Here’s a shocker: The US could have avoided almost 250,000 Covid-19 deaths if every state had adopted stricter mask and vaccine requirements seen in the Northeast during the height of the pandemic, according to a new study. Researchers say that the country, which saw more than 1.1 million Covid deaths, could have been spared an estimated 118,000 to 248,000 more lives. The research from University of Virginia public policy and economics professor Christopher J Ruhm, published Friday in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Health Forum, analyzed mortality data between 2020 and 2022, comparing it to a baseline of 2017 through 2019. “These study findings do not support the views of those opposing COVID-19 restrictions who erroneously believe the restrictions did not work,” Ruhm writes.
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With joy and unity A couple of Democratic events here in WNC over the last week drew far bigger crowds than I’ve seen in nearly two decades. A fundraiser for a county commission candidate at a nearby farm on Thursday drew hundreds. A district-wide gathering featuring a slate of statewide candidates at a rural farm west of here drew 400-500. An ice cream social at a city park shelter on Sunday exploded to 300 and became a local happening. That energy is popping up in unlikelier places: On Saturday afternoon, around 500 golf carts reportedly paraded through the Villages, a retirement community in Central Florida, in support of Kamala Harris for president — roughly 200 more than the number that reportedly showed up for President Biden ahead of the 2020 election. Saturday’s rally was part of the newly minted Harris campaign’s efforts to engage Florida voters and recruit volunteers to boost Democratic support.
A cold, self-centered monster This just makes me sad — and mad. How could anyone treat their own child this way? Vivian Jenna Wilson, the transgender daughter of Elon Musk, said Thursday in her first interview that he was an absent father who was cruel to her as a child for being queer and feminine. Wilson, 20, in an exclusive interview with NBC News, responded to comments Musk made Monday about her and her transgender identity. On social media and in an interview posted online, Musk said she was “not a girl” and was figuratively “dead,” and he alleged that he had been “tricked” into authorizing trans-related medical treatment for her when she was 16. Wilson said that Musk hadn’t been tricked and that, after initially having hesitated, he knew what he was doing when he agreed to her treatment, which required consent from her parents. Musk’s recent statements crossed a line, she said. “I think he was under the assumption that I wasn’t going to say anything and I would just let this go unchallenged,” Wilson said in a phone interview.
Democrats follow for once The first week of Harris for President has been, as they say, lit. “DAMN. This is how you slam Donald Trump,” tweeted Victor Shi, a Gen Z phenom from the Harris Youth Engagement Team. Shi boosted a campaign statement on Trump’s remarks to Turning Point USA Believers Summit on Friday in West Palm Beach, Florida. “Tonight, Donald Trump couldn’t pronounce words, insulted the faith of Jewish and Catholic Americans, lied about the election (again), lied about other stuff, bragged about repealing Roe, proposed cutting billions in education funding, announced he would appoint more extremist judges, revealed he planned to fill a second Trump term with more criminals like himself, attacked lawful voting, went on and on and on, and generally sounded like someone you wouldn’t want to sit near at a restaurant — let alone be President of the United States,” said James Singer. “Someone you wouldn’t want to sit near at a restaurant” is evocative in a way seldom seen in Democratic statements. “Criminals like himself” too. The gloves are off.
Lookee here: The US economy is on the verge of an extremely rare achievement. Economic growth in the first half of the year was solid, with the economy expanding a robust 2.8% annualized rate in the second quarter, according to fresh Commerce Department figures released Thursday, which are adjusted for inflation and seasonal swings. Stocks surged in the morning after the economy’s powerful show of resilience, but later lost steam and closed the day mixed. The Dow rose 81 points, or 0.2%, after jumping more than 500 points earlier in the session. The S&P 500 fell 0.5% and the Nasdaq Composite lost 0.9%. That comes after the benchmark index and tech-heavy Nasdaq on Wednesday logged their worst day since 2022. Gross domestic product, the broadest measure of economic output, was much stronger in the second quarter than economists had predicted. The GDP report showed that businesses are continuing to invest and that consumers are still opening their wallets. That’s key, because consumer spending is America’s economic engine, accounting for about two-thirds of US economic output.
