Around Alabama

Cullman’s annual Strawberry Festival features locally grown strawberries as well as arts and crafts and a baking competition.

APRIL

22-23 Gardendale Magnolia Festival, Gardendale Civic Center complex. More than 150 arts and crafts vendors, two stages with live entertainment, a pooch parade, midway-style carnival, car show, free kid zone, petting zoo, pony rides and cookie-eating contest. MagnoliaFestival.org

22-24 Orange Beach Interstate Mullet Toss and Gulf Coast’s Greatest Beach Party, Flora-Bama. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Friday through Sunday; finals each day at 4:30 p.m. $15 to toss a mullet, and all tossers receive a T-shirt. Proceeds benefit local charities. FloraBama.com

23 Florence Smoke on the Water Backyard BBQ Contest, 12 p.m. at St. Florian Park. Barbecue teams compete for cash prizes; this family-friendly event has other activities, including live entertainment. Ages 18 and older, $15; youth under 18 free with paid parent. SmokeOnTheWaterFestival.com

23-24 Guntersville 61st annual Art on the Lake, along Lake Guntersville. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. Fine artists and craftsmen from throughout the Southeast and beyond are featured. Food vendors, outdoor games and rides and a bake shop. $2 for ages 13 and older; event is rain or shine. ArtOnTheLake-Guntersville.com

23-24 Troy TroyFest Art Festival, downtown Troy. 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday. Held in honor of Troy artist Jean Lake, this weekend show draws upwards of 10,000 to downtown. Art, food, entertainment and activities for all ages. Free. TroyFestArts.com

29-May 1 Huntsville Panoply Arts Festival, Big Spring Park. This 40th celebration of art, music and more will welcome more than 100 visual artists from a variety of mediums to the Art Marketplace, plus two musical performance stages, artisan food trucks, kid-friendly interactives, community art projects and more. ArtsHuntsville.org 30 Scottsboro Salsa on the Square, downtown. 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Arts and crafts vendors, food vendors and competitions for best salsa, specialty sauce and festive booth, with business and amateur divisions. 256-912-0520 or search Scottsboro Trade Days on Facebook.

30-May 1 Enterprise Piney Woods Arts Festival, Enterprise State Community College. 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and 12 to 4 p.m. Sunday. One of the oldest juried arts and crafts shows in the area, the festival features original arts and crafts, children’s fun center, food and entertainment. Free. CoffeeCountyArtsAlliance.com

MAY

7Fairhope Barnwell Community Crawfish Derby 2022, 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. at Oak Hollow Farm, 14210 S. Greeno Road. All you can eat crawfish, live music, Kentucky Derby watch party, silent auction and more to benefit restoration of the Barnwell Community Center, a historic 1918 wooden schoolhouse. BarnwellCommunity.org

7Cullman Cullman Strawberry Festival, 10 a.m., Depot Park. Free event with live music, craft vendors, fun and games, Doggy “Pawgeant,” baking competition, food and locally grown strawberries. CullmanStrawberryFest.com.

13-14 Troy Thunder on Three Notch, Pioneer Museum of Alabama, 248 U.S. Highway 231 North. Two days of living history, including re-enactments of the last two battles of the Creek War of 1836 that were fought near Hobdy’s Bridge on the Pea River. Battles between militia and Native Americans at 2 p.m. each day. Skilled artisans and craftsmen in period clothing come to life on the grounds of the museum. 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. both days. 334-566-3597.

14 Henagar May on the Mountain Bluegrass Festival, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at Henagar City Park at the Cabin. Free; bring a lawn chair to enjoy a full day of local and professional bluegrass music and free food. 256-657-6282.

28-29 Dothan A Night at the Park, Landmark Park. This camping adventure for families features a night walk through the park, hay rides, s’mores, Nerf war, water balloon battleship and tent camping. 4 p.m. Friday through 9 a.m. Saturday. Fee is $20 per person for park members, $25 per person for nonmembers. Food included. Families are responsible for their own tents, sleeping bags and camping gear. LandmarkParkDothan.com

Call or verify events before you make plans to attend. Due to the changing nature of the COVID-19 pandemic, some events may change or be canceled after press time.

