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Category Archives: Uncategorized

Single Audits and COVID-19 Relief Funding

17 Friday Apr 2020

Posted by Richard Watson in COVID-19, Economics and Taxation, Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

COVID-19, Nonprofit Organizations, Single Audits, Stimulus Programs

Something to be aware of if you are a nonprofit organization is the potential effect of COVID-19 relief funding on single audits. A nonprofit organization which expends $750,000 or more in federal financial assistance within one year must have a single audit. Grants, cost reimbursement contracts and loans, among other sources of funding, can be included in determining whether the $750,000 threshold is achieved. The Uniform Guidance is the authoritative set of rules and requirements for Federal awards.

The AIPCA has asked the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) a series of questions about the impact of relief funding on the need to have a single audit which you can download here.

Here is what the AICPA has said regarding whether Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL) are subject to single audit:

One of the most common questions we have received is whether SBA PPP loans obtained by NFPs are subject to the Uniform Guidance single audit requirements. The good news is that we have recently received an answer to this question. Based on recent discussions with SBA staff, we have been informed that PPP loans made to NFPs will not be subject to single audit.

On the other hand, SBA informed us that loans made to NFPs under the EIDL program are considered a direct loan program disbursed from SBA to loan recipients. Therefore, these loans are considered federal financial assistance and are subject to the Uniform Guidance single audit requirements.

On March 19, 2020, the OMB released a memo apparently allowing a six-month extension for auditees to submit their single audit. Although according to the AICPA the memo has caused confusion:

The memo is not [emphasis added] instructing federal agencies to provide a blanket waiver for all recipients impacted by COVID-19. Instead, its guidance primarily relates to recipients receiving funds disbursed from the approximately $9 billion in emergency supplemental appropriations for coronavirus preparation and response (H.R.6074). Note that there could be cases where agencies may decide to apply the guidance in the memorandum for existing awards that are deemed by the agency to be for continued research and services necessary to carry out the emergency response relating to COVID-19.

Guidance is expected soon.

Returning to Earth

13 Thursday Dec 2018

Posted by Richard Watson in Uncategorized

≈ 3 Comments

The fighter jet, a North American F-86 Sabre, flamed out. Or perhaps it ran out of fuel. Certainly, the later would cause the former – the extinction of flame in the combustion chamber – but the events are not necessarily synonymous. In the milieu of flight, these things happen. In the milieu of memory, what matters is that you safely returned to Earth.

The pilot has two friends was what you told me – speed and altitude. So you stayed high and continued your flameless glide. This was the right stuff – surfing the clouds and hoping for a break, for a sighting of Earth. 

With luck, you make your own, so why not double-up. When that break in the clouds appeared, not only was there Earth but also a glimpse of runway. You landed and because of that, so did I. You once broke the sound barrier, and now you have broken the speed of Earth and are with the stars, finally admitted to the space program.

In your all too brief instructions, the doomsday book, you began at the end and returned to the beginning. This is my journey to rediscover your life – my homage to you. This is how my mind works when inspiration steals sleep at 3am most nights. This is how I feel it all, find my compassion and kindness, and regain my footing on this Earth.

This will be the first time I am missing your encouraging comment on this blog – “well written son.”

 

Chronology of an Appendectomy

16 Wednesday May 2018

Posted by Richard Watson in Uncategorized

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Appendectomy, appendicitis

Well…that’s the appendix gone. From start to finish, it was less than twenty-four hours. A blind-ending tubular structure arising from the cecum is no more, and I am reliably informed that it will not grow back.

Monday, April 23, 2018

3:00 am

I awaken feeling exactly like I did at Canyons 100k one year ago where I found myself lying on the ground at mile forty-three with severe abdominal pain. Thinking this was food-poisoning again, the next three hours were occupied with vomiting. However, there was something odd…only clear fluid was coming up.

7:15 am

Since the abdominal pain is not getting better, Debbie suggests I call Kaiser, and an appointment is made to see my primary care physician, Dr. Ferris.

