August 23, 2021 10:16 AM UTC

Get More Smarter on Monday (August 23)

• 2 Comments
• by: Colorado Pols

Happy Back to School Day for some of you. Let’s Get More Smarter. If you think we missed something important, please include the link in the comments below (here’s a good example). If you are more of an audio learner, check out The Get More Smarter Podcast. And don’t forget to find us on Facebook and Twitter. 

CORONAVIRUS INFO…

*Colorado Coronavirus info:
CDPHE Coronavirus website 

*Daily Coronavirus numbers in Colorado:
http://covid19.colorado.gov

*How you can help in Colorado:
COVRN.com

*Locate a COVID-19 testing site in Colorado:
Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment 

*Coloradans can now get a COVID-19 vaccine at one of six locations without a prior appointment. 

► As The Washington Post reports, you have one less reason to continue ducking the COVID-19 vaccination:

Federal regulators Monday granted full approval to the Pfizer-BioNTech coronavirus vaccine — a milestone that could help increase inoculation rates and spark a wave of vaccine mandates by employers and universities amid a surge of new cases and hospitalizations fueled by the ferocious delta variant.

The Food and Drug Administration action marks the first licensing of a vaccine for the coronavirus, which has swept the United States in repeated and punishing waves since early 2020, exhausting nursing staffs, filling intensive care units and raising fears among the vaccinated and the unvaccinated.

The vaccine has been approved for two doses, three weeks apart, in people 16 and older. It remains available under emergency use authorization for adolescents ages 12 to 15.

“As the first FDA-approved covid-19 vaccine, the public can be very confident that this vaccine meets the high standards for safety, effectiveness and manufacturing quality the FDA requires of an approved product,” FDA acting commissioner Janet Woodcock said in a statement.

Vax that thang up, people!

► The story of “missing” Mesa County Clerk and Recorder Tina Peters — who allegedly committed a serious crime in her zeal to prove the existence of a fictional crime — took a predictably stupid turn over the weekend. As Colorado Public Radio reports:

More than 100 people rallied in Grand Junction Saturday in support of Mesa County clerk Tina Peters, who is being investigated to determine whether she participated in a security breach of her office’s election equipment…

…An investigation by the Secretary of State’s office found that earlier this year Peters allowed an unauthorized man into a secure area where the election equipment is stored, and that he apparently made copies of hard drives ahead of an update by Dominion Voting Systems, the company that makes the equipment. Someone in the clerk’s office also ordered the cameras that monitor the equipment to be turned off for an extended period of time.

One of the speakers at Saturday’s rally appeared to confirm some of those events.

“One thing you have heard about Tina Peters is true,” said Cory Anderson, who heads the local chapter of the Election Integrity Project, which has been trying to use voter canvassing to prove fraud. “There was a before and after image taken of the Dominion system in clerk Peter’s office. I think we’ll be very glad that happened. Preserving the truth is important to discovering the truth.”

Peters is being investigated by the Colorado Secretary of State’s office, the Mesa County District Attorney, and the FBI. Peters is so innocent that she is hiding out in an undisclosed location in Texas.

The Colorado Sun has more on this story, including an amazing quote from State Rep. Ron Hanks (R-Penrose) indicating that he actually doesn’t understand the meaning of the phrase “false-flag operation.”

► Former President Donald Trump blurted out on Friday that he personally made the decision to relocate the HQ of U.S. Space Command from Colorado Springs to Alabama, which is a HUGE slap in the face to Colorado Republicans specifically. Colorado Public Radio looks at whether Trump’s decision can now be revisited.

►  The Denver Post answers questions about whether you should start thinking about a third “booster” shot for COVID-19.

Click below to keep learning stuff…

And Now, More Words…

► As The New York Times reports, many hospitals often try to hide pricing structures from patients so that they don’t get a chance to fully grasp the exorbitant prices they are being charged:

This year, the federal government ordered hospitals to begin publishing a prized secret: a complete list of the prices they negotiate with private insurers.

The insurers’ trade association had called the rule unconstitutional and said it would “undermine competitive negotiations.” Four hospital associations jointly sued the government to block it, and appealed when they lost.

They lost again, and seven months later, many hospitals are simply ignoring the requirement and posting nothing.

But data from the hospitals that have complied hints at why the powerful industries wanted this information to remain hidden.

