Daily Archives: August 26, 2020

2020-08-26: News Headlines

Staff (2020-08-26). RNC Night 2: Trump Loyalists & Family Members Ignore COVID Death Toll & Flout Election Laws. democracynow.org At the second night of the Republican National Convention in Charlotte, speakers largely ignored the devastating public health and economic crisis facing the country as the U.S. death toll from the coronavirus nears 180,000 and tens of millions of Americans are out of work and struggling to pay for food and housing. We feature excerpts from the night, which included praise for President Trump's actions in the Middle East and more dire warnings about a Joe Biden presidency, as well as several speeches that appear to violate the Hatch Act, which prohibits federal employees from using their office for partisan polit…

Staff (2020-08-26). Headlines for August 26, 2020. democracynow.org Two Killed as White Militia Member Fires on Black Lives Matter Protesters in Kenosha, WI, Family of Jacob Blake Demands Arrest of Officers Who Shot Him in the Back, Black Lives Matter Protesters Shot At While Marching in Pennsylvania, Republican National Convention Speakers Continue to Flout Hatch Act Ethics Laws, CDC Quietly Drops Test Recommendation for Asymptomatic People Exposed to COVID-19, Far-Right Militia Leader Ammon Bundy Arrested at Idaho State Capitol, Argentina Posts Record Coronavirus Toll; COVID-19 Resurgent in Europe, Hurricane Laura Could Become Category 4 Storm Ahead of Gulf Coast Landfall, Leba…

yenisafak (2020-08-26). Coronavirus outbreak kills 1, sickens 8 in Gaza. yenisafak.com Health authorities in the blockaded Gaza Strip on Wednesday registered one death and eight cases from the coronavirus pandemic.The Palestinian Health Ministry in Gaza said a 61-year-old Palestinian died from the virus, while eight people were infected, bringing the total number of cases in the enclave since Monday to 15.On Monday, authorities in the enclave imposed a two-day lockdown as part of measures to stem the virus' spread.Previous infections were reported from inside quarantine centers for arrivals to Gaza.*Writing by Mahmoud Barakat…

yenisafak (2020-08-26). Displaced Yemenis suffer as aid shortfall closes clinics. yenisafak.com "Enough is enough now, we can't go on," said administrative worker Mansour, who financially supports his and his deceased brother's family. His salary, while he was still paid, was around $180 a month.Across Yemen health, sanitation and nutrition services that keep millions from starvation and disease are gradually closing amid an acute funding shortage for the world's largest humanitarian crisis.The United Nations said last week 12 of its 38 major programmes have shut or scaled down, and between August and September 20 programmes face further reductions or closure.In the Mahraba displacement camp in Hajjah provi…

The Canary (2020-08-26). Devastating flooding in Afghanistan kills at least 100 people. thecanary.co Heavy flooding has killed at least 100 people as heavy rain drenched northern and eastern Afghanistan.Annual heavy rain, compounded by mudslides, often threatens remote areas of Afghanistan. Summer often brings heavy rainfall in northern and eastern parts of the country, leading to floods that leave hundreds dead every year.State minister for disaster management Ghulam Bahawudin Jilani said that in northern Parwan province, water inundated the central city of Charikar, where the health ministry said the local hospital was partially destroyed and many of the injured were being transferred to the capital, Kabul.An…

Pavan Kulkarni (2020-08-26). Anti-corruption protests, health workers' agitations point to depth of Kenya's COVID-19 crisis. peoplesdispatch.org Very little progress has been made in resolving the issues raised by doctors and nurses in Kenya. Meanwhile, protests have broken out in many cities against alleged misappropriation of funds for COVID-19 equipment…

Binoy Kampmark (2020-08-26). Permitted Unlawfulness: The New Zealand Coronavirus Lockdown. counterpunch.org "Limitation is essential to authority. A government is legitimate only if it is effectively limited." — Lord Acton It is a study both troublesome and perplexing. To what end can a state trample on human rights ostensibly to preserve such objects a public health? The coronavirus lockdowns have become a feature of global politics and

