular and electoral votes by considerable margins. All recounts have confirmed the results. Trump’s claims of “fraud” cannot be substantiated and his lawsuits are being thrown out of court right and left.

The Trump-appointed Republican in charge of overseeing the election called it the most secure election ever. The Trump administration will go down in history as an extremely sad and unfortunate chapter. On January 20, 2021 America can begin walking the long, difficult path that may return our country to the great place it once was.

— Anne Michels, Oroville

Chico State recently announced of the passing of Professor Emeritus José Mas, who taught Spanish at the University for 20 years. The announcement noted that travel was among the activities Dr. Mas enjoyed. I had the unforgettable experience of walking the last 100 kilometers of the Spanish Camino de Santiago with José. Professor Emeritus Jim Conklin, also a retired Spanish teacher, now gone, did the hike with us. We were part of a larger group of about 12 hikers. Both Jose´ and Jim had spent considerable time in Spain on many prior occasions, often taking students.

Chronologically, at 80 José was the oldest member of our Camino group. His contagious enthusiasm, energy and spirit were those of a much younger person. An example comes to mind. One of the more difficult parts of our hike was the climb up to O’Cebriero, a small hamlet on a pass near where we began. It was an elevation gain of about 3,000 meters. Nancy Frey, our trip leader, told us that we could ride the bus up to the pass … or we could hike those last few miles. In spite of the fact that it was beginning to snow and it would be dark soon, José wanted to make the climb … and he did.

José and Jim expanded my knowledge of Spanish culture in many ways. Over the years they did that and contributed wonderfully to the Spanish language proficiency for countless numbers of Chico State students.

— Bill Niepoth, Chico