| Trump Tweets That Virus Briefings Maybe ‘Not Worth the Time’ Posted: 25 Apr 2020 03:41 PM PDT  (Bloomberg) -- President Donald Trump has been determined to talk his way through the coronavirus crisis, but frequent misstatements at his daily news conferences have caused a litany of public health and political headaches for the White House.On Friday, Trump sought to clean up his briefing room riff from the day before about the possibility of fighting coronavirus infection in patients with chemical disinfectant or sunlight -- a dangerous idea that doctors and a manufacturer of cleaning products felt obliged to publicly warn against.By Saturday, Trump suggested the briefings, which have become a televised daily substitute for his campaign rallies, were "not worth the time and effort," a day after a report that he plans to scale back such appearances. Trump on Friday said he had "sarcastically" suggested Americans be injected with disinfectant. The president's new spokeswoman also sought to clarify his remarks."President Trump has repeatedly said that Americans should consult with medical doctors regarding coronavirus treatment, a point that he emphasized again during yesterday's briefing," the press secretary, Kayleigh McEnany, said in a statement. "Leave it to the media to irresponsibly take President Trump out of context and run with negative headlines."Trump's most public response to the U.S. coronavirus outbreak has been the extended news conferences he's held almost every day, including most weekends, to talk about it. He pulled off his 2016 election upset and survived the Russia investigation and impeachment in part due to his ability to dominate media coverage. But the president has never been known as a detail-oriented leader and his off-the-cuff briefings have left many Americans distrustful of what he says.As questions mounted about Trump's comments on disinfectant, Trump and his coronavirus task force on Friday evening held their shortest news conference yet, at just 22 minutes. He took no questions.There was no briefing on Saturday but instead, a series of Twitter messages that returned to familiar targets including the media and Democrats. Just 23% of Americans consider Trump a trustworthy source of information on the virus, while 52% trust their state and local leaders, according to poll published Thursday by the Associated Press and NORC at the University of Chicago.Trump's QuestionsTrump's remarks on Thursday followed a presentation by a Department of Homeland Security undersecretary, Bill Bryan, who showed White House reporters new research indicating the virus wouldn't survive as long on nonporous surfaces in higher temperatures and humidity. The research suggested summer heat could help temper the U.S. outbreak, at least temporarily, although places in warm climates such as Singapore are still battling their own outbreaks.After Bryan's presentation, Trump chimed in, off script."So I asked Bill a question that probably some of you are thinking of, if you're totally into that world, which I find to be very interesting. So, supposing we hit the body with a tremendous -- whether it's ultraviolet or just very powerful light -- and I think you said that that hasn't been checked, but you're going to test it," Trump said. "And then I said, supposing you brought the light inside the body, which you can do either through the skin or in some other way, and I think you said you're going to test that too. It sounds interesting."Bryan responded: "We'll get to the right folks who could.""Right," Trump continued. "And then I see the disinfectant, where it knocks it out in a minute. One minute. And is there a way we can do something like that, by injection inside or almost a cleaning. Because you see it gets in the lungs and it does a tremendous number on the lungs. So it would be interesting to check that."Two-Hour BriefingsEven some Republicans have said Trump would be better served by holding fewer news conferences or speaking less during the events, leaving his medical experts and others to convey the information. But the former reality TV star has until now shown no sign of surrendering the lectern and has repeatedly bragged about his television ratings.In the last month, the White House has held a coronavirus briefing on all but three days, and the last time Trump did not speak at one was late March, according to data compiled by C-SPAN. Of the 47 briefings held since the start of the pandemic response, Trump has spoken at 43 of them -- the most of any administration official, the data show.His marathon public remarks -- the news conferences have extended for as long as two hours and 23 minutes, according to C-SPAN -- have been peppered with false claims, exaggerations and misstatements, opening the president to criticism by Democrats seeking to defeat him in November. Trump's claims that the virus would "disappear" and that "nobody could have ever seen something like this coming" have been included in political ads arguing he is ill-equipped to combat the pandemic.Even government health authorities have been forced to rebut the president. On Friday, the Food and Drug Administration cautioned against the use of two drugs Trump has promoted to treat coronavirus infection, hydroxychloroquine and chloroquine. The malaria medicine has not been shown to be effective against the virus. Nonetheless, the FDA issued an emergency order last month permitting the drug to be prescribed for hospitalized coronavirus patients, after Trump repeatedly recommended it and directed his administration to procure