Cuban Drug Could Save Thousands of Lives in Coronavirus Pandemic
Steve Sweeney | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-17
Cuban medicine could treat thousands of coronavirus patients as production of a “flagship” drug known to combat the disease is set to increase significantly, pharmaceutical bosses said at a press conference on Friday. | President of the BioCubaFarma group Eduardo Martinez…
globalresearch.ca/cuban-drug-could-save-…

To Help Stem Coronavirus, Lift Sanctions on Iran
Medea Benjamin, Ariel Gold | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-17
The COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic is far from the first proof of how intertwined we are as a global community. The climate crisis and the refugee crisis have long been glaring examples that the wars or CO2 emissions on one continent risk the lives and well-being of people on another continent. What coronavirus is providing, however,…
counterpunch.org/2020/03/17/to-help-stem…

Armed Terrorists Storm Syrian Arab Red Crescent Offices in Idlib, Attack Volunteers, Loot Humanitarian Aid
Miri Wood | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-17
In coordinated attacks on Saturday 14 March, armed terrorists stormed the SARC office in Idlib and its sub-branch in Ariha. In both facilities, the savages beat up Syrian Arab Red Crescent volunteers, looted humanitarian aid, and vandalized that which they …
globalresearch.ca/armed-terrorists-storm…

US ramps up sanctions devastating Venezuela’s health sector as coronavirus spreads
Leonardo Flores | thegrayzone.com | 2020-03-17
Promising to “smash” Venezuela’s government during a “maximum pressure March,” Trump has imposed crushing sanctions that force Venezuela to spend…
thegrayzone.com/2020/03/17/us-sanctions-…

US threatens military escalation as Iraq confronts COVID-19 and oil price shock
wsws.org | 2020-03-17
Speaking with all the arrogance of a colonial occupier, Secretary of State Pompeo made it clear that Washington has no intention of withdrawing its troops as Iraq has demanded.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/17/iraq…

Nine Years Ago: The US-NATO-Israel Sponsored Al Qaeda Insurgency in Syria. Who Was Behind the 2011 “Protest Movement”?
Prof Michel Chossudovsky | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-17
It was not a protest movement, it was an armed insurgency integrated by US-Israeli & allied supported “jihadist” death squads. From Day One, the Islamist “freedom fighters” were supported, trained & equipped by NATO & Turkey’s High Command.
globalresearch.ca/syria-who-is-behind-th…

Podcast: Vanessa Beeley Unpacks the Idlib Crisis and the Fight for Syria’s Oil, Gas and Water
Whitney Webb | mintpressnews.com | 2020-03-17
Vanessa Beeley weighs in on the crisis in Idlib, Syria, the geopolitical agendas at play and how civilians are scrambling for survival amid a fight for Syria’s major oil, gas and water reserves.
mintpressnews.com/podcast-vanessa-beeley…

US Kills Iraqis for Demanding End of Illegal Occupation
Tony Cartalucci | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-17
The US has recently carried out deadly attacks across Iraq

Colombia: New Evidence in Case of Vote Buying
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-17
The Colombian Commission of Investigation and Accusation noticed several political figures involved in “àëeñe Hernandez’s” case on vote-buying. Both Alvaro Uribe, current senator, and President Ivan Duque are implicated in the accusation. | RELATED: | Venezuela Urges Colombia to Cooperate Over Coronavirus Outbreak | Among those summoned to testify on March 26 are Interior Minister Alicia Arango, former President àÅlvaro Uribe’s adviser María Claudia Daza and the wi…
telesurenglish.net/news/colombia-new-evi…

U.S. Intel Agencies played unsettling role in classified and “9/11-like” Coronavirus response plan
Whitney Webb | mronline.org | 2020-03-17
As the COVID-19 coronavirus crisis comes to dominate headlines, little media attention has been given to the federal government’s decision to classify top-level meetings on domestic coronavirus response and lean heavily “behind the scenes” on U.S. intelligence and the Pentagon in planning for an allegedly imminent explosion of cases. | Source…
mronline.org/2020/03/17/u-s-intel-agenci…

Together, Biden and Sanders COVID-19 plans provide immediate and systemic response
Mark Gruenberg | peoplesworld.org | 2020-03-17
WASHINGTON–If you want the global view of how the U.S. health care non-system is ill-equipped to help people cope with the coronavirus pandemic, Democratic presidential hopeful Sen. Bernie Sanders, Ind-Vt., has a solution for you. It’s in his speech on March 12. If you want point-by-point, detail-by-detail proposals on what the federal government can and …
peoplesworld.org/article/together-biden-…

Covid-19: Education Secretary announces suspension of Ofsted inspections
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2020-03-17
Ofsted inspections are being halted to “remove unnecessary burdens” on schools during the coronavirus pandemic, the education secretary has announced. | Gavin Williamson said he had instructed chief inspector Amanda Spielman to postpone all routine checks on schools, further education, early years and children’s social care providers. | Tuesday’s decision follows pressure from a number of teachers’ unions, including the National Education Union, which said it was “unacceptable” for inspections to be going ahead. | We are committed to supporting schools to stay open at this difficult time. As part of our measures…
thecanary.co/uk/news/2020/03/17/covid-19…

After handful of tests, West Virginia officials claim zero coronavirus cases
wsws.org | 2020-03-17
The state has, by many metrics, the unhealthiest and poorest adult population in the US, putting a majority in higher risk categories for COVID-19.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/17/wvir…

American Unexceptionalism & COVID-19
Kary Love | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-17
During the SARS-1 epidemic scare in 2002-4, America invaded Iraq. If you followed science, you would know that SARS-1, was a coronavirus that caused an acute respiratory disease that killed on average about 11 out of every 100 infected (but sometimes more depending on health care infrastructure), and was a pandemic bullet the world barely…
counterpunch.org/2020/03/17/american-une…

Amid coronavirus pandemic Nevada gaming commission announces “no plans” to close casinos
wsws.org | 2020-03-17
Regulators in just six US states–Maryland, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Indiana, Illinois and Massachusetts–have ordered casinos shut down in a criminally belated attempt to halt the spread of COVID-19.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/17/casl…

Black Plague, Spanish Flu, Smallpox: All Hold Lessons for Coronavirus
Staff | truthdig.com | 2020-03-17
Pandemics are nothing new in history, and their long record across the ages and continents has much to teach us about how best to handle the current outbreak, writes California State University professor Ibrahim Al-Marashi in a fascinating piece at the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists. | Al-Marashi begins with a tour through the animal origins of both common viruses and lethal pathogens, of which COVID-19 is just the latest example. Three-quarters of infectious diseases result from what he calls “zoonotic spillovers,” mostly from common farming…
truthdig.com/articles/black-plague-spani…

We don’t know when and if things will ever be the same again and it’s OK to feel overwhelmed
Emily Apple | thecanary.co | 2020-03-17
I knew I needed to write an opinion piece this morning, but I didn’t know where to start. I knew I couldn’t cover anything else until I’d managed to write a few words about what I’m feeling. Because there’s a need to pause, to acknowledge, to really take in how much the world and all our lives have changed due to the coronavirus (Covid-19) outbreak. And the scariest thing of all is the fact there’s no end in sight

A Tory MP showed her true colours over coronavirus. Her excuse isn’t fooling anyone
Fréa Lockley | thecanary.co | 2020-03-17
Tory MP Pauline Latham showed her true colours when asked a vitally important question. As the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic spreads, many people also face huge financial worries. But Latham’s heartless response epitomises just how dire the government’s treatment of the most vulnerable people truly is during this crisis. And her faux ‘apology’ really didn’t help either. | Inhuman: | The Conservative MP for Mid Derbyshire was asked a vital question about how people can afford to live on Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) of £94.25 a week if…
thecanary.co/trending/2020/03/17/a-tory-…

As lockdowns mount over COVID-19 worldwide, WHO pleads for more testing
wsws.org | 2020-03-17
President Trump admitted Monday that the coronavirus pandemic may not be contained in the US until at least July.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/17/covi…

Incarcerated Journalist Says Millions Behind Bars Are at Risk Amid Pandemic
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-03-17
As San Francisco takes the most severe measures in the country in response to COVID-19, telling 7 million people to shelter in place, we go inside the Bay Area’s San Quentin State Prison, where two prison blocks are under partial quarantine, to speak with incarcerated journalist Juan Moreno Haines. We look at how the coronavirus pandemic is a growing threat to the 2.3 million people locked up in U.S. prisons and jails, as prisons across the country have been shut down in response to the spreading…
truthout.org/video/incarcerated-journali…

