World News – UK – The Latest: Maryland Advancing Health Workers and Hospital Beds

ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Maryland Gov. . Larry Hogan on Tuesday announced measures to increase the number of available healthcare workers and to plan for more hospital beds.

In a partnership with the Maryland Hospital Association, the governor announced the launch of an initiative called MarylandMedNow to attract people with clinical backgrounds to work in state hospitals, nursing homes, testing sites, and vaccination clinics.

The state has asked colleges and universities to develop emergency policies and procedures to grant academic credits to students willing to gain hands-on work experience during the pandemic.

The governor also announced steps to increase hospital beds. Hospitals across the state are required to submit a patient surge plan that includes strategies to expand bed and staff capacity adjustments. They are due at the health department in December. 8th.

If total hospital stays are 8. 000 or more hospital stays, hospitals must add 10% of the physical bed capacity of each hospital to their staffing capacity within seven calendar days. From the 6. 816 people in hospitals had 1. 583 cases of the coronavirus confirmed by Tuesday.

– A pop-up school was created to teach Central American children living in an asylum seeker camp on America’s doorstep to read, write, math, and the arts.

SAN FRANCISCO – San Francisco Mayor, London Breed, dined at a posh Napa Valley restaurant the day after the Governor of California was present. San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo went to his parents’ home for Thanksgiving. And a Los Angeles County supervisor dined outdoors just hours after the vote to ban outdoor dining.

All three local officials were in the hot seat Tuesday after various reports said they broke rules to control the spread of the coronavirus – or at least the spirit of the rules, as they repeatedly urged others to stay home stay.

Breed was represented with seven others at the three Michelin-starred French Laundry on November. 7 to 60. Celebrating celebrity Gorretti Lo Lui’s birthday, the mayor’s spokesman for the San Francisco Chronicle confirmed. She dined in the same type of partially enclosed indoor / outdoor space Gov. Gavin Newsom celebrated the day before.

Newsom, who appealed to Californians to « do your part » and stay home, apologized when the 12-person dinner was reported and again when photos of him, his wife, surfaced and others sat close together at the same table without masks.

Breed spokesman Jeff Cretan called the mayor’s French laundry dinner a « little family birthday dinner ». He didn’t immediately respond to a phone message Tuesday asking if the dinner affected more than three different households, which are prohibited by state rules.

DENVER – Colorado Gov. . Jared Polis joined the nation’s leading infectious disease expert on Tuesday, urging people to wear masks and social distancing to avoid staying home and overwhelmed hospitals when a spike in coronavirus occurs during the holidays.

Dr. . Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergies and Infectious Diseases and a member of the White House’s coronavirus task force, warned during a virtual press conference that Colorado does not see a spike in cases and asked people not to travel or congregate in large groups.

« If you look at the US, we are in a public health crisis right now because we have a spike that is worse than the spike we all saw in late winter, early spring. « Said Fauci.

He added that « we will likely see an increase in cases, » based on the number of people who traveled and gathered for Thanksgiving and those expected to see before Christmas and Christmas shopping and partying in large New Year celebrations.

Colorado has seen a significant increase in COVID-19 cases, with one in 41 residents classified as contagious.

UNITED NATIONS – The U. . N. . The General Assembly tries to solve the problem of 400. Tackle 000 seafarers stranded at sea as a result of COVID-19 by passing a resolution calling on all nations to designate those who work on ships as « key workers ». ”

The resolution, which the 193-member world association passed by consensus on Tuesday, emphasizes the very difficult conditions seafarers are exposed to at sea, caused by the response to the pandemic, the change of crew and the repatriation of seafarers in their home countries have been tightened.

Indonesia’s U. . N. . Ambassador DianTriansyah Djani, who sponsored the resolution, said the work of two million seafarers « who have shown their dedication and professionalism during this crisis to ensure that world trade and logistics continue to operate properly » goes largely unnoticed.

The resolution recognized that “shipping continues to carry more than 80 percent of world trade that is essential for the normal functioning of society, including essential medical supplies, food and other essential goods necessary for response and recovery COVID-19 are vital. ”

Djani said travel restrictions imposed by countries as a result of the pandemic « created difficulties changing crews and prevented seafarers from getting on and off », leaving hundreds of thousands stranded at sea. Designating seafarers and other naval personnel as « key workers » would ease their plight, he said.

