Coronavirus, week 44: Have we overworried on schools? Now underworried on restaurants? And, those no-shows

• A lot of people, primarily conservative but within that, not all wingnuts, have argued that we're causing harm by keeping schools virtual only in many major urban areas. The argument goes on, but the proponents of reopening schools may be right. Higher education correlates with longer life (note old caveat with internal second caveat: correlation does not necessarily imply causation), and even short term disruptions can throw learning off track, especially for lower income students on the wrong side of the digital divide. This doesn't even address free and reduced lunch issues, school as a relatively safe place and more.

• Viral genome swapping has long been a problem with flu strains and vaccines. Now, word comes that the British coronavirus variant has picked up part of the additional variant in the South African strain. The Brazilian strain has similar evolution to the South African one. Immunologists are looking for hope amidst this, saying it shows COVID-19's evolutionary path and wells. We'll see.

 

• More help may be on the way. Johnson and Johnson has officially filed for an EUA for its 1-shot vaccine. Cliff Notes: It's not as good as Moderna or Pfizer against mild to moderate cases, but is just as good against severe cases. Part of its Phase 3 trials were in South Africa, so we should soon get news if it's better, or not, against the COVID variant than those two vaccines. The biggie for distribution and many other things? It's a 1-shot, of course, and it can be stored at normal refrigerator temperatures for months.

• ProPublica argues that many states loosening up restrictions on indoor dining (we've never, but briefly, had serious restrictions here in Tex-ass) is only inviting trouble with the rise of the new variant forms, noting that poor restaurant ventilation will likely help them spread faster. Let's remember that at least the South African variant can re-infect people who had the initial version. In addition, the British variant has now reportedly picked up the South African variant's main additional difference. Carl Zimmer confirms this.

• In Dallas, City Hospital at White Rock already had 150 or so no-shows for their second Moderna vaccine as of late last week. Logistics of making the second appointment appear to be part of it, which may be compounded by English language challenges in a heavily Hispanic service base. But ... how many are cancelling over first-shot side effects? And, do we have any nationwide information?

Many Texans, reportedly 1 in 5, don't even want the first shot.

Of course, thanks to Gov. Strangeabbott's mishandling, or nonhandling, of vaccine distribution, many people who want/ed the shot(s) still can't get it. (And Strange lied his ass off in the State of the State, including ignoring the fact that he was delivering his address to the Lege virtually.)

Meanwhile, while Strangeabbott expanded the vaccine-eligible list from "frontline medical worker types" to include all those over 65 (thought they had a duty to die, Danny Goeb?) he ignored the non-medical frontline workers, ie, grocery store employees, contra CDC recommendations. (We know what Strange thinks about federal recommendations.)

• China's Sinovac vaccine has turned out to be a semi-bust in Brazilian tests. 

Still robust? Likely quasi-official Chinese social media networks peddling lies about vaccines in the US that could almost be lifted from folks like NVIC.

• Still not robust, contra claims by the likes of Strangeabbott, Goeb and Comptroller Glenn Hegar? The Texas economy. American plans to furlough 13,000 without federal biz help being extended. United is cutting 14,000. Southwest says no furloughs, but it's pushing early retirement.

• Death begets death: The ghoulish federal execution death cult of former president Donald Trump and his attorney general henchman Bill Barr likely was a set of COVID superspreader events.

• Death begets violence: The pandemic put QAnon on steroids.