BUCKNACKT'S SORDID TAWDRY BLOG
We should not be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive & well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, chocolate, bier or wein in hand, body thoroughly used up, totally worn out and screaming "WHOO-HOO, WHAT A RIDE!!!!!!"
The winter storms that barreled through Texas and other states last week are another devastating wake-up call: The climate crisis is here, and we are not prepared.
As snow fell and temperatures dropped below zero in Texas, more than 4 million people lost power, and nearly 15 million have lacked safe water.
Families were burning whatever they could find to keep their children from freezing; heating rocks over fire pits to take inside for warmth; dying from carbon monoxide fumes after leaving cars running for heat; and risking contracting COVID-19 by gathering in makeshift shelters rather than freezing at home.
Low-income communities, Black people, and Latinos in the state have suffered most, in yet another manifestation of the environmental injustice that inflicts the greatest harm on the most vulnerable people.
What's happening in Texas is part of a larger story about the mounting costs and widening dangers of climate change. Here's what you need to know:
While it might seem counterintuitive, scientists see a strong link between the harsh winter temperatures and the warming of the planet. Higher temperatures are disrupting the jet stream, allowing arctic air to make its way farther and faster southward than normal, bringing icy temperatures that can make winter storms more devastating.
Climate-busting fossil fuels were to blame for the vast majority of power outages in the state. About 80 percent of the power outages in Texas were caused by systems that rely on gas, coal, or uranium, which provide about three-fourths of the state's electricity. Read more.
Texas gets about a quarter of its electricity from wind turbines. While some turbines froze last week, when properly equipped, wind turbines perform well in cold temperatures, as they do in Canada, Sweden, and for that matter, Iowa.
The extreme cold and power outages froze and burst water pipes and shut down water treatment systems, leaving millions of people without safe drinking water. This latest tragic example reveals once again a disastrous lack of preparedness to deal with drinking water emergencies in the United States. The same thing has happened over and over in recent decades — in Louisiana, Puerto Rico, California, Ohio, and elsewhere — after hurricanes, wildfires, floods, and other disasters, with low-income communities and communities of color hardest hit. Read more.
The outages also caused a tremendous spike in health-harming, climate-warming air pollution. With no power, oil refineries along the Gulf Coast burned gas to prevent damage from taking place in their processing units, sending thousands of tons of dangerous pollution into the atmosphere. In Houston last week, energy facilities burned off over 703,000 pounds of pollutants like carbon monoxide, benzene, hydrogen sulfide, and sulfur dioxide.
This disaster underscores the need for the U.S. to invest even more in clean and reliable renewable energy and to prepare our energy and water infrastructure for the effects of climate change. We know we need to cut our use of fossil fuels like oil, coal, and gas in half by 2030, and stop adding more carbon pollution to the atmosphere altogether by 2050, to avert the worst of raging wildfires, floods, storms, and, yes, frigid blasts of arctic air, going forward.
To prevent massive power failures and resulting devastation to vulnerable communities in the future, we must also invest in a smarter, more resilient electric grid in Texas and across the country that can withstand the extreme weather fueled by climate change.
In addition, states' repeated failure to ensure access to safe drinking water during emergencies proves that our water infrastructure is not equipped to withstand the impacts of climate change, and current emergency response plans are inadequate. We need a massive, systemic overhaul.
President Biden has committed to combating climate change, improving America's infrastructure, growing our clean energy economy, and ensuring clean and safe drinking water for all. Last week's storms demonstrate yet again the urgency of that work.
We need systems that are built to survive severe weather — including hurricanes, flooding, and winter storms — and that have the flexibility to deliver additional power when demand spikes due to heat waves and arctic blasts. We have the technology to do it — now we need to put it into action.
Thank you for fighting alongside us for a just transition to clean energy and a safer, healthier, and better future.
Sincerely, Mitch Bernard President, NRDC
The mission of the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) is to safeguard the Earth: its people, its plants and animals, and the natural systems on which all life depends.
We appreciate the opportunity to communicate with you and other NRDC Activists. We are committed to protecting your privacy and will never sell, exchange or rent your email address.
Natural Resources Defense Council | 40 West 20th Street | New York, NY 10011 www.nrdc.org
Big energy companies have been flooding Texas politicians with big money for years to get their way, and this week we got the tragic results of their corruption of our government and power grid.
