Coronavirus News, Analysis, and Opinion:

Retailers put brakes on Texas and Mississippi move to scrap mask mandates

Italy blocks export of Covid-19 vaccine doses to Australia, using EU powers for the first time

The Danger of a Fourth Wave

Although the U.S. has been moving in the right direction, 65,000 cases per day is not a number that indicates the virus is under control. It’s the same caseload the U.S. was seeing last July, at the height of the summer surge in cases and deaths.

Cryptocurrency, Investing, Money, Economy, and Debt:

U.S. blocked Myanmar junta attempt to empty $1 billion New York Fed account. One of these days, nation states will realize that Bitcoin and other cryptos might come in handy.

10Y Treasury Hits A Stunning -4.25% In Repo As Yields Blow Out

When Does This Travesty Of A Mockery Of A Sham Finally Implode?

They say you want to own real assets during periods of inflation, so I own shares in an EV company with no revenue and a bunch of GIFs of basketball players dunking. I'm ready.

— John W. Rich (Fake Tech Exec) (@Cokedupoptions) March 4, 2021

Politics:

Trump’s Strategy for Returning to Power Is Clear

Other European autocrats never had to leave office—Turkey’s Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, Belarus’s Alexander Lukashenka, and, of course, Russia’s Vladimir Putin have not been in the opposition since first touching power—but the cases of Hungary and Poland provide examples of a particular path to autocracy. It involves an aspiring autocrat who is rebuked by voters and who then frames his loss of power as illegitimate, launching a campaign aimed at undermining not only the party that won the election but the very institutions of democratic government.

The small injustices that keep me libertarian

Executive Overseeing Texas' Power Grid Is Forced Out From Within

The Republican Party, in two tweets. pic.twitter.com/TBodJ1Zk20

— Matt McDermott (@mattmfm) March 4, 2021

Trump appointee arrested in connection with Capitol riot

The FBI on Thursday arrested Federico Klein, a former State Department aide, on charges related to the storming of the Capitol on Jan. 6, marking the first known instance of an appointee of President Donald Trump facing criminal prosecution in connection with the attempt to block Congress from certifying President Joe Biden’s victory.

Whoops! GOPer Accidentally Voted For Dems’ Police Reform Bill By Pressing Wrong Button

Watchdog Cites Elaine Chao for Misuse of Office

The Transportation Department’s inspector general asked the Justice Department in December to consider a criminal investigation into what it said was Elaine Chao’s misuse of her office as transportation secretary in the Trump administration to help promote her family’s shipping business, which is run by her sister and has extensive business ties with China.
The inspector general said the Justice Department’s criminal and public integrity divisions both declined to take up the matter in the closing weeks of the Trump administration, even after the inspector general found repeated examples of Ms. Chao using her staff and her office to help benefit her family and their business operations and revealed that staff members at the agency had raised ethics concerns.

The guy who had his feet up on Pelosi’s desk during the Capitol insurrection is whining: Richard Barnett remains jailed, yells during court — ‘I’ve been here a long time. It’s not fair’

Ron Johnson grinds Senate to halt, irritating many

Serendipity:

The Former SolarWinds CEO Is Blaming the Largest Cyberespionage Campaign in History on an Intern

^{Badge thanks to @arcange}

^{Meme credit: stroft2gaming (source)}