Stimulus Check will hit the road Tonight

Help is on its way for many Americans. Recently, the second round of $600 per person, and tax-free Economic Impact payment will be deposited directly from tonight as of 29 December, two days before the end of the Year.

The Treasury Secretary had announced last week that he expected the federal government to start delivering the payment this week. After Pres. Trump announced the desire to see up to $2,000 for individual and vetoed the $600 one, he ultimately signed the bill with conditions to raise amount to $2,000 again.

Many American expected the Trump’s last effort while in office and it was survived at the House flour but Today, the bill was blocked by the Senate Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell. Stock Market went down in response.

Pres. Trump pointed that the bill should provide more for the Americans and not for the High Tech companies and foreign countries which is what many Americans agree with his last pitch. Treasury and the IRS said that they would work as soon as possible to deliver to many Americans who have suffered in the harsh economic climate.

Many healthcare workers are in danger at the line of virus war but many are still waiting for their vaccines, and they need more help but their revenue and funds had been cut in the beginning of the Trump administration.

Coree ILBO copyright (c) 2013-2020, All rights reserved.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or part with out the express written permission.

Communist China sentences Zhang Zhan to 4 Years in Prison for Reporting on Covid-19 in Wuhan

On Monday, Chinese court sentences Zhang Zhang, a citizen reporter to 4 years in prison for reporting on the development of Covid-19 in Wuhan in its early days.

Zhan was convicted of “picking quarrels and provoking trouble” by Pudong New Area People’s Court in Shanghai. The charge is apparently interpreted “broadly” and used by the police to stifle dissent. The maximum prison sentence allowed by the law is 5 years.

Zhan had travelled to Wuhan in February to report on the outbreak; while there, she posted short video clips to YouTube, some of which included interviews with Wuhan residents and footages of hospitals, crematorium, and the Wuhan Institute of Virology.

By mid-May however, she was arrested and accused of several charges, including spreading false information; the world knows that information regarding Covid-19 are all true.

The UN Human Rights office voiced its “deep concerns” for Zhan’s sentence, calling it excessive.

Her mother is devastated to hear of her daughter’s sentencing, as what Zhan had said were all true. Zhan’s attorney Ran Quanniu plans to appeal the decision, and explained that she believes she is being persecuted for exercising her freedom of speech. It certainly seems so from an American perspective.

Zhan is also currently physically unwell due to her long-term hunger strike; the Chinese officials had tied her hands to her waist, and nasogastric tube had been inserted into her nose, said Zhan’s other attorney, Zhang Keke.

Those in the Human Rights Watch argued that China had tried to avoid Western coverage of this event by scheduling the trial during the Christmas holiday period. China has also banned foreign media from the trial “due to the epidemic.”

The world has accused China of hiding the true extent of the outbreak in the early days of the Covid-19 breakout, which eventually led to the virus getting out of control and causing a massive global pandemic that has shut down the world in 2020.

Other journalists are still mostly missing from public spotlight: Fang Bin has been unseen since February, Chen Qiushi who is allegedly under close surveillance, and Li Zehua re-emerged after 2 months missing to say he was forcibly quarantined.

Trump Challenges $600 Stimulus Check and 5,600 Pg. Pork Spending Bill

On Monday, the Senate and the House of Representatives passed the 2021 spending bill and the new Coronavirus stimulus package. Packed into 5,600 pages of text, there were also hidden provisions such as laws against streaming of content and punishment for up to 10 years in prison for such behavior. It was likely that most in Congress did not actually have the time or resources to thoroughly review all that was included in the bill.

Nonetheless, the bill passed both houses. Many people had received this news with distaste, as most complained that $600 was not enough to pay the rent or the extensive amount of bills associated with the massive unemployment associated with the ineffectively short but economically devastating Covid shutdowns for many Americans.

However, on December 22, 2020, Pres. Trump posted a video to Twitter, stating that Congress should increase the stimulus check amount from $600 to $2,000 or $4,000 for a couple.

He argued that the current relief bill in current state included with $1.4 trillion omnibus spending has “almost nothing to do with Covid.”

He also argued that while Congress found plenty of money to give to foreign countries, lobbyists and special interests, it was only giving the bare minimum to its own people.

He also criticized the lack of support for small business owners, stating that they had not received enough money despite the suffering.

Nancy Pelosi responded that she and the Democrats are willing to bring the amendment to the House floor this week by unanimous consent, and to get $2,000 for each Americans if Trump was willing to convince the Republicans to do so, stating that the Republicans had repeatedly refused to say the amount preferred by Pres. Trump, and applauded the president for pushing for money to be included in the stimulus checks.

The Republican leaders have not responded or provided any requests for comment as of now.

