By Lambert Strether of Corrente.
Happy Friday the Thirteenth to those who celebrate! –lambert
Bird Song of the Day
Northern Mockingbird, Siboney; BIOECO Estacion Ecologica Siboney-Jutici, Santiago de Cuba, Cuba. “This is all one continuous cut even through my announcement.” Grab a cup of coffee. Eighteen minutes (though the last two minutes or so are the “announcement.”
In Case You Might Miss…
- RFK, Trump, and vax.
- Covid “viral reservoir” theory recieves support.
- Where oil profits went.
- New Covid charts: Good news, but positivity uptick.
Politics
“So many of the social reactions that strike us as psychological are in fact a rational management of symbolic capital.” –Pierre Bourdieu, Classification Struggles
Trump Transition
“RFK Jr key adviser petitioned regulators to revoke approval of polio vaccine” [Ed Pilkington, Guardian]. “A key legal adviser to Robert Kennedy Jr, Donald Trump’s pick for health secretary, is at the center of efforts to push federal drug regulators to revoke approval for the polio and hepatitis B vaccines and block distribution of 13 other critical vaccines. Aaron Siri, a lawyer who has been helping Kennedy select top health administrators as part of the Trump transition process, is deeply embedded in longstanding efforts to force the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to withdraw a raft of vaccines that have saved the lives and health of millions of Americans.” • I don’t mind having a good faith discussion about rolling back the childhood vaccination schedule; heck, it looks like a spreadsheet. But my concern has always been that the anti-vaxxers want to roll back all vaccines, including the original Measles, Mumps, and Rubella (MMR), i.e., the ones I was given as a child, and a good thing, too. And now a RFK’s legal running buddy wants to roll back polio vaccines, so my “lack of good faith” priors are heavily reinforced. A bridge too far, for me. Maybe focus on MAHA? Unless getting rid of polio vaccines is MAHA, of course.
“Trump to discuss ending childhood vaccination programs with RFK Jr.” [Reuters]. “He (Kennedy) does not disagree with vaccinations, all vaccinations. He disagrees probably with some,” Trump said.” • “Probably” is doing a lot of work there. And if Kennedy wanted to preseve polio vaccines, then his mimion wouldn’t be trying to revoke their approval. And if you want to get rid of the polio vaccines, then you might as well “disagree” with “all vaccinations.” Trump should put RFK back in his box on this one.
* * * “Trump Transition Team Wants To End Crash Report Requirement Opposed By Tesla, Report Says” [Forbes]. “President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team wants to scrap a regulatory order requiring automakers to report crashes involving vehicles with automated driving systems, Reuters reported Friday, aligning with opposition to the rule by Elon Musk’s Tesla, which accounts for most crashes reported under the requirement so far.” • Oh.
* * * “SEC charges Cantor Fitzgerald, led by Trump’s Commerce pick, with breaking securities laws” [CNBC]. • If we hadn’t just had four years of Democrat lawfare, I’d be aghast.
Republican Funhouse
“House Republicans launch investigation into CVS Caremark for potential antitrust violations” [The Hill]. “House Republicans want to know whether pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) CVS Caremark violated federal antitrust laws by threatening independent pharmacies to keep them from using money-saving tools outside the PBM’s network. In a letter to CVS obtained by The Hill, House Judiciary Committee Chair Jim Jordan (R-Ohio) asked the company for documents and communications about pharmaceutical hubs, a type of digital pharmacy service that can streamline the process of accessing and managing complex, high-cost specialty medications for patients. Jordan expressed concern that CVS prevents independent pharmacies from participating in hub arrangements, because the company wants to head off potential competition. If an independent pharmacy works with a hub outside the PBM, it could be excluded from the PBMs network.” • Good.
Syndemics
“I am in earnest — I will not equivocate — I will not excuse — I will not retreat a single inch — AND I WILL BE HEARD.” –William Lloyd Garrison
Covid Resources, United States (National): Transmission (CDC); Wastewater (CDC, Biobot; includes many counties; Wastewater Scan, includes drilldown by zip); Variants (CDC; Walgreens); “Iowa COVID-19 Tracker” (in IA, but national data). “Infection Control, Emergency Management, Safety, and General Thoughts” (especially on hospitalization by city).
