| Former top Justice Department official warns Trump may 'not cede power' Posted: 29 May 2020 06:05 PM PDT  A former top Justice Department official told Yahoo News she is deeply worried that President Trump could "delegitimize a lawful election" this November "and not cede power."
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| NY police commissioner says he's 'extremely proud' of department as videos surface showing officers using excessive force and plowing cars into protesters Posted: 31 May 2020 11:10 AM PDT  Dermot Shea censured demonstrators in New York, calling them "a mob bent solely on taking advantage of a moment in American history."
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| China's 'nervous' Xi risks new Cold War, last Hong Kong governor says Posted: 30 May 2020 12:12 AM PDT  Chinese President Xi Jinping is so nervous about the position of the Communist Party that he is risking a new Cold War and imperilling Hong Kong's position as Asia's pre-eminent financial hub, the last British governor of the territory told Reuters. Chris Patten said Xi's 'thuggish' crackdown in Hong Kong risked triggering an outflow of capital and people from the city which funnels the bulk of foreign investment into mainland China. The West, he said, should stop being naive about Xi, who has served as General Secretary of the Communist Party since 2012.
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| Boy Scout victims' choice: Sue rashly, or wait and risk loss Posted: 31 May 2020 06:08 AM PDT |
| Burkina Faso gunmen 'kill dozens' at cattle market in Kompienga Posted: 31 May 2020 08:22 AM PDT  The gunmen arrived on motorbikes, shooting into the crowded market, reports say.
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| The coronavirus has killed over 100,000 people in the US in just 4 months. This chart shows how that compares to other common causes of death. Posted: 31 May 2020 10:29 AM PDT  Heart disease typically kills about 200,000 Americans between February and May each year, but COVID-19 has been deadlier than other common causes.
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| Louisville police appear to shoot pepper rounds at reporters Posted: 29 May 2020 08:02 PM PDT  Footage from Wave 3 local news in Louisville, Ky., appears to show police shooting pepper rounds directly at news crew.
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| George Floyd protests: Woman who ‘lost eye’ tells people to keep demonstrating Posted: 31 May 2020 08:17 AM PDT  A woman who says she lost an eye during a protest over George Floyd's death has urged people to keep demonstrating.Linda Tirado, a journalist and photographer covering the protests in Minneapolis, the city where Floyd died after a police officer knelt on his neck for eight minutes, told people to "stay in the streets" for her.
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| Israeli forces shot and killed an autistic Palestinian man in Jerusalem as he walked to special needs school Posted: 31 May 2020 09:57 AM PDT  Israeli forces shot and killed an unarmed autistic Palestinian man on his way to a special needs school in Jerusalem's Old City on Saturday, prompting comparisons to the police violence in the US and accusations of excessive force by Israeli forces. In a statement, Israeli police said they spotted a suspect "with a suspicious object that looked like a pistol" and opened fire on 32-year-old Iyad Halak, when he failed to stop. No weapon was found on him. Israel's Channel 12 news station said members of the paramilitary border forces fired at Mr Halak's legs and chased him into an alley. A senior officer was said to have called for a halt to fire as they entered the alley, but a second officer ignored the command and fired six or seven bullets from an M-16 rifle. Mr Halak's father told AP that police later came and raided their home, but didn't find anything. The shooting has caused widespread outcry on social media with many comparisons to the racially-charged shooting and killing of George Floyd in the US last week. Benny Gantz, Israel's 'alternate' prime minister and defence minister apologised for the death of Mr Halak in a cabinet meeting on Sunday morning. Benjamin Netanyahu, the prime minister, made no mention of the incident in his opening remarks. Both officers were taken into custody and interrogated for several hours and an investigation has been opened. "We must resist the expected cover-up and make sure that the police will sit in jail," Ayman Odeh, the leader of the main Arab party in parliament, wrote on Twitter. "Justice will be done only when the Halak family, their friends and the rest of the Palestinian people know freedom and independence." Mr Halak had been on his way to the school for students with special needs when he was shot and killed, a trip that he made every day. According to the Times of Israel, his father told public broadcaster, Kan, that he suspected Mr Halak had been carrying his phone when he was spotted by the police. "We tell him every morning to keep his phone in his hand so we can be in contact with him and make sure he has safely arrived at the educational institution," his father reportedly said. In west Jerusalem, about 150 protesters, some pounding drums, gathered to demonstrate against police violence on Saturday. "A violent policeman must stay inside," they chanted in Hebrew. At a smaller protest in Tel Aviv, one poster read "Palestinian lives matter."
