Reality check

Day after day I read the news and become more agitated at the goings on, in the world and, particularly, in the United States. US media ratchets up the anxiety, as do polls, the president, and Congress. I’m reaching the point at which it becomes … mentally destabilizing… to focus on US news for news.

News blues…

The underlying assumption of Donald Trump’s many proclamations about Covid-19: life will immediately return to normal after a vaccine is administered.
Wrong. Again.
Here’s How the Pandemic Finally Ends : A vaccine by early 2021, a steady decline in cases by next fall and back to normal in a few years — 11 top experts look into the future.

“It will take two things to bring this virus under control: hygienic measures and a vaccine. And you can’t have one without the other,” says Paul Offit, director of the Vaccine Education Center and an attending physician in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.
… Producing and distributing a vaccine will take months, with the average American not receiving their dose (or doses) until at least mid- or late 2021. And while widespread inoculation will play a large role in bringing life back to normal, getting the shot will not be your cue to take off your mask and run free into a crowded bar. The end of the pandemic will be an evolution, not a revolution, the vaccine just another powerful tool in that process.
… Experts’ estimates of the timeline vary, but there seems to be some agreement that the virus could be in decline and under control by the second half of 2021, and that society could see pre-Covid “normal” within two years.

Buckle up – and don’t forget to wear your mask!

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Daily Maverick webinar: Eskom’s Survival is South Africa’s Survival. Hosted by Sasha Planting with Sikonathi Mantshantsha and Doug Kuni.

Healthy futures, anyone?

The wealthiest one percent of the world’s population are responsible for the emission of more than twice as much carbon dioxide as the poorer half of the world from 1990 to 2015.

Carbon dioxide emissions rose by 60% over the 25-year period, but the increase in emissions from the richest 1% was three times greater than the increase in emissions from the poorest half.
A report, compiled by Oxfam and the Stockholm Environment Institute, warned that rampant overconsumption and the rich world’s addiction to high-carbon transport are exhausting the world’s “carbon budget”.
Such a concentration of carbon emissions in the hands of the rich means that despite taking the world to the brink of climate catastrophe, through burning fossil fuels, we have still failed to improve the lives of billions, said Tim Gore, head of policy, advocacy and research at Oxfam International.
“The global carbon budget has been squandered to expand the consumption of the already rich, rather than to improve humanity,” he told the Guardian. “A finite amount of carbon can be added to the atmosphere if we want to avoid the worst impacts of the climate crisis. We need to ensure that carbon is used for the best.”
The richest 10% of the global population, comprising about 630 million people, were responsible for about 52% of global emissions over the 25-year period, the study showed.

The biggest surprise?
Globally, the richest 10 percent are those with incomes above about $35,000 (£27,000 / ZAR600,000) a year. The richest 1 percent are people earning more than about $100,000 (£78,000 / ZAR1,711,600) a year.
This requires a shift in understanding, particularly if one assumes an annual a salary of $35,000 barely provides a sustainable lifestyle in California’s San Francisco Bay Area. There, an annual salary of $35,000 disallows rental of even a small apartment,, and certainly disallows saving enough money to make a down payment on a home. (The median home value of single-family homes and condos in San Francisco is $1,416,879, with a down payment of 20 percent, that is, more than $280,000.)

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A note about political ads shared below: US political campaigns spend millions of dollars each year on political ads, and many more millions during presidential elections. This year, for the first time in my memory, Republicans are running political ads against Republican incumbents, particularly against the incumbent Republican president. The ads are diverse, hard hitting, and unprecedented. I share them to express surprise at the anomaly and at creativity. Enjoy!
The Lincoln Project: The Choice  (0:55 mins)
Meidas Touch:
Lying Lindsey  (0:58 mins)
Vote Or Die: You Are Not Nobody  (0:25 mins)
Really American: Trump Destroys Democracy (0:35 mins)

Meanwhile, back at the ranch…

My mother’s relocation to the Care Center is complete (sort of) and her – and Jessica, The Dog’s - settling in proceeds. My mother’s sole focus is Jessica’s happiness – and she appears to believe that my sole focus should be Jessica’s happiness, too. Accordingly, I regularly drive to the Center with freshly cooked giblets for Jessica, Beeno biscuits for Jessica, a non-slip mat for Jessica. (This, to secure the recycled crate upon which Jessica accesses my mother’s bed. Jessica’s first try on the crate resulted in the crate slipping on the tile floor and Jessica tumbling. So far, she’s refused to approach the crate for another try.)
After cancelling my visit today - I’m feeling unwell - and hired someone to deliver Jessica’s freshly cooked giblets.
In theory, my mother agrees that Jessica “must” transition to eating canned dog food. But she reports that Jessica “doesn’t want” to eat it – and frets that Jessica will starve.
I insist that Jessica transition to that more practical diet - whether she “wants to” or not – and advise mixing small amounts of canned food into Jessica’s high-end giblets meals.
“But,” my mother moans, “She doesn’t like it.”
“Your job as leader of the pack,” I urge my mother, “is to demonstrate to The Dog how to adjust to change.” 

Each day allows one to re-evaluate reality. Not an easy task.