Trump Tests Positive

President Donald Trump and first lady Melania Trump tested positive for coronavirus, the President has announced. "Tonight, @FLOTUS and I tested positive for COVID-19. We will begin our quarantine and recovery process immediately." (CNN)

It's October. We are more than six months into this Year of Living Separately with no end in sight. The number of new Covid-19 cases goes up here, down there, but overall continues surging through our society.

Over 7 million have gotten sick; more than 200,000 have died. But many more remain at risk. Another 25,000 are expected to die this month.

As the weather grows cooler, the U.S. appears to be poised to become a carbon copy of Europe, which is coping with a second wave of the pandemic already.

Now Trump faces an uncertain health future.

***

 * White House Blocked C.D.C. Order to Keep Cruise Ships Docked -- The C.D.C. director wanted a “no sail” order extended until February, a policy that would have upset the tourism industry in the crucial swing state of Florida. (NYT)

* As Kim wooed Trump with ‘love letters,’ he kept building his nuclear capability, intelligence shows (WashPo)

* FACEBOOK BANS ADS THAT SEEK TO 'DELEGITIMIZE' ELECTION RESULTS (HuffPost)

* If Trump wins, 20 million people could lose health insurance. If Biden wins, 25 million could gain it. (Vox)

* Denver Wants to Fix a Legacy of Environmental Racism -- Historically, trees and city parks in America go to wealthy, white neighborhoods. Now, a program in Colorado’s capital is trying to correct that injustice. (NYT)

* Trump’s call for poll-watching volunteers sparks fear of chaos and violence on Election Day (WashPo)

* A prominent member of the Proud Boys was arrested Wednesday in Portland, Oregon — less than a day after President Donald Trump publicly threw his support behind the hate group. (HuffPost)

* Trump-Biden Debate Prompts Shock, Despair and, in China, Glee -- The chaos of the event has left allies and rivals alike questioning the state of American democracy and the country’s place on the global stage. (NYT)

* Trump insists on no changes to debate rules, challenges leaders of debate commission (WashPo)

* The Silverado Trail has long been a place of dreams for Napa Valley wine lovers as it winds gently through vineyards and on to Calistoga. California's Glass Fire turned much of that dream to ash, destroying a 3-star restaurant at Meadowood resort, torching wineries such as Chateau Boswell, and tainting precious grapes with smoke. (AFP)

* Biden is favored to win the election. Odds: Biden 80%, Trump 20%. (538)

***

Meanwhile, a month remains before Election Day. Many Americans, including me, will have voted by then by mail. In the "poll of polls" assembled by the data site 538 calculates that Biden is for times more likely than Trump to win the election.

But everybody remembers what happened in 2016 when Trump snuck into office by a tiny percentage of votes in swing states while losing the popular tabulation by over 3 million votes.

Trump continues to intimidate voters by shouting his baseless claims of voter fraud, and claiming that the election outcome will only be valid if he wins. Meanwhile, his administration is doing whatever it can to *suppress* the votes by people of color and poor people.

That means the election outcome will only be valid if Trump loses.

I don't know what is going to happen but our country is never going to be the same after this outrageous spectacle concludes. By then, virtually all of us may be completely worn out.

The wildfire smoke has returned to the Bay Area, as has the heat. It is suffocating. I wish I could hit the road.

Everyone around here feels the same way.

Trapped.

-30-

Nothing to be Proud Of

 

The national embarrassment of the President acting like a spoiled child in the debate is behind us, but I'm worried about what effect this spectacle has had on our youth.

It was the first debate my grandchildren have seen. This is the first Presidential election my youngest daughter can vote in. Early in the debate, she texted that it was a "train wreck" -- a term I later heard from many people, including reporters covering the event.

But no matter what any of us think, our children and grandchildren have seen what they've seen and it will affect them for years to come.

Like anyone else watching the debacle, I was shocked by Trump's embrace of the "Proud Boys," who represent the absolute worst in our society.

It is impossible for me to imagine any decent Republican voter tolerating this embrace of a white supremacist organization. What is needed, for the good of the country, is for those voters to "stand down" -- sit this election out.

You don't have to agree with Joe Biden on the issues, or even like the way he speaks. Hell, he isn't my kind of speaker; I prefer an Obama -- someone who can articulate a vision we can share, regardless of party affiliation. But Biden is a good man who will stabilize the country at a time we really need stabilization.

Normally, I would urge everyone to vote, but I cannot in good conscience encourage anyone to vote for Trump.  Perhaps a better option would be to go down-ballot and support all of the other GOP candidates, and leave the top line blank.

