2020-06-28: News Headlines

Steve Ellner (2020-06-28). Trump's Second Thoughts on Juan Guaido are Not Enough. zcomm.org After the president's change of heart on Venezuela, and the waning of Juan Guaidó and his party, the entire Washington political establishment have a lot of explaining to do…

en.mehrnews (2020-06-28). Gasoline export to Venezuela trade deal: oil min. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Jun. 28 (MNA) — Stressing Iran has not given gasoline to Venezuela for free, Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh said that exporting gasoline to Venezuela was a trade deal.

yenisafak (2020-06-27). 'Rohingya issue, not Muslims v/s Buddhist paradigm'. yenisafak.com Maung Zarni, 56, scholar and activist, known for his opposition to the violence in Myanmar and his support to the Rohingya population said the Burmese military was taking advantage of strategic rivalry between China and India and blamed genocide of Rohingya to an institutional hate campaign.Born in a Burmese Buddhist family, Zarni said a campaign of ignorance was manufactured in his country through schools, mass media, and Buddhist organizations against Rohingya, which eventually culminated in the genocide."The Burmese public has been made ignorant of the facts about Islam and Muslims," said Zarni in an exclusive…

Juan Fortea, Eduard Vilaplana, Maria Carmona-Iragui, Bessy Benejam, Laura Videla, Isabel Barroeta, Susana Fernández, Miren Altuna, Jordi Pegueroles, Víctor Montal, Silvia Valldeneu, Sandra Giménez, Sofía González-Ortiz, Laia Muñoz, Teresa Estellés, Ignacio Illán-Gala, Olivia Belbin, Valle Camacho, Liam Reese Wilson, Tiina Annus, Ricardo S Osorio, Sebastián Videla, Sylvain Lehmann, Anthony J Holland, Daniel Alcolea, Jordi Clarimón, Shahid H Zaman, Rafael Blesa, Alberto Lleó (2020-06-27). [Articles] Clinical and biomarker changes of Alzheimer's disease in adults with Down syndrome: a cross-sectional study. thelancet.com Alzheimer's disease in individuals with Down syndrome has a long preclinical phase in which biomarkers follow a predictable order of changes over more than two decades. The similarities with sporadic and autosomal dominant Alzheimer's disease and the prevalence of Down syndrome make this population a suitable target for Alzheimer's disease preventive treatments.

Emeline Han, Shu-Ti Chiou, Martin McKee, Helena Legido-Quigley (2020-06-27). [Commentary] The resilience of Taiwan's health system to address the COVID-19 pandemic. thelancet.com A new book by world-leading economists gives clear advice on how to mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic: "Act Fast and Do Whatever It Takes" [1]. Yet, countries that have done so are the exceptions rather than the rule — and one of them is Taiwan. With 446 cases and 7 deaths as 22nd of June 2020 in a population of 23.8 million, Taiwan has remained relatively unscathed so far despite its proximity to the virus epicentre [2]. How was Taiwan able to respond the way it did? Here, we examine Taiwan's response using the World Health Organization (WHO) health system building blocks [3].

Abhijan Choudhury (2020-06-27). Israeli atrocities on the rise. peoplesdispatch.org Two recent reports released by the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs of the United Nations in the occupied Palestinian Territories (OCHA oPT), on June 18 and 24, describe the blatant human rights violations and war crimes committed by the Israeli occupation against the Palestinian population in the three occupied Palestinian territories of West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza. | The two reports cover May 2020 and the first fifteen days of June 2020, respectively, and compile data on acts committed by the Israeli government, armed forces and intelligence services to subjugate and oppress Palestinia…

Carter Dillard (2020-06-27). From COVID-19 to climate change, human overpopulation is the big white elephant in the room. nationofchange.org Experts warn that continued world population growth will make things worse.

_____ (2020-06-27). Why Is This Ongoing American "Revolution" Bound To Fail? popularresistance.org Observed from outer space, the United States is in a revolutionary turmoil. Fires are burning, thousands of people are confronting police and other security forces. There are barricades, banners, posters, and there is rage. | Rage is well justified. Grievances run deep, through the veins of a confused and socially insecure population, in both cities and the countryside. Minorities feel and actually are oppressed. Indeed they have been disgracefully oppressed, since the birth of the country, over two centuries ago (see my latest report carried by this magazine). | There are some correct words uttered and written…

_____ (2020-06-27). Bipartisan Crimes Against Humanity In The United States. popularresistance.org Hundreds of people are unnecessarily dying every day with African Americans representing a disproportionate number of those deaths. Eighty million people are now without health coverage, millions are unemployed, over the next two months evictions will resume with an expected explosion of homelessness. And what is the response from the state that is tasked with the responsibility to promote and protect the fundamental human rights of its population? | While trillions of dollars were transferred to the corporate sector though the CARES Act meant to support the economy through the crisis, the state continues to igno…

sputniknews (2020-06-27). Margot Robbie Reportedly Set to Star in Pirates Caribbean Franchise, but Fans Want Johnny Depp Back. sputniknews.com Aussie Margot Robbie will reportedly lead the all-women cast in an upcoming Pirates of the Caribbean spinoff, which is said to shift away from the portrayal of iconic Captain Jack Sparrow.

en.mehrnews (2020-06-27). Trump's talks offer with Venezuela, Iran doesn't mean policy shift: Argentinian Prof. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Jun. 28 (MNA) — The head of the International Relations Area for the Observatory of International Trade at the National University of Lujan in Argentina believes that US hostile policies toward Iran and Venezuela will continue despite Donald Trump's willingness to talk with Tehran and Caracas.

