In the news, Friday, May 22, 2020

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MAY 21      INDEX      MAY 23

________

________

from BBC News (UK)

Canada v US: Loon stabs eagle through heart
As with global affairs, nature has its pecking order. And in a contest between the bald eagle, America's national bird, and a common loon, which is featured on Canada's dollar coin, few would bet on the latter to come out the victor. But sometimes the underdog comes out on top, as was revealed when an eagle was found dead in the water near a dead loon chick in a Maine lake. A necropsy revealed he was killed by a stab to the heart from a loon's beak.

________

from Episcopal News Service

Texas Supreme Court rules against Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth in property dispute
The Fort Worth Court of Appeals issued a 178-page opinion April 5 in favor of the loyal Episcopalians of the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth. In a decision authored by the chief justice, the Court of Appeals reversed the trial court’s 2015 judgment for the breakaway parties and held that Episcopalians are entitled to control both the Episcopal Diocese of Fort Worth and its corporation.

________

from The Spokesman-Review

Newspaper in Spokane, Washington

________

In the news, Thursday, May 21, 2020

________

MAY 20      INDEX      MAY 22

________

________

from The Archive

Germanicus: The Great Military Mind of Ancient Rome

In the long line of Caesars, there are many notable figures. Some are more memorable than others, and each contributed to Rome's culture and its lasting memory. The Roman Empire of antiquity was never an entirely stable entity. During the Julio-Claudian dynasty, matters weren't altogether peachy. The period was marked with subversion, acts of assassination, and other political turmoil. Fraught with unrest from numerous sides, the nation's borders also faced militaristic upheaval.

________

from The Atlantic  Magazine

‘How Could the CDC Make That Mistake?’
The government’s disease-fighting agency is conflating viral and antibody tests, compromising a few crucial metrics that governors depend on to reopen their economies. Pennsylvania, Georgia, Texas, and other states are doing the same.

________

from FEE (Foundation for Economic Education)

RIGHT-CENTER BIAS, HIGH, non-profit organization

Massive Inflation May Be Coming, Because the US Government Has Cornered Itself into a Fiscal End Game

The federal government is moving into the final stages of its fiscal life. Deficits have gotten so enormous that the Federal Reserve simply prints the money the government needs. Why? Because that’s the only option left on the table. For years, we have warned that continued deficit spending would paint the Federal Reserve into a corner wherein monetary policy would become a slave to fiscal policy. To avoid government default, confiscatory taxes, government shutdown, or a combination of all three, the Federal Reserve has reached a point wherein it has little choice but to monetize federal deficits. Sooner or later, we will all pay the price in the form of massive inflation.

________

from The Hill

LEAST BIASED, MOSTLY FACTUAL, News & Media Website in Washington, D.C.

CDC acknowledges mixing up coronavirus testing data
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) acknowledged Thursday that it is combining the results from viral and antibody COVID-19 tests when reporting the country's testing totals, despite marked differences between the tests. First reported by NPR's WLRN station in Miaimi, the practice has drawn ire from U.S. health experts who  say combining the tests inhibits the agency's ability to discern the country's actual testing capacity.

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from HumanProgress.org  Education Website

Centers of Progress, Pt. 3: Mohenjo-Daro (Sanitation)
The city of Mohenjo-Daro pioneered new standards of urban sanitation.

________

from National Geographic

The story of New France: the cradle of modern Canada
France flirted with the New World for years, but it took several attempts to make French settlement stick. Between the 16th and 18th centuries, French settlers finally managed to take hold of a wild and wealthy land and turn it into an influential colonial outpost. New France, as this land was once called, consisted of five colonies that covered a massive swath of North America, stretching from Hudson Bay in the north to the Gulf of Mexico in the south. The land became home to fur traders, state-sponsored brides, soldiers—and the indigenous people who had been there for thousands of years. The intertwined lives of the people of 1690s New France are depicted in the upcoming National Geographic limited series Barkskins, which premieres on Memorial Day. Based on the bestselling novel by Annie Proulx, the eight-part series explores a mysterious massacre that threatens to throw the region into war and reveals the tensions and complexities of French colonization in North America.

