Valley Headlines

Gray’s national profile

MSNBC. Lawrence O’Donnell: Interviewing the newest Congressman.
Synopsis: Being the last person elected to Congress, and by the closest margin, has at least one advantage: Everybody is watching. Thursday night, Adam Gray was interviewed by MSNBC host Lawrence O’Donnell in New York; Adam was in his living room in Merced. O’Donnell was delighted when Adam explained that he hasn’t been sent to Washington to pick fights, but to go to work.

Merced Focus. How Democrat Adam Gray won his race, the last to be called for the US House. 
Synopsis: Reporter Rachel Livinal writes that “the race was called when (Gray) was ahead by a mere 187 votes.” Fresno State Prof. Tom Holyoke says Gray’s election is not good for Donald Trump. But the new congressman says his election is not about party agendas or politics; it’s about getting things done for the Valley.
MAD Note: The reason the race was “called” with Gray “ahead by a mere 187 votes” is because those were the very last votes left to be counted. It wasn’t “called” – it was finished.

Scary new data on bird flu

Washington Post. Single bird flu mutation could let it latch easily to human cells, study finds.
Synopsis: All cells have receptors, which (thankfully) are not very receptive to most viruses. But some viruses mutate, find a way to infect our cells and we get sick. A single mutation, says the Scripps Research Institute, would allow H5N1 to infect humans. Unfortunately, such spontaneous mutations are happening by the trillions in the germs now infecting cows, birds, cats and pigs, etc. One professor called this “sobering” as most believed a series of mutations, not just one, was required. Another said the necessary receptor mutation likely already exists but hasn’t yet gotten to us. If it does, expect a new type of COVID. A doctor at St. Jude’s calls this study “a little frightening.” But one scientist notes that in humans, H5N1 hasn’t yet caused the severe respiratory distress seen in birds and he points out that by next March we should have 10 million doses of a human vaccine ready for distribution.
MAD Note: Unmentioned in this and other stories is that if the mutation occurs, it most likely will hit the Valley first. We have more disease incubators than anywhere else – birds, cows, etc. – and a human population that, due to economic necessity, avoids the testing that could more quickly isolate the disease. So, if they’re looking for a place to store all that vaccine, I have a recommendation.

Farms.com. H5N1 outbreaks in CA dairy cattle top 500 as virus strikes more poultry in 3 states.
Synopsis: There are 11 more infected herds in CA as of Friday, pushing the state’s total to 504 and the national number to 718 in 15 states. In CA, 40% of the state’s commercial herds have been infected since the outbreak began in August. The Animal Plant and Health Inspection Service confirmed a new outbreak in a commercial turkey farm and an egg farm in Stanislaus County. The virus also hit a farm housing 61,000 turkeys in Sacramento County.  

Raw and in charge

Politico. Head of a celebrity-friendly raw milk brand says its recall is political; he may get an FDA role.
Synopsis: Raw Farms CEO Mark McAfee is a confidante of raw-milk customer Robert Kennedy Jr. and RFK’s former running mate, Nicole Shanahan. She asked McAfee to apply for a job with the FDA. McAfee says the FDA is using bird flu as a “new angle to try and discourage us.” The state’s Ali Bay calls that nonsense: “Milk from infected cows splashing into the eyes of workers on farms has led to more than 30 human cases in CA, indicating that raw milk is infectious to humans.”  A Wisconsin scientist added: “The bad news is that for raw milk drinkers you still have a higher risk of things like listeria, Campylobacter, Shiga toxin-producing E. coli, things like that. That’s still a bigger risk.” What about those sick cows found on Raw Farm? McAfee says it is just “his turn” to endure a positive test – one of 500 across the state. As for McAfee’s insistence that no evidence links raw milk to bird flu, the director of the Pandemic Center at Brown notes there’s also “no credible studies demonstrating the health benefits of raw milk. So that demonstrates (Kennedy’s) lack of command of evidence and data.”

Finding ‘Stranger Things’ in Clovis

Fresno Bee. Calling all ‘Stranger Things’ fans: Fresno AirBnB inspired by Netflix series.
Synopsis: The “Iconic Stranger Things Getaway” is now open in Clovis for stays of up to a week. It’s owned, created and operated by filmmakers Chris Lofing and Travis Cluff and Lofing’s wife Andrea. A night runs $219.

