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The United States is plunging ever deeper into a public health catastrophe. The coronavirus pandemic is out of control in much of the country. It is time to declare “emergency,” hit the reset button and try once more to get this right. Unfortunately, President Trump has walked away, and the nation is divided and fractious. But the virus cares not. It is relentless and advancing. Either strong action is taken now, or the crisis will become much worse.Warnings are flashing red almost everywhere. Nearly half the states and territories are likely to report more deaths in the next four weeks than in the past four, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said. (7/18)

As badly as the U.S. has mishandled the pandemic, there’s been one bright spot: Despite historic unemployment, the poverty rate in America hasn’t significantly increased. This happy paradox is mostly due to the $600 that the federal government has been adding to state unemployment benefits each week since April. The program has essentially buffered workers from the effects of the economic shutdown. But that benefit ends at the end of this week (not at the end of the month, as many mistakenly thought). (7/18)

It never ceases to amaze me how more people aren’t outraged, shocked and disgusted by Donald Trump’s cruelty and malfeasance. Nearly 140,000 Americans are now dead because of the Covid-19 pandemic and more than 3,000,000 have contracted the disease. Furthermore, our outlook in this country is dire: Cases are surging and the number of dead continues to climb. This is still the first wave; a second wave could simply pile on and be catastrophic. (Charles M. Blow, 7/19)

They acted like they had no idea the school year was coming. Earthquakes, fires, floods, and hurricanes can be difficult to plan for -- an event everybody knows begins in mid-August is not. Instead of the federal government implementing a responsible, science-based plan to reopen schools, President Trump, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, and numerous conservative commentators have instead focused their ire on one of their favorite bugaboos – teachers unions. “We're very much going to put pressure on governors and everyone else to open the schools,” vowed the president, while citing successful school reopening in four European countries. (Glenn Sacks, 7/18)

The debate about reopening schools seems to pit parents and their employers against teachers. But there is actually a solution that would let grown-ups go back to work, educate kids and keep everyone safe at the same time.More than 140,000 Americans have died from Covid-19, and there are growing outbreaks in many states. No other developed nation has sent children back to school with the virus at these levels. Data about transmission in classrooms is limited. Many teachers have health risks and are understandably afraid to return. The safest course would be for kindergartners through 12th graders to continue with online courses in the fall. (Shardha Jogee, 7/20)

As coronavirus cases soar across our region, hospitals taxed to capacity may soon face the unthinkable — deciding who lives and who dies. The prospect that we or our loved ones might be denied needed care during the pandemic is distressing for anyone. But those who are older, disabled or have terminal conditions like Lou Gehrig’s disease have good reason to fear being put at the bottom of the priority list. That is because experience has taught us that many people, including health care professionals, often see people who are aged, disabled and terminally ill as “damaged goods” or “short-timers.” (Jessica Mantel and Lex Frieden, 7/17)

Last Thursday, security officials from three countries told us that Russian hackers were targeting organizations involved in Covid-19 vaccine research in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. At first glance, this seems like an old school Cold War story with everyone other than James Bond involved. (Dr. Kent Sepkowitz, 7/19)

I don’t remember the first time a hearing person got angry at me for not understanding them, but I remember the first time that anger scared me. I was waiting on the subway platform on my way home from school one night when a hand clamped down hard on my shoulder, spinning me around. When I turned, there was a stranger too close to me, his eyes wide and his breath hot on my face as he shouted at me. I was terrified, and it took me a while to understand what he was saying — he had made a pass at me and was angry that I hadn’t responded.“Deaf, I’m deaf!” I shouted back, pointing to my ears. (Sara Nović, 7/16)

As COVID-19 cases surge in many areas of America, the great face mask debate of 2020 continues to rise and rage – and with deadly consequences. Just outside Lansing, Mich., this past Tuesday, Sean Ernest Ruis, 43, stabbed a 77-year-old man after the fellow customer in a convenience store confronted him over not wearing a face covering. The man survived the attack, but the knife-wielding Ruis fled the scene and was shot and killed by police after refusing to halt his aggressive pursuit of the officer. (Paul Batura, 7/19)

Why? That’s the question Georgians concerned about their own health and lives – and those of their neighbors, families and others – should ask of Gov. Brian Kemp, given his latest order neutering local government requirements that people wear face masks during this pandemic. It’s hard to see this latest move -- and a related lawsuit filed Thursday against the city of Atlanta -- as anything other than undermining both public health and the local-government-is-best beliefs that the Gold Dome’s conservative leaders used to tirelessly preach. (7/16)

As educators, we want to be back in school. We miss the connections we make with our students, the laughs we share, and the learning we do together. We recognize as well how much students need face-to-face interaction and social-emotional supports that can be provided only in school buildings. However, our first and most critical duty is to be advocates for the safety of the children in our care, and in that role — and in our roles as elected school committee members — we question the wisdom of the recent state guidance calling for a full school reopening. It compromises too much, and provides too little, to ensure the safety of students. (Massachusetts School Committee Members, 7/20)