Good morning
The re-preamble: Given what’s going on in the world due to the coronavirus outbreak, I’m sending out a daily newsletter to help keep things in perspective. The news, for the most part, isn’t pretty, and I think it’s important that we all understand what’s going on so that we can make better decisions as to how to deal with it in our lives.
It’s Tuesday.
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Stimulus bills are still up in the air.
We’ve been waiting since last week to see what additional measures the government is going to take to keep the economy afloat, as businesses shut down and people across the country are being ordered to stay at home. The main issue, right now, is differences in how policymakers want to dole out relief funds.
The Senate failed to pass a bill yesterday, and today, it looks like the House will introduce a new plan. We’ll have to wait and see what happens next.
Remember, too, that stimulus bills aren’t a silver bullet. Not everyone will qualify for a stimulus check, and even $1,200 isn’t going to do much, or last very long, for a majority of Americans. And it’ll be interesting to see which businesses and industries get bailed out, too.
15 days...
The president is champing at the bit to get people out of their homes and back to work. Yesterday, he and many of his surrogates and aides started talking about how the “cure” for the problem can’t be worse than the problem itself, and implied that the federal government would start pushing people to get back to work — while protecting the high-risk population — at the end of the 15-day social distancing guidance.
It’s easy to understand why: We want to lessen the economic damage the coronavirus is going to cause. But this seems unrealistic and is a message that comes in sharp contrast to what his medical and public health advisors are saying.
In short, you shouldn’t expect an all-clear to return to work from anyone this week, next week, or the week after.
Who’s hiring?
People I know personally are now being diagnosed with coronavirus, and are starting to lose their jobs. So, the virus has officially hit home for me, as I’m sure it is for many of you, too. While I try to include some actionable advice in this newsletter, given the unprecedented nature of what’s going on, I’ve had a hard time coming up with any.
But I will say that if you’ve been laid off or are otherwise out of work, there are some places that are hiring. In my local area, grocery stores are hiring lots of new workers to keep shelves stocked, as are some restaurants who need delivery drivers. Amazon, too, is hiring people to work in warehouses. So, there are some opportunities out there.
Finally, just for fun, the blog Uni Watch, which digs into the minutiae of sports uniform design (it’s more interesting than it sounds) has some pretty funny ‘coronavirus-inspired’ logo redesigns. Check it out.
Sam