I’ll just leave this here then.
It puts an end the lockdown debate !!!
Hopefully those tiresome anal retentive off Gardian folk will crawl back under the stone or swamp they came from.
THE JOHN SNOW MEMORANDOM
https://www.johnsnowmemo.com/#
Take a look at the list of signatures.

Posted by: Mark2 | Oct 15 2020 19:11 utc | 3

Posted by: karlof1 | Oct 15 2020 19:02 utc | 2
Thanks for posting russian official reactions to recent geopolitical issues with the EU, so that people can understand what is happening. And what is happening is that the EU has defined itself as enemy of Russia. Something many people could not believe it is happening.
In connection with that, i will repost a discussion of mine from another place.
Me: “Anyone who was talking about “independent EU”, or “russian-german alliance”, “EU rebellion against US”, “Europe joining Russia and China”, “European Army independent from NATO” has shit for brains and does not understand politics at all, no matter what his name or education or job was.”
Commenter: “By this token, does it mean Patrick Lawrence has “sh*t for brains” for writing this piece? (About Europe allegedly moving closer to Russia in recent days)
https://consortiumnews.com/2020/10/06/patrick-lawrence-europe-going-its-own-way/
I guess I’ll have to also inform Patrick Armstrong this once he writes his next Sitrep. I wonder what he’ll think.”
Me: “I actually saw that article of him before several days and i wondered whether to make a comment on that too, as an example of an “analyst” who does not understand at all what is happening.
Point 1: Nord Stream 2. He fails to understand that this is not a divorce with the US, rather an old german policy to buy russian energy. For example Germany approved pipelines from the USSR over Reagan’s objections in the 80s. Did that mean that Germany was not hostile to the Soviet Union? Was not part of the Western block? No. It was a part of NATO containment strategies against the USSR and hoped to take over Eastern Europe after the USSR loses the Cold War.
Not to mention that there is talk that the pipeline will only be used at half capacity.
The fact that someone (Europe) likes money does not mean that that same someone does not secretly hate you, and will not stab you in the back as soon as it is safe to do so.
Point 2: more and more evidence emerges that Germany organised the Novichok incident with Navalny (see John Helmer on that).
Point 3 – failed to understand that it was Germany who pushed for sanctions on Russia after the Ukraine affair. Not to mention that Germany was involved in the anti-russian coup in Ukraine, as part of its old strategy of “drang nach osten” – “pressure to the east” – to take over Eastern Europe and its labor pool and use it the way the US uses Latin America.
Point 4 – failed to understand that the biggest force behind the colour revolution in Belarus was the EU, playing far bigger role than the US. Now, who tries to take over a russian populated country, near Moscow, histrorically part of the Russian Empire, where millions of russians died to stop the german invasion, a situation that will also seriously imperil the Kaliningrad enclave? Only someone who is hostile to Russia. This is a strategic act of hostility towards Russia.
Point 5 – failed to notice that France and Sweden recently put sanctions on aviation and industrial equipment for Russia.
Point 6 – is not aware that anti-chinese hatred in Europe has increased to all time highs, according to recent surveys.
Point 7 – mentions several empty statements from Merkel and Macron as a sign of “rebellion” without mentioning many other statements countering that – such as France and Germany saying that Russia should not be allowed back in G-7, or that Borrell (EU foreign policy chief) called Russia an old enemy of Europe, or that the french EU minister recently called on Europe to unite against Russia, or that the EU comission chief called for Europe to stand up to Russia, or that the European Parliament called the russian constitution “illegal” and called for the “democratisation of Russia” (aka colour revolution), or Germany stating recently that no european army independent from NATO is possible or will be supported by Germany, or the 5 german parties that begged the US not to withdraw troops from Germany.
Point 8 – has no idea of recent official russian statements on the EU, meaning that he lives in an alternate Universe.
“France and Germany are now leading the anti-russian block within Europe”.
“There will be no more business as usual between Russia and France and Germany”.
“Russia will not follow EU and US rules”.
“Russia will no longer be dependent on the EU”.
“Europeans have delusions of grandeur”.
“Those people in the West who are responsible for foreign policy and do not understand the necessity of mutually respectable conversation–well, we must simply stop for a while communicate with them. Especially since Ursula von der Leyen states that geopolitical partnership with current Russia’s leadership is impossible. If this is the way they want it, so be it. ”
These are all statements by Lavrov and Zacharova.
So Lawrence does not even understand that there is a decoupling between Russia and EU taking place, and worsening of relations, instead of them getting closer, as he dreams in the daylight.
Analysts who understood the hostility of the EU towards Russia are M. K. Bhadrakumar and Alastair Crooke, and they wrote plenty on that recently.”

Posted by: Passer by | Oct 15 2020 19:44 utc | 5

A supplement to Karlof1’s post at no 2
This is a report from John Helmer.
http://johnhelmer.net/the-german-defence-ministry-ordered-the-swedish-defence-laboratory-to-find-novichok-in-navalnys-blood-or-else/
One part is particularly worth keeping in mind and that is the physical condition of Navalny before leaving for Germany is known to the Russians. Note the alchohol and the massive internal formation of acetone in the body
Acute metabolic disorder….
– – – –
(repeat of my post on the last open thread. No. 333)
In the meantime in Omsk, where two days of blood, urine and other biomarkers were recorded for Navalny, Alexander Sabaev issued a report on Navalny’s prior medical conditions and his biomarkers after the alleged poisoning. Sabaev is head of the acute poisoning department of the Omsk Emergency Hospital No. 1, chief toxicologist of the Omsk region and of the Siberian Federal District.
According to Sabaev, Navalny’s blood levels were “six times higher than the norm for amylase, sugar and serum lactate; twice the normal level of leukocytosis, and the maximum level of acetonuria. In addition, alcohol (0.2 ppm) was found in the urine …These are the metabolites, the substances which have been produced. These substances in large quantities cause pathological changes.” According to Sabaev, “Navalny did not suffer from diabetes, so the tests showed that he had an acute metabolic disorder. ‘An increase in the level of lactate and lactic acid, its excessive formation makes acidification of the blood. It should not be in such a quantity. There should be an indicator, let’s say of 2; but we had an indicator of 12, that is six times more,’ he said. According to the doctor, the level of internal acetone in Navalny’s body was at maximum… Normally, acetone should be negative; that is, it should be excreted from the body, the specialist added. ‘In this case, the carbohydrate metabolism suffered and completely different scenarios of development occurred. The body began to destroy itself from the inside.”
_________
The Germans are being trained to transport US nukes in the newest NATO exercise called “steadfast moon”. I wonder what is really going on and if the total lockdown is in expectation to the programmed start to a False-flag.
(Striking Syria because of the upcoming White helmets chlorine FF, or somewhere else?)

