• Editor’s note: Yelm Council’s April 7 Study Session agenda has no plans to address the fiscal impact of COVID-19 on the city’s cash reserves.
• While Yelm Will Work With Financially Distressed Ratepayers to Defer Water, Sewer Payments,
• Sales tax and new building permit revenue will significantly drop in 2nd quarter.
• The council recently voted 5-2 to authorize a reclaimed water system design study that will use $1.89 million of the city’s $2 million sewer reserve.
• A $110,000 sewer reserve balance is little if an emergency breakdown arises!
• The next public council session is April 14th, and by then, the looming fiscal emergency impacts could well be at-hand!
• In Spring of 2018, Councilor Tad Stillwell encouraged the council to ensure funding for the purchase of the new city hall would remain intact.
• Stillwell reminded council that in the 2008-2009 downturn and at other times, the city deferred payments owed, in order to fund other new projects, which added to taxpayer’s interest expense.
• Maintenance and upgrades to the city’s reclaimed water system was deferred beginning in 2009, leading to issues there the city faces still to this day!
• However Yelm’s council will now be forced to look at deferring payments on the city hall building and other opportunities, just to conserve cash.
• Olympia and Lacey city councils are already addressing the impact of COVID-19 on their cash flow.
• Time is of the essence for Yelm to act on conserving city cash!
• In addition to public health, fiscal health is a city emergency of utmost urgency!

Olympia City Council takes action on multiple fronts to provide financial relief

“The City of Olympia began taking steps … to prepare for financial hardships caused by the new coronavirus outbreak,” by Will Rubin, The Olympian. Read more

“The $2 trillion relief bill is massive but it won’t prevent a recession”

“But economists say two key problems remain: Fixing the health crisis and getting money to people in time.

“Constance Hunter, chief economist at KPMG, predicts it will take at least six to 10 weeks for the government to get a significant amount of the money disbursed. That’s a long time for laid-off workers and small business owners with no money coming in to wait. It makes it less likely they will bounce back quickly.

“‘There isn’t some magic restart button for the economy,’ Hunter said. ‘Before the money arrives, there will be a lot of collateral damage to the economy. That’s going to make restarting it difficult.’

“James Bullard, a noted economist and head of the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, put out a chilling forecast of what’s ahead for the nation in the coming months: He expects 46 million Americans to be unemployed (30 percent of workers), and an unprecedented 50 percent decline in economic output,” by Heather Long, The Washington Post. Read more

‘Recovery is going to be extremely tentative’

“‘This is not your garden variety business cycle where a sharp downturn is followed by an equally sharp snapback,’ [Economist Stephen Roach] said. ‘We can restart production, but can we really restart consumption with people still scared and unwilling to go out and socialize and spend? So, I think the recovery is going to be extremely tentative.’

“According to Roach, a drop-off in consumption will be exacerbated by spiking unemployment.

“‘The longer that the damage is done to small and medium-sized businesses, the harder they’re going to find it to re-create their old business models and rehire in a way you would expect them to do in a normal business cycle recession,’ he added,” by Stephanie Landsman, CNBC. Read more

Inslee, law enforcement provide guidance to businesses, individuals for compliance with ‘Stay Home, Stay Healthy’ order

See a business violating COVID-19 order? You can take action

Thurston County’s 2020 First Half Property Tax Due Date extended to Monday, June 1, 2020.

At-home learning for all Washington students started March 30th

Nisqually Valley News requests paid subscriptions or financial donations to “Support Local Journalism”

How do you disinfect a home office? Tips for protecting yourself from coronavirus

Case of inmates seeking release amid coronavirus pandemic will be heard by state Supreme Court

Sister Cities International applauds lighting of the torch between Olympia, Washington and Olympia, Greece

Abolish For-Profit Health Insurance’: Analysis Warns Companies Could Hike Premiums by 40% Amid Pandemic

Could COVID-19 Spell the End of the Fracking Industry as We Know It?

