Page 4 - Reedley Exponent 1-24-19 E-edition

The Reedley Exponent A4 Thursday, January 24, 2019 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 Occasionally the simplest of endeavors
can become complicated far beyond one’s wildest imagination. Being fed a daily diet of what contemporaneously passes for journal- ism, I thought I would check — of all sources — the internet to see what is being taught these days. Yes, it’s garbage.
Public can hear RC president finalists
Jon Earnest — Editor / Sports Juanita Adame — Panorama Editor Budd Brockett — Editor Emeritus
Out of page after page of phony practitio-
ners, it was really a disappointment that only
a couple of “platforms” even had an inkling of
what the standards of this profession should
be. As one “clicks” through the sites, a dead
giveaway of a complete know-nothing would be an article by some soy-boy expounding on the methods for driving up the number of clicks on your site. Immediately one feels the quicksand of igno- rance. Someone should have taught him that this business isn’t about sensationalism or agenda promotion. It’s about straightfor- ward, honest writing and reporting — not views or clicks!
Journalism today is busy committing suicide! That’s not just my opinion, you can check for yourself! That statement is inclu- sive of many of the larger journalistic operations that were — at one time — considered the gold standard of our industry. A partic- ular bit of crap (please excuse my use of the term, but nothing else fit) published by The New York Times about a week ago accused Donald Trump, in their headline, of working for the Russians.
The problem with that was there was absolutely nothing pre- sented anywhere in the story in the way of proof. All their sourc- ing was anonymous. That, alone, is an absolute no-no! There was a time people would have been summarily fired for such reporting. Sadly, not today.
It may not be a subject over which people get wildly excited, but because it is a part of everyone’s daily life, I would beg your indulgence for a few minutes while we discuss some of the ele- ments that were once required to meet journalistic standards for reporting agencies and organizations. Yes, here were standards not so long ago nor far, far away. Stories were actually sourced, by more than one person.
Journalistic ethics and standards comprise the principles of ethics and good practices which are specifically applicable to chal- lenges for those who hold themselves forward as practitioners of journalism.This specific subset of media ethics known to and iden- tified by journalists as their “professional code” or the “canons of journalism.” Following are the five core principles of journalism. We hope it will provide a larger picture for you, the reader, to help guide you through the daily dump of information that is happening in this country.
Number one would be truth and accuracy: Although a journal- ist cannot always guarantee”truth” getting the facts right is the cardinal rule. We should always strive for accuracy, provide all the relevant facts we have and make sure they have been checked. When we cannot corroborate information we should say so.
Number two is independence: journalists must be independent voices; we should not act, formally or informally, on behalf of spe- cial interests whether political, corporate or culture. We should declare to our editors — or our audience — any of our political affiliations, financial arrangements or other personal information that might constitute a conflict of interest.
Number three is impartiality: Most stories have at least two sides. While there is no obligation to present every side in every piece, stories should be balanced and add context. Objectivity may not always be possible and may not always be desirable (for ex- ample, in the face of brutality or inhumanity) but impartial report- ing builds trust and confidence.
Number four is humanity: Journalists should do no harm. What we publish or broadcast may be hurtful, but we should be aware of the impact of our words and images on the lives of others.
Number five is accountability: A sure sign of professional- ism and responsible journalism is the ability to hold ourselves accountable. When we commit errors we must correct them and our expressions of regret must be sincere and not cynical. We listen to the concerns of our audience. We may not change what readers write or say but we will always provide remedies when we are unfair.
Although it is not specifically addressed in the five preceding rules, we have a real problem with media’s new-found fascination with advocacy journalism.
Personally, I have a real problem with the words being used in conjunction with each other. If the piece is written in advocacy it belongs on the op-ed page and if it’s straight matter reporting then it belongs in the paper’s news hole. We’ve seen far too many newspapers — some of them in the local area — which publish stories that are little more than hit pieces.
Realizing that this column was written to be informative and apolitical, I still hope that many of you will find some useful in- formation contained with my weekly ramblings. The professional standards which I outlined will eventually lead to the internet be- coming pure entertainment because of their inexperienced, un- professional writers having no idea that there are even standards which apply to our trade.