________

from RealClearPolitics

 RIGHT-CENTER BIAS, MOSTLY FACTUAL Media/News Company

How Fear, Groupthink Drove Unnecessary Global Lockdowns
In the face of a novel virus threat, China clamped down on its citizens. Academics used faulty information to build faulty models. Leaders relied on these faulty models. Dissenting views were suppressed. The media flamed fears and the world panicked. That is the story of what may eventually be known as one of the biggest medical and economic blunders of all time. The collective failure of every Western nation, except one, to question groupthink will surely be studied by economists, doctors, and psychologists for decades to come.

________

from Reuters

International news agency headquartered in London, UK

Hundreds killed in South Sudan tribal clashes - ICRC
Hundreds of civilians, including three aid workers, were killed in a series of tribal clashes in villages in South Sudan’s vast Jonglei state, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said on Thursday. The territory of South Sudan has been plagued for decades by ethnic clashes over cattle and land, as well as blood feuds. But violence has risen in recent months after the government in February designated ten new states, including Jonglei, but failed to agree on governor appointments, creating a power vacuum. ICRC warned that COVID-19 restrictions have made it more difficult to evacuate wounded by air and to provide surgical care for trauma injuries. They said more lives will be lost if violence keeps escalating.

________

from The Spokesman-Review

Newspaper in Spokane, Washington

Sue Lani Madsen: Inslee should be more open about using pandemic to meet his climate change goals
Gov. Jay Inslee, the presidential candidate, talked of nothing but climate change. Inslee, the candidate for a third term as Washington’s governor, has of necessity been talking nothing but COVID-19 for the past two months. He tied the two together while a panelist at a virtual town hall live-streamed at berniesanders.com on May 13. The event was titled “Saving Our Planet from the Existential Threat of Climate Change,” and fellow panelist Varshini Prakash, executive director of the Sunrise Movement, had just discussed the Green New Deal. Inslee was up next. In his own words: “It is such a no-brainer at this moment with the COVID crisis that has precipitated this enormous economic challenge. We should not miss an opportunity to drive home what Varshini was talking about, that this has enormous backing in our constituents to understand the economic necessity of this. And we should not be intimidated when people say, ‘Oh, you can’t use this COVID crisis, you know, to peddle a solution to climate change.’ ”

Inslee decries Spokane businesses violating order
Despite tough talk from Gov. Jay Inslee, some Spokane-area businesses have opened despite not appearing to fit the definition of essential businesses under state COVID-19 restrictions. JOANN Fabric and Crafts indicated online it is open for curbside business. But the stores were bustling with in-store shoppers Tuesday at the retailer’s store at 1840 W. Francis Ave. Last week, Hobby Lobby stores opened after its corporate lawyers reached out to the Spokane City Attorney’s Office. The stores remained open Tuesday, with employees all wearing masks. The Spokane Valley store had protective barriers to separate cashiers from customers. In addition to the craft stores, three Spokane Valley bars have opened prior to easing of state restrictions.

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In the news, Wednesday, May 20, 2020

________

MAY 19      INDEX      MAY 21

________

________

from BBC News (UK)

There has been a spike in poaching in many countries during lockdown – as well as being bad for wildlife, that raises our risk of exposure to new viruses.
PPictures of smog-free skies and videos of lions and hyenas strutting across fairways could easily lead you to believe that nature is thriving during the coronavirus pandemic. For some species, lockdown may indeed be good news. For many other wild animals, however, that couldn’t be further from the truth. That’s because lockdown means many things: in the cities of rich countries, it means less traffic on the roads and less pollution, which can give wildlife space to thrive. But in rural parts of poor countries, it means some people are being driven to extremes to support themselves through poaching.

________

from Fox News (& affiliates)

Doctors raise alarm about health effects of continued coronavirus shutdown: 'Mass casualty incident'
More than 600 doctors signed onto a letter sent to President Trump Tuesday pushing him to end the "national shutdown" aimed at slowing the spread of the coronavirus, calling the widespread state orders keeping businesses closed and kids home from school a "mass casualty incident" with "exponentially growing health consequences." The letter outlines a variety of consequences that the doctors have observed resulting from the coronavirus shutdowns, including patients missing routine checkups that could detect things like heart problems or cancer, increases in substance and alcohol abuse, and increases in financial instability that could lead to "[p]overty and financial uncertainty," which "is closely linked to poor health." "We are alarmed at what appears to be the lack of consideration for the future health of our patients," the doctors say in their letter. "The downstream health effects ... are being massively under-estimated and under-reported. This is an order of magnitude error."

