\n<\/p>\n
By Lambert Strether of Corrente.<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\nBird Song of the Day<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Brown Thrasher, Parc de la Survivance, Les Maskoutains, Quebec, Canada.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p><strong>In Case You Might Miss\u2026 <\/strong> <\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><a href=\"#warren\">Warren v. Hegseth<\/a>, Ernst v. Hegseth.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#schedulef\">Biden-installed roadblocks<\/a> to Schedule F.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#leadership\">Democrat<\/a> leadership crisis.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#cat\">RedNote\u2019s cat tax<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/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=\"trump\"\/>Trump Transition<\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"162.60501135258\">\n<p><a name=\"hegseth\"\/>Warren v. Hegseth (1):<\/p>\n<p><center wp_automatic_readability=\"4.8362068965517\"> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" wp_automatic_readability=\"12.310344827586\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">One of the few useful questions asked at the Pete Hegseth hearing. Despite advocating that Generals be barred from working in the defense industry for 10 years after they retire, Hegseth, upon questioning from Sen. Warren, refuses to commit to the same standard for himself! <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/mQQD8xgljp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/mQQD8xgljp<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Michael Tracey (@mtracey) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/mtracey\/status\/1879249785666036115\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">January 14, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center> <\/p>\n<p>Warren v. Hegseth (2):<\/p>\n<p><center wp_automatic_readability=\"4.8492957746479\"> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" wp_automatic_readability=\"12.343661971831\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">JUST IN: Audience starts cracking up after Pete Hegseth stumps Elizabeth “Pocahontas” Warren.<\/p>\n<p>Warren: “You are quite sure every General who serves should not go directly into the defense industry for 10 years, but you’re not willing to make that same pledge?<\/p>\n<p>Hegseth: “I’m not a\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/ELmpwlNyxF\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/ELmpwlNyxF<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CollinRugg\/status\/1879220346756182136\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">January 14, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center> <\/p>\n<p>Lambert here: I award this round to Tracey. Not that I accept the revolving door metaphor (FlexNets are where it\u2019s at), but whether one wears a suit or a uniform while walking through one shouldn\u2019t matter.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSenate Democrats Fail To Rattle Hegseth\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.realclearpolitics.com\/articles\/2025\/01\/15\/senate_democrats_fail_to_rattle_hegseth_152201.html#2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">RealClearPolitics<\/a>]. \u201cUnlike many of his predecessors, Hegseth is not a retired general or seasoned government official and he has comparatively limited executive experience. He is a combat veteran and television anchor with ivy league degrees. But the former Army major\u2019s main qualification in the eyes of the incoming administration is a rejection of political correctness in the military. In Tuesday\u2019s committee hearing, he did not blink or abandon the views he has expressed for years in print and on air. He delivered a full-throated condemnation of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion policies that were hallmarks of the Biden Pentagon. \u2018This is not a time for equity,\u2019 the nominee said, arguing instead for \u2018equality\u2019 among the ranks that emphasizes meritocracy in pursuit of a common purpose, not prescribed outcomes and quotas based on immutable characteristics like race, gender, or sexual orientation\u2026. Republicans loved that they were hearing from a nominee who said many of the same things Trump said to get elected. Begrudgingly impressed, Democrats were, all the same, appalled. Hegseth does not need their votes. When allegations of professional and sexual misconduct surfaced, which he denies, the nominee focused instead on maintaining support among the GOP majority. Democrats on the committee complained repeatedly that Hegseth didn\u2019t even bother to meet with them privately prior to the hearing. Hegseth did moderate on at least one front. \u2018Women will have access to ground combat roles,\u2019 he said, walking back past statements but before qualifying that standards must \u2018remain high, and we will have a review to ensure the standards have not been eroded.’\u201d \u2022 A dude with a jawline like Hegseth\u2019s clearly ought to be in charge of <em>some<\/em>thing. It will be interesting to find out who his \u201cdeputies\u201d are\u2026.. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cGOP Sen. Joni Ernst officially backs Pete Hegseth for DOD after initial uncertainty\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/gop-sen-joni-ernst-officially-backs-pete-hegseth-dod-after-initial-uncertainty\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">FOX<\/a>]. \u201cErnst, a survivor of sexual assault herself, said, \u2018A priority of mine has been combating sexual assault in the military and making sure that all of our service members are treated with dignity and respect. This has been so important. Senator Gillibrand and I have worked on this, and we were able to get changes made to the uniform code of military justice to make sure that we have improvements, and on how we address the tragic and life altering, issues of rape, sexual assault. It will demand time and attention from the Pentagon under your watch, if you are confirmed. So, as secretary of Defense, will you appoint a senior level official dedicated to sexual assault prevention and response?\u2019 she asked Hegseth. Trump\u2019s DOD choice told the senator that he would agree to do so.\u201d \u2022 Hegseth, if he\u2019s smart, will take this opportunity to rehabilitate his reputation.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Greatest DEI Disaster Ever\u201d [Jennifer Rubin, <a href=\"https:\/\/contrarian.substack.com\/p\/the-greatest-dei-disaster-ever\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Contrarian<\/a>]. Rubin\u2019s first shot after leaving WaPo. \u201cWatching Secretary of Defense nominee Pete Hegseth demonstrate his appalling lack of credentials, knowledge, and character for the job for which he was nominated I am compelled to ask: Is the Trump administration running a DEI program for incompetent, unqualified, and\/or ethically compromised Whites?\u201d And: \u201cAmy McGrath, a former Marine fighter pilot whom I interviewed yesterday, told me that Republican claims that the military has lowered standards to accommodate women is a \u2018lie.’\u201d \u2022 Amy McGrath, Amy McGrath\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Amy_McGrath\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Oh yeah<\/a>. The fighter pilot, reporting for duty kinda like John Kerry, who, awash in out-of-state money, defeated Black progressive Charles Booker and then went on to outraise Mitch McConnell by $30 million \u2014 Democrats were s-o-o-o-o excited \u2014 and then lost the race by twenty points. How surprising that McGrath is still in Rubin\u2019s Rolodex. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cBy Targeting Hegseth, Democrats Open a Path for Gabbard\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/news\/magazine\/2025\/01\/15\/gabbard-nomination-00198303\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Politico<\/a>]. \u201c[I]ntimidated by threats hurled by Trump\u2019s allies, Republican lawmakers have in recent weeks rallied to Hegseth and many of them have made clear that, absent new and more damaging revelations, they will likely support his nomination. At the same time, Trump has made clear he won\u2019t yank Hegseth\u2019s nomination. Surprisingly, though, this GOP show of support has not prompted Senate Democrats to pivot toward confronting Gabbard. That has surprised, and even disappointed, their Republican counterparts, some of whom told me that they would be more willing to make common cause to stop the former Democrat from Hawaii, who holds isolationist and libertarian national security views outside the Senate GOP mainstream. Why wouldn\u2019t Democrats shift toward a softer target, especially knowing that few of their Republican colleagues want to cast one, if that many, votes against a Trump nominee? Yes, this is a commentary on the bargain pre-Trump Republicans have made. They may malign the press and Democrats, but they\u2019d sure like the media to dig up damaging stories on Gabbard so that Democrats can amplify them, which in turn would prompt Trump to grow irritated at the skeptical coverage and abandon her. A version of the Matt Gaetz appointment, in other words. That\u2019s much easier than publicly opposing Gabbard, to say nothing of voting her down on the Senate floor.\u201d \u2022\u00a0Hmm.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p><a name=\"schedulef\"\/>\u201cBiden\u2019s \u2018sneaky\u2019 and \u2018dirty\u2019 plot to slow down Trump on Day One\u2026 despite promising a \u2018smooth\u2019 transition\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/news\/article-14279947\/biden-trump-roadblocks-inauguration-agenda-plot-dirty.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Daily Mail<\/a>]. \u201cPresident Joe Biden enacted a series of roadblocks to slow down Donald Trump\u2019s agenda during the president-elect first days in the White House, despite his steadfast promises to cooperate with the incoming administration\u2026. \u2018I think he\u2019s going to have a problem,\u2019 the president said. \u2018Trump\u2019s going to have a hard time undoing a lot, I think.\u2019 Politics ain\u2019t beanbag. This, however, is important: \u201cDuring the final weeks of his first term in 2020, Trump issued an executive order creating a new class of federal workers known as Schedule F. These staffers would be exempt from the country\u2019s traditional merit-based civil service program. And opponents argued it was an attempt to hire and fire people based on their political loyalty. Biden, when he came into office in January 2021, rescinded that order. He then took it one step further last spring, when he issued a new rule that strengthens existing rights for career federal workers by making it clear that civil service protections cannot be taken away from employees unless they give them up voluntarily. In other words, it makes it nearly impossible for Trump to classify current federal employees under a Schedule F type order. A senior Biden administration official told CNN that the rule could not easily be rolled back in a second Trump term. Trump has repeatedly promised he would reinstate Schedule F executive order on day one. \u2018An executive order would not have impact with this regulation in place,\u2019 the senior Biden official said. \u2018A future administration would have to go through a new regulatory process, which would also entail like explaining specifically through that rulemaking process why a different rule is better than the existing regulations that OPM (the Office of Personnel Management) finalized and are announced \u2026 and how that new approach was consistent with the law.’\u201d \u2022 I dunno. The Trump operation has been pretty feral so far, so I\u2019m not sure what effect a new rulemaking process would have.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p>\u201cPoke The Bear\u201d [Brian Beutler, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.offmessage.net\/p\/poke-the-bear\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Off-Message<\/a>]. \u201cDonald Trump is a lame duck. He\u2019s weak in the ways every lame-duck president is, and, to an under-appreciated extent, his efforts to menace and extort concessions out of domestic and international rivals is a form of rebellion against his own expiration date, his looming irrelevance\u2026. But a good way to resolve the debate might be to establish an informal rule: responding to Trump\u2019s provocations is always acceptable if the effect is to belittle him; to make him look like a boob or a chump or a phony. Not \u2018ahhh! this is dangerous!\u2019 but \u2018whatever, clown!\u2019 Not Etc, etc. When Trump said he\u2019d rename the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America, U.S. liberals mostly resolved to ignore it, but Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum pointed to an old map of what is now the southwestern U.S. and said, \u201c\u00bfPor qu\u00e9 no le llamamos \u2018Am\u00e9rica mexicana\u2019? Suena bien, \u00bfverdad?\u201d\u2014 \u201cWhy don\u2019t we call this Mexican America? Sounds good, no?\u201d\u2026 I would like to applaud this approach, and encourage more of it from more western leaders, ideally in collaboration. Maybe they can start trying to one-up each other. Instead of simply saying Greenland isn\u2019t for sale, the prime minister of Denmark might ask Trump whether the United States can really afford a tariff on Ozempic given our epidemic of obesity, embodied by Trump himself.\u201d \u2022 Dunno. It would be hard to out-troll Trump. And I\u2019m not sure that Sheinbaum\u2019s punch landed anywhere that matters. Then again\u2013<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMichigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a potential 2028 candidate, wants to find common ground with Trump\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/governor-gretchen-whitmer-wants-collaboration-with-trump-c66bf6d351c3da69158b8365d4aa5f9a\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Associated Press<\/a>]. \u201d Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer wants a fresh start with President-elect Donald Trump but also warns that she won\u2019t back down over tariffs that she believes would hurt the auto industry in her state\u2026 \u2018I don\u2019t want to pretend we\u2019re always going to agree, but I will always seek collaboration first,\u2019 Whitmer said Wednesday about the Republican president-elect. \u2018I won\u2019t go looking for fights. I won\u2019t back down from them, either.’\u201d \u2022 It\u2019s gonna be hard to kidnap Big Gretch twice, so I\u2019m not sure what her options in 2028 will be.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p>Pledging fealty like the neo-feudalist robber barons they are:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cJeff Bezos, Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg to attend Trump\u2019s inauguration\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/archive.ph\/3GiUi\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">WaPo<\/a>]. \u201cTech moguls Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg are planning to attend President-elect Donald Trump\u2019s inauguration on Monday, underscoring the deepening ties between prominent tech leaders and the incoming administration after years of acrimony. The billionaire trio is expected to sit together on the dais, a prominent location alongside former presidents, Trump\u2019s family, Cabinet picks and lawmakers, according to a Trump official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the unannounced plans.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>\u201cScoop: Trump\u2019s $500 million post-election windfall\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.axios.com\/2025\/01\/15\/trump-windfall-fundraising-500-million\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Axios<\/a>]. \u201cPresident-elect Trump is being inundated with so much money from corporations and wealthy donors that his team expects to raise about $500 million by summer \u2014 even though he can\u2019t run again, sources in his operation tell Axios. By stockpiling so much cash, Trump is signaling he doesn\u2019t want to be seen as a lame duck [see above] in his second term, and is ready to help political allies, punish opponents and help Republicans keep full control of Congress in 2026.\u201d And: \u201c\u2018The crypto guys are just blowing it out,\u2019 the Trump adviser said. \u2018It used to be $1 million was a big number. Now we\u2019re looking at some folks giving like $10 [million] or $20 million.\u2019 \u2018If the tech guys are giving big, it makes everyone give,\u2019 another Trump adviser added.\u201d \u2022\u00a0As they would. Lots of Californians up on that dias\u2026. <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Lawfare<\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"24.659090909091\">\n<p>Lambert here: I hate to file these suits under lawfare, because to my recollection both have merit. But a little late, no?<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSEC sues Elon Musk, alleging failure to properly disclose Twitter ownership\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/01\/14\/sec-sues-musk-alleges-failure-to-properly-disclose-twitter-ownership.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CNBC<\/a>]. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cCFPB sues Capital One for \u2018cheating\u2019 customers out of over $2 billion in interest\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/01\/14\/cfpb-sues-capital-one-alleges-it-misled-consumers-on-savings-rates.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CNBC<\/a>]. <\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p>\u201cDespite Trump\u2019s Felony Conviction, Prosecutorial Liberalism Has Failed\u201d [Jeet Heer, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.msn.com\/en-us\/news\/politics\/despite-trump-s-felony-conviction-prosecutorial-liberalism-has-failed\/ar-BB1rnziv\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Nation<\/a>]. \u201cThe problems with prosecutorial liberalism are twofold. First, it is a strategy that tries to use the legal system to do the work of politics. Of course, if figures like Trump commit crimes, they should fall under the purview of the law. But the law in and of itself is ill-equipped to settle the matter of a corrupt politician\u2019s status with voters. There is a long history of voters rewarding politicians who run afoul of the law or have been entangled in scandal, beloved miscreants such as onetime Washington Mayor Marion Barry and onetime Louisiana Governor Edwin Edwards.\u201d \u2022\u00a0In a way, we might say that the famous slogan used by the Edwards camp (\u201cVote for the crook! It\u2019s important!\u201d) \u2014 Edwards then running against KKKer David Duke \u2014 applied equally well to Trump. Which isn\u2019t so such a stretch if genocide and a proxy war with a nuclear power are top of mind for you.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>2024 Post Mortem<\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"9.1419141914191\">\n<p>\u201cKamala Harris eyeing post-loss life in NYC as second gentleman tours $20K-a-month luxury space\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/pagesix.com\/2025\/01\/14\/gossip\/kamala-harris-eyes-post-loss-life-in-new-york-city\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Page Six, New York Post<\/a>]. \u2022 Rats leaving a sinking ship?