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July 19, 2021


'A Pandemic of the Unvaccinated': U.S. Covid Cases Rise in All 50 States (New York Times)

All 50 states reported more COVID-19 cases in the most recent 7-day period than in the week before, according to Johns Hopkins University data.

And the vast majority of patients driving up Covid-19 hospitalizations in parts of the U.S. are unvaccinated, according to hospitals, some of which are reactivating surge plans used in the peak of the pandemic.

"This is becoming a pandemic of the unvaccinated," US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Dr. Rochelle Walensky said during Friday's White House Covid-19 briefing.

A handful of states with low vaccination rates — Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, Missouri and Nevada — are driving a plurality of new cases, Axios reports.

In Arkansas, where about 40% of eligible people are fully vaccinated, Covid-19 hospitalizations have soared to 681 from 201 as of June 1. The state epidemiologist for Arkansas said that at current rates the hospitalization numbers would double in three weeks, rivaling the state's previous peak of 1,371 in January.

In North Carolina, where 53% of eligible residents are vaccinated, Covid-19 hospitalizations have risen every day for the past week. More than 99% of cases and more than 98% of hospitalizations and deaths since May were among people who weren't fully vaccinated.

However, states with high vaccination rates are seeing a different reality. 

In Vermont, the most vaccinated state in the country, health officials said the number of people hospitalized with Covid-19 has dropped from eight to fewer than six during the past two weeks.

Officials added that less than 3% of Covid-19 hospitalizations since January have been vaccinated individuals.

The bottom line: The vaccines are holding up against the Delta variant.

 

Banks Race to Return to 'Normal'.

 
Wall Street’s New Rivalry: Who Can Meet the Most People In Person? (Wall Street Journal)

Rivals Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan, which have already brought their employees back to the office faster than the rest of Wall Street, are urging their bankers to get out and visit boldfaced corporate clients -- and quickly, before others do.

Goldman chief David Solomon began touting the importance of traveling to see clients as soon as early April, modeling the desired behavior himself and asking bankers if they had clients he should visit while he was making trips to places such as Florida and California.

In June, JPMorgan's Jamie Dimon took a business trip to Europe but skipped a stop in London, unwilling to hunker down for the required quarantine for arriving travelers to the UK. 

Around the same time, Citigroup's Jane Fraser opted for a London stay and did the five required days in a hotel.

Once free, Fraser said it was worth it to return to Citigroup's Canary Wharf offices, see clients and officials from Bank of England and Rishi Sunak, Chancellor of the Exchequer. Meetings would run long, but few had other places to be. Plus, there was no traffic, she said. 

Though Fraser made it a point to make personal visits, Citigroup isn't requiring its bankers to start traveling again.
 

Gun Violence Streak Continues Across America.

 
Shooting Near Washington Nationals Park Puts Renewed Focus on Gun Violence in America (CNN)

A series of shootings over the weekend in Chicago, Philadelphia, Washington, DC, and other American cities underscored the ongoing rise in shootings and gun violence in the US this year.

The shooting near Nationals Park in DC was the most prominent of the incidents, as the audible gunshots sent fans and players scrambling for safety in the middle of a Washington Nationals baseball game.

At least 48 people were shot in 36 separate shootings in Chicago from Friday evening to Sunday morning, the police department's incident reports show. Of the 48 shot, five have died.


So far this year, homicides in Philadelphia are outpacing last year's numbers. Philadelphia reached its 300th homicide of the year in July for the first time in over three decades, according to available online records dating back to 1989.

Saturday Night Chaos: Shooting in Washington, DC Outside Baseball Game Leaves Three Injured (Associated Press)

A shooting outside Nationals Park during a game caused echoes of gunfire inside the stadium and prompted fans to scramble for safety in the dugout. The shooting, an exchange of gunfire between people in two cars, left three people injured.

Click here to see a video of the chaos inside the stadium after fans heard the gunshots.
 

World Unprepared for Extreme Weather.

 
Historic Heat, Floods, Fires, Drought: Climate Change Comes for the Wealthy Nations (New York Times)

The extreme weather disasters across Europe and North America have driven home two essential facts of science and history: The world as a whole is neither prepared to slow down climate change, nor live with it.

The rapid succession of precedent-shattering extreme weather events in North America and Europe has some scientists saying climate extremes are worsening faster than expected, Axios reports.


