Good Monday morning, CivMixers.
The best thing about a short month like February is how fast it flies by. Spring will be here before you know it – just 26 more days!
There’s also reason to be cautiously optimistic about the coronavirus pandemic.
Though the number of deaths has hit an alarming milestone (500,000, more than any other country and more than the number who died on the battlefields in World War I, World War II and the Vietnam War combined), the rate of new infections is dropping fast.
A Johns Hopkins professor and surgeon made international news when he predicted the pandemic would be “mostly gone” by April, and Americans could resume “normal life.” (Whatever THAT is).
Other public health experts – most notably, Dr. Anthony Fauci, as well as the Biden administration – were quick to sound a note of caution, saying that we could be wearing masks well in 2022, and that – especially due to the rise in new and more infectious virus variants – it could actually be months before a sense of normalcy returns.
President Joe Biden and first lady Jill Biden plan to mark the 500,000th American death from Covid-19 with a candlelighting ceremony at the White House today that will include Vice President Kamala Harris and her husband Doug Emhoff.
For the moment, we have to continue to soldier on, wearing masks, keeping a safe, six-foot distance from those outside our pods, and paying attention to hand hygiene.
A number of people in my life – including my parents, who are well over 70 – have received the vaccine. I am happy for them, and incredibly relieved that they were able to get appointments and keep them. But I am also a little jealous, I’m not going to lie.
Being under 50 (just a hair) and in good physical condition with no underlying health conditions, thank goodness, suddenly seems like something to be denigrated instead of celebrated, which is a very odd position to be in.
On a completely different note, but very interesting (to me, anyway), today’s Google doodle celebrates the 145th birthday of writer, musician, teacher, composer, and suffragist Zitkala-Ša, who was a member of the Yankton Sioux Tribe of South Dakota (Ihanktonwan Dakota Oyate or “People of the End Village”).
Also known as Gertrude Simmons, Zitkala-Ša left her reservation at the age of eight to attend a missionary boarding school where her hair was cut against her will, she was forbidden to speak her Lakota/Lakȟótiyapi language, and she was forced to practice a religion in which she didn’t believe.
This experience, which was not at all uncommon for Native children at the time, sparked in her a life of activism and protest.
And since we’re on the topic of birthday’s, it was on this day in 1732 that George Washington, who would go on to become the first president of the United States, was born in Virginia.
(As we’ve previously discussed, President’s Day, which now celebrates both Washington and Abraham Lincoln, has already occurred this year, on Feb. 15, as it is observed on the third Monday in February, whenever that falls).
Also, I’m not sure why there’s a specific day for this, since it’s a regular occurrence in my house – like, a three-times-a-day thing – but it’s National Walking the Dog Day, for those of you keeping track at home.
If you’ve got a doggo and are responsible for walking him or her, then be sure to have your hat and gloves and boots handy today. We are in for more snow – showers that develop into something steadier in the afternoon – with about an inch of additional accumulation expected. Temperatures will be in the balmy low 30s.
And if you’d prefer to stay inside, well, here’s an excuse if there ever was one: It’s National Margarita Day.
In the headlines…
As the U.S. prepares to hit a devastating new milestone – half a million Covid-19 deaths – officials say the country is also edging closer to the end of its brutal battle against the virus.
Biden is on a glide path to attain his 100 million vaccinations in 100 days goal and pitching well beyond it to the far more ambitious and daunting mission of vaccinating all eligible adults against the coronavirus by the end of the summer.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will reveal his plan today for unwinding one of the world’s strictest COVID-19 lockdowns.
Israel, which rolled out the world’s fastest vaccine campaign, lifted restrictions on most commerce and public activity, opening malls, markets and museums—and requiring the use of a pass to document vaccination status for some activities.
Covid-19 survivors who have gotten a first dose of Covid-19 vaccine are generating immune responses that might render a second shot unnecessary, potentially freeing up limited vaccine supply for more people, several new research papers suggest.
The outlook for a rebound in travel this year has dimmed after the global pandemic ravaged the industry and hurt tourism-dependent economies, with travelers postponing plans amid vaccine delays and border restrictions.
