Joe Biden is the worst imaginable challenger to Trump right now
 Ryan Cooper, The Week•March 29, 2020



















For anyone plugged in to the news firehose about the coronavirus pandemic, it has been extremely bizarre to watch President Trump's approval rating. He has botched the crisis beyond belief, and the United States now has the biggest outbreak in the world. Because of his ongoing failure to secure stockpiles of medical supplies, doctors and nurses are re-using protective gear over and over, and suiting up in garbage bags and page protectors to treat COVID-19 patients. Some have already caught the virus and died — along with over 1,300 others at time of writing, which is very likely an underestimate.

Yet Trump's approval rating keeps going up. Poll averages show a marked bump in favorable ratings, a recent Washington Post/ABC poll has him above water. He does even better on the coronavirus response, with a Gallup poll finding him at 60 percent approval of his handling of the situation.

This is what happens when the Democratic Party, de facto led at this point by its presumptive presidential nominee Joe Biden, refuses to make the case that Trump is in fact responsible for the severity of the disaster. Biden is proving to be about the worst imaginable nominee to take on Trump.

Now, Biden is not entirely to blame here. Surely some of Trump's approval bump can be chalked up to the usual "rally around the flag" effect that tends to happen at times of crisis, and the fact that we are likely still in the very early stages of the pandemic.

But if we dig into the numbers, some of the bump in Trump's approval rating is coming from changes in Democratic attitudes. A Pew poll, for instance, found that Democratic and Democratic-leaning voters nearly doubled their approval of Trump over the last few weeks, from 7 to 12 percent. It's not a huge change, but it could make the difference between Trump winning or losing in an election which is likely to be close.

As has been made abundantly clear, Democratic voters tend to take their cues from Democratic elites. The party rallied around Biden in lockstep right before Super Tuesday, and voters fell in line. Biden won multiple states he has not visited in months and in which he had no campaign offices. And now that he's the probable nominee, Biden is not savaging Trump's response. On the contrary, his campaign says they are hesitant to even criticize him at all. "As much as I dislike Trump and think what a bad job he's doing, there's a danger now that attacking him can backfire on you if you get too far out there. I don't think the public wants to hear criticism of Trump right now," one adviser told Politico.

Indeed, Biden has barely been doing anything. As the outbreak became a full-blown crisis, Biden disappeared for almost an entire week. His campaign said it was trying to figure out how to do video livestreams, something any 12-year-old could set up in about 15 minutes. (Hey guys: Any smartphone with Twitter, YouTube, or Twitch installed can become a broadcasting device with the press of a single button.) When Biden did finally appear, he gave some scripted addresses that still had technical foul-ups, and did softball interviews where he still occasionally trailed off mid-sentence.

People crave leadership during times of crisis, as evidence by the sudden surge of positive sentiment towards New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, who seriously mishandled the initial crisis response, and is still trying to cut Medicaid, but has been giving reassuring daily press conferences where he seems like he is on top of the situation. Washington state Governor Jay Inslee did a much, much better job (just compare the numbers in New York to those in Washington state), but has gotten comparatively little attention precisely because there are a lot fewer cases and deaths (and there are many fewer reporters in Seattle than New York City).

Trump, meanwhile, is similarly out there on TV every day boasting about how what he's doing is so smart and good. What he's saying is insanely irresponsible and has already gotten people killed, but absent an effective response from the Democratic leadership, it can appear to casual news consumers as though he has the situation in hand. Democratic backbenchers and various journalists are screaming themselves hoarse, but it plainly isn't working.

Biden's strategy appears to be to coast to the presidency in basically the same way he coasted to the nomination: Keep public appearances and therefore embarrassing verbal flubs to a minimum, and rely on Trump's disastrous governance to do all the work for him. But this is a horribly risky strategy. Biden is already a candidate whose awful record will make it harder to attack Trump on trade, protecting Social Security and Medicare, corruption, mental fitness, and his treatment of women — indeed, just recently a former Biden staffer came forward with an allegation that he had sexually assaulted her 26 years ago. Hunkering down and refusing to criticize Trump's world-historical bungling risks him successfully arguing that it was an unforeseeable disaster and he did the best anyone could have done.

Contrary to these half-baked notions that the public doesn't want to hear criticism of Trump, we saw during impeachment that once Democrats actually started going through with it, approval jumped — largely because the liberal rank-and-file took that as a cue it was indeed a good idea. It's just another instance of the Democratic establishment's habit of hiding their desire to avoid conflict and do nothing behind an imagined obstacle of public opinion, when in fact they can change those opinions dramatically by offering a strong and clear alternative.

