5 States: 44% of Cases

Posted on by Thor

CNN reported that five states account for 44% of the COVID-19 cases in the past week according to data from Johns Hopkins University. New York, Michigan, Florida, Pennsylvania and New Jersey had more than 196,400 of the country’s 453,360 cases reported in the last week, according to data available the morning of April 7. 2021.

Michigan has been hit especially hard with 6,600 cases a day over a week as opposed to 1,350 daily cases five weeks ago. The highly contagious and deadly B.1.1.7 variant of the COVID virus has helped cause the spike in cases. People are also experiencing pandemic fatigue and are taking fewer precautions giving the virus plenty of opportunity to spread.

The B.1.1.7, first identified in the UK, is now the most common strain of coronavirus in the United States, CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said April 7, 2021.

With more-transmissible variants adding up, surges like Michigan’s may soon be seen more widely, even though vaccination rates have increased nationally, epidemiologist Dr. Michael Osterholm said. The CDC says more than 16,200 cases of the B.1.1.7 variant have been confirmed in surveillance testing in the US, and B.1.1.7 has been found in every state. This number does not represent the total number of such cases circulating in the United States, but rather only those found by analyzing samples. Florida has more that 3000 confirmed cases of the B.1.1.7 UK variant, more than any other state.

The US has averaged 774 Covid-19 deaths a day over the last week. According to the latest CDC data, 19.4% of the total US population was fully vaccinated as of the morning of April 7, 2021; and 57.4% of people age 65 and older are fully vaccinated. But the US has a long way to go before reaching herd immunity. Dr. Anthony Fauci has estimated 70%-85% of the population needs to become immune.

Future of Cruising

Posted on by Thor

There had been at least 3,689 COVID-19 or coronavirus-like illness cases on cruise ships in U.S. waters, “in addition to at least 41 reported deaths,” the CDC said last October 2020. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that all people avoid travel on cruise ships, including river cruises, worldwide. That’s because the chance of getting COVID-19 on cruise ships is high, since the virus appears to spread more easily between people in close quarters aboard ships.

Florida Governor Ron DeathSantis (R) is threatening to sue the federal government if the CDC doesn’t allow cruises to restart by the summer. The cruise industry is worth billions of dollars for the state’s economy, according to the Associated Press (AP).

University of Florida epidemiologist Cindy Prins told AP it’s “too early” for cruises to resume, given the higher risk of the virus spreading among passengers mingling on ships for long periods. She noted that “testing and symptom screening are not perfect methods of prevention.” Prins added companies would have to limit passenger numbers, with crews required to show they’re fully vaccinated in order to lower the risk of the virus spreading — something DeathSantis opposes, and no industry leader addressed. DeathSantis also opposed COVID-19 vaccine passports.

Florida became one of the world’s epicenters for the virus last July, forcing DeathSantis to pause the state’s first round of reopening. He fully lifted restrictions on restaurants last September, as part of a commitment to reopen the economy, saying “we’re not closing anything going forward.” He never set up a statewide mandate to wear masks.

Major U.S. cruise lines are accepting bookings for June 2021 trips out of Florida ports, a Spectrum News review has found. The bookings come as Norwegian Cruise Line this month canceled all cruises through June 2021. “The timing for re-start in the U.S. continues to be uncertain,” On April 6, 2021 Carnival said in a statement to Spectrum News. On April 6, 20211, Carnival Cruise extended its pause of all operations out of U.S. ports through June 30, 2021.

COVID-19 Double Mutant

Posted on by Thor

A new COVID-19 variant known as “Double Mutant” is responsible for a surge in coronavirus cases in a a region of India that includes Mumbai. The existence of the newly discovered variant was first disclosed by India’s government on March 24, 2021. It is called a double mutant because it contains two mutations of the COVID-19 virus.

One day late, on March 25, 2021 one case of the Double Mutant was found in the San Francisco Bay area in California.

