The Buzz 05.17.18

WHO’S IN TOWN?

It sounds like a version of TED Talks for the military: The Big Ideas Exchange, or BIX, is convening to tackle pressing questions about American national security. Physicist Joseph Hooper talks about “The Next Big Bang,” exploring innovations in weapons, specifically metal combustion, noting that “a burning aluminum cube releases more energy than a detonating TNT cube.” Bradley J. Strawser covers the ethics of war, including the use of drones and precision warfare. According to his PowerPoint presentation, civilian casualties rose from 5 percent in 1900 to 15 percent by the end of World War I, to 65 percent by World War II and over 90 percent in recent years.

3pm Tuesday, May 22. Naval Postgraduate School, Sloat Avenue, Monterey. Free; closed to the public. 656-1068, nps.edu.

FREE SPEECH

We know data presentation can be spun to support competing perspectives. The same is true for collection of raw data. Consider the Trump administration’s decision to seek information on citizenship status in the 2020 Census. On May 1, Monterey County became a plaintiff in a lawsuit aiming to block the citizenship question, arguing it will intimidate respondents, and therefore lead to a poor Census participation, particularly in immigrant-dense communities.

In another federal decision about data collection, the U.S. Department of Justice announced in April that it would revise the National Crime Victimization Survey, eliminating information about sexual orientation and gender identity from youth ages 16-18, “due to concerns about the potential sensitivity of these questions for adolescents.” On May 11, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra sent a letter, on behalf of 10 state attorneys general, to the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics opposing the change: “Without this data, stakeholders will be denied an important tool to help them address the widespread bullying, threats, and actual violence against students,” he wrote.

GOOD WEEK / BAD WEEK

GOOD:

Visitors to Monterey County injected $2.85 billion into the local economy last year, an increase of 3.5 percent over 2016, according to the Monterey County Convention and Visitors Bureau’s latest “Monterey County Travel Impacts” report. The MCCVB estimates visitor spending supported 25,000 jobs and generated $127 million in tax revenue, an 8.7-percent increase. Monterey saw the biggest impact, at 31 percent, with Salinas getting 14 percent and Carmel 8 percent. The average overnight visitor spent nearly $800 per trip. Although the report delivered good news, MCCVB President and CEO Tammy Blount-Canavan cautions that the county is in competition with other tourist destinations, like Napa Valley. “It is crucial we remain aggressive and focused in attracting valuable travelers,” she says.

BAD:

First, the good news: An annual survey of 801 college students conducted by Hart Research Associates for the Panetta Institute shows 48 percent are paying close attention to the midterm elections, twice as many as 2014. But their reasons for tuning in reflect some dark perceptions: 61 percent say the U.S. is “on the wrong track” and 43 percent are seriously worried about a mass shooting occurring on their campus. Personal finances are even more bleak: 37 percent skipped a meal because they couldn’t afford to eat, 36 percent avoided a dental or medical procedure because of the expense and 65 percent worry about student debt. “These numbers are dramatic evidence of how college costs have been ratcheting up and pricing many young people out of the market,” Panetta Institute CEO Sylvia Panetta said.