(2020-08-18). Video: "The House Cat Flu" is Coming. The Meow Apocalypse… globalresearch.ca This article was first published on April 18, 2020 | The following episode of the Simpsons was released in 2010. | It is a satire. But at the same time it reveals the unspoken truth. The writer of the script is an …
(2020-08-18). Colonialism intensifies pandemic school crisis for Puerto Ricans. workers.org 
By Lorraine Liriano Chávez This slightly edited talk was given at the Aug. 6 Workers World Party webinar, "War on the Working Class: the Socialist Response," which featured education workers. Lorraine Liriano Chávez Puerto Rico faces the life-threatening decision of the reopening of schools in the midst of rising COVID-19 . . . |
(2020-08-18). At North Carolina colleges, 'Safe Jobs Save Lives'. workers.org 
Chapel Hill, N.C. At 2: 15 p.m. on Friday, Aug. 14 — as the first week of in-person classes at the University of North Carolina wound to a close — the independent student newspaper, the Daily Tarheel, made the announcement: "BREAKING: Carolina Housing reported two COVID-19 clusters today." UE 150 organized . . . |
(2020-08-18). Education Secretary resists calls to resign over GCSE and A-level grades U-turn. thecanary.co 
Education secretary Gavin Williamson has resisted calls to resign over his handling of A-level and GCSE grades in England, but he has apologised to thousands of students for the distress caused.The government announced a U-turn on Monday when it said students would be able to receive grades based on their teachers' estimates following anger over the downgrading of thousands of A-level grades.But Williamson has repeatedly refused to say whether he would consider resigning from his position.The minister said there had been "broad political consensus" across all parties that a standardisation model was needed for te…
(2020-08-18). US Firestorming of Tokyo Rivaled the Hiroshima Bombing. globalresearch.ca Featured image: Charred remains of Japanese civilians after the firebombing of Tokyo on the night of 9—10 March 1945. (Source: Ishikawa K≈çy≈ç / Wikimedia Commons) | In the early hours of 10 March 1945, as America's heavy aircraft dropped over 1,600 …
(2020-08-18). [Original Research] Changes in mental health and drug use among men who have sex with men using daily and event-driven pre-exposure prophylaxis: Results from a prospective demonstration project in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. thelancet.com Mental health disorders are prevalent among those initiating PrEP. We did not find increases in mental health disorders during PrEP use, but rather a decrease in sexual compulsivity and drug use disorders. The initial prevalence of mental health disorders in our study point at the continuous need to address mental health disorders within PrEP programs.
(2020-08-18). Trump's Attacks on Science Will Hasten Climate Catastrophe. thenation.com Trump's Attacks on Science Will Hasten Climate Catastrophe…
(2020-08-17). Julian Assange Court Case Delayed Again in Bizarre Circumstances. globalresearch.ca "I have never in my career faced so much difficulty attempting to trial monitor as in Julian Assange's case." — Rebecca Vincent, Director of International Campaigns for Reporters Without Borders. | *** | There were bizarre scenes at Westminster Magistrates' …
(2020-08-17). Missionaries Gain Access to Amazon's Indigenous Peoples, Despite Pandemic. globalresearch.ca When the first COVID-19 cases hit Brazil in March, the government agency in charge of protecting the country's Indigenous peoples, the National Indigenous Foundation, ordered all civilians to leave the Indigenous reservations. Only essential workers, such as health care personnel …
(2020-08-17). Anti-Racist Uprising Infiltrated by Extreme-Right Hooligans. globalresearch.ca The city of Minneapolis is where it all began. It is where the last drop fell on the surface of a proverbial overflowing lake, causing the dam to burst, consequently starting to destroy the foundations of the empire. | A death …
(2020-08-17). Russian-Belarusian Relations: Back to Being Brothers? Crimea 2.0 Is Unlikely. globalresearch.ca Several recent developments in Russian-Belarusian relations — in particular, Belarus' return of 32 suspected Wagner mercenaries to Russia, Belarusian opposition leader Tsepkalo's departure from Russia, and the two phone calls between Presidents Putin and Lukashenko — hint that bilateral ties …
(2020-08-17). The Show Trial of Julian Assange: A Cruel and Pseudolegal Farce. globalresearch.ca Yesterday's hearing in London made clear, if any further proof was needed, that the prosecution of Julian Assange is a shameful and degrading show trial, intended to railroad an innocent man to prison or death for revealing the crimes of …
(2020-08-17). NATO War Crimes: NATO's "Humanitarian" Bombings, the Balance Sheet of Destruction in Yugoslavia (1999). globalresearch.ca This article by Michel Chossudovsky was written in 1999 at the height of the NATO bombing campaign. It was presented to the Ad-hoc Committee to Stop Canada's Participation in the War in Yugoslavia, Press Conference, Monday, April 12, National Press …
