Items

2021-03-01

Skeptic's flawed analysis of pandemics over a century using data that ignores population growth and globalization.

The attached image was used as evidence in an article for pandemic skeptics to make a "realistic risk assessment" of their danger during the COVID-19 pandemic in an article originally published in March 2021. The image utilizes only the mortality rate of England and Wales over the last century to visually "show" that COVID-19 is just a "blip" on the map. They are seemingly hinting through an image that this pandemic is fake news compared to world wars or influenza, using data to propagandize skepticism. What is misleading about this data is that they are using numbers of today against nearly one hundred years ago and are not contextualizing the numbers at all. At first glance one can see the overall mortality rate is going down. Of course, this is due to improved science, sanitization, water, and medicine over this time period. We must not also forget that this rate has gone down because the number of people in England and Wales, as in all life on our Earth, has increased. Like all math problems, the larger the denominator the small the rate. For example, if 100 people died out of a population of 1,000, the mortality rate is 10% (100/1000x100). But, if 100 people died in a population of 10,000, the mortality rate is only 1 percent (100/10000x100). Trying to compare numbers in a situation where the world population is much different and globalized, is not an equal comparison. I believe this is misleading persuasive propaganda that skeptics used to make COVID look like not a big deal. However, the risk factors have much more to do with your age, location, health history, interaction with other people, and how your surrounding areas respond to a pandemic, none of which is contextualized in this vague graph.

2022-05-12

Baby Formula Shortage

This is an Instagram post by shanti.mikel. This post is on a conspiracy that the baby formula shortage is being used by Bill Gates to promote artificial breast milk technology. Connected to this theory is Pfizer advising people to not breast feed. I would be curious to know what the vaccine's impact would be on breast feeding in the future, as mRNA vaccines like the one Pfizer has produced are going to be used to treat other diseases. The claim that breast feeding is not recommended with COVID vaccines originated in Britain's medicines regulator, not Pfizer, according to Reuters. In order to give more context to this post, I have posted the story by Reuters as well, for those interested in reading. For me personally, I still don't think all the side-effects from the vaccines will be known for a while, as I have had a hard time getting information on the vaccines that has not come across as highly partisan for one group or the other. The evidence I rely on is mostly anecdotal from people that have received the vaccines, in addition to the reasoning of people that did not get them. For the people in my immediate circle, I have not seen any ill health effects from the vaccines so far, but I am also unsure how effective the vaccines are in the long run if some of those same people still get COVID anyway. It is hard to tell if the vaccine is making the COVID cases more mild, or if the virus has just mutated enough to where it is less deadly. It could be a mixture of both. All of it is hard for me to really be sure about either side because I feel like I am only getting partial truth from both.

2022-03-03

And just like that...COVID is over

This is an Instagram post by roryzacher. This is a meme showing what they think about the virus. This is a popular meme of a guy looking back at a girl in red, with his angry girlfriend in blue to the side of him. This meme became popular in the mid-2010s and has retained its popularity. In this context, it means now that there is a war, the COVID narrative is gone. This is commonly used by pandemic skeptics since they believe many of the COVID restrictions were more political rather than for health reasons. The war this is referencing is the Russian invasion on Ukraine.

2022-03-11

High Anxiety: Poll Finds Americans Stressed by Inflation, War

This is a news story from Health Day by Robert Preidt. This is about a poll on what is making Americans most anxious. War, COVID-19, and inflation are at the top of what is making Americans feel anxious. Another thing the poll tells is that 63% percent said their lives changed forever due to COVID-19. 47% of people that took this poll also said that they have become less active compared to pre-pandemic. 58% said they had unwanted weight changes. Among those that gained more weight than they wanted, the average weight gain reported was 26 pounds. Others have said that the separation from others has put strain on relationships, or ended them. The APA reports that those with reduced social support are more likely to cope with stress. 56% say they could have used more emotional support during the pandemic. This poll had 3,012 respondents in February, and 2,051 from March 1-3.

04/25/2021

Lou Fraise Oral History, 2021/04/25

Dr. Lewis Fraise details his service as a geriatric doctor during the Korean War and Vietnam War. He mentions his service in both Washington D.C. and Korea and continues to break down how the Coronavirus actually infects one's body and the response of the government as the pandemic ensued. Dr. Fraise criticizes the actions of Donald Trump and states that the spread of more medically-accurate information would have led to a better outcome in terms of the early stages of the pandemic.

