Texas Abortion Law Part I: The Law And The Supreme Court Dissents

 I'm trying to pull together points about the new Texas anti-abortion law.  You can see the law itself here.  I'm not going to discuss the issues related to whether women should have access to abortion, whether the religious and other arguments about when life begins or that abortion is murder.  I will assume here that abortion is not murder and the women have the right to end a pregnancy.  I'll only mention this once the hypocrisy of arguing for the right not to wear a mask or not get a vaccine during a pandemic, while arguing that women do not have the right to decide, with their doctors, if they should get an abortion.  

OVERVIEW

• Parts of the new Law
• Parts of the dissents by Supreme Court Justices
• Sotomayor
• Breyer
• Roberts
• My thoughts of steps to be taken to aid women needing an abortion.  [This will be a second post.  There's more than enough in this one already.]

PARTS OF THE NEW TEXAS LAW

Note there are different parts of the law - not clearly indicated that way in the law - that cover different aspects:

• specific details of the prohibition of abortion and conditions
• discussion of previous abortion laws and their continued existence
• manner of prosecution (not by state or governmental officials, but by private citizens)
• damages to be paid for violation of the law, including attorney fees, etc.
• lots of legal posturing to prevent court nullifications of the law (This is not necessarily a bad thing in and of itself.  Certainly laws that opponents of this law might favor are also crafted so they withstand court scrutiny.)
• severability language - that says if one part of the act is ruled unconstitutional, that part will be thrown out but the rest will stand
• long lists of what doctors must report about abortions they perform

I'm just going to give some examples of what the law actually states.  You can go to the link to see the whole statute.  Parts of the statute pasted in without spaces for some lines.  I've tried to fix those, but I may have missed some.   It begins like this:

AN ACT

relating to abortion, including abortions after detection of an unborn child’s heartbeat; authorizing a private civil right of action.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS: SECTIONA1.AAThis Act shall be known as the Texas Heartbeat

Act.

SECTIONA2.AAThe legislature finds that the State of Texas never repealed, either expressly or by implication, the state statutes enacted before the ruling in Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (1973),that prohibit and criminalize abortion unless the mother’s life is in danger.

Note:  They never repealed any of the unconstitutional abortion laws post Roe v. Wade and it appears from other parts of the law (which say this law doesn't not affect other existing abortion statutes) that they're hoping those old laws will come back into effect.

(7)AA"Unborn child" means a human fetus or embryo in any stage of gestation from fertilization until birth.

Throughout the bill, the cross out the word "fetus" and replace it with "child."  And here they are saying it is a "child" immediately at fertilization.

Sec.A171.205.AAEXCEPTION FOR MEDICAL EMERGENCY; RECORDS. (a)AASections 171.203 and 171.204 do not apply if a physician believes a medical emergency exists that prevents compliance with this subchapter.

So there is an exception to prevent a medical emergency.  It requires extensive paperwork detailing all the conditions the doctor must consider.  

Sec.A171.208.AACIVIL LIABILITY FOR VIOLATION OR AIDING OR

ABETTING VIOLATION. (a)AAAny person, other than an officer or employee of a state or local governmental entity in this state, may bring a civil action against any person who:

(1)AAperforms or induces an abortion in violation of thischapter;

(2)AAknowingly engages in conduct that aids or abets the performance or inducement of an abortion, including paying for or reimbursing the costs of an abortion through insurance or otherwise, if the abortion is performed or induced in violation of this chapter, regardless of whether the person knew or should have known that the abortion would be performed or induced in violation of this chapter; or

(3)AAintends to engage in the conduct described by Subdivision(1)or(2).

(b)AAIf a claimant prevails in an action brought under this section,thecourtshallaward:

(1)AAinjunctive relief sufficient to prevent the defendant from violating this chapter or engaging in acts that aid or abet violations of this chapter;

So anything anyone does to help someone abort a fetus with a heart beat is now illegal.  If you drive someone to the clinic (even if you don't know if there is a heart beat or not). If you help pay for the abortion, including insurance companies, you are violating the law.  What I'm trying to find here is clarification of whether helping to get an abortion outside of the state of Texas would also be illegal. I suspect not, because the language is always "in violation of this act" and 'this act' doesn't forbid abortions outside of Texas.  

[UPDATE Sept 3, 2021 2pm:  Constitutional Attorney Lawrence Tribe says, in a Guardian piece,  taking someone out of state would also be a problem:

"Worse still, if women try to escape the state to access abortion services, their families will be on the hook for offering even the smallest aid. If friends or family of a woman hoping to terminate her pregnancy drive her across state lines, or help her organize money for a plane or bus ticket, they could be liable for “aiding and abetting” a now-banned abortion, even if the procedure itself takes place outside Texas."]

S.B.ANo.A8 (2)AAstatutory damages in an amount of not less than $10,000 for each abortion that the defendant performed or induced in violation of this chapter, and for each abortion performed or induced in violation of this chapter that the defendant aided or abetted; and 

(3)AAcosts and attorney’s fees.