To place an event, e-mail events@alabamaliving.coop. or visit www.alabamaliving.coop. You can also mail to Events Calendar, P.O. Box 244014, Montgomery, AL 36124; Each submission must include a contact name and phone number. Deadline is two months prior to issue date. We regret that we cannot publish every event due to space limitations.

DO YOU

DO YOU | Arab EC | DO YOU KNOW ABOUT LINEWORKERS? KNOW ABOUT LINEWORKERS? Every April, we celebrate lineworkers and the hard work they do to make sure we have electricity to power our lives. How much do you know about lineworkers? Take the quiz below to find out! KNOW ABOUT LINEWORKERS? Every April, we celebrate lineworkers and the hard work they do to make sure we have electricity to power our lives. How much do you know about lineworkers? Every April, we celebrate lineworkers and the hard work they do to make sure we have electricity to power our lives. How much do you know about lineworkers? Take the quiz below to find out! (Use the answer key to check your work.) 1. Lineworkers have to wear a lot of gear to do their jobs. A lineworker’s gear (Use the answer key to check your work.) Take the quiz below to find out! (Use the answer key to check your work.) 1. Lineworkers have to wear a lot of gear to do their jobs. A lineworker’s gear can weigh up to ______. a. 15 pounds b. 50 pounds c. 80 pounds DO YOU KNOW ABOUT LINEWORKERS? DO YOU KNOW ABOUT LINEWORKERS? Every April, we celebrate lineworkers and the hard 1. 2. 2. 3. can weigh up to ______. a. 15 pounds b. 50 pounds c. 80 pounds 2. Lineworkers maintain and repair electrical lines, but they do not install them. a. True b. False (no installation) (They maintain, repair and install lines.) Lineworkers have to wear a lot of gear to do their jobs. A lineworker’s gear can weigh up to ______. a. 15 pounds b. 50 pounds c. 80 pounds Lineworkers maintain and repair electrical lines, but they do not install them. Lineworkers maintain and repair electrical lines, but they do not install them. a. True b. False There are approximately ______ lineworkers in the United States. a. 50,000 b. 90,000 c. 120,000 (no installation) (They maintain, repair and install lines.) Every April, we celebrate lineworkers and the hard work they do to make sure we have electricity to power our lives. How much do you know about lineworkers? Take the quiz below to find out! (Use the answer key to check your work.) work they do to make sure we have electricity to power our lives. How much do you know about lineworkers? Take the quiz below to find out! (Use the answer key to check your work.) 3. 4. 4. 5. 1. 2. 3. 3. There are approximately ______ lineworkers in the United States. a. 50,000 b. 90,000 c. 120,000 4. Lineworkers must wear ______ clothing to protect them from a possible electric arc while working. a. fire resistant b. extra thick c. leather or rubber a. True b. False There are approximately ______ lineworkers in the United States. a. 50,000 b. 90,000 c. 120,000 Lineworkers must wear ______ clothing to protect them from a possible (no installation) (They maintain, repair and install lines.) Lineworkers must wear ______ clothing to protect them from a possible electric arc while working. a. fire resistant b. extra thick c. leather or rubber Lineworkers must wear special conductive boots when climbing a 1. Lineworkers have to wear a lot of gear to do their jobs. A lineworker’s gear can weigh up to ______. a. 15 pounds b. 50 pounds c. 80 pounds 2. Lineworkers maintain and repair electrical lines, but they do not install them. a. True b. False (no installation) (They maintain, repair and install lines.) Lineworkers have to wear a lot of gear to do their jobs. A lineworker’s gear can weigh up to ______. a. 15 pounds b. 50 pounds c. 80 pounds Lineworkers maintain and repair electrical lines, but they do not install them. a. True b. False There are approximately ______ lineworkers in the United States. (no installation) (They maintain, repair and install lines.) 5. Lineworkers must wear special conductive boots when climbing a electric arc while working. steel structure. 3. There are approximately ______ lineworkers in the United States. a. 50,000 b. 90,000 c. 120,000 a. 50,000 b. 90,000 c. 120,000 5. 4. steel structure. a. True b. False a. fire resistant b. extra thick c. leather or rubber Lineworkers must wear special conductive boots when climbing a a. True b. False 4. Lineworkers must wear ______ clothing to protect them from a possible electric arc while working. a. fire resistant b. extra thick c. leather or rubber Lineworkers must wear ______ clothing to protect them from a possible electric arc while working. a. fire resistant b. extra thick c. leather or rubber 5. steel structure. a. True b. False 5. Lineworkers must wear special conductive boots when climbing a steel structure. Lineworkers must wear special conductive boots when climbing a steel structure. a. True b. False a. True b. False

Gravitas

Burdened by a Mississippi public school education, my vocabulary has never been particularly deep. As a high school senior, we had a six-week course study in literature named “Thirty Days to a Stronger Vocabulary.” We learned a new word every day. However, a short 50 years later I can’t remember a single one.

