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Current Topics
Flooded
Alaska villages face recovery far tougher than most Americans will
ever see. Alaska Beacon
In
photos: Residents of western Alaska share storm damage of ex-Typhoon
Halong. Alaska Beacon
‘No
home to go to’: Hundreds of evacuees need shelter as catastrophic
Western Alaska storm empties inundated villages. ADN
Disasters in remote Alaska
are not like disasters anywhere in the lower 48 states, he explains.
While East Coast homeowners recovering from a nor’easter
that flooded parts of New Jersey and other states the same weekend can
run to Home Depot for supplies or drive to a hotel if their home
floods, none of that exists in remote Native villages.
Halong
impact: Bush lawmakers say typhoon impact will be session focus, as
immediate need being assessed. Alaska's News Source
Halong
has impacted 49 communities and forced at least 1,800 into
shelters. Troopers reported Monday that 51 people and 2 dogs have
been rescued. There has been one fatality, and two
still remain missing.
Hundreds
evacuating from hardest hit Western Alaska villages following storm. Alaska Public Media
A Guard spokesperson said
that 300 people from both Kipnuk and Kwigillingok were being
evacuated to Anchorage. The Alaska National Guard said the evacuees
were being flown to Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, where agencies
will be available to direct them to shelter, food and medical care.
Typhoon
disaster in Western Alaska raises questions around the region's
future. Alaska Beacon
As of Friday, the disaster
response was being led by the state, according to a FEMA statement.
But opportunities for immediate action beyond evacuations and
temporary shelter were limited. “There is very little time to do
anything, like even dry stuff out at this point,” Thoman said.
“Winter is nigh.”
Anchorage
city leaders declare local disaster to assist hundreds displaced by
Western Alaska storms. Alaska Public Media
Anchorage city leaders
voted Friday to extend an emergency declaration as the city welcomes
hundreds of people displaced by heavy flooding in Western Alaska from
Typhoon Halong. Following a disaster declaration from Gov. Mike
Dunleavy, Anchorage Mayor Suzanne LaFrance declared a local
emergency, which the Assembly voted to extend to mid-December.
LaFrance said the proclamation allows the city to quickly mobilize
resources to help those in need.
(My Comment: Anchorage, as
Alaska's largest city, is a refuge to which many Alaskans come. The
disaster has created a large bolus of folks who have no homes. We,
Anchorage, have to step up. But not just for today; the unhoused
population is growing. I appreciate what Mayor LaFrance is doing to
activate resources. The need will get to be longer duration. We need
to come to grips with the cost and responsibility.)
What's
in a federal disaster declaration? Details matter for storm
survivors. Alaska Public Media
Typhoon
Halong recovery efforts. Talk of Alaska
Things That I Found Interesting
1
big thing: Next generation of cops. Axios
It claims that, after
drone flights, residents have received citations about code
violations and warnings about too many hemp plants on properties.
1
for the road: Gravestone recipes. Axios
Mental Health
New
study shed light on ChatGPT's alarming interactions with teens. AP News
ChatGPT will tell
13-year-olds how to get drunk and high, instruct them on how to
conceal eating disorders and even compose a heartbreaking suicide
letter to their parents if asked, according
to new research from a watchdog group.
The Associated Press reviewed
more than three hours of interactions between ChatGPT and researchers
posing as vulnerable teens. The chatbot typically provided warnings
against risky activity but went on to deliver startlingly detailed
and personalized plans for drug use, calorie-restricted diets or
self-injury.
Weighing
risks and benefits as kids turn to AI companions. NCSL
Over 70% of teens have used
an AI companion chatbot—avatars designed to replicate human
interaction.
Energy
A
green light for turning mine waste into nuke fuel. Axios
Russia was the top supplier
of nuclear reactor fuel to the U.S. last year despite a ban on
enriched uranium imports from that country becoming law, according to
recent Energy Information Administration data.
(My comment: I’m surprised
we are importing uranium from Russia. Saskatchewan (Canada) is the
largest producer of uranium and is right next to the US.
U.S.
fuel ethanol exports on track to set record, driving more domestic
production. EIA
The United States is on track
to export a record amount of fuel ethanol for the second year in a
row in 2025, driven by growing international demand. This growing
market for exports is supporting increased U.S. fuel ethanol
production, even as domestic consumption stagnates. Fuel
ethanol is a renewable fuel that is commonly blended with
gasoline and is made by fermenting sugar from biomass, typically corn
in the United States. The United States is the largest global
producer and exporter of fuel ethanol.
Economy
22
economies on the brink. Axios
(My comment: Alaska is
“treading water”. I’m not proud of that.)
Shutdown
won't stop CPI release. Axios
The September Consumer
Price Index is particularly critical because it is used to calculate
the annual cost-of-living adjustment for Social Security recipients —
and it will now be released
on Oct. 24, despite the shutdown. The government shutdown lapsed
funding for key agencies, including the Bureau of Labor Statistics,
which is responsible for releasing CPI, the monthly jobs report and
other economic indicators. That means all work on the price data was
halted indefinitely.
