In these days of anxiety, I wanted to find a way to continue to share some of the music that gives me comfort. The first of my #SongsOfComfort: Dvořák – "Going Home”
Yes, darn it! I think of myself as 27, not 71 with a list of some chronic health issues I’d better not ignore. Will give you the final decision Monday.
I went to a few stores this morning to get water, paper goods and bananas. Every where I went, the lines were like Black Friday lines with carts running over with goods. The lines stretched all the way to the back of the store at one place. The shelves that house all paper goods, including foil, storage bags, wipes, tissue, papers towels and any disinfectant product were all empty.
Yea, I went to Costco early to get gas and was shocked to see a looooong line waiting to enter the store itself, which was not scheduled to open for another HOUR!!!! Stopping at my 2 local grocery stores, I was also surprised to see the crowded parking lot AND the overloaded carts myself. I mean, why do people need to stock up on toilet paper?? I swear people there knew something I didn’t, but I was wasn’t feeling friendly enough to ask. 😉
Well, I’m jealous! My husband travels for work. I send him with Clorox wipes to wipes down his seat, tray, etc. You don’t have far to fly . Fingers crossed. A TOD meet up will be a great way to spend some time:)
“Our ancestor disdained the city with its noisy bustle and liked the solitude of the countryside. Living an upright life and without holding an official post, he accumulated virtue and cultivated goodness and, thus, he laid the foundations for the family for ten thousand generations to come, to pass on good fortune to the descendants; isn’t that what it is all about.”
— from a written description, in the genealogy, of Yo-Yo Ma’s 12th great grandfather, Ma Lin-Guan, born in China, 1435
David Frum: “Mr. Trump has no desire to acquaint himself with most issues, let alone master them” is how I put it four years ago….No major presidential candidate has ever been quite as disdainful of knowledge, as indifferent to facts, as untroubled by his benightedness.”
Per Wednesday: “He offered no guidance or policy on how to prevent the spread of the disease inside the United States……Financial futures began crashing even as Trump was talking, perhaps shocked by his lack of an economic plan, perhaps aghast at his latest attack on world trade.”
“The financial markets have plunged into a 2008-style crash, auguring a recession, perhaps a severe one.”
(https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/03/trump-ensuring-worst-possible-outcome-coronavirus-crisis/607867/)
—-fyi: Jason Furman on O’Donnell said it’s closer to the 1929 crash.
Mr. Frum: “And even now that he has acknowledged the crisis, he still cannot act, because he does not know what to do. His only goal now is to shove blame onto others.”
A group of Canadian scientists has successfully isolated and grown copies of the novel coronavirus responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic, paving the way for a potential vaccine. … isolating the virus will help develop treatments, vaccines and… https://t.co/sQ2PyuehVm
[Crossing my fingers that they’re able to speed things up a bit – from whichever corner of the world get there first, and that ALL countries will participate in the sharing of answers found.]
This young man shouldn’t have to, but “May God bless him” for seeing those around him and stepping in to help.
Zion Williamson is a class act. 19 years old. A rookie. Steps in to pay the salaries of the Pelicans’ arena workers facing income loss from the NBA shutdown. https://t.co/TvCsIXREe2
I am very impressed. Not the owner, who is a multi-billionaire. Not the older players who have a hundred million $ in the bank. Not any other wealthy people or older people. No, it's a 19 year old kid who has the maturity, decency and class.
— Mark T. Dickins. #FBR. Expert news analysis. (@MarkDickins) March 14, 2020
Trump: "I don't take responsibility at all." Gen. Eisenhower's draft statement in the event D-Day failed: "The troops, the air and the Navy did all that bravery and devotion to duty could do. If any blame or fault attaches to the attempt it is mine alone." pic.twitter.com/LBxW6HbICr
Four people at Mar-a-Lago with Trump last weekend have now tested positive for coronavirus: Bolsonaro's lawyer Karina Kufa, his aide Fabio Wajngarten, Miami mayor Francis Suarez, and an unnamed Republican donor. Probably more.
NBA players donate money to support arena workers —- that’s great & all but maybe if those people & their families had paid sick leave, guaranteed housing & Medicare for All, they wouldn’t need “donations”. https://t.co/hwBzkZq4kl
Opens with nonsensical hyperbole delivered with the intonation of your drowsy uncle talking to himself while he pees in your backyard despite the full family picnic occurring feet away.
I got up this morning to take my son to school, but my wife and I decided to keep him home since spring break starts Monday. Around noon time we get an auto call from the school informing the parents that school is letting out early, and that spring break has been extended for two weeks. So I imagine a bunch of parents had to hustle to pick their kids up early, the school district should have canceled school last night. We canceled our spring break trip to Dallas because basically has been shut down.
Sanders campaign just announced they’re opening five field offices in PA – Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Harrisburg, Scranton, and Allentown. They’re also staffing up an additional 16 people here.
Italians in lockdown all over Italy are keeping each other company by singing, dancing and playing music from the balconies. A thread to celebrate the resilience of ordinary people. This is Salerno: pic.twitter.com/3aOchqdEpn
Love it! We humans do have some redeeming qualities that seem to come out in times of crisis.
Brings to mind this scene from Starman (1984) – “Shall I tell you what I find what I find beautiful about you?… You are at your very best when things are worst.”
I used to live in Stafford. Gentleman looks like one of the old geezers that lived down the road. BTW, he’s not — too young.
