Month: March 2020

Assassin Of The 40 Foot Wood

A little diversion on the Sunday from all the news around the Covid-19…..

There is a patch of woods on my property, we have started calling it the 40 ft wood, and MoMo spends time back there doing what she does best….hunting.  After all she is a Hound….her official AKC title is Redbone Coonhound…..her breed has been bred for hunting and MoMo takes it very seriously.  An American original breed of dog, the Redbone Coonhound is a tenacious hunter used for hunting raccoon, deer, bear, boar, cougar, or any other large game. The breed originated in the Southern United States and is highlighted by their deep red coat.

The breed’s development was heavily influenced by George Birdsong, who began with a pack he obtained in the 1840s. As more people became interested in the breed, they set about to create a faster, hotter-nosed dog that was even quicker to locate scents. They mixed the existing dogs with later imports of hot, swift Red Irish Foxhounds. These early dogs were sometimes called Saddlebacks because they tended to be red with black saddles. However color was emphasized for several generations, resulting in the solid-colored red dogs. The breed became known as Redbone Coonhounds, either in recognition of its color or after Peter Redbone, a Tennessee promoter of the breed.

When we walk her nose is glued to the ground….she lives by the smells around her….plus her hearing is excellent…….watching her stare at the ground until she zeros in on the mole is just amazing to witness.

Now on to her successful scorecard……

She has caught and executed several different species….mostly varmints like mice, rats, squirrels and her favorite moles.

In her two years since she moved in with us her total keeps going up…..

4 field mice

5 wood rats

3 squirrels

9 moles…..5 of which she got just in one weekend…..apparently she found a new litter and wiped them out.

This is the first of 5 in one weekend….

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That is her below the bag in the photo looking for her lost prize….

And this is how she got the litter out of the ground……it is just a bit of the digging she did to get her prey.

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There were holes along a straight line for about 25 feet…..they started along the fence and under the Cypress tree and ended in the photo.

The good news is that flower bed I promised Sue will take less digging to complete.

Finally…..she nailed 1 dove….but Sue got there in time and told her to release and she let it go though she did pout for most of the afternoon at the loss of a hard win victory.

She now waits under the tangerine tree…..waiting to strike again………

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By the way….in this photo a bug has her full attention…..not a mole….

A final thought…..I walk MoMo at 0430 hrs to avoid any other people….this morning it was 77 as a low temp….that is more in line with Summer not April…..we are in our Summer cycle…..high temps, little rain and high humidity……it does have its upside and I will write about that soon…….but according to some there is NOTHING to see with the climate…..

Have a good Sunday……be well…..be safe…..

“lego ergo scribo”

Women’s History #5–The Poetic Princess

A little more women’s history to help sooth the nerves in the time of sheltering in place…..

I first came across this woman when I was living in Spain…..she has a fascinating story……and since this is women’s history month what better time to introduce this poet to my readers?

Her name was Wallada bint al-Mastakfi…….

Wallada was born in 1001, the daughter of a noble in the Andalusian city of Córdoba. In 711 an army of Moors coming up from Africa had conquered the city for the Umayyad Caliphate, along with most of modern Spain. Córdoba became the capital of this province on the edge of their empire. Fifty years later, after the Umayyads had been deposed, a prince of their line named Abd al-Rahman fled to Córdoba. Several of the locals had taken advantage of the chaos to declare independence, and he conquered them and welded them together into the independent Emirate of Córdoba. By the time Wallada was born his descendents had declared themselves Caliphs, [1] and Córdoba was a city of half a million people – one of the most advanced cities in Europe.

Unfortunately for the Córdobans, however, by this time the Umayyads had definitely begun to lose their grip on their caliphate. In 976 a ten year old boy named Hisham had succeeded to the throne. In the grand tradition of child rulers throughout history, fierce competition immediately started over the regency (and thus effective control of the caliphate). The eventual winner in this was al-Mansur Ibn Abi Amir, a powerful leader whose victories against the Christian kingdoms clinging to the northern part of Spain earned him infamy as “Almanzor”. He died in 1002, with his son succeeding to the regency.

