Posts from — May 2020

I have been watching the games being played with the data on the COVID-19 pandemic for weeks all of which are dodgy. The Florida health department decided early on that the only cases that would be reported would be those involving Florida residents. If you were visiting from outside Florida and got sick or died of COVID-19, Florida didn’t want it reported. To control that they ordered county medical examiners to stop publishing local death statistics, something that was common practice, because the MEs reported all deaths, including tourists. Journalists noticed the difference in the number of people in the reports and started asking questions.

Then the health department noticed that their web site was making “too much information” available to the media and researchers. The solution: fire Rebekah Jones, the data manager for the site because she objected to manually deleting data from the site.

The BBC has a long article on the handling of pandemic in the US – Coronavirus: From ‘We’ve shut it down’ to 100,000 US dead

On a lighter note you should check out Sarah Cooper on Twitter. She is a comedienne whose lip syncs of Trump are really worth your time. She does pantomime with a Trump sound track. To understand you have to see her in action. How to Medical is my personal favorite.

Position: 34.4N 80.3W [ 4:00PM CDT 2100 UTC].
Movement: North-Northwest [340°] near 15 mph [24 kph].
Maximum sustained winds: 30 mph [ 45 kph].
Wind Gusts: 40 mph [ 65 kph].
Minimum central pressure: 1008 mb ↑.

Currently about 55 miles [ 85 km] North-Northeast of Columbia, South Carolina.

At 10AM CDT landfall near Mount Pleasant, South Carolina.

At 1PM CDT all watches and warnings are cancelled.

This is the final NHC advisory on the system.

Here’s the link for NOAA’s latest satellite images.

[For the latest information click on the storm symbol, or go to the CATEGORIES drop-down box below the CALENDAR and select “Hurricanes” for all of the posts related to storms on this site.]

Towel Day

You do know where your towel is?

This is a picture from one of the columbariums at the Arlington National Cemetery, the final resting place of many of those who served the United States since the middle of the 19^th century.

That is my Father’s marker. He didn’t know those located around his marker, but they all shared service to their country as part of their life.

The country continues to ask for service and people still respond to that call. As you think about the sacrifices represented by Arlington and other cemeteries, ask yourself if you have done what you could to prevent misuse of the willingness of some to serve.

It is rather for us the living, we here be dedicated to the great task remaining before us–that from these honored dead we take increased devotion to that cause for which they here gave the last full measure of devotion–that we here highly resolve that these dead shall not have died in vain, that this nation shall have a new birth of freedom, and that government of the people, by the people, for the people shall not perish from the earth.

Taps – the final salute to a fallen comrade.

On last Friday an F-22 worth ≅$140 million dropped out of the sky over an Eglin AFB range, and last night an F-35A worth ≅$90 million did the same thing. The pilots ejected successfully. COVID-19 isn’t enough to worry about, now we have tons of flaming metal raining from above.

Position: 36.8N 68.5W [10:00AM CDT 1500 UTC].
Movement: East [100°] near 15 mph [24 kph].
Maximum sustained winds: 60 mph [ 95 kph].
Wind Gusts: 70 mph [115 kph].
Tropical Storm Wind Radius: 160 miles [260 km].
Minimum central pressure: 991 mb.

Currently about 400 miles [ 645 km] East-Northeast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina.

This is the final NHC advisory on Arthur.

Here’s the link for NOAA’s latest satellite images.

[For the latest information click on the storm symbol, or go to the CATEGORIES drop-down box below the CALENDAR and select “Hurricanes” for all of the posts related to storms on this site.]

Position: 36.4N 72.4W [10:00PM CDT 0300 UTC].
Movement: East-Northeast [070°] near 15 mph [24 kph].
Maximum sustained winds: 60 mph [ 95 kph].
Wind Gusts: 70 mph [115 kph].
Tropical Storm Wind Radius: 115 miles [185 km].
Minimum central pressure: 991 mb ↓.

Currently about 190 miles [ 310 km] East-Northeast of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina.

Here’s the link for NOAA’s latest satellite images.

[For the latest information click on the storm symbol, or go to the CATEGORIES drop-down box below the CALENDAR and select “Hurricanes” for all of the posts related to storms on this site.]

Position: 32.4N 76.9W [10:00PM CDT 0300 UTC].
Movement: North-Northeast [020°] near 10 mph [17 kph].
Maximum sustained winds: 45 mph [ 75 kph].
Wind Gusts: 55 mph [ 90 kph].
Tropical Storm Wind Radius: 90 miles [150 km].
Minimum central pressure: 1003 mb ↓.

Currently about 210 miles [ 335 km] South-Southwest of Cape Hatteras, North Carolina.

A Tropical Storm Warning is in effect for Surf City to Duck, North Carolina and the Pamlico and Albemarle Sounds.

Here’s the link for NOAA’s latest satellite images.