(c)AANotwithstanding Subsection (b), a court may not award relief  under this section in response to a violation of Subsection (a)(1) or (2) if the defendant demonstrates that the defendant previously paid the full amount of statutory damages under Subsection(b)(2)in a previous action for that particular abortion performed or induced in violation of this chapter, or for the particular conduct that aided or abetted an abortion performed or induced in violation of this chapter.

(d)AANotwithstanding Chapter 16, Civil Practice and Remedies Code, or any other law, a person may bring an action under this sectionn ot later than the sixth anniversary of the date the cause of action accrues.

The section above talks about financial penalties.  Note - people can snitch on someone for up to six years after an abortion has been performed.  

(e)AANotwithstanding any other law, the following are not a defense to an action brought under this section:

(1)AAignorance or mistake of law;

(2)AAa defendant’s belief that the requirements of this chapter are unconstitutional or were unconstitutional;

(3)AAa defendant’s reliance on any court decision that has been overruled on  appeal or by a subsequent court, even if that court decision had not been overruled when the defendant engaged in conduct that violates this chapter;

Note that section (3) here says that if a court ruled against the law and then later that was overturned, a doctor who performed an 'illegal' abortion during the time after it the law was suspended and before that suspension was overruled, would be liable.  That means even if there are stays and court cases suspending the law, doctors could be sued if they are later overruled.  EVIL.  

(f-1)AAThe defendant has the burden of proving an affirmative defense under Subsection (f)(1) or (2) by a preponderance of the evidence.

(g)AAThis section may not be construed to impose liability on any speech or conduct protected by the First Amendment of the United States Constitution, as made applicable to the states through the United States Supreme Court’s interpretation of the Fourteenth

As I've said, I'm not an attorney, but how can you just declare that this law does not violate the First Amendment.  They seem to be saying that if I tell someone where to get an abortion after a fetal heart beat, it's NOT a violation of the First Amendment to punish me for my speech.  (If they argue that this is because the law saves lives, then how is that different from disinformation about COVID?)

 

SUPREME COURT DISSENTS

I'm just going to give sections of the dissents.  You can see them in their entirety here.  I've bolded some sections I thought particularly noteworthy.

Sotomayor's dissent:

"JUSTICE SOTOMAYOR, with whom JUSTICE BREYER and JUSTICE KAGAN join, dissenting.

The Court’s order is stunning. Presented with an application to enjoin a flagrantly unconstitutional law engi- neered to prohibit women from exercising their constitu- tional rights and evade judicial scrutiny, a majority of Justices have opted to bury their heads in the sand. Last night, the Court silently acquiesced in a State’s enactment of a law that flouts nearly 50 years of federal precedents. Today, the Court belatedly explains that it declined to grant relief because of procedural complexities of the State’s own invention. Ante, at 1. Because the Court’s failure to act rewards tactics designed to avoid judicial review and in- flicts significant harm on the applicants and on women seeking abortions in Texas, I dissent. . ."

The Act is clearly unconstitutional under existing precedents. See, e.g., June Medical Servs. L. L. C. v. Russo, 591 U. S. ___, ___ (2020) (ROBERTS, C. J., concurring in judg- ment) (slip op., at 5) (explaining that “the State may not impose an undue burden on the woman’s ability to obtain an abortion” of a “nonviable fetus” (citing Roe v. Wade, 410 U. S. 113 (1973), and Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pa. v. Casey, 505 U. S. 833 (1992); internal quotation marks omitted)). The respondents do not even try to argue otherwise. Nor could they: No federal appellate court has upheld such a comprehensive prohibition on abortions before viability under current law.

The Texas Legislature was well aware of this binding precedent. To circumvent it, the Legislature took the extraordinary step of enlisting private citizens to do what the State could not. The Act authorizes any private citizen to file a lawsuit against any person who provides an abortion in violation of the Act, “aids or abets” such an abortion (in- cluding by paying for it) regardless of whether they know the abortion is prohibited under the Act, or even intends to engage in such conduct. §3 (to be codified at Tex. Health & Safety Code Ann. §171.208). Courts are required to enjoin the defendant from engaging in these actions in the future and to award the private-citizen plaintiff at least $10,000 in “statutory damages” for each forbidden abortion performed or aided by the defendant. Ibid. In effect, the Texas Legislature has deputized the State’s citizens as bounty hunters, offering them cash prizes for civilly prosecuting their neighbors’ medical procedures. 

The Legislature fashioned this scheme because federal constitutional challenges to state laws ordinarily are brought against state officers who are in charge of enforcing the law. See, e.g., Virginia Office for Protection and Advocacy v. Stewart, 563 U. S. 247, 254 (2011) (citing Ex parte Young, 209 U. S. 123 (1908)). By prohibiting state officers from enforcing the Act directly and relying instead on citizen bounty hunters, the Legislature sought to make it more complicated for federal courts to enjoin the Act on a statewide basis.