Seniors
and teens becoming more important in Alaska's workforce, statistics
show. Alaska
Beacon
A big difference between
older and younger workers is the degree of the male-female pay gap.
For workers 65 and older, the
gap is wide. Men in that age group had average annual earnings of
$54,835, compared to average earnings of $38,797 for women 65 and
older. In dollar terms, older women in Alaska earned 71 cents for
every $1 earned by men 65 and older.
The gap widens with age, the
analysis found. The gap existed even in the highest-paid job
category, the analysis found. Top male executives who were at least
65 years old earned $112,799 a year on average in 2024, while top
female executives in the same age group earned an average of $87,514.
Statewide, across all age groups, women earn 73 cents for every $1
earned by men, her article said.
Wall
Street tumbles to its worst day since April after trump threatens
more tariffs in China. ADN
A monthslong calm on Wall
Street shattered Friday, and U.S. stocks tumbled after President
Donald Trump threatened to crank tariffs much higher on
China.
Alaska
Housing Finance Corp. buys 600 acres of university land to spur
development. Alaska Public Media
Daniel
Delfino, with the Alaska Housing Finance Corp., said housing is tight
all around Alaska. The idea, he said, is to jump-start development in
a way the organization and others hope to replicate in the future.
Exclusive:
Deportation job wipeout. Axios
The Trump
administration's immigration crackdown is projected to reduce
the U.S. workforce by 6.8 million people by 2028 and by 15.7 million
by 2035, per a study. Fewer workers in the labor force
could have dramatic effects on the U.S. economy.
30
AI stocks: $180 billion in consumer spending. Axios
Stock ownership is
concentrated among the affluent, so the role of wealth effects in
driving consumer spending helps explain some of the contradictions
evident in the economy right now. Overall consumer spending has
remained strong, but it has been held
up by high earners, with more signs of stress evident at lower economic
tiers. The University of Michigan's consumer
sentiment survey shows a stark divide in sentiment between
households that have large stock holdings and those that don't.
Education
UA
president says budget cuts are modest, current projects align with
Trump administration priorities. Juneau Independent
“We are in an uncertain and
a quite bizarre federal environment, but it's manageable. It is even
more manageable when each of us comes to the table with a positive
attitude,” Pitney said.
Alaska
education department publishes guidelines on developing AI policies
in schools. Alaska Public Media
The Alaska Department of
Education and Early Development presented a set of guidelines on using AI in school districts last week.
It includes recommendations and considerations on topics like
cultural responsiveness and security when making AI policies.
Trump
moves closer to eliminating Education Department amid shutdown. ADN
The prolonged government
shutdown is helping the Trump administration advance its goal of
closing the Education Department - a longtime conservative aim that
congressional Republicans have failed to act on.
The agency had already
reduced its staff by half earlier this year. Now, blaming the
shutdown, the Education Department is trying to lay off an additional
465 people, cutting deeply into multiple offices. That includes
federal officials who oversee special education programs and another
round of slashing at the Office for Civil Rights.
Politics
1
big thing: China's mineral gambit enrages Trump and shows trade war
hazards. Axios
Chinese officials
unleashed new plans to restrict access to minerals critical for America's most economically important
industries — the latest area in which China is showing its unique
sources of leverage in the trade war. America's aggressive new tariff
regime may not be doing quite the damage to the U.S. economy that some
warned earlier in the year, but it is not without cost — and the
Chinese in particular are using tools they have to apply pressure.
Norwegians
worry about backlash as Trump misses out on Nobel Prize. ADN
Trump had
openly coveted the award, frequently touting his peacemaking efforts, privately
making a push for it with former NATO chief and Norwegian Finance
Minister Jens Stoltenberg - and going as far as to say that it would
be “a big insult to our country” if he didn’t win and that “perhaps
they’ll find a reason not to give it to me.” Israel and Hamas reached
an initial ceasefire agreement Thursday, after Trump pushed
hard for the two sides to reach a deal.
Sullivan
votes in support of killing suspected drug smugglers without trial;
Murkowski opposed. Alaska Beacon
Alaska’s two U.S. senators
are split on whether or not it is appropriate for the U.S. military
to kill suspected drug smugglers without trial or a declaration of
war.
Alaska
immigration enforcement: 41 of 56 detained this year not linked to a
crime, data shows. Alaska's News Source
New state data obtained by
Alaska’s News Source provides context for immigration advocates’
longstanding claims about federal enforcement priorities, showing 41
of the 56 people detained this year had no criminal records.
