Valley Solutions

GOP happy with early results

Modesto Focus. Analysis: Stanislaus Republicans punch above their weight in primary early results. 
Synopsis: Garth Stapley says the fight to control Congress, and Donald Trump’s endorsements, have energized Stanislaus Republicans. They have dominated the votes that have been counted so far. But it’s not all good news. Republican Central Committees in Stanislaus and San Joaquin refused to endorse one of their own, Assemblymember Heath Flora, choosing Jim Shoemaker instead. But Flora leads the crowded field and will likely face Democrat Matthew Adams in November. Basically, Flora decided “he could ignore the local party and still win the race,” said UC Merced expert Nate Monroe. In CA 13, Republicans think they have a chance to unseat Adam Gray mainly because Donald Trump has embraced Gray’s opponent.

ABC10. CA Republicans celebrate early primary results as Democrats urge patience.
Synopsis: With hundreds of thousands of ballots yet to be counted, Democrats are urging supporters not to lose momentum. Republicans, meanwhile, are promising victory in the general election based on early results. Steve Hilton leads for governor, and Republicans have run well in several key congressional districts that Democrats thought they had safely gerrymandered. The head of the Democrats in CA was dismissive of the GOP: “That’s like getting to the 50-yard-line and saying you’ve scored a touchdown.”

Tech bros get a comeuppance

Politico. Tech ‘got spanked’ in this week’s primaries; it could be preview of more to come.
Synopsis: Silicon Valley billionaires might believe they’re the masters of the universe, but the electorate doesn’t agree. Matt Mahan, Ethan Agarwal and Eric Jones all failed miserably in their elections despite millions lavished on them by tech investors. Being labeled a “tech bro” is more toxic than being old or moderate, it turns out. “Association with tech money is increasingly going to become a problem,” said Democratic strategist Rob Flaherty. Said Irene Kao, “People are looking for avenues to push back on tech. Voters … really want to see candidates who reflect who they are.” Similar stories are emerging in New York and Florida.

SF Standard. Sorry, Silicon Valley, it isn’t that easy to buy an election.
Synopsis: A longtime political adviser noted: “Politics isn’t the same as investing in a startup.” In fact, being backed by billionaires appears to have hurt several candidates, such as Matt Mahan (governor), Ethan Agarwal and Eric Jones (Congress). Simply put, they misread the room. “The anger and the populism on both sides” is carrying the moment. “Folks are not feeling moderate. Folks are feeling the American dream is dead and gone and it is impossible to get ahead.” On the other side, political consultant Andrew Acosta says the “anger” candidates on the left should delay taking any victory laps until November.

Screwworm reaches Texas

Morning Ag Clips. USDA confirms presence of New World Screwworm in the U.S. 
Synopsis: The flesh-eating New World Screwworm has crossed the border from Mexico into Texas. The worm is actually a fly maggot that burrows into living tissues. It has been found in a newborn calf on a farm in South Texas. USDA modeling predicted the zombie maggots would arrive in 2025, so we have actually held them at bay for a few extra months. Their presence triggered a new “command zone” around the border and release of 4 million sterile flies this week and every week for the foreseeable future.
MAD Note: According to Forbes and the New York Times, Elon Musk’s Dept of Government Efficiency cut millions of dollars from the USAID program that monitored and countered screwworm progress in Central America. This “created a gap in border surveillance which coincided with the parasite’s spread through Mexico.”

Successful Farming. New World Screwworm returns to the US as USDA confirms Texas calf case.
Synopsis: The Farm Bureau’s Zippy Duvall says he’s confident the USDA will limit the impact of the screwworm’s arrival. Nonetheless, the reappearance of the screwworm after 60 years “will have an immediate impact on farmers and ranchers.” He warned ranchers to get familiar with symptoms and to be vigilant. The USDA insists there is no threat to the safety of the food supply.

Successful Farming. How flesh-eating screwworms in cattle could raise US beef prices.
Synopsis: Reuters writes about the “devastating parasite” that eats warm-blooded animals alive and the impacts on the horizon. “With the US cattle herd already at a multi-decade low and record-high beef prices,” this will have an impact on consumer prices. It will also keep “calves out of the US supply chain.” The US typically imports 1 million head of cattle from Mexico every year so they can be fattened on US farms. The price of feeder cattle jumped $5 Thursday.

We don’t need grizzly bears

Modesto Bee. No grizzlies: Rural CA cannot handle another apex predator. 
Synopsis: In an op-ed, county supervisors Lee Adams (Sierra County) and Bob Nelson (Santa Barbara) make the case against bringing grizzly bears back to the Bear Flag state. They’re responding to legislation to fund a study looking into reintroduction in the Sierra. Bottom line: “To entertain the hypothetical reintroduction of a predator as formidable as the grizzly bear, while struggling to manage those already present, is irresponsible and a misuse of limited resources. It is also insulting to rural communities … who would inevitably bear the burden of defending against another predator.”
MAD Take: Editorial writer Bill McEwen once described returning a few hundred salmon to the upper San Joaquin River as creating “an aquarium species.” Returning the grizzlies would be similar, except that encountering a grizzly on mountain trail could turn you into lunch and not vice versa. Those so enamored of seeing real live grizzly bears should buy a ticket to a zoo. Just not a petting zoo. 

