George Grosz Apocalyptic landscape 1936
FEMA: The Best Way To Prepare for Hurricanes Is By Getting The Covid Vaccine.
FEMA: The Best Way To Prepare for Hurricanes Is By Getting The Covid Vaccine. pic.twitter.com/aHUR0svr9M
— Echo (@bryanvilleneuve) July 3, 2021
Craig Kelly
Ivermectin works…. pic.twitter.com/WsIPaw8d6o
— Husserl (@husserl79) July 3, 2021
Dr. Chinda Brandolino
Dr. Chinda Brandolino and her wild conspiracy theory… pic.twitter.com/fSrh8SJSKB
— Husserl (@husserl79) July 4, 2021
This makes no sense at all. The vaccinated are much more likely to make the virus mutate. CNN better keep its audience stupid, or every last one will leave.
Whitney Webb @_whitneywebb: Were ppl who don’t get the flu vaccine ever blamed for the variants and mutations that make that vaccine an annual affair? No. This comes right after Fauci said soon there will be “two Americas”, vaxxed and unvaxxed. This is a policy move for divide and conquer, not “science”
• Unvaccinated People Are “Variant Factories,” Infectious Diseases Expert (CNN)
Unvaccinated people do more than merely risk their own health. They’re also a risk to everyone if they become infected with coronavirus, infectious disease specialists say. That’s because the only source of new coronavirus variants is the body of an infected person. “Unvaccinated people are potential variant factories,” Dr. William Schaffner, a professor in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, told CNN Friday. “The more unvaccinated people there are, the more opportunities for the virus to multiply,” Schaffner, a professor in the Division of Infectious Diseases at Vanderbilt University Medical Center, said. “When it does, it mutates, and it could throw off a variant mutation that is even more serious down the road.”
All viruses mutate, and while the coronavirus is not particularly mutation-prone, it does change and evolve. Most of the changes mean nothing to the virus, and some can weaken it. But sometimes, a virus develops a random mutation that gives it an advantage — better transmissibility, for instance, or more efficient replication, or an ability to infect a great diversity of hosts. Viruses with an advantage will outcompete other viruses, and will eventually make up the majority of virus particles infecting someone. If that infected person passes the virus to someone else, they’ll be passing along the mutant version. If a mutant version is successful enough, it becomes a variant. But it has to replicate to do that. An unvaccinated person provides that opportunity.
“As mutations come up in viruses, the ones that persist are the ones that make it easier for the virus to spread in the population,” Andrew Pekosz, a microbiologist and immunologist at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, told CNN. “Every time the viruses changes, that gives the virus a different platform to add more mutations. Now we have viruses that spread more efficiently.” Viruses that don’t spread cannot mutate. Variants have arisen all over the world — the B.1.1.7 or Alpha variant was first seen in England. The B.1.351 or Beta variant was first spotted in South Africa. The Delta variant, also called B.1.617.2, was seen first in India. And the US has thrown up several of its own variants, including the B.1.427 or Epsilon lineage first seen in California and the B.1.526 or Eta variant first seen in New York.
More dumb nonsense, from a virologist.
People who are not vaccinated will end up in hospital and possibly die.”
• Belgian Experts Expect Fourth Wave At The End Of Summer Or Autumn (BT)
Belgium can expect a fourth wave of the coronavirus pandemic in September, or perhaps before the end of August, experts are predicting, according to De Morgen. Yesterday, for the first time in months, the daily average of new cases of the virus rose. There will be no reporting of disease figures for the time being, health institute Sciensano said. However all epidemiological models are predicting that the bottom has been reached, and the upturn will be seen to be continuing when new figures are presented on Tuesday. September would be a logical time to expect a new wave, said virologist Steven Van Gucht. “People are back from vacation, schools are open again and the weather is getting worse. This will translate into a sharp increase in the number of infections, especially with the delta variant. People who are not vaccinated will end up in hospital and possibly die.”
Those who are vaccinated, on the other hand, need not worry too much. All four vaccines used in Belgium – AstraZeneca, Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson – are effective against the variants known to date, according to the European Medicines Agency. “A degree of protection of more than 90 percent after two doses is very good,” said Van Gucht. “We cannot achieve those high percentages with the flu vaccine. The corona vaccines protect against serious illness, although mild or moderate symptoms after infection are still possible.” The trouble is, only 44.1% of adults, and 35.4% of the whole population, was fully vaccinated at the last count on Friday. And if people let all measures to protect against the disease drop, the models predict a fourth wave in mid-August.