Wallada bint al-Mustakfi, Poetic Princess

More on her scandalous love affair with ibn Zaydun a prominent poet of Andalusia…..

Although ibn Zaydun was a leading figure in the courts of Cordoba and Seville, he was most famous among the people of his day because of his scandalous love affair with Princess Wallada. They did nothing to hide their passion, and at her literary circle, when the poets began improvising, as was their custom, they would allude to it quite openly. On one famous occasion, Wallada uttered this impromptu verse, as she gazed upon her lover’s face:

“I fear for you, my beloved so much, that even my own sight even the ground you tread even the hours that pass threaten to snatch you away from me. Even if I were able to conceal you within the pupils of my eyes and hide you there until the Day of Judgment my fear would still not be allayed.”

https://www.andalucia.com/history/people/ibn-wallada.htm

Fascinating love story…..

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Trump’s Name Up In Lights

Donald of Orange wants to see his name on everything about virus….especially the give-a-ways…..he has it on the postal warnings (see below)……

Front

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Back

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…and now he wants his signature on those free cash checks…….

President Trump has told people he wants Americans to see his signature on the stimulus checks that will be sent out after he signed a $2.2 trillion coronavirus relief package into law Friday, according to an administration official cited by The Wall Street Journal. Such checks would normally be signed by a disbursing officer, not the president. While signing the bill into law in the Oval Office on Friday, the president appeared to express awe at the price tag attached to the legislation, calling it a “great honor” and saying, “I never signed anything with a T on it.” Trump, who has faced criticism recently for what some see as overly optimistic assessments about the coronavirus pandemic, went on to predict a “rebound like we have never seen before” by the end of the year.  The legislation he signed includes expanded unemployment benefits, direct cash payments to every American earning less than $99,000 a year, and billions in job retention loans for small businesses. 

Read it at The Wall Street Journal

The quarantine breakers are being rounded up…….

New Yorkers seeking refuge in Rhode Island might want to think again. The state’s police and National Guard are pulling over drivers with New York plates, and knocking on doors for recent travelers from the Empire State—America’s epicenter for the coronavirus outbreak, NBC News reports. Such visitors are told to quarantine for two weeks, or face 90 days in prison and a $500 fine. “I know this is unusual,” says Gov. Gina Raimondo. “I know this is extreme. And I know some people don’t agree with it. It’s absolutely not a decision I make lightly.” Raimondo says her state isn’t ready for a major spike in COVID-19 cases: “We are not set up for that,” she explains. For more:

  • But she’s getting some pretty serious pushback, Fox News reports. “I don’t like it socially or culturally,” New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo said Friday. “I don’t like what it says about us as one state, one family. Also, I don’t believe it’s medically justified.”
  • For its part, the ACLU calls Raimondo’s plan “ill-advised and unconstitutional” because the “under the Fourth Amendment, having a New York state license plate simply does not, and cannot, constitute ‘probable cause’ to allow police to stop a car.”
  • But consider the math: New York state has 52,000 cases, per CNN, and Rhode Island a little over 200. “Right now we have a pinpointed risk,” Raimondo tells Bloomberg. “That risk is called New York City.”
  • Texas, Massachusetts, and Florida are also ordering quarantines for recent visitors, Politico reports. They vary in scope, but appear to be focused on the stream of residents flowing out of New Orleans and New York City.

Donald of Orange is thinking of a 3 state quarantine……

President Trump said he was considering a quarantine as early as Saturday for coronavirus hotspots in New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut, though it wasn’t clear whether he had the power to order state residents to stay put, the AP reports. Trump told reporters that he had spoken with Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida, among others, and that “a lot of the states that are infected but don’t have a big problem, they’ve asked me if I’ll look at it, so we’re going to look at it.” New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who criticized the federal government’s response as his state became the country’s virus epicenter, said the issue did not come up in a conversation he had with Trump earlier Saturday. “I don’t even know what that means,” the Democrat said in New York.

