\n<\/p>\n
By Lambert Strether of Corrente<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\nBird Song of the Day<\/strong><\/p>\nReaders have been so happy with the mockingbirds I\u2019m going to keep doing them. Now entering Day Two of Week Three!<\/p>\n<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Long-tailed Mockingbird, Quebrada El Lim\u00f3n (Valqui E4.2), Piura, Peru.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><strong>In Case You Might Miss\u2026 <\/strong> <\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><a href=\"#helper\">Best Olympic story.<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#vp\">Walz is Kamala\u2019s VP choice.<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#climate\">Climate tipping points<\/a> unpredictable.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#gallery\">Andy Warhol\u2019s<\/a> lost Amiga Art.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"helper\"\/><strong>Look for the Helpers<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/helper_olympic.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"1157\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-276312\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/helper_olympic.png 500w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/helper_olympic-130x300.png 130w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/helper_olympic-443x1024.png 443w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\"\/><\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>My email address is down by the plant; please send examples of there (\u201cHelpers\u201d in the subject line). In our increasingly desperate and fragile neoliberal society, everyday <em>normal<\/em> incidents and stories of \u201cthe communism of everyday life\u201d are what I am looking for (and not, say, the Red Cross in Hawaii, or even the UNWRA in Gaza).<\/p>\n<p><strong>Politics<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo many of the social reactions that strike us as psychological are in fact a rational management of symbolic capital.\u201d \u2013Pierre Bourdieu, Classification Struggles<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"assassination \"\/>Trump Assassination Attempt<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cThe Kill Box: Investigating the Trump Assassination, Benny Johnson With Reps. Eli Crane and Cory Mills\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.realclearpolitics.com\/video\/2024\/08\/05\/the_kill_box_investigating_the_trump_assassination_benny_johnson_with_reps_eli_crane_and_cory_mills.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">RealClearPolitics<\/a>]. \u201cKill box\u201d is a phrase invented by the media personality, Johnson, and not by either of the two representatives, both of whom were snipers (!!). This caught my eye: \u201cREP. ELI CRANE: When you get out on that site, if you have even an iota of training on security, long-distance shooting, and you get on that property, I mean, you see a water tower that covers the entire premises, basically you start asking yourself, \u2018Why the hell wasn\u2019t anybody up on that water tower?’\u201d Johnson concludes: \u201cWe [I don\u2019t thinik the two reps would agree with that, and would not use this language] have established beyond a reasonable doubt that President Trump was intentionally put into the kill box on July 13th. So who\u2019s responsible for this fatal security plan? Who cut the communication lines? Who kept Trump on stage, and who will be held criminally liable for these deadly decisions? We have so many questions after our investigation of the assassination site, but one thing is crystal clear: there are forces that wanted President Trump dead. The obscene security failures created the conditions for a live TV execution. These failures are unforgivable and have inspired regular Americans to ask questions like this: Was there a stand-down order issued? Was there a conspiracy to kill President Trump? The head of the Secret Service resigned in disgrace after this question, but her replacement continues the same failed policies that sent a bullet through Trump\u2019s head.\u201d \u2022 Not to minimize, but not (no doubt the regreat of some) \u201cthrough his head.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p> \u2013><\/p>\n<p>2024<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Less than one hundred days to go!<\/p>\n<p><iframe src=\"https:\/\/free.timeanddate.com\/countdown\/i8ubjj5e\/n179\/cf100\/cm0\/cu1\/ct0\/cs1\/ca0\/cr0\/ss0\/cac000\/cpc000\/pcfff\/tcfff\/fs100\/szw320\/szh135\/tatTime%20left%20to%20Election%20Day%2C%202024\/tac000\/tptTime%20since%20Event%20started%20in\/tpc000\/mac000\/mpc000\/iso2024-11-05T00:00:00\/bo2\/pd2\" allowtransparency=\"true\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"322\" height=\"137\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p> <a name=\"rcp\"\/>Friday\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.realclearpolitics.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">RCP<\/a> Poll Averages:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/rcp_2023-08-02.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"960\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-276097\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/rcp_2023-08-02.png 500w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/rcp_2023-08-02-156x300.png 156w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Drops for Trump across the board, including a 2.5% drop nationally (almost outside the margin of error, ha ha), and a blue triangle on the mao for the first time.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"defenestration\"\/>Biden Defenestration: <\/p>\n<p>\u2018Presidential Agonistes, Half a Century Apart\u201d [Michael Austin, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/2024\/08\/Presidential%20Agonistes,%20Half%20a%20Century%20Apart\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">RealClearPolitics<\/a>]. \u201cThe summers of 1974 and 2024 are political theater of the highest kind, though the former had at least the semblance of a civics lesson, while the latter is pure bare-knuckle politics. They are also a reminder, in our digital and cable news age, that . If Donald Trump\u2019s resurgence, even after being written off in 2020, is due to his dominating his party, both Richard Nixon\u2019s and Joe Biden\u2019s demise was due to having been abandoned by theirs.\u201d <\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"trail\"\/><em><strong>The Campaign Trail<\/strong><\/em>:<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"vp\">The VP choice<\/a>:<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cTim Walz. Hell yeah.\u201d [Dave Karpf, <a href=\"https:\/\/davekarpf.substack.com\/p\/tim-walz-hell-yeah\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Now and Then<\/a>]. \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/politics\/2024\/08\/06\/harris-walz-vp\/?utm_campaign=&utm_medium=social&utm_source=threads\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Walz\u2019s biography<\/a> reads like a character ripped from the Aaron Sorkin extended universe. Small town boy from Nebraska, couple decades of military service, high school history teacher, part-time high school football coach who took the team to the state championship\u2026 went on to serve five terms in Congress as a Democrat in a conservative district, then became Governor and, with a small Democratic majority in the statehouse, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.msnbc.com\/opinion\/msnbc-opinion\/tim-walz-kamala-harris-vp-pick-minnesota-rcna164157\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">signed a huge slate of progressive initiatives into law<\/a>. But he doesn\u2019t talk like a safe, scripted centrist. The guy has spent the past few weeks pitching a comms perfect-game. Every media interview has been clipped and shared on social media. He rolled out the \u2018<a href=\"https:\/\/davekarpf.substack.com\/p\/why-youre-being-weird-works-so-well?r=eeyg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Trump and Vance are <em>just plain weird<\/em><\/a>\u2018 attack line. Listen to the guy on <a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/is-tim-walz-the-midwestern-dad-democrats-need\/id1548604447?i=1000664114455\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Ezra Klein\u2019s podcast<\/a>: he manufactures aww shucks midwestern-dad energy and converts it into body blows against his opponents. This is one of the interesting points about social media this election cycle. Twitter and Facebook aren\u2019t anything like they once were. TikTok is mostly for young people, but the other social networks are still trying to emulate TikTok. Which means, effectively, that .\u201d \u2022 I must confess that the video where Walz allowed his daughter to inveigle him into going on a heartstopping ride at the State Fair (or whichever fair) made me sit up and take notice. Very fresh. And then along came the school lunches, and getting that done with a one-vote (?) majority (quite in contrast to national Democrat whinging). A clip:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">If he\u2019s picked he should do clips like this every day for America. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/A0wrt2qqSk\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/A0wrt2qqSk<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Albie\ud83e\ude78\ud83e\uddb7\ud83e\udd1d\ud83e\udd65\ud83c\udf34 (@AlbieBrian) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/AlbieBrian\/status\/1820561409627046292\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 5, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): <\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">In one of the most improbable runs in recent political history, Tim Walz is the VP nominee. I wrote about why he was selected. I don’t think it was just “weird”; his legislative record in 2023 in Minnesota mirrors what Kamala Harris wants to get done:<a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/2pAJoY0IS8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/t.co\/2pAJoY0IS8<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 David Dayen (@ddayen) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ddayen\/status\/1820808900796653744\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 6, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>I don\u2019t agree with this at all. First, we don\u2019t <em>know<\/em> what Kamala wants to get done:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Kamala Harris\u2019s campaign page has no policy positions. There\u2019s nothing about the first 100 days. It\u2019s just PR fluff pieces on her and Waltz, and the many ways to donate. I\u2019ve never seen a presidential campaign like this. How are you running for president with no platform? <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/iARlP2kLzy\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/iARlP2kLzy<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 AshleyStevens (@The_Acumen) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/The_Acumen\/status\/1820837887627214877\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 6, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>(Of course, even if there were a platform, Kamala could be lying, as Democrats did continuously over Biden\u2019s cognitive deterioration).<\/p>\n<p>Second, making the assumption that Walz is a progressive instead of just another liberal (<a href=\"https:\/\/pensionwarriorsdwardsiedle.substack.com\/p\/minnesota-governor-walz-warned-of\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">see here<\/a>), Democrats have a long history of embracing progressives just before stabbing them in the back (see under the Biden Transition Team).<\/p>\n<p>Third, personnel is policy. And Kamala has a lot of people in her circle who would look askance at, say, free school lunches without complex eligibility requirements. Picking one of many examples:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Charles Phillips is also an advisor to NYC mayor Eric Adams and ran his mayoral tech transition. Nightmare. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/mR6Z7ybGVY\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/t.co\/mR6Z7ybGVY<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Matt Stoller (@matthewstoller) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/matthewstoller\/status\/1820814225607929912\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 6, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>Finally \u2014 and I don\u2019t hate Walz \u2014 if he\u2019s everything we\u2019re being told he is, why in the name of all that is holy isn\u2019t he at the top of the ticket? Maybe if the Democrats hadn\u2019t wired the primaries for Biden [sorry, that name again?] he would be.<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cWalz\u2019s handling of BLM riots, strict COVID rules under microscope after Harris VP pick\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/walzs-handling-blm-riots-strict-covid-rules-under-microscope-after-harris-vp-pick\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">FOX<\/a>]. \u201cVice President Kamala Harris\u2019 pick of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as a running mate will put the Democratic governor\u2019s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and widespread riots in the state back in the national spotlight. \u2018[H]e\u2019s been a disaster for Minnesota and is by far the most partisan governor that I can remember having,\u2019 Minnesota GOP Chairman David Hann told Fox News Digital last week. \u2018Going back to 2020, certainly \u2013 he did nothing to try to stop the riots going on in Minneapolis. I think he was fearful of alienating his \u2018progressive\u2019 base, who were supporting the riots. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/harris-backing-bail-fund-during-george-floyd-protests-dampens-trump-prosecutor-campaign-pitch\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Kamala Harris was raising money for the rioters<\/a>.\u201d And: \u201cMeanwhile, critics point to Walz\u2019s memorandum mandating indoor masking during the coronavirus pandemic, which he enacted in 2020 and ended in 2021. The Upper Midwest Law Center sued, calling the mandate unconstitutional, but an appellate court <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/minnesota-gov-walz-legally-allowed-mandate-masks-appellate-court-rules\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">ultimately sided with Walz<\/a>.\u201d \u2022 Different framing:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Walz is absolutely unafraid to govern. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/9b3ZQrBvdR\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/t.co\/9b3ZQrBvdR<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Zephyr Teachout (@ZephyrTeachout) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ZephyrTeachout\/status\/1820817299466535310\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 6, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>\u201cUnafraid to govern\u201d (sounds like Stoller).<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cKamala Harris chooses Tim Walz as running mate in US presidential election\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ft.com\/content\/a87b5e6d-89ab-44be-839b-f373e62fa8e9\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Financial Times<\/a>]. Walz after a clip from 2021 went viral, in which Vance warned the US was being run by \u201ca bunch of childless cat ladies\u201d: \u201c\u2018My God, they went after cat people \u2014 good luck with that. Turn on the internet and see what cat people do when you go after \u2018em. It would be funny if it wasn\u2019t so sad,\u2019 Walz said in one MSNBC appearance.\u201d \u2022 Walz can stick the shiv in. I like that.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>Walz and Covid:<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201c\u2018Buckle it up\u2019: Walz orders MN to \u2018stay at home\u2019 to curb virus spread\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mprnews.org\/story\/2020\/03\/25\/latest-on-covid19-in-minnesota\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">MPR News<\/a>] (March 25, 2020 5:30 AM). \u201cGov. Tim Walz has ordered Minnesotans to stay at home for two weeks, at least, as part of the state\u2019s ongoing efforts to control the spread of the coronavirus and COVID-19 disease. The order isn\u2019t a complete lockdown and it allows essential activities and services to continue, Walz said. People will be allowed to exercise outdoors and visit the grocery store, for example, with proper social distancing. \u2018Buckle it up for a few more weeks,\u2019 the governor said. The order takes effect Saturday and lasts through April 10. Walz said it\u2019s impossible to lessen the number of Minnesotans who will become infected with COVID-19, but the stay-home order is intended to push out the time of peak infections so there are intensive care unit beds available for those who need it. \u2018The thing that Minnesota is going to do is ensure if you need an ICU, it\u2019s there,\u2019 Walz told the state in a livestreamed address Wednesday.\u201d \u2022 Ah yes. \u201cFlatten the curve.\u201d We all did that, and then the PMC discovered they could work from home and have servants <em>bring<\/em> them stuff, at which point they threw the working class under the bus. Not Walz\u2019s fault, but\u2026 <\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cAs cases fall and vaccination ramps up, Gov. Walz adjusts COVID-19 mitigation measures\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mplsdowntown.com\/as-cases-fall-and-vaccination-ramps-up-gov-walz-adjusts-covid-19-mitigation-measures\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">mpls downtown council<\/a>] (March 12, 2021). \u201c\u2018Minnesotans should continue to take simple steps to protect the progress we\u2019ve made, but the data shows that we are beating COVID-19,\u2019 said Governor Walz. \u2018Our vaccine rollout is leading the nation, the most vulnerable Minnesotans are getting the shot, and it is becoming increasingly more safe to return to our daily lives. The sun is shining brighter.\u2019 As vaccines have an impact, life is slowly returning to normal. In February, Governor Walz announced a plan to return more students to the classroom, and 90 percent of schools now offer in-person learning, while 60 percent of teachers have been vaccinated. Minnesota is weeks ahead of schedule on vaccinations. Nearly 1.2 million Minnesotans and more than 70 percent of seniors have gotten a shot. \u2018There are more good days now than bad days,\u2019 said Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan.\u201d \u2022 Handy chart (and I love the file name: reanimation_guidelines_210312.png):<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/reanimation_guidelines_210312.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"600\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-276310\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/reanimation_guidelines_210312.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/reanimation_guidelines_210312-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/reanimation_guidelines_210312-150x150.png 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Shows a prime difficulty of lockdowns: They were organized by lines of business (churches, bars, etc.) instead of by ventilation (and surely a regulatory formula could have been worked out, even in 2020). Of course, in 2021, as today, the public health establishment was dug in against airborne transmission, so that wasn\u2019t \u201cpolitically feasible\u201d as we say.<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cWalz: Jensen\u2019s COVID-19 stance is \u2018killing people’\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/minnesotareformer.com\/briefs\/walz-jensens-covid-19-stance-is-killing-people\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Minnesota Reformer<\/a>] (August 10, 2022). \u201c\u2018Putting out false information around COVID, yourself not being vaccinated and telling others (not) to \u2014 it\u2019s killing people,\u2019 Walz told MPR News editor Mike Mulcahy. \u2018I think giving a platform for that \u2026 that\u2019s not who we are.\u2019 \u2026 .In the early days of the pandemic, [his gubernatorial opponent Scott Jensen] called COVID-19 a \u201cmild four-day respiratory illness which poses little risk to more than 95% of people.’\u201d \u2022 Rhetorically, that\u2019s the stuff to give the troops. <\/p>\n<p>Lambert here: Maybe Covid will finally enter the political arena through the back door. From my distinctly minority perspective, neither party has a record they can coherently defend. Trump instituted Operation Warp Speed (OWS), which if it had included sterilizing nasal vaccines, would have been seen as a moonshot, instead of the technical triumph it was. Unfortunately, Trump\u2019s base is disportionately anti-vax, so he can\u2019t take credit for vax, and the Democrats won\u2019t give it to him. Further, Trump modeled masking by denigrating it, when it ought at the very least to have been a fallback position. Meanwhile, Biden took the great gift that Trump gave him, and squandered it (which their base prevents the Republicans from saying): Rather than pursue a layered strategy that included vax, with a second OWS for mitigation, Biden bet the farm on vax, most especially with vaccine mandates. Unfortunately, the vaccines didn\u2019t prevent transmission, safety studies were hardly optimal, and we ended up with wave after wave of mass infection <em>while CDC continued Trump\u2019s work by simultaneously ruining non-pharmaceutical interventions<\/em>. Across-the-board elite denial that Covid was even a problem, combined with social norming has worked for awhile, but reality does seem to be breaking through (give it a couple more years). How is Biden\u2019s strategy defensible? At least the Republican messaging about freedom \u2014 vax bad, no mandates, no masking \u2014 is coherent. What do Democrats have in response? \u201cWe did our best\u201d? They didn\u2019t!<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cKamala Harris earns majority of Democratic roll call votes, achieving historic presidential nominatio\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/abcnews.go.com\/Politics\/kamala-harris-nominee-DNC-majority-democratic-roll-call-votes\/story?id=112580918\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">ABC<\/a>]. \u2022 Historic in that Harris is the first candidate ever to run for President whle never winning a single primary running for President.<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cThe Crucial Week Is Here. Can Kamala Keep This Crazy Enthusiasm Going?\u201d [Michael Tomasky, <a href=\"https:\/\/newrepublic.com\/article\/184532\/crucial-week-here-can-kamala-keep-crazy-enthusiasm-going\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The New Republic<\/a>]. Extended liberalgasm, oh good. \u201cIt was impossible to predict the explosion [(!!)] of relief, enthusiasm, and sense of mission that has greeted Kamala Harris\u2019s presumptive\u2014and now, as of Friday, official\u2014nomination for president. I choose those three descriptors with special care because each represents a critical component of a political phenomenon that has been greater than any of us\u2014most definitely including Donald Trump\u2014could have imagined.\u201d Actually, the key descriptor is \u201cexplosion.\u201d More: \u201cThis third week of the Harris candidacy is a crucial one. The initial burst of excitement is fading, a little, which is inevitable. The veep announcement and whistle-stop tour are well timed to regenerate excitement and keep the money rolling in. Non-MAGA America is united and energized. The mission this week is to keep it that way.\u201d \u2022 Tomasky seems to believe that the Democrats have what used to be called a \u201cnatural majority\u201d (\u201cNon-MAGA America\u201d). For good or ill, they don\u2019t\u2013<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cIs Kamala Harris beating Donald Trump in the polls?\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.vox.com\/politics\/365148\/kamala-harris-trump-polls-election-2024\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">VOX<\/a>]. \u201cKamala Harris entered the presidential race a little over two weeks ago as an underdog. Since then, Democrats\u2019 vibes have been fantastic \u2014 and Harris\u2019s polling has gotten better. But it hasn\u2019t improved as much as you might think. At least not yet. Per polls, Trump is no longer the clear favorite to win. But Harris hasn\u2019t taken a clear lead either. Polling, particularly in swing states, suggests an extremely close race that could go either way.\u201d \u2022\u00a0IOW, Non-MAGA America is half the country, give or take.<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201c\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.leefang.com\/p\/searching-for-the-real-kamala-harris\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Lee Fang<\/a>]. \u201cEven in this dynamic, there are two Kamalas. In her first bid for office, Harris leaned into her Indian background. She introduced herself to the local press as \u2018Kamala Devi Harris,\u2019 using her full name. \u2018In terms of Indian culture, my name represents the beautiful lotus flower,\u2019 she said at one of her first campaign events. \u2018I grew up with a strong Indian culture,\u2019 she told Asian Week in 2003. By the time she ran for the presidency in 2019, the mention of her Indian background had been removed from her campaign. An archive of her website shows that her biography listed her as the \u2018second African American woman in history to be elected to the U.S. Senate.\u2019 There was no hint of her South Asian lineage.\u201d \u2022 Chameleon\u2026 <\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>Trump (R): \u201cAt Trump rally in Atlanta, Black attendees say Kamala Harris playing \u2018race card\u2019 for votes\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.yahoo.com\/news\/trump-rally-atlanta-black-attendees-220420875.