vox--2020-10-19--Colorado is fighting its largest wildfire in history

The Cameron Peak Fire near Rocky Mountain National Park has become the largest wildfire in Colorado history , growing to 203,000 acres this weekend .
The fire was 62 percent contained as of Monday morning .
The previous record-holder was the 137,000-acre Pine Gulch Fire near Grand Junction , Colorado .
That fire also ignited this year and was declared 100 percent contained in September .
It only held on to its record as Colorado ’ s largest wildfire for seven weeks .
Meanwhile , another new , fast-moving wildfire ignited in Boulder County on Saturday and quickly spread across @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 3,000 people to evacuate .
Known as the CalWood Fire , it ’ s now the largest wildfire on record for Boulder County .
Then on Sunday , the Lefthand Canyon Fire started just outside of Boulder .
Beyond the threat from the flames , these various wildfires have sent dangerous , smoky air into cities like Denver and Fort Collins , triggering air quality alerts off and on for months .
Together , the recent blazes in Colorado add up to an unusually long and severe wildfire season , and it ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ soon .
“ The current fire season , it ’ s definitely a crazy one , ” said Chad Hoffman , an associate professor of fire science at Colorado State University .
“ We still have dry , windy conditions pushing these fires.
” Some unique weather conditions this year set the stage for Colorado ’ s blazes , but the threat from wildfires is growing across the state due to human development and climate change .
It ’ s an increasingly familiar story .
Like the epic wildfires this year across California @ @ @ @ @ @ @ wildfires in Colorado arose amid a year of extreme heat and dryness .
Heat waves baked the state this summer and persisted into the fall .
The high temperatures increased the evaporation of moisture from vegetation , leaving plants dry and ready to burn .
There was also less rainfall .
Over the past month , precipitation was less than 10 percent of what is typical .
“ By the end of September , nearly 100 % of the state was experiencing some level of drought , up from 51 % since the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ according to the Colorado Climate Center ’ s Monthly State of the Climate report .
The state is on track to have its second-driest year on record .
That aridity has left almost every type of vegetation in the state primed to burn , as was evident in the Cameron Peak Fire .
“ It burned all the way from fir forest , ponderosa pine , mixed conifer .
It ’ s burned through some grasslands and shrublands as well , ” Hoffman said .
“ It ’ s burned through areas that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Bobcat Fire .
It ’ s burned through bark-beetle-affected areas .
So a really big mix of fuels that this fire has burned through over the last 60 days.
” It ’ s also uncommon to see fires this late in the year in Colorado .
Typically winter precipitation starts to set in and cap fire seasons in the autumn .
This fits within the trend of fire seasons in Colorado getting longer .
Wildfires are a natural part of the landscape in the state , as they are in places farther west @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with and benefit from periodic fires .
However , humans have been making fire risks worse .
That ’ s in part due to climate change , which is changing weather patterns and driving some of the aridity in Colorado ’ s forests .
It ’ s also a function of more people living in high-risk areas .
“ The growing population in Colorado means we have more people in the woods , which leads potentially to more ignitions , ” Hoffman said .
The vast majority of wildfires in the United States @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about half of fires in the state are ignited by lightning strikes .
The growing fire risk is also a consequence of more than a century of suppression of natural wildfires .
By putting out blazes , vegetation in the state has accumulated , so during periods of extreme dryness , there is much more fuel to burn than there would be had more fires been allowed to proceed .
There are now efforts to reintroduce fire to the landscape , but vast swaths of the state need fuel reduction treatments , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ prescribed burns is shrinking as the climate warms .
For now , firefighters are facing high winds as they work to contain Colorado ’ s record-breaking blazes .
And until the winds slow and the snow and rain arrive , the fires in the state are poised to continue burning — and more may yet ignite .
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Snowfall over the weekend gave firefighters in Colorado some some desperately needed relief as they worked to contain the two largest blazes in state history burning just ten miles apart. The cold snowy weather helped limit the growth of the infernos, but it also prevented fire crews from making progress in containing them.
The Cameron Peak Fire near Rocky Mountain National Park is now the largest wildfire in Colorado history, at almost 208,000 acres in size. The fire was 64 percent contained as of Monday morning.
It’s followed closely by the East Troublesome Fire to its southwest, which has now burned more than 192,000 acres and was 10 percent contained as of Monday. The blaze stunned forecasters last week when, over a period of 24 hours, it grew six times in size to more than 125,000 acres. The fire is burning at an elevation of 9,000 feet and across both sides of the continental divide. forced Rocky Mountain National Park to close. It’s now the second-largest fire in Colorado history.
The previous record-holder before Cameron Peak was the 137,000-acre Pine Gulch Fire near Grand Junction, Colorado. That fire also ignited this year and was declared 100 percent contained in September. It only held on to its record as Colorado’s largest wildfire for seven weeks. Three of the four largest wildfires in state history have ignited just since July.
Smaller blazes this year have set records too. The CalWood Fire became the largest wildfire in the history of Boulder County after igniting earlier this month. The fire burned 10,000 acres and was 76 percent contained by Monday.
Beyond the threat from the flames, these various wildfires have sent dangerous, smoky air into cities like Denver and Fort Collins, triggering air quality alerts off and on for months. The smoke from Colorado’s wildfires has even reached Europe.
Together, the recent blazes in Colorado add up to an unusually long, late, and severe wildfire season, and it’s not likely to let up anytime soon. “The current fire season, it’s definitely a crazy one,” said Chad Hoffman, an associate professor of fire science at Colorado State University. “We still have dry, windy conditions pushing these fires.”
Some unique weather conditions this year set the stage for Colorado’s blazes, but the threat from wildfires is growing across the state due to human development and climate change.
What’s fueling Colorado’s fires this year
It’s an increasingly familiar story. Like the epic wildfires this year across California, Oregon, and Washington, the wildfires in Colorado arose amid a year of extreme heat and dryness.
Heat waves baked the state this summer and persisted into the fall. The high temperatures increased the evaporation of moisture from vegetation, leaving plants dry and ready to burn. There was also less rainfall. Over the past month, precipitation was less than 10 percent of what is typical.
“By the end of September, nearly 100% of the state was experiencing some level of drought, up from 51% since the beginning of the calendar year,” according to the Colorado Climate Center’s Monthly State of the Climate report. The state is on track to have its second-driest year on record.
That aridity has left almost every type of vegetation in the state primed to burn, as was evident in the Cameron Peak Fire. “It burned all the way from fir forest, ponderosa pine, mixed conifer. It’s burned through some grasslands and shrublands as well,” Hoffman said. “It’s burned through areas that have previously burned, like during the Bobcat Fire. It’s burned through bark-beetle-affected areas. So a really big mix of fuels that this fire has burned through over the last 60 days.”
This afternoon's view of widespread wildfire activity in the Colorado Rockies.
This includes the large hot spot of the #EastTroublesomeFire. pic.twitter.com/6uUBB5A21Z — CIRA (@CIRA_CSU) October 22, 2020
It’s also uncommon to see fires this late in the year in Colorado. Typically, winter precipitation starts to set in and cap fire seasons in the autumn.
This fits within the trend of fire seasons in Colorado getting longer. Wildfires are a natural part of the landscape in the state, as they are in places farther west. Many woodlands have evolved to deal with and benefit from periodic fires.
However, humans have been making fire risks worse. That’s in part due to climate change, which is changing weather patterns and driving some of the aridity in Colorado’s forests.
“Our 2020 wildfire season is showing us that climate change is here and now in Colorado,” said Jennifer Balch, director of the Earth Lab and an associate professor of geography at the University of Colorado Boulder, in an email. “Warming is setting the stage for a lot of burning across an extended fire season.”
In particular, there has been a growth in late-season fires in Colorado. The area burned by October fires over the past decade has tripled compared to the area burned between 1980 and 2000. “We do see fall fire events in Colorado, related to fast, downslope winds. But to see multiple events start this late, in the middle of October, is very rare,” Balch said.
It’s also a function of more people living in high-risk areas. “The growing population in Colorado means we have more people in the woods, which leads potentially to more ignitions,” Hoffman said. The vast majority of wildfires in the United States have human causes, though in Colorado about half of fires in the state are ignited by lightning strikes.
The growing fire risk is also a consequence of more than a century of suppression of natural wildfires. By putting out blazes, vegetation in the state has accumulated, so during periods of extreme dryness, there is much more fuel to burn than there would be had more fires been allowed to proceed.
There are now efforts to reintroduce fire to the landscape, but vast swaths of the state need fuel reduction treatments, and the window for safely conducting measures like prescribed burns is shrinking as the climate warms.
