navan
/
Daily-Dose
mirror of https://github.com/navanchauhan/Daily-Dose.git
1
0
Fork 0
Code Issues Projects Releases Wiki Activity
Daily-Dose/archive-daily-dose/20 October, 2022.html

548 lines
73 KiB
HTML
Raw Normal View History

Added daily report
2022-10-20 14:18:20 +01:00
<!DOCTYPE html>
<html lang="" xml:lang="" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head>
<meta charset="utf-8"/>
<meta content="pandoc" name="generator"/>
<meta content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0, user-scalable=yes" name="viewport"/>
<title>20 October, 2022</title>
<style type="text/css">
code{white-space: pre-wrap;}
span.smallcaps{font-variant: small-caps;}
span.underline{text-decoration: underline;}
div.column{display: inline-block; vertical-align: top; width: 50%;}
</style>
<title>Daily-Dose</title><meta content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1.0" name="viewport"/><link href="styles/simple.css" rel="stylesheet"/><link href="../styles/simple.css" rel="stylesheet"/><style>*{overflow-x:hidden;}</style><link href="https://unpkg.com/aos@2.3.1/dist/aos.css" rel="stylesheet"/><script src="https://unpkg.com/aos@2.3.1/dist/aos.js"></script></head>
<body>
<h1 data-aos="fade-down" id="daily-dose">Daily-Dose</h1>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" data-aos-anchor-placement="top-bottom" id="contents">Contents</h1>
<ul>
<li><a href="#from-new-yorker">From New Yorker</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-vox">From Vox</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-the-hindu-sports">From The Hindu: Sports</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-the-hindu-national-news">From The Hindu: National News</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-bbc-europe">From BBC: Europe</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-ars-technica">From Ars Technica</a></li>
<li><a href="#from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</a></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-new-yorker">From New Yorker</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Conservative Stalwart Challenging the Far-Right Legal Theory That Could Subvert American Democracy</strong> - J. Michael Luttig is opposing Republican groups in one of the most momentous cases that the Supreme Court is considering this term. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/news-desk/the-conservative-stalwart-challenging-the-far-right-legal-theory-that-could-subvert-american-democracy">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Supreme Court’s Self-Conscious Take on Andy Warhol</strong> - In a copyright case, the Justices revealed their own anxieties about interpreting precedents. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/the-supreme-courts-self-conscious-take-on-andy-warhol">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Can Organized Labor Win Back Wisconsin?</strong> - The Senate race between Ron Johnson and Mandela Barnes is a battle between two visions of how jobs are made and kept. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/campaign-chronicles/can-organized-labor-win-back-wisconsin">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>The Political Gospel of Raphael Warnock</strong> - With his opponent, Herschel Walker, weathering a series of scandals, can the Democratic senator from Georgia find a way to retain his seat? - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/the-political-scene/the-political-gospel-of-raphael-warnock">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Kanye West’s Parler Games</strong> - A stream of offensive statements from Ye and the announcement that he will buy a fringe social network have reignited debates about free speech. But maybe that’s not the best place to start. - <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/news/daily-comment/kanye-wests-parler-games">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-vox">From Vox</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>Instagram is politely reminding you to be nicer — and it actually seems to work</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="The instagram logo behind the silhouette of a person looking at their phone." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/iApzFtEKGCo9rlv7BiB5LJIy8RE=/278x0:4723x3334/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/71520106/GettyImages_1239414252.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The social media app is expanding “nudges” designed to protect creators from harassment and reduce dogpiling in comments.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ZGP5bb">
It’s no secret that Instagram has major problems with <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2018/10/instagram-has-massive-harassment-problem/572890/">harassment</a> and <a href="https://time.com/5619999/instagram-mosseri-bullying-artificial-intelligence/">bullying</a> on its platform. One recent example: a report that Instagram <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/04/06/instagram-women-harassment/">failed to act on 90 percent of over 8,700 abusive messages</a> received by several high-profile women, including actress Amber Heard.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7djtg4">
To try to make its app a more hospitable place, Instagram is rolling out features that will start reminding people to be respectful in two different scenarios: Now, anytime you send a message to a creator for the first time (Instagram defines a creator as someone with more than 10,000 followers or users who set up “creator” accounts) or when you reply to an offensive comment thread, Instagram will show a message on the bottom of your screen asking you to be respectful.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6s724p">
These gentle reminders are part of a broader strategy called “nudging,” which aims to positively impact people’s online behavior by encouraging — rather than forcing — them to change their actions. It’s an idea rooted in <a href="https://www.imperial.ac.uk/nudgeomics/about/what-is-nudge-theory/">behavioral science theory</a>, and one that Instagram and other social media companies have been adopting in recent years.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="t5IwWS">
While <a href="https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2019/7/9/20687697/instagram-anti-bullying-restrict-shadow-ban-comment-filter">nudging alone won’t solve Instagram’s</a> issues with harassment and bullying, Instagram’s research has shown that this kind of subtle intervention can curb some users’ cruelest instincts on social media. Last year, Instagram’s parent company, Meta, said that after it started warning users before they posted a potentially offensive comment, about 50 percent of people edited or deleted <a href="https://about.fb.com/news/2021/11/how-meta-addresses-bullying-harassment/">their offensive comment</a>. Instagram told Recode that similar warnings have proven effective in private messaging, too. For example, in an internal study of 70,000 users whose results were shared for the first time with Recode, 30 percent of users sent fewer messages to creators with large followings after seeing the kindness reminder.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/rcrzUM_fU9agGD0tauoCEKWtoBY=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24124941/DM_Nudge___Frames__1_.png"/> <cite>Meta</cite>
<figcaption>
Screenshot showing Instagram’s new “kindness reminder” nudge asking people to be respectful when they message creators — who face disproportionate harassment on social media — for the first time. The kindness reminder is shown at the bottom of the screen.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="XBshna">
Nudging has shown enough promise that other social media apps with their own bullying and harassment issues — like <a href="https://in.mashable.com/tech/22063/twitter-will-now-nudge-you-if-it-thinks-youre-about-to-tweet-something-toxic">Twitter</a>, <a href="https://support.google.com/youtube/thread/86685658/help-us-keep-comments-respectful-%E2%80%93-new-community-guidelines-comment-reminders?hl=en">YouTube</a>, and <a href="https://techcrunch.com/2021/03/10/tiktok-rolls-out-new-commenting-features-aimed-at-preventing-bullying/">TikTok</a> — have also been using the tactic to encourage more positive social interactions.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="t33Xi6">
“The reason why we are so dedicated about this investment is because we see through data and we see through user feedback that those interventions actually work,” said Francesco Fogu, a product designer on Instagram’s well-being team, which is focused on <a href="https://qz.com/quartzy/1238074/instagrams-new-wellbeing-team-will-address-its-effect-on-mental-health/">ensuring that people’s time spent on the app is supportive and meaningful</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="OdPKH7">
Instagram first rolled out nudges attempting to influence people’s <a href="https://about.instagram.com/blog/announcements/instagrams-commitment-to-lead-fight-against-online-bullying">commenting behavior in 2019.</a> The reminders asked users for the first time to reconsider posting comments that fall into a gray area — ones that don’t quite violate Instagram’s policies around harmful speech overtly enough to be automatically removed, but that still come close to that line. (Instagram uses machine learning models to flag potentially offensive content.)
