Month: December 2021

Costa Rica has increased its marine protected area from 2.7% to 30%, by expanding Cocos Island National Park by 26x its previous size.

President Carlos Alvarado signed the decree on December 17, broadening the park to more than 5 million hectares.

Under the decree, fishing and any other extractive operations are banned within the park, protecting its marine ecosystem. The park will be located in the newly designated Bicentennial Marine Management Area.

The announcement comes after 50 countries said they would protect 30% of their land and 30% of their water by 2030, commonly referred to as the 30×30 goal.

At COP26, the leaders of Costa Rica, Panama, Colombia, and Ecuador pledged to work together to protect 500,000 square kilometers along their borders in the eastern tropical Pacific ocean.

It’s a baby step but an important one. Thanks to those who are taking action.

Marcy Wheeler makes a great point about The Big Lie that I don’t think is commonly understood. An excerpt:

[T]here’s something missing from all the worthwhile discussions of the Big Lie. It’s the lie those who helped tell this most recent Big Lie tell.

Consider this interview Chris Hayes did with Dustin Stockton and Jennifer Lynn Lawrence, who’ve been doing a media tour to claim they were betrayed when Trump launched his mobsters on the Capitol.

When Hayes asked them whether they now admit that the election wasn’t stolen, Stockton instead attempted to turn the question around:

Do you now admit that the “Russia memes” that you guys ran 24-hours a day in the early days of the Trump that got maybe several million impressions which our pages often do. [cross chatter] There were tons of ridiculous stuff.

[snip]

Democrats and Republicans, every four years, whoever loses, right, then goes on to say, “oh, it was broken this way, it was broken this way.” It’s not that there aren’t things that aren’t broken and should be done better with mail-in balloting, with the way we verify people, the way we, make sure everybody has access to voting. There is common ground here. The problem is partisanly the Left fights, when they lose, the Right fights, when they lose.

[snip]

Or widespread Russian interference.

Stockton did, ultimately, concede that Biden is President and that there were tons of ridiculous claims about the election. But he excused his own contributions to sowing The Big Lie by equating lies about Trump’s loss with reporting about Russia’s attempt to interfere in the 2016 election, and claimed that reporting arose out of Democratic excuses to explain Hillary’s loss.

That is, a key purveyor of the The Big Lie excuses his actions because MSNBC reported on a Russian investigation that was based off real facts, an investigation that led to the prosecution of Trump’s National Security Advisor, Trump’s Coffee Boy, Trump’s personal lawyer, Trump’s Campaign Manager, and Trump’s rat-fucker, all of whom covered up aspects of the Trump camp’s outreach to Russia in advance of becoming President (Paul Manafort wasn’t prosecuted for his lies, but Amy Berman Jackson agreed with the Mueller team that he lied to cover up, among other things, why he traded campaign strategy for $19 million in debt relief). Stockton equates reporting on all that — plus the dossier and Alfa Bank and the failson’s meeting to trade campaign dirt for sanctions relief, as well as details of the disinformation campaign that had as a primary goal sowing division — Stockton equates all that with a deliberate attempt, over the course of months, to completely dismantle the credibility of our electoral system.

The equation is all the crazier given that, while Hillary herself did put some of the blame for her loss on Russia’s interference, most Democrats blame Jim Comey, the guy whom Trump fired in an attempt to undermine the Russian investigation. Those of us who live(d) in states that Hillary neglected were perfectly happy to blame Hillary’s own mistakes. More importantly, Hillary ceded power with no contest of the results even in closely fought states like Michigan.

This is just one example where Trumpsters excuse their own participation in The Big Lie by turning a bunch of different prongs of reporting on Russia in 2017 — some undoubtedly overblown but much based on real facts about real actions that Trump and his aides really took — into the equivalent of wild hoaxes about efforts to steal the 2020 election.

And it’s not just those who fostered The Big Lie. As I’ve noted, a viral thread earlier this year went further still, blaming January 6 on the Steele dossier (which most Republicans agree was larded with Russian disinformation).

