Recent articles I recommend….
Dr. Fauci has a lot to say, and we need to hear it all. ‘A whole lot of hurt’: Fauci warns of covid-19 surge, offers blunt assessment of Trump’s response 11/1/20 https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/fauci-covid-winter-forecast/2020/10/31/e3970eb0-1b8b-11eb-bb35-2dcfdab0a345_story.html
Don’t worry, Dr. Fauci is safe from Trump’s petty wrath. As a career federal employee and esteemed director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases since 1984, he is protected by federal civil service regulations from being fired or demoted for political reasons. Trump says he might fire Fauci. Technically, he can’t 11/2/20 https://www.washingtonpost.com/health/2020/11/02/can-trump-fire-fauci/
A recent CDC study of 101 households with a confirmed COVID patient isolating at home showed that over half of the people living with those patients went on to test positive within 5 days. This short video has tips on reducing this risk. What you can do to reduce the risk of spreading COVID-19 to the people you live with 11/2/20 https://www.clickondetroit.com/health/good-health/2020/11/02/what-you-can-do-to-reduce-the-risk-of-spreading-covid-19-to-the-people-you-live-with/
Don’t be put off by the headline; this article is a fascinating examination of how the coronavirus shaped BOTH sides of the presidential campaign. ‘This f—ing virus’: Inside Donald Trump’s 2020 undoing 11/7/20 https://www.politico.com/news/2020/11/07/this-f-ing-virus-inside-donald-trumps-2020-undoing-434716
In the World
Last week was the 20th anniversary of the first expedition to the International Space Station, as a joint Russian/American team docked with the new station and brought it to life. https://www.nasa.gov/feature/space-station-20th-expedition-1-arrives-at-the-international-space-station
Created, maintained and expanded by funding from many countries and the hard work of countless experts, this enduring monument to peaceful scientific excellence is a plus on humanity’s balance sheet. On a clear night, look up and watch the ISS glide by; 250 miles above, it orbits every 90 minutes. https://spotthestation.nasa.gov/home.cfm
In the US
Again, we have twin crises demanding attention: the election and the pandemic.
ELECTION–Success!
As for the election, Joe Biden won the presidency. And, Kamala Harris will be the FIRST ever female vice-president. What an enormous RELIEF. Hearing the Saturday morning announcement made it totally worth having been glued to MSNBC and Steve Kornacki’s awesome Big Board for all the days AND nights since Nov. 3.
Biden-Harris overwhelmingly won the popular vote AND the electoral college vote to end the horror show we endured for 4 years. Trump hasn’t conceded, but common decency is not in his nature; happily, there is no need, as a legal matter, for the loser to do anything. If necessary, he will be forcibly removed in January, and (after extensive White House decontamination), the Biden family will move in, and the new administration will take charge. The damage done in crucial areas like COVID mitigation, orderly staff hand-overs, seamless military policy, etc.–not to mention America’s world standing–will be considerable, but obviously Trump has no regard for such things.
The German magazine Der Spiegel captured the essence of America’s sea change, contrasting a past cover showing Trump beheading Lady Liberty with a 11/7/20 cover showing Biden replacing the head of Lady Liberty. Der Spiegel Reprises Famous Trump Cover After Biden Win https://www.haaretz.com/world-news/der-spiegel-reprises-famous-trump-cover-after-biden-victory-1.9296379
But, this COVID election highlighted the vastly differing voting laws across our 50 states. Since the right to vote is basic to our democracy, voting standards and protections should be balanced across the country, not subject to inroads by state legislatures or governors, of either party. ALL Americans should be able to:
— register to vote easily;
— vote by mail if desired;
–deliver ballots to secure and accessible drop-off boxes, as an option to mailing; and
–vote early in person if desired.
Not only would these options protect voting rights and promote participation in elections, they would result in TIMELY and accurate election results—which the 2020 election proved is NOT currently the case in many states.
The states that struggled with delayed results did so because their legislatures failed to offer voting options. Those states lacked early in-person voting, so voters had to choose between voting by mail or risking COVID infection at over-crowded voting locations on Election Day—resulting in an enormous number of mail-in ballots. Texas, on the other hand EXTENDED its usual in-person early voting period from 12 days to 18 days; the result was people safely voting in record numbers AND officials being able to tabulate totals, including hefty but not overwhelming mail-in ballots, by midnight on Election Day. Critically, the late-result states also refused to allow mail-in ballots to be processed before Nov. 3, even though officials knew early on that an avalanche of mail-in ballots was coming and begged their legislatures and governors for leeway to handle it.
Obviously, steps need to be taken to facilitate fast and reliable ballot handling by USPS, as opposed to the strategic disabling of the mail system than happened in 2020.
CORONAVIRUS–continued grim failure….
Last week, America reported new cases in record numbers—well over half a million cases in less than a calendar week—surpassing peaks from last spring and summer. Over 57,000 Americans are now hospitalized with COVID, very close to record highs in the past. The death toll is also near record levels, with well over 1,000 Americans now dying every day.
