GOOD MORNING, MASSACHUSETTS. Happy Monday!

MORSE DENIES ALLEGATIONS OF INAPPROPRIATE BEHAVIOR Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse won't drop out of his Democratic primary race against House Ways and Means chair Richard Neal, following allegations from college Democrats that that he misused his power for romantic or sexual gain.

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Morse denied the allegations in a statement released on Sunday night. The mayor also formally released any endorsers who no longer want to support him.

"I have never used my position of power as Mayor and UMass lecturer for romantic or sexual gain, or to take advantage of students," Morse said. "Too often, elections aren't about issues and ideas; they're about personal destruction."

Last week, three groups of college Democrats disinvited Morse from all future events alleging that he showed a pattern of using his platform and taking advantage of his position of power for romantic or sexual gain, specifically toward young students. The letter was first reported by the Massachusetts Daily Collegian on Friday.

In the days that followed, some Morse supporters revoked their support, while others questioned the allegations against him. Two Holyoke City Councilors called on the mayor to resign, while another said he should be put on paid leave. College Democrats at Morse's alma mater, Brown University, said they would stop publicizing events with him.

The University of Massachusetts, where Morse was a lecturer from 2014 to 2019, announced it would launch a full review into the allegations. The university policy states faculty are prohibited from having romantic or sexual relationships with students they supervise.

In his statement, Morse said he and other members of the queer community are outraged by the use of "anti-gay stereotypes" regarding the allegations against him.

"To the many members of the queer community that have reached out to me in recent days, it's clear that many of you feel that these recent events, and the language used in response, aren't just an attack on me, but on all of us. You're genuinely outraged, as I am, by the invocation of age-old anti-gay stereotypes," Morse said. "I want my freedom, and I want you to have yours, too."

The College Democrats of Massachusetts pushed back, saying any suggestion their decision to send the letter had to do with Morse's sexuality was "untrue, disingenuous and harmful."

Justice Democrats, a progressive group backing Morse that is known for supporting other leftwing primary challengers, like New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, has been silent. The group has not commented on the situation or posted on its otherwise active Twitter account since the story broke Friday, though the group is still airing television ads for Morse. Fight Corporate Monopolies, which is running attack ads against Neal, told POLITICO it would continue its efforts, but emphasized it hasn't endorsed Morse.

Morse and Neal will debate for the first time Aug. 17, a week from today.

FIRST IN PLAYBOOK: BELAFONTE ENDORSES MARKEY Singer, actor and activist Harry Belafonte is endorsing Sen. Ed Markey for reelection today.

Belafonte is celebrated for bringing Caribbean musical styles to an international audience in the 1950s. Belafonte was an early supporter of the American Civil Rights movement and was close with the late Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.

"Like millions of Americans, I'm aware of how desperate these times are for us all politically. That's why I'm supporting Ed Markey," Belafonte says in an endorsement video. "His political courage, his moral strength and his insight is just what we need in our political arena."

Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget for the Playbook? Get in touch: [emailprotected]

TODAY Candidate for congress Jake Auchincloss talks with Boston Globe editorial page editor Bina Venkataraman about the paper's decision to endorse him.

Massachusetts reports 14 new coronavirus deaths, 286 cases on Sunday as US tops 5 million cases, by Benjamin Kail, MassLive.com: Massachusetts health officials announced another 14 new coronavirus deaths on Sunday, bringing the statewide tally to 8,514. Officials also reported another 286 new confirmed cases of the virus, totaling at least 112,459 across the commonwealth since the pandemic began.

Baker pauses reopening; cracks down on gatherings, by Sarah Betancourt, CommonWealth Magazine: Gov. Charlie Baker is hitting the pause button on the states reopening efforts and ramping up enforcement of coronavirus prevention measures in an effort to limit community transmissions. At a State House press conference on Friday, Baker said step two of Phase 3 of reopening is indefinitely on hold due to the rise in new coronavirus cases. This means live music venues and bars wont be opening any time soon.

Thats not how you teach kids how to read: What Charlie Baker said about remote-only school, by Dialynn Dwyer, Boston.com: Massachusetts Gov. Charlie Baker expressed his concerns Friday about the impact of remote-only instruction on young students, particularly those learning to read. The comments were made during the governors press conference to provide updates on the coronavirus outbreak and followed his announcement that he would slow measures in the states reopening out of concern over an uptick in cases seen recently.

2 years on, data collection not measuring up to criminal justice reform bill goals, by Danny Jin and Jack Lyons, The Berkshire Eagle: Two years after Massachusetts passed a bill to reform its criminal justice system, it has yet to meet the data-collection goals outlined in that bill. Data collection remains inconsistent across criminal justice agencies, according to a June report.

Parents turning to pandemic pods and microschools, by Shira Schoenberg, CommonWealth Magazine: When North Andover schools closed in March, Jennifer Quadrozzis family formed a quarantine pod with three other neighborhood families. Quadrozzis seven-year-old daughter now had eight other children, ages two to nine, to play with. The kids would learn at their respective homes in the mornings, then play together in the afternoon.

