Endemic Report
We continue to see strong summer-wave infections in northern states as we transition to the fall/winter respiratory virus season. The biggest news over the past week was a case of pneumonic plague from Russia; there is fear of a related pandemic, though experts downplay it.
- "T-cell research reveals paths to better vaccines for COVID-19 and beyond"
- "COVID-19 Exacerbates Multimorbidity Burden in People With HIV"
- "Key Risk Factors for Post-COVID-19 Condition Among Previously Hospitalized Patients"
- "Researchers ID Genes Linked to Severe Pediatric COVID-19"
- "Personality traits may help explain persistent mental distress during COVID pandemic"
- "COVID-19 Linked to Increased Risk of Six Allergic Conditions"
- "Common viral infections may lead to faster ALS progression, study suggests"
- "What COVID-19 Rashes Look Like and Ways to Treat Them"
- "Nasal immune adjuvant protects mice against respiratory viruses for months"
- "China Approves Sinovac Biotech COVID-19 Vaccine"
- COVID relief fraud/other crimes:
- " Florida Laboratory Vice President and Marketer Convicted of Medicare Fraud for COVID-19 Testing Scheme"
- "Federal indictment accuses Maryland man of $100 million COVID-19 test fraud scheme"
- "South Florida resident convicted in $15.7 million COVID-19 testing fraud scheme in West Palm Beach area"
- "Lackawanna business to pay $1.5 million for improper COVID-19 loans"
- "Houston family doctor arrested by FBI Houston, indicted for fraudulent COVID-19-related Medicare claims"
- "Los Angeles man gets nearly 6 years in prison for COVID-19 relief fraud"
- "Ex-councillor guilty of running sham Covid-19 lab"
- "Elk Grove man convicted of blowing $442K in COVID loans at casinos"
- Leegal/political issues:
- "U.S. Supreme Court declines request to consider Bellingham COVID-19 vaccine case"
- "Florida Attorney General sues Pfizer over COVID vaccine claims"
- "Texas Clinics Agree to $20 Million Deal in Covid-19 Suits "
- "Ill. Appellate Court Narrows Scope of Covid-Era Immunity Defenses, Reviving Claims Against Nurse"
- "Extruder America Plastics pays $2.25M to settle COVID loan probe"
- "U.S. Offers $10 Million Reward for Chinese Hacker Who Tried to Steal COVID-19 Research"
- "Doctor faces tribunal over claims Covid-19 vaccine caused magnetic reactions"
- "Donald Trump Admits He’s ‘Concerned’ About Plague-Like Outbreak in Russia After COVID-19 Pandemic"
- "Justice Alito Says COVID-19 Response Subjected Americans' Constitutional Rights To 'Stress Test' ... And Revealed Ugly Truth"
- "USAID suspends COVID-19 relief funds to Uganda"
Other Notes
The blog averages about 10K pageviews daily, though the numbers are dubious. For once, I had a good week on X/Twitter followers.
I've been a good Amazon customer since the 90s. I've occasionally received the wrong product (I particularly remember getting a low-carb bakery mix that was substituted with a different alternative), but most of my issues have been with delivery problems. I just had an issue that boggles my mind. I bought nearly $200 of discounted items during the recent Prime Day promotion. Some items were bulky enough that they would have required at least a medium Amazon box if delivered together. So when Amazon notified me my big order had arrived, and all I saw was a slender envelope on my porch, I initially thought they had delivered to the wrong address. The slender package didn't even have Amazon branding. I was even more confused when the package turned out to be dog treats. (I don't own a dog and have never bought pet treats.) So I have no idea what happened. Did they have a labeling glitch where some dog owner got a boatload of stuff they never ordered? Amazon's web interface isn't designed to handle them screwing up an entire order. So I call customer service and get your typical AI nitwit who assumes you have an issue with an order item. They assure me they have "proof" my order was delivered. Their proof is a photo of the dog treat package on my porch. I repeatedly tell them I need to speak with an agent. They all but warn they'll end the call. I finally end up in an agent queue. When I finally connected, the agent seemed confused about my issue, put me on hold a few times, and finally told me they'd reimburse my card over the next 2 weeks. And I can keep the dog treats. Of course, I lose all those discounts if I try to reorder. They should give you something like a rain check on those discounts. I feel bad they're eating the costs of their screw-up.
Well, it was only a matter of time before my alma mater, Texas, would blow a game, in this case, against arch-rival Oklahoma. An ugly blocked punt in the end zone, two fourth-quarter Manning interceptions, and an errant field-goal attempt to regain the lead late. Manning has had moments of brilliance, but he's been too inconsistent. He's a bit too predictable. Too many short passes to receivers near the line of scrimmage.
It looks like Hallmark's Countdown to Christmas starts this coming Friday. Great American Family is already in theirs, although I have generally watched only 3 that originally were on Hallmark. I'm still not used to seeing holiday stuff before Halloween.