“I don’t know how that could be legally enforceable, and from a medical point of view, I don’t know what you would be accomplishing. … I don’t like the sound of it,” Cuomo added. Trump made his remarks while on a trip to Norfolk, Virginia, to see off a US Navy hospital ship heading to New York City to help with the pandemic. At the event, he spoke to a sparse crowd and cautioned Americans to take virus protections. The federal government is empowered to take measures to prevent the spread of communicable diseases between states, but it’s not clear that means Trump can ban people from leaving their state. It has never been tested in the modern era — and in rare cases when any quarantine was challenged, the courts generally sided with public health officials.

The president is still acting like an immature 7 year old…..now he wants to punish those that are “mean” to him……

Shortly after the U.S. death toll from the coronavirus pandemic reached 1,500 on Friday, President Donald Trump took to the podium at a White House press briefing and complained that certain state’s governors  are not “appreciative” enough of the federal government’s help—so much so that he said he’d told Vice President Mike Pence, the leader of the coronavirus task force, to skip calling governors of some hard-hit areas.  

Trump singled out the Democratic leaders of Washington and Michigan, noting that he had advised Pence not to call them as the healthcare crisis plagues their states and people fall sick and die. 

https://www.thedailybeast.com/trump-says-he-told-mike-pence-to-ignore-governors-in-hard-hit-areas-if-they-are-not-appreciative

Finally, Donald of Orange is still pushing the “back to work” strategy to defeat this virus…..;a moronic belief….

The coronavirus pandemic continues to spread throughout the world. The total death toll globally is over 22,000. On Thursday, there were more than 6,000 new cases and 712 new deaths reported in Italy; 6,600 new cases and 500 new deaths in Spain; and 6,000 new cases and 56 deaths in Germany. The virus is only beginning to spread in Indonesia, Brazil, India and other countries in Asia and Latin America.

The center of the accelerating pandemic is the United States. It has now surpassed Italy and China with the largest number of confirmed cases, at more than 85,000. The US counted 17,000 new cases yesterday, almost three times that of any other country. The death toll has surged to nearly 1,300.

Amidst this escalating crisis, the Trump administration is intensifying its efforts to promote a speedy return to work.

https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/27/pers-m28.html

Just a few thoughts for this weekend…..

Be calm…..avoid crowds…..wash hands often….stay prepared

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“lego ergo scribo”

 

Tale Of The Three Apples

It is the weekend and the days are getting warmer so I will try to put the Covid behind me for at least a couple of days…..and try to be an FYI posts……

For a long time now we have been told that Edgar Allen Poe was the inventor of the detective story…….well that is not necessarily true.

Actually the first whodunit came from the Arabian Nights collection and its title is “The Tale of the Three Apples”

A breakdown for your convenience…..

This story is typically regarded as one of the original murder mystery/whodunit stories that are so popular today. It begins with the discovery of a body, then introduces a pair of suspects, and continues along a series of twists until the final culprit is revealed. The difference between this and a more typical whodunit, though, is that our detective character (Ja’far the vizier) does not actually succeed in solving any crime; he simply happens upon the answer when he discovers the apple in his daughter’s pocket.

The story makes great use of twists, which is today a commonly-used tactic for keeping readers engaged, interested, and alert. In both instances, just when Ja’far is about to be executed, some big reveal changes the course of the story. First, the two men show up and take the blame. Then, he discovers that his own slave is guilty. Plot twists are essential components to any story that has elements of detective fiction, and of most successful stories in general. One of the great virtues of this collection is that it employs so many elements of good storytelling in a time before any professional criticism was available. That implies that the standards of storytelling (often cited to Aristotle’s Poetics) developed before any criticism indicated their value.

https://www.gradesaver.com/the-arabian-nights-one-thousand-and-one-nights/study-guide/summary-the-three-apples

A fascinating read if one has the time….in case my more literary visitors then here is a place to read the story……

https://middleeast.library.cornell.edu/content/tale-three-apples

As a fact the entire collection known as “The Arabian Nights”……

https://manybooks.net/titles/langandretext94arabn11.html

I will adjourn to the garden for some wine, cheese and fruit……please all be well and safe……

“lego ergo scribo”

Views And News

It is Spring the weather is nice and it makes it easier to stay home when I can sit in the garden and enjoy the Spring….and some cheese and fruit….maybe a glass of wine as well.

