Thursday, June 24, 2021
Coronavirus Rampant: How Deadly Is Delta? | To the Point
COVID Incompetence, Waste of £37 Billion Test & Trace and the Privatisation of the NHS
The government’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic has been lamentable leaving the U.K. 7th of all nations in total number of cases, total number of deaths and in the current daily total of new cases. Boris Johnson failed to attend the first five COBRA meeting, delayed in introducing the first two lockdowns and allowed flights to continue to come to the U.K. from India in April when it was known that this was a risk.
Test & Trace has been a complete waste of money - a staggering £37 billion. The woman who lead this catastrophic failure, Dido Harding, is favourite to become head of the NHS. Her husband, Conservative MP, John Penrose, is advisor to a think tank which favours the replacement of the NHS with an ‘insurance based’ alternative
Test & Trace has been a complete waste of money - a staggering £37 billion. The woman who lead this catastrophic failure, Dido Harding, is favourite to become head of the NHS. Her husband, Conservative MP, John Penrose, is advisor to a think tank which favours the replacement of the NHS with an ‘insurance based’ alternative
Five Years On, We Finally Know What Brexit Means: A Worse Deal for Everyone
Five years ago today, in the early hours, Britain discovered what it had done – and what had been done to it by the liars, charlatans and rogues who mis-sold Brexit as “taking back control”. The wound is as fresh as ever. Breaking apart political parties and reversing erstwhile red or blue wall seats is a minor matter, but Brexit’s explosive division of the country by social class, geography and a deep sense of personal identity is a lasting injury. » | Polly Toynbee | Thursday, June 24, 2021
Brazil Passes 500,000 Covid Deaths, a Tragedy with No Sign of Letup
RIO DE JANEIRO — Brazilians were recovering from Carnival in the heady days of February 2020 when the first known carriers of the new coronavirus flew home from Europe, planting the seeds of catastrophe.
In Brazil, Latin America’s largest nation, the virus found remarkably fertile ground, turbocharging the outbreak that has turned South America into the hardest-hit continent in the world.
Brazil recently surpassed 500,000 official Covid-19 deaths, the world’s second-highest total behind the United States. About 1 in every 400 Brazilians has died from the virus, but many experts believe the true death toll may be higher. Home to just over 2.7 percent of the world’s population, Brazil accounts for nearly 13 percent of recorded fatalities, and the situation there is not easing.
President Jair Bolsonaro has led a strikingly lackadaisical, dismissive and chaotic response to a coronavirus crisis that has left Brazil poorer, more unequal and increasingly polarized. Social distancing measures have been spotty and badly enforced, the president and his allies have promoted ineffective treatments, and for months the government failed to acquire a large number of vaccines. » | Ernesto Londoño and Flávia Milhorance | Thursday, June 24, 2021
EU Leaders to Confront Hungary’s Viktor Orbán over LGBTQ+ Rights
THE GUARDIAN: Sixteen EU leaders sign open letter vowing to fight discrimination of LGBTQ+ people before summit
European Union leaders including Emmanuel Macron and Angela Merkel have signed a letter vowing to fight discrimination towards lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people before an expected confrontation with Viktor Orbán over a Hungarian law widely condemned as an assault on the rights of LGBTQ+ people.
The letter published on Thursday does not mention Hungary explicitly, but the timing is no accident and the stage is set for a tense encounter on Wednesday between the Hungarian prime minister and many of his counterparts at an EU summit in Brussels.
Hungary’s parliament last week adopted a bill that will ban gay people from being shown in educational materials, on prime-time TV, or shows and films aimed at children. The government claims the law is intended to protect children, but campaigners and the Council of Europe’s human rights commissioner say those arguments are “misleading and false”. » | Jennifer Rankin in Brussels | Thursday, June 24, 2021
European Union leaders including Emmanuel Macron and Angela Merkel have signed a letter vowing to fight discrimination towards lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex people before an expected confrontation with Viktor Orbán over a Hungarian law widely condemned as an assault on the rights of LGBTQ+ people.
The letter published on Thursday does not mention Hungary explicitly, but the timing is no accident and the stage is set for a tense encounter on Wednesday between the Hungarian prime minister and many of his counterparts at an EU summit in Brussels.
Hungary’s parliament last week adopted a bill that will ban gay people from being shown in educational materials, on prime-time TV, or shows and films aimed at children. The government claims the law is intended to protect children, but campaigners and the Council of Europe’s human rights commissioner say those arguments are “misleading and false”. » | Jennifer Rankin in Brussels | Thursday, June 24, 2021
Wednesday, June 23, 2021
It Gets Better: Apple Employees
The Trevor Project »
A Culture War between Hungary and Europe Escalates over LGBT Bill
THE NEW YORK TIMES: E.U. leaders say that they will do all they can to thwart a proposed new law in Hungary that would, they say, equate homosexuality with pedophilia.