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| Cuomo pleads for calm after night of statewide protests Posted: 31 May 2020 12:55 PM PDT  The New York governor repeated what he announced Saturday, that Attorney General Letitia James would be overseeing an investigation into police behavior.
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| Venezuela raises fuel prices after arrival of Iranian oil tankers Posted: 30 May 2020 05:01 PM PDT  Venezuela will increase fuel prices in June, the president said, putting a limit on state subsidies that for decades had allowed citizens to fill their gas tanks virtually for free. Although the country has huge oil reserves, production has collapsed and Venezuelans are facing dire shortages -- exacerbated by the impact of COVID-19 on the economy. Beyond that, individuals will be required to pay international prices.
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| Supreme Court rejects challenge to limits on church services Posted: 29 May 2020 09:34 PM PDT  A divided Supreme Court on Friday rejected an emergency appeal by a California church that challenged state limits on attendance at worship services that have been imposed to contain the spread of the coronavirus. Over the dissent of the four more conservative justices, Chief Justice John Roberts joined the court's four liberals in turning away a request from the South Bay United Pentecostal Church in Chula Vista, California, in the San Diego area.
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| This high-tech Embraer private jet design seamlessly blends sustainability and technology. Take a look at Praeterra. Posted: 31 May 2020 05:26 AM PDT  The design is featured on the Praetor 600, the newest super-midsize private jet from Embraer that boasts a range of over 4,000 nautical miles.
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| Coronavirus' latest target? Rural counties. Posted: 31 May 2020 05:57 AM PDT  The number of COVID-19 cases is dropping nationally. But for rural counties, the worst appears yet to come.
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| Letters to the Editor: Stacey Abrams lost in Georgia, but she could lift Biden as his VP. Posted: 31 May 2020 03:00 AM PDT  Even with alleged voter suppression, Stacey Abrams came very close to winning in Georgia. She would make a great VP pick for Biden.
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| George Floyd protests: Police officers filmed being dragged along street in Chicago as unrest escalates across America Posted: 30 May 2020 04:25 PM PDT  Protests have erupted in more than two dozen cities across the US, as unrest continues to explode in the wake of the police killing of George Floyd, an African American man who died after being pinned to the ground by Minneapolis police officers and choked with a knee pressed against his throat.His death has galvanised furious protests as well as peaceful calls to action among Americans exhausted by police killings and disparate policing.
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| Boris Johnson blocks Corbyn’s recommendation for John Bercow peerage Posted: 31 May 2020 07:20 AM PDT  Boris Johnson has blocked Jeremy Corbyn's recommendation for John Bercow to receive a peerage over allegations of bullying by the former Speaker. Downing Street said it would not approve Labour's nomination of Mr Bercow for elevation to the upper chamber because there are outstanding concerns about his "propriety". Karie Murphy, Mr Corbyn's former chief of staff, was also blocked for appointment to the Lords over an Equalities and Human Rights Commission investigation into alleged institutional anti-Semitism in the Labour Party. The Jewish Labour Movement said her nomination was "deeply inappropriate". Ms Murphy denies all allegations of anti-Semitism. Officials at Downing Street informed Mr Corbyn his nominations would be rejected before he stepped down as leader, The Sunday Times reported. The House of Lords Appointments Commission had concerns about both Mr Bercow and Ms Murphy's "propriety". Mr Bercow, who stood down as Speaker at the end of October, was referred to the parliamentary commissioner of standards in January over allegations of bullying, which he denies. Commons officials accused him of creating a climate of "fear and intimidation" during his time in office, and a former clerk of the Commons said he used "sexually and racially inappropriate" language. Mr Bercow said the claim was "unadulterated rubbish". His nomination by Labour, which was greeted with surprise when it was leaked in January, cannot proceed to formal approval from the Queen without the backing of the Government. The rejection comes after Boris Johnson broke with tradition by refusing to nominate Mr Bercow for a peerage himself, which is customary of a Government after a Speaker's retirement. Dawn Butler, a Labour MP who ran for the deputy leadership of her party, said Mr Johnson's refusal to nominate Mr Bercow was in itself a "form of bullying". After the commission advised against Labour's nomination, Downing Street offered Mr Corbyn the option of replacing his nominees last month, allowing him to choose "antiwar" activists instead, the Sunday Times reported. Mr Corbyn is thought to have declined that offer after some consideration. The House of Lords Appointment commission, which does not comment on individual cases, said: "Our guidelines make clear that an individual must be in good standing in general and with the public regulatory authorities in particular."
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| #JusticeForUwa trends in Nigeria after student murdered in church Posted: 31 May 2020 08:42 AM PDT  The hashtag JusticeForUwa is trending after the killing of the 22-year-old woman.
