Thursday Thoughts and News Recap

In the spirit of sharing softer news and/or silly vibes:

• Jon Stewart explained his support for Biden over Swampy Don.
• Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert explored US history of explicit racism.
• Stephen Colbert and Jon Stewart discussed 1918 pandemic and COVID-19. 

Daily pandemic update:  

World Health Organization chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned that the pandemic is "not even close to being over" and while there had been some progress initially, it was "actually speeding up".  Aljazeera.com timeline

2 July 2020	Cases		Deaths		Recovered
11:11 GMT*	Tue 6/30	Thu 7/2	Tue 6/30	Thu 7/2	Tue 6/30	Thu 7/2
World	10,455,247	10,834,202	509,215	519,582	5,707,889	6,054,005
US	2,684,266	2,780,152	128,857	130,798	1,122,655	1,164,794
NY	417,328	418,605	31,496	32,143	89,038	90,478
CT	46,362	46,572	4,320	4,324	10,012	11,439
NC	63,734	66,653	1,366	1,394	45,538	45,538

A moment of silence for those we’ve lost to coronavirus, including the first 100 and the first 100,000 in the US.

As of today 10% of closed cases in the US resulted in death; 90% recovered.

Globally 8% of closed cases resulted in death worldwide; 92% recovered.

Currently 1% of all active cases are considered serious or critical.  

*Documenting time of day because real time data updates continuously.
Tracking specific states:  NY is US epicenter. Son Reid lives in CT. I live in NC. 
Worldometers     Coronainusa     Starsexpress2020     https://ncov2019.live/

In the news: 

