Volume 78, No. 260B ©SS 2020 CONTINGENCY EDITION SUNDAY, APRIL 19, 2020 stripes.com Free to Deployed Areas

ANALYSIS CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK Reinstatement among possible outcomes for fired captain

BY LOLITA C. BALDOR AND ROBERT BURNS Associated Press WASHINGTON — The Navy’s top admiral will soon decide the fate of the ship captain who was fired after pleading for command- ers to move faster to safeguard his coronavirus-infected crew on the USS Theodore Roosevelt. In the glare of a public spotlight, Adm. Mike Gilday will decide whether Navy Capt. Brett Crozier stepped out of line when he went around his chain of command and sent an email pushing for ac- tion to stem the outbreak. As of Friday, 660 sailors on the aircraft carrier, now docked at Guam, had tested positive for the virus and seven were hospitalized. One sail- or has died, and more than 4,000 of the ship’s 5,000 crew members have been moved onto the island for quarantine. Gilday’s review won’t be lim- ited to Crozier. It will also look at the command climate on the ship Virus resistance and higher up within the Pacific- based fleet, to determine if there are broader leadership problems in a region critical to America’s Conservative organizers ramp up protest efforts amid lockdown unrest national security interests. BY TOLUSE OLORUNNIPA, SHAWN BOBURG Gilday has many options as ‘ It looks a lot like the tea party. It almost seems like an excuse he reviews what was an extraor- AND ARELIS R. HERNÁNDEZ dinarily rapid investigation by The Washington Post for getting out and rallying against politicians they oppose. Adm. Robert Burke, the vice ’ Protesters at state capitols across the Nicole Hemmer chief of naval operations. Burke Columbia University scholar, on the anti-government, pro-personal liberty signage at lockdown protests and his staff finished the review country this week expressed their deep in about a week, conducting inter- frustration with the stay-at-home orders views almost entirely online and that are meant to stem the spread of the by phone between Washington novel coronavirus, pushing a message that ald Trump encouraged protesters in Michi- tweeted. “LIBERATE MINNESOTA,” he and Guam. is rapidly coalescing among the nation’s gan, Minnesota and Virginia, who this week continued. “LIBERATE VIRGINIA, and A look at some of Gilday’s op- conservatives: reopen the country. violated stay-at-home orders and social dis- save your great 2nd Amendment. It is under tions, and their benefits and Groups rallied in at least six states this tancing guidelines to march against Demo- siege!” week, and protests are planned in four more cratic governors. SEE FIRED ON PAGE 4 in coming days. On Friday, President Don- “LIBERATE MICHIGAN!” Trump SEE PROTEST ON PAGE 6 RELATED Above: Protesters demonstrate Friday against stay-at-home orders put in place due to the virus outbreak in Huntington Beach, Calif. France reports over MARK J. TERRILL/AP 1,000 virus cases Go online to read all the latest news on the virus outbreak on aircraft carrier stripes.com/coronavirus Page 5

SPORTS MUSIC VIRUS OUTBREAK 10-part documentary Death of best friend Travel ban for military series looks back on Mac Miller still painful personnel, families Jordan’s ‘Last Dance’ for virtuoso Thundercat through end of June Back page Page 12 Page 6

Hard-hit nations wrestle with when to ease restrictions » Virus outbreak, Page 7 PAGE 2 •STARS AND STRIPES• Sunday, April 19, 2020 BUSINESS/WEATHER EXCHANGE RATES Hope takes reins as stocks rally worldwide Military rates Switzerland (Franc)...... 0.9662 Euro costs (April 20)...... $1.06 Thailand (Baht) ...... 32.50 Dollar buys (April 20) ...... €0.8965 Turkey (Lira) ...... 6.9271 British pound (April 20) ...... $1.22 Associated Press Investors latched onto several piles higher showing the severe Japanese yen (April 20) ...... 105.00 (Military exchange rates are those South Korean won (April 20) ...... 1,187.00 available to customers at military banking strands of hope about progress economic and human toll of the Commercial rates facilities in the country of issuance NEW YORK — In Wall Street’s in the fight against the corona- outbreak. Bahrain (Dinar) ...... 0.3778 for Japan, South Korea, Germany, the tug of war between hope and pes- British pound ...... $1.2506 Netherlands and the United Kingdom. For virus. They included the White The virus has killed more than Canada (Dollar) ...... 1.4027 nonlocal currency exchange rates (i.e., simism about the coronavirus House’s release of guidelines for China (Yuan) ...... 7.0724 purchasing British pounds in Germany), pandemic, hope is fighting back. 150,000 worldwide and forced Denmark (Krone) ...... 6.8524 check with your local military banking states to reopen their economies Egypt (Pound) ...... 15.7516 facility. Commercial rates are interbank the formerly high-flying Chinese rates provided for reference when buying U.S. stocks joined a worldwide and a very early but encouraging Euro ...... $1.0886/0.9186 economy to shrink a crunching currency. All figures are foreign currencies rally Friday and closed out their report on a possible treatment for Hong Kong (Dollar) ...... 7.7505 to one dollar, except for the British pound, 6.8% last quarter. Hungary (Forint) ...... 323.52 which is represented in dollars-to-pound, first back-to-back weekly gain COVID-19. Those events dove- Israel (Shekel) ...... 3.5892 and the euro, which is dollars-to-euro.) since the market began selling tailed with recent numbers that The S&P 500 rose 75.01 points Japan (Yen) ...... 107.33 Kuwait (Dinar) ...... 0.3119 INTEREST RATES off two months ago. The S&P 500 raised hopes for a leveling off of to 2,874.56. The Dow Jones Indus- Norway (Krone) ...... 10.3228 jumped 2.7% for the day, follow- infections in some of the world’s trial Average jumped 704.81, or Philippines (Peso)...... 50.92 Prime rate ...... 3.25 Poland (Zloty) ...... 4.16 Discount rate ...... 0.25 ing up on even bigger gains in Eu- hotspots. 3%, to 24,242.49, and the Nasdaq Saudi Arabia (Riyal) ...... 3.7574 Federal funds market rate ...... 0.05 rope and Asia. The gains came even as data added 117.78, or 1.4%, to 8,650.14. Singapore (Dollar) ...... 1.4218 3-month bill ...... 0.14 South Korea (Won) ...... 1216.57 30-year bond ...... 1.21 WEATHER OUTLOOK SUNDAY IN THE MIDDLE EAST SUNDAY IN EUROPE MONDAY IN THE PACIFIC

Misawa 47/43 Kabul 60/39 Seoul 57/46 Baghdad 90/62 Kandahar 72/50 Osan Tokyo Mildenhall/ Drawsko 57/47 50/44 Lakenheath Pomorskie Busan 57/46 50/32 58/50 Iwakuni 59/52 Kuwait Bahrain Zagan Sasebo City 77/72 Brussels 51/39 Guam 82/70 57/50 Ramstein 59/55 83/79 Lajes, 61/37 Riyadh Doha Azores Stuttgart Pápa 91/70 87/73 63/60 64/49 58/54 Aviano/ Vicenza 68/45

Naples 66/57 Okinawa Morón 70/67 72/55 Sigonella Rota 76/50 The weather is provided by the Djibouti Souda Bay American Forces Network Weather Center, 85/80 66/53 63/55 2nd Weather Squadron at Offutt Air Force Base, Neb. T O D A Y IN STRIPES American Roundup ..... 18 Books ...... 11 Comics/Crossword ...... 14 Music ...... 12-13 Opinion ...... 19 Sports ...... 21-24 Travel ...... 16 Sunday, April 19, 2020 •STARS AND STRIPES• PAGE 3 MILITARY US: Naval buildup in Caribbean not to oust Maduro

BY JOSHUA GOODMAN lance aircraft and on-ground spe- Associated Press cial forces seldom seen before in /U.S. Air Force RICHARD EBENSBERGER the region. MIAMI — The top U.S. mili- An Air Force B-52 Stratofortress bomber lands at Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, in 2018. The Air Faller said the coronavirus tary commander for Latin Amer- Force has nixed its regular bomber presences in favor of a less predictable global deployment. did force some in the Pentagon ica said Friday that the Trump to rethink the timing of the de- administration isn’t looking to use ployment out of concern for the military force to remove Nicolas safety of service members. While USAF changing up Guam bomber Maduro even as it expands coun- ternarcotics operations in the controls to protect the workforce Caribbean. have been enhanced, it was deter- rotation for less predictable plan Adm. Craig Faller, head of U.S. mined that over the long term, the Southern Command, said in an U.S. is positioned to take advan- interview that the recent decision tage of the disruption in narcot- BY WYATT OLSON Atanasoff, a spokesperson for port the Pentagon’s strategy of to double anti-narcotics assets in ics supply chains caused by the Stars and Stripes U.S. Strategic Command, said in “operational unpredictability” Latin America was months in the virus as drug cartels scramble to a statement. by using a mix of aircraft that making and not directly tied to source precursor chemical and Just days after showing off a Strategic bombers will contin- include B-52, B-1 or B-2 bombers Maduro’s indictment in New York other inputs. runway parade of airpower on ue to operate in the Indo-Pacific, from bases throughout the U.S. on charges of leading a narcoter- “We thrive in uncertainty and Guam, the Air Force ended its including Guam, “at the timing mainland and Guam, she said. rorist conspiracy that sent 250 are going to try and capitalize on longtime practice of maintaining and tempo of our choosing,” she On Monday, 14 aircraft paraded metric tons of cocaine a year to a continuous bomber presence in said. that,” said Faller. in an “elephant walk” formation the U.S. He cited two “quick wins” the Pacific region through air- The Air Force will maximize along the runway at Andersen. Faller said economic and dip- since the start of the deployment craft rotations at the island’s An- its opportunities to train with al- Aside from the five Stratofortress lomatic pressure — not the use — a 1.7 metric ton seizure in the dersen Air Force Base. lies and partner nations to “bol- strategic bombers were six KC- of military force — remains the Pacific Ocean near Costa Rica The service said it is nixing the ster our collective ability to be 135 Stratotanker aerial refuelers, six-month rotations in place since U.S.’ preferred tools for removing last week and another 2.1-ton in- operationally unpredictable,” an MH-60S Knighthawk helicop- 2004 in favor of a less predictable Maduro from power. Atanasoff said. ter and two unmanned surveil- terdiction a few days ago. global deployment regimen. “This is not a shift in U.S. gov- “We continually reassess our lance drones. He said growing instability in On Thursday, five B-52H bomb- ernment policy,” said Faller, who overseas posture and adjust to Multimillion-dollar upgrades Venezuela is leading to an “up- ers flew back to their home station nonetheless celebrated that en- meet the requirements of the to infrastructure at Andersen and tick” in piracy in the Caribbean, at Minot Air Force Base, N.D., ac- hanced interdiction efforts would Joint Force and combatant com- Naval Base Guam over the past although he didn’t cite any statis- cording to Aircraft Spots, an on- manders as well as our treaty hurt Maduro’s finances and stay- decade have elevated the U.S. tics or evidence to back the asser- line military aircraft tracker. commitments,” she said. ing power. “It’s not an indication territory into a key strategic hub. of some sort of new militarization tion. He said the recent sinking Over the past 15 years, bomb- The Air Force’s end of continu- of a Venezuelan naval ship after er patrols from Guam over the Work is also underway on and in the Caribbean.” ous bomber support from Guam it allegedly rammed an Antarc- East and South China Seas have near Andersen for the planned The deployment announced was first reported by thedrive. tic-hardened cruise ship without served as a means of project- com. transfer of roughly 5,000 Ma- this month is one of the larg- passengers near Curacao was in- ing U.S. airpower and resolve to In response to a query by Stars rines and their dependents from est U.S. military operations in North Korea, China and Russia. and Stripes, Atanasoff said in an Okinawa in about 2024. the region since the 1989 inva- dicative of the readiness of Mad- “In line with the National De- email that this “adjustment to our Guam is now the Navy’s epi- sion of Panama to remove Gen. uro’s armed forces. fense Strategy, the United States posture was long-planned and center of coronavirus after the Manuel Noriega from power and “It was a bad day for them,” he has transitioned to an approach completely unrelated to the [coro- aircraft carrier USS Theodore bring him to the U.S. to face drug said. “Their lack of seamanship that enables strategic bombers navirus] pandemic.” Roosevelt arrived on March 27 charges. It involves assets like and lack of integrity is indicative to operate forward in the Indo- She did not have a specific list with hundreds of sailors sickened Navy warships, AWACS surveil- of how it all played out.” Pacific region from a broader of alternate locations to which by the virus. One sailor has since array of overseas locations, when bombers would rotate but added died, and several others have required, and with greater op- that the Air Force has and will been hospitalized in intensive erational resilience, while these continue to operate globally in care on Guam. ‘ bombers are permanently based multiple areas. [email protected] It’s not an indication of some sort of new in the United States,” Maj. Kate The bomber missions will sup- Twitter: @WyattWOlson militarization in the Caribbean. ’ Adm. Craig Faller head of U.S. Southern Command Navy plans to monitor jet noise in Wash.

Associated Press The Navy will next submit a noise monitoring effort is com- monitoring report including test- prehensive and that the data $41M contract awarded for MOUNT VERNON, Wash. ing results, comparisons of the collected meets the intent of Con- — The U.S. Navy has announced results to previous noise model- gress and addresses local con- new hangar at Dover AFB plans to monitor jet noise around ing, and any potential changes to cerns,” said Lucian Niemeyer, Naval Air Station Whidbey Island operations. acting assistant secretary of the Associated Press in Washington state and a base in Blunt Rochester said in a state- The projected timeline is ex- Navy for energy, installations and ment Friday. California. DOVER, Del. — An approxi- pected to be delayed because of environment. The contract was awarded to The Navy submitted the plan to the coronavirus pandemic. Residents in nearby neighbor- mately $41 million contract has Archer Western Federal JV. Congress on March 19, outlining “The details of the meters, hoods, including Coupeville and been awarded for the construc- “For too long now, our world- a general timeline and the terms their placement, and specific site Oak Harbor, have raised con- tion of a new aircraft mainte- for monitoring, including the use requirements are not yet known cerns about the effect noise from nance hangar at Dover Air Force class Dover Air Force base has of 10 or more sound level moni- to the Navy,” Navy news desk of- military aircraft will have on res- Base, according to Delaware’s not had a hangar large enough tors in the vicinity of usual flight ficer Emily Wilkin said. Exact lo- idents’ health and the surround- congressional delegation. to fully enclose its aircraft so paths, the Skagit Valley Herald cations for the sound monitoring ing environment. The project will enable the maintenance can be performed reported. equipment and kind of equipment The Navy has said the plan is base to perform maintenance in any day of the year, regardless The American National Stan- used will be coordinated with intended “to ensure community any weather on its C-5M Super of weather,” Carper said in the dards Institute and the Acousti- local officials and through a con- concerns are addressed,“ so no Galaxy and C-17 Globemaster III statement, which said the hangar cal Society of America assisted in tractor agreement, she added. public meetings are scheduled to aircraft, U.S. Sens. Tom Carper will increase maintenance effi- crafting the plan. “We want to make sure our discuss its details. and Chris Coons and Rep. Lisa ciency rates. PAGE 4 •STARS AND STRIPES• Sunday, April 19, 2020 VIRUS OUTBREAK Fired: A look at options

FROM FRONT PAGE This would avoid sending him pitfalls. back into the chain of command Reinstatement: Gilday could that likely felt betrayed by his decide that Crozier acted in the memo. But it doesn’t provide the best interests of his crew and emotional lift of seeing a popular was unfairly removed. He could captain stride back onto the ship reinstate him as captain of the for which he risked his career. Roosevelt. Administrative actions: Gil- That could generate a lot of day could fault Crozier for doing support. the right thing the wrong way. He In a widely viewed video, Roos- could determine that Crozier was evelt crew members applauded unfairly fired, but that he acted rashly and went outside his chain and chanted Crozier’s name as of command and therefore did not he walked off the ship after being exhibit good leadership. fired. When Thomas Modly, the He could put a letter in Crozier’s acting Navy secretary who fired personnel file, which usually is a Crozier, traveled to the ship and career-ender. Crozier could stay criticized him in a speech to the in the Navy and might move on to crew, he came under fire and had other jobs, but would probably not to resign. be promoted. President Donald Trump even Fire one, fire all: Gilday could suggested that while Crozier determine that firing Crozier was shouldn’t have sent the memo, he appropriate. Unless that’s over- ALEXANDER WILLIAMS, U.S. NAVY/AP shouldn’t be destroyed for having turned in an appeal process, that a “bad day.” would end Crozier’s Navy career. Capt. Brett Crozier, then-commanding officer of the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt, addresses But reinstating Crozier has its In most cases, senior officers the crew on Jan. 17 in San Diego, Calif. problems. simply retire after being relieved It would put him back on a ship of command for cause. mand, says Gilday’s decision is come chief when Spencer pushed Trump has expressed seem- with Rear Adm. Stuart Baker, But Gilday could also decide important to American interests out the admiral who was in line ingly contradictory views on commander of the carrier strike that the ship’s problems extended in the Asia-Pacific region, where for the job. Crozier. group of which the Roosevelt is beyond Crozier. He could recom- an aircraft carrier presence is Gilday, known as an honest, On April 4, he publicly blasted the lead ship. Officials say they mend that Baker be fired or pun- central to U.S. strategy. straight shooter, is expected to the captain, saying Crozier’s let- did not have a good relationship ished for not being receptive to “He’s making an administra- made a decision based on the ter pleading for more urgent ac- and that was among the problems Crozier’s concerns. tive decision back here, but it has facts and his judgment of what is tion was “terrible.” Trump also that triggered Crozier’s memo. Gilday’s review could also dole profound operational implica- best for the ship’s crew and the criticized Crozier for the ship’s Gilday may worry that putting out criticism for leaders who may tions,” Fallon said. Navy. But the decision expected port visit in Vietnam, where crew them back together would exac- And then there’s the poli- early next week can’t be separat- have taken too long to recognize members may have picked up erbate the ship’s toxic command the Roosevelt’s outbreak as the tics: The backdrop to Gilday’s ed entirely from politics. the coronavirus, even though the climate. deadly problem it became. Those decision is a fraught political en- When Gilday reaches a deci- Navy says that decision was made Forgive and move on: Rather would include the 7th Fleet com- vironment in Washington that sion, he will relay recommenda- than return Crozier to the Roos- mander, Vice Adm. William R. has taken a toll on the Navy. tions to acting Navy Secretary by Davidson. evelt, Gilday could absolve him of Merz; the Pacific Fleet com- Modly became acting secre- James McPherson. They will also Two days later, Trump took a wrongdoing and recommend he mander, Adm. John C. Aquilino, tary last November when his go to Defense Secretary Mark more empathetic tack, saying, move on to another job. Crozier or the most senior admiral in predecessor, Richard Spencer, Esper. More importantly, the “I’m not looking to destroy a per- could retain his rank and standing the Pacific, Adm. Phil Davidson, was forced out in a clash with the Navy will alert members of Con- son’s life, who’s had an otherwise and perhaps command another head of Indo-Pacific Command. White House over Trump’s inter- gress and the White House. stellar career, as I understand it.” ship, leaving open the possibility William Fallon, a retired vention in the war crimes case of Any of those could weigh in on Trump said that as far as he could that he could gain promotion and four-star admiral and former former Navy SEAL Eddie Galla- the matter. Or, in Trump’s case, tell, Crozier had simply “had a continue his Navy career. commander of U.S. Pacific Com- gher. And Gilday had abruptly be- he could reverse it. bad day.” Navy, CDC to launch study on Roosevelt virus outbreak

