FEED Validator

for Atom and RSS and KML

Congratulations!

This is a valid RSS feed.

Recommendations

This feed is valid, but interoperability with the widest range of feed readers could be improved by implementing the following recommendations.

line 83, column 0: content:encoded should not contain data-width attribute (7 occurrences) [help]
```
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
```
line 83, column 0: content:encoded should not contain data-dnt attribute (7 occurrences) [help]
```
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
```
line 86, column 0: content:encoded should not contain script tag (7 occurrences) [help]
```
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf- ...
```
line 124, column 0: content:encoded should not contain fetchpriority attribute [help]
```
<div id="attachment_90094" style="width: 460px" class="wp-caption aligncente ...
```
line 124, column 0: content:encoded should not contain decoding attribute (7 occurrences) [help]
```
<div id="attachment_90094" style="width: 460px" class="wp-caption aligncente ...
```
line 124, column 0: content:encoded should not contain aria-describedby attribute (6 occurrences) [help]
```
<div id="attachment_90094" style="width: 460px" class="wp-caption aligncente ...
```
line 137, column 0: content:encoded should not contain aria-level attribute (5 occurrences) [help]
```
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><span style="font-weight: 400;" ...
```
line 169, column 0: style attribute contains potentially dangerous content: max-height [help]
```
Happy holidays from the Antarctic Treaty Secretariat  ...
```
line 244, column 0: content:encoded should not contain loading attribute (4 occurrences) [help]
```
<div id="attachment_90091" style="width: 460px" class="wp-caption aligncente ...
```

Source: http://feeds.feedburner.com/whowhatwhy/oIEe

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8"?><rss version="2.0"
xmlns:content="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/content/"
xmlns:wfw="http://wellformedweb.org/CommentAPI/"
xmlns:dc="http://purl.org/dc/elements/1.1/"
xmlns:atom="http://www.w3.org/2005/Atom"
xmlns:sy="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/syndication/"
xmlns:slash="http://purl.org/rss/1.0/modules/slash/"
>
<channel>
<title>WhoWhatWhy</title>
<atom:link href="https://whowhatwhy.org/feed/" rel="self" type="application/rss+xml" />
<link>https://whowhatwhy.org/</link>
<description>Groundbreaking Investigative Journalism</description>
<lastBuildDate>Thu, 02 May 2024 14:42:58 +0000</lastBuildDate>
<language>en-US</language>
<sy:updatePeriod>
hourly </sy:updatePeriod>
<sy:updateFrequency>
1 </sy:updateFrequency>
<image>
<url>https://whowhatwhy.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/cropped-WWW_Logo_WHITE_bkg-150x150.png</url>
<title>WhoWhatWhy</title>
<link>https://whowhatwhy.org/</link>
<width>32</width>
<height>32</height>
</image>
<item>
<title>Climate Change Could Disappear in Florida — At Least According to State Law</title>
<link>https://whowhatwhy.org/editors-picks/climate-change-could-disappear-in-florida-at-least-according-to-state-law/</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Whowhatwhy Editors]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Thu, 02 May 2024 17:00:14 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Editors' Picks]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://whowhatwhy.org/?p=90102</guid>
<description><![CDATA[PICKS are stories from many sources, selected by our editors or recommended by our readers because they are important, surprising, troubling, enlightening, inspiring, or amusing. They appear on our site and in our daily newsletter. Please send suggested articles, videos, podcasts, etc. to picks@whowhatwhy.org.]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<h3>Climate Change Could Virtually Disappear in Florida — At Least According to State Law (Maria)</h3>
The author <a href="https://apnews.com/article/florida-desantis-climate-change-environment-a3bee6775476d6f3e00b8c6cd500a3b1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">writes</a>, “Florida, perhaps the most vulnerable state to sea-level rise and extreme weather, is on the verge of repealing what’s left of a 16-year-old law that lists climate change as a priority when making energy policy decisions. Instead, the state would make energy affordability and availability its main focus. A bill waiting to be signed by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis would strip the term ‘climate change’ from much of state law and reverse a policy then-Gov. Charlie Crist championed as he built a reputation for being a rare Republican fighting to promote green energy over fossil fuels.”
 
<h3>RFK Jr. Qualifies for California Ballot (Reader Steve)</h3>
The author <a href="https://thehill.com/homenews/campaign/4630903-rfk-jr-qualifies-for-california-ballot/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">writes</a>, “Independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has qualified for the ballot in California, his campaign announced Monday. Kennedy, alongside running mate Nicole Shanahan, was backed by the American Independent Party (AIP) of California, the state with the most electoral college votes in the country. The campaign confirmed it filed paperwork with California’s secretary of state on Monday.”
 
<h3>Pro-Palestine Protesters Are on the Right Side of History (Laura)</h3>
From <a href="https://jacobin.com/2024/04/columbia-university-palestine-protests-1968" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jacobin</a>: “Like those who protested the Vietnam War, the college students currently protesting Israel’s vicious assault on Gaza are in the right. Future generations won’t look kindly on those who used the moment to smear campus protesters as ‘antisemites.’”
 
<h3>Saudi Arabia Activist Sentenced to 11 Years in Prison for ‘Support’ of Women’s Rights (Gerry)</h3>
The author <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/may/01/manahel-al-otaibi-saudi-arabia-womens-rights-activist-sentenced-11-years-prison-anti-terrorism-court" target="_blank" rel="noopener">writes</a>, “A young women’s rights activist in Saudi Arabia was secretly sentenced to 11 years in prison by an anti-terrorism court after being arrested for ‘her choice of clothing and support for women’s rights.’ Saudi officials confirmed in a statement to the United Nations high commissioner for human rights that Manahel al-Otaibi was sentenced on 9 January for what the Saudi government called ‘terrorist offenses.’”
 
<h3>Study Uses Artificial Intelligence To Show How Personality Influences the Expression of Our Genes (Mili)</h3>
The author <a href="https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2024/04/240401142515.htm" target="_blank" rel="noopener">writes</a>, “An international study led by the UGR using artificial intelligence has shown that our personalities alter the expression of our genes. The findings shed new light on the long-standing mystery of how the mind and body interact. The study, published in the journal Molecular Psychiatry (Nature), examines how an individual’s personality and underlying outlook on life regulate their gene expression, and thus affect their health and well-being. It is the first study to measure the transcription of the entire genome in relation to human personality.”
 
<h3>Saving a Sea Monkey Sanctuary (Dana)</h3>
From <a href="https://hakaimagazine.com/features/saving-a-sea-monkey-sanctuary/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hakai Magazine</a>: “As the Great Salt Lake in Utah shrinks, locals are working to preserve its critical brine shrimp fishery — along with the other entities that flourish in the lake’s strange, saline beauty.”
 
