Month: July 2020

Just leaving all this here

benfell

My disgust is complete.

Higher Education

Michelle Hackman and Melissa Korn, “ICE Says Newly Enrolling International Students Can’t Come to U.S. if Classes Fully Online,” Wall Street Journal, July 24, 2020, https://www.wsj.com/articles/ice-says-newly-enrolling-international-students-can-t-come-to-u-s-if-classes-fully-online-11595611772

Gig economy

Marc Santia, “Lyft Driver Says He Was Attacked, Then Arrested After Refusing Rider Without Mask,” WNBC, July 24, 2020, https://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/lyft-driver-says-he-was-attacked-after-refusing-rider-without-mask-then-he-was-arrested/2529101/

Joshua Emerson Smith, “A COVID-19 death renews questions of Uber and Lyft’s responsibility to drivers,” San Diego Union-Tribune, July 24, 2020, https://www.sandiegouniontribune.com/news/transportation/story/2020-07-24/uber-driver-dies-covid-19

Elon Musk

So you all remember Elon Musk, the guy who resisted closing a Tesla factory in Fremont for the COVID-19 lockdown, opened it before he should, was in denial about COVID-19 a la Donald Trump, and donated the wrong kind of ventilators to treat the disease?[1] And, oh yeah.[2]

I guess it’s just a little past way beyond amazing that anyone thinks Musk is a great man:

The afterthought:

I don’t know where Tesla gets its lithium. But something’s certainly rotten in Bolivia.[3] And there just ain’t no excuse for Musk.

  1. [1]Steve Hanley, “Tesla Cuts Jobs In Nevada, Sends Ventilators To New York,” Clean Technica, March 29, 2020, https://cleantechnica.com/2020/03/29/tesla-cuts-jobs-in-nevada-sends-ventilators-to-new-york/; Tim Higgins, “Elon Musk’s Defiance in the Time of Coronavirus,” Wall Street Journal, March 20, 2020, https://www.wsj.com/articles/elon-musks-defiance-in-the-time-of-coronavirus-11584733458; Kathryn Krawczyk, “’Ventilators’ donated by Elon Musk can’t be used on coronavirus patients, health officials say,” Week, April 2, 2020, https://theweek.com/speedreads/906406/ventilators-donated-by-elon-musk-cant-used-coronavirus-patients-health-officials-say; Jack Morse, “Ventilator manufacturers aren’t impressed by Elon Musk’s offer,” Mashable, March 21, 2020, https://mashable.com/article/experts-doubt-tesla-elon-musk-manufacture-ventilators/; Kari Paul, “Elon Musk rails against ‘fascist’ shelter-in-place orders in Tesla earnings call,” Guardian, April 29, 2020, https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2020/apr/29/tesla-quarterly-earnings-coronavirus-shares; Zachary Shahan, “Elon Musk: Should Have 1000 Ventilators Next Week, + 250,000 N95 Masks For Hospitals Tomorrow,” CleanTechnica, March 21, 2020, https://cleantechnica.com/2020/03/21/elon-musk-should-have-1000-ventilators-next-week-250k-n95-masks-for-hospitals-tomorrow-cleantechnica-exclusive/↩
  2. [2]David Benfell, “Elon Musk, groan, again,” Not Housebroken, April 4, 2020, https://disunitedstates.org/2020/03/22/elon-musk-groan-again/↩
  3. [3]Marjorie Cohn, “US Is Again Complicit in an Illegal Coup, This Time in Bolivia,” Truthout, November 27, 2019, https://truthout.org/articles/us-is-again-complicit-in-an-illegal-coup-this-time-in-bolivia/; John Curiel and Jack R. Williams, “Bolivia dismissed its October elections as fraudulent. Our research found no reason to suspect fraud,” Washington Post, February 27, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/02/26/bolivia-dismissed-its-october-elections-fraudulent-our-research-found-no-reason-suspect-fraud/↩

Cold War, again?

benfell

China

There is a new blog post entitled, “A new ‘cold war’ with China as an election stunt?” This is the first of two, today.

Guardian, “Mike Pompeo says free world must change China or ‘China will change us,’” July 23, 2020, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jul/24/mike-pompeo-says-free-world-must-change-china-or-china-will-change-us

Education

There is a second new blog post entitled, “Could alternative schools offer an answer?”

Justin Lahart, “Kids at Home Could Put the Economy in Detention,” Wall Street Journal, July 24, 2020, https://www.wsj.com/articles/kids-at-home-could-put-the-economy-in-detention-11595583001

Recession

Eli Rosenberg, “‘A Band-Aid on a bullet wound’: Workers are getting laid off anew as PPP runs out,” Washington Post, July 23, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/07/23/ppp-layoffs/

Ask why your local district attorney isn’t taking as hard a line against Donald Trump’s secret police as Philadelphia’s

benfell

Updates

  1. Originally published, July 23, 2020, 10:16 am.
  2. July 23, 3:35 pm:
    • So I thought my car was done. Rohrich Toyota called me to tell me the relay was in. I thought that meant my car was ready to pick up, but no, apparently this was the parts department calling to say the part had arrived. I found this out after I had returned the rental car, and spent $40 on an Uber ride from the rental car place to Rohrich. Now I’ve spent another $20 on an Uber ride home. Hopefully my car will be ready by 4:00 pm.
    • The Wall Street Journal is worried by the latest report on unemployment insurance claims. “The economy’s ability to recover may depend on whether [the unemployed] can stay afloat.”[1] Gonna be a lot of folks sayin’ they told us so. A lot of ’em.

Fireflies

One of the wonders of my brief childhood in Pittsburgh was fireflies. Since returning last year, I haven’t seen nearly so many as I remember then and I wondered if climate change or something else had done them in.

Apparently, they’re still around, but not so much in places where pesticides are used—I’m guessing the maintenance folks dump lots of pesticides on the lawns around my apartment complex—and not so much in hot dry weather like we’ve had the last few weeks.[2]

At least there are thunderstorms.

Mary Ann Thomas, “Where have the fireflies gone in Southwestern Pennsylvania?” Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, July 22, 2020, https://triblive.com/local/regional/where-have-the-fireflies-gone-in-southwestern-pennsylvania/

Protests

Chris Walker, “Philadelphia DA Says Trump’s Police Will Be Arrested If They Assault Protesters,” Truthout, July 22, 2020, https://truthout.org/articles/philadelphia-da-says-trumps-police-will-be-arrested-if-they-assault-protesters/

Recession

Justin Lahart, “Jobs Warning Light Starts Flashing,” Wall Street Journal, July 23, 2020, https://www.wsj.com/articles/jobs-warning-light-starts-flashing-11595516312

  1. [1]Justin Lahart, “Jobs Warning Light Starts Flashing,” Wall Street Journal, July 23, 2020, https://www.wsj.com/articles/jobs-warning-light-starts-flashing-11595516312↩
  2. [2]Mary Ann Thomas, “Where have the fireflies gone in Southwestern Pennsylvania?” Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, July 22, 2020, https://triblive.com/local/regional/where-have-the-fireflies-gone-in-southwestern-pennsylvania/↩

Thunder outside my apartment, thunder in Portland

benfell

It isn’t literally true, at least that I know, that “I woke up this morning to the sound of thunder.” I usually wake up at some point anyway, catch up on email, and then go back to bed. But I did wake up. And there was thunder (figure 1).
ecan
Fig. 1. 72-hour gif, composed of Eastern Canada satellite photographs.

Protests

The one thing we can say about the Trump administration sending in federal forces, which has drawn criticism even from within at least some agencies involved,[1] against Black Lives Matter protests is that the administration is being stupid.

