Did China's Tencent Accidentally Leak The True Terrifying Coronavirus Statistics

Ten days ago, shortly after China first started reporting the cases and deaths associated with the coronavirus epidemic, a UK researcher predicted that over 250,000 Chinese would be infected with the virus by February 4. And while according to official Chinese data, the number of infections has indeed soared in the past two weeks, at just under 25,000 (and roughly 500 deaths), it is a far cry from this dismal prediction, about ten times below that predicted by the epidemiologists.

Is this discrepancy possible? Is the epidemic truly far less serious than conventional epidemiological models predicted? Or is China merely hiding the full extent of the problem?

After all, it the WSJ itself reported in late January , China was explicitly manipulating the casualty number by listing pneumonia as the cause of death instead of coronavirus. Subsequent reports that Wuhan officials were rushing to cremate coronavirus casualties before they could be counted did not add to the credibility of the official data.

But the biggest hit to the narrative and China's officially reported epidemic numbers came overnight, when a slip up in China's TenCent may have revealed the true extent of the coronavirus epidemic on the mainland. And it is nothing short than terrifying.

As the Taiwan Times reports, over the weekend, "Tencent seems to have inadvertently released what is potentially the actual number of infections and deaths, which were astronomically higher than official figures", and were far closer to the catastrophic epidemic projections made by Jonathan Read.

According to the report, late on Saturday evening, Tencent, on its webpage titled "Epidemic Situation Tracker", showed confirmed cases of novel coronavirus (2019nCoV) in China as standing at 154,023, 10 times the official figure at the time. It listed the number of suspected cases as 79,808, four times the official figure.

And while the number of cured cases was only 269, well below the official number that day of 300, most ominously, the death toll listed was 24,589, vastly higher than the 300 officially listed that day.

https://www.zerohedge.com/health/did-chinas-tencent-accidentally-leak-true-terrifying-coronavirus-statistics

Get Ready For Impeachment 2.0: House Dems To Subpoena Bolton After Senate's Refusal

CNN reports that the Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler is planning to subpoena John Bolton to testify in the House, after moderate Senate Republicans refused to join Democrats in demanding that the Senate call Bolton to testify about claims made in an upcoming book. Republicans argued that collecting testimony was the House's job (even though the leaked Bolton manuscript conveniently surfaced shortly after the trial began). And they eventually won the day.

Now, the Democrats are hoping to take a mulligan - just like Biden and Buttigieg now that Bernie Sanders was robbed in Iowa. And instead of limiting the testimony to Ukraine, they're jonesing to let Bolton talk about anything and everything that's weighing on his mind (though he might want to hold off on some spoilers for the sake of book sales).

https://www.zerohedge.com/political/get-ready-impeachment-20-house-dems-subpoena-bolton-after-senates-refusal

Packed passenger plane overshoots runway in Istanbul, splits into several pieces

A passenger plane has overrun runway at Sabiha Gokcen airport in Istanbul, Turkey. Apparent footage from the scene shows the aircraft broken into two pieces with flames emitting from its fuselage.

The incident occurred at the international airport on Wednesday. The domestic flight from Izmir overran the runway during landing, according to local media reports.

Footage from the scene shows the plane, belonging to the low-cost Turkish airline Pegasus, broken into several pieces with flames coming from its fuselage.

The plane broke into at least three large pieces, footage from the scene shows and people were seen evacuating through a large crack in the aircraft’s side. The cockpit apparently became completely detached from the rest of the frame and was seen lying upside down by the plane’s side.

https://www.rt.com/news/480157-plane-turkey-overruns-runway/

Amazon Drops After Bezos Sells $1.8 Billion In Stock

Amazon has turned red on the day, erasing some of its massive post-earnings gains, following a report that CEO Jeff Bezos sold 0.2% of the company for $1.8 billion. However, before investors decide that the CEO is calling the top, note that Bezos sold 905,456 Amazon shares on Friday and Monday under a pre-arranged trading plan, the filings reveal.

Putting that number in context, Bloomberg observes that in the 15 years after Amazon went public, Bezos sold a fifth of the company for $2 billion. So in the past few days, he sold shares equal to roughly one-hundreth of this stake for roughy similar proceeds. The latest liquidation brings the newly divorced bachelor's total stock sales to about $12 billion, with two-thirds of those occurring in the past four years, according to calculations by Bloomberg.

Other recent transaction by Bezos include the sale of $2 billion in 2017 and $2.8 billion in 2019, and reflect Amazon’s soaring valuation, which closed above $1 trillion for the first time on Tuesday.

https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/amazon-drops-after-bezos-sells-18-billion-stock

Boston — which has raised LGBT flag at City Hall — doesn't have to raise Christian flag, judge rules

The only other flag Boston rejected in 12-year-span was 'straight pride' flag prior to controversial 'straight pride' parade last year

A judge ruled that the city of Boston — which has raised an LGBT flag at City Hall Plaza — isn't required to raise a Christian flag as requested by a religious group, the Boston Herald reported.

What are the details?

U.S. District Court Judge Denise Casper on Tuesday denied a summary judgment for Harold Shurtleff and his Camp Constitution organization that claimed discrimination in a lawsuit after the city rejected their request to fly a Christian flag on a City Hall flagpole, the paper said.

While the city has maintained that flying a Christian flag would be akin to favoring a particular religion, Camp Constitution's 2019 federal complaint stated that Boston several times has flown the Turkish flag — which has Islamic symbolism — as well as the Vatican flag.

Other flags that would seem to reflect ideological stances — such as the Communist Chinese, transgender, and LGBT flags — reportedly were among 284 previously permitted flags.

