xtr

I am definitely sorry for what happened to George Floyd. It was horrible and that office deserved to be arrested and given a very stiff punishment. The other officers involved deserved to be punished as well, (beyond being fired.) I can understand a lot of the pain and anguish people are feeling right now especially in the black community. And I am sorry Soapsuds, that you are dealing with losing him as well, especially since you knew him.

I do think that people during these protests need to be careful. Try not to do anything to get arrested and stay as clear as possible of violence/people causing trouble. Especially people a lot of these outsiders who are at these rallies with ulterior motives and are making things harder on people. (Like it's being rumored that there are some white people at these rallies with these types of motives). 

People need to be smart and stay safe, even more so, because we are in the middle of a pandemic. Unfortunately, these riots are getting worse and worse and are becoming increasingly more violent. People have already been beaten, shot at and a couple have even died as a result of these riots. I wish that things could get a bit more under control but we may be a ways off from that, especially if people feel like justice isn't going to be really be served for what happened to George. 

32 minutes ago, DramatistDreamer said:

 

Apparently, she voiced her displeasure at the way the protests are being done? She needs to explain rather than trying to evoke her blackness, which, correct me if I'm wrong, may be the first time she's ever done this.  Who is she addressing in her original comments though?

She did voice displeasure about some of the stuff the protesters were doing (like looting). But instead of explaining herself in a more reasonable way, she's been going off and blocking people who are pointing out why the protesters are upset. Camila Banus has gotten really annoying in the past few months. (Maybe she's been like this for a while, I don't know.) But I've noticed she's been acting extra annoying ever since people voiced displeasure over being uncomfortable with Lani having to get on her knees and beg Gabi to save Julie's life. Some black fans and other fans were uncomfortable with that and Camila basically said she didn't care how people felt about that, and that she was an actor and was fine with those scenes. She got even more annoying around the time the whole Days Cast was "let go" from their contracts and people were reporting that the show might be cancelled. 

And now she's been annoying with this whole situation involving the protesters being upset about George Floyd's death. I think that one of the reasons she's been acting like this is because she has some black fans, especially black women who love/stan her/empower her to act like this. They do. I remember some of them dismissing other black fans concerns when we were talking being uncomfortable with Lani begging Gabi on her knees and about the writing that Lani received to the writing that Gabi was getting. (IMO, Lani being written to be weak, while it seems like Ron really likes Gabi, has her dominating people, etc...)

I enjoyed today's classic episode. I really have been enjoying these classics lately especially the ones from the 80's/early 90's. My favorite part of the show was actually Dru's conversation with John. It was nice seeing how warm/and supportive he was towards her. I like he was amused by her plan about making up a boyfriend to try and win over Nathan. I really enjoyed the Neil/Dru meeting each other scene as well.

I thought that today's show overall was interesting too including Brock, Gina/Clint, Katharine being worried and Brad/Cassandra. 

It's nice to see Cole again. I always liked J Eddie Peck in this role. He's looking good in this episode and so is Heather Tom. I like her/Victoria's hair color during this time. 

6 minutes ago, yrfan1983 said:

Jess Walton previews this Friday's Masquerade Ball re-airing: https://ew.com/tv/young-and-the-restless-masquerade-ball-jess-walton/

I'm looking forward to watching this episode. I am definitely going to make sure I record it to watch it later tomorrow evening. 

2 hours ago, FrenchFan said:

Don’t remember having seen these Amy/Nathan scenes : 

 

Thanks for posting this episode.  I enjoyed it. I felt bad for Nathan. Not only does he have to deal with Amy accusing him of setting her up to be hounded/almost raped by that group of men, but he also has to reveal to her he can't read in a very tense and embarrassing moment for him. Nathan Purdee did good work in these scenes. Also, I enjoyed seeing the Traci/John and Traci/Danny scenes. It was sweet seeing both men try to reassure her she would be fine, after deciding to end up her marriage to Danny. 

It was also nice seeing Lauren Koslow from her time on the show. 

40 minutes ago, alphanguy74 said:

You're not joking about the restroom hygiene. There are men that I call "Urinal huggers", they literally go up and let their forearms touch the sides of the urinal. I guess because they are afraid someone next to them will see something? Then they leave and put their arms around their girlfriend or whatever. Creeps me out. One thing I noticed is that every man who does that seems to be under the age of 35. 

