Sunday, December 13, 2020

SIGNIFICANT DATES, VACCINE, NON-PROFIT NEWSPAPERS

 LESS THAN A COUPLE WEEKS UNTIL CHRISTMAS 2020

The U.S. Government Election Officials report:

"The November 3rd election was the most secure in American history."

Significant Past Date .....

December 8, 2020:  Safe Harbor Deadline -- States had to choose electors to be accepted by Congress; voting disputes had to be resolved.

Personal POV .....

The present White House occupant still continues his efforts which very much resemble those of someone trying to stage a coup in his desperate attempt to stay in office as U.S. President for another four years in any way possible, legal or otherwise, despite having lost both the popular and electoral college votes.

Just when it seems he could sink no lower in the tactics he would employ to achieve such a travesty of justice, he descends even deeper into the morass of his behavioral cesspool to establish himself in what appears to be an effort to convert our nation to an autocracy, thus destroying our democratic republic, betraying his oath of office and the U.S. constitution.

Tragically for our nation in this effort many of his cult-like supporters have mindlessly accepted his falsehoods, fear of socialism, other bizarre conspiracy tales as fact -- apparently so confused they are no longer able to discern truth from fiction.

Other Significant Countdown Dates Reminder .....

December 14, 2020:     Electors Convene and Vote in D.C.         Be alert for possible efforts to coerce Congress to alter electors legal votes.

January 5, 2021:        Georgia runoff election for 2 Senate seats -- results will determine control of the U. S. Senate

January 6, 2021 at 1 pm: The vote will be finalized and certified in a joint session of Congress.

January 30 20, 2021 at noon: The President is inaugurated.

Pandemic:

--My city's Covid-19 infection reached the fourth highest new case rate in Los Angeles County this past Friday                            -- L.A. County ICU hospital beds available are continuing to dip down, currently at 5.3% as I write this Saturday night 12/12.                --for those with other medical requirements including from surgeries  beds may not be accessible.

--One nearby local hospital official reports in our local Courier newspaper,"we are in internal disaster mode."

Pfizer Covid-19 first shipment to Los Angeles County of 327,000 vaccines will occur Sunday, 12/13.                                     --The first hospital to receive the vaccine is Cedar-Sinai prepared to store in their required deep freezer.                                  --One-half dozen hospitals will receive the Pfizer vaccine.            --Vaccinations will be administered to health care personnel and residents in long term care facilities. 

--The first shots are expected to be given Monday, 12/14.              --A second shot will be required in the future to complete virus antibody resistance.                                                   --Anti-body immunity development will take several weeks after both shots received.                           

-- Long Term Care facilities in my city will be among the first including the one I had most recently served who report expecting to receive the vaccine and begin inoculations Monday, 12/14.

Local newspapers going out of business in cities are a concern I've previously written about. They are referred to as legacy media in the net lingo of today.  The term means media that is considered "old" which newspapers are considered to be as are radio, and television; also applies to Web sites using outdated technology.  Netlingo says: "With legacy media, the receiver does not contribute or interact with the content and remains totally passive."

Newspapers are important because they tell us what is going on in our town.  Local reporters also keep us informed about our local government and what officials are doing affecting all of us.  This can be positive actions officials take, reveal information we might want to change, and even be a deterrent to instances of official corruption.

Also, Pewtrusts.org reports: "Covid-19 is crushing Newspapers, Worsening Hunger for Accurate Information."

A year ago Salt Lake City's Tribune became the first legacy newspaper to adopt a nonprofit status as described in this NPR article in an effort to adapt and survive which has been successful to date.  

My city's local newspaper, Claremont Courier, has been struggling to survive also.  I've maintained my subscription which is now only weekly, also receive their Net highlights.  The Facebook page I prefer to not access but is available which my adult children can appreciate who live in other states.  The original publisher's son who was in the newspaper business on the east coast became the editor some years ago but his parents are now deceased.

Peter Weinberger, who is that publisher is in the process of sustaining our Courier's life by converting our newspaper to nonprofit status much like the Salt Lake paper has done.  The Courier is three months away from adoption of this transition if the IRS accepts their application.  They expect to accomplish this reinvention by Spring 2021 which pleases me immensely.  I also learned in the recent update my neighbor is intimately involved through a tech company he founded in aiding with this process.

Do you have a local newspaper where you live, perhaps one that didn't survive or has adapted to the Net so you can keep your finger on the pulse of your community?  

I think this is vitally important to insure good government starting at the local level, a critical element in our democracy.  Maybe your life is such that you have less focus on these matters which may need to occur for some of us, especially in our aging years.  What do you think and how do you learn about what's going on where you live or are you caught up with other matters in your life? 


                                                                  



23 comments:

  1. India thrives on newspapers. Television is a distant also ran. I get six newspapers every day and they give me different flavours to current topics. I also enjoy solving all the crossword puzzles that they offer every day.

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_newspapers_in_India

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    1. Six daily papers sound like you really are very attuned to the local area and other news and events. The most paper editions I ever had regularly was 3 maybe 4 at best.