• AL teens held COVID parties to infect themselves.
• AZ hospitals prepared to activate crisis care standards as coronavirus cases surged. 28.3% of people tested recently received positive results; nearly 1 in 3.
• Biden raised more money than Trump 2 months in a row. Trump campaign reserved $69 million in tv ads in swing states AZ, FL, OH, NC, PA, and WI with additional ad buys in GA, IA, and TX.
• Beyonce’s mother Tina Lawson and Breonna Taylor's family expressed outrage and disappointment over engagement party photos of KY Attorney General Daniel Cameron because police officers involved in Taylor’s death still have not been charged. FBI investigation is ongoing. Taylor supporters announced they are organizing KY Derby boycott in September.
• Boston MA investigation confirmed discrimination against Black renters and prospective tenants.
• CDC principal deputy director Anne Schuchat told Journal of the American Medical Association COVID may be spreading too fast to contain.
• Cognitive decline and senility have become presidential campaign talking points. 
• Democratic legislators proposed automatic extension of unemployment benefits until 3 month avg falls below 11%.
• Ethiopian singer Hachalu Hundessa was murdered Monday night. His songs focused on the rights of the Oromo people, the country's largest ethnic group. Protests have spread, troops have been deployed, and at least 81 people have been killed since Monday.
• Facebook was accused of systemic discrimination in hiring, compensation and promotion of Black people in EEOC class action complaint. Facebook again shared user data with developers that should not have been shared.  Mark Zuckerberg dismissed Facebook ad boycott and affirmed his refusal to change corporate policy on hate speech. Hundreds of advertisers are participating in boycott. However, top advertisers including Walmart, American Express, and Home Depot continue to spend money on Facebook ads. CEOs from tech giants Amazon, Apple, Facebook and Google agreed to testify before the House Judiciary Committee as part of congressional probe expected to result in new legislative proposals to reform and regulate the digital market.
• Former George W Bush administration officials launched 43 Alumni for Biden political action committee supporting Biden for president. Other republican PACs against Trump include Right Side PAC, Republican Voters Against Trump, and Lincoln Project.  
• Ghislaine Maxwell, former companion of Jeffrey Epstein, was arrested by FBI in New Hampshire.
• Hong Kong unveiled new security law restricting free speech and dissent against China. Hundreds of protestors have been arrested, including a stabbing suspect. US, UK, Canada, Japan and Taiwan condemned the law. Cuba praised the law on behalf of 53 nations. 
• Interpol rejected Iran’s request for Trump arrest after US air strike killed General Qassem Soleimani.
• Kellyanne Conway's 15 year old daughter Claudia posted pro Black Lives Matter and anti Trump TikTok videos.  
• Kumeyaay nation tribe blocked US-Mexico border wall construction to protect burial grounds.
• Las Vegas pastor murdered neighbor and her friend after long standing feud over backyard privacy while young daughter of pastor witnessed the killings.
• Miami FL announced 10 day shutdown penalty for businesses violating COVID rules.
• Mitch McConnell said senate would consider additional stimulus bill in July; Trump said he supported larger payments. McConnell warned democrats not to change senate filibuster rule. Also, he broke from Trump on 2 issues: 1) urging Americans to wear masks and 2) supporting legislation to rename military bases honoring confederate leaders. Amy McGrath won KY democratic primary to challenge McConnell for senate seat in November.
• Morgantown WV Planet Fitness exposed more than 200 people to COVID.
• Myanmar landslide at jade mine killed more than 100 people.
• NASCAR driver Corey Lajoie will debut Trump 2020 car during Indianapolis Brickyard 400 Sunday.
• NY appellate court lifted temporary restraining order against Simon & Schuster allowing publisher to continue printing and distributing copies of book written by Mary Trump after judge temporarily halted publication. Court left temporary order in place for Mary Trump until July 10 hearing.
• NY protests did not result in coronavirus case spike, despite fears and predictions.
• Pew poll: only 19% of republicans reported being satisfied with state of the country, a record low. 
• OK voters approved Medicaid expansion.
• Reddit recently removed pro Trump forum for hate speech while Twitch temporarily banned Trump for hateful content. Earlier in June Facebook took down Trump ads featuring Nazi symbol used to mark political prisoners. In May and June Twitter flagged controversial Trump tweets with warning labels. Last year Google and YouTube removed 300+ controversial Trump campaign ads for violating policies.
• Republican Voters Against Trump released a video: Trump Ignores Fauci and America Pays The Price. Stand Up Republic released a video criticizing Trump over Russian bounty report. Veterans for Responsible Leadership and Lincoln Project released video featuring former US Navy Seal Dr Dan Barkhuff asking if Trump is a coward or complicit with Putin. Biden campaign released new video criticizing Trump. Democratic Coalition also released video #AmericaStrongerWithBiden.
• Richmond VA mayor Levar Stoney invoked emergency powers to remove confederate statues.
• Seattle police dispersed protesters in Capitol Hill Occupation Protest (CHOP) area and arrested at least 31 people Wednesday after emergency order by Mayor Jenny Durkan.
• Senate republicans removed language from an intelligence bill that would have required presidential campaigns to report offers of foreign election help.
• Supreme Court ruled states must give religious schools same access to public funding that other private schools receive. Justices ruled 8-1 that adding .com to a generic word can make the entire combination eligible for trademark protection. Court voted 5-4 to temporarily block lower court order that would have cleared the way for more people in AL to vote. Justices agreed to hear arguments this fall in case between Trump administration and House Judiciary Committee regarding redacted portions of Mueller report; decision likely to come after November election. Court declined to hear equal pay case and multiple abortion related cases.
• Throwback Thursday reminder: republican lawmakers visited Moscow US Embassy July 4, 2018 to discourage Russian election interference ahead of Trump meeting with Putin. Delegation included senators Richard Shelby (AL), Steve Daines (MT), John Thune (SD), John Kennedy (LA), Jerry Moran (KS), John Hoeven (ND), and rep Kay Granger (TX) #TBT.
• Trump approved plan to withdraw 9,500 US troops from Germany.
• Trump campaign was criticized for selling $88 baseball linked to Nazi sympathizers, and for ANTIFA ad campaign condemning anti-fascist movement.
• Trump plans to visit Mt Rushmore for July 4 fireworks and rally despite coronavirus concerns and wildfire warnings. Sioux tribal leaders denounced the event and called for removal of monument. Sculptor Gutzon Borglum, also responsible for confederate monument in Stone Mtn GA, was a Ku Klux Klan supporter.
• Trump reportedly could not be reached for more than 3 hours while he was golfing, following his re-tweet of white power video. Trump later deleted the video.
• Trump’s resistance to bad news and warnings about Russia allegedly led his national security team to limit information shared during verbal summaries of President's Daily Brief. White House denied Trump was briefed about Russian bounties on US soldiers in Afghanistan though intelligence was reportedly included in written PDB. Trump called the bounty report a hoax despite congressional briefing by his administration. No action is currently planned.
• Trump said he believes coronavirus will disappear. He also said masks are good though he still opposes mask mandate.
• US Dept of Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar announced deal to purchase 500,000 doses of Gilead remdesivir coronavirus treatment for use in American hospitals. 
• US Treasury approved $700 million loan to YRC Worldwide trucking company in the interest of national security despite Defense Dept lawsuit.
• Vladimir Putin could rule Russia until 2036 due to referendum vote.