I hate to say it, but I've also seen too many women not wash their hands in the restrooms. And some of them will come out of a stall and give a look like "Yeah, I'm not going to wash my hands." It's really unfortunate. A lot of them may just not like to be sanitary but I do wonder if some of them are not really washing their hands because they think they are conserving water/helping the environment. There are people out there that don't really wash themselves, including taking showers/baths that often, because they want to conserve water/think they are helping the environment. I've seen women on the internet say this/even knew a women that have said stuff like this. And it's just umm......  I mean come on. They need to worry more about preventing disease and contamination, especially during these times right now.

As far as age goes, I have seen women of various ages, not wash their hands in the restrooms. Including some middle aged women. The people that I noticed that don't like to cover their mouths when they sneeze/cough and sneeze/cough unnecessarily forcefully tend to be younger people. I have noticed that younger people in their 20s like to do these things. Granted there are some older people that do this too, but I've really noticed this in younger people. And it's unsanitary and obnoxious. And very unsafe especially during times like these.

People really need to change their behavior when it comes to stuff like this. Hopefully, they are becoming more mindful and making adjustments to be more sanitary. It's safer for everyone if they do. 

Some people have gotten their stimulus checks are already. People can be on the lookout for it to hit your banks accounts soon. A lot of checks will be direct deposited between now and Wednesday/next week. Some banks (llke Navy Federal) have been getting the deposits early. The IRS has also just launched a link to help people who are non filer put in information to file a simple return to get the stimulus payments.

https://www.irs.gov/coronavirus/non-filers-enter-payment-info-here

And later on this month will be doing another portal for people who have filed already but need to update their direct deposit information. (So they can get their payments earlier and not have to wait on a paper check). Paper Check won't start be distributed until early May and it's being reported that five million checks will be sent out weekly.

1 hour ago, alphanguy74 said:

It will be interesting to see if the recommendation for people wearing masks will make a big difference. I believe it will, and should have been done long ago. I suppose one good thing about this virus, is it has taught a lot of people about germ transmission and how lacking their hygiene is. 

Hopefully it does. And hopefully more people are becoming more aware of how bad their hygiene has been. There are people out there that were not washing their hands the way they were supposed to. I've always been big on handwashing/sanitation. Unfortunately a lot of people have not been. I've seen too many instances in public restrooms, where people barely wash/don't wash their hands after they've used the bathrooms. It was really ridiculous. Hopefully, they've learned better now and are doing stuff like washing their hands more. People need to also be more mindful about covering their coughs/sneezes. There are too many people out there that are still not doing this. It doesn't help that some of them sneeze and cough in forceful, unnecessary, exaggerated manners. 

Babyface has revealed he and his entire family tested postive for the Coronavirus but are now negative. '

Also, I don't know if it was mentioned in this thread (I apologize if it was, I haven't been posting in this thread lately) but Jordi Vilauso also mentioned his entire family getting it, including his children.

People need to be safe and as careful as they can. There are some instances when this has killed a lot of people in a family, like the mother and some of her children in New Jersey. It's extra alarming that little children are now being reported to get it like Jordi's kids. For the most part, this thankfully hasn't affected many children. 

I know it's harder for someone to really distance themselves from a spouse, but everyone definitely needs to be careful. And look out for your children too.  

3 hours ago, I Am A Swede said:

It's fascinating how we've become the object of such interest from the rest of the world....

But it feels like there are some misconceptions on how we've handled this pandemic here in Sweden. I get the feeling that some people think that we haven't done anything and are living as normal, and that is not completely true. Our government hasn't forbidden people from going outside, and most businesses are still open. Congregations of more than 50 people have been banned however, and high schools and universities have closed and the students work from home. There is also a ban on visiting retirement homes, since the elderly have shown themselves more vulnerable to this disease

Apart from that we've mostly had recommendations, but most people here do listen to the experts. Many people are working from home, and social distancing have become the norm. Bars and restaurants have reduced the number of guests on their premises, and some shops have put a limit to how many customers they allow inside. All unnecessary travelling is also discouraged, and that seems to have been respected for the most part. The Easter holiday is usually a period with lots of travelling, but not this year.