Vulnerable Texans don't have access to water, old folks risk freezing to death, and rolling blackouts have turned into 4-day power failures, causing havoc. This is because oil and gas companies spent a lot of money to make sure that Texas energy is deregulated and not on the national grid.
That means that we can't borrow power from other states, and it means that the power giants don't have to spend money on making sure our power system is protected from cold winter weather.
Craig, the bottom line is this: the Texas GOP has spent YEARS taking oil money and neglecting our energy grid. Blood is now on their hands, and what's very clear is that we can't let these very dangerous people control our state.
Onward,
Jim Hightower National Board Member
My name is Kristi, and I’m an Our Revolution organizer in Texas and have been a part of the Bernie Sanders movement from the start.
In this email, I’m going to talk about how my fellow Texans are suffering because of Republican greed. I’m also going to talk about how we can beat them through organizing.
Decades ago, corporations paid off politicians to support the deregulation of the Texas energy market and limit federal oversight of our energy grid.
This week, like so many fellow Texans, I lost sewer and water service for days, our water pipes burst. I know many apartment complexes have been literal disaster zones. The hell we are experiencing from this storm disaster is shared by millions of Texans.
Senator Ted Cruz, who gets millions of dollars from energy companies that profit from the deregulation that directly led to my misery, decided to escape Texas last night and flee to a luxury vacation resort in Mexico.
To them, the suffering of millions of Texans this week is a game. Human beings froze to death, and Ted Cruz thought it was a good time for a cocktail on the beach.
More than anything else, this week has strengthened my resolve as an Our Revolution Texas organizer. We can’t let these greedy sociopaths run our lives any longer.
That’s why Our Revolution launched our Power To The People Campaign last night on Facebook Live to denounce the privatization and plunder of public services. We are demanding that Ted Cruz and other Texas officials resign, and we are going to fight for a Green New Deal and public energy for all, not just the privileged few.
Craig -
In Texas today, following an unprecedented winter storm, millions of people are without drinking water due to power failures at water treatment facilities. Millions were without electricity as a result of major disruptions to Texas's power grid and people were unable to heat their homes while temperatures were below freezing. And many experienced serious damage to their homes from frozen and burst water pipes.
Let me be very clear:
When we talk about the existential threat of climate change, this is what we are talking about. And unless we have the courage to take on the greed and lies of the fossil fuel industry, and transition to energy efficiency and sustainable energy, we will continue to experience the catastrophic effects of the climate crisis.
What the scientists are telling us very clearly is that if we, and countries around the world, do not act boldly within the next few years in transforming our energy systems away from fossil fuel and into energy efficiency and sustainable energy, the planet we will be leaving our kids and future generations will become increasingly unhealthy and uninhabitable.
It is past time for the United States to treat climate change like what it is: an emergency that is an existential threat to humanity that requires an urgent, massive response.
The good news is that Congress will soon be taking up a second reconciliation package that will, among other things, address the climate crisis by creating millions of jobs to transform our energy system away from fossil fuels and toward energy efficiency and sustainable energy. The goal of this second reconciliation bill is to deal with the structural changes our country desperately needs and create a government that works for all of our people, not just the 1%.
The bad news is that we will be going up against the fossil fuel industry, which is one of the most powerful political forces in the country with an army of lobbyists, PACs, and bought-and-sold legislators. But it is a fight that is worth having if we care about saving our planet for generations to come.
The only way that we can be successful in the fight against climate change is if the American people stand up to the fossil fuel industry and make their voices heard. So I’m asking you today:
Let's be clear. Failure to act decisively on climate change will mean more drought, more famine, more rising sea levels, more floods, more ocean acidification, more extreme weather disturbances, more disease, more strain on electrical grids, more blackouts, and more human suffering. Climate change is about our survival of the human race.
But some people — including my colleagues in the Senate — will say, "Well, Bernie, how can we afford to act on climate change?"
The question we should really be asking is how can we afford to do nothing while climate change causes more destruction and human suffering?
The scientists have said very clearly that if we do not act boldly within the next few years to transition to energy efficiency and sustainable energy, the planet we leave our kids and future generations will be increasingly unhealthy and uninhabitable.
I wish I could say we could address our climate crisis with a few tweaks at the edges. But I cannot say that. Now more than ever, we need Congress to have the courage to act boldly to effectively address the existential threat of climate change.