Alaska
allows feds to use state airports for political ad that blames
Democrats for shutdown. Alaska Beacon
Passengers at Alaska’s
biggest airports may soon see a political advertisement published by
the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that blames Democrats for
the ongoing federal government shutdown. The
video,
promoted by the White House, features Homeland Security Secretary
Kristi Noem and is expected to appear at Transportation Security
Administration checkpoints. Airport officials in other states —
including Noem’s home state of South Dakota — have
declined to allow the video, citing longstanding policies against airing
political content.
Dunleavy
appointment to Alaska judicial board will stand, judge rules after
two lawsuits. Alaska Beacon
The two plaintiffs had also
challenged Wood’s eligibility to serve because the Alaska
Constitution forbids a member of the Judicial Council from holding a
“position of profit under the state,” and Wood holds a consulting
contract with the Dunleavy administration.
In 1968, the Alaska Supreme
Court ruled that “position of profit” means acting as an
employee in “salaried nontemporary employment” and does not cover
consulting contracts. Lamoureux, citing that case, ruled against the
plaintiffs.
(My comment: The number of
Dunleavy appointments of people who are getting paid in some way by
the Administration…doesn’t pass the red face test.)
Dunleavy
drive to reduce regulation could reshape many parts of life in
Alaska. Alaska Beacon
Administrative Order 360,
issued in August, calls on state agencies to reduce the number of
state regulations by 15% before 2027 and 25% cumulatively before
2028. Both deadlines would come after Dunleavy, who is term-limited,
leaves office in December 2026.
(My comment: Please pay
attention. What regulations (guardrails, limits) will be removed for
“favored people” through this action? I agree that we have many old
laws and regulations, but this throws the doors open to favortism on
a large scale.)
It
won't stop with Trump. Axios
Unprecedented new powers
seized or granted to Trump and future presidents in the past eight
months alone. These
actions, all public, fall into three categories: punishing
individual critics ... freeing allies convicted of crimes ... and
policing speech.
Editorial:
Free speech isn't free if politicians decide what can be said. ADN
U.S.
rescue of Argentina is official. Axios
It's the largest direct
U.S. bailout of another country since the Clinton administration
rescued Mexico in 1995. The Argentine peso has continued to weaken despite the
U.S. government's interventions, raising pressure on President Javier
Milei, a Trump ally. After the U.S. first said it would come to
Argentina's aid, the government dropped an export tax, which allowed
Argentine farmers to sell soybeans to China at substantially lower
prices. American farmers already saw their largest export market
evaporate amid Trump's trade war.
Exclusive:
Lawmakers push back against Trump's H-1B visa fee. Axios
The Trump administration's
$100,000 fee for every new H1-B visa applicant is poised to hit small
technology companies and startups hard, stifling competition and
innovation in the U.S. Lawmakers from both sides of the aisle are
calling on Trump and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to negotiate a
policy solution to H1-B visa issues.
Health Care
Alaska's
whooping cough outbreak infected hundreds, with infants suffering the
most. Alaska
Beacon
Pertussis is caused by a
bacterial infection and is highly contagious. Among them were 74
infants younger than 1 who got the disease, most were not up to date
on their vaccinations, the bulletin said. Twenty-nine patients were
hospitalized, most of them infants under 1 year old, the bulletin
said. One unvaccinated baby died during the outbreak, the bulletin
said.
1
big thing: Unsubsidized health insurance is unaffordable. Axios
Health benefit costs are
expected to increase 6.5% per employee in 2026, according
to Mercer. On average, ACA marketplace plans are raising
premiums about 20% in 2026, according
to KFF. How
much of that increase gets passed on to enrollees will depend on
whether the enhanced subsidies are extended, but the premium
increases are partially due to insurers having accounted for the
subsidy expiration.
(My comment: Alaskan costs
are even higher. Insurance companies are REDUCING REIMBURSEMENT for
services to your healthcare provider. They are keeping the difference
in what the charge you (more $) and what they pay your healthcare
provider (less $). We have to rein insurance companies in!)
Trump's
new $100K visa fee could worsen state doctor shortages, experts say. Stateline
In Kentucky, patients drive
up to two hours to see Dr. Manikya Kuriti, one of the few
endocrinologists who serve the rural communities surrounding
Louisville.Kuriti’s husband, a pulmonologist, drives from Louisville
to small hospitals an hour south and north, in Indiana, to help small
teams treat critically ill patients.Many immigrant physicians help
fill those gaps thanks in part to the H-1B
visa, which
allows skilled foreign workers to come work in the U.S. Both Kuriti
and her husband came to the U.S. via the H-1B visa.
Health
insurance sticker shock begins as shutdown battle over subsidies
rages. ADN
Premiums nationwide are set
to rise by 18 percent on average, according to an analysis of
preliminary rate filings by the nonpartisan health policy group KFF.
That, combined with the loss of extra subsidies, have left Americans
with the worst year-over-year price hikes in the 12 years since the
marketplaces launched.
Expiring
SNAP funds leads to uncertainty for over 60,000 Alaskans; impact on
Halong evacuees unknown. Alaska's News Source
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