2020-07-15

HIST30060: KEEP YOUR distance!

HIST30060: This photo of the back of my work uniform shows how workplaces were affected by the restrictions of the pandemic. Hardware stores were able to stay open to trade customers and for "click and collect" purchases during Melbourne's lockdowns, which meant a change to our normal work routines. Staff were charged with the responsibility of making sure customers wore masks, checked in with the QR codes and practiced social distancing throughout the store. These necessary rules were challenging to enforce sometimes and customers could often be disgruntled and unhappy with these changes. This message on the back of the uniform was in keeping with the atmosphere of working during this period and symbolises our adjustment to "covid normal" practices.

2020-04-16

The Diary of a Broken High School Senior

I was a member of the class of 2020 at what I believe is the most incredible school imaginable. Perhaps after thirteen years I am far from unbiased, but the sense of community offered by my beautiful, 1,200 student Pre-K through 12th grade school is unmatched. Now, envision a girl who walked this campus with her childhood best friends, siblings, and cousins, and, rather frequently, her mother who made an effort to lead the Parents Association countless years. Overlay a history of homesickness and a global pandemic, and the product is March 2020 me when this blissful chapter of my life was abruptly ripped away, propelling me prematurely towards college at a school I had already decided could never fill the shoes of my high school. This tear stained entry was written on April 16th, when my state governor officially shut down all schools for the remainder of the school year. I had spent the last four weeks with a countdown on my iPhone tracking the days until I could return to school. The countdown had to be adjusted at one point when “coronacation” was extended from one to three weeks. Yet I remained the voice of naive optimism, unwilling to entertain the unfortunate reality that everyone around me had already accepted. This may seem dramatic and theatrical. But this same optimist in me hopes that, should anyone stumble upon my story, they will “respect what [they] cannot know” (Saidiya Hartman). There is much more to this story and my history than could ever be relayed to another person. But with the right lens, great value can be extracted from every story, no matter how many dried tears dot its pages. Hartman, Saidiya. "Venus in Two Acts." Small Axe, vol. 12 no. 2, 2008, p. 1-14. Project MUSE muse.jhu.edu/article/241115.

2020-03-18

My Personal Pandemic Experience

In March, 2020, a global pandemic started. Before that, jokes were made. "Coronavirus is going to take out the whole world". When the month of March began, most people were confused or very strongly opinionated about what was going to happen. It was the news of all news. Rumors got worse and worse and it was said that you could get the virus through your eyeballs, nose, and mouth. People got scared of getting sick so the world completely changed. Masks started arising with the thought that they'd slow the spread. Shortly after, however, masks became very political. In the world of demanding masks, canceling school, major political conflict and complete chaos I felt worried, annoyed, angered, and most of all disappointed in and for what the world became.

2020-03-13

Official School Shutdown

I first knew this when one of my friends texted me. She told me to check my email and when I did, the screenshot above told us that we were not going to go back to school until after Spring Break. It was a Friday and it didn’t occur to me that we would have online school. So I just assumed that we had no school at all, like an extended break. However, we got some more follow up emails saying how we still had to do classwork and such. (This is when I started checking my email daily) Back then, I had limited access to technology and I didn’t want to bother my parents too much; so I had to work with what I had. But then the date kept changing. It was extended to May, then to the rest of the school year. And the first half of this year. It was extremely distracting to learn from home, it felt like my siblings became ten times more annoying, we had to be more careful with cleaning/sanitizing and had to store more food/supplies. I didn’t leave the house for a couple of months and I barely talked to my friends. I did get to try more home cooked meals and it was easier to prepare in the morning. Many political and racial things began happening like getting justice for hate crimes (ex: BLM protests) and unfairness from police officers became relevant. When George Floyd got murdered, it caused a bit of controversy between my family and I, specifically my mom. My mom claimed that he was a criminal so she said the police officer was just doing his job; while I said that it still wasn't right. We kind of ignore that topic now.. A new president was also nominated and it was the first time people had to mail in votes. The new president wasn't official until two weeks after counting the votes. There were people that raided the White House and the 45th president of the USA got banned from many social media platforms. Since he was upset about not being president again and sort of hinted at people attacking the capital. Many people hate and like this man. Mostly hate. After about a year, scientists and doctors were able to create a vaccine that successfully blocked out covid. So many people are getting vaccinated and the public is beginning to reopen. Going to school in-person (late March 2021) had less distractions and I’m actually learning. We're still doing safety precautions and lots of sanitizing.