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 “COVID” in the subject line. Thank you!
Resources, United States (Local): AK (dashboard); AL (dashboard); AR (dashboard); AZ (dashboard); CA (dashboard; Marin, dashboard; Stanford, wastewater; Oakland, wastewater); CO (dashboard; wastewater); CT (dashboard); DE (dashboard); FL (wastewater); GA (wastewater); HI (dashboard); IA (wastewater reports); ID (dashboard, Boise; dashboard, wastewater, Central Idaho; wastewater, Coeur d’Alene; dashboard, Spokane County); IL (wastewater); IN (dashboard); KS (dashboard; wastewater, Lawrence); KY (dashboard, Louisville); LA (dashboard); MA (wastewater); MD (dashboard); ME (dashboard); MI (wastewater; wastewater); MN (dashboard); MO (wastewater); MS (dashboard); MT (dashboard); NC (dashboard); ND (dashboard; wastewater); NE (dashboard); NH (wastewater); NJ (dashboard); NM (dashboard); NV (dashboard; wastewater, Southern NV); NY (dashboard); OH (dashboard); OK (dashboard); OR (dashboard); PA (dashboard); RI (dashboard); SC (dashboard); SD (dashboard); TN (dashboard); TX (dashboard); UT (wastewater); VA (wastewater); VT (dashboard); WA (dashboard; dashboard); WI (wastewater); WV (wastewater); WY (wastewater).
Resources, Canada (National): Wastewater (Government of Canada).
Resources, Canada (Provincial): ON (wastewater); QC (les eaux usées); BC (wastewater); BC, Vancouver (wastewater).
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, Tom B., Utah, Bob White (3).
Stay safe out there!
Airborne Transmission
Word of the day (or the decade):
WORD OF THE WEEK:
Ca•cough•ony
A portmanteau of the words ‘cacophony’ + ‘cough’.
An unpleasant chorus of loud of coughing.
Often experienced during carol concerts, nativities, pantomimes, school assemblies & other indoor mass gatherings just before Xmas.@susie_dent pic.twitter.com/nDyRqpBfQB
— Cat in the Hat 🐈⬛ 🎩 🇬🇧 (@_CatintheHat) December 13, 2024
“Days after Era Tour ends, Taylor Swift spreads holiday cheer at Children’s Mercy Hospital in KC” [Knox News]. • And that’s not all she’s spreading, is it?
Vaccines: Covid
“COVID-19 vaccination and short-term mortality risk: a nationwide self-controlled case series study in The Netherlands” (preprint) [medRxiv]. From the Abstract: “We conducted a retrospective data-linkage study including all Dutch inhabitants to investigate the impact of COVID-19 vaccination on excess mortality using a modified self-controlled case series method. We found a 44% lower relative incidence of all-cause deaths in the first three weeks after the primary vaccination compared to more than three weeks after vaccination (IRR 0.56, 95%CI 0.54-0.57). This lower incidence was consistent across vaccine types, doses, genders, age groups, and individuals with or without prior SARS-CoV-2 infection or comorbidities, and for non-COVID-19 related deaths. For booster vaccinations, the relative incidence was similar (IRR 0.49, 95%CI 0.49-0.50). In comparison, we observed a 16-fold higher incidence of all-cause deaths in the three weeks following a registered positive SARS-CoV-2 infection compared to more than three weeks after infection (IRR 16.19, 95%CI 15.78-16.60). A lower relative incidence of short-term deaths following COVID-19 vaccination support that COVID-19 vaccination is not associated with the observed excess mortality.” • “Not associated” for that (relatively short) time-frame, as they indeed say.
