2020-04-23: News Headlines

Max Blumenthal (2020-04-23). Coronavirus Stimulus Bill Funds State Dept/USAID Operations that Once Helped Trigger Polio Outbreak in Syria. globalresearch.ca While the $2.2 trillion coronavirus stimulus bill was authored in the spirit of beating back a pandemic, buried deep within its text is a stipend for the US State Department operations dedicated to carrying out foreign interventions that have contributed …

Shane Quinn (2020-04-23). Forgotten War Crimes: NATO's 1999 Attack on Serbia's State TV Headquarters "Wiped from the Record" globalresearch.ca This article was originally published in 2018 following its 19th anniversary. Slight modification is made below for its 21st anniversary. | Twenty-one years ago, on 23 April 1999, a NATO missile attack on Radio Television of Serbia (RTS) headquarters killed …

South Front (2020-04-23). Video: Government Forces Clash with Kurdish Militias Amid Israeli Strikes on Central Syria. globalresearch.ca On April 21, clashes broke out in the city of Qamishly between the Kurdish Asayish, a security force of the Syrian Democratic Forces, and the pro-government National Defense Forces. | Local sources claim that NDF units tried to capture several Asayish …

Abayomi Azikiwe (2020-04-23). Detroit, COVID-19 and the Worsening Capitalist Crisis. globalresearch.ca Detroit still remains at the center of the COVID-19 pandemic as infection rates continue at unacceptable levels amid the rapidly declining economic situation. | Although the rate of people entering hospitals suffering from the virus and the number of deaths are …

Lucas Koerner (2020-04-23). Trump Administration Orders Chevron to Shutter Venezuela Operations. globalresearch.ca The United States Treasury Department gave California-based oil giant Chevron until December 1 to wind down its operations in Venezuela. | The Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) issued a temporary

Stephen Lendman (2020-04-23). Iran Harassing the US? Trump Threatens War? globalresearch.ca The Iranian and US geopolitical agendas are world's apart. | Iran hasn't attacked another country in centuries, threatens none now. Claims otherwise turn truth on its head. | The US, in contrast, is at war on humanity at home and abroad — …

Dr. Binoy Kampmark (2020-04-23). The Fire Fauci Brigade. globalresearch.ca The intemperate volcano that is the US President has done much to burn its way through prominent appointments. As the title of former GOP strategist Rick Wilson's book goes,

Lucas Leiroz de Almeida (2020-04-23). India and Pakistan Increase Mutual Violence Amidst Pandemic. globalresearch.ca In the midst of the global pandemic, India and Pakistan are increasing mutual violence, without due attention being paid to the situation by the international media. Several violations of the ceasefire between the two countries have been taking place in …

newsnetwork.mayoclinic (2020-04-23). COVID-19: Will social distancing be the new normal? A Mayo Clinic expert discusses what the future might look like. newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org As some states look toward relaxing restrictions and social distancing measures, such as stay-at-home orders, new projections suggest social distancing may need to continue through 2022. Researchers predict that SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, will return every winter, and that prolonged or intermittent social distancing strategies could limit the strain on health care systems. …

Adam Hanieh (2020-04-23). When Oil Markets Go Viral. globalresearch.ca The ecological dimensions of COVID-19 have become increasingly prominent in much recent discussion, with several important

Stephen Lendman (2020-04-23). Iran's Military Satellite Launch, Pentagon Response, Trump Regime Threats. globalresearch.ca On Wednesday, Iran's IRGC launched a military satellite into orbit 265 miles in space above planet earth. | IRGC commander General Hossein Salami said the "successful launch of the satellite promoted new dimensions of the defense power of the Islamic Republic …

Philip Giraldi (2020-04-23). Monitoring the Public After Coronavirus. globalresearch.ca It is too early to say when or even whether the siege initiated by the coronavirus will end, but many Americans and Europeans are speculating over what kind of countries will emerge on the other side. National Security Agency (NSA) …

Kimberly Brady (2020-04-23). Coronavirus… What If? globalresearch.ca What if…? What if the number of Coronavirus cases is not accurate and is actually exaggerated by many times? What if the estimates are based on a flawed computer model? What if the developer of the model has so admitted? …

imperial.ac.uk (2020-04-23). Future research and innovation leaders backed through flagship fellowships. imperial.ac.uk Three Imperial researchers have been awarded Future Leader Fellowships from UK Research and Innovation to tackle pressing global challenges.

