February 25, 2020
The Trump administration (click here) on Monday finalized a rule that would limit access to Social Security disability benefits for non-English speakers.
“It is important that we have an up-to-date disability program,” Social Security Commissioner Andrew Saul said.
“The workforce and work opportunities have changed, and outdated regulations need to be revised to reflect today’s world,” he added....
The USA has a proud heritage of multiculturalism. That means language plays a huge role in preserving that heritage. In the past there were deaths during illnesses such as the spread of HIV and the USA needed to change it's health information to communities to include at the very least Spanish. We are now faced with a new threat with it's first death from Covid-19. Now is not the time to rethink the USA policy on open and free speech which demands the intact status of multiculturalism and information in diversity of languages.
The First Amendment guarantees open and free speech, this policy is ludicrous and bigoted.
Unlike many other countries, (click here) the United States does not have an official national language policy. Educational language policy in the country is largely the result of widely held beliefs and values about immigrants and patriotism. Language policies, implicit or explicit, are used to influence and control social behavior, and the U.S. is no different. Nothing prohibits states from having one or official languages, and a majority of U.S. states have designed English their official language policies. New Mexico and the Common Wealth of Puerto Rico have designated both English and Spanish as co-official languages. The state of Hawaii also has two official languages, English and Hawaiian (ʻŌlelo Hawaiʻi).
Traditionally, the discourse on language policy in the U.S.has been framed as an either-or choice between English and other languages. In schools, the result was an imposition of English language and Anglo culture on minorities, which goes back to the deculturation of American Indians through the system of English-only boarding schools. During World War 1 and the early 1920s, imposition of English-only policies went along with persecution of German speakers.
For a brief period during the sixties and seventies languages other than English were accommodated in schools. However, since the nineties, the English-only movement has reversed most of those gains, and currently 28 states have English-only policies.
Whenever I see the number of states as 28, I automatically think there is an amendment to the USA Constitution in the works somewhere.
Educational access through English not only ignores the linguistic resources in many immigrant or indigenous communities, but also negatively affects educational equity, achievement, and a sense of identity. Foreign language teaching has generally been restricted to languages useful for defense and intelligence purposes, with foreign language programs delinked from heritage language resources in communities.
In the last decade, we have seen a growth in community schools teaching heritage languages, and in formal dual-language programs. Hopefully this trend will continue and opportunities for developing multilingual competence from an early age will be expanded.
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February 29, 2020
Gov. Jay Inslee (click here) released a statement today on the death of a Washington state individual from the coronavirus (COVID-19).
"It is a sad day in our state as we learn that a Washingtonian has died from COVID-19. Our hearts go out to their family and friends. We will continue to work toward a day where no one dies from this virus.
"In partnership with the Washington State Department of Health, the Washington State Department of Emergency Management and local and community health partners, we are strengthening our preparedness and response efforts. I am committed to keeping Washingtonians healthy, safe and informed."
February 29, 2020
Officials in Washington state (click here) say a person has died of COVID-19, the first such death in the United States.
Health officials in California, Oregon and Washington state worried about the novel coronavirus spreading through West Coast communities after confirming three patients were infected by unknown means.
The patients — an older Northern California woman with chronic health conditions, a high school student in Everett, Washington and an employee at a Portland, Oregon-area school — hadn't recently traveled overseas or had any known close contact with a traveler or an infected person, authorities said....
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March 1, 2018
In the event of an awkward silence, (click here) it’s generally a good idea to have a stockpile of random trivia handy.
So next time you’re at a party and need a topic of conversation that makes you sound smart, whip out these fun facts about bilingual and multilingual U.S. presidents.
Here are 11 commanders-in-chief who could speak another language (and two honorable mentions).
John Adams
Thomas Jefferson
James Madison
James Monroe
John Quincy Adams
Martin Van Buren
Herbert Hoover
Theodore Roosevelt
Franklin D. Roosevelt
Jimmy Carter
William Jefferson Clinton
George W. Bush
Baradk H. Obama
Saturday, February 29, 2020
Assad will not give up Idlib and Russia will back him. This is also not a basis for global war, either. If I may?
