Blog Archives - Jay Evensen

Why does Utah still allow private fireworks?

6/30/2020

In an age when some people confuse mask-wearing with a litmus test for constitutional fealty, it may be useless to say this, but Utahns should not be allowed to set off fireworks at home during the July holidays.
I feel almost silly as I write this. It’s raining outside and temperatures are in the 50s. I just got soaked on my morning bike ride. But the desert never hides its true identity for long this time of year. By the time everyone celebrates independence this Saturday, temperatures should be back in the 90s and the air should be bone dry.

American optimism will carry us through this time period

6/24/2020

As I write this, only six months remain until Christmas. And by the time you read this, chances are it will be even less.
How’s that for optimism in a time of distress?
Of course, no one knows today what Christmas will look like, but if you’re like most people, I’m guessing you have high hopes for a glorious holiday. In fact, you probably believe deep down we’ll have a vaccine by then for COVID-19 and Santa’s beard won’t have to double as a mask.

What's it going to be, Utah? Will you now wear a mask?

6/23/2020

So, now what, Utah?
The state’s epidemiologist, Dr. Angela Dunn, the face of the medical profession in the fight against COVID-19 in the state, authored a blunt and unequivocal memo last week.
“We are quickly getting to a point where the only viable option to manage spread and deaths will be a complete shutdown,” she wrote. That is, a complete shutdown of the economy; the one that boasts an unemployment rate of 8.5%, which is the second best in the nation and far better than the national rate of 13.3%.

All this pandemic spending must be dealt with some day

6/23/2020

Given the economic hardships caused by the pandemic, the federal government was right to authorize stimulus checks and approve loans to help people cope with the sudden drop in economic activity.
But no one should discount the seriousness of what $3 trillion in new spending will do to the nation’s heavy debt burden, nor its impact on future generations. Washington was irresponsible leading up to this crisis. Once it has passed, Congress and the president need to work to reduce spending.

What the pandemic is teaching us about happiness

6/16/2020

Happiness, the old Ray Conniff song used to remind us, is “different things to different people.” That makes it hard to measure.
Which hasn’t stopped people from trying, anyway. And it shouldn’t keep us from learning lessons from what they find, especially during this time of pandemic and protest.

Why is Utah seeing a surge of COVID-19 cases?

6/10/2020

Jon Huntsman Jr.’s positive test for COVID-19 this week ought to have brought the message home to the people of Utah: The pandemic is not over.
A lot of you have been acting as if it is, or as if you’re just plain tired of dealing with it.
A month ago, I wrote a column speculating about why Utah was doing better than just about any other state when it came to managing the novel coronavirus outbreak. Those were the good old days.
Now it’s time for a different take. We’re not doing so well any more.

Cities may have to defund police due to recession

6/10/2020

Calls to defund the police, echoing from coast to coast right now, come at a time when local governments might not have much choice. Simply put, there isn’t much money to go around.
Thanks to COVID-19 and, to a much smaller extent, the economic effects of riots that have harmed public property, cities and counties also may not have much left over to fund the social programs or neighborhood investments many protesters and others would like to see.

The window for tax reform in Utah may have passed

6/4/2020

If they haven’t already, Utah lawmakers may soon wish they had passed some sort of tax reform before the roof caved in.
On Feb. 25 of this year, during a week when stocks first began to tumble on worries the coronavirus might begin to disrupt supply chains, I asked state Senate leaders for their reaction. Did this give them concern that the good times were about to end?
“We worry about that all the time,” Sen. Majority Whip Ann Millner said. She pointed to the great recession of 2008, when the state went from healthy surpluses to a deficit almost overnight. “Events outside of Utah can impact us, as they did then.”
And how.

How smartphones have helped the oppressed

6/4/2020

As protests began to devolve into vandalism in Salt Lake City and elsewhere last weekend, thousands assumed a unique 21st century pose — they stood erect with one arm raised to the sky holding a smartphone aloft.
George Orwell got it only half right. In “1984” he envisioned a future in which video technology was the friend only of oppressive governments, allowing them to keep constant tabs on everyone. But while phones can indeed invade privacy, and oppressive regimes use technology to control subjects, the momentum instead has been in favor of freedom, giving the masses an ability to record video in ways governments can’t control or explain away.

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