<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHarris declines to invite Vance for courtesy visit to vice president\u2019s residence before inauguration\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/harris-jd-vance-vice-presidents-residence\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CBS<\/a>]. \u2022 Mind-bogglingly petty. <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><a name=\"democrats\"\/>Democrats <em>en d\u00e9shabill\u00e9<\/em><\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"11.787401574803\">\n<p><a name=\"leadership\"\/>\u201cThe Democratic Party\u2019s leadership crisis: \u2018Don\u2019t know\u2019 and \u2018Nobody\u2019 outpoll pols\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/story\/news\/politics\/elections\/2025\/01\/14\/democratic-party-leadership-crisis\/77680714007\/?tbref=hp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">USA Today<\/a>]. \u201cWhen asked to name the leader of the Democratic Party, nearly half of all registered voters nationally in our Suffolk University\/USA TODAY couldn\u2019t name a person or volunteered \u2018Nobody.’\u201d\u2026 Let\u2019s start with the 19% of voters who responded \u2018nobody.\u2019 As for the \u201cnobody\u201d retort, as you might expect, more Republicans (22%) gave this response, but 26% of independents did too.\u201d <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Realignment and Legitimacy<\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"10.729064039409\">\n<p>\u201cLuigi Mangione\u2019s Account Renamed on Stack Overflow\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/2025\/01\/10\/luigi-mangiones-account-renamed-on-stack-overflow\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Michael Tsai<\/a>]. \u201cMangione has not actually been convicted of anything yet. <a href=\"https:\/\/substack.evancarroll.com\/i\/153549636\/balance-with-other-online-accounts\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Reddit, Facebook, and Instagram<\/a> have deleted his accounts, but the only one that chose to both erase him and keep the content, is Stack Exchange. It\u2019s not clear whether that\u2019s legal.\u201d \u2022 Mangione is now \u201cuser4616250.\u201d Numerologists make of that what you will. <\/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:\/\/skylab.cdph.ca.gov\/calwws\/\" 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\/sars-cov-2-in-wastewater\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/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, KidDoc, LL, Michael King, KF, LaRuse, mrsyk, MT, MT_Wild, otisyves, Petal (6), RK (2), RL, RM, Rod, square coats (11), tennesseewaltzer, thump, Tom B., Utah, Bob White (3). <\/p>\n<p>Stay safe out there!<\/p>\n<p><a name=\"mask\"\/>Maskstravaganza<\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"6.2303664921466\">\n<p>Bonnie Henry territory (1):<\/p>\n<p><center wp_automatic_readability=\"7.9011627906977\"> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" wp_automatic_readability=\"18.436046511628\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">\ud83d\udea8 BC Ministry of Health Communique <\/p>\n<p>Masks now required in BC healthcare facilities.<\/p>\n<p>It was apparently issued to Health Authorities on Mon, Jan 6, 2025, but still has not been seen by many individuals working in BC Healthcare.<\/p>\n<p>9 pages long, so buckle up.<\/p>\n<p>1\/9 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/DCmwH7nq2b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/DCmwH7nq2b<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Inspired Aquariums (@InspiredAquaCA) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/InspiredAquaCA\/status\/1878285986527867116\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">January 12, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center> <\/p>\n<p>Bonnie Henry territory (2):<\/p>\n<p><center wp_automatic_readability=\"4.8636363636364\"> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" wp_automatic_readability=\"12.380165289256\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">\ud83d\udea8 Monday’s H5N1 memo to VCH staff<\/p>\n<p>Constrains diagnosis to people with “exposure to sick or dead poultry or other sick animals, particularly in areas with known outbreaks”.<br \/>Despite BC’s case of H5N1 having no such contact.<\/p>\n<p>Also leans heavily on Droplet and Contact precautions. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/7Co6kzogki\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/7Co6kzogki<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Inspired Aquariums (@InspiredAquaCA) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/InspiredAquaCA\/status\/1879236141851054088\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">January 14, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Vaccines<\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"14.956172388605\">\n<p>\u201cIt won\u2019t end with COVID: Countering the next phase of American antivaccine activism 2025\u201329\u201d [Peter Hotez, <a href=\"https:\/\/journals.plos.org\/globalpublichealth\/article?id=10.1371\/journal.pgph.0004020\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">PLOS<\/a>]. \u201cPeter Hotez is a co-inventor on non-revenue generating patents for neglected tropical diseases owned by Baylor College of Medicine (BCM). He is also a co-inventor of a COVID-19 recombinant protein vaccine technology owned by BCM that was recently licensed by Baylor Ventures non-exclusively and with no patent restrictions to several companies committed to advance vaccines for low- and middle-income countries.\u201d The lead: \u201cAntivaccine sentiments have been expressed throughout American history. However, in this century, the antivaccine movement gained momentum around false claims that vaccines cause autism in the 2000s, followed by \u2018health freedom\u2019 protests versus childhood immunization mandates in schools in the 2010s [1]. Starting in 2020 with the introduction of COVID-19 vaccines, health freedom extended to adult immunizations and became a signature feature of political activism on the far-right. This politically charged movement organized and convinced countless Americans to shun COVID-19 immunizations in 2021\u201322 resulting in an estimated 200,000 deaths from COVID-19 among the unvaccinated U.S. population. Antivaccine activism became a major lethal force in America.\u201d \u2022 Not seeing a note to that 200,000 figure. <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Social Norming<\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"19\">\n<p>\u201cA Nation of Homebodies\u201d [New York Times]. From October, 2024. Here is the deck: \u201cA recent study shows Americans are spending notably more time at home, a trend that started long before the pandemic.\u201d \u2022\u00a0Handy chart:<\/p>\n<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/time_spent_at_home.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"358\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-285535\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/time_spent_at_home.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/time_spent_at_home-300x179.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy the jump?\u201d If you were one of those Brownnose Institute fellas, you\u2019d say it was our (pissant, poruous, short-lived) lockdowns, and not \u2014 work with me here \u2014 millions of illnesses and deaths. But suppose they\u2019re right? \u201cWhy the persistence?\u201d One obvious answer is the desire to avoid infection. A second answer is Long Covid. It will be interesting to see what the numbers for 2023 and 2024 are. (Note that the article follows the deck in attempting to make an obvious state change into a smooth progression, rather like that study where people can be brow-beaten by putative peers into saying two lines are the same length when they are very obviously not.)<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p><a name=\"table\"\/><strong>TABLE 1: Daily Covid Charts<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tbody wp_automatic_readability=\"10.843373493976\">\n<tr colspan=\"2\">\n<td valign=\"top\"><strong>Wastewater<\/strong><\/td>\n<td\/>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\" wp_automatic_readability=\"3.6190476190476\">\n<td valign=\"top\"> This week[1] <a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#wastewater-surveillance\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> January 10<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\"> Last week[2] <a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#wastewater-surveillance\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> (until next week):<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\">\n<td>\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ww-natl-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285430\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ww-natl-1.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ww-natl-1-300x200.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" style=\"align: left; margin-left: 0px !important; padding: 9px 0 9px 0;\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ww-natl.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-284945\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ww-natl.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ww-natl-300x187.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr colspan=\"2\" wp_automatic_readability=\"3.6417910447761\">\n<td valign=\"top\"><strong> Variants<\/strong> [3] <a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery#variant-proportions\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> December 21<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\"> <strong>Emergency Room Visits<\/strong>[4] <a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#trends_select_7dayeddiagnosed_00\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> January 4<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\">\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/covid-cdc-variants-natl-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-284307\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/covid-cdc-variants-natl-1.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/covid-cdc-variants-natl-1-300x177.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ed-natl.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285314\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ed-natl.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ed-natl-300x159.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr colspan=\"2\">\n<td valign=\"top\"><strong>Hospitalization<\/strong><\/td>\n<td\/>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\" wp_automatic_readability=\"3.8961038961039\">\n<td valign=\"top\"><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; color: gold;\">\u2605<\/span> New York[5] <a href=\"https:\/\/coronavirus.health.ny.gov\/daily-hospitalization-summary\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">New York State<\/a>, data January 14:<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\"> National [6] <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/coronavirus\/2019-ncov\/covidnetdashboard\/de\/powerbi\/dashboard.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> Janurary 9:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\">\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-ny-hospitalization-nyc-6.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285532\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-ny-hospitalization-nyc-6.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-ny-hospitalization-nyc-6-300x189.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-hospitalizaiton-natl.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285315\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-hospitalizaiton-natl.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-hospitalizaiton-natl-287x300.png 287w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr colspan=\"2\">\n<td valign=\"top\"><strong>Positivity<\/strong><\/td>\n<td\/>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\" wp_automatic_readability=\"2.5507246376812\">\n<td valign=\"top\"> National[7] <a href=\"https:\/\/www.walgreens.com\/healthcare-solutions\/covid-19-index\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Walgreens<\/a> January 13:<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\"> Ohio[8] <a href=\"https:\/\/clevelandcliniclabs.com\/respiratory-virus-surveillance-statistics\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Cleveland Clinic<\/a> January 4:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\">\n<td>\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-walgreens-positivity-natl.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285429\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-walgreens-positivity-natl.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-walgreens-positivity-natl-300x189.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td>\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cleveland-positivity-oh-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" height=\"428\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-285157\"\/><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr colspan=\"2\">\n<td valign=\"top\"><strong>Travelers Data<\/strong><\/td>\n<td\/>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\" wp_automatic_readability=\"3.5932203389831\">\n<td valign=\"top\"> Positivity[9] <a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#traveler-genomic-surveillance\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> December 23:<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\"> Variants[10] <a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#traveler-genomic-surveillance\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> December 23<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-positivity-travelers-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285316\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-positivity-travelers-1.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-positivity-travelers-1-300x183.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-variants-travelers-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285317\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-variants-travelers-1.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-variants-travelers-1-300x211.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr colspan=\"2\">\n<td valign=\"top\"><strong>Deaths<\/strong><\/td>\n<td\/>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\" wp_automatic_readability=\"3.7551020408163\">\n<td valign=\"top\"> Weekly Deaths vs. % Positivity [11] <a href=\"https:\/\/health.hawaii.gov\/coronavirusdisease2019\/what-you-should-know\/current-situation-in-the-us\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> January 4:<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\"> Weekly Deaths vs. ED Visits [12] <a href=\"https:\/\/health.hawaii.gov\/coronadisease2019\/what-you-should-know\/current-situation-in-the-us\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> January 4:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\">\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-deaths-positivity-natl.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285313\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-deaths-positivity-natl.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-deaths-positivity-natl-300x182.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-deaths-ed.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285312\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-deaths-ed.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-deaths-ed-300x184.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<td wp_automatic_readability=\"131.85164835165\">\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) Seeing more red and more orange, but nothing new at major hubs. <\/p>\n<p>[2] (CDC) Last week\u2019s wastewater map.<\/p>\n<p>[3] (CDC Variants) XEC takes over. That WHO label, \u201cOmmicron,\u201d has done a great job normalizing successive waves of infection.<\/p>\n<p>[4] (ED) A little uptick.<\/p>\n<p>[5] (Hospitalization: NY) Definitely jumped.<\/p>\n<p>[6] (Hospitalization: CDC). Leveling out.<\/p>\n<p>[7] (Walgreens) Leveling out.<\/p>\n<p>[8] (Cleveland) Continued upward trend since, well, Thanksgiving.<\/p>\n<p>[9] (Travelers: Positivity) Leveling out.<\/p>\n<p>[10] (Travelers: Variants). Positivity is new, but variants have not yet been released.<\/p>\n<p>[11] Deaths low, positivity leveling out.<\/p>\n<p>[12] Deaths low, ED leveling out.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Stats Watch<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Inflation: \u201cUnited States Core Inflation Rate\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/tradingeconomics.com\/united-states\/core-inflation-rate\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Trading Economics<\/a>]. \u201cThe annual core consumer price inflation rate in the United States, which excludes items such as food and energy, eased to 3.2% in December 2024, down from 3.3% in the previous three months and slightly below market expectations of 3.3%. The shelter index, accounting for over two thirds of the total 12-month increase rose 4.6% over the past year, marking the smallest annual gain since January 2022.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Inflation: \u201cUnited States Consumer Price Index (CPI)\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/tradingeconomics.com\/united-states\/consumer-price-index-cpi\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Trading Economics<\/a>]. \u201cConsumer Price Index CPI in the United States increased to 315.61 points in December from 315.49 points in November of 2024. The annual inflation rate in the US rose for a 3rd consecutive month to 2.9% in December from 2.7% in November, in line with market expectations.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Manufacturing: \u201cUnited States NY Empire State Manufacturing Index\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/tradingeconomics.com\/united-states\/ny-empire-state-manufacturing-index\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Trading Economics<\/a>]. \u201cThe NY Empire State Manufacturing Index tumbled to -12.6 in January 2025 from 2.1 in December, missing forecasts of 3 and marking a return to contraction for New York state\u2019s manufacturing activity at the steepest rate since May 2024.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p>Manufacturing: \u201cTrump Transportation Dept nominee says he will work to restore global confidence in Boeing\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/us\/trump-transportation-dept-nominee-says-he-will-work-restore-global-confidence-2025-01-14\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Reuters<\/a>]. \u201c\u2018I will work with Congress and the FAA to restore global confidence in Boeing and to ensure our skies are safe,\u201d said Sean Duffy, a former U.S. House lawmaker, according to written testimony seen by Reuters. The Federal Aviation Administration is maintaining tougher oversight of Boeing indefinitely, a year after a door panel missing four bolts flew off a new Alaska Airlines (ALK.N), opens new tab Boeing 737 MAX 9 in mid-air. It has also barred Boeing from expanding production beyond 38 MAX planes per month. Boeing did not immediately comment. FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker plans to step down on Jan. 20, while Deputy FAA Administrator Katie Thomson left the agency last week. Trump has not yet named a new nominee to head the department. On Saturday, Trump said he was nominating Steve Bradbury, a former DOT general counsel, to serve as deputy DOT secretary. Duffy will face a number of aviation issues including a persistent shortage of air traffic controllers, aging FAA facilities and a series of dangerous near-miss incidents.