Vox Pop Influentials - November / December 2012

november/december 2012 vol. 7 Issue 6 www.voxpopinfluentials.com US $3.50

CENTRAL VALLEY’S VOICE OF THE PEOPLE — INNOVATIVE, INSPIRATIONAL, INSIDE MAGAZINECENTRAL VALLEY’S VOICE OF THE PEOPLE — INNOVATIVE, INSPIRATIONAL, INSIDE MAGAZINE

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Hetty Green - The World’s Greatest Miser

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infl_cs_peel_NOV12_final3.pdf 1 11/9/12 1:12 PM

2 VOX POP Influentials

Publisherr.J. Latronico

Creative DirectorJennifer Lingard

ContributorsAlana Unger, Harvey mackay, Kurt eichsteadt,

david Humerickhouse, emily Latronico,

Contact InformationvoX PoP Influentials

volume 7 Issue no. 6 november/december 2012

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CENTRAL VALLEY’S VOICE OF THE PEOPLE - INNOVATIVE, INSPIRATIONAL, INSIDE MAGAZINE

Pack Your own Parachute

[ from THe PUbLISHer’S deSK ]

now that the election is safely behind us I am able to breathe a sigh of relief. one good reason is that I have my Tv back! I have worked in the field of advertising and marketing communications all my life. I have also been a media strategist on a number of political measures and campaigns, but I have never, ever heard of $900,000,000 being spent on any one political race before!

Whether you’re happy with the results of this past election or not, I believe it is time to put aside all the political bickering and banter and start packing a few parachutes before we, as a nation, fall off the infamous fiscal cliff that every news program has been talking about.

Up to now we have listened as our favorite politicians have talked about the new tax increases, and cuts in both spending and unemployment benefits. on January 1, 2013 the discussion ends and a number of huge changes will kick in automatically, unless the president and congress can reach a budget compromise before then. compromise, that’s one word I haven’t heard in Washington at all lately.

Just to recap how serious this cliff is, here is what Americans will soon be facing:

• $136 billion (or 0.8% of GDP) in spending cuts to domestic, defense, and discretionary spending, the expiration of unemployment benefits, & reduced medicare physician rates.

• $532 billion (or 3.1% of GDP) in tax increases related to obama care, the end of the payroll tax holiday, other tax provisions, a rise in income tax rates, and an alternative minimum tax for the middle class.

Up to now you may have thought this all was political banter. These numbers are real and are sourced from the congressional budget office, normura Securities and the Wall Street Journal. The total of these spending and tax cuts amounts to $668 billion or 4.0%

of our Gross Domestic Product (GDP). That is not a cliff. It is an abyss!

Let’s look at the bright side. Yes, there is a bright side, as far as I’m concerned. Like the old elvis Presley song goes ...It’s now or never! maybe, just maybe, our representatives in d.c. will wake up and realize that the House has to work with the Senate, and both have to work with the President! While this may seem like civic class 101, it has yet to happen in Washington over the past four years.

The power still rests with the people and I am of the firm belief that it is just as easy to remove someone from office, who does not perform as expected, as it is to elect them in the first place. That is the power of voting. So, if you are at all inclined to write your congressman or Senator, a brief one or two sentence letter will suffice. I’ll even help you start the letter off with something like the following:

Dear (Congressman/Senator),

As an American citizen and one of your constituents I strongly urge you do whatever is necessary to right the course of our nation and return it to prosperity. If that means less time off for you during your Christmas holiday break, so be it! If you are unable to reach a compromise with our President, and move our nation forward during the remainder of your term, I will gladly support someone who can, the next time around.

Here’s to real Hope and change and a very Happy Holiday!

r.J. Latronico, Publisher

Final Mechanical


from THe PUbLISHer’S deSK2 rejoice! The election is over and the Holidays are

Upon Us.

WeALTH & fInAnce6 Harvey mackay: It’s not enough to know what. You

must also know how. IQ tests measure smarts as defined by words or math. but what about XQ (Execution Intelligence)?

8 Kurt eichsteadt: A rich Person and Her money - Henrietta Howland Robertson Green

She was known for two things: “her ability to make money and her inability to spend it.” She also was known as the “Witch of Wall Street.” You simply won’t believe some of the stories about this woman’s parsimonious habits.

HeALTH & WeLLneSS12 Alana Unger: Squash-tastic! Alana shares with us

some nutrient-packed, cold weather recipes.

24 david Humerickhouse, ddS: Let the truth be told about dental X-rays and Tumors. Always be cautious about alarmist articles that receive widespread attention in the media.

food & WIne26 Kurt eichsteadt: christmas is fast approaching and

here’s a brief look at some gifts for your favorite wine lover: non-traditional and traditional choices.

enTerTAInmenT28 Great DVD picks this month includes: Trouble With

The Curve, Beasts of the Southern Wild, Dark Knight Rises, and The Bourne Legacy. Two dvds to avoid are Total Recall and Lawless.

THE FABULOUS BANkER BOYSbanking is something we all have to do. In this issue we asked four community bank leaders to answer some tough questions about their banks and future banking trends. After reading this you may want to transfer some of your hard-earned money to one or more of these local banks. I’m sure these men behind the money: bill benneyan, Walt dwelle, Tom beene, and James Holly, will be happy to accept any or all of your deposits.

16

feATUreon THe cover

CONTENTS NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2012

www.voxpopinfluentials.com 5


When comedian Larry the Cable Guy says, “Git ‘er done,” he’s simply defining one of the buzzwords heard in boardrooms and offices everywhere: execution intelligence, also known as XQ.

I personally prefer Larry’s term to the fancier jargon, but the end result is the same: have an end result!

Execution intelligence is the ability to convert smarts and plans into action. A true business expert knows that the idea is not king - the solution is. In a digital culture that can find almost any kind of idea or information on the Internet, the challenge is in converting this universal knowledge into a successful result. Michael Dell, CEO and founder of Dell Inc., said, “Ideas are a commodity. Execution of them is not.”

The business world recently lost one of the giants of execution intelligence, Dr. Stephen Covey. Stephen and I shared a podium a number of times, and I am proud to have called him my friend. His life work is an example of how to get things done, from his planning calendars that many of us use to his inspirational writing. In his blockbuster book, “The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People,” the second habit is “Begin with the end in mind.”

Talking in a broader sense, Stephen said that “organizations that execute with excellence focus on very few clear objectives and align the focus of every worker and work group to those few goals. Can an organization execute its goals when its people are unclear on the goals, uncommitted to them, unempowered to achieve them and unaccountable for them? Got smart people? Got a vision? Good for you. Now, what about your XQ?”

As a lifelong salesman, I know success comes when you are able to close the deal. In the sales field, all the flashy brochures and well-practiced presentations are just the beginning. No one works until a sale is made. If salespeople can’t execute sales, the business fails.

There’s a whole movement defining different kinds of intelligence. For example, emotional intelligence is centered on being smart about feelings. Interpersonal intelligence deals with being smart socially. IQ tests measure smarts as defined by words or math. So someone who is classified as very smart but lacking execution intelligence might not be able to succeed.

