12-17: "You got really emotional today,” [Supervisor] Steel responded, with a laugh

✅ As Hospitals Get ‘Bombarded’ With Covid Patients, OC Health Director Pleads With Public 

Dr. Clayton Chau issued an emotional appeal for the public to wear masks and avoid gatherings. 

—Voice of OC 

     …“The emergency rooms have no capacity to triage people as quick as they can. We have people who are waiting to be seen when they get to the emergency room,” he added, noting his staff are deploying field hospital beds to local hospitals that requested them. 

     “Every day we break the record of the number of people who have [been] infected. So I’m pleading with the community: Please. Please. Do not gather. And make sure you follow the public health guidance.”…. 

     “The wearing [of] masks, the staying physically separate from people – that is the only thing that still works to stop the spread of the virus. Let’s make that very very clear. There’s no argument on the other side of it,” Chau said. 

     “We are now surpassing 16 million people infected, and over 300,000 people who died from this virus [in this country]. Okay? That is a fact. That number is not fake,” he added, raising his voice. 

     “And the reason why we have an increase in cases is because people have been gathering and not following public health guidance. Period. Let’s make that very clear. There’s no argument on that.”…. 

     “I apologize, I didn’t mean to raise my voice,” Chau said. 

     “You got really emotional today,” [Supervisor Michelle] Steel responded, with a laugh. “But you know, I understand that – that we are all very much concerned about this virus.” 

     “I know that you are working around the clock, and it has been a yeoman’s effort,” [Supervisor Don] Wagner told Chau.

     “I want to thank you for it. And I will also say for the public, I know you hear the voices of those who come here [to speak]. I know you hear the voices of the patients. And I know you hear the voices of the medical professionals…I thank you for your continued efforts.” 

     Wagner later said that while he supports Sheriff Don Barnes in not enforcing mask mandates, he’s also for the sheriff backing up businesses that do require masks. 

     “If you’re not going to wear a mask in a business that requires one, go down the street and find somebody else. Or better, put on the darned mask,” Wagner said…. 

✅ OC Sees Largest Single Day Hospitalization Increase as County Health Officials Build Field Hospitals

Coronavirus hospitalizations have been steadily climbing since November started, straining hospitals and their staff. 

—Voice of OC  

✅ More Southern California kids are killing themselves during coronavirus pandemic 

—OC Reg 

✅ California sets new daily record of 379 virus deaths -- California health authorities reported Thursday a record 379 coronavirus deaths and more than 52,000 new confirmed cases. The staggering new figures mean California has seen more than 1,000 deaths in the last five days and nearly 106,000 confirmed cases in just two days. John Antczak and Amy Taxin Associated Press -- 12/17/20 

✅ O.C. hospitals told not to divert ambulances despite influx of COVID-19 patients -- The order — the first of its kind in the region — went into effect at 7 p.m. Tuesday after 20 of the county’s 25 emergency medical centers became so overwhelmed with COVID-19 patients that they began diverting ambulances to other facilities in Orange County. As a result, ambulances were having difficulty finding a hospital that would take patients. Ruben Vives, Hayley Smith in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/17/20 

✅ High-Poverty Neighborhoods Bear the Brunt of COVID’s Scourge -- Over the course of the pandemic, COVID-19 infections have battered high-poverty neighborhoods in California on a staggeringly different scale than more affluent areas, a trend that underscores the heightened risks for low-wage workers as the state endures a deadly late-autumn surge. Phillip Reese Capital Public Radio -- 12/17/20 

✅ Christmas singalong organized by Kirk Cameron draws hundreds of mostly maskless people — and criticism -- Summoned by the actor Kirk Cameron, hundreds of maskless people belted out Christmas carols in a Thousand Oaks parking lot Sunday night in a protest against coronavirus restrictions. Faith E. Pinho in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/17/20 

