New York City, where the media insists crime is down, experienced
another grim milestone with the 15th person pushed into the subway
tracks so far this year.
Saritha Komatireddy, who is running for New York State Attorney General on a public safety platform, tweeted that,
“This is the fifteenth subway push this year. A 70-year-old woman was
just shoved onto the subway tracks by a stranger who walked up behind
her at a station in Midtown Manhattan.”
The perpetrator was a ‘parolee’,
the type of criminals whom pro-crime officials like Gov. Hochul and
Attorney General Letitia James have fought for and the kind whom Mamdani
celebrated the World Cup with at Riker’s Island, and is of course a
repeat offender.
The ex-con has racked up 14 prior arrests, including for
robbing an MTA worker in 2025 and for criminal sale of a controlled
substance.
His last known address is a homeless shelter in Bedford-Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, cops said.
Most recently, Smith was arrested for burglary on June 16 after
stealing cleaning solutions from a residential building in Chelsea,
which he snuck into through a service entrance, cops said.
The story is typical enough. And while New York City racked up its
15th subway push, the Pakistani Muslim squatting in Gracie Mansion was
busy making videos ranting about Israel and Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu.
While New York City goes to hell, Mamdani remains obsessed with his Jihad against Israel.
Covid-19 waking up, Cyclospora marches on, and measles is close to hitting a milestone The Dose (July 21)
Public health continues to feel like a game of whack-a-mole. We’re sure not getting a break.
Here’s
your disease “weather” report, covering where Covid-19 is waking up and
how measles is about to make headlines (again). There is also a
spotlight on the ongoing Cyclospora outbreak, which deserves an award for the most opaque and confusing outbreak ever, leaving consumers in the dark.
Here’s what’s going on and, most importantly, what it means for you.
Disease weather report
Covid-19 is quietly waking up
Right
on cue, Covid-19 is starting to stir, just as it does every summer
around mid-July. Several data signals are pointing the same way
nationally: levels of spread and infection are still very low, but
they’re beginning to climb.
Regionally, the clearest signal is in
the West, where emergency department visits, test positivity rates, and
wastewater data are all rising, along with anecdotal reports. The South
and Midwest are showing early signs of an increase too, though the
signal there is less consistent across data sources.
A map of where Covid-19 is growing. Source: CDC
How big will this wave get?
That’s the biggest question. Each successive wave has been smaller than
the last, which is good news. But that trend isn’t guaranteed to hold,
especially since it’s been a while since our last wave and a lot of
people’s immunity has had time to fade.
What this means for you: If you’re over 65 and never got your spring Covid-19 vaccine, the time is now.
Measles milestone coming up
As
of July 19, 2026, the U.S. has reported 2,278 measles cases this
year—already nearing the total for all of 2025 with five months still to
go. At this pace, 2026 is on track to set a new 33-year record. Expect
headlines soon.
The outbreaks peppered across the U.S. include:
Pennsylvania has the fastest-growing outbreak (111 cases), which began in April.
Utah: is in its 12th month of ongoing spread. At this point, measles is endemic in the state.
Arizona: a small but new cluster of cases after they just declared the last outbreak over.
Wyoming: Very small but expanding outbreak.
What this means for you:
96% of measles cases continue to be among the unvaccinated. If you’re
up to date on vaccines, you’re very protected. If you have an infant
under 12 months and are near an outbreak, ask about getting them
vaccinated early.
Cyclospora cases continue to increase
The
United States now has over 11,000 cyclosporiasis cases across 46
states, which is close to triple the number of cases in a typical year.
You can easily see how insane this outbreak is compared to previous
years, with a massive spike in diarrhea complaints at doctor visits.
Percentage of doctor visits due to diarrhea over time. Source: PopHIVE; annotated by Your Local Epidemiologist
Several
outbreaks are running at once. Some states are seeing a low simmer from
travelers picking it up abroad and bringing it home, like in
California. New York seems to have traced its above-normal case counts
to cilantro (which seems to be over, but it’s honestly very unclear).
The Midwest is its own beast. Michigan
hit 6,148 cases as of yesterday (over 1,000 added just this weekend,
102 hospitalized) compared with a typical year of ~50 cases total. I was
hoping the daily Michigan update would show this outbreak slowing down,
but it’s not yet. Ohio’s past 2,000 and climbing, which is similarly
unusual.
The recall for iceberg lettuce is far
wider, with 27 states named. This is due to a combination of the
complexity of food distribution networks and continued uncertainty
around where people are most impacted. (See more below.)
When will this end? No
one knows. Either the contaminated food works its way out of
circulation, or it takes a few weeks, the temperatures get cool, and the
parasites no longer mature on produce (basically killing themselves
off.) It’s hard to tell from the data alone if this outbreak is coming
to a close given that it’s significantly delayed.
What this means for you:
If you’re in the 27 states, avoid all shredded iceberg lettuce. If
you’re high-risk (pregnant, over 65, or immunocompromised), I would
remain careful around produce with crevices (like raspberries).
Spotlight: This Cyclospora outbreak is a real mess
If
you feel lost trying to follow this story, and are confused about
what’s actually been impacted, where, and how, you’re not alone. This is
one of the most opaque, confusing, and unclearly communicated outbreak
responses I’ve ever seen. Most of what we know has come out through
press releases or leaks, leaving us to piece things together and read
between the lines.