Moreover, if and when Biden does become president, he will be in charge of a country in ruins. Fixing the place up will require extremely energetic leadership. But both Biden, his campaign, and the Democratic establishment seem to believe that if they just pretend hard enough, everything will go back to normal on its own. It is willful blindness on par with the worst Trump loyalists.

As Easter, Passover and Ramadan near, religious leaders adapt holiday observances during the coronavirus pandemic

Elise Solé, Yahoo Lifestyle•March 31, 2020

As the coronavirus pandemic spreads, religious institutions — and how we celebrate holidays — are changing. (Photo: Getty Images)

Churches, synagogues and mosques are closing to contain the coronavirus global pandemic, and religion is traversing a new virtual world without physicality or roadmaps for prayer and celebration. As such, religious leaders are employing artistic license and bending holy rules while families create new rituals that respect social distancing.

Last week, Pope Francis was depicted praying alone in a haunting photograph captured in Rome’s St. Peter's Square while public celebrations for Holy Week festivities (Palm Sunday, Holy Thursday and Good Friday) will pivot to livestream, per the Vatican website. And “considering the rapidly evolving situation” of the pandemic, a decree called “In time of COVID-19” outlines resources to amend April holidays, including Easter.

Churches are holding “drive-thru” services, and a New Jersey bishop has eased rules for the remainder of Lent (until April 9), permitting the consumption of meat on Fridays, except on Good Friday, “given the difficulties of obtaining some types of food and the many other sacrifices which we are suddenly experiencing given the coronavirus,” according to a tweet from the Diocese of Metuchen.

From the Bishop's Desk:

"I have granted a dispensation from abstaining from meat on Fridays for the rest of Lent, except Good Friday which is universal law. " - Most Rev. James F. Checchio, Bishop of Metuchen pic.twitter.com/Lwr1GBso6n

— Diocese of Metuchen (@diocesemetuchen) March 26, 2020

Meanwhile, bar and bat mitzvahs, large Jewish coming-of-age ceremonies which demand years of vigorous studying and preparation, have been moved online or postponed. And Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has encouraged Jewish, Christian and Muslim citizens to “avoid family visits” during respective April holidays.

In Georgia, St. Anne Catholic Church in Columbus provides virtual-only services on social media (an option since January 2019 to include elderly, homebound or military members), but speaking to empty naves, not friendly faces, got lonely. So last week, leaders taped photographs of congregant faces onto their pews.

“From the altar, there’s now a sea of photos,” Rev. Emanuel Vasconcelos tells Yahoo Lifestyle. “It’s a way to stay united in prayer, not look out into an empty space.”

Designing a fair seating chart for 650 photos was hard, as regulars have their preferred places, but the church did its best. “This has been a challenge for everyone — we’ve never faced anything like this in our lifetime,” he says. When pandemic restrictions are eventually lifted, there may be a ceremonial photo removal.

On March 15, the Clackamas United Church of Christ (UCC) in Milwaukie, Ore. closed for the first time since its inception in 1895. “This is a political, economical and spiritual crises and everyone is anxious,” Pastor Adam Ericksen tells Yahoo Lifestyle. “It brings up a lot of questions about where God is in all this.”

Bible study and prayer meetings via Zoom haven’t been easy for everyone, so Ericksen has personally counseled his 70 communicants over the phone and created a phone tree pairing “buddies” together for spiritual support. There are plans to organize a multi-church online Easter service and possibly a 72-hour “Easter Triduum” from the evening of Holy Thursday to Easter morning with pastors taking shifts to lead continuous prayers.

And the church posted an outdoor sign displaying the phone number for a “senior loneliness line” during isolation. “Nothing will go smoothly but we have to embrace the mess and go with the flow,” says Ericksen, who is planning an at-home Easter egg hunt for his three children.

Rabbi Josh Stanton of the East End Temple in Manhattan has brought his entire synagogue online, including bat-and-bar mitzvah tutoring and Shabbat services. “Judaism is 4,000 years old and records that date back to plagues and quarantines have guided us,” he tells Yahoo Lifestyle. “We’ve had this in our religious discord for generations.”