The Coronavirus Outbreak is Revealing the Appalling Conditions Faced by Palestinians in Israeli Prisons
Delilah Boxstein | mintpressnews.com | 2020-03-17
“Ailing prisoners traveled three days in a metal van tied to metal chairs with feet and hands cuffed. They don’t have access to food or a toilet as they spend hours picking up other sick prisoners. Most sick inmates won’t even go to Ramleh [Hospial] because they know how excruciating the journey can be.”
mintpressnews.com/coronavirus-reveals-ap…

Insurance Industry Ramps Up Propaganda Against Medicare for All Amid Pandemic
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-03-17
As the coronavirus pandemic spreads across the United States, laying bare the myriad dysfunctions and inefficiencies of America’s for-profit healthcare system, a powerful insurance industry front group is openly ramping up its campaign against systemic healthcare reforms that experts say would help mitigate the outbreak and guarantee essential care for all…
truthout.org/articles/insurance-industry…

Years of Austerity Weakened the Public Health Response to Coronavirus
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-03-17
Years of austerity at all levels of government, combined with profiteering in the health care sector and the Trump administration’s bungled response, have severely weakened the nation’s ability to combat the coronavirus outbreak and is putting public health workers on the front lines of the crisis in danger, according to experts and labor advocates. | Underfunded and overworked public health departments are tasked with tracking and stopping the spread of the disease. Hospitals and emergency rooms ar…
truthout.org/articles/years-of-austerity…

Africans Accuse Europeans of Bringing in Coronavirus
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-17
Africa has so far reported relatively few coronavirus cases compared to the other continents, but governments have come under growing pressure to shut down airports and place travel bans to stop Europeans from coming in and possibly bringing the virus, Middle East Eye reported. | RELATED: | African Youth Optimistic About Future on the Continent: Survey | At the start of the month, after two French nationals had tested positive for the new coronavirus in Senegal, Senegalese new…
telesurenglish.net/news/Africans-Accuse-…

UK doctors speak out on coronavirus pandemic
wsws.org | 2020-03-17
Reporters for the World Socialist Web Site spoke to two medical doctors on how the coronavirus pandemic is affecting Britain’s National Health Service and their concerns for the future.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/17/doct…

As coronavirus cases surge in Canada, Trudeau prioritizes tougher border controls
wsws.org | 2020-03-17
Although the number of confirmed coronavirus cases more than doubled in the past two days to 425, Trudeau offered nothing in the way of additional support for the already overstretched health care system.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/17/caco…

Why America Can’t Respond to the Current Crisis
Robert Reich | truthdig.com | 2020-03-17
Dr. Anthony S Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases and just about the only official in the Trump administration trusted to tell the truth about the coronavirus, said last Thursday: “The system does not, is not really geared to what we need right now … It is a failing, let’s admit it.” | While we’re at it, let’s admit something more basic. The system would be failing even under a halfway competent president. The dirty little secret, which will soon become apparent to all, is that there is no real public health system in the United States. | The ad hoc response fashioned la…
truthdig.com/articles/why-america-cant-r…

Can Biden Defeat Sanders in Today’s Democratic Primary?>
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-17
Former Vice President Joe Biden is confident of his victory over Vermont Senator Bernie Sanders in the upcoming Democratic primary, which will be marked by concerns over the rise of the coronavirus. | RELATED: | Coronavirus Takes Center Stage in Sanders, Biden Debate | Polls show Biden as the favorite in the three states that will cast their votes this Thursday: Florida, Illinois, and Arizona. | Sanders’ victory is known to be unlikely in Florida, because of earlier comments about the leader of…
telesurenglish.net/news/can-biden-exclud…

Coronavirus crisis in Germany: Workers must demand factories and large enterprises be closed
wsws.org | 2020-03-17
The shareholders’ profits are of more value than workers’ lives for the managers, the government and also the union officials.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/17/coge…

Trump Minimizing and Sugarcoating Coronavirus Perils
Ralph Nader | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-17
Donald Trump can’t fake his way through the coronavirus. It’s spreading and doesn’t respond to his delusions. Donald is flailing, failing, fibbing, stumbling, and scapegoating. With the stock market collapsing and the economy shaking, Donald fears defeat in November. Trump is a daily clear and present danger and he is the worst person to handle…
counterpunch.org/2020/03/17/trump-minimi…

The Coronavirus Hoax. “Governments Love Crises”
Rep. Ron Paul | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-17
Governments love crises because when the people are fearful they are more willing to give up freedoms for promises that the government will take care of them. After 9/11, for example, Americans accepted the near-total destruction of their civil liberties …
globalresearch.ca/coronavirus-hoax/57066…

The UK and Spain make coronavirus plans to use private healthcare, with one glaring difference
Tracy Keeling | thecanary.co | 2020-03-17
Both the UK and Spain have made plans to use private healthcare facilities to help tackle the coronavirus pandemic. But there’s a glaring difference between the policies. One that speaks volumes about the Conservative government. | Public good vs private profit: | The Spanish government announced that it was going to requisition private healthcare facilities and healthcare equipment suppliers and manufacturers. The government gave companies 48 h…
thecanary.co/discovery/analysis-discover…

Governors forced to fill void left by Trump coronavirus inaction
John Wojcik | peoplesworld.org | 2020-03-17
As states left without a coordinated national plan to battle the coronavirus pandemic cobble together a patchwork of emergency measures, President Donald Trump said yesterday the states should continue to take care of matters themselves. The governors in the states, desperate to stop hospitals from being overwhelmed, are asking for ventilators, protective equipment, and ICU …
peoplesworld.org/article/governors-force…

Scandinavian Airlines lays off 10,000 airline workers as coronavirus triggers global jobs massacre
wsws.org | 2020-03-17
The devastating impact of the coronavirus pandemic on workers in the travel industry and related sectors is not confined to Scandinavia, but is unfolding on a global scale.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/17/scan…

UK: NHS anticipates year-long coronavirus crisis and 8 million hospitalised
wsws.org | 2020-03-17
The UK, along with much of the rest of the world, faces a prolonged social emergency which will affect the lives of millions.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/17/ukco…

Temporary work stoppage at Fiat Chrysler’s Warren Truck plant as wildcat strikes spread in global auto industry
wsws.org | 2020-03-17
Actions against continued production during the coronavirus pandemic have spread from Italy to Spain, Canada and now the United States.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/17/auto…

The Corona Virus, Trump, and Friday the 13th Press Conference
F. Elizabeth, Dahab | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-17
On Friday 13 March, listening to the President’s speech on the state of emergency provoked by the Coronavirus, I was thinking that the litany of interdictions enumerated had all the features of a crisis heterotopia. I reveled at all the “measures” he recalled: banning assemblies of people, canceling performances and sporting events, in short…
counterpunch.org/2020/03/17/the-corona-v…

Plagues, Pandemics, Paintings, and Personal Gain
Raouf Halaby | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-17
After a lot of Trump Administration obfuscation, dillydallying, denial, sloppy planning, incompetence, inaction, and indecision about the spread and the combatting of the Coronavirus in the United States, and, after much criticism by Democrat politicians and the “liberal” media, the White House apprised the nation that at 9: 00 p.m. EDT, March 11, 2020, President Donald…
counterpunch.org/2020/03/17/plagues-pand…

Democratic Party debate dominated by coronavirus pandemic
wsws.org | 2020-03-17
The exchanges between the candidates had been rendered largely irrelevant by consolidation of the Democratic Party behind Biden, making him the presumptive nominee.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/17/deba…

Canadian workers launch work-safety job actions amid rapid spread of coronavirus
wsws.org | 2020-03-17
While workers are being forced by employers in the private and public sectors to labour under dangerous and unsafe working conditions, the Trudeau government is moving to provide the financial and corporate oligarchy unlimited financial assistance.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/17/cavi…

The impact of the coronavirus crisis in Florence
wsws.org | 2020-03-17
The inadequacies are largely due to the constant cuts that have been made to the national health system over the last two-three decades, under every government, whether center-right or center-left.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/17/ital…

Spain deploys army to impose coronavirus lockdown
wsws.org | 2020-03-17
Spain has registered more than 9,191 infections, becoming the second country after Italy with most new infections.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/17/spai…

Bolsonaro’s Son Confirmed Father’s Positive Coronavirus Test, Then Lied About It
Glenn Greenwald | zcomm.org | 2020-03-17
The question of Bolsonaro’s health remains shrouded in mystery. And that mystery is now fueled by his son inadvertently starting a war with a news outlet they trained their followers to worship: Fox News…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/bolsonaros-son-con…

Coronavirus as a Way of Life
Binoy Kampmark | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-17
“Anything we say in advance of a pandemic happening is alarmist; anything we say afterwards is inadequate.”

