Inside the fight to save a beleaguered butterfly High Country News
Four-year-old climbs 52-foot walls, her mother says she ‘tries’ FOX
Neighbors solve mysterious NJ Pasta dump case NBC
Climate
Insights: AI is booming, and so is its carbon footprint Bloomberg
Changes in digital behavior can reduce carbon emissions: Research Anadolu Agency
Amazonian darklands enhance the establishment of tree species in forest ecological restoration Frontiers in soil science. Worth reading for soil experts.
#COVID-19
WHO declares the end of the global Covid health emergency STATISTICS. Still awake:
DONE: #COVID-19 It is NOT airborne.
THE #virus crown it is mainly transmitted through droplets generated when an infected person coughs, sneezes or talks.
To protect you:
-keep 1m away from others
– Disinfect surfaces frequently
-wash/scrub your 👐
– avoid touching your 👀👃👄 pic.twitter.com/fpkcpHAJx7— World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) March 28, 2020
The emergency that WHO has worked so hard to prolong and institutionalize….
Disease experts warn the White House of the potential for an omicron-like wave of disease WaPo
* * * CDC’s Rochelle Walensky resigns, citing pandemic transition ap. White House statement. No successor named. weird Anyway, good riddance. Meanwhile, CDC remains committed to the vax-only part:
The declaration of a public health emergency (PHE) for COVID-19 will end on May 11, but the CDC’s key recommendations remain the same:
📅 Stay updated on COVID-19 vaccines.
🤒 Get tested if you have symptoms or if you have been exposed to COVID-19. https://t.co/4pW71kHfps—CDC (@CDCgov) May 4, 2023
And speaking of tests–
Thousands of COVID tests recalled over bacterial risk, FDA warns MSN
US CDC chief resigns, Dr. Shah may be next in line WGM extension. Shah could be an improvement:
2) People- Dr Shah @nirav_uscdc he is one of the best public health leaders in the world. He was aggressive at the beginning of the pandemic when he was director of the Maine CDC, way before the other leaders. He is among the best precautionary leaders in public health! He’s on the precautionary team- ONE OF US! https://t.co/wZSszMNG8P
— Eric Feigl-Ding (@DrEricDing) May 5, 2023
or not
The truth about Nirav Shah The Maine media never told you Thread of Maine. From right, but documented. daunting.
* * * The CDC is changing the way it monitors COVID-19 in the United States Los Angeles Hours:
New cases of the pandemic virus, which has caused 1.1 million deaths in the United States and 6.9 million deaths worldwide, will eventually be lumped together with influenza, respiratory syncytial virus and other infections which can cause pneumonia and death in humans.
The CDC will still be able to alert communities to increases in the spread of the coronavirus based on ongoing monitoring of emergency room visits, COVID-19 hospitalizations, and surveillance of wastewater from local sewage facilities. Reliable statistics on COVID-19 deaths will lag behind other data.
[Nirav D. Shah, the CDC’s principal deputy director] he said the CDC’s plan will provide a picture of the pandemic virus that is “superior” to data collected on influenza and RSV. However, . And the data that will be published will be collected and updated less frequently.
It was quite a trick to frame everything as “personal risk assessment” and then deprive ourselves of the data we need to do so. And Shah seems to have accepted that.
* * * Intra-host evolution predicts the continued emergence of SARS-CoV-2 variants Virology. From the excerpt: “[W]It is estimated that in hospitalized cases of COVID-19, variants with multiple mutations can emerge locally in as little as 1 month, even in patients without overt immune deficiency. Surveillance by sequencing for patients who continuously shed, patients suspected of reinfection, and patients with reduced immune function may offer broad public health benefits.”
Deep phenotyping of post-acute neurological sequelae of SARS-CoV-2 infection Neurology (RS). From discussion: “This comprehensive analysis of a small group of patients with neuro-PASC has revealed a disabling but difficult-to-characterize syndrome that develops even after relatively mild COVID-19. A common feature is memory impairment. Microsmia was common, although none of our patients had anosmia. CSF analysis showed immunologic abnormalities. The strengths of our study are the research-based evaluation of a relatively homogeneous cohort, including advanced spinal fluid analysis, imaging, and autonomic testing. Clinically, our cohort had symptoms similar to those described in cohort reports and larger surveys, with fatigue and cognitive impairment the most common and debilitating symptoms, with a high rate of psychological symptoms and a substantial negative effect on quality of life. Press release.