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Oruqjr">
The initial offensive comment warnings were subtle in wording and design, asking users, “Are you sure you want to post this?” Over time, Fogu said, Instagram made the nudges more overt, requiring people to click a button to override the warning and proceed with their potentially offensive comments, and warning more clearly when comments could violate Instagram’s community guidelines. Once the warning became more direct, Instagram said it resulted in 50 percent of people editing or deleting their comments.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="krExN8">
The effects of nudging can be long-lasting too, Instagram says. The company told Recode it conducted research on what it calls “repeat hurtful commenters” — people who leave multiple offensive comments within a window of time — and found that nudging had a positive long-term effect in reducing the number and proportion of hurtful comments to regular comments that these people made over time.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="AVGb4D">
Starting Thursday, Instagram’s new nudging feature will apply this warning not just to people who post an offensive comment, but also to users who are thinking of replying to one. The idea is to make people reconsider if they want to “pile onto a thread that’s spinning out of control,” said Instagram’s global head of product policy, Liz Arcamona. This applies even if their individual reply doesn’t contain problematic language — which makes sense, considering that a lot of pile-on replies to mean-spirited comment threads are simple thumbs-up or tears-of-joy emojis, or “haha.” For now, the feature will roll out over the next few weeks to Instagram users whose language preferences are set to English, Portuguese, Spanish, French, Chinese, or Arabic.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="PmVbop">
One of the overarching theories behind Instagram’s nudging features is the idea of an “online disinhibition effect,” which argues that people have less social restraint interacting with people on the internet than they do in real life — and that can make it easier for people to express unfiltered negative feelings.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="3WYxWO">
The goal of many of Instagram’s nudging features is to contain that online disinhibition, and remind people, in non-judgmental language, that their words have a real impact on others.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="HM5b66">
“When you’re in an offline interaction, you see people’s responses, you kind of read the room. You feel their emotions. I think you lose a lot of that oftentimes in an online context,” said Instagram’s Arcamona. “And so we’re trying to bring that offline experience into the online experience so that people take a beat and say, ‘wait a minute, there is a human on the other side of this interaction and I should think about that.’”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="4TWJKZ">
That’s another reason why Instagram is updating its nudges to focus on creators: People can forget there are real human emotions at stake when messaging someone they don’t personally know.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="1gz5zm">
Some <a href="https://dl.acm.org/doi/pdf/10.1145/3491102.3501879">95 percent of social media creators</a> surveyed in a recent study by the Association for Computing Machinery received hate or harassment​​ during their careers. The problem can be particularly acute for creators <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2022/09/18/you-tube-mysogyny-women-hate/">who are women</a> or <a href="https://www.allure.com/story/black-twitch-beauty-creators-hate-raids">people of color</a>. Public figures on social media, from <a href="https://www.complex.com/pop-culture/rachel-lindsay-disabled-her-instagram-account-following-harassment-from-bachelor-fans"><em>Bachelorette</em> stars and contestants</a> to <a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/2021/7/14/22577682/marcus-rashford-sancho-bukayo-saka-england-facebook-instagram-social-media-racism-england-twitter">international soccer players</a>, have made headlines for being targeted by racist and sexist comments on Instagram, in many cases in the form of unwanted comments and DMs. Instagram said it’s limiting its kindness reminders toward people messaging creator accounts for now, but could expand those kindness reminders to more users in the future as well.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Iq2vuH">
Aside from creators, another group of people that are particularly vulnerable to negative interactions on social media is, of course, teens. Facebook whistleblower <a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/2021/10/3/22707940/frances-haugen-facebook-whistleblower-60-minutes-teen-girls-instagram">Frances Haugen revealed internal documents</a> in October 2021 showing how Instagram’s own research indicated a significant percentage of teenagers felt worse about their body image and mental health after using the app. The company then faced intense scrutiny over whether it was doing enough to protect younger users from seeing unhealthy content. A few months after Haugen’s leaks in December 2021, Instagram announced it would start <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2022/6/14/23167233/instagram-nudge-teens-harmful-content">nudging teens away from content</a> they were continuously scrolling through for too long, such as body-image-related posts. It rolled that feature out this June. Instagram <a href="https://www.theverge.com/2022/6/14/23167233/instagram-nudge-teens-harmful-content">said</a> that, in a one-week internal study, it found that one in five teens switched topics after seeing the nudge.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/BWzPAYTB2tpHZ7rx63pqcgCgZxM=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24124940/Comment_Nudge___Frames__1_.png"/> <cite>Meta</cite>
<figcaption>
Screenshot showing Instagram’s new comment warning labels, on the bottom of the right screen, that show up when people try reply to an offensive comment thread.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="xMFsgz">
While nudging seems to encourage healthier behavior for a good chunk of social media users, not everyone wants Instagram reminding them to be nice or to quit scrolling. <a href="https://www.vox.com/recode/2020/8/19/21373960/social-media-companies-censor-political-bias-trump-pew-study">Many users feel censored by major social media platforms</a>, which might make some resistant to these features. And some <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/352466233_Unhooked_by_Design_Scrolling_Mindfully_on_Social_Media_by_Automating_Digital_Nudges">studies have shown</a> that too much nudging to quit staring at your screen can turn users off an app or cause them to disregard the message altogether.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="r9TS3Y">
But Instagram said that users can still post something if they disagree with a nudge.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="UaipAD">
“What I consider offensive, you might be considering a joke. So it’s really important for us to not make a call for you,” said Fogu. “At the end of the day, you’re in the driver’s seat.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="UV1vZt">
Several outside social media experts Recode spoke with saw Instagram’s new features as a step in the right direction, although they pointed out some areas for further improvement.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="JfixUz">
“This kind of thinking gets me really excited,” said Evelyn Douek, a Stanford law professor who researches social media content moderation. For too long, the only way social media apps dealt with offensive content was to take it down after it had already been posted, in a whack-a-mole approach that didn’t leave room for nuance. But over the past few years, Douek said “platforms are starting to get way more creative about the ways to create a healthier speech environment.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="t1R7rf">
In order for the public to truly assess how well nudging is working, Douek said social media apps like Instagram <a href="https://www.vox.com/22622070/facebook-data-covid-19-vaccine-misinformation-researchers-access-nyu-academics">should publish more research</a>, or even better, allow independent researchers to verify its effectiveness. It would also help for Instagram to share instances of interventions that Instagram experimented with but weren’t as effective, “so it’s not always positive or glowing reviews of their own work,” said Douek.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="v2eVKS">
Another data point that could help put these new features in perspective: how many people are experiencing unwanted social interactions to begin with. Instagram declined to tell Recode what percentage of creators, for example, receive unwanted DMs overall. So while we may know how much nudging can reduce unwanted DMs to creators, we don’t have a full picture of the scale of the underlying problem.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="N3FUI9">
Given the sheer enormity of Instagram’s estimated over 1.4 billion user base, it’s inevitable that nudges, no matter how effective, will not come close to stopping people from experiencing harassment or bullying on the app. There’s a debate about to what degree social media’s underlying design, when maximized for engagement, is negatively incentivizing people to participate in inflammatory conversations in the first place. For now, subtle reminders may be some of the most useful tools to fix the seemingly intractable problem of how to stop people from behaving badly online.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="PpiFRA">
“I don’t think there’s a single solution, but I think nudging looks really promising,” said Arcamona. “We’re optimistic that it can be a really important piece of the puzzle.”