Posted by: Stonebird | Oct 15 2020 19:49 utc | 7

Demonizing Russia and China pays off in the “defense” budget. ..from the web…
WASHINGTON: As the Army urgently modernizes against Russia and China, which units get which new weapons first? How do they train? Where and how do they deploy?. . .
Actually it’s Navy which benefits most from hyping the major US demon – China, which comes under the US Indo-Pacific combatant command.. Army will have to make do with the lesser demon Russia, and the European combatant command, which doesn’t lessen the need to make up stuff about both countries.

Posted by: Don Bacon | Oct 15 2020 20:47 utc | 9

Transcript of interview with radio stations Sputnik, Komsomolskaya Pravda and Govorit Moskva from yesterday. As I wrote in my previous comment related to this interview, there’s a great deal of importance occurring. Here is just one of the many pointed questions:
“Question: This is a classic principle of international politics in recent years: All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others.
“You mentioned Germany and Nord Stream 2. The narrow question is what will we do if Germany abandons Nord Stream 2 after all? But I will formulate it more broadly; I’ve been wanting to put it to you – and others – for a long time. No matter what we do, we get sanctions in response. Some people believe that this doesn’t depend on what we do at all, doesn’t depend on our behaviour. There is an array of sanctions that was devised long ago and will be introduced in order to contain our economic, military and trade development, rather than make us change our behaviour. There will always be a ‘Magnitsky case’ or something else to be used as a pretext for sanctions. A lot of people die in US prisons, but we don’t introduce sanctions for this reason. Nor do we have the leverage to impose any more or less painful sanctions on them. If they are doing this anyway, isn’t it more advisable to stop deferring to them and defend our interests in the world on a broader basis? Isn’t it perhaps high time for us to decide what we would like to do about integration and whether we want to return to some form of a broader Union State? Should we perhaps articulate this in a clearer and more aggressive manner and work towards it, if sanctions are going to be introduced anyway?”
IMO, this isn’t the usual sort of question Lavrov gets and includes things I’d like to ask him myself, and there are others:
“Question: Shouldn’t we perhaps act more boldly? Send troops to Donbass? Put things in order openly? Where is the problem, if sanctions are pending anyway?”
And:
“Question: Our listeners are calling us all the time telling us that Russia should stop expressing concern about a particular situation, but rather be more assertive or even aggressive in promoting our agenda and initiate processes rather than respond to someone else’s moves.
“We talked about Svetlana Tikhanovskaya. She is going places, meeting with presidents and making a home in a neighbouring EU country. Are we ready for a change of power in Belarus? Do we have Plan B other than President Lukashenko? Often, the power changes in the wake of certain events, sometimes a revolution, sometimes something else, and we find out that we don’t have a plan and are not sure what we should be doing.”
I’ll paste Lavrov’s answer to the above question and let readers attend to getting the rest:
“Sergey Lavrov: I believe we must see the picture in its entirety, especially when it comes to our closest allies. We have lived in one state for many years, even centuries. However, we should not behave like the Americans. I cannot agree with this. They are rude, impolite and brazen, although they are trying to teach everyone to respect the right of each nation to decide on their future. They are trying to articulate this right through their embassies, as was the case in Kiev during the two Maidan protests. Everyone is well aware of the location and the number of FBI and CIA officers in the Ukrainian government buildings. They are now doing the same thing in Moldova, by the way. We can see this from the US ambassador’s public statements. They are promoting their interests in the South Caucasus republics which we are also aware of.
“However, I’m convinced that we should not be using these methods. It is important for us to see the potential future of our allies and the steps that will allow us to maintain good and mutually beneficial relations with them regardless of their domestic political events.
“As far as Belarus is concerned, I’m convinced that our policy seeking to support the constitutional reform process, which, as I just mentioned, was initiated by President Lukashenko, and which we see (and talk about this publicly) as a good opportunity to start a truly national dialogue with the involvement of that country’s political force, is the best we can come up with under these circumstances.
“We said we will recognise the results of the presidential election. We are convinced that our Western partners’ attempts to question them, or to claim that the percentage was lower, or to demand that we now agree to have the OSCE intervene and resolve this situation, are an exercise in futility.
“It was our and Minsk’s Western partners who slapped the OSCE on the wrist so that it doesn’t accept President Lukashenko’s invitation to send observers for them to see how these presidential elections were being organised and held. Claiming that only the OSCE is in a position to make a difference in these circumstances at a time when it simply missed its chance to contribute to channeling the events towards an outcome conducive to further development of the Belarusian state, is at least incorrect. President Lukashenko said that he is not holding on to power, and that, following the constitutional reform, he is prepared to consider early presidential and parliamentary elections. If we want to help the Belarusian people maintain its unity and achieve prosperity, we must cut short anyone’s ultimatums and attempts at violent protests and, of course, encourage law enforcement officers to also be guided by the law and respond in a proportionate manner. This is our position which we publicly stated on many occasions.” [My Emphasis]
The following is perhaps the most important part of the exchange and comes as a question:
“Question: They [Minsk Accords] have been articulated in Russia’s interests, only they are not complied with. This is why, when you say that we must uphold our interests under the international law, I’m always tempted to ask you if it really exists. But I won’t ask you this question, because it is a rhetorical one. We, journalists, think there is no longer such a thing as international law. The only real thing is what is happening ‘on the ground’ and what we can see with our own eyes.
“We can see how Belarus almost went up in flames and how Kyrgyzstan effectively blazed up. This is what is happening now. We have already covered Nagorno-Karabakh. Our colleagues from Sputnik in Moldova and Georgia are telling us that they are bracing up, because things will get scary too. Is this the result of our confrontation with the United States and other above-mentioned forces? Or, is it about deliberately rocking the boat and wreaking havoc near our borders? Or, is it because these countries are just a mess? Do we need to be more proactive in order to stop this?” [My Emphasis]
And the interview goes on and the transcript is not yet completely posted. It’s by far the longest most involved discussion I’ve seen Lavrov engage in where the results are there for the public to hear/read. Lavrov reveals aspects of his personality and biases I’ve never encountered before which I deem very important. And the views and emotions expressed by the journalists are also very important since we seldom get to learn of them.

