Wednesday, October 27, 2021

Wake-Up Call: FDA Greenlights Pfizer for Kids

A Food and Drug Administration (FDA) advisory panel yesterday voted unanimously to endorse Pfizer's Covid-19 vaccine for children ages five to 11. The FDA, which isn't bound by the panel's decision, will now decide if it agrees. If it does, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) will then have to decide whether to recommend the vaccine for children in that age group. The dose that would be administered to these children would be one-third of the dose given to adults and to older children ages 12 and over.


Fourth Dose for Immunocompromised: Meanwhile, the CDC said in updated guidelines yesterday that some immunocompromised people who've gotten two original doses and then a booster of either a Pfizer or Moderna vaccine will be able to get a fourth shot. That shot would come at least six months after the third dose, and would be for those who are "moderately to severely immunocompromised." These people may not develop a strong immune response to the vaccines because of their condition.

➤IDAHO MALL SHOOTING SUSPECT WHO KILLED TWO DIES: The suspect in Monday's shooting at a Boise, Idaho, mall that left two people dead and injured four others died Tuesday at a local hospital. Ada County Coroner Dotti Owens identified him as 27-year-old Jacob Bergquist of Boise. Owens also identified the victims: 26-year-old Jo Acker, who was a security guard at the mall, and 49-year-old Roberto Padilla. Family members said Acker was killed while trying to stop the shooter. Police responding to the shooting exchanged gunfire with the suspect, who was found to have had multiple guns and ammunition. Boise Police Chief Ryan Lee said Tuesday that they'd searched a home in the city and were looking on social media and at other evidence to try to find a motive. Lee said police knew of Bergquist from previous reports of disorderly conduct or trespassing.

 
➤ELECTION OFFICALS TELLS CONGRESS ABOUT THREATS: A bipartisan group of state election officials spoke before the Senate Rules and Administration Committee yesterday (October 26th) about threats they've received since the 2020 election, saying that a growing number of experienced election administrators are leaving the positions over the threats and accusations of manipulating election results. Arizona Secretary of State Katie Hobbs, who's a Democrat, spoke about threatening calls to her office, leading her to need round-the-clock security at times, by supporters of former President Donald Trump who falsely claim fraud in his loss in the state. Republican Al Schmidt, a Philadelphia city commissioner and member of the Board of Elections, called it "domestic terrorism," saying, "The whole point is to terrorize, to intimidate and to coerce." Another Republican, Kentucky Secretary of State Michael Adams, spoke about getting verbal abuse from Democrats who accuse him of promoting voter suppression.

➤LONGTIME HILLARY CLINTON AIDE ABEDIN SAYS WAS SEXUALLY ASSAULTED BY SENATOR: Huma Abedin, Hillary Clinton's longtime top aide, writes in her new memoir out next week that she was sexually assaulted by a U.S. senator when she was in her 20s. Abedin, who's now 45, doesn't identify the senator in the book, Both/And: A Life in Many Words, and withholds details including his party, his state and whether he's still in Congress. She writes that the two met at a Washington, D.C., dinner attended by several other lawmakers and their aides and took a walk after the meal. Abedin says the senator invited her to his apartment for coffee and told her to make herself comfortable on the couch. She writes: "Then, in an instant, it all changed," saying he sat next to her and pushed his tongue in her mouth. She pushed him away and he apologized, saying he "misread" the situation. She wrote, "Then I said something only the twentysomething version of me would have come up with -- 'I am so sorry' -- and walked out, trying to appear as nonchalant as possible."

➤SINEMA WEARS DENIM VEST WHILE PRESIDING OVER SENATE: Senator Kyrsten Sinema is known for the quirky outfits she wears, but the Arizona Democrat raised eyebrows even beyond that on Tuesday when she wore a sleeveless denim vest with a black T-shirt underneath while presiding over the Senate. Video of her in the attire went viral and drew lots of comments after being shared by a C-SPAN social media specialist. One of them came from Wasington Post editor and columnist Karen Tumulty, who tweeted that there used to be a sign for journalists forbidding denim from being worn in the Senate chambers and asked, "Is it still there?" Washington Post reporter Paul Kane confirmed that the sign is indeed still there, barring denim, overcoats, hats, purses, and bags in the chambers.

