Monthly Archives: December 2020

2020-12-06: News Headlines

_____ (2020-12-06). Venezuela's Legislative Elections. popularresistance.org Latin America has caught the world's attention as it has become the electoral battleground between progressive movements and the neo-colonial aspirations of the Washington Consensus. In Bolivia, Luis Arce, the candidate from Evo Morales's Movement Towards Socialism, won the presidential election, reverting the bloody coup that, to the convenience of transnational lithium interests, had forced the indigenous leader out of office only a year before. A week later, neoliberalism's birthplace became its next burial ground, as Chileans approved a historic referendum to change the Constitution left in place by Augusto P…

Dave Markland (2020-12-06). Review of Hensman's 'Indefensible'. zcomm.org Defense of the Easily Defensible By Dave Markland In 2018 Haymarket Books published Rohini Hensman's Indefensible: Democracy, Counter-revolution and Anti-imperialist Rhetoric. Its focus is on left journalists and analysts like John Pilger and the late Edward S. Herman who have committed the inexcusable sin of being overly suspicious of United States foreign policy. Many readers

Zoe PC (2020-12-06). Millions of Venezuelans are set to vote today in historic National Assembly elections. peoplesdispatch.org The election for the 277-member National Assembly is vital considering how sections of the legislature were in the forefront of coup attempts against the democratically elected government of Nicolás Maduro…

MEE and agencies (2020-12-06). Opposition scores win in Kuwait parliamentary election. middleeasteye.net Opposition scores win in Kuwait parliamentary election | Half of seats in first vote since death of Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Sabah go to opposition candidates, but no women are in the new National Assembly | Sun, 12/06/2020 – 14: 02 | A Kuwaiti casts his vote at a polling station during parliamentary elections in Jahra City, Kuwait on 5 December 2020 (Reuters) | Kuwait's opposition took ne…

teleSUR (2020-12-06). Venezuela: Parliamentary Elections Kick off Without Setbacks. telesurenglish.net With the traditional reveille, Venezuela Sunday began the parliamentary elections to form the new National Assembly in a process in which 14,000 candidates and over 100 political parties are taking part. | RELATED: | "Election Day is advancing with absolute normality. The 30,000 tables enabled nationwide will operate until 18h00 local time or until the last person in line votes," TeleSUR correspondent in Venezuela Leo…

teleSUR (2020-12-06). Traditional Morning Reveille Opened Elections Day in Venezuela. telesurenglish.net Hundreds of people attended the traditional morning reveille ceremony to show support for the parliamentary elections taking place in Venezuela this Sunday. | RELATED: | Waiting for the opening of the voting centers, supporters of the Great Patriotic Pole (GPP) took to the streets across the country to also perform a firework display. | Polling stations opened at 06.00 local time and are set to remain active until 18.00 or until no one is left in line. | Over…

Mehr News Agency (2020-12-06). Iran observing enemies beyond its borders. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Dec. 06 (MNA) — Iran's Commander of Army Air Defense Force Brigadier General Alireza Sabahifard said relying on its modern technology, Iran is observing enemies beyond its borders.

teleSUR (2020-12-06). Venezuela Implements Biosecurity Protocols in Elections. telesurenglish.net Venezuela's authorities of the National Electoral Council (CNE) on Sunday will implement the Strategic Biosafety Plan designed to prevent the spread of Covid-19 during the elections through which the new National Assembly (AN) will be elected. Previously, the CNE held two mock votings to familiarize people with biosafety protocols. | RELATED: | "Health is our premise …. in these elections, a health audit protects us…

teleSUR (2020-12-06). Venezuela's Elections Update: Rodriguez Casts Her Vote. telesurenglish.net Venezuela on Sunday holds elections for the renewal of the Parliament, a process where about 14,400 candidates from 107 political organizations | About 90 percent of the political organizations registered with the National Electoral Council (CNE) will take part in the D6 elections. The Venezuelan opposition is represented by 98 of those 107 political groups. | RELATED: | 10H15: Defense Minister Stresses tha…

teleSUR (2020-12-06). Caracas Metro to Provide Free Service to Ease Voters Mobility. telesurenglish.net Venezuela's subway and surface transportation system, Caracas Metro, informed that it will provide free service to facilitate the citizens' mobility to the voting centers this December 6. | RELATED: | The decision was taken to ease the participation in the parliamentary elections in which over 20 million Venezuelans are called to vote. | "Inhabitants will have free access to the subway transportation from 5h00 local time until 22h0…

teleSUR (2020-12-06). CNE: Voting Machines Are 100% Installed in All Polling Stations. telesurenglish.net Venezuela's National Electoral Council (CNE) President Indira Alfonzo informed that all the voting machines were installed in the 29,622 electoral tables to ensure the security and transparency of the parliamentary elections. | RELATED: | "The technological and electoral infrastructure is guaranteed in the 14,221 voting centers," Alfonzo explained, emphasizing that the new lawmakers will be elected in a free, secure, direct, and secre…

