Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 23hThis Pennsylvania river hasn’t always been orange. 043
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 02/10/2026It’s not immediately apparent that there’s anything wrong with the red-rocked Tioga River. But while life teems along its banks, there is virtually nothing beneath the water’s surface.capitalandmain.comOnce a Bucolic Pennsylvania River, the Tioga Is Now All but DeadTwo centuries after the coal miners arrived, residents are racing to save the stream and bring back the trout. 010
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 01/10/2026OPINION: As the California Oligarch Index makes clear, a relatively tiny number of wealthy donors and corporations are exerting profound influence over who gets elected and which laws get passed in the Golden State.capitalandmain.comNew ‘Oligarch Index’ Tracks California’s Biggest Political SpendersOver two decades, the top 99 individuals and business organizations spent more on campaigns and lobbying than the bottom 99.9%. 0114
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 01/10/2026NEWS: The condition of the building — and the displacement of residents — has raised questions among tenants and housing activists about the St. George’s owners’ ability to manage their portfolio of more than 1,100 downtown residential hotel units. capitalandmain.com/downtown-l-a...capitalandmain.comDowntown L.A. Residential Hotel Closed by City, Leaving Some Tenants HomelessA developer bet he could clean up the St. George Hotel. But former tenants describe mold, bedbugs and neglect. City records show conditions had deteriorated. 033
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 30/09/2026Damage wrought by the mountain pine beetle is already evident in thousands of dead and dying red-needled ponderosa pine knitted throughout these stands.capitalandmain.comIn Colorado, the Majestic Ponderosa Pines Are DyingA historic drought, climate change and a tiny beetle put 600,000 acres of pine at risk. Already, their gray skeletons line the highways. 134
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 30/09/2026The U.S. government has agreements with 36 countries to receive people who are not their citizens or residents, according to data gathered by Human Rights First and Refugees International.capitalandmain.comU.S. Sends Immigrants to Countries It Warns Americans Not to VisitFrom kidnappings to torture, lawyers say third-country removals expose vulnerable people to the risks they fled in the first place. 002
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 28/09/2026This West Texas town is experiencing its driest days in hundreds of years. 032
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 28/09/2026In a small border town in West Texas, ranchers and residents are struggling with a decades-long drought. The land has been cracking under the pressure of a sustained megadrought since 2000, bringing some of the driest days in hundreds of years to the region.capitalandmain.comThe Driest Days in Hundreds of YearsIn West Texas, the creeks dried up, cattle production struggled, and small towns like Candelaria slowly emptied out. 111
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 25/09/2026El sistema normativo diseñado para proteger a los trabajadores agrícolas de los pesticidas se aplica de manera irregular en toda California. capitalandmain.com/arbitrarieda...capitalandmain.comArbitrariedades en el control de pesticidas ponen en riesgo a trabajadores agrícolas de CaliforniaHay discrepancias en cómo los condados sancionan las violaciones en materia de salud y seguridad, mientras que las medidas reglamentarias se aplican de forma inconsistente. 010
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 24/09/2026OPINION: You have to scroll to the end of California Attorney General Rob Bonta’s statement about the Paramount-Warner Bros. Discovery merger to find the first — and only — mention of the massive settlement’s implications for freedom of the press.capitalandmain.comPress Freedom Becomes an Afterthought in Paramount-Warner Merger DealThe settlement includes a vague vow to protect CNN and CBS journalism, and few details on how an “editorial independence board” might work. 030
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 24/09/2026NEWS: In interviews, dozens of farmworkers reported suffering from nausea, burning eyes or irritated throats due to chemical-laced fields. Most said they didn’t report the problems because they feared retaliation or lacked confidence in the regulatory system.capitalandmain.comHaphazard Pesticide Enforcement puts Farmworkers in California at riskSerious health and safety violations are penalized differently across counties, and regulatory actions are enforced inconsistently. 12015