✅ Trump administration cuts off $200 million for California health care over abortions -- The Trump administration said Wednesday that it would withhold $200 million in federal health care funding from California because the state requires that insurance providers cover abortions, escalating a highly politicized battle just weeks before President Trump leaves office. Alexei Koseff in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 12/17/20 

✅ How counseling aims to help CSU freshmen graduate in four years -- Right out of high school and not sure where the advising office is, let alone how to register for classes, freshmen need special care at California’s big public universities. Without it, they are at higher risk of not making it back for a second year. Larry Gordon EdSource -- 12/17/20 

✅ ‘We want them infected’: Trump appointee demanded ‘herd immunity’ strategy, emails reveal -- A top Trump appointee repeatedly urged top health officials to adopt a "herd immunity" approach to Covid-19 and allow millions of Americans to be infected by the virus, according to internal emails obtained by a House watchdog and shared with Politico. Dan Diamond Politico -- 12/17/20 

✅ Lopez: California’s ‘climate damn emergency’ can’t be ignored -- In California, 2020 would have gone down as an apocalyptic year even without COVID. It was the year when it became impossible to ignore that climate change is here, it’s accelerating, and it’s dramatically altering California in myriad ways. Steve Lopez in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/16/20 

✅ Arellano: The year Orange County reminded us it’s still Orange County -- When it comes to Orange County and crazy, I always paraphrase Michael Corleone’s memorable quote about his involvement with organized crime in “The Godfather Part III”: Just when I thought we were out, we pull ourselves back in. Gustavo Arellano in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/16/20 

     ....Our gift to America this unfathomable year? A Murderers' Row of COVID-19 nitwits. 

     In the early days of the pandemic, cities and residents sought to keep coronavirus patients away from their paradises. In April, Supervisor Michelle Steel sent out a press release with a straight face that Orange County was “flattening the curve” on coronavirus cases and had kept hospitalization rates stable. A month later, both figures skyrocketed; right now, we’re even worse. 

     Next month, Steel will be sworn in as a member of Congress....

✅ Few Positives in Final Fall Enrollment Numbers 

Community colleges saw the largest enrollment declines this fall. Matriculation by first-time freshmen also fell sharply. 

—Inside Higher Ed 

✅ Fall’s Enrollment Decline Now Has a Final Tally. Here’s What’s Behind It. 

—CHE

Today's OC Covid numbers

12-16: Deaths rising so fast California must order more body bags

✅ Orange County ICU capacity remains dangerously low 

Orange County's intensive care capacity hung by a thread this week as nine-in-10 adult ICU beds were occupied and inundated emergency rooms redirected ambulance traffic elsewhere. 

—OC Reg 

✅ Fall Semester Was Not a Wash For All 

New national poll found students were satisfied over all with the quality of college classes this fall, with some discrepancies for those taking completely online classes. However, one-third of students considered discontinuing college during the pandemic. 

—Inside Higher Ed 

✅ Report: Liberty Gave Millions to Conservative Groups 

—Inside Higher Ed 

✅ Private Colleges Report Lost Revenue, Increased Expenses This Fall 

—Inside Higher Ed 

     Almost all private, nonprofit institutions responding to a survey reported losses in tuition and fees, room and board, and auxiliary services revenue amid the pandemic this fall, according to information released by the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities…. 

✅ The Missing 4th R 

Rigor is conspicuously absent from the current discourse on educational innovation. 

—Inside Higher Ed 

✅ The Demographic Cliff: 5 Findings From New Projections of High-School Graduates 

—CHE 

✅ Ocasio-Cortez takes direct shot at Pelosi and Schumer 

The progressive star bluntly stated that “we need new leadership in the Democratic Party.” 

—Politico 

     Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez argued in a new interview that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer should no longer lead Democrats in Congress, and complained that the party had failed at grooming a “next generation” of younger lawmakers to succeed them…. 