Developing your XQ involves several steps, according to teleseminar guru Alex Mandossian:

Don’t focus on complex solutions or even elegant ones. Sometimes we get too mired in details to see the logical end. Complicating your progress is counterproductive.

Execution intelligence forces you to zero in on answers that are pure action. Don’t stall in the thinking stage. That’s when you get bogged down in meetings, memos, and reinventing the wheel, but never reach a conclusion.

Don’t spend all your time chasing the wrong rainbow. If you determine that a project will not work like you thought it would, let it go. Knowing when to throw in the towel is also a form of execution intelligence.

Many brilliant ideas have been thought up already, but the real genius is being able to put them to work practically. Many people know - or claim to know - what to do. They just never get it done.

A doctor, a carpenter and an electrician were traveling in a foreign country when they unwittingly broke a law. They were all sentenced to die in the electric chair.

The doctor was placed in the chair first. The executioner asked if he had any last words. The doctor said, “I am so sorry. If I am spared I will spend the rest of my life caring for the people of this country.” The switch was flipped, but nothing happened. The doctor was spared.

Next came the carpenter. Again, he was asked for any last words. “I am so sorry. If I am also spared, I will spend the rest of my life building homes for the people of this country.” With that, the switch was flipped. Again, nothing happened, and the carpenter was spared.

Finally, the electrician was seated in the chair. The executioner asked him if he had anything to say. “Well, yes,” said the electrician. “As a matter of fact, I think I know what your problem is. If you would take that loose wire over there and connect it to that switch, I think you could get this chair working again.” Execution, yes. Intelligence? Maybe not.

Mackay’s Moral: It’s not enough to know what. You must also know how. Reprinted with permission from nationally syndicated columnist Harvey Mackay, author of the New York Times #1 best seller “Swim With the Sharks Without Being Eaten Alive” and “Use Your Head to Get Your Foot in the Door”. “The Mackay MBA Of Selling In The Real World” is Mackay’s seventh New York Times Bestseller. It’s #1 on the Wall Street Journal Business Bestseller list, and #2 on USA Today Money Bestseller.

[ WeALTH And fInAnce ]

If You Can’t ExECutE, You Can’t SuCCEEd

by Harvey Mackay


Your Success Is Our Business



InTro

Does money buy happiness? Maybe, maybe not. But what if doesn’t buy anything? Henrietta Howland Robinson Green lived in the Gilded Age, a time of opulence and excessive consumption, but dressed in the same clothes until they wore out.

Henrietta Howland Robertson was born in 1834 in New Bedford, Mass.

When she died, she was worth somewhere between $2 billion and $4 billion.

CNN.com said she was known for two things: “her ability to make money and her inability to spend it.” At the time her death she was known as the “Witch of Wall Street.”

There were a lot of rumors about her, but what is known for sure is pretty interesting. She was the subject of one biography in 2004 and another one this year, The Richest Woman in America, Hetty Green in the Gilded Age, by Janet Wallach.

HoW SHe dId ITHetty started at the age of six, reading the financial papers to her father and becoming the family bookkeeper at 13.

Thirty years later in 1864, she inherited $7.5 million ($107 million today) turning a small fortune into a large one.

Hetty had a good strategy and worked hard evaluating her investments. She based her investments on detailed information, which was a lot harder to come by at the end of 19th century. She was known for traveling hundreds of miles to evaluate potential investments, by herself, which was unheard of at the time.

When the Civil War ended a year later, the United States entered what is known as the Gilded Age. Gilded means covered with gold on the outside, but not really golden on the inside.

It was a time of rapid economic growth, but a great deal of social conflict existed as well. There was incredible wealth, but it was also the beginning of great philanthropy in the United States with business icons such as John D. Rockefeller and Andrew Carnegie. A PBS American Experience Documentary on Mark Twain said, “… Americans who achieved wealth celebrated it as never before.”

In New York, the opera, the theater, and lavish parties consumed the ruling class’ leisure hours. For example, Sherry’s Restaurant hosted, from horseback, a dinner for the New York Riding Club. Also, Mrs. Stuyvesant Fish once threw a dinner party to honor her dog who arrived wearing a $15,000 diamond collar.

Hetty was having none of it. In a 2004 review of “Hetty: The Genius and Madness of America’s First Female Tycoon,” by Charles Slack, the New York Times said, “by nearly all accounts she was also a thoroughly unpleasant individual, greedy, petty and often downright nasty.”

HoW SHe dId ITHetty began investing her money using an investing strategy and maintaining large cash reserves to handle any fluctuation. She concentrated on Greenbacks, the notes printed by the U.S. Government right after the Civil War. She claimed to have made $1.25 million in one year. Hetty used the money to buy railroad bonds, which was smart because it was a time of great expansion in the U.S. and the railroads were essential to that activity. She continued to invest in real estate and mines as well.

In 1867, she married Edward Henry Green. She made him renounce all rights to her money before the wedding in what was one of the first pre-nups. Afterwards, she lost a lawsuit in which she claimed she was owed money from her aunt’s estate. Hetty and her husband moved to London, where they had two children, Robinson (“Ned”) and Hetty Sylvia Ann.

WHAT SHe dId WITHWhen the family returned to the United States in 1873, her behavior became more unusual. She was abusive to her servants, local businessmen, as well as her husband.

Edward did not have the same business acumen as Hetty did. On several occasions, she had to bail him out of potential ruinous situations that he managed to become enmeshed in.

These occurrences are significant for two reasons. First, unlike Hetty, Edward was unable to leverage his inheritance into more

by Kurt A. Eichsteadt

A Rich Person and Her Money:

Hetty GreenThe Witch of Wall Street?


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money. And second, the reason she was able to bail him out was because she had insisted on keeping their finances separate when they were married.

Wikipedia says she lent money to New York City several times to help keep it afloat including during the Panic of 1907. She wrote a check for $1.1 million and accepted short-term revenue bonds for repayment.

WHAT SHe dIdn’T do WITH Her moneYThere are plenty of stories about Hetty and her parsimonious habits. Among other things she is said to have reused envelopes and eaten oatmeal that she heated on the radiator in her office. She wore a black dress and underwear that she changed only when she went out. Supposedly she didn’t want to rent an office, so she managed her extensive holdings at a bank office.

In her lifetime, there were stories that she delayed surgery on her son because she didn’t want to spend the money. Janet Wallach, her most recent biographer says that’s not true.

DEATH AND LEGACYThere are differing opinions of how much money she actually amassed. The New York Times of July 4, 1916, said she died after several strokes at the age of 82, with a net worth of at least $100,000,000 or $2 billion in today’s dollars.

Her money went to her children, Ned and Sylvia. Ned invested in a variety of things such as automobiles and horticulture. He also built some radio transmitters that were used to keep in touch with Richard Byrd during his expedition to the Antarctic from 1928-1930. When Sylvia died in 2008, her estate went almost entirely to 64 charities including colleges, churches and hospitals.

Hetty’s name even made turn-of-the-century popular culture. In 1890, the highly-popular short story writer O. Henry had a character who wanted to make sure people knew she was neither as rich, nor as naïve as she appeared, so she said “I’m not Hetty, if I do look green.” (Guess you had to be there.)

At one time, the Guinness Book of World Records listed her as “The World’s Greatest Miser.”


