(California Court of Appeal) - Reversed judgment and reinstated jury verdict in favor of Plaintiff. The trial court granted Defendant, Wells Fargo’s motions including a motion for judgment notwithstanding the jury verdict that found Wells Fargo committed fraud in a Home Affordable Mortgage Program case. The appeals court reversed the rulings and the judgment that it found in favor of Wells Fargo and remanded for further proceedings consistent with appeals court ruling.

118 confirmed Covid-19 cases in Bermuda, Swizzle South Shore to close down permanently, House of Assembly in session today, Colonial to...

Warwick Academy, in partnership with Lir Bermuda, has created a line of masks for students, staff, and frontline workers. A spokesperson said,...

Dr. Carika Weldon attended the Government press briefing held on Wednesday [May 6] in order to provide a scientific overview of Bermuda’s...

Essential workers are being given a 20 percent discount on a luxury catamaran charter as a ‘thank you’ by Sail Bermuda for their work during the...

[Ministerial statement by Minister of Public Works Lt/Col David Burch] Mr. Speaker, it was only a few short months ago that the world was hit with a...

Earlier today [May 8], Governor John Rankin and the Minister of National Security Wayne Caines visited Warwick Camp to mark the 75th Anniversary of...

Saturday, May 9 is expected to be windy with a few clouds from time to time, with the high to be near 23°C/73°F and the low to be near 17°C/62°F,...

[Ministerial statement by Minister of Home Affairs Walter Roban] Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to report to this Honourable House on the progress of the...

With an aim to expand the way they deliver their news to the community, the Bermuda Broadcasting Company is continuing to live stream their evening...

[Updating] Police can be seen in the Warwick area this evening [May 8], with crime scene tape visible, and unofficial information indicating that...

Despite the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, the container ship Oleander continues to work as a “ship of opportunity that acquires important ocean...

Man shot in Warwick, 118 confirmed Covid-19 cases in Bermuda with five care homes now affected, Minister Curtis Dickinson updates on Covid-19...

The Department of Marine & Ports Services has released the weekly shipping schedule for ship arrivals commencing on Saturday May 9th. On Sunday...

By Rob Stein, Carmel Wroth, Alyson Hurt

To safely phase out social distancing measures, the U.S. needs more diagnostic testing for the coronavirus, experts say. But how much more?

The Trump administration said on April 27 that the U.S. will soon have enough capacity to conduct double the current amount of testing for active infections. The country has done nearly 248,000 tests daily on average in the past seven days, according to the nonprofit COVID Tracking Project. Doubling that would mean doing about 496,000 a day.

Will that be enough? What benchmark should states try to hit?

One prominent research group, Harvard's Global Health Institute, proposes that the U.S. should be doing more than 900,000 tests per day as a country. This projection, released Thursday, is a big jump from its earlier projection of testing need, which had been between 500,000 and 600,000 daily.

Harvard's testing estimate increased, says Ashish Jha, director of the Global Health Institute, because the latest modeling shows that the outbreak in the United States is worse than projected earlier.

"Just in the last few weeks, all of the models have converged on many more people getting infected and many more people [dying]," he says.

But each state's specific need for testing varies depending on the size of its outbreak, explains Jha. The bigger the outbreak, the more testing is needed.

On Thursday, Jha's group at Harvard published a simulation that estimates the amount of testing needed in each state by May 15. In the graphic below, we compare these estimates with the average numbers of daily tests states are currently doing.

Two ways to assess whether testing is adequate

To make their state-by-state estimates, the Harvard Global Health Institute group started from a model of future case counts. It calculated how much testing would be needed for a state to test all infected people and any close contacts they may have exposed to the virus. (The simulation estimates testing 10 contacts on average.)

"Testing is outbreak control 101, because what testing lets you do is figure out who's infected and who's not," Jha says. "And that lets you separate out the infected people from the noninfected people and bring the disease under control."

This approach is how communities can prevent outbreaks from flaring up. First, test all symptomatic people, then reach out to their close contacts and test them, and finally ask those who are infected or exposed to isolate themselves.

Our chart also shows another testing benchmark for each state: the ratio of tests conducted that come back positive. Communities that see about 10% or fewer positives among their test results are probably testing enough, the World Health Organization advises. If the rate is higher, they're likely missing a lot of active infections.

What is apparent from the data we present below is that many states are far from both the Harvard estimates and the 10% positive benchmark.