10:30 am

After almost throwing up in – and thereby redecorating – my doctor’s office, I am given some ondansetron – often prescribed to prevent nausea and vomiting caused by cancer drug treatment and radiation therapy – nice! Since I have no fever, appendicitis cannot be diagnosed. Appendicitis is an infection, so there should be a fever. This could still be a gastrointestinal matter. I am advised to rest and monitor for temperature. If a fever develops, I should call 911 and go to emergency.

3:00 pm

With the pain level remaining constant, I notice my temperature is up by one-degree. Is that a fever? A faulty reading? Within the tolerable error of the measuring device? It’s warm upstairs. Perhaps I should go downstairs and check it there…Nope, still one-degree. I resolve to wait and see if it goes up by two-degrees.

3:56 pm

Email to Dr. Ferris. Is one-degree considered a temperature?

4:30 pm

Temperature now at 100.6 degrees. That’s my line-in-the-sand. So I change into hospital ready clothes and debate taking a book along in case I am bored. The book stays, since I sense the experience will be worth remembering…

4:44 pm

911 call is made, and I sit out front waiting for the ambulance.

4:49 pm

Text to Debbie to let her know what is happening. Ambulance arrives one-minute later and off we go (amount billed to insurance $2,366.54)…Debbie arrives quickly in the ER.

6:00 pm

In the ER, blood tests show dehydration with low electrolytes. Blood pressure is high. Lactated Ringers IV started which includes electrolytes – sodium chloride, potassium chloride, sodium lactate and calcium – good for an ultra marathon. Another dose of ondansetron is included, also good for an ultra marathon. At some point, I begin shaking uncontrollably, possibly because the IV is cold…so…

7:15 pm

Bring on the morphine! This stuff works fast. I know I am in pain, but I just…don’t…give a damn…

At some point, a CT scan with contrast material is performed which confirms the diagnosis of acute appendicitis.

8:30 pm

Zosyn, a penicillin antibiotic is started. One of the surgeons, Dr. Lehrer, introduces himself. “What do you think…should we take it out?”

Me – “seems like it will just cause problems if we leave it in. Let’s yank it.”

He explains the procedure which will be a laparoscopic appendectomy. Three incisions will be made, carbon dioxide gas will inflate the abdomen so that my insides can be viewed with a camera. The operating room will be available soon, so they expect to start around 10:30 pm. This allows Debbie to explore the Kaiser canteen, since she has not had dinner.

10:24 pm

I am given some mouthwash, probably because I’ll be intubated due to the anaesthesia. The nurses ask whether I have had general anaesthesia in the past. Debbie leaves to get a few hours of sleep…whatever I was given for anesthesia works remarkably well. I barely remember being wheeled into the OR…just before my lights went out, I recall seeing the operating lights and thinking it looked like a film set.

Tuesday, April 24. 2018

12:01 am

Although I have no recollection, senator, surgery is finished.

various times

I dreamt that someone was trying to talk to me. This confused me. Was I being asked if I knew my name, or where I was? Of course I know my name, what does it matter…can’t you see I’m trying to sleep?

3:00 am

I wake and look at the clock, realizing the whole appendix thing has been a dream. Turns out, I didn’t need to have it removed, and I am home. But wait…why am I in a hospital bed, and where are the cats?

Additional antibiotics are added to my IV drip – ceftriaxone and a gastrointestinal antibiotic called metronidazole, which is also used to treat vaginal infections. So I am covered under various scenarios…

various times

Throughout the early morning hours my legs are being treated with a type of compression device that alternatively inflates around each leg. Although this is used to prevent blood clots, it is very soothing on the calves.

5:32 am

Ketorolac, a nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug, is added to the mix.

7:24 am

My vital signs are looking good. Blood pressure is back down at 122/71 and pulse is a respectable 51 (all that running).