* * * Anti-mask scammer takes aim at germ theory:
It seems to me NOT scientific to start with the assumption that the masks work rather than asking for good proof that it is true.
They compare masks to life jackets but come on… we can see for ourselves that life jackets keep people afloat.
What exactly do masks do?
— Tracy Hoeg, MD, PhD (@TracyBethHoeg) May 6, 2023
China?
The real battlefield in the US-China Cold War will be in Europe South China Morning Post
Top Chinese digital banks report more bad loans but higher earnings Global caixin
Chinese fast fashion giant Shein denies low prices due to forced labour Asia News Channel
India
Calls for ‘chief heat officers’, urgent action plans when deadly heatwaves strike India Channel News Asia
What the US-China Chip War Means for India rest of the world
The dangers of the new multilateralism company standard
The United States and Saudi Arabia welcome the start of direct talks between the warring sides of Sudan Anadolu Agency
Dear old Blighty
Program of events for the coronation of King Charles III of England France24
The power behind the throne politic
Inflated, slapped London Book Review. Since 2017, still relevant.
New Not So Cold War
Russian Prigozhin says Wagner fighters will leave Bakhmut to ‘lick our wounds’ Asia News Channel. I don’t know what Prigozhin is doing (or taking). At the very least, his shenanigans are bad for business. Maybe oligarchs shouldn’t manage armies, even private ones?
Chechen leader says his fighters are ready to replace Wagner group’s “cannon fodder” for Bakhmut Ukraine Pravda
* * * Russia’s blockage of US-supplied missile systems complicates Ukraine’s war effort Cnn
The air war in Ukraine flares up foreign policy
* * * The neocon propaganda outlet has failed! Non-zero. The ISW, a nest of Kagan.
Their Democracy:
The Ukrainian secret police have arrested a well-known critic of the regime, the Chilean-American blogger Gonzalo Lira.
He is accused of “discrediting the highest military political leadership and defense forces” of Ukraine.
‘Democratic values’ in actionpic.twitter.com/KNuL0C6YLo
—Wyatt Reed (@wyattreed13) May 5, 2023
* * * Russia claims it has billions of Indian rupees it cannot use Bloomberg. As Yves predicted…
Pollution reveals what Russian statistics obscure: industrial decline wsj extension
A bipolar order? New Left Review. Apply food hermeneutics….
“Nearly a third of the world economy is now subject to sanctions” Alabama moon
South of the border
Former President of Mexico revealed as CIA asset Tribune of the Orinoco
Biden administration
Biden appoints Neera Tanden as his domestic policy adviser politic
Biden says he’s not yet ready to invoke the 14th amendment to avoid a debt default Reuters
The Supremes
Clarence Thomas promises to adopt a code of ethics at the right price Onion
Capitol seizure
What does seditious conspiracy mean in the Proud Boys January 6 case ap
Baad Banks
SEC investigates First Republic Bank executives for insider trading, Bloomberg reports Reuters (ReSilc).
“Nobody wants to be short” on the weekend is Mantra leading the bank rally Bloomberg
Have the short sellers hoarded bank shares? The group wants the SEC to investigate Market
Reverse ATMs take bills, deal out cards as stores run out of cash assios. The nice part is that little unused money that remains on the card after the user has thrown it away…
digital clock
Will artificial intelligence become the new McKinsey? The New Yorker
The legendary creator of horror manga is a little concerned about artificial intelligence artwork kotaku The Deck: “Legendary horror manga creator is a little concerned about AI artwork.” I don’t know. The art of AI has a very high grounding for creepy right from the start.
Google plans to make search more “personal” with AI chats and video clips wsj extension. The Deck: “The changes aim to answer questions that can’t be answered easily with traditional 10 Blue Links Web results.” It’s been a long time since the 10 blue links. So, I could find some things.
class warfare
Find a Writers Guild picket near you Payday report
Kill OSHA: Then shoot, stab, choke, and drown the agency Confined space. More up Loper Bright Enterprises v. Raymond.
The problem is not the “corporations”. It’s capitalism Carlo Beijer
How to win at cards and in life, according to the autistic poker superstar WaPo. A big shot, all about personal risk assessment….
Antidote of the day (through):
Check out yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour Here.