Louisiana Covid Count - Day 47

On this, the 47th day of the Covid lockdown, we turn to the Louisiana Dept of Health for the depressing numbers.

It seems that we're reporting 28,711 cases today.  That's 710 up from yesterday.
Fatalities are reported at 1927,  that's 65 more than yesterday.
Hospitalizations are reported at 1607, that's five (5) more than reported yesterday.  Of those, 230 are on ventilators, one less than yesterday.

My home parish of Rapides is reporting 270 cases, with the same ten deaths we've been reporting for a week.

We rode to Jena this morning to see the maw-in-law.  She's doing fine, getting stronger every day.  We took her a catfish plate from a local restaurant.

We stopped at the grocers on he way home to pick up some essentials.  It's easy to see that the peasants are getting fidgety.  We're not yet in open revolt, like other states, but we're getting impatient.  Very impatient.  It's time to end this nonsense.

UPDATE** The Louisiana Dept of Health is reporting that the spike in cases since yesterday is the result of a reporting glitch.

"Today, the [Louisiana Department of Health] reports 710 new cases, of which 381 came from two labs that are new to reporting. These labs previously have not reported and are now reporting all their historic lab results electronically," the department said Friday. 

C'mon, guys, get your head out of your asses.  We're looking at these numbers daily, and if we start hearing about reporting glitchees, we're going to lose faith in your reported numbers.  The actual number of new cases today is 329, a decrease from the 341 new cases they reported yesterday.

Gain of Function Research

Instapundit links to an article that says our own Dr. Fauci was ...

Dr. Fauci Backed Controversial Wuhan Lab with Millions of U.S. Dollars for Risky Coronavirus Research

The linked article goes on to describe Gain of Function research as:

 “Many scientists have criticized gain of function research, which involves manipulating viruses in the lab to explore their potential for infecting humans, because it creates a risk of starting a pandemic from accidental release. SARS-CoV-2 , the virus now causing a global pandemic, is believed to have originated in bats. U.S. intelligence, after originally asserting that the coronavirus had occurred naturally, conceded last month that the pandemic may have originated in a leak from the Wuhan lab. (At this point most scientists say it’s possible—but not likely—that the pandemic virus was engineered or manipulated.)”

It appears that Dr. Fauci chose poorly.

Louisiana Covid Update - Day 46

On this beautiful Thursday afternoon on Day 46 of the Covid lockdown, we turn to the Louisiana Dept of Health for the numbers.

We currently have 28,001 total reported cases.  That's 341 more than yesterday.
Fatalities tally at 1862.  That's 60 more than yesterday.
Hospitalizations continue at 1602, that's 27 less than yesterday.  Of t those, 231 are on a ventilator.  That number continues to drop as well.

I've been making leaflet drops on my State Senator.  He talked like a real conservative when he campaigned last year, but I'm not hearing much out of him right now.  Evidently, his office isn't getting mail from the US Post Office.  That's the excuse his assistant is giving me, and frankly, I'm not sure why we hired this guy.

Our Governor met with President Trump yesterday, and he's making hay out of that visit.  It will be interesting to see what he reports today.

Forty Four Years

On this day in 1975, the national prestige of the United States in Vietnam had contracted to a single rooftop, a pinpoint landing zone where American helicopters were extracting as many allies as we could from a nation in collapse.

Helicopter pilot O.B. Harnage reaches out to help Vietnamese evacuees escape Saigon on April 29, 1975.

I was a college senior, doing all the final things preparatory to graduation, and about to accept a commission as an Army officer.  Gerald Ford was President.

The Woods Holster

In Cowboy Fast Draw, we're always looking for an edge.  An edge in competition, anything to take another hundredth of your time.  And, the rules are very spectific for holsters and guns.

A year or so ago, my son cane by and dropped off a holster he had built as a woods-cruising holster.  I put it in the holster box and forgot about it.  Today, digging through dunnage, I spotted it and took it out.  Strapped it on.  It fit well.  It felt good.  I finished straightening the bench and dropped a revolver in it. 

Then I took it off and inspected it carefully for violations of CFDA rules.   I measured the cant ad all the little details.  It falls withing the rules, so I turned on the range, grabbed some ammo, and strolled to the line.