(2020-08-17). Headlines for August 17, 2020. democracynow.org Pelosi Calls House Back from Recess as Outrage Mounts over Turmoil at USPS, AZ Teachers Halt School Reopening; COVID-19 Data Shows Devastating Effect on Latinx, Black People, New Zealand Postpones Election Amid COVID-19 Spike; Virus Compounds Disaster in Lebanon, Mass Protests Continue in Belarus Amid Reports of Torture in Jails, Student Protests in Thailand Swell, Demanding Democratic Reforms, 16 People Killed After Car Bomb Blast at Hotel in Somalia, At Least 6 People Killed as Protests Intensify in Ivory Coast, Trump Vows to Reinstate U.N. Sanctions Against Iran, Lawyers Say Guards at Immigration Jail "Systema…
(2020-08-17). Engineered COVID-19-Infected Mouse Bites Researcher Amid 'Explosion' of Risky Coronavirus Research. counterpunch.org 
University researchers genetically engineer a human pandemic virus. They inject the new virus into a laboratory mouse. The infected mouse then bites a researcher…..It is a plot worthy of a Hollywood blockbuster about risky coronavirus research. But according to newly obtained minutes of the Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC) of the University of North Carolina (UNC),
(2020-08-17). Russia officially produces first batch of COVID-19 vaccine. mronline.org 
"Russia's health workers and teachers will be the first ones to receive the vaccine in the country," Russia's Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said.
(2020-08-17). UK government backs down on use of algorithm in exam results after public outcry over downgrading. rt.com 
The UK government has announced that students in England will now be awarded the grade that their teachers had predicted for them based on past performance rather than rely on an algorithm to help generate their marks. | The move was criticized as the algorithm used to assess grade predictions made by teachers saw marks lowered for almost 40 percent of students taking their main school-leaving exams. Students were not allowed to sit this year's exams due to the coronavirus pandemic. | The algorithm – devised by the exams regulator in England, Ofqual – will now be ditched, Education Minister Gavin Williamson sa…
(2020-08-17). Boris Johnson under pressure to end A-level chaos. thecanary.co 
Boris Johnson is facing a Tory backlash over the deepening A-levels crisis in England as pupils and teachers continued to protest about the results awarded.Senior Conservatives called for the government to resolve the "shambles" which had been "terribly unfair" to students who got lower-than-expected grades after their exams were cancelled as a result of coronavirus.Johnson is expected to go on holiday to Scotland this week, but Labour leader Keir Starmer called on him to take "personal responsibility" in dealing with the situation. | The Conservative former education secretary Kenneth Baker urged ministers to de…
(2020-08-17). Northern Ireland GCSE students to be awarded grades predicted by teachers. thecanary.co 
GSCE students in the north of Ireland are to be awarded the grades predicted by their teachers, Stormont's education minister has announced.Just days before the results are published on Thursday, Peter Weir has scrapped a plan that would have had grades calculated using a mathematical model that took into account the past performance of schools.The major policy shift comes amid a raging controversy in the north of Ireland about the system used to allocate A-level grades.The move affects grades issued by Northern Ireland exams body, the Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment (CCEA).CCEA accounts f…
(2020-08-17). Wearing a face mask reduces spread of coronavirus through coughing and speaking, new study reveals. thecanary.co 
Wearing a face covering lowers the risk of spreading coronavirus (Covid-19) to others through speaking and coughing, new research suggests.Speaking and coughing without face protection exposes people nearby to droplets carrying the virus that could otherwise be stopped by wearing a mask, according to the study."Wearing a face mask can really make a difference": Researchers found someone standing two metres from a coughing person with no mask is exposed to 10,000 times more droplets than someone half a metre from a coughing person with a mask on.Lead researcher Dr Ignazio Maria Viola, of the University of E…
(2020-08-17). History of Settler Colonialism in Palestine. globalresearch.ca The following research article aims at exploring the issue of history of settler colonialism in Palestine. It will tackle three different settler colonial projects that were established in Arab Palestine: the German Templers, the Jewish and the Zionist. | In the …
(2020-08-17). Agenda ID2020 of the "One World Order": The 101 to Understanding Its Implications. globalresearch.ca Agenda ID2020 — is hardly mentioned by any media, let alone the mainstream. Agenda ID2020, if carried out, is the ultimate control by a small elite — of the One World Order (OWO), also called the New World Order (NWO) …
(2020-08-17). Needed: Indicators for Measuring Injustice and Societal Decay. globalresearch.ca Adequate housing, healthcare, food, public services, education, mass transit, health & safety standards, and environmental protections are the prerequisites for a humane democracy. | *** | Economic indicators — data points, trends, and micro-categories — are the widgets of the big information …
