Bernie Drops Out of 2020 Democratic Presidential Race

Link: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/08/us/politics/bernie-sanders-drops-out.html

Summary: Bernie Sanders, the Senator of Vermont, former congressman, and now former Democratic candidate (for the 2020 Presidential Election) has dropped out of the race after claiming that it would be "virtually impossible" to beat candidate Joe Biden. This comes after Bernie steadily began to fall behind Biden when other former candidates endorsed Biden just before Super Tuesday. He stated that the choice was one he did not take lightly, calling it a "very difficult and painful decision" in a live stream speech on April 8th. In the speech he discussed the strength of his supporters, and spoke about his hopes in helping to cultivate the momentum and "the fight for justice" his campaign was centered around moving forward. Sanders officially endorsed Biden on April 13th, in an effort to unite for the Democratic Party and defeat opposing Republican candidate Donald Trump. Former President Barack Obama endorsed Joe Biden on April 14th as well, praising Sanders and adding that they shared many of the same visions for improving the country in the same speech.

Personal Reaction: I am disappointed that Bernie dropped out of the race because I believe that he is the best candidate for this election policy-wise. Although the goal is ultimately to defeat Trump, I was sad to see the news, as what I knew would eventually happen played out. Moving forward I hope that the Democratic party can pull everyone together, moderate and progressive, to get the current president out of office so we can have one who makes sense. #biden2020iguess

Connection to History: This election is a significant part of US History just as all elections that came before it in our country. Bernie dropping out of the race is a shaping factor in the political future of the US, and will be a small part of an explanation as to who the 46th President is. Just as other Presidents influenced those that followed them, Bernie Sanders dropping out of the race has an impact on the future of our nation.

Questions:

• Do you think this is significant to the Presidential Race?
• Personal Feelings/Reactions
• Comments on what our country needs from the President amidst COVID-19

How Fauci and Birx got Trump to listen to science

Link: https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/02/politics/anthony-fauci-deborah-birx-coronavirus-trump/index.html

Summary: Dr. Birx and Fauci are key members of the White House coronavirus task force that are currently coordinating and organizing the Administration's efforts in preventing and mitigating the spread of Covid-19. In a White House briefing, Birx and Fauci used graphs and models to explain why the stay at home orders are necessary to prevent a worse case scenario of death rates. These models were primarily made to target some of Trump's economic advisers and sometimes even Trump himself, whom worries that the quarantine is hurting America's economy. Their evidence was that unemployment rates soared as high as 6.6 million recently. But nonetheless, the graphs were effective in conveying Fauci and Birx's warnings, leading Trump to extend the stay at home and other social distancing orders for one more month. Despite numerous critics and worrying economists Birx and Fauci manage to convince Trump that the danger is real and harsh measures must be taken to save lives, even at the risk of collapse of the economy. 

Reaction: Well, they finally did it. Trump actually listens to them and takes their advice, although he is still far away from spewing complete scientific nonsense to the masses, it's still a good start. We should be seeing a faster and more effective response from the federal government to the under-supply of medical equipment and space, New York is not looking great right now. I find it funny that the disease experts provide legitimate scientific evidence and reasoning to shoot down Trump's preposterous claims every single time. 

Connection to U.S History: The Public Health Service Act of 1944 established the federal government’s authority to impose quarantine for the first time. The act gave the U.S. Public Health Service responsibility to prevent the introduction, transmission, and spread of infectious diseases from foreign countries into the United States.

Questions: What actions do you think the federal government should take to support the fight against the pandemic. If Trump instead decided to open up America's economy again, hypothetically how could things play out from there? How are you spending your time at home?

Decade of Job Growth Comes to an End, Undone by a Pandemic

Link: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/03/business/economy/coronavirus-jobs-report.html

Summary:

America's longest stretch of job creation ended this March, with the first decline since 2010. After 10 years of employment growth, rates plummeted by 701,000 unemployed in only the first half of the month, jumping from 3.5% to 4.4%. This data was collected just as shelter in place orders began in some states, before it reached the entire US. The hardest hit were the accommodation and food services (meal prep, restaurants, bars, on-premise dining and take-out) and leisure and hospitality (tourism, lodging, transportation) industries. A surge of unemployment claims and benefit applications are crashing government websites and phone lines. Some experts predict up to 13% unemployment levels in April and  16.4% in May, the highest since the Great Depression. Recovery is predicted to begin in June, but returning to normal employment levels will take much longer than the fall. Those laid-off will most likely be unable to find jobs until after the pandemic ends, leaving many with no income for several months, and even then the job market will be extremely competitive. 

Reaction:

For all that we complain about having to stay home, it's a luxury that many cannot afford. Those being laid off first have lower incomes and will struggle most to find another job. It feels like we should help, but there's not much to be done. My family has tried to order from whatever local restaurants are still open, hoping they can stay that way. This new unemployment crisis has already hit so many businesses and families, it's scary to think what might happen to our own. 

Connection:

The Great Recession of 2007-2009 was the US's most severe economic recession since the 1930s Great Depression. The recession was caused by the subprime mortgage crisis and was partly solved by the Federal Reserve's actions reducing target interest rates. Unemployment peaked at 10% in 2009, much below the projection for the coming months. 

Discussion:

Have recent lay-offs affected your family or friends? Do you think unemployment could become a problem in your household? Are you concerned about summer internships/current jobs? How do you think the government will respond?

