I am actually quite worried about Captain Knapp’s third point about Valley Fever. I would love to see his data on that, and would relay it to the Dept of Health Services if they don’t already have it. (For those of you who aren’t local, Valley Fever is an airborne fungus that makes people real sick. In seventh grade, it killed my best friend’s father. I came home from trip, asked my best friend how she was, and her father had died of Valley Fever within a couple days of getting it from a dusty attic. Oh.)
I also thought of a few critiques of the first story in the series, which was about the effects of pumping restrictions on the “human environment” of the west side. You guys want to see those?
On the public record 
Yes, I want to see those. I want to see anything you care to write about, because you’re just so darn good at it.
Wait, Grant, is that you? We used to know each other somewhere else on the internets? And then you went to England (I think) with a ladyfriend? (Don’t know if I have this right, but you were friends with Ethan, right?) Your IP address says you’re back in the states?
Or are you a different Grant?
It really is the silly season when they trot tout Air Force generals to pimp for Westlands. Without a Cold War, or any remotely plausible scenario in which the West Coast might need a large ground based air defense capability (Pot-crazed Canucks trying to socialize our medicine and Destroy the Family with gay marriage? Santa Ana, risen from the grave, leading the fearsome Mexican Army on a bloody rampage to reclaim their heritage?) why is Lemoore operating at all?
Valley Fever was here long before the modern environmental movement, and before any water projects were built. It persisted through the “glory days” of operating the water projects with the sole purpose of maximizing deliveries. It is a very serious health issue that has affected my family, and I resent having a bunch of extraneous political baggage attached to it.
General? The dude’s a captain.
It did cross my mind that if sustaining half of the Navy’s air strike capacity depends on a reliable source of water to irrigate surrounding farmland, perhaps Lemoore should be closed and operations moved to a different location. Maybe if the base commander took more of an ongoing interest in water he could read the State Water Project Reliability forecasts and plan for the next time this happens.
I am sorry to hear that your family has had problems with Valley Fever. It is no joke.
The captain had clear precedent to follow. China Lake station suffered dust problems because of Owens Valley groundwater pumping by LA. What did the Navy do then? It must have Jag lawyers on working on environmental issues. I am sure you’re right that going to Fox News is not among the protocols. Keeler fog was/is also deadly.
If someone wanted to play in the imbecile sandbox where these clowns come up with their Hail Mary attempts at claiming the end of the world follows any irrigation cutbacks, try this: Valley Fever is endemic to the dry regions of the Western Slope. Provisioning more water to those areas has allowed millions more people to live and work in these inhospitable regions. There has been a significant rise in the reported incidence of the disease over the past 50 years. Ergo, water projects cause Valley Fever, Q.E.D.
(Actually, improved diagnosis is a more likely cause, but we’re talkin’ news-bite here, people.)
Nope, sorry, I’m an entirely different Grant.
Mr. Kurtz comment is excellent.
Oh. Well, welcome. Glad you’re enjoying OtPR.
I owe you a post.