Roanoke residents speak out at public hearings about budget, meals tax, and more
The City Manager has said this is a particularly hard budget year, referencing 'challenges and choices' that have to be made.
Nearly an hour of public comment was devoted to the city budget and plans to give the city schools 'level funding.' That means the same funding they received last year. Former Council Member Trish White-Boyd stepped up to vouch for the budget plan, saying the city has already shown dedication to education.
'A goal that has required sacrifices such as adjustments in employee compensation, deferred maintenance and postponement of capital improvement projects,' she said.
School Board Chair Dr. Eli Jamison made an appearance, noting that she rarely speaks at council meetings. She claimed she'd heard that the city is considering cutting a rainy day fund but argued instead that fund should be used to support schools now.
'We know the challenges are real, but if you sweep the funding balance, Roanoke Schools will have layoffs,' she said. 'We will have larger class sizes. We will not have the funds to finish Preston Park Elementary School.'
Former school board member Mark Cathey said, with unpredictable changes at the federal level, this year is not the time to push the district into further cuts.
The next largest group of speakers showed up to address a proposed meals tax increase. The city is considering raising it from 5.5% to as high as 7%.
Roanoke residents demonstrate downtown during National Day of Protest
Keith Liles, owner of Deb's Frozen Lemonade, said the cost of everything has risen for restaurants, from minimum wage to the cost of goods.
'With the current tariffs who knows what lemons will be tomorrow or in the future,' said Liles.
He says raising the meals tax means he can't raise prices when his own cost of goods increase.
'The consumer, when they see a hot dog, a lemonade, and a bag of chips cost $6.85 on the menu board, and it comes to $7.75 when I ask for the money, it looks bad on me,' he said.
Matt Bullington, who owns Texas Tavern, says the meals tax has been raised several times throughout the restaurant's history. For instance, it was hiked during the financial crisis.
'Every time the city gets in a financial burden or has a financial burden it comes to our industry to help bail them out,' he said.
'Many people are aware the past five years have been the hardest five years in the history of the modern restaurant industry,' he continued. 'I'm not exaggerating that. We've had COVID restrictions, rampant inflation, supply line problems, dislocation of everything.'
City Council didn't make any decisions Monday. They're set to adopt a budget May 12.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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New York Post
5 days ago
- New York Post
Lasers are innovating modern warfare, for better or worse
Earlier this summer, Israel made military history. Not with a missile, bomb or bullet — but with a beam of light. In a first for modern warfare, the Israel Defense Forces successfully intercepted Hezbollah drones using a high-energy laser weapon in live combat. The breakthrough weapon, developed under the Iron Beam program, quietly zapped dozens of targets out of the sky during the Iron Sword campaign, marking the first confirmed use of laser cannon technology on an active battlefield. According to a joint statement in late May from the Israeli Ministry of Defence, the Israeli Air Force and defense contractor Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, 'soldiers from the IAF Aerial Defence Array operated high-power laser system prototypes in the field, successfully intercepting scores of enemy threats.' Advertisement 9 Rafael Advanced Defense Systems The technology might sound like science fiction, but officials say this laser cannon, which resembles an oversized spotlight, is anything but make-believe. Israel's success may signal a turning point in the race to develop laser weapons, but it's far from the only player on the field. China was accused last month of targeting a German aircraft with a laser during an EU operation. Germany called it 'entirely unacceptable,' although China denied the claim. Meanwhile, Chinese scientists are reportedly developing a microwave-based beam weapon that resembles the Death Star and is capable of combining multiple sources into one high-powered shot. Advertisement Russia recently unveiled the 'Posokh,' a laser weapon described as a 'ray gun' for downing drones. Russian Airborne Forces also showcased a prototype laser rifle in March designed to protect civilian infrastructure from UAV attacks. 9 AFP via Getty Images Laser weapons, formally known as directed energy weapons (DEWs), have been on the global radar for decades. But until now, they've mostly lived in research labs and defense trade shows. More than 30 countries are developing the technology — and the US military alone spends $1 billion annually on high-energy laser (HEL) research. 'The Army, Navy and Air Force have all been developing laser weapons,' says Dr. Iain Boyd, PhD, director of the Center for National Security Initiatives at the University of Colorado Boulder. 'The Navy has installed HELs on several ships, the Army is using them for base defense and vehicles, and the Air Force has studied installing HELs on fighter jets.' Advertisement Are lasers poised to become the weapon of choice for modern warfare? Boyd tells The Post he expects to see 'a steady increase in the use of high-energy laser weapons in the coming years. It is still relatively immature technology, but as the remaining challenges are overcome, their potential to change some aspects of warfare will be realized.' For the moment, the Iron Beam — known in Hebrew as Magen Or, which translates to Shield of Light —shows the most promise. An offshoot of the Iron Dome, Israel's air defense system that's been operational since 2011, the Iron Beam was designed to 'complement the Iron Dome and work alongside it, not replace it,' says military analyst Yaakov Lappin, who's been closely following the technology for years. But the Iron Beam promises something no other weapon can deliver: shots that cost a few dollars apiece. 