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Since I'll be talking about COVID-19, variants, and the pandemic, clarifications may be in order. I had COVID-19 vaccinations in May and June, because I thought it was a good idea. Politicos, partisans and crackpots have been throwing accusations and assertions about the pandemic at each other. I'll be talking about that, but I'm not 'political.' I've neither been proclaiming that one political party is in league with the Antichrist, nor denouncing another as a tool of fascists and racists. And, although I think the COVID-19 pandemic is real, I haven't been dreading America's impending doom and destruction. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

Today is New Year's Eve. It's also Saint Sylvester's Day, the 420th anniversary of the British East India Company's charter and the 141st anniversary of Thomas Edison's incandescent light demo. But mainly, I figure, for most Americans, today is New Year's Eve.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

The first shipments of COVID-19 mRNA vaccine arrived in America this week. Folks are getting immunized, including health care workers. I think that's good news.... As I see it, all that's good news. I'd prefer focusing exclusively on the 'up' side. But there's an ethical problem with the new vaccines. I'll be talking about that, and why getting immunized when it's my turn still makes sense. COVID-19 Vaccines and a Little History Ethical Concerns HEK 293 Donor: RIP Options and "The Mark of the Beast" Statistics and Death Love, Neighbors and the Common Good Remembering, and Learning From, Our Past First Vaccines Arrive: "...Healing is Coming" The Inevitable Link Lists (and resources, too) From the USCCB My stuff More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

I'll be talking about mRNA vaccines and COVID-19. And why I'll willingly wait for my vaccination, but think the new vaccines are a good idea. But first, I'll look at news, weirdness and a little history. In the News: Prospects and Concerns An Alleged North Carolina-China Conspiracy Mild Curiosity, Real Threat Wanting Immunity Vaccination Viewpoints Smallpox Vaccinations: "a Daring Violation" or "a Precious Discovery" Fear and Ethics Dealing With Differences Dosages and Unpleasant Results Science, Technology and Making Sense Trust and Prudence DNA, RNA and mRNA Vaccines, Briefly Decoding the SARS-CoV-2 Virus SARS-CoV-2 Build-a-Spike mRNA Snippet COVID-19 mRNA Vaccines, Build-a-Spike Code and — Virus Rights?? From the CDC's Factsheets New mRNA Vaccines: Good and Not-So-Good News Willing to Wait For My Turn More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

"This year's Thanksgiving is the first one affected by COVID-19. "Mainly because SARS-CoV-2, the virus causing COVID-19, didn't exist a year ago. Or hadn't spread to humans. Or was spreading to humans without anyone noticing it...." More at A Catholic Citizen in America : Conspiracy theories. Journalism's "unprecedented" precedent. News from the 1918 pandemic. Family, health and holiday plans. COVID-19 and Sauk Centre's hospital. Being thankful, anyway.

...The Osakis Chamber of Commerce parade sounds like a good idea. Provided that they take pandemic-related precautions to keep folks comparatively safe. I'm guessing that this year's sidewalk watchers will be spread out more, and wearing face masks. But I won't be going. Even though Osakis is only 20 minutes down the road. Standing on a central Minnesota sidewalk after sundown in early December isn't my idea of a good time. The COVID-19 pandemic is still around, and making a difference. Maybe that's this post's unifying idea: Macy's Parade News: Good and Sort-of-Good Rampantly Raging Death and Dramatic Drumbeats Monday's Death Toll in Rural Minnesota Speculation and a Serious Subject Streaming Together for Thanksgiving Sound, Fury and the Usual Paranoia More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

("It's the best I could do on short notice." ("Cinderella's Halloween") ;) ) Halloween will be different this year. Mostly because we're still dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. I don't know what it'll look like here in Sauk Centre. Safer Trick-or-Treating More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

I didn't feel all that sick Friday evening. That was August 21, 2020: 45 days ago. Online self-assessment guides from the Minnesota Department of Health and Mayo Clinic put me on the threshold of needing to call a doctor. My wife said calling the local hospital was a good idea. As it turns out, she was right.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America . Living in Room 20 Staph, Strep and Cellulitis Conspicuous by Their Absence A Century of Antibiotics Mice and a Man More Than You Need, Or Maybe Want, to Know About Penicillin Pandemic Precautions, Piety — and Prudence The "Source and Summit of the Christian Life" The Common Good Uncertainty Weirdness and Worship San Francisco's Rules It Could have been Worse Seating Capacity North Carolina in Cahoots with China?! New Lyrics, Old Song Sound, Fury and Making Sense Fear Appeal: Communist Agents, Tiny Cows and More Per...

