usatoday--2020-12-05--His father died of COVID-19 alone in a nursing home. The obituary he wrote blames Americans who 'aba

His father died of COVID-19 alone in a nursing home. The obituary he wrote blames Americans who 'abandoned' science.

Dr. Marvin James Farr was born into an America where neighbors were willing to die for their fellow citizens .
But he died Tuesday in a very different country – one where `` many of his fellow Americans refuse to wear a piece of cloth on their face to protect one another . ''
That 's according to a widely shared obituary written by one of Farr 's five surviving children , Courtney Farr , that criticizes Americans who have `` disparaged and abandoned '' science amid the coronavirus pandemic .
Farr , 81 , of Scott City , Kansas @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and had been in isolation at a nursing home since Thanksgiving day , according to his son .
`` He was preceded in death by more than 260,000 Americans infected with covid-19 .
He died in a room not his own , being cared for by people dressed in confusing and frightening ways .
He died with covid-19 , and his final days were harder , scarier and lonelier than necessary .
He was not surrounded by friends and family , '' his son wrote in the obituary posted on the website of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , a farmer and veterinarian , was born in 1939 `` into an America recovering from the Great Depression and about to face World War 2 , times of loss and sacrifice difficult for most of us to imagine , '' Courtney Farr wrote .
`` Americans would be asked to ration essential supplies and send their children around the world to fight and die in wars of unfathomable destruction .
He died in a world where many of his fellow Americans refuse to wear a piece of cloth on their face to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ careers filled his life with an understanding of the science of life : how to nurture it , how to sustain it , and the myriad ways that life can go wrong .
As a young man he debated between studying mortuary or veterinary science .
He chose life over death , '' the obituary continues .
`` The science that guided his professional life has been disparaged and abandoned by so many of the same people who depended on his knowledge to care for their animals and to raise their food .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ man of his community , '' and `` a family man , both of blood and chosen family , '' his son wrote .
He was active in social organizations that did `` good work '' for the Shriners Hospitals for Children network .
He was also a lay reader at church and `` saw no conflict between the science of his professional life and the belief of his personal life , each enriched the other . ''
`` From religion , he especially drew on lessons of forgiveness and care , '' @ @ @ @ @ @ @ after those who had harmed him the deepest , a sentiment echoed by the healthcare workers struggling to do their jobs as their own communities turn against them or make their jobs harder .
He would also fail those who needed him the most at times , as he was still human , with his flaws and limits . ''
'Staring down a tsunami ' : Exhausted COVID-19 nurse 's viral photo shows what it 's like The obituary has been widely circulated online and featured by various news organizations .
Courtney Farr @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he was `` in shock '' by the number of people who have seen it .
`` It 's resonated with a lot of people , and that warms my heart , '' Farr said in the post .
`` Often when we experience loss , pain or trauma , we feel so alone .
And there 's such incredible power to learning that you are not , that someone else also knows . ''
Most of the responses to the obituary have been positive , Farr said , but there have been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ claims that I made my father 's obituary political . ''
`` Well , his death was political .
He died in isolation with an infectious disease that is causing a national crisis .
To pretend otherwise or to obfuscate is also a political decision , '' Farr wrote .
`` I 'm sure my father 's main complaint would be that he does n't have the chance to give you all his two cents . ''
Courtney Farr and Price & Sons Funeral Home did not immediately respond to requests for comment @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 279,000 people in the U.S. and 1.5 million worldwide have died after contracting COVID-19 , according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University .
Meanwhile , infections and deaths continued climbing in recent weeks , leading the influential Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation model to project on Friday that the U.S. will surpass half-a-million COVID-19 deaths by April .
To combat the spread of COVID-19 , the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that Americans wear face masks in public spaces , and 37 states mandate the wearing of face masks @ @ @ @ @ @ @ maintained by AARP .
CDC studies have found , in at least 16 states and the District of Columbia , local mask mandates appear to have contributed to the mitigation of COVID-19 transmission .

His father died of COVID-19 alone in a nursing home: The obituary he wrote blames Americans who 'abandoned' science
Show Caption Hide Caption Dr. Fauci Warns of 'Surge upon Surge' as COVID-19 hospitalizations increase Dr Fauci Warns of 'Surge upon Surge' , of Coronavirus Infections during a televised interview on ABC's 'This Week' on Sunday. Wibbitz - News
Dr. Marvin James Farr was born into an America where neighbors were willing to die for their fellow citizens.
But he died Tuesday in a very different country – one where "many of his fellow Americans refuse to wear a piece of cloth on their face to protect one another."
That's according to a widely shared obituary written by one of Farr's five surviving children, Courtney Farr, that criticizes Americans who have "disparaged and abandoned" science amid the coronavirus pandemic.
Farr, 81, of Scott City, Kansas, tested positive last week for COVID-19 and had been in isolation at a nursing home since Thanksgiving day, according to his son.
"He was preceded in death by more than 260,000 Americans infected with covid-19. He died in a room not his own, being cared for by people dressed in confusing and frightening ways. He died with covid-19, and his final days were harder, scarier and lonelier than necessary. He was not surrounded by friends and family," his son wrote in the obituary posted on the website of Price & Sons Funeral Home.
Farr, a farmer and veterinarian, was born in 1939 "into an America recovering from the Great Depression and about to face World War 2, times of loss and sacrifice difficult for most of us to imagine," Courtney Farr wrote.
"Americans would be asked to ration essential supplies and send their children around the world to fight and die in wars of unfathomable destruction. He died in a world where many of his fellow Americans refuse to wear a piece of cloth on their face to protect one another."
Farr graduated from Kansas State University in 1968.
"His careers filled his life with an understanding of the science of life: how to nurture it, how to sustain it, and the myriad ways that life can go wrong. As a young man he debated between studying mortuary or veterinary science. He chose life over death," the obituary continues.
"The science that guided his professional life has been disparaged and abandoned by so many of the same people who depended on his knowledge to care for their animals and to raise their food."
Farr was religious, "a man of his community," and "a family man, both of blood and chosen family," his son wrote. He was active in social organizations that did "good work" for the Shriners Hospitals for Children network. He was also a lay reader at church and "saw no conflict between the science of his professional life and the belief of his personal life, each enriched the other."
"From religion, he especially drew on lessons of forgiveness and care," Farr wrote. "He would look after those who had harmed him the deepest, a sentiment echoed by the healthcare workers struggling to do their jobs as their own communities turn against them or make their jobs harder. He would also fail those who needed him the most at times, as he was still human, with his flaws and limits."
'Staring down a tsunami': Exhausted COVID-19 nurse's viral photo shows what it's like
The obituary has been widely circulated online and featured by various news organizations. Courtney Farr said in a Facebook post Thursday that he was "in shock" by the number of people who have seen it.
"It's resonated with a lot of people, and that warms my heart," Farr said in the post. "Often when we experience loss, pain, or trauma, we feel so alone. And there's such incredible power to learning that you are not, that someone else also knows."
Most of the responses to the obituary have been positive, Farr said, but there have been "a few negative comments, including claims that I made my father's obituary political."
"Well, his death was political. He died in isolation with an infectious disease that is causing a national crisis. To pretend otherwise or to obfuscate is also a political decision," Farr wrote. "I'm sure my father's main complaint would be that he doesn't have the chance to give you all his two cents."
Courtney Farr and Price & Sons Funeral Home did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
As of Saturday, more than 279,000 people in the U.S. and 1.5 million worldwide have died after contracting COVID-19, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University. Meanwhile, infections and deaths continued climbing in recent weeks, leading the influential Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation model to project on Friday that the U.S. will surpass half-a-million COVID-19 deaths by April.
To combat the spread of COVID-19, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends that Americans wear face masks in public spaces, and 37 states mandate the wearing of face masks in public, according to a list maintained by AARP. CDC studies have found, in at least 16 states and the District of Columbia, local mask mandates appear to have contributed to the mitigation of COVID-19 transmission.


usatoday--2020-12-05--'This is total chaos': Baylor-Gonzaga cancellation magnifies college hoops' COVID-19 issues

INDIANAPOLIS – The latest domino in what has become a coronavirus-ravaged men 's basketball season fell Saturday – this one between the country 's top two teams .
The game between No .
1 Baylor and No .
2 Gonzaga was called off Saturday due to positive COVID-19 tests within Gonzaga 's program .
The teams will attempt to make up their highly anticipated game , but the more glaring takeaway is whether playing December and January games amid a nationwide surge of coronavirus is worth it .
`` It 's a fair question to ask , 'should we be @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to continue to see these kind of disruptions over and over again , '' ESPN college basketball analyst Jay Bilas said .
`` We felt like we knew this would be a bumpy ride throughout the winter time with programs pausing activity and games being postponed or canceled . ''
MISERY INDEX : Top men 's programs are off to ugly starts to the season Also on Saturday , No .
10 Illinois canceled its game against UT Martin and No .
24 Ohio State canceled a game with Alabama A & M @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 25 , more than 50 games have been postponed or canceled and on Friday Louisville became the latest high-profile program to pause activities due to issues with COVID-19 .
One power five coach , who spoke to USA TODAY Sports on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the matter , said the inconsistency of the season has become a major headache to coaches and players who have to travel , watch film and prepare for opponents – only to have those games canceled or postponed or be given a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
`` This is total chaos , '' longtime college basketball voice Dick Vitale said .
`` My feeling from Day 1 was that we should 've started the season around February and then played conference games because this thing is out of control .
Basketball is my life and my love .
But it comes secondary when the disease is running rampant .
We 're going to have a lot of this happen and we should be listening to the experts . ''
Those experts are advising against playing .
The season @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for Disease Control and Prevention was advising Americans not to travel because of a surge in COVID-19 cases .
Dr. Sten Vermund , an infectious disease epidemiologist at Yale 's School of Public Health , told USA TODAY Sports prior to the season : `` You could n't be starting a season at a worse possible time ...
It would be best to delay the season until there 's a better handle on the virus . ''
Both Gonzaga and Baylor had coronavirus woes before Saturday 's contest .
Baylor coach Scott Drew @ @ @ @ @ @ @ season after testing positive .
And last Friday , two members of the Bulldogs ' traveling party tested positive for COVID-19 at a multi-team event in Florida .
Gonzaga played against Auburn with the blessing of local health officials and medical staffs from both schools .
With similar circumstances – a Gonzaga player and non student-athlete testing positive prior to Saturday 's tip-off – both teams opted to pull the plug on the advice of health officials in Indiana .
Drew and Gonzaga coach Mark Few issued a joint statement following Saturday 's @ @ @ @ @ @ @ re disappointed to not be able to play one of the most-anticipated games of the season , but we are following the advice of public health officials .
There are much greater issues in this world than not being able to play a basketball game.
” That 's where Vitale feels like the sport 's pulse should be checked – knowing that people 's health and wellbeing trump a No .
1 vs. No .
2 matchup .
`` The bottom line is that we should not just be playing games to get @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , '' Vitale said .
`` That 's not good for the student-athletes or anybody . ''
Bilas said there is an obvious reason to keep playing : money .
`` I 'm not in the camp of people who say , 'no do n't have the season . '
Because this is a multi-billion dollar industry with people 's livelihoods riding on this , '' Bilas said .
`` But this certainly does go against the narrative that the NCAA has been putting forth for the last decade – it 's hard @ @ @ @ @ @ @ college basketball players ) are just amateurs who should n't make any money .
We 're proving that they 're not every day now .
`` The NCAA just needs to be transparent .
If the NCAA wants to hold a press conference any time a player is getting an extra nickel , then why is there silence about why we are having this season , why is n't that part of the national conversation ?
It 's the same reason other places are staying open .
It 's for money , and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ businesses are staying open for money .
... Pretending like it 's any different is disingenuous and that 's being kind to the NCAA . ''