________

from HumanProgress.org

Education Website

Matt Ridley: How Innovation Works

From testing, to cures, to developing a vaccine, to creative and practical methods of physical distancing, the solution to the current crises is more innovation, not less.

When you think about it, what has happened to human society in the last 300 years is pretty weird. After trundling along with horses and sailboats, slaves and swords, for millennia, we suddenly got steam engines and search engines, and planes and cars and electricity and computers and social media and DNA sequences. We gave ourselves a perpetual motion machine called innovation. The more we innovated, the more innovation became possible.

________

from Mises Institute
RIGHT-CENTER BIAS, MIXED

We’re All in This Together. But Not in the Way You Think.
We are all interdependent through the production of goods and services that constitutes the market order. Some critics of the current crisis see it as yet another case of the rich getting one over on the rest of us. I will argue that this cannot be correct, because the rich as well as the poor (and the middle class) depend on the freedom to produce, and are all harmed by the lack of it.

Do Lockdowns Work? Mounting Evidence Says No
Most of the world's regimes enthusiastically destroyed their economies and consigned millions to destitution (and a rising tide of resulting health problems) in pursuit of a trendy and unproven theory. There's still not evidence that the lockdowns worked.

Let's Hope Deflation Is Headed Our Way
Central banks have decided that one of their main missions is to prevent deflation. But this only ends up causing the malinvestments that lead to economic busts.

________

from National Defense Magazine

Magazine published by National Defense Industrial Association (NDIA)

Finland Upgrading Military Capabilities
The Finnish Defence Force is developing new capabilities so it can operate more independently without the help of neighboring countries, according to an official. Raimo Jyväsjärvi, director general of the Ministry of Defence of Finland’s resource policy department and national armaments director, said the country’s unique geographical position next to Russia and the Arctic requires it to have a strong, self-sustaining military. “Finland’s isolated geographical position from the industrial clusters of Europe … compels Finland to insert self-sustaining capability for critical capability areas,” he said at the U.S.-Finland Defense and Security Industry Seminar. The government spends about 1.5 percent of its gross domestic product on defense. However, this is expected to increase to 2 percent in the 2020s due to a boost in investment in strategic capability programs, he said during the event, which was hosted by the National Defense Industrial Association in Washington, D.C.

________

from The National Interest  Magazine

U.S. Navy Fears Them: Sweden AIP Submarines Are Even Stealthier Than Ever
Despite staying on the sidelines during both World Wars and continuing to remain non-aligned in the Cold War, since the 1960s, Sweden has been seen as a mini-super power at least in terms of submarine warfare when the notoriously neutral Scandinavian nation modernized its fleet. This included the Gotland-class submarines, which were built at the Kockums shipyard in the 1990s and the first to feature a Stirling engine Air-Independent Propulsion (AIP) system. That allowed the boats to extend their time underwater endurance from a few days to weeks, a capability that had previously only been available with nuclear-powered submarines. Diesel engine submarines typically need to surface every few days or draw in air from the snorkel to recharge the batteries. In the case of AIP the batteries are saved for times when the submarines need speed but otherwise cruise on the AIP.

________

from National Review  RIGHT BIAS

The Lies We Live By
‘As I said from day one, I’m not going to choose between public health and economic activity.” So insists Governor Andrew Cuomo of New York. That is a lie, of course. Everybody knows it is a lie, beginning with Governor Cuomo. We are going to choose between public health and economic activity. We are going to try to strike some intelligent balance between competing concerns, and, even if we do our very best, innocent people are going to get hurt on both sides of that balance, and some of them will surely die — either from COVID-19 or from the economic consequences of the lockdown.

________

from The Spokesman-Review

Newspaper in Spokane, Washington

Spokane County health officer makes masks mandatory in public – but rule won’t be enforced
As officials press to ease restrictions on businesses and reopen parts of the Spokane County economy, they are urging residents to wear masks. Spokane County Health Officer Dr. Bob Lutz issued a directive on Wednesday that says residents must wear face coverings at indoor or confined public settings when they will be within 6 feet of another person with whom they don’t live.

________

In the news, Tuesday, May 19, 2020

________

MAY 18      INDEX      MAY 20

________

________

from ABC News (& affiliates)

TV Network in New York, New York

Pier 1 to go out of business and close all 540 stores
Pier 1, the seller of wicker chairs and scented candles, said it will go out of business and permanently close all 540 of its stores. The Fort Worth, Texas- based company said Tuesday that it was unable to find a buyer for its business after filing for bankruptcy protection earlier this year.