millions of doses.The medicines "can cause abnormal heart rhythms" as well as "a dangerously rapid heart rate called ventricular tachycardia," the FDA said Friday. "These risks may increase when these medicines are combined with other medicines" including azithromycin, the FDA said.The U.S. Surgeon General, Jerome Adams, meanwhile tweeted on Friday an admonition against Americans self-medicating without their doctors' advice.The state of Maryland's Emergency Management Agency said in a tweet on Friday that it had "received several calls regarding questions about disinfectant use and Covid-10.""This is a reminder that under no circumstances should any disinfectant product be administered into the body through injection, ingestion or any other route," the agency said.And the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a tweet Friday that household cleaners and disinfectants "can cause health problems when not used properly."'Something There'Trump views the daily White House briefings as an opportunity to share his optimistic view of the U.S. effort against the virus and battle critics, according to a person familiar with the matter. That has included insulting and arguing with individual reporters, particularly those from news organizations such as CNN that he considers unfair.The briefings also serve as an outlet for the president, who is no longer able to stage the boisterous political rallies that were the spine of both his 2016 and 2020 campaigns, the person said.But his frequent speaking appearances have also exposed his lack of preparedness. Trump rarely attends the White House coronavirus task force meetings that precede the briefings and does not typically rehearse his opening remarks, often reading them for the first time just minutes before he goes on air, the New York Times reported.After his remarks about light and disinfectant on Thursday, a litany of scientists and doctors called the president's suggestions dangerous. The maker of Lysol, Reckitt Benckiser Group Plc, issued a statement saying that "under no circumstance" should its disinfectant products be administered into the human body. The company said it felt obliged to issue a statement because it has a "responsibility in providing consumers with access to accurate, up-to-date information as advised by leading public health experts."In the Oval Office on Friday, Trump was invited to clarify his remarks. "I do think that disinfectant on the hands could have a very good effect," he said, adding that he'd like the government to research the effect of sunlight, heat and humidity on infected patients."Maybe there's something that's there," Trump said. "They have to work with the doctors. I'm not a doctor."For more articles like this, please visit us at bloomberg.comSubscribe now to stay ahead with the most trusted business news source.©2020 Bloomberg L.P.
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| Experts: Coronavirus samples from China not crucial to vaccine Posted: 25 Apr 2020 12:16 PM PDT  Medical experts interviewed by CBS News question some of the administration's claims about whether China's lack of transparency is actually is blocking the world from developing a vaccine.
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| U.S. banks in another mad grab for $310 billion in new small business aid Posted: 27 Apr 2020 04:08 AM PDT  The Small Business Administration (SBA) reopened its Paycheck Protection Program at 10:30 a.m. EDT (1430 GMT), allowing lenders to resume processing applications from businesses hurt by the novel coronavirus shutdown. Several bankers reported experiencing technology problems only minutes into the SBA reopening its loan processing portal, "E-Tran," which was not designed to handle such huge volumes of traffic. With the nation's lenders already sitting on hundreds of thousands of backlogged applications, the fresh funds are expected to be burned through in days - leaving swaths of mom-and-pop enterprises out in the cold again, banking groups said.
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| Drive-by shooters spray Duck Dynasty star Willie Robertson's estate with bullets Posted: 26 Apr 2020 04:42 PM PDT  One bullet lodged in the bedroom wall of son John Luke Robertson's and his wife Mary Kate McEachern's home.
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| After sailing into New York less than a month ago, the USNS Comfort is set to discharge its last coronavirus patient Posted: 26 Apr 2020 09:19 AM PDT  According to a report by ABC7, the USNS Comfort will be discharging its last coronavirus patient on Sunday, April 26 and returning to its homeport.
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| Lives Lost: Virus fells double-lung transplant daredevil Posted: 26 Apr 2020 09:31 PM PDT  Before her double-lung transplant, Joanne Mellady could barely put on a shirt without losing her breath. Mellady, who died of the coronavirus in March, had a bucket list that made her family blush. Before her death, Mellady was talking of a return visit to Alaska this summer and of participating again in the Transplant Games (now postponed).
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| El Paso Walmart shooting victim dies, raising death toll to 23 Posted: 26 Apr 2020 03:46 PM PDT  A hospital official said Guillermo "Memo" Garcia died after a nine-month fight.
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| Colorado governor defends move to reopen Posted: 26 Apr 2020 10:10 AM PDT  Gov. Jared Polis said it's essential to move toward long-term safe practices.