Ahead of Passover, which falls between April 8 and 16 and observes the freeing of Israelites from slavery in Egypt, Stanton says “we’re trying to host the world’s largest virtual seder that’s open to the world — singing, eating and reflecting together, even if it’s not at the same table. This Passover could be holier than any other time in our lives.”

Families traditionally abstain from or donate leavened bread (which contains yeast) and avoid technology, but Stanton dismisses perfectionism. “What matters is intention and in circumstances like this, creativity.” When food is scarce, he says, there’s little reason to discard bread, and technology is permissible for online seders provided cameras are activated one hour before sundown.

“Why not have a virtual seder with someone in Israel or South America?” says Stanton. “This might forever change Passover.”

For the holy month of Ramadan, this year from April 23 to May 23, Muslims self-reflect and perform good deeds, and pray and fast from dawn to sunset. “This is done in groups, however while living in our comfort zones, we can rely on online services,” Imam Tahir Kukaj, vice president of the Albanian Islamic Cultural Center in Long Island, N.Y. and chaplain of the New York Police Department, tells Yahoo Lifestyle.

At the end of the month, a celebration called Eid al-Fitr breaks the month-long fast. Typically held in mosques or outdoor areas, it’s marked by a feast with lamb, desserts and other dishes. “We have to play by the rules in isolation,” says Kukaj. “This year, how about we celebrate modestly and donate any money toward finding a cure for this virus? Why not invest in science?” says Kukaj, adding that celebrators can “eat whatever is available to you.”

SEE

https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/search?q=RAMADAN

https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/search?q=PASSOVER

https://plawiuk.blogspot.com/2007/04/pagan-origins-of-easter.html

Informal discussions begin on 9/11-style commission on coronavirus response

Carol E. Lee and Courtney Kube and Leigh Ann Caldwell,
NBC News•March 31, 2020

WASHINGTON — Informal discussions have begun on Capitol Hill about possibly creating a panel to scrutinize the Trump administration’s response to the coronavirus pandemic that would be modeled after the commission that investigated the 9/11 attacks, according to four people familiar with the discussions.

They described the discussions as “very preliminary” and mostly involving congressional Democrats.

One option that’s been raised is the potential inclusion of a plan to review the administration’s response in the annual National Defense Authorization Act, two of the people familiar with the discussions said.

The review would focus on lessons learned about the government’s preparedness and what the administration could have handled better, they said. They said the goal would be to put in place a more effective plan for handling a pandemic in the future

A wholesale examination of the administration’s response could gain traction with the passing of a gruesome milestone on Tuesday, when the number of deaths in the U.S. from coronavirus surpassed the number of people who were killed on 9/11.

But the formation of any commission, or possible congressional investigations, wouldn’t happen until after the country is through the current crisis, the people familiar with the discussions said. Some lawmakers have suggested putting off any investigation until after November’s presidential election, they said.

The bipartisan 9/11 Commission was created by legislation signed into law by President George W. Bush to review the government’s preparedness for and response to the 2001 terrorist attacks. It was formed a year after the attacks and two years before Bush was up for re-election.

President Donald Trump has defended his administration’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, and his White House has repeatedly bucked congressional oversight.

The people familiar with the discussions said expectations are low for a review that has broad bipartisan support in Congress and the backing of the White House, particularly in an election year.

“I don’t know that you would get administration buy-in for something like that,” a senior administration official said. “Then if the Democrats do one, it’s all one-sided.”

Any plan for a review that was tucked into the National Defense Authorization Act would require support from Senate Republicans and the White House.

Separately, Congress wrote into the third Coronavirus relief bill, the CARES Act, a number of accountability provisions to monitor the administration’s response to the pandemic and the distribution of billions of dollars of federal funds.

And the House Oversight and Reform Committee has already begun asking questions about the lack of access to testing early on in the crisis even as chairwoman Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., says the committee would dig deep into the administration’s response after the crisis is over.

“The committee’s top priority is the health and safety of the American people, so we have been working to push the administration to identify and fix problems and to share more accurate information with the public,” Maloney said in a statement. “There is no doubt that the administration has mishandled this entire crisis, and our committee will certainly be engaged in robust oversight to review what happened and how to avoid these mistakes in the future.”

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi raised the prospect of an investigation on Sunday, saying Trump’s response cost lives and questioning whether he was leveling with Americans early on about the threat of the crisis.

“What did he know and when did he know it?” Pelosi said in an interview on CNN. “That's for an after-action review.”

