Tag: covid-19

Next Time You’re Called A “Crank” Or “Flat Earther” On Concerns About A ‘Rushed’ Coronavirus Vaccine, Show Them This

We detailed earlier that a number of US universities will enforce mandatory COVID-19 tests for all students wishing to return to campus through the Fall semester — with some lately announcing that this will be at a rate of two nasal swabs per week — which is a policy, no doubt uncomfortable for those having to endure such “routine” swabs, also appearing among companies for on-site personnel.

And in many parts of the country, cities and counties currently have mask laws requiring them in all public spaces. Given that over the past months the race has been on to develop and fast-track a coronavirus vaccine, the logical next step will be that students and employees provide proof they’ve received the vaccine before returning to work or school. Naturally, the idea of fast-tracking this process also amid a deeply politically charged climate has people concerned. And they should be, if Bill Gates’ latest appearance on CBS is any indicator of where things stand.

British veteran journalist Neil Clark had this reaction to the Bill Gates interview, which came days ago: When anyone tries to gaslight you by calling you a ‘crank’ , a ‘tin-foil hat conspiracy theorist’ or ‘Flat Earther’ for having perfectly legitimate & sensible concerns over a rushed through ‘Coronavirus’ vaccine & its side effects, just send them this.

Even the mainstream media correspondent giving the interview appeared momentarily exasperated and incredulous that Bill Gates shrugged off credible reports of side effects as ultimately no big deal. When the anchor pressed him again on the safety of the vaccine, his answer appeared to be simply, trust us. Gates was asked:

Side effects from the Moderna vaccine sound concerning… we looked. After the second dose at least 80% of participants experienced a systemic side effect, ranging from severe chills to fevers. So are these vaccines safe?

“The FDA, not being pressured, will look hard at that,” Gates said, addressing the issue of possible side effects. “The FDA is the gold standard of regulators, and their current guidance on this — if they stick with that — is very very appropriate.”

Gates even goes on to candidly acknowledge the likelihood of side effects from the vaccine, which he admitted would “improve” over time. Does this sound comforting? Add to this that as part of his explanation he argues that for a vaccine to be effective it would have to be administered to the population on a mass scale, and globally:

“If what you’re trying to do is block all the transmission, then you need to get 70-80% coverage on a global basis. So it’s unbelievably big numbers,” he said.

Gates, who has been warning about the threat of a global pandemic since 2015, admitted that “there will be a lot of uncertainty” about the efficacy of any vaccine, but stressed that it’s a solution “that will improve over time.”

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Arizona GOP chair had Twitter account ‘temporarily limited’ for spreading COVID misinformation: report

The medical doctor who runs the Arizona Republican Party had her Twitter account “temporarily limited” for spreading misinformation during the coronavirus pandemic.

“Twitter has ‘temporarily limited’ the account features of Arizona Republican Party Chairwoman Kelli Ward after determining she violated its policy on spreading misleading and ‘potentially harmful’ information about the COVID-19 pandemic,” the Arizona Republic reported Tuesday. “Ward, a physician, has downplayed the severity of the virus’s spread in Arizona, even as caseloads skyrocketed and the state spiraled into a national hot spot.

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Dr. Anthony Fauci isn’t ‘particularly concerned’ about the safety of Moderna coronavirus vaccine

White House coronavirus advisor Dr. Anthony Fauci said Monday he is “not particularly concerned” about the safety risk of a potential coronavirus vaccine by Moderna, despite the fact that it uses new technology to fight the virus. 

The vaccine, which entered a large phase-three human trial Monday, uses messenger ribonucleic acid, or mRNA molecules, to provoke an immune response to fight the virus. Scientists hope mRNA, which relays genetic instructions from DNA, can be used to train the immune system to recognize and destroy the virus. While early studies show promise, mRNA technology has never been used to make a successful vaccine before.

“It’s a novel technology. We are certainly aware of the fact that there’s not as much experience with this type of platform as there are with other standards,” Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, told reporters on a conference call alongside National Institutes of Health Director Dr. Francis Collins.

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NYC coronavirus lockdown led to sharp rise in domestic violence, data shows

At the height of New York’s coronavirus lockdown, domestic violence in the five boroughs skyrocketed, data show.

When the pandemic first laid siege, experts predicted that mandatory lockdowns and soaring unemployment would cause a rise in household abuse, and figures now bear them out — with domestic-violence reports at some agencies doubling and even tripling in the past few months.

“We’ve never been busier,” lamented Nechama Bakst, senior director of the Met Council’s family-violence program.

“We have seen people who never experienced violence starting to experience violence, and people who have experienced violence experience worse violence.”

Typically, the non-profit gets about 70 new cases a month — but in April, they juggled 135, another 145 in May and 146 more in June, the organization said.

“We see more choking, more sexual violence, kind of much more intense and serious acts of crime,” the director said.

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Seattle asks state to create $100 million coronavirus relief fund for undocumented immigrants

The Seattle City Council passed a resolution Monday asking Gov. Jay Inslee and Washington state lawmakers to help undocumented immigrants who have lost their jobs during the coronavirus pandemic.

The measure urges Inslee and the Legislature to create a “Washington Worker Relief Fund,” with an initial allocation of at least $100 million, “to provide emergency economic assistance to undocumented Washingtonians.” The vote was 9-0, and Mayor Jenny Durkan will add her signature.

The nonbinding resolution, a lobbying move that won’t change conditions on the ground in Seattle, also asks the state leaders to create a wage-replacement system for workers who don’t qualify for regular unemployment benefits.

Undocumented immigrants are barred from federal assistance, so they aren’t getting stimulus checks and they aren’t collecting unemployment benefits.

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Unhinged Woman Pepper Sprays Man For Not Wearing Facemask In Public Park

As the debate over mandatory mask orders continues as American’s coronavirus summer of discontent grates on, one woman was allegedly caught on video pepper spraying a stranger after confronting him for not wearing his mask outdoors in a dog park.

Nevermind the fact that the coughing and tearing induced by pepper spraying a subject would only serve to spread the virus, there aren’t really any defensible reasons for confronting somebody for not wearing their mask outside. Somebody throwing a tantrum after being asked to put on a mask is one thing; but a man minding his own business being suddenly attacked? That doesn’t exactly paint the hard core “wear your mask or else” crowd in the best light.

According to KTVU, a San Diego woman posted a video of a stranger attacking her husband with pepper spray for allegedly not wearing a coronavirus mask at a San Diego dog park while having lunch.

“That is me crying hysterically in the background because my innocent husband just got maced for no reason,” Ash O’Brien said in a Facebook post sharing the video.

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Miami Police Setting Up ‘Mask Traps,’ Issuing $100 Fines to People Wearing Masks Improperly

It’s been less than two weeks since Miami-Dade County announced it would be fining people for not wearing masks in public. Already, Florida media outlets are filled with stories of people cited for wearing masks improperly, lowering masks to sip a drink, or removing their face coverings once outside of a store.

On Thursday, the Miami Herald reported that the Miami-Dade Police Department has issued 162 citations for violating the county’s mandatory mask ordinance, which comes with a $100 penalty.

One woman, Johanna Gianni, says she removed her mask in the parking lot of a Publix grocery store in North Miami Beach, when a police officer approached her and wrote her a ticket for not wearing a mask. Gianni told the Herald the parking lot was nearly empty and that she felt set up by police.

She’s not the only one.

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