     The remarks from the freshman congresswoman and superstar of the party’s left wing represented her most direct attack yet on Pelosi and Schumer, and come as Democrats are locked in a fierce debate over their broader message following a disappointing showing in 2020 congressional races across the country.

      Schumer, who is 70 years old, was reelected as leader of the Senate Democratic Caucus last month, and Pelosi is positioned to be reelected as speaker in January — all but ensuring the House Democratic Caucus will continue to be governed by the same octogenarian triumvirate that has occupied the party’s top three leadership roles for the past 14 years: the 80-year-old Pelosi, 81-year-old House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, and 80-year-old House Majority Whip James Clyburn (D-S.C.)….

Deaths rising so fast California must order more body bags -- Gov. Gavin Newsom offered a message of hope in his Tuesday press conference celebrating the arrival of the vaccine, but cautioned that the state has many dark and difficult months ahead amid the deadliest surge since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. Amy Graff in the San Francisco Chronicle$ Kim Bojórquez in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 12/16/20 

California expects 1 million more COVID-19 vaccine doses this month -- But that stream of vaccines, though welcome, will do little to dam the river of new infections that has flooded California in recent weeks. The supply remains limited and initially will be steered toward frontline healthcare workers and residents of long-term care facilities. Luke Money in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/16/20

Today's numbers

12-14: Another new high in OC Covid cases; More push-back against Covid restrictions; Throwin' shade on Jill Biden's Ed.D.

✅ OC Sees Thousands of New Coronavirus Cases in Just a Few Days, Resistance to Shutdown Grows

Public health experts fear trends will worsen as hospitals are pushed to their limits. 

—Voice of OC 

✅ Coronavirus: O.C. Supervisor Don Wagner joins rally to reopen businesses 

—OC Reg 

✅ More Orange County restaurants decide to stay open, declaring their views on Instagram 

—OC Reg 

✅ Students Wait for More Aid 

Colleges say they have long ago spent all the CARES Act money to aid struggling students and they need more help now. 

—Inside Higher Ed 

✅ Essay on Dr. Jill Biden Prompts Uproar 

—Inside Higher Ed 

An essay published last week in The Wall Street Journal is prompting considerable criticism in academic circles. 

     The essay's views are outlined in its first paragraph: "Madame First Lady — Mrs. Biden — Jill — kiddo: a bit of advice on what may seem like a small but I think is a not unimportant matter. Any chance you might drop the 'Dr.' before your name? 'Dr. Jill Biden' sounds and feels fraudulent, not to say a touch comic. Your degree is, I believe, an Ed.D., a doctor of education, earned at the University of Delaware through a dissertation with the unpromising title 'Student Retention at the Community College Level: Meeting Students’ Needs.' A wise man once said that no one should call himself 'Dr.' unless he has delivered a child. Think about it, Dr. Jill, and forthwith drop the doc."…. 

     The New York Times ran a story about the many women who saw the essay as "blatantly sexist and emblematic of the way many men question or disparage women’s credentials."…. 

     Paul A. Gigot, the editor of the Journal's opinion section, wrote today, “Why go to such lengths to highlight a single op-ed on a relatively minor issue?” He added, “My guess is that the Biden team concluded it was a chance to use the big gun of identity politics to send a message to critics as it prepares to take power. There’s nothing like playing the race or gender card to stifle criticism.”....

[As many of you know, I have occasionally suggested that the Ed.D. degree is worthless and even pernicious. Still, there's nothing female about the folly of Ed.D. degrees and other manifestations of sloppy and unscientific thinking in academia. It does appear that some of Ms. Biden's critics in this case are offensively sexist; such criticism I join with others in condemning.]

✅ Counties With Colleges Have More COVID-19 Deaths 

—Inside Higher Ed 

     A New York Times analysis has found that "as coronavirus deaths soar across the country, deaths in communities that are home to colleges have risen faster than the rest of the nation."....

