Page 4 - Reedley Exponent 3-15-18 E-edition

The Reedley Exponent A4 Thursday, March 15, 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
It’s once again that time of the year! With everything that goes on during the month of March, we could be describing a multitude of events. It could be the changing of the clocks for Daylight Saving time; it could herald the ar- rival of spring; it could be the adjusting of our lives for Lent; it could be the opening of the Blossom Trail here in Central California or sim- ply preparation for the crush of tax time from the Feds and the state of California.
Jon Earnest — Editor
Chris Aguirre — Sports Editor Felicia Cousart Matlosz — Panorama Editor Budd Brockett — Editor Emeritus
Vote delays extends the saga of proposed shelter for 2 more weeks
We believe that of equal importance to all
those events is the acknowledgement that this is
National Sunshine Week. Each year, at this time,
the American Society of News Editors drives a campaign which is designed to promote an open and transparent government. An obser- vant private sector and a media which is honest in its critical report- ing mandate are both necessary elements in guarding against ex- cessive and unnecessary secrecy. Government entities — especially those with access to taxpayer money — must be open and called to account for their actions.
Last week’s announcement that the State Center Community College District had purchased the Guarantee building in downtown Fresno evoked the inevitable question of “why?” Many issues such as the site, size, location and amount of cash involved all seem to cry out for a more public explanation of the decision to spend that amount of money in that particular location.
The original announcement indicated that the purchase price was $10.5 million but did not indicate whether that number included the parking facility next door, which the story indicated was purchased as well. The $10.5 million obviously does not include the interior re- modeling of 82,000 square feet, which obviously will be required for such a dramatic change of use.
Our only questions would be why that building and why in that particularlocation? Weallknowthatnoone—particularlystudents, since sources indicate there will be classrooms — enjoys the hassle of having to go into downtown Fresno. With ever-soaring costs of a college education, it seems to us that administration should worry less about building a monument to themselves than making sure that students are safe and the price of an education remains within the reach of Valley residents.
Also, since this money will apparently come from the recently approved bond measure, we would like some assurances that this purchase represents the very best use of that money. There are a lot of local taxpayers and property owners who are being asked to foot the bill for this “monument” structure, and we would rest better knowing that their investment is being maximized.
Keeping in mind that students and property owners deserve an explanation of why this was the best possible choice, there will be space provided in our newspaper for an appropriate explanation of the proceedings and perceived benefits.
We should not be spending money on expensively paneled and opulently appointed offices by a bunch of educational bureaucrats serving no purpose than that of massaging their egos.
Recently there has been an escalation in concerns about the safe- ty of students. An active local group that calls itself “Advocates for a Better College” has asked, on several occasions, about the lack of a police presence on the campuses of SCCCD. The numbers allocated to the protection of students — which the group cites — are pitifully low.
We also would be remiss if we failed to comment that the quality of the product which is released into the world and being pronounced as fit and capable for career pursuit is extremely questionable. We often wonder if the value of a college education is often overvalued in today’s world.
But, as always, that’s only one man’s opinion.
Well, that was quite the changeup.
An expected contentious meeting of the Reedley City Council — expect- ed to be highlighted by a vote to ap- prove or deny a proposed emergency shelter in southwest Reedley on West Huntsman Avenue – never material- ized as Council Member Bob Beck made a motion to table the vote. Beck said he wanted to receive more infor- mation on funding, and also cited the fact that only three council members would vote on the project. Mary Fast was an excused absence while Frank Pinon recused himself from the vote.
Altogether, it was a strange and short council meeting, lasting less than a half hour. Promises of multiple media outlets in attendance never material- ized, and there were just a handful of opposing residents. Still, a group call- ing itself “Reedley Beach Families” sent The Exponent and the council a prepared letter saying that more than 100 residents of Riverview Estates had signed a petition questioning what they called the city’s “ethics and methods.”
The group stated in the letter that
the council had received “bad advice” — calling it “the sort of advice that leads to major community reform in the way you are elected and the length of time you can remain in office.” Back in January, residents began a possible recall of Council Member Ray Soleno, filing a petition of their intent, but missed subsequent dead- lines to continue the action.
What it all means is that, for now, the matter won’t come back to the City Council for possible approval un- til Tuesday, March 27, at the earliest. It gives the parties on both sides of the issue more time to sharpen their arguments why or why not the emer- gency shelter — formerly the site of the Marjaree Mason shelter for vic- tims of domestic violence and family members — should proceed.
The saga continues, and should make for interesting future council meetings as the topic simmers.
•••
Reedley College will put on its an-
nual Safari Days activities next week in the college’s Quad fountain area.
A number of free events are sched- uled for students and staff.
Events planned
on Tuesday, March
20, are a comic-
con and health fair
while on Wednes-
day, March 21, the
“Experience Expo”
career expo will be held in the Reed- ley College Quad. Finally, a car show and Cesar Chavez Day celebration is scheduled for Thursday, March 22, in the Quad area.
The career expo is one of the pop- ular attractions for students looking to use their education for an entry-level position.The event runs from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and gives students the oppor- tunity to connect with employers and agencies to explorer career paths.
Students with questions or seeking more information can call the Reedley College Career Resource Center at 637- 2543. They also can email for informa- tion at rcjobs@reedleycollege.edu.
