Lambert and I, and many readers, agree that Ukraine has prompted the worst informational environment ever. We hope readers will collaborate in mitigating the fog of war — both real fog and stage fog — in comments. None of us need more cheerleading and link-free repetition of memes; there are platforms for that. Low-value, link-free pom pom-wavers will be summarily whacked.
And for those who are new here, this is not a mere polite request. We have written site Policies and those who comment have accepted those terms. To prevent having to resort to the nuclear option of shutting comments down entirely until more sanity prevails, as we did during the 2015 Greek bailout negotiations and shortly after the 2020 election, we are going to be ruthless about moderating and blacklisting offenders.
–Yves
P.S. Also, before further stressing our already stressed moderators, read our site policies:
Please do not write us to ask why a comment has not appeared. We do not have the bandwidth to investigate and reply. Using the comments section to complain about moderation decisions/tripwires earns that commenter troll points. Please don’t do it. Those comments will also be removed if we encounter them.
You can see all 5 naked-eye planets align in the night sky this month, a rare treat Space.com. Starts tonight!
The world’s largest plant is a 112-mile-long seagrass in Australia Interesting Engineerintg. Original.
Confronting a Perfect Long Storm International Monetary Fund. “We must embark on public-private collaboration on a scale never before adopted. Public sector finances will not be able to meet these needs on their own. As it is, debt-servicing costs will take an increasing share of government revenues.”
Davos ignores the pandemic Felix Salmon, Axios. From last week, still germane.
Climate
Seen from space, the snow-capped Alps are going green Channel News Asia. Original.
Study finds ‘millions of tons’ of extremely reactive chemical in Earth’s atmosphere Independent. Original.
#COVID19
Herd immunity was sold as the path out of the pandemic. Here’s why we’re not talking about it any more The Conversation
* * * Early introduction and rise of the Omicron SARS-CoV-2 variant in highly vaccinated university populations (accepted manuscript) Journal of Infectious Diseases. From the Abstract: “The dynamics governing [Omicron’s] establishment and propensity towards fixation (reaching 100% frequency in the SARS-CoV-2 population) in communities remain unknown. In this work, we describe the dynamics of Omicron at three institutions of higher education (IHEs) in the greater Boston area…. We show that the establishment of Omicron at IHEs precedes that of the state and region, and that the time to fixation is shorter at IHEs (9.5-12.5 days) than in the state (14.8 days) or region. We show that the trajectory of Omicron fixation among university employees resembles that of students, with a 2-3 day delay….. We document the rapid takeover of the Omicron variant at IHEs, reaching near-fixation within the span of 9.5-12.5 days despite lower viral loads, on average, than the previously dominant Delta variant. These findings highlight the transmissibility of Omicron, its propensity to rapidly dominate small populations, and the ability of robust asymptomatic surveillance programs to offer early insights into the dynamics of pathogen arrival and spread.”
Multistate Outbreak of Infection with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron Variant after Event in Chicago, Illinois, USA, 2021 Emerging Infectious Diseases, CDC. The Abstract: “Bars and restaurants are high-risk settings for SARS-CoV-2 transmission. A multistate outbreak after a bar gathering in Chicago, Illinois, USA, highlights Omicron variant transmissibility, the value of local genomic surveillance and interstate coordination, vaccination value, and the potential for rapid transmission of a novel variant across multiple states after 1 event.”
* * * Association Between COVID-19 Booster Vaccination and Omicron Infection in a Highly Vaccinated Cohort of Players and Staff in the National Basketball Association (research letter) JAMA. From the Discussion: “This study found that in a young, healthy, highly vaccinated cohort frequently monitored for SARS-CoV-2, booster vaccination was associated with a significant reduction in incident infections during the Omicron wave. Study limitations include generalizability to older populations and the possibility that some infections may have been undetected in the absence of daily surveillance testing.”
Monkeypox
Monkeypox is a new global threat. African scientists know what the world is up against Science. Presumably we’ve learned our lesson, and we’ll move to “Let ‘er rip” immediately?
What the surprising mutations in the monkeypox virus could indicate about the new outbreak STAT
Community transmission of monkeypox in the United Kingdom, April to May 2022 Eurosurveillance
China?
Zeroing out on zero-COVID Science. “There is no such thing as ‘zero-COVID.’ As the Omicron variant spreads to China’s capital city, Beijing, the question is not if, but when and how, China will begin to ‘live with COVID-19’ rather than continue to impose endless lockdowns. The problem is that under China’s stifling political climate, this notion cannot be uttered, let alone debated.” “Stifling political climate,” eh? Apparently, even the editors of Science are not immune to projection. From a Beijing resident and observer:
massive economic cost and widespread discontent.