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| Mitch McConnell's state bankruptcy idea may be 'dumb' but it isn't stupid Posted: 27 Apr 2020 05:25 AM PDT  If Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) manages to block aid to state and local governments in the next coronavirus relief bill, one result would be longer and deeper financial pain for the U.S., The Washington Post reports. And McConnell's idea that states should be allowed to declare bankruptcy makes no sense and would hurt everyone, Josh Barro explains at New York. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) described McConnell's bankruptcy idea as "one of the really dumb ideas of all time."State and local governments employ 13 percent of the U.S. workforce. "Without emergency relief as their revenues crater, state and local governments will not be able to run key programs like unemployment insurance, social services, housing assistance, and small business outreach needed to protect people and businesses in this crisis," tweeted Amy Liu, director of the Brookings Metropolitan Policy Program. An unidentified local government budget expert told the Post: "If you want to send the country into an extended depression, sending state and local governments into bankruptcy is a great way to do it."But "state bankruptcy is not some passing fancy," writes David Frum at The Atlantic. "Republicans have been advancing the idea for more than a decade." And McConnell is trying to use this fiscal crisis — states are projected to lose at least 25 percent of their revenue even as health care, welfare, and unemployment costs shoot up — to make it a reality while he still can.McConnell doesn't represent Kentucky so much as "the richest people in bigger, richer blue states who find it more economical to invest in less expensive small-state races," Frum writes. These wealthy donors want to gut pension funds and enact other fiscal policies anathema to voters in their states. "A federal bankruptcy process for state finances could thus enable wealthy individuals and interest groups in rich states to leverage their clout in the anti-majoritarian federal system to reverse political defeats in the more majoritarian political systems of big, rich states like California, New York, and Illinois," Frum explains. "McConnell gets it. Now you do, too." In not, read more at The Atlantic.More stories from theweek.com Everybody Loves Raymond creator highlights the people who stand behind Trump, literally and awkwardly Trump wants praise for his coronavirus response. Here it is. CDC set to unveil detailed phased plan for reopening businesses, schools, and religious institutions
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| Top Theories on What’s Going On With North Korea’s Kim Jong Un Posted: 27 Apr 2020 04:36 AM PDT |
| No more bodies on the streets. But coronavirus batters Ecuador with disproportionate force Posted: 26 Apr 2020 10:00 AM PDT  Images of corpses in Ecuador stoked fear of the coronavirus' effect on developing nations. Infections have yet to peak elsewhere in Latin America.
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| Anti-vaxxer apologizes after refusing to leave children's playground Posted: 27 Apr 2020 03:27 AM PDT  An anti-vaccination activist in Idaho who was arrested for refusing to leave a children's playground has apologized to police.
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| Mexico all but empties official migrant centers in bid to contain coronavirus Posted: 26 Apr 2020 02:25 PM PDT  Mexico has almost entirely cleared out government migrant centers over the past five weeks to contain the spread of the coronavirus pandemic, returning most of the occupants to their countries of origin, official data showed on Sunday. In a statement, the National Migration Institute (INM) said that since March 21, in order to comply with health and safety guidelines, it had been removing migrants from its 65 migrant facilities, which held 3,759 people last month. In the intervening weeks, Mexico has returned 3,653 migrants to Guatemala, Honduras and El Salvador by road and air, with the result that only 106 people remain in the centers, it said.
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| The EU rewrote a report detailing China's coronavirus 'disinformation' campaign following pressure from Beijing Posted: 27 Apr 2020 06:26 AM PDT  References to a Chinese campaign of "global disinformation" about the coronavirus were removed before publication.
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| The Forgotten Hong Kong Flu Pandemic of 1968 Has Lessons for Today Posted: 26 Apr 2020 05:47 PM PDT  We're not just living through an earthshaking pandemic.We're living through a new crisis in which a highly virulent virus arrives at the very moment when ubiquitous media coverage, global interconnectivity, and a certain amount of scientific conformity amplify everything.All of this has combined to create an unprecedented public-policy response. For the first time in history, we've effectively quarantined the healthy population while also practicing social distancing and protecting the old, vulnerable, and frail. Even public-health experts such as Doctors Anthony Fauci and Deborah Birx admit that an economic lockdown is an untried and untested theory.Just how much so can be seen if we look back at how the U.S. -- and indeed the world -- handled the now largely forgotten 1968–'69 Hong Kong flu pandemic. It was an especially infectious virus that had the ability to mutate and render existing vaccines ineffective.Hundreds of thousands were hospitalized in the U.S. as the disease hit all 50 states by Christmas 1968. Like COVID-19, It was fatal primarily to people older than 65 with preexisting conditions.The Centers for Disease Control reports that it killed more than 1 million people worldwide, more than 100,000 of them in the U.S. Luckily, a vaccine was developed early -- in August 1969. But the Hong Kong flu is still with us as a seasonal malady.I am just old enough to remember the Hong Kong flu. Like the majority of those infected, I didn't get sick. But my family lived down the road from Travis Air Force Base in the Bay Area, the main return point for soldiers coming home from Vietnam in the fall of 1968. Living near the place of that flu's first contact piqued my interest, and I recall preparing a school report on the virus.It amazes me now, but I was able to give my oral report in class because the schools didn't close in California -- or anywhere else in the country. Shawn Steel, now a California attorney, remembers attending a Grateful Dead concert in December 1968 at the Shrine Auditorium at the University of Southern California.We were more resilient then, there were no helicopter parents, and we were brought up in an era when it wasn't unknown to get chicken pox, measles, mumps, German measles, or scarlet fever. Polio had haunted people's nightmares until a vaccine was developed in the mid-1950s. Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell's earliest childhood memory is of the day he checked out of the polio treatment center in Warm Springs, Ga.During the Hong Kong flu, Americans rode buses less often, washed their hands, and practiced social distancing. But they went to work.Marilyn Brown worked at the Los Angeles Department of Social Services during the Hong Kong flu. "Other than my coworkers bringing their own alcohol to wipe down their desks and wipe down pencils and not use pencils that clients had used, we didn't do anything," she recently told Travel Weekly.Philip Snashall, a now retired professor of medicine, wrote in the British Medical Journal that his two-year-old daughter contracted the first known case of the Hong Kong flu to hit Europe. "How things change," he noted. "The stock market did not plummet, we were not besieged by the press, men in breathing apparatus did not invade my daughter's play group."The global response to COVID-19 couldn't stand in starker contrast. Leaders have made the decision to do everything possible, including bringing entire economies to a crashing halt, to limit the loss of life. They've swept aside considerations of the negative health effects of locking people inside with a virus that spreads most virulently indoors. People who've been denied nonemergency surgeries are expected to comply and shut up about their pain, even though some will undoubtedly die from their conditions.Joel Hay, a professor of pharmaceutical economics and policy at the University of Southern California, told me that the role of science has also changed. Medical technology has vastly improved from a time when people still did computations on slide rules. But the data it produces has seduced some into thinking that we know more than we actually do and that we can produce useful models to predict the course of this novel coronavirus disease. "We're being bombarded with data, but we often act like the guy who looks for his keys under the lamppost because the light is better there," he told me. "We aren't asking more fundamental questions, like 'Does this $20 trillion experiment in lockdowns actually work?'"Our politicians also face new pressures that their counterparts in 1968 didn't. Susan Craddock, professor at the Institute for Global Studies at the University of Minnesota, told the Wall Street Journal that 24-hour news coverage, social media, and heightened public anxiety mean today's leaders face far more pressure to do something."The thing elected officials fear most is social stigma from challenging the conventional wisdom," Colorado state senator Vicki Meeker told me.In Sweden, in line with national traditions and the culture there, scientists rather than politicians take the lead and establish pandemic policy. Swedish scientists also take responsibility for their decisions and speak honestly of tradeoffs. Johan Giesecke, the country's former chief epidemiologist, bluntly said on Swedish radio recently that harsh lockdowns make little sense and that it's the rest of the world that's conducting an experiment in lockdowns based on shaky models. In Sweden, people are encouraged to stay home, but stores, restaurants, and offices remain open. "Better to have social distancing people can live with for months than severe lockdowns that get reimposed if cases rise once they are lifted," Giesecke said.But the rest of the world has chosen the lockdown path, and I fear the upper hand belongs to those who wish to reduce the risk of infection regardless of the high associated costs to the overall health or society.In 1975, as Ronald Reagan left the governor's office in California and was looking back on his time managing the state, he spoke to a student audience about nuclear power. "I note that an overly excited group of Californians has formed something called People for Proof," to crusade for a risk-free future, he said. He warned that "this kind of group is as contagious as the Hong Kong flu." Like the flu, such groups will now always be with us, I fear.
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| Louisiana officer killed, another wounded; suspect arrested after hourslong standoff Posted: 27 Apr 2020 04:51 AM PDT  Ronnie Kato, 36, was detained after a roughly four-hour standoff in which he barricaded inside a house, police said.
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| Pentagon downplays Iran military satellite as 'tumbling webcam' Posted: 27 Apr 2020 06:30 AM PDT  The head of the US Space Command said the Pentagon believes that Iran's first successful launch of a military satellite into space does not pose any intelligence threat. The Nour satellite placed into orbit on April 22 is classified by the US military as a small 3U Cubesat, three adjoined units each no more than a liter in volume and less than 1.3 kilograms (one pound) each, said General Jay Raymond in a tweet late Sunday. "Iran states it has imaging capabilities -- actually, it's a tumbling webcam in space; unlikely providing intel," he wrote.
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| Kim Jong Un’s Sister Is in the Spotlight. But Could a Woman Ever Lead North Korea? Posted: 27 Apr 2020 06:08 AM PDT  If North Korea needs a new leader, Kim Yo Jong could be the most likely choice
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| Catholic Church angry after Italian government refuses to lift ban on religious services Posted: 27 Apr 2020 06:29 AM PDT  The Catholic Church in Italy is angry over the government's refusal to allow the faithful to attend religious services, as the country edges towards a cautious relaxation of coronavirus lockdown rules. Under a new decree announced on Sunday night by the prime minister, businesses, factories and building sites will be allowed to restart on May 4 and people will be allowed out of their homes to exercise. Public parks will be reopened and children will be allowed out for fresh air and exercise, Giuseppe Conte said. But the government said churches and cathedrals would remain closed to congregations because there remained a high risk of the virus being spread. Elderly people are particularly vulnerable to Covid-19 and make up a high proportion of Italy's dwindling churchgoers. "I understand that freedom of worship is a fundamental people's right," the prime minister said. "I understand your suffering. But we must continue discussing this further with the scientific committee." The Italian Bishops' Conference accused the government of "arbitrarily" compromising religious freedom. The decree also exposed divisions within the government, with some ministers calling for congregations to be allowed to return to churches. "So, we can safely visit a museum but we can't celebrate a religious service? This decision is incomprehensible. It must be changed," tweeted Elena Bonetti, the equal opportunities minister. Catholic leaders said the Church was working hard to alleviate the suffering of the poor and the marginalised during the coronavirus emergency. "It should be clear to all that the commitment to serving the poor, [which is] so significant in this emergency, stems from a faith that must be nourished at its source, especially the sacramental life", the bishops' conference said.