✅ Congresswoman Sees Debt Cancellation as Racial Equity Issue

—Inside Higher Ed

     Amid a debate even among Democrats over whether and how much of the nation’s student debt should be canceled, progressive congresswoman Ayanna Pressley on Thursday said widespread forgiveness is needed to close the disparity in wealth based on race….

✅ That Op-Ed About Jill Biden Was Sexist. But the Real Problem Lies Deeper. 

—CHE

3,250 new cases — and the trend is not good

12-13: Another SUPER-SPIKE in OC Covid cases!

✅ Coronavirus: Orange County surpasses 100,000 cases, with 3,121 new ones, 14 new deaths on Dec. 13 

There were 1,236 patients in local hospitals with the coronavirus on Sunday – breaking a July record. 

—OC Reg

[See DtB graph below]

✅ Hiltzik: 2020 was the year that American science denial became lethal -- It’s hard to pinpoint when the Republican Party’s long-cherished hostility to scientific facts went, shall we say, viral. Michael Hiltzik in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/13/20 

✅ Walters: High school ethnic studies – the third version -- Will the third time be the charm for California’s tortured effort to write a model ethnic studies curriculum for high school students? Dan Walters CalMatters -- 12/13/20 

✅ ‘An Indelible Stain’: How the G.O.P. Tried to Topple a Pillar of Democracy -- The Supreme Court repudiation of President Trump’s desperate bid for a second term not only shredded his effort to overturn the will of voters: It also was a blunt rebuke to Republican leaders in Congress and the states who were willing to damage American democracy by embracing a partisan power grab over a free and fair election. Jim Rutenberg and Nick Corasaniti in the New York Times$ -- 12/13/20 

✅ Several UC chancellors call for tuition increase amid pandemic-fueled budget crisis -- As the pandemic throws the University of California into one of the worst financial crises it has ever collectively faced, top leaders at the majority of campuses say it’s time to consider a tuition increase for fall 2022. Teresa Watanabe in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/12/20

✅ Orange County healthcare system ‘in crisis’ as COVID-19 hospitalizations hit record 

—LA Times

✅ ‘Covid-19 has an odour, and the dogs are detecting it’: meet the canine super-squad sniffing out the virus 

They’re loyal, diligent – and have unbeatable noses. Could dogs play a key part in the fight against the pandemic? 

—The Guardian

Today's OC Covid numbers: 2091 new cases; 18 new deaths

Today's OC Covid numbers; 2091 new cases; 18 new deaths

12-11: Community colleges hardest hit as college enrollment among high school graduates falls nationally; Rush Limbaugh's startling notion; More OC Covid spikery

✅ Thanksgiving Coronavirus Cases Begin to Rock Orange County Hospitals 

—Voice of OC 

     Orange County’s soaring coronavirus hospitalizations and daily case increases are at the highest levels ever, so far, while some public health officials and epidemiologists fear Thanksgiving cases will worsen the situation. 

     “Duct tape your underpants,” UC Irvine epidemiologist Andrew Noymer said in a Thursday phone interview. 

     Noymer, a public health expert, said the situation is going to continue to get worse. 

     “We’re breaking records on the daily here,” he said. “Thanksgiving is starting to bite. Thanksgiving was a fortnight ago, exactly.”…. 

     OC managed to shatter two records in one day: overall hospitalizations and the number of people in intensive care units. 

     As of Thursday, 1,025 county residents were hospitalized, including 257 people in intensive care units, according to state data. 

     That’s a 460% increase since Nov. 1, when 183 people were hospitalized, including 60 in ICUs. OC eclipsed its previous record from the July 14 peak, when 722 people were hospitalized, including 239 in intensive care units. 

     “It’s the first time we set a record on both of these statistics since July,” Noymer said. “These numbers look really bad.”…. 

     During the peak July hospitalization period, OC was averaging a little over 800 new cases a day. By the end of the month, the seven-day average was 470 new daily cases. 