Posted by: karlof1 | Oct 15 2020 21:06 utc | 11

In 2016, Trumpster injected $10,000,000 cash into his campaign.
Say what?!! How could he do that when he was and is in the hole for $440 Million?!
Robert Mueller dropped the ball. He shut down an entire floor of the Federal Appeals Court in Washington to try to execute a subpoena against an Egyptian Bank that was suspected of having transferred the $10,000,000 to the Trump campaign.
The case to subpoena the bank’s records was taken all the way to the Supreme Court. Mueller lost the fight, but transferred the criminal campaign finance violation case to prosecutors in the U.S. Attorney’s Office and it was closed in July, but can be reopened at a later date.
I doubt Egypt was involved. That Egyptian bank was probably a conduit and a decoy.
This is a very important case not only because it has the potential to land Trump with criminal charges, but you know, I have always suspected maybe an Israeli oligarch living in Israel next door to the Egyptian bank could be the party involved in this case of foreign campaign finance.
We’ll see if proof arises. I hope so. His taxes could reveal something.
Trump’s as dirty as they come.

Posted by: Circe | Oct 15 2020 21:26 utc | 13

Colombia Reports: The human rights commission of the Organization of American States expressed its “deep concern” on Monday over increased violence in Colombia’s historically war-torn regions. In a statement, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) said to be particularly alarmed by a recent increase in massacres. According to the IACHR, the United Nations confirmed 42 massacres so far this year and is verifying another 13.
Brasil Wire: The frontrunner in Bolivia’s presidential election has attacked Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro for what he called interference in Bolivian sovereignty. In an interview with TeleSUR, Luis “Lucho” Arce said that the Brazilian far-right President owed Bolivians an explanation for what he called “anti-democratic and non-diplomatic activities” of its embassy in La Paz.
Venezuelanalysis: Over 100 political parties are due to participate, including 95 which are not backing government candidates.

Posted by: Maracatu | Oct 15 2020 21:29 utc | 15

Mark2,
Your suggestion that another commenter is paid raises the suspicion that you are paid yourself. After all, the idea has occurred to you.
I noticed your extreme reaction many weeks ago to my rejection of the media story that George Floyd was a saint murdered by evil policemen. Now we know that he died of a drug overdose. Now you’re criticizing skeptics about the establishment’s covid narrative.
In both cases, you have attacked people who reject an establishment narrative. And the establishment has lots of money.

Posted by: lysias | Oct 15 2020 21:51 utc | 17

This should rile up China a bt more. “Foreign Minister” Joseph Wu of Taiwan was interviewed today by IndiaToday’s Geeta Mohan….excerpt…
Q. Is it time that the UN recognises Taiwan to settle matters once and for all? Although a veto-yielding China would never allow that.
Ans. I would say that it is time for the international community and the international organisations to consider seriously the existence of Taiwan and to think seriously and how to incorporate Taiwan into the international organisations.
Anyone who has any experience with Taiwan… we have 23 million people even though it’s much smaller than India, but at least it is a mid-sized country. Taiwan is a democracy. We have a democratic government that is publicly and democratically elected by the people here in Taiwan and we also have a vibrant press, freedom of speech is observed by the government.
And, therefore, for the international community to understand that Taiwan is in existence outside China is going to be very important. Many countries believe that there is a “One China policy” and that China represents Taiwan but that is not true.
Historically, beginning from 1949, Taiwan has not been any part of China and that is beginning from the day that the People’s Republic of China was established. The two sides are separate.
And, therefore, China cannot represent Taiwan internationally and only the democratically elected government in Taiwan can lawfully represent the Taiwanese people. Taiwanese people have the same right as the right of any other country to be represented in international organisations, in the UN or UN-affiliated organisations.
We are not just trying to pursue our participation in international organisations such as the UN or the WHO, what we want to do is to be able to make contributions to international society. We have been working together with some other democratic countries in making Taiwan’s contribution and we are a country that is well experienced in dealing with public health issues and therefore during the pandemic we have been providing assistance to many other countries in terms of relief material or other type of assistance. . . .here

Posted by: Don Bacon | Oct 15 2020 22:28 utc | 19

Posted by: karlof1 | Oct 15 2020 21:06 utc | 12
I had the impression the interview was intended primarily for internal consumption since no foreign media was present, but knowing that it was going to be looked at with a magnifying glass, like every other element of the information war in process.

Posted by: Paco | Oct 15 2020 22:46 utc | 21

Early Voting
Drove by polling place.
Did a possibly legal u-turn.
Line was long.
Would have liked to have seen more masks.
Could Republicans be daring Democrats and us Greens to show up?
Don’t wear masks and you can have the line to yourselves.
Wonder if Republicans have thought about that?

