Good news from China

Spain reported 6,600 new cases bringing the total number of infections to 39,673; fatalities rose to 2,696 from 2,182 the previous day. Laos recorded its first two cases. https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/01/timeline-china-coronavirus-spread-200126061554884.html

24 Mar 2020	Cases	Deaths	Recovered
World*	398,792	17,259	103,748
US**	44,186	544	29
NC**	388	0	0

* https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/
** https://www.coronainusa.com/

China announced plans to ease restrictions in Hubei province, ending the Wuhan lock down April 8. https://time.com/5808736/china-ends-hubei-coronavirus-lockdown/

Since the US outbreak is roughly 2 months behind China, perhaps we could start to get back to normal in June. If governors around the country act quickly and stay the course until then, it might be possible. https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/22/health/coronavirus-restrictions-us.html?searchResultPosition=2

However, Trump signaled yesterday his intention to keep America open for business despite potential human costs. How long might the crisis be prolonged if he doesn’t change his mind?  How many will die? If he continues to prioritize the economy over public health, it will likely be because his self image as a war time leader aligns with his belief that saving the economy would trickle down to fix everything else. Bless his heart. Has anyone discussed voter demographics with him? Because people who are older, poorer, and have preexisting conditions are at the highest risk of mortality if infected, he is poised to reduce his own base of support. Has he or anyone close to him attempted to calculate acceptable losses, politically? Some a-holes on Twitter refer to the virus as “boomer remover.” Looking at swing states, especially those with republican governors, MAGA math does not look great.  

Where’s Biden? briefly trended on Twitter after Joe was MIA a few days. He coughed a little during the last debate so some folks were worried. Turns out he was at home working hard, filming videotaped messages, and conference calling with advisors.

Bernie has been busy raising money for coronavirus charities and holding virtual town hall rallies online. Although the Bernie or Bust hardliners want him to stay in the race and fight for the nomination, this Sanders Sister believes the time has come to suspend his campaign and endorse Biden, respectfully and sincerely, to unite the party and end the need for more primaries during the pandemic. 

The two camps are reportedly talking.  https://www.businessinsider.com/coronavirus-bernie-sanders-and-joe-biden-are-working-together-2020-3 Business Insider is rated Left-Center Biased based on story selection that leans left and High for factual reporting due to proper sourcing and a reasonable fact check record. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/business-insider/

Health care is shaping up to be the most important plank in the democratic platform. Go figure.
https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/488966-biden-coronavirus-shows-why-conservatives-should-drop-obamacare-challenge

Some patients and doctors reported losing their senses of taste and smell, perhaps caused by inflamation. https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/coronavirus-patients-doctors-seem-to-be-temporarily-losing-their-sense-of-taste-and-smell-heres-why-213029665.html

Been wondering how best to clean your phone? Here’s some advice: https://www.wsj.com/articles/should-you-clean-your-phone-to-combat-coronavirus-definitely-maybe-11584018237?mod=e2fb&fbclid=IwAR2v83YJDYHs2CXuLZGZuyY0Lb5xKsABnmygwLHPujllSf_GYipqHDGkN9E

If your mental health has been suffering lately, Yale is offering a FREE online happiness course.  Sign up through Coursera.  More info at https://www.cnn.com/2020/03/23/health/yale-happiness-course-wellness/index.html

Texas Lt. Governor Dan Patrick loves his grandkids more than life itself, reported the Houston Chronicle.  https://www.chron.com/politics/texas/article/Dan-Patrick-says-he-is-willing-to-risk-his-own-15152350.php. I have only one surviving grandparent, age 90, and I hope my relatives will keep a respectful distance from her for a while to help her live even longer.  All things considered, I think Lindsey Graham and Andrew Cuomo are on the right track. https://www.nationalreview.com/news/lindsey-graham-urges-trump-admin-to-maintain-stringent-social-distancing-guidelines/ National Review is rated Right Biased based on story selection that always favors the right and Mostly Factual in reporting due to a few misleading claims and occasional use of poor sources. https://mediabiasfactcheck.com/national-review/

Tendai Kapfidze, chief economist at LendingTree, expects homes to retain their value during a housing market freeze. Once the public health crisis is over, he says the housing market will restart. Sure hope he’s right about that. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/economist-were-gonna-have-a-shutdown-in-the-housing-market-154833204.html

I’m currently researching three topics for future posts: 

1. how companies are treating their employees during the pandemic,  
2. how governors' responses vary state by state, and 
3. bias in news reporting.  

What other topics are of interest to YOU?