Coronavirus: What the world can learn from Ebola fight

BBC•March 30, 2020

Ellen Johnson Sirleaf

Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who made history as Africa's first elected female president, led Liberia for 12 years including during the 2014-16 Ebola outbreak that killed nearly 5,000 people in her country.

The BBC asked the Nobel Peace Laureate for her reflections on the current coronavirus crisis.

Dear fellow citizens of the world,

On 19 October 2014, at the height of the deadly Ebola outbreak in West Africa, when 2,000 of my citizens had already perished and infections were growing exponentially, I wrote a letter to the world pleading for the mobilisation of personnel and resources.

I demanded a show of global unity to avert what we feared would be a worldwide pandemic.

Today, I take this opportunity to raise my voice in a message of solidarity.

Ebola in West Africa. 2014-16 [ 11,325 people died in all ] [ 4,810 people died in Liberia ],[ 3,956 people died in Sierra Leone ],[ 2,544 people died in Guinea ], Source: Source: CDC, Image: People wearing protective gear

Almost six years ago, I explained how Liberia's post-conflict economy, and its fragile healthcare system, made it vulnerable to the rapid spread of disease, and I contended that how the world responded to the localised crisis in West Africa, would define our collective healthcare security.

I argued that an uncontrolled contagion, no matter where in the world, and no matter how localised, is a threat to all of humanity.

The world responded positively. And did so boldly.

President Sirleaf, seen here at the White House in 2015, worked with the leaders of neighbouring countries Sierra Leone (L) and Guinea (R) as well as the US to defeat Ebola

A mass mobilization of resources led by the UN, the World Health Organization, and the US followed. We defeated it together. As a result, today there are effective experimental vaccines and antivirals thanks to the collaboration of the best scientific minds around the world.

In the face of the coronavirus outbreak, I am making a similar plea to my fellow world citizens. I do this with an acute awareness that while African nations have so far been spared the worst, it is only a matter of time until it batters the continent which is the least prepared to fight it.

We must act to slow down, break the chain of transmission, and flatten the curve.

The lessons Liberia learned from the Ebola crisis can be applied to the spread of coronavirus

It is clear that lapses were made in the initial response to the virus, from Asia to Europe, to the Americas.

Cues were missed. Time was wasted.

Information was hidden, minimised, and manipulated. Trust was broken.
'I made the same mistakes'

Fear drove people to run, to hide, to hoard to protect their own, when the only solution is, and remains based in the community.

I know this. I made all of those missteps in 2014, and so did the world's responders. But we self-corrected, and we did it together.

We are at a critical juncture as borders are closing around the world to slow the rate of transmission.

"Every person, in every nation, needs to do their part. This realisation led to our turning point of disease control in West Africa"", Source: Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, Source description: President of Liberia, 2005-17, Image: Ellen Johnson SirleafMore

Let us not take the wrong cue from this. It does not mean that we are on our own, every country for themselves. On the contrary, it is the sign of a communal response, that border closures make a difference.

Watching from my home in Monrovia, what most encourages today, is the opening up of expertise and the fact that knowledge, scientific discovery, equipment, medicines and personnel are being shared.

It is happening within nations, and increasingly across international borders; an indispensable, albeit delayed reaction, that every person, in every nation, needs to do their part.
'We emerged resilient'

This realisation led to our turning point of disease control in West Africa.

In Liberia, we emerged resilient from the Ebola epidemic, and stronger as a society, with health protocols in place that are enabling us to manage the Covid-19 disease.

I fervently believe this is the path we are all on.

I have full faith in the relentless spirit of the individual, a conviction that leaders emerge in times of crisis at every level of society, and that our religious and communal differences pale in comparison to our collective belief in the power of prayer, and our respective faith in God.

As we all hunker down in the next few weeks, I pray for the health and well-being of our global citizens, and I ask that everyone remember that our humanity now relies on the essential truth that a life well-lived is a life in the service to others.

India’s coronavirus emergency just beginning as lockdown threatens to turn into human tragedy

Joe Wallen, The Telegraph•March 31, 2020

Up to twelve people share can one room in the Sarai Kale Khan slum in New Delhi - Cheena Kapoor

A week after Narendra Modi ordered the largest national lockdown the planet has ever seen and Delhi's Bhogal market is little quieter than usual.

Rather than being confined to home to stop the spread of Covid-19, large groups of residents instead huddle together in the shade, drinking tea and playing cards.

Street vendors continue to hawk fresh fruit and vegetables and the police watch as daily life in the capital's backstreets continues, apparently content to enforce movement restrictions only on the capital's major thoroughfares.