It has drawn people in from the sidelines to join the protests[2] and numerous mayors are asking that the forces be withdrawn, saying that their activities exacerbate the situation.[3] One way of looking at this request might be that the mayors may be seeking to relieve pressure for change that they may have thought had been alleviated as the protests went “nonviolent.”

But really, now, local and state politicians are now caught between federal forces and their own populations. How they handle it is anyone’s guess.

Hamed Aleaziz, “‘Disturbing And Demoralizing’: DHS Employees Are Worried The Portland Protest Response Is Destroying Their Agency’s Reputation,” Buzzfeed, July 21, 2020, https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/22/us/portland-protests-mayors-withdraw-federal-forces/index.html

Bill Chappell, “Federal Agents Will Be ‘Clearly Identified’ In Kansas City, Mo., U.S. Attorney Says,” National Public Radio, July 21, 2020, https://www.npr.org/sections/live-updates-protests-for-racial-justice/2020/07/21/893936041/federal-agents-will-be-clearly-identified-in-kansas-city-u-s-attorney-says

Marissa J. Lang, “‘MomBloc’ and protest first-timers march into Portland streets, moved by the aggressive tactics of federal agents,” Washington Post, July 21, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/07/21/mombloc-protest-first-timers-march-into-portland-streets-moved-by-aggressive-tactics-federal-troops/

Madeline Holcombe, “More than a dozen mayors join Portland in asking Trump administration to withdraw federal forces,” CNN, July 22, 2020, https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/22/us/portland-protests-mayors-withdraw-federal-forces/index.html

Pandemic

My usual caution about ludicrously low response rates[4] applies to poll results indicating many Amerikkkans think COVID-19 death tolls have been exaggerated.[5] And I simply can’t find it credible that people actually believe this shit. I think they’re desperately trying to persuade themselves.

Read the Washington Post article on isolation[6] carefully. In my reading, it does not cover contingencies systematically and this is obviously something not to fuck up.

Ariana Eunjung Cha, “How long should you isolate if you test positive for the coronavirus? At least 10 days after symptom onset,” Washington Post, July 21, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/07/21/how-long-should-you-isolate-if-you-test-positive-coronavirus-new-cdc-guidance-says-10-days-not-14/

Tom McCarthy, “US public increasingly skeptical of Covid-19 death toll, poll finds,” Guardian, July 21, 2020, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jul/21/us-coronavirus-death-toll-public-opinion-poll-accuracy

  1. [1]Hamed Aleaziz, “‘Disturbing And Demoralizing’: DHS Employees Are Worried The Portland Protest Response Is Destroying Their Agency’s Reputation,” Buzzfeed, July 21, 2020, https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/22/us/portland-protests-mayors-withdraw-federal-forces/index.html↩
  2. [2]Marissa J. Lang, “‘MomBloc’ and protest first-timers march into Portland streets, moved by the aggressive tactics of federal agents,” Washington Post, July 21, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/07/21/mombloc-protest-first-timers-march-into-portland-streets-moved-by-aggressive-tactics-federal-troops/↩
  3. [3]Madeline Holcombe, “More than a dozen mayors join Portland in asking Trump administration to withdraw federal forces,” CNN, July 22, 2020, https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/22/us/portland-protests-mayors-withdraw-federal-forces/index.html↩
  4. [4]Courtney Kennedy and Hannah Hartig, “Response rates in telephone surveys have resumed their decline,” Pew Research Center, February 27, 2019, https://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2019/02/27/response-rates-in-telephone-surveys-have-resumed-their-decline/↩
  5. [5]Tom McCarthy, “US public increasingly skeptical of Covid-19 death toll, poll finds,” Guardian, July 21, 2020, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jul/21/us-coronavirus-death-toll-public-opinion-poll-accuracy↩
  6. [6]Ariana Eunjung Cha, “How long should you isolate if you test positive for the coronavirus? At least 10 days after symptom onset,” Washington Post, July 21, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/07/21/how-long-should-you-isolate-if-you-test-positive-coronavirus-new-cdc-guidance-says-10-days-not-14/↩

Stimulus bullshit

benfell

Recession

I see the politicians are talking about another stimulus package. It appears there are four camps, the White House, Congressional Republicans who oppose any further stimulus on neoliberal principle, Congressional Republicans who recognize the need for further stimulus, and the Democrats. Beyond that, everything is bullshit and I’m archiving nothing.

Believe in that second stimulus check just like I said of the first one: When you see the money in your checking account. And not a second sooner.

The car

So after deciding at five o’clock in the morning that I couldn’t stand it anymore and firing off a missive to the dealership on their website contact form about how they were neglecting me, they called back this afternoon. Once again, the codes had disappeared by the time they could look at them. It turns out, or at least so they say, they’ve been trying and failing to reproduce the problem since last Thursday. They think it’s one of three things:

  1. A relatively cheap relay that I guess goes between the hybrid computer and the engine computer. I’m having them go ahead and replace this. Hopefully, it will be ready by Thursday.
  2. A $2000 hybrid computer.
  3. A more expensive engine computer.

I have hopefully found an OBD-II code scanner that’s right for the car. Since I’m having a problem with the codes disappearing, it’d be nice to have it to capture the codes when I first see the failure. That way, if the relay isn’t it, I can capture the codes and maybe only replace the right one of those expensive computers.

I’m updating this comparison between the rented Nissan Sentra and my Toyota Camry Hybrid here:

  1. I barely notice the automatic transmission on the Nissan Sentra now. I still prefer the continually variable transmission on the Camry Hybrid; my complaint with automatic transmissions has long been that it seems like they are too often in the wrong gear, even when they are in the correct gear, it often feels wrong or at least not quite right, and that they oscillate between gears.
  2. The Sentra has better acceleration than the 2007 Camry Hybrid.
  3. The 2007 Camry Hybrid has a better keyless entry system that the somewhat more recent (I haven’t figured out what year, but it’s a rental) Sentra. With the Sentra, I always have to push a button on the handle. With the Camry Hybrid, I just grab the hande—a sensor is on the inside, so in combination with the presence of the fob, it knows to unlock the door.
  4. The Sentra has a USB port suitable for keeping my cell phone charged. I finally found it last evening.
  5. I really like the regenerative braking on the Camry Hybrid. I guess it’s hard to trust friction brakes when I have experience with brakes that actually charge the hybrid battery. With the automatic transmission on the Sentra, I’m sometimes fighting the motor to brake.
  6. The Camry Hybrid has about 200 miles more range on a tank of gas. This was nice coming across country. It’s vital when driving for Uber or Lyft.
  7. The Sentra has a back-up camera with a twist I hadn’t seen before: When backing, and when steering while backing, the trace bends to show the path the car will take when backing. Even if I replace the sound system on the Camry Hybrid and get a backup camera with it (the car lacks any such thing now), I won’t get this.
  8. Yeah, I really like having a sound system with the Sentra. It’s something I badly miss with the Camry Hybrid, whose sound system—even the supposedly superior JVC system—is simply atrocious. This can be fixed and if the car survives this episode, I may very well do that.
  9. The Sentra has a collision avoidance warning system that I actually kind of like. Both times it went off, at least that I had figured out what that beeping was, was for stuff I’d seen and was either avoiding or already braking for. But it’d be nice to have nonetheless.
  10. It looks like—I’m not keeping track properly—the Sentra gets slightly worse gas mileage.

Overall, my preference remains strongly with hybrids. Which has implications both for my car purchasing decisions in the future and, really, since I’m having difficulty finding a hybrid mechanic who is both honest and professional (the dealers here aren’t) in Pittsburgh, where I move, if I move, next year.

The delusional raging narcissist-in-chief embraces neoconservatism

benfell

Protests

There is a new blog post entitled, “The authoritarian populist president embraces neoconservatism–to advance his own tyranny.”