I tell you that to explain how I learned “gravitas.” I heard gravitas the first time, I recall, from my friend Ted Jackson, who at that time was our general counsel. A couple of us looked at each other and asked Ted what the word meant. He explained in his calm way that gravitas meant deep seriousness, dignity and a weighty consideration. As I hear more from climate change activists on the Net-Zero by 2050 proposition, I think back to Ted’s explanation. I do so because the Net-Zero campaign and most of the climate change proposals are completely devoid of any gravitas.

To start, thousands of leaders of the climate change movement gather at far-away places like Kyoto, Paris, Lima, Madrid, and this year in Sharm El-Sheikh, Egypt, as well as other exotic destinations. They attend to propose how we – those who don’t attend – should have to live. Some of those proposals are drastic; for instance, all of us immediately changing our modes of transportation from internal combustion engines to electric vehicles (that supposedly have a smaller carbon footprint and will help alleviate climate change). According to these proposals, we must also immediately retire all coal-fired electric generation plants, change how we raise food, reduce how often we travel, and radically adjust the food we eat – all to supposedly reduce our carbon footprints and control our carbon emissions. In short, we will have to change our lives in almost every way as a sacrifice to the Net-Zero gods.

The Net-Zero advocates completely ignore the huge costs of their ambitions. No cost or inconvenience is too high to meet Net-Zero by 2050. Last month I referenced a McKinsey and Company study that indicates a successful Net-Zero campaign would cost $275 trillion to implement. To put the cost into context, it is three times the entire world’s 2021 total gross domestic product of $94 trillion. Spending three years of the world’s GDP in hopes of making some difference has no gravitas.

The Net-Zero advocates also have little advice on solving Net-Zero other than using nothing but renewable energy. They have no defined plan to manage the intermittency of renewables or manage an electric grid that rotates at 60 cycles per second with solar and batteries that do not spin at all. They seem to be completely oblivious to the physics of the questions about energy production.

The declarations of the leaders also lack credibility. How many times do we need to hear things like the North Pole will be icefree by the summer of 2013, glaciers will disappear by 2016, or the world as we know it will end in 12 years if the New Green Deal is not adopted?

The Net-Zero advocates also place unserious people at the front of the arguments. For instance, Swedish teenager Greta Thunberg has become a leading spokesperson for Net-Zero. She has written a book in which she states, “Around 2030 we will be in a position to set off an irreversible chain reaction beyond human control that will lead to the end of our civilization as we know it.” I’m not sure in which high school class she learned about climate science, but I doubt she has sufficient expertise in the subject (or knowledge of the physics of obtaining Net-Zero) to write a serious book.

Finally, just last week, former Secretary of State and current U.S. Presidential Envoy for Climate John Kerry warned of “massive emission consequences from a Russian war against Ukraine which will be a distraction from work on climate change.” He also stated, “I hope President Putin will help us stay on track with respect to what we need to do for the climate. I hope Mr. Putin realizes Northern Russia is thawing and his infrastructure is at risk, and the people of Russia are at risk.” All that was directed at a dictator who is killing civilians in their homes and threatening nuclear action. Mr. Kerry is talking utter nonsense.

The entire Net-Zero movement lacks depth, seriousness, logic or gravitas. It is time the whole group either gets serious about what can practically be done and how we can live with whatever climate change occurs, or moves on to the next existential threat of our time.

I am prepared for all the comments of “What does this have to do with my electric utility?” and “Why do you pick on teenagers?” It is about your electric utility because you will pay much of the increased costs of Net-Zero in your electric bills, and I will temper my feelings of teenagers’ opinions until they have learned enough about life to tell me how I am ruining theirs.

I hope you have a good month.

Gary Smith is President and CEO of PowerSouth Energy Cooperative.

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