Prof Michel Chossudovsky (2020-06-26). America's War against the People of Korea: The Historical Record of US War Crimes. globalresearch.ca "the population north of the imposed 38th Parallel lost nearly a third its population during the 37-month long "hot" war, 1950-1953, an unprecedented percentage of mortality suffered by one nation due to the belligerence of another." (War Veteran Brian Willson)…

_____ (2020-06-26). The 'New' American Mercenary: A Pocket History. popularresistance.org Though the bizarre story has been subsumed by other events, last month's aborted invasion of Venezuela should've hardly shocked anyone. The United States has long used mercenaries to do its bidding. They have provided Washington distance and deniability for unsavory operations. During the Cold War, the U.S. hoped this would limit domestic and international protest. Policymakers also discerned mercenary alternatives to bloody, expensive quagmires like the Vietnam or Iraq Wars. Traditionally, most of these hired guns were foreigners — ex-soldiers of declining European empires. | Much of this parallels the lat…

Brasil de Fato (2020-06-26). In South Africa, mining workers have double the infection rate for COVID-19. peoplesdispatch.org The rate of infection of the novel coronavirus among mining workers in South Africa is 330 per 100,000 inhabitants, more than double the average registered for the rest of the country's population — 160 per 100,000. From the 1474 positive cases confirmed within South African mines, 907 are still active, 563 patients recovered and four have died. | The information was released Monday (22nd) by the

David Smilde (2020-06-26). Joe Biden Should Not Try to Out-Hawk Trump on Venezuela. commondreams.org Thousands gather in Caracas to protest Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. April 2019 (Photo: Helena1 / Shutterstock.com) | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/screen_shot_2020-06-26_at_11.10.04_am.png

Workers World Party (2020-06-26). Defund means abolish police! workers.org "Defund the police!" has leaped to the top of the demands that mass demonstrations have been making since the May 25 police murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis. After that city's 3rd Police Precinct building burned to the ground to the cheers of a majority of the U.S. population, there . . . |

Peoples Dispatch (2020-06-26). COVID-19 in Brazil: The people's response. peoplesdispatch.org The coronavirus pandemic has sent a shockwave through Brazil which as of June 26 stands second in the world with 1 million 228 thousand confirmed cases of coronavirus and 54 thousand deaths. Hospitals are at capacity and the country also has experienced one of the highest rates of death of medical professionals amid the pandemic. However, Brazil's social movements have not stood by idly. They have been organizing around a list of demands with regards to economic support to vulnerable populations, public health policies and above all protection of the people. They have also organized solidarity initiatives across…

yenisafak (2020-06-26). Dead dolphins wash up on France's shores in record numbers. yenisafak.com Dead dolphins are washing up on France's Atlantic coast in such high numbers that local populations of the mammals are at risk, marine biologists say.The overwhelming majority drowned in the nets of fishing trawlers. Post mortems often show fractures, broken tails and flippers and deep incisions cut into their skin by the nets. Some have been mutilated as fishermen release their bodies."We're reaching mortality rates that threaten the survival of the dolphin population in the Bay of Gascony," said Morgane Perri, a marine biologist in Brittany, western France."For the last three years, we've seen more than 1,000 d…

yenisafak (2020-06-26). India grants thousands citizenship rights in Kashmir. yenisafak.com As many as 25,000 people have been granted domicile certificates in Muslim-majority Indian administered Jammu and Kashmir since May 18, which local politicians believe is the beginning of disturbing demographic profile of the region.The certificate, a sort of citizenship right, entitles a person to residency and government jobs in the region, which till last year was reserved only for the local population.Last year on Aug. 5, when India revoked the semi-autonomous status of the region, it also scrapped the local special citizenship law, guaranteed under Article 35 (A) of the Indian Constitution.The law was barrin…

Staff (2020-06-25). How U.S. and Brazil Leadership That "Neglects Science" Led to Hemisphere's Worst Coronavirus Crises. democracynow.org As coronavirus infections worldwide approach 10 million, nearly half can be found in the two largest countries in the Americas: the United States and Brazil, which now has the worst infection rate in the world and could surpass the U.S. death toll next month. "What we see in the country is a reflection of the leadership that we have," says Marcia Castro, professor of demography, chair of the Department of Global Health and Population at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and co-chair of Harvard's Brazil Studies Program, noting far-right President Jair Bolsonaro has downplayed the pandemic's severity an…

