We Need A Change

Dave Davis Commentary, Dave's Healthcare Plan, Policy, The Future Party

More than ever, we have to open up our political system to new ideas. Both parties have grown stale in their approach to long-standing problems. Take healthcare. The Democrats, no matter what they say, want a single-payer system. Everything else is just a way to get there. The Republicans seem to have a brain freeze—a few changes around the edges, but no real plan. There is nothing attractive about the rationing that’s always part of a single-payer system or our current very costly approach. Other countries, such as Singapore, have had great success in moving a new direction.

The problem is, if one side proposes something different, the other dismisses it out of hand. Worse, each exists in its bubble. One side might not even be aware of what the other is discussing. Unfortunately, we have too many examples of mutual exclusion.

Before the election, A major American newspaper, the New York Post, published a story potentially damaging to Joe Biden. A laptop allegedly belonging to Joe Biden’s son Hunter was found. Some emails casting doubt on Hunter’s business practices and showing his father’s knowledge of them was on it. I have no special powers to establish the truth of the situation, but at a minimum, we would expect Hunter and his father to contest the story’s veracity. We never heard the father or son’s defense because no one asked. Also, Big Tech limited the story’s spread. It took over three years to find Trump wasn’t Putin’s agent. It would be nice to know the Bidens aren’t in hock to China and others.

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Following Up

Dave Davis Commentary, COVID-19, Policy

I wrote about some things in the past that I need to follow -up on

.President-Elect Biden is about to ask America to wear masks for the next hundred days. I pointed out in my last post, 85% already are wearing masks. If this widespread mask usage hasn’t made a dent in the spread of COVID-19 spread, it’s hard to see a few more % would make a significant difference. A big problem is most people are wearing masks doing little to stop the spread. It appears some still aren’t convinced of this fact.

I just finished Alex Berensen’s third small book in his “Untold Truths about COVID-19 and LockDowns” series. I’ve highly recommended the previous two for getting a handle on what the COVID-19 data tells us. This one has been out for a few weeks, but Amazon only notified me a couple of days ago. It seems Amazon again held up his book. As luck would have it, the book is all about masks. It not only backs up what I wrote but does it in greater depth. If only we could get Joe Biden to read it.

What worries me is these less than 10% effective masks give people a false sense of safety, especially the at-risk. Seeing the elderly going in and out of stores wearing the same thin cloth masks as the rest of the shoppers should be a cause for concern. Maybe this explains why so many older people are still dying. Instead of having the proper PPE wherever the vulnerable are present, we tout Universal wearing masks unlikely to protect. These cloth masks aren’t much more than a virtue-signaling fashion statement.

Worse, several researchers at well-known Universities found social distancing is declining. We know distance is a good bet to prevent infection. Could the widely promoted idea of masks are protective encourage people to get closer than is safe? After all, the vast majority of people are wearing masks, and cases are still rising. What we need are masks that work. Maybe Honeywell and others will provide them to the general public soon.

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Mask-Charade

Dave Davis Uncategorized

According to the media, mask-wearing is America’s political dividing line. With almost religious fervor, those not wearing masks are denounced as killers. With a nearly a 50-50 split in the recent election, the indication in the press is half are following the “Science.” The others are horrible people wildly spreading a mass killer disease—virtue shaming taken to the N-degree. President-elect Biden cites the I.H.M.E. model and predicted tens of thousands of unnecessary deaths by the end of January. Mask-wearing dominates any COVID-19 discussion.

This is strange when one remembers on February 29, the U.S. surgeon general infamously tweeted, “Seriously people – STOP BUYING MASKS. They are NOT effective in preventing general public from catching #Coronavirus.” Dr. Fauci concurred. The C.D.C. told us that only medical personnel should wear masks. Somehow over the intervening months, the “Science” morphed to everyone should wear masks all the time.

You aren’t alone if you’re confused. I, too, am suffering from whiplash. While not an “expert” as an octogenarian, I have a great interest in anything COVID. I want to share what I found.

Surprisingly, there aren’t a lot of significant studies on mask-wearing. A recent study in Denmark apparently is the only one available. The first randomized and controlled study of its kind found an absence of empirical evidence that masks protect people wearing them. However, it apparently did not assess whether they prevent infection of those who encounter the wearer. This is the best info we have, yet we are told we must significantly increase our mask-wearing.  

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Better to Take Our Time

Dave Davis Commentary, COVID-19, Policy, Uncategorized

The 2020 election is winding down. As it should be, canvassing and recounts are taking place. An election with an enormous increase in mail-in ballots with many states using methods for the first time was bound to be suspect. Add a very close election when all the polls predicted a “Blue Wave,” and you have questions. Of course, rumors will fly. Understandably, the likely winners want the losers to concede. Still, it is far more critical the nation is assured the election was fair. If this takes a little more time, it will prove to be best for the country. If Trump has questions, this is the time for answers.

If we don’t establish the truth and get it out quickly, we end up with Ferguson type myths. Even though subsequent investigations determined Michael Brown was the author of his own death, a false narrative in the interim gained currency. The legend lives on today. Black Lives Matter was born in the flames of a burning Ferguson, Mo on the lie Michael Brown was criminally shot by a cop. “Hands up don’t Shoot” Michel Brown’s supposed last words are still heard. Michael Brown’s name is used to justify further unrest. Of course, none of it was ever real. The false narrative was off in the running before the truth could be determined and communicated.

How deeply has the false Ferguson Narrative dug in? Recently Shelby Steele, a scholar at the Hoover Institution, and his filmmaker son Eli released their documentary “What Killed Michael Brown?.” A solid exposition of what actually happened in Ferguson and its ramifications. Hard to believe, but Amazon Prime initially refused to distribute the film. According to Shelby Steele, Amazon “contributed $10 million to Black Lives Matter.”

Maybe Amazon had a problem with the movie’s content. Eli Steele tells us,” There are four criteria in order to go into content review. We didn’t meet any of the four criteria. So it has to be something else.” Eventually, the documentary was cleared and is now available on Amazon Prime. A highly respected black scholar was put through hoops before his work was available at the monster merchant.

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Timing In Life Is Everything

Dave Davis Commentary, COVID-19, Policy, Uncategorized

In my last post, I mentioned a COVID-19 vaccine may be in distribution before Biden’s Inauguration. With Pfizer’s announcement today, that’s all but certain. The importance of a 90% effective vaccine can’t be overstated. A market opening up well over 1000 points attests to its significance. For this octogenarian, this is akin to a prisoner getting the news he’ll likely get out of jail soon on new evidence.

The Pfizer news also jogged my memory. Wasn’t there some political noise over its vaccine and when it might be announced? A quick search of my saved documents brought up a letter to Pfizer’s CEO on Sept. 25. In the letter to Albert Bouria , 65 of the nation’s top academic health authorities told the CEO that Pfizer’s accelerated vaccine process and announcements were eroding public trust in ways that could ultimately cause enough people to refuse to take the drug, preventing the achievement of national herd immunity. Signing the letter were top leaders from U.S. medical schools. https://ldi.upenn.edu/news/five-ldi-senior-fellows-among-65-top-health-experts-letter-cautioning-pfizer-ceo-against The letter looked for a late November approval at the earliest. Of course, this would put it well after the election.

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