Ashok Chandrasekaran, Prakash Amboiram, Umamaheswari Balakrishnan, Thangaraj Abiramalatha, Govind Rao, Shaik Mohammad Shafi Jan, Usha Devi Rajendran, Uma Sekar, Gayathri Thiruvengadam, Binu Ninan (2020-12-06). Disposable low-cost cardboard incubator for thermoregulation of stable preterm infant — a randomized controlled non-inferiority trial. thelancet.com Maintenance of skin and axillary temperature of stable preterm infants in LCI along with kangaroo mother care was non-inferior to SSI, but at a higher incubator temperature by 0.7 ∞C. No adverse events occurred and LCI had excellent reliability to maintained set-temperature.

teleSUR (2020-12-06). US Observers Endorse Venezuela's Election Legitimacy. telesurenglish.net U.S. political actors observing Venezuela's parliamentary elections Sunday ratified the process' legitimacy, despite the U.S. administration's attempts to discredit it. | RELATED: | After visiting several voting centers in Caracas, New York Public University professor Danny Shaw highlighted the people's massive turnout on Election Day. | Taking part as an observer in these elections "has been an interesting exper…

Fight Back (2020-12-06). Eyewitness Venezuela: Hundreds of labor and left leaders from around world observe elections. fightbacknews.org Caracas, Venezuela – Venezuelan Minister of Foreign Affairs Jorge Arriaza spoke to the international observers of the elections to the National Assembly, December 4. He said to us, "The town is not full of only resistance and consciousness, they are on the offensive. They have been attacked by the World Bank and other capitalists. The Venezuelan people are working, they are creative. It's impressive how creative they are to fix the problems. We couldn't do this without the people." | He went on, "Imperialism has only increased the people's resistance. The opposition said, 'It wasn't a movement, it was just a lead…

teleSUR (2020-12-06). African Observers Present in Venezuela's Parliamentary Elections. telesurenglish.net African electoral observers invited to Venezuela's parliamentary elections signed a declaration that condemned the U.S. sanctions against the country. | RELATED: | "When we were fighting against Apartheid, Venezuela was there with us. Today we come to show them our solidarity, now that they are under the siege of unilateral coercive measures, and we support all the efforts they make to overcome them", African ele…

_____ (2020-12-06). Venezuela Votes To End Neocolonialism, Create Its Own Path. popularresistance.org On December 2, the Embassy Protection Collective (EPC) members, who were arrested in May 2019 when the United States illegally invaded the Venezuelan embassy in Washington, DC, completed their probation, ending the risk of the 30 days in prison that was being held over their heads. The three who remain marked their freedom this week by traveling on December 3 to Venezuela to serve as official international election observers invited by the National Electoral Council. Travel to Venezuela is challenging at the moment due to the United States' illegal economic blockade.

Ralph Nader (2020-12-05). The Road to a More Just Society Runs Through Congress. commondreams.org Think about all the dreams for a better world that could come to be realized if our elected officials worked for the big majority of Americans instead of for Big Business interests. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/views-article/thumbs/congress_5.jpg

teleSUR, ce (2020-12-05). Evo Morales Arrives in Venezuela to Observe Sunday's Election. telesurenglish.net The Foreign Minister of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Jorge Arreaza, held a fraternal meeting on Saturday with former President of Bolivia, Evo Morales and the President of the Bolivian Senate Andrónico Rodríguez, in preparation for the December 6 National Assembly election during which parliamentarians will be elected. | RELATED: | According to a message published on the official account of the Venez…

teleSUR, ce (2020-12-05). Venezuelan Housing Mission Delivers 3,300,000th Home. telesurenglish.net The President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Nicolás Maduro Moros, led this Saturday afternoon the delivery of the 3,300,000 house of the Great Venezuela Housing Mission (GMVV), which took place in the La Gran Villa urban development, located in the Villa de Cura parish, Zamora municipality, Miranda state. | RELATED: | Despite the effects of the economic blockade imposed by the United States government and t…

teleSUR, ce (2020-12-05). How Venezuela's Indigenous Peoples Will Elect their Parliamentarians. telesurenglish.net This Sunday, December 6, Venezuela holds parliamentary elections to choose lawmakers for the National Assembly in accordance with what was agreed to in the national dialogue between representatives of the opposition and the Government which began in 2019. | RELATED: | In accordance with the provisions of the Constitution, indigenous peoples will elect three parliamentarians in the three zones delimited by indi…

