Latest news with #Trotter
Los Angeles Times
a day ago
- General
- Los Angeles Times
Why Wildfires Can Be Especially Devastating for Older Adults
After a wildfire, the focus often turns to rebuilding homes. But for many older adults, the deeper challenge is rebuilding a sense of safety, identity, and connection, especially when they've lost the home and neighborhood that grounded their lives. 'A lot of their interpersonal connections are disappearing, because people die as they get older,' Dr. Jonathan Sherin, a psychiatrist and former director of the Los Angeles County Department of Mental Health, said. 'So you know, your social network shrinks, whether you like it or not.' That shrinking circle becomes even more dangerous when paired with the trauma and displacement that occur after losing your home in a wildfire. Dr. Sherin calls it 'the other LOL, which is the lethality of loneliness.' A 2023 study published in Science of the Total Environment found that older adults (ages 65 and up) who were exposed to multiple large wildfires in California experienced significantly more frequent days of mental health problems, even years later. Researchers noted that the psychological burden was strongest among seniors with limited income or mobility. When an elderly adult's property burns down in a wildfire, they don't just lose shelter. They also lose a place of lifelong memories, routines, and identity — a home they hoped would last long after them and bring comfort to their families in the future. In Altadena, a diverse neighborhood known for its historic Black population and strong pride in generational homeownership, the devastation of the Eaton Fire has been especially painful. 'Altadena was one of those spots where there was generational wealth creation,' said architect Matthew Trotter, president of SoCal NOMA and leader of the Altadena Rebuild Coalition. 'And what comes with generational wealth creation is also a certain level of knowledge creation.' Trotter said that a large part of the 200 families his coalition is supporting to help rebuild Altadena are older residents whose homes were purchased by themselves or their families in the 40s, 50s, and 60s as a place of refuge for African-Americans from redlining and discriminatory housing practices in Los Angeles during the Jim Crow era. A recent analysis by the UCLA Ralph J. Bunche Center for African American Studies found that 57% of Black homeowners affected by the Eaton Fire in Altadena were over the age of 65. Trotter said that many of them lacked adequate insurance, and their losses have disrupted generational wealth that families had hoped to pass on. This underscores how the destruction of homes for older wildfire survivors can damage family legacy, history and connection, bringing on another layer of distress. National research has shown that older adults are more likely to develop PTSD and adjustment disorders following disasters than younger populations, due in part to fragile support systems, compounding life losses, and barriers to accessing care. 'Old people get isolated and they get lonely,' Dr. Sherin said. 'Particularly in Western culture, which is not necessarily focused on family as much as other cultures.' He explained that trauma for older wildfire survivors can surface in many ways, including hypervigilance, irritability, depression, or complete withdrawal to the point that they stop doing actions that help prolong their lives. 'They don't eat well, they stop taking their medications, they drive when they shouldn't be driving,' Dr. Sherin said. 'They become suicidal and self-injurious, or they just defer their care.' Sometimes, these changes are mistaken for signs of normal aging, but they may actually signal more profound distress, particularly following a traumatic event like a natural disaster. Whether you're a family member, neighbor, or friend, being proactive in talking about the trauma and being present for elderly wildfire survivors can make a real difference. Sherin noted that wildfire survivors often 'take a big financial hit' and may find themselves relying on others in ways that feel uncomfortable, which can keep them from asking for help. 'When you're losing your agency, and you're losing your identity as a part of a trauma … that's a real problem and it needs to be addressed,' Dr. Sherin said. 'And the way to address it is not just medicating people.' He said it's essential to help older adults feel connected and appreciated, whether by inviting them to family events or encouraging regular routines, such as attending church. Dr. Sherin also said that some sadness and grief are expected. 