investmentwatchblog--2020-03-30--CoronaWar Battlegrounds: New York Leads in Growth, Minnesota Bends it Best. California Hot Spots v.

CoronaWar Battlegrounds: New York Leads in Growth, Minnesota Bends it Best. California Hot Spots v. Italy & South Korea. Pain in Spain

Madrid area hospitals were forced into wartime-triage , denying care to the elderly in order to give the young a better chance .
This post takes a fresh look at key battlegrounds in the CoronaWar which we discussed last week .
For local readers , I ’ ll take a unique and fresh look at the Bay Area , LA and California .
Around the US and globally , Spain joins Italy ’ s misery , but New York continues to hold out !
I share and discuss fresh graphs from a new website , 91-divoc.com by Professor Wade and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The graph below all focus on confirmed cases per million population , based primarily on the Johns Hopkins University ( JHU ) ArcGIS COVID dataset from 3/27 , representing cases confirmed mainly through 3/26 .
California and Bay Area county data were also taken from state and county websites .
These graphs use a log scale on the vertical axis , similar to stock charts .
This type of plot turns exponential curves into straight lines , which makes it easier to look at the early behavior and also spot “ bending the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ other public health measures .
Two reminders : graphs of “ confirmed cases ” are subject to limitations and variations in testing .
Depending on the level of testing , the actual spread of the disease could be 10-1000 times larger than the confirmed cases .
There ’ s now a “ COVID Tracking ” website which allows one to dive into the testing details for individual U.S. states .
Our first graph this week is an update for California and its two largest metro area hot spots , the San Francisco Bay @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and South Korea are included for contrast : Milan in Italy has been overwhelmed for the past 2-3 weeks and suffered a high death toll , while Korea successfully “ bent the curve ” so far with extensive test-trace-and-isolate techniques to reduce new infections .
Some good news : The Bay Area has continued to drop off the “ Trend Growth ” curve , and the effects of the March 16 “ shelter in place ” are expected to bend the curve further in the coming week , although accelerated testing is hopefully @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cases .
But the Bay Area has overrun the Korean example and appears to be on a curve similar to Italy ’ s , albeit lower .
By contrast , it looks like LA hasn ’ t begun to bend the curve yet .
As the statewide shelter-in-place kicks in , hopefully that will change !
But , back on the positive side , the “ Empirical Lombardy ICU Limit ” has proved pessimistic , and I ’ ve added empirical data for Spain and New York to highlight the range of caseloads @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
More about that below .
The 50 US States : New York Leads in Growth but Minnesota Bends It Best Taking advantage of the new 91-DIVOC.com graphing tool , this week ’ s US State graph features Minnesota , which has exceptionally good testing and appears to be successfully “ bending the curve ” .
Like last week ’ s plot and the California plot above , today ’ s graph shows confirmed cases per million population on a log scale .
But now all 50 states are included .
My one @ @ @ @ @ @ @ % daily growth ” trend line appears a bit too steep to my eye .
Among the 50 States , New York sadly holds the lead again this week , followed closely by sidekick New Jersey , and trailed by Louisiana .
Louisiana earned my second “ COVIDIOT Award ” for not canceling Mardi Gras and thereby seeding the whole region with new cases .
New York ’ s “ we don ’ t need no stinking shutdown ” attitude earned them my first “ COVIDIOT Award ” , failing to account for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nation ’ s highest population density .
But never underestimate the grit of New Yorkers !
So far , they have done better than anywhere at boosting local medical capacity to withstand a huge caseload .
New York ’ s lead , unfortunately , is not simply a matter of more testing : New York has a very high “ hit rate , ” 30 % positive on their tests , indicating that they aren ’ t testing enough to corral all the cases .
I expect New York to have ICU triage @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Minnesota ’ s “ hit rate ” is far lower , with under 3 % of tests being positive .
That ’ s an order of magnitude lower than New York ’ s , and comparable to Korea ’ s .
Minnesota also bought time with early school shutdowns , a week ahead the Bay Area relative to the local caseload .
With spread slowed , Minnesota has a chance at “ testing out ” all contacts of known cases .
They might almost corral the virus , and should at least slow @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have also been doing well at slowing the growth rate , but who will be the first to stop it ?
What does it take ?
COVID in the 25 Most Populous Nations : There is Pain in Spain Last week ’ s essay highlighted the “ most infected ” major nations : Italy , Spain , and the “ ski nations ” of Norway , Iceland , Switzerland and Austria .
This week ’ s graph shifts emphasis to the 25 nations with the highest populations .
The US , with the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cases , takes 6th place on this graph “ per million people.
” Spain and Italy are at the top of the curve again .
There is heartrending pain in Spain this week : Madrid area hospitals were forced into wartime-triage , denying care to the elderly in order to give the young a better chance .
Wuhan , Iran , Milan , Madrid – who will be next ?
The next three contenders are Paris , New York , or a hot spot in Germany .
One last comment – nearly hidden @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the purple curve for Turkey , which has just overtaken China for 9th place .
It ’ s good to see Turkey “ catching up ” in testing , but the data indicate a large underlying infection level .
And amidst a pandemic , Turkey ’ s move this month to export 4 million refugees becomes a grave concern for the whole region .

Madrid area hospitals were forced into wartime-triage, denying care to the elderly in order to give the young a better chance.
By Wisdom Seeker, a WOLF STREET Commenter with a physical sciences Ph.D., San Francisco Bay Area:
This post takes a fresh look at key battlegrounds in the CoronaWar which we discussed last week. For local readers, I’ll take a unique and fresh look at the Bay Area, LA and California. Around the US and globally, Spain joins Italy’s misery, but New York continues to hold out! I share and discuss fresh graphs from a new website, 91-divoc.com by Professor Wade and his crew at U of Illinois.
The graph below all focus on confirmed cases per million population, based primarily on the Johns Hopkins University (JHU) ArcGIS COVID dataset from 3/27, representing cases confirmed mainly through 3/26. California and Bay Area county data were also taken from state and county websites.
These graphs use a log scale on the vertical axis, similar to stock charts. This type of plot turns exponential curves into straight lines, which makes it easier to look at the early behavior and also spot “bending the curve” effects of social distancing and other public health measures.
Two reminders: graphs of “confirmed cases” are subject to limitations and variations in testing. Depending on the level of testing, the actual spread of the disease could be 10-1000 times larger than the confirmed cases. There’s now a “COVID Tracking” website which allows one to dive into the testing details for individual U.S. states.
California Hot Spots Compared to Italy and South Korea:
Our first graph this week is an update for California and its two largest metro area hot spots, the San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles County. Italy and South Korea are included for contrast: Milan in Italy has been overwhelmed for the past 2-3 weeks and suffered a high death toll, while Korea successfully “bent the curve” so far with extensive test-trace-and-isolate techniques to reduce new infections.
Some good news: The Bay Area has continued to drop off the “Trend Growth” curve, and the effects of the March 16 “shelter in place” are expected to bend the curve further in the coming week, although accelerated testing is hopefully catching a larger share of the total cases. But the Bay Area has overrun the Korean example and appears to be on a curve similar to Italy’s, albeit lower.
By contrast, it looks like LA hasn’t begun to bend the curve yet. As the statewide shelter-in-place kicks in, hopefully that will change!
But, back on the positive side, the “Empirical Lombardy ICU Limit” has proved pessimistic, and I’ve added empirical data for Spain and New York to highlight the range of caseloads at which ICU capacity has held up. More about that below.
The 50 US States: New York Leads in Growth but Minnesota Bends It Best
Taking advantage of the new 91-DIVOC.com graphing tool, this week’s US State graph features Minnesota, which has exceptionally good testing and appears to be successfully “bending the curve”. Like last week’s plot and the California plot above, today’s graph shows confirmed cases per million population on a log scale. But now all 50 states are included. My one quibble is that the fixed “35% daily growth” trend line appears a bit too steep to my eye.
We are primarily funded by readers. Please subscribe and donate to support us!
Among the 50 States, New York sadly holds the lead again this week, followed closely by sidekick New Jersey, and trailed by Louisiana. Louisiana earned my second “COVIDIOT Award” for not canceling Mardi Gras and thereby seeding the whole region with new cases.
New York’s “we don’t need no stinking shutdown” attitude earned them my first “COVIDIOT Award”, failing to account for super-spreading effect of close-quarters living with the nation’s highest population density.
But never underestimate the grit of New Yorkers! So far, they have done better than anywhere at boosting local medical capacity to withstand a huge caseload. New York’s lead, unfortunately, is not simply a matter of more testing: New York has a very high “hit rate,” 30% positive on their tests, indicating that they aren’t testing enough to corral all the cases. I expect New York to have ICU triage issues next week.
By contrast, Minnesota’s “hit rate” is far lower, with under 3% of tests being positive. That’s an order of magnitude lower than New York’s, and comparable to Korea’s. Minnesota also bought time with early school shutdowns, a week ahead the Bay Area relative to the local caseload.
With spread slowed, Minnesota has a chance at “testing out” all contacts of known cases. They might almost corral the virus, and should at least slow its growth substantially. Several other states have also been doing well at slowing the growth rate, but who will be the first to stop it? What does it take?
COVID in the 25 Most Populous Nations: There is Pain in Spain
Last week’s essay highlighted the “most infected” major nations: Italy, Spain, and the “ski nations” of Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Austria. This week’s graph shifts emphasis to the 25 nations with the highest populations. The US, with the highest number of “acknowledged confirmed” cases, takes 6th place on this graph “per million people.”
Spain and Italy are at the top of the curve again. There is heartrending pain in Spain this week: Madrid area hospitals were forced into wartime-triage, denying care to the elderly in order to give the young a better chance. Wuhan, Iran, Milan, Madrid – who will be next? The next three contenders are Paris, New York, or a hot spot in Germany.
One last comment – nearly hidden on the left of the chart is the purple curve for Turkey, which has just overtaken China for 9th place. It’s good to see Turkey “catching up” in testing, but the data indicate a large underlying infection level. And amidst a pandemic, Turkey’s move this month to export 4 million refugees becomes a grave concern for the whole region.


