Latest news with #Driscoll
Yahoo
2 days ago
- General
- Yahoo
Head-on collision involving tractor-trailer shuts down U.S. Route 77 near Driscoll
The Texas Department of Public Safety has shut down U.S. Route 77 near Driscoll as it clears the scene of a head-on collision. Texas Highway Patrol state troopers responded to a crash at 7:11 a.m. on May 30, said Sgt. Harold 'Rob' Mallory of the DPS Texas Highway Patrol Corpus Christi District. A man was driving a Mazda Tribute north on the highway when the vehicle crossed over into the southbound lanes, hitting an 18-wheeler head-on, he said. Medics attended to the man and transported him to the hospital with injuries. Mallory said he is not certain how serious the man's injuries are, though Robstown Fire Department first responders who arrived at the scene had to cut him out of the vehicle after the crash, he said. The crash caused substantial damage to the tractor-trailer's front end, but the driver of the tractor-trailer was not injured, he said. Traffic on U.S. Route 77 is being detoured at the County Road 28 exit as debris from the crash scene is being cleared, Mallory said shortly after 11 a.m. Texas Department of Public Safety investigators are determining the cause of the crash. More: You can't text, but can you read one while driving? Know these 10 Texas driving laws More: Texas state troopers searching for vehicle involved in May 23 hit-and-run near Rockport This article originally appeared on Corpus Christi Caller Times: Head-on crash with tractor-trailer shuts down U.S. 77 near Driscoll
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
"Learn to Code" Backfires Spectacularly as Comp-Sci Majors Suddenly Have Sky-High Unemployment
It looks like the "learn to code" push is backfiring spectacularly for those who bought in. As Newsweek reports, recent college graduates who majored in computer science are facing high unemployment rates alongside the increasing probability of being laid off or replaced by artificial intelligence if and when they do get hired. In its latest labor market report, the New York Federal Reserve found that recent CS grads are dealing with a whopping 6.1 precent unemployment rate. Those who majored in computer engineering — which is similar, if not more specialized — are faring even worse, with 7.5 percent of recent graduates remaining jobless. Comparatively, the New York Fed found, per 2023 Census data and employment statistics, that recent grads overall have only a 5.8 percent unemployment rate. While folks who majored in fields like anthropology and physics fared even worse, with unemployment rates of 9.4 and 7.8 percent respectively, computer engineering had the third-highest rate of unemployment on the New York Fed's rankings, while computer science had the seventh — a precipitous fall from grace for a major once considered an iron-clad ticket to high earnings and job security. (Those numbers, notably, are worse even than the outcomes for journalism grads. Despite being accurately advised that their chosen field is dying, recent grads who majored in journalism are only experiencing unemployment at a rate of 4.4 percent, per the NYFR's analysis.) Bryan Driscoll, an HR and business consultant, told the magazine that the pipe dream "sold" to CS majors doesn't match up to the reality of the current job market that still "rewards pedigree over potential." "We've overproduced degrees without addressing how exploitative and gatekept the tech hiring pipeline has become," Driscoll said. "Entry-level roles are vanishing, unpaid internships are still rampant, and companies are offshoring or automating the very jobs these grads trained for." By automating, of course, the consultant means being replaced with AI as part of the second apparent phase of the tech industry's latest crash following major layoffs in recent years. Michael Ryan, another of Newsweek's experts, suggested that recent CS grads are, somehow, doing a crappier job than their AI competition. "Every kid with a laptop thinks they're the next Zuckerberg," the finance guru behind told the magazine, "but most can't debug their way out of a paper bag." "We created a gold rush mentality around coding right as the gold ran out," Ryan continued, referencing the "learn to code" craze of the late 2010s and early 2020s. "Companies are cutting engineering budgets by 40 percent while CS enrollment hits record highs. It's basic economics. Flood the market, crater the wages." Where do they go from here? Aside from going back to school for something more lucrative, they could take the suggestion from one laid-off tech veteran, who last year told SFGATE that she had started selling her blood plasma to make ends meet. More on post-grad struggles: Berkeley Coding Professor Says Even Grads With 4.0 GPA Can't Find Jobs
Boston Globe
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
Regie Gibson selected as state's inaugural poet laureate
'He sees his poetry as a means of bringing people together, finding common ground and building stronger communities,' she said in a statement. Get Starting Point A guide through the most important stories of the morning, delivered Monday through Friday. Enter Email Sign Up Massachusetts, a state of deep literary traditions, was previously one of the few states without a designated poet laureate, though several municipalities have local poet laureates. Advertisement As state poet laureate, Lt. Gov. Driscoll said the state was lucky to have Gibson in the role, calling his selection 'an exciting step toward promoting creative expression from the Berkshires to the Cape.' Gibson, of Lexington, currently serves as co-artistic director at Advertisement He has performed his work in a variety of venues, and his poetry has appeared in numerous journals, including The Iowa Review and Poetry Magazine. His is the author of the 2001 poetry volume, 'Storms Beneath the Skin.' Referencing 'As Massachusetts inaugural Poet Laureate, I see it as my charge to do all I can to make sure there will be another and another and another!,' he said in a statement. Now in its 13th year, the biennial Massachusetts Poetry Festival unfolds this weekend with more than 60 events at venues across Salem. In addition to Gibson, the festival will include poets including Mass Poetry executive director Daniel Johnson said Gibson has been involved with the organization for years, even serving as the group's poet-in-residence. 'He's one of those poets I always looked up to,' said Johnson. 'Anytime I've seen Reggie perform, I just know it's going to be -- it can feel kind of intergalactic, you know, kind of cosmic even.' Mass Cultural Council executive director Michael J. Bobbitt called Gibson's appointment 'groundbreaking,' describing the poet as 'an extraordinary talent whose voice resonates with truth, creativity, and hope.' Characterizing the power of poetry, Gibson called the art form 'a sustained dialogue with ourselves across time.' Advertisement With poetry, 'we get a clearer sense of our own thoughts, feelings, and inner music – but also, our inspirations, aspirations and desperations,' he said, 'not only OURS, but of many who have walked before us – and, many who will walk after.' Malcolm Gay can be reached at