The map to the left is from an article from 2018 describing the ongoing civil war in Syria. (click here) These are not new struggles, so much as reignited and the addition in recent times of Turkey is a real problem because Assad ultimately won't accept a Turkish presence. If one recalls, after Trump pulled USA troops from the region there was a Turkish incursion that rejected the Kurds as a partner to the region. Well, when Turkey basically declared an ethnic war against the Kurds, they in turn joined forces with Assad and other Shi'ites in the Shia Crescent. So, now the tensions between Turkey and Assad is manifesting as Assad moves to retake lost ground.There is one other major problem Turkey is now facing, refugees seeking an opportunity to leave Turkey and Erodogan at the European border. (click here) From the picture it looks like the refugees do not deserve sympathy because they are primarily young men. The last time such a movement occurred Europe was not ready for it and the attacks in Paris were a direct result of extremists entering the country.
There are many sympathetic faces and stories, however, the militants manage to make themselves part of the masses.
28 February 2020
At least 33 Turkish soldiers (click here) have died in a Syrian government attack in opposition-held north-western Syria, in a major escalation of the conflict.
Turkey, which backs the opposition, says it hit 200 government targets in response, "neutralising" 309 soldiers.
Russia, Syria's key military ally, says Turkish troops were attacked in Idlib province by Syrian forces while operating alongside jihadist fighters.
The EU has warned the crisis could escalate further.
"There is a risk of sliding into a major open international military confrontation," EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell tweeted. "It is also causing unbearable humanitarian suffering and putting civilians in danger."...
Before the conflicts in Syria that have taken many lives and instilled an ongoing civil war the coastal region of Syria is HISTORICAL land for the Alawites. In recent years the Alawites migrated from that coastal area because of war that had begun there. If the Alawites are now in Idlib, Assad will protect them beyond any attempt by Turkey or others, including potentially NATO to stop him.
Additionally, the coastal region of Syria are ancestral lands. Idlib provides a region that could pose a threat to that coastal region. Assad will see any forces other than his own as a threat to the Alawites retaking and resettling that coastal region.
So, basically, this is more of the same ongoing war in Syria with one more player in Turkey. Obviously, NATO is not seeing Turkey's actions as their own so much as an attempt for more land possession by Turkey in an effort to remove Kurds from near Turkey's borders or end any claimes there is a Kurdistan in any way.
"There is a risk of sliding into a major open international military confrontation," EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell tweeted. "It is also causing unbearable humanitarian suffering and putting civilians in danger."...
Before the conflicts in Syria that have taken many lives and instilled an ongoing civil war the coastal region of Syria is HISTORICAL land for the Alawites. In recent years the Alawites migrated from that coastal area because of war that had begun there. If the Alawites are now in Idlib, Assad will protect them beyond any attempt by Turkey or others, including potentially NATO to stop him.
Additionally, the coastal region of Syria are ancestral lands. Idlib provides a region that could pose a threat to that coastal region. Assad will see any forces other than his own as a threat to the Alawites retaking and resettling that coastal region.
So, basically, this is more of the same ongoing war in Syria with one more player in Turkey. Obviously, NATO is not seeing Turkey's actions as their own so much as an attempt for more land possession by Turkey in an effort to remove Kurds from near Turkey's borders or end any claimes there is a Kurdistan in any way.
Trump vs the CDC
Community transmission is exactly what exists in China. China used flying drones to warn people to go back into their homes.
February 29, 2020
By Gerry Shih, James McAuley, Miriam Berger and Katie Mettler
More coronavirus infections (click here) were reported from South Korea to France to Qatar on Saturday after health officials in Washington state, Oregon and California on Friday reported a worrying development: new cases among people who have not traveled recently to countries hit hard by the outbreak or come into contact with anyone known to have the disease, which public health officials refer to as community transmission.
The four new cases Friday bring the total number of covid-19 cases detected through the U.S. public health system to 19, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Washington state announced late Friday that a high school student in Snohomish County, just north of Seattle, tested positive for the deadly virus and was in home isolation in a suspected community transmission case. State health officials also said a woman in her 50s in King County tested positive after traveling to Daegu, South Korea, the site of a major coronavirus outbreak. She, too, is in home isolation....
How the heck did a high school kid get the darn stuff? There is nothing in Snohomish County. This lousy virus better not be on wind currents either, but, Washington State is east of South Korea and Japan.
It is possibly the King County resident that traveled to South Korea. King County is directly south of Snohomish County in Washington State, but, where did the transmission occur?
Washington County isn't even close to either Snohomish or King Counties.
February 17, 2020
By Hannah Yasharoff, Jayme Deerwater, and David Oliver
...One plane carrying American passengers (click here) touched down at Travis Air Force Base in northern California just before 11:30 p.m. Sunday local time. A second flight arrived at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas around 2½ hours later, early Monday.