Brewers await vote on distribution deal, by Christian M. Wade, CNHI News: Craft brewers and beer wholesalers are nudging lawmakers to sign off an a deal to resolve a decade-long dispute over distribution rights, warning that a delay will worsen the microbrew industrys economic situation. Last month, the sides reached an agreement to give small brewers more flexibility and backed a legislative proposal to establish what they say is a fairer process of resolving disputes.

Police say state reform bill hurting officer retention, by Elaine Thompson, Telegram & Gazette: Dozens of local police officers in Massachusetts are checking on their retirement status, looking at possibly getting out of the profession if a police reform bill, which they say will handcuff them, passes. Police Sgt. Richard P. Cipro and Officer David J. Gilbert both of whom head the two unions at the Worcester Police Department said at least 50 of the departments approximately 445 police officers and officials have contacted the citys retirement office to see if they have enough time to retire and what their benefits would be.

Lawmakers hear bill that would suspend MCAS testing for four years, by Marie Szaniszlo, Boston Herald: The states high-stakes MCAS exam would be suspended for four years due to the coronavirus pandemic under a bill before lawmakers for written testimony Monday. The Joint Committee on Education is taking written testimony on the bill, which would institute a four-year moratorium on the use of the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System as a graduation requirement.

With remote learning increasingly likely, districts try to reach the most vulnerable students, by Jenna Russell, Naomi Martin and Bianca Vzquez Toness, Boston Globe: With the number of coronavirus cases climbing, and teachers unions rallying around a remote start to the school year, some Massachusetts school districts are holding out hope for a hybrid approach to reopening next month that would allow at least the most academically vulnerable students to return part-time to classrooms.

Eyes on the ground and in the sky: Dozens of police departments in Massachusetts have drones, partnerships with Amazon security company Ring, by Jackson Cote, MassLive.com: Local law enforcement agencies may be able to keep watch over their communities in more ways than one. A slew of surveillance technologies are in the hands of dozens of law enforcement agencies across Massachusetts, a new online map shows.

Many of Massachusettss biggest companies do not have a single Black board member, by Shirley Leung, Boston Globe: Change in Corporate America often begins in the board room, and by that measure, the biggest public companies in Massachusetts have a long way to go when it comes to appointing Black directors. Of the 100 largest public companies in the Commonwealth, close to two-thirds do not have a single Black board member, according to analysis by BoardProspects.

Between Mayor Walsh And Teachers Union, A Growing Gap And A Political Minefield, by Isaiah Thompson, WGBH News: With the official start of the school year just weeks away, and in the midst of a pandemic crisis whose continued magnitude and duration are unknown, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh has found himself caught between a rock and a hard place. Walsh is engaged in an increasingly public and at times acrimonious tug of war with one of the citys most influential employee unions the Boston Teachers Union.

Kennedy releases ad attacking Markey on senators home turf of Malden, by Danny McDonald, Boston Globe: More than three weeks before primary day, the Democratic contest between US Senator Edward J. Markey and Representative Joseph P. Kennedy III took a sharp turn Saturday, with the congressman releasing an online-only ad featuring a labor leader blasting Markey for hurting union workers in his hometown of Malden.

'Politics is about connecting,' by Madeline Hughes, Eagle-Tribune: Armed with a mask and hand sanitizer, Rep. Joe Kennedy III, D-Mass., was fist-bumping with locals and reminding them to vote as he walked through Lawrence Friday night. He was reminding people to request ballots and vote.

State auditor endorses Jesse Mermell in race for Kennedys vacant congressional seat, by Nick Stoico, Boston Globe: Jesse Mermell, a former adviser to Governor Deval Patrick, has picked up the endorsement of State Auditor Suzanne Bump in the Democratic primary to fill US Representative Joe Kennedys congressional seat, Mermells campaign announced Sunday evening. The endorsement could give Mermell a boost in a crowded field of nine candidates for the nomination to succeed Kennedy, who is in the midst of his own primary battle against incumbent US Senator Edward Markey.

Candidates for the 4th Congressional district push toward primary, by George W. Rhodes, Sun Chronicle: Democrat Dave Cavell, whos seeking the 4th Congressional District seat being vacated by Rep. Joseph Kennedy III, hosted online trainings and digital phone banks over the weekend with a focus on assisting voters in filling out a vote by mail request, his campaign said.

Leckey rolls out new TV ad in 4th District race as ballots hit mailboxes, by Ted Nesi, WPRI: In another sign that she has become a serious contender to succeed Congressman Joe Kennedy III, Democrat Ihssane Leckey is rolling out a second TV ad on Monday that seeks to reinforce her pitch to the partys left. Leckey who entered the race more than a year ago, when Kennedy was still expected to seek re-election rather than challenge U.S. Sen. Ed Markey has vaulted into the top tier of the 4th Congressional District primary by pumping $800,000 of her own money into her campaign.