<h3>Former NASA Engineer Says He’s Invented a Thruster That Doesn’t Require Propellant (Sean)</h3>
From <a href="https://futurism.com/former-nasa-engineer-thruster-no-propellant" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Futurism</a>: “Space startup Exodus Propulsion Technologies claims to have achieved a breakthrough, stumbling upon an entirely new force of nature that could power thrusters that don’t need propellant to work. As The Debrief reports, co-founder Charles Buhler — a former NASA engineer who’s worked on a number of major programs including the International Space Station, the Hubble Space Telescope, and the Space Shuttle — said the discovery could be a major turning point in humanity’s quest to explore space. Buhler makes some wildly ambitious claims that will likely face plenty of scrutiny from the scientific community — and it’s unclear if his startup’s claims will survive.”
]]></content:encoded>
</item>
<item>
<title>How Fair Is It to Address Trump’s Verbal Glitches and Gaffes?</title>
<link>https://whowhatwhy.org/politics/us-politics/how-fair-is-it-to-address-trumps-verbal-glitches-and-gaffes/</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Klaus Marre]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Thu, 02 May 2024 14:42:58 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[US Politics]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://whowhatwhy.org/?p=90106</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Because Donald Trump is trying to make Joe Biden's supposed feeblemindedness a major campaign theme, it is in fact newsworthy whenever the former president's brain short circuits... and it does so quite often. ]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[It is well known that Donald Trump has a problem with pronouncing longer words. That is why most of his messages are simple and don’t include more than one syllable. He can manage “Stop the Steal,” “Build That Wall,” or “Lock Her Up.” Things would be very different if he had to say “Prevent Election Interference,” “Construct That Barrier,” or “Incarcerate Her.” That would be less effective when it comes to messaging but more hilarious for those enjoying the former president’s linguistic adventures.
The latest example of one of his verbal glitches came Wednesday night, when he talked about the infrastructure legislation that passed Congress in 2021 with mostly Democratic support (although Republicans who voted against the measure are now trying to take credit for bringing infrastructure dollars to their home districts).
Trump stumbled over the phrase “infrastructure package,” which he turned into “infrastrucerschure para,” before recovering and calling it a “package of infrastructure,” which barely makes more sense.
He also referred to the $1 trillion legislation as “fake,” which must come as news to all the communities across the United States that have benefitted from it through construction projects, the expansion of high-speed Internet, public transportation projects, and much more.
Trump, of course, had promised to tackle the issue with “Infrastructure Week” while in office. This became a running joke because nothing ever happened (possibly because the former president would have just talked about Infersturkkur Week and confused everybody).
Always eager to point out Trump’s failings, some left-leaning publications like the Huffington Post and social media influencers really leaned into this latest faux pas.
And that raises the question of whether this treatment is fair.
After all, Trump is an old man and not terribly bright, so should anybody be pointing out when he can’t manage to correctly pronounce even fairly simple words like “vegan,” which he got wrong five times at a recent appearance?
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
This is also how I pronounce vegan <a href="https://t.co/D2hZlSAi4I">https://t.co/D2hZlSAi4I</a>
— Christopher Cadelago (@ccadelago) <a href="https://twitter.com/ccadelago/status/1785761771128807638?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">May 1, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Ordinarily not. Who hasn’t stumbled over words and phrases before? It happens all the time and public speakers deserve a break. If you listen to anybody speak long enough, you could come up with a damning dossier of mispronunciations and poorly chosen words.
However, in Trump’s case, his various verbal escapades are fair game for one simple reason: He is trying to make the case that President Joe Biden’s feebleness and gaffes would make him a real liability in a second term.
Therefore, whenever the former president once again wrestles with the English language, simple concepts, or basic logic, pointing this out is not sensationalism or a cheap way to get clicks.
Of course, the reverse would also be true. Biden keeps hammering Trump for staging a coup. If the president were to spark his own insurrection, it would be fine for journalists to point out his hypocrisy.
That being said, the increasing number of these slip-ups should not be used to simply make fun of Trump but should rather be viewed in the context of him being guilty of exactly the behavior that he is accusing Biden of.
]]></content:encoded>
</item>
<item>
<title>Behind the Ice Curtain: Antarctic Treaty Talks Hide Looming Bird Flu Catastrophe</title>
<link>https://whowhatwhy.org/science/environment/behind-the-ice-curtain-antarctic-treaty-talks-hide-looming-bird-flu-catastrophe/</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Tiara Walters]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Thu, 02 May 2024 12:00:52 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Environment]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[International]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://whowhatwhy.org/?p=90087</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Cash-strapped scientists in Antarctica face ‘unimaginable’ challenges — from sampling a lethal virus on floating ice to fighting a ‘climate’ threat that could kill millions of wildlife, and even humans. Despite calls for global assistance, 29 states meeting in India this month remain entrenched in Cold War-era secrecy.]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[This story by <a href="https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/tiara-2-2/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tiara Walters</a> was originally published by <a href="https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/our-burning-planet" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Daily Maverick</a> and is part of <a href="https://coveringclimatenow.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Covering Climate Now</a>, a global journalism collaboration strengthening coverage of the climate story.
<h4 style="text-align: center;">•</h4>
If there are zero journalists to hear a time bomb inside a secretive Antarctic Treaty meeting, does it make a sound? And if the <a href="https://documents.ats.aq/ATCM45/fr/ATCM45_fr001_e.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">explosive, 90,000-word minutes</a> are quietly announced only six months later, at the start of the festive season, will they be read? 
 
Always closed to media and the public, and held in a different country each year, this tightly guarded session was convened by 29 states in Helsinki, Finland, over May and June 2023. Countries like Australia, China, the US, South Africa, and Russia discussed the 1959 treaty’s usual objectives — which dedicate the icy region to the aspirational ideals of peace and science. Yet, they also grappled with the imminent arrival of a highly pathogenic bird flu — one that may be fatal to birds, mammals, and humans.
 
The H5N1 virus would be <a href="https://www.bas.ac.uk/media-post/first-confirmed-cases-of-avian-influenza-in-the-antarctic-region/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">confirmed by the British Antarctic Survey</a> in brown skua predatory birds on South Georgia, a UK subantarctic territory, in October — just months after the meeting. These migratory birds are thought to have picked up the virus in South America, where it has ripped 6,000 km (~37 miles) across the continent since turning up there in 2022. Here, hundreds of thousands of marine birds and mammals have been left dead.
 
This killer virus, 400 delegates heard, <a href="https://www.offlu.org/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/OFFLU-statement-HPAI-wildlife-South-America-20230823.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">posed a grave threat</a> to more than <a href="https://journals.asm.org/doi/full/10.1128/mbio.01098-14" target="_blank" rel="noopener">100 million breeding birds</a>, six seal, and 17 cetacean species.
 
And while the <a href="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/61073506e9b0073c7eaaf464/t/64d04cd227339408438de29d/1691372755560/Post+JEG+review+Avian+Influenza+A+summary+of+The+Risk+of+Avian+Influenza+in+the+Southern+Ocean+A+practical+guide+for+operators+interacting+with+wildlife.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">spillover chances from wildlife</a> are very rare, and there is still no evidence of transmission between humans, the consequences of infection could be severe.
 
