It’s Monday, March 23rd, A.D. 2020. This is The Worldview in 5 Minutes heard at www.TheWorldview.com. I’m Adam McManus. (Adam@TheWorldview.com)
By Adam McManus
Military prepared to take over hospitals, college dorms for COVID patients
On Friday, the U.S. military said it’s preparing plans to take over hotels and college dorms if necessary to add to the nation’s supply of hospital rooms, part of its response to the coronavirus emergency, reports the Wall Street Journal.
DOJ seeks new powers; detain people indefinitely without trial
The Justice Department has quietly asked Congress for the ability to ask judges to detain people indefinitely without trial during emergencies — part of a push for new powers that comes as the coronavirus spreads through the United States, reports Politico.com.
Businesses refuse cash, fearful it has COVID-19
In a world suffering a pandemic, cash is no longer king, reports the Associated Press.
A growing number of businesses and individuals worldwide have stopped using banknotes in fear that physical currency, handled by tens of thousands of people over their useful life, could be a vector for the spreading coronavirus.
Will Congress shut down?
Congressional leaders could shut the Capitol down, a place with hundreds of politicians — many of them elderly — and move operations online as the coronavirus spreads through the once-crowded, close-talking halls of Congress, leaving two House members infected so far and many more in quarantine, reports MSN.com.
Is a virtual Congress possible? What does floor debate look like when the speakers are patching in from their living rooms? Will the public still have access to the proceedings through C-SPAN? Who handles counting the votes, and how are they transmitted?
Walmart and Amazon employees asking for protection, paid leave
A group of workers from Walmart and Amazon demanded paid leave for those affected by the coronavirus outbreak and better protective measures from their employers, reports Bloomberg.
Homeowner arrested for “pop-up” wedding with 50+ people
Police in Lakewood, New Jersey have arrested a homeowner for hosting a “pop-up” wedding with more than 50 people in attendance during the COVID-19 pandemic, a violation of Governor Phil Murphy’s edict, reports CBS Philly.
Illinois, joins New York and California with lockdown announcement
On Friday, Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker announced a state-wide lockdown through April 7th as Abraham Lincoln’s home state joined New York and California in lockdowns to curb the coronavirus spread which accounts for more than 20 percent of the U.S., reports The Sun.
As of last Friday, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said there are 15,268 cases nationwide, an increase of 4,777 cases from its previous count. And the death toll had risen to 210, reports U.S. News.
At press time worldwide, there were 299,061 cases with 12,755 deaths. The good news is that 91,540 people have recovered from the coronavirus.
Look at the coronavirus sick map in a special link in our transcript today at www.TheWorldview.com.
Kenny Rogers has died
Last Friday, country music singer Kenny Rogers, age 81, died of natural causes in hospice care at his home in Sandy Springs, Georgia, reports Fox News.
In all, Rogers had 24 Number 1 hits and was the winner of six CMA Awards and three Grammys.
It’s my prayer that he knew the Lord Jesus Christ as his Savior.
Hebrews 9:27 says, “It is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment.”
Sandi Patty tests positive for coronavirus
In a Facebook post, gospel singer Sandi Patty revealed Tuesday that she has tested positive for the coronavirus, reports the Christian Post.
PATTY: “Hi, everybody. It’s Sandi Patty, coming to you from my favorite chair in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. So, yesterday I was tested for COVID-19. And today, I got a call from the Oklahoma Health Department and I have confirmed that, yes, I have COVID-19. We have thunder going on outside. So, it’s just all kinds of things.
“I haven’t felt well for a couple of weeks. So, I’ve been traveling and when I got off the road on March seventh and the eighth, I came back to Oklahoma City and really have been home since then.
“Here’s the thing I want to say to everybody. This is real. This is everything that they say that it is, and we just got to take it seriously. When we make the right choice to quarantine ourselves, not only are we protecting ourselves and thinking about ourselves; it’s the right decision for everybody else too. Do your part. God has given us faith, but He’s also given us wisdom. So, this is the time to utilize that wisdom. I wish you could see my husband behind the camera, yawning so bad. That’s the way we are.
“Pray safety and ‘God has not given us a spirit of fear, power and love and a sound mind.’” (2 Timothy 1:7)
Are you stressed out with all of the coronavirus news?
Are you getting stressed out by all the coronavirus news? Take a listen to a piece of Andy Eversole’s “Quarantined with You” love song for a humorous respite.