I normally shoot in the 6s, which is six-tenths of a second.  When the light came on I drew and fired.  0.713.  Not bad for a new holster.  Second shot was a miss.  Third shot was 0.573, not too shabby.  Fourth shot was 0.580.  Fifth shot was 0.620.  I cleared the revolver and put the ammo away.

This season has been a disappointment due to the covid scare.  The next scheduled shoot is in Amarillo, the first week of June.  I believe I'll shoot this holster in Texas and again in Louisiana in August.  My old Ken's holster will go in the "extra" bag for club shooters.

Louisiana Covid Update - Day 45

On day 45 of the pandemic, we turn to the Louisiana Dept of Health to see how we're doing.

Total cases today recorded at 27,660. That's 374 more cases than yesterday's total.
The Dept hasn't update recoveries for three days, we're stuck at 17,303.
Fatalities are recorded at 1802.  That is 44 more than yesterday.
Hospital census is 1629, which is 37 less than yesterday.

Our petty tyrant governor met with the President today.  He leaves Louisiana for a press event, while much of Louisiana is in open revolt.  Some parish governments are considering reopening against his advise.  The citizens of Louisiana are tired of his shenanigans and slowly relegating him to the status of irrelevant.  His administration is trying to hold it together, but I don't know how long they can hold the line.

There are reports everywhere of Louisiana hospitals operating at severely reduced capacity, to the pint where they are furloughing nurses and staff because of so many empty beds.  We started this so as not to overwhelm the medical capacity, and they are not overwhelmed.  Much the contrary.  Local nurses here in Rapides parish tell the same story.

Regulations

I passed through Camp Beauregard yesterday.  Camp Beauregard is a post of the Louisiana National Guard in Pineville, LA.  As a retired officer I have access to post facilities.

When I approached the gate, I greeted the MPs at the gate, showed them my ID.  The Sergeant at the gate (wearing a mask) pointed a little device at my ear and took my temp.  98.4, and she waved me through.  So far, so good.

I proceeded to the post barber shop and walked to the door to find it locked.  A notice on the door told me that the barber shop was closed until the Covid has passed.

What?  When I entered the service in 1973, the very first thing the Army did to me was cut my hair.  They were serious, and it was mandatory.  During my entire career, I enforced the hair regulations.  Period.  Once a month I sat in a barber chair and complied with a regulation that made sense.  Soldiers were clipped and clean-shaven.  Shortly before my retirement in 1998, I stopped by the brber shop and got right.  It was the military thing to do.

I need to call the Post Sergeant Major and ask him what kind of pissant post he's running.  I am outraged.

Louisiana Covid Update - Day 44

Belle and I have been doing improvements on the hospitality of our shop today, adding another refrigerator and tying in an ice maker.  We've been busy.

We turn to the Louisiana Dept of Health for today's covid numbers.
We have 27,286 cases reported today. An increase of 183 cases
Fatalities to date are 1758.  That's 61 of our neighbors who passed away.
Hospital census today is 1666, that's 17 less than yesterday.  Of those, 244 are on ventilators, a fair decrease since yesterday.
17,303 Louisianans have recovered from Covid-19.

By every rational standard, we're through the worst and our case count is declining.

I was listening to Moon Griffon (a talk show about Louisiana politics), and it seems that the legislature is pissed.  Evidently Governor Edwards told them that he intended to re-open the state, then changed his mind.  The legislators are planning to over-ride the governor, and they can do it on a simple majority vote.

State Rep. Alan Seabaugh talks with 101.7 / 710 KEEL's Robert J Wright and Erin McCarty about his legislative petition, that, if  passed, would overrule the stay-at-home emergency order of Governor John Bel Edwards.

Louisiana politics is always interesting, but may get more interesting i the next several days.

Let Freedom Ring

It seems that Texas governor Greg Abbot trusts the citizens of Louisiana more than the our own governor does.  Our Governor, John Bel Edwards, yesterday extended the stay-at-home order for another 14 days, currently set to expire on May 15th.

On April 5th, Governor Abbot of Texas signed an executive order limiting travel from Louisiana (and several other places), by ordering travelers into Texas to self-quarantine for 14 days.  He put up border checkpoints on the TX/LA borders to enforce his order.