Kenneth Surin (2020-08-26). What the President Continues to Say (About The Plague). counterpunch.org I have retained Trump's linguistic infelicities in this compendium of his remarks on the COVID-19 pandemic. July 1— "I think we're going to be very good with the coronavirus. I think that, at some point, that's going to sort of disappear, I hope." July 2— "Some areas that were very hard-hit are now doing very

Dr. Roberto Petrella (2020-08-26). The Dangers of the COVID Operation. Dr. Roberto Petrella. globalresearch.ca What do we know? | We know that the tests do not work but governments pretend that they do. We also know that some vaccines sterilize people. Warp Speed vaccine preparation almost guarantees vaccine injury, plus it is an entirely new …

Mehr News Agency (2020-08-26). Muharram mourning ceremonies in Tabriz. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Aug. 26 (MNA) — Mourning ceremonies in the sixth night of Muharram were held in Tabriz with health protocols in place.

imperial.ac.uk (2020-08-26). Syrian conflict the focus of redesigned global health degree. imperial.ac.uk Imperial's Global Health BSc focuses on one of the world's worst health crises of recent times, through collaborations with on the ground expertise…

imperial.ac.uk (2020-08-26). Hip fracture risk linked to nanoscale bone inflexibility. imperial.ac.uk New research has highlighted a preventative treatment gap in patients prone to bone fractures who are otherwise healthy.

imperial.ac.uk (2020-08-26). Syrian conflict the focus of redesigned global health degree. imperial.ac.uk Collaborations with on-the-ground expertise helped refocus Imperial's Global Health BSc on one of the world's worst health crises of recent times…

Direct Action Everywhere (2020-08-26). Cancel Animal Ag: Demand a Moratorium. indybay.org Animal abuse is rampant in California. Companies like Smithfield Foods are torturing animals, brewing disease inside filthy factory farms, and spreading COVID-19 among vulnerable slaughterhouse workers.

_____ (2020-08-26). Organizing Call: After The DNC And RNC — We Can't Breathe! popularresistance.org The Democratic and Republican Conventions are not confronting the crises of our times – the economic collapse, COVID pandemic, lack of access to healthcare, inequality, racism, the cost of education, and never-ending wars and more. | No matter which corporate-funded party wins the election, the people must rule from below. | The national uprising against police violence and the hundreds of wildcat strikes and rent strikes are a few examples among many that show once again that the only way to challenge this racist, militarized system is with the explosive power of people making demands and shutting the system dow…

sputniknews (2020-08-26). Kim Jong-un Appears in Public, Deflating Media Claims of His 'Comatose' State. sputniknews.com Tabloids, US government-funded media, and a throng of unnamed sources and ex-officials have been speculating about Kim Jong-un's health for months, with the North Korean leader reported missing and presumed dead or gravely ill at least four times in 2020. The rumours vanish each time Kim makes a public appearance, only to surface again soon after.

sputniknews (2020-08-26). Russia Ready to Start COVID-19 Vaccine Supplies to Brazil in November, RDIF CEO Says. sputniknews.com BUENOS AIRES (Sputnik) – Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) CEO Kirill Dmitriev said on Wednesday that Russia is ready to start deliveries of the newly registered COVID-19 vaccine to Brazil in November.

sputniknews (2020-08-26). Russian COVID Vaccine for Kazakhstan to Be Produced by Partner of Russia's Sovereign Fund. sputniknews.com MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The Russian Direct Investment Fund (RDIF) said on Wednesday that the production of Russia's coronavirus vaccine, dubbed Sputnik V, for Kazakhstan would be carried out by one of its international partners.

yenisafak (2020-08-26). Cambridge university aims for autumn trials of coronavirus vaccine after UK funding. yenisafak.com The University of Cambridge is aiming to start clinical trials of its possible coronavirus vaccine in the autumn after it received 1.9 million pounds ($2.5 million) in funding from the British government, the university said on Wednesday.The scientists behind the vaccine said their approach, which uses genetic sequences of all known coronaviruses to hone the immune response, could help avoid the adverse effects of a hyper-inflammatory immune response."We're looking for chinks in its armour, crucial pieces of the virus that we can use to construct the vaccine to direct the immune response in the right direction,"

