VIRUS NEWS:
At a press conference on Wednesday, the president said that COVID-19 deaths are lower if you ignore the 'blue states'. Senator Chuck Schumer blasted the president, calling him demented. Of course, Texas, Georgia and Florida, red states with high death rates, were not mentioned. In fact, if the red states were a country, they'd be in the Top 10 countries for mortality rate from the virus.
Mike Pence's former lead staffer on COVID 19 just endorsed Joe Biden for president.
Besty DeVos' top aide, Josh Venable, has joined an anti-Trump group.
Another White House staff member tested positive on Wednesday.
How does Trump's virus response compare with Biden's proposal to attack it?
Dr. Anthony Fauci is said to be 'depressed' about the virus cases still plaguing us, saying we are still in the first wave.
The president has tweeted to his followers six-times more about mail-in ballot fraud than he has about protecting themselves from COVID 19.
An ex-federal prosecutor thinks Trump should be prosecuted for ‘second-degree murder’ for downplaying COVID 19 threat.
Despite the fact that he was informed about how deadly the virus is and that it is mostly airborne, Trump had rallies and is now continuing to have larger and larger rallies with no social distancing and few masks. CNN compared them to THE HUNGER GAMES.
Following the tapes of Trump admitting that he knew how deadly the virus is and how easily it is transmitted, vulnerable Republican candidates avoid criticizing Trump.
A top official, Michael Caputo, at Health and Human Services claimed that scientists are plotting against the president and called on his supporters to arm themselves before the election. INSANE! He is now on a 60-day medical leave seeking mental health services.
The Republican National Chairwoman defended Trump on MEET THE PRESS with the same old tired answers the White House has been touting for months.
According to Political Tribune, Israel reported that the Trump Administration reached out to them back in November to warn them about the impending pandemic.
New research shows that if the president had even had just an "average" pandemic response, 100,000 people would still be alive.
The president keeps lying about COVID 19 in the US and how it compares to other countries.
1 in 7 healthcare workers reported coronavirus infections, the World Health Organization says.
COVID 19 cases are falling in the US...but they may not be falling for the reasons you think they are.
A doctor that was chosen to be Ohio's new Secretary of Health, withdrew herself from the position less than a month before it was to have begun, citing the way the family of the person who held the position previously was threatened by anti- virus lockdowners and pro-lifers.
The Republican governor of South Dakota, Kristi Noem, is drawing heat for having the state with the second-highest per-capita rate of infection in the country...after allowing things like the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally and the Fourth of July celebration at Mt. Rushmore. She is now crying her case to right-wing media for defense.
Even children with no symptoms can spread the virus, the CDC says. The CDC also says that although the virus rarely kills children, minority children run a greater risk.
A 9-year-old with "long haul" COVID 19 has a message for kids.
Parents in Ohio say masks in school infringe on their religious beliefs and are suing the state's health director.
13 child care centers in Sonoma County in California have had outbreaks of the virus.
Preschool classrooms in St. Louis experienced an outbreak.
The mayor of New York City has delayed in-person learning at schools.
Two students in New York state tested positive, requiring more than 80 others to quarantine.
Parents in Massachusetts knowingly sent their infected student to school---causing 30 others to have to quarantine.
A 14-year-old Southern California girl survived COVID 19, but nearly died--twice.
There have been nearly 4,500 positive cases in Texas public schools since they reopened.
The teachers union in Connecticut has asked for a state-wide policy for dealing with the pandemic.
Teachers have started resigning in Florida, saying it is not worth the risk.
In the month since school has started in Florida, the number of children with COVID 19 rose 26%.
Teacher deaths and college town outbreaks have only increased concerns about school reopenings.
College students admitted to police they had the coronavirus...and then threw a house party.
The University of Albany in New York added another 18 confirmed cases of the virus.
The University of Colorado Boulder reported 100 more cases of the virus.
The University of Michigan is having an outbreak.
75 Texas Tech football players have tested positive since June.
Louisiana State University's football coach says most of his players have had COVID 19.
North Carolina State University has confirmed that they have had 1,000 new cases.
