Page 4 - Reedley Exponent 11-8-18 E-edition

The Reedley Exponent A4 Thursday, November 8, 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 Here is the short version of the story
which I have taken the liberty of excerpting from a source that offers no attribution:
Playing politics with ethanol
Jon Earnest — Editor / Sports Juanita Adame — Panorama Editor Budd Brockett — Editor Emeritus
QUOTE
“The longer I live the more I see that I am never wrong about anything, and that all the pains
I have so humbly taken to verify my notions have only wasted my time.”
George Bernard Shaw (1856-1950)
Veterans Day is an official United States
public holiday, observed annually on Nov. 11,
that honors military veterans; that is, persons
who served in the United States Armed Forc-
es. It coincides with other holidays, includ-
ing Armistice Day and Remembrance Day.
Celebrated in other countries that mark the
anniversary of the end of World War 1; major
hostilities of World War 1 were formally ended at the 11th hour of the 11th month in 1918, when the Armistice with Germany went into effect. The United States previously observed Armistice Day. The U.S. holiday was renamed Veterans Day in 1954.
Veterans Day is not to be confused with Memorial Day, a U.S. public holiday in May; Veterans Day celebrates the service of all U.S. Military veterans while Memorial Day honors those who died while in military service. It is also not to be confused with Armed Forces Day, a minor U.S. remembrance that also occurs in May which specifically honors those currently serving in U.S. Military.
The long story is the importance of remembering that, on this special day, we pay homage to those heroic men and women who paid the ultimate sacrifice in service to their country and fellow Americans. All paid some while many paid all! We have reached the point in this country where we have become remiss in teaching history—especially that which may be unpleasant. While many seek to tear down statues and destroy anything his- torically unpleasant, it is an integral part of who we are and how we got here.
The very fact that I am free to write about this and your free choice of whether you to choose to read it or not flows directly from the fact that some young man or woman was willing to put their life on the line to insure you continue to enjoy these freedoms. You should thank a veteran for the very fact that we are still an English speaking country.They felt that freedom was worth defending and fighting for.
I fear that the empirical proof is, with the current generation, we are increasing willing to cede those liberties to others in order to maintain our “safe zones” and “safe places.” Take the word of an old man, that’s a fool’s bargain. “Those who would give up es- sential liberty to secure temporary safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.” Benjamin Franklin said it better and more succinctly than anyone I’ve ever heard. I can only hope I’m wrong but it does appear that the toughness exhibited by past generations of Americans has been “taught” out of many of today’s latest itera- tion of citizens.
The actions of so many of our young people — especially those who inhabit our college campuses — is so counterintuitive to the spirit that helped this great nation we can’t help but arrive at the conclusion that their rationale simply must be a learned behavior. For us, many of the beliefs which they espouse do not meet the measure of common sense.
Probably a good project to undertake this Veterans (yes, that is correct, there is no possessive used in Veterans) Day would be to offer solemn recognition for the sacrifices of those who gave all in the defense of America and the most free country in the world. Prayers and special thank yous issued at gravesites all across the nation would be especially welcomed. Getting an extra day away from work is special but we would council everyone to take a few minutes during that day in recognition of the men and women we are honoring on a very special national holiday. Thank a soldier for their service!
No position taken nor method employed seems to be sacro- sanct in the pursuit of radical political positions in today’s world of “anything goes.” Stunts and claims are deemed acceptable for positions that, at one time, would have been considered embar- rassing and inane.
We’re all fortunate that we live in California’s Central Valley, where the very essence of patriotism is alive and well. Mid Valley Publishing had the good fortune of being invited to be a partici- pant in the Veterans Day parade in Sanger this past Saturday. One’s chest virtually swelled with pride at the overt display of the colors and thanks for the contributions of those who defended America’s freedoms.
For our part, special thanks go out to Wally’s Body Shop in Reedley where the modifications were done, at no cost, to the World War II vintage tripod which held the 50-caliber Browning machine gun that was mounted on the hood of the Vietnam era Jeep we drove. Many thanks to Wally’s for their patriotic contri- bution. We recommend you add them to your list of good guys!