</p></li>
<li><strong>How airlines squeeze you for every penny</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="A photo illustration showing airplanes with a dollar sign on them." src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/XNhPxkGQB1iVGI9wKH5B0-LqHY4=/333x0:3000x2000/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/71519932/airline_bs.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
Airline fees are the worst and are not going away. | Amanda Northrop/Vox
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Your cheap flight won’t be so cheap after all the fees.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="JggCdh">
Frontier Airlines <a href="https://ir.flyfrontier.com/news-releases/news-release-details/frontier-airlines-reports-profitable-results-second-quarter-2022#:~:text=Second%20Quarter%202022%20Highlights%3A&amp;text=Generated%20a%20record%20%2475%20of,the%20corresponding%20quarter%20in%202019">booked</a> more than $900 million in revenue in the second quarter of 2022, about half of which came from fees. In its earnings report, it bragged about being able to squeeze out an extra $75 per passenger in <a href="https://www.flyfrontier.com/optional-services/">“ancillary” charges</a>, a 33 percent increase from the same quarter pre-pandemic. Its net income was $13 million. Sit for a second on what that math means.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="kZS2D6">
“They’d be hugely unprofitable without the fees,” said George Ferguson, a senior aerospace, defense, and airline analyst at Bloomberg Intelligence. On average, he estimates that budget airlines Frontier and Spirit double their base ticket price with fees for baggage, service, and more. “But even Delta’s trying to do that with people,” he added.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="GNSQih">
If you’ve had to book a flight lately, or really over the past 15 years, you’ve absolutely noticed the proliferation of fees.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="0lAmQE">
When you start shopping for flights on a website like Expedia or Kayak, you see one price at the start, and by the time you’ve gotten out your credit card, you’re paying tens and even hundreds more dollars than that initial number. Or you go directly to an airline’s homepage to buy and you’re immediately presented with multiple levels of tickets that you can’t quite decipher. Sure, you get what basic economy means (you are cheap and will be treated as such) and what first class is (you’re a big spender and also will be treated as such), but there are options in the middle that are totally unclear. Maybe you opt for one, trying to ensure yourself a better experience, and still you wind up coughing up $40 to pick your seat and $50 to check a bag.
</p>
<aside id="Bnvr90">
<div>
</div>
</aside>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="AU7rKP">
“Too often, people aren’t certain what’s in their cart, they’re often not certain what they’ve purchased, they’re not sure what they haven’t purchased, and too many consumers are confused by it all,” said Jay Sorensen, president of IdeaWorks, a travel consultancy.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="5joYW5">
To be an airline passenger today is to feel like an extra dollar is being wrung out of you at every turn. Things that used to be free or just the luck of the draw — whether you get a window seat, if there’s some extra legroom — have been stripped out of ticket prices and are now being sold back separately instead. The airline offering has been unbundled, and it costs a pretty penny to put the bundle back together again.
</p>
<div class="c-float-right">
<aside id="aixX0s">
<q>“Too many consumers are confused by it all”</q>
</aside>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ELhSBF">
“It’s a behavioral economics question — airlines try to figure out how people are going to behave, and they have policies and prices that respond to that,” said Bob Mann, an aviation analyst. “It’s a game.” And an annoying one at that. It’s not just that fees add onto the final price tag; they can also warp travel in other ways, making the experience more miserable, however much money passengers fork over.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="KXWpHX">
Frontier didn’t respond to a request for comment, and Spirit declined to go on record. In July, JetBlue <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2022/07/28/jetblue-airways-reaches-deal-to-buy-spirit-airlines.html">announced plans</a> to buy Spirit, though it’s <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/19/business/spirit-airlines-jetblue-merger.html">still unclear</a> whether regulators will allow the deal to go through.
</p>
<h3 id="oZ4sug">
The story of the airline fee starts with baggage
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="sTudgC">
For decades, it was free on major airlines to check at least one bag (some discount airlines got a <a href="https://www.farecompare.com/travel-advice/airline-fees-bags-history/">head start</a> on charging). But in 2008, amid rising fuel prices and economic turmoil, that started to charge. Airlines such as <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2008/05/21/business/worldbusiness/21iht-amr.4.13100744.html">American</a> and <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/13/business/13bags.html">United</a> began tacking on a $15 charge to get your bag checked to your destination.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Vr6UfB">
“With record-breaking fuel prices, we must pursue new revenue opportunities, while continuing to offer competitive fares, by tailoring our products and services around what our customers value most and are willing to pay for,” said John Tague, then the chief operating officer of United, in a <a href="https://www.bizjournals.com/triad/stories/2008/06/09/daily48.html">statement</a> at the time.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="jNA3Ag">
It proved to be a profitable endeavor: The airline industry <a href="https://money.cnn.com/2009/05/12/news/companies/airline_baggage_fees/index.htm">made over</a> $1 billion on excess baggage fees that year.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="nPzrXD">
It’s all sort of snowballed from there. Airlines figured out how to strip down their offerings to get passengers from A to B (the basic economy fee, or the budget airline fare) and then upcharge for the many things thereafter. It’s a lucrative deal for them — today, <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2018/09/06/airlines-raise-baggage-change-and-seating-fees-as-fuel-prices-surge.html">airlines make tens of billions on extra fees</a>.
</p>
<div class="c-float-right">
<aside id="Kc1QET">
<q>“They seem to be multiplying like rabbits”</q>
</aside>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="1NGWDv">
“Airlines charge these fees because the revenue they generate from either charging the fees or selling the optional products is really where airlines make their money,” said Henry Harteveldt, president of Atmosphere Research, a travel industry research firm. “These fees not only exist, but they seem to be multiplying like rabbits.”
