Stuffed clams for dinner tonight. Yum !
Now it's time for "very berry" pie (a mix of raspberry, blackberry & blueberry).
It seems that perhaps a cheap widely available steroid helps reduce the death rate in severe cases of Covid-19. However, this does not mean that the risk of death from Covid-19 is no longer real. In addition it does not mean that you should be taking this steroid at home.
From CNN;
In response to:
Commonly used steroid reduces risk of death in sickest coronavirus patients, preliminary study results suggest
The widely available steroid drug dexamethasone may be key in helping to treat the sickest Covid-19 patients who require ventilation or oxygen, according to researchers in the United Kingdom.
Their findings are preliminary, still being compiled, and have not been published in a peer-reviewed journal -- but some not involved with the study called the results a breakthrough.
The two lead investigators of the Recovery Trial, a large UK-based trial investigating potential Covid-19 treatments, announced to reporters in a virtual press conference on Tuesday that a low-dose regimen of dexamethasone for 10 days was found to reduce the risk of death by a third among hospitalized patients requiring ventilation in the trial.
"That's a highly statistically significant result," Martin Landray, deputy chief investigator of the trial and a professor at the University of Oxford, said on Tuesday.
"This is a completely compelling result. If one looks at the patients who did not require ventilators but were on oxygen, there was also a significant risk reduction of about one-fifth," Landray said. "However, we didn't see any benefit in those patients who were in hospital, had Covid, but whose lungs were working sufficiently well -- they were not taking either oxygen or on ventilators."
Landray added that "there are outstanding questions" and people treating Covid-19 at home should not be taking dexamethasone on the back of these results.
"We have not studied patients in the community," Landray said. "We show no effect in the patients who are not on oxygen and we did not study the patients who are not in hospital."
The dexamethasone arm of the Recovery Trial closed last week and researchers are now compiling its data. It included about 2,100 hospitalized Covid-19 patients who were randomized to receive dexamethasone, and about 4,300 hospitalized Covid-19 patients who were randomized to receive the usual standard of care at their hospitals.
In the trial, dexamethasone was provided at a dose of 6mg once a day for up to 10 days, administered either as an injection or taken orally. The researchers reported no serious adverse events among the patients taking dexamethasone, but the results are preliminary.
"At this stage, we found no clear adverse effects of doing this. Let's recognize that there are sort of two messages here. In the people who required oxygen or ventilation, it clearly works, and the benefits are biggest for those on ventilators. In the people in hospital with Covid who do not require oxygen -- so, their lungs are working moderately well -- then actually there's no benefit," Landray said on Tuesday.
"In the trial, our focus was on mortality, which obviously a drug can affect in either direction, but the overall results in the patients on oxygen and ventilation was a clear, clear benefit," Landray said, adding that deaths in the study were examined over a 28-day period. "We've looked, for example, were there deaths due to other forms of infection, which are sometimes considered a risk? And the answer is no, there was no excess of any other particular cause of death."
Dexamethasone is typically used to treat certain forms of arthritis, severe allergies and asthma, among other conditions, including certain types of cancer. Side effects can include upset stomach, headache, dizziness, insomnia and depression. GoodRx estimates the drug can cost as low as about $8. ...
(continued in my first comment below)
On May 21st Dr. Anthony Fauci warned, contrary to Trump, that if states opened back up quickly, there would be a rise in the number of Covid-19 cases and thus, deaths.
The wise not only listened, but took appropriate precautions about opening up and did so with gradual steps, while keeping a close eye on the resultant data. Perhaps New York under the leadership of their governor is the finest example of this, going from the worst state to the best state for percent transmission of the virus. Good job !!
However, Trump helped turn the re-openings into a political circus.
He misled the governors of lots of states to rush back to re-open.
The results have been devastating. Experts now predict that the total number of deaths in the USA
largely due to recent Covid-19 outbreaks in 21 of those quick to open states will more than double the total of what they were predicting just weeks ago.
From The Washington Post;
In response to:
As coronavirus infections surge nationwide, 21 states see increase in average daily new cases
June 13, 2020 at 10:06 p.m. EDT
Twenty-one states have seen an increase in their average daily new coronavirus cases this week in comparison to the previous week, according to data compiled by The Washington Post. New infections nationwide also surged.
Alabama, Oregon and South Carolina are among the states with the biggest increases. Alabama saw a 92 percent change in its seven-day average, while Oregon’s seven-day average was up 83.8 percent and South Carolina’s was up 60.3 percent. Hospitalizations have risen as well. For example, Arkansas has seen a 120.7 percent increase in hospitalizations, from 92 cases to 203, since Memorial Day.