Several decades back, while I was living with my parents in Moorhead, Minnesota, a radio announcer read the day's weather forecast.... After finishing the official forecast, the announcer paused before rhetorically asking "what? No burning hail?" Or maybe it was "fiery hail." Something like that.... ...Maybe it's the sudden and temporary sunshine, but I'm even almost upbeat about the COVID-19 pandemic. Folks here in Minnesota aren't dying of the disease nearly as fast as we were a month or two ago.... ...The politics thing is pretty much inevitable. There's a presidential election on, so sound and fury is the order of the day.... ' More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

My Fourth of July plans include watching an episode or two of Marvel Ultimate Spider-Man, contemplating the whichness of what while sitting on the front stoop, relaxing and getting a few chores done. And enjoying a virtual fireworks show. Probably one of these.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

This Saturday is the Fourth of July: America's Independence Day. It's a day for picnics and parades, barbecues and ice cream. We celebrate with fireworks and carnivals, picnics and concerts, fairs and baseball games. Usually. This year will be different. Plans and Parade Permits Blow Hot, Blow Cold Fireworks Parade Permit Perplexity Street Legal Vehicles and Skimmed News Vanilla Ice and Common Sense Patriotic? Me?! Definitions Viewpoints and Obligations Big Country, Small World Living in Small Town Minnesota, and Loving It "...My Family Celebrating!" Remembering And In Conclusion More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

In these times of the Coronavirus, civil unrest, and injustice for the marginalized, we might ask, “Where is God?” How can so many people become sick and die without healing, in such a short amount of time? Why do looters and rioters wreak havoc in the dark of night, taking advantage of righteous causes? Why after 400 years, do we, as a nation, condone any form of systemic racism? When faced with the unfathomable, it is normal human nature to ask, “Where is God?” Why? Because we feel abandoned. And yet, it is not us who are abandoned, it is us who abandon God. Where is God? God is at the bedside of every person suffering from the Coronavirus. For those who die, He is there to greet them and bring them to eternal life. And, for those who recover, He heals them. For those who seek to wreak havoc, God weeps, as looting and rioting offend God. Such acts violate the Seventh Commandment. How so? Well, such actions seek to steal/destroy property owned by another. Why doesn’t God sto...

With so many states reopened for business, defying the Center for Disease Control (CDC) Guidelines, one must take caution when leaving the home. The Coronavirus has not retreated. It waits, in hiding, ready to ambush us. Until we have a reliable means for treatment, or a vaccine, we risk illness, or possibly death. The question is: How much risk are you willing to take? For my husband and me, we are in the high risk group, as we are both over 60 years of age. Therefore, for us, courage is needed, just to leave the house. Courage is Needed My husband and I are not alone. Like many others, the extent of our new routine is a weekly trip to the grocery store, the post office (after hours), and our Church Office to drop off our donations in the mail slot. We keep our interactions with others to a minimum. So, for us, our greatest and only exposure is when we venture on these three weekly trips. Yet, all essential workers are at risk every day. For them, courage is needed consistentl...

Por Blanca Ahumada Otero en BLANCA EL AMOR GANA DE YOUTUBE  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrdOerFh3iU    

Blanca nos invita a reflexionar sobre los nuevos tipos de soledad en la edad moderna de las telecomunicaciones....  ¿Todos más comunicados pero más solos que nunca?  ¿Cómo podemos evitar la soledad y el aislamiento en la era de las Redes Sociales? Por Blanca Ahumada Otero aquí video completo...

Journal during coronavirus pandemic, part 3 One thing that I have noticed with being pregnant this time around is that I have had little trouble sleeping up until this point, and being able to sleep hard and well and long is feeling to me like a superpower.  I am not tossing and turning when I turn in at night.  Yes there have been days of nausea, and moments of discomfort.  But everyone in my family is very understanding of my need for more sleep.  It may be hard in some ways, but it's just a different kind of annoying. AND I get a baby daughter out of it! Some might say I'm making light of it, but another way of looking at this moment in my life is that I reject any opportunity to complain, focus on negativity, or become consumed by fears.  So the same could be said about the coronavirus.  It's annoying. It's hard.  But it's like life. It's a different kind of annoying.  It's a different kind of normal. I think we can all reframe our mentality ...

Today is April Fool’s Day, but the Coronavirus is no joke! I’ve seen the footage of young people partying in Florida on Spring Break. I’ve also seen the footage of people congregating in large groups to see the cherry blossoms in Washington, DC. Hello people!!! We have a crisis here that calls for individuals to think more of others and less of themselves – a call for humility. Those partying in Florida, went back home after Spring Break and now run the risk of giving this virus to their parents and/or grandparents. People congregating in large groups place themselves at higher risk of contracting this pandemic of a disease. Coronavirus – Call to Action Everyone needs to follow the latest advice put out by the... Read more...

COVID-19, a coronavirus disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, is still spreading. Thousands have died. Nearly 900,000 have been infected. A great many more are affected, directly or indirectly. Some are behaving badly. We cannot cure this disease. We can only endure it, or die trying. That's the bad news. The good news, part of it, is that this isn't the 14th century. We've learned a bit since the Black Death was spreading across Eurasia. Quite a bit, actually. More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

I'm writing this partly as a followup on Thursday's "Self-Isolation in the Family" post. And partly because I got frustrated with what I'd been trying to write today. My son is still sick, and it's a damply dismal Saturday afternoon. Outside temperature is 40 degrees Fahrenheit, 4 Celsius.... ...The family’s self-isolation went up a notch when Bishop Kettler said that churches should close their doors.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .

COVID-19, the pandemic coronavirus disease, has come to my house. Maybe. My son has been sick. Yesterday he had a telephone checkup. I don't know what the official term is for a medical interview conducted via telephone. He's been told to self-isolate.... More at A Catholic Citizen in America .