WHY WAS SHE LIKE THAT?Biographer Slack says that her reputation might have been due to the fact that she lived the way she wanted to, rather than what society expected of her. He thinks she was a happy person.

Hetty was born into a Quaker household and that may have contributed to her unwillingness (or inability) to spend money on anything. However, that same background didn’t seem to give her any reservations at all about amassing the big bucks.

I’m not sure if Hetty really got a fair shake. While she certainly wasn’t philanthropic in the tradition of a Carnegie or a John D. Rockefeller, she certainly didn’t squander her money on clothes, jewels or other things that might be considered superficial.

more InfoHetty: The Genius and Madness of America’s First Female Tycoon, By Charles Slack

The Richest Woman in America: Hetty Green in the Gilded Age, by Janet Wallach

CNNMoney.com: “Wealthy Eccentrics”, Hetty Green. 100 Willow PlazaSuite 106Visalia, CA 93291

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by Alana Unger, Registered Dietician

The jack-o-lanterns have been laid to rest, but many varieties of winter squash are still alive and ready to go! These versatile veggies (I know, technically they are fruit, but nobody typically considers them a fruit - sorry, I digress…) are not just pretty faces in the winter garden – they are also nutrition powerhouses! Including some squash in your day will boost your intake of vitamin A, fiber, Vitamin C, potassium, and a number of other healthy nutrients.

How do you transform squash from seasonal table decorations to main players at your dining table feast? Let me count the ways… Squash can be stuffed, baked, grilled, broiled, sautéed… Puréed, it can be swirled in and added to cakes, cookies, pies, breads, pancakes, biscuits, soups, stews, chilies, sauces, mashed potatoes, drinks, smoothies, yogurt, hot cereal, and any other use you can think of. Don’t let anything “squash” your imagination! See the side bars for quick tips on cooking squash, or hit the internet for step-by-step picture and/or video guides. Not fond of donning your chef hat and venturing into squash-prep 101? Check your local grocery store produce section for pre-cut squash, or the baking aisle for those good-ole’ stand by cans of pumpkin. Pure, perfectly pureed pumpkin, just a can-opener away!

Fresh or canned, take advantage of these nutrient-packed cold weather wonders by whipping up some squash-tastic comfort foods. Sweet or savory, you’re bound to find tummy-pleasing options for every palate. For as many different shapes, sizes and colors of winter

squash that are available, there are endless possibilities on what you can create with them in the kitchen. Here are a few recipes to get you started.

Cheesy Spaghetti Squash1 large spaghetti squash (3 lb.)

2 tbsp Parmesan cheese

1/2 cup mozzarella cheese

1 cup finely chopped plum tomatoes (about 2 medium)

1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley

Pierce squash several times with a fork or sharp knife to allow steam to escape.

Microwave on HIGH 10 minutes or just until soft, turning over after 5 minutes. Let stand 5 minutes.

Cut squash in half; remove and discard seeds. Using a fork, scrape insides of squash to form strands; place in bowl. Add remaining ingredients; toss lightly with fork.

Spoon into one of the squash shells; discard remaining squash shell. Microwave on HIGH 2 minutes or until heated through.

Mexican Pumpkin Soup1 large onion, chopped

4-5 cloves of garlic, chopped (or use crushed garlic)

4 cups low-sodium vegetable broth

2 cups pureed cooked pumpkin (or 1 cup canned)

16 ounce can reduced sodium pinto beans

1 tbsp seeded and diced jalepeno

5 medium red potatoes, cut into ½ inch cubes

1 tbsp oregano

pinch of cayenne or other red pepper

½ tsp cumin

1 tsp Gebhardt’s chili powder

1/3 cup milk

½ tsp sea salt, or to taste

cilantro or parsley

Sauté onions over medium heat until softened. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add broth, pumpkin, beans, jalapeno, potatoes and seasonings. Bring to a boil and simmer 30 minutes.

When potatoes are tender, remove from heat and cool 5 minutes. Stir in milk, salt and cilantro or parsley. Offer additional diced jalapeno if desired.

Squash Rice2 tbsp oil

1 ½ cups pumpkin (or squash of choice) peeled, seeded and cubed

½ cup carrot slices

¼ cup chopped hazelnuts (or nut of choice)

¼ tsp ground white pepper

other seasonings to taste

2/3 cup medium-grain rice

15 ounces low sodium broth

¼ cup water

[ HeALTH And WeLLneSS ]

winterSquaSH-taStic

TipBaking Squash: Cut squash in half and remove seeds and fibers from center. Place cut side down in a shallow baking pan and pierce skin several times with a fork or knife. Bake at 350° until flesh is tender. Time will vary by size and thickness of squash. Let cool and scoop out flesh. Season and enjoy or use in recipe.


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Heat oil in medium saucepan. Cook pumpkin, carrots, nuts and seasonings for 5 minutes. Add rice and cook for 2-3 minutes longer. Stir in broth and water, bring to boil. Simmer covered, stirring occasionally, for 25 minutes or until rice is tender.

Super Easy Squash Muffins1 box devil’s food cake mix

1 and ¾ cup pureed pumpkin or squash of choice

Mix together, spoon into mini muffin tins, and bake according to package directions.

Easy Stuffed Squash1 medium acorn squash (about 1-1/2 pounds)

1 reduced fat Italian sausage link, casing removed

1 small onion, chopped

1/3 cup chopped green pepper

1 garlic clove, minced

1 medium tomato, chopped

¾ teaspoon light Italian seasoning

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Cut squash in half lengthwise; discard seeds. Place cut side down in a microwave-safe baking dish. Cover and microwave on high for 10-12 minutes or until tender.

Meanwhile, crumble sausage into a large skillet; add the onion, green pepper and garlic. Cook over medium heat until meat

is no longer pink. Stir in the tomato, Italian seasoning, salt and pepper.

Turn squash cut side up. Stuff with sausage mixture; sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Cover and microwave on high for 2-3 minutes or until heated through.

TipMicrowaving Squash: Cut squash in half and remove seeds and fibers from center. Place cut side down in a microwave safe bowl and cover with plastic wrap or a plate, leaving a vent space for steam to escape. Cook on high 10-20 minutes until flesh is tender. Cooking times will vary. Let cool and scoop out flesh.

Tip Storing Puréed Squash: Place leftover puréed squash in plastic sealable plastic bags, removing air from bag and writing date on bags. Lay flat on a cookie sheet and freeze. Keep in freezer up to 6 months.


As Interim CEO of TRMC let me be the first to welcome Sherrie Bell and Laura Gadke to our Board of Directors.

As many of you know this past year has been quite a journey for TRMC. Change is never easy and constructing a new tower while revitalizing a hospital requires the collective effort of

everyone - from our staff and physicians to you, our community members. We still have lots of work to do, but now with a revitalized board, I believe anything is possible.

While I have only been on the job a short while, I assure each and every one of you that TRMC is still on course to providing the community with a strong and secure operation that will always strive for excellence and quality of care.

To our physicians, nurses and staff, I ask for your continued support and collaboration. To the community, I ask for your continued patience and trust in our new hospital team. I will do my best as your Interim CEO to continue to increase hospital efficiencies, reduce costs

and always improve the quality of care that you receive. This hospital was the first one to be built in Tulare County, and it still is the cornerstone of our community. Your continued support in the efforts of our administration, physicians, staff and our board is vital to our long-term success.

