Biden Announces COVID-19 Relief Plan

Yesterday, President-elect Joe Biden unveiled his COVID-19 relief plan. Costing around $1,900,000,000,000, this plan would approve another round of stimulus checks, raise the national minimum wage to $15 an hour, increase unemployment support, and more. While some on the left are already criticizing Biden’s plan, I’m thoroughly impressed with the proposed relief package that will help millions of Americans through this seemingly never-ending health crisis.

One of the biggest points of criticism Biden is receiving is his proposed $1,400 checks, which would complement the previous $600 stimulus payments to bring the grand total to $2,000. It seems that some were expecting a new set of $2,000 checks, but I never interpreted the proposed plans that way. Additionally, adult dependents will receive this payment, unlike previously. A large group of people previously forgotten will be assisted by this plan assuming it passes the Senate.

Biden’s plan will also provide $400 of unemployment insurance to Americans through September, which is roughly around the time I imagine enough Americans will be vaccinated to bring things back to a semblance of normalcy. If things go in the Democrats’ favor, which they should because they will have full government control, the federal minimum wage will be increased to $15 an hour. Finally, the minimum wage on a full-time schedule will be above the poverty line.

Importantly, the eviction and foreclosure moratoriums will be extended until September, ensuring that individuals and families struggling to make end’s meet won’t face the grim reality of homelessness in the coming months. A combined $70,000,000 will be spent on testing and vaccine funding, which will help mitigate further spread when paired with mask wearing, social distancing, and constant sanitization.

President-elect Biden is showing initiative early-on by announcing these proposals and his cabinet selections prior to even being inaugurated. I voted for Joe Biden because he was clearly the favorable choice when compared to Donald Trump, but I am now excited that Biden’s plans, including this one, are far more progressive and ambitious than I expected. Hopefully this plan does in fact bring relief to the millions of Americans desperate for help from their government.

The Dangers Of Normalization

It goes without saying that 2020 has been one of the darkest years in recent memory for a myriad of reasons. A nightmarish mix of incompetent presidential leadership, a global pandemic, and continued police brutality due to foundational systemic racism have defined the first six months of the new decade. While I don’t think it’s a bad thing to look for the best in any given situation, I’ve noticed a troubling trend of large issues being ignored until they reach a boiling point, or more recently, just accepting the absurdity of everything around us as a “new normal” when, in reality, there is nothing normal about what is happening. The onus is on us to make a change for the better.

Whichever methods Donald Trump used to swindle millions of Americans to support him in 2016 don’t seem to be working so far in 2020’s campaign. Recent polls collectively reflect that soon-to-be Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden is beating the incumbent president on both a national level and in the key swing states which will likely end up deciding the results of November 3rd’s election. We must remain vigilant and active, though, and learn from the mistakes of the 2016 election, in which many overestimated the polling data and decided not to vote. The president’s recent attacks on dreamers and DACA, the LGBTQ+ community, and unfathomable ambiguity when discussing COVID-19 and police brutality are sickening and un-American. This can’t become normal.

While our leadership continues to fail us, the coronavirus pandemic is continuing to spread uncontrollably in many states such as Florida, Arizona, and Texas. These recent spikes have led said states to regress their reopening plans, and there doesn’t seem to be an end in-sight as there are still individuals disregarding guidelines such as social distancing and mask-wearing. At the time of writing this, 127,986 Americans have died from the virus. This is because of an unspeakable mishandling of the pandemic from the president and his administration, who infamously claimed in February that cases would shortly be down to 0. Just because the virus is continuing to spread doesn’t mean it needs to keep spreading. If we follow the guidelines and listen to healthcare officials, we can slow the spread and manage the virus. What is happening now is simply unacceptable. This can’t become normal.

Speaking of unacceptable is the fact that Breonna Taylor’s killers still haven’t been charged for murder. It’s unacceptable that black Americans are incarcerated at more than five times the rate of white Americans. It’s unacceptable that police officers receive so much funding, yet so frequently abuse their power and fail to uphold the oath of protecting and serving their citizens. It’s also unacceptable that, for many, the Black Lives Matter movement was simply a trend which served as a means to virtue signal to their followers that they’re “woke”, but then return to not giving the cause any more thought. Whether one decides to post about these causes on their social media or not doesn’t necessarily reflect the advocacy and activism they partake in, but failing to advance a movement which is striving for equality and justice for black Americans at all is unacceptable. We can’t just pretend that everything’s okay. It isn’t. This cannot become normal.

Despite the circumstances we are in, we don’t have to accept what is happening as normal. We are able to love one another, educate ourselves, and advocate for rationality all while rejecting the status quo which has led us to this troubling moment in American history. The only way forward is upward toward a future of science, compassion, justice, rationality, and equality for all. Criticizing aspects of this country doesn’t mean you hate it, it means you love it and you want to make it better, because what is happening now isn’t working, and it can’t become normal. Thanks for reading.

Was Social Distancing Always An Option? (GSU Blog Post #3)

One of the few silver linings which has come from the otherwise tragic COVID-19 pandemic is our collective reflection on our social and workplace norms in this country. For the sake of safety and self-preservation, most governors and mayors have implemented some sort of shelter-in-place order for “non-essential” workers across the nation, leaving many unemployed, but an even larger portion of the workforce logging into Zoom and hopping onto conference calls from home. While I think we can all agree that going out recreationally is missed dearly and should come back as soon as responsibly possible, this situation makes me ask the question: Was social distancing always an option?

