7 Things: Coronavirus numbers looking better, ‘Parents’ Choice’ may be doomed this year but concern over time left in session is an excuse and more …

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February 7, 2022

7. Second union vote in Bessemer in underway

There’s already been one vote held on whether to join the Wholesale and Department Store Union at the Amazon fulfillment center in Bessemer, but the votes to unionize fell short. Now, there’s a second vote on the matter being held after there were integrity concerns with the first vote.
The effort to unionize has been supported by U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), U.S. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and President Joe Biden. Amazon spokesman Barbara Agrait said that it’s the employee’s choice to unionize and added, “As a company, we don’t think unions are the best answer for our employees. our focus remains on working directly with our employees and making Amazon a great place to work.”

6. Joe Rogan under fire for the same thing Joe Biden did

Podcaster and America’s most prominent media personality Joe Rogan is under fire again, this time for a compilation of his utterances of the uncensored n-word in the past. Spotify’s Rogan has issued an apology saying it’s a “most regretful and shameful thing.” The clips show him quoting people using the word and not one clip shows him using it with malice. The release comes after Spotify announced it would not be removing him from the platform over his airing of differing vaccine viewpoints. The Spotify CEO has already said that Rogan still won’t be removed, much to the chagrin of the mainstream media that has made him public enemy number one.
As always, if the media didn’t have double standards, they would have none at all because Rogan’s apparent crimes of quoting people accurately found him using the exact language our current president has. Now-President Joe Biden used the n-word repeatedly in the past, including in a viral clip where he quotes then-Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights William Reynolds in which he stated, “We already have a [n-word] mayor; we don’t need another [n-word] big-shot.” The instances are exactly the same but treated very differently.

5. Invasion could happen any day, but criticizing the U.S. approach is Russian disinformation

Russia has continued to show that it may very well invade Ukraine, and White House national security adviser Jake Sullivan has confirmed this. He said that the invasion could be “any day” and added, “If war breaks out, it will come at an enormous human cost to Ukraine, but we believe that based on our preparations and our response, it will come at a strategic cost to Russia as well.”
Alternatively, White House press secretary Jen Psaki and State Department spokesperson Ned Price have pushed back on questions about the handling of the Russia/Ukraine conflict, calling some of the questioning “Russian talking points” and “misinformation.”

4. Marshall files new lawsuit against Biden mandates

Alabama Attorney General Steve Marshall has filed an amended complaint against the coronavirus vaccine mandate from President Joe Biden that apply to Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), which would require all health care workers to get the vaccine or risk losing funding for their facility.
Marshall argued, “Circumstances have dramatically changed,” adding, “The mandate was promulgated in response to the Delta variant, which now accounts for only 0.1 percent of all COVID-19 cases in the United States.” He noted the vaccine doesn’t work as well against the Omicron variant. Marshall went on to explain that the mandate is damaging “the healthcare labor market across the nation—especially in rural communities—and does not account for the pandemic’s changing circumstances.”

3. Allow exceptions to constitutional carry

State Representative Shane Stringer (R-Citronelle) wants to offer some exceptions to constitutional, permitless carry for firearms to address concerns by some groups, mostly business, school and law enforcement groups.
Stringer said that some of these issues also relate to current law. He advised, “Currently, you can carry a firearm into a sporting event or school if you have an Alabama permit. They actually want to do away with that provision…I think the schools will still be able to prohibit firearms on their campuses if they choose.” Stringer went on to add, “The sheriffs have asked for a lot of different stuff, including wanting to make this apply to only Alabama citizens – which the Constitution applies to everybody, so we couldn’t do that…We’re still working with them.”

2. School choice push could be too late this year

House Majority Leader Nathaniel Ledbetter (R-Rainsville) has shown that he’s not as hopeful for State Senator Del Marsh’s (R-Anniston) school choice effort, which is also going to be carried in the State House by State Representative Charlotte Meadows (R-Montgomery).
Ledbetter said, “[R]ight now we’ve got 25 days to go in the session, it’s kind of late. And I think that the bill has got to be vetted a lot. I think what’s good for some areas may not be good for others…certain areas – my district is a good example of that…So I don’t know if you would take a shotgun approach to try to fix education. I think it’s good to have to be more laser-focused.”

1. Hospitalizations are falling

Coronavirus cases have already been decreasing across the state, and now hospitalizations have started to follow. According to the president of the Alabama Hospital Association Dr. Donald Williamson, “While inpatient hospitalizations are clearly trending in the right direction, ICUs are still a problem.”
In just over a week, hospitalizations in Alabama went from 2,961 to 2,540, according to the Alabama Department of Public Health, but the Alabama Hospital Association has been reporting about 500 ICU coronavirus patients, 300 of which are on ventilators.