Situational Analysis | August 1, 2022

Welcome to a new week and a new month! August is - not surprisingly - National Back to School Month. It's also Spinal Muscular Atrophy Awareness Month. I have friends who have lost 2 children to this horrible disease. May a cure be found in my lifetime. ❤️ 

Be in the Know

• We lost some icons this weekend: Navajo Code Talker Samuel Sandoval died late Friday at age 98. Sandoval joined the Marine Corps at age 18, served in five combat tours and was honorably discharged in 1946. The Code Talkers had orders not to discuss their roles — not during the war and not until their mission was declassified in 1968. He liked to tell his story in-person, but also helped write a book about his experience, called Naz Bah Ei Bijei: Heart of a Warrior. Hundreds of Navajo were recruited to serve as Code Talkers during WWII - only three are still alive. 
• Nichelle Nichols, Lt. Uhura on ‘Star Trek,’ died on Saturday at age 89. Her role in the 1966-69 original Star Trek series as Lt. Uhura earned Nichols a lifelong position of honor with Trekkers and Trekkies and earned her accolades for breaking stereotypes that had limited Black women to acting roles as servants. During the show, she and William Shatner shared an interracial onscreen kiss, something unheard of at the time.
• NBA legend Bill Russell died Sunday at the age of 88. Russell won 2 state championships in high school, two NCAA championships, an Olympic gold medal and 11 NBA championships with the Boston Celtics. When Russell was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1975, Red Auerbach, who orchestrated his arrival as a Celtic and coached him on nine championship teams, called him “the single most devastating force in the history of the game.” He was also a racial justice activist, both on and off the court. 

Rapid Roundup

• Tony Finau wins for the second straight week, the LDS Church endorses its first female military chaplain, Utah just tied the record for # of days hitting 100° at the SLC airport: 21 - expect a record-breaking year, with all of August still to go, Ivana Trump was buried on a golf course and finally, a ship carrying grain left Odesa for Lebanon, the first departure of any ship since Russia blocked shipping 5 months ago.

Utah Headlines

General

• You might not have guessed it but July was the best month for the stock market since November 2020. The S&P rallied 1.4% on Friday, marking a 9.1% gain in the month of July (Deseret News)
• Don’t expect air travel woes to be resolved by Thanksgiving, Sec. Pete Buttigieg says. ‘It’s going to take a while for the pilot workforce to be back up to pre-COVID levels,’ the transportation secretary told the Deseret News
• How a Utah startup is trying to make streaming music more local. The people behind a mobile app called Mixlo aim to connect users to bands close to them. (Salt Lake Tribune)

Politics

• What’s in the new Inflation Reduction Act? (Deseret News)
• Will 2016 Trump voters return to him if he runs for president again? (Spoiler alert: Yes) (Deseret News)
• The IUP Panel on the race for U.S. Senate and inflation (ABC4)
• Veteran’s burn pit health care bill blocked in Senate. Both Lee and Romney were ‘no’ votes (KUER)

Education

• Will the pause on student loan payment be extended? Payments are scheduled to restart Aug. 31, but there’s a chance the moratorium will be extended (Deseret News)
• Navajo woman recalls seeing kids beaten with rulers until they bled at Native American boarding school. During Utah’s Native American Summit, Rose Jakub encouraged tribal members who feel up to it to share their stories of the trauma they experienced. (Salt Lake Tribune)
• New rankings paint a different picture of the ‘best’ colleges in Utah. They examine colleges’ ability to boost economic mobility, updating long-standing methods that emphasized things like reputation and prestige. (KUER)

Environment

• Western governors aim to harness geothermal ‘heat beneath our feet’ (Deseret News)
• The dreary drought drags on. Here’s how Utah residents want to respond (Deseret News)
• Drought report: July monsoons help Utah's soil moisture levels, but dry conditions persist (KSL)
• Proposed quarry looks to mine fracking sand near Dinosaur (Salt Lake Tribune)
• 🔥 Western flames  spread, California sees its largest 2022 fire (AP)

Health

• Has science found the cure for baldness?? Maybe! (Deseret News)
• What impact does race have on mental health? New U. hire, Dr. William Smith, to explore and address disparities (KSL)
• Millions of Americans have long COVID. Many of them are no longer working (NPR)

Housing

• Utah’s housing market is ‘stabilizing.’ What that means — and why high prices are our new normal (Deseret News)
• As sprawl takes root, say goodbye to orchards, fresh fruit and a Utah tradition (Salt Lake Tribune)
• Former Tooele school property to become new homeless resource center (Fox13)
• USU housing complex delayed, again (UPR)

Transportation

• Mayor Jenny Wilson: How will Utah afford to fight fires and build infrastructure? Pete Buttigieg has the answer (Deseret News)
• Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg: Millions headed to Utah for transportation resilience. Billions in additional funding for transportation and safety projects is available to Utah (Deseret News)
• Sec. Buttigieg, Gov. Cox unveil $7.3B program to guard roads against climate extremes (KUER)

National Headlines

General

•  President Joe Biden has had rebound COVID, with 2 positive tests over the weekend after testing negative last Tuesday and Wednesday (AP)
• New Zealand's borders fully open after long pandemic closure (Reuters)
• Kentucky floods kill at least 28 - 'Everything is gone' (Reuters)
• Kentucky's governor warns residents to brace for more flooding (NPR)
• People buying more essentials at dollar stores (Wall Street Journal)
• In the Idaho resort area of Sun Valley, there are so few housing options that many workers are resorting to garages, campers and tents. (New York Times)