Massport slashing spending as it looks to make up $300M revenue loss under coronavirus, by Sean Philip Cotter, Boston Herald: Three hundred million dollars short. Thats how far the Massachusetts Port Authority says it would be in the red in this new fiscal year if it didnt take drastic measures cutting hundreds of millions in spending after massive revenue drops at Logan International Airport.

Pandemic shows a stark reality: For many, MBTA buses are a lifeline, by Adam Vaccaro, Boston Globe: For months, the bus system has been the MBTAs workhorse, shuttling essential workers around the region while many commuter rail and subway trains rumble nearly empty down the tracks. But within the bus network, the primary transit option in many neighborhoods, different lines tell very different stories.

Neighbor sues to block Pine Street Inn project in Jamaica Plain, by Tim Logan, Boston Globe: The Pine Street Inns biggest-ever development would provide long-term housing in Jamaica Plain for the formerly homeless. But one of the neighbors of the Washington Street site is suing to stop it, saying the project is too big, and wouldnt have enough parking.

As decision day nears, VP hopefuls rake in big money for Biden, by Elena Schneider, POLITICO: Of Bidens prospective running mates, Sen. Elizabeth Warren has brought in the most money for him, totaling more than $7.7 million combined from a high-dollar event which she vocally swore off during her own campaign and a grass-roots event that drew 50,000 participants. Shes also sent multiple emails to her own small-dollar list, as well as his. On Tuesday, Warren will host another event for Biden, alongside Rep. Katie Porter (D-Calif.), with tickets ranging from $250 to $25,000, according to an invitation obtained by POLITICO.

Warren and other top Democrats ask USPS watchdog to investigate practices, by Jessica Dean, Jeremy Herb and Ellie Kaufman, CNN: Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren and other top Democrats on Friday sent a letter to the United States Postal Service inspector general asking her to investigate recent operational changes within the agency. The Democrats write that they are concerned about modifications to USPS staffing and policies recently put in place by new Postmaster General Louis DeJoy.

Rondon gas safety bill passes U.S. Senate, by Christian M. Wade, Gloucester Daily Times: A proposal to require monitors to supervise work on natural gas systems has passed the U.S. Senate as part of a pipeline safety bill. The measure named after Leonel Rondon, the Lawrence teenager killed Sept. 13, 2018, in Merrimack Valley gas disaster, calls for other safety measures such as the instillation of pressure monitoring devices so that utility employees can quickly shut off gas flow in an emergency, among other provisions.

Herald: HURRICANE SEASON," "LET ME OUT, Globe: When a sofa cushion becomes a time clock," "Districts aim to aid at-risk students," "White House defends unilateral pandemic relief.

Candidates tout experience in three-way Dem primary in 5th Hampden District, by Dusty Christensen, Daily Hampshire Gazette: Socially distanced street corner campaigning. Masked door knocking. Zoom meetings instead of house parties and neighborhood gatherings. The COVID-19 pandemic may have made traditional political campaigning more difficult, but the three candidates for the state House seat in the 5th Hampden District have been pushing ahead as the Democratic primary approaches on Sept. 1.

Face mask order in Everett begins Monday; People can be fined up to $300 for violating order, by Scott J. Croteau, MassLive.com: Beginning Monday, anyone in Everett over the age of 2 must wear a clean face mask or face covering at any indoor or outdoor space open to the public. Anyone violating the order put in place during the coronavirus pandemic can be fined up to $300, the citys mayor, Carlo DeMaria, announced Saturday.

60 enslaved people once toiled for a rich landowner in Medford. Kyera Singleton wants you to know who they were, by Hayley Kaufman, Boston Globe: On a small piece of land a few blocks off I-93 stand two buildings, both made of clapboard and brick. One is an 18th-century mansion known as the Royall House, once home to the largest holder of enslaved people in Colonial Massachusetts. The other, a modest structure a few yards away, is believed to be the only remaining slave quarters in the Northern United States.

Globe union members rally for a new contract, by John Hilliard, Boston Globe: Members of the union representing Boston Globe employees, who have worked for more than 19 months without a new contract, rallied Sunday afternoon outside Fenway Park to demand a new agreement with the newspaper ownership. The Boston Newspaper Guild, which represents about 300 newsroom, advertising, and production employees at the Globe, has criticized the pace of contract talks with management.

Blackbaud Data Breach Affects WBUR And Other Nonprofits, WBUR: Boston University and WBUR notified donors on Saturday that some of their personal information may have been compromised. Blackbaud, a company that provides fundraising technology, says its client data was stolen.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY to state Rep. Tackey Chan, state Rep. Steven Ultrino, Matthew MacWilliams and Ryan O. Ferguson.

Want to make an impact? POLITICO Massachusetts has a variety of solutions available for partners looking to reach and activate the most influential people in the Bay State. Have a petition you want signed? A cause youre promoting? Seeking to increase brand awareness among this key audience? Share your message with our influential readers to foster engagement and drive action. Contact Jesse Shapiro to find out how: [emailprotected].