Abayomi Azikiwe (2020-04-23). Africa Responds to the COVID-19 Pandemic. globalresearch.ca There are 55 member-states within the African Union (AU) where 1.2 billion people reside. | Governments throughout the continent have taken initiatives to reduce the threat of COVID-19 cases which have been confirmed in a majority of countries. | The Republic of …

Dr. Rudolf Hà§nsel (2020-04-23). Psychological Remarks on "Authority Obedience". Say No! globalresearch.ca What is happening in front of all our eyes at the moment is a huge scary dizziness. "Corona" is a geopolitical operation by the "global elite" and their "depopulation agenda" is real. Isolation imprisonment makes people sick and kills …

Andrew Korybko (2020-04-23). India's Selective Embrace of Economic Nationalism Has Anti-Chinese Motivations. globalresearch.ca India's Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) took a page from Trump's playbook by selectively embracing economic nationalism after it revised its foreign investment policy to mandate that companies from neighboring states receive government approval prior to …

newsnetwork.mayoclinic (2020-04-23). Science Saturday: Antibody testing, in pictures. newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org Convalescent plasma therapy for the treatment of COVID-19 virus infection is based on the function of antibodies, tiny proteins created by the immune system, that combat invaders to the body in a variety of ways. Some are capable of neutralizing a virus, while others work by mobilizing a range of other immune cells that fight …

imperial.ac.uk (2020-04-23). Imperial geoscientists complete UK's first MSc virtual field trip. imperial.ac.uk As part of the College's move to remote learning, thirty-five MSc Petroleum Geoscience students embarked on a simulated overseas trip to the Pyrenees.

RT (2020-04-23). Moon's geology revealed in greater detail than ever before in first all-inclusive map (PHOTOS, VIDEO). rt.com For the first time in history, the entire lunar surface has been mapped and the geology classified, paving the way for safer future Moon landings and reminding us to look upwards once more. | Scientists from the USGS Astrogeology Science Center, in collaboration with NASA and the Lunar and Planetary Institute, have produced the 'Unified Geologic Map of the Moon,' at 1: 5,000,000 scale, marking the culmination of decades of work. | | © NASA/GSFC/USGS | "People have always been fascinated by the Moon and when we might return," said current USGS director and former NASA astronaut Jim Reilly. "So, it's wonde…

Cody Hounanian, Lindsay Clark (2020-04-23). Here's How the CARES Act Impacts Your Student Loans. thenation.com Here's How the CARES Act Impacts Your Student Loans…

WSWS (2020-04-23). Hundreds of laid-off Sweetwater teachers begin online teaching. wsws.org While knowing they will not have a job next school year and facing unemployment in six weeks, hundreds of laid-off teachers in the San Diego district have gone back to work.

en.mehrnews (2020-04-23). COVID-19 enforcer of decade old tendencies: Rusnák. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Apr. 23 (MNA) — Dr. Urban Rusnák, Secretary-General of the Energy Charter Secretariat believes coronavirus outbreak is an accelerator of tendencies which have been present since last decade — the rise of nativism, the twilight of international institutions, strengthening of intercultural conflicts, widening of the income gap, and search for safe heaven by individuals and societies.

Arlene Weintraub (2020-04-22). It Could Be Several Years for 2 Leading COVID-19 Vaccines to Debut, Wall Street Analysts. globalresearch.ca Ever since President Donald Trump said last month that a COVID-19 vaccine could be ready in 12 to 18 months, Wall Street analysts have been warning that the real timeline is likely to be longer, even though more than 40 …

South Front (2020-04-22). Video: Russian Fighter Jets Buzz US Spy Planes Off Syrian Coast. globalresearch.ca On April 20, gunmen attacked a vehicle of the US-led coalition moving along the road near the village of Roueished in the province of al-Hasakah. Syrian state media reported that the vehicle was destroyed and several US service members were …

Andrew Korybko (2020-04-22). Spinning Rumors of Regime Change in North Korea: Deciphering the Deep State's Latest Kim Jong-un Conspiracy. globalresearch.ca CNN's report from a single unnamed US government source that the North Korean leader "is in grave danger after undergoing a previous surgery" isn't all that credible, but the very fact that it's being pushed so strongly at this particular …

RT (2020-04-22). 'Trump only wants to look strong & raise oil prices by threatening to shoot at Iranian gunboats'. rt.com Neither Washington nor Tehran are looking for war, and Trump ordering the US Navy to destroy "harassing" Iranian vessels was likely an attempt to flex his muscles and send a signal to the oil markets, analysts have told RT. | "We have to distinguish between declarations and reality on the ground, where nobody wants a conflict" as it would be a "disaster" for both the US and Iran, Thierry Coville, research fellow at the French research organization IRIS, said. | Earlier on Wednesday, Trump ordered the US Navy to "shoot down and destroy" Iranian vessels if they "harass" American warships in the Persian Gulf. A w…

