J&J’s booster shown effective against Covid hospitalization
The results mark the first evidence of the effectiveness of such a vaccine boost while Omicron is circulating.
Today's Liberal News
‘This was the moment’: CDC defends altered guidance amid Omicron surge
Director Rochelle Walensky acknowledged that the decision to shorten the recommended isolation period “really had a lot to do with what we thought people would be able to tolerate.
U.S. sets new daily high for Covid cases
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s tally represents a grim new milestone in the coronavirus pandemic.
FDA: Antigen tests may have reduced sensitivity detecting Omicron
The new warning is based on preliminary studies by the National Institutes of Health’s Rapid Acceleration of Diagnostics initiative.
U.S. unemployment claims drop to 198,000
The four-week average, which smooths out week-to-week volatility, fell to just above 199,000, the lowest level since October 1969.
Despite supply issues and Omicron, holiday sales rise 8.5%
The results, which covered Nov. 1 through Dec. 24, were fueled by purchases of clothing and jewelry.
Health spending growth more than doubled in first year of pandemic
Nearly the entire increase came from the burst of federal spending as the government mobilized to contain the spread of the virus.
Fed clears path for multiple rate hikes during election year as prices surge
The Fed plans to cease its bond buys entirely by March, rather than its earlier target of June to give itself room to begin raising interest rates as early as the second quarter of next year.
Inflation accelerates at lightning pace in new setback for Biden
Costs for key goods and services soared 0.8 percent for the month and 6.8 percent for the year, the highest since 1982, the Labor Department reported Friday.
Chomsky Blasts the “Torture” of Julian Assange & Biden’s Provocative Acts Against China
Noam Chomsky decries what he calls the torture of imprisoned WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange. He also critiques the Biden administration’s reckless foreign policy. “The trajectory is not optimistic,” Chomsky says. “The worst case is the increasing provocative actions towards China. That’s very dangerous.
Noam Chomsky on Rising Fascism in U.S., Class Warfare & the Climate Emergency
Noam Chomsky warns the Republican Party is “marching” the world to destruction by ignoring the climate emergency while embracing proto-fascism at home. Chomsky talks about the January 6 insurrection, how neoliberalism is a form of class warfare and how President Biden’s climate plans fall short of what is needed.
Noam Chomsky: Corporate Patents & Rising Anti-Science Rhetoric Will Prolong Pandemic
Today, a special broadcast: an hour with Noam Chomsky, the world-renowned political dissident, linguist and author, who just turned 93 years old. Chomsky spoke to Democracy Now! prior to the discovery of the Omicron coronavirus variant, but he predicted new variants would emerge.
Arundhati Roy on the Media, Vaccine Inequity, Authoritarianism in India & Challenging U.S. Wars
We go to New Delhi, India, to speak with acclaimed Indian author and activist Arundhati Roy about the pandemic, U.S. militarism and the state of journalism. Roy first appeared on Democracy Now! after receiving widespread backlash for speaking out against the U.S. invasion of Afghanistan. At the time, her emphatic antiwar stance clashed with the rising tides of patriotism and calls for war after 9/11. “Now the same media is saying what we were saying 20 years ago,” says Roy.
Capitol Officer Furious Over Mike Pence’s Jan. 6 Comments After Police Saved His Life
Pence’s recent comments are a “disgrace,” said the sergeant. “We did everything possible to prevent him from being … killed in front of his daughter and his wife.
Photo gallery: On San Juan Island, 2021 was the Year of the Foxes
Friday Harbor, Washington: It surprises people to learn that there’s a population of red foxes on remote San Juan Island, up in the northwestern-most corner of the Lower 48 states. They’re not a native species, but they’ve been here long enough that they’ve carved a niche into the ecosystem and are now a celebrated component of the island’s phenomenal wildlife.
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez Rips ‘Creepy Weirdo’ Trump Adviser For Fixating On Boyfriend’s Feet
The congresswoman fired back at Republican Steve Cortes, turning the tables on his bizarre crack about her trip to Florida with her boyfriend.
Final note: Musicians who passed in 2021, Part Two
Below I will list some of the names of musicians who passed away in 2021. It will be a solid list, and I’ll link to larger and more robust obituaries throughout, but it’s almost entirely made up of American artists and people who found success in America. I ask your forgiveness in advance for the people I miss. I mean no disrespect and would appreciate their mentions in the comments, or stories you may have related to any of the music-makers listed below.