investmentwatchblog--2020-03-30--Corruption in the Time of Coronavirus

Corruption in the Time of Coronavirus

Now even the fig leaf is gone .
By Karen Parker Feld , The Irreverent Economist at Paladin Advisors : On March 23 , the Fed announced its largest-ever intervention in the financial markets .
Bazooka is too timid a word to describe it .
More like a neutron bomb .
Our central bank , supposed defender of the currency and the stability of markets , can now purchase an unlimited amount of US Treasury and agency mortgage-backed securities ( now running at the unheard-of rate of $ 625 billion per week ) .
That ’ s on top of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ operations .
As amazing as it sounds , that ’ s not where the real action lies .
As part of Congress ’ s CARES act ( ha , nice try ! )
, the Treasury will create ( or resuscitate ) a series of special-purpose vehicles ( SPVs ) to buy all manner of financial assets , backed by $ 425 billion in collateral conveniently supplied by the US taxpayer via the Exchange Stabilization Fund .
The Fed will lend to SPVs against this collateral which , when leveraged , could fund @ @ @ @ @ @ @ That includes municipal bonds , non-agency mortgages , corporate bonds , commercial paper , and every variety of asset-backed security .
The only things the government can ’ t ( transparently , yet ) buy are publicly-traded stocks and high-yield bonds .
You may ask , is this legal ?
Not exactly .
The Fed ’ s charter prohibits it from buying securities that lack an explicit government guarantee .
Hence the convenience of murky SPVs , to which the Fed is lending the majority of the funds .
Jim Bianco spells out @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ( Commercial Paper Funding Facility ) ; PMCCF ( Primary Market Corporate Credit Facility ) ; TALF ( Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility ) ; SMCCF ( Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility ) and a bone to small business in the form of the MSBLP ( Main Street Business Lending Program ) .
These SPVs involve the Fed in nearly every major US financial market .
That ’ s not all : by providing low/no cost financing to large corporations , asset managers , distressed debt ventures , and private equiteers , our @ @ @ @ @ @ @ American business into the hands of the few , the wealthy and the powerful .
In case you were wondering who gets to make these all-important “ investment ” decisions : it ’ s Treasury Secretary Mnuchin , the one who bought troubled mortgage originator IndyMac in a 2008 fire sale , then supervised the illegitimate foreclosure of thousands of California homeowners .
Mnuchin won ’ t have to do all the heavy lifting however , his old friends at Goldman Sachs are happy to help out , just as they did in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ giant BlackRock to direct three of its bond-buying programs , which can purchase some of its own funds on behalf of the central bank .
No conflict of interest there !
Democrats in Congress made a big show of their supposed oversight of these programs ; in reality , there is none .
The final draft removed most of the SPV reporting requirements .
Even the Sunshine Law that governs the release of Fed minutes has been waived for the duration of these programs .
Secretary Mnuchin is permitted to dispense with the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ can get only two times what they earned in 2019 ! )
as well as the suggested restrictions on stock buybacks and dividend payouts by bailed-out companies .
Last but not least : these firms are not required to share any upside from the rescue ( in the form of an equity stake ) with the US government .
Heads : company CEOs and investment banks win .
Tails : the taxpayer loses .
These bailouts are not ( or should not be ) necessary .
Chapter 11 of the bankruptcy code was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ operating while they restructure their debts .
However , as Wolf Richter points out , that would mean wiping out the shareholders and replacing the company managers .
To me , that sounds like a very good outcome for CEOs who set their companies up for failure by leveraging their balance sheets in order to buy back stock ( and juice their own compensation ) rather than saving some cash for a rainy day .
The airlines are merely the most egregious example , as Ben Hunt explains .
Talk about unlocking shareholder @ @ @ @ @ @ @ work if you can get it .
Some are wondering whether the market can absorb so much liquidity from a firehose .
The more pertinent question is whether , having been such poor stewards of capital over the past decade , the companies who will benefit from this largesse are its proper recipients .
The sums allocated to state and local government , small businesses and households pale in comparison to what large corporations and their investors will get , and are inadequate to support the collapsing US economy .
Additionally , there @ @ @ @ @ @ @ protect their employees .
They are greenlighted to fire 10 % of their staffs over next six months ( and will undoubtedly be hurrying to get more of that out of the way before the loan documents are signed ) .
There are no employment requirements thereafter .
United—the airline that dragged Dr. Dao off the plane—has already announced that it will begin layoffs as soon as the 6-month hiatus is over .
GM has made a similar announcement .
You can not revive a consumer-led economy by depriving people who need money @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t need it at all .
Even a cynic knows the math doesn ’ t work .
What are the consequences ?
The longer-term consequences are arguably worse .
This is a giant step towards the nationalization of US financial markets .
Our policymakers have been moving in this direction for decades , as their interventions have grown in size and frequency .
What are the consequences ?
There is effectively no obstacle to monetization of US government debt — meaning large increases in government spending financed directly by the Federal Reserve @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about this , if the funds were put to good use .
They won ’ t be .
Treasury oversight of these programs opens the door for the executive branch to direct lending to favored parties , and to manipulate financial markets to achieve political objectives .
As Jim Bianco observes , “ we have a president who has made it very clear how displeased he is that central bankers haven ’ t used their considerable power to force the Dow Jones Industrial Average at least 10,000 points higher , something he has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Capitalism ( other than the crony variety ) depends upon competitive markets to correctly price and distribute resources and risk .
In theory , financially-sound businesses get loans and capital , whereas profligate or obsolete companies do not .
Those days are officially over , as price discovery is dead .
Slower growth and higher inflation will almost inevitably result .
In the short run , an unprecedented government backstop of financial markets is a salve for anxious investors .
But we think it ’ s a poisoned chalice .
America has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on the order of 30 % of GDP ) in the context of globalized capital markets and significant foreign ownership of US debt .
Investors will re-evaluate their US holdings in the context of this new paradigm , once they are able to wrap their minds around it .
And when they do , we expect to see a significantly weaker US dollar in our future .
By Karen Parker Feld , Paladin Advisors

Now even the fig leaf is gone.
By Karen Parker Feld, The Irreverent Economist at Paladin Advisors:
On March 23, the Fed announced its largest-ever intervention in the financial markets. Bazooka is too timid a word to describe it. More like a neutron bomb. Our central bank, supposed defender of the currency and the stability of markets, can now purchase an unlimited amount of US Treasury and agency mortgage-backed securities (now running at the unheard-of rate of $625 billion per week). That’s on top of $1 trillion per week in repurchase operations. As amazing as it sounds, that’s not where the real action lies.
As part of Congress’s CARES act (ha, nice try!), the Treasury will create (or resuscitate) a series of special-purpose vehicles (SPVs) to buy all manner of financial assets, backed by $425 billion in collateral conveniently supplied by the US taxpayer via the Exchange Stabilization Fund. The Fed will lend to SPVs against this collateral which, when leveraged, could fund $4-5 trillion in asset purchases.
That includes municipal bonds, non-agency mortgages, corporate bonds, commercial paper, and every variety of asset-backed security. The only things the government can’t (transparently, yet) buy are publicly-traded stocks and high-yield bonds.
You may ask, is this legal? Not exactly.
The Fed’s charter prohibits it from buying securities that lack an explicit government guarantee. Hence the convenience of murky SPVs, to which the Fed is printing lending the majority of the funds. Jim Bianco spells out a slew of new acronyms: CPFF (Commercial Paper Funding Facility); PMCCF (Primary Market Corporate Credit Facility); TALF (Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility); SMCCF (Secondary Market Corporate Credit Facility) and a bone to small business in the form of the MSBLP (Main Street Business Lending Program).
These SPVs involve the Fed in nearly every major US financial market. That’s not all: by providing low/no cost financing to large corporations, asset managers, distressed debt vultures ventures, and private equiteers, our Federal Reserve has fast-tracked the hoovering up consolidation of American business into the hands of the few, the wealthy and the powerful.
In case you were wondering who gets to make these all-important “investment” decisions: it’s Treasury Secretary Mnuchin, the one who bought troubled mortgage originator IndyMac in a 2008 fire sale, then supervised the illegitimate foreclosure of thousands of California homeowners.
Mnuchin won’t have to do all the heavy lifting however, his old friends at Goldman Sachs are happy to help out, just as they did in 2008. And the Fed tapped asset-management giant BlackRock to direct three of its bond-buying programs, which can purchase some of its own funds on behalf of the central bank. No conflict of interest there!
Democrats in Congress made a big show of their supposed oversight of these programs; in reality, there is none. The final draft removed most of the SPV reporting requirements. Even the Sunshine Law that governs the release of Fed minutes has been waived for the duration of these programs.
Secretary Mnuchin is permitted to dispense with the already-feeble limits on CEO compensation (they can get only two times what they earned in 2019!) as well as the suggested restrictions on stock buybacks and dividend payouts by bailed-out companies. Last but not least: these firms are not required to share any upside from the rescue (in the form of an equity stake) with the US government. Heads: company CEOs and investment banks win. Tails: the taxpayer loses.
We are primarily funded by readers. Please subscribe and donate to support us!
These bailouts are not (or should not be) necessary.
Chapter 11 of the bankruptcy code was designed as a mechanism to keep companies operating while they restructure their debts. However, as Wolf Richter points out, that would mean wiping out the shareholders and replacing the company managers.
To me, that sounds like a very good outcome for CEOs who set their companies up for failure by leveraging their balance sheets in order to buy back stock (and juice their own compensation) rather than saving some cash for a rainy day. The airlines are merely the most egregious example, as Ben Hunt explains. Talk about unlocking shareholder value via the US taxpayer! Nice work if you can get it.
Some are wondering whether the market can absorb so much liquidity from a firehose. The more pertinent question is whether, having been such poor stewards of capital over the past decade, the companies who will benefit from this largesse are its proper recipients. The sums allocated to state and local government, small businesses and households pale in comparison to what large corporations and their investors will get, and are inadequate to support the collapsing US economy.
Additionally, there is little incentive for bailed-out firms to protect their employees. They are greenlighted to fire 10% of their staffs over next six months (and will undoubtedly be hurrying to get more of that out of the way before the loan documents are signed). There are no employment requirements thereafter. United—the airline that dragged Dr. Dao off the plane—has already announced that it will begin layoffs as soon as the 6-month hiatus is over. GM has made a similar announcement.
You cannot revive a consumer-led economy by depriving people who need money to survive while rewarding those who don’t need it at all. Even a cynic knows the math doesn’t work.
What are the consequences?
The longer-term consequences are arguably worse. This is a giant step towards the nationalization of US financial markets. Our policymakers have been moving in this direction for decades, as their interventions have grown in size and frequency. What are the consequences?
There is effectively no obstacle to monetization of US government debt — meaning large increases in government spending financed directly by the Federal Reserve. Modern Monetary Theorists might be happy about this, if the funds were put to good use. They won’t be.
Treasury oversight of these programs opens the door for the executive branch to direct lending to favored parties, and to manipulate financial markets to achieve political objectives. As Jim Bianco observes, “we have a president who has made it very clear how displeased he is that central bankers haven’t used their considerable power to force the Dow Jones Industrial Average at least 10,000 points higher, something he has complained about long before the pandemic hit.”
Capitalism (other than the crony variety) depends upon competitive markets to correctly price and distribute resources and risk. In theory, financially-sound businesses get loans and capital, whereas profligate or obsolete companies do not. Those days are officially over, as price discovery is dead. Slower growth and higher inflation will almost inevitably result.
In the short run, an unprecedented government backstop of financial markets is a salve for anxious investors. But we think it’s a poisoned chalice. America has never run deficits of this magnitude (on the order of 30% of GDP) in the context of globalized capital markets and significant foreign ownership of US debt. Investors will re-evaluate their US holdings in the context of this new paradigm, once they are able to wrap their minds around it. And when they do, we expect to see a significantly weaker US dollar in our future. By Karen Parker Feld, Paladin Advisors


