The Health of Nations #353
By Hank Silverberg
Commentary
My wife and I got our annual flu shots this week. We wanted Covid-19 booster shots as well, but we were told this year, when the booster shot is in short supply, you have to be over 65 and get a prescription from your doctor. We plan to follow up on that. We both had mild cases of Covid during the pandemic, mild only because we had gotten the vaccine. Otherwise we might have been included in the 1.2 million people in the United States who died from Covid.
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| (Iron Lung machine used for Polio victims before the vaccine) |
The chaos at the Centers for Disease Control created by the current Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., makes it impossible to get any real solid health advice on communicable diseases. It leaves doctors to make their own judgements and it leave states to scramble and fill in the information gap left by the federal vacuum. Some states, like Florida, have just gotten rid of the entire vaccine mandate, preferring instead to leave children vulnerable to preventable diseases like polio or measles, and their grandparents vulnerable to RSV and Covid. Yes, the vaccines are still available if you personally want one, which I do. But unless everyone gets vaccinated, society in general, particularly those who can't afford or don't have access to good health care, are susceptible to illnesses mankind has already conquered, like rubella, smallpox and polio. And that's our society, right here in the USA, not some isolated village in a third world country.
Several states, Oregon, Washington, California and Hawaii for example, have now set up regional health coalitions to share information that in the past went through the CDC for nationwide policy. And there's a similar effort among New England states and New York. That may help, but it also further divides the country into a patchwork of health care activity that could further divide rich states from poor ones, and Blue states from Red states. I wonder how long it will be before the Trump Administration steps in and tries to prevent any such coalitions, since they already don't think states can combat their own crime problems.
https://www.npr.org/sections/shots-health-news/2025/09/06/nx-s1-5532121/states-vaccine-guidance-washington-oregon-new-mexico
News You May Have Missed
War On The Homefront
President Trump has declared war against America. On Saturday he posted this:
"I love the smell of deportations in the morning."
It's a bastardization of a phase from the 1979 Vietnam war movie "Apocalypse Now".
Then he went on:
"Chicago is about to find out why it's called the Department of WAR."
It was followed by an AI-generated image of him dressed in a uniform labeled "US Army" with the words "Chipocalypse Now".
All this as ICE steps up its operations in Chicago
Trump continues to target cities or states controlled by Democrats, ignoring some Republican- dominated states and cities with higher crime rates. Chicago is ranked 16th on a list of the most dangerous cities. Baltimore, another city Trump may target for federal troops, is ranked 26th. Washington, DC, where National Guardsman are still on patrol, was not even in the top 30 before those patrols began. Two other cities Trump has targeted, Los Angeles and New York, are also not in the top 30 on the list, which bases the rankings on crimes per 100,000 people.
Trump's targets are clearly based on politics, not focusing on crime rates. The most dangerous city in the country, based on the list's formula, is Memphis in Red state Tennessee.
Take Ohio, run by Republican Governor Mike Dewine, as another example with Cleveland (#3), Toledo (#4), Akron (#8), Dayton (#12), all in the top 20, yet not on Trump's radar.
See the full list at this link:
https://www.newsweek.com/most-dangerous-cities-trump-washington-dc-2112006
Trump Approval Rating Remains Underwater
A new poll out this week shows Donald Trump's popularity waning. An NBC Decision Desk Poll shows Trump's approval rating at 43%, about the same as in June. And he rates even lower, 39%, on his handling of inflation, and 41% on his handling of the tariffs.
His highest rating comes from his handling of border security/immigration at 47%, but goes down to 43% when those polled were asked about his aggressive deportation program.
As you might expect, the poll fractured even more based on party affiliation.
Nearly half the Democrats (49%) said they were "furious" about actions taken by Trump, while only 27% of the Republicans said they were "thrilled" by such actions.
56% of Independents polled reported negative feelings about Trump's actions.
And finally, 78% of all those polled "strongly" or "somewhat" support using vaccines to prevent diseases.
The poll was taken online between August 13 and September 1, and has a margin of error of 1.9%.
You can see the full poll here:https://www.msn.com/en-us/health/other/trumps-job-ratings-stay-negative-americans-express-strong-support-for-vaccines/ar-AA1M3qig?ocid=BingNewsBrowse
Dumbest Quote Of The Week
This week's dumb quote comes from Florida Surgeon General Dr. Joseph Ladapo, who announced this past week that his state will be doing away with ALL mandatory vaccines for children. That includes long-time effective ones like the measles vaccine. That's bad policy, but it is what he said in the next sentence that made him the dumbest person on the planet this week. Yes, he is a medical doctor and he is also Black, but here is what he said while announcing the end to vaccine mandates:
"Every last one of them is wrong and drips with disdain and slavery."
Slavery? Really? Getting a shot in your arm to protect your health, the health of your family and your neighbors is the equivalent of human bondage? Never have I heard such lunacy.
(You suggestions and comments are welcome)
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