Any how, one day, the boys and I were in the general store (straight up from the Green Acres set). I’m at the register when I notice my boys are backed up in the corner with this old geezer wagging his finger. I walk over and my oldest tries to wave me off. I was in uniform, so the guy decided to bust them (think it was more an Army/enlisted/male vs Marine/officer/Black female thing). Anyway, the guy says you city folks think you’re so slick moving out to the country; you give your kids all kind of rules, but you have no idea what they’re up to when you’re at work. Turns out, my boys ran out of gas on their way to a friends house. I responded “Out of gas? They’re not old enough to drive and I had the car” Old geezer laughed in my face and said “but you have a John Deere!” Turns out all the kids used the lawn mowers and tractors to get around… They ran out of gas, old guy filled them up and gave them the gas can to replenish. They were supposed to return it the next day. Needless to say…
I got the “invitation to respond…” Last time around, I was overwhelmed by managing care for my father; having temporary custody of a friend’s children; fulfilling my duty as elected tax collector; and doing some community activism… The census was on the to do list, however it always fell due to OBE. The census taker showed up just as I was greeting the social worker at the door; I say not a good time, SW offers to interview kids first and me after I finish census… Don’t you know, she had the long form! Had I responded to the book received, I would have answered short form…
Briefly visited Greenwood last August; just so happens that the 100th anniversary of the massacre coincides with my Goddaughter’s graduation fro Tulsa University. Needless to say, I plan to be there.
If you live in California and have a fever with other respiratory symptoms, I’m offering free telemedicine evaluations and coronavirus testing if we determine that to be necessary through Cool Quit. We will also provide prescriptions if needed as well. https://t.co/xN0O5vzxF7
I'd be first in line, oxygen tank, hazmat suit with hood, gloves, and a box of alcohol wipes in tow. If the ancestors could lay down their lives for our right to vote, who am I to sit on my ass, safe at home? Can't get this mf'r out of there fast enough!
— The UnRuley Retired Marine (@TheUnruley) March 14, 2020
Thanks for the reminder to practice crawling over broken glass – Ha! Luckily, our state has vote by mail available to all if you want it. Sent mine in for our primary this upcoming Tuesday and it felt good!
Luckily I am in Oregon. We have had vote by mail since 2000. No long lines. No last minute changes in precincts. No voting machines shenanigans. I wish they would have them be pre-stamped though. However there are drive-up deposit sites at each precinct for those preferring that return method. We get our voting information packet in the mail a week or two ahead. I read it and mark my choices straight into the book. Then when the ballot comes I immediately use my decided choices to mark my ballot, put it into the privacy envelope, then sign the outside space for my official signature that is printed above the line on the envelope. I cannot remember if it is dated too or not. Then I mail it in.
In 2008 when Barack Obama was running against Hillary in the Primary I had occasion to view how the system worked close up. My Dad had suffered a stroke and was in short term care. We had been sharing information about the election each day prior to that. He had always voted and wanted to vote for Obama. He was unable to write or talk at that time, but you could ask him questions and he could nod or shake his head, or give a thumbs up sign. I told him I would go to the courthouse and ask about how he could vote.
The clerk at the courthouse explained to me how he could put his X on the line on the envelope and how I should sign under his X and bring his marked ballot back. I have forgotten some other details about specifics, but know I am so glad I helped Dad vote. Everyone else in my family told me not to bother with it, but I knew it was important to my Dad after we had spent a good six months in making the decision. I read him the names running for President even though I knew who he wanted to be sure he had not changed his mind. I read them slowly and saw him shake his head no to all others and yes to Obama. He put a mark on the bubble by Obama. I asked him if he wanted to vote for anything else on the ballot. He shook his head NO. So then we dove into the hard work of him making his X on the envelope line. I could see him straining to slowly mark his X. He was so worn out afterwards I even wondered if I had pushed him too much. At the end of my visit I told him I was going to take his ballot to the courthouse.
The same courthouse clerk tallied his vote right then and there for me in my presence. I showed my ID and my birth certificate with my Dad’s name on it just to be safe. The next day when I visited my Dad and told him about the ballot experience and how it was counted he smiled a crooked smile with a thumbs up. 👍 I will remember that moment fondly as that evening after I left he suffered a heart attack and died. So when I hear people comment about what lengths they would go to vote I think of my Dad’s desire to vote and how hard that was for him knowing that he was happy he voted just prior to his death.
Me and both my parents would crawl to the polls if necessary, bathed in disinfectant and togged in all kinds of protective gear and gloves, spray one pocket, wipes in the other.
If you have an at-risk friend or neighbor, now is a good time to ask if you can add picking up their groceries or running their errands to your ordinary travels.
We are out of here. Feels like we are escaping a bad movie about a virus ( We – President @barackobama and My crying self ). We are taking our grief on the road. I have to glue his hand back on & lost his arm when I saw @ChelseaClintonpic.twitter.com/LtFaLw1gdb
In one, the President of the United States gave misinformation about a pandemic, incorrectly stated his own actions, and slurred words through a speech he honestly seemed to be reading for the first time.
FLORIDA: While you were sleeping, state lawmakers passed #HB491, a bill that would criminalize those who help the elderly and the sick with vote by mail. Why are lawmakers imposing restrictions in the middle of a pandemic? The Senate MUST reject this. #Covid_19
— Kristen Clarke 866-OUR-VOTE (@KristenClarkeJD) March 14, 2020
Strong bipartisan support for the #FamiliesFirst Coronavirus Response Act, thanks to the steady & focused leadership of @SpeakerPelosi!
This legislation ramps up testing which has been woefully inadequate, bolsters Medicaid, & provides health and economic security for families. https://t.co/J3C7ZEBsjl
Real life impact:
1. VA called today to cancel my echocardiogram appointment on the 18th. They’ll call to reschedule in a few weeks; this will push back my upper GI as they want echo before the put me under anesthesia…
2. County is going to telephone hearings for assessment appeals. They will call during the hour of my appointment time; instructions for submission of documentation will be given during call.
3. All PA schools will close for two weeks as of Monday. Half the neighborhood will be playing basketball on the adjoining driveway. No complaint other than I don’t get anything done as I enjoy watching them play…
Thankful to have gotten my main question answered on @MSNBC tonight. Turns out the US federal government could have bought the WHO test kits, which are manufactured by a German company with offices here in America, from the start. We still could buy them. #WhereAreTheTestKits
Whole Foods & Jeff Bezos, Richest Man Tell Workers: Pay For Co-Workers Sick Leave For Covid-19
‘Grotesque Level of Greed’: Owned by World’s Richest Man Jeff Bezos, Whole Foods Wants Workers to Pay for Colleagues’ Sick Leave During Coronavirus Pandemic, by John Queally, Common Dreams, March 13, 2020.
