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Most CFO's in a Duke University survey don't see a recovery until 2009 and then also late 2009. About 75% did't think the interest rate cuts by the Federal Reserve haven't helped thier companies and one third see the effect on their firms directly in the credit markets. Most are reducing expansion plans and see new capital investment at 3.3% barely keeping up with replacement needs this year. This suggests the Fed's rate cuts havent helped business that much and the credit crisis has hit businesses directly and the full impact is still to come.

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Former employees of Google and Facebook have joined together to form The Center for Humane Technology. It plans to fight tech addiction in schools. A ad campaign is planned with $7 million from Common Sense, capital it has raised, and $50 million in donated media and airtime by DirecTV and Comcast. The idea is to educate students, teachers and parents about overuse of tech media leading to depression, other dysfunctional health issues. 

In one report even Tim Cook, Apple CEO says he realizes the dangers and is trying to discourage such use by his nephew. Some early investors such as Roger McNamee say they are horrified at what has happened with overuse of social media, especially health effects for a generation of school children and young adults. 

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Britain's NHS watchdog, National Audit Office, says cuts in public health spending for social care such as for obesity and smoking, by a quarter since 2014, could risk derailing achieving a key goal of preventing illness for the NHS.

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What is behind the anti-vaccine movement in the US? This NYT report looks at some of its unlikely origins- the anti-vaccine efforts of Robert Kennedy's son, Robert Kennedy Jr.. Mr. Kennedy is planning to run against Mr. Biden for the White House. Kennedy's opposition to vaccine's is traced back to his getting involved in cases as an environmental lawyer. Parents who had intellectually disabled children from other chemicals asked Kennedy to look into vaccines. Around 2010 Thimerosal, a mercury based preservative which been used for many years to prevent bacteria from growing in multiple dose vials of vaccine, was suspected to cause autism.  Already by 1999 the American Academy of Pediatrics, federal health agencies and pharmaceutical manufacturers agreed that thimerosal should be removed from childhood vaccines.  Yet it is still used, says this report.  This led to Mr. Kennedy's getting into vaccines in general by the time of the pandemic. He had a book out that was critical of Dr. Faucci, during the pandemic. Mr. Kennedy cautioned about the unintended effects of vaccines. He has another book out called the Wuhan Coverup that looks into the origins of the coronavirus. It refers to research conducted at the Wuhan Institute of Virology that was funded by the US. Mr. Kennedy believes that more transparency is needed on decisions made in the health care sector, and that critical views need to be aired for the public to be able to decide the right course of action. Vaccination is generally supported by people in America though there is a subsection of people who have concerns about side effects. On issues outside of vaccination there is a sense that America's health sector needs more transparency.     ...

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On March 20, reports show that the testing facilities in states in the U.S. have had to set priorities on who gets tested first. High risk areas identified by authorites come first. For this reason Corlado health authorites moved a test centrer in Denver to Telluride a ski community that has been hard hit. In Minnesota health department commissioner identified priorities and limited testing to health care workers, inpatients at hospitals and people in group living facilities. A backlog means tests can take 5 days in Colorado, and Colorado has capacity for 250 tests a day (March 20). Testing was centred first by the U.S. government at the Centre for Disease Control. On reconsideration the state and local authorites, private companies, were allowed to conduct the tests, to speed things up. But local areas in many cases lack supplies or enough test kits and protective gear that is needed. This WSJ report says that the Trump administration is also shifting their strategy to social distancing to contain the outbreak. The federal government says it is aware of shortages in chemicals used in the tests. New York City officials say they have testing capacity for 5000 people per day, and New York State Governor Cuomo says the state can test 6000 people per day. (March 20). ...

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NYT provides this conversation with a botanist and biochemist with a spiritual passion for trees. She reveals the many ways in which trees support the human health and souls, says NYT. She has a vast scientific knowledge of it and a spiritual connection with forests. She talks about why we should preserve old forests and plant more in this conversation.

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Us promises of aid to India during the current coronavirus outbreak. Anthony Blinken, US Secretary of State said - "Our hearts go out to the Indian people in the midst of the Covid outbreak. We are working closely with our partners in the Indian government, and we will deploy additional support to the people of India and India's health care heroes."

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Efforts to put aside the smartphone are shown in the NYT and ways this can be done to improve mental health and general well being. Some are switching to flip phones, others are keeping the smartphone only for some tasks and reducing its use so that they have more quality time with their spouses, friends and others they interact with in a better way.

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Nikki Haley calls TikTok "a dangerous social media asset" in a Republican debate for presidential hopefuls. Strangely the debate also had in a commercial break an ad for TikTok. Social media has been shown to have an harmful affect on the mental health of children. Use of social media also affects the reading ability and concentration of children and young people. 

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The differences in the Democratic party between conservatives and liberals that make it difficult to get things done in healthcare, energy and other areas. The lack of White House leadership in a number of areas, and in anumber of instances. The lack of Senate leadership on these issues with the Senate not having done much in energy and healthcare legislation. Add to this the influence of the $133 million that lobbyists spent in the 2nd quarter 2009 alone. The failure of Republicans and Democrats in Congress to push vigorously for cost control in the health care industry adds to these problems.

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A new CBS-New York Times opinion poll in June 2012 shows 44% of those polled approve the job the Supreme Court is performing and about three fourths say the decisions of justices of the court are influenced by their political and personal views. By comparison only 15% approve of the job done by the U.S. Congress in the most recent poll. Only one in eight say the justices make decisions based solely on legal analysis. About 60% say they agree that life tenure for justices is bad because it gives too much power to justices. On the health care law two thirds of those polled say they hope some or all of the 2010 Obama health care law is overturned.