This video gives a quick look into the types of wind conditions us and other firefighters on Cameron Peak experienced and have been experiencing over the duration of the #cameronpeakfire #cofire pic.twitter.com/8WDfE1reTc — COFirePrev&Control (@COStateFire) October 19, 2020
“We love our beautiful mountain landscapes to live and to recreate,” Balch said. “But these beautiful landscapes are also flammable, and more flammable with climate change. We need proactive solutions that manage our fuels in places where it matters most for ecosystems and people.”


vox--2020-10-19--Senate Republicans could be the real roadblock to getting a stimulus deal passed

Senate Republicans don ’ t seem eager to approve a stimulus deal , even if House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the White House reach an agreement .
This past weekend , Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said the upper chamber would “ consider ” any compromise made between Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin , though it ’ s unclear if that means he would schedule a vote on it .
( White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows has said that the Senate would vote on any deal that ’ s reached , but McConnell has not explicitly confirmed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the majority leader has been averse to voting on a more expansive package , in part due to fracturing within the Republican conference .
Repeatedly , Republican senators like Ted Cruz ( TX ) and Ben Sasse ( NE ) have said publicly they want a small stimulus that limits new debt .
So when the White House offered the latest $ 1.8 trillion deal , for example , McConnell made clear he wouldn ’ t be putting it on the floor .
The president is “ talking about a much larger @ @ @ @ @ @ @ members , ” he said during a press appearance last week in response to questions about a stimulus bill that would be in that range .
Pelosi and Mnuchin , meanwhile , are still in talks about a more expansive package , an agreement that a growing number of House Democrats would like to see reached in the near term .
“ I would like to see a deal now , ” Rep. Tom Malinowski , a Democratic lawmaker from a swing district in New Jersey , told the Washington Post last week @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to me is not the dollar amount but knowing that the central features like state and local government relief are funded for at least several months , because the need is immediate and great.
” Pelosi had previously turned down the White House ’ s $ 1.8 trillion proposal , arguing that the language it includes for coronavirus testing is inadequate and that the support it contains for child tax credits is insufficient .
She has been working to reach a deal with the Trump administration for months , and stressed on Sunday @ @ @ @ @ @ @ by Tuesday in order for something to advance ahead of Election Day .
But Republican opposition could mean this compromise ends up stuck in the Senate .
Even if Pelosi and Mnuchin get to a stimulus agreement , there ’ s a lot of uncertainty over whether Senate Republicans would be on board .
If Democrats in the upper chamber back the compromise , they ’ d still need 13 votes from Republicans to ultimately pass it , which isn ’ t guaranteed .
Currently , lawmakers are going down two different paths @ @ @ @ @ @ @ moving forward with an updated version of the HEROES Act , which called for $ 2.2 trillion in stimulus spending , and are in talks with the White House on a compromise bill .
Meanwhile , Republicans have their own , much narrower stimulus bill they plan to vote on this week .
Thus far , McConnell has not been as active a participant in negotiations as Pelosi and Mnuchin have been , a posture he ’ s taken during other stalemates like the government shutdown .
As Sen. John Cornyn ( R-TX @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this agreement as one that needs to be worked out between Democrats and the White House .
This time , however , Republican outcry over the size of a stimulus agreement and its additions to the national debt suggests that they ’ re the ones who could ultimately hold up a bill if Democrats and the administration work out their differences .
“ I can tell you this , that there are some in the Senate who would support it .
Whether there ’ s enough votes to get to the 60 vote @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Leader McConnell , ” Meadows said Monday , according to NBC News .
Many Senate Republicans have for months opposed a larger stimulus bill Senate Republicans have been split on stimulus for months , and some members have been quite vocal in their opposition to a larger bill .
Earlier this summer , GOP legislation that included roughly $ 1 trillion in stimulus spending garnered massive blowback from segments of the conference .
“ There is significant resistance to yet another trillion dollars .
The answer to these challenges will not simply be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ answer to these challenges will be getting people back to work , ” Sen. Ted Cruz ( R-TX ) said in July , according to CNN .
Since then , there have been repeated Republican pushes for a narrower bill , including a $ 500 billion option that ’ s getting a vote this week .
Areas where Republicans have differed significantly with Democrats include the scope of state and local funding , as well as the allocations for expanded unemployment .
And even as Trump has seemingly been willing to “ go @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Republicans are largely interested in something that ’ s less expansive .
“ My members think what we laid out — a half a trillion dollars , highly targeted — is the best way to go .
So that ’ s what I ’ m going to put on the floor , ” McConnell said during his press appearance .
As Senate Republicans gear up for a pair of stimulus votes this week — one on the Paycheck Protection Program to help small businesses and one on their broader $ 500 billion bill @ @ @ @ @ @ @ differences between House Democrats and the White House .
There are still a number of sticking points , which Pelosi noted in a “ Dear Colleague ” letter she sent to the Democratic caucus on Sunday .
Among them : The administration changed the language in her party ’ s proposal around funding for coronavirus testing , giving Trump more leeway in how stimulus spending would be used .
“ The White House has removed 55 percent of the Heroes Act ’ s language for testing , tracing , and treatment , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the elimination of measures to address the virus ’ s disproportionate and deadly impact on communities of color.
” Additionally , there are remaining disagreements over how much funding would be allocated to child tax credits , which Pelosi has made a key priority .
There is pressure from within the Democratic caucus to reach a deal soon , rather than waiting until after the election .
The issue is particularly pressing given the millions of people grappling with unemployment , evictions , and business closures as the economic fallout from the pandemic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ one from JPMorgan and the University of Chicago , have found that money families were able to save thanks to this spring ’ s stimulus packages is increasingly being exhausted .
“ The idea that you ’ d walk away until February ... is frankly unconscionable , ” Rep. Josh Gottheimer ( D-NJ ) , the head of the House Problem Solver ’ s Caucus , recently said in a CNBC interview .
Political experts have told Vox that Republicans may bear more of the political backlash for the hold-up in stimulus because @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the White House .
“ Voters are likelier to hold the incumbent presidential party more responsible for the state of the economy , and the country as a whole , ” Kyle Kondik , the managing editor of Sabato ’ s Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia , previously told Vox .
“ From a purely political perspective , Republicans should have more incentive to stimulate the economy than the Democrats.
” Right now , the deal between Democrats and the White House and the support it could get from Senate @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Whether the president can ultimately get his own party on board will be a key factor in advancing any potential compromise .
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Senate Republicans don’t seem eager to approve a stimulus deal, even if House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and the White House reach an agreement.
This past weekend, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said the upper chamber would “consider” any compromise made between Pelosi and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, though it’s unclear if that means he would schedule a vote on it. (White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows has said that the Senate would vote on any deal that’s reached, but McConnell has not explicitly confirmed this himself.)
In the past, the majority leader has been averse to voting on a more expansive package, in part due to fracturing within the Republican conference. Repeatedly, Republican senators like Ted Cruz (TX) and Ben Sasse (NE) have said publicly they want a small stimulus that limits new debt. So when the White House offered the latest $1.8 trillion deal, for example, McConnell made clear he wouldn’t be putting it on the floor.
The president is “talking about a much larger amount than I can sell to my members,” he said during a press appearance last week in response to questions about a stimulus bill that would be in that range.
Pelosi and Mnuchin, meanwhile, are still in talks about a more expansive package, an agreement that a growing number of House Democrats would like to see reached in the near term.
“I would like to see a deal now,” Rep. Tom Malinowski, a Democratic lawmaker from a swing district in New Jersey, told the Washington Post last week. “And what’s important to me is not the dollar amount but knowing that the central features like state and local government relief are funded for at least several months, because the need is immediate and great.”
Pelosi had previously turned down the White House’s $1.8 trillion proposal, arguing that the language it includes for coronavirus testing is inadequate and that the support it contains for child tax credits is insufficient. She has been working to reach a deal with the Trump administration for months, and stressed on Sunday that it would have to be struck by Tuesday in order for something to advance ahead of Election Day.
But Republican opposition could mean this compromise ends up stuck in the Senate. Even if Pelosi and Mnuchin get to a stimulus agreement, there’s a lot of uncertainty over whether Senate Republicans would be on board. If Democrats in the upper chamber back the compromise, they’d still need 13 votes from Republicans to ultimately pass it, which isn’t guaranteed.
Currently, lawmakers are going down two different paths on stimulus: Democrats have previously proposed moving forward with an updated version of the HEROES Act, which called for $2.2 trillion in stimulus spending, and are in talks with the White House on a compromise bill. Meanwhile, Republicans have their own, much narrower stimulus bill they plan to vote on this week.
Thus far, McConnell has not been as active a participant in negotiations as Pelosi and Mnuchin have been, a posture he’s taken during other stalemates like the government shutdown. As Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX) previously told Politico, McConnell sees this agreement as one that needs to be worked out between Democrats and the White House.
This time, however, Republican outcry over the size of a stimulus agreement and its additions to the national debt suggests that they’re the ones who could ultimately hold up a bill if Democrats and the administration work out their differences.
