(2020-04-30). WATCH: Stunning forked lightning envelops entire Oklahoma sky as US states battered by bizarre weather. rt.com 
A severe thunderstorm has served up an extraordinary sight in the skies above Oklahoma, with exceptional eyewitness footage showing lightning enveloping the entire countryside. | A barrage of thunderstorms blasted through Oklahoma bringing heavy hail, the threat of tornadoes and flooding, and even left extraordinary orange clouds in its wake. | The highlight of the wild weather was caught on camera by storm chaser Jake Heitman, who shared the amazing natural light show on Twitter. | The sky has a striking orange hue as the lightning rips through the atmosphere and unleashes ferocious peals of thunder. | #Oklah…
(2020-04-30). Demanding Women: Quarintine Conversations About Gun Violence w/ Sen. Elizabeth Warren. indybay.org Facebook livestream…
(2020-04-29). Kelli Ward's Call for "Reopen" Protesters to Dress as Nurses Reveals GOP Cruelty. truthout.org Kelli Ward, former state senator and chairwoman of the Arizona Republican Party, is messing with medical professionals in the middle of a global pandemic to get some ink for herself and maybe a fawning tweet from the president. I have personal reasons to have a serious problem with that. | Three years ago nearly to the day, I was admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at the local hospital here with pneumonia in both lungs and a larger infection running like wildfire through my body. I sto…
(2020-04-29). Hating Arabs as a Common Ground: Why Israel's Coalition Government is Likely to Survive. dissidentvoice.org 
Shortly after an agreement to form a "national emergency government" in Israel, leader of the Blue and White (Kahol Lavan) party, Benny Gantz, tweeted triumphantly that 'democracy' in Israel has been 'safeguarded'. But how is a deal that would grant Israel's right-wing Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, a veto power over the very judicial system which …
(2020-04-29). Finding Humor When 'Shit Is So Terrible': A Conversation With Samantha Irby. thenation.com 
| We talked to the writer and comedian about privacy, blogging, chronic illness, and how to actually enjoy social media.
(2020-04-29). #Resistance & MAGA crew both lose it over independent US congressman's third-party presidential bid. rt.com 
Liberals and conservatives have finally agreed on something about the 2020 US presidential election — neither want ex-Republican (and current independent) Michigan Congressman Justin Amash to run on the Libertarian ticket. | Amash announced on Tuesday night via Twitter that he was forming an "exploratory committee" to look into running for president under the Libertarian Party's banner. Posting a link to a campaign website that featured little beyond a "DONATE" button, the newly-minted candidate vowed to bring "practical approaches based in humility and trust of the people" to the table. | Today, I launc…
(2020-04-29). 'FREE AMERICA': Elon Musk divides opinions after calling for lockdown to be lifted and tweeting 'give people their freedom back!'. rt.com 
Tech entrepreneur Elon Musk has come out in favor of reducing restrictions on freedoms and businesses, sparking a fierce debate on Twitter. Some lauded him and others chastised him for putting profits ahead of people's safety. | The Tesla and SpaceX founder called on Wednesday for the US to lift the lockdown, tweeting "FREE AMERICA NOW" and "Give people their freedom back!" | FREE AMERICA NOW— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) He also attached links to a Wall Street Journal article suggesting lockdowns were ine…
(2020-04-29). NYC mayor blasted for 'anti-Semitism' after threatening to arrest Jews for flouting Covid-19 distancing rules at rabbi's funeral. rt.com 
A tightly-packed funeral procession of Orthodox Jews attracted the ire of Bill de Blasio, but netizens had something to say about the mayor's own distancing policy and said his outburst had "invited anti-Semitism." | The New York City mayor tweeted his anger at members of Brooklyn's Jewish community who gathered on Tuesday night for the funeral of Rabbi Chaim Mertz. "My message to the Jewish community, and all communities, is this simple: the time for warnings has passed," he wrote. | Photos of the procession were circulated in the media, with many of the participants visibly defying social distancing rules, w…
(2020-04-29). 'You misspelled censorship!' YouTube expands 'fact checks' to protect Americans from coronavirus 'misinformation'. rt.com 
YouTube will now "fact check" US search queries, expanding a feature tried in other countries last year in an effort to eradicate "misinformation" about Covid-19 — but some netizens are seeing hints of Orwell in the project. | The video-sharing giant rolled out the new feature on Tuesday, announcing that its "fact check information panels" will now appear on American searches, in which "authoritative sources" will show up below the search bar to correct claims that YouTube deems suspect. | "We're now using these panels to help address an additional challenge: misinformation that comes up quickly as part…