Just nine states are near or have exceeded the testing minimums estimated by Harvard; they are mostly larger, less populous states: Alaska, Hawaii, Montana, North Dakota, Oregon, Tennessee, Utah, West Virginia and Wyoming.

Several states with large outbreaks — New York, Massachusetts and Connecticut, among others — are very far from the minimum testing target. Some states that are already relaxing their social distancing restrictions, such as Georgia, Texas and Colorado, are far from the target too.

Jha offers several caveats about his group's estimates.

Estimates are directional, not literal

Researchers at the Global Health Initiative at Harvard considered three different models of the U.S. coronavirus outbreak as a starting point for their testing estimates. They found that while there was significant variation in the projections of outbreak sizes, all of the models tend to point in the same direction, i.e., if one model showed that a state needed significantly more testing, the others generally did too.

The model they used to create these estimates is the Youyang Gu COVID-19 Forecasts, which they say has tracked closely with what's actually happened on the ground. Still, the researchers caution, these numbers are not meant to be taken literally but as a guide.

Can't see this visual? Click here.

If social distancing is relaxed, testing needs may grow

The Harvard testing estimates are built on a model that assumes that states continue social distancing through May 15. And about half of states have already started lifting some of those.

Jha says that without the right measures in place to contain spread, easing up could quickly lead to new cases.

"The moment you relax, the number of cases will start climbing. And therefore, the number of tests you need to keep your society, your state from having large outbreaks will also start climbing," warns Jha.

Testing alone is not enough

A community can't base the decision that it's safe to open up on testing data alone. States should also see a consistent decline in the number of cases, of two weeks at least, according to White House guidance. If their cases are instead increasing, they should assume the number of tests they need will increase too.

And, Jha warns, testing is step one, but it won't contain an outbreak by itself. It needs to be part of "a much broader set of strategies and plans the states need to have in place" when they begin to reopen.

In fact, his group's model is built on the assumption that states are doing contact tracing and have plans to support isolation for infected or exposed people.

"I don't want anybody to just look at the number and say, we meet it and we're good to go," he says. "What this really is, is testing capacity in the context of having a really effective workforce of contact tracers."

The targets are floors, not goals

States that have reached the estimated target should think of that as a starting point.

"We've always built these as the floor, the bare minimum," Jha says. More testing would be even better, allowing states to more rapidly tamp down case surges.

In fact, other experts have proposed that the U.S. do even more testing. Paul Romer, a professor of economics at New York University, proposed in a recent white paper that if the U.S. tested every resident, every two weeks, isolating those who test positive, it could stop the pandemic in its tracks.

Jha warns that without sufficient testing, and the infrastructure in place to trace and isolate contacts, there's a real risk that states — even those with few cases now — will see new large outbreaks. "I think what people have to remember is that the virus isn't gone. The disease isn't gone. And it's going to be with us for a while," he says.

Can't see this visual? Click here.

Daniel Wood contributed to this report.

By Drew Sandsor

Updated 4:45 p.m.

For the first time, every eligible voter in California will get a mail-in ballot, Gov. Gavin Newsom announced Friday during his daily coronavirus briefing. 

Newsom signed the executive order Friday, saying it was a matter of voter safety.

"Not to feel like they have to go into a concentrated, dense environment where their health may be at risk, we'll provide an additional asset, an additional resource, by way of voting by mail," Newsom said.

Newsom said there will be physical voting sites as well with safety measures put in place to protect against the spread of COVID-19. Newsom's executive order is solely for the November general election.

Voting by mail has been steadily increasing. During California's March statewide primary, a record 72 percent of the ballots cast were mail-in.

Newsom held his daily briefing at a Sacramento florist shop that reopened Friday under the state's next phase of economic recovery. It allows non-essential retailers to offer curbside service.

In his remarks, Newsom said the 14.7% national unemployment rate doesn't represent the true number of those out of work. The jobless figure released Friday is the highest since the Great Depression. He said that 4.3 million people have applied for unemployment in California alone since mid-March, and that's on top of those who were already out of work.

"When you add 4.3 million people to a workforce that's north of 18 million … do the math," he said. "We're not at 14.7%. The state of California is north of 20% right now."

While President Trump has continually praised Newsom's handling of the pandemic he criticized the governor Friday. Trump said he thinks the state can move a little quicker on reopening and that people may force the issue. 

