Dorothy & Rebecca

March 9, 2020

Dorothy Day [1997-1980], journalist and social activist, was 8 years old on the night of April 18th, 1906, living in Oakland, during the San Francisco earthquake.

‘There were broken dishes all over the floor, along with books, chandeliers, and pieces of the ceiling and chimney. The city was in ruins, too, temporarily reduced to poverty and need. But in the days after, Bay Area residents pulled together. “While the crisis lasted, people loved each other,” she wrote in her memoir decades later. “It was as though they were united in [compassionate] solidarity. It makes one think of how people could, if they would, care for each other in times of stress, unjudgingly in pity and love” [David Brooks, The Road to Character, 2015, pp. 74-75.].’

‘Writer and editor Paul Elie has said,  “A whole life is prefigured in that episode”…the crisis, the tense of God’s nearness, the awareness of poverty, the feeling of loneliness and abandonment, but also the sense that that loneliness can be filled by love and community, especially through solidarity with those in the deepest need [Brooks, p. 75].’

The most startling thing about disasters, according to award-winning author Rebecca Solnit, is not merely that so many people rise to the occasion, but that they do so with joy. That joy reveals an ordinarily unmet yearning for community, purposefulness, and meaningful work that disaster often provides. 

A Paradise Built in Hell is an investigation of the moments of altruism, resourcefulness, and generosity that arise amid disaster’s grief and disruption and considers their implications for everyday life. It points to a new vision of what society could become-one that is less authoritarian and fearful, more collaborative and local.

NYTimes:

“What is this feeling that crops up during so many disasters?” Ms. Solnit asks. She describes it as “an emotion graver than happiness but deeply positive,” worth studying because it provides “an extraordinary window into social desire and possibility.” Our response to disaster gives us nothing less than “a glimpse of who else we ourselves may be and what else our society could become.” Her overarching thesis can probably be boiled down to this sentence: “The recovery of this purpose and closeness without crisis or pressure” — without disaster, that is — “is the great contemporary task of being human.”

In “A Paradise Built in Hell” Ms. Solnit probes five disasters in depth: the 1906 earthquake and fires in San Francisco, the Halifax munitions cargo ship explosion of 1917, the Mexico City earthquake of 1985, the events of 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina. She also writes about the London blitz, Chernobyl and many other upheavals and examines the growing field of disaster studies [2009].

Idaho COVID-19

Please note: The CDC is not accurate and has removed particular pages in relation to testing, i.e., the site has been politically compromised by the current WH administration. For more complete information visit the Johns Hopkins website or the World Health Organization [WHO] website. –dayle

http://www.centerforhealthsecurity.org/resources/COVID-19/

https://www.who.int

From the state of Idaho:

“Idaho public health officials are monitoring the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) situation very closely. Idaho is currently reporting no cases. [As of 3.9.20 at 1 pm.]

Officials are working with CDC and other states and are also in regular communication with Idaho public health districts and healthcare providers around the state. We are prepared to respond if someone is sick or exposed.” 

https://coronavirus.idaho.gov/

Idaho’s South Central Public Health District has opened an informational hotline for  concerns about the novel coronavirus:

208-737-1138

Th hotline will be accessible from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

The South Central Public Health District is also updating information on its website, phd5.idaho.gov, and its social media pages.

From James Dawson at Boise State Public Radio:

Idaho health insurers Blue Cross, Regence, SelectHealth, Pacific Source and Mountain Health Co-Op are all voluntarily waiving costs for #Coronavirus testing. There are still no confirmed cases here and 10 people are still being monitored. @RadioDawson

“CEO of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations Dr Richard Hatchett explains the long-term dangers of the Covid-19 coronavirus – saying it’s the scariest outbreak he’s dealt with in his 20-year career.”
UPDATE 3.10.2020
State of Idaho Department of Insurance:
‘Health insurance carriers waiving co-sharing for Coronavirus testing BOISE, ID – In an effort to protect Idaho individuals and families, health insurance carriers are waiving co-sharing for Coronavirus testing. While other states mandated the waiving of the co-sharing action, Idaho health insurance carriers voluntarily took this responsible action. For Idahoans who are insured on employer-based, selffunded plans that may not be waiving, it is advised they consult with their HR department. The Idaho carriers waiving co-sharing are:
  • Blue Cross
  • Regence
  • SelectHealth
  • Pacific Source
  • Mountain Health Co-Op
“We are in full support of Governor Little’s initiative to protect Idahoans in preparations for the Coronavirus,” said Director Dean Cameron. “We are thankful there are currently no reported cases in Idaho, and we commend our health insurance carriers for their compassion and assistance for Idaho families in waiving co-sharing.”’
Clean Web Design