As the Chinese crisis continues to ̶b̶l̶o̶s̶s̶o̶m̶ (ahem) devastate, the CDC page linked here a few days ago is good to have at hand.

But these two pages on Reddit are new favorites. Each offers both deep background stuff and quick-hit updates—

World News (Just titles & links)
I like this even better than Google News nowadays… At least as of Feb 2020, it seems pretty catholic in its sourcing, while G-news has had a lot of woke-y political attitude baked into its algorithm over the years.

2019-nCoV Live Thread (Blurbs & links)
This one auto-refreshes when interesting things are published; it's often quiet overnight in the States, but can have a few new things per hour during our daytime. (Who knows, maybe Reddit is a distinctly American platform: We need a few more of those.)

They used to call it an ancient Chinese curse: "May you live in interesting times."

Find your own favorite sources, but we should watch this story closely... Its consequences could make Brexit, Trump and even the Great Recession look like trivial fads. And we're going to learn a lot about the workings (and weaknesses) of new media.

Consequences.

The weakness of this kind of map is obvious, but maybe it will be useful.

Like I was saying about new media…!

Interesting times?
From Serenity

Mal: Define interesting.

Wash: oh God, oh God, we’re all going to die.

Jayne Cobb: I don't wanna explode!

Bernie:

https://twitter.com/EmeraldRobinson/status/1225099219666722816

Radiosynthesis?

https://www.foxnews.com/science/chernobyl-fungi-eats-radiation

• The technical advantage is unclear to a not-handy guy, but here's a high-tech brick wall.

• Is Trump really so unconventional a president? "Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job...."

Oh. Hopefully this time someone sets the number of copies to "1".

Incidentally, WOIO reports that all of the 55,000 statements from the College Avenue Student Loan Company were incorrect, and a new statement will have to be issued.

https://gizmodo.com/couple-receives-55-000-identical-bills-from-student-loa-1841457954

The "most reliable source of fake news" has struck again:

To avoid more election confusion, DNC will release New Hampshire primary results ahead of actual vote

https://genesiustimes.com/to-avoid-more-election-confusion-dnc-will-release-new-hampshire-primary-results-ahead-of-actual-vote/

News you can use?

https://vinepair.com/articles/how-drink-cognac-according-french-bartender/

• More disturbing ironies from 2019-nCoV.

• These Russian dancers are disconcerting.

Who did this?

http://ace.mu.nu/archives/sotu%2020200207%2001.jpg

One think the surveillance state has learned is that those face masks people are wearing to cut down on the transmission of 2019-nCoV also plays merry hob with their systems.

Thing, think, whatever.

> also plays merry hob with
> their systems.

If only: See 15th graf of the Reuters/'ironies' link above, just over the picture of the cameras overlooking the river in Shanghai.

Consider this from Mel, one of my internet dream babes.

Flow of Human Events-wise, we're up against an enormous irony here. Or as the beloved charlatan Kellogg Albran once put it, "It is easier to pass a camel through the eye of a needle when it has been lightly greased."

If you want better data —down to the individual pair of shoes— about who might be infected, government (or multinational internet conglomerates) will happily provide it, at the cost of every shred of privacy you ever (foolishly) imagined having.

• Is Trump really so unconventional a president? "Brownie, you're doing a heck of a job...."

Praising Xi Jinping for his handling of the Coronavirus? What the hell is Trump's problem? "Hey, Stalin, you're doing one heck of a job starving out those unruly peasants . . ."

Crid, I have that parody.

Guess what else one of the co-authors has written recently?

https://www.sheldonshacket.com/

To clarify for everyone else: I was referring to Kehlog Albran's "The Profit," actually written by two people.

Here's what the other co-author has written (mostly not humorous):

https://www.goodreads.com/author/list/704506.Martin_A_Cohen

Sorry for misspelling it. The book of parody is remembered fondly; the book that was parodied seems unloved and forgotten! Perhaps deservedly so.

This will work well.

https://dailycaller.com/2020/02/05/california-bill-fine-jail-people-for-not-voting/

Hoo boy...

