Daily Archives: May 3, 2020

2020-05-03: Social Media Postees

Please be social by posting these ‘POSTEES’ on social media! (Copy the text of the postee below, then paste it on social media and the story images will also appear.)

Israel’s New Government Is Exploiting Pandemic to Annex 30 Percent of West Bank
Marjorie Cohn | zcomm.org | 2020-05-03
One of the central pillars of this new regime is the unlawful annexation of the Jordan Valley and illegal Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank. The annexation has the full backing of U.S. President Donald Trump…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/israels-new-govern…

Lancet Editor Praises China, Slams Western Mishandling of COVID-19 Outbreaks
Stephen Lendman | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-03
Lancet editor Richard Horton debunked phony claims by the US and West, falsely blaming China for spreading COVID-19 outbreaks. | Friday on China’s CCTV, he stressed that Beijing “isn’t responsible for” what’s happening. | Calls by US and other Western leaders for …
globalresearch.ca/lancet-editor-praises-…

2009 H1N1 Vaccine Caused Brain Damage in Children. Dr. Anthony Fauci on “Vaccine Safety” Issues
Prof Michel Chossudovsky | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-03
In 2009, NIAID Director Anthony Fauci was firmly in support of a multibillion dollar H1N1 vaccine project | Today he is an avid supporter of a COVID-19 vaccine. | What he fails to acknowledge is that the 2009 H1N1 Vaccine caused brain …
globalresearch.ca/video-dr-anthony-fauci…

Towards A New World Order? The Global Debt Crisis and the Privatization of the State
Prof Michel Chossudovsky | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-03
This is the true picture of what is happening. Poverty is Worldwide. While famines are erupting in Third World countries, closer to home, in the richest country on earth, “millions of desperate Americans wait in long crowded lines for handouts”
globalresearch.ca/towards-a-new-world-or…

The Real Disease Is Inequality
Jim Hightower | zcomm.org | 2020-05-03
The forces of greed shoved working families to the edge

How Many People Will Patent Monopolies Kill In This Pandemic?
Dean Baker | cepr.net | 2020-05-03
No one wants to die, but hey, who wouldn’t be willing to sacrifice their life to protect someone’s patent monopoly? That is a question that is implicitly raised in this New York Times piece on the race to develop an effective vaccine against the coronavirus. Near the beginning the piece tells readers: “In an era …
cepr.net/how-many-people-will-patent-mon…

May Rent Is Due, and Hundreds of Thousands of Tenants Are Going on Strike
Rebecca Burns | zcomm.org | 2020-05-03
Activists and some members of Congress are calling for rent to be canceled, as the coronavirus pandemic wreaks economic havoc…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/may-rent-is-due-an…

[Letter] A reality check on the use of face masks during the COVID-19 outbreak in Hong Kong
Victor CW Tam, Shing Yau Tam, Wai Kwong Poon, Helen Ka Wai Law, Shara WY Lee | thelancet.com | 2020-05-03
Despite the rapid spread of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) into a pandemic, an ‘east-west’ divide remains between the recommendations of different health authorities on the use of face masks in the community [1,2]. We respectfully differ from the WHO recommendation on its effectiveness [3]. In our opinion, mass masking in the community is one of the key measures that controls transmission during the outbreak in Hong Kong and China. Moreover, it would be futile to convince individuals who experienced the SARS or swine flu outbreaks, not to wear face masks for protection.
thelancet.com/journals/eclinm/article/PI…(20)30100-0/fulltext?rss=yes

Venezuelan Military Foils Terrorist Infiltration from Colombia
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-03
The Minister of Interior, Justice and Peace of Venezuela, Nestor Reverol, announced on Sunday the disarticulation of an incursion by a terrorist group into the country via sea. | RELATED: | Venezuela to Carry out Special Repatriation Operations | Reverol said the infiltration attempt came from a terrorist group trying to enter Venezuela from Colombia. | Reverol highlighted that the objective of this incursion was to commit terrorist acts in the country, like carrying out asassinations…
telesurenglish.net/news/Venezuelan-Milit…

Bojaya commemorates massacre for the first time with lost loved ones, but without peace
Adriaan Alsema | colombiareports.com | 2020-05-03
The people of Bojaya on Saturday commemorated the 2002 massacre in their northwest Colombia village for the first time in the presence of those they lost, but without the peace…
colombiareports.com/bojaya-commemorates-…

China Denying False Claims Is ‘Evidence’ of COVID-19 Cover-Up
Andrey Areshev | strategic-culture.org | 2020-05-03
China is being put in a no-win bind. It is accused of misleading the world over the Covid-19 outbreak, which is in turn prompting demands for financial compensation. The United States, Britain, France and Australia have pushed this narrative. Demonization of China involves claims that Beijing has fomented disinformation about the pandemic. | The publicly documented timeline of the pandemic confounds this “blame China” narrative. So too does the disproportionate mishandling of the crisis in the U.S., Britain and Europe. | Yet when China protests such claims, this is then portrayed as evidence of a “cover-up”, furt…
strategic-culture.org/news/2020/05/03/ch…

Why Sweden Succeeded While Others Failed
Mike Whitney | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-03
How do you measure success in dealing with an illness for which there is no cure? | This is the question we need to ask ourselves before judging which country’s approach has been most successful in dealing with the coronavirus. The …
globalresearch.ca/why-sweden-succeeded-w…

Big Pharma Controlled FDA Approves Inadequately Tested Drug for COVID-19
Stephen Lendman | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-03
Big Pharma officials run the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), its mandate focused on profit-making over human health and welfare. | Consumer advocate Ralph Nader earlier slammed “unrestrained drug industry havoc.” | Big Pharma “receives billions of dollars in tax credits …
globalresearch.ca/big-pharma-controlled-…

Cuba Condemns Foiled Terrorist Plot Against Venezuela
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-03
Cuba’s Foreign Affairs Minister Bruno Rodriguez rejected Sunday the foiled terrorist attack against Venezuela, expressing his support to Nicolas Maduro’s government and Bolivarian Revolution. | RELATED: | Cuba Willing to Help Investigate Attack on Its US Headquarters | “We strongly condemn the armed mercenary incursion into Venezuela” the diplomat tweeted, adding that “all our solidarity and support for President Nicolas Maduro and the civic-military union of the Bolivarian an…
telesurenglish.net/news/cuba-condemns-us…

Bolivia vs Venezuela: COVID-19 response reveals true nature of governments
Federico Fuentes | zcomm.org | 2020-05-03
Because Venezuela represents an alternative to the profit-driven capitalist system, the US has chosen the COVID-19 crisis as a time to ramp up its attacks on the Maduro government…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/bolivia-vs-venezue…

Bolivian Military Aircraft Crashes During Aid Mission: 6 Killed
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-03
A Bolivian air force plane crashed during a humanitarian mission, killing all six people on board, said the Defence Ministry on Saturday. | RELATED: | Bolivia: Self-Proclaimed President Rejects New Electoral Law | The tragedy occurred near the north-central city of Trinidad, the country’s Air Force wrote on Twitter, confirming that two Bolivian crew and four Spaniards deceased. | The twin-engine propeller plane would have arrived in the country’s largest city of Santa Cruz, where t…
telesurenglish.net/news/bolivian-militar…

The Trump Regime Redeploys Its ISIS (Terrorist) “Freedom Fighters” to Iraq, Courtesy of the Pentagon
Stephen Lendman | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-03
For over 40 years, Iraqis suffered from the scourge of US wars by hot and other means with no let-up, millions perishing, an entire population immiserated. | The Iraqi government and vast majority of its people want their country back

Female Genital Mutilation Finally Banned in Sudan
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-03
In a significant victory for women and girls’ rights in Sudan, the country’s transitional government banned on April 22 and reported by The Guardian on Friday, the practice of female genital mutilation (FGM), making it punishable by three years in jail and a fine. | RELATED: | Sudanese Prime Minister Survives Assassination Attempt | Women’s rights groups praised the move saying it would help to end FGM but warned about the difficulty of changing mentalities as the practice is deeply…
telesurenglish.net/news/Female-Genital-M…

New COVID-19 Peaks As Nations Ease Lockdowns
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-03
As several governments resume productive activities and lift lockdowns amid the COVID-19 pandemic, experts warn the threat of a second wave of infections. | RELATED: | Spain Records Lowest Death Toll Since COVID-19 Quarantine | On Sunday some of the world’s most populous countries reported worrisome new peaks in infections, including India, which saw its biggest single-day jump yet.‚Äã‚Äã‚Äã‚Äã‚Äã‚Äã The country reported mo…
telesurenglish.net/news/world-nations-im…

Israel’s Top Court Discusses Netanyahu’s Legal Ability to Govern
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-03
Israeli Supreme Court began Sunday a two-day discussion to determine whether the criminal charges against Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu disqualify him from holding his post. | RELATED: | Hating Arabs as a Common Ground: Why Israel’s Coalition Government is Likely to Survive | “Today we shall hear arguments on the question of bestowing the duty of forming a government on a Knesset (Parliament) member against whom an indictment has been filed,” Chief Justice Esther Hayut sa…
telesurenglish.net/news/Israels-Top-Cour…

The Trump Regime’s Latest Diabolical Anti-Iran Scheme. With the Support of Bibi
Stephen Lendman | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-03
Decades of US hostility toward Iran for not bowing to its hegemonic will reached a fever pitch under Trump. | Regime hardliners and Netanyahu convinced him to wage all-out war by other means on Tehran, an agenda that risks things turning …
globalresearch.ca/trump-regime-anti-iran…

Former top officials in Bernie Sanders campaign form super PAC to back Joe Biden
WSWS Repost | indybay.org | 2020-05-03
With the Democratic Party uniting to promote Joe Biden, Bernie Sanders holds his nose to let his supporters build a super PAC.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/05/02/1883277…

Lenin on Democracy and Dictatorship & its relevance for our time
Eugene E Ruyle | indybay.org | 2020-05-03
Online ZOOM Meeting. | LOG-IN INFORMATION AT OUR WEBSITE | ICSSMARX.ORG | OR EMAIL CUYLERUYLE@MAC.COM
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/05/01/1883273…

CIA & MI6 put together ‘scientific’ dossier ‘targeting China’s Covid-19 cover-up’ – as West readies to demand Beijing COMPENSATION
rt.com | 2020-05-03
The West’s wish to pin the blame on China (and probably the bill too) for the Covid-19 pandemic has been reportedly incarnated in a 15-page dossier compiled by intelligence agencies, which has now leaked, according to reports. | The document, described by the Australian newspaper the Sunday Telegraph, was prepared by “concerned Western governments.” The publication mentions that the Five Eyes intelligence agencies are…
rt.com/news/487661-china-covid-dossier-l…