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">USA Today<\/a>]. \u201d When Vice President Kamala Harris entered the 2024 presidential race, Donald Trump tried to dismiss her identity as the first Black woman and person of South Asian descent on a major party ticket by labeling her a \u201cDEI hire,\u201d suggesting that her historic achievements are due to her race and gender. The talking point seemed to be sticking with Trump supporters at a rally in Atlanta on Saturday, even among those who identified as people of color. Andrea Smith, a Black woman who volunteers with the Trump campaign and is running for state representative in Georgia\u2019s District 41 north of Atlanta, asserted that Democrats were leaning into identity politics to win the election.\u201d \u2022 Here is a fine example\u2013<\/p>\n<p>Trump (R): \u2018\u2018Ruthless\u2019: How Kamala Harris Won Her First Race\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/archive.ph\/70mm7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Politico<\/a>] (2019). \u201cHarris vaulted past Fazio and into the runoff, where she defeated Hallinan in a landslide and became the state\u2019s first African-American district attorney. Not only did she cut into Hallinan\u2019s progressive base\u2014especially with black and female voters\u2014but she also carried more conservative areas of the city, garnering votes that had gone to Fazio. The campaign\u2019s closing argument was, Prozan said, \u2018one of the most effective mail pieces that we did.\u2019 The words were familiar and prosaic: \u2018It\u2019s time for a change.\u2019 The images told the story. Harris\u2019 staff had gone to the library and retrieved photographs of more than a century\u2019s worth of San Francisco\u2019s district attorneys, every one from 1900 to 2003. They were all white men.\u201d \u2022\u00a0Of course, the \u201cchange\u201d (where have I heard that before?) it was \u201ctime for\u201d\u2026 Not quite perhaps all that one might have hoped for. The mailer:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/harris_mailer.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"457\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-276320\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/harris_mailer.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/harris_mailer-300x229.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>So if we hear anything like \u201cnever played the race card\u201d\u2026 No.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>Kennedy (I): \u201cRFK Jr. grapples with torrent of negative headlines\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/homenews\/campaign\/4812305-rfk-jr-dead-bear-donald-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Hill<\/a>]. \u201cDemocratic groups have taken the lead in attacking Kennedy, with the White House staying out of the mix. The DNC has been at the forefront of fighting back against what party officials see as a possible threat to President Biden and now Vice President Harris\u2019s candidacy against former President Trump. Other liberal outfits have also joined in their effort, with several organizations holding conference calls to outline his mounting flaws.\u201d \u2022 Kennedy responds:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/rfk_roadkill.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"679\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-276319\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/rfk_roadkill.png 500w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/rfk_roadkill-221x300.png 221w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>I see the logic. But it\u2019s a big ask.<\/p>\n<p>Kennedy (I): \u201cDead bear another strange twist in RFK Jr\u2019s faltering campaign\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/articles\/c0mnn8zneppo\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">BBC<\/a>]. \u201cIn a move to get ahead of a lengthy profile published on Monday in the New Yorker magazine, he released a video where he discusses an accident involving a bear cub a decade ago \u2013 and the unlikely series of events that followed.\u201d \u2022 Hilarity ensues:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">How NYC local news covered the dead bear RFK Jr put into Central Park ten years ago \ud83d\ude2c\ud83d\udc40 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/J25gDeLQ1Q\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/t.co\/J25gDeLQ1Q<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/nJio51Li3R\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/nJio51Li3R<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Luther Lowe (@lutherlowe) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/lutherlowe\/status\/1820186492062605812\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 4, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/peterluger.com\/butcher-shop\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Peter Luger has a butcher shop<\/a>. Why not put the bear in the fridge?<\/p>\n<p>Kennedy (I):<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Some believe raw milk is a nutrient-rich superfood, while others, like The New York Times, label it a health hazard promoted by the right wing. Imagine that, raw milk, a right wing thing. So, which is it?<\/p>\n<p>We dove deep into the history of raw milk, speaking with leading\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/501ASZBUcE\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/501ASZBUcE<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Nicole Shanahan (@NicoleShanahan) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/NicoleShanahan\/status\/1819844126025613630\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 3, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>Sigh.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Spook Country<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cEXCLUSIVE \u2013 Federal Air Marshal Whistleblowers Report Tulsi Gabbard Actively Under Surveillance via Quiet Skies Program\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/uncoverdc.com\/2024\/08\/04\/fams-whistleblowers-report-tulsi-gabbard-on-quiet-skies-list\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">UncoveredDC<\/a>]. This article is noticeable light on actual documentation. Still, since the story is out there: \u201cIn an exclusive breaking story, several Federal Air Marshal whistleblowers have come forward with information showing that former U.S. Representative and Presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard is currently enrolled in the Quiet Skies program. Quiet Skies is a TSA surveillance program with its own compartmentalized suspected terrorist watchlist. It is the same program being weaponized against J6 defendants and their families. Quiet Skies is allegedly used to protect traveling Americans from suspected domestic terrorists\u2026. For what the Federal Government calls national security reasons, an individual is enrolled in the program without knowledge. Teams of Federal Air Marshals are assigned to individuals, following and tracking them from when they enter the airport and then on all their flights and transits until they reach their destination. Enrolled individuals usually have a Quad S (SSSS) on the bottom right-hand corner of their boarding passes, but not always. They are often flagged for extra searches, frequently so lengthy that they miss their flights.\u201d \u2022 Hmm. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cntraveler.com\/story\/what-to-know-if-an-ssss-code-shows-up-on-your-boarding-pass\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">In case <em>you<\/em> get an SSSS, here\u2019s more<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Realignment and Legitimacy<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cHollywood Loves Drama Of Kamala Harris\u2019 Veepstakes Decision, But Has A Clear Favorite\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/deadline.com\/2024\/08\/kamala-harris-vp-pick-josh-shapiro-first-hollywood-favorite-1236031889\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Deadline<\/a>]. \u201c\u2018This is like a mini-primary for the second spot, with one vote that matters,\u2019 a producer with deep Democratic donor ties told Deadline. \u2018Harris can do no wrong right now, so whoever she picks people will get behind,\u2019 he went on to say.\u201d \u2022 A primary with one vote is nothing like a primary, at least not a democratic one. What\u2019s wrong with these people?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><strong>Syndemics<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cI am in earnest \u2014 I will not equivocate \u2014 I will not excuse \u2014 I will not retreat a single inch \u2014 AND I WILL BE HEARD.\u201d \u2013William Lloyd Garrison<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>Covid Resources, United States (National): Transmission (<a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#county-view?list_select_state=all_states&list_select_county=all_counties&data-type=Risk&null=Risk\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a>); Wastewater (<a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#wastewater-surveillance\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a>, <del><a href=\"https:\/\/biobot.io\/data\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Biobot<\/a><\/del>; includes many counties; <a href=\"https:\/\/data.wastewaterscan.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Wastewater Scan<\/a>, includes drilldown by zip); Variants (<a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#variant-proportions\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.walgreens.com\/businesssolutions\/covid-19-index.jsp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Walgreens<\/a>); \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/iowacovid19tracker.org\/hospitals\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Iowa COVID-19 Tracker<\/a>\u201d (in IA, but national data). \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/icemsg.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Infection Control, Emergency Management, Safety, and General Thoughts<\/a>\u201d (especially on hospitalization by city).<\/p>\n<p>Lambert here: Readers, thanks for the collective effort. To update any entry, do feel free to contact me at the address given with the plants. Please put \u201cCOVID\u201d in the subject line. Thank you!<\/p>\n<p>Resources, United States (Local): AK (<a href=\"https:\/\/experience.arcgis.com\/experience\/af2efc8bffbf4cdc83c2d1a134354074\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); AL (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.arcgis.com\/apps\/dashboards\/6d2771faa9da4a2786a509d82c8cf0f7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); AR (<a href=\"https:\/\/experience.arcgis.com\/experience\/633006d0782b4544bd5113a314f6268a\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); AZ (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.azdhs.gov\/covid19\/data\/index.php\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); CA (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdph.ca.gov\/Programs\/CID\/DCDC\/Pages\/COVID-19\/CalSuWers-Dashboard.aspx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/coronavirus.marinhhs.org\/surveillance\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Marin, dashboard<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/healthalerts.stanford.edu\/covid-19\/wastewater-dashboard\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Stanford, wastewater<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/publichealth.verily.com\/?v=SC2_N&l=Oakland%2C+CA\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Oakland, wastewater<\/a>); CO (<a href=\"https:\/\/covid19.colorado.gov\/data\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/cdphe.maps.arcgis.com\/apps\/dashboards\/d79cf93c3938470ca4bcc4823328946b#utility=\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); CT (<a href=\"https:\/\/data.ct.gov\/stories\/s\/COVID-19-data\/wa3g-tfvc\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); DE (<a href=\"https:\/\/coronavirus.delaware.gov\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); FL (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.arcgis.com\/apps\/dashboards\/5b9d75ba683849928dc1a49c39ab0b1c\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); GA (<a href=\"https:\/\/dph.georgia.gov\/ga-nwss-wastewater-surveillance-reports\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); HI (<a href=\"https:\/\/health.hawaii.gov\/coronavirusdisease2019\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); IA (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dmmwra.org\/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=57\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater reports<\/a>); ID (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.idahopublichealth.com\/district-2\/novel-coronavirus\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>, Boise; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.idahopublichealth.com\/district-2\/novel-coronavirus\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/data.wastewaterscan.org\/?plantId=1056f05c-0e46-4e3d-b007-c0453ba7dc0d\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>, Central Idaho; <a href=\"https:\/\/publichealth.verily.com\/#:SARS-CoV-2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>, Coeur d\u2019Alene; dashboard, <a href=\"https:\/\/covid.srhd.org\/topics\/spokane-county-case-data\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Spokane County<\/a>); IL (<a href=\"https:\/\/iwss.uillinois.edu\/wastewater-treatment-plants\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); IN (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.coronavirus.in.gov\/indiana-covid-19-dashboard-and-map\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); KS (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.coronavirus.kdheks.gov\/160\/COVID-19-in-Kansas\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/experience.arcgis.com\/experience\/4456bae8a38f4b6180e008477382fff9\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>, Lawrence); KY (<a href=\"https:\/\/louisville.edu\/envirome\/thecoimmunityproject\/dashboard\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>, Louisville); LA (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ldh.la.gov\/coronavirus\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); MA (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mass.gov\/info-details\/covid-19-wastewater-report\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); MD (<a href=\"https:\/\/coronavirus.maryland.gov\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); ME (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.maine.gov\/dhhs\/mecdc\/infectious-disease\/epi\/airborne\/coronavirus\/data.shtml\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); MI (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.michigan.gov\/coronavirus\/stats\/wastewater-surveillance\/dashboard\/sentinel-wastewater-epidemiology-evaluation-project-sweep\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/gisportal.state.mi.us\/portal\/apps\/insights\/index.html#\/view\/52bbb104ed574887918f990af9f3debe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); MN (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.health.state.mn.us\/diseases\/coronavirus\/stats\/index.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); MO (<a href=\"https:\/\/storymaps.arcgis.com\/stories\/f7f5492486114da6b5d6fdc07f81aacf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); MS (<a href=\"https:\/\/msdh.ms.gov\/page\/14,0,420.html#Mississippi\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); <del>MT (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.arcgis.com\/apps\/MapSeries\/index.html?appid=7c34f3412536439491adcc2103421d4b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>)<\/del>; NC (<a href=\"https:\/\/covid19.ncdhhs.gov\/dashboard\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard)<\/a>; ND (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.hhs.nd.gov\/health\/coronavirus\/cases\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hhs.nd.gov\/health\/coronavirus\/cases\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); NE (<a href=\"https:\/\/atlas-dhhs.ne.gov\/Atlas\/Respiratory_Illness\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); NH (<a href=\"https:\/\/wisdom.dhhs.nh.gov\/wisdom\/dashboard.html?topic=covid-19&subtopic=recurring-updates&indicator=covid-19-wastewater#tabnavbarid\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); NJ (<a href=\"https:\/\/covid19.nj.gov\/forms\/datadashboard\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); NM (<a href=\"https:\/\/cvprovider.nmhealth.org\/public-dashboard.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); NV (<a href=\"https:\/\/nvhealthresponse.nv.gov\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/empower.unlv.edu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>, Southern NV); NY (<a href=\"https:\/\/mbcolli.shinyapps.io\/SARS2EWSP\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); OH (<a href=\"https:\/\/coronavirus.ohio.gov\/dashboards\/other-resources\/wastewater\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); OK (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.arcgis.com\/apps\/dashboards\/51657c21386d4f1a962b1853c76ec589\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); <del>OR (<a href=\"https:\/\/public.tableau.com\/app\/profile\/oregon.health.authority.covid.19\/viz\/OregonsCOVID-19DataDashboards-TableofContents\/TableofContentsStatewide\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>)<\/del>; PA (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.health.pa.gov\/topics\/disease\/coronavirus\/pages\/Cases.aspx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); RI (<a href=\"https:\/\/ri-department-of-health-covid-19-data-rihealth.hub.arcgis.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); SC (<a href=\"https:\/\/scdhec.gov\/index.php\/covid19\/covid-19-data\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); SD (<a href=\"https:\/\/doh.sd.gov\/COVID\/Dashboard.aspx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); TN (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.tn.gov\/health\/cedep\/ncov\/data.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); TX (<a href=\"https:\/\/txdshsea.maps.arcgis.com\/apps\/dashboards\/4ae43eefd0f641d59d35c3df82ee59cc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); UT (<a href=\"https:\/\/avrpublic.dhhs.utah.gov\/uwss\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); VA (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/coronavirus\/see-the-numbers\/covid-19-in-virginia\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); VT (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.healthvermont.gov\/disease-control\/covid-19\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); WA (<a href=\"https:\/\/doh.wa.gov\/emergencies\/covid-19\/data-dashboard\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/covid19.bfhd.wa.gov\/cases-and-roadmap-to-recovery\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); WI (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dhs.wisconsin.gov\/covid-19\/wastewater.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); WV (<del><a href=\"https:\/\/oehs.wvdhhr.org\/news\/oehs-coivd-19-information\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a><\/del>); WY (<del><a href=\"https:\/\/covidwastewatermonitor.wyo.gov\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a><\/del>).<\/p>\n<p>Resources, Canada (National): Wastewater (<a href=\"https:\/\/health-infobase.canada.ca\/covid-19\/wastewater\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Government of Canada<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p>Resources, Canada (Provincial): ON (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.publichealthontario.ca\/en\/Data-and-Analysis\/Infectious-Disease\/COVID-19-Data-Surveillance\/Wastewater\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); QC (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.inspq.qc.ca\/covid-19\/donnees\/eaux-usees\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><em>les eaux us\u00e9es<\/em><\/a>); BC (<a href=\"https:\/\/bccdc.shinyapps.io\/respiratory_wastewater\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); BC, Vancouver (<a href=\"https:\/\/metrovancouver.org\/services\/liquid-waste\/testing-for-the-covid-19-virus-in-wastewater\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p>Hat tips to helpful readers: Alexis, anon (2), Art_DogCT, B24S, CanCyn, ChiGal, Chuck L, Festoonic, FM, FreeMarketApologist (4), Gumbo, hop2it, JB, JEHR, JF, JL Joe, John, JM (10), JustAnotherVolunteer, JW, KatieBird, KF, LL, Michael King, KF, LaRuse, mrsyk, MT, MT_Wild, otisyves, Petal (6), RK (2), RL, RM, Rod, square coats (11), tennesseewaltzer, Tom B., Utah, Bob White (3). <\/p>\n<p>Stay safe out there!<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>Maskstravaganza<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cAre You Serious? Covid-19 Hasn\u2019t Gone Away?\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/johnsnowproject.org\/primers\/are-you-serious-covid-19-hasnt-gone-away\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">John Snow Project<\/a>]. \u201cInstead of blithe nihilism and the abandonment of principles of public health that have advanced human society for centuries, governments could instruct their public health and regulatory agencies to insist on cleaner air policies, mandating air quality that protects human health, in the same way we mandate water quality. Malaria prevention is not perfect, but that doesn\u2019t stop us using every possible tool at our disposal to minimize the impact of the disease around the world. Many engineers have decried the idea of needing a random trial to prove physics, but a Norwegian team did one anyway, examining whether surgical masks help prevent infection by respiratory viruses.They found surgical masks were 30% effective at reducing symptoms of respiratory infection<a href=\"https:\/\/johnsnowproject.org\/primers\/are-you-serious-covid-19-hasnt-gone-away\/#\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">17<\/a>. This is no surprise. It\u2019s long been established that surgical masks have a minor impact on airborne infection control, but they aren\u2019t worn by anyone who is serious about avoiding SARS-CoV-2 or any other respiratory pathogen. A 2008 UK Health and Safety Executive evaluation demonstrated that surgical masks provide a 6-fold reduction against aerosolized virus, while respirator masks provide at least a 100-fold reduction<a href=\"https:\/\/johnsnowproject.org\/primers\/are-you-serious-covid-19-hasnt-gone-away\/#\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">18<\/a>. Perhaps one of the biggest calamities of the COVID-19 pandemic was robbing people of one of the most effective forms of protection: respirator masks. Many people believe masks don\u2019t work, or if they do that they primarily protect others from infection and don\u2019t protect the wearer. This belief is completely unfounded and wholly wrong. Respirators have long been used to protect people working with some of the most dangerous pathogens imaginable, and FFP3\/N99 respirators have been shown to offer up to 100% protection against SARS-CoV-2 in healthcare settings<a href=\"https:\/\/johnsnowproject.org\/primers\/are-you-serious-covid-19-hasnt-gone-away\/#\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">19<\/a>. Imagine how many lives might have been saved and how many cases of Long Covid could have been avoided globally if people had been told that a well fitted mask of the correct grade (N95\/FFP2 or higher) can offer complete protection against infection. We don\u2019t need a magic bullet to solve the problem of COVID-19.\u201d \u2022 Say what you will for blithe nihilism, at least it\u2019s an ethos.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p> \u2013><\/p>\n<p>Sequelae: Covid<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Big if true:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">This study is very significant\u2014it directly compares SARS2 virus spike with vaccine spike\u2014which is altered from the viral sequence to stabilize the pre-fusion form.<\/p>\n<p>Virus spike fuses heart cells\u2014while vaccine spike does not. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/oqwQRh6990\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/t.co\/oqwQRh6990<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Lee Altenberg, Ph.D. \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8 (@AltenbergLee) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/AltenbergLee\/status\/1820688085132423443\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 6, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>I read the article, but can\u2019t penetrate the prose. Perhaps an expert reader will oblige.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Celebrity Watch<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>We\u2019ll always have Paris:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Indeed.<a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/hdEGCouIFr\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/t.co\/hdEGCouIFr<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Arturo Portnoy (@portna) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/portna\/status\/1820259949928136845\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 5, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"table\"\/><strong>TABLE 1: Daily Covid Charts<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>LEGEND<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>1) <span style=\"font-size: 10pt; color: gold;\">\u2605<\/span> for charts new today; all others are not updated.<\/p>\n<p>2) For a full-size\/full-resolution image, Command-click (MacOS) or right-click (Windows) on the chart thumbnail and \u201copen image in new tab.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>NOTES<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>[1] (CDC) This week\u2019s wastewater map, with hot spots annotated. Keeps spreading.<\/p>\n<p>[2] (CDC) Last week\u2019s wastewater map.<\/p>\n<p>[3] (CDC Variants) KP.* very popular.<\/p>\n<p>[4] (ER) Worth noting Emergency Department use is now on a par with the first wave, in 2020.<\/p>\n<p>[5] (Hospitalization: NY) Leveling off. Doesn\u2019t need to be a permanent thing, of course. (The New York city area has form; in 2020, as the home of two international airports (JFK and EWR) it was an important entry point for the virus into the country (and from thence up the Hudson River valley, as the rich sought to escape, and then around the country through air travel.)