</p>
<h3 id="iKV8N1">
More options are nice for passengers in theory, not always in practice
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="0w9AvC">
Customers have, in a certain sense, rewarded airlines — including low-cost carriers — for their practices, Sorenson said. Consumers theoretically like choice, and they’re price-sensitive, so it’s not a terrible idea to let people decide what they do and don’t want to pay for. For people who get really anxious about travel, the ability to choose their seat ahead of time and sit by the people they’re traveling with may feel infinitely worth it. For others, not so much.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="wzqRl8">
The problem is, the fees system is often confusing to navigate and at least modestly predatory (see: <a href="https://www.alternativeairlines.com/blog/guide-extra-airline-charges">charging to print a boarding pass</a>). Airlines can lure people in with one price, and then they pile on fees at the back end to drive up costs. And a lot of what they’re charging for isn’t entirely optional.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Qq5hVZ">
“In some industries, you disaggregate things so that customers can come in and pick what matters to them and use it,” Ferguson said. “In the airline, it’s a little funky, because you usually need most of those things.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="sVoFbt">
If you are one of those people who can put everything you’ll need for a three-day trip in your pockets, bless, but most people are not you, and they need luggage that gets either checked or carried on the plane. Sometimes, you don’t know what you’ll wind up needing — say, to change a flight — until the moment arrives. It’s also worth noting that <a href="https://news.gallup.com/poll/388484/air-travel-remains-down-employed-adults-fly-less.aspx#:~:text=Trends%20from%202003%20to%202021%20in%20average%20number%20of%20flights,and%203.6%20among%20air%20travelers.">most people don’t fly</a> more than once or twice a year, making the fee situation even more stressful.
</p>
<div class="c-float-right">
<aside id="NdbvXo">
<q>“Travelers need to do more forward planning than ever before” </q>
</aside>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="NRPUYk">
“The pressure is on travelers to really anticipate what their needs are going to be in advance, and that is part of the challenge right now,” said Melanie Lieberman, senior global features editor at The Points Guy. “Travelers need to do more forward planning than ever before.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="TJmGMo">
That means seriously trying to think ahead, reading the fine print, and being pretty skeptical about that initial price you’re shown. Mann noted that some airline co-branded credit cards offer freebies such as checked bags, seat selection, and club entry at the airport. “Basically it is a case of looking at which relationships with the airline have the desired benefits, and seeing whether those relationships are less expensive (some are ‘free’) than paying the fees,” he said. On some search websites, you can also filter to see only options where carry-on bags are allowed.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="4qPONu">
Beyond the actual cost, fees have distorted travel in other ways — again, really, this starts with baggage. Mann recalled talking to the CEO of a major airline in 2008 about baggage fees and warning him it would probably cause a bunch of flight delays. People were going to try to bring on board the bags they’d previously checked, the planes were going to run out of storage space, and loading and unloading the plane was going to take more time. “He said, ‘Well, yeah, that’s probably right,’” Mann said. Indeed, it was.
</p>
<h3 id="YzZhpv">
Airlines might soon have to be a bit more upfront about money
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="foycB6">
In September, the White House and the Transportation Department <a href="https://www.transportation.gov/briefing-room/biden-harris-administration-announce-new-effort-save-americans-money-and-spur">announced</a> a proposed new rule that would make airlines and travel websites disclose fees upfront. The minute the airfare is displayed, they would have to detail extra charges for things such as sitting with your child, canceling a flight, or checking a bag. In a statement at the time, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said the rule was intended to “help travelers make informed decisions and save money.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="hxPZwu">
If implemented, the new requirements would be a big deal. “This will be huge in terms of forcing airlines and third-party travel sites to disclose fees,” Lieberman said. The airlines seem to know it. Airlines for America, the lobbying group that represents major airlines in North America, <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2022/09/26/biden-seeks-stricter-rules-requiring-more-transparency-of-airline-fees.html">said at the time</a> that its member airlines are “fierce competitors” that “already offer transparency to consumers from first search to touchdown.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="jJMyz4">
The DoT is currently <a href="https://www.transportation.gov/airconsumer/AirlineAncillaryFeeNPRM">collecting comments</a> on the fees rule. It is also working to tighten other guidelines around when consumers are refunded for delayed and canceled flights and getting consumers their money back when they pay for a service they aren’t provided (as in, broken in-flight wifi).
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="an8DN2">
Sorensen, who’s generally friendly to the airlines, isn’t in love with the fees rule — he doesn’t think it’s “practical or possible” to implement. But given what the fees have done to the customer experience, he’s well aware why the airlines have invited the “wrath of the government” upon them. “The industry deserves the scrutiny of the government at this point,” he said.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="7YPPJu">
Not to mention that taxpayers just <a href="https://www.reuters.com/business/aerospace-defense/us-airlines-defend-54-billion-covid-19-government-lifeline-2021-12-15/">spent billions of dollars</a> bailing out the airlines because of Covid. It’s good the entire industry didn’t go bankrupt during the pandemic, but it’s also hard not to ask whether the industry needs to go on like this.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="KTyyBX">
“The government gave the US airline industry $54 billion in grants and wage subsidies, and what do we get for it?” Harteveldt said. “The ability to complain that the airlines are still around to charge these fees.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="aMNCG2">
<em>We live in a world that’s constantly trying to sucker us and trick us, where we’re always surrounded by scams big and small. It can feel impossible to navigate. Every two weeks, join Emily Stewart to look at all the little ways our economic systems control and manipulate the average person. Welcome to </em><a href="https://www.vox.com/the-big-squeeze"><em><strong>The Big Squeeze</strong></em></a><em>.</em>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="NF25sR">
<a href="http://vox.com/big-squeeze-newsletter"><em><strong>Sign up to get this column in your inbox</strong></em></a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="fEmYHz">
<em>Have ideas for a future column or thoughts on this one? Email </em><a href="mailto:emily.stewart@vox.com"><em><strong>emily.stewart@vox.com</strong></em></a>.
</p></li>
<li><strong>The overlooked elections this year with big climate stakes</strong> -
<figure>
<img alt="" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/y9vts7hWIVyyehOkXwzJwMJ1zFw=/277x0:4724x3335/1310x983/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/71519713/GettyImages_1234751511t.0.jpg"/>
<figcaption>
An Arizona resident attempts to enter his home, hit by a flash flood during a thunderstorm on August 18, 2021. | David McNew/Getty Images
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
10 state and local races that could shape our climate future.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="hqXX3W">
Some of the most consequential elections for climate change next month aren’t in the Senate. They’re for an Arizona regulatory body, a Texas city council, and the Ohio Supreme Court.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="W2clKJ">
These offices play a key role in climate policy. Even the most <a href="https://www.vox.com/policy-and-politics/2022/7/28/23281757/whats-in-climate-bill-inflation-reduction-act">optimistic economic modeling</a> on the impacts of the Inflation Reduction Act estimates the law won’t get the country close to slashing climate emissions in half by 2030 (<a href="https://climateactiontracker.org/countries/usa/">the bare minimum</a> the US needs to do to keep global warming to under a disastrous 2 degrees Celsius) without a big boost from state and local governments. A <a href="https://energyinnovation.org/publication/implementing-the-inflation-reduction-act-a-roadmap-for-state-electricity-policy/">recent paper</a> by Energy Innovation, a climate modeling group, notes that states will be “central actors” in implementing the Inflation Reduction Act and determining how much emissions will fall.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="HRip14">
There’s no level of government that is untouched by climate change. Local officials have to grapple with the consequences of raging wildfires, floods, and grid failures. And down-ballot races for city councils or states are “often nail-biters” that “literally come down to dozens or hundreds of votes,” said Whit Jones, an organizer of the climate campaign group <a href="https://leadlocally.org/">Lead Locally</a>.