Time for the Old Professor to venture around the world and give my readers locked in their homes some entertainment.

The first bit is from New Orleans……the city has become point zero now and a son of the city has stepped up….Drew Brees…..

Drew Brees just announced he’s donating $5 MILLION to the State of Louisiana to help with coronavirus relief efforts … just days after signing a new $50 mil contract with the Saints.

Pretty awesome move from Brees who’s already beloved in New Orleans for doing good work in the community … like building all-inclusive playgrounds.

“Brittany and I are committing $5,000,000 to the State of Louisiana in 2020,” Drew says … “The priority now is helping our communities get through this tough time.”

“After considerable research and conversations with local organizations, we will be mobilizing our partnerships with Second Harvest Food Bank, Ochsner Health Systems, Walk-Ons, Jimmy Johns, Smalls Sliders and Waitr to prepare and deliver over 10,000 meals per day throughout Louisiana for as long as it takes to children on meal programs, seniors, and families in need.”

https://www.tmz.com/2020/03/26/drew-brees-donating-5-million-covid-19-relief-new-orleans-saints/

Nice to see a player giving back to the city and state that has supported him for decades.

Next….you have seen those vacuum ads from Dyson, right?  Well the man behind the item has designed a ventilator to be used for virus treatments and it only took 10 days….

British company Dyson — best known for its sleek vacuum cleaners — has announced it has designed a new ventilator called the “CoVent” in just ten days, according to CNN, to help the UK treat coronavirus patients.

The company is planning to produce 15,000 ventilators to help fight the pandemic, 5,000 of which will be donated to other countries.

“A ventilator supports a patient who is no longer able to maintain their own airways, but sadly there is currently a significant shortage, both in the UK and other countries around the world,” company founder James Dyson wrote in an open letter, as quoted by CNN.

https://futurism.com/the-byte/vaccuum-maker-dyson-designed-ventilator

I have been told that Dyson will do anything he must to get a knighthood…..this could well be the ticket.

I am waiting for American manufacturers to step up voluntarily….so far they want free money before they go to work…..

The virus hysteria has caused a shortage of toilet paper and there is a new invention that could do away with the need for TP…….altogether…….

While the United States is often at the forefront of many trends, it still lags behind the rest of the world in some respects. And one example is the country’s strange reluctance to embrace the bidet toilet seat. Perhaps due to curious culture reasons that probably date back to the Mayflower, Americans still depend on dry and often substandard toilet paper for bathroom needs. Not only is traditional toilet paper harder on our bodies, it’s also harder on the environment. But with toilet paper being a little bit more of a concern these days, it might be time for the country to get on board with the bidet – and there’s no better way for us to do it than with a Tushy bidet toilet seat.

https://futurism.com/tushy-bidet-toilet-seats

Rightie journo Rush has weighed in on what he thinks of Trump’s health team……

Far-right talk radio host Rush Limbaugh, like President Donald Trump, has been a frequent source of nonsense during the coronavirus crisis: on his February 24 show, he equated COVID-19 with “the common cold.” And on Friday, the 69-year-old Limbaugh argued that health officials at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) cannot be trusted because they are part of “the Deep State” and have an anti-Trump agenda.

In audio that Media Matters has posted on its website, embedded above, Limbaugh can be heard on Friday telling listeners, “We’ve talked about the Deep State all these years since Trump was elected — the Trump-Russia collusion, the FBI — well, the Deep State extends very deeply. And the American people did not elect a bunch of health experts that we don’t know. We didn’t elect a president to defer to a bunch of health experts that we don’t know.”

https://www.salon.com/2020/03/28/rush-limbuagh-says-trumps-coronavirus-task-force-is-part-of-the-deep-state-cant-be-trusted-_partner/

Nice….we have not heard from the floating Fat Man for awhile…I guess he got tired of others making news and he had go come out with something as stupid as the president he tries to defend.

Just a few thoughts that could help lift one out of the cabin fever of this virus……

A parting cartoon…..or two……

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Stay calm……avoid crowds……wash hands often…..stay prepared

Be well….Be Safe…..

