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Show Viewpoints The A-13 Park Record. Wed/Thurs/Fri, February 20-22, 2019 editorial Backcountry caution is vital during active avalanche cycle I perspectiVe More than ever before in our culture, only seeing is believing SUSAN KNOPF Summit Daily If I tell you there’s a new pothole around the corner, on a route you often take, am I bad person? Am I malevolent? Do you think I dug the pothole in hope of ruining your car’s alignment? Of course not. Yet we have this visceral reaction to information that does not please us, information with which we do not agree. America seems to be having a hate affair with facts. Fox News’ Pete Hegseth admits he hasn’t washed his hands in 10 years. “Germs are not a real thing,” he says. “I can’t see them, therefore they’re not real.” It gets better. Hegseth attributes his good health to his poor hygiene. He apparently has decided to ignore all the warnings from the U.S. Center for Disease Control, touting the benefits of frequent hand washing. You probably don’t want to eat at his house. His fact filter is, “Seeing is believing.” Hegseth isn’t alone. Lots of people put us at risk with their beliefs that ignore documented facts. If the danger isn’t in front of their faces, if they can’t see it, they just don’t believe it. Measles were considered eradicated in 2000 after no cases were reported for 12 months, according to the CDC. This medical success was attributed to the safety and efficacy of the childhood vaccination program. Yet in 2014 we saw a record 667 cases reported. This year we already have 101 measles cases reported in Colorado, California, Texas, Washington, Oregon, Illinois, Georgia, New Jersey and New York. This increase in infection rates, in a previously eradicated disease, is attributed to continued viral disinformation regarding the safety and efficacy of vaccines, resulting in parents refusing to vaccinate their children. One of the pernicious issues that keeps popping up is the debunked link between the vaccine and child development. The CDC has done nine studies in the past 15 years all of which concluded there is no link between vaccines and autism. For the record, one in four people infected with measles will be hospitalized. For every 1,000 children infected, one or two children will die and one or two will become deaf and/or intellectually disabled, according to the CDC. Why would anyone take such a risk with their child’s life? Many parents don’t perceive the risk. Since measles was eradicated, parents are not afraid. Some cite “natural immunity” is superior to the immunity achieved through vaccination. Often religious or philosophical reasons are cited for refusal to vaccinate. I can personally attest to the folly of “natural immunity.” My husband thought he possessed such an immuni- The Park Record Staff PUBLISHER ....................... Andy Bernhard Editor ................................... Bubba Brown Staff Writers ......................Jay Hamburger Scott Iwasaki Angelique McNaughton Ben Ramsey Carolyn Webber Alder Contributing ............................. Tom Clyde Writers Jay Meehan Teri Orr Amy Roberts Tom Kelly Joe Lair Copy Editor ............................ James Hoyt Engagement Editor..Christopher Samuels Photographer .........................Tanzi Propst Circulation Manager ............. Lacy Brundy Accounting Manager ......... Jennifer Snow ADVERTISING Advertising Director ........... Valerie Spung Advertising Sales ................... Jodi Hecker Erin Donnelly Lindsay Lane Sharon Bush Production Director ..................Ben Olson Production ........................Chelsea Babbitt ty to chicken pox. His mother and our pediatrician both warned him he had no such immunity. When our oldest child contracted chicken pox in 1991, my husband came down with a case so virulent, he almost landed in the hospital. He had hundreds of pox covering his arms and legs and even down his throat. In the early 1990s, more than 10,000 people per year were hospitalized with chicken pox, and 100 to 150 died. I was delighted when the vaccine became available in 1995 and no other person in our family ever again faced this painful, and possibly fatal, illness. Then again, I’m a pragmatist. I make decisions based on facts. I’m sort of a fact collector. Some folks collect stamps. I like to collect information. So I’m always confounded by people who make decisions some other way, without facts. Our president said, “I just don’t believe it,” commenting on the National Climate Assessment released last November and produced by 13 federal agencies and more than 300 scientists. The president often tweets that the weather on any given day is proof climate change is fake news, conflating a single day’s weather with long-term data collection and rigorous scientific analysis. Remember that the Fox News guy who only believes what he can see; and others don’t believe what they do see. Our president can’t seem to get his mind wrapped around the idea that his citizens don’t want his wall. Polls state 60 to 65 percent of Americans do not want a wall. Most