EXPERTISE?

The death of expertise comes with the onset of a political election season.  The criticism of Drs. Fauci, Bright, and Brix by Trump, in which their statements are counter to Trump’s proclamations about medicine and science, has put the experts in the way of Trumps goals.  It’s to vilify the democratic states leaders for their response in their handling of the states’ openings, even though they are following the guidelines the CDC put out. 

It’s like the Trumplodites have glommed onto him like he was a god and are part of his team.  As with adamant fans, no one can criticize your team, and if criticized they cannot recognize facts due to the fog of pre-existing beliefs.  This conflict plays out at dinner tables all across America, stoked by the American public that has suffered from a pandemic of narcissism for the last 4 years.  His team has confirmation biases and can’t adjust their beliefs to the actual facts. Facts are dismissed if counter to their beliefs and is important to their indentities.

Politicians are pandering to populist expressions in an attempt to stay relevant, irrespective of the medical advice and science.  This response has the potential to make the second wave similar to the second wave of the Spanish Flu of 1918-1919.  Having twice the death rate as the first wave.

 I will now invoke Darwin.  Darwin will take care of those that do not believe in science and medicine.  The individuals that flaunt the CDC guidelines and do not wear masks, not washing their hands, and do not use social distancing will die, and also their friends die as a result of the virus and  have only themselves to blame for their fate. Unfortunately, these selfish youthful dotards in training are infecting others, if they do get the virus.  I hope natural selection will catch up with their team prior to infecting others.

They get their cues from the dotard in chief that refuses to wear a mask, while those around him are testing positive and/or are relying on a 15 minute test that gives high false negatives.  He is tested daily, but are all the selfish dotards-in-training that may be spreading the virus tested at all?  After all, their dotard leader has already said he may or may not get the vaccine, if available at the end of the year.  Does this give everyone confidence about the potential safety of the vaccine?  Is this statement by Dotard in chief meant stoke the anti-vaxers to reject the vaccine?

Dr. Sanjay Gupta said, “The U.S. isn’t through the therapy needed to defeat Covid-19.  If we stop now, we may be worse off than we started.” (CNN) Circa fall of 1918, as with the Spanish Flu, we could see 2x the deaths as was in the first wave. (17 May, 2020)

DON’T LOOK BACK

Mike Pompeo stated in a news conference, that he had evidence about the origination of the Corona Virus in China.  This was part of the Trump fog machine to blame China.  He intimated that the virus began in a lab in Wuhan.  He is now walking back the definitive statement.  He made his statement while intelligence work was ongoing and had not yet come to his conclusion.

Pompeo had his IG fired, in retaliation for the IG looking into him for using his office for political purposes.  He was also accused of, and investigated for, illegal* arms sales to Saudi Arabia over the objection of Congress.  Trump stated he fired him at the recommendation of Pompeo.  The rationale out of the White House was he was not supporting dear leaders agenda.  This is like saying, if you do your job and it steps on the wrong toes your fired, even though you are a civil servant without a political agenda.  That says, only do part of your job and ignore anyone except those employees actions below the appointed Trumplodytes or your fired.

*Note: Congress had voted to suspend $8 billion Arms Sales, as a result of the Saudi war killing civilians in Yemen and the killing of Khashoggi ordered by the crown prince.

Utah Senator Mitt Romney (R) commented in a tweet, “The firings of multiple Inspectors General is unprecedented; doing so without good cause chills the independence essential to their purpose”. He went on to say “it’s a threat to accountable democracy and a fissure in constitutional balance of power”.

Susan Collins (R) Maine, a Senator that had written the whistle blower protection act, responded to the Linick IG firing by tweeting, “The President has not provided the kind of justification for the removal of IG Linick required by this law.”  Ok Susan, looks like you reap what you sow.  You said he learned his lesion during the impeachment and did not vote to remove him from office.

As I have stated before, he is totally dis-mantling each and every office that has any accountability, and removal for those who resist his personal agenda and having the audacity to do his job.  This is shown in the rationale given for the Linick firing.  Remember the defense production act he avoids.  His avoidance is due to not yet having the ability to subvert the DCAA to bend to his wishes. 

When he uses the DPA for manufacturing or purchasing through the defense department, it comes under the Federal Acquisition guidance and it requires DCAA involvement.  The DCAA has rules and standards that have consequences if the law is not followed. They also have enforcement tools that none of the appointed Department Secretaries in the administration have.  This makes it possible to allow cronyism and self-dealing. 