     Now, OC is averaging over 1,800 new cases a day. When December began, the average seven-day average was 790 new cases a day. 

     The virus trends forced county Emergency Medical Services Medical Director, Dr. Carl Schultz, to issue a directive to hospitals late Wednesday evening, urging them to activate surge plans and halt non-emergency surgeries…. 

     Without intervention, county officials warn that Orange County’s emergency medical services could collapse…. 

     Meanwhile, Supervisor Michelle Steel railed against the regional shut down at the weekly Thursday OC news conference. 

     “As I have said since the very first stage of this pandemic, we must take a balanced approach to slowing the spread of this virus while ensuring the least economic harm to families,” Steel said…. 

     Steel said Gov. Gavin Newsom “Has frankly created an inconsistent mess … moving the bar each time to justify their actions with no scientific base.” 

     But public health experts like Noymer said the order should’ve gone a step further and close down all nonessential retail, like malls and department stores. 

     “It’s more important now than March. I would’ve rather seen the malls open in March than now, of course that’s easy to say in hindsight,” Noymer said. “I would say yeah, indoor shopping needs to shut down. We’re really in a crisis.”…. 

     “So two cases cause four, four cases cause eight and eight causes 16,” Noymer said. “Thanksgiving set in train a series of infections that are going to set in train a new series of infections. It’s not like Thanksgiving is done — it takes an explosion and makes it an even worse explosion … it’s not a road bump, it’s a mountain.”…. 

✅ Chapman professor draws attention, reprimand as Trump’s lawyer in Texas lawsuit 

"I think it’s really troubling when you have millions of people who believe that the election was stolen when there’s no good evidence to support that." Rick Hasen, law professor at UC Irvine. 

—OC Reg 

✅ Some Orange County ambulances with patients are ‘waiting hours’ for ER beds -- The rising flood of coronavirus patients has prompted Orange County’s Health Care Agency to warn that emergency room backups have had some ambulances waiting “hours” to offload patients and the county’s critical care network “may collapse unless emergency directives are implemented now.” Ian Wheeler, Roxana Kopetman in the Orange County Register -- 12/11/20 

✅Secession? Rush Limbaugh floats a startling notion — then quickly backs off. 

The conservative radio titan has been a fierce advocate of President Trump’s baseless election claims. This week, he took the talk a step further. 

—WashPo

✅ New data sheds light on parent debt burden for college students -- The new information gives new insight into intergenerational debt. Experts argue that the federal loans taken out by low-income parents can be a net negative for the family. Mikhail Zinshteyn CalMatters -- 12/11/20 

✅ Community colleges hardest hit as college enrollment among high school graduates falls nationally amid the pandemic -- Community colleges have seen the sharpest drop among colleges in high school graduates enrolling this fall, a likely effect of the Covid-19 pandemic, according to an annual report published Thursday by the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center. Betty Márquez Rosales EdSource -- 12/11/20 

✅ To spring break or not? California colleges weigh options as pandemic worsens -- Like a number of colleges across California, USC is swapping its traditional spring break for five single-day breaks scattered throughout the semester, in hopes of cutting down on the spread of COVID-19. Meghan Bobrowsky, Matthew Reagan and Emily Forschen CalMatters -- 12/10/20 

✅ Power Differentials 

Professor who studies pederasty sues students who've said he's sympathetic to pedophiles. Fellow classicists argue that he's treading into dicey legal and ethical territory in trying to police expression.

—Inside Higher Ed 

     A professor who does controversial research on age of consent is suing a graduate student who publicly criticized his writing and pedagogical choices. The new libel lawsuit parallels two others the professor filed earlier this year. Both of those were against undergraduate students. 

     The professor, Thomas Hubbard, a classicist at the University of Texas at Austin, says he’s been unfairly maligned to the point of becoming a target of violence. As proof, he points to an early-morning protest outside his home last year, during which his property was vandalized. He says he so fears for his safety in Texas that he’s relocated to California. 