“I can tell you this, that there are some in the Senate who would support it. Whether there’s enough votes to get to the 60 vote threshold, that’s up to Leader McConnell,” Meadows said Monday, according to NBC News.
Many Senate Republicans have for months opposed a larger stimulus bill
Senate Republicans have been split on stimulus for months, and some members have been quite vocal in their opposition to a larger bill. Earlier this summer, GOP legislation that included roughly $1 trillion in stimulus spending garnered massive blowback from segments of the conference.
“There is significant resistance to yet another trillion dollars. The answer to these challenges will not simply be shoveling cash out of Washington, the answer to these challenges will be getting people back to work,” Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) said in July, according to CNN.
Since then, there have been repeated Republican pushes for a narrower bill, including a $500 billion option that’s getting a vote this week. Areas where Republicans have differed significantly with Democrats include the scope of state and local funding, as well as the allocations for expanded unemployment. And even as Trump has seemingly been willing to “go big,” McConnell has said that Republicans are largely interested in something that’s less expansive.
“My members think what we laid out — a half a trillion dollars, highly targeted — is the best way to go. So that’s what I’m going to put on the floor,” McConnell said during his press appearance.
There’s no deal yet
As Senate Republicans gear up for a pair of stimulus votes this week — one on the Paycheck Protection Program to help small businesses and one on their broader $500 billion bill — Pelosi and Mnuchin are working through differences between House Democrats and the White House.
There are still a number of sticking points, which Pelosi noted in a “Dear Colleague” letter she sent to the Democratic caucus on Sunday. Among them: The administration changed the language in her party’s proposal around funding for coronavirus testing, giving Trump more leeway in how stimulus spending would be used.
“The White House has removed 55 percent of the Heroes Act’s language for testing, tracing, and treatment,” Pelosi wrote. “Especially disappointing was the elimination of measures to address the virus’s disproportionate and deadly impact on communities of color.”
Additionally, there are remaining disagreements over how much funding would be allocated to child tax credits, which Pelosi has made a key priority.
There is pressure from within the Democratic caucus to reach a deal soon, rather than waiting until after the election. The issue is particularly pressing given the millions of people grappling with unemployment, evictions, and business closures as the economic fallout from the pandemic continues. And recent studies, like one from JPMorgan and the University of Chicago, have found that money families were able to save thanks to this spring’s stimulus packages is increasingly being exhausted.
“The idea that you’d walk away until February ... is frankly unconscionable,” Rep. Josh Gottheimer (D-NJ), the head of the House Problem Solver’s Caucus, recently said in a CNBC interview.
Political experts have told Vox that Republicans may bear more of the political backlash for the hold-up in stimulus because they are currently the party in power in the White House. “Voters are likelier to hold the incumbent presidential party more responsible for the state of the economy, and the country as a whole,” Kyle Kondik, the managing editor of Sabato’s Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia, previously told Vox. “From a purely political perspective, Republicans should have more incentive to stimulate the economy than the Democrats.”
Right now, the deal between Democrats and the White House and the support it could get from Senate Republicans are up in the air. Whether the president can ultimately get his own party on board will be a key factor in advancing any potential compromise.


vox--2020-10-19--How America gave up on fighting the pandemic and saving the economy

For all of the talk of how to prioritize public health versus the economy in the response to the coronavirus pandemic , the United States appears to have chosen neither .
Early on in the days of the Covid-19 outbreak , much of the conversation among leaders and the media centered on to what extent economic sacrifices should be made in an effort to combat the virus .
The government shut down broad swaths of the economy ; the logic was that the slowdown in activity would give the country time to get Covid-19 under control .
And as soon @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to open things back up .
The argument was that the economy just couldn ’ t afford such drastic measures .
Months later , the economy has improved faster than some expected , but the recovery is not happening for everyone , and it ’ s beginning to stall .
Much of the stimulus from the federal government has dried up , and it ’ s not clear what , if anything , more is to come .
Meanwhile , the virus rages on , with new cases now at levels they were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ economy is open , but consumers are still hesitant to get back to normal amid so much uncertainty and with a deadly virus still spreading .
“ You have to get a handle on the pandemic , but there continues to be this argument about how we just need to open up , ” said Trevon Logan , an economist at Ohio State University and research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research .
“ It is the case that opening up is not going to be enough , and what I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is certainly going to be a problem for us if we ’ re still having a pandemic.
” Days before the 2020 election , the United States economy is in a recovery that is uneven and uncertain .
People at the top of the economic ladder are getting back to normal much faster than those at the bottom , and certain companies and industries are faring much better than others .
Whereas many of the closures and job losses at the outset of the pandemic were temporary , they are increasingly becoming permanent @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and it ’ s failing on keeping the economy afloat in the meantime .
“ It seems like we ’ ve come up with : ‘ Let ’ s just wait and see.
’ That ’ s just a devastating choice that we ’ re making , ” said Janelle Jones , managing director of policy and research at the Groundwork Collaborative .
The foundation of a healthy economy is a healthy workforce , and right now , America doesn ’ t have either one .
The pandemic isn ’ t over @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for ordinary people is “ The rebound has been faster than initially anticipated , but that does not mean that the economy is in the clear , ” said Gregory Daco , chief US economist at Oxford Economics .
“ If anything , today ’ s economy continues to show a significant shortfall in activity relative to pre-Covid levels , and that is despite what has been a very strong fiscal impulse to stimulate demand.
” To put it more plainly , the economy isn ’ t currently as bad as some feared @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , either , and the initial rebound is slowing down fast .
As Vox ’ s Matt Yglesias laid out in September , GDP plunged in the second quarter of the year , and millions of Americans lost their jobs , either temporarily or permanently .
But just because people were out of work did not mean they were out of money , thanks to the Coronavirus Aid , Relief , and Economic Security Act , or the CARES Act , the $ 2.2 trillion stimulus President Donald Trump signed into law in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ stimulus check to most American adults and an extra $ 600 in weekly unemployment insurance benefits through the end of July , which allowed people to stay afloat and even save .
“ It seems like we ’ ve come up with : ‘ Let ’ s just wait and see.
’ That ’ s just a devastating choice that we ’ re making.
” “ A lot of the transfers that were done with the CARES Act seem to have more legs on them to the extent that they helped smooth out @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said Skanda Amarnath , director of research and analysis at the think tank Employ America .
But the economy isn ’ t zooming back .
The recovery in the labor market appears to be stalling , with an estimated 661,000 jobs added in September , far below the 1.4 million jobs added in August and 1.7 million added in July .
More and more of the job losses happening now are permanent — and coming at a time when extra government assistance has dried up .
Last week , the number of new @ @ @ @ @ @ @ It ’ s very clear that labor market stress is far from over , ” said Elise Gould , an economist at the Economic Policy Institute , a progressive think tank .
The New York Times recently published banking data from 80,000 households on unemployment showing that as soon as expanded unemployment benefits expired in July , people started to go through their savings fast .
Eight million people are estimated to have fallen into poverty since CARES Act benefits expired .
People are increasingly at risk of having their utilities shut off @ @ @ @ @ @ @ food insecurity .
How is the economy doing ?
It depends on whom you ask .
Some parts of the economy are doing much better than others , and the same goes for people .
To put it plainly , if you ’ ve got a lot of money tied up in the stock market , you ’ re doing much , much better than if you are a service worker .
Early on in the pandemic , you heard a lot of optimistic talk about a “ V-shaped recovery , ” which @ @ @ @ @ @ @ then go back to where it was , literally shaped like a V. But now , some economics and politicians are increasingly discussing the likelihood of a K-shaped recovery , which basically means one where the rich recover quicker than everyone else .
It looks like the letter K — two lines starting together and then diverging as they branch out .
The line representing high-income people goes up , and the line representing low-income people goes down .
“ Millionaires and billionaires like [ Trump ] , in the middle of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” said Vice President Joe Biden in the first presidential debate , noting how much money some billionaires have added to their wealth during the pandemic .
“ But you folks at home , you folks living in Scranton and Claymont and all the small towns and working class towns in America , how well are you doing ?
” The unemployment rate fell to 7.9 percent in September , but if you dig into the numbers , you see an uneven picture .
Women are dropping out of the workforce at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and the burden of childcare often falls on women .
For white workers , the unemployment rate is 7 percent , but for Black workers , it is 12.1 percent , and for Hispanic workers , 10.3 percent .
“ The gains that black workers have made since the Great Recession were basically wiped out in the first couple of months of Covid , ” Jones said .
If the national unemployment rate were 12 percent , as it is for Black workers , she added , “ we would not be taking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are always uneven , but this appears on track to be even more so .
It ’ s not just people who are experiencing the economy differently , it ’ s also different industries and types of businesses .
Amazon is consolidating an enormous amount of business and power right now , the mom and pop store on the corner isn ’ t doing so hot .