BRUSSELS — A culture war between Hungary and the European Union escalated Wednesday after a top official from the bloc said she would use all her powers to thwart a new Hungarian law that critics say targets the L.G.B.T. community.
The law, which would ban the depiction or promotion of homosexuality to those under 18 years of age, an addition to legislation targeting pedophiles, has been approved in Hungary’s Parliament but still must be endorsed by the country’s president.
The legislation was sharply criticized on Wednesday by the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.
“This Hungarian bill is a shame,” Ms. von der Leyen said in a statement. “This bill clearly discriminates against people based on their sexual orientation. It goes against the fundamental values of the European Union: human dignity, equality and respect for human rights.”
Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary, who has defended the law, will come under pressure to withdraw it during a European Union meeting of heads of state and government on Thursday and Friday. It is the latest confrontation between the European Union and Mr. Orban, who styles himself as the champion of an “illiberal democracy” that can sometimes run counter to the democratic values of the bloc.
Ms. von der Leyen described the European Union as a place “where you are free to be who you are and love whomever you want,” adding: “I will use all the powers of the commission to ensure that the rights of all E.U. citizens are guaranteed. Whoever they are and wherever they live within the European Union.” » | Steven Erlanger | Wednesday, June 23, 2021
BRUSSELS — A culture war between Hungary and the European Union escalated Wednesday after a top official from the bloc said she would use all her powers to thwart a new Hungarian law that critics say targets the L.G.B.T. community.
The law, which would ban the depiction or promotion of homosexuality to those under 18 years of age, an addition to legislation targeting pedophiles, has been approved in Hungary’s Parliament but still must be endorsed by the country’s president.
The legislation was sharply criticized on Wednesday by the president of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.
“This Hungarian bill is a shame,” Ms. von der Leyen said in a statement. “This bill clearly discriminates against people based on their sexual orientation. It goes against the fundamental values of the European Union: human dignity, equality and respect for human rights.”
Prime Minister Viktor Orban of Hungary, who has defended the law, will come under pressure to withdraw it during a European Union meeting of heads of state and government on Thursday and Friday. It is the latest confrontation between the European Union and Mr. Orban, who styles himself as the champion of an “illiberal democracy” that can sometimes run counter to the democratic values of the bloc.
Ms. von der Leyen described the European Union as a place “where you are free to be who you are and love whomever you want,” adding: “I will use all the powers of the commission to ensure that the rights of all E.U. citizens are guaranteed. Whoever they are and wherever they live within the European Union.” » | Steven Erlanger | Wednesday, June 23, 2021
‘Gay Conversion Therapist’ Comes Out: Exclusive Interview
He was a leader of the controversial 'gay conversion therapy' movement in the United States - so it came as a shock when David Matheson publicly came out as gay.
For decades, Mr Matheson - a Mormon - ran retreats offering therapy to suppress or manage sexuality, - claiming to help people live as straight men rather than gay.
In an exclusive interview with this programme he's now conceded that the practice, which almost 700,000 Americans have undergone, is not only built on a harmful philosophy but should be banned.
We are also joined from New York by Chaim Levin, who twice attended retreats co-founded by David Matheson.
For decades, Mr Matheson - a Mormon - ran retreats offering therapy to suppress or manage sexuality, - claiming to help people live as straight men rather than gay.
In an exclusive interview with this programme he's now conceded that the practice, which almost 700,000 Americans have undergone, is not only built on a harmful philosophy but should be banned.
We are also joined from New York by Chaim Levin, who twice attended retreats co-founded by David Matheson.
Von der Leyen gegen Orbán: „Dieses ungarische Gesetz ist eine Schande“
EU-Kommissionspräsidentin Ursula von der Leyen hat ein neues ungarisches Gesetz, das Kinder vorgeblich vor nicht-heterosexuellen Orientierungen schützen soll, eine „Schande“ genannt. „Das Gesetz diskriminiert Menschen aufgrund ihrer sexuellen Orientierung. Es verstößt gegen fundamentale Werte der Europäischen Union: Menschenwürde, Gleichheit und der Respekt für Menschenrechte“, sagte von der Leyen am Mittwochmorgen in Brüssel. Sie glaube an eine Europäische Union, „wo wir alle sein können, wer wir sind“ und „in der wir lieben können, wen wir wollen“. Wie von der Leyen weiter sagte, hat sie die verantwortlichen Kommissare gebeten, einen Brief zu senden, der diesen rechtlichen Bedenken Ausdruck verleiht, noch bevor das Gesetz in Kraft tritt. » | Von Thomas Gutschker, Brüssel | Mittwoch, 23. Juni 2021
Brexit : cinq ans après le référendum, le Royaume-Uni est divisé
LE POINT : Le Brexit continue de faire débat au Royaume-Uni, où les divisions restent vives concernant ses effets, cinq ans après le vote du 23 juin 2016.
