All posts by Roger Straw

Editor, owner, publisher of The Benicia Independent
Earthjustice, Environmental justice, Trump administration

Funny video: The Birds & the Bees (Taking flight for the survival of all living things)

BirdsAndBeesPSA.com (Repost from YouTube)

Taking flight for the survival of all living things. With the voices of Sean Astin, Anjelica Huston, and Hasan Minhaj.

Did you know that 8 million metric tons of plastic enter the ocean annually? Over 1 million birds die as a result of plastic, every year. Bee colonies are reducing at a record-breaking number.

We are #OutOfTime to listen to our planet and elect leaders that care about science and humanity. We, Americans, want a sustainable future.

Take action: http://www.birdsandbeespsa.com

Follow the journey and spread the word: http://www.facebook.com/birdsandbeespsa http://www.twitter.com/birdsandbeespsa http://www.instagram.com/birdsandbeespsa

The Birds and The Bees PSA was created by concerned citizens as an act of free speech, and is not financially supported by any non-profit or political organization.

The Bird House Gang presents a Solo Pictures and Six Point Harness Animation Studios Production
Voiced by: Sean Astin Anjelica Huston Hasan Minhaj
Executive Producers: Lorraine Gallard Bob Tzudiker & Noni White
Produced by: Nancy Dickenson John L Solomon
Written by: Bob Tzudiker & Noni White
Music Producer: Hal Willner
Associate Producer: Leilah Franklin
Producer’s Assistant: Amy Harrington Stephanie Furtun
Animation Production Provided by: Six Point Harness, Inc.
Supervising Director: Greg Franklin
Directed by: Justin Young
Storyboards: Eddie Lin Ryan Jouas Chris Toms Justin Young
Character & Background Design: Adan Contreras Kati Prescott Kelsey Suan
Layouts: Eunbeal Cho Adan Contreras AnnMarie Roberts
Editor: Tony Christopherson
Animation Services: Regh Animation and Design
Audio Post Services: Studiopolis, Inc.
Supervising Producer: Vera M. Hourani
Production Manager: Max Minor
Production Coordinator: Shelby Sims
Head of Production: Barb Cimity
Sound Editor-Audio Mixer: Ernie Sheesley
Web Design: David Fodrek Heroa
Social Media Manager: Daniel E. Kaplan
Graphic Editor: Budd Diaz
Special Thanks: Vera Beren Aaron D. Berger Brendan Burch Sylvia Desrochers / Big Time PR & Marketing Rachel Fox John Kilgore (sound & recording) Stephen Nemeth Deborah Skelly Little Giant Studios, Inc. (poster design) WME Student Interns: USC School of Cinematic Arts BirdsNest Ambassadors
Coronavirus, Covid 19, Solano County CA

Solano County COVID testing passes 80,000, 7-day positive test rate falls below 3%

[For a complete archive of day by day data, see my Excel ARCHIVE – R.S.]

Friday, September 11: 15 new cases today, no new deaths.  Since the outbreak started: 5,820 cases, 48 deaths.Compare previous report, Thursday, Sept 10:Summary

  • Solano County reported 15 new cases overnight, total of 5,820 cases since the outbreak started.  Over the last 2 weeks, Solano reported 432 new cases, an average of 31 per day.
  • Deaths – no new deaths today, total of 48 Solano deaths.
  • Active cases – Solano reported 32 fewer ACTIVE cases today, total of 195.  Note that only 23 of these 195 people are hospitalized, so there are a lot of infected folks out among us, hopefully quarantined.  Is the County equipped to contact trace so many infected persons?  Who knows?  To my knowledge, Solano County has no reporting on contact tracing.
  • Hospitalizations – the number of currently hospitalized persons included 2 fewer individuals today, total of 23.  The total number hospitalized since the outbreak started increased by 3 today, total of 290.
  • ICU Beds –The County reported 43% of ICU beds available, down from 62.2% available yesterday.  Something volatile is going on in this reporting.  Yesterday, beds available were up 17% from the day before.  One wonders what is going on here.  (Still after 6 weeks, no information about availability of ventilators.)
  • Testing – The County reports today that 570 more residents were tested today, new total of 80,083.  Solano has a long way to go: only 17.9% of Solano County’s 447,643 residents (2019) have been tested.