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MORSE denies allegations of INAPPROPRIATE BEHAVIOR State REOPENING is on PAUSE Senate race gets NEGATIVE - Politico

Express News Service

BHUBANESWAR: The Higher Education department has re-engaged a retired bureaucrat as legal consultant, consigning austerity norms of the State Government to the dustbin. Bivas Kanungo, who retired as Special Secretary from Finance department in June, is the third officer to get a post-retirement appointment after the July 7 announcement of austerity measures and fifth to be re-engaged during the lockdown.

Bivas Kanungo, OAS (SAG), retired is hereby engaged as Legal Consultant in Higher Education department for a period not exceeding one year from the date of his joining, said an August 6 office order of the department.

Sources said, efforts were made to retain service of Kanungo in the same post (Special Secretary) in Finance department post retirement. On his retirement on June 30, a file was moved to rehire him which got the approval of the Government. However, the department could not issue the appointment order after this paper exposed how the Government is bending the (austerity) rules to rehabilitate a few retired officers in lucrative positions.

Kanungos appointment as legal consultant is baffling when the department has two law officers and the Government has a full fledged Law department to advise on official legal matters. The Advocate General is the top legal officer of the State to guide the Government on legal issues. Kanungo had all along been dealing with service conditions regarding financial matters, sources who worked closely with him told this paper.

As per the 2014 circular of GA department, there are provisions for notice inviting applications for selection of candidate (post-retirement) justifying the need for such an engagement. Prior concurrence of the Finance department is mandatory. While fixing monthly remuneration of Kanungo at `60,000, the department said this has been concurred by the Finance department.

Ironically, the previous four appointments were made without taking Finance department concurrence. The departments concerned were given the freedom to decided the remuneration which is against the GA circular. If the Finance department is bent upon violating the austerity measures, it should better withdraw the office memorandum issued on July 7 as part of the fiscal compression initiatives to overcome economic crisis due to Covid pandemic, said former Finance Minister Panchanan Kanungo.

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Austerity: Another officer retires, rehired by Odisha government - The New Indian Express

CommuniquThe International Press Centre (IPC), Lagos, in partnership with Media Rights Agenda (MRA) held a two-day Media Training Workshop on Using the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act for Investigative Reports on Campaign Finance and Covid-19 Accountability Issues on Wednesday August 5 and Thursday August 6, 2020 in Lagos.

The training workshop was supported by the European Union through Component 4b: Support to the media of the EU Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EU-SDGN) Project being implemented by the International Press Centre (IPC).

The workshop brought together female and male print, broadcast and online journalists including investigative reporters, political reporters, state house correspondents and editors from the public and private media in Lagos, Ogun, Oyo, Ondo, Ekiti, Osun and Edo States.

The workshop featured presentations on Understanding and Reporting Campaign Finance and Political Expenditure Frameworks and Issues, by Mr. Jide Ojo, Executive Director, OJA Development Consult; Using Investigative Reporting Techniques to Monitor Compliance with Campaign Finance and Political Expenditure Regulations by Ms. Tobore Ovuorie, Freelance Investigative Journalist; and Deploying the FOI Act and Other Investigative Tools/Methodologies in Reporting Covid-19 Funds in the Public Interest by Mr. Dayo Aiyetan, Executive Director, International Centre for Investigative Reporting (ICIR).

Other presentations were: Understanding the Key Features of the Freedom of Information Act, 2011 by Mr. Edetaen Ojo, MRAs Executive Director; and The Role of the Media in Ensuring Good Governance and Government Accountability by Mr. Lanre Arogundade, Executive Director of IPC.

The workshop had plenary sessions at which participants brainstormed on the matters arising from the presentations and came up with various story ideas on campaign finance and Covid-19 accountability issues that they will investigate using the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act.

ObservationsParticipants observed that: The media was not doing enough to unravel the mysteries surrounding political and campaign finance in Nigeria as many issues of importance and significant implications for governance remain uninvestigated and unreported;

The medias performance in holding Federal and State Governments accountable for the receipt and expenditure of Covid-19 funds has been grossly inadequate;

Investigative reporting remains a painstaking process of gathering evidence which may require journalists to submit several requests for information to different public institutions and possibly private entities;

The FOI Act is a potent tool as it makes investigative reporting much more feasible as it reduces the risks associated with obtaining information through other means while also making the process of information gathering easier;

To be able to meaningfully report on campaign finance, a journalist must be conversant with all the laws, regulations and policies which guide campaign financing;

Investigative journalism never provides an instant story, rather it goes through recognised stages of planning, investigation and information gathering as well as reporting, and has to work to accepted standards of accuracy and evidence;

Investigative journalism is a process, not an event and is not intended for use in daily reporting, leak journalism, single source reporting, misuse of information, or paparazzi journalism;

The media can play a vanguard role in overcoming the barriers that often militate against disadvantaged groups like women, youths and persons living with disabilities and their participation in elections;

For journalists to be able to do investigative reports they must be creative, inquisitive and constantly on the lookout for opportunities that exist for those in authority to profit from the system.