The failure to abide by the prime minister's decree is due to necessity, rather than defiance, said Muhammad Asif, 21, a cycle-rickshaw driver scanning the crowd for customers.

The three-week-long social distancing precautions ordered by Mr Modi are an unaffordable luxury for tens of millions of daily-wage labourers.

Muhammad Asif, 21, says despite the lockdown he will carry on driving his rickshaw to feed his family - Cheena Kapoor

With no savings to his name, Mr Asif cannot afford to remain at home and needs his daily earnings of a little over £5 to cover food, rent and medical bills for his family.

“We absolutely do not have any money to take the government precautions,” Mr Asif he explained.

Sanitiser, a mask, soap and even excess water to wash his hands are beyond his reach.

“If death has to come, it will come wherever I am, I can’t afford to run away,” he says.

The problem of millions forced to choose between poverty and defying restrictions is quickly turning into both a public health and political headache for the Indian leader.

An estimated 120 million Indian labourers are in the same predicament as Mr Asif, and Mr Modi has been accused of causing a humanitarian disaster by locking down the cities and unleashing a wave of poor migrant workers.

Many of those who have been forced out of work have streamed back along highways and railway lines to their home states and villages, potentially spreading the coronavirus infection into the country's hinterlands.

Mr Modi's lockdown was a knee-jerk reaction without thought for the consequences to the poor, claimed Manish Tewari, an MP for the Congress party.

“You have millions of poor, marginalised, displaced on the march and the government has left them to their own fate,” he told the Telegraph.

Sudhir Choudhury, 25 and Uttam Mani, 20 are rag pickers, 

searching through Delhi's rubbish for items to sell to recyclers - Cheena Kapoor

“You have millions of people carrying their meagre belongings and having to march hundreds of kilometres to find safety.”

The spectacle of destitute workers setting out to walk hundreds of miles home after they lost their jobs caused Mr Modi to make a rare apology at the weekend.

Many of those hardest hit are from his own party faithful.

"I apologise for taking these harsh steps that have caused difficulties in your lives, especially the poor people," Mr Modi said in his monthly address on Sunday, broadcast on state radio.

"I know some of you will be angry with me. But these tough measures were needed to win this battle."

While India by Tuesday had reported barely 1,500 cases and fewer than 50 deaths, health officials fear the virus could wreak havoc in the world's second most populated nation.

A lack of testing is thought to hide a far more widespread infection among the 1.3 billion population.

Moreover, in a country which spends little on healthcare and where many poor extended families live in cramped lodgings, the conditions could favour a rapid spread of the killer virus.

It was business as usual in Bhogal market, as Delhi residents ignored curfew to carry out their daily shopping - Cheena Kapoor

India's young population may be expected to provide some protection from worst of the death rates seen elsewhere.

The median age in the country is 28, compared with 47 in Italy.

But at the same time, the country is plagued with health conditions known to increase the impact of the pneumonia-causing virus.

India has more diabetics than any other country, while it also has the highest burden of tuberculosis. Indian cities top the world for the worst air pollution.

Faced with the threat, and a widespread failure to comply with restrictions, some neighbourhoods were taking their own protective measures on Tuesday.

After the south Delhi neighbourhood of Nizamuddin was identified as one of 10 coronavirus hotpots, residents of the neighbouring Sarai Kale Khan area used police barricades to block a connecting underpass.

Those trying to cross were threatened.

One distraught mother said she had crossed to buy groceries and become trapped, unable to reach her young children stranded on the other side.

Women stranded in Nizamuddin plead to be let through a

 makeshift barricade to their homes in Sarai Kale Khan - Cheena Kapoor

Several streets away, the Telegraph was chased away by an angry mob claiming the disease is only being spread by foreigners.

Back at Bhogal market, Rakesh Kumar Jain, a 60-year-old greengrocer, said business was good despite the lockdown.

Few people had fridges, forcing them to come out and shop each day and add to the daily crowds, he said.

“People are seeing all the facilities around them in the market, so why would they stay at home,” added one resident, Sanjay Goel,from his balcony.

“They are leaving their homes even for one lemon. It is going to spread.”

From Orban to Kaczynski, Wannabe Autocrats Love the Pandemic

Andreas Kluth,Bloomberg•March 30, 2020


(Bloomberg Opinion) -- Like war, pestilence requires unusual measures, including some that curtail civil liberties. That’s also why aspiring autocrats, throughout history and all over the world, secretly love such emergencies. When, if not now and in the name of public health, is a better time to usurp total power, eliminate opposition and discreetly bury liberty?

