Sunday, November 21, 2021

And another day of natural immunity, violent protests in Europe, terrorizing public officials, the ‘guns everywhere’ law, ransacking department stores, selling daughters, hiring chief heat officers, and free menstrual products in public restrooms comes to a close:

“Hell is empty and all the devils are here.” — William Shakespeare

Deaths

US: 793,651 (+112)

World: 5,167,773 (+4383)

Cases

US: 48,592,810 (+34,581)

World: 257,821,975 (+395,481)

Republicans fighting President Joe Biden’s coronavirus vaccine mandates are wielding a new weapon against the White House rules: natural immunity. They contend that people who have recovered from the virus have enough immunity and antibodies to not need COVID-19 vaccines, and the concept has been invoked by Republicans as a sort of stand-in for vaccines...Scientists acknowledge that people previously infected with COVID-19 have some level of immunity but that vaccines offer a more consistent level of protection. Natural immunity is also far from a one-size-fits-all scenario, making it complicated to enact sweeping exemptions to vaccines.

Protests in European countries against new Covid-19 restrictions turned violent over the weekend as cases continue to rise in the continent.

More arrests in Netherlands riots one night after "orgy of violence" over COVID-19 restrictions.

Fueled by Trump-inspired grievance, attempts to terrorize public officials escalate. Through public records requests, several previously unreported incidents came to light — while Capitol Police officials say the agency expects to log more than 9,000 threats this year.

The Dangerous Impact of the NRA’s “Guns Everywhere” Law on Airport Security. However, the incident is the latest example of persistent security problems stemming from lax gun regulations that have led to a surge in firearm seizures at airports around the country in recent years. Taking a gun through security checkpoints at airports is illegal, but more and more travelers are attempting to do so (whether intentionally or inadvertently), according to data from the Transportation Security Administration. In the first 10 months of the year, TSA officials nationally seized a record 4,650 firearms at checkpoints. Most were loaded. As air travel moves back toward pre-pandemic levels, the problem could escalate further. The phenomenon has become particularly worrisome in Georgia, where lawmakers in 2014 made it easier for people to carry weapons in schools, bars, churches, government buildings, and certain parts of airports. The NRA-backed Safe Carry Protection Act, known by critics as a “guns everywhere bill,” also prohibits law enforcement officials from asking armed citizens whether they have gun permits.

In Kenosha and beyond, guns become more common on US streets. The two proceedings sent startling new signals about the boundaries of self-defense as more guns emerge from homes amid political and racial tensions and the advance of laws that ease permitting requirements and expand the allowable use of force. Across much of the nation, it has become increasingly acceptable for Americans to walk the streets with firearms, either carried openly or legally concealed. In places that still forbid such behavior, prohibitions on possessing guns in public could soon change if the U.S. Supreme Court strikes down a New York law.

About 80 thieves ransack department store near San Francisco. About 80 people, some wearing ski masks and wielding crowbars, ransacked a high-end department store in the San Francisco Bay Area, assaulting employees and stealing merchandise before fleeing in cars waiting outside, police and witnesses said. -- A new Tik Tok fad? Seriously, though. We don’t want this shit catching on.

14 people rushed into a Louis Vuitton store outside Chicago and ran out with at least $100,000 in merchandise, police say. Police told WLS the individuals rushed into the store at Oak Brook Center Mall on Wednesday, took out garbage bags and began filling them with store items. Surveillance video from the store, obtained by WLS, shows the chaotic scene as the masked shoplifters pour into the store grabbing handbags and other merchandise while shoppers rush out of the way. -- What did I just say?

Desperate for cash, Afghan families are selling young daughters into marriage. “He will just take her hand and take her away from me,” one father said of his 8-year-old. “He will take her away and say, ‘She’s ours now.’” It is traditional for families here to pay a dowry to a bride’s family for a marriage, but it is extreme to arrange a marriage for a child so young. And the economic collapse following the Taliban’s takeover in August has forced already poor families to make desperate choices.

‘An invisible hazard’: Warming cities hire chief heat officers to tackle growing threat. Los Angeles joins Phoenix and Miami-Dade County in Florida in creating new roles designed to center the risks of extreme heat.

Ann Arbor, Michigan, becomes the first US city to require free menstrual products in public restrooms. The city council unanimously voted to pass an ordinance Monday requiring all public restrooms in the 120,000-resident college community -- including those located inside businesses -- to offer pads and tampons for free, as well as toilet paper and soap. Violations of the ordinance, which will go into effect January 1, 2022, will result in a $100 fine, according to the legislation.

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

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