“ What I see is two real stories going on .
In some segments , the economy is recovering and rebounding in a very robust way @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta , in an interview on CBS ’ s Face the Nation on Sunday .
“ But in other segments , things like hotels and restaurants , small businesses in particularly minority and lower-income communities , those places are seeing much more difficult situations.
” He said that the virus has put a “ wedge ” in the economy .
Retail sales went up in September , but as mentioned , because it ’ s unclear whether more government support will happen for people , whether that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ what people are spending on is also different — they ’ re not traveling or going out as much , but they are spending at the grocery store and embarking in home improvement projects .
“ It seems like we have a stronger manufacturing recovery underway , but we don ’ t have that in the service side , ” Amarnath said .
“ We ’ re hitting some diminishing returns.
” Lasting — and often invisible — damage is being done The longer the pandemic goes on , the more permanent the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and the hole Americans are in gets bigger and harder to dig out of .
Companies that tried to hold out finally lay off workers ( Disney , Allstate , the airlines ) , small businesses that could handle a couple of months of uncertainty close their doors .
Once eviction moratoriums end , people who haven ’ t been able to make rent still face the prospect of losing their homes — not to mention debt .
Again , this all playing out in an unequal manner and will have long-lasting effects @ @ @ @ @ @ @ others .
Women who have had to leave the workforce won ’ t have an easy time getting back in .
Unemployed Black workers will lose income that it will take a long time to recover .
Gould emphasized that getting the economy back to where it was before the pandemic isn ’ t really even the right conversation , because we ’ ve already missed out on months of growth that would have happened otherwise .
“ If you had continued adding jobs like we had been going into February and March @ @ @ @ @ @ @ even more jobs to the shortfall that we ’ re experiencing now , ” she said .
Ultimately , the virus and the economy are deeply intertwined , and you just can ’ t fix the latter until you fix the former .
The federal government can try to intervene in the economy to at least patch the problem temporarily , but it ’ s not even doing that right now .
“ This crisis is far worse than the one that we faced in 2008 , ” Sen. Elizabeth Warren , who @ @ @ @ @ @ @ downturn , recently told me .
“ It started with a pandemic , and the economic fallout can ’ t be arrested until the pandemic is under control.
” “ Most of what ’ s going on , we have no idea it ’ s going on , because it ’ s going on behind closed doors ” The virus has rendered much of what ’ s happening in the economy invisible , to the point that we likely won ’ t know the damage that is done until it ’ s over @ @ @ @ @ @ @ out as much , talking to people , or frequenting the places we usually do , we ’ re not getting a full picture of what is happening .
You might not know your favorite bar or restaurant shut down until you think it would have reopened .
“ A lot of the things that are going on in the economy , in my perspective , are sort of hidden , ” Logan said .
One can observe uncertainty in the stock market day-to-day as it fluctuates , but it ’ s harder @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about their income , the social safety net , just putting food on the table .
“ Most of what ’ s going on , we have no idea it ’ s going on , because it ’ s going on behind closed doors.
” Help keep Vox free for all Millions turn to Vox each month to understand what ’ s happening in the news , from the coronavirus crisis to a racial reckoning to what is , quite possibly , the most consequential presidential election of our lifetimes .
Our mission @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is in this moment : to empower you through understanding .
But our distinctive brand of explanatory journalism takes resources .
Even when the economy and the news advertising market recovers , your support will be a critical part of sustaining our resource-intensive work .
If you have already contributed , thank you .
If you haven ’ t , please consider helping everyone make sense of an increasingly chaotic world : Contribute today from as little as $ 3 .

For all of the talk of how to prioritize public health versus the economy in the response to the coronavirus pandemic, the United States appears to have chosen neither.
Early on in the days of the Covid-19 outbreak, much of the conversation among leaders and the media centered on to what extent economic sacrifices should be made in an effort to combat the virus. The government shut down broad swaths of the economy; the logic was that the slowdown in activity would give the country time to get Covid-19 under control. And as soon as that happened, the push began to open things back up. The argument was that the economy just couldn’t afford such drastic measures.
Months later, the economy has improved faster than some expected, but the recovery is not happening for everyone, and it’s beginning to stall. Much of the stimulus from the federal government has dried up, and it’s not clear what, if anything, more is to come. Meanwhile, the virus rages on, with new cases now at levels they were back in July. More of the economy is open, but consumers are still hesitant to get back to normal amid so much uncertainty and with a deadly virus still spreading.
“You have to get a handle on the pandemic, but there continues to be this argument about how we just need to open up,” said Trevon Logan, an economist at Ohio State University and research associate at the National Bureau of Economic Research. “It is the case that opening up is not going to be enough, and what I mean by that is that opening up is certainly going to be a problem for us if we’re still having a pandemic.”
Days before the 2020 election, the United States economy is in a recovery that is uneven and uncertain. People at the top of the economic ladder are getting back to normal much faster than those at the bottom, and certain companies and industries are faring much better than others. Whereas many of the closures and job losses at the outset of the pandemic were temporary, they are increasingly becoming permanent. The country is failing on coronavirus, and it’s failing on keeping the economy afloat in the meantime.
“It seems like we’ve come up with: ‘Let’s just wait and see.’ That’s just a devastating choice that we’re making,” said Janelle Jones, managing director of policy and research at the Groundwork Collaborative.
The foundation of a healthy economy is a healthy workforce, and right now, America doesn’t have either one.
The pandemic isn’t over, but a lot of government support for ordinary people is
“The rebound has been faster than initially anticipated, but that does not mean that the economy is in the clear,” said Gregory Daco, chief US economist at Oxford Economics. “If anything, today’s economy continues to show a significant shortfall in activity relative to pre-Covid levels, and that is despite what has been a very strong fiscal impulse to stimulate demand.”
To put it more plainly, the economy isn’t currently as bad as some feared, but it’s not great, either, and the initial rebound is slowing down fast.
As Vox’s Matt Yglesias laid out in September, GDP plunged in the second quarter of the year, and millions of Americans lost their jobs, either temporarily or permanently. But just because people were out of work did not mean they were out of money, thanks to the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, or the CARES Act, the $2.2 trillion stimulus President Donald Trump signed into law in March. It included a $1,200 stimulus check to most American adults and an extra $600 in weekly unemployment insurance benefits through the end of July, which allowed people to stay afloat and even save.
“It seems like we’ve come up with: ‘Let’s just wait and see.’ That’s just a devastating choice that we’re making.”
“A lot of the transfers that were done with the CARES Act seem to have more legs on them to the extent that they helped smooth out consumption over a longer period,” said Skanda Amarnath, director of research and analysis at the think tank Employ America. But the economy isn’t zooming back.
The recovery in the labor market appears to be stalling, with an estimated 661,000 jobs added in September, far below the 1.4 million jobs added in August and 1.7 million added in July. More and more of the job losses happening now are permanent — and coming at a time when extra government assistance has dried up. Last week, the number of new jobless claims filed went up.
“It’s very clear that labor market stress is far from over,” said Elise Gould, an economist at the Economic Policy Institute, a progressive think tank.
The New York Times recently published banking data from 80,000 households on unemployment showing that as soon as expanded unemployment benefits expired in July, people started to go through their savings fast. Eight million people are estimated to have fallen into poverty since CARES Act benefits expired. People are increasingly at risk of having their utilities shut off, facing evictions and foreclosures, and food insecurity.
How is the economy doing? It depends on whom you ask.
Some parts of the economy are doing much better than others, and the same goes for people. To put it plainly, if you’ve got a lot of money tied up in the stock market, you’re doing much, much better than if you are a service worker.
Early on in the pandemic, you heard a lot of optimistic talk about a “V-shaped recovery,” which basically means the economy would dip and then go back to where it was, literally shaped like a V. But now, some economics and politicians are increasingly discussing the likelihood of a K-shaped recovery, which basically means one where the rich recover quicker than everyone else. It looks like the letter K — two lines starting together and then diverging as they branch out. The line representing high-income people goes up, and the line representing low-income people goes down.
“Millionaires and billionaires like [Trump], in the middle of the Covid crisis, have done very well,” said Vice President Joe Biden in the first presidential debate, noting how much money some billionaires have added to their wealth during the pandemic. “But you folks at home, you folks living in Scranton and Claymont and all the small towns and working class towns in America, how well are you doing?”
The unemployment rate fell to 7.9 percent in September, but if you dig into the numbers, you see an uneven picture. Women are dropping out of the workforce at a staggering rate, as school closures and the burden of childcare often falls on women. For white workers, the unemployment rate is 7 percent, but for Black workers, it is 12.1 percent, and for Hispanic workers, 10.3 percent.
“The gains that black workers have made since the Great Recession were basically wiped out in the first couple of months of Covid,” Jones said. If the national unemployment rate were 12 percent, as it is for Black workers, she added, “we would not be taking our foot off the gas.”