'This is total chaos': Baylor-Gonzaga cancellation magnifies college hoops' COVID-19 issues
INDIANAPOLIS – The latest domino in what has become a coronavirus-ravaged men's basketball season fell Saturday – this one between the country's top two teams.
The game between No. 1 Baylor and No. 2 Gonzaga was called off Saturday due to positive COVID-19 tests within Gonzaga's program. The teams will attempt to make up their highly anticipated game, but the more glaring takeaway is whether playing December and January games amid a nationwide surge of coronavirus is worth it.
"It's a fair question to ask, 'should we be doing this?' We are going to continue to see these kind of disruptions over and over again," ESPN college basketball analyst Jay Bilas said. "We felt like we knew this would be a bumpy ride throughout the winter time with programs pausing activity and games being postponed or canceled."
MISERY INDEX: Top men's programs are off to ugly starts to the season
'WHAT A MESS': Pitino tweets after Iona game canceled
Also on Saturday, No. 10 Illinois canceled its game against UT Martin and No. 24 Ohio State canceled a game with Alabama A&M. Since the season began on Nov. 25, more than 50 games have been postponed or canceled and on Friday Louisville became the latest high-profile program to pause activities due to issues with COVID-19.
One power five coach, who spoke to USA TODAY Sports on the condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the matter, said the inconsistency of the season has become a major headache to coaches and players who have to travel, watch film and prepare for opponents – only to have those games canceled or postponed or be given a new opponent their team is unprepared for.
"This is total chaos," longtime college basketball voice Dick Vitale said. "My feeling from Day 1 was that we should've started the season around February and then played conference games because this thing is out of control. Basketball is my life and my love. But it comes secondary when the disease is running rampant. We're going to have a lot of this happen and we should be listening to the experts."
Those experts are advising against playing. The season started just as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was advising Americans not to travel because of a surge in COVID-19 cases. Dr. Sten Vermund, an infectious disease epidemiologist at Yale's School of Public Health, told USA TODAY Sports prior to the season: "You couldn't be starting a season at a worse possible time ... It would be best to delay the season until there's a better handle on the virus."
Gonzaga and Baylor had coronavirus woes before Saturday's contest. Baylor coach Scott Drew missed the first two games of the season after testing positive. And last Friday, two members of the Bulldogs' traveling party tested positive for COVID-19 at a multi-team event in Florida. Gonzaga played against Auburn with the blessing of local health officials and medical staffs from both schools. With similar circumstances – a Gonzaga player and non-athlete testing positive prior to Saturday's tip-off – both teams opted to pull the plug on the advice of health officials in Indiana.
Drew and Gonzaga coach Mark Few issued a joint statement following Saturday's cancellation that read: "We’re disappointed to not be able to play one of the most-anticipated games of the season, but we are following the advice of public health officials. There are much greater issues in this world than not being able to play a basketball game.”
That's where Vitale feels as if the sport's pulse should be checked – knowing that people's health and wellbeing trump a No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup.
"The bottom line is that we should not just be playing games to get games done, then having them canceled," Vitale said. "That's not good for the student-athletes or anybody."
Bilas said there is an obvious reason to keep playing: money.
"I'm not in the camp of people who say, 'no don't have the season.' Because this is a multi-billion dollar industry with people's livelihoods riding on this," Bilas said. "But this certainly does go against the narrative that the NCAA has been putting forth for the last decade – it's hard to make any rational claim that (college basketball players) are just amateurs who shouldn't make any money. We're proving that they're not every day now.
"The NCAA just needs to be transparent. If the NCAA wants to hold a press conference any time a player is getting an extra nickel, then why is there silence about why we are having this season, why isn't that part of the national conversation? It's the same reason other places are staying open. It's for money, and that's inescapable. A lot of businesses are staying open for money. ... Pretending like it's any different is disingenuous and that's being kind to the NCAA."
Follow college basketball reporter Scott Gleeson on Twitter @ScottMGleeson.


usatoday--2020-12-06--College football winners and losers from Week 14: Ohio State, Texas A&M stay on playoff track

That Ohio State beat Michigan State by 40 points is no surprise to anyone aware of where these two program stand in the Big Ten power rankings : The Buckeyes at the top , the Spartans somewhere around the bottom in coach Mel Tucker 's first season .
Junior quarterback Justin Fields completed 70.8 % of his attempts for 199 yards and four combined scores , two coming on the ground .
Fields eclipsed 100 rushing yards for the first time at Ohio State and the second time in his college career .
The Buckeyes ' defense held Michigan State @ @ @ @ @ @ @ four turnovers .
After being unable to play last Saturday 's game against Maryland as scheduled due to COVID-19 , OSU once again looked the part of one of the nation 's best teams and one of the select few capable of winning the national championship .
And that 's why the win against the Spartans was so important .
More than the win itself — predictably smooth even with several key players unavailable — the math is beginning to favor OSU , which is now 5-0 with the chance to add two @ @ @ @ @ @ @ selection committee issues the final rankings on Dec. 20 .
The Buckeyes have already received the benefit of the doubt from the committee .
Fourth in each of the first two rankings despite playing only four games , OSU was ahead of two SEC teams with more wins overall and stronger individual wins in Florida and Texas A & M , though the Gators and Aggies also have one loss .
“ The more games a team brings to the committee , the more we have to evaluate , '' selection committee chairman @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Iowa , said last week .
The committee already believes Ohio State is one of the best teams in the country .
As we get closer to the final weekend of the regular season , every game played brings the Buckeyes one step closer to cementing a spot in the national semifinals .
Here are the rest of Saturday 's winners and losers in college football : The No .
6 Aggies are looming in the playoff debate and ready to fill the void should one of the current top four stumble before @ @ @ @ @ @ @ A & M beat Auburn 31-20 in a nice bounce-back from last week 's sluggish win against LSU to move to 7-1 and lock up a second-place finish in the SEC West .
Senior quarterback Kellen Mond had 256 yards of total offense and two scores after struggling last week .
AGGIES RALLY : Texas A & M keeps playoff hopes alive with win at Auburn Herman 's best chance at returning to Texas in 2021 demands the Longhorns run the table from here and develop momentum after a spotty regular season .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ whether or not Texas can convince a certain ex-coach to return to the sidelines , is out of Herman 's control . )
Texas played its best game of the year in a 69-31 dismantling of Kansas State , which has plummeted from Big 12 contention to the bottom half of the conference standings .
Now 6-3 , Texas will move to 7-3 against Kansas next week and enter the postseason with a shot at winning eight games for the third time in Herman 's four seasons .
BLAME GAME : Herman responsible @ @ @ @ @ @ @ started slowly and trailed Syracuse 7-3 earlier in the second quarter in the final tune-up before the rematch against Clemson to decide the ACC championship .
But the Irish would go on a 21-0 run to end the first half and pulled away for a 45-21 win against the hapless Orange , the only 10-loss team in the Power Five .
Quarterback Ian Book threw for 285 yards with five touchdowns , two on the ground , and the Irish ran and threw for at least 250 yards in the same game for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ After securing a spot in the Big 12 championship game before kickoff , Iowa State went out and beat West Virginia 42-6 , bullying an opponent which had been increasingly competitive in coach Neal Brown 's second season .
The Cyclones landed another terrific game from quarterback Brock Purdy , who threw for 247 yards and three scores to continue his second-half charge from a disappointing start to the regular season .
Coach Matt Campbell has ISU on the verge of the most successful year in program history .
Meanwhile , another longtime @ @ @ @ @ @ @ securing a spot in the New Year 's Six .
Indiana 's 14-6 win against Wisconsin came without quarterback Michael Penix Jr. , who is out for the rest of the season with a knee injury , and needed a late defensive stand after Wisconsin drove within yards and a two-point conversion of forcing overtime .
The Hoosiers ' replacement under center , redshirt sophomore Jack Tuttle , averaged only 5.9 yards per pass attempt but threw two touchdowns without an interception .
ANOTHER ONE : No .
11 Indiana adds to memorable @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Missouri with 4:47 remaining , Arkansas went on a 13-play , 75-yard drive capped by a successful two-point try — off the hands of a Missouri defender and into the arms of receiver Mike Woods , but it counts — to take a 48-47 lead with 43 seconds left .
But the Razorbacks allowed the Tigers to march 60 yards and kick a 32-yard field goal as time expired to win 50-48 , handing Arkansas its third loss on the season by three or fewer points .
The two teams combined for 1,219 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ downs .
Oklahoma State is now eliminated from the Big 12 championship game after losing 29-22 to TCU , the Cowboys ' third loss in five games after starting 4-0 .
They do have one good Big 12 win : 24-21 against Iowa State , so far the Cyclones ' only loss in conference play .
But the Cowboys have been largely unimpressive since , with losses to Texas , Oklahoma and the Horned Frogs joining narrow wins against Kansas State ( 20-18 ) and Texas Tech ( 50-44 ) .
There may @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this week 's playoff rankings .
Marshall 's 20-0 loss to Rice is one of the most shocking results of the regular season .
Marshall was 7-0 and No .
15 in the Amway Coaches Poll , the program 's highest ranking since 2002 .
The Owls came into the weekend at 1-2 after having six games canceled or postponed due to COVID-19 , including an earlier matchup with the Thundering Herd scheduled for early October .
( Rice also had just seven wins combined since the start of the 2018 season .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ games : Rice held the Herd to 245 yards and made five interceptions for the program 's best win in years .
The Volunteers are now 2-6 and questions abound over coach Jeremy Pruitt 's future amid six consecutive losses , the latest 31-19 to rival Florida , and his team 's consistently underwhelming performance in the second half .
Hey , at least Tennessee scored in the second half against Florida — unfortunately , the two meaningless touchdowns came with the Gators already up 31-7 in the fourth quarter .
The Volunteers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ half during this losing streak and have scored more than 21 points in a game just once this season .
The Warhawks moved closer to a dubious achievement after failing to lead for even a second of a 48-15 loss to Arkansas State .
ULM has now trailed for all but 538 minutes and 12 seconds of its 600 minutes played this season — 10 games at 60 minutes each — and been tied for the remaining 61 minutes and 48 seconds .
No team since at least 1999 has gone an entire @ @ @ @ @ @ @ any point .
Not to be outdone , Bowling Green lost 31-3 to Akron , in the Zips ' first win since Oct. 27 , 2018 .
Like ULM , the Falcons have n't led this year and were only briefly tied 3-3 with Akron before giving up 28 unanswered points .
Bowling Green coach Scot Loeffler is now 3-14 overall and 2-11 in the MAC since taking over before last season .

