COVID-19 Update: July 6, 2020: Independence Day Blues

A somber Fourth of July weekend was loaded with developments. To wit:

Hundreds of scientists plead with the World Health Organization to admit that the coronavirus lingers in the air indoors: tinyurl.com/y99dohcc.

Many colleges and universities want to reopen in the fall; not so fast, say professors: tinyurl.com/ya5hcwxk. Meanwhile, health experts are stunned -- and not in a good way -- by the CDC's guidance for reopening schools in the fall: tinyurl.com/ycxk5o6t.

Evidence grows that the Black and Latino populations are, by a wide margin, more affected by the coronavirus: tinyurl.com/ybsj4bh6. Is an epidemic of arrests abetting the spread of the pandemic? tinyurl.com/y72cb5ut.

The US Conference of Mayors has issued a resolution supporting relief for the arts and humanities: tinyurl.com/y7ka7gzz.

Tiny audiences, drive-in venues, Plexiglas: How theatres around the US are experimenting with staying open: tinyurl.com/y8f5net2.

Underpaid, disrespected, at risk; stories of front line workers in the pandemic: tinyurl.com/y7qoj6rj.

Around the country:

In Arizona:

The mayor of Phoenix begs for help with coronavirus testing: tinyurl.com/yd9okst5.

One of the state's representatives calls for the disbanding of the White House coronavirus task force, charging that Drs. Anthony Fauci and Deborah Birx are spreading panic: tinyurl.com/ycsadvr7.

In California:

Inside Los Angeles' COVID-19 explosion: tinyurl.com/y7cmd6co.

How the state's COVID-19 plan, once so successful, went wrong: tinyurl.com/ybjqhash.

The governor works to keep a lid on the coronavirus, but enforcement isn't easy: tinyurl.com/y7ln26s9.

Following the spike in cases in Los Angeles County, Major League Baseball cancels the All-Star Game: tinyurl.com/yah7zho3.

Citing issues with safety protocols, SAG/AFTRA attaches a do-not-work order on Michael Bay's new thriller Songbird: tinyurl.com/y8gtqq6h.

More than 40 school principals are quarantined after being exposed to the coronavirus at an in-person meeting: tinyurl.com/y8ffvbzu.

Like every other awards show in Christendom, the SAG Awards have been postponed, in this case until March 14: tinyurl.com/ybkvkb8r.

In DC:

The country is in a crisis, but Congress takes a vacation, leaving little time next month to pass a relief bill: tinyurl.com/ydd4qs84.

In Florida:

The state sets another record, with more than 59,000 cases in one week: tinyurl.com/ybdrdjgt.

As the NBA gears up for its reduced season, three Miami Heat players test positive for COVID-19: tinyurl.com/ya6wnodk.

Many Disney workers assigned to the NBA bubble will be commuting from coronavirus hot spots: tinyurl.com/y7l7zmc9.

Four Miami Marlins players have tested positive as well: tinyurl.com/y8u99r2b.

"People have no regard for anyone else;" how Miami's house party scene causes the coronavirus to spread and why tracking the infected is so difficult: tinyurl.com/ydd4qs84.

In Illinois:

People coming to Chicago from 15 states will be required to self-quarantine for 14 days: tinyurl.com/yc2tjwt5.

Chicago's for-profit theatre community has been devastated by the pandemic: tinyurl.com/y945dvq8.

Chicago will allow the rooftops around Wrigley Field to open, at 25% capacity, for Cubs games: tinyurl.com/y7ho43ct.

In Massachusetts:

Moderna stock drops 9.4% after the company warns that its coronavirus vaccine may be delayed: tinyurl.com/yaswz9cj.

In New York:

A major hurdle for Broadway producers: getting insurance: tinyurl.com/y9bs638v.

In Texas:

In a sentence we're getting sick of writing repeatedly, the state on Friday sets a new record for infections: tinyurl.com/ycwrblst.

The governor finally mandates the wearing of masks: tinyurl.com/ycdx3l2d.

"It's New York all over again;" scenes from Houston's overwhelmed hospitals: tinyurl.com/ydg9b5wa.

Even as the coronavirus spreads into rural West Texas, many want nothing to do with masks: tinyurl.com/y926ar28.

In Washington State:

More than a hundred University of Washington students, clustered in fraternity houses, test positive for COVID-19: tinyurl.com/y8xkjvlt.

Around the world:

In Israel:

In an hopeful development, scientists have developed a simple, one-minute breath test for the coronavirus; it has been submitted to the FDA for approval: tinyurl.com/yapagb6z.

In the UK:

At last, Boris Johnson pledges a 1.5-billion-pound lifeline to the arts sector: tinyurl.com/y9hcxgzo.

Director Sam Mendes starts a fund to help theatre workers who are in desperate straits: tinyurl.com/y8c6nh2s.

The National Theatre terminates 400 front-of-house and backstage staffers: tinyurl.com/y8c6nh2s.

The rest of the West End remains closed but Agatha Christie's 68-year-old war horse The Mousetrap plans to reopen in October: tinyurl.com/y9fcpwy2.

Food for thought:

Interestingly, more COVID-19 patients are surviving being put on ventilators: tinyurl.com/y9wgec58. Apparently, the more recent strain spreads faster but is less virulent: tinyurl.com/yce3dpaj.

This collection of nation-by-nation charts reveals just how effective lockdowns were, when they were fully put in place: tinyurl.com/y7dyzxpx.

There may be no such thing as a mild case of COVID-19, thanks to side effects and lingering long-term problems: tinyurl.com/ycw4yo2l.

Does the pandemic -- and the social tremors accompanying it -- constitute an existential threat to the Disney Organization? tinyurl.com/yajudv4l.

Losses:

After a long and terrible journey, Broadway actor Nick Cordero passes away at 41: tinyurl.com/y9lksvb8.

Entertainment:

The streaming of Molière in the Park's acclaimed production of Tartuffe has been extended through July 12. The cast includes Raúl E. Esparza, Samira Wiley, Jennifer Mudge, and Rosemary Prinz. Go to tinyurl.com/y9n2tyjd. To appeal to their French speaking audience, hearing-impaired audience, and language learners, MIP is offering the option to choose closed captions in French or in English.

Mad Cow Theatre in Orlando will stream its productions of Donald Margulies' incisive literary drama Collected Stories and Dylan Thomas' Under Milk Wood: tinyurl.com/y77rqhjp.

For your pleasure:

Let Susannah McCorkle cool you off with "The Waters of March:" tinyurl.com/y9hmz5pw.

That's all for today. Stay safe. -- DB

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