Daily Archives: December 14, 2020

2020-12-14: News Headlines

John Pilger (2020-12-14). John Pilger: The Most Lethal Virus Is Not COVID. It Is War. mintpressnews.com In the midst of the greatest health emergency in modern times, with more than 4 million surgical procedures delayed by the National Health Service, Britain has announced a record increase of £16.5 billion in so-called defense spending.

Defense for Children International, Palestine (2020-12-14). Israel's Isolation of Palestinian Child Prisoners Amounts to Torture. globalresearch.ca Israeli authorities routinely detain Palestinian children in isolation solely for interrogation purposes, a practice that amounts to torture or cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment, Defense for Children International — Palestine said in a report released today. | The 73-page …

Caitlin Johnstone (2020-12-14). Imperialism 2.0: Notes from the Edge of the Narrative Matrix. globalresearch.ca The new imperialism doesn't look like old-school ground invasions, it looks like multi-front cold wars, economic warfare, blockades and starvation sanctions, drone strikes, arming proxy militias, CIA-backed coups, sprawling tech surveillance networks, mass psyops of unprecedented sophistication and narrative management …

Ann Garrison (2020-12-14). Coronavirus Protocols as Tools of Repression. globalresearch.ca Covid-19 is a convenient excuse for governments to ban or restrict activities they don't like. | Whatever the scientific truths about coronavirus, state measures to control it undoubtedly have great potential for justifying state repression and surveillance. A friend of mine …

Megan Sherman (2020-12-14). Julian Assange Is a Conscientious Objector. Time Will Vindicate Him. globalresearch.ca Julian Assange today, but the press is united in wilful ignorance of his plight. The dearth of stories about his show trial in a kangaroo court in London is evident. It has never been easier …

Rep. Ron Paul (2020-12-14). Video: Ron Paul: This Worries Me Much More than Covid. globalresearch.ca If you're concerned about the overreach of government in juicing asset prices to dangerous levels, picking economic winner and losers, and constraining our personal freedoms — you have very good right to be. | So says lifelong champion of free markets, …

Paul Antonopoulos (2020-12-14). Germany Unlikely to Pursue Independent Foreign Policy. Will Follow Biden. globalresearch.ca

Peter Koenig (2020-12-14). Radical De-Globalization: Finding Back Our Freedom and Sovereignty: Tyrants Don't Create Tyranny. Your Obedience Does. globalresearch.ca People are waking up. | Art is being applied to protests. As very well demonstrated in Germany the Netherlands and Denmark — see video " It is not without reference tongue-in-cheek …

Karen Weintraub (2020-12-14). Invisible Ink Could Reveal Whether Kids Have Been Vaccinated. globalresearch.ca Excerpt of Scientific American article published on December 18, 2019. | Keeping track of vaccinations remains a major challenge in the developing world, and even in many developed …

Eve Upton-Clark (2020-12-14). Dean Spade: 'Mutual Aid Always Pops Up Where Disasters Are'. progressive.org The author, activist, and teacher discusses his new book, the differences between mutual aid and charity, and his expectations for the Biden presidency.

Nick Cohen (2020-12-14). Cambridge Academics Have Just Won an Important Battle for Free Speech. globalresearch.ca Academics at Cambridge won a cheering victory for free speech today when they voted by an overwhelming majority to reject plans from the vice-chancellor to change the rules governing debate at the university. | They rejected the university's proposals to insist …

Robert F. Kennedy Jr (2020-12-14). "Digital Vaccine Passports": Yes, Bill Gates Said That. Here's the Proof. globalresearch.ca Gates and his minions insist the billionaire never said we'd need digital vaccine passports. But in a June 2020 TED Talk, Gates said exactly that. Someone edited out the statement, but CHD tracked down the original. | *** | Some chiseler altered…

Kit Knightly (2020-12-14). Coronavirus Fact-Check #9: Is the Vaccine Safe? globalresearch.ca There are

Strategic Culture Foundation (2020-12-14). Europe's Anti-Russia Sanctions Result in Extensive Economic Losses and Growing Tensions with Russia. globalresearch.ca New data out this week indicates that the European Union has suffered aggregate economic losses amounting to over €120 billion due to its policy of imposing sanctions against Russia. That's according to figures

imperial.ac.uk (2020-12-14). Business Secretary visits Imperial as Government announces new energy plans. imperial.ac.uk Business Secretary Alok Sharma MP visited Imperial to learn about carbon capture research.

WSWS (2020-12-14). School students in Germany protest and enforce online teaching to combat coronavirus infection. wsws.org "With our pupils' strike, we have achieved more‚ÄÜprotection against infection with a few hours of preparation than all of the measures taken by Bremen's politicians in recent months."

