Private Equity Captures Rather Than Creates Value Newsweek
Gov. Mike DeWine calls for repeal of House Bill 6, reversing his position from the day before Cleveland.com. Fallout from the Householder indictment. Also–
Why didn’t FBI agents stop Ohio’s corrupt FirstEnergy bailout as soon as they learned about it? Cleveland.com (CR). And–
An FBI investigation shows Ohio’s abysmal energy law was fueled by corruption Leah Stokes, Vox
Is America’s biggest gas utility abusing customer money? California demands answers Los Angeles Times. Surely not.
Tesla sues Rivian over ‘disturbing pattern’ of alleged trade secret theft The Verge. It’s almost like Silicon Valley is full of crooks.
What Lies Ahead Counterpunch
#COVID-19
We blew it Axios
Fauci on coronavirus: ‘I don’t really see us eradicating it’ The Hill. Controlling it, yes.
* * *
Chloroquine does not inhibit infection of human lung cells with SARS-CoV-2 Nature. From the abstract: “[C]hloroquine targets a pathway for viral activation that is not operative in lung cells and is unlikely to protect against SARS-CoV-2 spread in and between patients.”
Hydroxychloroquine use against SARS-CoV-2 infection in non-human primates Nature. From the abstract: “Neither HCQ nor HCQ+AZTH showed a significant effect on the viral load levels in any of the tested compartments. When the drug was used as a pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), HCQ did not confer protection against acquisition of infection.”
* * *
What Scientists Know About How Children Spread COVID-19 Scientific American. A good round-up. My personal view is that children are fomites, because they touch everything; but that doesn’t necessarily say anything about transmission. However, here as elsewhere, the Precautionary Principle should prevail. Tina Hartert of the Vanderbilt School of Medicine: “There aren’t many other countries that have opened schools while rates of the virus are increasing exponentially.” No indeed. But America is exceptional.
After spreading covid-19, a huge European abattoir vows reforms The Economist
Normally, I would link to the study, not the tweet about it. But the SSRN sever is “down for essential maintenance,” the thread is good, and I want to pair this with the meatpacking link above:
Highly interesting & important paper: #SARSCoV2 transmission > 8 meter distance in a meat processing plant & superspreading event from a single worker to >20 co-workers over 3 days #COVID19 @Helmholtz_HZI @BrinkmannLab Congratulations to this great work! https://t.co/8sra13cnmD
— Isabella Eckerle (@EckerleIsabella) July 23, 2020
MIT engineers designed an affordable, reusable face mask that’s as effective as an N95 — take a look CNBC (J-LS).
* * *
Surge in single-use PPE feeds ‘toxic’ pandemic waste crisis (free) FT
Americans Not Welcome in Caribbean Resorts Re-Opening to Tourism Bloomberg
The Long Game of Coronavirus Research The New Yorker. “Modern medical research is inherently collaborative, but the constellation of efforts now under way around the world is unprecedented in scale and scope.” Science is popping. Or at least percolating.
Classrooms without Walls: A Forgotten Age of Open-air Schools Messy Nessy (JD). From 2016, still germane. A desk in the garden has worked well for me. So why not a garden classroom? Won’t work in the winter, of course.
We need major air-conditioner innovation to keep us cool without warming the planet Fast Company
China?
Cold War Escapades in the Pacific Consortium News
Everyone loses Jakarta Post
China orders closure of US consulate in Chengdu in tit-for-tat move Straits Times
Who’s the brain behind Mike Pompeo’s anti-China stance? SCMP
China Has Blown Its Historic Opportunity Project Syndicate
* * *
A nervous watch on the Three Gorges Dam The Interpreter
China braces for impact after mass flooding at Three Gorges Dam UPI
* * *
‘People exempt from quarantine behind new wave‘ RTHK. Commentary:
Hong Kong up there with the USCSS Nostromo for lax quarantine procedures.
