12:28 PM 9/12/2020 - Michael Novakhov - SharedNewsLinks℠: Trump and Fascism - Voter Suppression Project 2020
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Michael Novakhov - SharedNewsLinks℠ | In Brief |
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Michael Novakhov - SharedNewsLinks  | |||||||
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| Can We Call It Fascism? Trumps Voter Suppression Project, 2020 | |||||||
Voter suppression and voter fraud have become dominant topics of discussion in the 2020 election. In an Orwellian twist, the Trump administration appears to be calling for the suppression of massive numbers of voters, in the name of combating voter fraud. This plan is coming to fruition by way of his assault on the U.S. Post Office and mail-in voting, which he admits is meant to restrict a form of voting thats expected to cut heavily in favor of Democratic candidates, despite non-partisan fact-checkers recognizing that the evidence of mail-in voter fraud is largely non-existent. A second front is also materializing in Trumps voter suppression scheme, involving his efforts to recruit right-wing activists to serve as poll watchers on election day. As CNN reported in August, the Trump re-election campaign has coordinated an electoral initiative to dispatch tens of thousands of election monitors to battleground states in what is shaping up as the Republican Partys largest ever poll-watching operation. These efforts have sparked very real fears of voter suppression, considering that the areas targeted in these monitoring efforts are certain to focus not on affluent white urban neighborhoods or suburban white ethnic enclaves, which are both more likely to cut toward Trump, but on cities and neighborhoods disproportionately populated by liberals, Democrats, working-class individuals, and poor people of color. Trump and his campaign have been clear that they view these volunteers as essential to exerting pressure on local electoral systems to crack down on Democratic voters. In his support for the poll watching initiative, Trump appealed at a recent rally to supporters in North Carolina: Gotta be careful with those ballots. Watch those ballots. I dont like it. You know, you have a Democratic governor, you have all these Democrats watching that stuff. I dont like it. Watch all the thieving and stealing and robbing they do. Because this is important. We win North Carolina, we win. Trumps campaign warns on its website, armyfortrump.com, that Democrats will be up to their old dirty tricks on election day, while Trump boasted in a recent Tweet that volunteering to be a Trump election poll watcher is an opportunity to fight for President Trump and his re-election. There has been much reluctance on the American left to discuss Trumps electioneering efforts, and his politics more generally, with reference to the threat of fascist politics. Most Americans assume It Cant Happen Here, drawing on the famous title of Sinclair Lewiss seminal novel about the rise of fascism in a country that historically prides itself in democratic politics. U.S. media discourse routinely downplays talk of fascism, preferring terms like authoritarianism, or the more innocuous sounding populism to describe Trumps anti-democratic tendencies. For example, in the first six months of 2020, a search of the Nexis Uni database reveals that the New York Times included the terms fascist or fascism alongside references to the Trump administration in 56 articles, compared to 161 articles referring to the Trump administration within the context of authoritarian politics or authoritarianism, and 193 articles referencing Trump alongside discussions of populism or populist politics. [1] Similarly, my review of the iPoll database, which is a clearinghouse for national polling data, finds that, for the professional polling organizations operating in the U.S., not a single group or poll bothered to ask Americans between 2016 and 2020 about their opinions of the fascist or fascism question, at all or in relation to the Trump presidency. Claims that Trump traffics in fascist politics are met with fierce opposition among mainstream intellectuals, and from what Ive seen in my personal interactions, among many on the American left as well. From my experiences, it is relatively affluent white males on the left who are the most likely to reject the fascism description. I have little doubt that their privileged identities, as members of dominant class, race, and gender groups, feeds into this reluctance to seriously consider the fascism question. For those who are not familiar with scholarly discussions of fascism, I explore here efforts to establish a common definition. This definition includes recognition that fascists engage in the following activities:
As I have argued in the past, I find the fascism-not fascism debate, to the extent that it even occurs in the U.S., to be extremely counter-productive. Its a diversion from a more thoughtful engagement in the political crises we face. Fascism is not a political system that suddenly materializes overnight. So any discussion of potential fascism within a nation must recognize that, particularly in periods when a fascist regime may be emerging, it makes little sense to talk about the phenomenon as fully formed or institutionalized. Hence the preference of more thoughtful engagements in this question, from intellectuals like David Niewert, William Connelly, and Alexander Reid Ross, via their discussions of aspirational fascism, creeping fascism and parafascism. The point of these frameworks is to recognize that, if we wait to have a serious discussion of fascism until a fascist regime has fully materialized, it will be far too late. The creeping/aspiring fascist framework is advantageous because it looks at fascism as existing on a political spectrum, with nations moving relatively closer to or further away from fascism over time. And it is a more realistic way of discussing fascism because it recognizes that a straight historical repeat of the German or Italian fascist regimes isnt likely to happen in the modern era, and particularly in American politics. Simplistic portrayals of fascism in America, replete with Charlottesville-style images of Nazis brandishing Swastikas and openly marching through the streets, clownishly saluting Donald Trump as a modern-day Hitler, will never catch on with the masses of Americans. Rather, the risk is that American fascism will take a more friendly form. As Ive documented in previous research, the distinctly American-friendly version of creeping fascism involves far-right reactionaries like Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity, and Donald Trump smuggling fascistic, racist, and authoritarian themes into mainstream media discourse, while denying the extremism of these positions. Revealingly, consumption of, and support for media venues such as Fox News, Breitbart, and Infowars is far and away the strongest statistical predictor of public support for alt-right style white nationalism, compared to other factors such as partisanship, race, gender, income, age, and education. This finding means that the dogmatic efforts to establish a fascism-not fascism framework are unsustainable and wholly lacking in merit. Still, that mode of thinking has been effective in reinforcing an It Cant Happen Here mantra in the U.S., in which fascism becomes a taboo topic of discussion. Meanwhile, fascistic discourses and political aspirations continue to be sold through Orwellian propaganda techniques celebrated through the rhetoric about freedom, liberty, and democratic empowerment. The U.S. may not be a fully formed fascist society, like the corporatist regimes of Nazi Germany or Mussolinis Italy of the 1940s. But considering the definition of fascism provided above, it is also unwarranted to downplay or ignore the fascism question, considering that American politics has increasingly been defined by many of the traits of fascism, which have qualitatively intensified since Trump took office, even if these developments have been decades in the making. Among the recent developments that reinforce a creeping fascist understanding of American politics are the following:
Trumps poll watching initiative should be understood within the context of his larger political agenda, and his creeping fascistic political initiatives, which seek to suppress political dissent, while further cementing his political power. Nowhere in this initiative does the president or his supporters advertise that poll watching is a euphemism for vigilante white supremacist goons coming together in mass to harass, intimidate, and terrorize people of color in a massive voter suppression effort. But those are never types of things that a serial gaslighter like Trump would ever say openly. His modus operandi has never been openly taking responsibility for his authoritarian proclivities. Rather, he is notorious for virtue-signaling to his far-right base, while implicitly supporting their vigilante efforts to suppress the administrations critics and people of color, while simultaneously denying that he is doing these things. And thats exactly the point: maintaining deniability and the ability to deflect critical public attention from his authoritarian politics. Consistent with this profile, Trump is billing his poll watching plan as a well-intended effort to combat Democratic treachery and voter fraud. But considering the complete lack of evidence for this narrative, it would be naïve not read between the lines and recognize the dangers of his efforts to monkey-wrench the integrity of local voting infrastructure across the nation. The danger moving into election day is that we will see tens of thousands of right-wing extremists and activists in the streets, flooding polling places in swing states and intimidating people of color and other Democratic voters, simply for trying to exercise their democratic right to vote. In a country that embraces conceal and open carry, and in which right-wing vigilantes are romanticized as defending themselves against overwhelmingly non-violent protesters, calling on these same individuals to confront Democratic voters on election day is a recipe for disaster. Poll watching will inevitably result in violence between right-wing election police, and those seeking to vote in Democratic-leaning cities and other locales. Trumps supporters will write of this vigilante violence as no big deal, since the