It is clear who we can and cannot trust, so I recommend these recent articles from Dr. Anthony Fauci:
—Fauci debunks theories of low CDC coronavirus death toll: ‘There are 180,000-plus deaths’ in U.S. https://www.cnbc.com/2020/09/01/fauci-debunks-theories-of-low-cdc-coronavirus-death-toll-there-are-180000-plus-deaths-in-us.html?fbclid=IwAR2fSXhSbfyxWhdarQ7JPm_0O9iSwS6yMOdh7tw2i2tF2j7Cug78LnQPPwg
—Fauci says U.S. needs to ‘hunker down’ for fall and winter https://www.nbcnews.com/health/health-news/fauci-says-u-s-needs-hunker-down-fall-winter-n1239798?cid=sm_npd_nn_fb_ma&fbclid=IwAR02lTJtUFAoW3Q8ShQMp3m1Bp9pjhPV98N5AMz7OjRQiM9391VlGXYiMAc
I also recommend this article–How Did the ‘Best-Prepared Country’ Become a Horror Story? 9/13/20 https://www.nytimes.com/2020/09/12/opinion/sunday/donald-trump-coronavirus.html
As always, my Covid-19 page has links to articles added daily, on all aspects of the pandemic.
In the US
SO MANY political tell-all books came out the last 2 weeks, the western edge of the country caught fire, and we observed both Labor Day and the 19th anniversary of 9/11. Of course, 197,000 Americans missed that milestone, having died in the current tragedy of COVID. I wonder how many more of us will die before the 20th anniversary? Another 200,000? More? Will there be a safe and effective vaccine a year from now? Or is that just another lie?
It is natural to compare 9/11 and the pandemic, despite their fundamental differences. What I heard repeatedly last week was a sense of nostalgia, a feeling we were better off back then, as bad as it was at the time. It seemed to boil down to feeling that in 2001 we were at least united. Now, our division along every axis—party and race just being the start of it—seems insurmountable. With all the anger and hate, and the screaming matches online amongst ourselves and also in the media, being united isn’t even palatable. Maybe in 2020, thanks to all the over-sharing in recent years, we just know each other far too well.
As for the books, I highly recommend soothing eye drops and:
–Peter Strzok’s Compromised: Counterintelligence and the Threat of Donald J. Trump
–Michael S. Schmidt’s Donald Trump v. The United States: Inside the Struggle to Stop a President
–Bob Woodward’s Rage.
But, the several trashier books published recently are also fun reads and VERY illuminating.
As for the fires, I recommend prayer. Also, if you can do it, donations. The Red Cross is always a good choice https://www.redcross.org/about-us/our-work/disaster-relief/wildfire-relief.html
Another option is Greater Good, which sends teams and funds local groups assisting people, pets and other animals in harm’s way. https://store.theanimalrescuesite.greatergood.com/collections/new-arrivals/products/93573-2020-disaster-response
For 9/11, I recommend this article: ‘We’re the Only Plane in the Sky’ https://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/09/were-the-only-plane-in-the-sky-214230
Without politicizing the tragedy, it tells the story of the moments and hours after it happened, from the viewpoint of staff and media who had traveled with President Bush to a school event in Florida. It shows how they made their way home during an unprecedented threat. They were scared, too.
This last recommendation is also non-partisan. Bruce Springsteen wrote us all a song. It is quintessential Bruce & E Street Band, only missing Clarence …. Listen to “A Letter to You“ here. You’ll feel better. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQyLEz0qy-g
In Texas
Schools and universities started up, some in person. Football games were played, with people in the stands. We’ll soon see the results of all that.
Gov. Abbott started signaling that he is going to ease restrictions on bars. The way he and TABC caved to bars already, letting them operate as restaurants without having kitchens by selling pre-packaged food, makes this nearly a non-issue. Surely the point has been made, over and over, in state after state–bars spread COVID.
In Lakeway
Mayor Cox mentioned in her Facebook talk last week that early voting is no longer allowed at schools or grocery stores. So, starting Oct. 13, Lakeway’s early voting will be held at the Activity Center. (Thanks to Gov. Abbott’s idiocy, masks are NOT required at the polls.)
People are still complaining about the raised medians on 620. Personally, I plan my trips to eliminate left-hand turns and prefer anything that minimizes collisions on this hazardous and unavoidable roadway.
Council again discussed the budget and raising our property tax rate as high as 3.5% (the max they can go with triggering an election for approval), at its Sept. 8 special meeting. Yet again, no final decision was made. However:
- They are still planning action against our deer. Mayor Cox stated that the annual deer count would be done 2 months early this year (in October), so that, depending on the results, Council would have time to take action against the deer. (Whether this would be TTT or TTP was not specified, but both include inhumane trapping.) For that purpose, roughly $40,000 was set aside in the budget; the latest estimate for culling was $120,000-$170,000, so apparently the rest will come out of the Capital Fund cookie jar. However, they fudge it, this money comes from our taxes. Funding and killing aside, changing the timing of the deer count is unfortunate, since the trend data gleaned won’t match up with that from the last 3 years, when the count was done in early December. Deer counts are all about trends; a single count is considered worthless.