Recessions are always uneven, but this appears on track to be even more so.
It’s not just people who are experiencing the economy differently, it’s also different industries and types of businesses. Amazon is consolidating an enormous amount of business and power right now, the mom and pop store on the corner isn’t doing so hot.
“What I see is two real stories going on. In some segments, the economy is recovering and rebounding in a very robust way,” said Raphael Bostic, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, in an interview on CBS’s Face the Nation on Sunday. “But in other segments, things like hotels and restaurants, small businesses in particularly minority and lower-income communities, those places are seeing much more difficult situations.”
He said that the virus has put a “wedge” in the economy.
Retail sales went up in September, but as mentioned, because it’s unclear whether more government support will happen for people, whether that will continue could change fast. And what people are spending on is also different — they’re not traveling or going out as much, but they are spending at the grocery store and embarking in home improvement projects.
“It seems like we have a stronger manufacturing recovery underway, but we don’t have that in the service side,” Amarnath said. “We’re hitting some diminishing returns.”
Lasting — and often invisible — damage is being done
The longer the pandemic goes on, the more permanent the changes in the US economy become, and the hole Americans are in gets bigger and harder to dig out of. Companies that tried to hold out finally lay off workers (Disney, Allstate, the airlines), small businesses that could handle a couple of months of uncertainty close their doors. Once eviction moratoriums end, people who haven’t been able to make rent still face the prospect of losing their homes — not to mention debt.
Again, this all playing out in an unequal manner and will have long-lasting effects that privilege some groups and industries over others. Women who have had to leave the workforce won’t have an easy time getting back in. Unemployed Black workers will lose income that it will take a long time to recover.
Gould emphasized that getting the economy back to where it was before the pandemic isn’t really even the right conversation, because we’ve already missed out on months of growth that would have happened otherwise. “If you had continued adding jobs like we had been going into February and March, then we would have to add even more jobs to the shortfall that we’re experiencing now,” she said.
Ultimately, the virus and the economy are deeply intertwined, and you just can’t fix the latter until you fix the former. The federal government can try to intervene in the economy to at least patch the problem temporarily, but it’s not even doing that right now.
“This crisis is far worse than the one that we faced in 2008,” Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who was in the trenches of the last downturn, recently told me. “It started with a pandemic, and the economic fallout can’t be arrested until the pandemic is under control.”
“Most of what’s going on, we have no idea it’s going on, because it’s going on behind closed doors”
The virus has rendered much of what’s happening in the economy invisible, to the point that we likely won’t know the damage that is done until it’s over. Because we’re not going out as much, talking to people, or frequenting the places we usually do, we’re not getting a full picture of what is happening. You might not know your favorite bar or restaurant shut down until you think it would have reopened.
“A lot of the things that are going on in the economy, in my perspective, are sort of hidden,” Logan said. One can observe uncertainty in the stock market day-to-day as it fluctuates, but it’s harder to gauge the uncertainty of households worried about their income, the social safety net, just putting food on the table. “Most of what’s going on, we have no idea it’s going on, because it’s going on behind closed doors.”


vox--2020-10-19--Report: Massachusetts rarely fires state troopers, “no matter what they have done”

The Massachusetts State Police has allowed dozens of officers to remain on active duty after internal investigations found they had broken the law , a Boston Globe investigation uncovered .
The Globe ’ s Matt Rocheleau reviewed the Massachusetts State Police Department ’ s internal affairs files and discovered that the force ’ s internal investigators had found “ 29 sustained charges for assault and battery ; 19 alcohol and drug violations , including four OUIs ; 17 charges for harassment , including three for sexual harassment ; [ and ] another 17 for improperly using the state ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ troopers .
Despite those alleged criminal actions — and other alleged policy violations , like lying to internal investigators or judges and using excessive force — Rocheleau found that “ the agency rarely fires troopers almost no matter what they have done.
” And only a “ handful ” of the potentially criminal transgressions had been referred to prosecutors .
In fact , the Massachusetts attorney general ’ s spokesperson told the Globe that “ the State Police had shared none of those details with the office.
” The investigation reveals a growing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ aren ’ t facing appropriate consequences for intolerable behavior .
One officer , Trooper Paul Higgins , has committed dozens of crimes according to the Globe ’ s review of the police ’ s internal investigations .
In 2013 , he was told he could be fired for his “ penchant for hanging out with and helping criminals ” which had been “ known to State Police leaders for years.
” The conversation apparently had no effect , as Globe reporting reveals : Despite that confrontation and warning , Higgins allegedly carried on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ received a letter from the US attorney ’ s office saying Higgins was the focus of a federal criminal investigation and had admitted to Drug Enforcement Administration agents that he ran background checks on behalf of drug-dealing bookies .
In at least one case , records show , Higgins provided the background check information to let a criminal know that local police had run his license plate .
State Police placed him on paid leave .
This pattern is not unique to Boston .
The Mercury News reported that “ more than 80 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are convicted criminals , with rap sheets that include everything from animal cruelty to manslaughter.
” The Baltimore Sun reported on a case where a police officer was caught by his own body camera “ placing drugs in a vacant lot and then acting as if he ’ d just discovered them ” ; he is still on the force .
The Minnesota Star-Tribune reported that hundreds of police officers “ convicted of criminal offenses in the past two decades ... kept their state law enforcement licenses.
” Rocheleau ’ s reporting doesn @ @ @ @ @ @ @ causes of this culture of permissiveness , beyond deep flaws and ineffectiveness in the internal affairs investigative process , but Massachusetts police unions have loudly opposed proposed accountability measures .
Police unions also have a well-documented role in shielding their members from repercussions and making it very difficult to fire members .
Vox ’ s Dylan Matthews has gone over the intense appeals process by which police officers are able to fend off accountability .
That combined with rules like “ giving officers a heads-up that they will be interviewed by internal affairs @ @ @ @ @ @ @ case of potential wrongdoing ” work to make it hard for even determined police departments to levy punishments on lawbreakers .
Matthews reported on research suggesting unions are increasing violent misconduct : Police unions , “ under the duty of fair representation covered by the National Labor Relations Act and state laws , ” are legally required “ to give the best possible protections , including legal aid and support in job negotiations , to all their members , ” my colleague German Lopez has reported .
That means police officers know they @ @ @ @ @ @ @ no matter what situation they get into , which some critics say has “ helped build a culture in which police feel they can get away with nearly anything.
” In Massachusetts , officers appear to have reason to feel that way .
Help keep Vox free for all Millions turn to Vox each month to understand what ’ s happening in the news , from the coronavirus crisis to a racial reckoning to what is , quite possibly , the most consequential presidential election of our lifetimes .
Our mission has never @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this moment : to empower you through understanding .
But our distinctive brand of explanatory journalism takes resources .
Even when the economy and the news advertising market recovers , your support will be a critical part of sustaining our resource-intensive work .
If you have already contributed , thank you .
If you haven ’ t , please consider helping everyone make sense of an increasingly chaotic world : Contribute today from as little as $ 3 .

The Massachusetts State Police has allowed dozens of officers to remain on active duty after internal investigations found they had broken the law, a Boston Globe investigation uncovered.
The Globe’s Matt Rocheleau reviewed the Massachusetts State Police Department’s internal affairs files and discovered that the force’s internal investigators had found “29 sustained charges for assault and battery; 19 alcohol and drug violations, including four OUIs; 17 charges for harassment, including three for sexual harassment; [and] another 17 for improperly using the state’s criminal background check system” against active troopers.
Despite those alleged criminal actions — and other alleged policy violations, like lying to internal investigators or judges and using excessive force — Rocheleau found that “the agency rarely fires troopers almost no matter what they have done.” And only a “handful” of the potentially criminal transgressions had been referred to prosecutors. In fact, the Massachusetts attorney general’s spokesperson told the Globe that “the State Police had shared none of those details with the office.”
The investigation reveals a growing consensus across the country that police officers aren’t facing appropriate consequences for intolerable behavior.
One officer, Trooper Paul Higgins, has committed dozens of crimes according to the Globe’s review of the police’s internal investigations. In 2013, he was told he could be fired for his “penchant for hanging out with and helping criminals” which had been “known to State Police leaders for years.” The conversation apparently had no effect, as Globe reporting reveals:
Despite that confrontation and warning, Higgins allegedly carried on. Two years later, the department received a letter from the US attorney’s office saying Higgins was the focus of a federal criminal investigation and had admitted to Drug Enforcement Administration agents that he ran background checks on behalf of drug-dealing bookies. In at least one case, records show, Higgins provided the background check information to let a criminal know that local police had run his license plate. State Police placed him on paid leave.
