Oskaloosa News Recap For February 1st, 2021
Local News
Plans Are Getting Hammered Out To Help Make A Southeast Connector A Reality
Ecumenical Cupboard Helping Individuals Impacted By Pandemic
Iowa hospitals’ financial losses mount amid COVID-19
United Way Of Mahaska County Playing Role In COVID-19 Help
2021 Eggs And Issues Set
Oskaloosa Fire Chief Talks Fire Safety
Local Sports
Indians Network
Statesmen Sports Network
North Mahaska Warhawks
Oskaloosa News Links
Obituaries
Radar and Road Conditions
Local Traffic Cameras
National and World News
Scientists have finally figured out why wombat poop is cube-shaped.
New research shows that the marsupial’s intestines stretch up to 33 feet long — about 10 times their body length. Due to the length, it takes four days for the critter to have a bowl movement, thus creating boxy-shaped feces as their muscles contract and it dries in part of their colon.
The new findings shut down previous theories that wombats have a square-shaped sphincter or that they mold the feces themselves.
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Singing in German spreads COVID.
According to a new study, singing in German is dangerous in the age of coronavirus — it is far better to sing in Japanese.
Japan Choral Association secretary-general Masakazu Umeda told CBS News that according to multiple studies, singing a song in German emits “nearly double the particles per minute” than singing it in Japanese.
The new research comes as choirs are still singing in Japan, but performance times have been reduced and participants are keeping more than six feet apart on stage.
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Eleven soldiers at a military base in Texas have been hospitalized after drinking what they believed to be alcohol.
The soldiers drank the unknown substance after a 10-day field exercise at Fort Bliss’ McGregor Range complex. Officials said all were taken to William Beaumont Army Medical Center, where two were admitted to the ICU.
Toxicology reports show the soldiers were suffering from ethylene glycol poisoning. Symptoms include: seizures, going into a coma and cerebral edema.
The US Army Criminal Investigation Command has opened an investigation.
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A lawmaker in Norway has nominated the Black Lives Matter movement for the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize.
In his nomination, Norwegian MP Petter Eide credits the movement for “bringing attention to racial inequalities around the world” — selectively choosing to leave out the riots and violence that occurred.
Eide has previously nominated activists from Russia and China for the prize.
WORTH NOTING: The US Crisis Monitor reports that the BLM Movement was linked to 91% of the riots that occurred in the country over the summer, which resulted in the most expensive property damage in insurance history.
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As of Friday, 6.9% of the US population has received their first dose of the COVID vaccine, while 1.4% have been fully vaccinated.
Over 49 million doses have been distributed nationwide and of those, 57% have been administered.
In Wisconsin, 5.8% of the population has received their initial dose, while 1.1% of the population is fully vaccinated. Nearly 800k doses have been given to the state, with 51% administered.
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Toys “R” Us is closing its two remaining stores.
The retailer confirmed over the weekend that its two locations in New Jersey and Texas, which opened in late 2019, have permanently closed because of the coronavirus crisis.
The company’s website is still up and running, as are the more than 700 stores outside of the US.
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A four-year-old girl from Wales made a big discovery last week.
While walking along the beach with her dad, Lily Wilder spotted a well-preserved dinosaur footprint on a low rock.
A paleontology curator from the Amgueddfa Cymru National Museum of Wales told NBC News that while it is impossible to know which type of dinosaur left the footprint, they do know that it was likely made by a creature that stood 29.5 inches tall and was about 8 feet long. The footprint is believed to have been left over 220 million years ago.
Once the museum reopens, Lily and her school class will be invited to see the artifact and her name listed beside it as an official “finder.”
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Experts believe the next pandemic could be from a (sometimes) deadly, yeast-like fungus known as Candida Auris.
The CDC reports that the fungus can be fatal if it enters the bloodstream, which can occur through catheters or other tubes that enter the body in healthcare settings.
First identified in 2009, epidemiologist Johanna Rhodes says it is “almost impervious to anti fungal drugs.” She added that it can “linger on inanimate surfaces for long periods and withstand whatever you throw at it.”
Dr. Tom Chiller from the CDC’s anti-fungal division told New Scientist that “no one truly knows where it came from,” calling it a “creature from the black lagoon.”
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A mom from England recently wrote about an experience she had at her local McDonald’s.
Sheree Claire took to Twitter and explained that a man was trying to take his son for a Happy Meal and due to COVID restrictions his only option was to order at the drive thru. After ordering AND paying, employees refused to hand him his food because he wasn’t in a car. After seeing the disappointment on the child’s face, Sheree said her son went over and gave the kid his Happy Meal.