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Empress Irene

While sheltering in place….why not learn something?

It is the weekend and I have been dealing (like everyone else) with the virus stuff that I think my readers need to know……but after all it is women’s history month so I will give some of women of history that are seldom mentioned…….this time it is Empress Irene.

Who?

She was the empress of the Byzantines ………

Known for: sole Byzantine emperor, 797 – 802; her rule gave the Pope the excuse to recognize Charlemagne as Holy Roman Emperor; convened the 7th Ecumenical Council (2nd Council of Nicaea), restoring icon veneration in the Byzantine Empire

Occupation: empress consort, regent and co-ruler with her son, ruler in her own right
Dates: lived about 752 – August 9, 803, ruled as co-regent 780 – 797, ruled in her own right 797 – October 31, 802
Also known as Empress Irene, Eirene (Greek)

Background, Family:

  • from a noble Athenian family
  • uncle: Constantine Sarantapechos
  • husband: Emperor Leo IV the Khazar (January 25, 750 – September 8, 780); married December 17, 769, son of Constantine V Copronymus who arranged the marriage and his first wife Irene of Khazaria. Part of the Isaurian (Syrian) dynasty ruling the Eastern Roman Empire.
  • one child: Constantine VI (January 14, 771 – about 797 or before 805), emperor 780 – 797

https://www.thoughtco.com/irene-of-athens-p2-3529666

We always hear about the strong men of this empire but seldom anything about the women…..and Irene is one that should be mentioned more…..

Empress Irene was the wife of Leo IV and, on her husband’s death, she reigned as regent for her son Constantine VI from 780 to 790 CE. From 797 to 802 CE she ruled as emperor in her own right, the first woman to do so in Byzantine history. During her lacklustre reign, Irene ruthlessly schemed and plotted to keep the throne she would lose and regain three times, but she is chiefly remembered for restoring the Christian veneration of icons, which her predecessors of the Isaurian dynasty had sought so vehemently to repress. Even this seemingly pious campaign was really only a means for Irene to defeat her enemies and keep power. The Empress’ gold coins reveal much of her duplicitous character for, uniquely, they carried a portrait of herself on both sides

https://www.ancient.eu/Empress_Irene/

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Class Dismissed!

Be Well…..Be Safe!

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“lego ergo scribo”

Pandemics In History

It is the weekend and I thought that a short history of the pandemic through the ages might give some small perspective to my readers that are at home and protecting themselves.

These things seem to have been with us for a very long time….if so then maybe we cannot blame some conspiracy with the reason.

The History of Pandemics by Death Toll

The Plague….but today we call it a pandemic……who started this “reporting” on the results of these pandemics….

The word ‘plague’, in defining a lethal epidemic, was coined by the physician Galen (l. 130-210 CE) who lived through the Antonine Plague (165 – c. 180/190 CE) but the disease was recorded long before in relating the affliction of the Plague of Athens (429-426 BCE) which killed many of the city’s inhabitants, including the statesman Pericles (l. 495-429 BCE). Plagues certainly may have existed prior to the Athenian outbreak – and almost certainly did – but most studies of the epidemic begin with Athens as it is the first recorded by an eyewitness and survivor, the historian Thucydides (l. 460/455 – 399/398 BCE). Plagues are routinely named either for the person who reported them, the monarch at the time of the outbreak, the region afflicted, or by an epithet as in the case of the Black Death.

https://www.ancient.eu/article/1528/plague-in-the-ancient–medieval-world/

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Be Well……Be Safe……

If you are sheltering in place and are reading this blog….I think you and hopefully I have been of some small help.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Do I Get Free Money?

Closing Thought–27Mar20

The stim package has passed and us mere mortals will be getting some sort of check in an attempt to sooth the savage beast……if so then how much will I get is the most asked question?

Let’s go to the info…..