Helen Yaffe (2020-08-25). With COVID-19 Under Control, Cuba Launches New Economic Battle. counterpunch.org The exemplary domestic and international response of socialist Cuba to the global SARS-CoV2 pandemic has been recognised worldwide. By late July, authorities had the virus under control; 87 people had died, none of them children or healthcare workers, and Cuba was entering phase three of post-Covid-19 recovery. While Cuba's public health response protected the population,

RT (2020-08-25). Push panic button, go to safe room & don't argue: CDC sets guidelines for companies dealing with customer rage over Covid-19 rules. rt.com The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has urged employees in retail and service businesses to avoid confronting customers who refuse to comply with Covid-19 restrictions, such as wearing masks or social distancing. | In its new

RT (2020-08-25). Fauci argues against potential emergency approval for Covid-19 vaccine, says it'll put other vaccines at disadvantage. rt.com Anthony Fauci, a top federal health expert, has warned that rolling out a coronavirus vaccine under an emergency approval could make testing for other immunizations "impossible," arguing it might rob the trials of participants. | Fauci, the director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told Reuters in an interview on Monday that a vaccine should not be given an emergency use authorization (EUA) "before you have a signal of efficacy," saying it could jeopardize the other various vaccines under testing. | "One of the potential dangers if you prematurely let a vaccine out is that it would…

RT (2020-08-25). As Covid-19 drives the planet batsh*t crazy, Russia to study the feces of its own bat population to look for coronaviruses. rt.com With the world in the grip of a pandemic possibly caused by Chinese bats, Russia wants to make sure its own can't start another. Thus, a new study will check the country's bat population for the presence of coronaviruses. | National health watchdog Roszdravnadzor's Institute of Epidemiology will test nocturnal flying mammals from various regions of the country, including Moscow, Volgograd, and the Black Sea coast, enabling the scientists to determine how common coronaviruses are in different species. | The researchers plan to analyze more than 1,500 individuals by checking fecal samples, using a "high-performa…

RT (2020-08-25). Washington Post does about-face on Covid-19 plasma treatment the moment Trump comes out in favor. rt.com Media coverage of a promising Covid-19 treatment has flipped from supportive to negative, a US health official has revealed, suggesting the president's praise of the treatment might relate to it falling out of favor. | The Washington Post's outlook on using blood plasma from recovered Covid-19 patients to treat the sick has flipped from optimistic to skeptical following a Sunday announcement from US President Donald Trump that the treatment has received emergency approval by the Food and Drug Administration. The switch in coverage was noted by the spokesman for the Department of Health and Human Services on Mo…

The Canary (2020-08-25). Johnson dismisses rumours he will quit due to ill health as absolute nonsense. thecanary.co Boris Johnson has dismissed as "absolute nonsense" a suggestion that he will quit early next year.Speculation about the prime minister's future was fuelled after the father-in-law of his senior aide Dominic Cummings reportedly said Johnson was struggling with his health and would leave Number 10 in six months' time.But during a visit to Devon, Johnson, who spent time in intensive care with coronavirus in April, said he was feeling "far better", partly due to losing weight.Prime minister Boris Johnson during his visit to Appledore Shipyard in Devon (Ben Birchall/PA)Johnson was forced to address questions about his…

Kuehn BM. (2020-08-25). Lung Diseases Affecting US Workers Cost Billions Annually. jamanetwork.com Annual expenditures for US workers totaled $7 billion for asthma care and $5 billion for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) care between 2011 and 2015, according to CDC researchers.

Wiersinga W, Rhodes A, Cheng AC, et al. (2020-08-25). Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)—Epidemiology, Diagnosis, and Treatment. jamanetwork.com This narrative review discusses what is currently known about the pathophysiology, epidemiology, diagnosis, management, prognosis, and prevention of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

Wiersinga W, Prescott HC. (2020-08-25). Patient Information: COVID-19. jamanetwork.com This JAMA Patient Page provides an overview of COVID-19 transmission, symptoms, diagnosis, disease course, and treatment.

Mello MM, Greene JA, Sharfstein JM. (2020-08-25). Attacks on Public Health Officials During COVID-19. jamanetwork.com This Viewpoint discusses ongoing harassment and threats against US public health officials who propose or take steps to protect communities from coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) and it proposes possible responses, including a call to elected leaders to implement protection of the officials from illegal harassment, assault, and violence.

