#The Covid-19 Files

[the-night-king-cometh]

[discluded]

Full article here. Please give it a click to support this kind of journalism! (I snipped out the highlights for a shorter read)

The state of Utah in the United States has no citizenship requirements for marriage licenses, and Utah County is the only place there that allows international couples to register their marriages online. Since the county rolled out virtual weddings during the Covid-19 pandemic, it became a wedding haven for same-sex couples who are not able to officially marry in their own countries.

As sexual minorities in China face suppression at home, Utah County is allowing them to officially marry and celebrate their love — all for around $100. Although the marriages aren’t recognized in China, some 200 same-sex couples from mainland China and Hong Kong have gotten married via the county’s digital marriage license system since 2021.

For authorities in Utah County, the influx of international couples came as a surprise. The Utah County and Auditor’s Office moved its marriage licensing service online, as part of a digitization initiative in 2019. At the start of the pandemic, a number of couples requested Zoom ceremonies, and the county made those available as well.

The service first attracted couples in Utah, followed by people from across the U.S., and later, from all over the world. From May 1 to September 20 this year, at least 77 same-sex couples with mainland Chinese addresses have been married there, said county deputy clerk Russ Rampton, who oversees marriage licensing, to Rest of World.

Although same-sex marriage remains illegal in Hong Kong, under a different set of laws to mainland China, residents who get married in other places are able to apply for dependent visas in the city for their partners. Married gay people are also able to mark themselves as married in tax filings.

In his vow, however, [one marriage certificate applicant] Zhu said he was looking forward to getting married a second time — in China. “If one day our country allows this, I hope we could get married again in this country,” Zhu said to his husband before they kissed.

**

Marriage equality does not stop in the West.

[tv-knows-you-com-inc]

Employee Retention Credit (ERC): Get Up to $26,000 per Employee - 

https://tvknowsyou.com/erc.html

[housesofinvestors]

The Effects of the Pandemic on Taxes and Tax Filing

Introduction

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on nearly every aspect of our lives, including the way we file our taxes. The government has implemented several measures to provide relief to individuals and businesses affected by the pandemic, and it’s important to understand how these changes may affect your tax situation. In this blog post, we’ll take a look at some of the key changes to taxes and tax filing as a result of the pandemic.

Economic Impact Payments

One of the most significant changes to taxes as a result of the pandemic is the distribution of Economic Impact Payments (EIPs), also known as stimulus checks. These payments were issued to eligible individuals to provide financial assistance during the pandemic. The first round of payments, which were issued in April 2020, were based on 2019 tax returns. The second round, issued in December 2020, were based on either 2019 or 2020 tax returns, depending on which was most recently filed. It’s important to note that these payments are not taxable income and do not need to be reported on your tax return.

Unemployment Benefits

Another change to taxes as a result of the pandemic is the increased number of individuals receiving unemployment benefits. These benefits, which are typically provided by state governments, are taxable income and must be reported on your tax return. However, the federal government has temporarily expanded the amount of unemployment benefits available, and the first $10,200 of these benefits will be tax-free for those with adjusted gross income (AGI) of less than $150,000.

Charitable Contributions

Small Businesses

Small businesses have been particularly hard hit by the pandemic, and the government has implemented several measures to provide relief. One of the most significant changes is the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), which provides forgivable loans to small businesses to help cover payroll and other expenses. The PPP loan forgiveness is not taxable, but the expenses paid for with the loan are still tax-deductible. Additionally, the Employee Retention Tax Credit, which is worth up to $5,000 per employee, is available to businesses that have experienced a significant decline in gross receipts.

Deadline Extension

The IRS has extended the deadline to file and pay federal income taxes from April 15, 2021 to May 17, 2021. Taxpayers will have until July 15, 2021 to pay any taxes owed. This extension applies to all taxpayers, including those who file self-employed or business income tax returns.

Changes in deductions and credits

The pandemic has also brought some changes in the deductions and credits that can be claimed in your tax return. For example, the CARES act increased the limit on deductions for business meals from 50% to 100% for the year 2020. Additionally, the act also allows eligible taxpayers to claim a refundable credit of up to $5,000 for employee retention.

Impact on Self-Employed

Self-employed individuals have been hit hard by the pandemic, and the government has implemented measures to provide relief. The CARES Act includes a new tax credit, the Credit for Sick and Family Leave, which allows eligible self-employed individuals to claim a credit of up to $5,110 for leave taken due to the pandemic. Additionally, the Act also allows self-employed individuals to claim a refundable credit against their self-employment tax for a portion of their net earnings from self-employment that have been impacted by the pandemic.