This pattern is not unique to Boston. The Mercury News reported that “more than 80 law enforcement officers working today in California are convicted criminals, with rap sheets that include everything from animal cruelty to manslaughter.” The Baltimore Sun reported on a case where a police officer was caught by his own body camera “placing drugs in a vacant lot and then acting as if he’d just discovered them”; he is still on the force. The Minnesota Star-Tribune reported that hundreds of police officers “convicted of criminal offenses in the past two decades ... kept their state law enforcement licenses.”
How police unions shield officers from accountability
Rocheleau’s reporting doesn’t zero in on the root causes of this culture of permissiveness, beyond deep flaws and ineffectiveness in the internal affairs investigative process, but Massachusetts police unions have loudly opposed proposed accountability measures.
Police unions also have a well-documented role in shielding their members from repercussions and making it very difficult to fire members. Vox’s Dylan Matthews has gone over the intense appeals process by which police officers are able to fend off accountability. That combined with rules like “giving officers a heads-up that they will be interviewed by internal affairs detectives or other investigators ... about a case of potential wrongdoing” work to make it hard for even determined police departments to levy punishments on lawbreakers. Matthews reported on research suggesting unions are increasing violent misconduct:
University of Chicago Law School’s Dhammika Dharmapala, Richard McAdams, and John Rappaport looked at a 2003 Florida Supreme Court decision that gave collective bargaining rights to sheriffs’ deputies. They use police departments, which were unaffected, as a control group, and find that in the wake of the decision, misconduct violations rose in sheriff’s offices but not in police departments. That suggests that collective bargaining itself caused a rise in misconduct, perhaps by making sheriff’s deputies feel like they could get away with it.
Police unions, “under the duty of fair representation covered by the National Labor Relations Act and state laws,” are legally required “to give the best possible protections, including legal aid and support in job negotiations, to all their members,” my colleague German Lopez has reported. That means police officers know they have strong legal representation waiting for them no matter what situation they get into, which some critics say has “helped build a culture in which police feel they can get away with nearly anything.”
In Massachusetts, officers appear to have reason to feel that way.


vox--2020-10-19--The US is plagued by long voting lines. Here’s how other countries do it better.

As voters from Ohio to North Carolina to Georgia wait in long lines for hours to cast their early vote for president , onlookers abroad were left scratching their heads .
That ’ s because in most other advanced democracies , long lines like these just don ’ t happen .
Canadians said they spent more time standing at bus stops than they do standing in line to vote , while Australians noted lines for their voting-day “ democracy sausage ” are longer than for the ballot box .
America ’ s long lines aren ’ t necessarily a surprise @ @ @ @ @ @ @ especially among Democrats who want President Donald Trump removed from office , have swollen queues .
Enhanced safety and cleaning protocols due to the pandemic , mixed with fewer and less-experienced poll workers , have caused delays .
And voter suppression , from a dearth of official voting sites to dried-up resources in districts with large minority populations , has made it harder to cast a ballot this year .
Still , the multi-hour wait times show the US has a lot of work to do to make it easier for Americans to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ commission said no one should have to stand in line for more than half an hour , stating that “ any wait time that exceeds this half-hour standard is an indication that something is amiss and that corrective measures should be deployed.
” Some of those measures could come from abroad , experts say .
Countries like Canada and France have national voting standards that take voting-day decisions away from local partisans .
Australia allows citizens to vote at any polling station in their area , not just one designated site .
And @ @ @ @ @ @ @ votes entirely online .
Adopting some of these practices might shorten voting lines in America and make it easier for everyone to cast a ballot , said David Daley of the pro-reform advocacy group FairVote .
But the problem , he said , is that “ we have been unwilling to look around the world to see who does it more efficiently and more fairly than we do.
” Here are some ways other countries handle their national elections , and what the US could learn from them .
The suggestion I heard @ @ @ @ @ @ @ US should have one single set of rules for how to administer elections in every state and territory .
“ The US is unique in how decentralized our system is , ” Ashley Quarcoo , a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington , DC , told me .
“ We have approximately 10,500 jurisdictions administering elections .
This is not necessarily a bad thing , but it does create challenges for ensuring electoral consistency , even service delivery , and a consistent — and ideally positive — experience @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s more , local rules make it possible for the secretary of state — not the nation ’ s top diplomat , but a state ’ s lead official for voting — to stand for office while running the election .
That ’ s led to controversies in Georgia and Kansas , with allegations swirling that both secretaries abused their power while simultaneously standing for another office .
In other words , the current American system increases the chances of corruption and a poorly run election .
Having a federalized system — @ @ @ @ @ @ @ across the country — could help fix that .
The US could look just over its northern border to Canada for inspiration .
The country has a federal election system , which means that the voting process is the same from Halifax to Vancouver and difficulties are minimized ( though there are still some related to voter ID ) .
One major reason it works so well is that Elections Canada , the government agency tasked with running national elections , is a nonpartisan , independent body .
It can do its work @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The agency “ is responsible for ensuring that election officers are politically neutral and non-partisan in all aspects of their work , ” according to its website .
However , some experts are skeptical the US could have such an agency .
Staffan Darnolf , senior global adviser at the International Foundation for Electoral Systems , said central election authorities usually work well in countries that have them , but few nations have as divided a system as America ’ s .
Instead , he proposes that each state ’ s most @ @ @ @ @ @ @ professional .
“ That ’ s a reform that could have a positive impact , ” he told me .
In the US , a voter is typically required to cast their ballot at a specific location on Election Day .
That ’ s not the case in Australia .
“ You can vote at any polling place in your state or territory on election day , ” reads the Australian Electoral Commission ’ s website .
“ Polling places are usually located at local schools , churches and community halls , or @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is traveling on Election Day , that person has another option at their disposal .
“ If on election day you are outside the state or territory where you are enrolled , you will need to vote at an interstate voting centre , ” the website adds .
Put together , Australia makes it really , really easy for someone to vote by increasing the number of places they can stand in line to cast a ballot — which is a good thing since Australians are fined if they don ’ t vote @ @ @ @ @ @ @ lot of sense for the US as it would give voters the option to go elsewhere if they see a line getting too long .
It also gives voters the flexibility to travel inside the country on Election Day without having to worry about being home to vote at their designated polling place ( though they could alternately vote by mail ) .
But where Australia makes more polling sites available to voters , the US does the opposite .
Last year , southern states closed around 1,200 polling sites ; this year @ @ @ @ @ @ @ locations .
Before America can have a conversation about providing more options to voters , it needs to first create more polling stations , period .
One of the most controversial reform ideas comes from Estonia , the small Baltic nation where citizens have been able to vote for their political leaders online since 2005 .
“ I-voting is possible around the clock during the days of advance voting , from the 10th until the 4th day before the election day , ” the country ’ s electoral agency says on its website @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t allowed on Election Day .
About 64 percent of eligible voters cast their ballots online for parliamentary elections in 2011 , 2015 , and 2019 , which means the actual in-person lines to vote on Election Day are shortened .
If nearly three in five voters in America could vote for their preferred candidate from their own computers at home or work , the multi-hour waits we see now at the polls would practically vanish .
The challenge , though , is ensuring the safety and integrity of the vote .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , horrible idea in the United States , ” said Jason Healey , a cybersecurity expert at Columbia University .
“ Estonia can get away with it because they ’ re so small and use their digital IDs for almost literally everything , so voting is just one , rare use.
” Indeed , the digital ID every Estonian has allows them to travel within the European Union , serves as a health insurance card , gives them access to their bank accounts , and much more .
It ’ s a highly @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tirelessly to perfect and secure .
That ’ s a hard thing to do , but it ’ s made easier when the nation ’ s population is only 1.3 million people .
Meanwhile , America ’ s population is over 250 times as big , and it ’ s nowhere close to having such an integrated digital system to prove everyone ’ s identity across nearly every facet of someone ’ s life .
The US could invest in such a system , but it would require political will , tons of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t look like the US will fully go in that direction , though .
It ’ s already dealing with election interference from the Russias and Chinas of the world , and top political leaders including Democratic vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris still tout the benefits of paper ballots over digital ones .
But if the US could find a way to make online voting secure and reliable , it could prove the greatest game changer of all .
Will you help keep Vox free for all ?
The United States is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ most consequential presidential elections of our lifetimes .
It ’ s essential that all Americans are able to access clear , concise information on what the outcome of the election could mean for their lives , and the lives of their families and communities .
That is our mission at Vox .
But our distinctive brand of explanatory journalism takes resources .
Even when the economy and the news advertising market recovers , your support will be a critical part of sustaining our resource-intensive work .
If you have already contributed , thank @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , please consider helping everyone understand this presidential election : Contribute today from as little as $ 3 .

As voters from Ohio to North Carolina to Georgia wait in long lines for hours to cast their early vote for president, onlookers abroad were left scratching their heads. That’s because in most other advanced democracies, long lines like these just don’t happen.
Canadians said they spent more time standing at bus stops than they do standing in line to vote, while Australians noted lines for their voting-day “democracy sausage” are longer than for the ballot box.