</p>
<div class="c-wide-block">
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/W769XlxP8qfglQv-MSMtGVwdmj4=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24124782/GettyImages_1235039845t.jpg"/> <cite>Jonathan Ernst/AFP via Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>
A view of President Joe Biden aboard Marine One during an aerial tour, inspecting Louisiana communities impacted by Hurricane Ida, on September 3, 2021.
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="lBVtOj">
Here are some of the races that could end up mattering most for climate change.
</p>
<h3 id="rJzpKS">
State legislatures
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="1EPPYa">
State legislatures can push forward climate policy, or they can obstruct it. Multiple legislatures could change party control, but contests in North Carolina and Minnesota are notable.
</p>
<h4 id="DvjgeQ">
<strong>North Carolina General Assembly</strong>
</h4>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="EmkSFt">
In North Carolina, Republicans are just a handful of seats away from a supermajority in both houses, giving them the two-thirds margin they need to overturn any vetoes from the governor. Even with Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper in office until at least 2024, a supermajority GOP state legislature could deliver some serious setbacks to clean car and clean energy goals.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="XBKYiW">
North Carolina is unique among Southeastern states because it has a plan to tackle <a href="https://apnews.com/article/climate-change-business-utilities-raleigh-legislature-cc5203cc848be803fa7a602405029501">climate change and advance clean energy</a>. But implementing it will require the governor to appoint climate officials to statewide<strong> </strong>positions like the utility regulatory commission. A supermajority of Republicans in control makes it much more difficult to get any appointees through.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="qFREiY">
If Republicans gain <a href="https://www.wral.com/supermajorities-or-shared-power-voters-face-choice-in-nc-legislative-elections/20521908/">just five seats</a>, then the state would also be the next to join the <a href="https://www.vox.com/22691755/gas-utilities-fight-electrification-preemption">20 others</a> that have preemption laws blocking climate action by cities. Last year, Cooper <a href="https://www.newsobserver.com/news/politics-government/article256429936.html">vetoed</a> the preemption bill passed by the Republican-controlled legislature. Preemption bills, aligned with the American Gas Association’s priorities, forbid cities and municipalities from passing rules that transition buildings off of gas appliances. While there aren’t any North Carolina cities with rules on the books blocking gas yet — gas overall is less common to heat homes in the Southeast than cities like New York — residential demand <a href="https://www.eia.gov/dnav/ng/hist/n3060nc2m.htm">has been growing</a> over the past decade, and preemption would limit cities’ options in the future.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="nkziRz">
<strong>Minnesota state Senate</strong>
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="M03tuJ">
Democrats control one chamber in Minnesota but are vying to gain control of the state Senate this cycle. If they do, they’ll have a Democratic governor and a Democratic legislature with potentially enough votes to finally pass climate legislation. Democrats need to pick off just two seats from the Republican majority to flip the state Senate.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="vBQsht">
Minnesota’s governor has unrolled a climate plan to accelerate pollution cuts faster than the law the state already has on the books. Many of the priorities will require <a href="https://www.startribune.com/minnesota-clamps-down-on-greenhouse-gases/600207503/">legislation to enact</a>, including new spending on public transit; boosting the number of electric vehicles on the road from under 1 percent to 20 percent by 2030; restoring forests, grasslands, and wetlands; and requiring all new commercial and multifamily buildings to hit a net-zero carbon target by 2036.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/jNNGDkkI8UO24NqWe7qZE-kyHDI=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24124725/AP22259758976922t.jpg"/> <cite>Steve Karnowski/AP Photo</cite>
<figcaption>
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz rolls out his initiatives to combat climate change in Eagan on September 16.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="CW4kCF">
Utilities are well aware of the climate stakes of the state Senate, too. According to tracking from <a href="https://www.energyandpolicy.org/utility-executive-contributions-kathleen-fowke-minnesota-senate/">Energy and Policy</a>, in one race, utility interests from inside and outside the state, including Xcel Energy, the Edison Electric Institute, Florida-based NextEra Energy, and Florida Power and Light, have lined up to support Republican candidate Kathleen Fowke, the wife of a former Xcel chair, against Democrat Kelly Morrison. (NextEra Energy is based in Florida but has wind projects in <a href="https://newsroom.nexteraenergy.com/news-releases?item=123859">Minnesota</a>; it’s the parent company of Florida Power and Light, which has been swept up in scandals for opposing <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2022/jul/27/leaked-us-leaked-power-companies-spending-profits-stop-clean-energy">expanded rooftop solar policies</a>.)
</p>
<h3 id="laUnpS">
Local officials with a say over what gets built, and how, in Texas
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="ZGtE8P">
Cities are major laboratories for climate policy and adaptation, especially when it comes to what gets built, or not, in major hotspots for fossil fuel drilling. Cities can make progress on climate change even in a red state like Texas.
</p>
<h4 id="E3ZD4K">
<strong>Harris County, Texas, judge</strong>
</h4>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="bHjHK4">
The Harris County judge is more like a CEO with broad jurisdictional power over the nation’s largest county in the Houston area, home to sprawling oil and petrochemical industrial operations.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="c0Yh0s">
Lina Hidalgo is fighting to stay in her seat as county judge for Harris County, after her surprise win in 2018.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="KkPZ3y">
Her opponent Alexandra del Moral Mealer has focused primarily on crime and law enforcement in her campaign, in contrast to Hidalgo’s emphasis on her environmental priorities — including incorporating climate flood maps into city planning and hiring environmental prosecutors. Hidalgo’s <a href="https://www.houstonchronicle.com/politics/houston/article/Lina-Hidalgo-Harris-County-crime-judge-reelection-17514561.php">expansion</a> of the county’s pollution budget and air monitors has earned her a strong reputation among climate advocates, including the endorsement of the down-ballot-focused PAC <a href="https://www.climateslate.com/candidate/lina-hidalgo-tx/r/recolbYl6DpIhStfK">Climate Slate</a>. Mealer, for her part, told the Houston Chronicle (which ultimately <a href="https://www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/endorsements/article/mealer-hidalgo-harris-county-endorsement-17504659.php">endorsed</a> her) that climate change isn’t her priority. <a href="https://alexandramealer.com/alexs-priorities/">Mealer’s website</a> says: “County is not the appropriate entity to solve Climate Change - let’s fix potholes first.” The race has been in a dead heat.
