Category Archives: News to use

Useful news for all to advance knowledge of the world and how it works

Local Officials in China Hid Coronavirus Dangers From Beijing, U.S. Agencies Find – The New York Times – (Leaked information to get around Trump self-serving spin?)

“It makes a huge difference if it was Wuhan or Beijing,” said Michael Pillsbury, a China scholar at the Hudson Institute who informally advises Mr. Trump.

If Mr. Xi was not the main person at fault, he said, then that meant that top Chinese officials had not engaged in total deceit on the coronavirus, and American officials had some basis for still trying to engage in good-faith negotiations with Beijing on issues of mutual interest.

COVID-19 antibody levels vary widely in recovered patients | CIDRAP

The use of convalescent plasma, or the transfer of blood plasma from recovered coronavirus patients to non-infected patients to confer immunity, is based on the premise that COVID-19 antibodies can provide protection against infection, but its durability is unknown.

The authors said that the variability of neutralizing antibody levels in recovered COVID-19 patients highlights the need to evaluate and adjust antibody levels in convalescent plasma before administration, should it prove efficacious.

 

Source: COVID-19 antibody levels vary widely in recovered patients | CIDRAP

Milwaukee Letter Carriers Are Refusing to Comply with Mail Delays | Labor Notes

It has been more than three weeks since we began refusing to willingly participate in the outrageous plan to delay the mail. In a service talk, management basically conceded and instructed us to case all the mail; however, they said we still had to do it in 30 minutes. When pressed on what to do if it would take longer than 30 minutes, their response was to “just case it all.”

We are now working in the same manner as we did before DeJoy was ever Postmaster General. Should management change its position, we’re now in good condition to respond within the week with new tactics and methods for winning.

There is nothing exceptional about our station. In fact, until recently it had been a station with very limited union presence and a very low grievance output. Postal union stewards and activists throughout the country can build shop floor power to take on any challenge.

 

Source: Milwaukee Letter Carriers Are Refusing to Comply with Mail Delays | Labor Notes

Pelosi says postmaster general doesn’t plan to replace sorting machines, drop boxes

Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Wednesday that Postmaster General Louis DeJoy does not intend to replace U.S. Postal Service sorting machines, blue mailboxes and other infrastructure that were removed

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Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) said Wednesday that Postmaster General Louis DeJoy does not intend to replace U.S. Postal Service sorting machines, blue mailboxes and other infrastructure that were removed before he annou…

At Least A Dozen Mail Sorting Machines Have Already Been Removed In Massachusetts, Postal Union Officials Say

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Democrats in Congress are preparing to vote on legislation to prevent President Donald Trump from scaling back operations at the U.S. Postal Service, but at least a dozen high-capacity mail sorting machines have already been removed from Massachusetts as part of a USPS reduction plan, two officials with the American Postal Workers Union told WGBH News Monday.

The equipment withdrawal, coupled with the seemingly sudden, wide-spread removal of USPS public mailboxes and new overtime and mail delivery policies, are causing national and local outcry from postal workers, politicians and voting rights groups concerned that processing centers may not be able to handle a flood of mail-in ballots in November.

“It’s disturbing to see the machinery taken out,” said Scott Hoffman, APWU Boston Local 100 president. Hoffman said nine machines have been removed from Boston’s Dorchester Avenue post office located downtown.

 

Source: At Least A Dozen Mail Sorting Machines Have Already Been Removed In Massachusetts, Postal Union Officials Say

Facebook restricts more than 10,000 QAnon and US militia groups | US news | The Guardian

Facebook has taken down or restricted more than 10,000 groups, pages and Instagram accounts associated with QAnon, US-based militia groups, and organizations that promote violent acts at protests. The moves are the result of a shift in the company’s policy toward movements with links to violence that do not meet the criteria for an outright ban.

Facebook will still allow people to post content that supports these movements, but “will restrict their ability to organize” on the platform by removing them from recommendation algorithms, reducing their ranking in news feed and search results, and prohibiting them from using features such as fundraising and advertising, the company said. Facebook will also remove pages, groups and accounts that discuss violence, and said it will study the terminology and symbolism that groups typically use to disguise their intent.

 

Source: Facebook restricts more than 10,000 QAnon and US militia groups | US news | The Guardian

Understanding COVID-19 Misinformation — VAXOPEDIA

The COVID-19 pandemic has been going on long enough that we know where much of the propaganda and misinformation about COVID-19 is coming from. Melissa Floyd says that “It’s not that you can’t find science that says there’s a potential benefit. It’s the fact that you can find science that says there isn’t… The fact…

Understanding COVID-19 Misinformation — VAXOPEDIA