Friday, May 1, 2020
What a day!
For some reason, I was late. I have no idea how this happened as I’m typically punctual regardless of the traffic or the tardiness of others. If I was going to make it to Quito today, I needed to run. Oddly, I didn’t even have a carry-on in this hand but I did have my passport and tickets to Copa Flight 152 in my hands. I was in such a daze that I didn’t even recall passing through immigration. I could see my gate ahead, however, just as the attendant was closing the doors to the jet bridge! Time to use my “cheap psychology” as my wife always calls it. As I approached, I had already established my pretext, “Ma’am, my wife is on board waiting for me!”, I’d tell her. But before I could utter a word, she smiled, “Hey Brett, we were waiting for you.” “Oh, well, thank ‘you’ very much.” I couldn’t remember her name. Actually, I really had no idea who she was, but her new name was “you”. She let me through. I was still in a daze, but the walk along the solitary bridge was all too familiar.
Quito is yet another home for me. Deep roots were set there back when I met the Guthemberg family in 1992. Since then we’ve been together here and there for weddings, births, baptisms, work and every now and again, sometimes just because we needed to. But this time, I couldn’t recall why I was going. The plane was empty, so I took the seat of my choice. It worried me a bit, but it was going to be a great flight with the whole thing to myself. Then, just as I was buckling myself in, I felt something on my feet. It was cold, uncomfortable and started to… …hurt? No, it didn’t hurt, but something wasn’t right. I shifted, tried to unlock the belt, but to no avail. I was stuck in that damn seat with no one around to help. I twisted once more to the left and……opened my eyes. Still sluggish and a bit confused, I was roused by exposed feet and a poorly adjusted AC. Yes, my daze was lifted and I was home in bed. But it wasn’t my bed, my room nor was it my AC; I was in the guest bedroom. Now, before you jump to conclusions, I didn’t get in trouble. Well, not exactly. Yesterday a decision was made and priorities were set. There was a new addition to the family and in no way, shape or form could we turn back on the newly established house rules. By “we” I’m referring to me and the boys. And by “house rules” I’m referring to Sayira’s rules.
“Tweety” entered our lives yesterday and our new goal was to do everything possible to keep that bird alive. So why was I in the guest bedroom? Well, let’s just say that each dictatorship is a little different. I used to think that ours was that of an authoritarian oligarchy, but the mysterious fibers of time started to weave our “thing” into an autocracy. Not the King Louis XIV kind; more like Catherine the Great! That’s right, Queen Sayira was at the helm of this mess, but she was benevolent in nature. And through this benevolence, she wouldn’t get angry, instead, she used her own cheap psychology in the form of romantic sarcasm. And what is this “romantic sarcasm”, you ask? It’s a sarcastic response to each other’s’ wit with brutal sweet nothings added in, just like we did last night. It went something like this (I’ll underline the “romantic sarcasm”):
Me: Hey Amor, is there any particular reason that you have Tweety on the table next to our bed at 11:00 p.m. when we’re about ready to go to sleep?
Queen Sayira: Why yes, Honey Bear, that’s where he’s sleeping tonight.
(pause)
Queen Sayira: Cielo Mio, is there a problem with that?
Me (AKA The dumbass): Well, yeah… …most, amazing, beautiful woman in the whole wide world, of course there is. We can’t turn the AC on while he’s in here because he needs warmth.
Queen Sayira: The AC won’t be on tonight and before you ask, a light will be on to give him warmth. Any further questions, most amazing husband and unworthy servant? (Wait, what?!)
Me (AKA that guy that just needs to shut up): Oh greatest of greats and she that was thrust into my life by the divine grace of God and all that is holy, I can’t sleep like that.
Queen Sayira (AKA: The Benevolent One): Aren’t you the funniest man I’ve ever met? Here’s a pillow. There’s the guest room.
She didn’t end that with Romantic Sarcasm and that’s not good. Any further talk from this unworthy servant and she loses control of her benevolence. We’ve all seen it before and I knew that I only had two choices. Either I stayed in there silently with lights on, no AC, a chirping hungry bird and her knack for Menippean satire or I moved to the comfort of the guest bedroom. I may be unworthy, but I’m not stupid.
The good news is that the bird survived the night and actually looks pretty good for dog food and boiled egg-eating, no feathers having, miniature skeksis reincarnatethingamabob.