It may not be as serious as last year thanks to the degree of vaccination, but it will be equally serious for some. The big worry at the moment is the delta variant, which is rampant in Portugal and to a lesser extent in Spain, which can expect large numbers of Belgian holidaymakers this summer. “For the whole of Spain, we count 110 infections per 100,000 inhabitants over a period of fourteen days. That is twice as many as in our country, which has an incidence of 45,” explained biostatistician Geert Molenberghs. “Portugal is doing even worse with 165. The number of infections is increasing very quickly. In greater Lisbon, this is already translating into increasing pressure on the hospital system.” “The Risk Assessment Group has put Portugal on a par with India, South Africa and Brazil,” said infectious diseases expert Erika Vlieghe.
From India, so: ivermectin.
• How To Prevent A Third Wave Of Covid-19 (NIE)
This is the first time in the history of a disease that its course is so anxiously charted and its possible surge predicted months in advance. Medical experts in India have forewarned of a third wave in the near future. Our government is pushing hard with vaccinations. But we have to ask the question: Even if vaccination is the best Covid terminator, is it the only one? All estimates confirm that it will take eight to ten months to vaccinate an adequate number of people in our country. During that time, those who are unprotected while waiting for the vaccine will be vulnerable to infection. As lockdowns are relaxed, the virus will spread. Given the likelihood and the dreaded implications of a third wave, we need to look at other possibilities of halting the virus.
People have the right to know: In 1979, two scientists Campbell and Omura discovered the drug Ivermectin, which was found to be effective against a number of parasitic infestations. The drug was produced by the pharmaceutical company Merck and in the last 40 years of its use, 3.7 billion tablets have been consumed worldwide. It figures in the WHO list of essential drugs. The two scientists were awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their discovery. Ivermectin is safer than commonly used medicines like Ibuprofen, paracetamol, penicillin and aspirin. In India, every medical practitioner is familiar with this drug that is also safe for children. However, parasitic infestations are the bane of economically backward countries in Africa and Asia. For the manufacturer, it is not a profit-making drug, so Merck did not renew its patent after the early years. Ivermectin is now being produced by several companies.
In 2020, during the early months of the pandemic, an Australian scientist experimenting with Ivermectin in vitro found that it killed the Covid-19 virus. He wrote about his findings and it was noted by a doctor working in a large government hospital in Bangladesh. He used Ivermectin on 60 patients and found that it cured most of them. Moreover, none of them developed any serious complications of the disease. As the news of this drug being effective in treating Covid spread, hundreds and then thousands of doctors began to use it all over the world. The results were extraordinary: When given in the early stage of viral replication (first five days) and along with other supportive vitamins, Ivermectin is far more effective than other more expensive drugs. In later stages of the disease also it works because of its anti-inflammatory properties that help avoid serious complications.
By August 2020, Ivermectin was being used in Bangladesh, Mexico, South Africa, Israel, Spain, Italy, Slovakia and Japan, besides in the US, UK and many countries in Europe. In India, a doctor in Deoria district of Uttar Pradesh has treated over 4,000 patients; another in Kandivali, Mumbai, has treated 6,000 (most of them from corporate houses) and a professor of ENT working in Mangaluru has treated over 4,000 patients. There are many others who have treated patients in large numbers. Those of us who work in smaller towns and rural areas have experience with several hundreds.
“People respond to the pandemic on their own. They’re invested in their own self-interest and self-preservation..”
• Shelter-in-Place Orders Didn’t Save Lives During The Pandemic – Study (WT)
A little-noticed study says government orders to “shelter in place” during the COVID-19 fight did not save lives and spurred an uptick in excess deaths in some places, especially overseas. Researchers from the RAND Corporation and the University of Southern California studied excess mortality from all causes, the virus or otherwise, in 43 countries and the 50 U.S. states that imposed shelter-in-place, or “SIP,” policies. In short, the orders didn’t work. “We fail to find that SIP policies saved lives. To the contrary, we find a positive association between SIP policies and excess deaths. We find that following the implementation of SIP policies, excess mortality increases,” the researchers said in a working paper for the National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER).