One might note, in addition, that the #NeverTrump movement is mostly a neoconservative enterprise. Would Donald Trump or his team seek to split that vote? I’m guessing, yes.

Julian Borger, “Trump consults Bush torture lawyer on how to skirt law and rule by decree,” Guardian, July 20, 2020, https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/jul/20/trump-john-yoo-lawyer-torture-waterboarding

Nick Miroff and Mark Berman, “Trump threatens to deploy federal agents to Chicago and other U.S. cities led by Democrats,” Washington Post, July 20, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/defending-portland-crackdown-trump-pledges-to-deploys-feds-to-chicago-and-other-us-cities-led-by-democrats/2020/07/20/fda42b8a-caaa-11ea-89ce-ac7d5e4a5a38_story.html

The car

I’m updating this here:

  1. I barely notice the automatic transmission on the Nissan Sentra now. I still prefer the continually variable transmission on the Camry Hybrid; my complaint with automatic transmissions has long been that it seems like they are too often in the wrong gear, even when they are in the correct gear, it often feels wrong or at least not quite right, and that they oscillate between gears.
  2. The Sentra has better acceleration than the 2007 Camry Hybrid.
  3. The 2007 Camry Hybrid has a better keyless entry system that the somewhat more recent (I haven’t figured out what year, but it’s a rental) Sentra. With the Sentra, I always have to push a button on the handle. With the Camry Hybrid, I just grab the hande—a sensor is on the inside, so in combination with the presence of the fob, it knows to unlock the door.
  4. The Sentra has a USB port suitable for keeping my cell phone charged. I finally found it last evening.
  5. I really like the regenerative braking on the Camry Hybrid. I guess it’s hard to trust friction brakes when I have experience with brakes that actually charge the hybrid battery. With the automatic transmission on the Sentra, I’m sometimes fighting the motor to brake.
  6. The Camry Hybrid has about 200 miles more range on a tank of gas. This was nice coming across country. It’s vital when driving for Uber or Lyft.
  7. The Sentra has a back-up camera with a twist I hadn’t seen before: When backing, and when steering while backing, the trace bends to show the path the car will take when backing. Even if I replace the sound system on the Camry Hybrid and get a backup camera with it (the car lacks any such thing now), I won’t get this.
  8. Yeah, I really like having a sound system with the Sentra. It’s something I badly miss with the Camry Hybrid, whose sound system—even the supposedly superior JVC system—is simply atrocious. This can be fixed and if the car survives this episode, I may very well do that.

Overall, my preference remains strongly with hybrids. Which has implications both for my car purchasing decisions in the future and, really, since I’m having difficulty finding a hybrid mechanic who is both honest and professional (the dealers here aren’t) in Pittsburgh, where I move, if I move, next year.

Donald Trump might not accept election results

benfell

I see I forgot to publish this last night. It has been updated with further material from today.

There is a new blog post entitled, “To escape ruthless criminality.” This is the first of two from yesterday.

Donald Trump

There is a new blog post entitled, “Would Donald Trump accept defeat?” This is the second new blog post from yesterday.

Felicia Sonmez, “Trump declines to say whether he will accept November election results,” Washington Post, July 19, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-declines-to-say-whether-he-will-accept-november-election-results/2020/07/19/40009804-c9c7-11ea-91f1-28aca4d833a0_story.html;

Recession

A hint that reality might not be quite so rosy as the Wall Street Journal suggests might be found in the Journal’s uncritical acceptance of Chinese growth figures. Even so, while the overall tone will cheer Donald Trump, the article does emphasize that a medical solution is needed for COVID-19.[1] The tone also contradicts an earlier, much more decidedly mixed picture[2] that looks to me more reflective of the substance in this article.[3] Finally, there remain serious questions as to how effective a vaccine would be should it indeed be developed[4] and we can probably just forget about “herd immunity.”[5] Some might suggest that the most pessimistic view is rarely an accurate view. The trouble there is that we, especially our delusional raging narcissist-in-chief,[6] have been doing just about everything wrong.[7]

Even that has nuance. The Telegraph seeks to cover Boris Johnson’s ass by reporting how the lockdown has delayed necessary medical care in non-COVID-19 cases and that this, in combination with other causes, will likely result in hundreds of thousands of deaths in the United Kingdom. Part of the solution in Britain would be increasing support for the health care system.[8] Seems like that’d be a good idea here, too. But ya know, neoliberalism, which means it won’t happen in either place.

Paul Hannon, “Economic Recovery Is Under Way but Fighting Flare-Ups Is Key,” Wall Street Journal, July 20, 2020, https://www.wsj.com/articles/economic-recovery-is-under-way-but-fighting-flare-ups-is-key-11595167200

Sarah Knapton, “Lockdown may cost 200,000 lives, government report shows,” Telegraph, July 19, 2020, https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/07/19/lockdown-may-cost-200k-lives-government-report-shows/

The car

So some further notes on the rented Nissan Sentra:

  1. The automatic transmission didn’t bother me as much today as yesterday. This is to be expected, I suppose, as I drove with such a transmission for decades before I ever encountered the wonder of a continually variable transmission. I still prefer the latter; my complaint with automatic transmissions has long been that it seems like they are too often in the wrong gear and that they oscillate between gears.
  2. The Sentra has better acceleration than the 2007 Camry Hybrid.
  3. The 2007 Camry Hybrid has a better keyless entry system that the somewhat more recent (I haven’t figured out what year, but it’s a rental) Sentra.
  4. The Sentra has a USB port suitable for keeping my cell phone charged. I finally found it last evening.
  5. I really like the regenerative braking on the Camry Hybrid. I guess it’s hard to trust friction brakes when I have experience with brakes that actually charge the hybrid battery.

So overall, my preference remains strongly with hybrids. Which has implications both for my car purchasing decisions in the future and, really, since I can’t find a hybrid mechanic who is both honest and professional (the dealers here aren’t) in Pittsburgh, where I move, if I move, next year.