We can meet the challenges of this moment AND create millions of jobs in the process. These jobs will be good-paying jobs building the new electric cars and high-speed rail systems that we need, weatherizing millions of homes and buildings, rebuilding our nation's infrastructure, and generating sustainable energy.
During this difficult time in American history, we must not turn to despair. Now is the time to fundamentally rethink our national priorities and imagine the kind of country that we want to become. That means ending the disgrace of the fossil fuel industry destroying the planet to make a profit.
I cannot do it alone, which is why I am asking you to say you will join me in this effort:
If we are going to save our planet for future generations, now is not the time to think small. Thank you for being a part of our fight to confront the climate crisis.
NEO-NAZI Rep steve scalise fr*LA is a disgrace to the US House of Representatives and to the nation as a whole. Unfortunately he is typical of the gop / greed over people-republican party, if he wasn't he would have been removed from his parteifuhrungsposten. scalise followed the lead of neo-nazi Rep kevin mccarthy fr*CA, the gop oberparteifuhrung in the US House and made a pilgrimage to mar-a-lago to kiss and lick drumpf's/trump's ass so scalise is not going to go against the party leadership and do the right thing. The only member of the gop House leadership with the courage to do that is Rep Liz Cheney R WY. This from The Guardian.....
A senior Republican House leader has refused to admit Joe Biden won the 2020 presidential election against Donald Trump.
Congressman Steve Scalise of Louisiana, the House minority whip, appeared on ABC’s This Week more than three months after Biden won the electoral college 306-232 and the popular vote by more than 7m ballots and just over a month after the Democrat was sworn into office.
Trump now lives in Florida but he has refused to accept reality and concede, even after having the vast majority of cases mounted to pursue baseless claims of voter fraud laughed and thrown out of court.
He was impeached a second time for inciting the attack on the US Capitol on 6 January, having told supporters to “fight like hell” to overturn the election. Thanks to Republicans in the Senate, he was acquitted.
“Clear this up for me,” ABC host Jonathan Karl said to Scalise on Sunday. “Joe Biden won the election. He is the legitimate president of the United States. The election was not stolen, correct?”
“Look,” Scalise said, “Joe Biden’s the president. There were a few states that did not follow their state laws. That’s really the dispute that you’ve seen continue on.
“And, look, if you’re Joe Biden, you probably want to keep talking about impeachment and anything other than the fact that he’s killed millions of American energy jobs, that … they just signed the Paris [climate] accord. It’s going to kill manufacturing jobs in America.
“But at the end of the day, when you look at where we are in this country, either we’re going to address the problems that happened with the election that … millions of people are still concerned about, the constitution says state legislatures set the rules for elections, that didn’t happen in a few states, and so, going forward – look, Joe Biden’s the president. But does he...”
Karl interjected.
“But, congressman, I know Joe Biden’s the president. He lives at the White House. I asked you, is he the legitimate president of the United States, and do you concede that this election was not stolen? Very simple question. Please just answer it.”
“Look,” said Scalise, not answering the question. “Once the electors are counted, yes, he’s the legitimate president. But if you’re going to ignore the fact that there were states that did not follow their own … laws, that’s the issue at heart, that millions of people still are not happy with and don’t want to see happen again.
“You know, look … you can rehash the election from 2020 all day long, but there are people concerned about what the next election is going to look like. Are we going to finally get back to the way the rule of law works?”
Scalise’s comment about the rule of law echoed statements from Trump, his supporters and his lawyers, who have insisted he represents the forces of law and order despite having incited an assault on Congress in which a police officer was one of five people killed and scores of others were injured.
Scalise told Karl he had recently visited Trump.
“I was doing some fundraising throughout a number of parts of Florida,” he said, “ended up at Mar-a-Lago, and the president reached out, and we visited. I hadn’t seen him since he had left the White House. And it was actually good to catch up with him. I noticed he was a lot more relaxed than in his four years in the White House.
“He still cares a lot about this country and the direction of our country. But, you know, it was a conversation more about how he’s doing now and what he’s … planning on doing and how his family is doing.”
In the long term, Trump’s plans may include another run for office – or other ways of keeping congressional Republicans firmly under his thumb. In the short term, the former president will next week address the Conservative Political Action Conference, or CPAC, in Florida.
I remember this song from the turbulent times of the late sixties and early seventies and how some things got better and too many got worse. We are in a period of epic change now and need to join together to heal the nation and repair the damage done by four years of corruption, of authoritarianism, of fascism of the drumpf / trump-pence administration and gop / greed over people-republican control of the US Senate.