Why sewage spill matters

KQED. Here’s how a major East Bay sewage leak could harm fish, wildlife.
Synopsis: The leak that allowed 20 million gallons of sewage that flow out of broken pipes into Suisun Marsh this week could have “considerable ecological consequences.” The story quotes SF Baykeeper’s executive director Sejal Choksi-Chugh, who’s not as worried about human waste as she is chemicals from detergents, meds and solvents. The size of the spill – 60-acre feet – is concerning. How did that much water leak without being detected? The facility’s GM says that there was no way to divert water away from this very important (but faulty) pipe, so it rarely gets maintenance.
MAD Take: It’s bad enough that the sewage-treatment plant wasn’t properly maintained; it’s worse to learn that it was dependent on a single point of failure. No fail-safe. Why should Valley residents care? Because this is happening across most of the 47 water-treatment plants that ring SF Bay and they’re using our water to solve their serious problem. Many of those 47 plants are in disrepair and frequently dump sewage and runoff into the Bay. It will cost $10 billion to bring the plants up to the same standards we must meet. The Bay Area has decided that “dilution is the solution” to their problems. The only way for the Bay and Delta to meet state and federal water-quality standards is to use more of our rivers to flush their crap through a broken system. It’s why the EPA has sued San Francisco.

How regs clog water flow

PPIC. Understanding water available for recharge in the Central Valley.
Synopsis: Virtually everyone agrees that the key to greater water resilience is to get more of what falls to the ground to soak beneath the ground into aquifers. A PPIC study shows that recharge – which everyone wants -- has increased by only 17% since 2017, and most of the reasons behind a lack of progress lies in regulations, red tape and outdated procedures.
MAD Take: For the wonkishly inclined, this is an interesting piece from Ellen Hanak et al. It suggests that a regulatory overhaul is in order. But we’ve known that for years.

Food not going to waste

Modesto Bee. Turlock welcomes plant that turns grocery waste into fuel; food banks get their share.
Synopsis: John Holland writes about Divert Inc., on West Main, which is turning unsold groceries into fuel and fertilizer. It opened Nov. 21 and has 40 employees running 24/7. Zoe Heller of CalRecycle came down Wednesday for the grand opening celebration. Food is separated from packaging (which is being landfilled) then broken into component parts. What’s developed is cleaner than petroleum products. Grocery stores and Blue Diamond are involved. Second Harvest gets anything deemed edible.

Sheriff wasn’t fooling around

KCRA. Man arrested for posting ‘disturbing and hateful’ graffiti across Stanislaus County.
Synopsis: A day after Sheriff Jeff Dirkse issued a strong statement against racist hate graffiti in West Modesto and Grayson, deputies arrested Anthony Rodriguez, 39. Apparently, some of his threatening language crossed the line into criminality. He has a record for similar actions two years ago.

Loss of landmark mourned

Merced County Times. Residents mull what went wrong after fire destroys historic landmark.
Synopsis: Jon Whitaker writes about the old school-turned-library that burned Monday. He notes that many are comparing the rapid spread to the flames that destroyed a vacant furniture warehouse a few months ago. Former supervisor Kathleen Crookham and Sherrie Spendlove are upset that the building was essentially abandoned despite enormous efforts to save it several years ago. Susan Walsh recalled a “magical” place. Mark Pazin says it deserved a more dignified end.

Merced Sun Star. Historic 1897 Merced building reduced to rubble after devastating fire.
Synopsis: Andy Kuhn writes about what’s left of the old Merced high building at 2125 M Street. The building had not been used for several years and there are no plans for the site, except to haul off the old bricks. It had been added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1984.

On second thought, it’s UCLA

Modesto Bee. Hughson QB McDaniel flips commitment to UCLA in signing-day stunner.
Synopsis: Having told everyone that he was going to Arizona, Hughson QB Robert McDaniel changed his mind. In 3 seasons as a Husky, he threw for 7,767 yards, 95 TDs and ran for 461 yards. McDaniel had been recruited to Arizona by Dino Babers, but he recently lost his job. And Arizona lost its future QB.