</p>
<h4 id="QLOfRx">
<strong>Corpus</strong> <strong>Christi, Texas, City Council</strong>
</h4>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="75dzF6">
Another Texas race has huge stakes because of its geographic location. Close to the Permian Basin, the <a href="https://www.vox.com/22407581/gas-texas-biden-climate-change-methane-permian-basin">most active oilfield</a> in the US, the Port of Corpus Christi has become the US’s <a href="https://portofcc.com/port-of-corpus-christi-finishes-fiscal-year-2021-with-record-tonnage/#:~:text=The%20Port%20of%20Corpus%20Christi%20accounted%20for%20roughly%2058%20percent,to%20research%20firm%20RBN%20Energy.">No. 1 exporter of crude oil</a>. The city council has a big say over what gets built and what oversight is in place in a state that’s otherwise overrun by oil industry interests. The climate group Lead Locally lists <a href="https://leadlocally.org/2022/09/07/support-2022-climate-candidates-in-critical-down-ballot-elections/">four endorsed candidates</a> running for city council, as part of a slate pledging to oppose a local desalination plant, put more attention on <a href="https://www.caller.com/story/news/local/2022/09/06/four-candidates-running-joint-campaign-for-corpus-christi-city-council/65473725007/">preparing</a> for climate change, and increase focus on clean energy.
</p>
<div class="c-wide-block">
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/iJgVVTFVl75i8qVUY9s0YZSlqVY=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24124562/GettyImages_1238854207t.jpg"/> <cite>Callaghan O’Hare/Bloomberg via Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>
Signs outside a polling location during primary elections in Corpus Christi, Texas, on March 1.
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<h3 id="cXBkcK">
State treasurers can fight or encourage clean energy investments
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="wwmL66">
A growing number of state treasurers have moved to pull any state investments from banks that “boycott fossil fuels,” haphazardly identifying certain companies that have made public commitments on climate change and ESG (a framework for incorporating environmental, social, and corporate governance values into company strategy).
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="E9tWOZ">
Even some <a href="https://www.energypolicy.columbia.edu/research/esg-investing-and-us-oil-and-gas-industry-analysis-climate-disclosures">fossil fuel companies</a> have considered aligning with ESG standards, but the growing anti-ESG movement has cherry-picked which companies they will divest from, and the investment fund BlackRock has become a poster child for the backlash. Texas, Florida, Louisiana, and West Virginia have all pulled or pledged to pull state pensions from BlackRock.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="Pu9sNY">
ESG has factored in the Arizona state treasurer race, where incumbent Kimberly Yee (R) is up against Martin Quezada (D). Yee has vowed to ignore ESG standards going forward, <a href="https://cronkitenews.azpbs.org/2022/10/13/arizona-state-treasurer-kimberly-yee-republican-stresses-transparency/">saying</a> it’s “inappropriate for the investment room.” Quezada takes a different view that ESG isn’t about politics, but about sensible investment decisions. “I think it’s really irresponsible of any manager or investor of public money to oppose any type of risk analysis for your investment strategy,” he’s <a href="https://cronkitenews.azpbs.org/2022/10/13/arizona-treasurer-martin-quezada-democrat-longtime-legislator-treasurer/">said</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="VgzF4s">
An October 17 poll by the research firm <a href="https://blog.ohpredictive.com/press-releases/arizona-statewide-races-down-ticket-takeaway">OH Predictive Insights</a> showed Yee holding a comfortable lead, 46-35, over Quezada.
</p>
<h3 id="C4k92A">
Contests that matter for legal cases
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="1w13MB">
Attorneys general and the courts have played an increasingly high-profile role in climate fights throughout the country. At least seven attorneys general are in lawsuits against the oil industry for its role in creating climate pollution and spreading disinformation, and are also locked in battles over the fate of fossil fuel infrastructure. More of these cases are going to hit state Supreme Courts, several of which are elected directly by the people.
</p>
<h4 id="zn09Hy">
<strong>Ohio Supreme Court</strong>
</h4>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="OGKeIt">
The Ohio Supreme Court has been <a href="https://ohiocapitaljournal.com/2022/10/10/ohio-supreme-court-chief-justice-candidates-have-very-different-backgrounds-ideologies-priorities/">controlled by Republicans for decades</a>, but there are three seats open this cycle. The candidates who win will play an important role deciding the future of energy accountability and climate lawsuits in the state. The court has played a particularly pivotal part in the ongoing <a href="https://www.motherjones.com/environment/2020/07/they-spent-millions-to-protect-polluters-then-they-got-busted-by-the-fbi/">FirstEnergy bribery scandal</a>, where the company has paid <a href="https://www.npr.org/2021/07/23/1019567905/an-energy-company-behind-a-major-bribery-scandal-in-ohio-will-pay-a-230-million-">$230 million in fines</a> over bribing state politicians to protect the utility’s nuclear and coal investments.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="WNsQMV">
The court will eventually decide a number of issues, including whether ratepayers will recover up to $1.4 billion for the scandal. Another important issue the court will decide is who has the right to sue and block renewable energy permitting in the state. The nonprofit outlet Energy News Network has a more detailed rundown of the <a href="https://energynews.us/2022/10/06/six-key-energy-questions-that-winners-of-ohios-high-court-races-will-decide/">race</a>, which polling from late September by Spectrum News/Siena College showed to be about <a href="https://spectrumnews1.com/oh/columbus/news/2022/09/28/ohio-supreme-court-chief-justice-seat-up-for-grabs">even</a>.
</p>
<h4 id="orHe0z">
<strong>Michigan attorney general</strong>
</h4>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="GbQjJQ">
The fate of a 1950s-era liquid gas and crude oil pipeline may be up to who <a href="https://michiganadvance.com/2022/10/19/where-the-michigan-governor-and-attorney-general-candidates-stand-on-line-5-and-climate-change/">wins the attorney general seat in Michigan</a>. Michigan’s incumbent AG Dana Nessel, a Democrat, has an ongoing complaint against the pipeline company Enbridge Energy over Line 5, which transports 22 million gallons of crude oil and natural gas liquids through Wisconsin and Michigan. Her lawsuit is trying to shut down the Michigan portion of the pipeline because of its role in <a href="https://www.arcgis.com/apps/View/index.html?appid=f817f5abad9a4cb09e942c1941fd0060">dozens of spills</a> and potential to wreak havoc on natural areas and tribal lands.
</p>
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/m8f5hhhUBcfKeCVsgSd869CvhDY=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24124688/GettyImages_1242759553t.jpg"/> <cite>Nic Antaya/Bloomberg via Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>
Matthew DePerno, Republican candidate for Michigan attorney general, speaks during the state GOP nominating convention in Lansing on August 27.
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="sSy0JQ">
She’s <a href="https://michiganadvance.com/2022/07/01/enviros-deperno-is-beholden-to-dirty-fossil-fuels-money-for-pledging-to-drop-line-5-suits/">up against</a> Republican challenger Matthew DePerno, who has promised that one of his first priorities will be to dismiss a legal fight with Enbridge over the Line 5 pipeline. DePerno rose to national prominence for claiming Donald Trump’s election loss in 2020 was fraudulent, and is under state investigation himself for <a href="https://www.npr.org/2022/10/18/1129521692/matthew-deperno-dana-nessel-michigan-attorney-general-voting-machines">allegedly plotting</a> to tamper with voting machines. Polling by WDIV/Detroit News in October has Nessel with a <a href="https://www.clickondetroit.com/news/local/2022/10/04/poll-where-michigan-voters-stand-on-attorney-general-secretary-of-state-races-1-month-before-election/">12-point lead</a> over DePerno.