targets will disproportionately be liberals, poor people, and poor people of color. But the reality of the matter is that these efforts will constitute a massive voter suppression initiative, built upon efforts to coerce, intimidate, and terrorize Democratic voters. In an era when Trump celebrates vigilantes as heroes, white reactionaries who harass Democratic voters will be depicted simply as engaging in self-defense or as freedom-loving people seeking to protect the integrity of the electoral process. And since these vigilantes know that Trump has their back, they will feel even more emboldened in their aggressive attacks on Democratic voters. Connecting the dots to understand where this is all headed isnt that difficult, at least for those who are not being willfully ignorant about the dangers this country faces. Sadly, large numbers of Americans are downplaying the threat. Voter suppression isnt going to happen in affluent white suburban and urban enclaves. And in a neoliberal narcissistic political culture like that of the United States, tens of millions of Americans are simply going to ignore the massive voter suppression undertaken by the Republican Party and its supporters because it has no direct effect on them personally. This reality feeds into the larger problem of most privileged Americans not wanting to discuss the fascism question, since they perceive it (at least so far) as not affecting them directly. Based on my own interactions with left intellectuals, I find it more than a little disturbing that the debate over Trumps politics has degenerated into a discussion of whether Trump is an authoritarian or a fascist. As far as Im concerned, once someone admits Trump is authoritarian in his politics, discussions of what type of authoritarian he is are largely academic. When the U.S. police state is systematically murdering people of color, and one of the two major parties is ramping up to engage in massive voter suppression, debating what brand of authoritarianism Trump ascribes to seems insensitive and disconnected from reality. Trumps poll watching initiative, coupled with his celebrations of vigilante violence against his political enemies, represents a ticking time bomb in its potential to provoke disaster come election day. This administration represents an existential threat to what little remains of American democratic institutions and the rule of law. Whether one calls it fascist, authoritarian, or dictatorial is ultimately secondary to the larger question of what can be done to combat this menace. Notes. [1] My examination of the Nexis Uni historical media archive includes any New York Times articles that reference President Donald Trump within 50 words of references to authoritarian politics or authoritarianism, populist politics or populism, or fascist politics or fascism. A digital copy of Anthony DiMaggios new book, Rebellion in America, can be read for free at the publishers website. | |||||||
| 6:42 AM 9/12/2020 Michael Novakhov on Twitter: "coronavirus in los angeles in december 2019" | |||||||
6:42 AM 9/12/2020
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| Restaurant dining linked to COVID-19 | |||||||
 FILE PHOTO: People eat at a mostly empty restaurant with tables on the street, in the financial district during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic in the Manhattan borough of New York City, New York, U.S., September 9, 2020. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri/File Photo Among adults tested for the coronavirus at 11 U.S. healthcare facilities in July, those who were infected were about twice as likely to have dined at a restaurant in the previous 14 days, according to a U.S. study. Otherwise, activity levels were similar in people with or without COVID-19 in other respects. ADVERTISEMENT Those included shopping, social gatherings at home, going to an office, salon, or gym, using public transportation or attending religious gatherings. Masks cannot be effectively worn while eating and drinking, whereas shopping and numerous other indoor activities do not preclude mask use, researchers said in the report on Friday in the U.S. Center for Disease Control and Preventions Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report. Eating and drinking on-site at locations that offer such options might be important risk factors associated with SARS-CoV-2 infection, they added. Severe COVID-19 less common in patients with GI symptomsPeople with gastrointestinal symptoms related to the new coronavirus, like diarrhea, nausea and vomiting, may be significantly less likely to develop severe COVID-19 and die, a new study found. New York City doctors looked at 635 COVID-19 patients, expecting to see worse disease when the GI tract was involved. To their surprise, patients admitted with GI symptoms had 50% lower odds of severe COVID-19 and death, compared to patients without GI symptoms, even after accounting for age, race, and underlying medical conditions. Also unexpectedly, patients with GI involvement had lower levels of inflammatory proteins in their blood. A subset who underwent closer inspection of their intestines had virus particles in gut tissues, but relatively little inflammation, and low activity of genes responsible for making inflammatory proteins, doctors found, according to a paper posted on medRxiv on Wednesday ahead of peer review. When the New York doctors collaborated with Italian colleagues to study 287 COVID-19 patients in Milan, they saw the same link between GI involvement and less-severe disease, Dr. Saurabh Mehandru of the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai told Reuters. Mehandrus team has also found that factoring GI symptoms into the initial patient assessment may help identify those at risk for more severe disease. Antibody-binding might not neutralize the virusA so-called spike protein on the surface of the new coronavirus helps it invade cells, and some antibodies being tested as treatments work by attaching to the spike and disabling it. But researchers have discovered in test-tube experiments that merely binding to the spike protein is not necessarily enough to neutralize the ability of the virus to break into cells. When they exposed coronavirus particles to antibody-rich plasma from 25 people recovering from COVID-19, all of the antibodies attached themselves to the spike protein. However, a few plasma samples failed to neutralize the virus and were no more effective than plasma from uninfected people. The findings might help explain why convalescent plasma therapy does not always work, the researchers say. They did not use active virus particles for their experiments. Still, study leader Andrés Finzi of Université de Montréal told Reuters the findings stress the need to learn more about the different shapes the spike protein may assume as the virus breaks into cells, and how to block them. Efforts to better understand the link between antibody interaction with the spike protein and virus neutralization might assist ongoing vaccine efforts aimed at eliciting neutralizing antibodies, the researchers conclude in a paper posted on Tuesday on bioRxiv ahead of peer review. New system groups hospitalized COVID-19 patients by riskA simple 21-point scoring system helps assign hospitalized COVID-19 patients to different risk groups, UK researchers reported on Wednesday in The BMJ. The score does not require an app or any other technology, beyond perhaps a pen or pencil if you cant count up to 21 in your head, Dr. Calum Semple of the University of Liverpool told Reuters. The score takes 8 factors into account including age, other illnesses, kidney health, and oxygen levels in the blood. Based on the result, patients are assigned to one of four groups. The risk of dying from COVID-19 is 1% in the low-risk group, 10% in the intermediate-risk group, 31% in the high-risk group, and 62% in the very high-risk group. The ISARIC Coronavirus Clinical Characterization Consortium developed its 4C scoring system using data from 35,463 patients and validated its accuracy in another 22,361 patients. As pressures on health services increase, being able to identify patients most likely to need escalated care becomes particularly important, Semple said in a news release. For more news about the novel coronavirus click here. The Inquirer Foundation supports our healthcare frontliners and is still accepting cash donations to be deposited at Banco de Oro (BDO) current account #007960018860 or donate through PayMaya using this link . Read Next EDITORS' PICK MOST READ Subscribe to INQUIRER PLUS to get access to The Philippine Daily Inquirer & other 70+ titles, share up to 5 gadgets, listen to the news, download as early as 4am & share articles on social media. Call 896 6000. | |||||||
| Coronavirus May Have Hit Los Angeles In December, Before Wuhan Outbreak Was Reported | |||||||
It would be hard, if not impossible, to find a CIO today who hasnt taken a long, hard look at their organizations resilience in the face of the worst global health crisis in generations. This includes rethinking their current digital transformation efforts. As business weaknesses are laid bare by the pandemic, leaders are shifting their digital transformation investments and strategy to accommodate a world reshaped by COVID-19. What was once about employee experience or improved productivity is now centered on addressing short- and long-term business continuity. One major coronavirus surprise was the dawn of a new work-from-anywhere era. Because business resilience depends on the ability to keep teams working productively, this rethink of the office has many implicationsnot the least of which is that IT must now become leading organizational changemakers. And that means focusing less on back-office technology and more on painting a strategic vision for the organization. Meet Janet In a previous digital transformation leadership role, I had the opportunity to put this philosophy into practice. Based on our transformation vision, I knew a key role would be the head of employee experience. It was a big role, responsible for leading the HR team in creating seamless cross-functional processes that would vastly improve new-hire onboarding. I selected our help desk supervisor, Janet, for this pivotal position, despite her relative lack of experience as a project manager or a process architect. When I approached her about the position, she was understandably surprised. She wanted to know