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>Manufacturing: \u201cCrisis-hit Boeing delivered less than half as many jets as Airbus in 2024\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.seattletimes.com\/business\/boeing-aerospace\/crisis-hit-boeing-delivered-less-than-half-as-many-jets-as-airbus-in-2024\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Seattle Times<\/a>]. \u201cBoeing must begin to turn its fortunes around to avoid falling further behind because Airbus plans a relentless production increase as it fixes its supply chain. Airbus now operates eight A320 jet family assembly lines \u2014 two in Toulouse, France; four in Hamburg, Germany; one in Tianjin, China; and one in Mobile, Ala. \u2014 all now equipped to build the larger A321 model. Scherer reiterated that Airbus plans to increase production of the A320 family from 50 per month in 2024 to 75 per month in 2027. To implement that ramp-up, Airbus plans to add another A320 assembly line in Mobile and another in Asia by 2026.\u201d \u2022\u00a0Eight. That\u2019s a lot.<\/p>\n<p>Manufacturing: \u201cBoeing CEO in India in his first overseas visit\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/business\/boeing-ceo-in-india-in-his-first-overseas-visit\/article69099964.ece\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Hindu<\/a>]. \u201cOn [Ortberg\u2019s agenda are business meetings with Boeing\u2019s customers in the country, which include a meeting with Tata Trusts Chairman Noel Tata, according to industry sources. There are also meetings with key government stakeholders as well as employees. Though the visit has been kept under wraps, it is learnt that visits to some of Boeing\u2019s facilities in Hyderabad and Bengaluru are also on his itinerary. He is in India for nearly three days. Boeing and Tata have a joint venture in Tata Boeing Aerospace Limited for manufacturing aerostructures and collaboration on integrated systems development opportunities in India, both for its military and civil aircraft that includes a production facility in Hyderabad for co-producing Boeing AH-64 Apache helicopter fuselages, among other aerostructures. The Tata Advanced systems Limited (TASL) also manufactures composite assemblies for Boeing\u2019s 737 MAX, 777X, and 787 Dreamliner.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p>Today\u2019s Fear & Greed Index: 29 Fear (previous close: 26 Fear) [<a href=\"https:\/\/money.cnn.com\/data\/fear-and-greed\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CNN<\/a>]. One week ago: 30 (Fear). (0 is Extreme Fear; 100 is Extreme Greed). Last updated Jan 15 at 1:56:49 PM ET.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Musical Interlude<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.talkbass.com\/threads\/how-to-play-like-phil-lesh.511216\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Play<\/a> everything but the root and everywhere but on the beat:<\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"A look at Phil Lesh's spring '77 bassline for "Scarlet Begonias"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/2RHImYFJXQw?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"zeitgeist\"\/><strong>Zeitgeist Watch<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Readers, have at it:<\/p>\n<p><center wp_automatic_readability=\"4.2241379310345\"> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" wp_automatic_readability=\"11.264367816092\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">We need a new word. One that means a combination of an oligarchy, a kleptocracy, and a kakistocracy, because that’s what we’re going to be living under. I can’t think of a word that’s adequate.<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Khashoggi\u2019s Ghost \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6\ud83c\udf3b (@UROCKlive1) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/UROCKlive1\/status\/1879314156626833484\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">January 14, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center> <\/p>\n<p>I quarrel with \u201cgoing to be.\u201d Nevertheless, we do need that word!<\/p>\n<p>News you can use:<\/p>\n<p><center wp_automatic_readability=\"3.5227272727273\"> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" wp_automatic_readability=\"9.6875\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Been collecting data on traditional methods of black magic across cultures. Here’s a map of the materials sorcerers obtain from enemies to curse them via sympathetic magic across 77 societies. It is widely believed you can curse a person if you have some of their hair especially. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/AiZMi8dwe8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/AiZMi8dwe8<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Will (@Evolving_Moloch) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Evolving_Moloch\/status\/1879568892076740685\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">January 15, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center> <\/p>\n<p><a name=\"wired\"\/><strong>News of the Wired<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid we all know this already?\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/kottke.org\/25\/01\/0046000-did-we-all-know-this\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Kottke.org<\/a>]. \u201cChip is a nickname for a guy named after his dad. Skip is a nickname for a guy named after his grandfather. Trip is a nickname for a guy named after his dad AND grandfather.\u201d \u2022 Readers?<\/p>\n<p><a name=\"cat\"\/>This is awesome, actually. More insight into the new craze all the kids are into, RedNote (\u201cXiaohongshu\u201d), the Chinese TikTok replacement:<\/p>\n<p><center wp_automatic_readability=\"2.2409638554217\"> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" wp_automatic_readability=\"6.7228915662651\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">posted a picture of my cat on Xiaohongshu and someone replied with this \ud83d\ude2dthey gave my ass a receipt <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/p2DAf8oRkI\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/p2DAf8oRkI<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 drea (@okaybrb) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/okaybrb\/status\/1879224606806147217\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">January 14, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><br \/>\n<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\/2025\/01\/200pm-water-cooler-1-14-2025.html\">here<\/a>. From Desert Dog:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/roost.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"800\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-285530\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/roost.jpeg 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/roost-225x300.jpeg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Desert Dog writes: \u201cOn the hike up to my daughters house in the four corners area of Colorado I pass this Bald Eagle roost where they can scan the valley below.\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. Material here is Lambert\u2019s, and does not express the views of the Naked Capitalism site. 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!<\/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<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<!-- .entry-content --><\/p>\n<footer class=\"entry-meta\">\n\t\t\tThis entry was posted in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/category\/water-cooler\" rel=\"category tag\">Water Cooler<\/a> on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/2025\/01\/200pm-water-cooler-1-15-2025.html\" title=\"2:00 pm\" rel=\"bookmark\"><time class=\"entry-date updated\" datetime=\"2025-01-15T14:00:44-05:00\">January 15, 2025<\/time><\/a><span class=\"by-author\"> by <span class=\"author vcard\"><a class=\"url fn n\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/author\/lambert-strether\" title=\"View all posts by Lambert Strether\" rel=\"author\">Lambert Strether<\/a><\/span><\/span>.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"author-info\" wp_automatic_readability=\"20.197005056398\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<!-- .author-avatar --><\/p>\n<div class=\"author-description\" wp_automatic_readability=\"35.467911318553\">\n<h2>About Lambert Strether<\/h2>\n<p>Readers, I have had a correspondent characterize my views as realistic cynical. Let me briefly explain them. I believe in universal programs that provide concrete material benefits, especially to the working class. Medicare for All is the prime example, but tuition-free college and a Post Office Bank also fall under this heading. So do a Jobs Guarantee and a Debt Jubilee. Clearly, neither liberal Democrats nor conservative Republicans can deliver on such programs, because the two are different flavors of neoliberalism (\u201cBecause markets\u201d). I don\u2019t much care about the \u201cism\u201d that delivers the benefits, although whichever one does have to put common humanity first, as opposed to markets. Could be a second FDR saving capitalism, democratic socialism leashing and collaring it, or communism razing it. I don\u2019t much care, as long as the benefits are delivered. <br \/>\n <br \/>\nTo me, the key issue \u2014 and this is why Medicare for All is always first with me \u2014 is the tens of thousands of excess \u201cdeaths from despair,\u201d as described by the Case-Deaton study, and other recent studies. That enormous body count makes Medicare for All, at the very least, a moral and strategic imperative. And that level of suffering and organic damage makes the concerns of identity politics \u2014 even the worthy fight to help the refugees Bush, Obama, and Clinton\u2019s wars created \u2014 bright shiny objects by comparison. Hence my frustration with the news flow \u2014 currently in my view the swirling intersection of two, separate Shock Doctrine campaigns, one by the Administration, and the other by out-of-power liberals and their allies in the State and in the press \u2014 a news flow that constantly forces me to focus on matters that I regard as of secondary importance to the excess deaths. What kind of political economy is it that halts or even reverses the increases in life expectancy that civilized societies have achieved? I am also very hopeful that the continuing destruction of both party establishments will open the space for voices supporting programs similar to those I have listed; let\u2019s call such voices \u201cthe left.\u201d Volatility creates opportunity, especially if the Democrat establishment, which puts markets first and opposes all such programs, isn\u2019t allowed to get back into the saddle. Eyes on the prize! I love the tactical level, and secretly love even the horse race, since I\u2019ve been blogging about it daily for fourteen years, but everything I write has this perspective at the back of it.<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<!-- .author-link\t-->\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p><!-- .author-description -->\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p><!-- .author-info --><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/footer>\n<p><!-- .entry-meta --><br \/>\n\t<!-- #post --><\/p>\n<nav class=\"nav-single\">\n<h3 class=\"assistive-text\">Post navigation<\/h3>\n<p>\t\t\t\t<span class=\"nav-previous list-posts-older\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/2025\/01\/a-forgotten-farming-technique-is-making-a-big-comeback-heres-why.html\" rel=\"prev\"><span class=\"meta-nav\">\u2190<\/span> A Forgotten Farming Technique Is Making a Big Comeback \u2013 Here\u2019s Why<\/a><\/span><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"nav-next list-posts-newer\"\/><br \/>\n\t\t\t<\/nav>\n<p><!-- .nav-single --><\/p>\n<p>\t<!-- #comments .comments-area --><\/p>\n<p>\t<!-- #content --><br \/>\n<!-- #primary --><\/p>\n<p>\t<!-- #secondary --><\/p>\n<footer id=\"colophon\" role=\"contentinfo\">\n\t\t\t\t<!-- .site-info --><br \/>\n\t\t<\/footer>\n<p><!-- #colophon --><br \/>\n\t\t<!-- #main.wrapper --><br \/>\n<!-- #page --><br \/>\n<!-- .mobile-menu-wrap --><\/p>\n<p><!-- Blog Reader Pooling - removed 09\/16\/2015 by M. 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Bird Song of the Day Brown Thrasher, Parc de la Survivance, Les Maskoutains, Quebec, Canada. * * * In Case<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":89754,"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-89753","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\/89753","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=89753"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89753\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/89754"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=89753"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=89753"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=89753"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
Bird Song of the Day<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Brown Thrasher, Parc de la Survivance, Les Maskoutains, Quebec, Canada.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p><strong>In Case You Might Miss\u2026 <\/strong> <\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><a href=\"#warren\">Warren v. Hegseth<\/a>, Ernst v. Hegseth.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#schedulef\">Biden-installed roadblocks<\/a> to Schedule F.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#leadership\">Democrat<\/a> leadership crisis.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#cat\">RedNote\u2019s cat tax<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/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=\"trump\"\/>Trump Transition<\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"162.60501135258\">\n<p><a name=\"hegseth\"\/>Warren v. Hegseth (1):<\/p>\n<p><center wp_automatic_readability=\"4.8362068965517\"> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" wp_automatic_readability=\"12.310344827586\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">One of the few useful questions asked at the Pete Hegseth hearing. Despite advocating that Generals be barred from working in the defense industry for 10 years after they retire, Hegseth, upon questioning from Sen. Warren, refuses to commit to the same standard for himself! <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/mQQD8xgljp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/mQQD8xgljp<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Michael Tracey (@mtracey) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/mtracey\/status\/1879249785666036115\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">January 14, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center> <\/p>\n<p>Warren v. Hegseth (2):<\/p>\n<p><center wp_automatic_readability=\"4.8492957746479\"> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" wp_automatic_readability=\"12.343661971831\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">JUST IN: Audience starts cracking up after Pete Hegseth stumps Elizabeth “Pocahontas” Warren.<\/p>\n<p>Warren: “You are quite sure every General who serves should not go directly into the defense industry for 10 years, but you’re not willing to make that same pledge?<\/p>\n<p>Hegseth: “I’m not a\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/ELmpwlNyxF\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/ELmpwlNyxF<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CollinRugg\/status\/1879220346756182136\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">January 14, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center> <\/p>\n<p>Lambert here: I award this round to Tracey. Not that I accept the revolving door metaphor (FlexNets are where it\u2019s at), but whether one wears a suit or a uniform while walking through one shouldn\u2019t matter.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSenate Democrats Fail To Rattle Hegseth\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.realclearpolitics.com\/articles\/2025\/01\/15\/senate_democrats_fail_to_rattle_hegseth_152201.html#2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">RealClearPolitics<\/a>]. \u201cUnlike many of his predecessors, Hegseth is not a retired general or seasoned government official and he has comparatively limited executive experience. He is a combat veteran and television anchor with ivy league degrees. But the former Army major\u2019s main qualification in the eyes of the incoming administration is a rejection of political correctness in the military. In Tuesday\u2019s committee hearing, he did not blink or abandon the views he has expressed for years in print and on air. He delivered a full-throated condemnation of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion policies that were hallmarks of the Biden Pentagon. \u2018This is not a time for equity,\u2019 the nominee said, arguing instead for \u2018equality\u2019 among the ranks that emphasizes meritocracy in pursuit of a common purpose, not prescribed outcomes and quotas based on immutable characteristics like race, gender, or sexual orientation\u2026. Republicans loved that they were hearing from a nominee who said many of the same things Trump said to get elected. Begrudgingly impressed, Democrats were, all the same, appalled. Hegseth does not need their votes. When allegations of professional and sexual misconduct surfaced, which he denies, the nominee focused instead on maintaining support among the GOP majority. Democrats on the committee complained repeatedly that Hegseth didn\u2019t even bother to meet with them privately prior to the hearing. Hegseth did moderate on at least one front. \u2018Women will have access to ground combat roles,\u2019 he said, walking back past statements but before qualifying that standards must \u2018remain high, and we will have a review to ensure the standards have not been eroded.’\u201d \u2022 A dude with a jawline like Hegseth\u2019s clearly ought to be in charge of <em>some<\/em>thing. It will be interesting to find out who his \u201cdeputies\u201d are\u2026.. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cGOP Sen. Joni Ernst officially backs Pete Hegseth for DOD after initial uncertainty\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/gop-sen-joni-ernst-officially-backs-pete-hegseth-dod-after-initial-uncertainty\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">FOX<\/a>]. \u201cErnst, a survivor of sexual assault herself, said, \u2018A priority of mine has been combating sexual assault in the military and making sure that all of our service members are treated with dignity and respect. This has been so important. Senator Gillibrand and I have worked on this, and we were able to get changes made to the uniform code of military justice to make sure that we have improvements, and on how we address the tragic and life altering, issues of rape, sexual assault. It will demand time and attention from the Pentagon under your watch, if you are confirmed. So, as secretary of Defense, will you appoint a senior level official dedicated to sexual assault prevention and response?\u2019 she asked Hegseth. Trump\u2019s DOD choice told the senator that he would agree to do so.\u201d \u2022 Hegseth, if he\u2019s smart, will take this opportunity to rehabilitate his reputation.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Greatest DEI Disaster Ever\u201d [Jennifer Rubin, <a href=\"https:\/\/contrarian.substack.com\/p\/the-greatest-dei-disaster-ever\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Contrarian<\/a>]. Rubin\u2019s first shot after leaving WaPo. \u201cWatching Secretary of Defense nominee Pete Hegseth demonstrate his appalling lack of credentials, knowledge, and character for the job for which he was nominated I am compelled to ask: Is the Trump administration running a DEI program for incompetent, unqualified, and\/or ethically compromised Whites?