Positive Test Rate – VERY LOW AGAIN

Solano County reported today that our 7-day average test rate remained very low today at 2.7%, following a DRAMATIC drop yesterday, when it fell from 5.2% to 2.8%.  Yesterday’s single-day dip struck me as unlikely. 7-day averages don’t normally jump like this – they are designed to “smooth out” the volatility of a daily data chart.  If these low rates can be believed, Solano’s test rate has fallen below the state of California’s rate for the first time.  Last week we saw Solano rates above 7% for the first time since we peaked at 9.3% on July 22.  The County reported a 7-day test rate low of 4.1% on August 11, with the rate peaking at 9.3% on July 22.  Health officials and news reports focus on percent positive test rates as one of the best metrics for measuring the spread of the virus.  The California 7-day test rate rose slightly today from 3.5% to 3.7%.  (Note that Solano County displays past weeks and months in a 7-day test positivity curve chart which also shows daily results.  However, the chart does not display an accurate number of cases for the most recent days, as there is a lag time in receiving test results.  The 7-day curve also lags behind current unknown results.) 

By Age Group

  • Youth 17 and under – 2 new case today, total of 639 cases, representing 11% of the 5,820 total cases.  No new hospitalizations among this age group, a total of 5 hospitalizations since the outbreak began.  Thankfully, no deaths.  In recent weeks it seems too many youth are ignoring public health orders.  Cases among Solano youth rose steadily over the summer, from 5.6% of total cases on June 8 to 11% since last week.  Youth are 22% of Solano’s general population, so this 11% may seem low.  The significance is: 1) that youth numbers are increasing steadily and at a faster rate than the other age groups, and 2) that youth are seriously NOT immune – in fact 5 youth have been hospitalized.
  • Persons 18-49 years of age – 9 new cases today, total of 3,522 cases. This age group is 41% of the population in Solano, but represents 60.5% of the 5,820 total cases, by far the highest percentage of all age groups.  The County reported 1 new hospitalization in this age group today, total of 94 hospitalized since the outbreak began.  No new deaths among this age group today, total of 4 deaths.  Some in this group are surely ignoring public health orders, and many are providing essential services among us.  I expect his group is a major factor in the spread of the virus.
  • Persons 50-64 years of age – 3 new cases today, total of 1,109 cases.  This age group represents 19% of the 5,820 total cases.
    1 new hospitalization today, total of 78 hospitalized since the outbreak began.  No new deaths  in this age group today, a total of 7 deaths.
  • Persons 65 years or older – 1 new case today, total of 548 cases, representing 9.4% of the 5,820 total cases.  1 new hospitalization today, total of 113 hospitalized since the outbreak began.  In this older age group, 20.6% of cases required hospitalization at one time.  This is a much higher percentage than in the lower age groups.  No new deaths in this age group today, total of 37 deaths.  This group accounts for 37 of the 48 deaths, or 77%.[sta_anchor id=”citydata” /]

City Data

  • Benicia added 1 new case today, total of 142 cases since the outbreak began.
  • Dixon added 1 new case today, total of 396 cases.
  • Fairfield added 5 new cases today, total of 1,898.
  • Rio Vista remained steady today, total of 38 cases.
  • Suisun City added 1 new case today, total of 419 cases.
  • Vacaville added 3 new cases today, total of 983 cases.
  • Vallejo added 4 new cases today, total of 1,926 cases.
  • Unincorporated areas remained steady today, total of 18 cases.

Cases, Hospitalizations & Deaths by Race / Ethnicity

The County report on race / ethnicity includes case numbers, hospitalizations, deaths and Solano population statistics.  Today I am again returning to the summary chart featuring all of these.  This information is discouragingly similar to national reports that indicate significantly worse outcomes among black and brown Americans.  Note that all of this data surely undercounts Latinx Americans, as there is a large group of “Multirace / Others” which likely is composed mostly of Latinex members of our communities.