College football winners and losers from Week 14: Ohio State, Texas A&M stay on playoff track
Show Caption Hide Caption College Football Playoff rankings 2.0: Will Ohio State hang on to final spot? SportsPulse: Dan Wolken reacts to the second College Football Playoff rankings and believes Ohio State can get into the playoff without qualifying for the Big Ten championship game given the committee's track record. SportsPulse, USA TODAY
That Ohio State beat Michigan State by 40 points is no surprise to anyone aware of where these two program stand in the Big Ten power rankings: The Buckeyes at the top, the Spartans somewhere around the bottom in coach Mel Tucker's first season.
Junior quarterback Justin Fields completed 70.8% of his attempts for 199 yards and four combined scores, two coming on the ground. Fields eclipsed 100 rushing yards for the first time at Ohio State and the second time in his college career. The Buckeyes' defense held Michigan State to 261 yards of offense and forced four turnovers.
After being unable to play last Saturday's game against Maryland as scheduled due to COVID-19, OSU once again looked the part of one of the nation's best teams and one of the select few capable of winning the national championship.
And that's why the win against the Spartans was so important. More than the win itself — predictably smooth even with several key players unavailable — the math is beginning to favor OSU, which is now 5-0 with the chance to add two more wins before the College Football Playoff selection committee issues the final rankings on Dec. 20.
The Buckeyes have already received the benefit of the doubt from the committee. Fourth in each of the first two rankings despite playing only four games, OSU was ahead of two SEC teams with more wins overall and stronger individual wins in Florida and Texas A&M, though the Gators and Aggies also have one loss.
“The more games a team brings to the committee, the more we have to evaluate," selection committee chairman Gary Barta, the athletics director at Iowa, said last week.
The committee already believes Ohio State is one of the best teams in the country. As we get closer to the final weekend of the regular season, every game played brings the Buckeyes one step closer to cementing a spot in the national semifinals.
Here are the rest of Saturday's winners and losers in college football:
Winners
Alabama
Mac Jones threw for 338 yards and four touchdowns, DeVonta Smith had seven catches for 219 yards and three scores and Alabama gained 469 and scored 45 points in routing woebegone LSU — and this was only at halftime. The 55-17 final does not do the Tide's dominance of the Tigers justice. The offense is for the record books: Alabama has scored at least 35 points in 22 consecutive games, the longest such streak in modern history, and has scored at least 38 points in eight consecutive road games, the second-longest run in history. Meanwhile, LSU bears no resemblance at all to last year's version and will make the wrong sort of history as just the third defending champion in the poll era to finish with a losing record.
Clemson
Virginia Tech made the Tigers sweat for a good portion of three quarters before Clemson pulled away to score a 45-10 win. Up 17-10 with five minutes left in the third, the Tigers closed with a Trevor Lawrence touchdown run, a scoop-and-score fumble return, a long Lawrence scoring strike to receiver Cornell Powell and a 50-yard touchdown scamper by running back Darien Rencher. The win sends Clemson to the ACC championship game.
More: Sprinklers on field go off during game at Lane Stadium between Clemson and Virginia Tech
Texas A&M
The No. 6 Aggies are looming in the playoff debate and ready to fill the void should one of the current top four stumble before the end of the regular season. A&M beat Auburn 31-20 in a nice bounce-back from last week's sluggish win against LSU to move to 7-1 and lock up a second-place finish in the SEC West. Senior quarterback Kellen Mond had 256 yards of total offense and two scores after struggling last week.
AGGIES RALLY: Texas A&M keeps playoff hopes alive with win at Auburn
Tom Herman
Herman's best chance at returning to Texas in 2021 demands the Longhorns run the table from here and develop momentum after a spotty regular season. (All the other stuff, including whether or not Texas can convince a certain ex-coach to return to the sidelines, is out of Herman's control.) Texas played its best game of the year in a 69-31 dismantling of Kansas State, which has plummeted from Big 12 contention to the bottom half of the conference standings. Now 6-3, Texas will move to 7-3 against Kansas next week and enter the postseason with a shot at winning eight games for the third time in Herman's four seasons.
BLAME GAME: Herman responsible for his situation at Texas
Coastal Carolina
In one of the best endings of the season, Coastal Carolina tackled Brigham Young receiver Dax Milne at the 1-yard line on the game's final play to preserve a 22-17 win and remain unbeaten. A late addition to the Week 14 schedule after the Chanticleers' game against Liberty was canceled due to COVID-19, the matchup exceeded even some pretty significant expectations: BYU and Coastal scratched and fought — literally, actually — for 60 minutes and showed why both went into the weekend as contenders for the New Year's Six. Beating the Cougars gives Coastal a very real shot at the access-bowl bid given to the best team in the Group of Five should Cincinnati stumble on the way to an American title.
CLOSE CALL: Coastal Carolina tops No. 8 BYU with dramatic stop on final play
Notre Dame
Notre Dame started slowly and trailed Syracuse 7-3 earlier in the second quarter in the final tune-up before the rematch against Clemson to decide the ACC championship. But the Irish would go on a 21-0 run to end the first half and pulled away for a 45-21 win against the hapless Orange, the only 10-loss team in the Power Five. Quarterback Ian Book threw for 285 yards with five touchdowns, two on the ground, and the Irish ran and threw for at least 250 yards in the same game for the second time in three games.
Iowa State
After securing a spot in the Big 12 championship game before kickoff, Iowa State went out and beat West Virginia 42-6, bullying an opponent which had been increasingly competitive in coach Neal Brown's second season. The Cyclones landed another terrific game from quarterback Brock Purdy, who threw for 247 yards and three scores to continue his second-half charge from a disappointing start to the regular season. Coach Matt Campbell has ISU on the verge of the most successful year in program history.
MAKING HISTORY: Iowa State headed to first Big 12 championship game
Indiana
Meanwhile, another longtime Power Five pushover made another move toward securing a spot in the New Year's Six. Indiana's 14-6 win against Wisconsin came without quarterback Michael Penix Jr., who is out for the rest of the season with a knee injury, and needed a late defensive stand after Wisconsin drove within yards and a two-point conversion of forcing overtime. The Hoosiers' replacement under center, redshirt sophomore Jack Tuttle, averaged only 5.9 yards per pass attempt but threw two touchdowns without an interception.
ANOTHER ONE: No. 11 Indiana adds to memorable season with at Wisconsin
Colorado
Karl Dorrell's hiring this winter was not greeted with unanimous praise, to put it lightly. Well, here we are: Colorado is now 4-0 and one of the great success stories in the Power Five under the former UCLA coach, who has led the Buffaloes through narrow, hard-fought wins against a pretty impressive run of opponents. Saturday's 24-13 win against Arizona required climbing out of 13-0 hole in the second quarter and 301 yards rushing from sophomore Jarek Broussard, who missed all of last season with a knee injury but has 733 yards through four games.
Losers
Brigham Young
BYU would've been in a healthy position to nab an at-large bid to the New Year's Six with a win against Coastal and a victory against San Diego State to end the regular season. Instead, the Cougars will reach a mid-level bowl game. The Chanticleers did what no opponent had done to BYU all season: slow down quarterback Zach Wilson. The junior threw an interception, just his third this year, and failed to throw at least two touchdowns for the first time.
Oregon
Once the Pac-12's best hope of putting a team in the playoff, Oregon is set to drop out of the Amway Coaches Poll after losing to California 21-17. After starting 3-0, the Ducks have dropped two in a row by a combined seven points due in large part to a minus-five hole in turnover margin. (Overall, Oregon is minus-seven on the year in turnover margin.) All isn't lost: Oregon can still win the Pac-12 North outright and earn a spot in the conference championship game with a win next Saturday against rival Washington and an Oregon State loss to Stanford.
Arkansas
Down 47-40 to Missouri with 4:47 remaining, Arkansas went on a 13-play, 75-yard drive capped by a successful two-point try — off the hands of a Missouri defender and into the arms of receiver Mike Woods, but it counts — to take a 48-47 lead with 43 seconds left. But the Razorbacks allowed the Tigers to march 60 yards and kick a 32-yard field goal as time expired to win 50-48, handing Arkansas its third loss on the season by three or fewer points. The two teams combined for 1,219 yards of total offense and 71 first downs.
Oklahoma State
Oklahoma State is now eliminated from the Big 12 championship game after losing 29-22 to TCU, the Cowboys' third loss in five games after starting 4-0. They do have one good Big 12 win: 24-21 against Iowa State, so far the Cyclones' only loss in conference play. But the Cowboys have been largely unimpressive since, with losses to Texas, Oklahoma and the Horned Frogs joining narrow wins against Kansas State (20-18) and Texas Tech (50-44). There may be only two Big 12 teams in this week's playoff rankings.
Marshall
Marshall's 20-0 loss to Rice is one of the most shocking results of the regular season. Marshall was 7-0 and No. 15 in the Amway Coaches Poll, the program's highest ranking since 2002. The Owls came into the weekend at 1-2 after having six games canceled or postponed due to COVID-19, including an earlier matchup with the Thundering Herd scheduled for early October. (Rice also had just seven wins combined since the start of the 2018 season.) Here's why they play the games: Rice held the Herd to 245 yards and made five interceptions for the program's best win in years.
Tennessee
The Volunteers are now 2-6 and questions abound over coach Jeremy Pruitt's future amid six consecutive losses, the latest 31-19 to rival Florida, and his team's consistently underwhelming performance in the second half. Hey, at least Tennessee scored in the second half against Florida — unfortunately, the two meaningless touchdowns came with the Gators already up 31-7 in the fourth quarter. The Volunteers have been outscored 122-26 in the second half during this losing streak and have scored more than 21 points in a game just once this season.
Louisiana-Monroe
The Warhawks moved closer to a dubious achievement after failing to lead for even a second of a 48-15 loss to Arkansas State. ULM has now trailed for all but 538 minutes and 12 seconds of its 600 minutes played this season — 10 games at 60 minutes each — and been tied for the remaining 61 minutes and 48 seconds. No team since at least 1999 has gone an entire season without once holding a lead at any point.
Bowling Green
Not to be outdone, Bowling Green lost 31-3 to Akron, in the Zips' first win since Oct. 27, 2018. Like ULM, the Falcons haven't led this year and were only briefly tied 3-3 with Akron before giving up 28 unanswered points. Bowling Green coach Scot Loeffler is now 3-14 overall and 2-11 in the MAC since taking over before last season.


