Page 4 - Reedley Exponent 5-3-18 E-edition

The Reedley Exponent A4 Thursday, May 3, 2018 Editorial & Opinions
Serving “The World’s Fruit Basket” since 1891
A Mid Valley Publishing Newspaper
Founded March 26, 1891, in a two-story building on the corner of 11th and F streets, by A.S. Jones
Fred Hall — Publisher
In my OPINION
Jon Earnest — Editor
Chris Aguirre — Sports Editor Felicia Cousart Matlosz — Panorama Editor Budd Brockett — Editor Emeritus
QUOTE
“If we were not all so interested in our- selves, life would be so uninteresting that none of us would be able to endure it.”
— Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860)
Having been born, raised and educated in this great country, it has always been my as- sumption the best educated and highest skilled among us would rise to the top of various fields and professions based on that criteria. Imagine my surprise when I opened last Sunday’s daily newspaper to read an article bemoaning the fact that the Cal Poly campus in San Luis Obispo was 54 percent “white.” There was no mention of any sort of record of academic achievement by the student body, only a condemnation for their being “too white.”
What ever happened to the concept of excel- lence and achievement?
Hall of Fame provides a chance for Reedley High to honor athletic greats
Fred Hall
Four Reedley High School athletic icons registered Hall of Fame-caliber careers as a competitor, coach or both. On April 28, they finally could be called authentic Hall-of-Famers.
The inaugural Reedley High School Athletic Hall of Fame dinner and ceremony outside the Wakehouse Woodfire Grill and Barrel restaurant marked a long-awaited arrival for premier athletes at the school. Not to mention Darren Minami, the school’s current athletic director.
“One of the things I thought would be cool would be to have an athletic Hall of Fame,” Minami said. “The purpose is to recognize and honor those Reedley High athletes, coaches, teams, administrators and contribu- tors. This recognition will maintain the spirit and pride of the school.”
Through the efforts of the Reedley Pirate Foundation Board, the Kings Canyon Unified School District and a seven-member Hall of Fame Commit- tee, the event began with a stellar first class of famed school athletic figures: Larry Iwasaki, the late Paul Mitchell, Glenda Morgan and Pete Romero.
About 135 people turned out on beautiful Saturday evening to salute the four inductees, who rose above about a dozen initial finalists to be- come the first Hall class members. The biographies and each inductee stirred memories of the school’s great-
est athletic accomplishments. Qualifying for the Reedley High School shrine is a lofty achievement, as it should be for any Hall of Fame. Mark Givens, the longtime public ad- dress announcer for Reedley High sports, said that individual athletes won’t even be considered until a decade after graduation from high school. Benchmarks include — but are not limited to — the school’s league, section, state or national records or championships; selection to first team all-league, all-section or all-state; and being recognized as a multiple sport
athlete excelling as an individual. For coaches, a former head coach or assistant must have at least eight years of service of exceptional perfor- mance standards. Accomplishments can be limited to league/conference, section and state championships. Teams up for possible induction aren’t eligible for consideration until at least
10 years after graduation.
Hearty congratulations to the first
class of inductees. They will be hon- ored by the school at this fall’s home- coming football game.
•••
The news out of Reedley College
came swiftly and suddenly on May 1. President Sandra Caldwell, who also oversees the Madera and Oakhurst Community College centers, an- nounced that she will be leaving the
school this summer.
She has accepted
the job as new ex-
ecutive director
of the Wyoming
Community Col-
lege Commission
in Cheyenne, Wyo.
Caldwell will start
when she com-
pletes her Reedley College responsi- bilities, and will remain in the area until at least June 30.
Caldwell has a connection to Wyo- ming, having served two years as the associate vice president for planning and improvement and nine years to- tal at Western Wyoming Community College in Rock Springs, Wyo. She has a connection to the state, as her two children graduated from high school there.
“I love community college, and this is an opportunity that just came up,” she said. The previous executive director for the commission held the job for 13 years. Caldwell’s duties will include traveling to the community college campuses around the state.
Still, she calls it a “bittersweet” decision to leave Reedley. “There are many great memories and experienc- es here,” she said. “I will have Reedley College in my heart forever.”
Jon Earnest
Why are all of our institutions in today’s marketplace judged on their diversity? We read no percentage of diversity figures for pro- fessional sports except for ownership and management! Why have we progressed so far and yet have a dual standard for measuring achievement?
No country surpasses America in providing an equal opportunity to achieve success, but one should not find the thumb of government placed on the scale in an attempt to produce equal results.
The simple truth is that we are not all born equal in terms of skills and aptitude. Genetics and the environment in which we are raised are important factors and can’t be simply changed by wishing it were different.
Certainly everyone should be provided an equal opportunity but politically correct social experimentation in our schools and institu- tions of higher learning will have very little impact on the natural order or the results. We simply wind up “dumbing down” the com- mon denominator.
After the recent fiasco at Fresno State, which does not appear to be an isolated incident, the American public needs to address the current phenomenon of politics and political correctness that seems to have run amok in our educational system. Professors as well as high school teachers need to keep politics out of the classroom. How tough is that?
An education should deal with basics and prepare our children for entry into a world that is far different from much of the fantasy which is thrown in on an ancillary basis and deemed education. These instructors are most certainly entitled to their personal political views but classes and the classroom should never be used to indoctrinate and intimidate our young students.
One more thing. Instructors, when you do make statements of a political nature try to rise above being so stupid and insipid as to embarrass yourself and the institution for which you work.