Michigan State University has asked all of its students to quarantine for two weeks due to the tremendous outbreak the school has had.
Earlier this week, Canada reported no deaths from COVID 19...while we still have near 9/11 number of deaths on a daily basis.
USA TODAY ran an article on how the CDC failed local public health officials who are fighting the coronavirus.
The Mayo Clinic has started posting its own COVID 19 guidelines.
An outbreak at a German resort has been traced back to (you guessed it) a US citizen who failed to quarantine despite having symptoms. The woman partied while waiting for her test results, which a German official called a "model case of stupidity." Yep.
Millennials and Gen Z are spreading the virus--but not because of parties and bars, a new report suggests.
Adults with positive COVID 19 test results are approximately twice as likely to have reported dining at a restaurant than those with negative test results, says a CDC study.
There was more to Jared Kushner's duplicity in the COVID 19 response than you might think, according to an article in VANITY FAIR.
A nurse at an ICE detention center reported little of no COVID 19 testing and sick detainees, along with the horror of forced hysterectomies.
Dr. Anthony Fauci says you won't be able to sit in a movie theater until about a year after an effective vaccine is delivered.
The director of the CDC said that wearing masks is more effective than a vaccine will be.
Washington state residents flocked to see a controversial anti-mask pastor from Tennessee with no social distancing or masks and in violation of the state's rules on indoor gatherings.
Anti-maskers in Florida stormed a Target, chanting "Take off your masks!"
Anti-maskers in Indonesia have been ordered to dig mass graves for those who have died from COVID 19.
Trump contradicted his own CDC director, Robert Redfield, (in the video above) and called him "confused."
Wearing glasses may help you to not get the virus.
Jasred Kushner called the president "very forthcoming with the American people" in regards to the virus, despite the tapes Bob Woodward has that would suggest otherwise.
Trump doesn't believe his own advice about health safety at his rallies. He does, however, stay far from those in the crowd.
New audio that has been released from the Woodward interviews have Trump calling the virus "a real killer" and "the plague" among other things in April.
Michael Steele, former chairman of the Republican National Committee, slammed the president and Trump supporters.
Carl Bernstein called Trump supports the president's "sacrificial lambs" who he would have die in service of his re-election campaign.
Trump's followers believe their leader has given their lives meaning as public health squares off against mass delusion.
A legal expert explained how Trump's rallygoers could sue if they get COVID 19.
Trump apparently said that holding an indoor rally in Nevada "wasn't our fault" and blamed the state's governor.
The site that hosted Trump's rally in Nevada was fined $3,000 for breaking the state's coronavirus guidelines.
The Trump administration has not paid $28 million owed to the United States Post Office for COVID-19 guideline postcards featuring Trump's name.
Al Gore said the president was 'gaslighting' in his response to the virus and climate change.
Pakistan’s successful handling of the coronavirus pandemic is getting international recognition.
The World Health Organization is now warning about a new wave of infections across Europe.
The world's largest manufacturer of vaccines says that it will probably take up to 2024 to get everyone vaccinated.
Pfizer's vaccine trial has the company betting on an early win against the coronavirus.
Moderna expects to know if its coronavirus vaccine works by November
A new poll says most Americans believe that political pressure by the government will cause the FDA to rush a vaccine. Democrats say they need to hear from scientists--not Trump---that any vaccine that arrives is safe before they'll take it.
Dr. Anthony Fauci says that enough people have to take the vaccine for it to be effective.
The US plans to give free vaccinations and return to 'normal life' in the third quarter of 2021.
The Russian vaccine is being questioned by experts who are concerned about its safety and global distribution.
A new drug being developed using antibodies is showing promise.
A doctor from Boston University says Vitamin D can lower your risk for the coronavirus by 54%.
A new 90-minute COVID 19 test is said to be very effective.
Experts are reminding people to get a flu shot to prevent a flu/COVID 19 double whammy.
The US isn't even close to getting COVID-19 down to where it needs to be by fall, medical experts say.
Scientists are exploring a surprising theory about the low death rate for the virus in South Africa.
A new report shows that the number of cases in Texas was actually higher than announced when the state reopened.