 

Only time will tell which method, ours or most other countries, have been more succesful. There will come a time, in the probably not so distant future, when other countries will have to relax their rules, and we'll see what happens then. I know that Norway, Denmark and Austria have started to relax their rules somewhat. You cannot keep an entire population under lock and key forever. The society will collapse if you do that.

Will they have been able to stop the virus spreading, or will it start to spread again when people come out of their confinement....?

Thanks for sharing about your situation in Sweden. I do think that at some point more nations will move towards what you guys are doing. But that may be a while. We're tightening down in places here including in my home state of North Carolina. Some recent changes that have been made are that starting Monday the governor has issued an executive order that only so many people can be in a store at a time. Some stores have already been doing that like Walmart and Family Dollar.

I went to Walmart today to do some shopping and they were only letting so many people in and they made sure that everyone was given a sanitized basket. I actually like the way they handled things. I don't go to Walmart very often and don't really like going there, (Even though the prices are cheap and I like the products) because it can be so crowded. Even before the coronavirus. Family Dollar is also making people carry something in their hands, that alerts employees in the store to how many people are in there at a time. My dad went there today and said they aren't letting more than like 15 people in the store and they have to carry something in their hands to alert people when they are in a store. 

Also, the military bases here have gotten more strict with their rules. Single marines can't really go anywhere on base. (Except for places like the Chow Hall, I believe they may have prohibited from really traveling off base too). The commissary will no longer allow visitors into it, you have to have a military ID card or dependent ID card to get in there. Also anyone who wants to go into the commissary or place like the exchange (including shoppers and employees) must now all wear a face covering. They aren't letting anyone in there without some sort of face covering. The CDC has recommended face masks, but these are the first stores here in NC that I know of that have made it mandatory that everyone that shops in them has one. I think that will definitely keep some people out, one big reason because a lot of people don't have access to masks right now. They are so hard to find here, and if you order on places like Amazon you'll be waiting weeks for one. 

I was glad I did grocery shopping today. Next week a lot of people will get the stimulus checks starting on Wednesday and the places here (especially the grocery stores) will stay busy. They already can't keep certain items on the shelves like toilet paper and wipes. I haven't seen toilet paper/wipes/sanitizer in most stores for weeks now. Thankfully one of my dad's friend has a small discount store which usually keeps toilet paper, or else I wouldn't be able to get any. People here keep hoarding and keeping supplies low. And I believe it's a lot of the same people that keep doing it.

My dad told me he went to a Dollar General a few days ago and the employees had to prevent this woman who lives alone for hoarding toilet paper. She had already bought multiple large packs of toilet paper the day, before and was trying to hoard even more. (Like six large packs in total). They made her stop and she left. People like that are causing shortages and also are creating extra foot traffic in the stories, because people who don't have the resources and/or time to hoard have to go several places to try and find toilet paper. 

With the  way people are shopping, hoarding. even with the new rules in place coming Monday about how many shoppers can be in stores, I still don't really want to be in stores when the stimulus checks first hit. I still won't be able to find a lot of stuff anyhow. 

I'm looking forward to watching this classic Y&R episode from 1993.  Especially seeing Neil and Dru on their honeymoon and John/Jill. It will be nice to see Brad again too. Soaps.com has the full recap for what will air on tomorrow's classic episode. 

https://soaps.sheknows.com/the-young-and-the-restless/recaps/563146/flashback-yr-recap-jill-stuns-john-pregnancy-news-after-vasectomy/

Here is some more information regarding the stimulus checks. The first round of checks are expected to be distributed around the week of April 13th, for people who have filed either their 2018 or 2019 Tax Returns and used direct deposit information. Lower income people will get their checks first. Paper checks will start to be mailed out around early May. The government intends to send out five million checks a week and it could take up to 20 weeks for some people to get their payments (if they are getting a check). The IRS will also be creating a portal either late this month or early May so people can enter their direct deposit information:

https://www.politico.com/news/2020/04/02...-13-162041
https://thehill.com/policy/finance/49085...ratic-memo'

I'm also glad that Seniors on Social Security do not have to file a simple tax return. Yesterday, I was talking to a sweet old lady who had called into the office, who was so happy she didn't have to file a return. She lives alone and was willing to come out and file and pay somebody to do it for her. I'm glad that she and other seniors who's only income is Social Security don't have to risk coming out, dealing with exposure and possibly having to pay someone to file unnecessary returns for them. They can just get it direct deposited to their accounts like they do their SS income. 

