Friday, February 5, 2021

Wake-Up Call: COVID Cases Fall, Deaths Still High


As the U.S. passed 450,000 deaths from the coronavirus early yesterday, daily deaths continue to remain high at more than 3,000 a day, even as the number of cases and hospitalizations continue to fall after the surge of the previous three months that included the holiday season. Experts believe that deaths, which usually trail cases and hospitalizations, will begin declining as early as next week, after the peak in cases hit around the start of the year. However, the declines could be offset if people start to ease up and gather with people again, including this Sunday for the Super Bowl. Additionally, even as vaccine distribution continues to ramp up, mutated variants of the coronavirus from the U.K., Brazil and South Africa are all now known to be in the U.S., against which vaccines may not work as well.

Johnson & Johnson Asks U.S. to Approve One-Shot Vaccine: Drugmaker Johnson & Johnson asked U.S. regulators yesterday to approve its coronavirus vaccine, the first in the world that's just one dose, instead of requiring two shots weeks apart. The Food and Drug Administration is asking its independent advisers to scrutinize the data just like it did for the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines before deciding whether to give approval. The panel will meet on February 26th.


➤ TWH CONSIDERS SENDING FACE MASKS TO EVERY U-S HOUSEHOLD: As part of the ongoing fight against the pandemic, which has been complicated by the emergence of mutated variants of the coronavirus, the administration is considering sending face masks to every U.S. household. NBC News reported that President Biden's Covid-19 team has been discussing the idea and considering the logistics. White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said about the idea, "There are a range of options on the table to help protect more Americans from the coronavirus and encourage people to mask up, but no decision has been made." Former President Donald Trump's administration scrapped a plan last year that would have sent 650 million reusable cotton masks to all U.S. households via the U.S. Postal Service starting in April, near the beginning of the pandemic. The idea was rejected because of concern that Americans getting the masks "might create concern or panic." Most of the masks for the initiative were instead given to state and nonprofit organizations.

➤HOUSE REMOVES TAYLOR GREENE FROM COMMITTEES, 11 REPUBLICANS SIDE WITH DEMS: The Democratic-led House of Representatives voted Thursday to remove freshman Republican Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene from both her assigned committees, an unprecedented step taken for her past support of racist and violent views, including social media "likes" for violence against House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and former President Barack Obama, and conspiracy theories, including questioning the reality of deadly school shootings and supporting QAnon theories. Eleven Republicans voted with the Democrats in removing Greene, while all the other GOP House members voted against it, although none defended her behavior. Greene spoke from the House floor in her own defense, saying, in contrast to her past social media posts, that she believes 9/11 and mass school shootings were real and no longer believes in QAnon conspiracy theories, while portraying herself as the victim of, quote, "big media companies" like Facebook. She didn't explicitly apologize for past remarks like those about Pelosi being treasonous and subject to death or space rays controlled by the Rothschilds causing wildfires. While Republican members didn't defend Greene's statements, some criticized the Democrats' action, with Rep. Tom Cole of Oklahoma saying they were setting a precedent by punishing lawmakers for statements made before they were even candidates for Congress.

➤TRUMP SAYS NO TO DEMS' REQUEST TO TESTIFY AT IMPEACHMENT TRIAL: Former President Donald Trump said no yesterday to a request from House Democrats to testify under oath at his Senate impeachment trial that will begin next week. Soon after the request from the House managers who will prosecute the case was revealed, Trump adviser Jason Miller called the trial "an unconstitutional proceeding" at which the former president wouldn't testify, and Trump's attorneys separately called the request a "public relations stunt."
 

➤BIDEN CALLS FOR RUSSIA TO RELEASE NAVALNY, SAYS U.S. 'IS BACK': President Biden visited the State Department yesterday for the first time since taking office, and called for the release from jail of Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny, saying, quote, "the days of the United States rolling over in the face of Russia’s aggressive actions -- interfering with our election, cyber attacks, poisoning its citizens -- are over." Biden also said that he was ending U.S. support for Saudi Arabia's military offensive in Yemen and reversed former President Donald Trump's order to withdraw U.S. troops stationed in Germany. Addressing how his foreign policy would be different from that of his predecessor, Biden called for a return to the, quote, "grounding wire of our global power," saying, "America is back. Diplomacy is back."

➤McKINSEY TO PAY NEARLY $600 MILLION FOR OPIOID CRISIS ROLE: Global consulting firm McKinsey & Company has agreed to pay nearly $600 million for its role in advising businesses on how to sell more prescription opioid painkillers during the country's opioid crisis. Most of the money is in a $573 million settlement reached with 47 states, the District of Columbia and five U.S. territories. McKinsey Global Managing Partner Kevin Sneader said in a statement, "We deeply regret that we did not adequately acknowledge the tragic consequences of the epidemic unfolding in our communities."


➤OLIVIA NEWTON-JOHN SAYS RENEWERS CRITICISM OF 'GREASE' AS SEXIST IS SILLY: ONJ is pushing back against renewed criticism of Grease, the popular, iconic 1978 movie she starred in with John Travolta. The criticism was sparked on Twitter after Grease was re-aired in December in the U.K. on the BBC, with some calling the film "problematic," "sexist," "misogynistic," "rapey," and even displaying "racism" for not having diversity. During an appearance on a podcast earlier this week called, A Life of Greatness, the 72-year-old Newton-John called the criticism "silly," pointing out that the movie was made in the 1970s about the 1950s, and that gender roles were different then compared to today's standards. She continued, "It was a stage play, it's a musical, it's fun. I think everyone's taking everything so seriously. I think we need to relax a little bit and just enjoy things for what they are. . . . I think it's just a fun movie that entertains people."