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 23/09/2026NEWS: For Salud Garcia, the numbers still don’t add up. It isn’t for lack of trying on her part.capitalandmain.comShe Leaves Home Before Dawn to Get to Her Low-Wage Job. She’s 83.Salud Garcia’s struggles echo those of millions of low-wage workers across the nation, where mounting costs erode their already precarious footing. 143
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 23/09/2026NEWS: Hurricane Helen flooded Jen and RJ Garbowicz’s home in St. Petersburg in September 2024. Hurricane Milton tore up the roof less than two weeks later. The couple had both flood and homeowners insurance.capitalandmain.comIn Florida, the Climate Crisis Comes Due as a Higher Insurance PremiumThe state’s voters aren’t arguing about fuel. They’re arguing about who pays when extreme weather hits. 001
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 22/09/2026NEWS: Salud Garcia has been working full time at the same Los Angeles International Airport food service company for 33 years, trying to build financial stability for herself. But as an hourly employee, Garcia has never been able to out-earn her expenses.capitalandmain.comShe Leaves Home Before Dawn to Get to Her Low-Wage Job. She’s 83.Salud Garcia’s struggles echo those of millions of low-wage workers across the nation, where mounting costs erode their already precarious footing. 073
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 21/09/2026In 2024, California adopted landmark rules intended to protect more than 1 million workers who toil in sweltering warehouses, kitchens, factories, and other indoor workplaces. capitalandmain.com/california-e...capitalandmain.comCalifornia Eyes Prison Heat Protections That Fall Short of Other Workplaces’California is crafting weaker heat protections for prisons than for other workplaces, citing billions in costs to cool aging institutions as climate and health risks increase. 120
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 18/09/2026NEWS: Rideshare giants Uber and Lyft each offer recourse for drivers facing deactivation, but drivers and their advocates across the country said that their appeals processes favor companies over drivers.capitalandmain.comRideshare Drivers Want a Fair Hearing Before Losing Their JobsIn Chicago, city data shows fewer than 4% of the more than 30,000 drivers removed from rideshare platforms were reinstated. 003
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 18/09/2026Coming soon from Capital & Main: High Costs, Low Wages This series explores how California’s low-wage workers are navigating the cost of living crisis in one of the nation’s most expensive states, and examines policy solutions that could ease the burden. 222
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 17/09/2026NEWS: In 2024, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration exempted state prisons from heat illness prevention rules, citing concerns over potentially billions of dollars in costs to the state. Now, his administration has refused to make the cost estimate public.capitalandmain.comCalifornia Cites Billions to Cool Prisons, But Won’t Disclose FiguresGov. Gavin Newsom’s administration has yet to make public the multibillion-dollar cost projection behind its 2024 decision to exempt state prisons from heat safety rules. 012
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 17/09/2026OPINION: When supporters of Proposition 40 speak on the initiative, they do so with a passion and conviction that wealthy figures trying to protect their treasures — think of Google’s Sergey Brin and Larry Page, or Meta’s Mark Zuckerberg — never seem to match. capitalandmain.com/billionaires...capitalandmain.com‘Billionaires Shouldn’t Exist.’ Why California Unions Are Fighting for a Wealth Tax.Cal Labor Federation president Lorena Gonzalez says Proposition 40 — opposed by the ultra-rich — is needed to maintain basic health care services after cuts by President Trump and Republicans. 1104
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 17/09/2026NEWS: Regulators with Cal/OSHA have proposed protections that wouldn’t kick in until temperatures reach 87 degrees — 5 degrees higher than for other indoor workplaces. This article was produced in collaboration with @kffhealthnews.org.capitalandmain.comCalifornia Eyes Prison Heat Protections That Fall Short of Other Workplaces’California is crafting weaker heat protections for prisons than for other workplaces, citing billions in costs to cool aging institutions as climate and health risks increase. 043
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 16/09/2026At least once a week, Aisha Torres arrives at her job as a technician at a CVS specialty pharmacy in Redlands, California, only to find that she’s already behind.capitalandmain.comUnderstaffed and Underpaid: Why CVS Pharmacists in Three States Authorized a StrikeThe pressure on pharmacy staff to work quickly leads to high turnover and threatens patient safety, workers say. 110
