Daily Archives: June 20, 2020

2020-06-20: News Headlines

Thomas Zenteno (2020-06-20). Reclaiming Our Homes fights water shutoff in El Sereno. liberationnews.org Benito Flores reclaimed his home in El Sereno in March 2020 along with other families and elders seeking shelter from the COVID-19 pandemic. As COVID-19 cases began to rise throughout Los Angeles County, the 59,000 people without permanent shelter began to look for a way to stay "safer-at-home" as per the dictates of Los Angeles …

Calvin Deutschbein (2020-06-20). Protesters blockade Central Prison in North Carolina. workers.org June 13 marked the beginning of the third week of protests in Raleigh, N.C., the state capital and home of the murderous Raleigh Police Department and more than 70 other law enforcement agencies. Different days have drawn different groups with varying goals, but not a day has gone by without . . . |

Martha Grevatt (2020-06-20). Labor vs. police: Learning from working-class history. workers.org Led by oppressed youth, a working-class revolt has erupted, initially over the police lynching of George Floyd. It needs and deserves the unconditional solidarity of organized labor. Unfortunately, what top labor officials have delivered is something much less. GM strikers battle police on Jan. 11, 1937. Consider a recent statement . . . |

Gloria Rubac (2020-06-20). Black Lives Matter in Bastrop, Texas. workers.org With the whole world exploding in support of the Black Lives Matter movement that is sweeping through large U.S. cities and small towns alike, Black Lives Matter may finally become a reality in Bastrop, Texas, for death row prisoner Rodney Reed. Outside court hearing for Rodney Reed, February 2015. WW . . . |

Joanna Palmer (2020-06-20). [Comment] Framing health stories: Highlights 2020 photography competition open for submissions. thelancet.com The video and pictures of the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis, MN, USA, as police officer Derek Chauvin knelt on Floyd's neck while he pleaded that he could not breathe, as well as photographs of subsequent anti-racism protests around the world, are some of the most powerful images this year. These pictures highlight the devastating impacts of structural racism and the deep inequities in our societies, and have given renewed urgency to the Black Lives Matter movement. This year has also brought moving and sometimes shocking photographs of health-care staff working in challenging conditions—too often…

Tariq Kewan, Fahrettin Covut, Mohammed J. Al—Jaghbeer, Lori Rose, K.V. Gopalakrishna, Bassel Akbik (2020-06-20). Tocilizumab for treatment of patients with severe COVID—19: A retrospective cohort study. thelancet.com In patients with severe COVID-19, tocilizumab was associated with significantly shorter duration of vasopressor support. Although not statistically significant, tocilizumab also resulted in shorter median time to clinical improvement and shorter duration of invasive ventilation. These findings require validation from ongoing clinical trials of Tocilizumab in COVID—19 patients.

Daniel Marchalik, Dmitriy Petrov (2020-06-20). [Perspectives] Seeing COVID-19 through José Saramago's Blindness. thelancet.com Some 6 months into the COVID-19 pandemic, the emotional devastation, socioeconomic impacts, and pressures on front-line health-care workers continue to shape our world. While words cannot always do justice to the extent of individual suffering from this disease, fiction can sometimes offer a way to process the present moment, and this feels particularly true of Portuguese writer José Saramago's Blindness (1995).

The Lancet (2020-06-20). [Editorial] Global governance for COVID-19 vaccines. thelancet.com The COVID-19 pandemic has uncovered serious gaps in the health-care systems of many nations. In particular, it exposes a fragmented global governance system that does not have the structures to coordinate the pooling and sharing of resources needed to combat pandemics. Since the early days of the pandemic, medical protectionism has emerged as nations scrambled for their own stocks of personal protective equipment and ventilators. COVID-19 vaccines could be the next example. Already there is a danger of a vaccine bidding war, with governments competing for a limited number of doses, well before a vaccine even reac…

Niall Boyce, Bianca Brandon, Gabriella Merry, Joanna Palmer, Jonathan Pimm, Maneet Virdi (2020-06-20). [Comment] Wakley Prize Essay 2020: medicine and plain truths in a pandemic year. thelancet.com "Sorrow and Truth, sit you on either side of me, whilst I am relieved of this deadly burden…Lend me art, without any counterfeit shadowing, to paint and delineate to the life the whole story of this mortal and pestiferous battle."1 When London-based Renaissance author Thomas Dekker came to write his account of the 1603 plague outbreak, he renounced the "silver-tongued muses", feeling that only plain words and plain truth could do justice to the moment. Four centuries on, the COVID-19 pandemic demands a similar response.