Dr. Benjamin Pinsky, a Stanford doctor, said, that this double mutation has a mutation in the spike protein which is found in the California variant and also a mutation that is found in the South African and Brazil variants.  “We do have some information on experiments on the individual mutations (California, Brazil, South African) suggesting that antibodies will be less able to neutralize this India variant.” Pinsky said. “So this rapid spread across the globe is pretty impressive, and also a bit concerning.”

The city of Manaus in Brazil was one of the hardest hit in the world with a conventional strain of the coronavirus, and it now there’s a lot of substantial reinfection with the new Brazilian variant, Dr. Stefano Bertozzi, professor of health policy and dean emeritus of the UC Berkeley School of Public Health, said at a UC San Francisco forum last month.

Dr. Benjamin Pinsky said, “Vaccines may be slightly less effective in preventing moderate disease or moderate illness with this particular variant, but the vaccines are still very effective and people should get vaccinated as soon as possible.” “We don’t know how those two mutations behave when they’re paired together.”

The emergence of the new variant underscores how important it will be to quickly vaccinate as many people as possible. The only way to stop the proliferation of mutations is to stop the spread of the virus through vaccines. If you are vaccinated, the immunity produced is believed to be better than immunity produced by surviving COVID-19. If you are vaccinated an get infected by one of these new variants then the result wold be a mild to moderate illness, likely not ressulting in hospitalization or death.

 

Sold Out Superspreader

Posted on by Thor

Globe Death Field in Arlington Texas will be the first Major League Baseball stadium to reopen at full capacity – roughly 40,000 seats – since the pandemic began. This decision was made one month after Texas Governor Greg Abbott ended the state’s mask mandate and insisted that businesses to reopen fully.

Everything is big in Texas including stupid. Half hearted measures will be in place for safety, like a gentle request that fans should wear masks except for while eating, guzzling beer and yelling. Over 38,000 fans packed the stands on opening day April 5, 2021.

“We made a commitment to everybody [season ticket holders] that they could hold tickets if we would allow them for the proper Opening Day,” executive vice president and chief revenue and marketing officer Joe Januszewski told MLB.com. “We’re going to honor that, so in order to do that, obviously we would be at a full capacity.”

When asked about the full capacity decision, President Joe Biden said, “They should listen to Dr. Fauci, the scientists and the experts. But I think it’s not responsible.” Biden warned about potential surges, citing the jumps in European nations that have reopened, and reiterated that vaccinations need to increase before businesses can reopen fully. “We have to get to the point where enough people have taken the vaccine, so we diminish the possibility for it to spread,” he said.

Texas ranked 47 out of all 50 states in percentage of the population to receive at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine. “I worry we’re in for the perfect storm. We’re lifting restrictions, the B.1.1.7 variant is here in a big way, and we’re lagging behind on vaccinations. None of that is good news,” said Dr. Peter Hotez, the Dean of Baylor College of Medicine. “We’re going to be in a much better shape in a couple of months from now. I don’t quite understand the urgency to lift restrictions.”

Ivonne Galanes

Posted on by Thor

Ivonne Galanes grew up in Puerto Rico and always wanted to be an artist.  She attended Pratt Institute in NYC. She loved the museums in NYC, the Frick Collection, MOMA, the met. You had to take two days to see the Met. Every chance she got she would take a subway and go to the Met. At Pratt she studied anatomy. A class went tot he Columbia School of Medicine. One cadaver had all the skin stripped off  so you could see all the muscles. The body was from a Hollywood actor from a Hercules movie. She studied at Pratt for two years and went back to Puerto Rico after getting sick. The school shut off the heat in the winter to save money. Years alter she went to an atelier in San Juan and she was always painting.

Her father was an art director and she followed in his footsteps. After college her day job was always in an advertising agency. She would paint at night and weekends. She made a name for herself. She started as a graphic designer. This was before computers. You had to know how to draw. Her father taught her since she was a little girl. Her training started way before college. She could sketch up an idea during the course of a meeting with clients.

