san diego: dialed in: CoViD-19: Breakthrough Transmission Limited | Psaki Demolishes Cruz | Oil Spill Updates | WHO To Honor Henrietta Lacks | Adios, Amazon | Border To Reopen To Vaccinated In November

Hannah Joy of `Middle Kids at Soda Bar (Taken 12.13.18)

I chickened out.

Or, as Nova kindly said, "it isn't chickening out if you were presented with new information and changed your mind."

I really wanted to go to the Casbah to see Middle Kids, I really did.

I had procured set times.
We had cut our afternoon visit to the San Diego Zoo short so we'd have time to cook dinner before the show.
Darren and I laid down ground rules and agreed that we wouldn't drink so as not to remove our masks.
My first article linked today is about low transmission among vaccinated.
I was even dressed and almost ready to go, just finishing up a few things online.

And then I opened an email.

Someone had tested positive. People are out living their lives so they could've gotten it anywhere but who knows how long it took from contracting COVID to notifying everyone. And we don't have any context of vax status or if they're symptomatic. It just kinda flipped my feelings and I had to make the decision not to go. We're still able to visit my dad in the hospital so I just can't take chances like that. He's in hospice care but I don't need to be the one to kill him. We've already been loosening up as far as eating out and doing more activities that interface with more of the public, but the thought of standing still, inside, with other stationary people kinda gives me a panic attack.

I'm totally experiencing FOMO and I know I'm missing a ton of amazing shows, but just with the current situation, I'm not ready. Still, I better get to work on listings because I think there are a lot of people who aren't regulars at the VA hospital, who aren't high risk or living among high risk people. For those people, by all means, have all the fun for the rest of us.

Thanks to everyone who sent kind messages about Kiwi. My meanest cat, Strawberry, seems to be taking the absence especially hard, but I think things are gonna be okay as she adjusts. She is also going to hate us as we put her on a diet because she was eating all of Kiwi's food and gained some pandemic pounds.

There were some newsy things I wanted to highlight. First of all, another Psaki bomb today as Jen shreds Ted Cruz. Second, Vice has a great story about how Amazon canceled plans to build a warehouse in San Diego because they don't like the County's plans to impose prevailing wage and minimum sick days to employees. This was discussed last week at the meeting and it's just being drawn up and investigated at this point, but it is popular among the Supervisors. Last, Secretary Mayorkas will be reopening the border to non-essential travel, but it will open in two phases- In November it will open only to fully vaccinated people from within North America. In January it will expand to all fully vaccinated foreign nationals. Seems like that might still need some tweaking and we'll probably get more details on Wednesday, including information on children, for example, but you can read the release below. Off to do listings.

Stay safe out there.

COVID-19:

Breakthrough infections might not be a big transmission risk. Here's the evidence - npr/kpbs (10.12.21)
COVID-19: Where we were, where we are and what could come next - Becker's Hospital Review (10.12.21)
Wisconsin parents file lawsuits against school districts over their children's Covid-19 infections - CNN (10.12.21)
Covid-19 cases may be going down in much of the country, but for children they are still exceptionally high - CNN Health (10.12.21)

Politics:

House sends debt limit hike to Biden, staving off default - AP News (10.12.21)

News:

The Unified Command continues its response Monday to the coastal oil spill in Orange and San Diego Counties - SD County Emergency (10.12.21)

Southern California Spill Response Media Updates
Tar Ball Reporting Line 1-866-985-8366
Report Oiled Wildlife 1-877-UCD-OWCN (1-877-823-6926)
Pipeline P00547 Incident Wildlife Numbers - UC Davis

U.S. to lift Canada, Mexico land border restrictions in Nov for vaccinated visitors -officials - Reuters (10.12.21)
Henrietta Lacks: Recognizing Her Legacy Across the World- A special award ceremony at WHO

Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus will honour the late Henrietta Lacks with a WHO Director-General’s award at a special ceremony at the WHO office in Geneva, recognizing her world-changing contribution to medical science. Henrietta Lacks died of cervical cancer, 70 years ago, on 4th October, 1951.
The award will be received at the WHO office in Geneva by Lawrence Lacks, Henrietta Lacks’ 87-year-old son.

Vietnam’s factories lurch into crisis from worker exodus with holiday shopping on the line. - South China Morning Post (10.11.21)

This is the latest disruption to global supply chains already roiled by labour shortages and high shipping costs due to the pandemic
Factories had moved to Vietnam amid the US-China trade dispute, but there are fears the mass departure of workers could drag down economic growth

Amazon Abandons Warehouse Plan Because San Diego Is Considering Worker Protection Law. The law would require Amazon raise wages and offer more safety training and sick days. - Motherboard/Vice (10.12.21)

Other Reading:

Gun violence claiming more lives of American teens, children - AP News (10.11.21)
Another Global Pandemic Is Spreading—Among Pigs. African swine fever killed half the pigs in China. There is no vaccine and no treatment. Now it’s in the Caribbean and on the doorstep of the US. - Wired (10.12.21)

Government:

White House

Press Briefing by Press Secretary Jen Psaki, October 12, 2021
Q: What’s the White House response to people who say vaccine mandates have reduced the workforce and contributed to this problem?
A: Well, I know world-renowned business, travel, and health expert Senator Ted Cruz has made that point. But I wouldn’t say that that is widely acknowledged or echoed by business leaders who have implemented these mandates, by health experts who have conveyed the way to get out of the pandemic is to ensure that we’re doing exactly the steps the President has announced and we are working to implement.

In response to fight between a Federal executive order for vaccine mandates vs Texas state executive order:
I will say, since you gave me the opportunity, Governor Abbott’s executive order banning mandates — and I would also note an announcement by Governor DeSantis this morning, essentially banning the implementation of mandates — fit a familiar pattern that we’ve seen of putting politics ahead of public health. Over 700,000 American lives have been lost due to COVID-19, including more than 56,000 in Florida and over 68,000 in Texas. And every leader should be focused on supporting efforts to save lives and end the pandemic.
President Biden Announces Key Regional Appointments for EPA, HHS, and USDA
Letter from Dana A. Remus, Counsel to the President, to David Ferriero, Archivist of the United States, dated October 8, 2021

President Biden has determined that an assertion of executive privilege is not in the best interests of the United States, and therefore is not justified as to any of the Documents.