Thursday, July 23rd, 2020

Mayor Ted Wheeler is tear-gassed in downtown Portland, according to video from a New York Times journalist. The video shows Wheeler, wearing goggles and a face mask amid a crowd of people, holding his nose and closing his eyes in distress as a cloud of tear gas drifts by him. It is unknown at this time who is responsible for deploying the tear gas and there is nothing to indicate the mayor was targeted. (CNN)

Inspector General Michael E. Horowitz announces that there will be a investigation into the Justice Department’s use of force against protesters. (CBS News)

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz signs a law banning various forms of chokeholds. (Hastings Tribune)

Trump says he’s canceling Jacksonville portion of the Republican National Convention President Trump announced on Thursday evening that he has canceled the Jacksonville, Florida, portion of the Republican National Convention because “the timing for this is not right” and he has to “protect the American people.” The convention, slated for late August, was originally going to be held in Charlotte, North Carolina. After GOP officials and North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper (D) could not agree on social distancing measures, it was decided that party business would still take place in Charlotte, but the parties and programs were moved to Jacksonville. Trump told reporters that he received plans for the nominating convention on Thursday afternoon, “but I looked at my team and I said the timing for this event is not right, just not right with what’s happened recently.” The formal nominating process will still proceed in Charlotte, Trump said, and he will give some sort of acceptance speech. Source: The Washington Post

Senate passes defense bill stripping Confederate names from Army bases The Senate passed a $741 billion defense bill, 86-14, on Thursday that forces Confederate names to be removed from Army bases. The bill passed with a similarly overwhelming majority in the House, meaning President Trump won’t be able to veto the measure. Protests over police brutality and racism in the U.S. led to calls to remove statues of Confederate leaders from around the U.S. and to take their names off bases. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) formalized that effort with an amendment to the defense spending bill after the idea of renaming the Confederate bases was passed with a voice vote. President Trump previously said he would not even consider renaming the bases, including Fort Bragg and Fort Hood. Source: Politico

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Wednesday,  July 22nd, 2020

President Donald Trump and Attorney General William Barr announce a surge of “hundreds” of federal law enforcement officers to Chicago, Albuquerque and other cities in an effort to crack down on a recent wave of violent crime. The mayors of Portland, Seattle, Washington, D.C., Chicago, Atlanta and Kansas City pen a letter to Barr and acting Secretary of Homeland Security Chad Wolf expressing “deep concern and objection to the deployment of federal forces in our cities”. (Forbes)

South Korea’s economy enters recession after exports plunge to their lowest levels since 1963. (Reuters)

Ohio Governor Mike DeWine issues a statewide mandate requiring masks to be worn indoors and outdoors whenever social distancing isn’t possible. (Reuters)

Washington, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser announces that masks will be mandatory outside of homes to battle rising COVID-19 cases in the city. (The Hill)

California reports the highest number of new COVID-19 cases in a single day, with 12,807 new cases that bring the statewide total to 413,576 cases, surpassing New York in the process. (The Guardian)

South Africa reports a record 572 new COVID-19 deaths. (Anadolu Agency)

The number of cases in Africa reaches 750,000. (Reuters)

Australia reports the highest one-day increase of new cases since the pandemic began, with 502 new cases, surpassing the previous record set on March 28 at 469 cases. Victoria records 484 new cases and two deaths, the highest of any Australian state. (The Age)

Brazil reports its highest one-day increase in COVID-19 cases days after WHO says the country reaches the plateau, with 67,860 new cases that pushes the nationwide total at more than 2.2 million. (Bloomberg)

 

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The numbers in Massachusetts continue to drop very slightly, creeping towards zero. For all intents and purposes the spread of the disease appears to have been arrested in Massachusetts.

3 weeks before June 19th the trajectory of new deaths, new infections, and current hospitalizations suggested the counts would be near zero by June 19th, but since that time the rate of decrease has slowed while never rising.

With an infection rate of about 17 people per thousand, or 1.7%, Massachusetts leads the country and the world along with New York, New Jersey, and Lousiana. New York state has the highest infection rate in the world for a region over 5 million people at about 2.3%

New cases per day

Deaths per day. Down to 11 or 12 per day on average from 23/day a month ago.