Take, for instance, two wannabe dictators in the European Union, which fancies itself a club of law-abiding democracies. One is Viktor Orban, the prime minister of Hungary, a nation that he’s shaped into an “illiberal democracy,” in his own proud words. The other is Jaroslaw Kaczynski, the chairman of the ruling Law & Justice (PiS) party and de facto ruler of Poland. Both are using the Covid-19 pandemic as a flimsy pretext to establish dictatorships in all but name.

This week, Orban had his pliant legislature adopt an “empowerment law” (doesn’t that sound vaguely like an “enabling act”?). It lets Orban rule by decree, and without any time limit whatsoever. Jaw-dropping in its brazenness, the new law also allows Orban to suspend any previous law he doesn’t like and changes the criminal code so that Orban’s government can imprison anybody who in its opinion “distorts” facts. In effect, it’s a silent coup d’etat that leaves Orban’s power completely unchecked. All in the name of fighting the coronavirus, you understand.

Meanwhile in Poland, Kaczynski just rigged the electoral system so that his party’s candidate, incumbent Andrzej Duda, is sure to remain president in the election slated for May 10. That ballot shouldn’t be taking place in the first place: Poland is in lockdown, which prevents the opposition from campaigning, whereas Duda still travels the country and appears on PiS-controlled TV.


But Kaczynski wants the vote to happen, and also wants to know the outcome already. So, between 2am and 4:20am on Saturday morning, in a largely empty parliament where PiS has the absolute majority, he suddenly introduced 79 pages of amendments into an emergency law ostensibly targeted at the coronavirus. The changes, which alter the election rules to favour PiS, violate parliamentary rules and the constitution. Jerzy Stepien, a former president of Poland’s constitutional tribunal, called the move another step toward a “dictatorship in Poland.”

The EU could and should punish Hungary and Poland, but that would take unanimity, and Orban and Kaczynski, along with a few of their eastern European pals, have each other’s backs. So the only remaining checks on the two leaders would in theory be their own countries’ courts. Conveniently, however, both have spent years stacking them with loyalists. With their new powers, they’ll be able to make their judiciaries fully beholden to them.

Poland and Hungary are in a sense providing a user manual for creeping autocratic takeovers, and lots of eager students are paying attention. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu has just staged his own sort of “coronavirus coup.” Cambodian prime minister Hun Sen has arrested opposition critics in the name of cracking down on fake news over the coronavirus. From India to Russia and Brazil, leaders seem quite enthusiastic about all sorts of drastic emergency measures that just happen to eliminate political nuisances. China’s Xi Jinping already has, of course; but he at least never pretended to be a democrat.

None of this is really new. Epidemics have put freedom-loving societies to the test at least since the plague struck Periclean Athens in 430 BCE. The difference is that today the tools of epidemiology are also potentially perfect instruments of totalitarianism. From China to Singapore and the West, governments are using or deploying artificial intelligence, facial recognition and social-contact analysis to trace the viral pathways. These same technologies can also turn into permanent surveillance for other purposes.

But who wants to seem “unpatriotic” right now, or to put lives at risk by saying no to containment efforts as the bodies mount? And yet, we must insist on limits if we treasure our liberties. At some point, this pandemic will recede. And when it does, the extraordinary measures to contain it must end as well. Otherwise, we will have survived one hell only to enter another.

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of Bloomberg LP and its

Sierra Leone overturns ban on pregnant schoolgirls

BBC•March 31, 2020

Teenage pregnancy is an issue in many African countries

Sierra Leone has overturned a five-year law barring pregnant girls from going to school.

The ban was introduced in 2015 as schools reopened after the Ebola crisis, which saw a rise in pregnancies among school-age girls.

West Africa's top court ruled in December that the girls were discriminated against and their human rights violated.

Teenage pregnancy is a huge issue in Sierra Leone.


The UN children’s agency Unicef in a 2015 report found that 40% of girls are married before their 18th birthday

Young and pregnant in Sierra Leone


I was a teenage mother

Several rights organisations sued the Sierra Leone government at the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas) court in May 2018.

The court ruled last year that the “discriminatory” policy had denied the girls their right to education.

Judges also criticised parallel learning centres that had been set up for the girls, saying it was “another form of discrimination” and ordered that they be abolished.