BY ANDREW DYER “The intent of investigation The ship’s commanding of- The San Diego Union-Tribune is not to get to the source; it’s to ficer, Capt. Brett Crozier, was better understand the behavior fired seven days later, after a The Navy is coordinating with of virus going forward,” he said. letter he wrote predicting dire the U.S. Centers for Disease Con- “The information gained will consequences for his crew if the trol and Prevention in an investi- add to the growing body of public Navy did not move them off the gation into the novel coronavirus health knowledge about this virus ship was leaked to the media and outbreak on board the San Diego- so that we can better understand widely publicized. based aircraft carrier Theodore it and fight it.” COVID-19 testing of the Roos- Roosevelt, the Navy announced Blood samples will be tested at evelt’s crew is ongoing but has Friday. the CDC’s laboratory in Atlanta stalled at about 94% tested. The outbreak on the Roos- using the agency’s new serology The skeleton crew left behind evelt is the single largest in the test, which can identify antibod- on board won’t be tested until military, with 660 members of its ies and tell researchers whether they rotate off to spend 14 days crew testing positive for the novel ICHOLAS UYNH AVY/AP N V. H , U.S. N a person has been exposed to the in quarantine, Gillingham said. coronavirus, seven in the hospital virus even if they are showing no An F/A-18F Super Hornet launches from the flight deck of the They have been keeping watch and one sailor who died Monday. symptoms. aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt in the Pacific March. of the ship’s two nuclear reactors The virus has sidelined the About 60% of the 660 Roosevelt and disinfecting the ship. carrier in Guam for three weeks, sailors who have tested positive The Navy and CDC expect re- where 4,000 sailors have been nation,” Gillingham said in a call ment. It was sidelined in March so far have shown no COVID-19 sults from the study in about a quarantined off the ship. with reporters. after sailors began testing posi- symptoms, Pentagon officials month, Gillingham said. Rear Adm. Bruce Gillingham The investigation will be done tive for the virus 15 days after a said this week. Gillingham said said Friday that officials hope the by the Navy and Marine Corps port visit to Vietnam. one of the investigation goals is study will help the military and Public Health Center in partner- The first two cases of the virus to determine how much the virus the country better understand ship with the CDC. were found among two members spread without sailors showing Correction how the virus behaves. They will begin gathering data of the ship’s air wing, a Navy of- symptoms. “The results of this inves- Monday and spend about a week ficial told the Union-Tribune Fri- “Because of the pre-symptom- A story in Saturday’s edi- tigation will inform medical surveying sailors. The Navy is day. However, because the two atic transmission, we believe that tion about this year’s Air professionals to support better asking for 1,000 volunteers from cases came to light 15 days after it probably passed through the Force Academy gradua- public health decisions for the the Roosevelt’s crew to undergo the port visit to Vietnam, Gilling- ship quite freely and was initially tion should have said cadets ship. It will also advise the broad- additional saliva tests and anti- han could not say how the virus unrecognized,” Gillingham said. would gather at The Terrazo er COVID-19 surveillance and body blood tests. got on board. The Roosevelt pulled into Guam pavilion, instead of in Falcon mitigation strategy for the (Theo- The Roosevelt left San Diego He said identifying the first case March 28 as the virus spread out- Stadium. dore Roosevelt), the fleet and our in January for a routine deploy- isn’t the goal of the investigation. of-control among its crews. Sunday, April 19, 2020 •STARS AND STRIPES• PAGE 5 VIRUS OUTBREAK French navy starts probe into cause of ship outbreak

Associated Press Parly told lawmakers that 1,081 of the 2,300 people aboard the PARIS — The French navy is Charles de Gaulle and its es- investigating how the coronavi- cort vessels have tested positive rus infected more than 1,000 sail- so far — nearly half the overall ors aboard the aircraft carrier personnel. Charles de Gaulle, amid growing While the virus has immobi- pressure on government lead- lized the immense and important ers to explain how it could have ship, Parly insisted that other- happened. wise “our forces continue to as- The ship, France’s biggest car- sure the defense of our country at rier and the flagship of its navy, sea, under the sea, on land and in is undergoing a lengthy disinfec- the air.” tion process since returning to CARLOS OSORIO/AP An investigation to retrace its home base in Toulon five days the paths of the personnel is in Members of the military assemble some of the beds April 1 for use at the TCF Center in Detroit to ago. accommodate an overflow of patients with the coronavirus. progress. Lavault noted that the One person remains in inten- aircraft carrier made a call in sive care, and some 20 others are the French port of Brest, on the hospitalized, navy spokesman Atlantic Ocean; had been in the Cmdr. Eric Lavault told The As- North Sea as part of a “naval di- Army Corps of Engineers plans sociated Press. plomacy” mission with NATO Two of four U.S. sailors serv- partners; and had stopped in ing aboard the Charles de Gaulle Cyprus during an operation in to continue adding hospital space as part of an exchange program the eastern Mediterranean Sea also tested positive, according to to join in the fight against the Is- BY ROSE L. THAYER it was going to come up and come ments are signing seven-month a U.S. Navy statement. A British lamic State group. Stars and Stripes back down, we seeing that curve leases for the facilities housing sailor was aboard another vessel, Journalists had boarded the stretch all the way out perhaps to alternate-care sites to prepare for Lavault said, refusing to reveal vessel at one point. The Army Corps of Engineers as far as June.” the possible return of the corona- the sailor’s health status. “All hypotheses are on the is working to provide extra hos- By Friday, the United States virus in the fall, Semonite said. Lavault insisted that the air- table,” Lavault said. pital space to cities and states had more than 662,000 con- He did not say which locations craft carrier’s commander sought So far, 350 crew members have concerned that the coronavirus firmed cases of the virus and have made that choice. to increase the physical distance been grilled about their move- pandemic could peak in rural nearly 29,000 deaths, according “It’s almost like insurance – a among the crew on the vessel, ments on and off the vessel, ac- areas during the summer or re- to the Johns Hopkins Coronavi- good reserve,” he said, adding he where there was no testing equip- cording to Lavault. turn in the fall, Lt. Gen. Todd T. rus Resource Center. While large tells mayors, “If you have hospi- ment and for most of its three The defense minister defended Semonite said Friday. cities remain the hotspots of the tal beds that don’t get used, I don’t months on operations, no masks. the decision to allow the ship to “The virus is getting a vote,” outbreak, rural areas are not ex- think that’s a problem because It is “very difficult to apply stop in Brest in mid-March, even the commander of the Army pected to go unscathed. you had the ability to take care social distancing measures on a though France had already or- Corps of Engineers told reporters In preparation for ongoing of the people for your city. It’s a combat vessel,” Lavault said. But dered all schools closed to fight at the Pentagon. “The virus has spread of the virus, Army engi- small cost to be able to have the “security of the crew is the first the virus and the government changed” in the last month. concern. A combat ship, especial- neers have conducted 1,099 of the capability to keep people alive.” was preparing confinement mea- In March, many officials be- requested 1,178 site assessments ly an aircraft carrier, is nothing Despite the rise in demand for sures. Hours after the ship left, lieved the coronavirus would and are moving forward to build without its crew.” the Corps, Semonite said only President Emmanuel Macron an- cause a huge spike, followed by 28 alternate-care facilities, total- A similar outbreak on the USS about 5% to 10% of their other nounced a nationwide lockdown, a quick drop, which led to a rush ing more than 15,870 bed spaces, Theodore Roosevelt and a dispute among the strictest in Europe. ongoing projects have been im- for more hospital beds, Semonite Semonite said. about how the at-sea health crisis “We are and will be transpar- pacted by pandemic work. That is said. Instead, many regions are In 41 instances, state govern- was handled led to the firing of its ent” about the health situation, mostly due to stay-at-home direc- seeing a delay in the peak — in ments chose to take the corps de- captain and the resignation this the health director Maryline part because of prevention ef- sign and build on their own. tives from area governments that month of the acting U.S. Navy Gygax Genero told the parlia- forts to slow the spread of the Officials in Colorado asked the limit construction. secretary. mentary commission. virus. This has allowed more Corps to prepare the city’s con- Otherwise, work at military The French navy has been Lavault said the carrier was time for the Corps to build alter- vention center with about 500 bases and along U.S. waterways spared major controversy so far, being cleaned top to bottom, first nate-care facilities that increase bed spaces and the capacity to remains steady, as does about $8 but the defense minister and the with high-pressure water at 140 hospital bed space, particularly more than double that, if needed, billion worth of construction for head of the French military’s degrees , then with an anti-viral in places such as Alaska, Hawaii Semonite said. Those beds are Department of Veterans Affairs health service arm were ques- product, a process that could take and Guam. projected to open Saturday at an hospitals. tioned Friday about the infections weeks. He said the goal is to get “The curve is elongated,” Se- estimated cost of $35 million. [email protected] at parliamentary hearings. the carrier back to sea sometime monite said. “Where we thought In other instances, govern- Twitter: @Rose_Lori Defense Minister Florence in May. Infections among US service members nearing 3,000

BY COREY DICKSTEIN with the fast-spreading virus military services. The Army re- evelt’s crew revealed that more testing capacity from about 8,700 Stars and Stripes have recovered from the disease. ported the second highest total than half of the sailors who tested tests per day to about 65,000 Forty-four troops are now hospi- with 725 cases among its active- positive were asymptomatic. But within 45 days, citing the need WASHINGTON — Nearly talized by the virus, which has duty and Reserve soldiers. The the disease has also hospitalized to ensure asymptomatic carriers 3,000 U.S. service members had killed two service members, in- Air Force reported 328 cases, several members of the crew, in- were not spreading the virus un- tested positive for the coronavi- cluding 41-year-old Chief Petty the Marines reported 236, and cluding Thacker. Seven Roosevelt knowingly within their units. rus by Friday, according to new Officer Charles Robert Thacker the National Guard reported crew members were hospitalized The Pentagon especially wants Pentagon data that showed the Jr., who died Monday in a Guam 609 coronavirus-positive troops for the virus as of Friday, includ- to ensure it is regularly testing number of military-affiliated hospital after contracting the among its Air and Army Guard ing one sailor who was in inten- members of its top-tier special people infected by the virus near- virus aboard the aircraft carrier members. sive care, the Navy said. operations units and others re- ing 5,000. USS Theodore Roosevelt. Top Pentagon officials pledged Army Gen. Mark Milley, the sponsible for its nuclear capabili- The data released Friday Overall, the Navy reported this week to increase testing chairman of the Joint Chiefs of ties, Milley said. showed that more than 22% of the 1,017 positive cases among its among its troops worldwide, es- Staff, said Tuesday that the de- [email protected] 2,986 service members diagnosed personnel, the most of any of the pecially after testing of the Roos- partment aimed to improve its Twitter: @CDicksteinDC PAGE 6 •STARS AND STRIPES• Sunday, April 19, 2020 VIRUS OUTBREAK Halt on military moves to last through June

BY ROSE L. THAYER into effect Monday, Donovan said. where [troops] are moving to,” he said. Command supports about 400,000 moves, Stars and Stripes The new order will replace the travel Each move will be reviewed on a case- with about a quarter of those moves occur- restrictions put into place in March that by-case basis, looking at the departure and ring during the summer months, Donovan A new directive on the movement of mil- have stopped thousands of military moves arrival locations carefully and determin- said. In light of March’s halt on moves, mil- itary personnel and their families will bar and forced some deployed units to remain ing whether local governments for those itary personnel are only moving at about travel through June 30, but create more overseas longer than anticipated. areas allow for such movement, includ- 30% of the normal rate. Each service is only flexibility to allow for the deployment of The new order applies to service mem- ing the ability to hire movers. Waivers for seeing about 10% of normal movement. troops serving overseas and some priority bers, civilians and their families and travel will only be granted for missions For those troops and civilian personnel troops to change duty stations, a Pentagon comes as the military prepares for sum- deemed essential, humanitarian relief or who are granted the ability to move under official said Saturday. mer, its peak moving season. Without re- personal hardship. Personal leave will only Monday’s pending order, they could have Defense Secretary Mark Esper has yet vealing many details, Donovan said the be granted for the local area where service to isolate themselves once they arrive at to issue the order, which aims to curb the new directive is “more liberal” and allows members are located now. their new location. That will depend on spread of the coronavirus by keeping ser- more exemptions and waivers. The services are now preparing for the where they left and what the local authori- vice members and their families in place, “You’ll see that it’s a little bit looser, be- new order by identifying personnel moves ties in that state or host country require, according to Matthew Donovan, undersec- cause we know more about [the coronavi- that are the highest priority, Donovan Donovan said. retary of defense for personnel and readi- rus] and can get projections on potential said. [email protected] ness. However, Esper is expected to sign it hotspots and more information on nations In an average year, U.S. Transportation Twitter: @Rose_Lori Protest: Some Americans weary of quarantine orders take to the streets

FROM FRONT PAGE long way to go before restrictions Trump’s tweets come as the can be lifted,” Washington Gov. right-wing media has ampli- Jay Inslee, a Democrat, said. A fied the protests and conserva- protest against his stay-at-home tive groups have formed plans to order, which lifts May 5, is sched- jointly press for a reopening of uled in Olympia this weekend. the economy. The groups include Tyler Miller, who organized the several veterans of the tea party Washington state protest, said he era, activism that was powered is urging attendees to wear per- by a network of right-wing and sonal protective equipment, prac- corporate financiers interested tice physical distancing and not in reducing taxes and regulations attend if they are in a high-risk on industry. category or feeling sick. Protesters railed against poli- Public health experts have said cies that call for nonessential any premature easing of stay-at- businesses and schools to be home orders could lead to a sec- closed, restaurants limited to car- ond wave of pandemic, erasing ryout service and people to stay the social distancing progress, largely in their homes except for returning the population to quar- emergencies. They argue that the antine, deepening the economic nation has sacrificed the econo- turmoil and resulting in more my, with unemployment at record lives lost. levels, and people have upended Some said they are protest- their lives for something many do ing mainly because of the severe not see as an existential threat to economic impact caused by the society. virus. More than 22 million peo- “I think there’s a boiling point ple have filed for unemployment that has been reached and ex- since Trump declared a national ceeded,” said Stephen Moore, a emergency last month. conservative economist. Moore In Ohio, where 100 protesters GLEN STUBBE, STAR TRIBUNE/AP is a member of both the White did not practice social distanc- House council to reopen the Hundreds of protesters gather outside Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’ official residence, Friday, in St. Paul, ing as they pushed up against country and a coalition of conser- Minn. President Donald Trump tweeted his support the protest. the glass doors of the statehouse vative leaders and activists seek- this week, Gov. Mike DeWine, a ing to push government officials people clogged traffic in cars or cases and over 2,200 deaths. its Facebook page. The column, Republican, announced he was to relax stay-at-home orders. marched in the snow to protest State incorporation records which appeared in The Washing- assembling plans to safely reopen “I call these people the mod- Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Demo- show the nonprofit coalition also ton Post, asserted that the pro- the economy ahead of the expi- ern-day Rosa Parks — they are crat, who last week added addi- goes by another name: Michigan test had all but killed Whitmer’s ration of his stay-at-home order protesting against injustice and tional restrictions to the state’s Trump Republicans. The group’s chances to be vice president. May 1. DeWine and Amy Acton, a loss of liberties,” Moore said of stay-at-home order. Protesters president, Rosanne Ponkowski, “Mission accomplished?” the director of the Ohio Department the protesters. waved American flags, Trump identified herself as a homemak- group wrote above the link to the of Health, have said reopening Moore described himself as a flags and an occasional Con- er last year in federal campaign column. will come in phases. radical when it comes to getting federate flag. Many screamed finance records. But the group’s Nicole Hemmer, a scholar at State Sen. Andrew Brenner, Americans to work during a 2016 “Lock her up!” and “We will not other directors are longtime Columbia University and author a Republican, said DeWine was Freedomworks debate on the comply!” GOP insiders, according to state of “Messengers of the Right,” right to close schools and busi- minimum wage. Protest leaders said the demon- records. They include Marian about the right-wing media, said nesses early, decisions that “I’m a radical on this,” he said strations evolved organically into Sheridan, the state Republican the anti-government signage and Brenner said are bringing the while debating the Center for a collective call for rolling back Party’s vice-chair of “grassroots” argument that stay-at-home or- state closer to reopening. American Progress’ David Mad- emergency measures that they efforts. ders infringe on personal liberty Brenner’s district near Colum- land. “I’d get rid of a lot of these think infringe on personal free- Sheridan has “worked in Mich- hark back to a prior conservative bus is one of the fastest-growing child labor laws. I want people doms and further decimate the igan grassroots for the last 10 movement. areas of the state. He said the starting to work at 11, 12.” economy. years” and started her political “In my mind, it looks a lot like pandemic has wiped out its eco- Moore said the protests have “I feel terrible about the lives career as a tea party leader and the tea party,” she said. “It almost nomic gains. been spontaneous and orga- lost, but at some point, we have to organizer, according to the state seems like an excuse for getting “People are calling me crying nized at the local level, but he say ‘mission accomplished’ and GOP’s website. out and rallying against politi- because they’ve lost their jobs, and said his group has been offering come up with the next phase of Sheridan, Ponkowski and the cians they oppose.” the government stimulus checks them advice and legal support this that doesn’t have us continu- Michigan Republican Party did Some politicians believe are not going to keep people going should protesters be arrested and ously locked inside our homes,” not respond to messages. Trump’s egging on of the protest- long,” Brenner said, adding more prosecuted. said Matthew Seely of the Michi- Social media accounts show ers is dangerous. people will need government as- The protests come as governors gan Conservative Coalition, which that part of the group’s goal was “The president is fomenting sistance. “The next thing that’s in Texas, Minnesota and Vermont organized the protests. to damage Whitmer. A day after domestic rebellion and spread- going to happen is that revenue on Friday announced dates to Michigan has been one of the the protest, the Michigan Trump ing lies even while his own ad- needed to maintain vital services, ease certain restrictions. states hardest hit by the virus, Republicans posted a conserva- ministration says the virus is real such as education and Medicaid, In Michigan, hundreds of with more than 30,000 confirmed tive opinion writer’s column on and is deadly and that we have a will plummet.” Sunday, April 19, 2020 •STARS AND STRIPES• PAGE 7 VIRUS OUTBREAK Hard-hit nations debate easing lockdowns