Impact on Retirement savings

The pandemic has also brought changes to the rules surrounding retirement savings. The CARES Act has temporarily increased the limit on tax-favored withdrawals from qualified retirement plans to $100,000 for distributions made in 2020. Additionally, the act also allows for the suspension of required minimum distributions from certain retirement plans for 2020.

Impact on Estate and Gift Tax

The pandemic has also brought changes to the rules surrounding estate and gift tax. The CARES Act temporarily increased the estate and gift tax exclusion for 2020 to $11.58 million per individual, up from $11.4 million in 2019. Additionally, the act also allows for the postponement of the filing of estate tax returns and the payment of estate taxes for certain estates of decedents who died in 2020 until January 1, 2022.

Impact on Education Tax

The pandemic has also brought changes to the rules surrounding education tax. The CARES Act temporarily suspended the requirement to file a Form 1098-T for the 2020 tax year, and it also allows for the distribution of up to $10,000 of qualified education expenses tax-free from a 529 plan for elementary, secondary, or vocational schools.

Conclusion

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a significant impact on taxes and tax filing, with changes to Economic Impact Payments, unemployment benefits, charitable contributions, small business relief, deductions and credits, self-employed, retirement savings, estate and gift tax, and education tax. It’s important to be aware of these changes and how they may affect your tax situation. If you have any questions or concerns, it’s always a good idea to consult with a tax professional. It is crucial to stay informed about the updates and changes in the tax laws, so you can take advantage of the relief measures and avoid any penalties.

[janieunknownwriter]

pWas the AIDS-HIV campaign but a prelude to the COVID-19 mega fraud/pp /ppDid you know that AIDS-HIV campaign was  but a prelude to the COVID-19 mega fraud?  Nearly all the same hoaxes and scientific frauds aimed at increasing the wealth and power of Anthony Fauci, the big government health agencies, the pharmaceutical industry, the investors, and the elites.  /pp /ppHost Peter  Breggin MD has an in-depth discussion with Rebecca Culshaw, PhD,  a mathematician working with disease models, and author of The Real AIDS Epidemic.  Both find that AIDS was a warm up for COVID-18.  There was the same suppression of good inexpensive treatments and the touting of disastrous expensive ones.  The same false testing and the same oppression of anyone dissenting from the narrative and ultimately. And the same insane rush to make a vaccine that there never was.  /ppDr. Breggin concludes there was one big difference between the conduct of the AIDS and the COVID-19 campaign.  This time they decided to go ahead with vaccines that they know don’t work and that kill people. /p

[markettrend24]

Managed File Transfer (MFT) Software and Service Market 2022 Size, Share, Upcoming Industry Trends, Business Development Analysis, Segmentation and Forecast by 2028

Managed File Transfer (MFT) Software and Service Market 2022 Size, Share, Upcoming Industry Trends, Business Development Analysis, Segmentation and Forecast by 2028

This report studies the Managed File Transfer (MFT) Software and Service Market with many aspects of the industry like the market size, market status, market trends and forecast, the report also provides brief information of the competitors and the specific growth opportunities with key market drivers. Find the complete Managed File Transfer (MFT) Software and Service Market analysis segmented by…

[reportwire]

Moderna files patent infringement lawsuits against Pfizer and BioNTech over mRNA Covid-19 vaccines

Moderna files patent infringement lawsuits against Pfizer and BioNTech over mRNA Covid-19 vaccines

2022-08-29 23:57:19 “Moderna believes that Pfizer and BioNTech’s COVID-19 vaccine Comirnaty infringes patents Moderna filed between 2010 and 2016 covering Moderna’s foundational mRNA technology. This groundbreaking technology was critical to the development of Moderna’s own mRNA COVID-19 vaccine, Spikevax. Pfizer and BioNTech copied this technology, without Moderna’s permission, to make…

[stupittmoran]

Top 10 headlines the media didn't tell you this week, Repost & FoIIow for more.

DeSantis vs Newsom debate turns into a sh*tshow as the Florida governor calls out San Francisco's human feces problem.

Elon Musk interview goes viral, causing mass cancelations of Disney Plus and other services.

Texas is suing Pfizer for misrepresenting COVID-19 vaccine efficacy and conspiring to censor the public.

KC Chief's fans plan to attend next game with black and red face paint after the media accused a child fan of racism.

Former official has been indicted on three grand jury charges for altering 2020 election results.

Reports of "White Lung" pneumonia affecting mostly children in China has been found in Massachusetts & Ohio.

BLM Leader endorses Trump for President in 2024, accuses democrats of racist policies.

CTIL files reveal how the government conspired to censor citizens and alter the 2020 election.