The International Chamber of Shipping, which represents 80 percent of the world’s merchant fleet, estimates that nearly 400. 000 seafarers have been stranded at sea because of the pandemic, many for more than a year and some for up to 17 months, which is way beyond their contracts.

SALEM, ore. – Oregon reported 24 more deaths from COVID-19 on Tuesday, a record high for a single day in the state.

The Oregon Health Authority said the « grim milestone » underscores that people should wear masks, keep physical distance, and keep gatherings small. The increase brings the state’s known death toll to 936.

Officials in Silverton, a town east of Salem, are trying to monitor a possible outbreak among firefighters. The situation has underscored a weakness in Oregon’s response to the pandemic: the lack of a system that allows first responders to be quickly tested, said Silverton Fire District deputy chief Ed Grambusch.

A member of the fire department who attended training in November. 21 was diagnosed with COVID-19. Twenty people who were trainees or trainers may have been at high risk.

Everyone was advised to quarantine themselves and get tested. When Grambusch, who coordinates local responses to infectious disease outbreaks, called the Oregon Health Authority, the agency confirmed that he needed to speak to Marion County’s health authorities about rapid testing. The district officials told him they did not know of such a system, Grambusch said.

« The problem is – this is a huge disappointment for me – that we don’t have a system for quick testing of our first responders, » said Grambusch. « And I’m just not sure why that is. I would hope we can email or make a phone call – a phone call – and send someone in for a quick test. ”

FRANKFORT, Ky. – Kentucky reported a record number of new coronavirus cases and deaths Tuesday as the governor warned that the COVID-19 outbreak « is spreading like wildfire. ”

Gov. . Andy Beshear announced nationwide 4. 151 more virus cases and 35 more virus-related deaths. He called it « the worst day » since he started reporting daily virus counts in March.

« COVID is spreading like wildfire, taking record numbers of people from us and infecting record numbers of people out there, » the Democratic governor said at a press conference.

Almost 1. 780 virus patients are being hospitalized in Kentucky, including more than 440 in intensive care – both record numbers for the state, he said. Almost 250 virus patients are ventilated.

The nationwide rate for positive testing reached 9. 59%. Beshear warned that « a large amount of virus » is spreading rapidly in every county in Kentucky.

« Today is a terrible day that shows us how fast this thing is spreading, » he said.

JACKSON, MISSISSIPPI – Gov. . Tate Reeves set up mask mandates in 13 other Mississippi counties on Tuesday, but opted not to implement the move nationwide a week after several prominent health care leaders told him to do so.

During a press conference, the Republican governor said he believed that issuing mask requirements in counties with the highest number of new cases will encourage people to take regulations more seriously than a blanket approach would. A total of 54 of the state’s 82 counties now have a mask mandate.

« I almost feel like there are people out there who really, really believe that if we were to write an executive order, a nationwide hurricane ban in 2021, that we won’t have hurricanes, » Reeves said. « It just doesn’t work that way. ”

Reeves introduced a nationwide mask mandate in early August but revoked the measure in late September when new coronavirus cases fell in Mississippi. As the number of cases has increased again in recent weeks, he has started to implement mask mandates in individual counties.

Four healthcare executives said it was time for Reeves to take it a step further. You wrote a letter to Reeves in November. 24 are calling for another nationwide mask mandate.

« The nationwide mask mandate, which has been very effective, needs to be reintroduced, » says a Dr.. . LouAnn Woodward of the University of Mississippi Medical Center; DR. Anita Henderson, President-elect of the Mississippi Chapter of the American Academy of Pediatrics; DR. Claude Brunson, executive director of the Mississippi State Medical Association; and dr. . James Griffin Jr. . , President of the Mississippi Academy of Family Physicians.

Reeves said Tuesday that he would not comment on the letter, but said he believes a county-by-county approach is best for Mississippi right now.

DES MOINES, Iowa – Iowa Gov. . Kim Reynolds on Tuesday called on Congress to approve money for businesses and families grappling with the coronavirus pandemic. However, she said there are no plans to use available government funds as other officials have done.

Some lawmakers, including Colorado and New Mexico, are considering allocating state funds as a stopgap until Congress approves additional federal relief.