That would send the message that needs to be sent. We Americans stand united against hate, against racism, against police violence, against protestor violence, against inequality, against oppression and against authoritarianism.

We support tolerance, diversity, decency, equality, love, kindness, compassion, and the freedom to speak out on behalf of our beliefs. We support our right to differ, but not to attack each other with the kind of vicious rhetoric Trump employs.

BTW, the debate moderator, Chris Wallace of FoxNews, has come under severe criticism for not being able to control Trump's unhinged  behavior, but could anyone have done a better job? He was overwhelmed, as were we all.

Take a look at the first news item below. When the country's foremost conservative thinker says we should cancel the rest of the debates because of Trump's behavior, we have a problem.

***

* For the sake of the country, cancel the remaining debates-- Opinion by George F. Will  (WashPo)

* Of Course, the Debate Was Always Going to Be About Trump -- A face-off with Joe Biden devolves into an ugly shouting match as President Trump, characteristically, makes it all about him. (NYT)

* Tuesday’s Debate Made Clear the Gravest Threat to the Election: The President Himself -- President Trump’s unwillingness to say he would abide by the result and his disinformation campaign about election fraud went beyond anything President Vladimir V. Putin could have imagined. (NYT)

* Head-scratching perplexity about U.S. democracy in Australia and Denmark. Disdain for “chaos” and “insults” between America’s presidential contenders in a Chinese Communist Party tabloid. A European market watcher’s warning of a “credibility deficit” in U.S. politics amid fears that a long tradition of peaceful, amicable transfer of power could be in jeopardy. (AP)

* The Commission on Presidential Debates announced Wednesday that it would add “additional structure” to the remaining faceoffs between President Trump and Democratic nominee Joe Biden after Tuesday night’s chaotic clash in Cleveland, saying “more orderly discussion is needed.” (WashPo)

* Early surge of Democratic mail voting sparks worry inside GOP (WashPo)

* 'We are ready': Proud Boys threaten to act and pledge allegiance to Trump after he told the far right group to 'stand back and stand by' during presidential debate (Mail Online)

*Trump Sent a Warning. Let’s Take It Seriously. -- Our democracy is in terrible danger — more than since the Civil War, more than after Pearl Harbor, more than during the Cuban missile crisis. (NYT)

* CALIFORNIA FIRES BREAK 'ALMOST EVERY RECORD' Fires continue to grow in Northern California, continuing the state’s historic, devastating fire season after record-breaking blazes swept the state in August. California’s fires this year have “broken almost every record there is to break,” the state’s firefighting agency, Cal Fire, tweeted on Tuesday. Fires have burned more than 3.8 million acres so far this year, more than five times the average of 740,000 acres burned by this time in the past five years. Five of the six largest fires in California history have occurred this year. [HuffPost]

* ICE preparing targeted arrests in ‘sanctuary cities,’ amplifying president’s campaign theme (WashPo)

* How Trump Voters Feel About His Refusal to Commit to Transferring Power -- Many Trump supporters do not believe that he can or will lose, and say he would be justified in questioning whether Democrats manipulated the outcome. (NYT)

* Greenland ice sheet on course to lose ice at fastest rate in 12,000 years, study find (WashPo)

* BIDEN PITCHED A CLIMATE PLAN. TRUMP RAMBLED. Across the West Coast, fires have scorched a record 2.5 million acres and incinerated entire towns ― and there are still several months left in the fire season. During Tuesday night's presidential debate, the president shrugged off a question about what should be done about it. Pressed on whether he understands the role that human-caused emissions are playing, Trump extolled the need for “immaculate air and immaculate water.” Biden pitched his plan to add “millions of good-paying jobs” created by new efforts to eliminate the energy sector’s emissions by 2035 and build 500,000 charging stations for electric vehicles. [HuffPost]

* Trump’s quest to win a second term is not in good shape. He entered Tuesday night’s debate with roughly a 7- or 8-point deficit in national polls, putting him further behind at this stage of the race than any other candidate since Bob Dole in 1996. (538)

* The Carnival Parade Is Canceled, and Rio Is Reeling -- Wars, disease and political turmoil have never prevented Rio de Janeiro from putting on its famous carnival. Now, the pandemic has forced a suspension of the annual parade, at great cost to the city and its residents. (NYT)

***

I continue to reach out to old friends, connecting with two or three every week. It's extremely difficult to continue making new friends given the pandemic, but I'll do that too when I can.

