“Vietnam jailed a man on Monday for five years for breaking strict COVID-19 quarantine rules and spreading the virus to others,” Reuters reports.
Norway’s Oil Rises to Top of Election Agenda
“Norway’s voters are to give their verdict next week in what has become a ‘climate election’ — jolted into life by the UN report last month that issued a stark ‘code red’ over the impact of environmental change,” the Financial Times reports.
“The UN report has forced Norway to examine a big contradiction at the heart of its economy. The country is one of the largest proponents of green solutions such as electric cars and carbon capture storage: seven in 10 new cars sold last month in Norway were fully electric.”
“But the country is also western Europe’s biggest petroleum producer, with a massive sovereign wealth fund accumulated on the back of oil and gas output.”
Breakthrough Infections Are Still Very Rare
David Leonhardt: “How small are the chances of the average vaccinated American contracting Covid? Probably about one in 5,000 per day, and even lower for people who take precautions or live in a highly vaccinated community.”
“The estimates here are based on statistics from three places that have reported detailed data on Covid infections by vaccination status: Utah; Virginia; and King County, which includes Seattle, in Washington state. All three are consistent with the idea that about one in 5,000 vaccinated Americans have tested positive for Covid each day in recent weeks.”
“The chances are surely higher in the places with the worst Covid outbreaks, like the Southeast. And in places with many fewer cases — like the Northeast, as well as the Chicago, Los Angeles and San Francisco areas — the chances are lower, probably less than 1 in 10,000. That’s what the Seattle data shows, for example.”
Dr. Ashish Jha: “And if you live in a lower infection state like MA or RI, its probably closer to 1 in 20,000.”
Judge Reverses Order on Anti-Parasite Drug
An Ohio judge reversed a previous court order forcing a hospital to honor a prescription of ivermectin, which infectious disease experts have warned against as a COVID-19 treatment, for a patient who has spent weeks in the ICU with the disease, the Ohio Capitol Journal reports.
Gavin Newsom Makes Vaccine Mandates His Closing Issue
“With one week to go until California’s gubernatorial recall, the closing message from Gov. Gavin Newsom and his Democratic allies has been on the coronavirus, vaccines and a vaccine mandate,” NBC News reports.
“And also on how Republicans would govern during the pandemic if Newsom is recalled.”
Virginia to Remove Statue of Robert W. Lee
“A towering statue of Confederate Gen. Robert E. Lee in Richmond, Virginia, will be taken down on Wednesday as a symbol of racial injustice, more than 130 years after it was erected in tribute to the South’s Civil War leader,” the AP reports.
“While many other Confederate symbols across the South have been removed without public announcements beforehand to avoid unruly crowds, Gov. Ralph Northam’s office is expecting a multitude and plans to livestream the event on social media.”
Biden to Give Major Speech on Pandemic
President Joe Biden is set to deliver a major address on the next phase of his pandemic response this week, CNN reports.
Graham Says We’ll Be Going Back to Afghanistan
Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-SC) told the BBC that the United States “will be going back into Afghanistan” despite pulling troops out after nearly two decades.
Said Graham: “We will be going back into Afghanistan. We’ll have to, because the threat will be so large.”
He add that Afghanistan “will be a cauldron for radical Islamic behavior,” leaving the U.S. with only two options: “You can say that’s no longer my problem or hit them before they hit you.”
Quote of the Day
“I am for a woman’s right to choose. I am also for a state having the ability to make their own laws. So I support Texas in that decision, that’s their decision.”
— California gubernatorial candidate Caitlyn Jenner (R), backing a Texas law that effectively bans abortions.
China Bans ‘Sissy Men’ from Television
“China’s government banned effeminate men on TV and told broadcasters Thursday to promote ‘revolutionary culture,’ broadening a campaign to tighten control over business and society and enforce official morality,” the AP reports.
The television regulator said broadcasters must “resolutely put an end to sissy men and other abnormal esthetics.”
America Is Unusual In Its Vaccine Skepticism
The Economist: “When Covid-19 vaccines were first being rolled out in December, many Americans were reluctant to get a jab, fearing that they might be unsafe or have harmful side-effects. At the time, such concerns were not unusual.”
“But according to a new poll, Americans’ continuing skepticism of covid-19 vaccines now makes it an outlier among other rich Western countries. A survey conducted between August 24th and 30th by Morning Consult, an American pollster, found that 28% of Americans say they do not plan to get vaccinated or are unsure whether they will do so, more than double the average for the 15 countries surveyed. Only Russians are less enthusiastic.”
Biden Bets on Economic Plan Win
“President Joe Biden needs Democrats in Congress to give him a political boost by passing his $4 trillion economic agenda, but deepening divisions in the party threaten the chances of that happening any time soon,” Bloomberg reports.
“Lawmakers are attempting to craft one of the most complex tax and spending bills ever contemplated, with virtually no area of the budget or tax code left untouched, during just a handful of work days this month.”
Canadians Turn on Justin Trudeau Over Early Election
“When Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called a snap election last month, the question most observers asked was would his Liberal party win enough seats to become a majority in parliament, or simply increase the size of his minority,” the Financial Times reports.
“His government was lauded for its handling of the coronavirus pandemic, injecting billions of dollars into the economy and acquiring enough vaccine doses to inoculate the entire population a few times over. Canada’s per capita vaccination rate is now one of the highest in the world.”
“But two weeks into the campaign, his Conservative rivals are ahead in the polls, buoyed by a detailed policy platform that eschews fiscal frugality for billions of dollars in new stimulus spending. Trudeau faces a likeable opponent in Conservative leader Erin O’Toole, competition from the left, and dismay among voters over what many see as an unnecessary election during a fourth wave of the pandemic, just as their children head back to school.”
Catalan Separatist Sought Help from Russia
New York Times: “In Moscow, the emissary, Josep Lluis Alay, a senior adviser to the self-exiled former Catalan president Carles Puigdemont, met with current Russian officials, former intelligence officers and the well-connected grandson of a K.G.B. spymaster. The aim was to secure Russia’s help in severing Catalonia from the rest of Spain, according to a European intelligence report.”
Germany Accuses Russia of Election Interference
“Germany has accused Russia of launching a spate of cyber attacks on politicians amid suspicions that Moscow is interfering in this month’s election to decide who succeeds Angela Merkel as chancellor,” the Financial Times reports.
“Germany’s foreign ministry said it held Russia responsible for illegally targeting a number of national and regional politicians with “phishing” emails to gain access to personal details.”
Taiwan Scrambles Chinese Flyby
“Taiwan’s air force scrambled against renewed Chinese military activity, with its defense ministry reporting that 19 aircraft including nuclear-capable bombers had flown into Taiwan’s air defense identification zone,” Nikkei Asia reports.
Afghanistan’s Corruption Was Made in America
Sarah Chayes: “Corruption in U.S.-occupied Afghanistan wasn’t just a matter of constant street-level shakedowns. It was a system. No cops or customs agents got to put all their illicit gains in their own pockets. Some of that money flowed upward, in trickles that joined to form a mighty river of cash.”
“Two surveys conducted in 2010 estimated the total amount paid in bribes each year in Afghanistan at between $2 billion and $5 billion—an amount equal to at least 13 percent of the country’s GDP. In return for the kickbacks, officials at the top sent protection back down the line.”
Deconstructing the Disappointing August Jobs Report
Axios: “Covid-era economic data tends to be noisy, and problematic to interpret. But in Friday’s disappointing jobs report, one thing was pretty clear: It’s Delta’s fault.”