Publix will give employees a $125 gift card to the store if they get a COVID-19 vaccine, the grocery store announced.
High school students could begin to get vaccinated against COVID-19 when they return to classes in the fall, Fauci said.
Multiple poultry farmers in Russia are suspected of catching an avian flu strain in what could be the first instances of the illness being transmitted to people.
Not since Watergate has an attorney general nominee faced the kinds of questions awaiting Merrick Garland as he prepares to take his seat today for a confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee.
Garland is vowing to defend the Justice Department’s independence from the White House, pursue equal justice for communities of color and make the battle against extremism “central” to the department’s mission, according to remarks prepared for delivery.
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said he’s working with Biden to gather the support needed to confirm Neera Tanden as director of the Office of Management and Budget after moderate West Virginia Democrat Sen. Joe Manchin said he wouldn’t vote for her.
Former Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel appears poised to take on a high-profile ambassadorship (to Japan) for Biden, a step likely to trigger contention with progressives who’ve balked at him taking a Cabinet role.
Texas rolled into full-blown recovery mode yesterday after a winter storm that at its powerful peak left more than 4 million in the dark and almost half the state’s 29 million people under boil-water advisories.
Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez had amassed $4.7 million in her fundraising efforts to help Texans hard hit by last week’s winter storm as of last night.
Ocasio-Cortez shared a video on Twitter with Texas Reps. Sylvia Garcia and Sheila Jackson Lee while packing meals for the non-profit Houston Food Bank.
Their 11-year-old son was found dead in his bed Tuesday morning after their mobile home lost power as chaos descended on Texas. Now, the family has sued the energy company for gross negligence.
After an attack at the U.S. Capitol and a historic impeachment trial, Congress is back to legislating. Lawmakers’ primary focus this week will be Biden’s $1.9 trillion coronavirus relief package and Congress is up against a clear deadline
Federal investigators have signaled some of the defendants in the attack on the U.S. Capitol could be charged with seditious conspiracy, a law enacted to target those who attacked the federal government during the Reconstruction era.
China’s top diplomat called for the Biden administration to lift restrictions on trade and people-to-people contacts while ceasing what Beijing considers unwarranted interference in the areas of Taiwan, Hong Kong, Xinjiang and Tibet.
A previously undetected piece of malware found on almost 30,000 Macs worldwide is generating intrigue in security circles, and security researchers are still trying to understand precisely what it does and what purpose its self-destruct capability serves.
United Airlines grounded 24 of its Boeing 777s after one plane experienced an engine failure and spewed debris over a northern Denver suburb this weekend.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said it will be stepping up inspections of Boeing 777s that contain the same engine model that failed over Denver this weekend, with some likely to be removed from service.
Former Vice President Mike Pence has declined an invitation to speak at the Conservative Political Action Conference, a major annual gathering of the most influential figures in American conservative scheduled to open this week in Orlando, Florida.
Former President Donald Trump will make his first major public appearance since leaving office at the CPAC.
In the latest USA Today/Suffolk Poll, just 34 percent of Trump voters listed Fox News as their “most trusted source of news”—a 24 percent drop from the 58 percent that favored the network in October 2016.
Nearly half of Republicans say they would abandon the party as it is currently structured and join a new party if Trump was its leader, the same poll found.
New York coronavirus news yesterday was a study in contrasts, as the test positivity rate reached its lowest level since just before Thanksgiving — while the first patient diagnosed with the South African variant was confirmed in Nassau County.
Two new mass COVID-19 vaccination sites will open Wednesday in Brooklyn and Queens as part of a federal partnership with New York — and there are still plenty of appointment slots available.
The relationship between Gov. Andrew Cuomo and leading lawmakers of his own party has hit a nadir amid questions over the Democratic governor’s handling of Covid-19 in nursing homes.
State Senate Democrats are poised to approve a package of nursing home accountability bills today, taking matters into their own hands with Cuomo under fire for the coronavirus’ deadly toll in the facilities under his watch.
