A New Summer is Beginning
And a new start for millions of people! Life is beginning to feel like it was pre-pandemic. In-person dating is awkward. Students feel socially awkward. Small talk is hard after communicating with people through video and online. People are uncertain. But This is how far we have come in conquering the virus. It’s not over … we have to be cautious until we know for sure things will be OK and that it will last … but this summer will be very different from last year.
Skagit Valley Corral Story – Mt. Vernon, WA
Last March, a choir event occurred in Mt. Vernon, WA. It turned into a “super-spreader event.” At the time, we were in the midst of a debate about how people could get together, and we weren’t certain just how the virus was able to spread.
The Skagit Valley Chorale didn’t take auditions. They were open to anyone that enjoyed singing. Their superspreader event happened early … on March 10, 2020. There was general consensus that if you washed hands and observed social distancing, they would be OK. They did that to the extreme. Then, they practiced for 2 1/2 hours. Never a sneeze, sniffle, or cough. But … a few days later, people started coming down sick. Of the 61 singers at practice, 52 were diagnosed with COVID 19. Several were hospitalized and two died. This was one of the two events that solidified the airborne transmission theory. It seemed mathematically impossible to have all of those people get sick at once. It was a turning point for the scientists’ understanding of the virus.
A year later, the Chorale is rehearsing again. They are planning on in-person performances in the fall and are considering proof of vaccine requirements. They are hoping people will all get vaccinated. But some don’t want the vaccine. People believe it should be a personal choice. But others say that if unvaccinated people are allowed to sing, that they won’t participate. The director hopes that their love of singing allows them to stay together. So the question now is: who will be there, and who will walk away?
Source: Podcast (June 1, 2021) NPR Consider This
More are Getting Shots
Our youngest grandkids got their first Pfizer shot. Washington set up their own lottery to encourage people to get the vaccine! Yay, we are eligible to participate (LOL).
Can Schools Mandate Vaccines?
Colleges in Washington already are. Granddaughter McKenna has been told that she will have to provide proof of vaccination in order to attend in-person college classes in the Fall.
Global Health Should Now be a Priority
We won’t get ahead of this if we can’t support other countries. Epidemiologists are concerned that we are too America-focused and not thinking about the global context. We have a long way to go, helping with mental issues, “long Covid”, and globally.
Democracy VS Liberty (a bit of a rabbit hole)
Liberty means being able to think, say and live independently without any barriers or restrictions, as long as it doesn’t interfere with the welfare or safety of others. It differs from democracy, which consists of governance by all members of a population, but the two have been conjoined. Right now I don’t think that I can bring up any topic for discussion and not run the risk of being labeled as part of a tribe or group (groupthink, tribalist thinking). Examples: isn’t that racist … that sounds Trumpian … oh right, you’re part of the Biden Socialist group ….” when I hear a viewpoint, I feel compelled to read up about it before deciding how I feel about that viewpoint. That is part of my personal liberty. I am very grateful for that. Even if I just resign myself to keeping my mouth clamped shut most of the time.
We Need an Investigation into the Wuhan Lab-Leak Theory
Complete article (Peter Wehner, Contributing writer, The Atlantic (June 2, 2021) NIH Director: We Need an Investigation into the Wuhan Lab-Leak Theory.
The author interviewed his longtime friend, Francis Collins (Director of the National Institutes of Health). Collins had valid things to say regarding the Wuhan Lab-Leak Investigation.
Below are other topics covered in the article. I have read his points in other (valid) articles and found them credible:
- The vaccine development and what it is and is not
- Confusion regarding accusations that the NIH was funding research intended to make pathogens more deadly or transmissible for the purpose of producing knowledge that would benefit humans
- The medical breakthrough of Messenger RNA
- The good decision to begin mass production of the vaccines back in spring 2020, when trials were still underway
- The challenges presented by those resisting the vaccine
- His biggest surprise regarding the virus and why testing strategies are so important
- What has unsettled him regarding our response to the Pandemic
As I talked to Collins, I found it difficult to simultaneously hold the conflicting emotions—great sorrow and great gratitude—evoked by two realizations: A single disease has caused carnage and grief unmatched in any of our lifetimes, but because of the work of countless heroes in the world of medicine, many millions survived. Collins and his colleagues have been givers of life in a year of death.
Peter Wehner, Contributing writer at The Atlantic, June 2, 2021
If you hit a paywall, the complete article is in a separate post.
Dr. Fauci Gets Blasted … Again
Only in our anti-truth landscape could Dr. Fauci become a villain
Thousands of his emails since the beginning of the pandemic were published as part of a Freedom of Information Act request filed by various news outlets. He is being attacked even more ferociously by those that denounced him early in the pandemic. Some have even called him a war criminal. Dr. Fauci has declined to comment or respond. Good for him. Ignore it. Resource: Politico article dated June 4, 2021.
More about this is in THE WEEK: June 18, 2021.”Fauci: The Uproar Over His Emails” (p.16). By demonizing Dr. Fauci, Trump supporters are trying to “rewrite or distort the history of the pandemic.” Their story is that it was not Trump’s downplaying of Covid as a “little flu” and his incompetent response that led to nearly 600,000 American deaths. Instead, it was a conspiracy involving China, Fauci, and the media to create and release a virus that ruined Trump’s re-election. This is nuts, but these are the same people now insisting that the January 6 insurrection was nothing more than a peaceful protest by patriots.