'A lot of it is normal, and is a normal part of the process of kind of going through a loss, mourning it and moving it forward,' Dr. Sherin said. However, if anyone affected by the fires finds it challenging to do the things they usually do, it may be a sign that they are not coping well with their loss and may need extra support. Here are specific signs Dr. Sherin said to look for: However, there is some positive research on mental health consequences for our elders after a wildfire. Some studies have found that older disaster survivors may carry greater long-term resilience. According to a 2023 article in the Journal of Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology, older adults often suffer greater psychological harm in the immediate aftermath of a disaster, but those who do rebuild or receive meaningful support within a year may become less vulnerable to long-term psychological decline than younger adults. Researchers referred to this as the 'inoculation' effect of aging, citing life experience and emotional regulation as key factors in post-disaster recovery. Therefore, the key to making sure elderly wildfire survivors do not develop depression and can cope well with the loss is to engage with them and make them feel a part of the community. Dr. Sherin said that when families, neighbors, and communities offer connection and care, that support can be the most powerful form of healing. It just takes everyone to be comfortable addressing mental health challenges and feel the duty to act if they see someone struggling. 'Raise the red flag in a loving way, just like you would when someone you know is injured physically,' Dr. Sherin said. 'When someone's burned and they're in pain. Do you just ignore it? No. So it's the same thing, and we can't ignore that.' If you or someone you know is actively planning to harm themselves, call 988 or 911 immediately. Visit the LA County Department of Mental Health – Older Adult Services page for free access to therapy, case management, and in-home support for L.A. County residents aged 60 and older experiencing depression, trauma, grief, or isolation. You can also call their ACCESS line 24/7 at 800-854-7771 or text 'LA' to 741741.
USA Today
11-06-2025
- Sport
- USA Today
College basketball analyst thinks USC should make NCAA Tournament next year
College basketball analyst thinks USC should make NCAA Tournament next year It has certainly been a dramatic offseason for USC men's basketball. For the second year in a row, the Trojans turned over nearly their entire roster, once again heavily utilizing the transfer portal. A recent story by Isaac Trotter of 247Sports gave a way-too early 2025-2026 outlook for every Big Ten basketball team. His view on USC was a fairly optimistic one, as he believes that Eric Musselman's group should be an NCAA Tournament team next season. Here is what Trotter had to say about the Trojans: 'USC's talent level has skyrocketed after the snazzy additions like [Rodney] Rice and [Chad] Baker-Mazara, but it's the defense that should be remarkably better in 2025-26,' Trotter wrote. 'Musselman's squad now has legit plus size at all five positions. USC should be able to shrink the floor defensively and cause real problems at every level. Of course, there's a little fretting about the point guard room. [Jordan] Marsh is the lone true point guard on the roster, but both Rice and Baker-Mazara notched north of 150 pick-and-roll reps last year with elite efficiency and slim turnover rates. USC can piece it together with those two alphas if it wants, while maintaining the flexibility to play a traditional point guard in Marsh if things go haywire. Losing Keonte Jones stings, but USC has a deep frontcourt with plenty of versatile, different pieces. Keep an eye on [Jacob] Cofie. The Virginia transfer has all the tools to be a total stud. USC is huge, will shoot way more 3-pointers, has multiple different avenues it can use to find efficient offense and should be much-improved defensively. If Arenas is healthy, it may have the best wing corps in the Big Ten. The Trojans smell like a tournament team with room for so much more if everything clicks.' In Year 1 under Musselman, USC did not even come close to making the NCAA Tournament. Getting there in Year 2 would be a tremendous step in the right direction. Let's see if the Trojans can pull it off.