By Bert Johnson

By Julie Appleby, Kaiser Health News

As many states begin to reopen — most without meeting the thresholds recommended by the White House — a new level of COVID-19 risk analysis begins for Americans.

Should I go to the beach? What about the hair salon? A sit-down restaurant meal? Visit Mom on Mother’s Day?

States are responding to the tremendous economic cost of the pandemic and people’s pent-up desire to be “normal” again. But public health experts remain cautious. In many areas, they note, COVID cases — and deaths — are still on the rise, and some fear new surges will follow the easing of restrictions.

“Reopening is not back to normal. It is trying to find ways to allow people to get back out to do things they want to do, and business to do business,” said Dr. Marcus Plescia, chief medical officer at the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials. “We can’t pretend the virus has gone away. The vast majority of the population is still susceptible.”

So far, state rules vary. But they involve a basic theme.

“They are making assumptions that people will use common sense and good public health practice when they go out,” said Dr. Georges Benjamin, executive director with the American Public Health Association.

As states start to reopen, people will have to weigh the risk versus benefit of getting out more, along with their own tolerance for uncertainty. The bottom line, health experts say, is people should continue to be vigilant: Maintain distance, wear masks, wash your hands — and take responsibility for your own health and that of those around you.

“It’s clearly too early, in my mind, in many places to pull the stay-at-home rules,” said Benjamin. “But, to the extent that is going to happen, we have to give people advice to do it safely. No one should interpret my comments as being overly supportive of doing it, but if you’re going to do it, you have to be careful.”

An added caveat: All advice applies to people at normal risk of weathering the disease. Those 60 or older and people with underlying health conditions or compromised immune systems should continue staying home.

“Folks who are at higher risk of having a more severe reaction have to continue to be very careful and limit contact with other people,” Plescia said.

So, should I go to the beach?

There’s nothing inherently risky about the beach, said Benjamin. But, again, “if you can, avoid crowds,” he said. “Have as few people around you as possible.”

Maintain that 6-foot distance, even in the water.

“If you are standing close and interacting, there is a chance they could be sick and they may not know it and you could catch it,” Plescia said. “The whole 6-foot distance is a good thing to remember going forward.”

Still, “one thing about the beach or anywhere outside is that there is a lot of good air movement, which is very different than standing in a crowded subway car,” he said.

Even so, recent images of packed beaches and parks raise questions about whether people are able or willing to continue heeding distancing directives.

But if we’re all wearing masks, do we really need to stay 6 feet apart?

Yes, for two reasons. First, while masks can reduce the amount of droplets expelled from the mouth and nose, they aren’t perfect.

Droplets from sneezing, coughing or possibly even talking are considered the main way the coronavirus is transmitted, from landing either on another person or surface. Those who touch that surface may be at risk of infection if they then touch their face, especially the eyes or mouth. “By wearing a mask, I reduce the amount of particles I express out of my mouth,” said Benjamin. “I try to protect you from me, but it also protects me from you.”

And, second, masks don’t protect your eyes. Since the virus can enter the body through the eyes, standing further apart also reduces that risk.

Should I visit Mom on Mother’s Day?

This is a complex choice for many families. Obviously, if Mom is in a nursing home or assisted living, the answer is clearly no, as most care facilities are closed to visitors because the virus has been devastating that population.

There’s still risk beyond such venues. Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows 8 out of 10 reported deaths from the coronavirus are among those 65 or older. Underlying conditions, such as heart or lung disease and diabetes, appear to play a role, and older adults are more likely to have such conditions.

So, what if Mom is healthy? There’s no easy answer, public health experts say, because how the virus affects any individual is unpredictable. And visitors may be infected and not know it. An estimated 25% of people show no or few symptoms.

“A virtual gathering is a much safer alternative this year,” said Benjamin.

But if your family insists on an in-person Mother’s Day after weighing Mom’s health (and Dad’s, too, if he’s there), “everyone in the family should do a health check before gathering,” he said. “No one with any COVID symptoms or a fever should participate.”

How prevalent COVID is in your region is also a consideration, experts say, as is how much contact you and your other family members have had with other people.

If you do visit Mom, wear masks and refrain from hugging, kissing or other close contact, Benjamin said.

My hair is a mess. What about going to the salon?

Again, no clear answer. As salons and barbershops reopen in some states, they are taking precautions.