ResolutionsIn order to attain the objectives of the workshop, participants resolved to:

Familiarise themselves with the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act in order to effectively use it for verification or fact checking in the course of investigations;

Read and digest relevant sections of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and the Electoral Act 2010 (as ammended) so as to be able to report on the state of compliance with campaign finance disclosure and accounting obligations by political parties and candidates;

Read and digest the Companies and Allied Matters, the Public Procurement Act, Fiscal Responsibility Act and other relevant instruments in order to assess the state of compliance with such legislation, regulations and laws guiding budgeting and the award of contracts;

Familiarise themselves with the provisions of media regulatory frameworks including the Nigeria Broadcasting Code, the Code of Ethics for Nigerian Journalists and the Nigerian Media Code of Election Coverage in order to ensure that they stick to ethical and professional standards while reporting transparency and accountability issues in governance;

Upgrade their investigative and reportorial skills by exploring and making use of local and international opportunities including training programmes and fellowships;

Embark on collaboration in order to conduct in-depth investigations which may require more time and resources if individually conducted;

Work on the various story ideas identified at the workshop in order to promote good governance and accountability

ConclusionParticipants brainstormed on various ideas that they will investigate both individually and collaboratively and agreed to set up a platform to share further ideas and experiences on carrying out these investigations. They thanked the European Union which supported the workshop through Component 4b: Support to the media of the EU Support to Democratic Governance in Nigeria (EU-SDGN) Project.

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Media Training Workshop on Using the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act for Investigative Reports on Campaign Fi - The Nigerian Voice

Harvards endowment, $40.9 billion as of fiscal year 2019, has become notorious for its size both on and off campus. It is common to hear sarcastic complaints about its excess and imbalance from students discussing funding allocation, and it often comes up in staff salary and benefits disputes. The endowment even catches occasional attention from public officials: Boston City Councilor Josh Zakim said during the 2016 HUDS strike, The $35,000 annual [average] salary for these workers thats one one-millionth of Harvards endowment, and President Trump referenced its size in a recent dispute over Harvard receiving COVID-19 assistance funds. Central to these complaints is the idea that, with billions of dollars in the endowment, it is unfair and outrageous that Harvard does not fund specific areas more.

These perceptions are also common among university divestment campaigns. Fossil Fuel Divest Harvard provides an analysis of the endowment in which they estimate that, of the 1% of the endowment publicly disclosed, $5.6 million is invested in the fossil fuel industry. The letter speculates that if that 1% is a representative sample of the whole endowment, that would mean that Harvard has $560 million in fossil fuel investments, but it is also careful to say that FFDH cannot know how representative that 1% is. The Harvard Prison Divestment Campaigns website similarly features an animated graphic declaring that there are $38.775 billion endowment dollars we know nothing about.

Although they often connect to important issues, these stark arguments present an overly simplistic view of how a university endowment works.

For one, an endowment is not a general fund that Harvard can freely take money from. It is designed to be a long-term guarantee for the university via investment, with only small portions of it used to preserve its viability. The funds are run by the Harvard Management Company, a separate group created to manage the schools financial assets. Endowment investments provide future returns for an institution to ensure it can remain fiscally solvent for generations, and market fluctuations can easily wipe out those future savings. After all, Harvard lost 30% of its endowments value in the 2008 recession, and the current COVID-19 recession poses similarly immense risks. To view the endowment as a purse would be immensely irresponsible and undermine the universitys stability.

Endowments are also typically a combination of recent donations and returns on past donations, meaning some of the funds are from fixed longer-term investments that are harder for the school to adjust. According to the 2019 report, around 80% of the endowments funds are restricted by the donors wishes, often earmarked for helping specific schools or other purposes. Of the 5% of the endowment spent on University operations, 70% of those funds were restricted and 30% were available for flexible spending. Even with restrictions, the endowment provided 35% of the Universitys $5.2 billion operating expenses; it also provided pluralities and significant portions of many schools operating budgets.

It is fair to question if Harvard is spending the money it has effectively, if the growth of endowment returns is appropriately scaled to budget and funding increases, or if its investment strategies are optimal. For example, a Harvard Crimson overview of the endowment from 2016 noted that Harvards return trailed that of other universities, indicating that Harvards investments underperformed in comparison. These are some of the more precise issues at play in university funding; describing the total sum amount of the endowment is fairly meaningless on its own.

While those are more general complaints, the divestment campaigns protests on more specific facets of the endowment also contain misconceptions. Given the information available in the fiscal reports, it is not true that we know nothing about the undisclosed funds. And while the fact that Harvard does not reveal all of its investments in certain industries is technically true, the objection to it omits the context of how investing works.

Harvard, as with any group participating in an investment market, is trying to maintain a secure strategy that cannot be copied or undermined by other competitors. The universitys direct investments, about 1% of the total endowment, are publicly filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Beyond that, however, a degree of privacy is needed to have the freedom to execute a strategy, so it makes sense that Harvard would not disclose its entire portfolio beyond the legally required direct holdings.

