Blog

Posted on

Some Government Aid Checks Will Arrive This Week

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin says 80 million Americans should receive economic impact payments by Wednesday.

President Trump said during Monday’s contentious coronavirus task force briefing that he plans to lift federal guidelines on social distancing soon, falsely claiming that he has “total” authority on the matter.

Meanwhile, as an outbreak of COVID-19 in South Dakota closes a major meat processing facility, Governor Kristi Noem continues to reject the idea of a statewide stay-at-home order.

Many Americans are reporting that they’re having unusually vivid dreams at night. One Bay Area resident started a website for others to share their dreams. Read what others are dreaming about on i dream of covid.

Listen to Short Wave’s episode, ‘How To Talk About The Coronavirus With Friends And Family’

Find and support your local public radio station

Sign up for ‘The New Normal’ newsletter

Posted on

Trump’s Unfulfilled Promises; What Contact Tracing Could Look Like

Exactly one month ago, President Trump declared a national emergency and promised a mobilization of public and private resources to attack the coronavirus. NPR’s Investigations Team finds that few of those promises have come to pass.

The CDC says they’ll soon release a plan to help state and local governments with contact tracing, but Massachusetts has already started building its own contact tracing system.

NPR’s Allison Aubrey discusses why some are more vulnerable to COVID-19 than others, and looks ahead at what opening up the country may look like.

And if you’re one of the many families feeling a budget squeeze right now, Life Kit has some tips for you.

NPR’s Investigations Team’s full story on each claim Trump made one month ago

Tips on budgeting from Life Kit.

Find and support your local public radio station

Sign up for ‘The New Normal’ newsletter

Posted on

How to ask for a divorce without causing more trouble

The mere thought of asking for a divorce is enough to scare you away from doing so. However, if you realize that your marriage is no longer working, it may be something you need to do.

There’s no easy way to ask for a divorce, but there are steps you can take to do so without causing more harm than good. Consider the following tips:

  • Be honest about your feelings: This isn’t the time to hide anything from your spouse. Tell them why you want a divorce and stick to it. If you know that it’s time to move on, stick to your decision.
  • Keep calm: It’s easy to let your emotions get the best of you, so stay calm throughout the conversation.
  • Choose the right time and place: Asking for a divorce is difficult enough. If you choose to do so at the wrong time and/or wrong place, it’ll only complicate matters.
  • Skip the details: It sounds like a good idea to discuss the details of your divorce, such as who will get the family home or custody of the children, but it has the potential to escalate the conversation to an argument. You’ll have enough time for this as you go through the divorce process, so wait until then.

Once you ask for a divorce, you have one of your biggest challenges out of the way. At that point, you can turn your focus to the process, your legal rights and devising a strategy to help you along the way. It can be a long journey from start to finish, but proper preparation will help.


Go to Source
Author: On behalf of Katie L. Lewis of Katie L. Lewis, P.C. Family Law

Posted on

Q & A: Masks, Unemployment Aid, And Recovering From COVID-19

Public health experts and NPR journalists answer listener questions on ‘The National Conversation with All Things Considered,’ NPR’s nightly radio show about the coronavirus crisis. Excerpted here:

– Dr. Abraar Karan on wearing masks
– Dr. Lucy McBride on what to do if someone is recovering from the coronavirus at home
– NPR’s Scott Horsley on unemployment relief and how to get it

We’ll return with a regular episode of Coronavirus Daily on Monday.

Posted on

Some Infection Rates Drop, But U.S. Hasn’t Peaked Yet

Dr. Deborah Birx said despite signs of progress in New York and elsewhere, the United States hasn’t reached the peak of the pandemic yet.

Rigorous testing and contact tracing specifically are being called for, but Birx said the White House Task Force is being realistic about “how strategically that very valuable resource can be used” in the U.S.

Despite empty grocery store shelves, there’s an excess of food other places, like farms. NPR’s Dan Charles reports on the struggling supply chain.

Chaplain Rocky Walker’s full conversation with Morning Edition host David Greene.