This use of the Russian investigation, the Democratic-paid dossier, and the legitimate reporting on both to rationalize Trump’s actions post-2020 is no accident. That’s one reason I persist in reporting on the dossier: because Paul Manafort came back from a meeting with an Oleg Deripaska associate and encouraged everyone to discredit the Russian investigation by focusing on the dossier. Because it was so full of garbage (some of it placed there at the behest of Russian intelligence, if you believe all the Republican members of Congress to focus on it), it was an easy way to make the real Russian investigation look corrupt to people like Dustin Stockton, to say nothing of the real cover-up disclosed by the investigation.

Before Trump claimed to be the victim of vote fraud, Trump claimed to be the victim of an investigation into the many documented ways in which Trump tried to optimize Russian help to get elected. That claim — that he was the real victim of the Russian investigation — is how Trump trained so many Republicans to put his fate over the fate of the country.

He screamed “witchhunt” and “hoax” all day, every day for four years and then switched seamlessly to “stolen election.” He whined and whined and whined and with each sob story, his followers loved him more. Trump’s grievances and tantrums speak for them as well.

The Russia Investigation was real and it uncovered massive wrongdoing by a whole bunch of people including President Trump who egregiously obstructed justice to cover it up. Whether he was too stupid to know he was being manipulated or he just didn’t care, his lies about that scandal set the table for his lies about the 2020 election. No one should forget that.

I’m sure you’ve heard about the jerk who said “let’s go Brandon” (aka “fuck Joe Biden”) to the president on Christmas eve. If you were mercifully spared this story on your family holiday, here is the gist:

Biden and Schmeck discussed presents Schmeck’s four children were hoping to receive, and how one, Hunter, shared a name with the president’s son and grandson. Schmeck said he was hoping for a “quiet night”.

Biden sad: “Lots of luck, dad.”

All on the call laughed.

At the end of the call, Schmeck said: “Merry Christmas and Let’s go Brandon.”

“Let’s go Brandon, I agree,” Biden said, as his wife winced.

Biden also said: “By the way are you in Oregon? Where’s your home?”

But the call was disconnected.

“Let’s go Brandon” originated in an interview with a racing car driver by a TV reporter who may have misheard a crowd’s obscene chant.

It has flourished in rightwing and pro-Trump circles – even being promoted by Republican congressmen and the Texas senator Ted Cruz.

Schmeck and his wife promoted the remark on social media. But they met with a tide of opprobrium, including a tweet in which the California congressman Eric Swalwell pointed to Biden’s painful personal history.

“I refuse to believe we are this indecent as people,” the Democrat wrote. “Not on Christmas Eve. And not to a person who lost his wife and daughter at Christmastime. We are better than this. Be kind and Merry Christmas.”

Schmeck, a former police officer, told the Oregonian he was “being attacked for utilising my freedom of speech”.

He also said he had received some potentially threatening phone calls of his own.

“I understand there is a vulgar meaning to ‘Lets go Brandon’ but I’m not that simple-minded, no matter how I feel about him,” Schmeck said.

“[Biden] seems likes he’s a cordial guy. There’s no animosity or anything like that. It was merely just an innocent jest to also express my God-given right to express my frustrations in a joking manner.”

Schmeck said subjects stoking those frustrations with Biden included vaccine mandates and supply chain problems.

He also insisted: “I love him just like I love any other brother or sister.”

Right. He’s a typical Trump jerk, down to the fatious declaration of his allegedly Christian faith.

The wingnuts are all delirious with the fact that Biden replied, “yes, let’s go Brandon” either because he didn’t know about this silly wingnut meme because he has better things to do or because he just decided to shine it on because it was Christmas, fergawdsakes. Either way, he is a much more decent person than this jerk.

I think it’s fine to tell the president to go fuck himself. That really is free speech. There are many great venues available for that. But to do it on Christmas eve during a presidential call with your kids is just trashy. The next time they all clutch their pearls over lefty incivility, I think it’s important to remember this one. It was as classless as they come.

Antigen test kits are ramping up and should become readily available before long. But what’s the protocol? What do we do with the information?

Dr. Ashish Jha posted an informative threat that gives some practical guidance:

As Omicron cases explode we need a strategy for isolating folks who test positive.

We need to think about the purpose of isolation clearly because if we don’t get it right, it’ll both be hugely disruptive and won’t keep us safe.

So let’s discuss what we need to do

First principles:

Why ask people to isolate at all? Well, that’s obvious. We don’t want them spreading.

