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- Fear and fatalism in Birmingham as Covid cases surge
- 'It was an act of principle': The Covid doctor who quit over Cummings
- Why do Covid fatalities remain low when infection numbers are rising?
- Whitty says it would be foolish to count on having Covid jab by winter
- California wildfires: Trump declares major disaster as state braces for worsening conditions
- Earth has lost 28 trillion tonnes of ice in less than 30 years
- Coronavirus live news: Italy 'won't lock down again' to curb cases; £10,000 fines for illegal raves in England
- Joe Biden picks Seamus Heaney to add to his appeal
- Lukashenko vows to defend Belarus borders as more mass protests planned
- Mixed race woman fired by G4S after row over black power salute
- 'Donald is cruel': Trump's sister recorded saying president has 'no principles'
- Holocaust denial graffitied at site of Nazi massacre in France
- Your data is not destined for China, assures TikTok’s UK boss
- Judge orders Donald Trump to pay Stormy Daniels $44,000 in legal fees
- First ladies: voices of reason and compassion, central to US politics today
- Migrants housed in Essex hotel find themselves at mercy of local hostility
- From Washington to Minsk, democracy is under siege ... and losing the battle
- Mike Pompeo to visit Israel and UAE to discuss new diplomatic ties
- The week in TV: Lovecraft Country; African Renaissance; Manctopia and more
- The Libertarian party was up and coming in 2016. What happened?
- The big picture: a tender family moment with JFK
- How China uses Muslim press trips to counter claims of Uighur abuse
- Northern Territory election: Labor claims victory but majority hangs in the balance
| Fear and fatalism in Birmingham as Covid cases surge Posted: 22 Aug 2020 01:47 PM PDT Some say the young are flouting the rules, others doubt the statistics. Most are anxious about what a lockdown will bring If news that Birmingham was facing a local lockdown troubled drinkers around the Gas Street basin on Thursday afternoon, they were determined to forget it. "This is the first time I've got dressed up and come to town," said Pam, who didn't want to give her full name, as she fluffed her pink hair. "I know what's going on, I've worked in Covid wards. I'm not worried being here, but it does feel weird." Continue reading... |
| 'It was an act of principle': The Covid doctor who quit over Cummings Posted: 23 Aug 2020 01:30 AM PDT Dr Dominic Pimenta resigned from his cardiology post after Boris Johnson's chief advisor made his controversial car journey. Was it the right decision? On 24 May, a couple of days after it was revealed that Dominic Cummings had travelled to Durham during the lockdown, a British cardiologist, Dr Dominic Pimenta, published a tweet in which he threatened to resign if Cummings did not. For Pimenta, news of Cummings's trip had landed like a blow. In March, he had been drafted on to a Covid-19 intensive care unit, where he had witnessed suffering and death, struggle and recovery: "This sheer volume of human capacity that had been devoted to trying to save lives." His tweet came at the end of a terrible weekend of intensive care shifts, during which he had watched patients die, their loved ones absent, and he had given everything of himself and seen colleagues do the same. And now this? "If we are going to be asked to risk our lives," he wrote later, "the least we can expect is to be treated like people." Pimenta's tweet was widely shared. By the following morning he'd become a national news story, and he was invited by the media to share more of what he wanted to say: how he hoped that by making a stand he might highlight the recent sacrifices of healthcare workers while reassuring the public that their own sacrifices had not been in vain, that the lockdown was saving lives, that they must maintain faith in it. Catherine Calderwood, Scotland's former chief medical officer, had recently resigned for a minor lockdown transgression. Pimenta wanted Cummings to do the same, or to at least acknowledge how irresponsible he'd been. "It was an act of principle," Pimenta says. "And the principle was: this isn't acceptable, I will not accept it. All I ever wanted was for the government to underline the importance of the lockdown." Continue reading... |
| Why do Covid fatalities remain low when infection numbers are rising? Posted: 22 Aug 2020 11:45 PM PDT While some scientists believe the virus has become less deadly, others look at the factors that suggest otherwise Are Covid-19 death rates decreasing? Why lies behind this trend? |
| Whitty says it would be foolish to count on having Covid jab by winter Posted: 22 Aug 2020 03:19 PM PDT Chief medical officer believes 'reasonable chance' of vaccines before winter of 2021-22 England's chief medical officer has said it would be "foolish" to plan for winter on the basis of having a coronavirus vaccine. But Professor Chris Whitty told reporters on Saturday that there was a "reasonable chance" there could be vaccines for the virus before the winter of 2021-2022. Continue reading... |