investmentwatchblog--2020-03-30--“Not All Airlines Will Go Bankrupt”: How Will Coronavirus Travel-Bans Impact Airbus, Suppliers, and

“Not All Airlines Will Go Bankrupt”: How Will Coronavirus Travel-Bans Impact Airbus, Suppliers, and Airlines?

All eyes are on China to see how air transport will change in the aftermath of the crisis .
Airbus CEO Guillaume Fleury and CFO Dominik Adam issued a joint statement on March 23 , regarding the European aerospace giant ’ s plan to power through the Covid-19 crisis .
These new provisions include a new €15 billion credit facility , cancelling the proposed €1.80 per share dividend , and “ cutting operational costs where possible.
” This gave Airbus €30 billion in liquidity to burn through .
While Messrs. Fleury and Adam seem confident Airbus will not need a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the environment will need as much help as possible to get through the crisis .
This “ environment ” includes dozens of airlines who are now asking Airbus to “ defer ” deliveries .
While Chinese airlines have started accepting new aircraft once again and the Airbus assembly line in Tianjin is already back at full at full capacity , the rest of the world is not in such good shape .
Mr. Fleury in particular warned that while “ recovery has already started in China ” “ it ’ s difficult @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be.
” For the moment Airbus production is unaffected : The main facilities at Toulouse re-opened on Monday , as did all the Spanish operations .
The helicopter assembly plants ( formerly Eurocopter ) near Marseille and Augsburg are both operating at full capacity , and even in the “ worst case scenario , ” their maintenance facilities will remain operative to ensure emergency services can still operate at full capacity .
This means that Airbus ’ galaxy of vendors and contractors has been so far mostly unaffected , but it ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will be reduced or even idled as undelivered aircraft fill up all available space .
Key vendors , such as Mecachrome of France , have invested heavily over the past five years to help Airbus increase their production to meet the flood of new orders , chiefly from Asia .
For example , starting last Summer , production of the best-selling A320 narrowbody increased to 60 units per month , a tremendous achievement .
Production was to be further increased to 63 aircraft in 2021 and 65 in 2023 .
One of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ specifically hard and expensive to manufacture components such as turbine blades and shafts that can ensure the level of performance and reliability airlines require .
A single turbine blade used in the first stage of a CFM-56 ( a common engine used by many airliners such as the Boeing 737NG ) cost the aircraft owner about $ 8,000 , and according to the specific engine model there are between 22 and 44 of them .
While this may sound ridiculously expensive , one needs to remember turbine blades need to operate at prohibitive @ @ @ @ @ @ @ air temperature is -51°C while combusted gases have temperatures running well north of 1,500°C ) , with shaft speeds of over 10,000 rpm ( here is a discussion of some of the issues of turbine blades ) , and with maximum reliability .
The facilities , foundries , and equipment to manufacture turbine blades to these exacting standards are expensive .
If aircraft production stops , engine production stops as well , and with it the need for components .
This means zero cashflow to service the loans with which this plant was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ suspect this highly alarming prospect is what convinced the French and Spanish governments to greenlight the restart of production at Airbus facilities and at their vendors albeit with many precautions in place , as it should be .
But what about the aircraft already in service ?
Airlines have grown to dislike the Airbus A380 due to lack of flexibility , high fixed costs , and the difficulties of filling it to capacity .
Some of the highest-hour hulls were already being withdrawn from service and scrapped last year after Airbus announced the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will most likely accelerate the A380 demise .
Airlines such as Air France never really took to the type , and it ’ s likely that only a small portion of their A380 fleets will emerge from storage .
For Emirates , by far the largest operator of the A380 , it will be more complicated .
Already before this crisis , Emirates had started to plan the replacement of their Airbus A380 and Boeing 777-300ER ( the older 777-200LR is being phased out ) with the Airbus A350-900 , Boeing 787-9 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Deliveries of the new models are scheduled to start in 2021 .
Now all eyes are on China to see how air transport will change in the immediate aftermath of the crisis and beyond .
Freighter aircraft are busier than they have ever been in peacetime .
Ironically , the excess capacity that has plagued the air-cargo industry is now coming in very handy .
Lufthansa has even started pioneering the use of ordinary passenger aircraft to carry cargo without conversion .
All airliners have some cargo capacity in addition to the ordinary @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to pile light bulky emergency medical supplies on the seats of its airliners as China emerges from the crisis and can afford to ship healthcare supplies abroad ( image via Lufthansa ) : As Airbus CEO Fleury said , “ not all airlines will go bankrupt , ” but beyond doubt , many marginal players with little in government backing won ’ t emerge from this crisis .
The many airlines of Egypt and Turkey in particular are likely to be savaged .
These companies completely depend on steady revenues in hard currency @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
With tourism pretty much dead for 2020 , and with the large Egyptian and Turkish expat communities either already back home or under lockdown in Europe , there isn ’ t a whole lot left for them to do .
Egypt and especially Turkey can not afford a general bailout of their aviation sector .
While the existence of their two flag carriers is unlikely at risk , only a fraction of the other airlines may survive .
They took on too much debt to fuel their explosive growth , and as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ foreign currency , local central banks will only be able to do so much to help .
This scene will likely repeat itself in many other countries , even those that are hopefully the least affected by the pandemic .
But the Civil Aviation Authority of China ( CAAC ) has already been tasked by the government in February , at the height of the healthcare emergency , to come up with a massive reorganization and support plan for the industry .
This plan will likely include a wave of forced mergers and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” valuations .
Hong Kong Airlines , already in serious financial difficulties following the collapse of HNA Group , was originally set to receive a bailout worth RMB 2 billion ( about $ 290 million ) through state-owned conglomerate Citic and a group of HK magnates .
But the deal was scuttled for reasons unknown .
Now quasi-bankruptcy administrators , the “ HNA Group Risk Management Committee , ” seem to favor handing Hong Kong Airlines over to state-owned carrier Air China for what will most likely be a symbolic sum .
As @ @ @ @ @ @ @ steadily picking up by the week , the CAAC restructuring and support plan will make itself felt .
And what are our Western governments doing apart from throwing money around like confetti ?
By MC01 , a frequent commenter , for WOLF STREET

