Electric charging network - Sweden ends Covid testing - Religious clothing ban

11 FEB 2022

Facts, not fear.

TRENDING TOPICS
Ending forced arbitration • Electric charging network • Religious clothing ban in India • Sweden ends Covid-19 testing • Tesla discrimination lawsuit

FEATURED UNDER-REPORTED STORIES
Curable high blood pressure • Right to sex work • Preschool efficacy

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TRENDING TOPICS, MOST CREDIBLE STORIES

#1 in U.S. News • 21 articles

How did the Senate get bipartisan support for a bill on workplace sexual misconduct?

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Highly-rated - last 48 hrs
Congress sends Biden bill to end forced arbitration in harassment cases.
Roll Call (Center) • Factual Grade 79% • 4 min read
The bill would give workers the opportunity to pursue sexual harassment and sexual assault claims in public courts, instead of being forced by employer arbitration agreements to pursue those claims in a confidential forum. Illinois Democratic Rep. Cheri Bustos and New York Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand have filed versions of the legislation in the past three sessions of Congress.
...
Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand said the bill would give workers the ability to use the courts to find out more information about their abusers and get out of a forum where they are more likely to lose and typically get smaller monetary rewards if they prevail. The bill also would allow them to discuss their cases publicly, Gillibrand said.
...
Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer credited the legislative success in part to the tenacity of Gillibrand and to South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham’s effort to “convince businesses that this is good for business as well.”

Different political viewpoint
Congress passes bipartisan bill ending forced arbitration in sexual misconduct cases
Washington Times (Moderate Right) • Factual Grade 72% • 3 min read

Selected long-read
Forced arbitration shields serial harassers, experts say. Here’s what you should know. (2021)
The Lily (Left) • Factual Grade 83% • 5 min read

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#2 in U.S. News • 17 articles

How is the Biden administration funding an electric vehicle charging network?

Highly-rated - last 48 hrs
White House rolls out $5 billion funding plan to states for electric vehicle chargers.
CNBC (Moderate Left) • Factual Grade 80% • 3 min read
The Biden administration rolled out a plan to allocate $5 billion to states to fund electric vehicle chargers over five years, as part of the bipartisan infrastructure package that includes $7.5 billion to build a sprawling network of EV charging stations across the country. The new guidance will help states build a network of EV charging stations along designated alternative fuel corridors on the national highway system.
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The program to build out charging stations could save an average driver who uses an electric vehicle up to $1,000 each year on gasoline, President Joe Biden said. Tritium, an Australian company that makes EV chargers, is set to build a manufacturing facility in Tennessee that will produce up to 30,000 chargers each year and create 500 local jobs.
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Officials during the call Wednesday said they will unveil guidance on the other $2.5 billion for EV charging stations as part of the bipartisan infrastructure plan later this year. That funding will involve discretionary grants for corridor and community EV charging.

Different political viewpoint
EV charging network will target interstate highways. [Free read link]
Wall Street Journal (Moderate Right) • Factual Grade 70% • 3 min read

Selected long-read
More EVs are coming. Where's the infrastructure to support them? (2021)
ABC News (Moderate Left) • Factual Grade 79% • 6 min read

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#1 in World News • 13 articles

What school policies are sparking protests in India?

Highly-rated - last 48 hrs
Hijab protests spread in India as girls face off against Hindu nationalist crowds. [Free read link]
Washington Post (Moderate Left) • Factual Grade 85% • 5 min read
Debate over the hijab in schools took off last month after students at a pre-university college in [the state Karnataka] began protesting a rule barring them from wearing the head covering in classrooms. Protests quickly spread, as more educational institutions began banning Muslim students from wearing the hijab.
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“Government is very firm that the school is not a platform to practice dharma [religion],” Karnataka education minister B.C. Nagesh said. Officials have also said saffron scarves are forbidden in class. Hindu activists have staged counterprotests, demanding that the saffron shawl — a Hindu religious symbol — be allowed in schools.
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The opposing movements have deepened polarization and prompted the state to close secondary schools. On Tuesday, protests turned violent. The state’s high court had ordered the government to reopen schools but prevent students from wearing any religious dress until it delivers a verdict on petitions seeking to overturn the hijab ban.