A giant step toward that end would be for all these sites to be declared “publishers” instead of “platforms.” That simple move- ment would results in everyone coming under the application of libel laws. The threat of huge financial losses would quickly stop some of the idiocy and they would function on a level playing field with professionals on television and in the newspapers.
But, as always, that’s only one man’s opinion.
Mark next Tuesday, Jan. 29, on your calendar. That’s when you can meet — and possibly even question — the next president of your local community college. On that day, Reedley College is hosting a public forum from 9:15 to 11:30 a.m. that features the two finalists, Donna Berry and Jerry Buckley.
Berry is the interim president of the college, having stepped in last Ju- ly when Sandra Caldwell resigned to become the executive director of the Wyoming Community College Com- mission. She has a wealth of knowl- edge with the campus, having served as vice president of administrative services for almost seven years. Buck- ley also is highly qualified, as the doc- tor of education has been the assistant superintendent/VP of academic af- fairs at Santa Clarita Community Col- lege District for more than five years.
Both Berry (9:15 to 10:15) and Buckley (10:30 to 11:30) will speak to attendees and present the vision they hold for the future of Reedley College. The public can submit ques- tions in advance and have until Mon- day, Jan. 28, at noon to send them for review. The email contact is Sareang.
Nhim@scccd.edu. If you come up with a question at the event, you can pick up a form there and submit the question if time permits.
Reedley College is a source of pride for the community. This is residents and the public’s chance to directly address the person who will lead the college in coming years.
•••
Next week is a significant week
for community events. In addition to the forum at Reedley College, the city’s first of six monthly Town Hall events is scheduled for Monday, Jan. 28, at 6 p.m. Come to the Senior Room at the Reedley Community Center, to discuss and provide ideas regarding the city’s homeless problem.
The topic of “So Many Homeless People in Reedley Now!” will answer questions about dealing with homeless who have camped out in areas east of town and in recent months along the Kings River. You can learn about the city’s challenges in following state law and recent legal rulings that protect the rights of the homeless.
It should provide interesting dis- cussion, debate and hopefully some
problem-solving.
Future topics at the
Town Halls will fo-
cus on business de-
velopment, crime
and gangs, city
government, roads
and streets and the
state’s drought reg-
ulations. Except for
May (because of
the Memorial Day holiday), meetings will be on the final Monday of each month until summer. Questions? Call the city at 637-4200, exit. 212.
•••
Finally, you have until the end of
the month to submit a nomination for the upcoming 2019 Reedley Business and Community Awards Gala. This year’s event will begin at 6 p.m. (so- cial hour at 5) on Saturday, Feb. 23, at the Reedley College Student Center. Once again, musical entertainment will be a major attraction at the event and provide a complement to honoring of award winners in nine categories.
Tickets now are on sale. Call the Greater Reedley Chamber of Com- merce at 638-3548.
By Greg Dill
Guest columnist
Most doctors accept Medicare as full payment for their services. But some accept it only for certain services, and others don’t accept it at all.
What does this mean for
you?IfyouhaveOriginal Medicare, it means you should try to use doctors, hospitals, medical equipment suppliers, and other health- care providers that partici- pate or “accept assignment” in Medicare. Such providers have signed agreements to take Medicare as payment in full for their services.
If your doctor or other provider accepts assign- ment:
• Your out-of-pocket costs may be less.
• The provider agrees to charge you only the Medi- care deductible and coinsur- ance amount, and usually waits for Medicare to pay its share before asking you to pay your share.
• The provider has to submit your claim directly to Medicare and can’t charge you for submitting the claim.
Some doctors and other providers haven’t signed an agreement to accept as- signment for all Medicare- covered services, but they
can still choose to accept assignment for some ser- vices. These providers are called “non-participating” providers.
If your doctor or other provider doesn’t accept as- signment:
• You may have to pay the entire bill at the time of service. Your provider is supposed to submit a claim to Medicare for any Medi- care-covered services they provide to you.