Travel + Leisure Magazine’s ideas to travel around the world though these virtual links

Hotels Around the World Are Live Streaming Their Views to Make You Feel Like You’re on Vacation (Video)

Pandemic – The Ballad, by Laurie Vitt – “This song reflects how many Americans feel about the slow and misdirected response to COVID-19 by the Federal Government as more and more people become infected and die.”

Yelm Community Blog is 14 years old, begins 15th year!

– THANK YOU to readers of the Yelm Community Blog, now accessible
at YelmCommunity.org, YelmNews.com, and Yelm.com.

– Always free access, always without paid advertisements!

• Editor’s note:

The Yelm Community Blog was begun at the insistence of a supporter to my 2005 Yelm mayoral campaign, who said I had garnered so much knowledge during that election year, that to just walk away would be a travesty to the community. I heard this supporter’s message and with his encouragement, began the Yelm Community Blog on March 29, 2006 as a free service to the public and as a live archive of important stories of local and historical significance.

Click here for the first blog entry 14 years ago.

With the diminishing budgets of our newspapers, blogs have become part of the fabric in reporting important stories and events of local interest. This has been reflected in the increasing volume of site visitors, re-tweets and Twitter followers for this blog. So I thank you for your continued interest and support!

As always, you can e-mail me at info@yelm.com.

Thank you for your continued support.

Steve Klein
Host, Yelm Community Blog

Thank you to America’s heroes – By Lesley Stahl, CBS News, 60 Minutes (click right box under the main video)

Taco Bell CEO Mark King announced the fast food chain will give out free tacos across the United States on Tuesday, March 31.

Thurston Community Media (TCMedia) Community Cable Channels Can Now be Seen on the Internet.

Nutrition and Natural Strategies Offer Hope Against COVID-19

Stuck at home? There’s plenty for you to do in the yard

11 ways to travel the world without leaving your sofa

Not So Fast Using CPAPs In Place Of Ventilators. They Could Spread The Coronavirus.

Coronavirus crisis reveals the depth of our grace — and our greed – Italian priest gave up his respirator so another could live

Nisqually Red Wind Casino to Extend Casino Closure through April 13th.

Yelm Schools cancels April 14th Yelm Middle School groundbreaking event

WSDOT extends studded tire removal to April 30

More than 9,000 retired Army medical personnel respond to call for assistance with coronavirus pandemic

U.S. virus deaths could reach 200,000, Fauci warns as medical supplies run short

101-Year-Old Spanish Flu and World War 2 Survivor Has Now Beat COVID-19 As Well

“I don’t want you to be the backup quarterback, we need you to be Tom Brady here,” said a frustrated Gov. Inslee to Trump due to the federal lack of a coherent response, invoking the name of the football star who also happens to be a Trump friend.

The 1985 “U.S.A. For Africa – We Are the World (Official Video)” is required viewing during these times!

And The 2010 “We Are The World 25 For Haiti – Official Video” (with Lionel Ritchie, Barbra Streisand, Jennifer Hudson, Celene Dion, Tony Bennett, Gladys Knight, Josh Groban and many more!)

“Gays to blame for ‘wrath of God’ in coronavirus pandemic, White House minister says”

“A reverend who leads a weekly White House Bible study drew backlash after he appeared to suggest that gays and lesbians are among those to be blamed for the coronavirus pandemic.

“Rev. Ralph Drollinger wrote in a blog post the United States ‘is experiencing the forsaking wrath of God’ because of homosexuals, environmentalists, atheists and ‘depraved minds.'”

“‘The coronavirus could be a form of God’s cataclysmic wrath,’ he wrote.

“Drollinger, who operates Capitol Ministries, quoted Bible scripture and said ‘indicative of forsaking wrath is a proclivity toward lesbianism and homosexuality.'”