2021-04-23

The Face Mask

At the beginning of the pandemic, a surgical mask was not something we thought about daily. As cases began to rise and people began to get sicker and sicker a mask was the most wanted item in the world. All around the news and internet, we would hear not to leave our house without a mask or be around other people without one. This lead everyone in the world to be on the hunt for masks. The next thing we knew everywhere masks would be sold out or on backorder and people began to panic. Mask at the beginning of the pandemic was very hard to get your hands on but as time went on businesses got more interested in mass-producing masks and saw to take the opportunity to make a whole lot of money on a needed item. We can now see masks being sold in every store from corner stores to grocery stores and even designer brands like Saint Laurent Paris. Businesses saw the opportunity to make a lot of money on items that were needed by consumers every day but they knew consumers would buy them because nowadays people want to match them with their outfits. These masks have become such an essential part of our daily lives that we no longer reach for our keys before we leave we look for our masks. Although there are many people who follow the mandatory rules of wearing masks there are still many others that believe wearing a mask is taking away their freedom. It is unbelievable to think that a simple cloth that goes over your face that can protect the lives of many others and yours has become such a controversial and important part of our everyday life when it was never something that affected us before March 2020

2021-04-11

Pandemic Street Art: teenage tagger made to apologize and cleanup

New York teen tags the streets in "response to multiple stressors. Quarantining boredom. Family problems. Feeling stuck since graduating high school and not yet finding a job or college that fit."

2020-07-15

The screenshot says it all...

This is a picture taken of a sign placed on the window of a business. The sign has an image of a face mask on it and reads: "To accommodate ANTI-MASKERS, we have provided a space 40 feet west where you can stare at your reflection in the window since apparently you're the only person you care about."

2020-06

Dear Anti-Maskers

One common sight to behold during the pandemic was the signs posted within business’ storefront windows mandating masks to be worn to slow the spread of the coronavirus. In early June 2020 as the city of Chicago entered their Phase 3, which allowed for local businesses to reopen, some store owners used creative messages such as this one to enforce required mask mandates. The sign above, which I noticed on the Chicago Bagel Authority’s Belmont location—six miles north of the Chicago Loop—is a symbol of the city’s efforts to mask up, specifically targeting groups known as “anti-maskers.”

2020-08-22

The Difficulties of a College Student During a Pandemic

During the start of the school semester of spring 2020, talks of a very contagious illness stated to spread. Most students on campus believed COVID-19 to be a threat nut one month later, all colleges across the world shut down. While moving out, my friend's dad said we would be back that same semester. I believed him until infection rates increased across the United States. States started to shut down including the one I lived in. Restrictions, isolation, and guidelines were enforced to ensure public safety. Instead, thousands of people went into depression including me. Not being able to leave my house during the pandemic was difficult. Not only was I hundreds of miles away from my friends at school, but I couldn't see my friends at home too. My experience with online class didn't make interacting with people any easier. Most of my classes didn't require the camera to be on, while the other class didn't even meet online. This was very difficult for me because I was used to being around friends everyday. I started to become depressed as I spent 2 months without interacting with anyone but my family and my teacher. Fortunately, restrictions eased up as the spring semester came to a close. I was able to get a job at a donation center for the summer. I still wasn't allowed to see my friends which made for a disappointing summer but working helped the time go by. When it was time to go back to college, I was relieved. My college was fortunate enough to have students on campus for the fall 2020 semester. I was overly excited to see any friends after months. I counted down the days until we moved in. But I knew the semester would be different. When arriving on campus, I learned that several rules and regulations were implemented to "keep the community safe." Some of these included no visiting anyones dorm room, scheduling when to eat, certain doors were entrances while others were exits, no guests from off campus, must wear a green bracelet at all times, must get randomly tested, etc. I made sure to read the rules and regulations but unfortunately, my roommates didn't. The very first night on campus, my roommates decided to have friends over. I told my roommates that it wasn't allowed but it did not matter. The guests stayed until there was banging at the door. The Resident Assistant working that night wrote us up, and we had to meet with the Dean. While meeting with the Dean, I explained how it was not my fault and I was against having guests over, but I was charged with a $200 fine. Completely upset, I change all my classes to online classes and moved back home. I did not trust my roommates enough to stay. The last thing I wanted was several fines that weren't my fault. When I got home, I was really depressed. I was the only one home out of all my friends and I was back to remote learning. I couldn't see anyone while home and I felt betrayed by my roommates. I felt like my life was crumbling as another semester of my college experience was being wasted. This caused me to have a mental breakdown, and lose all motivation to do work. Four months passed by slowly and I escaped the semester with mediocre grades and a crippling mind. Fortunately, my parents noticed I was not in the best shape of mind. They had me see a therapist and find new activities to do during the pandemic. This got me back on my feet and my friends from home started returning from school. The gap between semesters when well and I was joyful again. However, it was time to decide if I wanted to return to campus for the 2021 Spring Semester. I was torn because some of my friends were staying home that semester and I still did not trust my roommates. I thought rationally and contacted them to see our their semester went. To my surprise, they received 4 fines and one of them had to quarantine. This gave me reassurance that I made the right choice on leaving campus during the fall semester. Currently I am taking the 2021 Spring Semester all remotely and I am happy. I am seeing friends and have synchronous classes. I am confident that I will keep seeing my friends at home and keep a good mindset throughout the semester. I wish for everyone to stay strong during the pandemic and seek help if you're depressed.

