What is Gilead's role in the war on hydroxychloroquine?

Is Gilead, the maker of Remdesivir, waging war on HCQ (hydroxychloroquine)? Attacks on the drug have been continuous ever since Dr. Didier Raoult used this quinine derivative to save the lives of COVID-19 patients last March. The first attempt to discredit HCQ was a hastily compiled Veterans' Administration hospital system study last April. Notably, one of the study's authors had in the past received numerous grants from Gilead, with one grant in 2018 totaling nearly a quarter of a million dollars.

After deep flaws in the V.A. study were exposed, Surgisphere came to the rescue in May with a "15,000 patient" megastudy allegedly compiled from hospitals all over the world. This strategy succeeded: following its publication in the Lancet and the NEJM, all outpatient use of HCQ was severely restricted in the U.S., Australia, and most of Europe.

https://www.americanthinker.com/blog/2020/08/what_is_gileads_role_in_the_war_on_hydroxychloroquine.html

Indian merchants sue Amazon over unfair business practices – report

US e-commerce behemoth Amazon could face a new regulatory challenge in India as a group representing over 2,000 vendors has filed a lawsuit claiming the retailer’s mistreatment may drive some sellers out of business.

In a claim filed to the Competition Commission of India (CCI) earlier this month, the All India Online Vendors Association accused Amazon of unfair business practices. In the legal filing, seen by Reuters, the group claims that Amazon India’s wholesale arm purchases massive volumes of goods directly from manufacturers and then sells them at a loss to companies it favors. Those firms then sell the products on Amazon marketplace in India at discounts of up to 45 percent.

The report named Amazon’s affiliate Cloudtail – the single largest seller on the Amazon India platform – as one of the firms taking advantage of such preferential treatment. According to a 700-page filing, such selected sellers enjoy lower fees when they list their goods on the platform, making it more difficult for independent online retailers to compete. For example, Cloudtail allegedly pays 6.3 percent for electronic products, while independent sellers pay roughly a 28.1 percent fee.

Last year, Cloudtail had to briefly suspend operations to restructure its ownership in order to comply with India’s direct investment policy for e-commerce. According to the Economic Times, Amazon had to half its indirect holding in the online retailer to 24 percent.

https://www.rt.com/business/499097-indian-sellers-sue-amazon/

Millions Of Americans Getting Money From IRS But Not Through Stimulus Checks

The Internal Revenue Service is expected to send 13.9 million Americans interest payments if they filed their 2019 income tax returns but did not receive their refunds.

The amount isn't substantial, as the IRS said that average payments are about $18.

Filers who receive their refund by direct deposit will also receive the interest payment in the same account. Individuals who do not have their direct deposit information on file will receive a paper check in the mail, which will be notated “INT Amount.”

These interest payments are taxable if individuals receive at least $10. In January 2021, the IRS will send out 1099-INT forms to those who received larger payments.

The IRS currently has a backlog of tax returns to process due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. This year’s tax deadline was pushed back from April 15 to July 15 in order to give people more time to file.

Americans waiting on another stimulus check will have to remain patient. Although both Republicans and Democrats agree on another round of direct payments, stimulus negotiations collapsed in early August after both sides failed to reach an agreement on a new COVID-19 relief package.

On Wednesday, White House Chief Of Staff Mark Meadows told Politico that he is not optimistic about reaching a stimulus deal before the end of September.

https://www.ibtimes.com/millions-americans-getting-money-irs-not-through-stimulus-checks-3035288

CNN faces brutal ridicule over 'mostly peaceful' chyron message as city burns in background

They are not good at their job

The CNN cable news network faced ridicule and mockery after social media users shared a scene from their coverage of riots with an incongruous chyron description.

The news chyron read, "Fiery but mostly peaceful protests after police shooting," as a CNN reporter stood in Kenosha, Wisconsin, in front of a conflagration set off by the rioting over the police shooting of a black man.

Screenshots and a video of the ironic scene were widely circulated on social media:

I don’t want to offend all the other hilariously awful CNN chyrons, but this is the most hilariously awful one by f… https://t.co/uzx3Pes6be

— Cabot Phillips (@Cabot Phillips)1598501693.0

In the video, CNN national correspondent Omar Jimenez noted that earlier in the day that the protests were "largely peaceful" but that they "became a little more contentious" after night fell.