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 16/09/2026NEWS: At full buildout, the energy consumed would equal about 11 times the power used by Denver International Airport, about eight miles to the north. The 143-acre project proposal is little known to residents in Aurora, Colorado’s third-largest city.capitalandmain.comColorado’s Largest Data Center Could Rise Next to Homes — Without a Public HearingThe proposed campus would consume 11 times the power of Denver International Airport; as it has across the country, opposition mounts. 011
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 15/09/2026In an interview with Capital & Main, author Naomi Klein describes tech oligarchs preparing for an apocalyptic end to life on Earth, fueled by the carbon emissions generated by the companies they own.capitalandmain.com‘We Are in a Moment of Unparalleled Peril’: An Interview With Naomi KleinThe author and academic spoke with Capital & Main about an apocalyptic future and strategies for survival. 054
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 15/09/2026NEWS: John James Audubon, the author and artist of the foundational 1827-1838 work The Birds of America, is widely hailed as the father of American birding. capitalandmain.com/the-national...capitalandmain.comThe National Audubon Society Kept Its Name. These Chapters Are Leaving It Behind.From Seattle to Houston, more than 50 local chapters have renamed themselves as part of a reckoning over John James Audubon’s racist past. 110
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 15/09/2026After vowing to spend $20 billion on data centers across Pennsylvania, Amazon is now quietly reaping the rewards of a controversial, yet lucrative state tax exemption.capitalandmain.comPennsylvania’s Amazon Data Center Boom Is Fueled by a Lucrative Tax BreakRepealing the exemption, which could cost the state billions, has failed repeatedly despite bipartisan support. 034
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 14/09/2026NEWS: At least once a week, Aisha Torres arrives at her job as a technician at a CVS specialty pharmacy in Redlands, California, only to find that she’s already behind.capitalandmain.comUnderstaffed and Underpaid: Why CVS Pharmacists in Three States Authorized A StrikeThe pressure on pharmacy staff to work quickly leads to high turnover and threatens patient safety, workers say. 110
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 14/09/2026John James Audubon is widely hailed as the father of American birding. Audubon was also an avowed racist who bought and sold enslaved people; robbed Native American grave sites to aid in eugenics research; and killed birds by the thousands.capitalandmain.comThe National Audubon Society Kept Its Name. These Chapters Are Leaving It Behind.From Seattle to Houston, more than 50 local chapters have renamed themselves as part of a reckoning over John James Audubon’s racist past. 084
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 10/09/2026NEWS: When Sara Ramirez started as an interpreter for Monterey, California-based LanguageLine Solutions, in October 2020, she saw it as “a regular company.”capitalandmain.comAI Hasn’t Replaced These Interpreters — But It Has Degraded Their Working ConditionsEmployees at LanguageLine Solutions report heavier workloads, erratic schedules and burnout since the $1.1 billion company shifted to AI-powered workforce software. 110
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 10/09/2026OPINION: California Gov. Gavin Newsom has an opportunity this month to do two things at once: reaffirm his support of higher wages for low-paid workers, and stick his thumb in the eye of President Donald Trump’s systematic attack on immigrants.capitalandmain.comNewsom Has the Chance to Stand Up for Farmworker WagesA bill on the California governor’s desk would restore the wage floor for 35,000 seasonal workers, whose pay was slashed by a U.S. Labor Department rule. 041
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 09/09/2026A Colombian asylum seeker who has spent a year in immigration custody at Otay Mesa Detention Center in San Diego said that she has a serious infection in her urinary tract and kidneys and is not receiving proper medical treatment.capitalandmain.comMonths of Pain, Delayed Care: An Asylum Seeker’s Health Crisis in ICE CustodyMother held at San Diego immigration facility says months of delayed and inadequate medical care have left her with serious kidney infection and worsening pain. 100
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 09/09/2026NEWS: In January, U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany (R-Wisconsin) called data centers “exciting new technology” and voted for a federal bill to speed their construction. But by May, he was promising to repeal the state tax breaks that lure them.capitalandmain.comWisconsin GOP Candidate Is Exploiting the Data Center Backlash to Hit Solar, WindGubernatorial nominee Tom Tiffany flipped on data centers, outflanked his Democratic rival and tied the issue to renewable projects he has opposed for years. 011
