2020-07-16: News Headlines

Eds. (2020-07-16). Turin grants honorary citizenship to head of Cuban medical brigade (+ Photos). mronline.org The Municipal Council of Turin granted the honorary citizenship of that city in the region of Piedmont to Dr. Julio Guerra, head of the Cuban medical brigade that helped fight COVID-19 there.

yenisafak (2020-07-16). Italy imposes travel ban on 3 more Balkan nations. yenisafak.com Italy on Thursday imposed a travel ban on three more Balkan nations due to the coronavirus pandemic, the country's heath minister said.Italy's list of high-risk countries now contains 16 nations with new additions; Kosovo, Serbia, and Montenegro, Health Minister Roberto Speranza said on Facebook.Travelers, who had been in these countries in the last 14 days, will not be able to enter Italy.The list of restricted countries included Armenia, Bahrein, Bangladesh, Brazil, Bosnia Herzegovina, Chile, Kuwait, North Macedonia, Moldova, Oman, Panama, Peru, Dominican Republic, Serbia, Montenegro, and Kosovo.Since originati…

Rajan Menon (2020-07-16). How the Pandemic Hit Americans: Selective in Its Impact, the Virus Has Struck the Homeless Hard. counterpunch.org The novel SARS-CoV-2 has roared through the American landscape leaving physical, emotional, and economic devastation in its wake. By early July, known infections in this country exceeded three million, while deaths topped 135,000. Home to just over 4% of the global population, the United States accounts for more than a quarter of all fatalities from

Raul Diego (2020-07-16). New Tech Company Partnership to Offset Responsibility for Public Safety and Health onto AI. mintpressnews.com A new tech partnership augurs a bleak vision for the future of public safety and health emergencies where algorithms and mass profiling of entire populations make the social contract obsolete.

Christian Kreiss (2020-07-16). Economic impact of corona lockdowns. indybay.org Even before the current lockdown-induced economic depression, the assets of the lowest 20 percent of US households – between 2007 and 2019 – had fallen by about a third according to the Wall Street Journal, and their incomes had fallen by 2 percent in real terms in these 12 years. Then came the lockdown. It hit the bottom fifth of the US population correspondingly hard.

Jean Jores Pierre (2020-07-15). PetroCaribe is at the heart of a geopolitical battle in the Carribean. peoplesdispatch.org For the past two years, Haitians have been engaged in several

Fernando Ravsberg (2020-07-15). Cuba in the Last Stretch of the Pandemic. globalresearch.ca Introduction | The following article by Fernando Ravsberg It is worth mentioning some …

Germán Gorraiz López (2020-07-15). Is U.S. Military Action against Venezuela Contemplated? Trump Wants to Extradite Maduro. globalresearch.ca The Sino-Venezuelan agreement by which the Chinese state petrochemical company Sinopec will invest 14,000 million dollars to achieve daily oil production of 200,000 barrels per day of crude in the Orinoco Oil Belt, (considered the most abundant oil field in …

WSWS (2020-07-15). Further details emerge on far-right views of Canadian army reservist who tried to kill Trudeau. wsws.org The political establishment fears an examination of the far-right incubating in the armed forces would cut across plans to dramatically increase military spending and aggression.

Elijah Magnier (2020-07-15). Quand le Hezbollah brandit la carte de la Chine et de l'Iran, les USA tremblent. thealtworld.com En toute hâte et sous l'≈ìil vigilant des drones israéliens et américains, le Hezbollah stocke des centaines de tonnes de stocks de nourriture, fournis par l'Iran, dans des dizaines d'entrepà¥ts improvisés à la frontière syro-libanaise. Cette nouvelle mesure inhabituelle du Hezbollah concrétise la récente promesse du secrétaire général Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah de prévenir la menace de famine qui pèse sur la population libanaise. | La guerre menée par Israà´l et les USA contre l'Axe de la Résistance se poursuit, mais à l'aide d'outils différents. Elle est passée de guerres conventionnelles av…

Elijah Magnier (2020-07-15). When Hezbollah flags up the China and Iran options, the US trembles. thealtworld.com Hastily and under the watchful eye of Israeli and US drones, Hezbollah is storing hundreds of tons of food stock, supplied by Iran, in dozens of improvised warehouses on the Syrian-Lebanese border. This new and unusual step by Hezbollah reflects Secretary General Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah's recent promise to prevent the starvation threat looming for the Lebanese population. | The US-Israel war against the "Axis of the Resistance" continues but with different tools. It is progressing from waging wars with armies on the ground as the US did in Afghanistan in 2001 and in Iraq in 2003, and as Israel did in Lebanon in <...

Jessica Culhane, Monisha Sharma, Kate Wilson, D.Allen Roberts, Cyrus Mugo, Dalton Wamalwa, Irene Inwani, Ruanne V. Barnabas, Pamela K. Kohler (2020-07-15). Modeling the health impact and cost threshold of long-acting ART for adolescents and young adults in Kenya. thelancet.com Providing LA-ART to AYA can be cost-effective in Kenya if it is less than twice the cost of oral ART. Long-acting injectable ART for priority populations with low viral suppression has the potential to cost-effectively avert disability and death.