So what we care about is CONTAGIOUSNESS. We want folks to isolate when they’re contagious

So when are people contagious? Well, it varies. A lot. OK, so what to do?

How long folks are contagious depends on two things

1. When they test positive (i.e. early in the phase of infection vs. late)

2. Their immune system’s ability to clear the virus

Take the average person who tests PCR+ today. How long will they be contagious?

The average person who tests PCR+ today? Some will be contagious for 2 days. Others for 5 or (rarely) 10 days. But here’s the kicker. Some for zero days – because they tested + after no longer being contagious!

Confusing

But thankfully, we have tools to figure this out. So let’s look at what we know

Here’s a graphic from @FT by @jburnmurdoch that’s adapted from @michaelmina_lab piece in @NEJM. Simply speaking, there are three periods of time you can be PCR+ (I label as A, B, and C.) Its an excellent graphic and critical to this whole story.

There is very short pre-contagious period. Where folks are PCR + but rapid antigen negative Labeled A.

There is the contagious period: PCR + and Antigen + Labeled B

There is post contagious period: PCR +, Antigen neg, which can last many, many days Labeled C

The graph shows “infectious” period of about 5 days. But it can be longer. That’s why CDC defaults to 10 days to be safe. But here’s the thing.

10 day isolation uses the mental model that either. People test + in Phase A/early Phase B or have symptoms beginning of phase B. But many people have little or no symptoms (especially vaccinated folks.) And many folks get tested late in phase B or even in phase C which is why studies show that many PCR+ have high CT values (low viral load)

These are people testing positive but no longer contagious!

So what to do?

We need a simple, workable solution that works across scenarios, works for everyone, not just in healthcare. So here’s why 5 days of isolation and negative antigen test is reasonable, even cautious.

Antigen tests (“lateral flow”) are contagiousness tests. So for average person if you isolate for 5 days, you are likely no longer contagious. But for rare person who might still be? That’s where antigen “contagiousness” test comes in. Negative antigen on top of 5 day isolation? Pretty good evidence you are no longer contagious.

But, what about false negative antigen test (i.e. person still contagious)? That’s pretty rare. But if you want to be extra careful (for nursing home workers), you could require 2 negative antigen tests. At that point, I’m not sure why you’d continue isolating someone.

Two more things

1. If you test + on rapid antigen, you are contagious (vaccinated or not)And isolating for 5 days and repeating antigen test makes sense.

2. Data from Delta suggests vaccinated folks have shorter contagiousness period. Expect same with Omicron. Therefore, if you want to be even more cautious limit 5 days isolation and a neg antigen test to only vaccinated folks.

NYC strategy: 5 days isolation and then high quality masking for another 5 days. That’s reasonable. I’d love a negative antigen test on top if possible

Bottom line?

Isolating COVID + people all about stopping transmission. Different people contagious for different periods of time. 10 days isolation for everyone is unnecessary.

Luckily, we don’t have to guess. We have antigen tests (I know, not enough…but they’re coming.) 5 days and 1-2 neg antigen tests should be enough to end isolation not just for healthcare workers but for moms and dads getting back to kids, hourly workers who don’t get paid when home, really for anyone who doesn’t want to be isolating when they don’t need to be.

Originally tweeted by Ashish K. Jha, MD, MPH (@ashishkjha) on December 26, 2021.

The Happy Hollandaise fundraiser goes through the end of the year. If you’d like to participate you can do so here. And thank you so much. I truly appreciate it.

cheers — digby

For those who have not found time yet to see Don’t Look Up, you’d best hurry before reality catches up.

Brace yourself for impact. ☄️

Adam McKay’s star-studded comedy DON’T LOOK UP—starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Jennifer Lawrence, Meryl Streep, Rob Morgan, Jonah Hill, and *so many* more—is now on Netflix. pic.twitter.com/whrXnoV2DA

— Netflix Tudum (@NetflixTudum) December 24, 2021

This is a kind-of spoiler, but there is plot point regarding mining the sea floor. For those not keeping up with current events, it is only partly satire. The New Yorker‘s Elizabeth Kolbert has an update.

Let’s head to the tiny island nation of Nauru which wields outsized importance considering its eight-square-miles and 10,000 inhabitants.

