Each day at just after midnight Eastern, a post like this one is created for contributors and readers of this site to upload news links and video links on the issues that concern this site. Most notably, Islam and its effects on Classical Civilization, and various forms of leftism from Soviet era communism, to postmodernism and all the flavours of galloping statism and totalitarianism such as Nazism and Fascism which are increasingly snuffing out the classical liberalism which created our near, miraculous civilization the West has been building since the time of Socrates.
This document was written around the time this site was created, for those who wish to understand what this site is about. And while our understanding of the world and events has grown since then, the basic ideas remain sound and true to the purpose.
So please post all links, thoughts and ideas that you feel will benefit the readers of this site to the comments under this post each day. And thank you all for your contributions.
This is the new Samizdat. We must use it while we can.
Georgia’s No 1 tennis player, Nikoloz Basilashvili, quits match in Australian open due to breathing difficulties.
Video: https://twitter.com/i/status/1480266664067444740
VLAD: I hope you’re keeping a file dedicated to Covid and athletes and popular people that go down suddenly due to jab.
International Finance Leaders Hold ‘War Game’ Exercise Simulating Global Financial Collapse. Should We Be Worried?
High-level international banking officials and organizations gathered last month for a global “war game” exercise simulating the collapse of the global financial system. The tabletop exercise was reminiscent of “Event 201,” the pandemic simulation exercise that took place just before COVID-19 entered the global scene.
High-level international banking officials and organizations last month gathered in Israel for a global “war game” exercise simulating the collapse of the global financial system.
The tabletop exercise was reminiscent of “Event 201” — the pandemic simulation exercise that took place in October 2019, shortly before COVID-19 entered the global scene.
The “Collective Strength” initiative was held for 10 days, beginning Dec. 9, 2021, at the Israeli Finance Ministry in Jerusalem. It was relocated to Jerusalem from the Dubai World Expo over concerns about the Omicron variant.
Israel led a 10-country contingent that also included treasury officials from the U.S., Austria, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Switzerland, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates.
Representatives from supranational organizations, such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF), World Bank and Bank of International Settlements (BIS), also participated.
Described as a simulated “war game,” the exercise sought to model the response to various hypothetical large-scale cyberattacks on the global financial system, including the leaking of sensitive financial data on the “Dark Web,” hacks targeting the global foreign exchange system, and subsequent bank runs and market chaos fueled by “fake news.”
However, the main theme of “Collective Strength” appears not so much the simulation of such cyberattacks but, as the name of the initiative implies, the strengthening of global cooperation in cybersecurity and the financial sector.
As reported by Reuters, participants in the simulation discussed multilateral responses to a hypothetical global financial crisis.
Proposed policy solutions included debt repayment grace periods, SWAP/REPO agreements, coordinated bank holidays and coordinated delinking from major currencies.
The idea of simulated delinking from major currencies raised some eyebrows because of its timing — on the same day participants gathered to launch “Collective Strength,” reports circulated that the Biden administration was considering removing Russia from the global electronic-payment-messaging system known as SWIFT, short for Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication.
This measure would be part of a package of economic sanctions the U.S. would levy against Russia should it attack Ukraine.
However, what may raise even more eyebrows is the list of participants in the “Collective Strength” simulation, which includes: the IMF and World Bank, and indirectly, the World Economic Forum (WEF).
It was the WEF, along with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, which ran the simulated “Event 201” in October 2019.
As previously reported by The Defender, the WEF also supported the development of financial instruments, such as credit and debit cards, that would track “personal carbon allowances” on an individualized basis.
An executive summary issued in November 2020 by the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, in collaboration with the WEF, provided a rundown of just the type of scenario that was simulated as part of “Collective Strength.”
The report’s authors, Tim Maurer and Arthur Nelson, described a world whose financial system is undergoing “an unprecedented digital transformation … accelerated by the coronavirus pandemic.”
In such a world, the authors argued, “cybersecurity is more important than ever.”
Describing protection of the global financial system as an “organizational challenge,” the report pointed out there is no clear global actor in charge of protecting the global financial system or its digital infrastructure.
The executive summary went so far as to describe a “disconnect between the finance, the national security and the diplomatic communities.”
The solutions identified by Maurer and Nelson included:
The need for “greater clarity” regarding roles and responsibilities
Bolstering international cooperation
Reducing fragmentation and increasing “internationalization” among “siloed” financial institutions
Developing a model that can then be used in unspecified “other” sectors.
