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COMMENTARY: COVID-19 Is Not Over! We Cannot Drop Our Guard

HOUSTON FORWARD TIMES — In a recent report in The New York Times, it stated that there are about 68,000 COVID-19 cases announced each day. Yet that only captures a portion of the total. That same report states that our country will be approaching 1 million deaths from COVID-19 in the coming weeks.
The post COMMENTARY: COVID-19 Is Not Over! We Cannot Drop Our Guard first appeared on BlackPressUSA.

Published

3 years ago

May 17, 2022

Forward Times Staff

By James B. Ewers Jr. Ed.D. | Houston Forward Times

Sometimes we come to conclusions too quickly. We want things so badly that we think we can just make them happen.

Outlooks look good and they look promising. We immerse ourselves in all that is good and refuse to see the bad.

We are all guilty of rushing to judgments. That’s just a part of life, I guess.

There are many instances where we use statistics to justify our reasoning. I have learned throughout the years that we can make statistics say anything we want them to say.

If you say the same thing to people, over time they will start to believe you.

This past election is a good example of someone using the same story line and having people believe them.

You see, there are fellow countrymen and countrywomen who believe that Mr. Biden’s opponent won the election. That wrong and overused statement continues to haunt our country.

Our nation is severely divided because of it.

Since 2020, we have been in a health crisis. The Coronavirus has run rampant and roughshod over the United States of America.

Our mindsets and our mental conditions have changed dramatically.

In many of our families, this illness took its toll. We could not escape it.

Pre-COVID-19, most of us were hopeful. Post-COVID-19, too many of us are hopeless.

Dinner tables have one less seat and living rooms have one less chair. The Coronavirus has caused this permanent disruption.

America has forever changed as we have lost thousands of our citizens.

It is a colorless disease. It has hit all of us, no matter our skin color.

Medications are with us now and new systems of safety have been implemented.

Before now, while I knew about the CDC (Centers for Disease Control), I can honestly say that I didn’t pay attention to all of their statistical information.

Now, I pay close attention to their COVID-19 data.

According to the CDC, unvaccinated people are more likely to die from COVID-19. Does that scare you?

I hope it does and makes you want to get vaccinated.

In a recent report in The New York Times, it stated that there are about 68,000 COVID-19 cases announced each day. Yet that only captures a portion of the total.

That same report states that our country will be approaching 1 million deaths from COVID-19 in the coming weeks.

Dr. Anthony Fauci said, “The United States and the entire world is still experiencing a pandemic, but there are different phases of the pandemic.”

He added, “And what we are in right now is somewhat of a transitional phase; out of the accelerated component into hopefully a more controlled component.”

Cities and states are now loosening some of the restrictions. One of the biggest is that you don’t have to constantly wear your mask.

Most people that I know still wear a mask wherever they go. I just think that kind of discretion is still needed.

For example, in large-scale events, you still don’t know who is vaccinated.

I believe we cannot drop our guard. Yes, we are better than we were, but normal, we are not. Will we ever be normal again?

That is a good question and one that cannot be answered now.

According to the CDC, nearly 220 million people, or roughly 66% of the population, are fully vaccinated.

100 million people have also received their first booster dose.

We are going in the right direction and that is good news.

Encourage your friends and family to be cautious and not to take chances with their health.

Know who you are around. Our lives are at stake.

I value my life. Don’t you value your life?

The post COVID-19 Is Not Over! We Cannot Drop Our Guard appeared first on Houston Forward Times.

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Tiguan’s AI Touchscreen & Gear Shift: VW Just Changed the Game! #2

Explore the Tiguan’s cutting-edge 12.9-inch infotainment touchscreen featuring wireless Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, voice control, and a new AI assistant. See how VW innovatively moved the gear shifter to the steering column, enhancing the center console and navigation system! #AutoNetwork #Tiguan #Infotainment #AppleCarPlay #AndroidAuto #AISystem #NavigationSystem #CarTech #TechReview #CarInnovation #Automotive

Published

1 day ago

June 17, 2025

Oakland Post

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IN MEMORIAM: Legendary Funk Pioneer Sly Stone Dies at 82

Sly Stone’s musical approach radically reshaped popular music. He transcended genre boundaries and empowered a new generation of artists. The band’s socially conscious message and infectious rhythms sparked a wave of influence, reaching artists as diverse as Miles Davis, George Clinton, Prince, Dr. Dre, and the Roots.