I just decided — as an afterthought — to throw in some items for discussion over morning coffee or adult beverages in the evening with my impressions on each topic:
• Global climate change — Personally, I see no empirical evi- dence of such an occurrence. The guys who are trying to convince us can’t even tell us, with any degree of certainty, when we might expect our next rain might fall much less what our climate will be like in the next 50 years!
• High Speed Rail — It’s so far over budget and so underfunded that it’s extremely unlikely it will ever be finished even though the governor continues to gather money from other sources in his at- tempts at a legacy. It, if ever finished, will serve such a small part of our population it makes no sense!
• The $53 billion increase in gas tax — This is a crippling load on California’s economy and is not earmarked for road improvement! Much will be spent on bike trails, HSR and other pork barrel projects!
* Propositions 47 and 57 — Need immediate repeal! These do nothing but provide comfort to our criminal element and place citi- zens at greater risk!
But, as always, that’s only one man’s opinion.
Caucuses are far more representative than primaries
By Harold Pease
Guest columnist
Voters might be con- fused by the difference between a caucus and a primary, each state offer- ing one or the other to find the right contenders for the general election in Novem- ber. We will treat both.
In a primary the over- riding principle is that ev- eryone should vote regard- less of how informed or ill-informed one is. Televi- sion is the major—often the only—source of information for older voters and social media for younger voters. Neither source by itself is enough. Candidates can submit a word statement, often a paragraph, promot- ing themselves on the ballot, but rarely is enough given for voters to make an intel- ligent choice. This is the on- ly free coverage allowed a candidate. Candidates seek- ing the office of judge rare- ly leave any information on the ballot from which to evaluate them. Many voters just guess.
In a primary voting choice may be but a whim. There exists nothing to protect us from the non-in- formed. One giving only 10 seconds of forethought may erase the vote of someone spending six months study- ing an issue or candidate. The whole system is an ignorance paradise. Voter preparation may take 20 minutes.
In a primary the can- didate “buys” the office. Serious candidates know that they must hire a cam- paign manager who devel- ops campaign strategies, never gives specifics (if the campaign slogan cannot fit on a postage stamp it is too
complex) and spends tens of thousands of dollars on media ads mostly defin- ing the opponent as unfit. Of course, those who give large contributions expect access to the winner after the election so he/she most- ly represents them. The poor, outside being used on occasion for street demon- strations or envy politics, have no real representa- tion in either major politi- cal party.
In primary elections it is not a matter of how well informed, experienced or qualified one is. What is absolutely critical to win- ning is whom you hire to promote you. Money, not knowledge, is primary. The rest of the campaign you become a professional beggar asking everyone, always and endlessly to contribute to your cam- paign. Running for office is not the model of Abra- ham Lincoln riding the caboose of a train making speeches at each stop. To- day candidates give their messages to special inter- est groups who can deliv- er votes and money. Far more time is spent asking for money than explaining views. Regular voters on- ly know of a candidate by way of television, print or social media.
The following is rep- resentative. In the greater Bakersfield area campaign, where I once resided, man- ager Mark Abernathy was the “king maker.” Those in the know realized this. In a conversation I had with him he named virtually every- one holding public office in the area as his and boasted of his winning at least 90 percent of all elections the previous 10 years. He often
ran several candidates for different offices simultane- ously. Those he brought to power were expected to en- dorse his future candidates. Rarely did anyone beat the “Abernathy machine.” He is certainly a pleasant fellow, dedicated to his philosophy, and skilled and ruthless in the art of getting someone elected but at a hefty price. In a phone conversation with me he said, “I per- ceive that you do not have money,” meaning $100,000 or more. I agreed and he selected another candidate to support. Thus in 2010, I failed to secure a seat in the California State Legislature before a single vote was cast.
In a caucus state such as Utah there is protection from the “drive-by” voter. Neighbors gather together and select from themselves those who have earned their respect. They spend whatever time is neces- sary at candidate activities visiting with candidates, reading their literature and more to differentiate between the candidates be- fore voting. Citizens accept that all voters cannot de- vote such time and energy in the effort. Each of 2235 precincts in Utah choose from one to five state del- egates to differentiate be- tween state candidates and thousands more to do the same for all county candi- dates. Thousands of state delegates, at their own expense, meet in the Salt Lake City area and county delegates somewhere in their county the following month.
In that 30-day time pe- riod before a vote is cast candidates seek to impress these selected delegates
with their credentials for the office wanted and del- egates can meet with and ask probing questions. This is a far better vetting process than voting based on sound bites and hunches.
With respect to issues, caucus delegate voters are far more informed than the general public because the public selected them to probe. There exists no pub- lic acclaim for delegates. They have to take off work with no compensation for meals and/or travel for a weekend. They do it to en- sure liberty.
In a caucus no one “buys” the office as in pri- maries. Since candidates do not have to appeal to the less informed, only to del- egates, much more inter- ested in details over gener- alities, they normally do not have the vast expenditures of money needed in a pri- mary election. A candidate with modest means can compete for any state or federal office, which is far more democratic than in a state utilizing the primary system for selecting candi- dates. The representatives of the people choose their leaders rather than “king makers” as in primaries. Candidates can put prior- ity on issues rather than on fund raising and appealing to the moneyed class.
Harold Pease is a syn- dicated columnist and an expert on the United States Constitution. He has dedi- cated his career to studying the writings of the Found- ing Fathers and applying that knowledge to current events. He has taught his- tory and political science from this perspective for more than 30 years at Taft College in Kern County.
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