Even though not all of its investments are revealed, we do know that Harvard has no direct investments in any of the companies the two groups highlight; its money is spread out into mutual funds that feature these companies as a partial beneficiary to an indirect general pool. Often these funds are general indexes meant to represent broad sectors of the economy for stock investment, rather than targeted at specific companies. Many peoples 401(k), general portfolios and retirement accounts have similar partial investments in such companies.

For example, the iShares Core S&P 500 ETF highlighted by FFDH is designed for large-capitalization U.S. equities. Companies connected to fossil fuels, as a large component of the U.S. economy, make up 7.14% of the fund across 54 holdings and are included among other companies like Apple, Microsoft and Visa. The iShares Core S&P Mid-Cap ETF highlighted by HPDC is similarly configured for mid-capitalization U.S. equities and includes private prison operators among many mid-sized IT, industrial, financial and other assorted companies (though the group also objects to the schools investments in companies that in some way service prisons, such as Amazon and Bank of America). The inclusion of certain industries in these funds reflects the state of the overall economy. Harvard, rather than propping up specific companies, is broadly investing its money in a typical way for any organization.

While the divestment groups have centered their most recent efforts on the abstract idea that investments should reflect [Harvards] moral and political principles, some of the campaigns have also argued that divestment will help change larger issues beyond the school. However, there is little evidence to support this claim. Research on the divestment movements impact on apartheid South Africa, one of the most public such campaigns in history, concluded that it had negligible impact on share prices themselves, though it may have contributed to the greater social pressure against the regime.

Even then, stigmatization has never been a guarantee for destroying controversial industries that still have a broad market demand for their goods and services. Tobacco, perhaps one of the most scrutinized industries of all, has maintained fairly constant production levels and increased revenues despite similar campaigns and governmental taxes. Harvard even divested from the industry in 1990, but it appears to have had little effect.

In both allocation-based and moral critiques of Harvards financial practices, the intense focus on the endowment itself is misplaced when there are alternatives that are less easy to sloganeer but more effective in practice. For those wanting to improve Harvards underfunded areas, it is better to look at what the university is funding already and assess the trade-offs. To name one example, does Harvard benefit from funding the most varsity sports of any Division I school, compared to prioritizing the needs of its workers or its less wealthy students? Questionable spending practices on certain amenities, administrative positions or other existing projects are much more tangible and consequential concerns when it comes to Harvards financials.

Likewise for the divestment campaigns, it makes more sense to focus on changing or challenging Harvards direct links with their targeted industries as well as ingraining activists in local networks. Much of this the divestment campaigns already do. FFDH has pressed against Harvard board members ties with the energy industry and its direct funding of university research. HPDC has coordinated with prison suffrage campaigns. Harvard Out of Occupied Palestine has challenged Israeli speakers and hosted striking public displays. If the campaigns want to focus on impacting the Harvard community as they describe in the vision of their coalition letter, it makes more sense to prioritize such direct efforts within the university community rather than aiming for a distant shift in investments that may not carry any substantial change.

This is not to automatically endorse every such effort on campus, as they can be judged on their own merits and prudence but such attempts would undoubtedly have a more tangible impact on the university and the student body. The endowment is much less of an issue than it carries in popular imagination, and a shift in focus would better actualize any changes student activists want.

Image Credit: Harvard fossil fuel divestment petition by victorgrigas is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0

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The Endowment is Not the Issue - Harvard Political Review

Micheal Alexis, a detainee at the Hays County Jail, spoke with Community Impact Newspaper about the conditions inside the jail. (Evelin Garcia/ Community Impact Newspaper)

Recent national reports from the New York Times database indicate prisons and jails have quickly become one of the nations biggest clusters of coronavirus cases. The number of positive cases among detainees housed at the Hays County Jail and those who have been outsourced, has nearly tripled since June 22.

As of July 30, 106 detainees have tested positive for the virus, which has infected about 24% of the jails population, according to the Hays County Sheriffs Office.

The overcrowded jail cost taxpayers $3.86 million in fiscal year 2018-19 to outsource detainees to Blanco, Burnet, Caldwell, Guadalupe, Fort Bend and Walker counties, but with a global pandemic in play and no room for detainees to keep a safe distance, the overcrowded jail may come with a higher price tag for detainees: their well-being.

In a statement to Community Impact Newspaper, Hays County Deputy Sheriff Bruce Harlan wrote: All inmates are given masks and medical screening upon arrival in the jail. If they refuse to take a mask or refuse to wear it, we cannot make them do so. If they lose theirs, one will be replaced within a reasonable time.

However, several detainees claimed that to be untrue.

The holding areas were full. I got there the night of July 7they didnt give me a mask, soap or a test until the third or fourth day I was there. I couldnt wash my hands; there was no soap or toilet paper in the restroom, said Joshua Williams, a resident of Kyle, a cancer survivor and amputee with emphysema, who was taken into custody for a Class B misdemeanor and released seven days later.