• The provider can’t charge you for submitting a claim. If they don’t sub- mit the Medicare claim once you ask them to, call 1-800-MEDICARE.
• In some cases, you might have to submit your own claim to Medicare us- ing Form CMS-1490S to get paid back.
• The provider can charge you more than the Medicare-approved amount, but there’s a limit. Non-par- ticipating providers are paid 95 percent of the Medicare- approved amount. They can only charge you up to 15 percent over the amount that non-participating pro- viders are paid.
The 15 percent limit ap- plies only to certain Medi- care-covered services and doesn’t apply to some medi- cal supplies and durable medical equipment.
Some doctors and other providers don’t want to en- roll in the Medicare program at all. You can still visit these “opt out” providers, but they must enter into a private contract with you (unless you’re in need of emergency or urgently needed care).
A private contract is a written agreement between you and a doctor or other provider who has decided not to provide services to anyone through Medicare. The private contract only applies to services you get from the provider who asked you to sign it.
If you sign a private contract with an opt-out doctor or other provider, keep in mind that Medicare won’t pay any amount for the services you get from that provider, even Medi- care-covered services.
• You’ll have to pay the full amount this provider charges you. You and your provider will set up your own payment terms through the contract.
• If you have a Medi- care Supplement Insur- ance (Medigap) policy, it won’t pay anything for the services you get. Call your insurance company before you get the service if you have questions.
• Your provider must tell you if Medicare would
pay for the service if you got it from another provider who accepts Medicare.
• Your provider must tell you if he or she has been excluded from Medicare.
• You can’t be asked to sign a private contract for emergency or urgent care.
• You’re always free to get services not covered by Medicare if you choose to pay for them yourself.
You don’t have to sign a private contract. You can al- ways go to another provider who participates (accepts assignment) in Medicare.
Be sure to ask your physician or other provider if they are participating, non-participating, or opt- out. You can also check by calling 1-800-MEDICARE or by using Medicare’s Physi- cian Compare tool on www. medicare.gov.
You may want to contact your State Health Insurance Assistance Program (SHIP) to get free help before sign- ing a private contract with any doctor or other health care provider.
Greg Dill is Medicare’s regional administrator for Arizona, California, Nevada, Hawaii, and the Pacific Ter- ritories. You can always get answers to your Medi- care questions by calling 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800- 633-4227).
QUOTE
“Man is the only animal that can remain on friendly terms with the victims he intends to eat until he eats them.”
Samuel Butler (1835-1902)
Jon Earnest
Fred Hall
Some ways to keep your Medicare costs down
Walls are not immoral
Walls are not immoral. Biblical science has shown that before Jesus, and during Jesus’ time, there were hundreds of cities with walls. Dur- ing those turbulent times, walled cities were not built for impressive purposes but were built for survival to keep out invaders, bandits, and to hide from the Roman soldiers whose aim was to destroy Christianity.
During his public ministry, Jesus was constantly in hiding and protected by his apostles in walled cities to avoid being captured. Here are three bibli- cal quotes as to why these walled cit- ies were necessary: “As soon as you
receive this letter since your master’s children are with you, and you are protected by a walled city and weap- onry” (2nd Kings 10:2); He put forces in all walled towns of Judah, and in the towns of Ephraim, which Asa, his fa- ther had taken” (2nd Chronicles 17:2); and “After this he made an outer wall for the town of David, on the west side of Gihon in the valley, as far as the way into town by the fish doorway, and he put a very high wall round the Ophel; and he put captains of the army in all the walled towns of Judah.” (2nd Chronicles, 33:14)
Jesus Christ never condemned those walled cities as being immoral.
What right does Nancy Pelosi have in calling these walled cities immoral? Walls were necessary in biblical days and are necessary now. There is sub- stantiated evidence that large amounts of drugs can be brought into this coun- try using these immigrant caravans.
Since these immigrants have no money, they could be paid and bank- rolled by the cartels. There are pos- sibly two more caravans preparing to make the trip apart from one already on its way. They must be stopped from entrenching our borders and creating chaos.
Manuel Madrid Reedley
Letters from readers