Today, November 1, the new federal sentencing guidelines take effect. One of the most significant changes involves bringing the penalty for possession of crack cocaine in line with the penalties for possession of cocaine in other forms. In general terms this means lowering the mandatory sentence for possession of crack cocaine. Although this portion of the new guidelines will take effect retroactively it is not an automatic "get out of jail" card. Each case must be considered individually by a federal court. National Public Radio did an interesting story on the changes to crack sentencing that could lead to early releases. The story notes that the "disparity in sentences for crack versus powder had long been criticized as racially discriminatory because it disproportionately affected black defendants. The Fair Sentencing Act passed by Congress in 2010 and signed by President Barack Obama reduced the disparity for future cases."
For official information, go to the United States Sentencing Commission's website which has an FAQ with information about the changes for crack cocaine. For more indepth information, consult the commission's report to Congress about the effects of mandatory sentences on the federal prison system. The commission is charged with making "recommendations to Congress concerning modification or enactment of statutes relating to sentencing, penal, and correctional matters that the Commission finds to be necessary and advisable to carry out an effective, humane, and rational sentencing policy." Aligning the sentences for crack cocaine with those for other forms of cocaine seems like a good step towards a more rational sentencing policy.
The New York Times reported on Saturday that efforts currently underway to draw new boundaries for Congressional districts across the country, a process called Redistricting that takes place in America after each Decennial Census, the most recent of which occurred, of course, in 2010.
Above, an interactive map of the current population of Colorado from the Census Bureau.
The Times points out that 28 states -- including Colorado -- have already had or are in the process having their new district maps challenged in court due to a process called gerrymandering. Gerrymandering is a process named for Elbridge Gerry, former Governor of Massachusetts, whose "Democratic-Republican partisans," according to the blog Big Think...
...had stitched together the district
in such a way as to assure the electoral victory of their candidate and
therefore the defeat of the candidate for the other main party, the
Federalists. The year was 1812, and the first of many recorded uses of
the term occurred that spring.
From Big Think, an 1812 Editorial cartoon by famed American artist Gilbert Stuart that gave birth to the term "Gerrymander."
Essentially, gerrymandering is the process by which the party currently holding a majority at the time of redistricting oversees and approves the process of creating new district maps. The downside is that this is done in a manner that makes it highly unlikely, if not statistically impossible, that the party in party will lose an upcoming election. In some cases, the dominant party make gain seats through redistricting.
To understand the effects redistricting can have on future elections, it helps to note how congressional seats are initially assigned -- or apportioned, to use the official term. The U.S. Census Bureau has, to that end, released a video summarizing the process of apportionment.
Once seats are apportioned, the creation of districts are up to the state. The State of Colorado has a detailed Redistricting Web site to make the process as transparent an open as possible. This site includes definitions of terms, access to the data files used to draw the maps, as well as GIS files and even Google Earth friendly KMZ files to view existing and proposed changes to congressional boundaries.
If after viewing these files a person doesn't quite understand how the mix of population and political representation can affect the creation of congressional voting districts, then they do have the opportunity to try their hand at redistricting via The Redistricting Game.
As its title implies, The Redistricting Game allows players to work to balance congressional districts in favor of their party. It also serves, according to its creators at the University of Southern California, "to educate, engage, and empower citizens around the issue of political
redistricting."
By exploring how the system works, as well as how open it is to abuse, The Redistricting Game
allows players to experience the realities of one of the most important
(yet least understood) aspects of our political system. The game
provides a basic introduction to the redistricting system, allows
players to explore the ways in which abuses can undermine the system,
and provides info about reform initiatives - including a playable
version of the Tanner Reform bill to demonstrate the ways that the
system might be made more consistent with tenets of good governance.
Beyond playing the game, the web site for The Redistricting Game
provides a wealth of information about redistricting in every state as
well as providing hands-on opportunities for civic engagement and
political action.
Were you able to draw up boundaries that approtions voters fairly into districts? Did the game affect your perceptions of bias and gerrymandering for future elections? Let us know your thoughts on the process as a whole in the comments below.
Today the Food and Drug Administration released a report providing an overview of a variety of factors that may have contributed to the listeria outbreak at Jensen Farms in Colorado. If you want you can find a timeline with all the pertinent documents on the FDA's web site. Want more alphabet soup? The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) also has a page on the outbreak.
Want some help on food safety? Why not check out this video:
If you are all set on fresh produce prep, but the the start of the Walking Dead season has you running scared, the CDC also has Zombie Preparedness 101 kit.
Still want more information? Why not check out the library's guide to the food supply.
Continuing from the "What is FDsys?" video made earlier this year, the latest video from the Government Information Library, "How to Use FDsys," is a short introduction to the three main ways to find content in the GPO database. The video has been embedded below, but can also be found on the CU Boulder Libraries YouTube Channel.
We hope you enjoy it, and if you do, please feel free to share and embed the video elsewhere.
Thanks for watching!