“Absolute bullshit. With the amount Jeff Bezos makes in one day, he could shut stores down and pay employees to stay safe.”
When progressives like Sen. Bernie Sanders say “now is the time for solidarity” amid the coronavirus outbreak, they likely do not mean that employees of Whole Foods—owned by the world’s richest man, Jeff Bezos—should be asked to give their own accrued paid sick days to their co-workers who have either contracted the deadly virus or been forced to take time out of work because of what is now a global pandemic.
But that is exactly what executives with the grocery chain are asking its employers to do, even though Bezos’ could effectively give them unlimited paid sick leave during the current national emergency without barely a scratch in his bank account.
In a letter sent to employees earlier this week, Whole Foods CEO John Mackey explained that one of the options available to workers was for them to “donate” their “paid time off” (pto) days to a pool that other workers could draw from.
– People shopping in the dairy and eggs case at the Whole Foods store in Vauxhall, New Jersey, March 13, 2020.
Journalist Lauren Kaori Gurley, who broke the story with reporting for Motherboard, notes that “as a subsidiary of Amazon, the world’s biggest company, Whole Foods could easily afford to pay its hourly employees for sick days taken during the coronavirus outbreak without breaking the bank. Instead, the company has put the onus back on workers, and they’re not happy about it.”
Amazon paid $0 in taxes on $11 billion in annual profits. But it asks workers to “donate” their paid leave to others who are sick. Workers and taxpayers are expected to be generous. Corporate CEOs—even during a pandemic—can be as stingy as they want. https://t.co/xsJLnxgVSa
Though such labor practices are not unusual—with workers in various sectors and industries pooling accumulated sick leave for a colleague experiencing a long-term illness—doing so in the face of a global pandemic, in which all members of society are equally at heightened risk, the move was seen by critics as shortsighted, tone deaf, and cruel. The fabulous wealth of Bezos only increased the ire for many.
Remember when Jeff Bezos, whose company owns Whole Foods, said he was so freakin’ rich he didn’t know how to spend his money so, heck, he’d start a space program? https://t.co/PjLe6MpQc8 — Alex Kotch (@alexkotch) March 13, 2020…
"An alarming unintended consequence of Pres Trump's misguided trade war with China has suddenly threatened to cripple the US fight against the COVID-19 pandemic. The admin's tariffs on Chinese medical products may contribute to shortages and higher costs."https://t.co/EjwZYk4ThH
An Amazon provider charged me $49 for (6) 2 oz bottles of sanitizer — I complained, was refunded, told to keep the sanitizer, and that Amazon was reconsidering relationship w price gouger
A shout out to Kevin, Giannis, Zion, Blake, Steph and all the players, owners and organizations who are setting a good example during a challenging time. A reminder that we’re a community, and that each of us has an obligation to look out for each other. https://t.co/cv1RZi9GGL
We can have all this again, if we all just vote in overwhelmingly numbers so that cheating is pointless
Watched the House vote when a whirl of blue caught my eye — the blue wave of my mom’s dress as @SpeakerPelosi voted to PASS the #FamiliesFirst Bill for #CoronaVirus testing and care. This is why we voted in 2018 — to bring humane, Democratic leadership back to the People’s House. pic.twitter.com/KlVh9MUniU
Last night I was on with state & local officials around the US well into the night. By March 23 many of our largest cities & hospitals are on course to be overrun with cases.
I am going to prepare a memo for them. I will share highlights here.1/
jeff bezos/amazon owns whole foods. he could give every one of their 91 THOUSAND employees $10k and still maintain over 99% of his wealth. https://t.co/yeXbzSQRG7
This is the right thing to do. I hope that all hospitals do this immediately as a PAUSE during time of unprecedented uncertainty. You can quickly start back up; once you have too many sick patients in critical beds, you will be forced to make unconscionable decisions. #COVID19https://t.co/JtU0CKkMhQ
Trump sent a note to supporters that included a chart showing the Dow Jones Industrial Average dramatically rising roughly at the time he began a news conference declaring a national emergency over coronavirus. The President signed the chart. https://t.co/I3r8yQsysg
I'm more enthusiastic about @JoeBiden than this piece, but it brilliantly states why Dems have and should coalesce around him. Policy, norms,competence, honesty, and winning House, Senate and Presidency. Why Joe Biden is the antidote to this virus https://t.co/qBSE1mo5je
“HERD IMMUNITY’….my apologies.
U.K. ministers consdering “Herd Immunity” to solve COVID-19 pandemic.
“To reach herd immunity, about 60% of the population would need to get ill and become immune,
according to Sir Patrick Vallance, the government’s chief scientific adviser.”
It relies on people getting the disease – in this case Covid-19 – and becoming immune as a result.
(Relies on you not getting it twice.)
(https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/13/herd-immunity-will-the-uks-coronavirus-strategy-work)
—They propose not vaccinating, let the disease run its course, kill people off.
Insane anti-science.
1) This approach didn’t cure smallpox or AIDs.
2) Via “herd immunity” the disease will hang around and keep killing people.
What happens when you denigrate Science in favor of politics…
This is my go to market in Philly! I shop there about every other month…
Lines are non-existent at a lot of Asian supermarkets right now, and they could use some help. Fight xenophobia while not standing in line for 40 minutes! pic.twitter.com/IbOmTAV0NX
Haven't been able to stop thinking about this. A US pharma company with a potential COVID-19 vaccine is in court trying to PREVENT China from getting it bc they're worried China will DISTRIBUTE IT TO THE WORLD FOR FREE https://t.co/9rSzkXhTFH
Damn, this motherf*cker is acting like a reality show host/MC at #COVIDー19 press briefing. Lord, help us survive until November 3, 2020 when we will kick his ass to the curb! #ByeDon2020
He can say whatever he wants. He can even say he tested negative when he could really, in fact, have the virus. Unless I see the test from start to finish, he’s lying about this too as far as I’m concerned. I don’t give 2 shits what he says. EVER!
