Bridging the digital divide would lead to jobs, opportunity

Illinois’ plans to expand broadband internet access could create thousands of jobs, higher wages and a bridge between social divisions, according to researchers with the Illinois Economic Policy Institute and the Project for Middle Class Renewal at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Their study,  “The Economic, Fiscal, and Social Effects of Public Investments in Broadband Internet Access in Illinois,” released last month, says improving internet access would better connect rural and urban residents, economic classes, and those who have high-speed internet access for business, education, etc., and the millions who don’t.

“Access to reliable high-speed internet has become an essential part of commercial activity and daily life, the study says. “Ultimately, historic public investments in broadband internet access are expected to increase labor income, create jobs, promote business activity, generate tax revenues, and address rural and racial divides in communities across Illinois.”

Rural areas have always struggled for service, from getting transportation and mail delivery to electricity and, now, broadband access.

It’s not as easy as clicking some On switch

Generally, broadband refers to high-capacity transmission lines or techniques using a variety of frequencies capable of sending and receiving more and faster communications.

“Only 83% of Illinois residents have broadband internet access,” the study adds, “  – 82% in the City of Chicago, 88% in the Chicago suburbs, and 76%  Downstate.”

That 83% means that 17% don’t have internet service: 2.1 million Illinoisans, many in rural areas. Almost 13% of Illinoisans live in rural areas (populations of less than 2,500 people). That’s about 1.6 million.

Besides geographic separation, economic class divides those with and without access. Last year, Pew Research found that 34% of low-income households in the country struggle to pay for home broadband service, and Broadband Now says 42 million Americans lack access.

It matters beyond convenience. Reliable, affordable high-speed internet service ensures people’s ability to more fully participate in civic and business activities. A coalition of progressive groups, including the League of United Latin American Citizens, the National Rainbow/PUSH Coalition, and People for the American Way decades ago issued a joint comment to the Federal Communication Commission urging support for rural, isolated and high-cost areas.

“Citizens without access are citizens without voices and ears,” their statement argued. “They are unable to engage in these fundamental new forms of speech and new means to participate in society.”

An additional 238,000 households, businesses and farms would have new internet accessibility as a result of the state initiative.

Today, even with access, quality can be slow or have connection interference. Many still can’t get 4 megabits per second (Mbps) download and 1 Mbps upload speeds – the federal standard set in 2011.

“The technology is there,” said study co-author Robert Bruno, “ – but it’s paying dividends for only certain people.”

One obstacle is “the marketplace,” which is often inadequate to meet society’s needs. Frequently, what should be done isn’t profitable for companies.

“They simply do not have the incentives," says Tom Rowley, a Community Planning and Development representative at the U,S, Housing and Urban Development who formerly worked at the Rural Policy Research Instiute and the University of Kentucky's Rural Studies Program. "Instead, smaller phone companies, electric utilities, cable television companies and municipalities are often in the best position to ensure the communities get what they need."

A private-public partnership seems the best approach, although corporations’ involvement has been sporadic.

With state government leading, Illinois' effort could also mean an additional 25,000 jobs in construction and the supply sector, the study says. About 38% of the building-trades jobs would be covered under Prevailing Wage rates, and more than 11,000 jobs would continue after the buildout. Also, researchers say additional jobs in local retail, restaurant and small businesses would happen due to an estimated increase of $843 million in wages statewide, boosting consumer spending power. (See sidebar.)

Also, bridging the “digital divide” would increase tax revenues, according to study co-author Frank Manzo IV, who adds that the increased revenues would offset the state’s investment within four years of its completion.

Nationally, the Communications Workers of America’s “Broadband Brigade” has an ongoing campaign to ensure that the federal broadband buildout funds from the bipartisan infrastructure bill are used to support good jobs for union members.

“I’ve never been prouder of the work of this union than what I’ve seen this kick-ass group of members do,” said CWA President Chris Shelton. “I urge you to work closely with them as we move forward with making sure that we take full advantage of this opportunity presented to us to secure good, union jobs and make a real difference for our country by bringing true high speed broadband to every community.”

The idea is to use some funds from Illinois’ $400 million Rebuild Illinois program enacted in 2019, supplemented by federal dollars from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act. However, previous proposals over decades have been disappointing:

* 1996- the Telecommunications Act established regulations to expand the definition of universal service to make broadband telecommunications available to schools, libraries and medical centers at affordable rates funded in part by the federal tax line item on phone bills – which have changed dramatically with the advent of cell phones.

* 2000- Illinois Gov. Ryan in his budget called for spending $1.9 billion over five years to improve the state’s technological infrastructure.