| California wildfires: Trump declares major disaster as state braces for worsening conditions Posted: 22 Aug 2020 11:29 PM PDT
Donald Trump has issued a major disaster declaration as deteriorating weather conditions threaten to spark new wildfires in California, where firefighters have been battling some of the largest wildfires on record for the past week. Trump's declaration will release federal assistance for the state, with governor Gavin Newsom saying it will also help people in counties affected by the fires with crisis counselling, housing and other social services. Continue reading... |
| Earth has lost 28 trillion tonnes of ice in less than 30 years Posted: 22 Aug 2020 10:09 PM PDT 'Stunned' scientists say there is little doubt global heating is to blame for the loss A total of 28 trillion tonnes of ice have disappeared from the surface of the Earth since 1994. That is stunning conclusion of UK scientists who have analysed satellite surveys of the planet's poles, mountains and glaciers to measure how much ice coverage lost because of global heating triggered by rising greenhouse gas emissions. The scientists – based at Leeds and Edinburgh universities and University College London – describe the level of ice loss as "staggering" and warn that their analysis indicates that sea level rises, triggered by melting glaciers and ice sheets, could reach a metre by the end of the century. Continue reading... |
| Posted: 23 Aug 2020 02:25 AM PDT Fines will come into force for bank holiday weekend; Australian deaths pass 500; Mexico passes 60,000 deaths
German finance minister Olaf Scholz said the European Union's recovery package is a long-term measure rather than a short-term coronavirus crisis fix, contradicting chancellor Angela Merkel, AFP reports. "The recovery fund is a real step forward for Germany and for Europe, one we won't go back on," Scholz, who is also the centre-left Social Democratic Party (SPD) candidate to succeed Merkel in 2021 elections, told the Funke newspaper group on Sunday.
Dr Dominic Pimenta resigned from his cardiology post after Boris Johnson's chief advisor made his controversial car journey. Related: 'It was an act of principle': The Covid doctor who quit over Cummings Continue reading... |
| Joe Biden picks Seamus Heaney to add to his appeal Posted: 23 Aug 2020 12:06 AM PDT Presidential frontrunner quotes Irish wordsmith in his nomination acceptance speech Joe Biden is not the first nor is he likely to be the last politician to summon political spirits with poetry, but choosing verse from The Cure at Troy, Seamus Heaney's free translation of Sophocles' Philoctetes, for his Democratic party nomination acceptance speech on Thursday had scholars of the poet's work and the political class eating out of his hand. Biden pulled out Heaney's lines close to the end of an address that also won over conservative pundits and Fox News anchors – "an enormously effective speech", said Chris Wallace – and left Donald Trump, for once, without response on Twitter. Biden quoted Heaney saying: "History says, Don't hope / On this side of the grave. / But then, once in a lifetime / The longed-for tidal wave / Of justice can rise up / And hope and history rhyme." Continue reading... |
| Lukashenko vows to defend Belarus borders as more mass protests planned Posted: 22 Aug 2020 07:38 PM PDT Country's president promises 'stringent measures' and claims Nato troops 'stirring' in Poland and Lithuania Belarus's authoritarian leader, Alexander Lukashenko, has ordered his defence minister to take "stringent measures" to defend the country's territorial integrity after mass protests against his claim to election victory. The 65-year-old, who said he won a sixth presidential term with 80% of the vote in the 9 August ballot, made the comments on Saturday while inspecting military units in Grodno, near Belarus's border with Poland, according to the president's press service. Continue reading... |
| Mixed race woman fired by G4S after row over black power salute Posted: 22 Aug 2020 11:13 AM PDT Worker alleges she was unfairly sacked from Covid-19 testing site, but G4S disputes claims A mixed race woman was disciplined and later sacked from a G4S coronavirus testing centre after suggesting colleagues could adopt the black power salute for a photo in support of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement. The outsourcing giant said Kenya Scarlett had previously been confrontational and demanding; it claimed no one had taken issue with expressing support for BLM. Continue reading... |