It shows hospitals are charging patients wildly different amounts for the same basic services: procedures as simple as an X-ray or a pregnancy test.

► As The Colorado Sun reports, more than half of the $15 billion in “paycheck protection” loans collected by Colorado businesses have been forgiven.

► As CNN reports, the worldwide shipping problem is getting worse, which could be a YUGE problem for holiday shopping.

► John Aguilar of The Denver Post looks at how federal funding might help Colorado students get caught up after a weird pandemic school year:

Across Colorado, school districts are just starting to figure out how to spend a sizable slice of federal money that’s aimed at helping the education system recover from months during which classmates and teachers were disconnected from one another and test scores plummeted.

The approaches will differ by size, location and need of the district. Douglas County will focus on delivering more individual instruction for students in school, like literacy support and tutoring. Westminster will expand its partnership with the Boys & Girls Club of America for after-school social and emotional support beyond the classroom.

And in the tiny Monte Vista School District in southern Colorado, the focus will be on hiring new teachers and reducing class sizes for a better learning experience.

This latest round of federal COVID-19 funding is different from previous ones because it contains a forward-looking piece: a requirement that at least 20% of any district’s allocation must be used to address pandemic-induced “learning loss.”

 

► Colorado Newsline reports on the prevalence of voting by proxy in Congress.

► Chevron is the latest private company to start requiring COVID-19 vaccinations for employees.

► The Colorado Sun follows up on a story about Rep. Lauren “Q*Bert” Boebert’s curious personal financial disclosures:

Boebert’s name appears in business documents filed with the state for the oil and gas consulting firm run by her husband, Boebert Consulting, which was paid about $1 million over the past two years by a drilling company that has a large presence on the Western Slope.

The Garfield County Republican is the registered agent of JLB903 LLC, which is, in turn, the registered agent of Boebert Consulting run by her husband, Jayson, according to records reviewed by The Colorado Sun, as well as information from Boebert’s office and a financial disclosure the congresswoman filed this week.

The revelation poses more questions about the Boeberts’ finances and their close ties to the oil and gas industry, which have come under increasing scrutiny from opponents in recent days. The congresswoman’s office said she does not work for Boebert Consulting, but it did not answer whether she owns the firm.

Boebert, who sits on the House Natural Resources Committee, has been a major cheerleader for the oil and gas industry, often citing her husband’s work.

For more on this story, check out a new report from The Daily Beast.

► President Biden does not appear inclined to offer federal protections for wolves.

► Esquire reminds us not to forget some very basic and VERY important facts about Afghanistan.

► Arizona Democratic Sen. Kyrsten Sinema continues to do her very best to alienate Democrats everywhere.

► House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy really wants to be Speaker of the House at some point. As POLITICO reports, that ambition has him waffling on what to do about a few critical votes coming up in the House.

► As Axios Denver reports, the surge of the Delta variant of COVID-19 has many companies reassessing return to work policies.

In a related story, Governor Jared Polis believes that enough people are still working at home that a million square feet of office space in Colorado is going unused.

► The surge in COVID-19 cases basically shut down an entire town in Texas.

Say What, Now?

Congressman Ken Buck’s (R-Greeley) Twitter account is basically a Newsmax madlib:

Your Daily Dose Of ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ 

► The FDA is advising people, particularly in the Southern U.S., that they SHOULD NOT TAKE MEDICINE INTENDED FOR LIVESTOCK IN ORDER TO TRY TO TREAT COVID-19.

You are not a horse. You are not a cow. Seriously, y’all. Stop it. https://t.co/TWb75xYEY4

— U.S. FDA (@US_FDA) August 21, 2021

Earlier this year, State Rep. Rod Pelton (R-Cheyenne Wells) admitted that he was also taking horse medication instead of just following the advice of human doctors on COVID-19.

► Jesus doesn’t care about aliens, apparently.

► Florida Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz got married in California over the weekend (to an adult).

ICYMI

► It sure is fun to compare mask requirements to the fundamental idea of freedom that drove the creation of the United States of America. It’s also very silly.

► This week on The Get More Smarter Podcast, Congressman Ed Perlmutter (D-Jefferson County) returns to discusss some of the big local projects being funded with federal dollars in Colorado…so long as your Member of Congress is a Democrat, apparently. 

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