  • Asian Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 9% of cases, 12% of hospitalizations, and 20% of deaths.
  • Black Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 11% of cases, but 18% of hospitalizations, and 24% of deaths.
  • Latinx Americans are 26% of Solano’s population, but account for 32% of cases, 33% of hospitalizations, and 26% of deaths.
  • White Americans are 39% of the population in Solano County, but only account for 20% of cases, 21% of hospitalizations and 20% of deaths.

The County’s new and improved Coronavirus Dashboard is full of much more information, too extensive to cover here on a daily basis.  The Benicia Independent will continue to summarize daily and highlight a report or two.  Check out the Dashboard at https://doitgis.maps.arcgis.com/apps/MapSeries/index.html?appid=055f81e9fe154da5860257e3f2489d67.

Benicia City Council, Benicia City Manager, JohnGlidden.com, Lorie Tinfow

Why did Benicia’s City Manager Lorie Tinfow resign suddenly?

By Roger Straw, September 10. 2020
Lorie Tinfow, Benicia City Manager, 2017-2020

Why did City Manager Lorie Tinfow resign suddenly?  Everyone is asking, and I wish I had an answer to that question.

Most of my friends and acquaintances held her in high regard, had no warning of her quick departure, and were shocked and saddened when the news broke.  Her resignation was effective immediately, and gave the impression of a firing or at least an unhappy crashing of relations.

I am aware that not every Benicia City Council member favored her, but I am truly shocked that we lost her at this delicate time in our city’s many struggles, including dealing with the effects of the COVID pandemic.

I take this opportunity to refer you to an excellent new source of Benicia news.  John Glidden, formerly an excellent reporter for the Vallejo Times-Herald, has struck out on his own and is covering Vallejo and Benicia news at JohnGlidden.com.  Here’s a good example of his work – covering a closed-session Benicia City Council performance evaluation of Ms. Tinfow before the sudden resignation.

If you have any information about why Ms. Tinfow resigned, please contact John Glidden via johnglidden.com/contact/ or write to me at rogrmail at gmail dot com.

 

Coronavirus, Covid 19, Solano County CA

Dramatic drop in COVID-19 test rate: Solano, Benicia, Vallejo, Fairfield, Suisun City, Rio Vista, Vacaville

[For a complete archive of day by day data, see my Excel ARCHIVE – R.S.]

Thursday, September 10: 27 new cases today, no new deaths.  Since the outbreak started: 5,805 cases, 48 deaths.Compare previous report, Wednesday, Sept 9:Summary

  • Solano County reported 27 new cases overnight, total of 5,805 cases since the outbreak started.  Over the last 2 weeks, Solano reported 477 new cases, an average of 34 per day.
  • Deaths – no new deaths today, total of 48 Solano deaths.
  • Active cases – Solano reported 7 more ACTIVE cases today, total of 227.  Note that only 25 of these 227 people are hospitalized, so there are a lot of infected folks out among us, hopefully quarantined.  Is the County equipped to contact trace so many infected persons?  Who knows?  To my knowledge, Solano County has no reporting on contact tracing.
  • Hospitalizations – the number of currently hospitalized persons included 2 fewer individuals today, total of 25.  The total number hospitalized since the outbreak started remained steady today, total of 287.
  • ICU Beds –The County reported 62.2% of ICU beds available, up 17% from yesterday (a remarkable one-day jump, one wonders what happened).  (Still after 6 weeks, no information about availability of ventilators.)
  • Testing – The County reports today that 401 more residents were tested today, new total of 79,513.  Solano has a long way to go: only 17.8% of Solano County’s 447,643 residents (2019) have been tested.

Positive Test Rate – IMPROBABLE NUMBER?

Solano County reported today that our 7-day average test rate fell DRAMATICALLY today, perhaps IMPROBABLY, from 5.2% yesterday to 2.8% today.  I find this single-day fluctuation unlikely. 7-day averages don’t normally jump like this – they are designed to “smooth out” the volatility of a daily data chart. Someone at the County is likely correcting previous errors, made a mistake, or I just don’t understand something.  If today’s low rate can be believed, Solano’s test rate has fallen below the state of California’s rate for the first time.  Last week we saw Solano rates above 7% for the first time since we peaked at 9.3% on July 22.  The County reported a 7-day test rate low of 4.1% on August 11, with the rate peaking at 9.3% on July 22.  Health officials and news reports focus on percent positive test rates as one of the best metrics for measuring the spread of the virus.  The California 7-day test rate fell today from 3.6% to 3.5%.  (Note that Solano County displays past weeks and months in a 7-day test positivity curve chart which also shows daily results.  However, the chart does not display an accurate number of cases for the most recent days, as there is a lag time in receiving test results.  The 7-day curve also lags behind current unknown results.) 

