Today's Headlines

Taking Valley Fever seriously

SF Chronicle. CA is seeing record-high numbers of this fungal disease.
 Last year we set a record of 9,300 reported cases; this year we will break that record. Doctors often call it “cocci,” referring to the coccidiodomycocis fungus, but we know it as an often-serious respiratory disorder. Of those who get it, 4% will have recurring problems and it can spread from the lungs to the bones and brain. Worse, the number of hose requiring hospitalization from the disease is increasing. Worser, wildfire spreads the fungus faster and isn’t hot enough to kill it.
MAD Note: A generation ago, many doctors didn’t even think Valley Fever was real or distinct from allergic reactions. Thanks to research being done at UC Merced they are now beginning to comprehend the scope of this issue. With a new emphasis on healthcare at UC Merced, expect more breakthroughs.

New cancer center at Memorial

Modesto Bee. Sutter Health unveils plan for $380 million cancer center at Modesto hospital.
Synopsis: Memorial Medical Center will add a 4-story, 165,000 square foot center to its campus, opening by 2029. The current building at the corner of Coffee and Spanos Court will come down. Radiation, pharmacy, clinics, the surgery center and labs will all move into the new building. Patients will have access to clinical trials. MMC says it will recruit 56 clinicians for the cancer center. Mayor Sue Zwahlen, a nurse, is happy about the new center.

Cows make good firefighters

Farms.com. Livestock grazing vital for reducing wildfire threat.
Synopsis: We’re not just talking about goats chewing away grass near highway bridges. A USDA study confirms that cows pastured in high meadows help reduce the fuel load that contributes to the largest fires in the west while also creating natural fire breaks.

Funding wasn’t cut after all

Modesto Bee. Why Modesto students, teachers thought funding for arts had been cut.
Synopsis: Modesto City Schools insists that funding for visual and performing arts has actually been increased, not cut as many students and teachers thought. Some 100 of those students attended this week’s board meeting to demand restoration. The district says funding went up $1.8 million this year thanks to Prop 28. That was on TOP of the LCAP funding already in place. Before Prop 28, the funding was $3.4 million, but this year will be $5.4 million. The district blamed a communications failure on its part.  

Sheriff can trigger review

Modesto Bee. Youth psychiatric crisis center approved in Stanislaus County; security issues debated.
Synopsis: The new 40,000 square foot building on the Hope Forward Campus at Youngstown Road and South Golden State Blvd in Turlock has engendered a LOT of conversation. Aspiranet is applying for a state license to treat 31 foster youth from Stanislaus, San Joaquin and Merced counties. If there are “impacts on the community,” Sheriff Jeff Dirkse will have the discretion to request a review of the conditional use permit. In 2019, the existing Aspiranet center generated 200 SO calls, 10x more than any other location. Turlock PD and the Merced SO were OK with giving Dirkse the authority to trigger a review. Also testifying: Tony Vartan of BHRS, John Mataka of Grayson and Vern Brown, of Aspiranet.

Understanding unhoused in Patterson

Patterson Irrigator. Community meeting addresses homelessness.
Synopsis: Police chief Josh Clayton helped run a meeting of residents and a couple of homeless persons. He made certain the homeless had a chance to speak (and be spoken to) during a 2-hour meeting. The homeless were angry about being run out of a city park, but residents were angry that the homeless are there in the first place. Clayton noted that most of Patterson’s homeless are from Patterson, not bused in from elsewhere. He also noted that the majority refuse help when offered – including offers made at the meeting. Among those trying to figure things out was former mayor Becky Campo.

The cost of delaying allocations

CA Ag Net. Low, late water allocations undercut CA ag; pistachio grower aims to make a difference.
Synopsis: Video. Westlands grower Rebecca Kaser of Huron says the June CVP allocation was of almost no use, and actually hurt their operations. The timing makes it impossible to make water plans or crop management. (Ignore the annoying music and preachy interviewer; Kaser has something to say.)

Local journalism ignored?

Cal Matters. CA tried to make Google pay news outlets; it cut a deal that includes funding AI.
Synopsis: The huge tech giant agreed to pay $172 million to support local media – or at least the big-city newspapers. The money will arrive over 5 years and be spread among newspapers. Unfortunately, Buffy Wicks’ compromise does not require Google and Meta to negotiate with the media outlets over using their content. Instead, Google makes a one-time payment of $55 million into a fund managed by UC Berkeley while the state puts in $70 million. After that, Google will put in $10 million a year. Meanwhile, Google will put $12.5 million into an “AI accelerator” program that labor hates. While the CNPA praised the deal, small publishers believe they have been sacrificed. And working journalists, represented by The Newspaper Guild, called this a big win for Google but no one else. Said Matt Pearce: “I don’t know of any journalist who asked for this.”
MAD Take: First, this sounds like self-serving charity from the Masters of the Universe (aka, Google) – not a fair settlement between those who produce stories and those who profit from handing them out “for free” while profiting off ads. Second, small newsrooms like those serving the vast majority of Central Valley communities – Los Banos, Merced County, Turlock, Ceres, Dos Palos, Manteca, Newman, Patterson – will get nothing or next to it out of this deal. Finally, nothing in this deal does one damned thing for working journalists. Larger newspapers will be paid with no requirement that they either hire more journalists or pay the ones still working fairly. Meanwhile, small-town publishers like Gene Lieb, Hank VanderVeen and the folks at the Valley Journalism Collaborative will have to carry on with whatever support their sometimes grateful communities provide. (Full disclosure: The writer served as a shop steward for The Newspaper Guild in two Valley newsrooms.)

Patterson Irrigator. New managing editor.
Synopsis: Jessica Wilkinson will take over the reins at the Irrigator, having worked 8 years at family newspapers in Oklahoma and Texas. She has two kids. Good to see more stories in the Irrigator already.

Buying the whole coffee house

Modesto Bee. Iconic Modesto coffeehouse for sale; how much it will cost to buy Queen Bean.
Synopsis: The for sale “sign” is a YouTube video putting the price at $675,000 for the business on 14^th. Since the coffeehouse has been in escrow for 6 months, owner Debra Martinez is still entertaining offers. There is even a studio apartment on the second floor.

Fire destroys 3 trailers

ABC30. 3 families displaced after fire at Atwater mobile home park.
Synopsis: Cal Fire and Atwater FD responded to a vegetation fire at Jennings Mobile Home Park on Crest near Bellevue. It started in a palm tree, but spread to mobile homes, destroying two and severely damaging another. Sofia Coronado saved her family and pets, but nothing else. She had been living in the trailer since losing her rental home during the pandemic. She said God must have another plan for her.

Hating on Lou Seal

SF Chronicle. San Francisco Giants’ Lou Seal ranks among MLB’s least popular mascots.
Synopsis: In a survey by casino.ca, Lou Seal ranked 16 of MLB’s 26 mascots. Compared to Oakland’s Stomper, that’s not bad – Stomper was No. 26. The most popular is the Philly Phanatic followed by Mr. Met and Blooper of the Braves. The Giants are unfazed, noting Lou is going into the Mascot Hall of Fame this year. But the Chron writes, “This low ranking will be unsurprising to Chronicle readers. … Peter Hartlaub described Lou Seal’s 1997 debut at Candlestick as an insult to both mascots and seals.” Bruce Jenkins compared Lou to a rat.