Chicago - A message from the station manager

The Weekend Desk Report

By Steve Rhodes

“Chicago police broke up at least two house parties Saturday night as dozens of people there defied orders to stay at home and keep away from large groups during the coronavirus pandemic,” CBS2 Chicago reports.
This demonstrates the importance of the state’s stay-at-home order – and that the state and city mean business.


*
“Police got a call about a party in the Noble Square neighborhood. Officers showed up around midnight and found dozens of people inside a home near Greenview Avenue and Blackhawk Street. Officers then told everyone to leave.”
Make no mistake, parties endanger lives and the police breaking them up saves lives.
“Not too long after that police got a call for a large gathering in the Austin neighborhood at an apartment building in the 4900 block of West Van Buren. Two men leaving the party were even wearing protective face masks.”
Sometimes the job of the police is to serve and protect people from their dumb selves.
–
Chicago Death Toll
“Two more Cook County residents who deaths are attributed to coronavirus have been identified, bringing the total number of confirmed deaths in the county to four,” according to the Sun-Times Media Wire. “Both were from Chicago.”
A week from now these will seem like the good old days.
–
Bearly Helping
“The Bears have stepped up and made a donation to help the Chicago community in the wake of the COVID-19 outbreak in the U.S.,” NBC Sports Chicago notes. “The Bears organization is donating $250,000 to the Chicago Community COVID-19 Response Fund.”


*
The McCaskey family has a net worth of $1.3 billion, which is odd considering that the team they own is valued at $3.5 billion, but at any case, I’d hardly consider throwing $250K into a coronavirus fund “stepping up.”
–
Crazy Bernie
“As COVID-19 continues to spread, many people are scared they or their loved ones will fall ill,” the Tribune reports.
“Those fears are especially acute for those who don’t have health insurance – some of whom lack coverage because they can’t afford plans sold on the Affordable Care Act exchange.”
As some of you know, I’ve taken an eight-week job as a field office supervisor for the U.S. Census here – if we ever get going in light of the pandemic. I took the job for the extra cash – and also because I think it will be fun and interesting.
But here’s the thing: The extra money I’ll make may make me ineligible for Medicaid, in which case I’ll have to buy health insurance on the Obamacare market. And guess what? That shit is expensive. I’m not sure it’s worth it. I may be better off at poverty-line level income. Thanks, Obama!
*
“[F]ar fewer people in Illinois are uninsured now than a decade ago, before the law was signed,” the Tribune notes.
But if you can’t afford to use your insurance, are you really insured?
*
“This month marks 10 years since President Barack Obama signed the law – an anniversary that’s colliding with an unprecedented health care crisis. It’s a turn of events that will undoubtedly highlight both how the law has improved access to health insurance for many, and how it’s fallen short.”
If only this were, say, a presidential election year with a major candidate whose centerpiece issue was universal health care.
*
This article has a word count of 2,362. To the unitiated, that’s long for a newspaper story, which would typically weigh in a maybe 800 to 1,400 words. My Chicago magazine articles usually totalled around 5,000 words.
And yet, words not appearing among those 2,362:

“Bernie”
“Sanders”
“Medicare for All”
“universal”

And the verdict on Obamacare? He said-she said. On the one hand, on the other. Shrug.
–
States’ Rights To Die
“Federal delay in procuring masks, gloves and other medically needed protective equipment has forced states to be “competing against each other” and overpaying as the coronavirus crisis continues to explode, Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Sunday,” the Sun-Times notes.

“With governors of other big states – especially California and New York – shopping the world for supplies with open wallets, Pritzker told host Jake Tapper on CNN’s State of the Union, “We’re all competing against each other. This should have been a coordinated effort by the federal government.”

The state of the Union is fucked.
*
“President Donald Trump has yet to invoke a national law to allow him to order U.S. manufacturers to make desperately needed personal protective equipment – known as PPE – instead relying on volunteer efforts of the nation’s companies.”
And that is not working out.
Maybe those partygoers have the right idea after all.
–
New on the Beachwood . . .
Kenny Rogers In The Beachwood
Including how one asshole ruined “The Gambler” for me.
*
The Beachwood Radio Sports Hour #296: Foles Gold
Least bad move. Plus: Alternate Sports Programming; Thank You (Again), NFL!; Tom Brady Is A Buccaneer; Bears Transactions; Bowman (& Co.) Will Be Back; Gar Forman On Way Out Again; UICUL8R; Elk Grove Village Bails On Bahamas Bowl; Cubs, White Sox DNP.
*
Asian Carp DNA Test
100% that fish.
*
Prosecuting U.S. War Crimes In Afghanistan
Guess who’s standing in the way? The U.S.
*
Poles In Illinois
“The first comprehensive history to trace the abundance and diversity of this ethnic group throughout the state from the 1800s to the present.”
*
24 Hours With HGTV
Sheltering in place.
–
Weekend ChicagoReddit

What happens if your lease is up during Shelter-in-Place order in Chicago? from r/chicago


–
Weekend ChicagoGram

View this post on Instagram

Hands not touching hands. #handart #ravenswood #chicago #streetart

A post shared by NTordai (@erzsebeteresze) on


–
Weekend ChicagoTube
Chicago Northern Soul: “Music” / The Festivals

–
Weekend BeachBook
Her Facebook Friends Asked If Anyone Was Actually Sick. She Had An Answer.

*
A ‘Drop The Mic’ Moment For A Man Who Paid College Basketball Recruits.

*
What Makes A Hotel Breakfast ‘Continental?’

*
What Bernie Said.

*
What’s It Like To Audition For AC/DC?

*
The Wonderful 3-D Diorama Art Of Old View-Master Reels.

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


*


*


*


*


–
The Weekend Desk Tip Line: Exceptional.

Permalink

Posted on March 22, 2020