Mike's Blog Round Up For Wednesday

Rare but deadly blood clots tied to Johnson & Johnson and AstraZeneca Plc’s Covid-19 shots were caused by an autoimmune reaction that some people are predisposed to, researchers found, a discovery that they say will shape development of future vaccines. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Adenovirus-based vaccines, like the J&J and AstraZeneca shots that were later pulled from the market, contain a component that, in genetically susceptible people, can trigger the production of unusually structured antibodies against a protein involved in blood clotting, scientists said Wednesday in a letter to the New England Journal of Medicine.

Open thread below read more

New York City Mayor Eric Adams suggested Tuesday that immigrants could help solve the city’s lifeguard shortage because they’re “excellent swimmers,” a remark that sparked outrage among immigrant advocates and confusion among lifeguards. At a press conference on Tuesday, a reporter asked Adams for an update on the city’s lifeguard shortage in light of Memorial Day approaching.

Five years after Amazon.com Inc. raised wages to $15 an hour, half of warehouse workers surveyed by researchers say they struggle to afford enough food or a place to live. The national study, published Wednesday by the University of Illinois Chicago’s Center for Urban Economic Development, asked U. S. employees about their economic wellbeing, including whether they’d skipped meals, went hungry, or were worried about being able to make rent or mortgage payments. [time-brightcove not-tgx=”true”] Fifty-three percent of respondents reported that they’d experienced one or more forms of food insecurity in the prior three months, and 48% experienced one or more forms of housing insecurity.

After an Arizona grand jury indicted 18 people in late April, including Rudy Giuliani and Mark Meadows, over an alleged attempt to alter the results of the 2020 presidential election, prosecutors in the state have tried for weeks to serve Donald Trump's former bug-eyed attorney with notice of his indictment.

George Conway turned directly to the camera and addressed Donald Trump about why he will not testify in his election interference trial. Trump's lawyers indicated they haven't made a decision about his testimony, but as Conway pointed out, he'd be shredded in about 3 minutes because, as one of Trump's prior lawyers pointed out, "he's an effing liar." Conway also reminded viewers that he doesn't listen to his lawyers, instead making his own poor decisions about how the trial should go, which is why the cross-examination of Stormy Daniels was such a failure. "If he doesn't testify, it's not going to be because he all of a sudden decided to follow legal advice," Conway asserted.