Sharmila Devi (2020-06-20). [World Report] COVID-19 resurgence in Iran. thelancet.com Iran was one of the first countries to experience a COVID-19 epidemic, and began relaxing restrictions in April, but cases have since rebounded. Sharmila Devi reports.

Peter Baker, Alan White, Rosemary Morgan (2020-06-20). [Comment] Men's health: COVID-19 pandemic highlights need for overdue policy action. thelancet.com The COVID-19 pandemic is shining a cruel light on the state of men's health globally. In 38 out of 43 countries for which provisional data were available, as of June 10, 2020, more men than women have died from COVID-19 despite a similar number of confirmed cases in each sex.1 In several countries, including the Netherlands, Dominican Republic, and Spain, about twice as many men as women have died from COVID-19.1 International Men's Health Week on June 15—21 is an opportune time to focus attention on this issue and the need for a new and systematic approach to improve the health of men generally.

Jonathan P S Knisely, Sonia A Henry, Shahryar G Saba, Lindsay L Puckett (2020-06-20). [Correspondence] Cancer and cardiovascular disease. thelancet.com Helen Strongman and colleagues1 provide valuable information on cardiovascular consequences that affect adults surviving a wide range of common cancers. We are concerned that some important signals might be obscured by inadequate data on known risk factors for cardiovascular disease.

Maximilian Huhn, Myrto Samara, Stefan Leucht (2020-06-20). [Correspondence] Antipsychotics for schizophrenia and substance misuse — Authors' reply. thelancet.com Alain Dervaux raises concerns about the generalisability of our findings in patients with schizophrenia who also have comorbid substance abuse disorder. Indeed, in our analysis we excluded studies in which patients had specific characteristics, such as first episode patients, patients with predominantly negative symptoms, treatment-resistant patients, and patients with comorbid substance abuse disorder (as stated in our protocol registered at PROSPERO, CRD42014014919). The basis of this decision was to preserve transitivity.

Annelies Wilder-Smith, Steven W Lindsay, Thomas W Scott, Eng Eong Ooi, Duane J Gubler, Pamela Das (2020-06-20). [Comment] The Lancet Commission on dengue and other Aedes-transmitted viral diseases. thelancet.com The past 50 years have seen the emergence of epidemic arboviral diseases transmitted by the urban mosquito, Aedes aegypti. More than 120 countries are affected by frequent and cyclical dengue epidemics that result in an estimated annual 400 million infections and 100 million symptomatic cases.1 Chikungunya virus re-emerged in 2004 from east Africa and spread to Asia, the Pacific, the Americas, and Europe.2,3 Zika virus spread from sub-Saharan Africa through Asia and the Pacific to the Americas, where it caused a major outbreak associated with severe birth defects and neurological complications.

The HALT-IT Trial Collaborators (2020-06-20). [Articles] Effects of a high-dose 24-h infusion of tranexamic acid on death and thromboembolic events in patients with acute gastrointestinal bleeding (HALT-IT): an international randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial. thelancet.com We found that tranexamic acid did not reduce death from gastrointestinal bleeding. On the basis of our results, tranexamic acid should not be used for the treatment of gastrointestinal bleeding outside the context of a randomised trial.