States and professional associations are recommending requiring reservations, limiting the number of customers inside the shop at a given time, installing Plexiglas barriers between stations, cleaning the chairs, sinks and other surfaces often, and having stylists and customers wear masks. Ask what steps your salon is taking.

“Employees should stay home if they are sick or in contact with someone who is sick,” said Dr. Amanda Castel, professor of epidemiology at Milken Institute School of Public Health at the George Washington University. “Also, employers should make sure they don’t have everyone congregating in the kitchen or break room.”

Some salons or barbers are cutting hair outside, she noted, which may reduce the risk because of better ventilation. Salons should also keep track of the customers they see, just in case they need to contact them later, should there be a reason to suspect a client or stylist had become infected, Castel said.

Consider limiting chitchat during the cut, said Plescia, as talking in close proximity may increase your risk, although “it feels a little rude,” he admitted.

What if your stylist is coughing and sneezing?

“I would leave immediately,” he said.

What about dining at a restaurant?

Many states and the CDC have recommendations for restaurants that limit capacity — some states say 25% — in addition to setting tables well apart, using disposable menus and single-serve condiments, and requiring wait staff to wear masks.

“That’s the kind of thing that does help reduce the chance of spread of infection,” Plescia said.

If your favorite eatery is opening, call to ask what precautions are in place. Make a reservation and “be thoughtful about who you are having dinner with,” said Plescia. Household members are one thing, but “getting into closer physical contact with friends is something people should be cautious about.”

Overall, decide how comfortable you are with the concept.

“If you’re going to go to a restaurant just to sit around and worry, then you might as well do takeout,” he said.

And travel?

Consider your options and whether you really need to go, say experts.

Driving and staying in a hotel may be an option for some people.

If hotels are adequately cleaned between guests, “you could make that work,” said Plescia. Bring cleaning wipes and even your own pillows. Again, though, “if you’re going to see an elderly parent, you don’t want to contract something on the way and give it to them.”

Regarding air travel — airlines are taking steps, such as doing deep cleaning between flights. Fresh and recirculated air goes through special HEPA filters. While there is little specific research yet on the coronavirus and air travel, studies on other respiratory and infectious diseases have generally concluded the overall risk is low, except for people within two rows of the infected person. But a case involving an earlier type of coronavirus seemed to indicate wider possible spread across several rows.

Maintaining distance on the plane and in the boarding process is key.

“Wear a mask on the plane,” said Benjamin.

And plan ahead. How prevalent is the coronavirus in the areas you are traveling to and from? Are there any requirements that you self-isolate upon arrival? How will you get to and from the airport while minimizing your proximity to others?

But if it’s not essential, you might want to think twice right now.

“People who absolutely don’t have to travel should avoid doing it,” said Plescia.

Worship services are important to me. What precautions should be considered?

The distance rule applies as houses of worship consider reopening.

“As much as you can within religious rules, try to avoid contact,” said Benjamin.

He is not giving any advice on Holy Communion, saying that is up to religious leaders. But, he noted, “drinking from the same cup raises the risk if a person is sick or items are touched by anyone who is sick.”

Finally, keep in mind that much is being learned about the virus every day, from treatments to side effects to how it spreads.

“My own personal approach is, try to play it on the cautious side a bit longer,” said Plescia.

Castel agreed.

“We need a little more time to fully understand how COVID-19 works and more time to ramp up our testing, find treatments and hopefully a vaccine,” she said. “We all have social distancing fatigue. But we can continue to save lives by doing this.”

By Ezra David Romero

As the state slowly begins to reopen there’s a lot of mixed messages about what it means for Californians because counties, cities and the state are opening at different paces. 

CapRadio recently asked our audience about what concerns them about the reopening beginning to take place. We heard everything from California is opening prematurely so officials should take more caution to relief that some people can go back to work. 

There was an air of anxiety in their responses like this: “I think it is too early, and people just need to calm down. We need more testing before we start making plans to reopen so we can know what we are dealing with.”

Our listeners noted that they’re concerned because there are new transmissions and deaths from COVID-19 almost daily in the state. As of May 6 there were 60,614 cases in the state and 2,504 deaths. 

But how do we move forward? CapRadio’s region encompasses many counties and two states all with different rules. Imagine living in one county with a strict stay-at-home order and working in another where restrictions are limited. That’s the reality for many of our listeners and it’s producing anxiety for some.

