COVID-19 pandemic is over in US says Joe Biden – despite increasing deaths and cases

Sep 20 2022

President Joe Biden has declared the COVID-19 pandemic over in the United States, despite the number of Americans contracting and dying of the virus continuing to rise.

Speaking during a television interview, Biden said that “we’re still doing a lot of work on it. But the pandemic is over.” However, statistics show that over 400 Americans are dying each day on average.

The World Health Organisation said last week that the end of the pandemic is in sight, with Biden pushing the statement forward by said that there is a lot of work being done to control the COVID-19 outbreak.

“If you notice, no-one’s wearing masks. Everybody seems to be in pretty good shape. I think it’s changing’ the president told a crowd.

However, administration officials told US media on Monday that the comments did not signal a change in policy and there are no plans to lift the public health emergency.

To date, more than 1.05 million people in America died of the virus, with the country registered 95.5 million cases. Certain federal vaccine mandates remain in place in the US, including on healthcare workers, military personnel and non-US citizens entering the country.

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Man donates blood for the 100th time to celebrate birthday

Sep 20 2022

A man by the name of Paul Pace celebrated his latest birthday by donating blood.

But this was an extra special day for Paul as he was also celebrating the 100th time he donated blood. The National Blood Transfusion Service shared an appreciation post for Paul, writing:

‘Today we wish Sir Paul Pace a happy birthday, as well as commending him for his 100th blood donation! Well done and thank you Paul! You are an inspiration to many others!’

The need for blood donations is always encouraged so as to provide when people are in need for transfusions.

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31 organisations benefit from the Artistic Financing Scheme for feast street decorations

Sep 20 2022

€180,000 has been invested in voluntary organisations linked to feast decorations related to Maltese feasts for continuous fostering, strengthening and protection of our cultural traditions. Speaking at the presentation, Minister for the National Heritage, the Arts and Local Government Owen Bonnici thanked these associations for all their hard work in organising and planning artistic decorations in feasts.

“With the implementation of the artistic financing for feast associations’ scheme, we continue to strengthen our country’s cultural fabric and traditions in feast decorations not only by assisting with designs and manufacturing but also towards their learning investment and training, as well as other cultural projects and activities. Such schemes keep giving us the foundation to further solidify our culture and its future”, said Minister Bonnici.

Managed by the Arts Council Malta, this fund assists the numerous organisations in our towns and villages, which are linked to traditional Maltese feasts and voluntarily work throughout the year on the artistic aspect of feasts. “This scheme ensures that these organisations get the assistance needed to continue furthering their work so that higher artistic levels are reached”, said Director Funding and Strategy within the Arts Council Malta, Mary Ann Cauchi. “Such a scheme also enables us to see the full potential of our vibrant local ecology of cultural expressions, grounded in our communities, as stated in Strategy2025”, she continued.

Beneficiaries of this scheme are voluntary organisations enrolled with the Commissioner for Voluntary Organisations and were scrutinised in terms of technical and artistic eligibility by Arts Council Malta. The maximum funding per beneficiary was €10,000 per project; each project was awarded funding on a case-by-case basis.

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Abandoned and starving dog finds a loving forever home

Sep 20 2022

Taking to social media, a woman by the name of Christa Cilia recounted how she rescued an abandoned elderly dog which was left out in Malta’s streets.

The dog, now named Sudo a.k.a ‘Ġużi ix-Xiħ’, was first found by a couple by the names of Adam and Yana. The dog was approached by Cilia on Sunday, who expressed utter disbelief at how bad of a state the dog was in.

The dog was not responding well to people trying to approach him, lashing out as he attempted to walk despite being partially blind.

‘His second chance at life came in his elderly years’ said Cilia. ‘Still late but he managed to find who loves him immediately.’

Christa condemned the previous owners who, instead of loving the dog and attempting to find aid, they abandoned him despite his ailments. ‘You ended up in my home. I already love you’ she said.

The chosen name for the dog was picked by the couple who found him, with Christa keeping it with respect to those who helped the innocent canine.

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