Joe Rogan says anyone who tells him to 'trust the experts' can suck his d*ck, Covid taught him that the so-called experts are bought and paid for.

James O'Keefe releases bombshell undercover report exposing China's operation of a biolab in California.

How many more Chinese biolabs are there in the United States?

BONUS: Speaker Johnson ramps up Biden impeachment, stating Biden has lied at least 16 times about his involvement in his family's business schemes.

If you appreciate this Top 10 recap, remember to Repost and FoIIow me for another week in a clown world 🤡🌎

[mingus-archives]

Major Revelations from Minneapolis Ghost FIles Live

The Professor has many names, but right now Shane prefers Concupiscence and calls him Connie/Conny for short

Shane was working on the hotdaga at the start of 2020/end of 2019 and was getting ready to transfer it over to Watcher when the pandemic happened and he's been busy busy busy ever since

Shane knows how the hotdaga ends

Shane wonders if Buzzfeed would fight him for hotdaga rights but he doesn't think they know it exists

Shane and Ryan were going to end Buzzfeed Unsolved earlier but the pandemic happened and they wanted the stability

Ryan got COVID-19 in Montana, which prevented the team from filming the most recent Montana Prison ghost files episodes in -30F degree weather

He ate an entire bag of cookies when he had COVID-19 and was trapped in his hotel room while the rest of the team went home to LA

@poorly-drawn-puppet-history @mike-soup thought you may be interested love your blogs <3

[allthecanadianpolitics]

Class action lawsuits against six of Ontario's largest for-profit long-term care (LTC) home providers, claiming gross negligence that led to illnesses and deaths during the COVID-19 pandemic, have been allowed to proceed.

In a ruling last week, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice certified class action suits against Sienna, Revera, Schlegel, Responsive, Extendicare and Chartwell.

The separate class actions were filed on behalf of thousands of clients, family members and visitors, who allege the companies were unprepared to provide care during the pandemic and failed to protect the health of residents and visitors.

Full article

Tagging: @politicsofcanada

[chxrlie-cox]

BBC Buys Irish Crime Drama ‘Kin’

The BBC has picked up Irish crime drama Kin from Fifth Season.

The RTÉ series, which aired in the U.S. on AMC+, is the latest high-profile show snapped up by the BBC buying team, following the likes of AMC’s Interview with the Vampire. It is produced by Joker financier Bron Studios and Man in the High Castle outfit Headline Pictures.

According to Fifth Season, the second season’s finale was the most-watched Irish show of this year sco far outside of sport. It has already aired in the UK on AMC streamer Sundance Now.

Earlier this year, Bron filed for bankruptcy citing the Covid-19 pandemic and dual U.S. labor strikes

via Deadline

Is this hope for some new funding after Bron's bankruptcy? Will s3 see the light of day now?

[androgynealienfemme]

Doctors have denied an American woman on holiday in Malta a potentially life-saving abortion, despite saying her baby had a “zero chance” of survival after she was admitted to hospital with severe bleeding in her 16th week of pregnancy.

Despite an “extreme risk” of haemorrhage and infection, doctors at the Mater Dei hospital in Msida told Andrea Prudente that they would not perform a termination because of the country’s total ban on abortion.

Prudente and her husband are seeking a medical transfer from Malta to the UK, which the couple say is their only option due to the risk to her life. They claim medical staff were uncooperative in their attempts to leave and in sharing medical records with the couple’s insurance company.

“I just want to get out of here alive,” Prudente told the Guardian from her hospital room in Malta’s capital, Valletta. “I couldn’t in my wildest dreams have thought up a nightmare like this.”

Activists in Malta say the case has alarming echoes of the treatment of Savita Halappanavar, who died of sepsis in an Irish hospital in 2012 after doctors refused a request to terminate her pregnancy when she began to miscarry at 17 weeks, due to the abortion ban that was in place in Ireland then.

Malta is the only country in the EU to ban abortion under any circumstances. The only options for those seeking to end a pregnancy on the island nation are to buy illegal abortion medication online or seek a termination overseas.

Prudente, 38, was on holiday with her partner, Jay Weeldreyer, 45, on the island of Gozo on 12 June when she began bleeding heavily in the night.

Doctors in Gozo prescribed her a drug to protect against miscarriage, but two days later when they were back on Malta, the main island, Prudente’s waters broke and she was admitted to St Thomas hospital, where she was told that her placenta had become partially detached.

A follow-up ultrasound 48 hours later found there was no amniotic fluid left in her womb, and the couple were told the baby could not survive. They were also told that because of Malta’s abortion law, there was nothing doctors could do to end the pregnancy as long as the foetus had a heartbeat.

