Inspite of great progress on the vaccination, we are not out of the woods yet. The number of Michigan residents in hospitals with confirmed cases of COVID-19 is now increasing at a faster rate than it did in the fall before Gov. Gretchen Whitmer shuttered indoor dining and suspended in-person high school classes. Through Monday, the state reported 2,144 adults were hospitalized with the coronavirus, a 53% jump from a week earlier when there were 1,404 hospitalizations.
Through emails obtained by the Detroit News through FOIA requests, we are finding the sudden resignation of DHHS Director Gordon in January appears to center around a disagreement with Governor Whitmer on the restrictions Gordon announced at the press conference immediately prior to his sudden resignation. Gordon was advocating for much tougher restrictions. Since the less severe restrictions have been implemented, Michigan’s cases and hospitalization have increased significantly. This shows the conflict that the governor has been faced with throughout the pandemic. Health officials wanting more stringent restrictions while others wanting the governor to open things up. A classic catch 22.
After almost a week of dredging, digging and tugging — and with some help from the moon — salvage teams yesterday freed the giant container ship that had been stuck in the Suez Canal, one of the world’s most important shipping lanes. Even though the enormous ship is free, the world wide disruption of supply chains will not be over anytime soon. As we have learned through this incident and through the early struggles of distributing the vaccine world wide, supply chains are complicated and very vulnerable to delays if any part of the supply chain breaks. In a world wide economy a blockage of a canal half way around the world can have an immediate impact on prices and availability of goods in the US. Keeping the ports, shipping canals, railways, freight planes and truck service running smoothly throughout the world is very important to the economy. A sniffle in Egypt can cause pneumonia in the US.
It is going to be a late night tonight as the Michigan elite eight game does not start until 9:57 and will probably not be over until 12:15. It will make it hard to get to the gym by 6:30 AM but I need to make it happen as Leah and I have a full day on Wednesday. A victory will make it worthwhile. A loss will make me question my priorities.
One of the great traditions in Detroit is opening day for the Tigers. This year opening day is on April 1st. It will be better than last year, but not much. Some fans will be allowed to attend, but it will be very limited. The hoopla of opening day in Detroit will not be there . The weather will be perfect for football. It will be a high of 36 degrees with high winds. Do not be surprised if opening day is cancelled and moved to April 2 when it is forecasted to be sunny and 50 degrees. Much better for players, fans, and umpires.
Stay safe. Wash your hands regularly. Wear your mask properly. Social distance. Schedule your vaccine.
Quote of the Day: “We pulled it off” Egyptian official after the ship in the Suez canal was finally freed and was floating again.
Orchid of the Day: 70 degrees and sunny in SE Michigan today. It will not last long.
Onion of the Day: We the citizens of Michigan for leading all of the US in the number of new covid-19 cases per 100,000 people.
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Sorry. I hope it was a well fought battle