This is very sad.  My heart goes out to Eva, his lovely daughter Kaya (especially since she's still young) and his family, friends, former co-workers and fans.  He really did seem like a nice guy and I really liked Edmund on All My Children. Especially with Brooke. I enjoyed them together and wish they would have gotten a happier ending as a couple on the show. It seemed like John touched a lot of people's lives and I definitely hope they can get through this difficult time of losing him. 

1 hour ago, Khan said:

 

Yup.

 

Thomas Massie: "I swore to uphold an oath!"

 

An oath to do what?  Be a douchenozzle?  Congrats, bruh, oath fulfilled!

I liked seeing him get denied here in this video (while everyone is cheering he got denied, lol):

Now is definitely not the time for the type of stunt he was trying to pull.

I think that today's scenes with Ashley/Jack and Traci are good. They are touching. I like seeing them reading Dina's thoughts and like supportive and loving they are towards each other. Especially the way that Jack/Ashley are comforting Traci. Dina mentioned how she felt like she let Traci down the most and how she regretted she wasn't around her and how she didn't go to Colleen's funeral. Those were emotional scenes and it was nice seeing Jack/Ashley put their arms around Traci literally and figuratively to comfort her.

This is going to be hard on all of them, but Traci was the youngest when Dina left and that definitely has it's own impact on her dealing with this situation. Traci usually is the one that tries to hold the family together and often times she acts like she's the big sister. It's nice seeing Jack/Ashley acting like comforting, protective big siblings to her.

Thomas Massey trying to hold up the voting on the stimulus bill is wrong, selfish and could put several of the members of Congress health at risk. (Especially the older ones) He's insisting on doing a roll call vote and many of them may have scramble to travel back to Washington to vote. And he knows it's going to pass, regardless of what he's doing right now. There are some people that always have to be that one person, causing trouble and it's Massey today with the bill. You know he's doing wrong when both Trump and John Kerry are agreeing with each other's posts about him on Twitter. And most people, including democrats and republicans are calling him out for this selfish stunt. 

1 hour ago, ChitHappens said:

Really kind of you to give these details  

 

My family continues to ask me and I want to make sure I'm giving them the right answers.  

You're welcome. I definitely want try to help people who have questions regarding these checks. I know that most people need/could use this money, especially right now.

Also, I just read some more positive information regarding people who owe student loans and usually get their tax refunds taken. The Department of Education has instructed the IRS, not to take away refunds right now from these people right now. So people who haven't filed their 2019 Tax Return yet and maybe were afraid to do, because of this, you can file it now without worrying about it. The IRS is not taking your refund due to defaulted student loans. So you can get a stimulus payment and your refund. 

And for anyone who already filed their returns this year, if your refund  was in the process of being withheld on March 13, (When the national emergency was declared), that refund will actually be refunded back to you. Betsy DeVos has instructed the Department of Treasury to refund 1.8 Billion dollars to 830,000 borrowers. This is going to make a lot of people happy, lol. Also, right now wage garnishments and social security garnishments due to federal owed student loans have also been halted. 

This is the first time I've read this news, I had just heard of people not having to pay on their loans right now. But people not actually getting their refunds taken now due to student loans/ and refunds being refunded to them is definitely some  more good news. 

https://www.ed.gov/news/press-releases/secretary-devos-directs-fsa-stop-wage-garnishment-collections-actions-student-loan-borrowers-will-refund-more-18-billion-students-families

I saw that people on places like Twitter had a lot of questions/concerns regarding who would and wouldn't possibly be getting these stimulus checks. A recent New York times article did a really nice job of answering some of these questions. Though, there are still some questions out there, that I will try and find/research ask about at work. Including seeing how this could affect veterans and people who owe money to the IRS. One big question that a NYY article answered was regarding whether people who owed money  for federal student loans, would not get a check, because they have been having their refunds taken for that debt. The answer is No. If someone has had their refunds taken as a result of federal student loan debt, they will still get a stimulus payment.