One feature of 2020 is my Facebook Friend network has vastly expanded and I am extremely grateful to all of you for that.

If you're lonely
And need a friend
And troubles seem like
They never end
Just remember to keep the faith
And love will be there to light the way

Anytime you need a friend
I will be here

-- Mariah Carey

-30-

Debate Loser? America

In the end, there was no actual debate. It was the starkest example yet of a schoolyard bully misbehaving on national TV, and it is a tragedy that he is the President of the U.S.

Biden did his best to respond, but in the end a bully is a bully. And on occasion, Biden stumbled with his answers and seemed disoriented.

For one, I am disappointed, because I had hoped against hope for a discussion of the issues.

I had my pen and paper ready to take notes, but there were no substantive notes to be taken.

The moderator, Chris Wallace of Fox News, had to repeatedly request Trump to back off, but he refused.

It was an embarrassment for the country in the eyes of the world. 

***

Well, as I was compiling the latest news headlines, something weird happened. A bunch of strange stories started popping up in my news feeds -- trips to Mars and the moon, a jetpack man who comes to your aid, a hermaphrodite bird in the Midwest, and a giant robot in Tokyo. 

Far more entertaining than the debate...

* A review by The Washington Post of nearly 90 state and federal voting lawsuits found that judges have been dubious of Republican arguments about the risk of widespread fraud. (WashPo)

* TRUMP OUT TO WIN AT ANY COST The New York Times’ detailing of two decades of President Donald Trump’s federal tax returns made it even clearer that he sees a second term as a way to avoid potential prosecution and the burden of his mountainous debts. The report raises questions about whether Trump violated federal law in evading taxes, and offers a lens into why he has fought so hard to shield the returns from public view (HuffPost)

* Post-ABC poll: Biden leads Trump in battleground state of Pennsylvania (WashPo)

* Disney is laying off 28,000 employees at theme parks due to Covid-19. (CNN)

* A former federal prosecutor during the Watergate proceedings that brought down President Richard Nixon says tax revelations about Trump could ultimately send him and oldest daughter Ivanka Trump to prison. “Tax evasion is a five-year felony,” said Nick Akerman. (HuffPost)

* Trump said he would bring jobs back to Ohio’s manufacturing workers. Instead, he deserted them. (WashPo)

* Trump Secretly Mocks His Christian Supporters (Atlantic)

* Trump’s presidential election campaign attempted to discourage millions of Black Americans from voting in 2016 in a move that could have been crucial to his victory. According to an investigation by Britain's Channel 4 News, the “Deterrence” project run by Trump’s digital campaign team targeted 3.5 million Black people with ads in an attempt to get them to stay at home on Election Day. (Channel 4)

* Strange Bacteria Is Attacking California’s Trout Supply (NYT)

*  Wildfires erupt across California, damaging Santa Rosa and displacing thousands (WashPo)

* Elon Musk says humans need to move to Mars as Sun will one day engulf Earth (U.S. Sun)

* United Arab Emirates to launch spacecraft to moon in 2024 (AP)

* Jet suit paramedic tested in the Lake District 'could save lives' (BBC) Maybe this explains that guy above LAX? (DW)

* Giant robot moving in Japan harbour entrances millions on Twitter (Reuters)

* Researchers In PA Catch Rare Part-Female, Part-Male Bird (CBS)

***

According to Ancestry.com's analysis of my DNA sample, I'm 92% Scottish, 4% Irish, and 4% British. That's fine but can I ask for a second opinion?

"I don't need your rocking' chair." -- George Jones

Under the Heat Dome

Reminder: The first presidential debate before this year's election occurs tonight, Tuesday, at 7 p.m. ET.

"Red Flag" warnings of fire danger are back here on the coast, after a brief stretch when the air seemed clear and the sky brighter. The air thickened with smoke overnight early Monday, apparently from the two new fires listed below. 

I don't know if the fires are due to climate change, as Gov. Newsom says, but they do presage a necessary change in the California lifestyle.

How many people are going to continue to be willing to risk living in the fire zones if along with that sweet mountain air and the comfort of tall trees comes the constant risk of losing everything, even their lives?

As September sneaks off, we're still a long way from the rainy season, assuming we even have one this year. We may not, because California is also given to droughts, which exacerbate the fire problem. 

Come to think of it, *everything* seems to exacerbate the fire problem, even heavy rains.

That's because the rains stimulate the growth of grasses and brush that dries out and turns brown during the hot season, becoming fuel for the next cycle of wildfires that always seem to be poised to resume their race through this region.