<\/p>\n<p>[6] (Hospitalization: CDC). The visualization suppresses what is, in percentage terms, a significant increase.<\/p>\n<p>[7] (Walgreens) An optimist would see a peak.<\/p>\n<p>[8] (Cleveland) Slowing. Comment on the Cleveland Clinic:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Why is the Cleveland Clinic building a new facility for a professional basketball team? These hospitals are not ‘nonprofits’ they are ridiculously profitable monopolies with an endless cash gusher to point at whatever they want. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/1REM2LMLjd\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/t.co\/1REM2LMLjd<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Matt Stoller (@matthewstoller) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/matthewstoller\/status\/1817948450908258696\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">July 29, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>Ka-ching.<\/p>\n<p>[9] (Travelers: Positivity) Up. Those sh*theads at CDC have changed the chart so that it doesn\u2019t even run back to 1\/21\/23, as it used to, but now starts 1\/1\/24. There\u2019s also no way to adjust the time rasnge. CDC really doesn\u2019t want you to be able to take a historical view of the pandemic, or compare one surge to another. In an any case, that\u2019s why the shape of the curve has changed.<\/p>\n<p>[10] (Travelers: Variants) Same deal. Those sh*theads. <\/p>\n<p>[11] Deaths low, but positivity up.<\/p>\n<p>[12] Deaths low, ED up.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Stats Watch<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Logistics: \u201cUnited States LMI Logistics Managers Index\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/tradingeconomics.com\/united-states\/lmi-logistics-managers-index-current\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Trading Economics<\/a>]. \u201cThe Logistics Manager\u2019s Index in the US increased to 56.5 in July 2024, the highest in four months, compared to 55.3 in June, and marking eight consecutive months of expansion in the logistics sector. Transportation continued its recovery, as Transportation Prices went up (+2.8 to 63.8, the highest since May of 2022) and Transportation Capacity expanded slightly (+0.9 to 50.9). It is the 3rd consecutive month the prices have exceeded capacity due to excess capacity contraction and increasing demand. Respondents are predicting that these dynamics will hold, suggesting that the freight recession is potentially ending. Warehousing also remained strong\u2026.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe consumer may be preparing to leave the party.\u201d [Logistics Report, <a href=\"https:\/\/logistics.cmail20.com\/t\/d-e-ehyujld-dyukidmly-r\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Wall Street Journal<\/a>]. \u201cFrom McDonald\u2019s to Mercedes-Benz, executives say that many consumers in China and the U.S. are pulling back on spending. \u2026[T]he countries are under different stresses, <a href=\"https:\/\/logistics.createsend1.com\/t\/d-l-ehyujld-dyukidmly-k\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">with U.S. consumers increasingly showing signs of weariness after a run of high inflation while Chinese households focus more on saving than spending<\/a>. If consumers in the U.S. do falter, it would mean a double whammy for multinational companies, which have been facing weak demand in China. PepsiCo sounded an early alarm on consumer spending in both the U.S. and China, and reported a 4% drop in North American sales volume in the latest quarter. Many American importers have been rushing in goods early ahead of the traditional peak season to get ahead of shipping disruptions. A pullback by consumers would leave them with another inventory overhang.\u201d \u2022 Not the same as what economist Alfred Kahn memorable called \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.yardeniquicktakes.com\/its-a-banana\/#:~:text=%E2%80%9CBetween%201973%20and%201975%20we,to%20fight%20inflation,%20once%20said.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">a banana<\/a>,\u201d but nevertheless a sign of weekness. And that early shipping data point is interesting.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>Today\u2019s Fear & Greed Index: 21 Exreme Fear (previous close: 19 Extreme Fear) [<a href=\"https:\/\/money.cnn.com\/data\/fear-and-greed\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CNN<\/a>]. One week ago: 47 (Neutral). (0 is Extreme Fear; 100 is Extreme Greed). Last updated Aug 6 at 11:51:12 AM ET. I turn my back <em>for one minute<\/em>\u2026.. <\/p>\n<p>Rapture Index: Closes unchanged [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.raptureready.com\/rapture-ready-index\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Rapture Ready<\/a>]. Record High, October 10, 2016: 189. Current: 183. (Remember that bringing on the Rapture is good.) \u2022 Hard to believe the Rapture Index is going <em>down<\/em>. Where are there people getting their news?!<\/p>\n<p><strong>Book Nook<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cUncovered Euripides fragments are \u2018kind of a big deal’\u201d (press release) [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.colorado.edu\/asmagazine\/2024\/08\/01\/uncovered-euripides-fragments-are-kind-big-deal\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">University of Colorado Boulder<\/a>]. \u201cWorking together, Trnka-Amrhein and renowned classics Professor John Gibert embarked on many months of grueling work, meticulously poring over a high-resolution photo of the 10.5-square-inch papyrus. They made out words and ensured that the words they thought they were seeing fit the norms of tragic style and meter. Eventually, they became confident that they were working with new material from two fragmentary Euripides plays, Polyidus and Ino.\u201d And: \u201cPolyidus retells an ancient Cretan myth in which King Minos and Queen Pasipha\u00eb demand that the eponymous seer resurrect their son Glaucus after he drowns in a vat of honey.\u201d \u2022 What.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Zeitgeist Watch<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201c\u2018No Salt’\u201d [Jake Seliger, <a href=\"https:\/\/jakeseliger.com\/2024\/08\/05\/no-salt\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Story\u2019s Story<\/a>]. \u201cSo I opted for something simple: a shakshuka. Tomatoes, vegetables, sauce, and mild flavorings, topped with feta cheese, eggs, and basil. I reached for the salt, and found the bottle empty. I\u2019m not sure why, but I started weeping. No salt. No salt means that he\u2019s not cooking. He\u2019ll never cook again.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIs The Collapse Of Civilization Boring To You?\u201d [Nate Bear, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.donotpanic.news\/p\/is-the-collapse-of-civilization-boring\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">\u00a1Do Not Panic!<\/a>]. \u201c[A] bunch of environmental groups came out in support of Kamala Harris just two days after she renounced her previous anti-fracking position. She did this because she wants to win pro-fracking votes in Pennsylvania. Maybe no one has told her that there probably won\u2019t be an entity called Pennsylvania at some point in the next few decades if fracking continues. Or that Trump has a lock on the pro-fracking bloc and no one she wants to convince of her new anti-fracking stance will believe her. Fracking, of course, has seen the US surpass Russia and Saudi Arabia to become the world\u2019s largest oil producer. Fracking initiated by Obama[1] and continued by Trump, then by Biden and will continue under Harris or Trump 2.0. How thin the politics. How meagre the demands of some activists have become.\u201d And <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/2024\/08\/insects-apocalypse-soon.html\">relevant to yesterday\u2019s post<\/a>: \u201cI was thinking about this when I sat outside every evening for four nights on an island in southern Europe, on a well-lit patio at the end of quiet, carless street expecting to see moths swarming the lights. I know well the trouble insects are in, but I still expected to see moths. I saw one. Moths are critical night-time pollinators, an essential part of the ecology that supports our food chain. In Australia, a type of moth that you could find by the tens of thousands in individual caves <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/environment\/2021\/dec\/18\/a-995-decline-what-caused-australias-bogong-moth-catastrophe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">suddenly disappeared in the space of a few months<\/a>. How quickly things can collapse.\u201d \u2022 Thinking of this post, and the comments to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/environment\/2021\/dec\/18\/a-995-decline-what-caused-australias-bogong-moth-catastrophe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">yesterday\u2019s post on an insect apocalypse<\/a>, it occurs to me that this \u201cSilent Summer\u201d on a grand scale might be something that <em>everybody<\/em> can be brought to see and to understand. That hasn\u2019t been easy to do with climate change. NOTE [1] The best starting point for the fracking timeline is <a href=\"https:\/\/bigthink.com\/the-present\/halliburton-loophole\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Dick Cheney\u2019s Energy Task Force (and the \u201cHalliburton Loophole\u201d)<\/a> under Bush the Younger, not Obama. It\u2019s bipartisan! <\/p>\n<p><a name=\"climate\"\/><strong>Climate<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cUncertainties too large to predict tipping times of major Earth system components from historical data\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.science.org\/doi\/10.1126\/sciadv.adl4841\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Science<\/a>]. \u201cOne way to warn of forthcoming critical transitions in Earth system components is using observations to detect declining system stability. It has also been suggested to extrapolate such stability changes into the future and predict tipping times. Here, we argue that the involved uncertainties are too high to robustly predict tipping times. We raise concerns regarding (i) the modeling assumptions underlying any extrapolation of historical results into the future, (ii) the representativeness of individual Earth system component time series, and (iii) the impact of uncertainties and preprocessing of used observational datasets, with focus on nonstationary observational coverage and gap filling. We explore these uncertainties in general and specifically for the example of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation. We argue that even under the assumption that a given Earth system component has an approaching tipping point, the uncertainties are too large to reliably estimate tipping times by extrapolating historical information.\u201d \u2022 Oh. <\/p>\n<p><a name=\"gallery\"\/><strong>The Gallery<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cAndy Warhol\u2019s lost Amiga art found\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/dfarq.homeip.net\/andy-warhols-lost-amiga-art-found\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Silicon UnderGround<\/a>]. \u201cTo a casual viewer, they look like low resolution images with a very limited number of colors, and it\u2019s not completely unfair to say they bear some resemblance to something my kids would have created in Microsoft Paint when they were little. But when I showed the images to my wife, a former high school art teacher, the first thing she noticed was his choice of colors. He deliberately chose colors that contrasted with each other, and the other colors he used were colors you would get from mixing two or more of the other colors he used. Rule number one of painting, she said, is to never use black or brown, but make your own from the other colors you\u2019re using. Warhol\u2019s images contain odd shades that result from mixing other colors in the image together. When you look at Andy Warhol paintings, his style suited these specific tools. He often worked from photographs, creating stark images containing bold flood fills with only a few colors. Sometimes he would cut up photographs, or have someone else cut up the photographs, then he would arrange the pieces and then paint what he saw. With the Amiga, he could do all of this digitally. So the choice of Andy Warhol to demonstrate how to use the machine was a brilliant idea. This computer with advanced graphics capabilities for its time, and the ability to multitask and switch between different tools so he could cut up and resize images and then paste the result into the image he was working on couldn\u2019t have suited him any better if he\u2019d designed it himself. Problem was, he didn\u2019t know how to use a computer.\u201d \u2022 Worth a read!<\/p>\n<p>Turner as Giger?!<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Also felt apt that one of things I saw this avo at Tate Britain was Turner\u2019s Fall of Anarchy. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/eftLQ8INNf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/eftLQ8INNf<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Rishi Dastidar \ud83d\udd31\ud83c\udf0a (@BetaRish) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/BetaRish\/status\/1820139374182568330\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 4, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p><strong>News of the Wired<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I am not yet feeling wired today.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><strong>Contact information for plants<\/strong>: Readers, feel free to contact me at lambert [UNDERSCORE] strether [DOT] corrente [AT] yahoo [DOT] com, to (a) find out how to send me a check if you are allergic to PayPal and (b) to find out how to send me images of plants. Vegetables are fine! Fungi, lichen, and coral are deemed to be honorary plants! If you want your handle to appear as a credit, please place it at the start of your mail in parentheses: (thus). Otherwise, I will anonymize by using your initials. See the previous Water Cooler (with plant) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/2024\/08\/200pm-water-cooler-8-21-2024.html\">here<\/a>. From KW:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/fog.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"379\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-276302\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/fog.jpeg 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/fog-300x190.jpeg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>KW writes: \u201cFog on the Marsh, Madison,Wisconsin. The Ho Chunk word for fog is ruuj\u0105.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"donate\"\/><strong>Readers<\/strong>: Water Cooler is a standalone entity <em>not<\/em> covered by the annual NC fundraiser. So if you see a link you especially like, or an item you wouldn\u2019t see anywhere else, please do not hesitate to express your appreciation in tangible form. Remember, a tip jar is for tipping! <em>Regular positive feedback both makes me feel good and lets me know I\u2019m on the right track with coverage<\/em>. When I get no donations for three or four days I get worried. More tangibly, a constant trickle of donations helps me with expenses, and I factor in that trickle when setting fundraising goals:<\/p>\n<p>Here is the screen that will appear, which I have helpfully annotated:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-226891\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/contribution.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"606\" height=\"384\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/contribution.png 606w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/contribution-300x190.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 606px) 100vw, 606px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>If you hate PayPal, you can email me at lambert [UNDERSCORE] strether [DOT] corrente [AT] yahoo [DOT] com, and I will give you directions on how to send a check. Thank you!\n<\/p>\n<div class=\"printfriendly pf-alignleft\"><a href=\"#\" rel=\"nofollow\" onclick=\"window.print(); return false;\" title=\"Printer Friendly, PDF & Email\"><img decoding=\"async\" style=\"border:none;-webkit-box-shadow:none; -moz-box-shadow: none; box-shadow:none; padding:0; margin:0\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.printfriendly.com\/buttons\/print-button-gray.png\" alt=\"Print Friendly, PDF & Email\"\/><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/2024\/08\/200pm-water-cooler-8-6-2024.html\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Lambert Strether of Corrente Bird Song of the Day Readers have been so happy with the mockingbirds I\u2019m going to keep doing them. Now<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":82938,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[153,183],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-82937","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy","category-spotlight"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82937","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=82937"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82937\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/82938"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=82937"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=82937"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=82937"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
Bird Song of the Day<\/strong><\/p>\nReaders have been so happy with the mockingbirds I\u2019m going to keep doing them. Now entering Day Two of Week Three!<\/p>\n<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Long-tailed Mockingbird, Quebrada El Lim\u00f3n (Valqui E4.2), Piura, Peru.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><strong>In Case You Might Miss\u2026 <\/strong> <\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><a href=\"#helper\">Best Olympic story.<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#vp\">Walz is Kamala\u2019s VP choice.<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#climate\">Climate tipping points<\/a> unpredictable.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#gallery\">Andy Warhol\u2019s<\/a> lost Amiga Art.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"helper\"\/><strong>Look for the Helpers<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/helper_olympic.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"1157\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-276312\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/helper_olympic.png 500w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/helper_olympic-130x300.png 130w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/helper_olympic-443x1024.png 443w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\"\/><\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>My email address is down by the plant; please send examples of there (\u201cHelpers\u201d in the subject line). In our increasingly desperate and fragile neoliberal society, everyday <em>normal<\/em> incidents and stories of \u201cthe communism of everyday life\u201d are what I am looking for (and not, say, the Red Cross in Hawaii, or even the UNWRA in Gaza).<\/p>\n<p><strong>Politics<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo many of the social reactions that strike us as psychological are in fact a rational management of symbolic capital.\u201d \u2013Pierre Bourdieu, Classification Struggles<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"assassination \"\/>Trump Assassination Attempt<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cThe Kill Box: Investigating the Trump Assassination, Benny Johnson With Reps. Eli Crane and Cory Mills\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.realclearpolitics.com\/video\/2024\/08\/05\/the_kill_box_investigating_the_trump_assassination_benny_johnson_with_reps_eli_crane_and_cory_mills.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">RealClearPolitics<\/a>]. \u201cKill box\u201d is a phrase invented by the media personality, Johnson, and not by either of the two representatives, both of whom were snipers (!!). This caught my eye: \u201cREP. ELI CRANE: When you get out on that site, if you have even an iota of training on security, long-distance shooting, and you get on that property, I mean, you see a water tower that covers the entire premises, basically you start asking yourself, \u2018Why the hell wasn\u2019t anybody up on that water tower?’\u201d Johnson concludes: \u201cWe [I don\u2019t thinik the two reps would agree with that, and would not use this language] have established beyond a reasonable doubt that President Trump was intentionally put into the kill box on July 13th. So who\u2019s responsible for this fatal security plan? Who cut the communication lines? Who kept Trump on stage, and who will be held criminally liable for these deadly decisions? We have so many questions after our investigation of the assassination site, but one thing is crystal clear: there are forces that wanted President Trump dead. The obscene security failures created the conditions for a live TV execution. These failures are unforgivable and have inspired regular Americans to ask questions like this: Was there a stand-down order issued? Was there a conspiracy to kill President Trump? The head of the Secret Service resigned in disgrace after this question, but her replacement continues the same failed policies that sent a bullet through Trump\u2019s head.\u201d \u2022 Not to minimize, but not (no doubt the regreat of some) \u201cthrough his head.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p> \u2013><\/p>\n<p>2024<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Less than one hundred days to go!<\/p>\n<p><iframe src=\"https:\/\/free.timeanddate.com\/countdown\/i8ubjj5e\/n179\/cf100\/cm0\/cu1\/ct0\/cs1\/ca0\/cr0\/ss0\/cac000\/cpc000\/pcfff\/tcfff\/fs100\/szw320\/szh135\/tatTime%20left%20to%20Election%20Day%2C%202024\/tac000\/tptTime%20since%20Event%20started%20in\/tpc000\/mac000\/mpc000\/iso2024-11-05T00:00:00\/bo2\/pd2\" allowtransparency=\"true\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"322\" height=\"137\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p> <a name=\"rcp\"\/>Friday\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.realclearpolitics.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">RCP<\/a> Poll Averages:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/rcp_2023-08-02.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"960\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-276097\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/rcp_2023-08-02.png 500w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/rcp_2023-08-02-156x300.png 156w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Drops for Trump across the board, including a 2.5% drop nationally (almost outside the margin of error, ha ha), and a blue triangle on the mao for the first time.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"defenestration\"\/>Biden Defenestration: <\/p>\n<p>\u2018Presidential Agonistes, Half a Century Apart\u201d [Michael Austin, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/2024\/08\/Presidential%20Agonistes,%20Half%20a%20Century%20Apart\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">RealClearPolitics<\/a>]. \u201cThe summers of 1974 and 2024 are political theater of the highest kind, though the former had at least the semblance of a civics lesson, while the latter is pure bare-knuckle politics. They are also a reminder, in our digital and cable news age, that . If Donald Trump\u2019s resurgence, even after being written off in 2020, is due to his dominating his party, both Richard Nixon\u2019s and Joe Biden\u2019s demise was due to having been abandoned by theirs.\u201d <\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"trail\"\/><em><strong>The Campaign Trail<\/strong><\/em>:<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"vp\">The VP choice<\/a>:<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cTim Walz. Hell yeah.\u201d [Dave Karpf, <a href=\"https:\/\/davekarpf.substack.com\/p\/tim-walz-hell-yeah\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Now and Then<\/a>]. \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/politics\/2024\/08\/06\/harris-walz-vp\/?utm_campaign=&utm_medium=social&utm_source=threads\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Walz\u2019s biography<\/a> reads like a character ripped from the Aaron Sorkin extended universe. Small town boy from Nebraska, couple decades of military service, high school history teacher, part-time high school football coach who took the team to the state championship\u2026 went on to serve five terms in Congress as a Democrat in a conservative district, then became Governor and, with a small Democratic majority in the statehouse, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.msnbc.com\/opinion\/msnbc-opinion\/tim-walz-kamala-harris-vp-pick-minnesota-rcna164157\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">signed a huge slate of progressive initiatives into law<\/a>. But he doesn\u2019t talk like a safe, scripted centrist. The guy has spent the past few weeks pitching a comms perfect-game. Every media interview has been clipped and shared on social media. He rolled out the \u2018<a href=\"https:\/\/davekarpf.substack.com\/p\/why-youre-being-weird-works-so-well?r=eeyg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Trump and Vance are <em>just plain weird<\/em><\/a>\u2018 attack line. Listen to the guy on <a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/is-tim-walz-the-midwestern-dad-democrats-need\/id1548604447?i=1000664114455\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Ezra Klein\u2019s podcast<\/a>: he manufactures aww shucks midwestern-dad energy and converts it into body blows against his opponents. This is one of the interesting points about social media this election cycle. Twitter and Facebook aren\u2019t anything like they once were. TikTok is mostly for young people, but the other social networks are still trying to emulate TikTok. Which means, effectively, that .