All posts by nedhamson

Activist, writer, researcher, addicted to sharing information and facts.

9 vaccine makers sign safety pledge in race for Covid-19 vaccine – CNN

The companies that signed the pledge include AstraZeneca, BioNTech, Moderna, Pfizer, Novavax, Sanofi, GlaxoSmithKline, Johnson & Johnson and Merck.
The nine companies on Tuesday wrote that they pledge to “Only submit for approval or emergency use authorization after demonstrating safety and efficacy through a Phase 3 clinical study that is designed and conducted to meet requirements of expert regulatory authorities such as FDA.”
“With increasing public concerns about the processes we are using to develop these vaccines, and even more importantly, the processes that will be used to evaluate these vaccines, we saw it as critical to come out and reiterate our commitment that we will develop our products, our vaccines, using the highest ethical standards and the most scientific [rigorous] processes,” Bourla said.

Source: 9 vaccine makers sign safety pledge in race for Covid-19 vaccine – CNN

Anti-Asian Racism During the Pandemic – LA Progressive

This hate transcends garden-variety street racism, and watchdogs of hate groups say it is tacitly encouraged by the White House. Consequently, civil rights and social justice organizations are forming national, multiracial coalitions. They recognize that a broad, coalescing force is necessary to counter attacks and address the deep inequities responsible for disproportionate death rates. Above all, they want to take control of distorted narratives about their communities that are now exacerbated by this pandemic.

Source: Anti-Asian Racism During the Pandemic – LA Progressive

Missing Belarus opposition figures turn up at Ukraine border, one said to have been detained

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Three Belarusian opposition politicians, including protest leader Maria Kolesnikova, who disappeared on Monday, have passed border control at the Belarusian-Ukrainian border, an official of the Belarusian border guard service said.

Kolesnikova, a presidium member of the opposition Coordination Council, disappeared in Minsk on Monday after she was seen being bundled into a van by unidentified men in black wearing masks. Two of her allies disappeared later, the opposition movement has said.

The Belarusian State Border Committee later said that Kolesnikova was detained trying to cross the border while the other two had entered Ukraine. Ukraine’s State Border Service also said that Kalesnikava did not enter Ukraine, and that her two allies entered the country. An official of the Belarusian border guard service said later confirmed that all three politicians have passed the border.

Belarus has been rocked by weeks of protests after president Alexander Lukashenko, who has led the country since 1994, won a landslide victory in the August 9 election. The vote was denounced by EU officials, and forced Lukashenko to look to Moscow for support.

The opposition says that Lukashenko’s main challenger, Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, was the rightful winner and wants new elections. Tikhanovskaya, who fled to Lithuania after the vote, won only about 10% to Lukashenko’s 80%, according to the election committee.

Human rights activists accuse Belarusian riot police of brutally suppressing peaceful marches in the country. The government has denied the claims.

On Monday, the EU’s foreign policy chief Josep Borrell had called on authorities in Belarus to release all opposition figures and protesters: “It is clear that the State authorities in Belarus continue to intimidate or allow intimidation of its citizens in an increasingly lawless way and crudely violate both their own domestic laws and international obligations”, he said.

Spanish parents challenge back to school orders

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Many Spanish parents are refusing to send their children back to class amid a record rise in coronavirus infections in the county as the new school year begins.

According to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control, Spain has the highest infection rate in Western Europe.

Despite the rapid spread of the virus, Spain is reopening schools this month, but parents fear that sending their children to school will put older family members at risk in a country where one in four families live with a relative who is over 65.

The families contesting the status quo say Spain’s constitution gives them freedom to keep their children away from school. But there is neither a legal umbrella for homeschooling, nor is there a system that sets standards for studying at home.

Spain’s health ministry said Monday that the total number of Covid-19 infections has risen to 525,000, meaning that infections spiked again last week, with nearly 9,000 new daily cases.

Trump launches unprecedented attack on military leadership he appointed – CNNPolitics

“The President’s comments about the motivations of military leaders not only demeans their service and that of those they lead; he lends credence to the very disdain and thoughtlessness he tries to deny,” retired US Navy Rear Admiral and CNN analyst John Kirby said.

Source: Trump launches unprecedented attack on military leadership he appointed – CNNPolitics

UK pro-Israel lawyer faked graffiti attack to frame pro-Palestinian group

British pro-Israel attorney Matthew Berlow is facing fines and criticism for faking a graffiti attack on his home in order to discredit a Scottish pro-Palestinian organization, the Daily Record reported Monday.
Berlow had originally faked an attack on his home in order to frame the Scottish Palestine Solidarity Campaign (SPSC). 442888
Berlow confessed the incident was faked. However, he went along with it as part of an attempt “to monitor various ­disruptive activities of the SPSC.”

Illinois reports 1,403 new COVID-19 cases, 5 additional deaths – Chicago Sun-Times

Illinois health officials Sunday announced 1,403 new confirmed cases of COVID-19, a sharp decline from the massive daily tally reported a day earlier.

On Saturday, Illinois reported 2,806 new coronavirus cases, one of the highest daily totals since the state’s worst period of the pandemic.

The new cases also come two days after the state recorded 5,368 cases of the coronavirus, a record high the Illinois Department of Public Health attributed to three days’ worth of delayed test results due to a data-processing backlog.

 

Source: Illinois reports 1,403 new COVID-19 cases, 5 additional deaths – Chicago Sun-Times