Friday,  Sept.  18th, 2020

U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the second woman to serve on the U.S. Supreme Court, dies at the age of 87. (NPR)

Report: CDC testing guidance published despite scientists’ objections In August, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention was criticized for releasing guidance saying it wasn’t necessary to test people without coronavirus symptoms who had been in close contact with an infected person for more than 15 minutes. But this recommendation was not written by CDC scientists and was posted online over their strenuous objections, The New York Times reports. A federal official told the Times the police came from the Department of Health and Human Services and the White House Coronavirus Task Force and “does not reflect what many people at the CDC feel should be the policy.” The document was “dropped” into the CDC’s public website, bypassing the agency’s scientific review process. The CDC is facing scrutiny over whether it is maintaining its independence amid the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed nearly 200,000 Americans. Source: The New York Times

Texas Governor Greg Abbott eases restrictions on retail stores, gyms, and restaurants. Bars, however, remain closed. (CNBC)

France reports 13,215 new confirmed cases in the last 24 hours, a new record since the start of the pandemic, while the daily death toll jumps to 154, a four-month high according to data from the health ministry. (Reuters)

Due to concerns over the spread, the government announces that it will move Dublin to “risk level three” restrictions in its response plan effective at midnight tonight, which means that indoor restaurant dining is banned again in the capital and residents are being advised against all non-essential travel. Meanwhile, indoor visitations are only allowed between one other household, most sporting events will be cancelled, and attendance at weddings and funerals is going to be capped at 25 guests effective September 21. (Sky News)

Madrid regional government announced new restrictions aimed at curbing the rising number of cases in the region. The order will go into effect on September 21 and last for at least 14 days which will effects more than 855,000 people, or 17% of the region’s population. (El Pais in English)

Israel enters a three-week second nationwide lockdown in an attempt to curb surging cases as people begin to mark the start of Rosh Hashanah (Jewish New Year). Under these rules, Israelis must stay within one kilometer of their homes, with exceptions, and the number of people allowed in synagogues has been greatly reduced. (BBC)

The United States Department of Commerce says it will ban U.S. citizens from downloading the Chinese apps TikTok and WeChat effective September 20, unless a partnership between Oracle Corporation and TikTok owner ByteDance is agreed to and approved by President Donald Trump. (BBC)

The Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority announces it will launch an investigation into major lending bank Swedbank for suspected market abuses between September 2018 and February 2019, as part of a larger international investigation into allegations of money laundering. (Bloomberg)

Biden calls Trump’s downplaying of coronavirus threat ‘close to criminal’ Democratic presidential nominee Joe Biden fielded questions from voters in Pennsylvania during a CNN Presidential Town Hall on Thursday night, sharing his plans on how to get Americans safely back to work and school amid the coronavirus pandemic and ensuring there is more police accountability. Biden said he would have nationwide rapid testing and sufficient personal protective equipment, which “requires some federal funding, particularly kids going back to school.” He slammed President Trump for downplaying the virus, saying he knew how deadly it was “and did nothing. It is close to criminal.” Regarding policing, chiefs and unions must join community and civil rights leaders “at a table and agree on the fundamental” reforms that must be done, Biden said, including better background checks for potential officers. Source: The Week

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Thursday, Sept. 17th, 2020

A two-month-old baby dies of COVID-19 in Michigan, the youngest known fatality in the state thus far. (MLive.com)

An additional 150 million children live in multidimensional poverty since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic earlier this year. The analysis by UNICEF and Save the Children is based on shortcomings in education, health, housing, nutrition, sanitation, and water. (PTI via The Week)

US Attorney General William Barr told prosecutors to aggressively charge people arrested at recent demonstrations across the US, even suggesting including a sedition charge, usually reserved for those who have plotted a threat that posed imminent danger to the government. (The Guardian)

The economy enters recession for the first time since 1987 after the country’s GDP declined by 12.2% between April and June, amid a nationwide lockdown and travel bans due to COVID-19. (BBC)

Health Secretary Matt Hancock announces that temporary restrictions will be in place in Newcastle, Gateshead, Sunderland, Northumberland, South Tyneside, North Tyneside, and the County Durham council area effective at midnight tonight due to “concerning rates of infection.” Almost two million people in North-east England will be banned from meeting with other households. (BBC)

Portugal reports a record increase of 770 new cases and ten deaths, thus bringing the cumulative total to 66,396 confirmed cases and 1,888 deaths. Today also marks the official start of the 2020/2021 public school year, which began with in-person classes nationwide. (DGS)

Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki proposes a €1 billion (US$1.2 billion) stabilization fund by the European Central Bank to revitalize the Belarusian economy amid the protests. (AFP via France 24)

 

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Wednesday,  Sept. 16th, 2020

The Trump administration and federal officials from Operation Warp Speed unveil plans for distributing doses of a COVID-19 vaccine once the FDA approves their use. (CBS News)

Madrid announces plans to introduce targeted lockdowns and other restrictions on movement on September 18, in areas with high cases, local authorities said as the region accounts for around one-third of active cases in Spain. (El Pais in English)

In Popayán, Colombia, members of the Misak indigenous community topple and decapitate a monument dedicated to Spanish conquistador Sebastián de Belalcázar. (BBC)

The United Kingdom returns three antique bronze sculptures to India more than 40 years after they were stolen from a Hindu temple in Tamil Nadu. They were found in London after one was offered for sale in 2019. A total of four bronzes from the Vijayanagara period, which lasted from the 14th to the 17th century, were stolen in 1978 from a temple dedicated to the god Vishnu in Nagapattinam. (Reuters)

Part of the Pensacola Bay Bridge in Pensacola, Florida, collapses due to 30 inches of rain. (USA Today)

A United Nations Human Rights Council fact-finding mission formally accuses the Venezuelan government of crimes against humanity, including cases of killings, torture, violence against political opposition and disappearances since 2014. President Nicolás Maduro and other senior Venezuelan officials are among those implicated in the charges. (BBC)

The head of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service (SVR), Sergey Naryshkin, accuses the United States of “working behind the scenes” in Belarus towards another “colour revolution”, funding bloggers and training activists through NGO’s against the interests of Belarusian citizens. Minister of Defence Sergey Shoygu flies to Minsk after disputed Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said he had asked Russian President Vladimir Putin for weapons during a meeting in Moscow on Monday. Minister of Finance Anton Siluanov says Russia will, before the end of the year, disburse the first $1-billion tranche of a loan that was agreed also on Monday, to help Belarus’ financial stability. (Reuters)

Sources around President Donald Trump say that the United States plans to sell as many as seven major weapons systems, including mines, cruise missiles and drones to Taiwan. (Reuters)

Yoshihide Suga is elected Prime Minister of Japan, following the resignation of his predecessor Shinzo Abe over health concerns. (BBC)

A United States House Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure report blames a “horrific culmination of a series of faulty technical assumptions by Boeing’s engineers, a lack of transparency on the part of Boeing’s management, and grossly insufficient oversight” by the Federal Aviation Administration for two deadly Boeing 737 MAX crashes, resulting in the airliner being grounded worldwide. (Reuters)

The Big Ten Conference announces its 2020 football season will begin on October 24 with an eight-game schedule, reversing its previous decision to cancel the season. (AP via WJRT-TV)

The End