Social hiking again – Great Falls – The protective dog-owner – Virginians to wear masks indoors – Reports from Latin America – Evening statistics
Today I was with the Vigorous Hikers. We hiked together this time rather than going at different paces, or if we got separated we waited at various junctions. There were many turns to make during the route and it is necessary to keep together to ensure that no one got lost. BF, who is a surgeon, appeared to be relatively unconcerned about the virus. He said that the great majority of deaths, at least in Virginia, have occurred among people with underlying conditions, obesity and diabetes being two of most pertinent factors. That was reassuring to an extent, but only to a certain extent. As MC pointed out, caution has to be exercised when dealing with the unknown. He gave as an instance the story of what happened to his son while staying at camp. A bat had entered the son’s room when he was asleep, and when MC made inquiries he learned that if the bat had rabies and if the bat had bitten the young man or even if the young man had breathed in droplets exuded by the bat, he could contract rabies as well; and rabies from bats can be fatal. The treatment was expensive, painful, and time-consuming; but MC would take no chances – the uncertainty factor was too great.
It was a lovely day, warm but not overly hot and not humid. In the shade it was delightful. It feels so good to have seasonable weather at last after this long period of cool and wet days. We hiked in the Great Falls area, which is now open to the public. Nonetheless we started from the parking area which I had scouted the previous week. The lines for entering the park tend to be long and especially at this time of year, just after Memorial Day. Actually there were not many people on the trails when we began our hike (we started a little before 8:00 AM) but after we had gone along the Matildasville Trail past the Visitor Center and covered several miles in Riverbend Park, we encountered numerous visitors upon our return via the River Trail. We also went to the confluence of Difficult Run and the Potomac, where to our surprise we found some people swimming. The Potomac is very swift and has deep currents; they were staying in the area where Difficult Run drains into the Potomac, which is somewhat calmer, but it was still a risky thing to do. It was a splendid day, covering over 16 miles and perhaps 1500 feet of elevation gain. We all moved swiftly and returned to our cars will before 2:00.
An episode occurred in Central Park today that illustrated both the poor state of racial relations in our country and the overweening arrogance of dog-owners. A black man was strolling through the Ramble in Central Park where a white woman was allowing her dog to roam freely, although there are signs everywhere stating that dogs have to be leased. The dog tearing through the various plantings placed in the park for replenishment and racing after any wildlife that caught its fancy. The woman was of course looking on indulgently and never doubting that all passersby felt a reciprocal enjoyment. So when he requested her to put her dog on a leash she refused, immediately whipping out her cell phone to call the police to complain that a black man was molesting her. That turned out to be a costly mistake. As it happened, he videotaped the incident and posted it, where it immediately went viral. She was an employee of Franklin Templeton, an investment firm, and when the incident came to their attention they promptly fired her. So justice was done for once, but it will have little impact on dog-owners who persist in treating their pets like spoiled children.
Governor Northam has announced that Virginians are to wear masks on public transportation and in public indoor places such as retail stores. Compliance is voluntary, since the governor says that criminal prosecutions will not be made against those who fail to observe the guideline.
Formerly the discouraging reports came chiefly from Europe; now Latin America is becoming the focus of unwelcome attention. The number of new cases in Brazil, Peru, and Chile has accelerated. Chile’s case incident rate is already over 0.4%, about one case in every 250 of the nation’s population. Two prominent members of the Chilean government have tested positive for the virus. Peru had taken several precautions and at the onset appeared to have the virus under control, but the ubiquitous crowded outdoor food markets and the fragility of their medical care system defeated all of their preventative measures. It is now twelfth on the list of nations with the highest case counts. The travel ban for people from Brazil entering the U.S. goes into effect tomorrow; Americans currently in Brazil are frantically scrambling to get out while there is still time. Brazil has had more deaths today than the U.S. It may lose as many as 125,000 by early August.
Today’s statistics as of 8:30 PM — # of cases worldwide: 5,678,021; # of deaths worldwide: 351,667; # of cases U.S.: 1,725,150; # of deaths U.S.: 100,579.