How a Rag-Tag Crew of Hippies, Housewives and Politicians Created Earth Day – The Allegheny Front

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How a Rag-Tag Crew of Hippies, Housewives and Politicians Created Earth Day – The Allegheny Front

Think Earth day was started by a group of tree-hugging hippies? That’s just part of the story. In fact, the first Earth Day was actually the brainchild of a U.S. Senator from Wisconsin. And according to environmental historian Adam Rome, author of The Genius of Earth Day, Sen. Gaylord Nelson’s story itself is pretty amazing.

Nelson had been governor of Wisconsin in the late ‘50s and early ‘60s and was already interested in environmental issues back then. By the time he was elected to the Senate, he had decided that the environment was the great challenge of the ‘60s.

He introduced legislation in the Senate dealing with issues like pesticides and water pollution, but none of it passed. Finally, in 1969, he decided he needed to try a different approach and came up with the idea for what eventually became Earth Day.

399- Masking for a Friend

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399- Masking for a Friend

4/21/2020 by Roman Mars

Web player: https://podplayer.net/?id=102816136
Episode: https://dts.podtrac.com/redirect.mp3/media.blubrry.com/99percentinvisible/dovetail.prxu.org/96/e75121d3-c346-45a6-a46a-4576806d4218/01_399_Masking_for_a_Friend_pt01.mp3

Here in the US, we’re not used to needing to cover half of our faces in public, but if you look at the other side of the world, it’s a different story. In parts of Asia, wearing a mask in response to the coronavirus pandemic was a totally easy and normal adjustment. Rebecca Kanthor is a reporter based in Shanghai who has lived in China for the past 17 years, and she tells us why the culture behind masks developed so differently there, and the doctor who started it all. Plus, we look at the manufacturers who pivoted to make products that are in short supply because of the pandemic.

Will Cuomo order vote-by-mail for June primary election? – syracuse.com

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Coronavirus in NY: Will Cuomo order vote-by-mail for June primary election? – syracuse.com

A switch to a mail-only election would require counties to print and mail millions of ballots to voters, with only two months remaining before Election Day, said Susan Lerner, executive director of Common Cause New York, one of the groups pushing back against the idea.

“Jumping to an entire vote-by-mail system in New York state is setting up our elections for failure,” Lerner said.

“We’re hopeful that in a few years we’ll be able to transition to a vote-by-mail model, but right now in the middle of a pandemic New Yorkers do not need to be experimenting with a complete overhaul of our elections against the advice of all experts,” Lerner said.

Common Cause, a disabled rights group and a Chinese-American group in New York said a 100% vote-by-mail system would take away accessible options for people with disabilities, including those who require ballots in large print or braille, or voters who need language assistance.

I like the idea of a vote by mail option but I think polling places should remain an option too fir voters. 

Coronavirus Live Updates : NPR

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26 Million Jobs Lost In 5 Weeks As Unemployment Claims Rise Another 4.4 Million : Coronavirus Live Updates : NPR

The number of people forced out of work during the coronavirus lockdown continues to soar to historic highs. Another 4.4 million people claimed unemployment benefits last week around the country, the Labor Department said.

 

That brings the total of jobless claims in just five weeks to more than 26 million people. That's more than all the jobs added created in the past 10 years since the Great Recession.

Still the pace of job losses is slowing. About 5.2 million filed during the week that ended April 11 and last week was the third consecutive week of declines.

There is nothing more permanent than a temporary solution.

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There is nothing more permanent than a temporary solution. 🩹

I saw that post on Facebook the other day and isn’t that life? Temporary measures are hard to give up, especially if they enhance power and prestige of an institution or simply work well enough and aren’t in our faces every day.