Ivonne loves science. Her feet might be on the ground but her head is in the stars. That is where the creative ideas come from. Early in her career colors in her painting were dark but after she got divorced the colors became more vibrant.

She had a friend who was at Pulse Nightclub on the night of the shooting that killed 49 and he was one of the survivors. She did a painting called Angel of Healing. The wings were a rainbow of colors. The angel had his hand on his heart. The friend who survived fell in love with the painting and he bought it. Ideas for paintings are in the air and she just grabs them. If she tries to sit down and think about an idea it will not happen. It is random. She picks up the signal.

 

Second COVID-19 Vaccine Shots

Posted on by Thor

Once again Pam and I got up a 5AM to drive to the Valencia College campus FEMA site to get our second dose of the Pfizer vaccine. Since this was our second dose we were directed to a line that went straight inside the tents essentially bypassing several registration tents that e waited in the first time around.

We gave our drivers licenses and vaccination cards to a worker and she entered the information into her phone which was hooked up to a tiny printer. She printed out a sticky label that I was to wear though the remaining process. As we went to the next tent another helper checked my label against the drivers license and I was told that my last name had been misspelled. I had to go back to get the information changed.

Ultimately we ended up in a holding tent with multiple switchbacks waiting to enter the tent here shots were administered. The site was officially to open at 7AM and there were only minutes before we would be let inside. I decided there wasn’t enough time to sketch all the people waiting. But the minutes dragged on and 7AM became 7:15 and onward.

A woman walked her way backwards in the line and kept asking “Are you Janet?” Who was Janet, and was she the cause for the hold up? Dammit Janet. It turned out she wasn’t looking for Janet, she was asking if people were Spanish. No one who spoke only Spanish would likely respond to someone asking asking questions in English. Regardless several others walked back through the line asking the same question. Then someone started shouting the question loudly from the sidelines. Finally a National Guardsman shouted the question in Spanish and several hands went up. This was unsettling. Something was up. Then everyone was given pens. The computer system had gone down and we had to fill out a Vaccine Screening and Consent form.

I immediately filled out my form incorrectly by putting my first name in the last name field. Then came a series of questions which required me to check NO…

Are you experiencing fever, chills, cough, soreness of breath, difficulty breathing, fatigue, muscle of body aches, headache, loss of taste or smell, sore throat, congestion or runny nose, nausea, vomiting, or diarrhea? Well I always have a headache, and allergies have been really bad this year so I have had a cough and runny nose. I checked NO.

Have you tested positive for COVID-19? NO

Have you had a serious reaction to a previous dose of vaccine. Well I got a headache and aches. NO

Have you had any vaccinations in the last 14 days. How long ago was the first dose I got? I don’t know. NO

Have you had any COVID-19 antibody therapy in the last 90 days? NO

Have you received a previous dose of the COVID-19 vaccine? NO. Oh wait, YES! Hell I already checked the box wrong! OK cross it out and put a big circle in the YES column. But everything else had been filled out with check marks. Would the one circle on the page cause some alarm?

The line started to move as I was still filling out the form. I was directed to seat number 8 and I took off my jacket and sweat shirt. Pam sat diagonally across from me. The sweatshirt got stuck on my baseball cap and mask. I couldn’t just remove the cap since the mask was tied over it. I struggled with my head wedged in the hoodie for what seemed an eternity and finally pulled the sweatshirt over my big head ripping off both my cap and mask. Mortified, I quickly re-masked. I don’t think anyone noticed. I made sure my sticker was on top of my pile of folded clothes. It was chilly outside. The National Guard officer scanned my sticker and had me roll up my sleeve. Before I had time to wince, the shot was in and I was getting my sweatshirt back on. No one ever took my form. I guess the computer system was back online.