The Senate on Wednesday passed the biggest economic relief bill in US history—the AP gives a sense of scope by noting the $2.2 trillion price tag is equivalent to half the size of the entire $4 trillion-plus annual federal budget. Assuming the House passes it as expected on Friday, how much will end up in your pocket? The Washington Post has created a coronavirus stimulus check calculator where you can see for yourself (use it here), but in general, here’s how it will work:

  • The checks are expected to go out in April, and in most cases they won’t be checks. If you qualify for a check, the government will see if it has your direct deposit info on file from the filing of your 2018 or 2019 taxes. If it does, you’ll receive your payment that way.
  • If you earn no more than $75,000 a year you’ll qualify for the full $1,200. Married couples can get $2,400 so long as their adjusted gross income doesn’t exceed $150,000 a year.
  • Reduced checks will go to individuals making up to $99,000, with the total amount reduced by $5 for every $100 over $75,000. Married couples who make up to $198,000 will also get reduced checks.
  • Adults will also receive $500 per child under age 17. Forbes reports there is no limit on the number of kids, so the same thing applies whether you have one kid or six.
  • Based on these parameters, not every American will receive a check, but most will—about 83% of tax filers, per one estimate cited by the Post.
  • Your income level will be determined based on your 2019 taxes, or your 2018 taxes if you haven’t filed them yet. The checks won’t be taxed.
  • Another note on timeline: The Post notes that while Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin wants the first batch of checks to go out the week of April 6, “the last time the US government did anything like this, in 2008 … it took about eight weeks for the final people to receive their checks.”
  • CNN echoes that, with Howard Gleckman with the Tax Policy Center saying, “It is more realistic to expect them in a month or two

Does that answer your question?

This should be helpful for some….but I feel that it will fall short in most cases for the people that are suffering economically.

On the other side of this disaster…..after all it is an election and the president needs the economy to rebound, which it is doing thanks to the free cash for corporations…..and he needs some popular support and apparently his free money to the peons  has had its upside…

Despite a series of setbacks and snafus, a stunning new poll finds that 60 percent of Americans approve of President Donald Trump’s response to the coronavirus pandemic.

A Gallup poll released this week — and conducted during the week ending this past Sunday — shows nearly two-thirds of Americans approving of Trump’s handling of the crisis, buoyed by high marks from Republicans (94 percent) and independents (60 percent), with even just over a quarter of Democrats (27 percent) in favor as well.

Stunning Poll Finds 60 Percent of Americans Approve of Trump’s Coronavirus Response

Apparently we Americans can be bought.

My thought is if we could ask the 1000+ people dead would they agree and approve of Trump’s virus response?

I know I am a cynic….but I have been watching this scenario played out numerous times and little has changed and the people still have not learned that they are only an after thought most of the time.

Just wondering.

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

Virus–This Needs Doing….NOW!

More thoughts from the trenches of the blogosphere….where good info is abounding.

Our politicians and the wealthy elite are saying that all we need to fight this virus is to throw money at them so they can survive……once again the elite get cash and the people get the virus…..

These are things that I read that I agree with 100%….things we need to do to fight this killer…..(the virus not the elite)……

No expense can be spared in making testing for the coronavirus available immediately in every country. Trillions of dollars must be invested internationally in testing regimes, the manufacture of protective clothing, the purchase of oxygen machines and other necessary technology, the construction of new hospitals and the expansion of existing hospital facilities.

From this standpoint we raise the following demands:

Accessible and universal testing: There is no way to combat the spread of coronavirus without testing that is accessible to all those who show symptoms. It is essential that testing be made available immediately throughout the United States and the entire world.

Free high–quality treatment: Stopping the spread of the coronavirus is impossible in a society where only those with money can see a doctor. In a country like the United States, where the average household cannot afford to pay cash for a $400 expense, providing free treatment is inseparable from controlling the spread of the disease.

Every country must immediately begin to provide free testing and treatment, and pay all medical costs associated with the coronavirus. Medical care is not a privilege, it is a right!

Paid sick leave for all workers: It is vital to ensure that workers do not feel pressured to work when they are sick. Corporations and governments must immediately begin providing paid sick leave for all employees.

Equality of care: In the United States, a vast and disproportionate share of medical resources is monopolized by the financial oligarchy. Reports abound of the V.I.P. emergency rooms in Manhattan and the Hamptons for the super-rich, and the massive emergency bunkers and private medical treatment centers being constructed by the oligarchs in their own mansions.