Fred Hall
Jon Earnest
Trump would do well to follow South Korea’s lead
By Kevin Martin
Guest columnist
The developments re- garding Korea last week are astonishing. We may be witnessing a breathtaking outbreak of peace, when not very long ago a nuclear war seemed possible. Now that the Koreas have gotten the diplomatic ball rolling, can President Donald Trump do his part?
For Trump’s planned meeting with Kim Jong- un, announced at the White House by South Korea’s se- curity director Chung Eui- yong, to be successful, the administration will need to do a lot more diplomatic leg work than it’s used to. It will also be important to set expectations appropri- ately—we can’t expect one meeting between the two leaders to end in a compre- hensive agreement like the Iran nuclear accord, which took years to negotiate. But challenges aside, it’s hard to imagine how Trump could scuttle this progress, short of calling off the meeting or throwing in the towel at the first disagreement and piv- oting back toward threats of war.
Now South Korea, with its right-wing opposition to budding Nobel Peace Prize
candidate President Moon Jae-in, or North Korea, with its unpredictable leader Kim Jong-un, could well mess things up on their own, so the extremely hopeful thaw in relations brought about by the Olympic Truce is far from a done deal.
However, it seems North Korea has put so much on the table, probably more than President Moon could have asked for, that there should be no going back. And for his part, Trump al- ready made one wise deci- sion, agreeing to President Moon’s request to postpone the massive U.S.-South Korea military exercises after the conclusion of the Paralympics in South Ko- rea in late March. Now that Pyongyang accepts that the exercises will proceed next month (an astonishing con- cession given North Korea’s legitimate security concerns in relation to the war games), Trump has the chance to do what no president has done in seven decades — help achieve lasting peace on the Korean Peninsula.
The North, for its part, has already helped set the stage for productive dia- logue with a host of conces- sions, including committing not to test nuclear weapons or ballistic missiles while
talks are ongoing, accepting that the U.S.-South Korean war games will continue, and committing not to at- tack South Korea. Beyond concessions, North Korea has expressed a desire for normalized relations with the U.S. and South Korea, and a willingness to de- nuclearize if its security concerns are adequately addressed, a reiteration of a longstanding position. These impressive con- cessions and gestures of good faith offer propitious grounds for negotiations. Trump needs to take them seriously, understand the gravity of the opportunity, and act accordingly.
It makes sense for Moon, who was elected on a platform of reviving the sunshine policy with the North (in which he par- ticipated in earlier govern- ments), to take the lead. It’s the Korean Peninsula, not Florida or Cape Cod. Kore- ans need to be allowed to make peace, regardless of the interests of outside pow- ers. Ultimately though, if the long-term goal of nego- tiations is a peace treaty, a goal shared by both Koreas, then the U.S. will need to do more than just stay out of the way. But the task before President Trump right now
is continuing in the right di- rection, and that means fol- lowing Moon’s lead.
Some have feared Trump could launch a war to distract from his pecca- dilloes and attempt to raise his dismal poll numbers, counting on a “rally round the flag and president” ef- fect. While not unfounded, it would seem that would be too outrageous, even for Trump, when peace ap- pears to be so close at hand. Indeed, he could gain more politically by supporting a peace deal on the Korean Peninsula than by start- ing yet another war, which would be a catastrophe, and getting the U.S. into more wars was something he campaigned against.
So let’s take counsel of our hopes, not our fears, and let 2018 be the year the Korean War was really ended, for good.
Kevin Martin, syndicat- ed by PeaceVoice, is Presi- dent of Peace Action, the country’s largest grassroots peace and disarmament or- ganization with more than 200,000 supporters nation- wide, and he convenes the Korea Peace Network, a network of peace, arms con- trol, and Korean-American activists working for peace on the Korean Peninsula.
A ‘thank you’ for project help
Dear Mr. Fred Hall,
Thank you for helping me with my project for school. As you know, I like the newsies. So all you did for me was amazing. I like reading the Reedley Ex- ponent and it’s better than the Fresno Bee. Also, thank you for letting me go to The Exponent, along with the hat and the newspapers. So thank you for ev- erything you’ve done for me.
Sincerely,
Frances-Elizabeth Gutierrez Reedley
Editor’s note: Frances-Elizabeth Gutierrez, 11, is a fifth-grader at Wash-
ington Elementary School.
Time to assess U.S. gun control system
After being bombarded with newsletters on mass shootings at schools in the United States year af- ter year, it is time to take a look at our country’s gun control system.
Like other countries, the United States allows its people to obtain guns for protection under the Second Amendment. Being an amendment, it would be unconstitutional to inhibit anyone from purchasing a gun. That being said, we still can constitution- ally limit the people who are allowed
to purchase guns by setting more ex- tensive criteria in every state.
Background checks have been is- sued prior to purchasing a gun, but looking at the numbers of mass shoot- ings that have taken place, it’s reason- able to say that this sole criteria is not enough. The government needs to be more proactive and change their gun control system so that children, parents, faculties are put at ease. The govern- ment needs to make training sessions mandatory, meetings with a mental health professional a requirement, and have a police officer interview the buy- er prior to giving them the gun.
Linda Tran Fresno
Letters from readers
QUOTE
“It is not bigotry
to be certain we are right; but it is bigotry to be unable to imagine how we might possibly have gone wrong.”
— G.K. Chesterton (1874-1936)
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