Donald Trump
There is a new blog post entitled, “The new quests for a(n) (un)holy grail.” But apart from that, I occasionally wonder, really wonder what I am to do about the fact I live in such a politically hopeless state.
Stephen Caruso, “Pa. election audit a ‘very real possibility,’ top Pa. Senate Republican says after meeting activists,” Pennsylvania Capital-Star, June 17, 2021, https://www.penncapital-star.com/government-politics/pa-election-audit-a-very-real-possibility-argall-says-after-meeting-activists/
Catholics
There is another new blog post entitled, “The proxy war in the Roman Catholic Church.”
Michelle Boorstein, “Catholic bishops vote on controversial Communion document,” Washington Post, June 18, 2021, https://www.washingtonpost.com/religion/2021/06/18/biden-catholic-president-bishops-abortion-communion/
Matt Viser, “Biden, deeply Catholic president, finds himself at odds with many U.S. bishops,” Washington Post, June 18, 2021, https://www.washingtonpost.com/religion/2021/06/18/biden-catholic-president-bishops-abortion-communion/
Gig economy
There is yet another new blog post entitled, “The corruption of the nonprofits.”
Cory Doctorow, “The gig economy’s dark-money, astroturf ‘community groups,’” Pluralistic, June 19, 2021, https://pluralistic.net/2021/06/19/dynastic-wealth/#astroturf
Pittsburgh
Fig. 1. Abandoned building in Wilkinsburg. Photograph by author, November 25, 2020.
I’ve heard rumblings about a possible merger of Wilkinsburg into Pittsburgh, but had yet to see anything substantial. Now I have.[1] It’d been a while so I was more than a little surprised to see something now. But here it is.
The main part of Wilkinsburg is distressed (example, figure 1). But the borough extends up the hill and towards Penn Hills Township and Churchill Borough, where it includes the western part of the quite well off Blackridge development and it seems solidly middle class in some other areas.
Pittsburgh is already an agglomeration of some 90 neighborhoods, some of which seem once upon a time to have been their own municipalities.
Paul Van Osdol, “Wilkinsburg mayor backs merger with Pittsburgh,” WTAE, June 18, 2021, https://www.wtae.com/article/wilkinsburg-merger-with-pittsburgh-proposed/36768006
Pandemic
I finally stumbled onto the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention COVID Data Tracker for vaccinations. And well, we have a ways to go in Pennsylvania.
While 73.0 percent of Pennsylvanians 18 and over had received their first dose of a vaccine, as of June 11, only 56.7 percent were fully vaccinated.[2] There’s a four week interval between the shots and then an additional two weeks delay before they’re considered fully vaccinated, so many simply haven’t gotten through that six week interval, but some major providers are seeing a five to ten percent failure to return (which fails to account for people who may be getting their second shot at different locations).[3]
That’s better than the national numbers (64.0 percent first dose, 53.6 percent fully vaccinated) but the difference is considerably larger for the first dose than it is for fully vaccinated, with the latter number really only a smidge higher.[4] My hunch is that the numbers should be better at this point.
Pennsylvania ranks 28th in the nation for new cases per 100,000 population, 30th for hospital admissions, and 43rd for deaths. From the color coding,[5] I infer that the higher-numbered ranks are bad, not good.
Henry Kissinger
Henry Kissinger is a war criminal; there are countries he dares not travel to because he would likely be arrested.[6] That said, sometimes there are quotations I really don’t want to lose track of. This is, “When statesmen want to gain time, they offer to talk.”[7] Damn. Have to admire the cynicism.
Just me, being morbid
I have now paid for a redwood tree (#1557) at Better Place Forests in Point Arena. It is presently my intention that my own ashes and the ashes of my dear cat, Admiral Janeway, who has already crossed the proverbial “rainbow bridge,” should be scattered there.
As of this date, I have not made arrangements for cremation, although Admiral Janeway’s ashes are already in a box on my dresser.
And in case you’re wondering, no, I don’t expect Henry Kissinger to outlive me. He’s 98 years old. But it’s not as big of a difference as you might kindly expect; he’s only 36 years older than I am.
- [1]Paul Van Osdol, “Wilkinsburg mayor backs merger with Pittsburgh,” WTAE, June 18, 2021, https://www.wtae.com/article/wilkinsburg-merger-with-pittsburgh-proposed/36768006↩
- [2]Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “COVID-19 State Profile Report – Pennsylvania,” June 11, 2021, https://healthdata.gov/Community/COVID-19-State-Profile-Report-Pennsylvania/tkdp-r3p8↩
- [3]Megan Guza, “As some Pennsylvanians skip second covid shot, experts caution one dose ‘not enough,’” Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, June 13, 2021, https://triblive.com/local/regional/as-some-pennsylvanians-skip-second-covid-shot-experts-caution-one-dose-not-enough/↩
- [4]Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “COVID-19 State Profile Report – Pennsylvania,” June 11, 2021, https://healthdata.gov/Community/COVID-19-State-Profile-Report-Pennsylvania/tkdp-r3p8↩
- [5]Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “COVID-19 State Profile Report – Pennsylvania,” June 11, 2021, https://healthdata.gov/Community/COVID-19-State-Profile-Report-Pennsylvania/tkdp-r3p8↩
- [6]Daniel Marans, “Henry Kissinger Just Turned 92. Here’s Why He’s Careful About Where He Travels,” Huffington Post, May 28, 2015, https://www.huffpost.com/entry/henry-kissinger-human-rights_n_7454172↩
- [7]Henry Kissinger, Diplomacy (New York: Simon and Schuster, 2011), 505.↩