Night Owls, a themed open thread, appears at Daily Kos seven days a week

At The American Prospect, David Dayen writes—The Winter of Our Discontent:

The 78 days from November 3 to January 20, known as the transition, have kept me awake at night since I started reporting out this article.

FRIDAY HARBOR, Washington—Late last Saturday afternoon, seemingly out of the blue, whale watchers out in Haro Strait between San Juan and Vancouver islands were treated to what has become a rare event:  a “superpod,” one of the large gatherings of all three pods—some 72 whales—in the endangered Southern Resident killer-whale (SRKW) population of the Salish Sea.

Deadly consequences are the result of schools resuming in-person learning amid the novel coronavirus. Teachers have died as a result of COVID-19 in at least five states since the beginning of the new school year. As the U.S. continues to fail its residents in responding to the coronavirus pandemic, educators worry about the impact that opening schools will have across the country. Since the start of the pandemic, many teachers have expressed their fear of returning back to their classrooms.

Welcome to the sprint, folks.

… that last, long push before Election Day, I mean.

(Fun fact! I actually hate running.)

Fifty-four days. 54. LIV.

Most statehouse candidates are out campaigning (such as it is in the middle of a pandemic).

Which makes sense.

This final November before the next round of redistricting is the most important state legislative election cycle of the entire decade, after all.

While Mitch McConnell wasted even more time this week with another symbolic coronavirus “relief” bill, states are struggling to come up with a solution for saving bars and restaurants while still keeping their populations safe. They remain the establishments hit hardest by the economic disaster that came with the pandemic, and the help they need is nowhere in sight.