I later learned from my queen that Tweety didn’t eat a single time last night. Further research (youtube) shows that they don’t eat at night unless provoked to do so by momma bird. Well, THAT figures!
On another bird-related note, our third baby bird that was still in the nest as of yesterday, flew the coop and was absent from today’s snooping. A little more of that Circle of Life, I wrote about yesterday. The boys were crushed, but they’re also learning the importance of development and growth. In other words, you two young hatchlings will also someday leave this nest!
TOP NEWS and TIDBITS:
FLU VACCINES FOR OLDER ADULTS DRIVE-THRU FASHION IN DAVID POLYCLINIC
A vaccination day against influenza and pneumococcus, aimed at older adults, was carried out by medical authorities from the Gustavo A. Ross Polyclinic, in the province of David Chiriquí. The novelty of this day, is that to avoid the mobility problems that some older adults may present, a drive-thru was created from The Polyclinic’s medical director, Eduardo Castillo, highlighted the importance of these vaccines and pointed out that they started vaccination with those adults over 60 years of age.
CSS INITIATED RECEIPT OF CONVALING PLASMA FROM RECOVERED DONORS OF COVID-19
The director of the Social Security Fund (CSS), Enrique Lau, reported on Thursday that the Blood Bank of the Dr.Arnulfo Arias Madrid Hospital Complex (CHDr.AAM), began receiving the donation of convalescent plasma from people that have been recovered from COVID-19. The procedure consists of extracting the plasma from the patient recovered from the respiratory virus, which will later be administered to patients who are ill so that they can overcome COVID-19.
“This means that when a person suffers an infection with the COVID-19 virus, their body begins to produce antibodies. Those antibodies, once the person has passed the infection period, circulate, so they go to the Blood Bank, they take the blood and the solid component of the liquid is separated, which is the plasma, which will be rich in antibodies. These antibodies will then be injected into a person who currently has an active infection but is not capable of generating new antibodies, ”said Lau.
Hematologist Ricardo Aguilar explained that the process is not painful and is carried out with the help of a team called aferes, which separates the plasma from the blood. He indicated that the first patients to receive this plasma will be those who are located in the hospital ward by COVID-19.
“There is evidence that the patient’s enzymes with two weeks of recovery from this virus, increase their defenses in proteins known as immunoglobulins, so this plasma is transfused into the sick patient so that it can leave the disease crisis ”, he detailed. On the other hand, he reported that, since the middle of the month of March, in Panama the first approaches were made with researchers and scientists from the United States, who allowed using the protocols already developed for the application of this methodology. He stressed that the importance of protocols is based on patient and donor safety, to enforce ethical and scientific requirements.
19 CASES OF COVID-19 AT THE WOMEN’S JAIL
Of the total of 42 Covid-19 cases in all prisons in the country, 19 correspond to inmates of the Cecilia OrillacWomen’s Rehabilitation Center in Chiari in Panama and 23 to detainees in the Nueva Esperanza prison in Colón. This is reflected in data from the General Directorate of the Penitentiary System of the Ministry of Government. The last cases were registered precisely at the Cecilia OrillacWomen’s Rehabilitation Center in Chiari. For this reason, the prison authorities adopted measures so that the new inmates who arrive at that prison are isolated for 14 days in facilities fitted out for that period. This protocol was also activated in the Colón prison.
The Government Ministry through the Penitentiary System has granted sentence reductions to 176 inmates and deprived of liberty in the country as part of humanitarian aid to reduce overcrowding in prisons and thus prevent the spread of the virus. Recently, the president of the board of directors of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), Esmeralda Arosemena de Troitiño, called on the judges for the execution of sentences to order measures of house deposit in favor of those deprived of liberty who qualify .Likewise, the United Nations Human Rights Office asked to reduce the number of detainees to prevent the spread of the virus in prisons. This, due to the fact that the prison population of Panama is just over 16 thousand and the most common diseases have to do with respiratory deficiencies and asthma.