A pastor who discouraged his congregation from wearing masks is in an ICU getting over a case of the virus.
42 players and staff from the Wisconsin Badgers football team have tested positive.
The superspreader wedding in Maine last month has now left 170 infected and has killed 7.
A South Carolina couple, married for 40 years, died of COVID 19 together on the same day, leaving a 14-year-old daughter.
The opening day for the Kansas City Chiefs was marred by two game-goers testing positive...requiring all of those seated around them to have to quarantine.
Last week was 9/11. How many 9/11 survivors have succumbed to COVID 19? At least 42 so far...
Does your boss have to tell you if a co-worker has been diagnosed with COVID 19?
Pine Sol has been approved as a cleanser that can kill the virus on surfaces. (Do NOT be a Trumper and inject it. No No No!)
Trump is less trusted internationally than Putin or Xi following his response to COVID 19.
A Chinese virologist claimed the coronavirus was 'intentionally' released. It turns out she works for Trump crony Steve Bannon.
Twitter and Facebook flagged posts by Fox News host Tucker Carlson as being misinformation. He threw a fit, of course. His tweets were of his interview with the bogus virologist from China.
A CNN reporter slammed Fox News for spreading so much misinformation.
ABC's George Stephanopoulos questioned one of Joe Biden's senior advisers, Symone Sanders, about the presidential candidate's attempts to stop the virus.
In a disastrous (for him) "town hall" event recently on ABC, Trump falsely said he didn't down play the severity of the virus and that he often 'up-played it.'
A report on CNN suggests that about 60% of the businesses that closed down due to the pandemic will never reopen.
Half of the households in the four largest US cities have reported financial problems due to pandemic.
Unemployment is still rampant. 860,000 more people filed for unemployment last week.
Trump blames Democrats for the delay in a new COVID 19 relief package...and worries that no new package may hurt him at the polls. The president says the Democrats are heartless (even though there is no relief for the average citizen in anything the Senate Republicans have tried to pass). Meanwhile Mitch McConnell is sitting on 325 bills the House has already approved while he quickly rams through 30 of judges-for-life that Trump has chosen.
REM frontman Michael Stipe wrote an op ed to the governor of Georgia and the university, offering new COVID 19 guidelines (since whatever the state is doing is not working...)
Carnival Cruise Lines has canceled cruises up into spring 2021.
A 32-year-old man bought a California ghost town to ride out the coronavirus pandemic alone.
Hawaii will let visitors who pass a COVID 19 test back into the state without having to quarantine first starting October 15.
Aruba is inviting Americans to spend up to three months of the pandemic there without worry about having a visa.
Here is a look at how various communities are handling Halloween this year. And here is a clever trick-or-treat goodie delivery idea.
If Senators have their way, we will not fall back to standard time this year in order to provide a modicum of unchanging stability during the pandemic.
GLOBAL:
There have been 30,071,314 confirmed cases of the virus around the world with Europe posed for another huge surge. There have been 944,887 deaths from the virus globally.
Israel has started a 3-week nationwide lockdown to try to combat the virus.
The BBC took a look at what is going wrong with the testing in the UK.
North Korea has issued shoot-to-kill orders to keep the virus out of the country. (Are people really that desperate to go there?)
Venezuela has mandatory quarantine motels that are like prisons with horrible conditions.
Thousands of Australians are stranded overseas in the face of their government's stringent border controls.
India is second to the USA for most cases in the world, but its leader has not been so widely criticized. The country is on track to overtake the US very soon.
Antarctica is the only continent free of the virus. Can it stay that way?
STATES:
The coronavirus is increasing in 17 states.
Maine checked in with 25 new cases on Thursday.
Massachusetts has had low positivity test rate over the last several days.
New York's Governor Cuomo announced an infection rate below 1% for his state. There were 896 new cases and 3 deaths reported on Thursday.
New Jersey was up 617 new cases and 3 deaths yesterday.
North Carolina was up 1,552 new cases as of Thursday.
Georgia jumped up 1,901 new cases and 170 deaths yesterday.
Florida had 3,255 confirmed new cases and 147 deaths reported Thursday.
