Local emergency coronavirus orders threatening constitutional rights?
By Rick Brundrett The Nerve When Columbia city leaders imposed a curfew in response to the coronavirus outbreak, they required residents in most cases – under the threat of possible jail time – to isolate themselves in their homes between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. In justifying the curfew, Mayor Steve Benjamin told a WIS-TV reporter on camera, “We started seeing some reports of even if the restaurants and bars might be shut down by the...
Minding your health during pandemic
By Samantha Lyles slyles@newsandpress.net We are living in strange times. The COVID-19 pandemic is causing widespread and prolonged stress for people around the world, and if you’re feeling the strain, you’re not alone. A new poll by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that 7 in 10 Americans (72 percent) say their lives have been disrupted “a lot” or “some” by the coronavirus outbreak, and three-fourths of respondents say...
Classes by computer: Not a perfect solution, but school board’s glad to have it
By Bobby Bryant Editor editor@newsandpress.net Since the coronavirus crisis shut down all public schools in South Carolina in mid-March, Darlington County students have continued the semester with classes by computer. Last week, the county school board briefly discussed how the district’s “eLearning” system is working so far. The consensus: Some students love it and are easily able to work with it. Others don’t like it and struggle to...
How serious are you about avoiding the coronavirus?
By Richard C. Culyer III Yes, I know you will likely give a positive answer to the question. But are you serious enough to take the necessary steps for you and yours? Read on and decide. First, let’s make some safe assumptions. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that the coronavirus may be with us through July or August. In other words, we are not talking about a short-term change in lifestyles. Second,...
McMaster orders ‘non-essential’ businesses closed
By Bobby Bryant Editor editor@newsandpress.net Darlington County residents will be saying goodbye to nightclubs, Bingo halls, commercial gyms, spas, swimming pools, barber shops, hair salons, tanning salons and tattoo parlors for a while under a new order from S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster. McMaster, in another executive order intended to combat the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, on March 31 ordered the closing of all “non-essential...
Family violence and COVID-19
As our country continues to fight the pandemic known as COVID-19, families everywhere are making adjustments to assimilate work and education into their households. Isolation and containment cannot be avoided; these measures are necessary in keeping our elderly and those with underlying health conditions safe and for reducing the spread of the virus. However, even those not at a serious health risk are now facing overwhelming...