The increase was statistically significant in other countries in the weeks following the imposition of shelter-in-place orders. In the U.S., excess deaths rose in the weeks following the order before subsiding 20 weeks later under the orders. The findings undercut blue states that relied on stay-at-home methods as the treatment of choice throughout the pandemic, while providing a measure of vindication for GOP leaders who said they were harmful and that constituents could protect themselves. Former President Donald Trump told Americans to stay home to slow the spread in March 2020 but criticized ongoing shutdowns as counterproductive overreach throughout 2020. Researchers counted all excess deaths to avoid a messy debate over what constituted a COVID-19 death.
They pointed to reported upticks in deaths of despair — including drug overdoses, homicides, and unintentional injuries in 2020 — and delays in diagnosing other health conditions as part of the reason the orders fell flat. “There’s little evidence these policies saved lives and there is some evidence they led to an increase in deaths of despair,” Neeraj Sood, a study author and USC professor, told The Washington Times. He said government moves often lagged behind choices that individuals made to mitigate their risk of catching COVID-19, blunting the anticipated impact of shelter-in-place orders. “People respond to the pandemic on their own. They’re invested in their own self-interest and self-preservation,” he said.
“95% of the residents and 75% of staff were fully vaccinated..”
• Delta Variant Ravages Belgium Care Home: 55 Infected, 12 Dead (BT)
An investigation is underway into how a care home in Nivelles in Walloon Brabant came to be infected with the Delta variant of the coronavirus, while 95% of the residents and 75% of staff were fully vaccinated. According to the latest studies, the vaccines in use at present offer reliable protection against the Delta variant – the most virulent of the four variants so far uncovered. Yet the home suffered an infection of 55 of its 119 residents. Most suffered relatively mild symptoms – although symptoms among elderly and infirm people can quickly change from mild to something much worse. Nevertheless, 12 people died. According to figures from the health institute Sciensano, 34 people aged over 65 – not all of them in care homes – died in the week of 14 to 20 June in the entire country, down from 252 in the week of 4 to 11 April.
The investigation will now enquire into how the variant came to be present in the home, and why it had such a devastating effect. At the same time, it will look into the odd situation whereby, while residents were being felled by the Delta variant, staff were becoming infected with the Alpha variant, formerly known as the British or Kent variant. Did the presence of the Alpha variant somehow compromise the residents without producing symptoms, making them more vulnerable to the Delta variant? The investigation is being carried out by the national reference centre for Covid-19, and the familiar face of Emmanuel André of KULeuven, once the daily bringer of Covid news.
“..the facility could not afford to have more people off sick from potential vaccine side-effects..”
• Two-Thirds Of Staff Unvaccinated At Sydney Aged Care Home (G.)
Two-thirds of staff working at a Sydney aged care facility in the midst of a Covid outbreak are unvaccinated, SummitCare’s chief operating officer has confirmed, as New South Wales recorded a “pleasing” 16 local cases. Three aged care residents at the SummitCare Baulkham Hills facility in Sydney’s north-west tested positive on Saturday night, while two staff members were infected last week. The infected residents – a woman and man in their 80s and a man in his 90s – have since been moved to Westmead hospital as an infection control precaution. All three were fully vaccinated and none have become unwell or are displaying symptoms.
The facility has been placed into a 14-day lockdown. So far the other 149 residents have tested negative. Some 96% of residents were fully vaccinated. The outbreak has once again put the federal government’s sluggish vaccine rollout in the spotlight – especially for aged care staff who were meant to be prioritised. SummitCare’s chief operating office, Michelle Sloane, confirmed only one-third of the staff at the facility had received their vaccinations. “At this time, it is my understanding that about a third of our staff are vaccinated,” she said on Sunday. The federal opposition leader, Anthony Albanese, said that fact was “another reminder of this government’s incompetence when its comes to the rolling out of the vaccine”.
While there are now plans to ramp up the vaccination of SummitCare staff on-site, Sloane said this would need to wait until the end of the current outbreak as a large number of the regular staff had been forced into isolation and the facility could not afford to have more people off sick from potential vaccine side-effects. “We have had to furlough at least 70% of our registered nurses it is my understanding … basically we have no staff left there. They are all surge workforce,” Sloane said.
“This isn’t a battle by anti-vaxxers but a democratic battle..”
• 300 Italian Health Workers Challenge Covid-19 Vaccine Obligation (ST)
Three hundred healthcare workers in Italy have lodged a legal challenge against the requirement that they get vaccinated against coronavirus, according to media reports Saturday (July 3). The case, brought by professionals throughout northern Italy, will be heard on July 14. “This isn’t a battle by anti-vaxxers but a democratic battle,” constitutional lawyer Daniele Granara, who helped build up the case, was cited as saying in the Giornale di Brescia newspaper. “We force people to take a risk under threat of no longer being allowed to exercise their profession,” he added. Granara is also defending dozens of caregivers who have been suspended from work for refusing to be vaccinated.