Taylor Farms is still the likely source of the outbreak
You probably heard that the FDA’s initial finding linked to a Taylor Farms product was a “false positive.”
Over the weekend, the FDA announced that a lettuce sample from Taylor Farms tested positive for Cyclospora.
Within 24 hours, the FDA reversed itself, calling the result a false
positive. This is rare, but it can happen. Taylor Farms quickly deleted
its own social media posts about its bagged lettuce and boasted the FDA
had apologized to them.
But the FDA still says Taylor Farms is “overwhelmingly” linked to the outbreak. There are two reasons for this:
The
false positive was on lettuce coming from Mexico that was NOT part of
the recall. If that was a true positive, then we would need a larger
recall.
Not finding the parasite in one lab sample doesn’t mean it isn’t there.
To
find the culprit, investigators don’t rely on a single lab test. They
look at all sorts of data sources. Interviews with hundreds of sick
patients pointed clearly to Taco Bell (more than 90% of interviews
mentioned Taco Bell). And the FDA’s traceback, using invoices, shipping
records, and receipts, narrowed the source down to one farm in central
Mexico that supplies Taylor Farms de Mexico. Taylor Farms said it
provides less than 1% of the iceberg lettuce sold in the U.S., yet it’s
linked to far more than 1% of the cases. This is very strong data suggesting it’s Taylor Farms, and specifically, shredded lettuce.
A
positive lab test would have been the nail in the coffin. But finding
this parasite is like finding a needle in a haystack. It’s microscopic,
contamination levels are often very low, and scientists usually can’t
grow more of it in the lab to confirm what they find. A false positive
is a small setback, but not a reversal of how scientists got us here for
the past few weeks.
We know that this farm doesn’t just supply Taco Bell
Distribution
networks are complex, and suppliers don’t just serve one fast-food
chain; they supply grocery stores and food service operations in bulk,
too. Taylor Farms provides up to 160 million servings of produce to
stores and restaurants every week.
Buried in Taylor Farms’ own recall notice was a list of the retailers and outlets it distributed to, written in coded language, leaving everyone else to decode it themselves.
Below is a table someone put together from that. It’s still unclear
whether this list is complete, or whether Taylor Farms lettuce ends up
in other bagged salads that don’t carry the Taylor Farms name. Given
that uncertainty, the safest move right now is to avoid iceberg lettuce altogether.
We
also don’t know how this outbreak started yet. This information is
helpful for accountability and fixing systems in the future, but more
immediately, it will help us know if it’s just lettuce or
cross-contaminated with other produce.
Why is this so hard?
Watching
this unfold has been like watching a train wreck. What we are all
experiencing is a perfect storm with a few factors colliding:
Cyclosporiasis is a hard-to-investigate parasite.
Symptoms can take up to 2 weeks or more. (Can you remember what you ate
12 days ago?) This work is laborious, and confirming it requires
specialized lab testing. Often, a source is never identified.
Federal food safety agencies are stretched thin.
Neither the FDA nor the CDC has a permanent director right now, and
both agencies have lost staff and lab capacity and undergone major
reorganizations, some actively happening when the largest outbreak in
history occurred. Their centralized role is critical to help stitch
together what is happening in the states.
The private company linked to the outbreak is muddying the waters with its PR approach.
For example, in the Taylor Farms voluntary recall, they listed
customers where this lettuce was sent, but in coded language. Typically,
this information would have been shared with lot numbers, source names,
and much more clarity on where else this lettuce went, beyond Taco
Bell. There have been questions about Taylor Farms linked to this
administration and Trump White House officials as well.
What this means for you: If
you’re in the 27 states, avoid all shredded iceberg lettuce. If you’re
high-risk (pregnant, over 65, or immunocompromised), I would remain
careful around produce with crevices (like raspberries) until we are
sure there is no cross-contamination happening, too.
Good news
Big
thanks to Ms. Lillian Pollack, a summer YLE intern, for helping keep
track of all the good things that happen in public health, too. We can’t
forget about this. Here is the latest:
The Ugandan Ebola outbreak is ending. Ugandan
hospitals discharged their last Ebola patient on July 16th. They are
currently in a 42-day waiting period before the outbreak can officially
be declared over, but there are no known cases of Ebola in Uganda
anymore. (BBC)
New cholesterol-lowering prescription received FDA-approval. The
FDA just approved a new and highly effective drug for cholesterol
management. Instead of treatments that can require lifestyle or dietary
restrictions or come in an injectable format, this new prescription,
called enlicitide or brand-name Lipfendra, is an easier-to-manage pill. (NYT).
Bottom line
This
world often feels random, but public health is predictable, and when
it’s predictable, it’s preventable. Stay healthy out there.
Love, YLE
Your Local Epidemiologist
(YLE) comprises a team of experts, ranging from physicians to
immunologists to epidemiologists to nutritionists, working together with
one goal: to “translate” ever-evolving public health science so that
people are well-equipped to make evidence-based decisions. The YLE suite
of newsletters reaches over 475,000 people across more than 132
countries. This newsletter is free to everyone, thanks to the generous
support of fellow YLE community members.
