An end of a snow drought – Restricted skiing in the Alps – Sanctions against Myanmar – Day 3 of the impeachment trial – Evening statistics
On January 14th Ian Livingston, weather forecaster and meteorologist for the Washington Post, lamented the “snow drought” that Washington DC underwent for the past two years, with only occasional snow showers that accumulated less than half an inch apiece; and, with that fine free habit of extrapolation that experts often display, he proceeded to infer an assortment of environmental misfortunes from this state of affairs. Since the publication of his article we have had two snowstorms and are anticipating two more within the next week. Livingston seems to prophesy by contraries, and one can only hope that he doesn’t take it into his head at some future date to deplore the dearth of earthquakes in this region as well.
One of the casualties of the pandemic is the ski season in Italy, a significant source of income for that country. Generally it brings in about 1.2 billion euros from visitors. The Italian Alps has had one of the most prolific snowfalls in years, but no one has been able to enjoy it. Italy has been crippled by the pandemic and its resorts are still closed. One resort town, Cortina, will hold the 2021 World Ski Championship, which will bring in some participants and their coaches; but no spectators are allowed. Currently the resorts are scheduled to re-open next week, but even that alleviation is doubtful. Other nations have been similarly affected. Switzerland opened its resorts in December, with several restrictions; In Austria the resorts are limited to residents only; in France they are closed altogether.
Biden has announced sanctions against the military government of Myanmar. American assets are frozen and the aid that Myanmar has been receiving is now cut off, with the exception of that which goes directly to health care services. The U.S. is working with allies to cut off aid from other nations as well. It is not clear how effective such sanctions will be. The sanctions that the U.S. previously imposed against the military junta that ruled Myanmar in the 1990s and 2000s had a devastating effect on the country’s economy. Some analysts have claimed that the measures impacted the lives of ordinary citizens more than the military. They may be correct, but I don’t see what else is to be done. Despite the State Department’s efforts, no contact can be made with Suu Kyi. People are continuing to protest in greater numbers. So far there has been no violent crackdown, but it is doubtful that the military government will show such restraint for long.
Today is the third day of the impeachment trial. The prosecutors completed their presentation today. Their arguments demonstrating Trump’s complicity are sufficiently convincing, but they will have little effect on those who have made up their minds in advance to acquit him. And I’m a bit disappointed that they did not put greater emphasis on the financial motivations behind the raid on the Capitol. Even if no Republican Senators are swayed by the arguments against Trump, it would be just as well that the public in general be reminded that Trump was clinging onto the Presidency from motives of personal greed, not ideological ones.
There is one hopeful aspect about the impeachment case. Trump’s lawyers will present their case tomorrow and Saturday, and if their presentation is on a par with their performance on Tuesday, they might persuade more Republican Senators to desert Trump’s cause by the sheer ineptitude of their defense.
Today’s statistics as of 8:00 PM – # of cases worldwide: 108,278,195; # of deaths worldwide: 2,377,196; # of cases U.S.: 28,000,761; # of deaths; U.S.: 486,914. India and Brazil, each of which seemed at one point to rival the U.S. in the number of COVID cases, now have little over a third apiece. Only the Czech Republic and a handful of micro-states have higher incidence rates than ours.