  1. [1]Paul Hannon, “Economic Recovery Is Under Way but Fighting Flare-Ups Is Key,” Wall Street Journal, July 20, 2020, https://www.wsj.com/articles/economic-recovery-is-under-way-but-fighting-flare-ups-is-key-11595167200↩
  2. [2]Greg Ip, “A Recovery That Started Out Like a V Is Changing Shape,” Wall Street Journal, July 1, 2020, https://www.wsj.com/articles/a-reverse-square-root-recovery-11593602775; Catherine Rampell, “The U.S. job market is still in very bad shape. Just wait until the fiscal time bomb goes off,” Washington Post, July 2, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/07/02/us-job-market-is-still-very-bad-shape-just-wait-until-fiscal-time-bomb-goes-off/; Eli Rosenberg, Heather Long, and Jeff Stein, “The U.S. economy added 4.8 million jobs in June, but fierce new headwinds have emerged,” Washington Post, July 2, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/07/02/june-2020-jobs-report/↩
  3. [3]Paul Hannon, “Economic Recovery Is Under Way but Fighting Flare-Ups Is Key,” Wall Street Journal, July 20, 2020, https://www.wsj.com/articles/economic-recovery-is-under-way-but-fighting-flare-ups-is-key-11595167200↩
  4. [4]Joel Achenbach, Karin Brulliard, and Ariana Eunjung Cha, “The ultimate covid-19 mystery: Why does it spare some and kill others?” Washington Post, June 17, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/the-ultimate-covid-19-mystery-why-does-it-spare-some-and-kill-others/2020/06/16/f6acc1a0-ab35-11ea-9063-e69bd6520940_story.html; Christie Aschwanden, “Sorry, Immunity to Covid-19 Won’t Be Like a Superpower,” Wired, April 16, 2020, https://www.wired.com/story/sorry-immunity-to-covid-19-wont-be-like-a-superpower/; David Horovitz, “‘Under-50s have little to fear, but even vaccine won’t save millions of elderly,’” Times of Israel, June 17, 2020, https://www.timesofisrael.com/under-50s-have-little-to-fear-but-even-vaccine-wont-save-millions-of-elderly/; Andrew Nikiforuk, “Don’t Bet on a Vaccine,” Tyee, May 13, 2020, https://thetyee.ca/Analysis/2020/05/13/Vaccine-Not-Likely/; Alison Rourke, “Global report: don’t count on vaccine, US scientist warns, as cases pass 5m,” Guardian, May 21, 2020, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/21/global-report-coronavirus-vaccine-us-scientist-cases-5-million; Christopher Rowland, Carolyn Y. Johnson, and William Wan, “Even finding a covid-19 vaccine won’t be enough to end the pandemic,” Washington Post, May 11, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/05/11/coronavirus-vaccine-global-supply/↩
  5. [5]D. Clay Ackerly, “My patient caught Covid-19 twice. So long to herd immunity hopes,” Vox, July 12, 2020, https://www.vox.com/2020/7/12/21321653/getting-covid-19-twice-reinfection-antibody-herd-immunity; Christie Aschwanden, “Sorry, Immunity to Covid-19 Won’t Be Like a Superpower,” Wired, April 16, 2020, https://www.wired.com/story/sorry-immunity-to-covid-19-wont-be-like-a-superpower/↩
  6. [6]Associated Press, “FDA warns against using the drugs that Trump touts for coronavirus,” Los Angeles Times, April 24, 2020, https://www.latimes.com/science/story/2020-04-24/fda-warns-against-using-trump-touted-drugs-to-treat-coronavirus; David Benfell, “The dangerous and delusional raging narcissist-in-chief,” Not Housebroken, April 25, 2020, https://disunitedstates.org/2020/04/25/the-dangerous-and-delusional-raging-narcissist-in-chief/; Aaron Blake, “The timeline of Trump’s coronavirus response is increasingly damning,” Washington Post, April 7, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2020/04/07/timeline-trumps-coronavirus-response-is-increasingly-damning/; Allyson Chiu, Katie Shepherd, and Brittany Shammas, “Trump comments prompt doctors, and Lysol, to warn against injecting disinfectants,” Washington Post, April 24, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/04/24/disinfectant-injection-coronavirus-trump/; Helen Davidson, “WHO says it has no evidence to support ‘speculative’ Covid-19 lab theory,” Guardian, May 4, 2020, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/05/who-says-it-has-no-evidence-to-support-speculative-covid-19-lab-theory-pushed-by-us; Ed Kilgore, “Could Trump Go the Way of Herbert Hoover?” New York, May 4, 2020, https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/05/could-herbert-hoovers-fate-be-trumps.html; Joe Lowndes, “The Morbid Ideology Behind the Drive to Reopen America,” New Republic, April 30, 2020, https://newrepublic.com/article/157505/morbid-ideology-behind-drive-reopen-america; Ben Mathis-Lilley, “Multiple White House Staffers Diagnosed With COVID-19 as Trump, Pence Hold Photo-Ops With the Elderly,” Slate, May 8, 2020, https://slate.com/news-and-politics/2020/05/multiple-white-house-staffers-covid-19-trump-pence-meet-elderly.html; Laura Meckler, “With pressure and threats, Trump pushes to fully reopen schools. Schools say: Not so fast,” Washington Post, July 8, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/education/trump-schools-cdc-pence/2020/07/08/8a52d400-c14b-11ea-b4f6-cb39cd8940fb_story.html; Dana Milbank, “For Trump, a reckoning has come,” Washington Post, February 28, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/02/28/trump-reckoning-has-come/; Molly Roberts, “Anthony Fauci built a truce. Trump is destroying it,” Washington Post, July 16, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/07/16/anthony-fauci-built-truce-trump-is-destroying-it/; David Roth, “The Enduring Delusion of a Chastened Trump,” New Republic, April 3, 2020, https://newrepublic.com/article/157154/enduring-delusion-chastened-trump; Aaron Rupar, “Trump and Fox News want to send their hydroxychloroquine hype down the memory hole,” Vox, April 22, 2020, https://www.vox.com/2020/4/22/21230982/hydroxychloroquine-coronavirus-trump-fox-news-hype; Anna Sanders and Chris Sommerfeldt, “A spike in New Yorkers ingesting household cleaners following Trump’s controversial coronavirus comments,” New York Daily News, April 24, 2020, https://www.nydailynews.com/coronavirus/ny-coronavirus-new-yorkers-household-cleaners-trump-20200425-rnaqio5dyfeaxmthxx2vktqa5m-story.html; Adam Serwer, “The Coronavirus Was an Emergency Until Trump Found Out Who Was Dying,” Atlantic, May 9, 2020, https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/05/americas-racial-contract-showing/611389/; Michael D. Shear and Maggie Haberman, “Health Dept. Official Says Doubts on Hydroxychloroquine Led to His Ouster,” New York Times, April 22, 2020, https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/22/us/politics/rick-bright-trump-hydroxychloroquine.html; Sheryl Gay Stolberg and Eileen Sullivan, “As Trump Pushes to Reopen, Government Sees Virus Toll Nearly Doubling,” New York Times, May 4, 2020, https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/04/us/politics/trump-coronavirus-death-toll.html; David Von Drehle, “If Trump doesn’t like the coronavirus news now, he’ll hate what comes next,” Washington Post, March 10, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/global-opinions/if-trump-doesnt-like-the-coronavirus-news-now-hell-hate-what-comes-next/2020/03/10/e478c314-62ea-11ea-acca-80c22bbee96f_story.html; Paul Waldman, “How coronavirus has deeply flummoxed conservative media,” Washington Post, February 28, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/02/28/how-coronavirus-has-deeply-flummuxed-conservative-media/; Paul Waldman, “The real reason Trump is obsessed with hydroxychloroquine,” Washington Post, April 7, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/04/07/real-reason-trump-is-obsessed-with-hydroxychloroquine/; David Wallace-Wells, “There Is Still No Plan,” New York, May 7, 2020, https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/05/white-house-plan-for-ending-coronavirus-stay-at-home-orders.html; Joanna Walters, “Donald Trump goes without mask at Michigan Ford plant despite company request,” Guardian, May 22, 2020, https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2020/may/21/trump-ford-factory-mask-michigan↩
  7. [7]Adam Cancryn and Nancy Cook, “Health officials want Trump to ‘double down, not lighten up’ restrictions,” Politico, March 23, 2020, https://www.politico.com/news/2020/03/23/coronavirus-economy-trump-restart-145222; Jonathan Chait, “Trump Wants to Starve the States Into Opening Before It’s Safe,” New York, April 20, 2020, https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/04/trump-coronavirus-open-state-governors-protests.html; Kenya Evelyn, “‘We’re expendable’: black Americans pay the price as states lift lockdowns,” Guardian, May 25, 2020, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/may/25/covid-19-lockdowns-african-americans-essential-workers; Emma Farge with Peter Graff, “WHO warns of ‘second peak’ in areas where COVID-19 declining,” Reuters, May 25, 2020, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-who-peak/who-warns-of-second-peak-in-areas-where-covid-19-declining-idUSKBN2311VJ; David Frum, “Why Mitch McConnell Wants States to Go Bankrupt,” Atlantic, April 25, 2020, https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/04/why-mitch-mcconnell-wants-states-go-bankrupt/610714/; Kim Hart, “The coronavirus economy will devastate those who can least afford it,” Axios, March 23, 2020, https://www.axios.com/coronavirus-economy-layoffs-children-families-bad-d588cc93-ff26-4031-8be8-5654cce05a15.html; Robert McCartney, “McConnell’s rejection of federal aid for states risks causing a depression, analysts say,” Washington Post, April 27, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/mcconnells-rejection-of-federal-aid-for-states-risks-causing-a-depression-analysts-say/2020/04/26/1fd4731c-8632-11ea-a3eb-e9fc93160703_story.html; Reuters, “U.S. has potential of becoming coronavirus epicentre, says WHO,” March 24, 2020, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-who-usa/u-s-has-potential-of-becoming-coronavirus-epicentre-says-who-idUSKBN21B1FT; Ben Riley-Smith, “Donald Trump launches plan to ‘open up America again’ after coronavirus lockdown,” Telegraph, April 17, 2020, https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/04/16/donald-trump-launches-plan-open-america-coronavirus-lockdown/; Jennifer Rubin, “Mitch McConnell cries ‘Uncle!’” Washington Post, April 28, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/04/28/mcconnell-cries-uncle/; Adam Serwer, “The Coronavirus Was an Emergency Until Trump Found Out Who Was Dying,” Atlantic, May 9, 2020, https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/05/americas-racial-contract-showing/611389/; Teghan Simonton, “Pittsburgh professors see flaws in coronavirus modeling, predict more grim outlook,” Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, April 3, 2020, https://triblive.com/local/pittsburgh-allegheny/pittsburgh-professors-see-flaws-in-coronavirus-modeling-predict-more-grim-outlook/; Sheryl Gay Stolberg and Eileen Sullivan, “As Trump Pushes to Reopen, Government Sees Virus Toll Nearly Doubling,” New York Times, May 4, 2020, https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/04/us/politics/trump-coronavirus-death-toll.html; David Wallace-Wells, “We Are Probably Only One-Tenth of the Way Through This Pandemic,” New York, April 17, 2020, https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/04/we-are-probably-only-a-tenth-of-the-way-through-the-pandemic.html; David Wallace-Wells, “There Is Still No Plan,” New York, May 7, 2020, https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/05/white-house-plan-for-ending-coronavirus-stay-at-home-orders.html; Ben White, “Great Depression 2? Worries about a coronavirus-induced calamity pile up,” Politico, March 23, 2020, https://www.politico.com/news/2020/03/23/great-depression-coronavirus-induced-calamity-145304↩
  8. [8]Sarah Knapton, “Lockdown may cost 200,000 lives, government report shows,” Telegraph, July 19, 2020, https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/07/19/lockdown-may-cost-200k-lives-government-report-shows/↩