On TV, they called it "a scare" and "a little flame". I have a feeling that the only thing Mamdani is "deeply disturbed" about is that the blast wasn't more powerful than it was.
------------------------------------
New York Post 7-20-26:
"An armed maniac lit an “incendiary device” Monday morning outside a
building in Lower Manhattan Monday morning that houses federal
immigration offices and courts, officials and law enforcement sources
said.
"The terrorism task force was investigating the incident, including
probing whether it was an anti-ICE attack, according to the sources.
"The suspect, a man identified by sources as a 43-year-old military
veteran from Poughkeepsie, was taken into custody. He was not
immediately charged.
"Officials said he started a blaze with gasoline and fireworks outside
of 26 Federal Plaza around 8:30 a.m. and also threatened passersby with
airsoft rifles.
"Wild video shows suspect hurl fireworks into flames outside NYC Federal Plaza
"The man was pulling a cart with “ICE off our streets” scrawled on the
side that contained two long firearms, more fireworks and other items,
sources said.
"Wild video shared on social media showed the raving suspect
hurling fireworks into the flames right outside of the building’s front
entrance, with one exploding loudly as police tackled him to the
ground.
"Officials could later be seen quickly dousing the flames.
"Another clip showed several large fireworks and debris the suspect apparently left behind, including the anti-ICE sign.
"Four civilians were treated for minor injuries, according to FDNY.
One person was taken to New York Presbyterian hospital and three others
refused medical attention.
"Omer Bulla, the manager of a Worth Street parking garage right across
the street from 26 Federal Plaza, said he and employees heard what
sounded like a pair gunshots go off.
“I don’t know what happened,” he said. “It was loud. When we looked outside the police already took the guy.”
"The Jacob K. Javits Federal Office Building is home to New York’s ICE
field office in Manhattan as well as offices for the US Department of
Homeland Security, immigration court and other federal agencies.
Lots of news this week about the Cyclosporiasis outbreak, wild fire smoke, and of course, COVID and Long COVID.
When
government agencies designed to protect Americans against threats like
foodborne illness are working correctly, you never have to think about
them because potential disasters are detected early and are contained
before they cause significant damage. Unfortunately, significant staff
cuts at the USDA, FDA, and CDC appear to have contributed to the
country’s worst Cyclosporiasis outbreak ever.
Last
year in July 2025, the CDC scaled back surveillance of foodborne
illnesses from eight pathogens to two: Salmonella and Shiga
toxin-producing E. coli (STEC). FoodNet had been tracking six additional
pathogens: Campylobacter, Cyclospora, Listeria, Shigella, Vibrio and
Yersinia which were dropped last July.
Now, the worst
Cyclosporiasis outbreak in U.S. history appears to be from lettuce
produced by Taylor Farms. Yesterday, Taylor Farms and the CDC posted
that grocery store lettuce was not affected, but then in their recall
notice, Taylor Farms stated that the Cyclospora contaminated lettuce was
distributed in 27 states (AL, AR, CT, FL, GA, IA, IL, IN, KS, KY, LA,
MA, MD, MI, MO, MS, NC, NH, NJ, OH, OK, PA, SC, TN, TX, VA, and WI) to
restaurants like Taco Bell, but also to grocery stores like Walmart
under the Marketside brand.
Unfortunately, the Taylor
Farms recall names 8 customer codes instead of full brand names. Sysco
and Walmart’s Marketside brand have been confirmed while five other
codes remain unidentified by the company. Food safety attorney Bill
Marler posted his assessment of the product brand codes which I put in a
table below.
Wildfire
smoke from Canadian wildfires caused dangerous air quality in many
places, but is now improving. Up-to-the-minute information on local air
quality can be found from citizen scientists at Purple Air.
It is important to protect yourself from “unhealthy” levels (over 151
on the air quality index) as these can trigger lung inflammation and
even heart attacks. Protection includes wearing a well-fitting N95 mask
outdoors and using air filters indoors.
COVID
levels in wastewater are just starting to increase, but overall numbers
are still quite low. CDC modeling demonstrates that as of July 15,
2026, COVID infections are increasing or likely growing in 18 states, declining in 3 states, and not changing in 28 states. The CDC wastewater map
with data through July 11, shows that Texas has moderate levels of
COVID in wastewater, while Florida, Nevada, and California have low
levels (up from “very low”).
JP Weiland also notes a visible increase in SARS-CoV-2
in wastewater, but we are still at quite low levels and he believes
that the summer wave will be limited. There are about 88,000 new COVID
cases in the U.S. each day now.
In California,
Alameda county and Sonoma county have some higher levels of COVID in
wastewater per the CDC. SARS-CoV-2 levels are very low in most of Europe
and the UK according to Bob Hawkins.
Danish
researchers looked at over 1.1 million grandparents and found that
COVID infection rates rose almost 10% following a grandchild’s birthday,
climbing to 15% when the grandchild was preschool age. The findings
point to small, informal family celebrations as a meaningful but often
overlooked transmission setting for older adults.
Researchers
from the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia examined 651 pediatric
patients and found that children with clinician confirmed Long COVID
faced 3.5x greater odds of academic decline and 4.6x greater odds of new or worsening mental health symptoms.