Associated Press municate that there is a kind of conflict with health and safety on one side and eco- BERLIN — Facing rising unemployment nomic resumption,“ said Domenico Arcuri, and with many of their citizens struggling Italy’s extraordinary commissioner for the to make ends meet, governments around coronavirus emergency. the world are wrestling with when and how Arcuri told reporters Saturday that to ease the restrictions designed to control the coronavirus pandemic. “without health, the (economic) revival will Mandatory lockdowns to stop the spread disappear in the batting of an eyelash.” of the new virus, which has so far infected The Italian government’s decree, shut- more than 2.2 million people and for which ting down nonessential industries and there is no vaccine, have brought wide- businesses, runs through May 3. Health spread hardship. experts are advising that any easing must In a joint statement Saturday, a group be gradual in the country that’s seen the of 13 countries including Canada, Brazil, most deaths so far in Europe, with nearly Italy and Germany called for global coop- 23,000 fatalities and over 172,000 known eration to lessen the economic impact of cases. the pandemic. Some Asian nations that until recently “It is vital that we work together to save appeared to have the outbreak under con- lives and livelihoods,” they said. trol, including Singapore and Japan, re- The group, which also includes Britain, ported a fresh surge in cases Saturday. France Indonesia, Mexico, Morocco, Peru, Japan’s total case number rose above South Korea, Singapore and Turkey, said 10,000 on Saturday. Prime Minister Shinzo it was committed to “work with all coun- Abe expressed concern Friday that people tries to coordinate on public health, travel, were not observing social distancing and trade, economic and financial measures in RAJANISH KAKADE/AP announced a 100,000-yen ($930) cash handout to each resident as an incentive to order to minimize disruptions and recover Children wait to receive free food distributed in a slum during a lockdown to check the stay home. stronger.” spread of the new coronavirus in Mumbai, India, on Saturday. This includes maintaining “air, land and Iran, hard hit by the virus and interna- tional sanctions, allowed some businesses marine transportation links” to ensure the at-home orders that have thrown millions In France and Spain, some field hospitals continued flow of goods including medical in the capital and nearby towns to re-open out of work. were starting to be dismantled, while Ger- equipment and aid, and the return home of Saturday after weeks of lockdown. Gyms, travelers, they said. The official death toll in the U.S. has many said the number of people infected restaurants, shopping malls and Tehran’s In the United States, the debate has topped 35,000, with more than 700,000 by each person with COVID-19 fell below grand bazaar will remain closed. taken on partisan tones ahead of this fall’s confirmed infections. one for the first time this week. In Africa, one of the world’s poorest re- presidential elections. Republican Presi- There have been tentative signs that Still, most governments and public gions, the pandemic is only just getting dent Donald Trump urged supporters to measures to curb the outbreak are work- health officials remain cautious about re- underway. The continent has now record- “liberate” three states led by Democratic ing, with the rate of new infections slowing laxing the shutdowns, despite the mount- ed more than 1,000 coronavirus deaths, governors, tweeting the kind of rhetoric across Europe in response to the lock- ing economic toll. among them the Nigerian president’s chief some have used to demand an end to stay- downs there. “It’s wrong, sensationally wrong to com- of staff. Virus forced schools online, but many students didn’t follow

Associated Press learning is raising concerns that a device by the end of April. those who already were strug- Mayor Bill de Blasio said the SAN DIEGO — During the gling will be left further behind. district was still gathering data, first week that her San Diego “The pandemic is an educa- but “there’s clearly an issue with public school was shuttered to tional equity crisis for vulnerable attendance.” slow the spread of the coronavi- rus, not one of Elise Samaniego’s students who were too often un- That is true in many places. students logged on to her virtual derserved by our education sys- In the Los Angeles Unified classroom. tem in ‘normal’ times,” said Ian School District, the country’s Three weeks in, the teacher Rosenblum, executive director of second largest, as many as 40% of still hadn’t connected online The Education Trust-New York. elementary school students had with roughly two-thirds of the Not all schools are struggling. not logged on even once as of the Those accustomed to technol- first week of April — three weeks students in her third- and fourth- RICH PEDRONCELLI/AP grade combo class at Paradise ogy transitioned smoothly. Derek after the system closed. Hills Elementary. She fears the Blunt, a math teacher at Making As for those who have made Kelly Dighero, a third grade teacher at Phoebe Hearst Elementary pandemic will exact a devastat- Community Connections Charter an appearance, superintendent School, gives a thumbs-up during her first online meeting with ing toll on education in the United School in Keene, N.H., said stu- Austin Beutner, cautioned that students and parents on the front lawn of her home in Sacramento, States, especially at low-income dents are issued iPads in normal “merely logging in does not tell us Calif., on Monday. schools like hers. times and regularly use Google anything more than the student “I do have several students Classroom and other platforms. turned on their computer.” would work online. Most students out the kinks, and instruction below grade level, and this is just A week after the school closed, In ordinary times, some 16% in her Algebra II and pre-Calcu- officially starts April 27. Some going to make it worse,” said Sa- nearly all of his 65 students were percent of public school students lus classes are doing their work. schools are adopting pass or fail maniego, who has been emailing doing their work. nationally are chronically absent, But only about half of her 10th systems or “no harm grading,” in and calling families to get her 22 In contrast, students at Sa- with higher rates among high grade geometry students are log- which grades will not be lowered students to participate. maniego’s school faced several school, black and Hispanic stu- ging on, and even some of them during distance learning but can Teachers across the country hurdles before learning could dents, according to the U.S. Edu- aren’t handing in assignments. go up. report their attempts at distance begin. Some only had internet cation Department. “When they were in class, you Given the difficulties of con- learning are failing to reach large access through their parents’ Many districts are now not could get on their back and ask ceiving lessons and science labs numbers of students. Hundreds phones. tracking attendance because it them about what was going on, that are effective virtually, some of thousands of students are still “I can’t tell them even where to tells them so little. But attendance where is the work?” Katz said. assignments feel like busy work without computers or internet ac- start,” she said. “Do you have a is usually critical: Absenteeism is “It’s hard from a distance.” to Emily Weinberg, a senior at cess. Those who do log on have computer? That’s step 1. Then you linked to a significant increase in Adding to her frustration was a Lexington High School, a public countless distractions: They are have to download Chrome. That’s the risk of dropping out of school. student who interrupted a virtual school in Massachusetts. babysitting siblings, sharing lap- step 2.” And attendance is only one part class with yelling and profanity “I had to try to figure out what tops, lying in bed during lessons. In New York City, the nation’s of the puzzle. five times. the kinetic energy of a dime was Others log on only to walk away. largest school district, tens of Michelle Katz, a math teacher Schools are responding by when I pushed it,” she said. “I felt With schools closed for the rest thousands of tablets and laptops at the public Northridge Academy making accommodations. San like this is wasting my time.” of the year in at least 23 states, have been lent to students, and High School in the Los Angeles Diego Unified School District Even so, she’s completing all the uneven progress with remote the plan is for everyone to have area, revamped lessons so they said this month is for working her work. PAGE 8 •STARS AND STRIPES• Sunday, April 19, 2020 VIRUS OUTBREAK ROUNDUP California tops 1K deaths as economy takes tumble

Associated Press ficult time?” Pritzker said. “The answer to that question leaves us LOS ANGELES — California with only one path forward.” recorded more than 1,000 deaths The governor closed schools from the coronavirus Friday as March 17 amid growing concern the pandemic pushed the state over the virus, idling more than 2 into recession, despite signs that million children midway through have emerged of an improving the spring semester, including outlook for the virus. 355,000 in Chicago’s public school The state topped a number it district, which is the third largest once hoped to avoid, reaching in the nation. 1,021 deaths, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University. The death toll came after California Louisiana recorded its greatest number of NEW ORLEANS — Louisi- deaths in one day, 95, on Thurs- ana is working to make more day, eclipsing the previous mark clinic and hospital space avail- of 71. able again for elective surgeries The state also reported for the and other nonemergency medical first time that 3,500 cases are in care before May 1, Gov. John Bel nursing homes or adult care fa- Edwards said Friday. cilities, where the most vulner- Elective surgeries and other able people reside and infections procedures were largely put on MARK LENNIHAN/AP have spread quickly. That figure hold as state hospitals converted reflects about 12% of more than space and clinic personnel were A man wearing a face mask rides a subway in the Bronx borough of New York, on Friday. 27,500 cases the state reported. diverted to other jobs as Louisi- Gov. Gavin Newsom also named ana ramped up to deal with the to vote absentee in upcoming said Friday as he offered a set of for three weeks. a task force Friday to help the COVID-19 outbreak. The state elections to help reduce the risk guiding principles, but few specif- state recover economically after has the third-highest rate of cases of catching or spreading the ics, on how he plans to get legions Utah he begins easing restrictions in the country, Edwards said. coronavirus. of unemployed residents out of that have shuttered businesses. But the number of those re- The lawsuit was filed in Jeffer- their homes and back to work. SALT LAKE CITY — Utah will The nonpartisan panel of billion- quiring hospitalization and venti- son City by the American Civil Cautioning that serious obsta- aim to reopen restaurants and aires and corporate leaders that lators has declined in recent days, Liberties Union of Missouri and cles remain, Wolf said he would gyms and resume elective sur- includes all four living former raising hopes that an easing of the Missouri Voter Protection Co- rely on an “evidence-based, re- geries in early May under a plan governors — two Democrats, like economically devastating stay-at- alition on behalf of the NAACP, gional approach” guided by health unveiled Friday by Gov. Gary Newsom, and two Republicans home orders and business shut- the League of Women Voters and experts and economists that will Herbert to gradually reopen the — came after dismal unemploy- downs may soon be in sight. several residents. It claims that help him decide when it’s safe. economy that has been decimated ment figures ended a record 10- Edwards said details on the requiring voters to appear at tra- The plan released by his admin- by the coronavirus pandemic. year economic growth streak. return of more nonemergency ditional polling places during the istration offered no timetable. It Herbert said at a news confer- “We are now in a pandemic-in- services would be released next pandemic puts lives at risk. also did not spell out the metrics ence the plan is dependent on duced recession here in the state week. “No one should be forced to that Wolf and his administration continued adherence to hygiene of California,” Newsom said. “We’re going to open that up choose between staying safe and will use to decide that Pennsylva- and social distancing rules but “These are sober and challeng- sooner rather than later and, in voting,” Sophia Lin Lakin, deputy nia can begin emerging from the said the state has done a good ing times.” all likelihood, ahead of May 1,” he director of the ACLU’s Voting pandemic after weeks of social job containing the outbreak of The growth period ended as the said during a news conference at Rights Project, said in a state- distancing. COVID-19 and leaders must help state lost 100,000 jobs in March, LSU’s Pete Maravich Assembly ment. “Expanding absentee bal- Wolf called Friday’s release a the thousands of people suffering a figure that barely begins to Center. lot access to all registered voters “framework” and said he would without paychecks. account for damage done to the during the pandemic is a com- lay out more concrete steps next The Republican governor said world’s fifth-largest economy. Michigan mon-sense solution that protects week. The state needs to be care- the plan, which has been in the Those March job losses oc- people’s health and their right to ful and deliberate in reopening work for weeks, mirrors guide- curred before the governor is- LANSING — Gov. Gretchen vote.” the economy, the governor said, lines issued by President Donald sued a stay-at-home order that Whitmer said Friday that she with the flexibility to respond to Trump on Thursday. only allows essential employees hopes to begin gradually reopen- New Mexico new outbreaks. Doing otherwise, to go to work, effectively closing ing Michigan’s economy on May he contended, would prolong the Virginia most shops, bars and restaurants 1 after weeks of a strict stay- SANTA FE — New Mexico re- crisis. that don’t offer takeout food. at-home order during the coro- ported seven new deaths across BON AIR, Va. — Coronavirus In order to begin lifting restric- navirus crisis that has crippled the state linked to the coronavi- Tennessee has erupted inside a juvenile de- tions, the state will need to test businesses and caused more than rus pandemic as the number of tention center in Virginia with 25 25,000 people a day and track 1 million unemployed people to people seeking unemployment NASHVILLE — A federal kids testing positive, accounting down those they may have infect- seek aid. benefits surged to nearly 80,000. judge Friday night ruled that for a quarter of all cases reported ed, a big task in the nation’s most Meanwhile, the number of new Health officials said deaths Tennessee has to continue allow- at youth facilities nationwide, of- populous state with 40 million virus cases statewide rose 2%, linked to COVID-19 increased ing abortions amid a temporary ficials said Friday. residents. a much slower pace. In Detroit, to 51, with 1,711 people testing ban on nonessential medical pro- Children’s rights advocates and where nearly 600 people have positive. cedures that’s aimed at slowing health experts have warned state Illinois died, Mayor Mike Duggan re- Two new deaths involving resi- the spread of COVID-19. officials for weeks that it was ported upbeat news from hospi- dents of La Vida Llena retirement U.S. District Judge Bernard just a matter of time before the CHICAGO — Gov. J.B. Pritz- tals, declaring: “We are beating facility in Albuquerque raised the Friedman said the defendants virus took off inside juvenile fa- ker on Friday ordered schools this thing.” death toll at the facility to a dozen didn’t show that any apprecia- cilities. They have called on Gov. throughout the state closed for Whitmer didn’t identify which people. The state attorney gen- ble amount of personal protec- Ralph Northam to start releas- the rest of the semester because businesses may be allowed to eral says operators of the facility tive equipment, or PPE, would ing as many children as safely of the lingering threat of the open but said the restrictions will initially discouraged personnel be saved if the ban is applied to possible from centers, including coronavirus. be relaxed in phases. She said from wearing personal protec- abortions. at the newly hit Bon Air Juve- Pritzker announced the move there would be many factors: in- tive equipment and did not warn In a hearing by phone Friday, nile Correctional Center outside during his daily briefing in Chi- doors work or outdoors; the num- medical providers in advance attorneys representing several Richmond. cago, extending school closures ber of employees; their proximity that patients from the retirement state abortion clinics argued that On April 2, officials in Virginia past the April 30 date he had set to each other; and their interac- community had either tested pos- Tennessee women will face im- announced two staffers at Bon Air earlier. As of Friday, Illinois had tion with the public. itive or had been exposed to the mediate harm if the ban on abor- had tested positive, but contact recorded 27,575 confirmed cases It will be “based on facts, sci- virus. tions is not lifted. with residents was limited. A day of COVID-19, including 1,134 ence and what is the best medi- Alex Rieger, arguing for the later, a kid started showing symp- deaths. cal advice we can get,” Whitmer Pennsylvania Tennessee attorney general’s of- toms and later tested positive. In issuing his latest order, said. fice, said abortions are not being Chris Moon, chief physician at Pritzker acknowledged the dis- HARRISBURG — Pennsyl- singled out but treated like any Virginia’s Department of Juve- ruption it would cause to students Missouri vania has managed to avoid the other procedure that is not nec- nile Justice, said 21 of the 25 in- and their families. worst of the pandemic and it’s essary to prevent death or seri- fected kids in Bon Air exhibited “But my priority remains un- O’FALLON — A lawsuit filed now time to start talking about a ous bodily injury. Gov. Bill Lee no outward symptoms and only changed. How do we save the by civil rights groups on Friday gradual reopening of the state’s issued an emergency order on four showed signs that were more most lives during this very dif- seeks to allow all Missourians battered economy, Gov. Tom Wolf April 8 banning those procedures severe than a cold or a flu. Sunday, April 19, 2020 •STARS AND STRIPES• PAGE 9 NATION Smugglers target border wall in San Diego

BY NICK MIROFF 10. The agency withheld information about reciprocating saws that retail for as little privately acknowledged repeated breaches The Washington Post the specific locations of the incidents, cit- as $100 at home improvement stores — can and breaching attempts during that time ing law enforcement sensitivities. The cut through the bollards using inexpensive span in the San Diego area, incidents that Smugglers sawed into new sections of agency said the average cost to repair the blades designed for slicing through metal do not appear to have been tallied in the President Trump’s border wall 18 times damage was $620 per incident. and stone. response to The Post’s FOIA request. in the San Diego area during a single one- The records do not indicate whether the The Post requested breaching data for CBP said the 18 incidents were a count month span late last year, according to U.S. one-month span last year is a representa- the full 2019 fiscal year, which ended Sept. of smuggling attempts that required the Customs and Border Protection records tive sample of how frequently people are 30, but CBP provided data for the time pe- U.S. government to repair the structure obtained by The Washington Post via a trying to breach new sections of Trump’s riod spanning Jan. 1 to Oct. 27. and did not necessarily represent success- Freedom of Information Act request. border barrier, which are made of tall steel The agency’s figures show all 18 breach- ful breaches that allowed narcotics or mi- The breaches and attempted breaches bollards partially filled with concrete and es and attempted breaches occurred be- grants to illegally enter the United States. were made between Sept. 27 and Oct. 27, rebar. The Post reported last November tween Sept. 27 and Oct. 27, with none The San Diego area has the most forti- according to CBP records, with five of the that smuggling crews armed with common recorded during the nine months prior. fied barriers anywhere along the border incidents occurring on a single day, Oct. battery-operated power tools — including But CBP officials and border agents have with Mexico. Biden angling to let Sanders keep delegates