Steve Watson (2020-12-14). NJ Lawmaker Wants Mandatory Corona Shot for All Kids Without Exemption. globalresearch.ca A State Senator in New Jersey wants the coronavirus vaccine made mandatory for all school age children, despite them being the least at risk group. | Middlesex Democrat Senator Joseph Vitale also wants to eliminate exemptions that have been used in …

Sarah Godlewski (2020-12-14). Ron Johnson Brings Fringe Science to the US Senate. thenation.com Ron Johnson Brings Fringe Science to the US Senate…

The Canary (2020-12-14). The number of homeless people dying rises for the fifth year in a row. thecanary.co The number of people dying while homeless in England and Wales has risen for the fifth year in a row, new data shows.Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that there were an estimated 778 deaths of homeless people in England and Wales registered in 2019.This is an increase of 7.2% from 2018 when there were 726 estimated deaths and the highest number since the data series began in 2013.The number of estimated deaths of homeless people has increased each year from 2014 when there were 475, the data shows.(PA Graphics)"These are not just statistics": Shelter's chief executive Polly Neate…

Mehr News Agency (2020-12-14). Education min. inaugurates 58 student reasearch centers. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Dec. 14 (MNA) — Iranian Education Minister Mohsen Haji-Mirzaei and VP for Science and Technology Sorena Sattari inaugurated 58 student research centers on Monday.

Jonathan Cook (2020-12-14). Antisemitism Claims Mask a Reign of Political and Cultural Terror Across Europe. globalresearch.ca The Israeli newspaper Haaretz has run a fascinating

Joe Mellor (2020-12-14). As Brexit Talks Enter Final 48 Hours UK Threatens to Deploy No-deal Gun Boats. globalresearch.ca Ministers are set to beef up patrol powers by bringing in legislation to allow the Navy to board foreign vessels and arrest fishermen if there is no agreement, in scenes reminiscent of the 1970s Cold Wars. | *** | The UK has …

Orinoco Tribune (2020-12-14). Venezuelan Gold Seized by the Bank of England: British Court Accepts Guaidó's Appeal. globalresearch.ca Thursday December 10 the British Supreme Court accepted the appeal issued by the lawyers of the opposition for exiting deputy Juan Guaidó, and ruled in favor of hearing his appeal regarding control of Venezuela's gold reserves, valued at $1.3 …

Symon Hill (2020-12-14). Ignore the Spin, The Hague's ICC Ruling on British War Crimes in Iraq Is Damning. globalresearch.ca The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court recently reported that there was "reasonable basis to believe" that British troops committed war crimes in Iraq. She declared that there was evidence of crimes including unlawful killing, rape, torture and inhumane treatment …

Mike Ervin (2020-12-14). Smart Ass Cripple: When a Good Name Is Not Enough. progressive.org The Keeping All Students Safe Act seems like something everyone would support, so why is there opposition to it?

R. A. Jones (2020-12-14). Bretton Woods 3.0. The Great Lockdown, The Great Reset, and The Great Paradigm Shift. globalresearch.ca "The transformation is both symbolically and visibly expressed by the de facto appearance of the first-ever global capital. That capital city, however, is not New York, the place where the General Assembly of all nation-states periodically convenes. New York …

Richard Gale (2020-12-14). Cautionary Tale: This COVID Vaccine Could Heighten HIV Risk for Some, Scientists Warn. globalresearch.ca In a The researchers — from the Fred Hutchinson …

Staff (2020-12-14). Public Distrust in Science Made COVID Worse. It Will Also Harm Climate Policy. truthout.org Earlier this year, when the coronavirus pandemic led to a global wave of lockdowns, the world saw

Phil Knight (2020-12-14). Have the Machines Already Taken Over? counterpunch.org "The planet groans every time it registers another birth" — Paul Simon, The Obvious Child According to Ron Milo and his colleagues at Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, in 2020 the mass of artificial, human made objects on Earth is likely greater than the mass of all living things. The human-made world — steel,

Alan MacLeod (2020-12-13). US Media, Pols Rage After Venezuelans Defy US Empire to Re-elect Socialists. globalresearch.ca President Nicolas Maduro and his United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV) are celebrating today, after a clear victory in yesterday's National Assembly elections. The elections, boycotted by many major right-wing opposition groups, but still participated in by over 100 …

RT (2020-12-13). More questions than relief: Brazil vaccination plan promises jab to less than quarter of population, no timetable set. rt.com Brazilian authorities have rolled out a vaccination plan which has been met with skepticism due to the lack of concrete data, and was even criticized by the researchers who helped to draw it up. | Local media noted that Brazil's plan has no specific launch date in mind for the vaccinations and does not detail the timetable of the supplies. The country's initial goal is to vaccinate some 51 million people, which is less than a quarter of the population. The document itself admits it's significantly lower than the number required to stop the spread of the coronavirus — at least 70 percent of the population.