University
College London researchers tracked 943 children and young people and
found that Long COVID consistently presented as a cluster of multiple concurrent symptoms rather than any single defining complaint. Over two years of follow up, fatigue
was the most persistent symptom, reported at every assessment by 73.5%
of participants, with breathlessness and headaches also persisting.
A new study provides evidence of dopamine system injury in the brains of people with Long COVID.
CAMH researchers used PET scans on 24 Long COVID patients and 24
healthy controls, finding 16 to 20% lower VMAT2 binding, a marker of
dopamine neuron density, in the striatum, a part of the brain that plays
a central role in motivation, movement, learning, and cognition.
The location of the dopamine nerve damage matched specific symptoms: lower markers in the ventral striatum of the brain tracked with reduced motivation, changes in the dorsal putamen tracked with slower movement, and lower levels in the caudate tracked with worse memory. The authors concluded that dopamine boosting treatments should be tested in Long COVID patients to assess their impact on motivation, motor speed, and memory.
Researchers
at King’s College London studied 38 individuals and found that serum
from people experiencing more severe post-COVID fatigue provoked
stronger IL-13 signaling and reactive astrocyte activity in human
hippocampal cells in vitro. They concluded “our results suggest that fatigue after COVID-19 infection is associated with neuroimmune and metabolic changes in hippocampal cells, involving peripheral serotonin metabolism (5-HIAA) and cytokine signalling (IL-13).”
Researchers
at Griffith University in Australia reviewed existing evidence
identifying four biological mechanisms that may contribute to Long COVID
cognitive difficulties: viral persistence, blood brain barrier
disruption, immune cell infiltration, and microvascular injury. The
authors concluded that a definitive causal relationship between these
mechanisms and Long COVID brain fog has not yet been established.
Spanish scientists examined 120 mice
following SARS-CoV-2 infection and found that survivors exhibited
enduring behavioral changes, immune disruption in both the brain and
lungs, and measurable shrinkage of the Vagus Nerve. These effects
persisted despite no detectable virus in brain tissue. This suggests
that autonomic and immune injury,rather than direct viral invasion, drives post-COVID neurological damage.
Researchers
from the University of Bergen, Norway conducted a double blind, placebo
controlled trial examining whether nirmatrelvir-ritonavir (Paxlovid)
taken during acute COVID infection could reduce the likelihood of
developing Long COVID. Among the 144 adult participants, those who
received Paxlovid showed a meaningful drop in Long COVID rates at three
months, from 43% in the placebo group down to 26% in the treated group.
The authors caution that the modest sample size limits how broadly these
conclusions can be applied.
UCSF
scientists reviewed the 143 person Norwegian trial above that found
that early Paxlovid treatment lowered Long COVID rates at three months
from 43% to 26%. Longer follow up is needed to determine whether
Paxlovid prevents Long COVID or just speeds up symptom resolution.
Dr. Resia Pretorius of Stellenbosch University posted a tweet this week and shared a table of over 20 blood biomarkers (fibrinogen, von Willebrand factor, complement proteins, and more) trapped in Long COVID fibrinaloid microclots. Seven of the proteins showed chemical modifications
like glycation and oxidation. This may explain why standard clotting
and inflammatory panels often look normal despite clinical evidence of
microclotting, as normal blood levels may mask a functional problem if the protein is modified or is sequestered in clots.
University of Antwerp researchers followed 200 participants and found that low levels of SARS-CoV-2 Spike and Nucleocapsid proteins
lingered in the bloodstream of some individuals for up to 18 months
after infection. However, the presence of these viral remnants did not reliably distinguish people who developed Long COVID from those who did not.
These results are similar to a recent Spanish study from June showing that “SARS-CoV-2 antigens circulate in plasma up to one year after infection in a minority of individuals, regardless of whether they develop Long COVID or not” as detected by the ultra-sensitive Simoa® assay at 6-12 months post infection.
Tufts researchers tested 1,017 marine mammals
and found neutralizing SARS-CoV-2 antibodies in harbor seals, grey
seals, and California sea lions. Nasal swabs detected no active
infections, suggesting the animals had encountered the virus but were
not currently spreading it.
Researchers from Latvia propose that persistent SARS-CoV-2 spike protein may reactivate
three latent herpesviruses, HHV-6, HHV-7, and Epstein Barr virus (EBV),
through interconnected mechanisms involving chronic inflammation,
immune exhaustion, and mitochondrial stress. They review mechanisms of spike-mediated TLR activation and downstream metabolic dysfunction with NF-kB activation and IL-6 induction.
Dr.
Gary Kaplan wrote a narrative review examining evidence that persistent
inflammation, autoantibody production, and cellular immune dysfunction
underlie post-treatment Lyme disease syndrome, Long COVID, ME/CFS, and PANS/PANDAS.
These conditions share overlapping symptoms of fatigue, cognitive
dysfunction, sleep disturbance, and neuropsychiatric features. The
review evaluates the rationale for immunomodulatory therapies including IVIG, rituximab, and therapeutic plasma exchange
across these overlapping conditions, arguing that identifying patients
with measurable immune abnormalities through biomarker testing is
essential to target treatments effectively.