NC News

• Greensboro city council voted 8-1 to not renew contract of North State Security Group after complaints of aggressive security at J Douglas Galyon Depot transportation hub. 
• NC A&T University scheduled webinars to explain Fall 2020 semester registration.
• NC schools are developing reopening plans without directives from Gov Cooper or NCDPI.
• Samspon, Stanly, Montgomery and Duplin counties have reached coronavirus hot spot tipping point. Health officials also are concerned about rising case counts in Charlotte and Mecklenburg county. Clay, Cherokee, Avery and Transylvania counties in the western part of the state have relatively low case counts.
• UNC Board of Governors elected Peter Hans the next UNC System President. He is currently president of NC Community College System.
• UNC Chapel Hill updated physical distancing protocol to reflect standard 6 foot recommendation after backlash following announcement students would be 3 feet apart.
• UNC Wilmington announced retirement of controversial professor Mike Adams effective August 1. The school agreed to pay Adams $500,000 settlement to avoid costly litigation.
• Unemployment insurance system in NC is notoriously restrictive. Piedmont triad region jobless rate remains highest on record in 44 years.
• US Army announced 90 participants in Survival, Evasion, Resistance and Escape (SERE) training at Fort Bragg NC tested positive for COVID-19.
• Variety of new NC laws went into effect July 1.
• Williamston NC hotel apologized after employee called police on unverified Black guests using pool.
• Winston Salem community pools and splash pads opened July 1 despite rising coronavirus cases and deaths in Forsyth County.
• Winston Salem man alleged excessive force when he was arrested at Cooks Flea Market. Charles Moody had intended to purchase car tires from an outdoor vendor and went inside to get cash from ATM. He did not have a mask. After a dispute with employees, a deputy forcibly arrested him.
• Winston Salem police issued statement affirming support for peaceful protests and condemning criminal violations. Demonstrators met at Trader Joe’s grocery store Monday evening for a sit down protest. Afterward they went to Mayor Allen Joines’ home where he thanked them for protesting peacefully, encouraged them to email questions to him, and invited a representative from the group to join a citizens’ committee to discuss city funding. Tuesday protestors gathered at Publix grocery store and blocked traffic at Five Points intersection. Wednesday protestors met at Hanes Mall. Since May 26 there have been at least 31 protests in the city.

In my personal life…

Greg and I have been talking about traveling together at some point in the future, possibly taking an extended cross country road trip. We’re considering camping to save money rather than staying in a hotel or airbnb every night. In 20 years as a couple Greg and I never camped together, not once. His love of air conditioning, cable tv, room service and indoor heated pools is so strong that we never seriously considered camping when planning family vacations, not until now.

I camped with my family as a teenager, camped with son Reid when he was a cub scout, and traveled with Reid to Brazil in 2018 so we could camp in the Amazon rainforest together. We invited Greg to join us but he declined, responding “hell no!” as he laughed out loud at the thought of such a crazy idea.

Greg slept in the back of his dad’s truck as a child when they went jug fishing together but he never camped as an adult. When we recently discussed the possibility of camping together, Greg had some concerns about comfort and safety. He carefully researched various options: tents, truck camping, tow behind camper trailers, RVs, etc. After several days of thoughtful consideration and product comparisons he picked a Coleman tent.

Monday night we set up the tent in our backyard and placed an air mattress inside. We had difficulty falling asleep due to our giddy excitement though we eventually slept well; no complaints. The tent was easy to set up and take down and was quite comfortable for the 2 of us. It is advertised to accommodate 4 people but I doubt that claim; maybe 4 kids or 2 adults with 2 small children but not 4 full size grown ups. Coleman dark room technology blocks light. However, we lifted the canopy cover to expose the mesh netting for better air flow since it was hot and humid with little chance of rain overnight. We could see the sky so well, it was almost like sleeping out in the open but thankfully with no bugs or mosquitoes bothering us.

Next step we’ll likely stay overnight at a nearby campground, probably Hanging Rock State Park. We’re also considering van camping for better protection than a tent offers.  

We ate the last 2 blueberry muffins for breakfast Monday morning. For linner Greg made grilled chicken with rice along with squash and zucchini from our garden. Afterward we snacked on candy for dessert. Tuesday we skipped breakfast. Greg made hamburgers for lunch; I topped mine with lettuce from the garden, a cucumber (also from the garden) sliced and dipped in humus, and a garlic dill pickle on the side. For dinner we had ribeye steak, potatoes, and more squash and zucchini from the garden followed by more candy for dessert. Greg made homemade blueberry crumble Wednesday. I ate left over grilled chicken for dinner but can’t remember what Greg had. Thursday we skipped breakfast, snacked mid day, then I made grilled pork chops, baked potato, roasted squash and zucchini and corn on the cob for dinner.

My daily actions for racial justice continued to be listening, reading, watching and thinking. I also participated in Nextdoor online discussions regarding Black Lives Matter. It was frustrating to see posts from neighbors insisting all lives matter, though heartwarming to read more comments supporting black lives matter.