Venezuelanalysis (2020-12-05). VA's Rolling Coverage: Venezuela's National Assembly Elections | December 6, 2020. venezuelanalysis.com On December 6, Venezuelans choose their new National Assembly. Count on Venezuelanalysis to bring you all the information with its on-the-ground team.

Roger S McIntyre, Michael Berk, Elisa Brietzke, Benjamin I Goldstein, Carlos López-Jaramillo, Lars Vedel Kessing, Gin S Malhi, Andrew A Nierenberg, Joshua D Rosenblat, Amna Majeed, Eduard Vieta, Maj Vinberg, Allan H Young, Rodrigo B Mansur (2020-12-05). [Seminar] Bipolar disorders. thelancet.com Bipolar disorders are a complex group of severe and chronic disorders that includes bipolar I disorder, defined by the presence of a syndromal, manic episode, and bipolar II disorder, defined by the presence of a syndromal, hypomanic episode and a major depressive episode. Bipolar disorders substantially reduce psychosocial functioning and are associated with a loss of approximately 10—20 potential years of life. The mortality gap between populations with bipolar disorders and the general population is principally a result of excess deaths from cardiovascular disease and suicide.

The Xerces Society (2020-12-05). Monarch Population in California Spiraling to Another Record Low. indybay.org Early Thanksgiving Count numbers show population may be less than 10,000…

WSWS (2020-12-05). Alternative for Germany shifts further to the right. wsws.org The AfD is despised among wide layers of the population and has fallen well below 10 percent support in many opinion polls. Their influence is secured thanks above all to the established parties, and the official "left" in particular.

teleSUR, ce (2020-12-05). Cuba Tests Vaccine Candidate Abdala Against Covid-19. telesurenglish.net Cuba has begun the clinical trial of a new vaccine candidate against COVID-19, named Abdala (CIGB-66), in Santiago de Cuba province, in the east of the country. | RELATED: | The candidate was developed by the Center for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (CIGB) of Cuba, an institution that is dedicated to the research, development, production and commercialization of products of this branch. | On Friday, the CI…

_____ (2020-12-05). Coronavirus Lessons That Vietnam Could Teach Americans and the World. strategic-culture.org All of the data here can easily be found at the world's best website for tracking each day's national and international coronavirus (or covid) cases and deaths: —— | After America hit a world-record high of 204,163 new covid-19 cases on November 20th, that number declined down to 145,576 new daily cases a week later, on November 26th, which was, of course, very welcomed news. Meanwhile, Vietnam, with a population of 97,693,204 as compared to America's 331,790,984, had only 1 new case on November…

imperial.ac.uk (2020-12-04). Chinese water deer introduced to UK may be valuable to restoring numbers in Asia. imperial.ac.uk Researchers have found Chinese water deer populations in the UK might be able to supplement declining populations in their native range in East Asia.

Manabe YC, Sharfstein JS, Armstrong K. (2020-12-01). The Need for More and Better Testing for COVID-19. jamanetwork.com This Viewpoint proposes criteria for more effective COVID-19 testing strategies to manage population transmission, including use of rapid antigen tests and self-administered nasal and salivary tests, emphasizing that more effective testing alone cannot control the pandemic without continued public health interventions, such as mask wearing, physical distancing, and avoidance of large gatherings.

2020-12-05: News Headlines

Eds. (2020-12-05). Venezuela's anti-blockade law and the Dec. 6 elections. mronline.org On Sunday, Dec. 6, the Venezuelan people will vote to elect the new deputies of the National Assembly. This election is enormously important for the Bolivarian Revolution.

Roger S McIntyre, Michael Berk, Elisa Brietzke, Benjamin I Goldstein, Carlos López-Jaramillo, Lars Vedel Kessing, Gin S Malhi, Andrew A Nierenberg, Joshua D Rosenblat, Amna Majeed, Eduard Vieta, Maj Vinberg, Allan H Young, Rodrigo B Mansur (2020-12-05). [Seminar] Bipolar disorders. thelancet.com Bipolar disorders are a complex group of severe and chronic disorders that includes bipolar I disorder, defined by the presence of a syndromal, manic episode, and bipolar II disorder, defined by the presence of a syndromal, hypomanic episode and a major depressive episode. Bipolar disorders substantially reduce psychosocial functioning and are associated with a loss of approximately 10—20 potential years of life. The mortality gap between populations with bipolar disorders and the general population is principally a result of excess deaths from cardiovascular disease and suicide.