The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) declares about a hundred million square miles of seabed a “common heritage of mankind.” Administration is by the International Seabed Authority based in Kingston, Jamaica. But that’s just a miner wrinkle (pun intended) for those hoping to tear the shit out of our common heritage for private profit:

Large swaths of the seabed are covered with potentially mineable—and potentially extremely valuable—metals, in the form of blackened lumps called polymetallic nodules. For decades, companies have been trying to figure out how to mine these nodules; so far, though, they’ve been able to do only exploratory work. Permits for actual mining can’t be granted until the I.S.A. comes up with a set of regulations governing the process, a task it’s been working on for more than twenty years.

The complexities continue. To apply for a mining permit, companies need to team up with a country that’s party to UNCLOS. (Most of the nations in the world are, but not, significantly, the United States.) And this is where Nauru comes in. It’s sponsoring a company called Nauru Ocean Resources, which is a subsidiary of the Metals Company, a Canadian firm. The Metals Company wants to mine a nodule-rich region of the Pacific between Hawaii and Mexico known as the Clarion-Clipperton Zone. In June, not long before the Metals Company went public as a “special purpose acquisition company,” Nauru notified the I.S.A. that it was invoking what’s become known as the “two-year rule.” The rule—which is actually part of an annex to UNCLOS—says that, “if a request is made by a State,” the I.S.A. “shall” finalize the regulations within two years. As it has now been six months since Nauru invoked the rule, this leaves just eighteen months for the work to be completed.

When did we last see special purpose acquisition companies? Oh, right. Friday.

Anyhoo, developers object to the short timetable. Not enough time for lobbyists to buy off the right people, one supposes. But surely, environmentalists want to tear up the seafloor, right? This is all about green energy and sustainability. The same way developers where I live argue that tearing down a block of 100-year-old Victorian homes to build 100 condos is about affordable housing if they make seven affordable. Never mind that 50 people already occupy affordable apartments in those existing homes they plan to bulldoze.

But I digress:

Both Nauru and the Metals Company have portrayed the effort to mine the seabed as essential to cutting carbon emissions. Clean-energy technologies such as electric-car batteries, at least in their current form, require metals, including cobalt, that are found in the nodules in relatively high concentrations. “Nauru is part of a pioneering venture that could soon power the world’s green economy,” a video produced by the country’s government declares. “We’re in a quest for a more sustainable future,” Gerard Barron, the C.E.O. of the Metals Company, says in the same video.

Marine scientists argue, though, that the potential costs of deep-ocean mining outweigh the benefits. They point out that the ocean floor is so difficult to access that most of its inhabitants are probably still unknown, and their significance to the functioning of the oceans is ill-understood. In the meantime, seabed mining, which would take place in complete darkness, thousands of feet under water, will, they say, be almost impossible to monitor. In September, the International Union for Conservation of Nature, which compiles the “red list” of endangered species, called for a global moratorium on deep-sea mining. The group issued a statement raising concerns that “bio­diversity loss will be inevitable if deep-sea mining is permitted to occur,” and “that the consequences for ocean ecosystem function are unknown.”

Nauru’s business ventures have a dubious record, Kolbert reminds readers, quoting oceanographer Sylvia Earle. Carving up the ocean floor with mining would amount to “biggest land grab in the history of humankind.” Give the non-White inhabitants of Nauru more Bibles. It will all be fine.

Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos had best set about mining the asteroid belt ASAP, a la “The Expanse,” if they expect to save mankind from others of their kind.

It’s Happy Hollandaise time here at Hullabaloo. If you’d like to drop a little something in the old Christmas stocking you can do so here:

“Do your little bit of good where you are; it’s those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.” ― Desmond Tutu

This came over the wires early this morning (Washington Post):

Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu, South Africa’s ebullient apostle of racial justice and reconciliation who won the Nobel Peace Prize for his struggle against the system of White domination known as apartheid, died Dec. 26 in Cape Town. He was 90.

The cause of death was complications from cancer, according to Roger Friedman, spokesman for the Archbishop Desmond Tutu Intellectual Property Trust. Archbishop Tutu was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 1997, and he was hospitalized on several occasions in recent years to treat infections associated with his cancer treatment.