8:26 am

Famotidine, which inhibits stomach acid production, is also introduced to the IV. Is this because I am about to be served breakfast in bed?

Dr. Lehrer visits me in the morning, and even though he said I would not remember him, I do remember his confidence and kindness from last night. His approach had just the right mixture of humor and professionalism which communicated that although any surgery has risks, this one should be just fine. There was never any moment of doubt.

Noon

I am discharged around noon, and Debbie’s bright and smiling face is there to take me home. I am prescribed hydrocodone (an opioid synthesized from codeine, one of the opioid alkaloids found in the opium poppy) for the pain. Rashly, I think I can make it through the pain without the opiates. This fallacy only lasts a few hours before I am ripping the top off the bottle…

In a few days, the pathologist will call to go over findings. There were no concerns, and the appendix was not perforated. However, the pathologist said my appendix was probably about 12-hours away from bursting. Both the surgeon and the pathologist noted that my appendix had gotten rather large.

My greatest thanks to Debbie who came to my side when I needed her. The joy of growing old together is that we get to take each other to hospital. And of course, thanks to all the doctors, nurses and paramedics. From primary care to the ambulance, from the ER to the OR, it is immensely reassuring to be surrounded by such a group of professionals.

I have pictures, but will spare the internet…hopefully back on the trails in four-weeks.

Iran – Radicalism in the Age of Radicalization

27 Saturday May 2017

Posted by Richard Watson in Political Commentary, Uncategorized

≈ 2 Comments

Tags

Iran, Saudi Arabia

I am struck by images from the recent Iranian election and thought I would make a comparison of election images from other countries in the region. My methodology lacks scientific rigor, would be laughed out of any legitimate study, plus I’ll admit that I’ve stacked the deck somewhat. Nevertheless, to my eye, one country appears to lean more to the west than the others. And although images can be highly manipulative, they are often revealing.

Here is the test. Pick the images which correspond to the following countries: Iran, Afghanistan, Israel, and Saudi Arabia. The inclusion of the Saudis is a slight deception, since the country is a monarchy, but they do sometimes have municipal elections. My contention is that you can see it in the eyes of the women, and although the plague of the ubiquitous cell phone is also evident, in Iran you see young people who look as though they would gladly cast off the theocracy and embrace freedom, if only given the chance.

14_iran

14

13_afghan4

13

12_iran

12

11_saudi

11

10_israel 3

10

9_Iranian_2016_election_15-800x500_c

9

8_afghan

8

7_saudi 1

7

6_israel 2

6

5_iran-election-rouhani-ap-img

5

4_israel 1

4

3_iran

3

2_iran

2

1_afghan1

1

The point I really wish to make is that the United States is yet again backing the wrong regime. Our relationship with the Saudis is a Cold War relic that will ultimately drag us into a much wider and devastating war.

But first, the key to the photographs: Afghanistan 1, 8, 13; Israel 4, 6, 10; Iran 2, 3, 5, 9, 12, 14; Saudi Arabia 7, 11. How did you do? What were your impressions?

I have no doubt you can find images to stack the deck your own way, creating a different impression – particularly if you go back to the 1979 Iranian Revolution. Yet consider how the United States has historically treated Iran, and you begin to see where that chip on their shoulder comes from.

It was in 1953 that the CIA backed a coup which overthrew the Iranian government. Kermit Roosevelt, grandson of Teddy and distant cousin of FDR, was the CIA’s man in Tehran. By now, you should realize that the United States merely follows the footsteps of the British throughout the entire region – treading over the same mistake strewn ground. The British staged their own Iranian coup in 1921. Then later, the U.S. backed Saddam Hussein in the Iran-Iraq war of 1980-1988, and may have even supplied some of the chemical weapons used by Iraq.