why I chose her, and I answered honestly. I said, I can improve your project management skills; I can assign an experienced process-architect to your team. But what I cant find anywhere else is someone who thinks like me in terms of the experience we want to create and who shows a visceral reaction to a bad service experience with IT. I know what motivates you, and I know you have ideas on how to fix our problems. Janet took the role and was ridiculously successful. Less technology, more empowerment I wasnt surprised. In my experience, winning transformation strategies have less to do with the technologies employed and more to the power you give your people. IT and business teams need to be able to manage the relationships and process interdependencies required to create seamless, resilient, end-to-end services for employees and customers alike. Thats easier said than done and requires IT to take a central leadership role throughout the organization. The question is, are they ready for such prominent positioning? Lets face it. The answer is probably not. At least not without a little self-reflection. CIOs, as well as their direct reports, must consider whether their leadership empowers the IT organization to lead the business through a re-thinking, re-imagining, and re-engineering of a multitude of complicated, cross-functional processes. This is a non-negotiable prerequisite for the simultaneous transformation of the employee experience, customer outcomes, organizational productivity, and business-continuity management. Set the vision What does this leadership look like? First, its critical for the CIO to provide a strong vision for their team to follow. This vision must be continually updated, with focused and continuous visioning and empowerment practices cascaded from the most senior stakeholders to their change-agents in the trenches. Each member of the team should understand:
If we are not having these conversations with every member of our team, if we dont have a clear understanding of how every IT function will need to be reshaped, re-trained, or re-engineered to support the vision, how can we expect to succeed? Like driving a car Think back to when you learned to drive a car. The driving itself wasnt hard; after all, it takes about 15 minutes to learn how to operate a vehicle. Its everything that comes nextroad rules, how to respond to an erratic driver, what to do in the event of an accidentthat requires practice. This practice armed you with the tools to respond when something inevitably does go wrong, no matter its specifics. The same is true in IT. Understanding and learning the technology is the easy part. Its the scenarios in which those technologies are engaged that offer a real challenge. While digital transformation is a heroic endeavor, success requires less emphasis on digital and more on transformation especially when framing a vision of what your digital transformation program aims to accomplish. As CEOs re-evaluate the scope and ambitions of their digital transformation initiatives, I hope they will re-evaluate their strategies as well. I hope they will consider, in essence, a transformation of their transformations. | |||||||
| 9/11/01 - 6:12 PM 9/11/2020 | |||||||
Covering a host of issues relative to disability claims and benefits for cops, firefighters and other rescue workers, the 9/11 Worker Protection Task Force will be extended for five years through June 2025.
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| 5:16 PM 9/11/2020 - Blogs | |||||||
5:16 PM 9/11/2020 - Blogs - Links and Pages - The News and Times - Blogs by Michael Novakhov 
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| 4:25 PM 9/11/2020 - The Counterintelligence Investigations of Donald Trump - Update | |||||||
4:25 PM 9/11/2020 - The Counterintelligence Investigations of Donald Trump - UpdateTweets by @mikenov
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| Peter Strzok claims he 'knows things' that could hurt Trump's reelection bid if it became public | |||||||
Disgraced former FBI agent Peter Strzok claims he knows 'things' that could harm President Trump's reelection campaign - but is choosing not to go public with the information. The former deputy assistant director made the declaration as he explained to CBSN that his own personal bias had no implications in how he handled the investigation into Trump when he was the Republican nominee. The comments come as his new book, Compromised: Counterintelligence and the Threat of Donald J. Trump, hit the stands on Tuesday - tracing his arc from veteran counterintelligence agent to the man who came to embody Trump's public scorn of FBI and his characterization of its Russia investigation as a 'witch hunt.' 'To this day, there are things that I know, that others know, that aren't public at all... appropriately not known to the public, that nevertheless would harm the Trump campaign in the 2020... right now... if we released it..Yet none of us did that because that is our duty. That is the oath we swore to uphold,' he said. Peter Strzok said that he and others knew 'things' that if made public, could ruin President Trump's election campaign Strzok's time investigating as a part of Robert Mueller's team was cut short in 2017 after an inspector general discovered anti-Trump text messages he'd exchanged during the campaign with an FBI lawyer with whom he had had an extramarital relationship. The texts cost Strzok his job and drew vitriol from Trump. But even with those, Strzok asserted that he was still able to focus on his job and not act with 'nefarious' intent. Strzok said: 'The fact that throughout 2016... I and others knew and had information that would absolutely be devastating to Trump's campaign if it became public and yet it never came out.' 'To this day, there are things that I know, that others know, that aren't public at all...that nevertheless would harm the Trump campaign in the 2020,' he said 'Any one of us could have gone to the press, could have gone to Congress and provided information that could have destroyed his candidacy. That never happened.' He later added: 'What I can tell you is every agent in the FBI has a political opinion, but each and every day what I saw in myself and others over the course of 20 years was that when people walk in the doors, they set that aside,' Strzok said. 'They walk in, they do their job and pursue the truth objectively.' Strzok also expressed uneasiness at Attorney General WIlliam Barr's willingness to 'improperly' act on behalf of the president. The former deputy assistant director was fired in the summer of 2017 after it was revealed he was sending anti-Trump text to an FBI lawyer Lisa Page 'I'm concerned,' Strzok told CBSN's Vladimir Duthiers. 'The things that I have heard the attorney general say, some of the actions of the Department of Justice unfolding or rolling back the prosecution of General [Michael] Flynn, the sentencing of Roger Stone give me great concern.' He added that the DOJ's actions in recent months 'smack of political partisanship.' Strzok assertion comes on the release of his new book, Compromised: Counterintelligence and the Threat of Donald J. Trump Strzok's anti-Trump texts on a government phone to an FBI lawyer gave Trump and his supporters a major opening to undercut the bureau's credibility right as it was conducting one of the most consequential investigations in its history. Trump's attacks have continued even as two inspector general reports found no evidence Strzok's work in the investigations were tainted by political bias and multiple probes have affirmed the Russia probe's validity. Strzok expresses measured regret for the texts in 'Compromised: Counterintelligence and the Threat of Donald J. Trump,' out now. 'I deeply regret casually commenting about the things I observed in the headlines and behind the scenes, and I regret how effectively my words were weaponized to harm the Bureau and buttress absurd conspiracy theories about our vital work,' Strzok writes. Before becoming a virtual household name, Strzok spent two decades at the FBI toiling in relative anonymity on sensational spy cases. He helped uncover Russian sleeper agents inside the U.S., worked the Edward Snowden case and led the investigation into whether Hillary Clinton mishandled classified information. (She did, he writes, but not in a way meriting prosecution). After the Clinton case concluded in July 2016, Strzok opened an investigation into whether the campaign of her Republican opponent was coordinating with Russia, conceiving the 'Crossfire Hurricane' codename he says proved prescient. Strzok said he intended for his book to lend insight into the Clinton probe, Russian election interference and, 'first and foremost, the counterintelligence threat that I see in Donald Trump.' Agent Peter Strzok angrily denies accusations of bias in June 2018 Loaded: 0% Progress: 0% 0:00 LIVE | |||||||
| New Whistleblower Outlines How Trump Is Politicizing Intelligence | |||||||
This president and members of his Cabinet pose a grave threat to our national security.  U.S. Department of Homeland Security/WikiMedia CommonsAnother whistleblower has emerged from within the Trump administration. Brian Murphy, until recently, was in charge of intelligence and analysis at the Department of Homeland Security. In his complaint filed with the Inspector General at DHS, Murphy claims that he was demoted for refusing to doctor intelligence in a way that aligned with the messages Trump wanted to convey. Murphy first filed a complaint with the IG in 2018 when Kirstjen Neilsen was DHS Secretary. In it, he alleged that, following instructions from the White House, he was pressured to suggest that large numbers of known or suspected terrorists were illegally coming across our southern border in order to justify the building of Trumps wall. Murphy refused to comply, telling his supervisor that it was an improper administration of an intelligence program, and that doing what was being requested would constitute a felony. The complaint suggests that Neilsen gave perjured testimony to Congress in December 2018. The following year, Murphy claims, Deputy DHS Secretary Ken Cuccinelli pressured him to alter an intelligence report regarding conditions in Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador in order to better align them with Trumps claims about asylum seekers coming from countries with high levels of corruption, violence, and poor economic conditions.
