Links 8/17/2020
New dinosaur closely related to the Tyrannosaurus rex discovered in England CBS
Women’s football squad surprise teammate with hearing impairment by learning their club song in sign language ABC Australia (KW).
Inside Art Garfunkel’s Bond with Blind College Roommate Who Says His Care Was ‘End of Hopelessness’ People (Furzy Mouse).
‘This Is Uncharted Territory’: Wall Street Weighs Prospect Of Contested Election Outcome Heisenberg Report (Re Van).
Bonds and syndicated loans during the Covid-19 crisis: decoupled again? Bank of International Settlements
Facebook algorithm found to ‘actively promote’ Holocaust denial Guardian
Pontifications: A330neo future bleak from COVID impact Leeham News and Analysis
The hidden dangers of a poorly handled pay-off FT
#COVID19
Scientists See Signs of Lasting Immunity to Covid-19, Even After Mild Infections NYT. “Protection against reinfection cannot be fully confirmed until there is proof that most people who encounter the virus a second time are actually able to keep it at bay, Dr. Pepper said. But the findings could help quell recent concerns over the virus’s ability to dupe the immune system into amnesia, leaving people vulnerable to repeat bouts of disease.”
Functional SARS-CoV-2-specific immune memory persists after mild COVID-19 (preprint) medRxiv.com. From the Abstract: “These findings demonstrate that mild COVID-19 elicits memory lymphocytes that persist and display functional hallmarks associated with antiviral protective immunity.”
Robust T cell immunity in convalescent individuals with asymptomatic or mild COVID-19 Cell. From the Highlights: “Our collective dataset shows that SARS-CoV-2 elicits robust, broad and highly functional memory T cell responses, suggesting that natural exposure or infection may prevent recurrent episodes of severe COVID-19.”
San Quentin’s coronavirus outbreak shows why ‘herd immunity’ could mean disaster Los Angeles Times. On San Quentin, see NC here.
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Some Duval teachers are prioritizing drafting wills along with lesson plans. One even penned her own obit. Florida Times-Union. So strike?
Meharry CEO Dr. James Hildreth says new research shows it’s not safe to open schools News Channel 5 (Nashville). Hildreth read the aerosol studies.
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The U.S. is far behind other rich countries in coronavirus response Axios
Six Key Takeaways From Pandemic Data on American Households Bloomberg
For company behind coronavirus drug, sharp questions over pricing, potentially cheaper option ABC
Face masks: in 2020, ‘mask slacking’ is more partisan than in 1918, historians say CNN
China?
China Feasts on Obscure Oil to Dodge Taxman Amid Demand Gain Bloomberg
Masks hold images of pandemic, Hong Kong protests (gallery) AP
On being continually doxxed, defamed and harassed by Communist Party allies Hong Kong Free Press
There’s No Cold War With China Foreign Policy
Is the Time Right for Japan to Become Five Eyes’ ‘Sixth Eye’? The Diplomat
New Zealand PM Jacinda Ardern delays election to Oct 17 over Covid-19 pandemic concerns Straits Times
The Koreas
Thousands of S. Korea church members quarantined over virus Agence France Presse
India
The annihilation of India’s political opposition is almost complete FT
Hair scavenged from Nairobi dump ends up in salon amid COVID-19 pandemic Reuters
New Cold War
Dealing with America in Decline Valdai Discussion Club
Sputnik V: The Geopolitics Surrounding Russia’s Coronavirus Vaccine The National Interest
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Svetlana Tikhanovskaya ‘prepared to act as national leader’ in Belarus FT
Belarus: Mass protest eclipses defiant Belarus leader’s rally BBC
Belarus’s Workers Are Going on Strike Against the Election Fraud Jacobin
Trump Transition
Trump Oversees All-Time Low in White Collar Crime Enforcement Bloomberg (Re Silc). Re Silc: “Hard to beat Holder.” But that’s no reason not to try!
Shocking no one, not enough foreigners applied for H-1B visas this year so US govt ran a second lottery The Register
How QAnon rode the pandemic to new heights — and fueled the viral anti-mask phenomenon NBC
2020
‘I badly need you’: Biden makes impassioned plea to progressive conference NBC
Democratic National Convention Schedule: Who’s Speaking and How to Watch New York Magazine
Milwaukee misses Democratic convention: ‘It is a gut punch’ AP
Trump ‘failure’ on COVID-19 will be central message of Biden convention The Hill
The Biden/Harris campaign and the dead-end of “lesser evil” politics WSWS
4 Social Security Changes Joe Biden Wants to Make Motley Fool (Furzy Mouse).
Health care industry launches new ads against public option for convention The Hill
USPS
WH Chief Of Staff Won’t Say Whether USPS Machines Have Been Removed Forbes
Stop Panicking about the Post Office Nick Harper, Medium. This is the author.
Pelosi calls back House over Postal Service upheaval Politico
That’ll do it:
If Postmaster General DeJoy doesn’t testify before Congress next week as Speaker Pelosi and I have requested, he should be stamped, returned to sender, and removed from his position.
— Chuck Schumer (@SenSchumer) August 16, 2020
A Brief History Of Political Interference In The U.S. Postal Service NPR
3 Ways Postal Banking Could Help Save Our COVID-Ravaged Economy HuffPo. Oddly, there’s no mention of this policy from liberal Democrats (not even Sanders. Or Warren). On postal banking, see NC: 2014, 2015, 2019, and 2020.
Failed State Watch
The role of a Christian at the collapse of the first American Republic Alice Marshall. “Bernie Sanders thinks that we need a political revolution. I think that we are going to get one whether we want one or not.”
Guillotine Watch
Rapid Testing Is the New Velvet Rope NYT. “While most of the country waits seven to 14 days for coronavirus test results, a privileged few have access to rapid tests.” Shocking. I mean, this is America, man.
Class Warfare
Dreams and Nightmares of the World’s Middle Classes New Left Review
Op-Ed: How the pandemic divided California in two Los Angeles Times
With Rolling Blackouts, California Power Grids Strained Amid Worst Heat Wave in 70 Years Time
Antidote du jour (via):
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here