Variants: H5N1
“Novel human-type receptor-binding H5N1 virus in live poultry markets, China” [The Lancet]. “In January, 2024, findings from a surveillance study near Poyang Lake in southern China revealed a high prevalence of novel H5N1 viruses that showed enhanced binding affinity for human-type sialic acid receptors…. Given the established role of [Live poultry markets (LPMs)] as a major source of human H5N1 infections, we highlight the urgent need for enhanced surveillance and public health interventions to mitigate the widespread transmission potential of these novel human-type receptor-binding H5N1 viruses in these markets.” • “Novel” in the headline and repeated in the text doesn’t sound good. Perhaps a kind reader can translate the entire abstract.
Sequelae: Covid
“Multi-Organ Spread and Intra-Host Diversity of SARS-CoV-2 Support Viral Persistence, Adaptation, and a Mechanism That Increases Evolvability” [Journal of Medical Virology (Jason Boxman). The Abstract:
Intra-host diversity is an intricate phenomenon related to immune evasion, antiviral resistance, and evolutionary leaps along transmission chains. SARS-CoV-2 intra-host variation has been well-evidenced from respiratory samples. However, data on systemic dissemination and diversification are relatively scarce and come from immunologically impaired patients. Here, the presence and variability of SARS-CoV-2 were assessed among 71 tissue samples obtained from multiple organs including lung, intestine, heart, kidney, and liver from 15 autopsies with positive swabs and no records of immunocompromise. . All organs presented intra-host single nucleotide variants (iSNVs) with low, moderate, and high abundances. The iSNV abundances observed within different organs indicate that . In agreement with previous data from respiratory samples, our lung samples presented no more than 10 iSNVs each. But interestingly, when analyzing different organs we were able to detect between 11 and 45 iSNVs per case. . We elaborate on how compartmentalized evolution in multiple organs may contribute to SARS-CoV-2 evolving so rapidly despite the virus having a proofreading mechanism.
Yikes.
Lambert: After repeated attempts, this is what I get for CDC’s wastewater page:
I conclude that CDC doesn’t know how to run a server, along with everything else they don’t know how to do.
| Wastewater | |
| This week[1] CDC December 2 | Last week[2] CDC (until next week): |
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| Variants [3] CDC December 7 | ★Emergency Room Visits[4] CDC December 7 |
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| Hospitalization | |
| ★New York[5] New York State, data December 12: | ★ National [6] CDC December 12: |
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| Positivity | |
| National[7] Walgreens December 9: | ★ Ohio[8] Cleveland Clinic December 7: |
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| Travelers Data | |
| ★Positivity[9] CDC November 25: | ★Variants[10] CDC November 25: |
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| Deaths | |
| Weekly Deaths vs. % Positivity [11] CDC November 20: | Weekly Deaths vs. ED Visits [12] CDC November 20: |
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LEGEND
1) ★ for charts new today; all others are not updated.
2) For a full-size/full-resolution image, Command-click (MacOS) or right-click (Windows) on the chart thumbnail and “open image in new tab.”
NOTES
[1] (CDC) Good news!
[2] (CDC) Last week’s wastewater map.
[3] (CDC Variants) XEC takes over. That WHO label, “Ommicron,” has done a great job normalizing successive waves of infection.
[4] (ED) A little uptick.
[5] (Hospitalization: NY) Leveled out.
[6] (Hospitalization: CDC). Leveling out.
[7] (Walgreens) Leveling out.
[8] (Cleveland) Up!
[9] (Travelers: Positivity) Leveling out.
[10] (Travelers: Variants). Positivity is new, but variants have not yet been released.
[11] Deaths low, positivity leveling out.
[12] Deaths low, ED leveling out.
Stats Watch
There are no official statistics of interest today.
Manufacturing: “Boeing Plans $1 Billion Expansion in South Carolina” [Industrial Equipment News]. “Boeing yesterday announced plans to invest $1 billion in infrastructure upgrades at its Charleston County, South Carolina site. The expansion will create 500 new jobs over the next five years. The announcement was made by the South Carolina Department of Commerce (SCDC). Boeing South Carolina is home to the entire 787 Dreamliner production cycle and fabricates, assembles, and delivers the 787-8, 787-9 and 787-10. The factory has been in operation for more than ten years.” • That’s non-unionized South Carolina.