Dr. Gary Null (2020-04-22). The Empty Celebration of Earth Day. globalresearch.ca Fifty years ago I and other conservationists and public health advocates were thrilled with the idea of an annual Earth Day celebration to honor our planet. At that time, I had more requests from television and radio to speak about …

Germán Gorraiz López (2020-04-22). Is the CIA Preparing a Color Revolution in Cuba? globalresearch.ca The cessation of the United States blockade against Cuba, demanded for the twenty-eighth consecutive year in the General Assembly of the United Nations Organization and overwhelmingly approved by 187 votes in favor, 3 against (USA, Israel and Brazil ) and …

Julia Conley, staff writer (2020-04-22). 'Cruel and Outrageous': DeVos Blocks Undocumented Students From Receiving Coronavirus Emergency Aid. commondreams.org Immigrant rights groups on Wednesday condemned the Trump administration's decision to exclude undocumented students from a $6 billion aid program that the Education Department unveiled earlier this month, calling the exclusion needlessly "cruel." | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…

Stephen Lendman (2020-04-22). The New Senate $480 Economic Stimulus Bill. A "Social Safety Net" for Banks and Billionaires. globalresearch.ca Republicans and Dems serve privileged interests exclusively on major issues, differing only rhetorically for political reasons. | At a time of economic shutdown with growing millions of Americans out of work, congressional focus is largely on helping monied interests. | It's unclear …

Dr. Pascal Sacré (2020-04-22). Covid-19: Check the Source of your Information! War against… Corruption? globalresearch.ca Introduction | I am not a conspiracy theorist. I am not a great fan of social media, blogs or controversy on the Internet; nor am I a journalist, at least not by profession. | I am a doctor: seven years at medical …

teleSUR (2020-04-22). China: Three Weeks in Quarantine for Those Arriving in Beijing. telesurenglish.net People arriving in Beijing from abroad will have to complete an additional week of domestic quarantine after the two currently required. This implies that the number of weeks of mandatory confinement is raised to three. | RELATED: | Foreigners are currently banned from entering China, a national-level decision that exempts diplomats and some people related to trade or medical research. | Until now, regulations required…

Renee Parsons (2020-04-22). No Justification for a Coronavirus. Deprive Americans of Their Civil and Individual Rights. globalresearch.ca In the aftermath of two national catastrophes (Oklahoma City bombing in 1995 and 911 in 2001), past history has shown that the US Congress seized the opportunity to penalize Americans and deprive them of their constitutionally guaranteed civil and individual …

Max Parry (2020-04-22). 9/11 Truth: Under Lockdown for Nearly Two Decades. globalresearch.ca "The whole aim of practical politics is to keep the populace alarmed (and hence clamorous to be led to safety) by an endless series of hobgoblins, most of them imaginary" — H.L. Mencken | As the global pandemic grips world attention, …

imperial.ac.uk (2020-04-22). Podcast: COVID-19 vaccine development, patient data and isolation diaries. imperial.ac.uk In this edition: We hear from researchers working on a COVID-19 vaccine and with patient samples, and how students are coping in isolation.

Christine E. Black (2020-04-22). Common Cruelty in Lockdown Time. Allowing Hatred, Fear and Paranoia to Cloud our Judgment. globalresearch.ca "Deer in the headlights look," wrote someone on social media about South Dakota Governor Kristi Noem, who was shown in an unflattering photo, after workers at a Smithfield plant in her state tested positive for the corona virus. "That …

RT (2020-04-22). France finds smoking may help you RESIST Covid-19… if you don't mind dying of something else. rt.com In a reversal of prevailing Covid-19 wisdom, a French study appears to show smokers are less at risk from the virus, affirming the results of an earlier Chinese study. The data aren't conclusive — but they're certainly surprising. | Nicotine may protect smokers against the coronavirus, according to a paper published on Tuesday in the French Academy of Sciences' Biology Reports. Studying 482 patients hospitalized with Covid-19 in Paris's Pitié-Salpêtrière hospital, the researchers found just 5 percent were daily smokers — far lower than the 25.4 percent of the French population wh…

Paul Le Blanc (2020-04-22). United States: An 'all hands on deck' moment—Sixty six old new leftists urge support for Joe Biden. mronline.org SDS, along with the Student Nonviolent Coordinating Committee (SNCC), had been in the vanguard of the new left in the 1960s, and some of these oldsters now want to challenge a position taken by Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), currently the foremost organization on the left today. They tell us "this is an all hands …

IMEMC & Agencies (2020-04-22). Israeli Troops Abduct 6 Palestinians, Assault Family Members in West Bank. imemc.org Israeli troops reportedly abducted, on Wednesday, a number of Palestinians from several occupied West Bank towns and cities. In Ramallah city, local sources reported that an Israeli army force broke into several Palestinian-owned homes, before they abducted Abdelrahman Elwi and Mohammad Hassan, who are both students at Birzeit University. The …