\u201d \u2022 I must confess that the video where Walz allowed his daughter to inveigle him into going on a heartstopping ride at the State Fair (or whichever fair) made me sit up and take notice. Very fresh. And then along came the school lunches, and getting that done with a one-vote (?) majority (quite in contrast to national Democrat whinging). A clip:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">If he\u2019s picked he should do clips like this every day for America. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/A0wrt2qqSk\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/A0wrt2qqSk<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Albie\ud83e\ude78\ud83e\uddb7\ud83e\udd1d\ud83e\udd65\ud83c\udf34 (@AlbieBrian) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/AlbieBrian\/status\/1820561409627046292\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 5, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): <\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">In one of the most improbable runs in recent political history, Tim Walz is the VP nominee. I wrote about why he was selected. I don’t think it was just “weird”; his legislative record in 2023 in Minnesota mirrors what Kamala Harris wants to get done:<a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/2pAJoY0IS8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/t.co\/2pAJoY0IS8<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 David Dayen (@ddayen) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ddayen\/status\/1820808900796653744\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 6, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>I don\u2019t agree with this at all. First, we don\u2019t <em>know<\/em> what Kamala wants to get done:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Kamala Harris\u2019s campaign page has no policy positions. There\u2019s nothing about the first 100 days. It\u2019s just PR fluff pieces on her and Waltz, and the many ways to donate. I\u2019ve never seen a presidential campaign like this. How are you running for president with no platform? <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/iARlP2kLzy\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/iARlP2kLzy<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 AshleyStevens (@The_Acumen) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/The_Acumen\/status\/1820837887627214877\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 6, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>(Of course, even if there were a platform, Kamala could be lying, as Democrats did continuously over Biden\u2019s cognitive deterioration).<\/p>\n<p>Second, making the assumption that Walz is a progressive instead of just another liberal (<a href=\"https:\/\/pensionwarriorsdwardsiedle.substack.com\/p\/minnesota-governor-walz-warned-of\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">see here<\/a>), Democrats have a long history of embracing progressives just before stabbing them in the back (see under the Biden Transition Team).<\/p>\n<p>Third, personnel is policy. And Kamala has a lot of people in her circle who would look askance at, say, free school lunches without complex eligibility requirements. Picking one of many examples:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Charles Phillips is also an advisor to NYC mayor Eric Adams and ran his mayoral tech transition. Nightmare. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/mR6Z7ybGVY\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/t.co\/mR6Z7ybGVY<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Matt Stoller (@matthewstoller) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/matthewstoller\/status\/1820814225607929912\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 6, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>Finally \u2014 and I don\u2019t hate Walz \u2014 if he\u2019s everything we\u2019re being told he is, why in the name of all that is holy isn\u2019t he at the top of the ticket? Maybe if the Democrats hadn\u2019t wired the primaries for Biden [sorry, that name again?] he would be.<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cWalz\u2019s handling of BLM riots, strict COVID rules under microscope after Harris VP pick\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/walzs-handling-blm-riots-strict-covid-rules-under-microscope-after-harris-vp-pick\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">FOX<\/a>]. \u201cVice President Kamala Harris\u2019 pick of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as a running mate will put the Democratic governor\u2019s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and widespread riots in the state back in the national spotlight. \u2018[H]e\u2019s been a disaster for Minnesota and is by far the most partisan governor that I can remember having,\u2019 Minnesota GOP Chairman David Hann told Fox News Digital last week. \u2018Going back to 2020, certainly \u2013 he did nothing to try to stop the riots going on in Minneapolis. I think he was fearful of alienating his \u2018progressive\u2019 base, who were supporting the riots. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/harris-backing-bail-fund-during-george-floyd-protests-dampens-trump-prosecutor-campaign-pitch\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Kamala Harris was raising money for the rioters<\/a>.\u201d And: \u201cMeanwhile, critics point to Walz\u2019s memorandum mandating indoor masking during the coronavirus pandemic, which he enacted in 2020 and ended in 2021. The Upper Midwest Law Center sued, calling the mandate unconstitutional, but an appellate court <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/minnesota-gov-walz-legally-allowed-mandate-masks-appellate-court-rules\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">ultimately sided with Walz<\/a>.\u201d \u2022 Different framing:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Walz is absolutely unafraid to govern. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/9b3ZQrBvdR\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/t.co\/9b3ZQrBvdR<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Zephyr Teachout (@ZephyrTeachout) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ZephyrTeachout\/status\/1820817299466535310\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 6, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>\u201cUnafraid to govern\u201d (sounds like Stoller).<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cKamala Harris chooses Tim Walz as running mate in US presidential election\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ft.com\/content\/a87b5e6d-89ab-44be-839b-f373e62fa8e9\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Financial Times<\/a>]. Walz after a clip from 2021 went viral, in which Vance warned the US was being run by \u201ca bunch of childless cat ladies\u201d: \u201c\u2018My God, they went after cat people \u2014 good luck with that. Turn on the internet and see what cat people do when you go after \u2018em. It would be funny if it wasn\u2019t so sad,\u2019 Walz said in one MSNBC appearance.\u201d \u2022 Walz can stick the shiv in. I like that.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>Walz and Covid:<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201c\u2018Buckle it up\u2019: Walz orders MN to \u2018stay at home\u2019 to curb virus spread\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mprnews.org\/story\/2020\/03\/25\/latest-on-covid19-in-minnesota\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">MPR News<\/a>] (March 25, 2020 5:30 AM). \u201cGov. Tim Walz has ordered Minnesotans to stay at home for two weeks, at least, as part of the state\u2019s ongoing efforts to control the spread of the coronavirus and COVID-19 disease. The order isn\u2019t a complete lockdown and it allows essential activities and services to continue, Walz said. People will be allowed to exercise outdoors and visit the grocery store, for example, with proper social distancing. \u2018Buckle it up for a few more weeks,\u2019 the governor said. The order takes effect Saturday and lasts through April 10. Walz said it\u2019s impossible to lessen the number of Minnesotans who will become infected with COVID-19, but the stay-home order is intended to push out the time of peak infections so there are intensive care unit beds available for those who need it. \u2018The thing that Minnesota is going to do is ensure if you need an ICU, it\u2019s there,\u2019 Walz told the state in a livestreamed address Wednesday.\u201d \u2022 Ah yes. \u201cFlatten the curve.\u201d We all did that, and then the PMC discovered they could work from home and have servants <em>bring<\/em> them stuff, at which point they threw the working class under the bus. Not Walz\u2019s fault, but\u2026 <\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cAs cases fall and vaccination ramps up, Gov. Walz adjusts COVID-19 mitigation measures\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mplsdowntown.com\/as-cases-fall-and-vaccination-ramps-up-gov-walz-adjusts-covid-19-mitigation-measures\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">mpls downtown council<\/a>] (March 12, 2021). \u201c\u2018Minnesotans should continue to take simple steps to protect the progress we\u2019ve made, but the data shows that we are beating COVID-19,\u2019 said Governor Walz. \u2018Our vaccine rollout is leading the nation, the most vulnerable Minnesotans are getting the shot, and it is becoming increasingly more safe to return to our daily lives. The sun is shining brighter.\u2019 As vaccines have an impact, life is slowly returning to normal. In February, Governor Walz announced a plan to return more students to the classroom, and 90 percent of schools now offer in-person learning, while 60 percent of teachers have been vaccinated. Minnesota is weeks ahead of schedule on vaccinations. Nearly 1.2 million Minnesotans and more than 70 percent of seniors have gotten a shot. \u2018There are more good days now than bad days,\u2019 said Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan.\u201d \u2022 Handy chart (and I love the file name: reanimation_guidelines_210312.png):<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/reanimation_guidelines_210312.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"600\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-276310\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/reanimation_guidelines_210312.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/reanimation_guidelines_210312-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/reanimation_guidelines_210312-150x150.png 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Shows a prime difficulty of lockdowns: They were organized by lines of business (churches, bars, etc.) instead of by ventilation (and surely a regulatory formula could have been worked out, even in 2020). Of course, in 2021, as today, the public health establishment was dug in against airborne transmission, so that wasn\u2019t \u201cpolitically feasible\u201d as we say.<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cWalz: Jensen\u2019s COVID-19 stance is \u2018killing people’\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/minnesotareformer.com\/briefs\/walz-jensens-covid-19-stance-is-killing-people\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Minnesota Reformer<\/a>] (August 10, 2022). \u201c\u2018Putting out false information around COVID, yourself not being vaccinated and telling others (not) to \u2014 it\u2019s killing people,\u2019 Walz told MPR News editor Mike Mulcahy. \u2018I think giving a platform for that \u2026 that\u2019s not who we are.\u2019 \u2026 .In the early days of the pandemic, [his gubernatorial opponent Scott Jensen] called COVID-19 a \u201cmild four-day respiratory illness which poses little risk to more than 95% of people.’\u201d \u2022 Rhetorically, that\u2019s the stuff to give the troops. <\/p>\n<p>Lambert here: Maybe Covid will finally enter the political arena through the back door. From my distinctly minority perspective, neither party has a record they can coherently defend. Trump instituted Operation Warp Speed (OWS), which if it had included sterilizing nasal vaccines, would have been seen as a moonshot, instead of the technical triumph it was. Unfortunately, Trump\u2019s base is disportionately anti-vax, so he can\u2019t take credit for vax, and the Democrats won\u2019t give it to him. Further, Trump modeled masking by denigrating it, when it ought at the very least to have been a fallback position. Meanwhile, Biden took the great gift that Trump gave him, and squandered it (which their base prevents the Republicans from saying): Rather than pursue a layered strategy that included vax, with a second OWS for mitigation, Biden bet the farm on vax, most especially with vaccine mandates. Unfortunately, the vaccines didn\u2019t prevent transmission, safety studies were hardly optimal, and we ended up with wave after wave of mass infection <em>while CDC continued Trump\u2019s work by simultaneously ruining non-pharmaceutical interventions<\/em>. Across-the-board elite denial that Covid was even a problem, combined with social norming has worked for awhile, but reality does seem to be breaking through (give it a couple more years). How is Biden\u2019s strategy defensible? At least the Republican messaging about freedom \u2014 vax bad, no mandates, no masking \u2014 is coherent. What do Democrats have in response? \u201cWe did our best\u201d? They didn\u2019t!<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cKamala Harris earns majority of Democratic roll call votes, achieving historic presidential nominatio\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/abcnews.go.com\/Politics\/kamala-harris-nominee-DNC-majority-democratic-roll-call-votes\/story?id=112580918\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">ABC<\/a>]. \u2022 Historic in that Harris is the first candidate ever to run for President whle never winning a single primary running for President.<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cThe Crucial Week Is Here. Can Kamala Keep This Crazy Enthusiasm Going?\u201d [Michael Tomasky, <a href=\"https:\/\/newrepublic.com\/article\/184532\/crucial-week-here-can-kamala-keep-crazy-enthusiasm-going\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The New Republic<\/a>]. Extended liberalgasm, oh good. \u201cIt was impossible to predict the explosion [(!!)] of relief, enthusiasm, and sense of mission that has greeted Kamala Harris\u2019s presumptive\u2014and now, as of Friday, official\u2014nomination for president. I choose those three descriptors with special care because each represents a critical component of a political phenomenon that has been greater than any of us\u2014most definitely including Donald Trump\u2014could have imagined.\u201d Actually, the key descriptor is \u201cexplosion.\u201d More: \u201cThis third week of the Harris candidacy is a crucial one. The initial burst of excitement is fading, a little, which is inevitable. The veep announcement and whistle-stop tour are well timed to regenerate excitement and keep the money rolling in. Non-MAGA America is united and energized. The mission this week is to keep it that way.\u201d \u2022 Tomasky seems to believe that the Democrats have what used to be called a \u201cnatural majority\u201d (\u201cNon-MAGA America\u201d). For good or ill, they don\u2019t\u2013<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cIs Kamala Harris beating Donald Trump in the polls?\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.vox.com\/politics\/365148\/kamala-harris-trump-polls-election-2024\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">VOX<\/a>]. \u201cKamala Harris entered the presidential race a little over two weeks ago as an underdog. Since then, Democrats\u2019 vibes have been fantastic \u2014 and Harris\u2019s polling has gotten better. But it hasn\u2019t improved as much as you might think. At least not yet. Per polls, Trump is no longer the clear favorite to win. But Harris hasn\u2019t taken a clear lead either. Polling, particularly in swing states, suggests an extremely close race that could go either way.\u201d \u2022\u00a0IOW, Non-MAGA America is half the country, give or take.<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201c\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.leefang.com\/p\/searching-for-the-real-kamala-harris\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Lee Fang<\/a>]. \u201cEven in this dynamic, there are two Kamalas. In her first bid for office, Harris leaned into her Indian background. She introduced herself to the local press as \u2018Kamala Devi Harris,\u2019 using her full name. \u2018In terms of Indian culture, my name represents the beautiful lotus flower,\u2019 she said at one of her first campaign events. \u2018I grew up with a strong Indian culture,\u2019 she told Asian Week in 2003. By the time she ran for the presidency in 2019, the mention of her Indian background had been removed from her campaign. An archive of her website shows that her biography listed her as the \u2018second African American woman in history to be elected to the U.S. Senate.\u2019 There was no hint of her South Asian lineage.\u201d \u2022 Chameleon\u2026 <\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>Trump (R): \u201cAt Trump rally in Atlanta, Black attendees say Kamala Harris playing \u2018race card\u2019 for votes\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.yahoo.com\/news\/trump-rally-atlanta-black-attendees-220420875.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">USA Today<\/a>]. \u201d When Vice President Kamala Harris entered the 2024 presidential race, Donald Trump tried to dismiss her identity as the first Black woman and person of South Asian descent on a major party ticket by labeling her a \u201cDEI hire,\u201d suggesting that her historic achievements are due to her race and gender. The talking point seemed to be sticking with Trump supporters at a rally in Atlanta on Saturday, even among those who identified as people of color. Andrea Smith, a Black woman who volunteers with the Trump campaign and is running for state representative in Georgia\u2019s District 41 north of Atlanta, asserted that Democrats were leaning into identity politics to win the election.\u201d \u2022 Here is a fine example\u2013<\/p>\n<p>Trump (R): \u2018\u2018Ruthless\u2019: How Kamala Harris Won Her First Race\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/archive.ph\/70mm7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Politico<\/a>] (2019). \u201cHarris vaulted past Fazio and into the runoff, where she defeated Hallinan in a landslide and became the state\u2019s first African-American district attorney. Not only did she cut into Hallinan\u2019s progressive base\u2014especially with black and female voters\u2014but she also carried more conservative areas of the city, garnering votes that had gone to Fazio. The campaign\u2019s closing argument was, Prozan said, \u2018one of the most effective mail pieces that we did.\u2019 The words were familiar and prosaic: \u2018It\u2019s time for a change.\u2019 The images told the story. Harris\u2019 staff had gone to the library and retrieved photographs of more than a century\u2019s worth of San Francisco\u2019s district attorneys, every one from 1900 to 2003. They were all white men.\u201d \u2022\u00a0Of course, the \u201cchange\u201d (where have I heard that before?) it was \u201ctime for\u201d\u2026 Not quite perhaps all that one might have hoped for. The mailer:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/harris_mailer.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"457\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-276320\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/harris_mailer.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/harris_mailer-300x229.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>So if we hear anything like \u201cnever played the race card\u201d\u2026 No.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>Kennedy (I): \u201cRFK Jr. grapples with torrent of negative headlines\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/homenews\/campaign\/4812305-rfk-jr-dead-bear-donald-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Hill<\/a>]. \u201cDemocratic groups have taken the lead in attacking Kennedy, with the White House staying out of the mix. The DNC has been at the forefront of fighting back against what party officials see as a possible threat to President Biden and now Vice President Harris\u2019s candidacy against former President Trump. Other liberal outfits have also joined in their effort, with several organizations holding conference calls to outline his mounting flaws.\u201d \u2022 Kennedy responds:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/rfk_roadkill.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"679\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-276319\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/rfk_roadkill.png 500w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/rfk_roadkill-221x300.png 221w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>I see the logic. But it\u2019s a big ask.<\/p>\n<p>Kennedy (I): \u201cDead bear another strange twist in RFK Jr\u2019s faltering campaign\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/articles\/c0mnn8zneppo\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">BBC<\/a>]. \u201cIn a move to get ahead of a lengthy profile published on Monday in the New Yorker magazine, he released a video where he discusses an accident involving a bear cub a decade ago \u2013 and the unlikely series of events that followed.\u201d \u2022 Hilarity ensues:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">How NYC local news covered the dead bear RFK Jr put into Central Park ten years ago \ud83d\ude2c\ud83d\udc40 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/J25gDeLQ1Q\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/t.co\/J25gDeLQ1Q<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/nJio51Li3R\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/nJio51Li3R<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Luther Lowe (@lutherlowe) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/lutherlowe\/status\/1820186492062605812\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 4, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/peterluger.com\/butcher-shop\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Peter Luger has a butcher shop<\/a>. Why not put the bear in the fridge?<\/p>\n<p>Kennedy (I):<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Some believe raw milk is a nutrient-rich superfood, while others, like The New York Times, label it a health hazard promoted by the right wing. Imagine that, raw milk, a right wing thing. So, which is it?<\/p>\n<p>We dove deep into the history of raw milk, speaking with leading\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/501ASZBUcE\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/501ASZBUcE<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Nicole Shanahan (@NicoleShanahan) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/NicoleShanahan\/status\/1819844126025613630\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 3, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>Sigh.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Spook Country<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cEXCLUSIVE \u2013 Federal Air Marshal Whistleblowers Report Tulsi Gabbard Actively Under Surveillance via Quiet Skies Program\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/uncoverdc.com\/2024\/08\/04\/fams-whistleblowers-report-tulsi-gabbard-on-quiet-skies-list\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">UncoveredDC<\/a>]. This article is noticeable light on actual documentation. Still, since the story is out there: \u201cIn an exclusive breaking story, several Federal Air Marshal whistleblowers have come forward with information showing that former U.S. Representative and Presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard is currently enrolled in the Quiet Skies program. Quiet Skies is a TSA surveillance program with its own compartmentalized suspected terrorist watchlist. It is the same program being weaponized against J6 defendants and their families. Quiet Skies is allegedly used to protect traveling Americans from suspected domestic terrorists\u2026. For what the Federal Government calls national security reasons, an individual is enrolled in the program without knowledge. Teams of Federal Air Marshals are assigned to individuals, following and tracking them from when they enter the airport and then on all their flights and transits until they reach their destination. Enrolled individuals usually have a Quad S (SSSS) on the bottom right-hand corner of their boarding passes, but not always. They are often flagged for extra searches, frequently so lengthy that they miss their flights.\u201d \u2022 Hmm. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cntraveler.com\/story\/what-to-know-if-an-ssss-code-shows-up-on-your-boarding-pass\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">In case <em>you<\/em> get an SSSS, here\u2019s more<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Realignment and Legitimacy<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cHollywood Loves Drama Of Kamala Harris\u2019 Veepstakes Decision, But Has A Clear Favorite\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/deadline.com\/2024\/08\/kamala-harris-vp-pick-josh-shapiro-first-hollywood-favorite-1236031889\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Deadline<\/a>]. \u201c\u2018This is like a mini-primary for the second spot, with one vote that matters,\u2019 a producer with deep Democratic donor ties told Deadline. \u2018Harris can do no wrong right now, so whoever she picks people will get behind,\u2019 he went on to say.\u201d \u2022 A primary with one vote is nothing like a primary, at least not a democratic one. What\u2019s wrong with these people?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><strong>Syndemics<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cI am in earnest \u2014 I will not equivocate \u2014 I will not excuse \u2014 I will not retreat a single inch \u2014 AND I WILL BE HEARD.\u201d \u2013William Lloyd Garrison<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>Covid Resources, United States (National): Transmission (<a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#county-view?list_select_state=all_states&list_select_county=all_counties&data-type=Risk&null=Risk\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a>); Wastewater (<a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#wastewater-surveillance\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a>, <del><a href=\"https:\/\/biobot.io\/data\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Biobot<\/a><\/del>; includes many counties; <a href=\"https:\/\/data.wastewaterscan.