Inmates are provided cleaning supplies daily, and upon request. Personal hygienesoapfor the inmates to maintain personal care continues to be judiciously provided by request at no cost to the inmate, Harlan wrote.

Detainees speak about jail conditions

Even after speaking about his pre-existing conditions and compromised immune system, Williams said he did not receive a mask or test upon arrival. Instead, he was placed in a crowded rec room where conditions were filthy.

They absolutely knew of my situation, but I didnt get quarantine until about the fourth day I was in there, Williams said.

He said he was eventually placed in one of the jails four infirmaries, the only place where detainees can truly be quarantined. He also noted that some nurses and the majority of correctional officers were not wearing personal protective equipment.

While he was in jail, Williams said he did not receive a proper meal, and he was denied prescribed medication for his chronic pain, even after getting confirmation from his doctor.

According to Harlan, the majority of detainees who tested positive for COVID-19 were not experiencing symptoms of the virus, and the jails medical team routinely monitored those detainees.

Harlan said jail officials issued 250-300 masks a week, but many detainees have not been wearing them in their housing units.

Michael Alexis, a detainee who said he had been in custody for about a year while awaiting court dates, tested positive for COVID-19 in late June. He said he did not receive any medical attention after exhibiting symptoms, including shortness of breath, fatigue and no taste or smell. He said he had been using the same disposable mask since mid-June.

They just started giving us masks a few weeks ago, Alexis said.

To Alexis knowledge, testing of detainees did not start until June 1, but jail officials contend that testing for the virus began April 24.

Our medical team routinely monitors inmates. If one of our inmates would experience any symptoms that need medical attention they are instructedto both verbally and in writingon how to report symptoms in order to receive treatment, Harlan wrote in response to detainees allegations.

Alexis said he knew of three riots protesting the poor conditions that occurred in June.

Lt. Dennis Gutierrez from the Hays County Sheriffs Office confirmed that detainees did riot in late June, and the Hays County SWAT team was called to quell the situation.

They barricaded windows, they tried to set fires [inside the jail], but [riots] had nothing to do with the safety conditionsit was about being tested, Gutierrez said. They demanded to get tested right then and there ... there were no injuries.

Alexis said he thinks following media coverage of the jails lack of safety conditions, local TV news channels were censored by jail officials. In early July, he said news channels disappeared, although they still received newspapers.

He also noted an incident in which a page featuring his sisters speaking about the jails lack of safety practices was missing from his newspaper.

Decisions about which TV channels would be available were recently reviewed. As a result, changes were made to add channels that would appeal to the larger population of inmates, Harlan wrote.

Multiple handwritten letters provided to Community Impact Newspaper through a nonprofit that seeks criminal justice reformMano Amigarevealed that other detainees shared the same experiences as Williams and Alexis at the county jail.

Rick Selman, a detainee who has been behind bars since 2018, wrote in a letter to Mano Amiga about facing delays with his case for the past 15 months. In his letter, he also detailed the lack of masks and proper disinfectant provided by the jail.

Honestly, masks started to be given on July 1, Selman wrote in a letter to Mano Amiga. Few people got masks before, like me, because we found one at work.

Selman said although guards sanitize twice a day, they use generic Fabuloso and Pine-Sol as a disinfectant.

I know for a fact because I did the disinfecting of dorms for months, Selman said.

Neither cleaner is listed by the United States Environmental Protection Agency or Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as an approved disinfectant for COVID-19.

According to Harlan, the facility is using Halt disinfectant, a U.S. Food and Drug Administration-approved hospital-grade disinfectant.

Multiple other detainees cite in their letters the lack of medication, medical attention and healthy food options to recover from the virus. In a letter, a detainee asks the nonprofit for help and pleads to be deported to his home county to seek medical attention.

Officials consider selective releases

As health experts confirmed prisons and jails are now an epicenter of the coronavirus, some states and counties started to release detainees to slow the spread of COVID-19.

Local activists in Hays County organized demonstrations to demand that pretrial detainees be released amid the pandemic as most of these are victims of a clogged criminal legal system who are sitting in jail for months because they cannot afford bail.

According to Gutierrez, there were about 366 pretrial detainees in a jail population of 435, or 84.14%. That number includes 180 detainees who have been transferred to other counties due to overcrowding.

District judges in Hays County, along with other criminal justice officials, met in March to discuss depopulation of the jail. That led to the release of some detainees, according to Hays County District Judge Bill Henry.

Henry said he could not speak for the rest of the countys judges, but he has been reviewing his cases for any potential releases.

I am continuously reviewing my cases on these issues. Ive made some progress, but there are things on which I cannot approve, Henry said.

Local nonprofit aids detainees

On the heels of a global pandemic at play inside the county jail, Mano Amiga launched the first bail fund in the county ahead of schedule with grants from the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Foundation and the Bail Project. Bail funds assist detainees who cannot afford their bail.

The nonprofit has helped release about 18 detainees since the launch of the bail fund.