But let’s get back to Saudi Arabia. This is the home of the Wahhabi ideology whose followers attacked the United States on September 11, 2001 (although for a different interpretation, see this New York Times article). This sect of Islam was founded by Abdul Wahhab (1703-1792), who with Muhammad bin Saud established the first Saudi state in 1744. My argument is that Western Europe and the United States weaponized the Wahhabi ideology in a misguided attempt to thwart Russian ambitions. It begins some time ago, as you no-doubt guessed, with the British.

The British were in Afghanistan to protect their position in India, which officially began in 1600 when Queen Elizabeth I granted a charter to the Honourable East India Company. The French also thought that India could be good for trade (opium, silk, cotton, tea, and so on) and formed a rival French East India Company. France and Britain fought each other for awhile on the subcontinent and elsewhere in the world including a little tiff in North America where a bothersome British colony had the cheek to declare independence. It was Clive of India who put paid to French ambitions in India in 1757 at the Battle of Plassey, and the French who returned the favor in North America by helping the colonists. Despite their North American losses, the British remained untouchable at sea, but were vulnerable by land. It was thought that Russia posed the next and greatest threat. Hence the British interest in Afghanistan and the resulting First Afghan War (1839 to 1842).

Almost since its inception at the beginning of the 7th century, Islam has been under siege from the West. Although to be fair, there was a time when Islam gave as good as it got. The Umayyad Caliphate expanded into the Iberian Peninsula in 711. Later, Constantinople fell to the Ottoman Empire in 1453. But in the nineteenth century, the Ottoman’s become the Sick Man of Europe leading into the First World War. Then Germany had an idea.

The First World War quickly bogged down in Flanders Fields, and powers on all sides tried to come up with alternative plans to break the stalemate. Churchill came up with Gallipoli. The Germans thought it would be a good idea to arm Irish nationalists. But it was the other German idea that was right out of the Great Game. The Germans realized that Britain could be destabilized by threatening their empire on the subcontinent. To this end, the Germans were in Kabul in 1915 with plans to start a holy war. Islam would be used as a weapon against the British.

Although the German idea didn’t work (they did loose the war), the United States thought it could use yet another failed European strategy to fight the Soviet Union during the Cold War. Communism does not abide religion. It is anathema to Communists. So the United States encouraged Saudi Arabia to spread its Wahhabist interpretation of Islam to fight the godless Communists. What else to do with all that oil money? It was a nice fit at the time, but would ultimately be bad for the United States.

In 1979, the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan. The U.S. responded with covert operations against the Soviets (code named Operation Cyclone) in which the United States fought a proxy war by arming and supporting the Mujahideen (the word meaning “those engaged in Jihad”). Out of the Mujahideen grew the Taliban which was created by the Pakistani intelligence agency and funded by the United States. There was even a time when the United States felt it could do business with the Taliban. Union Oil Company of California was involved in negotiations with them to build an oil pipeline through Afghanistan. But the 1998 bombing of the US embassy in Nairobi made it difficult for the United States to continue its support of Jihadists. And after 2001, well…

The West’s habit of stirring up trouble along Russia’s southern flank by enlisting the help of fundamentalist Islam has to be the most short-sighted and disastrous foreign policy in history. The strategy was deeply flawed and left the region from the Mediterranean to Pakistan awash in continual strife, cost trillions of dollars and millions of lives, and has begotten the worst humanitarian crisis since the end of the Second World War.

Alexander the Great lead his army through the Khyber Pass in 326 BCE in his failed attempt to capture India, becoming the first head-stone in this “Graveyard of Empires” known as Afghanistan. With over two-thousand years of examples, war proves that it is always an abysmal failure that only succeeds in setting up the next monstrous regime. Clearly, war as a strategy has failed to sort-out the region. Isn’t it time for a new approach?