Selected local viewpoint
Denying students educational services for wearing hijab is unconstitutional.
The Wire (Moderate Left) • Factual Grade 71% • 10 min read

Selected long-read
India’s Muslims: an increasingly marginalized population. (2020)
Council on Foreign Relations (Moderate Right) • Factual Grade 89% • 9 min read

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TODAY'S POLL

Should schools bar students from wearing religious clothing?

Yes No Unsure

All votes are anonymous. This poll closes at: 9:00 PDT

YESTERDAY'S POLL

Are K - 5 students too young to talk about sexual orientation and gender identity?

853 votes, 123 comments

Context: Florida legislature considers bill restricting discussions of sexual orientation and gender identity for grades K-5.

HIGHLIGHTED COMMENTS

“ Yes - I DO think there are developmentally appropriate conversations to be had with kids on these topics. However, children develop at varying rates that are influenced by a multitude of factors and the way we divide children into grades based on age doesn’t adequately take that into account as a foundation for discussions on these topics.”

“ No - If the question had been about K-3, then maybe. Having been a principal of 5th graders, some are beginning puberty and others see the world around them and ask questions. We mustn’t hide the world from kids—they are savvy and know when they are being patronized or lied to. Better to answer questions they ask than to seek answers elsewhere.”

“ Unsure - There is a difference between proactively encouraging young children to consider their own sexuality and helping them make sense of the world they see. I am generally opposed to the former. I am 100% in favor of the latter, in age-appropriate ways and as questions naturally arise. ”

Your comments and earned Respects.

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#2 in World News • 9 articles

Why is Sweden ending its Covid-19 testing?

Highly-rated - last 48 hrs
Sweden ends Covid-19 testing as pandemic restrictions lifted.
Associated Press (Center) • Factual Grade 71% • 5 min read
Some experts say the move could become the norm as costly testing yields fewer benefits with the easily transmissible but milder omicron variant and as governments begin to consider treating COVID-19 like they do other endemic illnesses.
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Sweden also scrapped its limits on how many people may gather at events or in restaurants, vaccine certificates can no longer be required and reduced operating hours have been canceled for bars and eateries. High vaccination rates in Sweden are creating optimism among health officials and a late 2020 study released Tuesday showed antibodies present in 85% of samples.
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For most of the pandemic, Sweden stood out among European nations for its comparatively hands-off response. It never went into lockdown or closed businesses. While coronavirus deaths were high compared with other Nordic countries, they were lower than many other places in Europe that did implement lockdowns.

Selected long-read
Sweden’s pandemic experiment. (2021)
New Yorker (Left) • Factual Grade 64% • 17 min read

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#1 in Business News • 18 articles

Why is a California agency suing Tesla?

Highly-rated - last 48 hrs
California sues Tesla, saying the company permitted racial discrimination at its factory. [Free read link]
New York Times (Moderate Left) • Factual Grade 80% • 3 min read
The California Department of Fair Employment and Housing said hundreds of Tesla workers had reported being subjected to racist graffiti and widespread use of racial slurs, including from supervisors. The agency said Black employees were assigned more physically arduous work and denied transfers and promotions more often than other workers.
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[Tesla] argued that the state agency had investigated dozens of previous claims in recent years and found no misconduct. “It therefore strains credibility for the agency to now allege, after a three-year investigation, that systematic racial discrimination and harassment somehow existed at Tesla,” the company said.
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Tesla said its Fremont factory had a “majority-minority work force” and described the lawsuit as counterproductive “at a time when manufacturing jobs are leaving California.” Tesla also said the California agency had declined its requests for information on the accusations.

Selected long-read
Despite legal protections, most workers who face discrimination are on their own. (2019)
Center for Public Integrity (Center) • Factual Grade 83% • 10 min read

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UPDATES & BREAKING NEWS

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HIGHLY CREDIBLE, UNDER-REPORTED STORIES




	Doctors overlook a curable cause of high blood pressure. Undark (Center) • Grade 86% • 10 min read


	Is there a constitutional right to sex work? Boston Review (Moderate Left) • Grade 71% • 24 min read


	A major new study suggests that preschool holds kids back. The Bulwark (Moderate Right) • Grade 73% • 5 min read