Health officials warn that mass gatherings of any type could worsen the spread of the virus, as the 2020 election heats up and nationwide protests against racism and police brutality stretch into their third week.
Here are some significant developments:
Washington state health officials warned Saturday that coronavirus transmission is increasing in the eastern part of the state. Benton, Franklin, Spokane and Yakima counties are of greatest concern and could see “increasingly explosive growth” in cases and deaths if the current rate of transmission continues.
Several new studies published this month support wearing masks to curb the transmission of the virus.
Beijing’s biggest meat and vegetable market was shut down after the discovery of a cluster of coronavirus cases, raising the prospect of a second wave of infections.
Brazil’s official coronavirus death toll overtook Britain to become the world’s second-worst hit country.
Russia more than doubled its official death toll related to covid-19 for April, days after the World Health Organization raised questions about its numbers.
10 hours ago in Business Insider
In response to:
Republicans are going to bear the Trump stain for years to come
Michael Gordon
10 hours ago
For years Republicans have spoken privately about their disgust with President Trump's racist tactics, focus on dividing us, and general incompetence. But at some point elected Republicans will distance themselves from all things Trump and Trumpism or risk being polluted with the association forever.
As the last few years have shown, the self-described party of law and order, of a hawkish defense, is in fact a cavalcade of wimps. Their fear of Trump prevents them from following their conscience and speaking publicly against his most outrageous actions.
When Trump is sufficiently weak – be it before Election Day or after he likely loses – they'll start pretending that they were against his controversial ways all along, betting on the fact that swing voters have short memories. The Trump stain has alienated suburban white women, working-class white women, young nonwhite voters, and other key demographics in large numbers. That will hurt all Republicans this November.
The question is what happens after the Trump presidency has faded into a frightening memory.
Republican acquiescence
Throughout the last Presidential campaign, many Republicans spoke out against Trump. Sen. Cory Gardner said his "flaws are beyond mere moral shortcomings." Sen. Mike Crapo withdrew his endorsement. Rep. Martha Roby called him "unacceptable as a candidate." Sen. Lindsay Graham labeled him a "race-baiting xenophobic religious bigot." The list goes on.
The most notable Never Trumper was Mitt Romney, but he was too late, calling Trump out for his con man status after his Super Tuesday surge.
Since Trump's inauguration, there have been few glimmers of a spine in the GOP with a President who has separated immigrant families, defended white supremacists, attacked the integrity of the Justice Department, mismanaged the response to the pandemic, and called for military force against American citizens.
Over the course of his tumultuous first term, Trump has lost some Republicans with greater intestinal fortitude, like Rep. Justin Amash who had to leave the GOP in order to make a stand. Generally the loudest voices among other disgusted Republicans are not in office.
More commonly, elected Republicans have been too chicken to do more than stray mildly and briefly from Trump during his most un-ignorable atrocities. Trump's racist attacks on Democratic congresswomen in 2019, for example, led to distancing and disapproval from some GOP allies that evaporated at the speed of the news cycle. How easy it is to forget – or ignore – each offense rather than stand up to the source.
This year, of course, has brought us new depths in the Trump presidency, and the volume of recriminations has begun to increase. Former defense secretary James Mattis sent shock waves by denouncing Trump as a threat to the Constitution, and just on Thursday top general Mark Milley apologized for participating in Trump's controversial photo op. Ex-White House chief of staff John Kelly has questioned the President's ethics and encouraged Americans to "look harder at who we elect."
And The New York Times now reports that former President George W. Bush will not support Trump's re-election while Cindy McCain is almost certain to support Biden. With each week it seems a new voice joins the chorus.
But they are all formers: former presidents, former cabinet secretaries, former chiefs of staff. The real voices that need to speak up are the current elected Republicans. But that doesn't seem to be coming anytime soon.
(continued & finished in my next comment below)
Today from The New York Times;
In response to:
N.Y. Bans Chokeholds and Approves Other Measures to Restrict Police
The state became one of the first to make major changes in police practices in the wake of George Floyd’s killing, which has spurred nationwide protests.
June 12, 2020 Updated 10:35 p.m. ET
New York on Friday became one of the first states to take meaningful action to restrict police forces after the killing of George Floyd, banning the use of chokeholds by law enforcement and repealing a half-century-old law that has kept police disciplinary records secret in the state.
Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo signed the expansive package of bills less than three weeks after Mr. Floyd’s death at the hands of the police in Minneapolis, which has since sparked widespread civil unrest and demonstrations against police brutality and racism.
New York City also took tentative steps toward meeting protesters’ calls to “defund the police.” On Friday, the City Council speaker, Corey Johnson, said the Council had identified $1 billion in cuts to the Police Department’s $6 billion budget, and would urge Mayor Bill de Blasio to agree in advance of the July 1 budget deadline.
Mr. de Blasio quickly rejected the proposal, while indicating that he was open to further negotiations over the size of the Police Department. “The mayor has said we’re committed to reprioritizing funding and looking for savings, but he does not believe a $1 billion cut is the way to maintain safety,” said Freddi Goldstein, Mr. de Blasio’s press secretary.
A similar reckoning is occurring across the nation, as lawmakers are weighing various changes to police tactics that may have exacerbated racial disparities in law enforcement. In California, Gov. Gavin Newsom called for an immediate end to the use of “strangleholds” last week, saying such use of force had “no place any longer in 21st century practices and policing.”
In Washington, where authorities used tear gas and rubber bullets to clear peaceful protesters from Lafayette Park for President Trump to stage a photo op at St. John’s Church, the District of Columbia’s Council unanimously passed a sweeping series of changes earlier this week, including prohibiting the use of chemical irritants, riot gear and stun grenades on demonstrators exercising their First Amendment rights.
A few hours after Mr. Cuomo signed the bills in New York, Gov. Kim Reynolds of Iowa signed a similar measure into law on Friday. The bill, passed unanimously by the Iowa Legislature the night before, also included a ban on most police chokeholds and empowered the state attorney general to investigate police misconduct.
And in Minneapolis, where Mr. Floyd was killed on May 25, the City Council voted on Friday to seek “a transformative new model for cultivating safety in our city” just days after vowing to dismantle the city’s police department. But even there, change would take time — months if not more, and not before a citywide vote and rounds of bureaucratic wrangling.
The obstacles to the kind of sweeping and immediate changes made in New York could also be seen in Minnesota’s State Capitol, where an ambitious package of police reforms proposed by Democrats faced an uncertain future.
Republicans who control one legislative chamber said they would oppose some of the most far-reaching changes, including restoring voting rights to felons or putting the state’s attorney general, rather than local prosecutors, in charge of investigating killings by the police.
The clash over how much change lawmakers are willing to accept in a state that has become ground zero of a new movement to address racism and police brutality shows how difficult it may be to bring real changes across a patchwork of state governments and in a divided Washington.
(continued below)
Yesterday from Bloomberg;
In response to:
Second U.S. Virus Wave Emerges as Cases Top 2 Million
By Emma Court and David R Baker
June 10, 2020, 1:34 PM EDT Updated on June 10, 2020, 11:43 PM EDT
A second wave of coronavirus cases is emerging in the U.S., raising alarms as new infections push the overall count past 2 million Americans.
Texas on Wednesday reported 2,504 new coronavirus cases, the highest one-day total since the pandemic emerged.
A month into its reopening, Florida this week reported 8,553 new cases -- the most of any seven-day period.
California’s hospitalizations are at their highest since May 13 and have risen in nine of the past 10 days.
A fresh onslaught of the novel coronavirus is bringing challenges for residents and the economy in pockets across the U.S. The localized surges have raised concerns among experts even as the nation’s overall case count early this week rose just under 1%, the smallest increase since March.
“There is a new wave coming in parts of the country,” said Eric Toner, a senior scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Security. “It’s small and it’s distant so far, but it’s coming.”
Though the outbreaks come weeks into state re-openings, it’s not clear that they’re linked to increased economic activity. And health experts say it’s still too soon to tell whether the massive protests against police brutality that have erupted in the past two weeks have led to more infections.
Will you conservatives finally admit, that you and the "so-called" president got it wrong also ?
(insert sound of crickets).
Today from CNBC;
In response to:
NFL condemns racism, admits ‘we were wrong’ not to listen to NFL player protests
Points;
National Football League commissioner Roger Goodell released a recorded video to admit the league was “wrong” for not listening to players who protested against social injustice and police brutality.
Goodell said he wants players to continue to speak out through protesting, supported the Black Lives Matter movement, and offered his participation.
“I personally protest with you and want to be part of the much needed change in this country Without black players, there would be no National Football League,” Goodell said.