Deirdre Griswold (2020-06-25). Amazing facts about the virus. workers.org Medical staff in Wuhan, China, celebrate after all coronavirus patients were discharged from temporary emergency hospital, March 9. Facts are stubborn things. Take the fact that the People's Republic of China, with four times the population of the U.S., has had far fewer COVID-19 deaths, even though it was the . . . |

RT (2020-06-25). Bitcoin bolivars? Venezuela reportedly accepting crypto as payment for passport applications. rt.com Venezuela's passport service is accepting Bitcoin as payment for some applications, according to people using the online system. The move suggests an increased shift to alternative payment systems in the South American state. | A screenshot of a Bitcoin (BTC) payment prompt on Venezuela's Administrative Service for Identification, Migration and Foreigners (SAIME) was posted to

RT (2020-06-25). Texas slams brakes on its reopening process as coronavirus cases soar. rt.com Texas Governor Greg Abbott has announced that the state is halting its reopening process after hospitals were flooded with new Covid-19 cases and health officials raised fears of bed shortages. | "The last thing we want to do as a state is go backwards and close down businesses," Abbott said in a statement. "This temporary pause will help our state corral the spread until we can safely enter the next phase of opening our state for business." | The development comes as Texas, the US state with the second largest population, continues to report record increases in coronavirus cases and hospitalizations. | More t…

Almasdar News (2020-06-25). US Sends Powerful Message to Iran, Venezuela as Warship Sails Near Caracas. globalresearch.ca The U.S. Naval Command in the southern region announced on Wednesday, that a warship belonging to it sailed near the Venezuelan coast, hours after an Iranian tanker was docked in the port of Caracas. | According to the Southern Command's official …

_____ (2020-06-25). Latin Americans Fighting Mining Companies During COVID19. popularresistance.org Over the years, the mining industry has taken advantage of dictatorship, disasters, and a variety of distractions to expand operations in Latin America. In the time of Covid-19, with entire populations under lockdown and economies falling apart, mining companies have also hopped on the pandemic profiteering bandwagon. | In Latin America, the areas of interest to mining companies whether they are exploring or digging for gold, silver, copper, iron ore, and other minerals can extend to vast areas of entire countries. Their activities also affect important ecosystems. These include high-altitude wetlands and glacier…

Staff (2020-06-25). Leadership That Neglects Science Led to Worst COVID Crises in US and Brazil. truthout.org As coronavirus infections worldwide approach 10 million, nearly half can be found in the two largest countries in the Americas: the United States and Brazil, which now has the worst infection rate in the world and could surpass the U.S. death toll next month. "What we see in the country is a reflection of the leadership that we have," says Marcia Castro, professor of demography, chair of the Department of Global Health and Population at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health and co-chair o…

Media Lens (2020-06-24). "Six Months To Avert Climate Crisis": Climate Breakdown And The Corporate Media. dissidentvoice.org In his classic science fiction novel, Foundation, Isaac Asimov posited a future in which 'psychohistorians' could predict outcomes based on past history and the large-scale behaviour of human populations by combining psychology and the mathematics of probability. Using 'psychohistory', the protagonist Hari Seldon discovers that the 12,000-year-old Galactic Empire will collapse in 500 years. He …

Leonardo Flores (2020-06-24). Bolton weaves a tall tale in his Venezuela chapter. peoplesdispatch.org Per Bolton, Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro remains in power only because the Trump administration lacked the determination to keep the pressure on. He argues that sanctions were neither strict nor swiftly applied. Yet during Bolton's tenure, the Trump administration blocked Venezuela's ability to trade gold, froze the assets of state oil company PDVSA (including US based subsidiary Citgo Petroleum), sanctioned Venezuela's Central Bank, and imposed an economic embargo. All of this occurred between November 2018 and August 2019, during Bolton's tenure as Trump's National Security Advisor. | Four major sanction…

yenisafak (2020-06-24). US sanctions five Iranian ship captains for bringing oil to Venezuela. yenisafak.com Speaking to reporters, Pompeo also said the United States continues to support Venezuelan opposition leader Juan Guaido. Washington, which seeks the ouster of Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, and most other Western governments have recognized Guaido as the legitimate leader of the OPEC nation.

Stansfield Smith (2020-06-24). The Wasp Network Highlights Our Lack of Freedom to Tell the Truth on the Cuban Five Case. dissidentvoice.org The film Wasp Network, based on the book The Last Soldiers of the Cold War, The Story of the Cuban Five by Fernando Morais, is a co-production between France, Spain, Belgium and Brazil. It was shown in Cuba last December, soon after it came out. You can now watch it on Netflix. It is not a …

WSWS (2020-06-24). Ten years since the US-backed coup against Australian Labor PM. wsws.org Literally overnight, a handful of factional warlords, including US "protected sources," engineered Prime Minister Kevin Rudd's ouster, entirely behind the backs of the population.