After Pam and I both got our shots, we were directed to a tent where we had to wait for 30 minutes to be sure there were no severe reactions. This is when I finally got my sketchbook out and sketched the guy in front of us as he waited for the moment he could return to life as normal. I got the VAX!!! The next day I have a headache and feel achy but that means the vaccine is working. Soon life can return to a new normal though I will still wear my mask, social distance and wash hands often until research proves I can not infect others.

COVID-19 Deaths Under Counted in Florida

Posted on by Thor

A study published by The American Journal of Public Health this month says that Florida has under reported its coronavirus deaths by thousands of cases. The report stated that the impact of the pandemic in Florida “is significantly greater than the official COVID-19 data suggest.”

Researchers came to their conclusions by comparing the estimated deaths in the state from March to September and compared that figure to the actual number of recorded deaths, or the “excess deaths.”

Moosa Tatar, public health economist at the University of Utah and lead researcher of the study said, “I am sure that COVID-19 is responsible for most of these excess deaths.” According to Tatar’s study, nearly 5,000 deaths should have been included among the listed COVID-19 fatalities, but were instead attributed to other causes.

In May 2020, Rebekah Jones, a data scientist who helped create the state’s Covid-19 data dashboard, was fired from her role running a COVID-19 dashboard for the Florida Department of Health. Jones claims she was fired after refusing to falsify state Covid-19 data. Jones has harshly criticized Florida Governor Ron DeSantis‘ handling of the pandemic and filed a whistleblower complaint. She was fired and later her home was raided by police who took all her computer equipment. She has been running her own dashboard to keep track of Florida’s COVId-19 statistics. Her dashboard was back online in a few days when donors helped her get a new computer.

Governor DeathSantis has been less than forthcoming in releasing data to keep the public informed about the pandemic. He has consistently withheld information until media outlets sue the state to get the information released. Florida state Rep. Anna Eskamani said, “The governor does have a habit of picking the most positive numbers and ignoring the bad numbers. He hand selects data to fit a narrative rather than acknowledge the reality for people.” She said, “Access to even the basic tools to make decisions doesn’t seem like a priority for the governor.”

An investigation by the South Florida Sun Sentinel published in December found that the DeSantis administration worked to minimize bad news about the pandemic and spread misinformation, with some officials withholding crucial data about the spread of the virus.

According to the CDC, Florida has confirmed more than 33,000 deaths due to COVID-19 and more than 2 million cases of the coronavirus. Some 9.4 million coronavirus vaccine doses have been administered in the state. Florida has the fourth-highest number of COVID-19 deaths in the country, according to the Johns Hopkins University website that tracks national and international data.

QAnon Zoom

Posted on by Thor

On social media during lockdown I was amazed to discover how many “Friends” who I thought were smart, sentient, reasoning individuals were actually QAnon conspiracy theorists. The art work I have been creating would ignite their remaining brain waves, turning them in to vicious trolls.

My Facebook accounts have been hacked and shut down so I haven’t been following the insanity online as much this past month. The promise of a vaccine leaves me feeling like I might soon wake from a year long coma. People seem to have too much time on their hands and with no creative outlet they turn into mindless zombies who prefer conspiracy theories to science.

Q is a fictional mysterious figure whose cryptic, evidence-free posts  are accepted by many as gospel. They promote the idea that there is a satanic cabal of pedophiles that runs rampant in government and Hollywood. The former president, was supposed to expose and defeat that cabal. Instead he lost the election and has been reduced to crashing wedding parties at Mar-a-Lago to spread his lies.

After the Jan. 6, 2021 attack on the U.S. Capitol, the social media platforms that had long allowed the falsehoods to spread like wildfire — namely Twitter, Facebook and YouTube — got more aggressive in cracking down on accounts promoting QAnon. Hollywood. QAnon has continued to survive in the darker corners of the Internet. In these fringes white supremacist and neo-Nazi groups continue to flourish.