Normalized psychopathy

benfell

Pandemic

Donald Trump, some say, wants to ‘normalize’ COVID-19 deaths,[1] “to let daily deaths between one and three thousand become a normal thing,”[2] I usually doubt that Trump has sufficient intelligence to be even this clever, and I simply don’t accept that anyone can still seriously believe[3] in “herd immunity,”[4] or in the rampant and imaginative conspiracy theories[5] I hear from passengers, but if this is indeed the plan, whether by the delusional raging narcissist-in-chief himself or by the White House, it’s working.[6] We had just short of a thousand (969) deaths on Thursday, July 16,[7] and “[m]ore than 900 people died” on Friday, July 17.[8]

“I feel like it’s March all over again,” said William Hanage, a professor of epidemiology at the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health. “There is no way in which a large number of cases of disease, and indeed a large number of deaths, are going to be avoided.”

The problem facing the United States is plain. New cases nationally are up a remarkable 50% over the last two weeks and the daily death toll is up 42% over the same period. Cases are on the rise in 40 out of 50 states, Washington DC and Puerto Rico. Last week America recorded more than 75,000 new cases daily – five times the rate of all Europe.[9]

As case counts are already skyrocketing,[10] death counts are a lagging indicator.[11] “Even if we could magically lock everyone in their room and no one transmits to anyone, we would still be seeing an increase in deaths for the next several weeks.”[12] All so psychopaths[13] can party in bars.[14]

Griff Witte and Ben Guarino, “It’s not only coronavirus cases that are rising. Now covid deaths are, too,” Washington Post, July 17, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/its-not-only-coronavirus-cases-that-are-rising-now-covid-deaths-are-too/2020/07/17/193006e8-c868-11ea-8ffe-372be8d82298_story.html

Tom McCarthy, “‘The virus doesn’t care about excuses’: US faces terrifying autumn as Covid-19 surges,” Guardian, July 18, 2020, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jul/18/us-coronavirus-fall-second-wave-autumn

The car

The dealership still hasn’t gotten back to me about my 2007 Camry Hybrid that died Tuesday afternoon with a Check VCS System and a Check Hybrid System indication, so today, I rented a car from Avis with the Uber deal.

I wound up with a Nissan Sentra and on my very first ride, I got a very rude reminder why I despise the automatic transmissions found on conventional cars.

The Toyota hybrids I’ve been driving have continuously variable transmissions (CVT). You never feel them shift. They never get caught in the wrong gear. They offer a smooth experience.

The Sentra, being a conventional car, does not have this. And so on my very first ride, I would up taking somebody up Rialto Street, one of the steepest streets in the world and excruciatingly narrow.

The Sentra’s transmission got caught in the wrong gear and the motor started lugging. I let up on the accelerator to let it downshift but this pissed off the asshole behind me. Honk #1.

Honk #2 was when I slowed because, no, I’m not used to driving past a monster SUV going the other way on such a narrow street, and yes, I’d like a lot more fucking room.

With my Camry and its CVT, I’d only have suffered honk #2, not honk #1.

But the Sentra has a passable sound system, which the Camry does not, and eventually I got it paired with my phone. This is something I’ve missed since I had the sound system put in on the Prius and it was nice to have my music going as I drove.