Posted by: librul | Oct 15 2020 22:54 utc | 23

To the surprise of nobody:
‘Reprehensible Behavior’: US Elites Privately Briefed About COVID-19 Dangers in February

Posted by: vk | Oct 15 2020 23:10 utc | 25

Passer by @25–
Hard to disagree with Korybko given events. IMO, I think China has the best option for doing something proactive to make the most of what’s happening, and that’s to solve the Taiwan issue before the end of the year.

Posted by: karlof1 | Oct 15 2020 23:15 utc | 27

A Desperate Trump Rallies in Iowa as He Cancels Ads, Loses Ground
The grim reality of the coronavirus pandemic is hanging over the president’s proof of life tour.

If he loses Iowa, it will be seen as a referendum on his national response to the coronavirus. Few states have embodied Trump’s mandate to “not be afraid” of Covid-19 like Iowa has. Since the early days of the pandemic’s spread through the United States, Iowa’s unified Republican state government and particularly its governor have been lockstep with Trump, refusing to institute a statewide mask mandate and keeping masks optional for in-person learning. Iowa surpassed California in cases-per-million in early September and hasn’t looked back.
The absence of a mask mandate has resulted in “unnecessary transmission and deaths,” according to reports from Trump’s own White House. Iowa has counted over 100,000 confirmed cases of Covid-19 and over 1,500 deaths as a result in a state with a population that barely tops 3 million. Health care is consistently cited by Iowa voters as a major issue, and the pandemic has only exacerbated already present issues in the state’s privatized Medicaid and led to layoffs at hospitals. The two days prior to Trump’s arrival in the state saw new records for coronavirus-related hospitalizations.

Posted by: Richard Steven Hack | Oct 15 2020 23:36 utc | 29

Trump Brags About U.S. Marshals Killing an Antifa Activist in Violent Raid

Trump: We sent in the US Marshals, took 15 minutes and it was over… They knew who he was, they didn’t want to arrest him and 15 minutes that ended.

The consensus on Twitter appears to be exemplified by these tweets:
Spencer Ackerman @attackerman
5h
This is an admission of state-sanctioned murder. If there is no accountability, it will happen again.
Micah Lee @micahflee
4h
The President bragging about ordering the domestic assassination of a political enemy, a US citizen
Of course, everyone will bring up Obama’s drone assassination – but that was done overseas. As usual, government murder is turned on citizens in country. No surprise there. This is but one reason why murder of any government official is correct action.

Posted by: Richard Steven Hack | Oct 15 2020 23:47 utc | 31

Norway Accuses Russia of Cyber Attack on Parliament

Despite not specifying what information prompted its conclusions, the country’s foreign ministry is convinced of its findings.

Russia considers the accusations by the Norwegian authorities of the cyber attack as a provocation

“Millions of cyber attacks are made annually on Russian state Internet resources (including foreign institutions in Norway) from abroad (for example, 77 million attacks were made on the Foreign Ministry website in January-September 2018), but this does not give the right to accuse the authorities of the countries of their possible origin,” stressed the Embassy.
They pointed out that “in May 2020, a note was sent to the Norwegian Foreign Ministry setting out the procedure for dealing with computer incidents – there are official channels for investigating them.” “There was no reaction at the time, which indicates the reluctance of the Norwegian authorities to conduct a dialogue. The question is why did we create specialized response mechanisms and create a legislative framework together with European countries? We expect explanations from the Norwegian side,” said the diplomatic mission.

Of course, we all know who is really behind this sort of thing.

Posted by: Richard Steven Hack | Oct 15 2020 23:53 utc | 33

Passer by @Oct15 19:44 #6

… what is happening is that the EU has defined itself as enemy of Russia. Something many people could not believe it is happening.

Thank you for highlighting this.
There are many false narratives that are being pushed. I still remember the “Erdogan is turning east!” and “Putin is a Zionist” crap.
Another is that Trump is an “populist” fighting the Obama-loving, trans-loving, socialist-leaning, “globalist” establishment and that Trump is an underdog in the Presidential race (see Richard Steven Hack @Oct 152020 23:36 #30: “A Desperate Trump Rallies in Iowa …”). This conveniently ignores facts like:

• Hillary was also said to be in the lead in 2016;
• people don’t like to identify as a Trump supporter/voter (so polls aren’t accurate);
• the Democrats have shot themselves in the foot multiple times – so much so that it’s difficult to believe that they want to win;
• Trump has done everything that the establishment might’ve wanted him to do.
  

  – tax cuts;
  – increased military spending;
  – overwhelming support for Israel;
  – Wall Street and Boeing bailouts;
  – China smack-down; anti-Maduro; etc.

!!

Posted by: Jackrabbit | Oct 16 2020 0:00 utc | 35

karlof1 #17
“The Outlaw US empire’s policy of fomenting chaos everywhere is now being deployed domestically.”
Very true. I suspect that has been the case for at least fifty years.

Posted by: uncle tungsten | Oct 16 2020 0:04 utc | 37

Uncle tungsten @ 33
I respect your views but don’t agree with much you say in your @33
The point I should make clear is this ——-
The covid debate is now over !
The fire is now out of control.
We have no time for a post match debate.
Now is the time to protect you life and loved ones.
It’s over.
Stay safe uncle.

Posted by: Mark2 | Oct 16 2020 0:20 utc | 39

The autopsy showed Floyd had a fatal level of fentanyl in his blood. What the police officers did to him was an authorized procedure of the Minneapolis Police Department.

Posted by: lysias | Oct 16 2020 0:24 utc | 41

I hear Biden on ABC’s townhall whining about Trump’s covid response. Here are the facts: ten days ago I watched a Frontline episode titled “America’s Medical Supply Crisis” on PBS (hardly a conservative outfit!) in which 2 things were crystal clear: (A) Forth Worth, TX was the “world capital” of N95 and medical masks production until China was admitted to the WTO and all but one companies shut down (China entered the WTO with Biden’s full support and the blessings of the democratic administration at the time). (B) In the early 2000’s (during Bush’s administration) Funds were appropriated and the FEMA warehouses were filled up with masks and other PPE. When H1N1 hit (during the Obama/Biden administration) the warehouses were emptied and supplies never got replenished, i.e., the warehouses were empty when Trump came in! Moreover, a 3M factory making masks in China was prohibited by the Chinese to export masks. So, before Joe whines that Trump “didn’t do enough”, he should man up and look himself in the mirror.