We reached out to experts to find out how to meander through all the noise, news and changing guidelines.

What we looked into:

• How to find meaning within this crisis and how to fight off anxiety
• Precautions moving forward
• How do vulnerable communities move ahead? 
• Is it safe to go out into the natural world?

By Bob Moffitt

(California Court of Appeal) - Held that the trial court awarded too little in attorney fees to a vehicle purchaser who had prevailed on a lemon law claim. The fees should not have been limited to a percentage of her modest damages award. Reversed and remanded for a determination of a reasonable fee award.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Revived a consumer's claim that certain nutritional supplements were falsely labeled as capable of improving cognitive functions when in fact they provided no such benefits. Reversed the entry of summary judgment, allowing class claims under California law to proceed.

(California Court of Appeal) - Reversed most of a judgment against a mobile home park. The residents contended that the park breached their contracts and violated various laws, and a jury rendered a verdict in their favor. However, the California Court of Appeal held that the award of damages could not be sustained under any of the theories of liability presented to the jury.

(United States Seventh Circuit) - Revived businesses' claims that they were sent unsolicited fax advertisements in violation of the federal Telephone Consumer Protection Act. Reversed a dismissal, in a case raising issues of standing to sue.

(United States Seventh Circuit) - Held that a consumer reporting agency lawfully disclosed the plaintiff's decades-old criminal record for battery to a landlord when she applied to rent an apartment. Affirmed summary judgment against her claim under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Held that the U.S. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's structure is constitutionally permissible. A law firm raised the argument in contending that it was not required to comply with the bureau's investigative demand to respond to interrogatories about its debt relief services and marketing. The Ninth Circuit rejected the law firm's position.

(California Court of Appeal) - Upheld sanctions that the Department of Motor Vehicles imposed on a car dealer. The dealer should have returned buyers' down payments when it repossessed the cars after the buyers failed to obtain financing.

(California Court of Appeal) - In a debt collection action, the court found that Defendant was liable for the debt, but found that the trial court erred by awarding Plaintiff attorney fees related to the defense of counterclaims.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed. An organization of wireless providers appealed the district court's denial of a preliminary injunction in their challenge of a Berkeley ordinance requiring cell phone retailers to warn potential buyers that carrying a phone could cause them to exceed FCC guidelines for exposure to radio-frequency radiation.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed Defendant’s summary judgment against Plaintiff, holding that the Fair Credit Reporting Act did not require Defendant to initiate a reinvestigation of incorrect credit report items because Plaintiff did not directly notify Defendant of disputed items.

(United States Ninth Circuit) - Affirmed the district court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of the defendant in an action under the Driver’s Privacy Protection Act, which prohibits the use and disclosure of personal information derived from Department of Motor Vehicles records.

(California Court of Appeal) - Reversed order denying Defendant’s motion to compel arbitration. Plaintiff filed a complaint against his employer for unfair competition under the Business and Professions Code section 17200 and also brought wage and hour claims. The Defendant moved to compel arbitration. The trial court granted arbitration for all claims, but for the unfair competition claim. The appeals court held that the unfair competition claim could also be subject to arbitration.

This theological abstract reality needs support all year round for any of us to believe it.

When it comes to explaining Easter to our children, we bump up against the same problems every year. First of all, our culture doesn’t point to Easter. There are no Easter songs playing on the radio. There are no parties in the lead up or the aftermath. Compared to Christmas, Easter just happens, with little cultural recognition other than a few minutes of interest in egg dying techniques. In contrast, even for nominal Christians, most of December in America directs itself toward what has more or less become a national celebration on December 25th. Sure, many people celebrate without direct reference to Jesus, but as I’ve written before, without his birth there would be no reason for the tinsel and the mistletoe.

We might bemoan the materialism of Christmas, but as parents we can also use it to our advantage. Everyone is paying attention. Schools take a break. Gift giving all around. It’s on the radio, in the mall, in our homes and in our churches. With Easter, not so much. One of my children has Good Friday off, but the others keep apace with their schoolwork. Ballet rehearsal is on for this Saturday. It’s easy to forget that we are preparing to mourn the death of Jesus and celebrate his resurrection in a few short days.

Secondly, my kids don’t retain the Easter story very easily. They remember eggs and bunnies from last year. They remember the sugar rush, and they are ready for more. But the theological narrative of Easter—that doesn’t linger in quite the same way. At Christmas, presents and special treats abound, but we also have the nativity scene and a birthday party for Jesus. Throughout the month of December, our children move the physical characters around and enact ...

