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Optimism fades that jobs lost to virus will return (AP) Nearly half of Americans whose families experienced a layoff during the coronavirus pandemic now believe those jobs are lost forever, a new poll shows, as temporary cutbacks give way to shuttered businesses, bankruptcies and lasting payroll cuts. It’s a sharp change after initial optimism the jobs would return. In April, 78% of those in households with a job loss thought they’d be temporary. Now, 47% think that lost job is definitely or probably not coming back, according to the latest poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. That translates into roughly 10 million workers who will need to find a new employer, if not a new occupation. The poll is the latest sign the solid hiring of May and June, as some states lifted stay-at-home orders and the economy began to recover, may wane as the year goes on. Adding to the challenge: many students will begin the school-year online, making it harder for parents to take jobs outside their homes.

Watchdog to review conduct of federal agents in Portland, DC (AP) The Justice Department inspector general said Thursday that it will conduct a review of the conduct of federal agents who responded to unrest in Portland, Oregon and Washington, D.C., following concerns from members of Congress and the public. The watchdog investigation will examine use-of-force allegations in Portland, where the city’s top federal prosecutor and mayor have publicly complained. In Washington, investigators will look at the training and instruction provided to the federal agents who responded to protest activity at Lafayette Square, near the White House. Among the questions being studied are whether the agents followed Justice Department guidelines, including on identification requirements and in the deployment of chemical agents and use of force. The investigation was announced amid ongoing chaos in Portland, where Mayor Ted Wheeler was tear-gassed by federal agents as he stood outside the courthouse there. Local authorities in both cities have complained that the presence of federal agents have exacerbated tensions on the streets, while residents have accused the government of violating their constitutional rights.

FBI interviewing Chinese visa holders across U.S. about possible military ties: Justice Department (Reuters) The FBI has interviewed visa holders it believes to secretly be members of the Chinese military in more than two dozen U.S. cities, the Justice Department said on Thursday. The department said it has arrested three Chinese nationals for visa fraud, while a fourth remains a fugitive staying at China’s consulate in San Francisco. The United States believes the four were members of China’s military posing as researchers. “In interviews with members of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army in over 25 cities across the U.S., the FBI uncovered a concerted effort to hide their true affiliation to take advantage of the United States and the American people,” John Brown, executive assistant director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s national security branch, said in a statement.

The coming plastic-covered beach (Bloomberg) The annual flow of plastics into our oceans is on a trajectory to triple over the next 20 years, which could add up to 110 pounds of plastic trash for every meter of coastline worldwide, a new report finds. That path is not inevitable, however. The volume could be cut by 80%, the analysis found, by taking actions to reduce the growth of virgin plastic production, improve waste collection systems across the globe, and invest in the creation of plastic materials that are easier to recycle.

New York street partying fuels fears of coronavirus resurgence (The Guardian) Motorcycles revved, waiters served drinks, and food in busy outdoor street seating areas and, on the pavement, people gathered to sip to-go drinks. On Saturday night in Astoria, in Queens, it was almost as if coronavirus had never hit New York City. In April, the city was the center of the global coronavirus pandemic, with the daily death toll reaching almost 800 people at its height. But as cases of Covid-19 have steadied and lockdown restrictions have eased, this stretch of Steinway Street has emerged as an unofficial party street. But standing on the other side of the road from Mehmood in Astoria, outside a barber shop, Omar Melendez, 39, who has a newborn at home, said he was “living in fear”.

Thousands in Puerto Rico still without housing since Maria (AP) Nearly three years after Hurricane Maria tore through Puerto Rico, tens of thousands of homes remain badly damaged, many people face a hurricane season under fading blue tarp roofs and the island’s first major program to repair and rebuild houses hasn’t completed a single one. Maria hit more than 786,000 homes on Sept. 20, 2017, causing minor damage to some homes and sweeping others from their foundations. A federally funded program administered by local officials carried out relatively small repairs to some 108,000 homes the next year, while churches and nonprofits patched up thousands with private funds. A Puerto Rican government program known as R3 is the first major effort by the U.S. territory to carry out major repairs and rebuilding of damaged and destroyed housing. Nearly 27,000 homeowners have applied. But nearly 1 1/2 years after federal funding was released to local officials, not a single repair or rebuilding job has been completed. For many Puerto Ricans, the program’s slow progress has become a symbol of their government’s inability to address the long-term effects of the disaster. “They talk about billions of dollars, but we’re not seeing it,” said Sergio Torres, mayor of the northern mountain town of Corozal. His municipality still has 60 homes with blue tarps as roofs and two families still living in school shelters. “It’s a way of life here.”