Gravel mine OK’d on Kings

GV Wire. Fresno County supes OK Kings River Mining Project to move forward. 
Synopsis: After 11 years of arguing, Fresno County’s supervisors approved a project to allow sand and gravel mining on 833 acres along the Kings River. The Kings River Land Trust and Kings River Conservancy both objected vehemently. The vote was 4-0 with Brian Pacheco recusing. Steve Scheenstra, whose farm is surrounded by the property, says the mine “is going to devastate my property value and my ability to farm.” The land all around is covered in olives, walnuts and grapes. The mine will be operated by Martin Marieta Materials.

Sheriff says DHS is wrong

Stocktonia. Feds say sheriff denied ICE hold on man later accused of killing 3; he refutes it. 
Synopsis: San Joaquin Sheriff Pat Withrow didn’t take kindly to the suggestion from the US Dept of Homeland Security that he was somehow responsible for having turned loose an inmate in Modesto. DHS blamed “sanctuary politicians” for having released Joaquin Escoto despite a “hold” request from ICE so that he could be deported. Escoto is accused of killing the mother of his child, the two-week-old infant and the woman’s mother in Modesto. Withrow says ICE and DHS never requested that Escoto be held, only that the department be notified about his release. Even that was a moot point, because the request arrived hours after Escoto’s release. “We didn’t do anything wrong,” said Withrow.

CA’s water is ‘misallocated’

LA Times. Recent assessment of CA’s water misallocation is first step toward justice. 
Synopsis: Two economics academics at Columbia University believe it won’t be enough just to allow “water trading” via speculative “markets” in California. We must also fundamentally alter water rights to more “equitably” distribute the water. They say we must “unlock” the water tied up in orchards and vineyards so that it can be “reallocated in any given year without major consequences.” They claim that “millions of Californians still lack reliable access to safe drinking water.” By following their recommendations, they insist, we would be “prioritizing basic human needs and ecosystem flows.”
MAD Take: It must be wonderful to be a thinker safely ensconced in a New York City ivory tower, far from the real-world miseries and realities of this Valley. These two believe we can stop watering orchards and vineyards “without major consequences.” No “major consequences?” What do you call dead trees and vines? If trees and vines die, so do jobs. If there are no jobs, the “millions” of workers will leave. Problem solved. One question: Who financed these two professors and their big idea to turn publicly owned water into a speculative commodity? They forgot to mention that in their op-ed.

Ceres getting new stadium

Ceres Courier. Central Valley High students will have a stadium of their own. 
Synopsis: The Ceres Unified School District broke ground on a $16.2 million athletic facility that will be the home to both the football and track teams by next year. “Our goal is to host our first football game on Friday, August 28,” said athletic director Greg Magni. Central Valley plays Pitman that night. It will include a home-side grandstand for 1,800, another 1,000 seats on the visitors side, a concession stand, artificial turf, fencing and a parking lot.

Want to buy your own island?

California Post. CA private island up for sale as $39,000 listing sparks interest. 
Synopsis: A 5.6-acre island sitting in White Slough west of Stockton is for sale. Despite the glowing terms used to describe it, this is not a luxury stop. It is largely marsh covered with shrub sitting just a few inches above the water line. Looks like the current residents are all mosquitoes. It’s about 2 miles from Tower Park Marina near Grindstone Joe’s Campground. Online reaction is, uh, skeptical. Wrote one commenter: “No one wants to live in Stockton.” Public records show the island sold for $12,500 in 2004 and $17,500 in 2007.

Cuts will run deep in Ceres

Ceres Courier. Council cuts deep to balance city of Ceres budget. 
Synopsis: The city of Ceres has a budget hole of $2.16 million and will opt to make more than a dozen cuts to close the gap. “Our citizens are going to feel these cuts, and it’s unfortunate,” said a member of the city council. Among proposed cuts are $147,000 to the animal shelter, $22K for upkeep of the Whitmore Home, $75K for the community center, and leaving vacancies on staff unfilled, including three cadet positions in the police department.

County fair: 5 days of fun

Merced County Times. County Fair returns with five days of hometown fun.
Synopsis: The Merced County Fair starts June 10, with four days of music, rides, hotrods, fried food and farm animals. The fair is a 135-year-old tradition, and one of two in the county each year. (The other is the Los Banos Spring Fair.) Just a few days before the Fair, the Merced Western Days Pre-Rodeo Kickoff will be at downtown’s Bob Hart Square on June 6 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. with roping contests, horses, riders, music and vendors.  

Waymo drove getaway car

SF Chronicle. How a burglar used a robotaxi to flee the scene in a first-of-its-kind case in SF. 
Synopsis: It took the thief only 3 minutes to steal an armload of activewear from Hot 8 Yoga. He ran out of the building and stuffed the loot into the trunk of a waiting Waymo. Then he hopped inside and disappeared down the street. The burglary happened six months ago, and police say they still haven’t made an arrest despite 29 high-def cameras and tracking software installed on all Waymo taxis. Apparently, Waymo didn’t really want to turn over the video to law enforcement, forcing police to narrow the scope of their request. By the time the company complied, the video had been blurred “to protect rider privacy.”
MAD Take: Is that rider “privacy” or “piracy”?