Results of COVID testing – The perils of living alone – Marjorie Taylor-Greene’s confusion between culinary and constabulary matters – France’s pre-emptive measures against a freedom convoy – A homicide in Italy – The extent of COVID vaccination – Dr. Fauci is optimistic – Evening statistics
After I wrote the preceding entry it occurred to me that I was indulging in a bit of hubris by expressing so much confidence in the results of my COVID test. If so, Nemesis has not overtaken me on this occasion. I received the results today, somewhat earlier than I expected (it was a 24-hour turnaround time, in fact), and the result is negative. And even though I was not especially worried, I will admit that it is a relief to obtain confirmation that I have thus far escaped from the virus.
The following story is not COVID-related, but it has relevance to people in my situation. Marinella Beretta, of Como in Italy, was discovered by police in her home. She had been dead for well over two years and her remains had become mummified. Nearly 40% of men and women over 75 years old in Italy live alone. Berretta’s neighbors, who had not seen her since September 2019, assumed she had moved away at the start of the coronavirus pandemic. Of course many elderly people, including myself, live alone in this country as well. I have some interaction with my neighbors and my relatives and my friends, particularly with those who join me on hikes, but still – I go away on trips from time to time, I don’t always respond rapidly to Emails or messages left on my cell phone. And, of course, I have been living a somewhat more isolated life for the past two years on account of the restrictions imposed by the pandemic. It’s conceivable that once I pass on it will take some time for others to notice. I suppose that I should set up some sort of mechanism to alert people if there’s no sign of life in the house after a while, but I have no idea of how to go about it. It’s something that I need to research.
Marjorie Taylor-Greene has accused Nancy Pelosi having “gazpacho police.” Who knew that Pelosi’s devious plans included an attempt to force Americans to consume cold soup made from bread crumbs, tomatoes, cucumbers, bell peppers, garlic, olive oil, and wine vinegar? Needless to say, the Internet has taken up this faux pas with its usual charitableness. Alexandra Petri, for instance, tweeted that “the use of gazpacho tactics by Nancy Pelosi is chilling” while Alyssa Farah Griffin, a former White House communications director under the Trump administration, added, “Thank goodness my wedding caterers knew the difference between gazpacho and the gestapo. Coulda gotten weird.”
So-called “freedom convoys” of motorists have set off from half a dozen French cities to Paris in order to protest against the country’s coronavirus restrictions. But the French government is showing a great deal more resolution than the Canadian one, which has allowed its capital to languish for days on end. The protests are unilaterally banned for February 11-14, and violators of the ban will incur penalties such as two years in prison, a fine of €4,500, and a three-year driving ban if they block public roads.
Carabinieri Vice Brigadier Mario Cerciello Rega, who had just returned from his honeymoon, was stabbed 11 times in the street while on a plainclothes mission in July 2019, near a hotel where two American visitors were staying. Finnegan Lee Elder, now 22, and Gabriel Natale-Hjorth, now 20, were convicted in May 2021 of slaying the 35-year-old officer, as well as of attempted extortion, resisting a public official, and carrying an attack-style knife without just cause. They are currently appealing their sentence of life imprisonment. In light of the events of January 6, 2021, the Italian police should not be surprised at the lethal propensities of American “tourists.”
Nearly 54% of the world’s population has been fully vaccinated for COVID just one year after the vaccines were rolled out. This effort represents a logistical feat without precedent in human history. There is, however, a great disparity among richer and poorer nations. Less than 11% of people in low-income countries have received at least one dose, while the numbers are about 55% of populations in lower-middle-income countries and nearly 80% of populations in upper-middle-income and high-income nations. The WHO last month said that nearly 90 countries have not reached the public health agency’s national vaccination target for late 2021 and were not on track to reach its target for mid-2022. Many of those countries are in Africa, where 85% of people have not received any dose of a coronavirus vaccine.
Dr. Fauci says that the U.S. is almost past the “full-blown” pandemic phase of the coronavirus and hopes that all virus-related restrictions could wind down in a few months. The number of COVID-related hospitalizations has decreased by more than 28% over the past three weeks. We continue to fall lower on the list of nations ranked by incidence of the COVID virus, and are currently in the 40th place. Last year at this time the U.S. was among the top ten.
Today’s statistics as of 8:00 PM – # of cases worldwide:406,064,155; # of deaths worldwide: 5,807,352; # of cases U.S.: 78,983,392; # of deaths; U.S.: 939,298.