\u201d And: \u201cAmy McGrath, a former Marine fighter pilot whom I interviewed yesterday, told me that Republican claims that the military has lowered standards to accommodate women is a \u2018lie.’\u201d \u2022 Amy McGrath, Amy McGrath\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Amy_McGrath\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Oh yeah<\/a>. The fighter pilot, reporting for duty kinda like John Kerry, who, awash in out-of-state money, defeated Black progressive Charles Booker and then went on to outraise Mitch McConnell by $30 million \u2014 Democrats were s-o-o-o-o excited \u2014 and then lost the race by twenty points. How surprising that McGrath is still in Rubin\u2019s Rolodex. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cBy Targeting Hegseth, Democrats Open a Path for Gabbard\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/news\/magazine\/2025\/01\/15\/gabbard-nomination-00198303\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Politico<\/a>]. \u201c[I]ntimidated by threats hurled by Trump\u2019s allies, Republican lawmakers have in recent weeks rallied to Hegseth and many of them have made clear that, absent new and more damaging revelations, they will likely support his nomination. At the same time, Trump has made clear he won\u2019t yank Hegseth\u2019s nomination. Surprisingly, though, this GOP show of support has not prompted Senate Democrats to pivot toward confronting Gabbard. That has surprised, and even disappointed, their Republican counterparts, some of whom told me that they would be more willing to make common cause to stop the former Democrat from Hawaii, who holds isolationist and libertarian national security views outside the Senate GOP mainstream. Why wouldn\u2019t Democrats shift toward a softer target, especially knowing that few of their Republican colleagues want to cast one, if that many, votes against a Trump nominee? Yes, this is a commentary on the bargain pre-Trump Republicans have made. They may malign the press and Democrats, but they\u2019d sure like the media to dig up damaging stories on Gabbard so that Democrats can amplify them, which in turn would prompt Trump to grow irritated at the skeptical coverage and abandon her. A version of the Matt Gaetz appointment, in other words. That\u2019s much easier than publicly opposing Gabbard, to say nothing of voting her down on the Senate floor.\u201d \u2022\u00a0Hmm.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p><a name=\"schedulef\"\/>\u201cBiden\u2019s \u2018sneaky\u2019 and \u2018dirty\u2019 plot to slow down Trump on Day One\u2026 despite promising a \u2018smooth\u2019 transition\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/news\/article-14279947\/biden-trump-roadblocks-inauguration-agenda-plot-dirty.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Daily Mail<\/a>]. \u201cPresident Joe Biden enacted a series of roadblocks to slow down Donald Trump\u2019s agenda during the president-elect first days in the White House, despite his steadfast promises to cooperate with the incoming administration\u2026. \u2018I think he\u2019s going to have a problem,\u2019 the president said. \u2018Trump\u2019s going to have a hard time undoing a lot, I think.\u2019 Politics ain\u2019t beanbag. This, however, is important: \u201cDuring the final weeks of his first term in 2020, Trump issued an executive order creating a new class of federal workers known as Schedule F. These staffers would be exempt from the country\u2019s traditional merit-based civil service program. And opponents argued it was an attempt to hire and fire people based on their political loyalty. Biden, when he came into office in January 2021, rescinded that order. He then took it one step further last spring, when he issued a new rule that strengthens existing rights for career federal workers by making it clear that civil service protections cannot be taken away from employees unless they give them up voluntarily. In other words, it makes it nearly impossible for Trump to classify current federal employees under a Schedule F type order. A senior Biden administration official told CNN that the rule could not easily be rolled back in a second Trump term. Trump has repeatedly promised he would reinstate Schedule F executive order on day one. \u2018An executive order would not have impact with this regulation in place,\u2019 the senior Biden official said. \u2018A future administration would have to go through a new regulatory process, which would also entail like explaining specifically through that rulemaking process why a different rule is better than the existing regulations that OPM (the Office of Personnel Management) finalized and are announced \u2026 and how that new approach was consistent with the law.’\u201d \u2022 I dunno. The Trump operation has been pretty feral so far, so I\u2019m not sure what effect a new rulemaking process would have.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p>\u201cPoke The Bear\u201d [Brian Beutler, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.offmessage.net\/p\/poke-the-bear\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Off-Message<\/a>]. \u201cDonald Trump is a lame duck. He\u2019s weak in the ways every lame-duck president is, and, to an under-appreciated extent, his efforts to menace and extort concessions out of domestic and international rivals is a form of rebellion against his own expiration date, his looming irrelevance\u2026. But a good way to resolve the debate might be to establish an informal rule: responding to Trump\u2019s provocations is always acceptable if the effect is to belittle him; to make him look like a boob or a chump or a phony. Not \u2018ahhh! this is dangerous!\u2019 but \u2018whatever, clown!\u2019 Not Etc, etc. When Trump said he\u2019d rename the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America, U.S. liberals mostly resolved to ignore it, but Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum pointed to an old map of what is now the southwestern U.S. and said, \u201c\u00bfPor qu\u00e9 no le llamamos \u2018Am\u00e9rica mexicana\u2019? Suena bien, \u00bfverdad?\u201d\u2014 \u201cWhy don\u2019t we call this Mexican America? Sounds good, no?\u201d\u2026 I would like to applaud this approach, and encourage more of it from more western leaders, ideally in collaboration. Maybe they can start trying to one-up each other. Instead of simply saying Greenland isn\u2019t for sale, the prime minister of Denmark might ask Trump whether the United States can really afford a tariff on Ozempic given our epidemic of obesity, embodied by Trump himself.\u201d \u2022 Dunno. It would be hard to out-troll Trump. And I\u2019m not sure that Sheinbaum\u2019s punch landed anywhere that matters. Then again\u2013<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMichigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a potential 2028 candidate, wants to find common ground with Trump\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/governor-gretchen-whitmer-wants-collaboration-with-trump-c66bf6d351c3da69158b8365d4aa5f9a\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Associated Press<\/a>]. \u201d Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer wants a fresh start with President-elect Donald Trump but also warns that she won\u2019t back down over tariffs that she believes would hurt the auto industry in her state\u2026 \u2018I don\u2019t want to pretend we\u2019re always going to agree, but I will always seek collaboration first,\u2019 Whitmer said Wednesday about the Republican president-elect. \u2018I won\u2019t go looking for fights. I won\u2019t back down from them, either.’\u201d \u2022 It\u2019s gonna be hard to kidnap Big Gretch twice, so I\u2019m not sure what her options in 2028 will be.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p>Pledging fealty like the neo-feudalist robber barons they are:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cJeff Bezos, Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg to attend Trump\u2019s inauguration\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/archive.ph\/3GiUi\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">WaPo<\/a>]. \u201cTech moguls Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg are planning to attend President-elect Donald Trump\u2019s inauguration on Monday, underscoring the deepening ties between prominent tech leaders and the incoming administration after years of acrimony. The billionaire trio is expected to sit together on the dais, a prominent location alongside former presidents, Trump\u2019s family, Cabinet picks and lawmakers, according to a Trump official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the unannounced plans.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>\u201cScoop: Trump\u2019s $500 million post-election windfall\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.axios.com\/2025\/01\/15\/trump-windfall-fundraising-500-million\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Axios<\/a>]. \u201cPresident-elect Trump is being inundated with so much money from corporations and wealthy donors that his team expects to raise about $500 million by summer \u2014 even though he can\u2019t run again, sources in his operation tell Axios. By stockpiling so much cash, Trump is signaling he doesn\u2019t want to be seen as a lame duck [see above] in his second term, and is ready to help political allies, punish opponents and help Republicans keep full control of Congress in 2026.\u201d And: \u201c\u2018The crypto guys are just blowing it out,\u2019 the Trump adviser said. \u2018It used to be $1 million was a big number. Now we\u2019re looking at some folks giving like $10 [million] or $20 million.\u2019 \u2018If the tech guys are giving big, it makes everyone give,\u2019 another Trump adviser added.\u201d \u2022\u00a0As they would. Lots of Californians up on that dias\u2026. <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Lawfare<\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"24.659090909091\">\n<p>Lambert here: I hate to file these suits under lawfare, because to my recollection both have merit. But a little late, no?<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSEC sues Elon Musk, alleging failure to properly disclose Twitter ownership\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/01\/14\/sec-sues-musk-alleges-failure-to-properly-disclose-twitter-ownership.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CNBC<\/a>]. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cCFPB sues Capital One for \u2018cheating\u2019 customers out of over $2 billion in interest\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/01\/14\/cfpb-sues-capital-one-alleges-it-misled-consumers-on-savings-rates.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CNBC<\/a>]. <\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p>\u201cDespite Trump\u2019s Felony Conviction, Prosecutorial Liberalism Has Failed\u201d [Jeet Heer, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.msn.com\/en-us\/news\/politics\/despite-trump-s-felony-conviction-prosecutorial-liberalism-has-failed\/ar-BB1rnziv\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Nation<\/a>]. \u201cThe problems with prosecutorial liberalism are twofold. First, it is a strategy that tries to use the legal system to do the work of politics. Of course, if figures like Trump commit crimes, they should fall under the purview of the law. But the law in and of itself is ill-equipped to settle the matter of a corrupt politician\u2019s status with voters. There is a long history of voters rewarding politicians who run afoul of the law or have been entangled in scandal, beloved miscreants such as onetime Washington Mayor Marion Barry and onetime Louisiana Governor Edwin Edwards.\u201d \u2022\u00a0In a way, we might say that the famous slogan used by the Edwards camp (\u201cVote for the crook! It\u2019s important!\u201d) \u2014 Edwards then running against KKKer David Duke \u2014 applied equally well to Trump. Which isn\u2019t so such a stretch if genocide and a proxy war with a nuclear power are top of mind for you.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>2024 Post Mortem<\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"9.1419141914191\">\n<p>\u201cKamala Harris eyeing post-loss life in NYC as second gentleman tours $20K-a-month luxury space\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/pagesix.com\/2025\/01\/14\/gossip\/kamala-harris-eyes-post-loss-life-in-new-york-city\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Page Six, New York Post<\/a>]. \u2022 Rats leaving a sinking ship?<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHarris declines to invite Vance for courtesy visit to vice president\u2019s residence before inauguration\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/harris-jd-vance-vice-presidents-residence\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CBS<\/a>]. \u2022 Mind-bogglingly petty. <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><a name=\"democrats\"\/>Democrats <em>en d\u00e9shabill\u00e9<\/em><\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"11.787401574803\">\n<p><a name=\"leadership\"\/>\u201cThe Democratic Party\u2019s leadership crisis: \u2018Don\u2019t know\u2019 and \u2018Nobody\u2019 outpoll pols\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/story\/news\/politics\/elections\/2025\/01\/14\/democratic-party-leadership-crisis\/77680714007\/?tbref=hp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">USA Today<\/a>]. \u201cWhen asked to name the leader of the Democratic Party, nearly half of all registered voters nationally in our Suffolk University\/USA TODAY couldn\u2019t name a person or volunteered \u2018Nobody.’\u201d\u2026 Let\u2019s start with the 19% of voters who responded \u2018nobody.\u2019 As for the \u201cnobody\u201d retort, as you might expect, more Republicans (22%) gave this response, but 26% of independents did too.\u201d <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Realignment and Legitimacy<\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"10.729064039409\">\n<p>\u201cLuigi Mangione\u2019s Account Renamed on Stack Overflow\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/2025\/01\/10\/luigi-mangiones-account-renamed-on-stack-overflow\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Michael Tsai<\/a>]. \u201cMangione has not actually been convicted of anything yet. <a href=\"https:\/\/substack.evancarroll.com\/i\/153549636\/balance-with-other-online-accounts\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Reddit, Facebook, and Instagram<\/a> have deleted his accounts, but the only one that chose to both erase him and keep the content, is Stack Exchange. It\u2019s not clear whether that\u2019s legal.\u201d \u2022 Mangione is now \u201cuser4616250.\u201d Numerologists make of that what you will. <\/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:\/\/skylab.cdph.ca.gov\/calwws\/\" 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\/sars-cov-2-in-wastewater\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/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, KidDoc, LL, Michael King, KF, LaRuse, mrsyk, MT, MT_Wild, otisyves, Petal (6), RK (2), RL, RM, Rod, square coats (11), tennesseewaltzer, thump, Tom B., Utah, Bob White (3). <\/p>\n<p>Stay safe out there!<\/p>\n<p><a name=\"mask\"\/>Maskstravaganza<\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"6.2303664921466\">\n<p>Bonnie Henry territory (1):<\/p>\n<p><center wp_automatic_readability=\"7.9011627906977\"> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" wp_automatic_readability=\"18.436046511628\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">\ud83d\udea8 BC Ministry of Health Communique <\/p>\n<p>Masks now required in BC healthcare facilities.<\/p>\n<p>It was apparently issued to Health Authorities on Mon, Jan 6, 2025, but still has not been seen by many individuals working in BC Healthcare.<\/p>\n<p>9 pages long, so buckle up.<\/p>\n<p>1\/9 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/DCmwH7nq2b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/DCmwH7nq2b<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Inspired Aquariums (@InspiredAquaCA) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/InspiredAquaCA\/status\/1878285986527867116\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">January 12, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center> <\/p>\n<p>Bonnie Henry territory (2):<\/p>\n<p><center wp_automatic_readability=\"4.8636363636364\"> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" wp_automatic_readability=\"12.380165289256\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">\ud83d\udea8 Monday’s H5N1 memo to VCH staff<\/p>\n<p>Constrains diagnosis to people with “exposure to sick or dead poultry or other sick animals, particularly in areas with known outbreaks”.<br \/>Despite BC’s case of H5N1 having no such contact.<\/p>\n<p>Also leans heavily on Droplet and Contact precautions. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/7Co6kzogki\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/7Co6kzogki<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Inspired Aquariums (@InspiredAquaCA) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/InspiredAquaCA\/status\/1879236141851054088\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">January 14, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Vaccines<\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"14.956172388605\">\n<p>\u201cIt won\u2019t end with COVID: Countering the next phase of American antivaccine activism 2025\u201329\u201d [Peter Hotez, <a href=\"https:\/\/journals.plos.org\/globalpublichealth\/article?id=10.1371\/journal.pgph.0004020\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">PLOS<\/a>]. \u201cPeter Hotez is a co-inventor on non-revenue generating patents for neglected tropical diseases owned by Baylor College of Medicine (BCM). He is also a co-inventor of a COVID-19 recombinant protein vaccine technology owned by BCM that was recently licensed by Baylor Ventures non-exclusively and with no patent restrictions to several companies committed to advance vaccines for low- and middle-income countries.\u201d The lead: \u201cAntivaccine sentiments have been expressed throughout American history. However, in this century, the antivaccine movement gained momentum around false claims that vaccines cause autism in the 2000s, followed by \u2018health freedom\u2019 protests versus childhood immunization mandates in schools in the 2010s [1]. Starting in 2020 with the introduction of COVID-19 vaccines, health freedom extended to adult immunizations and became a signature feature of political activism on the far-right. This politically charged movement organized and convinced countless Americans to shun COVID-19 immunizations in 2021\u201322 resulting in an estimated 200,000 deaths from COVID-19 among the unvaccinated U.S. population. Antivaccine activism became a major lethal force in America.\u201d \u2022 Not seeing a note to that 200,000 figure. <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Social Norming<\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"19\">\n<p>\u201cA Nation of Homebodies\u201d [New York Times]. From October, 2024. Here is the deck: \u201cA recent study shows Americans are spending notably more time at home, a trend that started long before the pandemic.\u201d \u2022\u00a0Handy chart:<\/p>\n<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/time_spent_at_home.