  1. [1]Margaret Sullivan, “Trump wants America to ‘normalize’ coronavirus deaths. It’s the media’s job not to play along,” Washington Post, May 10, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/media/trump-wants-america-to-normalize-coronavirus-deaths-its-the-medias-job-not-to-play-along/2020/05/09/72de4c32-9090-11ea-a9c0-73b93422d691_story.html↩
  2. [2]Jay Rosen, quoted in Margaret Sullivan, “Trump wants America to ‘normalize’ coronavirus deaths. It’s the media’s job not to play along,” Washington Post, May 10, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/media/trump-wants-america-to-normalize-coronavirus-deaths-its-the-medias-job-not-to-play-along/2020/05/09/72de4c32-9090-11ea-a9c0-73b93422d691_story.html↩
  3. [3]David Benfell, “The psychopathy of the spike in COVID-19 cases,” Not Housebroken, July 7, 2020, https://disunitedstates.org/2020/07/07/the-psychopathy-of-the-spike-in-covid-19-cases/; David Benfell, “The expendable worker,” Not Housebroken, July 13, 2020, https://disunitedstates.org/2020/07/05/the-expendable-worker/↩
  4. [4]D. Clay Ackerly, “My patient caught Covid-19 twice. So long to herd immunity hopes,” Vox, July 12, 2020, https://www.vox.com/2020/7/12/21321653/getting-covid-19-twice-reinfection-antibody-herd-immunity; Christie Aschwanden, “Sorry, Immunity to Covid-19 Won’t Be Like a Superpower,” Wired, April 16, 2020, https://www.wired.com/story/sorry-immunity-to-covid-19-wont-be-like-a-superpower/↩
  5. [5]Mark Scott and Steven Overly, “‘Conspiracy bingo’: Trans-Atlantic extremists seize on the pandemic,” Politico, May 12, 2020, https://www.politico.com/news/2020/05/12/trans-atlantic-conspiracy-coronavirus-251325↩
  6. [6]Tom McCarthy, “‘The virus doesn’t care about excuses’: US faces terrifying autumn as Covid-19 surges,” Guardian, July 18, 2020, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jul/18/us-coronavirus-fall-second-wave-autumn↩
  7. [7]Lisa Shumaker, “U.S. shatters coronavirus record with over 77,000 cases in a day,” Reuters, July 17, 2020, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-usa-records/u-s-shatters-coronavirus-record-with-over-77000-cases-in-a-day-idUSKCN24I014↩
  8. [8]Griff Witte and Ben Guarino, “It’s not only coronavirus cases that are rising. Now covid deaths are, too,” Washington Post, July 17, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/its-not-only-coronavirus-cases-that-are-rising-now-covid-deaths-are-too/2020/07/17/193006e8-c868-11ea-8ffe-372be8d82298_story.html↩
  9. [9]Tom McCarthy, “‘The virus doesn’t care about excuses’: US faces terrifying autumn as Covid-19 surges,” Guardian, July 18, 2020, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jul/18/us-coronavirus-fall-second-wave-autumn↩
  10. [10]Agence France-Presse, “Fauci warns U.S. is “knee-deep” in coronavirus first wave,” CBS News, July 7, 2020, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/fauci-warns-us-knee-deep-coronavirus-first-wave/; Talal Ansari, “Texas Governor Rolls Back Reopening as U.S. Virus Cases Hit Record,” Wall Street Journal, June 26, 2020, https://www.wsj.com/articles/coronavirus-latest-news-06-26-2020-11593159630; CBS News, “U.S. sees another record-breaking day with more than 63,000 coronavirus cases,” July 10, 2020, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/coronavirus-cases-usa-63000-daily-record/; Annie Gowen, Arelis R. Hernández, and Lori Rozsa, “Young people urged to take virus more seriously as pandemic worsens in U.S.,” Washington Post, June 27, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/young-people-are-driving-a-spike-in-coronavirus-infections-officials-say/2020/06/27/3654638c-b7b4-11ea-a510-55bf26485c93_story.html; Thomas Heath and Hannah Denham, “Dow tumbles 730 points as covid-19 flare-ups force states to push back reopening,” Washington Post, June 26, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/06/26/stocks-markets-today-texas-coronavirus/; Thomas Heath and Hamza Shaban, “Dow tumbles more than 700 points as surge in coronavirus cases rattles investors,” Washington Post, June 24, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/06/24/dow-tumbles-more-than-700-points-surge-coronavirus-cases-rattles-investors/; Chelsea Janes et al., “Surge in virus hospitalizations strains hospitals in several states,” Washington Post, July 8, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/surge-in-virus-hospitalizations-strains-hospitals-in-several-states/2020/07/08/12855e5e-c135-11ea-864a-0dd31b9d6917_story.html; Claire Lampen, Hannah Gold, and Amanda Arnold, “Everything to Know About the Coronavirus in the United States,” Cut, June 24, 2020, https://www.thecut.com/2020/06/which-states-have-coronavirus-and-how-do-you-minimize-risk.html; Christina Maxouris, “Officials say states like Arizona and Texas reopened too quickly after soaring Covid-19 cases,” CNN, July 6, 2020, https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/06/health/us-coronavirus-monday/index.html; Tom McCarthy, “‘The virus doesn’t care about excuses’: US faces terrifying autumn as Covid-19 surges,” Guardian, July 18, 2020, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jul/18/us-coronavirus-fall-second-wave-autumn; Lauran Neergaard and Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, “Fauci: Next few weeks critical to tamping down virus spikes,” Associated Press, June 23, 2020, copy in possession of author; Toluse Olorunnipa, Josh Dawsey, and Yasmeen Abutaleb, “With Trump leading the way, America’s coronavirus failures exposed by record surge in new infections,” Washington Post, June 27, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/with-trump-leading-the-way-americas-coronavirus-failures-exposed-by-record-surge-in-new-infections/2020/06/27/bd15aea2-b7c4-11ea-a8da-693df3d7674a_story.html; Lisa Shumaker, “U.S. shatters coronavirus record with over 77,000 cases in a day,” Reuters, July 17, 2020, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-usa-records/u-s-shatters-coronavirus-record-with-over-77000-cases-in-a-day-idUSKCN24I014; Lisa Shumaker and Sharon Bernstein, “Washington state makes face masks mandatory as some states see new coronavirus surge,” Reuters, June 23, 2020, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-usa/washington-state-makes-face-masks-mandatory-as-some-states-see-new-coronavirus-surge-idUSKBN23U2QT; Lisa Shumaker and Brendan O’Brien, “Record spike in new coronavirus cases reported in six U.S. states as reopening accelerates,” Reuters, June 16, 2020, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-usa-idUSKBN23N32O; Meg Wagner et al., “Fauci, Redfield testify on Covid-19 reopening as cases rise,” CNN, June 30, 2020, https://www.cnn.com/webview/politics/live-news/covid-19-school-work-reopening-testimony-06-30-20/h_cc7cf09eae87064e72f75af30984acd3; Griff Witte and Ben Guarino, “It’s not only coronavirus cases that are rising. Now covid deaths are, too,” Washington Post, July 17, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/its-not-only-coronavirus-cases-that-are-rising-now-covid-deaths-are-too/2020/07/17/193006e8-c868-11ea-8ffe-372be8d82298_story.html; Griff Witte and Rachel Weiner, “Sun Belt hospitals are feeling the strain from virus’ surge — and bracing for worse,” Washington Post, July 16, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/coronavirus-hospitals-florida-texas-arizona-california/2020/07/16/dea0ed7a-c79b-11ea-8ffe-372be8d82298_story.html↩
  11. [11]Chelsea Janes et al., “Surge in virus hospitalizations strains hospitals in several states,” Washington Post, July 8, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/surge-in-virus-hospitalizations-strains-hospitals-in-several-states/2020/07/08/12855e5e-c135-11ea-864a-0dd31b9d6917_story.html; Tom McCarthy, “‘The virus doesn’t care about excuses’: US faces terrifying autumn as Covid-19 surges,” Guardian, July 18, 2020, https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jul/18/us-coronavirus-fall-second-wave-autumn; Meg Wagner et al., “Fauci, Redfield testify on Covid-19 reopening as cases rise,” CNN, June 30, 2020, https://www.cnn.com/webview/politics/live-news/covid-19-school-work-reopening-testimony-06-30-20/h_cc7cf09eae87064e72f75af30984acd3; Griff Witte and Ben Guarino, “It’s not only coronavirus cases that are rising. Now covid deaths are, too,” Washington Post, July 17, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/its-not-only-coronavirus-cases-that-are-rising-now-covid-deaths-are-too/2020/07/17/193006e8-c868-11ea-8ffe-372be8d82298_story.html↩
  12. [12]Catherine Troisi, quoted in Griff Witte and Ben Guarino, “It’s not only coronavirus cases that are rising. Now covid deaths are, too,” Washington Post, July 17, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/its-not-only-coronavirus-cases-that-are-rising-now-covid-deaths-are-too/2020/07/17/193006e8-c868-11ea-8ffe-372be8d82298_story.html↩
  13. [13]David Benfell, “The psychopathy of the spike in COVID-19 cases,” Not Housebroken, July 7, 2020, https://disunitedstates.org/2020/07/07/the-psychopathy-of-the-spike-in-covid-19-cases/; David Benfell, “The expendable worker,” Not Housebroken, July 13, 2020, https://disunitedstates.org/2020/07/05/the-expendable-worker/↩
  14. [14]Talal Ansari, “Texas Governor Rolls Back Reopening as U.S. Virus Cases Hit Record,” Wall Street Journal, June 26, 2020, https://www.wsj.com/articles/coronavirus-latest-news-06-26-2020-11593159630; Annie Gowen, Arelis R. Hernández, and Lori Rozsa, “Young people urged to take virus more seriously as pandemic worsens in U.S.,” Washington Post, June 27, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/young-people-are-driving-a-spike-in-coronavirus-infections-officials-say/2020/06/27/3654638c-b7b4-11ea-a510-55bf26485c93_story.html; Thomas Heath and Hannah Denham, “Dow tumbles 730 points as covid-19 flare-ups force states to push back reopening,” Washington Post, June 26, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/06/26/stocks-markets-today-texas-coronavirus/; KDKA, “‘For The First Time…Allegheny Co. Led The State In The Number Of New COVID-19 Cases’: Allegheny Co. Officials Ban On-Site Consumption Of Alcohol At Local Bars,” June 28, 2020, https://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2020/06/28/allegheny-co-highest-case-numbers-bans-on-site-drinking/; KDKA, “Allegheny Co. Health Officials: Spike In New Coronavirus Cases Linked To Bars, Not Protests,” June 29, 2020, https://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2020/06/29/spike-in-coronavirus-cases-linked-to-bars-not-protests/; Claire Lampen, Hannah Gold, and Amanda Arnold, “Everything to Know About the Coronavirus in the United States,” Cut, June 24, 2020, https://www.thecut.com/2020/06/which-states-have-coronavirus-and-how-do-you-minimize-risk.html; Christina Maxouris, “Officials say states like Arizona and Texas reopened too quickly after soaring Covid-19 cases,” CNN, July 6, 2020, https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/06/health/us-coronavirus-monday/index.html; Toluse Olorunnipa, Josh Dawsey, and Yasmeen Abutaleb, “With Trump leading the way, America’s coronavirus failures exposed by record surge in new infections,” Washington Post, June 27, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/with-trump-leading-the-way-americas-coronavirus-failures-exposed-by-record-surge-in-new-infections/2020/06/27/bd15aea2-b7c4-11ea-a8da-693df3d7674a_story.html; Andy Sheehan, “Allegheny County Closes Bars, Restaurants, Casinos And All Activities That Involve Over 25 People For One Week,” KDKA, July 2, 2020, https://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2020/07/02/allegheny-county-bar-restaurant-casino-closure/; John Shumway, “‘People Don’t Care’: Recent Jump In Allegheny County Coronavirus Cases Linked To People In Their 20s, 30s,” KDKA, June 23, 2020, https://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2020/06/23/jump-in-allegheny-county-coronavirus-cases-linked-to-young-people/↩