Since 2003, this virus has killed <a href="https://who.int/emergencies/disease-outbreak-news/item/2024-DON511#:~:text=From%202003%20to%2025%20March,to%20WHO%20from%2023%20countries." target="_blank" rel="noopener">half of 900 people</a> infected by it, and has become <a href="https://www.who.int/news/item/12-07-2023-ongoing-avian-influenza-outbreaks-in-animals-pose-risk-to-humans" target="_blank" rel="noopener">better adapted to mammals</a>. If this animal pandemic (“panzootic”) mutates into a human pandemic, its pathogenic potential could prove less, or worse, than COVID-19’s toll. The Scientific Committee on Antarctic Research (SCAR), an independent advisory body, notes mutation could have a <a href="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/61073506e9b0073c7eaaf464/t/64d04cd227339408438de29d/1691372755560/Post+JEG+review+Avian+Influenza+A+summary+of+The+Risk+of+Avian+Influenza+in+the+Southern+Ocean+A+practical+guide+for+operators+interacting+with+wildlife.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">“catastrophic effect”</a> on the global human population.
 
None of the dramatic implications was lost on the delegates as they gathered <a href="https://twitter.com/looksouth/status/1429915869652525056" target="_blank" rel="noopener">behind the “ice curtain.”</a> In fact, unbeknown to world media, the talks raised dangerous bird flu — “highly pathogenic avian influenza” or “HPAI” — more than 50 times. 
 
<div id="attachment_90094" style="width: 460px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="https://whowhatwhy.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/image7.jpg"><img fetchpriority="high" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-90094" class="wp-image-90094 size-featured-single" src="https://whowhatwhy.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/image7-450x301.jpg" alt="Brown Skua Marion Island" width="450" height="301" /></a>A brown skua hovers over thousands of king penguins at South Africa’s Marion Island. Photo credit: <a href="https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2024-04-24-behind-the-ice-curtain-antarctic-treaty-talks-conceal-looming-bird-flu-catastrophe/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tiara Walters / Daily Maverick</a></div>
<h2>‘Ice Curtain’ Calls for a ‘Common Approach’</h2>
In fast-heating West Antarctica, possibly thousands of Adélie penguins found by a surveillance expedition in recent weeks now lie lifeless in the snow. The expedition, led by the Antarctic Wildlife Health Network (Scar), is still <a href="https://federation.edu.au/fednews?announcement_id=35782&action=view_announcement&category_id=&utm_source=feduni_news&utm_medium=website&utm_campaign=FedNews" target="_blank" rel="noopener">investigating the cause of death</a> — and, yet, these frozen mass graves hint at precisely the kind of ecological crime scene forewarned by <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00300-009-0640-3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">climate-induced disease outbreaks</a>.
 
As revealed in the extensive meeting minutes, which have not been previously reported, outgoing chair of the Antarctic Treaty’s environmental protection committee, Norway’s Birgit Njåstad, said an outbreak was “likely and could be a detrimental threat to Antarctic wildlife.” 
 
Chile, South Korea, the UK, and the US <a href="https://www.ats.aq/devAS/Meetings/DocDatabase?lang=e" target="_blank" rel="noopener">tabled substantive contributions</a>, reporting they had publicly shared their stringent HPAI <a href="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/61073506e9b0073c7eaaf464/t/64d0515591851131bb6ac914/1691373912670/United+Kingdom+ATCM45+IP039+2023.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">biosecurity protocols</a>. A competent protocol, according to the UK’s biosecurity plan, deployed specialist staff, protective gear, and back-up stocks.
 
Despite these obviously laudable efforts, the talks offered a telling clue about a fragmented surveillance response. <a href="https://documents.ats.aq/ATCM45/fr/ATCM45_fr001_e.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">“Some parties”</a> — the minutes noted in the usually muted language of Antarctic diplomacy — urged “competent authorities” to “develop a common approach.”
 
No silver bullet would naturally address the needs of national scientific programs across the profoundly complex Antarctic, but this minute item alluded to two inconvenient truths of universal relevance. 
 
<ol>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">In some ways, bird flu is actually old news in Antarctica — a <a href="https://journals.asm.org/doi/full/10.1128/mbio.01098-14" target="_blank" rel="noopener">WHO-led discovery</a> first isolated the fairly harmless, low-pathogenic type a decade ago. The WHO collaboration team even described the risk of HPAI infecting the “fragile” region via migratory species like skuas, to date <a href="https://federation.edu.au/fednews?announcement_id=35782&action=view_announcement&category_id=&utm_source=feduni_news&utm_medium=website&utm_campaign=FedNews" target="_blank" rel="noopener">the Antarctic outbreak’s greatest victim</a>. With H5N1 first isolated in China in 1996 and treaty disease talks <a href="https://www.ats.aq/devAS/Meetings/DocDatabase?lang=e" target="_blank" rel="noopener">tracing to that time</a>, it could also be argued that states had sufficient time to coordinate, giving all scientists — from richer and poorer states — all the gear and equipment needed for dangerous, sensitive work.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">At least two parties put their subtle clarion call for a more coordinated approach on record, but they did not link their names to a concession that might be viewed as candid, or even controversial.</li>
</ol>
 
<div id="attachment_90092" style="width: 460px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="https://whowhatwhy.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/image5.jpg"><img decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-90092" class="wp-image-90092 size-featured-single" src="https://whowhatwhy.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/image5-450x298.jpg" alt="Delegates, first climate day, consultative meeting" width="450" height="298" /></a>Delegates arrive for the first climate day at a consultative meeting — a historic moment in Antarctic climate politics. Journalists were not allowed to enter. Photo credit: <a href="https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2024-04-24-behind-the-ice-curtain-antarctic-treaty-talks-conceal-looming-bird-flu-catastrophe/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tiara Walters / Daily Maverick</a></div>
<h2>Extraordinary Public Interest, Press Access Denied</h2>
In February 2023, Helsinki declined Daily Maverick’s request for press conferences at the closed 45th consultative meeting, citing a consensus decision system not solely governed by Finland. 
 
Yet, <a href="https://www.ats.aq/e/key-documents.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">as compelled</a> by the treaty’s environmental laws, <a href="https://iaato.org/first-report-of-suspected-cases-of-high-pathogenicity-avian-influenza-hpai-in-antarctic-treaty-area/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">it was already in mid-2022</a> that scientific committee SCAR, the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO), and the Council of Managers of National Antarctic Programmes (COMNAP) had launched a campaign to prevent the <a href="https://www.ats.aq/e/protocol.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">illegal accidental introduction</a> of HPAI as a non-native microorganism.
 
This early awareness suggests treaty states had ample chance to reconsider their media exclusion policy on the grounds of extraordinary public interest. Instead, Daily Maverick was compelled to report from the venue’s doorsteps for the majority of the 10-day event. 
 
This reporter also questioned delegates at the door about the contents of the secretive talks, but — even as the public remained unaware of the threat bearing down on the southern regions — they remained tight-lipped and did not mention the virus. 
 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Very concerning that HPAI has now reached the Southern tip of South America. We wrote some recommendations last year in preparation of HPAI entering Antarctica. You can find them here: <a href="https://t.co/RNJxawWXa6">https://t.co/RNJxawWXa6</a> <a href="https://t.co/1Z9tJG12ke">https://t.co/1Z9tJG12ke</a>
— Michelle Wille (@DuckSwabber) <a href="https://twitter.com/DuckSwabber/status/1644124806311297025?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 6, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
 
Controlled by 29 influential states capable of mobilizing support and resources from other organizations for a global crisis that started outside Antarctica, the meeting also failed to issue a dedicated joint statement on the deadly flu threat to some 140 non-Antarctic states and the press. The event, which ended June 8, did publish a broad closing communiqué involving a <a href="https://um.fi/documents/35732/0/Host+Country+Communique+090623+final+%281%29.pdf/74fd7db3-1851-83c0-2d61-1001c8971324?t=1686293527621" target="_blank" rel="noopener">variety of minute items</a>, including a reaffirmation of Antarctica’s mining ban. It even flagged some of H5N1’s dangers, but it was not a detailed HPAI warning.
 