The California flight had 177 people on it, seven of whom tested positive for coronavirus, Walters said. An additional three people were isolated during the flight for fever. Upon arrival, 171 stayed in Travis while six traveled to Omaha....
The FDA is allowing other labs to carry out the complex testing for Covid-19 in anticipation of a widening exposure to the general public. It is officially called a public health emergency.
2/29/2020
By Sarah Owermohle
The Food and Drug Administration (click here) on Saturday morning laid out how academic labs can use in-house coronavirus tests in hopes of expanding the health care system’s ability to detect the virus.
The guidance would let certain labs develop FDA-authorized tests without relying on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“We believe this policy strikes the right balance during this public health emergency,” FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn said in a statement....
This is current as of yesterday, communities need to mobilize for cases of Covid-19. One thing is sure to result as more hospital labs use techniques to diagnosis the virus, there will be some false positives and false negatives. I think we have already seen false negatives with persons originally thought to be negative. That is due to viral load (click here for similar procedure for HIV) most probably. Where a person's immune system can inhibit the virus to grow there will be false negatives. Statistically, these errors will occur. Every person is different which leads to different outcomes. There is a lot no one knows about this virus, including any latent stage. A latent stage would indicate a "carrier" rather than a symptomatic person. I am quite confident the CDC and WHO are looking at everything.
This virus is a puzzle and isn't neatly fitting into any stereotypes of other coronavirus.
...This report summarizes (click here) the aggressive measures (2,3) that CDC, state and local health departments, multiple other federal agencies, and other partners are implementing to slow and try to contain transmission of COVID-19 in the United States. These measures require the identification of cases and contacts of persons with COVID-19 in the United States and the recommended assessment, monitoring, and care of travelers arriving from areas with substantial COVID-19 transmission. Although these measures might not prevent widespread transmission of the virus in the United States, they are being implemented to
February 29, 2020
By Gerry Shih, James McAuley, Miriam Berger and Katie Mettler
More coronavirus infections (click here) were reported from South Korea to France to Qatar on Saturday after health officials in Washington state, Oregon and California on Friday reported a worrying development: new cases among people who have not traveled recently to countries hit hard by the outbreak or come into contact with anyone known to have the disease, which public health officials refer to as community transmission.
The four new cases Friday bring the total number of covid-19 cases detected through the U.S. public health system to 19, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Washington state announced late Friday that a high school student in Snohomish County, just north of Seattle, tested positive for the deadly virus and was in home isolation in a suspected community transmission case. State health officials also said a woman in her 50s in King County tested positive after traveling to Daegu, South Korea, the site of a major coronavirus outbreak. She, too, is in home isolation....
How the heck did a high school kid get the darn stuff? There is nothing in Snohomish County. This lousy virus better not be on wind currents either, but, Washington State is east of South Korea and Japan.It is possibly the King County resident that traveled to South Korea. King County is directly south of Snohomish County in Washington State, but, where did the transmission occur?
Washington County isn't even close to either Snohomish or King Counties.
February 17, 2020
By Hannah Yasharoff, Jayme Deerwater, and David Oliver
...One plane carrying American passengers (click here) touched down at Travis Air Force Base in northern California just before 11:30 p.m. Sunday local time. A second flight arrived at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas around 2½ hours later, early Monday.
The California flight had 177 people on it, seven of whom tested positive for coronavirus, Walters said. An additional three people were isolated during the flight for fever. Upon arrival, 171 stayed in Travis while six traveled to Omaha....
The FDA is allowing other labs to carry out the complex testing for Covid-19 in anticipation of a widening exposure to the general public. It is officially called a public health emergency.
2/29/2020
By Sarah Owermohle
The Food and Drug Administration (click here) on Saturday morning laid out how academic labs can use in-house coronavirus tests in hopes of expanding the health care system’s ability to detect the virus.
The guidance would let certain labs develop FDA-authorized tests without relying on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
“We believe this policy strikes the right balance during this public health emergency,” FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn said in a statement....
This is current as of yesterday, communities need to mobilize for cases of Covid-19. One thing is sure to result as more hospital labs use techniques to diagnosis the virus, there will be some false positives and false negatives. I think we have already seen false negatives with persons originally thought to be negative. That is due to viral load (click here for similar procedure for HIV) most probably. Where a person's immune system can inhibit the virus to grow there will be false negatives. Statistically, these errors will occur. Every person is different which leads to different outcomes. There is a lot no one knows about this virus, including any latent stage. A latent stage would indicate a "carrier" rather than a symptomatic person. I am quite confident the CDC and WHO are looking at everything.
