Chicago - A message from the station manager

The [Wednesday] Papers

By Steve Rhodes

Boom.


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And:

Has anyone been able to get through to IDES? from r/chicago


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From a friend’s Facebook comment responding to Tuesday’s column:

I have properly applied for “regular,” got the card, activated it, certified twice (total of 4 weeks covered), got rejected and got rejected again by the first set of fields in the new freelance/gig portal, which sends me back to file for “regular” again. The “appeal” process doesn’t allow you to attach or upload documents. I faxed . . . and, lo, I wait.

Also, an IDES debit card just arrived in the mail. I’m not sure why. I’m not sure I want it. I thought I signed up for direct deposit. I’m not even really sure what this is. All I know is that it’s issued by KeyBank, which is apparently MasterCard.
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Oh, maybe that’s the card that my friend is referencing. Look, I’m a reasonably intelligent person and quite experienced journalist well-versed in the ways of government and public policy. I generally know how things work. And I’m befuddled. I’m not even sure I’ve actually properly applied for unemployment, but who ya gonna call?
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Don’t even get me started on the Paycheck Protection Program or Economic Injury Disaster Loan.
But . . .


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Undercounting Everything
“The COVID-19 crisis has sent the US jobs market reeling. As of April 16, more than 22 million workers had filed unemployment claims since the shutdowns began in March,” the Chicago Booth Review says.
“But the real unemployment figures are likely higher than reported, suggests research by University of Texas’s Olivier Coibion, University of California at Berkeley’s Yuriy Gorodnichenko, and Chicago Booth’s Michael Weber. Despite catastrophic job losses, an increase in workers dropping out of the labor force altogether may mean the official unemployment rate is misleadingly low, they argue.”
Isn’t that a given in our economic understanding at this point – even without a pandemic?
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Also, we all understand by now that the coronavirus death toll is understated too, right? And is everybody over Deborah “Baghdad” Birx yet, as I was from day one?


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What if we had a National Honesty Day where everyone was honest for 24 hours? Or a National Honesty Week? Or better yet, forget flouride, let’s put truth serum in the drinking water.
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Roseland’s Remdesivir
“Chicago’s Roseland Community Hospital has been on the front lines of the pandemic, treating many patients who have COVID-19 and testing close to 11,000 people for the virus over the past few months,” WTTW-TV reports.
“The safety-net hospital, with a majority of patients on Medicaid, has seen 27 coronavirus-related deaths so far.
“But Roseland wasn’t included in Illinois’ recent distribution of remdesivir, a move that’s angered hospital officials. Remdesivir is the only medicine that’s been authorized by the Food and Drug Administration on an emergency basis for treating COVID-19.

“We got nothing. Once again, Roseland Hospital is getting shortchanged. Are people in Roseland not as sick as the people in other parts of the city? No. That’s BS. They’re just as sick and they’re dying. They’re just as dead,” said Tim Egan, the hospital’s president and CEO.

“Only 14 Illinois hospitals received a limited supply of the drug from the state this week, enough to treat about 700 patients. Illinois Department of Public Health Director Dr. Ngozi Ezike says the state hopes to receive more from the federal government.”
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See also: After Reports Of Chaos And Confusion, White House Announces New Plan For Remdesivir Distribution.
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Beer Bummer
“Chicago beer drinkers could see a shortage of popular imported Mexican brands as soon as next week due to an ongoing shutdown of Mexico’s beer industry,” the Tribune’s Josh Noel reports.
“Most immediately at risk are the brands owned by Heineken USA, including Dos Equis Tecate and Bohemia.
“Should the shutdown persist, beers owned by Constellation Brands – which include Modelo Especial, Corona and Pacifico – may also be in shorter supply by summer.”
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New from the Beachwood sports desk today . . .
Michael’s Mindfuck
* Coffman: Michael Jordan’s Regrets(?)
* Wallenstein: How Jordan Led.
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New From The Post Office: American Gardens Stamps
Including the Chicago Botanical Garden – and why posting about new stamps has become a political act.
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And the aforementioned . . .
How The Bailout Is Working – For The Rich
Food lines for some, and this for others:
“The S&P 500 is now up 30% from its lows in mid-March and back to where it was last October, when the outlook for 2020 corporate earnings looked sunshiny. Companies have sold record amounts of debt in recent weeks for investment-grade companies. Junk bonds, historically dodgy during an economic swoon, have roared back.
“If you’re looking for investors’ verdict on who has won the bailout, consider these returns: Shares of Apollo Group, the giant private equity firm, have soared 80% from their lows. The stock of Blackstone, another private equity behemoth, has risen 50%.”
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ChicagoReddit

Has anyone gotten a COVID antibody test? from r/chicago


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ChicagoGram


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ChicagoTube
“Goodbye Chicago Waltz” / Dynabrass

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TweetWood
A sampling of the delight and disgust you can find @BeachwoodReport.


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The Beachwood Q-Tip Line: Drink the Kool-Aid.

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Posted on May 13, 2020