“Unfortunately for the vast majority of faithful individuals in America, too many of the unfaithful have been allowed by the faithful to gain high positions of influence in our culture: high positions in our government, our educational system, our media and our entertainment industry,’ Drollinger said. ‘This is tragic, unfortunate, and costly.'”

“More than 50 GOP lawmakers attend Drollinger’s Capitol Hill Bible study, according to The Intercept, by Mike Stunson, McClatchy News. Read more

• Editor’s note: Trump’s dangerous ‘cat & mouse” game with coronavirus reality in the forefront last week, and most of all yesterday (see bottom post).
• Trump ceded a leadership role in the U. S. to New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, while Germany’s Angela Merkel was heralded as the “leader of the free world” after her dynamic speech was delivered with empathy and understanding, something sorely lacking in our President.
• Trump’s 2-months-long statements of denial about coronavirus infections spreading through the U. S. was highlighted in a highly incriminating advertisement with his quotes.
• Below are some key stories bumped from the front page:

Priorities USA crafted an ad quoting 2 months of Trump’s misinformation!

State Governments Step In as Trump Makes Lethal Mistakes in COVID-19 Response

Coronavirus Could Infect Privacy And Civil Liberties Forever

Fighting coronavirus: U.S. military could help more if Trump wasn’t commander in chief

Trump team failed to follow NSC’s pandemic playbook

800,000 Doctors to Trump: Heed Expert Warnings and End Dangerous Campaign Against Social Distancing

Trump, rejecting blame, warns governors to be ‘appreciative’

Trump issues order to bring former troops back to active duty to assist in coronavirus response

‘Don’t call the governor of Washington.’ Trump holds Inslee grudge amid pandemic

Trump called A Rod, yet on calling former Presidents Obama, Bush, Clinton & Carter he said basically no, “I don’t think I’m going to learn much.”

Fox Business anchor who called coronavirus an ‘impeachment scam’ against Trump is out

Trump Reportedly Wants His Signature on Coronavirus Stimulus Checks rather than the usual civil servant’s

Senator says White House turned down emergency coronavirus funding in early February

The coronvirus ad which Trump’s campaign threatens legal action!

As Trump signals readiness to break with experts, his online base assails Fauci

Frank Figliuzzi: As coronavirus deaths mount, Trump’s handling of intelligence warnings looks worse and worse

If you liked TARP, you’ll love the new coronavirus bill

The Leader of the Free World Gives a Speech, and She [Merkel] Nails It

Citing Coronavirus, EPA Suspends Environmental Rules Indefinitely

• Editor’s note: Here we go – watch as the Trump Administration pauses and/or dismantles regulations with impunity, meant to protect the American public.

Trump backs off quarantine of New York area in favor of ‘strong’ travel advisory

• Editor’s note: Of course, this fully displayed Trump’s style in shooting from the hip without prior consultation with the Governors of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. Governor Cuomo of New York said this was unconstitutional and would sue to block this. Trump finally backed down on advice from VP Pence and the Coronavirus Task Force. Trump’s off-the-cuff “chopper talk” yesterday before flying in the helicopter to Andrew’s Air Force Base and on to Norfolk, VA. created quite the unrest in the Tri-State NY/NJ/CT region.

“Digital divide of US households without internet”

“Data from Pew Research Center shows large swaths of the U.S. are trying to cope without a household internet connection while much of the country hunkers down to work and shop from home.

“Before coronavirus hit the U.S., about 7% of private-industry workers had access to a flexible workplace benefit, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Those jobs tend to pay well, which helps explain why access to telework varies sharply by income, according to the Pew Research Center.

“Lack of internet access has also left millions of households cut off from vital services and information during the pandemic,” by Melodie Warner, John Schoen, CNBC. Read more

Coronavirus Cases, Concentrated on the Coasts, Now Threaten America’s Middle

“A second wave of coronavirus cases is charting a path far from coastal Washington State, California, New York and New Jersey, and threatening population centers in America’s middle. Emerging hot spots include smaller communities like Greenville, Miss., and Pine Bluff, Ark., and large cities like New Orleans, Milwaukee, Detroit and Chicago.”