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"358\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-285535\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/time_spent_at_home.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/time_spent_at_home-300x179.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy the jump?\u201d If you were one of those Brownnose Institute fellas, you\u2019d say it was our (pissant, poruous, short-lived) lockdowns, and not \u2014 work with me here \u2014 millions of illnesses and deaths. But suppose they\u2019re right? \u201cWhy the persistence?\u201d One obvious answer is the desire to avoid infection. A second answer is Long Covid. It will be interesting to see what the numbers for 2023 and 2024 are. (Note that the article follows the deck in attempting to make an obvious state change into a smooth progression, rather like that study where people can be brow-beaten by putative peers into saying two lines are the same length when they are very obviously not.)<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p><a name=\"table\"\/><strong>TABLE 1: Daily Covid Charts<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tbody wp_automatic_readability=\"10.843373493976\">\n<tr colspan=\"2\">\n<td valign=\"top\"><strong>Wastewater<\/strong><\/td>\n<td\/>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\" wp_automatic_readability=\"3.6190476190476\">\n<td valign=\"top\"> This week[1] <a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#wastewater-surveillance\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> January 10<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\"> Last week[2] <a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#wastewater-surveillance\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> (until next week):<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\">\n<td>\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ww-natl-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285430\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ww-natl-1.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ww-natl-1-300x200.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" style=\"align: left; margin-left: 0px !important; padding: 9px 0 9px 0;\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ww-natl.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-284945\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ww-natl.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ww-natl-300x187.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr colspan=\"2\" wp_automatic_readability=\"3.6417910447761\">\n<td valign=\"top\"><strong> Variants<\/strong> [3] <a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery#variant-proportions\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> December 21<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\"> <strong>Emergency Room Visits<\/strong>[4] <a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#trends_select_7dayeddiagnosed_00\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> January 4<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\">\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/covid-cdc-variants-natl-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-284307\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/covid-cdc-variants-natl-1.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/covid-cdc-variants-natl-1-300x177.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ed-natl.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285314\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ed-natl.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ed-natl-300x159.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr colspan=\"2\">\n<td valign=\"top\"><strong>Hospitalization<\/strong><\/td>\n<td\/>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\" wp_automatic_readability=\"3.8961038961039\">\n<td valign=\"top\"><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; color: gold;\">\u2605<\/span> New York[5] <a href=\"https:\/\/coronavirus.health.ny.gov\/daily-hospitalization-summary\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">New York State<\/a>, data January 14:<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\"> National [6] <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/coronavirus\/2019-ncov\/covidnetdashboard\/de\/powerbi\/dashboard.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> Janurary 9:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\">\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-ny-hospitalization-nyc-6.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285532\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-ny-hospitalization-nyc-6.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-ny-hospitalization-nyc-6-300x189.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-hospitalizaiton-natl.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285315\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-hospitalizaiton-natl.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-hospitalizaiton-natl-287x300.png 287w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr colspan=\"2\">\n<td valign=\"top\"><strong>Positivity<\/strong><\/td>\n<td\/>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\" wp_automatic_readability=\"2.5507246376812\">\n<td valign=\"top\"> National[7] <a href=\"https:\/\/www.walgreens.com\/healthcare-solutions\/covid-19-index\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Walgreens<\/a> January 13:<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\"> Ohio[8] <a href=\"https:\/\/clevelandcliniclabs.com\/respiratory-virus-surveillance-statistics\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Cleveland Clinic<\/a> January 4:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\">\n<td>\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-walgreens-positivity-natl.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285429\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-walgreens-positivity-natl.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-walgreens-positivity-natl-300x189.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td>\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cleveland-positivity-oh-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" height=\"428\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-285157\"\/><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr colspan=\"2\">\n<td valign=\"top\"><strong>Travelers Data<\/strong><\/td>\n<td\/>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\" wp_automatic_readability=\"3.5932203389831\">\n<td valign=\"top\"> Positivity[9] <a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#traveler-genomic-surveillance\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> December 23:<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\"> Variants[10] <a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#traveler-genomic-surveillance\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> December 23<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-positivity-travelers-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285316\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-positivity-travelers-1.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-positivity-travelers-1-300x183.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-variants-travelers-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285317\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-variants-travelers-1.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-variants-travelers-1-300x211.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr colspan=\"2\">\n<td valign=\"top\"><strong>Deaths<\/strong><\/td>\n<td\/>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\" wp_automatic_readability=\"3.7551020408163\">\n<td valign=\"top\"> Weekly Deaths vs. % Positivity [11] <a href=\"https:\/\/health.hawaii.gov\/coronavirusdisease2019\/what-you-should-know\/current-situation-in-the-us\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> January 4:<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\"> Weekly Deaths vs. ED Visits [12] <a href=\"https:\/\/health.hawaii.gov\/coronadisease2019\/what-you-should-know\/current-situation-in-the-us\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> January 4:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\">\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-deaths-positivity-natl.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285313\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-deaths-positivity-natl.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-deaths-positivity-natl-300x182.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-deaths-ed.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285312\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-deaths-ed.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-deaths-ed-300x184.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<td wp_automatic_readability=\"131.85164835165\">\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) Seeing more red and more orange, but nothing new at major hubs. <\/p>\n<p>[2] (CDC) Last week\u2019s wastewater map.<\/p>\n<p>[3] (CDC Variants) XEC takes over. That WHO label, \u201cOmmicron,\u201d has done a great job normalizing successive waves of infection.<\/p>\n<p>[4] (ED) A little uptick.<\/p>\n<p>[5] (Hospitalization: NY) Definitely jumped.<\/p>\n<p>[6] (Hospitalization: CDC). Leveling out.<\/p>\n<p>[7] (Walgreens) Leveling out.<\/p>\n<p>[8] (Cleveland) Continued upward trend since, well, Thanksgiving.<\/p>\n<p>[9] (Travelers: Positivity) Leveling out.<\/p>\n<p>[10] (Travelers: Variants). Positivity is new, but variants have not yet been released.<\/p>\n<p>[11] Deaths low, positivity leveling out.<\/p>\n<p>[12] Deaths low, ED leveling out.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Stats Watch<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Inflation: \u201cUnited States Core Inflation Rate\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/tradingeconomics.com\/united-states\/core-inflation-rate\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Trading Economics<\/a>]. \u201cThe annual core consumer price inflation rate in the United States, which excludes items such as food and energy, eased to 3.2% in December 2024, down from 3.3% in the previous three months and slightly below market expectations of 3.3%. The shelter index, accounting for over two thirds of the total 12-month increase rose 4.6% over the past year, marking the smallest annual gain since January 2022.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Inflation: \u201cUnited States Consumer Price Index (CPI)\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/tradingeconomics.com\/united-states\/consumer-price-index-cpi\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Trading Economics<\/a>]. \u201cConsumer Price Index CPI in the United States increased to 315.61 points in December from 315.49 points in November of 2024. The annual inflation rate in the US rose for a 3rd consecutive month to 2.9% in December from 2.7% in November, in line with market expectations.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Manufacturing: \u201cUnited States NY Empire State Manufacturing Index\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/tradingeconomics.com\/united-states\/ny-empire-state-manufacturing-index\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Trading Economics<\/a>]. \u201cThe NY Empire State Manufacturing Index tumbled to -12.6 in January 2025 from 2.1 in December, missing forecasts of 3 and marking a return to contraction for New York state\u2019s manufacturing activity at the steepest rate since May 2024.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p>Manufacturing: \u201cTrump Transportation Dept nominee says he will work to restore global confidence in Boeing\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/us\/trump-transportation-dept-nominee-says-he-will-work-restore-global-confidence-2025-01-14\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Reuters<\/a>]. \u201c\u2018I will work with Congress and the FAA to restore global confidence in Boeing and to ensure our skies are safe,\u201d said Sean Duffy, a former U.S. House lawmaker, according to written testimony seen by Reuters. The Federal Aviation Administration is maintaining tougher oversight of Boeing indefinitely, a year after a door panel missing four bolts flew off a new Alaska Airlines (ALK.N), opens new tab Boeing 737 MAX 9 in mid-air. It has also barred Boeing from expanding production beyond 38 MAX planes per month. Boeing did not immediately comment. FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker plans to step down on Jan. 20, while Deputy FAA Administrator Katie Thomson left the agency last week. Trump has not yet named a new nominee to head the department. On Saturday, Trump said he was nominating Steve Bradbury, a former DOT general counsel, to serve as deputy DOT secretary. Duffy will face a number of aviation issues including a persistent shortage of air traffic controllers, aging FAA facilities and a series of dangerous near-miss incidents.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>Manufacturing: \u201cCrisis-hit Boeing delivered less than half as many jets as Airbus in 2024\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.seattletimes.com\/business\/boeing-aerospace\/crisis-hit-boeing-delivered-less-than-half-as-many-jets-as-airbus-in-2024\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Seattle Times<\/a>]. \u201cBoeing must begin to turn its fortunes around to avoid falling further behind because Airbus plans a relentless production increase as it fixes its supply chain. Airbus now operates eight A320 jet family assembly lines \u2014 two in Toulouse, France; four in Hamburg, Germany; one in Tianjin, China; and one in Mobile, Ala. \u2014 all now equipped to build the larger A321 model. Scherer reiterated that Airbus plans to increase production of the A320 family from 50 per month in 2024 to 75 per month in 2027. To implement that ramp-up, Airbus plans to add another A320 assembly line in Mobile and another in Asia by 2026.\u201d \u2022\u00a0Eight. That\u2019s a lot.<\/p>\n<p>Manufacturing: \u201cBoeing CEO in India in his first overseas visit\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/business\/boeing-ceo-in-india-in-his-first-overseas-visit\/article69099964.ece\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Hindu<\/a>]. \u201cOn [Ortberg\u2019s agenda are business meetings with Boeing\u2019s customers in the country, which include a meeting with Tata Trusts Chairman Noel Tata, according to industry sources. There are also meetings with key government stakeholders as well as employees. Though the visit has been kept under wraps, it is learnt that visits to some of Boeing\u2019s facilities in Hyderabad and Bengaluru are also on his itinerary. He is in India for nearly three days. Boeing and Tata have a joint venture in Tata Boeing Aerospace Limited for manufacturing aerostructures and collaboration on integrated systems development opportunities in India, both for its military and civil aircraft that includes a production facility in Hyderabad for co-producing Boeing AH-64 Apache helicopter fuselages, among other aerostructures. The Tata Advanced systems Limited (TASL) also manufactures composite assemblies for Boeing\u2019s 737 MAX, 777X, and 787 Dreamliner.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p>Today\u2019s Fear & Greed Index: 29 Fear (previous close: 26 Fear) [<a href=\"https:\/\/money.cnn.com\/data\/fear-and-greed\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CNN<\/a>]. One week ago: 30 (Fear). (0 is Extreme Fear; 100 is Extreme Greed). Last updated Jan 15 at 1:56:49 PM ET.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Musical Interlude<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.talkbass.com\/threads\/how-to-play-like-phil-lesh.511216\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Play<\/a> everything but the root and everywhere but on the beat:<\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"A look at Phil Lesh's spring '77 bassline for "Scarlet Begonias"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/2RHImYFJXQw?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"zeitgeist\"\/><strong>Zeitgeist Watch<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Readers, have at it:<\/p>\n<p><center wp_automatic_readability=\"4.2241379310345\"> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" wp_automatic_readability=\"11.264367816092\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">We need a new word. One that means a combination of an oligarchy, a kleptocracy, and a kakistocracy, because that’s what we’re going to be living under. I can’t think of a word that’s adequate.<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Khashoggi\u2019s Ghost \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6\ud83c\udf3b (@UROCKlive1) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/UROCKlive1\/status\/1879314156626833484\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">January 14, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center> <\/p>\n<p>I quarrel with \u201cgoing to be.\u201d Nevertheless, we do need that word!<\/p>\n<p>News you can use:<\/p>\n<p><center wp_automatic_readability=\"3.5227272727273\"> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" wp_automatic_readability=\"9.6875\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Been collecting data on traditional methods of black magic across cultures. Here’s a map of the materials sorcerers obtain from enemies to curse them via sympathetic magic across 77 societies. It is widely believed you can curse a person if you have some of their hair especially. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/AiZMi8dwe8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/AiZMi8dwe8<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Will (@Evolving_Moloch) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Evolving_Moloch\/status\/1879568892076740685\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">January 15, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center> <\/p>\n<p><a name=\"wired\"\/><strong>News of the Wired<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid we all know this already?\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/kottke.org\/25\/01\/0046000-did-we-all-know-this\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Kottke.org<\/a>]. \u201cChip is a nickname for a guy named after his dad. Skip is a nickname for a guy named after his grandfather. Trip is a nickname for a guy named after his dad AND grandfather.\u201d \u2022 Readers?<\/p>\n<p><a name=\"cat\"\/>This is awesome, actually. More insight into the new craze all the kids are into, RedNote (\u201cXiaohongshu\u201d), the Chinese TikTok replacement:<\/p>\n<p><center wp_automatic_readability=\"2.2409638554217\"> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" wp_automatic_readability=\"6.7228915662651\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">posted a picture of my cat on Xiaohongshu and someone replied with this \ud83d\ude2dthey gave my ass a receipt <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/p2DAf8oRkI\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/p2DAf8oRkI<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 drea (@okaybrb) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/okaybrb\/status\/1879224606806147217\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">January 14, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><br \/>\n<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\/2025\/01\/200pm-water-cooler-1-14-2025.html\">here<\/a>. From Desert Dog:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/roost.