Pennsylvania had 933 new cases and 10 deaths reported on Thursday.
Ohio's governor will spell out the guidelines for Halloween sometime today.
Kentucky added 628 new cases and 11 deaths yesterday. Anti-mask and virus restriction protesters marched while the governor's coronavirus rules went through the courts.
Alabama added 574 new cases yesterday.
Wisconsin saw a state record of 2,034 new cases reported on Thursday.
Minnesota has 931 new infections as of yesterday.
There were 918 new cases and 13 deaths reported yesterday in Iowa.
Governor Abbott of Texas is loosening restrictions for restaurants and other businesses in most regions. There were 3,400 new cases and 135 new deaths on Thursday.
Utah had a record number of new cases, 911, yesterday, prompting the governor to speak out.
Clark County, Nevada (aka Home of Las Vegas) can reopen bars starting Sunday. The state had 347 new cases (224 in Clark County) and 12 deaths reported yesterday. Wynn Resorts reports more than 500 of its employees have tested positive.
Washington added 347 new cases on Thursday.
Oregon was up another 215 cases yesterday.
CALIFORNIA:
California is turning a corner with the number of virus infections. Will it last?
Governor Newsom signed a law to protect workers from COVID 19.
California has been removed from the quarantine list from visiting New York, New Jersey or Connecticut.
LOCAL:
The Fresno County Board of Supervisors passed a budget in the face of uncertainty over the pandemic and recent fires.
CARES Act funding is being offered to local farmworkers.
Local restaurants are imploring the governor to allow them to reopen.
VOTE:
An "army" has been enlisted to intimidate voters.
A Republican county commissioner urged Americans to stock pile arms for the coming war (based on the outcome of the election results).
A new report says in-person voting is about as safe as going to the grocery store.
A federal judge has blocked the United States Postal Service from sending out notices with false mail-in ballot information after Colorado sued...and the post office is fighting it.
The Trump administration engaged in a “politically motivated attack” on the Postal Service when it implemented recent changes at the agency, a judge said Thursday when he ordered the changes be blocked.
Because the president's appointee has been deliberately messing with the mails, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court extended the deadline for mail-in ballots.
The National Postal Mail Handlers Union has endorsed Joe Biden (not surprisingly...).
FBI director Christopher Wray defied the Trump Administration and acknowledged that Russia is actively targeting Biden.
Hacking risks for voting machines is a concern in regards to tampering with the results of the election.
Trump's flagrant disregard for science--whether about the coronavirus or about global climate change--has caused something to happen that has never happen in its 175-year history. SCIENTIFIC AMERICAN magazine is endorsing a political candidate for president and they've chose Joe Biden.
Twitter and North Carolina push back on Trump's repeated call to vote twice.
Wisconsin's Supreme Court originally banned mail-in voting , but it decided to keep the Green Party off of the presidential ballot, allowing the ballots to be mailed on time.
Georgia reportedly wrongly removed 200,000 voter registrations.
Ohio rejected a plan to pre-pay postage for mail ballots.
A polling place in Tennessee was plastered with Trump signs until Democrats complained.
Kentucky is warning voters about voting scams arriving via mail and by text.
North Carolina has early voting and is already rejecting more African American voters' ballots than those of white voters.
The Supreme Court of Texas blocked two counties from sending out two million vote-by-mail applications to potential voters.
The Trump campaign is seeking to stop New Jersey's early vote count through a lawsuit.
St. Louis, MO poll workers were told they don't need to wear masks, but to 'act surprised' if voters notice.
More and more, military generals are voicing concerns about Trump.
Rudy Giuliani's daughter is endorsing Biden/Harris over Trump.
Although it had previously said it wouldn't, the University of Georgia will be hosting early voting on its campus.
Trump is apparently unwilling to prepare for his debates against Joe Biden. Mike Pence, however, is busy practicing with former governor of Wisconsin, Scott Walker, filling in as Kamala Harris.
Republicans are running a huge campaign of conspiracy theories, misinformation and outright lies to Spanish speaking citizens in Florida, according to one article.