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What spring break taught me about God.

In March, we went on vacation as a family. It was a beautiful trip—clear skies, blue water, white sandy beaches. The resort where we stayed offered a “kids club” in the morning, so I had time for walks by myself and with Peter, for naps in the shade of a palm tree, for times of prayer, for reading lots of books. It was extravagant and luxurious and strangely challenging all at the same time.

Every day after camp, our kids wanted to go to the pool. They wanted to jump into the safe, contained, semi-toxic water. They wanted to dive for rings on the pool’s concrete floor. They wanted to get a drink at the poolside bar. Every day, we tried to cajole them toward the ocean instead. The ocean, filled with rocks and coral, teeming with life. This vast expanse of water required our respect and our attention with its powerful waves, its constant motion. They liked it once we were there—the feeling of their toes in the sand, the sight of hermit crabs scuttling across the beach, the pulsing rhythm of the water. But even then, every day, they wanted to go back to the pool.

I want to teach our children, and I want to challenge myself, to swim in the ocean. I mean this literally, but I also mean it in every other aspect of our lives.

The easiest area to see this tension in our lives is with food. Recently, our kids have been offered candy at every turn—Easter eggs in the backyard from the church youth group, Easter candy from aunts and uncles, Easter candy in Sunday school, and more from a family egg hunt. Jellybeans, Starburst, Twix, Peeps. Tastes great. Rots their teeth. Gives a burst of energy. And then a crash. They would always choose candy over, say, the lentil soup I offered last night. ...

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Fair treatment for Christians by secular journalists

I read and listen to a lot of news. NPR plays in the background as I’m making breakfast and dinner. We subscribe to Time, The Atlantic, and The New Yorker (as well as to Christianity Today, Books and Culture, and Critique). I scroll through The New York Times’ headlines and most-emailed list on my phone every day, and most days I check TheWall Street Journal and TheAtlantic as well. And that’s not to mention the podcasts and books. Both explicitly Christian content and content from avowedly secular sources inform my take on our world every day.

Many Christians worry that the mainstream media demonstrates a persistent bias against Christianity, and certainly examples of this type of bias exist. But recently I have been struck by the number of mainstream outlets in which an evangelical Christian perspective (not to mention mainline Protestant and Catholic positions) is given fair treatment and earnest engagement. Some of this writing comes from Christians writing for those publications—Ross Douthat for The New York Times, for example, or Rod Dreher in Time this week. But just as often, it comes from writers who aren’t Christians and who are simply doing their jobs with integrity.

In the past week alone, I’ve noted Time's cover article—with equal space given to “The Attack on Gay Rights” and “The Attack on Believers.” Conor Friedersdorf of The Atlantic, has once again defended the religious freedom of Christians who feel morally obligated not to participate in gay weddings (although he personally supports gay marriage). Not only that, he has argued that such Christians are not bigots but that they are often loving and lovely people who are following ...

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Everyone can experience God’s presence through worship

In honor of autism awareness month, Jared Kennedy reflects on his daughter Lucy's experience as a part of a church community:

Kelly couldn’t wait to talk after the service. She met Megan and me in the stairwell on our way to the children’s wing. “I have to tell you about Lucy’s morning!” At that moment, anxious questions filled my head. “Did she bolt from the classroom? Did she have a meltdown? Did anyone get hurt?”

Lucy was diagnosed with Autism at age 3. Over the past five years, we’ve pressed into daily therapy and training with love, and we’ve seen our little redhead grow and progress. Lucy’s verbal and language skills were essentially non-existent at the time of her diagnosis. Now she can clearly ask us to play “Let It Be” or “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” on the car stereo. But Lucy still struggles profoundly. She has some obsessive tendencies. For example, (in addition to the Beatles) she’s a fan of Martina McBride’s Christmas album, and we’re still playing it in the car a week after Easter. Though she’s grown in social awareness and language skill, we’ve seen the gap between Lucy’s actual age and her developmental age steadily increase. At age 8, we’re still working on potty training. And some of Lucy’s more persistently negative behaviors—such as frequent tantrums and bolting away from tutors and care givers—are more like those you’d expect from a toddler.

