The Secret to Container Vegetable Gardening TreeHugger
Facing up to Woodrow Wilson’s true legacy Times Literary Supplement
Colorado Prison Escapee Caught After Nearly 50 Years on Run USA Today
Satellite images show oil spill disaster unfolding in Mauritius: “We will never be able to recover” CBS (User Friendly)
TikTok ban exposes PSYOPs-led secret dance battle with China Duffelblog
#COVID-19
The COVID Interregnum Counterpunch
CA’s top health official: Glitch fixed but there’s a backlog of up to 300,000 records SFGate
Navajo Nation’s Shortage of Clean Water Is Impeding Efforts to Control COVID Truthout
Nursing homes grapple with a dual crisis: preparing for hurricane season amid the Covid-19 pandemic Stat
97,000 children reportedly test positive for coronavirus in two weeks as schools gear up for instruction CBS News UserFriendly
From Bourbon Street to Food Banks, Signs of a Slow U.S. Recovery Bloomberg. Hmm – strikes me as wishful if not downright magical thinking.
Sturgis motorcycle rally draws thousands of bikers despite coronavirus fears NBC News
Thousands of bikers heading to South Dakota rally to be blocked at tribal land checkpoints Guardian (furzy)
UK orders recall of 741,000 coronavirus testing kits over safety concerns Reuters
Boris Johnson says reopening schools next month is a ‘moral duty’ and a ‘national priority’ as he takes on the teaching unions Daily Mail (The Rev Kev)
I know Yves linked to Schumer’s comment yesterday, but I post this today so readers can see him utter the words:
Sen. Chuck Schumer: “If we don’t open up the schools, you’re going to hurt the economy significantly.”pic.twitter.com/Ne5znhvk2y
— The Hill (@thehill) August 7, 2020
Brazil today will pass 100,000 COVID-19 deaths, the only country other than the US to reach that grim milestone.
Even worse: “the virus took three months to kill 50,000 people, and just 50 days to kill the next 50,000.”https://t.co/7LoG9OQaBv
— Glenn Greenwald (@ggreenwald) August 8, 2020
Science/Medicine
Povidone-Iodine Demonstrates Rapid In Vitro Virucidal Activity Against SARS-CoV-2, The Virus Causing COVID-19 Disease Nature Public Health Emergency Coalition
Three major scientific controversies about coronavirus The Conversation
Scientists Weigh the Benefits of Air Purifiers in Fighting COVID-19 Der Spiegel
Statement from Yale Faculty on Hydroxychloroquine and its Use in COVID-19 Medium
Trump Transition
The lost days of summer: How Trump struggled to contain the virus WaPo
Trump signs order for coronavirus relief, with lower level of extra aid for jobless Guardian (The Rev Kev) Likely unconstitutional, but politically astute, especially given Biden’s weakness on bankruptcy and consumer debt. And what would you have Trump do, in the absence of congressional action?
Trump antagonizes GOP megadonor Adelson in heated phone call Politico
Class Warfare
Record Scratch Airmail. There’s a paywall but one can register for access to some pieces each week. which is what I did. Not sure this is yet worth the price of a subscription – nor if it will ever be. Vanity Fair under Carter used to be something I’d flip through when getting my hair styled, rather than buying for its online or deadtreee content. Especially now that Christopher Hitchens is no more.
Appeals court rules 10¢-a-page charge for court documents is too high Ars Technica
Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway grew profits by 86% last quarter as its stock portfolio soared in value Business Insider
SENATORS PUSH FOR FREE PRISON CALLS IN NEXT CORONAVIRUS RELIEF BILL Intercept
Matt @mtaibbi & I had a great time nerding out w/ Thomas Frank @thomasfrank_ about his new book “The People, No.” Fun challenge: what do *you* think made Frank write it? This will make sense when you’ve seen/heard ep. https://t.co/oGlo1JI4bm #UsefulidiotsPod @MetropolitanBks
— Katie Halper (@kthalps) August 8, 2020
No, arguments like this perpetuate government dysfunction. Many of us were saying back in March ‘don’t bail out Wall Street you won’t get a second bite for the rest of us.’ Pelosi and Schumer did the bailout anyway. This is on the Dems too.
(Including Bernie and Warren.) https://t.co/bm8OMnefyB
— Matt Stoller (@matthewstoller) August 7, 2020
Big Brother IS Watching You Watch
Software that monitors students during tests perpetuates inequality and violates their privacy MIT Technology Review
2020
Biden campaign reportedly making ‘ruthless cuts’ to convention speaking list The Week
OVERCOMING AN ELECTORAL HURDLE COULD HELP TIP NORTH CAROLINA IN NOVEMBER Capital & Main
The Memo: Trump team pounces on Biden gaffes The Hill
How the Final Stretch of Biden’s VP Search Is Playing Out New York magazine
Trump has about as much power to curb mail-in-voting by executive order as he has to control the flight of pigeons and seagulls by executive order. This is part of his fantasy that Article II contains a secret provision making him boss of everything. https://t.co/IeHxjjhAbq
— Laurence Tribe (@tribelaw) August 8, 2020
China?
All About The Chips: Taiwan Is Next Battleground For Trade Fight American Conservative
Does the US-led Five Eyes have wider sights on China? SCMP
US fails to build regional coalition against China Asia Times (The Rev Kev)
‘Everything is gone.’ Flooding in China ruins farmers and risks rising food prices CNN (User Friendly)
Mark Ames tweets link to Max Blumenthal’s scoop:
Remember “Gay Girl In Damascus” the fake Syrian lesbian aka Tom MacMaster, who rallied gullible western liberal support for Syria regime change? Turns out one of the most popular US-backed Hong Kong protest “voices” is another hoax https://t.co/dScJD3R5gR https://t.co/dScJD3R5gR
— Mark Ames (@MarkAmesExiled) August 9, 2020
India
Kerala plane crash: DGCA’s investigation team, Union minister Scroll. Note the reporting says the ‘’plane was a Boeing 737- but doesn’t mention MAX, so I think it was a previous model. I wonder how much rusty pilots – both of whom died in the crash- perhaps driven by commercial pressures imposed on Air India Express, contributed to the tragedy. The monsoon seems a too-convenient scapegoat. Pilots who fly regularly in Indian airspace during this time of year are trained for such conditions.
Reliance tech arm expands monopoly muscle in India Asia Times
Coronavirus: India is turning to faster tests to meet targets BBC
India’s expanding mining sector is posing an acute threat to endangered tigers and their habitats Scroll
Syraqistan
More than 60 missing after Beirut mega-blast: Live updates Al Jazeera
Beirut explosions: Protesters storm government buildings as tear gas fired and over 110 wounded Independent
Absolutely despicable journalism from the BBC and punditry from the former head of Carnegie ME Center. The hundreds of dead and victims tapped under rubble are being exploited to blame Hizbullah for the criminal negligence of the real non-state actor—the Lebanese state pic.twitter.com/T0RpFSaYNY
— Amal Saad (@amalsaad_lb) August 5, 2020
Antidote du Jour (via):
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.