How global agriculture grew a pandemic
Rob Wallace | mronline.org | 2020-03-17
What are the underlying structural reasons for the coronavirus outbreak? According to Monthly Review Press author Rob Wallace, you have to look at global agriculture if you really want to understand the nature of global outbreaks. | Source…
mronline.org/2020/03/17/how-global-agric…

Leading orchestras and musicians move to free online performances in response to the coronavirus pandemic
wsws.org | 2020-03-17
Some of the most important cultural achievements of humanity, previously locked behind paywalls or limited to local audiences, are now available to virtually everyone in the world who has access to the Internet.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/17/musi…

US autoworkers demand industry shutdown to fight coronavirus
wsws.org | 2020-03-17
Autoworkers continued to flood the World Socialist Web Site Autoworker Newsletter with comments denouncing the decision by the companies and the UAW to maintain full production in the midst of a deadly pandemic.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/17/uaw-…

Army enters Paris as Macron announces coronavirus lockdown in France
wsws.org | 2020-03-17
The total number of SARS-Covid-2 cases in France grew by 1,210 yesterday to 6,663, with 148 deaths.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/17/fran…

The Corona Virus, Trump, and Friday the 13th Press Conference
F. Elizabeth Dahab | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-17
On Friday 13 March, listening to the President’s speech on the state of emergency provoked by the Coronavirus, I was thinking that the litany of interdictions enumerated had all the features of a crisis heterotopia. I reveled at all the “measures” he recalled: banning assemblies of people, canceling performances and sporting events, in short…
counterpunch.org/2020/03/17/the-corona-v…

Trump Minimizing and Sugarcoating Coronavirus Perils
Ralph Nader | zcomm.org | 2020-03-17
Donald Trump can’t fake his way through the coronavirus. It’s spreading and doesn’t respond to his delusions. Donald is flailing, failing, fibbing, stumbling, and scapegoating…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/trump-minimizing-a…

Coronavirus for All
Seiji Yamada | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-17
Our government will compensate the petroleum, airline, cruise ship, hotel, and sports and entertainment industries for their losses. Socialism for corporations is the first order of the day. But if we want to get through the coronavirus with grandma and grandpa alive, we must have Medicare for All. Or would you rather have Coronavirus for All?
counterpunch.org/2020/03/17/coronavirus-…

America Is a Sham
Dan Kois | zcomm.org | 2020-03-17
Policy changes in reaction to the coronavirus reveal how absurd so many of our rules are to begin with…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/america-is-a-sham/

New Rocket Attack Targets Foreign Troops in Iraq
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-17
A training base for coalition troops led by the United States and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in Iraq was the target of a new rocket attack on Monday. | RELATED: | Iraq Condemns US Air Strikes, Warns of Consequences | Casualties are still unknown after two rockets fell on the Besmaya base south of the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, on Monday night. | The Iraqi army did explain in a statement that this attack “is the third in the past week on the housing of foreign forces.” | Spanish fo…
telesurenglish.net/news/new-airstrike-to…

Iraqi President Appoints New Prime Minister
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-17
Iraqi President Barham Salih on Tuesday appointed Adnan al-Zurfi as the prime minister-designate who will form an interim government, the official television reported. | RELATED: | Iraq Condemns US Air Strikes, Warns of Consequences | Salih received al-Zurfi in his office in the Presidential Palace in central Baghdad and handed him the task letter to form a new government within 30 days, the state-run Iraqiya channel said. | Al-Zurfi’s nomination came one day after the deadline of 15 days…
telesurenglish.net/news/Iraqi-President-…

Covid Update: Europe Must Make More Effort to Halt the Pandemic
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-17
Update: 1: 00 pm. | Italy: death toll rises to 2,503 | The Civil Protection chief Angelo Borrelli reported that 345 people died in the last 24 hours, which increased the number of deaths to 2,503 deaths. | In this European country the number of positive cases amounts to 26,062 people, 2,941 of whom have been discharged. | Since the end of February, the number of total infections since the outbreak was detected at the end of February is 31,506, counting the positives, deaths, and discharges. | US: Amazon suspends storage of non-essential products | Amazon will suspend until April 5 the storage of non-essential p…
telesurenglish.net/news/Covid-Update-Eur…

Open Letter from Truthdig’s Publisher & CEO: Breaking My Silence
Zuade Kaufman | truthdig.com | 2020-03-17
I am proud of what Truthdig has accomplished. Truthdig has received wide acclaim and many awards. We are a voice for progressive politics, social justice, humanitarian issues, the environment, women’s rights and…
truthdig.com/articles/an-open-letter-fro…

Bolivia: MAS Presents Legal Resource in Support of Evo Morales
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-17
The second constitutional chamber, a body of the Bolivian Plurinational Constitutional Court, will hold a hearing to consider a legal appeal proposed by the Movement to Socialism Party in favor of the candidacy of Evo Morales. | RELATED: | Bolivia: Over 147,000 Voters Disqualified From Next Election | Morales, who was forced to leave the Bolivian presidency because of a coup d’état, has been recommended as a senatorial candidate by the leftist party. This candidacy w…
telesurenglish.net/news/bolivia-mas-pres…

Venezuelan Migrants Face Difficult Conditions in Ecuador
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-17
Social organizations Monday warned of the vulnerability faced by many Venezuelans in Ecuador due to mobility restrictions implemented to confront the COVID-19 pandemic. | RELATED: | Ecuador: Citizens Reject Economic Decisions to Please the IMF | “The percentage of Venezuelans who work informally, as well as the percentage of those who work without a visa, is worrisome. Some of their employers have warned them that they will not be paid on the days they do not work,” Daniel Regalado, the pre…
telesurenglish.net/news/Venezuelan-Migra…

ICE officials running unchecked facial recognition searches on Maryland drivers
wsws.org | 2020-03-17
Officials from Immigration and Customs Enforcement have been accessing Maryland state driver’s license photos for years to catch undocumented immigrants given licenses by a special state program.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/17/icem…

New Zealand cabinet minister Shane Jones continues to stoke racism
wsws.org | 2020-03-17
Jones’ anti-immigrant salvos are a sign of the extreme right-wing, nationalist agenda on which the September election will be contested by all the major parties.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/17/jone…

US Indifference to Public Health: The Shame of the Nation
Stephen Lendman | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-17
Both right wings of the US one-party state serve privileged interests exclusively at the expense of public health and welfare. | It’s been this way throughout the nation’s history, notably since the neoliberal 90s, especially post-9/11 when Republicans and undemocratic Dems …
globalresearch.ca/us-indifference-public…

Sanders Endorses Biden? It’s Coming
Stephen Lendman | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-17
You heard it here first. No, Sanders hasn’t formally endorsed Biden yet, but make no mistake. It’s coming

The Saudi Royal Family Appear Unaware of the Dangers of Settling Scores Among Themselves
Robert Fisk | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-17
Purges, interrogation, claims of torture, accusations of treason, suspicion of murder, an insane war in Yemen and ruinous plans for a “reformed” kingdom, all supported by the US and the west and an often fawning media. So what’s new? Poor Mohammed bin Salman is surely getting a bum rap. Far from being a frightening and uncontrollable new…
counterpunch.org/2020/03/17/the-saudi-ro…

The Saudi royal family should beware fighting among themselves
Robert Fisk | zcomm.org | 2020-03-17
The kingdom was never the pool of tranquillity that its rulers have claimed

Quarantine the US Military Machine?
Prof Michel Chossudovsky | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-17
It happened almost on the same day. Italy’s lockdown. People confined to their homes across the European Union. Influx of 30,000 US troops in preparation of the “Defend Europe 2020” war games against Russia in the largest display of military …
globalresearch.ca/quarantine-for-the-us-…