But, as always, that’s only one man’s opinion.
By Mark Hendrickson
Guest columnist
On October 9, President Donald Trump announced that he was lifting the EPA’s ban on summertime sales of E15—a motor fuel blend consist- ing of 15 percent ethanol instead of the usual 10 percent. Trump’s an- nouncement is telling. It teaches much about politics, trade policy, and the sorry state of the environ- mentalist movement.
That Trump’s announcement was politically motivated is obvious. The proposed new policy was announced during a campaign visit to Iowa. A crucial biennial election looms, and Trump unveiled his plan there to give a boost to the electoral prospects of Republicans in the Corn Belt.
Such a move was politically nec- essary after Trump’s tariffs on Chi- nese imports triggered retaliatory tariffs that reduced American food exports to China and cut American farmers’ incomes. The president needed to demonstrate to farmers that he is looking out for their inter- ests. The call for greater use of E15— which would increase the demand for corn— was music to the ears of many voters in the Farm Belt.
This sequence of events—eco- nomically disruptive tariffs followed by a policy designed to mitigate or offset those disruptions—illustrates a profound truth about political economy. The great Austrian econo- mist Ludwig von Mises elucidated this truth in his essay, “Middle-of- the-Road Policy Leads to Socialism.”
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[Stay calm; I am NOT suggesting that Trump wants socialism!]
Mises’ point was that govern- ment intervention into markets, however well intentioned, inevita- bly impacts prices and patterns of production. Intervention helps some and hurts others. Those who now have a government-induced prob- lem, like American farmers after the imposition of tariffs, expect the government to solve that problem. But whatever government does in the attempt to offset the damage its policies caused will further distort markets...
Trump’s trade policy is develop- ing as a “two steps forward, one step back” process. (Let’s hope it doesn’t end up being one step forward for every two steps back!) Clearly, the proposal for increased usage of E15 is a government subsidy to corn growers and the ethanol industry. It moves us even farther away from Trump’s professed goal of dropping all tariffs, trade barriers, and subsi- dies. Realistically, given our current political alignment, zero subsidies for American agriculture is incon- ceivable for the foreseeable future.
I have written before about the negative economic effects of us- ing corn-based ethanol as a motor fuel. The negative environmental impacts are significant, too. Al- though some green groups, such as the Sierra Club, have warned about the environmental consequences of corn-based ethanol in the past, they
have remained strangely silent about Trump’s plan to increase its usage. Apparently, they are too busy try- ing to use the climate change issue to scare Americans into embracing socialism to challenge a policy that truly is environmentally harmful. This underscores my long-held be- lief that preserving a healthy envi- ronment is not the primary goal of environmentalists.
Worst of all, any government policy that hastens the pace of water consumption in the Midwest, where aquifers already are dangerously depleted, is environmentally short- sighted. If environmentalists really cared about the environment more than they want to increase govern- ment control of the economy, they would oppose corn-based fuel more vigorously than they oppose frack- ing. Fracking does not jeopardize our precious water supply; corn- based ethanol does.
The good news is that Trump may not have the legal authority to revise existing limits on E15. If not, then his Oct. 9 announcement could be a stroke of political genius: It could help Trump’s party retain control of Congress at no cost to the environment.
Mark W. Hendrickson is an ad- junct faculty member, economist, and fellow for economic and social policy with The Center for Vision & Values at Grove City (Pa.) College.
Fred Hall
Jon Earnest’s column will return next week.
Death at the Tree of Life Synagogue
Editor’s note: This ar- ticle first appeared at The American Spectator.
By Paul Kengor
Guest columnist
“Pray for us, I will call you later.”
That was the text mes- sage we received from our 16-year-old daughter at 10:16 a.m. on Oct. 27 as we drove down Liberty Avenue toward Pittsburgh’s Strip District.
My wife called her im- mediately. “Are you okay? Were you in an accident? What’s happening?”
I heard a gasp from my wife and braced myself.