I'm not sure about people who get their refunds taken by the IRS for other reasons such as child support. Or people who have been failing to report/pay money from previous/current years that they owe to the IRS. But I will try and find out the answers to those questions. We've already had clients at work start asking about who is eligible for these checks, and they have different situations. I would like/need to get the answers for them as well. But this article from the NYT here is very informative and does answer several questions for people:

https://www.nytimes.com/article/coronavirus-stimulus-package-questions-answers.html

I've also seen concerns from people about how they may get this money distributed to them. One question I saw was people being concerned about having given the IRS banking information to a closed account. If the account is closed, the stimulus check should act like a refund check, would in that situation, in that it would probably be sent back and the person would receive a paper check in the mail.

If someone has given the wrong banking account number or your address has changed, your best bet would probably be to call the IRS. Though, they are really busy right now and really aren't answering the phones much. So you would just have to keep trying to see if you can get your contact information updated. People need to get that information updated ASAP. You don't want someone else getting your check, or having your money be deposited into someone else's account.

I saw that some people are upset about the IRS taking longer to mail checks, than they do direct deposits but that's the way it's been for a long time now. Whenever refunds are issued, it almost always takes longer to get a check (usually 6-8 weeks) than it does a direct deposit (which is usually around like 3 weeks, maybe longer if you have certain credits on your return.) I know that some people don't have bank accounts for various reasons, but if you can do direct deposit do it. It's quicker, more efficient and safer. I could see people trying to steal some of these checks, especially if many of them are delivered around the same time. There's already been stories of how people would go out and still checks, (and often times use things/employees from places like the Postal service to do it). DD is usually the best method to go, for those who are able to do it. 

8 minutes ago, alphanguy74 said:

I'm not sure that has been ironed out yet. I have heard that if you filed online, and got a refund through direct deposit in 2018, then that will be the way it happens again, and everyone else gets a check in the mail. I think people who flout the system and don't file their taxes may get left out. But that will remain to be seen. Ironically, I'm going to be using mine to pay my social security taxes, since I'm still working. 

From what  I have read it's not something you have to sign up for. You just have had to file either a 2019 or 2018 Tax Return. They will look at the 2019 return first and if that hasn't been filed they will go off of your 2018 return. People definitely need to get one or both of those returns filed if they haven't ready.

I also.saw.they will be sending out some paper checks. But also saw like Alphanguy74 mentioned some/maybe a lot people might get it electronically if they provided the IRS with their banking information when they filed their returns electronically. 

3 minutes ago, alphanguy74 said:

THANK GOD. That's what it should have been in the first place. This BS about lower income people getting 600 was just ridiculous

I agree. It didn't make sense that lower income people would less like $600 in one of the earlier proposals. I'm glad that lower income people will get the full amount. This will help most working people.

Now.granted some people that have been unemployed for a while and have things like SSI benefits are upset because they aren't getting anything. As well as people who were claimed as dependents on tax returns (like grown college students). It would have been nice if they would have gotten something as well. But I am at least glad working lower income people will get the full payment.

An agreement on the stimulus bill was made early this morning. It will be a one time payment of $1,200 to anyone who has an income up to $75,000. Lower income people who don't make much will also get the full $1,200. 

I was reading up on Nancy Pelosi and the Democrat's recent proposal for a stimulus bill. I also read up a bit more on Mitch McConell's bill. It is more generous than what Mitch McConnell was trying to do, but there are some similarities as well. I could see the Republicans/Democrats doing some type of fusion of both bills. Nothing has passed yet, but here is some important information to know and what I think people may need to be on the lookout for should a bill pass.

Both sides  want to give money to taxpayers. Both Bills are saying they want these funds to go to taxpayers. Which is definitely good. Though, taking that into consideration it doesn't look like any people who were unemployed for the past couple of years or are disabled are going to get any payments. (Unless they change things). Both Bills are saying they will be looking at either the 2018 or 2019 Tax Returns to help determine who to make payments too. Mitch's bill said they would also look at 2019 Social Security records, for people who haven't filed Tax Returns for either years. So if you haven't already,  definitely get your tax returns for those years filed. Even if you made only a little bit money, you may still be eligible to get a payment. The way the Democrat's bill is looking,  if you just worked and filed a return you could get stimulus money.