Associated Press licly and spoke on condition of anonymity. “We are in discussion WASHINGTON — Seeking with them now on how to best ac- to avoid the bitter feelings that complish that.” marred the 2016 Democratic con- Sanders’ campaign declined vention, Joe Biden’s campaign is to comment on the talks. “Noth- angling to allow Bernie Sanders ing to add from us,” said Sanders to keep some of the delegates he spokesman Mike Casca. would otherwise forfeit by drop- In some ways, the delegate ping out of the presidential race. count is a moot point. While he Under a strict application of has yet to formally win the 1,991 party rules, Sanders should lose delegates needed to claim the about a third of the delegates he’s Democratic nomination on the won in primaries and caucuses first ballot at the party conven- as the process moves ahead and tion, Biden is the Democrat’s states select the actual people presumptive nominee. All of his who will attend the Democratic rivals — including Sanders — National Convention. The rules have endorsed him after ending say those delegates should be their own campaigns. Biden supporters, as he is the But with the nomination essen- only candidate still actively seek- tially decided, who has how many ELLEN KNICKMEYER/AP ing the party’s nomination. delegates takes on a new mean- A label indicating the absence of PFAS, perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances on pans is seen in Quiet talks between the two ing. In 2016, rowdy Sanders sup- Washington in June. campaigns center on allowing porters booed some speakers and Sanders to keep some of his del- any mention of nominee Hillary egates, essentially a goodwill Clinton at the party’s Philadel- gesture from a presumptive nom- phia convention. The disruptions White House moves to weaken inee seeking to court Sanders’ were so embarrassing to the progressive supporters and unite party that Sanders pleaded with the party. It is not yet settled how his supporters not to stage pro- EPA rule on toxic compounds many. tests on the floor. “We feel strongly that it is in By claiming the delegates that the best interest of the party to ought to belong to him under Associated Press bor” provision for industry. House pressure amounts to un- ensure that the Sanders cam- party rules, Biden could cut down Pushed again in January, the usual intervention in what had WASHINGTON — The Trump paign receives statewide del- on the number of Sanders’ back- agency responded, “EPA opposes been the EPA’s in-house efforts White House has intervened to egates to reflect the work that ers — some of whom have been proposing a safe harbor provi- to regulate imports tainted with they have done to contribute to slow to embrace the former vice weaken one of the few public sion, but is open to a neutrally- the compound. Trump has nomi- health protections pursued by the movement that will beat Don- president — who could stage a worded request for comment nated Beck to lead the Consumer ald Trump this fall,” said a Biden replay of that divide. Instead, he’s its own administration, a rule to from the public” on the White Product Safety Commission, a limit the use of a toxic industrial official, who wasn’t authorized to decided to try to attract Sanders’ House request. government panel charged with discuss private negotiations pub- supporters. compound in consumer products, The rule is one of the few con- protecting Americans from harm according to communications be- crete steps that the Trump ad- by thousands of kinds of consum- tween the White House and Envi- ministration has taken to deal er goods. ronmental Protection Agency. with growing contamination by Asked about the White House The documents show that the PFAS industrial compounds. The actions, EPA spokeswoman Corry White House Office of Manage- EPA has declared dating back to Schiermeyer said in an email that ment and Budget formally noti- 2018 that consumer exposure to “consulting with other federal fied the EPA by email last July the substances was a “national agencies on actions is a normal that it was stepping into the craft- priority” that the agency was process across government,” and ing of the rule on the compound, confronting “aggressively.” that “EPA is often required to perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroal- Delaware Sen. Tom Carper, engage in an interagency review kyl substances, used in nonstick the ranking Democrat on the process led by OMB.” and stain-resistant frying pans, Environment and Public Works “It is routine for the agency rugs, and countless other con- Committee, who obtained the to receive input from all of our sumer products. documents revealing the White stakeholders, including our feder- The White House repeatedly House intervention, and public- al partners,” Schiermeyer wrote. pressed the agency to agree to a health advocates say the White The EPA did not respond to a major loophole that could allow House action was led by Nancy question about whether Beck led substantial imports of the PFAS- Beck, a former chemical industry the White House intervention. tainted products to continue, executive now detailed to Presi- Emails sent for comment to the EVAN VUCCI/AP greatly weakening the proposed dent Donald Trump’s Council of White House, the White House rule. EPA pushed back on the Economic Advisers. Office of Management and Bud- Former Vice President Joe Biden, left, and Sen. Bernie Sanders, White House demand for the In a letter sent Friday to the get and Beck were not immedi- I-Vt., right, greet one another before they participate in a Democratic loophole, known as a “safe har- EPA, Carper charged the White ately answered. presidential primary debate in Washington last month. PAGE 10 •STARS AND STRIPES• Sunday, April 19, 2020 WORLD US, Russia discuss arms control pact, strategic security

BY VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV Foreign Ministry said. It added Associated Press that the top diplomats agreed to intensify the U.S.-Russian arms MOSCOW — U.S. Secretary of control dialogue. State Mike Pompeo and Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Ser- Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov gei Ryabkov said Friday that discussed arms control and other Russia’s new Sarmat heavy inter- issues Friday as Moscow has sig- continental ballistic missile and naled readiness to include some the Avangard hypersonic glide of its latest nuclear weapons in vehicle could be counted along the last remaining arms control with other Russian nuclear weap- pact between the two countries ons under the treaty. if Washington accepts the Krem- The Sarmat is still under de- lin’s offer to extend it. velopment, while the first missile The State Department said the unit armed with the Avangard be- two top diplomats discussed the came operational in December. next steps in the bilateral stra- The Russian military has said tegic security dialogue. Pompeo the Avangard is capable of flying emphasized that any future arms 27 times faster than the speed of control talks must be based on sound and could make sharp ma- KIN CHEUNG/AP U.S. President Donald Trump’s neuvers on its way to a target to vision for a trilateral arms control bypass missile defense systems. Former pro-democracy lawmaker Martin Lee, 81, second right, leaves a police station in Hong Kong, on agreement that includes China It has been fitted to the existing Saturday. Hong Kong police arrested at least 14 pro-democracy lawmakers and activists on Saturday on along with the U.S. and Russia, Soviet-built intercontinental bal- charges of joining unlawful protests last year calling for reforms. the State Department said. listic missiles instead of older Russian President Vladimir type warheads, and in the future Putin has offered to extend the could be fitted to the more pow- New START arms control treaty, erful Sarmat. Police in Hong Kong arrest 14 which expires in February 2021. The New START treaty, signed The Trump administration has in 2010 by U.S. President Barack pushed for a new pact that would Obama and Russian President involved in 2019 reform protests include China as a signatory. Dmitry Medvedev, limits each Moscow has described that goal country to no more than 1,550 de- Associated Press the Democratic Party — were and an independent inquiry into as unrealistic given Beijing’s re- ployed nuclear warheads and 700 charged in February over their police conduct. luctance to discuss any deal that deployed missiles and bombers. HONG KONG — Hong Kong involvement in a mass anti-gov- While the protests began would reduce its much smaller The treaty, which can be ex- police arrested at least 14 vet- ernment demonstration on Aug. peacefully, they increasingly de- nuclear arsenal. tended by another five years, eran pro-democracy lawmakers, 31 last year. The protests in the scended into violence after dem- Separately, the State Depart- envisages a comprehensive veri- activists and a media tycoon on semi-autonomous Chinese ter- onstrators became frustrated ment on Friday sent to Congress fication mechanism to check Saturday on charges of joining ritory against proposed extra- with the government’s response. a report on Russian compliance compliance, including on-site in- unlawful protests last year call- dition legislation exposed deep They feel that Hong Kong leader with the treaty. The report said spections of each side’s nuclear ing for reforms. divisions between democracy- Carrie Lam has ignored their de- that although Moscow is abiding bases. Among those arrested were minded Hong Kongers and the mands and used the police to sup- by its terms, the accord does not New START is the only U.S.- 81-year-old activist and former Communist Party-ruled central press them. cover enough weapons systems Russia arms control pact still lawmaker Martin Lee and de- government in Beijing. The League of Social Demo- and leaves China with a free in effect after both Moscow and mocracy advocates Albert Ho, The bill — which would have al- crats wrote in a Facebook post hand. It added, however, that the Washington withdrew from the Lee Cheuk-yan and Au Nok-hin. lowed Hong Kong residents to be on Saturday that its leaders were administration has not yet made a 1987 Intermediate-range Nucle- Police also arrested media ty- sent to mainland China to stand among those arrested, including decision on whether to renew the ar Forces Treaty last year. coon Jimmy Lai, who founded the trial — has been withdrawn, but chairman Raphael Wong. They treaty. Arms control advocates have local newspaper Apple Daily. the protests continued for more were accused of participating “Whether continuing imple- warned that its demise could trig- Lai, Lee Cheuk-yan and Yeung than seven months, centered in two unauthorized protests on mentation of New START re- ger a new arms race and upset Sum — a former lawmaker from around demands for voting rights Aug. 18 and Oct. 1 last year. mains in the national security strategic stability. interests of the United States Ryabkov said in an interview depends on a policy judgment with the Mezhdunarodnaya Zhizn taking into account a number of magazine that other prospective factors,” the report said, listing weapons announced by Putin in Smoke from Chernobyl wildfires engulfs several considerations including 2018 don’t fall under the pact’s the impact that withdrawal would provisions, but Russia is open for have on both the U.S. and Russian discussion on their possible inclu- Kyiv, worsens city’s air pollution rank arsenals as well as the impact on sion as part of a wider dialogue American allies. about strategic stability. Associated Press took place 34 years ago. fires were posing no threat to ra- “The administration is seeking Those weapons include the Bu- Wildfires erupted in the forests dioactive waste dumps and other KYIV, Ukraine — Smoke arms control that can deliver real revestnik nuclear-powered cruise around Chernobyl on April 4, ac- facilities in Chernobyl, but ad- security to the United States and from wildfires in the contami- missile and the atomic-powered cidentally sparked by residents vised Kyiv residents to drink a lot its allies and partners and has not nated evacuation zone around and nuclear-armed Poseidon un- who were burning trash. The of water and cover windows with yet made a decision on whether derwater drone. the wrecked Chernobyl nuclear firefighting teams managed to and how extension of the New power plant has engulfed Kyiv, wet fabrics if they open them. Russia has cast the develop- contain the initial blazes, but new The fires are in the 1,000- START Treaty will be an element ment of Avangard, Burevestnik placing the Ukrainian capital fires erupted Thursday, sweeping square-mile Chernobyl Exclusion of that effort,” said the report, a and Poseidon as a response to near the top of the global air pol- into wider areas thanks to strong Zone that was established after copy of which was obtained by U.S. missile defense, which it lution index. winds. the 1986 disaster at the plant that The Associated Press. has called a threat to its nuclear The authorities said Friday that Live air quality data on iqair. During the call with Pompeo, deterrent. It also has voiced con- radiation levels in Kyiv have re- com placed the Ukrainian capi- sent a cloud of radioactive fallout Lavrov reiterated Moscow’s offer cern about U.S. plans to deploy mained normal, but they advised tal right behind several cities in over much of Europe. to extend New START, saying weapons in space. residents to stay home and close China in air pollution on Friday. The zone is largely unpopu- that Russia is ready to discuss Referencing these concerns, their windows. About 1,000 fire- The authorities in Kyiv said lated, although about 200 people possible new agreements but con- during Friday’s call Lavrov em- fighters backed by aircraft have radiation levels in the capital, have remained despite orders siders it important to preserve the phasized that the arms control di- been deployed to battle the forest which is about 60 miles south of to leave. Fires in the area raise existing treaty as a “cornerstone alogue should “include all factors blazes near the site of the world’s the plant, were within norms. concerns that they could spread of global security,” the Russian that impact strategic stability .” worst nuclear accident, which They also insisted that the wild- radioactive material. Sunday, April 19, 2020 •STARS AND STRIPES•PAGE 11 BOOKS

horrors, whether the 2018 shooting at a Pittsburgh synagogue or the tragedies along the U.S.-Mexican border: “I found it easy to ‘be’ Micah, so to speak, throughout the book, but especially in that passage. We all have lone- some moments, after all; it’s no stretch to imagine those. But also the events that he’s refl ecting upon here — the synagogue shooting, the plight of immigrant children — weigh so heavily on my mind these days, as I imagine they do on everyone’s, that I felt even Micah would have to be affected by them.” On the book’s title, based on a recurring hallucina- tion of Micah’s: “Several times I mistook the same object for another on my morning walk, although you’d think I would have learned after the fi rst time. The experience started me thinking: How many other mistakes, more serious mistakes, do we repeat in the course of our lives? How often do we fail to realize that they were mistakes, even? I thought it would be fun to explore the issue.” Familiar, On life in Baltimore: “I guess it’s no secret that Baltimore is going through a hard spell. And yet it’s such a kindhearted city, paradoxi- cal though that sounds. Just about everyone here, across all classes and cultures, behaves with grace and patience. Watch some trying episode in, say, a supermarket check- but also out line — a customer taking too long counting coins or a cashier who doesn’t know his produce codes. Balti- moreans stand by quietly, or they try to help out if they can. Not even an eye-roll! I think this has an infl uence on my writing. In such surroundings, how could I possibly different invent a mean-spirited character? On how Micah would handle social distancing: “I think he would have handled it the way I have. First I thought, ‘Oh, well, never mind; I basically shelter in Anne Tyler discusses place anyhow, and I already know about working from home — how you have to be sure and change out of your new book, Baltimore pajamas.’ But then after a few days I thought, ‘Oh. Wait a minute. I’m surprised at how often now I feel the need to and social distance step out on my front stoop and start a conversation with a passing neighbor.’ On how the book, completed well before the pan- Diana Walker demic, might read now: “I haven’t read the book since the virus began. A friend head: ‘You have to wonder what goes through the mind of asked recently, though, how I’d known to write pages a man like ______.’ (I didn’t have a name for him yet.) 94-95, so I checked to see what she meant. Lo and behold, I was baffl ed. Why should I have to wonder? I thought, there was Micah on his early-morning run fantasizing, BY HILLEL ITALIE and then up popped the next sentence: ‘He lives alone; he briefl y, that the empty streets were due to some global keeps to himself ...’ ” Associated Press disaster and he was the last person left alive. Then he “The rest of the book was up to me, but at least I was on comes upon two women talking up a storm together, and fter more than 20 books, Anne Tyler still fi nds my way.” he’s extremely pleased to see them. I relate to that scene ways to challenge herself. The computer man’s name is Micah Mortimer. He now much more than when I wrote it.” Her new novel, “Redhead by the Side of the lives alone and wonders if he’s meant to be that way as he On writing while sheltering in place: ARoad,” is, of course, set in her longtime home of alienates his current girlfriend and unexpectedly recon- “For the fi rst few days, I seemed to keep writing the Baltimore and features the family and romantic en- nects with the woman he loved — and drove away — back same three pages over and over again. I just had a gen- tanglements and other narrative touches Tyler fans know in college. Tyler tries to minimize politics and topical ref- eral feeling of distractedness. Eventually, though, I did well. But the story’s main character, a self-employed tech erences in her books, but is quite specifi c about locations, sink back into my work. I happened to be writing about consultant/repairman confronting the fallout of decisions placing Micah in north Baltimore, in a three-story home an Easter dinner with a lot of people attending, some of made years before, pretty much came out of nowhere. near York Road, with an “incongruous front porch” and a them behaving a bit snarkily with each other. I thought, “This is the fi rst book I’ve written where I began with “splintery front porch swing that nobody ever sits in.” Oh, now I remember why I write. I write because it no idea,” Tyler, the Pulitzer Prize-winning novelist During her recent AP interview, the 78-year-old Tyler makes me happy.” known for “The Accidental Tourist,” “Morgan’s Passing” discussed the mind of Micah, the book’s tricky title, Bal- “As for whether the virus will turn up in my next book: and “Breathing Lessons,” told The Associated Press in a timore and her life during the coronavirus outbreak. Well, generally I don’t think current events make for very recent email. “I was wracking my brains for something On Micah, whom she describes in one passage as good literature. They have to mellow for a while. We need to write about, and a single sentence popped into my “narrow and limited” but still aware of the world’s a little distance to see them for what they are.”