     Many scholars following the case say that they don’t condone physical violence or threats by any means. But they argue that Hubbard is now seeking to limit the very freedom of expression that affords him the right to study what he does…. 

     Indeed, Hubbard’s lawsuits are very much about language. Among other topics, Hubbard studies pederasty, or sexual activity involving a man and a male youth. The practice occurred with some regularity in ancient Greece, and Hubbard has argued that U.S. age of consent laws should be re-examined with that tradition in mind. He points to contemporary statutory rape laws in parts of Europe where the age of consent is as young as 14, and argues that these thresholds may be different for young men and women. Age of consent laws are gender neutral in the U.S., but Hubbard has argued that young men may require less legal protection, or merit a lower age of consent, than young women….

✅ Progress Slows on California Remedial Education Reform 

—Inside Higher Ed 

     Some colleges are falling behind on making progress in remedial education reform just two years after California enacted legislation on the issue. 

    The latest report from the California Acceleration Project and Public Advocates shows that only three of California's 116 community colleges have achieved complete implementation of the changes listed in Assembly Bill 705 for both English and math. 

    The bill, which took effect in 2018, requires community colleges to use high school grades for placement, restricts colleges from requiring students to take remedial courses and requires colleges to place students in the English and math courses that will maximize the likelihood of students completing transfer-level coursework in those areas within a year. 

     Research has shown that students are more likely to complete transfer-level English and math courses if they begin in transferable courses, rather than remedial courses that tend to not earn students credit…. 

✅ Colleges Are Canceling Spring Break. In Its Place: ‘Wellness Days’ 

—CHE

Today's OC Covid numbers

12-10: Like ‘talking to a brick wall’; Roaring '20s?

✅ California congressman: Talking to anti-mask lawmakers like ‘talking to a brick wall’ -- California Rep. Ami Bera complained Wednesday that many of his fellow members of Congress still do not wear masks inside the Capitol, and compared efforts to convince them to cover their faces to “talking to a brick wall.” Quint Forgey Politico -- 12/10/20 

✅ Cal State announces plans for fall 2021 reopening of its 23 campuses -- Six days before its application window closes, the California State University system serving nearly half a million students has announced a plan for all 23 of its campuses to reopen next fall after more than a year of virtual instruction amid the COVID-19 pandemic. Nina Agrawal in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/10/20 

✅ Get ready for another roaring ’20s, UCLA economic forecast predicts -- UCLA economists issued an optimistic forecast Wednesday, predicting the U.S. economy will experience “a gloomy COVID winter and an exuberant vaccine spring,” followed by robust growth for some years. Margot Roosevelt in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 12/9/20 

✅ Low-Income Community College Students Most Likely to Cancel Plans 

The pandemic is widening equity gaps as more low-income students and students of color leave higher ed. 

—Inside Higher Ed 

✅ New Analysis of Faculty Pay, Representation 

—Inside Higher Ed 

     Women and people of color make less money and have less job security than their white, male counterparts in academe, according to a new “snapshot” analysis of federal data from 2018 by the American Association of University Professors. “That these data sets predate the advent of COVID-19 is cause for true alarm and also a clear call to action,” Rana Jaleel, assistant professor of gender, sexuality and women’s studies at the University of California, Davis, and chair of the AAUP’s Committee on Gender, Sexuality and Women's Studies, said in a statement…. 

✅ Report: Fewer High School Students Went Straight to College 

—Inside Higher Ed 

     The COVID-19 pandemic doesn't seem to have affected high school graduation rates. But it appears to have impacted how many of those graduates went straight to college. 

     New data from the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center show that nearly 22 percent fewer students from the Class of 2020 went to college immediately after high school this fall compared to the Class of 2019, according to a news release from the center. The overall immediate college enrollment rate fell from 35.3 percent to 27.7 percent, a drop that is 10 times greater than the decline between 2018 and 2019…. 