A small, effervescent man with a crooked nose and infectious toothy grin, Archbishop Tutu served as Black South Africa’s informal ambassador to the world during the dark days of repression and as a crucial voice in the campaign for racial equality that culminated with Nelson Mandela’s election as the country’s first Black president in 1994. Throughout the struggle, he preached nonviolence even while denouncing apartheid as “an evil system.”

As our own country faces what could be a period of legalized minority rule, a pair of quotes serve as reminders of what Tutu helped face down in South Africa.

“When we see others as the enemy, we risk becoming what we hate. When we oppress others, we end up oppressing ourselves. All of our humanity is dependent upon recognizing the humanity in others.” ― Desmond Tutu

“My father always used to say, “Don’t raise your voice. Improve your argument.” Good sense does not always lie with the loudest shouters, nor can we say that a large, unruly crowd is always the best arbiter of what is right.” ― Desmond Tutu

The rest of this (and other) obituaries is boilerplate obituary newspapers keep on file for when they need it. It speaks of the long road Tutu trod from childhood to the clergy to opponent of apartheid to the Nobel Peace Prize, of his opposition to violence, and of his rescue in 1985 of a suspected police informer from an angry mob. The bloodied man was set to be “necklaced.” Tutu scolded attackers, reminding them of “the need to use righteous and just means for a righteous and just struggle.”

“If you want peace, you don’t talk to your friends. You talk to your enemies.” ― Desmond Tutu

This anecdote from the Nobel ceremony stands is not to be missed:

Even during that solemn event, Archbishop Tutu couldn’t help making a joke: A Zambian boasts about his country’s minister for naval affairs to a South African, who points out disparagingly that landlocked Zambia has no navy. The Zambian replies, “Well, in South Africa you have a minister of justice, don’t you?”

This one is not too shabby either (New York Times):

Politics were inherent in his religious teachings. “We had the land, and they had the Bible,” he said in one of his parables. “Then they said, ‘Let us pray,’ and we closed our eyes. When we opened them again, they had the land and we had the Bible. Maybe we got the better end of the deal.”

Tutu once attended the same conference in Athens, Georgia as an Episcopalian minister friend. The two passed on the sidewalk. Tutu recognized him and knew his name. My friend was floored. Quiet moments of personal recognition stand out, as they did in Tutu’s life when Bishop Trevor Huddleston

… tipped his hat to Archbishop Tutu’s mother when he passed her on the street.

“I couldn’t believe my eyes,” Archbishop Tutu once told Washington Post journalist Steven Mufson for the book “Fighting Years: Black Resistance and the Struggle for a New South Africa,” “a White man who greeted a Black working-class woman.”

That small moment altered the course of his life and inspired him to the ministry.

“If you are neutral in situations of injustice, you have chosen the side of the oppressor.” ― Desmond Tutu

It’s Happy Hollandaise time here at Hullabaloo. If you’d like to drop a little something in the old Christmas stocking you can do so here:

If you can’t find a good action movie to watch tonight, you can tune into this for a while and then go have several shots of tequila. It’s quite terrifying:

Here are some of the most shocking highlights:

Here are the scariest moments from the 3-hour "tunnel siege" at the US Capitol on 1/6. Many cops were injured, some hospitalized, from this battle. My colleagues @HolmesLybrand and @HBRabinowitz combed through the footage, which DOJ released this week. https://t.co/NOlMkMRj3M pic.twitter.com/L4oOrwja0o

— Marshall Cohen (@MarshallCohen) December 25, 2021

If Trump is able to convince half of America that these people were justified in their actions I can’t imagine why anyone would believe that he isn’t capable of winning in 2024.

The world feels very ugly right now but I think this sort of thing happens all the time, strangers reaching out, being decent, normal human beings. It’s good to be reminded of it:

The kindness of strangers:

“When my son was little my son saw a pair of sneakers on clearance. They were every color of the rainbow and $3. I had no money and he needed the shoes. So we hid them in a cabinet under the display and I told him if his dad could get work this week (he lost his job and was doing odd jobs at our apt complex to get money towards our rent—I was working part time and was pregnant with my fourth child) I told him if dad could get a little job that week we could come back and get the shoes. He was going into kindergarten in a few weeks and the other kids told me they didn’t need new shoes to try to get them for their brother. As we left the mall after we got my little bit of groceries and started to walk home an elderly lady handed me a bag, I told her it wasn’t mine and she said it was and walked away. In the bag was the shoes. She must have been watching and listening. My son was so proud to wear those shoes because an angel lady gave them to him.” – Michelle T.