Stephen Lendman (2020-12-13). US Supreme Court Backs "Grand Theft" Election 2020. globalresearch.ca On Friday, the Supreme Court declined to hear arguments in what may be remembered one day as the most significant political dispute in US history. | Texas et al v. Pennsylvania et al was the judicial equivalent of Hollywood's Godzilla v. …

_____ (2020-12-13). Science Magazine Report Praises China's COVID-19 Vaccine. popularresistance.org The Science magazine website has just published a report praising a Covid-19 vaccine China has developed and referred to its "outstanding efficacy data" as a relevant feature, compared to the other vaccines out in the market. The vaccine, developed by the China National Pharmaceutical Group (CNPG), had been under phase III trials in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) since June, involving 31,000 volunteers from 125 countries and regions. | The UAE announced on Wednesday the official registration of the Chinese company's COVID-19 vaccine. According to a statement issued by the UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention, th…

sputniknews (2020-12-13). Social Researcher Receives 9-Year Imprisonment in Iran, Report Says. sputniknews.com TEHRAN (Sputnik) РAn Iranian court has sentenced Kameel Ahmady, a social researcher and citizen of both Iran and the United Kingdom, to nine years of imprisonment and a €600,000 ($728,237) fine, Tasnim news agency reported on Sunday.

Mark Kreidler (2020-12-13). Fear and loathing as colleges face another season of red ink. salon.com Schools are forced to choose between keeping students at home or grapple with the consequences of closed campuses…

Prison Radio (2020-12-13). Perfecting Tyranny: Mumia's New Book Hot Off the Press! globalresearch.ca Perfecting Tyranny by Mumia Abu-Jamal & Stephen Vittoria is a window into the soul of a nation from one of its most respected and feared captives. Getting this book to print took enormous resolve. We now turn to you to …

Timothy Alexander Guzman (2020-12-13). The New Normal: One Step Closer to Dystopia. New Covid Outbreaks, People are "Living in Extreme Fear" globalresearch.ca On September 11th, 2001, terrorist attacks took place on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon allegedly orchestrated by Al Qaeda led by Osama bin Laden, and subsequently blamed it on Saddam Hussein and the Baath Party and then …

Fight Back (2020-12-13). Chicago Teachers Union car caravan presses mayor to bargain enforceable safety standards. fightbacknews.org Chicago, IL — More than 100 teachers, parents and community members participated in a car caravan, December 12 for safety, equality and trust. Chicago Public Schools has rejected the union's safety concerns at every turn, refused to bargain to consensus on safety needs, rejected improving its inhumane remote learning program despite months of pleas from parents, students and educators, and fallen woefully short on safety promises they've made. | The caravan traveled to city hall, where caravan members delivered pointed criticisms of CPS' dangerous plan to accommodate the mayor's insistence on reopening unsa…

Rocco Galati (2020-12-13). Video: Rocco Galati on COVID Lockdown Measures. Crimes against Humanity. Lawsuit against Government of Canada. globalresearch.ca "Politicians have not put forward any persuasive evidence that lockdowns have actually saved lives. At the same time, there is no question that lockdowns have caused grave harm to millions of Canadians suffering unemployment, poverty, cancelled surgeries, suicides, isolation …

Michael Snyder (2020-12-13). 48% Of U.S. Small Businesses Fear that They May be Forced to "Shut Down Permanently" Soon. globalresearch.ca What would the United States look like if we lost half of our small businesses? The reason I ask that question is because approximately half of all small business owners in the entire country believe that they may soon be …

Jill Richardson (2020-12-13). Failing Students Need Support, Not Blame. commondreams.org Students don't fail because they are lazy. They fail because something is wrong in their lives—and right now, so much is wrong. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…

Dr. Pascal Sacré (2020-12-13). The COVID-19 RT-PCR Test: How to Mislead All Humanity. Using a "Test" To Lock Down Society. globalresearch.ca The misuse of the RT-PCR technique is used as an intentional strategy by some governments, supported by scientific safety councils and by the dominant media, to justify the violation of a large number of constitutional rights, the destruction of the economy with the bankruptcy of entire active sectors of society,…