Helen Strongman, Alexander R Lyon, Isabel dos Santos Silva, Liam Smeeth, Krishnan Bhaskaran (2020-06-20). [Correspondence] Cancer and cardiovascular disease — Authors' reply. thelancet.com We thank Nasra Alam and colleagues and Jonathan Knisely and colleagues for their comments about our cohort study.1…

Sara Gasparini, Claudia Torino, Damiano Branca, Edoardo Ferlazzo, Umberto Aguglia (2020-06-20). [Correspondence] Testing rimegepant for migraine—time to revise the trial design? thelancet.com We read with interest the results of the phase 3 trial by Robert Croop and colleagues1 on the use of rimegepant for treatment of acute migraine. We feel that this study, like other similarly designed trials, has major problems in its methods, which suggests caution should be taken when examining the results.

Hans Lund, Carsten Juhl (2020-06-20). [Correspondence] Doing meaningful systematic reviews is no gravy train. thelancet.com Imagine all the scientific papers, it is not hard to do. But, imagine all these papers without any kind of syntheses or summing up: it would be returning to "intuition, unsystematic clinical experience, and pathophysiologic rationale as sufficient grounds for clinical decision making".1 No doubt, a systematic review is not the perfect solution and faces a lot of challenges, not least the ones highlighted by Richard Horton2 and Ian Roberts.3…

Robert Croop, Peter J Goadsby, David A Stock, Richard B Lipton (2020-06-20). [Correspondence] Testing rimegepant for migraine—time to revise the trial design? — Authors' reply. thelancet.com We thank Sara Gasparini and colleagues for their critique of our work.1 In stating that single-attack studies of acute treatments for migraine with no active comparator have major problems in their methods, however, they ignore their own recommendation that clinical studies should take regulatory requirements and the needs of clinical practice into account.2 Studies of single migraine attacks are the global standard for establishing the efficacy of acute treatments of migraine and the cornerstone of regulatory approval in the USA.

Alain Dervaux (2020-06-20). [Correspondence] Antipsychotics for schizophrenia and substance misuse. thelancet.com In their network meta-analysis of the efficacy and tolerability of 32 oral antipsychotics for the treatment of schizophrenia in adults, Maximillian Huhn and colleagues1 found some efficacy differences between antipsychotics. However, treatment studies in patients with schizophrenia have generally excluded those with past or current substance use disorders. A systematic review and meta-analysis showed that schizophrenia and substance use disorder comorbidity was highly prevalent among adults (41 ∑7%).

John Zarocostas (2020-06-20). [World Report] Plain packaging ruling hailed as a victory for tobacco control. thelancet.com The decision of the World Trade Organization's appeals body is expected to spur more countries to implement similar stringent packaging laws. John Zarocostas reports from Geneva.

Anders Perner, Morten Hylander Mà∏ller (2020-06-20). [Comment] Tranexamic acid for severe gastrointestinal bleeding. thelancet.com Severe gastrointestinal bleeding is frequent and associated with use of blood products and endoscopic and invasive procedures, including emergency surgery, which increases the risk of mortality.1 Interventions to stop bleeding include the use (often in an escalating manner) of proton-pump inhibitors, transfusion of blood products, therapeutic endoscopy, endovascular coiling, and open laparotomy.1,2 Tranexamic acid is also used in some patients in an attempt to inhibit blood clot breakdown by fibrinolysis that can occur in some cases.

newsnetwork.mayoclinic (2020-06-20). Mayo Clinic Q and A: COVID-19 and gastrointestinal concerns. newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org Dear Mayo Clinic: I've been hearing so much information about COVID-19 that I'm worried that every ache or pain may be related. I have been having stomachaches and then I began having diarrhea. I'm wondering if those are symptoms of COVID-19 and if I should get tested? Answer: There is certainly a lot of information …

newsnetwork.mayoclinic (2020-06-20). National campaign, big names calling on COVID-19 survivors to help others defeat it. newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org A national coalition, including Mayo Clinic, is launching a nationwide push for plasma donations to help fight COVID-19. The campaign has some big names behind it. Today a coalition of more than 30 organizations is launching a national donor recruitment campaign — "The Fight Is In Us" — with the goal of connecting survivors with …

Colin Todhunter (2020-06-20). From Toxic Food to Agrarian Disaster: Dirty Deals Done Dirt Cheap. dissidentvoice.org During the early days of the coronavirus lockdowns, in some quarters there was a certain degree of optimism around. Although millions of people were suffering, the hope was that the Covid-19 crisis would shine light on societal and economic systems across the world, exposing some of the deep-rooted flaws of capitalism. There was a belief that people …

news.un (2020-06-20). Refugee athletes stay focused on countdown to delayed Olympics. news.un.org With the Tokyo Olympics delayed until 2021, UN News has spoken to two recipients of Refugee Athlete Scholarships, an initiative of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), and UN refugee agency (UNHCR), to find out how COVID-19 lockdown measures are affecting their preparations for the games.