Find and support your local public radio station

Sign up for ‘The New Normal’ newsletter

Posted on

Antibody Tests Coming “Very Soon”; Is The Coronavirus Seasonal?

Antibody tests that could help determine who has had the virus are being developed Dr. Anthony Fauci said. There’s hope those people will have some measure of immunity.

The CDC issued return-to-work guidelines for critical workers who had contact with someone who had a confirmed or even suspected case of COVID-19.

Scientists are trying to figure out whether changing seasons will affect the spread of the coronavirus.

Plus, how public health experts create models to help us predict where the outbreak is headed.

Wuhan resident Piso Nseke’s conversation with Mary Louise Kelly about his first day outside after almost three months of lockdown.

Find and support your local public radio station

Sign up for ‘The New Normal’ newsletter

Posted on

A prenup without full disclosure may be invalid

If you’re thinking of signing a prenuptial agreement with your spouse, make sure that you fully disclose all of your assets and all of your debts. That means everything you own, all the money in your savings, anything you have in investments, any business ownership percentages and all the rest. If you have financial policies like a pension or a life insurance plan, you want to disclose these, as well.

Why is it is important to do this? Well, from a practical standpoint, your spouse just needs to know what you own before agreeing to a contract that can have a big impact on their financial future. They deserve to know what they’re agreeing to and what they may be signing away.

From a legal standpoint, it’s also important to disclose everything because the agreement likely will not stand if you don’t. The judge can throw it out, even if everything else was done correctly, and it no longer governs the divorce. This could cause you to lose some of the protections that you carefully built into your plan and that you were really counting on.

Remember, the opposite side of this is also true. You deserve to know all of the same details about your spouse before you sign. If they hid or failed to mention anything, the agreement may not hold up if you do eventually get divorced.

Prenups can get more complicated than many people assume. It is very important to know about all of the legal steps you need to take and what obligations both of you have.


Go to Source
Author: On behalf of Katie L. Lewis of Katie L. Lewis, P.C. Family Law

Posted on

Social Distancing Is Working; Why The Virus Hits Hard In The Second Week

New York state saw its highest daily death count today, but Dr. Anthony Fauci says because of mitigation strategies like social distancing, a turnaround may be in sight.

Some people who get COVID-19 will experience relief from symptoms, only to crash in the second week. NPR’s Geoff Brumfiel reports doctors think they may have found a treatment for these patients.

Plus, U.S. states are competing against each other for the same scare medical resources.

Scott Horsley’s reporting on women losing more jobs than men.

Nell Greenfieldboyce’s reporting on why men appear to be more likely to die from COVID-19 than women.

Video of Fenway Park’s organist Josh Kantor.

Find and support your local public radio station

Sign up for ‘The New Normal’ newsletter

Posted on

Deaths Climb In Louisiana; Delays In Aid For Small Businesses

The Paycheck Protection Program was created to help small businesses during the coronavirus pandemic. But the program got off to a rocky start, with some businesses having trouble applying for and getting the money.

In Louisiana, an alarming number of black people are dying from COVID-19.

Plus, how the coronavirus affects animals and what you can do to protect your pets.

Derek Thompson’s article in The Atlantic ‘The Four Rules of Pandemic Economics.’

Find and support your local public radio station

Sign up for ‘The New Normal’ newsletter

Posted on

Fauci: Half Of Those With Coronavirus May Have No Symptoms

Even as the total number of deaths grows, White House officials said Sunday that if the public forcefully practices social distancing, the United States might see the curve bending soon.

Experts say masks can help prevent those who are asymptomatic from unknowingly spreading COVID-19.

Plus, health care worker who have recovered from the virus share their experiences.

And while many companies are required to offer sick leave and other benefits to their employees, gig workers are running into hurdles to get the help they were promised.

Life Kit’s episode, ‘How To Get Therapy When You Can’t Leave The House’ is on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and NPR One.

Find and support your local public radio station

Sign up for ‘The New Normal’ newsletter