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 08/09/2026Baristas nationwide have reported experiencing headaches, coughing, sore throats, hives and other health problems in recent weeks after working with a new blending powder used in Starbucks Blended Refreshers.capitalandmain.comStarbucks Removes Drink Powder that Baristas Say Was Making Them SickWorkers have reported headaches, coughing, sneezing, sore throats and hives after using the powder. Their union says the company has not addressed the health risks of inhalation. 131
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 08/09/2026ICE hasn’t paid for medical care for people in its custody since the beginning of October last year, which has caused cases of delayed and denied treatment across the country.capitalandmain.comMonths of Pain, Delayed Care: An Asylum Seeker’s Health Crisis in ICE CustodyMother held at San Diego immigration facility says months of delayed and inadequate medical care have left her with serious kidney infection and worsening pain. 000
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 08/09/2026Interpreters are often listed among the workers at the highest risk of replacement by AI. But interviews with a half dozen LanguageLine employees reveal a different phenomenon: AI is not so much eliminating as eroding the quality of their work. capitalandmain.com/ai-hasnt-rep...capitalandmain.comAI Hasn’t Replaced These Interpreters — But It Has Degraded Their Working ConditionsEmployees at LanguageLine Solutions report heavier workloads, erratic schedules and burnout since the $1.1 billion company shifted to AI-powered workforce software. 121
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 04/09/2026In 1973, I was in sewing class in seventh grade and having a miserable time. I couldn’t sew and wasn’t interested in learning. capitalandmain.com/decades-long...capitalandmain.comA Decades-Long Friendship, Tested by TrumpismI dreaded talking politics with a longtime friend whose conservative beliefs are at odds with mine. But I had to. 100
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 04/09/2026A recently published scientific paper ties oil and gas operations in the Permian Basin to radioactive airborne plumes near the small New Mexico town of Loving. capitalandmain.com/studies-link...capitalandmain.comStudies Link New Mexico Drilling to Radiation, Air Pollution, Health RisksSmall towns in the Permian Basin have become a petri dish for the perils of living amid the nation's largest oil fields. 033
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 03/09/2026Were there unsafe levels of ammonia in the air after the Lineage warehouse fire in Los Angeles? #losangeles #boyleheights #lineage #warehouse #fire #news 063
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 03/09/2026In the climactic scene of Martin Ritt’s 1979 drama Norma Rae, Sally Field’s character climbs onto a cutting table in a textile mill, writes “UNION” in marker on a scrap of cardboard, and holds up the makeshift sign in silence. capitalandmain.com/ten-films-fo...capitalandmain.comTen Films for a Labor Day Under New ManagementWhile the Trump administration attacks workers’ rights, here are some of the most influential films about labor from the last 50 years. 120
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 03/09/2026There’s little evidence that tying public assistance to work requirements actually increases employment in an area or state. In fact, what data there is on the topic points the other direction. capitalandmain.com/california-l...capitalandmain.comCalifornia Lawmakers Push Back on Trump’s Attack on RentersFirst-of-its-kind law would prohibit work requirements or time limits on low-income tenants who receive federal assistance. 001
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 02/09/2026What seemed to be a typical Friday morning for the San Francisco Bay Area family quickly became a nightmare when about a dozen armed and masked Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents surrounded Ulises Peña Lopez’s truck. capitalandmain.com/disabled-fat...capitalandmain.comDisabled Father Says He Was Beaten by ICE Agents, Denied Medical Care in DetentionDetainee was stripped of his cane, hearing aids and medication; case highlights pattern of mistreatment of those with disabilities, attorney says. 102
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 02/09/2026Movies have been picking a side in the fight for workers’ rights for almost as long as films have existed. Here are ten impactful films about labor from the last 50 years and where you can watch them. capitalandmain.com/ten-films-fo...capitalandmain.comTen Films for a Labor Day Under New ManagementWhile the Trump administration attacks workers’ rights, here are some of the most influential films about labor from the last 50 years. 021