(2020-04-29). Covid-19 was already 'silently circulating' in France before virus arrived from China & Italy — study. rt.com 
The outbreak of the coronavirus in France has little to do with cases imported from China or Italy, as another strain of the disease of unknown origin had already been infecting people in the country, research claims. | The virologists at the Pasteur Institute in Paris have sequenced the genomes from samples taken from 97 French and three Algerian coronavirus patients between January 24 and March 24. | What they found is that the dominant types of Covid-19 viral strains in France differed from those that arrived from China or Italy, and belonged to another group, or 'clade.' | The earliest sample in the French…
(2020-04-29). Pence's Barefaced Mayo Clinic Tour Proves He Still Does Not Take COVID Seriously. truthout.org Vice President Mike Pence's visit to the Mayo Clinic on Tuesday upset a lot of people after images released from the event demonstrated he did not wear a mask while touring the facility. | Pictures quickly circulated on social media showing how Pence toured the clinic, being one of the only individuals during the ordeal to not be wearing a mask (medical or fabric) to prevent the possible spread of coronavirus while he was there. After it became clear that the imagery was receiving a lot of…
(2020-04-29). 'Coronavirus Capitalism' Is Coming for Public Schools. commondreams.org Naomi Klein refers to this as "disaster capitalism," and it can happen far more easily now in Seattle and in other parts of the country, when schools are closed and no one is watching. (Photo: United Federation of Teachers/ Facebook) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/hisd-ravitch_0.jpg …
(2020-04-28). Minnesotans protest Trump's threats on Iran. fightbacknews.org St. Paul, MN – Over 30 cars occupied the parking lot of Minnesota Senator Tina Smith, April 26, to call on her to denounce President Trump's attacks and sanctions on Iran. Trump has escalated the threats against Iran by announcing on Twitter, April 22, that he told the Navy "to shoot down and destroy any and all Iranian gunboats if they harass our ships at sea." Unlike Minnesota's Representative Ilhan Omar, Senator Smith has remained silent while Trump again threatened Iran with further acts of war. | The safe-distance car protest was the first Twin Cities anti-war action during the coronavirus pandemic. It was o…
(2020-04-28). 'Did Biden's lawyer write this?' WaPo receives 'Noble' for 'embarrassing' attempt to obfuscate sexual assault claim in headline. rt.com 
The Washington Post was lambasted on social media after running a bizarrely tortured headline that took great pains to avoid direct mention of sexual assault allegations dogging Joe Biden, the presumptive 2020 Democratic nominee. | "Developments in allegations against Biden amplify efforts to question his behavior," read…
(2020-04-28). Long-Acting Injectable HIV Therapy Noninferior to Daily Pills. jamanetwork.com A pair of trials in the New England Journal of Medicine found that long-acting monthly injectable therapy for HIV-1 infection was noninferior to standard daily oral regimens for maintaining viral suppression.
(2020-04-27). 'Does sarcasm ever work?' Trump brushes off 'Noble Prize' blunder, says it was a dig at media's lack of morals. rt.com 
US President Donald Trump fired back at detractors on Sunday, saying that mixing up the Nobel Prize and the Pulitzer Prize, and making a spelling mistake in a tweet attacking the media, was a deliberate play on words. | "Does anybody get the meaning of what a so-called Noble (not Nobel) Prize is, especially as it pertains to Reporters and Journalists? Noble is defined as, 'having or showing fine personal qualities or high moral principles and ideals,'" Trump tweeted shortly after taking a swipe at the "fake news" media in a series of tweets that threw the platform into full-blown meltdown. | "Does sarcasm ever…
(2020-04-24). Dr. Rashid Buttar Interview — Why COVID-19 Is Not What You Think. thelastamericanvagabond.com Joining me today to discuss further some of the very relevant and important points we went over during our recent roundtable (www.youtube.com/watch?v=RO2Fh3ThKoE) is Dr. Rashid Buttar. We discuss the very obvious way in which it seems we are all being deceived, and the many and varied ways in which that deception is taking place. (d.tube/c/tlavagabond) …
(2020-04-23). Oath Keepers Chaplain Quits Over Leader's COVID Response. splcenter.org Chuck Baldwin, who has served as the national chaplain of the antigovernment Oath Keepers since 2013, announced his resignation early Tuesday morning on Facebook.