Posted by: Bill | Oct 16 2020 1:00 utc | 43

@ karlof1 | Oct 15 2020 21:06 utc | 12… thanks karlof1.. much appreciated…

Posted by: james | Oct 16 2020 1:04 utc | 45

Mark2 #40
The fire is not out of control. The virus is fully suppressed here and in many parts of the world.
There will be no ukusi visitors to my country for the next few years. Your embassy is mostly shut down. Your global finance parasite is subdued. That fire is under control to some extent.
We are free to trade with reliable virus free nations that have excellent systems of pandemic suppression.
We are safe now.

Posted by: uncle tungsten | Oct 16 2020 1:07 utc | 47

@ circe… who are you predicting to win this election?? thanks…

Posted by: james | Oct 16 2020 1:19 utc | 49

Commenter: “By this token, does it mean Patrick Lawrence has “sh*t for brains” for writing this piece? (About Europe allegedly moving closer to Russia in recent days)
https://consortiumnews.com/2020/10/06/patrick-lawrence-europe-going-its-own-way/
I guess I’ll have to also inform Patrick Armstrong this once he writes his next Sitrep. I wonder what he’ll think.”

Hey, I was the one who wrote that. I think it was on Andrei Martyanov’s blog. This one, wasn’t it?

Posted by: Digby | Oct 16 2020 2:38 utc | 51

it appears the 100 years old BCG tuberculosis vaccine might be helpful in fighting covid: https://www.bbc.com/news/health-54465733
Scientists in the UK have begun testing the BCG vaccine, developed in 1921, to see if it can save lives from Covid.
The vaccine was designed to stop tuberculosis, but there is some evidence it can protect against other infections as well.
Around 1,000 people will take part in the trial at the University of Exeter.
But while millions of people in the UK will have had the BCG jab as a child, it is thought they would need to be vaccinated again to benefit.
Vaccines are designed to train the immune system in a highly targeted way that leaves lasting protection against one particular infection.
But this process also causes wide-spread changes in the immune system. This seems to heighten the response to other infections and scientists hope it may even give our bodies an advantage against coronavirus.
Previous clinical trials have shown the BCG jab reduced deaths by 38% in newborns in Guinea-Bissau, mostly by reducing cases of pneumonia and sepsis.
Studies in South Africa linked the vaccine to a 73% reduction in infections in the nose, throat and lungs; experiments in the Netherlands showed BCG reduced the amount of yellow fever virus in the body.
“This could be of major importance globally,” Prof John Campbell, of the University of Exeter Medical School, told the BBC.
“Whilst we don’t think it [the protection] will be specific to Covid, it has the potential to buy several years of time for the Covid vaccines to come through and perhaps other treatments to be developed.”
The UK trial is part of the international Brace-study, which is also taking place in Australia, the Netherlands, Spain and Brazil, recruiting 10,000 people in total.
It will focus on health and care workers, as they are more likely to be exposed to coronavirus, so researchers will know more quickly if the vaccine is effective.
Baby being given a BCG jabimage copyrightGetty Images
Sam Hilton, a GP from Exeter, is taking part in the trials since, as a doctor, he is at higher risk of catching Covid.
“There’s quite a good theory BCG might make you less likely to get unwell when you get Covid,” he told the BBC.
“So I see it as a potential for me to get protected a bit, which means I’m more likely to come to work this winter.”
Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the director general of the World Health Organization, is one of the authors of a Lancet article saying the BCG vaccine has the potential to “bridge the gap before a disease-specific vaccine is developed”.
“This would be an important tool in the response to Covid-19 and future pandemics,” the article states.
However, the BCG vaccine will not be a long-term solution.
Any enhanced resilience to Covid is expected to wane meaning people who were immunised with BCG in childhood would no longer have protection. BCG has not been routinely used in the UK since 2005 because levels of tuberculosis are so low.
Additionally, the vaccine will not train the immune system to produce the antibodies and specialist white blood cells that recognise and fight off the coronavirus.
End game
The big goal remains a vaccine that specifically targets the coronavirus. Ten such vaccines are in the final stages of clinical research, including the one developed at the University of Oxford.
Prof Andrew Pollard, from the Oxford Vaccine Group, told the BBC: “The way that most vaccines work is to make a very specific immune response against the germ you are trying to prevent.
“But in order to make a good immune response, there is also a rather non-specific ‘souping-up’ of the immune response and that changes the way the immune system is able to respond in the future.
“The problem we have today is I can’t tell you what you could do with other vaccines to try to improve your ability to respond to coronavirus because we have no evidence at all.”
All of us in the olde communists countries have been vaccinated with BCG. Suck to be USA. THose American idiots found I was TB positive and didnt know shit, so they were going to give me a TB med. Luckily my mother remembered and explained to them how we were vaccinated and that we would always show as positive.