________

from BBC News (UK)

Shakespeare's Globe theatre calls for urgent funds to avoid insolvency
Shakespeare's Globe Theatre has called for urgent funding to avoid going out of business due to the "devastating" impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The London venue has been shut since 20 March and has warned MPs it is "critically vulnerable and at risk of closure in the wake of Covid-19". It said it would need at least £5m to get back up and running. .... The theatre has now warned it faces the "biggest threat to its future since opening in 1997". Shakespeare's Globe, a replica of an Elizabethan playhouse, has played host to actors including Sir Ian McKellen, Christopher Plummer, Dame Judi Dench, Jude Law, Ralph Fiennes and David Tennant.

________

from Forbes

One Of Russia’s Most Advanced Missile Systems Captured In Libya

The Pantsir-S1, known to NATO as the SA-22 Greyhound, combines both guns and missiles. It is reputed to be able to intercept cruise missiles and has been extensively used by Assad’s forces in Syria. Despite its potency, or possibly because of it, it has been a target of choice for both Turkish and Israeli air strikes in Syria. What is less well known is that it has been present in the Libyan Civil War as well.

________

from The Guardian (UK)

LEFT-CENTER, HIGH, British daily newspaper published in London UK

Cambridge University moves all lectures online until summer 2021
Cambridge has become the first university to set out measures for the full 2020-21 academic year, announcing that it will move all “face-to-face lectures” online for the duration. The institution added that it was “likely” social distancing would continue to be required. The university said lectures would continue virtually until summer 2021, while it may be possible for smaller teaching groups to take place in person if it “conforms to social-distancing requirements”.

________

from The Heritage Foundation
RIGHT BIAS,  MIXED  American conservative think tank based in Washington, D.C.

Denmark Is Not a Socialist Economic Nirvana
A recent New York Times op-ed observed that “Danes haven’t built a ‘socialist’ country. Just one that works.” A more precise observation would have been that Denmark has built a free-market democracy that works for Danes. Given the fact that America is a much larger and far more diverse and multifaceted nation than Denmark, comparing the two countries’ economic systems is not always straightforward. For example, the competitive Nordic nation is an economy of 5.6 million people living in an area half the size of South Carolina. The Danish case reflects a resilient commitment to economic freedom that is based on a high degree of mutual trust between individuals and government. We should focus on how to emulate its free-market policies that have advanced economic freedom, not big-government socialism.

________

from Mises Institute
RIGHT-CENTER BIAS, MIXED

Krugman: We Need More Unemployment—to Save Us from Unemployment
It has been a long time since I read anything by Paul Krugman, and seeing his most recent column simply reminds me why I’ve not missed anything. As both an extreme Keynesian and political partisan, he long ago abandoned economic analysis for something economists should recognize as nothing less than what Mises called metaphysics.

How Modern Economics Has Lost Its Way: It's All About the "Unseen"
Economics has lost its way and the study has become both impotent and lacking in relevance. It's easy to see how and why once we recognize that proper economic thinking takes place two steps beyond the apparent. Noneconomists typically take none of these steps, while modern economics has lost the ability to go beyond the first. The difference between modern economics and proper economic thinking lies in taking the step that comes after arriving at the "unseen," to the "unrealized."

________

from The Spokesman-Review

Newspaper in Spokane, Washington

________

from The Washington Post

Newspaper in Washington, D.C.

Citing financial cost of pandemic, House liberals demand cut in military spending
Twenty-nine of the House’s most liberal Democratic members called Tuesday for a cut in military spending in the yearly national defense authorization bill — a declaration, they said, that is meant to focus federal resources on the coronavirus pandemic. The demand, however, stands to greatly complicate the Democratic-controlled House’s ability to advance the National Defense Authorization Act, one of the most consequential must-pass measures that Congress assembles each year. It is likely to generate objections from Republicans and more moderate Democrats alike — and create headaches for Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) and her leadership team.

________

from Yahoo News

LEFT-CENTER BIAS, HIGH, news website owned by Verizon Media

Trump wants to 'terminate' all trade deals that bring foreign cattle to US
Donald Trump on Tuesday called on federal officials to cancel all trade deal with other countries that include cattle imports. "We have a lot of cattle in this country," he said of the United States. "I think you should look at the possibility of terminating those deals." Mr Trump appeared to be directing his order to Agriculture Secretary Sonny Perdue during an event on directing funds allocated by Congress in coronavirus relief legislation to American farmers and its agriculture sector, which have been hit hard by the Covid-19 pandemic.