“When I was 9, I was on holiday with my dad. I spent ages in the arcade on the claw machine trying to get this one toy. I ran out of change, so dashed to the change kiosk, and when I got back to the machine, the toy I was trying to get was gone. I was starting to tear up, when there was this tap on my shoulder and this woman handed me the toy I had been trying to get. She’d watched me trying to get it all that time, managed to get it on her first go and felt bad for me so she gave it to me. I loved that toy so much!” – Kimberly H.

“I was heading up for my daughter’s wedding weekend and stopped at a lovely gift shop for a card and maybe a little something extra. I asked how much the beautiful, green milk glass cake stand was and it was over 100.00. I decided I had spent enough money and just went to pay for the card. She came out from the back room with a gift bag all wrapped. She said please take this. I can tell you’re a great Mom. I broke down in tears. I’ve been paying it forward ever since.” – Jeannie J.

“3am walking home alone from a club. A guy who had slowly been catching up to me apologised and hurried past me, saying he could see I was nervous with him walking behind me. I thanked him and relaxed a little. Not a hundred yards later, a second man shouts from a passing car, pulls up in front of me and GETS OUT OF THE CAR, beckoning me into the back seat. The previous man is now a while ahead but turns round and shouts “babe come on, I wanna get home!” And starts walking back towards me. Man #2 hurriedly gets back in his car and speeds off.

The first man just gives me a thumbs-up and goes on his way. Nice.” – Ruth C.

“Almost a decade ago I was abused by my husband for the last time. It was the first time I had gone to the hospital because of the abuse and I went via ambulance. I swear, every single person I spoke with—every medical worker, security guard, cop, and any person I spoke with in the waiting room as I waited to be picked up to go home shared stories with me about domestic abuse. I was still in such denial but my face was so wrecked, everyone could see what I had been through. My ex went straight to jail from the incident and I have not seen or spoken with him since. Those strangers treated me with respect and dignity and were a huge driving force in me getting out with my children alive. I have come so far and now work in the medical field and share my stories of abuse and escape in hopes that I can help even just one person to get out. I don’t know any of their names or faces. I am forever grateful for the time that they all took to save my kids and me.” – Mya F.

“Comforted me in the lobby of the veterinary clinic where my dog had just been euthanized. I was standing there sobbing, unable to walk out, and she asked if she could give me a hug. I told her she could and she did. It meant so much to me—I will never forget her.” – Amy D.

“A pharmacist paid for my prescription when I was fresh out of college and broke. I was crying counting my change and he just told me to take it.” – Lindsey M.

“After I learned that my Mother chose not to have a life saving procedure, that she wanted to let go and die peacefully and I only had hours left with her, I walked into the hospital hallway and emitted painful, wailing cries and fell to the floor. A complete stranger asked if she could hug and hold me because I was breaking her heart. She didn’t want me to be alone. After five minutes she told me to be strong, wipe my eyes and not let my mama hear or see me like this. She was an angel during a time of serious need. I will always be grateful for her words, comfort and strength.” – Nicole R.

“I was 15 y.o and just landed in Seattle from boarding school in Utah. I decided to hitch-hike alone from Seattle to Denver. A trucker picked me up in Spokane and took me to Billings MT where I’d lived as a kid briefly. He toured me around town to see my home, my school, my piano teacher’s house. Then we went to where his trucker buddies all hung out to try to find me a ride to Denver. After a few hours, he told me to get into his rig. He drove to the airport. Told me to wait while he ran inside to ‘do a chore.’ He returned with a plane ticket and handed it to me and told me ‘No argument. You’re getting on that plane. I don’t trust any of those guys to get you there safely’ His name was John van der Horne. He gave me one of his bank deposit slips. His parting words to me were ‘You’ll think of me someday.’ When I was in my 20’s (I’m 63 now) I sent him a check and a huge ‘thank you.’ He never cashed my check and I never heard from him again.

Thank you, John van der Horne. Wherever you are.” – Terilee H.