All eyes are on China to see how air transport will change in the aftermath of the crisis.
By MC01, a frequent commenter on WOLF STREET:
Airbus CEO Guillaume Fleury and CFO Dominik Adam issued a joint statement on March 23, regarding the European aerospace giant’s plan to power through the Covid-19 crisis. These new provisions include a new €15 billion credit facility, cancelling the proposed €1.80 per share dividend, and “cutting operational costs where possible.”
This gave Airbus €30 billion in liquidity to burn through. While Messrs. Fleury and Adam seem confident Airbus will not need a government bailout, they stressed the rest of the environment will need as much help as possible to get through the crisis.
This “environment” includes dozens of airlines who are now asking Airbus to “defer” deliveries. While Chinese airlines have started accepting new aircraft once again and the Airbus assembly line in Tianjin is already back at full at full capacity, the rest of the world is not in such good shape. Mr. Fleury in particular warned that while “recovery has already started in China” “it’s difficult to assess where the low point will be.”
For the moment Airbus production is unaffected: The main facilities at Toulouse re-opened on Monday, as did all the Spanish operations. The helicopter assembly plants (formerly Eurocopter) near Marseille and Augsburg are both operating at full capacity, and even in the “worst case scenario,” their maintenance facilities will remain operative to ensure emergency services can still operate at full capacity.
This means that Airbus’ galaxy of vendors and contractors has been so far mostly unaffected, but it’s pretty obvious that at some point production will be reduced or even idled as undelivered aircraft fill up all available space.
Key vendors, such as Mecachrome of France, have invested heavily over the past five years to help Airbus increase their production to meet the flood of new orders, chiefly from Asia. For example, starting last Summer, production of the best-selling A320 narrowbody increased to 60 units per month, a tremendous achievement. Production was to be further increased to 63 aircraft in 2021 and 65 in 2023.
One of the bottlenecks is caused by the engines, specifically hard and expensive to manufacture components such as turbine blades and shafts that can ensure the level of performance and reliability airlines require. A single turbine blade used in the first stage of a CFM-56 (a common engine used by many airliners such as the Boeing 737NG) cost the aircraft owner about $8,000, and according to the specific engine model there are between 22 and 44 of them.
While this may sound ridiculously expensive, one needs to remember turbine blades need to operate at prohibitive temperatures (at 35,000 feet, average air temperature is -51°C while combusted gases have temperatures running well north of 1,500°C), with shaft speeds of over 10,000 rpm (here is a discussion of some of the issues of turbine blades), and with maximum reliability.
The facilities, foundries, and equipment to manufacture turbine blades to these exacting standards are expensive. If aircraft production stops, engine production stops as well, and with it the need for components. This means zero cashflow to service the loans with which this plant was funded and cover other expenses.
I suspect this highly alarming prospect is what convinced the French and Spanish governments to greenlight the restart of production at Airbus facilities and at their vendors albeit with many precautions in place, as it should be.
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But what about the aircraft already in service? Airlines have grown to dislike the Airbus A380 due to lack of flexibility, high fixed costs, and the difficulties of filling it to capacity. Some of the highest-hour hulls were already being withdrawn from service and scrapped last year after Airbus announced the end of production.
The present crisis will most likely accelerate the A380 demise. Airlines such as Air France never really took to the type, and it’s likely that only a small portion of their A380 fleets will emerge from storage.
For Emirates, by far the largest operator of the A380, it will be more complicated. Already before this crisis, Emirates had started to plan the replacement of their Airbus A380 and Boeing 777-300ER (the older 777-200LR is being phased out) with the Airbus A350-900, Boeing 787-9, and the brand new 777X). Deliveries of the new models are scheduled to start in 2021.
Now all eyes are on China to see how air transport will change in the immediate aftermath of the crisis and beyond.
Freighter aircraft are busier than they have ever been in peacetime. Ironically, the excess capacity that has plagued the air-cargo industry is now coming in very handy. Lufthansa has even started pioneering the use of ordinary passenger aircraft to carry cargo without conversion. All airliners have some cargo capacity in addition to the ordinary luggage hold, but Lufthansa has started to pile light bulky emergency medical supplies on the seats of its airliners as China emerges from the crisis and can afford to ship healthcare supplies abroad (image via Lufthansa):
As Airbus CEO Fleury said, “not all airlines will go bankrupt,” but beyond doubt, many marginal players with little in government backing won’t emerge from this crisis.
The many airlines of Egypt and Turkey in particular are likely to be savaged. These companies completely depend on steady revenues in hard currency (chiefly euro) to stay afloat. With tourism pretty much dead for 2020, and with the large Egyptian and Turkish expat communities either already back home or under lockdown in Europe, there isn’t a whole lot left for them to do.
Egypt and especially Turkey cannot afford a general bailout of their aviation sector. While the existence of their two flag carriers is unlikely at risk, only a fraction of the other airlines may survive. They took on too much debt to fuel their explosive growth, and as most of this debt was incurred in foreign currency, local central banks will only be able to do so much to help.
This scene will likely repeat itself in many other countries, even those that are hopefully the least affected by the pandemic.
But the Civil Aviation Authority of China (CAAC) has already been tasked by the government in February, at the height of the healthcare emergency, to come up with a massive reorganization and support plan for the industry. This plan will likely include a wave of forced mergers and acquisitions at “pennies to the dollar” valuations.
Hong Kong Airlines, already in serious financial difficulties following the collapse of HNA Group, was originally set to receive a bailout worth RMB 2 billion (about $290 million) through state-owned conglomerate Citic and a group of HK magnates. But the deal was scuttled for reasons unknown. Now quasi-bankruptcy administrators, the “HNA Group Risk Management Committee,” seem to favor handing Hong Kong Airlines over to state-owned carrier Air China for what will most likely be a symbolic sum.
As air traffic in China is cautiously but steadily picking up by the week, the CAAC restructuring and support plan will make itself felt. And what are our Western governments doing apart from throwing money around like confetti? By MC01, a frequent commenter, for WOLF STREET


investmentwatchblog--2020-03-30--The Economic Depression Of 2020: Many Of The Restaurants, Bars And Retailers That Have Closed Will N

The Economic Depression Of 2020: Many Of The Restaurants, Bars And Retailers That Have Closed Will Never Open Again

It appears that we are heading into the worst economic downturn of the post-World War II era , and that is going to be true no matter how this coronavirus pandemic ultimately plays out .
There are some that believe that this virus will only kill thousands , and there are others that are warning that it could kill millions , but everyone can agree that this outbreak is causing an unprecedented amount of fear .
And even once this pandemic starts to fade , a certain percentage of the population will continue to be afraid to go to restaurants @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are open to the public .
Of course many restaurants , bars and small businesses were just barely scraping by during the “ good times ” , and so many of them will simply not be be able to survive if a substantial portion of the population is literally petrified to step through their doors for the foreseeable future .
As long as fear of the coronavirus persists , the U.S. economy is going to be in for a world of hurt , and it looks like we may still be in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ In fact , we are now being told that the death toll in the U.S. “ could reach 100,000 or more ” … President Donald Trump acknowledged Sunday for the first time that deaths in the United States from coronavirus could reach 100,000 or more , adding that if the death toll stays at or below 100,000 , “ we all together have done a very good job.
” Trump ’ s assertion came after he was asked about comments the nation ’ s top infectious disease expert , Dr. Anthony Fauci , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ State of the Union ” that based on models , 100,000 Americans or more could die from the virus .
Of course the death toll could ultimately be much lower than that if effective treatments are made widely available to the general public .
We shall have to wait and see if that actually happens .
But meanwhile , fear of the coronavirus is absolutely devastating the economy .
According to the National Restaurant Association , our restaurant industry has lost 25 billion dollars in sales so far this month… As this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dominoes in the commercial mortgage market are going to begin to fall .
What we are watching is deeply tragic , because those that work in our restaurants are some of the hardest working people in the entire country .
At this point , 3 percent of our restaurants “ have already permanently closed ” , and another 11 percent “ anticipate they will permanently close within 30 days ” … Can you imagine that ?
By the end of next month , 14 percent of all restaurants in America could be gone @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pandemic lasts , the higher that number will go .
We didn ’ t see anything like this back in 2008 .
What we are now facing is truly unprecedented , and there is going to be a whole lot of vacant buildings in the days ahead .
Of course it isn ’ t just restaurants that are being hit extremely hard .
According to the Wall Street Journal , a wide variety of businesses all over the country are already in very serious trouble… Even if all of the lockdowns all over @ @ @ @ @ @ @ activity would not return to “ normal ” , because millions upon millions of Americans would still be deeply afraid of the virus .
And that isn ’ t going to happen anyway .
In fact , President Trump just extended the national “ social distancing guidelines ” through April 30th… So that means that it is probably unlikely that any of the lockdowns on the state level that we have witnessed will be lifted before April 30th .
Across the Atlantic , citizens of the United Kingdom are being warned that life @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for six months or even longer ” … Would they really try to keep people inside for that long ?
I can promise you that people do not have that much patience .
If you doubt this , just look at what is happening in China… Here in the U.S. , I have been seeing people all over social media clamoring for a return to normalcy .
Sadly , that is simply not going to happen for the foreseeable future , and the consequences for the U.S. economy are going to be extremely @ @ @ @

