Portugal cut drug deaths by 80%, using free health care and addiction treatment. The U.S., meanwhile, focused on drug busts and tough crime laws. Overdose deaths keep rising catastrophically.
National News
FTC and 9 states sue to block Kroger-Albertsons supermarket merger
The deal would combine the country’s two largest grocery store chains. The companies say they have to merge to compete with Walmart.
Federal appeals court revokes Obama-era ban on coal leasing
Even as demand for coal has slumped nationwide, mining companies have pushed federal land managers to open up more land for exploration.
NASA is looking for people to test out its Mars simulator for a year
Applications are live for NASA’s next four-person cohort to live and work from a 3D-printed, 1,700-square-foot facility.
How far can cities go to clear homeless camps? The US Supreme Court will decide
Lower courts have said it’s unconstitutional to punish people for sleeping outside if no shelter is available. Cities say these rulings have paralyzed their efforts to manage growing tent encampments.
Violent crime is dropping fast in the US — even if Americans don’t believe it
In cities big and small, from both coasts, violence has dropped. Yet when you ask people about crime in the country, the perception is it’s getting a lot worse.