________

In the news, Monday, May 18, 2020

________

MAY 17      INDEX      MAY 19

________

________

from FactCheck.org

False Perception of COVID-19’s Impact on the Homeless
Viral posts suggest that COVID-19 can’t be a serious disease if it hasn’t “wiped out the homeless.” But recent reports published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have found high rates of homeless residents testing positive for the novel coronavirus, known as SARS-CoV-2.

________

from Hoover Institution
Nonprofit Organization in Stanford, California

Space—The Final Military Frontier?
Late last week defense leaders presented the flag of the newly created U.S. Space Force to President Donald Trump in a ceremony in the Oval Office. The new Space Force emblem, eerily reminiscent of the logo for Starfleet Command in the Star Trek sci-fi series, now takes its place alongside those of the five other U.S. armed services. Proponents have argued the need for a separate military service to ensure U.S. domination of space, while critics have questioned the need for an expensive new headquarters to manage military activities better kept under the control of the U.S. Air Force. To gain perspective on the arguments surrounding the creation of the Space Force, an examination of the history surrounding the creation of the other branches of the military is in order.

________

from Mises Institute
RIGHT-CENTER BIAS, MIXED

Thanks to Shutdowns, Many Will Learn That Public Schooling Isn't All That Essential After All
Panic over the COVID-19 virus has led to the closure of many schools and new forays into education outside the government school system. Many will find that they don't need the state's schools at all.

________

from The Spokesman-Review

Newspaper in Spokane, Washington

________

from TASS (Russian News Agency)

Russia to begin clinical trials of anti-coronavirus vaccine in one month
Russia plans to begin clinical trials of an anti-coronavirus vaccine in a month, Russian Health Minister Mikhail Murashko said on Monday. "Russia manufactures more than 20 testing systems. It is developing full-cycle medicines, which are ready for clinical use. Serious work is being done to develop vaccines for preventive immunization against the disease. It is planned to begin their clinical trials in a month," the ministry’s press service quoted Murashko as saying at the 73rd session of the World Health Assembly.

________

from UPI News Agency (United Press International)

Media/News Company

U.S. blasts WHO's coronavirus response, says failure 'cost many lives'
The United States harshly criticized the World Health Organization's response to the coronavirus pandemic Monday, saying the global agency's "failure cost many lives." U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar, speaking during the WHO's two-day virtual World Health Assembly, repeated criticisms of the organization made last month by U.S. President Donald Trump, who pulled its funding after accusing it of "mishandling" and "covering up" the coronavirus outbreak.

Global trial to assess chloroquine against COVID-19 in health workers
More than 50,000 healthcare workers worldwide will be enrolled in a clinical trial to assess chloroquine's potential in protecting against COVID-19, researchers at the Washington University of St. Louis School of Medicine announced Monday. The U.S. arm of the study, which will begin enrolling participants later this month, is being led by the school. Results are expected in early 2021, researchers said. "Because of their repeated close contacts with infected patients, frontline healthcare workers in all parts of the world have a higher risk of contracting COVID-19 than most members of the general public," principal investigator Michael S. Avidan, head of the Department of Anesthesiology at WUSTL, said in a press release.

________

In the news, Sunday, May 17, 2020

________

MAY 16      INDEX      MAY 18

________

________

from The Spokesman-Review

Newspaper in Spokane, Washington

Helga Estby’s long, long walk was almost lost to history
In the later years of her life, Helga Estby would sit alone in her room and write the story of her long, long walk from Spokane to New York City. It’s a nearly unbelievable tale, spilling over with adventure, heartbreak and social import, and Helga had hoped to make a book of it. She and her daughter, Clara, walked the breadth of the nation in 1896 to try and save their family farm in Mica Creek – trudging over mountain passes and across lava beds and through deserts, stopping in cities to earn money and talk to newspaper reporters and meet with governors, all on the promise of a $10,000 payment from a sponsor in New York City.

________

In the news, Saturday, May 16, 2020

________

MAY 15      INDEX      MAY 17

________

________

from The Spokesman-Review

Newspaper in Spokane, Washington

Washington governor retracts restaurant contact requirement
Washington will not require restaurants to get customers’ contact information as initially planned as part of reopening amid the coronavirus pandemic, Gov. Jay Inslee said. The Democratic governor’s office in a news release Friday said that instead, businesses are asked to keep a list of those who voluntarily provide contact information. He said the state only needs information from one person per household, and it will only be shared with public health officials if it turns out they might have been exposed to the virus.