Taken together, the Act is a breathtaking act of defiance—of the Constitution, of this Court’s precedents, and of the rights of women seeking abortions throughout Texas. But over six weeks after the applicants filed suit to prevent the Act from taking effect, a Fifth Circuit panel abruptly stayed all proceedings before the District Court and vacated a preliminary injunction hearing that was scheduled to begin on Monday. The applicants requested emergency relief from this Court, but the Court said nothing. The Act took effect at midnight last night.*

Today, the Court finally tells the Nation that it declined to act because, in short, the State’s gambit worked. The structure of the State’s scheme, the Court reasons, raises “complex and novel antecedent procedural questions” that counsel against granting the application, ante, at 1, just as the State intended. This is untenable. It cannot be the case that a State can evade federal judicial scrutiny by outsourcing the enforcement of unconstitutional laws to its citizenry. Moreover, the District Court held this case justiciable in a thorough and well-reasoned opinion after weeks of briefing and consideration. 2021 WL 3821062, *8–*26 (WD Tex., Aug. 25, 2021). At a minimum, this Court should have stayed implementation of the Act to allow the lower courts to evaluate these issues in the normal course. Ante, at 2 (ROBERTS, C. J., dissenting). Instead, the Court has re- warded the State’s effort to delay federal review of a plainly unconstitutional statute, enacted in disregard of the Court’s precedents, through procedural entanglements of the State’s own creation.

The Court should not be so content to ignore its constitutional obligations to protect not only the rights of women, but also the sanctity of its precedents and of the rule of law.

I dissent.

 

 Robert's Dissent

"CHIEF JUSTICE ROBERTS, with whom JUSTICE BREYERand JUSTICE KAGAN join, dissenting.

The statutory scheme before the Court is not only unu- sual, but unprecedented. The legislature has imposed a prohibition on abortions after roughly six weeks, and then essentially delegated enforcement of that prohibition to the populace at large. The desired consequence appears to be to insulate the State from responsibility for implementing and enforcing the regulatory regime. . ."

Breyer's dissent

JUSTICE BREYER, with whom JUSTICE SOTOMAYOR and JUSTICE KAGAN join, dissenting.

The procedural posture of this case leads a majority of this Court to deny the applicants’ request for provisional relief. In my view, however, we should grant that request.

I agree with THE CHIEF JUSTICE, JUSTICE SOTOMAYOR, and JUSTICE KAGAN. Texas’s law delegates to private indi- viduals the power to prevent a woman from obtaining an abortion during the first stage of pregnancy. But a woman has a federal constitutional right to obtain an abortion dur- ing that first stage. Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pa. v. Casey, 505 U. S. 833, 846 (1992); Roe v. Wade, 410 U. S. 113, 164 (1973). And a “State cannot delegate . . . a veto power [over the right to obtain an abortion] which the state itself is absolutely and totally prohibited from exercis- ing during the first trimester of pregnancy.” Planned Parenthood of Central Mo. v. Danforth, 428 U. S. 52, 69 (1976) (internal quotation marks omitted). Indeed, we have made clear that “since the State cannot regulate or pro- scribe abortion during the first stage . . . the State cannot delegate authority to any particular person . . . to prevent abortion during that same period.” Ibid. The applicants persuasively argue that Texas’s law does precisely that. . . "

 

Maybe Vietnam Is The Wrong War For Afghanistan Comparisons

 We keep hearing that Biden has ended the US's longest war.  Technically that's true, but also technically, the Korean War isn't over.  There's never been a peace treaty.  And the US has about 28,500 troops still in Korea, some 60 years after the active shooting war is over.  

There are 80,000 US troops stationed in Japan.  

And 35,000 more in Germany.

What's different about Germany, Japan, and Korea from Vietnam and Afghanistan?  First Germany and Japan.  Both were soundly defeated in WWII.  Germany was divided by the Soviet Union, the US, France, and England.  The Soviet Union, which controlled East Germany, was seen as the biggest threat to West Germany.  

Japan was also soundly defeated and ruled by the Allied forces, though effectively headed by General Douglas MacArthur.  A democratic Constitution for Japan was created under MacArthur's leadership.  Japan's two greatest adversaries were neighboring China and the Soviet Union.  Again, the US presence served as protection for the severely battered post-WWII Japan.  

South Korea was threatened by North Korea supported by the Chinese.  The US helped keep the North Koreans and their Chinese allies from taking over South Korea.  

In all three cases, the US was seen as a military protection from outside invasion - China in Korea's case, the Soviet Union and China in Japan's case, and the Soviet Union in West Germany's case.  

In contrast, both in Vietnam and Afghanistan, the US was supporting a government that was more aligned with foreign powers.  Vietnam had recently gotten rid of the French colonial rulers.  The US came in backing the Catholic French colonial Vietnamese against the indigenous Buddhist Vietnamese.  

In Afghanistan, again, the Kabul government was aligned with the US against Afghan groups - Taliban and local tribal leaders.  It's more complicated than that, of course, but basically the Muslim nation was fighting a basically Christian outside force.  

In both Vietnam and Afghanistan, there was outside support for the North Vietnamese and the Taliban, but it was to oust was was seen as an occupying force from the West.  

So in the cases of Vietnam and Afghanistan, the US military was fighting a war, far away from home, in a country they knew little or nothing about.  They didn't speak the language and needed interpreters or locals who spoke English to communicate.  They couldn't tell their friends from their enemies.  Their opponents were fighting for their homeland and to expel the invaders.  