"A New Missouri Bill Calls For Police To Literally Stop Women From Getting Abortions"

https://www.yahoo.com/lifestyle/missouri-bill-calls-police-literally-215021502.html

First two paragraphs:

One Missouri lawmaker is working to make it harder for women to get abortions, while simultaneously redefining what an abortion actually is. Mike Moon, a Republican Missouri state representative, has introduced a bill that would classify a fertilized egg as a “person” with constitutional rights. In doing so, police would be required to enforce the proposed law, which would essentially make abortion akin to murder.

According to The Guardian, Moon has dubbed the bill the “Right to Due Process Act.” He introduced it into the Missouri state legislature last month, but it was reportedly pre-filed back in December. The bill’s text says that “law enforcement officers, officers of the court, and any licensed or state-regulated entities in the state shall affirmatively enforce” the bill’s provision barring abortion in the state. The worse-case scenarios of this playing out in real life would involve cops preventing people from getting abortions, or punishing anyone who does get an abortion, which would be considered murder under the proposed legislation...

One comment:

Timothy23 hours ago

"Won't this impact the Census then since every fertilized egg is a person with constitutional rights...it needs to be counted. In addition, that means every fertility clinic is going to become a major population center. Will the state be providing legal advocates for each fertilized egg? What about SSN/TINs?"
___________________________________

Some people don't realize that when it comes to adults who get unintentionally pregnant, none of them WANTS to have a second-term abortion or even one in the third month, per se, but there are all sorts of legal roadblacks, especially for the poor.

Btw, many people also don't realize that 4 months are always greater than 17 weeks, no matter how one calculates. It's a good thing to remember.

I KNEW someone would mention this...

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/02/06/opinion/letters/mitt-romney-kirk-douglas-spartacus.html

I meant, of course, "roadblocks."

Conservative columnist Ross Douthat (whose name I cannot stop mispronouncing, in my head), wrote this for the Sunday NYT:

https://www.sltrib.com/opinion/commentary/2020/02/02/ross-douthat-only-way/

"...It’s worth remembering, too, that liberalism is not just struggling in America, with our Electoral College and right-tilting Senate; it is struggling all around the world. Which, again, suggests that American liberals are fortunate to have Trump as their Great Foe. If he were merely as disciplined and competent as Boris Johnson or Viktor Orban, to choose leaders with whom he has a few things in common, he would be coasting to reelection.

"Instead it is very likely that he will lose. But it was likely that he would lose in 2016 as well. One essential lesson of the Trump era is that likelihoods are not enough; if you want to end the Trump era, only one thing will suffice.

"You have to beat him."
_____________________________________

What makes him so sure Trump might lose?

47 minutes long. The callers were good too.

"The Complicated History Of The Classic Neo-Noir Film 'Chinatown'"

https://www.wbur.org/onpoint/2020/02/07/complicated-history-chinatown

This article compares the Trump shampeachment to the Andrew Johnson shampeachment. And Johnson's shampeachers were only one vote shy of removing him from office.

How History Will Judge the Trump Impeachment

Coronavirus Live Update Thread Feb 7th, 2020 (Agenda Free TV)

> Douthat (whose name I cannot
> stop mispronouncing

Matt Welch, too. It's funny when the guy comes up on the podcast.

"...It’s worth remembering, too, that liberalism is not just struggling in America, with our Electoral College and right-tilting Senate; it is struggling all around the world."

"One essential lesson of the Trump era is that likelihoods are not enough; if you want to end the Trump era, only one thing will suffice.

"You have to beat him."

Yeah, Carville was saying that today as well. Set aside your feelings about Vox and read his interview.

What could possibly go wrong???

UK Council Set To Host Drag Queen Story Time In Muslim-Dominated London Neighborhood

"What makes him so sure Trump might lose?" ~Lenona

Wishful thinking.

Corporate bullies.

Andrew Bock hates the environment!

        (hi)

James is not to be forgiven for his reckless dismissal of Hong Kong, but this is cool.

The Daily Telegraph this week received a letter from the Australian Consulate General of the People's Republic of China, who took gentle issue with [their] excellent coverage of the coronavirus crisis.
https://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/blogs/tim-blair/via-local-commie-underlings-beijing-officially-disapproves/news-story/491b415795fbbdc526d33d5b569134a4