Yahoo
5 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Donald Trump is creating a ‘civil rights' initiative to target DEI programs in the private sector
Good morning! The Trump administration took aim earlier this year at diversity, equity and inclusion programs in the private sector. And last week, it took another step towards creating a way to crack down on federal contractors with DEI programs. On May 19, the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced the establishment of the Civil Rights Fraud Initiative, which will use the False Claims Act to 'investigate and, as appropriate, pursue claims against any recipient of federal funds that knowingly violates federal civil rights laws.' The initiative will be co-led by the DOJ's Civil Division's Fraud Section and the Civil Rights Division, and each group will be tasked with identifying a team of attorneys to 'aggressively pursue this work.' 'America has watched a tidal wave of anti-Semitism sweep our universities and seen public institutions codify inherently divisive policies like DEI at an unprecedented rate,' Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche wrote in a statement. 'The days of using federal funds to further discrimination are over.' Traditionally, the False Claims Act is used to combat fraud, such as the misuse of federal funds in billing, procurement, or administration, according to Kate Driscoll, a lawyer and partner at Morrison Foerster's investigations and white collar defense practice group, who previously served as Assistant U.S. Attorney in the office for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. For example, if a manufacturing company said they would provide a certain number of products to the government and underdelivers, or a health care provider bills Medicare for services it never provided. Using the law as a way to target companies over their DEI programs, according to Driscoll, is unprecedented. 'This really is a novel extension of the False Claims Act to address an enforcement priority for this new administration, and address what it views as unlawful DEI,' says Driscoll. 'The DOJ bases investigations on a preponderance of evidence, so these claims are easy to prove and the damages are tremendous.' Trump's missives from earlier this year, as well as a May memorandum, make it clear that the DOJ is looking for the public's help in calling out institutions over their DEI practices. Any individual with knowledge of discrimination by federal funding recipients are 'strongly encouraged' by the department to file whistleblower claims against an organization for their DEI programs. These individuals are even financially incentivized to do so. Penalties for violating the False Claims Act include both civil penalties and potential for damages of up to three times the government's losses. The DOJ says it obtained close to $3 billion in settlements and judgments from general claims during the 2024 fiscal year. Whistleblowers can receive up to 30% of what the government recovers. It's important to note, however, that the Trump administration is targeting 'illegal' DEI programs, which would have already been a liability long before any presidential missives. And many companies have spent the fast few months making sure their DEI initiatives are airtight. But companies that receive federal funds will have to figure out in advance how they may handle a DEI 'fraud' claim, should it arise, says Vanessa Matsis-McCready, associate general counsel and vice president of human resources for Engage PEO, an HR outsourcing platform. 'Best practice is to routinely evaluate corporate programs to ensure they are not disparately impacting any particular groups, and that they are applied consistently in a business neutral manner,' she says. 'It is also recommended that employers reiterate reporting procedures, review all complaints or concerns that are raised and investigate further when appropriate.' Brit This story was originally featured on
Axios
6 days ago
- Automotive
- Axios
Army weapons shake-up backed by Hegseth and other Trump picks
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and the wider Trump White House are providing "air cover" for the U.S. Army's ongoing vehicle-and-weapons upheaval, the service's top civilian told Axios. Why it matters: System shocks are exactly that — a shock. Executing them requires support, especially at such a politically volatile moment. "Fundamentally, they just have a risk tolerance that doesn't match, I think, previous administrations," Secretary Dan Driscoll said at a live Axios event. "There are a lot of states and congressional districts and lobbyists; there are rational reasons why it exists the way it is today," he said. "Those reasons are just not in the best interest of soldiers." Friction point: On the materiel chopping block are longtime favorites (Humvee, Apache and the Improved Turbine Engine Program) as well as relative newcomers (M10 Booker). By the numbers: The Army is expected to save $48 billion over the next five years. Driscoll told Axios he and others consider comparisons between the Army Transformation Initiative (ATI) and Elon Musk's DOGE a compliment. "I think DOGE is loaded," he added. "You have a lot of people who have these feelings about it." The intrigue: Both Driscoll and Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George have been working the media circuit since ATI was announced May 1.