Despite all of this, I love it here and I'm still itching to get on the road and go somewhere -- anywhere -- no doubt in rebellion against all of the restrictions I have faced the past six months.

My thoughts, admittedly irrational, go like this: "Okay, I was really sick for a long time last year. That meant being trapped in hospital beds. But I willed myself back to health and did a lot of physical therapy to build back my strength, so I wouldn't be trapped anymore. I wanted to be free. So I was good.

"Well now I am free but this effing pandemic and the fires and the heatwaves have kept me from living out that freedom. I'm feeling almost as trapped as when I was in the hospital beds.

"Looking on the bright side, at last I don't have to wear those damned hospital gowns that open in the back. But still, this good boy is gonna go bad, to misquote Tammy Wynette."

***

Here you go. Watch out for those swearing parrots.

* Two new wildfires grew by nearly 10,000 acres in a day in California, where more than 3.6 million acres have burned this year. (CNN) 

* 3 Killed in Fresh Wildfires in Northern California -- In addition to the deaths, the famous Chateau Boswell winery is gone, a community of tiny homes for homeless people has burned, and an untold number of houses are feared lost. (NYT)

* Ocean heat waves linked to climate change are disrupting the food webs of sea lions and other marine creatures. (NYT)

* During a press conference in Delaware, Biden warned Americans that their health care will be in jeopardy if Trump's nominee Barrett is confirmed and the court gains a 6-3 conservative majority. “It’s no mystery what is happening here: President Trump is trying to throw out the Affordable Care Act,” Biden said. “He’s been trying to do it for the last four years. The Republican Party has been trying to eliminate it for a decade.” [HuffPost]

* Ransomware attacks against small towns, big cities and the contractors who run their voting systems have federal officials fearing that hackers will try to sow chaos around the election. (NYT)

* Despite Trump’s repeated insistence that COVID-19 is largely a blue state problem, cases are surging in red states just five weeks before the election. Twenty-two states are currently seeing increases in cases, including in the Midwest, the Great Plains and some in the South. The biggest spikes in new cases have been in North and South Dakota (scene of the massive Sturgis Motorcycle Rally in August), Wisconsin, Utah, Oklahoma and Iowa— all of which voted for Trump in 2016. Among those states, Trump is particularly vulnerable in Iowa and Wisconsin. [HuffPost]

* Most Americans Want To Wait Until After The Election To Fill The Supreme Court Vacancy. (538)

* Trump in 2011 said lower-income Americans should have to pay taxes to 'be a part of the game' and said he paid 'a lot' (CNN) I guess zero means "a lot" (DW)

* Tax Records Reveal How Fame Gave Trump a $427 Million Lifeline -- “The Apprentice” rescued Donald J. Trump, bringing him new sources of cash and a myth that would propel him to the White House. (NYT)

* Ethics experts see national security concern in Trump’s debt (AP)

* Trump’s 'biggest fear' is 'massive' IRS bills and potential tax fraud charges, says Michael Cohen (Yahoo News)

* More than one million votes have already been cast in the November election, according to data from the United States Election Project, marking a noticeable increase over voting trends in 2016 even before the first presidential debate. (Forbes)

* Nearly three-quarters of voters plan to watch first debate, poll finds. (WashPo)

* Parrots removed from UK wildlife park after they started swearing at customers -- Steve Nichols, chief executive of Lincolnshire Wildlife Park, said the five African grey parrots were adopted in the same week and while in isolation taught each other to swear. (Mirror)

***

Road Trippin' Blues...

I don't have my license yet
But I think it might be fun to try with you
You live far and I don't have a car
But I think it might be fine and the sky looks so blue
We'd fill up with gas and we move pretty fast
Is that something you'd like to do?

-- Chloe Moriondo

-30-

Polls, Ads and Debates

 

It's getting to be the time that most of us will be voting in this year's presidential election. We are trying to analyze the information available to us, which includes polls and political ads, as well as the upcoming debate on Tuesday night at 7 p.m. (E.T.)

Most analysts agree that the outcome will come down to a handful of swing states, mainly in the industrial Midwest. I asked my old friend, Doug Foster, journalism professor at Northwestern and my former colleague at the Center for Investigative Reporting and elsewhere, what he thinks will happen out there in his neck of the woods.

"My guess is that Trump narrowly wins Pennsylvania and Biden narrowly wins Michigan and Wisconsin. The number of swing voters is small — maybe two percent in WI and MI, four percent in PA — but the margins for Trump in all three states (last time) was one percent or less."