* 2012- the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) started a Connect America Fund program that hoped to connect every American by 2020.

* 2020- the FCC launched a Rural Digital Opportunity Fund. (FCC officials say the agency’s intention is to provide support to rural areas. FCC chair Jessica Rosenworsel told the Wall Street Journal, “It’s clear we need to fix what came before and make changes.”)

* 2021- Congress enacted the bipartisan infrastructure act, which included $42.5 billion for a rural broadband program.

* 2022- This May, President Biden announced an agreement with 20 internet providers covering 80% of the nation to provide households eligible through the FCC’s Affordable Connectivity Program, which provides discounts of up to $30 per month toward internet service. However, fewer than 13 million households have enrolled as of July 5.

            So, the ambitious plan will have challenges. Even after the program wraps up in 2026, about 13% of Illinoisans still won’t have service, and achieving 100% connectivity will require another $3 billion, the study says.

            Organized labor is optimistic, but some rural residents are skeptical

In some rural areas, even new connections can be better but still slow.

            Talking to the Wall Street Journal, John Powell of Heavener, Okla., said, “It’s like getting left behind.”

Gun violence is workplace issue: AFL-CIO

  

This commentary was postponed from the June Labor Paper because space and time were tight and, after all, we feared that for all the attention to the Uvalde, Texas, school slaughter, other mass shootings were tragically inevitable.

It’s heartbreaking that we were right.

The column is late but long and getting longer.

In Highland Park, Ill., a young man with a high-powered rifle randomly shot at people crowded along a parade route for the Independence Day celebration, killing seven and wounding dozens.

That same holiday weekend saw mass shootings in Boston, Kansas City, Richmond, Va., and Sacramento; the Memorial Day weekend saw 12 mass shootings nationwide. Other recent mass shootings besides Uvalde were in Buffalo, Chattanooga, Philadelphia, Tulsa and Vestavia, Ala. In Illinois, we’ve suffered mass shootings in Aurora (2019), DeKalb (2008) and Melrose Park (2001).

The AFL-CIO says organized labor must address the issue.

“This is a workplace issue. This is a school issue. This is a community issue,” the labor federation said. “That makes it a labor issue. Working people deserve safe workplaces without fear of a mass shooting. And America’s children deserve to learn and thrive in safe schools.”

An astounding 311,000 school kids have experienced gun violence since the Columbine shootings in 1999, when 12 students and 1 teacher were murdered, the Washington Post found.

“This is the land of the free, where a boy in Texas can turn 18, buy semi-automatic rifles the next day, and then kill 21 people within the week,” said National Education Association President Becky Pringle – who said some fearful school children have written their wills!

After the National Rifle Association reacted to the July 4 shooting by saying, “since 1950, 94% of mass public shootings occurred in gun-free zones,” a furious Gov. Pritzker responded to the NRA by saying, “Leave us the hell alone … 100% of mass public shootings happen with guns.”

Republican gubernatorial candidate Darren Bailey initially commented, “Let’s pray for justice to prevail and then let’s move on…" but after considerable blowback he apologized for the insensitive remark

This isn’t a progressive vs. conservative debate. Conservative columnist Mona Charon criticizes Right-wing voices that say mass shootings are a small part of the violence in the country.

“Massacres at supermarkets, churches, classrooms, sopping malls, and good God, July 4^th parades are not like other violence,” she wrote. “It’s like terrorism. It invades the normal, peaceful world – the places in which we must feel secure.

“These mass shootings are a greater threat to our security than Islamic terrorism was.”

The statistics are staggering. This year, the country’s had more than 300 mass shootings (those with at least four fatalities). Before Uvalde, the year already had had 27 school shootings alone, according to Education Week, which tracks them, and gun purchases broke records in 2020 and 2021, when 43 million more guns were bought.

U.S. mayors are angry, too. Tampa Mayor Jane Castor (a former police chief), told the New York Times, “Are we going to continue to just see these mass shootings, and everyone sends their prayers and their sympathies, but no action is taken? As a nation, we have to make a decision — we are in that inflection point right now.”

Doctors stress the public-health aspect. The American Pediatric Association (APSA) in June called for a new federal assault weapons ban on military-style firearms:

“During the decade of the previous ban, public mass shootings and deaths decreased. These weapons have the capacity for rapid fire and large numbers of rounds between reloads, which increases their lethality and the number of victims. The APSA acknowledges the 2^nd Amendment and the right to responsible gun ownership. However, assault weapons – used in many locations including Newtown, San Bernadino, Las Vegas, Sutherland Springs, Parkland, and Uvalde (each incident killing more than a dozen people) – have no place in the civilian arena.”