Mitch wants to start giving money to people who made at least $2,500. But either way if you worked at least a little bit you could probably get some sort of payment. I also want to note that if you were a dependent on someone's return during these years,  it's looking like as of right now you wouldn't be eligible to get a payment. Say you were like 17, 18 both of these tax years and were claimed by your parents. And now you're 19, and now out of the house, it's looking as of now you aren't going to get a payment. Likewise if you were a full time college student (and under 24), who worked a little during these years and were claimed by your parents, it's looking like those people aren't getting payments either. Even if you were like 21 and 22 during these years and were working a little.

The Democrats proposal was talking about giving each taxpayer $1,500, plus $1,500 per child. That is more helpful to individuals and definitely families. The income people have to make in order to possibly get this payment phases out a little higher than the Republicans plan. Both of these current proposed bills could have the money being paid out recalculated on people's 2020 Tax Return. The Republicans want it to act and be recalculated as an advanced payment of a credit that will be computed again on the 2020 Return.

Some people could end up having to pay some of the money back, and I think that the types of people who are more likely to do this are people who have higher income (But I will definitely ask/research more about that, including at work, once a bill is finalized, and that's included in there). The Democrats also wants to use it as a credit on the 2020 Tax Return. People will get a credit on that return and it will be compared against the Advance Credit you got for the payment. If it's greater, you'll get to reduce your tax liability, if it's more it will be recognized as income and people will have to pay at least a portion of it back. 

Here is an article from Forbes talking about the differences in these plans and the implications it could have on people's tax returns.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/anthonynitti/2020/03/23/house-senate-coronavirus-relief-bills-offer-drastically-different-cash-payouts-to-individuals/#66f295447110

10 hours ago, JaneAusten said:

I agree with most of this but the part of me that is still under an isolation mandate for being exposed to someone who has corona virus and I can't tell you how much less anxiety I would have if I could just get tested.

 

Then I worry about my mom who's elderly and my older brother who lives with her and has a heart condition.

I definitely hope that you and your family end up being okay. I saw you said you in another post that you don't have any symptoms. Hopefully, you don't have it, or if you do, you're asymptomatic and you'll end up being okay. It seems like a lot of people who have contracted this disease so far have been asymptomatic, and will be okay. Also, I did see a figure from a twitter account that is tracking recoveries of this disease, saying like 100,000 people have recovered from the coronavirus so far. I believe it's true because I also saw an article from Newsweek mentioning that. Hopefully, that figure can people some comfort knowing that a lot people have recovered from this.

 I wish more testing would become available so that people who have been exposed to someone/have severe symptoms can get tested. Those are the top two types of people who really need to be able to get testing right now, especially with the tests being limited. I hope they are working on getting more tests available for people and I did see somewhere where some places were starting to get the drive through testing sites. I hope you end up getting access to a test. 

59 minutes ago, I Am A Swede said:

 

I agree so much with this, and it's what I tried (and seemingly failed) to express a few pages back. Thank you for putting it into words much better than I managed to do.

 

Thanks. I just wanted some of that type of perspective to this thread. And maybe help try and calm people's fears a bit.

We really do need more information about this virus, so we can best figure out how to deal with it. And I don't think we should be making long term decisions about things like the economy right now, until we have more information. I'm fine with taking it a little bit at time. Some things are closed down now for a couple/few weeks, I think that things can be re-evaluated after those periods are up. And maybe something will happen between now and then to help make decisions easier to make.

And going back to the virus, I was looking at this chart and seeing how it's affecting the different states in the US, including my home state in NC. In NC, we have at least 300 cases (and I saw one chart that said 400) (And at least 8438 tests have been completed) but zero deaths so far. I believe the governor today said he was grateful there haven't been any death so far. Which I am also very grateful for. Last time I checked we had like three cases in my entire county. And at least one of those cases I believe was a young marine who had recently come back from Italy, and was in quarantine for like ten days already before it was even announced he had been quarantined.

What's interesting about my area in NC., is that we are one of the youngest areas in the US. (Largely due to us having a lot of military bases in this part of NC.) The average age of people where I live is 24 years old. And that actually went up from a couple of years ago, lol. With a lot of people talking (and also IMHO doing too much) blaming of young people for helping spreading this illness, I have to wonder what might be reflected among the really young population here. I hope not too much. Right now I'm glad we don't have many cases or deaths.