Manufacturing: “Boeing, Airbus still struggle with supply chains and personnel shortages” [Leeham News & Analysis]. “Michael Haidinger, president of Boeing’s European and Middle Eastern regions, and Juergen Westermeier, chief procurement officer for Airbus, agree challenges remain in the near future. ‘There is always a shortage of skilled aerospace talent intensified by the pandemic,’ Haidinger said this month at the annual Aviation Forum (2024) in Munich, Germany. ‘As all the professionals retired, fewer new employees entered the field. Our industry needs more people who not only bring expertise but also embrace the mission of advancing aerospace.’ Haidinger added, ‘The deficit of skilled engineers, technicians, and other aerospace workers has made ramping up production more challenging. Attracting and retaining talent has become a top priority for us. [We are] with many companies investing in workforce development, partnerships with universities, training programs, and apprenticeship programs.’”
Today’s Fear & Greed Index: 51 Neutral (previous close: 48 Neutral) [CNN]. One week ago: 56 (Greed). (0 is Extreme Fear; 100 is Extreme Greed). Last updated Dec 11 at 1:27:47 PM ET.
Musical Interlude
Toe-tapping goodness:
Groves of Academe
“Comparative lit class will be first in Humanities Division to use UCLA-developed AI system” (press release) [Newsroom, UCLA]. “The textbook: AI-generated. Class assignments: AI-generated. Teaching assistants’ resources: AI-generated.” When I ran a Literary Hub post on this story, alert reader and critical thinker PJay asked a great question: “Are we sure this isn’t a Sokal-type hoax?” So I went and dug up this press release; the odds of hoaxdom are vanishingly small. Here again, for your reference. is the AI art for the textbook. Put down your coffee:
The course is Comp Lit 2BW in the UCLA College Division of Humanities [sic]. Would some kind soul with a UCLA connection be able to throw copies of the teaching material over the transom? I’m sure the readership would enjoy them. My email address is down by the plants.
Healthcare
“UnitedHealth Group C.E.O.: The Health Care System Is Flawed. Let’s Fix It.” [Andrew Witty, New York Times]. Witty is the chief executive officer of UnitedHealth Group, the parent company of UnitedHealthcare. “He believed decisions about health care should start with the individual and championed plans in which consumers could see costs and coverage options upfront, so they could decide what’s best for themselves and their families.” • Oh.
“Brian Thompson, Not Luigi Mangione, Is the Real Working-Class Hero” [Bret Stephens, New York Times]. “Thompson’s life may have been cut brutally short, but it will remain a model for how a talented and determined man from humble roots can still rise to the top of corporate life without the benefit of rich parents and an Ivy League degree.”
“The Crisis of Elite Indifference to Corporate Mass Murder” [Nathan Newman, Left Future]. The deck: “And a Modest Proposal to License No More than 10 CEO Murders Each Year to Improve Corporate Accountability” NOTE: Satire. Sort of like Shirley Jackson’s The Lottery. As the author mentions!
“Lakeland woman threatens insurance company, says ‘Delay, Deny, Depose’: police” [WFLA]. “A Lakeland woman was charged Tuesday after police said she ended a call to an insurance company with the words, ‘Delay, Deny, Depose.’ In an arrest affidavit, the Lakeland Police Department said officers were contacted by the FBI on Tuesday, Dec. 10 regarding an alleged threat made over the phone. Briana Boston, 42, had reportedly placed a call to BlueCross BlueShield regarding recent medical insurance claims she was denied. The entire phone call was recorded, according to the affidavit…. Police made contact with Boston at her home in Lakeland, where she reportedly admitted to using those words during the call, telling detectives that ‘healthcare companies played games and deserved karma from the world because they are evil.’ ‘My client is 42, married mother of three. Never had any criminal charges or convictions. May you release her on her own recognizance,’ her attorney Jim Headley said to a judge during her first appearance in court. However, the judge set her bond at $100,000, stating, ‘I do find that the bond of $100,000 is appropriate .’ Boston was charged with threats to conduct a mass shooting or an act of terrorism, according to the affidavit.” • Hoo boy.