This virus is a puzzle and isn't neatly fitting into any stereotypes of other coronavirus.
...This report summarizes (click here) the aggressive measures (2,3) that CDC, state and local health departments, multiple other federal agencies, and other partners are implementing to slow and try to contain transmission of COVID-19 in the United States. These measures require the identification of cases and contacts of persons with COVID-19 in the United States and the recommended assessment, monitoring, and care of travelers arriving from areas with substantial COVID-19 transmission. Although these measures might not prevent widespread transmission of the virus in the United States, they are being implemented to
1) slow the spread of illness;
2) provide time to better prepare state and local health departments, health care systems, businesses, educational organizations, and the general public in the event that widespread transmission occurs; and
3) better characterize COVID-19 to guide public health recommendations and the development and deployment of medical countermeasures, including diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines. U.S. public health authorities are monitoring the situation closely, and CDC is coordinating efforts with the World Health Organization (WHO) and other global partners. Interim guidance is available at https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/index.html. As more is learned about this novel virus and this outbreak, CDC will rapidly incorporate new knowledge into guidance for action by CDC, state and local health departments, health care providers, and communities.
Person-to-person spread of COVID-19 appears to occur mainly by respiratory transmission. How easily the virus is transmitted between persons is currently unclear. Signs and symptoms of COVID-19 include fever, cough, and shortness of breath (4). Based on the incubation period of illness for Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) coronaviruses, as well as observational data from reports of travel-related COVID-19, CDC estimates that symptoms of COVID-19 occur within 2–14 days after exposure. Preliminary data suggest that older adults and persons with underlying health conditions or compromised immune systems might be at greater risk for severe illness from this virus (5)....
It is what it is.
Tomoyuki Sugano, (click here) starting pitcher of Yomiuri Giants, throws the first pitch during a behind-closed-doors opening game against the Tokyo Yaklut Swallows at Tokyo Dome baseball stadium in Tokyo on Feb. 29, 2020.
2) provide time to better prepare state and local health departments, health care systems, businesses, educational organizations, and the general public in the event that widespread transmission occurs; and
3) better characterize COVID-19 to guide public health recommendations and the development and deployment of medical countermeasures, including diagnostics, therapeutics, and vaccines. U.S. public health authorities are monitoring the situation closely, and CDC is coordinating efforts with the World Health Organization (WHO) and other global partners. Interim guidance is available at https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/index.html. As more is learned about this novel virus and this outbreak, CDC will rapidly incorporate new knowledge into guidance for action by CDC, state and local health departments, health care providers, and communities.
Person-to-person spread of COVID-19 appears to occur mainly by respiratory transmission. How easily the virus is transmitted between persons is currently unclear. Signs and symptoms of COVID-19 include fever, cough, and shortness of breath (4). Based on the incubation period of illness for Middle East respiratory syndrome (MERS) and severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) coronaviruses, as well as observational data from reports of travel-related COVID-19, CDC estimates that symptoms of COVID-19 occur within 2–14 days after exposure. Preliminary data suggest that older adults and persons with underlying health conditions or compromised immune systems might be at greater risk for severe illness from this virus (5)....
Tomoyuki Sugano, (click here) starting pitcher of Yomiuri Giants, throws the first pitch during a behind-closed-doors opening game against the Tokyo Yaklut Swallows at Tokyo Dome baseball stadium in Tokyo on Feb. 29, 2020.
February 29, 2020
By David Welna
U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan Reconciliation Zalmay Khalilzad attends the Intra-Afghan Dialogue talks in the Qatari capital, Doha, in July.
The U.S. and the Taliban have struck a deal that paves the way for eventual peace in Afghanistan. U.S. Special Representative Zalmay Khalilzad and the head of the militant Islamist group, Mullah Abdul Ghani Baradar, signed the potentially historic agreement Saturday in Doha, Qatar, where the two sides spent months hashing out its details.
Under the terms of the deal, the U.S. commits to withdrawing all of its military forces and supporting civilian personnel, as well as those of its allies, within 14 months. The drawdown process will begin with the U.S. reducing its troop levels to 8,600 in the first 135 days and pulling its forces from five bases.
The rest of its forces, according to the agreement, will leave "within the remaining nine and a half months."
The Afghan government also will release up to 5,000 Taliban prisoners as a gesture of goodwill, in exchange for 1,000 Afghan security forces held by the Taliban....
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