usatoday--2020-12-05--Arizona Legislature 'cannot and will not' overturn election, Republican House speaker says

PHOENIX – Republican Speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives Rusty Bowers said Friday that pleas from some GOP lawmakers to overturn the results of the state 's presidential election are illegal and `` can not and will not '' happen .
Republican state Reps. Mark Finchem and Kelly Townsend spent much of the day imploring their fellow legislators on social media to overturn the election results in favor of President Donald Trump .
Bowers said such action would be both illegal and inappropriate .
`` As a conservative Republican , I don ’ t like the results of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a prepared statement .
`` I voted for President Trump and worked hard to reelect him .
But I can not and will not entertain a suggestion that we violate current law to change the outcome of a certified election . ''
He noted that such an action would violate the oath lawmakers took to uphold the U.S. and Arizona Constitutions , along with , `` the basic principles of republican government and the rule of law if we attempted to nullify the people ’ s vote based on unsupported theories of fraud @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and voted upon , Arizona voters choose who wins , and our system requires that their choice be respected . ''
Bowers did , however , support an audit of the voting machines in Maricopa County to assuage concerns of tampering , but that call was n't taken up by Republican county officials who run elections .
Finchem and Townsend 's attempt to overturn the election follows a daylong meeting with Trump 's legal team , led by former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani , at a Phoenix hotel ballroom on Monday .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , including Gov .
Doug Ducey , signed documents to certify the state 's election results .
`` I believe that ( Ducey ) signed a fraudulent document .
And he knew it !
I ’ m requesting we recall Arizona ’ s certification , '' Finchem said on Twitter Friday morning .
Later in the day , he cited a portion of the U.S. Constitution that he claims allows the Legislature to choose a state 's slate of electors .
`` Gov .
Ducey says he ‘ did his job ’ .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ to do ours , '' Finchem wrote .
President-elect Joe Biden defeated President Trump by 10,457 votes in Arizona , according to the certified results transmitted to the National Archives .
What Finchem and his cohorts are asking is essentially impossible , though it is garnering substantial attention .
Finchem gained more than 5,000 new Twitter followers in the hours following his post .
`` It is imperative that Arizona 's legislators use our Article 2 power and choose the electors after everything we have seen here , '' Townsend wrote on Twitter @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not want to go down in history as doing nothing about it . ''
The Washington Post has reported that Trump has collected more than $ 200 million in campaign donations after he lost the national election as supporters cling to hopes that the election can be reversed through the courts or state legislatures .
The campaign sent more than 500 email pleas for cash since the election that often , if not always , repeat misleading claims the election was stolen , according to the Post .
Townsend responded to Bowers later @ @ @ @ @ @ @ understand constitutional law .
`` His constitutional law knowledge is not accurate and there is very good reason to believe that the election did not produce a winner , '' Townsend said Friday afternoon .
Why a change in electors is n't possible The lawmakers may have received support from like-minded people online , but not from fellow lawmakers , which is a problem for their plan .
The Legislature would need to change the law to alter how Arizona chooses its state electors .
And the Legislature is not in session after @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Legislature can not convene on its own without support from two-thirds of the members in each chamber .
That means Democrats would have to agree , which is unlikely .
Republicans have narrow majorities – 31-29 in the House and 17-13 in the Senate .
The governor could call a special session , but any change in law would require a supermajority of lawmakers to take effect immediately rather than in a few months – meaning several more Republicans than Finchem and Townsend plus some Democrats would need to agree .
The U.S. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ deciding how presidential electors will be chosen , and the Arizona Legislature has tasked voters with choosing those electors on Election Day .
A `` faithless elector '' provision , backed by Arizona Republicans in 2017 , requires the electors to cast their votes for the presidential candidate who wins the most votes in the state .
`` Under a law the Republican-led Legislature passed just three years ago , the state ’ s electors are required to cast their votes for the candidates who received the most votes in the official statewide @ @ @ @ @ @ @ fellow lawmakers Friday .
`` Enacted after the 2016 presidential election , in which President Trump won the electoral college but not the popular vote , the law was aimed at ensuring that Arizona ’ s electors would remain faithful to the vote of the people . ''
Bowers echoed a recent opinion from lawyers at the Legislature that said even if lawmakers wanted to alter how Arizona chooses electors , such changes could not apply to this election because voters already have selected electors at the ballot box .
Finchem argued thatthe @ @ @ @ @ @ @ legal team spent a large part of Monday 's meeting trying to convince lawmakers the U.S. Constitution gives them the power to overturn the election if they choose .
`` Article II , Sec 1 , Par 2 of the Constitution explicitly vests the power to choose a slate of electors to the State Legislature , '' Finchem said on Twitter .
`` The Supremacy Clause , nullifies any State Statute saying otherwise . ''
Bowers said the Trump team met privately with Republican leaders on Tuesday to make the same plea for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ times , the Trump team made claims that the election was tainted by fraud but presented only theories , not proof , '' Bowers said , adding that Attorney General William Barr also is unconvinced of wide-scale election fraud .
The concerns about machine vote counts are based on unfounded rumors about Dominion Voting Systems , the voting system the county uses for ballot tabulating .
Dominion has responded by reassuring voters that it ’ s a nonpartisan company with no political ties , and by correcting misinformation about its systems , including @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ballots would not work with the machines .
Perhaps unaware of the situation on the ground in Arizona , Trump late Friday thanked Bowers and Fann on Twitter for their request for an audit of the machines .
His message came after Bowers foreclosed the option of overturning the election in Trump 's favor .