🏈SUPER BOWL 55 PREVIEW: America's unofficial national holiday arrives on Sunday (February 7th), when Super Bowl 55 will pit the Kansas City Chiefs against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

WHERE: Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida, home of the Buccaneers, making the Bucs the first team to play a Super Bowl in its home stadium. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, just 25,000 fans will be allowed in the stadium, and there will be an additional 30,000 cardboard cutouts of fans in the stands. This will be the third Super Bowl at Raymond James Stadium, which last hosted the NFL championship game 12 years ago in February 2009.

WHEN AND HOW TO WATCH: CBS will be airing the big game, and their broadcast will include hours of pre-game coverage, including an interview with President Biden, before getting to the main event at 6:30 p.m. E.T. The game will be streamed for free on CBSSports.com, the CBS Sports app and CBS All Access.

THE TEAMS:

Chiefs: This will be the fourth Super Bowl for the Chiefs, who will be trying to repeat as Super Bowl champions and win their third NFL title in franchise history, having also won Super Bowl 4 in 1970. The Chiefs had an NFL-best 14-2 record this season, led by quarterback Patrick Mahomes, last year's Super Bowl MVP, and head coach Andy Reid, in his eighth year with the team. This will be Mahomes' second Super Bowl in just his fourth season in the NFL, and the third for Reid as head coach, whose Philadelphia Eagles lost to the New England Patriots in 2005.

Buccaneers: After an 11-5 season, the Buccaneers will be the first wild card team in the Super Bowl in a decade. This will be Tampa Bay's second Super Bowl, having won in their only other appearance in the NFL championship game in 2003. After joining the Bucs this season after 20 years with the New England Patriots, quarterback Tom Brady will be appearing in his record 10th Super Bowl and trying for his seventh NFL championship, already holding the record for a player with six. Before Brady's arrival, the Bucs hadn't made the playoffs since 2007, and had losing seasons the prior three years. The will be the first trip to the Super Bowl as head coach for Bruce Arians, who is in his second season with Tampa Bay.
 

ENTERTAINMENT: The Weeknd will headline the halftime show. Country music's Eric Church and R&B's Jazmine Sullivan will sing the National Anthem, and "America the Beautiful" will be performed by R&B singer H.E.R.

COMMERCIALS:  The commercials have become part of the Super Bowl experience, with advertisers ramping up their creativity for the game's huge national audience. This year they'll be paying around $5.5 million for a 30-second spot. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, some brands that normally advertise during the game have decided to skip it this year, including Budweiser, which donated airtime it bought for public service announcements about coronavirus vaccinations, as well as Avocados from Mexico, Coca-Cola, Hyundai and Pepsi. Below is a look at a few of the ads that have already been released.

🏒FIVE NHL TEAMS HAVE POSTPONED GAMES, LEAGUE REVISES COVID PROTOCOLS: The NHL revised its coronavirus protocols yesterday as the Colorado Avalanche became the fifth team to have games postponed because of Covid-19 issues. The New Jersey Devils have games postponed through at least Saturday, the Buffalo Sabres through Monday, the Minnesota Wild through Tuesday and the Avalanche through next Thursday, and the Vegas Golden Knights are resuming play today. So far, 26 games have been postponed. Among the protocols being adjusted, glass panels are being removed from behind benches for better air flow, all meetings will be virtual, and teams will space out locker rooms to have six feet of space between players.

🏀NBA TELLS TEAMS EXPECTING TO SET MARCH 7TH ALL-STAR GAME: The NBA told teams last night that it expects to finalize plans over the next week to play an All-Star Game on March 7th in Atlanta, according to media reports yesterday. There have been ongoing talks between the league and the players union about whether to hold an All-Star Game and if so, how. L.A. Lakers star LeBron James, for one, isn't thrilled with the idea, saying, "I have zero energy and zero excitement about an All-Star Game this year. I don’t even understand why we’re having an All-Star Game . . . I’ll be there physically if I’m selected . . . but not mentally."

🏀UNDEFEATED BAYLOR PAUSES GAMES DUE TO COVID: Number 2 college basketball team Baylor, which is undefeated so far this season at 17-0, matching their best-ever start, had their next two games postponed by the Big 12 Conference yesterday because of coronavirus protocols. No specifics were given for what tripped the protocols, whether positive tests or contact tracing. Baylor has had previous games postponed in the season because of Covid issues.

🏌NESMITH, HUBBARD TIED IN LEAD AT PHOENIX OPEN AFTER FIRST ROUND: Matthew NeSmith and Mark Hubbard are tied in first place after the opening round of the Phoenix Open at TPC Scottsdale in Arizona yesterday (February 4th). They are both at 8-under 63, one stroke ahead of fellow Americans Nate Lashley and Sam Burns. There were 5,000 spectators allowed at the course, the most for a PGA Tour event since the start of the pandemic, but far below the usual number.

🏀HEAT'S BRADLEY TO BE OUT THREE TO FOUR WEEKS WITH CALF INJURY: Miami Heat guard Avery Bradley is expected to be out for three to four weeks with a strained right calf, The Athletic reported Thursday (February 4th), the day after Bradley left the Heat's game against the Washington Wizards after he was hurt. Bradley has played in 10 games this season for the Heat with one start.
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