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| Dr. Birx Waves Off Trump’s Disinfectant Comments, Says ‘This Was a Musing’ Posted: 26 Apr 2020 07:58 AM PDT  White House coronavirus task force response coordinator Dr. Deborah Birx largely defended President Donald Trump's recent suggestion that injecting disinfectants could treat coronavirus, saying on Sunday that it "bothers" her that this is still in the news cycle as the president was just "musing" on the subject.During an interview on CNN's State of the Union, Birx was confronted about the president using an "emerging result" from the Department of Homeland Security that showed sunlight, heat and disinfectants could weaken the spread of the virus to question whether ingesting bleach could be a potential cure."What should the American people know about disinfectants and the human body?" CNN anchor Jake Tapper asked."Well, first, that was a dialogue he was having between the DHS scientists and himself for information that he had received and he was discussing," she responded. "We have made it clear and when he turned to me I made it clear and he understood that it was not as a treatment. And I think that kind of dialogue will happen."Trump, however, attempted to claim on Friday that he was posing the question about disinfectants "sarcastically" to reporters in the Thursday briefing "just to see what would happen."Birx went on to lament that "what got lost" is that the Department of Homeland Security study that the president touted showed that sunlight can impact the aerosolization of the virus, prompting Tapper to point out that Trump was not "musing" about the factual findings of the study."He was talking about ways to take that science and somehow turn it into injecting UV light or disinfectants into the human body which as you know, especially with disinfectants, can be lethal," the anchor added, noting the CDC and disinfectant manufacturers have had to issue statements."As a doctor, doesn't that bother you, that you have to even spend any time discussing this?" Tapper pressed Birx."Well, I think it bothers me that this is still in the news cycle, because I think we're missing the bigger pieces of what we need to be doing as an American people, to continue to protect one another," she replied.Grousing that spending time on Trump's remarks prevents her and other scientists from getting more important information out to the American public, she asserted that the president wasn't peddling dangerous misinformation."I think the president made it clear that physicians had to study this," Birx stated. "I think I've made it clear that this was a musing, as you described."In a Saturday night Fox News appearance, Birx told host Jesse Watters that she didn't believe Trump had placed anyone in danger, claiming the president "likes to talk that through out loud and really have that dialogue."In another interview on NBC's Meet the Press, Birx continued to promote the DHS study while insisting that she had already made it "very clear" that she has clarified that ingesting bleach is "not a treatment" for coronavirus. Asked by anchor Chuck Todd whether she was worried that Trump's comments and touting of unproven cures were undermining the credibility of task force scientists, Birx largely avoided the question."I think all of us are very clear and very clear in our discussions with the American people how we're looking and utilizing data to drive decision making within the task force," she said, adding: "We need to constantly be focusing on what we're learning to save more lives and to make our treatment more effective."Bix essentially giving Trump a pass while touting the DHS study, which hasn't been peer-reviewed, prompted NBC News correspondent Andrea Mitchell to blast the doctor for helping to propagate misinformation."I think the credibility of the scientists really now is on the line," Mitchell said on Meet the Press. "When Dr. Birx said to you today that sunlight does kill the virus, she is perpetuating an unscientific, untested, single study presented by a nonscientist from the Department of Homeland Security, which led to the president, as she put it, not fully digesting the data," she added. "She needed to be very clear on disavowing it, and to this point, she still has not been even this morning."Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| Thailand to extend coronavirus emergency measures, sees improvement Posted: 26 Apr 2020 10:58 PM PDT  Thailand will extend a state of emergency over the coronavirus until the end of May, but will consider easing some restrictions on businesses and public activities as the number of new cases has eased, a government spokesman said. Thailand on Monday reported nine new coronavirus cases and no new local virus transmission in Bangkok for the first time since the outbreak began in January. Concerns over a possible second wave of outbreaks prompted the government's Centre for COVID-19 Situation Administration (CCSA) to recommend extending emergency powers and a nationwide night time curfew for another month.
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| Bill Gates thinks the global shift towards nationalism made the coronavirus response worse Posted: 27 Apr 2020 02:38 AM PDT  "Very few people get an A in terms of what they've done in this situation," Gates said in an interview with The Times.
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| Mexico returns Central Americans, empties migrant centers Posted: 26 Apr 2020 03:17 PM PDT |
| Supreme Court Dismisses NYC Gun Rights Case; Conservative Justices Dissent Posted: 27 Apr 2020 08:00 AM PDT  The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a case brought by three New York City handgun owners challenging a city regulation that prohibited gun owners from transporting their firearms outside the city.The court agreed to hear the case in December, but the city then amended the regulation to allow gun owners to bring firearms to other locations. The Supreme Court ruled 5-3 in an unsigned opinion that the case was moot because the city had amended its original regulation.Conservative justices Samuel Alito, Clarence Thomas, and Neil Gorsuch wrote in their dissent that the case should not have been dismissed."By incorrectly dismissing this case as moot, the Court permits our docket to be manipulated in a way that should not be countenanced," the justices wrote. Lawyers for the plaintiffs had argued that the case should not be dismissed because the city changed its regulation due to fears that the Supreme Court would use the case to restrict broader gun control measures.Gun rights advocates had initially hoped the court's conservative majority would tip the case in their favor."I believe it will change the way the Second Amendment is applied to everyone who owns a gun in the country," Romolo Colantone, a resident of Staten Island and one of the plaintiffs in the case, said in December 2019.