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"800\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-285530\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/roost.jpeg 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/roost-225x300.jpeg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Desert Dog writes: \u201cOn the hike up to my daughters house in the four corners area of Colorado I pass this Bald Eagle roost where they can scan the valley below.\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. Material here is Lambert\u2019s, and does not express the views of the Naked Capitalism site. 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!<\/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<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<!-- .entry-content --><\/p>\n<footer class=\"entry-meta\">\n\t\t\tThis entry was posted in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/category\/water-cooler\" rel=\"category tag\">Water Cooler<\/a> on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/2025\/01\/200pm-water-cooler-1-15-2025.html\" title=\"2:00 pm\" rel=\"bookmark\"><time class=\"entry-date updated\" datetime=\"2025-01-15T14:00:44-05:00\">January 15, 2025<\/time><\/a><span class=\"by-author\"> by <span class=\"author vcard\"><a class=\"url fn n\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/author\/lambert-strether\" title=\"View all posts by Lambert Strether\" rel=\"author\">Lambert Strether<\/a><\/span><\/span>.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"author-info\" wp_automatic_readability=\"20.197005056398\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<!-- .author-avatar --><\/p>\n<div class=\"author-description\" wp_automatic_readability=\"35.467911318553\">\n<h2>About Lambert Strether<\/h2>\n<p>Readers, I have had a correspondent characterize my views as realistic cynical. Let me briefly explain them. I believe in universal programs that provide concrete material benefits, especially to the working class. Medicare for All is the prime example, but tuition-free college and a Post Office Bank also fall under this heading. So do a Jobs Guarantee and a Debt Jubilee. Clearly, neither liberal Democrats nor conservative Republicans can deliver on such programs, because the two are different flavors of neoliberalism (\u201cBecause markets\u201d). I don\u2019t much care about the \u201cism\u201d that delivers the benefits, although whichever one does have to put common humanity first, as opposed to markets. Could be a second FDR saving capitalism, democratic socialism leashing and collaring it, or communism razing it. I don\u2019t much care, as long as the benefits are delivered. <br \/>\n <br \/>\nTo me, the key issue \u2014 and this is why Medicare for All is always first with me \u2014 is the tens of thousands of excess \u201cdeaths from despair,\u201d as described by the Case-Deaton study, and other recent studies. That enormous body count makes Medicare for All, at the very least, a moral and strategic imperative. And that level of suffering and organic damage makes the concerns of identity politics \u2014 even the worthy fight to help the refugees Bush, Obama, and Clinton\u2019s wars created \u2014 bright shiny objects by comparison. Hence my frustration with the news flow \u2014 currently in my view the swirling intersection of two, separate Shock Doctrine campaigns, one by the Administration, and the other by out-of-power liberals and their allies in the State and in the press \u2014 a news flow that constantly forces me to focus on matters that I regard as of secondary importance to the excess deaths. What kind of political economy is it that halts or even reverses the increases in life expectancy that civilized societies have achieved? I am also very hopeful that the continuing destruction of both party establishments will open the space for voices supporting programs similar to those I have listed; let\u2019s call such voices \u201cthe left.\u201d Volatility creates opportunity, especially if the Democrat establishment, which puts markets first and opposes all such programs, isn\u2019t allowed to get back into the saddle. Eyes on the prize! I love the tactical level, and secretly love even the horse race, since I\u2019ve been blogging about it daily for fourteen years, but everything I write has this perspective at the back of it.<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<!-- .author-link\t-->\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p><!-- .author-description -->\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p><!-- .author-info --><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/footer>\n<p><!-- .entry-meta --><br \/>\n\t<!-- #post --><\/p>\n<nav class=\"nav-single\">\n<h3 class=\"assistive-text\">Post navigation<\/h3>\n<p>\t\t\t\t<span class=\"nav-previous list-posts-older\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/2025\/01\/a-forgotten-farming-technique-is-making-a-big-comeback-heres-why.html\" rel=\"prev\"><span class=\"meta-nav\">\u2190<\/span> A Forgotten Farming Technique Is Making a Big Comeback \u2013 Here\u2019s Why<\/a><\/span><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"nav-next list-posts-newer\"\/><br \/>\n\t\t\t<\/nav>\n<p><!-- .nav-single --><\/p>\n<p>\t<!-- #comments .comments-area --><\/p>\n<p>\t<!-- #content --><br \/>\n<!-- #primary --><\/p>\n<p>\t<!-- #secondary --><\/p>\n<footer id=\"colophon\" role=\"contentinfo\">\n\t\t\t\t<!-- .site-info --><br \/>\n\t\t<\/footer>\n<p><!-- #colophon --><br \/>\n\t\t<!-- #main.wrapper --><br \/>\n<!-- #page --><br \/>\n<!-- .mobile-menu-wrap --><\/p>\n<p><!-- Blog Reader Pooling - removed 09\/16\/2015 by M. 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Bird Song of the Day Brown Thrasher, Parc de la Survivance, Les Maskoutains, Quebec, Canada. * * * In Case<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":89754,"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-89753","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\/89753","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=89753"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89753\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/89754"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=89753"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=89753"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=89753"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
<\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Brown Thrasher, Parc de la Survivance, Les Maskoutains, Quebec, Canada.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p><strong>In Case You Might Miss\u2026 <\/strong> <\/p>\n<ol>\n<li><a href=\"#warren\">Warren v. Hegseth<\/a>, Ernst v. Hegseth.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#schedulef\">Biden-installed roadblocks<\/a> to Schedule F.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#leadership\">Democrat<\/a> leadership crisis.<\/li>\n<li><a href=\"#cat\">RedNote\u2019s cat tax<\/a>.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/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=\"trump\"\/>Trump Transition<\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"162.60501135258\">\n<p><a name=\"hegseth\"\/>Warren v. Hegseth (1):<\/p>\n<p><center wp_automatic_readability=\"4.8362068965517\"> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" wp_automatic_readability=\"12.310344827586\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">One of the few useful questions asked at the Pete Hegseth hearing. Despite advocating that Generals be barred from working in the defense industry for 10 years after they retire, Hegseth, upon questioning from Sen. Warren, refuses to commit to the same standard for himself! <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/mQQD8xgljp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/mQQD8xgljp<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Michael Tracey (@mtracey) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/mtracey\/status\/1879249785666036115\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">January 14, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center> <\/p>\n<p>Warren v. Hegseth (2):<\/p>\n<p><center wp_automatic_readability=\"4.8492957746479\"> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" wp_automatic_readability=\"12.343661971831\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">JUST IN: Audience starts cracking up after Pete Hegseth stumps Elizabeth “Pocahontas” Warren.<\/p>\n<p>Warren: “You are quite sure every General who serves should not go directly into the defense industry for 10 years, but you’re not willing to make that same pledge?<\/p>\n<p>Hegseth: “I’m not a\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/ELmpwlNyxF\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/ELmpwlNyxF<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/CollinRugg\/status\/1879220346756182136\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">January 14, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center> <\/p>\n<p>Lambert here: I award this round to Tracey. Not that I accept the revolving door metaphor (FlexNets are where it\u2019s at), but whether one wears a suit or a uniform while walking through one shouldn\u2019t matter.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSenate Democrats Fail To Rattle Hegseth\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.realclearpolitics.com\/articles\/2025\/01\/15\/senate_democrats_fail_to_rattle_hegseth_152201.html#2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">RealClearPolitics<\/a>]. \u201cUnlike many of his predecessors, Hegseth is not a retired general or seasoned government official and he has comparatively limited executive experience. He is a combat veteran and television anchor with ivy league degrees. But the former Army major\u2019s main qualification in the eyes of the incoming administration is a rejection of political correctness in the military. In Tuesday\u2019s committee hearing, he did not blink or abandon the views he has expressed for years in print and on air. He delivered a full-throated condemnation of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion policies that were hallmarks of the Biden Pentagon. \u2018This is not a time for equity,\u2019 the nominee said, arguing instead for \u2018equality\u2019 among the ranks that emphasizes meritocracy in pursuit of a common purpose, not prescribed outcomes and quotas based on immutable characteristics like race, gender, or sexual orientation\u2026. Republicans loved that they were hearing from a nominee who said many of the same things Trump said to get elected. Begrudgingly impressed, Democrats were, all the same, appalled. Hegseth does not need their votes. When allegations of professional and sexual misconduct surfaced, which he denies, the nominee focused instead on maintaining support among the GOP majority. Democrats on the committee complained repeatedly that Hegseth didn\u2019t even bother to meet with them privately prior to the hearing. Hegseth did moderate on at least one front. \u2018Women will have access to ground combat roles,\u2019 he said, walking back past statements but before qualifying that standards must \u2018remain high, and we will have a review to ensure the standards have not been eroded.’\u201d \u2022 A dude with a jawline like Hegseth\u2019s clearly ought to be in charge of <em>some<\/em>thing. It will be interesting to find out who his \u201cdeputies\u201d are\u2026.. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cGOP Sen. Joni Ernst officially backs Pete Hegseth for DOD after initial uncertainty\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.foxnews.com\/politics\/gop-sen-joni-ernst-officially-backs-pete-hegseth-dod-after-initial-uncertainty\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">FOX<\/a>]. \u201cErnst, a survivor of sexual assault herself, said, \u2018A priority of mine has been combating sexual assault in the military and making sure that all of our service members are treated with dignity and respect. This has been so important. Senator Gillibrand and I have worked on this, and we were able to get changes made to the uniform code of military justice to make sure that we have improvements, and on how we address the tragic and life altering, issues of rape, sexual assault. It will demand time and attention from the Pentagon under your watch, if you are confirmed. So, as secretary of Defense, will you appoint a senior level official dedicated to sexual assault prevention and response?\u2019 she asked Hegseth. Trump\u2019s DOD choice told the senator that he would agree to do so.\u201d \u2022 Hegseth, if he\u2019s smart, will take this opportunity to rehabilitate his reputation.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe Greatest DEI Disaster Ever\u201d [Jennifer Rubin, <a href=\"https:\/\/contrarian.substack.com\/p\/the-greatest-dei-disaster-ever\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Contrarian<\/a>]. Rubin\u2019s first shot after leaving WaPo. \u201cWatching Secretary of Defense nominee Pete Hegseth demonstrate his appalling lack of credentials, knowledge, and character for the job for which he was nominated I am compelled to ask: Is the Trump administration running a DEI program for incompetent, unqualified, and\/or ethically compromised Whites?\u201d And: \u201cAmy McGrath, a former Marine fighter pilot whom I interviewed yesterday, told me that Republican claims that the military has lowered standards to accommodate women is a \u2018lie.’\u201d \u2022 Amy McGrath, Amy McGrath\u2026 <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Amy_McGrath\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Oh yeah<\/a>. The fighter pilot, reporting for duty kinda like John Kerry, who, awash in out-of-state money, defeated Black progressive Charles Booker and then went on to outraise Mitch McConnell by $30 million \u2014 Democrats were s-o-o-o-o excited \u2014 and then lost the race by twenty points. How surprising that McGrath is still in Rubin\u2019s Rolodex. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cBy Targeting Hegseth, Democrats Open a Path for Gabbard\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.politico.com\/news\/magazine\/2025\/01\/15\/gabbard-nomination-00198303\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Politico<\/a>]. \u201c[I]ntimidated by threats hurled by Trump\u2019s allies, Republican lawmakers have in recent weeks rallied to Hegseth and many of them have made clear that, absent new and more damaging revelations, they will likely support his nomination. At the same time, Trump has made clear he won\u2019t yank Hegseth\u2019s nomination. Surprisingly, though, this GOP show of support has not prompted Senate Democrats to pivot toward confronting Gabbard. That has surprised, and even disappointed, their Republican counterparts, some of whom told me that they would be more willing to make common cause to stop the former Democrat from Hawaii, who holds isolationist and libertarian national security views outside the Senate GOP mainstream. Why wouldn\u2019t Democrats shift toward a softer target, especially knowing that few of their Republican colleagues want to cast one, if that many, votes against a Trump nominee? Yes, this is a commentary on the bargain pre-Trump Republicans have made. They may malign the press and Democrats, but they\u2019d sure like the media to dig up damaging stories on Gabbard so that Democrats can amplify them, which in turn would prompt Trump to grow irritated at the skeptical coverage and abandon her. A version of the Matt Gaetz appointment, in other words. That\u2019s much easier than publicly opposing Gabbard, to say nothing of voting her down on the Senate floor.\u201d \u2022\u00a0Hmm.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p><a name=\"schedulef\"\/>\u201cBiden\u2019s \u2018sneaky\u2019 and \u2018dirty\u2019 plot to slow down Trump on Day One\u2026 despite promising a \u2018smooth\u2019 transition\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dailymail.co.uk\/news\/article-14279947\/biden-trump-roadblocks-inauguration-agenda-plot-dirty.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Daily Mail<\/a>]. \u201cPresident Joe Biden enacted a series of roadblocks to slow down Donald Trump\u2019s agenda during the president-elect first days in the White House, despite his steadfast promises to cooperate with the incoming administration\u2026. \u2018I think he\u2019s going to have a problem,\u2019 the president said. \u2018Trump\u2019s going to have a hard time undoing a lot, I think.\u2019 Politics ain\u2019t beanbag. This, however, is important: \u201cDuring the final weeks of his first term in 2020, Trump issued an executive order creating a new class of federal workers known as Schedule F. These staffers would be exempt from the country\u2019s traditional merit-based civil service program. And opponents argued it was an attempt to hire and fire people based on their political loyalty. Biden, when he came into office in January 2021, rescinded that order. He then took it one step further last spring, when he issued a new rule that strengthens existing rights for career federal workers by making it clear that civil service protections cannot be taken away from employees unless they give them up voluntarily. In other words, it makes it nearly impossible for Trump to classify current federal employees under a Schedule F type order. A senior Biden administration official told CNN that the rule could not easily be rolled back in a second Trump term. Trump has repeatedly promised he would reinstate Schedule F executive order on day one. \u2018An executive order would not have impact with this regulation in place,\u2019 the senior Biden official said. \u2018A future administration would have to go through a new regulatory process, which would also entail like explaining specifically through that rulemaking process why a different rule is better than the existing regulations that OPM (the Office of Personnel Management) finalized and are announced \u2026 and how that new approach was consistent with the law.’\u201d \u2022 I dunno. The Trump operation has been pretty feral so far, so I\u2019m not sure what effect a new rulemaking process would have.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p>\u201cPoke The Bear\u201d [Brian Beutler, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.offmessage.net\/p\/poke-the-bear\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Off-Message<\/a>]. \u201cDonald Trump is a lame duck. He\u2019s weak in the ways every lame-duck president is, and, to an under-appreciated extent, his efforts to menace and extort concessions out of domestic and international rivals is a form of rebellion against his own expiration date, his looming irrelevance\u2026. But a good way to resolve the debate might be to establish an informal rule: responding to Trump\u2019s provocations is always acceptable if the effect is to belittle him; to make him look like a boob or a chump or a phony. Not \u2018ahhh! this is dangerous!\u2019 but \u2018whatever, clown!\u2019 Not Etc, etc. When Trump said he\u2019d rename the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America, U.S. liberals mostly resolved to ignore it, but Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum pointed to an old map of what is now the southwestern U.S. and said, \u201c\u00bfPor qu\u00e9 no le llamamos \u2018Am\u00e9rica mexicana\u2019? Suena bien, \u00bfverdad?\u201d\u2014 \u201cWhy don\u2019t we call this Mexican America? Sounds good, no?\u201d\u2026 I would like to applaud this approach, and encourage more of it from more western leaders, ideally in collaboration. Maybe they can start trying to one-up each other. Instead of simply saying Greenland isn\u2019t for sale, the prime minister of Denmark might ask Trump whether the United States can really afford a tariff on Ozempic given our epidemic of obesity, embodied by Trump himself.