➤ZUCKERBERG SUED BY TWO EX-HOUSEHOLD EMPLOYEES: The bad news keeps coming for Mark Zuckerberg. The Facebook CEO and his wife, Priscilla Chan, are being sued by two former household employees who allege the family's former head of security, Liam Booth, targeted them with racist and sexist harassment. The two are Mia King, who is Black, their former security operations assistant, and an unnamed John Doe, who is gay and has a disability, who was their household operations manager. A representative for Zuckerberg and Chan told the New York Post that after investigations were carried out, the allegations "could not be substantiated." The allegations include that Booth referred to King as "ghetto," called her hairstyle unprofessional, and said she was only hired because of her race, and made homophobic comments toward Doe and slapped his groin on two different occasions.

👑QUEEN ELIZABETH WON'T ATTEND CLIMATE CONFERENCE ON DOCTORS' ADVICE: Britain's Queen Elizabeth the Second won't be attending the upcoming U.N. climate conference in Glasgow, Scotland, in person as planned on November 1st, following doctors’ advice to rest, she announced Tuesday. The news came just days after the 95-year-old monarch spent the night in a hospital for tests, which were described as "preliminary investigations." Buckingham Palace said, "Her Majesty is disappointed not to attend the reception but will deliver an address to the assembled delegates via a recorded video message." The queen underwent the medical tests after she canceled a trip to Northern Ireland, and she has recently been seen using a walking stick.
 
➤POLL..MAJORITY CONCERNED ABOUT CLIMATE CHANGE:  A majority of Americans are very concerned about climate change, with a jump seen just in the past few years, according to a new poll from the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and the University of Chicago's Energy Policy Institute. In the survey, 59 percent said global warming is very or extremely important to them as an issue, up 10 percentage points from 49 percent just three years ago in 2018. Among the factors that influenced their views, 54 percent cited information from scientists and 51 percent named recent extreme weather events. Three-quarters of Americans, 75 percent, said they believe climate change is happening, including 89 percent of Democrats and 57 percent of Republicans. Just 10 percent don't believe it's happening and 15 percent said they were unsure. When it comes to what to do about it, 55 percent want Congress to pass legislation ensuring more of the nation's electricity comes from clean energy sources, and 52 percent would support a $1 a month carbon fee on their energy bill to fight climate change, but support for that fee decreases as the amount of it goes up.

🐶MANY NEW COLLEGE STUDENTS REPORT PET SEPARATION ANXIETY:  Pets aren’t the only ones that can feel separation anxiety. Washington State University researchers surveyed college freshmen students leaving pets at home and found 75 percent reported having some level of pet separation anxiety, and 25 percent of that group reported moderate to severe symptoms. Students with higher anxiety tended to be those who treated their pets more like people, and students with dogs at home also tended to report more attachment to their pets (and therefore more separation anxiety) compared to those with cats and other types of pets. Lead study author Alexa Carr says, “Students who are struggling with missing their pets should know that they’re not alone. There’s nothing necessarily wrong with them if they are experiencing a lot of distress from leaving their pets. It can be an isolating experience to lose that coping resource.” But, researchers also stressed this finding should not be used as justification for students to bring their pets with them to college, particularly if they would be their sole caregivers.


👻WHEN IS A KID TOO OLD TO TRICK-OR-TREAT? HALLOWEEN HAS NO AGE LIMIT, SAY EXPERTS—AS LONG AS YOUR TEEN FOLLOWS SOME RULES:  How old is too old to be trick-or-treating? Many parents told Yahoo that there is no age limit, and perhaps the only cutoff is becoming a parent yourself. Alexandrina Aguirre-Schilke, from Holly Springs, Georgia, says, “I know a lot of parents think high schoolers are too old to be trick-or-treating, but I don’t think so. The oldest [trick-or-treaters] I have seen are 14 or 15 years old anyway. These kids could be doing god-knows-what, and if they still want to trick-or-treat, I think it’s totally fine. They shouldn’t be turned away because some people think they’re too old. They’re still kids.” Brett Bernstein is a community resourced unit supervisor at the Pima County Sheriff’s Department in Tucson, Arizona, says if your teen is heading out for their first Halloween alone, he suggests having a plan in place beforehand, and agreeing on a specific time when teens should return home.