Once again, Murphy contends, he refused to comply and Cuccinelli demanded that the deep state intelligence analysts be fired, but apparently never followed up. The most explosive charge Murphy makes in the complaint, however, is that after regularly briefing administration officials about Russian attempts to interfere in the 2020 election, he was told by Acting DHS Secretary Chad Wolf to cease providing intelligence assessments on the threat of Russian interference in the United States, and instead start reporting on interference activities by China and Iran. If any of that sounds familiar its because that is exactly what was included in the statement that was eventually released by William Evanina, director of the National Counterintelligence and Security Center. Furthermore, DNI John Ratcliffe used the same lie to justify his directive that in-person intelligence briefings on election interference would no longer be provided to Congress. Ratcliffe said that the suggestion that Russia poses a greater threat than China simply isnt true. In other words, he wants us to ignore Russia and focus on their narrative of blaming everything on China. The final episode Murphy relates is the development of a document called a Homeland Threat Assessment. Wolf and Cuccinelli refused to distribute the document due to their concerns about how it would reflect upon President Trump.
When Murphy refused to comply with that one, he says, it seemed to be the final straw. In retaliation, he was demoted. It is important to note that Murphys complaint is consistent with what weve seen from members of Trumps cabinet, such as DNI Ratcliffe, AG Barr, and DHS Secretary Wolf. There is a coordinated effort to alter intelligence in a way that supports Trumps lies, which also happen to align with Moscows. In a statement announcing an investigation into Murphys complaint, Rep. Adam Schiff characterized the situation:
The threat is, indeed, grave and actually resides in the White House. | |||||||
| "Everybody Has Concluded That My Work Was Done Objectively, Says Peter Strzok | The Daily Caller | |||||||
David Krayden Ottawa Bureau Chief Font Size: Former FBI agent Peter Strzok said Thursday that everybody has rated his work as objective and not based on personal political belief. Furthermore, there have been multiple investigations, two inspector general investigations, multiple U.S. attorneys who have looked at this matter and congressional committee after congressional committee examining all of this, Strzok told CNN. And everybody has concluded that my work and the work of the FBI was done objectively and without anything based on personal political belief. And so I point people to the record and the facts. (RELATED: Peter Strzok Sues FBI And DOJ Over Firing, Claims His Anti-Trump Texts Were Protected Free Speech) Former Republican South Carolina Rep. Trey Gowdy, for one, did not echo Strzoks assertion. Gowdy specifically said that Strzoks comments demonstrated a level of bias that you rarely see by public servants. Strzok lost his job with the bureau for a series of anti-Trump texts to his girlfriend of the time, FBI lawyer Lisa Page. Asked to provide context to his remark to Page that he would stop then-candidate Donald Trump from being elected, Strzok responded, I mean, this was an off-the-cuff comment made outside of any work context whatsoever. The former deputy director of FBI counterintelligence insisted that his work for the FBI actually helped get Trump elected. Whats critical to notice throughout the time period of 2016, in the summer and fall, every single action that we took in the FBI, that I took in the FBI, that came out of the public context ended up hurting candidate Clinton and helping candidate at the time Trump. (RELATED: STRZOK: Well Stop Trump Presidency)  Former Democratic presidential nominee former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton (R) and then Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump speak during the town hall debate at Washington University on Oct. 9, 2016 in St Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images) The FBI was prepared to close an investigation into former National Security Advisor Michael Flynn before Strzok intervened. Strzok has done a series of interviews with friendly media to promote the release of his book this week, Compromised: Counterintelligence and the Threat of Donald J. Trump, in which the author contends that the president was damaged by an alleged relationship with Russia. | |||||||
| Trump-Russia 'follow the money' counterintelligence investigation may not exist [Video] | |||||||
Captions will look like this Up next
Trump-Russia 'follow the money' counterintelligence investigation may not exist
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| 3:08 PM 9/11/2020 - The example of Sweden indicates that our current understanding of the so called "Covid-19" is incorrect and may be the result of the deliberate disinformation. Social Distancing absolutely does not matter and has no effect: see Covid-19 in Sweden. | |||||||
The example of Sweden indicates that our current understanding of the so called "Covid-19" is incorrect and may be the result of the deliberate disinformation - Google Search https://www.google.com/search?q=The+example+of+Sweden+indicates+that+our+current+understanding+of+the+so+called+%22Covid-19%22+is+incorrect+and+may+be+the+result+of+the+deliberate+disinformation&source=lmns&bih=762&biw=1462&rlz=1C1CHBF_enUS733US733&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj_vtD_1-HrAhXQIN8KHcBICH4Q_AUoAHoECAEQAA Social Distancing absolutely does not matter and has no effect: see Covid-19 in Sweden - Google Search https://www.google.com/search?q=Social+Distancing+absolutely+does+not+matter+and+has+no+effect%3A+see+Covid-19+in+Sweden&newwindow=1&rlz=1C1CHBF_enUS733US733&sxsrf=ALeKk00QQuxhsxq8NSg345I_4z2QpT7mQw%3A1599846685694&source=lnt&tbs=qdr%3Aw&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj3-JSr1eHrAhW9gXIEHU7FAkMQpwV6BAgXEBs&biw=1462&bih=762 3:08 PM 9/11/2020 - Tweets by @mikenov | |||||||
| How comeback kid Sweden got the last laugh on coronavirus | |||||||
While coronavirus cases rebound across Europe, Sweden is enjoying record low numbers of infections and deaths despite months of scepticism about its lockdown-free strategy. Sweden's infection rate - once the highest in Europe - is now lower than in Britain, Spain, France or Italy, as well as Norway and Denmark where leaders have long been alarmed by their neighbour's high death rate. Sweden last week carried out a record number of tests but only 1.2 per cent of them came back positive, the lowest level since the start of the pandemic. The Swedish comeback has now led Britain to remove the country from its quarantine list, opening the door to tourism in an economy which has already suffered a milder downturn than much of Europe. Sweden has flattened the curve without ordering its people to stay inside - keeping shops, schools and restaurants open even at the height of the pandemic and trusting Swedes to combat the virus by washing their hands and abiding by social distancing rules. The Nordic country's top epidemiologist has also played down the effectiveness of face masks and insisted that a full-scale lockdown would not have prevented care home deaths. Sweden, in brown, once had the worst infection rate in Europe measured by cases per million people - but while cases have surged in Spain and France and risen in Britain, Germany and Italy, Sweden's infection rate has fallen to an all-time low In the spring and summer, Sweden's infection rate (in red) was far higher than that of its Nordic neighbours - but the numbers are now similar with Norway and Denmark both having more cases per million over the last seven days Sweden's infection rate was the highest in Europe as recently as mid-June, when increased screening led to more than 1,000 people testing positive per day. On June 15, Sweden had a 7-day average of 101 cases per million people per day, while the next-highest in Europe was Belarus with 79. In Western Europe, the next-highest was Portugal on 30 cases per million, while Sweden's neighbours were far lower: Denmark six, Finland three, Norway two. In addition, Sweden has piled up more deaths than Norway, Denmark and Finland put together, with 5,843 fatalities in total, despite its population being only twice as large as those countries. The Swedish figures prompted concern and its strategy led to criticism at home and abroad, with many countries leaving Sweden off their lists of approved travel destinations when they resumed tourism. Sweden was indignant when its Scandinavian neighbour Finland excluded it from an easing of travel restrictions in Baltic and Nordic countries. Britain also left Sweden out of its 'travel corridor' list because its infection rate was still too high, while the Swedish prime minister announced an inquiry into the country's handling of the disease. However, the situation has totally reversed in three months since then, with infections surging in much of Europe but reaching record low levels in Sweden. Sweden announced only 7,131 new cases in the month of August, down from 11,971 in July and a far higher figure of 30,909 in June. By contrast, cases quadrupled from July to August in Spain and France, and more than doubled in Germany and Italy, while Britain this week tightened restrictions after a rise in cases. Sweden is currently averaging around 200 new cases per day, compared to more than 1,000 at the height of the pandemic, while the rate of positive tests last week was the lowest since the crisis began Deaths have fallen to an average of less than two per day after just 11 fatalities in the last week, compared to hundreds of deaths per week at the height of the pandemic in the spring The highest infection rates in Western Europe are now in Spain (200 cases per million) and France (118), while Britain is on 37 with Sweden well below them on 17. Sweden's current figure is lower than in Norway (19) and Denmark (38), with Finland the lowest of the four mainland Nordic countries on seven cases per million. Schools re-opened in Sweden mid-August and health officials say they do not expect a large resurgence of the virus in the coming weeks. On Tuesday, Sweden announced that it had carried out a record number of tests last week with only 1.2 per cent coming back positive - the lowest rate since the crisis began. At the peak of the crisis in the spring, 19 per cent of of tests - nearly one in five - were coming back positive in some weeks. 