The United States should drop its so-called ally, Saudi Arabia. ISIS-like, the Saudis continue to behead and stone to-death those who incur its disfavor or disagree with the regime. The Saudis are guilty of war crimes which, most notably in Yemen, are aided by the United States government. This includes the use of cluster munitions which are banned under the 2008 Convention on Cluster Munitions and the use of white phosphorus on populated areas. The U.S. State Department has this to say about the Convention on Cluster Munitions – “Cluster munitions have demonstrated military utility. Their elimination from U.S. stockpiles would put the lives of its soldiers and those of its coalition partners at risk.” The lives of innocent civilians apparently do not figure into the State Department’s reasoning. Other countries that are not signatories to this Convention include: Saudi Arabia, Libya, Russia, North Korea, Iran and Yemen (other U.S. allies in the region also commit war crimes, see Israel’s use of white phosphorus in Gaza). Nice company. The most recent $100 billion dollar arms deal with Saudi Arabia is abhorrent. It will guarantee that the Saudis can continue to fan the parched flames of conflict in the Middle East for decades.

The second part of this new approach dictates that the United States embrace young Iranians who can truly become a moderating force throughout the region, once the shackles of theocracy are broken. Look at those pictures again at the beginning of this blog and see if there is a shift in your perspective.

Lastly, but no less important, a radical idea presents itself in Syria – or really next door in Lebanon. In Lebanon alone, there are upwards of one-million Syrian refugees, of which 200,000 are children in need of education. Do we teach them that the West is uncaring of their humanitarian plight, ignorant of their culture, and closed to asylum (visit any homeless camp along the urban river banks of American cities to get a sense of what life in a refugee camp is like – minus the water)? Or do we radicalize these children by providing an education? A foreigner looks at the United States and sees a country that incongruously loves its guns and bombs more than its children. Now is the time to change that perception and begin the long process of reconciliation.

The Clooney Foundation for Justice is taking the first important step in this direction, believing that “without education, this lost generation becomes not only a missed opportunity for the advancement of Lebanon but also a huge security threat in the region and beyond.” The Foundation plans to work with private sector partners to design “a program to provide out-of-school children in Lebanon, including Syrian refugees, a chance to go back to school.”

Rather than $100 billion of arms, imagine what $100 billion of education can do. Imagine what 200,000 children radicalized with education can accomplish…imagine the future.

Take up the White Man’s burden—
The savage wars of peace—
Fill full the mouth of Famine
And bid the sickness cease;
And when your goal is nearest
The end for others sought,
Watch Sloth and heathen Folly
Bring all your hope to nought.

-Kipling – The White Man’s Burden, 1899

Recommended reading:

Rachel Bronson, Thicker than Oil. America’s Uneasy Partnership with Saudi Arabia.
Diana Preston, The Dark Defile.
Catherine Merridale, Lenin on the Train.

We Love to Fly and it Shows

10 Monday Apr 2017

Posted by Richard Watson in Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

Welcome to the new friendly skies. United Airlines has set a new low for air travel. CEO Oscar Munoz must resign his post, as a start, so that the airline can begin to make amends to its customers. The fact that he has failed to recognize that the despicable ejection of a paying client is morally and ethically wrong, despite the legalities of the situation, is cause enough for United’s board to dismiss him. If they do not, Congress must investigate the sorry state of affairs that has come to be considered normal in air travel within the United States.

United employees must also be criticized for their failure to exercise common sense. They have allowed a computer to do their thinking, and have hidden behind a flawed rule book, because they were only following orders. They thoughtlessly passed responsibility to the goons at TSA (or whichever law enforcement agency did the shameful deed) who appeared to beat senseless a man who was morally correct in refusing to disembark.

This action must not be allowed to stand, and consequences should follow.

…and yes, in all probability, I’ll be looking forward to getting bumped from my next flight.

Recent Posts

  • The Sash My Father Wore, or How the Orange Came to Ireland April 26, 2020
  • Single Audits and COVID-19 Relief Funding April 17, 2020
  • Relief Provisions for Individuals April 7, 2020
  • Covid-19 Stimulus Programs for Small Businesses April 2, 2020
  • “Been a Breach of Promise” October 5, 2019

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