Happy National Signing Day, everyone! I’ll be cheering on all the new Dawgs and Heels, naturally. Which teams are you watching?
It’s also National Women Physicians Day, and this year it’s rather more special than normal, as today would be Elizabeth Blackwell’s 200th birthday. National Women Physicians Day is on February 3rd in honor of Dr. Blackwell, who was the first woman to obtain a medical degree in the United States in 1849. Today, women outnumber men in medical school, so we’ll be seeing even more women physicians in the near future. In the midst of a pandemic, I’m especially grateful to them for their hard work and dedication.
Let’s get on to the news.
Pat Conroy
- Georgia’s groundhog, General Beauregard Lee, did not see his shadow yesterday – meaning early spring – but Punxsutawney Phil up in Pennsylvania did see his shadow – meaning six more weeks of winter. Which groundhog is right? We’ll see!
- Staten Island Chuck agrees with ours, if that matters.
- It looks like one of the cases of voter fraud in Georgia could well be the boy (or man, in this case) who cried wolf, Lin Wood.
- If you’re at all curious as to what Georgia defines as residency, here’s that section of the state code. Yikes for him, yeah?
- Senators Ossoff and Warnock now have their committee assignments.
- Some Georgia judges are ignoring the CDC’s moratorium order on evictions during the pandemic.
- It could take years to determine the cause of last week’s fatal nitrogen gas leak at the Foundation Food Group’s Gainesville poultry processing plant.
- The Johns Creek man who was caught trying to sell 50 million non-existent N95 masks to a foreign government was sentenced in Savannah yesterday.
- Governor Kemp is trying to entice retired teachers back into the classroom.
- Here’s a good explanation of why Georgia’s vaccine rollout has been so chaotic. (Alternate link.)
- Georgia is two years behind on submitting an improvement plan for the state’s Medicaid delivery.
- Stuckey’s has bought the Atwell Pecan Company in Wrens, so now they will produce some of their confections in house. (Alternate link.)
- New COVID cases remain above the national average in Georgia, so be smart!
Alice Walker
- Officer Brian Sicknick’s remains are lying in honor at the U.S. Capitol.
- The Senate has reached a power-sharing deal, allowing Democrats to take control of committees.
- The Biden Administration will be reassessing the government’s response to domestic terrorism in the wake of the January 6th insurrection.
- While President Biden is striking a conciliatory tone with Republicans, Senate Democrats are still setting up a path to pass his stimulus plan through reconciliation. (Alternate link.)
- The House GOP leadership has, so far, punted on a decision in regards to Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.
- Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy is trying to make a deal with Majority Leader Steny Hoyer, wherein Greene would be removed from the Ed & Labor Committee, but keep her position on the Budget Committee and possibly get a new assignment elsewhere.
- Rep. Liz Cheney is also under fire, and she’s working to shore up support against those who want her out of a leadership role.
- On a party line vote, the House has agreed to levy up to $10,000 fines on lawmakers who skirt the security screenings to get onto the Floor. (Alternate link.)
- 59% of the people who would benefit from an increase in minimum wage are women.
- A study has found that the Oxford-AstraZeneca COVID vaccine slows the spread of the virus.
- Myanmar police are using an import-export charge to detain the country’s ousted leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, for two weeks amid a military coup.
- World Health Organization investigators are visiting the lab in Wuhan, China that has been at the center of speculation about COVID’s origins.
Flannery O’Connor
- This South Carolina woman explains how she escaped QAnon’s clutches.