Video: Golan Heights Escalation and New Drama in Idlib
South Front | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-03
Early on May 1, several missiles launched from the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights hit positions of the Syrian Army near Tell Ahmar and Quneitra city. The strike reportedly led to no casualties among Syrian personnel, but destroyed several pieces of military …
globalresearch.ca/video-golan-heights-es…

Minnesota Weatherman Sacked For Repost Likening Anti-Lockdown Protesters With Nazi Sympathisers
sputniknews.com | 2020-05-03
A group dubbed “Liberate Minnesota” has been protesting lockdown measures introduced in the state, and are calling for the reopening of the economy. The state has recently extended the stay-at-home order to 18 May to slow the spread of COVID-19.
sputniknews.com/us/202005031079181929-mi…

Taliban Kill 3 Soldiers in Attack on Checkpoints in Eastern Afghanistan – Official
sputniknews.com | 2020-05-03
KABUL (Sputnik) – Three Afghan soldiers were killed and five others injured overnight in a gunfight with Taliban militants in the eastern Afghan province of Paktia, a spokesman for the governor told Sputnik on Sunday.
sputniknews.com/asia/202005031079181948-…

Europe’s Largest? 3500 Protest Anti-Virus Overreach in Slovenia
Marko Marjanović | anti-empire.com | 2020-05-03
As in the rest of Europe (except Belarus) protest is not permitted in Slovenia. Cycling however, is since recently again allowed. So Slovenians had the mind they would mess with the government by taking their again-permitted once-daily bicycle ride and do it all at once. | A mass of 3500 cyclists rode through the center of the city and circled in front of the parliament building. | | On the one hand, a bicycle protest (and largely masked) is somewhat lame, certainly compared to the incredible coolness on display in Michigan. On the other…
anti-empire.com/europes-largest-3500-pro…

Pompeo Demands Countries Block Airspace to Iran’s Sanctions-Busting Air Bridge to Venezuela
Tyler Durden | anti-empire.com | 2020-05-03
The US is going on the offensive once again against Venezuela, this time attempting to break up growing Iranian cooperation and assistance to Caracas. The two so-called ‘rogue states’ recently targeted for US-imposed regime change are helping each other fight coronavirus as well as Washington-led sanctions. Specifically Tehran has ramped up cargo deliveries related getting Venezuela’s derelict oil refineries fully operational. | Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in new statements has called on international allies to block airspace specifically for Iran’s Mahan Air, currently under US sanctions, and which has in…
anti-empire.com/pompeo-demands-countries…

Iran Bashing, a US Media Specialty
Stephen Lendman | iranian.com | 2020-05-03
Operating as imperial mouthpieces, US establishment media are hostile toward all sovereign independent nations on its target list for regime change. They’re countries unwilling to sacrifice their sovereign rights to US interests. Iran tops the list of Middle East nations Washington wants transformed into a vassal state

We need to talk about coronavirus and mental health. Because all is not what it seems
Steve Topple | thecanary.co | 2020-05-03
THIS ARTICLE DOES NOT CONSTITUTE MEDICAL ADVICE. IF YOUR ARE HAVING A MENTAL HEALTH CRISIS, YOU CAN CALL SAMARITANS UK ON 116 123. IF YOU HAVE CONCERNS ABOUT MEDICATION YOU TAKE, ALWAYS SPEAK TO YOUR DOCTOR. | A London-based psychologist has put his head above the parapet and warned that the coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic could cause a surge in unnecessary mental health diagnoses and drug prescriptions. But his statement poses far bigger questions about depression, and whether it’s ‘all in our heads’

COVID-19 pandemic could last up to 2 years, according to US experts
graham | truepublica.org.uk | 2020-05-03
A new report from researchers at the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy lays out three scenarios for how the coronavirus pandemic will progress in the coming months. Using the 1918 Spanish flu pandemic as a model, experts suggested the COVID-19 outbreak will last between 18 and 24 months. The pandemic “likely won’t be …
truepublica.org.uk/newsbits/covid-19-pandemic-could-last-up-to-2-years-according-to-us-experts/

So We’re All in This Together… Really? What About Big Oil?
Andrey Areshev | strategic-culture.org | 2020-05-03
Charlotte DENNETT | So what are we make of the fact that the price of oil tanked to below zero per barrel on April 22, the greatest drop in history? The price has gone up slightly since then, hovering around $16 a barrel on April 25th, but it is still severely depressed. Who will suffer from this? And perhaps more importantly, who will gain? | Predicting the future is difficult during this pandemic. Here are five questions that might yield answers. | What caused the precipitous drop in the price of oil? | In a word: coronavirus. No one can deny this. It is an inescapable fact, plainly portrayed by TV images of em…
strategic-culture.org/news/2020/05/03/so…

China Denying False Claims Is ‘Evidence’ of COVID-19 Cover-Up
Finian Cunningham | thealtworld.com | 2020-05-03
The publicly documented timeline of the pandemic confounds the “blame China” narrative. So too does the disproportionate mishandling … | China is being put in a no-win bind. It is accused of misleading the world over the Covid-19 outbreak, which is in turn prompting demands for financial compensation. The United States, Britain, France and Australia have pushed this narrative. Demonization of China involves claims that Beijing has fomented disinformation about the pandemic. | The publicly documented timeline of the pandemic confounds this “blame China” narrative. So too does the disproportionate mishandling of…
thealtworld.com/finian_cunningham/china-…

Spain Records Lowest Death Toll Since COVID-19 Quarantine
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-03
Spain recorded 164 new deaths from the coronavirus on Saturday, the lowest number since the state of emergency was declared in the European country. | RELATED: | Spain To Open Up Society After COVID-19 Case Reduction | The figure announced by the President of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sánchez, brings the total number of deaths due to the Covid-19 pandemic to 25,264. | Sánchez indicated that the number of confirmed virus infections since Saturday does not exceed a thousand. | The he…
telesurenglish.net/news/Spain-Records-Lo…

Dozens of Stranded Rohingyas Land on Bangladesh’s Coast
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-03
At least 40 Rohingyas including “starving” women and children have landed Saturday on the coast of southern Bangladesh, security officials said Sunday. | RELATED: | Rohingyas in India Abandoned to Fate in Face of Pandemic | Locals informed the coastguard and 29 people were arrested while around 10 people fled, police and security officials said. | Those rescued will be sent to the island of Bhashan Char in the Bay of Bengal where Bangladesh has built shelters for some 100,000 refuge…
telesurenglish.net/news/Dozens-of-Strand…

Gogglebox is doing a better job holding the government to account than the mainstream media
Emily Apple | thecanary.co | 2020-05-03
Twitter users have noticed something disturbing about Channel 4’s Gogglebox. Namely that the participants on the show seem to be doing a better job at holding the government to account than the mainstream media: | Surely we should be worried when #Gogglebox is the best journalism and social commentary we’ve had in this country for about 15 years. |

Spain Records Lowest Death Toll Since COVID-19 Quarantine
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-03
Spain recorded 164 new deaths from the coronavirus on Saturday, the lowest number since the state of emergency was declared in the European country. | RELATED: | Spain To Open Up Society After COVID-19 Case Reduction | The figure announced by the President of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sánchez, brings the total number of deaths due to the Covid-19 pandemic to 25,264. | Sánchez indicated that the number of confirmed virus infections since Saturday does not exceed a thousand. | The he…
telesurenglish.net/news/Spain-Records-Lo…

Israel Behind Air Strikes in Syria Directed against Hezbollah. “Greater Israel” in the Making?
Lucas Leiroz de Almeida | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-03
Tensions have worsened in the Middle East. Apparently, the Israeli government is promoting an escalation of violence in Syria with the aim of expelling any trace of Iranian presence from the country, leading to the collapse of relations between Tehran …
globalresearch.ca/israel-can-be-behind-a…

Bolsonaro Heads Anti-Democratic Rally Amid Brazil’s Crisis
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-03
Far-right Brazilian leader Jair Bolsonaro took to the streets Sunday to attack Congress and the courts in a speech to hundreds of his supporters, mentioning once again the backing he continues to have with the armed forces. | RELATED: | Brazil: Moro Testifies Against Bolsonaro Who Calls Him ‘Judas’ | “We have the armed forces at the people’s side: the side of order, democracy, liberty,” Bolsonaro said in a speech transmitted live on Facebook, underlining the former army captain’s in…
telesurenglish.net/news/Bolsonaro-Heads-…

Politics and Corruption at the World Health Organization (WHO)
Dr. Pascal Sacré | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-03
This article, translated from French, was written prior to Wuhan Coronavirus epidemic outbreak | *** | The WHO [OMS in French] is the World Health Organisation. ‘WHO’ in English

Why Sweden Has Already Won the Debate on COVID ‘Lockdown’ Policy
Patrick Henningsen | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-03
As Europe and North America continue suffering their steady economic and social decline as a direct result of imposing ‘lockdown’ on their populations, other countries have taken a different approach to dealing with the coronavirus threat. You wouldn’t know it …
globalresearch.ca/why-sweden-won-debate-…

Venezuelan Constituent Assembly on Foiled Terrorist Attack
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-03
The President of the Constituent Assembly, Diosdado Cabello, slammed on Sunday the latest attempt by armed terrorists to infiltrate Venezuela’s border by means of a naval invasion from Colombia. | RELATED: | US: Tape Exposes Pompeo’s Real Opinion on Venezuelan Opposition, ‘They Plot for Themselves’ | US: Tape Exposes Pompeo’s Real Opinion on Venezuelan Opposition, ‘They Plot for Themselves’ | During the failed attempt, Venezuelan forces have killed abou…
telesurenglish.net/news/venezuelan-assem…

Venezuelan Constituent Assembly on Foiled Terrorist Attack
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-03
The President of the Constituent Assembly, Diosdado Cabello, slammed on Sunday the latest attempt by armed terrorists to infiltrate Venezuela’s border by means of a naval invasion from Colombia. | RELATED: | US: Tape Exposes Pompeo’s Real Opinion on Venezuelan Opposition, ‘They Plot for Themselves’ | US: Tape Exposes Pompeo’s Real Opinion on Venezuelan Opposition, ‘They Plot for Themselves’ | During the failed attempt, Venezuelan forces have killed abou…
telesurenglish.net/news/venezuelan-assem…

