Coasties And A Boston Food Pantry; ‘Baby Shark’ Chomps At The Charts

Plus, the effects of the federal shutdown across the country

Michael Brochstein/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images How Is The Shutdown Affecting America? Let Us Count The Ways The effects of the federal shutdown, officially the longest ever, are being felt in families and communities across the country. Lots of important things have not been affected: Medicare, Medicaid and the Health Insurance Marketplace. Social Security, disability checks and veterans' benefits. Even getting a passport. And the U.S. Postal Service, an independent agency funded by sales of postage and services, not taxes, keeps delivering mail. But other aspects of American life have become complicated, scarce or messy since the shutdown started. Here's a look at how it's affecting the country.   Hundreds Of Coast Guard Families Show Up To A Boston Food Pantry   Stress is mounting for many federal workers who don't know when they'll get their next paycheck. There are efforts to help the hundreds of thousands affected by the ongoing shutdown — including about 8,000 in Boston. Last week, a pop-up food pantry opened for men and women of the Coast Guard, the only branch of the armed services working without pay. Coasties, as they're called, stepped up to help their own, forming a bucket brigade to ferry 30,000 pounds of groceries off trucks and onto shelves in the corner of a cafeteria. They stocked everything from milk to medicine and cereal to celery, all free for the taking.   Ryan Johnson for NPR Bullying Is Up In This State's Trump-Leaning Communities   Seventh- and eighth-graders in areas of Virginia that favored Donald Trump reported bullying rates in spring 2017 that were 18 percent higher than students living in areas that went for Hillary Clinton. They were also 9 percent more likely to report racial or ethnic teasing. Two years earlier, before the president’s election, there were "no meaningful differences" among the areas. Researchers took pains to note that they can prove the election results are correlated with more bullying, not that election rhetoric caused it.   CSA-Printstock/Getty Images Is It A Nasty Cold Or The Flu? It's that time of year again. You wake up with a scratchy throat, stuffy nose, a little achy — maybe a fever. Is it a classic head cold, or do you need to be more concerned? No one likes to get a cold, but people are more fearful of the flu. There are some clear distinctions between the two similar types of viral illness in terms of symptoms. Here’s how to tell the difference between the two.   Sigrid Olsson/PhotoAlto/Getty Images Prescription Drug Costs Driven Up By Manufacturers, Not Innovation The skyrocketing cost of many prescription drugs in the U.S. can be blamed primarily on price increases, not expensive new therapies or improvements to existing medications as drug companies frequently claim, a new study shows.   Are we ready for "The Big One”?   How can Californians prepare for a megaquake? A new podcast from KPCC takes a look at what a catastrophic earthquake would mean for Los Angeles, the U.S. and the world.   Why No One Wants America's Processed Cheese   It's a stinky time for the U.S. cheese industry. While we consumed nearly 37 pounds per capita in 2017, it wasn't enough to reduce the country's 1.4 billion-pound cheese surplus, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. There is enough cheddar, American and Swiss currently sitting in cold storage to wrap around the U.S. Capitol building.    YouTube screenshot by NPR A Catchy Kids' Song That’s Killing It On The Pop Charts   From the "songs you can’t unhear" file: A song about a family of sharks scouring the seas for their next meal has made its way to the Billboard Hot 100. The uber-viral "Baby Shark" charted at No. 32 for the week ending Jan. 12, and the video has a gargantuan 2 billion-plus YouTube views. It has even inspired car-jumpers, children and Ellen DeGeneres to raise their arms in marine-fish formation in the name of the #BabySharkChallenge. You received this message because you're subscribed to our Best of NPR emails. |  Unsubscribe  |  Privacy Policy | NPR 1111 N. CAPITOL ST. NE WASHINGTON DC 20002