It appears that those checkpoints will be taken down on May 1st.  He doesn't explicitly say so, but that seems to be the gist of the order.

Whereas, Governor Edwards of Louisiana has extended his order until May 15th.

Texas is opening up.  Louisiana is stil on lockdown  Compare and contrast.

Petty Tyrant Extends Stay-At-Home Order

Our petty tyrant in Baton Rouge has extended his stay-at-home order for two weeks,



The feeling on the street is that this extension is complete and utter bullshit. 

The worst par is that he is term-limited and we won't vote him out.  He'll likely stay in office until he completes his term.  However, this governor has presided over the worst contraction of liberty in this state since Reconstruction.

He claims that this next two weeks will give him time to ramp-up testing ad get his little Gestapo ready for contact tracing.  I hope that he instructs them thoroughly on the Patient's Bill of Rights, and the protections in the 5th Amendment.

Louisiana Covid Update - Day 43

It's day 43 of the Louisiana Covid lockdown.  Let's look at the numbers, shall we?

We have 27068 diagnosed cases, an increase of 295 since yesterday.
Of that number, 1683 are hospitalized, with 262 on ventilators.  That's a decrease of 18 in the hospitals, and a decrease of 3 on the vents.
Our death toll stands at 1697, which is 27 more than yesterday.  That surprises me, because I expected a Monday jump.

The numbers are going down, and our governor is expected to make a big announcement at 4:00 central time.  Of course, our President is expected to make a big announcement at the same time.

I'll bet that the President will be upbeat and positive, and our governor will be a serious drag.  That man can suck the air out of the room.

Victor Davis Hanson

If you don't study history, you are doomed to repeat it.  And, there are huge lessons to be learned from classical history.  I've read Dr. Hanson for many years, and I've learn to value his opinion.

It's an hour long, what else do you have to do?



It's well worth the hour.

Five Million Per Week?

As I'm sitting here waiting for my doc to call on a tele-med appointment (nothing serious folks), I'm looking t the intertubes regarding the next steps in the covid lockdown.

It seems that our medical experts wan to test 5 million people per week, to try to get ahead of this thing.  A little math tells me that they want to test about 7% of the entire US population in a single week.  (5 million divided by 328 million times 5 working days).  That ain't going to happen.

It's simply unreasonable.  That same article, linked above, says that we have approximately 3.8 million primary care visits per week, on average.  If everyone that walked into a doctors office or urgent care facility got tested, they probably would ot get to 5 million per week.  And, at what cost?  It's preposterous.

They say that they want to do contact-tracing.  Good luck with that. 

I carried a Miranda Warning card for 27 years.  If PawPaw goes to the sawbones, and they tell me I have the Covid, that still does not compel me to tell then who I have been in contact with.  It ain't none of the gummint's business.  I will do the responsible thing and tell my loved ones that I have the Covid, but whether they go get tested is on them.  Not me.  I will not reveal my contacts.  Period.

Public Health - Or Power?

In early March, the corona virus was in my consciousness, but I really didn't consider it a threat.  On March 16th, the state of Louisiana locked down, and I became painfully aware that my life, and the life of much of the state had changed.

We were told initially that the lockdown was necessary to slow the spread of the virus, and to give our medical community a fighting chance, to limit our contact with others so that the medical system would not become overwhelmed and collapse.  First, it was "14 days to slow the spread", then it was 30 days.  Our governor's lockdown order expires on April 30th, three days away.  But, we in Louisiana know that April 30 isn't the end of the lockdown.

By my count, we are in day 43 of this lockdown.  Six full weeks, and we're starting week seven.  By-and-large, we've done what we were told to do. We've changed our society in ways that I can't even start to detail.  And, by any rational measurement, we've slowed the spread, we've flattened the curve, we've kept the medical community from collapse.

At this point, we have done what they asked us to do.  The government has had six weeks.  Everybody I've talked to is tired of it, and if you read the national media, the phrase "lockdown fatigue" is becoming common.  What this lockdown has taught me is the amount of control government at every level has over our lives. Churches, restaurants, barber shops, and other retail shops are closed.  On government edict.  Ministers are being arrested and we're all wearing masks, like we're ready to rob a liquor store.  It's bizarre.