| 'Donald is cruel': Trump's sister recorded saying president has 'no principles' Posted: 22 Aug 2020 10:04 PM PDT Maryanne Trump Barry, a former federal judge, made the comments to her niece Mary Trump in secretly taped conversations Donald Trump's older sister, a former federal judge, is heard sharply criticizing her brother in a series of recordings released Saturday, at one point saying of the president: "He has no principles." Maryanne Trump Barry was secretly recorded by her niece, Mary Trump, who recently released a book denouncing the president, Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created the World's Most Dangerous Man. Mary Trump said Saturday she made the recordings in 2018 and 2019. Continue reading... |
| Holocaust denial graffitied at site of Nazi massacre in France Posted: 22 Aug 2020 07:23 AM PDT Justice minister vows to 'find and judge' vandals who defaced Oradour-sur-Glane Vandals have scrawled graffiti denying the Holocaust on a wall in the village that was the site of the Nazis' biggest massacre of civilians in France during the second world war. The justice minister vowed on Saturday to bring those responsible to justice. Continue reading... |
| Your data is not destined for China, assures TikTok’s UK boss Posted: 22 Aug 2020 10:56 PM PDT The controversial app's users are ignoring geopolitical battle over its digital security, says Richard Waterworth TikTok's UK chief has strenuously denied the video-sharing app, which Donald Trump has threatened to ban, shares data with China. Richard Waterworth told the Observer that the UK and European arm of TikTok was growing quickly, despite the "turbulent" geopolitical battle in which the Chinese-born app has found itself. Continue reading... |
| Judge orders Donald Trump to pay Stormy Daniels $44,000 in legal fees Posted: 22 Aug 2020 01:59 PM PDT Payment relates to case over non-disclosure agreement in alleged affair between adult film star and president A California judge has ordered Donald Trump to pay the adult film actor and director Stormy Daniels $44,100, to cover legal fees in the battle over her non-disclosure agreement (NDA) with the president. Related: William Barr told Murdoch to 'muzzle' Fox News Trump critic, new book says Continue reading... |
| First ladies: voices of reason and compassion, central to US politics today Posted: 22 Aug 2020 11:22 PM PDT Michelle Obama's powerful speech at the Democratic National Convention showed how the roles of leaders' wives are more important than ever Michelle Obama may think that Donald Trump "cannot meet this moment", but she has proved without a doubt that she can. When Obama spoke at the Democratic National Convention (DNC) last week, she pleaded for Americans to vote for Joe Biden like their "lives depend on it". She used her recent history as America's "mom-in-chief" to make her case in what was the most talked-about speech of the convention. And she made clear that first ladies have enormous platforms, if they choose to use them. Continue reading... |
| Migrants housed in Essex hotel find themselves at mercy of local hostility Posted: 22 Aug 2020 10:20 PM PDT Far-right Britain First party leading the charge against asylum-seekers with false claims of 'crime surge' in Epping Jabbing a finger in the direction of the Bell hotel, Paula Clarke was in no doubt as to what needed to happen to it. "They need to build an electrified fence around the place. It's the only way to protect us," said the 68-year-old. The hotel, which was originally a 16th-century coaching inn and is sited on the southern approach to the town of Epping in Essex, can never before have generated so much fear and loathing. Some nearby residents want its current occupants deported. Others feel very differently, proud to offer them sanctuary. Continue reading... |
| From Washington to Minsk, democracy is under siege ... and losing the battle Posted: 22 Aug 2020 11:27 PM PDT The supposed triumph of western liberal values in the 1990s – the 'end of history' – now rings hollow indeed It would be reassuring to think that if Russia moved to intervene militarily in Belarus – as it did in Ukraine and Georgia – the EU, the US and Nato would finally draw a line. Vladimir Putin would be firmly told: "Not again. Enough of your overt aggression, covert operations, 'little green men', cyber attacks, poll meddling and assassinations. If you really want a new cold war with the west, then we're ready – and just like last time, Russia will lose." Reassuring, but unrealistic. As last week's EU response to the popular uprising in Belarus made clear, a primary concern of Europe's leaders is to avoid antagonising Russia's president. True, they told Putin not to interfere. But in return, they promised not to interfere themselves. "The EU stands in solidarity with the people of Belarus," they said. Solidarity turned out to mean limited sanctions and backing for a "national dialogue" already rejected by the regime. |