Quarantine for the US-NATO Military Machine?
Prof Michel Chossudovsky | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-17
It happened almost on the same day. Italy’s lockdown. People confined to their homes across the European Union. Influx of 30,000 US troops in preparation of the “Defend Europe 2020” war games against Russia in the largest display of military …
globalresearch.ca/quarantine-for-the-us-…

We’re in a Recession, and It’s Likely to Get Worse
Kevin Zeese | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-17
Introduction | Margaret Flowers and I focus on the foundational flaws in the US economy that will make this recession worse than elites are saying. | We examine the weaknesses in the drivers of the economy and discuss how each was at …
globalresearch.ca/were-recession-get-wor…

Striking Truthdig Staffers Respond to the Publisher
CounterPunch News Service | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-17
On March 16, those participating in Truthdig’s work stoppage wrote directly to publisher Zuade Kaufman and Editor-in-Chief Robert Scheer. We invited them to participate in a conference call on March 17 to begin negotiations to restore Robert Scheer as Editor-in-Chief and to address unfair labor practices, opening a potential path that would allow us to…
counterpunch.org/2020/03/17/striking-tru…

Remembering a Panther
Elena Carter | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-17
The last time I saw former Black Panther, incarcerated activist and poet, Wopashitwe Mondo Eyen we Langa, he asked me a question I didn’t fully understand. “Here’s a riddle for you,” he began, gap-toothed and grinning from his hospice bed.
counterpunch.org/2020/03/17/remembering-…

The Taliban Scores a Coup
Binoy Kampmark | dissidentvoice.org | 2020-03-17
It threatened to disappear under the viral haze of COVID-19, but February 29 saw representatives from the US and Taliban, loftily acknowledged as the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, sign the “Agreement for Bringing Peace to Afghanistan”. After two decades of conflict, the agreement sets in motion the process that should see American troops leave Afghanistan …
dissidentvoice.org/2020/03/the-taliban-s…

Chile: Government May Approve Salary Increase to Quell Protests
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-17
The Chilean Joint Commission on Monday approved a bill that will allow for an increase in the liquid monthly remuneration of workers, thanks to the creation of a subsidy. | RELATED: | Chile: Piñera Celebrates ‘Democracy’ As Police Mistreat People | The decision seeks to ensure a Minimum Guaranteed Income for the working class, which will allow for a salary increase starting at 300 thousand Chilean “pesos” (approximately $350 U.S.D.). | The Minister of Social Development and Fam…
telesurenglish.net/news/chile-government…

Bernie Didn’t Lose the Last Debate, But We May Have
Manuel García, Jr. | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-17
Biden repudiated his long-standing record on all issues (for real?) and advocated the Bernie Sanders’ program, reduced by at least 55% to protect the wealth of his billionaire contributors and patrons, and protect the status quo, all in hopes of conning Latinos and the numerous American underclasses to vote for his prospective administration, which like…
counterpunch.org/2020/03/17/bernie-didnt…

Is the DNC Once Again Orchestrating the Defeat of a Socialist Candidate?
Prof. Marjorie Cohn | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-17
In 1944, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) ensured that socialist Henry Wallace would not succeed Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR) as president. Is history repeating itself in 2020? | Democratic socialist Bernie Sanders received the most votes in the first three primary …
globalresearch.ca/dnc-orchestrating-defe…

‘A Policeman, A Pastor and A Palestinian’: The ‘Chilestinians’ as a Model for Palestinian Unity
Ramzy Baroud | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-17
I was only introduced to the term ‘Chilestinians’ last February at a conference in Istanbul, during a presentation by the Director of the Palestinian Federation of Chile, Anuar Majluf. When Majluf referred to the well-rooted Palestinian community in Chile, who number between 450,000 and half a million, using that unfamiliar and peculiar phrase, I smiled.
counterpunch.org/2020/03/17/a-policeman-…

Is Washington’s Attack Against Chinese Media a Bad Joke?
Andre Vltchek | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-17
The U.S. is insulting the Chinese media. It is affecting both countries. My colleagues in Beijing believe, correctly, that Washington should have tried to increase communication, not to bring it to a halt. | Twist what is happening; reverse facts. That …
globalresearch.ca/washington-attack-agai…

How the OAS Revived the Cold War in the Americas
Laura Carlsen | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-17
The OAS has never been a neutral forum. Since its founding in 1948, the United States government has always wielded power far beyond its vote. Each member state’s contribution is based on the relative size of its national economy and the US contributed 60% ($51 million) of the $81million 2019 OAS operating budget. As a result, the U.S. has historically had disproportionate power over the organization.
counterpunch.org/2020/03/17/how-the-oas-…

President Maduro Requests $5 Billion to Serve His People
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-17
Venezuela’s Foreign Minister Jorge Arreaza reported on Tuesday that the government of President Nicolas Maduro asked the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a financing facility for US$5 billion from the emergency fund of the Rapid Financing Instrument (RFI). | RELATED: | Venezuela Initiates Social Quarantine to Contain COVID-19 | These resources will be deployed t…
telesurenglish.net/news/President-Maduro…

Brazil: Bolsonaro to Be Denounced for Risking the Population
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-17
The Socialism and Liberty Party (PSOL) lawmaker Marcelo Freixo will denounce Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro before the World Health Organization (WHO) for putting the population at risk by promoting the concentration of people in a political act against of the National Congress and the Federal Supreme Court held in Brasilia on March 15. | RELATED: | Bolsonaro Claims His Second COVID-19 Test Was Negative | At an event called by those who long for the return to a military regime, Bolso…
telesurenglish.net/news/Brazil-Bolsonaro…

How to fight the COVID-19 pandemic: A program of action for the working class
wsws.org | 2020-03-17
The essential principle that must guide the response to the crisis is that the needs of working people must take absolute and unconditional priority over all considerations of corporate profit and private wealth.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/17/pers…

“Defender-Europe 20” War Games, COVID-19 and NATO’s Disjointed Flight Forward. Computer Simulations of Nuclear War
Brian Gray | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-17
Presently NATO is in the initial stages of military operations called Defender-Europe 20. The 40,000 soldier strong war game exercise includes roughly 20,000 American troops and accompanying weaponry. This witnesses the largest deployment of US personnel in Europe since 1983 …
globalresearch.ca/war-games-covid-19-nat…

Australian governments invoke emergency powers amid COVID-19 disaster
wsws.org | 2020-03-17
These laws contain powers only previously used in wartime, such as arbitrarily detaining, imprisoning or imposing massive fines on people, to be imposed now in the name of protecting public health.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/17/emer…

The Global Media and COVID-19
Emanuel Pastreich | zcomm.org | 2020-03-17
The media has helped spread panic more often than useful information…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/the-global-media-a…

Older people enjoy dedicated shopping sessions at supermarkets
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2020-03-17
Older people have enjoyed dedicated shopping sessions at some supermarkets.Pensioners were able to shop at Iceland and Lidl stores before general admittance to the public.The moves come amid reports of panic buying leaving shelves empty of essentials such as toilet rolls amid concern over the impact of Covid-19.Older shoppers enter the branch of Iceland in the Kennedy Centre, Belfast, for an early dedicated shopping session (Liam McBurney/PA)At the Kennedy Centre in west Belfast, the local Iceland store opened its doors only for older people at 8am.Kennedy Centre manager John Jones said it had been a chink of lig…
thecanary.co/uk/news/2020/03/17/older-pe…

Cuba’s Contribution to Combatting COVID-19
Helen Yaffe | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-17
COVID-19 surged in the Chinese city of Wuhan in late December 2019 and by January 2020 it had hit Hubei province like a tidal wave, swirling over China and rippling out overseas. The Chinese state rolled into action to combat the spread and care for those infected. Among the 30 medicines the Chinese National Health Commission selected to fight the virus was a Cuban anti-viral drug Interferon Alpha 2b. This drug has been produced in China since 2003, by the enterprise ChangHeber, a Cuban-Chinese joint venture.
counterpunch.org/2020/03/17/cubas-contri…

With US Hospitals Unprepared for COVID-19, European Students Urged Home
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-03-17
The biggest college in Norway urged students to return from countries with “poorly developed” health systems