by Michael Snyder
It appears that we are heading into the worst economic downturn of the post-World War II era, and that is going to be true no matter how this coronavirus pandemic ultimately plays out. There are some that believe that this virus will only kill thousands, and there are others that are warning that it could kill millions, but everyone can agree that this outbreak is causing an unprecedented amount of fear. And even once this pandemic starts to fade, a certain percentage of the population will continue to be afraid to go to restaurants, bars and other small businesses that are open to the public. Of course many restaurants, bars and small businesses were just barely scraping by during the “good times”, and so many of them will simply not be be able to survive if a substantial portion of the population is literally petrified to step through their doors for the foreseeable future.
As long as fear of the coronavirus persists, the U.S. economy is going to be in for a world of hurt, and it looks like we may still be in the very early stages of this pandemic.
In fact, we are now being told that the death toll in the U.S. “could reach 100,000 or more”…
President Donald Trump acknowledged Sunday for the first time that deaths in the United States from coronavirus could reach 100,000 or more, adding that if the death toll stays at or below 100,000, “we all together have done a very good job.” Trump’s assertion came after he was asked about comments the nation’s top infectious disease expert, Dr. Anthony Fauci, made earlier Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union” that based on models, 100,000 Americans or more could die from the virus.
Of course the death toll could ultimately be much lower than that if effective treatments are made widely available to the general public.
We shall have to wait and see if that actually happens.
But meanwhile, fear of the coronavirus is absolutely devastating the economy. According to the National Restaurant Association, our restaurant industry has lost 25 billion dollars in sales so far this month…
The U.S. restaurant industry has lost $25 billion in sales since March 1, according to a survey of 5,000 owners by the National Restaurant Association. Nearly 50,000 stores of major U.S. retail chains have closed, according to the companies. An estimated $20 billion in monthly retail real estate loans are due as early as this week, according to Marcus & Millichap, a commercial real-estate services and consulting firm. Many retailers and restaurants have said they are not going to pay their April rents, which in turn poses a threat to the $3 trillion commercial mortgage market.
As this crisis stretches on, all of the dominoes in the commercial mortgage market are going to begin to fall.
What we are watching is deeply tragic, because those that work in our restaurants are some of the hardest working people in the entire country. At this point, 3 percent of our restaurants “have already permanently closed”, and another 11 percent “anticipate they will permanently close within 30 days”…
Three percent of restaurants have already permanently closed due to the coronavirus crisis, according to research from the National Restaurant Association. Forty-four percent of operators have temporarily closed their restaurants, and 11% anticipate they will permanently close within 30 days.
Can you imagine that?
By the end of next month, 14 percent of all restaurants in America could be gone for good.
And the longer this pandemic lasts, the higher that number will go.
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We didn’t see anything like this back in 2008. What we are now facing is truly unprecedented, and there is going to be a whole lot of vacant buildings in the days ahead.
Of course it isn’t just restaurants that are being hit extremely hard. According to the Wall Street Journal, a wide variety of businesses all over the country are already in very serious trouble…
Companies of all sizes are feeling the squeeze, especially retailers and restaurants that have closed their doors during the outbreak. Nike Inc. is asking to pay half its rents. TJ Maxx is delaying payments to its suppliers. Victoria’s Secret and Men’s Wearhouse have furloughed thousands of workers. Cheesecake Factory Inc. closed 27 of the company’s locations and furloughed 41,000 hourly workers, nearly 90% of its total staff.
Even if all of the lockdowns all over the U.S. were immediately lifted, economic activity would not return to “normal”, because millions upon millions of Americans would still be deeply afraid of the virus.
And that isn’t going to happen anyway. In fact, President Trump just extended the national “social distancing guidelines” through April 30th…
President Donald Trump announced on Sunday that the White House would be extending its social distancing guidelines through April 30 – a month longer than an initial 15-day timeline when they were implemented on March 16. “The peak in death rate is likely to hit in two weeks,” Trump said. “Nothing would be worse than declaring victory before the victory is won.”
So that means that it is probably unlikely that any of the lockdowns on the state level that we have witnessed will be lifted before April 30th.
Across the Atlantic, citizens of the United Kingdom are being warned that life may not get back to normal “for six months or even longer”…
Britons should not expect to get back to ‘normal life’ for six months or even longer, the government’s deputy chief medical officer warned today. Dr Jenny Harries told a Downing Street press conference that people should not be viewing the coronavirus crisis as something that will blow over soon.
Would they really try to keep people inside for that long?
I can promise you that people do not have that much patience.
If you doubt this, just look at what is happening in China…
Angry crowds rioted near the Chinese city of Wuhan after the region’s two-month coronavirus lockdown was lifted but residents were told they could not travel elsewhere in China. Shocking footage showed a mob overturning a police van on a bridge linking Wuhan, which is the capital of Hubei Province, and neighbouring Jiangxi.
Here in the U.S., I have been seeing people all over social media clamoring for a return to normalcy.
Sadly, that is simply not going to happen for the foreseeable future, and the consequences for the U.S. economy are going to be extremely, extremely bitter.


investmentwatchblog--2020-03-30--Some States Are Now Intercepting Travelers From Other States And Forcing Them Into Quarantine

All of a sudden , people all over the country are very afraid of travelers from New York , Louisiana and other COVID-19 “ hotspots ” across the nation .
In fact , as you will see below , some states are now trying to intercept travelers from other states and force them into quarantine .
Measures that would have been unthinkable just a few short weeks ago have now become a reality , and things are likely to get even crazier in the days ahead .
If this pandemic is causing this much fear already even though less than @ @ @ @ @ @ @ what will the level of fear be if 30,000 or 300,000 Americans die ?
Unfortunately , many experts are now warning that the death toll will eventually get very high in this country .
For example , on Sunday Dr. Anthony Fauci told CNN that he expects to see more than 100,000 deaths in the U.S. alone… Dr. Anthony Fauci , the government ’ s top expert on infectious diseases , predicted Sunday that the United States will end up with “ millions ” of cases of coronavirus and up to 200,000 deaths @ @ @ @ @ @ @ though he cautioned that any projection of mortality statistics could “ easily ” end up being wrong .
“ Looking at what we ’ re seeing now , I would say between 100,000-200,000 [ deaths ] , ” Fauci said in an interview on CNN ’ s “ State of the Union.
” This virus spreads so easily from person to person , and once it gets loose in a city it can spread like wildfire .
Right now , New York City is being hit harder than anywhere else in the country @ @ @ @ @ @ @ members of the NYPD have tested positive for the virus , and the public transportation system is being flooded with calls from sick employees… Overall , the death toll in New York has reached nearly 1,000 , and many believe that what we have seen so far is just the beginning .
Needless to say , hospitals are rapidly being overwhelmed , and basic medical supplies are being used up fast .
Fortunately , a lot of outside help is coming in .
On Sunday , I was greatly encouraged to learn that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ up a field hospital in Central Park… But as other states have watched the nightmare that is currently unfolding in New York , they have become greatly alarmed , and some have even taken measures to try to prevent New Yorkers from spreading the virus to their communities .
Beginning on Friday , authorities in Rhode Island started stopping vehicles “ with New York plates ” , and any New Yorkers that were discovered were forced into “ 14 days of self-quarantine ” … When New York Governor Andrew Cuomo found out about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ it specifically discriminated against citizens of his state .
So Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo later expanded the directive to include anybody coming into Rhode Island from any other state… Of course Rhode Island is basically the size of a postage stamp , and so not that many people are too worried about what they are doing .
But Florida is a much bigger deal .
Florida has already been forcing anyone flying in from New York to self-quarantine for 14 days , and on Friday Governor Ron DeSantis expanded that directive to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Louisiana… In fact , a highway checkpoint has already been set up on Interstate 10 so that police can monitor who is coming into the state… In the days ahead , more states may start implementing such measures .
So if you are still not where you want to be to ride out this pandemic , you need to get there as quickly as possible .
We still don ’ t know how bad this crisis is going to become .
It may fizzle out with just a few hundred thousand deaths globally @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a nightmare scenario in which millions die .
We just don ’ t know yet .
But those that are running things are starting to act like we are facing a worst case scenario , and that should deeply alarm us all .
For instance , I was quite surprised to learn that officials from U.S. Northern Command have isolated themselves inside the giant Cheyenne Mountain facility in Colorado… Perhaps such a move is warranted during a time of great crisis , but what really got my attention was the following statement that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ people were clamoring to get inside Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station that he was concerned that there wouldn ’ t be room for them all ?
I don ’ t like the sound of that at all .
We live in very strange times , and they are about to get even stranger .
I hope that you are somewhere safe , and I hope that you are well stocked up for the long , dark months that are ahead of us .