Pretrial detainees, legally innocent people who have only been charged but not convicted of a crime, account for the majority of our jail population; many of them there because they are simply too poor to afford their own freedom, Mano Amiga Policy Director Eric Martinez said. Were punishing poor community members for their poverty with a fatal virus when wealthy people accused of the same offenses are able to buy their freedom by posting bail and eluding the deadly pandemic.

See the article here:

Detainees concerned for well-being as COVID-19 cases rise in crowded Hays County Jail - Community Impact Newspaper

IT sector would be a good defensive bet in the portfolio, but the valuation appears fair post the recent rally, Shridatta Bandwaldar, Head of Equity, Canara Robeco, said in an interview with Moneycontrols Kshitij Anand.

Edited excerpt:

Q) July has been an impressive month for investors with both Sensex, and Nifty climbing above crucial resistance levels. We saw mild profit booking towards the close of the month, but would momentum change in August?

A) Predicting near term returns is almost impossible. At the current junction, the focus is more on accessing pace of underlying demand recovery as the economy opens more and moreovernext quarter or two from the lockdown and its implication for earnings of different sectors and companies.

Having said that, from the valuation perspective we are trading at 18xFY22, which to us looks fair and thus we see limited upside in the near term at indices levels.

But, the sectoral rotation and outperformance will continue as investors get incremental sector and company-specific data points.

Q) We have seen some massive outperformance from the IT pack. What is fuelling the rally, and what should investors do now?

A) Recent IT rally has been driven by, 1) better-than-expected quarterly numbers and guidance from most companies, 2) IT is levered to developed countries, which are expected to witness earlier demand recovery driven by huge fiscal push, 3) WFH trend at the margin will increase the need for IT spend from the customers and 4) Offshoring trend might increase as clients focus on costs in this environment.

Looking ahead, the sector would be good defensives bet in the portfolio but the valuation appears fair post the recent rally.

Q) Are there any stocks/sectors that investors could include in their portfolio to safeguard from volatility?

A) We remain invested in Healthcare, IT, select FMCG and exporters to protect portfolio from meaningful downside volatility.

Q) 2020 gave an opportunity for investors to build their portfolio at a reasonable price. What factors should one consider for value investing?

A) We are happy to see Indian retail investors participating in the market when it was at an attractive valuation. However, given the lack of research at retail investors' end, we will advise them to use a mutual fund route rather than investing directly in securities. Investing directly in securities needs a lot of in-depth research over the period.

Q) We are also heading towards the Independence Day as well. Sticking to the theme, how can investors attain financial freedom especially at the time when there is a lot of uncertainty, and equity markets have rallied without any meaningful change in fundamentals?

A) Achieving financial freedom through investing in equities needs a huge amount of discipline. Equities as an asset class will always outperform other asset classes over a period.

Investor has to remain focused on the medium to long term goals and has to continue with a pre-decided sum of SIP plan through 5, 10, 15 years to achieve that financial freedom.

There will always be some or the other uncertainty in markets, which will make investors nervous the key is to not extrapolate near term challenges for a longer horizon.

Q) What is your view on the recent results which have come out from India Inc. for the June quarter? They have not been as bad or the commentary from the management seems comforting. Or, was the Street discounting the worst before?

A) Quarterly earnings have generally been better than what the consensus was building in. This is also partly the reason, why you witnessed arally in several sectors and companies post results.

Most sectors have displayed good cost mitigation ability during when revenues were down between 15-70 percent. The next few quarters would give better indication on-demand recovery.

Q) People say that history never repeats but rhymes. Leaders of the past might not lead the future. So which according to you could lead the rally on D-Street?

A) It is almost impossible to predict that today. Having said that, consolidation of market shares would be a big theme and we would keenly watch it to identify the next winner sector and companies.

Q) PM Modis assurance to the financial sectors was a positive sign. What is your call on the financials? Do you think that investors could contra bet on this sector as the worst seems to be factored in?

A) If COVID gets resolved faster than anticipated on timeline, financials and discretionary might surprise positively. These are also the sectors with the highest uncertainty and low investor expectations for FY21/22. Financials as a sector will also witness huge consolidation on the asset side over the next 3-5 years.

Q) What are you factoring in from the RBI for the rest of the year? More easing?

A) We think RBI has done pretty well in terms of providing rate cuts and liquidity to the market in this challenging time. We do expect some more easing this year.

Q) Maruti Suzuki posted loss for the first time since IPO. What is your call on the auto space? Which sectors according to you can turn out to be a dark horse?

A) The auto sector has been witnessing a weak volume trajectory over the last 6-8 quarters, driven by slowing economic activity and retail consumption. We see the auto sector reviving at the margin in 2HFY21/FY22, driven by better rural demand and increased private transportation needs due to COVID.

Sector, where the investor expectations are really low, can prove to be a dark horse over the next 1 year. These sectors could be one or more from Auto, Financials, Discretionary consumption, Cement, etc.

See the rest here:

DAILY VOICE: Four reasons why IT stocks are hitting 52-week highs - Moneycontrol.com