________

In the news, Friday, May 15, 2020

________

MAY 14      INDEX      MAY 16

________

________

from AP (Associated Press)
LEFT-CENTER BIASED, VERY HIGH, News Agency in New York City

China uses trade as weapon to silence virus criticism
Trying to silence criticism over the coronavirus pandemic, China is deploying a well-used weapon — trade sanctions. Beijing has blocked some imports of Australian beef after Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s government, endorsed by Washington, called for a robust inquiry into the origins of the outbreak and rebuffed Chinese demands to back off. The move is the first time Beijing has used access to its huge markets as leverage in its campaign to deflect blame for the outbreak. But it has used the tactic regularly against governments from Norway to Canada in political disputes over the past decade.

________

from The Archive

Inspiring Winston Churchill Quotes That Will Help You Maintain a Stiff Upper Lip
Winston Churchill is best known for his role as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945, when he led his country to military victory during World War II. Though the man also built a life as an army officer, writer, and Member of Parliament—as well as taking a second turn as Prime Minister in 1951—his wise and strategic actions during the fight against Nazi Germany would be what made him go down in history as a formidable force. Through his pushes for British rearmament in the late 30s to his remarkable 1940 “Battle of Britain” speech to his relationship with President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Churchill was a titan of inspiration and steely resolve. As we all face uncertain and difficult times, Churchill’s attitude and determination is precisely what we need to make it through.

________

from Axios
LEFT-CENTER BIAS,  HIGH,  news website

Where coronavirus hospitalizations are falling
Coronavirus hospitalizations have declined in many states — another indication that social distancing has been effective at curbing the virus' spread.

________

from FEE (Foundation for Economic Education)

RIGHT-CENTER BIAS, HIGH, non-profit organization

How Elon Musk Beat a California Dictate by Flexing the "Power of Exit”
The Alameda County Health Department backed down in its face-off with Elon Musk over the closure of Tesla’s car plant in Fremont, California. Musk reopened the factory, openly defying the government’s order to remain closed. The health officials acquiesced to the fait accompli by granting it after-the-fact provisional approval. Musk’s act qualified as economic civil disobedience, especially since he expressly offered himself up for arrest and punishment. His ultimate success was a testament to the power of that peaceful strategy for political change. The government probably wanted to avoid the public controversy that would result from jailing someone like Musk. But there was another consideration in play that probably influenced the official decision to relent. Shortly before daring the government to arrest him, Musk had also threatened to simply leave California over the COVID-19 lockdown.

________

from Forbes

House Votes Today: Another $1,200 Stimulus Check, $200 Billion For Hazard Pay, Extended Unemployment

So far, Congress has passed several large stimulus packages in response to the coronavirus pandemic. Now, the House has put forward another one and will vote on it today. The details of this latest coronavirus stimulus relief package were released Tuesday. If this stimulus package becomes law, it would insert an additional $3 trillion into the economy in the ongoing effort to address the outstanding concerns and needs of those most impacted by the pandemic. It would also help to fill state, local and tribal government budget shortfalls.

________

from The Guardian (UK)

LEFT-CENTER, HIGH, British daily newspaper published in London UK

Large areas of London to be made car-free as lockdown eased
Large areas of London are to be closed to cars and vans to allow people to walk and cycle safely as the coronavirus lockdown is eased, Sadiq Khan has announced. In one of the biggest car-free initiatives of any city in the world, the capital’s mayor announced on Friday that main streets between between London Bridge and Shoreditch, Euston and Waterloo, and Old Street and Holborn, will be limited to buses, pedestrians and cyclists. ,,, Khan warned people the changes would be disruptive. “If we want to make transport in London safe, and keep London globally competitive, then we have no choice but to rapidly repurpose London’s streets for people.

________

from HumanProgress.org

Education Website

Heroes of Progress, Pt. 44: James Madison

This week, our hero is James Madison. Madison was a Founding Father and the fourth president of the United States. He composed the first drafts, and thus the basic frameworks, for the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Madison is often dubbed the “Father of the Constitution” and he spent much of his life ensuring that the U.S. Constitution was ratified, and that freedoms of religion, speech and the press were protected under the law. 