As Ohio Postpones Its Primary, COVID-19 Pandemic Wreaks Election Havoc
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-03-17
After covering presidential elections, primaries and politics for the last 20 years, I’ve gotten used to days when the story changes before I can finish typing a sentence. The days after this year’s South Carolina primary are a perfect example. Super Tuesday preview done, think I’ll make a sandwich, wait, Amy Klobuchar and Pete Buttigieg just dropped out and endorsed Joe Biden, oh well, NO SANDWICH FOR ME. | It’s the nature of the beast: The only constant is change. If you’re not ready to turn on a…
truthout.org/articles/as-ohio-postpones-…

Cuba’s Contribution to Combatting COVID-19
Helen Yaffe | zcomm.org | 2020-03-17
Cuban Interferon Alpha 2b has proven effective for viruses with characteristics similar to those of COVID-19…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/cubas-contribution…

Covid Update: European Union Works to Bring Its Ex-Pats Back
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-17
Update: 10: 30 | France: public deficit will rise to 3.9 percent due to the pandemic | France’s Public Action and Accounts Minister Geral Darmanin Tuesday estimated that the Covid-19 pandemic will generate a fiscal deficit equivalent to 3.9 percent of Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and a 1 percent reduction in production growth in 2020. | Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire announced that his government will disburse more than US$49 billion to finance policies to counter the decline in economic activity. | France will establish a “solidarity fund” of about US$2 billion for small businesses whose revenues have decline…
telesurenglish.net/news/Covid-Update-Eur…

Brazil: Massive Prisoner Escape Increases Risk of COVID-19
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-17
About 1,350 inmates escaped on Monday in the Brazilian state of Sao Paulo and others are still in mutiny, due to various restrictions on the system of visits and departures as a preventive measure against Covid-19. Most were under a semi-open regime. | RELATED: | Brazil: The Left Presents Plan to Tackle Economic Crisis | The massive escape occurred in three penitentiary centers after several riots and violent confrontations between the convicts and guards. According to the military police i…
telesurenglish.net/news/brazil-massive-p…

Chile: Earthquake Reported in Southern Region
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-17
A seism of 6.0 magnitude occurred in Chile on early Tuesday, local media reported. The earthquake had a minimal impact on the southern región of the South American nation. | RELATED: | Chile’s Communist Mayor to Import Cuban Meds to Fight COVID-19 | The National Seismological Center of the University of Chile published a report of all the telluric movements exceeding 3.0 on the Ritcher Scale. On the information, perceptible seisms were felt since 12: 04 a.m. in the region of Huasco, Quillagua, Mina la Escondida and Cobquecura. | Th…
telesurenglish.net/news/6-0-earthquake-h…

Manchester Arena bomber’s brother found guilty of plot that killed 22
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2020-03-17
The brother of Manchester Arena bomber Salman Abedi has been found guilty of murdering 22 people and injuring hundreds more in the “cruel and cowardly” attack.Hashem Abedi was not present at the conclusion of his seven-week trial as he continued to attempt to evade responsibility for the carnage of 22 May 2017.Families of some of the victims in court two of the Old Bailey wept as a jury found him guilty of 22 counts of murder, attempted murder and conspiring with his brother to cause explosions after less than five hours of deliberations.CCTV of Salman Abedi at Victoria station making his way to the Manchester Ar…
thecanary.co/uk/news/2020/03/17/manchest…

5G: “The End of All Things”. The Health Impacts of Electromagnetic Radiation
Dr. Gary Null | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-17
We have become thoroughly accustomed and habituated to endless advertising by drug makers to buy into the promises of pharmaceutical drugs or to consent to the nutritional value of junk food. Yet the drug and food industries are completely indifferent …
globalresearch.ca/5g-end-all-things/5706…

Global Economy Heads for Major Recession as Central Banks Increase Emergency Measures to Prevent Collapse of the Financial System
Dr. Leon Tressell | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-17
“Those whom the gods wish to destroy they first make mad.” | You can taste the fear as global central banks panic and introduce emergency measures to prevent a systemic collapse of the global financial system. On Sunday the U.S. Federal …
globalresearch.ca/global-economy-heads-m…

The Stop5GL Foundation Takes Netherlands Government to Court over 5G Rollout, Citing Health Concerns
telecompaper | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-17
The Stop5GNL Foundation has filed a suit summary proceedings against the Dutch government, to stop it from rolling out 5G. The foundation believes the deployment is unlawful because it does not protect citizens against the consequences of radiation exposure from …
globalresearch.ca/dutch-foundation-takes…

Pandemic: The Invention of a Disease Called Fear. People are being “Herded”. Disrupting the World Economy
Julian Rose | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-17
The word ‘pandemic’ bears a similarity to the word ‘panic’ and indeed ‘pandemonium’. In fact ‘pandemic’ evokes an almost instant flush of fear in those easily manipulated by mass media, before any details have even touched the surface or context …
globalresearch.ca/pandemic-invention-dis…

Guyana: Vote Recount Suspended Once Again
telesurenglish.net | 2020-03-17
Guyana suspended the vote count again after the Electoral Commission’s headquarters was sprayed with pesticides on Monday, Telesur’s special envoy in the country Alejandro Kirk, said Tuesday. | RELATED: | Guyana: High Court Urges Recount in Largest Electoral District | “On Monday, Guyana’s health ministry suddenly decided to spray the commission’s headquarters with pesticides,” Kirk said. | As a result, “the police were forced to evict the Caribbean Community of Nations (Caric…
telesurenglish.net/news/guyana-votes-rec…

From The Plague Doctor to Plague Culture
Julian Vigo | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-17
In Italy and France during the 17th century, the plague doctor was a physician who treated victims of the bubonic plague. He would dawn a plague mask which usually resembled the face of a white bird to include a curved beak and glass, goggle-like eye holes. Inside the beak or nose-case were placed various aromas–often…
counterpunch.org/2020/03/17/from-the-pla…

Letter from America: March 16, 2020
Lawrence Reichard | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-17
Belfast, Maine, USA. Monday, March 16, 2020. Life has taken on a surreal quality, like living on a set of a zombie apocalypse movie. In my midcoast Maine town of 6,700, shelves in the Hannaford supermarket are three quarters empty. If your company’s product is still on the shelf, you might want to think about…
counterpunch.org/2020/03/17/letter-from-…

No, Italy is Not Consigning 80-Year Olds to Death
Masturah Alatas | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-17
Fake News Alert. Many people around the world are circulating this Telegraph article and it appears that the main source of this news seems to be the Telegraph, not the Italian media. The Italian media, based on accounts and projections from doctors, medical practitioners, family members and analysts, speak, instead, in terms of doctors already…
counterpunch.org/2020/03/17/no-italy-is-…

You Can be Free to Vote, Even Behind Bars
Kenyetta Rich | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-17
Birmingham, Alabama is a landmark city for the American civil rights movement. Even today, it’s ground zero for a vital fight over voting rights. I visited Jefferson County Jail in Birmingham recently to deliver inmates a simple message: you are free to vote, even if you don’t know it. And now is the time for…
counterpunch.org/2020/03/17/you-can-be-f…

Corona, There Goes My Career
Ed Sanders | counterpunch.org | 2020-03-17
counterpunch.org/2020/03/17/corona-there…

Facing a liquidity tsunami? Profit, risk, and discipline in emerging markets
Eds. | mronline.org | 2020-03-17
In April 2012, at the White House on her first visit to the United States since her election in 2010, Brazilian president Brazil Dilma Rousseff scolded advanced capitalist economies for unleashing a ‘tsunami de liquidez’, a ‘liquidity tsunami’, onto the developing world. | Source…
mronline.org/2020/03/17/facing-a-liquidi…

Despite massive Fed intervention, market plunge continues
wsws.org | 2020-03-17
The theme of all the comments from financial analysts was that action by central banks could do nothing to halt the downward spiral.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/03/17/mark…

Concerns over supply shortage of protective gear for frontline health workers
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2020-03-17
There are “critical” shortages of laboratory equipment, medical devices and protective equipment in some countries, European health leaders have said.The European branch of the World Health Organisation (WHO) said it was aware of some shortages and was also monitoring the potential risk of a disruption to medicine supplies.It comes after officials in Britain faced renewed calls to keep frontline staff healthy and ensure they have enough protective equipment to continue caring for patients. | “Health facilities have to have the necessary equipment to care for those seriously affected and to protect health workers…
thecanary.co/discovery/news-discovery/20…