An article in THE NATION discusses how the Trump team and his supporters are erecting barriers to voting and creating chaos in battleground states all right before our eyes in an effort to steal the election.
Joe Biden's team has apparently already put together a special litigation unit to protect the election.
Here are six ways that your mail-in ballot is protected from fraud.
Trump retweeted more false information about mail-in balloting, saying there would be so much fraud, we may never know the outcome. Twitter fact checked and censored the tweet.
Senate Republicans renounce Trump's claim that election results 'may never be' determined
If Trump wins, will Democrats accept it, even if they think the president cheated? (What do you mean "think"? He is doing everything he can in his power to cheat now...)
What could happen if Trump loses and won't leave? Will he be the GOP nominee in 2024?
The FBI is increasingly concerned about clashes between violent groups before the election.
A Boaters for Trump member says that if the president loses, he’s ‘heading to the White House with the militia’. GEEZ!
Trump and his supporters are going to great lengths to steal this election.
The president is already saying that he plans to negotiate a Constitutionally illegal third term as president because he is 'entitled' to it.
VOTE!!!!!
CREATIVITY:
Here is something fun to do that you can try at home. Google the word "idiot" then click "images". Who is the person shown in the first image? Try it! It's good for a laugh... (Or just click HERE)
Universal Studios sent out coloring pages to promote its JURASSIC WORLD ride:
Here is a new Randy Rainbow:
Here is an at-home teaching service that might save the sanity of parents everywhere:
The political ads keep coming fast and furiously and probably will be through the election. Here are some more recent examples:
Here is a look at super smart Don Trump The Science-ish Guy explaining global climate change. (He sooooo doesn't get it.):
MAIL:
My friend Linda sent this super brief note:
"Drive-by parties in these COVID times, as seen in Lucky Market, Castro Valley, CA.," she said.
My friend Vye in Fresno, CA is having a bad time of things lately. Over Labor Day weekend, she had to flee the Creek Fire in the Sierras. Her week didn't get any better...
"It's been bad days," she said. "My sweet boy, Bertie, had liver failure and we said goodbye yesterday. My heart is in a million pieces. I won't be very chatty.
"But here is the sun from my house right now."
The next day, I heard from Vye again:
"Jesus f***ing Christ," she said. "My sister-in-law's father just died from COVID. He had Alzheimer's, caught COVID in the home he was in, four or five days later he's died."
My friend David in Australia sent me a quick note:
"They are beginning to ease the lockdown," he said. "Now we can do two one-hour exercises a day and our curfew is now 9 pm and not 8 pm. Ha ha ha. But our cases have come down from over 700 a day to 31 today, so we are doing something right."
An acquaintance of mine, Vito, lives in Italy but is from Argentina and was back home visiting recently. He sent this note:
"It’s been bad, but luckily no one around me got sick or die because of the pandemic," he said. "But the situation just made worse some previous issues that been going on here in Argentina. We are locked. We can’t travel anywhere else yet. They have more authority to the police and, of course, they had abused of the power they had been given.
"I came here before the pandemic. For me, it’s been 10 months. I’ve lost this year so far, cause I’ve missed many jobs in Italy. And even when I work here, isn’t same because the value of Argentinian peso its devalued."
I heard from my friend Robin, who, with her wife Skye, had to flee one of the fires in Oregon last week. She also included a photo she sent from someone's Facebook post.
"We are home," she said. "The air is still full of ash. I have been hosing down the garden and house every day.
"The fire is 12 miles from town. They did a great job of making a fire line on the western face of the fire. When we left, if was 7.5 miles from town. The national guard is here now. We are very lucky.
"It's really smoky. Skye had to go out yesterday and got a pounding headache. I think we are at 20% containment, but it hardly makes a difference since both of us are surrounded by fires burning in every direction.
"My yard is so dry. This has really been a learning experience. Where are the locusts? Are they not the next curse?"
The next day, Robin sent this note:
"I was wrong," she said. "It's not locusts. It's flash flood warnings! What a year!"
I had a text from my former co-worker, Jerry, on Wednesday.
"Cheering up your day," he said.