Redhead by the sometimes by turning them I have switched dry cleaners with college years, Brink is convinced that off and turning them back on. more drama. Micah must be his real father. Alas, the Side of the Road “His routine is etched in Of course, there’s also a sweet and calendar won’t support that conclusion. Anne Tyler stone,” Tyler writes. “He somewhat amusing family in this novel, Tyler spins a small story about a man rises, runs, eats breakfast and of course, they have sweet and perplexed by the tepid state of his life. Anne Tyler’s new novel, and answers a few calls. somewhat amusing rituals involving “He had no one,” he realizes. “His entire “Redhead by the Side of the Monday is trash night. Micah food. “The table itself was bare,” Tyler life ran in a rut.” But maybe, he thinks, Road,” is either wholly irrel- prided himself on his house- writes, “except for a portable Ping Pong he just doesn’t want all the “fuss and evant or just what we need keeping.” net that had been stretched across the bother” of being close to someone. — or possibly both. Slight He may not have a pulse, center.” If you’ve read and adored as There is nothing necessarily objec- and slightly charming, it’s but he does have a girlfriend. many of Tyler’s novels as I have, such tionable about a novel focused on “such a like the cherry Jell-O that “She was matronly,” Tyler idiosyncrasies convey all the reassuring narrow and limited man,” as Tyler calls Mom serves when you’re writes, “which Micah found warmth of an old hymn. Micah. Writers as diverse as Sinclair feeling under the weather. kind of a turn-on.” That Micah’s four sisters — all lifelong Lewis and Anita Brookner have found Not much of a meal, perhaps, but who marks the erotic peak of this novel. “He waitresses — pester him to get Cass profound comedy and pathos in the lives could handle more now? and Cass had been together for three of apparently dull people. But in this years or so, and they had reached the back, lest he “end up a crusty old bache- The milquetoast protagonist is Micah case, the mold growing on Micah’s air- Mortimer, “a tall, bony man in his early stage where things had more or less lor,” but he resists their efforts. Still, the less character seems to have spread to 40s with not-so-good posture.” He lives solidifi ed: compromises arrived at, minor disruptions to Micah’s orderly life the narration itself. in a basement apartment in Baltimore, incompatibilities adjusted to, minor are just beginning. A preppy young man which over the course of more than 20 quirks overlooked. They had it down to named Brink shows up at the door. He’s Tyler’s best novels are so wonderful novels has become Tyler’s Yoknapataw- a system.” Or so Micah assumes. In the run away from college and his parents. that they’ve tended to eclipse her short pha. Gilded with a patina of quirkiness, fi rst chapter, Cass fears she’s about to “I don’t belong in that family,” Brink stories, but that would have been a more Micah is a self-employed computer fi x-it be evicted from her apartment. When tells Micah. “I’m a, like, misfi t. They’re effective form for “Redhead by the Side guy. Tellingly, he calls himself the Tech Micah reacts with insuffi cient sympathy, all so ... I’m more like you.” Having of the Road.” Hermit. He repairs elderly folks’ PCs, she breaks up with him. found some old photos from his mother’s — Ron Charles/The Washington Post PAGE 12 •STARS AND STRIPES• Sunday, April 19, 2020 MUSIC

After a ‘really, really hard year’ that included the death of his best friend and collaborator, jazz-funk bass virtuoso Thundercat beat his demons and made peace with himself

BY JEFF WEISS Special to The Washington

hey all know Thundercat here: the enough to remember when bowl- print. He looks like the star of an weathered, seen-it-all counter- ing was televised every Saturday Afro-futurist manga about George man who reserves the lanes, the afternoon on ABC. And one regu- Clinton’s P-Funk Mothership: The acne-ridden teenager handing out lar is Thundercat, nee Stephen Next Generation. But this isn’t a floppy and slick leather shoes, the Bruner, who never fails to abide. pose. Thundercat used to amble waiter bringing heaping platters of To be fair, it is impossible to through his native South Central fruit and bowls of matzo ball soup. forget Thundercat. On this Tues- in the warzone late ’90s wearing a To them, the interstellar jazz bass- day night in early February, he’s tuxedo T-shirt. ist is practically family. But don’t wearing oversized cat-eye pink “Haven’t seen you here in a After coming to terms mistake this for “Cheers.” sunglasses and red silk shorts minute,” the gravelly-voiced clerk with the 2018 death of The Pinz Bowling Center in seemingly designed for a boxer ob- says, swiping Thundercat’s credit Mac Miller, Thundercat Studio City is no insular neighbor- sessed with Edo-period Japanese card and letting us know the lane got sober, lost 100 hood tavern, but rather one of the woodblock prints. His magenta will be available in 15 minutes or pounds and finished his most popular social nexuses in dreadlocks are partially covered so. “Everything OK?” fourth studio album, Los Angeles (at least in pre-pan- by Gucci headphones. There’s a “It was a really, really hard “It Is What It Is.” demic days). It attracts everyone fanny pack slung around his black year,” Thundercat says, nodding from stoned Valley high schoolers Pokemon sweatshirt, a nest of his head in appreciation. “Glad to to the Los Angeles Lakers, young gold chains dangling around his be back, though.” Motormouth Media working-class families to those old neck, and his shoes are leopard CONTINUED ON PAGE 13 Top photo: The1point8 Sunday, April 19, 2020 •STARS AND STRIPES• PAGE 13 MUSIC

FROM PAGE 12 It’s fitting that he feels perfectly at ease in Pinz, throws, but he has precision aim and cruises through The September 2018 death of rapper Mac Miller enjoying a sport whose peak popularity came during the first half of the game with a series of nines, a spare — Thundercat’s best friend and close collaborator the Watergate era. “People automatically associate and a strike. — has colored almost every day since then. Miller’s bowling with fun, but there’s something relaxing about Bowling’s appeal is obvious for someone like Thun- death at age 26, by accidental overdose, occurred it to me. Some people love to get competitive, but there’s dercat, who alternates between whimsical joy and roughly one month before the pair were set to embark no pressure to win. I’m only competing with myself,” profound grief. It’s a sport that oscillates between the on a national tour, which would have featured Thunder- he says, breaking down his love affair with the lanes. euphoria and cruelties of life, a sure-thing strike that cat as both opening act and the bassist in Miller’s band. “There’s a real Zen quality to it; it’s similar to music in turns into a 7-10 split. Beneath the sartorial flamboy- The tragedy forced Thundercat to grapple with his own the sense that you have to be okay with your style and ance and eccentricity, Thundercat retains the unaffect- demons involving alcohol abuse, triggering a newfound learn to be in tune with yourself.” ed quality of someone who grew up in South Central, but hard-fought and shaky sobriety. He removes his sweater, revealing a Mac Miller who would never go Hollywood — even if Brad Pitt Around this same time, he decided to go vegan and T-shirt underneath. Knuckles are cracked. It’s time to recently came to his show at the Wiltern. lost 100 pounds. (“I didn’t notice until I saw a picture of bowl. As a musician, Thundercat is always dazzling, “That was trippy as hell,” he says later. “I guess he reached out to my management, but I had no idea and myself, and it freaked me out. It’s still kind of hard to unleashing perfect-pitch wails that sound like tears while I was playing, I look over and he’s sitting next to process.”) Shortly thereafter, he experienced the emo- from heaven splashing on an open-collared white Ariana Grande. So I waved.” tional ransacking of a breakup. Somewhere in the fog, leisure suit; his bass riffs are as chunky and rumbling For now, it’s serious business at the bowling alley. he found the clarity to finish his fourth studio album, as King Hippo. But as a bowler, he is solid, workman- Kind of. Thundercat takes a laissez-faire approach to the typically brilliant “It Is What It Is,” which cements like, straightforward. There is no chimerical spin to his his unlikely but deserved ascent to the ranks of jazz- the sport, drifting off and wandering about, break- funk fusion superstar — roughly 35 years after critics ing to FaceTime his 13-year old daughter. Pinz is his read the genre’s last rites. happy place, a cocoon of sentimentality and nostalgia “When Mac died, I realized I couldn’t drink my way that reminds him of when he used to come here with through it,” Thundercat explains. “I sat with it, let the ‘ When Mac died, his friend, Austin Peralta, the jazz piano prodigy. They pain in, and accepted that this would be a roller coaster. used to watch “The Big Lebowski” on loop and always I needed to feel every part of it, and I still don’t know I realized I couldn’t dreamed of starting a bowling team, until Peralta’s how to feel. There are moments when I break down 2012 death from viral pneumonia aggravated by a com- about it.” drink my way through it. bination of alcohol and drugs. He was just 22. Peralta To understand Thundercat, you need to accept his played on Thundercat’s 2011 debut, and the duo had natural duality. In one moment, the 35-year-old bassist/ I sat with it, let the pain been virtually inseparable right up until his last night producer/general musical virtuoso can be unflinching- on earth. ly open, vulnerable, generous and sincere. In the next, in, and accepted that this If Thundercat has a superpower, it’s in his ability to he will comically hump one of those machines where transmute his intense grief into art. It’s a quality he you put in a dollar and try to grab stuffed animals with would be a roller coaster. shares with his label boss, close friend and producer, a giant claw. This is what he briefly does while we wait Flying Lotus — who walks into the bowling alley about to bowl, squandering a couple bucks in a vain effort to I needed to feel every halfway through our game. win an oversized plush Sonic the Hedgehog. “He’s slowly been able to introduce people to who he “It took me a while to deal with my struggles with al- really is: a maniac who can be very silly but also some- cohol and the friends I’ve lost,” he continues, as we play part of it, and I still don’t one who is super emotional and wears his heart on his air hockey amid the chirping whirs and epileptic lights sleeve,” Flying Lotus says. of the arcade adjacent to the alley’s 32 lanes. know how to feel. There “We’re both super grateful to have the art to turn to,” “Some days I feel good about it, some days I feel hor- Lotus continues. “The closing track on (“It Is What It rible. I spent a lot of time self-medicating, and it served are moments when Is”) was the first thing we did after we heard the news its purpose until it couldn’t anymore,” he says wist- about Mac. It was painful for us to write the music. It fully. “Sometimes, when I look behind, I see smoke and I break down about it.’ was like, ‘Are we really going to try to do this — feeling ashes. I feel like I survived, but in a different form.” Thundercat this way?’ But he was like, ‘Let’s go!’ We listened back He sighs and adds for emphasis. “Sometimes I have a to it for hours, just crying, but how else could that have hard time.” On the death of his friend and collaborator Mac Miller manifested into something beautiful?” The Dionysian equation of “sorrow + excess = great Not long after Peralta’s death, Thundercat and art,” has gone out of vogue in the past decade. It’s a Miller became close friends based on a shared musi- slightly antiquated notion that usually leads to preten- cal bond and countless other similarities. They’d go on sion and maudlin indulgence. Thundercat’s genius double dates to Pinz and endlessly re-watch “The Big lies in his ability to both reinvent that frayed calculus Lebowski.” and combine it with a hilarious streak of absurdist “We used to argue about who was Walter, who was postmodern irony and fluorescent intergalactic the Dude, and who was Donny,” Thundercat recalls. symphonies. The result is something like a one-man “But Mac and I eventually realized we were both two synthesis of Frank Zappa and George Duke scoring the Lebowskis.” soundtrack to a live-action reimagination of “Dragon It’s now the 10th frame, and by some cosmic syn- Ball Z,” set in the contemporary San Fernando Valley. chronicity, the video screen above is playing the Doobie His catalogue includes multiple paeans to his nat- Brothers’ “What a Fool Believes.” Thundercat busts tily attired cat, Tron, and guest raps from everyone out a smooth two-step to Michael McDonald’s 10,000- from Kendrick Lamar to Pharrell Williams to Lil B. thread-count croon. He nails the spare to finish with a Thundercat’s bass lines formed the sonic bedrock of respectable 118 score. “To Pimp a Butterfly,” Lamar’s Grammy-winning gen- This is where the story was supposed to end. A few erational triumph of an album; he will appear on the days later, Thundercat embarked on what was supposed next Herbie Hancock album; he reintroduced Michael to be a two-month-long national tour — his first since McDonald and Kenny Loggins to millennials on his the death of Miller. The tour was, of course, eventually last album’s underground smash, “Show You the Way.” canceled because of the coronavirus outbreak. In line with the ever-evolving Thundercat Cinematic About a week after he returned home, we spoke Universe, the first single off “It Is What It Is” is a about the surreal nature of the present moment: gossamer falsetto funk levitation about moving out of “I’ve never dealt with anything like this, and I know the hood and making ill-advised posts on Instagram, it’s not easy for anyone. I’m just trying to be emotion- pairing Steve Lacy with Childish Gambino with Steve ally supportive to my homies and homegirls,” he says Arrington — the sequin boogie sorcerer behind Slave, wearily via phone. a band whose biggest hits all came before Bruner was In a perverse way, Thundercat’s new album feels born in 1985. particularly suited for this moment — filled with both “These older artists are beacons of sound and light, celestial, futuristic escapism and plaintive grief, the and it’s important for me to remind people of the con- strength of human resilience and an unstinting sense of text and understanding that ground the music I’m mak- frustration. After all, its title is a Zen koan unto itself: ing,” Thundercat says. “In this weird algorithm era, it’s “It Is What It Is.” important to remind people about jazz and the funk and “The name hits a little different now,” Thundercat all the stuff that came before us and remains timeless.” says, laughing. His obligation to tradition can only come from some- We talk a little more about his last year and the emo- one acutely aware of their place in a deeper slipstream tions stirred by yet another false start. The tour was a of funk, jazz, yacht rock and soul. His father crafted chance to forget it all and focus on the music, but now gorgeous strobe-light grooves in a late-’70s disco en- he’s back home. Even worse, Pinz is closed indefinitely. semble named Chameleon. Thundercat’s older brother, I ask if there’s been anything — any piece of art or Ronald, is one of the best drummers in the world; his Parker Day record or minor consolation of philosophy — that has younger brother, Jameel, is a gifted beatmaker who gotten him through the deaths, the breakup, the battle until recently played keys in The Internet. Thunder- for sobriety, the disappointments. cat’s original guru was Reggie Andrews, the Mr. Hol- “The Big Lebowski,” Thundercat reflexively land of South Central music education. And Thundercat answers. refined his trademark Richter-wobble backing up “What about it?” Erykah Badu and Snoop Dogg, and as a member of “Strikes and gutters, man. It’s all just strikes and venerable L.A. punk thrashers, Suicidal Tendencies. gutters.” PAGE 14 •STARS AND STRIPES• Sunday, April 19, 2020 CROSSWORD AND COMICS NEW YORK TIMES CROSSWORD

GUNSTON STREET RESULTS FOR ABOVE PUZZLE

“Gunston Street” is drawn by Basil Zaviski. Email him at [email protected], and visit gunstonstreet.com. Sunday, April 19, 2020 •STARS AND STRIPES• PAGE 15 GADGETS & TECHNOLOGY GADGET WATCH Speaker has vintage look, modern sound and ports

BY GREGG ELLMAN Tribune News Service ith an attractive vin- tage look, Electro- home Birmingham’s Wretro Bluetooth speaker seeks to bring back the era of mop tops and mullets from the golden age of rock ’n’ roll. I prefer to say it reminds me of a hi-fi stereo system my dad had long ago. While the look takes you back ELECTROHOME/TNS in time, the sound and features Electrohome Birmingham’s retro are up to date and forward BILL O’LEARY/Washington Post Bluetooth speaker is hand- marching. It produces room-fi ll- crafted from engineered MDF Internet pioneer Vinton Cerf, shown in May 2015 at Google’s offices in Washington, D.C., has been a ing sound from any play list or wood with a carrying handle built driving force in developing key internet protocols. can stream any music service into the top. with a Bluetooth connection from your smartphone, tablet or In addition to the fi ngerprints, computer. you can use the Tapplock app The exterior is hand- to open the lock with Blue- crafted from engineered tooth or with a combination Built to withstand anything MDF wood with a carrying used via Morse code. handle built into the top. Through the app, you Producing the sound inside can remotely manage the are dual full-range 4-inch The internet is working the way Cold War-era designers intended Bluetooth access on any woofers with an integrated other stored fi ngerprints. amplifi er. BY CRAIG TIMBERG Some credit goes to Comcast, Google and the Specifi c dates and times To add to the vintage look, The Washington Post other giant, well-resourced corporations essential can be set, and access can controls for adjusting the to the internet’s operation today. But perhaps even be revoked. oronavirus knocked down — at least for music, power and volume more goes to the seminal engineers and scientists The Tapplock Lite is built a time — internet pioneer Vinton Cerf, are all knobs along the top of like Cerf, who for decades worked to create a par- with a metal chassis and the front side of the speaker. who offers this refl ection on the experi- ticular kind of global network — open, effi cient, an IP67 rating, making it Cence: “I don’t recommend it ... It’s very resilient and highly interoperable so anyone could There’s also a 3.5 mm aux perfect for the outdoors since debilitating.” join and nobody needed to be in charge. input for a direct connection it can withstand being fully But Cerf, 76 and now recovering in his northern “They’re deservedly taking a bit of a moment and USB charging port to submerged in water or even Virginia home, has better news to report about for a high fi ve right now,” said Jason Livingood, connect your cable for device sweaty/wet fi ngerprints. the computer network he and others spent much a Comcast vice president who has briefed some charging. Inside is a rechargeable of their lives creating. Despite some problems, the members of the internet’s founding generation Working as a Bluetooth battery, good for 8 months internet overall is handling unprecedented surges about how the company has been handling in- speaker is the primary func- or 1,200 unlocks. The app of demand as it helps keep a fractured world con- creased demands. tion of the Birmingham, but shows the battery level and nected at a time of global catastrophe. Cerf was a driving force in developing key there’s an appealing feature when it needs a charge. A “This basic architecture is 50 years old, and ev- internet protocols in the 1970s, while working for guitar players who want blinking light goes off on the eryone is online,” Cerf noted in a video interview for Stanford University and, later, the Pentagon’s to jam along. Since I have lock when the level is below over Google Hangouts, with a mix of triumph and Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, zero musical talents, I 10 percent. One feature wonder in his voice. “And the thing is not collaps- which provided key early research funding but couldn’t try it, but if you’re allows it to unlock with just ing.” ultimately relinquished control of the network it a guitar player, you can an 8-second charge with The internet, born as a Pentagon project during spawned. plug into the built-in input a portable battery, in the some of the chillier years of the Cold War, has “You’re seeing a success story right now,” said and customize the live event the lock’s battery taken such a central role in 21st century civilian David Clark, a Massachusetts Institute of Tech- sound with the volume goes totally dead. society, culture and business that few pause any nology computer scientist who worked on early and gain control. Online: tapplock.com; longer to appreciate its wonders — except per- internet protocols, speaking by the videoconfer- Online: electrohome. $39 each, 2-pack for $72 haps, as in the past few weeks, when it becomes encing service Zoom. “If we didn’t have the inter- com; $149 and a 3-pack is $105 even more central to our lives. net, we’d be in an incredibly different place right Many facets of human life — work, school, now. What if this had happened in the 1980s?” Rather than having Twelve South’s lim- banking, shopping, fl irting, live music, govern- Such a system carries a notable cost in terms of to remember a combi- ited edition AirBag for ment services, chats with friends, calls to aging security and privacy, a fact the world rediscovers nation or have a key to AirPods and AirPods parents — have moved online in this era of social every time there’s a major data breach, ransom- open it, the Tapplock Pro will store, carry distancing, all without breaking the network. It ware attack or controversy over the amount of Lite uses your fi nger- and protect the expen- has groaned here and there, as anyone who has information governments and private companies print. sive earbuds in a struggled through a glitchy video conference collect about anyone who’s online — a category The smart fi nger- unique style. knows, but it has not failed. that includes more than half of the world’s almost print portable padlock The mini satchel “Resiliency and redundancy are very much a 8 billion people. opens in less than 1 bag can be worn part of the internet design,” explained Cerf. Some of the early internet architects — Cerf second after being over your shoulder, programmed with your Comcast, the nation’s largest source of residen- among them, from his position at the Pentagon TWELVE SOUTH/TNS around your neck or tial internet, serving more than 26 million homes, — were determined to design a system that could fi ngerprint. You can just take the leather reports that peak traffi c was up by nearly one continue operating through almost anything, store up to 100 fi nger- AirBag for AirPods strap off to carry it third in March, with some areas reaching as high including a nuclear attack from the Soviets. prints for each lock, and AirPods Pro with the leather top as 60% above normal. Demand for online voice, That’s one reason the system doesn’t have any which are managed in handle or just carry video and VPN connections — all staples of re- preferred path from Point A to Point B. It continu- the Tapplock app. it in a purse, pocket or backpack. mote work — have surged, and peak usage hours ously calculates and recalculates the best route, Your AirPods will stay in the have shifted from evenings, when people typically and if something in the middle fails, the comput- AirBag securely when closing stream video for entertainment, to daytime work ers that calculate transmission paths fi nd new the front-sided metal snap but- hours. routes — without having to ask anyone’s permis- ton, which also allows wireless But so far, internet industry offi cials report that sion to do so. charging for the AirPods Pro. they’ve been able to manage the shifting loads Steve Crocker, a networking pioneer like Cerf, There’s also an opening for a and surges. To a substantial extent, the network compared this quality to that of a sponge, an or- Lightning cable for charging. has managed them automatically because its ganism whose functions are so widely distributed The limited edition AirBag is underlying protocols adapt to shifting conditions, that breaking one part does not typically cause made with full-grain leather and working around trouble spots to fi nd more effi - the entire organism to die. protects all sides of the AirPod TAPPLOCK/TNS cient routes for data transmissions and managing “You can do damage to a portion of it, and the case. glitches in a way that doesn’t break connections rest of it just lumbers forward,” Crocker said, also The Tapplock Lite uses your Online: twelvesouth.com; entirely. speaking by Zoom. fingerprint as security. $49.99 PAGE 16 • S TARS AND STRIPES• Sunday, April 19, 2020 TRAVEL The trail now less traveled