But how long will this hiatus last? Will mass daily testing in all big cities be able to nip outbreaks in the bud? Can they really manage to make this work? Only time will tell. End/— Gabriel Corsetti (@GabrielCorsetti) June 2, 2022
I mean, it’s not as if the lives of a million Chinese elders are at stake. Oh, wait….
Beijing and Shanghai ease COVID restrictions as outbreaks fade Los Angeles Times
Russia oil giant Rosneft picks Mandarin speaker to lead global trading as Ukraine war prompts pivot to Asia South China Morning Post
U.S. updates fact sheet, again, says does not support Taiwan independence Reuters
Upgraded trade talks with EU on semiconductors signal an advance in Taiwan’s standing South China Morning Post
The mystery of Scott Morrison The Monthly
Myanmar
Non-inclusive ceasefires do not bring peace: findings from Myanmar Small Wars & Insurgencies. Leaving open the question of why the International Crisis Group is promoting one.
Mekong River in jeopardy: Sand-pumping operations ravage ecosystem France24 (Furzy Mouse).
Syraqistan
BDS victory: General Mills says it will divest from Israel Mondoweiss (Re Silc).
New Not-So-Cold Cold War
Ukraine Security Services Hunt for Russia Supporters and Agents in Their Midst WSJ. Hmm.
Ukrainian Parliament Fires Ombudswoman Denisova Citing Lax Efforts In Response To Russian Invasion Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
* * * West must brace for ‘long haul’ in Ukraine: NATO chief France24. Well, now that we’ve safeguarded the Atlanticists’ rice bowl, maybe we can pivot to Asia?
Vladimir Putin: Russian President Vladimir Putin thinks his biggest ally in Ukraine war is time Times of India
2022.06.03 Those Lying Americans, lol (video) Gonzalo Lira. Many interesting speculations.
* * * Turkey, Russia, Ukraine, UN Form Road Map For Shipping Grains From Ukrainian Ports: Report Republic World
Biden Administration
OSHA requires JBS to implement disease preparedness measures at seven plants Investigate Midwest
Biden Hikes Medicare Prices And Funnels Profits to Private Insurers Lever News
Supply Chain
Soaring costs squeeze farmers’ returns in North American grain belt FT
How we all paid for the shipping giants’ $150 billion windfall Freight Waves
About 3,000 workers laid off at Peru’s Las Bambas as mine shutdown drags on Mining.com
Shortages
Drug shortages: FDA to require risk management plans Benefits Pro
Pharmaceutical Supply Chain Reliability and Effects on Drug Shortages Computers & Industrial Engineering. “With a lean supply chain configuration, we observe that expected shortages at status quo conditions are 10%…. The most influential single change would be to add a back-up supplier to a lean configuration, leading to expected shortages of 4%.”
The Bezzle
CFTC sues Gemini Trust over statements ahead of bitcoin futures launch FT. “Crypto winter.” Why not a “crypto Ice Age”?
Jump Report Shows Big Investors Exited Terra While Retail Bought Bloomberg
Gunz
Two Professors Found What Creates a Mass Shooter. Will Politicians Pay Attention? Politico
Zeitgeist Watch
The jury verdict in the Depp-Heard case: A telling, deserved blow to the #MeToo witch-hunt WSWS
The Depp Trial and the Demise of the ACLU: How a Celebrity Trial Exposed the Collapse of a Once Celebrated Group Jonathan Turley
Black Injustice Tipping Point
‘Was Emancipation Constitutional?’: An Exchange NYRB. Polemics!
Imperial Collapse Watch
Bound to Fail: The Rise and Fall of the Liberal International Order (PDF)) John Mearshimer. From 2019, still worth a read.
Class Warfare
The Conglomerate Problem Matt Stoller, BIG
Wells Fargo employees pushing to organize union across bank’s workforce Guardian
Amazon said to be impeding House probe of warehouse collapse AP
‘Tsunami’ of prosecutor departures hits Baltimore State’s Attorney’s Office Baltimore Banner
Meet A Corrupt Company Town Boondoggle. Anaheim.
Antidote du jour (via):
Bonus antidote, or maybe an anti-antidote. A thread on seagulls:
Arrived at our Airbnb. Woman who owns it pointed out the usual – keys here, wifi password – then said ‘and I must tell you about… The seagull’
Turns out one is nesting outside our bedroom and we mustn’t look at it because otherwise it gets agitated and will attack the windows
— Ian Ford (@ij_ford) June 1, 2022
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour here.