“I was in town one day—we only live in a small town and it was the day the farmers market was there so it was quite busy. I took my child with ASD with me to pick up some things and pop into the bank. Halfway through the town he had a meltdown and threw himself on the floor, rolling around and screaming. Lots of people walking by would stare and make comments, and I reached the point that I just wanted to cry. I couldn’t get my son to walk any further and had big bags of shopping to carry so I couldn’t carry him. I was exhausted because I’m a single parent and my son had never slept through the night and I have a neuralgia condition meaning I was in constant pain.

A lady with her young child came up to me with flowers and said that she’d had a tough day the day before and someone had bought her flowers, which cheered her up, so she’d done the same for me. She offered to put the bags on her pushchair and carry them to my car so I could carry my son. That made such a difference to my day.” – Holly L.

“My husband died unexpectedly at home about 18 months ago. One of the initial first responders to arrive was a police officer I did not know. He sat and held my hand for hours until my husband’s body was removed. Had never seen him before, and have only bumped into him one time since that day.” – Denise M.

“I was on holidays in San Anselmo, California when I got food poisoning. The hospital staff were so lovely. Two people even offered to give me cab fare back to my B&B. This Aussie was so grateful for their kindness. I wrote to the hospital when I got home and thanked them.” – Myrna H.

“Had a stranger pay for my family’s and myself’s appetizer/dinner/drinks/dessert at a mid-priced restaurant. There were six adults and one child. It was absolutely incredible. They even paid the tip! I was dumbfounded when I asked for the check and was told that there wasn’t one.” – Holly F.

“Years ago I was shopping with my 3 kids. I had a list and was adding up the cost as I went along. Single mom, little money. When I checked out the cashier said the woman in front of me gave her $25 to help cover my groceries. It was such a quiet kindness.” – Dana S.

Here’s to the “quiet kindness” of strangers, reminding us that people are awesome and humanity at its best is pretty darn amazing.

I suspect this isn’t the only thing happening in the executive branch that doesn’t get the attention it should. Whether you like or hate Biden personally, this is the reason to vote for Democrats, regardless of the personalities:

It has been overshadowed by months of Democratic infighting and the searing national debate over Jan. 6, but the Biden administration is quietly erasing one of the cruelest legacies of Donald Trump’s presidency. This is a genuine achievement, in both symbolic and practical terms.

On Thursday, the administration rejected Georgia’s proposal to impose work requirements and premiums on Medicaid recipients. This was effectively the last nail in the coffin of Trump’s zombie attempt to make Medicaid more cumbersome and bureaucratic, in hopes of knocking as many people off health coverage as possible.

When Biden took office, nearly 20 mostly Republican-controlled states were in the process of crafting work requirements for Medicaid, on which 76 million Americans rely.

Now, Medicaid work requirements are all but dead in all those states.

That erases a legacy of the Trump administration, which had invited states to submit proposals to impose such requirements. Proposals were eventually approved for 12 states — all with Republican legislatures, governors or both — while a half-dozen others were pending when Trump left office.

In the most visible case, under Arkansas’s 2018 requirements, nearly 17,000 people lost health coverage. That wasn’t necessarily because they weren’t working. It was mainly because it was so difficult to satisfy all the reporting requirements.

Which is a feature, not a bug, of work requirements. By forcing recipients to prove they’re working and navigate a bureaucratic maze to stay in the program, the state gives itself an excuse to kick off those who make a paperwork mistake or miss a reporting deadline.

Biden’s reversal began just after he took office. In February, the administration informed states that it was preparing to withdraw approvals for work requirements granted under Trump.

That is not a Trump thing. The hostility to health care for Americans long predates him. For some inexplicable reason they believe that Americans deserve to die. And their voters have come to believe it too, even when it comes to themselves. I would call it a you-know-what cult but it’s Christmas.

Give a little bit of thanks today that these people are not in charge for the moment. It’s a life saver.

You deserve the chuckle:

Former press secretary for the man who claimed credit for people saying Merry Christmas says “I saved Christmas” is not an effective talking point pic.twitter.com/V0hyFSwu6T

— Acyn (@Acyn) December 23, 2021

But it’s not a cult.. https://t.co/cvCaKivLxi

— It’s All A Game (@40AcresBuilt) December 17, 2021

You cannot make this stuff up, you really can’t.