But which “other” sectors?
This set of recommendations was classified by the authors in their report under “Digital Transformation: Safeguard Financial Inclusion.”
One such recommendation reads as follows:
“The G20 should highlight that cybersecurity must be designed into technologies used to advance financial inclusion from the start rather than included as an Technology that is “used to advance financial inclusion from the start” would appear to include digital “health passports” and accompanying “digital wallets.”
It also seems to be aligned with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals — in particular, Goal 16.9, which calls for the provision of a digital legal identity for all, including newborns, by 2030.
Goal 16.9 also brings to mind the European Union’s insistence that its vaccine passport, the so-called “Green Pass,” which is used in numerous European countries to bar the unvaccinated and those with natural immunity from all sorts of public and private spaces, protects individuals’ privacy.
In a further connection between two distinct issues — security of the global financial system and public health — the GAVI Vaccine Alliance called for “innovations that leverage new technologies to modernize the process of identifying and registering the children who are most in need of life-saving vaccines.”
However, the use of these technologies would not stop with registering childhood vaccinations. GAVI described potential uses of these “new technologies” as encompassing “access to other services,” including the broadly defined “financial services.”
The authors of the Carnegie Endowment executive summary mirrored their proposals in a spring 2021 article that appears on the IMF’s website, although issues of “financial inclusion” are left out.
While the two authors of the Carnegie report, and the participants in the “Collective Strength” initiative, emphasize the need for the financial system and its digital data to be better protected, it remains unclear how a continued transformation toward a fully digital, cloud-based environment can indeed be considered “secure.”
Consider, for instance, the following remark by Micha Weis, financial cyber manager at the Israeli finance ministry, in reference to “Collective Strength”: “[a]ttackers are 10 steps ahead of the defender.”
Such words don’t offer much comfort to those who are already wary of “FinTech,” or the increasing proximity between “Big Tech” and “Big Finance.”
Similarly, yet another “simulation” of a large-scale and destructive global catastrophe will, for some, bring back recollections of “Event 201” and what followed thereafter — infamously described on March 20, 2020, by then-U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo as a “live exercise.”
The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of Children’s Health Defense.
I hand it to Djokovic. It would be easiest for him to leave the Australian gulag, but he wants to stay and compete. His victory at this tournament would be a propaganda victory for the resistance.
https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/australian-govt-weighs-whether-bar-djokovic-3-years-after-judge-orders-immediate
sky news australia – Djokovic wins court case against Australian government
Novak Djokovic has won his court battle against the Australian government after his visa was cancelled forentering the country without being vaccinated.
The court has ordered the Australian Open champion be released immediately from his hotel detention and the Commonwealth will pay his legal costs.
GREAT news, I love it.
Djokovic supporters clash with police in Melbourne
Supporters of tennis champion Novak Djokovic surrounded a car leaving his lawyer’s office earlier this evening, with some fans pepper sprayed by police.
The world number one’s bid to remain in the country remains under a cloud, with his fate in the hands of Immigration Minister Alex Hawke.
A spokesperson for the Minister said the matter was still being considered.
Cops pepper-spray Djokovic fans as his dad claims tennis star was ‘ARRESTED’
NOVAK Djokovic has returned to the court and vowed to play in the Australian Open after winning his visa court battle – but ministers are STILL threatening to deport him.
Despite a judge ruling the decision to cancel his visa was “unreasonable”, the anti-vaxxer – who returned to training in Melbourne today – could still be booted out of the country by the Aussie government.
Although he still faces being thrown out of Oz, Djokovic has insisted he wants to stay and compete after his parents today claimed he “suffered torture” while being forced to quarantine.
The world men’s number one tweeted today: “I’m pleased and grateful that the Judge overturned my visa cancellation.
“Despite all that has happened, I want to stay and try to compete AustralianOpen I remain focused on that. I flew here to play at one of the most important events we have in front of the amazing fans.
FOX News – New York Times slams tennis star Djokovic over vaccination status
The guy is a hero and it’s a pleasure to see the government caught in a Catch-22. This is a David against Goliath story.
AUSTRALIA – Federal government considering deporting Novak Djokovic
The federal government is still considering deporting tennis star Novak Djokovic through controversial ministerial powers.
The world number one may not be allowed to play at the Australian Open even after Mr Djokovic won his visa battle in court.
Immigration Minister Alex Hawke can still decide to deport Mr Djokovic in a move which can prevent the tennis player from entering Australia for three years.