Telegraph
11-06-2025
- Business
- Telegraph
Why a blank cheque won't solve Britain's policing woes
In 2023, a productivity review led by two former chief constables identified 26 ways of freeing-up 38 million hours of police time. That would equate to 20,000 extra police officers. The recommendations included cutting red tape, reducing sickness absence and using computer technology for clerical tasks. A second report from the productivity panel, in 2024, said a further 23 million hours could be saved – including through the expansion of AI. 'Modern technology is the golden key to police efficiency and effectiveness,' says Winsor. Yet, progress on technology has been painfully slow – and not helped by a failure to manage large-scale projects, such as ESN (Emergency Services Network), an upgrade on the ageing emergency services communications network Airwave, which is a decade behind schedule and £3.1 billion over budget. 'You have to lay much of it at the door of the Home Office,' says Trotter. 'The replacement of Airwave has gone on for years – it's an area that has not been a success, it's wasted a lot of money and is still not resolved. It needs an inquiry,' he adds. Failing to see 'beyond force boundaries' There are glaring inefficiencies in other areas, too. Across England and Wales, each of the 43 forces, no matter how large or small, has its own leadership team, civilian support set-up and administrative functions, such as payroll, legal affairs and human resources. Pooling some of that work would make financial sense, says Winsor. 'The back office stuff could and should be done either regionally or nationally, in the way it's done in the NHS or the military,' he says. In 2022, a report from the independent think-tank, the Police Foundation, estimated that forces in England and Wales could save 'hundreds of millions' of pounds annually by combining support teams – as well as purchasing police uniform, equipment, vehicles, forensic services and computers centrally, rather than negotiating individual contracts with suppliers, as many constabularies do. But it seems the introduction of police and crime commissioners, a decade earlier, cemented a 'localist' approach, hindering prospects for developing a more cohesive and less fragmented system of policing, with the economies of scale that would result. 'The police and crime commissioner model has some strengths but it can hold things back, because in my time there were far too many who could not see beyond their force boundaries – and crime doesn't stop at force boundaries,' says Winsor, who left the watchdog three years ago. The author of the Police Foundation report, its former director Rick Muir, is now working as a Home Office adviser, developing plans for a white paper, based around the establishment of a new National Centre of Policing. It is long overdue. Rowley and other police leaders support the case for a reorganisation. Although their immediate concern is whether they'll have enough resources over the next three years, they are aware that it is not just about the money – radical structural reform is needed to put forces on a long-term sustainable financial footing and ensure the public get the police service they deserve. As Peter Kyle, the Science and Technology Secretary, put it at the weekend, the police must 'do their bit' and 'embrace change'.
Hamilton Spectator
06-06-2025
- Business
- Hamilton Spectator
Peckham or Sarajevo? Bosnian brothers spark joy with replica van from iconic British sitcom
SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina (AP) — There is an unmistakable air of Peckham these days in Bosnia's capital, Sarajevo, as the legendary yellow three-wheeled van from the BBC's long-running sitcom 'Only Fools and Horses' cruises the city streets. The little Reliant Regal was the trademark of the stars of the series — the irresistible Trotter brothers from Peckham, a working-class neighborhood in London. In Bosnia, a replica belongs to the Fatic brothers, local businessmen who are crazy about the show. The Fatics are dealers in home appliances, running a successful company with dozens of employees and a huge shop on the outskirts of Sarajevo. Building the business, however, has resembled the ups and downs of the Peckham market traders Del Boy and Rodney Trotter, they say. 'We are definitely the local version of the series,' Tarik Fatic, the younger of the brothers, told The Associated Press. 'We were always dealing in something, we would buy whatever we can and then sell it.' The enormously popular BBC sitcom, which began in 1981, follows the lives of the Trotter brothers and their far-from-straightforward path from rags to riches. Over the course of seven series and several Christmas specials, the Trotters tried various get-rich-quick schemes, buying low-quality or sometimes black-market goods and selling them at the market. Many in Bosnia and in the wider Balkans easily identify with the Trotters' endless wheeling and dealing. In the region that went through a series of wars in the 1990s, where the economy was shattered and remains deeply corrupt, the Trotter ways of survival are simple reality. Just like the Trotter brothers, 'we always tried to make profit and regardless of how many times we failed, we just moved on,' Tarik Fatic said. Also from a working-class family, and growing up in a country that was devastated in the bloody 1992-95 ethnic conflict , the brothers tried trading in food, poultry and clothes before settling on home appliances. They are aware there are no guarantees their current success will last. 'The market (in Bosnia) is still disorganized and unstable,' Tarik Fatic, 33, said. 'Not a day passes without the two (Del Boy and Rodney) crossing my mind.' Known here as Mucke, which actually means something like wheeling and dealing, 'Only Fools and Horses' became hugely popular throughout what was still Yugoslavia from the 1980s onwards. Murals with images of main characters have been painted on the walls; many cafes were named after the series, while visiting actors were greeted with frenzy. The Reliant Regal was made by a British company, famous for its eccentric vehicles, that went out of business in 2002. In Sarajevo, people wave, take pictures with their phones, honk their horns when they see the yellow van in the streets. The Fatic brothers imported it from Manchester six months ago after a long search. It took a while to register the unusual vehicle, said Mirnes Fatic, 38. 'It is a very nice feeling. It's a joy every time I go for a ride in the city,' he said, admitting that it also was 'a great advertising move.' And it's not just the van. The Fatic brothers have also named their company after the series — Only Fools and Horses Brothers Mucke. There have been some doubts how clients and banks would react but it turned out really well, Mirnes added. 'We hope and believe that this time next year, we will be millionaires,' he smiled, using the famous phrase from the show.