Trump’s action in this case is disturbing in many ways.  Does he not think his actions will not see the light of day?  Trump’s actions don’t go away, even if he attempts to shut the eyes of those paid to see what’s going on.  Like a child, he thinks if you put your hands over your eyes you can’t see the crime? What about being the most transparent administration ever, as Trump claims? This transparency lie must make up 5% or 6% of the over 18,000 lies he has spoken since his inauguration? 

UNDERSTANDING HHS

Alex Azar HHS Secretary is responsible for our health care system.  His recent statement concerning the virus deaths was telling.  His statement, though true, ignores the obvious.  He said chronic health issues have contributed to the Covid-19 deaths.  Ok, why is this so bad, and what are you going to do about it?  His comment shows that he is unaware of the systematic inequities in our health care system.

The obvious causes of poor health revolve around access to care, diet, social status and income and many other factors that Trump and other Administrations have long ignored.  The Pandemic has highlighted the need for supplemental nutrition for the inner cities and the poor.  The need for inner city health care clinics, quality jobs and not just low paying service jobs has contributed to this crisis.  Inter city education geared to the needs of the community with added community colleges.

This pandemic shows why health care tied to jobs, is shown to be flawed with unemployment approaching 20-25%.  A universal health care choice or being able to opt into a Medicare type system would make it possible for everyone to obtain relatively cheap insurance.  The rates, as been shown before in my analysis, are at least a 15-25% lower cost with a public option having no one profiting on misery.

OTHER TIDBITS

The Fed chairman Jerome Powell, a realist and Trump appointee, said the economy may not recover until the end of 2021.  Not saying at what level?  This is totally counter of Trump’s daily insistence, with the vaccine needles in both tiny hands, the virus will be vanquished and the economy will magically recover in the first quarter, just after his election. 

On another hilarious note (it would be sad but it is true),  Dr. Trump the uncle of Donald Trump and an MIT professor, had spent 10 years of his career investigating cancer cures.  Specifically cures that involved radiation therapies.  Those wasted 10 years were spent in a failed attempt to somehow get radiation inside the body (the fruit did not fall far from the tree). Perhaps Donald read of his efforts and decided that ingestion of disinfectants would work like radiation?  Or that somehow find a way to get laser light inside the body? If Trump read about his uncle’s work, I guess he did not read the part where he failed after 10 years? 

It was discovered that Alex Azar HHS Sect. recommended, in early to mid-January, that a complete travel ban be put in place for China and Europe,  Trump waited until early-March.  

Studies have shown, as high as 60% was an undercount, in the death rate for the virus.  This is due to methodology and guidance that were meant to undercount.  The first undercount is when a patient dies of pneumonia, even in a hospital, and has the virus, but he/she is not counted as a virus death, even though the virus is due to a respiratory illness.  The second undercount is if a patient who has not been tested yet, had the symptoms, but they are not counted as a virus death.  Nursing home deaths, where the virus has run amuck, did not count deaths, whereas someone who had the virus and an underlying condition was active or they died and did not get a test, any pre-existing condition was blamed and not counted.  So does anyone think the total death count is intentionally being kept away from the public?  The CDC awarded a contract to a firm, which is going to oversee the data coming from the CDC.  Do you think the data will reflect accurate or manipulated data from a firm hired to make the administration look good in a crisis during an election year?

A global virtual conference on the pandemic is underway and a conspicuous absence was anyone representing the United States, once the leader in the world, now totally disappeared as if in a bubble.

There is joy in the oval office with the presentation of the official flag of the Space Force!  This in light of a pandemic, which would yearn for any kind of a unified Pandemic Response Force.  I am miffed at the outlay of dollars, time and energy to make up a phony force that was always there, in El Segundo since the 1950’s called USAF Space and Missile Command on El Segundo Blvd.  I was there in 1970 giving a presentation on a concept study for Reusable Upper stage Astronics.  The mission statement was tweaked and updated but the basic mission remains the same.  So what Trump did was to beat his chest and roll out a new flag and a new costume (uniform) for the Air Force Space Force.

An editorial a columnist said, “If Trump was President during WWII, this column would be written in German”.  Speaking of Germany, they are having students go back to school in the fall.  They have announced that all students would be tested multiple times.

Trump was quoted after someone questioned his timeline for vaccine testing “vaccine or no vaccine we’re back!”. The ostrich strikes again.

Three of the four firings of the Inspector Generals seem to stem from the Muller investigation or the congressional hearing that destroyed Trump’s message on preparedness and PPE’s.  I have an alternate theory, he is attempting to subvert the use of these departments to use during his re-election and he cannot do this with oversight.  The oversight also shines light on cronyism, nepotism and single and sole source contracts that appear to be suspect.