Ryan Randazzo, Jen Fifield and Andrew Oxford, Arizona Republic

Arizona Legislature 'cannot and will not' overturn election, Republican House speaker says
PHOENIX – Republican Speaker of the Arizona House of Representatives Rusty Bowers said Friday that pleas from some GOP lawmakers to overturn the results of the state's presidential election are illegal and "cannot and will not" happen.
Republican state Reps. Mark Finchem and Kelly Townsend spent much of the day imploring their fellow legislators on social media to overturn the election results in favor of President Donald Trump.
Bowers said such action would be both illegal and inappropriate.
"As a conservative Republican, I don’t like the results of the presidential election," Bowers said in a prepared statement. "I voted for President Trump and worked hard to reelect him. But I cannot and will not entertain a suggestion that we violate current law to change the outcome of a certified election."
He noted that such an action would violate the oath lawmakers took to uphold the U.S. and Arizona Constitutions, along with, "the basic principles of republican government and the rule of law if we attempted to nullify the people’s vote based on unsupported theories of fraud. Under the laws that we wrote and voted upon, Arizona voters choose who wins, and our system requires that their choice be respected."
Bowers did, however, support an audit of the voting machines in Maricopa County to assuage concerns of tampering, but that call wasn't taken up by Republican county officials who run elections.
Finchem and Townsend's attempt to overturn the election follows a daylong meeting with Trump's legal team, led by former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, at a Phoenix hotel ballroom on Monday.
While that meeting occurred, Arizona officials, including Gov. Doug Ducey, signed documents to certify the state's election results.
"I believe that (Ducey) signed a fraudulent document. And he knew it! I’m requesting we recall Arizona’s certification," Finchem said on Twitter Friday morning. Later in the day, he cited a portion of the U.S. Constitution that he claims allows the Legislature to choose a state's slate of electors.
"Gov. Ducey says he ‘did his job’. Now it’s time for us to do ours," Finchem wrote.
President-elect Joe Biden defeated President Trump by 10,457 votes in Arizona, according to the certified results transmitted to the National Archives.
What Finchem and his cohorts are asking is essentially impossible, though it is garnering substantial attention. Finchem gained more than 5,000 new Twitter followers in the hours following his post.
Townsend echoed Finchem's call for legislative action Friday afternoon.
"It is imperative that Arizona's legislators use our Article 2 power and choose the electors after everything we have seen here," Townsend wrote on Twitter in the afternoon. "I do not want to go down in history as doing nothing about it."
The Washington Post has reported that Trump has collected more than $200 million in campaign donations after he lost the national election as supporters cling to hopes that the election can be reversed through the courts or state legislatures. The campaign sent more than 500 email pleas for cash since the election that often, if not always, repeat misleading claims the election was stolen, according to the Post.
Townsend responded to Bowers later Friday, saying the speaker doesn't understand constitutional law.
"His constitutional law knowledge is not accurate and there is very good reason to believe that the election did not produce a winner," Townsend said Friday afternoon.
Why a change in electors isn't possible
The lawmakers may have received support from like-minded people online, but not from fellow lawmakers, which is a problem for their plan.
The Legislature would need to change the law to alter how Arizona chooses its state electors. And the Legislature is not in session after voting to adjourn in May.
The Legislature cannot convene on its own without support from two-thirds of the members in each chamber. That means Democrats would have to agree, which is unlikely. Republicans have narrow majorities – 31-29 in the House and 17-13 in the Senate.
The governor could call a special session, but any change in law would require a supermajority of lawmakers to take effect immediately rather than in a few months – meaning several more Republicans than Finchem and Townsend plus some Democrats would need to agree.
The U.S. Constitution gives state legislatures the job of deciding how presidential electors will be chosen, and the Arizona Legislature has tasked voters with choosing those electors on Election Day.
A "faithless elector" provision, backed by Arizona Republicans in 2017, requires the electors to cast their votes for the presidential candidate who wins the most votes in the state.
"Under a law the Republican-led Legislature passed just three years ago, the state’s electors are required to cast their votes for the candidates who received the most votes in the official statewide election canvass," Bowers reminded his fellow lawmakers Friday.
"Enacted after the 2016 presidential election, in which President Trump won the electoral college but not the popular vote, the law was aimed at ensuring that Arizona’s electors would remain faithful to the vote of the people."
Bowers echoed a recent opinion from lawyers at the Legislature that said even if lawmakers wanted to alter how Arizona chooses electors, such changes could not apply to this election because voters already have selected electors at the ballot box.
Finchem argued that the state laws are unconstitutional. Trump's legal team spent a large part of Monday's meeting trying to convince lawmakers the U.S. Constitution gives them the power to overturn the election if they choose.
Finchem rehashed those beliefs Friday.
"Article II, Sec 1, Par 2 of the Constitution explicitly vests the power to choose a slate of electors to the State Legislature," Finchem said on Twitter. "The Supremacy Clause, nullifies any State Statute saying otherwise."
'Theories, not proof' of fraud
Bowers said the Trump team met privately with Republican leaders on Tuesday to make the same plea for the Legislature to intervene.
"Both times, the Trump team made claims that the election was tainted by fraud but presented only theories, not proof," Bowers said, adding that Attorney General William Barr also is unconvinced of wide-scale election fraud.
The concerns about machine vote counts are based on unfounded rumors about Dominion Voting Systems, the voting system the county uses for ballot tabulating.
Dominion has responded by reassuring voters that it’s a nonpartisan company with no political ties, and by correcting misinformation about its systems, including the false rumor that Sharpies used on ballots would not work with the machines.
Perhaps unaware of the situation on the ground in Arizona, Trump late Friday thanked Bowers and Fann on Twitter for their request for an audit of the machines. His message came after Bowers foreclosed the option of overturning the election in Trump's favor.
Follow Ryan Randazzo on Twitter @UtilityReporter.


usatoday--2020-12-05--A council refused to appoint a special prosecutor in Breonna Taylor case. An outcry ensued.

LOUISVILLE , Ky. — There will be no new special prosecutor appointed to review the fatal police shooting of Breonna Taylor , an unarmed Black woman who was killed in her home in March .
The Kentucky Prosecutors Advisory Council voted unanimously Friday to decline a request from Taylor 's mother , Tamika Palmer , for a new prosecutor after she complained Attorney General Daniel Cameron had mishandled the case .
The decision provoked an immediate outcry during the council 's video meeting , which had more than 200 participants , with audience members breaking in to demand justice for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ woman said , despite not being a voting member .
`` You 're wrong , and you know it , '' another voice said .
`` You have the authority , '' said a third .
`` You 're scared . ''
So many people chimed in that their individual comments became hard to decipher and the council muted everyone 's microphone except for members .
In October , Palmer and her attorneys requested the advisory council appoint a `` competent and capable prosecutor willing to handle the case involving the death of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said Friday their hands are tied because state law does not allow them to replace the Attorney General 's Office as the prosecutor .
Cameron 's office served as the special prosecutor in the case after the Jefferson County commonwealth 's attorney recused himself in May .
`` We do not have the legal authority to fulfill the request that has been submitted , '' said Chris Cohron , a council member and the Commonwealth 's Attorney in Warren County .
Sam Aguiar , one of Palmer 's attorneys , said he believes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he plans to file action in court seeking clarity on the state law granting powers granted to the council .
`` If the court system were to come back and rule this is the mechanism to allow an aggrieved citizen to go and seek a new prosecutor , then obviously the PAC ( Prosecutors Advisory Council ) is going to have to really deliberate on the merits , rather than their authority , '' Aguiar said .
'Say her name .
Do n't say mine ' : Breonna Taylor 's boyfriend remains haunted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the case has been heavily criticized since a grand jury on Sept. 23 indicted only one of the three Louisville police officers who fired their weapons at Taylor 's apartment as they were attempting to serve a no-knock search warrant in a narcotics investigation .
Taylor , a 26-year-old Black woman , was unarmed .
A subsequent search of Taylor 's apartment found no drugs .
Taylor 's death helped ignite a political and social firestorm this summer , fueling nationwide and international protests over police brutality and injustice for Black Americans killed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ celebrities and star athletes have demanded that the officers who shot her be fired and criminal criminally charged .
Former Louisville Metro Police detective Brett Hankison has pleaded not guilty to three counts of wanton endangerment after shooting into an occupied apartment next to Taylor 's .
Sgt .
Jonathan Mattingly and Detective Myles Cosgrove , who fired the shots that injured and killed Taylor , were not charged .
Cameron has said the officers ' actions were justified under Kentucky 's self-defense law , since Taylor 's boyfriend , Kenneth Walker , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ n't know it was police at the door .
Cameron told media the grand jury agreed with that determination , but he later admitted prosecutors did not present charges to the jurors against anyone except Hankison .
Cameron 's claims incensed three grand jurors , who fought in court for permission to speak publicly and later said they felt they should have been allowed to consider charges against all the officers .
Fact checking 8 myths in Breonna Taylor case : Was she asleep when police shot her ?
Is there body-cam footage @ @ @ @ @ @ @ co-counsel are exploring a possible ethics complaint against Cameron to the Kentucky Bar Association .
`` He basically took the decision out of their hands , '' Aguiar said .
`` The grand jury is the one who makes the decisions .
They 're the ones who decide what to indict .
… They wanted to indict , and that decision was taken out of their hands .
Palmer and her attorneys argued the public may face a `` 'stacked deck ' when the perpetrators are members of law enforcement . ''
NAACP @ @ @ @ @ @ @ argued Cameron 's office showed `` inappropriate bias '' in favor of the police officers and expressed support for a new prosecutor and grand jury .
The Prosecutors Advisory Council is a nine-member panel that includes Cameron , three commonwealth 's attorneys , three county attorneys and two citizen members from around the state .
Cameron , who was not present on the call , was represented by a member of his team and did not participate in the vote .
The Courier Journal , part of the USA TODAY Network , has @ @ @ @ @ @ @ office for comment and did not immediately receive a response .