Donohue JM, Hernandez I, Hershey T. (2020-08-25). Drug Shortages and Group Purchasing Organizations—Reply. jamanetwork.com In Reply We agree with Ms Calleja that GPOs play an important role in the supply of health care products, including pharmaceuticals. The need for a high-functioning supply chain for health care products has never been more salient than now, during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic.

Palmqvist S, Janelidze S, Quiroz YT, et al. (2020-08-25). Accuracy of Plasma P-tau217 for Distinguishing Alzheimer Disease From Other Neurodegenerative Disorders. jamanetwork.com This cross-sectional study compares the accuracy of plasma tau phosphorylated at threonine 217 (P-tau217) levels vs other plasma-, MRI-, CSF-, and PET-based markers for distinguishing Alzheimer from other neurodegenerative diseases in 3 cohorts in Arizona, Sweden, and Columbia with or at risk for dementia.

Pereira NL, Farkouh ME, So D, et al. (2020-08-25). Effect of Genotype-Guided Oral P2Y12 Inhibitor Selection vs Clopidogrel on Ischemic Outcomes After PCI. jamanetwork.com This open-label randomized trial compares the effect of a genotype-guided oral P2Y12 inhibitor selection strategy vs conventional clopidogrel prescribing on 12-month ischemic outcomes after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in CYP2C19*2/CYP2C19*3 loss-of-function allele carriers with acute coronary syndromes and stable cardiovascular disease.

teleSUR (2020-08-25). Chile Can Hold a Safe Electoral Process, UNDP Assures. telesurenglish.net The United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Monday assured that Chile can hold safe elections in October if the authorities take the appropriate health protocols. | RELATED: | "It is possible to hold elections without putting in danger more people. However, this is a complex process that requires a lot of planning," UNDP Assistant Resident Representative Marcela Rios said. | She mentioned that health measures should…

WSWS (2020-08-25). US health care workers infected with COVID-19 pressured to return to work. wsws.org The failure of health care facilities and employers to provide adequate paid leave has left health care staff with the cruel "choice" of risking hunger and homelessness by forfeiting their paychecks or becoming transmitters of the coronavirus in their workplaces.

Calleja K. (2020-08-25). Drug Shortages and Group Purchasing Organizations. jamanetwork.com To the Editor Health care group purchasing organizations (GPOs) play an important role in helping to deliver a safe and reliable supply of products to health care clinicians. Unfortunately, a recent Viewpoint on drug shortages misrepresented key aspects regarding GPOs.

news.un (2020-08-25). COVID-19 reinfection seems not to be a 'regular event', says UN health agency. news.un.org There is likely only a slim possibility of people being reinfected with COVID-19, the UN health agency said on Tuesday, following reports in Hong Kong that a man had contracted new coronavirus for a second time after an interval of more than four months.

news.un (2020-08-25). 'Momentous milestone' as Africa eradicates wild poliovirus. news.un.org The wild poliovirus has been eradicated in Africa, health officials announced on Tuesday, calling it a "momentous milestone" for the continent.

jamanetwork (2020-08-25). Experts Discuss COVID-19—Remdesivir, Vaccines, and More. jamanetwork.com This JAMA Live Highlights feature provides comments about the coronavirus 2019 pandemic from experts in clinical medicine, public health, and health policy expressed during livestream interviews with JAMA Network Editor in Chief Howard Bauchner, MD.

Slomski A. (2020-08-25). Aspirin Fails to Prevent Depression in Older Adults. jamanetwork.com Low-dose aspirin did not reduce the risk of depression in healthy older adults, a trial in JAMA Psychiatry reported. Depression is associated with elevated markers of inflammation, which may occur before symptoms arise, particularly in older people.

Rodgers GP, Collins FS. (2020-08-25). Precision Nutrition—the Answer to "What to Eat to Stay Healthy" jamanetwork.com In this Viewpoint directors of the NIH and NIDDK summarize the agency's 2020-2030 Strategic Plan for NIH Nutrition Research, a roadmap to establish a science of nutrition as a means to prevent and treat illness and to develop actionable, evidence-based dietary recommendations across cultures and settings.