[For the latest information click on the storm symbol, or go to the CATEGORIES drop-down box below the CALENDAR and select “Hurricanes” for all of the posts related to storms on this site.]

Position: 29.4N 77.7W [10:00PM CDT 0300 UTC].
Movement: North-Northeast [030°] near 13 mph [20 kph].
Maximum sustained winds: 40 mph [ 65 kph].
Wind Gusts: 50 mph [ 80 kph].
Tropical Storm Wind Radius: 80 miles [130 km].
Minimum central pressure: 1006 mb.

Currently about 190 miles [ 305 km] East-Northeast of Cape Canaveral, Florida.

A Tropical Storm Watch is in effect for Surf City to Duck North Carolina and the Pamlico and Albemarle Sounds.

Here’s the link for NOAA’s latest satellite images.

[For the latest information click on the storm symbol, or go to the CATEGORIES drop-down box below the CALENDAR and select “Hurricanes” for all of the posts related to storms on this site.]

Florida attorney Daniel Uhlfelder, dressed as the Grim Reaper, walks on a newly opened beach near Destin, Florida, on Friday, May 1. He believes Florida beaches are opening too soon, and this is his macabre plea for beachgoers to stay home. (Devon Ravine/USA Today/Reuters)

Trump disagrees with Dr. Fauci on reopening schools. Dr. Fauci attempted to correct Senator Rand Paul’s opinion that it is safe to open schools because children aren’t affected by the virus. Trump wants to reopen the economy, to aid his reelection, so he disagrees with Dr. Fauci.

Doctors Warn Of Severe Inflammatory Syndrome In Children With COVID

The syndrome, now frequently referred to as ‘multisystem inflammatory syndrome in children,’ resembles another childhood condition known as Kawasaki disease which typically affects children under the age of five. The disease causes inflammation in the walls of medium-sized arteries and can damage the heart.

While the new syndrome also involves inflammation, infectious disease experts say it is different from Kawasaki disease. Symptoms include persistent fever, rash, red eyes, inflammation and poor function in one or more organs.

So, relatively few children have died from the virus, but if it’s your child or grandchild, it’s one too many. Even if they don’t die, children carry the virus and can infect adults. What about parents, teachers, aides, bus drivers, janitors, school nurses, the cafeteria staff, etc? Children are not consistent about washing their hands or covering their mouths when they sneeze or cough. Children are definitely not big on social distancing. You need adults to teach and care for the children in this country. Opening schools early will kill people.

Okaloosa County testing plan:

In Partnership with Florida Department of Health – Okaloosa, drive-thru testing begins 05.14.2020 – LInk to More

Crestview Community Center – May 14 8-11am
Destin United Methodist Church – May 19 8-11am
Northwest Florida State College Niceville – May 21 8-11am
Baker Emergency Medical Services Station – May 26 8-11am
Northwest Florida State College Ft. Walton Beach – May 28 8-11am

There are over 200,000 people in the county and they will be testing for 15 hours.

Crestview and Fort Walton Beach have over 20K, Destin and Niceville over 15K, while Baker gets the same 3 hours with 1K. Most of the testing supplies were sent South Florida.

There are only 172 known/reported cases in the county with only 5 known deaths, but without testing who knows for sure?

First some information about the White House. The Navy treats the White House as a flag ship and the President like an Admiral. That’s why there are Marine guards, a Marine band, and a special Marine helicopter serving as an “Admiral’s barge”. There is also a Navy galley (kitchen to the rest of us) with Navy cooks and stewards. One of the stewards is designated as the President’s steward and is responsible for serving the President’s meals and drinks. Should the President get sick to his stomach, the Secret Service know who to talk to about the food and the possibility of contamination.

In the last week the White House has shown it isn’t even capable of protecting itself from COVID-19. Trump doesn’t like masks, so no one at the White House wears one. Despite being a self-confessed “germophobe”, Trump has not been very effective at “social distancing”.

It started with Trump’s steward testing positive for the virus. Then Pence’s press secretary, Katie Miller, tested positive. Mrs. Miller is the wife of Trump advisor Stephen Miller.

Now Dr. Stephen Hahn director of the Food & Drug Administration, Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the Center for Disease Control, and Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, major players on the White House’s COVID-19 task force, are all in self-quarantine as a precaution.

Now others, like Kevin Hassett, a senior economic adviser at the White House is concerned about going to work.

Walls, fences, armed guards, surveillance systems, alarm systems, access control points, and COVID-19 still found a way in.

Trump picked a terrible week to try re-open the economy 😈 [with apologies to National Lampoon’s Airplane]

Seventy-five years ago today the War in Europe ended. Because of COVID-19 all of the celebrations have been cancelled.

We now have a pResident who hasn’t mentioned it and is well on his way to surpassing the death toll of Americans in that war by ignoring the current public health emergency.