It spanned half a paragraph. And it was filed <a href="https://um.fi/documents/35732/0/Host+Country+Communique+090623+final+%281%29.pdf/74fd7db3-1851-83c0-2d61-1001c8971324?t=1686293527621" target="_blank" rel="noopener">under the wrong date</a>: May 9.
 
Helsinki did not provide answers to detailed questions sent repeatedly over several weeks, saying the organizing officials were now in new positions. 
<h2>Saving the World by Whispering in a Broom Closet?</h2>
Even if the risk is low, <a href="https://www.ecdc.europa.eu/sites/default/files/documents/EFS2_8735_0.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">best practice</a> involves notification about the potential of human infection. However, meeting statements by host state Finland, tourism body IAATO, and the Antarctic and Southern Ocean Coalition (ASOC), the treaty’s independent environmental observers, also failed to cite <a href="https://iaato.org/iaato-2022-23-biosecurity-protocols-regarding-avian-influenza/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">H5N1’s 50% human mortality rate</a>.
 
But maybe, in ASOC’s case, that point was moot, because <a href="https://www.asoc.org/media-releases/atcm-2023-closing-press-release/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">they did not actually mention the virus</a> — only flagging it nearly five months later in a statement titled “<a href="https://www.asoc.org/media-releases/asoc-closing-ccamlr-42-2023-pr/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ASOC Closing CCAMLR-42 2023 PR</a>.” (This statement was about the Antarctic Treaty System’s October/November fisheries meeting, and even seasoned reporters might have mistaken its cryptic headline for a poker tournament announcement).
 
Acting on the instructions of the 29 states, the treaty secretariat only announced the <a href="https://documents.ats.aq/ATCM45/fr/ATCM45_fr001_e.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">90,000-word Helsinki minutes</a> half a year after the meeting — and nearly two months after the virus erupted in the Antarctic region. There was nothing unusual about the treaty custom picking the festive season to release a document at least a thousand times longer than the average press release. However, it does suggest that — regardless of the issues of the day — there was no appreciable urgency to share them with the media, or the international public.
 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Happy holidays from the Antarctic Treaty Secretariat to you and yours! <img src="https://s.w.org/images/core/emoji/15.0.3/72x72/2744.png" alt="❄" class="wp-smiley" style="height: 1em; max-height: 1em;" /> <a href="https://t.co/s2g4HvLdfZ">pic.twitter.com/s2g4HvLdfZ</a>
— AntarcticTreaty (@AntarcticTreaty) <a href="https://twitter.com/AntarcticTreaty/status/1735334299472204019?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 14, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
The definitive version of the Final Report of the 45th <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Antarctic?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Antarctic</a> Treaty Consultative Meeting (held in Helsinki, Finland, 2023) has been published and is available for download from <a href="https://t.co/6wpqDu1mKf">https://t.co/6wpqDu1mKf</a>. 
Read more: <a href="https://t.co/kTyssQD7H8">https://t.co/kTyssQD7H8</a> <a href="https://t.co/88efNmW6QB">pic.twitter.com/88efNmW6QB</a>
— AntarcticTreaty (@AntarcticTreaty) <a href="https://twitter.com/AntarcticTreaty/status/1735328894184529934?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 14, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
 
The tabled HPAI papers were <a href="https://www.ats.aq/devAS/Meetings/DocDatabase?lang=e" target="_blank" rel="noopener">unlocked on the secretariat archive</a> directly after the meeting. None of these revealed the transcripts from the live debate chambers — sealed off to the press since Uncle Sam led the Cold War-era push that gave us the demilitarization treaty at the end of the 1950s. They were also tucked in among hundreds of other unrelated documents tabled at the meeting, and not flagged as priority information of global public interest.
 
They were, in other words, only likely found by experts who knew they were there — a catch-twenty-flu situation, one might say. 
 
ASOC, the world’s only non-profit environmental advocacy group with a backstage pass to consultative meetings, told us they “did not comment at the time of [the meeting] as we did not have anything substantive to add to the response by other organizations and their infectious disease experts.”
 
IAATO said <a href="https://iaato.org/iaato-2022-23-biosecurity-protocols-regarding-avian-influenza/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">their guidance</a> — issued in advance of two tourism seasons that attracted roughly 220,000 tourists — was “created in consultation” with SCAR. Communications director Hayley Collings said the body’s guidance and accompanying resources directed would-be visitors to the World Organisation for Animal Health (WOAH) for further advice — these resources were also <a href="https://iaato.org/news-room/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">made available via the IAATO website</a> and member operators.
 
(Even so, SCAR and COMNAP, in a June advisory coinciding with the month of the Helsinki meeting, <a href="https://static1.squarespace.com/static/61073506e9b0073c7eaaf464/t/64d04cd227339408438de29d/1691372755560/Post+JEG+review+Avian+Influenza+A+summary+of+The+Risk+of+Avian+Influenza+in+the+Southern+Ocean+A+practical+guide+for+operators+interacting+with+wildlife.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">explicitly outlined</a> the potential human costs.)
 
The Antarctic Treaty, which has no official media spokesperson, declined to comment. However, a South African government spokesperson told us the upcoming consultative meeting in India from May 20 to 30 “is closed.”
 
We asked the Indian host secretariat why, despite their consequence, the 2024 bird flu talks would also thwart media. After eight emails sent since March 26, we received a brief response — “portions” of the opening ceremony would be “open” and “broadcast.” No “broadcast” details were given. 
 
<div id="attachment_90089" style="width: 460px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="https://whowhatwhy.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/image2.jpg"><img decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-90089" class="wp-image-90089 size-featured-single" src="https://whowhatwhy.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/image2-450x274.jpg" alt="Media waiting area, Helsinki" width="450" height="274" /></a>The media waiting area in Helsinki ahead of the opening ceremony. No other news reporters turned up. Photo credit: <a href="https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2024-04-24-behind-the-ice-curtain-antarctic-treaty-talks-conceal-looming-bird-flu-catastrophe/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tiara Walters / Daily Maverick</a></div>
<h2>The United Nations of Antarctica? It’s a Question of ‘Human Rights’</h2>
To prevent escalation of fractious power competition that could further damage the Antarctic environment, there may be valid reasons for diplomatic confidentiality.
 
