Page 4 - Mid Valley Times 1-20-22 E-Edition

Serving the Readers of the Reedley Exponent, Dimuba Sentinel and Sanger Herald.
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
In my OPINION The battles of opinion and
fact on 'climate change'
Does anyone recall the genesis of
the political craziness which has be-
come climate change? The original it-
eration was that the planet was in the
process of global cooling. When that
proved demonstrably wrong, the man-
tra became global warming. When that
proved incorrect as well the promoters
pivoted to climate change, which was
tougher to debunk. Those pushing this
narrative always have maintained that the elimination of cars and trucks utilizing carbon based fuel, changing our diets and controlling gas emitted by cattle would sharply curb our climate problems.
Although there currently are about 350 million peo- ple who live in the United States, our presence isn't significant enough to alter the earth's climate. History provides proof that climate has always been cyclical. Climate change isn't something over which we have control. The poor judgment of the people involved and implied circumstances leaves one with the assumption that the entire sorry mess is about the redistribution of wealth.
History — which appears not to be taught today — is replete with recollections of extraordinary climate events. During early December 1861, the Sierra had been blanketed with 15 feet of wet snow. As a reference, the biggest problem facing California at that time was a bitter split between Union and Confederacy supporters. If memory serves me correctly, there weren't many gas- guzzling vehicles around to pollute the air with climate changing tailpipe emissions which California could tax.
The Winter of 1862 was replete with reports of heavy rain and flooding in every corner of the state.
In January 1862, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration researchers, a series of what we today call "atmospheric rivers" swept across the area for about 40 days. Warm rain and high winds hammered this part of California severely, impacting the 15 feet of snow and frozen creeks.
Following all the rain, the San Joaquin Valley could absorb no more. Pooling of water was up to 30 feet in many areas. Between Sacramento to the San Joaquin Valley was an area that was 300 miles long and 20 miles wide and completely under water. No one can believe those conditions were created because of the over-in- dustrialization of California. The loss of human life, live- stock and destruction of property was overwhelming.
Blaming that awful chapter in history on mankind was just as dumb back then as it today. We need to thank Dennis Salwasser for providing the background infor- mation about the “great flood of 1862.”
About here is where you might feel like pointing out that basically what we are talking about with that storm is weather. Climate, however, is determined by the aver- aging of weather. Actions of weather over a long period of time is used to determine your climate.
Those among us who practice the “religion” of cli- mate change seem to intentionally overlook some of the facts. Electric cars will, indeed, eliminate tailpipe emis- sions but the power to keep them charged will require a physical plant, generating electricity to keep them charged. Those power stations require carbon based fuel which simply relocates the source of pollution. Also overlooked is the problem of producing the rare earth materials needed to build the required batteries and then disposing of them when they have been used up.
Rational thought tells me that we've always had ex- traordinary weather events but what passes for climate has been cyclical throughout the centuries. We warm a bit and cool a bit. We have periods which are exception- ally wet and then we experience drought. The only thing that does not impact any of that is causation on the part of mankind. We can't affect our surroundings through our actions by that much. We're just not that special!
But, as always, that's only one man's opinion.
Numbers back it up: January is a rugged month for COVID cases
Fred Hall — Publisher
Jon Earnest — Editor
Dick Sheppard — Editor Emeritus
Thursday, January 20, 2022 | A4 | Mid Valley TiMes Editorial & Opinions
QUOTE
“I don't mind what language an opera is sung in so long as it is a language I don't understand.”
— Sir Edward Appleton (1892-1965)
I was checking out the lat- est COVID-19 case numbers over the weekend for Fresno and Tulare counties, and I was getting the usual absence of updates during the weekend. With the exception of hospi- talizations and vaccinations posted by the state, there are no solid numbers provided by the two counties. They usually come by midday Monday.
This week, however, Tulare County didn't have an update for Monday, Jan. 17. Based on what Fresno County released that day, it was an ominous sign of numbers to come.
The first jolt was the Fresno County numbers on Monday. In just three days, the 7-day active count for cases jumped from 9,164 to 11,718, and the new daily cases per 100,000 continued to skyrocket from 125.1 to 165.8. But the next day was even crazier, as Fresno County cases jumped by near- ly 1,800 and more than 2,000 in the subsequent day. The new daily numbers jumped to 164.6
and the positivity rate was up to 31 percent.