Tessa Duvall, Louisville Courier Journal

A council refused to appoint a special prosecutor in Breonna Taylor case. An outcry ensued.
Show Caption Hide Caption Breonna Taylor remembered as 'good girl' by family, friends Breonna Taylor was shot to death by police. Update from Oct. 12: Breonna Taylor’s occupation was as an emergency room technician. USA TODAY
LOUISVILLE, Ky. – There will be no new special prosecutor appointed to review the fatal police shooting of Breonna Taylor, an unarmed Black woman who was killed in her home in March.
The Kentucky Prosecutors Advisory Council voted unanimously Friday to decline a request from Taylor's mother, Tamika Palmer, for a new prosecutor after she complained Attorney General Daniel Cameron had mishandled the case.
The decision provoked an immediate outcry during the council's video meeting, which had more than 200 participants, with audience members breaking in to demand justice for Taylor.
"Opposed!" one woman said, despite not being a voting member.
"You're wrong, and you know it," another voice said.
"You have the authority," said a third. "You're scared."
So many people chimed in that their individual comments became hard to decipher and the council muted everyone's microphone except for members.
Kentucky Prosecutors Advisory Council punted on appointing a new special prosecutor in the Breonna Taylor case, saying they don't have the authority.
The council agreed unanimously, then the public turned on their mics. pic.twitter.com/h0Z3bCFCcB — Adam K. Raymond (@adamkraymond) December 4, 2020
In October, Palmer and her attorneys requested the advisory council appoint a "competent and capable prosecutor willing to handle the case involving the death of my daughter."
But council members said Friday their hands are tied because state law does not allow them to replace the Attorney General's Office as the prosecutor. Cameron's office served as the special prosecutor in the case after the Jefferson County commonwealth's attorney recused himself in May.
"We do not have the legal authority to fulfill the request that has been submitted," said Chris Cohron, a council member and the Commonwealth's Attorney in Warren County.
Sam Aguiar, one of Palmer's attorneys, said he believes the council misinterpreted state law, and he plans to file action in court seeking clarity on the state law granting powers granted to the council.
"If the court system were to come back and rule this is the mechanism to allow an aggrieved citizen to go and seek a new prosecutor, then obviously the PAC (Prosecutors Advisory Council) is going to have to really deliberate on the merits, rather than their authority," Aguiar said.
'Say her name. Don't say mine': Breonna Taylor's boyfriend remains haunted by her death
Cameron's handling of the case has been heavily criticized since a grand jury on Sept. 23 indicted only one of the three Louisville police officers who fired their weapons at Taylor's apartment as they were attempting to serve a no-knock search warrant in a narcotics investigation. Taylor, a 26-year-old Black woman, was unarmed. A subsequent search of Taylor's apartment found no drugs.
Taylor's death helped ignite a political and social firestorm this summer, fueling nationwide and international protests over police brutality and injustice for Black Americans killed by police. Protesters, politicians, celebrities and star athletes have demanded that the officers who shot her be fired and criminal criminally charged.
Former Louisville Metro Police Detective Brett Hankison has pleaded not guilty to three counts of wanton endangerment after shooting into an occupied apartment next to Taylor's. Sgt. Jonathan Mattingly and Detective Myles Cosgrove, who fired the shots that injured and killed Taylor, were not charged.
Cameron has said the officers' actions were justified under Kentucky's self-defense law, since Taylor's boyfriend, Kenneth Walker, fired first. Walker said he didn't know it was police at the door.
Cameron told media the grand jury agreed with that determination, but he later admitted prosecutors did not present charges to the jurors against anyone except Hankison.
Cameron's claims incensed three grand jurors, who fought in court for permission to speak publicly and later said they felt they should have been allowed to consider charges against all the officers.
Fact checking 8 myths in Breonna Taylor case: Was she asleep when police shot her? Is there body-cam footage?
Aguiar also said he and his co-counsel are exploring a possible ethics complaint against Cameron to the Kentucky Bar Association.
"He basically took the decision out of their hands," Aguiar said. "The grand jury is the one who makes the decisions. They're the ones who decide what to indict. … They wanted to indict, and that decision was taken out of their hands.
"That's a gross violation of prosecutorial ethics."
So the PAC just punted. Had an opportunity to restore integrity to the process and instead chose to basically say, “we... Posted by Sam Aguiar on Friday, December 4, 2020
Palmer and her attorneys argued the public may face a "'stacked deck' when the perpetrators are members of law enforcement."
NAACP's Legal Defense and Educational Fund also argued Cameron's office showed "inappropriate bias" in favor of the police officers and expressed support for a new prosecutor and grand jury.
The Prosecutors Advisory Council is a nine-member panel that includes Cameron, three commonwealth's attorneys, three county attorneys and two citizen members from around the state.
Cameron, who was not present on the call, was represented by a member of his team and did not participate in the vote.
The Courier Journal, part of the USA TODAY Network, has reached out to the Attorney General's office for comment and did not immediately receive a response.
Tessa Duvall: @TessaDuvall.


usatoday--2020-12-03--Monolith spotted in California after sportsmen say they dismantled Utah one

Monolith spotted in California after sportsmen say they dismantled Utah one At least three monoliths have been spotted in recent @ @

Monolith found in California after Utah one disappears
At least three monoliths have been spotted in recent weeks.
USA TODAY


usatoday--2020-12-05--'You are not welcome in New Jersey': Gov. Phil Murphy slams Rep. Matt Gaetz over maskless GOP gala

Gov .
Phil Murphy continued his sharp criticisms of so-called `` knuckleheads '' who fail to follow his limits on indoor and outdoor gatherings when he called out the New York Young Republican Club and its keynote speaker , Rep. Matt Gaetz , for hosting what appeared to be a gala devoid of face masks and social distancing .
The governor was reacting to photographs that made the rounds on the internet following the Thursday night gala at the Maritime Parc restaurant in Jersey City .
The photos showed attendees bunched closely together as they posed for photos , with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ As Murphy excoriated the club and Gaetz ( during his Friday COVID-19 briefing , he lobbed criticisms for what he framed as an invading threat .
`` It is beyond the pale that anyone would willingly endanger people in another state , never mind their own , '' Murphy said , as he claimed the New York group `` snuck into Jersey City '' to hold their gala because no venue in their home state would host it .
But his sharpest tongue was reserved for Gaetz , referring to the Florida Republican @ @ @ @ @ @ @ told the congressman , `` You are not welcome in New Jersey and , frankly , I do n't ever want you back in this state . ''
He punctuated his remarks on Gaetz , adding , `` what a fool . ''
Gaetz , meanwhile , fired back on Twitter , telling Murphy he would regret his remarks when he moved to Florida `` like the rest of New Jersey . ''
Maritime Parc was forced to shutter while local police investigate the matter , and until it submits a plan to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the use of masks by patrons , according to a statement from Jersey City .
But Gavin Wax , president of the Republican club , said Friday that Maritime Parc had insisted his event follow state guidelines to stem the spread of the coronavirus .
As of Dec. 1 , Murphy 's executive order limits indoor gatherings to 10 people .
However , constitutionally protected gatherings for political activities are limited to 150 people or 25 % of a room 's capacity , with the lower number applying .
A spokesperson from the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ compliance of the reduced capacity , hosting the event in a room usually meant for upwards of 600 , and that tables were spaced 6 feet apart and that guests were only served at their seats .
`` We are aware that videos and photos have emerged on social media showing people in close proximity ; we surmise this was at the end of the evening , '' the spokesperson stated .
The venue said it furnished the mayor 's office with a full list of attendees , with contact information for each @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and that state police inspected the venue before the event to ensure compliance .
As a result of the incident , Maritime Parc said it has faced `` death threats , calls to boycott and more coming in steadily . ''
Fighting back against the governor 's public attacks , Wax stated it was unfortunate that Murphy appropriated Jewish culture by using a Yiddish term , `` when [ Murphy ] is , in fact , acting like a schmuck . ''

Nicholas Katzban and Ricardo Kaulessar, NorthJersey.com

'You are not welcome in New Jersey': Gov. Phil Murphy slams Rep. Matt Gaetz over maskless GOP gala
Show Caption Hide Caption Jersey City NJ: Gov. Murphy calls Rep. Matt Gaetz a fool for RNC event Gov. Phil Murphy said a New York Young Republican Club gala held at Maritime Parc in Jersey City was "beyond the pale" and condemned the event. Paul Wood Jr, NorthJersey
Gov. Phil Murphy continued his sharp criticisms of so-called "knuckleheads" who fail to follow his limits on indoor and outdoor gatherings when he called out the New York Young Republican Club and its keynote speaker, Rep. Matt Gaetz, for hosting what appeared to be a gala devoid of face masks and social distancing.
The governor was reacting to photographs that made the rounds on the internet following the Thursday night gala at the Maritime Parc restaurant in Jersey City.
The photos showed attendees bunched closely together as they posed for photos, with no one wearing protective face coverings.
Last night, the @NYYRC allegedly snuck into Jersey City to hold a “gala fundraiser” – ignoring our social distancing and mask rules.
It is beyond the pale that anyone would willingly endanger people in another state.
Jersey City law enforcement is investigating this matter. pic.twitter.com/OX2ug8S1e3 — Governor Phil Murphy (@GovMurphy) December 4, 2020
As Murphy excoriated the club and Gaetz (during his Friday COVID-19 briefing, he lobbed criticisms for what he framed as an invading threat.
"It is beyond the pale that anyone would willingly endanger people in another state, never mind their own," Murphy said, as he claimed the New York group "snuck into Jersey City" to hold their gala because no venue in their home state would host it.
But his sharpest tongue was reserved for Gaetz, referring to the Florida Republican as Matt "putz."
Murphy told the congressman, "You are not welcome in New Jersey and, frankly, I don't ever want you back in this state."
He punctuated his remarks on Gaetz, adding, "what a fool."
Gaetz, meanwhile, fired back on Twitter, telling Murphy he would regret his remarks when he moved to Florida "like the rest of New Jersey."
Maritime Parc was forced to shutter while local police investigate the matter, and until it submits a plan to comply with state mandates for capacity and the use of masks by patrons, according to a statement from Jersey City.
But Gavin Wax, president of the Republican club, said Friday that Maritime Parc had insisted his event follow state guidelines to stem the spread of the coronavirus.
As of Dec. 1, Murphy's executive order limits indoor gatherings to 10 people. However, constitutionally protected gatherings for political activities are limited to 150 people or 25% of a room's capacity, with the lower number applying.
A spokesperson from the venue stated that Maritime Parc was in compliance of the reduced capacity, hosting the event in a room usually meant for upwards of 600, and that tables were spaced 6 feet apart and that guests were only served at their seats.
"We are aware that videos and photos have emerged on social media showing people in close proximity; we surmise this was at the end of the evening," the spokesperson stated.
The venue said it furnished the mayor's office with a full list of attendees, with contact information for each, to prove they were below capacity and that state police inspected the venue before the event to ensure compliance.
As a result of the incident, Maritime Parc said it has faced "death threats, calls to boycott and more coming in steadily."
Fighting back against the governor's public attacks, Wax stated it was unfortunate that Murphy appropriated Jewish culture by using a Yiddish term, "when [Murphy] is, in fact, acting like a schmuck."
Follow Nicholas Katzban on Twitter @nicholaskatzban


usatoday--2020-12-06--What will 2021 bring? Promising vaccines and 'the darkest days of our war on COVID-19'