ITV News
06-06-2025
- Entertainment
- ITV News
Peckham or Sarajevo? Bosnian brothers spark joy with replica van from iconic British sitcom
There is an unmistakable air of Peckham these days in Bosnia's capital, Sarajevo, as the legendary yellow three-wheeled van from the BBC's long-running sitcom 'Only Fools and Horses' cruises the city streets. The little Reliant Regal was the trademark of the stars of the series — the irresistible Trotter brothers from Peckham, a working-class neighborhood in London. In Bosnia, a replica belongs to the Fatic brothers, local businessmen who are crazy about the show. The Fatics are dealers in home appliances, running a successful company with dozens of employees and a huge shop on the outskirts of Sarajevo. Building the business, however, has resembled the ups and downs of the Peckham market traders Del Boy and Rodney Trotter, they say. 'We are definitely the local version of the series,' Tarik Fatic, the younger of the brothers, said. 'We were always dealing in something, we would buy whatever we can and then sell it." The enormously popular sitcom, which began in 1981, follows the lives of the Trotter brothers and their far-from-straightforward path from rags to riches. Over the course of seven series and several Christmas specials, the Trotters tried various get-rich-quick schemes, buying low-quality or sometimes black-market goods and selling them at the market. Just like the Trotter brothers, 'we always tried to make profit and regardless of how many times we failed, we just moved on," Tarik Fatic said. Also from a working-class family, and growing up in a country that was devastated in the bloody 1992-95 ethnic conflict, the brothers tried trading in food, poultry and clothes before settling on home appliances. They are aware there are no guarantees their current success will last. 'The market (in Bosnia) is still disorganized and unstable,' Tarik Fatic, 33, said. 'Not a day passes without the two (Del Boy and Rodney) crossing my mind.' Known here as Mucke, which actually means something like wheeling and dealing, 'Only Fools and Horses' became hugely popular throughout what was still Yugoslavia from the 1980s onwards. Murals with images of main characters have been painted on the walls; many cafes were named after the series, while visiting actors were greeted with frenzy. The Reliant Regal was made by a British company, famous for its eccentric vehicles, that went out of business in 2002. In Sarajevo, people wave, take pictures with their phones, honk their horns when they see the yellow van in the streets. The Fatic brothers imported it from Manchester six months ago after a long search. It took a while to register the unusual vehicle, said Mirnes Fatic, 38. 'It is a very nice feeling. It's a joy every time I go for a ride in the city,' he said, admitting that it also was "a great advertising move." It's not just the van. The Fatic brothers have also named their company after the series — Only Fools and Horses Brothers Mucke. There have been some doubts how clients and banks would react but it turned out really well, Mirnes added. 'We hope and believe that this time next year, we will be millionaires," he smiled, using the famous phrase from the show.