DOJ drops charges against ‘Russian trolls’ after they dared demand evidence in US court
rt.com | 2020-03-17
The US is dropping the much-hyped indictment for ‘election meddling’ against a company supposedly behind the so-called Russian troll farm, closing the opening chapter of special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russiagate investigation. | Further pursuing the case against Concord Management & Consulting LLC “promotes neither the interests of justice nor the nation’s security,” the Department of Justice wrote to the federal judge overseeing the case on Monday in a motion to dr…
rt.com/usa/483279-concord-russiagate-cha…

Leaders of Turkey, Germany, France, UK discuss Syria & migration crisis in videoconference
rt.com | 2020-03-17
Turkish, German, British and French leaders discussed the Syria crisis and migrant issue as well as joint action against coronavirus in a videoconference, Turkish presidency said on Tuesday. | It issued a statement saying that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson also discussed methods of humanitarian aid to Syria’s northwestern Idlib province, Reuters reports. | A summit was planned after Ankara opened its borders to migrants trying to enter the bloc, but the leaders decided to switch to a video call.
rt.com/newsline/483339-turkey-germany-fr…

Leaders of Turkey, Germany, France, UK discuss Syria & migration crisis in videoconference
rt.com | 2020-03-17
Turkish, German, British, and French leaders discussed the Syria crisis and the migrant issue, as well as joint action against coronavirus in a videoconference, the Turkish presidency said on Tuesday. | It issued a statement saying that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, French President Emmanuel Macron, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson also discussed methods of humanitarian aid to Syria’s northwestern Idlib province, Reuters reports. | A summit was planned after Ankara opened its borders to migrants trying to enter the bloc, but the leaders decided to switch to a…
rt.com/newsline/483339-turkey-germany-fr…

Covid-19 pandemic could continue for 2 YEARS, German health expert warns
rt.com | 2020-03-17
A senior German disease control expert has warned that the coronavirus pandemic could continue for two years, depending on how long it takes for an effective vaccine to be developed and if people develop immunity after illness. | Speaking on Tuesday, the Robert Kock Institut’s (RKI) president, Prof. Lothar Wieler, said pandemics tend to run their course in waves, and factors influencing how it unfolds from this point include how many people become immune to it after contracting the virus

Cash-strapped global airlines seek billions in government bailouts to survive
rt.com | 2020-03-17
The airline industry is in crisis because of the coronavirus pandemic. The Italian government announced on Tuesday it plans to re-nationalize the bankrupt Alitalia airline under an emergency economic rescue plan. | Three of the biggest international airline alliances are calling for government support and US carriers are asking for more than $50 billion in assistance, as the industry faces “unprecedented challenges” over the Covid-19 outbreak. | The pandemic has hit the aviation industry hard, as it has forced governments to impose travel bans and close borders. While the crisis does not seem to have an “end i…
rt.com/business/483283-global-airlines-g…

Coronavirus cancels major military drills, gives Europe reprieve from NATO warmongering
rt.com | 2020-03-17
NATO’s massive military exercise ‘Defender Europe 2020’ has been effectively canceled over the covid-19 pandemic. Instead of hype about Russia, perhaps the alliance should address the actual danger to Europe, analysts tell RT. | The Pentagon had already deployed some 6,000 troops and 3,000 pieces of equipment to Europe by March 13, when the transfers were halted amid the rapid spread of the coronavirus. The decision to cancel the drills actually improved European security, since the risk of covid-19 transmission among the troops

Iran has now temporarily sent home 85,000 inmates over coronavirus fears
rt.com | 2020-03-17
Iran’s effort to free up overcrowded prisons from non-critical inmates has seen 85,000 people going home for leave. The measure is meant to prevent an outbreak of coronavirus in the penitentiary system. | “Some 50% of those released are security-related prisoners… Also in the jails we have taken precautionary measures to confront the outbreak,” judiciary spokesman Gholamhossein Esmaili said, as cited by Reuters. | The number of people granted furlough has increased by 15,000 compared to last week. The Middle Eastern country reported 14,991 confirmed cases of the Covid-19 infection as of Monday, with the deat…
rt.com/news/483294-iran-prisoners-leave-…

Ohio governor vows to delay primary vote over coronavirus emergency despite judge’s ruling
rt.com | 2020-03-17
Dueling press reports and statements have created major confusion over the upcoming primary vote in Ohio

Juventus and France star Blaise Matuidi tests positive for coronavirus
rt.com | 2020-03-17
Serie A giants have confirmed that their second star has tested positive for the COVID-19 coronavirus, with French international Blaise Matuidi named as the latest top player to contract the illness. | Juventus confirmed the news via a press statement Tuesday, with the French international midfielder joining defender Daniele Rugani as the second Juve player to contract the virus. | Also on rt.com | | Ronaldo issues statement from quarantine after Juventus teammate’s positive coronavirus test | The team were already under self-isolation me…
rt.com/sport/483355-juventus-blaise-matu…

It took Italian doctors days & an emergency to check her cough, and she still doesn’t know if she has Covid-19
rt.com | 2020-03-17
As the EU belatedly recommends member nations seal their borders, Italy is on the frontline of the fight against coronavirus. RT talked to a student in Milan who became a witness

Airbus & Volkswagen stop production as Covid-19 brings Europe to screeching halt
rt.com | 2020-03-17
European aviation giant Airbus has decided to pause production and assembly activities at its French and Spanish facilities for the next four days to contain the spread of coronavirus. | “This will allow sufficient time to implement stringent health and safety conditions in terms of hygiene, cleaning and self-distancing, while improving the efficiency of operations under the new working conditions,” the company said in a statement on Tuesday, adding that it will allow its staff to work remotely wherever possible. | Airbus’ announcement came shortly after France and Spain imposed drastic measures to battle the…
rt.com/business/483293-airbus-volkswagen…

Not so scary! Russian model says if Covid-19 wipes out half of humanity, the planet will benefit
rt.com | 2020-03-17
A well-known Russian celebrity and glamour model has caused a stir online after suggesting that the death of a massive chunk of humanity would be no big deal, and that it would be good for the Earth as a whole. | Victoria Bonya, a former participant on the massively popular reality television show ‘Dom-2’, recorded the controversial statement on Instagram, and the clip was shared widely on Russian social media. | In her video, Bonya said that coronavirus is actually needed by the Earth and will be a positive thing for the planet. “Because [humanity] simply devoured the planet, we destroyed the planet. And, to…
rt.com/russia/483333-russian-celebrity-c…

Bless me father, for I may be DRUNK! Russian church will DOUBLE communion wine servings to kill coronavirus
rt.com | 2020-03-17
The Russian Orthodox Church’s response to the ever-changing Covid-19 situation has raised some eyebrows, but one new measure will undoubtedly receive a good reception from those partial to a tipple. | In what could only be described as an ‘unorthodox’ proposal, parishioners who wish to receive communion will be drinking a lot more wine than usual. | Speaking to radio station Moscow Talks, Archpriest Leonid Kalinin, a member of the Patriarchal Council for Culture, said that Moscow churchgoers would be receiving double the usual volume of the holy sacrament when attending one of the capital’s churches. | “Accord…
rt.com/russia/483318-russian-church-coro…

Weed & maple syrup: What people are panic buying in different countries amid growing Covid-19 crisis
rt.com | 2020-03-17
As more governments advised people to curtail their movements in an effort to limit the spread of Covid-19, it prompted panic buying sprees

Iran’s supreme leader issues fatwa banning ‘unnecessary travel’ as coronavirus death toll mounts
rt.com | 2020-03-17
The supreme leader of Iran, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has made a religious ruling that prohibits “unnecessary travel” in the country in a bid to stop the spread of Covid-19. Iran’s death toll from the outbreak is nearing 1,000. | The fatwa urges citizens to respect the orders of the health authorities and to refrain from traveling across the country without a valid reason. The supreme leader has final say on all state affairs and the decree published on Tuesday is a rare move on his part. | Iranian authorities called upon the citizenry to avoid traveling, closing major Shia Muslim holy sites on Monday in a bid t…
rt.com/news/483337-iran-coronavirus-trav…

‘Unwoke’ Peloton stock now roaring back as Americans go stir crazy in coronavirus lockdown
rt.com | 2020-03-17
Less than three months after an infamous holiday commercial wiped out $1 billion in Peloton’s market value, the company’s stock is bouncing back

