United States – Page 24 – Desdemona Despair

Protesters carry swastikas and other flags at the truckers' anti-vaccine occupation in Ottawa, 29 January 2022. Photo: Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs / Twitter

February 8, 2022

Fearful Ottawa residents flee downtown as anti-vaccine mandate occupation drags on – Residents fed up with noise, racist harassment, and threats of violence – Police hate crimes hotline receives more than 200 calls – PM denounces “people waving swastikas”

By Kimberley Molina 8 February 2022 (CBC News) – As the disruptive protest in Ottawa drags into its second week, some residents of the downtown core say they’ve been living a nightmare, under siege and terrified to leave their homes — except to seek refuge away from the epicentre. For 10 days, downtown residents have been subjected to relentless honking, random fireworks and choking diesel fumes […]

Estimated economic impacts of unmitigated climate change on seven geographical regions in the United States. Over the next 50 years, climate change-induced economic losses in the U.S. could total approximately $14.5 trillion in present-value terms. Graphic: Deloitte

February 7, 2022

Climate change-induced losses in the U.S. could total $14.5 trillion by 2070 – “In a climate-damaged world of 2070, the U.S. could lose nearly 4 percent of GDP in that year alone”

By Rachel Koning Beals 26 January 2022 (MarketWatch) – Definitive and deliberate climate action from Wall Street to Washington and beyond could deliver a $3 trillion gain to the U.S. economy over the next 50 years to 2070. But it’s the toll of inaction that would cost the nation nearly five times that amount, a […]

Followers of Tennessee pastor and pro-Trump conspiracy theorist Greg Locke burn books on 2 February 2022. The books included Millennial staples like Harry Potter and Twilight. Photo: Tyler Salinas / Nashville Scene

February 5, 2022

COVID-19 mortality in U.S. exceeds 900,000 as Covid deaths surge in low-vaccination states – Tennessee has lowest vaccination rate and highest book-burning rate

By Nigel Chiwaya 4 February 2022 (NBC News) – More than 900,000 people have died in the United States from Covid-19 as of Friday, according to NBC News’ tally, and data shows that states with low vaccination rates have had the biggest share of deaths over the past six weeks. The country has recorded 100,000 […]

Far-right conspiracy theorist Ben Bergquam tweets from the National Butterfly Center on 30 January 2022, espousing the unfounded claim that the center participates in child sex trafficking. On 1 February 2022, the National Butterfly Center was forced to close indefinitely due to ongoing threats from QAnon and MAGA conspiracy theorists. Photo: Twitter

February 2, 2022

Ongoing threats from conspiracy theorists force National Butterfly Center to close – “Our staff should not suffer a loss of wages due to this unexpected business disruption caused by false and defamatory attacks directed by political operatives”

2 February 2022 (National Butterfly Center) – We regret to announce that the National Butterfly Center will be closed to the public—both members and visitors—for the immediate future. This difficult decision was made Tuesday evening, 1 February 2022, by the board of directors of the North American Butterfly Association, in the wake of recent events targeting the center. […]

Fake photo of rafts at the National Butterfly Center dock in Mission, Texas, composed and disseminated by Brian Kolfage as part of a QAnon/MAGA disinformation campaign. Kolfage was indicted in 2021 for fraud for his “We Build The Wall” fundraising scheme and had his Twitter account suspended for repeated violent threats. The National Butterfly Center was forced to close for the weekend of 28 January 2022 because of credible threats from QAnon/MAGA conspiracy theorists. Photo: National Butterfly Center

January 29, 2022

QAnon conspiracy theorists force National Butterfly Center to shut down for the weekend – “We simply cannot risk the safety and lives of our staff and visitors during this dangerous time”

By Shoshana Wodinsky 28 January 2022 (Gizmodo) – After spending years coming after furniture and pizza, QAnon followers are finally ruining life for butterflies and those who enjoy them. Far-right conspiracy theories have latched onto baseless claims that major Texas butterfly sanctuary is a hub for sex trafficking, leading to real-world threats against the sanctuary’s staff. On Thursday, […]

January 29, 2022

Graph of the Day: New COVID-19 death rates in the U.S. by Trump county-level vote – Death rates are 4.1x higher in reddest decile vs. bluest – “Get vaccinated, for the love of God”

By Charles Gaba 23 January 2022 (ACA Signups) – So, I plugged in the latest COVID case and death rates at the county level, as I do every week. I recently decided to switch from using the beginning of the Delta wave as my starting point (30 June 2021) to using the “start” of the […]

Nurse Marie-Laure Satta wipes her face during a pause in her New Year’s Eve shift in the COVID-19 intensive care unit at La Timone hospital in Marseille, France, 31 December 2021. Photo: Daniel Cole / AP Photo

January 29, 2022

“COVID parties” spread the virus on purpose. That’s “Russian roulette”, doctors warn

By Lisa Gutierrez 21 January 2022 (Kansas City Star) – Thinking about intentionally exposing yourself to the coronavirus? Thinking that you’ll probably get away with a mild case and become immune to COVID-19? You need to think again. Even if you’re fully vaccinated. If you get COVID on purpose, there’s no guarantee you’ll only get […]

COVID-19 daily cases per 100,000 people in Tennessee, 26 January 2022. Graphic: Covid Act Now

January 28, 2022

The rise of anti-vaccination social movements in a COVID-19 Infodemic era – “This pandemic has driven the largest-ever human behavior change at scale”

By Hazel Wallace 22 January 2022 (LinkedIn) – According to the World Health Organization (WHO), immunisation is a global health success story. Thanks to vaccines that help prevent over 20 infectious diseases, 2-3 million lives are saved every year. These vaccinations are one of the greatest investments for primary healthcare to underpin global health security […]

Cumulative global insured losses by peril in 2021. Aggregated costs for insurers have been largely dominated by the Tropical Cyclone and Severe Weather perils this century. The two perils combined for more than $1 trillion, or 60 percent of the total cumulative industry losses, of which roughly 74 percent was incurred in the United States. The Severe Convective Storm peril has also increasingly separated itself as accounting for the highest number of billion-dollar events. Graphic: Aon

January 27, 2022

Aon: 2021 was third costliest year on record for weather and climate-related events – Germany, Belgium, Austria, Luxembourg, and China recorded the costliest insurance industry events on record

CHICAGO, 25 January 2022 (Aon) – Aon plc (NYSE: AON), a leading global professional services firm, today published its 2021 Weather, Climate and Catastrophe Insight, which evaluates the increasing frequency and severity of disruptive natural disasters and how their resulting economic losses are protected globally. This data serves as the foundation for insights that can help […]

Annual synthetic opioid mortality in the United States, 2000-2020. Data: CDC. Graphic: Families Against Fentanyl

January 23, 2022

“The deadliest drug we’ve ever known”: author Sam Quinones on how fentanyl and meth saturated the U.S.

By Erin McCormick 23 January 2022 (The Guardian) – For the last nine years, Sam Quinones has been studying the changing face of drug use, sales, and addiction in the United States. In his new book, The Least of Us: True Tales of America and Hope in the Time of Fentanyl and Meth, he tracks […]