The Laurentino Cortizo government has issued four decrees for a reduction of sentence benefiting 176 detainees.
https://www.prensa.com/impresa/panorama/van-19-casos-de-covid-19en-la-carcel-de-mujeres/
DENGUE CASES IN THE METROPOLITAN REGION RISE TO 229
Two new cases of dengue positives have been confirmed by the health authorities of the Metropolitan Region, which brings the number to 229 cases, as announced by the entity in a statement. The operations and the pertinent response to the calls of the citizenry, before the possible sources of contamination in different areas, continue by the Metropolitan Health Region, as announced by the entity.
After receiving a complaint at the Parque Lefevre Health Center, vector department officials fumigated a residence that kept a large amount of accumulated scrap metal, which becomes a vital focus for the formation of hatcheries and increased Dengue case statistics, a statement said. Until April 23 of this year the number of people with dengue in the Metropolitan Region reached 227 people.
RESTAURANTS WILL CONTINUE CHARGING 7% OF ITBMS, DESPITE NOT SELLING LIQUOR
Consumers who order food through the delivery service must continue to pay the 7% ITBMS tax in the restaurants that provide the service and are licensed to sell liquor, although due to quarantine the sale of alcoholic beverages is prohibited by executive decree. . The owners of restaurants assure that they held meetings with representatives of the General Directorate of Income (DGI), to request that during this period of quarantine and dry law they be allowed to exempt consumers from 7% of the ITBMS on meals, but the response it was negative.
“They told us that we are registered as a company that contributes 7% and we must collect it. We cannot do anything else and punish a population that is currently in economic trouble, “said Domingo de Obaldia, president of the Association of Restaurants and Related of Panama (ARAP). In this regard, Publio de Gracia, general director of revenue, assured that the entity has no competence to exempt from the payment of taxes determined by law. “The power that the Tax Procedure Code gave us is only to authorize the deferral of the payment of taxes and not so to modify the taxable events or the aliquot,” the official remarked.
COMMERCIAL REALTY
The president of ARAP assures that currently, very few are the restaurants that are operational and that sales have decreased as a result of the economic crisis generated by the Covid-19 pandemic. “The few restaurants that have opened have found a very low volume of sales, almost 30% of what was sold before, because there is not much liquidity on the street,” said De Obaldía. Delivery costs have also become another obstacle for the sector.
“Many customers are complaining about the high prices being charged by the companies that handle delivery. There are some that have a preferential rate, but there are others that charge between $ 3.50 and $ 4.00 per shipment, “said De Obaldia.
In Panama City there are approximately 2,700 restaurants with a workforce of approximately 40,000 people. 95% of workers had their employment contracts temporarily suspended, according to ARAP. The vast majority of the 450 restaurants associated with ARAP have said that their staff does not appear on the list of beneficiaries of the Panama Solidario plan.
“We have been sending the list (of those affected) to the Ministry of Labor and the Presidency of the Republic and even so the staff does not appear, and that is worrying, because there are many restaurants that are not going to be able to help their collaborators by 15 May, and if that happens and also the collaborators are not receiving the benefits of the Panama Solidarity plan, there will be chaos. ”
COVID19 CASES ARE RISING IN VERAGUAS
COVID-19 cases in the province of Veraguas continue to increase, reaching 273 who confirmed positive. Daily, there are between 4 and 18 new cases registered. Experts point out that they have not yet reached the peak of the epidemic in the province. They predict that the increase will continue during the next two weeks. The authorities ask the population to stay at home to avoid contagion. A team of rapid response works on capturing suspicious cases and tests corresponding.
POLICE CLARIFY DETENTION OF SUBJECT DETAINED DURING PROCESS OF REFERRAL BEFORE THE JUSTICE OF THE PEACE
The National Police of Panama through a statement clarified the death of a citizen this Thursday, April 30, who after being detained in the Samaria sector was brought before a justice of the peace for disturbing public order and died before the legal proceedings.
“This person was arrested after service units in the Community Police Unit (UPC) of Samaria received several calls from residents of sector 1, stating that a man was throwing himself onto the road in front of the vehicles and assaulting passers-by who were walking through the sector, ” explains the statement.
The Police adds that the subject also jumped into the void on a bridge, attacked a pastor who tried to mediate, attacked the police units and chewed an amphibian.