On Tuesday, Tulare Coun- ty's latest numbers came out, adding four days from the last update. Active cases had soared by more than 4,700, and the positivity rate was quickly threatening to eclipse 30 percent. These were jumps in numbers that haven't been seen since the early stages of COVID in 2020. Even any spikes during 2021 were rela- tively tame in number.
It's possible the Omicron variant is leading to many more cases, although they ap- pear to not be as damaging and burdensome than the Delta variant (unless you're one of the unfortunate ones currently battling the virus).
Roughly 22 months in from the first reports of coronavirus, I personally am one of the for- tunate ones. I'm two years into getting annual flu shots, begin- ning before this pandemic, and I managed to get through the initial 12 months without so
much as a cold or any type of flu-like symp- toms. I was ful- ly vaccinated by spring 2021, and received a booster shot this past fall.
Jon Earnest
Fred Hall
So far it's worked for me, and I've suffered no side ef- fects from any shots. I'm still showing consideration for others and masking up when I go to public indoor settings, and do it for my own peace of mind when I'm subject to large crowds, be it indoors or outdoors.
My opinion has never wa- vered from the start. I respect and understand all sides on this issue, and merely ask that we all show consideration and good judgment during what's likely to be a challenging rest of the winter. Take care of yourselves, and sincerely wish the best of health to everyone.
Jon Earnest is news-sports editor for The Times.
Candidates, keep it clean! Exhausted majority is asking
By Melinda Burrell
Guest columnist
On Dec. 31, as I uncorked champagne with my family, my stomach suddenly clutched with dread. For the first time, I feared the turning of the new year. Other new years I’ve an- ticipated with joy or at least cu- riosity. But 2022 loomed darkly.
2022 brings midterms, and elections can be triggers for serious conflict. Given our cur- rent polarization, I suspect the anger and division will acceler- ate as November nears.
But I’m hoping this can be stemmed. We’re hearing more about our “exhausted majority” – the two-thirds of Americans who are tired of the polarization and anger that surround us, are flexible in their attitudes, and want a way out of the divide.
Perhaps proving that re- search, dozens of organizations have sprung up to help Ameri- cans talk across our political divides. Braver Angels, Living Room Conversations, Urban- Rural Action are just a few, fu- eled by volunteers driven by a strong sense of civic duty. These organizations help build skills necessary for a democra- cy, such as engaging in curious conversations and fostering re- lationships not bound by polar- ized stereotypes.
Perhaps this means we can flip the 2022 elections from a source of conflict to a means
of community empowerment and enrichment. One possible approach is the development of campaign pledges, something that has been successfully used in other countries experiencing toxic polarization.
With this approach, a local organization or group of organi- zations, credible to both parties, reaches out to all candidates in an election and invites them publicly to pledge not to use in- flammatory or divisive rhetoric on the campaign trail.
The organization and the candidates design the elements of the pledge together, then have a joint, public signing ceremony. The ceremony gives the candi- dates yet another much-desired opportunity for press coverage. It also enables local media and civil society to launch a process of monitoring candidates’ in- person as well as online speech.
There are many empowering aspects of this approach. Most fundamentally, at a time when competing campaigns can sep- arate a community, creating a pledge brings people together. Candidates and other communi- ty members join to discuss what they feel is and is not acceptable speech in their community.
Campaign pledges also are a chance for communities to articulate their expectations of their leaders, in terms of dis- course and behavior. Finally, such campaign pledges reset standards of public speech, re-
orienting them towards norms of respect and thoughtful in- quiry, rather than knee-jerk ac- cusations and insults.
In this way, campaign pledg- es normalize nonviolence and rule of law as the modes of in- teraction in a democracy. This has long-term, positive effects.
Of course, there are com- plications to any such commu- nity dialogue process. As school board conversations around critical race theory have shown, even the act of creating a pledge could have contentious aspects.
Enlisting the aid of experi- enced facilitators can ensure that the conversation is inclu- sive and constructive. Com- munity mediation or dispute resolution centers can help with this, and as could some of the dialogue organizations noted above.
In some ways, our anger to- wards each other reveals how much each of us cares about our country and its future. As we start the new year, let’s try new approaches to strengthen the norms of our democracy in 2022 and beyond.
Melinda Burrell, syndicated by PeaceVoice, is a humani- tarian aid worker who studies polarization and trains on the neuroscience of communication and conflict. She is on the board of the National Association for Community Mediation, which offers resources on cross-divide engagement.