Stuff YOU Should Know
Shareable Scooters Hit the Road
Move over, buses and subways and ride sharing. A new public transportation trend is hitting the streets: e-scooters.
E-scooters, or shareable electric scooters, are stand-up, battery-powered personal transportation devices that are part of the growing micro-mobility trend in cities nationwide. Here’s how they work: you use an app on your phone to locate a scooter (most of the major e-scooter companies operate as “dockless” models, meaning that you can drop them off and pick them up anywhere), and use your phone to enter your credit card information. You’re then charged a fee for unlocking the scooter, plus a few cents for every minute that you have it out. When you get to where you need to go, you drop the scooter off wherever you want.
The reason for the popularity of e-scooters is obvious: they’re a cheap, convenient, and fun way to get around. They’re great for getting people to or from bus stops or subways, or for tourists exploring a city, or for places that don’t have good public transportation methods already in place. They’re more economical and more environmentally friendly than cars, buses, or trains. And they can go anywhere: there’s no need to stay on the road, which makes them great for exploring parks and other tucked-away places.
But there are drawbacks, too. E-scooter companies will often set up shop in a city without acquiring the necessary permits first, hoping to win over residents so the city won’t kick them out. Also, because they can be dropped off anywhere, the scooters can become a nuisance, with ditched scooters clogging sidewalks and presenting hazards to pedestrians and bicyclists. Most e-scooter companies have rules that require riders to wear helmets and ride only in bike lanes, but those rules are tough to enforce. In April, the city of San Francisco went so far as to send cease-and-desist letters to the three top e-scooter companies, accusing them of “endangering public health and safety.”
What Do You Think? Write a letter to the leaders of your city explaining whether or not you think the city should permit e-scooters, and why.
Going on a Bear Hunt?
We don’t often think of big game hunting as something that happens in the United States (at least, not in the lower 48 states). But that might soon be changing. Last month, the Wyoming Fish and Game Commission unanimously decided to allow the hunting of grizzly bears near Yellowstone National Park. This is the first time such a thing has been allowed since 1974, just before the Yellowstone grizzlies were put on the endangered species list. (They were removed from the list last year.) The hunt will be carefully regulated, and the maximum number of bears that can be shot is 22. The state of Idaho has announced that it too will allow grizzly bear hunting, though the total allowed to be killed in Idaho is just one.
Many environmentalists and roughly 200 Native American tribal nations have spoken out against the decision. They worry that, although grizzly bear numbers have improved, hunting—combined with a warmer, drier climate that causes less food to be available—will severely damage the grizzly population. They also oppose the hunt on moral grounds, because bears are only taken as trophies (not for sustenance) and are intelligent creatures with distinct, individual personalities.
Others, including farmers and ranchers, see the growing grizzly population as a threat to their livestock and welcome the hunt. However, several lawsuits have already been filed, and it’s possible that hunting season won’t open for grizzlies this year after all.
Dig Deeper Use internet resources to create a line graph showing the estimated number of Yellowstone grizzly bears that existed in 1974, up to today. In your opinion, has the population increased enough that Wyoming’s decision to hunt the bears is appropriate? Why or why not?
Sticks and Stones . . . and Food Allergies
Credit: Image Source/Getty Images
It’s a typical story: a child who is different from his or her peers is singled out and teased by classmates, and perhaps even bullied for these differences. Kids pick on other kids for being too small, too big, too weak, for their socioeconomic background, for looking different, or for having different interests. And now, experts are beginning to realize that some kids are also being bullied for something else: their allergies.
This is called “food bullying.” Sometimes it involves teasing someone about his or her allergy, but other times, it can involve deadly “pranks,” such as putting peanut butter on the backpack of someone with a severe peanut allergy. This kind of bullying can lead to a trip to the hospital, or even death. The concept of food bullying isn’t new. But what has changed is the number of children who have food allergies, which increased by 18% from 1997 to 2007 and has continued to grow since then. That means every year, more and more children are threatened—sometimes seriously—by this kind of bullying behavior.
So, what’s to be done about it? The first step, experts say, is to raise awareness about serious food allergies, which are legally considered to be a disability. Zero-tolerance bullying policies in schools are a good start, but some schools are going further, and actually integrating food-allergy education programs into their curriculum.
Dig Deeper Create a poster raising awareness about food allergies or food bullying. With your teacher’s permission, hang the poster in a visible place in your school’s cafeteria or common area.
More Protests in the Middle East
In April, btw brought you the story of political protests along the border between Palestine and Gaza. Protests also happened last week in Jordan. Thousands of citizens took part in anti-government protest that were largely peaceful, though protesters did set fires, and riot police were called in to keep the situation under control. At least ten people were arrested. After four nights, however, not a single person was killed, and the protesters were successful at achieving their agenda: the prime minster of Jordan, Hani al-Mulki, resigned, taking his cabinet with him.
These protests were sparked by the government’s announcement of a new income tax that included even very poor citizens. This, combined with the rising cost of living, led people to stand up and speak out in what turned out to be the largest demonstrations to take place in Jordan in the past seven years. Over thirty labor unions were involved, but also crowds of people from diverse backgrounds, including doctors, lawyers, engineers, and unemployed young people. Even after the prime minister agreed to resign, protests continued as the people spoke out against the tax bill and widespread governmental corruption. Finally, the government agreed to revoke the tax bill that had made everyone so angry.
The new prime minister is Omar Razzaz, a Harvard-educated economist. He has stated that he sees many ways that Jordan’s government can cut spending and be more fair and equitable with its finances. Razzaz is expected to announce his new cabinet as soon as this week.