Venezuelan Assembly Vows to Defend Country After Border Attack
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-03
The President of the Constituent Assembly, Diosdado Cabello, slammed on Sunday the latest attempt by armed terrorists to infiltrate Venezuela’s border by means of a naval invasion from Colombia. | Cabello said that the incident is still under investigation by the Venezuelan authorities, but he vowed, on behalf of the Constituent Assemby, to confront these terrorists that seek to harm the South American nation. | “We must summarize that these are not the only ones who came in the operation. It is under investigation. There was a confrontation, shots fired. We don’t know if there are people who died at sea, or r…
telesurenglish.net/news/Venezuelan-Assem…

Bolivarian Armed Forces Reject Terrorist Incursion Attempt
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-03
Venezuela’s Minister of Defense, Vladimir Padrino Lopez, condemned the attempted terrorist incursion, planned and organized from Colombia, which sought to generate chaos in the country and assassinate Venezuelan leaders. | RELATED: | Venezuelan Constituent Assembly on Foiled Terrorist Attack | “The attack was timely detected thanks to the intelligence and counter-intelligence agencies, which guarantee the active surveillance of our geographic space,” Padrino explained. | The r…
telesurenglish.net/news/bolivarian-armed…

Bolivarian Armed Forces Reject Terrorist Incursion Attempt
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-03
Venezuela’s Minister of Defense, Vladimir Padrino Lopez, condemned the attempted terrorist incursion, planned and organized from Colombia, which sought to generate chaos in the country and assassinate Venezuelan leaders. | RELATED: | Venezuelan Constituent Assembly on Foiled Terrorist Attack | “The attack was timely detected thanks to the intelligence and counter-intelligence agencies, which guarantee the active surveillance of our geographic space,” Padrino explained. | The r…
telesurenglish.net/news/bolivarian-armed…

UK: Venezuela’s Support Organization Condemns Violent Attack
telesurenglish.net/rss/google-news/news…. | 2020-05-03

Challenging the Narrative: Media Propaganda Launches Conspiracy Theories Against Covid-19 Skeptics
Timothy Alexander Guzman | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-03
Following the September 11th attacks in New York City, it instantaneously changed everything, from expanding US wars abroad against Afghanistan and Iraq, the dismantling of whatever civil rights you had left to the increased use of drones for surveillance and …
globalresearch.ca/media-propaganda-launc…

This Weekend We Mark “Press Freedom Day”. But Whose Freedom?
Steve Sweeney | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-03
Global human rights organisations and press freedom groups will today hold events across the world to mark International Press Freedom day, held annually on May 3. | It was established by the United Nations in 1993 on the second anniversary of …
globalresearch.ca/press-freedom-day-whos…

Fear and Loathing of the COVID-19 Economy
Kurt Nimmo | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-03
Let me begin by saying I don’t know anything definitive about the origin of COVID-19. I don’t know if it is a natural mutation or a manmade biological weapon. I don’t trust the government and its media corporations to report …
globalresearch.ca/fear-loathing-covid-19…

Who Really Controls the World? Deadly Weapons, Concentration of Wealth, Corporate Media
Prof. Dr. Mujahid Kamran | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-03
(Article originally published in April 2015) | Since I entered politics, I have chiefly had men’s views confided to me privately. Some of the biggest men in the United States, in the field of commerce and manufacture, are afraid of something. …
globalresearch.ca/who-really-controls-th…

Shutting Down an Entire Economy. Weighing up the Threat From the Virus and the Threat From the Reaction
Rob Slane | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-03
Would you consider the shutting down of an entire national economy for a disease such as the Black Death, which between 1347-1351 killed an estimated 60% of the population in the areas where it spread, to be a proportionate …
globalresearch.ca/analysis-covid-19-resp…

Video: California Doctors Debunk Covid-19 Media Hysteria
Dr. Dan Erickson | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-03
Two doctors, Dan Erickson and Artin Massihi, co-owners of Accelerated Urgent Care, which offers Bakersfield’s only private walk-in COVID-19 testing site, held a press conference on April 22 to report their conclusions about COVID-19 test results. The doctors said that …
globalresearch.ca/video-california-docto…

U.K. Plc issued more profit warnings in Q1 than all of 2008
graham | truepublica.org.uk | 2020-05-03
By TruePublica: With news that the UK economy could shrink by an eye-watering 20 per cent if the COVID-19 outbreak is not contained by the year-end and that the likelihood of recovery back to 2019 (itself bordering on recession) levels will take at least three years, businesses are facing the type of battering that the …
truepublica.org.uk/united-kingdom/u-k-plc-issued-more-profit-warnings-in-q1-than-all-of-2008/

Acknowledging Disorientation After COVID-19
Richard Falk | zcomm.org | 2020-05-03
Beyond Horizons of Fear and Doubt…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/acknowledging-diso…

Informal workers bear the brunt of COVID-19 economic slowdown
Peoples Dispatch | peoplesdispatch.org | 2020-05-03
We look at the impact of the COVID-19 related lockdown and economic distress on one of the most vulnerable sections in the world, the informal workers.
peoplesdispatch.org/2020/05/03/informal-…

Colombia’s latest spying scandal reveals mainly that nobody knows who is spying on who and why
Adriaan Alsema | colombiareports.com | 2020-05-03
Illegal wiretapping and spying has long been common in Colombia, but the reported intelligence gathering on President Ivan Duque’s former chief of staff has pushed paranoia to a whole new…
colombiareports.com/colombias-latest-spy…

Colombia is not a democracy if army considers journalists military targets
Adriaan Alsema | colombiareports.com | 2020-05-03
The list of media and journalists who have been “profiled” by Colombia’s military is so terrifyingly long I don’t know whether I am reporting on a mafia state or an…
colombiareports.com/colombia-is-not-a-de…

Colombia sacked officials never mentioned in illegal army spying scandal
Adriaan Alsema | colombiareports.com | 2020-05-03
Seven of nine army officials who were sacked by Colombia’s defense ministry on Friday over their alleged role in reported intelligence gathering for President Ivan Duque’s far right party were…
colombiareports.com/colombia-sacked-offi…

New START and the China Diversion
Andrey Areshev | strategic-culture.org | 2020-05-03
The effort to bring China into an arms reduction treaty certainly is futile. Not only is China not going to participate in arms control negotiations with the U.S. anytime soon, but even if China were persuaded to participate the limits set by New START would allow China to increase its nuclear arsenal many times over while still remaining in compliance.
strategic-culture.org/news/2020/05/03/ne…

Labour Day, 2020
Badri Raina | zcomm.org | 2020-05-03
It is Labour Day– So the sansculottes are made To pay for returning home From official lockdown In unwanted city and town. The rich are poor, So they receive stimulus packages And loan waivers. The poor are rich And need no such favours. In any case, when we open again, What choice will they Read…
zcomm.org/znetarticle/labour-day-2020/

Dispatches from India Ep 8: Arrests during the time of lockdown
Peoples Dispatch | peoplesdispatch.org | 2020-05-03
In this episode of Dispatches from India, we look at arrests by the police in India of people on charges of being involved in the Delhi riots of February…
peoplesdispatch.org/2020/05/03/dispatche…

Reopening in Words Only?
Dr. Paul Craig Roberts | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-03
The “reopenings” underway in 30 states in the US might be in words only just as the ballyhooed “open” Swedish economy is not open in fact and has been closed by non-participation. The Swedish Riksbank reports that attendance at cinema, …
globalresearch.ca/reopening-words-only/5…

A Prayer for Justice and Compassion During the Pandemic
Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II | thenation.com | 2020-05-03
Rev. Dr. William J. Barber II A Prayer for Justice and Compassion During the Pandemic…
thenation.com/article/society/pandemic-s…

Minister admits that failures in coronavirus testing capacity led to more deaths
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2020-05-03
Fewer Britons would have died from coronavirus if more tests had been available earlier, a cabinet minister has admitted. He also warned life would not return to “business as usual” when Boris Johnson sets out his exit strategy.Decisions: Transport secretary Grant Shapps said “many things” could have been different if the UK’s testing capacity was above 100,000 before coronavirus (Covid-19) spread in the country. More than 28,000 people have now died after testing positive for the virus in the UK.Shapps also confirmed the NHSX contact tracing app

‘I’ve had dreams where I’ve seen myself on ventilators’. A GP shares his experience of coronavirus
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2020-05-03
As a part-time GP and Labour cabinet member for Oldham Council, Dr Zahid Chauhan has a broad view of the coronavirus (Covid-19) response in the UK.In the latest of a series of profiles looking at workers on the front line of the battle against coronavirus, Chauhan, who is also chief clinical officer for a social enterprise in Greater Manchester, tells the PA news agency what life is like right now.What was a normal working day like before…
thecanary.co/feature/2020/05/03/ive-had-…

Poll shows that most people oppose loosening UK lockdown this week
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2020-05-03
More than four in five Britons are against lockdown restrictions being eased for schools, pubs and restaurants this week, a poll suggests.Boris Johnson said the country had passed the peak of Covid-19 infections and he would be setting out a “road map” for easing measures in the near future.But only 17% of those polled thought the time was right to consider re-opening schools, with smaller proportions of people thinking conditions had been met to allow cinemas, sporting stadia and nightclubs to open their doors.The Opinium poll for the Observer questioned 2,000 adults between 29 April and 1 May and showed 79% of…
thecanary.co/uk/news/2020/05/03/poll-sho…

‘Don’t exclude healthy pensioners from lockdown easing’ say doctors’ leaders
The Canary | thecanary.co | 2020-05-03
Doctors’ leaders have said excluding any section of the population from lockdown easing based solely on age would be “discriminatory”.NHS England’s national medical director Professor Stephen Powis said on 1 May, that officials will be studying whether stricter measures will or will not have to continue to apply to the elderly when restrictions are relaxed.But the British Medical Association (BMA) said excluding any section of the population from lockdown easing based on age would be “unacceptable”. | BMA council chair Dr Chaand Nagpaul said: “Any proposal to impose stricter social distancing for those at higher…
thecanary.co/uk/news/2020/05/03/dont-exc…