Cinq ans après le coup de tonnerre du référendum du Brexit, le divorce est plus que jamais consommé. Mais les divisions restent vives et les changements profonds induits commencent seulement à se faire sentir dans un contexte brouillé par la pandémie. Cinquante-deux pour cent des Britanniques en faveur de la sortie du Royaume-Uni, 48 % pour le maintien dans le bloc européen : le résultat du référendum du 23 juin 2016 avait provoqué une onde de choc, au sein du pays comme auprès de ses alliés en Europe et au-delà. » | Source AFP | mercredi 23 juin 2021
Cinq ans après le coup de tonnerre du référendum du Brexit, le divorce est plus que jamais consommé. Mais les divisions restent vives et les changements profonds induits commencent seulement à se faire sentir dans un contexte brouillé par la pandémie. Cinquante-deux pour cent des Britanniques en faveur de la sortie du Royaume-Uni, 48 % pour le maintien dans le bloc européen : le résultat du référendum du 23 juin 2016 avait provoqué une onde de choc, au sein du pays comme auprès de ses alliés en Europe et au-delà. » | Source AFP | mercredi 23 juin 2021
Ursula von der Leyen qualifie de « honte » la loi hongroise interdisant la « promotion » de l’homosexualité
LE MONDE: Bruxelles enverra une lettre à Budapest pour exprimer ses « préoccupations » sur le plan légal avant l’entrée en vigueur d’une loi qui « discrimine les personnes sur la base de leur orientation sexuelle », a déclaré la chef de l’exécutif européen.
« Une honte. » C’est ainsi que la présidente de la Commission européenne, Ursula von der Leyen, a qualifié, mercredi 23 juin, la loi hongroise interdisant la « promotion » de l’homosexualité auprès des mineurs. Bruxelles enverra une lettre à Budapest pour exprimer ses « préoccupations » sur le plan légal avant l’entrée en vigueur de cette loi qui « discrimine les personnes sur la base de leur orientation sexuelle », a précisé devant la presse la chef de l’exécutif européen.
Une déclaration, soutenue à l’heure actuelle par quinze Etats membres, a appelé la Commission à agir après l’adoption de ce texte, le 15 juin, à Budapest.
La loi, à l’initiative du parti souverainiste du premier ministre, Viktor Orban, prévoit que « la pornographie et les contenus qui représentent la sexualité ou promeuvent la déviation de l’identité de genre, le changement de sexe et l’homosexualité ne doivent pas être accessibles aux moins de 18 ans ». » | Le Monde avec AFP | mercredi 23 juin 2021
« Une honte. » C’est ainsi que la présidente de la Commission européenne, Ursula von der Leyen, a qualifié, mercredi 23 juin, la loi hongroise interdisant la « promotion » de l’homosexualité auprès des mineurs. Bruxelles enverra une lettre à Budapest pour exprimer ses « préoccupations » sur le plan légal avant l’entrée en vigueur de cette loi qui « discrimine les personnes sur la base de leur orientation sexuelle », a précisé devant la presse la chef de l’exécutif européen.
Une déclaration, soutenue à l’heure actuelle par quinze Etats membres, a appelé la Commission à agir après l’adoption de ce texte, le 15 juin, à Budapest.
La loi, à l’initiative du parti souverainiste du premier ministre, Viktor Orban, prévoit que « la pornographie et les contenus qui représentent la sexualité ou promeuvent la déviation de l’identité de genre, le changement de sexe et l’homosexualité ne doivent pas être accessibles aux moins de 18 ans ». » | Le Monde avec AFP | mercredi 23 juin 2021
Gove Rules Out ‘Foolish’ Scottish Independence Vote before Election
THE GUARDIAN: Minister says prime minister’s focus is recovery from pandemic ‘for lifetime of this parliament’
Michael Gove has said he “can’t see” Boris Johnson granting a new referendum on Scottish independence before the next general election.
The Cabinet Office minister – who is responsible for countering the push for independence – said the prime minister’s focus was completely focused on recovery from the pandemic “for the lifetime of this parliament”.
His comments – which are likely to infuriate the SNP – appear to go further than other ministers who have said this is the wrong time for another referendum.
Under the Fixed Term Parliaments Act, the next general election is not due until May 2024 – although Johnson is committed to repealing the act, which could allow him to go to the country before then. » | PA Media | Wednesday, June 23, 2021
Michael Gove has said he “can’t see” Boris Johnson granting a new referendum on Scottish independence before the next general election.
The Cabinet Office minister – who is responsible for countering the push for independence – said the prime minister’s focus was completely focused on recovery from the pandemic “for the lifetime of this parliament”.
His comments – which are likely to infuriate the SNP – appear to go further than other ministers who have said this is the wrong time for another referendum.
