Proximity alert

It’s Wednesday, National Nurses Day. Really, everyday should be Nurses Day, right?

Massachusetts tax revenues were down by over $2 billion dollars last month. “We’ve never seen anything like it,” UMass economist Michael Goodman told The Globe. Does this sound like a good time to cut taxes?

Contract tracing is coming to your phone. Apple and Google have teamed up on a protocol called Exposure Notification, which should be available in a software update this month. It’s not clear if the default will be opt-in or opt-out but, based on what I’ve read about it, I would recommend you turn it on if it’s opt-in. It does not record your location. It does record your proximity to other phones and based on the characteristics of the proximity, calculates an exposure probability if the owner of one of those phones has tested positive. And if that’s the case, an app using the protocol will let you know, so you can get tested. The privacy protections for the basic protocol are pretty impressive. This was good, fast work from Google/Apple.

When you think of a district attorney taking on public defenders, it’s usually a lock-them-up vs. let-them-go dispute. This is not that. Rollins may have a point but everyone loses in this unnecessary fight.

To prune or not to prune. Advice for gardeners.

And my rant of the day: Starbucks reopening for take-out can’t come too soon. Those long, slow lines at the drive through, where people pull up and then order multiple drinks and breakfast sandwiches, are just too much. 40 cars?!? Download the app people! Order ahead online! And tip!!

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