President of U.S. Soccer quits after gender discrimination suit

Source: NBC News

Carlos Cordeiro resigned as U.S. Soccer Federation president on Thursday night, three days after the organization sparked a backlash when its legal papers in a gender discrimination lawsuit claimed the women's national team players had less physical ability and responsibility than their male counterparts.

His decision elevated former American midfielder Cindy Parlow Cone to become the first woman president in the history of the 107-year-old federation.

Cordeiro announced his resignation on Twitter without even telling the federation's communications staff. He stepped down on a day several USSF board members issued extraordinary rebukes that criticized the governing body's legal filings. Among them were Major League Soccer Commissioner Don Garber and Parlow Cone, the federation's vice president.

A night earlier, U.S. women wore their warmup jerseys inside-out to hide the federation crest before a game against Japan. Several of the federation's sponsors issued statements this week backing the players and condemning the USSF, including The Coca-Cola Co., Anheuser Busch Cos. Inc., The Procter & Gamble Co. and Volkswagen Group.

Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/sports/president-u-s-soccer-quits-after-gender-discrimination-suit-n1157516

Coronavirus in N.Y.: Riders Ditch the Subway as Fear Spreads

Source: New York Times

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which oversees the subway, buses and two commuter railroads, said that on Wednesday ridership fell by nearly 20 percent on subways and 15 percent on buses compared with a similar day last year. The subway system typically handles around 5.5 million riders each weekday.

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority, which oversees the subway, buses and two commuter railroads, said that on Wednesday ridership fell by nearly 20 percent on subways and 15 percent on buses compared with a similar day last year. The subway system typically handles around 5.5 million riders each weekday.

During the morning rush on Thursday, ridership on the Long Island Rail Road was down 31 percent, and on Metro-North Railroad, which serves suburbs north of New York, it was down by 48 percent compared with a similar rush hour last year, M.T.A. officials said.

Metro-North provides service to New Rochelle, the town in Westchester County that has been the site of the state’s worst outbreak and where Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo declared a “containment zone” to effectively quarantine part of the town.

Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/13/nyregion/coronavirus-subway-public-transit.html

Our niece and boyfriend were planning to come visit NYC and Washington from...

...Washington State (not in the hot zone, but would need to travel through). We've made it clear that this would be a very bad idea on multiple levels.

The Worst-Case Estimate for U.S. Coronavirus Deaths

Source: New York Times

Officials at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and epidemic experts from universities around the world conferred last month about what might happen if the new coronavirus gained a foothold in the United States. How many people might die? How many would be infected and need hospitalization?

One of the agency’s top disease modelers, Matthew Biggerstaff, presented the group on the phone call with four possible scenarios — A, B, C and D — based on characteristics of the virus, including estimates of how transmissible it is and the severity of the illness it can cause. The assumptions, reviewed by The New York Times, were shared with about 50 expert teams to model how the virus could tear through the population — and what might stop it.

The C.D.C.’s scenarios were depicted in terms of percentages of the population. Translated into absolute numbers by independent experts using simple models of how viruses spread, the worst-case figures would be staggering if no actions were taken to slow transmission.

Between 160 million and 214 million people in the U.S. could be infected over the course of the epidemic, according to one projection. That could last months or even over a year, with infections concentrated in shorter periods, staggered across time in different communities, experts said. As many as 200,000 to 1.7 million people could die.

Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/13/us/coronavirus-deaths-estimate.html?referringSource=articleShare

Presidential Leadership: Blame Someone Else...

Lin-Manuel Miranda shares an unreleased 'Hamilton' song to help us get through all this

Source: Los Angeles Times

“Hamilton” at the Hollywood Pantages Theatre has been postponed, but now, without compromising recommended social-distancing procedures, fans can listen to a song that was cut from the hit musical.

Amid the rapidly escalating developments around the coronavirus Thursday, “Hamilton” scribe and star Lin-Manuel Miranda took to Twitter to say he wished he could send everyone peace of mind via the platform. But since he couldn’t, he sent the next best thing: an unreleased “Hamilton” song.

“Here’s a cut Hamilton/Washington tune called ‘I Have This Friend,’” Miranda tweeted. “No one’s heard it, not even [‘Hamilton’ director Thomas] Kail.”

In the song, which is available on Soundcloud, Alexander Hamilton asks George Washington for advice for his “friend” who is “in a bit of a bind.” Miranda sings both parts.

Read more: https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/story/2020-03-12/lin-manuel-miranda-hamilton-washington-cut-song

Ohio health official estimates 100,000 people in state have coronavirus

Source: The Hill

A top health official in Ohio estimated on Thursday that more than 100,000 people in the state have coronavirus, a shockingly high number that underscores the limited testing so far.

Ohio Department of Health Director Amy Acton said at a press conference alongside Gov. Mike DeWine (R) that given that the virus is spreading in the community in Ohio, she estimates at least 1 percent of the population in the state has the virus.

"We know now, just the fact of community spread, says that at least 1 percent, at the very least, 1 percent of our population is carrying this virus in Ohio today," Acton said. "We have 11.7 million people. So the math is over 100,000. So that just gives you a sense of how this virus spreads and is spreading quickly."

She added that the slow rollout of testing means the state does not have good verified numbers to know for sure.

Read more: https://thehill.com/policy/healthcare/487329-ohio-health-official-estimates-100000-people-in-state-have-coronavirus

NPR: Trump blocked more COVID-19 testing in January to help his election chances

BREAKING: Biden campaign to send all workers home; switches to virtual fundraisers

Animation of COVID-19 spread