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Wastewater Scan<\/a>, includes drilldown by zip); Variants (<a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#variant-proportions\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.walgreens.com\/businesssolutions\/covid-19-index.jsp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Walgreens<\/a>); \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/iowacovid19tracker.org\/hospitals\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Iowa COVID-19 Tracker<\/a>\u201d (in IA, but national data). \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/icemsg.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Infection Control, Emergency Management, Safety, and General Thoughts<\/a>\u201d (especially on hospitalization by city).<\/p>\n<p>Lambert here: Readers, thanks for the collective effort. To update any entry, do feel free to contact me at the address given with the plants. Please put \u201cCOVID\u201d in the subject line. Thank you!<\/p>\n<p>Resources, United States (Local): AK (<a href=\"https:\/\/experience.arcgis.com\/experience\/af2efc8bffbf4cdc83c2d1a134354074\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); AL (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.arcgis.com\/apps\/dashboards\/6d2771faa9da4a2786a509d82c8cf0f7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); AR (<a href=\"https:\/\/experience.arcgis.com\/experience\/633006d0782b4544bd5113a314f6268a\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); AZ (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.azdhs.gov\/covid19\/data\/index.php\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); CA (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdph.ca.gov\/Programs\/CID\/DCDC\/Pages\/COVID-19\/CalSuWers-Dashboard.aspx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/coronavirus.marinhhs.org\/surveillance\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Marin, dashboard<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/healthalerts.stanford.edu\/covid-19\/wastewater-dashboard\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Stanford, wastewater<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/publichealth.verily.com\/?v=SC2_N&l=Oakland%2C+CA\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Oakland, wastewater<\/a>); CO (<a href=\"https:\/\/covid19.colorado.gov\/data\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/cdphe.maps.arcgis.com\/apps\/dashboards\/d79cf93c3938470ca4bcc4823328946b#utility=\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); CT (<a href=\"https:\/\/data.ct.gov\/stories\/s\/COVID-19-data\/wa3g-tfvc\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); DE (<a href=\"https:\/\/coronavirus.delaware.gov\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); FL (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.arcgis.com\/apps\/dashboards\/5b9d75ba683849928dc1a49c39ab0b1c\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); GA (<a href=\"https:\/\/dph.georgia.gov\/ga-nwss-wastewater-surveillance-reports\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); HI (<a href=\"https:\/\/health.hawaii.gov\/coronavirusdisease2019\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); IA (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dmmwra.org\/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=57\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater reports<\/a>); ID (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.idahopublichealth.com\/district-2\/novel-coronavirus\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>, Boise; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.idahopublichealth.com\/district-2\/novel-coronavirus\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/data.wastewaterscan.org\/?plantId=1056f05c-0e46-4e3d-b007-c0453ba7dc0d\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>, Central Idaho; <a href=\"https:\/\/publichealth.verily.com\/#:SARS-CoV-2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>, Coeur d\u2019Alene; dashboard, <a href=\"https:\/\/covid.srhd.org\/topics\/spokane-county-case-data\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Spokane County<\/a>); IL (<a href=\"https:\/\/iwss.uillinois.edu\/wastewater-treatment-plants\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); IN (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.coronavirus.in.gov\/indiana-covid-19-dashboard-and-map\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); KS (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.coronavirus.kdheks.gov\/160\/COVID-19-in-Kansas\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/experience.arcgis.com\/experience\/4456bae8a38f4b6180e008477382fff9\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>, Lawrence); KY (<a href=\"https:\/\/louisville.edu\/envirome\/thecoimmunityproject\/dashboard\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>, Louisville); LA (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ldh.la.gov\/coronavirus\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); MA (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mass.gov\/info-details\/covid-19-wastewater-report\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); MD (<a href=\"https:\/\/coronavirus.maryland.gov\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); ME (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.maine.gov\/dhhs\/mecdc\/infectious-disease\/epi\/airborne\/coronavirus\/data.shtml\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); MI (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.michigan.gov\/coronavirus\/stats\/wastewater-surveillance\/dashboard\/sentinel-wastewater-epidemiology-evaluation-project-sweep\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/gisportal.state.mi.us\/portal\/apps\/insights\/index.html#\/view\/52bbb104ed574887918f990af9f3debe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); MN (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.health.state.mn.us\/diseases\/coronavirus\/stats\/index.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); MO (<a href=\"https:\/\/storymaps.arcgis.com\/stories\/f7f5492486114da6b5d6fdc07f81aacf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); MS (<a href=\"https:\/\/msdh.ms.gov\/page\/14,0,420.html#Mississippi\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); <del>MT (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.arcgis.com\/apps\/MapSeries\/index.html?appid=7c34f3412536439491adcc2103421d4b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>)<\/del>; NC (<a href=\"https:\/\/covid19.ncdhhs.gov\/dashboard\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard)<\/a>; ND (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.hhs.nd.gov\/health\/coronavirus\/cases\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hhs.nd.gov\/health\/coronavirus\/cases\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); NE (<a href=\"https:\/\/atlas-dhhs.ne.gov\/Atlas\/Respiratory_Illness\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); NH (<a href=\"https:\/\/wisdom.dhhs.nh.gov\/wisdom\/dashboard.html?topic=covid-19&subtopic=recurring-updates&indicator=covid-19-wastewater#tabnavbarid\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); NJ (<a href=\"https:\/\/covid19.nj.gov\/forms\/datadashboard\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); NM (<a href=\"https:\/\/cvprovider.nmhealth.org\/public-dashboard.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); NV (<a href=\"https:\/\/nvhealthresponse.nv.gov\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/empower.unlv.edu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>, Southern NV); NY (<a href=\"https:\/\/mbcolli.shinyapps.io\/SARS2EWSP\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); OH (<a href=\"https:\/\/coronavirus.ohio.gov\/dashboards\/other-resources\/wastewater\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); OK (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.arcgis.com\/apps\/dashboards\/51657c21386d4f1a962b1853c76ec589\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); <del>OR (<a href=\"https:\/\/public.tableau.com\/app\/profile\/oregon.health.authority.covid.19\/viz\/OregonsCOVID-19DataDashboards-TableofContents\/TableofContentsStatewide\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>)<\/del>; PA (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.health.pa.gov\/topics\/disease\/coronavirus\/pages\/Cases.aspx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); RI (<a href=\"https:\/\/ri-department-of-health-covid-19-data-rihealth.hub.arcgis.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); SC (<a href=\"https:\/\/scdhec.gov\/index.php\/covid19\/covid-19-data\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); SD (<a href=\"https:\/\/doh.sd.gov\/COVID\/Dashboard.aspx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); TN (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.tn.gov\/health\/cedep\/ncov\/data.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); TX (<a href=\"https:\/\/txdshsea.maps.arcgis.com\/apps\/dashboards\/4ae43eefd0f641d59d35c3df82ee59cc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); UT (<a href=\"https:\/\/avrpublic.dhhs.utah.gov\/uwss\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); VA (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/coronavirus\/see-the-numbers\/covid-19-in-virginia\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); VT (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.healthvermont.gov\/disease-control\/covid-19\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); WA (<a href=\"https:\/\/doh.wa.gov\/emergencies\/covid-19\/data-dashboard\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/covid19.bfhd.wa.gov\/cases-and-roadmap-to-recovery\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); WI (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dhs.wisconsin.gov\/covid-19\/wastewater.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); WV (<del><a href=\"https:\/\/oehs.wvdhhr.org\/news\/oehs-coivd-19-information\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a><\/del>); WY (<del><a href=\"https:\/\/covidwastewatermonitor.wyo.gov\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a><\/del>).<\/p>\n<p>Resources, Canada (National): Wastewater (<a href=\"https:\/\/health-infobase.canada.ca\/covid-19\/wastewater\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Government of Canada<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p>Resources, Canada (Provincial): ON (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.publichealthontario.ca\/en\/Data-and-Analysis\/Infectious-Disease\/COVID-19-Data-Surveillance\/Wastewater\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); QC (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.inspq.qc.ca\/covid-19\/donnees\/eaux-usees\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><em>les eaux us\u00e9es<\/em><\/a>); BC (<a href=\"https:\/\/bccdc.shinyapps.io\/respiratory_wastewater\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); BC, Vancouver (<a href=\"https:\/\/metrovancouver.org\/services\/liquid-waste\/testing-for-the-covid-19-virus-in-wastewater\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p>Hat tips to helpful readers: Alexis, anon (2), Art_DogCT, B24S, CanCyn, ChiGal, Chuck L, Festoonic, FM, FreeMarketApologist (4), Gumbo, hop2it, JB, JEHR, JF, JL Joe, John, JM (10), JustAnotherVolunteer, JW, KatieBird, KF, LL, Michael King, KF, LaRuse, mrsyk, MT, MT_Wild, otisyves, Petal (6), RK (2), RL, RM, Rod, square coats (11), tennesseewaltzer, Tom B., Utah, Bob White (3). <\/p>\n<p>Stay safe out there!<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>Maskstravaganza<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cAre You Serious? Covid-19 Hasn\u2019t Gone Away?\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/johnsnowproject.org\/primers\/are-you-serious-covid-19-hasnt-gone-away\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">John Snow Project<\/a>]. \u201cInstead of blithe nihilism and the abandonment of principles of public health that have advanced human society for centuries, governments could instruct their public health and regulatory agencies to insist on cleaner air policies, mandating air quality that protects human health, in the same way we mandate water quality. Malaria prevention is not perfect, but that doesn\u2019t stop us using every possible tool at our disposal to minimize the impact of the disease around the world. Many engineers have decried the idea of needing a random trial to prove physics, but a Norwegian team did one anyway, examining whether surgical masks help prevent infection by respiratory viruses.They found surgical masks were 30% effective at reducing symptoms of respiratory infection<a href=\"https:\/\/johnsnowproject.org\/primers\/are-you-serious-covid-19-hasnt-gone-away\/#\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">17<\/a>. This is no surprise. It\u2019s long been established that surgical masks have a minor impact on airborne infection control, but they aren\u2019t worn by anyone who is serious about avoiding SARS-CoV-2 or any other respiratory pathogen. A 2008 UK Health and Safety Executive evaluation demonstrated that surgical masks provide a 6-fold reduction against aerosolized virus, while respirator masks provide at least a 100-fold reduction<a href=\"https:\/\/johnsnowproject.org\/primers\/are-you-serious-covid-19-hasnt-gone-away\/#\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">18<\/a>. Perhaps one of the biggest calamities of the COVID-19 pandemic was robbing people of one of the most effective forms of protection: respirator masks. Many people believe masks don\u2019t work, or if they do that they primarily protect others from infection and don\u2019t protect the wearer. This belief is completely unfounded and wholly wrong. Respirators have long been used to protect people working with some of the most dangerous pathogens imaginable, and FFP3\/N99 respirators have been shown to offer up to 100% protection against SARS-CoV-2 in healthcare settings<a href=\"https:\/\/johnsnowproject.org\/primers\/are-you-serious-covid-19-hasnt-gone-away\/#\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">19<\/a>. Imagine how many lives might have been saved and how many cases of Long Covid could have been avoided globally if people had been told that a well fitted mask of the correct grade (N95\/FFP2 or higher) can offer complete protection against infection. We don\u2019t need a magic bullet to solve the problem of COVID-19.\u201d \u2022 Say what you will for blithe nihilism, at least it\u2019s an ethos.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p> \u2013><\/p>\n<p>Sequelae: Covid<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Big if true:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">This study is very significant\u2014it directly compares SARS2 virus spike with vaccine spike\u2014which is altered from the viral sequence to stabilize the pre-fusion form.<\/p>\n<p>Virus spike fuses heart cells\u2014while vaccine spike does not. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/oqwQRh6990\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/t.co\/oqwQRh6990<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Lee Altenberg, Ph.D. \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8 (@AltenbergLee) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/AltenbergLee\/status\/1820688085132423443\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 6, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>I read the article, but can\u2019t penetrate the prose. Perhaps an expert reader will oblige.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Celebrity Watch<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>We\u2019ll always have Paris:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Indeed.<a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/hdEGCouIFr\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/t.co\/hdEGCouIFr<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Arturo Portnoy (@portna) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/portna\/status\/1820259949928136845\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 5, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"table\"\/><strong>TABLE 1: Daily Covid Charts<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>LEGEND<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>1) <span style=\"font-size: 10pt; color: gold;\">\u2605<\/span> for charts new today; all others are not updated.<\/p>\n<p>2) For a full-size\/full-resolution image, Command-click (MacOS) or right-click (Windows) on the chart thumbnail and \u201copen image in new tab.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>NOTES<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>[1] (CDC) This week\u2019s wastewater map, with hot spots annotated. Keeps spreading.<\/p>\n<p>[2] (CDC) Last week\u2019s wastewater map.<\/p>\n<p>[3] (CDC Variants) KP.* very popular.<\/p>\n<p>[4] (ER) Worth noting Emergency Department use is now on a par with the first wave, in 2020.<\/p>\n<p>[5] (Hospitalization: NY) Leveling off. Doesn\u2019t need to be a permanent thing, of course. (The New York city area has form; in 2020, as the home of two international airports (JFK and EWR) it was an important entry point for the virus into the country (and from thence up the Hudson River valley, as the rich sought to escape, and then around the country through air travel.)<\/p>\n<p>[6] (Hospitalization: CDC). The visualization suppresses what is, in percentage terms, a significant increase.<\/p>\n<p>[7] (Walgreens) An optimist would see a peak.<\/p>\n<p>[8] (Cleveland) Slowing. Comment on the Cleveland Clinic:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Why is the Cleveland Clinic building a new facility for a professional basketball team? These hospitals are not ‘nonprofits’ they are ridiculously profitable monopolies with an endless cash gusher to point at whatever they want. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/1REM2LMLjd\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/t.co\/1REM2LMLjd<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Matt Stoller (@matthewstoller) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/matthewstoller\/status\/1817948450908258696\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">July 29, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>Ka-ching.<\/p>\n<p>[9] (Travelers: Positivity) Up. Those sh*theads at CDC have changed the chart so that it doesn\u2019t even run back to 1\/21\/23, as it used to, but now starts 1\/1\/24. There\u2019s also no way to adjust the time rasnge. CDC really doesn\u2019t want you to be able to take a historical view of the pandemic, or compare one surge to another. In an any case, that\u2019s why the shape of the curve has changed.<\/p>\n<p>[10] (Travelers: Variants) Same deal. Those sh*theads. <\/p>\n<p>[11] Deaths low, but positivity up.<\/p>\n<p>[12] Deaths low, ED up.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Stats Watch<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Logistics: \u201cUnited States LMI Logistics Managers Index\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/tradingeconomics.com\/united-states\/lmi-logistics-managers-index-current\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Trading Economics<\/a>]. \u201cThe Logistics Manager\u2019s Index in the US increased to 56.5 in July 2024, the highest in four months, compared to 55.3 in June, and marking eight consecutive months of expansion in the logistics sector. Transportation continued its recovery, as Transportation Prices went up (+2.8 to 63.8, the highest since May of 2022) and Transportation Capacity expanded slightly (+0.9 to 50.9). It is the 3rd consecutive month the prices have exceeded capacity due to excess capacity contraction and increasing demand. Respondents are predicting that these dynamics will hold, suggesting that the freight recession is potentially ending. Warehousing also remained strong\u2026.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe consumer may be preparing to leave the party.\u201d [Logistics Report, <a href=\"https:\/\/logistics.cmail20.com\/t\/d-e-ehyujld-dyukidmly-r\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Wall Street Journal<\/a>]. \u201cFrom McDonald\u2019s to Mercedes-Benz, executives say that many consumers in China and the U.S. are pulling back on spending. \u2026[T]he countries are under different stresses, <a href=\"https:\/\/logistics.createsend1.com\/t\/d-l-ehyujld-dyukidmly-k\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">with U.S. consumers increasingly showing signs of weariness after a run of high inflation while Chinese households focus more on saving than spending<\/a>. If consumers in the U.S. do falter, it would mean a double whammy for multinational companies, which have been facing weak demand in China. PepsiCo sounded an early alarm on consumer spending in both the U.S. and China, and reported a 4% drop in North American sales volume in the latest quarter. Many American importers have been rushing in goods early ahead of the traditional peak season to get ahead of shipping disruptions. A pullback by consumers would leave them with another inventory overhang.\u201d \u2022 Not the same as what economist Alfred Kahn memorable called \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.yardeniquicktakes.com\/its-a-banana\/#:~:text=%E2%80%9CBetween%201973%20and%201975%20we,to%20fight%20inflation,%20once%20said.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">a banana<\/a>,\u201d but nevertheless a sign of weekness. And that early shipping data point is interesting.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>Today\u2019s Fear & Greed Index: 21 Exreme Fear (previous close: 19 Extreme Fear) [<a href=\"https:\/\/money.cnn.com\/data\/fear-and-greed\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CNN<\/a>]. One week ago: 47 (Neutral). (0 is Extreme Fear; 100 is Extreme Greed). Last updated Aug 6 at 11:51:12 AM ET. I turn my back <em>for one minute<\/em>\u2026.. <\/p>\n<p>Rapture Index: Closes unchanged [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.raptureready.com\/rapture-ready-index\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Rapture Ready<\/a>]. Record High, October 10, 2016: 189. Current: 183. (Remember that bringing on the Rapture is good.) \u2022 Hard to believe the Rapture Index is going <em>down<\/em>. Where are there people getting their news?!<\/p>\n<p><strong>Book Nook<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cUncovered Euripides fragments are \u2018kind of a big deal’\u201d (press release) [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.colorado.edu\/asmagazine\/2024\/08\/01\/uncovered-euripides-fragments-are-kind-big-deal\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">University of Colorado Boulder<\/a>]. \u201cWorking together, Trnka-Amrhein and renowned classics Professor John Gibert embarked on many months of grueling work, meticulously poring over a high-resolution photo of the 10.5-square-inch papyrus. They made out words and ensured that the words they thought they were seeing fit the norms of tragic style and meter. Eventually, they became confident that they were working with new material from two fragmentary Euripides plays, Polyidus and Ino.\u201d And: \u201cPolyidus retells an ancient Cretan myth in which King Minos and Queen Pasipha\u00eb demand that the eponymous seer resurrect their son Glaucus after he drowns in a vat of honey.\u201d \u2022 What.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Zeitgeist Watch<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201c\u2018No Salt’\u201d [Jake Seliger, <a href=\"https:\/\/jakeseliger.com\/2024\/08\/05\/no-salt\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Story\u2019s Story<\/a>]. \u201cSo I opted for something simple: a shakshuka. Tomatoes, vegetables, sauce, and mild flavorings, topped with feta cheese, eggs, and basil. I reached for the salt, and found the bottle empty. I\u2019m not sure why, but I started weeping. No salt. No salt means that he\u2019s not cooking. He\u2019ll never cook again.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIs The Collapse Of Civilization Boring To You?\u201d [Nate Bear, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.donotpanic.news\/p\/is-the-collapse-of-civilization-boring\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">\u00a1Do Not Panic!<\/a>]. \u201c[A] bunch of environmental groups came out in support of Kamala Harris just two days after she renounced her previous anti-fracking position. She did this because she wants to win pro-fracking votes in Pennsylvania. Maybe no one has told her that there probably won\u2019t be an entity called Pennsylvania at some point in the next few decades if fracking continues. Or that Trump has a lock on the pro-fracking bloc and no one she wants to convince of her new anti-fracking stance will believe her. Fracking, of course, has seen the US surpass Russia and Saudi Arabia to become the world\u2019s largest oil producer. Fracking initiated by Obama[1] and continued by Trump, then by Biden and will continue under Harris or Trump 2.0. How thin the politics. How meagre the demands of some activists have become.\u201d And <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/2024\/08\/insects-apocalypse-soon.html\">relevant to yesterday\u2019s post<\/a>: \u201cI was thinking about this when I sat outside every evening for four nights on an island in southern Europe, on a well-lit patio at the end of quiet, carless street expecting to see moths swarming the lights. I know well the trouble insects are in, but I still expected to see moths. I saw one. Moths are critical night-time pollinators, an essential part of the ecology that supports our food chain. In Australia, a type of moth that you could find by the tens of thousands in individual caves <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/environment\/2021\/dec\/18\/a-995-decline-what-caused-australias-bogong-moth-catastrophe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">suddenly disappeared in the space of a few months<\/a>. How quickly things can collapse.