Perhaps this is one of the key lessons we should have learned.  We can support countries that see us as allies against their fight against a feared enemy.  We oughtn't, otherwise, be outsiders picking a side in a civil war, especially in countries we (the average US citizen and the soldiers) know little or nothing about.  

And, of course, we should not assume that what happens us in the future will be exact matches to what happened in the past.  We must be careful to choose our models carefully and to weigh various factors.  

And the world has to figure out how to protect humans from their own ruthless rulers.  It's all very thorny and no one emerges unscathed.  

Alaska's Dismal COVID Data

 I track Alaska's COVID numbers on a chart I started March 15, 2020.  I also make a small summary of the numbers each day.  That got too tedious to post here with the regular posts every day, so they're hidden in a tab under the banner above: Alaska Daily COVID Count 3.

The numbers continue to get worse and worse.  Normally I keep the comments to a minimum and focus on the numbers.  But I couldn't help myself today.  This is all so avoidable, but the kids in the third grade classroom who still haven't learned to clean up after themselves and can't stand it when another kid has something that don't have (even if they don't even want it), well those kids (and their various enablers) are keeping this pandemic going.  

Here's today's update. You have to actually go to the tab to see the table with all the numbers.  

"Wednesday, September 1, 2021 -  For all the folks complaining about how Biden got us out of Afghanistan, yet didn't really work hard to get past the 20 years of wishful thinking about how well the Afghan army and government were doing, think carefully about your beliefs that COVID is a hoax, that herd immunity will make it disappear, that younger people don't get sick or die, that masks and vaccines don't matter.  You're thinking like those so focused on myths about American exceptionalism and our ability to make anything happen because ... we are America.  The Alaska numbers are worse once again and it's the fault of a Governor who cares more about his agenda of cutting government and getting reelected than about the lives of Alaskans.  It's the fault of people profiting from slick podcasts and websites that spread misinformation and alternative medicines that range from useless too dangerous.  It's the fault of people so vested in some mythical better time in America that they believe anything that supports their false vision.  

Sorry, but four more people died yesterday.  That's adding to the four who died the day before.  13 more were hospitalized.  Another new record of COVID hospitalizations was set: 181 or 161(20) - the (20) are COVID positive or suspected who are on Vents.  That sounds like nothing, but  BEING ON A VENT IS HORRIBLE!  This is from Yale Medicine

"The goal is for patients to be awake and calm while they are on a ventilator, but that can sometimes be difficult; many require light sedation for comfort, Dr. Ferrante says.

“Sometimes, patients develop delirium, or an acute state of confusion. And when patients become confused, they might try to pull out their endotracheal tube, which connects them to the ventilator,” she says. “Patients with delirium can be lucid one moment and confused the next. Although we try to avoid sedation as much as possible, particularly in delirious patients, we may have to give some sedation to prevent people from causing self-harm, like pulling out the breathing tube.”

Furthermore, patients with ARDS often feel a natural instinct to take in very big breaths, Dr. Ferrante adds. “Very large breaths can be harmful to an ARDS patient’s lungs, so we try to have their breath size match what we have set on the ventilator,” she says. 

Typically, most patients on a ventilator are somewhere between awake and lightly sedated. However, Dr. Ferrante notes that ARDS patients in the ICU with COVID-19 may need more heavy sedation so they can protect their lungs, allowing them to heal."

Here's another description from the Medical School at Ohio State University.

22 available ICU beds in Alaska, six in Anchorage.  That's a slight improvement, thanks, I guess to the four people who died.  

761/765 new resident cases. Yet another one day record for 2021.  Not the kind of records we want.  Also, 37 new non resident cases.

About 11,000 tests.  Test Positivity dipped slightly.  Yesterday was the highest TP of 2021 and today is the second highest at 7.47.  You can't fly on this 747 though.  

And with Matsu having the 3rd worst Alaska vaccine record at 44%  (one or more shots) yet hosting the State Fair and trying to open schools without masks, be assured things are going to get worse before they get better."

Folks, it's probably not people who read this blogs.  But people you know are insuring that more people get sick and die of COVID.  It's a shrinking minority.  

63% of US adults (18+) are fully vaccinated.  That means 37% of adults are not.  63%-37% is a landslide in an election.  

55% of Alaskan (12+ not 18+) are fully vaccinated.  That means 45% are not.  But this includes kids from 12 to 18, not just adults over 18.  55% to 45% is still a pretty decisive win in an election.  If you interact with non-vaxxers, be polite.  Ask them about their family life when they were kids.  How well did the siblings get along?  How did they get along with their parents?  I suspect for many of them, that is the crux.  They're still rebelling against parental authority.  Whatever they are told by their parental authority substitute, they'll do the opposite.

Beautiful Day For Hike Along Eklutna Lake

 Didn't get to the keyboard until about 5:30 pm today because we went to Eklutna Lake to take advantage of the beautiful day.  Maybe low 70s, sunny with some decorative clouds.  And it's a Tuesday so it shouldn't be crowded.  And it wasn't.  Although it's not far (maybe 20 miles away) we haven't been there since our kids were little.  Just going to offer you some pictures.  

Looking north.  We started near the low point on the left.  

Looking South

People in the canoe are not us.  They just paddled by while we were on the shore having lunch.