America’s long lines aren’t necessarily a surprise. Increased enthusiasm to vote early, especially among Democrats who want President Donald Trump removed from office, have swollen queues. Enhanced safety and cleaning protocols due to the pandemic, mixed with fewer and less-experienced poll workers, have caused delays. And voter suppression, from a dearth of official voting sites to dried-up resources in districts with large minority populations, has made it harder to cast a ballot this year.
Still, the multi-hour wait times show the US has a lot of work to do to make it easier for Americans to vote. In 2014, a presidential commission said no one should have to stand in line for more than half an hour, stating that “any wait time that exceeds this half-hour standard is an indication that something is amiss and that corrective measures should be deployed.”
Some of those measures could come from abroad, experts say. Countries like Canada and France have national voting standards that take voting-day decisions away from local partisans. Australia allows citizens to vote at any polling station in their area, not just one designated site. And Estonia, believe it or not, votes entirely online.
Adopting some of these practices might shorten voting lines in America and make it easier for everyone to cast a ballot, said David Daley of the pro-reform advocacy group FairVote. But the problem, he said, is that “we have been unwilling to look around the world to see who does it more efficiently and more fairly than we do.”
Here are some ways other countries handle their national elections, and what the US could learn from them.
Have national election standards like Canada
The suggestion I heard most often from experts is that the US should have one single set of rules for how to administer elections in every state and territory.
“The US is unique in how decentralized our system is,” Ashley Quarcoo, a senior fellow at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, DC, told me. “We have approximately 10,500 jurisdictions administering elections. This is not necessarily a bad thing, but it does create challenges for ensuring electoral consistency, even service delivery, and a consistent — and ideally positive — experience for voters across the country.”
What’s more, local rules make it possible for the secretary of state — not the nation’s top diplomat, but a state’s lead official for voting — to stand for office while running the election. That’s led to controversies in Georgia and Kansas, with allegations swirling that both secretaries abused their power while simultaneously standing for another office.
In other words, the current American system increases the chances of corruption and a poorly run election. Having a federalized system — one where voting rules are the same across the country — could help fix that.
The US could look just over its northern border to Canada for inspiration. The country has a federal election system, which means that the voting process is the same from Halifax to Vancouver and difficulties are minimized (though there are still some related to voter ID).
One major reason it works so well is that Elections Canada, the government agency tasked with running national elections, is a nonpartisan, independent body. It can do its work without being tainted by partisan political concerns. The agency “is responsible for ensuring that election officers are politically neutral and non-partisan in all aspects of their work,” according to its website.
However, some experts are skeptical the US could have such an agency.
Staffan Darnolf, senior global adviser at the International Foundation for Electoral Systems, said central election authorities usually work well in countries that have them, but few nations have as divided a system as America’s. Instead, he proposes that each state’s most senior election administrator be a non-partisan election-administration professional.
“That’s a reform that could have a positive impact,” he told me.
Increase polling station options like Australia
In the US, a voter is typically required to cast their ballot at a specific location on Election Day. That’s not the case in Australia.
“You can vote at any polling place in your state or territory on election day,” reads the Australian Electoral Commission’s website. “Polling places are usually located at local schools, churches and community halls, or public buildings.”
And in case someone is traveling on Election Day, that person has another option at their disposal. “If on election day you are outside the state or territory where you are enrolled, you will need to vote at an interstate voting centre,” the website adds.
Put together, Australia makes it really, really easy for someone to vote by increasing the number of places they can stand in line to cast a ballot — which is a good thing since Australians are fined if they don’t vote.
Adopting this idea would make a lot of sense for the US as it would give voters the option to go elsewhere if they see a line getting too long. It also gives voters the flexibility to travel inside the country on Election Day without having to worry about being home to vote at their designated polling place (though they could alternately vote by mail).
But where Australia makes more polling sites available to voters, the US does the opposite. Last year, southern states closed around 1,200 polling sites; this year, Texas shuttered several official ballot drop-off locations.
Before America can have a conversation about providing more options to voters, it needs to first create more polling stations, period.
Vote online like in Estonia
One of the most controversial reform ideas comes from Estonia, the small Baltic nation where citizens have been able to vote for their political leaders online since 2005.
“I-voting is possible around the clock during the days of advance voting, from the 10th until the 4th day before the election day,” the country’s electoral agency says on its website, though it notes online voting isn’t allowed on Election Day.
About 64 percent of eligible voters cast their ballots online for parliamentary elections in 2011, 2015, and 2019, which means the actual in-person lines to vote on Election Day are shortened. If nearly three in five voters in America could vote for their preferred candidate from their own computers at home or work, the multi-hour waits we see now at the polls would practically vanish.
The challenge, though, is ensuring the safety and integrity of the vote. “Online voting is just a horrible, horrible idea in the United States,” said Jason Healey, a cybersecurity expert at Columbia University. “Estonia can get away with it because they’re so small and use their digital IDs for almost literally everything, so voting is just one, rare use.”
Indeed, the digital ID every Estonian has allows them to travel within the European Union, serves as a health insurance card, gives them access to their bank accounts, and much more. It’s a highly advanced, encrypted system the country works tirelessly to perfect and secure. That’s a hard thing to do, but it’s made easier when the nation’s population is only 1.3 million people.
Meanwhile, America’s population is over 250 times as big, and it’s nowhere close to having such an integrated digital system to prove everyone’s identity across nearly every facet of someone’s life. The US could invest in such a system, but it would require political will, tons of money, and time.
It doesn’t look like the US will fully go in that direction, though. It’s already dealing with election interference from the Russias and Chinas of the world, and top political leaders including Democratic vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris still tout the benefits of paper ballots over digital ones.
But if the US could find a way to make online voting secure and reliable, it could prove the greatest game changer of all.


vox--2020-10-19--The great hypocrisy of California using Indigenous practices to curb wildfires

It is not hyperbolic to describe the 2020 fire season as historically catastrophic .
Records for both the largest wildfire and the total number of acres burned in California have already been shattered this year , according to a Los Angeles Times analysis , and the past decade ’ s fire seasons have been demonstrably larger and more intense than the decade before it .
The pictures of smoke choking the sun from San Francisco , of fires ripping through the exurban and suburban West are not an aberration ; they ’ re the future .
The causes of today @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is no doubt that global climate change is changing the intensity , size , and duration of wildfires in California .
But the fires have ties to the historical and social injustices done to Indigenous peoples — genocide , slavery , the destroying of cultural rites — which have led to the mismanagement and overdevelopment of California lands .
Now , in such a dire fire season , the state has invested new resources into Indigenous fire management techniques , like controlled burning .
But this begs the question : How do Indigenous @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to use their cultural practices to help a state that has largely sought to erase them ?
The Indigenous scholars I talked to stressed that their communities have always burned as part of their culture — and yet many are still not in control of their own lands because of California ’ s long history of colonialism .
The way forward , many say , is not just for the state to incorporate Indigenous practices but to understand their importance in the culture and reckon with this history .
When Indigenous peoples were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ stripped of their cultural practices With wildfires out of control around the world , there has been much discussion about Indigenous fire practices in recent years .
A recent executive order signed by California governor Gavin Newsom included the use of prescribed or controlled burning — planned fires for forest restoration — as a strategy to conserve land in the fight against climate change .
Cal Fire and the Forest Service also signed a pact earlier this year to increase the use of controlled burning , according to the San Francisco Chronicle .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ California have been pushing for the state to incorporate these practices — as well as tree thinning , native seed restoration , and others — for years .
The US government ’ s historically aggressive response to extinguishing wildfires has led to overgrown forests and debris , which has made wildfires worse .
Indigenous fire practices would help both to mend and prevent such devastation .
Traditionally , the role of prescribed burning has been to balance the ecosystem .
“ We utilized the resources of our lands ... things like fire to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ down the amount of brush , so you wouldn ’ t have these massive fires that you see today , ” said Charles Sepulveda ( Tongva/Acjachemen ) , assistant professor of ethnic studies at the University of Utah .
All this changed with colonization .
The establishment of Southern California as a Spanish colony in 1769 presaged not only discrimination toward Indigenous fire practices , Sepulveda said , but genocide and slavery .
“ California Indians were enslaved under the mission system , ” he said , “ think about it in those @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the independence to produce the things that were important to your culture and your society.
” In this system , the ability of California ’ s Indigenous peoples to maintain traditional knowledge was also largely destroyed .
“ During this time , there are increased mortality rates ... so the people responsible for a lot of those things within tribal communities , tribal nations were no longer able to practice their ways of life , ” Sepulveda said .
While the Spanish mission system did not extend throughout the entirety of California , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ constant in the histories of California ’ s Indigenous peoples .
