The Buzz 02.03.23

FREE SPEECH

The city of Salinas maintains multiple social media accounts. A series of those accounts – with an active presence on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram – have been run by the Salinas Police Department, with public safety advisories, announcements of arrests and more. But the last Twitter post was made six months ago, and recently its Instagram and Facebook pages disappeared. Salinas Public Information Officer Sophia Rome says it’s part of a city-wide overhaul, and emphasizes the removal is temporary. “We appreciate there is a lot of engagement on the Salinas Police Department pages, but we are working to improve our communications strategy,” Rome says. She adds that the temporary removal is not based on complaints, though advocates of criminal justice reform have raised issues with a flippant tone. One recent post, on Valentine’s Day, encouraged people to call in about ex-partners who might be engaged in criminal activity. “Show them you didn’t forget about them (like they forgot about you),” the post read. “They will get a few nights stay with the county’s best accommodations at [Monterey County Jail]. We will even send a vehicle to pick them up.” Rome says, “We are trying to find what the perfect tone is across all of our social media pages.”

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

“I’m in love with this brine.” - Chef Jonathan Rodriguez speaking about his weekly pig roasts, the centerpiece of Sunday afternoon gatherings at Salt Wood Kitchen in Marina (see story, post at mcweekly.com).

GOOD WEEK / GREAT WEEK

GOOD:

As the ocean continues to absorb one-quarter of the global carbon emissions annually, the ocean is changing. Specifically, it’s becoming more acidic, which negatively impacts marine life. Scientists are still trying to better understand this process, and to that end, the National Science Foundation awarded the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute a $519,101 grant to test and develop two different types of pH sensors that can be deployed for years and to depths of up to 2 kilometers. Yui Takeshita of MBARI said in a statement, “[The ocean] has buffered our planet from the worst effects of climate change, but at a heavy cost… Scientists need new tools to understand the ocean’s changing chemistry.” The project will allow MBARI and its collaborators to “share this new sensor technology with our colleagues to quickly scale our ability to observe the world ocean at this critical moment.”

GREAT:

It’s a great week for North County Fire Protection District of Monterey County and the residents they serve. The district will be fully staffed – meaning a total of 30 firefighters, three per shift, at each fire station – after a long stretch of understaffing and just two firefighters per engine. “We can respond to emergencies and handle them in a manner that is safe and efficient,” says Fire Chief Joel Mendoza. The district was considering the possibility of closing one of its three fire stations because of a lack of funds and personnel. In June of 2021, with 58.11 percent of the vote, residents passed a Prop. 218 assessment that brings additional funds to the district. Since then, they have hired 10 firefighters – most of them from the Monterey Peninsula College fire academy – to get to full staffing levels. “We were very lucky that we have the support of our residents,” Mendoza says.