Linkee-poo is always gone too long anytime she goes away

Bill Withers, and so it goes.

Missing your Girl Scout Cookie Fix? Wait no more. (Grokked from Michele)

"A potential vaccine for COVID-19 has been developed and tested successfully in mice, researchers reported Thursday… 'We'd like to get this into patients as soon as possible,' said Andrea Gambotto, associate professor of surgery at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and co-author of a paper announcing the vaccine in the journal EBioMedicine."

"About 35 companies and academic institutions are racing to create such a vaccine, at least four of which already have candidates they have been testing in animals. The first of these – produced by Boston-based biotech firm Moderna – will enter human trials imminently… But there is another reason for the head start. Though nobody could have predicted that the next infectious disease to threaten the globe would be caused by a coronavirus – flu is generally considered to pose the greatest pandemic risk – vaccinologists had hedged their bets by working on 'prototype' pathogens. 'The speed with which we have [produced these candidates] builds very much on the investment in understanding how to develop vaccines for other coronaviruses,' says Richard Hatchett, CEO of the Oslo-based nonprofit the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (Cepi), which is leading efforts to finance and coordinate Covid-19 vaccine development." Hurrah for basic research! This article has a lot of good information on how vaccines are developed, why it's important to test, and then the process of producing the vaccine in bulk and getting the population vaccinated.

"According to New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo, the state has 2,200 ventilators in its state stockpile. Current COVID-19 case projections suggest the state may not have enough of the machines, which help critically ill people breathe, as soon as next week."

"As the coronavirus continues to spread across the globe, John Oliver discusses President Trump’s inconsistent response to the pandemic, including his suggestion of an Easter deadline for sending America back to work, and his reluctance to use the Defense Production Act." Again, that the "sane" take on the world can be found more reliably with comedians instead of conservative political leaders demonstrates just how far they've gone over the edge.

"The White House is expected soon to advise Americans living in coronavirus hotspots to wear cloth masks or scarves in public to help stop the spread of the coronavirus." Good luck finding them, though. Instead, everyone will wear bandanas over their nose and mouths, because that won't cause problems either.

"The captains of the U.S. Navy’s two hospital ships said Thursday that the vessels have treated fewer than 20 patients since deploying to New York and Los Angeles in an effort to alleviate the pressure on local hospitals… 'The process continues and we are honestly looking forward to seeing a significant increase in patients being transferred to the Comfort,' (Capt. Patrick Amersbach, commanding officer of the USNS Comfort) said, adding that each patient must be referred to the vessel by a local hospital."

"President Donald Trump is resisting calls to issue a national stay-at-home order to stem the spread of the new coronavirus despite his administration’s projections that tens of thousands of Americans are likely to be killed by the disease. One by one, though, states are increasingly pushing shutdown orders of their own."

"Deaths mounted across the four European nations, which between them have almost 60% of total fatalities and more than a third of the global tally of 1 million confirmed cases. The grim figures give governments little leeway to ease restrictions in a human and economic crisis that is straining continental unity."

And in "when you only have a hammer, everything looks like a nail" news… "Later that night, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte took to the airwaves with a chilling warning for his citizens: Defy the lockdown orders again and the police will shoot you dead."

"The UK plans to roll out 'immunity passports' to people who have already contracted COVID-19 to allow them to return to 'normal life,' the Health Secretary Matt Hancock said on Thursday." I'm sure that will work out totally fine.

Never let a good crisis go to waste. "There has been widespread dismay in Italy over Europe's response to the pandemic, starting with an initial failure to send medical aid, followed by a refusal amongst northern nations to endorse joint bonds to mitigate the cost of recovery… The far-right League party has jumped on the discontent to call into question Italy's continued membership of the 27-nation bloc, while even staunch pro-Europeans have expressed consternation at the lack of empathy and support."

And the view from post-Brexit UK… "Why would there be, you might ask. Germany is a sovereign nation, facing its own pretty big problems… But therein lies the question: What does European Union really mean?"

"Around the world, as cities have gone into lockdown to stop the spread of coronavirus, the mass efforts to save lives have put one vulnerable group more at risk… Women and children who live with domestic violence have no escape from their abusers during quarantine, and from Brazil to Germany, Italy to China, activists and survivors say they are already seeing an alarming rise in abuse."