Published

1 day ago

June 17, 2025

Oakland Post

Sly and the Family Stone play the Opera House in Bournemouth. Mojo review. Photo by Simon Fernandez.

By Stacy M. Brown
BlackPressUSA.com Newswire

Sylvester “Sly” Stewart—known to the world as Sly Stone, frontman of the groundbreaking band Sly and the Family Stone—has died at the age of 82.

His family confirmed that he passed away peacefully at his Los Angeles home surrounded by loved ones, after battling chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) and other health complications.

Born March 15, 1943, in Denton, Texas, Stone moved with his family to Vallejo, California, as a child. He began recording gospel music at age 8 with his siblings in a group called the Stewart Four. By his teenage years, he had mastered multiple instruments and was already pioneering racial integration in music—an ethos that would define his career.

In 1966, Sly and his brother Freddie merged their bands to form Sly and the Family Stone, complete with a revolutionary interracial, mixed-gender lineup.

The band quickly became a commercial and cultural force with hits such as “Dance to the Music,” “Everyday People,” and “Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)”—all penned by Stone himself.

Their album “Stand!” (1969) and live performances—most notably at Woodstock—cemented their reputation, blending soul, funk, rock, gospel, and psychedelia to reflect the optimism and turmoil of their era.

As the 1970s progressed, Stone confronted personal demons. His desire to use music as a response to war, racism, and societal change culminated in the intense album “There’s a Riot Goin’ On” (1971). But drug dependency began to undermine both his health and professional life, leading to erratic behavior and band decline through the early 1980s.

Withdrawn from the public eye for much of the 1990s and early 2000s, Stone staged occasional comebacks. He was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 1993, received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Grammys in 2017, and captured public attention following the 2023 release of his memoir “Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)”—published under Questlove’s imprint. He also completed a biographical screenplay and was featured in Questlove’s documentary “Sly Lives!” earlier this year.

His influence endured across generations. Critics and historians repeatedly credit him with perfecting funk and creating a “progressive soul,” shaping a path for racial integration both onstage and in the broader culture.

“Rest in beats Sly Stone,” legendary Public Enemy frontman Chuck D posted on social media with an illustrative drawing of the artist. “We should thank Questlove of the Roots for keeping his fire blazing in this century.”

Emmy-winning entertainment publicist Danny Deraney also paid homage. “Rest easy Sly Stone,” Deraney posted. “You changed music (and me) forever. The time he won over Ed Sullivan’s audience in 1968. Simply magical. Freelance music publicist and Sirius XM host Eric Alper also offered a tribute.

“The funk pioneer who made the world dance, think, and get higher,” Alper wrote of Sly Stone. “His music changed everything—and it still does.”

Sly Stone is survived by three children.

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PRESS ROOM: Clyburn on 10th Anniversary of Mother Emanuel AME Church Shooting in Charleston

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — Congressman James E. Clyburn (SC-06) released the following video on X, paying tribute to the 10th anniversary of the shooting that took place at Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina on June 17, 2015.

Published

1 day ago

June 17, 2025

Oakland Post

By Congressman James E. Clyburn

WATCH HERE

CHARLESTON, SOUTH CAROLINA – Congressman James E. Clyburn (SC-06) released the following video on X, paying tribute to the 10^th anniversary of the shooting that took place at Mother Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, South Carolina on June 17, 2015.

“Over 6 years ago, the House first passed my Enhanced Background Checks Act to close the Charleston Loophole that allowed a white supremacist to obtain the gun he used to murder nine worshipers at Emanuel AME Church on June 17, 2015.

“I’ll never stop fighting to pass this law.”