Verse of the day
You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh; rather, serve one another humbly in love.
- Galatians 5:13 (NIV)
Voice of the day
The cause of freedom is not the cause of a race or a sect, a party or a class - it is the cause of humankind, the very birthright of humanity.
- Anna Julia Cooper, A Voice from the South (1892)
Prayer of the day
God, in your Word you have given us a vision of that holy city to which the nations of the world bring their glory. Enable us to eliminate poverty, prejudice, and oppression, that peace may prevail with righteousness, and justice with order, and that people from different cultures and with differing talents may find with one another the fulfillment of their humanity.
Written more than 50 years ago, the Bob Dylan classic "The Times They Are A-Changin'" is as relevant today as it was then. We invite you to enjoy this touching rendition performed by Brandi Carlile along with Mike McCready (Pearl Jam) from our recent event, celebrating the 75th anniversary of the UN, Peace Through Music. Change is inevitable. It's up to us to create change that uplifts, change that betters ourselves and humankind, and change that is for the good and for the love of everyone. Let's stand strong, united in one love, and be the positive change we want to see in the world.
CREDITS:
Brandi Carlile: vocals and acoustic guitar
Mike McCready (Pearl Jam): vocals and electric guitar
Phil Hanseroth: vocals and acoustic guitar
Tim Hanseroth: vocals and acoustic guitar
Biko | Peter Gabriel | Playing For Change | Song Around The World
“You can blow out a candle, but you can't blow out a fire. Once the flames begin to catch, the wind will blow it higher.” – Peter Gabriel, Biko
In honor of Black History Month, we are proud to bring the message of Peter Gabriel’s “Biko” back to the forefront, 40 years after its initial release. Inspired by the death of anti-apartheid activist Steve Biko while in police custody, this song’s relevance still holds true with the unfortunate police brutality that continues to take place in the USA, Nigeria and many places around the world. More than 25 musicians from seven countries join Gabriel for this global rendition to share a message of unity, peace, and hope, including Beninese vocalist and activist Angélique Kidjo, Silkroad’s Yo-Yo Ma, and bass legend Meshell Ndegeocello.
The eyes of the world are watching… Let each of us lead with love and let that love ripple throughout the universe.
Produced by Sebastian Robertson and Mark Johnson
The Biden administration has issued a mask mandate, requiring individuals to wear masks on federal property, and he's encouraging all Americans to wear them in public for 100 days. Face coverings are also required on planes, trains, buses and at airports, renewing questions about which kinds of masks provide the best protection against COVID-19, as well as where to find them.
The goal of the "100 Days Masking Challenge" is to curb the rapid spread of the coronavirus, which has already claimed the lives of more than 400,000 Americans. Indeed, a study published on January 19 in the Lancet Digital Health journal Studies found that increasing mask-wearing across the U.S. by just 10% would significantly curb the transmission of the coronavirus.
Mask-wearing is even more effective when the face coverings fit properly and efficiently filter aerosol particles, according to medical experts.
"In addition to filtration, fit is the most important factor," said Devabhaktuni Srikrishna, founder of global-health platform Patient Knowhow, which curates educational health content for the general public.
"Even if you're wearing a high-quality mask, if it doesn't contact your face, it's going to leak all around. The best masks have a very solid, tight seal so that air doesn't leak. Effectively, a low fit equals low filtration," Srikrishna said.
Megan Ranney, an emergency physician at the Rhode Island Hospital, ranked generally available mask alternatives from most effective to least effective, noting that typically, any kind of face covering is better than none at all.
N95s provide the most filtration, according to Ranney, followed by so-called KN95 masks. Regular surgical masks are the next best option, followed by double-layer cloth masks with a filter worn in-between the two layers. Double-layer and single-layer cloth masks without filters tend to be the least efficient, she said.
"Anytime you take a step up, you're going to get a little more protection. Within cloth or homemade masks, things that make them better include having two layers of cloth with a filter in between the two layers, like a vacuum bag filter, and having the cloth be tightly woven," Ranney said.
Dr. Tom Frieden, who was the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from 2009 to 2017, echoed Ranney's advice in a tweet Sunday.
"N95 masks are the most protective masks, followed by three-ply surgical masks, then fabric masks. A fabric mask is a lot better than no mask, but we may need to step up our mask game if contagious Covid variants start to spread widely," he said.