\u201d \u2022 Thinking of this post, and the comments to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/environment\/2021\/dec\/18\/a-995-decline-what-caused-australias-bogong-moth-catastrophe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">yesterday\u2019s post on an insect apocalypse<\/a>, it occurs to me that this \u201cSilent Summer\u201d on a grand scale might be something that <em>everybody<\/em> can be brought to see and to understand. That hasn\u2019t been easy to do with climate change. NOTE [1] The best starting point for the fracking timeline is <a href=\"https:\/\/bigthink.com\/the-present\/halliburton-loophole\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Dick Cheney\u2019s Energy Task Force (and the \u201cHalliburton Loophole\u201d)<\/a> under Bush the Younger, not Obama. It\u2019s bipartisan! <\/p>\n<p><a name=\"climate\"\/><strong>Climate<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cUncertainties too large to predict tipping times of major Earth system components from historical data\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.science.org\/doi\/10.1126\/sciadv.adl4841\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Science<\/a>]. \u201cOne way to warn of forthcoming critical transitions in Earth system components is using observations to detect declining system stability. It has also been suggested to extrapolate such stability changes into the future and predict tipping times. Here, we argue that the involved uncertainties are too high to robustly predict tipping times. We raise concerns regarding (i) the modeling assumptions underlying any extrapolation of historical results into the future, (ii) the representativeness of individual Earth system component time series, and (iii) the impact of uncertainties and preprocessing of used observational datasets, with focus on nonstationary observational coverage and gap filling. We explore these uncertainties in general and specifically for the example of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation. We argue that even under the assumption that a given Earth system component has an approaching tipping point, the uncertainties are too large to reliably estimate tipping times by extrapolating historical information.\u201d \u2022 Oh. <\/p>\n<p><a name=\"gallery\"\/><strong>The Gallery<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cAndy Warhol\u2019s lost Amiga art found\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/dfarq.homeip.net\/andy-warhols-lost-amiga-art-found\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Silicon UnderGround<\/a>]. \u201cTo a casual viewer, they look like low resolution images with a very limited number of colors, and it\u2019s not completely unfair to say they bear some resemblance to something my kids would have created in Microsoft Paint when they were little. But when I showed the images to my wife, a former high school art teacher, the first thing she noticed was his choice of colors. He deliberately chose colors that contrasted with each other, and the other colors he used were colors you would get from mixing two or more of the other colors he used. Rule number one of painting, she said, is to never use black or brown, but make your own from the other colors you\u2019re using. Warhol\u2019s images contain odd shades that result from mixing other colors in the image together. When you look at Andy Warhol paintings, his style suited these specific tools. He often worked from photographs, creating stark images containing bold flood fills with only a few colors. Sometimes he would cut up photographs, or have someone else cut up the photographs, then he would arrange the pieces and then paint what he saw. With the Amiga, he could do all of this digitally. So the choice of Andy Warhol to demonstrate how to use the machine was a brilliant idea. This computer with advanced graphics capabilities for its time, and the ability to multitask and switch between different tools so he could cut up and resize images and then paste the result into the image he was working on couldn\u2019t have suited him any better if he\u2019d designed it himself. Problem was, he didn\u2019t know how to use a computer.\u201d \u2022 Worth a read!<\/p>\n<p>Turner as Giger?!<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Also felt apt that one of things I saw this avo at Tate Britain was Turner\u2019s Fall of Anarchy. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/eftLQ8INNf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/eftLQ8INNf<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Rishi Dastidar \ud83d\udd31\ud83c\udf0a (@BetaRish) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/BetaRish\/status\/1820139374182568330\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 4, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p><strong>News of the Wired<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I am not yet feeling wired today.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><strong>Contact information for plants<\/strong>: Readers, feel free to contact me at lambert [UNDERSCORE] strether [DOT] corrente [AT] yahoo [DOT] com, to (a) find out how to send me a check if you are allergic to PayPal and (b) to find out how to send me images of plants. Vegetables are fine! Fungi, lichen, and coral are deemed to be honorary plants! If you want your handle to appear as a credit, please place it at the start of your mail in parentheses: (thus). Otherwise, I will anonymize by using your initials. See the previous Water Cooler (with plant) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/2024\/08\/200pm-water-cooler-8-21-2024.html\">here<\/a>. From KW:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/fog.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"379\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-276302\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/fog.jpeg 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/fog-300x190.jpeg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>KW writes: \u201cFog on the Marsh, Madison,Wisconsin. The Ho Chunk word for fog is ruuj\u0105.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"donate\"\/><strong>Readers<\/strong>: Water Cooler is a standalone entity <em>not<\/em> covered by the annual NC fundraiser. So if you see a link you especially like, or an item you wouldn\u2019t see anywhere else, please do not hesitate to express your appreciation in tangible form. Remember, a tip jar is for tipping! <em>Regular positive feedback both makes me feel good and lets me know I\u2019m on the right track with coverage<\/em>. When I get no donations for three or four days I get worried. More tangibly, a constant trickle of donations helps me with expenses, and I factor in that trickle when setting fundraising goals:<\/p>\n<p>Here is the screen that will appear, which I have helpfully annotated:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-226891\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/contribution.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"606\" height=\"384\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/contribution.png 606w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/contribution-300x190.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 606px) 100vw, 606px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>If you hate PayPal, you can email me at lambert [UNDERSCORE] strether [DOT] corrente [AT] yahoo [DOT] com, and I will give you directions on how to send a check. Thank you!\n<\/p>\n<div class=\"printfriendly pf-alignleft\"><a href=\"#\" rel=\"nofollow\" onclick=\"window.print(); return false;\" title=\"Printer Friendly, PDF & Email\"><img decoding=\"async\" style=\"border:none;-webkit-box-shadow:none; -moz-box-shadow: none; box-shadow:none; padding:0; margin:0\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.printfriendly.com\/buttons\/print-button-gray.png\" alt=\"Print Friendly, PDF & Email\"\/><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/2024\/08\/200pm-water-cooler-8-6-2024.html\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Lambert Strether of Corrente Bird Song of the Day Readers have been so happy with the mockingbirds I\u2019m going to keep doing them. Now<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":82938,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[153,183],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-82937","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy","category-spotlight"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82937","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=82937"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82937\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/82938"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=82937"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=82937"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=82937"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
Readers have been so happy with the mockingbirds I\u2019m going to keep doing them. Now entering Day Two of Week Three!<\/p>\n
<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Long-tailed Mockingbird, Quebrada El Lim\u00f3n (Valqui E4.2), Piura, Peru.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><strong>In Case You Might Miss\u2026 <\/strong> <\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><a href=\"#helper\">Best Olympic story.<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#vp\">Walz is Kamala\u2019s VP choice.<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#climate\">Climate tipping points<\/a> unpredictable.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#gallery\">Andy Warhol\u2019s<\/a> lost Amiga Art.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"helper\"\/><strong>Look for the Helpers<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/helper_olympic.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"1157\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-276312\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/helper_olympic.png 500w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/helper_olympic-130x300.png 130w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/helper_olympic-443x1024.png 443w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\"\/><\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>My email address is down by the plant; please send examples of there (\u201cHelpers\u201d in the subject line). In our increasingly desperate and fragile neoliberal society, everyday <em>normal<\/em> incidents and stories of \u201cthe communism of everyday life\u201d are what I am looking for (and not, say, the Red Cross in Hawaii, or even the UNWRA in Gaza).<\/p>\n<p><strong>Politics<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo many of the social reactions that strike us as psychological are in fact a rational management of symbolic capital.\u201d \u2013Pierre Bourdieu, Classification Struggles<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"assassination \"\/>Trump Assassination Attempt<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cThe Kill Box: Investigating the Trump Assassination, Benny Johnson With Reps. Eli Crane and Cory Mills\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.realclearpolitics.com\/video\/2024\/08\/05\/the_kill_box_investigating_the_trump_assassination_benny_johnson_with_reps_eli_crane_and_cory_mills.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">RealClearPolitics<\/a>]. \u201cKill box\u201d is a phrase invented by the media personality, Johnson, and not by either of the two representatives, both of whom were snipers (!!). This caught my eye: \u201cREP. ELI CRANE: When you get out on that site, if you have even an iota of training on security, long-distance shooting, and you get on that property, I mean, you see a water tower that covers the entire premises, basically you start asking yourself, \u2018Why the hell wasn\u2019t anybody up on that water tower?’\u201d Johnson concludes: \u201cWe [I don\u2019t thinik the two reps would agree with that, and would not use this language] have established beyond a reasonable doubt that President Trump was intentionally put into the kill box on July 13th. So who\u2019s responsible for this fatal security plan? Who cut the communication lines? Who kept Trump on stage, and who will be held criminally liable for these deadly decisions? We have so many questions after our investigation of the assassination site, but one thing is crystal clear: there are forces that wanted President Trump dead. The obscene security failures created the conditions for a live TV execution. These failures are unforgivable and have inspired regular Americans to ask questions like this: Was there a stand-down order issued? Was there a conspiracy to kill President Trump? The head of the Secret Service resigned in disgrace after this question, but her replacement continues the same failed policies that sent a bullet through Trump\u2019s head.\u201d \u2022 Not to minimize, but not (no doubt the regreat of some) \u201cthrough his head.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p> \u2013><\/p>\n<p>2024<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Less than one hundred days to go!<\/p>\n<p><iframe src=\"https:\/\/free.timeanddate.com\/countdown\/i8ubjj5e\/n179\/cf100\/cm0\/cu1\/ct0\/cs1\/ca0\/cr0\/ss0\/cac000\/cpc000\/pcfff\/tcfff\/fs100\/szw320\/szh135\/tatTime%20left%20to%20Election%20Day%2C%202024\/tac000\/tptTime%20since%20Event%20started%20in\/tpc000\/mac000\/mpc000\/iso2024-11-05T00:00:00\/bo2\/pd2\" allowtransparency=\"true\" frameborder=\"0\" width=\"322\" height=\"137\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p> <a name=\"rcp\"\/>Friday\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/www.realclearpolitics.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">RCP<\/a> Poll Averages:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/rcp_2023-08-02.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"960\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-276097\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/rcp_2023-08-02.png 500w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/rcp_2023-08-02-156x300.png 156w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Drops for Trump across the board, including a 2.5% drop nationally (almost outside the margin of error, ha ha), and a blue triangle on the mao for the first time.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"defenestration\"\/>Biden Defenestration: <\/p>\n<p>\u2018Presidential Agonistes, Half a Century Apart\u201d [Michael Austin, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/2024\/08\/Presidential%20Agonistes,%20Half%20a%20Century%20Apart\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">RealClearPolitics<\/a>]. \u201cThe summers of 1974 and 2024 are political theater of the highest kind, though the former had at least the semblance of a civics lesson, while the latter is pure bare-knuckle politics. They are also a reminder, in our digital and cable news age, that . If Donald Trump\u2019s resurgence, even after being written off in 2020, is due to his dominating his party, both Richard Nixon\u2019s and Joe Biden\u2019s demise was due to having been abandoned by theirs.\u201d <\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"trail\"\/><em><strong>The Campaign Trail<\/strong><\/em>:<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"vp\">The VP choice<\/a>:<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cTim Walz. Hell yeah.\u201d [Dave Karpf, <a href=\"https:\/\/davekarpf.substack.com\/p\/tim-walz-hell-yeah\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Now and Then<\/a>]. \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/politics\/2024\/08\/06\/harris-walz-vp\/?utm_campaign=&utm_medium=social&utm_source=threads\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Walz\u2019s biography<\/a> reads like a character ripped from the Aaron Sorkin extended universe. Small town boy from Nebraska, couple decades of military service, high school history teacher, part-time high school football coach who took the team to the state championship\u2026 went on to serve five terms in Congress as a Democrat in a conservative district, then became Governor and, with a small Democratic majority in the statehouse, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.msnbc.com\/opinion\/msnbc-opinion\/tim-walz-kamala-harris-vp-pick-minnesota-rcna164157\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">signed a huge slate of progressive initiatives into law<\/a>. But he doesn\u2019t talk like a safe, scripted centrist. The guy has spent the past few weeks pitching a comms perfect-game. Every media interview has been clipped and shared on social media. He rolled out the \u2018<a href=\"https:\/\/davekarpf.substack.com\/p\/why-youre-being-weird-works-so-well?r=eeyg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Trump and Vance are <em>just plain weird<\/em><\/a>\u2018 attack line. Listen to the guy on <a href=\"https:\/\/podcasts.apple.com\/us\/podcast\/is-tim-walz-the-midwestern-dad-democrats-need\/id1548604447?i=1000664114455\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Ezra Klein\u2019s podcast<\/a>: he manufactures aww shucks midwestern-dad energy and converts it into body blows against his opponents. This is one of the interesting points about social media this election cycle. Twitter and Facebook aren\u2019t anything like they once were. TikTok is mostly for young people, but the other social networks are still trying to emulate TikTok. Which means, effectively, that .\u201d \u2022 I must confess that the video where Walz allowed his daughter to inveigle him into going on a heartstopping ride at the State Fair (or whichever fair) made me sit up and take notice. Very fresh. And then along came the school lunches, and getting that done with a one-vote (?) majority (quite in contrast to national Democrat whinging). A clip:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">If he\u2019s picked he should do clips like this every day for America. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/A0wrt2qqSk\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/A0wrt2qqSk<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Albie\ud83e\ude78\ud83e\uddb7\ud83e\udd1d\ud83e\udd65\ud83c\udf34 (@AlbieBrian) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/AlbieBrian\/status\/1820561409627046292\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 5, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): <\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">In one of the most improbable runs in recent political history, Tim Walz is the VP nominee. I wrote about why he was selected. I don’t think it was just “weird”; his legislative record in 2023 in Minnesota mirrors what Kamala Harris wants to get done:<a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/2pAJoY0IS8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/t.co\/2pAJoY0IS8<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 David Dayen (@ddayen) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ddayen\/status\/1820808900796653744\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 6, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>I don\u2019t agree with this at all. First, we don\u2019t <em>know<\/em> what Kamala wants to get done:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Kamala Harris\u2019s campaign page has no policy positions. There\u2019s nothing about the first 100 days. It\u2019s just PR fluff pieces on her and Waltz, and the many ways to donate. I\u2019ve never seen a presidential campaign like this. How are you running for president with no platform? <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/iARlP2kLzy\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/iARlP2kLzy<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 AshleyStevens (@The_Acumen) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/The_Acumen\/status\/1820837887627214877\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 6, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>(Of course, even if there were a platform, Kamala could be lying, as Democrats did continuously over Biden\u2019s cognitive deterioration).<\/p>\n<p>Second, making the assumption that Walz is a progressive instead of just another liberal (<a href=\"https:\/\/pensionwarriorsdwardsiedle.substack.com\/p\/minnesota-governor-walz-warned-of\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">see here<\/a>), Democrats have a long history of embracing progressives just before stabbing them in the back (see under the Biden Transition Team).<\/p>\n<p>Third, personnel is policy. And Kamala has a lot of people in her circle who would look askance at, say, free school lunches without complex eligibility requirements. Picking one of many examples:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Charles Phillips is also an advisor to NYC mayor Eric Adams and ran his mayoral tech transition. Nightmare. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/mR6Z7ybGVY\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/t.co\/mR6Z7ybGVY<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Matt Stoller (@matthewstoller) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/matthewstoller\/status\/1820814225607929912\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 6, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>Finally \u2014 and I don\u2019t hate Walz \u2014 if he\u2019s everything we\u2019re being told he is, why in the name of all that is holy isn\u2019t he at the top of the ticket? Maybe if the Democrats hadn\u2019t wired the primaries for Biden [sorry, that name again?] he would be.<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cWalz\u2019s handling of BLM riots, strict COVID rules under microscope after Harris VP pick\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/walzs-handling-blm-riots-strict-covid-rules-under-microscope-after-harris-vp-pick\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">FOX<\/a>]. \u201cVice President Kamala Harris\u2019 pick of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as a running mate will put the Democratic governor\u2019s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and widespread riots in the state back in the national spotlight. \u2018[H]e\u2019s been a disaster for Minnesota and is by far the most partisan governor that I can remember having,\u2019 Minnesota GOP Chairman David Hann told Fox News Digital last week. \u2018Going back to 2020, certainly \u2013 he did nothing to try to stop the riots going on in Minneapolis. I think he was fearful of alienating his \u2018progressive\u2019 base, who were supporting the riots. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/harris-backing-bail-fund-during-george-floyd-protests-dampens-trump-prosecutor-campaign-pitch\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Kamala Harris was raising money for the rioters<\/a>.\u201d And: \u201cMeanwhile, critics point to Walz\u2019s memorandum mandating indoor masking during the coronavirus pandemic, which he enacted in 2020 and ended in 2021. The Upper Midwest Law Center sued, calling the mandate unconstitutional, but an appellate court <a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/minnesota-gov-walz-legally-allowed-mandate-masks-appellate-court-rules\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">ultimately sided with Walz<\/a>.\u201d \u2022 Different framing:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Walz is absolutely unafraid to govern. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/9b3ZQrBvdR\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/t.co\/9b3ZQrBvdR<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Zephyr Teachout (@ZephyrTeachout) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/ZephyrTeachout\/status\/1820817299466535310\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 6, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>\u201cUnafraid to govern\u201d (sounds like Stoller).<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cKamala Harris chooses Tim Walz as running mate in US presidential election\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ft.com\/content\/a87b5e6d-89ab-44be-839b-f373e62fa8e9\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Financial Times<\/a>]. Walz after a clip from 2021 went viral, in which Vance warned the US was being run by \u201ca bunch of childless cat ladies\u201d: \u201c\u2018My God, they went after cat people \u2014 good luck with that. Turn on the internet and see what cat people do when you go after \u2018em. It would be funny if it wasn\u2019t so sad,\u2019 Walz said in one MSNBC appearance.\u201d \u2022 Walz can stick the shiv in. I like that.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>Walz and Covid:<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201c\u2018Buckle it up\u2019: Walz orders MN to \u2018stay at home\u2019 to curb virus spread\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mprnews.org\/story\/2020\/03\/25\/latest-on-covid19-in-minnesota\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">MPR News<\/a>] (March 25, 2020 5:30 AM). \u201cGov. Tim Walz has ordered Minnesotans to stay at home for two weeks, at least, as part of the state\u2019s ongoing efforts to control the spread of the coronavirus and COVID-19 disease. The order isn\u2019t a complete lockdown and it allows essential activities and services to continue, Walz said. People will be allowed to exercise outdoors and visit the grocery store, for example, with proper social distancing. \u2018Buckle it up for a few more weeks,\u2019 the governor said. The order takes effect Saturday and lasts through April 10. Walz said it\u2019s impossible to lessen the number of Minnesotans who will become infected with COVID-19, but the stay-home order is intended to push out the time of peak infections so there are intensive care unit beds available for those who need it. \u2018The thing that Minnesota is going to do is ensure if you need an ICU, it\u2019s there,\u2019 Walz told the state in a livestreamed address Wednesday.\u201d \u2022 Ah yes. \u201cFlatten the curve.\u201d We all did that, and then the PMC discovered they could work from home and have servants <em>bring<\/em> them stuff, at which point they threw the working class under the bus. Not Walz\u2019s fault, but\u2026 <\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cAs cases fall and vaccination ramps up, Gov. Walz adjusts COVID-19 mitigation measures\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mplsdowntown.com\/as-cases-fall-and-vaccination-ramps-up-gov-walz-adjusts-covid-19-mitigation-measures\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">mpls downtown council<\/a>] (March 12, 2021). \u201c\u2018Minnesotans should continue to take simple steps to protect the progress we\u2019ve made, but the data shows that we are beating COVID-19,\u2019 said Governor Walz. \u2018Our vaccine rollout is leading the nation, the most vulnerable Minnesotans are getting the shot, and it is becoming increasingly more safe to return to our daily lives. The sun is shining brighter.