'The purpose of our approach is for people themselves to understand the need to follow the recommendations and guidelines that exist,' health agency chief Johan Carlson told a news conference. 'There are no other tricks before there are available medical measures, primarily vaccines. The Swedish population has taken this to heart,' he said. Deaths have also declined to their lowest levels since the earliest days of the pandemic, with only 11 new fatalities in the last week. There were 681 deaths in the worst week of the pandemic from April 19-25, when Swedes were still going to shops while most of Europe was in lockdown. People walk on a street in Stockholm where masks are not required and shops and restaurants have remained open throughout the pandemic, with Swedes trusted to take necessary hygiene measures themselves In recent weeks, some days have passed without a single new patient going into intensive care - compared to the dozens going into ICU every day in April. There were only six virus patients in Stockholm hospitals as of August 31 compared to 225 at the end of April, the local health authority Region Stockholm said. Per Follin, department head at Stockholm's Communicable Disease Control and Prevention, said figures in the capital were at the 'lowest level in a very long time.' 'The reason we have relatively low transmission now is largely due to the fact that so many Stockholmers are following the recommendations to stay home when you're sick, wash hands and keep your distance,' Follin said. Anders Tegnell, the Swedish state epidemiologist who has been the face of the country's virus strategy, has previously admitted that too many Swedes have died from the virus. However, he has insisted that a lockdown would not have stopped the large number of deaths in care homes where visits were banned in any case. In another sign of Swedish success, Britain announced yesterday that Sweden had been added to the list of approved 'travel corridor' countries - while Portugal was removed after a rise in cases. The Swedish government has long cited a high level of trust in authorities as a reason why virus measures can be voluntary rather than enforced. The strategy has been touted by the WHO as a sustainable model for tackling the virus, with Swedish officials saying that people will accept softer restrictions for longer. Shops and restaurants remained open with social distancing rules, while most schools stayed open and the rate of infection among children was no higher than in Finland where classrooms closed, officials said. April 22: While most of Europe was shut inside, people continued to sit in Stockholm parks such as this one despite the rising number of deaths from coronavirus As Europe edged out of lockdown, Sweden continued to forge its own path by playing down the use of face masks as other countries made them mandatory. Tegnel has said that masks have little proven effect and could lead to a false sense of security among wearers, and they are not required on public transport. By contrast, Finland now recommends wearing masks in public places, Norway advises it on Oslo public transport, while Denmark has made it mandatory on all public transport and in taxis. Tegnell's standard response is that public health officials are 'keeping an eye on' the issue and could introduce the measure if deemed necessary. 'Our strategy has been consistent and sustainable,' says Jonas Ludvigsson, a professor of epidemiology at Karolinska Institutet. 'We probably have a lower risk of spread here compared to other countries,' he said, adding that Sweden likely had a higher level of immunity than other countries. 'I think we benefit a lot from that now,' he said. Sweden has never adopted 'herd immunity' as a strategy in itself but officials have voiced hopes that it would gradually help to limit the spread of the disease. However, scientists are not yet fully certain of exactly how much immunity is provided by recovering from Covid-19, or for how long it lasts. A study by the UK's Royal Society of Medicine last month found that only 15 per cent of people in Stockholm had acquired antibodies by May 2020. Meanwhile, Swedish economic activity has started to pick up and the effects of the downturn look less severe than previously feared. 'The economic situation is looking a little brighter compared to our assessment in June,' finance minister Magdalena Andersson said in late August. Sweden's economy will contract around 4.6 per cent this year, Andersson said, compared to a projected 8.0 per cent slump in the EU and 11.0 per cent in Britain. The predicted drop is lower than an earlier projection of 6.0 per cent and similar to that seen during the global financial crisis of 2008-09. The outcome for Sweden is also roughly in line with forecasts for its Nordic neighbours, despite the much tougher measures they took to fight the pandemic. Andersson said the improvement would mean a deficit in public finances of around 5.6 per cent of GDP this year, compared with its June forecast of 7.8 per cent. She said the economy would need further support next year and in 2022 and 2023, promising around $11.46 billion of spending in September's budget. The Social Democrat-Green coalition government introduced a raft of policies to fight the pandemic, promising to spend about $34billion this year. Swedish museums struggle amid the COVID-19 pandemic Loaded: 0% Progress: 0% 0:00 LIVE | |||||||
| 1:17 PM 9/11/2020 - Tweets by @mikenov | |||||||
 1:17 PM 9/11/2020 - Tweets by @mikenov
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| 12:37 PM 9/11/2020 - Blogs Review | |||||||
Blogs - Links and Pages - The News and Times - Blogs by Michael Novakhov  Blogs - Links and Pages - The News and Times - Blogs by Michael Novakhov on RSS Dog | New Page | In Brief - Page ____________________________________________ | |||||||
| 11:47 AM 9/11/2020 - Germans want the US forces out of Germany: this is their long term strategy after WW2 | US embassy to challenge Germany over attempts to tax American troops | |||||||
 Germans want the US forces out of Germany: this is their long term strategy after WW2, and the recent events confirm this, including the decision by the German - Russian - New Abwehr puppet and The Useful Idiot Trump to withdraw the US troops from Germany, with the consent and approval of the German and the New Abwehr agent Putin. - M.N. 11:58 AM 9/11/2020 - Saved and Shared Stories in 25 Posts on RSS Dog | New Page_______________________________________
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| US embassy to challenge Germany over attempts to tax American troops - Europe | |||||||