COVID rebound:
Using super-resolution microscopy, researchers from Stanford mapped the
viral protein nsp5 inside SARS-CoV-2 replication vesicles at nanoscale
detail. Nirmatrelvir (Paxlovid) left viral RNA and intact replication
compartments behind after treatment. Once the drug was removed, viral
replication quickly restarted, pointing to a hidden cellular reservoir
as a likely cause of COVID infection rebound.
COVID
infection can lead to autoantibodies. EPA researchers studying 302
people found that a recent COVID infection corresponded with a 10% increase in autoantibody
reactivity, suggesting the virus may prime the immune system to
mistakenly target the body’s own tissues. Elevated total IgG levels
accounted for 54% of this association, and stronger antibody responses
to the spike protein were also linked to broader patterns of
self-directed immune activity.
A review of transcutaneous auricular (ear) Vagus Nerve Stimulation (taVNS)
use in Long COVID patients appears safe and the existing evidence
suggests this approach may reduce excessive sympathetic nervous system
activity and fatigue. However, so far studies have been small and larger
studies would be needed to show direct mechanistic proof.
Conclusion from this review: “Long COVID is a multi-system syndrome driven by a core set of primary immunological mechanisms: persistent immune activation with T-cell exhaustion, autoimmunity (particularly anti-cytokine and anti-interferon antibodies), and thromboinflammation.
Secondary phenomena, including complement dysregulation, metabolic
alterations, and endothelial dysfunction, likely represent downstream
consequences or modifiers of these primary drivers rather than
independent causes.
“Among the candidate biomarkers, autoantibody profiles and cytokine panels show the most promise for clinical translation: autoantibody testing could stratify patients for immunomodulatory therapy, while elevated IL-6, IL-10, TNFα, and IP10
may serve as monitoring tools for disease activity and treatment
response. Early viral persistence (spike antigen, SARS-CoV-2 RNAemia,
and EBV reactivation) identifies high-risk individuals who might benefit
from antiviral strategies.”
Simmaron Research enrolled 76 people with ME/CFS in a phase II observational pilot trial and found that 90 days of low dose rapamycin
was associated with reduced fatigue and post-exertional malaise
alongside decreased IMPDH2 enzyme activity, lower oxidative purine
levels, and recovered mitochondrial reserve capacity. The trial did not
include a placebo group, which limits how confidently the improvements
can be attributed to the treatment itself.
As of July 16, 2026, 2,260 measles cases were reported in the United States in 2026.
Ebola in Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)
The DR Congo Health Minister reports that as of July 17, “2,267
confirmed [Ebola] cases have been recorded, including 722 patients in
isolation or hospitalization, 444 people recovered, and 893 deaths. The casefatality rate stands at 39.4%, while the contact tracing rate has reached 83.6%.”
Harvard and MGH scientists studying 60 people with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) found that the Epstein Barr virus (EBV) activates CD4+ T cells that appear to drive immune attacks on the myelin sheath protecting nerve fibers. Treatment with anti-CD20 therapy
reduced those T cells by 2.5 times and also lowered EBV levels in
saliva, providing the clearest mechanistic link yet between this EBV and
MS onset.
Photo: Epstein–Barr virus
triggers specific T cells in the immune system, which leads to an attack
on nerve cells in the brain and spinal cord. Photo Credit: Steve
Gschmeissner/SPL
Untreated Multiple Sclerosis patients had twice the CD4+ T cell immune response to Epstein Barr virus (EBV) late lytic proteins compared to controls, pointing to active viral replication as a feature of the disease. Anti CD20 therapy both reduced this elevated T cell response and eliminated EBV shedding in saliva, linking ongoing EBV viral activity to MS.
Pancreatic cancer arises from precursor lesions over more than a decade and is associated with mutant KRAS (mKRAS). A Phase I study of a peptide vaccine targeting six common KRAS mutations (mKRAS-VAX)
in 20 people with hereditary Pancreatic cancer predisposition and an
abnormal pancreas on CT scan was safe and showed that 90% of these
individuals had a significant mKRAS-specific T cell response which may
help prevent pancreatic cancer in high-risk people.
Researchers
at the Sichuan Provincial Center for Mental Health conducted a review
of scientific work since 1990 linking major depression. Their NIMETOX (NeuroImmune, METabolic, and OXidative stress)
framework proposes that these converging disruptions can compromise the
brain’s protective barriers and drive neuroinflammation as well as
direct neuronal damage.
Ed
Bambas worked for 40 years at General Motors, but when the company went
bankrupt in 2012, his pension and health insurance were replaced with a
$350,000 lump sum. Medical costs for his late wife’s illness and her
death in 2018 left him nearly bankrupt, forcing him back to work as a grocery cashier at age 80 just to make ends meet. At age 88, a viral video
by influencer Sam Weidenhofer led to almost $2 million in GoFundMe
donations from 67,000 donors for Ed to finally retire. Wanting to
pay-it-forward, he donated $50,000 of it, $1,000 each, to a GoFundMe for
50 veterans in all 50 states through a campaign called “For Your
Service.”