The N95 — king of all masks
An N95 approval rating by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health means that a mask has been rigorously tested and verified by the federal government and filters at least 95% of airborne particles.
NIOSH maintains a list of approved respirators by brand. Because N95-approved masks remain in short supply, however, experts still recommend that they only be used by health care providers.
Health care and industrial product manufacturer 3M on Friday acknowledged that it is still struggling to meet demand from frontline workers, despite quadrupling production in the U.S. Currently, it is making 95 million respirators per month.
"I generally ask the public to not purchase N95s because the authentic ones are still in short supply for health care workers," Ranney said.
Proper fit, meanwhile, which is also key, is difficult for the layperson to achieve.
"Within health care, before we are allowed to go take care of patients in an N95 or equivalent mask, we have to go through fit testing where they have us move our head around and see if a bitter spray gets through the mask. An average member of the public can't do a fit test, that's why we've been hesitant to recommend that the public wear N95s," Ranney added.
Brian Wolin, whose work as a chiropractor has slowed since the onset of the pandemic, has been selling NIOSH-approved N95 masks through his company, Protective Health Gear, based in Paterson, New Jersey. Initially, his goal was to help meet hospitals' masks needs. He's now urging the general public to wear the respirators, too.
Chiropractor Brian Wolin is selling USA-made, NIOSH approved N95s through his newly formed company, Protective Health Gear. PROTECTIVE HEALTH GEAR
"We feel it's very important to sell to the general public now. I think if everyone on the planet wore one of these things for 30 days, we would take care of this thing," Wolin said.
He acknowledged the importance of fit testing in health care settings but insists that regular individuals can easily mold Protective Health Gear's masks to form a tight seal on their faces. A box of 50 N95 respirators costs $199 at protectivehealthgear.com.
While NIOSH-approved N95 masks are among the most rigorously tested for a variety of factors including filtration, breathability and durability, there are other effective alternatives suitable for general use when N95s aren't available.
Elastomeric masks
Srikrishna recommends reusable elastomeric masks, which are more durable and cost-effective than disposable N95s.
Elastomeric masks provide a high level of respiratory protection, and can be paired with disposable filters. The masks themselves are made of a flexible material similar to rubber and can be adjusted to fit snuggly across the wearer's face.
A 2020 study published in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons found that of those health care workers who swapped disposable N95 masks for the elastomeric variety — paired with a P100 filter — none returned to wearing an N95 mask.
"Our clinicians were very comfortable with the fit, knowing it was an equivalent if not superior amount of protection, and that these masks were intended to be reused," Dr. Sricharan Chalikonda, the study's lead author, said in a statement.
The elastomeric mask shell is sold separately from the filter. Srikrishna recommends pairing the masks with a P95 filter, as opposed to a P100 filter, for easier breathability. Another plus to elastomeric masks: They are relatively easy to find. A 3M version is available for $15 on Amazon, as are P95 particulate filters — sold separately.
Elastomeric masks like the one pictured above are highly effective and are not in short supply.3M / AMAZON.COM
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also approves the use of elastomeric masks, calling them "equivalent protection" to N95 masks.
KN95s from China
KN95 masks look similar to N95 masks but meet completely different standards. Whereas N95 masks are NIOSH-certified, KN95 masks meet the Chinese government's standards for certification.
Given that the quality of KN95 masks is wildly inconsistent, experts in the U.S. are leery of them, particularly those sold on platforms like eBay and Amazon. A September report from ECRI, a nonprofit health care safety organization, found that up to 70% of KN95 masks did not meet U.S. standards of effectiveness. In other words, they did not filter 95% of aerosol particulates, as their name suggests.
Of course, average consumers are unlikely to have the time and tools to inspect the masks themselves.
"In health care we generally avoid the KN95s at this point," ER physician Ranney said. Ranney is co-founder of GetUsPPE.org, a site that provides donated PPE to frontline workers and under-resourced communities.
Ranney said her organization received batches of donated KN95s, a number of which failed the group's inspection process. "Cloth masks that fit really well and have a filter in between layers are going to be more dependable," she said.
The Food and Drug Administration does however provide a list of KN95 masks it authorizes for emergency use by health care professionals.
Among them are KN95 masks from Chengde Technology, which cost $15 for a pack of 10. They're available here.