Posted by: Hoyeru | Oct 16 2020 3:24 utc | 53

I wonder if b has wanted to do a story on Trump’s remarks last month on Fox and Friends that he wanted to “take Assad out” but that Gen. Mattis had advised against and ultimately thwarted this action.
My take is this.
Trump never thought about assassinating Assad. Trump has had an unspoken understanding with Putin since he became POTUS that Syria would not be touched. However, certain semblances of intervention had to be maintained to keep alive the apparition by the Trump-admin that they were keeping on eye on those dastardly-Russians. Of course, Putin has also signaled to Trump that peacekeeping in the region involves keeping Syria relatively free of Iranian-use to funnel materials to Hezbollah. All-in-all, a tentative truce has prevailed in the region thanks to this three-way deal between Syria, the U.S., and Ru. The wildcard in the region is still Turkey, using its leverage as bridge between Europe and the MENA to full advantage with the singular purpose of its own benefit.
But then why would Trump make the comments that he was willing to take-out Assad? How does one, even with the sophisticated weapons of the U.S., quickly and simply take out a dictator in a foreign country? Usually, a slow, bombing campaign is needed to approach the President’s compound, paving the way for the opposition party to gather at the gates and storm them, seeking a hiding Gaddafi or Hussein in some hole or sewer pipe. Is Trump really that dumb to have blurted this out?
For those who would say yes and then point to Soleimani…well, that’s a whole different ball of wax. Trump’s main goal in the region is equally peace and keeping Iran’s influence locked away in the eastern MENA. Putin agrees with this, for better or worse, as his willingness to broker peace between Armenia and Azerbeijan reinforces. The dream of some grand reshaping of the MENA in favor of Iran and Palestine is probably dead in its tracks as of now. In its place is a general peace in the region and a stabilized Syria. What is the better of the two? Putin would rather not trade in religious prophecy and holy war and I don’t blame him for not desiring this.
Which brings us back to Trump and Mattis. When Mattis was ousted, as with the late John Bolton, the msm wanted to turn them both into some well-meaning victims of a brutal and ignorant dictatorship. Perhaps even one that, at any second, would start a conflagration in the MENA that would engulf the world and bring us to that dreaded “Orange-man/Red-button” meme. The horror!
But the problem with that narrative was that up until that point, the historical proof was the inverse of this preferred narrative. Bolton had advocated the Iraq War. Mattis, the Butcher of Fallujah, had, well, butchered in that war.
So how does one paint Trump as a warmonger and thereby hurt the reputation of a man seen by many in his base as a calming POTUS following on the heels of thirty years of wonton chaos in the region? Not surprisingly, what they decided to do was to put Mattis on a tour warning the country of his old boss and his unhinged tendencies, what with letting the peacemaking Ruskies in the arena so willingly!
So what could a DJT do to head this accusation off at the pass or at least minimize while even calling into question the accuser’s own reputation as a Gung-Ho badass?
Trump, being the savvier and skilled self-marketer, simply out-manned him. HE WANTED TO TAKE OUT ASSSAD WITH HIS BARE, SMALL HANDS! And it was Mattis, the pansy, who was shaking at the thought of such action.
“Well,” the msm thought, “we have been telling our readers for the past year that DJT was being too soft on Syria and Assad.” What were they going to do with that statement from Trump?
If you finish the short WaPo story above, you will notice that they simply reiterate that DJT contradicted himself again and it needs clarification, which they will probably never get.
Meanwhile, Trump, Putin, and Assad are laughing at the establishment. And Mattis looks like a pansy.

Posted by: NemesisCalling | Oct 16 2020 4:31 utc | 55

Macron,alias Monarc,takes a delight in bullying the “people who are nothing”(his words).Now his negotiators have been brokering a truce with covid-19.For twenty million french people the disease wont be attacking them from 6 am to 9 pm.,so the people can do their job.Then from 9 pm the virus is out again,and the people must stay inside of the barn,but only with six maximum.Great diplomatic achievement!Only for six weeks,but could become six months! People who want to meet and eat with friends,just have to start earlier and may have to skip the apero,the core of modern french civilization.

Posted by: willie | Oct 16 2020 6:14 utc | 57

Couple Youtube vids from Angry Prepper on the situation in New York City. Apparently the city is shutting down again zip code by zip code. I do like watching Angry Prepper as he tells it straight about prepping in a city like New York. Don’t always agree with his remarks, and he’s no genius, but he is focused on common sense issues like food shortages, the economy, and crime, rather than doomsday scenarios. Check him out.
NYC Food Crisis Is Here
NYC Second Wave Shutdown Is Happening Now!
Your Covid Belief Is Irrelevant

Posted by: Richard Steven Hack | Oct 16 2020 6:31 utc | 59

Great analysis of the terrible performance of covid PCR tests: https://swprs.org/the-trouble-with-pcr-tests/
Explains why these tests produce so many false positive results.

Posted by: arne | Oct 16 2020 7:19 utc | 61

@willie | Oct 16 2020 6:14 utc | 58

Macron,alias Monarc,takes a delight in bullying the “people who are nothing”(his words).Now his negotiators have been brokering a truce with covid-19.For twenty million french people the disease wont be attacking them from 6 am to 9 pm.,so the people can do their job.Then from 9 pm the virus is out again,and the people must stay inside of the barn,but only with six maximum.Great diplomatic achievement!Only for six weeks,but could become six months! People who want to meet and eat with friends,just have to start earlier and may have to skip the apero,the core of modern french civilization.

Quite some skilled diplomacy there, who negotiated on behalf of covid-19 one might ask?
Over here it is the corporations that negotiate hard on behalf of covid-19. Out on the streets the situation is largely normal, except from some very few terrorized (mostly foreign) individuals who apparently fear the miasma and prefer their own bad breath rather than the now increasingly fresh autumn air.
Still where I work, the since April advertised “second wave” has finally arrived in the heads of the management, there are now new police style plastic bands preventing access to the coffee machine and employees are advised to “work from home”, but the same management do not believe their own cowardly words so they emphasize that “the office is not closed”. So I go to work every day and enjoy the company of myself and one or two others who have some resemblance of ability to think for themselves.

Posted by: Norwegian | Oct 16 2020 7:50 utc | 63

The slumb in German-Russian relations are indeed concerning. However, I would like to remind that the unfounded reservations towards Russia in Europe are founded in the recent annexion of Crimea – a clear and open violation of the Charta of the UN, the Helsinki Accords and the Budapest Memorandum.
Many Russians seem to genuinly think of their country as an innocent victim of and nothing else. However, Russia has a centuries long tradition of imperialism and expansionism and the Crimea annexion – which is totally illegal by international law – shows clearly that this tradition is not at all a thing of the past but still pretty alive.
Everybody in the former Tsarist/Soviet sphere of influence – from Lithuania to Romania – asks themselfes if they will be next. That`s the source of the tension.