Neil the seal,
a beloved 2,000-pound adolescent southern elephant seal, has swum back
out to sea after another chaotic “haul-out” season on Tasmania’s roads
and beaches. Normal male elephant seal behavior includes banging against
other male elephant seals, but since there aren’t any in Hobart, he’s
been banging against traffic cones and posts. Neil is a big guy, but is
expected to reach about 8,000 pounds and 16 feet long, or as big as a
pickup truck, when he is fully grown. Authorities are planning on how to
keep both Neil and his adoring human fans safe when he next comes back
to visit.
Teenager Neil the seal in a parking lot, photo credit: Rebecca Thomson
Imagine the reaction if we were obsessed with, and spoke this way about, Muslims and blacks. There'd be 24 hour coverage on cable news; huge protest marches; and mass firings. Yet antisemites can disparage Jews this openly, and they get thousands of social media followers. At least the Mayor had this guy removed from the meeting, but it proves again that these people have tied their popularity to their hatred of Jews and of Israel.
I really dread the elections and the hateful rhetoric that will continue if the Democrats win their races, which they will win based on how antisemitic they are. How pathetic they are.
And as an aside, I hope the Jew-hating Mamdani chooses to be out of town and misses the commemorations of the 20th anniversary of the September 11 terrorist attacks. He has no right to speak.
"NJ.com reports
that an antisemite spoke at a Ocean Township meeting, ostensibly
complaining about deer, which was really meant as an antisemitic screed,
using "deer" as a dog whistle for Jews.
"Ocean
Mayor John Napolitani said George used references to the township’s
deer population as a metaphor for Jewish people, prompting the mayor to
have him removed from a July 9 meeting.
"The
dispute stems from a meeting George attended in June, when the activist —
who describes himself on social media as a Christian, public speaker
and anti-Zionist — urged the township to curtail herds of deer he described as “out of control.”
"In his statement, George suggested the township could move the deer to “Ocean County or upstate New York.”
“It’s impossible to distinguish one deer from another,” George said. “You can try to be friendly with them, but they’re extremely skittish.”
"At
the meeting, Napolitani and other officials said they would consider
ways to address George’s claims, treating his comments as a genuine
concern about wildlife.
"Napolitani said after
the meeting, he and his colleagues learned George’s references to deer
were intended as a metaphor for Jewish people.
"The speaker is Jeff George, who calls himself "JerseyGoy" online.
"His Instagram and TikTok is filled with antisemitic garbage - often "anti-Zionist" as well.
"He has over 30,000 followers on Instagram.
"George has spouted much more explicit antisemitic screeds to other local councils. In March he
told the Long Branch council that the Jews "control the military
industrial complex, the news media, the music industry, Hollywood, big
tech, big pharma, and all the big banks and banks around the world. They
control the ultraprocessed food industry, specifically designed to make
us all sick. They own and control all the smut and filth used to
subvert Christian society. They were responsible for both world wars.
They were responsible for the attacks on 9/11. They were responsible for
the COVID pandemic and the poisonous injection that they falsely
labeled a vaccine. They were responsible for Jeffrey Epstein and the
child sex ringing operation that was used to control US politicians,
celebrities, and billionaires through blackmail. And it is more than
apparent that international organized Jewry controls our Congress, our
president, this council, this mayor, and the mayor's corrupt brother,
Congressman Frank Pallone. Whether it be through blackmail or bribery, I
cannot be certain, but it is obvious you people have been compromised.
Your allegiance is to a foreign nation and not to America. "
"Local council meetings have become a hotbed for antisemitism, introduced by anti-Israel speeches nationwide and now the right-wing antisemites are getting on the bandwagon."
When I saw this headline today, I saw red. Since when is it the goal of a Mayor to arrest the Prime Minister of Israel? Not only is Mamdani a deranged, brazen Jew-hater and anti-Israel proponent, but he's now openly "desperate" to get more publicity and admiration from his fellow antisemites. He probably considers arresting Bibi an achievement in comparison with the damage he's already done to NYC. There should be a recall effort to remove him from office.
The only war criminals are terrorists and murderers like Hamas, Al Qaeda, Hezbollah, and Iran, who seek to exterminate the Jews and destroy Israel.
With this dangerous and false rhetoric against Netanyahu, I fear for his life.
The Pro-Palestine, Israel-hating, socialist pol said in an interview published Saturday that it’s unclear whether he has the authority to order the NYPD to arrest Netanyahu during the prime minister’s expected trip to the Big Apple for the U.N. General Assembly – but is in an “active conversation” with the city’s Law Department about the matter.
“I believe that Prime Minister Netanyahu belongs in The Hague,” Mamdani bluntly told The New York Times, referring to the United Nation’s International Court of Justice.
“He’s a war criminal who has been charged by the International Criminal Court. And what you will find is that it is an opinion that is held by many purely because of what his actions have wrought over these last many years.”
Mamdani – who has made accusing Israel of genocide in Gaza a focal point of a far-left ideology that his helped propel him into the national spotlight – vowed during last year’s campaign that, if elected mayoral, he’d have Netanyahu arrested if he ever set foot in NYC.
He cited the International Criminal Court’s 2024 arrest warrant for Netanyahu — which the U.S. doesn’t recognize.
However, Mamdani insisted during The Times interview that the city “won’t be writing our own laws” to lock up the prime minister, who is seeking re-election.
