COVID-19 Update: September 2, 2020: The 6% Delusion

Yesterday's Red Alert RESTART sent a charge of hope and enthusiasms through the industry. Both are needed, as today's headlines reveal a national government swamped in fake cures and conspiracy theories, while hopes for relief seem to be heading in the wrong direction.

The latest:

The president retweets, and then deletes, a tweet from a QAnon follower asserting that only 6% of reported COVID-19 deaths were actually caused by the coronarvirus: tinyurl.com/y3jn9wwq. Dr. Anthony Fauci makes short work of this nonsensical claim: tinyurl.com/yy5k4rh6. Which probably explains why the president is so dismissive of Fauci: tinyurl.com/y2kgy72x. It also explains the rise of Scott Atlas, who is not an epidemiologist but espouses theories the president likes: tinyurl.com/yyaxbcht. Meanwhile, the CDC is deluged with calls about bizarre QAnon theories: tinyurl.com/y3cvdn2s.

Senator Joni Ernst joins the controversy, alleging -- without evidence -- that doctors are falsely attributing deaths to COVID-19 for financial reasons: tinyurl.com/y55op6js.

Puncturing another balloon, the NIH, contradicts the president, citing the lack of data to suggest that plasma works as a COVID-19 treatment: tinyurl.com/yxgo5v4w.

In another display of America-first attitude, the US will not join COVAX, a global effort that "aims to speed vaccine development, secure doses for all countries, and distribute them to the most high-risk segment of each population:" tinyurl.com/yy6etnw7.

And remember the stimulus bill? When we last left it, the GOP was offering roughly $1 trillion, much less than the Democrat figure. Now the GOP is cutting back, possibly by half: tinyurl.com/y6b3srgl.

Meanwhile:

Unsurprisingly, a panel of government medical advisors wants the first available doses of any vaccine to go to first responders and healthcare workers: tinyurl.com/y5d6hr2a.

The surge in COVID-19 cases across the Sun Belt eases, although maybe not for long: tinyurl.com/yyqtj28r.

AstraZeneca says its vaccine trial is in its final stage: tinyurl.com/y4bqkqpw.

Food for thought:

Why it's important not to overpromise when it comes to vaccines: tinyurl.com/y3l5yvzy.

Investment in the arts could be a key to post-pandemic economic recovery: tinyurl.com/yyv87k49.

How the pandemic infinitely complicates the production of Broadway national tours: tinyurl.com/yxosy3h7.

The pandemic plays havoc with theatre companies' scheduling plans: tinyurl.com/y4m5b8n7.

Around the country:

In Alabama:

The number of Auburn University students testing positive for the coronavirus doubles in a week; the school says this is to be expected: tinyurl.com/y5ywfrr5.

More than 1,000 students at University of Alabama's Tuscaloosa campus have tested positive: tinyurl.com/y3w6lcw6.

In California:

Nancy Pelosi visits a hair salon for a (not allowed) indoor visitor, and gets her head handed to her: tinyurl.com/y56ol8mq.

In the District of Columbia:

The pandemic fuels a real estate boom: tinyurl.com/y4f538zr.

In Florida:

Nearly 450 students and staffers are in quarantine following positive COVID-19 tests in Central Florida schools: tinyurl.com/y4x4xfst.

For the third day, the Miami virtual learning system is beset by cyberattacks: tinyurl.com/y6p4kwk5.

The state cuts ties with Quest Diagnostics following a "data dump" that artificially drives up the positivity rate: tinyurl.com/y2db7o4j.

Nursing homes and assisted living facilities in the state reopen for visitors: tinyurl.com/yyvvyadp.

In Illinois:

The state government warns that the president's much-touted $300-a-week unemployment benefit will last only three weeks and will leave thousands of workers in the cold: tinyurl.com/y63nj4z7.

In Maryland:

The state to enter Phase Three of its reopening plan, bringing back most businesses: tinyurl.com/y2rqhyhm.

In New Jersey:

The state's cinemas scramble to open in time for Christopher Nolan's Tenet: tinyurl.com/yyscyd3m.

In New York:

The city's cabarets, determined not to lose another season, roll out various Plan Bs: tinyurl.com/y5qqvhpe.

In Minnesota:

Residents of the state are recruited for the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine trial: tinyurl.com/y68b8rrp.

Around the world:

In Hungary:

In response to rising COVID-19 cases across Europe, Hungary closes its borders to most foreigners: tinyurl.com/y475d45a.

Entertainment:

The Wooster Group is now streaming its haunting production The B-SIDE: "Negro Folklore from Texas State Prisons," A Record Album Interpretation, based on a 1965 LP of work songs, blues, spirituals, preaching, and toasts from inmates in Texas' then-segregated agricultural prison farms. Donations cheerfully accepted. Go to: tinyurl.com/y2c3tylc.

Here's a guide to upcoming jazz concerts: tinyurl.com/y3sxqbxc.

Michael Friedman's musical Paris Commune is now available for streaming: tinyurl.com/yxdmwmrs.

Mexican stage star Mauricio Martinez will stream a previously recorded cabaret concert on September 16 at 7:00pm ET: tinyurl.com/yy7ae6rf.

Emma Thompson, Robert Lindsay, Emilia Clarke, and Sanjeev Bhaska will star in a reading of Noël Coward's Private Lives, September 13 at 7:00pm ET: tinyurl.com/yyadxyl2.

For your pleasure:

Check out composer Anthony Barfield's invigorating new work, Invictus, scored for brass instruments and performed (in socially distant fashion) on Lincoln Center Plaza: tinyurl.com/y2euz9fo.

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

To receive your LSA copies at home (no charge), please email LSA@plasa.org or go to www.ezsubscription.com/lsa/mysubscription.

Previous LSA COVID-19 Updates: plasa.me/lsacovid19resources.