This picture shows a collapsible table with alcohol wipes, hand sanitizer, thermometers, and disposable gloves on it.

2021-01-26

Special Practice Check-in

This is the table outside my moms work. She is a manager at a special practice medical facility called Arizona Oncology. Her staff check everyone that walks into the building, making sure they don't have a fever and wear their mask properly. There are arguments and disagreements at this desk everyday. Either patients don't believe the virus is real, refuse to wear a mask or flat out want to be an issue. They've recently hired a security guard to help handle those causing issues.

2021-01-20

Covid-19 New Norms and Rules

All the new rules revolving around the virus have were strange to get used to but seem normal now. Wearing masks, social distancing, not seeing close people who. may be high risk, etc. If someone was to tell me this would be my life a couple years ago, I would never believe them. It sounds like a different planet, completely different from what I'm used to.

2021-01-20

Rules I have to follow

Here at oaks christian, they have made restrictions to the normal life I use to have at school. One rule that I have gotten used to is wearing a mask for the whole school day. We have to walk in on direction in the halls, which sometimes makes me late to my next class, or I get lectured by one of the traffic controllers. What makes me sad is thinking that for the rest of my life even when covid goes away, I will still see other people around me wearing a mask and being afraid.

2021-01-20

COVID Rules

During covid a lot of new rules have come into place. The main one is masks. This rule just makes it so that we have to wear a face mask whenever we go into a public area. I feel like this rule is important because it slows down the rate of which covid is spreading. I also think that masks can be annoying sometimes but that putting up with it is worth it if it means that we can be more safe. Another new rule is social distancing. This is where we have to stay 6 feet apart from each other at all times. I also think this rule is important to stop close interactions since we never know who has covid and who doesn't. This rule is harder to follow though because it means that we have to reduce the number of people allowed in a store at one time.

2021-01-20

Covid Rules

Some of the many rules for Covid is that you have to wear masks at places. I personally think masks are bad/useless because you can't breath, they give me headaches, and they don't really help. Also, they should not be forcing people to wear them and should be glad when people are wearing them and not complain about it being over their nose. Another rule that some stores have is that they limit the number of people that can go into a store. Honestly, this is just kinda pointless and makes doing something take much longer than it needs to be. Some thing people also do is social distance and use hand sanitizer, which is gross and really bad for your hands. Overall, I think these rules are unnecessary and should not be forced.