“Whatever the law allows me to do in New York City, that’s what we will do,” he said.
During the interview, Mamdani also complained about media coverage of his wife Rama Duwaji, who has come under fire for her long history of bashing the United States and Israel.
This includes since-deleted social media posts praising Palestinian terror groups and others attacking US service members for assisting the Jewish State.
The Syrian-American artist also once liked a social media post claiming Hamas’ rapes of Israelis during the Oct. 7, 2003 terror attack were a “mass hoax.”
“She is her own person,” Mamdani said. “She is an incredible artist, and yet so much of how she engages with the world is framed through her being my wife.
“Whatever the law allows me to do in New York City, that’s what we will do,” he said.
Netanyahu, however, remains unfazed by Mamdani’s threats.
In a recent radio appearance, he accused Mamdani of supporting Hamas.
“I think he should look at who he’s condemning, who he’s praising. He’s condemning Israel, the one democracy that stands shoulder to shoulder with American values,” the prime ministersaidduring an interview this week with Sid Rosenberg on 77 WABC.
“Who does he champion? Hamas, that calls openly to massacre every Jew on earth, that conducted that horrible massacre [on Oct. 7, 2023], the worst massacre on Jews since the Holocaust.”
He also said Mamdani “doesn’t care” that “those who hate the Jews and Israel ultimately hate America.”
“And in fact, I think secretly, he hates America,” the prime minister said.
“And if anyone should be arrested, it is @NYCMayor Zohran Mamdani,” he said in a post on X.
Netanyahu is also expected to visit DC later this month to meet with President Trump.
He was initially scheduled to arrive this weekend but postponed the visit after Sen. Lindsey Graham’s funeral was pushed back to accommodate the flood of national and international dignitaries seeking to attend.
It would mark Netanyahu’s first trip to Washington since the Iran war began in February.
This is a great refresher about the best masks to protect yourself from the oppressive Canadian wildfire smoke. If you wore these at the beginning of the COVID pandemic, you already know how well these work.
"As smoke from hundreds of Canadian wildfires
continues to degrade air quality across parts of the Midwest, Great
Lakes and Northeast, many Americans may be reaching for the disposable
or cloth face masks left over from the COVID-19 pandemic.
"However, health experts say not every mask offers meaningful protection against wildfire smoke.
"Over 830 wildfires
are burning across Canada, with more than 100 considered out of
control. Smoke from fires in Ontario and other regions has spread into
the United States, prompting air quality alerts for millions of people
and creating hazy skies from Chicago and Detroit to Cleveland, New York
City and Boston. While conditions in some areas are expected to improve
gradually through the weekend, officials warn that smoky air may linger
as long as the fires continue burning.
"The tiny
particles carried in wildfire smoke are small enough to travel deep
into the lungs, meaning the type of mask you wear, and how well it fits,
can make a significant difference.
"These
masks are designed to filter at least 95% of airborne particles as
small as 0.3 microns when fitted properly. That includes fine
particulate matter known as PM2.5, the primary pollutant found in
wildfire smoke that can penetrate deep into the respiratory system.
"Experts say a tight seal around the nose and chin
is just as important as the filter itself. Air leaking around the edges
of a mask reduces its effectiveness because unfiltered air can be
inhaled through the gaps.
"The EPA also advises
choosing a mask with two straps that go around the head, rather than ear
loops, because they're designed to create a tighter seal against the
face.
Why cloth and surgical masks aren't enough
"Basic
cloth face coverings, scarves and many disposable surgical masks are
not designed to filter the tiny particles found in wildfire smoke,
according to IQAir.
"While those masks can help
reduce the spread of large respiratory droplets during illnesses such as
COVID-19, they generally do not create a tight seal around the face and
allow smoke particles to leak through the sides.
The best way to protect yourself
"The EPA says wearing a respirator should not be the first line of defense against wildfire smoke.
"Instead,
the agency recommends staying indoors, limiting outdoor activity,
reducing physical exertion and using HEPA air cleaners when smoke levels
are elevated. People who must spend extended time outside in smoky
conditions may benefit from wearing a properly fitted N95 or P100
respirator.
"Respirators can make breathing more difficult, particularly for people
with heart or lung conditions. The EPA advises anyone with those
conditions to talk with a doctor before using one. Anyone who becomes
dizzy or has trouble breathing while wearing a respirator should move to
cleaner air and remove the mask.
"The agency also notes that respirators are not sized for children and
generally cannot provide the tight seal needed to reduce smoke exposure
Why wildfire smoke is a health concern
"Wildfire
smoke contains fine particulate matter that can irritate the eyes,
nose, throat and lungs, causing coughing, wheezing and shortness of
breath. Prolonged exposure has also been linked to inflammation,
cardiovascular problems and worsening symptoms for people with asthma or
other respiratory conditions.
"People considered most vulnerable include older adults, young children, pregnant people and those with heart or lung disease.
"With
wildfire smoke expected to continue impacting parts of the United
States as Canadian fires burn, health officials say choosing the right
mask, if one is needed, is more important than simply wearing any face covering."