'It's vastly cheaper,' Lappin says. Advertisement Israel currently spends upwards of $100,000 per Iron Dome interceptor. That's a steep price to shoot down enemy projectiles that might cost just a few hundred dollars to build. The Iron Beam's electric 'bullets,' by contrast, are practically free. 9 AP 'They are described as having an 'infinite magazine,' ' says Dr. Boyd. 'Unlike guns and rocket launchers that have a finite number of munitions available, as long as a HEL has electrical power, it can keep on firing 'bullets' of photons.' The US, meanwhile, has yet to deploy lasers in real-world combat despite decades of research. The Army's Stryker-based laser, Navy's ship-mounted HELs and Air Force programs all remain in test phases. 'I am not content with the pace,' US Navy Vice Adm. Brendan McLane said in a keynote speech at the Surface Navy Association confab in 2024. 'We must deliver on the promise this technology gives us.' America's laser weapon dreams go back to Ronald Reagan's 1983 'Star Wars' Strategic Defense Initiative, a $200 billion attempt to shoot down nuclear missiles with space lasers. That program fizzled out by 1993. Subsequent efforts, like the joint US-Israel 'Nautilus' laser in the late '90s, also stalled for being too bulky, weak and slow. 9 Sygma via Getty Images The pivot came with solid-state lasers which are smaller, more efficient and electric rather than chemical. Advertisement Israel had one key advantage over other nations in the race to develop lasers, says Brian Wang, a science writer and co-founder of the popular tech blog Next Big Future. 'The US has spent billions over the decades, but Israel had actual fighting as a forcing factor to get this stuff working and deployed,' he explains. The breakthrough came when Israeli engineers abandoned the old idea of firing one giant beam and instead developed a system that fires hundreds of small, coin-sized beams. These beams lock onto a single vulnerable spot, often identified via telescopic reflection, and bombard it in succession until the threat is neutralized. The Iron Beam uses optical fiber lasers, which are essentially souped-up industrial lasers, to destroy aerial threats. 'Electricity is used to excite atoms or molecules,' explains Wang. 'They emit high energy photons, and all the photons are concentrated using mirrors. The laser heats a critical area — say, the fuel tank or warhead — until the missile fails.' 9 Commander Naval Surface Force Atlantic/Facebook Advertisement Lasers convert electrical energy 'into a focused beam of light particles, or photons,' says Boyd. 'Depending on the energy, they can cut, melt, combust or destroy a target.' In practical terms, the Iron Beam vaporizes drones with surgical precision. But there are limits. HELs currently can't intercept long-range ballistic missiles like the ones targeted by Israel's Arrow 3, which shoots down threats outside the Earth's atmosphere. For now, lasers remain short-range guardians. Also, a weapon capable of melting metal at 2 kilometers isn't exactly energy-efficient. A 100-kilowatt laser requires a massive power source and cooling system. The most advanced (and smallest) prototypes draw 300 kilowatts — enough to power 30 homes — and are only about 50% efficient, meaning they produce immense waste heat. This limits where and how the weapons can be deployed. And there's another catch. Advertisement 'The effectiveness of laser beams can be diminished through interaction with a variety of environmental phenomena,' say Boyd. Rain, fog, dust and smoke can scatter laser beams, reducing their effectiveness. 'The laser needs to stay locked on a target for several seconds to be effective,' he adds. Which is why naval lasers, like those tested on the USS Preble, haven't seen wide use. The sea is a famously unforgiving place for precision optics. A misplaced beam can also cause serious unintended damage. As Boyd warns, there's concern about potential collateral effects. 'A laser beam reflecting off a surface could blind someone,' he says. 'Or if it misses a target, it could travel hundreds of miles. There is a need to ensure no innocent party is affected.' Advertisement The UN banned laser weapons designed to blind in 1995. But with nations like Russia and Turkey reportedly fielding HELs, updated international rules may be overdue. And then there's the conspiracy crowd. Social media has fueled bizarre theories claiming government lasers have started wildfires in California and Hawaii, an idea experts flatly reject. 'I am very skeptical about these claims,' says Boyd. 'Installing a laser of sufficient power to start a fire on a drone is not simple. For a laser to be effective, you need to have very fine pointing control to ensure that the beam stays precisely on the target.' Achieving that during flight requires sophisticated technology, Boyd says, and there are 'probably more effective ways of starting wildfires from drones than lasers.' In a world where a $500 drone can destroy a $10 million tank, militaries are desperate for cheaper, smarter defenses. Lasers offer just that, if they can overcome their limitations. Israel's success may mark the beginning of a new era, one where the flash of a laser, not the roar of a missile, is what keeps the skies safe.
