WSJ: Vaccine race update: https://www.wsj.com/articles/covid-19-vaccines-whats-coming-and-when-11598882964 . This article still has the ending table which is not appropriately updated; here is the prior article.
WSJ: More on the J&J vaccine: https://www.wsj.com/articles/johnson-johnsons-covid-19-vaccine-produced-immune-response-in-earlier-stage-study-11601061618 .
Florida to fully re-open: https://www.miamiherald.com/news/coronavirus/article246006835.html . Welcome to “God’s waiting room”. This sure looks like political suicide for DeSantis, assuming there are voters left after this.
WSJ: Global round-up: https://www.wsj.com/articles/coronavirus-latest-updates-092520-11601019557 .
WSJ: Hospital cyberattacks raise alarms: https://www.wsj.com/articles/brussels-report-governments-concerns-rise-about-pandemic-cyberattacks-on-health-care-11601026200 .
WSJ: Herd immunity in Americans under 10% in July: https://www.wsj.com/articles/coronavirus-antibodies-found-in-small-portion-of-americans-study-says-11601073002 .
WSJ: How South Korea managed COVID-19 effectively: https://www.wsj.com/articles/lessons-from-south-korea-on-how-to-manage-covid-11601044329 . Another in WSJ’s ongoing series on the coronavirus. The short answer to effective management of COVID-19, as everyone should know, is to manage public health crises according to the science and to respond rapidly.
As to differences with South Korea, the WSJ comparison to Indiana is off the mark. The key aspect of South Korea is its population density of 527 people per square kilometer. The densest US state is New Jersey at 467 people per square kilometer. Furthermore, as 70% of South Korea is mountainous, its effective density is about 3 times the 527 figure. The comparison to New Jersey quickly shows the truly effective management of COVID-19, a highly contagious disease, in South Korea.
Centrally, if you respond quickly enough to effectively contact trace, test and isolate, virtually all the death and destruction the US has experienced would be avoided. The key US failure is our ongoing failure to respond, particularly in regard to producing and distributing adequate testing. Our contact tracing is also a failure, but that cannot even be addressed without adequate testing. A comprehensive failure of this magnitude is the responsibility of national leadership, or more accurately the total lack of responsible national leadership.
WSJ: One of the worst COVID-19 days: https://www.wsj.com/articles/in-a-year-of-bad-days-this-was-one-of-the-worst-11601057449 . Another in the WSJ series, this is a chronicle of individual stories from April 29, 2020.
WSJ: Trump’s Medicare drug cards covered by Medicare trust fund: https://www.wsj.com/articles/trumps-proposed-drug-discount-cards-will-be-funded-by-a-medicare-trust-fund-11601040498 . This makes exactly as much sense as it did yesterday. It’s quite the stretch to think a benefit to 33 million people is a demonstration project.
Governors call for investigation of Trump COVID-19 response: https://www.usnews.com/news/politics/articles/2020-09-24/andrew-cuomo-gretchen-whitmer-call-for-congressional-investigation-into-trumps-coronavirus-response?src=usn_nl_coronavirus .
Three arrested at Idaho church singing event for flaunting mask order: https://apnews.com/article/virus-outbreak-arrests-moscow-archive-idaho-493cfd970eda54a57b8bc6ebb7f5d5f2 . (A) The American educational system is failing. (B) Well, it is Moscow, right?
WSJ: COVID-19 muddies school schedules; kids show up on the wrong day: https://www.wsj.com/articles/children-show-up-for-school-on-wrong-day-and-its-because-of-covid-19-11600945201 .
WSJ: Bigger government loans for American Airlines: https://www.wsj.com/articles/american-secures-larger-government-loan-after-rivals-reject-cash-11601070734 .
WSJ: UK pandemic etiquette: Rule of 6 is “awkward”: https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-k-s-rule-of-six-covid-rule-poses-etiquette-problems-its-just-incredibly-awkward-11601043995 . Well, killing your guests can be awkward, too.
WSJ: UK may participate in vaccine challenge trials: https://apnews.com/article/virus-outbreak-archive-pandemics-9bf3dbbc4e563385b0937b4b2d7865b8 .
WSJ: Opioid lawsuits drive Mallinckrodt to bankruptcy: https://www.wsj.com/articles/drugmaker-mallinckrodt-nears-bankruptcy-filing-over-opioid-lawsuits-11601062672 . It is reasonable to ask exactly who won with this drug.
WSJ: Judge rules in favor of accuracy: https://www.wsj.com/articles/federal-judge-says-2020-census-must-continue-for-another-month-11601034711 . The Trump administration is expected to appeal, apparently based on divine right to bias the Census.
CIA filters information on Russia to keep Trump calm: https://www.politico.com/news/2020/09/23/cia-russia-intelligence-white-house-420351 . Yikes!
WSJ: Judge rules in favor of rules: https://www.wsj.com/articles/judges-removes-trump-public-lands-boss-for-serving-unlawfully-11601081738 . Rules? Who knew?