I am very hopeful that soon you will be able to see for yourself some really wonderful things happening here.

If any of you wish to reach out to me, please feel free to contact my office.

Kevin Shimamoto, Interim CEOTulare Regional Medical Center

Now, With A Revitalized Board We’ll Deliver On That Promise!

Our Region Deserves The Best Care

$120 million, 115,000 square-foot state of the art medical tower (Completion target date Spring 2014)

Photo of Kevin

As Interim CEO of TRMC, let me be the first to extend a warm welcome to our two new board members.

As many of you know this past year has been quite a journey for TRMC. Change is never easy and constructing a new tower while revitalizing a hospital

requires the collective effort of everyone - from our staff and physicians to you, our community members. We still have lots of work to do, but now with a revitalized board, I believe anything is possible.

While I have only been on the job a short while, I assure each and every one of you that TRMC is still on course to providing the community with a strong and secure operation that will always strive for excellence and quality of care.

To our physicians, nurses and staff, I ask for your continued support and collaboration. To the community, I ask for your continued patience and trust in our new hospital team. I will do my best as

your Interim CEO to continue to increase hospital efficiencies, reduce costs and always improve the quality of care that you receive.

This hospital was the first one to be built in Tulare County, and it still is the cornerstone of our community. Your continued support in the efforts of our administration, physicians, staff and our board is vital to our long-term success.

I am very hopeful that soon you will be able to see for yourself some really wonderful things happening here. If any of you wish to reach out to me, please feel free to contact my office.


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Santa IS SmIlIng,are You?


The following is what Vox Pop Influentials was able to find out by interviewing four key “Influentials” of locally owned and managed banks in Tulare County. Our headliners included, Walt Dwelle from Valley Business Bank (VBB), Tom Beene from Visalia Community Bank (VCB), James Holly from Bank of the Sierra (BOS), and Bill Benneyan from Suncrest Bank. All these men had a lot of information to share with us. So, grab a pencil and start taking some notes.

Richard Latronico: Gentlemen, to begin, please provide some key banking financials for our readers, including the type of business your bank is targeting.

HOLLY (BOS): 20% Retail/Consumer 20% Commercial 20% Agriculture 20% Business 20% Real Estate Industries

This is the best approximation of Bank of Sierra’s business mix using both loan accounts and deposit accounts. It is representative of the kind of diversification of risk that we would like to maintain. It was this kind of diversity that helped us get through the recent Great Recession of 2008.

BENNEYAN (SUNCREST): 16% Retail/Consumer 30% Commercial 28% Agriculture 19% Business 7% Civic/Social

DWELLE (VBB): 1% Retail/Consumer 17% Commercial 2% Agriculture 6% Business (Real Estate-Construction) 74% Other (Real Estate-Mortgage, business related)

BEENE (VCB): 15% Retail/Consumer 40% Commercial 10% Agriculture 35% Business

What are your total assets, deposits, loans, and total number of branches? Also, what year were you chartered?

HOLLY: Total Assets: $ 1,423,000,000 Total Deposits: $ 1,146,000,000 Total Loans: $ 843,000,000 Total Branches: 25 brick and mortar, plus one Internet Only Year Chartered: 1977

BENNEYAN: Total Assets: $103,590,435 Total Deposits: $90,124,589 Total Outstanding Loans : $79,348,442 Number of branches: 2 Year Chartered : 2008

DWELLE: Total Assets: $339,948,328 Total Deposits : $295,364,370 Total Outstanding Loans (gross loans): $233,394,713 Number of branches : 5 Year Chartered : 1996

BEENE: Total Assets : $200,000,000 Total Deposits: $175,000,000 Total Outstanding Loans: $125,000,000 Number of Branches: 5 Year Chartered : 1976

CommunItY Bank LEadErSmonEYmEn

Interview by R.J. Latronico

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How would you describe the main difference between your bank and the other community banks in this story?

HOLLY: Not only does Bank of the Sierra have an extremely experienced staff and local flexibility to make quick decisions on the spot; we have a variety of key differentiators that set us apart from our competition.

• We are large enough to bank any one or any business in Tulare County, but small enough to also deliver quality service on a timely, competitive basis.

• Bank of the Sierra takes customer feedback very seriously and also takes a proactive approach to understand the needs of our customer base. This valuable feedback allows Bank of the Sierra to make informed decisions that positively affects our customers and helps the bank maintain the highest level of customer satisfaction.

• Bank of the Sierra remains well capitalized and has never accepted government bailout funding.

BENNEYAN: Suncrest is the youngest of the local community banks, and accordingly, we were afforded the opportunity to start making loans after the real estate crisis had taken its toll on local borrowers. Since we didn’t have loans boarded prior to the peak in the decline of values, we were able to make loans based on the new values. This has provided us with a well-collateralized loan portfolio that will stand the test of time. We started with no loans in 2008, and now have over 79 million dollars of loans, together with plenty of money left for new loans. Being the new bank in town has its advantages.

DWELLE: What is most visible to the public is VBB’s distinct emphasis on serving the local business community. We form lasting relationships with our business customers. This allows us to act quickly when they have a business need and it also allows us to provide products and services tailored to their individual business circumstances, along with meeting their personal banking needs.

What is less visible to the public is how each bank manages risk, although this is very apparent when profitability of banks is examined. We have a conservative risk management philosophy and this prevented us from getting carried away with lending when property values were peaking. As a result, we got past the recession issues more quickly than many other banks.

BEENE: VCB is focused on serving customers primarily in the Visalia and Exeter area. Given VCB was established in 1976, and many years before VBB and Suncrest, VCB has demonstrated that it can survive through a number of challenging economic times.

Now that the economic downturn seems to be easing up a bit, is your bank experiencing any substantial loan growth? If so, please describe what kind of loan growth that is.

HOLLY: BOS is experiencing loan growth in three key business areas:

1. Mortgage Warehouse Financing

2. Agricultural Credit

3. Small Business Loans

Secondarily, in the consumer credit area, construction lending for custom homes is increasing. Other areas of consumer credit continue to decline due to consumer caution and restraint.

BENNEYAN: Suncrest’s loan growth has been very steady since our inception. While certain parts of the economy did slow down with the recession, we made a concerted effort to attract agricultural customers, and they have been blessed with strong commodity prices and good growing weather.


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DWELLE: VBB got though the worst of the recession without losing as much loan volume as the average bank, and our loan growth has accelerated in the last six months. Our growth is occurring in locally owned, small businesses that were well positioned for the recession and are now taking advantage of very beneficial refinancing opportunities.

The local economy is stabilizing due primarily to the tremendous performance of Central Valley agriculture. There will need to be more industrial expansion and new construction before the local economy can really accelerate, but there is no question that our primary lending territory of Tulare, Kings, and Fresno counties will continue to provide great lending opportunities for banks that are positioned to compete.