by Michael Snyder
All of a sudden, people all over the country are very afraid of travelers from New York, Louisiana and other COVID-19 “hotspots” across the nation. In fact, as you will see below, some states are now trying to intercept travelers from other states and force them into quarantine. Measures that would have been unthinkable just a few short weeks ago have now become a reality, and things are likely to get even crazier in the days ahead. If this pandemic is causing this much fear already even though less than 3,000 Americans have died so far, what will the level of fear be if 30,000 or 300,000 Americans die?
Unfortunately, many experts are now warning that the death toll will eventually get very high in this country. For example, on Sunday Dr. Anthony Fauci told CNN that he expects to see more than 100,000 deaths in the U.S. alone…
Dr. Anthony Fauci, the government’s top expert on infectious diseases, predicted Sunday that the United States will end up with “millions” of cases of coronavirus and up to 200,000 deaths by the time the pandemic ends, though he cautioned that any projection of mortality statistics could “easily” end up being wrong. “Looking at what we’re seeing now, I would say between 100,000-200,000 [deaths],” Fauci said in an interview on CNN’s “State of the Union.”
This virus spreads so easily from person to person, and once it gets loose in a city it can spread like wildfire.
Right now, New York City is being hit harder than anywhere else in the country. At this point close to 700 members of the NYPD have tested positive for the virus, and the public transportation system is being flooded with calls from sick employees…
The MTA’s 24-hour hot line for workers with coronavirus symptoms is constantly crashing because it’s being flooded with calls — and higher-ups are bracing for a mass sickout, transit insiders told The Post. Bus and subway employees already called out sick at three times the normal rate last week, prompting the MTA to dramatically reduce service.
Overall, the death toll in New York has reached nearly 1,000, and many believe that what we have seen so far is just the beginning.
Needless to say, hospitals are rapidly being overwhelmed, and basic medical supplies are being used up fast.
Fortunately, a lot of outside help is coming in. On Sunday, I was greatly encouraged to learn that Samaritan’s Purse is actually putting up a field hospital in Central Park…
Dozens of people worked in a drizzle to erect the facility for an expected influx of COVID-19 patients at the epicenter of the US coronavirus pandemic. Samaritan’s Purse, a US-based Christian global relief agency, is setting up the hospital on the park’s East Meadow lawn, where workers in face masks unloaded a white tarp and other equipment on the grass. The site is right across from one of the facilities in the Mount Sinai hospital group.
But as other states have watched the nightmare that is currently unfolding in New York, they have become greatly alarmed, and some have even taken measures to try to prevent New Yorkers from spreading the virus to their communities.
Beginning on Friday, authorities in Rhode Island started stopping vehicles “with New York plates”, and any New Yorkers that were discovered were forced into “14 days of self-quarantine”…
Rhode Island police began stopping cars with New York plates Friday. On Saturday, the National Guard will help them conduct house-to-house searches to find people who traveled from New York and demand 14 days of self-quarantine. “Right now we have a pinpointed risk,” Governor Gina Raimondo said. “That risk is called New York City.”
When New York Governor Andrew Cuomo found out about this, he went ballistic, because it specifically discriminated against citizens of his state.
So Rhode Island Governor Gina Raimondo later expanded the directive to include anybody coming into Rhode Island from any other state…
Gov. Gina Raimondo instead has expanded the order to include ‘any person’ coming to Rhode Island from another state to ‘immediately self-quarantine for 14 days’. The directive, signed late Saturday, does not apply to health workers or those working in public safety. It reads: ‘Any person coming to Rhode Island from another state for a non-work-related purpose must immediately self-quarantine for 14 days.’
Of course Rhode Island is basically the size of a postage stamp, and so not that many people are too worried about what they are doing.
But Florida is a much bigger deal.
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Florida has already been forcing anyone flying in from New York to self-quarantine for 14 days, and on Friday Governor Ron DeSantis expanded that directive to include anyone traveling into the state from Louisiana…
New Orleans is experiencing a coronavirus surge of more than 1,000 infections linked to the Mardi Gras celebration in February, sending Louisiana’s total number of cases past 3,300 as of Saturday. DeSantis wants to intercept any Louisiana travelers from “seeding” the virus in Florida. It’s about a three-hour drive from New Orleans to Pensacola, Florida, and panhandle officials had expressed concerns to him about travelers fleeing the Bayou State and carrying the virus into Florida.
In fact, a highway checkpoint has already been set up on Interstate 10 so that police can monitor who is coming into the state…
“Look, we’re either trying to fight this virus or we are not,” DeSantis said of his plan that includes a checkpoint on Interstate 10 at the Alabama line and National Guard members greeting travelers from the New York City area at airports.
In the days ahead, more states may start implementing such measures.
So if you are still not where you want to be to ride out this pandemic, you need to get there as quickly as possible.
We still don’t know how bad this crisis is going to become. It may fizzle out with just a few hundred thousand deaths globally, or we may end up with a nightmare scenario in which millions die.
We just don’t know yet.
But those that are running things are starting to act like we are facing a worst case scenario, and that should deeply alarm us all.
For instance, I was quite surprised to learn that officials from U.S. Northern Command have isolated themselves inside the giant Cheyenne Mountain facility in Colorado…
‘To ensure that we can defend the homeland despite this pandemic, our command and control watch teams here in the headquarters split into multiple shifts and portions of our watch team began working from Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station, creating a third team at an alternate location as well,’ Air Force General Terrence O’Shaughnessy, head of U.S. Northern Command and NORAD, said during a Facebook Live town hall with those under his command.
Perhaps such a move is warranted during a time of great crisis, but what really got my attention was the following statement that O’Shaughnessy made…
‘My primary concern was … are we going to have the space inside the mountain for everybody who wants to move in there, and I’m not at liberty to discuss who’s moving in there,’ O’Shaughnessy added.
Ummm, what?
Apparently so many people were clamoring to get inside Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station that he was concerned that there wouldn’t be room for them all?
I don’t like the sound of that at all.
We live in very strange times, and they are about to get even stranger.
I hope that you are somewhere safe, and I hope that you are well stocked up for the long, dark months that are ahead of us.


investmentwatchblog--2020-03-30--In Austria you will be forced to wear a mask in supermarket

[ Sebastian ] Kurz said , that he is aware , that a lot of people would have loved to @ @ @ @ @ will be lifted , but in reality , ‘ it is a marathon ’ ( @ @ @ @ @ wollten , dass die Maßnahmen gelockert würden .
‘ Aber die Wahrheit ist , es @ @ @ @ @ ) From wednesday on , it will be required to wear a mask in supermarkets @ @ @ @ @ masks for all customers to hand out ( “ werde es verpflichtend sein , künftig @ @ @ @ @ .
Voraussichtlich würden ab Mittwoch genügend Masken vorhanden sein , dass diese Mund-Nasen-Schutzmasken ( NMS @ @ @ @ @ würden ” ) They say , it ’ s not a replacement for keeping distance @ @ @ @ @ ( “ das sei ‘ kein Ersatz für das Abstandhalten ’ , sondern eine zusätzliche @ @ @ @ @ orf.at/stories/3159909/ sorry , didnt find an english version there : -/

by MW
[Sebastian] Kurz said, that he is aware, that a lot of people would have loved to hear, that the measures will be lifted, but in reality, ‘it is a marathon’
(“dass viele Menschen hören wollten, dass die Maßnahmen gelockert würden. ‘Aber die Wahrheit ist, es ist ein Marathon’”)
From wednesday on, it will be required to wear a mask in supermarkets and there should be enough masks for all customers to hand out
(“werde es verpflichtend sein, künftig Schutzmasken im Supermarkt zu tragen. Voraussichtlich würden ab Mittwoch genügend Masken vorhanden sein, dass diese Mund-Nasen-Schutzmasken (NMS) an die Kundschaft gegeben würden”)
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They say, it’s not a replacement for keeping distance, but an additional measure (“das sei ‘kein Ersatz für das Abstandhalten’, sondern eine zusätzliche Maßnahme”)
Source: orf.at/stories/3159909/
sorry, didnt find an english version there :-/


investmentwatchblog--2020-03-30--WHO is incompetent by design?

WHO is incompetent by design?

As you know , the World Health Organization ( WHO ) is an agency of the useless United Nations .
@ @ @ @ @ them in my opinion .
China has LIED to WHO and they , in turn @ @ @ @ @ world : I ’ ve seen many theories online as to how China controls WHO @ @ @ @ @ Twitchy here .
Make no doubt about it : China OWNS this worldwide pandemic .
@ @ @ @ @ pass by WHO and the demorat-run U.S. media .
All because OrangeManBad .
Shameful and @ @ @ @ @ WHO .
If there ’ s any justice , China MUST PAY for lying to @ @ @ @ @ design .

by DCG
As you know, the World Health Organization (WHO) is an agency of the useless United Nations. Completely useless, both of them in my opinion.
China has LIED to WHO and they, in turn, have LIED to the world:
I’ve seen many theories online as to how China controls WHO. See an example on Twitchy here.
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Make no doubt about it: China OWNS this worldwide pandemic. Yet they are given a pass by WHO and the demorat-run U.S. media. All because OrangeManBad.
Shameful and tragic. And SHAME ON WHO.
If there’s any justice, China MUST PAY for lying to all of us, by design.
DCG


investmentwatchblog--2020-03-30--The Post-Coronavirus World Will Be FAR WORSE Than The Pre-Coronavirus World

