By Sherman R. Frederick
This comes from the SF Chron’s website. I bring it to your attention this week because I don’t think enough journalistic umph has been given to uncovering the errors that led to this. Someone wasn’t minding the store. Prisoners died. And, Marin businesses will pay the price for the spikes in the virus.
“San Quentin prison in Marin County has experienced the worst outbreak in the system, and as of this morning 1,388 inmates have tested positive. The explosion of cases is the result of a mismanaged transfer of prisoners from the Chino Institution for Men to San Quentin. Before the transfer, San Quentin didn’t have any cases.”
The governor sacked the prison system’s chief medical officer. (The minimum move, it seems to me.)
This was a monumental screw-up and it came on the governor’s watch.
Postscript: I’ve been a big fan of the way Gov. Newsom has handled the pandemic early-on. Good communicator. Willing to admit he doesn’t have all the answers. But of late he’s been stumbling around and his leadership has become authoritarian. He needs to decisively lead us on the question of fall in-person school.
AND THUS IT BEGAN
HOW CRAZY IS IT OUT THERE?
It’s this crazy:
No. 1: Black Lives Matter folk are turning on the play Hamilton bcause they nonsensically say it downplays slavery. Lin-Manuel Miranda, the author of the celebrated play, has already taken a knee in responding to the criticism.
“All the criticisms are valid. The sheer tonnage of complexities & failings of these people I couldn’t get. Or wrestled with but cut. I took 6 years and fit as much as I could in a 2.5 hour musical. Did my best. It’s all fair game.”
So, ladies and germs, Hamilton is now a racist play? Count me out on that one.
No. 2: The president and five other board members of the National Book Critics Circle have resigned, amid allegations of racism and violations of privacy. The 24-member board was in the process of crafting a letter on Black Lives Matter issues when a black board member ratted on her fellow board by making public a private email discussion in which the board was attempting to work out the wording of the statement.
Laurie Hertzel, president since 2019, quit over the crappy move saying the breach of privacy “made it impossible to continue with this discussion in good faith.”
NOT SO FAST, TRUMPERS
In light of the tell-all book by President Donald Trump’s niece, Mary, in which the president is portrayed as a narcissist (duh!) and a possible sociopath because his dad was too tough on the young Trump (meh), I think we can hold off on these Mount Rushmore plans for just a bit, don’t you? There’s also a little thing called a national election coming up and things don’t look particularly good for the mighty Orange One.
Of course, he’s running against Joe Biden. So anything can happen, I suppose.
ONE MORE THING
— I ate my exam paper. I’ll pass the exam for sure.
— I swallowed a small dictionary. It gave me thesaurus throat I ever had.
— You said everything would be back to normal in June. Julyed.
— Anyone here who believes in telekinesis raise my hand.
Can you hear that song in your head now? My apologies. I’ll pick up my knitting and let myself out. Until next week, stay well, wear a mask when you’re out and, please, reject anyone who tries to tell you Marin is a racist place filled with racists. That’s a lie. Also, avoid soreheads.
Sherman R. Frederick is the founder of Battle Born Media, publisher of intensely local community newspapers in Nevada and Northern California, including the Novato Advance, the San Rafael News Pointer, the Mill Valley Herald, the Sausalito Marin Scope, the Twin Cities Times, the Ross Valley Reporter and the Pacifica Tribune. He may be reached at shermfrederick@gmail.com.)
Leave a Reply