\u2019 As vaccines have an impact, life is slowly returning to normal. In February, Governor Walz announced a plan to return more students to the classroom, and 90 percent of schools now offer in-person learning, while 60 percent of teachers have been vaccinated. Minnesota is weeks ahead of schedule on vaccinations. Nearly 1.2 million Minnesotans and more than 70 percent of seniors have gotten a shot. \u2018There are more good days now than bad days,\u2019 said Lieutenant Governor Peggy Flanagan.\u201d \u2022 Handy chart (and I love the file name: reanimation_guidelines_210312.png):<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/reanimation_guidelines_210312.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"600\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-276310\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/reanimation_guidelines_210312.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/reanimation_guidelines_210312-300x300.png 300w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/reanimation_guidelines_210312-150x150.png 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Shows a prime difficulty of lockdowns: They were organized by lines of business (churches, bars, etc.) instead of by ventilation (and surely a regulatory formula could have been worked out, even in 2020). Of course, in 2021, as today, the public health establishment was dug in against airborne transmission, so that wasn\u2019t \u201cpolitically feasible\u201d as we say.<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cWalz: Jensen\u2019s COVID-19 stance is \u2018killing people’\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/minnesotareformer.com\/briefs\/walz-jensens-covid-19-stance-is-killing-people\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Minnesota Reformer<\/a>] (August 10, 2022). \u201c\u2018Putting out false information around COVID, yourself not being vaccinated and telling others (not) to \u2014 it\u2019s killing people,\u2019 Walz told MPR News editor Mike Mulcahy. \u2018I think giving a platform for that \u2026 that\u2019s not who we are.\u2019 \u2026 .In the early days of the pandemic, [his gubernatorial opponent Scott Jensen] called COVID-19 a \u201cmild four-day respiratory illness which poses little risk to more than 95% of people.’\u201d \u2022 Rhetorically, that\u2019s the stuff to give the troops. <\/p>\n<p>Lambert here: Maybe Covid will finally enter the political arena through the back door. From my distinctly minority perspective, neither party has a record they can coherently defend. Trump instituted Operation Warp Speed (OWS), which if it had included sterilizing nasal vaccines, would have been seen as a moonshot, instead of the technical triumph it was. Unfortunately, Trump\u2019s base is disportionately anti-vax, so he can\u2019t take credit for vax, and the Democrats won\u2019t give it to him. Further, Trump modeled masking by denigrating it, when it ought at the very least to have been a fallback position. Meanwhile, Biden took the great gift that Trump gave him, and squandered it (which their base prevents the Republicans from saying): Rather than pursue a layered strategy that included vax, with a second OWS for mitigation, Biden bet the farm on vax, most especially with vaccine mandates. Unfortunately, the vaccines didn\u2019t prevent transmission, safety studies were hardly optimal, and we ended up with wave after wave of mass infection <em>while CDC continued Trump\u2019s work by simultaneously ruining non-pharmaceutical interventions<\/em>. Across-the-board elite denial that Covid was even a problem, combined with social norming has worked for awhile, but reality does seem to be breaking through (give it a couple more years). How is Biden\u2019s strategy defensible? At least the Republican messaging about freedom \u2014 vax bad, no mandates, no masking \u2014 is coherent. What do Democrats have in response? \u201cWe did our best\u201d? They didn\u2019t!<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cKamala Harris earns majority of Democratic roll call votes, achieving historic presidential nominatio\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/abcnews.go.com\/Politics\/kamala-harris-nominee-DNC-majority-democratic-roll-call-votes\/story?id=112580918\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">ABC<\/a>]. \u2022 Historic in that Harris is the first candidate ever to run for President whle never winning a single primary running for President.<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cThe Crucial Week Is Here. Can Kamala Keep This Crazy Enthusiasm Going?\u201d [Michael Tomasky, <a href=\"https:\/\/newrepublic.com\/article\/184532\/crucial-week-here-can-kamala-keep-crazy-enthusiasm-going\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The New Republic<\/a>]. Extended liberalgasm, oh good. \u201cIt was impossible to predict the explosion [(!!)] of relief, enthusiasm, and sense of mission that has greeted Kamala Harris\u2019s presumptive\u2014and now, as of Friday, official\u2014nomination for president. I choose those three descriptors with special care because each represents a critical component of a political phenomenon that has been greater than any of us\u2014most definitely including Donald Trump\u2014could have imagined.\u201d Actually, the key descriptor is \u201cexplosion.\u201d More: \u201cThis third week of the Harris candidacy is a crucial one. The initial burst of excitement is fading, a little, which is inevitable. The veep announcement and whistle-stop tour are well timed to regenerate excitement and keep the money rolling in. Non-MAGA America is united and energized. The mission this week is to keep it that way.\u201d \u2022 Tomasky seems to believe that the Democrats have what used to be called a \u201cnatural majority\u201d (\u201cNon-MAGA America\u201d). For good or ill, they don\u2019t\u2013<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201cIs Kamala Harris beating Donald Trump in the polls?\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.vox.com\/politics\/365148\/kamala-harris-trump-polls-election-2024\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">VOX<\/a>]. \u201cKamala Harris entered the presidential race a little over two weeks ago as an underdog. Since then, Democrats\u2019 vibes have been fantastic \u2014 and Harris\u2019s polling has gotten better. But it hasn\u2019t improved as much as you might think. At least not yet. Per polls, Trump is no longer the clear favorite to win. But Harris hasn\u2019t taken a clear lead either. Polling, particularly in swing states, suggests an extremely close race that could go either way.\u201d \u2022\u00a0IOW, Non-MAGA America is half the country, give or take.<\/p>\n<p>Kamala (D): \u201c\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.leefang.com\/p\/searching-for-the-real-kamala-harris\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Lee Fang<\/a>]. \u201cEven in this dynamic, there are two Kamalas. In her first bid for office, Harris leaned into her Indian background. She introduced herself to the local press as \u2018Kamala Devi Harris,\u2019 using her full name. \u2018In terms of Indian culture, my name represents the beautiful lotus flower,\u2019 she said at one of her first campaign events. \u2018I grew up with a strong Indian culture,\u2019 she told Asian Week in 2003. By the time she ran for the presidency in 2019, the mention of her Indian background had been removed from her campaign. An archive of her website shows that her biography listed her as the \u2018second African American woman in history to be elected to the U.S. Senate.\u2019 There was no hint of her South Asian lineage.\u201d \u2022 Chameleon\u2026 <\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>Trump (R): \u201cAt Trump rally in Atlanta, Black attendees say Kamala Harris playing \u2018race card\u2019 for votes\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.yahoo.com\/news\/trump-rally-atlanta-black-attendees-220420875.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">USA Today<\/a>]. \u201d When Vice President Kamala Harris entered the 2024 presidential race, Donald Trump tried to dismiss her identity as the first Black woman and person of South Asian descent on a major party ticket by labeling her a \u201cDEI hire,\u201d suggesting that her historic achievements are due to her race and gender. The talking point seemed to be sticking with Trump supporters at a rally in Atlanta on Saturday, even among those who identified as people of color. Andrea Smith, a Black woman who volunteers with the Trump campaign and is running for state representative in Georgia\u2019s District 41 north of Atlanta, asserted that Democrats were leaning into identity politics to win the election.\u201d \u2022 Here is a fine example\u2013<\/p>\n<p>Trump (R): \u2018\u2018Ruthless\u2019: How Kamala Harris Won Her First Race\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/archive.ph\/70mm7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Politico<\/a>] (2019). \u201cHarris vaulted past Fazio and into the runoff, where she defeated Hallinan in a landslide and became the state\u2019s first African-American district attorney. Not only did she cut into Hallinan\u2019s progressive base\u2014especially with black and female voters\u2014but she also carried more conservative areas of the city, garnering votes that had gone to Fazio. The campaign\u2019s closing argument was, Prozan said, \u2018one of the most effective mail pieces that we did.\u2019 The words were familiar and prosaic: \u2018It\u2019s time for a change.\u2019 The images told the story. Harris\u2019 staff had gone to the library and retrieved photographs of more than a century\u2019s worth of San Francisco\u2019s district attorneys, every one from 1900 to 2003. They were all white men.\u201d \u2022\u00a0Of course, the \u201cchange\u201d (where have I heard that before?) it was \u201ctime for\u201d\u2026 Not quite perhaps all that one might have hoped for. The mailer:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/harris_mailer.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"457\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-276320\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/harris_mailer.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/harris_mailer-300x229.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>So if we hear anything like \u201cnever played the race card\u201d\u2026 No.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>Kennedy (I): \u201cRFK Jr. grapples with torrent of negative headlines\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/thehill.com\/homenews\/campaign\/4812305-rfk-jr-dead-bear-donald-trump\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Hill<\/a>]. \u201cDemocratic groups have taken the lead in attacking Kennedy, with the White House staying out of the mix. The DNC has been at the forefront of fighting back against what party officials see as a possible threat to President Biden and now Vice President Harris\u2019s candidacy against former President Trump. Other liberal outfits have also joined in their effort, with several organizations holding conference calls to outline his mounting flaws.\u201d \u2022 Kennedy responds:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/rfk_roadkill.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"500\" height=\"679\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-276319\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/rfk_roadkill.png 500w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/rfk_roadkill-221x300.png 221w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>I see the logic. But it\u2019s a big ask.<\/p>\n<p>Kennedy (I): \u201cDead bear another strange twist in RFK Jr\u2019s faltering campaign\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.co.uk\/news\/articles\/c0mnn8zneppo\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">BBC<\/a>]. \u201cIn a move to get ahead of a lengthy profile published on Monday in the New Yorker magazine, he released a video where he discusses an accident involving a bear cub a decade ago \u2013 and the unlikely series of events that followed.\u201d \u2022 Hilarity ensues:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">How NYC local news covered the dead bear RFK Jr put into Central Park ten years ago \ud83d\ude2c\ud83d\udc40 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/J25gDeLQ1Q\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/t.co\/J25gDeLQ1Q<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/nJio51Li3R\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/nJio51Li3R<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Luther Lowe (@lutherlowe) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/lutherlowe\/status\/1820186492062605812\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 4, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/peterluger.com\/butcher-shop\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Peter Luger has a butcher shop<\/a>. Why not put the bear in the fridge?<\/p>\n<p>Kennedy (I):<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Some believe raw milk is a nutrient-rich superfood, while others, like The New York Times, label it a health hazard promoted by the right wing. Imagine that, raw milk, a right wing thing. So, which is it?<\/p>\n<p>We dove deep into the history of raw milk, speaking with leading\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/501ASZBUcE\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/501ASZBUcE<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Nicole Shanahan (@NicoleShanahan) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/NicoleShanahan\/status\/1819844126025613630\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 3, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>Sigh.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Spook Country<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cEXCLUSIVE \u2013 Federal Air Marshal Whistleblowers Report Tulsi Gabbard Actively Under Surveillance via Quiet Skies Program\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/uncoverdc.com\/2024\/08\/04\/fams-whistleblowers-report-tulsi-gabbard-on-quiet-skies-list\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">UncoveredDC<\/a>]. This article is noticeable light on actual documentation. Still, since the story is out there: \u201cIn an exclusive breaking story, several Federal Air Marshal whistleblowers have come forward with information showing that former U.S. Representative and Presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard is currently enrolled in the Quiet Skies program. Quiet Skies is a TSA surveillance program with its own compartmentalized suspected terrorist watchlist. It is the same program being weaponized against J6 defendants and their families. Quiet Skies is allegedly used to protect traveling Americans from suspected domestic terrorists\u2026. For what the Federal Government calls national security reasons, an individual is enrolled in the program without knowledge. Teams of Federal Air Marshals are assigned to individuals, following and tracking them from when they enter the airport and then on all their flights and transits until they reach their destination. Enrolled individuals usually have a Quad S (SSSS) on the bottom right-hand corner of their boarding passes, but not always. They are often flagged for extra searches, frequently so lengthy that they miss their flights.\u201d \u2022 Hmm. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cntraveler.com\/story\/what-to-know-if-an-ssss-code-shows-up-on-your-boarding-pass\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">In case <em>you<\/em> get an SSSS, here\u2019s more<\/a>.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Realignment and Legitimacy<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cHollywood Loves Drama Of Kamala Harris\u2019 Veepstakes Decision, But Has A Clear Favorite\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/deadline.com\/2024\/08\/kamala-harris-vp-pick-josh-shapiro-first-hollywood-favorite-1236031889\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Deadline<\/a>]. \u201c\u2018This is like a mini-primary for the second spot, with one vote that matters,\u2019 a producer with deep Democratic donor ties told Deadline. \u2018Harris can do no wrong right now, so whoever she picks people will get behind,\u2019 he went on to say.\u201d \u2022 A primary with one vote is nothing like a primary, at least not a democratic one. What\u2019s wrong with these people?<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><strong>Syndemics<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cI am in earnest \u2014 I will not equivocate \u2014 I will not excuse \u2014 I will not retreat a single inch \u2014 AND I WILL BE HEARD.\u201d \u2013William Lloyd Garrison<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>Covid Resources, United States (National): Transmission (<a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#county-view?list_select_state=all_states&list_select_county=all_counties&data-type=Risk&null=Risk\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a>); Wastewater (<a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#wastewater-surveillance\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a>, <del><a href=\"https:\/\/biobot.io\/data\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Biobot<\/a><\/del>; includes many counties; <a href=\"https:\/\/data.wastewaterscan.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Wastewater Scan<\/a>, includes drilldown by zip); Variants (<a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#variant-proportions\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.walgreens.com\/businesssolutions\/covid-19-index.jsp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Walgreens<\/a>); \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/iowacovid19tracker.org\/hospitals\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Iowa COVID-19 Tracker<\/a>\u201d (in IA, but national data). \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/icemsg.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Infection Control, Emergency Management, Safety, and General Thoughts<\/a>\u201d (especially on hospitalization by city).<\/p>\n<p>Lambert here: Readers, thanks for the collective effort. To update any entry, do feel free to contact me at the address given with the plants. Please put \u201cCOVID\u201d in the subject line. Thank you!<\/p>\n<p>Resources, United States (Local): AK (<a href=\"https:\/\/experience.arcgis.com\/experience\/af2efc8bffbf4cdc83c2d1a134354074\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); AL (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.arcgis.com\/apps\/dashboards\/6d2771faa9da4a2786a509d82c8cf0f7\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); AR (<a href=\"https:\/\/experience.arcgis.com\/experience\/633006d0782b4544bd5113a314f6268a\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); AZ (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.azdhs.gov\/covid19\/data\/index.php\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); CA (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdph.ca.gov\/Programs\/CID\/DCDC\/Pages\/COVID-19\/CalSuWers-Dashboard.aspx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/coronavirus.marinhhs.org\/surveillance\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Marin, dashboard<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/healthalerts.stanford.edu\/covid-19\/wastewater-dashboard\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Stanford, wastewater<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/publichealth.verily.com\/?v=SC2_N&l=Oakland%2C+CA\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Oakland, wastewater<\/a>); CO (<a href=\"https:\/\/covid19.colorado.gov\/data\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/cdphe.maps.arcgis.com\/apps\/dashboards\/d79cf93c3938470ca4bcc4823328946b#utility=\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); CT (<a href=\"https:\/\/data.ct.gov\/stories\/s\/COVID-19-data\/wa3g-tfvc\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); DE (<a href=\"https:\/\/coronavirus.delaware.gov\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); FL (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.arcgis.com\/apps\/dashboards\/5b9d75ba683849928dc1a49c39ab0b1c\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); GA (<a href=\"https:\/\/dph.georgia.gov\/ga-nwss-wastewater-surveillance-reports\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); HI (<a href=\"https:\/\/health.hawaii.gov\/coronavirusdisease2019\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); IA (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dmmwra.org\/CivicAlerts.aspx?AID=57\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater reports<\/a>); ID (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.idahopublichealth.com\/district-2\/novel-coronavirus\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>, Boise; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.idahopublichealth.com\/district-2\/novel-coronavirus\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/data.wastewaterscan.org\/?plantId=1056f05c-0e46-4e3d-b007-c0453ba7dc0d\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>, Central Idaho; <a href=\"https:\/\/publichealth.verily.com\/#:SARS-CoV-2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>, Coeur d\u2019Alene; dashboard, <a href=\"https:\/\/covid.srhd.org\/topics\/spokane-county-case-data\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Spokane County<\/a>); IL (<a href=\"https:\/\/iwss.uillinois.edu\/wastewater-treatment-plants\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); IN (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.coronavirus.in.gov\/indiana-covid-19-dashboard-and-map\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); KS (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.coronavirus.kdheks.gov\/160\/COVID-19-in-Kansas\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/experience.arcgis.com\/experience\/4456bae8a38f4b6180e008477382fff9\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>, Lawrence); KY (<a href=\"https:\/\/louisville.edu\/envirome\/thecoimmunityproject\/dashboard\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>, Louisville); LA (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ldh.la.gov\/coronavirus\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); MA (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.mass.gov\/info-details\/covid-19-wastewater-report\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); MD (<a href=\"https:\/\/coronavirus.maryland.gov\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); ME (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.maine.gov\/dhhs\/mecdc\/infectious-disease\/epi\/airborne\/coronavirus\/data.shtml\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); MI (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.michigan.gov\/coronavirus\/stats\/wastewater-surveillance\/dashboard\/sentinel-wastewater-epidemiology-evaluation-project-sweep\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/gisportal.state.mi.us\/portal\/apps\/insights\/index.html#\/view\/52bbb104ed574887918f990af9f3debe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); MN (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.health.state.mn.us\/diseases\/coronavirus\/stats\/index.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); MO (<a href=\"https:\/\/storymaps.arcgis.com\/stories\/f7f5492486114da6b5d6fdc07f81aacf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); MS (<a href=\"https:\/\/msdh.ms.gov\/page\/14,0,420.html#Mississippi\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); <del>MT (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.arcgis.com\/apps\/MapSeries\/index.html?appid=7c34f3412536439491adcc2103421d4b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>)<\/del>; NC (<a href=\"https:\/\/covid19.ncdhhs.gov\/dashboard\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard)<\/a>; ND (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.hhs.nd.gov\/health\/coronavirus\/cases\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.hhs.nd.gov\/health\/coronavirus\/cases\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); NE (<a href=\"https:\/\/atlas-dhhs.ne.gov\/Atlas\/Respiratory_Illness\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); NH (<a href=\"https:\/\/wisdom.dhhs.nh.gov\/wisdom\/dashboard.html?topic=covid-19&subtopic=recurring-updates&indicator=covid-19-wastewater#tabnavbarid\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); NJ (<a href=\"https:\/\/covid19.nj.gov\/forms\/datadashboard\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); NM (<a href=\"https:\/\/cvprovider.nmhealth.org\/public-dashboard.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); NV (<a href=\"https:\/\/nvhealthresponse.nv.gov\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/empower.unlv.edu\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>, Southern NV); NY (<a href=\"https:\/\/mbcolli.shinyapps.io\/SARS2EWSP\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); OH (<a href=\"https:\/\/coronavirus.ohio.gov\/dashboards\/other-resources\/wastewater\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); OK (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.arcgis.com\/apps\/dashboards\/51657c21386d4f1a962b1853c76ec589\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); <del>OR (<a href=\"https:\/\/public.tableau.com\/app\/profile\/oregon.health.authority.covid.19\/viz\/OregonsCOVID-19DataDashboards-TableofContents\/TableofContentsStatewide\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>)<\/del>; PA (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.health.pa.gov\/topics\/disease\/coronavirus\/pages\/Cases.aspx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); RI (<a href=\"https:\/\/ri-department-of-health-covid-19-data-rihealth.hub.arcgis.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); SC (<a href=\"https:\/\/scdhec.gov\/index.php\/covid19\/covid-19-data\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); SD (<a href=\"https:\/\/doh.sd.gov\/COVID\/Dashboard.aspx\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); TN (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.tn.gov\/health\/cedep\/ncov\/data.