(2020-04-22). Is Trump's "Shoot Down And Destroy" Tweet About Boosting Oil Prices Or A Harbinger Of War With Iran? thelastamericanvagabond.com Trump's recent tweet to "shoot down and destroy any and all Iranian gunboats if they harass our ships" has sparked concern over a new war in the Middle East. However, the more immediate effect of Trump's tweet has been a big boost in oil prices and a rise in the stock market. Was that Trump's …
(2020-04-16). Hate Groups and Racist Pundits Spew COVID-19 Misinformation on Social Media Despite Companies' Pledges to Combat It. splcenter.org Hate groups and racist pundits have pushed misinformation about the COVID-19 pandemic on mainstream social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and YouTube throughout the crisis, despite companies pledging to fight fake news about the virus.
(2020-04-15). [Correspondence] SARS-CoV-2 shedding and infectivity. thelancet.com Fei Zhou and colleagues1 estimated mean duration of viral shedding by assessing the presence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) viral RNA in patient samples. Assessing potential infectivity is a labour-intensive process, but the presence of nucleic acid alone cannot be used to define viral shedding or infection potential, as the authors state is possible within their methods.
(2020-04-15). [Correspondence] SARS-CoV-2 shedding and infectivity — Authors' reply. thelancet.com We thank Barry Atkinson and Eskild Petersen for their comments on our Article describing the clinical course and risk factors for mortality of adult inpatients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in Wuhan, China.1 We agree that the presence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) viral RNA in a respiratory specimen cannot be directly interpreted as a potential for disease transmission and infection.
(2020-03-19). [Correspondence] Use of antiviral drugs to reduce COVID-19 transmission. thelancet.com As the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) spreads, efforts are being made to reduce transmission via standard public health interventions based on isolation of cases and tracing of contacts. In their modelling study, Joel Hellewell and colleagues1 predict that such a strategy could contribute to reducing the overall size of an outbreak, but will still be insufficient to achieve outbreak control of COVID-19 when the basic reproduction number (R0) is higher than 1 ∑5 or the proportion of contacts traced is lower than 80%.
(2020-04-30). Taliban set free 40 captives amid escalating violence. yenisafak.com The Taliban in Afghanistan set free at least 40 captive security forces personnel amid escalating violence in the war-ravaged country, the group said on Thursday.Suhail Shaheen, the Taliban's Qatar office spokesman, announced on Twitter the captives were released in the afternoon in northern Kunduz province bordering Tajikistan."The Islamic Emirate [Taliban] is trying to speed up prisoners' release process in order to save lives of the prisoners from the risk of the coronavirus desease," Shaheen tweeted.This comes as the Afghan government and the Taliban exchange allegations over the surge in violence.Javed Faisa…
(2020-04-30). New COVID-19 Antiviral Drug Remdesivir Offers 'No Significant' Benefit, More Research Needed-Study. sputniknews.com The first randomised trial for a promising new antiviral drug, lauded by many as a positive treatment for SARS-CoV-2 patients, suggested that there were no significant clinical benefits, with researchers urging further trials, a study released on late Wednesday revealed.
(2020-04-30). 'Such a Natural Beauty, Regardless': Makeup-Free Bella Thorne Awes Fans as She 'Rocks a Stye'. sputniknews.com Miss Thorne's corona-induced self-isolation has apparently resulted in strings of new pictures – most of them spontaneous but undoubtedly steamy – posted to her social media accounts, and a myriad of positive reactions are expectedly there.
(2020-04-30). Gettin' Piggy With It: Little Porker is 'Twerking'. sputniknews.com As nations went into lockdown due to the coronavirus pandemic, more people have started posting funny and adorable videos of their pets on social media platforms.
(2020-04-30). Watch as Leopard Rescued in Kashmir After Attacking 8 People. sputniknews.com New Delhi (Sputnik): Wild animals are wreaking havoc in Jammu and Kashmir's Kupwara district where animals like bears, lions, and leopards enter villages in search of food and attack people, said an official from the wildlife department.
(2020-04-30). Watch Terrifying Fireball Erupt in Auckland, Destroying 12 Cars. sputniknews.com A giant blaze, sparking like a ball of fire, woke up dozens of people in the Auckland suburb of New Lynn, forcing people to call rescue services while a giant pillar of smoke rose above the rooftops.
(2020-04-22). Would you die for Wall Street? greenleft.org.au 
(2020-02-20). [Comment] Efficient transmission of viral gastroenteritis in Dutch households. thelancet.com Community cohorts of acute gastroenteritis, such as the one presented by Franke Quee and colleagues1 in The Lancet Infectious Diseases, provide a crucial opportunity to understand the epidemiology and transmission dynamics of different enteric viruses that could be targeted to prevent diarrhoea in vulnerable populations.