2020-08-10

Seeing the Shades

It is human nature to ignore somethings over others through the application of selective attention. According to human psychology, we tend to focus on information that we think matters more while ignoring the presumed irrelevant details. The same applies to colors. They are flamboyant, bringing out the best, most salient parts of objects. However, they are merely as alluring without the shades, the easily ignored parts that make objects pop. If you were to ask me before the pandemic COVID-19, what the utensil that produces shades means to me, I’d probably tell you schoolwork. It means working on an assignment in Spanish class, drafting an artwork for art class. It’s something that blends into my life, something so easily accessible that I had ignored. COVID-19 inspired me to expand my selective attention, giving me an opportunity to deal with my personal crisis. It allowed me to realize the importance of shades. Pencils are typical. They have long and narrow bodies, a burgundy pinkish eraser on the top, and a greyish carbon tip. It’s everywhere, in school, stores, houses…So obtainable that people tend to disregard its essentiality. Before the COVID crisis, I use a pencil mostly under instructions: “use a pencil to darken circles for this section”, “please use a pencil to do the annotations”, “always draft your artwork with a pencil”. It had been an object that I associate with obligations and restraints. I enjoy socializing and being in crowded locations. Deep down, I know that spending time with others provides me an excuse to not face “me”. Being accompanied by technology since my early childhood, it’s easy to feel lost and hollow when I’m idling around; when I’m truly alone with myself. I didn’t like being with myself because I know I would overthink. So, I used to go out whenever I could. It is a personal crisis that I have avoided and procrastinated on fixing. Coincidentally, the pandemic happened, and I was forced to quarantine in my house, with me. As a member of Generation Z, I spent most of the first two months immersed in technology: Tik Tok, Instagram, and YouTube. I used all my time absorbing useless information online, to fill the emptiness I feel from lack of social stimuli. Until one day when I was spacing out at my desk, thinking which information dump to go to next, I noticed my pencil lying on the table. I picked it up, with nothing in mind, I started scribbling on a piece of paper. The products are in all forms, intersecting with each other but not showing any outline of specific objects. They are abstracts piled together. It struck me as I realized the freeing side of pencil. When you press it on to the paper lightly, the shade that comes out is lighter, and vice versa. I understood that I have control over the pencil and over what I want to do. Not some structured art assignment that tells me to have a meaning in my artwork, to go with the norms of art. It’s a language of my own. When I see the overcrowded lines, I feel the noisiness; when I see spaced lines, I feel the indifference and coldness. That day, I spent the entire afternoon scribbling and looking at lines and shapes that I had created with a pencil. A language is forming. Being focused on my “language”, I registered my change as I started tuning out my anxious and overthinking self. I am feeling the present, because every single line, is controlled by me. I need to stay focused on expressing my feelings through lines. One might ask why I wouldn’t write journals instead, that way I can articulate my feelings more intentionally. But writing is restrained, you have grammatical and spelling structures to follow. There are so many rules to adhere to in order to let the future you look back and be able to understand what the present you are trying to say. That’s exhausting. I started to use pencil to scribble every day before I go to bed. It’s refreshing, almost like a personal space where I express all my feelings that I’ve experienced in the day. Through utilizing my pencil, I can appreciate the beauty in gradient of shades, the beauty of my consciousness. I consider penciling the medium that allows me to connect with myself and be more aware of my thoughts and feelings. Even though pencil can only produce monochromatic colors, they mean color to me. It is my form of communication with myself. I’ve been out with my friends several times after quarantine. But now, I no longer feel the constant need to be accompanied by someone to be distracted from my thoughts. I’ve learned how to respect my personal space and alone time. A clear line between my “me time” and my socializing times is established. This change for me is immaculate as I change the lens I use to see the world in, but this time, with more self-consciousness with it. Pencil helped me comprehend the importance of self-acceptance and appreciation of the unnoticeable things in life. It made me more conscious of my surrounding as I continuously try to seek things that I’ve taken for granted or have ignored. It freed me from my personal crisis, giving color to my world through shades.

2020-12-14

Middle Schooler during Covid-19

Covid-19 coming into this world had a strong impact on me and a strong impact on the world. This is because I was not able to go outside to my favorite restaurants or around friends without staying 6 feet apart. I wasn't able to work out and train for sports. My learning ability got harder and harder every day because I wasn't able to go to school. During this hard time, I had to adapt to these struggles and figure different ways to do these things during these times.

2020-11-13

The pandemic has revealed the question of privacy

In China, every confirmed patient needs to report their family name, their activities in last three days and what places they’re been to so that the close contact persons would also be easily to followed. This method is meant to use as a clue for the public to know if they have been in close contact with the confirmed patient so they could self-report to the community that they are in high-risks. However, many have used these information as a clue to dig up the personal information of the confirmed patient and cyberbully him or her. This time for Chengdu’s outbreak, many people were furious that the patient had been to a dozen places in a night even she did not know that she was confirmed. Keyboard warriors started to find her personal information, and many girls were mistakenly recognized as the patient, they all suffered cyberbully and their personal information, pictures were posted online and the public demanded them to apologize. This has been a huge fight in Chinese social media these days, many supported the victim and the question of privacy has been brought up. Many believe that personal privacy should be valued, however, in the time of internet, the scope of privacy is getting narrowed.