National Football League commissioner Roger Goodell admitted the league was “wrong” for failing to listen to players who protested social injustice, he said on Friday in a video.
In his second statement released since the May 25 death of George Floyd, an unarmed black man killed by police in Minnesota, Goodell used the roughly 80-second recorded message not only to “condemn the systemic oppression of black people” but also to admit fault for not listening to its players “earlier.”
Goodell said he wants players to continue to speak out through protesting, supported the Black Lives Matter movement, and offered his participation.
“I personally protest with you and want to be part of the much needed change in this country. Without black players, there would be no National Football League,” Goodell said.
Floyd died shortly after Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin was recorded with his knee on Floyd’s neck following his plea of being unable to breathe. Chauvin and three other officers have been fired and charged in connection with Floyd’s death.
The video footage caused an outbreak of protests throughout the country, renewing conversation about police brutality and social injustice.
The NFL has come under fire since Floyd’s death, as the image of Chauvin kneeling on Floyd’s neck is being compared to former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick kneeling during the national anthem in 2016 to protest racism and oppression. The moved sparked years of controversy, lawsuits, an eventual settlement, and a blown attempt to reconcile after Kaepernick was blackballed.
Basketball legend Kareem Abdul-Jabbar joined CNBC’s “Closing Bell” on Tuesday to discuss the recent protests throughout the country following Floyd’s death, the killing of Breonna Taylor in Louisville and the Feb. 23 shooting of Ahmaud Arbery in Georgia.
Abdul-Jabbar said the NFL needs to “prove to all of us that they mean what they say” following Goodell’s first statement to address the “systemic issues” facing minorities.
“We have to listen to people who are suffering,” Abdul-Jabbar said. He also called for law enforcement and companies to “understand the problem” facing blacks in America.
“Certain people among the ranks of police are racist or are afraid of people who don’t look like them,” Abdul-Jabbar said. “I think all of us would serve this issue if we can make friends with someone who doesn’t look like us. I think that is a key issue here, that too much of people’s humanity and their right to be a part of the American dream, that’s not recognized all the time, and that’s very unfortunate.”
Today in The New York Times;
In response to:
Wave of New Polling Suggests an Erosion of Trump’s Support
Joe Biden appears in a stronger position to oust an incumbent president than any challenger since Bill Clinton in the summer of 1992.
By Nate Cohn
June 9, 2020, 5:00 a.m. ET
The coronavirus pandemic, a severe economic downturn and the widespread demonstrations in the aftermath of the death of George Floyd in police custody would pose a serious political challenge to any president seeking re-election. They are certainly posing one to President Trump.
His approval rating has fallen to negative 12.7 percentage points among registered or likely voters, down from negative 6.7 points on April 15, according to FiveThirtyEight estimates. And now a wave of new polls shows Joe Biden with a significant national lead, placing him in a stronger position to oust an incumbent president than any challenger since Bill Clinton in the summer of 1992.
He leads the president by around 10 percentage points in an average of recent live-interview telephone surveys of registered voters. It’s a four-point improvement over the six-point lead he held in a similar series of polls in late March and early April. Since then, Bernie Sanders has left the Democratic race, the severity of the coronavirus pandemic has became fully evident, and the president’s standing has gradually eroded.
The erosion has been fairly broad, spanning virtually all demographic groups. But in a longer-term context, the president’s weakness is most stark in one respect: his deficit among women.
Women were supposed to carry the first female major-party nominee to victory four years ago, as many assumed that Mr. Trump’s treatment of women, including allegations of s*xual assault, would prove to be his undoing. But women might be his undoing this time. He trails Mr. Biden by 25 points among them, far worse than his 14-point deficit four years ago. He still leads among men by six points in the most recent polls, about the same margin as he led by in the final polls of registered voters in 2016.....
Apparently, the only women still supporting Trump, are the ones, who are 'thick as a brick'.
How's it going Mr. Peterson?
"It's a dog-eat-dog world, and I'm wearing Milkbone Underwear"
"Beer please Woody."
"Isn't it a little early Mr Peterson?"
"OK. Float a cornflake in it"
"What's shakin' Norm?"
"What isn't?"
"What would ya say to a beer?"
"What's a nice beer like you doing in a place like this?"
"What'll you have, Norm?"
"Fame, fortune, and fast women."
"How 'bout a beer?"
"Even better."
"Whatcha up to Norm?"
"My ears."
"Beer Norm?"
"I remember that stuff. Better give me a tall one in case I like it."