EVERSOLE: “Turn on the TV or the radio news. Everybody’s talking ‘bout those old virus blues. Can’t find no sanitizer or toilet tissues. Everybody’s talking ‘bout those old virus blues. There’s just one thing now that I know is true. If I’m going to be quarantined, I want to be with you. Close down the schools and cancel all the shows. What happens next? Only Jesus knows.”
Acts of kindness abound in midst of COVID crisis
And finally, from grocery shopping for the elderly to delivering meals or offering free classes online, acts of kindness during the coronavirus pandemic are providing uplifting moments of joy in a United States beset by anxiety, reports AFP.
Supermarkets across the country have reached out to help seniors, putting in place special hours for people 65 and over to ensure they avoid crowds.
Outside San Francisco, where residents have been ordered to stay home, a dentist, David Nisenboyn, is offering free emergency dental services to ease the congestion at hospital emergency rooms.
Further north, in the neighboring state of Oregon, the Shine Spirits distillery is turning byproduct into a hand cleaning solution with 80 percent alcohol.
Close
And that’s The Worldview in 5 Minutes on this Monday, March 23rd in the year of our Lord 2020. Subscribe by iTunes or email to our unique Christian newscast at www.TheWorldview.com. Or get the Generations app through Google Play or The App Store. I’m Adam McManus (adam@TheWorldview.com). Seize the day for Jesus
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5 Facts about the Chinese Coronavirus
Christian columnist Scott Alan Buss, wrote a fascinating column entitled “Keep Your Eye On The Bug: Don’t Let Anyone Distract You From Key Attributes Of Coronavirus.”
He writes, “Let’s start by calmly, coolly noting five key attributes of the novel Chinese Coronavirus as it actually exists and has been observed to function in the real world:
- “It has a much higher fatality rate than the average seasonal flu.Despite many a meme and wishful proclamation to the contrary, this bug is 10-30 times more likely to lead to death than the flu, though that figure spikes significantly from that already high level when the Coronavirus overwhelms medical systems, as it has repeatedly done already. (See: Italy, China, etc.)
. - “It causes a much higher rate of serious complications than the flu.This is a big deal when it comes to medical system capacity issues. When a person requires a hospital bed or intensive care unit as a result of Coronavirus, that vital resource is then unavailable for another person. Once these very finite resources are spoken for, they are gone, at least for the time being. This reality is a primary motivation for the #FlattenTheCurve movement.
. - “It is frequently transmitted by asymptomatic hosts.This means that you can be carrying it even though you don’t have any symptoms and appear to be completely healthy. Obviously, this makes spreading the bug very easy, especially in a culture unaccustomed or unwilling to embrace social distancing.
. - “It spreads much more easily and rapidly than the flu.Asymptomatic transmission combined with mind-blowingly easy/rapid transmissibility make it a lightning-fast moving contagion capable of quickly transforming cities, states, and nations from “nothing to worry about” to “it’s everywhere and our hospitals are overwhelmed” status. (See: New York City, Italy, China, etc.)
. - “It is very capable of overwhelming medical systems.This is the Big Thing that we should all be acknowledging and addressing on an individual level, regardless of what any government, politician, or “expert” has to say.”
Buss goes on to recognize 9 additional truths which in no way minimize those 5 facts.
- “The media is just trying to juice ratings by hyping coronavirus.
- “The Democrats are just trying to use coronavirus as a weapon against trump
- “Big pharma will just use this to push its vaccines.
- “Big government will just use this as an excuse to build more and bigger government programs.
- “China is just going to use this to try to gain an advantage over the U.S.
- “Tyrant wannabes in government will just use this as an excuse to crack down on freedom and control us even more.
- “Many businesses will be destroyed and lives will be economically scarred if we take coronavirus and social distancing seriously.
- “Warmongers desperate for distractions from a collapsing economy will just use coronavirus as cover to go to war.
- “Central banks will just use coronavirus as a reason to push for a cashless economy.”
Terrified package delivery employees are going to work sick
Hour after hour, day after day, the packages keep arriving: food, medicine, clothes, toys and a million other items brought to the doorsteps and building lobbies of Americans who are hunkering down as the coronavirus sweeps the land, reports the New York Times.
An increasing number of the workers sorting those boxes, loading them into trucks and then transporting and delivering them around the country have fallen sick.
They have coughs, sore throats, aches and fevers — symptoms consistent with the coronavirus. Yet they are still reporting for their shifts in crowded shipping facilities and warehouses and truck depots, fearful of what will happen if they don’t.
Angel Duarte, a package handler at a UPS hub in Tucson, Arizona, said, “I have been coming in sick because I’m worried that I’ll lose my job or just be punished if I call out. I am 23, and I have no savings, and I have a 4-month-old son.”