US embassy to challenge Germany over attempts to tax American troopsSTUTTGART, Germany Germany is violating an international treaty when it asks U.S. military personnel to pay taxes in the country, the U.S. Embassy in Berlin said as it jumped into a long-running fiscal dispute that has affected hundreds of U.S. troops and civilians. The U.S. Embassy and military commands are aware of this long-standing issue and working closely in concert to address what we believe to be a misinterpretation of the NATO Status of Forces Agreement, embassy spokesman Joseph Giordono-Scholz said in a statement this week. The Department of Defense and Department of State are engaged to try and reach a resolution, Giordono-Scholz said, giving the first indication that the issue is being tackled at a higher level than military commands in Germany, which have been unable to resolve it after years of trying. State and Defense Department lawyers are hashing out the details of a plan that will be turned over to the embassy for action in the weeks ahead, a State Department official told Stars and Stripes this week. The involvement of senior U.S. officials comes after Stars and Stripes earlier this year spotlighted how Germany has threatened to impose hefty tax penalties some in six figures on troops and civilians who it says have special ties to the country. Its aimed at getting the German federal government to issue guidance that would stop regional tax offices from levying taxes on Americans living in the country with SOFA protections, military officials have said. The American flag flies over the U.S. embassy in Berlin, Germany. High-level U.S. diplomats are getting involved in a dispute with Germany over whether troops and Defense Department civilians who have NATO Status of Forces Agreement protections, are obligated to pay German taxes. Michael Abrams/Stars and Stripes The NATO Status of Forces Agreement is intended, among other things, to protect military personnel, who already pay taxes in the U.S., from having to also pay it in Germany on their military pay. But some local fiscal offices in Germany maintain they have a right to tax personnel who arent in the country solely for their jobs. They have argued that a service member or Defense Department civilian who extends their tour, marries a local person or does anything else that suggests special ties to Germany could be liable for taxes on all military pay theyve received while in Germany, including back pay. Benefits such as housing allowance have been factored into the tax bills, said tax experts and a German defense attorney who has taken on some military cases. To avoid being taxed, service members and civilians must prove to German authorities a willingness to return to the U.S. But there is no established legal standard that defines what constitutes a willingness to return and German tax offices decide on a case-by-case basis if they will waive or impose taxes on someone. The ultimate proof of intent to leave actually returning to the U.S. doesnt necessarily offer protection from German regional finance offices, which have sought taxes dating back 10 years and pursued U.S. personnel after they have returned home. U.S. Army Europe, which manages SOFA matters in Germany, has known about the severity of the problem since at least 2014, when an Army PowerPoint presentation about host-nation relations noted that around 100 civilians and active-duty troops were in financial difficulty after receiving tax bills from the Germans. Today, nearly 500 people with military ties are under investigation in the Landstuhl area, where thousands of Americans who are assigned to Ramstein Air Base and several Army bases live, the local tax office said in July. Military members in other regions, including Stuttgart and Wiesbaden, also have been targeted. In the 2014 document, USAREUR said the personal nature of the issue meant the ability of the command to influence the outcome is limited. It also said that, as a last resort, the U.S. Embassy in Berlin could be called in to organize inter-governmental talks on the issue. Its unclear if the growing number of Americans with SOFA status who are being threatened with tax bills was the trigger for that last-resort solution, but six years later, the high-level talks seem to be on the brink of happening. | |||||||
| www.washingtontimes.com stories: Security: Pelosi honors 9/11 first responders: 'September 11 does not belong to fear, but rather to courage' | |||||||
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi marked the anniversary of 9/11 Friday morning by honoring the first responders that risked their lives in the immediate aftermath of the terrorist attacks. "Nineteen years later, we still remember where we were when the Twin Towers fell, when the Pentagon was struck and when Flight ... | |||||||
| 9:45 AM 9/11/2020 - Mike Nova's Shared NewsLinks Review In 250 Brief Posts | |||||||
9:45 AM 9/11/2020_______________________________________________________________ Mike Nova's Shared NewsLinks Review In 250 Brief Posts - » Odor-sensing cells in nose seen as key entry point for SARS-CoV-2 » Transverse Myelitis, Possible Adverse Reaction to COVID-19 Vaccine, Explained » Coronavirus Infects, Hijacks Brain - How Does It Work? » How Russia Updated Its Disinformation Playbook for 2020 » mikenov on Twitter: RT @ForeignAffairs: With new players in the disinformation game, in all likelihood, 2020 will not be a replay of 2016. It will be far wors » AstraZeneca-Oxford vaccine trial pause a 'wake-up call', says WHO » Century 21, landmark of Lower Manhattan since 1961, files for bankruptcy and plans shutdown of all 13 locations » At least 3 dead in Northern Calif. wildfire threatening thousands of homes » Ex-Minneapolis cop Derek Chauvin appears in court for tax evasion charges » Настоящее Время: "Люди в разрисованных масках и сотрудники милиции". Избитый в изоляторе в Минске мужчина о жестокости силовиков » 1:56 PM 9/10/2020 - Mr. Lukashenko: Is this how you treat your fellow citizens who try to exercise their basic rights and freedoms? Shame on you! Resign! » 11:31 AM 9/10/2020 - News Review » 9:49 AM 9/10/2020 - "Wild animals roaming the cities of the "free" Western world - this is one of the most favorite memes, themes, propaganda scares, etc., etc. of the RUSSIAN INTELLIGENCE, POSSIBLY THE GRU AND THEIR MAFIA FRIENDS. » Tiger spotting in Tennessee prompts huge search efforts » 9:11 AM 9/10/2020 - Blogs Review: News - coronavirus and the brain | Sexual harassment in the FBI - the hidden epidemic. What do we really know about it? » 8:38 AM 9/10/2020 - News - coronavirus and the brain | |||||||
| 9:30 AM 9/11/2020 - Transverse Myelitis, Possible Adverse Reaction to COVID-19 Vaccine, Explained | Coronavirus Infects, Hijacks Brain - How Does It Work? | How Russia Updated Its Disinformation Playbook for 2020 | |||||||
 9:30 AM 9/11/2020 -
Michael Novakhov - SharedNewsLinks | In Brief | - | |||||||
| Odor-sensing cells in nose seen as key entry point for SARS-CoV-2 | |||||||
By Waun'Shae Blount /Published Aug 24Scientists at Johns Hopkins Medicine, experimenting with a small number of human cell samples, report that the "hook" of cells used by SARS-CoV-2 to latch onto and infect cells is up to 700 times more prevalent in the olfactory supporting cells lining the inside of the upper part of the nose than in the lining cells of the rest of the nose and windpipe that leads to the lungs. These supporting cells are necessary for the function/development of odor-sensing cells. The findings, from a preliminary study of cells lining both the nose and trachea, could advance the search for the best target for topical or local antiviral drugs to treat COVID-19, and offer further clues into why people with the virus sometimes lose their sense of smell. A summary of the findings appears in a letter published Aug. 19 in the European Respiratory Journal. "Loss of the sense of smell is associated with COVID-19, generally in the absence of other nasal symptoms, and our research may advance the search for a definitive reason for how and why that happens, and where we might best direct some treatments," says Andrew Lane, professor of otolaryngology, head and neck surgery, and director of the Johns Hopkins Sinus Center. Lane's medical practice focuses on people with nasal and sinus problems, who oftentimes, he says, lose their sense of smella condition called anosmia. Scientists have known that SARS-CoV-2 latches on to a biological hook on the surface of many types of human cells, called an angiotensin-converting enzyme 2, or ACE2, receptor. The receptor reels in essential molecules. Johns Hopkins responds to COVID-19Coverage of how the COVID-19 pandemic is affecting operations at JHU and how Hopkins experts and scientists are responding to the outbreak In a bid to explore the ACE2 link to COVID-19 in more detail, Lane and Mengfei Chen, a research associate in Lane's lab, as well as others on the team took a close look at ACE2 levels in nasal tissue specimens from 19 adult men and women with chronic rhinosinusitis (inflammation of nasal tissue) and in tissues from a control group of four people who had nasal surgeries for issues other than sinusitis. The researchers also studied tissue samples of the trachea from seven people who underwent surgery for abnormal narrowing of the trachea. Cells from children were not examined for this study, in part because they tend to have low ACE2 levels in the cells lining the nose, which may contribute to generally less severe illness among children infected with the SARS-CoV-2 virus. None of the study participants had been diagnosed with COVID-19. The scientists used a high-resolution imaging technique called confocal microscopy to produce very sharp images of cells lining the nasal and tracheal airways. They used fluorescent stains to identify ACE2 receptors. They found high levels of ACE2 among nasal cells that give structural support called sustentacular cells. These cells are located in an area called the olfactory neuroepithelium, where odor-sensing neurons are found. The researchers say this area of the nose may be particularly vulnerable to infection and might be the only infected site even when there are no symptoms. Because of this, they urge people to wear masks and wear them correctly. For the study, depending on the biopsy sample, cells in the olfactory neuroepithelium had a 200-fold to 700-fold increase in ACE2 proteins compared with other samples from the nose and trachea. Because the cells with high levels of ACE2 are associated with odor sensing, the researchers suggest that infection of these cells may be the reason some people with COVID-19 experience loss of smell. Two of seven trachea specimens had low levels of ACE2 receptors, and the amount of those receptors was similar between study participants with and without chronic rhinosinusitus. Because the cells lining the nose may prove to be a key entry point for SARS-CoV-2, Lane says there may be ways to target those particular cells with topical antiviral drugs or other therapies directly to that area. | |||||||