________

from MyNorthwest.com

Media/News Company in Seattle

Dori: Inslee sees our devastated economy as a wonderful ‘opportunity’ for climate agenda
Every day I hear from people whose lives are being destroyed by our crumbling economy. We have 900,000 newly unemployed workers in our state. Business owners who have put their heart and soul into building wonderful enterprises are devastated as their companies — and their financial lives — are disappearing into an abyss. More than one listener has told me they are crying themselves to sleep every night. What does Gov. Inslee think about these shattered lives? He views it as a great opportunity.

________

from Reuters

International news agency headquartered in London, UK

Poland, Russia to cut decades-old gas transit ties
A gas transit deal between Russia and Poland that expires later this month will not be renewed, Russia’s Gazprom said, as Warsaw aligns its energy regulations with European Union rules and curbs its decades-old dependence on Russian fuel.

First U.S. crude oil shipment heads to Belarus this week: Pompeo
The first shipment of U.S. crude oil is heading to Belarus this week, fulfilling a commitment made in February, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said. The shipment involves by U.S. firm United Energy Trading, with the assistance of U.S. firm Getka and Polish partner UNIMOT. “This competitive deal ... strengthens Belarusian sovereignty and independence, demonstrates that the United States is ready to deliver trade opportunities for American companies interested in entering the Belarusian market,” Pompeo said. Belarus, a close ally of Russia, became involved in a row with Moscow earlier this year over the price it pays for Russian oil. The dispute has since been concluded, but Belarus has said it wants to diversify its oil imports.

________

from The Spokesman-Review

Newspaper in Spokane, Washington

Shea won’t run for re-election, leading to shuffle in area races
Embattled Spokane Valley Republican Matt Shea will not seek reelection to the legislative seat he has held for 12 years. Shea did not file a petition of candidacy for his 4th District House seat Friday, the last day available for people seeking offices in the 2020 election. He was rumored to be considering a run for Congress against fellow Republican Cathy McMorris Rodgers, but he did not file for that position either before the deadline passed.

________

from U.S. Department of State

First Shipment of U.S. Oil to Belarus
This week, the first shipment of U.S. crude oil will depart for Belarus.  This competitive deal, by U.S. energy trader United Energy Trading, with the assistance of U.S. firm Getka and their Polish partner UNIMOT, strengthens Belarusian sovereignty and independence, demonstrates that the United States is ready to deliver trade opportunities for American companies interested in entering the Belarusian market, and fulfills the commitment the United States made to Belarus in February with government leaders in Minsk. As the biggest oil and gas producer in the world, the United States stands ready to meet the import requirements of countries that, like Belarus, want to benefit from enhanced energy security based on supply diversification and trade rooted in the U.S. commercial values of free enterprise, the rule of law, and transparent deals free of corruption.

________

In the news, Thursday, May 14, 2020

________

MAY 13      INDEX      MAY 15

________

________

from American Thinker

QUESTIONABLE SOURCE, EXTREME RIGHT BIAS, LOW, News and Opinion Blog

Fauci's Song and Dance
Dr. Anthony Fauci has never been muzzled by President Trump, as the lamestream media often charged, but maybe he should have been and should be still. Before his tour de farce before the Senate Health Committee, the shy, modest, and unassuming Dr. Fauci emailed a New York Times reporter with a preview of his testimony,  an apocalypse now prediction if we don’t hang on to and follow his sage and expert advice:

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from The Archive

Inspiring Winston Churchill Quotes That Will Help You Maintain a Stiff Upper Lip

Winston Churchill is best known for his role as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945, when he led his country to military victory during World War II. Though the man also built a life as an army officer, writer, and Member of Parliament—as well as taking a second turn as Prime Minister in 1951—his wise and strategic actions during the fight against Nazi Germany would be what made him go down in history as a formidable force. Through his pushes for British rearmament in the late 30s to his remarkable 1940 “Battle of Britain” speech to his relationship with President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Churchill was a titan of inspiration and steely resolve. As we all face uncertain and difficult times, Churchill’s attitude and determination is precisely what we need to make it through. To help stir up some of that wise tenacity, here are 10 Winston Churchill quotes from his six-volume World War II memoirs.