The Xerces Society (2020-12-05). Monarch Population in California Spiraling to Another Record Low. indybay.org Early Thanksgiving Count numbers show population may be less than 10,000…

Manuela Solé (2020-12-04). Venezuela Set for Parliamentary Elections as Campaign Ends. venezuelanalysis.com President Maduro threatened to quit should the opposition win a majority in next Sunday's elections.

teleSUR (2020-12-04). Venezuela Loses 99 Percent of Its Income Due To US Sanctions. telesurenglish.net Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro held a meeting with journalists on Thursday at the Miraflores Palace, where he denounced that the U.S. arbitrary sanctions have caused a loss of 99 percent in the country's income. | RELATED: | He noted that despite losses in several economic sectors, investments in health, education, and housing have been maintained. | The sanctions have also impacted the wages received…

The Canary (2020-12-04). Priti Patel is furious that campaigners are daring to challenge deportation flights. thecanary.co Home secretary Priti Patel has called comments from campaigners who linked the deportation of Black people to Jamaica "deeply offensive" because they linked it to the Windrush scandal. Said scandal involved the deportation of Black people to Jamaica.The government has defended the action as it claims those deported are criminals with no right to be in the UK. Campaigners argue there should be no deportations until "justice has been delivered for all Commonwealth Windrush victims".Thirteen prisoners were deported to Jamaica in a flight on 2 December, but lawyers successfully moved to have another 23 removed from t…

Federico Fuentes (2020-12-04). Why Venezuela's National Assembly elections matter. zcomm.org Venezuelans are set to vote in elections like no other in the country's recent history when they go to the polls to elect a new National Assembly (AN) on December 6…

WSWS (2020-12-04). Trudeau names top military officer to lead Canada's COVID-19 vaccine rollout. wsws.org Making the military responsible for the vaccination campaign is part of an ongoing government effort to promote the armed forces as a pivotal national institution, and acclimatize the population to its playing an increasingly important role in public life.

imperial.ac.uk (2020-12-04). Chinese water deer introduced to UK may be valuable to restoring numbers in Asia. imperial.ac.uk Researchers have found Chinese water deer populations in the UK might be able to supplement declining populations in their native range in East Asia.

sputniknews (2020-12-04). Venezuela's Parliamentary Elections Are December 6, Here's What to Expect. sputniknews.com Venezuela's parliamentary elections are scheduled for December 6. The election will be the 26th held since Hugo Chavez's 1998 election ushered in a new era for the country, but since each has its own unique features, Sputnik has assembled an easy guide to the basics of the event.

Peoples Dispatch (2020-12-04). More than half of Yemeni population likely to face acute food insecurity by mid-2021: UN agencies. peoplesdispatch.org UN agencies have emphasized that an end to the Saudi-led war in Yemen is the only long-term solution for ending the food insecurity in the country…

_____ (2020-12-04). Venezuela Wins Simply By Holding An Election. popularresistance.org On December 6, the Venezuelan people will vote for a new National Assembly. Ordinarily, there is nothing unusual about this, nor would this be newsworthy outside Venezuela. Ever since the election of Hugo Chávez to the presidency in 1998, the Venezuelan people have been used to more than one national election each year (this legislative election is the 25th in 21 years); these have been the presidential elections, the legislative elections, and the referendums to strengthen the 1999 Constitution. On the surface, this is just another one of these elections that has served to deepen the meaning of democracy in Vene…

Pablo Vivanco (2020-12-04). US-Backed Opposition in Venezuela Is in Freefall, Have Only Themselves to Blame. globalresearch.ca Most people around the globe would agree that 2020 has been a year to forget. This is certainly, if not especially, true for Venezuela's opposition, and the upcoming parliamentary vote will only add to their misfortunes. | A revolt from within …

Margaret Flowers (2020-12-03). Decolonizing Thanksgiving And Supporting Indigenous Peoples. dissidentvoice.org This week, as some people in the United States celebrated the mythical 'Thanksgiving' dinner, Indigenous Peoples held a National Day of Mourning and continued their resistance to defend the land and water. As Native American, Matt Remle, writes: Despite colonial efforts to exterminate, terminate, relocate, and assimilate Indigenous populations, Native communities continue to resist efforts …

Ricardo Vaz (2020-12-03). Venezuela, China Condemn US Sanctions Against Tech Company. venezuelanalysis.com Beijing reiterated its support for Venezuelan sovereignty.