However, do such justifications clarify how a system that <a href="https://twitter.com/looksouth/status/1429915869652525056" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reinforces its “ice curtain” precedents year upon year</a> would manage and communicate more outbreaks in a time of climate change? 
 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Just your periodic reminder that it’s now TWO MONTHS since ⁦<a href="https://twitter.com/AntarcticTreaty?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@AntarcticTreaty</a>⁩’s annual closed door meeting and the public still has not been given an account of it. Yes, really. An IGO governing a whole continent can’t manage contemporary communication. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/IceCurtain?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#IceCurtain</a>. <a href="https://t.co/8SlYTMcfHG">pic.twitter.com/8SlYTMcfHG</a>
— Andrew Darby (@looksouth) <a href="https://twitter.com/looksouth/status/1429915869652525056?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">August 23, 2021</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
 
If it seems there are no easy answers, the French scientist Dr Valérie Masson-Delmotte delivered an elegant coup de grâce for transparency in Helsinki. Delivering a presentation at the treaty’s first climate day, Masson-Delmotte, an IPCC co-chair at the time, <a href="https://twitter.com/valmasdel/status/1664565849754071043" target="_blank" rel="noopener">also uploaded her slides to X</a>, the social media site.
 
“I decided to release my slides and a summary of my presentation online, through social networks,” Masson-Delmotte <a href="https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2023-06-04-ipcc-co-chair-lifts-the-ice-curtain-at-antarctic-climate-meeting-in-finland/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">told us</a>. “I also informed the delegates of this choice of transparency during a long Q&A session after my presentation.”
 
IPCC sessions may also be closed, but external observers <a href="https://enb.iisd.org/58th-session-intergovernmental-panel-climate-change-ipcc-58" target="_blank" rel="noopener">provide detailed reports</a>. UN meetings held daily live press conferences and allowed broader, accredited civil society engagement, said Professor Nicholas King, an IPCC Fifth Assessment Review editor.
 
Also a UN science panel co-chair to UNEP’s Global Environmental Outlook, King described the treaty system as “an outdated anomaly among more recent multilateral treaties designed to deal with issues of a transboundary nature and global significance — which the future of Antarctica very much is.” 
 
King urged: “The global community needs to come together through the UN to force changes to a fully open, multilateral Antarctic oversight treaty which negotiates transparently and undertakes decisions in the best interest of the planet and all peoples, in line with the objectives of the UN Charter on Human Rights.” 
 
Like the UN, which demonstrates a somewhat healthier, if imperfect, relationship between confidentiality and public communication, other Antarctic conferences offer tried-and-tested hybrid models. SCAR’s “<a href="https://scar.org/scar-events/osc2024" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Antarctic Science: Crossroads for a New Hope</a>,” to be hosted in Chile in August, will have closed business meetings but run a rich public education program over four days.
 
<h2>‘Unimaginable Challenges: Sampling On Floating Sea Ice’ </h2>
In March, a Chilean team of surveillance experts made a <a href="https://www.institutobase.cl/en/chile-detects-positive-cases-of-avian-flu-in-penguins-shags-and-skuas-in-antarctica/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">milestone, if tragic, announcement</a> — they had confirmed H5N1 in Adélie penguins and cormorants on the Antarctic Peninsula, which faces South America. They had joined forces with researchers from France and Monaco, as well as the Czechian base on the peninsula, which reported the suspected cases.
 
Dr Fabiola León spearheaded the landmark analysis, and told Daily Maverick the confirmation illustrated why “border-transcending” cooperation was crucial in this far-flung frontier. Their lab had unlocked a biosecurity budget long before the virus’s Antarctic outbreak, explained León, who is affiliated with, among others, the <a href="https://www.institutobase.cl/en/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">BASE Millennium Institute</a> — a Chile government program. Chilean researchers had launched surveillance as early as January 2023.
 
Their confirmations followed the historic Argentine-Spanish effort that isolated the <a href="https://www.csic.es/es/actualidad-del-csic/cientificos-del-centro-de-biologia-molecular-severo-ochoa-del-csic-confirman-la-presencia-por-primera-vez-en-la-antartida-del-virus-de-la-gripe-aviar-altamente-patogenica" target="_blank" rel="noopener">first Antarctic mainland cases</a> in February. However, while the Argentine and Czechian bases were on high alert and played the critical role of reporting the suspected cases, they lacked capacity for full sample analysis. The Argentine team shipped skua samples to their Spanish neighbors, who did the analysis instead. At the Czechian post, there were no wildlife specialists trained for sample collection and preparation, so the Chile team traveled there themselves. They braved thousands of kilometers.
 
“The sampling covered both island and continental locations located in the Weddell Sea, Bellingshausen Sea, Amundsen Sea, and Ross Sea,” said Dr Elie Poulin, director of the BASE Millennium Institute, which worked with the Chilean Antarctic Institute. “In this sense, the campaign’s journey covered more than 5,000 km (~3,100 miles).” 
 
León painted a picture of working in an extreme and remote outdoor laboratory like no other.
 
“As researchers, we often face unimaginable challenges such as sampling on floating sea ice, enduring extremely cold temperatures, and going without food and restroom breaks for up to eight hours during sampling,” the virologist recalled about her 2023/24 fieldwork. “In other instances, we may find ourselves working in isolated research stations with limited resources. These conditions demand meticulous planning, specialized equipment, and skilled personnel.”
 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Report of an Antarctic expedition to investigate the spread and impact of highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 on wildlife in Antarctica. <a href="https://twitter.com/nienkebeintema?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@nienkebeintema</a> of <a href="https://twitter.com/nrc?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@nrc</a> interviews Dutch members of the expedition team. Part of <a href="https://twitter.com/KappaFlu?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@KappaFlu</a> research. <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/vogelgriep?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#vogelgriep</a><a href="https://t.co/cPYFD25AUv">https://t.co/cPYFD25AUv</a>
— Thijs Kuiken (@thijskuiken) <a href="https://twitter.com/thijskuiken/status/1778706559914119418?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 12, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
<h2>Scientists On the Front: The Strain of Ecological Grief</h2>
Just weeks before researchers from across the world were due to head south for the season, it would surface that only about 12 members from the COMNAP council — which convenes 33 national Antarctic programs — had proper plans in place. 
 
These revelations emerged a month after the Helsinki talks at a SCAR workshop of frontline researchers, held in the Antarctic gateway of Christchurch, New Zealand. 
 
During a 200-minute recording <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xzm1ApfqphU" target="_blank" rel="noopener">freely uploaded to YouTube</a> by SCAR and <a href="https://www.comnap.aq/heightened-risk-of-hpai-in-antarctica" target="_blank" rel="noopener">COMNAP’s website</a>, other preparedness worries came to light, including fears about reporting lines and political tensions if the virus were to rear a potentially divisive head in areas with many national stations.
 
The workshop was also informed that H5N1’s Antarctic incursion via migratory species was unavoidable — and that the pressure cooker of climate change was the chilling, silent, and insidious culprit. 
 
“Infectious disease is increasing in wildlife due to climate change — we’ve been warned for many years,” said Dr Meagan Dewar, chair of SCAR’s Antarctic Wildlife Health Network (AWHN), which unearthed the penguin mass graves in March. Their three-week mission, <a href="https://www.csic.es/es/actualidad-del-csic/un-equipo-cientifico-internacional-identifica-la-dispersion-de-la-gripe-aviar-de-alta-patogenicidad-traves-de-la-region-de-la-peninsula-antartica" target="_blank" rel="noopener">co-funded by IAATO</a>, pioneered a fast-detection onboard diagnostic lab — <a href="https://federation.edu.au/fednews?announcement_id=35782&action=view_announcement&category_id=&utm_source=feduni_news&utm_medium=website&utm_campaign=FedNews" target="_blank" rel="noopener">a first for Antarctica</a>.
 