Italy passed a law in April obliging anyone working in public or private social health positions, including in pharmacies and doctors’ offices, to get vaccinated against Covid-19 or be suspended without pay, unless their employer can reassign them to a less sensitive position. After the elderly and vulnerable, caregivers including teachers were the first to be vaccinated in Italy. A total of 52.7 million vaccine does have been administered throughout the country, and around 19.5 million Italians are now fully vaccinated, 36 per cent of the population over 12 years of age.
“The San Francisco policy requires all staff to report their vaccination status to the city no later than July 29 as a condition of employment.”
• San Francisco To 37,000 City Employees: Get Vaccinated Or Get Out (USAT)
In an announcement Wednesday evening, the city of San Francisco told its 37,000 employees they must either be vaccinated against COVID-19 within 10 weeks of the Food and Drug Administration giving final approval to a coronavirus vaccine, or lose their jobs. This would make San Francisco the first large U.S. city to require vaccination of all city employees. “It’s quite straightforward – it’s my job to protect the safety of our employees; I am exercising my duty under the San Francisco charter to do just that,” said Carol Isen, the human resources director for the city and county of San Francisco. The vaccination policy released by the city on Wednesday said “failure to comply with this policy may result in discipline up to and including termination of employment.”
Currently, all COVID-19 vaccines being used in the United States were approved by FDA under what’s known as an emergency use authorization, an expedited process. The emergency use is an authority that Congress gave to the FDA after the 9/11 terrorist attacks to allow countermeasures, treatments or vaccines to be available earlier than would be the case in a normal approval process. The full drug approval process takes longer. Some have used the fact that the Pfizer, Moderna and Johnson & Johnson vaccines have all been issued under emergency use as a reason to doubt their safety. Pfizer and its German collaborator BioNTech submitted an application to the FDA for full approval of their COVID-19 vaccine on May 7. Moderna did so on June 1.
The San Francisco policy requires all staff to report their vaccination status to the city no later than July 29 as a condition of employment. To do so, they must upload a copy of their COVID-19 vaccination card or documentation of vaccination from their health care provider. Medical exemptions will be available for employees with medical conditions that affect their eligibility for a vaccine, but those conditions must be verified by a medical provider. A “sincerely held religious belief that prohibits them from receiving a vaccine” could also be grounds for an exemption, according to the city’s vaccination policy. Those requests will be reviewed on a case-by-case basis. “The burden would be on the employee to establish a sincerely held religious belief,” Isen said.
Neil Oliver
'Are the adults of this country truly supporting the notion of standing behind a wall of safety built of our children and infants?'
Neil Oliver says the Government should 'leave our kids alone'
Watch GB News on Sky 515, Freeview 236, Virgin Media 626 and Freesat 216. pic.twitter.com/WSZxqAIEpu
— GB News (@GBNEWS) July 3, 2021
Just that of Navalny..
• No EU or NATO Summit Raised Question Of Fate Of Assange – Russia (Tass)
Official spokesperson of the Russian Foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova, after one of the witnesses admitted the accusation of perjury in the case against the founder of WikiLeaks Julian Assange, drew attention to the fact that the leaders of the EU or NATO countries did not touch on the fate of the journalist at any of the summits. In an interview with Stundin, Sigurdur Ingi Thordarson, a key witness in the US Department of Justice case against Julian Assange, admitted that he fabricated parts of his testimony. “And after all, not a single EU or NATO summit has even touched on the fate of Assange,” she wrote in her Telegram channel.
Zakharova recalled that the investigative journalist is now in a UK prison. “The term of his imprisonment, according to UK law, has long expired. But who cares about it in the West when there are so many interesting things east of liberalism,” she said. According to Zakharova, this story is a bad look for Western liberal values. In addition, the methods, she noted, are not entirely legal. “We are talking about outright pressure, blackmail, and judicial forgery. But for the American repressive power machine, the methods are justified by the goals,” she said.
We try to run the Automatic Earth on donations. Since ad revenue has collapsed, you are now not just a reader, but an integral part of the process that builds this site. Thank you for your support.
Support the Automatic Earth in virustime. Click at the top of the sidebars to donate with Paypal and Patreon.