Staff (2020-07-15). Texas and Arizona Request Refrigerated Trucks as Morgues Run Out of Space. truthout.org Refrigerated trucks are en route to Texas and Arizona as morgues struggle to deal with the rising number of deaths resulting from Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego, a Democrat, told reporters that at least one morgue in Maricopa County, home to nearly 60% of the state's population, was "near cap…

Cira Pascual Marquina (2020-07-15). Popular protagonism in Venezuela's transition to socialism: A conversation with Michael Lebowitz. mronline.org The Marxist theorist emphasizes that socialism involves people transforming themselves.

Stansfield Smith (2020-07-15). WOLA's David Smilde Advocates a more Efficient Regime Change Strategy against Venezuela. dissidentvoice.org Common Dreams, a liberal-left website, reposted an article by David Smilde of the Washington Office on Latin America (WOLA): "Joe Biden Should Not Try to Out-Hawk Trump on Venezuela." It starts off well with the subtitle: "The first task for a Biden administration would be to take military intervention off the table." The US has …

news.un (2020-07-15). Venezuela: amputation, extortion and death amidst booming gold mining racket. news.un.org The Human Rights Council on Wednesday heard damning reports of serious exploitation and abuse of children and indigenous communities in Venezuela, where mining for gold and other minerals is booming.

Ricardo Vaz (2020-07-15). Venezuela's Oil Production Plunges as US Issues New Threats. venezuelanalysis.com Special Envoy Elliott Abrams threatened to "go after" shipping companies that continue to transport Venezuelan crude.

_____ (2020-07-15). Trump Tells Florida Crowd 'Something Will Happen In Venezuela' Soon. popularresistance.org On a trip to COVID-19 riddled Florida this weekend, President Donald Trump not-so-cryptically revealed that he had something big planned for Venezuela during a meeting with leaders of the U.S. military's Southern Command. "Something will happen with Venezuela. That's all I can tell you," he said, before adding that Washington would be "very much involved" in what he was referencing. Biden has also taken a hard line on Venezuela and is attempting to out-hawk Trump on the issue. "It's time for free and fair elections so that the Venezuelan people can turn the page on the corrupt and repressive Maduro regime," he sa…

Peoples Dispatch (2020-07-14). Cuban doctors land in Azerbaijan to help fight COVID-19. peoplesdispatch.org Over 100 medical professionals from the Henry Reeve Brigade arrived in Azerbaijan on Monday. The brigade, founded by Fidel Castro in 2005, has worked in more than 25 countries during the COVID-19 pandemic…

Anita Waters (2020-07-14). Cleveland City Council calls for end of U.S. blockade against Cuba. peoplesworld.org CLEVELAND—On July 1, the City Council here voted 14 to 1 for an Emergency Resolution calling for the United States to end its economic, commercial, and financial embargo against Cuba, and for the Trump administration to open negotiations toward a cooperative relationship between the two nations. The resolution now goes to Mayor Frank Jackson for …

_____ (2020-07-14). To Abolish The Medical Industrial Complex. popularresistance.org The past six months have highlighted the fight that Black people are in against state violence, both in the form of policing and the US healthcare system. Though the ruling class cries that the coronavirus pandemic is "the great equalizer ," the virus continues to demonstrate exactly who our capitalist health-care system was designed to keep alive. So far, across the country, about 42% of coronavirus deaths have been Black people , even though they were only about 21% of the population in the areas analyzed. In Louisiana , over 70% of people who died were Black (despite Black people being only 32% of the populati…

Kozhimannil KB, Interrante JD, Tuttle MS, et al. (2020-07-14). Changes in Hospital-Based Obstetric Services in Rural US Counties, 2014-2018. jamanetwork.com This study describes hospital-based obstetric service losses in rural US counties between 2014 and 2018 overall and by county population and urban adjacency.

Anya Parampil (2020-07-14). Blockbuster oil bribery scandal exposes corrupt double-dealing of Guaidó 'attorney general'. thegrayzone.com Jose Ignacio Hernandez has raked in lucrative fees as a legal mercenary for the corporate looters of Venezuela's PDVSA oil…

Alan MacLeod (2020-07-14). Trump Tells Florida Crowd "Something Will Happen in Venezuela" Soon. thealtworld.com "Something will happen with Venezuela. That's all I can tell you," Trump said, before not-so-cryptically adding that Washington would be "very much involved." | MPN— On a trip to COVID-19 riddled Florida this weekend, President Donald Trump not-so-cryptically revealed that he had something big planned for Venezuela during a meeting with leaders of the U.S. military's Southern Command. "Something will happen with Venezuela. That's all I can tell you," he

