The Evening: Good News For Grandparents, US-SK Mil Cost Sharing, None of Us Are Free and More

Good News For Vaccinated Grandparents

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Monday issued long-awaited advice to Americans fully vaccinated against Covid-19, freeing them to take some liberties that the unvaccinated should not, including gathering indoors in small groups without precautions while still adhering to masking and distancing in public spaces. And, as the NYT reports, the agency offered good news to grandparents who have refrained from seeing children and grandchildren for the past year, saying that vaccinated people may visit indoors with unvaccinated people from a single household so long as no one among the unvaccinated is at risk for severe disease if infected with the coronavirus.

U.S.-South Korea Reach Military Cost Sharing Agreement

The United States and South Korea have reached a cost-sharing agreement that will include a “meaningful increase” in payments for U.S. troops on the Korean Peninsula and launched annual joint military exercises, in a partial reset between the two nations, as the Washington Post reports.

U.S. alarmed by frequency of attacks on Saudi after Houthis target oil heartland

The United States on Monday expressed alarm at “genuine security threats” to Saudi Arabia from Yemen’s Iran-aligned Houthis and elsewhere in the region after attacks on the heart of the Saudi oil industry, and it would look at improving support for Saudi defenses, as Reuters reports.

Executive Education

Navigating U.S. Foreign Assistance features a hands-on study of the latest trends and techniques today’s international development and humanitarian leaders need to successfully maximize their impact. Through seminars, case studies, and a culminating crisis simulation, participants will join a diverse network of industry professionals and pair their own unique experience with CSIS’s rich array of coaching resources. Register here.

Coronavirus Crisis Update

The Coronavirus Crisis Update podcast brings you the latest updates and analysis from CSIS experts and the leaders directing the global response. Past guests include NIAID Director Dr. Anthony Fauci, White House Chief of Staff Ron Klain, IHME Director Dr. Chris Murray, Covid-19 Advisory Group members Dr. Luciana Borio and Dr. Celine Gounder, chef Jose Andres, and more. Listen on Apple Podcasts & Spotify.

Video Shorts

Check out CSIS’s new series of video shorts: “Data Unpacked,” Testify,” “What's Happening,” “Preview,” and “High Resolution.” And don’t forget to subscribe to the CSIS YouTube Channel!

In That Number

58.9 million

As of Sunday, about 58.9 million people have received at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccine, including about 30.7 million people who have been fully vaccinated. Providers are administering about 2.16 million doses per day on average.

Source: C.D.C.

Critical Quote

“Everyone, including those who are vaccinated, should continue with all mitigation strategies when in public settings.”

— Dr. Rochelle P. Walensky, director of the C.D.C.

iDeas Lab

Last week, CSIS expert Todd Harrison testified before the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Defense on “Future Defense Spending” Learn more about the recommendations here.

The Andreas C. Dracopoulos iDeas Lab at CSIS enhances our research with the latest in cutting-edge web technologies, design, and multimedia.

Optics

(Photo credit: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images.) US President Joe Biden, with Vice President Kamala Harris, speaks on the passage of the American Rescue Plan in the State Dining Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on March 6, 2021.

Recommended Reading

“2021 Report on Reports: A Roadmap for U.S. Global Leadership,” by the U.S. Global Leadership Coalition (USGLC).

This Town Tomorrow

Tomorrow, at 8:00 a.m., experts from CSIS and the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) will come together virtually for the annual CSIS-JETRO conference on Asia-Pacific economic integration and U.S.-Japan relations.

Then, at 11:00 a.m., the CSIS Strategic Technologies Program will host a panel of government and industry leaders who will explore how to advance cybersecurity solutions for small businesses.

Later, at 3:00 p.m., the CSIS Commission of Strengthening America’s Health Security and the Indo-Pacific Centre for Health Security will co-host a discussion with Dr. Anthony Fauci and Professor Paul Kelly, Chief Medical Officer at the Australian Government Department of Health.

Video

In celebration of International Women's Day, the Smart Women, Smart Power (SWSP) Initiative hosted NYT best-selling author Gayle Tzemach Lemmon to discuss her extensive research and experience covering the women who serve and live in conflict-affected areas of the world. Watch here.

Podcasts

The Bulwark’s Charlie Sykes joined the podcast to discuss the campaign to minimalize the events of January 6, tribalism in the Republican Party, and the prospects for bipartisanship in our fractured politics.

Listen on Spotify and Apple Podcasts.

Smiles

“None of us are free, one of us is chained.
None of us are free.”

One of my favorite albums of all-time, one I would take to a deserted island, is Solomon Burke’s “Don’t Give Up On Me.” I loved Solomon and had the honor of interviewing him a few times, including for an article about “Don’t Give Up On Me.” Every time I called him, he would remember that I have three sons and he would ask after them.

Released in 2002, “Don’t Give Up On Me” won the Grammy for Best Contemporary Blues Album in 2003, capping several years of accolades for Burke who had been inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in ’01. The album was noteworthy for several reasons in addition to Burke’s immense vocal talent. The songs he sang on “Don’t Give Up” were contributed to Burke by Bob Dylan, Van Morrison, Brian Wilson, Elvis Costello, Tom Waits, Dan Penn, Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil. Noted roots musician Joe Henry produced the album and he and Solomon brought in some heavy guest musicians: Daniel Lanois, organist Rudy Copeland and the Blind Boys of Alabama.

I keep coming back to “Don’t Give Up On Me” because it is everything I want in a record: Solomon’s sublime vocals, the words of Dylan and company, Joe Henry’s sparse production that allows you to hear every note with crystal clarity. Even the sequencing of the songs feels right. I love every track on the record but a few stand above, including the title cut, the Van Morrison penned “Fast Train,” Elvis Costello’s “The Judgement” and most of all, “None of Us Are Free” written by Barry Mann and Cynthia Weil. The Blind Boys of Alabama sing backing vocals on “None of Us Are Free” take the song to another level. Turn this up LOUD.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Edaz7CUAZg8