Posted by: m | Oct 16 2020 8:22 utc | 65

Thank you ——-
Prof k @ 46
Desisdeads @ 65
Abe @ 59 ——- Revoluts… are exempt from lockdown ( prioritiesation)
Down South @ 67 your comment is so March 2020.
————————-
Look we are where we are, mid October we need to move on right now,
If you live in a low risk area don’t be complacent put out the last spark of virus, prevent incoming infection.
If your in an area of increasing spread, disregard anyone (including govenment) who suggests you stay put in the face of a raging fire (think about it)
This virus is now coming from schools and universities then seeding in homes / communities
Get out of them. Yes life’s a bitch, yes get very angry, yes blame your govenment and chainge it.
Now can we all move on please.
Q what can we predict over the next 4 months, or 1 year ?

Posted by: Mark2 | Oct 16 2020 9:20 utc | 67

M @ 66:
Current Western hostility towards Russia began almost as soon as Vladimir Putin became President of Russia back in the early 2000s and began to steer Russia towards genuine economic reconstruction, laid down the law to the oligarch class ransacking the country through neoliberal “reforms” and put Mikhail Khodorkovsky in jail because he refused to stop meddling in politics and buying political influence.
Crimea was illegally “gifted” to Ukraine by Nikita Khrushchev in 1954 who did not consult with the Soviet Parliament at the time. The Soviet Parliament would never have allowed Crimea to be transferred from the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic to Ukraine just to simplify the paperwork over supplying water from the RSFSR through Ukraine to Crimea.
In early 2014, after three busloads of Crimean activists returning from Kiev were ambushed by Nazi thugs (obviously tipped off as to the return route the convoy was taking) who beat them and killed some of them, Crimea held a referendum to determine whether its public preferred independence and reintegration with Russia or to continue being part of Ukraine but with the 1992 Constitution (giving more autonomy to Crimea) restored. With a voter turnout of over 80%, support for independence and reintegration with Russia was 97%, meaning that at least 77% of the voter base supported independence and reintegration with Russia. Some 23,000 Russian troops, legally stationed in Crimea under a treaty signed in 1997 by Ukraine and Russia, were spread through Crimea to ensure that voters could reach polling booths and vote safely without being intimidated by the Ukrainian government.
Clearly there was no annexation or “annexion” as you call it, and what the Crimeans have done is legal under the UN Charter or “Charta” as you call it.
And do please learn some Russian history if your comments on Russia are to be taken seriously.

Posted by: Hor, Jennifer | Oct 16 2020 10:24 utc | 69

Europe will let the 737 fly again. I don’t trust that.
https://www.reuters.com/article/us-boeing-737max-easa-idUSKCN26G1H8

Posted by: Tuyzentfloot | Oct 16 2020 10:58 utc | 71

UT @ 33
Nice ( paraphrased ) Pink Floyd reference in your comment.

Posted by: Digital Spartacus | Oct 16 2020 11:36 utc | 73

Mark2 @ 68
It is very much a current and relevant topic:
KEY POINTS
Europe is introducing more and more restrictive measures to curb the spread of the coronavirus and lockdowns are the next possible step.
Full-scale lockdowns should be a “very, very last resort.”
Any national lockdowns must consider direct risks and “collateral damage” associated with the pandemic, such as the mental health impact and domestic violence.
https://www.google.co.za/amp/s/www.cnbc.com/amp/2020/10/15/lockdowns-should-be-last-resort-whos-europe-chief-says.html

Posted by: Down South | Oct 16 2020 11:50 utc | 75

Norwegian @ 75
No, just discussing my own experience with hard and extended lockdowns and the effects there of that the WHO Chief in Europe mentioned.

Posted by: Down South | Oct 16 2020 11:54 utc | 77

Oh, this is just hilarious… I went on Twitter and one of the infosec guys was tweeting that Trump had tweeted that Twitter had shut down. Well, we know Twitter had an outage. Apparently Trump was allegedly hoaxed by a satirical Web site.
For Real: Trump Tweets Out Fake Story About Twitter Shutting Down, Tricked By Satirical Newspaper Babylon Bee

He fell for it, hook, line, and sinker. He no doubt didn’t read beyond the headline into the copy. If he had, he might have seen: “After seeing account after account tweet out one particularly bad story, CEO Jack Dorsey realized he had to take action. Dorsey smashed a glass box in his office reading “Break In Case Of Bad Publicity For Democrats.” Inside the case was a sledgehammer for smashing Twitter’s servers. “Red alert — shut the servers down! Shut them all down!”
Instead, the president of the United States wrote:
“Wow, this has never been done in history. This includes his really bad interview last night. Why is Twitter doing this. Bringing more attention to Sleepy Joe & Big T”
Meantime, Trump’s Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnemy has had her Twitter account suspended forever, it seems. And the NYPost’s Twitter account also has been suspended for the last 48 hours. This is all because of a fake news story published by the Post involved Joe Biden’s son, Hunter, allegedly colluding with Ukrainians. Twitter has finally stepped up and done the right thing.

That last bit I would say isn’t entirely correct. The Post piece isn’t clearly “fake”, and I really don’t think Twitter “done the right thing.” There is zero rationale for them censoring any such stories, fake or not.
But the fact that we have a moron President has once again been proven.

Posted by: Richard Steven Hack | Oct 16 2020 12:22 utc | 79

Already we are moving to Trump has stolen the election. No need to have an election first, we simply know a priori he stole it.
Mark2, our resident Antifa, simply wants to punish somebody, anybody. If not appointed to Committee of Public Safety he will start on his own.
In case any are not aware, most states are setting November 3 as last date for postmarks on ballots, with ballots to be received by November 10. Here in Illinois ballots must be received by November 17. There will be no election result November 4. And there will be no election result November 18. This is pre-programmed to go on for months. Which will be simply chaotic. Of course some on this board already know who won and there are many more just like them.Their most fervent desire is to fight it out.
No one has yet commented on Twitter cancelling the New York Post, the entire Trump campaign, and now the House Judiciary Committee. Free speech is cancelled and no one even notices. They are all Trumptards, they don’t deserve free speech so the “left” just does not care. We see who has power and how they exercise it.