Latin America’s beach towns isolate themselves to keep the coronavirus out (Miami Herald) Before the pandemic, thousands of people left the capital city of Santiago, Chile, every weekend to head to Los Molles. They filled the hotels and bars run by the town’s 648 permanent residents. It was a reliable and amicable relationship: The tourists came for the beaches and laid-back fishing village vibes, and their spending fed the Los Molles economy. When coronavirus quarantine measures were announced, Santiago residents fled to their beach vacation homes midweek, hoping to escape a claustrophobic quarantine in the capital and relax in Los Molles. But they found flaming barricades made of wood and tires, billowing tar-thick smoke and blocking the highway entrances leading into town. If the flaming barricades didn’t get the message across, the volunteer guards let anyone who wasn’t a permanent resident know this wasn’t the time for a beach vacation and sent them away. Los Molles is among a handful of small tourist towns in Latin America that have decided on isolation to protect themselves against the coronavirus pandemic. Remote beach towns in Mexico have used the same strategy. Residents of these small communities say the measures have worked. Los Molles residents said that with community organizing they have avoided any infections as of late July despite being two hours outside Santiago, which is now a global COVID-19 hot spot.

Bolivia election delayed to October as pandemic bites (Reuters) Bolivia’s general election will be pushed back until Oct. 18 as the pandemic grips the South American nation, a move that could fan tensions between the interim conservative government and the socialist party of former President Evo Morales. The head of the electoral tribunal said on Thursday that the vote would be postponed from the previously scheduled Sept. 6 date to ensure the safety of voters, with hospitals and cemeteries straining under the impact of the virus. The vote is key to the political future of the Andean nation of 11.5 million people after a fraught election last year sparked widespread protests and led to the resignation of the country’s long-term leftist leader Morales.

Brazil reports record infections as coronavirus spreads to all regions (Washington Post) There was a time, weeks ago, when Carlos Renan dos Santos Evaldt allowed himself to hope. Much of Brazil was in varying states of chaos as the novel coronavirus devastated the country’s largest cities. But it had largely spared the wealthier, more developed south. But after a surge in cases and deaths, his city is considering imposing a lockdown. The pockets of Brazil that had been largely unscathed by the virus—the south, the vast central states—have been engulfed by it. The sheer relentlessness of the surge here underscores Brazil’s failure to quell the world’s second-worst coronavirus outbreak. On Wednesday, Latin America’s largest country posted a record 67,860 new cases, bringing the total infected to 2.2 million, with nearly 83,000 dead. Both counts are second only to the United States.

Thailand protest movement puts country’s youth on collision course with military-backed establishment (CNN) Thailand’s student movement has reignited, as young people across the country defy threats from the military-backed government to take to the streets and call for the resignation of Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha. In what was the biggest demonstration since the pandemic began, about 3,000 people gathered at Bangkok’s Democracy Monument on Saturday, according to organizers. They called for the dissolution of parliament, for the constitution to be rewritten, and for authorities to stop intimidating activists. Similar demands were made at smaller protests that sprang up in towns and cities across the country every day this week, with more planned for the coming days. The protests come after years of political upheaval marked by a military coup in 2014, followed by failed promises to restore democracy, and what activists say is a repression of civil rights and freedoms.

Iranian Civilian Jet Swerves to Avoid American Warplane in Syria (NYT) An Iranian passenger plane en route from Iran to Beirut swerved and dropped abruptly on Thursday to avoid a nearby American fighter jet, injuring several passengers before landing in Beirut. Videos broadcast by Iranian and pro-Iran Lebanese media, which said the footage was taken by passengers, showed a fighter jet flying alongside the passenger plane, operated by Mahan Air, a privately owned Iranian airline. Passengers then screamed as sudden turbulence seized the plane. In the aftermath, one video showed a passenger with his face and head bloodied, as well as a man lying down, apparently unconscious, while someone tended to him. Oxygen masks dangled overhead. Capt. Bill Urban, a spokesman for the U.S. Central Command, said in a statement later Thursday that an Air Force F-15 on “a routine air mission” near a small American military base in southern Syria had conducted “a standard visual inspection of a Mahan Air passenger airliner.”

Israeli police use water cannons on protesters, arrest 55 (AP) Israeli police used water cannons to disperse protesters in central Jerusalem and arrested at least 55 of them as clashes broke out overnight after thousands staged a protest against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Israelis have held a series of demonstrations in recent weeks calling on Netanyahu to resign, citing his trial on corruption charges and his fractious unity government’s poor handling of the coronavirus pandemic.

Cut off from world, and virus, Gaza prepares for Eid like nowhere else (Reuters) Gazans are thronging beaches and crowding markets filled with holiday sweets and clothes as they prepare to celebrate Eid al-Adha largely free of the coronavirus restrictions affecting the Muslim festival elsewhere. The 360 sq. km. coastal strip has had little access to the outside world for years due to an Israeli-led blockade which many Palestinians say is like living in permanent lockdown. No cases have been recorded in the towns and refugee camps where its two million Palestinian population live. The result is that Gazans are preparing much as normal ahead of Eid, which begins at the end of July, with few people wearing masks in shopping centers that are packed after sunset. “God protected us from the virus,” said Malkeya Abdallah, 62, as she relaxed on the beach near Gaza City.

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