Miami Herald
03-08-2025
- Miami Herald
It's the Worst Time To Be an American Farmer in Decades
America's farmers are locked in a generational crisis, fending off an array of threats that could jeopardize food supplies and spell financial disaster for those often hailed as the "backbone of the nation." "They love their way of life, and they love that dirt," President Donald Trump said this week, in a somewhat off-piste response to a question on the importance of farmers. "They don't know how to do anything else, but they don't want to do anything else." But the current storm of rising debt, declining commodity prices and labor shortfalls has begun to echo the great Farm Crisis of the 1980s and may be testing the love farmers hold for their profession. Farm sector debt is expected to reach a record $561.8 billion in 2025, according to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, up 3.7 percent from 2024. The Kansas City Federal Reserve has attributed this primarily to increased lending for small- and mid-sized farms. This growing financial pressure has also pushed up bankruptcies. Researchers at the University of Arkansas recently found that Chapter 12 filings-specifically for farmers and family fishermen-reached 88 in the first quarter of the year, nearly doubling the previous year's figure. "Bankruptcies are on the rise and you will see many more on the auction block in the coming months especially this fall," said John Boyd, a crop and livestock farmer and founder of the National Black Farmers Association. Boyd has been farming since the early 1980s, currently growing soybeans, corn and wheat across 1,500 acres in Virginia while raising 150 head of beef cattle. He told Newsweek that 2025 marked the first time in his career that he was unable to receive an operating loan, which provides farmers working capital needed to cover daily expenses, and blamed this on the trade policies of the current administration. "I was turned down by banks for the simple fact of low commodity prices due to the president's tariffs," he said. The higher costs for foreign importers have dampened foreign demand, leading to further reductions in the price of America's agricultural exports. Corn futures, as an example, have fallen about 15 percent since the start of the year, according to TradingEconomics. "Mexico buys U.S. corn, China buys soybeans," Boyd said. "We cannot survive on low crop prices with input costs at an all-time high.I have not seen such political chaos like this, and I have been farming since 1983." A May survey by Purdue University found that a strong majority (70 percent) of U.S. farmers believe Trump's tariffs will strengthen U.S. agriculture-some telling Investigate Midwest that they will help the U.S. pressure China to boost its imports. But according to Caleb Ragland, president of American Soybean Association, the "tit-for-tat trade war"-which has still not given way to a full-fledged deal despite several weeks of negotiations-could see American soybean farmers lose out on this critical market. "Make no mistake, American soybean farmers do stand at the edge of a cliff and will suffer if tariffs are not replaced with trade agreements that reduce tariffs before our harvest this fall," Ragland said in his May testimony before the U.S. Senate Finance Committee. "American farm and ranch families need a workforce that is ready, willing and available," said Michael Marsh, president and CEO of the National Council of Agricultural Employers (NCAE). "The shortage of these workers is perhaps the most significant challenge facing U.S. agriculture." "This year, the labor shortfall in U.S. agriculture will exceed 400,000 jobs," he added. "Technology will not fill that need." The California Farm Bureau listed "access to a stable workforce" among the key challenges facing America's farmers, and pointed Newsweek to its recent statement warning that "current immigration enforcement activity has caused disruptions to farming operations." Farms have been one the key targets of the administration's crackdown on illegal immigration, raids by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) resulting in worker shortages and even rotting crops as the country heads into harvest season. "The president's immigration policies have hurt America's farmers," Boyd said. "Who's going to do the hard work that is required in 100-degree heat and enduring work conditions?" "A significant portion of our domestic workforce is here in unauthorized status," Marsh said. "Congress has failed since 1986 to pass meaningful agricultural labor reform. As a result of that and stepped-up efforts to remove unauthorized persons from the U.S., people on our farms and ranches are frightened." However, beyond the current enforcement actions, Marsh said the issue has been exacerbated by labor regulations, which "expanded significantly during the last administration." "For instance, in just 18 months the Biden administration issued 3,000 new pages of regulations for users of the temporary H-2A visa program," he said, referencing changes made by the Department of Labor in 2024. That, he said, has been "jeopardizing the ability of