Jake Johnston — Kira Paulemon (2020-12-03). Haiti: Protests, Repression Mark Police Chief's First Week. counterpunch.org On November 18, the 217th anniversary of the Battle of Vertières where Haitians delivered a fatal blow to Napoleon's troops during their struggle for independence, thousands took to the streets across the country to protest rising insecurity and government inaction. Anti-government actions took place in Cap-Haitien, GonaàØves, l'Estère, Saint-Marc, Delmas, Tabarre, Port-au-Prince,Cayes, Jérémie, Mirebalais, and

Gloria La Riva (2020-12-02). La Ley Antibloqueo de Venezuela y las elecciones el 6 de diciembre. liberationnews.org Las fuerzas progresistas se están movilizando en todo el país para recuperar la asamblea de los políticos de derecha que obtuvieron la mayoría en diciembre de 2015.

John Pilger (2020-12-01). "I spoke to impoverished families in 1975 and little has changed since then" dissidentvoice.org A British family from the film Smashing Kids, 1975. Photograph: John Garrett John Pilger interviewed Irene Brunsden in Hackney, east London about only being able to feed her two-year-old a plate of cornflakes in 1975. Now he sees nervous women queueing at foodbanks with their children as it's revealed 600,000 more kids are in poverty …

Dowling R, Melton NL, Soleimani B. (2020-12-01). Developments in Heart Failure With Reduced Ejection Fraction. jamanetwork.com To the Editor The review by Dr Murphy and colleagues on heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) did not mention surgical options for this patient population. Advances in the field of mechanical circulatory support that include new-generation continuous-flow devices have resulted in improved patient outcomes and merit discussion. Recent American College of Cardiology (ACC) guidelines state that mechanical circulatory support is beneficial in carefully selected patients with stage D heart failure in whom definitive therapy such as cardiac transplantation is planned or when native heart recovery is anti…

Ed Morales (2020-12-01). Privatizing Puerto Rico. thenation.com Privatizing Puerto Rico…

Manabe YC, Sharfstein JS, Armstrong K. (2020-12-01). The Need for More and Better Testing for COVID-19. jamanetwork.com This Viewpoint proposes criteria for more effective COVID-19 testing strategies to manage population transmission, including use of rapid antigen tests and self-administered nasal and salivary tests, emphasizing that more effective testing alone cannot control the pandemic without continued public health interventions, such as mask wearing, physical distancing, and avoidance of large gatherings.

Alejandra Garcia (2020-11-30). Hostilities Won't Stop Venezuela's Upcoming Elections. telesurenglish.net The international campaign of discredit against the Venezuelan electoral process, encouraged by the U.S. and the European Union (EU), gains strength one week ahead of the legislative elections scheduled for December 6. | RELATED: | "Chavism won't guarantee biosecurity measures," "The voting machines will fail," "Maduro seeks to settle his government after the parliamentary elections," are some headlines shown by the Miami-Bogota-Ma…

Paul Dobson (2020-11-30). Venezuelan Government Privatises State-run AgroPatria. venezuelanalysis.com Maduro also requested private sector help in finishing an abandoned rail construction project from 2002.

Jessica Corbett, staff writer (2020-11-30). Six Environmental Heroes Awarded Goldman Prize for 'Taking a Stand, Risking Their Lives and Livelihoods, and Inspiring Us'. commondreams.org This year's recipients of the annual honor hail from the Bahamas, Ecuador, France, Ghana, Mexico, and Myanmar. | www.commondreams.org/sites/default/files/styles/cd_special_coverage/public/headline/thumbs/goldman_1.jpg

news.un (2020-11-30). Growing potatoes in the air: agricultural innovation in Rwanda. news.un.org A Rwandan entrepreneur is pioneering the use of innovative farming technology that, he believes, is set to play a major role in feeding the growing population in his country, amid increasing pressure on arable land.

Mehr News Agency (2020-11-29). Cuban FM slams terrorist assault against Iranian Scientist. en.mehrnews.com TEHRAN, Nov. 29 (MNA) — Condemning the assassination of the Iranian Scientist, Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez noted that his country is against all forms and manifestations of terrorism.