The Appalachian Trail has closed due to the pandemic, forcing hikers to head home

BY SARAH BLAKE MORGAN virus fear was changing the Associated Press vibe of my hike,” said Selvage, who started the hike, in part, to hen Alexandra Eagle experience the culture of trail fi rst mentioned plans towns. “I chose to pause to get to hike the entire the full experience when it was WAppalachian Trail less controversial.” alongside her new husband, her Selvage rented an SUV and sister told her they’d either be drove back home to Las Vegas. divorced in fi ve months or mar- She slept in the back of the car. ried forever. Now, she’s renting out a room in Eagle, 33, and Jonathan Hall, a friend’s house until the all- 36, had just moved out of their clear is given to hike again. Brooklyn apartment when they “I still think I was safer on the married on March 2, the third trail,” Selvage said. anniversary of the blind date that For Eagle and Hall, deciding brought them together. They had to stay or go was brutal. The talked about the Appalachian couple debated day after day Trail in their fi rst conversation as they hiked over rocks and and, when it came time to plan waterfalls. They hadn’t yet come a honeymoon, they decided to to terms with their choice when make the hike. they loaded their backpacks into “This was going to be an epic the trunk of a rental car in Ten- adventure,” Eagle told The As- Above, Alexandra Eagle and Jonathan Hall soak up their last moments hiking the Appalachian Trail in sociated Press. Cosby, Tenn., March 30. The couple is postponing the roughly 2,190-mile hike until the coronavirus nessee. The couple spent a year re- pandemic ends. Below, a notice is nailed to a tree along a portion of the trail in Cosby, Tenn. Hikers have “Even right now, I don’t know searching, training and saving been asked to leave the trail immediately as trailheads continue to close due to the pandemic. if we’re doing the right thing,” before setting off on the roughly Eagle said through tears. 2,190-mile journey seven days were halted. On April 1, the down,’ ” she said. Their decision came down after their wedding. They knew conservancy and 29 other trail- That wasn’t exactly the type to the small chance that they about the new coronavirus maintaining clubs asked federal of solitude Selvage had in mind might catch and spread the spreading across the globe but offi cials to close the trail until when she quit her job, rented virus, something Eagle said considered themselves lucky to the end of the month. out her house in Las Vegas and she couldn’t live with. For now, be trading Brooklyn for a tent on Though more than 3,000 started her hike on Feb. 26. they’ll stay with her parents in the trail, especially as New York “thru-hikers” set out to traverse Selvage, 51, said she thrives Louisiana, which has more than fell under restrictions to prevent the length of the trail each year, by herself and set out to hike the 12,000 confi rmed cases. the virus’ spread. only about 25% successfully trail alone, so when whispers of “Is that better? That’s hard to “We always fi gured that being make the hike from Georgia to closures and restrictions started say,” she said. out on the trail and seeing a Maine, which typically takes to spread, she wasn’t too con- They’ll try to stay in shape dozen people a day was a fi ne about six months. cerned and pressed on. while they wait for the all-clear. position to be in,” Hall said. Eagle and Hall never consid- With her two kids in college Hall joked about looking into As the pandemic grows, hik- ered any scenario but fi nishing. and her parents gone, the Ap- a treadmill sale he saw online. ers face the diffi cult decision to They picked up speed as they ing more lives. Days would palachian Trail was home for the But as the timeline becomes postpone their dreams or ignore moved into the Great Smoky pass before Eagle and Hall had time being, and it’s where she grimmer with each passing day, warnings and forge ahead. Like Mountains along the Tennes- enough cellphone service to believed she was safest. Leaving he thinks they might be saying virtually every other entity in see-North Carolina border. They see just how dire the crisis had it would mean a cross-country goodbye to the trail for good. the U.S., the Appalachian Trail woke to sunrise on Clingmans become. drive exposing her to far more His wife disagrees and sees Conservancy began issuing Dome — the trail’s highest point Fellow thru-hiker Kimberly people than she encounters while them starting again in a few COVID-19 safety guidance in — a view that seemed to sum up Selvage was 30 minutes from Hot hiking, she said. months. Until then, she’s trying March. But social distancing exactly what they’d hoped for Springs, N.C., when she called But as more trails closed and to keep her disappointment in and hand-washing suggestions from their newlywed adventure. a local hostel to confi rm her communities issued shelter-in- perspective. soon shifted to urging all hikers At the same time, families reservation. place orders, Selvage decided to “I’m just trying to focus in on to leave the trail immediately. across the U.S. braced for “He was like, ‘Ma’am, I think throw in the towel for the time the fact that we are in such a Shelters and privies were shut lockdowns as COVID-19 spread you’ve been in the woods too being after hiking 470 miles. better position than most of the down, and volunteer programs through cities and towns , claim- long; the whole world is shutting “The closures and general world,” she said. Sunday, April 19, 2020 •STARS AND STRIPES• PAGE 17 MOVIES

Sharing the journey Alan Yang’s ‘Tigertail’ is loosely based on his Taiwanese father’s immigration story

BY LINDSEY BAHR dream of my dad’s stories melded with Associated Press some Wong Kar-Wai and some Hou Hsiao- Hsien.” our years ago, when “Master of Thanks to “Master of None,” Yang had a None” co-creator Alan Yang start- pre-existing relationship with Ted Saran- ed writing a fi lm loosely based on dos, the streaming giant’s chief content Fhis Taiwanese father, Hollywood offi cer. So while it was easy to get the wasn’t exactly clamoring for Asian Ameri- script to him, anything beyond a read was Netflix photos can stories. “Crazy Rich Asians” had hardly a guarantee. not made more than $200 million, “The “It’s an art house-infl ected movie that’s A man (played by Lee Hong-chi, top right, and Tzi Ma, above left) reflects on the lost Farewell” was only a almost entirely in Mandarin and Taiwan- love of his youth and his long-ago journey from Taiwan to America in “Tigertail,” “This American Life” ese and it features no Marvel stars,” Yang co-starring Kunjue Li, top left, and Fiona Fu, above right, and directed by Alan Yang. episode, and “Para- said with a laugh about its marketability. site” hadn’t yet swept But Sarandos didn’t need convincing: His brother was an architect in Hong Netfl ix had planned on having a the Oscars. It was a He loved the script and that was that. The Kong before their family immigrated to premiere and a simultaneous theatrical long shot that “Tiger- movie was a go. the United States, where his degree wasn’t release for “Tigertail” before theaters tail” would even get “I’m incredibly grateful to Netfl ix for recognized. shuttered due to coronavirus. Yang said he made, let alone with taking a chance and allowing us to make “Basically, in the ’60s there were two was a little disappointed that he wouldn’t a partner like Netfl ix, the movie in the way we saw fi t,” Yang businesses we could get into as Asian be able to celebrate with everyone who where it is currently said. That included shooting the past on Americans, Chinese Americans in par- worked on it, but that there are discussions available to stream. 16mm fi lm to give it a dreamier feel and ticular: Restaurants and laundry,” Ma to hold some select screenings down the “This was a crazy, the present on digital. said. “So we bought a restaurant on Staten line and maybe even a make-up premiere. Yang crazy choice on my Yang cast Chinese-American actor Tzi Island and he became the cook.” It also means he won’t even be able to part to write a movie Ma to play Pin-Jui (also called Grover) in When they moved, Ma remembers a watch it with his family. with no white people in it,” said Yang from the present day. Ma, who recently played distinct change in his brother, who was “I just told my family, this movie is a his home in Los Angeles. “This is the only a version of fi lmmaker Lulu Wang’s father once so vibrant and full of life. love letter to you guys, and please don’t movie I know that starts in Taiwan, seg- in “The Farewell,” knew that his charac- Actress Christine Ko, who plays his take offense at anything,” Yang said. ues into Mandarin and ends in English.” ter was inspired by Yang’s father, but said grown daughter, Angela, in the present- Even though things are strange right But he carried on, winnowing down that’s where the similarities end. day scenes, had a similarly personal con- now, everyone is excited to be working in the 250-page odyssey to something more “The fi rst thing Alan told me was his nection to the material. this moment where Asian American fi lms focused: A story about a Taiwanese man dad was a doctor,” Ma said. “Already I “It felt like therapy for me, two years of are having such mainstream success. named Pin-Jui who leaves his great love know this is a huge departure. (Pin-Jui) is therapy,” Ko said. “I grew up in a home “For the fi rst time it feels like we have for an arranged marriage and a new life [a] common man. This is a common man’s that was a little more strict and wasn’t as solid footing, whereas in the past it always in America. It splits between his life as a journey.” emotionally forthcoming with discussions felt like we’re the fl avor of the month,” Ma young man in the 1960s and the present Regardless, Ma knew just who this of feelings and all that, so I felt like I could said. “The talent has always been there; day with his now-grown daughter. character was. “This character is modeled really relate to the distance that Angela they’ve just not had the opportunity to Yang has described it as his “fever after my brother,” Ma said. has with her father.” show the world how wonderful they are.” PAGE 18 •STARS AND STRIPES• Sunday, April 19, 2020 AMERICAN ROUNDUP Block falls through ice in sign of spring

DANVILLE — A cinder VT block fell through the ice on Joe’s Pond in West Dan- ville last week, an official sign of spring in northeastern Vermont. Each year, people buy tickets to guess when that happens in the Joe’s Pond Ice Out Contest. The block went through the ice disconnecting a clock at 6:07 a.m., Michelle Walker of the Joe’s Pond Association said in an email. The winner had not yet been deter- mined. The prize is a little less than $4,500, she said. This is the 33rd year of the contest , which was started in the 1980s due to cabin fever. Police say man teased cops about having gun