| Transverse Myelitis, Possible Adverse Reaction to COVID-19 Vaccine, Explained | |||||||
It is still unclear whether the adverse event that caused AstraZeneca to pause enrollment in its COVID-19 vaccine trial was transverse myelitis or not. The New York Times is reporting this morning that in a statement to reporters yesterday an AstraZeneca spokesperson said the individual did not have a confirmed [emphasis added] case of transverse myelitis. The newspaper reported two days ago that an anonymous source said a woman in the United Kingdom who had the possible adverse reaction to the vaccine had received a diagnosis of transverse myelitis. Stat, which broke the story that the trial had been put on hold, reported yesterday that companys CEO, Pascal Soriot, told investors in a conference call today that the symptoms of the woman whose illness led the company to pause of the trial are consistent with transverse myelitis, although in the same story the biotech news site reported that diagnosis had not been confirmed. The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday that a form from July that was posted on an international registry of clinical trials said a study volunteer had developed symptoms of transverse myelitis. Meanwhile, health officials and experts are cautioning that it is common for vaccine trials to be put on hold as researchers investigate whether illnesses that occur in study volunteers are, in fact, related to the vaccine. Its quite common for serious adverse events to occur, most not relevant to the vaccine, Peter Hotez, dean of the National School of Tropical Medicine at Baylor told the Journal. Whether or not the adverse event is confirmed as a case of transverse myelitis or not, the news over the last few days has asking a lot of questions about transverse myelitis. Here is some information for people who are unfamiliar with it: What is transverse myelitis?In simple terms, it is inflammation of the spinal cord. Wolters Kluwer UpToDate, the database of reviews of medical topics, describes transverse myelitis as a mixed inflammatory disorder that affects neurons, axons, and oligodendrocytes [the cells that produce myelin] and myelin. A 2010 clinical practice article in the New England Journal of Medicine described the pathological hallmark of the condition as being the focal collection of lymphocytes and monocytes with varying degrees of demyelination, axonal injury and astroglial and microglial activation within the spinal cord. Why is it called transverse myelitis?Myelitis is the medical term for inflammation of the spinal cord. In some accounts, the modifier transverse is explained as referring to the pattern of symptoms that go across the body. But the better explanation is that transverse refers to the transverse, or horizontal, plane of the spinal cord and the fact that the inflammation is usually limited to a relatively small area of the spinal cord, not its whole length. Transverse also refers to the fact that both the ascending (that carry sensory messages to the brain) and descending (which direct voluntary movement) tracts of the spinal cord are affected. What causes transverse myelitis?A large proportion how large varies with the study of cases are associated with central nervous system autoimmune disorders, such as multiple sclerosis and neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder, and other autoimmune disorders, such as sarcoidosis and Sjögren syndrome. In fact, transverse myelitis can be the first demyelinating event that precedes full-blown multiple sclerosis. Another large fraction of cases as large as two thirds in some studies of transverse myelitis cases are labeled idiopathic, meaning that the cause is uncertain. But that is a bit of a misnomer because a large proportion of those idiopathic cases occur after an illness or infection of some kind has occurred. Nevertheless, these are considered idiopathic because the causative nature of the infection is seldom proven, says the Wolters Kluwer UpToDate article on transverse myelitis. The thinking is that an infection can trigger an aberrant, unregulated immune response that turns on the body and, in this case, the spinal cord instead of taking on the invasive organism. Some of the infectious agents that have been linked to the development of transverse myelitis include the enteroviruses, the West Nile virus, and the Zika virus. Transverse myelitis can also be a complication of Lyme disease, which is typically caused by bacterium Borrelia burgdorfer There have been several case reports suggesting that COVID-19 itself could trigger transverse myelitis. For example, in a letter published in May in the Journal of Neurology, German clinicians described the case of a 60-year-old man who recovered quickly from COVID-19 pneumonia but then developed symptoms suggestive of transverse myelitis three days after he was discharged. Do other vaccines cause transverse myelitis?There are reports of instances when getting a vaccine appeared to lead to transverse myelitis. But Roger Baxter of the Northern California Kaiser Permanente Vaccine Study Center in Oakland, California, and his colleagues used the Vaccine Safety Database to look at the question more systematically. Among 64 million vaccine doses, they found 7 cases of transverse myelitis and no statistically valid association between those cases and prior vaccination. They reported the results of their study in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases in 2016. in the Vaccine Safety Database to look at the question more systematically. How common is transverse myelitis?An incidence of between one to eight cases per million people is cited often. Such a proportion would mean a range of between 330 and 2,640 new cases in the United States annually. The authors of the NEJM clinical practice piece noted that if cases associated with multiple sclerosis and other demyelinating disorders are included, the estimated incidence increases to about 25 cases per million, which would translate into roughly 8,000 cases occurring in the U.S. annually. What are the symptoms?Transverse myelitis is divided into subtypes based on how large the area of inflammation is, whether it affects both sides of the spinal cord symmetrically, and other factors. The symptoms vary with these subtype and where on the length of the spinal cord the inflammation is present. In a nontechnical explanation on its website, the Johns Hopkins Transverse Myelitis Center says the four classic symptoms are weakness in the arms and legs, sensory symptoms such as numbing and tingling, pain and discomfort, and bladder dysfunction, bowel motility problems, or both. How is it diagnosed?Clinicians are encouraged to take a patient history and assess symptoms carefully because they can yield important diagnostic clues. After that, one of the first steps is an MRI scan of the spine, partly to rule out that the symptoms arent the result of a compressive lesion something (herniated disc, for example) impinging on the spinal cord that might be treated with surgery. The contrast agents used in MRI scans can also yield some diagnostic information that may (or may not) lead to transverse myelitis diagnosis. The diagnosis also hinges on the analysis of the cerebrospinal fluid, which is collected via lumbar puncture. High white blood cells can be indicative of inflammation. Measurements of antibody can indicate whether multiple sclerosis is likely. The authors of the NEJM article note that transverse myelitis syndrome has an extensive differential diagnosis, which means a number of other tests might be done to rule out other causes. For example, a brain MRI might be ordered to detect the presences of lesions that are indicative of multiple sclerosis. How is it treated?Treatment with intravenous corticosteroids is the standard first-line treatment and has been for a while. Although the NEJM article was published 10 years ago, the authors identify intravenous corticosteroids as the front-line treatment. The authors of Wolters Kluwer UpToDate article say their preferred regimens are methylprednisolone or dexamethasone for three to five days. The Johns Hopkins Transverse Myelitis Center notes the lack of evidence from clinical trials but says it is well recognized as a standard of care that patients suspected to have acute myelitis receive high-dose intravenous methyl-prednisolone for 3-5 days, unless there are compelling reasons not to. The standard second-line treatment if intravenous corticosteroids arent effective is plasma exchange, which involves filtering out a patients plasma and replacing it plasma from a donor or a saline solution that contains albumin. The Wolters Kluwer UpToDate authors say that for patients with significant deficits, waiting for end of the corticosteroid treatment isnt necessary. The Johns Hopkins Transverse Myelitis Center takes a slightly different approach, saying that plasma exchange is often used for patients with moderate to aggressive forms of transverse myelitis who dont show much improvement after being treated with intravenous and oral steroids. Immunosuppressant or immunomodulatory agents may be used to treat people with recurring transverse myelitis or cases that dont respond to intravenous corticosteroids or plasma exchange. The Wolters Kluwer UpToDate authors mention mycophenolate and intravenous rituximab. The Johns Hopkins center mentions intravenous cyclophosphamide. | |||||||