For Families Divided by ICE, the Pandemic Compounds the Nightmare
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-05-03
On March 25, Alexandra Seo’s mother sent her a message: “Alexandra. Call 911 for me. We don’t have any water.” Seo watched as more messages came in: Her mother told her there was no bathroom she could use. There was a foul chemical smell in the air that made it hard to breathe. And there was no running water for her to wash her hands to try to protect herself from the coronavirus. “It’s panic around here,” she messaged. “Everyone is going crazy. Tell dad please.” Seo felt nauseous as more texts arrived.
truthout.org/articles/for-families-divid…

Families Need Help Paying for COVID Burials But Trump Hasn’t Released the Money
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-05-03
As the U.S. death toll from the coronavirus mounts, President Donald Trump has yet to free up a pool of disaster relief funding specifically intended to help families cover burial costs. | Approximately 30 states and territories have requested the funding as the pandemic spreads across the country and struggling families ask for help burying their dead. The funding is part of the wide array of “individual assistance” programs handled by the Federal Emergency Management Agency to help disast…
truthout.org/articles/families-need-help…

As We Shelter in Place, Access to Outdoors Should Not Only Be for the Privileged
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-05-03
On the weekend that shelter-in-place orders were announced in California, regional parks and beaches registered record-high visits. The following week, as parks started to close across the country, visits boomed in t…
truthout.org/articles/as-we-shelter-in-p…

Over 70 Percent of Jobless Americans Didn’t Receive March Unemployment Benefits
Staff | truthout.org | 2020-05-03
The vast majority of Americans who lost their jobs did not receive unemployment benefits in March, despite federal and state efforts to ramp up aid to jobless Americans after large swaths of the economy shut down to slow the spread of the coronavirus. | Millions of Americans filed for first-time unemployment benefits in March but 71% of them did not receive their benefits that month, delaying a…
truthout.org/articles/over-70-percent-of…

What links big tech, data, herd-immunity and COVID-19 to Brexit
graham | truepublica.org.uk | 2020-05-03
By TruePublica: What links big tech, big data, herd-immunity and the death-scape that is COVID-19 to Brexit? That has a really complicated answer and as you start to trawl through it, it just gets more complicated. However, here are the common links: Boris Johnson, Dominic Cummings (of course), Palantir and SAGE. There are other links …
truepublica.org.uk/united-kingdom/what-links-big-tech-data-herd-immunity-and-covid-19-to-brexit/

Three quarters of British truckers expect to go out of business within just 2 months
graham | truepublica.org.uk | 2020-05-03
UK truckers are warning Boris Johnson’s government that thousands could go out of business in weeks without more financial support for dealing with the impact of the coronavirus on their industry. The truckers are playing a vital role in transporting essentials like food and PPE around Britain during the coronavirus pandemic, but their futures still …
truepublica.org.uk/newsbits/three-quarters-of-british-truckers-expect-to-go-out-of-business-within-just-2-months/

While the British media portrays Johnson as a hero, poor and BAME people are dying at alarming rates
Afroze Fatima Zaidi | thecanary.co | 2020-05-03
On Sunday 3 May, the Sun published an exclusive interview with Boris Johnson detailing his experience of coronavirus (Covid-19). It seems the British media is prepared to do anything to try and distract from the government’s woeful handling of the pandemic. And it’s also shifting attention…
thecanary.co/uk/analysis/2020/05/03/whil…

UK had plan in case virus killed Boris Johnson
yenisafak.com | 2020-05-03
Speaking to The Sun on Sunday, Johnson said during his two-week hospital stay last month, his doctors were beginning to think about how to announce a possible death.”It was a tough old moment, I won’t deny it.”They had a strategy to deal with a ‘death of Stalin’-type scenario,” Johnson said.Johnson said the doctors had made arrangements if things had gone wrong as some of his vital signs were not positive.”They gave me a face mask so I got litres and litres of oxygen and for a long time I had that and the little nose jobbie,” Johnson said.Johnson stressed he was not in good shape during his life-or-death struggle…
yenisafak.com/en/world/uk-had-plan-in-ca…

Vice President Pence visits Mayo Clinic
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org | 2020-05-03
Vice President Mike Pence visited Mayo Clinic in Rochester to see firsthand how Mayo is providing scientific leadership to aid the national response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. Gianrico Farrugia, Mayo Clinic president and CEO, guided the vice president on a tour where he was able to talk with Mayo Clinic scientists leading the country’s …
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/vi…

Joe Biden Used to Swim Naked in Front of Embarrassed Female Guards, Book Claims
sputniknews.com | 2020-05-03
The former US vice president, now the presumptive Democratic contender for the presidency, has recently been accused by a former staffer of sexually assaulting her as a senator in 1993. Biden denies the allegations, which came on top of a string of complaints from several women about his alleged overly physical behaviour.
sputniknews.com/us/202005031079181410-jo…

Could Hillary Clinton and Barak Obama Join Forces to Run Against Trump if Joe Biden Quits the Race?
sputniknews.com | 2020-05-03
Former US Vice President Joe Biden has emerged as the presumptive Democratic party presidential nominee after his rivals suspended their campaigns. However, following a number of mounting scandals, including allegations of sexual assault, Biden might be losing ground.
sputniknews.com/us/202005031079180729-co…

Fifth of UK Households with Children Going Hungry Amid COVID-19 Lockdown – Report
sputniknews.com | 2020-05-03
The United Kingdom has implemented social-distancing measures to combat the spread of coronavirus (Covid-19) and prevent overloading of patients onto the National Health Service. Due to existing food insecurity and the reliance on food banks and school lunches before the lockdown, many of Britain’s poorest are at breaking point.
sputniknews.com/uk/202005031079181312-fi…

Mayo Clinic introduces skill for Amazon’s Alexa about COVID-19
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org | 2020-05-03
ROCHESTER, Minn.

A Minute With: Tim Gunn on pajamas and post-quarantine fashion
yenisafak.com | 2020-05-03
Even Tim Gunn, the immaculately dressed fashion mentor from “Project Runway” and Amazon’s new competition show “Making the Cut,” is finding it hard to get out of his pajamas these days.As much of the world shelters at home to prevent the spread of the coronavirus, Gunn said he too has given in to comfort over style when he’s at home in his New York apartment.Reuters spoke to Gunn by telephone about how the ongoing quarantine has changed fashion and what might come next on “Making the Cut.” Q: What do you think will happen to fashion now that people have gotten used to working in sweatpants or even their pajamas?
yenisafak.com/en/life/a-minute-with-tim-…

Saudi-led coalition continues violation of truce in Yemen
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

Iran exports 1st batch of agricultural products to Kuwait during corona
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

Global coronavirus death toll surpasses 244,000
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

78,422 patients recover from Covid-19
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

Iran Air to launch special flights from Qatar, Europe to return stranded Iranians back
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

Friday prayers to be held this week after 2-month hiatus thru. observing health protocols
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

Iranian model of public assistance during corona to be compiled: official
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

Russia names US efforts for extension of Iran’s arms embargo fruitless
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

Badr official warns about US, Saudi new plan to transfer ISIL terrorists into Iraq
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

Iran strongly condemns ISIL’s terrorist attack against PMU
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

Iran ready to share COVID-19 experiences with West: Amir-Abdollahian
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

Iran not discriminating between COVID-19 patients unlike US: Rouhani
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

Parl. Secuiry Commission to address condition of Iranian scientist jailed in US
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

Over 2 ton of illicit drugs seized in Iran’s Mirjaveh
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

Iran marks national Shiraz Day
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
SHIRAZ, May 04 (MNA)

Afghanistan, Iran’s new goods transit route to Central Asia: official
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

European, American seminary students in Qom prov
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
QOM, May 03 (MNA)

Iranian dailies’ headlines on May 3
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

World knows Ayatollah Khamenei as ‘strategist’: Mousavi
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

Police confiscates above 2.3 tons of illicit drugs in SE Iran
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

Police confiscates 257 kg illicit drugs in Iran’s Damavand
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

Germany unable to withstand US pressures: MP
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

Incident occurred to Afghan nationals took place in Afghanistan not Iran: Mousavi
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

Front pages of Iran international dailies on May 3
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

Illegal extension of arms embargo to kill JCPOA forever
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

A glimpse at landscapes of N Khorasan province
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
BOJNURD, May 03 (MNA)

Five minerals hit production growth last year
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

Iranian animation ‘Greyish’ goes to Meryland filmfest
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

Leader to deliver speech on International Quds Day
en.mehrnews.com | 2020-05-03
TEHRAN, May 03 (MNA)

Good Riddance Releases EP to Benefit Aid During Virus Pandemic
John Malkin | indybay.org | 2020-05-03
Santa Cruz punk band Good Riddance released a benefit EP on April 15 to benefit the World Food Programme, the food assistance branch of the United Nations. The four songs are previously unreleased tracks from the band’s “Thoughts and Prayers” recording sessions.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/04/30/1883271…

The music of Vitamin Em during the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic
Lynda Carson | indybay.org | 2020-05-03
Music Of Vitamin Em During Coronavirus Covid-19 Pandemic…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/04/30/1883272…

24 hour May Day programing on mayday.pacifica.org
Pacifica COVID-19 Taskforce | indybay.org | 2020-05-03
Pacifica COVID-19 Taskforce is hosting May Day with programing from throughout the world. Live streaming from South Africa, Korea, Turkey, Mexico, Brazil, Chile and other countries.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/04/30/1883271…

4/30/20: 45th Anniversary of Victory in Vietnam
repost | indybay.org | 2020-05-03
On April 30, 1975, the “little people in black pajamas” of Vietnam defeated the mightiest, most despicable war machine the world had seen since Nazi Germany, namely the US military, as they chased the US military and their local lackeys onto helicopters, boats and planes, causing celebrations around the world, including here in the Bay Area where we, who opposed the war machine and resisted the draft, danced in streets. Today, Vietnam has ZERO deaths from the coronavirus because it has SOCIALIZED medicine. For more, see www.counterpunch.org/2020/04/30/a-letter…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/04/30/1883270…

Developing Countries Struggle with Coronavirus Health and Economic Impacts
Kate Zeller | indybay.org | 2020-05-03
From Ecuador to the Dominican Republic to Ethiopia, developing countries are struggling to obtain aid and financing to address the health and economic impacts of the coronavirus.
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/05/01/1883273…

COVID-19 and Climate: The Future of Energy
Climate One | indybay.org | 2020-05-03
Online via livestream (FREE)…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/05/02/1883278…

Connecting Community: Staying Positive and Empowered During COVID-19 (10am & 1pm WM)
Women’s March | indybay.org | 2020-05-03
Online via Zoom…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/05/01/1883273…