The Russian Optic Fail
As of June 18, Russia has cases climbing and too many people resisting the vaccine. This after they have been saying for months that they have COVID 19 under control, “not like those western countries where the cases are climbing and there is much devastation.” Well then. That optic convinced the Russians that they had it all together, and there was nothing to worry about. Unfortunately, no one told COVID 19.
A Goal by July 1
Biden’s goal is to have 70% of the U.S. vaccinated by July 1. Will we meet it? Unfortunately many states are way behind in their vaccination rates due to numerous factors. Others are doing great. California and New York have completely opened back up with no restrictions (except advising the unvaccinated to wear masks although it isn’t being enforced). Can’t point to politics, at least not to the governors … California has Democratic Newsome and New York has Republican DeSantos.
Mask-Wearing Details in California
(as of June 15)
Businesses can pick the options that are best for them:
- They can post rules regarding mask-wearing and allow visitors to say whether they are vaccinated
- They can implement a vaccine-verification system to determine whether individuals should wear masks
- They can simply require everyone wear a mask
“This is the choice of the venue and the operators,” Dr. Mark Ghaly (Secretary of the State Health and Human Services Agency) said. “We at the state level are giving all three options to private and independent operators to choose which is best suited for their community and their businesses.”
California will still require that masks be worn in healthcare, childcare and correctional facilities, as well as at homeless shelters.
Washington Reopens
On June 20, Washington officially reopened. Regarding masks, Washington state follows the same guidelines as California (outlined in the previous paragraph).
Virtually All New COVID Cases are Unvaccinated People
The country’s declining COVID 19 case rates are unrealistically optimistic for half of the nation — the half that is still not vaccinated.
As more people receive vaccines, COVID 19 cases are occurring mostly in the increasingly narrow slice of the unprotected population. As time moves forward, the differences become even more stark. In some areas, close to 100% of the current COVID 19 cases are of the unvaccinated. The vaccinated are going back to their lives … and the unvaccinated are getting COVID 19.
However, this is being disputed by some antivaxxers, that insist that anyone can spread COVID, including the vaccinated. Some of those that have had COVID are declaring that they don’t need the vaccine, which is untrue according to reliable sources … because prior infection doesn’t protect you from variants (only the vaccines do … at this time).
Vaccination Rates Stall as COVID Deaths Go Down
The WEEK, June 18, 2021). As of this date, the concern was the Delta variant. It now accounts for 6 percent of domestic infections. Who are the people that are refusing the shot? At present, it appears that they are white, middle-class, middle-aged and younger conservatives. There are still pockets of disadvantaged people that also have not received it.
The CDC has framed vaccines as a “matter of personal choice” and let the newly vaccinated believe they are liberated from the pandemic. That has encouraged a “mass demasking” even as many groups remain unprotected. “What is America’s goal—to end the pandemic or to suppress it to a level where it mostly plagues communities that privileged individuals can ignore?”
THE WEEK: June 18, 2021. Vaccination Rates Stall as Covid Deaths Decline (p.5.)
Another Text from v-safe (CDC)
We received yet another text from the CDC …. possibly two months since the last one, asking about our health. I think they are watching out for possible “long COVID” or collecting data to trace the health of those that have had the vaccine. This could go on for months.
A New Living Pattern is Emerging
We are entering a new phase of less regulation and more recommendations. So it’ll be up to us to make smart and good decisions regarding what we do and who we are with these days.
Lynn and I had our annual PCP visit. We asked him for COVID guidance, since the states were relaxing their guidelines. His advice mirrored what has been distributed by the state and federal government agencies. He recommended that we not travel abroad this year, and carefully consider next year, realizing that the situation could change between now and then. He said it is safe to gather with those that are vaccinated, including family members and friends. He recommended that any unvaccinated friends or family be masked during a gathering. He recommended against our attending any large indoor events with people we did not know. His reasons for this advice were the number of unvaccinated that were unmasked, and the presence of variants that are more aggressive and infectious (the consequence of this is unknown at this time). He also said that although rare, it is still possible for us to get COVID under certain circumstances (such as prolonged exposure to someone with COVID) and passing it along to others. The good news is that if we are exposed, we may not get it or would get mildly ill. He didn’t see any problem with our (carefully) traveling in the USA.
We Need a Larger Public Health Budget
One major reason the U.S. struggled to contact trace was that budget cuts following the 2008 recession had eviscerated the nation’s public-health departments. Spending on state and local public-health departments has declined by 16 and 18 percent, respectively, since 2010, according to an analysis by Kaiser Health News and the Associated Press. Public-health departments’ data systems are especially outdated, which means that public-health workers have trouble tracking people’s vaccine status, counting COVID-19 deaths, or sharing data across state lines. And on to my story in the next paragraph.
The Situation with My Name
in late June, I learned that my name is wrong in the Washington State Department of Health system. It appears as “Robin R Button” rather than “Kerry Robin Button.” My SARS Covid vaccination data isn’t under my name. This post details the frustrating situation. My experience illustrates the brokenness of our data systems in Washington State, anyway …. it will take time to get it sorted out.
Public-health departments can’t hire people based on a one-time surge of money. Just like businesses, they need annual revenue in order to make payroll. “A lot of states are not going to hire people unless they know that there’s a secure, ongoing level of funding,” Marcus Plescia, the chief medical officer at the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, said that would need to come from Congress, a body that is not known for acting swiftly and boldly.
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