As for polling, Doug and other journalism friends recommend Monmouth University Polling Institute in New Jersey. Their recent state and national polls indicate a close race for the Electoral College victory just as in 2016.

The popular vote is not in much question; Biden should win by 5 million votes or more.

When it comes to the attack ads and other propaganda generated by the campaigns, the anti-Trump ads created by disaffected Republicans at the Lincoln Project are an unusual feature of this year's election cycle.

I'm unaware of whether they are proving to be effective, however. In general, my view of political ads is they have to be highly adaptive to keep up with the rapidly mutating sense of humor of the general public, though even when it comes to jokes, the country is so divided that what makes one side laugh makes the other side angry.

As for my own twisted sense of humor, I've long embraced the SNL view of politics, where the skits regularly pierce the noise with biting criticism of the candidates on both sides.

Debates can be tricky. From what I've read, Trump plans to do what he always does and attack Biden and his family personally.

Biden is reported to be planning to do what he usually does -- stick to the high road and discuss policy issues, like health care. He may try to ignore Trump's barbs.

That might seem laudable to those who favor a civil debate, but if the Biden camp asked me for advice, I would caution them to avoid a repeat of the Dukakis rape disaster from eight election cycles ago.

To recap:

It was Oct. 13, 1988.

The second and final presidential debate between Vice President George Bush and Massachusetts Gov. Michael Dukakis took place in Los Angeles. The debate began with moderator Bernard Shaw of CNN asking Dukakis, "Governor, if Kitty Dukakis were raped and murdered, would you favor an irrevocable death penalty for the killer?"

Dukakis replied, "No, I don't, and I think you know that I've opposed the death penalty during all of my life."

That was NOT the right answer.

The right answer would have been: "Forget the death penalty. I would track down the man who did this and beat him to death myself."

***

* Trump paid no income taxes in 10 out of 15 years beginning in 2000. (NYT) Tax bombshell reveals Trump's image is a sham. (CNN) Trump ally Lindsey Graham thinks the President should release tax returns. (CNN)

*  Tasmania Whale Rescue Ends With 108 Saved and Over 300 Dead (NYT)

* Biden maintains lead over Trump as support from women fuels ex-vice president’s advantage, Post-ABC poll finds (WashPo)

* ‘Schitt’s Creek’ Star, and His Fans, Are Taking Indigenous Studies -- Dan Levy suggested in an Instagram post that his fans study Canadian Indigenous history along with him. About 64,000 people signed up. (NYT)

* Already facing its worst crisis since 9/11, airline industry set to cut more than 35,000 jobs this week (WashPo)

* The Future of Airbnb -- Home-sharing’s challenges aren’t only about social distancing and hygiene. Overtourism, racial bias, fee transparency and controlling the party crowd are also in the mix. (NYT)

* Facing possible defeat, Trump threatens the integrity of the election (WashPo)

* Pasta, Wine and Inflatable Pools: How Amazon Conquered Italy in the Pandemic -- The e-commerce giant had struggled to gain a foothold in a society that prefers to shop in person, with cash, but now Italians are hooked on online shopping. (NYT)

* Heat wave, dry winds raise threat of new blazes in fire-weary California (WashPo)

* Biden is favored to win the election. Biden 78%. Trump 22%. (538)

***

Well, the big news around here is my pandemic beard is gone -- poof!  That, plus I am so restless,  in my dreams I'm traveling all over the place. Is anyone else like that?

Dream lover, where are you?
With a love, oh, so true
And the hand that I can hold
To feel you near as I grow old

-- Bobby Darin

-30-

Where Did America Go?

Saturday was hot in San Francisco, but a cooling breeze came in from the ocean. Arriving there by Lyft,  I met my three youngest for a delightful lunch at an outdoor cafe in the Castro, prior to my daughter's travel next week to the East Coast, where she'll finish out her senior year in college.

One of our dilemmas this fall has been how to get her into the right time zone for her classes, which start at 6 a.m. Pacific Time. Her college outside Baltimore cancelled in-person classes late in the summer, so remote learning is the only option. This week she signed a lease on an apartment she can share with a friend in New Jersey.

Having grown up in the Bay Area, my three 20-somethings are perplexed that there seem to be so many people in this country who do not share our values of tolerance, diversity, compassion and love. And why do these people support a cruel tyrant who demonizes good, peace-loving people as members of a violent "mob?"