LAS CRUCES — A NM New Mexico man faces charges after police said he teased officers about having a gun. The Las Cruces Sun-News re- ported Asher Madrid was arrest- ed following a domestic violence call in Las Cruces. Court documents said Madrid, 37, asked an officer to run his name through central dispatch to check if he had felony warrants. Documents said Madrid asked the officer what would happen if he had felonies and was also in possession of a gun. The officer CHRIS DILLMANN, VAIL (COLO.) DAILY/AP then asked Madrid if he had a gun on him. Madrid allegedly re- sponded that he did not this time, Bundled up brothers but would the next time he had an encounter with police. Kari Bangston of Minturn, Colo., pushes Owen, 2, left, and Bradley, 5, home after snowboarding and sledding in Maloit Park in Minturn, As officers were walking away, Colo. The two brothers were tuckered out after a day of playing in the snow. court documents said Madrid threw his hand behind his back. and state agencies. THE CENSUS bers of the Hmong community Court documents state the of- Attorney Blake Long in North into investing in a nonexistent ficers on the scene then drew Carolina said the man paid the The amount given to restore a school ginseng farm, the Star Tribune their guns on Madrid, who was fines following an investigation built 100 years ago to educate African reported. searched to make sure he didn’t of a video shared on social media, Americans in South Carolina. Dorches- Prosecutors allege that be- have any weapons. The Honolulu Star-Advertiser $400K ter County Council approved the money tween 2012 and 2014, Vang per- reported. for repairs on the St. George Rosenwald suaded nine Minnesota victims to Store brawl ends with 2 The video showed a man ap- School as part of a larger package for parks and tourism projects, The Post and give her more than $450,000 for proaching a monk seal from Courier of Charleston reported. The school was one of about 5,000 across the a purported farm near Wausau, arrested, bystander shot behind and slapping its hindquar- nation and 500 schools across the state built in the 1920s with help from well- Wis . One couple who knew Vang ters, which is a violation of the known educator Booker T. Washington and Julius Rosenwald, the philanthropic HACKENSACK — A Endangered Species Act. from church allegedly gave her NJ dispute between two president of Sears & Roebuck. their life savings. customers at a northern New City orders tourist birth Jersey convenience store ended Police search for man with a bystander being shot and motel to shut down Kevin Fallon, 30, was arrested Parish’s Mosquito Abatement both customers being arrested, after police found what appeared and Rodent Control department suspected of firebomb authorities said. ORANGE. — A Cali- to be three pipe bombs in his said in a Facebook post . It said The men began arguing in the CA fornia city ordered the apartment, according to court the flies, also known as “buffalo BRUNSWICK — Au- store and soon one of them pulled shutdown of a motel that caters documents. The bombs turned gnats,” will try to crawl into peo- GA thorities issued an out a gun, authorities said. to pregnant Chinese women who out to be empty. Police also found ple’s ears, noses and eyes. arrest warrant for a suspect ac- As the two men wrestled for travel to the United States to de- rifle ammunition and several Insect spray, including those cused of hiding a makeshift explo- control of the gun it went off, with liver their babies. knives taped together, the court used for mosquitoes or other in- sive device underneath a Georgia the bullet striking the torso of an- The Orange County Register papers said. sects, is not effective on them. woman’s car and dousing the ve- other customer. One of the men reported that council members in According to the criminal com- hicle in gasoline, police said. then gained control of the weapon the city of Orange revoked the JR plaint against him, Fallon sent a Woman arrested for Brunswick police and a Geor- and fired a shot at the other com- Motel’s conditional use permit. text to several people on April 9 gia Bureau of Investigation bomb threatening to blow up the Cen- scam 2 years later batant as that man ran away, but Officials said the motel doesn’t squad were called to a neighbor- that shot did not hit anyone, au- take reservations from the public tral Park statue of Alice, the Mad MINNEAPOLIS — A hood when a woman spotted a thorities said. but rather hosts Chinese women Hatter and other guests at her fa- Minnesota woman suspicious package underneath The wounded bystander was who travel to the country to give mous tea party. MN wanted in an alleged ginseng taken to a hospital . The two men birth to babies that automatically her car and noticed gasoline on scam was arrested after evading involved in the dispute were both have American citizenship. the vehicle, Chief Kevin Jones Flies that crawl into capture for more than two years. arrested, authorities said. said. Man threatened to noses, ears infest state Hennepin County prosecutors The squad used a robot to re- Man apologizes, pays said Mai Vu Vang, 51, of Brook- trieve the firebomb, which was bomb ‘Alice’ statue BATON ROUGE — It’s lyn Center, was arrested in Geor- made out of a firework that was at fines for slapping seal LA that time of year again gia and extradited to Minnesota . least 4 inches in diameter, Jones when flies that bite and crawl into Vang made her first court ap- NEW YORK — A New said. Investigators also found HONOLULU — The at- York City man was ar- people’s bodies infest areas with pearance, where bail was set at NY another large firework, a bag of HI torney for a man who rested after he texted several standing water in Louisiana. $500,000 without conditions. She slapped a Hawaiian monk seal friends that he was going to blow Residents should expect these remains in jail. smaller fireworks and a bottle of while visiting Oahu issued an up a statue of Alice in Wonder- “annoying” black flies to be Vang was charged in 2017 with accelerant beneath the car, ac- apology on behalf of his client, land in Central Park with a pipe around until the weather be- six counts of theft by swindle for cording to officials. who paid fines issued by federal bomb, authorities said. comes warmer, East Baton Rouge allegedly duping several mem- From wire reports Sunday, April 19, 2020 •STARS AND STRIPES•PAGE 19 OPINION Max D. Lederer Jr., Publisher Lt. Col. Sean Klimek, Europe commander Lt. Col. Richard McClintic, Pacific commander Vital to acknowledge virus’ effect on youth Caroline E. Miller, Europe Business Operations BY ASHLEY Y. SHAW, JOSEPH K. YUN Joshua M. Lashbrook, Pacific Chief of Staff ed to minimize contamination prohibit experience the physical manifestations of AND NISARG A. PATEL children from visiting COVID-19 patients COVID-19 and inherit its burdens. Special to The Washington Post even if the children have been admitted. At Field hospitals and other isolation facili- EDITORIAL best, their hellos — and possibly goodbyes ties such as the Boston Hope Medical Cen- n less tumultuous times, pediatric — are communicated through video. When ter and the Javits Center in New York that Terry Leonard, Editor emergency departments evaluated working around children who are isolated [email protected] care for recovering COVID-19 patients and treated asthma attacks, fussy but might not be infected, it is hard not to have been designed for adults. These types Robert H. Reid, Senior Managing Editor Ieating habits and, of course, scrapes worry that we are seeing the first of the of facilities lack amenities for children, [email protected] and bruises. The COVID-19 pandemic has COVID-19 orphans. such as infant cribs and safety gates for brought a new trauma to emergency de- Tina Croley, Managing Editor for Content While much coverage of COVID-19 un- beds. Additionally, incorporating pediatric partments nationwide: children left alone [email protected] derstandably involves fatality rates and psychologists, social workers and child-life — often in isolation rooms to minimize the end-of-life matters, the disease affects Sean Moores, Managing Editor for Presentation risk of infection spread — because there is specialists into health care teams would all ages and life stages. Hospitals have help mitigate the psychological trauma of [email protected] no one to care for them. restricted visitors to minimize infection, COVID-19. Increased funding for pediat- Families exposed to the new coronavi- leaving many pregnant women without Joe Gromelski, Managing Editor for Digital ric care would help distressed hospitals [email protected] rus experience additional challenges at loved ones in the delivery room. Some new hospitals, where health care workers must mothers have developed signs of corona- achieve these goals. separate parents from children because virus infection and been whisked, hours Ultimately, a vaccine will keep the new BUREAU STAFF both are at risk for contagion. Children after childbirth, from labor and delivery coronavirus at bay. But the traumas in- Europe/Mideast usually experience milder symptoms than floors to COVID-19 surge units or inten- flicted by COVID-19 will remain and most Erik Slavin, Europe & Mideast Bureau Chief adults, but they are not unspared by the sive care units. Newborns of mothers who likely resurface. We cannot completely [email protected] virus. Some 40% of U.S. hospitals have spe- have tested positive are restricted to nurs- shield children from the consequences of +49(0)631.3615.9350; DSN (314)583.9350 cialized in-patient pediatric wards, where eries and neonatal ICUs, on a recent rec- this pandemic, but acknowledging its ef- Pacific children might be treated for their own ommendation of the American Academy fects on their well-being and taking other Aaron Kidd, Pacific Bureau Chief symptoms or wait, alone, because their of Pediatrics, meaning they can no longer meaningful actions might lessen their [email protected] loved ones have been admitted. “room-in” during a crucial period for in- scars. +81.42.552.2511 ext. 88380; DSN (315)227.7380 At our hospitals and others nation- fant-mother bonding. Alone in hospitals, As health care providers, we are doing Washington wide, the toll of family separation is clear. parents view their newborn on baby moni- what we can right now: We fight the soli- Joseph Cacchioli, Washington Bureau Chief Younger children are placed in single tors that nurses switch on while they care tude these children face with our company. [email protected] rooms in the department bay for hours for the infant. We point out murals of athletes, animals (+1)(202)886-0033 while health care workers like us try to Although much has yet to be learned and trains on our department walls. We Brian Bowers, Assistant Managing Editor, News distract them with toys or cajole them to about COVID-19, the disease’s psychologi- chat about favorite television shows and [email protected] stay inside. Often, older children stand cal impact on patients and their relatives school subjects. We joke until we belly- CIRCULATION against the walls, not saying much, their is almost certain to be severe. During the laugh together, cutting through the tension faces and posture betraying anxiety about 2003 SARS outbreak, parents and children heavy in many hospitals of late. When our Mideast their loved ones. experienced varying degrees of depression shifts end, we update our colleagues so the Robert Reismann, Mideast Circulation Manager Children are assumed to be positive and anxiety as a result of family separation children can make new friends. We aim to [email protected] when the caregivers they arrive with are and hospital isolation policies implement- help them understand that regardless of [email protected] hospitalized for COVID-19. To be observed ed to contain disease spread. The develop- DSN (314)583-9111 what lies ahead, we will continue to care or tested, these children are often admit- ing neurological pathways in children are for them — and that they are not alone. Europe ted to in-patient pediatric floors as “social particularly susceptible to such stressors; Karen Lewis, Community Engagement Manager admissions,” a category typically used for long-term behavioral and psychological is- Ashley Y. Shaw is a resident pediatrician at [email protected] child victims of abuse or non-accidental sues can result. Failure to provide effective Massachusetts General Hospital. Joseph K. Yun is [email protected] a resident pediatric dentist at Children’s Medical +49(0)631.3615.9090; DSN (314)583.9090 trauma awaiting placement with local pro- family-centered care options could exacer- Center Dallas. Nisarg A. Patel is a resident surgeon tective agencies. Hospital protocols craft- bate such consequences. After all, children at the University of California at San Francisco. Pacific Mari Mori, [email protected] +81-3 6385.3171; DSN (315)227.7333 CONTACT US Finding the right words for health care workers Washington tel: (+1)202.886.0003 BY DOROTHY R. NOVICK As soon as we had a moment alone, I occupy the ring closest to them. Next come 633 3rd St. NW, Suite 116, Washington, DC 20001-3050 Special to The Washington Post asked what had happened at the scene their parents. Then their friends like me, of the crash. I shared my shock and dev- who work in lower-risk fields. Then my Reader letters ne of my friends grew so con- astation. We had always talked like that [email protected] family. And then everyone else who is wor- cerned about my safety during — no holds barred. But this conversation ried but is not tying back their hair and Additional contacts the new coronavirus outbreak changed our friendship for years to come. putting on scrubs each morning. stripes.com/contactus Othat she began sending articles. Everything I said seemed to worsen her I may want to tell my ER friends how First, about why health care providers get agony. I was heartbroken. I couldn’t figure scared I feel for them. But as close as I am OMBUDSMAN sicker than others. Then about how the out how to reach and support her. to the battleground, they are closer. So in- Ernie Gates virus might penetrate my mask. Then a Finally, I came across an article about stead I say, “If you take no risks, you will map of the United States, with my city en- “Ring Theory,” written by Susan Silk and stay safe. I am here for you, every step of veloped in a giant red circle. The Stars and Stripes ombudsman protects the free flow Barry Goldman. In this construct, we the way.” of news and information, reporting any attempts by the These are things I have read before. I imagine a person who is suffering, like If you care about a health care worker military or other authorities to undermine the newspaper’s spend most days calming my nerves in the Margi, sitting in a small circle surrounded on the front lines of this crisis, imagine the independence. The ombudsman also responds to concerns face of them, so I can be a guiding force for and questions from readers, and monitors coverage for fair- by concentric rings. Her dearest relatives circles and decide where you land. Then ness, accuracy, timeliness and balance. The ombudsman my patients. I know my friend sends these sit in the circle closest to her. Best friends send your love in. Tell us you are proud , welcomes comments from readers, and can be contacted articles because she’s worried and wants by email at [email protected], or by phone at sit in the next larger circle. More friends and you believe in our mission. It’s fine to 202.886.0003. me to stay safe. But with each one, a freez- and colleagues occupy the next one. say you are worried. We feel loved when ing chill seeps in through my pores and I According to “Ring Theory, ” a person in you ask about our days and remind us to am shaking again. any given circle should send love and com- be careful. But if you are having a dark Stars and Stripes (USPS 0417900) is published week- As a pediatrician during the greatest passion inward, to those in smaller circles, moment full of doomsday predictions, if days (except Dec. 25 and Jan. 1) for 50 cents Monday pandemic of our time, I understand that through Thursday and for $1 on Friday by Pacific Stars and and process personal grief outward, to you are crying for fear we will die, please it’s hard to find the right words. Some of Stripes, Unit 45002, APO AP 96301-5002. Periodicals those in larger circles. To Margi and her know this increases our anxieties. Please postage paid at San Francisco, CA, Postmaster: Send my friends and family process their fears mother, I should have said, “I love you, and process your worst nightmares with oth- address changes to Pacific Stars and Stripes, Unit 45002, for my safety with me, as we’ve always APO AP 96301-5002. I’ll do everything I can to support you.” ers. And please, don’t forget to call us once This newspaper is authorized by the Department of processed everything together. Others ask And only when talking to others should I you feel better. Defense for members of the military services overseas. whether I also worry after each trip to the have said, “Her suffering feels impossible However, the contents of Stars and Stripes are unofficial, Yesterday I received this message from grocery store. Or whether I’ve picked up to bear.” Comfort in, grief out. and are not to be considered as the official views of, or a relative: “I am holding you in my heart endorsed by, the U.S. government. As a DOD newspaper, new hobbies. “Ring Theory” works for supporting being on the front lines of these difficult Stars and Stripes may be distributed through official chan- I know they are frightened — for them- health care providers during the trauma nels and use appropriated funds for distribution to remote times. The professional skill, kindness, locations where overseas DOD personnel are located. selves, for their families, for me. And I of COVID-19 too . We are grappling with a support and tenacity you give your patients The appearance of advertising in this publication does know everyone is wrestling with the quar- complex duality of mission plus terror. We not constitute endorsement by the Department of Defense and your medical community I am sure is antines. These struggles are real. But what are proud of what we can contribute and or Stars and Stripes of the products or services advertised. a comfort in this darkness. Sending much Products or services advertised shall be made available for can be difficult for my loved ones to realize passionate about our patients’ well-being. purchase, use or patronage without regard to race, color, is that, although this is a collective plight, But we are frightened — for our safety, for love, appreciation and admiration.” religion, sex, national origin, age, marital status, physical My heart rate slowed and my skin handicap, political affiliation or any other nonmerit factor we are not sharing the same experience. our patients, for the spouses and children of the purchaser, user or patron. Years ago, my friend Margi watched we might expose. warmed over as I read the message. Then I pulled my mask over my face and opened © Stars and Stripes 2020 her husband die in a car crash. They were When I imagine the COVID-19 Ring caravanning home from vacation, he in the Theory, I picture my emergency room col- the door to the next patient room. stripes.com lead and she with their children behind. leagues in the center circle. Their spouses Dorothy R. Novick is a pediatrician in Philadelphia. PAGE 20 •STARS AND STRIPES• Sunday, April 19, 2020 Sunday, April 19, 2020 •STARS AND STRIPES•PAGE 21 SCOREBOARD/NBA

Sports on AFN Players’ salaries being cut 25%

Go to the American Forces Network website for the most up-to-date TV schedules. Still no plan in place myafn.net for games to resume Deals BY TIM REYNOLDS Friday’s transactions Associated Press FOOTBALL National Football League Commissioner Adam Silver said it remains CHICAGO BEARS — Released TE Trey Burton. Signed OL Rashaad Coward, TE impossible for the NBA to make any decisions J.P. Holtz, OL Jason Spriggs and K Ramiz about whether to resume this season and that Ahmed to one-year contracts. CINCINNATI BENGALS — Signed HB it is unclear when that will change. Jacques Patrick to a three-year deal. But in a clear sign that at least some of the Signed TE Cethan Carter to a one-year contract. 259 remaining regular-season games that NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS — Signed DL were not played because of the coronavirus Adam Butler. TENNESSEE TITANS — Agreed to terms pandemic will not be rescheduled, the league with OL Avery Gennesy. announced Friday it will withhold 25% of HOCKEY National Hockey League player pay starting with their May 15 checks. WINNIPEG JETS — Terminated the con- tract of D Dustin Byfuglien. Silver, speaking after the league’s regularly COLLEGE scheduled April board of governors meeting LA SALLE UNIVERSITY — Named MaKayla Hancock Head Field Hockey — one that took place through video confer- coach. encing and not the usual in-person setting in RICE UNIVERSITY — Signed Junior Col- STEPHEN M. DOWELL, ORLANDO SENTINEL/TNS lege transfer G Jake Lieppert New York — said all options remain on the table for trying to resume play and eventually The seats are empty at the Amway Center in Orlando, home of the NBA’s Orlando Magic. Pro basketball crowning a champion. “I think there is a sense that we can con- urday. If none of the 259 outstanding regular- “All rules are off at this point during the tinue to take the leading role as we learn more season games are played, the league’s players situation we find ourselves in and the coun- NBA in coming up with an appropriate regimen would lose about $800 million in gross salary. try is in,” Silver said. “If there is an opportu- EASTERN CONFERENCE and protocol for returning to business,” Silver nity to resume play, even if it looks different Atlantic Division In other matters Silver discussed Friday: W L Pct GB said. “There’s a recognition from (owners) than what we’ve done historically, we should Toronto 46 18 .719 — that this is bigger than our business; certainly, Boston 43 21 .672 3 More player positives be modeling it. ... We don’t have a good un- Philadelphia 39 26 .600 7½ bigger than sports.” derstanding of exactly sort of what those Brooklyn 30 34 .469 16 The salary decision was made in concert There were 10 players known to have tested New York 21 45 .318 26 standards are that we need to meet in order Southeast Division with the National Basketball Players Asso- positive for coronavirus as of late March: four to move forward ... because the experts don’t Miami 41 24 .631 — Orlando 30 35 .462 11 ciation, the league saying it would “provide from the Brooklyn Nets including Kevin Du- necessarily, either.” Washington 24 40 .375 16½ players with a more gradual salary reduction rant, two from the Los Angeles Lakers, Chris- Charlotte 23 42 .354 18 Atlanta 20 47 .299 22 schedule” if games are officially canceled or tian Wood of the Detroit Pistons, Marcus Return-to-play sites Central Division the rest of the season is totally lost. Smart of the Boston Celtics, and Rudy Gobert Milwaukee 53 12 .815 — Indiana 39 26 .600 14 Players will be paid in full on May 1. The and Donovan Mitchell of the Utah Jazz. The NBA is still listening to ideas from Chicago 22 43 .338 31 cutback in salary has been expected for some More players have tested positive since, Sil- those pitching so-called “bubble” scenarios as Detroit 20 46 .303 33½ Cleveland 19 46 .292 34 time in response to the NBA’s shutdown that ver said. a way to resume play. Teams would be brought WESTERN CONFERENCE started March 11, and has no end in sight. to a site or sites to finish a season in a way that Southwest Division “For privacy reasons, we’re not reporting” W L Pct GB Silver said the league will weigh several any other positive tests, Silver said. theoretically could minimize exposure risks. Houston 40 24 .625 — factors as it continues to try to save the sea- Sites such as Las Vegas, Los Angeles and Dallas 40 27 .597 1½ Memphis 32 33 .492 8½ son, among them whether the infection rate of No deadlines the Disney complex near Orlando have been New Orleans 28 36 .438 12 San Antonio 27 36 .429 12½ COVID-19 comes down nationally, the avail- mentioned as possibilities. But Silver said the Northwest Division ability of large-scale testing and progress on Silver said there is no cutoff date in mind league isn’t actively pursuing any such “bub- Denver 43 22 .662 — Utah 41 23 .641 1½ the path toward a vaccine. for a decision to be made about playing some ble” plan yet, again citing so much uncertain- Oklahoma City 40 24 .625 2½ The NBA playoffs would have started Sat- games or calling everything off. ty in so many areas. Portland 29 37 .439 14½ Minnesota 19 45 .297 23½ Pacific Division L.A. Lakers 49 14 .778 — L.A. Clippers 44 20 .688 5½ Sacramento 28 36 .438 21½ Last: Bulls knew 1997-98 season was their last together Phoenix 26 39 .400 24 Golden State 15 50 .231 35 All games postponed at least until mid-May. FROM BACK PAGE ‘ The series has been pletive) bad the headache is.” dynasty that won six NBA titles in eight Mentally billed to include never- Reinsdorf ultimately won out; Jordan sat Pro hockey years. it tugged before-seen footage from out 64 games that season before returning for “The beginning of the season, it started that season, during which the playoffs. at you that the team chased its sixth NHL when (general manager) Jerry Krause told Jordan also talks about his time at the Uni- (coach) Phil Jackson that he could go 82-0 and this had championship. versity of North Carolina where he would EASTERN CONFERENCE But the documentary Atlantic Division he would never get a chance to come back,” to come write his mother asking for money for postage GP W L OT Pts GF GA Jordan said. “Knowing that I had married covers more than just the stamps so he could send her letters and to pay Boston 70 44 14 12 100 227 174 to an end, Tampa Bay 70 43 21 6 92 245 195 myself to him, and if he wasn’t going to be the final season. his phone bill. Toronto 70 36 25 9 81 238 227 coach, then obviously I wasn’t going to play. The documentary Florida 69 35 26 8 78 231 228 but it also “It’s a little different today,” Jordan said. Montreal 71 31 31 9 71 212 221 So Phil started off the season saying this was shows Bulls owner Jerry “I had a phone bill in college that was $60 or Buffalo 69 30 31 8 68 195 217 centered Reinsdorf and Jordan ar- Ottawa 71 25 34 12 62 191 243 the last dance — and we played it that way.” less, but I only had $20 in my account. The Detroit 71 17 49 5 39 145 267 The series will debut Sunday night on our focus guing about a foot injury thing that people will learn, and my kids will Metropolitan Division he suffered during his Washington 69 41 20 8 90 240 215 ESPN in the United States and on Netflix in- to making laugh about when they see it, is we used post- Philadelphia 69 41 21 7 89 232 196 second NBA season. ternationally over five consecutive Sundays age stamps back in those days. Looking at the Pittsburgh 69 40 23 6 86 224 196 sure we Jordan wanted to play Carolina 68 38 25 5 81 222 193 through May 17. There will be two hour-long video you will see things that people have for- Columbus 70 33 22 15 81 180 187 episodes each of those nights. through the injury after N.Y. Islanders 68 35 23 10 80 192 193 ended it got, that life was this way. doctors told the team N.Y. Rangers 70 37 28 5 79 234 222 Jordan said Thursday that after Jackson “We didn’t have Instagram or Twitter, so New Jersey 69 28 29 12 68 189 230 told the team it was to be the final season to- right.’ there was a 90% chance WESTERN CONFERENCE you had to live life as it came. ... Spending time Central Division gether, the Bulls focused on completing the Michael he would recover. GP W L OT Pts GF GA with friends and family, it wasn’t the phone. It St. Louis 71 42 19 10 94 225 193 task of a second three-peat. Jordan Reinsdorf, however, Colorado 70 42 20 8 92 237 191 “Mentally it tugged at you that this had to Hall of Famer did not want the star was in presence — and you wrote letters.” Dallas 69 37 24 8 82 180 177 Jordan discussed his parents during the in- Winnipeg 71 37 28 6 80 216 203 come to an end, but it also centered our focus on fi nal season guard to play for fear it Nashville 69 35 26 8 78 215 217 with Bulls might ruin his career. terview with Good Morning America, saying Minnesota 69 35 27 7 77 220 220 to making sure we ended it right,” Jordan Chicago 70 32 30 8 72 212 218 said. “As sad as it sounded at the beginning of “I said to Michael, they were the biggest influence in his life. He Pacific Division said he learned many valuable lessons from Vegas 71 39 24 8 86 227 211 the year, we tried to rejoice and enjoy the year ‘you’re not thinking about the risk-reward Edmonton 71 37 25 9 83 225 217 and finish it off the right way.” ratio,’ ” Reinsforf said in the clip aired by them, including the ability to learn from the Calgary 70 36 27 7 79 210 215 Vancouver 69 36 27 6 78 228 217 The documentary was originally scheduled GMA. “ ‘If you had a terrible headache and I negatives in life and turn them into positives. Arizona 70 33 29 8 74 195 187 to be released in June during the NBA Finals, gave you a bottle of pills and nine of the pills The series will also include extensive pro- Anaheim 71 29 33 9 67 187 226 Los Angeles 70 29 35 6 64 178 212 but ESPN made the decision to accelerate its would cure you and one of the pills would kill files of Jackson, and some of Jordan’s key San Jose 70 29 36 5 63 182 226 release due to the lack of live sports program- you, would you take a pill?’ ” teammates, including Scottie Pippen, Dennis All games postponed at least until early May. ming because of the coronavirus pandemic. Jordan replied that “it depends on how (ex- Rodman and Steve Kerr. PAGE 22 • S TARS AND STRIPES• Sunday, April 19, 2020 SOCCER/AUTO RACING NWSL’s momentum headed off by virus

