Minneapolis Council official calls for a 'state of emergency' declaring racism 'a public health issue' following George Floyd's​ death

'There was a knee on all of our collective necks'

Minneapolis Council Vice President Andrea Jenkins called on the city to declare a state of emergency Thursday labeling racism a public health issue following the death of George Floyd.

Floyd died Monday night as a result of injuries sustained during his arrest for allegedly using a counterfeit bill. A viral video showed Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin kneeling on Floyd's neck for several minutes while Floyd repeatedly stated, "I can't breathe."

The incident, which led to the firing of four officers involved and spawned an investigation by the FBI, sparked violent protests and looting in the city Tuesday and Wednesday night.

In an emotional press conference Thursday, Jenkins said that black Americans across the country feel as if there was "a knee on all of our collective necks … a knee that says 'black life does not matter.'"

"I'm asking my colleagues, the mayor, and anyone else who is concerned about the state of affairs in our community to declare a state of emergency declaring racism as a public health issue," Jenkins said .

"Until we name this virus, this disease that has infected America for the past 400 years, we will never, ever resolve this issue," she continued. "To those who say bringing up racism is racist in and of itself, I say to you, if you don't call cancer what it is, you can never cure that disease. And so in an effort to try and cure this disease, I am stating exactly what everyone else has witnessed, and that is racism."

It remains to be seen if her request is granted.

Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey (D) has publicly called for Chauvin to be thrown into jail for his actions.

"Why is the man who killed George Floyd not in jail? If you had done it, or I had done it, we would be behind bars right now," teh mayor asked on Wednesday. "We cannot turn a blind eye. George Floyd deserves justice."

https://www.theblaze.com/news/minneapolis-council-racism-george-floyd

Nordic Countries Accelerate Opening and Abandon COVID-19 Testing Plans

One has to wonder if parts of Europe are a harbinger of what is to come for the United States in the COVID-19 pandemic. If it is, what is coming out of the Nordic countries is all good news. Revised testing guidelines, slower rates of infection and expedited opening are all indicated in the experience in Sweden, Norway, and Switzerland might be better than expected. It won’t make the “lockdown until November, we need 5 million tests a day” crowd happy at all.

Sweden has chosen a different path to public health from the beginning of the pandemic. Seeking to protect their hospital system and increase immunity in the population, they put light recommendations in place and allowed shops and primary schools to stay open.

Despite the hands-off, high-trust approach, Sweden falls in about the middle of the pack for deaths per million in Europe. Yet their disease penetration in Stockholm, a metro area of about 2.6 million people, is only 7.3% as of the end of April according to antibody testing.

This is far below expectations given the original R0, or measure of how contagious a virus is. Original estimates said this rate could be as high as one infected person infecting 5-6 others on average. Sweden’s approach suggests this might be much lower, which would be good news.

In Norway, they have abandoned their plans for broad-based testing:

Norway’s health agency has abandoned plans to test broadly for coronavirus after judging that the spread of infection in the country is now so low that doing so would be pointless.

Instead, tests will be reserved for those who have symptoms of coronavirus, those who work in healthcare or elderly care homes, and those in risk groups.

If 12,000 random people were tested in Norway today, the Norwegian Institute of Public Health estimated in a press release issued on Monday, 15 would test positive, of which only one would have a real coronavirus infection.

Based on the low forecasted infection rates and an even lower symptomatic disease forecast, the Norwegian Institute of Public Health issued new testing guidelines that mirror the kind of sentinel surveillance Dr. Deborah Birx has been describing for months. It suggests testing asymptomatic individuals in specific circumstances, not broadly:

After an outbreak of infection in elderly care homes, all employees and residents of the affected units should be tested

When diagnosing infection in health institutions, it may be appropriate to test asymptomatic close contacts.

When new residents move into nursing homes, testing may be appropriate.

Prior to certain hospital stays or procedures (although this is up to each hospital).

In some cases, foreign universities or employers might require testing. This can be done on a private basis.

Research: In some research studies, all participants will be tested regardless of symptoms.

They also set COVID-19 testing priorities that focus on symptomatic individuals, screening specific populations and contact tracing.

https://pjmedia.com/news-and-politics/stacey-lennox/2020/05/28/nordic-countries-accelerate-opening-and-abandon-covid-19-testing-plans-n438797

In Video: Egyptian-Supplied Battle Tank Seized By GNA Forces Near Libya’s Tripoli

On May 26, the Libya al-Ahrar TV released a video showing a T-55 battle tank that was captured from the Libyan National Army (LNA).

The tank was captured by Turkish-backed forces supporting the Government of National Accord (GNA) during clashes in the town of Ain Zara south of the Libyan capital, Tripoli.

In the video, the battle tank can be seen equipped with a German AEG infrared searchlight. This type was not spotted in Libya before. However, it is installed on several Egyptian variants of the tank, mainly the T-55E Mark 0, T-55E MK I and T-55E MK II.

The T-55 captured by GNA forces was likely supplied to the LNA by Egypt. Cairo is known to be one of the key allies of the Libyan military and its leader Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar.

Turkey’s ever growing intervention in Libya allowed GNA forces to regain momentum in the battlefield. In response to this, the LNA is now receiving more support from its backers. Recent reports even claim that Russia has supplied 14 warplanes to the LNA.

https://southfront.org/in-video-egyptian-supplied-battle-tank-seized-by-gna-forces-near-libyas-tripoli/