Redistricting Board Info On Public Testimony, Mapmaking

 There are about seven nascent blog posts battling it out in my brain.  Waiting for them to decide which one I should tackle first.  Too lazy today to try to make them behave.  

So this email from the Redistricting Board is my easy way out.

"Hello Subscribers,

 

In addition to the existing website portal for testimony at: akredistrict.org/map-comment, you may now email testimony to: testimony@akredistrict.org.  Any comments submitted through the portal or the testimony@akredistrict.org address will be included in the next board packet and added to the official record. 

 

NOTE: The Board has announced that oral public testimony will be taken at the beginning and end of every meeting. Following up oral testimony at a meeting with an email is a great way to make sure that board members understand your specific recommendations as they consider map proposals.

 

I hope everyone has had a chance to check out the public mapping tool available now at akredistrict.org/create.  While the board is happy to receive ideas for smaller areas, statewide (40-district) map plans will be prioritized for presentation at the board meeting currently planned for September 17. 

 

If you, or a group you are affiliated with, are planning to present a plan to the Board, please:

• let board staff know in advance so we can work with you to schedule a presentation time on the 17th and address any technical requirements – you can respond to this email or give us a call at (907) 563-0300 (we are planning to give everyone a 30-minute time slot, but that is subject to change depending on how many presentations there are);
• while map drawing, keep in mind the Constitutional criteria of contiguity, compactness, socio-economic integration, and population – see our website athttps://www.akredistrict.org/mapping-criteria for more information on these criteria;
• do include geographic labels that help the Board understand the borders of districts, including names of cities and villages, landmarks, streets, and geographic features such as rivers, lakes, and mountains; BUT
• do not include labels that are related to politics, elections, or demographic information such as incumbent names or addresses, political party membership, voter history, or statistics on voting age population, race, ethnicity, or gender.

 

Please feel free to contact board staff with any additional questions,

 

Juli Lucky

Staff, Alaska Redistricting Board

(907) 563-0300 main office

(907) 251-9295 cell

 

 

Upcoming Board Meetings and Important Dates:

September 7 – 10, 2021: Map Drawing Work Sessions; Discussion and Adoption of Draft Plan(s)

September 11, 2021: Day 30

September 17, 2021: Presentations of Submitted (3rd Party) Plan(s)

September 21, 2021: Discussion and Adoption of Additional Draft Plan(s)

NOTE: the meeting schedule between September 21 and November 9 is being developed

November 10, 2021: Day 90: Adoption of Final Redistricting Plan"

The Mayor's Attempt To Take Control Of The Library - Part Of A National Conservative Effort?

I wrote the title before doing some research.  I wasn't sure,  but now it looks like the answer is Yes!!

It was one thing when the new very conservative mayor of Anchorage tried to appoint Sami Graham head librarian despite the fact that she lacked the basic qualifications for that position.  (Like a masters degree in library science and experience as a librarian.)  But seconds after her appointment was rejected by the Anchorage Assembly, he appointed her his chief of staff and said she would also be in charge of libraries.

Why?  I know that Republicans have made a strong effort to elect conservatives to school boards,  We are already seeing conservatives being disruptive at the Anchorage School Board over COVID restrictions.  This isn't just a local effort. but I didn't know about libraries.  But it seemed consistent.  What kinds of things would they like to change?

Well I checked the internet.  Here are some things we might expect:

• Getting rid of books that deal with racism and non-English books ("Critical Race Theory" is the rallying cry)
• Getting rid of libraries' community center functions
• Slashing budgets, cutting back hours

This July 31, 2021 Truthout article relates the story of a conservative takeover of the Niles, Illinois library board.  It begins by highlighting the election of a conservative to the library board along with two other conservative candidates.  There were also some other conservatives already on the board.

"Since their swearing in on May 19, the new board has wasted no time in imposing its agenda. “Their focus is to change the very nature of the library,” Lynch says. “They’ve already slashed the budget from $7.4 to $5.9 million, fired staff or reduced their hours, gone from being open 70 hours a week to being open 54, and eliminated outreach to schools and nursing homes.” In addition, she says, longtime library director Susan Dove Lempke felt she had to resign from her position after clashing with Makula and the other conservatives over the cutbacks."

The Niles-Maine Public Library is not the only program facing draconian cutbacks or a right-wing takeover. In fact, in places ranging from Kootenai County, Idaho, to Ann Arundel County, Maryland, to Lafayette Parish, Louisiana, to the town of Frisco, Texas, local efforts are underway to limit what libraries offer — especially when it comes to promoting racial equity and gender inclusivity.

Some locales are making opposition to critical race theory — either through books or community lectures and discussions — their core focus, but other locations are adding virulent opposition to comprehensive sex education and LGBTQIA+ acceptance in a trio of concerns. What’s more, while most of these opposition groups purport to be homegrown and grassroots, all have access to the support and resources (including model legislation) of numerous national right-wing organizations. These include the Alliance Defending Freedom, the American Legislative Exchange Council, the Family Research Council, Family Watch International, the Heritage Foundation and Project Blitz, as well as right-wing media outlets such as Breitbart, Fox News, the Daily Wire, Newsmax and the Washington Free Beacon. All told, NPR reports that as of late June, at least 165 local and national groups are working to “disrupt or block lessons on race and gender,” in both traditional classrooms and public spaces. 