Jimenez then recounted the measures police took to disperse the protesters, implying that police aggression was the cause for the rioting.

"And then what you are seeing, the common theme that ties all of this together," Jimenez continued, "is an expression of anger and frustration over what people feel like has become an all-too familiar story playing out in places all across the country, not just here, in Kenosha, Wisconsin."

The response

Twitter users roasted the news network over the bizarre juxtaposition of imagery and chyron.

"It's impossible to dunk on CNN harder than it dunks on itself," noted Buck Sexton.

"CNN has gone full Baghdad Bob," replied Allum Bokhari.

"Y'all…. I have just confirmed… this is real. THIS IS F***ING REAL. This is CNN," responded Jason Howerton.

"This is what a Biden Presidency will bring to your city. Hats off to CNN for having the stamina to continue to carry water for democrats," said California state Sen. Melissa Melendez (R).

The protests and rioting raged on in Kenosha, where an altercation between rioters and counter-protesters led to the shooting deaths of two protesters and another being injured on Tuesday.

https://www.theblaze.com/news/cnn-chyron-peaceful-protests-riots

Trump Asks Supreme Court To Reinstate Abortion Pill Restrictions Relaxed Due To Pandemic

The Trump administration asked the Supreme Court on Wednesday to reinstate regulations on abortion pills that a federal judge had suspended for the duration of the pandemic.

The federal rules, set by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), require that abortion-inducing pills be dispensed in person at a medical office. Such drugs can be used to terminate a pregnancy up to 10 weeks.

The High Court has mostly turned away challenges to virus-related restrictions. In a May decision, Chief Justice John Roberts warned that the courts should not "second-guess" decision makers or interfere with public-health policy during the pandemic. Wednesday's emergency appeal sets that commitment against a politically sensitive question during an election season.

The administration took up Roberts's theme to criticize a federal trial court in Maryland for applying its decision to all patients and providers, a so-called nationwide injunction.

"That sort of judicial management of public-health policy is inappropriate," acting solicitor general Jeff Wall wrote, adding elsewhere that the need for the Court to curb nationwide injunctions "has become acute." The administration has been beset by such orders on issues ranging from immigration to the president's ban on transgender military personnel.

A coalition of doctors and pro-choice groups say that the FDA rules violate the Constitution "by imposing life-threatening viral exposure risks as a condition of accessing abortion." They argue that the drug should be available by mail order and note that the FDA has encouraged doctors and patients alike to use tele-health alternatives as much as possible.

The ACLU is representing the plaintiffs.

"Forcing patients to travel during a pandemic just to pick up a pill is irrational and dangerous, which is why the medical community uniformly opposes this senseless rule," ACLU staff lawyer Julia Kaye said in a statement. "We hope the Supreme Court will deny the Trump administration's cruel attempt to score political points by putting people seeking essential reproductive health care at needless risk."

https://freebeacon.com/courts/trump-asks-supreme-court-to-reinstate-abortion-pill-restrictions-relaxed-due-to-pandemic/

Berlin Bans Protest Against Pandemic Restrictions, Deploys Thousands Of Police

Authorities in Berlin have banned a series of planned demonstrations against the country's COVID-19 lockdown measures - claiming they were organized by "right-wing extremists" and would lead to the spread of the virus. The city is deploying several thousand police around the German capital this weekend, citing threats.

The German city notably did not ban a June Black Lives Matter protest in which approximately 15,000 people turned out.

Meanwhile, the Assembly for Freedom had 17,000 registered demonstrators for the August 29 event before Berlin shut it down.

"We are still in the middle of a pandemic with rising infection figures," said Berlin Interior Minister, Andreas Geisel. "This is not a decision against freedom of assembly, but a decision in favor of infection protection," he continued, adding that Berlin should not be "misused as a stage for corona deniers… and right-wing extremists."

https://www.zerohedge.com/medical/berlin-bans-protest-against-pandemic-restrictions-deploys-thousands-police