When asked Tuesday if she was considering calling lawmakers back in session to approve such a move, she said no.

« Unfortunately there isn’t enough government funding to bring everyone together, and that’s just a reality of what we’re up against, » Reynolds said. “This is something that Congress has to do. You have to step up and do your job. ”

Iowa ended the fiscal year in September with a balance of $ 305. 5 million in general fund and cash reserves of more than $ 770 million.

The Iowa coronavirus infection rate showed signs of slowing Tuesday, but the number of people hospitalized with illness and dying of COVID-19 remained high, according to public health reports.

MINNEAPOLIS – Minnesota is facing a surprising projected surplus of $ 641 million in its current budget that provides money for a new coronavirus aid package. However, officials warned Tuesday that the state is still facing a dollar. 3 billion shortfall for the next budget.

Minnesota Management and Budget’s not-so-bad forecasts were a welcome departure from the agency’s last forecast, released in May as the coronavirus pandemic hit. At that time it was estimated at $ 2. 4 billion deficit in the current fiscal cycle and $ 4. 7 billion shortfall in the next.

The new forecast is expected to stimulate government negotiations. Tim Walz and lawmakers from both parties on an aid package targeting small businesses – and potentially workers and families – that lawmakers could approve in a special session later this month if all sides can agree on what’s in it should be.

MMB Commissioner Jim Schowalter and other budget officials said at a press conference that the updated forecasts are better than May’s, partly because tax revenues are higher than expected. Amid the pandemic, consumers are shifting their spending away from social distancing and non-sales taxable services, and buying more taxable goods like electronics and furniture. And the blow to income tax collection was less than expected, as lower-income workers who pay less taxes suffered the most from the recession.

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.. . J. . – Johnson & Johnson, one of the largest drug companies developing a vaccine for COVID-19, began filing applications for emergency approval of its vaccine with the European Medicines Agency and Health Canada on Tuesday.

J&J’s Janssen Pharmaceutical business has submitted early test data from its experimental single-dose vaccine for the prevention of COVID-19 to regulators in the EU and Canada. Rolling filings are used to expedite the evaluation of key drugs by providing data to regulators as soon as it becomes available and while human testing is still in progress, rather than having to submit tons of data immediately after testing is finished.

Johnson & Johnson said in a statement that the European Medicines Agency allowed ongoing filing mainly based on positive results from laboratory tests that showed the vaccine produced a robust immune response and produced antibodies that could fight the virus.

The New Brunswick, New Jersey-based company is also talking to regulators in other countries around the world to conduct ongoing reviews with them.

J&J is currently in the final stages of testing his single-dose vaccine on volunteers. In the meantime, a second study was recently started to see if two doses of vaccine worked better than just one.

The company has announced that it will provide its vaccine on a non-profit basis throughout the pandemic emergency.

MIAMI – Florida, along with Texas and California, surpassed more than 1 million confirmed COVID-19 cases on Tuesday as the governor promised not to put any further restrictions or impose closings like those enacted this spring and summer.

The number of hospitalizations in this state is 4. 261 COVID-19 patients increased, compared to 4. 139 on Monday.

The number is still less than half the number hospitals saw in late July, but it has increased steadily since October, having stayed at around 2 for weeks after the virus’ summer surge. 000 hospital admissions per day had reached a plateau.

The state’s health department reported 82 new virus deaths Tuesday, bringing the number of victims in the third largest state since the pandemic started to at least 18. 942 increased.

While vaccines could arrive as early as this month, officials say it won’t be spring before most people can get treatment.

Florida Gov. . Ron DeSantis said on Twitter Tuesday that the priority for the new vaccines should be given to residents of long-term care facilities, who are « by far the most likely population group to die from COVID. ”

By rounding up data from a few sources – past vacation peaks, current travel patterns, cell phone proximity trackers, and various pandemic forecasting models – you can roughly predict what to expect in the coming weeks. The early numbers are worrying.

There were no visible wounds on the body and a cause of death for the 26-year-old was not yet known, the police said.

