03 May, LV A.S.

1. The Devil’s Advocate

Time Stamp: 16:17

• Ritual Aesthetics
  • Favorite artifacts
    • Sword, gong and bell
  • Simplicity speaks volumes
    • Clutter takes away from focus
  • Familiarity Breeds contempt
    • Keep your implements exotic, don’t engage with them outside of the chamber
  • Customize your robes (clothes)
    • Your individualism feeds your vital saltes/adrenal energies
  • Remember: The devil is in the details

2. Infernal Informant

Time Stamp: 37:02

• Why You Should Return to Work Even If Unemployment Pays More
  https://www.fool.com/investing/2020/05/03/why-you-should-return-to-work-even-if-unemployment.aspx
  • The larger unemployment check may be nice now, but you may regret staying home from work later.
  • the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act may be having unintended consequences.
  • dramatically expands state unemployment benefits to help households hang on financially through these unprecedented times. 
  • Unfortunately, those robust unemployment benefits may be too generous, as some workers are declining offers from former employers to return to the workforce.
  • Consider Alabama, which previously had a maximum weekly unemployment benefit of $275. The additional $600 increases that maximum to $875, which would be an income increase to anyone who was formerly making less than $45,000 a year. Even in Massachusetts, where benefits are the highest in the country, the extra $600 equates to a “raise” of 73%.
  • But there are longer-term benefits — for you, your employer, and the economy — associated with making the tough choice to go back to work
  • 1. You may regret staying home later
    • The $600 supplement is a temporary benefit that expires on July 31, 2020. Starting on August 1, your benefit will return to the normal amount allowed by your state. 
    • If you do choose to sit tight at home until July, you won’t be the only one hitting the job market this summer. The Economic Policy Institute predicts a nationwide unemployment rate of 15.6% in July of this year. 
    • To put that in perspective, the highest unemployment rate experienced during the Great Recession was 10% in October 2009.
  • 2. You may lose benefits like health insurance
    • healthcare and retirement benefits are worth a pretty penny. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, benefit costs on average account for nearly 30% of an employee’s total compensation.
    • You’d have to extend your health insurance through COBRA, which is notoriously expensive, or purchase a plan on the healthcare marketplace under a special enrollment period.
    • The loss of retirement plan benefits, such as a 401(k), may not be as impactful in the short term. But it could be very expensive later on. that will cost you thousands in missed contributions and lost earnings.
  • 3. You may disqualify yourself from unemployment
    • you are supposed to accept suitable job offers while you’re receiving unemployment.
    • Under provisions in the CARES Act, you do qualify for unemployment if you turn down a job for a coronavirus-related reason.
  • 4. You may put your employer in a tight spot
    • Under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), established by the CARES Act, small businesses can apply for enough money to fund eight weeks of their payroll costs. They can also use the money to pay for certain overhead expenses, including mortgage payments, rent, and utilities. These are loaned funds that will be forgiven, as long as employers meet certain requirements:
      • PPP recipients must keep employees on the payroll or quickly bring back employees that have been furloughed or let go.
      • At least 75% of the forgiven amount must be used for payroll.
    • If the employer’s salaries and wages decrease or the funds are used for other purposes, the employer will lose eligibility for loan forgiveness and have to repay some or all of the PPP funds.

• Florida man stalks beach as Grim Reaper to protest reopening amid pandemic
  https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/may/02/florida-grim-reaper-beach-video-coronavirus
  • Death goes viral on social media after attorney dresses up to alert Floridians to the dangers of reopening their economy too soon
  • Florida’s governor, Ron DeSantis, announced on Friday that state parks will soon reopen, even as the coronavirus pandemic continued and Death himself
  • the Grim Reaper in question was actually Daniel Uhlfelder, a lawyer and campaigner for public beach access who put on a cowl and wielded a scythe in an attempt to alert Floridians to the dangers of reopening their economy too soon.
  • Uhlfelder told CNN: “We aren’t at the point now where we have enough testing, enough data, enough preparation for what’s going to be coming to our state from all over the world from this pandemic. “I know how beautiful and attractive our beaches are. But if we don’t take measures to control things, this virus is going to get really, really out of control.”
  • According to researchers at Johns Hopkins University, there have been more than 1.1m confirmed cases of Covid-19 in the US and more than 65,000 deaths. There have been nearly 35,000 cases in Florida, and just over 1,300 deaths.
  • Uhlfelder hopes to use his protest to reap donations to Democrats running for Congress.
  •  DeSantis, a Republican, defended the reopening of some beaches. cited a controversial Department of Homeland Security (DHS) study he said showed sunlight, heat and humidity – plentiful commodities in Florida – can kill Covid-19.
  • The DHS has said the study is preliminary and is undergoing peer review.

3. Creature Feature

Time Stamp: 55:40

• The Great Outdoors
  • There is beauty that can only be experienced. Photos don’t do it justice.
  • It’s not just the visual, it’s the atmosphere
    • Air, environment, others
  • Connection to the land, to your friends or family, but most importantly with yourself
  • Be prepared for inclement weather and always being a snack
    • Don’t forget about your animals!