Doctor to DeMentis: “Stop the nonsense”: https://www.cnn.com/videos/health/2022/01/01/ron-desantis-covid-19-natural-infection-nr-vpx.cnn . The GOP attachment onto natural immunity as a rationale not to get vaccinated reflects more anti-science lunacy. Conservatives should realize that when your brain trust involves people like Ron DeMentis and Ron Johnson, the vault is empty: https://www.ronjohnson.senate.gov/2021/9/sen-johnson-it-is-shocking-that-fauci-does-not-have-a-firm-grasp-on-the-effectiveness-of-natural-immunity .
2.49 million weekly US COVID cases: https://www.aol.com/news/us-surpasses-2m-cases-one-110020717.html . This figure has been widely reported at “exceeded 2 million”. But the number was actually just short of 2.5 million.
WSJ: Risks of COVID antiviral pills: https://www.wsj.com/articles/new-covid-19-pills-carry-risks-what-patients-should-know-11641033002 .
A poor history of vaccine skepticism: https://www.aol.com/news/skeptics-doubted-vaccines-long-covid-100039376.html . Good grief. Obviously, science and medical knowledge have changed tremendously since Benjamin Franklin’s time. Back then, doctors put leeches on people (including George Washington) to try to get the bad blood out of their system. We now understand DNA, which made COVID mRNA vaccines possible. So the skepticism today reflects a depth of ignorance unmatched in history.
Hundreds of US health officials forced out: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/politics-news/sacrificial-lamb-pandemic-politics-force-out-hundreds-public-health-officials-n1286268 . What is NBC talking about? “Pandemic politics” does not accurately capture the situation. Followers of the Big Lie are making death threats against these officials for doing their jobs. “Pandemic terrorism” would be a more apt descriptor.
United offers triple pay to pilots as flight chaos continues: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/united-airlines-offers-triple-pay-pilots-travel-chaos-rcna10553 . Note that the triple pay runs through January 29. So apparently United anticipates a lot of problems for the next 4 weeks. More: https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2022/01/01/1069647633/covid-us-travel-flights-canceled-colleges .
WSJ: Europe faces record COVID cases: https://www.wsj.com/articles/europe-fights-record-covid-19-cases-looks-ahead-to-reopenings-11641051922 .
Welcome to 2022: https://apnews.com/article/joe-biden-ap-top-news-russia-europe-wilmington-74b613d04cc6d5194cf52c927a9d744e . Putin works to reestablish Russia’s control of countries in the former Soviet Union. This problem will not just go away. WSJ: More: https://www.wsj.com/articles/russia-ukraine-conflict-lies-in-the-bones-of-an-11th-century-prince-11641052801 . Ahh, it is so quintessentially Wall Street Journal to bring us breaking news from the 11th century. The article involves Prince Yaroslav the Wise, whose remains may have been taken to the US after World War II: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yaroslav_the_Wise . However, locating these remains will not resolve this conflict.
Currently, Americans cannot renounce US citizenship: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/dec/31/americans-seeking-renounce-citizenship-stuck . The article describes the situation as “Kafkaesque”. However, this affects up to 30,000 Americans abroad, preventing some from applying for citizenship in their new country of residence.
January 6 committee preparing to go public: https://apnews.com/article/steve-bannon-elections-donald-trump-election-2020-congress-bab0144274d996171b7160e051b29a75 . So Orange Julius should be hearing footsteps.
Webb telescope (probably) completes initial deployment steps: https://www.cbsnews.com/news/nasa-begins-unfurling-james-webb-telescopes-critical-sunshade/ . NASA’s incredible exploratory work goes on. We sometimes forget that Hubble made possible a much deeper understanding of our universe. But also, humanity’s modern understanding of the universe comes from Einstein and his series of thought experiments about light, space and time.