Republicans trying to undo President-elect Joe Biden’s victory in Pennsylvania asked the U. . S.. . Supreme Court Tuesday to take her case three days after she was dismissed by the Battlefield State Supreme Court. In the request to the U. . S.. . Supreme Court, Republican U. . S.. . Rep. Mike Kelly, of northwest Pennsylvania, and the other plaintiffs are calling on the court to prevent the state from certifying competitions from November. 3 choice and revoke any certifications you have already made, such as Biden’s victory. Biden defeated President Donald Trump in Pennsylvania by more than 80. 000 votes, a state that Trump won in 2016.

Hours after a bipartisan group of Senators tabled a $ 908 billion proposal for a coronavirus relief bill Tuesday, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky. ) distributed its own plan among Republican lawmakers. Several news organizations received a copy of the outline. According to Bloomberg, McConnell’s plan appears to be a tweaked version of his earlier $ 500 billion proposal (although the full price is not yet known). The funds are earmarked for a second round of the Payroll Protection Program and for the distribution and development of coronavirus vaccines. It doesn’t appear to serve as an overture for Democrats and instead targets several Republican Senators by adding measures like COVID-19 corporate liability shields that the other side of the aisle is speaking out against. > McConnell’s « revised » bill has many extras for its members: >> – Toomey proposal to ensure the Fed can’t use unspent CARES money> – School election tax credits for Cruz> – Tim Scott’s tax deduction for Business lunch> – Cornyn’s Liability Protection Act> – 20 billion. USD for extra help to farmers >> – Igor Bobic (@igorbobic) 1. December 2020 Contrary to the bipartisan framework from earlier, McConnell’s bill does not include money for state, local, and tribal governments, another nod to Republicans who are strongly against the term. However, it only extends the deadline for higher unemployment benefits by one month, while the other bill would move the end date to April. McConnell said he is bearish of his peers’ framework because the clock is ticking and he seems to believe the White House will sign his version. > I asked @senatemajldr McConnell why I shouldn’t push for the bipartisan, possibly more popular, COVID Relief framework. His answer: picture. Twitter. com / iekHQkkues >> – Garrett Haake (@GarrettHaake) 1. December 2020More stories from the week. com George Floyd Family Attorney Ben Crump Recommends Kamala Harris’ Attorney General’s brother-in-law Americans choose death over deprivation Our parents warned us that the Internet would break our brains. Instead, it broke hers.

China has provided North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and his family with an experimental coronavirus vaccine, a U.. S.. . Analyst said Tuesday, citing two unidentified Japanese intelligence sources. Harry Kazianis, a North Korea expert at the think tank at the Center for National Interest in Washington, said the Kims and several senior North Korean officials had been vaccinated.

In 2018, Crystal Mason was sentenced to five years in prison for voting in the 2016 election. The American Civil Liberties Union of Texas is now working with her to appeal the ruling. Little did Mason know she was banned from voting in 2016 when she cast her tentative vote because she was being overseen by the federal government.

An Iranian commander was reportedly killed in a drone strike on the Syrian-Iraqi border over the weekend, days after the murder of an Iranian nuclear scientist outside Tehran on whom Iran alleged Israel. The Islamic Republic was shaken following the assassination of nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh on Friday, and some believe that Israel could step up targeted killings ahead of the inauguration of US President-elect Joe Biden, who is more forgiving to Iran than current President Donald Trump. Iraqi security and militia officials told Reuters on Monday that the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, whose identity they did not confirm, was killed along with three men in the same vehicle as him. Two officials told Reuters that the vehicle was hit with weapons from Iraq shortly after crossing into Syria. Israel launched strikes against a number of Iranian and Syrian targets in Syria over the past week, despite not being held responsible for the drone attack that allegedly killed the IRGC commander, who some reports referred to as a Muslim Shahdan. The assassination of Iranian personalities is likely to continue as long as the regime continues to threaten the destruction of Israel, although not all targets will be household names, said Alex Vatanka, director of the Iran program at the Middle East Institute. « I would have a hard time finding another name like Qassem Soleimani, whom the Israelis could attack in an act of bombing that would show his dominance in the intelligence war against Iran, » he said. Soleimani, head of the IRGC’s elite quds force, was killed in a US air strike in Baghdad in January.