IMEMC & Agencies (2020-06-20). Israeli Navy Forces Palestinian Fisherman off the Coast of Gaza. imemc.org The Israeli Navy, early on Friday, forced Palestinian fishermen to flee the coast fearing for their lives, blocking their ability to provide for their families. According to Palestinian sources in the besieged coastal territory, Israeli Navy vessels intercepted fishermen sailing in the north of the Gaza strip, in the Al-Sudaniya …

Richard Horton (2020-06-20). [Comment] Offline: A novel solution to live with coronavirus. thelancet.com "Could you spare half an hour for me to get your advice on a potential safe and effective (and rapid) way out of the UK's current situation?" The text message was from a professor of medicine and epidemiology at an English university. I called him. He had an extraordinary proposal. Given where the country is now, he said, we needed more radical ideas about not only how to save lives but also how to save the economy. The country is collapsing. This coronavirus will be with us for some time. We can't live in lockdown forever.

The Canary (2020-06-20). Washington DC protesters topple statue of Confederate general Albert Pike. thecanary.co Black Lives Matter protesters have toppled the only statue of a Confederate general in the US capital and set it on fire on Juneteenth — the day marking the end of slavery in the US. | Cheering demonstrators jumped up and down as the 11ft statue of Albert Pike, wrapped with chains, wobbled on its high granite pedestal before falling backwards. | Protesters then set a bonfire and stood around it in a circle as the statue burned, saying "No justice, no peace!" and "No racist police!". | Eyewitness accounts and videos posted on social media indicated that police were on the scene but did not intervene. | Donal…

Revolutionary United Front (2020-06-20). Tuesday 6/23: Community Meeting on Police Brutality and the George Floyd Protests Pt. 2. indybay.org Willow Park | Oakland, CA 94607…

IMEMC & Agencies (2020-06-20). Arab Leaders Express Criticism of Israeli Annexation Plans. imemc.org Three key Arab countries, including Jordan, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), have expressed their opposition to the Israeli leadership's plan to expropriate Palestinian lands, expected to be implemented in July. For his part, King Abdallah II of Jordan, asserted, in a phone conversation with the Emir of Abu …

yenisafak (2020-06-20). Restrictions back as virus spreads in Australian state. yenisafak.com Coronavirus restrictions were reimposed in Australia's southern state of Victoria on Saturday, following a persistent rise in infections over the past few days.At a press conference, Premier Daniel Andrews said 25 cases — a two-month high — were recorded over the past day, making restrictions necessary to stem the virus' spread.Under the new rules, gatherings at homes will be limited to five people, while plans to increase the number of people allowed in restaurants, libraries, and places of worship from 20 to 50 have been deferred until at least July 12.Expressing "disappointment" and "frustration,"

yenisafak (2020-06-20). Serbians to go to general, local polls. yenisafak.com As the world wrestles with the novel coronavirus pandemic, Serbia on Sunday will hold general, local, and autonomous region elections.Voters will head to the polls to determine the names and parties that will govern the country both locally and nationally for the next four years.In Serbia, the effect of the pandemic has disappeared for the most part, with casualty numbers and daily cases having decreased to the 50-100 band and major measures removed.More than 6.5 million voters have registered to cast their ballots and elect lawmakers from among 21 election lists competing to enter the 250-seat national assembly.