A spokesperson for McDonald’s said the employees were instructed not to serve the man out of concern for the “health and safety of [their] people and customers.” The statement explained that had the man gone to the restaurant entrance — which was closed — he would have been served his meal.
WORTH ASKING: So, it isn’t safe to hand someone food through a window, but it is okay to take their money through a window and then open a door, stand face-to-face and hand them their food?
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The last couple weeks, groups of retail traders banded together through social media sites to challenge professional money managers. The goals were simply to inflict financial harm on the hedge funds and to make a couple dollars themselves in the process.
GameStop has been the most popular example of this phenomenon. In January alone, retail investors have cost short-sellers an estimated 19 billion dollars. The share price of GameStop has increased more than 1500 percent this year.
Investment platform Robinhood has faced increasing scrutiny after they halted retail traders ability to buy shares of many securities involved with this effort. At the center of the complaint is that Robinhood’s founding mission was to allow average investors to get involved with the market, and their recent actions seem to be unfairly leveling the field so big firms can catch up.
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A contingent of 10 Republican Senators called for a meeting with President Joe Biden Sunday to discuss a $600 billion COVID relief bill a fraction of the size of the $1.9 trillion bill currently being discussed.
The letter is both symbolic and pragmatic. At least 10 Republicans would have to vote a spending bill out of the Senate, assuming all 50 Democrats were also on board. Coming to the table with their own bill could keep Biden in support of a more moderate bill. It’s hardly a secret that life-long Senator Biden appreciates the tradition of the Upper House, and would prefer a bipartisan bill than one accomplished through budget reconciliation, which would only require a simple majority.
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Weekend Box Office
10. Come Play: $95k (up from 12)
9. Supernova: $99k (new)
8. Our Friend: $135k (stayed at 8)
7. The War with Grandpa: $147k (up from 9)
6. Fatale: $220k (stayed at 6)
5. Promising Young Woman: $260k (up from 7)
4. News of the World: $540k (up from 5)
3. Monster Hunter: $740k (up from 4)
2. The Marksman: $1.3 million (down from 1)
1. The Croods: A New Age: $1.8 million (up from 2)
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Tube Talk
Here’s what’s new on TV tonight:
The Neighborhood / CBS / 7:00 pm
The Bachelor / ABC / 7:00 pm
Ellen’s Game of Games / NBC / 7:00 pm
9-1-1 / FOX / 7:00 pm
Bob (Hearts) Abishola / CBS / 7:30 pm
All Rise / CBS / 8:00 pm
The Wall / NBC / 8:00 pm
9-1-1: Lone Star / FOX / 8:00 pm
Bull / CBS / 9:00 pm
The Good Doctor / ABC / 9:00 pm
Weakest Link / NBC / 9:00 pm
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Showbiz News
“The Wonder Years” reboot has been picked up by ABC.
The revival of the classic 1980s family drama was handed a pilot production commitment last summer and is now set to begin filming this spring.
The show will be set in the same era as the original, with star of the series Fred Savage directing and executive producing.
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NBC’s medical drama “New Amsterdam” will return on Tuesday March 2.
Production on the upcoming Season 3 had been delayed due to COVID.
The show is inspired by Dr. Eric Manheimer’s memoir “Twelve Patients: Life and Death at Bellevue Hospital.”
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David Magidoff has joined the cast of Showtime’s “Dexter” revival.
He will co-star opposite Michael C. Hall, Clancy Brown, Julia Jones and Jack Alcott in the 10-episode limited series.
Production is set to begin next month.
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This year’s Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival and Stagecoach Country Music Festival are cancelled.
The promoter of the festivals, Goldenvoice, made the announcement over the weekend citing the “worldwide epidemic of COVID-19 disease” as the reason for the cancellation.
Neither of the two events were held last year either. Rescheduled dates were not mentioned.
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Sara Gilbert, Rob Huebel, Leland Order and Tate Donovan have joined Chris Messina in HBO Max pilot “Verbatim,” an anthology series from Ben Stiller’s Red Hour Films and the New York Times.
Based on the New York Times Op-Docs digital series, the pilot episode follows the story of the 2019 college admissions scandal.
Other than Messina, who is expected to link the different cases throughout the series, the rest of the cast are guest starts for the pilot only.
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Netflix series “On My Block” is returning for a fourth and final season.
The coming-of-age comedy centers on four friends who are navigating their way through high school set in the rough inner city.
The third season premiered in March 2020.
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AppleTV+ has ordered “WeCrashed” a limited series starring Jared Leto and Anne Hathaway.
