b'Q2.2020 EditorFrom the Editor Part IDefining Our Role in Local Mediaand racing toward justifying our existence.BE GRATEFUL FOR THE STRUGGLE. kind of challenges as us. Those who confuse our publica-A pretty smart guy who is respected by many around thetions by name, never have that problem again once they world offered those words to a person in distress once,have seen copies of eachto be sure, they are the cute andinone,five-word,enigmaticphrase,transferredkids, and we are the smart kids, so to speak. While our wisdom from which he had once benefitted. How manymagazine is downright hideous compared to theirs, our dozens, or hundreds, or maybe millions of people havereporting is in-depth and accurateno two versions of had their lives indirectly saved, in one way or another,the same story are more illustrative of this contrast in through the transference of this wise way of thinkingproficiency than each of our reports on the North Beach[DOCTORS] ARE GOING INTO [A] BATTLE THAT about ones current state of distress? redevelopment plan, both published last fall. THEYVENEVERREALLYTRAINEDFORNO-I feel privileged to transfer it to you, todaybecauseWe honestly wish we could just declare our supportBODYS SEEN THIS, I WOULD SAY, SINCE 1917, so many of you, and us, are in distress. for the community, recognize our mutual strength andWHICH WAS THE GREATEST OF THEM ALL.The gratitude we should have now has to do withresilience, and urge you to spread hope during the cri- An astute observation from President Donald J. Trump, our own, personal survival, whether it be physical, psy- siswhich is all wonderful, dont get us wrongbut ourthough phrased in his signature, odd word choice (the chological, or economicor all of the aboveand howinsatiable intellectual curiosity leads us to a place notbest words), about the current Covid-19 (Coronavirus that survival of this difficult time will equip each of usof less hope, but of no hope lest we do something muchDisease 2019) pandemic, compared to the Spanish In-to handle the next crisis, and the ones after that. Whatdifferent than what we were doing before this all hap- fluenza of 1918-20, which resulted in the death of an es-doesnt kill me makes me stronger, as the saying goes. pened. Decades in publishing make us unable to resisttimated 50 million people worldwide including 675,000 Among our advertising clientele, from which thisthe personal and professional need to tell you what wein the United States.publicationderivesitsfunding,aredozensofgreathave learned, especially now that it really counts. Apparently, one hundred years notice was just not Coastal Bend restaurants. They are suffering in an un- Are we finally reminded that this is not as bad as itenough for humanity to take the threat of viral infection speakable way amid the Covid-19 crisis, including theircan get? It can be much worse, for the world, America,seriously, because we obviously have not.owners, all their employees and their vendors. Hospital- Texas, Nueces County, and Corpus Christi, Port A, Port- The Spanish Flu did not originate in Spainin fact, ity is an industry that gets hit hard, and very quickly,land and everywhere else around hereif we (the Royaltheir fair nation has paid a century-long price for be-every time economic, natural disaster, or public healthWe) do not change our priorities. Make no mistake, fewing the one country that did the right thing at the time. emergencies arise. in this country can hold their heads high in pride aboutThe flu was first identified in France, at a British army In Corpus Christi, they and thousands of other busi- how the Covid-19 emergency has been handled. A veryhospital camp deployed in World War I, and spread to nesses suffered untold millions of dollars in losses infewand we as publishers cannot just waste our pre- Spain, which was neutral during the war and thus had 2015-16 as a result of water boil and no-use orders forcious space, and your even-more precious time and at- not imposed censorship on the press. News of the virus the Citys drinking water system. During that period,tention, on some B.S. like our favorite fish taco. Dont getspreading throughout the country hit its peak when King none of our City leaderselected, appointed or hired byme wrongwe love fish tacos, especially those of ChefAlfonso XIII was reported to be deathly ill from the dis-City Councilseriously questioned what they were beingOrlando Quintanillabut is now, at last, a time to getease. He survived, but Spains dignity did not, as the term told about the water problems by hired experts, or tookjust a little bit serious about the world around us? Spanish Flu lives on to this day.time to independently research how a public water sys- We wrote about Mark Van Vleck and the disastrousThe second-deadliest event in human history is tem is supposed to be run. Neither did local news media. City of Corpus Christi Utilities Department because westill studied today, and especially in 2020, a full cen-Last year, our autopsy report on the series of de- love you, our neighbors. Love thy neighborduh! And totury later. The true place of origin of the Spanish Flu, bacles at the City of Corpus Christis Water Departmentlove your neighbor is to love yourself and your own fam- however,remainsamatterofscientificcontrover-[Drowned in Incompetence, Late Spring 2019] revealedily, and those whose families you support with your busi- sy. One of the two most accepted theories settles on the glaring incompetencies that led to an inevitable re- ness and your labor. Let us be reminded that we are all inHaskell County, Kansas, here in the U.S., as where the sult: Chaos at our Utilities Department that ended up en- this togetheranother duh. first documented outbreak took place, in January 1918. dangering the lives of us citizens while wreaking havocSo, when you good folks on The Island, or in Calal- It was said to have then migrated to Boston with sol-and pain on our economy. Sound familiar? len, or in Molina, or in South Park or Lamar Park, seediers headed to the war in Europe, and then to France.While this edition was in development, starting be- your fellow Corpus Christians on North Beach gettingSeveral other, more scientifically-intensive studies fore the virus crisis, a theme had emergedgovernments are made effective or ineffective, as they are only a reflec- royally screwed out of a basic, public utility that they paystate that the Spanish Flu virus, an N1H1 originating tion of We the People, and how much we care, or dontforyou should care, and so should we! in pigs like that of the 2009 pandemic, was first known care, about their effectiveness. We, as a nation, wantedIt has been more than two years since we publishedto affect humans in Northern China in November 1917. an effective U.S. Militaryand we certainly got one. Con- A Season of Loss, which was about the tragedy broughtAlmost 100,000 Chinese soldiers were sent to Europe in versely, no one really cared that much about our countrysto the people of Port Aransas by Hurricane Harvey andsupport of the British and French armies fighting World healthcare infrastructure, and our current, disastrous na- the death of our beloved friend, Tony Amos. It pains us toWar I, and the observation of mild symptoms and lower tional response to Covid-19 is what we have earned forbe once again publishing an edition centered on loss, butmortality among the Chinese led to speculation that they ourselves. The chickens have come home to roost. we hope (that term we love) that you will be motivatedhad acquired immunity to the virus that was killing Eu-We feel a polite sense of affection and camaraderieby the truth and analysis in our pages to consider, andropeans by the thousands. It also meant that they could for the friendly folks who publish The Bend magazine, amaybe reconsider, your personal, business and politicalhave been asymptomatic carriers and transmitters of the competitor whom we recognize as dealing with the sameprioritiesso we can do better, together. The Editor Spanish Flu, an airborne virus. 16 THE COASTAL BEND MAGAZINEQ2.2020 TheCoastalBend.com'