Oakland Arts and Culture in the Era of COVID-19 (livestream talk)
The Commonwealth Club | indybay.org | 2020-05-03
Online via livestream…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/05/02/1883278…

Sacramento: May Day Car Caravan for Immigrant & Worker Rights
Graton Day Labor Center and others | indybay.org | 2020-05-03
Car Caravan: Southside Park, Sacramento…
indybay.org/newsitems/2020/04/30/1883271…

The COVID Rouge Covers a Spanish Beach in Bleach ‘to Protect the Children’
BBC | anti-empire.com | 2020-05-03
Authorities in a Spanish coastal resort have apologised after spraying a beach with bleach in an attempt to protect children from coronavirus. | Zahara de los Atunes, near Cadiz, used tractors to spray more than 2km (1.2 miles) of beach with a bleach solution a day before Spain allowed children out of lockdown for the first time. | Environmentalists say the move caused “brutal damage” to the local ecosystem. | Spain has been badly affected by the coronavirus, with 23,800 deaths. | It recently announced a four-phase plan to lift its stringent lockdown measures and return to a “new normality” by the end of June.
anti-empire.com/the-covid-rouge-covers-a…

‘Nothing attractive’: Warren Buffett’s Berkshire sells ALL stakes in US airlines, reports $50bn Q1 loss amid Covid-19 shutdown
rt.com | 2020-05-03
With Berkshire Hathaway Inc reporting a record quarterly loss of nearly $50bn amid the economic fallout from the Covid-19 pandemic, Warren Buffett remains optimistic that in the long run, “nothing can stop America.” | Speaking at an annual meeting in Omaha, Nebraska, which for the first time was livestreamed and held without shareholders, the 89-year-old billionaire tried to reassure everyone by recalling the hardships of the past that the US successfully survived. | The famously bullish Buffett, however, expressed doubt that the markets have hit the bottom yet, saying “this is a very good time to borrow money…
rt.com/business/487648-buffett-berkshire…

NYPD officer brandishes taser, tackles and strikes bystander during social-distancing bust (VIDEO)
rt.com | 2020-05-03
Video out of New York City shows an officer brandishing a taser and repeatedly striking a bystander during a social distancing bust, a measure meant to stop the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. | The run-in reportedly began when officers were trying to break up a gathering of people in the East Village on Saturday, which is prohibited under current lockdown measures in the city. | The video shows police tussling with a suspect while onlookers ask aloud what they did. A man then approaches the incident, and the officer tells him to keep his stance while brandishing his taser. | “What you flexing for? Don’t flex…
rt.com/usa/487679-nypd-social-distancing…

German Interior Minister Seehofer mulls FIFTH term for Chancellor Merkel as Covid-19 crisis boosts her popularity
rt.com | 2020-05-03
The Covid-19 crisis has surprisingly turned out to be a boon for German Chancellor Angela Merkel as she regained public support. Now, Interior Minister Horst Seehofer believes a fifth term in office might not be ruled out. | Successful handling of the novel coronavirus pandemic which has allowed Germany to start the process of gradually easing quarantine rules which have been crippling its economy for quite some time has apparently boosted Merkel’s image among her fellow party members and political allies. | Interior Minister Horst Seehofer, who has had quite a thorny relationship with the chancellor over the…
rt.com/news/487678-germany-merkel-chance…

Your passport and corona test, please: Vienna airport starts on-site screening for those who wish to avoid quarantine
rt.com | 2020-05-03
Starting Monday, passengers arriving at Vienna International Airport will be offered an on-site Covid-19 test to avoid the mandatory 14-day quarantine. | Austrian health officials require everyone arriving in the country by air to provide a health certificate ensuring they are not carrying the coronavirus. Without one issued no less than four days prior to arrival, travelers must sign up for two weeks of self-isolation. Starting Monday, there will be an alternative

Over 10,000 for the 1st time: Russia hits new daily record for fresh coronavirus cases
rt.com | 2020-05-03
With 10,633 cases registered in a single day, Russia has seen its largest daily increase in reported Covid-19 infections. While the Moscow area remains the worst affected, the disease is spreading across the country. | The number of people confirmed to have contracted coronavirus nationwide rose to 134,687 on Sunday, disease response officials said. Fifty-eight more patients have died, bringing the overall national death toll from Covid-19 to 1,280. | With over 82,700 infections recorded in Moscow and its surrounding eponymous region, the capital remains the centre of Russia’s outbreak. It’s followed by the se…
rt.com/russia/487652-over-10k-russia-cor…

ANOTHER leaked intel report accuses China of ‘intentionally’ concealing coronavirus danger to hoard medical supplies
rt.com | 2020-05-03
The Department of Homeland Security has backed the US administration’s criticism of Beijing’s early response to the coronavirus outbreak with a new intelligence report, which has already been leaked to the media. | Back in January, China decreased exports and sharply increased its imports of basic medical supplies like face masks and surgical gowns and gloves, while simultaneously “denying there were export restrictions and obfuscating and delaying provision of its trade data,” the Associated Press reports, citing excer…
rt.com/usa/487680-dhs-china-concealed-co…

Covid contradiction? Pompeo believes coronavirus was ‘man-made,’ also agrees with intelligence that it was not
rt.com | 2020-05-03
In his rush to accuse Beijing of unleashing the scourge of Covid-19 on an unsuspecting world, the US Secretary of State said the coronavirus was man-made, before making a U-turn without even blinking. | “The best experts so far seem to think it was man-made. I don’t have reason to disbelieve them at this point,” Mike Pompeo told ABC’s ‘This Week’ when asked about a statement from the US intelligence community that unequivocally said the opposite. | Host Martha Raddatz twice asked Pompeo to clarify whether his view differed from that of American intelligence, and he voiced his total support for the spies &#150…
rt.com/usa/487667-pompeo-coronavirus-man…

‘As long as coronavirus doesn’t go on vacation’: German interior minister warns against ‘reckless’ reopening of borders
rt.com | 2020-05-03
Germany’s interior minister said that early decisions to reopen borders could backfire in terms of the spread of Covid-19. The leader of Austria had earlier floated the idea of inviting German tourists to return. | “As long as the virus does not go on vacation, we also have to restrict our travel plans. As understandable as the desires of people and the tourism industry are, the disease protection has its own timetable,” Horst Seehofer told Bild am Sonntag. | No one wants to restrict citizens’ freedom of movement longer than is absolutely necessary. But the reckless opening [of borders], which later backfires…
rt.com/news/487659-germany-seehofer-tour…

High-ranking Indian military staff killed in prolonged hostage rescue operation in Kashmir
rt.com | 2020-05-03
An Indian colonel and major were among security personnel killed in a gun battle following a hostage crisis in Handwara, Kashmir. The colonel was the highest-ranking army official to die in an operation of this type in five years. | Colonel Ashutosh Sharma, the commander of the special 21 Rashtriya Rifles counter-terrorism unit, was killed in an hours-long gunfight in the Kupwara District of the Indian-controlled part of Kashmir, officials told Indian media. | It is reported that Sharma

‘Invasion by sea’: Venezuela thwarts ‘mercenary’ infiltration attempt from Colombia
rt.com | 2020-05-03
Venezuelan authorities say they have foiled a raid by “foreign mercenaries” trying to reach the Latin American nation by sea to launch terrorist attacks and assassinate government officials. | A group of mercenaries have tried to infiltrate Venezuela’s major port of La Guaira, located just north of the nation’s capital of Caracas, Interior Minister Nestor Reverol said in a televised address. The incident, which the minister called “an invasion by sea,” was part of preparations for another coup attempt, he added. | #Video Declaracione…
rt.com/news/487673-venezuela-thwart-merc…

‘Wasteful’ US and China-chasing India: What 5 biggest military powers are spending more than a TRILLION DOLLARS on
rt.com | 2020-05-03
Global defense spending saw its largest annual increase in a decade in 2019, proving that the trend for bloated military budgets is here to stay

South Korea moves forward with relaxing of Covid-19 restrictions as new infection numbers remain low
rt.com | 2020-05-03
Health authorities in South Korea have been reporting fewer than 15 new cases of Covid-19 for over two weeks now, with international travel being a major source. With domestic transmissions thought to be in check, the government will now move forward with plans to lift some of the social distancing restrictions, Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun confirmed on Sunday. | The anticipated change will come starting Wednesday, after the Asian nation emerges from a period of long holidays. The government will have a set of guidelines for businesses and public venues, which will be allowed to reopen, on how to minimize the…
rt.com/newsline/487650-south-korea-lifts…

Dems & loyalist media STILL prioritizing beating Trump over treating Tara Reade’s accusations against Biden fairly
rt.com | 2020-05-03
With Joe Biden accused of sexual assault, Democrats and the mainstream media are being exposed as hypocrites willing to compromise their values, cautiously calling for a probe after ignoring the story for too long. | The editorial board at the New York Times actually believes the accusations put forth by Tara Reade against Biden should be investigated

The media & Dems are prioritizing beating Trump over taking Tara Reade’s accusations against Biden fairly
rt.com | 2020-05-03
With Joe Biden accused of sexual assault, Democrats and the mainstream media are being exposed as hypocrites willing to compromise their values, cautiously calling for a probe after ignoring the story for too long. | The editorial board at the New York Times actually believes the accusations put forth by Tara Reade against Biden should be investigated

‘I’ll rip your HEAD off’: Eddie Hall warns Hafthor Bjornsson he will ‘knock him the f*ck out’ as strongman row erupts (VIDEO)
rt.com | 2020-05-03
Eddie Hall and “Game of Thrones” giant Hafthor Julius Bjornsson are on a collision course for a fearsome fight between two of the strongest men on the planet after a war of words broke out over the world deadlift record. | Bjornsson, who is best known for his enormous screen presence while playing “The Mountain” in the hit TV series “Game of Thrones,” stunned fans by lifting 501kg (1,105lbs) on Saturday, breaking the record held by Hall since 2016 and appearing to find the feat easier than his relatively diminutive English rival. | ‘The Beast’ seemed to offer his fellow warrior support before his long-await…
rt.com/sport/487671-eddie-hall-hafthor-b…

Kim gossip never dies: ‘Resurrected’ North Korean leader’s footage ‘evidence’ of heart surgery
rt.com | 2020-05-03
For more than a week, the mainstream media got a lot of mileage out of speculating as to whether North Korea’s leader had died. It turns out Kim Jong-un is alive, but that hasn’t stemmed the flow of rumors about his health. | …
rt.com/news/487654-kim-arm-heart-surgery…

