Today is a two-for since I ran out of time and energy to write my blog last night. It will have a little bit of what I was going to write about yesterday and a little bit of today.
Per the Detroit Free Press, Benton Harbor residents have filed a federal lawsuit that seeks class-action status that stems from the ongoing Benton Harbor water crisis, where lead levels have exceeded state and federal drinking water standards since 2018. The lawsuit indicates Benton Harbor residents are still suffering from the effects of lead-tainted water because of years of “deliberate indifference” from Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, state department directors, city leaders and others according to allegations in the lawsuit.
With golf season coming an end, I am excited to start playing racquetball again. I woke up this morning excited because I was going to play racquetball with my good friend Neal Goodman for the first time since pre-covid in January 2020. Neal, who was the number 1 player in the country in the late 70s and early 80s, and I have been playing for 15 years. He is the Harlem Globetrotters, and I am the Washington Generals. I was a little nervous because I didn’t know how my legs would respond to the stopping and starting and change of direction. Most of all I was worried about my ability to stop and twist so I didn’t crash into a wall head or shoulder first. I am happy to say that we played two games for 40 minutes and everything held up and there has been no soreness even after a 4-hour car ride to Petoskey. It felt rewarding in a sick way to take a few balls into my backside.
As I wrote on Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Judith Levy has given final approval to the historic $626.25 million settlement with victims of the Flint lead-tainted water crisis, a settlement that compensates more than half of the city’s residents. In her Wednesday opinion, Levy called the settlement a “remarkable achievement” and a “fair and sensible resolution of the claims” for both claimants and defendants who faced an unpredictable outcome if the case went through a full trial, she said. As it stands right now, the lawyers for the plaintiff (Flint residents) are scheduled to get over $200 million of the settlement unless a judge rules on a separate lawsuit brought forth asking for a cap on how much the lawyers can get. It is interesting the AG Nessel is as quiet as a church mouse about how much the plaintiff’s lawyers may get form the settlement of Michigan taxpayer money, but she spent 9 months trying to limit the hourly rate to $175/hour for the amount the State was willing to pay for the defense lawyers of Snyder, Lyon and others in the criminal case she has filed against them for the Flint water case. At the same time, AG Nessel has spent over $4 million to date on lawyers’ fees prosecuting Snyder, Lyon and others and the case is not even close to going to trial if it ever goes. It seems inconsistent to me, but that is what happens when the criminal case is politically motivated and has no business being filed in the first place.
Earlier this evening, Steve Bannon, a longtime ally of former President Donald Trump, was indicted Friday on two counts of criminal contempt of Congress after he defied a subpoena from the House committee investigating the Jan. 6 insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. The Justice Department said Bannon, 67, was indicted on one count for refusing to appear for a deposition last month and the other for refusing to provide documents in response to the committee’s subpoena. He is expected to surrender to authorities on Monday and will appear in court that afternoon, a law enforcement official told the AP. The person was granted anonymity to discuss the case.
Per the Detroit News, Beaumont Health has 400 COVID-19 patients admitted at its eight hospitals and the medical system’s top epidemiologist said Thursday that officials there are considering this Beaumont’s fourth surge of the virus and warning it could last for months. Dr. Nick Gilpin, Beaumont Health’s director of infection prevention and epidemiology, said transmission rates in the tricounty region are about double what’s being seen across the country and Metro Detroit “is once again becoming a hotspot.” Gilpin noted that the positivity rate, or percentage of tests coming back positive, reached a very low point over the summer, but began to creep up in August — and it has continued to rise since then.
Per Bridge Magazine, the Michigan Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission finalized 15 potential maps that would create new congressional, state House and state Senate districts. The maps will undergo a 45-day public comment period before one last vote from the commission scheduled for Dec. 30. Nonetheless, the approval of the proposed maps is a significant step made by the 13-member panel towards accomplishing a historic task. It is important that people make their comments known during the 45-day public comment period.
I love this piece in the Yahoo News yesterday. Congress is making its biggest push ever to stop drunk driving with President Biden’s huge infrastructure bill. As we previously reported, one of the provisions included a mandate for anti-drunk driving technology in new cars. Now, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act has passed Congress with the measure intact, Autoblog (AP) reports, and it’s expected to be signed by the President soon. As part of the legislation, carmakers will have to include technology to detect and stop drunk drivers by as early as 2026.
First, though, the Department of Transportation will have to determine the best solution to curtail intoxicated drunk driving. Specifically, the bill requires something that will “passively monitor the performance of a driver of a motor vehicle to accurately identify whether that driver may be impaired.” That sounds similar to infrared camera solutions already used today by GM, Nissan and others, Sam Abuelsamid, principal mobility analyst for Guidehouse Insights, tells the AP. It goes without saying that we’d need something more advanced than breathalyzers, which are already used as a punishment for convicted drunken drivers.
Around 10,000 people die every year in the US from drunk driving accidents, the NHTSA says. Now that we have smarter sensors and plenty of camera technology to monitor driver behavior, it makes sense to explore solutions that could help prevent those sorts of accidents. Within a decade, it should feel as commonplace as seatbelts.
Stay safe. Wash your hands regularly. Schedule your vaccine and booster. Wear your mask. Social distance.
Orchid of the Day: Secretary of State, Jocelyn Benson, for allowing Michigan auto owners to opt for two-year auto registration periods, rather than the one-year which is the only option. Anything that cuts down on in-person traffic at the SOS offices is a good thing.
Onion of the Day: To the person or persons who are posting racist graffiti in the Bloomfield Hills High school restroom and on snapchat about African American students.
Quote of the Day: “I have a feeling we’re going to be living in this world probably for the next couple of months and possibly even through the winter. Because I don’t see anything out there that’s going to stop this in a meaningful way unless people radically change their behavior and start getting vaccinated and masking up. This is going to be a tough one. This one is shaping up to be a little bit more of a marathon than a sprint.” Dr. Nick Gilpin, Beaumont Health’s director of infection prevention and epidemiology