Captain of the Theodore Roosevelt chooses crew's safety over his career amidst the Coronavirus pandemic

Link : https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/03/us/politics/coronavirus-brett-crozier-theodore-roosevelt.html

Summary: Captain Brett E. Crozier sent a letter to his superiors demanding for help as the coronavirus spreads across his ship. Top navy officials said that they were protecting their historic practices of complaints and requests to go up a formal chain of command. Captain Crozier sent his concerns to 20-30 people which eventually led to a leak to news organizations. Crozier departure was viewed as an act of bravery and self-sacrifice by his crew. In addition this action also weakens the transparency between people in the organization.

Reaction: I know that the military prides itself in its discipline and integrity. So, the Navy officials definitely had the authority to fire the captain, but I think it was a decision of poor judgement. The times are different and we are going into this blind. We have to have flexibility and Crozier was doing what he thought was best for the safety of his crew. So what if the Navy gets some bad publicity, they have to realize that times are different and the safety of the people comes first.

Historical Significance: This leads back into U.S. war of independence. The colonies were a rag-tag group of people who had little to no chance of winning. Officers with prior war experience disciplined these people and with guerrilla warfare, we miraculously won.

Question: Do you believe Capt. Crozier should have been relieved of his command? Is the reason for firing him a reasonable one?

The US economy lost 701,000 jobs in March - worst report since 2009

Link: https://www.cnn.com/2020/04/03/economy/march-jobs-report-coronavirus/index.html

Summary: This past month, the US economy experienced the worst month in job losses since the Great Recession in March 2009, and the largest single-month change in unemployment since January 1975. Most of the Americans effected by this were those working in retail, restaurants, and tourism. Although many lost their jobs, 1.8 million are only temporarily laid off. Unfortunately it's only going to get worse, especially since many states only issued their shelter-in-place orders during mid- to late March. The April jobs report could include nearly 10 million Americans filing for first-time unemployment benefits. Economists at St. Louis Fed also predict that unemployment could rise to above 30%, worse than the Great Depression and 1933, when unemployment reached 24.3%. As part of the government's stimulus package through the CARES Act, many Americans are able to receive one-off stimulus checks, some up to $1,200.

Reaction: It is saddening to see how many Americans are unemployed and must continue to provide for themselves and their families during this time. Americans should not have to choose between paying rent and buying basic necessities to get through this time. Two days ago I was laid off from my job, but I am fortunate enough to live in a household that doesn't require my financial assistance.

Historical Connection: As stated in the article's headline, this is the worst month for unemployment for Americans since the Great Recession in 2009, when international trade imbalances and other factors led to the stock market plummeting, housing prices increasing, the global GDP falling 5.1%, and banks going into crisis.

Questions: 
- Do you have a job? Were you laid off during this period? If not, do you know anyone that was laid off? How has the unemployment rate affected you during this time?
- How else do you think the government will respond to this? What did you think when you heard about the CARES Act (especially how it's $2 trillion and the biggest stimulus package congress has ever passed)?

Zoom Security Flaws Leave People at Risk

link: https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2020/04/02/everybody-seems-be-using-zoom-its-security-flaws-could-leave-people-risk/

Summary: During this pandemic, many people are using Zoom, a video conferencing app, for working from home, doing schoolwork or socializing. However, their programming method allows people to record conversations without the consent of everyone involved and allows hackers to easily obtain personal information. Zoom also has a feature called "attention tracking", which alerts the host when a user has been on another tab for more than half a minute. In addition to lack of protection, Zoom has also faced problems with what's called "zoom-bombing", where zoom meetings have been taken over by attendees. There have been many incidents where class meetings were invaded by inappropriate pictures or racial slurs. Zoom's chief executive, Eric Yuan, apologized and the company has decided to focus solely on the current privacy issues. Despite this apology, Zoom's stock prices have dropped drastically and several lawsuits were filed against the company.

Reaction: When I first heard about this incident, I thought it was crazy that this company was prioritizing fast installation over user privacy. I am also worried about the growing popularity of this app and how many people do not know that their information could be exposed. This also reminded me of a similar incident regarding Facebook's privacy policy from a few years ago. In both cases, the company was under investigation for not protecting personal information of their users.

Historical Connection: The use of Zoom is similar to the boom in popularity of Graham Bell's telephone during the Spanish flu pandemic in 1918. The telephone and Zoom gained popularity in a time of quarantine and were supposed to help life go on as normal as possible, but both were not ready to serve such a high volume of people at the time.

Question: Do you think the "attention tracking" feature of the app is an effective way to keep students engaged or an invasion of privacy? What do you think the app should do to prevent inappropriate comments or pictures from appearing in meetings?

Amazon Fires New York Worker Who Led Strike Over Coronavirus Concerns

Link: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/mar/31/amazon-strike-worker-fired-organizing-walkout-chris-smallls



Summary: On Monday, Chris Smalls, an assistant manager for Amazon was fired for organizing a strike that had dozens of workers pushing for Amazon to shut down a facility on Staten Island for cleaning after multiple cases of the coronavirus were reported there. The workers also pushed for protective gear and hazard pay due to the conditions that they had to work under. Amazon fired Smalls for not obeying quarantine, however, Smalls says that multiple employees did not obey the quarantine and he was the only one fired. Amazon has also underreported the numbers of the strike as well as the number of employees infected.

Reaction: I find it difficult to lay the blame in this scenario. Both parties deserve some blame: Smalls ignored the quarantine rule and therefore may have put many lives at risk, but Amazon also downplayed the whole situation and targeted Smalls for starting a strike. They claim to care about the health of their workers but also won't do anything to make the situation better.

Connection to U.S. History: This connects to the labor strikes such as the Homestead Strike of 1892. Workers wanted better working conditions and protested against large businesses. Many times, these strikes were shut down and the workers fired, parallel to Smalls's situation in New York.

Questions: Who do you think is in the wrong in this situation? Did Amazon handle this situation well? How do you think they should've handled it?