AUSTRALIA – Immigration Minister considers Djokovic visa rejection
Immigration Minister Alex Hawke says he is still considering whether to cancel Novak Djokovic’s visa for a second time, with the tennis star released from detention and cleared to play in the Australian Open.
Send an email to everyone of them, this is OUR Canada – -Stop the jabs and don’t even think about making them mandatory,we the people have had enough.
British Columbia Premier John Horgan pr*****@go*.ca
Alberta Jason Kenny. pr*****@go*.ca
Saskatchewan Scott Moe pr*****@go*.ca
Manitoba. Brian Pallister Pr*****@le*.ca
Ontario Doug Ford pr*****@on*****.ca
Quebec. Francois Legault pr*************@qu****.ca
Nova Scotia. Tim Houston ti*********@ns*******.com
PEI Dennis King. pr*****@go*.ca
New Brunswick Blaine Higgs pr*****@gn*.ca
Newfoundland and Labrador. Andrew Furey pr*****@go*.ca
Northwest Territories. Caroline Cochrane. pr*****@go*.ca
Nunavut Joe Savikataaq. js*********@go*.ca
Yukon Sandy Silver pr*****@go*.ca
Time consuming, however the replies show you just how far gone we are as a country with these global monsters in charge of our lives. Who knows with vast numbers of emails, the cowards might change their minds for 15 seconds.
This a statement the man who congratulated himself and other collaborators for implementing M-103, our HATE SPEECH motion.
The disgraceful Justine Trudeau calls unvaccinated Canadians
“Extremists, who do not believe in science, who are often misogynists, racists, too; it is a sect, a small group, but who are TAKING UP SPACE, and here we have to make a choice, as a leader, as a country. Do we tolerate these people?”
If you agree with this vile creature, you are part of the overall problem, you are helping to take away our freedom.
Justine Trudeau needs to go.
Incident of peace in France. I used google translate on the swedish-language title and description:
Arab violence with pensioners arouses anger
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o6NKz4HrwJk
Car-borne immigrants ask pensioners for a cigarette and then grab the pensioners and drive until they fall and hit themselves. Now the leisure pleasure of immigrants in France is rising.
Use translation tool DeepL. It’s the best.
And GET OUT of Google. Go to Duckduckgo search engine. Even Brave is great. Just remove Google from your life.
How many ministers in Canada have been arrested, publicly humiliated, dragged down a highway, and physically abused for trying to have any kind of church service.
Why are mosques still open? ( Toronto area- Al Salam, Brampton, Central Islamic Foundation on Parliament Street, York Masjid Mosque) Why are Imams not arrested, mosque doors locked by the police, fences erected around them to keep the worshippers out, like the police have done to churches?
I read an article the other day about Christian numbers dwindling in Canada, Islam is the fastest growing religion in Canada. Could it be that the government is aiding and abetting in this?
Christianity is still by far the number one religion in Canada. What a disgrace that our politicians and many so-called religious leaders are not stepping up for their congregations. I did send an email a long time ago to the pathetic woman who is the MP in my riding asking her to stop the persecution of Pastor Arthur and her reply was he should do what he is told.
Putin: Maidan ‘technologies’ used in Kazakhstan
Speaking at the CSTO summit, Russian President Putin says that Maidan-like methods were used during the Kazakhstan chaos
Kazakhstan President describes the riots as an attempt to topple the govt and part of a ‘terrorist war’ against the country
Let’s hope the bioweapons labs have been secured. Terrible stuff there.
Facilities the USA funded after gain-of-function research was suspended here.
Clowns run our State Dept.
Neither they nor the self-important fools of Nato care – at all – about the people who LIVE in Ukraine.
Russo-phobe and Russo-phil live in a land soaked in blood. Just leave them alone.
BELGIUM – BRUSSELS – THOUSANDS denounce Belgium’s COVID restrictions
A massive crowd flooded the streets of the Belgian capital, with demonstrators calling for “freedom” and demanding that authorities abolish the Covid-19 health pass required to enter various venues.
Belgians protest mandatory COVID-19 vaccine
DENMARK – Anti-lockdown protesters DECRY Denmark’s new restrictions warning
Black-clad activists marched through Denmark’s capital Copenhagen on Sunday, decrying anti-Covid rules.
The protest took place after the prime minister warned of new restrictions.
