http://bit.ly/2x4nfBn

I chose to write my News Comment on an article from Vox.com titled “Study: A Universal Basic Income would Grow the Economy.” This article detailed a study that is examining the role that a universal income within the United States would play within the lives of citizens. A Roosevelt study and a study conducted at the University of Cassino and Southern Lazio in Italy details the roaring effects this could potentially have on the economy. Though protestors of the idea claim that offering a universal income will lower the amount of working Americans within the country, these two studies predict that it will actually raise the working class from 4.5 million to 4.7 million. By potentially offering both children and adults a basic income (the lowest amount being $3,000/year and the largest being $12,000) the economy could potentially grow and stay large.

This is news and relates to our journalism class based on the fact that the students at this school are most likely in debt, hoping to find a career within the field of their major. We, as a student body, would benefit greatly from an increase in economic stability and the creation of a universal basic income. As to the rest of the country, this is news because it could potentially be groundbreaking in the fight against poverty and in the creation of a larger working force. While it is only a potential fix to a very large and all-encompassing problem, the creation of a universal basic income could be a potential lifesaver.

http://bit.ly/2xhqcMo

The article I decided to write my first news comment on was titled “UPDATE: Wildfire Sparks South of Helena, Evacuations Underway” which is about my home town in Montana and the wildfires that are consuming my state. This afternoon, Thursday, August 24th, a lightening storm spiked a fire that brings the states total above 25 fires. The state Capital and its surrounding cities, including Montana City and the South Hills, are being covered with smoke and tormented by fire. Many areas, including Holmes Gulch and Martinez Gulch Rd, are under immediate evacuation orders, while areas further from the fire are on standby.

This is important news, not only to my family and me but also to the rest of the country. Recently, and by recently I mean close to three months, not a single news source of great significance has covered the wildfires of Montana for more than a short period of time. While the state itself is very large and contains a large amount of land, the fires are cultivating themselves around the most densely populated areas of the state. Lolo has been under evacuation for weeks with the blaze steadily moving towards Missoula, one of the largest cities in the state. This is no longer a matter of a loss of land or a loss of field, this is a matter of a loss of property and potentially people. This news source, the Helena Independent Record, is necessary to bring to light the harm and immediate danger of new fires such as this fire in the South Hills Valley to the people of Helena and the state. With evacuations being taken place within miles of the Capital, this newspaper is providing the people with locations and times of fire growth.