David Skripac (2020-12-13). COVID-19: A Fabricated Second "Tidal Wave" of Poverty and Injustice. globalresearch.ca Here we are at the end of a year filled with upheaval, facing yet another round of lockdowns, this time ostensibly intended to fight off a supposed "second wave of COVID-19." | In the foreground, we have the completely co-opted mainstream …

Editor (2020-12-12). America Is Contributing to Iran's Shocking Covid-19 Death Toll. scheerpost.com Farhad Babaei/ Magnus News] By Juan Cole / Informed Comment The US financial and trade blockade of Iran, which has strangled its economy, has also taken a heavy toll on the country's coronavirus response. Nick Paton Walsh, Jo Shelley, Ramin Mostaghim and Scott McWhinnie at CNN did a great story on this heartrending travesty. They write, "Retired teacher Khalif Farahani struggles to speak… |

Ralph Nader (2020-12-12). Go Vote Yourself a Raise, Georgia—You've Long Earned It. commondreams.org Candidates should be pushed to say if they stand with the super-rich profiteering, callous Big Business tycoons or with the people who work for pitiful wages, on the rugged frontlines, and keep our society running. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files…

Desmond O'Neill (2020-12-12). [Perspectives] Protecting our second harvest. thelancet.com Among the saddest aspects of the COVID-19 pandemic was the laying bare of how older people are devalued by our politicians and the medical establishment. Although older people, and particularly those resident in care homes, were the demographic group most affected by mortality and morbidity from COVID-19, in the early stages of the pandemic advisory sites from many international and national medical organisations and professional bodies did not sufficiently prioritise effective prevention and management for older people in COVID-19 guidance documents and educational updates.

The Lancet (2020-12-12). [Editorial] Facing up to long COVID. thelancet.com Multiorgan symptoms after COVID-19 are being reported by increasing numbers of patients. They range from cough and shortness of breath, to fatigue, headache, palpitations, chest pain, joint pain, physical limitations, depression, and insomnia, and affect people of varying ages. At the Lancet—Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences conference on Nov 23, Bin Cao presented data (in press at The Lancet) on the long-term consequences of COVID-19 for patients in Wuhan, and warned that dysfunctions and complications could persist in some discharged patients for at least 6 months.

Berit Lange (2020-12-12). [Correspondence] Maintaining a gendered perspective in scientific meetings during the COVID-19 pandemic. thelancet.com Several studies have pointed towards the COVID-19 pandemic's potential to negatively affect career paths of women in science.1,2 Although the impact on manuscript submissions and publications, as one career path mechanism, has been well documented,3 an area that is often difficult to elucidate as part of the mechanisms underlying differential progress of male and female researchers is that of invitations to give scientific talks and to chair scientific meetings. Here, the merit of such an invitation is not always transparent or as easy to assess as a publication record.

March for Science (2020-12-12). Saturday 12/12: SC1.5NCE Not SILENCE: Five-year Anniversary of Paris Agreement Climate Emergency Forum. indybay.org Online via livestream or Zoom…

Eric J Topol (2020-12-12). [Perspectives] Is my cough COVID-19? thelancet.com Imagine that even if you have no symptoms of COVID-19, the sound of your forced cough transmitted to your smartphone or smart speaker, processed by an algorithm, could provide a 98 ∑5% accurate diagnosis. That's what a study involving more than 4000 people suggested might be possible. And it could be done anytime, free of charge, with immediate turnaround of results. It's one of many proposed uses of artificial intelligence (AI) for COVID-19. However, such technology will clearly require further research and independent replication to be refined, accepted, or implemented.

2020-12-14: Social Media Postees

Please be social by posting these 'POSTEES' on social media! (Copy the text of the postee below, then paste it on social media and the story images will also appear.)

Julian Assange Is a Conscientious Objector. Time Will Vindicate Him
Megan Sherman | globalresearch.ca | 2020-12-14
Julian Assange today, but the press is united in wilful ignorance of his plight. The dearth of stories about his show trial in a kangaroo court in London is evident. It has never been easier …
globalresearch.ca/julian-assange-conscientious-objector-time-vindicate-him/5732080

Coronavirus Protocols as Tools of Repression
Ann Garrison | globalresearch.ca | 2020-12-14
Covid-19 is a convenient excuse for governments to ban or restrict activities they don't like. | Whatever the scientific truths about coronavirus, state measures to control it undoubtedly have great potential for justifying state repression and surveillance. A friend of mine …
globalresearch.ca/coronavirus-protocols-tools-repression/5732221