That’s why, when Kelly greeted us in the stairwell, I didn’t immediately expect the best. But this was good news. It was a baptism Sunday. At the service, one of our youth who recently graduated ...

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A new study demonstrates the role of culture in welcoming children with Down syndrome.

For years, I have read news headlines in Christian and secular outlets, from conservatives and liberals alike, stating that “90% of babies with Down syndrome are aborted.” As I have argued before, and as a new study demonstrates, it’s just not true. Correcting this common misconception matters both in providing accurate information to pregnant women and in normalizing the experience of receiving a child with Down syndrome.

Last week, the American Journal of Medical Geneticspublished a study about the birth rates of babies with Down syndrome in the United States. The study estimates live births of babies with Down syndrome from 1900-2010, with a focus upon the effect of prenatal screening programs within the United States on the population of babies with Down syndrome. After factoring in the expected number of live births, miscarriages, and stillbirths, it then posits a “reduction rate.” This reduction rate demonstrates the number of babies with Down syndrome that are not born as a result of selective abortion.

To be specific, in 2006-2010 theses researchers estimate around 5,300 babies were born with Down syndrome annually. During this same time period, approximately 3,100 babies with Down syndrome were selectively aborted each year. Around 800 of those aborted babies would have died before birth, so without selective abortion, the researchers estimate there would be around 7,600 live births with Down syndrome. The reduction rate of babies with Down syndrome in the United States in 2010 was around 30 percent. In other words, without selective abortion, the number of babies born with Down syndrome in recent years would have been about 30 percent higher than it actually has been.

So why ...

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Giving thanks for God’s work throughout the church universal.

I hope that if I counted myself as a member of a “liberal” denomination, I would be writing a post about my gratitude for the contributions of evangelicals to proclaiming God’s glory in the church and in the world. Instead, as an evangelical, I am here to say thank you to the Catholics and Episcopalians, to the feminist theologians and the pastors focused on social justice, to the whole host of people past and present who witness to the breadth and depth of God’s character and glory.

Here’s a bit of the backstory: I sometimes say that I am “denominationally confused.” I was baptized Episcopalian, confirmed Presbyterian, and married in the Congregational church I attended through college. Over the fifteen years of our marriage (which has included moving to four different towns), my husband and I have worshiped in an Episcopal church, a non-denominational church, a Vineyard church, and a Covenant church. Each of these churches has offered distinct gifts to us—the lofty liturgy of an Episcopal cathedral, the emphasis on global missions at the non-denominational church, the healing prayer at the Vineyard, the solid preaching and welcoming community at the Covenant. It would be easy to critique any of these churches, but overall I am grateful for them each in their own way, and I’m grateful for their variety. It has shown me so much more about the diversity of God’s healing work in the world.

Perhaps I’m so willing to move from denomination to denomination because of the role para-church ministries played in my growth as a Christian. I first experienced the power of the Holy Spirit at a Young Life camp, and I grew even more through ministries on my high ...

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What one night at lacrosse practice showed me about who he is becoming.

April is my bittersweet month, when the world turns blue for autism awareness, when it’s more conscious of the thing that is my constant companion. But after April, the world sometimes forgets.

I cannot.

When he was little, our neurologist commended us for being proactive in seeking Noah’s Asperger’s Diagnosis. Strange, I thought. As if we could wait, when Noah was flapping, refusing eye contact, and fixating; as if other parents would have missed it. But they do. Parents miss things. We are so fallible. We are busted and time-weary and inexperienced. Sometimes we don’t see things until later, when a child on the spectrum stands out among his peers like a road flare in the dark.

Tuesday was the first lacrosse practice of the year for Noah. Lacrosse requires a hand-eye coordination that’s so hard for him. He’s also started with a new league, where he knows neither the coaches nor the players. On this night, my husband was traveling and I had neglected to ensure my son had all required equipment. Being only passingly familiar with lacrosse, I eyeballed his gloves, helmet, and stick and thought we were covered.

We were, in fact, not.

We were missing Noah’s pads, his jersey, and a pair of shorts. He was going to have to practice in sweatpants, indoors. This would be unremarkable, save for the fact that he was also wearing a long-sleeved shirt, and Noah sweats like a hog in July. What’s more? We’d forgotten his sports bottle. I had visions of Noah’s heat-stroking, unprotected body being pelted by balls as he begged the coach for water.

The only thing “right” that night was the fact that we were punctual, and had just enough time to approach ...

