This week, @GeoRebekah wrote about a high-risk Florida teen who died from #covid19 after attending a church “party” & then being given hydroxychloroquine by her parents washingtonpost.com/nation/2020/07…
Her mom was anti-vaccine & a QAnon conspiracist. Lies can kill.
This is not the first parent who hasn’t gotten a sick child care because of their beliefs:
“At least 50 Christian Scientists have been charged with murder or manslaughter after their children died of diseases curable by modern medicine.” rlp.hds.harvard.edu/files/hds-rlp/…
US Supreme Court, 1944: “The right to practice religion freely does not include liberty to expose the community or the child to communicable disease or the latter to ill health or death” law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/t…
SCOTUS 1944: “Parents may be free to become martyrs themselves. But it does not follow they are free, in identical circumstances, to make martyrs of their children before they have reached the age of full & legal discretion when they can make that choice for themselves.” #covid19
SCOTUS 2020: “Our Constitution principally entrusts “[t]he safety & the health of the people’ to the politically accountable officials of the States ‘to guard & protect.’” supremecourt.gov/opinions/19pdf…
This applies to #masks4all, vaccinations, & restrictions on large public gatherings.
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Transparency & accountability have not been a priority for a @WhiteHouse that briefs on background & relegates open government to a compliance exercise.
Opacity atop secrecy: @politico granted US officials anonymity to say @DeptofDefense did not tell @POTUS @JakeSullivan46 & NSC aides @SecDef was hospitalized for 3 days,
Austin recognized he “could have done better job” informing the public.
@politico @DeptofDefense @POTUS @JakeSullivan46 @SecDef Official opacity: @Axios granted the @WhiteHouse anonymity to claim that President Biden & Austin had “a warm conversation” & that @POTUS “has full confidence in @SecDef & is “ looking forward to him being back at the Pentagon.”
I heard a thunderclap in DC on a sunny day.
It appears it was a sonic boom from @DeptofDefense fighters scrambled from Andrews @airforce Base to intercept an unresponsive Cessna that overflew DC.
This is the least useful PSA I’ve encountered in some time, @AlertDC — could you please investigate and then elaborate when you confirm what has happened, @DC_HSEMA@SafeDC ?
🚨✈️🛫💨💥?
I take it back, @AlertDC: it was useful to hear that “there is no great at this time,” but being aware of reports of a loud “boom” doesn’t add much context for millions of people wondering what we heard.
If you know there was a sonic boom from scrambled fighters, please say so.
I’m at the historic @WarnerTheater in DC to bear witness what @PowerUSAID invited all Americans to learn about this morning:
How Ukraine is delivering services online in a democracy at war with @USAID. @karaswisher live now: usaid.gov/diiaindc
19M Ukrainians using DIAA now
As @karaswisher said, there has a been backpack against disruptive technologies like the Internet, smartphones, & social media.
We now worry about AI.
But all governments must harness these technologies to provide critical info & deliver services to networked publics, everywhere.
Today, @PowerUSAID says delivering services showed how “robust & secure digital public infrastructure” enabled Ukrainians to access services in a war while minimizing corruption.
She says @USAID supported in e-gov in Ukraine since 2016. “
The result: “Government in a smartphone.”
I find it encouraging to see @USAID@StateDRL rejoining international open government circles.
It’s discouraging @OpenGovPart@OGP_IRM have said so little about @WhiteHouse45@WhiteHouse acting contrary to process after @POTUS45 made a mockery of the US being in “good standing.”
No #AprilFools: @Twitter to remove @verified status from journalists, after enabling anonymous accounts to spread misinformation & lies using @elonmusk’s ill-designed pay-to-get-seen system “to expand their reach while creating the illusion of credibility” apnews.com/article/ohio-t…