This PBS News Hour article gives some reasons why libraries are under attack from conservatives.  Librarians, it argues, become activists simply by doing their jobs.  

“Libraries Are For Everyone.” That’s the message of a series of images created by Rebecca McCorkindale in the days after President Donald Trump announced the temporary travel ban on seven Muslim-majority countries. She never expected her signs of inclusion to go further than a handful of libraries.

"But by the time she’d woken up the following day, she had received messages from librarians across the world wanting their languages represented. And libraries across the country — in Illinois, Minnesota, California, Virginia — had begun putting up the images as posters, along with displays about books on Islam, empathy and being a good neighbor.

“Libraries are the heart of a community, for anyone and everyone that lives there, regardless of their background,” she said. “And so we strongly believe that libraries are not neutral. We stand up for human rights.”

The article chronicles the many ways that librarians became more activist during the Trump administration.  

The American Conservative also looks at the activism of librarians from a more critical perspective in ‘Woke’ Librarians Take Their Politics To Another Level.  It begins:

"Everyone knows the old caricature of the local librarian: a white, middle-aged woman, slightly plump, a bit intimidating, shushing patrons while wearing comfortable clothing—cardigans especially—and unflattering shoes. Sadly, a more damaging and likely more accurate moniker has emerged in the age of Google: anachronistic. Internet search has degraded the perceived value of public libraries as their staffs spend their time teaching the elderly how to use the Internet or scrambling around for eclipse glasses that the local news assured “can be picked up at your local library.”

However, librarians today are doing less shushing and more shouting, as the academic social justice movement has penetrated the library stacks."

It's all condescending and sexist.  Theseare the most flattering paragraphs of the article.  

Electric Lit's  contribution to this discussion is entitled "The Real Reason Conservatives Are Scared of Libraries : Easy access to information can show marginalized people that we’re not alone. Not everyone wants us to know that."

Conservatives hide behind taxes to justify shuttering libraries, but demographic data suggests a more sinister intention. Many of those who benefit from libraries are among the nation’s most vulnerable populations. According to a 2016 report by the Pew Research Center, “Library users who take advantage of libraries’ computers and internet connections are more likely to be young, black, female, and lower income.” In the Pew Center’s 2015 study, researchers found that “lower-income Americans, Hispanics and African Americans are more likely to say that libraries impact their lives and communities than other Americans.”

In February [2018], the Trump administration released a budget proposal that would effectively eliminate federal funding of libraries, an institution that serves homeless people, addicts, people of color, immigrants, and those living in poverty. The issue isn’t about the cost of libraries; it’s that conservatives believe some people simply aren’t worth the money. Even more insidiously, it’s that conservatives fear what happens when those people get access to information."

This is not just a US phenomenon.  In a Guardian article entitled  The Tories are savaging libraries – and closing the book on social mobility,  author John Harris first writes passionately about the important community benefits of libraries, and quotes Andrew Carnegie:

“A library outranks any other one thing a community can do to benefit its people. It is a never failing spring in the desert.”

After this lengthy list of how libraries improve society, he offers the sobering news that Britain's libraries are under serious attack:

"But does anyone in government care? Since 2010, at least 478 libraries have closed in England, Wales and Scotland. Over the same period, the number of books held by surviving libraries has dropped by 14m, while librarian numbers have been cut by around 8,000. Statistics released this week by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy show that over the past five years, loans of books have dropped by a quarter, and that spending on libraries by councils fell by £66m in 2016-17 alone."

The fact that Bronson pointedly made Graham in charge of libraries even after the Assembly rejected her as head librarian suggests that taking on these Republican goals for libraries was part of his plan.  

Mushrooms And Other Late Summer Delights

 

These artichokes were growing outside the Legislative Information Office.  There was a big round flower bed full of flowers and edible plants.

You don't see that many artichokes growing in Alaska, but, obviously, they can.

I thought this giant cabbage plant had a great design.   And then I played with it some more with Curves.  That's a technique that messes with the colors and the light and dark in different programs like Photoshop and, in this case, Apple's Photo.

I played the same kind of tricks on this curled leaf decorative cabbage.  You get to see patterns that you didn't see in real life. 

When I take the Goose Lake route for my bike ride I always enjoy this spot.  On the way out this morning I noticed ripples emanating from the shore and stopped to look for ducks or grebes.  Then ducks headed out.  And then toward me.  I held real still and a couple walked onto the shore right next to me.  I took this picture on the way back. The ripples were gone, but ducks started heading in my direction again.  I realized I wasn't the duck whisperer I thought.  Obviously, this is a spot where people feed the ducks and any human standing here attracts the ducks.  

This big brown mushroom has made an appearance in the yard in the last few days.  I think the originally is more interesting than the one I played with in curves.

And these bright red amanitas are performing in the front yard today.  Didn't think that curves would do anything worthwhile.

We hiked along Power Line Pass on an always threatening to rain day.  The rain didn't come until we were in the car and almost home.

Raspberries from below.  Been picking them every other day for a week now.