importantly, existing border barriers aren’t working. Flooding in sister cities of Nogales, Arizona, and Nogales, Mexico, proved border fencing and other security deterrents exacerbated flooding devastation, causing the loss of life and costing more than $8 million. Now people in the Rio Grande Valley (some say is more of a delta than a valley) are objecting to wall construction approved by Congress in 2018. They don’t want the same flooding disaster as Nogales. Much of the proposed barrier would be erected in flood-prone areas. It’s tough when the facts don’t support the plan. It’s tougher still when people say they want the facts, but then call the information fake news. It gets worse when they demonize the messenger. Our president is famous for calling out individual journalists, or persecuting whole networks simply because he doesn’t like the coverage. The Greek essayist Plutarch recorded, before the time of Christ, general Tigranes cut off the head of a messenger bearing bad news. After that, no one would dare bring him any news but flattery. Does that sound familiar? Its one thing to read it in an article, it’s quite another when friends do it. Recently a friend advised me of dangers we should anticipate on a trip we are planning next fall. I wasn’t angry at her. Apparently as a collector of information I am alone in this appreciation, “Don’t kill the messenger.” Apparently, it is all too common and well understood — the person bearing unpleasant tidings is screwed. I like to share information. I like to gather people around me who are likewise so inclined. But I have learned of late, the hard way, one must be very careful sharing tales of pitfalls and potholes. Sometimes people become hurt or aggravated when they get information they asked for, but really didn’t want to hear. And then they just want someone to blame, so they kill the messenger. The blame is easy, but there are consequences. Resistance to facts can kill you. Two people died in the Nogales flood in 2008, my husband could have died from chicken pox and failure to heed my friend’s travel warnings could have deadly consequences. And up here in the mountains, the weather can kill you. Please don’t kill the messenger. Susan Knopf is a columnist for the Summit Daily, one of The Park Record’s sister papers, based in Frisco, Colorado. t’s been a banner ski season in Utah by most measures — particularly the kind one performs with a yardstick. But while outdoor enthusiasts have rejoiced at the plentiful snow, one number shows the danger that accompanies it: four. That’s how many people in the state have died in avalanches this winter, including a 49-year-old man killed in a slide earlier this month in eastern Summit County. The tragedies are the first avalanche deaths in Utah since January of 2016, snapping a streak of two winters without any. And they are a reminder that, though many of us live in the mountains to take advantage of the recreational opportunities the backcountry offers, it’s imperative to account for the inherent danger. The threat has been particularly apparent this season. According to the Utah Avalanche Center, more than 100 slides have been reported statewide in February alone. In addition to the four fatalities this winter, there have been numerous near misses and slides that required the rescues of buried recreaters. One such close call happened Saturday near Guardsman Pass, when a group of three skiers triggered a 200-foot slide that fully buried one of them. Fortunately, the other members of the group were equipped with avalanche gear and were able to dig the skier out within a minute. That’s a lesson that can benefit others thinking about venturing into the backcountry. Put simply, recreaters shouldn’t even consider it without both the proper equipment and the know-how to use it. Nor should they enter the backcountry without the ability to identify areas susceptible to an avalanche. For the naive, it can be easy to underestimate the danger. Even after seeing reports of fatalities, some backcountry users may rationalize that such tragedies are relatively rare and that getting caught in an avalanche won’t happen to them. But that’s a foolhardy outlook, particularly during an active avalanche cycle like this one. Fortunately, there are more resources than ever to guide backcountry users. Organizations like the Utah Avalanche Center and Wasatch Backcountry Rescue host frequent avalanche awareness classes and workshops. Can’t fit one of those events into your schedule? You can complete the free, online Know Before You Go backcountry safety program from the comfort of your own home. Once they’re ready to take on the backcountry, people should also arm themselves with information about current conditions, such as forecasts the Utah Avalanche Center and National Weather Service publish detailing the risk of slides in areas throughout the state. Risks will always be present in the backcountry. But by taking the proper precautions, recreaters can stack the odds in their favor to ensure they’ll be around to enjoy winters like this one for years to come. Information