Hospitals in England told to postpone ‘non-urgent’ operations for 3 MONTHS amid coronavirus crisis
rt.com | 2020-03-17
NHS England is cancelling all routine surgery from April 15 for a period of at least three months, and discharging all inpatients as a matter of great urgency, to help deal with the Covid-19 outbreak. | The latest measures revealed by health bosses on Tuesday would see hospital patients who are ‘medically fit’ sent home to free up staff and beds as the UK attempts to stem the spread of the deadly disease. | In a letter sent to health trusts across the country, NHS heads claimed that the novel coronavirus presented the national healthcare system with “arguably the greatest challenge it has faced since its crea…
rt.com/uk/483345-uk-coronavirus-plans-nh…

‘Shocking and callous’: Tory MP rejects concerns over coronavirus low sick pay claims, tells constituent to ‘get a life’
rt.com | 2020-03-17
A Conservative MP has felt the fury of Britons scared about the effect of the Covid-19 pandemic on the poor, after telling one of her constituents concerned about low sick pay to “get a life.” | While the coronavirus outbreak is causing heightened tensions amongst citizens around the globe, lawmakers in various countries are attempting to allay fears with a series of measures to tackle the spread of the deadly disease. | However, it would appear Pauline Latham

Trump Derangement Syndrome meets Covid-19 panic: Hollywood actress spreads conspiracy theory about Israel & coronavirus
rt.com | 2020-03-17
Rosanna Arquette inspired some colorful reactions when she floated the theory that Israel has long known about the coronavirus and claimed the country and Jared Kushner are putting “lives at risk for profit.” | “I’m still confused,” the ‘Buffalo 66’ actress tweeted to her more than 100,000 Twitter followers on Tuesday, “so Israel has been working on a coronavirus vaccine for a year already? (so they knew).” | Arquette went on to say US President Donald Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner is the main investor in the vaccine. | “Vaccines take a long time to know if they are safe and KUSHNER OSCAR is the major inves…
rt.com/usa/483357-rosanna-arquette-israe…

‘If I had to go to the pub, I’d go’: PM BoJo’s dad defies own son’s advice ONE day after new Covid-19 measures (VIDEO)
rt.com | 2020-03-17
Boris Johnson’s father Stanley has vowed that coronavirus won’t put him off ordering a pint of beer, despite the UK government

‘The numbers are staggering’: New York announces 432 new cases of coronavirus, 12 total deaths
rt.com | 2020-03-17
Governor Andrew Cuomo has promised more closures in the state of New York, yet rejected the idea of a quarantine in the Big Apple. He also pleaded for help from the federal government as coronavirus deaths and cases rise steeply. | “It’s possible we will be doing more dramatic closings,” Cuomo said at a Tuesday press conference, only a day after announcing the closing of gyms, casinos and movie theaters in response to the coronavirus outbreak. | New York was facing just over 900 confirmed cases of the coronavirus and seven deaths on Monday, but 432 new cases were revealed on Tuesday, as well as five new deaths…
rt.com/usa/483334-new-york-coronavirus-c…

Fed brought out the big guns to save market but it wasn’t enough, ex-insider tells Boom Bust
rt.com | 2020-03-17
An emergency response from the US Federal Reserve failed to calm investors amid the coronavirus panic and led to another market bloodbath. However, it didn’t have any other options, a former Fed insider believes. | “If the Fed had been silent then we might have even seen more disruption,” Danielle DiMartino Booth said in an interview with RT’s Boom Bust. “Sadly, they’ve backed themselves into a corner and they had to deploy all of the weapons that they had, all at once, and that still wasn’t quite enough.” | The analyst noted that the average American will hardly feel any impact of the rate reduction and fres…
rt.com/business/483310-fed-failed-save-m…

White House promises big bucks to airlines…and Americans will get a check too
rt.com | 2020-03-17
US Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin has promised immediate financial relief “within the next two weeks” to Americans hit hard by the coronavirus recession – plus a massive financial aid package for the airline industry. | The Trump administration will be sending a check to Americans within the next two weeks for an undetermined amount, Mnuchin announced at a press conference on Tuesday. | While the figure of $1,000 has been frequently floated, Mnuchin implied the real figure will be larger. | “We want to make sure Americans get money in their pocket quickly,” he said, adding that a “payroll tax holiday” for l…
rt.com/usa/483342-mnuchin-aid-americans-…

US stocks try to claw back losses a day after one of the worst declines on record
rt.com | 2020-03-17
Wall Street opened slightly higher on Tuesday, a day after US stocks saw the worst sell-off in more than 30 years as the impact of the coronavirus on the global economy became clear. | The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose more than 400 points seconds after the opening bell, before reversing most of its gains. Both the S&P 500 and the Nasdaq Composite were up slightly during early trading. | Also on rt.com | | US stocks crash as Fed action fails to calm market panic | The Dow lost nearly 3,000 points on Monday, ending the day down almost 13 percent &#15…
rt.com/business/483323-us-markets-recove…

Celebrities take social distancing & blaming millenials to levels bordering on absurd
rt.com | 2020-03-17
Public figures in the US have ramped up their responses to the coronavirus outbreak by practicing social distancing, shaming millennials who refuse to self-isolate and making brash comparisons, but it all seems more like a stunt. | ‘Fox & Friends’ surprised many on Tuesday morning when the hosts were seen practicing social distancing. | “To be responsible, to show social distancing, all three of us are apart

Finland to restrict traffic across borders, govt approves legislation on state of emergency
rt.com | 2020-03-17
Finland will start heavily restricting traffic crossing its borders on Thursday in an attempt to contain the coronavirus outbreak, Interior Minister Maria Ohisalo said. The center-left government approved legislation on Tuesday to adopt a state of emergency, which the parliament is expected to approve on Wednesday, Reuters said. | “Goods and cargo transports will continue across all borders. Indispensable work-related traveling will still be possible and continues within EU borders,” Ohisalo told reporters. Permanent residents will be allowed to return and foreign travelers permitted to leave the country. | Tr…
rt.com/newsline/483336-finland-traffic-b…

EU leaders agree to close external borders to limit coronavirus spreading – President of EU commission
rt.com | 2020-03-17
President of the European Council Charles Michel has announced EU’s external borders will be closed for 30 days to combat the spread of the coronavirus. It’s up to member states to implement the ban. | “The EU and its member states will do whatever it takes to address the current challenges,” Michel announced. | President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen made the recommendation for the ban on Monday.”The less travel, the more we can contain the virus,” she said. She noted that the idea got overwhelming support and the countries would work on how to implement the ban individually. | Also on rt.co…
rt.com/news/483359-eu-close-borders-exte…

Top candidate for Merkel ¥s successor Friedrich Merz tests positive for coronavirus
rt.com | 2020-03-17
Friedrich Merz, a former Christian Democratic faction leader in the Bundestag, who is now seen as the most likely successor to Chancellor Angela Merkel, has revealed he has tested positive for coronavirus. | Merz has emerged as a grassroots favorite in the race for the top post in Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU), and was considered one of the frontrunners. This came after the chancellor’s protege, Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer, abruptly resigned following a political scandal in the eastern region of Thuringia. | However, the 64-year-old now faces a fight for more than just his political career. “My Sund…
rt.com/news/483321-merz-coronavirus-merk…

France postpones 2nd round of municipal elections to late June
rt.com | 2020-03-17
The second round of France’s municipal elections, originally set for this weekend, has been postponed to June 21 after the first round of voting on Sunday was marred by record no-shows. The results of the first round of local elections on Sunday will remain valid. | The French government has been criticized for choosing to press ahead with the first round even as it imposed stringent curbs on public life in an effort to slow the spread of the new coronavirus. | President Emmanuel Macron ordered people on Monday to stay at home to avoid spreading the virus. He will ask parliament on Thursday to approve a law gr…
rt.com/newsline/483288-france-postpones-…

Wall Street’s big coronavirus mistake
rt.com | 2020-03-17
The coronavirus has wreaked havoc on global stock markets, but this may just be the start of a much bigger economic crisis. | Investment professionals on Wall Street spend their days reading financial reports and looking at numbers flash on screens. These numbers record the moment-to-moment changes in the collective wisdom of markets about the value of stocks, bonds, commodities and a distressing array of derivative financial products. | From the comfort of the sealed caverns of Wall Street the actual physical and social world is just an abstraction to be quantified and analyzed. One of Wall Street’s most prom…
rt.com/business/483287-wall-streets-big-…