BEENE: As a Preferred Lender through the Small Business Administration, VCB is able to provide streamlined, more affordable loans for equipment and new construction. We also provide lines of credit and quick, personal service, — both of which are essential for small businesses in these tough economic times. We are not seeing great growth in the portfolio, but the services we provide are truly a lifeline for the local, small businesses that are the core of our customer base.

Will your bank be changing how it markets itself in the future? If so, how?

HOLLY: Bank of Sierra’s continued approach to bank marketing is to domicile our lenders with the branch offices in a given market area, and to offer full service banking within that market area. Other banks work out of loan centers and project a bifurcated and confusing delivery system. It is the semi autonomous Area Manager making local decisions that separate our bank from our competitors. We then provide logistical and technical support from the Corporate Office. We may add increasingly complex and sophisticated technology, but the basic delivery is through the area branch system.

BENNEYAN: Suncrest is happy with our place in the market, and our team members are working hard to grow our market share.

DWELLE: VBB likes to maintain a balanced approach to our marketing, but our primary marketing emphasis will probably always be the personal approach. Our business development officers are very well known and network extensively within the business community, and our branch employees are charged with introducing our current customers to new products as they become available.

Our strength is in one on one contact along with referrals from satisfied customers; however, we were one of the first local banks advertising on television in the post-recession period. We run television and radio spots primarily to support our personal sales approach by improving our name recognition and conveying our confidence in our bank. But we know the banking world is changing and our future marketing will take this into consideration.

BEENE: There are no plans for marketing changes. Most of VCB’s new customers come to the bank based upon referrals from very satisfied long-time customers.

Given the current trends in banking that seem to favor technology over bricks and mortar, how will your bank’s growth be affected? Will your bank be less likely to invest in new branches as a result? Please explain.

HOLLY: BOS continues to add ever more sophisticated technology to meet consumer and business demand, but at the same time many customers continue to demand a brick and mortar presence to resolve issues on a local basis. Concurrently, other customers are reluctant to embrace technology and prefer to bank in a traditional manner. We are in position to offer both. We now have 25 branches in four counties, and one Internet Only office. We will continue to add new branches, both in the four counties where we are now, and look to adding new counties where we are not now located.

BENNEYAN: The electronic age is certainly here. Electronic and mobile platforms are a large part of the present, and certainly will be major part of the growth opportunities in the future. Banking is all about good service and understanding our customers’ needs. Many of Suncrest’s customers still enjoy the friendly smiles and greetings of

2012 Market Share

$750,921$278,773

$175,806$85,838


2012 total DepoSitS ($000)


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our team members, and prefer having a cookie and cup of coffee in our lobby over placing an electronic order. New branches will be in our future, and they will be sized and equipped to be customer friendly and profitable to our shareholders.

DWELLE: VBB is committed to implementing products that provide convenience to our customers and we are a leader in bringing banking technology to business customers. Our basic philosophy is to have cutting edge products, such as mobile banking and person-to-person payments, fully implemented well ahead of the onset of customer demand. In other words, we won’t push technology at customers that prefer traditional banking and we aren’t going to change our business model to over-rely on technology as a source of growth. We are making the investments in technology and will be ready with the latest products and strong customer support for them.

As far as bricks and mortar are concerned, we are of the opinion that the look of banking is going to be quite different in the coming years. The cost of an online banking transaction performed by a customer is obviously a lot less, as well as being more convenient, than an in-person transaction. With this said, our bank is among the leaders of community banks in the number of customers using our remote deposit capture product. Bricks and mortar will not be as important as in years past, but we foresee the need for some new branches as we move into new markets.

BEENE: VCB has done a very good job in staying up-to-date with appropriate products and services related to the latest in banking technology for consumers and businesses.

VCB has no plans for new branches in the near future.

Are other major technological changes in store for the future of banking? If so, how will these changes help your bank customers?

HOLLY: The payment system is constantly changing from a historically simple check system, to the complex system we see today. For example, ACH, Debit/Credit Card, Bill Pay Systems, Cash Management Systems and the latest steps into Mobile Phone Banking are continuing to evolve. Emerging mobile technologies

including mobile capture, mobile payments, mobile wallets and tablet banking are all on our radar. These technologies can enable BOS customers to make payments faster and safer and in a simplified manner.

BENNEYAN: The industry is changing rapidly. Suncrest will be changing our methods and tools as the customers change their wants and needs. The skill of balancing your offerings to the needs of all of your customers is the formula for success. We are very aware of the technological changes, and are careful to time their implementation. To be ahead of our time with offerings could leave our good customers wondering why we are not thinking about their needs. This is one of the main benefits of being a community bank.

We recognize that to grow our business we will have to continually offer our customers exemplary service together with new and cutting-edge products. To accomplish this goal we have a growth structure in place to ensure that Suncrest Bank is always expanding to better serve our current and future customer base.

DWELLE: VBB has a major technology emphasis at our bank. This has allowed us to stay well ahead of the curve for community banks. For example, our implementation of “cloud computing” was quite a project, but it opens up many possibilities. We have the technology in place right now to provide a full range of banking services to business customers on a remote basis. In other words, the customer never needs to leave their office to do their banking. This will come into play in our strategic planning.

The consumer-oriented technology using smartphones that is being so heavily promoted by national banks is another service we will be promoting in the near future. So, the benefit for bank customers from technological changes is clearly the convenience of banking from anywhere they have cellular service or an Internet connection.

BEENE: We are unaware of any “major technological changes” on the horizon. VCB provides customers with up-to-date banking technology related services and customers don’t have to call an out-of-the-area 800 number to get help when they have questions or concerns.

Jim HollyPresident & CEOBank of Sierra

Walt DWelle Chairman of the BoardValley Business Bank

Bill BenneyanChairman & Interim CEO

Suncrest Bank

tom BeenePresident & CEO

Visalia Community Bank


With the recent cyber attacks that have hit the big banks, what is your bank doing to ensure a secure banking environment for your depositors, investors and shareholders?

HOLLY: We are acutely aware of the dangers of cyber attacks. This may be a part of the new war of terrorism. We maintain very robust security systems monitored daily, and we periodically have our systems audited and checked by outside independent experts.

BENNEYAN: Bank security is one of the most demanding areas we face. Suncrest is constantly training our team members in the latest procedures, practices, and operational techniques as provided by our cyber specialists. Securing our network from cyber attacks is a constant requirement, and a large expense, for all banks.

DWELLE: There are many facets to cybercrime. One is an attack on the bank itself and in this regard, VBB has implemented an extremely secure environment. Another facet is cybercrime perpetrated on bank customers. Although no Valley Business Bank customer has experienced a loss related to cybercrime, we are very aware that bank customers all over the country are getting their computers hacked and sensitive information stolen, in some cases leading to funds being removed from their bank accounts. One common ploy is to hack into a bank customer’s e-mail account and use it to send fraudulent e-mails to the bank in an attempt to elicit a transaction.

Valley Business Bank has strengthened its procedures to ensure that customer identities are verified before funds will be wired from their accounts. In addition, we are in the process of building customer awareness by distributing up to date guidance on cybercrime prevention.

BEENE: VCB pays very close attention to all aspects of account security and privacy for our customers. We utilize high quality vendors to support and update VCB’s security and technology programs. All VCB employees are required to complete up-to-date security training in this area as well.