Prudente was transferred to Mater Dei hospital, where she was additionally diagnosed with a ruptured membrane and an umbilical cord that was protruding from her cervix, putting her at even greater risk of haemorrhage and infection. She also tested positive for Covid-19. She is being kept in Covid isolation and receiving antibiotics to ward off infection.

Weeldreyer said medical staff came to check for a foetal heartbeat every day.

“It’s an inconceivable form of emotional and psychological torture,” he said. “Part of me still celebrates hearing the heartbeat … and at the same time, I don’t want that heartbeat there because this is just leading to more suffering for this woman that I love.”

Lara Dimitrijevic, founder of Malta’s Women’s Rights Foundation and the lawyer representing Prudente, said the hospital only provided medical records after she intervened, which has delayed a transfer to the UK.

“It took a day for Andrea to receive her file and we are dealing with an emergency situation,” she said. “Every minute could lend itself to putting Andrea’s life in danger.”

Mater Dei hospital confirmed that it had given Prudente access to her file, but did not comment further on the case.

Prudente said the current advice from Maltese medical staff was for her to leave the hospital and wait at the couple’s hotel for the foetus’s heartbeat to stop or for Prudente to develop an infection, after which they could intervene.

“I feel like I’m being actively traumatised,” she said.

The Women’s Rights Foundation filed a judicial protest last week on behalf of 188 women, claiming the Maltese government’s blanket ban on abortion breached their right to health, privacy and equality. The foundation is now preparing to launch a case challenging the constitutional ban.

Weeldreyer said the couple had no idea that Malta had an abortion ban when they booked the holiday, intended to be a “babymoon”, where they could spend time on a Mediterranean island before the birth of their first child together.

Prudente said she was “desperate” to get off the island and receive appropriate medical care, but also wanted to raise awareness of the situation in Malta to prevent others suffering in the way that she had.

“I don’t want this to happen to more people,” she said.

This is the reality of abortion bans. This is what it leads to. Being asked to wait until you get an infection before you can terminate a dangerous pregnancy.

[vigilante7657]

Hello, everyone! I've been a walking dead roleplayer since covid-19, and have always wanted to make my character template! Posted above are two variant templates of my own custom OC template for Walking Dead roleplays! If you like these two, I also have a one-page version on my tumblr blog. There's both a landscape and a portrait-style template! The links below will link you to the two Google Doc files! PORTRAIT LANDSCAPE Note: The Footer has my Discord tagline for my Discord User, please do not remove this! My Discord Info [<VIGILANTE>] - Nickname [vigilante7567] - Username

[mariacallous]

On Tuesday, the Supreme Court of the United States will hear oral arguments in a challenge to abortion pill access across the country, including in states where abortion is legal. The stakes for abortion rights are sky-high, and the case is the most consequential battle over reproductive health care access since Roe v. Wade was overturned in 2022.

At the center of this fight is mifepristone, a pill that blocks a hormone needed for pregnancy. The drug has been approved by the US Food and Drug Administration for more than two decades, and it’s used to treat some patients with Cushing’s syndrome, as well as endometriosis and uterine fibroids. But its primary use is the one contested now—mifepristone is the first of two pills taken in the first 10 weeks of pregnancy for a standard medication abortion, along with the drug misoprostol.

If the justices side with the antiabortion activists seeking to limit access to mifepristone, it could upend nationwide access to the most common form of abortion care. A ruling that invalidates mifepristone’s approval would open the door for any judge to reverse the FDA approval of any drug, especially ones sometimes seen as controversial, such as HIV drugs and hormonal birth control. It could also have a chilling effect on the development of new drugs, making companies wary of investing research into medicines that could later be pulled from the market.

Pills are now the leading abortion method in the US, and their popularity has spiked in recent years. More than six in 10 abortions in 2023 were carried out via medication, according to new data from the Guttmacher Institute. Since rules around telehealth were relaxed during the Covid-19 pandemic, many patients seeking medication abortions have relied on virtual clinics, which send abortion pills by mail. And it keeps getting more popular: Hey Jane, a prominent telemedicine provider, saw demand increase 73 percent from 2022 to 2023. It recorded another 28 percent spike comparing data from January 2023 to January 2024.

“Telemedicine abortion is too effective to not be in the targets of antiabortion folks,” says Julie F. Kay, a longtime reproductive rights lawyer and director of the advocacy group Abortion Coalition for Telemedicine.