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| Iran says virus cases surpass 150,000 Posted: 31 May 2020 11:49 AM PDT  Iran said its caseload of novel coronavirus infections passed the grim milestone of 150,000 on Sunday, as the country struggles to contain a recent upward trend. The government has largely lifted the restrictions it imposed in order to halt a COVID-19 outbreak that first emerged in mid-February. Ministry spokesman Kianoush Jahanpour said 2,516 new cases were confirmed across the country in the past 24 hours, bringing the total to 151,466.
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| People more important than the economy, pope says about Covid crisis Posted: 31 May 2020 04:48 AM PDT  Pope Francis said on Sunday that people are more important than the economy, as countries decide how quickly to reopen their countries from coronavirus lockdowns. Francis made his comments, departing from a prepared script, at the first noon address from his window overlooking St. Peter's Square in three months as Italy's lockdown drew to an end. "Healing people, not saving (money) to help the economy (is important), healing people, who are more important than the economy," Francis said.
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| Israeli police probe false claims in case against PM's wife Posted: 31 May 2020 11:59 AM PDT  Israeli police on Sunday said they were investigating whether two employees at Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's official residence gave false testimony in a civil case against his wife, Sara Netanyahu — reportedly in order to help her fend off accusations of mistreating a housekeeper. Sara Netanyahu faces a civil lawsuit from former employee Shira Raban, who claims the premier's wife mistreated her during a brief stint working at the residence. Israeli police confirmed an investigation "is being conducted with the approval of the Attorney General and the supervision of the State Attorney's Office."
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| Indianapolis riots leave 3 dead after 'multiple shootings' downtown, buildings damaged Posted: 31 May 2020 05:54 AM PDT  At least three people were killed after 'multiple shootings' were reported in downtown Indianapolis as protests over the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis turned into violent riots; Darius Johnson reports.
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| Family of Grand Princess passenger who died of coronavirus files suit against Carnival Posted: 31 May 2020 12:39 PM PDT  The family of a California cruise ship passenger who died of coronavirus has sued Princess Cruises and its parent company Carnival in federal court.
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| George Floyd protesters condemn 'opportunistic' looting and violence Posted: 31 May 2020 07:40 AM PDT  Minneapolis protesters spoke out in interviews, saying looting and violence is not being done in the name of George FloydProtesters in Minneapolis have condemned as "opportunistic" looting and violence taking place in cities across the US, saying it is not being done in the name of George Floyd, the 46-year-old African American man who was killed during an arrest this week.A police officer was charged with murder on Friday but Saturday night again saw widespread violence and unrest. In Minneapolis, some protesters spoke out in interviews with CNN, footage of which spread swiftly online.In one interview, a man who did not give his name addressed looters directly, saying: "Something is wrong with you."He said: "This is what I've got to say to the people who are destroying things. If you really feel like you have to take an opportunity, like if you're going to be opportunistic, something is wrong with you."If you cannot stand up and fight the good fight and you want to be a cheater and go ahead and take what we're trying to do, something is wrong with you. Because what we're trying to do is stand up for the basic right of humanity. And that's what we're trying to do and we're trying to do in a peaceful way."He added: "We do not want to go through this any more. OK? I want to be able to go in a white neighbourhood and feel safe. I want to be able, when a cop is driving behind me, I don't have to clench and be tense, OK?"I want to be able just to be free and not have to think about every step I take because at the end of the day, being black is a crime. At the end of the day, being born black is a crime to them and I don't understand why because we're all humans and that's sickening."Another protester said demonstrations staged in Floyd's name were peaceful."I don't think the looting and rioting is being done in George Floyd's name," he said. "What's being done in George Floyd's name is this type of gathering right now and we're going to try to keep this peace and morale the way it is."Our goal tonight is to keep the energy high and the tension low, we're going to keep that up."From the White House, Donald Trump has tweeted remarks interpreted as threatening protesters and claimed the demonstrations have been taken over by political agitators.Joe Biden, his presumptive opponent at the polls in November, has spoken in support of peaceful protest.On Sunday, mayors of cities affected by the violence voiced similar sentiments.Keisha Lance Bottoms, the Democratic mayor of Atlanta, told CBS's Face the Nation: "I think that there is a place in America for peaceful protest, and we know that peaceful protests have had a history of changing things in this country."But it has to be organised and it has to be for a purpose. And when you have violent eruptions like we've seen across America, then we lose sight of even what we are talking about."