Federal thugs may be coming to a protest near you

benfell

Pandemic

The hope—this study has not yet been peer reviewed—is that it will be possible to identify the most severe cases of COVID-19 early enough to take action even while patients are still at home. Even failing that, this is a more comprehensive list of symptoms associated with the disease[1] than I’ve seen before.

Henry Bodkin, “Scientists identify six different types of coronavirus with increasing severity levels,” Telegraph, July 17, 2020, https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/07/17/scientists-identify-six-different-types-coronavirus-increasing/

Homeland insecurity

I tend to shy away from interview transcripts and this is a good example of why, but Ken Cuccinelli attributes[2] the detentions of protesters by federal thugs displaying no identification and using unmarked vehicles[3] to the Federal Protective Service, with support from Customs and Border Patrol thugs and Immigration and Customs Enforcement thugs. Cuccinelli claims they are protecting federal personnel and federal property even though many of these detentions are occurring well away from federal property. The even scarier part is this: Cuccinelli says “this is a posture we intend to continue not just in Portland but in any of the facilities that we’re responsible for around the country,” which implies that these detentions might occur wherever protests are being held around the country.[4]

Anny is right to worry, right to be afraid. But intimidation is the point here: Protesters need to find a way to carry on despite that intimidation. Because otherwise the thugs win.

Sarah McCammon, “DHS Official On Reports Of Federal Officers Detaining Protesters In Portland, Ore.,” National Public Radio, July 17, 2020, https://www.npr.org/2020/07/17/892393079/dhs-official-on-reports-of-federal-officers-detaining-protesters-in-portland-ore

  1. [1]Henry Bodkin, “Scientists identify six different types of coronavirus with increasing severity levels,” Telegraph, July 17, 2020, https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2020/07/17/scientists-identify-six-different-types-coronavirus-increasing/↩
  2. [2]Sarah McCammon, “DHS Official On Reports Of Federal Officers Detaining Protesters In Portland, Ore.,” National Public Radio, July 17, 2020, https://www.npr.org/2020/07/17/892393079/dhs-official-on-reports-of-federal-officers-detaining-protesters-in-portland-ore↩
  3. [3]Jeet Heer, “Trump Unleashes His Secret Police in Portland,” Nation, July 17, 2020, https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/trump-secret-police-portland/; Katie Shepherd, “‘It was like being preyed upon’: Portland protesters say federal officers in unmarked vans are detaining them,” Washington Post, July 17, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/07/17/portland-protests-federal-arrests/↩
  4. [4]Sarah McCammon, “DHS Official On Reports Of Federal Officers Detaining Protesters In Portland, Ore.,” National Public Radio, July 17, 2020, https://www.npr.org/2020/07/17/892393079/dhs-official-on-reports-of-federal-officers-detaining-protesters-in-portland-ore↩

(Governor Tom) Wolf nibbles back

benfell

Pandemic

Medical workers can’t sustain this[1] surge in cases.[2] Meanwhile, the psychopaths are still on the loose, still refusing to wear masks, refusing to socially distance, generally with impunity.

I’m perplexed that Pennsylvania governor Tom Wolf has only withheld coronavirus funding from one county.[3] The defiance of his lockdown was rather more widespread than that.[4] Wolf withheld funding from Lebanon County,[5] but county commissions in Berks, Cumberland, Dauphin, Franklin, Lebanon and Schuylkill counties all threatened to reopen early;[6] Beaver, Lebanon, and Dauphin counties unilaterally declared themselves in “yellow” phase when the governor still had them in “red;”[7] and Dauphin, York, and Lebanon county district attorneys declined to criminally prosecute lockdown violators.[8] And that’s just what I haphazardly archived.

I try not to focus too much on personalities but Molly Roberts has a heartwarming account of Anthony Fauci’s not quite apolitical rise[9] that really is well worth reading.

KDKA, “Gov. Tom Wolf Follows Through On Threat, Yanks Coronavirus Funding From County That Defied Shutdown Order,” July 16, 2020, https://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2020/07/16/tom-wolf-follows-through-on-threat-yanks-coronavirus-funding-from-county/

Molly Roberts, “Anthony Fauci built a truce. Trump is destroying it,” Washington Post, July 16, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/07/16/anthony-fauci-built-truce-trump-is-destroying-it/

Lisa Shumaker, “U.S. shatters coronavirus record with over 77,000 cases in a day,” Reuters, July 17, 2020, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-usa-records/u-s-shatters-coronavirus-record-with-over-77000-cases-in-a-day-idUSKCN24I014

Griff Witte and Rachel Weiner, “Sun Belt hospitals are feeling the strain from virus’ surge — and bracing for worse,” Washington Post, July 16, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/coronavirus-hospitals-florida-texas-arizona-california/2020/07/16/dea0ed7a-c79b-11ea-8ffe-372be8d82298_story.html

‘Law and Order’

There’s trouble in Portland, Oregon:

Federal officers from the U.S. Marshals Service and Department of Homeland Security have stormed Portland’s streets as part of President Trump’s promised strong response to ongoing protests. Local leaders expressed alarm at news of [Mark] Pettibone’s detention and echoed calls for the feds to leave that have grown stronger since Marshals Service officers severely wounded a peaceful protester on Saturday.[10]