<div id="attachment_90091" style="width: 460px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="https://whowhatwhy.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/image4.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-90091" class="wp-image-90091 size-featured-single" src="https://whowhatwhy.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/image4-450x286.jpg" alt="Bird Flu, Lab Sample" width="450" height="286" /></a>Analyzing 2023/24 summer samples from an extensive Chilean surveillance effort joining forces with other countries. Photo credit: <a href="https://www.clauwers.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Christian Clauwers / Clauwers.com / </a><a href="https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2024-04-24-behind-the-ice-curtain-antarctic-treaty-talks-conceal-looming-bird-flu-catastrophe/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Daily Maverick</a></div>
 
When we asked workshop participant Dr. Michelle Wille where scientists needed help, she said she was encouraged by cooperation among many national programs, but said capacity could “improve across the board.” She also rattled off an Antarctic virologist’s wishlist, which asked for more financial support to dispatch trained staff for an outbreak response, as well as enhanced shipping and permitting to ensure samples are transported swiftly to accredited labs. Covering costly items like PPE, kits, and reagents, her list included dedicated funding for sample testing.
 
Besides the deep disappointment of <a href="https://www.nature.com/articles/d41586-024-00807-0" target="_blank" rel="noopener">canceled wildlife studies</a> so soon after COVID-19, deemed necessary to avoid non-essential contact with animals, there was also the matter of processing emotional stress. 
 
“Many of my colleagues from around the world have been shocked by the scale of mortality events,” added the AWHN’s Wille, who has tirelessly churned out daily HPAI tweets on her <a href="https://twitter.com/DuckSwabber" target="_blank" rel="noopener">@duckswabber</a> X account. “I’ve heard tales from colleagues in Europe, watching almost all individuals in a seabird colony die or disappear, and my colleagues in South America seeing dead sea lions, kilometer after kilometer upon beaches.”
 
“I think we are all collectively struggling with ecological grief and are speaking as loudly as we can,” said Wille. “It has been very challenging to convey the level of mortality to the public, as well as the implications of these mortality events. Scientists are speaking widely to media outlets as best as possible.” 
 
Meanwhile, on South Africa’s Marion Island, which supports half the world’s breeding wandering albatrosses, Professor Nico de Bruyn noted the island’s researchers had taken their own initiative to introduce biosecurity in the absence of government protocols. The South African government confirmed theirs would only be tabled in India next month. 
 
Pretoria University Professor Marthan Bester, a leading polar mammal authority, feared a grim outcome might face the subantarctic territory’s elephant seals. If the virus hit, “bitterly few” would survive.
 
COMNAP executive secretary Michelle Rogan-Finnemore did not respond to repeated requests for comment about preparedness challenges. Answers were also not received from the Argentine, Czechian, and Spanish bases.
<h2>‘We Chose Hope’</h2>
For William Muntean, the former head of the US delegation to the Helsinki meeting, national programs have done as well as can be expected. Since the flu’s incursion, some countries have issued individual statements, including <a href="https://www.antarctica.gov.au/news/2024/aad-seabird-expert-in-avian-influenza-monitoring-role/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Australia</a>, <a href="https://www.institutobase.cl/en/chile-detects-positive-cases-of-avian-flu-in-penguins-shags-and-skuas-in-antarctica/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Chile</a>, <a href="https://www.csic.es/es/actualidad-del-csic/cientificos-del-centro-de-biologia-molecular-severo-ochoa-del-csic-confirman-la-presencia-por-primera-vez-en-la-antartida-del-virus-de-la-gripe-aviar-altamente-patogenica" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Spain</a>, the <a href="https://www.bas.ac.uk/media/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">UK</a>, and the <a href="https://www.nsf.gov/news/news_summ.jsp?cntn_id=308279&org=OPP" target="_blank" rel="noopener">US</a>.
 
The minutes show that Muntean and his delegation from the US — the treaty depositary — took a lead role at the meeting to address the potentially “devastating consequences.” They proposed measures for detection and prevention, urging cooperation, the “highest biosecurity,” and data exchange.
 
“No scientist said at the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting that human vectors such as tourism or scientists were the only pathways for HPAI to arrive in Antarctica,” Muntean continued. 
 
“Therefore, officials at the ATCM could at best be hopeful that actions taken by relevant groups to reduce those risks would slow the introduction of HPAI to the region,” he told us. 
 
Muntean noted: “They also chose to be hopeful that the limited monitoring ability combined with behavior modifications would significantly reduce if not eliminate the risk of transmission of HPAI from wildlife to humans.” 
 
<div id="attachment_90088" style="width: 460px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="https://whowhatwhy.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/image1-2.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-90088" class="wp-image-90088 size-featured-single" src="https://whowhatwhy.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/image1-2-450x276.jpg" alt="Adélie penguins, East Antarctic" width="450" height="276" /></a>Adélie penguins running across East Antarctic sea ice. Photo credit: <a href="https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2024-04-24-behind-the-ice-curtain-antarctic-treaty-talks-conceal-looming-bird-flu-catastrophe/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tiara Walters / Daily Maverick</a></div>
<div id="attachment_90090" style="width: 460px" class="wp-caption aligncenter"><a href="https://whowhatwhy.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/image3.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-90090" class="wp-image-90090 size-featured-single" src="https://whowhatwhy.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/05/image3-450x297.jpg" alt="Marion Island, king penguins" width="450" height="297" /></a>Marion Island king penguins. Photo credit: <a href="https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2024-04-24-behind-the-ice-curtain-antarctic-treaty-talks-conceal-looming-bird-flu-catastrophe/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tiara Walters / Daily Maverick</a></div>
<h2>The World Cannot Wait for Spring</h2>
As animals disperse, the 2023/24 breeding season has now drawn to a close. Professor Ashley Banyard, head of the virology division at the UK’s Animal and Plant Health Agency, which <a href="https://www.bas.ac.uk/media-post/first-confirmed-cases-of-avian-influenza-in-the-antarctic-region/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">confirmed the first Antarctic cases</a>, and sent additional help to South Georgia, hoped the worst of the virus had “burnt out” in the island’s seals, after causing mass deaths there.
 
Either way, when the Long Dark Night retreats in spring, and the sun’s tentacles creep back over the ice, virologists will be vigilant for a new ecological chapter. The sun, for eons a sign of renewal, could now signal ruin for a vast and complex community of life for which there may be no more safety in numbers.
 
Upcoming seasons, BASE Millennium Institute researcher Dr Fabiola León said, would be best tackled with drone mapping and proactive surveillance across vulnerable species. Singling out Antarctic specially protected areas, León called for intensified surveillance, biosecurity enforcement, and restrictions — which required increased budgetary support for specialized teams across Antarctica.
 
A “primary rationale” for mobilizing resources was anchored in the ethical mandate to safeguard the biodiversity and essential ecosystem services of every Antarctic species. 
 
Waiting for spring could be too late. 
 
“I suggest that specialized scientific groups be mobilized, laboratory equipment be provided in Antarctic scientific bases, and continuous surveillance be established even before the breeding season,” León said. “This surveillance should involve a population census, symptom monitoring, and detection of viral prevalence and load in both flying and non-flying birds.”
 