Republicans are already signaling they won’t vote to endorse Neera Tanden, President-elect Joe Biden’s election to head the Office of Administration and Budget for next year – and some have even expressed doubts as to whether they will a committee will receive listening. Part of their dislike is their productive activity on Twitter, which includes a lot of criticism of GOP lawmakers. In fact, Tanden seems to have expected this, as she has apparently deleted a slew of tweets in the past few weeks. But GOP critics are calling on lawmakers to complain about Tanden’s hypocrites on social media, especially as President Trump and some of his own candidates don’t shy away from using the platform to target political and personal opponents (and sometimes suspected allies) his four years in office to be mocked. > Do Republicans feel a little embarrassed talking about tweets from Biden candidates when they endorse a president who is largely ruled by tweets? >> – Molly Jong-Fast (@MollyJongFast) 1. In fact, it wasn’t like that during Trump’s tenure.It’s not uncommon for Republican lawmakers to say they didn’t actually see the posts of president. > Many Republican Senators who always claimed to be unfamiliar with Trump tweets are very familiar with tanden tweets. Https: // t. co / xZPi3mivFU >> – Mike Memoli (@mikememoli) 30. November 2020But Paul Waldman of the Washington Post argues that lawmakers are likely not too concerned about Tanden’s use of Twitter, using it instead as part of a strategy to make it harder for Biden to put together the cabinet they want. > If you hear Republicans raise specific concerns about the Biden nominees, remember that Obama nominated Merrick Garland because the Republicans specifically mentioned him as a Supreme Court candidate that they would support. >> This is their rope-a-dope strategy. Don’t fall for it. / 1 >> – Paul Waldman (@ paulwaldman1) 1. December 2020More stories from the week. com George Floyd Family Attorney Ben Crump Recommends Kamala Harris’ Attorney General’s brother-in-law Americans choose death over deprivation Our parents warned us that the Internet would break our brains. Instead, it broke hers.

A photo of a hospital alternative care facility in Reno, Nevada, is misrepresented on social media to fuel the misrepresentation that the coronavirus pandemic is a hoax, even as cases rise in the state. The prestigious Regional Medical Center has been the main target of renewed online conspiracy theories that hospitals are empty and the virus is not as dangerous as senior medical officials claim. The hospital opened an alternative care facility in November with two floors of additional hospital beds in a parking garage. 12 to make up for an overflow in COVID-19 cases if necessary.

Turkey’s seismic exploration vessel, Oruc Reis, returned to port from controversial Mediterranean waters on Monday, less than two weeks before a European Union summit where the bloc will assess possible sanctions against Ankara. NATO members Turkey and Greece have conflicting claims to the continental shelf and rights to potential energy resources in the Eastern Mediterranean. Tensions mounted in August when Ankara sent Oruc Reis to assess the prospect of energy drilling in waters also claimed by Greece.

The 39-year-old woman was wounded Saturday when relatives gathered at the grave of her son Sincere Pierce to say goodbye.

On Tuesday, Gabriel Sterling from the Georgian Foreign Minister’s office spoke out firmly against &nbsp, post-election threats and rhetoric against electoral staff.

A photo of an Australian soldier drinking beer from the prosthetic leg of a dead Taliban fighter appeared on Tuesday as the Chinese and Australian governments continued to trade beatings against alleged Australian war crimes in Afghanistan. The photo of the soldier drinking from what appeared to be a « war trophy » in an unauthorized bar in Afghanistan in 2009 was one of several that Guardian Australia received. Another shows two soldiers dancing with their legs. The bar, known as Fat Lady’s Arms, was set up in the Australian special unit in Tarin Kowt, the capital of the Uruzgan province. Some soldiers claimed in the Guardian that the practice was largely tolerated by high-level officers, and even involved some of them. Taking over property without the owner’s consent can be classified as looting, a war crime punishable by a sentence of up to 20 years in prison. The revelations came after China hit back the Australian government for criticizing a social media post by senior official Zhao Lijian with a doctoral picture of an Australian soldier holding a knife to the throat of an Afghan child. The post was an indication of the findings of the Brereton investigation into the alleged murder of prisoners or civilians in Afghanistan by Australian forces. In a statement, the Chinese Embassy in Canberra said the Australian government had attempted to divert attention from war crimes committed by the Australian armed forces, fuel the fires of “domestic nationalism” and blame China for deteriorating relations between countries. While the Brereton investigation largely exonerated the Australian military’s primary responsibility for the alleged crimes, the report found that a “warrior culture” had developed in the special forces that contributed to crime that senior officers were unaware of. Australian historian and lecturer in asymmetric warfare and counterinsurgency, Dr. Philip Chilton, told The Telegraph that the Australian Special Forces « are bred to have a warrior culture » and that it was « problematic » that the report « appeared to exonerate the high command » for responsibility for it « . While the Department of Defense has failed to confirm the authenticity of the photos, Fairfax Media reported in June 2018 that Australian troops had used an Afghan’s prosthetic leg as a drinking vessel. The Department of Defense said in a statement that all credible allegations of wrongdoing will be investigated. “The report was edited to remove names and details that could identify individuals against whom the investigation found credible information to support allegations of criminal or other misconduct. . . If information is made available to the defense that was not covered by the Afghanistan investigation [led by Justice Brereton], those matters will be thoroughly investigated and dealt with, « a spokesman said. “It is important that all matters are carefully considered and that all measures are taken in accordance with the long and established processes of the ADF to ensure that individuals’ rights to due process and fair hearing are protected. ”