DENMARK – COPENHAGEN
bloomberg – Pfizer CEO Bourla on Acuitas Deal, mRNA Tech, Djokovic
Pfizer Chairman and CEO Albert Bourla discusses the partnership with Acuitas Therapeutics, vaccine development, and tennis star Novak Djokovic’s Australian visa reinstatement.
Evil madman, named in the World Court Filings
Mandatory vaccination suffers setback in Austria
Due to technical complications, the registration of mandatory vaccines will only be possible by April, two months later than envisioned by the Austrian government. Meanwhile, experts are questioning the effectiveness of mandatory vaccinations.
The technical implementation of mandatory vaccinations will only be possible by April, the ELGA GmbH, which is responsible for the technical execution of the measure said on Friday – a setback for the government which planned on introducing the mandatory vaccination by February.
While the government said it wants to stick to its February timeline, it will “take into account” the potential technical difficulties and might extend the period after which it will issue fines for the unvaccinated.
At the same time, academic voices criticising compulsory vaccinations are growing louder. According to epidemiologist Gerald Gartlehner, the highly infectious Omicron wave will accelerate immunisation at a speed “never seen before.”
“Therefore, compulsory vaccinations probably have to be reevaluated after the Omicron wave,” the professor at the Danube-University Krems stated in an interview with ORF.
Due to the delay in the implementation, compulsory vaccinations could come “too late for the Omicron variant,” Peter Bußjäger, constitutional lawyer at the University of Innsbruck, told Wiener Zeitung.
The COVID-19 Crisis Coordination unit (GECKO), the government’s main advisory body for the pandemic, calls for the situation to be reevaluated. Karl Stöger, a member of GECKO, said the law introducing compulsory vaccination should include options to delay the introduction. However, he also stated that compulsory vaccination is not “off the table” yet as potentially new variants after Omicron could make such a step necessary again.
Before the Omicron variant appeared, some European Commission officials, including EU executive chief Ursula von der Leyen, had said mandatory vaccination should be on the table as an option to convince people to get vaccinated.
https://www.euractiv.com/section/politics/short_news/mandatory-vaccination-suffers-setback-in-austria/
DAILY MAIL – Archbishop of Canterbury urges people to have Covid jabs because Jesus said Christians should ‘love your neighbour as yourself’
Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby has urged the public to get vaccinated
‘Love your neighbour as yourself,’ he quoted from Jesus about need for vaccine
He told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme he was not in favour of compulsory jabs
In December, the archbishop said on ITV being vaccinated was a ‘moral issue’
[…]’Vaccination reduces my chances – doesn’t eliminate – but it reduces my chances of getting ill and reducing my chances of getting ill reduces my chances of infecting others. It’s very simple.
‘So I would say yes, to love one another – as Jesus said – get vaccinated, get boosted.’
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-10387017/Archbishop-Canterbury-urges-people-Covid-jabs-love-neighbour-yourself.html
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Antivax people are ‘immoral’ says Archbishop of Canterbury Justin Welby
The Archbishop of Canterbury has said being vaccinated against coronavirus is a moral issue.
The Most Rev Justin Welby said that getting the jab reduces the chances of illness being spread and that ‘it’s not about me and my rights to choose – it’s about how I love my neighbour’.
Heretic
Jeremiah 23:1
Woe to the Shepard who mislead and scatter the flock of my pasture, says the Lord.
Therefore, thus says the Lord, the God of Israel against the Shepard’s who Shepard my people: You have scattered my sheep and driven them away. you have not cared for them, but, I will take care to punish your evil deeds.
Not my kinda a guy, Christlam, climate crisis, and vaccines.
“Of all tyrannies, a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It would be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron’s cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end for they do so with the approval of their own conscience.”
—C. S. Lewis
Lifted from Kennedy’s book, The Real Anthony Fauci.
Daniel Pipes @DanielPipes
Jan 8
“After a membership decline between 1961 and 2001 of 50%, and a similar decline in 1991-2015, [@RevNelli, the #AnglicanChurch’s statistics and research officer, in 2019] projected the Anglican Church of Canada would run out of members completely by 2040.”
europravda – COVID-19 vaccination is a ‘moral obligation’, Pope Francis insists
Bergoglio also lamented that increasing “ideological divides” were discouraging people from getting vaccinated.
the gateway pundit – FINALLY: CDC Director Walensky Admits the Vast Majority of COVID Deaths Had Not One, Not Two, Not Three – But “At Least FOUR” Comorbidities
On Monday, CDC Director Rochelle Walensky finally admitted that an “overwhelming” number of Covid deaths that have been recorded in the US were individuals with multiple comorbidities which were a main contributing factor in their deaths.