Do you feel that the Dodd-Frank legislation* is living up to its intent, or do you feel that implementation so far has been incremental and timid?

BOC: It is estimated that only 220 out of 350 new regulations have actually been implemented, so there is a lot more to come. On balance that this has all been overly burdensome with really very

little gain or benefit for consumers. All of this new regulation places an enormous compliance burden on every bank. Some are better able to staff up for this, others simply do not have the resources to do so. This, among other factors, will force a huge consolidation within the industry.

BENNEYAN: The major effects of the Dodd-Frank act are coming into place starting in 2013. Like all new laws, regulations and policies will dictate the success or failure of the act. The community banks will need help with practice regulations as we go forward. The “too big to fail” benefits of the big banks need to be tempered.

DWELLE: Dodd-Frank has been heavily politicized, but so far it has actually been a benefit to VBB due to some initial rule changes. But there is a considerable amount of uncertainty since a lot more rules have yet to be written. Out of the 16 major sections of Dodd-Frank, about half could impact community banks. The main concern with Dodd-Frank is that it may push some regulations intended for $10 billion-plus sized banks down to the community bank level. This includes a potentially drastic change in the formulas for computing bank capital positions that could adversely affect a lot of small banks. We’re sufficiently strong and flexible enough to handle anything that is reasonable.

BEENE: Dodd-Frank is complex legislation intended to address issues with corporate banks, primarily, and the mortgage crisis. The problems intended to be “fixed” were not caused by small, community banks such as VCB. The new rules and regulations and pages of fine print that Dodd-Frank created use resources and staff time and don’t really help the consumer. A great concern for small banks is the reality that we have seen only a piece of this huge piece of legislation. More rules are coming. A very real problem is online and telemarketer businesses that sell consumers on loans and don’t explain the fees and charges. It’s important that consumers know who they are doing business with, and doing business locally makes that easy. The good news with VCB is that our customers have always been able to walk in, or call our local number, and talk with a staff member who can explain a fee.

EDITOR’S NOTE: The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act was signed into federal law by President Barack Obama on July 21, 2010. It brought with it the most significant changes to financial regulation in the U.S. since the regulatory reform that followed the Great Depression.


According to Sheila Bair (Retired FDIC Chair), community banks faired much better, and were less affected by the financial crisis of 2007/2008 than the big banks were. While these big banks received huge bailouts, some community banks accepted Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) funds to tide things over.

Did your bank accept any (TARP) funds? Why or why not?

HOLLY: We did not accept TARP funding largely because we did not need or want a government bail-out. We concluded the conditions of acceptance were onerous and poorly defined, and lastly we did not want the U.S. Treasury Department as a partner. Later as the economy continued to deteriorate, we were able to raise additional capital on our own merits from private sector, institutional investors.

BENNEYAN: No, Suncrest did not.

DWELLE: I would say that the shareholders of the hundreds of small banks that were forced out of business by the crisis would disagree with Ms. Bair. When the recession hit, the U. S. Treasury called VBB and said we would easily qualify for the TARP capital. The intent of the program was to promote the availability of credit during the financial crisis. Not every bank qualified for TARP, so it was absolutely not a bailout for participating community banks. We sold $7.7 million of preferred stock to the Treasury in January 2009 and repurchased it in full in March of 2012 plus interest at 5%. Looking back, we didn’t really need the TARP capital but don’t forget there were some extraordinary financial conditions in existence in the latter part of 2008. A couple of large community banks in the Central Valley had already failed, costing their shareholders everything. At that time, real estate values were dropping at cataclysmic rates with no one being able to predict how deep the recession would go. Loan defaults were also hitting some area banks at an alarming rate. We decided the prudent conservative action was to take TARP as an insurance policy to provide an additional layer of protection to our shareholders.

BEENE: VCB is a well-capitalized bank and has previous experience of successfully raising its own capital when needed.

All the moves implemented four years ago did not help to avoid a deep recession. In retrospect, what do you feel should have been done by the FDIC, the Treasury Secretary, or the Administration in Washington to avoid what eventually happened?

HOLLY: Faced with a possible economic collapse of proportions not seen since the Great Depression of the 1930’s, the various government agencies took, in my opinion, appropriate action. Many of these actions were not visible to the general public, and one could question the propriety of some things (like not saving Lehman Bros.), but on the whole, our government took a very commendable series of actions, from the time period beginning at the end of President Bush’s administration, on through President Obama’s administration.

Simply put, the economic collapse was caused by a huge real estate speculation bubble that had been building for years. This bubble was made possible by the creation of easy mortgage debt instruments that were warped and distorted to enable otherwise unqualified borrowers to obtain purchase money debt. This was a cruel hoax and many of these same borrowers eventually lost their homes through foreclosure. This all could have been avoided by relying on traditional mortgage loan underwriting to ascertain that borrowers could actually repay a traditional loan. This is all now in place.

I would add that the sheer volume of what we now call “sub-prime” loans would not have been possible had Wall Street not been able to package large pools of loans in a process called securitization and sell them to investors. This ability to package and sell led to a demand for even more loan pools. There you have the makings of the real estate bubble (and of course its ultimate collapse as massive defaults started to occur). I would note that community banks were not a part of this process.

BENNEYAN: I will not second-guess the efforts that have helped to keep us going. It is always easy to criticize the efforts of others. The banking and mortgage industries were out of control. Builders were almost as greedy. A $350,000 dollar house was providing a builder with profits that were triple those of five years before. These profits were possible because the lending industry was appraising property with never ending upward values. Prices eventually went so far above the buyer’s ability to pay, they had to collapse. The markets had to right themselves. Our government has been walking a fine line of success verses failure. I am not smart enough to decide if they need to be pushed or propped up so they don’t fall. I pray for their success.

DWELLE: It would take some time to go into all the details of the financial crisis, but suffice it to say that the global financial world


changed much faster than the ability and desire of both political leadership and business leadership to control it. This was a perfect storm of misjudgments and market failures. It should be noted that VBB, along with most community banks, didn’t participate in the well-publicized derivative markets that created a lot of the problems felt by the large investment banks.

One source of the problem was when the Clinton administration, at the behest of Congressman Frank (as in Dodd-Frank), wanted to make home ownership available to more Americans. They pushed through legislation, which forced Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to purchase nearly all mortgages, regardless of the qualifications of the borrower. The banks and mortgage companies were happy to oblige and made all kinds of “liar loans” and “negative amortization loans” that could not be repaid. The huge demand for new homes drove the prices up to unreasonable levels in the process until it became unsustainable.

BEENE: The reality is that no community bank can affect what happens in Washington, D.C. What we can do is provide loans and lines of credit to help our customers weather the storm. As a community bank, we make decisions locally and much more quickly. We know our customers needs and they know us, and we are as flexible as we possibly can be to help small businesses survive. Unfortunately, the rules and regulations in some cases actually restrict our ability to support small businesses, rather than truly protecting the consumer.

What do you see as being the brightest part of your bank’s future here in Tulare County?