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from BBC News (UK)

Coronavirus: State of emergency lifted in most of Japan
The country's low level of testing has raised questions, but Mr Abe said its strategy of tracking virus clusters had worked in many areas. "We were able to contain (the spread of infections) to the level at which it can be prevented with a thorough cluster-focused approach," he told reporters. Unlike governments elsewhere, Japan's leaders have no legal power to enforce a lockdown. While local governors can call on businesses to stay closed and suggest people stay at home, there are no punishments if they choose not to do so. Despite this, mobility data has shown a striking drop in public movement.

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from The Jerusalem Post

Harry Truman: The man from Missouri who helped change Jewish history
Harry Truman, a man with little experience in foreign affairs, assumed the tall order of uniting the Allies, winning the war, restoring the shattered global economy, and creating a new world order. In 1948, at a rally on the Lower East Side of New York, when the crowd began chanting, “Give ‘em hell, Harry,” Truman responded, “I don’t give ‘em hell, I just tell the truth and they think it’s hell.”

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from National Review  RIGHT BIAS

The Coronavirus Lockdown Has Not Made the Air Cleaner
According to the EPA’s air-quality monitors, levels of particulate matter — known as PM 2.5 — are not lower now and have, in fact, been higher recently than the median level of the last five years. Consisting of particles smaller than 2.5 microns, PM 2.5 includes natural sources such as smoke or sea salt, as well as human-caused pollution from combustion. So, why do so many activists claim the air is ‘physically cleaner’ in the United States? In part because they want to believe it. Opposition to cars is a major theme in left-wing environmental politics, and it is simply assumed, without looking at the data, that less driving equals cleaner air. The large gap between the political rhetoric and scientific reality is a reminder that costly environmental regulations should be based in real-world data, not ideologically driven assumptions.

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from Reuters

International news agency headquartered in London, UK

Trump threatens new taxes on companies that make goods outside United States
President Donald Trump threatened on Thursday to impose new taxes on American companies that produce goods outside the United States, another move his administration could make to push supply chains away from China and raise new trade barriers.

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from The Spokesman-Review

Newspaper in Spokane, Washington

Sue Lani Madsen: Junior Livestock Show of Spokane must go on, even if online
Lilac Festival Parade canceled. Bloomsday postponed, with cancellation still a possibility. Among gatherings affected by the extended shutdown, one dedicated group of Eastern Washington competitors found a way to take their event online. Not a virtual Bloomsday, but a virtual running of the bulls – and the steers, heifers, pigs, sheep and goats through the show ring at the Spokane County Fair and Expo Center. It would have been the 85th Annual Junior Livestock Show of Spokane, according to Lynn Cotter, show manager.

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from The Wall Street Journal

Scenes From the Class Struggle in Lockdown
Those who are anxious to open up the economy have led harder lives than those holding out for safety.

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from Washington Policy Center

Educational Research Center in Seattle, Washington

The governor’s unscientific and misleading COVID-19 dials
On April 29, Governor Inslee released a series of dials called the “COVID-19 Risk assessment dashboard,” reflecting the data he claims to be using to make decisions about reopening the state economy. He told the reporters that he was doing this “so we can be completely transparent with Washingtonians about how we are making these decisions,” which he promised he is doing “based on data and science.” Analysis of that dashboard and the dials, however, shows this is simply not true and there are several problems. The dial settings do not match the underlying data trends. There is no data for some of the dials. The dials are extremely imprecise, and some of the metrics the governor uses are meaningless. These flaws are even more obvious when compared to New York’s detailed and specific dashboard, which includes clear targets and transparent data. The governor’s dashboard is not science. It is political guesswork masquerading as science. The dials on the dashboard are not based on the underlying data.

Superintendent Reykdal denies 780 families funding to attend online public schools
When Governor Inslee’s order closed public schools in mid-March because of COVID-19, many parents went online for help. They discovered Washington state has an existing, well-established system of free, public, state-approved and fully accredited, online schools. These online schools have years of experience and expertise.  Thousands of students have graduated from online public schools and gone on to college and to lead successful, productive lives. Naturally, with widespread school closures, many parents rushed to enroll their children online. Yet state superintendent of schools Chris Reykdal has decided to cut off state funding for these families. ... Washington law provides that students who transfer to a public online school will not lose their state funding. On average online students get $8,500, far less than the $12,700 Seattle students receive but many families clearly feel it is worth it. Yet Reykdal indicates he will not allow transfer students to receive funding, and that he will send the money to their old school districts instead.  The decision is clearly unfair and meanspirited.  Such a policy would never stand in private sector education.

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