As Cutcha Risling Baldy ( Hoopa Valley/Yurok/Karuk ) , associate professor and department chair of Native American studies at Humboldt State University , explains , many Native nations were faced with complete devastation in the wake of the California Gold Rush in the mid-1800s .
In particular , two laws — the 1850 Act for the Government and Protection of Indians and the California Volunteer Act — sought to effectively legalize the bounty of Native peoples and enslave those who survived , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were enslaved during California ’ s first years as a state .
“ People are fighting for their lives during this period of time , and then they ’ re also having to worry about the laws being passed to prevent them from going off the reservation , from utilizing land in certain ways , ” said Risling Baldy .
Nearly 200 years later , these laws still matter deeply to Native communities in Northern California .
“ There ’ s actually a lot of people in California today that trace their land @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , ” said Risling Baldy .
“ They have deeds from their families that are from 1849.
” California needs to reckon with its history The extent to which California has reckoned with its history has so far largely been symbolic .
While Gov .
Gavin Newsom formally apologized in 2019 , the executive action taken so far has been to establish a state-level Truth and Healing Council between tribal , state , and local leaders .
For many Indigenous communities , the idea of truth and healing is complex .
Many Native @ @ @ @ @ @ @ homelands , leaving many seeking restitution or reparations for basic access to the land and the resources on it .
This lack of access also plays into structural issues that Indigenous peoples face across the country , including high rates of poverty , health care inequality , and intergenerational trauma .
Almost all of the Indigenous experts I talked to noted that Indigenous fire practices grow out of larger ideas about a reciprocal relationship with the environment — a relationship that is innately tied to their health and wellbeing .
In many ways @ @ @ @ @ @ @ historical memory that is the American West .
The idea that we might listen to the environs around us , and that the plants and animals might ask something of us , is conflicting at best , heretical at worst .
So if California wants to incorporate Indigenous fire practices , then that means grappling with the history of its Indigenous people .
Indigenous communities can also facilitate a conversation about how fire practices can be a part of a larger cultural shift that values Indigenous lands and peoples .
For example , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ volunteer land tax for local residents and businesses to pay as a show of thanks for being hosted on their homelands , money that goes to replenishing the land with fruit and vegetation .
Federally recognized tribes , meanwhile , can ask to have their land put into trust , which would essentially put it under tribal jurisdiction .
As for California , the most actionable step the state can take is to facilitate a return of the land .
“ If you want to support Indigenous knowledges , cultural burning , moving @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Baldy , “ you also have to support land return ; you also have to support our sovereignty over our lands.
” Rory Taylor is a Ckiri/Chahta journalist covering Indigenous politics , policy , and culture .
He currently lives on the territory of Ngāti Whātua Orākei in Tāmaki Makaurau , where he is pursuing a master ’ s degree in Indigenous studies at Te Whare Wānanga o Tāmaki Makaurau .
Help keep Vox free for all Millions turn to Vox each month to understand what ’ s happening in the news , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ reckoning to what is , quite possibly , the most consequential presidential election of our lifetimes .
Our mission has never been more vital than it is in this moment : to empower you through understanding .
But our distinctive brand of explanatory journalism takes resources .
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It is not hyperbolic to describe the 2020 fire season as historically catastrophic. Records for both the largest wildfire and the total number of acres burned in California have already been shattered this year, according to a Los Angeles Times analysis, and the past decade’s fire seasons have been demonstrably larger and more intense than the decade before it. The pictures of smoke choking the sun from San Francisco, of fires ripping through the exurban and suburban West are not an aberration; they’re the future.
The causes of today’s wildfires are complex. There is no doubt that global climate change is changing the intensity, size, and duration of wildfires in California. But the fires have ties to the historical and social injustices done to Indigenous peoples — genocide, slavery, the destroying of cultural rites — which have led to the mismanagement and overdevelopment of California lands.
Now, in such a dire fire season, the state has invested new resources into Indigenous fire management techniques, like controlled burning. But this begs the question: How do Indigenous peoples in California feel about being asked to use their cultural practices to help a state that has largely sought to erase them?
The Indigenous scholars I talked to stressed that their communities have always burned as part of their culture — and yet many are still not in control of their own lands because of California’s long history of colonialism. The way forward, many say, is not just for the state to incorporate Indigenous practices but to understand their importance in the culture and reckon with this history.
When Indigenous peoples were stripped of their land, they were stripped of their cultural practices
With wildfires out of control around the world, there has been much discussion about Indigenous fire practices in recent years. A recent executive order signed by California governor Gavin Newsom included the use of prescribed or controlled burning — planned fires for forest restoration — as a strategy to conserve land in the fight against climate change. Cal Fire and the Forest Service also signed a pact earlier this year to increase the use of controlled burning, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.
But tribes like the Karuk in Northern California have been pushing for the state to incorporate these practices — as well as tree thinning, native seed restoration, and others — for years. The US government’s historically aggressive response to extinguishing wildfires has led to overgrown forests and debris, which has made wildfires worse. Indigenous fire practices would help both to mend and prevent such devastation. Traditionally, the role of prescribed burning has been to balance the ecosystem.
“We utilized the resources of our lands...things like fire to help produce more trees, to cut down the amount of brush, so you wouldn’t have these massive fires that you see today,” said Charles Sepulveda (Tongva/Acjachemen), assistant professor of ethnic studies at the University of Utah.
All this changed with colonization. The establishment of Southern California as a Spanish colony in 1769 presaged not only discrimination toward Indigenous fire practices, Sepulveda said, but genocide and slavery. “California Indians were enslaved under the mission system,” he said, “think about it in those terms — you don’t have the independence to produce the things that were important to your culture and your society.”
In this system, the ability of California’s Indigenous peoples to maintain traditional knowledge was also largely destroyed. “During this time, there are increased mortality rates...so the people responsible for a lot of those things within tribal communities, tribal nations were no longer able to practice their ways of life,” Sepulveda said.
While the Spanish mission system did not extend throughout the entirety of California, the realities of genocide and slavery are constant in the histories of California’s Indigenous peoples. As Cutcha Risling Baldy (Hoopa Valley/Yurok/Karuk), associate professor and department chair of Native American studies at Humboldt State University, explains, many Native nations were faced with complete devastation in the wake of the California Gold Rush in the mid-1800s.
In particular, two laws — the 1850 Act for the Government and Protection of Indians and the California Volunteer Act — sought to effectively legalize the bounty of Native peoples and enslave those who survived, including children. Over 20,000 Indigenous peoples were enslaved during California’s first years as a state.
“People are fighting for their lives during this period of time, and then they’re also having to worry about the laws being passed to prevent them from going off the reservation, from utilizing land in certain ways,” said Risling Baldy.
Nearly 200 years later, these laws still matter deeply to Native communities in Northern California. “There’s actually a lot of people in California today that trace their land rights...back to the Gold Rush,” said Risling Baldy. “They have deeds from their families that are from 1849.”
California needs to reckon with its history
The extent to which California has reckoned with its history has so far largely been symbolic. While Gov. Gavin Newsom formally apologized in 2019, the executive action taken so far has been to establish a state-level Truth and Healing Council between tribal, state, and local leaders. For many Indigenous communities, the idea of truth and healing is complex. Many Native communities remain effectively disenfranchised from their own homelands, leaving many seeking restitution or reparations for basic access to the land and the resources on it. This lack of access also plays into structural issues that Indigenous peoples face across the country, including high rates of poverty, health care inequality, and intergenerational trauma.
Almost all of the Indigenous experts I talked to noted that Indigenous fire practices grow out of larger ideas about a reciprocal relationship with the environment — a relationship that is innately tied to their health and wellbeing. In many ways, this philosophy is antithetical to the historical memory that is the American West. The idea that we might listen to the environs around us, and that the plants and animals might ask something of us, is conflicting at best, heretical at worst.
So if California wants to incorporate Indigenous fire practices, then that means grappling with the history of its Indigenous people. Indigenous communities can also facilitate a conversation about how fire practices can be a part of a larger cultural shift that values Indigenous lands and peoples.
For example, unrecognized tribes in Oakland have instituted a volunteer land tax for local residents and businesses to pay as a show of thanks for being hosted on their homelands, money that goes to replenishing the land with fruit and vegetation. Federally recognized tribes, meanwhile, can ask to have their land put into trust, which would essentially put it under tribal jurisdiction. As for California, the most actionable step the state can take is to facilitate a return of the land.
“If you want to support Indigenous knowledges, cultural burning, moving towards Indigenous sciences,” said Risling Baldy, “you also have to support land return; you also have to support our sovereignty over our lands.”
Rory Taylor is a Ckiri/Chahta journalist covering Indigenous politics, policy, and culture. He currently lives on the territory of Ngāti Whātua Orākei in Tāmaki Makaurau, where he is pursuing a master’s degree in Indigenous studies at Te Whare Wānanga o Tāmaki Makaurau.