✅ Moody's Sees Negative Outlook for Community Colleges 

—Inside Higher Ed 

     Community colleges are expected to take financial and enrollment hits through 2021. Moody's Investors Services announced its 2021 outlook for the sector is negative, as is its outlook for four-year public and private institutions. 

✅ Food Insecurity Among Students Continues During Pandemic 

—Inside Higher Ed 

     Nearly one-third of students said they have experienced food insecurity since the beginning of the coronavirus pandemic, according to a new survey report from Chegg.org, the research and advocacy arm of the course materials and services company Chegg. About the same number of students also said hunger has “impacted their ability to study,” and more than half of students have accessed an off-campus food bank at least once, the survey found…. 

✅ The Real Covid-19 Enrollment Crisis: Fewer Low-Income Students Went Straight to College 

—CHE 

✅ ‘A Tremendous Amount of Fear’: Will Major Cuts Threaten Research Universities’ Work? 

Public flagship universities are bracing for a grim 2021. 

—CHE

Today's OC Covid numbers: the spike to end all spikes (Thanksgiving surprise!)

Today's OC Covid numbers.
Early on, I discerned the OC Reg's (et al.) game, which is to report these numbers without providing the all-important context. So I've provided the context, which is where these numbers have been over the months.
The picture is clear: we're MASSIVELY FUCKING UP. Week after week of disturbing numbers go by, and there's no reaction, no public reflection and judgment. On the contrary, the loons are declaring that they will defy the rules anew!
If you were to keep track of the trends, you'd have known for some time that our hair is on fire.

Southern California ICU capacity slips to 9% in latest state update 

State officials are using the metric to determine which regions are subjected to the most recent stay-at-home order 

—OC Reg 

California has its most coronavirus deaths in a single day 

Until this past week, the state had topped 200 daily coronavirus-related deaths only four times. That number has been exceeded twice in the last five days. 

—LA Times

Regional ICU capacity shrinks to 9% as Orange County reports highest single-day coronavirus totals yet

—LA Times

THE TRUMPIANS (aka "slack-jawed louts")

I'll say it: they're selfish and stupid and UTTERLY IRRESPONSIBLE; and they're
threatening everyone's well-being, and boy am I sick and tired of it!

12-9: Fullerton police, again; Coronavirus vaccines are near; Hospitals overwhelmed; Community Colleges’ Chronic Challenges

✅ A Fullerton Police Shooting Draws Neighborhood Outrage to Department’s Doorstep 

—Voice of OC 

     …The chain of events began in May, when officers responded to a frantic 15-year-old’s 9-1-1 call about his drunk step father threatening family members and firing off a gun in their house. 

    Through body-worn camera footage released by police, officers arriving on scene May 27 could be heard shouting orders at Hector Hernandez, 34, as he stood outside his home on the west side of town. 

     He complied, according to police statements, but started pacing. Then, police set a dog loose on him. 

     By the time the canine’s handling officer caught up, Hernandez had stabbed the animal with a pocket knife — injuring but not killing it — and Hernandez, a U-Haul employee and father of two kids, was lying on the ground. 

     Standing above him, the footage shows the officer fired multiple rounds into Hernandez, who later died at a hospital. 

     Then the department’s public relations team got to work. 

     Police posted the step son’s 9-1-1 call and body cam footage to YouTube the next month, overlapped by officials’ statements detailing Hernandez’s allegedly violent behavior that night, such as claims he assaulted his girlfriend after a night out and threatened his own son when they got home. 

     Meanwhile, friends argue Hernandez, despite his behavior, didn’t deserve what they say was a highly unnecessary and brutal death. 

     In turn, a small band of enraged neighbors — some of whom knew Hernandez and watched the events unfold that night — took their anger to the department’s front door on Saturday…. 

     “I’m not somebody that wants to come stand out on the corner of the police station,” [neighbor Bill Brown] said. 

