A group of agents rose through the ranks to lead the Border Patrol. They’re leaving it in crisis.
How several agents from a small outpost in Arizona, including recently retired chief Carla Provost, climbed to the top of the Border Patrol, then one by one retired, leaving corruption, misconduct and a toxic culture in…
Border Patrol Officials dodged Congress’ questions about migrant children’s deaths
The chair of a House Homeland Security subcommittee reprimanded Border Patrol officials for concealing information about migrant children’s deaths. Officials did not respond to the chairwoman’s criticism. by Robert Moore, special to ProPublica Jan. 14, 5:38…
They loan you money. Then they get a warrant for your arrest.
THE NEW DEBTORS PRISONS High-interest loan companies are using Utah’s small claims courts to arrest borrowers and take their bail money. Technically, the warrants are issued for missing court hearings. For many, that’s a distinction without…
Temperature in Antarctica soars past 69°F as NOAA reports last month was world’s hottest January on record
While the reading in Antarctica still needs to be confirmed, the Brazilian scientists who logged it called the new record “incredible and abnormal.” by Jessica Corbett, staff writer As the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration on…
The irony of the centrist-progressive debate
Moderates consistently warn that progressive ideas can’t win “the middle.” But just look at the polls. By Jim Hightower | February 12, 2020 With dozens of Democratic candidates, scores of televised debates, and swarms of reporters…
Hundreds of county jails detained immigrants for ICE
To hold immigrant detainees for ICE, state and local governments enter into agreements with ICE known as Intergovernmental Service Agreements. These agreements require ICE to pay the local government per diem for each bed that the…
TurboTax and others charged at least 14 million Americans for tax prep that should have been free, audit finds
Tax software companies made around $1 billion in revenue by charging people who were eligible to file for free. by Paul Kiel and Justin Elliott Feb. 5, 3:18 p.m. EST More than 14 million taxpayers paid…
Unique ‘Mary Farfisa’ Episode, A River In Space, touches on old age, Alzheimer’s
By Jim Cheff, The Meteor ‘Mary Farfisa’ is a series of radio plays for children, created by writer/artist Jim Cheff. It ran for two years on Radio Sunnyside in Flagstaff. It now can be found…
To boost bottom lines, Single-Payer may be just what these restaurateurs ordered
Shefali Luthra, Kaiser Health News February 6, 2020 Providence, R.I. — Last winter, James Mark was a 2018 James Beard Award finalist. A few months later, both GQ and Bon Appétit ranked Big King, his newest…
In Flagstaff minimum wage increased to $13 per hour. If you can get it, and keep it.
Flagstaff The beginning of 2020 was historic for workers in 47 states, cities, and counties, including Arizona and Flagstaff, as minimum wage inched upward. Across Arizona the Minimum wage increased to $12.00 per hour from…
Are big-time CEOs finally facing justice?
New Orleans Ok, I’ll admit right off the bat that it’s not a movement. It might not even be a trend, but perhaps we could call it a tendency. I’m talking about the fact that…
How Trump’s proposed benefits changes will create hardship for rural people with disabilities
“Additional reviews would cost $1.8 billion to administer while saving $2 billion in terminated benefits.” Rural Americans are more likely than urban Americans to experience disability. Natee K Jindakum/Shutterstock.com By Lillie Greiman, The University of Montana…
Bears Ears: what’s the rumble about?
Bears Ears is the first tribally requested national monument and has been home to Hopi, Diné, Ute, Ute Mountain Ute, and Zuni peoples since time immemorial, it was designated as a national monument in 2016 to…
How credit cards make us more unequal
Credit card companies fleece retailers to give high-end spenders cash back — a system the rest of us end up subsidizing. By Sam Pizzigati | February 10, 2020 What happens when we use our credit cards?…
Xi Jinping reassures Trump that April heat will kill virus
Quick health brief from the president. The Washington Post reports President Trump said that heat will kill the coronaviruses. At a White House meeting with state governors this morning Trump said Chinese President Xi Jinping feels “Very…
Georgia Governor Kemp loses vote purge suit brought by reporter Palast
Nicole Powers for The Palast Investigative Fund February 9 Atlanta In an extraordinary and unexpected move, Federal Judge Eleanor Ross has declared Gov. Brian Kemp the loser in a lawsuit brought by investigative journalist Greg Palast…
Don’t mourn, hit the doors!
New Orleans What a week! It was pretty much a full-on-Trump-arade! Rarely have we read or heard so many pundits wringing their hands and tearing their hair since they were forced to walk-back the headlines…
Deported to death: US sent 138 Salvadorans home to be killed
At least 138 people deported from the United States to El Salvador since 2013 have been killed, according to a new report by Human Rights Watch, which investigates human rights abuses worldwide. Updated February 7,…
Running from race is hard in the presidential race
New Orleans It’s Abraham Lincoln’s birthday, so what better time to talk about the still unresolved, raw issues around race that continue more than 150 years after his death. Evidence abounds that you can’t run…
Raising the minimum wage in restaurants could be a win for everyone
Nicole Hallett, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York Critics would have you believe that upping the minimum wage in restaurants will lead to massive layoffs and closures. But since raising the minimum wage…
Mary Farfisa’s Outer Space Adventures: Episode 14 – A River In Space
A RIVER IN SPACE – While exploring a river in Outer Space, Mary and Briscoe visit a Nursing Home for Fading Stars. Mary meets a very old Sun named Mr. Corona. He’s cooled off, and all…
Report: ‘No Evidence That Fracking Can Operate Without Threatening Public Health’
More than 1,500 scientific studies on the health and climate impacts of fracking prove its dangerous effect on communities, wildlife and nature. By Tara Lohan, The Revelator In 2010 when I first started writing about hydraulic…
BLM suspends oil & gas extraction leases in Little Colorado River Valley
Flagstaff The Trump administration has suspended 4,200 acres of oil and gas leases on public land in Arizona’s Little Colorado River Valley as part of a joint motion filed in federal court yesterday (Feb 5) after…
Rejecting ‘profoundly disturbing’ logic, judge reverses convictions of AZ border humanitarians
This is the second time in recent months that a federal judge has granted a faith-based defense raised by volunteers prosecuted for providing aid to migrants traveling through the dangerous Arizona desert. By Jessica Corbett, staff…