And he did--in a BIG way. Included with his note was a picture of four people I miss very much---some of my old co-workers from the hospital; Jerry, Carla, Erica, and Dena.
SHIRLEY:
Shirley was staying in her box way too much. Despite the heat and the smoky air from the fires, she wasn't eating and wasn't drinking in her box. So, on Monday I put her out.
She just sat there--not moving. She wouldn't eat.
I left her out there while I ran some errands, but about two hours later when I got home, she was at the door wanting in. Okay...
I put her out again Tuesday. She just sat on the patio for the longest time. I put food in front of her, but again she ignored it. She eventually crawled under a shrub...but that was it. She was at the door a little while later wanting in.
She decided to go to the opposite of the fridge again, instead of her box. She headed under the bar stools...and got stuck. I moved it off of her.
She walked through the bushes near the patio, walked down by the gate and the garbage cans, down along the fence in the flower bed. She stopped to drink from a puddle left by the sprinklers, then walked across the lawn and further into the back yard.
She stayed out there about 6 hours or so. There were a couple of times when I thought she had wanted in and I had missed her. I called to her, but she ignored me and kept toodling around. Finally, she knocked over a tiki torch I had leaning against the house. I heard that and went to investigate. She was by a bottle of tiki torch fuel. I called to her and she made a U-turn and came in.
She had such a big day outside on Wednesday, I was merciful and let her sleep all day Thursday. She didn't eat on Wednesday. I am a little worried she is trying to hibernate already. It's way too early. I don't want her waking up in December. Tomorrow I'll put her out again. Maybe she'll eat this time. We will see...
ME:
It's been a pretty uneventful week. (So what else is new?)
On Monday, I woke up crazy early (not on purpose). I got myself together and went and had some labs drawn at a Quest. Yikes! After years of getting my labs done at the hospital for $15, I had to pay $85...and that wasn't even for all of the labs. There were two neuro labs that they didn't do because it was going to cost me more than $3,000 out of pocket. EEK! That was not happening...
On the way home, I took a quick spin through a Spirit Halloween store. It seems kind of pointless this year. Oh well.
That afternoon, I received a whole slew of tiki-themed postcards from my former co-worker, Mike. More of my "early retirement" gift, I suppose. How kind of him.
On Wednesday, I went to my neurologist's. I was having an EMG (nerve conduction study). I'd had them before---three other times. The tech did the first part, sending shocks (of increasing intensity) through various parts of my feet and legs.
The neurologist came in to do the second part. Instead of an electrode gun, he stuck needles into my muscles and zapped me. AHHHHH!
The plan is still the same. I have my next EMG (upper body) on Monday. After that, i'll be scheduled to a spinal puncture to get some CSF and then he should be able to diagnose me. He is still thinking along the lines of CIDP (Chronic Inflammatory Demylinating Polyneuropathy).
I contacted my insurance carrier. Even though I had my job terminated, I am still on the COBRA version of my insurance. So, I have to do everything the same as I would before...so I have to go back to the hospital and get my labs done there---even though it is a children's hospital. But $15 vs $3,000+ ?? Okay--no problem-O! I need to ask about the spinal fluid. How can I get the hospital to do the labs if he pulls the CSF (cerebral spinal fluid)? Will they let me deliver it? Hmm.
In other crappy news, I have not gotten a disability check since August 27. As has happened in the past, they've skipped a few days and moved the check to a Monday. But last Monday there was nothing again. Because of the pandemic, there are millions of people out of work--so calling is impossible. There is a way to send a brief message---which I did on Monday. I got a message that I needed to wait up to a week for a reply. Last night, I got a note saying that my disability insurance was on hold because I also had an unemployment claim. HUH? I have no unemployment claim with them. That must be a mistake or some sort of fraud. I sent another note explaining this--but it will be several days until I hear back. ARGH!
On Tuesday, I am flying (EEEEK!) to Washington to see my family (even if they'll be socially distant). I don't know how well I will be able to continue these blogs while away...but it is my intention to try. We will see how it goes. Stay tuned...
Stay SAFE! Stay HEALTHY! Stay ALIVE!
CHEERS!
Continue to the next part HERE.
Comments