President Julius Maada Bio, who had come into office a month earlier, said in a statement after the December ruling that he was committed to "inclusion of every citizen” in his development plans.

There was an increase in underage pregnancy during the Ebola crisis, which left many girls vulnerable to sexual abuse and desperate for money.
Analysis: The stigma will continue

By Umaru Fofana, Freetown

Sierra Leone is a very traditional society. Many say much of the beliefs are misogynistic. It is a country where former President Ernest Bai Koroma refused to sign into law an abortion bill that was unanimously passed by parliament. Many activists say men are determining the future of women without regard to the women themselves.

Female genital mutilation is widespread, with an equally widespread resistance to stopping it by traditionalists. Any attempt to do so is resisted, with accusations of "foreign cultural interference".

During the Ebola outbreak in 2014 and 2015, the government closed all schools in order to halt the spread of the disease. Consequently, hundreds - some say thousands - of girls became pregnant. A 2010 policy of not allowing pregnant girls in school came to the fore. So the girls were shut out of school and not allowed to write their exams.

The policy received widespread public support and still does.

Memunatu Margao, a shop attendant in central Freetown, expressed disappointment with the overturning of the ban: "I will not allow my daughter to sit in class with someone pregnant - that's a very bad influence".

Asked whether she would keep her daughter in school if she became pregnant, the mother of two said emphatically: "No! She will stay at home."

But Education Minister David Moinina Sengeh described it as a great day for the children of Sierra Leone, and said the policy shift "was based on evidence and consultation with a diverse task force consisting of religious leaders, heads of schools and civil society organizations".

He said that "at a time of uncertainty, when schools are closing for what seems like an indefinite time for Covid-19, Sierra Leone is learning from its experience during the Ebola crisis".

A new policy of inclusion would apply to "all learners", while the government would also "engage communities to prevent teenage pregnancies", he added.

But many here believe that while the official policy may have changed, the stigma against pregnant girls will continue, so the girls may be kept out of school for a different reason.

The issue of pregnant girls going to school is also a big issue on the other side of Africa, in Tanzania.

President John Magufuli has defended the policy of banning pregnant girls from school, saying young mothers would be distracted if they were allowed back in school.

Coronavirus crisis creating new models of leadership, kindness for the future | Opinion
AMELIORATING CAPITALISM 
Shalom Saada Saar, Miami Herald•March 30, 2020


Coronavirus crisis creating new models of leadership, kindness for the future | Opinion

Crisis tends to produce more compelling leaders than do peaceful times. No wonder that, in ancient China, crises were always synonymous with opportunities. The current coronavirus pandemic is a case in point. In China, President Xi Jinping inspired a despaired nation by stating that the role of his government is “to do whatever it takes to save lives.”

It was a simple and authentic statement that spread hope. As a result, the Chinese people have followed the tough measures that the government put in place without panic despite the heavy loss of lives. Today by all accounts, China has contained the virus and slowly makes its way to normalcy.

Likewise, President Trump, for the first time since he took office, appears to be less self-centered, less critical and more sensitive to the growing pain and suffering of small business owners and the working people who live from one payroll to another. His more-humble demeanor and words, as well as his actions, are inspiring a nation to come together regardless of party affiliation. Not surprisingly, his public rating stands at an all-time high.

Effective leaders also are surfacing throughout the nation at all levels, from Gov. Andrew Cuomo of New York to Florida’s Gov. Ron DeSantis. Mayors and other leaders such as Miami-Dade public schools chief Alberto M. Carvalho more than ever are demonstrating effective leadership.

Clearly, this is no time for politics. We must work together and collaborate across all groups and all states to get through this challenging phase’.

Chief executive officers of national companies are extending the utmost respect to employees, urging them to weather the storm and not worry about their future employment. Leaders of health services are working relentlessly, assuring medical services to all residents. University presidents communicate constantly with thousands of students, reducing their anxieties and assuring them that they will graduate despite the interruption.

Faculty throughout the country continue to teach over the internet, warming students’ hearts by showing empathy and concern.

Our revitalized leaders from all walks of life are balancing command and control with compassion and caring. They communicate consistently and, most of all, appear humble and more human. Hence, we are willing to follow their advice and appreciate their counsel and guidance.

This stands as a critical moment in our history. We have come to learn the power of unity and cohesiveness. When we get through this trying moment, lessons will have been learned and what seem to be destructive winds will be transformed into better organizations and a better society. We are in the midst of a fundamental social revolution that will affect the way we learn, work and treat each other.