</p>
<h3 id="q5oosk">
State regulators can make sure utilities are hitting clean energy targets
</h3>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="6DCuDV">
Utility commissions can make or break a state’s climate goals. “They can approve or block the stuff that needs to get built to deliver a clean, electrified future, from renewable plants and batteries to transmission lines to electric-vehicle charging infrastructure,” <a href="https://www.canarymedia.com/articles/guides-and-how-tos/power-by-people-puc-involvement-guide">explained</a> Julian Spector of Canary Media.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="r5wpWp">
Governors <a href="https://www.canarymedia.com/articles/guides-and-how-tos/power-by-people-puc-involvement-guide">appoint</a> commissioners in 37 states, and the state legislature appoints them in two. In the last 11 states, commissioners have to run for election, setting up a situation where the utility regulators can be surprisingly pro-climate in unexpectedly red territory.
</p>
<h4 id="CrRKjv">
<strong>Arizona Corporate Commission</strong>
</h4>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="n1mzqR">
This five-seat commission has two openings up for grabs. There are two Democrats, Sandra Kennedy and Lauren Kuby, running against two Republicans, Nick Myers and Kevin Thompson. Most of Arizona’s statewide races have looked like <a href="https://ktar.com/story/5296046/most-of-arizonas-statewide-races-look-like-toss-ups-according-to-polls/">toss-ups, per polling</a>.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="jXGIhb">
If Democrats win, they could flip the commission’s majority, 3-2, creating a solid bloc of more ardent clean energy advocates to advance reforms. While the Republican candidates have argued for an all-of-the-above energy mix that maintains reliance on fossil (natural) gas, the Democratic candidates argue the state’s overdependence on natural gas is a problem. “We replaced one dirty fossil fuel with another by switching from coal to natural gas, and the recent spike in natural gas prices has hit Arizona ratepayers hard as a result,” Kennedy told the <a href="https://www.azcentral.com/story/money/business/energy/2022/10/07/arizona-corporation-commission-what-gop-democrat-candidates-would-do-issues/8180557001/">Arizona Republic</a>.
</p>
<h4 id="yIwycf">
<strong>Louisiana Public Service Commission </strong>
</h4>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="hbPuWO">
Louisiana, which voted overwhelmingly for Trump in 2020, doesn’t seem the likeliest climate battleground. But as the third-ranked state in gas production and home to a growing number of liquid natural gas terminals, Louisiana has outsize influence beyond its borders. The state’s position on clean energy is especially important because it is part of the mid-continent system operator, the biggest interstate grid operator by land that <a href="https://www.canarymedia.com/articles/transmission/grid-operator-misos-transmission-plan-would-split-its-region-in-two">encompasses 15 states</a>.
</p>
<div class="c-wide-block">
<figure class="e-image">
<img alt=" " src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/d58z-Uz1hT0o0Ce7u6G55KOzvck=/800x0/filters:no_upscale()/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/24124818/GettyImages_1234970857t.jpg"/> <cite>Luke Sharrett/Bloomberg via Getty Images</cite>
<figcaption>
Traffic moves along a stretch of roads near the Royal Dutch Shell and Valero Energy’s Norco refineries in LaPlace, Louisiana.
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="3NkF6G">
The Louisiana Public Service Commission, which regulates utilities, could become less deferential to the utility Entergy and more open to <a href="https://www.canarymedia.com/articles/transmission/grid-operator-misos-transmission-plan-would-split-its-region-in-two">regional transmission projects</a> for renewables, depending on who wins the commission’s two open seats. “If one or both of these seats flips to someone — regardless of party — who is active on clean energy and climate, you’re going to see a lot of movement from Louisiana,” said Daniel Tait, who has tracked these races for the utility watchdog Energy and Policy. Two of those utility-friendly incumbents, Lambert Boissiere (D) and Mike Francis (R), are in reelection campaigns against challengers, progressive favorite Gregory Manning and Republican Keith Bodin, respectively.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="d4SVrJ">
Boissiere has had a comfortable lead, but an Environmental Defense Fund-affiliated PAC has just entered the race with $500,000, a huge sum for a down-ballot race, to <a href="https://www.theadvocate.com/baton_rouge/news/politics/elections/article_bf9a1316-4e5d-11ed-82bc-231a3364ee1a.html">spend on ads against him</a>.
</p>
<h4 id="CHGgOc">
<strong>Texas Railroad Commission</strong>
</h4>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="NttYsB">
Climate activists also spent last cycle making a failed bid to gain control of the Texas Railroad Commission, which is technically not a utility commission but an important environmental regulatory body in the state. Though he is still considered an underdog, Democratic candidate Luke Warford has made a bid for a seat on the commission by focusing on clean energy and climate issues. He’s focused on Texas’s overreliance on gas to power its grid, which was one factor that led to massive blackouts in winter 2021.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="KzapoU">
“Texas is the largest greenhouse gas emitter in the country, and Texas’ oil and gas industry is the largest contributor to those emissions,” Warford wrote in a column for <a href="https://www.dataforprogress.org/blog/2022/10/4/the-race-to-regulate-texas-oil-and-gas-industry-is-within-reach-for-democrats">Data for Progress</a>. “Put differently, the Texas Railroad Commission regulates the industry that produces the most greenhouse gasses in the highest greenhouse-gas-emitting state in the country. And every year, millions of tons of greenhouse gasses are emitted into the atmosphere because the Texas Railroad Commission fails to enforce existing regulations.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom" id="YqIVIg">
The limited polling on the race, conducted by <a href="https://www.khou.com/article/news/politics/texas-poll-november-election-part-1/285-fa4c589c-58e3-4abb-aa8b-6c8791eca1e1">KHOU/Texas Hispanic Policy Foundation</a> in September, found Warford trailing Republican incumbent Wayne Christian by at least 7 points.