According to Walensky, CDC data shows that a whopping 75% had not just one, or two, or even three, but actually had 4 or more comorbidities WHEN THEY WERE RECORDED AS A COVID-19 DEATH .
Walensky acknowledged the number during an interview with Good Morning America.
“The overwhelming number of deaths – over 75% – occurred in people who had at least four comorbidities, so really these are people who were unwell to begin with.”
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video
https://twitter.com/TPostMillennial/status/1480557790527635460
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Walensky’s admission confirms what the Gateway Pundit and others have reported for months – this virus is not deadly for the vast majority of people, aside from those who are elderly or very sick already.
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2022/01/finally-cdc-director-walensky-admits-vast-majority-covid-deaths-not-one-not-two-not-three-least-four-comorbidities/
Biden’s CDC Director 75 Percent Of COVID Deaths Were In “Unwell” People With “Four Comorbidities”
Walensky said 75 percent of COVID deaths were in “unwell” people with “four comorbidities,”
ctv news -OTTAWA – Theresa Tam gets booster shot at Ottawa ‘Jabapalooza’
Canada’s top doctor has had her booster shot, thanks to a local Ottawa doctor’s vaccine clinic.
ctv news – ONTARIO – Hospitalizations are rising sharply across the province
Dr. Mike Haddad says the majority of patients in hospital are unvaccinated.
ctv news – ‘Exponential rise’ in ICU admissions, warns Ont. doctor
Dr. Lisa Salamon says there is an ‘exponential rise’ in ICU admissions, and her hospital is facing a shortage of beds.
( age restricted on YT )
ctv news – ER physician: We’re running out of staff ‘to treat patients’
Dr. David Carr warns they are going to ‘run out of people to treat patients’ amid staffing shortages due to the Omicron variant.
( age restricted on YT )
CNBC – Moderna CEO Bancel: Future Covid vaccine booster will likely target omicron variant
…future booster strategies against the concerning omicron variant.
CNBC -Pfizer CEO Bourla: Omicron-specific Covid vaccine will be ready by March
…. the company’s Covid-19 vaccine booster strategy, including a potential shot targeting the omicron variant.
CNN – Drug makers working on Omicron-specific vaccines to fight Covid
CNBC – Moderna CEO: We can supply up to 3 billion Covid vaccine booster doses this year
Canadian Centre for Occupational Health andSafety – Vaccines – Addressing Misinformation
You can address misinformation by leading with the facts, warning others before sharing the misconception, explaining why it could have been misinterpreted, and providing the correct information.
For example, the COVID-19 vaccine will NOT make you sick with COVID-19. Misinformation alert: some people are saying that the vaccine gives you COVID-19. This is not true. None of the authorized vaccines in Canada have the virus that causes COVID-19 in them.
You may feel sick after getting the vaccine, but this is a sign that your body is building up immunity. The vaccine teaches your immune system to recognize and fight the virus, and sometimes this process can cause symptoms like fever and chills. These are normal signs that the body is building protection against the virus that causes COVID-19. It may take a few weeks before you build immunity.
Bradbury-Sullivan LGBT Community Center – Protecting Your Children from COVID-19
LCI – Non-vaccinés : faut-il les poursuivre en justice ?
LCI – Le Pen : “Macron crée une hystérie sanitaire”
sky news australia – All Gold Coast COVID patients unvaccinated
Queensland authorities are asking people to get vaccinated after revealing all COVID patients in intensive care on the Gold Coast are either unvaccinated or have a complex medical condition.
Federal agencies taking step against employees who refuse COVID jab
Federal government agencies are now preparing to take harsh steps against unvaccinated employees.
FRANCE PRAVDA – European countries ramp up pressure on the unvaccinated
Austria is set to become the first EU country to make the jabs obligatory, as of February – with the measure valid until 2024.
UK -Would you want to be treated by an unvaccinated doctor?
‘The NHS is supposed to set an example for the rest of the country.’
Fleet Street Fox and Jason Beattie discuss the vaccine-sceptic doctor who confronted Sajid Javid and what it means for the NHS and compulsory jabs.