HOLLY: Bank of the Sierra now has the number one and largest market share of deposits in Tulare County based on annual data collected by the FDIC. We think we can continue to improve our market share and we will continue to work on that. More broadly, Tulare County has a unique and uncommonly diversified economy with a large agricultural base that continues to prosper. Additionally, it has a growing industrial base including distribution centers, and also a large public service base which includes the national parks and forest, a state hospital, the nearby prison system and all of the support facilities, like educational and medical services. While we have made a good start in gaining a fair share of the market to date, our future is even brighter as we continue to work and earn the confidence as well as support of more and more people and businesses within Tulare County. Providing quality service on a timely, competitive basis makes this possible. That is our value

proposition that we started 35 years ago, and it remains today as one of our seven major strategies. All seven of these major strategies can be viewed within our Annual Report available on the Internet.

BENNEYAN: Suncrest is a young organization with talented people. Our vision is simple. We are working hard to execute our plans, and have done extremely well in a tough environment. The brightest part of our future is our relationship with our customer, which provides us with the ability to earn a good living and support our communities, all while growing profits for our shareholders.

DWELLE: At VBB, most of us are longtime residents and we have seen a lot of growth and positive changes in Tulare County over the years. This is a prime location for businesses to invest and grow, not just because of the location, but also because of the great community that exists here. We have positioned ourselves to be a strong member of the community and are looking forward to whatever the future holds.

BEENE: More and more customers keep walking into VCB because of our community based structure and history. Local business owners and others want to have access to the latest in banking technology service and face-to-face professional assistance when required.

In closing, please feel free to comment on any other matter that is important to you, your customers or your board of directors.

HOLLY: In closing, permit me to say that the banking business is in a period of consolidation, driven largely by what we politely call

the “Regulatory Burden” which is an ever increasing series of new rules and regulations. At Bank of the Sierra, we have staffed up for this and we have twelve full time people working in this area. We continue to wonder if this is enough. There is also the need for new technology to meet customer demand in this area, and this new technology is expensive to purchase. It is even more expensive to implement, train staff, and successfully introduce. Most but not all smaller banks will have difficulty in addressing these two areas and will seek to partner with a larger bank that can keep up. We think we can be that bank.

Sierra Bancorp and its wholly owned subsidiary, Bank of the Sierra, is the largest publicly traded company to ever be headquartered in Tulare County. It is also one of the largest publicly traded companies in the South San Joaquin Valley. Sierra Bancorp is on NASDAQ and

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Bank name total active Branches

2012 total ($000)

Deposits

2012 total Deposit (%)

market Share

2012 (%) Deposit Growth (ytoy)

Bank of Sierra

25 750,921 18.01% (2.85)%

Suncrest Bank

2 85,838 2.06% 24.28%

Vallley Business Bank

5 278,773 6.69% 3.69%

Visalia Community Bank

5 175,806 4.22% 4.10%

Analysis Current as of 10/19/12


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trades under the symbol: BSRR. Sierra Bancorp is also in the Russell 3000 Stock Index which is comprised of the 3000 largest publicly traded companies in the United States. We do not often mention this because to most people it is not important. However, as we travel around the country to various investment seminars, and meetings we do project out Tulare County and the South San Joaquin Valley very favorably. We also have over 400 employees, many of whom live right here in Tulare County, adding to the local economy.

BENNEYAN: Suncrest Bank has been granted a wide marketing area to service. Our Board of Director members live in Porterville, Exeter, Dinuba, Visalia, Lemoore, and Kingsburg. We directors have a main purpose of helping our team members meet and serve prospective customers from Tulare, Kings, Fresno, and Kern counties. Having the familiarity with this broad geographical region is a big benefit to our bank. If we haven’t called on you, it is our loss. We will find you! In the mean time have a good Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas, and a Happy New Year!

DWELLE: One of the greatest strengths of VBB is the ability of our lending staff to meet the needs of our business borrowers. These needs don’t often fit the “cookie cutter” mold that the major banks rely upon and our lending officers have become very creative in

finding a ways to craft a deal that works for our customers as well as the bank. In order to find these solutions, our officers need to fully understand the challenges that each customer faces, and they do this very well.

Our board is very proud of the Valley Business Bank team for the way that they have balanced the needs of our customers with the expectations of our shareholders. Our conservative, yet innovative approaches to banking, have served us well throughout the financial crisis and are helping to provide financial results well above those of most community banks in the aftermath of the crisis.

BEENE: As is the case with many businesses, there have been times when VCB lost a good customer due to a “special offer” at another bank. It’s always a very good feeling when those customers eventually come back to VCB because they miss the quality level of our service and state that they will not go after any more “special offers”. They like VCB!



The media hype over a recent study on benign brain tumors and dental x-rays may have been cause for some male dental

professionals to pull out more of their already thinning hair and the rest to just groan in exasperation.

The study cited a history of dental x-rays associated with an increase in the number of people diagnosed with a benign (non-cancerous) tumor called a meningioma. This is a type of tumor that is usually cured by surgery.

SucH StuDieS are SuBJect to…’recall BiaS’According to Stacy Simon however, a writer for the American Cancer Society reporting on the study, it has some serious drawbacks. These make the link between dental x-rays and meningiomas far from certain. Perhaps, most importantly, it relies on participants’ memories about their history of dental x-rays, versus their actual dental records. Furthermore, such studies are subject to a phenomenon that scientists call “recall bias,” which is when people with a disease may be more likely to look for a cause. This may have caused the meningioma patients in the study to over-report the number of dental x-rays they received.

Still, you wouldn’t know about such an incredibly vague link and the lack of hard science behind it by the news reports. CBS News in an article titled, “Yearly Dental X-rays Raise Brain Tumor Risk, Study Finds” presents the information as a comparison between a healthy and a diseased group, initially leaving the reader to think that this study actually has determined some definitive information for the consumer through the usual rigorous scientific method.

CBS wasn’t the only news outlet to jump on the bandwagon. ABC, NBC, CNN, the NY Times, and others disseminated the same story. The report goes on to list a set of guidelines for dentists and patients follow. These also happen to be the current guidelines that are already in place for dental professionals and their patients. Old news is new news.

…after tHe averaGe lay perSon reaDS tHe article; Will tHey ultimately Be Better off?So, my question to the media is, “Does your reporting help or hinder the general public?” That is, after the average person reads the article, will they ultimately be better off? My personal concern is that some of the fallout I have witnessed over the years when alarmist articles receive widespread attention in the media is that patients often postpone or curtail their treatment—almost always to their detriment. I have seen this happen with dental amalgam scares, HIV concerns, and yes, dental x-ray exposures.

Let me give you some objective background to the whole radiation issue. In a paper written by the U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission they state that, “About half of the total annual average U.S. individual’s radiation exposure comes from natural sources. The other half is mostly from diagnostic medical procedures. The average annual radiation exposure from natural sources is about 310 millirem (3.1 millisieverts or mSv). Radon and thoron gases account for two-thirds of this exposure, while cosmic, terrestrial, and internal radiation account for the remainder. No adverse health effects have been discerned from doses arising from these levels of natural radiation exposure.

Man-made sources of radiation from medical, commercial, and industrial activities contribute about another 310 mrem to our annual radiation exposure. One of the largest of these sources of exposure is computed tomography (CT) scans, which account for about 150 mrem. Other medical procedures together account for about another 150 mrem each year. In addition, some consumer products such as tobacco, fertilizer, welding rods, exit signs, luminous watch dials, and smoke detectors contribute about another 10 mrem to our annual radiation exposure.”