‘Erdogan, Turkey will continue to help its allies fight coronavirus’
yenisafak.com | 2020-05-03
Turkey will continue to support its allies, friends, and those in need around the world amid the global coronavirus outbreak, Turkey’s communications director said on Sunday.”We hear a lot of positive feedback and praise about our humanitarian aid to close to 60 countries so far,” Fahrettin Altun said on Twitter, adding that even before the pandemic Turkey had been leading the world in the ration of its humanitarian aid ratio to GDP.Altun also said that Turkey’s aid shipment to Somalia included for the first time Turkey’s locally manufactured ventilators.”This is not a matter of politics but our President [Recep…
yenisafak.com/en/world/erdogan-turkey-wi…

Turkish Cargo 5th among top 25 air cargo carriers
yenisafak.com | 2020-05-03
Turkey’s national air cargo brand Turkish Cargo has achieved the highest growth rate

‘Indian TV channels amplify, justify and legitimize fake news’
yenisafak.com | 2020-05-03
As the world marks Press Freedom Day on Sunday, a rising tide of fake news and misinformation pumped through mainstream media has become a major concern in India.Linking an event of a Muslim group Tablighi Jamaat for spreading coronavirus or COVID-19 pandemic in the country while overlooking other similar gatherings, the attitude of a section of India’s mainstream media created hatred against Muslim community, leading to their social boycott at various places.In an exclusive interview with Anadolu Agency, Samar Halarnkar, an award-winning journalist and former editor of the Hindustan Times said the transmission o…
yenisafak.com/en/world/indian-tv-channel…

Syrian tycoon Makhlouf says security forces are arresting his employees
yenisafak.com | 2020-05-03
Sanctions-hit Syrian tycoon Rami Makhlouf on Sunday said that security forces are arresting employees at his diversified companies in what he said were “mounting pressures” on him days after Syrian authorities asked him to repay hefty taxes.”Today pressures began in an unacceptable ways and the security forces, in an inhumane way, are arresting our employees,” Makhlouf said in a video.Makhlouf, a maternal cousin of President Bashar al-Assad and widely considered part of the president’s inner circle, has a business empire that ranges from telecoms and real estate to construction and oil trading. He had played a bi…
yenisafak.com/en/news/syrian-tycoon-makh…

Iran’s coronavirus death toll rises 47 to 6,203
yenisafak.com | 2020-05-03
Iran confirmed 47 more fatalities from coronavirus on Sunday, bringing the nationwide death toll to 6,203, according to the official IRNA news agency. | Health Ministry spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour said 976 new infections were detected over the past 24 hours in the country. | He said 78,422 people out of a total of 97,424 infected with the disease have recovered, while 2,690 cases are in critical condition.Iran is one of the Mideast countries hardest hit by coronavirus, as first detected in the city of Qom on Feb. 19, and then spread throughout the country. | The government did not impose a total lockdown as see…
yenisafak.com/en/world/irans-coronavirus…

Turks turn to minimalism amid coronavirus lockdown
yenisafak.com | 2020-05-03
More and more people in Turkey are leaning into minimalism and consuming less as the world takes a giant pause due to the novel coronavirus, according to one local minimalist.Hale Acun Aydin, founder of the Turk Isi Minimalizm (Turkish Way Minimalism) website and related social media sites, said interest in minimalism had already risen in the last couple of years before recently skyrocketing as residents face a long lockdown at home.”It doesn’t matter how many shoes we have now, we only use one pair of shoes to go to the supermarket,” Aydin told Anadolu Agency.Populations across the world, as well as in Turkey, a…
yenisafak.com/en/life/turks-turn-to-mini…

Dutch coronavirus cases rise 335 to 40,571 with 69 new deaths
yenisafak.com | 2020-05-03
The number of confirmed coronavirus infections in the Netherlands has increased by 335 to 40,471, Dutch health authorities said on Sunday.The National Institute for Public Health reported 69 new deaths, taking total COVID-19 fatalities to 5,056. The authorities stress that the actual number of infections is likely higher because not all suspected COVID-19 patients are being tested.
yenisafak.com/en/world/dutch-coronavirus…

Mehmet the Conqueror: Genius emperor of Ottomans
yenisafak.com | 2020-05-03
Among the billions of people who have walked the earth since the dawn of humanity, only a few are rightfully remembered for their exceptional skills and impact on history, and among these is Mehmet II, the Ottoman emperor who had the honor of conquering Istanbul and thus earning the title “conqueror.”Mehmet the Conqueror was only 21 years old when he sent the Eastern Roman or Byzantine Empire to the dusty pages of history and leveled up a Turkish state into an empire that would rule regions in multiple continents for centuries to come.Much like other leading historical figures still remembered and respected, an i…
yenisafak.com/en/news/mehmet-the-conquer…

Colonel among 5 Indian forces killed in Kashmir
yenisafak.com | 2020-05-03
Four Indian army soldiers, including a high-profile colonel, and a police officer were killed in a gunfight with militants in Indian-administered Kashmir, an army spokesman said Sunday.Col. Rajesh Kalia told Anadolu Agency that a team made up of Col. Ashutosh Sharma plus a major, two soldiers, and a sub-inspector of Jammu and Kashmir Police last night entered a village in the northern Kupwara district where they believed militants had taken civilians hostage in a house.”The team successfully evacuated the civilians but during the process came under heavy fire,” he said. In the ensuing firefight, two militants we…
yenisafak.com/en/world/colonel-among-5-i…

Lukashenko Says Belarus Cannot Cancel Victory Day Parade on May 9 Despite Pandemic
sputniknews.com | 2020-05-03
MINSK (Sputnik) – Belarus “cannot” call off the WWII Victory Day parade on 9 May, despite the coronavirus pandemic, because thousands of people are looking forward to the event, including veterans, President Alexander Lukashenko said on Sunday.
sputniknews.com/europe/20200503107918224…

Ex-German Chancellor Urges Lifting ‘Senseless’ Anti-Russian Sanctions Amid COVID-19 Pandemic
sputniknews.com | 2020-05-03
Crimea rejoined Russia in March 2014 as a result of a referendum which saw over 96 per cent of the peninsula’s residents backing the option. However, the move was opposed by Ukraine and a majority of Western countries, including EU members, with several rounds of sanctions slapped on Moscow.
sputniknews.com/world/202005031079180885…

‘End of US Global Dominance’ Predicted in Wake of COVID-19 as World Order to ‘Reinvent Itself’
sputniknews.com | 2020-05-03
As the coronavirus pandemic continues to spread across the globe, many are already looking ahead, pondering how or if the health crisis will effectively reshape geopolitics and the era of globalisation.
sputniknews.com/world/202005031079179103…

Almost 3,000 Crew Members Quarantined on Cruise Ship in Germany After Positive COVID-19 Test – Video
sputniknews.com | 2020-05-03
Live from the port of Cuxhaven as almost 3,000 crew members are quarantined on a TUI cruise ship after one of them tested positive for coronavirus.
sputniknews.com/europe/20200503107917869…

Women at War: Female Soldiers of the Soviet Red Army in the 1940s
sputniknews.com | 2020-05-03
Russia is preparing to mark the 75th anniversary of the victory of the Soviet Union in the Great Patriotic War of 1941-1945 against Nazi Germany.
sputniknews.com/photo/202005031079180501…

Russian, Italian Military Disinfect 3 Medical Facilities in Lombardy – Russian Ministry
sputniknews.com | 2020-05-03
BERGAMO (Sputnik) – Russian servicemen and their Italian counterparts have disinfected three medical facilities in Italy’s northern region of Lombardy, the Russian Defence Ministry said on Sunday.
sputniknews.com/world/202005031079181483…

At Least 7 Injured in Blast Near Site of Counter-Terror Operation in Handwara, Kashmir
sputniknews.com | 2020-05-03
New Delhi (Sputnik): Earlier in the day, five security personnel were killed by terrorists in Handwara, a town in India’s Jammu and Kashmir union territory. India has accused Pakistan of instigating terror activities in Kashmir; Pakistan has denied the charges and insisted the local Kashmiris are fighting for their independence.
sputniknews.com/military/202005031079180…

Pope Francis Calls for International Cooperation to Develop Vaccines Against COVID-19
sputniknews.com | 2020-05-03
VATICAN CITY (Sputnik) – Pope Francis on Sunday called for joint international efforts to create vaccines against COVID-19 and provide access to medical treatment worldwide.
sputniknews.com/europe/20200503107918198…

Petal Shower by Armed Forces: Waste of Resources or Modi’s ‘Flower Power’ Way to Fight Crisis?
sputniknews.com | 2020-05-03
New Delhi (Sputnik): Despite implementing the world’s most extensive lockdown for around two months, the approval rating of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is up; making him more popular than other world leaders. However, some have criticised India’s government for using military assets to express solidarity with those fighting COVID-19.
sputniknews.com/analysis/202005031079181…

Giant ‘Murder Hornets’ Threat Looms Over the United States – Report
sputniknews.com | 2020-05-03
While the hornets’ mandibles allow them to decimate a beehive in a matter of hours, their powerful venom and long stingers make these insects a credible, and possibly lethal, threat to humans as well.
sputniknews.com/environment/202005031079…

How a US Government-Sponsored Outlet Sparked Media Hysteria About Kim Jong-un’s ‘Death’
sputniknews.com | 2020-05-03
After weeks of speculation fueled by a lengthy absence, the North Korean leader suddenly reappeared in public on May 1 at the opening of a new fertilizer plant, dispelling rumours that he was dead or ‘gravely ill’.
sputniknews.com/asia/202005031079181775-…

Mayo Clinic Q and A: Reducing anxiety and stress during COVID-19 pandemic
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org | 2020-05-03
DEAR MAYO CLINIC: It’s been weeks of being at home with my children and spouse due to the COVID-19 pandemic and stay-at-home requirements. I’m feeling overwhelmed and I’m also scared because we really don’t know what’s going to happen. How can I ease this anxiety? ANSWER: You certainly are not alone in those feelings. As …
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/ma…

Media backgrounder: COVID-19 readiness and helping the world respond to the global pandemic
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org | 2020-05-03
ROCHESTER, Minn.