The Competitive Health Insurance Reform Act of 2020 passed the US House on September 21 (Monday). The bill is not expected to proceed in the Senate. https://www.benefitspro.com/2020/09/25/houses-competitive-health-insurance-reform-act-takes-aim-at-price-gouging/?slreturn=20200825132145 . This is an interesting follow-on to yesterday’s Blues’ blues news.
WSJ: Social Security’s finances creep into public’s radar: https://www.wsj.com/articles/trump-and-biden-trade-barbs-on-social-security-but-avoid-substance-11601026202 . The weak link here would seem to be Trump’s fixation on cutting the payroll tax. Will the politicians be able to spin that away?
WSJ: California’s electrifying goal: https://www.wsj.com/articles/california-wants-cars-to-run-on-electricity-its-going-to-need-a-much-bigger-grid-11601036583 . Two points: (1) Wildfires created by the existing grid point to the critical need to upgrade (not just harden) the state’s electrical grid. (2) California has to hope the rest of the country follows it, otherwise after 2035 you can’t drive your new car outside of California.
WSJ: California’s cleaning goals: https://www.wsj.com/articles/cloroxs-new-ceo-is-racing-to-keep-wipes-on-store-shelves-11601041820 . Also not in new products: injectables.
WSJ: Boeing board comes under fire: https://www.wsj.com/articles/boeing-board-accused-in-lawsuit-of-lax-oversight-during-737-max-crisis-11601054531 .
WSJ: China mulls TikTok deal: https://www.wsj.com/articles/beijing-frets-over-losing-control-of-tiktok-as-it-debates-apps-fate-11601044211 . Right. Americans will own the company but the code will remain secret. How does that solve the alleged central concern, that the code allows improper data collection on Americans by the Chinese? I still don’t see any incentive for the Chinese to resolve this before the US elections.
WSJ: Synthetic dollars: https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-the-worlds-dullest-market-quietly-created-a-synthetic-dollar-empire-11601031401 . This is a complex topic. Dollar-yen swaps are a way of hedging against currency risk. This article describes how the Japanese bond market has been used to facilitate this hedging. Interestingly, China is a major player (in this context, FX means Foreign Exchange). China is 3rd, just behind France and well behind the lead player, the UK.
WSJ: European drug stocks dominate market capitalization: https://www.wsj.com/articles/a-bet-on-europe-is-a-bet-on-drugs-against-tech-11601024897 . An interesting view of where Europe makes its money.
WSJ: Pandemic cripples South Africa: https://www.wsj.com/articles/south-africas-promise-of-racial-equality-falters-under-pandemic-11601031600 . A troubling situation on so many levels.
WSJ: More bad news for South Africa: https://www.wsj.com/articles/for-engagement-rings-are-natural-diamonds-on-the-way-out-11601045092 . This doesn’t sound like good news for those diamond coins, either.
WSJ opines, incorrectly, on “filibuster”: https://www.wsj.com/articles/filibuster-a-pirating-maneuver-that-sailed-into-the-senate-11601039960 . “Renegade adventurers” is literally a whitewash of “filibuster”. “Manifest destiny” may be seen as a race between the North and the South to spread their cultures westward. The Mexican-American War was the South’s opportunity to seize Texas and create a new slave state. California was the next big agricultural target for the South. However, the gold rush in 1849 created population dominance in Northern California leading to California’s admission as a free state.
From here, the South’s eyes turned … South. William Walker received financial backing for an attempt to seize Sonora. While that failed, he was able to seize Baja California, declaring a Republic of Lower California, ruled under the laws of Louisiana (in other words, slavery). The Republic lasted only from November 3, 1853 to January 21, 1854. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Republic_of_Baja_California .
Walker was not finished, invading Nicaragua in 1855 and taking control of the country on October 13 (The Filibuster War). The US recognized Walker’s government on May 20, 1856. Walker declared himself president, reinstated slavery and made English the official language. Other Central American countries united to drive Walker out in 1857. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Filibuster_War .
Note to Wall Street Journal: You can’t whitewash the stink of slavery out of American history in general or filibuster in particular.
WSJ’s “Saturday Essay”: Tortured opinion masquerading as history: https://www.wsj.com/articles/why-we-fight-so-ferociously-over-the-supreme-court-11601045891 . So much to say, but I will limit to 3 points: (1) Earl Warren’s mastery was to produce a string of unanimous opinions – if you don’t like the Warren Court, you don’t like the Court. (2) Douglas’ formulation of penumbras falls under the concept of a living Constitution, which is the only approach that makes sense for a governing document that’s over 200 years old. Scalia’s concept of a dead Constitution is intellectually ridiculous. (3) Packing the Court with mini-Scalia’s is the real crime, and has led to the nose-counting which is destroying the Court.
WSJ: Trump continues “voter fraud” fantasies: https://www.wsj.com/articles/trump-seizes-on-handful-of-allegedly-discarded-ballots-in-pennsylvania-11601059996 . The actual explanation of course makes no difference.
WSJ: Alabama teaches football economics: https://www.wsj.com/articles/bama-fans-learn-about-supply-demand-and-covid-11601044484 . Um, a “mixed marriage” in Alabama is … an Alabama fan and an Auburn fan? Seriously, WSJ, how tone-deaf are you?