JV Last at the Bulwark explains what all this “single cat ladies” stuff is all about: Watching the JD Vance / New Right obsession with natalism, I’m struck by how racially coded it is. Because while Vance and his confederates are super-duper concerned about childless people who “have no stake in America’s future” I have also heard many conservatives/Republicans express a great deal of concern about brown people having too many babies. Here, for example, is the Manhattan Institute’s Heather Mac Donald in 2007: Pretty obvious what her problem is there, isn’t it? You may have forgotten, but back in the 1990s, conservatives were worried about African-American women having too many babies, so they pushed for a welfare “family cap” which denied extra benefits for low-income women (translation: African-American women) who had children while on public assistance. Sometimes the Republican pro-natalists let the mask slip. Last year in Texas Republicans pushed a bill that would give large property tax credits to households with four or more children.
Oh puleeze… With cameras rolling and flashing, the two men sought to repair what had been seen as one of the closest relationships between leaders when they were in office, now that Trump is once again the Republican presidential nominee three months out from a new election. At their talks, also attended by Sara Netanyahu, Trump declared that he could not understand how Jews could vote for presumptive Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, referring to remarks she made on Thursday after she met with Netanyahu regarding the suffering of Gazans that Trump called “disrespectful to Israel.” Trump also charged that the world would see “major wars in the Middle East and maybe a third world war” if he didn’t win the election. As things stand, he further said, “You are closer to a third world war” than ever “because we have incompetent people running our country.” Netanyahu should be ashamed but, of course, he isn’t.
Cheetah babies! A pair of inquisitive cheetah cubs take their first steps into public view – in a moment of hope for the vulnerable species. The adorable three-month-old cubs, born to mum Darcy at the award-winning Yorkshire Wildlife Park, represent a major advance for the conservation of cheetahs whose numbers have fallen to around 7,000 in the wild. Darcy, four, and their father 13-year-old Brook moved to the park’s Cheetah Territory last year and set up home in the three reserves and two specially-designed houses as part of a European breeding project. The cubs, the park’s first ever. were nurtured by Darcy in the enclosure for three months but are now strong enough to be allowed out to roam out across the 10,000 square metre reserve which is enriched with caves and grasslands. We’re so pleased that our cubs are strong and healthy and ready to be released into the reserve where visitors will be able to see them properly for the first time,” said Dr Charlotte Macdonald, Director of Animals, at the park, near Doncaster.
In the name of Orange Jesus “FWIW I think this is gibberish, rather than a vow to end democracy. But the fact that I’m not sure speaks volumes,” tweeted media critic Dan Froomkin Friday night. Donald Trump told the Turning Point USA Believers Summit on Friday that if only they would vote for him this time they would never have to vote again. He’d see to it, Trump promised. “We’ll have it fixed so good your not gonna have to vote.” Even if there are still elections, there will be no point to voting. That’s how his dictator buddies do it. They will be “fixed” for good after he’s implemented Project 2025. “Can you believe they put that thing in writing?” Vice President Kamala Harris asked a campaign rally crowd in Milwaukee this week. How many times must normal Americans hear Trump and his MAGA cult make their intentions plain before taking them seriously? It’s bad enough that there is an informal Caste system in this unperfected land with “created equal” in its charter.
JD Vance’s wife seems to be a shape-shifter too: During her rise through America’s most prestigious schools, law firms and judicial clerkships, Usha Vance rarely— if ever — volunteered her opinions on the nation’s bitterly partisan politics to friends and colleagues. But she did express revulsion at former president Donald Trump’s actionson Jan. 6, 2021. Vance told friends she was outraged by Trump’s incitementofthe deadly riot at the U.S. Capitol and lamented the social breakdown that fueled his political support, according to one friend, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss sensitiveconversations. Her view at the timecontrasts with the later pronouncements of her husband and Trump’s newly minted running mate, JD Vance, who has downplayed the storming of the Capitoland called participants who were jailed “political prisoners.” “Usha found the incursion on the Capitol and Trump’s role in it to be deeply disturbing,” the friend recalled.