Under the Fixed Term Parliaments Act, the next general election is not due until May 2024 – although Johnson is committed to repealing the act, which could allow him to go to the country before then. » | PA Media | Wednesday, June 23, 2021
Hong Kong’s Apple Daily, Symbol of Pro-democracy Movement, to Close
THE GUARDIAN: Tabloid founded by Jimmy Lai and targeted by police raid last week will print final edition on Thursday
Hong Kong’s largest pro-democracy newspaper, Apple Daily will shut down online at midnight on Wednesday and print its final edition on Thursday, in a move observers fear signals the death-knell for press freedom in the territory.
The paper and its activist founder, Jimmy Lai, had become symbols of the pro-democracy movement and a thorn in the side of Hong Kong’s government and police, making it a prime target in the government’s efforts to stifle Hong Kong’s media.
National security police raided its offices last week as part of a crackdown that also included the freezing of its assets and accounts, crippling the company and guaranteeing its demise. » | Helen Davidson | Wednesday, June 23, 2021
Hong Kong’s largest pro-democracy newspaper, Apple Daily will shut down online at midnight on Wednesday and print its final edition on Thursday, in a move observers fear signals the death-knell for press freedom in the territory.
The paper and its activist founder, Jimmy Lai, had become symbols of the pro-democracy movement and a thorn in the side of Hong Kong’s government and police, making it a prime target in the government’s efforts to stifle Hong Kong’s media.
National security police raided its offices last week as part of a crackdown that also included the freezing of its assets and accounts, crippling the company and guaranteeing its demise. » | Helen Davidson | Wednesday, June 23, 2021
Australia Plans to Shelve AstraZeneca Covid Vaccine by October
THE GUARDIAN: Controversial vaccine to be given only by request later this year when Moderna and Pfizer will dominate
The federal government has announced it will shelve the controversial AstraZeneca vaccine by October, suggesting it will have enough supplies of other vaccines to meet “allocation horizons” for vaccinating the population by the end of the year.
The government released a revised planning document on Wednesday outlining how it intended to direct supplies over the rest of the year.
At the same time, the chief health officer, Prof Paul Kelly, said he was “worried” about the growing Bondi cluster and declared seven local government areas in Sydney would be recognised as national hotspots.
The vaccination document, titled National vaccination allocation horizons, suggests in July and August AstraZeneca will continue to dominate the vaccination program, with up to 2.6m doses being administered each week, predominantly to those over the age of 60, through state and territory clinics and the primary care network.
But as the vaccination of this age group nears completion, it is anticipated AstraZeneca will be used only “subject to request” from October.
The commonwealth last week announced changed health advice for the AztraZeneca shot restricting it to over-60s because it has been linked to an extremely rare blood clotting condition. » | Sarah Martin, Chief political correspondent | Wednesday, June 23, 2021
The federal government has announced it will shelve the controversial AstraZeneca vaccine by October, suggesting it will have enough supplies of other vaccines to meet “allocation horizons” for vaccinating the population by the end of the year.
The government released a revised planning document on Wednesday outlining how it intended to direct supplies over the rest of the year.
At the same time, the chief health officer, Prof Paul Kelly, said he was “worried” about the growing Bondi cluster and declared seven local government areas in Sydney would be recognised as national hotspots.
The vaccination document, titled National vaccination allocation horizons, suggests in July and August AstraZeneca will continue to dominate the vaccination program, with up to 2.6m doses being administered each week, predominantly to those over the age of 60, through state and territory clinics and the primary care network.
But as the vaccination of this age group nears completion, it is anticipated AstraZeneca will be used only “subject to request” from October.
The commonwealth last week announced changed health advice for the AztraZeneca shot restricting it to over-60s because it has been linked to an extremely rare blood clotting condition. » | Sarah Martin, Chief political correspondent | Wednesday, June 23, 2021
Hitting Rock Bottom, Gay Man Adopts Dog. “I Have a Great Life with an Amazing, Little, Bitchy Dog.”
Monaco: Princess Stephanie Vows to End AIDS by 2030
End inequalities, end AIDS. An ambitious goal, but one the United Nations aim to meet by 2030, as discussed in the high level meeting held by the Joint UN Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) this week.
Taking place from the 8 to 10 June, Isabelle Picco, the permanent representative of Monaco at the United Nations in New York, chaired the meeting, whilst Princess Stephanie addressed the group. During the two-day long discussions, Princess Stéphanie shared a video message with the participants. In her speech, she claimed that the HIV and Covid-19 epidemics are very real examples of the need for stronger healthcare systems.
She also took a moment to praise the new global strategy devised by UNAIDS, which focuses on prevention and reducing inequalities, particularly amongst key populations. » | Alexis Gertaldi | Wednesday, June 16, 2021
La Princesse Stéphanie veut mettre fin au sida d’ici 2030 »
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