QAnon podcasts are available through Apple and Google. There is big money to be made from the mindless. Fox News host Tucker Carlson recently defended QAnon adherents. QAnon has even gained a foothold in the halls of Congress, where two Republican members have openly supported some of the movement’s baseless ideas. The zombies are roaming the halls of the capitol long after the insurrection.

India Godman: Pulse Survivor

Posted on by Thor

India Godman is a wife with two step children. Her son Chris West was also a survivor on the night of the Pulse shooting where 49 people lost their lives. Chris shot video inside the club just moments before the shooting started.

On that night they were in the VIP section which was close to the outdoor porch. Around 11:45 she was talking to Neema Bahrami  who ran events at Pulse. Then friends walked in. She noticed two guys at the edge of the VIP section and they were looking at her group. They looked like they were up to no good. Were they looking at their jewelry? On reflection she believes that one man was Omar Mateen wearing black. In passing, he asked if this was always a gay bar.

Last call for drinks was around 2:02AM. India was standing near the stripper pole. Mateen walked to the back of the club.

Then they heard the loud Brata Ta Ta Ta Ta Ta. The screaming started and the tables shook. She could taste the gun powder. “Get down!” “Get the F#ch out!”  They ran towards the porch. The door to get off the patio was locked, her friend kicked it in. She looked to her right and saw the guy shooting everybody and people dropped. 10-12 people ran out. The shooting turned towards the bathroom. She felt an impact on her leg and she fell to the floor. Thankfully she wasn’t shot. She feared a head shot. People who had been under chairs and tables ran out.

When she was outside she started shooting video on her phone. She and her son and friends ran towards the fire department. She wondered why the fire department wasn’t coming out. Then the police arrived and people who had been shot were taken to Orlando Health a few blocks north. Survivors were ordered behind Einstein Beagles. She continued recording. Shots seemed to come from everywhere. They were moved to the 7-11. They watched as bodies were being removed. Some were dead and other were struggling to survive.

She managed to get to her car and drive away. Is this truly the county the United States wants to be?

Impending Doom

Posted on by Thor

New CDC Chief Rochelle P. Walensky warned on March 29, 2021 of her ‘Impending Doom‘ as Covid-19 Cases Rise. The following is a summery of her statement…

“Yesterday, we in America surpassed 30 million cases of COVID-19. CDC’s recent data shows that the 7 day average of new cases is slightly less than 60,000 new cases a day. This is a 10% increase compared to the prior 7 day period. Hospitalizations have also increased. Admissions rose from 4600 to 4800 a day compared to the prior seven day period. And deaths, that typically lag behind cases and hospitalizations, have started to rise, increasing 3% to about 1000 deaths a day.”

“When I fist started at CDC about two months ago, I made a promise to you. I would tell you the truth even if it is not the news you wanted to hear. Now is one of those times when I have to share the truth, and I have to hope and trust that you will listen.”

“I am going to pause here, I am going to loose the script and I am going to reflect on the recurring feeling I have of impending doom. We have so much to look forward to. So much promise and potential of where we are. And so much reason for hope. But right now I am scared. I know what it is like as a physician to stand in that patient room, gowned, gloved, masked, shielded and to know you will be the last person to touch someone’s loved one, because their loved ones could not be there. I know what it is like when you are the health care provider and you are worried that you do not have the resources to take care of the patient in front of you. I know that feeling of nausea when you read the crisis standards of care, and you wonder if there are going to be enough ventilators to go around, and who is going to make that choice. I know what it is like to pull up to your hospital every day and see the extra morgue sitting outside.”

“So I am speaking today not only as your CDC Director, but as a wife, as a mother, as a daughter, to ask you to hold on just a little while longer. I so badly want to be done, I know you all want to so badly be done, we are almost there but not quite yet. And so I am asking you to just hold on a little longer, to get vaccinated when you can, so that all of those people that we all love, will still be here when this pandemic ends.”