farm and ranch families to sustain the enterprise but also jeopardizing the safety and security of our people." For the consumer, the struggles of American farmers in 2025 are beyond simply a rural community crisis and carry direct repercussions at the checkout line and dinner table. "When our farmers face persistent challenges, the broader consequences can include higher food prices, fewer choices at the grocery store and reduced access to the variety and quality of food Americans have come to expect," California Farm Bureau President Shannon Douglass told Newsweek. "In the long run, it could also weaken our domestic food supply and make the U.S. more reliant on imports." For farmers, the impacts could be even more dire. "We as Black farmers are facing extinction!" said Boyd, adding that this group has "never really benefited" from the billions in subsidies paid annually by the government. The sweeping tax and spending package signed into law by Trump on July 4 frees up significant funds to support America's farmers. The "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" will continue commodities programs and boosts subsidies for farmers by an estimated $66.4 billion over 10 years. While a lifeline for many, analysis has shown that these benefits will be unevenly distributed, depending on the type of crops are grown, with larger farms and those in the South expected to reap the greatest benefits. "It fails to offer any meaningful support for independent farmers-who face increasing challenges from low prices, trade wars and the climate crisis-and the communities they feed," was the response of the National Family Farm Coalition, a nonprofit that advocates for small- and medium-scale family farmers and fishing communities. And to others, while subsidy programs are a step in the right direction, they fall short of addressing the structural issues plaguing U.S. agriculture. "There are provisions included in the Big Beautiful Bill that benefit farmers and ranchers," the California Farm Bureau said. "However, a comprehensive farm bill is still needed." Newsweek has reached out to the Department of Agriculture via email for comment. Related Articles Agriculture Secretary Brooke L. Rollins: A Common-Sense Plan to Strengthen America's Food Safety | OpinionTrump's Plan To Combat Bird Flu Will Ensure More Bird Flu | OpinionWoman Speechless at 'Huge' Egg Laid by Chicken-Then Sees What's InsideTrump Pressures California to Reroute Water to Farms, Cities 2025 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC.
Newsweek
03-08-2025
- Newsweek
It's the Worst Time To Be an American Farmer in Decades
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. America's farmers are locked in a generational crisis, fending off an array of threats that could jeopardize food supplies and spell financial disaster for those often hailed as the "backbone of the nation." "They love their way of life, and they love that dirt," President Donald Trump said this week, in a somewhat off-piste response to a question on the importance of farmers. "They don't know how to do anything else, but they don't want to do anything else." But the current storm of rising debt, declining commodity prices and labor shortfalls has begun to echo the great Farm Crisis of the 1980s and may be testing the love farmers hold for their profession. Farm sector debt is expected to reach a record $561.8 billion in 2025, according to data from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, up 3.7 percent from 2024. The Kansas City Federal Reserve has attributed this primarily to increased lending for small- and mid-sized farms. This growing financial pressure has also pushed up bankruptcies. Researchers at the University of Arkansas recently found that Chapter 12 filings—specifically for farmers and family fishermen—reached 88 in the first quarter of the year, nearly doubling the previous year's figure. "Bankruptcies are on the rise and you will see many more on the auction block in the coming months especially this fall," said John Boyd, a crop and livestock farmer and founder of the National Black Farmers Association. Photo-illustration by Newsweek/Getty Tariffs Putting Pressure on Crop Prices Boyd has been farming since the early 1980s, currently growing soybeans, corn and wheat across 1,500 acres in Virginia while raising 150 head of beef cattle. He told Newsweek that 2025 marked the first time in his career that he was unable to receive an operating loan, which provides farmers working capital needed to cover daily expenses, and blamed this on the trade policies of the current administration. "I was turned down by banks for the simple fact of low commodity prices due to the president's tariffs," he said. The higher costs for foreign importers have dampened foreign demand, leading to further reductions in the price of America's agricultural exports. Corn futures, as an example, have fallen about 15 percent since the start of the year, according to TradingEconomics. "Mexico buys U.S. corn, China buys soybeans," Boyd said. "We cannot survive on low crop prices with input costs at an all-time high.I have not seen such political chaos