"The Navy announced it has relieved the captain who sounded the alarm about an outbreak of COVID-19 aboard the USS Theodore Roosevelt." Yeah, we all saw that coming, and I suspect so did Capt. Crozier and why it was "leaked".

"Now, at 79, Fauci is working 19- to 20-hour days thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic… It’s Fauci’s wife of 35 years, Christine Grady, a nurse bioethicist, who is there at the end of those very long days to remind him to take care of himself too… 'I try to get him to rest, to drink water, to eat well, to sleep, and to be selective about what he agrees to and say no to some things,' Grady tells CNBC Make It."

"It was never meant to get this big, this fast. Zoom — the video-conferencing service which has become the go-to way for millions of self-distancing users to get in touch with friends, family, teachers, co-workers and more — has gone public with exactly how large it has grown since the coronavirus pandemic, and what it plans to do about its growing pains."

"Google is using location data gathered from smartphones to help public health officials understand how people’s movements have changed in response to the global COVID-19 pandemic. In a blog post early Friday morning, Google announced the release of its COVID-19 Community Mobility Reports." Big brother is watching.

"NASA originally planned to announce that it was bringing its iconic 'worm' logo back on Wednesday, but the agency was afraid people would take it as an April Fools' Day joke."

"U.S. employers shed 701,000 jobs in March — the most since 2009, during the depths of the Great Recession, according to the monthly survey. But that was conducted three weeks ago — before the pandemic forced the widespread closing of restaurants, retail shops and other businesses."

"Starting today, small businesses can apply for the nearly $350 billion in loans available through the economic rescue plan from Congress… The loan program, known as the Paycheck Protection Program, is intended to support businesses so they can ride out the tough economic times and most importantly assist with either keeping current workers or rehire those that were laid off."

"Coal mining companies owned by West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice and his family have agreed to pay the government more than $5 million in delinquent mine safety fines, the Justice Department says… A 2014 joint investigation by NPR and Mine Safety and Health News found that companies linked to the governor were among 2,700 mining companies that had failed to pay nearly $70 million in delinquent penalties to the government. The investigation also found that mines that don't pay their safety fines are more dangerous than those that do."

"The Trump administration is still soliciting immigrants for specific jobs despite droves of Americans filing for unemployment… It is urging medical professionals to contact a U.S. embassy to move their application process along… It is easing requirements for immigrants to get jobs as farm workers, landscapers and crab pickers, aware that industries, including those that fill grocery store shelves, could be hurt if they couldn’t hire foreign employees… And until facing criticism this week, it had been moving ahead with a 35,000-person increase in the number of seasonal workers in part for expected job openings at resorts and golf courses after the pandemic releases its grip on the economy." Just remember all that the next time you hear about foreigners coming to take our jobs.

"Wisconsin's April 7 primary will proceed amid the coronavirus pandemic, but with significant changes, a federal judge ruled Thursday… U.S. District Judge William Conley said he could not change the date of the election but chastised Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers, a Democrat, and the Republican-controlled legislature for not rescheduling the election."

"The federal government expects to begin making payments to millions of Americans under the new stimulus law in mid-April, but some people without direct deposit information may not get checks until mid-August or later, according to a memo obtained by The Associated Press… Then, starting the week of May 4, the IRS will begin issuing paper checks to individuals, says the memo obtained by AP Thursday. The paper checks will be issued at a rate of about 5 million per week, which means it could take up to 20 weeks to get all the checks out. That timeline would delay some checks until the week of Aug. 17." It's not like you press a button and print checks to everybody.

"Pence explained that the White House Coronavirus Task Force is drafting a proposal 'to use some of the $100 billion that we're making available to hospitals to compensate the hospitals directly for any coronavirus treatment that they provide to uninsured Americans… 'We've been working every day to make sure that Americans don't have to worry about the cost of treatment…'" You know what would help with that? Single-payer or Medicare for all.

When you displease the Dear Leader. "President Donald Trump's campaign has sent a letter to Jeff Sessions demanding the former attorney general stop using Trump's name in his campaign materials for his US Senate bid."