Coree ILBO copyright (c) 2013-2020, All rights reserved.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or part with out the express written permission.

House to Vote for a 5,600 page Bill After Receiving the Bill the Day of Voting

The members of the House of Representatives voted on the stimulus bill recently passed by the Senate on Monday, December 21.

However, as AOC stated, the longest bill in history (approximately 5,600 pages of legislation) arrived at the House Monday afternoon, and most have not had the time to thoroughly review the bill.

In playing the political game, both the Republican and Democrat representatives did not have the time to thoroughly review the bill, being forced by time limits.

This is alarming for the entirety of the democratic process; there may be many legalese and languages that aren’t open to thorough debate or consideration by the members of both houses, as due to the pettiness of partisan politics and needless bickering between parties over unimportant matters. Ultimately, even post-Trump, neither the Republican nor the Democratic parties show that they care about the American public.

Some may see it as a sad day for democracy, one Americans are being paid $600 in trade, at a time when significant number of people are facing evictions, starvations, and poverty due to the US system’s ineffective ability to protect its people from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Coree ILBO copyright (c) 2013-2020, All rights reserved.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or part with out the express written permission.

As COVID-19 Vaccines Begin Distribution, ICU capacity in SoCal drops to 0%

Photo from Google Images

Southern California region’s health authorities have reported that the intensive care unit capacity has dropped to 0% on Thursday, as it faced a record 379 coronavirus deaths and 52,000 new confirmed cases.

This means that there has been 1,000 deaths in the last 5days, and 106,000 confirmed cases in 2 days.

California is now the state with the most positive cases of coronavirus in the country with 21,860 death toll.

This is not only problematic for those suffering from the coronavirus; those needing medical help for non-coronavirus related matters are receiving less attention due to the need to treat Covid patients.

As of December 17, 2020, only Northern California has ICU capacity of 25.8% at this point, as the Bay Area sees 13.1%, Greater Sacramento region with 11.3%, and San Joaquin Valley with 0.7%.

The infection rate has been on the rise since people have begun ignoring safety measures and socialize with others, many of them from Halloween and Thanksgiving. State officials are begging people to not gather for Christmas and New Year’s.

It hasn’t helped that San Diego has given up enforcement of Covid-19 restrictions on restaurants and live entertainment establishments after the judge extended his order to protect two strip clubs from state shutdown order.

Those in the medical profession are frustrated with their community for their refusal to follow the basic protocols for safety.

San Francisco is ordering a travel quarantine of 10 days for anyone coming into the city, due to the high number of cases, as it is currently averaging a record high of 242 new cases a day. It will expire January 4.

Coree ILBO copyright (c) 2013-2020, All rights reserved.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or part with out the express written permission.

Massive Snow Storm Affects the Entire East Coast

While the Major Storm System passed over Virginia and North Carolina with rain and snow, Northeast was facing another snow storm. While New York City is dealing with one of the heaviest snow storm in years at 14 inches, more than 60 million people were under a winter storm warning or advisory from northern Georgia to Maine. Most of the warnings and advisories expire on Thursday.

Heaviest snow, up to 2 feet could collect in parts of central Pennsylvania and northern New Jersey. The National Weather Service warned that this could lead to very dangerous, if not impossible travel conditions and isolated power outages.

Due to the storm, some public transportation systems were shut down.

Unfortunately, there was a major pileup in Clinton County, Pennsylvania involving 60 cars and trucks on interstate 80, killing two people and injuring several in the crash.

More than 1300 US flights were cancelled for Wednesday and Thursday, and the NJ Transit suspended some bus and rail services.

Apart from the snow, ice could also accumulate from North Carolina to Maryland, causing travel disruptions and power outages and damages across the East Coast, even after the storm passes by.

However, this storm is set to move onto the Atlantic by Thursday, with only some snowfall possible in New England.

Coree ILBO copyright (c) 2013-2020, All rights reserved.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or part with out the express written permission.

DMV Region Braces for First Major Winter Storm of the Year

The National Weather Service has issued a Winter Storm Warning for areas of Maryland, DC, and Virginia to be in effect effective 7 AM Wednesday to 4 AM on Thursday.

Snow is to spread between 9 AM and 11 AM, and snow is expected to change over to a mixture of sleet and freezing rain during the afternoon, making travel very difficult with severe impact on the morning and evening commutes.

Because DC is located on the border of snow and rain change, weather tends to be especially difficult for prediction. However, the National Weather Service has issued a warning for the general DMV area, specifically in the areas of Northwest Montgomery, Northwest Howard Counties in Maryland, and East Loudoun County in Virginia for a total snow and sleet accumulation of 3 to 6 inches and ice accumulations of up to 1/10th of an inch.