And two of the downstairs tomatoes got red the other day.  They were tasty.  The ones in the outside greenhouse are still green as are the ones on the deck which are still a bit more than pea sized.    

The moon was full the other night.  I still think it's neat that people all around the earth can see it - many at the same time you can even though their thousands of miles away from you.  

[Added Aug 29, 2021 in résponse to Mike's comment:  No bears, but the next day these two moose were on the side of the trail in that stretch where I'm extra bear careful.  This was on a downhill part, and they were far enough off the trail so I could stop easily (rather than stopping on the uphill part) (But I guess that depends on which direction you're going.)  They were maybe 40 or 50 feet from the trail.  You can see how easy it is for huge brown animals to blend into the scenery.  I guess after many years I'm just better than I was at seeing brown blobs as something to pay attention to.  If you can't see them they are just left of center.  Their heads are down in the grass eating.  I'm putting this picture here since I can't put pics in the comments. That doesn't mean it's not possible to put pictures in the comments, but I've never figured it out. . . Of course, that made me google the question, and yes you can upload images into comments. But it has to have a url and this one isn't posted to the web.  I could do that, according to the article, but for now I'm just going to leave it here.]

AK Redistricting Board September Schedule AND Links To Public Map Making Software

 I got two emails from Juli Lucky, a staff member of the Board today.  One announcing the September meetings and the other with links to the Map Making software that's available for public use.  

The Board adopted some deadlines in the meetings Monday and Tuesday:

• Constitutional 30 days after receiving official Census data they most have preimimaoy map
• This date was ambiguous this year because Census Bureau sent data August 12 but saw it was unofficial.  Then later said it was official.  So Board is a little behind, and 30 days is September 10.  So they've scheduled map making days leading up to the 10th.
• They also decided that independent map makers (members of the public and some organized groups working on alternative plans ought to have a little more time, so they've given them another week - to September 17 to get their maps in for consideration
• And so the board will look at those maps and decide which ones to adopt as part of the draft plans to share with the public
• They have 60 more days (from September 10) to adopt an official plan which will be November 10.  In the meantime, they will go on the road around Alaska to present the plans to the public and get their input - particularly on local situations that might violate some of the Alaska Constitutional requirements - particularly social-economic integration of districts.  Or that just might make more or less sensible districts. 

So here's the email with that schedule.  I'd note they met Monday and Tuesday at the Legislative Information Office  (LIO) in Anchorage which allowed for statewide video conferencing plus phone in lines.  They've scheduled the LIO again but caution that the legislature has priority for that location and they may end up in the Board's Offices in the University Mall which doesn't have - at this point - video conferencing.  

"The Alaska Redistricting Board adopted the following meeting schedule and announced that public testimony will be taken at the beginning and end of each board meeting. The intent is to have full day meetings at the Anchorage Legislative Information Office, but that is subject to change based on availability.  Meetings times and more detailed agendas will be forthcoming as they are finalized. 

 

September 7 – 9, 2021: Map Drawing Work Sessions

September 10, 2021: Discussion and Adoption of Draft Plan(s)

September 17, 2021: Presentations of Submitted (3rd Party) Plan(s)

September 21, 2021: Discussion and Adoption of Additional Draft Plan(s)"

 

I'd note the first day - September 7 - is also Rosh Hashanah which along with Yom Kippur ten days later are the two holiest days on the Jewish calendar.  

I've posted the link to the mapping software before, but here it is again.  I did play with it at home and again at the Board meeting yesterday.  For what it has to do, it's pretty simple.  But that's like saying Photoshop is simple.  It's easy to use, but takes a while to figure out.  I haven't found the instruction manual yet.  I'm following my granddaughter's way of learning how to use her mother's phone - just press every option and see what it does until I figure it out.  I'm not sure that will make me proficient enough in the time available to do anything useful.  But I'll keep trying and share if i get any great insights or breakthroughs.

We are pleased to announce that our public mapping tool has updated with new 2020 Census geography and population information. 

 

Public Mapping Tool: www.akredistrict.org/create

 

The public mapping tool is a user-friendly way to start drawing your own maps using the same geographic and population information as the Board. The tool uses a “paint brush” approach to color in census blocks with real time updates of the population of each proposed district showing how it compares to the “ideal” district population of 18,335. You can also add “data layers” to see existing boundaries such as current legislative districts, school districts and municipalities.

 

The Save Plan function produces a unique URL that can be shared with others and also has a button to start the process to submit your map to the Board.

 

The tool has been verified by our staff and compared to the population counts provided by the Department of Labor on their website (two screenshots are attached illustrating this test).  

 

Executive Director Peter Torkelson demonstrated this tool at the meeting this morning. If you missed the meeting, the video archive will be available soon through the Alaska Legislature’s page at www.akleg.gov under the “meetings tab” or via this link.

 

 

Juli Lucky

Staff, Alaska Redistricting Board

(907) 251-9295

Board Gets Interesting Testimony And Works On Mapping Skills

 Morning so far has included 

Board discussing how they want to learn the mapping software during the day today

Testimony by:

James Squires Gulkana

Tom Begich - State Senator and very involved in past two redistricting processes

Rhonda Pitka -  Village of Beaver

Aaron Shutt - CEO Doyon

It's 10:38 now and the Board members are working together and individually on their computers to create districts in SE Alaska.  Basically, this is a learning exercise so they can get skilled on the mapping software.  They are each asking questions and staff are giving suggestions for what to do.  

