Author: Alex Trent

On Wednesday, Chicago Health Officials confirmed that a ‘small number’ of tuberculosis (TB) cases have emerged in migrant shelters in the city of Chicago. These cases were reported by the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH) to be located in a “few different shelters” but would not say exactly how many cases there are, nor which shelters have seen confirmed cases. Outbreak Source: CDC/Unsplash Tuberculosis is an infectious bacteria that targets the lungs and can be spread through the air and by an infected person’s cough. “These outbreaks happen in close quarters, people who are living close to one another,”…

Increasing numbers of Americans feel that the two major political parties no longer represent them, which has given rise to an apathetic attitude towards the electoral process. Independents are now the largest voting bloc in America and are often key determiners of important elections when they break for one side or the other. Another group that political strategists are trying to figure out how to reach is apathetic voters, also known as ‘double-haters,’ which some polls estimate comprise 15% or more of the voting electorate. Double Haters Source: National Cancer Institute/Unsplash A March poll from USA Today and Suffolk University…

An animal activist group has successfully put forward a petition in the northern California county of Sonoma that aims to ban large-scale concentrated animal farming in the area. The group managed to collect over 37,000 signatures from residents in the county, which forced the county Board of Supervisors to take action. The Sonoma County Board of Supervisors is forced to either enact the ordinance, create a matching ordinance, or let it appear as an option for voters on the November ballot. Last, Wednesday the county clerk and registrar of voters approved the measure to appear on the ballot, having far…

The senior vice president of grocery stores for Amazon has confirmed that the ‘Just Walk Out’ program is being dropped from many of the company’s Amazon Fresh stores. The story was first reported by The Information on Tuesday. The program previously allowed customers in over half of Amazon Fresh stores to skip the checkout process for their groceries, in a seemingly automated process. What is ‘Just Walk Out?’ Source: JOHN K THORNE/Wikimedia The ‘Just Walk Out’ program was an initiative that relied on customers scanning QR codes and leaving the store with their purchases without going to the register. Amazon…

The Morning Consult 2024 election tracker has put Democrat Joe Biden in a two-point lead over Republican Donald Trump in the race for president for the first time in a seven-point swing from earlier results. This is a notable pickup for Biden who had been trailing Trump in this poll by a moderate margin in the past. Election analysts still think the race between the two in November is still too close to call. However, some speculate that this and other poll results might be indicative of Biden starting to gain ground on Trump, who previously enjoyed a comfortable early…

A new Gallup poll published Wednesday found that almost 30 percent of Americans say they don’t think Trump or Biden would make a good president if elected. This number had increased from the previous month when only 25 percent of Americans doubted both Trump and Biden’s ability to lead the country. This poll confirms the feelings of many Americans who feel they have to choose between two candidates they see as unpopular and unlikeable. Gallup Poll Source: René DeAnda/Unsplash The Gallup poll found that 29% of respondents said that both Trump and Biden would not perform well if elected to…

Matt Haney, an Assemblymember from San Francisco, has introduced a bill with a mission to protect workers’ off time. Assembly Bill 2571, introduced in February, would grant additional protections for employees when they are off the clock at their jobs. Workers would be protected from having to answer emails or respond to messages from their supervisors when they have “disconnected” without consequences. Haney calls the protection a “right to disconnect” and hopes it will empower workers to feel safer stepping away from work to maintain a better work-life balance. In an interview with Fox, Haney outlined his motivations for the…

President Vo Van Thuong of Vietnam has officially resigned from his post only after having served the country for a year. Reports suggest that Thuong’s resignation comes in response to being swept up in an ongoing anti-corruption campaign started by the country’s communist party. Thuong is the second president in two years to have resigned, which leaves some analysts worried about the political stability of Vietnam. The Vietnamese Communist Party Source: PA/Wikimedia Vietnam has a unitary government, meaning it is a one-party state with a ruling party controlling the government and society. The ruling party is known as the Communist…

A new bill in Iowa, which is likely to be signed into law by Governor Kim Reynolds, would target migrants living in the state illegally. It would empower state authorities to arrest and deport some of these migrants if they have been previously denied admission or removed from the United States. The potential of this law going into effect has Iowa migrant communities worried, with some asking if they should leave the state for somewhere else before enforcement begins. Iowa Bill Source: Paul Burley/Wikimedia The Iowa bill being considered is called SF 2340. On March 19, it passed the Iowa…

The Florida Supreme Court has elected not to block a ballot initiative that could legalize marijuana in the state if it gains enough votes to pass in November. The ruling that approved the language in the ballot measure went 5-2 in the conservative-leaning Florida Supreme Court. The ballot proposal received over one million signatures and will offer Florida residents a chance to decide on recreational marijuana directly, an issue that the state’s legislature has consistently rejected. Florida Attorney General Objections Source: Florida Attorney General office/Wikimedia The Florida Supreme Court had to vote on whether to reject the language in the…