More from the Herald:

An attorney for Boston argued in case documents the city is allowed to have control over the City Hall Plaza flagpoles because they're considered government speech. Shurtleff argued the city's 284 flag raisings between 2005 and 2017 were evidence the city had not previously denied a request, while Boston rebutted that most of the flags were of other countries and some civic symbols, such as the LGBT flag.

The City Hall Plaza flagpoles fly the United States and Massachusetts flags, a Prisoner of War/Missing in Action flag and the city of Boston's flag on the third pole, which is replaced by requested flags.

"There are no additional facts in the record that would suggest any improper preference for non-religion over religion or selective treatment of any person or group based on religion," the judge wrote, according to the paper.

The Herald added that the only other flag the city refused to fly was a "straight pride" flag before the controversial "straight pride" parade last year.

What did Boston's mayor have to say?

Boston's Democratic Mayor Marty Walsh — characterized by Politico as an "intense defender of Obamacare, immigrants and unions, and a vocal supporter of full equality for LGBTQ Americans" — said in a statement that "we have never raised a religious flag on City Hall Plaza. Everything is either a national flag raising (the vast majority) or flag raisings dealing with issues of social or public policy, or historical significance," the paper reported.

Walsh added that "Camp Constitution's request to fly the 'Christian' flag (as it is labeled by the organization), which bears the Latin cross … should be denied, because … the flag sends an overt religious message, and could reasonably be construed to be an endorsement of Christianity by the City, which would be a violation of the Establishment Clause," the Herald added.

How did Camp Constitution react?

"We are appealing the decision and will take it all the way to the Supreme Court if necessary," Shurtleff told paper.

Camp Constitution describes itself as a Christian group that seeks to "enhance understanding of our Judeo-Christian moral heritage, our American heritage of courage and ingenuity, including the genius of our United States Constitution," according to its website, the Herald said.

Here's a report on the controversy from last year:

https://www.theblaze.com/news/boston-which-has-raised-lgbt-flag-at-city-hall-doesnt-have-to-raise-christian-flag-judge-rules

NO JAIL for Cop Guilty of Responding to Domestic Violence Call by Raping the Victim

El Paso, TX — Police, we are told, are the ones we call when we are in trouble and need help. However, often times, “help” is the last thing people receive. Instead of serving the public, many police officers use their badge to prey on them instead. As the following case out of El Paso illustrates, they do so with seeming impunity and almost never go to jail for it.

Imagine for a moment that you are a victim of domestic violence. After being attacked, you call police for help and protection. However, when the police show up, instead of getting that help or protection, you get raped. Well, that is exactly what happened to one woman in Texas and the cop who raped her was found guilty of it.

Instead of going to jail, however, this cop who admitted to raping a victim of domestic violence, gets off essentially Scot free and will only have to serve 10 years of probation. This is a travesty of justice indeed—especially considering the fact that good people are serving life sentences in a cage for possession of marijuana.

On Friday, former El Paso police officer William Ollie Alexander received a 10-year suspended prison sentence on one count of sexual assault. He will spend exactly zero days in jail for the brutal sexual assault of a domestic violence victim he was tasked with protecting. He will also have to register as a sex offender for life.

According to authorities, on March 10, 2018, Alexander responded to a domestic violence call. Before leaving the woman, he gave her his phone number and told her to meet him several hours later. According to police, when she met him, he then kidnapped her, took her to a dark area near Mesa Street in West El Paso and raped her. These facts are undisputed, yet this monster will not be going to jail.

“I used to be trusting,” the woman said when asked by prosecutors how the incident has impacted her. “I thought everyone was nice and would be helpful, but now I know it is not like that. My intimacy went away for a long time. I didn’t want any guy around me. That’s not right. I shouldn’t have to feel that way.”

According to the report in the El Paso Times, as the woman cried as she testified about the impact the incident has had on her life, while Alexander began crying when his children came into the courtroom.

“Can you imagine having a daughter and having this happen to her?” she asked. “It would be awful. I don’t have kids, but Mom was overprotective, and I am going to be even more overprotective. This is something I will never forget. It was the worst day of my life.”

Despite her heart-wrenching testimony, the jury apparently blinded by the badge, sided with the rapist cop’s father who pleaded for no jail, out of fear for his son’s safety.

William Ollie Alexander III said he knows his son made a mistake, but he asked for his son to be sentenced to probation due to fear for his son’s safety in jail.

“I understand he made a moral mistake,” he said. “My son is a law enforcement officer. I think you, I and all the men and women of the jury know what happens to law enforcement officers in prison.”

His attorneys. Dolph Quijano and Omar Carmona backed up his father’s plea, claiming that if this rapist cop was sentenced to jail, he would be killed.

“Any sentence you give Mr. Alexander could result in a death sentence,” Carmona said. “It doesn’t matter how many years. He will go to the penitentiary as former police officer. He is going to be there with gang members. Yes, it is because of his actions, but remember any prison sentence is a death sentence.”

By that insane logic, no cops should ever be sent to jail for the crimes they commit because it’s dangerous for them.

Perhaps this cop should’ve thought about these repercussions before he raped a domestic violence victim he was supposed to be helping. Or, perhaps he did, and he knew that he could rape her and no go to jail. Either way, the result is the same and this cop who raped an innocent woman who needed his help will be going home to his family as others rot in prison for victimless crimes and possessing substances deemed illegal by the state.

https://thefreethoughtproject.com/no-jail-for-cop-guilty-of-responding-to-domestic-violence-call-by-raping-the-victim/