“It is clear to me that your Court is willfully hurtling back to the cruel days of Lochner and even Plessy. The only constitutional freedoms ultimately recognized may soon be limited to those useful to wealthy, Republican, White, straight, Christian, and armed males— and the corporations they control. This is wrong. Period. This is not America.
I predict that your legacy will ultimately be as diminished as that of Chief Justice Melville Fuller, who presided over both Plessy and Lochner. It still could become that of his revered fellow Justice John Harlan the elder, an honest conservative, but I doubt that it will. Feel free to prove me wrong.”
Japan is reporting its first case of a person becoming reinfected with the coronavirus after showing signs they had fully recovered #coronavirushttps://t.co/MORYQNVjr3
A White House nurse prepares to administer the H1N1 vaccine to President Barack Obama at the White House on Dec. 20, 2009. On Friday, President Trump called the Obama administration’s response to that outbreak “a full scale disaster.”
FACT CHECK: As his administration faces criticism for its response to the coronavirus, President Trump has falsely accused the Obama administration of botching its response to the swine flu. https://t.co/uNkXlRqJtP
The CDC wanted to recommend that anyone over 60 remain inside their homes whenever possible, but was told not to say that by Trump administration officials, three people familiar with the matter told NBC News https://t.co/nNchZuNSfI
. @LouisianaGov says 67 positive tests in Louisiana for #coronavirus, says the state has one of the highest rates per capita in the country so far. #lalege#lagov
Mom and Dad were low on toilet paper. Everywhere I checked yesterday was totally out. I called Kroger last night to ask when the next truck with toilet paper would be coming to restock the store. They said about an hr before closing but could guarantee paper would be on shelves bu then. So I set my clock to get up and be at the store when it opened at 5am. I think I slept right thru the alarm cuz I rolled over and saw 6:05 on the clock. I jumped up, threw on sweats and made it to the store at 6:35am. Don’t you know the shelves were almost bare again? I got 2 of the last 5 cases of 12 rolls! If I’d made it there 10 minutes later there would be nothing Wow!
It’s the same everywhere. When I first saw people stocking up at Costco, that was the weekend before last, I asked myself what was the frenzy. Yesterday, all shelves were emptied. I have to make do with whatever I have for the next 15 days as I refused to pay $7 for a roll of 4 small toilet paper at a local CVS that still had some.
Good Afternoon TODVille. Everyone, please stay safe.
Yep, you can’t even get it online. I tried ordering some TP from Amazon, the estimated delivery date they gave was April 23rd! Yikes that’s crazy! We’re okay for a 3-4 weeks but then I’ll probably be camping out waiting for stores to open in the wee hours.
I am trying to understand this run on TP as it makes no sense to me. Are people thinking they are going to have allergic reactions to all the canned foods with which they’ve been filling their carts? I just don’t get it.
Effin PP … at the press conference, telling the white lady reporter ‘ … take it easy, relax ‘ etc … but if the reporter is a person of colour then they are rude, nasty etc etc etc.
What a POS.
I think he has it. Would be hard to believe he doesn’t.
Why would any journalist show up for these press conferences?
This admin is made up of pathological liars.
After my trek to Kroger this morning, got a scary text from Dad that Mom’s blood pressure was like 240/120. He was calling ambulance. Poor Mom was writhing in agony from a monster headache. The put her in an exam room right away and took vitals but she didn’t see the doc for 2 hrs. Dad was nervous because she was having chills too. But she didn’t have a fever, so infection going on. Quick diagnosis – family doc dropped one of her BP meds, should have lowered dosage instead. They gave her meds to lower her BP and stop the headache. Another two hours later, headache, BP is back to normal range and we’re outta there. Did I mention the ER waiting run was jam packed with people coughing into masks? We’re in for some troubled times y’all.
That’s where the main, biggest hospital in Gwinnett is located. Mom refuses to go to the closest hospital near where we live in Snellville. They saved my life there, but changes since then have turned it into a nightmare.
During Italy's quarantine, Italian tenor Maurizio Marchini found a way to spread a little joy amid the Coronavirus lockdown in Florence. So from his balcony he serenaded the city with Nessun Dorma.pic.twitter.com/NAluu01Ms5
🇮🇹 The Italian airforce gives a big emotional lift to their nation with Pavarotti singing Nessun Dorma (let no one sleep) and where lyrics say venceremos (we will overcome). They have their planes dramatically facing and overpowering the single plane (virus) with their Nat. Flag! pic.twitter.com/77ywWPfQ3v
He DICTATED HIS OWN LETTER!!?? Told you he’s a fucking liar
The letter released late last night from the WH physician stating that Trump needs no quarantine or testing reminds me of the letters of the past we have seen from Trump's doctors: https://t.co/xniVezzYqd
Bernie Sanders hasn’t inspired voters to turnout, he talks about his supporters showing up to rallies, they aren’t showing up to vote? Numbers don’t lie, shut this foolishness down Bernie, Joe Biden will bring us together to defeat the Republicans #NeverBerniepic.twitter.com/kzMAOGG2Ey
Bernie has publicly given Joe questions ahead of time so they can discuss In a substantive exchange.
It will help bring voters over so we can beat Trump. They are friends who want the best for this country.
-You cannot say fairer than that.
Ricky Davila @TheRickyDavila · 2m
This is Ben Carson, coughing directly into his hand close to his face whilst sharing his nonsense opinion about the Coronavirus pandemic. How the hell was he ever a brain surgeon?
FRANCE NOW AT EPIDEMIC LEVEL. All restaurants, cafés, non-essential services closed. MORE THAN 50% OF THE 300 #COVIDー19 CASES IN FRENCH ICUs ARE PEOPLE UNDER 60; France now has 4,500 cases, which doubled in the past 72 hours, said Jérôme Salomon, head of French health service.
Some of the responses to this tweet actually made *me* chuckle. Hope you’ll get a smile or two too.