BY ANNE M. PETERSON Cup team, was about to make her Associated Press Thorns debut after a trade from the Utah Royals in the offseason. PORTLAND, Ore. — Morgan “It’s been a little bit of a bum- Weaver laughed it off when her mer to get the trade done, join agent told her she was going to the Thorns and then not actually be the second pick in the National meet any of the Thorns in per- Women’s Soccer League Draft. son. And so that’s been a sad part A four-year starter at Washing- about this for me personally, is ton State, Weaver wasn’t among that I didn’t get to start preseason the names getting a lot of buzz and kind of get my feet wet with heading into the January draft. the team,” Sauerbrunn said. “He told me and I was like, Saturday might have also ‘OK, right. Whatever. I don’t be- marked Weaver’s debut on the lieve you,’ ” she said, recalling the Thorns’ roster. conversation she had before her The rookie forward has had a name was announced. “Then it whirlwind six months. First, she actually happened.” helped lead Washington State Weaver went to the Portland IRACING INDYCAR/AP to the semifinals of the NCAA Thorns, who also got the first College Cup for the first time in In this image taken from video provided by iRacing IndyCar, Pato O’Ward, foreground, heads into a overall pick, Sophia Smith out of school history. turn during the opening lap of the American Red Cross Grand Prix virtual IndyCar race at Watkins Glen Stanford. The unseeded Cougars were International. The mind-boggling success of virtual racing has put motorsports out front in the race to Weaver said one of her greatest create competition during the sports shutdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic. strengths as a player is that she’s the tournament’s Cinderella after a good learner. But for now, like knocking off top seed Virginia in the rest of the NWSL’s players, the second round, downing West she’s learning to be patient. Virginia 3-0 and blanking South The league was supposed to Carolina 1-0 in the quarterfi- start its eighth season this week- nals. The run came to an end in Pumping the brakes end with plenty of momentum be- the Final Four, when Washington hind it courtesy of an enthusiastic State fell 2-1 to North Carolina. new commissioner in Lisa Baird “I knew we had it in us and I Drama around Larson and a new TV deal with CBS. knew that we had the fight and The league was also riding a the grit. I think we just all had dulls initial shine on surge in attention following the to believe in ourselves — and United States’ victory in the Wom- I think that’s what happened,” iRacing experiment en’s World Cup last summer. The Weaver said. “Once we hit the national team’s players are scat- tournament, we all believed in BY JENNA FRYER tered throughout the NWSL, with each other, knew what we had to U.S. Soccer paying their salaries. do to get to that spot. And I think Associated Press that was what helped us through The league averaged 7,337 in CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Scott attendance last season, a 21.8% everything.” Dixon, five-time IndyCar cham- increase over 2018 — the so- Weaver had already reported to pion and relatively new iRacing called “World Cup Bump.” her first pro training camp when competitor, received a brief set of The nationally televised opener the NWSL shuttered. Currently, instructions from boss Chip Ga- between the Washington Spirit she spends her days working out nassi about the world of virtual and OL Reign was originally with her roommate, Thorns de- racing. scheduled for Saturday afternoon fender Christen Westphal. “I did get a text from him that at Audi Field. The Thorns were “It’s just crazy what’s been said ‘Just lay low,’ ” Dixon said supposed to host the Utah Royals going on,” she said. “Everyone Friday. /AP on Saturday night. just needs to stay safe and I think What started out as a fun way MARY SCHWALM Becky Sauerbrunn, a defender that’s been more important than for racing leagues to fill time and NASCAR Cup Series driver Kyle Larson, right, was fired Tuesday by who was on that winning World starting this season.” engage fans during the sports Chip Ganassi Racing after nearly every one of his sponsors dropped shutdown because of the corona- the star driver for using a racial slur during a live stream of a virtual virus pandemic has taken a dark race. Considered the top free agent in NASCAR mere weeks ago, turn. Larson is now out of a job in what could be an eight-figure blunder. Kyle Larson was fired by Ga- nassi this week for using a racial It seemed a fair concession for streamed. slur during a virtual race. Bubba Cassill, who does not currently Virtual racing has become the Wallace lost a sponsor for “rage have a Cup Series ride. He has only way for drivers to promote quitting” the game a week earli- competed in the first three of- their partners during stay-at- er. And NASCAR’s iRacing event ficial NASCAR virtual races, home orders, and teams have this Sunday is drawing criticism hosted other virtual events and recognized the value in having after the series decided to trim signed topical pain reliever Blue- their drivers participate. But the field of lesser-known drivers. Emu — the sponsor that dropped what started as fun became very The decision was intended to Wallace — as a backer. serious business and snowballed avoid the wreckfest of two weeks “The best thing that I’ve Sunday night when Larson used ago at virtual Bristol Motor learned from this week is that the N-word while trying to com- Speedway. But it came at the ex- pense of drivers such as Landon my sponsor Blue-Emu is behind municate with his spotter. Almost Cassill and Michael McDowell, me 100% and ultimately that re- all of his sponsors dropped him who have sponsorship for the lationship is what will scale these the next day, and he was fired by events and then learned they iRacing events from the virtual Ganassi. were not invited to compete on world into opportunities in the IndyCar Series owner Roger the virtual Richmond track. Re- real world,” Cassill said. “That I Penske urged team owners to tired star Dale Earnhardt Jr. even have to qualify in this week is just caution their drivers about their pulled out in an effort to give his another opportunity to prove my- conduct while virtual racing — a spot to one of the excluded driv- self as a racer.” message delivered after Penske ers, but it was clear the shine is It’s become very messy in driver Will Power had his stream wearing off. the month since NASCAR piv- muted by the service for calling NASCAR came up with a solu- oted from real racing to iRac- Dixon a “wanker.” ing, which has twice set esports NASCAR on Friday postponed COLIN MULVANY, THE SPOKESMAN-REVIEW/AP tion: A heat race Sunday morning for drivers not already invited, viewership records on Fox and its its next scheduled event, May 9 Washington State forward Morgan Weaver, right, competes for the with the top two finishers eligible cable channel. IndyCar launched at Martinsville, Va., and is ex- ball with Gonzaga’s Maddie Cooley during a college soccer match to compete in the nationally tele- a league with Saturday races now ploring racing at venues without in Spokane, Wash., in September. Weaver was selected by the vised virtual race and two other aired by NBCSN, and IMSA host- spectators. IndyCar’s next sched- Portland Thorns with the second pick in the NSWL Draft. The league drivers selected by broadcast ed a huge field of sports car driv- uled race is June 6 at Texas Motor was supposed to start its season this weekend. partner Fox. ers Thursday in a race that was Speedway. Sunday, April 19, 2020 •STARS AND STRIPES•PAGE 23 WNBA DRAFT/NHL Ionescu goes No. 1 to New York Liberty

WNBA Draft tany Brewer, F, Texas Tech Oregon star set 18. Phoenix (From Minnesota), Friday Te’a Cooper, G, Baylor First Round 19. Seattle, Joyner Holmes, F, Tex- 1. New York, Sabrina Ionescu, G, as NCAA record for Oregon 20. Los Angeles (From Chicago), 2. Dallas, Satou Sabally, F, Oregon Beatrice Mompremier, F, Miami 3. Indiana, Lauren Cox, F, Baylor 21. Dallas (From Las Vegas), Luisa 4. Atlanta, Chennedy Carter, G, Geiselsoder, C, Germany triple-doubles Texas A&M 22. Los Angeles, Leonie Fiebich, G, 5. Dallas (From Phoenix), Bella Germany Alarie, G/F, Princeton 23. Connecticut, Kaila Charles, G/F, BY DOUG FEINBERG 6. Minnesota, Mikiah Herbert Har- Maryland rigan, F, South Carolina 24. Washington, Jaylyn Agnew, F, Associated Press 7. Dallas (From Seattle - via Con- Creighton necticut, Phoenix), Tyasha Harris, G, Third Round South Carolina 25. Atlanta, Mikayla Pivec, G, Or- NEW YORK — Oregon star Sa- 8. Chicago, Ruthy Hebard, F, Or- egon State brina Ionescu was the No. 1 pick egon 26. New York, Erica Ogwumike, G, 9. New York (From Dallas - via Las Rice in the WNBA Draft, as expected. Vegas), Megan Walker, F, Connecti- 27. Atlanta (From Dallas), Kobi When she’ll play for the New cut Thornton, F, Clemson 10. Phoenix (From Los Angeles - 28. Indiana, Kamiah Smalls, G, York Liberty is unclear. via Connecticut), Jocelyn Willoughby, James Madison With sports on hold during the G/F, Virginia 29. Phoenix, Stella Johnson, G, 11. Seattle (From Connecticut), Rider coronavirus pandemic, it was a Kitija Laksa, F, TTT Riga (Latvia) 30. Chicago (From Minnesota), Ja- 12. New York (From Washington), preece Dean, G, UCLA draft Friday like no other — with Jazmine Jones, G, Louisville 31. Seattle, Haley Gorecki, G, players in their own homes instead Second Round Duke 13. New York (From Atlanta), Kylee 32. Chicago, Kiah Gillespie, F, Flor- of a central location. Commission- Shook, F, Louisville ida State er Cathy Engelbert announced 14. Indiana (From New York - 33. Las Vegas, Lauren Manis, F, via Minnesota), Kathleen Doyle, G, Holy Cross selections from her home in New Iowa 34. Los Angeles, Tynice Martin, G, Jersey, holding up the jersey of 15. New York (From Dallas), Lea- West Virginia onna Odom, F, Duke 35. Connecticut, Juicy Landrum, G, the player being chosen. 16. Minnesota (From Indiana), Baylor Crystal Dangerfield, G, Connecticut 36. Washington, Sug Sutton, G, “Of course it was different than 17. Atlanta (From Phoenix), Brit- Texas what I had expected, and just ex- cited to be able to be here with my family and the people clos- pick. The Princeton star was only Virginia 10th. Seattle took former est to me and be able to spend the second Ivy League player to South Florida star Kitija Laksa this time,” Ionescu said from her be drafted that high. Harvard with the 11th pick and New York home in California. “Making the star Allison Feaster was also se- closed out the first round drafting most out of what’s going on in lected fifth in the 1998 draft by Jazmine Jones from Louisville. today’s society. Just really happy the Los Angeles Sparks. New York, which was the first to be able to spend this moment with them and excited to have South Carolina players Mikiah team ever to have five of the first gone through this process.” Herbert Harrigan and Tyasha 15 picks in the draft, selected Ionescu set the NCAA record Harris went sixth and seventh Jones’ Louisville teammate Kylee to Minnesota and Dallas. The Shook at 13 and Duke’s Leaonna for triple-doubles and was the JOHN LOCHER/AP first college player to have over Gamecocks finished No. 1 in the Odom at 15. 2,000 points, 1,000 rebounds and Oregon guard Sabrina Ionescu was taken No. 1 overall by the AP poll this season. The Liberty also made two 1,000 assists in her career. Iones- Liberty on Friday, the first of three first-round picks for New York, Chicago chose Ruthy Hebard trades after the draft, acquiring cu was one of three first-round which also took Connecticut forward Megan Walker at No. 9 and with the eighth pick — marking Willoughby for Shatori Walker- picks for New York, which also another guard, Louisville’s Jazmine Jones, with the 12th pick. the fifth consecutive season and Kimbrough. New York also trad- had Nos. 9 and 12. ninth overall that three college ed Erica Ogwumike, who they “I’ve been working for this for the draft, went second to Dallas. “Really proud of her and what we teammates were taken in the drafted in the third round, to my entire basketball career and It’s the third time in the history were able to do as teammates and opening round. Minnesota for Stephanie Talbot. super excited to see that come of the draft that the top two picks excited to see her future in the “Really shows what kind of The WNBA tried to create a to fruition,” Ionescu said. “I’m were college teammates. pros.” environment we had at Oregon,” draft-like experience for the play- very humbled and excited for the “To go 1-2 with Satou is a re- Lauren Cox went third to In- Sabally said. ers, sending them a care pack- opportunity.” ally cool feeling and shows all diana and Chennedy Carter was New York took UConn’s Megan age with hats of all 12 teams, a Ducks teammate Satou Sa- the hard work we went through the fourth pick by Atlanta. Dallas Walker with the ninth pick. Phoe- WNBA sweatshirt, confetti and a bally, one of three juniors to enter this year paid off,” Ionescu said. took Bella Alarie with the fifth nix picked Jocelyn Willoughby of few other items. Jets, Byfuglien agree to terminate contract

BY STEPHEN WHYNO repair an ankle injury, which prompted a remainder of the regular season and open AND JOHN WAWROWA grievance filed through the NHL Players’ with the playoffs. At the very least, Byfug- Associated Press Association and settled Friday. lien would be ineligible to compete in this It wasn’t clear how much Byfuglien wa- year’s playoffs. Dustin Byfuglien and the Winnipeg Jets vered about returning to play. Cheveldayoff A person familiar with the situation told agreed to mutually terminate his contract broached the possibility of trading him on The AP that Byfuglien was healthy enough Friday, potentially marking the end of a multiple occasions, and came away ques- to return playing, which is why he was no playing career for “Big Buff.” tioning whether a change of scenery would longer eligible to collect on his contract. The agreement ended a lengthy dispute make a difference for Byfuglien. The person spoke on the condition of ano- between Byfuglien and the organization Cheveldayoff said, “There’s only one per- nymity because that information was not over his absence this season. Because son and one person only who can answer if revealed in the announcement released by there was no financial settlement as part he’ll ever play again, and that’s Dustin.” the NHL and union. of the termination, the defenseman walked Agent Ben Hankinson told The Associ- “Dustin’s choice was to be true to himself away from the $14 million remaining on ated Press by email that Byfuglien doesn’t and not put himself and maybe the team his contract with no guarantee he’ll play have anything to say and “will take some again. time to decide” on his future. and everybody in a difficult situation,” Ch- “This was never our desired outcome The 35-year-old Byfuglien patrolled the eveldayoff said. “If he really didn’t have it or ending with Dustin,” Winnipeg general ice at multiple positions for 14 NHL sea- in him to continue to play, that’s probably manager Kevin Cheveldayoff said on a con- sons with a rare blend of size, skill and the most honest thing that he could say.” ference call with reporters. “If it were the power. He hasn’t played since Winnipeg’s If Byfuglien hangs up his skates, his lega- JIM MONE/AP Jets writing the perfect script, it would’ve first-round playoff series last April, and is cy will be that of a Stanley Cup winner who The Winnipeg Jets came to an agreement ended with Dustin holding a great, big sil- now an unrestricted free agent. It’s unclear switched positions and became one of the with Dustin Byfuglien to mutually ver trophy over his head at center ice and when he would be allowed to sign with any most feared blueliners of this era. Big hits terminate his contract Friday, ending a flashing that great, big smile of his.” team because the NHL’s season is on hold and powerful slap shots allowed Byfuglien lengthy dispute between the 35-year-old In reality, it ended seven months after due to the new coronavirus pandemic. to make a difference all over the ice. defenseman and the organization over his Byfuglien told the Jets he’d lost the desire The league hasn’t decided when it will “He was a force of nature,” Cheveldayoff absence this season. to play and following surgery in October to resume play and whether it will skip the said. S TARS AND STRIPES Sunday, April 19, 2020 No. 1 pick As expected, Oregon’s Ionescu fi rst SPORTS player taken » WNBA Draft, Page 23

NBA

‘The Last Dance’ Final title of Bulls dynasty chronicled

BY TIM REYNOLDS year knowing it was coming to an end,” Jor- Associated Press dan told Good Morning America on Thursday. CHARLOTTE, N.C. Jordan appeared on the show via video confer- ichael Jordan described his final ence from his home in Florida to promote the NBA championship season with the “The Last Dance,” a 10-part documentary se- Chicago Bulls as a “trying year.” ries focused on the final year of the ’90’s Bulls M “We were all trying to enjoy that SEE LAST ON PAGE 21 Top: Members of the Chicago Bulls attend a rally on June 16, 1998 to celebrate the team’s sixth NBA title. Right: Michael Jordan looks at the league MVP award presented to him before a playoff game on May 19, 1998.

BETH A. KEISER, TOP, AND FRANK POLICH, RIGHT / AP

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