🦃THIS YEAR’S THANKSGIVING DINNER COULD BE ‘THE MOST EXPENSIVE MEAL IN THE HISTORY OF THE HOLIDAY’:  2021’s Thanksgiving dinner costs could be the highest of all time. The New York Times reports that “nearly every component” of the holiday dinner will cost more this year, per agricultural economists, farmers, and grocery executives. The costs are up due to “a knotted supply chain, high transportation expenses, labor shortages, trade policies,” bad weather, and inflation. The Times notes the biggest expense will be the turkey, whose price per pound is expected to surpass the current record benchmark of $1.36, set in 2015. The price increase in turkey is attributed to the price of corn (commercial turkeys eat it) which “more than doubled” in price in some places nationwide between July 2020 and July 2021.

🤣COMEDIAN MORT SAHL DEAD AT 94: Standup comedian Mort Sahl has died at the age of 94. His friend Lucy Mercer confirmed to The New York Times that Sahl passed Tuesday (Oct. 26th) in Mill Valley, California. The political satirist was known as the “Rebel Without a Pause” for his rapid-fire monologues.




⚾BRAVES DOWN ASTROS 6-2 IN OPENING GAME OF WORLD SERIES: The Atlanta Braves downed the Houston Astros 6-2 in the opening game of the World Series last night (October 26th). The Braves got things going quickly, with Jorge Soler becoming the first player to ever begin a World Series with a home run, which he smacked out on the third pitch of the game at Minute Maid Park in Houston. On their way to the win, the Braves had to overcome losing starting pitcher Charlie Morton, who left with a fractured right fibula in his leg in the bottom of the third inning. He'd apparently been hurt worse than realized by a hit that bounced off his leg in the second inning, and is now done for the series. Game 2 is tonight in Houston.


⚾OHTANI GETS SPECIAL AWARD FOR TWO-WAY ALL-STAR SEASON: The Los Angeles Angels' Shohei Ohtani received a special award from MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred last night (October 26th) for his two-way All-Star season as both a pitcher and hitter. Ohtani was given the Commissioner’s Historic Achievement Award by Manfred before the opening game of the World Series. The 27-year-old had 46 home runs, 100 RBIs and 26 stolen bases this season, as well as had a 9-2 record in 23 starts with a 3.18 ERA, striking out 156 batters. Ohtani is the most accomplished two-way player since Babe Ruth, and was the first two-way starter in the history of the All-Star Game. He is the 16th recipient of the award, and the first to get it since Manfred became commissioner in 2015.

🏒BLACKHAWKS GM RESIGNS AFTER PROBE FINDS SEX ASSAULT CLAIM MISHANDLED: Chicago Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman resigned yesterday (October 26th) after a investigation found that the organization mishandled allegations that an assistant coach sexually assaulted a player in 2010. The NHL also fined the team $2 million in the wake of the probe by an outside law firm hired by the Blackhawks. Florida Panthers coach Joel Quenneville and Winnipeg Jets general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff, who were with the Blackhawks at the time, were also named in the report. The team commissioned the investigation in response to two lawsuits against them, one by a player identified as John Doe alleging sexual assault by then-assistant coach Brad Aldrich in 2010, and another filed by a former student whom Aldrich was convicted of assaulting in Michigan.

⚽LLOYD PLAYS IN FINAL MATCH FOR U.S. WOMEN'S SOCCER TEAM: Carli Lloyd played in her final game for the U.S. women's soccer team last night in St. Paul, Minnesota, which the U.S. won 6-0 over South Korea, although Lloyd didn't score. She left to a standing ovation after being subbed out in the 65th minute. Lloyd is retiring after a career that includes two World Cup titles and two Olympics gold medals, and a signature achievement of scoring three goals in the opening 16 minutes of the U.S. victory over Japan in the 2015 Women’s World Cup final. The 39-year-old, who made her first appearance with the national team in 2005, has the second-most international appearances of any player, and the third-most goals in team history for the U.S.
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