— Hong Kong Hermit (@HongKongHermit) July 24, 2020
China May Refuse to Accept British National Overseas Passports Bloomberg
Why a ‘route to citizenship’ is not enough: The limitations of expanding BNO rights Lausan
India
India to curb Chinese bids for state contracts FT
Modi’s extension of food grain scheme was welcome but Centre must expand it to cover the neediest Scroll.in (J-LS).
Internet Curbs, Chinese App Ban Allows Local Alternatives to Flourish in Kashmir The Wire (J-LS).
Nigeria: Why Some Anti-Corruption Campaigns Make People More Likely to Pay a Bribe All Africa (original).
UK/EU
‘A hell of a year’: Tories reflect on 12 months led by Boris Johnson Guardian
“Credible Open Source Reporting”, the Intelligence Services and Scottish Independence Craig Murray
England’s leasehold system is crumbling. Freeholders’ fightback will be nasty Guardian. When I was at a London Meetup, some Londoners tried to explain leasehold v. freehold to me, but my eyes glazed over. But since “there are billions of pounds at stake here – money that flows to rich freeholders, many of them aristocratic families or companies in the British Virgin Islands, for doing virtually nothing,” perhaps some kind souls will explain again.
Melting Arctic Permafrost Threatens Russian Energy Firms’ Bottom Line – Morgan Stanley Moscow Times
New Cold War
Putin plans to make the West destroy itself The Spectator
Bolivia delays presidential election again over pandemic FT
Trump Transition
Trump Rule Change Will Likely Do More Harm Than Good to 401(K)s, Study Shows The Intercept (MC).
2020
Democrats Go On Offense On Russian Election Interference As November Approaches NPR. Because of course.
Dems Voting Against Pentagon Cuts Got 3.4x More Money From the Defense Industry Sludge
Our Famously Free Press
I Don’t Always Believe CIA Narratives. But When I Do, I Believe Them About China. Caitlin Johnstone
L’Affaire Joffrey Epstein
Epstein floodgates open as judge rules explosive docs detailing Ghislaine Maxwell’s sex life can be UNSEALED in Virginia Giuffre’s defamation case within a week Daily Mail. We’ll see.
Influential DC-Based Ukrainian Think Tank Hosts Neo-Nazi Activist Convicted for Racist Violence Consortium News
Police State Watch
Why Portland Became the Test Case for Trump’s Secret Police The Nation. “Trump’s Secret Police” is, of course, funded by Democrats. As was Obama’s, although since 2016 is Year Zero, nobody remembers that.
Dems’ Sternly Worded Letter Won’t Stop Fascism David Sirota, Too Much Information.
In Portland, the Baby Fascists Have Shown Their Face Timothy Snyder, Foreign Policy. “All of this is a dry run for November.” Possibly. But it’s amusing to see liberal Democrats, who hammered the talking point that Trump would not accept the 2016 results, and then very visibly did not accept the results themselves, hammering the same talking point again. Honestly, if Trump was or could be what Snyder says he is, wouldn’t Snyder already be in a camp somewhere? For a better discussion of fascism in the American context, see BAR; linked to yesterday in Water Cooler, but very much worth a read.
Buildings damaged in Minneapolis, St. Paul after riots Star-Tribune. Good maps. Here is a handy chart of damaged property types:
Imperial Collapse Watch
2020: The Year We Confronted Decline The American Conservative
Class Warfare
The “Strike for Black Lives” protest stunt WSWS. If there’s no work stoppage, it’s not a strike.
Counterfeit Capitalism, Food Delivery Apps, and the Attack on Franchising Matt Stoller, BIG
“Stealth” food banks serve the undocumented The Counter
KFC will test lab-grown chicken nuggets made with a 3D bioprinter this fall in Russia Business Insider
Pigeon: We should not tear down Confederate statues! Duffel Blog
Antidote du jour (via):
Bonus antidote:
Video shows kitten trying to get away with a bundle of cash at a Russian bar pic.twitter.com/PkC7Ke5rJW
— Reuters (@Reuters) July 23, 2020
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour https://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2020/07/links-7-22-2020.html“>here.