</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-the-hindu-sports">From The Hindu: Sports</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Skipper Panchal guides Gujarat to a five-wicket win over Andhra</strong> -</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Vikas and Nitesh win two more bronze medals for India</strong> - Sports Bureau</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Madhya Pradesh to host 5th edition of Khelo India Youth Games, Water sports added to roster</strong> - The action will unfold in Bhopal, Indore, Ujjain, Gwalior, Jabalpur, Mandla, Khargone (Maheshwar) and Balaghat while Delhi will host cycling events</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Ballon d'Or winner Benzema scores as Madrid beats Elche 3-0</strong> - Karim Benzema and referee Jesús Gil Manzano looked at each other and started to laugh</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Polo in India: How the sport is drawing new spectators</strong> - With corporate sponsors and a growing number of riding clubs in the country, polo is no longer a sport pursued only by royals and cavalry officers. Despite its costly tag, an increasing number of riders are keen to swing the mallet</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-the-hindu-national-news">From The Hindu: National News</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Court permits compounding of offence against civil police officer accused of ‘stealing’ mangoes in Kerala</strong> - The police, however, have been permitted to investigate any other charges relating to the alleged theft</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Global Technology Centre in Mysuru by Feb: Ashwath Narayan</strong> - At the Big Tech Show-2022 in Mysuru, Minister says State govt. is establishing the centre at a cost of ₹30 cr; another ₹25 crore fund set up under the ‘Cluster Seed Fund’ initiative to promote start-ups and fuel innovation</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>‘What happened to promise of fluoride research centre?’</strong> - Finance Minister Harish Rao questions BJP president Nadda</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Agri business conclave brings cheer to budding Kerala entrepreneurs</strong> - Five innovators each from CIFT and KAU were among those who were invited to the meet in which more than 300 budding entrepreneurs participated</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>KTR objects to transfer of Munugode returning officer</strong> - Accuses ECI of working under the control of BJP</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-bbc-europe">From BBC: Europe</h1>
<ul>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Ukrainians told to ‘charge everything’ as power grid hit by Russia</strong> - As Russian attacks on Ukraine’s energy plants intensify, people are told to prepare for blackouts.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Russian jet released missile near RAF aircraft over Black Sea</strong> - The unarmed plane was in international airspace when the incident happened last month, a minister says.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>US reminds pro-Putin Hungary it’s a Western ally</strong> - The US embassy hits back at anti-American remarks from Viktor Orban’s government over the Ukraine war.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Damaged cable leaves Shetland cut off from mainland</strong> - Police have declared a major incident with phone lines and internet down on the islands.</p></li>
<li data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Eurovision: Bulgaria is latest country to pull out of Liverpool song contest</strong> - Bulgaria is not on the list of 37 nations to be confirmed for next year’s song contest in Liverpool.</p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-ars-technica">From Ars Technica</h1>
<ul>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>GPS interference caused the FAA to reroute Texas air traffic. Experts stumped</strong> - Episode lasting almost 2 days prompted the closure of a runway at Dallas airport. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1891367">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Stunning new Webb Telescope image showcases the “Pillars of Creation“</strong> - Protostars steal the show in this new image from the telescope’s Near Infrared Camera. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1891200">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Black Death etched a mark on our genetics, warping immune responses, study finds</strong> - The plague may have put selective pressure on mutations in four genes. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1891350">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>RIP Apple TV HD: Apple went all-in on 4K yesterday</strong> - 4K TV adoption hasn’t been slowing down, and Apple knows the HD era is over. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1891206">link</a></p></li>
<li><p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"><strong>Tired of laundry folding? AI breaks the robot folding speed record</strong> - Two-armed method doesn’t beat human speeds but leaves older folding robots in the dust. - <a href="https://arstechnica.com/?p=1891093">link</a></p></li>
</ul>
<h1 data-aos="fade-right" id="from-jokes-subreddit">From Jokes Subreddit</h1>
<ul>
<li><strong>This is an actual medieval joke from 14th century Florence:</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
A Florentine had in his home a young man who instructed his children in the elements of knowledge. After a long stay, the young tutor felt himself so much at home that he had in turn the housemaid, the nurse, and finally the mistress herself.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
When the master of the house, who was a jovial fellow discovered this, he summoned the young man to his private chamber and said: “I find it unmannerly of you, sir, that in taking your pleasure of my entire household you have made an exception of me.”
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/SevenIsNotANumber2"> /u/SevenIsNotANumber2 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/y8gfgx/this_is_an_actual_medieval_joke_from_14th_century/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/y8gfgx/this_is_an_actual_medieval_joke_from_14th_century/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>A man walks into the local cathedral and says to the rector, “I would like to join this fucking church.”</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The rector is astonished. “I beg your pardon, sir . . . I must have misunderstood you. What did you say?” “Are you deaf? I said I want to join this fucking church!”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“I’m sorry, sir, but that kind of language is not tolerated in this building.” “Okay, twat face, I want to speak to someone else.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
The rector goes into the bishop’s study to inform him of the situation. The bishop listens and both return to confront the man, “Sir, what seems to be the problem here?”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“There is no problem,” the man says. “I just won five million fucking quid on the fucking lottery and I want to join this fucking church to get rid of some of this fucking money.”
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“I see,” says the Bishop, “and this cunt is giving you a hard time?”
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/vect77"> /u/vect77 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/y87lnd/a_man_walks_into_the_local_cathedral_and_says_to/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/y87lnd/a_man_walks_into_the_local_cathedral_and_says_to/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>A man calls the police and reports that his girlfriend has gone missing</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
A male and a female police officer turn up at his house and begin to interview him. The female officer asks the man if he has any theories on where she might be. The man responds with “This is going to sound weird but I think she disappeared into the magic coffee table” The officers look confused and ask him to elaborate. “It’s really strange but whenever I leave things on this coffee table they disappear and reappear somewhere else. When I leave take away containers on it they disappear and reappear in the trash. When I leave dirty plates and mugs on it, they disappear and reappear in the cupboards washed, dried and stacked neatly and even when I leave my dirty clothes on it they disappear! and reappear cleaned and neatly folded on my bed” The female police officer looks at the man and says “Oh my god, you’re an idiot. No wonder your girlfriend has left you.” And the male officer says “I don’t think she’s left him. I think he’s right. I’ve got the same coffee table at my house”
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/OwenJthomas89"> /u/OwenJthomas89 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/y8cajr/a_man_calls_the_police_and_reports_that_his/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/y8cajr/a_man_calls_the_police_and_reports_that_his/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>A guy is camping and finds his buddy standing over an outhouse toilet about to drop a $50 bill down the hole.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
“What on earth are you doing?” he asks his buddy.
</p>
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
His friend replies “I was taking a dump and a $10 bill fell out of my pocket and went down the hole…… and I sure as hell ain’t going down there for ten bucks”.
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/pee_diddy"> /u/pee_diddy </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/y88cyh/a_guy_is_camping_and_finds_his_buddy_standing/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/y88cyh/a_guy_is_camping_and_finds_his_buddy_standing/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
<li><strong>My girlfriend dumped me, so I stole her wheelchair.</strong> - <!-- SC_OFF -->
<div class="md">
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom">
Guess who came crawling back?
</p>
</div>
<!-- SC_ON -->
<p data-aos="fade-left" data-aos-anchor-placement="bottom-bottom"> submitted by <a href="https://www.reddit.com/user/mozzer7_7"> /u/mozzer7_7 </a> <br/> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/y8quz0/my_girlfriend_dumped_me_so_i_stole_her_wheelchair/">[link]</a></span> <span><a href="https://www.reddit.com/r/Jokes/comments/y8quz0/my_girlfriend_dumped_me_so_i_stole_her_wheelchair/">[comments]</a></span></p></li>
</ul>
<script>AOS.init();</script></body></html>