The electoral college is a political abomination. As I wrote earlier, it grants overwhelming power to a handful of states that happen to have a tight party-political balance and are mostly quite large, rather than protecting the influence of small states. Worse still, it enables the losers of popular votes to win – which has happened twice in the last 20 years. In theory, a candidate could lose the referendum four to one and still win the vote. In addition, the divergence between the electoral college and the referendum has increased steadily since 2012. As I will show below, Joe Biden won a clear victory in the referendum, but hardly prevailed in the electoral college. This idiotic anachronism must be destroyed. Let’s look at this over the past two decades. One way to examine this question is to examine the « most efficient » method by which the loss of candidates could have won the electoral college. In other words, if we add up the state totals for previous 2000 elections, how could the losers have won by flipping the lowest number of votes? Use data from U. . S.. . Election Atlas and 2020 New York Times data (including a rough extrapolation assuming Biden wins 80 percent of the mail-in votes not yet counted in New York state), I calculated how the losers of the Popular votes could be won by the electoral college – or lost in the case of George W. . Bush in 2000 and Donald Trump in 2016. In 2000, of course, Bush officially « won » Florida with 537 votes and with it the presidency with 271 votes, while Al Gore the referendum with about 550. Won 000 votes. (In reality, Gore would probably have won a fair recount in Florida had it not been stopped by a Conservative Supreme Court on bare partisan grounds, but I’ll ignore that for now as it doesn’t matter that particular argument. This means that a change of only 269 votes in one state from one candidate to another would have changed the result. In 2004, Bush won re-election by around three million votes and 286 votes. John Kerry could have won famously if he had just turned Ohio, where the lead is only 118. 601 votes. In terms of votes, however, it would have been a bit more efficient, New Mexico, Iowa, Nevada, and Alaska with a cumulative margin of 117. 411 to turn around. That means a flip of just 58. 706 votes would have given Kerry the presidency. In 2008, Barack Obama dampened John McCain with a vote of over 9. 5 million and 365 votes. But it would have taken relatively few vote changes to overturn even this landslide result. Obama won Florida, Colorado, Iowa, Rhode Island, Maine, New Mexico, Nevada, Vermont, Delaware, New Hampshire, Indiana and North Carolina with a cumulative lead of only 1. 436 million votes – a flip of just 718. 138 would have given McCain an additional 97 votes and one victory. Similarly, Mitt Romney could have won 2012 by winning the nine closest states in terms of total votes and only 384. 188 flips required. Then, in 2016, of course, Trump scored a victory at Electoral College by tiny margins in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania – just 38. 868 flips would have given Clinton the win. That finally brings me to 2020. Biden won the referendum easily, with a lead perhaps close to 6. 9 million or so (depending on what’s happening in New York. ) But it would only have 33. Cost 139 flips in Arizona, Georgia and Wisconsin to deliver a second term from Trump. All in all, if we flip these minimum votes to change the electoral college score as a percentage of the population’s vote margin, we can get a sense of how much it deviates from the one person and one vote principle: Courtesy: U. . S.. . What this shows is that the electoral college is routinely about to hand over the presidency to the loser in the referendum, even if it doesn’t – and it seems to be getting worse. In 2008 and 2012 it would have cost a flip of 7. 5 percent and 11 percent of the population’s vote (still not great), but only 1 in 2016. 3 percent of the margin would change the result. The 2020 election is the worst result since 2000 – although Biden won, a flip of just 0. 48 percent of the population’s vote (or something like 0). 02 percent of the total vote) would have let Trump win. While the 2008 flip scenario outlined above is based on implausible large percentage fluctuations in small states like Vermont, Biden’s victory depended on wafer-thin margins in three swing states. It all speaks for itself. But before Republicans get too complacent when it comes to crafting justifications for the electoral college for helping them right now, consider that only 1 was flipped in 2004. 9 percent of the population’s vote margin would have given the Democrats the presidency, even though Bush would have received three million more votes. With the rules of the electoral college being so stupid and arbitrary, it’s very easy to imagine that demographic trends would give the Dems an almost automatic victory every time – for example, when Texas turns blue all the time. It would be better and fairer for everyone if the presidency simply went to the candidate who received the most votes. More stories from the week. com Americans Choose Death Over Deprivation Our parents warned us that the internet would break our brains. Instead, it broke hers. GOP Sen. . Josh Hawley tries to explain how Democrats are both « Marxists » and « Corporatists »