Obama-appointed liberal justices meet ferocious pushback for this
Correspondent Lucas Tomlinson discusses accusations against Justice Elena Kagan and Justice Sonia Sotomayor for spreading misinformation on ‘Fox Report.’
the gateway pundit – BREAKING…Recent Podcast Shows Bob Saget Telling Fan: “I went to the pharmacy the other day and I got my booster shot” [VIDEO]
[…]
Here’s the video of Saget’s conversation where he says, “I went to the pharmacy the other day and I got the booster shot.” He added, “I should’ve gotten it in my arm, but I got it in my butt, so I’m in pain.”
video :
https://rumble.com/vsbcjm-bob-saget-tells-fan-he-just-got-booster-shot-on-dec-13-2021.html
https://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2022/01/breaking-recent-podcast-shows-bob-saget-telling-fan-went-pharmacy-day-got-booster-shot-video/
NYT – U.S. insurers must cover 8 at-home tests per member each month.
Private insurers will have to cover the cost of eight at-home coronavirus tests per member per month starting on Saturday, the Biden administration said Monday.
People who provide their insurance information will be able to get the tests with no out-of-pocket costs at certain pharmacies; in other cases, they will have to file claims to their insurers for reimbursement, according to the Department of Health and Human Services, just as they often do for medical services.
The plan “incentivizes insurers to cover these costs up front and ensures individuals do not need an order from their health care provider to access these tests for free,” the agency said in a statement. Roughly 150 million Americans, or about 45 percent of the population, are privately insured.
Insurers that do not require people to pay the upfront cost for tests at certain retailers will be charged no more than $12 per test, if the test was purchased at an out-of-network site. Otherwise, insurers will be charged the full price of a test.
“Today’s action further removes financial barriers and expands access to Covid-19 tests for millions of people,” Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, the Biden administration’s Medicare and Medicaid chief, said in a statement.
The at-home tests are typically sold in packs of two, and prices have ranged in cost from $14 to $34, which can be prohibitively expensive especially when tests are purchased in bulk. Tests ordered or administered by a health provider would continue to be covered by insurance without co-payment or a deductible, the administration said.
Other countries have spent more heavily on rapid testing. In Britain, citizens can use a government website to order free rapid tests for home use. Germany invested hundreds of millions of dollars to create a network of 15,000 rapid testing sites. The United States has instead focused public purchasing on vaccines and efforts to encourage their uptake.
Some local governments in the United States have invested more heavily in rapid testing to counter this latest wave of cases. Washington, D.C., for example, now allows residents to pick up four free rapid tests daily at eight libraries across the city.
The new U.S. policy does not apply to at-home tests that Americans have already purchased. The Biden administration is also working on other efforts to get tests to people regardless of their insurance status, including a plan to deliver 500 million free rapid tests to the homes of Americans who order them, starting later this month.
Like that plan, the guidelines announced Monday were part of a broader effort the Biden administration has undertaken in recent weeks to catch up to skyrocketing demand for rapid tests, as virus cases have exploded around the nation with the arrival of the highly contagious Omicron variant.
Supplies of the tests at pharmacies and grocery stores quickly diminished last month, and manufacturers are racing to restock shelves, a scramble that has prompted some experts to criticize the administration for being caught flat-footed ahead of a winter surge.
Availability could at first hinder the rollout of the reimbursement policy, said Lindsey Dawson, an associate director at the Kaiser Family Foundation who has researched the availability of rapid tests.
“If reimbursement exists but there aren’t tests to purchase,” she said, “that doesn’t help an individual consumer.”
She added, “The policy could certainly drive demand, and could exacerbate the problem.”
https://www.nytimes.com/live/2022/01/10/world/omicron-covid-testing-vaccines/private-insurers-must-cover-eight-at-home-virus-tests-a-person-per-month-the-biden-administration-says
Italy: PM Draghi blames unvaccinated for large part of COVID problems
SOT, Mario Draghi, Italian prime minister (Italian): “The reason we are able to take a different approach in respect to the past is, fundamentally, just the one. Vaccinations.
Almost 80 per cent of the Italian population has completed the cycle of primary vaccinations.
Almost 40 per cent have had the third dose.
We never have to forget, that a large part of the problems we are seeing today are because of the fact that there are unvaccinated people. Unvaccinated people have a much larger probability of catching the virus as well as severe forms of the sickness.
So, another one of the objectives of this press conference is the umpteenth invite to all Italians who haven’t yet been vaccinated to do it, and to do take the third dose. A big thank you to all those who have already.”