QUARANTINE DIARY
Day 1: I have stocked up on enough non-perishable food and supplies to last me for months, maybe years, so that I can remain in isolation for as long as it takes to see out this pandemic
Day 1 + 45 minutes: I am in the supermarket because I wanted a Twix
The Obama Diary 
Thanks and congrats, Meta. Having second thoughts about getting on a plane on Monday will be in touch about all my TOD meet up plans in California.
Hi Judith and meta, I completely understand Judith, just let us know. Safety first – we are all in the vulnerable age group 😊
Yes, darn it! I think of myself as 27, not 71 with a list of some chronic health issues I’d better not ignore. Will give you the final decision Monday.
I’m so upset that the world as we know it these days is conspiring against us! UGH!
sounds like a great time waiting to happen
I so understand. It’s so scary and require an abundance of caution. Hugs to you. Stay in touch.
I went to a few stores this morning to get water, paper goods and bananas. Every where I went, the lines were like Black Friday lines with carts running over with goods. The lines stretched all the way to the back of the store at one place. The shelves that house all paper goods, including foil, storage bags, wipes, tissue, papers towels and any disinfectant product were all empty.
Everything is crazy right now. It’s painful to witness, really.
Yea, I went to Costco early to get gas and was shocked to see a looooong line waiting to enter the store itself, which was not scheduled to open for another HOUR!!!! Stopping at my 2 local grocery stores, I was also surprised to see the crowded parking lot AND the overloaded carts myself. I mean, why do people need to stock up on toilet paper?? I swear people there knew something I didn’t, but I was wasn’t feeling friendly enough to ask. 😉
Well, I’m jealous! My husband travels for work. I send him with Clorox wipes to wipes down his seat, tray, etc. You don’t have far to fly . Fingers crossed. A TOD meet up will be a great way to spend some time:)
Congrats meta and thanks for the sweet music 🎶
So Very Niceeeeeee
I’ve always loved this:
***
“Our ancestor disdained the city with its noisy bustle and liked the solitude of the countryside. Living an upright life and without holding an official post, he accumulated virtue and cultivated goodness and, thus, he laid the foundations for the family for ten thousand generations to come, to pass on good fortune to the descendants; isn’t that what it is all about.”
— from a written description, in the genealogy, of Yo-Yo Ma’s 12th great grandfather, Ma Lin-Guan, born in China, 1435
Beautiful!
Beautiful! Thanks meta!
Trump is a pathological liar.
Of course he will not take responsibility for anything bad but he will take it if it is something good.
David Frum: “Mr. Trump has no desire to acquaint himself with most issues, let alone master them” is how I put it four years ago….No major presidential candidate has ever been quite as disdainful of knowledge, as indifferent to facts, as untroubled by his benightedness.”
Per Wednesday: “He offered no guidance or policy on how to prevent the spread of the disease inside the United States……Financial futures began crashing even as Trump was talking, perhaps shocked by his lack of an economic plan, perhaps aghast at his latest attack on world trade.”
“The financial markets have plunged into a 2008-style crash, auguring a recession, perhaps a severe one.”
(https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/03/trump-ensuring-worst-possible-outcome-coronavirus-crisis/607867/)
—-fyi: Jason Furman on O’Donnell said it’s closer to the 1929 crash.
Mr. Frum: “And even now that he has acknowledged the crisis, he still cannot act, because he does not know what to do. His only goal now is to shove blame onto others.”
A somewhat encouraging article?
This is great news.
🙂
[Crossing my fingers that they’re able to speed things up a bit – from whichever corner of the world get there first, and that ALL countries will participate in the sharing of answers found.]
Encouraging. Thanks vc. 🙂
This young man shouldn’t have to, but “May God bless him” for seeing those around him and stepping in to help.
All blessings to this young man! 💞
It’s so weird lately find I myself retweeting folks like Bill Kristol and Rick Wilson. It’s a topsy-turvy world.
You’re not alone, {{{{{{{Dudette}}}}}}}
Never thought I’d RT or even mention either of them ‘in polite company’ — and then Trump was installed by Putin and they became allies!!!
At this point Mar-a-Lago is nothing more than a bloated petri dish.
Orange in color, of course. 😏👀
Day of reckoning will be ugly. The only question is scale and duration.
Why aren’t the billionaire owners donating money to support the arena workers?
Right?
Thread
I got up this morning to take my son to school, but my wife and I decided to keep him home since spring break starts Monday. Around noon time we get an auto call from the school informing the parents that school is letting out early, and that spring break has been extended for two weeks. So I imagine a bunch of parents had to hustle to pick their kids up early, the school district should have canceled school last night. We canceled our spring break trip to Dallas because basically has been shut down.
That’s crazy! Really poor planning on their part. Ugh!
Who’s surprised that he lied? Anyone?
Q: Why is he opening offices in PA when:
1) practically the whole state is shutting down
2) after the 17th, he’ll be mathematically out of the race?
A: Grifters gotta grift…
This made me smile
Love it! We humans do have some redeeming qualities that seem to come out in times of crisis.
Brings to mind this scene from Starman (1984) – “Shall I tell you what I find what I find beautiful about you?… You are at your very best when things are worst.”
This is great! I’ve been following Qasim for quite a while. He’s awesome!
I used to live in Stafford. Gentleman looks like one of the old geezers that lived down the road. BTW, he’s not — too young.
Any how, one day, the boys and I were in the general store (straight up from the Green Acres set). I’m at the register when I notice my boys are backed up in the corner with this old geezer wagging his finger. I walk over and my oldest tries to wave me off. I was in uniform, so the guy decided to bust them (think it was more an Army/enlisted/male vs Marine/officer/Black female thing). Anyway, the guy says you city folks think you’re so slick moving out to the country; you give your kids all kind of rules, but you have no idea what they’re up to when you’re at work. Turns out, my boys ran out of gas on their way to a friends house. I responded “Out of gas? They’re not old enough to drive and I had the car” Old geezer laughed in my face and said “but you have a John Deere!” Turns out all the kids used the lawn mowers and tractors to get around… They ran out of gas, old guy filled them up and gave them the gas can to replenish. They were supposed to return it the next day. Needless to say…
So glad I saw that! Thanks for sharing the goodness, Dudette.