I am witnessing a more mature, considerate and kinder nation. All of us are experiencing the beauty of spending more time with our families. We are calling our friends and loved ones to make sure that they are OK.

Unlike during previous epidemics and fuel shortages, we are demonstrating our true values as a great nation. The virus that knows no boundaries, in many ways, has brought out the best in us. May we sustain such attributes for many years to come and serve as role models and a shining beacon of light for future generations to see.



Shalom S. Saar is associate dean of executive education at the University of Miami Herbert Business School.

Black, Asian and Hispanic House caucus chairs unite in 'no tolerance' for coronavirus racism

Kimmy Yam, NBC News•March 31, 2020

FIRST THING I NOTICE IS NO ONE IS PRACTICING SAFE DISTANCING

The leaders of the congressional black, Asian and Hispanic caucuses gathered Monday to condemn the racism that the Asian American community is confronting during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The chairs of all three caucuses, as well as leaders of the full Democratic caucus, called for unity at a virtual news conference against increasing attacks against Asian Americans in association with the coronavirus. Rep. Judy Chu, D-Calif., chairwoman of the Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus, or CAPAC, said about 100 hate incidents a day have been directed toward those in the community, according to data from three hate incident reporting sites.

Rep. Hakeem Jeffries of New York, chairman of the Democratic Caucus, said before addressing reporters' questions: "In times of crisis, it's important for us all to stand together. It's particularly important for leaders of every race, every religion, every background to raise your voices as we are doing today to make it clear we will not tolerate anti-Asian rhetoric or violence against the community."

Chu said at least 1,000 hate incidents have been reported since the beginning of the pandemic across the online reporting forum Stop AAPI Hate, a separate site led by OCA — Asian Pacific American Advocates and a third initiative spearheaded by Asian Americans Advancing Justice.

Leaders also took a stand against rhetoric that promoted the racist association between the disease and location or ethnicity, including terms like "Chinese virus" and "Wuhan virus," saying it could cause people to misdirect their anger and put Asian Americans in harm's way.

Previously, President Donald Trump had used the term "Chinese virus" multiple times, both during news conferences and on Twitter. However he abruptly shifted his tone last week, tweeting that "it is very important that we totally protect our Asian American community in the United States, and all around the world." He later said on Fox News that he doesn't regret having used the terminology but "decided we shouldn't make any more of a big deal out of it."

Answering questions from reporters, Chu credited a letter condemning the language, spearheaded by Asian Pacific Islander American Public Affairs with the involvement of "powerful" Republican and Democratic Asian Americans, for Trump's shift. However, she said, the change was "too little, too late."

"He continues to double down on that term, and his followers continue to double down on that term. What he should do is send a strong message to his followers to not say that. He should start with his task force," Chu said.

"Of course, there are the other people in his party that are in Congress that have continued to use that term, including our minority leader, Kevin McCarthy," she said. "So he should send the message directly to them if he really means what he said when he said 'Asian Americans should not be blamed for the coronavirus.'"

While the caucus chairs condemned the anti-Asian discrimination, they praised a resolution recently introduced by Rep. Grace Meng, D-N.Y., that would condemn all forms of racism and scapegoating and call on public officials to denounce anti-Asian sentiment. The bill drew overwhelming support, with more than 120 co-sponsors.

"I'm so thankful for the fact that it's not only Asian American leaders that are condemning these attacks but leaders from all around the country, from different backgrounds," said Meng, vice chairwoman of CAPAC. "The AAPI community has benefited so much from the struggles and the achievements of the black, Latino and Native American communities."

Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-Texas, chairman of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, reminded listeners that the U.S. has a history of discrimination toward Asian Americans, starting with the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882. The legislation put a 10-year moratorium on Chinese labor immigration and was later extended with the Geary Act.

Rep. Karen Bass, D-Calif., chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus, said: "These attacks are nothing new, unfortunately, in the history of our country at different points in time. White supremacy rears its head, and there have been attacks on one of our communities.

"And so, us standing in solidarity today, the Congressional Black Caucus, the Hispanic Caucus and CAPAC, that amounts to us continuing a historical tradition," she said. "I hope that we don't have to have this historical tradition forever."

THEODORE ROOSEVELT DEMOCRAT 

WELL AT LEAST A ELIZABETH WARREN DEMOCRAT AT THAT