Europe Flooding LatestGermany, Belgium Pick Through Rubble From Deluge As Death Toll Soars Past 150 (France 24)

Beyond Weather: Floods in Germany Throw Upcoming Election a Curve Ball (Bloomberg)

Climate Read of the Day: Inside the American Southwest Mega-Drought (Bloomberg Opinion)

Sometime next month, for the first time, the federal government is likely to declare a water shortage at Lake Mead after the entire Southwest has been baking in a 21-year drought.

If the drought persists or accelerates, then this becomes a race against time. The Colorado River Compact, drafted in the wake of two decades of unusually abundant rains, allocated more water than the river could provide. Now Mother Nature is forcing the Southwest to adjust.
 

2020's Devastating Year of Overdoses.

 
More than 93,000 people died from drug overdoses in 2020, according to provisional data released by the CDC. That's a 29.4% increase from the 72,151 deaths projected for 2019.

Dr. Joshua Sharfstein, vice dean at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, said the pandemic made an already serious crisis even worse.

"The same kind of urgency and strategy that has been applied to Covid could produce results over time," he added.
 

What I'm Reading.


UK Marks 'Freedom Day': Boris Johnson Urges Caution as Covid Restrictions Ease, Cases Rise (Bloomberg)

There are no longer limits on how many people can meet or attend events, nightclubs can reopen, and table service is not necessary in pubs or restaurants. Face coverings are now recommended in some spaces, but not required by law.

But the Prime Minister, chancellor and the health secretary are all self-isolating after coming in contact with positive cases, and there are warnings of more cases as the country marks the so-called 'Freedom Day' today.


Tokyo Olympics Latest: U.S. Tennis Star Coco Gauff, Three South African Athletes Test Positive with Opening Ceremony Friday (Bloomberg)

Economy WatchFed Has a Sunny View of Inflation While Companies See the Clouds (Bloomberg)

The Federal Reserve may be downplaying the risk of lingering inflation, but those with arguably the best vantage point -- the companies themselves -- are taking a less optimistic view of rising prices.

Low Enthusiasm: Tickets Selling Slowly for Upcoming Trump Speaking Tour with Bill O'Reilly (Politico)

For Trump’s Houston event with O’Reilly at the 19,000-seat Toyota Center, 60 to 65 percent of seats remain unsold.

Ready to Travel: 2024 'World Cruise' from Miami Visiting 66 Ports in 31 Countries Sells Out in Under 3 Hours (CBS Miami)

Future of Museums? Italy’s Art Museums Are Open Again, and Data Could Help Improve the Viewing Experience (Bloomberg)

A new technology agency has developed a system using cameras positioned near artwork to soak up data on the number of observers and their behavior as they look at a painting, sculpture or artifact, including time elapsed and distance of observation. The goal is to help define “attraction value” for specific works of art, leading to changes in museum and gallery layout and exhibit scheduling.

Getting Back to Normal: As New York Reopens, It Looks for Culture to Lead the Way (New York Times)

Broadway is Back! A Guide to Shows, Tickets and Covid Protocols (New York Times)

The Times breaks down everything you need to navigate Broadway as shows like The Tina Turner Musical, Hadestown, Moulin Rouge, Freestyle Love Supreme and more follow Bruce Springsteen’s sold out reopening. 
 

Best of Late Night.

 
"According to a new book, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff General Mark Milley was worried that former President Trump would try to incite a coup after losing the 2020 election. We really need to come up with a better early warning system than tell-all books."
-- Seth Meyers

On Angela Merkel's visit to the White House last week, which was likely her last as she will finish her 16-year run as Germany's leader later this year:

"Angela Merkel visited President Biden at the White House. Merkel was glad to see Biden, she said, 'When I visited the last president, he asked if I was related to Meghan Markle.'"
-- Jimmy Fallon

"Merkel has been in office for Bush, Obama, Trump and now Biden. At this point when she meets a new president, she's just like 'Please be normal, please be normal.'"
-- Jimmy Fallon

"Jeff Bezos is going to space and it was announced one of his fellow passengers will be an 18-year old, who will be the youngest person ever to go to space. What an experience for an 18-year old. He'll be the only passenger who sums up the trip by saying, 'The WiFi sucked.'"
-- Jimmy Fallon


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