Signs , especially in the United States , are that the post-coronavirus-plagued world will have even more inequality of wealth , within each nation , than existed prior to the plague .
Billionaires are demanding to be included in the bailouts by their governments ; and , because billionaires financed the careers of the successful politicians who won seats in their country ’ s legislature , those demands are almost certain to be complied with .
Only the least-corrupt nations will be able to recover fully from the current plague .
In the United States , one Party , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to be concerned about the growth of wealth-inequality after 1980 ; but the other Party , the Democrats , do make that pretense ; and so a deal is being worked out in the U.S. Congress that both Parties will tout as being a ‘ balanced ’ bailout bill , because it will bail out both the megacorporations that the billionaires own and control , and the public — their workers ( especially the ones that those billionaires are now laying off ) .
Because of the enormous give-aways to the billionaires , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ out of control , and ultimately paper money will plunge in value , which will bring on a global depression that will be even worse than 1929 .
Some governments will find ways to nationalize the wealth of billionaires and perhaps also of centi-millionaires in order to fund the continuing needs of the public , and there will be a scramble by many of those super-rich to relocate to countries where they still will be able to bribe enough government officials so as to provide safe haven for their accumulated wealth .
Graduated @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the industrialized countries that aren ’ t totally corrupt , but the most extremely corrupt industrialized countries will experience massive capital-flight and a future as a “ third world ” nation , under extended martial law .
On March 22nd , Zero Hedge headlined “ ‘ Stop The Coronavirus Corporate Coup ’ : Here Is A List Of Everyone Demanding A Bail Out ” and Matt Stoller listed the many different categories of mega-corporate lobbyists who were urging the Senators and Representatives , whose campaigns they fund , to bail out their respective @ @ @ @ @ @ @ republished or linked to that list were other alternative-news sites , not any of the mainstream ones .
This was a major news-report , which deserved to become a top topic of public conversation , but that didn ’ t happen ; and here is an example of what it said ( and which the rest of the press were hiding ) : Mitch McConnell wants big business to rule , so he ’ s playing a trick .
He is refusing aid to workers .
Democrats are negotiating with him to try @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
McConnell knows Dems won ’ t pay attention to corporate bailouts if he takes the public hostage , and Democrats know that they can hand out favors to big business if they just talk about how they got larger checks for workers .
So McConnell will put a bill down in front of Nancy Pelosi , with some good stuff like unemployment insurance , but also the really ugly stuff to hand over America to big business .
The corporatists in the Democratic Party will tell her “ Pass the corporate coup @ @ @ @ @ @ @ do something right now !
” And because she doesn ’ t have the votes from within her own caucus because of these corporatists , and because she doesn ’ t particularly care if America is sold off to big business , she will do that .
It ’ s a song-and-dance routine , performed by the two “ good cop , bad cop ” political Parties , in order to satisfy not only the audience ( the voters ) but the producers ( the billionaires ) .
On March 21st , I @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : Who will get the money ?
” at Strategic Culture , and submitted that news-report to all U.S. major news-media and most of the minor ones .
24 hours later , it was picked-up by only a few minor , very courageous , ones : The 21st Century , The Duran , Free World Economic Report , The Russophile , and Verity Weekly .
The corruption is so pervasive that all of the news-media that 99.99 % of the public rely upon for their ‘ news ’ were filtering out the news @ @ @ @ @ @ @ America ’ s billionaires by America ’ s ‘ public representatives ’ — shoveling the public ’ s money to the billionaires as bailouts .
Stoller was obviously correct that the Republican leader of the U.S. Senate , Mitch McConnell , “ is refusing aid to workers ” and ( though Stoller — being himself a Democrat — didn ’ t use nearly such direct language to say ) the Democratic Party ’ s leader in the House was trying to wrangle enough of the desperately needed funds for the American public ( @ @ @ @ @ @ @ here , especially the most important ones , such as nurses , police , etc . )
so that congressional Democrats will be able to give the billionaires what they demand , while still getting enough aid out to everybody else in order for congressional Democrats to be able to hold their congressional seats after November 3rd .
( In America , keeping the poor away from the voting-booths , and undercounting the votes that they do cast , are usually insufficient in themselves so as to prevent a Republican landslide , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to non-billionaires that will be needed if Congress isn ’ t to become 100 % Republican . )
In a profoundly corrupt country , over 99 % of the press will filter-out such basic details of the true extent of the corruption , because , otherwise , the revolution that results will be against the aristocracy , instead of against the public itself ( and producing martial law ) , and a revolution like that could produce actual democracy , which the few people who fund politicians ’ careers fear the most .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ is coming , that it be clearly against the public ( and result in martial law , which will protect only themselves ) , not against themselves .
In fact , such a country has a government almost solely in order to protect the aristocrats from the public , and almost not at all in order to protect the public from the aristocracy .
Interestingly , the very next day , on March 22nd , my headlined news-report was “ Coronavirus Cases Soaring Much Faster in U.S. Than in Other Countries ” and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ America ’ s major ‘ news ’ media , despite its being merely a presentation of the statistical data , which discredited the U.S. Government in comparison with almost all of the other governments in the world .
( Only Turkey and Luxembourg had even worse figures at that time , but they were just beginning to count their coronavirus cases . )
On March 25th , I headlined “ Coronavirus : Why Russians Are Lucky to Be Led by Putin ” , and wrote that “ within just three more days , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ largest total number of cases , if Italy won ’ t .
And after yet another day , the U.S. will almost certainly have the world ’ s largest total number of cases.
” Both statements came to pass .
On March 26th , America ’ s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation published their projection of the rise and subsiding of the coronavirus-19 in the U.S. , and predicted that this country would end up with 460,000 cases and 81,114 deaths from the disease , and that America ’ s epidemic would @ @ @ @ @ @ @ headlined about that , on March 28th , “ Projection : U.S. Coronavirus Deaths to = China ’ s Total Coronavirus Cases ” .
Though all of these news-reports are major , and deal with the news-event that is currently obsessing all of the world ’ s news-media — which is the coronavirus plague — the news-media that are owned or otherwise controlled by America ’ s billionaires rejected them all and are doing everything else that they possibly can to delay , if not to block entirely , the crucial information from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this is happening during an election year .
The Jeff-Bezos-owned liberal neoconservative Washington Post reliably reported on March 28th that “ in private discussions , the president has been driven much more by economic concerns , according to people involved in internal debates or briefed on them .
Trump has long viewed the stock market as a barometer for his own reelection hopes.
” Safety of the American people is a secondary concern for him .
That was being reported by a Democratic Party billionaire against Republican Party billionaires , but what it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ controlled by its billionares , of both Parties .
The public , here , actually don ’ t count .
Under conditions such as this , one can easily understand — with this type of information , which is being hidden from the public — only politicians who satisfy the wants of the nation ’ s billionaires stand even so much as a chance to win seats in Congress or other high elective office .
The public are so misinformed that they are like horses with blinders on and which are being driven @ @ @ @ @ @ @ expendable and replaceable , not objects of authentic and caring concern for their welfare .
Everything has a price to such a master , who will grab at any chance to replace any of the public by a cheaper alternative , so long as “ the job gets done ” — to satisfy their own unlimited greed .
The deception of the public is so extreme that America ’ s Establishment are so brazen as to blame China and Russia for the “ disinformation ” about the cornoavirus-19 pandemic .
The U.S. regime @ @ @ @ @ @ @ billionaires will destroy what little was left of a democratic future for America — and for any other nation that happens to be nearly as corrupt .
Is this to be the long-term impact of coronavirus-19 ?
Is there an alternative likely scenario ?
Perhaps the coronavirus plague won ’ t spread as uncontrollably as is feared , but even if that is the case , what justification exists for bailing out any of the super-rich , in response to an emergency that is causing widespread suffering ?
And yet , America is @ @ @

by Eric Zuesse via Strategic Culture Foundation
Signs, especially in the United States, are that the post-coronavirus-plagued world will have even more inequality of wealth, within each nation, than existed prior to the plague. Billionaires are demanding to be included in the bailouts by their governments; and, because billionaires financed the careers of the successful politicians who won seats in their country’s legislature, those demands are almost certain to be complied with. Only the least-corrupt nations will be able to recover fully from the current plague.
In the United States, one Party, the Republicans, doesn’t even pretend to be concerned about the growth of wealth-inequality after 1980; but the other Party, the Democrats, do make that pretense; and so a deal is being worked out in the U.S. Congress that both Parties will tout as being a ‘balanced’ bailout bill, because it will bail out both the megacorporations that the billionaires own and control, and the public — their workers (especially the ones that those billionaires are now laying off). Because of the enormous give-aways to the billionaires, deficit-spending by the government will be soaring out of control, and ultimately paper money will plunge in value, which will bring on a global depression that will be even worse than 1929. Some governments will find ways to nationalize the wealth of billionaires and perhaps also of centi-millionaires in order to fund the continuing needs of the public, and there will be a scramble by many of those super-rich to relocate to countries where they still will be able to bribe enough government officials so as to provide safe haven for their accumulated wealth. Graduated exit-taxes will be instituted by any of the industrialized countries that aren’t totally corrupt, but the most extremely corrupt industrialized countries will experience massive capital-flight and a future as a “third world” nation, under extended martial law.
On March 22nd, Zero Hedge headlined “‘Stop The Coronavirus Corporate Coup’: Here Is A List Of Everyone Demanding A Bail Out” and Matt Stoller listed the many different categories of mega-corporate lobbyists who were urging the Senators and Representatives, whose campaigns they fund, to bail out their respective industries. The few other news-sites that republished or linked to that list were other alternative-news sites, not any of the mainstream ones. This was a major news-report, which deserved to become a top topic of public conversation, but that didn’t happen; and here is an example of what it said (and which the rest of the press were hiding):
Mitch McConnell wants big business to rule, so he’s playing a trick. He is refusing aid to workers. Democrats are negotiating with him to try to get unemployment assistance and social welfare. McConnell knows Dems won’t pay attention to corporate bailouts if he takes the public hostage, and Democrats know that they can hand out favors to big business if they just talk about how they got larger checks for workers.
So McConnell will put a bill down in front of Nancy Pelosi, with some good stuff like unemployment insurance, but also the really ugly stuff to hand over America to big business. The corporatists in the Democratic Party will tell her “Pass the corporate coup bill, after all we have to do something right now!” And because she doesn’t have the votes from within her own caucus because of these corporatists, and because she doesn’t particularly care if America is sold off to big business, she will do that.
It’s a song-and-dance routine, performed by the two “good cop, bad cop” political Parties, in order to satisfy not only the audience (the voters) but the producers (the billionaires).
On March 21st, I headlined “Triage Starts in Government Bailouts: Who will get the money?” at Strategic Culture, and submitted that news-report to all U.S. major news-media and most of the minor ones. 24 hours later, it was picked-up by only a few minor, very courageous, ones: The 21st Century, The Duran, Free World Economic Report, The Russophile, and Verity Weekly. The corruption is so pervasive that all of the news-media that 99.99% of the public rely upon for their ‘news’ were filtering out the news of the impending massive public subsidies to America’s billionaires by America’s ‘public representatives’ — shoveling the public’s money to the billionaires as bailouts.
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Stoller was obviously correct that the Republican leader of the U.S. Senate, Mitch McConnell, “is refusing aid to workers” and (though Stoller — being himself a Democrat — didn’t use nearly such direct language to say) the Democratic Party’s leader in the House was trying to wrangle enough of the desperately needed funds for the American public (all sorts of workers, and, here, especially the most important ones, such as nurses, police, etc.) so that congressional Democrats will be able to give the billionaires what they demand, while still getting enough aid out to everybody else in order for congressional Democrats to be able to hold their congressional seats after November 3rd. (In America, keeping the poor away from the voting-booths, and undercounting the votes that they do cast, are usually insufficient in themselves so as to prevent a Republican landslide, and so as to supply the bumper-sticker benefits to non-billionaires that will be needed if Congress isn’t to become 100% Republican.)
In a profoundly corrupt country, over 99% of the press will filter-out such basic details of the true extent of the corruption, because, otherwise, the revolution that results will be against the aristocracy, instead of against the public itself (and producing martial law), and a revolution like that could produce actual democracy, which the few people who fund politicians’ careers fear the most. They much prefer, if a revolution is coming, that it be clearly against the public (and result in martial law, which will protect only themselves), not against themselves. In fact, such a country has a government almost solely in order to protect the aristocrats from the public, and almost not at all in order to protect the public from the aristocracy.
Interestingly, the very next day, on March 22nd, my headlined news-report was “Coronavirus Cases Soaring Much Faster in U.S. Than in Other Countries” and even that report had no takers in America’s major ‘news’ media, despite its being merely a presentation of the statistical data, which discredited the U.S. Government in comparison with almost all of the other governments in the world. (Only Turkey and Luxembourg had even worse figures at that time, but they were just beginning to count their coronavirus cases.)
On March 25th, I headlined “Coronavirus: Why Russians Are Lucky to Be Led by Putin”, and wrote that “within just three more days, America will have the world’s largest total number of cases, if Italy won’t. And after yet another day, the U.S. will almost certainly have the world’s largest total number of cases.” Both statements came to pass. On March 26th, America’s Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation published their projection of the rise and subsiding of the coronavirus-19 in the U.S., and predicted that this country would end up with 460,000 cases and 81,114 deaths from the disease, and that America’s epidemic would virtually end by July 1st. I headlined about that, on March 28th, “Projection: U.S. Coronavirus Deaths to = China’s Total Coronavirus Cases”.
Though all of these news-reports are major, and deal with the news-event that is currently obsessing all of the world’s news-media — which is the coronavirus plague — the news-media that are owned or otherwise controlled by America’s billionaires rejected them all and are doing everything else that they possibly can to delay, if not to block entirely, the crucial information from reaching America’s voters, and this is happening during an election year. The Jeff-Bezos-owned liberal neoconservative Washington Post reliably reported on March 28th that “in private discussions, the president has been driven much more by economic concerns, according to people involved in internal debates or briefed on them. Trump has long viewed the stock market as a barometer for his own reelection hopes.” Safety of the American people is a secondary concern for him. That was being reported by a Democratic Party billionaire against Republican Party billionaires, but what it actually indicates is America’s being controlled by its billionares, of both Parties. The public, here, actually don’t count.
Under conditions such as this, one can easily understand — with this type of information, which is being hidden from the public — only politicians who satisfy the wants of the nation’s billionaires stand even so much as a chance to win seats in Congress or other high elective office. The public are so misinformed that they are like horses with blinders on and which are being driven by a master to whom they are expendable and replaceable, not objects of authentic and caring concern for their welfare. Everything has a price to such a master, who will grab at any chance to replace any of the public by a cheaper alternative, so long as “the job gets done” — to satisfy their own unlimited greed. The deception of the public is so extreme that America’s Establishment are so brazen as to blame China and Russia for the “disinformation” about the cornoavirus-19 pandemic. The U.S. regime is utterly shameless.
These bailouts of billionaires will destroy what little was left of a democratic future for America — and for any other nation that happens to be nearly as corrupt.
Is this to be the long-term impact of coronavirus-19? Is there an alternative likely scenario? Perhaps the coronavirus plague won’t spread as uncontrollably as is feared, but even if that is the case, what justification exists for bailing out any of the super-rich, in response to an emergency that is causing widespread suffering? And yet, America is doing that.