Video: Ron Paul: This Worries Me Much More than Covid
Rep. Ron Paul | globalresearch.ca | 2020-12-14
If you're concerned about the overreach of government in juicing asset prices to dangerous levels, picking economic winner and losers, and constraining our personal freedoms — you have very good right to be. | So says lifelong champion of free markets, …
globalresearch.ca/video-ron-paul-this-worries-me-much-more-than-covid/5732196

Israel's Isolation of Palestinian Child Prisoners Amounts to Torture
Defense for Children International, Palestine | globalresearch.ca | 2020-12-14
Israeli authorities routinely detain Palestinian children in isolation solely for interrogation purposes, a practice that amounts to torture or cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment, Defense for Children International — Palestine said in a report released today. | The 73-page …
globalresearch.ca/israel-isolation-palestinian-child-prisoners-amounts-torture/5732181

John Pilger: The Most Lethal Virus Is Not COVID. It Is War
John Pilger | mintpressnews.com | 2020-12-14
In the midst of the greatest health emergency in modern times, with more than 4 million surgical procedures delayed by the National Health Service, Britain has announced a record increase of £16.5 billion in so-called defense spending.
mintpressnews.com/john-pilger-lethal-virus-not-covid-war/273597/

Radical De-Globalization: Finding Back Our Freedom and Sovereignty: Tyrants Don't Create Tyranny. Your Obedience Does
Peter Koenig | globalresearch.ca | 2020-12-14
People are waking up. | Art is being applied to protests. As very well demonstrated in Germany the Netherlands and Denmark — see video " Lockstep" Protest Marches in Netherland, Germany, Denmark (4 December 2020). | It is not without reference tongue-in-cheek | …
globalresearch.ca/radical-de-globalization-finding-back-our-freedom-sovereignty-tyrants-dont-create-tyranny-obedience-does/5732186

Germany Unlikely to Pursue Independent Foreign Policy. Will Follow Biden
Paul Antonopoulos | globalresearch.ca | 2020-12-14
In an interview with The Guardian in June, Chancellor Angela Merkel said that Germans grew up knowing that the U.S. wanted to be a world power. Despite Washington abusing its power against some of its strongest allies, Germany, whose six-month …
globalresearch.ca/germany-unlikely-pursue-independent-foreign-policy-follow-biden/5732223

Imperialism 2.0: Notes from the Edge of the Narrative Matrix
Caitlin Johnstone | globalresearch.ca | 2020-12-14
The new imperialism doesn't look like old-school ground invasions, it looks like multi-front cold wars, economic warfare, blockades and starvation sanctions, drone strikes, arming proxy militias, CIA-backed coups, sprawling tech surveillance networks, mass psyops of unprecedented sophistication and narrative management …
globalresearch.ca/imperialism-notes-edge-narrative-matrix/5732184

Europe's Anti-Russia Sanctions Result in Extensive Economic Losses and Growing Tensions with Russia
Strategic Culture Foundation | globalresearch.ca | 2020-12-14
New data out this week indicates that the European Union has suffered aggregate economic losses amounting to over ‚Ǩ120 billion due to its policy of imposing sanctions against Russia. That's according to figures released by the Dusseldorf Chamber of Commerce …
globalresearch.ca/europe-anti-russia-sanctions-self-harm-loathing/5732198

We Been Done That, Joe
Brett Warnke | counterpunch.org | 2020-12-14
As an exhausted public school teacher in Gary and New Orleans, I often fell too comfortably into a routine. My students would let me know this. For a teacher, reading groups take a long time to organize. Essay prompts are tedious as hell to write. But I could always count on one of my sharper…
counterpunch.org/2020/12/14/we-been-done-that-joe/

Invisible Ink Could Reveal Whether Kids Have Been Vaccinated
Karen Weintraub | globalresearch.ca | 2020-12-14
Excerpt of Scientific American article published on December 18, 2019. | See Robert F. Kennedy Jr's analysis on the digital vaccine passport for children | Keeping track of vaccinations remains a major challenge in the developing world, and even in many developed …
globalresearch.ca/invisible-ink-could-reveal-whether-kids-have-been-vaccinated/5732158

CNN: 'Don't be Alarmed' if People Start Dying After Taking the Vaccine
Paul Joseph Watson | globalresearch.ca | 2020-12-14
In an article on the COVID vaccine rollout, CNN says that Americans shouldn't be alarmed if people start dying after taking the vaccine because "deaths may occur that won't necessarily have anything to do with the vaccine." | The advisory appeared …
globalresearch.ca/cnn-dont-alarmed-people-start-dying-after-taking-vaccine/5732213

Cambridge Academics Have Just Won an Important Battle for Free Speech
Nick Cohen | globalresearch.ca | 2020-12-14