New cases are down from 250/day a month ago to under 200/day.

There are under 500 people hospitalized. 67 in intensive care and 38 intubated.

https://www.businessinsider.com/german-scientists-host-concert-to-study-how-the-coronavirus-spreads-2020-7

There will not be a vaccine for corona. Ever.

 

Tuesday,  July 21st, 2020

Oxford vaccine produces dual immune response A study published Monday in The Lancet found a coronavirus vaccine candidate developed by the University of Oxford and AstraZeneca to be safe, albeit with some mild side effects like fatigue and headaches. The injection also led to a dual immune reaction to the coronavirus. Patients in the trial involving 1,077 people produced both neutralizing antibodies and the less-frequently discussed T-Cells, a type of white blood cell that helps coordinate the body’s immune system and destroys infected cells. “We’re stimulating both arms of the immune system,” said Adrian Hill, the head of Oxford’s Jenner Institute. T-Cell and antibody levels peaked at 14 and 28 days after vaccination, respectively, but the study did not run long enough to get a sense of long-term immunity. More trials will be necessary to ensure safety and prove the immune responses reach levels necessary to fight off the virus. Source: The Lancet, BBC

Florida’s largest teachers’ union sues governor over school reopening order The Florida Education Association — the state’s largest teachers’ union — filed a lawsuit on Monday against Gov. Ron DeSantis (R), alleging that by hurrying to fully reopen all public schools in August, he is violating a Florida law meant to keep schools “safe and secure.” With coronavirus cases surging in the state, DeSantis has recommended that all public schools reopen to their full capacity, and earlier this month, Florida Education Commissioner Richard Corcoran issued an emergency order for the fall semester requiring all schools to be open for five days a week. Corcoran said schools provide everything from academic learning to socialization, and Florida can’t hit its “full economic stride” until the schools are all reopened. The suit — which names DeSantis, Corcoran, the Florida Department of Education, and the Florida State Board of Education — attempts to block the order. Source: NBC News

DHS will reportedly send federal agents to Chicago to combat protests The Department of Homeland Security plans to deploy about 150 federal agents to Chicago this week to “assist other federal law enforcement and Chicago police in crime-fighting efforts, the Chicago Tribune reported on Monday. It still hasn’t been made clear “the chain of command they would fall under,” though the agents “would not be involved in immigration or deportation matters,” the Tribune writes. The report comes as President Trump on Monday praised the work of federal agents in Portland, Oregon, some of the unmarked, who have been arresting protesters in the city. He also said he’d consider sending more officers to Baltimore, Chicago, Detroit, New York, Oakland, and Philadelphia despite there being no major reports of violent protests there. Source: Chicago Tribune

Mayor Lori Lightfoot said she has “great concerns” about the possibility President Donald Trump could deploy federal agents to Chicago to crack down on gun violence and protests, similar to an approach in Portland, Oregon. The Trump Administration will be sending 175 federal agents to Chicago to assist police in curbing violent crime. (CBS Chicago)

The EU meeting on a post-coronavirus recovery fund enters deadlock on its fourth day. Complicating matters, the group is also negotiating a deal for the bloc’s next long-term budget. Today’s early talks over a proposed €750bn ($857bn / £680bn) recovery package have reportedly been testy. Resumption is scheduled for 14:00 GMT. (BBC)

Nationals invite Fauci to throw out first pitch on Opening Day The Washington Nationals invited Dr. Anthony Fauci, the head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, to throw out the ceremonial first pitch Thursday when the defending World Series champions host the New York Yankees for Major League Baseball’s opening night. In a statement, the Nationals said Fauci, who is a big fan of the club, “has been a true champion for our country during the COVID-19 pandemic and throughout his distinguished career.” The Nationals and Yankees will kick off a 60-game season that was shortened because of the coronavirus pandemic. Fans won’t be in attendance to watch the Nationals mount their title defense due to public healthy and safety concerns. Source: Washington Nationals

The End