By Age Group

  • Youth 17 and under – no new case today (!), total of 637 cases, representing 11% of the 5,805 total cases.  No new hospitalizations among this age group, a total of 5 hospitalizations since the outbreak began.  Thankfully, no deaths.  In recent weeks it seems too many youth are ignoring public health orders.  Cases among Solano youth rose steadily over the summer, from 5.6% of total cases on June 8 to 11% since last week.  Youth are 22% of Solano’s general population, so this 11% may seem low.  The significance is: 1) that youth numbers are increasing steadily and at a faster rate than the other age groups, and 2) that youth are seriously NOT immune – in fact 5 youth have been hospitalized.
  • Persons 18-49 years of age – 18 new cases today, total of 3,513 cases. This age group is 41% of the population in Solano, but represents 60.5% of the 5,805 total cases, by far the highest percentage of all age groups.  The County reported no new hospitalizations in this age group today, total of 93 hospitalized since the outbreak began.  No new deaths among this age group today, total of 4 deaths.  Some in this group are surely ignoring public health orders, and many are providing essential services among us.  I expect his group is a major factor in the spread of the virus.
  • Persons 50-64 years of age – 5 new cases today, total of 1,106 cases.  This age group represents 19% of the 5,805 total cases.
    No new hospitalizations today, total of 77 hospitalized since the outbreak began.  No new deaths  in this age group today, a total of 7 deaths.
  • Persons 65 years or older – 4 new cases today, total of 547 cases, representing 9.4% of the 5,805 total cases.  No new hospitalizations today, total of 112 hospitalized since the outbreak began.  In this older age group, 20.5% of cases required hospitalization at one time.  This is a much higher percentage than in the lower age groups.  No new deaths in this age group today, total of 37 deaths.  This group accounts for 37 of the 48 deaths, or 78%.[sta_anchor id=”citydata” /]

City Data

  • Benicia added 3 new cases today, total of 141 cases since the outbreak began.
  • Dixon added 2 new cases today, total of 395 cases.
  • Fairfield added 11 new cases today, total of 1,893.
  • Rio Vista remained steady today, total of 38 cases.
  • Suisun City added 2 new cases today, total of 418 cases.
  • Vacaville added 5 new cases today, total of 980 cases.
  • Vallejo added 4 new cases today, total of 1,922 cases.
  • Unincorporated areas remained steady today, total of 18 cases.

Cases, Hospitalizations & Deaths by Race / Ethnicity

The County report on race / ethnicity includes case numbers, hospitalizations, deaths and Solano population statistics.  Today I am again returning to the summary chart featuring all of these.  This information is discouragingly similar to national reports that indicate significantly worse outcomes among black and brown Americans.  Note that all of this data surely undercounts Latinx Americans, as there is a large group of “Multirace / Others” which likely is composed mostly of Latinex members of our communities.

  • Asian Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 9% of cases, 12% of hospitalizations, and 20% of deaths.
  • Black Americans are 14% of Solano’s population, and account for 11% of cases, but 18% of hospitalizations, and 24% of deaths.
  • Latinx Americans are 26% of Solano’s population, but account for 32% of cases, 33% of hospitalizations, and 26% of deaths.
  • White Americans are 39% of the population in Solano County, but only account for 20% of cases, 21% of hospitalizations and 20% of deaths.

The County’s new and improved Coronavirus Dashboard is full of much more information, too extensive to cover here on a daily basis.  The Benicia Independent will continue to summarize daily and highlight a report or two.  Check out the Dashboard at https://doitgis.maps.arcgis.com/apps/MapSeries/index.html?appid=055f81e9fe154da5860257e3f2489d67.