It was, in a word, a matter of universal concern.
 
“The issue of the H5N1 outbreak on the Antarctic continent,” León said, “should be a matter of priority where all countries worldwide could contribute.”
 
<a href="https://whowhatwhy.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/ccnow_logo_192x192.jpg"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="alignnone size-medium wp-image-58065" src="https://whowhatwhy.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/ccnow_logo_192x192.jpg" alt="Covering Climate Now logo" width="192" height="192" /></a>
]]></content:encoded>
</item>
<item>
<title>Presidential Debate Commission Refutes Ridiculous Trump Campaign Claim</title>
<link>https://whowhatwhy.org/elections/presidential-debate-commission-refutes-ridiculous-trump-campaign-claim/</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[WhoWhatWhy Staff]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Thu, 02 May 2024 09:57:37 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Elections]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://whowhatwhy.org/?p=90099</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Donald Trump always brags that he wants to debate Joe Biden anytime, anywhere. However, now that Biden has indicated he is fine with that, the former president’s campaign is throwing up roadblocks. ]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[Donald Trump has boasted that he would debate President Joe Biden anytime and anywhere. Apparently, that statement has to come with a qualifier: only on his terms, and not whenever the Commission on Presidential Debates (CPD) has scheduled debates.
The former president’s campaign has lamented that the first debate would “only” be held on September 16, claiming that “millions of Americans will already have voted then.”
Not surprisingly, that is complete nonsense, as the CPD pointed out on Wednesday in its response to the criticism.
The commission noted that the first debate, scheduled to be held on September 16, would be “<a href="https://debates.org/2024/05/01/cpd-statement/index.html">the earliest televised general election debate ever held</a>.”
The CPD said it chose the date “after a comprehensive study of early voting rules in every state,” and that only voters in North Carolina would even have the opportunity to cast a ballot by then (beginning on September 6). 
However, it seems unlikely that “millions” of them would have requested an absentee ballot by September 16, filled it out, and returned it back to a board of election. 
In theory, voters in Pennsylvania could also cast their ballots. Here, the day of the first debate is the first one where they can receive and complete a ballot. 
Still, we are talking about a few thousand votes being cast in total in these two states. Of course, neither Trump nor his campaign can ever be accused of letting facts ruin a nonsensical narrative to feed to supporters.
What seems more likely is that the former president’s claim of being willing to debate Biden is worth as much as his statements that he would be willing to testify under oath at one of his criminal trials. 
In other words, don’t hold your breath.
Another reason why the debates cannot be held earlier, according to the CPD, is that federal law stipulates that not only the candidates of the major parties are invited to participate but also anybody else who appears on a sufficient number of ballots that, theoretically, would allow them to win the Electoral College. 
And, since three states do not close their ballots for independent candidates until September 6, it might be impossible to hold a debate before then that includes all eligible candidates.
Of course, it is quite possible that the Trump campaign is looking for an out now that Biden has indicated that he would be willing to debate the former president. This week, Biden told radio host Howard Stern that he would be open to debating his opponent.
Trump could not be blamed if he were reluctant to cross (s)words with the president. 
Polling shows that Hillary Clinton soundly beat him in all three debates in 2016 and that he also lost all debates against Biden in 2020. 
The reason why seems clear: While Trump’s rambling and combative style plays well with his supporters at campaign rallies, it is much less effective in a debate setting.
All of that being said, it seems unlikely that any debate at any stage will make much of a difference in swinging votes because the country is simply too polarized.
Therefore, even if the candidates do agree on dates, the debates will largely only be a spectacle for the media. 
And that’s a big if since both campaigns probably don’t want to rush two elderly men in front of cameras, where their performances could easily do more harm than good. 
]]></content:encoded>
</item>
<item>
<title>Eight US Newspapers Sue OpenAI and Microsoft for Copyright Infringement</title>
<link>https://whowhatwhy.org/editors-picks/eight-us-newspapers-sue-openai-and-microsoft-for-copyright-infringement/</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Whowhatwhy Editors]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Wed, 01 May 2024 17:00:04 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Editors' Picks]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://whowhatwhy.org/?p=90079</guid>
<description><![CDATA[PICKS are stories from many sources, selected by our editors or recommended by our readers because they are important, surprising, troubling, enlightening, inspiring, or amusing. They appear on our site and in our daily newsletter. Please send suggested articles, videos, podcasts, etc. to picks@whowhatwhy.org.]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<h3>Eight US Newspapers Sue OpenAI and Microsoft for Copyright Infringement (Maria)</h3>
The author <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2024/apr/30/us-newspaper-openai-lawsuit" target="_blank" rel="noopener">writes</a>, “A group of eight US newspapers is suing ChatGPT-maker OpenAI and Microsoft, alleging that the technology companies have been ‘purloining millions’ of copyrighted news articles without permission or payment to train their artificial intelligence chatbots. The New York Daily News, Chicago Tribune, Denver Post and other papers filed the lawsuit on Tuesday in a New York federal court.”
 
<h3>How Far Trump Would Go (DonkeyHotey and Dana)</h3>
From <a href="https://time.com/6972021/donald-trump-2024-election-interview/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Time</a>: “Donald Trump thinks he’s identified a crucial mistake of his first term: He was too nice. We’ve been talking for more than an hour on April 12 at his fever-dream palace in Palm Beach. Aides lurk around the perimeter of a gilded dining room overlooking the manicured lawn. When one nudges me to wrap up the interview, I bring up the many former Cabinet officials who refuse to endorse Trump this time. Some have publicly warned that he poses a danger to the Republic. Why should voters trust you, I ask, when some of the people who observed you most closely do not? As always, Trump punches back, denigrating his former top advisers. But beneath the typical torrent of invective, there is a larger lesson he has taken away. ‘I let them quit because I have a heart. I don’t want to embarrass anybody,’ Trump says. ‘I don’t think I’ll do that again. From now on, I’ll fire.’”
 
<h3>How Today’s Antiwar Protests Stack up Against Major Student Movements in History (Laura)</h3>
The author <a href="https://www.vox.com/politics/24141636/campus-protest-columbia-israel-kent-state-history?__c=1" target="_blank" rel="noopener">writes</a>, “Just like the protesters who came before them, the students who are now being arrested, and in some cases suspended, for setting up encampments on their campuses in solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza have been demonized by politicians. … Some of their demands, including divestiture from firms that support Israel’s war and occupation, mirror demands that past protesters made to divest from South Africa’s apartheid government. And their discontent has similarly intensified in the face of police crackdowns. But there are key differences as well. Besides their smaller size, the present-day protests have faced swifter suppression than their predecessors dealt with. In perhaps the most extreme example at the University of Texas at Austin, administrators quickly dispatched police with horses and riot gear absent any signs of violence; charges were later dropped against all 57 arrested.”
 
<h3>The New Sundown Towns (Dana)</h3>
From <a href="https://newrepublic.com/article/181036/new-sundown-towns-grants-pass-v-johnson" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The New Republic</a>: “As Grants Pass, Oregon — and the nation — await a Supreme Court ruling on just how far cities can police the homeless, a volunteer mayor and her unhoused constituents try to weather the backlash.”
 