(2020-08-17). 'Regime Change' in Belarus Looks Like an Objective of Both the Trump Administration and the Biden Campaign. globalresearch.ca It seems that whoever wins the presidency, United States foreign policy will keep chugging away at intervening across the world, including via "regime change" efforts. Over the last couple decades, targets for US-government-supported overthrow have included Afghanistan, Iran, Iraq, Libya, …
(2020-08-17). Belarus Kicks Off Large-scale Military Drills Near Poland, Lithuania. globalresearch.ca On August 16, the Belarusian Armed Forces announced large-scale military drills near the country's nuclear plant and in the Grodno region bordering Poland and Lithuania. The drills will take place on August 17-20 and involve rocket and artillery units, air-defense …
(2020-08-17). Lebanon Devastated by Corruption, Economic Collapse, and Beirut Explosion. globalresearch.ca A perfect storm affects Lebanon and vast majority of its near-seven million people, including: | Out-of-control rampant corruption. | Unemployment of a third or more of working-age Lebanese. | Poverty exceeding 50% of the population. | Over 80% inflation since last October, debasing the …
(2020-08-17). Charter Schools Have Failed (And We Need to Stop Funding Them). progressive.org Nearly one million students have been left stranded because of charter school closures in the past twenty years—there's clearly something wrong here.
(2020-08-17). Private U.S. Contractors Part of the 'Kill Chain' in East Africa "Anti-Terrorist Operations" globalresearch.ca It was early on a Sunday morning when Al-Shabab militants attacked the small airstrip next to a military base on Kenya's north coast. Plumes of black smoke billowed into the sky as the militants destroyed six aircraft and killed three …
(2020-08-17). "The World That I See Today": Sanity, Her Son, and the Credulous. globalresearch.ca I have recently completed a large painting (oil on canvas), exploring the emotional and spiritual side of mandatory masks, and what they symbolize. Visual art can serve as a medium to express sentiments from an angle that cannot be …
(2020-08-17). Historic Collapse of US Economy: Real GDP Registers Biggest Quarterly Slump in Last 70 Years at 32.9%. globalresearch.ca The United States economy has been growing steadily over the last few years as indicated by the real Gross Domestic Product figures. However, the coronavirus health crisis has plunged the economy to the worst levels in about seven decades. | Data …
(2020-08-17). Doctors Lay Out Plan to 'Punish' People Who Refuse Coronavirus Vaccine: 'There Is No Alternative'. globalresearch.ca 'Simply put, getting vaccinated is going to be our patriotic duty,' and America should consider making it difficult for the unvaccinated to participate in society, three doctors wrote. | *** | A coronavirus vaccine should be mandatory, and tax penalties, higher insurance …
(2020-08-17). South Dakota governor first to reject unemployment aid from Trump executive order. wsws.org While four states have already been approved by FEMA to begin authorizing payments, Kristie Noem cited cherry-picked statistics to justify her rejection of federal benefits.
(2020-08-17). Texas A&M faculty decry plans to reopen campuses in midst of pandemic. wsws.org Faculty, professors and students at multiple Texas A&M University campuses recently penned an open letter that has garnered roughly 900 signatures.
(2020-08-17). Thousands hit the streets in anti-government demonstration in Bangkok. peoplesdispatch.org An estimated ten thousand people participated in a demonstration on Sunday, supporting the ongoing students' movement calls for political reforms. This is the latest in a series of growing protests against the establishment…
(2020-08-17). With pandemic raging, Florida governor deepens drive to reopen schools. wsws.org School districts and teachers in Florida have been forced to resume in-person learning while COVID-19 cases and deaths continue to surge throughout the state.
(2020-08-17). Teacher sickout closes Arizona school district as support grows for national strike. wsws.org Phoenix area teachers forced the closure of the first day of school today as protests against the unsafe opening of schools spread across the country.
(2020-08-17). Calls For Nationwide Sickout As Arizona School District Cancels Reopening. zcomm.org Arizona public school district forced to abandon plans after more than 100 teachers and staff members called in sick…
(2020-08-17). Foreign patent offices registers 110 of Iran's inventions. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Aug. 18 (MNA) — Iran Patent Center announced that as many as 110 inventions by Iranian scientists have been granted patents by authentic foreign patent offices, according to Vice Presidency for Science and Technology.
(2020-08-17). Low-cost sensor developed by Imperial students to identify recyclable objects. imperial.ac.uk Students from Imperial have used AI-powered cameras to identify recyclable objects, enabling them to be automatically sorted at waste facilities.