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| British expat on frontline of Hong Kong protests says UK has abandoned former colony Posted: 30 May 2020 09:28 AM PDT  As pepper balls and rubber bullets rained down on the crowd of Hong Kong protesters crouched by the entrance of a carpark tunnel, protecting themselves from the riot police with flimsy umbrellas, a chill of terror swept over one young man as he dived for cover with his girlfriend. "I remember the moment when it felt like a truck hit the end of my umbrella, it was like it didn't even exist. I put my arm under [her] and said get your head down and our umbrellas were caving in," said the protester, who asked to be identified as Mark. That night in October Mark blended into the crowd of mainly black-clad protesters, most of them wearing face masks. But as one of the only British expats to join the front lines of the protests, he had a unique background. Speaking to the Sunday Telegraph as protests got back under way in Hong Kong last week he said he had taken to the streets of his adopted city because his own government had "turned its back" on the people of Hong Kong. The UK government this week offered a "path to citizenship" to almost three million Hong Kong residents as it condemned China's move to crush dissent in the former British colony. But Britain has been criticised for failing to act against the steady erosion of Hong Kong's rights and freedoms for years. It stands accused of doing too little too late to support the pro-democracy movement over the past year of civil unrest.
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| Coronavirus began spreading in the US in January — predating President Trump's travel restrictions and the detection of community transmission, CDC says Posted: 30 May 2020 11:55 AM PDT  CDC Director Robert Redfield said that the virus first circulated at low levels in the US so diagnostic tests would've missed it.
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| Tropical storm Amanda leaves 9 dead in El Salvador: officials Posted: 31 May 2020 12:59 PM PDT  Tropical storm Amanda, the first named storm of the season in the Pacific, lashed El Salvador and Guatemala on Sunday, leaving nine people dead amid flooding and power outages. El Salvador's President Nayib Bukele declared a state of emergency, announcing it on his Twitter account. "We have nine dead," Salvadoran Interior Minister Mario Duran said, adding that the toll could rise.
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| Philippine police arrest 90 Chinese for illegal gambling Posted: 31 May 2020 12:41 AM PDT  Philippine police have arrested 90 Chinese for allegedly running an online gambling hub without permits and for violating quarantine restrictions, officials said Sunday.
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| Coronavirus: Brazil now fourth-highest nation in Covid-19 deaths Posted: 31 May 2020 07:33 AM PDT  Brazil records almost 1,000 deaths in a day, taking its overall number of fatalities past France.
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| As Australia clashes with China, the European Union lays low Posted: 31 May 2020 07:52 AM PDT  A trade war with Beijing is no fun for anyone, but it's especially problematic for Canberra.
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| What Amtrak passengers need to know as train service comes back from coronavirus pandemic Posted: 31 May 2020 01:41 PM PDT  Amtrak turns 50 in 2021, but it could take years for the railroad to recover from the coronavirus pandemic fallout.
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| AOC slams Bill de Blasio for 'unacceptable' comments after mayor says police showed 'tremendous restraint' amid protests Posted: 31 May 2020 11:22 AM PDT  Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D—NY) slammed New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio over "unacceptable" remarks in which he defended the city's police department and said it showed "restraint" when responding to protests that erupted during the weekend.The progressive freshman Democrat issued a statement criticising the mayor's comments after videos posted online Saturday showed NYPD vehicles driving through a crowd of demonstrators taking part in the nationwide protests over the death of George Floyd. The 46-year-old unarmed black man was killed after pleading for air as a white officer kneeled on his neck for more than eight minutes, according to charging documents.
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| Labour whip resigns after breaking lockdown rules to meet married boyfriend Posted: 31 May 2020 06:58 AM PDT  A Labour MP has stepped down from her front bench position as whip after admitting she broke lockdown rules to meet her married lover. Rosie Duffield met her boyfriend for a long walk in April, while it was still against the lockdown rules to meet people from different households, the Mail on Sunday reported. She resigned as a whip on Saturday night and said she was "attempting to navigate a difficult personal situation". Ms Duffield, 48, was living separately from married father-of-three James Routh, pictured below, a TV director, when they went for a long walk in her constituency and he visited her home, it was reported. The MP for Canterbury told the Mail on Sunday the pair observed the two-metre social distancing rules, but these incidents were before meetings between people from different households were allowed.
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| Coronavirus live updates: Trump says U.S. will end support for WHO, as death toll nears 103,000 Posted: 30 May 2020 01:10 AM PDT  Here are the latest coronavirus updates from around the world.
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| Protests spread across NYC Saturday, more arrests after night of violence in Brooklyn Posted: 30 May 2020 07:52 PM PDT  For the third night in a row, protesters are coursing through the streets of New York City, with over 100 arrests, injuries to police officers and attacks on police vehicles, echoes of the violence that convulsed Brooklyn the night before.