Yes,
I know it’s a summer Friday afternoon, but I wanted to pop in with two
important health updates that might be useful as you head into the
weekend. If you’re in the Midwest or Northeast, you’ve probably already
noticed it just by looking out the window: air pollution is at extremely
high levels right now. We also just got an update on the source of the
cyclosporiasis outbreak.
Here’s what it all means for your health. I’ll keep it quick.
Air pollution is at extremely high, dangerous levels
Air pollution levels in Chicago, Detroit, New York, and DC are the worst in
the world right now. We are starting to see it on the West Coast too.
All from wildfire smoke. I called my friend, Dr. Joseph Allen—a
professor of exposure assessment science—to help break this down for
you.
This is very dangerous for everyone’s health — not just people with high-risk conditions. Wildfire smoke contains tiny particles less than 2.5 microns in diameter (PM2.5)
that can enter the lungs and irritate our respiratory linings, as well
as toxic gases. Once wildfire particles hit your lungs, your body reacts
like it’s under attack: it triggers inflammation and puts stress on
blood vessels that spreads beyond the lungs into the bloodstream. That
inflammation makes blood clot more easily and can destabilize plaque in
your arteries, which is why breathing bad air can trigger a heart
attack, not just breathing problems.
The more smoke
inhaled, the higher the risk to your health. For every 10 micrograms per
meter (μg/m3) increase, the heart attack risk increases by 2.5%. So if
baseline air pollution in DC is 10 and it’s currently 160, the increased
risk of heart attacks is close to 40%. In some places, air quality
ranges from 300 to 900. You can do the math, but this is not good.
Here's
another way to think about risk, though the comparison isn’t perfect:
spending an hour in "purple" air quality is roughly equivalent to smoking half a pack of cigarettes.
Some
people are at higher risk than others (like pregnant women, older
adults, children, and people with pre-existing respiratory or heart
conditions), but once it reaches “unhealthy” levels (over 151 on the air
quality index), everyone should take action:
Keep checking air quality; it will ebb and flow over the next few days. My go-to is Purple Air, but you can alsodownload the EPA’s AirNow mobile app. Dr. Matt Willis had a great look at air quality apps in our California newsletter last week—check it out here.
Yes, an N95 mask works if you need to go outside during unhealthy levels. The “95” means at least 95% removal efficiency of particles like those in wildfire smoke. Research found
that N95s reduced hospitalizations from wildfire smoke by 30%. In other
words, it offers some protection, at least in the short term, while
running to the grocery store. Cloth, paper, and tissue masks will not filter out the smoke.
Air pollution can get inside our buildings;
in fact, we breathe more outdoor air pollution indoors because we spend
so much time indoors. There are several things we can do:
Have good filtration for the particles and gases.
HEPA filter units are good for cleaning the air in individual rooms,
while MERV 13 or higher filters are good for entire HVAC systems. You
can also create a low-cost air cleaner for inside your house (see
picture below). There are portable air cleaners that can capture both
particles and gases (but these get expensive).
Source: Yale School of Public Health
b. Run your system 24/7, even if it’s on “fan only” mode, if you have a central system. If not, the air isn’t passing through filters.
c. Get an indoor air quality monitor that measures PM2.5. Then you can compare your indoor levels to what’s outside to be sure your filtration is working properly.
d. When this mess is all done, make sure you change your AC filter. Many
filters rely on electrostatic charge, and because wildfire smoke is
charged, it can reduce the filter’s effectiveness significantly because
it ‘depletes’ the charge.
Finally, some clues for an explosive diarrhea outbreak
The
number of people getting sick continues to rise in the Midwest, and we
are finally starting to get clarity on the likely culprit: shredded iceberg lettuce. The federal government named Taco Bell. The FDA reports
that in epidemiological investigations (i.e., patient interviews),
Michigan found that roughly 90% of people who got sick reported eating
at Taco Bell in the prior 10 days.
Source: Health Security Operations Center
However, I find it very hard to believe it’s just Taco Bell, and I am hearing
from the public and investigations that this isn’t the case. Produce
distributors don’t just supply one fast-food chain; they typically
supply many retail grocery and food service bulk. It’s incredibly
unusual that the federal government didn’t name the supplier. However,
the Washington Post reported
yesterday that the culprit is Taylor Farms. Taylor Farms feeds up to
160 million servings of produce to stores and restaurants each week.
What does this mean to you?Avoid shredded iceberg lettuce in these hotspot states, and I am personally avoiding it beyond Taco Bell.
I’m
hopeful the circulation of these products is close to (or possibly even
out) of circulation, given lettuce’s shelf life, but we don’t have data
showing that yet. We also don’t know whether there’s
cross-contamination, so if I were at high risk (like a pregnant woman) in this area, I would remain cautious about certain other produce. Hopefully, we see this outbreak finally calm down soon.
Bottom line
The world of public health never gets boring. Stay healthy out there.
Love, YLE
Your Local Epidemiologist
(YLE) comprises a team of experts, ranging from physicians to
immunologists to epidemiologists to nutritionists, working together with
one goal: to “translate” ever-evolving public health science so that
people are well-equipped to make evidence-based decisions. The YLE suite
of newsletters reaches over 475,000 people across more than 132
countries. This newsletter is free to everyone, thanks to the generous
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