Washington DC and counties further west are currently under Winter Storm watches, and these regions are not expected to see much snow or ice.

However, as previously said, because it is difficult to predict the weather pattern around DC, while light dusting is expected for DC, up to 3 inches of snow could possibly fall on Washington, DC on Wednesday as well.

Some parts of Pennsylvania will see more than 12 inches of snow from this winter weather storm.

National Weather Service has advised that all those under warning have sufficient water and food just in case.

Coree ILBO copyright (c) 2013-2020, All rights reserved.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or part with out the express written permission.

Electoral College Votes for Joe Biden

On Monday, December 14, 2020, the Electoral College formally elected Joe Biden as the next President, with a majority of 306 votes.

Although normally not a highlighted event, due to Pres. Trump’s refusal to concede, this state-by-state voting system was under the spotlight this year.

In some states, security was heightened to protect the electors casting paper ballots, along with masks and social distancing to deal with pandemic concerns. The results will be sent to Washington, D.C. and tallied on January 6 joint session of Congress presided by Vice President Mike Pence.

In comparison to Biden’s 306 votes, Pres. Trump garnered 232 electoral votes.

California’s 55 electoral votes were difficult for Trump to defeat. Yet the Trump Administration remained silent on concession, and Pres. Trump continues to argue fraud. Some expect Trump’s legal challenges will continue up to the Inauguration Day on January 20, 2021. Because of Pres. Trump’s continued assertions of fraud, many states had to enforce stronger than usual protection. For example, Georgia State Police were out at the state Capitol in Atlanta. Thankfully, no protesters were in attendance.

Many Republicans still refuse to accept the Biden win despite the electoral college vote, but the Supreme Court seems set on not allowing the 2020 election matters to politicize the Court.

Coree ILBO copyright (c) 2013-2020, All rights reserved.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or part with out the express written permission.

Aurora Visible from Pennsylvania to Oregon

On Monday, the Sun expelled a huge eruption of plasma and magnetically charged particles. Called coronal mass ejection, it is currently speeding towards Earth. The coronal mass ejection likely arrived on Earth by late Wednesday, which usually results in mild geomagnetic storm. It can worsen if it hits Earth’s magnetic field at a certain angle.

As a result, the National Weather Service has issued a geomagnetic storm watch effective through Friday, with warnings of potentially strong storm on Thursday; people can expect issues with power grids, GPS, and radio communications.

However, one positive side to this strong storm is that the aurora borealis (glowing light usually visible at the poles due to the interaction of the Earth’s atmosphere with solar particles) may be seen further south than usual, possibly as low as Pennsylvania to Iowa and Oregon.

These disturbances will likely only be “minor nuisance” for modern day humans; however, the Sun is entering a new 11-year solar cycle, and stronger storms are highly possible.

NASA and European Space Agency are working to better predict the frequency and strength of solar storms to better prepare for these solar interruptions. On Earth, if there are clear dark skies anywhere north of the Pennsylvania-Iowa-Oregon line, people may get a glimpse of the beautiful aurora borealis just in time for Winter.

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This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or part with out the express written permission.

Covid Ends 47 Years of Marriage As Couple Die Within Minutes of Each Other

A Michigan couple, Leslie and Patricia Waters, married for 47 years died of Covid-19 within seconds of each other last week. The time of death was 4:23 PM on November 24.

Leslie (78 years old) was a former truck driver, and Patricia (76) was a registered nurse for 35 years. They had two daughters, three grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. The Obituary noted that they did almost everything together, so it was no surprise that they “went to be with the Lord together within the very same minute.”

One of the daughters stated her sadness at people who continue to deny the dangers of the coronavirus, as it was particularly difficult to lose both parents to the same disease at the same time. The deaths of the Waters couple brings similar sentiments of those already passed from the virus.

For example, Johnny and Cathy Peoples in North Carolina is another couple that died of Covid-19 September 2, within moments of each other. They were married for 48 years.

Texas couple Avelino and Anita De Leon passed away on the same morning in August, just a few weeks prior to their 57th wedding anniversary.

Another Michigan couple, Donna and Jerry Castleberry died from Covid-19 complications of the virus about an hour apart last month.

The stories of long-married couples passing due to Covid-19 is not new.

Michigan has reported more than 360,000 confirmed Covid-19 cases and 9,500 deaths as of Monday. Nationally, there are 13.5 million confirmed cases and 267,600 deaths. The virus infection numbers continue to rise in alarming rates. It is only a matter of time before we hear of even more couples whose lives will end because of the Covid-19.

Coree ILBO copyright (c) 2013-2020, All rights reserved.

This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or part with out the express written permission.