     “This is something I felt I was just forced to do,” Brown added. “I can’t sit around and watch my family and my kids depressed and sad and just say, ‘Oh, well, we’ll just trust that the police will do what’s right.’”…. 

✅ Coronavirus vaccines are near; 25,350 for Orange County expected next week 

Orange County has an order out for perhaps the most important package its pandemic-weary hospital workers will get this December: 26 boxes containing 25,350 coronavirus vaccines. Expected delivery date: Tuesday, Dec. 15. 

—OC Reg 

✅ Orange County’s coronavirus case rate has never been worse 

—OC Reg 

✅ California shatters more coronavirus records as officials warn rapidly filling hospitals ‘may be overwhelmed’ -- One day into a sweeping new shutdown, an explosion of new coronavirus cases and hospitalizations signaled California could be entering the darkest chapter yet of the state’s public health crisis with no quick end in sight. Nico Savidge, Evan Webeck in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 12/9/20 

✅ Mixed messages? UC Berkeley closes residence halls while urging students to heed stay-at-home orders -- UC Berkeley recently released travel guidelines for students planning to return home for the holidays, but some feel the university is sending mixed messages by urging students to follow new stay-at-home guidelines that restrict travel while it closes most on-campus housing during winter break. Vanessa Arredondo in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 12/9/20 

✅ Library Leaders Brace for Budget Cuts 

Academic library survey reveals widespread budget cuts during the COVID-19 pandemic and concern about long-term financial recovery. 

—Inside Higher Ed 

✅ Rating Agencies Issue Dour Higher Ed Outlook for Next Year 

Two bond rating agencies on Tuesday issued pessimistic outlooks for the U.S. higher education sector for 2021 as the coronavirus pandemic continues to strain enrollment and revenue, heighten long-term pressures, and hit certain types of institutions harder than others. 

—Inside Higher Ed 

✅ Report: $1 Billion Needed to Improve Hispanic Institutions 

—Inside Higher Ed 

     Hispanic-serving institutions received only $87 in federal funding per Latinx student in 2019, compared to $1,642 historically Black colleges and universities received for each of their students, according to a Center for American Progress study. And it would take an additional $1 billion in funding just to bring HSIs' funding level up to half that of HBCUs. 

     Increasing funding for HSIs is particularly important at a time when enrollment by Latinx students is rising rapidly and faster than their growth in the U.S. population, wrote Viviann Anguiano, the progressive group’s associate director for postsecondary education, and Marissa Navarro, special assistant for postsecondary education…. 

✅ Report Chronicles Changes in Law Education 

—Inside Higher Ed 

     The Law School Survey of Student Engagement, released Tuesday, chronicles changes in law education in the United States from 2004 to 2019. While law education has become more diverse in terms of race and ethnicity, those gains have been unequal. For example, Black men doubled their percentage of the total number of law students -- from 3 to 6 percent -- in the 15 years of the survey, while Black women saw no similar gains. White men are still the majority of law students, though that group fell from 86 percent of total students in 2004 to 74 percent in 2019....

✅ A Pitch to Turn Prison Into College 

—Inside Higher Ed 

     A former Wisconsin governor who oversaw the expansion of the state's prison system now wants to turn a prison into a college. 

     Tommy Thompson, now the interim president of the University of Wisconsin system, wants to start with a class of 315 inmates, according to Wisconsin Public Radio. He estimates the project, called the UW System Prison Education Initiative, will cost about $5 million to get started. Thompson is working to secure funding, he told WPR, but he also expects to have inmates pay some money back in the form of student loans.... 

✅ What Attacks on Science Get Wrong 

—CHE 

✅ How the Pandemic Worsened — and Highlighted — Community Colleges’ Chronic Challenges

Two-year public institutions nationwide suffered the largest fall undergraduate-enrollment decrease of any higher-education sector. 

—CHE