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| As Minneapolis rioters set buildings ablaze, grocer pleads to save his stores Posted: 30 May 2020 05:26 PM PDT |
| US cities fear protests may fuel new wave of virus outbreaks Posted: 29 May 2020 10:18 PM PDT  The massive protests sweeping across U.S. cities following the police killing of a black man in Minnesota have sent shudders through the health community and elevated fears that the huge crowds will lead to a new surge in cases of the coronavirus. Minnesota's governor said Saturday that too many protesters weren't socially distancing or wearing masks after heeding the call earlier in the week. "It's not OK that in the middle of a pandemic we have to be out here risking our lives," Spence Ingram said Friday after marching with other protesters to the state Capitol in Atlanta.
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| Cemeteries braced for surge in Covid-19 dead as Mexico readies to reopen Posted: 30 May 2020 02:15 AM PDT  The president says the pandemic has been tamed but experts, and those who must bury the dead, fear an alarming rise in casesFour generations of Enrique Ruvalcaba's family have worked at the Mezquitán cemetery in the Mexican city of Guadalajara. None of them ever saw anything like this. Before the coronavirus, the burial ground was open to the public, and the deceased were honoured by flower-carrying mourners and mariachis. Now the dead arrive in silence and alone."Only the box came, not a single relative, just the coffin," Ruvalcaba, 32, said of the first Covid-19 burial he witnessed last month. "Absolutely everything has changed."The Guadalajara graveyard, which has added 700 tombs for an anticipated wave of Covid deaths, has yet to see a major increase of victims – but Ruvalcaba said gravediggers had been advised to prepare. "They've told us a more intense phase is coming," he said.Yet as Mexico's daily death toll rises to become one of the highest in the world – a record 501 fatalities were reported on Tuesday alone – the country is simultaneously preparing to reopen and weathering a politically charged battle over the true scale of the crisis."We're doing well, the pandemic has been tamed," Mexico's populist president, Andrés Manuel López Obrador, claimed on Thursday as he announced he would resume touring the country when a period of nationwide quarantine was wound down next week.Alejandro Macías, a leading infectious diseases specialist, said he understood and supported the need to plot out a return to some kind of normality for Mexico's 129 million citizens.Covid deaths in Mexico"It's good to have a plan and it is good for this plan to constantly put people's lives first," he said.But Macías, who was Mexico's influenza chief during the 2009 swine flu pandemic, said he was worried things were moving too fast, when the extent of the crisis remained unclear and different parts of the country were at different stages of transmission."The risk is that there will be another substantial rise in the number of cases and that this could cause some hospitals to collapse – and if the hospitals collapse this could put the security and governance of some regions at risk," Macías warned."In many parts of the republic the curve has barely started to rise."Macías said he suspected political pressure from López Obrador's year-old government and the United States – which is highly reliant on Mexican supply chains – explained the authorities' desire to promote the idea the crisis was under control."It is exactly like what is happening in the United States. The government there is also putting pressure on to show a certain normality and tranquillity when clearly they can't yet say they have the situation under control" and were still suffering "terrifying" Covid figures, Macías said."I feel there is a great deal of political pressure – much more in Mexico than in other parts of Latin America – because Mexico's industrial production is so tightly connected to industry in the United States. And they want to reopen but can't do so if Mexican industry doesn't reopen, because we are so integrated."Latin America's number two economy registered its first Covid case in late February and has since recorded more than 9,000 deaths and 81,400 cases, although the government admits the true number is probably considerably higher.One report this week found Mexico City had issued 8,000 more death certificates than usual between January and late May, suggesting a significantly higher death toll.López Obrador, who was criticized for his initially dismissive attitude to the pandemic, has been bullish about Mexico's response. On 26 April, with 1,351 deaths and 14,677 infections, he claimed it had managed "to tame" the coronavirus. But many are not so sure. A month after those claims, Mexico had suffered 9,044 deaths and 81,400 cases.Macías said it was likely many more had died. "Right now we have less than 10,000 recognized deaths. But it's very probable the true figure is substantially bigger – probably double that."Behind those statistics lie thousands of grieving families – some of which have lost multiple members to Covid-19.Karlo Colín, who works at a funeral home in Mexico City, said he and his colleagues had handled 60 coronavirus cases in the last three weeks. One family had lost five members, another four. "Every week a family member dies," Colín said.Despite the rising death toll, many Mexicans seem in denial. Even Colín, on the frontlines of the pandemic, admitted having doubts."A lot of people don't believe in the virus," the undertaker said. "There are times where I say, how is it possible that the guy giving me the body, at the centre of the infection, doesn't have protective equipment? Is this real or isn't it?"Adrián Carranza, a nursing student, has been conducting Covid-19 evaluations at Mexico City's main market, the Central de Abasto – and referring suspected patients for testing. He said that many vendors remained skeptical despite the deaths of several vendors."They'll say, sure, that guy over there died, but we don't know why," Carranza said.Carranza and his colleagues have faced harassment at the market, where about 40% of the stalls have shut down."Because of misinformation, more than anything else, they think we're hurting them, that we're going to inject them with the virus," he said. "They yell that we're murderers."As Mexico prepares to reopen, Guadalajara's gravediggers are readying themselves for the dead.Ruvalcaba, whose father, grandfather and great-grandfather all worked in the same cemetery, called his colleagues the hidden heroes of the Covid-19 crisis."It's a really noble line of work. People talk about the doctors and the nurses but nobody thinks about the people who are laying Covid's victims to rest," said Ruvalcaba, who has been digging tombs since he was 12."It's like doctors' work – only from the moment when the patient has gone to a better life," Ruvalcaba added. "And someone has to do it."