I’m not sure if there’s a clear answer to this question, or that there will be for a very long time. It seems that companies and organizations have done their best to transition their business to an online format of some kind, with universities and school systems doing the same. Besides disrupting the social norms of going into work and school for forty hours a week, could we always have done this? Working from home offers both freedoms and challenges, but in this post, I’m going to make the argument that in-person interaction and working is better in the long-term than socially distant contributions.

The sense of purpose and belonging associated with working or learning amongst colleagues cannot be replicated through chatrooms or instant messages. It is too easy to become distracted, fall out of routine, and not have access to the necessary technologies to get work done when working from home. Even in my practice, digital content writing and marketing, I enjoy interacting with others and communicating in-person as much as possible. As social creatures, interaction is a necessity - and that’s coming from an a very introverted person.

So yes, we probably could have been socially distancing all this time, especially with recent advancements in technology and computing power. It’s my belief, however, that solely working from home is damaging for some, as it removes much-needed social interaction and that there are too many difficulties associated with conducting business remotely in the long-term. Hopefully we can get back in-person, in a safe and responsible way, as soon as possible. Now go wash your hands and maybe put on some actual clothes while you’re at it so that jeans aren’t such a shock to the system once all this blows over. Thanks for reading.

Lyin', Tigers, and Bears... Oh My!

Late last night, while brainstorming possible blog topics to write about, I realized that quite a bit has been happening recently. Even though the United States has effectively shut down for the time being, things are still happening both related and completely separate from the virus which is causing all of this chaos. In today’s post, I’m going to discuss these, starting with the White House’s response to this global pandemic.

Around 5:00 PM Eastern every afternoon, I watch the White House’s Coronavirus Task Force update. I generally watch for the meaningful contributions from Dr. Anthony Fauci or Dr. Deborah Birx, but I stick around to watch the President spread misinformation and grapple with journalists seeking information and clarity regarding the situation we’re in. Some of these anti-truth bombs being dropped recently are that the United States will be ready to reopen on Easter Sunday (it won’t), the United States responded to this pandemic faster than any country in the world (it didn’t), and that we just found out there are asymptomatic carriers who can spread the disease. If that last one is sincere, we may all be doomed from the incompetence of our “leaders”. In trying to escape from the gravity of COVID-19, I turned to Netflix and decided to jump on the Tiger King bandwagon.

I am only a couple of episodes in, but this documentary is alarming (and admittedly entertaining) on multiple levels. First of all, I don’t think I realized the depth of absurdity and abnormality that makes up the underbelly of the United States. This documentary series is truly exposing how vast of an amount of people both coordinate and partake in bizarre practices, specifically animal trading in this case, around the nation. I didn’t know people like Joe Exotic or Carole Baskin existed up until recently, and I’m not sure if I’m happy that I know who they are now. That being said, I’m going to finish watching the series, and hopefully there’s a shred of humanity or common goodness that I can take away from it. It’s based in Florida, though, so I’m not getting my hopes up.

Aside from Netflix binging (check out Ozark season 3), I’ve been keeping up with sports highlights from around the major leagues of American sports. My NFL team, the Chicago Bears, just made a big move by trading for Jacksonville Jaguars Quarterback and former Super Bowl MVP Nick Foles. I’m not sure how I feel about this move. I’ve been ecstatic watching the Bears make moves on the defensive side of the ball, but I think bringing in someone like Teddy Bridgewater or Cam Newton would’ve served Chicago better at the QB position. Either Mitch Trubisky will be able to learn by having an experienced veteran backup, or Nick Foles will take over and hopefully take Chicago on a run just like he did in Philadelphia just a few years ago.

These are wild times, and we’re all doing what we can as we take things day-by-day. I’ve been focusing on my mental health and well-being as much as possible, which is important right now as the outside world is a source of separation and anxiety. I suggest you do the same. Stay informed, but don’t scare yourself. Stay entertained, but keep getting things done. Keep your relationships healthy, whether in-person or at a temporary distance. We’re going to get through this together. Thanks for reading.

The NBA Season Has Been Suspended

Last night was quite eventful. Within the span of only an hour, the United States banned travel from Europe for the next thirty days, Tom Hanks confirmed that he tested positive for COVID-19, and the NBA suspended its season indefinitely due to Utah Jazz member Rudy Gobert contracting the virus. Since then, it has been confirmed that Gobert’s teammate Donovan Mitchell has come down with the virus as well, which is likely to be the beginning of many more reports of prominent players confirming cases.

Gobert is being blamed online for spreading the virus due to his recent carefree and reckless behavior. At the end of a recent press conference, Gobert seemingly mocked those who have taken precautions in regards to COVID-19, intentionally touching every microphone at the podium. The video of this incident is extremely cringe-inducing now, knowing that he was likely asymptomatically carrying the virus at the time of the video. The former defensive player of the year just shut down the whole league.

With the playoffs quickly approaching, it’s unclear as to how the league is going to handle the rest of the season. This is likely going to end up being long-lasting and have an impact on most of our lives over the next few months, so no one is sure as to what happens next. Not only are thousands of people currently suffering from the virus, but tens of millions of dollars are going to be lost from the NBA canceling the foreseeable games, a trend already becoming clear just from looking at the stock market recently.

These are scary times. I’ve been trying to keep my head up and maintain a positive attitude as much as possible, but it seems that this pandemic is truly going to be damaging globally. I’ll likely be posting more about COVID-19 and related events as they come up short. In the mean time, wash your hands and try not to get too down about the world. Thanks for reading.