Russia Announces Another Cease-Fire, But The Fighting Continues. The Latest Plus Where Things Stand With Arming Ukraine
Talks of yet another cease-fire agreement between Russia and Ukraine crumbled Monday morning as Russian artillery fire pounded residential buildings in cities across Ukraine, catching civilians in the deadly cross-fire and killing a family trying to escape in Kyiv. Although Russia announced that it would create safe corridors for Ukraininans to leave major cities, many of these passageways led evacuees back into Russia or its neighboring ally Belarus. Meanwhile, Ukraininan’s ferocious resistance has slowed the invasion of Russia and thwarted any hopes Russia had for a lightning victory. In Kyiv, soldiers and volunteers have built checkpoints using sandbags and stacked tires while makeshift kitchens are helping to feed the soldiers. Ukrainian fighters can also expect a much-needed resupply in weapons from European countries soon, an effort that’s been stalled by logistical and security concerns. President Zelensky of Ukraine has welcomed and encouraged outside aid, but also warns that the support so far has been wildly insufficient. His plea for a no-fly zone over Ukraine continues to be unanswered by NATO for fear that it could trigger a wider war.
Today on AirTalk, we hear the latest update on the war in Ukraine from Oleg Suhkov, political reporter at the Kyiv Independent. We also talk with Paul McLeary, defense reporter for POLITICO, about the latest efforts to send weapons to Ukraine.
With files from the Associated Press
Los Angeles County Drops Indoor Mask Mandate. How Was Your First Mask-Free Weekend?
Los Angeles County dropped its indoor mask mandate on Friday, after new data from the C.D.C. put L.A. County in the “low community risk level,” indicating area hospitals are no longer under high strain. Masks are no longer required – whether you’re vaccinated or not – in indoor settings like stores, bars, and restaurants. Individual businesses can still decide for themselves if they’ll require employees and customers to wear masks, and Los Angeles County Public Health Director Barbara Ferrer says it’s still strongly recommended to wear masks indoors. Masks will still be required on public transit, in health care facilities and long-term care facilities, and indoors at K-12 schools until March 12 (L.A. Unified’s indoor mask mandate will stay in place, pending new negotiations with the teacher’s union).
The vaccine verification rules changed, too. People attending outdoor mega events are no longer required to show proof of vaccination or a negative test, nor do you have to show it at bars, wineries, breweries, or nightclubs in the County. However, the cities of L.A. and West Hollywood have stricter rules and will still require vaccine verification at bars, restaurants, gyms, and other businesses. State rules still require vaccine verification or a recent negative test at indoor mega events with more than 1,000 people, like concerts or NBA games.
This is the first weekend without mask rules in L.A. County in nearly two years. We want to know how it felt for you. Were you anxious? Happy? Something in between?
With files from LAist
The Financial Challenges Of Caring For Older Relatives
Long-term care has become more complicated – and more expensive – than it once was. Risinglife expectancies – and the increasing costs of the care involved in helping people live longer – are putting a financial strain on families, and the situation may only get worse in coming years. TheCDC expects the number of adults aged 65 or older to reach nearly 81 million by 2040, and the financial strain is widespread, according to arecent report in The Wall Street Journal: “Although the average caregiver is 49, about 23% are millennials, who have had less time in the workforce to build financial security.”
Today on AirTalk, we talk with licensed clinical social workers Elizabeth Malloy and Steven Barlam about the current state of long-term care and why its increasing costs are leaving many families cash-strapped.
Previously on AirTalk, we discussed what the government could do to help Americans who would rather age at home instead of in long-term care facilities. You can listen to that conversationhere.
COVID-19 AMA: World Surpasses 6 Million COVID Deaths, Mask Mandates For Kids, And More
In our continuing series looking at the latest medical research and news on COVID-19, Larry Mantle speaks with Dr. Dean Blumberg, professor of medicine and chief of Pediatric Infectious Diseases at UC Davis Children’s Hospital.
Topics today include:
- Worldwide death toll from COVID surpasses 6 million as pandemic enters its third year
- Why have some people never caught COVID? The answers may help protect us all
- L.A. child care providers say mask mandates kept kids safe, and they’re not ready to drop them
- Vaccination rates among teens and young adults remain low, as two Southern California teens die of COVID
- Data analysis shows deaths among the vaccinated in California rose sharply with Omicron
- Lack of awareness and limited supply limit rollout of COVID antibody treatment Evusheld
- A surge in cases challenges China’s “zero COVID” approach
KPCC And LAist Want To Hear Your Experience Of “Being American”
Our website LAist launched a new project today, and you play a big part in it. We’re asking the children and descendants of immigrants to share their personal stories of their American experience. We’re calling the new project, “Being American.” It’s a sequel of sorts to a web series we launched in 2020 called “Race in L.A.” Today on AirTalk, KPCC’s immigrant communities correspondent Leslie Berestein Rojas – who oversaw that series – joins Larry to talk about the new “Being American” project.
Vibe Shifts: What They Are, Whether One Is Coming And Why The Term Is All Over Your Social Feeds
You might have seen conversations about or references to “vibe shifts” on social media and elsewhere on the web in the last couple weeks, and if you’re wondering why that is, or simply what the heck a vibe shift even is, we’re here to help.
The term went public last month when Allison Davis, a culture writer for New York Magazine’s vertical The Cut, published an article titled “A Vibe Shift Is Coming. Will any of us survive it?”. Davis says a trend forecaster named Sean Monahan coined the term in a Substack newsletter last summer and that it is “the catchy but sort of too-cool term Monahan uses for a relatively simple idea: In the culture, sometimes things change, and a once-dominant social wavelength starts to feel dated.” She also explores vibe shifts we’ve seen in recent decades as well as who survives vibe shifts and who, as she describes it using a train metaphor, gets left behind at the last station or “vibe.” Davis’ article made for plenty of conversation on social media and elicited several response articles and listicles, among them an article from NBC Culture Critic Brian Moylan, who writes about the idea of being “vibe proof” and what he thinks both Monahan and Davis might have left out of their analysis.
Today on AirTalk, Brian Moylan stops by to talk about vibe shifts, and we want to hear from you as well about the vibe shifts you’ve observed in your lifetime. Have you found yourself trying to keep up and change with the vibes or have you been content to let them come and go?