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The possibilities and limitations of logging life on the Internet.

“Blog” is a word that was coined nearly two decades ago as a shortened version of “web log.” As the word suggests, blogs originated as online spaces in which individuals or groups log their experiences in something approaching real time, much as a sailor would record the daily weather conditions onboard hundreds of years ago. “Blog” can be used as a noun or a verb, but in either case this compact word almost describes itself. Not poetic or thought-provoking or nuanced. Rather— short, efficient, straightforward.

So the word “blog” itself pretty much sums up the promise and perils of the genre. On the one hand, blogging offers a wealth of opportunity, especially for writers like me who are trying to figure out topics of interest to readers, or work through new ideas, or build an audience of people interested in those topics and ideas. Over the past few years, I have been blogging about faith, family, and disability here at Thin Places (and elsewhere), and I’m grateful for what that opportunity has afforded me. I’ve been able to provide a space for conversation by curating guest posts around topics like racial reconciliation or rest or contraception. I’ve been able to offer my own thoughts about a whole host of topics, from advances in prenatal testing to reflections on quiet times and church attendance, from sexuality to the Oscars. I’ve been able to highlight some of the good work happening within the church, especially when it comes to disability, and I’ve been able to participate in some online conversations about events within the news.

Blogging offers a terrific forum for pushing ideas out into the world for immediate consumption ...

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A conversation with CT editor Katelyn Beaty about blogging, books, and what's next.

Fifteen months ago, this blog began with a conversation with Katelyn Beaty about my hopes and dreams for Thin Places. As I conclude this blog, we thought it fitting to have a concluding conversation as well. Katelyn and I had a chance to talk about the most exciting and most challenging aspects of writing in this space and genre, and we also had a chance to talk about the future:

If you’d like to stay current with what I’m thinking about, where I’m speaking, and what I’m reading, you can continue to follow me on Facebook and Twitter or subscribe to my monthly newsletter.

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Final thoughts on family, faith, and what matters most.

When I first met my husband I was 16 years old. I would have said I fell in love with him immediately. We stood in the darkness of an October night and talked and talked. Two months later we exchanged those words—I love you—also whispered in the dark of night. But it took five more years before we were married, and in that time, that intense emotion that had carried us through the early months became more measured. I still felt giddy when I saw him. I still wanted to spend my life with him. I still counted him as my best friend. But true love, I learned, is slower than that initial emotional and physical connection led me to believe.

Loving our kids was similar. I felt a surge of affection (hormones?) after they were born. I felt fierce protective instincts. I was willing to sacrifice sleep and energy. But building that base of love with them took years. it went slowly. It felt as though the feeling of love was interrupted by the reality of changing diapers and spraying avocado off clothing and willing myself out of bed for one more trip to the potty in the middle of the night. But over time I learned that those moments I saw as interruptions were in fact the seeds of love. Over time, they grew.

In Matthew 13, Jesus tells a parable about the word of God. He says it is like a farmer sowing seed. He says that it falls on all different types of soil, and that when it falls on good soil it grows. I’ve always wanted to have good soil, to be the one whose faith grows firm and strong forever. Truth be told, there have been plenty of seasons where my life resembles the hard soil or the soil that produces quick growth and quick demise. But I’ve only recently noticed that the seed in the good soil, even ...

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Rachael Sage Has Released A New Single, “Bravery’s On Fire" After Revealing Cancer Diagnosis; All Proceeds From Single And Charity Shows To Benefit Women's Cancer Research.

NJ Rock Band Triple Addiction Scores A Guitar Endorsement And Books Some Big Shows.

Montreal Hip-hop Collective Triple-R Has Signed With Squash Comp And Released Their Debut Album “Red Rum Records”

#62ndGrammyAwards #GrammyAwards #GrammyNominations #MelissaB

#62ndGrammyAwards #Blues #GrammyAwards #GrammyNominations

Rising Country Artist, Stephanie Ryann, Has Released Her First Music Video For The Song "Whiskey Regret" Off Of Her Debut, Self-titled EP To Commemorate The Anniversary Of Its Release Last October

Carla Williams, The Songstress That Captured New Release Today’s “Indie Artist To Watch” In March 2019, Released Her Latest Single He’s Love Today On Apple Music, ITunes, Amazon And Google Play.

Cloe Wilder Releases The Music Video For Her New Single.