In a hushed voice, my daughter explained that she and our second daugh- ter and three friends, along with an adult friend of ours, were hiding in their van across the street from the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh’s Squirrel Hill section, the wonderful his- toric Jewish section of Pitts- burgh. They were there for a Saturday morning retreat at an Opus Dei house. They had arrived at 9:55 a.m. They initially stopped the van directly across from the synagogue, on Shady Avenue, which would have been straight in the line of fire between the police and the shooter, who did his dirty work both outside and inside. They were plan- ning to hop out and walk to the house. Mercifully, the driver, our friend Suzy, de- cided almost on a whim (a gut-feel, she later conceded) to find a parking spot so she could walk the girls inside. Just as she moved to a spot
a little further away, police cars began flying in, and out poured officers brandishing serious weaponry.
As the girls struggled to assess the chaos, the police parked sideways so the officers, now in combat readiness, could use their vehicles as shields for the shoot-out. The girls’ van was hemmed in. The street was instantly closed off, like an action scene right out of Hollywood. Suzy told the girls not to get out, and to duck. They all sat on the floor of the van and listened and prayed and worried.
We received the text message about 20 minutes later.
Shortly after we talked to our daughter, Suzy and the girls made a careful decision to try to drive a little further away. She did a U-turn and went down the street just enough to pull into a driveway that allowed them to put a few houses and buildings of separation between them and the synagogue—and the gunfire. More and more police streamed in.
With none of us hav- ing an idea why this was happening, my wife and I headed to St. Paul’s Cathe- dral in the Oakland section of Pittsburgh, closer to the girls and to a church. We sat in that parking lot and prayed and worried, and alerted family and friends. We checked websites, ra- dio, any source for infor- mation.
After nearly an hour of confusion and concern, the girls decided to aban- don the van. They dashed
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across backyards and over fences to meet a relative of Suzy who lived down the street. They met him in his getaway car.
“I was really surprised that we heard gunfire,” Suzy would later say of their escape. She had hoped the shooting had ended. “I didn’t expect that. That was scary.”
The whole thing was scary. It was also evil — an act of evil against our be- loved Jewish brothers and sisters at a peaceful Satur- day worship service.
I followed a roundabout route to the house of Suzy’s relative, barely avoiding the blocked off crime scene and eluding police cars screeching past. We picked up all the girls. All were safe. My 16-year-old had merely a small cut on her hand and a ripped sweater from jumping a fence.
The same cannot be said, of course, for all the people inside that syna- gogue, 11 of which were murdered, nor for the in- jured police who risked their lives to save many others. My wife and I gave thanks to God that our loved ones didn’t get caught in the crossfire. I imagine, however, that many of the families of the victims are asking why God hadn’t protected their loved ones. That’s one of those timeless questions that the Jewish people in particular, and believers of all stripes, have often asked since lit- erally the time of Job. It’s a mystery why some leave
this world in a violent way, seemingly prematurely, while others stay longer in this valley of tears and sorrow. I have no answer there, though I know that God is the Author of Life, and God wasn’t pulling the trigger in that synagogue. That was a malicious act of evil by a warped human being, not an act of benevo- lence by a loving God.
I also feel confident in saying this: the true Tree of Life is not an earthly one but an eternal one. This world, unlike the heavenly paradise we seek, is full of sin and rot. Trees in this world decay and die. Like people, they face mortal- ity in this realm. Eternal life and perfect bliss is not reachable in this world. It comes in the next.
We live not so much for this world—though we strive to make it better—but above all for the next. Those who permanently departed the Tree of Life synagogue on Saturday morning, Oct. 27, 2018, now enjoy a Tree of Life truly greater and truly everlasting. That may be small consolation to their grieving and hurting loved ones, but I think it’s truly the best we can say.
Paul Kengor is profes- sor of political science and executive director of The Center for Vision & Values at Grove City (Pa.) College. His latest book (April 2017) is “A Pope and a President: John Paul II, Ronald Rea- gan, and the Extraordinary Untold Story of the 20th Century.” He also is the author of “11 Principles of a Reagan Conservative.”
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