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| The Pentagon releases footage of ‘aerial phenomena’ from the Navy that it says is ‘unidentified’ Posted: 27 Apr 2020 08:22 AM PDT  The Department of Defense released three Navy videos from 2004 and 2015 that it says contain "aerial phenomena" that remains "unidentified."
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| China envoy threatens Australia boycott over virus inquest demand Posted: 27 Apr 2020 12:00 AM PDT  China's ambassador in Australia has warned that demands for a probe into the spread of the coronavirus could lead to a consumer boycott of Aussie wine or trips Down Under. Australia has joined the United States in calling for a thorough investigation of how the virus transformed from a localised epidemic in central China into a pandemic that has killed more than 200,000 people, forced billions into isolation and torpedoed the global economy. In a thinly veiled threat, ambassador Cheng Jingye warned the push for an independent inquest into the origins of the outbreak was "dangerous".
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| Small businesses say they need more than 2 months of help to survive coronavirus crisis Posted: 26 Apr 2020 09:24 AM PDT  Strict restrictions on federal assistance could hinder their bid for long-term survival.
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| Italy is set to begin easing its coronavirus restrictions on May 4 after nearly 2 months of lockdown. But some measures may stay in place until there's a vaccine. Posted: 26 Apr 2020 08:46 PM PDT  Despite the easing of restrictions, Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte told his nation: "If you love Italy, keep your distance."
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| Coronavirus: The US resistance to a continued lockdown Posted: 26 Apr 2020 08:33 PM PDT  The protesters have made global headlines but it's ideology not economics driving them.
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| Factbox: Questions hang over North Korea succession amid reports on Kim health Posted: 25 Apr 2020 03:37 PM PDT  North Korea has never publicised who would follow leader Kim Jong Un in the event he is incapacitated, and with no details known about his young children, analysts say his sister and loyalists could form a regency until a successor is old enough to take over. Each change of leadership in North Korea has raised the prospect of a leadership vacuum or collapse of the Kim dynasty, which has ruled the country since its founding in 1948. The following are key figures in the North Korean leadership circle and what role they may play in any future transition.
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| A serious new coronavirus-related condition may be emerging in children, with UK doctors reporting growing numbers requiring intensive care Posted: 27 Apr 2020 04:48 AM PDT  There is 'growing concern' that a serious new coronavirus-related condition may be emerging in children.
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| US review: Airstrike in Somalia killed, injured civilians Posted: 27 Apr 2020 03:04 AM PDT  An American military airstrike in Somalia more than a year ago killed two civilians and injured three others, U.S. Africa Command acknowledged in a new report on Monday. The deaths, confirmed by an internal investigation, mark only the second time Africa Command has determined that civilians were killed in a military strike in Somalia. The decision comes even as U.S. airstrikes against the al-Qaida linked al-Shabab extremist group this year are increasingly outpacing 2019 totals.
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| Jewish history explains why some ultra-Orthodox communities defy coronavirus restrictions Posted: 27 Apr 2020 05:09 AM PDT  Most prominent rabbis around the world support government health regulations intended to curb the spread of coronavirus, even if it means closing places of study and worship. But some observant Jewish communities in the United States and Israel were slow to adopt social distancing. The leader of a strictly observant Jewish community in New York instructed his followers to continue collective study and prayer well into March, though COVID-19 had already killed thousands in the state. In Israel, residents of one observant Jewish neighborhood reacted with defiance – even violence – to the country's strict social distancing regulations.Outsiders are often outraged when religious communities defy government regulations meant to protect the general public. But the situation in strictly observant Jewish communities is more complicated than simply flouting the rules. As an anthropologist who studies religion, politics, identity and conflict in Israel and Palestine, my research helps explain why some religious groups might disobey public health guidelines. Who are Haredi Jews?Ultra-Orthodox, orHaredi Jewish communities, are a diverse population, with varying spiritual and cultural practices. But they all follow Halacha, loosely translated as Jewish law. As such, many do not share the same information sources that others take for granted. In accordance with the rulings of their rabbis, internet access, television broadcasts and certain cellphone functions are generally limited in strictly observant Jewish communities. Maintaining their closeness to God by distancing themselves from the secular world prevented many Haredim from seeing news reports of the virus spreading worldwide in February and March. Some Haredi leaders maintained that gathering to pray and study remained paramount. Studying the Hebrew scriptures, or Torah, is a commandment and a duty in Judaism. Haredi men generally gather to pray three times daily. Students at yeshivas, or Jewish seminaries, may spend 18 hours a day studying together. More than a way of life, prayer and study are the means for protecting life itself. According to Jewish sages, "One who engages in Torah study also protects the entire world." Indeed, "without Torah the world falls." The importance of engaging with the Torah explains why one prominent rabbi in Israel insisted even in March that "canceling Torah study is more dangerous than the coronavirus."Ultimately, the Israeli government intervened to enforce its coronavirus restrictions. On March 22, police were sent into Me'a She'arim, a Haredi neighborhood in Jerusalem, to end public gatherings, close synagogues and shutter