_____ (2020-07-14). CoronaShock And Socialism. popularresistance.org CoronaShock is a term that refers to how a virus struck the world with such gripping force; it refers to how the social order in the bourgeois state crumbled, while the social order in the socialist parts of the world appeared more resilient. | This is the third in a multiple-part series of studies on CoronaShock. It is based on research by Ana Maldonado (Frente Francisco de Miranda, Venezuela), Manolo de los Santos (researcher with Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research), Subin Dennis (researcher with Tricontinental: Institute for Social Research), and Vijay Prashad (director of Tricontinental: Institute…

Jamal Rich (2020-07-13). The right to be radical: Uplifting the life of Claudia Jones. peoplesworld.org WASHINGTON—The Claudia Jones School for Political Education and Black Women Radicals came together virtually on the evening of July 3rd to co-host an event uplifting the life and work of Black Communist Claudia Jones. Over 300 attendees from around the world attended the event, including scholars and activists from Kenya, Toronto, London, Brazil, the Caribbean, …

Staff (2020-07-13). COVID Catch-22: They Got a Big ER Bill Because Hospitals Couldn't Test for Virus. truthout.org Fresh off a Caribbean cruise in early March, John Campbell developed a cough and fever of 104 degrees. He went to his primary care physician and got a flu test, which came up negative. | Then things got strange. Campbell said the doctor then turned to him and said, "I've called the ER next door, and you need to go there. This is a matter of public health. They're expecting you." | It was March 3, and no one had an inkling yet of just how bad the COVID-19 pandemic would become in the U.S.

Peoples Dispatch (2020-07-13). Protests against economic mismanagement engulf southern Tunisia. peoplesdispatch.org Protesters have demanded that the Tunisian president, Kais Saied, visit the southern region and address the hardships faced by the local population, as well as respond to the police killing of a youth in the town of Remada on July 7…

teleSUR (2020-07-13). Honduras Extends Curfew and Red Alert Over COVID-19 Spreading. telesurenglish.net Honduras is extending the curfew issued to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic, from July 13 to 19, its Secretary of Security announced late on Sunday. | RELATED: | The government also decided to prolong, until June 19, the red alert for the 18 departments of the country as a containment measure since there is still a high infection rate among the population. | According to the press release, citizens will be able to carry on their duties f…

Mike Whitney (2020-07-13). Children's Rights: Stop Fu**ing Around and Open the G**Damn Schools! globalresearch.ca Countries around the world are ignoring the media's fearmongering and starting to reopen their schools. This is a positive development which shows that the Coronavirus's psychic-grip on the population is gradually loosening. Once again, people are asserting control over their …

news.un (2020-07-13). Cities and local government must focus on well-being of people in developing countries. news.un.org While the scale and severity of the COVID-19 pandemic is being felt in developing and developed countries alike, the President of the UN General Assembly maintained on Monday that the response must focus on "the two-thirds of the world's population at risk of being left behind".

yenisafak (2020-07-13). Births in Italy hit record low in 2019, population shrinks again. yenisafak.com The number of babies born in Italy hit a new record low in 2019, the population shrank and more Italians moved abroad, national statistics office ISTAT said on Monday.Italy's demographic crisis, with a dwindling population and ageing workforce, is one reason for its chronically stagnant economy, economists say — and the situation is getting worse.Births dropped by some 19,000 to 420,000 last year, the lowest level since the unification of Italy in 1861, ISTAT said, while deaths totalled 634,000.Bolzano, on the northern border with Austria, was the only Italian province in which births exceeded deaths in 2019, wh…

WSWS (2020-07-13). Puerto Rico declares emergency as drought leaves nearly 150,000 residents without water. wsws.org A lack of consistent running water will make it more difficult for frequent handwashing to limit the spread of the coronavirus which has already infected thousands on the island.

Paul Dobson (2020-07-13). Venezuela Begins Election Preparations as More Parties Confirm Participation. venezuelanalysis.com Hard-right Popular Will Party has announced it will run, while the Communist Party has unveiled an alternative revolutionary alliance.

Leonardo Flores (2020-07-13). VenezolanosConBiden and MAGAzuela: Two sides of the same coin. mronline.org The Biden campaign recently held an event outlining the presidential hopeful's "vision for Venezuela." Spoiler alert: it barely differs from President Trump's.

teleSUR (2020-07-13). Venezuela Updates its Electoral Roll Amidst Health Protocols. telesurenglish.net Venezuela's National Electoral Council (CNE) Monday kicked off a voters register's update process to set up the elections whereby 277 lawmakers will be elected on Dec. 6. | RELATED: | CNE president Indira Alfonzo detailed that to this end were established 551 active locations in each Regional Electoral Offices (REO). | The electoral body deployed 1,232 agents in each REO to ensure compliance with the h…

Michael Lebowitz (2020-07-13). Popular protagonism in Venezuela's transition to socialism. zcomm.org Capitalism, which destroys human beings and nature, must be ended, but you can not build socialism without the protagonism by which people change themselves…

Anya Parampil (2020-07-13). Exclusive: Bill Richardson undertakes private mission after State Dept abandons families of mercenaries detained in Venezuela invasion. thegrayzone.com The brother of Luke Denman, a former Green Beret detained after a failed invasion of Venezuela told The Grayzone ex-US…