"Well, look at you. You look like the cat that swallowed the canary."
"And I need a beer to wash him down."
"How's life Norm?"
"Ask a man who's got one."
"What can I do for you Norm?"
"Well, I am going to need something to kill time before my second beer. Uhhh, how about a first one?"
"How's it going, Norm?"
"Cut the small talk and get me a beer."
"What's the story, Norm?"
"Thirsty guy walks into a bar. You finish it."
"What's going on, Normie?"
"My birthday, Sammy. Give me a beer, stick a candle in it, and I'll
blow out my liver."
"How would a beer feel, Mr. Peterson?"
"Pretty nervous if I was in the room."
"What's doing, Norm?"
"Well, science is seeking a cure for thirst. I happen to be the guinea pig."
"What's the latest, Mr. Peterson?"
"Zha-Zha marries a millionaire, Peterson drinks a beer. Film at eleven."
"How's life, Mr. Peterson?"
"Oh, I'm waiting for the movie."
"Hey, Mr. Peterson, what's up?"
"The warranty on my liver."
"What's up, Normie?"
"My nipples, it's freezing out there."
"Can I draw you a beer Norm ?"
"No, I know what they look like. Just pour me one."
"How's a beer sound Norm?"
"I dunno. I usually finish them before they get a word in."
"What's shaking Norm?"
"All four cheeks & a couple of chins."
"Beer, Normie?"
"Uh, Coach, I dunno, I had one this week."
"Eh, why not, I'm still young."
"What would you say to a nice beer Normie?"
"Going Down?"
"Beer, Norm?"
"Yeah, that's it."
"What's new Normie?"
"Terrorists, Sam. They've taken over my stomach & they're demanding beer."
"What'll it be Normie?"
"Just the usual Coach. I'll have a froth of beer & a snorkel."
"How's life in the fast lane?"
"Dunno, can't get on the on-ramp."
"What would you say to a beer Normie?"
"Daddy wuvs you."
"What'd you like Normie?"
"A reason to live. Give me another beer."
"What'll you have Normie?"
"Well, I'm in a gambling mood Sammy. I'll take a glass of whatever comes
out of that tap."
"Looks like beer, Norm."
"Call me Mister Lucky."
"What'd you say Norm?"
"Any cheap, tawdry thing that will get me a beer."
"What would you say to a beer Norm?"
"Hiya, sailor. New in town?"
(Coming in from the rain)
"Evening everybody."
Everybody: "Norm!"
"Still pouring Norm?"
"That's funny, I was about to ask you the same thing."
"Whaddya say, Norm?"
"Well, I never met a beer I didn't drink."
"Hey Norm, how's the world been treating you?"
"Like a baby treats a diaper."
"What's your pleasure, Mr. Peterson?"
"Boxer shorts and loose shoes. But I'll settle for a beer."
"How's life treating you?"
"It's not, Sammy, but you can."
"What's the story Mr. Peterson?"
"The Bobbsey twins go to the brewery. Let's cut to the happy ending."
"Hey Mr. Peterson, there's a cold one waiting for you."
"I know, if she calls, I'm not here."
"Beer, Norm?"
"Have I gotten that predictable? Good."
"What's going on Mr. Peterson?"
"A flashing sign in my gut that says, 'Insert beer here.'"
"Hey Mr. Peterson, Jack Frost nipping at your nose?"
"Yep, now let's get Joe Beer nipping at my liver, huh?"
"What's going on Mr. Peterson?"
"Another layer for the winter, Wood."
"Whatcha up to Norm?"
"My ideal weight if I were eleven feet tall."
"How's it going Mr. Peterson?"
"Poor."
"I'm sorry to hear that."
"No, I mean pour."
As reported in the New York Times yesterday, the results are in from the first carefully controlled trial
which exposed 821 people to others with Covid-19. No difference from the control group.
"What have you got to lose ?" Time, money, hope, and side effects, including heart problems.
Plus, it may prevent you from taking something that does work.
Please stick to doing your actual job Mr. "so-called" president and stop pretending you know it all.
The truth is, that you are a dope !
.....around the White House today. Well, fencing. But, the principle is similar.
Apparently, hiding in the bunker wasn't enough for chicken little hands.
I remember Bill Clinton used to go jogging and occasionally meet the public in McDonalds.
Obama used to take surprise walks, talk, joke, laugh & shake hands with the public.
But then, Bill & Barack didn't have a negative approval ratings and weren't racists.
JimNastics Blog (1,965)