👍🏾😘
I got mine today.
I was just wondering if these were going out! Hope I get mine tomorrow!
I got the “invitation to respond…” Last time around, I was overwhelmed by managing care for my father; having temporary custody of a friend’s children; fulfilling my duty as elected tax collector; and doing some community activism… The census was on the to do list, however it always fell due to OBE. The census taker showed up just as I was greeting the social worker at the door; I say not a good time, SW offers to interview kids first and me after I finish census… Don’t you know, she had the long form! Had I responded to the book received, I would have answered short form…
These folks need to resist every urge to even begin to compare the two. Can’t, Won’t. Incomparable. Period. 💞
Briefly visited Greenwood last August; just so happens that the 100th anniversary of the massacre coincides with my Goddaughter’s graduation fro Tulsa University. Needless to say, I plan to be there.
I’m scared too.
Hey Cali… 👀
I’d drive ya to the polling place, honey bunch!
Thank you! Truth be told, I’d crawl over broken glass if I had to…
Requesting absentee ballots for my Mom and me the firsy day they are available for our April primary.
Thanks for the reminder to practice crawling over broken glass – Ha! Luckily, our state has vote by mail available to all if you want it. Sent mine in for our primary this upcoming Tuesday and it felt good!
Our April primary will be the first no excuse necessary, vote by mail for all who request. I’m doing my best to get the word out…
Luckily I am in Oregon. We have had vote by mail since 2000. No long lines. No last minute changes in precincts. No voting machines shenanigans. I wish they would have them be pre-stamped though. However there are drive-up deposit sites at each precinct for those preferring that return method. We get our voting information packet in the mail a week or two ahead. I read it and mark my choices straight into the book. Then when the ballot comes I immediately use my decided choices to mark my ballot, put it into the privacy envelope, then sign the outside space for my official signature that is printed above the line on the envelope. I cannot remember if it is dated too or not. Then I mail it in.
In 2008 when Barack Obama was running against Hillary in the Primary I had occasion to view how the system worked close up. My Dad had suffered a stroke and was in short term care. We had been sharing information about the election each day prior to that. He had always voted and wanted to vote for Obama. He was unable to write or talk at that time, but you could ask him questions and he could nod or shake his head, or give a thumbs up sign. I told him I would go to the courthouse and ask about how he could vote.
The clerk at the courthouse explained to me how he could put his X on the line on the envelope and how I should sign under his X and bring his marked ballot back. I have forgotten some other details about specifics, but know I am so glad I helped Dad vote. Everyone else in my family told me not to bother with it, but I knew it was important to my Dad after we had spent a good six months in making the decision. I read him the names running for President even though I knew who he wanted to be sure he had not changed his mind. I read them slowly and saw him shake his head no to all others and yes to Obama. He put a mark on the bubble by Obama. I asked him if he wanted to vote for anything else on the ballot. He shook his head NO. So then we dove into the hard work of him making his X on the envelope line. I could see him straining to slowly mark his X. He was so worn out afterwards I even wondered if I had pushed him too much. At the end of my visit I told him I was going to take his ballot to the courthouse.
The same courthouse clerk tallied his vote right then and there for me in my presence. I showed my ID and my birth certificate with my Dad’s name on it just to be safe. The next day when I visited my Dad and told him about the ballot experience and how it was counted he smiled a crooked smile with a thumbs up. 👍 I will remember that moment fondly as that evening after I left he suffered a heart attack and died. So when I hear people comment about what lengths they would go to vote I think of my Dad’s desire to vote and how hard that was for him knowing that he was happy he voted just prior to his death.
♥️🙏🏼💞🕊♥️
OG, what a wonderful memory! You got me sitting here with tears streaming down my face.
What a wonderful story!
YAY!
Me and both my parents would crawl to the polls if necessary, bathed in disinfectant and togged in all kinds of protective gear and gloves, spray one pocket, wipes in the other.
I wish I had a little Obama doll.
Ain’t that some ripe fecal matter?
Yes it is! Stinks to high heaven too!!!
Florida smh
The House bill is passed!
This is the month, I believe, when Nancy Smash turns 80 years old. Wow. What a role model. Of course, she was a role model decades ago, too!
Nancy Smash gets it DONE!
who are the 9 dems who voted against this
John Lewis gets a pass. 😞
Yes, he does; and Ireplied to one of the “remember in November” crowd that those not voting may have been absent…
Wow!
Even the David Plouffes of the world have dropped all pretense of respect for this monster.
Real life impact:
1. VA called today to cancel my echocardiogram appointment on the 18th. They’ll call to reschedule in a few weeks; this will push back my upper GI as they want echo before the put me under anesthesia…
2. County is going to telephone hearings for assessment appeals. They will call during the hour of my appointment time; instructions for submission of documentation will be given during call.
3. All PA schools will close for two weeks as of Monday. Half the neighborhood will be playing basketball on the adjoining driveway. No complaint other than I don’t get anything done as I enjoy watching them play…
Inspiring and heart warming.
Good Morning TOD.
Because we all need a little levity, I offer this thread…
… not thread, I meant hashtag…
#DuringMy14DayQuarantine
https://www.democraticunderground.com/1016249331
Whole Foods & Jeff Bezos, Richest Man Tell Workers: Pay For Co-Workers Sick Leave For Covid-19
‘Grotesque Level of Greed’: Owned by World’s Richest Man Jeff Bezos, Whole Foods Wants Workers to Pay for Colleagues’ Sick Leave During Coronavirus Pandemic, by John Queally, Common Dreams, March 13, 2020.
“Absolute bullshit. With the amount Jeff Bezos makes in one day, he could shut stores down and pay employees to stay safe.”
When progressives like Sen. Bernie Sanders say “now is the time for solidarity” amid the coronavirus outbreak, they likely do not mean that employees of Whole Foods—owned by the world’s richest man, Jeff Bezos—should be asked to give their own accrued paid sick days to their co-workers who have either contracted the deadly virus or been forced to take time out of work because of what is now a global pandemic.