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| Florida’s Seen a ‘Statistically Significant’ Uptick in Pneumonia Deaths. The CDC Says It’s Likely COVID. Posted: 30 May 2020 11:08 PM PDT  Since the beginning of this year, Florida has experienced an uptick in the number of pneumonia and influenza deaths, according to data from the Centers for Disease and Control. Experts and Trump administration officials responsible for keeping tabs on mortality rates across the country believe that many of those individuals had likely contracted and died from COVID-19.According to the data from the CDC's National Center for Health Statistics, since the beginning of the year there has been a total of 1,519 deaths in Florida where pneumonia and influenza were listed as the underlying cause. By comparison, in the same time period last year, Florida recorded 1,207 such deaths. The CDC has historically counted pneumonia and influenza deaths together. CDC officials told The Daily Beast that most of the deaths included in that category are pneumonia. Bob Anderson, the chief of the Mortality Statistics Branch in CDC's National Center for Health Statistics, told The Daily Beast that the increase of deaths in Florida where pneumonia and influenza were the underlying cause was "statistically significant" and that those mortalities were "probably COVID cases that weren't reported as such." The coronavirus can cause lung complications such as pneumonia.The increase has sparked a conspiracy theory on the left, that Florida is deliberately trying to undercount coronavirus fatalities by labeling them as something else. There's no evidence to suggest any such underhand efforts, or that the state is unique across the country. But officials, including Anderson, do believe that a portion of the pneumonia and influenza deaths in Florida involved patients who were infected with, but never tested for, COVID-19. In such scenarios, though the virus likely contributed to the death, it may not have been recorded as the cause of death by the physician, coroner or medical examiner. "We're definitely experiencing an underreporting issue nationwide," Anderson said, pointing to the CDC's study of "excess deaths" during the coronavirus. "[In Florida] most likely what we're seeing are folks dying without having been tested and the best evidence that the doctors or whoever is filling out the death certificate had pointed to the person dying of pneumonia."Anderson added that the numbers currently reflected on the CDC's website for pneumonia and influenza deaths for 2020 are lower than reality because the death certificate reporting system lags by several weeks, especially in states that do not have digitized systems to process the papers. 'F*cking Dangerous': Dems in Pennsylvania Lose It After GOP Kept Virus Diagnosis a SecretThough other states are experiencing a similar phenomenon, there has been notable scrutiny placed on Florida, due to Gov. Ron DeSantis' (R) handling of the coronavirus response and his decision to move to quickly reopen the state. DeSantis allowed some Florida beaches to reopen in the middle of April, even as the number of coronavirus cases and related deaths continued to rise across the state. The governor has since criticized members of the press for rushing to warn that Florida would experience a spike in COVID-19 cases, and calling his actions cavalier. Conservative and Trump supportive commentators have pointed to the absence of a notable uptick as evidence that fears of a hasty reopening were overblown. DeSantis' office did not return a request for comment. But the actual story, like much related to the pandemic, appears to be more complicated. And it underscores how much of the public's understanding of, and opinions about, the pandemic are affected by bureaucratic decisions and accounting formulas related to categorizing fatalities. As The Daily Beast previously reported, President Trump and members of his coronavirus task force have pressed the CDC to change how the agency works with states to count coronavirus-related deaths, arguing for revisions that could lead to far fewer deaths being attributed to the disease. The administration has also moved to allow nursing homes the ability to only report coronavirus deaths that occurred after May 6—well after facilities across the country experienced a massive uptick in coronavirus-related deaths. States, as well, have different methods of collecting relevant data and calculating COVID-19 death counts and that, in turn, has sowed speculation about political motivations. On that front, few governors have been as closely watched as DeSantis. Part of that is because of his close relationship with the president. Part of that is because of decisions he has made. Earlier this month the DeSantis administration fired Rebekah Jones, the data manager for the Florida Department of Health who worked on the state's coronavirus online dashboard. In a statement posted to her website, Jones said she was removed from her