International

Tuesday, May 26, 2020 National and international news –

Tuesday, May 26, 2020 – National and international news

NATIONAL NEWS

USDA and DOJ explore rising beef prices

Despite the fact that the pandemic has seen beef prices rise higher than they have been in decades, farmers and ranchers are getting a bite of bread for their livestock. The suspicion that the meat packaging industry does not play fairly with its suppliers and consumers has attracted the attention of federal authorities. The USDA and DOJ have launched an investigation into Tyson Foods, JBS, National Beef and Cargill. Collectively, these four companies control about 85% of the processing of American beef. Meat packers say the price spike is due to factories operating at lower capacity when workers get sick, which translates into less meat ultimately being placed on the market. Breeders have also reduced their prices for steers when they reach their ready weight to be placed on the market to avoid having to slaughter them without sale. However, with the processing of local meat in the hands of so few companies, the industry may face a surge of confidence like that seen 100 years ago.

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Trump threatens to move Republican convention if NC doesn’t allow crowded arena

Two days after North Carolina reported its highest daily peak in Covid affairs, President Trump threatened to move this year’s Republican convention elsewhere if the state could not commit to authorizing a ” full participation ”. Trump has targeted state Democratic Governor Roy Cooper in a series of tweets, saying the governor is still in a closed mood. Trump went on to say that the party plans to invest millions of dollars in planning and upgrading the arena without assurances that it will be allowed to fill the arena to capacity. The RNC will be a major tool in Trump’s re-election campaign, and a crowd distancing from social distancing may be a blow to Trump’s hoped-for media buzz (they could always fill empty seats with sex dolls, as a South Korean soccer club recently did). Before the pandemic, the event was expected to attract approximately 50,000 participants. Cooper, who has so far not responded to Trump’s Twitter storm, recently authorized the reopening of some businesses, but has ordered the closure of entertainment venues, gyms and bars. By observing the rise in the cases, Cooper’s prudence seems justified.

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INTERNATIONAL INFORMATION

Study finds immunity to coronaviruses can only last for a few months

A recent study from the University of Amsterdam has raised doubts about the feasibility of any coronavirus vaccine offering long-term immunity. The study followed 10 men over the age of 35, checking their antibody levels for four seasonal human coronaviruses 3 or 6 months apart. The researchers found an “alarming duration of protective immunity against coronaviruses”, noting “frequent re-infections 12 months after infection and substantial reduction in antibody levels from 6 months post-infection. “The researchers conclude that if Covid-19 behaves in the same way, no antibody formed can be invoked for lasting immunity. This study has a small sample, but other studies have confirmed that many patients recovered from Covid -19 do not form antibodies, and this study may suggest that even those who are not guaranteed long-term protection.

In addition to tarnishing the hopes of any single-use vaccine for Covid, the results also point to a massive package in the idea of ”immunity passports”. An idea put forward by many governments, these certificates would be issued to those who have recovered from Covid assuming that their access to the disease would eliminate the risk of being re-infected or subsequently infected by other people.

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Hong Kong leader dismisses fears that China’s new security law will violate rights

The mainland government’s proposal last week to implement a “national security law” rekindled fears of an end to Hong Kong’s legislative and judicial autonomy. However, Carrie Lam, pro-Beijing leader in Hong Kong, sought to allay fears that the law would restrict human rights or the right to freedom of expression in the territory. We are a very free society, “she said,” then for the time being, people have the freedom to say what they want to say. She continued the vitality and fundamental values of Hong Kong in terms of the rule of law, the independence of the judiciary, the various rights and freedoms enjoyed by the people will continue to be there. Since the enactment of the law would likely bypass the Hong Kong legislature, Lam’s assertion that it poses no threat to the autonomy of the island is prima facie invalid. As for her claim that rights and freedoms will be protected, Lam herself added that “rights and freedoms are not absolute.“This is consistent with Beijing’s view that “human rights” are not universal, or even inherent in man as an individual. On the contrary, Chinese law regards human rights as “free grants»Of the State, which can be slowed down at any time to preserve the State or collective interests. Given this attitude, it is easy to understand the lack of interest of Hong Kong people to be governed by this system.

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