‘Russian troll firm’ says it has a $50bn grudge to settle with US after indictment dropped by DoJ
rt.com | 2020-03-17
A Russian firm that the DoJ failed to prosecute for “sowing discord” during the 2016 election aims to take its pound of flesh

IOC remains ‘fully committed’ to Tokyo 2020 Olympics as it urges athletes to ‘continue to prepare’ for competition
rt.com | 2020-03-17
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has issued a statement staying the organization “remains fully committed” to the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo, and urged athletes to “continue to prepare” for the Games. | The statement, issued Tuesday, moved to dampen the speculation surrounding the future of the 2020 Olympics amid the ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic, as the IOC effectively told athletes and stakeholders that it was business as usual. | Als…
rt.com/sport/483330-tokyo-2020-olympics-…

Former banker who crashed Northern Rock slammed as hypocrite for ‘ironic’ suggestion that China pay ‘reparations’ for Covid-19
rt.com | 2020-03-17
A suggestion that China should pay “reparations” for the Covid-19 crisis made by a British former banker responsible a major financial collapse in the UK agitated people who accused him of a “staggering” lack of self-awareness. | Matt Ridley, who was chairman of the collapsed Northern Rock bank between 2004 and 2007, tweeted on Monday that he was “not a fan of reparations for the sins of past generations.” Nonetheless, he proposed that there might be “a case for demanding some sort of reparations from the Chinese government” due to the “terrible human suffering” the pandemic will inevitably cause. | Needless t…
rt.com/uk/483317-matt-ridley-china-repar…

France may nationalize major companies amid market meltdown, finance minister says
rt.com | 2020-03-17
The French government said on Tuesday it is ready to use all measures necessary to support big companies suffering during the current global market turmoil caused by the Covid-19 pandemic. | “I won’t hesitate to use all means available to protect big French companies,” Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said on a call with journalists, adding: “That can be done by recapitalisation, that can be done by taking a stake, I can even use the term nationalisation if necessary.” | According to the Financial Times citing Le Maire, Paris has also promised a package of measures worth €45 billion (US$49.8bn) to help com…
rt.com/business/483302-france-may-nation…

‘Reciprocal measures’: Beijing tells NYT, WSJ, WaPo journalists to hand in credentials as US-China media war rolls on
rt.com | 2020-03-17
China is pulling the press credentials of US journalists from outlets including the New York Times and the Washington Post whose passes expire in 2020, in the latest move of an ongoing tit-for-tat with America over media access. | In a statement about China’s “countermeasures against US suppression of Chinese media organizations in the United States,” Beijing announced that American reporters working for the NYT, Wall Street Journal, Voice of America, Time and the Washington Post whose credentials are due to expire by the end of this year must hand them over within 10 days. | These reporters will also not be a…
rt.com/news/483351-china-new-restriction…

With economy imploding, US losing its superpower status to make room for Russia and China, says Max Keiser
rt.com | 2020-03-17
The global markets’ current implosion was 100 percent guaranteed, former Wall Street stockbroker Max Keiser told RT. According to him, the financial markets are best described as a “quadrillion-dollar Ponzi scheme.” | “Central banks’ policy of allowing governments and corporations to borrow, at virtually no cost, against decades of future consumption to consume now, hollowed out the global economy and made it extremely fragile,” said Keiser. | He explained that industries and companies that destroyed themselves buying back their own stock (airlines, for example) are “rightfully being wiped off the face of the…
rt.com/business/483327-us-losing-super-p…

Eduard Limonov, Soviet-Era dissident & writer who shocked Russia, dead at 77
rt.com | 2020-03-17
The Russian writer, politician and Soviet-era dissident Eduard Limonov has died at 77. His controversial 1970s memoir ‘It’s me, Eddie’ scandalized Russia when first published in the country in 1991, selling over a million copies. | His death was announced by State Duma (national parliament) deputy and chief editor of ‘Yunost’ magazine Sergei Shargunov. His assistant Dmitry Sidorenko subsequently confirmed it to Moscow daily RBK. He didn’t specify a cause of death, but Russian media suggested it was complications from surgery. | Shargunov told the TASS news agency that Limonov died on Tuesday evening at a hospi…
rt.com/russia/483348-writer-polititian-l…

Eduard Limonov, Soviet-Era dissident & writer who shocked Russia, dead at 77
rt.com | 2020-03-17
Eduard Limonov, who has died in Moscow, was a one off. A Soviet-era dissident, his controversial 1970s memoir ‘It’s me, Eddie’ scandalized Russia when first published in the country in 1991, selling over a million copies. | His death was announced by State Duma (national parliament) deputy and chief editor of ‘Yunost’ magazine Sergei Shargunov. Limonov’s assistant Dmitry Sidorenko subsequently confirmed it to Moscow daily RBK. He didn’t specify a cause of death, but Russian media suggested it was due to complications from surgery. | Shargunov told the TASS news agency that Limonov died on Tuesday evening at a…
rt.com/russia/483348-writer-polititian-l…

Spain Locks Down & Nationalizes Private Healthcare as Coronavirus Deaths Double & Cases Skyrocket
Staff | democracynow.org | 2020-03-17
Europe is the epicenter of coronavirus, and Spain now has the second most cases in Europe, with more than 2,000 new cases in 24 hours and the number of deaths doubled. We’ll go to Madrid for an update, where more than half of the country’s cases have been reported. This comes as the Spanish government announced it is nationalizing hospitals and private healthcare companies to better manage the pandemic. We are joined by María Carrión, a freelance journalist and former Democracy Now! producer who is also executive director of FiSahara and co-founder of Nomads HRC, which focus on human rights in Western Sahara.
www.democracynow.org/2020/3/17/spain_cor…

Spain Nationalizes Health Care as Its Coronavirus Cases Double
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-03-17
Europe is the epicenter of coronavirus, and Spain now has the second most cases in Europe, with more than 2,000 new cases in 24 hours and the number of deaths doubled. We’ll go to Madrid for an update, where more than half of the country’s cases have been reported. This comes as the Spanish government announced it is nationalizing hospitals and private healthcare companies to better manage the pandemic. We are joined by María Carrión, a freelance journalist and former Democracy Now! producer who is also execu…
truthout.org/video/spain-nationalizes-he…

Iran calls on Europe to defy US sanctions amid COVID-19 outbreak
Press TV | iranian.com | 2020-03-17
Iran’s foreign minister has called on London and the European Union to defy Washington’s anti-Iran sanctions amid the outbreak of the novel coronavirus. In a Monday phone conversation with his British counterpart Dominic Raab, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif denounced the US’ illegal and unilateral sanctions against Iran as an obstacle to the battle …
iranian.com/2020/03/17/iran-calls-on-eur…

How can the US support Iran’s response to the coronavirus and bolster diplomacy?
Mark Fitzpatrick | iranian.com | 2020-03-17
As Tehran is scrambling to contain the rapid spread of the coronavirus in Iran, Mark Fitzpatrick explains why the United States should facilitate the humanitarian assistance Iran needs to address its current public health crisis. The United States’ policy toward Iran is stuck in a rut. Government officials know well that the maximum pressure campaign …
iranian.com/2020/03/16/how-can-the-us-su…

Video: New Syrian Army Offensive in Idlib Becoming Inevitable as Militants Sabotage Joint Turkish-Russian Patrols
South Front | globalresearch.ca | 2020-03-17
On March 15, Russian and Turkish forces conducted a first joint patrol in Greater Idlib in the framework of the new de-escalation agreement reached in Moscow. The planned route of the patrol goes along the M4 highway, where a buffer …
globalresearch.ca/video-new-syrian-army-…

Curbside Communities Need Our Support During the Coronavirus Crisis
The Village Oakland | indybay.org | 2020-03-17
Most unhoused folks don’t have the privledge of washing hands all day long or self-quarantining.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/03/16/1883158…

Coronavirus Scares Tourists Away from Sausalito
Leon Kunstenaar | indybay.org | 2020-03-17
Formerly bustling tourist town almost deserted…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/03/16/1883156…

Online Event: Combatting Coronavirus in our Community–What Works, Why Now (live stream)
The Commonweath Club | indybay.org | 2020-03-17
Via live stream online…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/03/14/1883152…