position because she pushed back when officials in the health department asked her to "manipulate and delete data in late April as work for the state's reopening plan started to take off." The DeSantis administration has since said Jones was fired for insubordination.FL Gov. Overrides County Officials to Allow Church During Coronavirus LockdownWith Florida already under a national microscope, news of the state's pneumonia fatalities circulated on social media this week as liberals accused DeSantis and members of his administration of manipulating data and deliberately downplaying the number of coronavirus deaths. Howard Dean, the former Democrat governor from Vermont, commented on Florida's statistics Thursday, going so far as to accuse Florida of "cooking the books on COVID-19 deaths." Andy Slavitt, the former Acting Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, said while Florida appears to have the coronavirus under control, it was experiencing an "unprecedented 'pneumonia' crisis."But Anderson said it is unlikely that a physician with a patient who tested positive for the coronavirus would have marked anything other than COVID-19 as the underlying cause on the death certificate. If individuals die, for example, in their homes or in nursing facilities without having been tested, a medical examiner or coroner could hypothetically mark the individual as having died of pneumonia. That scenario would have likely played out in the early days of the coronavirus outbreak when testing was difficult to access and when physicians were still learning how the coronavirus presented itself, Anderson said. According to a report by the Miami Herald, officials inside the DeSantis administration kept the Florida public in the dark in February for about two weeks as they scrambled to come up with a plan on how to respond to the state's outbreak. A similar phenomenon took place in Flint after a switch in water supply exposed thousands of people to lead poisoning and caused one of the largest outbreaks of Legionnaires' disease in U.S. history. Last year, a team of reporters at PBS Frontline found that there may have been about 70 more deaths from Legionnaires' during the outbreak than the 12 that were officially recorded. But because the government was not forthcoming about the crisis, doctors were not alerted to it and therefore did not know to look or test for the disease. Many people who died of Legionnaires' disease were originally reported as having died from other causes, such as pneumonia. Donald Trump Is Gaslighting Andrew Cuomo and Sucking Up to Ron DeSantisCurrently, health officials and statisticians are researching how many of the states' "excess deaths" over the last several months should be attributed to the coronavirus. One study by the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene published earlier this month said that there were thousands of "excess deaths" in the city from March 11 to May 2. About 18,879 of those deaths were explicitly tied to the coronavirus. But the study said there were also an additional 5,200 deaths that were not identified as either laboratory-confirmed or probable COVID-19-associated cases, but could have been tied to the virus in some other way. At the CDC, officials found 1,500 individuals who were mistakenly overlooked in the first few weeks the agency was calculating the coronavirus death count, and Anderson's team is now going back and correcting those calculations to produce a more accurate death toll.The CDC relies largely on the state department of health systems and a reporting system that is more than 100 years old to calculate the annual death toll in the U.S.. When an individual dies, a doctor, coroner or medical examiner records on the death certificate a sequence of events that contributed to that person's demise and what ultimately caused it. The certificate then goes to the state's registrar, or sometimes a funeral director, who examines the certificate and determines whether to send it back to the physician, coroner or medical examiner for more information. Once the state registrar is satisfied with the certificate, he or she sends it on to the state's department of health. Then, the state sends portions of data from the death certificate onto the CDC. Anderson's team is charged with using that death certificate data, along with data from a national digital coding system, to tabulate causes of death per state each year. The emergence of the coronavirus strained the reporting system in a way that has led to a significant national undercounting, Anderson said, adding that the death-certificate count usually lags anywhere from two to eight weeks. "We've never experienced anything like this before," Anderson said. "We're still learning new things about this virus every day. The reporting will only get better."Read more at The Daily Beast.Get our top stories in your inbox every day. Sign up now!Daily Beast Membership: Beast Inside goes deeper on the stories that matter to you. Learn more.
