CoViD-19: CA Capitol Outbreak Includes Breakthroughs | Psaki's Latest Doocy Disses | 4th of July Safety: Pets, Booze, 'Works | Busy Biden |

Southern White Rhino Mwezi at San Diego Zoo Safari Park  (Taken 7.1.21)

Today's post is just kind of a recap of the past day or two of news. I was gonna post last night but then got super tired after our big Costco adventure and had to be somewhat coherent this morning because *drumroll* our new couch was delivered today! I was so sick of shopping at furniture stores and seeing how backlogged they were. You may or may not remember that once upon a time I worked as a media buyer for Mor Furniture and at my agency before that we had Jerome's as a client, but I couldn't bring myself to buy from either, especially when you'd look online and they'd say "this item is on back order and will take 8-12 weeks for delivery." So I ordered sight unseen from an online merchandiser who I'd prefer to leave nameless because their ex-CEO is a creep. Our couch before wasn't the best, we bought it gently used from a furniture store in North Park, but the pandemic really sucked away any life it had left and we were constantly cleaning and pulling escaped down feathers from our hair, our laundry, everything.  

And anyway, today's news isn't really news at all...just more stuff about Delta, lots of action in the White House, and a bunch of warnings about staying safe this weekend because (1) fireworks are dangerous (2) drinking and driving is bad (3) this is now the busiest travel weekend since before March 2020 (4) many pockets of the country have low vaccination rates and the virus is still very dangerous to the unvaxxed. The news keeps saying "the White House missed their goal" of vaccinated but I'm kinda sick of hearing it already. At least here in San Diego, you have no excuse to not have a vaccine by now. It's been made available in numerous places with numerous incentives and no appointment, late-night, around public transit clinics throughout the past six months. It isn't the White House's fault if you're willfully choosing to listen to conspiracies, anti-vaxxers, and general misinformation that comes from people who do not wish you well. So yeah, I said what I said. 

I'm gonna get back to lounging on my new couch and will catch up tomorrow. Maybe. Both the State and County didn't update numbers today, so I suspect that will be true through Monday. Stay safe out there. 

 

• COVID-19:
• California Capitol faces COVID outbreak of 7 new cases, including 2 breakthrough cases - Sacramento Bee (7.1.21)
• Schools That Mask See Little COVID Spread — North Carolina's experience supports safe reopening for in-person learning, researchers say - MedPage Today (7.2.21)
• Scientists identify long-sought marker for COVID vaccine success. Knowing which signatures in the blood predict protection against COVID-19 could speed the development of new vaccines. - nature (7.1.21)
• Politics: 
• Mayor Gloria Announces Hire of City’s First Chief Race and Equity Officer Mayor Taps Kim Desmond To Lead City's Race and Equity Office, Ensure City Operates More Equitably - (7.2.21)
• Lieutenant Governor Kounalakis Declares Special Election - Lt Gov (7.1.21)
• "declaring a special gubernatorial recall election on September 14, 2021"
• Attorney General Merrick B. Garland Imposes a Moratorium on Federal Executions; Orders Review of Policies and Procedures - DOJ (7.1.21)
• Sexual Assaults Will No Longer be Prosecuted by Commanders - DOD (7.2.21)
• Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III accepted all of the recommendations of an independent review commission that stood up in March and delivered its findings just last week. The commission recommended an array of changes in how the defense department and the services that fall under it will handle sexual assaults.
• White House: 
• Jen Psaki has had it with Peter Doocy's stupid fucking questions about de-funding the police. (7.2.21)
• Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jen Psaki and Director of the National Economic Council Brian Deese, July 2, 2021
• Remarks by President Biden on the June Jobs Report
• Remarks by President Biden After Visiting King Orchards
• Remarks by President Biden in a Naturalization Ceremony with Essential Workers and Military Service Members
• Remarks by President Biden at the 2021 National Education Association Annual Meeting
• Statement by NSC Spokesperson Emily Horne on National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan’s Call with Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi of Indonesia
• President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. Amends Florida Emergency Declaration
• Statement of President Joe Biden on the Results of the Independent Review Commission on Military Sexual Assault
• Background Press Call by Senior Administration Officials on the Independent Review Commission on Sexual Assault
• Readout of White House Meeting with Congressional Hispanic Caucus
• News:
• Keep Your Dogs Safe Over Fourth of July - County News Center (7.2.21)
• California State Parks Launches Mobile App, Making It Easier to Connect Visitors to Nation’s Largest State Park System - California Parks (7.2.21)
• Agents will be out the Fourth of July Weekend to Increase Public Safety.  ABC agents will look in on licensees and their employees to ensure they are checking identifications to prevent underage drinking - ABC CA (7.1.21)
• Slow Down For A Safe And Sane Independence Day -  CHP (6.30.21)
• Other Reading:
• Oregon’s Buckled Roads and Melted Cables Are Warning Signs. Highways and rail lines in the Pacific Northwest were built for a cooler climate. But the heat wave proved that extreme weather is becoming more common. - Wired (7.1.21)
• Global COVID-19 Stats (JHU 6.3.21 2:21pm):
• 183,283,292 Known Cases
• 3,966,601 Known Deaths
• US COVID-19 Stats 
• CDC COVID-19 Vaccination Data Tracker
• JHU
• 33,711,940 Cases
• 605,467 Deaths
• CDC Data Tracker:
• +15,555 New Cases/33,530,880 Known Cases 
• +287 New Deaths/603,018 Known Deaths
• 383,067,560 Doses Delivered
• 329,970,551 Doses Administered
• 182,109,860 Partially Vaccinated
• 156,982,549 Fully Vaccinated
• San Diego County 
• Free Testing Sites and Schedule in San Diego
• VaccinationSuperstationSD
• Vaccination Dashboard
• San Diego County Of Education School Reopening Dashboard
• County Data From CDC Tracker (Data Lags Behind County/State Data):
• 2,860368 at least one dose 85.7% of population 
• 1,378,243 fully vaccinated 41.3% of population