“Woman threatens BlueCross BlueShield, saying ‘delay, deny, depose’, then gets arrested” [WHAM]. “Boston is charged with one count “Written Threat to Kill or Injure- Conduct a mass shooting or an act of terrorism.” • This looks like the relevant Florida statute;
But phone calls are exempt, and Boston made the alleged threat over the phone. Perhaps a legal expert from Florida can weigh in?
“BioLab sets deadline for claims over Conyers chemical plant fire” [FOX5]. “Time is running out to file reimbursement claims in connection to the BioLab chemical plant fire in Conyers. The fires in September sent chemical-filled smoke into the air for days, leading to complaints about a strong chemical smell and haze and forcing thousands to shelter in place. The company is already facing multiple lawsuits, including one filed by Rockdale County commissioners. The commission chair says that the lawsuit is currently in process. As cleanup began, BioLab opened a website for residents to file a claim for expenses incurred as a result of the fire. The company says it has responded to more than 29,000 calls and 9,000 emails, and helped 4,000 people through its Community Assistance Center since Oct. 8. With the high volume of claims steadily decreasing, BioLab has set a deadline for New Year’s Eve for any new submissions. After that, the company will no longer accept new claims.”• The post gives directions on filing a claim, which is useful. Still, what about long term effects?
“Musk’s Charitable Foundation Sent Most of Its Millions to His Own Entities” [Bloomberg]. “Elon Musk’s charitable foundation ballooned to $9.5 billion in assets last year while handing out $237 million in gifts, most of which went to other entities controlled by the world’s richest person. The figures are part of the Musk Foundation’s latest tax filing, obtained Thursday by Bloomberg News…. The nonprofits Musk controls are part of his vast and growing empire, which counts a carmaker, rocket company, social media platform and, now, a major political apparatus…. Though Musk has widened his lead as the richest person ever, his philanthropy remains muted…. The IRS mandates that foundations deploy, on average, 5% of assets a year. Musk has repeatedly missed that bar. Over the years, even as the foundation has grown in wealth, he has kept the team small. Its latest filing lists the same handful of people, including himself and his fixer, Jared Birchall.” • Lol, “muted.” “Fixer” is also quite a strong word to use, especially for Bloomberg. I mean, “fixer” is a Third World concept, no?
“Distributional implications and share ownership of record oil and gas profits” (PDF) [University of Massachusetts, Amherst]. “We estimate that globally, net income in publicly listed oil and gas companies reached US$916 billion in 2022. The United States was the biggest beneficiary receiving US$301 billion in fossil fuel profits both from domestic extraction and through global shareholding, more than U.S. investments of US$267 billion in the low carbon economy that year. Analyzing the U.S. distribution including privately held US companies, 51% of profits went to the wealthiest 1%, predominantly through direct shareholdings and private company ownership. In contrast the bottom 50% only received 1%. The incremental fossil-fuel profits in 2022 over those in 2021 were enough to increase the disposable income of the wealthiest Americans several percent and compensate a substantial part of their purchasing power loss from inflation that year, thereby exacerbating inflation inequality. Record fossil-fuel profits also reinforce existing racial and ethnic inequalities and inequalities between groups with different educational attainments. Our results also show that only a small share of overall profits benefits institutions that serve the wider public such as pension funds.” • Handy chart:
NEW PAPER: The 2022 fossil fuel price jumps caused an oil and gas profit explosion. We show the US reaped the largest profit increase (USD 275bn) of any country. Big Oil claims this benefits the American people. In fact, 51% went to the richest 1%, only 1% to the bottom 50%. A 🧵 pic.twitter.com/2p1SVQqImO
— Isabella M. Weber (@IsabellaMWeber) December 12, 2024
I am not feeling wired today.
Contact information for plants: 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) here. From timotheus:
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