Politics

• Who is Viktor Bout? Meet the ‘Merchant of Death’ the U.S. may trade for Brittney Griner. A notorious arms dealer, Bout was convicted in a U.S. court in 2011 (Deseret News)
• House committee finds AR-15 style guns brought in over $1 billion in last decade (Deseret News)
• Pelosi meets Singapore leaders at start of Asia tour (AP)
• Veterans call rejection of toxic-exposure bill ‘a slap in the face’ (Washington Post)
• Fetterman is taking on Oz with an ‘irreverent,’ extremely online campaign (The Hill)

Ukraine 🇺🇦 

• Russia pounds Ukrainian port; Putin announces global maritime ambitions (Reuters)
• One of Ukraine’s richest businessmen and his wife are killed in the port city of Mykolaiv. (New York Times)
• Calls grow for investigation of POW bombing in Ukraine. Zelenskyy calls shelling of prison a ‘deliberate Russian war crime.’ (Politico)

Monday Musings: It’s August and summer’s last hoorah

by Holly Richardson

It’s August 1 and we’re at that weird in-between space that exists between the heat of summer, the start of school and the rapid slide from Labor Day to Christmas. While there will still be plenty of hot days ahead, by the end of the month, there will be red leaves on the mountains. I’ve gotten my first holiday ad, inviting me to the fabric store so I can begin crafting/sewing gifts and this weekend, Costco had Halloween decorations out.

We’re also in the political doldrums. The primaries are settled (except for one candidate who is suing after his loss) and most campaigning for the general election won’t begin until after Labor Day. That’s when you’ll see signs sprouting up everywhere and the political ads taking off. Until then, though, it’s mostly a holding pattern. (Read More and find out what baby George was born yesterday)

News Releases

Mayor Jenny Wilson celebrates announcement from Secretary Pete Buttigieg on funding for resilient infrastructure

Secretary Buttigieg joined local leaders and firefighters for a roundtable moderated by Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson to discuss the 2021 Parley’s Canyon Fire, firefighting efforts in the greater Salt Lake area, and how infrastructure investments can improve evacuation routes and safety across their community. 

“Each wildfire season fills me with dread as we prepare ourselves for the worst-case scenarios. Secretary Buttigieg’s announcement today means our state and our first responders will have more of the resources we need to prepare for wildfires, natural disasters, and extreme weather intensified by climate change,” said Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson. “When we have the right tools, coordination, and infrastructure, we save lives and homes.” (Read More)

Rep. Moore’s Saline Lake Ecosystems in the Great Basin States Program Act passes House of Representatives

Congressman Blake Moore’s Saline Lake Ecosystems in the Great Basin States Program Act passed the House of Representatives. Introduced with Congressman Jared Huffman (D-CA), this legislation would establish a scientific monitoring and assessment program to help save the Great Salt Lake and other saline lakes in the West.

“Utah’s Great Salt Lake and its neighboring saline lakes are invaluable to our health, environment, habitats, and our ski, recreation, brine shrimp, and extraction industries,” said Congressman Blake Moore. â€œI am thrilled this bill moved through the House Natural Resources Committee with unanimous support and passed the House as a testament to our commitment to preserve our saline lake ecosystems so our water users, habitats, industries, and animals can thrive for years to come. I thank my colleagues for their support of this bill, and I look forward to its progress through the legislative process.” (Read More)

Owens leads the Preventing Impairment in the Workplace Act

Rep. Burgess Owens (UT-04) introduced the Preventing Impairment in the Workplace Act, legislation authorizing a workplace training program through the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) to help employers recognize, respond, and prevent workplace impairment while addressing increased safety concerns. The program will be made available to full time and part-time employees and individuals employed by a State or the Federal Government. (Read More)

Number of the Day

Tweet of the Day

Upcoming

• Women in the Money with Utah State Treasurer's Office — Sept. 15-16, Salt Lake Sheraton + online, Register here
• ULCT Annual Convention — Oct 5-7, Salt Palace Convention Center, Register here
• General election â€“ Nov 8

On This Day In History

• 30 BC - Mark Antony [Marcus Antonius], Roman politician and general, commits suicide after he is defeated by Octavian at the Battle of Actium at 53
• 1779 - Francis Scott Key is born.
• 1818 - Maria Mitchell is born. After discovering a comet while searching the night sky with her telescope, Mitchell became America’s first female astronomer. The official name of the comet is 1847 VI. However, during Mitchell’s lifetime, it came to be known as “Miss Mitchell’s Comet” around the world.
• 1834 - The British Empire abolishes slavery with the Slavery Abolition Act.
• 1893 - A Nebraska senator and lawyer, Henry Perky, patents shredded wheat. He later founded the Natural Food Company in Niagara Falls, NY. The company would go on to produce the Triscuit which are still popular today.
• 1900 - The first Michelin Guide is published.
• 1907 - U.S. Army establishes the Signal Corps, the first aeronautical division in the United States military. It was the precursor to the U.S. Air Force.
• 1911 - Harriet Quimby passes her pilot's test and becomes the 1st US woman to earn an Aero Club of America aviator's certificate
• 1933 - Death penalty imposed for anti-fascists in Germany
• 1936 - Adolf Hitler presides over the opening ceremonies of the Berlin Olympics
• 1944 - Anne Frank writes her last diary entry
• 1961 - The Joint Chiefs of Staff establishes the Defense Intelligence Agency (DIA) under the direction of Defense Secretary Robert S. McNamara. The organization integrated military intelligence efforts.
• 1974 - Beverly Johnson becomes the first African American to be featured on the cover of Vogue.
• 1981 - MTV launches
• 2020 - Egypt tells Elon Musk its pyramids were not built by aliens, after Musk tweets in support of a conspiracy theory that they did

Wise Words

"For generations in this country, beauty was traditionally represented by three very distinct ideals in virtually all media: blond hair, blue eyes and fair skin...My cover shattered that notion forever."

— Beverly Johnson

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