\u201d \u2022 Dunno. It would be hard to out-troll Trump. And I\u2019m not sure that Sheinbaum\u2019s punch landed anywhere that matters. Then again\u2013<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMichigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a potential 2028 candidate, wants to find common ground with Trump\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/apnews.com\/article\/governor-gretchen-whitmer-wants-collaboration-with-trump-c66bf6d351c3da69158b8365d4aa5f9a\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Associated Press<\/a>]. \u201d Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer wants a fresh start with President-elect Donald Trump but also warns that she won\u2019t back down over tariffs that she believes would hurt the auto industry in her state\u2026 \u2018I don\u2019t want to pretend we\u2019re always going to agree, but I will always seek collaboration first,\u2019 Whitmer said Wednesday about the Republican president-elect. \u2018I won\u2019t go looking for fights. I won\u2019t back down from them, either.’\u201d \u2022 It\u2019s gonna be hard to kidnap Big Gretch twice, so I\u2019m not sure what her options in 2028 will be.<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p>Pledging fealty like the neo-feudalist robber barons they are:<\/p>\n<p>\u201cJeff Bezos, Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg to attend Trump\u2019s inauguration\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/archive.ph\/3GiUi\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">WaPo<\/a>]. \u201cTech moguls Jeff Bezos, Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg are planning to attend President-elect Donald Trump\u2019s inauguration on Monday, underscoring the deepening ties between prominent tech leaders and the incoming administration after years of acrimony. The billionaire trio is expected to sit together on the dais, a prominent location alongside former presidents, Trump\u2019s family, Cabinet picks and lawmakers, according to a Trump official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss the unannounced plans.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>\u201cScoop: Trump\u2019s $500 million post-election windfall\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.axios.com\/2025\/01\/15\/trump-windfall-fundraising-500-million\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Axios<\/a>]. \u201cPresident-elect Trump is being inundated with so much money from corporations and wealthy donors that his team expects to raise about $500 million by summer \u2014 even though he can\u2019t run again, sources in his operation tell Axios. By stockpiling so much cash, Trump is signaling he doesn\u2019t want to be seen as a lame duck [see above] in his second term, and is ready to help political allies, punish opponents and help Republicans keep full control of Congress in 2026.\u201d And: \u201c\u2018The crypto guys are just blowing it out,\u2019 the Trump adviser said. \u2018It used to be $1 million was a big number. Now we\u2019re looking at some folks giving like $10 [million] or $20 million.\u2019 \u2018If the tech guys are giving big, it makes everyone give,\u2019 another Trump adviser added.\u201d \u2022\u00a0As they would. Lots of Californians up on that dias\u2026. <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Lawfare<\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"24.659090909091\">\n<p>Lambert here: I hate to file these suits under lawfare, because to my recollection both have merit. But a little late, no?<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSEC sues Elon Musk, alleging failure to properly disclose Twitter ownership\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/01\/14\/sec-sues-musk-alleges-failure-to-properly-disclose-twitter-ownership.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CNBC<\/a>]. <\/p>\n<p>\u201cCFPB sues Capital One for \u2018cheating\u2019 customers out of over $2 billion in interest\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnbc.com\/2025\/01\/14\/cfpb-sues-capital-one-alleges-it-misled-consumers-on-savings-rates.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CNBC<\/a>]. <\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p>\u201cDespite Trump\u2019s Felony Conviction, Prosecutorial Liberalism Has Failed\u201d [Jeet Heer, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.msn.com\/en-us\/news\/politics\/despite-trump-s-felony-conviction-prosecutorial-liberalism-has-failed\/ar-BB1rnziv\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Nation<\/a>]. \u201cThe problems with prosecutorial liberalism are twofold. First, it is a strategy that tries to use the legal system to do the work of politics. Of course, if figures like Trump commit crimes, they should fall under the purview of the law. But the law in and of itself is ill-equipped to settle the matter of a corrupt politician\u2019s status with voters. There is a long history of voters rewarding politicians who run afoul of the law or have been entangled in scandal, beloved miscreants such as onetime Washington Mayor Marion Barry and onetime Louisiana Governor Edwin Edwards.\u201d \u2022\u00a0In a way, we might say that the famous slogan used by the Edwards camp (\u201cVote for the crook! It\u2019s important!\u201d) \u2014 Edwards then running against KKKer David Duke \u2014 applied equally well to Trump. Which isn\u2019t so such a stretch if genocide and a proxy war with a nuclear power are top of mind for you.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>2024 Post Mortem<\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"9.1419141914191\">\n<p>\u201cKamala Harris eyeing post-loss life in NYC as second gentleman tours $20K-a-month luxury space\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/pagesix.com\/2025\/01\/14\/gossip\/kamala-harris-eyes-post-loss-life-in-new-york-city\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Page Six, New York Post<\/a>]. \u2022 Rats leaving a sinking ship?<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHarris declines to invite Vance for courtesy visit to vice president\u2019s residence before inauguration\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cbsnews.com\/news\/harris-jd-vance-vice-presidents-residence\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CBS<\/a>]. \u2022 Mind-bogglingly petty. <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><a name=\"democrats\"\/>Democrats <em>en d\u00e9shabill\u00e9<\/em><\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"11.787401574803\">\n<p><a name=\"leadership\"\/>\u201cThe Democratic Party\u2019s leadership crisis: \u2018Don\u2019t know\u2019 and \u2018Nobody\u2019 outpoll pols\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.usatoday.com\/story\/news\/politics\/elections\/2025\/01\/14\/democratic-party-leadership-crisis\/77680714007\/?tbref=hp\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">USA Today<\/a>]. \u201cWhen asked to name the leader of the Democratic Party, nearly half of all registered voters nationally in our Suffolk University\/USA TODAY couldn\u2019t name a person or volunteered \u2018Nobody.’\u201d\u2026 Let\u2019s start with the 19% of voters who responded \u2018nobody.\u2019 As for the \u201cnobody\u201d retort, as you might expect, more Republicans (22%) gave this response, but 26% of independents did too.\u201d <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Realignment and Legitimacy<\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"10.729064039409\">\n<p>\u201cLuigi Mangione\u2019s Account Renamed on Stack Overflow\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/mjtsai.com\/blog\/2025\/01\/10\/luigi-mangiones-account-renamed-on-stack-overflow\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Michael Tsai<\/a>]. \u201cMangione has not actually been convicted of anything yet. <a href=\"https:\/\/substack.evancarroll.com\/i\/153549636\/balance-with-other-online-accounts\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Reddit, Facebook, and Instagram<\/a> have deleted his accounts, but the only one that chose to both erase him and keep the content, is Stack Exchange. It\u2019s not clear whether that\u2019s legal.\u201d \u2022 Mangione is now \u201cuser4616250.\u201d Numerologists make of that what you will. <\/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:\/\/skylab.cdph.ca.gov\/calwws\/\" 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\/sars-cov-2-in-wastewater\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">wastewater<\/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, KidDoc, LL, Michael King, KF, LaRuse, mrsyk, MT, MT_Wild, otisyves, Petal (6), RK (2), RL, RM, Rod, square coats (11), tennesseewaltzer, thump, Tom B., Utah, Bob White (3). <\/p>\n<p>Stay safe out there!<\/p>\n<p><a name=\"mask\"\/>Maskstravaganza<\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"6.2303664921466\">\n<p>Bonnie Henry territory (1):<\/p>\n<p><center wp_automatic_readability=\"7.9011627906977\"> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" wp_automatic_readability=\"18.436046511628\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">\ud83d\udea8 BC Ministry of Health Communique <\/p>\n<p>Masks now required in BC healthcare facilities.<\/p>\n<p>It was apparently issued to Health Authorities on Mon, Jan 6, 2025, but still has not been seen by many individuals working in BC Healthcare.<\/p>\n<p>9 pages long, so buckle up.<\/p>\n<p>1\/9 <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/DCmwH7nq2b\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/DCmwH7nq2b<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Inspired Aquariums (@InspiredAquaCA) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/InspiredAquaCA\/status\/1878285986527867116\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">January 12, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center> <\/p>\n<p>Bonnie Henry territory (2):<\/p>\n<p><center wp_automatic_readability=\"4.8636363636364\"> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" wp_automatic_readability=\"12.380165289256\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">\ud83d\udea8 Monday’s H5N1 memo to VCH staff<\/p>\n<p>Constrains diagnosis to people with “exposure to sick or dead poultry or other sick animals, particularly in areas with known outbreaks”.<br \/>Despite BC’s case of H5N1 having no such contact.<\/p>\n<p>Also leans heavily on Droplet and Contact precautions. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/7Co6kzogki\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/7Co6kzogki<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Inspired Aquariums (@InspiredAquaCA) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/InspiredAquaCA\/status\/1879236141851054088\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">January 14, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center>\n<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Vaccines<\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"14.956172388605\">\n<p>\u201cIt won\u2019t end with COVID: Countering the next phase of American antivaccine activism 2025\u201329\u201d [Peter Hotez, <a href=\"https:\/\/journals.plos.org\/globalpublichealth\/article?id=10.1371\/journal.pgph.0004020\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">PLOS<\/a>]. \u201cPeter Hotez is a co-inventor on non-revenue generating patents for neglected tropical diseases owned by Baylor College of Medicine (BCM). He is also a co-inventor of a COVID-19 recombinant protein vaccine technology owned by BCM that was recently licensed by Baylor Ventures non-exclusively and with no patent restrictions to several companies committed to advance vaccines for low- and middle-income countries.\u201d The lead: \u201cAntivaccine sentiments have been expressed throughout American history. However, in this century, the antivaccine movement gained momentum around false claims that vaccines cause autism in the 2000s, followed by \u2018health freedom\u2019 protests versus childhood immunization mandates in schools in the 2010s [1]. Starting in 2020 with the introduction of COVID-19 vaccines, health freedom extended to adult immunizations and became a signature feature of political activism on the far-right. This politically charged movement organized and convinced countless Americans to shun COVID-19 immunizations in 2021\u201322 resulting in an estimated 200,000 deaths from COVID-19 among the unvaccinated U.S. population. Antivaccine activism became a major lethal force in America.\u201d \u2022 Not seeing a note to that 200,000 figure. <\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p>Social Norming<\/p>\n<blockquote wp_automatic_readability=\"19\">\n<p>\u201cA Nation of Homebodies\u201d [New York Times]. From October, 2024. Here is the deck: \u201cA recent study shows Americans are spending notably more time at home, a trend that started long before the pandemic.\u201d \u2022\u00a0Handy chart:<\/p>\n<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/time_spent_at_home.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"358\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-285535\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/time_spent_at_home.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/time_spent_at_home-300x179.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy the jump?\u201d If you were one of those Brownnose Institute fellas, you\u2019d say it was our (pissant, poruous, short-lived) lockdowns, and not \u2014 work with me here \u2014 millions of illnesses and deaths. But suppose they\u2019re right? \u201cWhy the persistence?\u201d One obvious answer is the desire to avoid infection. A second answer is Long Covid. It will be interesting to see what the numbers for 2023 and 2024 are. (Note that the article follows the deck in attempting to make an obvious state change into a smooth progression, rather like that study where people can be brow-beaten by putative peers into saying two lines are the same length when they are very obviously not.)<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p><a name=\"table\"\/><strong>TABLE 1: Daily Covid Charts<\/strong><\/p>\n<table>\n<tbody wp_automatic_readability=\"10.843373493976\">\n<tr colspan=\"2\">\n<td valign=\"top\"><strong>Wastewater<\/strong><\/td>\n<td\/>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\" wp_automatic_readability=\"3.6190476190476\">\n<td valign=\"top\"> This week[1] <a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#wastewater-surveillance\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> January 10<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\"> Last week[2] <a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#wastewater-surveillance\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> (until next week):<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\">\n<td>\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ww-natl-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285430\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ww-natl-1.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ww-natl-1-300x200.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\" style=\"align: left; margin-left: 0px !important; padding: 9px 0 9px 0;\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ww-natl.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-284945\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ww-natl.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ww-natl-300x187.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr colspan=\"2\" wp_automatic_readability=\"3.6417910447761\">\n<td valign=\"top\"><strong> Variants<\/strong> [3] <a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/?utm_medium=email&utm_source=govdelivery#variant-proportions\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> December 21<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\"> <strong>Emergency Room Visits<\/strong>[4] <a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#trends_select_7dayeddiagnosed_00\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> January 4<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\">\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/covid-cdc-variants-natl-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-284307\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/covid-cdc-variants-natl-1.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/covid-cdc-variants-natl-1-300x177.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ed-natl.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285314\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ed-natl.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-ed-natl-300x159.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr colspan=\"2\">\n<td valign=\"top\"><strong>Hospitalization<\/strong><\/td>\n<td\/>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\" wp_automatic_readability=\"3.8961038961039\">\n<td valign=\"top\"><span style=\"font-size: 10pt; color: gold;\">\u2605<\/span> New York[5] <a href=\"https:\/\/coronavirus.health.ny.gov\/daily-hospitalization-summary\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">New York State<\/a>, data January 14:<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\"> National [6] <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cdc.gov\/coronavirus\/2019-ncov\/covidnetdashboard\/de\/powerbi\/dashboard.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> Janurary 9:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\">\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-ny-hospitalization-nyc-6.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285532\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-ny-hospitalization-nyc-6.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-ny-hospitalization-nyc-6-300x189.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-hospitalizaiton-natl.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285315\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-hospitalizaiton-natl.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-hospitalizaiton-natl-287x300.png 287w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr colspan=\"2\">\n<td valign=\"top\"><strong>Positivity<\/strong><\/td>\n<td\/>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\" wp_automatic_readability=\"2.5507246376812\">\n<td valign=\"top\"> National[7] <a href=\"https:\/\/www.walgreens.com\/healthcare-solutions\/covid-19-index\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Walgreens<\/a> January 13:<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\"> Ohio[8] <a href=\"https:\/\/clevelandcliniclabs.com\/respiratory-virus-surveillance-statistics\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Cleveland Clinic<\/a> January 4:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\">\n<td>\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-walgreens-positivity-natl.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285429\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-walgreens-positivity-natl.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-walgreens-positivity-natl-300x189.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td>\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cleveland-positivity-oh-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" height=\"428\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-285157\"\/><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr colspan=\"2\">\n<td valign=\"top\"><strong>Travelers Data<\/strong><\/td>\n<td\/>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\" wp_automatic_readability=\"3.5932203389831\">\n<td valign=\"top\"> Positivity[9] <a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#traveler-genomic-surveillance\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> December 23:<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\"> Variants[10] <a href=\"https:\/\/covid.cdc.gov\/covid-data-tracker\/#traveler-genomic-surveillance\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> December 23<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-positivity-travelers-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285316\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-positivity-travelers-1.