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| Airlines schedule major increase in flights in July as pressure mounts on ministers to ease quarantine Posted: 30 May 2020 11:44 AM PDT  Airlines have scheduled a dramatic increase in flights in July in anticipation that Governments will lift travel restrictions for holidaymakers and save the industry from potential collapse, according to data seen by The Sunday Telegraph. The companies which have already laid off tens of thousands of workers are banking on a "V-shaped" recovery by scheduling 161,200 passenger flights and 29.5 million seats for July, just eight per cent down on last year's July timetables. The strategy to open up business travel and holiday routes to hotspot favourites like Greece, Italy, France and Spain comes as most European countries are preparing to lift their quarantines or open their borders in mid June or at least by July 1. It will increase pressure on Boris Johnson to make good his suggestion last week that the UK's quarantine - to be introduced on June 8 - could be replaced with "air bridges" to low-risk holiday destinations when it is reviewed on June 29. One senior industry source claimed: "The sense is that they might quietly do a U-turn after the first review period. Grant Shapps [the Transport Secretary] is against quarantine, the Treasury are against it, Beis is against it and DCMS hate it." The exclusive data, from Cirium, a travel analytics firm, shows how the coronavirus pandemic devastated the aviation industry as it tore across the world. Scheduled passengers were 22.5 million in February, 10 per cent up on last year before it slumped by 93 per cent in April and May. It has risen in June to 38.5 per cent down on last year, as the Far East has opened up, and rises to just minus eight per cent in July as airlines anticipate Europe unlocking. June and July are "scheduled" rather than actual flights, which will depend on quarantines easing in June and July. Germany has lifted restrictions, Italy wants to resume travel on June 15, and Spain and Portugal are aiming for July 1. France hopes to drop border controls to and from EU countries after June 15 except with countries that impose quarantine on a "reciprocal" basis, namely the UK. Greece has excluded the UK from a "white list" of 29 countries it judges are low-risk enough from which to accept tourists from June 15 without quarantine although it will open up to more countries after it reviews their infection rates at the end of June. British Airways says it is aiming for a "meaningful return" to flying in July, RyanAir plans to ramp up flights to at least 40 per cent of its normal July schedule and EasyJet, which has laid off one in three staff, hopes to operate 30 per cent of its pre-crisis timetable from July to September. Paul Charles, chief executive of PC Consultancy, which advises the tourist industry, said Britain's quarantine risked "killing" the economy. "Travel companies have not had any bookings for April or May. They are worried that if they don't get them in June, they will go under," he said. The Airport Operators' Association (AOA) has urged ministers to aim for the first "air bridges" to "low risk" destinations by June 8 so that holidaymakers can sidestep quarantine and the requirement to self-isolate for 14 days on their return to the UK. The Department for Transport will shortly publish new guidelines for "safe" travel which will include face coverings or masks throughout the journey, temperature checks, social distancing in airports and contactless travel including for check-ins and payments. An AOA spokesman said: "Once these guidelines are agreed and given that they are based on a common European baseline, this puts in place the right conditions for opening up air bridges to low-risk countries." The Home Office which has led the moves to introduce quarantine has, however, warned that it will block attempts to lift the quarantine unless it is safe and there is no risk of it sparking a second wave of coronavirus. A Department for Transport source said: "There is certainly a willingness in Government to do as much for this Summer as is safe." Post-coronavirus air travel: No travel if you have symptoms If ill, no cost re-booking or refunds up to six hours before flying Face masks or coverings from arrival at airport to leaving terminal at destination Only passengers in the terminal, no tearful goodbyes at departure gates Contact-less electronic check-in and boarding Social distancing and one-way systems for waiting and queuing passengers Airports' association pressing for temperature checks Exemption from two-metre rule on plane No on-board duty free, reduced food and drink service, pre-packaged food and cashless payments
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| Hong Kong officials say Trump 'completely wrong' to end city's special status Posted: 29 May 2020 06:02 PM PDT  Hong Kong officials lashed out on Saturday at moves by U.S. President Donald Trump to strip the city of its special status in a bid to punish China for imposing national security laws on the global financial hub. Speaking hours after Trump said the city no longer warranted economic privileges and that some officials could face sanctions, security minister John Lee told reporters that Hong Kong could not be threatened and would push ahead with the new laws. "I don't think they will succeed in using any means to threaten the (Hong Kong) government, because we believe what we are doing is right," Lee said.
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| Iran suggests up to 225 killed in November protests Posted: 31 May 2020 09:46 AM PDT  Iran's interior minister has suggested that up to 225 people were killed in November protests sparked by a petrol price hike, ISNA news agency reported on Sunday. Officials in Iran have yet to issue an overall death toll for the unrest, while London-based human rights group Amnesty International has put the number at more than 300. The protests erupted on November 15 in several cities and rapidly spread to at least 100 cities and towns, with petrol pumps torched, police stations attacked and shops looted, before being put down by security forces amid a near-total internet blackout.
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