A trio of promising coronavirus vaccines promises to plunge a stake through the dark pandemic-riddled heart of 2020 .
That ’ s the good news .
Less encouraging is the reality that our national resolve will continue to be tested well into 2021 as a comprehensive inoculation rollout is likely only by summer .
In the meantime , winter is coming .
COVID-19 cases and deaths are skyrocketing nationwide , taxing hospital staff and facilities .
More school disruptions seem inevitable , vexing students and frustrating parents .
The recession has plunged millions into unemployment , challenging the incoming administration @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
And partisan politics linger , undermining the kind of united front necessary to stem the tide of death and economic disruption .
“ The only way to face this is one day at a time , ” said Nina Lewellen , 30 , of Detroit , whose birthday present last June was five days in intensive care with COVID-19 .
She is upset many of her Michigan peers continue to take the virus lightly as she continues to deal with repercussions including headaches and hair loss .
“ The next few months @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pandemic to our door , so I can only hope that by sharing my own serious experience maybe I can get even one person to be careful , ” said Lewellen .
“ The vaccines will help .
But we ’ re a long way away.
” Conversations with historians , futurists , doctors and business leaders around the country paint the coming year as both a challenge and opportunity , one that sees us all shouldering continued disruptions to the way we live and work but also , one day next year @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a wedding or a throwing a Little League post-game barbecue .
The journey from here to there is a simple one , experts say .
The more resolute we are in collectively facing the hardships 2021 brings us , the faster will we reap the freedom-filled rewards promised by the vaccines .
And vice versa .
“ We are heading into the darkest days of our war on COVID-19 , ” said Douglas Brinkley , historian at Rice University in Houston whose books have chronicled everything from the space race to World War @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the COVID-19 siege has revealed both the best and worst of American character .
“ On the one hand , this pandemic has shown we have short attention spans , don ’ t trust science and believe in the survival of the fittest , ” Brinkley said .
“ On the other , you see the tireless compassion of doctors and nurses working overtime to save lives .
That deep community spirit is what we need now.
” Or else — that phrase seems to hang off the end of every observation made @ @ @ @ @ @ @ warn , are that high .
Winter could be worst U.S. health crisis `` in history '' Plenty of people are sounding the alarm .
Robert Redfield , the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention , recently warned that the next three months will be “ the most difficult time in the public health history of this nation , ” with upwards of 450,000 deaths possible by February , up from around 280,000 currently .
World Food Program executive director David Beasley said Friday that “ 2021 is literally going @ @ @ @ @ @ @ various humanitarian crises could be exacerbated as poorer nations wait longer for the COVID-19 vaccine .
Philanthropist Melinda Gates , who along with her husband Bill has been working for decades to curb infectious diseases , said in a recent interview that vaccine skepticism in the United States threatens not only to undermine a COVID-19 recovery but also extend the `` stretch of very dark months ahead of us . ''
In Michigan , where increased testing has resulted in a 13 % jump in positivity rates and rising 7-day death toll figures @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a rethinking of travel and holiday plans .
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said Wednesday the area ’ s mushrooming COVID-19 cases means residents should “ hunker down … cancel everything . ''
Sunday a stay-at-home order went into effect for 33 million Californians , including those in Southern California , the Bay Area and Central California to help stop the spread of a virus that is filling the state 's ICUs .
Those warnings are powerful and even dire , and they fall on fatigued ears .
“ Everyone is tired but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ they just replicate , ” said Timothy Brewer , professor of medicine and epidemiology at the University of California , Los Angeles .
“ As long as it ’ s circulating , we need to be vigilant.
” With a majority the nation ’ s hospitals at stretched capacity , the tipping point is here .
“ We are far from out of the woods just because there are vaccines that have good results , ” he said of products from Moderna and Pfizer that promise 95 % effectiveness .
Trial results from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ remain under review .
The vaccines themselves come with their own issues .
Some require sub-Arctic temperatures up until the moment of injection , which presents a transportation and storage challenge .
And then there ’ s the fact that most require two shots , which in a nation of 330 million will be some undertaking .
“ People need to brace themselves from the cold reality of what ’ s in front of us , and not stop any of the preventive measures meant to keep COVID-19 in check , ” said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and surgery at Emory University in Atlanta .
He also works at Emory Decatur Hospital ’ s intensive care unit , where he treats COVID-19 patients .
He had the virus last summer .
In a recent article , Zivot posited that basic math — which takes into account an 80 % uptake of the vaccine that is 95 % effective — could yield between 500,000 and 2 million American deaths in 2021 .
That calculation , whose wide death margin reflects whether the nation heeds heath community recommendations , excludes both how @ @ @ @ @ @ @ distribute doses for all Americans , and how many will say yes .
“ The vaccine is not a panacea , ” he said .
“ It ’ ll take a year or more before some real material changes appear to the way we live .
But , as I like to remind people , a year in a long life is a short time .
We just have to be patient and think of the collective.
” 'This Is Real ' campaign seeks to sway skeptics Health officials say they will continue @ @ @ @ @ @ @ skeptical public opinions about both masks and the vaccine .
Liz Sharlot , director of communications at the Mississippi State Department of Health , said she aims to raise money to create a series of ads and public service announcements featuring testimonials from the first healthcare workers to receive the vaccine .
Recent polls show that around 60 % of Americans say they will take the vaccine when it becomes available .
`` At first , health care workers will get these vaccines , so I want to use them in ads saying @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had few effects , ' '' says Sharlot .
`` If you hear it from people , it means something . ''
Last summer , Sharlot helped lead the department ’ s “ It Is Real ” campaign , featuring video interviews of COVID-19 survivors .
In Detroit , a $ 5 million Rona 4 Real campaign is credited with changing the habits of younger Michiganders , who this summer were among those responsible for spreading the virus as they sought to mingle as cases fell .
That campaign may get a twist @ @ @ @ @ @ @ existence of a vaccine may lead to a winter case spike .
`` With the vaccine here , there 's that same risk of younger people getting euphoric and reviving bad behavior , '' said Gerry Anderson , executive director of DTE Energy and co-chair of the Michigan Economic Recovery Council , which advised Whitmer on COVID-19 and spearheaded the Rona 4 Real campaign .
`` But we ’ ll need discipline to hang in there .
Skepticism about COVID-19 may have contributed to prolonging the nation ’ s suffering well beyond what @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the last big viral conflagration , the 1918 Spanish Flu outbreak , said John Barry , author of “ The Great Influenza : The Epic Story of the Deadliest Plague in History.
” While that event killed 675,000 Americans , or 0.5 % of the 103 million population , and some 50 million worldwide , it took its biggest toll in only a 15-week period and passed through any given community in six to 10 weeks .
“ There ’ s really no comparison to the last plague , this one is much @ @ @ @ @ @ @ re not done yet , ” Barry said .
“ We ’ d all be better off if early on leaders had said what should have been said , ‘ This is going to a be long fight and we need to be prepared to fight it for the extended duration.
’ ” 'Naive ' to think economic landscape wo n't be forever altered Economists looking ahead to 2021 see a mixed bag .
On the one hand , many spy the promise of a surge in discretionary spending as the vaccine gets @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from leisure travel to concerts and other group gatherings .
Recently , the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development projected global gross domestic product would rise next year by 4.2 % after falling by the same percentage in 2020 .
However , there will be no simple reset to the fall of 2019 as the virus batters the economy in the first quarter of 2021 — JPMorgan economists have forecast a 1 % contraction for the period — and countless industries endure permanent change .
“ We won ’ t return to pre-pandemic @ @ @ @ @ @ @ so in a way we ’ ve lost two years , ” said Andrew Butters , assistant professor at the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University in Bloomington .
In a recent report , Butters and his colleagues at the Kelley School predicted that employment is not likely to hit a pre-shut down peak until “ well into 2022 , ” and while consumer spending ultimately may recover , it will be aimed at goods and not services as people remain wary of interaction for the foreseeable future .
“ After all @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the economy in terms of businesses that have closed and jobs that no longer are viable , it would be naïve to think none of these are going to stick , ” he said .
“ Post-vaccine , there will be winners and losers in the new economy .
Some sectors , firms and households will say , ‘ The economy ’ s back.
’ And others will say , ‘ Not for me.
’ ” Other lasting changes despite the prevalence of a vaccine are likely to be behavioral , experts @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of contagion and a corresponding aversion to big crowds , which in turn “ can , very sadly , dampen the natural curiosity we humans have about one another , ” said Maria Bothwell , CEO of Toffler Associates , a future-focused strategic advisory firm founded by “ Future Shock ” authors Alvin and Adelaide Toffler .
But , Bothwell adds , it would be inaccurate to say that the pandemic has not brought positive changes to American society .
In her plus column : the ability of entrepreneurs to help society create @ @ @ @ @ @ @ recent sale of messaging site Slack to Salesforce for $ 27 billion is bet on the permanent shift to remote working ) ; a renewed appreciation for science and data-driven decision making ( 77 % of Americans have at least some trust in scientists , according to a Pew Research Center poll ) ; and a growing spotlight on healthcare inequity ( the result of the poor and people of color suffering disproportionately from COVID-19 ) .
“ On top of all that , you ’ ve also got a sense of elation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ over us as the vaccine helps us beat back the virus , ” Bothwell said .
“ There will be more hugging and laughter .
That ’ s something to look forward to.
” Is 'losing someone ' what it takes to listen ?
Until then , it ’ s a matter of staying alive .
Detroit resident Lewellen continues to tell anyone who will listen , whether on social media or in socially distanced meet-ups , about how serious this moment of national reckoning is .
“ I mean , what will @ @ @ @ @ @ @ losing someone ?
” she said .
Lewellen , who caught the virus last summer from her asymptomatic 3-year-old , had a hellish experience at the hospital .
Her breathing was so shallow doctors worried they would have to restart her heart .
Once home , she was out of work for two months suffering from brain fog and insomnia .
And that paled when compared to her mother ’ s 10-day stay for COVID-19 , which Lewellen says left her with cataracts in her eyes that only recently were removed .
While @ @ @ @ @ @ @ welcome relief at some point in 2021 , for the moment she is girding for a battle to keep those around her safe .
“ I ’ ll just keep doing everything I can to get the word out that people need to be very careful , ” said Lewellen .
“ I know people are really fatigued by the masks and the restrictions , but this is not over .
”