yenisafak (2020-06-20). Top Pakistani diplomat hails Bozkir's UNGA presidency. yenisafak.com Pakistan's foreign minister on Saturday congratulated Turkey's Volkan Bozkir on his election as president of the next session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA)."On behalf of the people and government of Islamic Republic of Pakistan, I would like to extend my warm felicitation on your unanimous election by all member states as the President of the historic 75th Session of the UN General Assembly," Shah Mahmood Qureshi said in a letter.He said Bozkir's unanimous election reflects the international community's "trust and confidence" in his abilities to lead the UNGA "at this time of unprecedented global…

yenisafak (2020-06-20). India claims Pakistani drone shot down in Jammu and Kashmir. yenisafak.com India's border security forces on Saturday announced that they had shot down an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) belonging to Pakistan at an outpost in the disputed region of Jammu and Kashmir.The Border Security Force (BSF) shot down the Pakistani Hexa copter drone allegedly carrying an assortment of arms at the Pansar border outpost in Kathua district."Alert troops of BSF shot down a Pakistani Hexa copter drone carrying 01 M4 carbine machine (US Made), 02 filled magazines (60 Rds), 07 Chinese grenades," the BSF said in a statement on Twitter.The aircraft was spotted by a BSF patrol at in the vicinity of the borde…

yenisafak (2020-06-20). Libyan premier arrives in Algeria for talks. yenisafak.com The head of Libya's internationally-recognized government on Saturday arrived in Algeria in an official visit to discuss the ongoing conflict in his country.According to the official Algerian TV network, Prime Minister Abdelaziz Djerad, Foreign Ministers Sabri Boukadoum and Interior Minister Kamel Beldjoud received Libyan premier Fayez al-Sarraj at the capital's Houari Boumediene Airport.Al-Sarraj's one-day visit is expected to focus on the latest developments in Libya.On Friday, Libyan local media said the country's Interior Minister Fathi Bashagha and al-Sarraj would meet Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune…

yenisafak (2020-06-20). Turkey rejects UN group's claims on activities in Libya. yenisafak.com Turkey has rejected "unfounded" allegations by the UN Human Rights Special Procedures."We reject the unfounded and unfortunate allegations in the press release of the UN Human Rights Special Procedures," Foreign Ministry spokesman Hami Aksoy said in a statement.Aksoy said Turkey, extending its support to the internationally recognized Libyan government upon its request and pursuant to UN resolutions, emphasized from the very beginning that there was no military solution to the conflict in Libya."In this context, Turkey spares no effort to ensure a lasting and sustainable ceasefire and to reinvigorate the politica…

yenisafak (2020-06-20). Libya says 190 bodies found in mass graves by Haftar. yenisafak.com The Libyan army said Saturday 190 corpses have been found in mass graves south of Tripoli and the city of Tarhuna since June 5. | In a statement, the army said 106 bodies, including children and women, were found with signs of torture inside a hospital morgue in Tarhuna on June 5. | A further 37 bodies were found in another hospital in the city, of which 14 corpses were identified, the military said. | According to the statement, 15 additional bodies were found in Qasr bin Ghashir area, south of Tripoli. The military said those bodies belonged to persons kidnapped by militia of warlord Khalifa Haftar. | The remai…

yenisafak (2020-06-20). Turkish sailors freed after 3-month captivity in Eritrea. yenisafak.com Three Turkish sailors on a world tour detained in the East African country of Eritrea were freed Saturday as a result of Ankara's intervention.Selim Ekmekcioglu, Ibrahim Ignak and Erman Lutfu Atamer regained their freedom under the instruction of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and the intervention of Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu, according to diplomatic sources.Seyda Ekmekcioglu told Anadolu Agency that her husband called her to say they had been freed."I spoke to my husband for the first time today since April 25. H sounded fine. He said their condition was very good and that they were treated very well in…

yenisafak (2020-06-20). Africa: Virus cases pass 286,000, deaths near 7,700. yenisafak.com According to the latest update, the death toll on the continent is now up to 7,693, while 132,412 people have recovered in 54 countries.With 91,800, Southern Africa leads in the number of cases, followed by North Africa with 77,200, West Africa 59,500, East Africa 30,000, and Central Africa with 28,000.At least 3,200 people have died in North Africa, 1,900 in Southern Africa, 1,100 in West Africa, 915 in East Africa, and 621 in Central Africa.Southern Africa also has the highest number of recoveries at 49,700, followed by North Africa's 31,700, West Africa 26,500, Central Africa 12,400, and East Arica with 12,100…

