Tag Archives: Vox

Current Affairs, Food & Drink, Memories & History, Pleasures, Travel

What I learned from taking a train across the US

August 9, 2023 DrWeb

Here’s how US train travel went from excellent to mediocre.

By Dean Peterson, Jul 18, 2023, 11:15am EDT

Added via YouTube

If you’ve taken the Amtrak recently, you might have no idea that the United States used to have the largest and wealthiest rail system in the world. How did the US go from having luxurious, widely used passenger trains to the Amtrak system we have today?

Video producer Dean Peterson makes a 72-hour journey on Amtrak from LA to NYC to show its current state of operation. From getting kicked in the head by his sleeping seatmate to taking in sweeping views of the desert at sunset, Dean shows the highs and lows of being stuck on Amtrak for days on end.

Along the way, he explains the history of passenger rail in the US — starting in the problematic robber baron era to the US government’s takeover of passenger rail. Will the United States ever catch up to the rest of the world when it comes to train travel, or are Americans stuck with an underfunded, inefficient rail network forever? Join Dean on his journey as he sets out to find the answers to these questions and more.

https://www.vox.com/videos/2023/7/18/23798910/travel-train-amtrak-coast-to-coast

Arts & Humanities, Books & Reading, Current Affairs, Libraries, Memories & History, Politics, Science & Health, Times They Are A-Changing, Web & Technology

Republicans are trying to defund public libraries in addition to book bans – Vox

May 6, 2023 DrWeb

By Fabiola Cineas, May 5, 2023, 5:05pm EDT

A library in Missouri, where state lawmakers in 2022 made it illegal to provide students with “sexually explicit” material and later tried to eliminate state funding for public libraries.
Shane Keyser/Kansas City Star/Tribune News Service via Getty Images

Fabiola Cineas covers race and policy as a reporter for Vox. Before that, she was an editor and writer at Philadelphia magazine, where she covered business, tech, and the local economy.

When Missouri’s House voted in late March to approve a state budget that would eliminate $4.5 million in funding for public libraries, local and national free speech advocates went into panic mode.

The Missouri Senate later restored the funding to the budget proposal in April. But full funding for the state’s libraries is still not guaranteed, and librarians and patrons are concerned that libraries across the state are still under attack and subject to the whims of Republican lawmakers.

Editor’s Note: Read more, see link below for original item…

Source: Republicans are trying to defund public libraries in addition to book bans – Vox

Current Affairs, Science & Health

Who should get a second Covid-19 vaccine booster shot — and when? – Vox

April 3, 2022 DrWeb

There is no right or wrong answer on getting another booster shot. Here’s what to consider.

By Dylan Scott @dylanlscott dylan.scott@vox.com, Mar 31, 2022, 2:30pm EDT

The Biden administration has approved a fourth Covid-19 vaccine shot for all Americans over age 50 and for all adults who are immunocompromised.

But does that mean everybody who is eligible should rush out to their pharmacy or primary care doctor to get it?

The short answer is that it depends — on both your personal risk and what’s happening with the pandemic.

Making things even more perplexing, the public health guidance has become more nuanced as more booster shots are authorized.

Whereas public health experts were unified in urging people to get their first and second shots last year, they were more divided about third shots when those were approved late last year, at least until the emerging omicron wave made the first round of boosters more urgent.

Source: Who should get a second Covid-19 vaccine booster shot — and when? – Vox