Thursday, October 14, 2021

And another day of contempt, booster shots, applications, balancing Holocaust books with ‘opposing’ views, child tax credit benefits, recruiting 10-year olds, the CA drought, and Lucy in the sky comes to a close:

“The actions of men are the best interpreters of their thoughts.” -- James Joyce

Deaths

US: 741,893 (+2131)

World: 4,897,227 (+8519)

Cases

US: 45,639,012 (+92,795)

World: 240,375,947 (+369,233)

Jan. 6 panel sets vote on contempt charges against Bannon. A congressional committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection has set a vote to recommend criminal contempt charges against former White House aide Steve Bannon after he defied the panel’s subpoena. Rep. Bennie Thompson, D-Miss., said that the panel will vote next Tuesday to recommend the charges. That would send the recommendation to the full House for a vote.

FDA advisory panel votes to recommend Moderna booster shots for emergency use authorization for certain at-risk groups. The decision will now go to the Food and Drug Administration, which is expected to make a final ruling in the coming days…It would be authorized for adults ages 65 and up; people in long-term care facilities; people with underlying medical conditions; and people at high risk of exposure to the coronavirus because of their job. These individuals would be eligible at least six months after their second shot.

Nursing schools see applications rise, despite COVID burnout. Nurses around the U.S. are getting burned out by the COVID-19 crisis and quitting, yet applications to nursing schools are rising, driven by what educators say are young people who see the global emergency as an opportunity and a challenge.

17 employees have died from Covid in a Florida school district since August. Of the staff who died at the Polk County Public Schools, 12 of the 17 had returned to their jobs when the school year began on Aug. 10, said Kyle Kennedy, a district spokesman. The remaining five employees never reported to their jobs this school year. The district is unaware of how the employees contracted Covid, Kennedy said.

Southlake [Texas] school leader tells teachers to balance Holocaust books with 'opposing' views. Teachers in the Carroll school district say they fear being punished for stocking classrooms with books dealing with racism, slavery and now the Holocaust. -- Dangerous ground we walk upon.

Future of child tax credit may be foggy, but its benefits are growing clearer. Despite concerns, early data shows the extra monthly income has gone to support family budgets and has had little effect on the U.S. labor market. As of now, this benefit program ends in December despite huge popularity and the appearance of real need.

In Mexico, children as young as 10 recruited by drug cartels. Reinserta says kids are frequently recruited to cartels by other children their own age; drug use is one way to recruit them, but the cartels also use religious beliefs and a sense of belonging kids can’t get elsewhere. Combinations of poverty, abusive homes and unresponsive schools and social agencies play a role.

The drought in California this summer was the worst on record. In California, drought conditions this summer were the most extreme in the entire 126-year record -- a clear sign of the role climate change plays in the perilous decline of the state's water resources. Data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration shows that drought months are becoming the new normal, with rainy months becoming fewer and farther between.

Lucy in the sky: Spacecraft will visit record 8 asteroids. Attention asteroid aficionados: NASA is set to launch a series of spacecraft to visit and even bash some of the solar system’s most enticing space rocks. The robotic trailblazer named Lucy is up first, blasting off this weekend on a 12-year cruise to swarms of asteroids out near Jupiter — unexplored time capsules from the dawn of the solar system. And yes, there will be diamonds in the sky with Lucy, on one of its science instruments, as well as lyrics from other Beatles’ songs.

Life’s short. Live, love, create, and help others.

Until next time, my friends. Stay safe and stay sane. Good night.