What will 2021 bring? Promising vaccines and 'the darkest days of our war on COVID-19'
Show Caption Hide Caption COVID-19 vaccines: What are the potential side effects? Experts say side effects from the COVID-19 vaccine range from soreness to fatigue. USA TODAY
A trio of promising coronavirus vaccines promises to plunge a stake through the dark pandemic-riddled heart of 2020.
That’s the good news. Less encouraging is the reality that our national resolve will continue to be tested well into 2021 as a comprehensive inoculation rollout is likely only by summer.
In the meantime, winter is coming.
COVID-19 cases and deaths are skyrocketing nationwide, taxing hospital staff and facilities. More school disruptions seem inevitable, vexing students and frustrating parents. The recession has plunged millions into unemployment, challenging the incoming administration of President-elect Joe Biden to provide relief.
And partisan politics linger, undermining the kind of united front necessary to stem the tide of death and economic disruption.
“The only way to face this is one day at a time,” said Nina Lewellen, 30, of Detroit, whose birthday present last June was five days in intensive care with COVID-19. She is upset many of her Michigan peers continue to take the virus lightly as she continues to deal with repercussions including headaches and hair loss.
“The next few months promise to bring the worst of this pandemic to our door, so I can only hope that by sharing my own serious experience maybe I can get even one person to be careful,” said Lewellen. “The vaccines will help. But we’re a long way away.”
Conversations with historians, futurists, doctors and business leaders around the country paint the coming year as both a challenge and opportunity, one that sees us all shouldering continued disruptions to the way we live and work but also, one day next year, newly appreciating the joys of attending a wedding or a throwing a Little League post-game barbecue.
The journey from here to there is a simple one, experts say. The more resolute we are in collectively facing the hardships 2021 brings us, the faster will we reap the freedom-filled rewards promised by the vaccines. And vice versa.
“We are heading into the darkest days of our war on COVID-19,” said Douglas Brinkley, historian at Rice University in Houston whose books have chronicled everything from the space race to World War II.
Our efforts to beat back the COVID-19 siege has revealed both the best and worst of American character.
“On the one hand, this pandemic has shown we have short attention spans, don’t trust science and believe in the survival of the fittest,” Brinkley said. “On the other, you see the tireless compassion of doctors and nurses working overtime to save lives. That deep community spirit is what we need now.”
Or else – that phrase seems to hang off the end of every observation made about 2021. The stakes, officials warn, are that high.
Winter could be worst U.S. health crisis "in history"
Plenty of people are sounding the alarm. Robert Redfield, the head of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, recently warned that the next three months will be “the most difficult time in the public health history of this nation,” with upwards of 450,000 deaths possible by February, up from around 280,000 currently.
World Food Program executive director David Beasley said Friday that “2021 is literally going to be catastrophic," and the various humanitarian crises could be exacerbated as poorer nations wait longer for the COVID-19 vaccine.
Philanthropist Melinda Gates, who along with her husband Bill has been working for decades to curb infectious diseases, said in a recent interview that vaccine skepticism in the United States threatens not only to undermine a COVID-19 recovery but also extend the "stretch of very dark months ahead of us."
In Michigan, where increased testing has revealed a 13% jump in positivity rates and rising 7-day death toll figures, Gov. Gretchen Whitmer pleaded for a rethinking of travel and holiday plans.
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti said Wednesday the area’s mushrooming COVID-19 cases means residents should “hunker down … cancel everything." Sunday a stay-at-home order went into effect for 33 million Californians, including those in Southern California, the Bay Area and Central California to help stop the spread of a virus that is filling the state's ICUs.
Those warnings are powerful and even dire, and they fall on fatigued ears.
“Everyone is tired but unfortunately viruses don’t care, they just replicate,” said Timothy Brewer, professor of medicine and epidemiology at the University of California, Los Angeles. “As long as it’s circulating, we need to be vigilant.”
With a majority the nation’s hospitals at stretched capacity, the tipping point is here.
“We are far from out of the woods just because there are vaccines that have good results,” he said of products from Moderna and Pfizer that promise 95% effectiveness. Trial results from a third vaccine, from AstraZeneca, remain under review.
The vaccines themselves come with their own issues. Some require sub-Arctic temperatures up until the moment of injection, which presents a transportation and storage challenge. And then there’s the fact that most require two shots, which in a nation of 330 million will be some undertaking.
“People need to brace themselves for the cold reality of what’s in front of us, and not stop any of the preventive measures meant to keep COVID-19 in check,” said Joel Zivot, associate professor of anesthesiology and surgery at Emory University in Atlanta. He also works at Emory Decatur Hospital’s intensive care unit, where he treats COVID-19 patients. He had the virus last summer.
In a recent article, Zivot posited that basic math – which takes into account an 80% uptake of the vaccine that is 95% effective – could yield between 500,000 and 2 million American deaths in 2021. That calculation, whose wide death margin reflects whether the nation heeds heath community recommendations, excludes both how long it will take to make and distribute doses for all Americans, and how many will say yes.
“The vaccine is not a panacea,” he said. “It’ll take a year or more before some real material changes appear to the way we live. But, as I like to remind people, a year in a long life is a short time. We just have to be patient and think of the collective.”
'This Is Real' campaign seeks to sway skeptics
Health officials say they will continue to use media campaigns to influence often skeptical public opinions about both masks and the vaccine.
Liz Sharlot, director of communications at the Mississippi State Department of Health, said she aims to raise money to create a series of ads and public service announcements featuring testimonials from the first healthcare workers to receive the vaccine. Recent polls show that around 60% of Americans say they will take the vaccine when it becomes available.
"At first, health care workers will get these vaccines, so I want to use them in ads saying, 'I got it, it had few effects,'" Sharlot says. "If you hear it from people, it means something."
Last summer, Sharlot helped lead the department’s “It Is Real” campaign, featuring video interviews of COVID-19 survivors.
In Detroit, a $5 million Rona 4 Real campaign is credited with changing the habits of younger Michiganders, who this summer were among those responsible for spreading the virus as they sought to mingle as cases fell. That campaign may get a twist as local leaders grow concerned that the existence of a vaccine may lead to a winter case spike.
"With the vaccine here, there's that same risk of younger people getting euphoric and reviving bad behavior," said Gerry Anderson, executive director of DTE Energy and co-chair of the Michigan Economic Recovery Council, which advised Whitmer on COVID-19 and spearheaded the Rona 4 Real campaign. "But we’ll need discipline to hang in there.
Skepticism about COVID-19 may have contributed to prolonging the nation’s suffering well beyond what the United States had to endure during the last big viral conflagration, the 1918 Spanish Flu outbreak, said John Barry, author of “The Great Influenza: The Epic Story of the Deadliest Plague in History.”
While that event killed 675,000 Americans, or 0.5% of the 103 million population, and some 50 million worldwide, it took its biggest toll in only a 15-week period and passed through any given community in six to 10 weeks.
“There’s really no comparison to the last plague, this one is much longer period of stress and we’re not done yet,” Barry said. “We’d all be better off if early on leaders had said what should have been said, ‘This is going to a be long fight and we need to be prepared to fight it for the extended duration.’”
'Naive' to think economic landscape won't be forever altered
Economists looking ahead to 2021 see a mixed bag.
On the one hand, many spy the promise of a surge in discretionary spending as the vaccine gets widely distributed globally, bringing back everything from leisure travel to concerts and other group gatherings. Recently, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development projected global gross domestic product would rise next year by 4.2% after falling by the same percentage in 2020.
However, there will be no simple reset to the fall of 2019 as the virus batters the economy in the first quarter of 2021 – JPMorgan economists have forecast a 1% contraction for the period – and countless industries endure permanent change.
“We won’t return to pre-pandemic levels until the end of 2021, so in a way we’ve lost two years,” said Andrew Butters, assistant professor at the Kelley School of Business at Indiana University in Bloomington.
In a recent report, Butters and his colleagues at the Kelley School predicted that employment is not likely to hit a pre-shutdown peak until “well into 2022,” and while consumer spending ultimately may recover, it will be aimed at goods and not services as people remain wary of interaction for the foreseeable future.
“After all of these changes we’ve seen in the economy in terms of businesses that have closed and jobs that no longer are viable, it would be naïve to think none of these are going to stick,” he said. “Post-vaccine, there will be winners and losers in the new economy. Some sectors, firms and households will say, ‘The economy’s back.’ And others will say, ‘Not for me.’”
Other lasting changes despite the prevalence of a vaccine are likely to be behavioral, experts say.
These include a growing awareness of contagion and a corresponding aversion to big crowds, which in turn “can, very sadly, dampen the natural curiosity we humans have about one another,” said Maria Bothwell, CEO of Toffler Associates, a future-focused strategic advisory firm founded by “Future Shock” authors Alvin and Adelaide Toffler.
But, Bothwell adds, it would be inaccurate to say that the pandemic has not brought positive changes to American society.
In her plus column: the ability of entrepreneurs to help society create new ways of doing business (the recent sale of messaging site Slack to Salesforce for $27 billion is bet on the permanent shift to remote working); a renewed appreciation for science and data-driven decision making (77% of Americans have at least some trust in scientists, according to a Pew Research Center poll); and a growing spotlight on healthcare inequity (the result of the poor and people of color suffering disproportionately from COVID-19).
“On top of all that, you’ve also got a sense of elation, optimism and freedom that will surge over us as the vaccine helps us beat back the virus,” Bothwell said. “There will be more hugging and laughter. That’s something to look forward to.”
Is 'losing someone' what it takes to listen?
Until then, it’s a matter of staying alive. Detroit resident Lewellen continues to tell anyone who will listen, whether on social media or in socially distanced meet-ups, about how serious this moment of national reckoning is.
“I mean, what will it take for people to listen, losing someone?” she said.
Lewellen, who caught the virus last summer, apparently from her asymptomatic 3-year-old, had a hellish experience at the hospital. Her breathing was so shallow doctors worried they would have to restart her heart. Once home, she was out of work for two months suffering from brain fog and insomnia.
And that paled when compared to her mother’s 10-day stay for COVID-19, which Lewellen says left her with cataracts in her eyes that only recently were removed.
While Lewellen is hopeful the vaccines will bring welcome relief at some point in 2021, for the moment she is girding for a battle to keep those around her safe.
“I’ll just keep doing everything I can to get the word out that people need to be very careful,” Lewellen said. “I know people are really fatigued by the masks and the restrictions, but this is not over.”
Follow USA TODAY national correspondent Marco della Cava: @marcodellacava