Or, have such crises became so commonplace they’re routine? Acceptable?

Schools have “safety plans” and active-shooter drills, and media now follow such tragedies with advice on “How to talk to your kids about mass shootings,” and lists for places that help with counseling and coping

Shockingly, sadly, a June CBS News/YouGov poll showed that 44% of Republicans agreed that mass shootings are “something we have to accept as part of free society.”

Meanwhile, the labor group Union Sportsmen’s Alliance (USA) this month is holding its Peoria County conservation dinner benefiting the Labor Temple. Besides food and drink, it will off Remington 783 files to some sponsors. Many of those gathered will be hunters, and I have friends who hunt. However, they use deer rifles, .22s and shotguns, not weapons specifically designed to use against human beings in war or law enforcement. Further, the USA’s mission – conserving and maintaining wildlife habitats, improving access to the outdoors, restoring parks, and mentoring youth about the outdoors –  underscores how comfortable their get-togethers are. Sensible sportsmen and -women identify with the victims, not the criminals.

Steve Guilliti, a retired Iron Worker, comments, “I am a gun owner, a onetime competitive rifleman on a high school rifle team, a USCG Rifle Expert and Pistol Sharpshooter, a former member of the NRA and a onetime avid duck and bird hunter. I am in no way opposed to individuals owning firearms for hunting, target shooting, because they regularly carry large amounts of cash in the course of their business activities, or the defense of their hearth, home and person if they think that too is required. That said, having handled automatic weapons I can't see why anyone would need to own one other than the military, a law enforcement agency or a gun club which might have a few around so as to provide its membership with the thrill of shooting one off within the confines of their property and only there.”

Some say mass shootings stem from mental illness, easy access, or the increasing social schism dividing Americans. But the mentally ill are more likely to be victims than assailants, data show. Mentally ill shooters are just 1% of the perpetrators, so 99% aren’t mentally ill (apart from the assertion that ANY killer is emotionally damaged)..

It’s undeniable that buying weapons is easy There are an estimated 400 million guns in the United States (although it’s difficult to be exact since private transactions at gun shows or online can’t be accurately counted).

And can political polarization really be blamed?

“Many other countries have disadvantaged folks who are angry and alienated,” said Richard Berk, professor emeritus of criminology at the University of Pennsylvania, talking to the Washington Post. “But guns aren’t there.”

Others blame courts’ modern interpretation of the 2^nd Amendment.

Conservative columnist George Will said, “The 2^nd Amendment is the only one in the Bill of Rights with a preamble: ‘A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, shall not be infringed.’

“The amendment was 217 years old before the court held that it protected the gun rights of individuals, irrespective of membership in a militia,” Will added.

And conservative Republican Supreme Court Justice Warren Burger in 1991 was more blunt, saying that the contention that the 2^nd Amendment gives citizens an unrestricted right to a gun is “a fraud on the American public.”

But lobbyists like the NRA intimidate too many lawmakers.

On Capitol Hill, a modest bipartisan measure curbing gun sales to those younger than 21, improving background checks, etc., passed the House 234-193 and the Senate 65-33; 226 legislators voted against even these minor changes.

States by themselves can’t fully address the crisis. Illinois has tighter laws than Indiana, Kentucky or Missouri, but guns cross borders. Still, Illinois lawmakers are working on dealing with military-style weapons and large-capacity ammunition magazines.

“Everything has to be on the table,” said State Rep. Bob Morgan (D-Deerfield).

The Highland Park shooter, police said, used a Smith & Wesson M&P15 semiautomatic; the M&P designates Military & Police.

State Rep. Maura Hirschauer (D-Batavia) said, “The general public in Illinois has clearly said that those types of weapons are designed for the battlefield, not for hunting or any reasonable use.”

Elsewhere, others are trying to find innovative answers. For example, lawsuits are increasingly possible against gun manufacturers, who aren’t protected from relevant state laws about consumer-protection and advertising regulations, as Sandy Hook families showed.

“There is now significant case law from around the country that the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act [passed in 2005] does not give gun companies sweeping immunity from lawsuits,” said Jonathan Lowy, chief counsel at the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence. “Gun manufacturers and dealers can be liable in numerous cases.”

A creative idea is a suggestion from U.S. Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.) to impose a 1,000% tax on purchases of military-style guns, which could be considered without the threat of a Senate filibuster since it’s a tax matter.

There must be ways lawmakers could reduce gun violence. Gun owners in every state could be required to be licensed to own guns, as they are to drive cars.