Furthermore, take a look at the following comparison table to put things into a more visual perspective. Here are some radiation numbers for situations you might find yourself in at different times:

1 Day of typical background radiation 8-10 uSv* ** 1 Dental Cone Beam CT scan 38 uSv* 1 Cross-country airline flight 40 uSv** 1 PA and chest x-ray 170 uSv* 1 Mammogram 700 uSv* 1 Medical CT scan, head 2000 uSv* 1 year background radiation 3100 uSv*

1 mSv (milliSievert) = 1000uSv (microSievert); 1 mrem = 10 uSv***

Sensation and negativity sells. I expect that stuff when I see election campaign ads. Reporting on subtleties in technical research data as if it was something new to the general public rarely serves them well. The information in this article is designed to put some balance and objectivity back into your healthcare decisions. Digital imaging has been one of the biggest improvements in reducing exposure by ionizing radiation. Always be cautious and thoughtful in your healthcare decisions, but don’t live in fear. That can eventually hurt you more.

*Health Physics Society, radiation safety specialists. **Randall Munroe, Reed Research Reactor ***Lamse equivalent dose unit converter


SillineSS AboundS in RepoRt on dentAl X-RAy/tumoR link

by David Humerickhouse, DDS


12/21/12.

Christmas is fast approaching, so here’s a brief look at some gifts for your favorite wine lover: non-traditional and traditional choices.

From www.artfulwinemaker.com comes the Personal Winemaking System. It’s everything you need in one package to make your own wine: their trademark Artful Winemaker System, a DVD, 12 bottles and a Premium Red or White Kit Refill, which contains grape concentrate, wine making ingredients, 12 capsules, 12 wine bottle closures, 12 printed bottle labels and instructions. In 28 days, you have your wine. Choose from Riesling, Pinot Grigio, Merlot, Chardonnay, Cabernet/Shiraz and Pinot Noir. The original kit, which includes the bottles, is $149.95 plus $19.50 for shipping. Visit the website, www.artfulwinemaker.com or call them at (800) 263-4790, ext. 6449. Tell them Influentials sent you!

The Wine Aroma Kit is for people interested in really learning about the different scents and aromas of wine. It’s a system that allows people to develop their sense of smell, understand and enjoy wine more. It’s a collection of tiny vials of the most common scents of wine and printed support material. And it’s two gifts in one. The Wine Aroma Kit can be a conventional instruction program, or be used as an enjoyable way to spend an evening with friends. Prices start at $119 for the Le Nez du Vin/Make Scents of Wine. Visit www.winearomas.com for more information.

For a different kind of group experience, how about the Winerd game? (As in “Wine-Nerd.”) It’s a board game that tests your wine knowledge, sip by sip, and has you write down your observations. “The more you remember, the faster you move around the board!” Visit www.winerdgame.com. for more information. The list price is $35 but it’s available for less at amazon.com and barnesandnoble.com.

How about a set of wine candles? The Yankee Candle Wine Collection comes in scents like Napa Valley Sun, Grapevine and Vineyard with aromas of Merlot, Cabernet and Zinfandel. Prices start at $9.99. The website is www.yankeecandle.com.

Finally, there’s the Krug Flanerie. It’s a Champagne cooler that looks like a designer bag but guarantees a portable party because it keeps the Champagne at a perfect 50 degrees. It’s just $200. Visit www.notcot.org/post/48135.

Finally, if choosing among all these exotic gifts is just too much trouble, here’s some recommended places for just plain wine:

• www.wine.com - more traditional wines like Kendall Jackson Chardonnay

• www.corkdiaries.com - pricey, but interesting

• www.napacabs.com - the name speaks for itself

Enjoy the holidays with family, friends, and of course some great vino!.

[ food & WIne ]


Holiday Wine Gifts



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trouBLE WItH tHE CurVE This may be our last chance to see Clint Eastwood act – he turned 82 in May. If so, not a bad way to go out. Not the greatest movie, but Eastwood has two scenes that will stay with you a long time. Eastwood is Gus, one of the best baseball scouts who ever lived. He’s trying to hold on while having problems with his eyes. Amy Adams plays his daughter who has her own outstanding scene about how she felt when Gus abandoned her at the age of six after her mother (Gus’s wife) died. Rated PG-13.

BEaStS of tHE SoutHErn WILd This is a small, beautiful film about people struggling to live on an isolated island off the Louisiana coast. The script, the directing, and the acting, mostly by actors not seen before, give intense emotion to a story that will stay in your heart and mind. Rated PG-13.

dark knIGHt rISES Dark Knight Rises is large and everything you want in a first-class big summer action picture. This, the final installment of director Christopher Nolan’s rebooting of the franchise, is pretty much everything you could want in a big picture: a broad canvas, compelling characters, solid acting, a sprinkling of humor, and a satisfying conclusion to the journey of one of our iconic superheroes. The story and acting are strong and there are great action sequences, including the destruction of the bridges leading into Gotham City, and the breathtaking depiction of a playing field disintegrating beneath the feet of football players during a game. Rated PG-13.

tHE BournE LEGaCY Another big picture that is about intensity and excitement. It is one of the best movies of the year. Jeremy Renner takes over the franchise for Matt Damon. While he’s different from Damon’s version, he’s everything you want in a Bourne hero: fearless, quick thinking, and addicted to action. In this film, the government tries to shut down a program of genetically modified killers by killing them. One gets away (Renner), threatening not only that program, but also the one created in The Bourne Ultimatum. Rated PG-13.

tEd One of the funniest movies of the year. Twenty years after wishing his stuffed bear would come to life, Mark Wahlberg is stuck with a foul-mouthed, 24 inch tall pot smoking teddy bear companion that threatens to ruin his life. It is written, directed by, and stars Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane (who does Ted’s voice). It’s rated R for good reason, so if you’re easily offended, this is not for you. Otherwise get ready to laugh. A lot.

dVd don’t Advertising could trick you into thinking these two are worth watching. Don’t be fooled. They are both DVD Don’ts.

totaL rECaLL This remake of the 20-year-old-Arnold Schwarzenegger classic is one big misfire. Nothing happens until Bryan Cranston (Breaking Bad) shows up as the villain to steal every scene he’s in. As for the rest of it, save your money. Rated PG-13.

LaWLESS They wanted to be Quentin Tarantino, but there’s only one Tarantino. This movie tries to be like Quentin, but lacks his style, skill and writing ability. Shia LaBeouf, Mia Wasikowska and Guy Pearce can’t do anything with this material. Rated R.

[ enTerTAInmenT ]

Our mission at DVD Diary is to point you in the right direction when it comes to DVD rentals, downloads and streaming. The movies discussed are worth your time (and money), except for the DVD Don’t, which isn’t.

There are lots of choices for holiday gift giving, but DVDs offer an excellent option: with thousands of DVDs, it should be relatively easy to find something for everyone on your list. Here’s quick rundown on new releases, plus a few to avoid.


HOLIDAY GIFT GIVING EDITION

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Vox Pop Influentials - November / December 2012