Adolf Alzuphar (2020-08-25). A New Republic. counterpunch.org A misuse plagues our republic: the misuse of democracy; instead of building a democratic, and just, society, we simply use democracy to validate and renew the personnel of our oligarchic republic. These days, because the republic is fractured and oligarchic, democracy is being misused to maintain the same republic as the promise of a new

Mehr News Agency (2020-08-25). Iran COVID-19 update: 125 deaths, 2,213 cases in 24 hours. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Aug. 25 (MNA) — The Iranian Health Ministry has confirmed 2,213 COVID-19 infections and 125 deaths due to the disease in the past 24 hours.

Mehr News Agency (2020-08-25). 5th night of Muharram mourning in Zanjan. en.mehrnews.com ZANJAN, Aug. 25 (MNA) — The mourning ceremonies on the fifth night of Muharram in Zanjan Province, west of Iran, were held preserving the anti-coronavirus health and social-distancing protocols.

Jean Twenge (2020-08-25). Video: The Narcissism Epidemic, 1 hour. indybay.org In this BookTV presentation from May 4, 2009, Jean Twenge explains how narcissism thought to be the ladder of success can lead to anti-social behavior and collective paralysis.

Olga Fajardo (2020-08-25). Schools Is In and Education is Back in Tampa Bay. indybay.org Despite all the adversity and all the state ordinances to handle these imposed health protocols, placed to create a safe environment during the Coronavirus pandemic.

WSWS (2020-08-25). Victims of herd immunity: further evidence that UK care home residents were denied medical treatment. wsws.org National Health Service managers instructed care homes that residents who became sick were to be covered with DNAR (do not attempt to resuscitate) orders.

yenisafak (2020-08-25). Turkey reports 1,500-plus coronavirus cases in a day. yenisafak.com Turkey on Tuesday confirmed 1,502 new cases of the novel coronavirus, while the number of tests conducted exceeded 6.5 million.On Twitter, Health Minister Fahrettin Koca said 887 patients recovered from COVID-19 over the past day, pushing the total count of recoveries to 238,795.Meanwhile, the death toll in the country reached 6,163, as 24 more people lost their lives.Health care professionals run 98,231 more tests to diagnose the disease over the last 24 hours, pushing the tally beyond 6.5 million.Since it originated in China last December, the coronavirus has claimed around 814,500 lives in 188 countries and re…

yenisafak (2020-08-25). Russia parliament orders probe into possible foreign link to alleged Navalny poisoning. yenisafak.com The speaker of Russia's lower house of parliament on Tuesday ordered one of its committees to probe whether foreign forces were behind the alleged poisoning of Kremlin critic Alexei Navalny in a bid to fuel tensions in Russia."The State Duma security committee will be instructed to analyse what happened in order to understand whether this was an attempt on the part of foreign states to harm the health of a Russian citizen to fuel tensions inside Russia, as well as to formulate fresh accusations against our country," speaker Vyacheslav Volodin said in a statement.The Kremlin said earlier on Tuesday it saw no need…

yenisafak (2020-08-25). Virus claims 77 more lives in Iraq, 31 in Saudi Arabia. yenisafak.com Health authorities in Iraq, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait confirmed more fatalities and infections related to the novel coronavirus on Tuesday.The Iraqi Health Ministry said 77 people died from COVID-19 over the past 24 hours, pushing the nationwide death toll to 6,596.The virus has also sickened 3,962 more people, bringing the total cases to 211,947, including 153,761 recoveries.In Saudi Arabia, the Health Ministry recorded 31 more deaths and 1,114 new cases over the past day.The kingdom's count now stands at 3,722 deaths and 309,768 infections as well as 283,932 recoveries.Meanwhile, the Kuwaiti Health Ministry regis…

Lisa Newcomb, staff writer (2020-08-25). 'What's Radical Is Doing Nothing': Attacked as an Extremist, Sanders Condemns GOP for Ignoring Climate Crisis at Convention. commondreams.org "It would be a moral disgrace if we left to future generations a planet and that was unhealthy, unsafe, and uninhabitable." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…