about avalanche safety and current conditions is available at the Utah Avalanche Center’s website, utahavalanchecenter.org. letters to the editor Answer the Call to Action Editor: Working for a nonprofit providing mediation and restorative justice services to residents of Summit and Wasatch Counties, I pay particular attention to proposed legislation that may affect our clients and community. This session, H.B. 120 has caught my eye. Titled “Student and School Safety Assessment,” the bill arose in the aftermath of the horrific Parkland shootings that took place last year. The laudable goal of the bill is to provide a safer school environment. The bill, as currently drafted, addresses the issue of school safety primarily from the standpoint of identifying and assessing threatening behavior. This represents only one prong of the three-pronged approach recommended in the Call for Action to Prevent Gun Violence in the United States of America. The Call to Action was developed by the Interdisciplinary Group on Preventing School and Community Violence and has been endorsed by many national organizations, including the American Psychological Association and the National PTA. The Call to Action calls for three levels of prevention: (1) approaches for assessing school climate and maintaining physically and emotionally safe conditions and positive school environments that protect all students and adults from bullying, discrimination, harassment and assault; (2) a reform of school discipline to reduce exclusionary practices and foster positive social, behavioral, emotional and academic success for students; and (3) a program to train and maintain schooland community-based threat assessment teams. With an overhaul of the juvenile justice system (H.B. 239, 2016GS) and a House Resolution encouraging public schools to use restorative justice practices (H.R. 1, 2017GS), the Utah Legislature has taken initial steps regarding the first two prongs of the Call to Action. Including restorative practices provisions within H.B. 120 to build positive school environments and reform school discipline as outlined in the first two prongs of the Call to Action appears to be a logical next step. Safe schools are not optional. While “threat assessment teams” may have become a necessary part of our vocabulary, we can’t leave behind the critical community building work within our schools and in our community. Gretchen Lee Mountain Mediation Center executive director Jaw-dropping story Editor: The piece about a driver who was ticketed for going 62 mph in a 25 mph zone was a jaw-dropper. The article said, often, the police reduce the mph on the ticket. Why? In some states, such as Arizona, going 30 mph over the speed limit is a felony. If the mph amount is routinely lessened, I now see why these black vans and town cars zoom past the entrance to my home. The driver was also cited for not having a driver’s license in his/her possession. This driver should be in jail. Beth Souther Park City The Park record Pulse Here’s a sampling of the conversation readers are having on our Facebook page. To visit the page, go to Facebook.com/parkrecord/. This was such an amazing opportunity for my 10 year old! Without this program, he would have been home and yes....possibly with ipad in hand! He can’t wait for next yr! Thank you to all who have made this possible!” Lesa Hudgens, on “Guest editorial: Park City students live Youth Sports Alliance’s motto — play, learn and dream” I have been one of those Deer Valley skiers that has used the Gondola for years. I come up from Provo. This year it has been crazy to see the lines and congestion at Deer Valley. I do think it is a lot of people using their IKON passes (me included) that are the reason for the increase. When it’s crazy busy in the cottonwoods, I always head to DV.” Ryan King, on “Tom Clyde: Parking lot culture” I’d still rather have local ‘near beer’ than full strength Natty Light, or Schlitz. Utah has some strange laws, but I’d still rather live here than in NY.” Scott Coughlin, on “Utah breweries opposed to bill to allow full-strength beer in grocery stores” Oh relax, people who drink craft beers aren’t going to be like ‘oh cool, a full strength bud heavy, that’s gonna be my go to beer now’. Let’s all just agree to join the 21st century and work out the kinks along the way.” Sam Swendler, on “Utah breweries opposed to bill to allow full-strength beer in grocery stores” I have not personally experienced the physicality of this venture, but it is ridiculous that individuals feel it okay to leave trash behind. What happened to pack out what you pack in?” Britania Corleone, on “Nonprofit leader intends to pick up mountains of trash near Everest” Such B.S. The recent legislature overrides of ballot initiatives is completely disheartening. I mean, we voted for these initiatives. They passed! We made our voices heard, and we won … and then they took it away from us. Twice.” Jeremy Christensen, on “Herbert signs bill scaling back Utah’s Medicaid expansion ballot initiative” The Park Record attained permission to publish these comments. |