The entity concluded the note assuring that after neutralizing the subject, he was taken to the nearest police substation in stable condition, two hours later he presented physical decompensation and was transferred to the Manuel María Valdés Polyclinic, where they determined his death.
https://www.telemetro.com/nacionales/2020/05/01/policia-aclara-deceso-retenido/2822160.html
Brett’s Comments: I know one of the officers on the scene. There’s no doubt that this person had serious problems and it was suggested that he was also under the effects of some drug or stimulant. The part that says he “chewed an amphibian”, well after jumping from the bridge, he grabbed a live toad from the street and took a bite out of it. You’re not right in the head if you do that. There were reports earlier that the police tazed him and he died. He did NOT die from being tazed.
STATUS UPDATE:
DEATHS FROM COVID-19 IN PANAMA INCREASE TO 192, THERE ARE 6,720 CASES IN TOTAL
- 6,720 positive cases
- 188 new cases
- 192 deaths
- 3,061 home isolation (1,127 hospital hotels)
- 361 are hospitalized (276 in the ward / 85 intensive care)
- 622 recovered by laboratory
- 2,484 recovered clinically
The head of epidemiology of the Ministry of Health of Panama (Minsa), Lourdes Moreno, added that to date a total of 31,895 tests have been carried out to detect COVID-19, of which 7,538 have been positive and 24,357 have been negative.
Coronavirus statistics from Day 1:
- Mon, March 9: 1 case
- Tues 10: 8 cases (+7)
- Wed 11: 14 cases (+6)
- Thu 12: 27 cases (+13)
- Fri 13: 36 cases (+9)
- Sat 14:43 cases (+7)
- Sun 15: 55 cases (+12)
- Mon 16: 69 cases (+14)
- Tues 17: 86 cases (+17)
- Wed 18: 109 cases (+23)
- Thu 19: 137 cases (+28)
- Fri 20: 200 cases (+63)
- Sat 21: 245 cases (+45)
- Sun 22: 313 cases (+68)
- Mon 23: 345 cases (+32)
- Tues 24: 443 cases (+98)
- Wed 25: 558 cases (+115)
- Thu 26: 674 cases (+116)
- Fri 27: 786 cases (+112)
- Sat 28: 901 cases (+115)
- Sun 29: 989 cases (+88)
- Mon 30: 1075 cases (+86)
- Tues 31: 1181 cases (+106)
- Wed April 1:1317 cases (+136)
- Thu 2: 1475 cases (+158)
- Fri 3: 1673 cases (+198)
- Sat 4: 1801 cases (+128)
- Sun 5: 1988 cases (+187)
- Mon 6: 2100 cases (+112)
- Tues 7: 2249 cases (+149)
- Wed 8: 2528 cases (+279)
- Thu 9: 2752 cases (+224)
- Fri 10: 2974 cases (+222)
- Sat 11: 3234 cases (+260)
- Sun 12: 3400 cases (+166)
- Mon 13: 3472 cases (+72)
- Tues 14: 3574 cases (+102)
- Wed 15: 3751 cases (+177)
- Thu 16: 4016 cases (+265)
- Fri 17: 4210 cases (+194)
- Sat 18: 4273 cases (+63)
- Sun 19: 4467 cases (+194)
- Mon 20: 4658 cases (+191)
- Tues 21: 4820 cases (+162)
- Wed 22: 4992 cases (+171)
- Thu 23: 5166 cases (+174)
- Fri 24: 5338 cases (+172)
- Sat 25: 5538 cases (+200)
- Sun 26: 5779 cases (+241)
- Mon 27: 6021 cases (+242)
- Tues 28: 6200 cases (+179)
- Wed 29: 6378 cases (+178)
- Thu, 30: 6532 cases (+154)
- Fri, May 1: 6720 cases (+188)
ENDNOTES
I’m working diligently on a Business Edition of my daily report. It will be a one-time report and I should have it out this weekend. There’s a lot going on in Panama and there are several Ex-Pats who conduct business or have major businesses and need to know what’s going on with COVID19 matters. One such matter is in reference to the “Day 1” opening of our businesses once the government gives the go to do so. What security and safety measures will we be required to implement to allow us to open? Can I start an e-commerce business right now to mediate the loss I’m sustaining due to the shutdown? How does the Salvoconducto work and where are we at with the process of adding employees to the list of validated individuals?
There really is a lot to cover and I hope to have it done sooner than later.
In the meantime,
Stay safe… Stay healthy… And by all means STAY HOME!!…
Great stuff mate!