Ocasio-Cortez joined fellow New York Democrats in calling for an investigation into Cuomo and his administration’s handling of COVID-19 in the state’s nursing homes.
Assemblyman Ron Kim said he will lead a push among his fellow Democratic Assembly members to pursue an impeachment trial over charges that Cuomo’s office purposefully for months held back the total number of nursing home deaths due to COVID-19.
Legal experts are warning that Cuomo’s alleged undercounting of nursing-home deaths amid the COVID-19 pandemic may rise to the level of a criminal offense.
Queens Democratic Sen. Leroy Comrie is demanding that the Legislature hold special hearings on the coronavirus nursing home scandal that has engulfed Cuomo — separate from a federal probe that is underway.
Comedian Pete Davidson played Cuomo in a Saturday Night Live skit in which the governor was roasted for failing to fully apologize for the nursing home death scandal.
A recurring portrait of Cuomo has emerged: a talented and deft politician whose tendency toward aggression can seem out of step in an age when abusive behavior in the workplace or in professional surroundings is increasingly called out and often censured.
“The governor’s confident bluster has obscured his habit of dismissing scientific expertise in service of burnishing his own reputation and asserting his final authority over every lever of power and policy in the state.”
With political pressure mounting on Cuomo in the midst of the nursing home imbroglio, the batch of New York Republicans is growing who appear to be flirting with a gubernatorial challenge in 2022.
Delivery-only ghost kitchen establishments are on the rise in New York City.
Apps like DoorDash and Uber Eats have provided restaurants a flood of customers in the pandemic. Now a host of food-ordering tools, along with some restaurants, are finding ways around those apps and the commissions they charge.
New York City’s next mayor will inherit a host of complex problems when he or she steps into office Jan. 1, but there’s one pressing issue that’s been given relatively short shrift on the campaign trail so far: crime.
The City’s overnight subway shutdown will be scaled back starting early today, with passengers not allowed to ride from 2 a.m. to 4 a.m. instead of the 1 a.m. to 5 a.m. closure that went into place May 6.
New York City transit chief Sarah Feinberg blamed the media for low subway ridership, claiming news outlets stoked fears about contracting COVID-19 on trains.
Nearly one year after the COVID-19 pandemic hit New York, parts of the Big Apple look more like ghost towns, lined with shuttered storefronts, empty office buildings and businesses teetering on the edge of closure.
The beloved Central Park skating rinks run by the Trump Organization will be allowed to remain open for the rest of the season, Mayor de Blasio’s office indicated.
An unlicensed Queens bar packed with hundreds of COVID-flouting revelers locked its doors to stop a sheriff’s office raid — and prevented partygoers from leaving in the process, authorities said.
The Staten Island Republican Party has endorsed Guardian Angels founder Curtis Sliwa for mayor.
Six months’ worth of data show that Capital Region school districts have largely been effective at keeping coronavirus out of the schools using strategies like social distancing and mask-wearing, bolstering the notion that schools have not been major drivers of infection during the pandemic.
A 30-minute virtual training is being made available yesterday and today for residents who may need help with pre-registering for a special vaccination clinic being held at the Washington Avenue Armory starting March 3.
Kelly Mateja, a longtime advocate for senior citizens and public service, is running for Colonie Town supervisor as a Democrat.
Amusement parks from Six Flags’ Great Escape to Huck Finn’s Playland are scrambling to be ready to open by May after getting the green light from Cuomo to do so.
NYRA has announced the dates for the 2021 summer meet in Saratoga. Opening day is Thursday, July 15. There will be racing Wednesdays through Sundays.
The DEC’s avalanche warning in the Adirondacks remains in place through the remainder of ski season.
New claims are coming to the surface over the assassination of civil rights leader Malcolm X.
Malcolm X’s family has released a letter it says was written by a deceased New York cop claiming the NYPD and FBI were behind the 1965 Harlem assassination of the civil-rights activist.
Jersey City has placed its police department under the leadership of a civilian in an unusual arrangement meant to bring greater transparency and accountability to law enforcement there, Mayor Steven Fulop said.