2020-12-07

2020 Problems from the past

The problems of 2020 started from historical events. https://www.americanprogress.org/issues/green/reports/2020/06/18/486480/covid-19-response-indian-country/

09/20/2020

Julia Norton Oral History, 2020/09/09

This interview gives insight into a high school senior's experience with dealing with Covid-19. *This interview is about Julia's experience and perspective on the Covid-19 outbreak.

2020-05-15

Student Paper on Federalism and Coronavirus

A student's paper discussing the federal government's response to COVID-19.

2020-05-09

KNPR

A student's final paper discussing the reopening of Las Vegas and Clark County, Nevada

Playground with a sign on the gate saying it is closed

2020-05-15

Covid Playground

This is a photo I took while out for a walk at a park that I grew up by. It was a park I had been going to all my life, and a playground that saw me as a 3 year old. Never in my life have I seen it closed. But on that day, I saw a sign that declared it closed until further notice, to stop the spread of the virus. It was straight out of fiction to me, because I had never seen anything like it. I was shocked, and had another of the (too common nowadays) moments of "wow, this is really happening."

A pink sign on a glass door explaining the rules for mobile pick up at a restaurant during lock down restrictions

2020-05-15

Hayden and Osborn Starbucks #2

Another image advertising Starbucks’ mobile in store pick up. Otherwise, lobby is closed. Drive thru remains open to cash and card payment.

2020-05-14

Is Depression a Smptom of this Pandemic?

Biography

2020-05-15

Life during Covid-19

#LSMS #NSD

2020-05-08

Life during Covid-19

Personal Experience Text

2020-05-08

Carona Farms, Louisiana's Ripest Strawberries, Independence, LA

A local produce box I purchased to avoid going to the grocery store during the stay-at-home order included this box of strawberries. The strawberry farm's name "Carona Farms" caught my eye as it closely resembles the name of the virus.

2020-05-12

Travel and Self Isolation for a boarding school student

a person holding a sign that says "hail nihilism" and another person holding a sign that says "all jobs are essential"

2020-04-20

A Conflicting Agenda

This image portrays two women in downtown Sacramento in protest of the shelter-in-place lockdown that Governor Gavin Newsom implemented. One women is seen holding a sign that portrays Governor Gavin Newsom as part of the Nazi regime or compared with Adolf Hitler. Another woman is seen in the foreground carrying a child on her back with another sign declaring that “All Businesses Are Essential”. Both women are protesting against business closures, unemployment, and being unable to return to the workforce. While with some jobs work is almost guaranteed like those who work for the state, other private and small businesses are suffering. On the other hand, while having the freedom to assemble and speak openly comes with its benefits, the sign depicting Gavin Newsom as a Nazi is quite extreme. The level of ignorance present in this photograph equates its offensive demeanor and deeply undermines the experiences of Holocaust survivors and the other millions of lives lost. For me fellow Sacramentans, seeing signs and descriptions such as these make me feel less proud of the town I live in. I thought the pandemic would help us realize our insensitive words and unnecessary slurs but it’s only reminded many people of a troubled past. The pandemic has truly brought a side of the American people that I have never seen and as a young student seeing adults act with rational thought makes me wonder where our world will be in the next few decades. If the world changes, so do we. Some people have a hard time overcoming adversity and the pandemic has exposed triggers amongst the American people. One of them being economic downfall. The image clearly represents what some individuals believe to be most important and valued in life. It seems that we have reached a point through this pandemic that we no longer prioritize the lives of each other but rather how much money is in the bank. In many ways, this is a reflection of what America was built off of.

screen shot from website Reddit of a grim reaper laying out body bags and the word "too soon to fast"

05/20/2020

Finally, a protest I can get behind.

An article posted to the site Reddit.com about a protest against the opening of a state in the US; it comes after several protests have been made against lockdown orders.