Infographic: Informed but not overwhelmed
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org | 2020-05-03
For the latest updates on the COVID-19 pandemic, check the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website. For more information and COVID-19 coverage, go to the Mayo Clinic News Network and mayoclinic.org.
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/in…

Mayo Clinic Q&A podcast: Skin care for your hands, face during COVID-19
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org | 2020-05-03
Your best defense against the spread of coronavirus is hand-washing, but frequent hand-washing can deplete the skin of its natural moisture and oils, causing dry and cracked skin. Recommendations to wear face masks also are taking a toll on the skin. Face masks may rub across the nose and behind the ears, which can irritate …
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/ma…

Mayo Clinic Q&A podcast: Respiratory therapists play critical role in treating COVID-19 patients
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org | 2020-05-03
COVID-19 was first identified late last year with a cluster of pneumonia cases caused by a new coronavirus. The COVID-19 disease process heavily affects the respiratory system, and patients often need oxygen support. The respiratory therapist plays a critical role in managing oxygen levels, placing breathing tubes, and managing the mechanical ventilator, when necessary. On …
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/ma…

Symptom list for COVID-19 expanded
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org | 2020-05-03
COVID-19, the disease caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus, affects people in many ways. Early symptoms have included fever, cough and chills. The list of symptoms in people with confirmed COVID-19 disease has expanded since early reports of the disease.
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/sy…

Physicians, scientists and physician-scientists connect dots between heart disease, potential for worse COVID-19 outcomes
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org | 2020-05-03
ROCHESTER, Minn. ? People with certain heart diseases may be more susceptible to worse outcomes with COVID-19, but the reason why has remained unknown. New research from Mayo Clinic indicates that in patients with one specific type of heart disease ? obstructive hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) ? the heart increases production of the ACE2 RNA transcript …
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/ph…

Mayo Clinic expert talks social distancing
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org | 2020-05-03
The need for?social distancing?will continue into the summer as an important public health tool to reduce the spread of?COVID-19. ?Dr. Gregory Poland, an infectious diseases specialist at Mayo Clinic acknowledges the hardships of public safety measures and says they are important. “The nature of social distancing, isolating ourselves, and shelter-in-place has been tremendous hardships from …
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/ma…

Mayo Clinic Q&A podcast: Using tele-ICU to support New York hospital
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org | 2020-05-03
Using tele-ICU capabilities, Mayo Clinic physicians in critical care medicine are volunteering to support staff at New York-Presbyterian Lawrence Hospital, which has been inundated with COVID-19 cases. At this unprecedented time, these two organizations are collaborating and innovating to help patients. On the Mayo Clinic Q&A podcast, Dr. Sean Caples, a Mayo Clinic pulmonologist and critical …
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/ma…

AskMayoExpert’s COVID-19 information made available to public
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org | 2020-05-03
Mayo Clinic is making parts of its AskMayoExpert clinical knowledge resource for providers available to the public to make trusted knowledge on COVID-19 easily available to other health systems and providers. AskMayoExpert, Mayo Clinic’s primary clinical knowledge resource for providers at the point of care, is sharing its COVID-19 content with the public. “Mayo leadership …
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/as…

Respiratory care and people who care for patients with COVID-19
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org | 2020-05-03
When people experience severe symptoms with COVID-19, they are urged to seek medical attention. But what happens to patients when they are hospitalized and who helps them? Because COVID-19 heavily affects the respiratory system, respiratory care is an important part of the care and healing process, says Dr. Daniel Diedrich, an anesthesiologist and critical care specialist at Mayo Clinic. All clinicians play an important role in providing lifesaving …
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/re…

Why patients with lung cancer in a COVID-19 era need to keep their treatment
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org | 2020-05-03
Patients with cancer are at a higher risk of having a more severe COVID-19 illness. “Unfortunately, COVID-19 has severely affected those who are diagnosed with lung cancer,” says Dr. Shanda Blackmon, a thoracic surgeon at Mayo Clinic. “We know that these patients who get infected with COVID-19 while they’re immune compromised are increasingly susceptible to having a worse …
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/wh…

Are pets at risk of getting, spreading COVID-19?
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org | 2020-05-03
Recent reports of cats and dogs becoming infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, has prompted the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to update its guidelines for pets. According to the CDC, two pet cats in New York City became the first domestic animals in the U.S. to test positive for the …
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/ar…

Science Saturday: Antimalarials, COVID-19, cardiac arrest
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org | 2020-05-03
Over the last few weeks, chloroquine and hydroxychloroquine have become household words. These antiparasitic drugs normally prescribed for malaria were introduced early in the rush to find potential treatments for COVID-19. As time goes on, the public discussion has centered on who should get these particular drugs and when. Meanwhile many doctors and medical researchers …
newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/sc…

Public Opinion, Not Scientific Advice, Is What Is Keeping Us in Lockdown
Daniel Hannan | anti-empire.com | 2020-05-03

“The whiff of pestilence throws us back onto our most basic Stone Age heuristics: stay away from strangers, avoid risk, hoard food, keep your children close. These basic promptings will always prove stronger than academic papers”

| What has come over us? Is Covid-19 turning us into a nation of authoritarians? Are we secretly enjoying the lockdown and its associated feelings of community, simplicity and purpose? Were some of us longing all the while to be bossed about? Opinion polls continue…
anti-empire.com/public-opinion-not-scien…

If We’re at War, the Weapons We Need Are Tests and PPE, Not Pork
Lawrence Gostin | zcomm.org | 2020-05-03
Source: Democracy Now! As President Trump invokes the Defense Production Act to bar local governments from closing meatpacking plants around the United States, we get response from a longtime adviser to the World Health Organization.
zcomm.org/znetarticle/if-were-at-war-the…

90-year-old lady defeats COVID-19 in Iran
IRNA | iranian.com | 2020-05-03
A 90-year-old woman from western Iran has defeated coronavirus (COVID-19) after three weeks of resistance to the deadly virus, doctors said on Sunday. The senior citizen who lives in Iran’s Ilam Province was discharged from Mostafa Khomeini hospital. Earlier, a 106-year-old patient from Qom, a 98-year-old lady from Mashad, a 97-year-old woman from Qom, an …
iranian.com/2020/05/02/90-year-old-lady-…

Measuring Inflation in Times of Coronavirus
Dean Baker | cepr.net | 2020-05-02
There has been some discussion of whether we should anticipate deflation or inflation as a result of the impact of the pandemic. I have been in the camp arguing the latter, based on the idea that precautionary measures will raise costs in major areas of the economy while reducing supply. (This is not an argument …
cepr.net/measuring-inflation-in-times-of…

[Editorial] COVID-19: remaking the social contract
The Lancet | thelancet.com | 2020-05-02
“Allegiance, after all, has to work two ways; and one can grow weary of an allegiance which is not reciprocal.” The British playwright David Hare quoted this line by the American writer James Baldwin in his recent reflections on the UK Government’s response to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Baldwin’s reminder and warning in the context of civil rights in the mid-20th century USA speak now in the pandemic to communities the world over who are unsure of their governments’ allegiances to them.
thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PI…(20)30983-1/fulltext?rss=yes

[Comment] Offline: A global health crisis? No, something far worse
Richard Horton | thelancet.com | 2020-05-02
Every evening we scour those graphs looking for signs that the epidemic is in retreat. New cases of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). People in hospital with COVID-19. Critical care beds with COVID-19 patients. Daily COVID-19 deaths in hospital. And then the final and bluntly worded “global death comparison”. Those with responsibility for leading us through this emergency have called it “a once in a century global health crisis”. This statement is incorrect on two grounds. First, because we cannot know what the rest of the century will bring.
thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PI…(20)31017-5/fulltext?rss=yes

[Obituary] Gita Ramjee
Andrew Green | thelancet.com | 2020-05-02
HIV researcher who specialised in HIV prevention for women. Born on April 8, 1956, in Kampala, Uganda, she died of complications from COVID-19 on March 31, 2020, outside Durban, South Africa, aged 63 years.
thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PI…(20)30941-7/fulltext?rss=yes

[Comment] Renal denervation: time to refine the focus of research
Peter J Blankestijn, Sabine C Meijvis | thelancet.com | 2020-05-02
In The Lancet, Michael Bà∂hm and colleagues report the results of their international, prospective, randomised controlled trial on the effects of renal denervation in unmedicated patients.1 They report that, in a cohort of 331 patients with hypertension assigned to either a renal denervation procedure (n=166; mean age 52 years [SD 11], 36% women) or sham procedure (n=165; 53 years [10], 32% women), treatment differences were ‚àí3 ∑9 mm Hg (Bayesian 95% credible interval ‚àí6 ∑2 to ‚àí1 ∑6) for 24 h systolic blood pressure and ‚&agr…
thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PI…(20)30853-9/fulltext?rss=yes

[World Report] Prisons are “in no way equipped” to deal with COVID-19
Talha Burki | thelancet.com | 2020-05-02
Prisons are a hotspot for COVID-19. In theory, prisoners have the same right to health as anyone else, but the reality is very different. Talha Burki reports.
thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PI…(20)30984-3/fulltext?rss=yes

[Perspectives] Death of a courtier
Sarah Ditum | thelancet.com | 2020-05-02
A plague sweeps the nation, the head of state’s health is threatened, and the business of government is rendered fragile and unsteady. It has been over a decade since Hilary Mantel began her Thomas Cromwell trilogy with Wolf Hall in 2009, and 8 years since 2012’s Bring Up the Bodies, but what felt like an arduous wait now seems like nothing but impeccable timing. Cromwell even ends the novel under his own version of lockdown as a prisoner in the Tower of London. The world has been uncannily prepared for The Mirror & the Light.
thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PI…(20)30939-9/fulltext?rss=yes

[Perspectives] Society and the slow burn of inequality
Michael Marmot | thelancet.com | 2020-05-02
On June 14, 2017, Grenfell Tower, a high-rise housing block in the Royal London Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, UK, went up in flames. 72 people died, among the poorest and most marginalised in society. A dramatic conflagration such as this could teach us two kinds of lessons, if we were but open to receiving them. This event exposed underlying problems in society and it showed us that we have to do things differently. In the case of Grenfell, the underlying societal problem was deep-seated and enduring social inequalities and resultant health inequalities.
thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PI…(20)30940-5/fulltext?rss=yes

Amid shutdowns, youth climate activists are writing the curriculum for a just economic recovery
Leanna First-Arai | nationofchange.org | 2020-05-02
“Organizing is intertwined with our survival as a people, and that can’t take a back seat.”
nationofchange.org/2020/05/02/amid-shutd…