| Mike Pompeo to visit Israel and UAE to discuss new diplomatic ties Posted: 22 Aug 2020 01:57 PM PDT US secretary of state is also expected to address other security challenges in region Mike Pompeo, the US secretary of state, will visit Israel on Monday and the United Arab Emirates a day later to discuss the countries' normalisation deal, according to two sources briefed on his itinerary. Also on Pompeo's agenda will be the security challenges posed by Iran and China in the region, said the sources, who declined to be identified by name or nationality. Continue reading... |
| The week in TV: Lovecraft Country; African Renaissance; Manctopia and more Posted: 23 Aug 2020 01:30 AM PDT Horrors of all kinds abound in HBO's brilliant new drama; Afua Hirsch explores African history; and inside the mind of Derren Brown Lovecraft Country (Sky Atlantic) | sky.com Lovecraft Country was, in its ambitions and its potential heft, already a phenomenon just on paper. Add in the presence of JJ Abrams and Jordan Peele as executive producers, along with a sublime cast of strength in depth, and it landed on our screens last week with a burnished gleam of unmistakable triumph. It is that rare thing: a show that can deliver gut-punch messages of contempt (and hope), yet which remembers throughout that it's a drama, keeping one thrillingly on the edge, ripe and reeking with surprise. Continue reading... |
| The Libertarian party was up and coming in 2016. What happened? Posted: 23 Aug 2020 02:00 AM PDT Four years ago the party's ticket included two former governors. This year it features fringe figures who flirt with the far right The Libertarian party nominated two respected former state governors for president and vice-president in 2016, and enjoyed its most successful election performance ever, winning nearly 4.5m votes. To many, it seemed that the Libertarians were a genuinely relevant third party in US politics, which is overwhelmingly dominated by Republicans and Democrats. But in 2020, the party, which advocates for small government and civil liberties, has gone in a wildly different direction. Continue reading... |
| The big picture: a tender family moment with JFK Posted: 22 Aug 2020 11:00 PM PDT A candid shot of the young senator by Life magazine's Ed Clark portrayed him as a man to lead a new generation into a new decade Ed Clark, a Life magazine staff photographer, was commissioned to photograph the Kennedy family at home in Georgetown in 1958. JFK was campaigning to be elected to a second term as Massachusetts's senator and, if successful, there were strong rumours that he would make a run for the presidency in 1960. After several days taking pictures of husband and wife, Clark asked over lunch at the house if he could get a picture of the senator with his baby daughter, Caroline. "Jackie said no," he recalled, "that she was upstairs asleep. But Jack bounded up the stairs, and I followed." Clark took a spontaneous roll of film up in the nursery. It included this picture capturing the moment Caroline woke up, wide-eyed with delight to see her father. The nation was starting to share that excitement. Clark's cover story for Life did much to advance the growing conviction that Kennedy was a leader for a new generation and a new decade. Up until that moment, presidents were far more likely to be grandparents than new dads, and family photographs were largely awkwardly staged compositions. Continue reading... |
| How China uses Muslim press trips to counter claims of Uighur abuse Posted: 23 Aug 2020 12:30 AM PDT Heavily supervised visits to indoctrination centres present reporters with smiling inmates and tales of cultural acceptance Journalist Sherif Sonbol was taking pictures of ethnic dancers during an official tour of China's far western Xinjiang province when he noticed a room full of women being trained to use sewing machines. He realised he was in one of Beijing's network of political indoctrination camps, where – according to the United Nations – China is detaining up to one million members of the mostly Muslim Uighur minority. Sonbol, an Egyptian photographer and editor, was one of at least 80 journalists taken to Xinjiang since 2015 on the "Silk Road Celebrity China Tour". He left convinced that accounts of mistreatment inside the re-education centres were untrue. "I keep hearing people saying the education centres were where they torture people," he said. But the enthusiasm of the dancers impressed him, "Look at their faces! You know these are very happy people." Continue reading... |
| Northern Territory election: Labor claims victory but majority hangs in the balance Posted: 23 Aug 2020 12:41 AM PDT NT will have to wait at least another day to find out if Michael Gunner's team has polled enough votes to form a majority government Michael Gunner's Labor team is expected to retain government in the Northern Territory, where counting continues in a knife-edge election. The Northern Territory will have to wait at least another day to find out if incumbent Labor has polled enough votes to form a majority government. Continue reading... |
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