• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

The Valley Citizen

Nature, Environment, History & Politics

The Valley Citizen

  • Arts
  • Education
  • Environment
  • History
  • Nature
  • Politics
  • Wit
  • About
  • RSS Icon

Is the Bee Serious?

January 26, 2013 By Eric Caine Leave a Comment

Are you serious?
Are you serious?

There are times when our beloved local newspaper outdoes even itself in high self-mockery. On those increasingly regular occasions, you have to wonder whether you’re reading the Bee or yet another clever send-up by the perpetrators of The Onion.

Just consider last Wednesday’s editorial, “Water posturing stifles compromise.” The Bee couldn’t “resist pointing out the irony” when the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) decided to increase river flows for salmon and the health of the watershed. The way the Bee sees it, this provides a well-deserved comeuppance for those who opposed the Modesto Irrigation District (MID) proposal to sell water to San Francisco.

Is it conceivable the Bee just found out about the SWRCB intentions? Followers of water news have known increased flows were inevitable for well over a year.

We’ve always thought the Bee’s long practice of doling out news like a miser dispensing nickels stemmed from its desire to tilt issues in its own favor. That was doubtless the motive for suppressing documents revealing the MID’s problems with its Falling Water Charge and the Farm Bureau’s objections to the water sale on legal grounds.

But this recent editorial suggests Bee management may be as much in the dark about western water realities as its dwindling readership. Is it conceivable the Bee expected local farmers to agree to transfer additional water out of the region when they already knew there was going to be more water diverted for fish and the watershed?

Typically, the Bee can’t imagine reasonable objections to its own arguments, which were in favor of less water and more money in the hands of recently departed MID General Manager Allen Short.  As those who follow MID history well know, Short left the MID in dire financial straits. Why would ratepayers want to put more money in his hands?

The Bee characterizes opposition to its support of the water sale as “posturing” and “hyperbole.” But the Bee’s self-appointed position as our high court of reason and impartiality comes apart under even the most casual scrutiny. Not only have we long known that salmon and the Delta would be receiving more water, we’ve also known that the Federal Energy Regulation Commission’s relicensing process for the MID will very likely also result in less available water.

Apparently, only the Bee’s own management hasn’t yet realized that when the Bee says “compromise” it’s like asking a farmer to set the barn on fire while his house is burning down.

They’ve got to be kidding.

Filed Under: Featured, History Tagged With: Allen Short, MID water sale, Modesto Bee editorial

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Note: Some comments may be held for moderation.

Primary Sidebar

Off The Wire

Louis DeJoy Is Killing It
Louis DeJoy Is Killing It
While Biden dithers, Trump’s minion wrecks the postal service.
nymag.com
So What if Romney Doesn?t Solve the ?Root Causes? of Poverty?
So What if Romney Doesn’t Solve the Root Causes of Poverty?
We handle problems all the time without dealing with their root causes.
nymag.com
The Facts of Life - The Bulwark
The Facts of Life – The Bulwark
My suggestion last week that perhaps the best way some of us who’ve been conservatives can now help the country is to help the Biden administration succeed, and help the Democratic party move to the center, seems to have stirred up a minor tempest in the conservative teapot. I asked whether one shouldn’t consider allying…
thebulwark.com
WSJ News Exclusive | Texas Electric Bills Were $28 Billion Higher Under Deregulation
WSJ News Exclusive | Texas Electric Bills Were $28 Billion Higher Under Deregulation
Texas’s deregulated electricity market left millions in the dark last week. For the past 20 years, its consumers have paid more for their electricity than state residents who are served by traditional utilities, a WSJ investigation found.
www.wsj.com
The making of Madison Cawthorn: How falsehoods helped propel the career of a new pro-Trump star of the far right
The making of Madison Cawthorn: How falsehoods helped propel the career of a new pro-Trump star of the far right
Cawthorn has emerged as one of the most visible figures among newly arrived House Republicans, who have promoted baseless assertions and pushed a radicalized ideology that has become a driving force in the GOP.
www.washingtonpost.com
Los Angeles Just Opened a Tiny Home Village for the Homeless
Los Angeles Just Opened a Tiny Home Village for the Homeless
The colorful community was built in just 13 weeks!
www.housebeautiful.com
California's coronavirus strain looks increasingly dangerous: 'The devil is already here'
California’s coronavirus strain looks increasingly dangerous: ‘The devil is already here’
California’s coronavirus strain is more transmissible than its predecessors, is more resistant to vaccines and may cause more severe cases of COVID-19.
www.latimes.com
More Than 150 Biz Leaders Endorse Biden's Sweeping COVID Package
More Than 150 Biz Leaders Endorse Biden’s Sweeping COVID Package
More than 150 business leaders from various industries have signed a letter backing President Joe Biden’s $1.9 trillion COVID-19 relief…
talkingpointsmemo.com
Exclusive: Defeated and impeached, Trump still commands the loyalty of the GOP's voters
Exclusive: Defeated and impeached, Trump still commands the loyalty of the GOP’s voters
www.usatoday.com
The Christian Prophets Who Say Trump Is Coming Again
The Christian Prophets Who Say Trump Is Coming Again
In the growing community of charismatic Christian prophecy, faith in Donald Trump’s imminent return to the White House is a new dividing line.
www.politico.com
AOC raises $1 million in Texas relief, heading to Houston as Ted Cruz douses Cancun flames
AOC raises $1 million in Texas relief, heading to Houston as Ted Cruz douses Cancun flames
The New York congresswoman said she would travel to Houston to highlight the problems faced by Texans hit by power outages and freezing weather.
www.newsweek.com
Rush Limbaugh Did His Best to Ruin America
Rush Limbaugh Did His Best to Ruin America
How the right-wing talk radio icon corrupted the Republican Party, spread hate, racism, and lies, and laid the groundwork for Trumpism
www.rollingstone.com

Find us on Facebook

The Valley Citizen
PO Box 156
Downtown Bear Postal
1509 K Street
Modesto, CA 95354

Email us at:
thevalleycitizen@sbcglobal.net

Footer

The Valley Citizen
PO Box 156
Downtown Bear Postal
1509 K Street
Modesto, CA 95354

Email us at:
thevalleycitizen@sbcglobal.net

Subscribe for Free

* indicates required

Search

• Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2021 The Valley Citizen

Dedicated to the memory of John Michael Flint. Contact us at thevalleycitizen@sbcglobal.net

Editor and publisher: Eric Caine

Website customization and maintenance by Susan Henley Design