investmentwatchblog--2020-03-30--3/28 Coronavirus: South Korea has more recovered patients than sick

Why can ’ t we just do what the South Koreans did , without all the drama , hysterics , @ @ @ @ @ ?
Coronavirus : South Korea has more recovered patients than sick March 28 ( UPI @ @ @ @ @ officials said Saturday that for the first time since the country ’ s first confirmed @ @ @ @ @ been more recoveries than active cases .
According to the Korea Center for Disease Control @ @ @ @ @ are recovered and 4,597 are active .
“ We believe this to be the result @ @ @ @ @ the public , who worked to maintain disinfectant process while actively participating in social distancing @ @ @ @ @ Director Kwon Joon Wook during a regular briefing .
The Johns Hopkins University global trackerindicates @ @ @ @ @ 10th highest number of cases in the world with 9,478 cases and 144 deaths .
@ @ @ @ @ at least 615,000 cases and 28,700 deaths .

Why can’t we just do what the South Koreans did, without all the drama, hysterics, lies and other assorted bullshit?
Coronavirus: South Korea has more recovered patients than sick
WORLD NEWS MARCH 28, 2020 / 9:59 AM
March 28 (UPI) — South Korean health officials said Saturday that for the first time since the country’s first confirmed coronavirus case, there have been more recoveries than active cases.
According to the Korea Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 4,881 cases are recovered and 4,597 are active.
“We believe this to be the result of selfless efforts made by the public, who worked to maintain disinfectant process while actively participating in social distancing,” said KCDC Deputy Director Kwon Joon Wook during a regular briefing.
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The Johns Hopkins University global trackerindicates that South Korea has the 10th highest number of cases in the world with 9,478 cases and 144 deaths. Worldwide, there have been at least 615,000 cases and 28,700 deaths.
www.upi.com/Top_News/World-News/2020/03/28/Coronavirus-South-Korea-has-more-recovered-patients-than-sick/2521585396787/
9,478 cases, 144 dead
death rate, 1.52%
AC


investmentwatchblog--2020-03-30--Dyson develops ventilator in just 10 days

This is awesome !
I love his vacuum cleaners !

This is awesome! I love his vacuum cleaners!
www.architecturaldigest.com/story/dyson-designs-ventilator-10-days-covid-19-patients
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AC


investmentwatchblog--2020-03-30--Kennedy Center Tells Musicians It Will Stop Paying Them Hours After $25 Million Bailout Is Signed

“ The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts informed members of the National Symphony Orchestra that they would no longer be paid just hours after President Trump signed a $ 25 million taxpayer bailout for the cultural center , according to an email obtained by the Washington Free Beacon .
Nearly 100 musicians will no longer receive paychecks after April 3 , according to an email from the orchestra ’ s Covid-19 Advisory Committee .
“ The Covid-19 Advisory Committee was broadsided today during our conversation with [ Kennedy Center President ] Deborah Rutter , ” the email @ @ @ @ @ @ @ informed us today that the last paycheck for all musicians and librarians will be April 3 and that we will not be paid again until the Center reopens.
” The email went out to members on Friday evening , shortly after President Trump signed the $ 2 trillion CARES Act , a stimulus package intended to provide relief to people left unemployed by the coronavirus pandemic .
Congress included $ 25 million in taxpayer funding for the Kennedy Center , a provision that raised eyebrows from both Democrats and Republicans , but ultimately @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bailout was designed to “ cover operating expenses required to ensure the continuity of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and its affiliates , including for employee compensation and benefits , grants , contracts , payments for rent or utilities , fees for artists or performers , ” according to the law ’ s text .
The arts organization decided that the relief did not extend to members of the National Symphony Orchestra , its house orchestra .
”

“The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts informed members of the National Symphony Orchestra that they would no longer be paid just hours after President Trump signed a $25 million taxpayer bailout for the cultural center, according to an email obtained by the Washington Free Beacon.
Nearly 100 musicians will no longer receive paychecks after April 3, according to an email from the orchestra’s Covid-19 Advisory Committee.
“The Covid-19 Advisory Committee was broadsided today during our conversation with [Kennedy Center President] Deborah Rutter,” the email says. “Ms. Rutter abruptly informed us today that the last paycheck for all musicians and librarians will be April 3 and that we will not be paid again until the Center reopens.”
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The email went out to members on Friday evening, shortly after President Trump signed the $2 trillion CARES Act, a stimulus package intended to provide relief to people left unemployed by the coronavirus pandemic. Congress included $25 million in taxpayer funding for the Kennedy Center, a provision that raised eyebrows from both Democrats and Republicans, but ultimately won support from President Trump. The bailout was designed to “cover operating expenses required to ensure the continuity of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and its affiliates, including for employee compensation and benefits, grants, contracts, payments for rent or utilities, fees for artists or performers,” according to the law’s text. The arts organization decided that the relief did not extend to members of the National Symphony Orchestra, its house orchestra.”
freebeacon.com/issues/kennedy-center-tells-musicians-will-stop-paying-them-hours-after-25-million-bailout-signed/


investmentwatchblog--2020-03-30--CDC: Japanese Data Show Indoor Coronavirus Transmission 18.7 Times Likelier Than Outdoors

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention ( CDC ) recently published a paper reporting that Japanese data showed that @ @ @ @ @ times more likely indoors than outdoors .
Environmental factors include population density and the availability @ @ @ @ @ and control measures in healthcare facilities .
SARS and MERS had relatively low rates of @ @ @ @ @ outbreaks in healthcare settings ( 28 ) .
Rapid person-to-person transmission of COVID-19 appears likely @ @ @ @ @ settings , on a cruise ship , and in a church ( 3 ) .
@ @ @ @ @ case-patients from 11 clusters in Japan , all clusters were associated with closed environments , @ @ @ @ @ eating environments , and hospitals , the odds for transmission from a primary case-patient were @ @ @ @ @ open-air environments ( H. Nishiura et al.
, unpub .
data ) .

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently published a paper reporting that Japanese data showed that coronavirus transmission was nearly 20 times more likely indoors than outdoors.
www.breitbart.com/health/2020/03/29/cdc-japanese-data-show-coronavirus-transmission-18-7-times-more-likely-eric-garcetti-indoors/
Environmental factors include population density and the availability and use of infection prevention and control measures in healthcare facilities. SARS and MERS had relatively low rates of person-to-person transmission but caused explosive outbreaks in healthcare settings (28). Rapid person-to-person transmission of COVID-19 appears likely to have occurred in healthcare settings, on a cruise ship, and in a church (3). In a study of 110 case-patients from 11 clusters in Japan, all clusters were associated with closed environments, including fitness centers, shared eating environments, and hospitals, the odds for transmission from a primary case-patient were 18.7 times higher than in open-air environments (H. Nishiura et al., unpub. data).
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wwwnc.cdc.gov/eid/article/26/6/20-0495_article
h/t Daniel Higdon