CBC – N.L. government introducing ‘safe zone’ around vaccine clinics after weekend protest
Newfoundland and Labrador Health Minister John Haggie joins Power & Politics to discuss the current COVID-19 situation in the province and a recent protest that disrupted a booster clinic in St John’s.
ctv – Quebec public health director Horacio Arruda resigns, admitting ‘erosion’ of public opinion
Dr. Horacio Arruda, who has been Quebec’s top public health official for the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic, resigned Monday while admitting a recent “erosion” in public trust.
He offered his resignation to Premier François Legault, which Legault accepted, according to a spokesperson from the premier’s office.
Legault’s office is making no other comment for the moment but will hold a press conference Tuesday.
In Arruda’s letter of resignation, obtained by CTV News, he cited recent criticisms of his work but didn’t specify what exactly he was referring to.
“The recent remarks made on the credibility of our opinions and on our scientific rigour undoubtedly cause a certain erosion in the adhesion of the population,” he wrote, meaning people’s willingness to follow public health rules.
“In this context, I consider it appropriate to offer you the possibility of replacing me before the end of my term of office, at least as DNSP,” the acronym in French for Director of Public Health.
Arruda has served as the province’s public health chief for 12 years.
“Do not see in this gesture as an abandonment on my part, but rather the offer of an opportunity for you to reassess the situation, after several waves [of the pandemic] and in a context in constant evolution,” he wrote.
He wrote that if Legault wished him to continue in the job, he would do so, but said he was ready to “serve the citizens” of the province in a different capacity.
Arruda has faced criticism on several fronts recently as Quebec yet again became the country’s COVID-19 epicentre, as it has repeatedly been since the pandemic’s first wave in spring 2020.
Each wave has brought different critiques of the way the province handled the virus, but recently, Arruda faced a barrage of complaints over comments he made publicly, including repeatedly saying that K-95 masks weren’t better than procedural masks and therefore didn’t need to be provided to health-care workers or to teachers.
Quebec’s worker safety board reversed that decision, at least for health workers, mandating that they be provided with N-95s.
https://montreal.ctvnews.ca/quebec-public-health-director-horacio-arruda-resigns-admitting-erosion-of-public-opinion-1.5734967
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QUEBEC – Horacio Arruda resigns as Quebec’s public health director
In a statement issued Monday evening, Premier François Legault confirmed he had received the letter and accepted the resignation.
“The premier will address this tomorrow,” the statement said.
[…]With my colleagues, over the last two years, we fought tirelessly to reduce as much as possible the impact of this terrible COVID-19 pandemic.”
[…]“recent statements on the credibility of our recommendations and our scientific rigour doubtlessly cause a certain erosion in public cooperation. In that context, I think it’s appropriate to offer you the possibility to replace me before the end of my mandate, at least as director of public health.”
[…]Parti Québécois leader Paul St-Pierre Plamondon said Arruda “sacrificed himself for the bad decisions of the government,” including having insufficient scientists in Legault’s crisis management team.
https://montrealgazette.com/news/quebec/horacio-arruda-resigns-as-quebecs-public-health-director
Video: “SHOCK As legendary Actor Bob Saget ‘Dies Suddenly’ 1 Month After Receiving COVID Booster Shot”
The Covid World – January 9, 2021
https://thecovidworld.com/shock-as-legendary-comedian-and-actor-bob-saget-dies-suddenly-1-month-after-receiving-covid-booster-shot/
** EXCLUSIVE: ‘There was no foul play, nothing odd at all. He died in his sleep’: Mystery as Full House legend Bob Saget, 65, with NO apparent underlying health conditions, passes away in Orlando hotel room **
(He was found in a supine position, one arm across his chest, cold, clammy and yellow.)
In a final Instagram post less than 24 hours before he was found dead, Saget told fans he was ‘loving every minute’ of being back on stage.
‘Okay, I loved tonight’s show in Jacksonville. Really nice audience. Lots of positivity. Happened last night in Orlando last night at the Hard Rock Live too. Very appreciative and fun audiences. Thanks again to @comediantimwilkins for opening.