| Coronavirus Infects, Hijacks Brain - How Does It Work? | |||||||
Everyone knows the COVID-19 coronavirus is a respiratory disease, but SARS-CoV-2 the virus associated with the illness responsible for nearly 200,000 deaths in the U.S. also affects other organ systems, including the central nervous system. Whether this damage extends to the brain, no one was sure. Until now. A new study found the first clear evidence that some people will suffer an invasion of the coronavirus in their brain cells hijacking them to copy and reproduce itself, according to a new study shared on a pre-print website. The virus also absorbs all nearby oxygen, effectively starving neighboring cells to death. RELATED: COVID-19 VACCINE LIKELY COMING THIS NOVEMBER, CDC TELLS STATES COVID-19 can infect, hijack brain cellsAs of writing it remains unclear how the virus associated with COVID-19 illness enters the brain, or how often it launches its path of destruction, reports The New York Times. COVID-19 infection in the brain is probably rare, but some people are more vulnerable than others because of genetic backgrounds, high viral load, or other, miscellaneous reasons. "If the brain does become infected, it could have a lethal consequence," said Akiko Iwasaki, a Yale University immunologist and lead author of the study, the Times reports. The study is still waiting for expert review, but several researchers agree it is careful and elegant, displaying multiple ways brain cells may suffer from COVID-19 infection. Coronavirus uses ACE2 protein to invade the brainThe team first used human brain organoids which are clusters of brain cells in a lab dish designed to mimic the brain's 3D structure. Using these, the research team found clear evidence of infection, along with the associated metabolic changes in infected and neighboring neurons. But no evidence for type I interferon responses were found. "We demonstrate that neuronal infection can be prevented either by blocking ACE2 with antibodies or by administering cerebrospinal fluid from a COVID-19 patient," read the study. The research team also used mice that overexpresses ACE2 a protein the coronavirus uses to enter human cells and showed that death is associated with cases when the virus invades the brain without touching the lungs. "These results provide evidence for the neuroinvasive capacity of SARS-CoV-2, and an unexpected consequence of direct infection of neurons by SARS-CoV-2," concluded the study's abstract. Brain imaging shows coronavirus hijacks cells, copies itself, starves nearby neuronsScientists have to use brain imaging and patient symptoms to infer the effects of the virus on the brain, but the ones involved in the study "hadn't really seen much evidence that the virus can infect the brain, even though we knew it was a potential possibility," said Michael Zandi, consultant neurologist at the National Hospital for Neurology and Neurosurgery in Britain, the Times reports. "This data just provides a little bit more evidence that it certainly can." Zandi and his colleagues also published research in July, suggesting patients with COVID-19 develop serious neurological issues like nerve damage. The new study saw Iwasaki and her colleagues document brain infection in three different ways: in brain matter from a person who was killed from COVID-19 illness, in a mouse model, and in organoids. Other deadly pathogens like the Zika virus are known to infect the brain's cells. Immune cells typically then flood sites of damage in a bid to cleanse the brain by destroying all infected cells. However, the coronavirus works in stealth-mode: It uses brain cell machinery to multiply without destroying them choking adjacent cells of oxygen until they die. No signs of human immune system responseAutopsies from patients who died from COVID-19 revealed the presence of the coronavirus in cortical neurons and showed no evidence significant immune response to fight infiltrating coronavirus cells. "It's kind of s silent infection," said Iwasaki. "The virus has a lot of evasion mechanisms." When the coronavirus attacks the brain, it appears to rapidly decrease the number of synapses connections between neurons. "Days after infection, and we already see a dramatic reduction in the amount of synapses," said Alysson Muotri, a neuroscientist at the University of California who has studied both the coronavirus and the Zika virus. Previous studies wrong about brain security from virusThe virus infects a host cell using a protein on its surface called ACE2. This protein also shows up throughout the human body especially in the lungs which helps explain why they tend to infect there the most. While earlier studies suggested the brain was relatively safe from coronavirus infection via its lack of ACE2 proteins, Iwasaki and her colleagues concluded after further scrutiny that the brain is indeed susceptible to infection. "It's pretty clear that it is expressed in the neurons and it's required for entry," she said, reports the Times. As potential vaccines to the COVID-19 coronavirus ready for distribution across the U.S., we are learning that the virus can be deadly in more ways than previously thought infecting and hijacking brain cells to reproduce itself while suffocating nearby neurons. We have created an interactive page to demonstrate engineers noble efforts against COVID-19 across the world. 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| How Russia Updated Its Disinformation Playbook for 2020 | |||||||
As the United States gets ready for the 2020 presidential election, there is reason to think that this time, the country might be spared the massive interference campaign that Russia carried out in 2016. Back then, Moscow had a clear opportunity. The cost of running the Internet Research Agency (IRA), the St. Petersburgbased troll farm set up by the Kremlin to spread disinformation during the U.S. election, was about $1.25 million a month. That was a small price to pay for a remarkable foreign policy coup: a seemingly pro-Russian U.S. president in Donald Trump, a humiliating defeat for Hillary Clinton (whom Russian President Vladimir Putin had long disliked), and, above all, a chance to expose U.S. democracy as dysfunctional. Unprepared and seemingly unaware of the planned Russian operation, the United States was low-hanging fruit. Four years on, Moscows calculus is less straightforward. The pandemic and the ensuing crash in oil prices hit the country hard, and Putins approval ratings have taken a nosedive. In the past, the Russian president has used foreign policy wins, such as the 2014 invasion of Crimea and Russias years-long intervention in Syria, to maintain his support at home. The unspoken contract behind this strategythat making Russia great again on the world stage was worth some economic sacrifices by its citizenshad grown fragile even before the pandemic. Now, with the Russian economy on a path to long-term stagnation, the majority of Russians want their government to focus on the problems at home. Selling them another foreign policy adventure will be a tall order. On top of these domestic concerns, the Kremlin would need to work harder in order to manipulate U.S. voters and cover its tracks this time around. A growing cottage industry of analysts now monitors Russias disinformation operations across the world. Social media companies have become more aggressive in taking down networks of inauthentic accounts and bots, and they are more willing to point the finger at Moscow and other governments. And the investigation by the U.S. special counsel Robert Mueller revealed the Kremlins operational tactics in impressive detail, naming both IRA employees and operatives of the GRU, Russias military intelligence unit, which carried out cyberattacks against the Democratic National Committee and the Clinton campaign. Stay informed.In-depth analysis delivered weekly. Thank you for signing up. | |||||||
| mikenov on Twitter: RT @ForeignAffairs: With new players in the disinformation game, in all likelihood, 2020 will not be a replay of 2016. It will be far wors | |||||||
With new players in the disinformation game, in all likelihood, 2020 will not be a replay of 2016. It will be far worse. Retweeted by  Michael Novakhov (mikenov) on Thursday, September 10th, 2020 8:33pm23 likes, 17 retweets |
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