But that is exactly what executives with the grocery chain are asking its employers to do, even though Bezos’ could effectively give them unlimited paid sick leave during the current national emergency without barely a scratch in his bank account.
In a letter sent to employees earlier this week, Whole Foods CEO John Mackey explained that one of the options available to workers was for them to “donate” their “paid time off” (pto) days to a pool that other workers could draw from.
– People shopping in the dairy and eggs case at the Whole Foods store in Vauxhall, New Jersey, March 13, 2020.
Journalist Lauren Kaori Gurley, who broke the story with reporting for Motherboard, notes that “as a subsidiary of Amazon, the world’s biggest company, Whole Foods could easily afford to pay its hourly employees for sick days taken during the coronavirus outbreak without breaking the bank. Instead, the company has put the onus back on workers, and they’re not happy about it.”
Amazon paid $0 in taxes on $11 billion in annual profits. But it asks workers to “donate” their paid leave to others who are sick. Workers and taxpayers are expected to be generous. Corporate CEOs—even during a pandemic—can be as stingy as they want. https://t.co/xsJLnxgVSa
Though such labor practices are not unusual—with workers in various sectors and industries pooling accumulated sick leave for a colleague experiencing a long-term illness—doing so in the face of a global pandemic, in which all members of society are equally at heightened risk, the move was seen by critics as shortsighted, tone deaf, and cruel. The fabulous wealth of Bezos only increased the ire for many.
Remember when Jeff Bezos, whose company owns Whole Foods, said he was so freakin’ rich he didn’t know how to spend his money so, heck, he’d start a space program? https://t.co/PjLe6MpQc8 — Alex Kotch (@alexkotch) March 13, 2020…
More, https://www.commondreams.org/news/2020/03/13/grotesque-level-greed-owned-worlds-richest-man-jeff-bezos-whole-foods-wants-workers
9
Why are they are asking employees to donate their paid leave … ??
Can’t Bezos part with his precious cash? Jeebus, he is not going to spend it all in this lifetime.
Fact is two weeks pay for all of his WF’s employees would amount to a rounding error on his billions…
I hardly ever shop online … here’s another reason to not support Amazon.
Morning everyone
The author is a very good follow:
@ChadBown
What’s with these horrible people??!!
Tears…. as some of you know, my mom died waiting for a heart transplant. Watching this was bittersweet for me
((( DF ))) 💔😢
Thanks, jazz. She’s with me every day. I’m so glad this man has this to comfort him. His son gave life to another. There is no greater gift
Sending you a big hug DF.
Thank you sweetness.
This
Short, Sweet AND to the Point!
A genuine person, speaks
We can have all this again, if we all just vote in overwhelmingly numbers so that cheating is pointless
Here’s a good place to start…. as well as the 40 that voted against the coronavirus package…
Joyous:)
Share this thread
Greedy shit
Sums it up
BTW, YoYo Ma is doing his #SongsOfComfort every day to help soothe anxieties. Let’s post as we find them.
Wonderful:)
While not in the #SongsOfComfort series, I find this intriguing enough to put it on my to order list…
Beautiful! Thank you!!
Interesting
Profit over people. I hate this sonofabitch
Good Midday, TODbots.
“HERD IMMUNITY’….my apologies.
U.K. ministers consdering “Herd Immunity” to solve COVID-19 pandemic.
“To reach herd immunity, about 60% of the population would need to get ill and become immune,
according to Sir Patrick Vallance, the government’s chief scientific adviser.”
It relies on people getting the disease – in this case Covid-19 – and becoming immune as a result.
(Relies on you not getting it twice.)
(https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/mar/13/herd-immunity-will-the-uks-coronavirus-strategy-work)
—They propose not vaccinating, let the disease run its course, kill people off.
Insane anti-science.
1) This approach didn’t cure smallpox or AIDs.
2) Via “herd immunity” the disease will hang around and keep killing people.
What happens when you denigrate Science in favor of politics…
Europe has been historically and avidly pro-science….
Who is behind this anti-science and who benefits?
If they go through witth that approach, London will be off our August itinerary…
This is my go to market in Philly! I shop there about every other month…
I don’t believe the pathological liar
He can say whatever he wants. He can even say he tested negative when he could really, in fact, have the virus. Unless I see the test from start to finish, he’s lying about this too as far as I’m concerned. I don’t give 2 shits what he says. EVER!
https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/03/judge-james-dannenberg-supreme-court-bar-roberts-letter.html?fbclid=IwAR2dG6SkjQLhCG86KUP5hTEikevZ0IXcQ5eHH49KSPIRn2BLujX75wcfB5E
“It is clear to me that your Court is willfully hurtling back to the cruel days of Lochner and even Plessy. The only constitutional freedoms ultimately recognized may soon be limited to those useful to wealthy, Republican, White, straight, Christian, and armed males— and the corporations they control. This is wrong. Period. This is not America.
I predict that your legacy will ultimately be as diminished as that of Chief Justice Melville Fuller, who presided over both Plessy and Lochner. It still could become that of his revered fellow Justice John Harlan the elder, an honest conservative, but I doubt that it will. Feel free to prove me wrong.”
This sounds bad
A White House nurse prepares to administer the H1N1 vaccine to President Barack Obama at the White House on Dec. 20, 2009. On Friday, President Trump called the Obama administration’s response to that outbreak “a full scale disaster.”
Mom and Dad were low on toilet paper. Everywhere I checked yesterday was totally out. I called Kroger last night to ask when the next truck with toilet paper would be coming to restock the store. They said about an hr before closing but could guarantee paper would be on shelves bu then. So I set my clock to get up and be at the store when it opened at 5am. I think I slept right thru the alarm cuz I rolled over and saw 6:05 on the clock. I jumped up, threw on sweats and made it to the store at 6:35am. Don’t you know the shelves were almost bare again? I got 2 of the last 5 cases of 12 rolls! If I’d made it there 10 minutes later there would be nothing Wow!
Dudette,
It’s the same everywhere. When I first saw people stocking up at Costco, that was the weekend before last, I asked myself what was the frenzy. Yesterday, all shelves were emptied. I have to make do with whatever I have for the next 15 days as I refused to pay $7 for a roll of 4 small toilet paper at a local CVS that still had some.