‘I had no idea I did a two hour set tonight. I’m back in comedy like I was when I was 26. I guess I’m finding my new voice and loving every moment of it.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-10386581/Bob-Saget-said-loving-minute-stage-haunting-final-Instagram-post.html
DuckDuckGo and key in vigiaccess Covid-19 vaccination. 2,933,902
WHO Collaborating Centre for International Drug monitoring
Disorders
Blood and lymphatic system. 126,096
Cardiac 168,786
Congenital, familial and genetic 1,827
Ear and labyrinth 96,146
Endocrine 5,107
Eye. 107,716
Gastrointestinal 573,082
General Administration site conditions. 1,744,290
Hepatobiliary 6,374
Immune system 47,627
Infections and infestations 242,946
Injury, poisoning and procedural complications. 169,025
Investigations 423,647
Metabolism 63,884
Musculoskeletal and connective tissue 812,767
Neoplasms benign, mag Lina the and unspecified (incl cysts and polyps 5,319
Nervous system 1,219,123
Pregnancy, puerperium and perinatal conditions. 7,596
Product issues 4,416
Psychiatric 137,529
Renal and urinary. 24,943
Reproduction system and breast 144,883
Respiratory, thoracic and mediastinal 314,610
Skin and subcutaneous tissue. 390,344
Social circumstances 21,575
Surgical and medical procedures 45,399
Vascular 155,242
Whoa, I love the dark picture, makes me think I should be reading Dark and Stormy books.
10 million euro reserach project:
Welcome to the Website of the ERC Synergy Project ‘The European Qur’an. Islamic Scripture in European Culture and Religion 1150-1850 (EuQu)’
https://euqu.eu/
EuQu is an ambitious six year research project (2019-2025) studying the ways in which the Islamic Holy Book is embedded in the intellectual, religious and cultural history of Medieval and Early Modern Europe. Our research studies how the Qur’an has been translated, interpreted, adapted and used by Christians, European Jews, freethinkers, atheists and European Muslims in order to understand how the Holy Book has influenced both culture and religion in Europe.
[..]
“Open the Damn Country” article by Jordan Peterson
https://www.msn.com/en-ca/money/topstories/jordan-peterson-open-the-damn-country-back-up-before-canadians-wreck-something-we-can-t-fix/ar-AASDjZY?ocid=msedgdhp&pc=U531
USAID announces more than $308 million in additional humanitarian assistance for the people of Afghanistan
The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) announced the United States government’s initial 2022 contribution of more than $308 million in humanitarian assistance for the people of Afghanistan.
President Biden has been clear that humanitarian assistance will continue to flow directly to the Afghan people and the United States remains the single largest provider of humanitarian assistance in Afghanistan.
This contribution reflects a continued scale up of the United States’ humanitarian assistance in alignment with an unwavering commitment to aid vulnerable Afghans, and this new funding brings total U.S. humanitarian aid in Afghanistan and to Afghan refugees in the region to nearly $782 million since October 2021.
Today, the UN launched its Afghanistan humanitarian response plan with the world’s largest humanitarian funding appeal ever. The new contribution from the United States will provide life-saving aid for the most vulnerable, to include women, girls, minority populations, and people with disabilities. This assistance includes food and nutrition assistance; support for health care facilities and mobile health teams; winterization programs—including the provision of emergency cash grants, shelter kits, heaters, blankets, and warm clothing; and logistics and transportation support to ensure that aid workers and critical relief supplies can make it to the hardest to reach areas.
The United States remains committed to helping the people of Afghanistan. However, for this assistance to be the most effective, all aid workers, especially women, must be permitted to operate independently and securely and be able to reach women and girls without impediments. The United States continues to urge the Taliban to allow unhindered humanitarian access, safe conditions for humanitarians, independent provision of assistance to all vulnerable people, and freedom of movement for aid workers of all genders. We will continue to work to alleviate the suffering of the Afghan people, and call on other donors to continue to contribute to this international response. Together, we can deliver critical assistance directly to the people of Afghanistan.
For the latest updates on USAID’s humanitarian assistance in Afghanistan, visit: Afghanistan | Humanitarian Assistance | US Agency for International Development.
https://reliefweb.int/report/afghanistan/usaid-announces-more-308-million-additional-humanitarian-assistance-people
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CNN – US providing $308 million in humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan
(CNN)The US is providing $308 million in humanitarian aid for the people of Afghanistan, the National Security Council announced Tuesday, as well as additional Covid-19 vaccine doses.
The humanitarian assistance and vaccines come months after the US completed its military withdrawal from the country. The Biden administration has also faced pressure to take action as the country faces a dire humanitarian crisis.
[…]
https://www.cnn.com/2022/01/11/politics/us-humanitarian-assistance-afghanistan/index.html
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AFGHANISTAN – HERAT – JAN 2022 – TALIBAN – MILITARY PARADE