The House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic released its final report, detailing the federal response to COVID-19. The Republican-led committee concluded that COVID-19 “likely emerged because of a laboratory or research-related accident,” with former CDC Director Robert Redfield asserting, “COVID-19 infections more likely were the result of an accidental lab leak than the result of a natural spillover event.” The report also criticized mask mandates, lockdowns, and six-foot social distancing guidance as ineffective and harmful.⁠
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Democrats on the committee released their own 60-page report, disputing many of the Republican conclusions. They described the lab leak theory as “largely circumstantial” and rejected claims that Dr. Anthony Fauci had suppressed alternative origins theories. Democrats argued that the Republican report was driven by “a political agenda” rather than a focus on pandemic preparedness, adding, “Republicans’ investigation did not uncover the origins of COVID-19.”⁠
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Both reports criticized former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo for allegedly underreporting nursing home deaths and stressed the need for clear communication from trusted public health officials. The Republican report further scrutinized EcoHealth Alliance and the NIH for oversight failures in gain-of-function research, while Democrats dismissed the GOP findings as unsubstantiated and damaging to public trust.⁠
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The 6-foot social distancing guideline, widely recommended during the COVID-19 pandemic, lacked a scientific basis, according to former chief medical advisor Anthony Fauci.⁠
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Fauci, who advised former President Donald Trump and President Joe Biden, testified behind closed doors to the select subcommittee on the COVID-19 pandemic in January. The Committee on Oversight and Accountability released transcripts of his testimony, and Fauci is expected to testify publicly before Congress on Monday.⁠
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During questioning, Fauci indicated that the six-foot social distancing rule was not grounded in specific data. When asked about the origin of the guideline, he said, “I don’t recall. It sort of just appeared,” and admitted he had not seen studies supporting the standard. He acknowledged that conducting such a study would be challenging.⁠
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Fauci was also asked about the evidence for masking children, a policy implemented across the U.S. He responded, “You know, I might have, Mitch, but I don’t recall specifically that I did. I might have.”⁠
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The U.S. response to COVID-19, particularly regarding children and education, has become increasingly controversial. Data analyzed by The New York Times indicated that prolonged school closures correlated with declines in test scores.⁠
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Vintage drive in theatres across America.

Remember those lazy summer days of your childhood and teenage years, when everyone loaded into the car and headed down to the drive-in? If you wanted something fun, unique, and maybe even magical, the drive-in movie theater was the place to be!

Sometimes they were called Outdoor Theaters or even “Ozoners.” The drive-in movie theater debuted in 1933 in Camden, New Jersey. An enterprising man named Richard Hollingshead patented the concept of creating a movie-going experience that would work well for anyone who didn’t want to sit inside a traditional movie theater or were uncomfortable in the small seats.

That original “Automobile Movie Theater” had a screen that was 40 feet tall by 50 feet wide. Speakers boomed from poles throughout the lot. The theater could accommodate up to 400 cars. The thrill of watching a movie on a big screen from the comfort of your vehicle was offered for the low cost of 25 cents per car and an additional 25 cents per person.

And while it was popular, remember that vehicles were still coming of age during the early 1930s. A trip to the drive-in became an experience that allowed you to enjoy the thrill of your new automobile as well as the pleasure of taking in a new picture.

Once the joys of the drive-in theater took hold, those big screens began to spread all over the country. Drive-Ins showed up mostly in rural areas because a large amount of land was required to handle all the cars. By the 1950s, there were over 4,000 drive-in theaters in the United States.

By the 1970s, the novelty of the drive-in movie theater had largely worn off. People now wanted to go to large, air-conditioned multi-plex theaters with multiple screens showing a wide variety of movies at all hours, including the middle of the day. Without air conditioning, and lacking the ability to show several movies or offer daytime viewing hours, drive-ins had a hard time competing.

As drive-ins declined, their numbers dropped from thousands to hundreds. Suddenly they were in the realm of nostalgia and over time they became something you might take a road trip to visit for a special event on a Saturday night. ...

Wie geht’s euch? Das ist heute den ganzen Tag über Thema bei COSMO.

Die Pandemie hat unser Leben verändert und auch unseren Umgang mit Social Media. 75% der Internetnutzer*innen in Deutschland gaben an, dass sie mehr Zeit mit Instagram, Facebook & Co verbracht haben. Das ist praktisch – so bleibt man in Kontakt. Hat aber auch seine Schattenseiten. Vor allem die Reizüberflutung und der ständige Vergleich mit anderen kann uns belasten. Kleine Tipps, die helfen können, die eigene Bildschirmzeit zu verringern: Mitteilungen ausschalten, auf Schwarz/Weiß Modus umschalten und Zeitlimits einstellen.
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#wiegehtseuch #cosmo #wdr #socialmedia #lockdown #socialdistancing #physicaldistancing #gesundheit #dankegut ...