This chart is showing how many cases/deaths are in each state.

https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/country/us/

I have noticed is how several states in the South, including NC, Alabama, Arkansas, West Virginia all have zero deaths so far. I've also noticed that some of the states in the Northeast like Maine, Delaware, Rhode Island, even less populated states like Wyoming, North Dakota, and Montana, and states that are further away from the other states Alaska, and Hawaii all have zero deaths, thus far. Now some of these states, one good guess for why they haven't been hit as hard as other states is because they aren't as populated and/or visited as much.

And I find the news so far about some of the southern states optimistic (at least for now) and interesting. Especially since people often like to crap on the South and our ways of doing things. I wonder how things will change with the states. I hope it doesn't get much worse for them, especially the ones that have been hit the hardest. But if some states end up having a much slower spread of this illness and significantly less deaths, and it's for other reasons than a state isn't as largely populated, maybe people can learn from that. And possibly study/implement some of the habits of these states.

North Carolina today ordered some more businesses to be shut down, including personal care and grooming busineses, entertainment businesses that don't have any dining, etc. Some of these businesses include gyms, nail and hair salons, movie theatres, martial arts facilities, bowling alleys, and yoga studios. So many people are going to be put out of work, until I don't know when. I feel so bad for all of these people. This is really going to hurt our local economy. He did at least give them until Wednesday at 5pm to close, so maybe they can pick up some extra business between now and then.

I was supposed to get my hair done on Friday, but I'm texting with my stylist and I'm going to see if I can get it done by the deadline to put some money in her pocket, before her shop has to close down. She has another job which she's not working at right now, and I'm not sure she's going to get paid at that job either. I'm going to give her a good sized tip to try and help. Maybe some of the other people who she normally styles on Fridays can come in and get their services done early, before the shops have to close.

Also schools have been shut down until May 15th here. This isn't the first time schools in my area have shut down here in NC for a while. A couple of years ago after Hurricane Florence happened schools were shut down here for at least a month. Maybe longer. Kids were going to school well into the Summer time. During that time, I felt it wasn't necessary to keep kids out of school that long. In our particular area, it wasn't that bad, and other areas with worse damage, sent their kids back to school earlier than our area did.

I could see kids now going back to school well into the summer like they did then. And speaking of Hurricane Florence, we still have people in the state waiting on aid from that in areas, that suffered a bigger impact from the storm. Here's hoping that the coronavirus aid comes much faster than the aid for the Hurricane has. 

10 hours ago, I Am A Swede said:

 

This is so true!

Amen.

I also think that we need as much transparency as possible, about what is going on regarding this virus. It's just mostly a lot of panic mixed up with various numbers and the full story (or more of the story) is nowhere near being told. How many people of the case being diagnosed are asymptomatic (It seems like a lot). And of that number how many of them live with/closely associate with high risk people?  How many of them have around higher risk people that have died from this or contacted this illness so far? What is the real trajectory for people that may die from this disease? I see a lot of stuff being thrown around and it seems misguide/often exaggerated to say the least.

Also transmission, I would like to hear more stories about how people contacted/or at least think they contacted the illness. Were they around any sick people, did some one cough on them or what. It seems like people are acting like you can just be in the same room/less than six feet from someone with corona and get it. Even if they aren't showing symptoms or doing any sort of coughing, etc... Was it the likelyhood of contact the illness this way. There are a lot of questions that needs to be answered and it's all being pushed aside, and overrun by people panicking. And that's not really doing anybody any good. 

I know people are worried and scared, but the "He's going to kill us all" stuff is not going to happen. It's not. We're not all going to die from this. Most of us are not going to die from this. More people have died and will die from other things than coronavirus. Even taken into consideration that it's more contagious than other illnesses. There are things right now killing more people and will kill more people this year and in the future than coronavirus. People being concerned and scared is very understandable, but I do believe that most people in this country will survive in spite of this illness being around.

And I do believe that a lot of people curbing their behaviors will help prevent more people getting it/death and a lot of people getting it are healthy and will be fine. We need to do what we can to help the high risk and those that are suffering with this illness, but all these people being afraid they are going to die (especially those that aren't high risk, have knowingly been exposed to anyone and don't have symptoms) is actually doing harm in some cases. And could also be contributing to some of the shortages of important resources (like people doing things like hoarding medical masks, sanitizers, going to emergency rooms when they really don't need to etc...)