Tomorrow’s argument comes after a long, tangled series of legal disputes in lower courts. The Supreme Court will be hearing two cases consolidated together, including FDA v. Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine, in which a coalition of antiabortion activists filed a suit challenging the FDA’s approval of mifepristone, asking for it to be removed from the market. The Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine is represented by the Alliance Defending Freedom, a right-wing Christian law firm that often takes politically charged cases.

Despite decades of scientific consensus on the drug’s safety record, the Alliance for Hippocratic Medicine has alleged that mifepristone is dangerous to women and leads to emergency room visits. A 2021 study cited by the plaintiffs to back up their claims was retracted in February after an independent review found that its authors came to inaccurate conclusions.

In April 2023, the Trump-appointed judge Matthew Kacsmaryk of the Northern District of Texas issued a preliminary ruling on the FDA case invalidating the agency’s approval of mifepristone. The ruling sent shock waves far beyond the reproductive-rights world, as it had major implications for the entire pharmaceutical industry, as well as the FDA itself; the ruling suggested that the courts could revoke a drug’s approval even after decades on the market.

The US 5th Circuit Court of Appeals narrowed Kacsmaryk’s decision a week later, allowing the drug to remain on the market, but undid FDA decisions in recent years that made mifepristone easier to prescribe and obtain. That decision limited the time frame in which it can be taken to the first seven weeks of pregnancy and put telemedicine access, as well as access to the generic version of the drug in jeopardy.

Following the 5th Circuit ruling, the FDA and Danco Laboratories sought emergency relief from the Supreme Court, asking the justices to preserve access until it could hear the case. In its legal filing, Danco aptly described the situation as “regulatory chaos.”

SCOTUS issued a temporary stay, maintaining the status quo; the court ultimately decided to take up the case in December 2023.

As all this was unfolding, pro-abortion-rights states across the country were passing what are known as shield laws, which protect medical practitioners who offer abortion care to pregnant patients in states where abortion is banned. This has allowed some providers, including the longtime medication-abortion-advocacy group Aid Access, to mail abortion pills to people who requested them in states like Louisiana and Arkansas.

Though the oral arguments before the Supreme Court begin on Tuesday, it will likely be months before a ruling. Court watchers suspect a decision may be handed down in June. With the US presidential election in the fall, the ruling may become a major campaign issue, especially as abortion access helped galvanize voters in the 2022 midterms.

If the Supreme Court agrees with the plaintiffs that mifepristone should be taken off the market, some in the pharmaceutical industry worry that it will undermine the authority of the FDA, the agency tasked with reviewing and approving drugs based on their safety and efficacy.

“This case isn't about mifepristone,” says Elizabeth Jeffords, CEO of Iolyx Therapeutics, a company developing drugs for immune and eye diseases. Jeffords is a signatory on an amicus brief filed in April 2023 that brought together 350 pharmaceutical companies, executives, and investors to challenge the Texas district court’s ruling.

“This case could have easily been about minoxidil for hair loss. It could have been about Mylotarg for cancer. It could have been about measles vaccines,” Jeffords says. “This is about whether or not the FDA is allowed to be the scientific arbiter of what is good and safe for patients.”

Greer Donley, an associate professor of law at the University of Pittsburgh and an expert on abortion on the law, doesn’t think it’s likely that the court will revoke mifepristone’s approval entirely. Instead, she sees two possible outcomes. The Supreme Court could dismiss the case or could undo the FDA’s decision in 2023 to permanently remove the in-person dispensing requirement and allow abortion by telehealth. “This would be an even more narrow decision than what the 5th Circuit did, but it would still be pretty devastating to abortion access,” she says.

The Supreme Court could also decide that the plaintiffs lack a right to bring the case to court, says David Cohen, a professor of law at Drexel University whose expertise is in constitutional law and gender issues. “This case could get kicked out on standing, meaning that the plaintiffs aren't the right people to bring this case,” he says. “If most of the questions are about standing, that will give you a sense that that's what the justices are concerned about.”

As the current Supreme Court is considered virulently antiabortion, reproductive-health-care workers are already preparing for the worst. Some telehealth providers have already floated a backup plan: offering misoprostol-only medication abortions. This is less than ideal, as the combination of pills is the current standard of care and offers the best results; misoprostol on its own can cause additional cramping and nausea. For some providers who may have to choose between misoprostol-only or nothing, it’s better than nothing.

Abortion-rights activists have no plans to give up on telehealth abortions, regardless of the outcome of this particular case. “Let us be clear, Hey Jane will not stop delivering telemedicine abortion care, regardless of the outcome of this case,” says Hey Jane’s CEO and cofounder, Kiki Freedman.

“They’re not going to stuff the genie back in the bottle,” Kay says.