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  2. My local newspaper continues to do well. I don't subscribe to it, but prefer instead the Cleveland Plain Dealer, which has been struggling and adapting. It has cut home delivery to three days a week, cut staff (mostly senior--and therefore expensive--members), and raised prices. But I still prefer it to other newspapers in the area, and have no problems with its digital version overall.

    As to the outgoing administration's treasonous flailings, I am daily outraged. His party is seditious and shameful. If any Democrat had done even one of this boor's acts, we'd be looking at a full Congressional hearing, at the very least.

    We cannot be rid of this rubbish soon enough. Were that he could take all his traitorous supporters in the House and the country with him.

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    1. Your Cleveland paper has really been adversely affected which sounds a lot like what happened to reporters, staff, content of our Los Angeles Times.

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  3. Will this Trump travesty ever end? Sigh.
    I do subscribe to my local weekly paper and look forward to it each Tuesday. I miss the Sunday paper I use to devour. The beauty of newspapers is that the news may not be instant but it is more comprehensive. No sound bites.

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    1. A newspaper’s comprehensive articles are superior to sound bites. I, too, miss the Sunday papers of yore.

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  4. We had the San Diego Union, which merged with the afternoon Tribune, and is now published in LA. I get the online version of the Washington Post and the New York Times. I miss holding the paper in my hands.

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    1. That sounds like a good selection of newspaper sources.

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  5. We have - for the first time ever - taken out several online subscriptions to local, national and international newspapers. The latter from places we used to live and work or where family is living and working. The Fourth Estate is essential to democracy.

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    1. I certainly agree about the press being essential to democracy.

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  6. I’m relieved that the House is still Democratic, I hate to consider the possibility that Congress might not certify the election in January and what that would mean. I have never paid this much attention to the procedures before, and I suspect most people are the same.

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    1. I can't imagine the Congress wouldn't certify the election, but there have been so many things I never thought could happen I hesitate to be completely confident there are sure things any more -- thinking more along the lines of what else could happen even if only a minuscule chance.

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    2. I recall the hubbub when an elector failed to cast his vote for Truman in 1948. Since I lived in Missouri (from whence Truman hailed), it was a big deal.

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  7. There's no local newspaper for East Belfast, but the BBC and the Belfast Telegraph provide news from all over the city.

    Virus restrictions in the UK are being eased for a few days at Christmas to allow for family gatherings. But there's a widespread expectation that this will inevitably push up infection rates after Christmas.

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    1. Glad you get local news coverage. I think you’re right that easing restrictions will result in increased virus infections but I hope not.

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  8. I felt awful but I recently cancelled my local newspaper's subscription. Even though I was at one point on the editorial board and a contributing columnist. Why? I hadn't opened the app for about 3 months. And could use the $18/mo elsewhere in my budget.

    I get my local Twitter feed news, headlines/articles from our national newspaper, UK papers and Irish papers.

    I really thought about this and came to the conclusion the paper held no content of interest to me, even though our demographics are mainly elderly and the newspaper did not cater to elder news or concerns. I offered to do a column and they agreed but had no budget to pay me.

    XO
    WWW

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    1. Budget considerations always must take precedence in our lives and we have to make cuts sometimes we might not under different circumstances. Besides, sounds like the paper wasn’t really offering you that much information that mattered. I stopped a couple newspaper subscriptions several years ago we’d had for years, one partly because not that much info about my area, but basically both of them had become delivery problems in terms of where they were thrown in my yard. I got fed up trying to correct the matter and they'd often end up wet on the day the sprinkler came on or if it rained as even double plastic wrap didn't seem to keep,them dry.

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  9. It's upsetting that so many people would support a dangerous rube like DJT. I don't know what to say beyond that fact.

    Rates of infection have climbed in both your area of Ca. and mine. I will be immunized when given the chance.

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    1. I, too, was surprised and disappointed to say the least that so many continue to support our lame duck President.

      We do need to stay safe and I look forward to the vaccinations that are continuing to develop but glad we have the ones we do, whenever they become available to all.

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  10. It is with a sense of consternation and amazement that those of us living outside the US view what has happened there over the past four years. Trump's tactics to remain in office whatever the cost to democracy and the rule of law is one thing, the fact that seventy-odd millions of people voted for him is another matter entirely. We shake our heads! Much as I welcome Joe Biden's victory and look forward to a return to normalcy and a modicum of decency, it is still sad that the choice came down to either Biden or Trump. Surely the nation has more to offer?

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    1. I couldn't agree more! Incredible to me that so many of my fellow citizens seem to have been bamboozled -- at least now we know and realize just how fragile democracy can be if there was ever any doubt. I, too, hope some degree of sanity will prevail in our nation these next four years and into the future.

      Thanks for stopping by and sharing your thoughts. Your blog is spectacular!

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  11. H: You really covered a lot and I agree with you on everything ... like I always do, except that Biden will be sworn in on the 20th of January, not the 30th. It can't come too soon for me!

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  12. Hey! Thanks!!! You're the first to note/bring to my attention, my typo on the President's swearing-in date the 20th, not the 30th, I managed to overlook every time I edited before publishing. I'll correct.

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