There can be no preferential treatment in combating this pandemic! Equality of care is not only a moral question, but an urgent social necessity. The private doctors of the rich and those engaged in vanity procedures must be immediately drafted to treat the general population. Access to care must be determined by necessity, not wealth. The rich have the right to the same treatment as anyone else—but no better.

Protect refugees, prisoners and the homeless: Around the world, millions of people are homeless, millions more are fleeing war and poverty, and countless others are imprisoned under conditions that make them vulnerable to infectious disease. Everything must be done to improve the conditions of prisoners, refugees and the homeless and provide these vulnerable populations with access to hygiene and the best quality medical care.

Stop price gouging: Medical supplies and sanitary products must be made available to households and medical workers, and all those profiting from the crisis should be held criminally liable.

Safe working conditions: Employers and the government must be responsible for providing all employees—from medical workers to factory, warehouse, retail and service workers—with a safe work environment.

The supervision of safety cannot be left to the employers. Workers should form rank-and-file committees to make sure that safety codes are being observed by the employers and measures are being taken to combat the spread of the disease. These committees will ensure that workers are not compelled to work in an unsafe environment and that coworkers who become ill receive the necessary treatment and support.

Support the ill and the quarantined: No one should fear that being designated and quarantined means neglect and ostracism. Workers should form neighborhood committees to ensure that those who are sick and quarantined are safe and have social support and the necessary food and supplies.

For international collaboration: US economic sanctions against Iran are causing severe medical shortages in a country with over 3,000 coronavirus cases, and the US political establishment has been waging a campaign to demonize Chinese scientists and doctors. All sanctions must immediately be lifted and all restrictions on international medical collaboration ended!

In responding to this dangerous disease, one principle must guide us: that human need is primary. Combating an epidemic that threatens millions of lives cannot be subordinated to considerations of private profit.

(wsws.org)

These items should have been forefront….and yet we are still waiting on most of these answers….but not to worry the rich will get their cash….and the markets are up….and why not?  Corporations are getting FREE money……and Americans could get a death bed.

What good is a booming economy if there are no people to feed it?

I Read, I Write, You Know

“lego ergo scribo”

We Don’t Need No Stinking Ventilators!

Donald of Orange has stated that we do not need so many ventilators….that it is just an exaggeration from governors that are being mean to him.

As the coronavirus crisis escalates, hospitals are pleading for ventilators to save the lives of patients whose lungs are failing. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo says the state will need 30,000 of the machines when the pandemic peaks, but President Trump thinks the governor is probably exaggerating. Trump downplayed the need for ventilators in a call to Sean Hannity on Fox News Thursday night, Politico reports. “I have a feeling that a lot of the numbers that are being said in some areas are just bigger than they’re going to be,” he said. “I don’t believe you need 40,000 or 30,000 ventilators. You go into major hospitals sometimes, and they’ll have two ventilators. And now all of a sudden they’re saying, ‘Can we order 30,000 ventilators?'” Trump likened ventilators to cars, calling them “very expensive” and “very intricate.

Cuomo said Tuesday that FEMA had only sent 400 ventilators. The administration later said 4,000 would be sent. In his call to Hannity, Trump criticized the Democratic governors of Washington and Michigan and praised the Republican leadership of states like Idaho and Nebraska, which have not seen major outbreaks yet, the Hill reports. “They all have a little bit, but many of them have just a little bit and they have it under control.” The New York Times reports that the White House was going to announce General Motors and Ventec Life Systems were teaming up to produce around 80,000 ventilators, but the announcement was called off amid disagreements over how many ventilators were needed and suggestions from FEMA officials that that price tag of around $1 billion was too high.

Yep you read that correctly….they are haggling over your health care and/or your possibility of death.

ESTIMATED INFECTION BY 30Apr20–1,382,926

(map from Time)

1.3+ million people infected and the president does not think we need those ventilators because they are too expensive.

Think about that!

Remember those stories of death panels?

Looks like Donald of Orange is the head of those panels.

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“lego ergo scribo”