Such reforms are premised on whether there’s the political will to respond to the overwhelming public support for better laws – if lawmakers could muster as much concern for the country as they do for their positions and power.

Until unreasonable and/or selfish leaders stop denying that guns contribute to the carnage, kids, cops, worshippers, shoppers and anyone going about their regular activities will keep getting shot.

George Tanner, an 83-year-old retired teacher and father, grandfather and great-grandfather, is also is poet. This month he wrote:

I’m thinking…

That Abe should have stayed home lon theater night

And JFK, on Dallas Day, should have taken another street.

Martin should have slept in the car, Bobby left by the front door.

We mourn the loss of these great men, yet still kiss up to the gun.

Webvan’s George Shaheen: A man before his time

Area native George Shaheen was enormously successful in business, leading Andersen Consulting from 1989-99, when its revenue grew from $1.1 billion to $8 billion. So it wouldn’t be surprising for him to sour some after a failure – especially one that’s back with a bang after a few clicks.

“I have no regrets,” says the one-time online-grocery entrepreneur. “My wife and I were on a cruise ship when we tested positive for COVID and quarantined in our cabin for five days. That might’ve angered some, but it was just another life experience. Nobody was out to get us or anything.”

Shaheen, who turns 78 this month, was raised in Elmwood and attended Bradley University before rising through the ranks at Andersen, moving to Silicon Valley, and then getting involved in the dot-com boom, from software maker Siebel, where he was CEO in 2005-2006 when it merged with Oracle, to Webvan a few years before.

In some ways the ex-Webvan CEO got his start in the family’s grocery.

“I worked there what seems like a long time,” Shaheen says. “Started early. It was a small store – one of three in Elmwood then, before the Interstate and chain stores and people driving to Peoria or Galesburg. We couldn’t compete with their selection. Now, of course, it’s not the Interstate but the Internet.”

After he left Andersen (“Too many CEOs stay too long,” he says, chuckling), he joined Webvan, a huge startup, reportedly attracting hundreds of millions of dollars in investments.

“It was a great idea with good people, all on a mission,” Shaheen says. “The technology was pretty good but fragile. We had different iterations of computers and dial-up Internet [so] the underpinning was powerful but clunky.”

Aiming to deliver groceries in less than an hour, Webvan built a $25 million Oakland warehouse with more than four miles of conveyer belts through the 330,000-square-foot facility. (Most traditional supermarkers have about 60,000 square feet.)

“We had a tracking system that could handle thousands of orders a day, refrigerated trucks to make sure produce stayed fresh, 12 docking stations and more than 60 vans in the Bay Area,” he says.

Early in Webvan’s launch there, about 10,000 households signed up.

“Looking back, consumers weren’t ready,” Shaheen says. “Shopping was still an experience itself.

“I grew up in the grocery business, so I didn’t want to go to the store,” he continues, laughing. “But at that time, a lot of people did want to go shop, to get out of the house, look over the shelves…”

Within a year, Webvan bought Home Grocer with plans to move into 13 other markets and expand from groceries to an all-purpose e-commerce retailer. But the company couldn’t cultivate and maintain a loyal customer base, says Shaheen, who resigned from the company in 2001, when it shut down and filed for bankruptcy.

Decades later, the pandemic changed consumers, with shopping-as-socializing less appealing with health risks, and vastly better technology, from fiber-optics to smart-phone apps.

Now, online grocery shopping makes up 12% of all grocery sales nationwide, according to Deborah Weinswig of Coresight Research, which studies the sector. That percentage is up from 2% pre-pandemic.

Online groceries are increasing in cities including Chicago and New York, offering safety and convenience. Besides familiar brands such as Amazon Fresh and Instacart (a delivery service working with many retailers), Chicago has Farmstead, offering locally sourced produce and national brands from a “dark store” closed to the public in Franklin Park but serving people within 50 miles – from Gary, Ind., to Kenosha, Wis.

Similarly, New York has several speedy online grocers: Buyk, Fridge No More, GoPuff. Instead of Webvan’s centralized-warehouse model, most operate from a network of neighborhood microhubs with inventories of less than 5,000 items. (Brick-and-mortar grocers have some 35,000 items.)

“I don’t know how food delivery is doing, really,” Shaheen says. “I don’t see food-delivery vehicles in our area. When Webvan was going, we’d see our trucks all over the place.”

Apart from timing, “the idea was right,” he says, adding that he sees unending business possibilities ahead.

“Jeff Bezos started out selling books, but he didn’t start an online bookstore. He built a platform.” Sahheen says. “I’m curious about what’s coming, like artificial intelligence. It happens fast. Business life cycles aren’t very long.”