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-positivity-travelers-1-300x183.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-variants-travelers-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285317\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-variants-travelers-1.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-variants-travelers-1-300x211.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr colspan=\"2\">\n<td valign=\"top\"><strong>Deaths<\/strong><\/td>\n<td\/>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\" wp_automatic_readability=\"3.7551020408163\">\n<td valign=\"top\"> Weekly Deaths vs. % Positivity [11] <a href=\"https:\/\/health.hawaii.gov\/coronavirusdisease2019\/what-you-should-know\/current-situation-in-the-us\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> January 4:<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\"> Weekly Deaths vs. ED Visits [12] <a href=\"https:\/\/health.hawaii.gov\/coronadisease2019\/what-you-should-know\/current-situation-in-the-us\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CDC<\/a> January 4:<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr valign=\"top\">\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-deaths-positivity-natl.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285313\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-deaths-positivity-natl.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-deaths-positivity-natl-300x182.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<td valign=\"top\">\n<p><span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<span class=\"Apple-tab-span\">\t<img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-deaths-ed.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"310\" class=\"alignleft size-full wp-image-285312\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-deaths-ed.png 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/covid-cdc-deaths-ed-300x184.png 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<td wp_automatic_readability=\"131.85164835165\">\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) Seeing more red and more orange, but nothing new at major hubs. <\/p>\n<p>[2] (CDC) Last week\u2019s wastewater map.<\/p>\n<p>[3] (CDC Variants) XEC takes over. That WHO label, \u201cOmmicron,\u201d has done a great job normalizing successive waves of infection.<\/p>\n<p>[4] (ED) A little uptick.<\/p>\n<p>[5] (Hospitalization: NY) Definitely jumped.<\/p>\n<p>[6] (Hospitalization: CDC). Leveling out.<\/p>\n<p>[7] (Walgreens) Leveling out.<\/p>\n<p>[8] (Cleveland) Continued upward trend since, well, Thanksgiving.<\/p>\n<p>[9] (Travelers: Positivity) Leveling out.<\/p>\n<p>[10] (Travelers: Variants). Positivity is new, but variants have not yet been released.<\/p>\n<p>[11] Deaths low, positivity leveling out.<\/p>\n<p>[12] Deaths low, ED leveling out.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Stats Watch<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Inflation: \u201cUnited States Core Inflation Rate\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/tradingeconomics.com\/united-states\/core-inflation-rate\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Trading Economics<\/a>]. \u201cThe annual core consumer price inflation rate in the United States, which excludes items such as food and energy, eased to 3.2% in December 2024, down from 3.3% in the previous three months and slightly below market expectations of 3.3%. The shelter index, accounting for over two thirds of the total 12-month increase rose 4.6% over the past year, marking the smallest annual gain since January 2022.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Inflation: \u201cUnited States Consumer Price Index (CPI)\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/tradingeconomics.com\/united-states\/consumer-price-index-cpi\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Trading Economics<\/a>]. \u201cConsumer Price Index CPI in the United States increased to 315.61 points in December from 315.49 points in November of 2024. The annual inflation rate in the US rose for a 3rd consecutive month to 2.9% in December from 2.7% in November, in line with market expectations.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Manufacturing: \u201cUnited States NY Empire State Manufacturing Index\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/tradingeconomics.com\/united-states\/ny-empire-state-manufacturing-index\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Trading Economics<\/a>]. \u201cThe NY Empire State Manufacturing Index tumbled to -12.6 in January 2025 from 2.1 in December, missing forecasts of 3 and marking a return to contraction for New York state\u2019s manufacturing activity at the steepest rate since May 2024.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p>Manufacturing: \u201cTrump Transportation Dept nominee says he will work to restore global confidence in Boeing\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.reuters.com\/world\/us\/trump-transportation-dept-nominee-says-he-will-work-restore-global-confidence-2025-01-14\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Reuters<\/a>]. \u201c\u2018I will work with Congress and the FAA to restore global confidence in Boeing and to ensure our skies are safe,\u201d said Sean Duffy, a former U.S. House lawmaker, according to written testimony seen by Reuters. The Federal Aviation Administration is maintaining tougher oversight of Boeing indefinitely, a year after a door panel missing four bolts flew off a new Alaska Airlines (ALK.N), opens new tab Boeing 737 MAX 9 in mid-air. It has also barred Boeing from expanding production beyond 38 MAX planes per month. Boeing did not immediately comment. FAA Administrator Mike Whitaker plans to step down on Jan. 20, while Deputy FAA Administrator Katie Thomson left the agency last week. Trump has not yet named a new nominee to head the department. On Saturday, Trump said he was nominating Steve Bradbury, a former DOT general counsel, to serve as deputy DOT secretary. Duffy will face a number of aviation issues including a persistent shortage of air traffic controllers, aging FAA facilities and a series of dangerous near-miss incidents.\u201d <\/p>\n<p>Manufacturing: \u201cCrisis-hit Boeing delivered less than half as many jets as Airbus in 2024\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.seattletimes.com\/business\/boeing-aerospace\/crisis-hit-boeing-delivered-less-than-half-as-many-jets-as-airbus-in-2024\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Seattle Times<\/a>]. \u201cBoeing must begin to turn its fortunes around to avoid falling further behind because Airbus plans a relentless production increase as it fixes its supply chain. Airbus now operates eight A320 jet family assembly lines \u2014 two in Toulouse, France; four in Hamburg, Germany; one in Tianjin, China; and one in Mobile, Ala. \u2014 all now equipped to build the larger A321 model. Scherer reiterated that Airbus plans to increase production of the A320 family from 50 per month in 2024 to 75 per month in 2027. To implement that ramp-up, Airbus plans to add another A320 assembly line in Mobile and another in Asia by 2026.\u201d \u2022\u00a0Eight. That\u2019s a lot.<\/p>\n<p>Manufacturing: \u201cBoeing CEO in India in his first overseas visit\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.thehindu.com\/business\/boeing-ceo-in-india-in-his-first-overseas-visit\/article69099964.ece\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">The Hindu<\/a>]. \u201cOn [Ortberg\u2019s agenda are business meetings with Boeing\u2019s customers in the country, which include a meeting with Tata Trusts Chairman Noel Tata, according to industry sources. There are also meetings with key government stakeholders as well as employees. Though the visit has been kept under wraps, it is learnt that visits to some of Boeing\u2019s facilities in Hyderabad and Bengaluru are also on his itinerary. He is in India for nearly three days. Boeing and Tata have a joint venture in Tata Boeing Aerospace Limited for manufacturing aerostructures and collaboration on integrated systems development opportunities in India, both for its military and civil aircraft that includes a production facility in Hyderabad for co-producing Boeing AH-64 Apache helicopter fuselages, among other aerostructures. The Tata Advanced systems Limited (TASL) also manufactures composite assemblies for Boeing\u2019s 737 MAX, 777X, and 787 Dreamliner.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><center>* * *<\/center> <\/p>\n<p>Today\u2019s Fear & Greed Index: 29 Fear (previous close: 26 Fear) [<a href=\"https:\/\/money.cnn.com\/data\/fear-and-greed\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">CNN<\/a>]. One week ago: 30 (Fear). (0 is Extreme Fear; 100 is Extreme Greed). Last updated Jan 15 at 1:56:49 PM ET.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Musical Interlude<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.talkbass.com\/threads\/how-to-play-like-phil-lesh.511216\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Play<\/a> everything but the root and everywhere but on the beat:<\/p>\n<p><iframe title=\"A look at Phil Lesh's spring '77 bassline for "Scarlet Begonias"\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/2RHImYFJXQw?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><a name=\"zeitgeist\"\/><strong>Zeitgeist Watch<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Readers, have at it:<\/p>\n<p><center wp_automatic_readability=\"4.2241379310345\"> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" wp_automatic_readability=\"11.264367816092\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">We need a new word. One that means a combination of an oligarchy, a kleptocracy, and a kakistocracy, because that’s what we’re going to be living under. I can’t think of a word that’s adequate.<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Khashoggi\u2019s Ghost \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6\ud83c\udf3b (@UROCKlive1) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/UROCKlive1\/status\/1879314156626833484\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">January 14, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center> <\/p>\n<p>I quarrel with \u201cgoing to be.\u201d Nevertheless, we do need that word!<\/p>\n<p>News you can use:<\/p>\n<p><center wp_automatic_readability=\"3.5227272727273\"> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" wp_automatic_readability=\"9.6875\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">Been collecting data on traditional methods of black magic across cultures. Here’s a map of the materials sorcerers obtain from enemies to curse them via sympathetic magic across 77 societies. It is widely believed you can curse a person if you have some of their hair especially. <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/AiZMi8dwe8\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/AiZMi8dwe8<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 Will (@Evolving_Moloch) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Evolving_Moloch\/status\/1879568892076740685\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">January 15, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center> <\/p>\n<p><a name=\"wired\"\/><strong>News of the Wired<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid we all know this already?\u201d [<a href=\"https:\/\/kottke.org\/25\/01\/0046000-did-we-all-know-this\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">Kottke.org<\/a>]. \u201cChip is a nickname for a guy named after his dad. Skip is a nickname for a guy named after his grandfather. Trip is a nickname for a guy named after his dad AND grandfather.\u201d \u2022 Readers?<\/p>\n<p><a name=\"cat\"\/>This is awesome, actually. More insight into the new craze all the kids are into, RedNote (\u201cXiaohongshu\u201d), the Chinese TikTok replacement:<\/p>\n<p><center wp_automatic_readability=\"2.2409638554217\"> <\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" wp_automatic_readability=\"6.7228915662651\">\n<p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">posted a picture of my cat on Xiaohongshu and someone replied with this \ud83d\ude2dthey gave my ass a receipt <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/p2DAf8oRkI\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">pic.twitter.com\/p2DAf8oRkI<\/a><\/p>\n<p>\u2014 drea (@okaybrb) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/okaybrb\/status\/1879224606806147217\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\">January 14, 2025<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><\/center><br \/>\n<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\/2025\/01\/200pm-water-cooler-1-14-2025.html\">here<\/a>. From Desert Dog:<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/roost.jpeg\" alt=\"\" width=\"600\" height=\"800\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-285530\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/roost.jpeg 600w, https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/roost-225x300.jpeg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 600px) 100vw, 600px\"\/><\/p>\n<p>Desert Dog writes: \u201cOn the hike up to my daughters house in the four corners area of Colorado I pass this Bald Eagle roost where they can scan the valley below.\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. Material here is Lambert\u2019s, and does not express the views of the Naked Capitalism site. 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!<\/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<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<!-- .entry-content --><\/p>\n<footer class=\"entry-meta\">\n\t\t\tThis entry was posted in <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/category\/water-cooler\" rel=\"category tag\">Water Cooler<\/a> on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/2025\/01\/200pm-water-cooler-1-15-2025.html\" title=\"2:00 pm\" rel=\"bookmark\"><time class=\"entry-date updated\" datetime=\"2025-01-15T14:00:44-05:00\">January 15, 2025<\/time><\/a><span class=\"by-author\"> by <span class=\"author vcard\"><a class=\"url fn n\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/author\/lambert-strether\" title=\"View all posts by Lambert Strether\" rel=\"author\">Lambert Strether<\/a><\/span><\/span>.\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"author-info\" wp_automatic_readability=\"20.197005056398\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<!-- .author-avatar --><\/p>\n<div class=\"author-description\" wp_automatic_readability=\"35.467911318553\">\n<h2>About Lambert Strether<\/h2>\n<p>Readers, I have had a correspondent characterize my views as realistic cynical. Let me briefly explain them. I believe in universal programs that provide concrete material benefits, especially to the working class. Medicare for All is the prime example, but tuition-free college and a Post Office Bank also fall under this heading. So do a Jobs Guarantee and a Debt Jubilee. Clearly, neither liberal Democrats nor conservative Republicans can deliver on such programs, because the two are different flavors of neoliberalism (\u201cBecause markets\u201d). I don\u2019t much care about the \u201cism\u201d that delivers the benefits, although whichever one does have to put common humanity first, as opposed to markets. Could be a second FDR saving capitalism, democratic socialism leashing and collaring it, or communism razing it. I don\u2019t much care, as long as the benefits are delivered. <br \/>\n <br \/>\nTo me, the key issue \u2014 and this is why Medicare for All is always first with me \u2014 is the tens of thousands of excess \u201cdeaths from despair,\u201d as described by the Case-Deaton study, and other recent studies. That enormous body count makes Medicare for All, at the very least, a moral and strategic imperative. And that level of suffering and organic damage makes the concerns of identity politics \u2014 even the worthy fight to help the refugees Bush, Obama, and Clinton\u2019s wars created \u2014 bright shiny objects by comparison. Hence my frustration with the news flow \u2014 currently in my view the swirling intersection of two, separate Shock Doctrine campaigns, one by the Administration, and the other by out-of-power liberals and their allies in the State and in the press \u2014 a news flow that constantly forces me to focus on matters that I regard as of secondary importance to the excess deaths. What kind of political economy is it that halts or even reverses the increases in life expectancy that civilized societies have achieved? I am also very hopeful that the continuing destruction of both party establishments will open the space for voices supporting programs similar to those I have listed; let\u2019s call such voices \u201cthe left.\u201d Volatility creates opportunity, especially if the Democrat establishment, which puts markets first and opposes all such programs, isn\u2019t allowed to get back into the saddle. Eyes on the prize! I love the tactical level, and secretly love even the horse race, since I\u2019ve been blogging about it daily for fourteen years, but everything I write has this perspective at the back of it.<\/p>\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<!-- .author-link\t-->\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p><!-- .author-description -->\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p><!-- .author-info --><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/footer>\n<p><!-- .entry-meta --><br \/>\n\t<!-- #post --><\/p>\n<nav class=\"nav-single\">\n<h3 class=\"assistive-text\">Post navigation<\/h3>\n<p>\t\t\t\t<span class=\"nav-previous list-posts-older\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.nakedcapitalism.com\/2025\/01\/a-forgotten-farming-technique-is-making-a-big-comeback-heres-why.html\" rel=\"prev\"><span class=\"meta-nav\">\u2190<\/span> A Forgotten Farming Technique Is Making a Big Comeback \u2013 Here\u2019s Why<\/a><\/span><br \/>\n\t\t\t\t<span class=\"nav-next list-posts-newer\"\/><br \/>\n\t\t\t<\/nav>\n<p><!-- .nav-single --><\/p>\n<p>\t<!-- #comments .comments-area --><\/p>\n<p>\t<!-- #content --><br \/>\n<!-- #primary --><\/p>\n<p>\t<!-- #secondary --><\/p>\n<footer id=\"colophon\" role=\"contentinfo\">\n\t\t\t\t<!-- .site-info --><br \/>\n\t\t<\/footer>\n<p><!-- #colophon --><br \/>\n\t\t<!-- #main.wrapper --><br \/>\n<!-- #page --><br \/>\n<!-- .mobile-menu-wrap --><\/p>\n<p><!-- Blog Reader Pooling - removed 09\/16\/2015 by M. 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Bird Song of the Day Brown Thrasher, Parc de la Survivance, Les Maskoutains, Quebec, Canada. * * * In Case<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":89754,"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-89753","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\/89753","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=89753"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/89753\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/89754"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=89753"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=89753"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/neclink.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=89753"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}