Good Afternoon TODVille. Everyone, please stay safe.
Yep, you can’t even get it online. I tried ordering some TP from Amazon, the estimated delivery date they gave was April 23rd! Yikes that’s crazy! We’re okay for a 3-4 weeks but then I’ll probably be camping out waiting for stores to open in the wee hours.
WUT
Seriously. I nearly choked!
I am trying to understand this run on TP as it makes no sense to me. Are people thinking they are going to have allergic reactions to all the canned foods with which they’ve been filling their carts? I just don’t get it.
Nuts!
Glad you got some Dudette. I went to 5 different stores here in Toronto before I got TP 😂.
I went in 6 stores yesterday. Checked online inventory for another 10. Last resort was gonna be a case of 1-ply dinosaur rolls from Office Depot. 😜
LOL so glad it didn’t get that far LOL!!!
Indeed. 😄
Effin PP … at the press conference, telling the white lady reporter ‘ … take it easy, relax ‘ etc … but if the reporter is a person of colour then they are rude, nasty etc etc etc.
What a POS.
I think he has it. Would be hard to believe he doesn’t.
Why would any journalist show up for these press conferences?
This admin is made up of pathological liars.
I noticed that too.
4 short pithy videos:
“Infection rate charts forecast steep rise in US coronavirus cases”
“Dr. David Ho, director and CEO of the Aaron Dia(mond AIDS Research Center, talks with Rachel Maddow
about how the shape of the graph of new coronavirus cases in other countries can be a guide to expectations for the United States.”
(Video: https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/infection-rate-charts-forecast-steep-rise-in-us-coronavirus-cases-80654405881)
“No quick solution to treat coronavirus despite hopeful leads”
“Dr. David Ho, director and CEO of the Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center, talks with Rachel Maddow about work being done to find a treatment for novel coronavirus infection, where researchers are hopeful to find an answer, and why it’s still likely to take at least a year.”
(https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/no-quick-solution-to-treat-coronavirus-despite-hopeful-leads-80654917732)
“Seattle mayor shares insights on responding to coronavirus outbreak”
“Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan talks with Rachel Maddow about managing the first major American city to deal with an outbreak of the novel coronavirus, and what advice she can offer to other cities as the number of cases across the United States ramps up.”
(https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/seattle-mayor-shares-insights-on-responding-to-coronavirus-outbreak-80653893903)
4th one not posting…
After my trek to Kroger this morning, got a scary text from Dad that Mom’s blood pressure was like 240/120. He was calling ambulance. Poor Mom was writhing in agony from a monster headache. The put her in an exam room right away and took vitals but she didn’t see the doc for 2 hrs. Dad was nervous because she was having chills too. But she didn’t have a fever, so infection going on. Quick diagnosis – family doc dropped one of her BP meds, should have lowered dosage instead. They gave her meds to lower her BP and stop the headache. Another two hours later, headache, BP is back to normal range and we’re outta there. Did I mention the ER waiting run was jam packed with people coughing into masks? We’re in for some troubled times y’all.
Glad your mom is okay and out of that ER!!! Can I ask…what city is this?
Lawrenceville GA
So glad moms okay. I have a cousin who lives in Lawrenceville. I’ve been there. Nice city.
That’s where the main, biggest hospital in Gwinnett is located. Mom refuses to go to the closest hospital near where we live in Snellville. They saved my life there, but changes since then have turned it into a nightmare.
I understand. Finding good hospitals is important when one has medical needs.
Absolutely
Happy that your mother is ok Dudette!!
👍🏾
This!
Be safe and be well. XOXO
Thanks Dear!
Had posted a reply, Dudette, but it’s never appeared.
Suffice, am grateful your mother is ok.
Thanks Bob! ☺️
🙏💪💙❤💪🙏
😘
Whew! Scary. Thrilled she is okay.
Yep me too! Thanks!
Dudette glad your mom is ok, sorry about all that happened…great you’re there for them.
Thanks brp! Best thing I ever did was talk them into moving nearby.
good thinking…fab daughter.
–take care while you’re out and about!!!
Definitely. Got gloves, mask, wipes, hand sanitizer and spray with me at all times. 😘
marvelous.
Glad to hear your Mom is okay. You almost have to go to med school to manage your/family member’s illnesses these days. Troubled times are here…
So glad that your mom is okay. Definitely scary.
Thankz sjt!
Glad your is okay Dudette
Glad your mom is okay.
Thanks todjey
Glad to hear that your mother is doing okay.
Thanks jer!
But ‘ordinary’ people can’t get this quickly
Okay…I am in tears watching this! Perhaps…just perhaps our country can come together for once and join hearts to get us through what is coming.
He DICTATED HIS OWN LETTER!!?? Told you he’s a fucking liar
I read that Orange Man took the test. Will the results be made public?
WE HAVE SEEN BETTER DAYS.
I hope Nerdy Wonka is okay? ❤
Bernie has publicly given Joe questions ahead of time so they can discuss In a substantive exchange.
It will help bring voters over so we can beat Trump. They are friends who want the best for this country.
-You cannot say fairer than that.
Bernie’s surrogates are truly reprehensible. Just completely disgusting jerks, all of them.
We must avoid hate speech. It plays into the hands of Putin and Trump.
You make your own choices. I do not tolerate that crap. And I never will.
Travel from UK and Ireland now suspended.
Ricky Davila @TheRickyDavila · 2m
This is Ben Carson, coughing directly into his hand close to his face whilst sharing his nonsense opinion about the Coronavirus pandemic. How the hell was he ever a brain surgeon?
Video: (https://www.msnbc.com/rachel-maddow/watch/threat-of-crush-of-coronavirus-cases-calls-for-creative-solutions-80653381950)
—creative solutions.
New post.
https://obamadiary.wordpress.com/2020/03/14/setting-a-good-example/
Some of the responses to this tweet actually made *me* chuckle. Hope you’ll get a smile or two too.