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 01/09/2026Soon after Starbucks introduced a new blending powder, Destiny Valencia, a barista in San Jose, California, began experiencing headaches and feeling fatigued after mixing drinks that use the new ingredient. capitalandmain.com/starbucks-re...capitalandmain.comStarbucks Removes Drink Powder that Baristas Say Was Making Them SickWorkers have reported headaches, coughing, sneezing, sore throats and hives after using the powder. Their union says the company has not addressed the health risks of inhalation. 21910
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 01/09/2026NEWS: Ulises Peña Lopez, who was 30 at the time of the incident, says in a lawsuit filed by his family that he was detained by ICE agents and beaten in a secluded alley until he was unconscious. capitalandmain.com/disabled-fat...capitalandmain.comDisabled Father Says He Was Beaten by ICE Agents, Denied Medical Care in DetentionDetainee was stripped of his cane, hearing aids and medication; case highlights pattern of mistreatment of those with disabilities, attorney says. 064
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 01/09/2026I was going to Tennessee to answer a question that for over 50 years had never been in doubt: Was it possible for us to remain friends? capitalandmain.com/decades-long...capitalandmain.comA Decades-Long Friendship, Tested by TrumpismI dreaded talking politics with a longtime friend whose conservative beliefs are at odds with mine. But I had to. 000
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 28/08/2026Baristas nationwide have reported experiencing headaches, coughing, sore throats, hives and other health problems in recent weeks after working with a new blending powder used in Starbucks Blended Refreshers. capitalandmain.com/starbucks-re...capitalandmain.comStarbucks Removes Drink Powder that Baristas Say Was Making Them SickWorkers have reported headaches, coughing, sneezing, sore throats and hives after using the powder. Their union says the company has not addressed the health risks of inhalation. 031
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 27/08/2026In Alicia Yu’s first post-college apartment, a studio in Burbank, monthly utility costs were calculated through a process she’d never heard of. capitalandmain.com/l-a-renters-...capitalandmain.comL.A. Renters Push to Ban a Utility Billing System They Say Leaves Them GuessingTenants and advocates are calling for an end to a utility billing practice that they say lacks transparency and causes them anxiety by making monthly bills unpredictable. 121
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 27/08/2026In Ohio, the Republican-controlled Legislature is trying to redefine “clean energy” to include coal and gas, explicitly to the benefit of data centers, through a little noticed proposal. capitalandmain.com/candidates-r...capitalandmain.comCandidates Run Against Data Centers, but Ohio Legislature Didn’t Get the MemoCandidates in both parties turn on the industry while a bill redefining coal and gas as “clean” energy moves quietly in the statehouse. 001
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 26/08/2026When Maria Titova filed her asylum application soon after fleeing Russia to San Diego where her husband was a flight school student, she thought the process would take a matter of months. That was the beginning of 2016. She’s still waiting.capitalandmain.comShe Fled Russia for Freedom in the U.S. Ten Years Later, She’s Still Waiting.Persecuted in her homeland, a mother asked for protection but ran into a perfect storm of policy changes instead. 131
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 26/08/2026NEWS: Los Angeles tenants are calling on the city to ban the use of Ratio Utility Billing Systems, following a December 2025 recommendation from the city’s housing department to eliminate the practice in rent-stabilized units.capitalandmain.comL.A. Renters Push to Ban a Utility Billing System They Say Leaves Them GuessingTenants and advocates are calling for an end to a utility billing practice that they say lacks transparency and causes them anxiety by making monthly bills unpredictable. 073
Capital & Main @capitalandmain.bsky.social · 25/08/2026Before people settled along the bayous, when Houston was not yet Houston, the wetlands stretching across the Southeastern Texas coast were covered with prairie potholes and pimple mounds. capitalandmain.com/as-texas-des...capitalandmain.comAs Texas Destroys Its Wetlands, the Risk of Devastating Flooding IncreasesThousands of acres have been decimated to make room for development and urban sprawl, alarming residents and climate experts. 150