German Lawyer Sent to Psychiatric Ward for Organizing Protest Against COVID-19 Lockdown
Kurt Nimmo | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-02
First published on April 16, 2020 | In the Soviet Union, activists were sent to state psychiatric wards. According to the state, any and all opposition to government policy was considered a form of mental illness. | Stephanie Buck writes about the …
globalresearch.ca/german-lawyer-sent-psy…

Buffalo, N.Y., banner drop on May Day 2020
Nigel Bouvart | workers.org | 2020-05-02
In honor of International Workers Day, local activists adorned several overpasses with radical demands on behalf of the working class, including calls for rent cancellation and universal healthcare. Credit: Oscar Elliot | Continue reading Buffalo, N.Y., banner drop on May Day 2020 at Workers.org
workers.org/2020/05/48107/?utm_source=rs…

Philippines: CPP denounces arrest of 76 activists, volunteers on Labor Day
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2020-05-02
Fight Back News Service is circulating the following statement from the Communist Party of the Philippines. | The Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) denounces the arrest of 76 activists and relief volunteers by police elements in Metro Manila and Iloilo on Labor Day. | “The Duterte regime marked Labor Day with mass arrests to stifle dissent and muffle criticism in its desperation to cover up its ineptness and failure to address the hunger and plight of the working class amid the Covid-19 pandemic,” said CPP Chief Information Officer Marco L. Valbuena. | “Using the Covid-19 pandemic as an excuse, Duterte is…
www.fightbacknews.org/2020/5/2/philippin…

Wikileaks Chief Editor on Assange: “People need to care”
acTVism Munich | dissidentvoice.org | 2020-05-02
dissidentvoice.org/2020/05/wikileaks-chi…

Trump tweets support for armed right-wing protesters in Michigan
wsws.org | 2020-05-02
The right-wing demonstration in the Michigan state Capitol is part of a high-level campaign to force a return to work in the midst of the deadly COVID-19 pandemic.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/05/02/lans…

Do we laugh? Backwoods Michigan Sees Powerful COVID Surge/Deaths After Lockdown Protests (updating)
Gordon Duff | thealtworld.com | 2020-05-02
COVID deaths doubled in one day, largely due to protests of lockdown. How many protesters or family members died last week? Without game playing, probably between 50 and 90 as deaths in “protest land” skyrocketed. | This was a single day.: | It is too easy to treat the pandemic as though it were a sport, watching the figures, cheering on the grim reaper, hoping he is killing off those other people. | This is wrong, there, I’ve said it. | From today’s Detroit News: | “Michigan’s death toll from the novel coronavirus reached 4,020 on Saturday after the state added 154 deaths to its count. | The state recor…
thealtworld.com/gordon_duff/do-we-laugh-…

Russia: Two ministers, one deputy test positive for COVID as workers’ protests grow
wsws.org | 2020-05-02
Just one day after Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin was hospitalized for COVID-19, the minister for construction, housing and communal services and his deputy also tested positive.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/05/02/russ…

Colombia’s New Scandal: The Army Spied on Journalists
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-02
The magazine Semana Friday published a special investigation showing that the Colombian Army spied on journalists who were reporting on the armed conflict and military corruption. | RELATED: | Colombia: Protests Over Lack of Food Aid Persist | Foreign journalists who were monitored by Colombian security forces include the New York Times correspondent Nick Casey, freelance photographer Stephen Ferry, and Lynsey Addario. | Between February and December 2019, the military also carried out comput…
telesurenglish.net/news/Colombias-New-Sc…

Colombia’s New Scandal: The Army Spied on Journalists
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-02
The magazine Semana Friday published a special investigation showing that the Colombian Army spied on journalists who were reporting on the armed conflict and military corruption. | RELATED: | Colombia: Protests Over Lack of Food Aid Persist | Foreign journalists who were monitored by Colombian security forces include the New York Times correspondent Nick Casey, freelance photographer Stephen Ferry, and Lynsey Addario. | Between February and December 2019, the military also carried out comput…
telesurenglish.net/news/Colombias-New-Sc…

New York caravan celebrates May Day
Fight Back | fightbacknews.org | 2020-05-02
New York, NY – Dozens of cars gathered in different boroughs of New York City on Friday May 1 in honor of May Day, or International Workers Day. Due to the city being on pause, protesters used a caravan to display signs and drive through different neighborhoods in the city, showing solidarity with workers and other oppressed groups. A special focus was put on COVID-19 and how workers, prisoners and immigrants lack protection from COVID-19. | The three contingents started in the Bronx, Brooklyn and Queens. Their demands included cancel the rents, hazard pay and PPE, free healthcare and COVID testing, free them al…
www.fightbacknews.org/2020/5/2/new-york-…

PA prisoners tortured for protesting racist policies
Ted Kelly | workers.org | 2020-05-02
Eric McGill was locked up in Lebanon County Correctional Facility in Lebanon, Pa., on Jan. 19, 2019. For 15 months now he has been held there, not because he has been convicted of a crime, but because he cannot afford the preposterous $1 million bail the judge set. And during . . . | Continue reading PA prisoners tortured for protesting racist policies at Workers.org
workers.org/2020/05/48116/?utm_source=rs…

Portugal Leads the Way: How European Countries Fared in Their Treatment of Refugees
Ramzy Baroud and Romana Rubeo | dissidentvoice.org | 2020-05-02
As soon as the COVID-19 pandemic began spreading its tentacles throughout China and eventually to the rest of the world, the World Health Organization (WHO), along with other international groups, sounded the alarm that refugees and migrants are particularly vulnerable to the deadly disease. “We strongly emphasize the need for inclusive national public health measures …
dissidentvoice.org/2020/05/portugal-lead…

‘Milestone Moment’ as JPMorgan Chase Announces Former Exxon CEO to No Longer Be Lead Director of Bank’s Board
Andrea Germanos, staff writer | commondreams.org | 2020-05-02
The ousting of “America’s #1 climate denier” from the leadership position on the board of the largest global lender of fossil fuels is being welcomed by the climate movement. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…
commondreams.org/news/2020/05/02/milesto…

Coronavirus, Vaccines and the Gates Foundation
F. William Engdahl | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-02
First published on March 20, 2020 | Arguably, no one has been more active in promoting and funding research on vaccines aimed at dealing with coronavirus than Bill Gates and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. From sponsoring a simulation of …
globalresearch.ca/coronavirus-gates-foun…

Former US Special Ops Soldier Led Plot to Invade Venezuela: Sources
Lucas Koerner | venezuelanalysis.com | 2020-05-02
AP reports that the Venezuelan opposition and Colombian authorities were aware of the plot.
venezuelanalysis.com/news/14859

Former top officials in Bernie Sanders campaign form super PAC to back Joe Biden
wsws.org | 2020-05-02
Despite his long record of opposition to super PACs, Sanders has remained silent on the creation of the “Future to Believe In” political action committee.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/05/02/sand…

Remembering Henri Falcon’s May 2018 Presidential campaign in Venezuela
Joe Emersberger | zcomm.org | 2020-05-02
Henri Falcon was a viable candidate

The War of Two Middle Classes
Joel Kotkin | anti-empire.com | 2020-05-02
Politicians across the Western world like to speak fondly of the “middle class” as if it is one large constituency with common interests and aspirations. But, as Karl Marx observed, the middle class has always been divided by sources of wealth and worldview. Today, it is split into two distinct, and often opposing, middle classes. First there is the yeomanry or the traditional middle class, which consists of small business owners, minor landowners, craftspeople, and artisans, or what we would define historically as the bourgeoisie, or the old French Third Estate, deeply embedded in the private economy. The oth…
anti-empire.com/the-war-of-two-middle-cl…

WATCH North Korea’s Kim re-emerge in public amid rumors of DEATH
rt.com | 2020-05-02
North Korean state media has released video footage of the country’s leader Kim Jong-un opening a new fertilizer plant. The video comes after weeks of rumors of his death, actively spread by Western media. | The video, said to have been shot on Friday, shows North Korea’s leader cutting the red ribbon at a new plant in South Phyongan Province. The smiling Kim Jong-un is pictured meeting the workers of the plant and touring the facility alongside other officials, including his sister Kim Yo-jong. | While the plant’s workers are seen wearing face masks as a precaution against coronavirus, none of the official…
rt.com/news/487633-kim-jong-un-new-video…

“America the Victim”: Are “Enemies” Lining Up for Revenge in the Wake of the Coronavirus?
Philip Giraldi | globalresearch.ca | 2020-05-02
When in trouble politically, governments have traditionally conjured up a foreign enemy to explain why things are going wrong. Whatever one chooses to believe about the coronavirus, the fact is that it has resulted in considerable political backlash against a …
globalresearch.ca/america-victim-enemies…

Sudan bans female genital mutilation, UNICEF vows to help support new law
news.un.org | 2020-05-02
The United Nations Childen’s Fund (UNICEF) welcomed the landmark move by Sudan’s transitional government this week to criminalize female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C), with a three-year jail sentence for offenders.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2020/05/1…

COVID-19 impact could be ‘disastrously high’ in poverty-stricken Malawi
news.un.org | 2020-05-02
In Malawi, one of the world’s poorest countries, with a fragile health system, the UN is bracing for the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic which, it is feared, could be severe.
news.un.org/feed/view/en/story/2020/05/1…

China Registers Only One New COVID-19 Case in the Whole Country
telesurenglish.net | 2020-05-02
China’s National Health Commission (NHC) Friday reported one new COVID-19 case in the entire country corresponding to a traveler from abroad, which is the lowest growth rate recorded in the Asian country since the pandemic began. | RELATED: | Russia Refutes Western Attempts To Blame China For COVID-19 | The NHC also reported two suspected cases, both related to someone from abroad. In the last 24 hours, 43 patients were discharged and 650 of their close contacts were no longer obs…
telesurenglish.net/news/China-Registers-…

OSHA abandons essential workers
Joyce Chediac | liberationnews.org | 2020-05-02
Months into the COVID-19 pandemic, OSHA has ignored the pleas of scores of trade unions to protect workers.
liberationnews.org/osha-abandons-essenti…

US autoworkers oppose early return to factories
wsws.org | 2020-05-02
Detroit auto companies are pushing for a May 18 restart but workers are resisting this attempt to force them into the factories during the uncontained COVID-19 pandemic.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/05/02/auto…

UK: Delays to medical treatment during pandemic will cost thousands of lives
wsws.org | 2020-05-02
Reports claim that deaths due to the disruption of cancer services alone are likely to outnumber deaths from the coronavirus itself over the next five years.
www.wsws.org/en/articles/2020/05/02/dela…