Shutdown Diary
In the past week in the U.S. ...
New daily reported cases rose 65.6%
New daily reported deaths rose 20.2%
Covid-related hospitalizations rose 28%
Among reported tests, the positivity rate was 5.1%.
The number of tests reported fell 15.6%
An average of 196.0k adults received the first dose in the U.S. over the last week
By CDC:
There's no way to put a positive spin on these numbers. Note I have used 5% positivity rate for months now as a personal baseline, and we have been significantly below that rate for several weeks now. We are roughly shy of 40K daily cases, almost triple the rate we saw maybe a week back. The weekend numbers are lower, but they usually pick up on weekdays. So when you take into account that over two-thirds of adults (even if you extent that to young teens) are partially vaccinated and nearly 60% are fully vaccinated, keep in mind this surge is almost all completely coming from the 46% of the remaining unvaccinated people (including younger preteen children).
There are probably a couple of top relevant stories in the news:
- Japan, just days from hosting the delayed Olympics from last year, is reportedly experiencing its own surge, and reportedly at least 3 athletes in Olympic Village have tested positive.
- Reportedly a (small?) number of Texas state representatives, who flew to DC to deny a quorum and thus sidetrack voting integrity reforms in Texas, have tested positive for COVID-19. It's got to be embarrassing for Biden who was pushing for 70% of adults vaccinated by July 4.
I had a doctor's appointment this morning and have gotten so used to going around unmasked I was surprised when I was given a disposable one to wear. It wasn't at a hospital clinic, but I guess they have their protocols.
I'm getting more annoyed at my libertarian colleagues. Lew Rockwell's daily email digest this morning appeared with a leading post (paraphrased): "The Persecution of the Unvaccinated".
Life's Little Problems
Logins. My company recently made some nuanced change to its timesheet system that had me scrambling for about a half hour Friday to access my timecard for edit and submit my weekly timesheet.
Then there are changes at many URL's I haven't connected to in a while. I know I have it in at least a few of my password managers and/or browser-stored. I used to have some DRIP investments (company-sponsored stock investments), and I typically needed to access the websites for tax return reasons. I would inevitably run into login issues related to website changes in the interim. Don't get me wtong--I'm Security+ certified and I appreciate website security. But it's bad enough going through the form of torture known as filing a tax return without having to go through the process of having my account password replaced for up to a half dozen accounts just to fill out paperwork. Oh, they claimed to have mailed the information, but I've moved like 4 times in the last 8 years. and I really don't track which website has which address.
I think the most annoying one today was running into a problem accessing my test results from this morning's doctor's visit. I was just on the site over the past week to confirm my appointment. This login was a weird one, because it required a nonstandard username with minimum length and complexity rules which you needed to know to change your password. So it probably took me 15-30 minutes to finally get access to that result.
Entertainment
Well, WWE had its Money in the Bank PPV Sunday night. I experienced some sort of a glitch (also experienced by others) during the men's MITB segment where reception was erratic. I could piece together what was going on through scattered images and brief clips. It turns out the connection was hosed, probably at the start of the match, and was probably corrected before the action started, although the fix didn't apply to ongoing connections; I was able to reconnect to Peacock after the match. I don't recall the WWE Network having comparable issues.
The Mysterio father-son tag team jobbed to the Usos, bringing titles to Reigns' stable. It was clear that it was going to happen; it was just a matter of when/where. It was just a matter of time also before they had Charlotte Flair regain the RAW women's title. I knew they booked a Belair/Carmella bout, I think originally intended for MITB, on Friday's Smackdown, probably just like they moved the Reigns/Mysterio match to the Smackdown before the last PPV. (Hell in a Cell).
Lashley and Reigns retained their championship belts as expected. They briefly teased a Rollins challenge to Reigns when Cena made his long rumored appearance. It had been rumored for the last Smackdown, the first with in-person fans in over a yea, but it makes sense they did it after Edge's challenge was thwarted, in part due to Rollins' interference, hence a new Summerslam match. They keep teasing a Lynch return, maybe bring saved for tonight's debut in-person crowd for RAW (to challenge Flair?)
Nor a fan of this year's MITB match winners: Big E and 5-foot Nikki Cross, in her superheroine gimmick. I have to wonder if they're looking at Big E as a challenger to RAW champ Lashley who destroyed former New Day colleague Kofi Kingston.
