GARBAGE PEOPLE, GARBAGE MAP: SPLC Releases Fear-Mongering ‘Hate Map’ Amid Coronavirus Outbreak.

SMART: Trump Orders Military Hospital Ships ‘Mercy’ and ‘Comfort’ to New York.

WHICH HORSEMAN OF THE APOCALYPSE IS THIS? MSNBC’s Joe Scarborough Praises Trump for Wuhan Response.

MEANWHILE, OVER AT VODKAPUNDIT: Battles of the Bulge: What WWII Can Teach Us About Stopping the Chinese Flu. “Moving hundreds of thousands of men and armored vehicles around rough terrain, under enemy fire, during the coldest January in memory might be child’s play compared to getting 320,000,000 restive Americans to do the right thing, but that’s exactly what all levels of government in America are trying to do.”

This one is just for our VIP members, and I trust by now you know all about that nifty VODKAPUNDIT discount code.

INDEED: We Can Be Critical Of Virus Response Later-For Now There’s Plenty To Be Proud Of.

DEFINING PROSECUTORIAL OVERREACH UP: Unhinged MSNBC Legal Analyst Claims Trump May Be Guilty of ‘Negligent Homicide’ for Coronavirus Response.

CHRISTIAN TOTO INTERVIEWS NICK SEARCY: Stop Being Afraid of Hollywood Bullies.

HONESTY, IT’S SUCH A LONELY WORD: NKorea’s Kim admits troubled medical system amid virus fears. “North Korea says leader Kim Jong Un admitted the country lacked modern medical facilities in a rare assessment of its system and said improving its health care was ‘crucial’ as he marked the construction of a new hospital.”

Kim must be shaken.

BUT OF COURSE: Ilhan Omar Is Her New Husband’s Biggest Client, Public Records Show.

RUSSIA! RUSSIA! RUSSIA! First No Collusion, Now No Actual *Russians* in Mueller’s Disastrous Russian Collusion Illusion.

DRAIN THE SWAMP FASTER: Despite Trump’s Best Efforts, Economic Freedom Declined in the U.S. Last Year.

CLAIM: Chinese overseas head home to safe haven under Beijing’s tough quarantine regime. “Some Chinese abroad feel comfort of close family, health care, masks, social control, quarantines and government surveillance is best combination to beat pandemic.”

Unsettled by the coronavirus epidemic in the United States, 26-year-old Liu, an exchange PhD student at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, returned to China at the weekend.

During his flights from Boston to Hong Kong and then to Beijing, Liu wore two layers of masks, goggles, plastic gloves and a raincoat to protect himself.

After arriving in Beijing, he spent 10 hours going through immigration and health checks. Despite the long journey and strict quarantine measures, Liu was happy to be back with his family.

As the coronavirus has spread across the world, infecting more than 193,000 people and killing more than 7,800, its presence in China has waned.

Color me extremely skeptical of this South China Morning Post report.

HMM: Fujifilm shares jump 15% on China coronavirus drug trial boost.

Avigan, also known as Favipiravir, is manufactured by a subsidiary of Fujifilm, which has a healthcare arm although it is better known for its cameras. The drug was approved for use in Japan in 2014.

Favipiravir has been effective, with no obvious side-effects, in helping coronavirus patients recover, Zhang Xinmin, an official at China’s Science and Technology Ministry, told reporters at a news conference on Tuesday.

A Fujifilm spokeswoman said the company had no comment on the Chinese government’s announcement. Fujifilm manufactures Avigan only on receiving orders from the Japanese government and has no sales target for the drug, she said.

Stay tuned.

KRUISER’S MORNING BRIEF: Tom Brady Puts the New England Patriots In Permanent Super Bowl Quarantine. “As a Steelers fan (long story) Brady’s tenure in New England has been the bane of my existence. I certainly won’t be sorry to see him go to the NFC. I am very grateful to him, however, for giving me a lead story that wasn’t about people dying.”

FALLOUT: Coronavirus Gut-Punches Austin Restaurants. “Six weeks is a long damn time for a restaurant or bar owner, many of whom just barely scrape by. I wonder how many restaurants and bars this will drive into bankruptcy.”

I’m doing takeout the rest of the week from my favorite local places, and hope that it helps.

COLORADO: Gunnison County bans restaurants, bars from serving people 60 and older to slow coronavirus spread.

HE’S AWFUL: Joe Biden Spreads Misinformation About Trump and the WHO Amid Coronavirus.

MEANWHILE, OVER AT VODKAPUNDIT: It’s the Corona Tuesday Primary Drunkblog.

RESET: Russian Parliament Declares National Do-Over, Allows Putin to Rule Until 2036.

WHAT COULD GO WRONG? Los Angeles releasing inmates, urging fewer arrests in coronavirus fight.

SMART: Supreme Court Suspends Arguments Amid Coronavirus Fears. “Six justices considered ‘at risk’ given age.”

Although I suspect RoboGinsburg isn’t at risk for anything.

NEWS YOU CAN USE? Stop hoarding toilet paper and make your own bidet starting at $20.

YOU COULD PUT THE PERIOD AFTER “PARTY”: Leftists Echo Chinese Communist Party in Slamming Trump Coronavirus Tweet as Racist.

EMPLOYMENT: Food delivery gigs abound in COVID-era Denver.

SALENA ZITO: Coronavirus has this small Ohio city longing for a return to normal.

There are now 50 confirmed cases of COVID-19 coronavirus in the state, so far there are none reported yet here in East Liverpool or anywhere in Columbiana County. But in a city where nearly 15% of the population is over age 65, Bricker is being cautious. He points to the city hospital in the distance, a highly acclaimed but small local facility that is limited to 152 beds for a city of 11,000. Those numbers and odds are weighing on the accountant turned mayor’s mind.

“First, we needed to do a series of precautionary measures to prevent the spreading of this, so we closed the city offices to keep this from spreading to our workers but also to our citizens, because if we don’t take preventative measures, we’ll just really overwhelm our hospital and our healthcare system,” he said.

This is life in America, interrupted. Aside from the older gentleman who groused about having to pay his water bill in a slot and not in person, people were doing what they had to keep themselves and their community safe.

“The healthcare workers are really our first line of defense right now,” Bricker explains. “Anyone who has exhibited symptoms is being asked to quarantine. They have also set up drive-through testing. We’ve had a couple of people tested. And all the results have come back negative.”

Good.

PLUS:

We’re a much better people than our chattering class is, or gives us credit for being.