“As the threat expands, the orders from state and local officials have sometimes been a chaotic, confusing patchwork. With mixed signals from the federal authorities in Washington, D.C., local leaders have wrestled with complicated medical and economic choices. Mayors and governors in Oklahoma, Massachusetts, South Carolina and Texas have clashed over which restrictions to impose on residents, dispensing contradictory instructions, even as their communities are being ravaged by the virus.”

“In Mississippi, the state government had largely resisted calls to put in place regulations around the virus. That had led to a jumble of regulations, as mayors of cities in Oxford, Jackson and Tupelo closed bars and restaurants and established shelter orders not much different than the rules in Houston, New Orleans, New York, Boston or San Francisco.

“‘You can only go so far with leading from below,‘ said Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba of Jackson, the capital, which has more than 31 confirmed infections. ‘We need the state,'” by Julie Bosman, The New York Times. Read more

Yelm’s Gather GastroPub now offers on-line pre-orders

Coronavirus Updates: What You Need to Know

UW model suggests mid-April peak for coronavirus in Washington state with scores more deaths

Gov. Inslee signs Washington plastic bag ban into law

It’s dangerous for public officials to cry ‘fake news’ during the COVID-19 pandemic

I’ve Spent 27 Years in Solitary Confinement. Here Are Some Tips on Making the Best Use of Time Alone. “You have to learn how to deal with yourself.”

San Francisco’s early restrictions seem to be helping hospitals avoid coronavirus overload — so far

American consumers, once bulwark of economy, are rapidly losing confidence

A letter to the UK [and the US] from Italy: this is what we know about your future

Army Corps eyes Seattle Seahawks stadium for hospital beds as coronavirus cases rise

Bob Dylan’s ‘Murder Most Foul’ is a 17-minute new song about JFK — and maybe coronavirus?

• Editor’s note: Brilliantly conveyed by Bob Dylan!

*Blogger Klein is a graduate and post-graduate of the University of Miami (FL).

Thurston County is with you – King, Pierce and Snohomish Counties!

• Editor’s note:
• In 1973, President Richard Nixon ordered the withdrawal of U.S. forces from Vietnam, with the draft ending that same year.
• While our volunteer military has been deployed in wars in Afghanistan, the Middle East and elsewhere, the country has not come together as a collective as with the Vietnam conflict or WW II.
• Recent generations have no experience of a country in sacrifice.
• We just don’t have a fatherly figure and unifying leader like FDR.
• The AP’s Michael Tackett’s thoughtful observation asks a key question:

“Of America and sacrifice: Is the country ready to step up?”

“For most Americans alive today, the idea of shared national sacrifice is a collective abstraction, a memory handed down from a grandparent or passed on through a book or movie.

“Not since World War II, when people carried ration books with stamps that allowed them to purchase meat, sugar, butter, cooking oil and gasoline, when buying cars, firewood and nylon was restricted, when factories converted from making automobiles to making tanks, Jeeps and torpedoes, when men were drafted and women volunteered in the war effort, has the entire nation been asked to sacrifice for a greater good.

“The civil rights era, Vietnam, the Gulf wars, 9/11 and the financial crisis all involved suffering, even death, but no call for universal sacrifice. President George W. Bush encouraged people to buy things after the terrorist attacks to help the economy — “patriots at the mall,” some called it — before the full war effort was underway. People lost jobs and homes in the financial crisis, but there was no summons for community response.

“Now, with the coronavirus, it’s as though a natural disaster has taken place in multiple places at once. Millions of people will likely lose their jobs. Businesses will shutter. Schools have closed. Thousands will die. Leaders are ordering citizens into isolation to stop the virus’ march.

“Suddenly, in the course of a few weeks, John F. Kennedy’s “ask what you can do for your country” injunction has come to life. Will Americans step up?” by Michael Tackett, Associated Press. Read more