like this, and I have been farming since 1983." A May survey by Purdue University found that a strong majority (70 percent) of U.S. farmers believe Trump's tariffs will strengthen U.S. agriculture—some telling Investigate Midwest that they will help the U.S. pressure China to boost its imports. But according to Caleb Ragland, president of American Soybean Association, the "tit-for-tat trade war"—which has still not given way to a full-fledged deal despite several weeks of negotiations—could see American soybean farmers lose out on this critical market. "Make no mistake, American soybean farmers do stand at the edge of a cliff and will suffer if tariffs are not replaced with trade agreements that reduce tariffs before our harvest this fall," Ragland said in his May testimony before the U.S. Senate Finance Committee. Vanishing Farm Workforce "American farm and ranch families need a workforce that is ready, willing and available," said Michael Marsh, president and CEO of the National Council of Agricultural Employers (NCAE). "The shortage of these workers is perhaps the most significant challenge facing U.S. agriculture." "This year, the labor shortfall in U.S. agriculture will exceed 400,000 jobs," he added. "Technology will not fill that need." The California Farm Bureau listed "access to a stable workforce" among the key challenges facing America's farmers, and pointed Newsweek to its recent statement warning that "current immigration enforcement activity has caused disruptions to farming operations." Farms have been one the key targets of the administration's crackdown on illegal immigration, raids by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) resulting in worker shortages and even rotting crops as the country heads into harvest season. Federal agents block people protesting an ICE immigration raid at a nearby licensed cannabis farm on July 10, 2025, near Camarillo, California. Federal agents block people protesting an ICE immigration raid at a nearby licensed cannabis farm on July 10, 2025, near Camarillo, California."The president's immigration policies have hurt America's farmers," Boyd said. "Who's going to do the hard work that is required in 100-degree heat and enduring work conditions?" "A significant portion of our domestic workforce is here in unauthorized status," Marsh said. "Congress has failed since 1986 to pass meaningful agricultural labor reform. As a result of that and stepped-up efforts to remove unauthorized persons from the U.S., people on our farms and ranches are frightened." However, beyond the current enforcement actions, Marsh said the issue has been exacerbated by labor regulations, which "expanded significantly during the last administration." "For instance, in just 18 months the Biden administration issued 3,000 new pages of regulations for users of the temporary H-2A visa program," he said, referencing changes made by the Department of Labor in 2024. That, he said, has been "jeopardizing the ability of farm and ranch families to sustain the enterprise but also jeopardizing the safety and security of our people." Consequences of America's Latest Farm Crisis For the consumer, the struggles of American farmers in 2025 are beyond simply a rural community crisis and carry direct repercussions at the checkout line and dinner table. "When our farmers face persistent challenges, the broader consequences can include higher food prices, fewer choices at the grocery store and reduced access to the variety and quality of food Americans have come to expect," California Farm Bureau President Shannon Douglass told Newsweek. "In the long run, it could also weaken our domestic food supply and make the U.S. more reliant on imports." For farmers, the impacts could be even more dire. "We as Black farmers are facing extinction!" said Boyd, adding that this group has "never really benefited" from the billions in subsidies paid annually by the government. The sweeping tax and spending package signed into law by Trump on July 4 frees up significant funds to support America's farmers. The "One Big Beautiful Bill Act" will continue commodities programs and boosts subsidies for farmers by an estimated $66.4 billion over 10 years. While a lifeline for many, analysis has shown that these benefits will be unevenly distributed, depending on the type of crops are grown, with larger farms and those in the South expected to reap the greatest benefits. "It fails to offer any meaningful support for independent farmers—who face increasing challenges from low prices, trade wars and the climate crisis—and the communities they feed," was the response of the National Family Farm Coalition, a nonprofit that advocates for small- and medium-scale family farmers and fishing communities. And to others, while subsidy programs are a step in the right direction, they fall short of addressing the structural issues plaguing U.S. agriculture. "There are provisions included in the Big Beautiful Bill that benefit farmers and ranchers," the California Farm Bureau said. "However, a comprehensive farm bill is still needed." Newsweek has reached out to the Department of Agriculture via email for comment.
