Good morning. 
Thursday in Whitewater will be sunny with a high of 75. Sunrise is 6:29 AM and sunset 7:14 PM, for 12h 44m 40s of daytime. The moon is a waxing crescent with 7.6% of its visible disk illuminated.
Whitewater’s Landmarks Commission meets at 6 PM.
On this day in 1776, the Continental Congress officially names its union of states the United States.
Sophie Carson reports ICU beds are in short supply across much of Wisconsin as COVID-19 hospitalizations are at heights last seen in January:
As the number of people hospitalized in Wisconsin with COVID-19 remains at heights last seen in January, available intensive care beds are in the single digits in much of the state.
In the north-central region, a 12-county area that includes Wausau, three ICU beds were available Wednesday, according to data from the Wisconsin Hospital Association.
In the northeast region, which includes Green Bay, seven ICU beds were open. In the northwest region, one ICU bed was open; in the western region, three were.
The number of COVID-19 patients in the state, as well as those in intensive care, has risen rapidly over the last month or so as the delta variant causes a surge in cases.
Wednesday was only the third time since mid-January that the state recorded more than 1,000 hospitalized COVID-19 patients. The first two times were Sunday and Tuesday.
I’ve no estimate, no projection, about the path of the pandemic through Wisconsin. One needs no projection, however, to read and grasp that increased ICU usage is a personal (for patients) and social (for all of us) cost. COVID-19 vaccines reduce the likelihood of hospitalization.
The populists insist that others should be practical. Well, here’s practicality: hospital space is not free, for those who occupy it or those who might have trouble finding nearby ICU space for care for other illnesses (heart conditions, etc.).
Anti-vax populists are costing America vast, needless expense and disruption for their ignorance. These conservative populists want to be taken seriously, but they neither think nor behave seriously.
See also A Private Insurance Response to Vaccine Refusal (Updated) and The ‘Personal Responsibility’ Crowd Wants a Handout.