Here are my notes from this morning.  Of most substantive interest is the testimony.  Regular disclaimers:  these are rough notes, a guide to what's happening at the Board, but not verbatim and not without errors.  

AK Redistricting Board Notes

Aug. 24, 2021

Meeting 

9am - 10:15am

9:17  Peter Torkelson demonstrating online website.

9:44 Board has been talking about the new software and how they want to learn the software.  

9:48  Board is going to take public testimony - looking for people on line who might want to testify.  Two people in line

9:50 James Squire, Gulkana District 9 describing district.  Even to Whittier - we have little in common - people living in Super Cold down to Whittier.  Delta to Valdez - north of Alaska range to Whittier and Palmer.  Distance to travel from one part to another.  Need something more reasonable, similar climates, life style.  They drive to Fairbanks, NOT Palmer.  Alaska Range is important boundary.  I understand you need to get population.  Alaskans in Palmer have little to do with what goes on here.  We go to FB and FB comes to us for recreation.  

John:  Thanks very much appreciate the detail and brevity.  If you’ve been looking online, can you give the online mapping project 

Nicole - Thanks for excellent, precise testimony.  

James Squire - We don’t go to Fred Meyers in Palmer, Go to Fairbanks.  Difference between -4 and -50.  

Sen. Tom Begich, from Anchorage - Thanks for letting me testify.  Couldn’t yesterday.  Commend you on your process.  I’ve served in 2001 and 2011 cycle.  First - caution, if you separate into group you’ll run into  interlocking puzzle problem when you put them together.

1. Two piece criteria - Federal and Constitutional guidance.  There are no existing districts.  They are built by scratch.  We start by looking at Burroughs because they are by definition socio-economic integrated.  You talked about starting with SE because has only one direction to go.  Having done that, there is a way to have a core district with Yakutat.  
2. Mr. Squires says Delta should be connected with FB.  He’s right.  No reason for Delta or Valdez to be connected with FB.
3. Matsu has to find that .6 percent and Anchorage will too, while Kenai and FB have to shed population.  Anchorage 15.8 will have to go south to get the extra population.  It can be done.
4. Matsu won’t be able to go south to Anchorage.  
5. Heard Doyon testimony.  Areas of Doyon region required by 39 can be returned to Doyon.

Starting with Socio Economic first, existing districts are irrelevant.

Start with SE

Take testimony.  

John:  Thanks Senator, that was a lot to absorb.  Couldn’t follow it all.  You have a lot of experience.  

Melanie:  Thank you.  For those not familiar with this, we have to follow Alaska Constitution, that we start with blank slate, look at Constitution.

Nicole:  Specific recs for Delta and Valdez.  Repeat?

Tom:  Palmer has grown.  Control of six seats.  Valdez, the largest pop center and Delta neither required by Palmer.   Move Cordova into broader district with Valdez.  Another thing:  Courts fairly strict of socio-economic relationship.  We tried to use community councils but courts said no, the whole city.  But because Fairbanks City was an elected govt. inside the Borough so it was given consideration.

Including Valdez in anchorage district struck down in 2001 because they had no relationship.  

John.  Thanks. You said not be relying on existing districts, just socio-economic aspects.  To me it’s intuitive because they’ve passed Court scrutiny.  They were binding.  Why not use that as a starting point.  

Tom:  Court ruled that Anchorage by definition is socio-economic area so line can be drawn anywhere.  In that criteria, massive deviation with new data.  In outlying areas .  No inherent right of district to exist.  But socio-economic unit does have right.  You do have natural districts - Nome area - but if you start there you ignore the socio-economic as most important.  You can use the districts to guide you.  You can have deviation within 5 points.  Start with Constitution criteria - socio-economic integrated, contiguity, compactness.  

Ronda Pitka from Village of Beaver  - Testifying on behalf of Beaver Village council.  Heavily rely on.  Support of strong consideration of work of Sealaska, ?????, to advance or suppress political power of Alaska Natives has been considerable.  We should be able to hold reps accontable.  In past, we’ve been fractured in deference to Fairbanks.  If map of unfractured representative.  Doyon and partners have looked at river systems, local boundaries.  ??

Melanie:  Thanks for calling in and testifying.  

John:  Audience wish to testify?

Mr. Aaron Shutt CEO Doyon  (https://www.doyonutilities.com/leadership/aaron-m-schutt)- Thanks mr. Squires.  The work we (Doyon) are doing supports Mr. Squires.  Interior is one socio-economic unit.  Rural parts of Alaska always come together.  Also share with Board, resources to board.  If you have questions for us we’re here to help.  We have a great team.  

John:  natural time for break.  Till 10:30

1:20pm

I decided to go home during the lunch break to see how this works online.  You can watch here: http://akleg.gov/index.php#

There were some redistricting board sessions done via phone last time, but I don't remember any live stream video.  It makes the meetings much more accessible to the world, and my blogging not quite as important.