2020-04-09

Life at Home

Ever since the coronavirus epidemic, my life hasn’t quite been the same. Before governors issued the stay-at-home orders, I was working and had recently started attending college. Everything was good for me and my days were spent living a normal teenage life. Now, everything is closed and I can’t go anywhere. Despite this, I have been surprisingly enjoying my time at home. As a kid I would hate staying home and always wanted to go somewhere to do something. To combat boredom I bought myself a ps4 so that I can play video games with my friends. A lot of my time has been going to my ps4 so it was one of my better investments. Besides playing video games, I have been playing guitar and exercising. These are the fun things I do but there are also the things that I have to do such as cleaning the house and schoolwork. Everyday I balance my time by cleaning the house and doing my homework in the morning. After I finish all my tasks, I then allow myself to do whatever I feel like. I usually finish every night with some exercise and a shower before going to sleep. Staying home all the time has led me to do things I didn’t do before. One thing I have done since the stay-at-home orders is starting a routine for my everyday life. It feels good having a routine as I already know what I have to do and when I must have it done. Of course, there have been some days where I’m lazy and don’t get anything done but I’ve been trying to have less of those. Getting to see my family all the time has been one of the pluses of staying home. I’ve been getting closer to my brothers and sister as well as my father. Whenever I’m bored or can’t find something to do, I’ll hang out or do something with my family. When I feel like going outside I’ll go for a walk around the neighborhood or I’ll go on a hike at the mountains near my house. Sometimes, there's seemingly nothing to satisfy my boredom so I’ll just sleep all day only to wake up at 3 a.m, wishing I didn’t mess up my sleeping schedule. Lucky for me, I have some night owl friends so they’re always down to game or chat at an ungodly hour. It feels like forever since I’ve seen my friends. Talking with them while playing games makes me want to see them even more but it’ll be a while until then. Thankfully, none of my friends or family have gotten the coronavirus. My family and I have been taking precautions to minimize the risk of us getting sick. My dad leaves the house only to work and go shopping but the rest of my family has been isolating. I have several friends who still go out and live life like normal but I know that isolating will stop me from getting my family sick. I wish I could accept all the invitations I’ve gotten to hang out but this is what’s best. Staying at home has its advantages and disadvantages but atleast I have a good home with a loving family and plenty of things I can do to occupy myself. I wonder if when I’m older I’ll even remember the stay-at-home order and the coronavirus. Will this all be something that is mentioned or referenced in future media? Whatever the case, I’m just waiting until the day I can go out and hang out with my friends again.

04/09/2020

Fact Check: Yes, Texas' governor has deemed religious services essential amid pandemic

On March 31st Texas governor Greg Abbott added religious worship to the state’s list of essential services. This order allows for in-person religious gathers after other local officials had already ordered religious gatherings to be live-streamed only. The governor’s order proceeds the news of the arrest of several religious leaders for holding services with hundreds to thousands of attendees.

2020-03-31

Tribal Leaders Worried about Being Left Out of Conversation in Washington, D.C. on COVID-funding

"Even before the COVID-19 public health crisis began to grip the globe, Indian Country faced significant challenges from underfunding in health care, education, broadband and internet access, economic development, housing, human services and more." As a result, tribal leaders held a March 20 teleconference to discuss their next move. #IndigenousStories

A sign that reads "Montgomery Bell State Park, Established 1942".

04/20/2020

So Much For Essential Activities

The Montgomery Bell State Park in Tennessee is shut down and completely blocked off like many others despite the governer stating that outdoor recreation is an essential activity and therefore still allowed.

2020-04-15

ESTA ES LA TRAVESIA DE MUCHOS HUANCAVELICANOS PARA LLEGAR A SU LUGAR DE ORIGEN.

Un grupo de pobladores pertenecientes a la Región de Huancavelica , partieron del VRAEM con niños de todas las edades y personas adultas, pobladores que se encontraban por distintos motivos en en Picharia, C.P de Natividad y Mantaro Vraem, a falta de movilidad y en acato de estado de emergencia optaron por viajar a pie, según reportes ya no pueden estar más días de la cuarentena en el Vraem debido a que no cuentan con recursos económicos. NOTA : La gran mayoría de pobladores se dedicarían a la cosecha de coca e incluso muchos de ellos fueron con toda su familia para poder trabajar, debido al Estado de Emergencia, no pueden trabajar y ahora solo buscan retornar a su tierra natal. A group of residents belonging to the Huancavelica Region, left the VRAEM with children of all ages and adults, residents who were for different reasons in Picharia, CP de Natividad and Mantaro Vraem, due to lack of mobility and in compliance with state of emergency chose to travel on foot, according to reports they can no longer be more days of quarantine in Vraem because they do not have financial resources. NOTE: The vast majority of residents would dedicate themselves to the coca harvest and many of them even went with their entire family to be able to work, due to the State of Emergency, they cannot work and now only seek to return to their homeland.

2020-03-25

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