The series is based on the hit podcast “WeCrashed: The Rise and Fall of WeWork.”
Hathway and Leto will also serve as executive producers.
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Darius Rucker covered all the diners’ bills at his local Charleston IHOP last week.
The country crooner told the restaurant’s general manager that he would like to pay the tab for all patrons dining in that morning. One eyewitness told the Associated Press that it was a “packed house.”
While the total amount was not shared, the general manager told the outlet that Rucker also left a “very generous” tip for the servers to share.
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“Cloverfield” is getting a sequel.
Paramount and JJ Abrams have teamed up with showrunner Joe Barton to write a script for an untitled sequel to the flick.
The 2008 monster movie grossed $172 million worldwide and was a base that launched “10 Cloverfield Lane” and “The Cloverfield Paradox.”
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The number of scripted shows to premiere in 2020 was down from the year prior.
Last year saw 493 new shows, about a 7% drop from 2019.
The decline is the first to be reported since FX Networks began its annual count of scripted series across broadcast, cable and streaming over a decade ago.
FX did not breakdown where series premiered in 2020, but did make the assumption that the coronavirus crisis was to blame.
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Sports
The Rams and the Lions have swapped quarterbacks.
Matthew Stafford is heading to LA and Jared Goff is going to Detroit.
Also on the table are a handful of draft picks. The Rams are handing over a 2021 third-round pick, a 2022 first-round pick and a 2023 first-round pick.
Both QBs were No. 1 overall picks in their respective draft class — Stafford in 2009 and Goff in 2016.
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Day of the Year
National Baked Alaska Day
National Freedom Day (Freedom From Slavery)
National Get Up Day
National Serpent Day
National Texas Day
National Dark Chocolate Day
No Politics Day
Spunky Old Broads Day
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On This Date
1790 – The US Supreme Court convenes for the first time.
John Jay sits as the Chief Justice.
He was accompanied by five associate justices, including John Rutledge and John Blair.
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1861 – Texas secedes from the Union, against the wishes of governor Sam Houston.
Houston sat in the state house as the legislature voted to withdraw from the Union.
He later refused to pledge an oath to the confederacy, and was replaced by his lieutenant governor.
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1884 – The Oxford English Dictionary premieres.
It was considered then and remains the most comprehensive and accurate index of the English language.
For those wondering if something is an official world in the English lexicon, consult the OED.
The first edition was assembled by the Philological Society of London. They sought a dictionary to cover all of English since 1150 A.D.
The final product took another 40 years to finish, weighing in at 400,000 words and 10 volumes.
The official OED provides a chronology of the history of words — the word “set” takes 60,000 words to explain its definitions and history.
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1968 – Richard Nixon announces his CANDIDACY for president.
This would be like Mitt Romney announcing their candidacy just nine months before the general election.
Nixon had previously lost to JFK in the 1960 election.
Since then he had also lost a run for governor of California.
He chose Maryland governor Spiro Agnew as his running mate.
Nixon and Democrat Hubert Humphrey nearly tied the popular vote, but Nixon won the electoral college in a blowout.
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2003 – Following the Columbia shuttle disaster, George W Bush speaks to the country.
The president highlighted the importance of space travel despite the risks.
The next shuttle mission would not be until 2005, with the launch of Discovery.
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2016 – The WHO declares a global public health emergency over the rapid spread of zika-linked conditions.
The spread of the virus and its suspected link to birth defects raised the cause for alarm.
It was predicted that 3-4 million people would be infected within the year. By December, only 5,000 cases would be reported in the US.
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Birthdays
Stormi Webster – daughter of Kylie Jenner – 3
Harry Styles – singer – 27
Ronda Rousey – MMA Fighter – 34
Heather Morris – actress, “GLEE” – 34
Lauren Conrad – reality star & designer – 35
Big Boi – rapper – 46
Michael C. Hall – actor, “Dexter” – 50
Lisa Marie Presley – daughter of Elvis – 53
Born On This Date
Lee Thompson Young – actor, “The Famous Jett Jackson – 1984 (d. 2013)
Brandon Lee – actor, “The Crow & son of Bruce Lee – 1965 (d. 1993)
Rick James – funk singer – 1948 (d. 2004)
Elisabeth Sladen – actress, “Doctor Who” – 1946 (d. 2011)
Langston Hughes – poet -1902 (d. 1967)
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Deaths
Sophie Xeon has died.
The Grammy-nominated producer and DJ passed away Saturday in Greece. Her team cited an accident as her cause of death.
She was 34.
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