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); TX (<a href=\"https:\/\/txdshsea.maps.arcgis.com\/apps\/dashboards\/4ae43eefd0f641d59d35c3df82ee59cc\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); UT (<a href=\"https:\/\/avrpublic.dhhs.utah.gov\/uwss\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); VA (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.vdh.virginia.gov\/coronavirus\/see-the-numbers\/covid-19-in-virginia\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); VT (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.healthvermont.gov\/disease-control\/covid-19\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); WA (<a href=\"https:\/\/doh.wa.gov\/emergencies\/covid-19\/data-dashboard\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>; <a href=\"https:\/\/covid19.bfhd.wa.gov\/cases-and-roadmap-to-recovery\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">dashboard<\/a>); WI (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dhs.wisconsin.gov\/covid-19\/wastewater.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); WV (<del><a href=\"https:\/\/oehs.wvdhhr.org\/news\/oehs-coivd-19-information\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a><\/del>); WY (<del><a href=\"https:\/\/covidwastewatermonitor.wyo.gov\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a><\/del>).<\/p>\n<p>Resources, Canada (National): Wastewater (<a href=\"https:\/\/health-infobase.canada.ca\/covid-19\/wastewater\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Government of Canada<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p>Resources, Canada (Provincial): ON (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.publichealthontario.ca\/en\/Data-and-Analysis\/Infectious-Disease\/COVID-19-Data-Surveillance\/Wastewater\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); QC (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.inspq.qc.ca\/covid-19\/donnees\/eaux-usees\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\"><em>les eaux us\u00e9es<\/em><\/a>); BC (<a href=\"https:\/\/bccdc.shinyapps.io\/respiratory_wastewater\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>); BC, Vancouver (<a href=\"https:\/\/metrovancouver.org\/services\/liquid-waste\/testing-for-the-covid-19-virus-in-wastewater\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/a>).<\/p>\n<p>Hat tips to helpful readers: Alexis, anon (2), Art_DogCT, B24S, CanCyn, ChiGal, Chuck L, Festoonic, FM, FreeMarketApologist (4), Gumbo, hop2it, JB, JEHR, JF, JL Joe, John, JM (10), JustAnotherVolunteer, JW, KatieBird, KF, LL, Michael King, KF, LaRuse, mrsyk, MT, MT_Wild, otisyves, Petal (6), RK (2), RL, RM, Rod, square coats (11), tennesseewaltzer, Tom B., Utah, Bob White (3). <\/p>\n<p>Stay safe out there!<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>Maskstravaganza<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>\u201cAre You Serious? Covid-19 Hasn\u2019t Gone Away?\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/johnsnowproject.org\/primers\/are-you-serious-covid-19-hasnt-gone-away\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">John Snow Project<\/a>]. \u201cInstead of blithe nihilism and the abandonment of principles of public health that have advanced human society for centuries, governments could instruct their public health and regulatory agencies to insist on cleaner air policies, mandating air quality that protects human health, in the same way we mandate water quality. Malaria prevention is not perfect, but that doesn\u2019t stop us using every possible tool at our disposal to minimize the impact of the disease around the world. Many engineers have decried the idea of needing a random trial to prove physics, but a Norwegian team did one anyway, examining whether surgical masks help prevent infection by respiratory viruses.They found surgical masks were 30% effective at reducing symptoms of respiratory infection<a href=\"https:\/\/johnsnowproject.org\/primers\/are-you-serious-covid-19-hasnt-gone-away\/#\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">17<\/a>. This is no surprise. It\u2019s long been established that surgical masks have a minor impact on airborne infection control, but they aren\u2019t worn by anyone who is serious about avoiding SARS-CoV-2 or any other respiratory pathogen. A 2008 UK Health and Safety Executive evaluation demonstrated that surgical masks provide a 6-fold reduction against aerosolized virus, while respirator masks provide at least a 100-fold reduction<a href=\"https:\/\/johnsnowproject.org\/primers\/are-you-serious-covid-19-hasnt-gone-away\/#\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">18<\/a>. Perhaps one of the biggest calamities of the COVID-19 pandemic was robbing people of one of the most effective forms of protection: respirator masks. Many people believe masks don\u2019t work, or if they do that they primarily protect others from infection and don\u2019t protect the wearer. This belief is completely unfounded and wholly wrong. Respirators have long been used to protect people working with some of the most dangerous pathogens imaginable, and FFP3\/N99 respirators have been shown to offer up to 100% protection against SARS-CoV-2 in healthcare settings<a href=\"https:\/\/johnsnowproject.org\/primers\/are-you-serious-covid-19-hasnt-gone-away\/#\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">19<\/a>. Imagine how many lives might have been saved and how many cases of Long Covid could have been avoided globally if people had been told that a well fitted mask of the correct grade (N95\/FFP2 or higher) can offer complete protection against infection. We don\u2019t need a magic bullet to solve the problem of COVID-19.\u201d \u2022 Say what you will for blithe nihilism, at least it\u2019s an ethos.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p> \u2013><\/p>\n<p>Sequelae: Covid<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>Big if true:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">This study is very significant\u2014it directly compares SARS2 virus spike with vaccine spike\u2014which is altered from the viral sequence to stabilize the pre-fusion form.<\/p>\n<p>Virus spike fuses heart cells\u2014while vaccine spike does not. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/oqwQRh6990\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/t.co\/oqwQRh6990<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Lee Altenberg, Ph.D. \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\uddf8 (@AltenbergLee) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/AltenbergLee\/status\/1820688085132423443\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 6, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>I read the article, but can\u2019t penetrate the prose. Perhaps an expert reader will oblige.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Celebrity Watch<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>We\u2019ll always have Paris:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Indeed.<a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/hdEGCouIFr\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/t.co\/hdEGCouIFr<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Arturo Portnoy (@portna) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/portna\/status\/1820259949928136845\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 5, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"table\"\/><strong>TABLE 1: Daily Covid Charts<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>LEGEND<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>1) <span style=\"font-size: 10pt; color: gold;\">\u2605<\/span> for charts new today; all others are not updated.<\/p>\n<p>2) For a full-size\/full-resolution image, Command-click (MacOS) or right-click (Windows) on the chart thumbnail and \u201copen image in new tab.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>NOTES<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>[1] (CDC) This week\u2019s wastewater map, with hot spots annotated. Keeps spreading.<\/p>\n<p>[2] (CDC) Last week\u2019s wastewater map.<\/p>\n<p>[3] (CDC Variants) KP.* very popular.<\/p>\n<p>[4] (ER) Worth noting Emergency Department use is now on a par with the first wave, in 2020.<\/p>\n<p>[5] (Hospitalization: NY) Leveling off. Doesn\u2019t need to be a permanent thing, of course. (The New York city area has form; in 2020, as the home of two international airports (JFK and EWR) it was an important entry point for the virus into the country (and from thence up the Hudson River valley, as the rich sought to escape, and then around the country through air travel.)<\/p>\n<p>[6] (Hospitalization: CDC). The visualization suppresses what is, in percentage terms, a significant increase.<\/p>\n<p>[7] (Walgreens) An optimist would see a peak.<\/p>\n<p>[8] (Cleveland) Slowing. Comment on the Cleveland Clinic:<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Why is the Cleveland Clinic building a new facility for a professional basketball team? These hospitals are not ‘nonprofits’ they are ridiculously profitable monopolies with an endless cash gusher to point at whatever they want. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/1REM2LMLjd\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">https:\/\/t.co\/1REM2LMLjd<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Matt Stoller (@matthewstoller) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/matthewstoller\/status\/1817948450908258696\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">July 29, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p>Ka-ching.<\/p>\n<p>[9] (Travelers: Positivity) Up. Those sh*theads at CDC have changed the chart so that it doesn\u2019t even run back to 1\/21\/23, as it used to, but now starts 1\/1\/24. There\u2019s also no way to adjust the time rasnge. CDC really doesn\u2019t want you to be able to take a historical view of the pandemic, or compare one surge to another. In an any case, that\u2019s why the shape of the curve has changed.<\/p>\n<p>[10] (Travelers: Variants) Same deal. Those sh*theads. <\/p>\n<p>[11] Deaths low, but positivity up.<\/p>\n<p>[12] Deaths low, ED up.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Stats Watch<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Logistics: \u201cUnited States LMI Logistics Managers Index\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/tradingeconomics.com\/united-states\/lmi-logistics-managers-index-current\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Trading Economics<\/a>]. \u201cThe Logistics Manager\u2019s Index in the US increased to 56.5 in July 2024, the highest in four months, compared to 55.3 in June, and marking eight consecutive months of expansion in the logistics sector. Transportation continued its recovery, as Transportation Prices went up (+2.8 to 63.8, the highest since May of 2022) and Transportation Capacity expanded slightly (+0.9 to 50.9). It is the 3rd consecutive month the prices have exceeded capacity due to excess capacity contraction and increasing demand. Respondents are predicting that these dynamics will hold, suggesting that the freight recession is potentially ending. Warehousing also remained strong\u2026.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe consumer may be preparing to leave the party.\u201d [Logistics Report, <a href=\"https:\/\/logistics.cmail20.com\/t\/d-e-ehyujld-dyukidmly-r\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Wall Street Journal<\/a>]. \u201cFrom McDonald\u2019s to Mercedes-Benz, executives say that many consumers in China and the U.S. are pulling back on spending. \u2026[T]he countries are under different stresses, <a href=\"https:\/\/logistics.createsend1.com\/t\/d-l-ehyujld-dyukidmly-k\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">with U.S. consumers increasingly showing signs of weariness after a run of high inflation while Chinese households focus more on saving than spending<\/a>. If consumers in the U.S. do falter, it would mean a double whammy for multinational companies, which have been facing weak demand in China. PepsiCo sounded an early alarm on consumer spending in both the U.S. and China, and reported a 4% drop in North American sales volume in the latest quarter. Many American importers have been rushing in goods early ahead of the traditional peak season to get ahead of shipping disruptions. A pullback by consumers would leave them with another inventory overhang.\u201d \u2022 Not the same as what economist Alfred Kahn memorable called \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.yardeniquicktakes.com\/its-a-banana\/#:~:text=%E2%80%9CBetween%201973%20and%201975%20we,to%20fight%20inflation,%20once%20said.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">a banana<\/a>,\u201d but nevertheless a sign of weekness. And that early shipping data point is interesting.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p>Today\u2019s Fear & Greed Index: 21 Exreme Fear (previous close: 19 Extreme Fear) [<a href=\"https:\/\/money.cnn.com\/data\/fear-and-greed\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CNN<\/a>]. One week ago: 47 (Neutral). (0 is Extreme Fear; 100 is Extreme Greed). Last updated Aug 6 at 11:51:12 AM ET. I turn my back <em>for one minute<\/em>\u2026.. <\/p>\n<p>Rapture Index: Closes unchanged [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.raptureready.com\/rapture-ready-index\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Rapture Ready<\/a>]. Record High, October 10, 2016: 189. Current: 183. (Remember that bringing on the Rapture is good.) \u2022 Hard to believe the Rapture Index is going <em>down<\/em>. Where are there people getting their news?!<\/p>\n<p><strong>Book Nook<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cUncovered Euripides fragments are \u2018kind of a big deal’\u201d (press release) [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.colorado.edu\/asmagazine\/2024\/08\/01\/uncovered-euripides-fragments-are-kind-big-deal\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">University of Colorado Boulder<\/a>]. \u201cWorking together, Trnka-Amrhein and renowned classics Professor John Gibert embarked on many months of grueling work, meticulously poring over a high-resolution photo of the 10.5-square-inch papyrus. They made out words and ensured that the words they thought they were seeing fit the norms of tragic style and meter. Eventually, they became confident that they were working with new material from two fragmentary Euripides plays, Polyidus and Ino.\u201d And: \u201cPolyidus retells an ancient Cretan myth in which King Minos and Queen Pasipha\u00eb demand that the eponymous seer resurrect their son Glaucus after he drowns in a vat of honey.\u201d \u2022 What.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Zeitgeist Watch<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201c\u2018No Salt’\u201d [Jake Seliger, <a href=\"https:\/\/jakeseliger.com\/2024\/08\/05\/no-salt\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Story\u2019s Story<\/a>]. \u201cSo I opted for something simple: a shakshuka. Tomatoes, vegetables, sauce, and mild flavorings, topped with feta cheese, eggs, and basil. I reached for the salt, and found the bottle empty. I\u2019m not sure why, but I started weeping. No salt. No salt means that he\u2019s not cooking. He\u2019ll never cook again.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIs The Collapse Of Civilization Boring To You?\u201d [Nate Bear, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.donotpanic.news\/p\/is-the-collapse-of-civilization-boring\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">\u00a1Do Not Panic!<\/a>]. \u201c[A] bunch of environmental groups came out in support of Kamala Harris just two days after she renounced her previous anti-fracking position. She did this because she wants to win pro-fracking votes in Pennsylvania. Maybe no one has told her that there probably won\u2019t be an entity called Pennsylvania at some point in the next few decades if fracking continues. Or that Trump has a lock on the pro-fracking bloc and no one she wants to convince of her new anti-fracking stance will believe her. Fracking, of course, has seen the US surpass Russia and Saudi Arabia to become the world\u2019s largest oil producer. Fracking initiated by Obama[1] and continued by Trump, then by Biden and will continue under Harris or Trump 2.0. How thin the politics. How meagre the demands of some activists have become.\u201d And <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/2024\/08\/insects-apocalypse-soon.html\">relevant to yesterday\u2019s post<\/a>: \u201cI was thinking about this when I sat outside every evening for four nights on an island in southern Europe, on a well-lit patio at the end of quiet, carless street expecting to see moths swarming the lights. I know well the trouble insects are in, but I still expected to see moths. I saw one. Moths are critical night-time pollinators, an essential part of the ecology that supports our food chain. In Australia, a type of moth that you could find by the tens of thousands in individual caves <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/environment\/2021\/dec\/18\/a-995-decline-what-caused-australias-bogong-moth-catastrophe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">suddenly disappeared in the space of a few months<\/a>. How quickly things can collapse.\u201d \u2022 Thinking of this post, and the comments to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.theguardian.com\/environment\/2021\/dec\/18\/a-995-decline-what-caused-australias-bogong-moth-catastrophe\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">yesterday\u2019s post on an insect apocalypse<\/a>, it occurs to me that this \u201cSilent Summer\u201d on a grand scale might be something that <em>everybody<\/em> can be brought to see and to understand. That hasn\u2019t been easy to do with climate change. NOTE [1] The best starting point for the fracking timeline is <a href=\"https:\/\/bigthink.com\/the-present\/halliburton-loophole\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Dick Cheney\u2019s Energy Task Force (and the \u201cHalliburton Loophole\u201d)<\/a> under Bush the Younger, not Obama. It\u2019s bipartisan! <\/p>\n<p><a name=\"climate\"\/><strong>Climate<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cUncertainties too large to predict tipping times of major Earth system components from historical data\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.science.org\/doi\/10.1126\/sciadv.adl4841\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Science<\/a>]. \u201cOne way to warn of forthcoming critical transitions in Earth system components is using observations to detect declining system stability. It has also been suggested to extrapolate such stability changes into the future and predict tipping times. Here, we argue that the involved uncertainties are too high to robustly predict tipping times. We raise concerns regarding (i) the modeling assumptions underlying any extrapolation of historical results into the future, (ii) the representativeness of individual Earth system component time series, and (iii) the impact of uncertainties and preprocessing of used observational datasets, with focus on nonstationary observational coverage and gap filling. We explore these uncertainties in general and specifically for the example of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation. We argue that even under the assumption that a given Earth system component has an approaching tipping point, the uncertainties are too large to reliably estimate tipping times by extrapolating historical information.\u201d \u2022 Oh. <\/p>\n<p><a name=\"gallery\"\/><strong>The Gallery<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cAndy Warhol\u2019s lost Amiga art found\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/dfarq.homeip.net\/andy-warhols-lost-amiga-art-found\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Silicon UnderGround<\/a>]. \u201cTo a casual viewer, they look like low resolution images with a very limited number of colors, and it\u2019s not completely unfair to say they bear some resemblance to something my kids would have created in Microsoft Paint when they were little. But when I showed the images to my wife, a former high school art teacher, the first thing she noticed was his choice of colors. He deliberately chose colors that contrasted with each other, and the other colors he used were colors you would get from mixing two or more of the other colors he used. Rule number one of painting, she said, is to never use black or brown, but make your own from the other colors you\u2019re using. Warhol\u2019s images contain odd shades that result from mixing other colors in the image together. When you look at Andy Warhol paintings, his style suited these specific tools. He often worked from photographs, creating stark images containing bold flood fills with only a few colors. Sometimes he would cut up photographs, or have someone else cut up the photographs, then he would arrange the pieces and then paint what he saw. With the Amiga, he could do all of this digitally. So the choice of Andy Warhol to demonstrate how to use the machine was a brilliant idea. This computer with advanced graphics capabilities for its time, and the ability to multitask and switch between different tools so he could cut up and resize images and then paste the result into the image he was working on couldn\u2019t have suited him any better if he\u2019d designed it himself. Problem was, he didn\u2019t know how to use a computer.\u201d \u2022 Worth a read!<\/p>\n<p>Turner as Giger?!<\/p>\n<p><center><\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Also felt apt that one of things I saw this avo at Tate Britain was Turner\u2019s Fall of Anarchy. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/eftLQ8INNf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/eftLQ8INNf<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Rishi Dastidar \ud83d\udd31\ud83c\udf0a (@BetaRish) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/BetaRish\/status\/1820139374182568330\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">August 4, 2024<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><\/p>\n<p><strong>News of the Wired<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>I am not yet feeling wired today.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><strong>Contact information for plants<\/strong>: Readers, feel free to contact me at lambert [UNDERSCORE] strether [DOT] corrente [AT] yahoo [DOT] com, to (a) find out how to send me a check if you are allergic to PayPal and (b) to find out how to send me images of plants. Vegetables are fine! Fungi, lichen, and coral are deemed to be honorary plants! If you want your handle to appear as a credit, please place it at the start of your mail in parentheses: (thus). Otherwise, I will anonymize by using your initials. See the previous Water Cooler (with plant) <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/2024\/08\/200pm-water-cooler-8-21-2024.html\">here<\/a>. From KW:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/fog.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"379\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-276302\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/fog.jpeg 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/08\/fog-300x190.jpeg 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>KW writes: \u201cFog on the Marsh, Madison,Wisconsin. The Ho Chunk word for fog is ruuj\u0105.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"donate\"\/><strong>Readers<\/strong>: Water Cooler is a standalone entity <em>not<\/em> covered by the annual NC fundraiser. So if you see a link you especially like, or an item you wouldn\u2019t see anywhere else, please do not hesitate to express your appreciation in tangible form. Remember, a tip jar is for tipping! <em>Regular positive feedback both makes me feel good and lets me know I\u2019m on the right track with coverage<\/em>. When I get no donations for three or four days I get worried. More tangibly, a constant trickle of donations helps me with expenses, and I factor in that trickle when setting fundraising goals:<\/p>\n<p>Here is the screen that will appear, which I have helpfully annotated:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-226891\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/contribution.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"606\" height=\"384\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/contribution.png 606w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/04\/contribution-300x190.png 300w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 606px) 100vw, 606px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>If you hate PayPal, you can email me at lambert [UNDERSCORE] strether [DOT] corrente [AT] yahoo [DOT] com, and I will give you directions on how to send a check. Thank you!\n<\/p>\n<div class=\"printfriendly pf-alignleft\"><a href=\"#\" rel=\"nofollow\" onclick=\"window.print(); return false;\" title=\"Printer Friendly, PDF & Email\"><img decoding=\"async\" style=\"border:none;-webkit-box-shadow:none; -moz-box-shadow: none; box-shadow:none; padding:0; margin:0\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.printfriendly.com\/buttons\/print-button-gray.png\" alt=\"Print Friendly, PDF & Email\"\/><\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><br \/>\n<br \/><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/2024\/08\/200pm-water-cooler-8-6-2024.html\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Lambert Strether of Corrente Bird Song of the Day Readers have been so happy with the mockingbirds I\u2019m going to keep doing them. Now<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":82938,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[153,183],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-82937","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-economy","category-spotlight"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82937","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=82937"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82937\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/82938"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=82937"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=82937"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=82937"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}