schools. They were met with curses, slurs and thrown stones. Some Haredim even called the Israeli police "Nazis." Collective memoryWhile such responses might seem extreme to outsiders, they become clearer when considering Jewish history and the memories provoked by police intervention. Anthropological research demonstrates that people give meaning to their experiences in different ways. Our perception, imagination and actions are deeply embedded in the whole of our experiences. The past – whether individually experienced or collectively nourished by the community – gives meaning to the present. Henri Bergson, a French philosopher, used the term "duration" to explain how the past shifts to present itself in ways that appeal to current experiences in different ways for different people. In times of crisis like the coronavirus pandemic, this sense of duration becomes more acute. For some, hospital tents erected in public places evoke World War I. A Holocaust survivor recently told me the stay-at-home order brought back memories of her childhood years of confinement hiding from the Nazis. One New Orleans resident found that the "flood" of coronavirus deaths recalled Hurricane Katrina.Duration as personal memory is central to an individual's sense of self, but it arises in collective memories, too. Collective memory, including the stories we all tell ourselves and our children about our past, gives meaning and purpose to our collective selves. These stories recount struggles and triumphs and help define our moral community.Duration interacts with collective memory, and is key to the formation of group identity. History of persecutionThe historical persecution of Jews around the world is central to both secular and strictly observant Jews. However, how that memory works in contemporary circumstances is not predetermined. My research demonstrates that different aspects of the past inform collective meaning and actions differently. Unlike most Israelis – who see Jewish history as a justification for the state of Israel and understand the Israeli army and police as existing to protect them – some Israeli Haredim distrust the government and its functionaries. In fact, Haredi Jews, who make up about 10% of Israel's population, are foundationally opposed to Zionism, the political ideology of Jewish nationalism that led to the establishment of Israel in 1948. While Haredi Jews believe that God promised the land of Israel to the Jewish people, they are also certain that promise cannot be fulfilled by human intervention in God's work, such as the establishment of a nation state. They have previously clashed with the Israeli government and law enforcement over compulsory military service and other policies. Suspicion of policeSo when armed men in uniform entered their neighborhoods to close down synagogues and yeshivas, members of the Haredi community drew on their collective memories of soldiers and police wreaking havoc and destruction on Jewish communities in Tsarist Russia and later in Western Europe. Rather than feeling protected by the state, they were fearful and suspicious. Suspicion of the police is common in other communities historically mistreated by law enforcement. The collective memories of both black Americans and the Roma of Europe, for example, associate police with violence and danger. When facing a crisis like the coronavirus, many people rely primarily on science, technology and governments for protection. And the Haredim do not reject science or medicine.But for them, living the Torah life through daily study and prayer is the primary means by which all human life is maintained and preserved. When the political order interferes with their work, the consequences could be more disastrous than a pandemic. It could mean the end of Jewish life, if not of humanity itself. [You need to understand the coronavirus pandemic, and we can help. Read The Conversation's newsletter.]
Este artículo se vuelve a publicar de The Conversation, un medio digital sin fines de lucro dedicado a la diseminación de la experticia académica. Lee mas:
Joyce Dalsheim does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.
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| Mexico Has Deported Nearly All Illegal Immigrants from Shelters to Contain Coronavirus Posted: 27 Apr 2020 04:56 AM PDT  Mexico said it has just over 100 people remaining in its government migrant centers after removing thousands over the past five weeks due to the coronavirus pandemic.Mexico's National Migration Institute (INM) said in a statement that it had removed migrants from 65 government facilities since March 21, following health and safety guidelines amid the coronavirus outbreak. Last month, the Mexican government held 3,759 people, but that number has shrunk to 106 after 3,653 migrants were deported to Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador.Those remaining in INM centers are awaiting the decisions on asylum requests or judicial hearings, or had asked permission to stay, a migration official told Reuters.Last week, the Trump administration announced an executive order that would suspend permanent immigration procedures for 60 days, after saying in March that it would immediately deport any illegal immigrants attempting to enter the country over concerns of potential coronavirus outbreaks in detention facilities. Reuters found earlier this month that the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Customs and Border Protection have removed nearly 7,000 migrants to Mexico, including nearly 400 children."President Trump is committed to protecting the health and economic well-being of American citizens as we face unprecedented times," White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said on Monday. "As President Trump has said, 'Decades of record immigration have produced lower wages and higher unemployment for our citizens, especially for African-American and Latino workers.' At a time when Americans are looking to get back to work, action is necessary."Democrats around the country, including in California and Chicago, have countered with proposals to provide illegal immigrants with access to locally run relief programs."Here in Chicago, saying 'we are all in this together' means that during this crisis, no one gets left out and no one gets left behind," Chicago mayor Lori Lightfoot said in announcing an executive order to secure coronavirus relief benefits for undocumented city residents.
