The research community is reacting with alarm and anger to the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH’s) abrupt and unusual termination of a grant supporting research in China on how coronaviruses—such as the one causing the current pandemic—move from bats to humans. The agency axed the grant last week, after conservative U.S. politicians and media repeatedly suggested—without evidence—that the pandemic severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) escaped from a laboratory in Wuhan, China, that employs a Chinese virologist who had been receiving funding from the grant. The termination, which some analysts believe might violate regulations governing NIH, also came 7 days after President Donald Trump, asked about the project at a press conference, said: “We will end that grant very quickly.”
Daily Archives: April 30, 2020
Protests against coronavirus stay-at-home orders dishonor US veterans
Apparently these protesters with their weapons and false bravado think they are smarter than the medical experts.
— Read on www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2020/04/29/coronavirus-stay-at-home-protests-dishonor-veterans-column/3038871001/
Trump blaming Obama for broken coronavirus tests is complete nonsense – Vox
An exchange with CNN’s Jim Acosta revealed just how impervious to correction the president’s falsehoods can be.
— Read on www.vox.com/2020/4/30/21243117/trump-blames-obama-coronavirus-broken-tests-jim-acosta
Food Crisis Deepens as Puerto Rico School Cafeterias Shutter
A report from the Associated Press. Puerto Rico’s government is refusing to open school cafeterias amid coronavirus health concerns and has not …
Food Crisis Deepens as Puerto Rico School Cafeterias Shutter
Covid-19 coronavirus: Donald Trump blames China for unleashing virus due to ‘mistake’ – NZ Herald
Donald Trump has floated a dramatic theory about the origins of the coronavirus
— Read on www.nzherald.co.nz/world/news/article.cfm
His desperation to avoid blame for deaths he is responsible for because of his inaction and denial in January, February and March is unlimited. The result will be more deaths from his lashing out instead of leadership!
Trump says he could bring back fired ex-national security adviser Flynn – Reuters – Also considering pardoning and hiring El Chapo to head up drug war?
U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday he would consider bringing his fired former national security adviser Michael Flynn, a key figure in the probe into Russia’s interference in the 2016 election, back into his administration.
Source: Trump says he could bring back fired ex-national security adviser Flynn – Reuters
Coronavirus latest: Trump suggests Chinese lab behind outbreak
Desperate to avoid blame for killing thousands of Americans due to his inaction in January and February. Deaths of many on him alone. US President Donald Trump suggested the coronavirus may have originated in a Chinese lab. Meanwhile, Germany has announced it will ease some lockdown restrictions. Follow DW for the latest.
Who Should Wear Masks on Planes? More Airlines Say Everyone.
Major carriers are requiring masks on their flight crews. United, Delta and American decided that passengers must cover their faces, too.
Cars bumper to bumper at popular Muriwai beach during alert level 3
Stupid is as stupid does.
Bumper to bumper cars at a popular west Auckland beach has followed fears of an influx of visitors during alert level 3.
Muriwai is ordinarily called home by just over 1000 residents, many of them retirees …
Covid-19 not man-made or bio-engineered!
https://news.yahoo.com/us-intel-agencies-covid-19-134132888.html
WASHINGTON (AP) — US intel agencies: COVID-19 virus not man-made or altered, but still studying if outbreak began in China lab accident.
https://www.livescience.com/coronavirus-not-human-made-in-lab.html
SARS-CoV-2 is very closely related to the virus that causes severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), which fanned across the globe nearly 20 years ago. Scientists have studied how SARS-CoV differs from SARS-CoV-2 — with several key letter changes in the genetic code. Yet in computer simulations, the mutations in SARS-CoV-2 don’t seem to work very well at helping the virus bind to human cells. If scientists had deliberately engineered this virus, they wouldn’t have chosen mutations that computer models suggest won’t work. But it turns out, nature is smarter than scientists, and the novel coronavirus found a way to mutate that was better — and completely different— from anything scientists could have created, the study found.
Another nail in the “escaped from evil lab” theory? The overall molecular structure of this virus is distinct from the known coronaviruses and instead most closely resembles viruses found in bats and pangolins that had been little studied and never known to cause humans any harm.