- Mayor Cox yet again stressed she wants to give city staff an across-the-board raise. This is in addition to the 4 new positions and 2 vehicles that would require a property tax increase. She insists she wants to “take care of our people.” Surely, the RESIDENTS of Lakeway are the people she should be taking care of by NOT raising taxes at this difficult time. If they can manage to avoid furloughs of staff, that would be lovely, but anyone who expects a RAISE during a pandemic is way too entitled—even by Lakeway’s standards.
- The online meeting was the usual technical nightmare. City staff had repeated problems getting connected. Sound quality was laughable, and the extended time lag between Council and others was tedious. The sole resident who signed up for Citizen Participation was able to connect, but his comments were garbled by the system and unintelligible. Lakeway has had the same amount of time as the rest of America to figure out remote meetings and adopt Zoom instead of this decrepit system. If only the city had a Communications Director to handle these things…. Oh, wait, we do.
Council will consider budget issues one last time at its Sept. 21 meeting. It will adopt a budget and set the tax rate at the special Sept. 28 meeting. All meetings will limp along online in non-Zoom fashion. Go here to see the Agendas and Meeting Packets (posted 3 days prior)–https://www.lakeway-tx.gov/archive.aspx
If you want to make a public comment, you must arrange it BEFORE a meeting. To send written comments to Council and/or request to speak at the meeting, go here and create a Public Comment Form—https://lakeway-tx.civicweb.net/Portal/CitizenEngagement.aspx
Go here to watch Council meetings online, live or after the fact—https://www.lakeway-tx.gov/1062/Videos—Meetings-Events
Back to me….
I took advantage of the current COVID lull by catching up on medical appointments cancelled in the spring and early summer. Both my primary and dermatologist are very worried about another surge in Texas this fall.
We not only got needed rain but glorious jacket weather…in September! Cuddling with cats and a blanket is my idea of paradise. It only lasted 24 hours, but it was terrific.
My favorite living author, Louise Penny, has her latest book, All the Devils Are Here, sitting at #1 on the NY Times Bestseller List today. Well deserved! This is the 16th book in the author’s amazing Gamach series. I just finished it and think it, after a couple uneven recent books, may be her very best. Instead of her usual Canadian setting, this book is set in Paris; it lets readers travel abroad safely, and it also highlights characters who were previously under-used. Amazon will send you one. Also, the Lake Travis Community Library has it.
The book uses a quote from Thomas Hobbes that struck me. “Hell is the truth seen too late.” Think about that. Seems to me it applies universally– to politics, the pandemic, even that unfortunate relationship, Facebook post, or failed recipe….
The deer continue to amaze. Fawns born in spring are now nearly as tall as their moms with rapidly fading spots. Enjoy a few of my favorite photos!
Panda cub updates:
–The National Zoo’s PandaCam updates show Mei Xiang caring for her thriving baby panda. https://www.fox5dc.com/news/national-zoos-latest-pandacam-shows-mei-xiang-care-for-baby-panda-in-reminder-there-is-joy-in-this-world?fbclid=IwAR3FHzDZ7QQsLBC7RWzIZG78oJ5tv01QB2nV3jmygwjUTRzEbSL5RCiCsZ4
–Mom grabs a snack and wee cub complains very cutely. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iqbtS_kkYyU&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR2C-1ciQLJXGeL9MgT_fFHMDTFzuuKPFV68rVg5NB1ECgt1xaECXG2fQXg
Perspective is key…..
Worldwide, we are closing in on 30 million cases and 1 million deaths. I’m feeling numb to numbers, which may be for the best. India has lurched into second place, behind America, for confirmed cases. Considering India has 4 times the number of people that America does, it will likely at some point take over our sad #1 spot. However, India’s death rate is relatively low, in part because its obesity rate is very low (while America tends toward obesity, a serious complicating factor for surviving COVID).
In the US, this past week we averaged 38,000 new COVID infections per day. We averaged 748 COVID deaths per day. And this is the plateau, down from the horror show of July but still far worse than May-June. Experts warn that when this lull ends (and it will end), the surge will be FAR worse that July was, due to the high plateau.
In Texas, deaths were reported in the last week at an average of 103 per day. (Yes, that means that of the 748 Americans who died per day last week, 103 were Texans.) Right now, the state site is again strewn with multiple warnings of data discrepancies. While the positivity rate (8.11 today) and hospitalizations (3,319 today) are reported as dropping, is that data accurate?