Posted by: oldhippie | Oct 16 2020 12:39 utc | 81

Reporters from the Grayzone are in Bolivia to report on Sunday’s election and are being harassed by the right wing. Here’s a link to their first account which highlights the level of tension and threats surrounding the high stakes outcome. Basically, Sunday’s vote is part primary but could be the whole election: if a leading candidate gets 40% along with winning over the 2nd place candidate by a 10% margin s/he wins. If not, the top 2 finishers face off in a second round.The right wingers have more than one candidate and so they’re split similar to the dems in the primaries. The MAS (left) party is more united but supposedly doesn’t quite have a majority of support although I think they do– it’s just that the dark skinned peons don’t count as much in polls.
The Grayzone team includes Max Blumenthal, Anya Parampil, Ben Norton and I think Wyatt Reed. They will likely be a good source of what’s going on while they’re there which will also include their own experience with the fascists.
https://thegrayzone.com/2020/10/15/bolivia-stalk-threat-election-observers/

Posted by: migueljose | Oct 16 2020 12:50 utc | 83

Trump Boasts About Federal Task Force Killing Antifascist Wanted for Murder in Portland
“We got him,” the president said of a fugitive killed by federal deputies. Witnesses say officers made no attempt to arrest him first.

While there is no doubt that Trump did praise federal deputies for killing Reinoehl — as part of a riff about how quickly agents under his command could put an end to violence from left-wing activists — the full video of his remarks shows that the president appeared to be saying, in his own, fractured way, that the federal government was forced to intervene because local officials in Portland, who are Democrats, “didn’t want to arrest him.”
In the abbreviated version of the video that went viral, it seemed to many viewers as if the president had said the U.S. Marshals “didn’t want to arrest him,” and that he was endorsing an extrajudicial execution.

Frankly, I assume he still was. Given, as the article says, that Trump can’t put two words together to make a coherent sentence, a point I’ve made many times before, why bother trying to exonerate him from what is likely his real attitude?

Posted by: Richard Steven Hack | Oct 16 2020 14:08 utc | 85

Community suppression simply means lockdowns. No discussion whatever of why lockdowns have utterly failed thus far. No discussion at all of what would be a good lockdown and what would be a bad lockdown. Just trust us. On basis of our white coats, trust us.
Posted by: oldhippie | Oct 16 2020 13:43 utc | 85
A good lockdown where it restrict human movement while enforce a comprehensive self quarantine plans as well systematic contract tracing databases.
A bad lockdown where human movement still happen no other things of the above being done.
Look at how China doing theirs.
By now i have some thinking that Democrats in USA might be ordering lockdown just for the sake of lockdown as political stand against Trump since they did nothing or very little of what they are supposed to do. Either that or the US citizens just harder to control or conform to drastic changes.

Posted by: Lucci | Oct 16 2020 14:27 utc | 87

Yes the answers were straight on as well. No mumbo jumbo.

Posted by: arby | Oct 16 2020 14:52 utc | 89

Why France waged war on Libya …
Sarkozy Charged With ‘Conspiracy’ Over Libyan Financing

French prosecutors said Friday that they had slapped criminal conspiracy charges on former president Nicolas Sarkozy over claims he used Libyan cash for his 2007 election campaign.
The charge for “membership in a criminal conspiracy” was brought on Monday, the prosectoros told AFP.
…
Prosecutors suspect that Sarkozy and his associates received millions of euros from the regime of former strongman Moamer Kadhafi to help finance his election bid.

Posted by: b | Oct 16 2020 14:59 utc | 91

@Mark2 | Oct 16 2020 0:20 utc | 40

The covid debate is now over !

I have been hearing the same assertion combined with appeal to authority in other politicized fields. All it says is you don’t want to debate. Fine, so we can do it without you.

Posted by: Norwegian | Oct 16 2020 15:34 utc | 93

vk @ 95, if the fish become radioactive we will have to stop eating them,and that will be good for the fish.
Environmentalism is for everyone. We only have one planet. But I take your point – covid will make the US a poor country, so let’s have at it (and stop nibbling at the edges of Russia.)

Posted by: juliania | Oct 16 2020 16:13 utc | 95

The OffGuardian published its supposed refutation of the Moon of Alabama’s supposed refutation of one of the OffGuardian’s articles. Just to share the news.

Posted by: Doubter | Oct 16 2020 16:21 utc | 97

It puts an end the lockdown debate !!!
Hopefully THE JOHN SNOW MEMORANDOM https://www.johnsnowmemo.com/# https://www.bbc.com/news/health-54465733 is used for Bladder Cancer around the world, and BCG works in many tissue challenged situations. .. its a non specific block for many receptor effector binding situations. Many scientist early in the Covid 19 propaganda suggested BCG but Trumps crew at the NIH and CDC and even WHO stopped it because no one can get a patent on it.
I’m not sure where the revolutions are going to come from. EoinW @ 83 <=Ever hear see a panty raid develop? .. No one can establish how they get started, but once the Panty raid starts (just like in the French Revolution), nearly every person on both sides of the panties join in the raid. America, is not like the USA, its people are not educated crooks, they are moody, potentially ready to fight government any where any time any how (there would not have been a constitution if the federalist had tried to deny Americans the right to their guns; because the Guns were the peoples guarantee government could be suppressed if need be), often Americans fight, merely because it is government.. Americans have always seen government, and political or bureaucratic persons associated with government, as useless fools, intent of making money by constraining the behaviors of the governed..

Posted by: snake | Oct 16 2020 16:34 utc | 99