Udi Ofer (2020-04-22). New Model Shows Reducing Jail Population will Lower COVID-19 Death Toll for All of Us. aclu.org The Trump administration optimistically projects that "substantially under" 100,000 people will die from COVID-19 in the United States. Horrific as that statistic is,

The Canary (2020-04-22). UK coronavirus deaths may have reached 41,000, study finds. thecanary.co Deaths linked to coronavirus (Covid-19) in the UK may have already reached 41,000, according to new analysis.The Financial Times estimate is more than double the latest total announced by the Department of Health, which stood at 17,337 at 5pm on 20 April.The government's figure is based almost entirely on the deaths of hospital patients who tested positive for Covid-19.Differences in reporting mean this total can include a small number of deaths outside hospital that occurred in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.The Financial Times has used separate figures published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS)…

Espinoza M, Hsiehchen D. (2020-04-21). Characteristics of Faculty Accused of Academic Sexual Misconduct in the Biomedical and Health Sciences. jamanetwork.com This study uses internet search data to identify and characterize biomedical and health sciences faculty at US higher education institutions who had sexual misconduct accusations against them between 1982 and 2019 that led to institutional or legal actions proving or supporting guilt.

news.un (2020-04-21). Startling disparities in digital learning emerge as COVID-19 spreads: UN education agency. news.un.org With most of the world's students now at home due to COVID-19, the pandemic is revealing startling divides in digitally-based distance learning, data from the UN education and cultural agency, UNESCO, and partners has revealed.

jamanetwork (2020-04-21). Wilhelm Konrad Roentgen—The Centennial of His Birth. jamanetwork.com On March 27, 1845 Wilhelm Konrad Roentgen was born in Lennep, Germany. He received his early education in the Netherlands and then studied under Clausius, teacher of Willard Gibbs, in Zurich, Switzerland. At Wàºrzburg he became assistant to Kundt. In 1874 he became privatdozent at Strasbourg University. In 1875 Roentgen was made professor of mathematics and physics at the Agricultural Academy of Hohenheim. He returned to Strasbourg in 1876, where he became extraordinary professor. In 1879 he was appointed ordinary professor of physics and director of the Physical Institute of Giessen, and in 1885 he became p…

The Canary (2020-04-21). Government plans to give poorer pupils free laptops 'do not go far enough'. thecanary.co The government's plans to ensure that disadvantaged children can access lessons online amid school closures "do not go far enough", campaigners say. | Education secretary Gavin Williamson has announced that free laptops or tablets will be given to disadvantaged pupils to help them learn at home amid the Covid-19 pandemic. | Disadvantaged secondary school pupils and care leavers who do not have mobile or broadband internet in their homes will also be provided with 4G routers. | But the Good Law Project (GLP), a legal campaign group which has previously brought cases against Uber and over Brexit, said the governmen…

Bauchner H, Flanagin A, Fontanarosa PB. (2020-04-21). Correcting the Scientific Record—Retraction and Replacement of a Report on Dialysis Ownership and Access to Kidney Transplantation. jamanetwork.com The September 10, 2019, issue of JAMA included an Original Investigation titled "Association Between Dialysis Facility Ownership and Access to Kidney Transplantation" by Gander and colleagues, and an accompanying Editorial by Boulware and colleagues. The authors of the research report subsequently notified the editors that a major coding error had occurred in their data management and analyses, and that they discovered these errors had resulted in incorrect data in their published article. As reported in their letter of explanation, the authors performed a thorough reanalysis of their data to address these errors…

RT (2020-04-21). Let the blame games begin: Missouri sues China, including WUHAN LAB, over coronavirus outbreak. rt.com The state of Missouri has sued China — plus its Communist Party and a handful of other entities — for "causing a global pandemic that was unnecessary and preventable." It's the first state to take the dubious accusation to court. | Missouri Attorney General Eric Schmitt filed suit on Tuesday against the entire nation of China, its national, provincial and city governments, and a smattering of government agencies and research institutes, blaming the lot for allowing the coronavirus epidemic to go global. Laying the sum total of suffering that has resulted from the epidemic at China's feet might soun…

Kuehn BM. (2020-04-21). Boosting Rwanda's Health Workforce. jamanetwork.com Rwanda's physician specialist workforce tripled and the ranks of nurses and midwives grew substantially as a result of the country's Human Resources for Health (HRH) Program, according to an evaluation by the National Academies of Science, Engineering, and Medicine.

David Ruccio (2020-04-21). Student debt jubilee—pandemic edition. mronline.org The United States is currently experiencing a dystopian orgy of death and destruction.