The Canary (2020-06-20). An Australian state is set to reimpose restrictions as coronavirus cases increase. thecanary.co The Australian state of Victoria is set to reimpose household restrictions from Monday 22 June after recording double-digit increases in coronavirus (Covid-19) cases for a fourth consecutive day. | Daniel Andrews, the premier for Victoria, said household gatherings will be restricted to five guests and outdoor gatherings to 10 people until midnight on 12 July. | Andrews said Victoria recorded 25 new cases on Saturday 20 June, the biggest daily increase in two months. The planned easing of restrictions for cafes, restaurants and pubs, from a maximum of 20 guests to a maximum of 50, will be deferred for three weeks…

Dwight A Ost (2020-06-20). Friday 6/19: Workers' Collective Mourns Victims of Covid19 and Broken Promise of Emancipation. indybay.org AMAZON FULFILLMENT CTR-6015 Giant Hwy-Richmond CA…

Norbert Trenkle (2020-06-20). Climate crisis and social transformation in the age of Corona. indybay.org Material wealth in the form of useful things and utilities is only a means subordinated to the objective of capital accumulation and is sacrificed when that objective can no longer be achieved… Without the state, capitalist society would fly apart immediately. The state, however, is an essential precondition for abstract wealth production and dependent on it.

WSWS Repost (2020-06-20). PG&E pleads guilty to 84 counts of involuntary manslaughter for wildfire deaths. indybay.org With the help of California Governor Gavin Newsom, Pacific Gas & Electric receives a mere slap on the wrist for what has been deemed the deadliest US corporate crime ever prosecuted.

Oakland Privacy (2020-06-20). Wednesday 7/15: Oakland Privacy: Fighting Against the Surveillance State in the Age of Trump and Pandemic. indybay.org Online via Zoom. | Check here: oaklandprivacy.org/next-meeting/ starting a few days before the meeting.

Ilona Gazarova (2020-06-20). Friday 6/26: United Nations International Day in Support of Victims of Torture. indybay.org Advocacy for Humankind is Hosting an Event for United Nations International Day in Support of Victims of Torture.

Santa Cruz Police News (2020-06-20). "I Can't Breathe": Remembering David Cross, Killed by Corrections Officers in Santa Cruz County Jail. indybay.org David Cross, a 44-year-old local plumber, was killed on September 18, 2005 in Santa Cruz County Jail while experiencing a mental health crisis. Corrections officers who responded that day to address his health issues decided Cross needed to be restrained, so they sat on his back as he lay on his stomach and "hog tied" him on the floor of the jail. Cross screamed, "I can't breathe," "I'm going to die," and "Please get off me," before his body went limp after 3 1/2 minutes of being restrained. Fast forward to 2020, and it is likely that many will see the killing of David Cross in a new light. The world is currently…

Paul Antonopoulos (2020-06-19). Trump Signed a Bill Calling for Sanctions Against China's So-called "Treatment of Uighurs" globalresearch.ca Leaked excerpts from the upcoming memoir The Room Where It Happened has made stunning allegations against U.S. President Donald Trump. Former U.S. National Security Advisor, John Bolton, claims in his book that Trump attempted to interfere in a …

Eva Bartlett (2020-06-19). The Caesar Act: The Latest Western Attack on Syria Didn't Drop From a Plane. mintpressnews.com As Syria struggles to recover from over a decade of US-imposed conflict, it faces a new deadly threat in the form of sweeping sanctions under the Caesar Act.

Ralph Nader (2020-06-19). From the Covid-19 Battle Can Come Unstoppable Citizen Power to Propel "Full Medicare for All" Through Congress. counterpunch.org Frontline healthcare, transit, and grocery clerk workers are too busy risking their lives helping and saving people exposed to the deadly Covid-19 pandemic to see themselves emerging as the force that can overcome decades of commercial obstruction to full Medicare for All. These heroic, courageous, and selfless people are getting the job done, often without