After a two-week hiatus, I am back at it. Only three people contacted me wondering about my Thoughts for the Day. Now I know how reporters feel as they wonder if anyone really reads what they write.
The Justice Department has decided not to pursue charges against Governor Whitmer for her covid-19 policies with nursing homes. I agree with the Justice Department. I wish Attorney General Nessel would take the same course of action and drop the 9 manslaughter charges Nessel is pursuing against former DHS Director Nick Lyon in the Flint Water case. Nick Lyon had nothing to do with anyone dying in the Flint Water case. The charges against him are a political stunt to gain voter approval in the upcoming elections. To date, the details of the charges habr not been provided to the defense teams, nor has the state finalized a contract with the defense lawyers which they are legally obligated to provide Lyon and others in the case. Nessel is wasting tax payer money for her own political gain.
Simone Biles is in the spot light this week as the U.S. Women’s Gymnastics Team takes center stage in the Olympics. Even though Biles is clearly the greatest female gymnast of all time, any medal for her other than gold will be considered a failure by many of her followers. She has set the bar so high that anything less than perfection, even if she wins, will not be good enough for some people. I wish her well in her competition, but most of all I hope that she has the strength to understand her greatness, even if she does not win a single gold medal.
Last week the NY Times ran an article about a physician in Alabama who has been treating covid-19 patients in a hospital since the beginning of the pandemic. In the early stages of the pandemic, she felt overwhelmed and saddened with the number of people dying due to covid-19. Now she continues to treat people who are dying of Covid-19, but these are people who have refused to get vaccinated. Once in the hospital the patients are asking to get vaccinated and she has to tell them it is too late. The vaccine will not help to save them. All not as overwhelmed as she was in the early stages of the pandemic, she is still very saddened by the deaths of her covid-19 patients, but she is saddened for a different reason. She is saddened because it is a death that could have been avoided.
I have been reading more and more articles about people who have been fully vaccinated but are testing positive for covid-19. Everyone seems to be surprised that this can happen. I don’t understand the surprise. When I got my vaccination, I never once thought it would prevent me from getting Covid-19 in the future. I knew it was still possible to get Covid-19. My expectation was that if I did get Covid-19 my symptoms would be mild to moderate and it was highly unlikely that I would need to be hospitalized. I am not sure where the expectations of the vaccine got distorted. It is just another example of all the misinformation that is out there.
Following the November 2020 election, I was feeling optimistic about Congress starting to work together. Here it is six months into a new Congress and things seem to be worse rather than better. Trump continues to hold power over the Republican Party. Anyone who does not support him is considered the enemy, including those that were very supportive of him during his presidency. A wedge is being driven deep into the soul of this country that I am not sure we will be able to recover. It is very scary to me. I hope I am wrong. We need political leaders who will not kowtow to the extremist and will bring us back to the center.
Stay safe. Social distance. Wash your hands regularly. Wear your mask properly. Schedule your vaccine.
Orchid of the Day: The U.S. Men’s 4 by 100 freestyle team for winning the gold medal.
Onion of the Day: Bryson DeChambeau for blaming his poor play on the manufacturer of his driver. I don’t know much about golf, but I do know that my driver has never ever caused me to hit a bad shot. My bad shots are a result of the person holding my driver.
Quote of the Day: “I know I saw how your putt broke to the right, but I didn’t believe it.” A fellow golfer responding to me after he missed his putt which was on the same line as my putt which broke to the right.