Amid the long-running, deadly dispute in Indian-controlled Kashmir, another conflict is silently taking its toll on the people of the Himalayas: the conflict between humans and wildlife. According to official figures, at least 67 people have been killed and 940 others injured in attacks by wild animals in the famous Kashmir Valley over the past five years. It is a huge collection of alpine forests, connected wetlands and waterways known for their idyllic views as well as for its decades of armed conflict between Indian troops and rebels. The Himalayan black bear is at the heart of these problems.

The United States on Monday imposed sanctions on China National Electronics Import & Export Corporation (CEIEC), accusing it of supporting Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro’s efforts to undermine democracy. The U. S.. . The Treasury Department said in a statement that the Chinese company supports the left-wing Maduro government in its « efforts to restrict Internet service and carry out digital surveillance and cyber operations against political opponents. « The United States will not hesitate to target anyone who will help suppress the democratic wills of the Venezuelan people and other people around the world, » Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in the statement.

James Dixon put his bare hands in the food of the house where his victim was the host’s friend. A Chicago man was charged with murder after a dispute over some Thanksgiving leftovers. 28-year-old James Dixon is believed to have stabbed 52-year-old Vincell Jackson when the man was led out of a house after a holiday get-together.

Chinese special operators are getting more resources and training, but there is something you cannot teach.

President Trump’s lawyers have an unexpected new enemy. Attorney General William Barr on Tuesday removed a surprise move from Trump, telling The Associated Press that the Department of Justice had not detected any major cases of election fraud. Trump’s legal team, including Rudy Giuliani and Jenna Ellis, quickly shot back, claiming Barr simply didn’t have enough evidence to clear all of the fraud allegations. « With all due respect to the Attorney General, there was no sign of an investigation by the Justice Department » into the allegations of electoral fraud that Trump’s team has put together. If Barr just looked at Giuliani’s « many witnesses » and « checked » some voting machines, the legal team insists that he would find fraud; Election officials on the U. . S.. . There is no evidence of widespread fraud that would alter the election result. Trump campaign lawyers oppose DOJ statement that there is no evidence of election fraud in the 2020 election, citing « ample evidence » (which somehow still hasn’t gotten to an actual judge). . image. Twitter. com / Irm1U0rxnM >> – DJ Judd (@DJJudd) 1. December 2020 In an interview with AP, Barr said the department had « seen no fraud to the extent that could affect a different outcome » in last month’s presidential election. President-elect Joe Biden beat Trump, but the president and most of his team have not yet acknowledged it. He raised legal challenges and promoted conspiracy theories to reverse election results in the long run. The judges have cast down the challenges of the Trump campaign and allegations of election fraud almost everywhere. More stories from the week. com George Floyd Family Attorney Ben Crump Recommends Kamala Harris’ Attorney General’s brother-in-law Americans choose death over deprivation Our parents warned us that the Internet would break our brains. Instead, it broke hers.

Coronavirus, Alabama, Inpatient Care, Alabama Department of Public Health, Health Care