Globally, the Delta case wave is over. New cases are almost back to their pre-Delta July lows. The US, the last large economy to get Delta, isn’t there yet, but it’s just a matter of weeks now. The next challenge is to break the July lows and be rid of this thing.
Covid-2019
Covid-2019
Tuesday, October 12, 2021
Our Meme of the Day is no joke. It's a screenshot of an actual correction to a Covid story in the New York Times by their top "global health" reporter. Apoorva Mandavilli, whose fear-porn stories we have criticized many times, literally got everything wrong -- including the key fact announced in the headline, which still remains unchanged. The newspaper of record is officially broken.
Meanwhile, a new Times story in "Recommended Reading." The headline says boosters "complicate" efforts to persuade the unvaccinated. But the meat of the story is that the unvaccinated think "the need for boosters indicated that the vaccines were not working." The only complicated thing about that is how the Times has to squirm to keep the story within the accepted narrative.
Covid-2019
Monday, October 11, 2021
In "Recommended Reading," from our friend Allysia Finley -- the chilling story of the literally lethal consequences of politicizing Covid treatments. In this case, the entirely unnecessary delay of the approval of Merck's antiviral pill.
Covid-2019
Sunday, October 10, 2021
US adult vaccinations and prior infections now pass the 85% herd immunity threshold. Meanwhile, in "Recommended Reading," the New York Times breaks the bombshell story that Moderna is in it for the money. As Navin Johnson said, "Ah! It's a profit deal! Takes the pressure off!"
Covid-2019
Saturday, October 9, 2021
Over the last couple months of divisive harangues about vaccinations, the racial gap has not improved much for African Americans -- at 46% vaccinated, still more than 10% below whites as a share of population. The biggest gains have been with Hispanics, at 55%, who have now almost entirely closed the gap with whites at 57%. Asians continue strongly in the lead at 62%.
Covid-2019
Friday, October 8, 2021
In "Recommended Reading," Pfizer asks the F.D.A. to authorize its Covid-19 vaccine for children 5 to 11. Of course it does.
Covid-2019
Thursday, October 7, 2021
We've seen some strange stories during the pandemic, but in "Recommended Reading" today we have the strangest yet. A San Antonio man on Monday was sentenced to more than a year in prison for claiming on social media that he paid someone with COVID-19 to go to area grocery stores and lick products. He said it was a plot to deter people from shopping. Makes you wonder what kind of jail time would be appropriate for all the panic-mongering public officials around the world who said untrue things to keep people shut away in fear?
Covid-2019
Wednesday, October 6, 2021
In "Recommended Reading," always some new rule to comply with in the never-ending Covid state of emergency. Israel adjusts the rules for its vaccine passport to treat people who got their second shot more than six months ago just like people who got no shot at all.
Covid-2019
Tuesday, October 5, 2021
Lots of good pandemic stuff in "Recommended Reading." But there's one non-Covid item on top: William Shatner is going into space next Tuesday on a Blue Origin flight! There's a lot of work to be done to fix the world -- but this is an age of breakthroughs.
Covid-2019
Monday, October 4, 2021
The US Delta case-wave has been rolling over for weeks, and now it looks like the lagging fatalities have peaked, too. The 2-week case-fatality ratio is flattening out, and will surely fall now. With Delta having 100% share now among strains in the US, and broadly similar everywhere in the world, it looks like we've seen the worst.