On the face of it, what these federal officers are doing is illegal and unconstitutional. It’s possible that they are acting under the 2011 National Defense Authorization Act, signed by Barack Obama, which legalized the detention of Americans suspected of being terrorists. If so, then the War on Terrorism has truly come home.[11]

Jeet Heer, “Trump Unleashes His Secret Police in Portland,” Nation, July 17, 2020, https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/trump-secret-police-portland/

Katie Shepherd, “‘It was like being preyed upon’: Portland protesters say federal officers in unmarked vans are detaining them,” Washington Post, July 17, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/07/17/portland-protests-federal-arrests/

  1. [1]Griff Witte and Rachel Weiner, “Sun Belt hospitals are feeling the strain from virus’ surge — and bracing for worse,” Washington Post, July 16, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/coronavirus-hospitals-florida-texas-arizona-california/2020/07/16/dea0ed7a-c79b-11ea-8ffe-372be8d82298_story.html↩
  2. [2]Agence France-Presse, “Fauci warns U.S. is “knee-deep” in coronavirus first wave,” CBS News, July 7, 2020, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/fauci-warns-us-knee-deep-coronavirus-first-wave/; Talal Ansari, “Texas Governor Rolls Back Reopening as U.S. Virus Cases Hit Record,” Wall Street Journal, June 26, 2020, https://www.wsj.com/articles/coronavirus-latest-news-06-26-2020-11593159630; CBS News, “U.S. sees another record-breaking day with more than 63,000 coronavirus cases,” July 10, 2020, https://www.cbsnews.com/news/coronavirus-cases-usa-63000-daily-record/; Annie Gowen, Arelis R. Hernández, and Lori Rozsa, “Young people urged to take virus more seriously as pandemic worsens in U.S.,” Washington Post, June 27, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/young-people-are-driving-a-spike-in-coronavirus-infections-officials-say/2020/06/27/3654638c-b7b4-11ea-a510-55bf26485c93_story.html; Thomas Heath and Hannah Denham, “Dow tumbles 730 points as covid-19 flare-ups force states to push back reopening,” Washington Post, June 26, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2020/06/26/stocks-markets-today-texas-coronavirus/; Jeet Heer, [Twitter thread], Twitter Thread App, July 9, 2020, https://threadreaderapp.com/thread/1281071726596521984.html; Chelsea Janes et al., “Surge in virus hospitalizations strains hospitals in several states,” Washington Post, July 8, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/surge-in-virus-hospitalizations-strains-hospitals-in-several-states/2020/07/08/12855e5e-c135-11ea-864a-0dd31b9d6917_story.html; Christina Maxouris, “Officials say states like Arizona and Texas reopened too quickly after soaring Covid-19 cases,” CNN, July 6, 2020, https://www.cnn.com/2020/07/06/health/us-coronavirus-monday/index.html; Toluse Olorunnipa, Josh Dawsey, and Yasmeen Abutaleb, “With Trump leading the way, America’s coronavirus failures exposed by record surge in new infections,” Washington Post, June 27, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/with-trump-leading-the-way-americas-coronavirus-failures-exposed-by-record-surge-in-new-infections/2020/06/27/bd15aea2-b7c4-11ea-a8da-693df3d7674a_story.html; Lisa Shumaker, “U.S. shatters coronavirus record with over 77,000 cases in a day,” Reuters, July 17, 2020, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-usa-records/u-s-shatters-coronavirus-record-with-over-77000-cases-in-a-day-idUSKCN24I014; Lisa Shumaker and Brendan O’Brien, “Record spike in new coronavirus cases reported in six U.S. states as reopening accelerates,” Reuters, June 16, 2020, https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-usa-idUSKBN23N32O; Meg Wagner et al., “Fauci, Redfield testify on Covid-19 reopening as cases rise,” CNN, June 30, 2020, https://www.cnn.com/webview/politics/live-news/covid-19-school-work-reopening-testimony-06-30-20/h_cc7cf09eae87064e72f75af30984acd3; Griff Witte and Rachel Weiner, “Sun Belt hospitals are feeling the strain from virus’ surge — and bracing for worse,” Washington Post, July 16, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/coronavirus-hospitals-florida-texas-arizona-california/2020/07/16/dea0ed7a-c79b-11ea-8ffe-372be8d82298_story.html↩
  3. [3]KDKA, “Gov. Tom Wolf Follows Through On Threat, Yanks Coronavirus Funding From County That Defied Shutdown Order,” July 16, 2020, https://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2020/07/16/tom-wolf-follows-through-on-threat-yanks-coronavirus-funding-from-county/↩
  4. [4]Jana Benscoter, “Dauphin, York DAs, say they won’t take immediate action against businesses that reopen in defiance of state order,” Harrisburg Patriot-News, May 9, 2020, https://www.pennlive.com/news/2020/05/dauphin-york-das-say-they-wont-take-action-against-businesses-that-reopen-in-red-phase-counties.html; Charles Thompson, “Two central Pa. counties say they plan to reopen ahead of Gov. Wolf’s schedule,” Harrisburg Patriot-News, May 8, 2020, https://www.pennlive.com/news/2020/05/dauphin-lebanon-county-officials-declare-themselves-ready-to-reopen-say-they-will-break-from-gov-wolfs-plan.html; Charles Thompson, “A growing number of Pa. counties test Gov. Tom Wolf’s emergency powers, saying they’ll decide if it’s time to reopen,” Harrisburg Patriot-News, May 9, 2020, https://www.pennlive.com/news/2020/05/a-growing-number-of-pa-counties-test-gov-tom-wolfs-emergency-powers-saying-theyll-decide-if-its-time-to-reopen.html↩
  5. [5]KDKA, “Gov. Tom Wolf Follows Through On Threat, Yanks Coronavirus Funding From County That Defied Shutdown Order,” July 16, 2020, https://pittsburgh.cbslocal.com/2020/07/16/tom-wolf-follows-through-on-threat-yanks-coronavirus-funding-from-county/↩
  6. [6]Charles Thompson, “A growing number of Pa. counties test Gov. Tom Wolf’s emergency powers, saying they’ll decide if it’s time to reopen,” Harrisburg Patriot-News, May 9, 2020, https://www.pennlive.com/news/2020/05/a-growing-number-of-pa-counties-test-gov-tom-wolfs-emergency-powers-saying-theyll-decide-if-its-time-to-reopen.html↩
  7. [7]Charles Thompson, “Two central Pa. counties say they plan to reopen ahead of Gov. Wolf’s schedule,” Harrisburg Patriot-News, May 8, 2020, https://www.pennlive.com/news/2020/05/dauphin-lebanon-county-officials-declare-themselves-ready-to-reopen-say-they-will-break-from-gov-wolfs-plan.html↩
  8. [8]Jana Benscoter, “Dauphin, York DAs, say they won’t take immediate action against businesses that reopen in defiance of state order,” Harrisburg Patriot-News, May 9, 2020, https://www.pennlive.com/news/2020/05/dauphin-york-das-say-they-wont-take-action-against-businesses-that-reopen-in-red-phase-counties.html↩
  9. [9]Molly Roberts, “Anthony Fauci built a truce. Trump is destroying it,” Washington Post, July 16, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/opinions/2020/07/16/anthony-fauci-built-truce-trump-is-destroying-it/↩
  10. [10]Katie Shepherd, “‘It was like being preyed upon’: Portland protesters say federal officers in unmarked vans are detaining them,” Washington Post, July 17, 2020, https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/07/17/portland-protests-federal-arrests/↩
  11. [11]Jeet Heer, “Trump Unleashes His Secret Police in Portland,” Nation, July 17, 2020, https://www.thenation.com/article/politics/trump-secret-police-portland/↩