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| Europe cautiously eyes an exit from virus lockdowns Posted: 27 Apr 2020 06:17 AM PDT  European countries took fresh steps towards charting a path out of virus lockdowns Monday as debates rage over how quickly to ease safety measures that are suffocating ordinary and economic life. In Britain, Prime Minister Boris Johnson returned to work after his own battle with the respiratory disease, looking thinner and with his blond mane a bit longer. Italy and New York have laid out partial reopening plans while France and Spain are expected to follow suit this week.
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| 'Extensive search' for missing soldier after keys, wallet found Posted: 25 Apr 2020 12:09 PM PDT  Vanessa Guillen, 20, was last seen Wednesday in a parking lot at Fort Hood in Texas.
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| U.S. Supreme Court rules for insurers over $12 billion Obamacare claims Posted: 27 Apr 2020 07:12 AM PDT  The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday ruled in favor of health insurers seeking $12 billion from the federal government under a program set up by the Obamacare law aimed at encouraging them to offer medical coverage to previously uninsured Americans. The 8-1 ruling authored by liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor paves the way for a significant one-time cash infusion for major companies such as Humana Inc, Anthem Inc and Centene Corp. The justices reversed a lower court's ruling that Congress had suspended the government's obligation to make such payments.
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| 'You are a miracle': Home care is new front in virus fight Posted: 26 Apr 2020 05:42 AM PDT  Ruth Caballero paused outside an unfamiliar apartment door, preparing to meet her new patient. After about three weeks in a hospital, the man was home in his New York apartment but still so weak that sitting up in bed took some persuading. "You made it out of the hospital, so you are a miracle," Caballero told him.
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| ‘There Is Nothing Unusual’: South Korea Disputes Claims of Kim Jong-un’s Critical State Posted: 27 Apr 2020 05:27 AM PDT  South Korea is confident that "there is nothing unusual" about the situation in North Korea, following reports that its leader Kim Jong-un is dead or gravely ill, a senior South Korean official said Sunday."Our government has enough information-gathering capabilities to say confidently that there is nothing unusual" about Kim's status, Kim Yeon-chul, South Korea's unification minister, said on Sunday, adding that the circulation of rumors amounted to an "infodemic."South Korea has continuously denied reports that Kim is seriously ill, with President Moon Jae-in's spokesman saying earlier this month that South Korea "has so far detected no special signs inside North Korea," after Daily NK, a South-Korean online newspaper, reported that Kim had undergone a cardiovascular procedure on April 12. Kim Jong-un was last seen publicly on April 11, with speculation growing after he was absent from state celebrations for North Korea's biggest holiday, the April 15 birthday of Kim's paternal grandfather, Kim Il-sung, the founder of the country.Last week, CNN cited U.S. officials who said Kim is in "grave danger" after a botched surgery, but President Trump then slammed the story, saying Thursday that "it was a fake report done by CNN." On Wednesday, General John Hyten — the vice chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff — said he did not doubt that Kim was "still in full control of the Korean nuclear force and the Korean military forces.""I want to emphasize that when officials say such things, they don't do it idly," Kim said Sunday, referencing Hyten's comments. "They say them based on assessment of information."
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| Over-70s should not be forced to stay in isolation when coronavirus lockdown eased, Sage adviser says Posted: 27 Apr 2020 05:34 AM PDT  The over-70s cannot be told to continue isolating once Britain's coronavirus lockdown measures are eased, a Sage scientific adviser has suggested. Last month, Matt Hancock, the Health Secretary, said older people would be "shielded for their own protection", meaning those aged 70 and over could be asked to stay at home for up to four months to protect themselves from the risk of coronavirus. However, a scientist on a sub-committee of the Government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) board, has called for "more reformed and nuanced" guidance. Susan Michie, professor of health psychology and sirector of the Centre for Behaviour Change at UCL, said: "The guidance is based on averages, and as we know there's huge individual differences for every average. "So there are many 70 and 80-year-olds that are much fitter and healthier than those who are a lot younger. I think the problem is that if people don't perceive the guidance to be proportionate to their own situation there will be problems with adherence, and we now know more about who is at risk and the whole progress of the disease."
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| Israel's Labour party agrees to join Netanyahu-led coalition Posted: 26 Apr 2020 12:57 PM PDT  Israel's left-wing Labour party, traditionally a staunch opponent of right-wing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, voted Sunday to join a coalition government he is set to lead. At a party conference held virtually because of the novel coronavirus pandemic, 64.2 percent of nearly 3,500 voting Labour delegates endorsed the alliance agreed last week between Netanyahu and his centrist election rival Benny Gantz. "We are not joining a right-wing government," Labour leader Amir Peretz said in a statement.
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