Also last week, Trump‘s Chief of Staff Mark Meadows and several other West Wing staffers were newly diagnosed with COVID, in the fourth (disclosed) White House outbreak since last summer.
President-Elect Biden has already declared COVID mitigation to be a priority. Details on his plans are to be announced as early as Nov. 9.
In Texas
We had HUGE voter participation for this election. And, over half of the registered voters in Texas voted early. (735,000 more Texans voted EARLY this year than voted in the ENTIRE 2016 presidential election, including on Election Day.) In the end, 66% of the 17 million registered Texas voters cast ballots in the 2020 general election. Texas failed to turn blue this year, but maybe next time….
In Lakeway
We only had propositions on the ballot this time, no elections. Of the 7 proposed Charter changes, 5 passed and 2 failed (D and E).
The FAILED proposals concern the City Manager and volunteer treasurer. Our City Manager will continue to be required to live in Lakeway (which reduces the candidate pool and increases the salary to be paid). There will continue to be a volunteer treasurer listed in the Charter; since this function has long been performed by paid Finance Dept. staff, I doubt anything will change as a practical matter.
The PASSED proposals were:
–A: Our annexation process will follow state law.
–B: Our mayor and council members will serve 2 year terms.
–C: Successive terms of our officials will be limited to 3 terms (6 years straight, and up to 7 years straight in the case of a partial 1 year term).
–F: How we handle ballots when a candidate dies or withdraws will follow state law.
–G: How we issue bonds will follow state law.
Council, at its Nov. 2 online meeting, among other things, :
–Hired an Assistant City Manager, Joseph Molis;
–Created a standing Economic Development Committee (9-15 members to be appointed by Mayor Cox), its meetings to be PRIVATE and NOT subject to the Open Meetings Act; and
–Instructed staff to investigate an annual “High Quality Event” for Lakeway to sponsor (to further the work of the Economic Development Committee and preparatory to hiring an Event Coordinator).
Go here to watch this Council meeting online—https://lakewaytx.new.swagit.com/videos/89648
The next Council meeting is Nov. 16. I’m guessing it will be in-person, but who knows….
Finally, I am told the 2020 deer count is underway. This is a full month ahead of the timeline used for the last 3 annual counts, so comparisons will be problematic. These previous counts indicated a slightly decreasing deer population in Lakeway, which was supported by the city’s own statistics on things like collisions, carcass pick-ups and resident complaints—all dwindling as well. Hopefully, the results of the 2020 count will be released to the public before any Council action is taken. Not only was Lakeway’s decades-long culling barbaric and inhumane, it was also unnecessary and failed to reduce the deer population long-term since Hill Country deer simply wandered inside city limits to take advantage of available resources and territory. As a practical matter, past culling cost the city hundreds of thousands of taxpayer dollars; now, with the COVID economy reducing tax revenue, Lakeway has no funds to waste. By the way, the Wildlife Advisory Committee last met in February and seems to have been disbanded, although it is still listed on the city site. While other committees have met sporadically or not at all during the pandemic, their monthly meetings are still listed on the city calendar, then cancelled if nothing urgent comes up; WAC has not appeared on calendars since June.
Back to me….
Great quote: “What matters most is how well you walk through the fire.” It is from a poem by the late Charles Bukowski, whose work seems unpalatable overall. But, it feels like there is a lot of fire lately….
I recently fell in love with the old TV series Justified (2010-2015), escaping ugly reality with something very different, watching all 6 seasons of stellar entertainment in record time. Yet, that show’s distinctive theme song perfectly captures 2020 – “Long Hard Times to Come.” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9BEoG0e-L8 But, I’m hoping the recent election signifies a turn-around on that theme.
Otherwise, marathon election-watching was punctuated with fall cleaning and coping with some changes on my online job.
The deer are less visible, as they always are this time of year. But, here are a few recent photos. Also, a cheeky squirrel….
Update on The National Zoo’s panda cub (he squeaks a lot in this one)–PandaStory: Nine Weeks Old https://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/news/pandastory-nine-weeks-old?fbclid=IwAR0xqhpmqvm-Yj2HbEi_ylHlqg-H6I7CnXUrK1Nry4_FlgxdmPFtmwz1YFU
In this video, cubbie is sleepy and naps though his exam–PandaStory: 11 Weeks Old https://nationalzoo.si.edu/animals/news/pandastory-11-weeks-old
Perspective is key…..
Worldwide, we passed 50 million Covid cases on November 7.
In the US, we passed 10 million Covid cases on November 6.
In Texas, there are now over 6,000 people hospitalized (with this number climbing steadily), the daily death rate recently has been well over 100 people, and the positivity rate now exceeds 10% (and is also climbing steadily). El Paso remains the hardest-hit area, with makeshift hospitals and morgues, as well as military medical assistance; the city is also under a judicial shutdown order that has so far survived legal challenge by restaurant owners and by AG Paxton, acting on behalf of Gov. Abbott. But, many other areas across the state are surging.