8 O'Clock Buzz

The coronavirus pandemic’s impacts are not limited to the public health arena.  The State of Wisconsin has banned gatherings of 10 or more people, and shut down schools, restaurants and bars across the state.  Public offices, libraries and small businesses have shut down or severely limited services in an effort to thin crowds and slow viral infection.  Due to workplace restrictions and reduced demand, thousands are now out of work, with the State Department of Workforce Development reporting unemployment claims spiked by the thousands in the last few days.  Those who still have jobs are finding themselves in uncharted territory, with many working from home, on emergency leave or reassigned. Jirs Meuris is an Assistant Professor in the Management and Human Resources Department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and serves as a faculty affiliate at the Institute for Research on Poverty and the Center for Financial Security.

With 381 confirmed cases of COVID-19, and four deaths, as of March 22nd, Wisconsin is just entering the acceleration phase of the coronavirus pandemic.  Dane County has 61 of the state’s COVID-19 confirmed cases, but that number is expected to grow as the county moves into the community spread phase, meaning it’s no longer practical to track the individuals who are the source of coronavirus contagion.  Dane County United Way recently announced the creation of a COVID-19 Emergency and Recovery Fund designed to help people impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. Dane County United Way Chief Executive Officer Renee Moe and Boys and Girls Club of Dane County CEO Michael Johnson joined Monday Buzz host Brian Standing on March 23, 2020.

 

Amidst the COVID-19 concerns, Congress is pushing a stalled bill, HR-6191 — the “AQUA” act, to allow permitting for industrial ocean fish farming in the Pacific coasts. Hallie Templeton, Senior Oceans Campaigner of Friends of the Earth, talks about the issues and many concerned environmental groups efforts to “Keep Fin Fish Free”.

This year marks the 40th anniversary of Chrysalis, a member organization of Community Shares of Wisconsin, which helps those with substance abuse or mental health issues gain employment — a great first step! Jan talks with Alysha Clark, Assistant Director and Peer Specialist at Chrysalis about their programs.

Even in the digital age, the art of creating physical DIY magazines, known as zines, continues to flourish around the country.  Here in Madison, the seventh annual Print and Resist Zine Fest recently fell victim to the Coronavirus Pandemic ban on large assembly events, but hopes to have a new life later this year.  In order to comply with Madison / Dane County Public Health orders banning assembly events of more than 50 people, organizers have postponed this year’s Print and Resist fest, but hope to have a new life later this year.  Carlee Latimer, Madison Public Library Bubbler Program Assistant and Jennifer Bastian, Arts Program Manager for Communication.

In August of 2018, an unheard-of 13 inches of rain fell just west of Madison in less than 24 hours.  That deluge shattered all rainfall records in the State of Wisconsin, causing flash floods that filled city streets, swept away cars, bridges and trees and, after filling up Lake Mendota, threatened to overtop the Tenney Dam and inundate the Madison isthmus.  Clearly, none of the public stormwater and other infrastructure was designed to cope with such a storm — before that year, no one thought such a storm was even possible. But one of the lessons of climate change is that past history is not a good predictor of what is to come.  As the earth heats up and the atmosphere becomes more turbulent, what if storms like the August 2018 storm become not just more frequent, but commonplace? Steve Vavrus — a former WORT volunteer — now sits as the co-chair of the Wisconsin Institute for Climate Change Impacts, which is working with local communities, including Madison, to help make Madison a climate-ready city.

 

Article 1, Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution requires the federal government to conduct an “actual enumeration” of all people residing in the nation every ten years.  The logistical operation that is the U.S. Census is a formidable endeavor. The Census Bureau staffs up every ten years, hoping to leave no stone unturned in finding and counting everyone where they live as of April 1.  Even with all that effort, however, the Census has historically undercounted certain populations. People without a fixed abode, people who move often, children, people who don’t speak or read English and people who distrust and fear the federal government have always been notoriously difficult to count.  Because census numbers determine not only congressional representation, but also the allocation of billions of dollars in federal grants, aids and other expenditures, local communities have an incentive to make sure none of their residents are left out. Sheila Stubbs represents Assembly District 77 in the Wisconsin Legislature, and she is the Chair of Madison’s Census Complete Count Committee.

Controversy continues over centralized storage of “spent” nuclear fuel or hardened on-site storage. Kevin Kamps from “Beyond Nuclear” talks about the potential issues related to transportation of these materials on our highways, rails, and water to centralized “interim” storage facilities.

Firefighting foam, once thought to be a safe means to control jet fuel fires, has now been strongly linked to PFAS contamination of water in Madison and other areas. Lance Green from “Safe Skies Clean Water Wisconsin” talks to Jan about the PFAS issues linked to the Air National Guard and the subject of the film “Dark Waters”.

Robert Reuschlein, from the Real Economy Institute, talked about his 100-year analysis of military spending, and how military spending is inversely proportional to economic growth, transfers tax resources unequally among states, and causes social decay. He will be presenting his theories at the Central Library, Room 104, at 6:30 on 3/12/20.