My kids have all marched in peaceful demonstrations; none of them would ever even consider being violent or destroying anyone else's property. But now they wonder whether the lessons they were taught at school, that this is a democracy where each citizen has the right, indeed the responsibility, to exercise their first amendment freedoms, remain accurate representations of what this country seems to have changed into.

Who are these angry, spiteful white people so filled with hate and resentment that some of them actually celebrate the killing of peaceful protestors? That is one of the questions I cannot answer for them. For my children, the choice is stark: Either America will sink into an unthinkable abyss or it will reaffirm the values of tolerance, diversity and mutual respect that once made the country the envy of the world. 

For them, there is no middle ground. As their father, I almost feel guilty now for raising them to believe in the essential goodness of people. 

Just like them, my hope for the future is fading.

***

In and out of the city, m Lyft drivers told me their stories. A delightful thing about taking Lyft is getting to know these drivers, most of whom grew up overseas, as they work their way through college or support their young families here in the Bay Area.

Quite a few years ago now, I met the company's founder, John Zimmer, when he was running an earlier ride-service company called Zimride. He seemed earnest and idealistic. Then, when he started Lyft, he called me to tell me about it. I wrote a favorable blog post for the media company I worked for at the time.

Back at the company's birth, I met some of the early drivers and developed the firm impression this startup was going to strike gold. There were a few other ride-sharing ventures I was covering at the time, including another startup called Uber, but I liked Lyft's business model best.

These days, without a car myself, Lyft is my key to independent movement, although now I can actually see (post-cataract surgery), I may start renting cars for road trips as well. Because like many others, I am feeling incredibly restless.

***

So here is my latest theory about news. You can take any genuine news story, cut it into slices, and it will accurately reflect the essential nature of our time. It also usually contains traces of our history and hints about our future.

An example:

A week ago, I posted an extended essay on the potential synergistic effect of pesticides on our health and the integrity of our environment, titled "Synergistic Times." 

In it, I recapped research I did in the '70s and '80s about the combined effects of the chemical cocktail we all are subjected to in modern society.

Today, way down the list of headlines that follows, is a piece from the Times about how new international guidelines on combating drug resistance omit any mention of fungicides, an omission that is directly due to the political influence (money) of the U.S. pesticide industry.

This new article reflects the current balance of power in the U.S. and the world, the lack of our collective ability to achieve scientific integrity in both domestic and global policys, and the ongoing threat agrochemicals present to our bodies and surroundings.

Alone, it may seem a rather obscure piece of a larger puzzle, but that is my point. It also indicates where those of us who worry about the future of climate change and democracy stand.

And that is a long, long way from where we need to be.

***

* Facing possible defeat, Trump threatens the integrity of the election (WashPo)

* ‘I Feel Sorry for Americans’: A Baffled World Watches the U.S. -- From Myanmar to Canada, people are asking: How did a superpower allow itself to be felled by a virus? And why won’t the president commit to a peaceful transition of power? (NYT)

* Thousands of Proud Boys plan to rally in Portland, setting up another clash in a combustible city (Washpo)

* Will Amy Coney Barrett Cost Republicans the Senate? -- Mitch McConnell has a tricky needle to thread. (NYT)

* The pandemic has devastated downtown D.C. Some fear the damage is permanent. (WashPo)

* Her Study Center Was Bombed. She Still Topped Afghanistan’s National University Exam. -- Shamsea Alizada’s story of persistence is a reminder of advances in girls’ education in Afghanistan — and their vulnerability as the government negotiates with the Taliban. (NYT)

* Most Americans remain vulnerable to coronavirus, a national study suggests (WashPo)

* Record Wildfires on the West Coast Are Capping a Disastrous Decade -- One after another, major fires exploded across Washington, Oregon and California earlier this month. They have added up to the worst fire season on record. (NYT)

* The famed ‘Jericho banana’ is vanishing. Under Israeli occupation, there’s not enough water. (WashPo)

* China is doubling down on its territorial claims and that's causing conflict across Asia (CNN)

* Emails Show How Pesticide Industry Influenced U.S. Position in Health Talks -- The U.S. insisted that new international guidelines on combating drug resistance omit any mention of fungicides — a demand that the industry made but that ran counter to science. (NYT)

***

I close this Sunday morning with a question: Where did America go?

Though you're far away
I'll be right here to stay
'Till You're back someday
To go again
Hope your holiday
At Tokyo & Causeway bay
Will drive your heart to say
"Wish you were here"
I can only perceive by usin' my imagination
Believe that everything will be real
How magical
Wherever you go, I too will go
There are things in life I can't ignore
Like how I'm connected to you

-- Billy Simpson

-30-