A Pandemic Guide to Anime: Zombie Land Saga
Welcome back to our impromptu and sporadically scheduled pandemic guide to anime. If you’ve missed any of our earlier entries, you can find them all here; for our introductory post you can go here, yada yada yada, introduction done.
All right, recent entries have ranged from the perils of high school life to the perils of the afterlife.
Prism’s top stories of 2021
by Ashton Lattimore
This article was originally published at Prism
This year has been marked by political and public health turmoil, environmental disasters, and widespread social injustice, and it’s strained our communities and inspired us to imagine and demand better futures.
Chief Justice John Roberts: Judges Must Be Better At Avoiding Financial Conflicts
“We are duty-bound to strive for 100% compliance because public trust is essential, not incidental, to our function,” Judge Roberts said.
We held a panel on ableism, and we listened. Your turn
When people talk about their experiences, listen. Truly listen. Take in what they’re saying and not just how what they’re saying affects you. It’s a simple means of education, but the good news is, it’s completely free—no tuition, no registration. Someone else does all the work, and you get all the benefits.
Those benefits with regards to a virtual panel we hosted with our Daily Kos staff in December simply cannot be quantified.
Rep. Ayanna Pressley Tests Positive For COVID-19
The Massachusetts Democrat said that after experiencing symptoms, she received a positive, breakthrough COVID-19 test result Friday.
‘A Hell Of A Year’: GOP Anticipating A Triumphant 2022
Republican leaders are heading into the new year with surging confidence. But the party still has a few challenges ahead.
The Atlantic Daily: What Covid Could Look Like One Year From Now
Every weekday evening, our editors guide you through the biggest stories of the day, help you discover new ideas, and surprise you with moments of delight. Subscribe to get this delivered to your inbox.The United States is logging record-setting numbers of coronavirus cases in the final week of 2021. The country is now averaging more than 300,000 new cases per day as it prepares to enter a third calendar year spent battling the pandemic.
The Books Briefing: 5 Short Stories to Read This Weekend
Editor’s note: This week’s newsletter is a rerun.
We’ll be back with a fresh newsletter next week.
I often think of fiction as fact’s partner in the pursuit of truth. At its best, the genre is capable of rendering the worlds we’re unable to imagine, and also of revealing the ones hidden around us. Last year, The Atlantic recommitted itself to publishing fiction with greater frequency.
These Long-Distance Friends Reunite Every New Year’s Like No Time Has Passed
Each installment of “The Friendship Files” features a conversation between The Atlantic’s Julie Beck and two or more friends, exploring the history and significance of their relationship.This week she talks with three men whose international group of friends has been having an annual New Year’s Eve reunion party for the past 10 years (except for 2020, when the pandemic prevented it).
Democracy Now! at 25: Celebrating a Quarter-Century of Independent News on the Frontlines
Democracy Now! first aired on nine community radio stations on February 19, 1996, on the eve of the New Hampshire presidential primary. In the 25 years since that initial broadcast, the program has greatly expanded, airing today on more than 1,500 television and radio stations around the globe and reaching millions of people online.
Biden officials now fear booster programs will limit global vaccine supply
A looming shortage of doses for low- and moderate-income countries puts increased pressure on Novavax to obtain regulatory approvals for global manufacturing.
Our Highways Are an Ever-Expanding Museum of America’s Wars
South of downtown Columbus, Ohio, lost on the way to a tailgate, I saw the road sign bearing his name. The brown aluminum placard flashed between passing cars. I’d been holding my phone, listening to directions, and I dropped it. I could hardly make out the words on the sign, and then it disappeared behind semis, but I knew what they said: Army Specialist Nicholaus E. Zimmer Memorial Highway.
The NBA and NFL Surrendered to Their Vaccine Refusers
The Brooklyn Nets have officially ended their tug-of-war with Kyrie Irving over the star point guard’s vaccination status. And Irving, who has refused to get a COVID-19 shot, is unquestionably the winner.The rapid spread of the coronavirus’s Omicron variant has left gaps on rosters across the NBA.