Georgia Today: You likely won't get monkeypox on MARTA

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Now, the news:

FATHER, SON GET LIFE FOR HATE CRIME IN AHMAUD ARBERY'S DEATH

The white father and son convicted of murder in Ahmaud Arbery’s fatal shooting after they chased the 25-year-old Black man through a Georgia neighborhood were sentenced Monday to life in prison for committing a federal hate crime.

U.S. District Court Judge Lisa Godbey Wood handed down the sentences against Travis McMichael, 36, and his father, Greg McMichael, 66, reiterating the gravity of the February 2020 killing that shattered their Brunswick community and became part of a larger national reckoning over racial injustice. William “Roddie” Bryan, 52, who recorded cellphone video of the slaying, was sentenced to 35 years in prison.

• “A young man is dead," Wood said. "Ahmaud Arbery will be forever 25." And it happened because he was Black, she said.

The McMichaels were previously sentenced to life without parole in state court for Arbery’s murder and had asked the judge to divert them to a federal prison to serve their sentences, saying they were worried about their safety in the state prison system. Wood declined their request. 

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YOU LIKELY WON'T GET MONKEYPOX ON MARTA. HERE'S HOW YOU COULD

Concern is growing around the metro Atlanta area as monkeypox cases continue to climb, reports GPB's Ellen Eldridge.

Georgia confirmed its first case — ever — the first week of June. Now, the state has 625 confirmed cases, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

A MARTA train rider reported to police Monday afternoon that another passenger said they had monkeypox, WSB-TV reported Tuesday. But to contract monkeypox, which is not related to chickenpox but is similar to smallpox, one must be in close contact for a prolonged period of time. 

The virus enters the body through broken skin, the respiratory tract, or mucous membranes in the eyes, nose or mouth. Symptoms such as fever, malaise, headache, weakness, develop after an incubation period of one to two weeks, followed by lesions and a rash on any given part of the body. 

Individuals at high risk should contact their local health department for vaccine availability.

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GEORGIA DEMOCRATS SCORE LEGISLATIVE WINS IN U.S. SENATE OVER THE WEEKEND

Senate Democrats from across the country are cheering the passage of a massive spending bill that puts billions toward fighting climate change and aims to crack down on prescription drug prices.

Included in what is called the “Inflation Reduction Act,” are multiple provisions pushed by Georgia's U.S. Sens. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock.

Warnock, up for reelection in November, led extensive lobbying to include multiple prescription drug initiatives aimed at easing the burden on Americans who struggle to afford high prices for necessary medications.

• “From saving seniors money by allowing Medicare to directly negotiate drug prices, to expanding vital health care subsidies, to greening the economy, this legislation will make a lasting impact on Georgians’ lives,” Warnock said in a statement after the final vote.

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GEORGIA FARMERS HAVE STRUGGLED WITH MENTAL HEALTH. ARE THEY READY TO TALK?

Drew Echols doesn’t remember ever talking with his father about mental health. Or his grandfather. In fact, he doesn’t remember the last time he talked about his mental health at all, reports GPB's Riley Bunch.

• “We talked about work a whole lot more than we should, and talked about our physical or mental well-being, probably a whole lot less than we should,” he said.

Startling new research from Mercer University depicts near crisis levels of stress for farmers. A statewide survey showed that 29% of farmers in Georgia report thinking of dying by suicide at least once per month and 42% have thought about dying by suicide at least once in the past year.

Those in the industry describe a pervasive stigma that keeps farmers and producers from seeking out help coupled with the isolation that comes with the job. Even for individuals who do voice a need for support, access to mental health care in rural areas falls far short.

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GEORGIA'S HEAT-RUINED WATERMELON CROPS ARE EXPENSIVE LOSSES

The right amount of heat is needed to raise good watermelons. But there’s been too much, too soon in Georgia this summer.

That’s why farmers like Christy Smith in Georgia face major challenges as the planet continues to rapidly warm. Crop yields are low, causing farmers — and agricultural towns — to lose money as well as crops.

Dr. Daniel Gilford from Climate Central, a research group that develops ways to communicate climate science, says that this is all the product of climate change. 

• Carbon dioxide takes hundreds of years to leave the atmosphere, Gilford said. “In my lifetime, this heat is not going away. We're going to have to adapt to it.”

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TYBEE'S SEA TURTLE GETS ROOM TO GROW

A loggerhead sea turtle named Ike, age 2, made a short trip Friday to prepare him for a much longer journey he’ll undertake next year when he’s released into the Atlantic, reports Mary Landers for The Current.

Chantal Audran, acting director of the Tybee Island Marine Science Center, plucked Ike from his upstairs tank at the newly built beachfront museum and carried the 10-pounder downstairs to a 4,500-gallon fiberglass pool in the undercroft where Ike can more freely stretch his flippers. A group of sea campers scooched forward to get nose to nose with Ike at the tank’s viewing window.

With the campers cheering him on, Ike swam laps around his new home, surfaced for air, splashed Tybee Mayor Shirley Sessions and dispatched a live blue crab with ease.

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