Sherman R. Frederick/Properly Subversive
I heap much guff on the California Legislature because at the end of the season when all the stats are compiled, California lawmakers lead the league in dumb-assery.
Last week we talked about the idiotic bill to silence doctors who stray from COVID orthodoxy.
This week, boys and girls and all genders twix-and-tween, I bring you news of a righteous bill. It’s Senate Bill 1198 championed by Sen. Mike McGuire. It dares to bring justice to craft beer makers and end wine supremacy in the Golden State.
Sen. McGuire says: “SB1198 closes a legislative loophole to protect California‘s beloved craft brewers’ ability to ship customers their favorite beers. It’s a win-win for over 1,000 family-owned businesses, and those who love California’s incredible brew.”
Finally, beer equity.
I’ll drink to that.
JANKY MASKS
The COVID-19 update issued last week by the Marin County Health Department contained a nice explainer on the new way the CDC looks at the virus spread.
Now the CDC doesn’t just look at the number of cases, but also hospitalizations. That combined metric ranks counties as Low (green), Medium (yellow), or High (red). Marin County shifted from the Low to Medium level two weeks ago.
The update shows that Marin County only had 12 people hospitalized as of the last update with zero patients in ICU, so in that category we’re doing well.
Also, no mask mandate in Marin is needed at this time.
But a word of warning comes in our Page One story today. Sooner or later we’re all going to get COVID and people who are vulnerable and need to attend an indoor gathering should wear a well fitted KN-95 or N-95 mask. Those janky homemade masks no longer will suffice.
CROSSING MY MIND: A SHORT JOURNEY
– No Brainer: Why in the world isn’t Gov. Gavin Newsom suspending the gas tax in California? Seems like such a no-brainer and would provide at least a bit of real, immediate relief to Californians. Why not do it between Memorial Day and Labor Day? The governor still has emergency powers. We have money banked. Do it, governor. Suspend the gas tax today.
– Sausalito Radio: Hat tip to Natalie Hanson for her story in the regional morning newspaper on Radio Sausalito. Hanson highlights Larkspur favorite son ChrisTognotti, who hosts a show called “Night Harbor.” In addition to playing jazz he comments on the “strange duality” of Marin. Strange duality. That’s a nice way to describe it. You can tune in here: Radiosausalito.org.
White Supremacy: Nazi nutjobs who think Marin is fertile ground for their ethnic purity message might want to read about the newest science in archaeology. The relatively new ability to inexpensively do analysis of ancient genomes has exploded the field with new information. One of the victims of more information is the idea of ethnic purity in Europe. Hitler was wrong: It’s a continent of immigrants and always has been. “The people who live in a place today are not the descendants of people who lived there long ago,” says Harvard University paleogeneticist David Reich. “There are no indigenous people—anyone who hearkens back to racial purity is confronted with the meaninglessness of the concept.”
– Navy Book List: The Chief of Naval Operations issued its annual professional reading recommendations and, unlike last year, there were no “woke” recommendations. This year it’s 12 books – a mix of fiction, non-fiction, military strategy and management. Last year, the list included Ibram X. Kendi’s “How to be an Antiracist,” Michelle Alexander’s “The New Jim Crow,” and Jason Pierceson’s “Sexual Minorities and Politics.” Criticism of the military’s list of recommended books was always trumped up. There is nothing wrong – nothing – with being well read and a member of America’s military.
– Newsom’s Folly: It’s been a year since Gov. Gavin Newsom passed into law the ill-advised SB132 that requires the state to put transgender men in prison facilities for women only. Lawsuits are flying now with a trangender group saying the governor isn’t “fully” following his own law. Meanwhile, a women’s group has filed suit saying the practicality of Newsom’s law is stuffed fuller than a Christmas turkey.
The women’s group says: “The reality that men and women are factually, materially, immutably different, in ways that disadvantage women and necessitate attention to women’s unique needs, supports protection of incarcerated women by providing women-only correctional facilities.”
It’s Californicated, start to finish. But, if Gov. Newsom becomes a presidential candidate in 2024 (as I think he will), SB132 will come back to bite him, big time. This law barely plays in California, much less Iowa.
– Teacher Pay: Over the last several editions, this newspaper has published names and salaries of new principals, assistant principals, teachers and administrative assistants in various positions in Marin public schools. I did not see one person who will be paid above what is considered “low income” in Marin. Not sayin’ anything other than it’s no wonder few in the Marin educational complex live in county.
– Water Defiance: This from the Associated Press: “California’s water use jumped dramatically in March, state officials said Tuesday, as one of the driest stretches on record prompted a wave of homeowners to start watering their lawns earlier than usual in defiance of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s pleas for conservation amid a severe drought.”
ONE MORE THING
– Lynyrd Skynyrd has a new song – “Rest Home Alabama.”
– The man who invented autocorrect has died. May he roast in piss.
– We told the restaurant manager that our salads were a bit on the dry side. It was a situation that we felt needed addressing.
— Dare of the week: Call the local women’s rights group and ask for the man in charge.
See you next week. In the meantime, avoid soreheads, laugh a little and always question authority.
(“Properly Subversive” is commentary written by Sherman R. Frederick for the Novato Advance, San Rafael News-Pointer, Mill Valley Herald, Ross Valley Reporter, Twin City Times and the Sausalito Marin Scope. Frederick is a long-time journalist and co-founder of Battle Born Media, a news organization dedicated to the preservation of community newspapers. You can reach him by email at shermfrederick@gmail.com.)
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