Our governor says that we have to re-open slowly, so as not to experience a second wave, that medical experts tell us we are surely going to endure.  On this, the 43rd day of his shutdown, he still hadn't given us a plan to re-open. 

At this point, it's about power.  The government can couch it in whatever verbiage they'd like, but it's now about power.  They've shown that they can control us.  They've learned that most Americans will put up with whatever they say.  They can close churches, bars, lounges, casinos, barber shops, and all manner of venues where people congregate.

Fankly, I've had enough of it.

Louisiana Covid Update

After a big ol' lunch, ad talking with friends, we turn to the Louisiana Dept of Health for the daily dose of covid numbers.

Diagnosed cases are listed at 26,773, a jump of only 261 since yesterday.
Fatalities tally at 1670,  that's 26 more tragedies than we listed yesterday.
Hospital census is at 1701, only one (1) more than yesterday.  That's great news.  Of those, 265 are on ventilators.

Rocket Man - Pininng For the Fjords

It seems that a Chinese news network is reporting that the North Korean dictator is deceased.  Defunct.  Near room temperature.

A female vice-director of HKSTV Hong Kong Satellite Television, a Beijing-backed broadcast network in Hong Kong, claims that Kim Jong-un is dead, citing a “very solid source.” TMZ reports the woman is a niece of the Chinese foreign minister.

Cool.  The death of a tyrant is always good news.  I'm not sure what this means in the short run, because North Korea's power transfer mechanism is fairly... medieval.  I'm sure that the top generals are all looking at each other sideways.

The story is that L'il Kim went in for a stent and the doctor botched the operation.  That doc will either be considered a hero of the revolution of will be found dangling from a convenient light pole.  Either way, so much for socialized medicine.

Indulgence

A couple of weeks ago, grandson Lucas was eating lunch with us, the standard Sunday dinner.  I had made an apple pie for dessert.  Nothing to it, easy-peasy.

After Lucas had hammered his piece of pie, he asked me if I knew anything about chocolate pie.  I allowed as how I did not, but I'd think on it.  Over the past days I've been cogitating about an easy, no-bake chocolate pie, and I think I mght have it.  Someone else may have already discovered this recipe, but great minds think alike.

PawPaw's Chocolate Pie

Ingredients:
1 can 14 oz, sweetened condensed milk
1 box instant chocolate pudding
1 tub, 8 oz whipped topping (think Cool-Whip)
1 pre-made graham cracker pie shell.  I chose chocolate.

Prep.
Mix the pudding and the condensed milk in a large bowl.
Add whipped topping and mix thoroughly
Put mixture in pie shell.
Put it in the freezer till tomorrow.
Makes one pie.

If that doesn't suit him, he can come up with his own recipe.  It's not like I indulge him or anything.

Louisiana Covid Update - Saturday Edition

I don't know if the state workers at the Louisiana Dept of Health are working today, but we'll review the numbers anyway.

Total diagnosed count is 26,512, up 372 from yesterday.
Fatalities are listed at 1644, only 43 deaths since yesterday.  We mourn for the families.  Each death is a loss.
The hospital census stands at 1700, up 3 from yesterday.  Of those, 268 are on ventilators. This is eighteen (18) less than yesterday.

My home parish, Rapides, is showing 239 cases today.  No word on how many of those are hospitalized.

There are five more days in the Governor's stay-at-home order.

Smoked Cheese

I have smoked a lot of things, brisket, chicken, ham, sausage, you name it, I've smoked it.  However, I was always just a bit confused abut how to smoke cheese without it melting into a puddle.

Well, Kent Rollins shows us how.



Thanks, Kent.

Rocket Man In Bad Shape?

Fox News is reporting that Kim Jong Un is in a "vegetative state", according to Japanese media.

Reports emerged earlier this week that Kim was gravely ill following heart surgery, although that has since been disputed. However, Japanese media now claims that Kim is in a vegetative state following a stent procedure.

 Shukan Gendai subsequently detailed how the surgeon in charge of Kim’s operation was not used to dealing with obese patients and was too nervous during the operation, leading to delays that left Kim in a “vegetative state.”

Under the Kim regime, he was probably the only fat  man in North Korea.  Everyone else is starving.

Of course, being in a "vegetative state" might qualify him as a reporter at MSNBC or CNN.