Notices by Augie Ray (augieray@mastodon.social), page 3

My latest weekly update on #COVID19 in the US:

- COVID viral activity has never been this varied across the US
- COVID is 5.5x higher in the Midwest than the West
- COVID and flu declined the past week, but increases are still possible in the weeks ahead
- Few get vaccinated, but new studies tell us vaccines keep us healthier

https://medium.com/@augieray_66704/covid-and-flu-risks-high-in-much-of-nation-update-for-january-16-2026-e1dcf9b576f7

There's a new MAGA trend in social media: Eating raw chicken. I'd point out the obvious risks of doing so, but you know what, I love that for them. We'll add that to avoiding vaccines, doubting doctors and experts, owning guns, and having COVID and measles parties. If the right wishes to hasten their own demise, who am I to stand in the way?

For the rest of you, however. Avoid COVID, get vaccinated, eat properly cooked chicken, listen to your doctor, and be safer and healthier!

Getting cancer treatments? Get vaccinated!

STUDY: "In this cohort including multiple cancer types, #COVID19 mRNA vaccination within 100 days before ICI (Immune checkpoint inhibitors) initiation was independently associated with superior long-term overall survival."

https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=6024843

“Are you a communist?”
“No, I am an anti-fascist”
“For a long time?”
“Since I have understood fascism.”

– Ernest Hemingway, For Whom the Bell Tolls

My post on LinkedIn about the newly updated Federal Reserve data on disabilities in the US. Since 2021, disabilities have risen considerably, and they keep rising in 2023, 2024, and 2025. I wonder what could cause this. #COVID19

https://www.linkedin.com/posts/augieray_covid19-covid19-activity-7415416870163603456-6z0m?utm_source=share&utm_medium=member_desktop&rcm=ACoAAAARAO4BAPx0-DzizrQdFWXScUx1J1Sa0xc

Funny how quick "I need guns to resist a fascist government" turns into "She'd be alive if she'd followed cops' orders."

Another good reason to wear a mask while shopping:

NYC Wegmans is storing biometric data on shoppers' eyes, voices and faces

https://gothamist.com/news/nyc-wegmans-is-storing-biometric-data-on-shoppers-eyes-voices-and-faces

Pediatric healthcare workers: "We can't wear masks because it's so, so, so important babies see our faces, even if it exposes them to dangerous viruses."

STUDY: "Findings suggest that masked and unmasked static faces equally attract newborns' attention and that surgical masks do not disrupt their face configuration processing."

Medical professionals need to start admitting they're just being selfish, not altruistic, by not masking around at-risk patients.

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/infa.70064

Maybe next year FIFA can award their peace prize to Hitler or Genghis Khan posthumously.

Sad and true:

I don't normally ask for this, but if you are concerned about #COVID19, please share my latest post with others. I'd like it to reach folks who AREN'T already COVID-aware.

I’ve Read 3,000 Studies About COVID: Here’s What You’re Ignoring That Could (Still) Harm You or a Loved One

I share some simple conclusions, along with over 100 links to research. My goal is to urge more awareness and commonsense caution.

https://medium.com/@augieray_66704/ive-read-3-000-studies-about-covid-here-s-what-you-re-ignoring-that-could-still-harm-you-or-a-accafe0f7c66

I'm feeling Dorothy Parker, who sent this telegram to her friend after a difficult year:

A former writer for South Park foresaw Trump's takeover of the Kennedy Center and had the foresight to register the domain names trumpkennedycenter dot org and dot com back in August. JFK's niece thanked him for doing so. Of course, the Trump-controlled board now wants their domain name and threatened legal action. His response is brilliant.

“The reason poverty exists is not because we can’t feed the poor, it’s because we can’t satisfy the rich. That’s exactly what we’re seeing with Elon Musk becoming the first trillionaire. This is a spiritual sickness. What leads a person to accumulate more money than they could possibly spend in a hundred lifetimes when we have people starving in this one?”

- James Talarico, Presbyterian seminarian and Democrat in the Texas House of Representatives

This post is from an American Reformed Christian theologian and pastor. It's hard to tell if it is more ignorant, hateful, or racist.

Kwanzaa is a non-religious holiday that celebrates family, community, and heritage. The celebration is not a substitute for Christmas. Founded in 1966, Kwanzaa was created in the aftermath of the Watts Riots in Los Angeles as a way to unite and empower the Black community.

The only demons are the people pushing racism and intolerance.

Absolutely insane:

Whooping cough surging because vaccinations are down. https://www.nbcnews.com/health/kids-health/whooping-cough-vaccines-cases-us-pertussis-rcna248746

Measles surging because vaccinations are down. https://conexiant.com/infectious-disease/articles/measles-cases-surge-to-25-year-high/

And in kids, this year's COVID vaccination rate is a measly 7.1% for the 2025/26 #COVID19 vaccine. https://www.cdc.gov/covidvaxview/weekly-dashboard/child-coverage-vaccination.html (1/2)

More morality and bravery from a pro wrestler than from almost every member of GOP leadership.

:D

“Omicron is milder.”
STUDY: Omicron evolved to enrich “pathways associated with neurodegeneration, mitochondrial dysfunction, and cellular stress responses highlighting a potential shift toward long-term host manipulation and the emergence of post-acute #COVID19 syndromes.” These changes are “associated with neurodegenerative diseases, including Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, and ALS, raising concerns about its long-term neurological impact.”

How many times do you want that?

https://www.mdpi.com/2673-8112/5/12/203

How is this possible after all those Russian bots on Twitter pretending to be New Yorkers said they'd sell their NYC homes and move to Florida?!?

https://fortune.com/2025/12/04/mamdani-effect-new-york-city-real-estate-manhattan-luxury-millionaires-billionaires/