(2020-08-17). School Cancelled In Arizona Area After 'Sick Out' Over Reopening. popularresistance.org An Arizona school district that ignored state safety guidelines and voted to begin in-person learning on Aug. 17 has had to cancel classes after staff said it was unsafe to return and called in sick. | Greater Phoenix's J.O. Combs Unified School District canceled all instruction for Monday due to "insufficient staffing," days after its board disregarded state benchmarks on when students can safely return to classes during the pandemic. | The "sick out" underlined the difficulties in returning to in-person learning in the United States after schools in Tennessee, Georgia, and Alabama closed this week as students a…
(2020-08-17). Asymptomatic US Student Attends Class After Positive COVID-19 Test, Classmates Exposed. sputniknews.com A student in Moore, Oklahoma, knowingly chose to attend school last week while positive for COVID-19, according to officials.
(2020-08-17). Calls for government to support universities after 'late' U-turn on A-levels. thecanary.co The government must "step up" and support universities now facing further challenges created by its U-turn on the way A-level results are awarded, a leading education body has said. | Universities UK chief executive Alistair Jarvis has called for "urgent clarification" from the government and advice on a number of "crucial issues" following its policy change on Monday 17 August. | He warned that while 70% of students were placed with their first-choice institution, those who aren't should "think carefully about their next steps" and seek advice from their preferred university. | "The Government will need to s…
(2020-08-17). Boris Johnson surveys the wreckage of the exam results scandal then scoots off on holiday. thecanary.co A U-turn over the controversial system for awarding A-level results in England appears imminent after Tory MPs heaped pressure on Boris Johnson and education secretary Gavin Williamson to change course. | Downing Street refused to rule out a shift to a Scottish-style system based on teachers' predicted grades rather than an algorithm aimed at standardising results. | Johnson has gone on holiday to Scotland this week despite the chaos over the A-level results but held talks with Williamson and senior officials on Monday morning. | In an indication that the grades awarded last week may not be the final results, a N…
(2020-08-17). Schools Can No Longer Be Our Social Safety Net. commondreams.org Labels on desks designate where students can sit with respect to social distancing as Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent Austin Beutner takes a tour of Burbank Middle School with Principal Christine Moore on Friday, Aug. 7, 2020 in Los Angeles, CA. (Kent Nishimura / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-17). After Organizing Mass 'Sick-Out,' Arizona Teachers and School Staff Applauded for 'Bold' Collective Action to Stop Unsafe Reopening. commondreams.org Teachers and school staff members in a Phoenix suburb were praised by progressives and public health experts on Monday for their "bold" decision to call in sick en masse, forcing their school district to reverse its plan to return to in-person classes. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files… …
(2020-08-17). Scotland's schools reopen as COVID-19 infects students. wsws.org The Scottish National Party's school reopening exposes it as the accomplice of the Johnson government's herd immunity strategy.
(2020-08-17). Universities Are Playing Fast and Loose With Students' Health. thenation.com Universities Are Playing Fast and Loose With Students' Health…
(2020-08-16). The AFT Has Endorsed the Green New Deal. What's Stopping the AFL-CIO? truthout.org The Amer ≠i ≠can Fed ≠er ≠a ≠tion of Teach ≠ers (AFT), the sec ≠ond largest teach ≠ers' union in the coun ≠try, passed a res ≠o ≠lu ≠tion in sup ≠port of the Green New Deal at its bien ≠ni ≠al con ≠ven ≠tion at the end of July. The Green New Deal, fed ≠er ≠al leg ≠is ≠la ≠tion intro ≠duced in ear ≠ly 2019, would cre ≠ate a liv ≠ing-wage job for any ≠one who wants one and imple ≠ment 100% clean and renew ≠able ener &n…
(2020-08-16). Teenagers taking legal action against Ofqual amid A-level results anger. thecanary.co 
A-level students who feel let down by a "ridiculous and insane" marking system are launching legal action against England's exam regulator Ofqual.Thousands of teenagers were left angered after almost 40% of predicted grades were downgraded by the regulator's "moderation" algorithm, leaving many missing out on their first-choice universities."The Government is playing politics with our futures": Student Curtis Parfitt-Ford has launched a legal bid against Ofqual to "force them to come up with a fairer system".Despite getting the grades he was predicted, he said he couldn't stand by and watch his friends and…
(2020-08-16). Israeli-Emirati Peace Deal Is a Major Blow to Turkey's Regional Ambitions. globalresearch.ca Yesterday, one of the most unexpected geopolitical manoeuvres took place that no one was expecting. U.S. President Donald Trump went