June 15, 2021
New York Times
by A. Corres Pondent
RED STATES WITH SPARSE VACCINATIONS EXPLODE WITH COVID
To the surprise of No One, the Red States, which have been lax in getting their populations vaccinated, are experiencing a resurgence in Covid. The curve started back up on May 14, the day after the CDC and President Biden announced that the fully vaccinated are free to go about their lives without a mask in all venues, not just outdoors.
To the surprise of No One, all those Red State Yahoos immediately dis-masked, even though the majority eligible for vaccines have refused to be vaccinated. If the rest of the country is fortunate, the Yahoos will infect themselves to death.
[update 14 May]
Here's the vaccination record for the states. The bottom of the barrel
At the other end, the five states with the lowest percentage of people with one dose are Mississippi, Louisiana, Alabama, Wyoming and Idaho.
So, one dose isn't the best measure, but still.
Here's the benchmark as of 14 May behind the June 15 lede from the NYT.
Since the point is daily trend, updated to use reported daily cases. Per 100K is only reported, in this source, as 7-day.
cases per 100K
Mississippi 201 8
Louisiana 421 10
Alabama 285 6 cases data on the 14th is way whacky, so stick with 7-day average
Wyoming 83 12
Idaho 167 9
We'll stop by the data every now and again to see whether the Oracle turns out to be correct. One actually hopes not, since Covid doesn't respect state lines.
[update 21 May]
cases per 100K
Mississippi 105 5
Louisiana 340 9
Alabama 443 6
Wyoming 70 14
Idaho 167 9
[update 28 May]
cases per 100K
Mississippi 131 5
Louisiana 354 9
Alabama 228 5
Wyoming 96 12
Idaho 135 8
[update 4 June]
cases per 100K
Mississippi 141 4
Louisiana 364 7
Alabama 557 6
Wyoming 80 12
Idaho 166 6
[update 11 June]
cases per 100K
Mississippi 236 4
Louisiana 228 7
Alabama 188 5
Wyoming 103 12
Idaho 118 6
[update 15 June]
cases per 100K
Mississippi 47 4
Louisiana 559 8
Alabama 290 5
Wyoming 68 11
Idaho 89 5
[update 18 June]
cases per 100K
Mississippi 244 4
Louisiana 326 6
Alabama 334 4
Wyoming 65 9
Idaho 0 4
[update 25 June]
cases per 100K
Mississippi 243 4
Louisiana 210 6
Alabama 540 4
Wyoming 104 11
Idaho 83 5
[update 2 July; swap in Arkansas]
cases per 100K
Mississippi 242 6
Louisiana 525 9
Alabama 315 4
Wyoming 92 12
Arkansas 494 16
This is the last scheduled update, as promised. Further Cheatin Hearts will be presented if extraordinary data, better or worse, should emerge. As of today, it sure looks like the Two Americas meme has yet another vector; get the shot(s) and survive or not and die.
[update 28 June]
Well, we have more
data on the Bottom Five. One replacement, but I'll take solace in the fact that four of the five remain in the Bottom. Consistency is the mark of a small mind.
According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 46.1% of the total US population has been vaccinated against Covid-19. Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Wyoming are among the states with the lowest vaccination rates, with less than 35% of their population fully vaccinated.
Idaho was the fifth at the beginning, thence Tennessee, and now Arkansas. That they're all now Southern Rebel Red States, is another hallmark of consistency. Good on ya.
Despite an increasing number of hospitalizations, [Arkansas governor Asa] Hutchinson said he does not think strict limitations are needed again to prevent the spread of the virus because people are more informed of how they should act. However, he did not rule out imposing any restrictions.
Let the Social Darwinist approach go full boar.
Substituting Arkansas for Idaho over the period of these missives, we see the following.
[14 May data start]
cases per 100K
Mississippi 201 8
Louisiana 421 10
Alabama 285 6
Wyoming 83 12
Arkansas 250 8
[update 24 June, Arkansas only]
cases per 100K
Arkansas 383 8
[update 2 July]
Well, it looks like
The South Has Risen Again.
In Arkansas, which has one of the lowest vaccination rates in the nation, cases are surging, officials said. In Los Angeles County, where the vaccination rate is slightly above the national average, officials warned about a possible new wave of infections, especially given the rapid spread of the Delta variant.
"We are now going in the wrong direction yet again with Covid-19 infections here in the state of Arkansas," said Dr. Cam Patterson, chancellor at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, during the state's weekly briefing Tuesday.
[my emphasis]
And, as one would expect
"Looking state by state and county by county, it is clear that communities where people remain unvaccinated are communities that remain vulnerable," Dr. Rochelle Walensky, head of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said Thursday. "This is all true as we monitor the continued spread of the hyper-transmissible Delta variant."
To plagiarize the Granite State motto, "Live Free or Die", well OK
The state saw 988 Covid-19 deaths since late January, and 99.6% of those deaths were people who were not vaccinated, Hutchinson added. In the same time period, more than 98% of those hospitalized with Covid-19 were not vaccinated.
It appears that A. Corres Pondent was just two weeks too soon. Well within the bounds of stat sig, in my opinion. There's no cure for stupid, or fealty to Batshit J. Moron.
[update 3 July]
Over the last few weeks there have been a flood of reports about how Australia has devolved from a paragon of Covid success to a shithole country ravaged by Covid thanks to Delta; of course, 'ravaged' is relative.
This is today's version.
Three days after the emergence of a rare Covid-19 case in Sydney, around 40 friends gathered for a birthday party. Along with cake and laughter, there was a hidden threat: One of the guests had unknowingly crossed paths with that single Covid case, an airport driver who had caught the Delta variant from an American aircrew.
Two weeks later, 27 people from the party have tested positive, including a 2-year-old child, along with 14 close contacts. And the seven people at the gathering who were not infected? They were all vaccinated.
Latest estimate is that ~25% of Covid in the USofA is Delta. Australia has learned, yet again, that geometric progression only looks slow at the beginning. That's why and how they managed to keep Covid in check before the vaccines were available: at the first sign of infections, clamp down. And it worked. And they tried it again when Delta appeared, but now
New South Wales avoided a full lockdown during previous Covid outbreaks, including a cluster last December that was curbed with three weeks of suburb-specific restrictions. This time, Gladys Berejiklian, the state premier, tried a similar tactic, but found that Delta moved too quickly to be contained.
[my emphasis]
All you Red State Rebels be warned, yet again, your insistence on 'personal freedom' is going to kill your tribe.