Powecom KN95 masks are also FDA-approved for emergency use. Office Depot sells a 10-pack for $10.
Powecom KN95 masks are approved for emergency use in health care settings by the FDA. Still, they are not NIOSH certified. POWECOM / OFFICE DEPOT
KF94s from South Korea
KF94 masks, which meet standards set by the South Korean government, are generally seen as more consistent in quality than the KN95's from China, but still are not fully approved for use in health care settings in the U.S.
Korean cosmetics company Be Healthy sells KF94 masks imported from South Korea from a variety of different manufacturers. All of the products sold by the online company must meet South Korean standards, and some are also approved for use in Europe.
A study from the National Center for Biotechnology Information, comparing the effectiveness of surgical N95 and KF94 masks, found both types of masks to be equally effective.
Unmasking counterfeits
Of course, given the shortage of N95 masks, counterfeits abound. Telltale signs of fake N95 respirators, according to the CDC, include masks with no markings or approval number on the face piece and no NIOSH markings. Other red flags include decorative add-ons such as sequins, and claims of approval for children. Packaging claims that a product is "legitimate" or "genuine" can also be indicative that it is not, according to the CDC.
YES these freaks are out there ( I bet he's related to that fotze betsy devos ), let's just hope this one hasn't been able to breed. From the Washington Post.....
When a pharmacist discovered that 57 vials of the Moderna vaccine were left to spoil outside a Wisconsin clinic’s refrigerator in December, the worker immediately suspected a colleague who had spread false and outlandish claims, according to court records.
For months, Steven Brandenburg, the overnight pharmacist at Aurora Medical Center in Grafton, Wis., had said he thought the vaccine would harm people, make them infertile and implant them with microchips.
Now, federal authorities say his belief in debunked claims went beyond the vaccine. The pharmacist, who has agreed to plead guilty to charges of attempting to spoil the vaccine, also believes the Earth is flat and that the sky is not real, according to court documents.
His beliefs were revealed in court after a search of Brandenburg’s phone, computer and hard drive by the FBI. The documents include interviews with Brandenburg and Aurora Medical Center pharmacy technicianSarah Sticker, who told authorities she discovered the unrefrigerated doses of the Moderna vaccine at around 3 a.m. on Dec. 26. The unsealed records were first reported by the Daily Beast.
“Brandenburg was very engaged in conspiracy theories,” Sticker told law enforcement, according to court records.
Jason D. Baltz, Brandenburg’s attorney, declined to comment to The Washington Post late Sunday.
The pharmacist removed 57 vials, each containing enough for 10 vaccinations, of the Moderna vaccine from the hospital’s refrigerators the nights of Dec. 24 and Dec. 25, prosecutors say.
On the first evening, he left the vaccine doses unrefrigerated for about threehours before placing them back inside the refrigerator, Brandenburg told authorities. The following day, he said he once again removed the doses, which Sticker found after they had been unrefrigerated for about nine hours.
The incident prompted an investigation by the FBI, the Grafton Police Department and the Food and Drug Administration. The hospital was forced to discard nearly 600 doses following the incident. On Dec. 26., 57 patients were given the Moderna coronavirus vaccine that had been left out of the refrigerator by Brandenburg, according to court records. A hospital administrator told investigators they would not have used the vaccine had they known it was removed from refrigeration on Dec. 24.
The hospital, which launched an internal investigation prompted by Sticker’s findings, said it was initially “led to believe” the incident had been caused by “an inadvertent human error.”
But on Dec. 30, authorities said, Brandenburg admitted to intentionally removing the vials.
“I did so with the purpose of allowing the vaccine to be outside the temperature range so that it would not be effective,” Brandenburg said in anemail to Advocate Aurora Health investigators, noting he believed the vaccine “would be harmful to individuals that receive it.”
That same day, Advocate Aurora Health announced Brandenburg no longer worked at the hospital.
In another interview with authorities, Sticker said Brandenburg sent her text messages promoting false beliefs he supported, including that the sky was not really the sky but a “shield put up by the government to prevent individuals from seeing God,” court records show.
Brandenburg, in a separate interview with the Grafton Police Department and the FBI, said “he has had an interest in conspiracy theories” for the past seven years.
Brandenburg is expected to appear in court on Feb. 9.
Andrea Salcedo is a reporter on The Washington Post's Morning Mix team. Before joining The Post in 2020, she covered breaking news and features for the New York Times metro desk. Follow