<h3>It’s the End of the Web as We Know It (Sean)</h3>
From <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/technology/archive/2024/04/generative-ai-search-llmo/678154/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Atlantic</a>: “The web has become so interwoven with everyday life that it is easy to forget what an extraordinary accomplishment and treasure it is. In just a few decades, much of human knowledge has been collectively written up and made available to anyone with an internet connection. But all of this is coming to an end. The advent of AI threatens to destroy the complex online ecosystem that allows writers, artists, and other creators to reach human audiences. To understand why, you must understand publishing.”
 
<h3>The Breathtaking Lifesaving Impact of Vaccines, in One Chart (Gerry)</h3>
The author <a href="https://www.vox.com/future-perfect/24138291/do-vaccines-work-explained-study-efficacy-evidence" target="_blank" rel="noopener">writes</a>, “The world has become a much safer place to be a young child in the last 50 years. Since 1974, infant mortality worldwide has plummeted. That year, one in 10 newborns died before reaching their first birthday. By 2021, that rate had fallen by over two-thirds. A lot of factors drove this change: lower poverty and better nutrition, cleaner air and water, and readily available antibiotics and other treatments. But one of the biggest contributors, a new study from the World Health Organization (WHO) concludes, was vaccines. Vaccines alone, the researchers find, accounted for 40 percent of the decline in infant mortality. The paper … estimates that in the 50 years since 1974, vaccines prevented 154 million deaths.”
 
<h3>Civil War Might Be the Year’s Most Explosive Movie. Alex Garland Thinks It’s Just Reporting (Reader Jim)</h3>
From <a href="https://apnews.com/article/civil-war-film-alex-garland-8c523bf7db2bfae480ff7cfe22ea547e" target="_blank" rel="noopener">AP News</a>, “Alex Garland’s films have vividly conjured a virus-caused pandemic (2002’s ‘28 Days Later’), an uncontrollable artificial intelligence (2014’s ‘Ex Machina’) and, in his latest, Civil War, a near-future America in the throes of all-out warfare. Most filmmakers with such a record might claim some knack for tapping into the zeitgeist. But Garland doesn’t see it that way. He’s dealing, he says, with omnipresent realities that demand no great leaps of vision. He wrote Civil War in 2020, when societies around the world were unraveling over COVID-19 and the prospect of societal breakdown was on everyone’s minds. … Civil War is an ominous attempt to turn widely held American anxieties into a violent, unsettling big-screen reality. Garland’s film [opened on] the anniversary, to the day, of when the Civil War began in 1861.”
]]></content:encoded>
</item>
<item>
<title>DeSantis Announces ‘Freedom Summer’ in Florida — Just Not for Pregnant Women</title>
<link>https://whowhatwhy.org/politics/us-politics/desantis-announces-freedom-summer-in-florida-just-not-for-pregnant-women/</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Klaus Marre]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Wed, 01 May 2024 13:06:08 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[US Politics]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://whowhatwhy.org/?p=90076</guid>
<description><![CDATA[If you are looking to buy sales tax-free recreational equipment in Florida this summer, Ron DeSantis has great news for you. But if you need an abortion, you’ll have to look elsewhere.]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) said Tuesday that he would sign legislation to make this summer a “Freedom Summer” in the Sunshine State. Of course, that doesn’t apply to pregnant women, who, as of today, are subject to one of the most draconian abortion bans in the country.
The legislation is great news for anybody who does not have an unwanted pregnancy and wants to buy snorkeling equipment (up to $25) in July. The Freedom Month Sales Tax means that lots of recreational items are discounted in Florida that month.
Speaking of recreational, if you are a woman who had recreational sex that left you pregnant, you better find out quickly… because abortions after six weeks of pregnancy are now illegal in this paddle board (up to $300) tax haven.
But the good news doesn’t stop there for non-pregnant Floridians. Thanks to DeSantis’s largesse, they can visit Florida’s state parks for free on Memorial Day weekend.
Of course, if you ended up getting pregnant after being raped by your uncle and didn’t file a police report, you might want to spend that time trying to figure out where you can get an abortion. Just FYI, don’t look in the South.
Because, while the six-week abortion ban includes an exception for pregnancies (up to 15 weeks) resulting from rape, incest, or sex trafficking, you must have documentation to verify this fact. So, if you are a 14-year-old middle schooler who didn’t file that police report because you were worried that Uncle Lou would beat you to a pulp if you didn’t keep quiet, you are out of luck after six weeks.
On the plus side, inflatable water tubes and floats up to $150 will be cheaper for you so that you can really enjoy the summer.
DeSantis hailed this legislative milestone by taking a swipe at the Biden administration.
“Florida is stepping up to make summer more affordable for families,” he said. “While the federal government is causing high inflation and skyrocketing costs for families, Florida’s smart fiscal policies allow us to reduce taxes and help reduce the burden on Floridians.”
Not the burden of an unwanted pregnancy, though. If that’s your problem and not the high prices of sunscreen (up to $15), flashlights (up to $30), and bicycle helmets (up to $50), then you need to look elsewhere.
“I encourage all of Florida’s residents and visitors to take advantage of these extra savings and discover the unique experiences the real Florida has to offer,” said Department of Environmental Protection Secretary Shawn Hamilton.
As of today, these experiences do not include access to safe abortions after 42 days following a sexual encounter, i.e., a point in time before many women even realize that they are pregnant. At least not unless their life is on the line.
However, they don’t have to be concerned about the sales tax on concert tickets through December 31, which will be waived. That should be welcome news for any woman now having to pay for two.
]]></content:encoded>
</item>
<item>
<title>Back to First Principles</title>
<link>https://whowhatwhy.org/cartoon/back-to-first-principles/</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Jon Richards]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Wed, 01 May 2024 11:56:38 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Cartoon]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Courts]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://whowhatwhy.org/?p=90073</guid>
<description><![CDATA[SCOTUS wishes to Make Immunity Great Again.]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[While you’re here enjoying Jon Richards’s latest cartoon, please take a moment to read these articles on related topics: 
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><a href="https://whowhatwhy.org/politics/us-politics/everyone-is-right-about-the-ny-trial-except-trump/">Everyone Is Right About the NY Trial… Except Trump</a></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><a href="https://whowhatwhy.org/elections/in-hilarious-reversal-trump-now-slams-rfk-jr/">In Hilarious Reversal, Trump Now Slams RFK Jr.</a></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1"><a href="https://whowhatwhy.org/author/jon-richards/">More Cartoons by Jon Richards</a></li>
</ul>
]]></content:encoded>
</item>
<item>
<title>Amateur Photographer Snaps Rare Bird in Oregon: ‘It’s Mind-Blowing’</title>
<link>https://whowhatwhy.org/editors-picks/amateur-photographer-snaps-rare-bird-in-oregon-its-mind-blowing/</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Whowhatwhy Editors]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Tue, 30 Apr 2024 17:00:33 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Editors' Picks]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://whowhatwhy.org/?p=90070</guid>
<description><![CDATA[PICKS are stories from many sources, selected by our editors or recommended by our readers because they are important, surprising, troubling, enlightening, inspiring, or amusing. They appear on our site and in our daily newsletter. Please send suggested articles, videos, podcasts, etc. to picks@whowhatwhy.org.]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[<h3>Amateur Photographer Snaps Rare Bird in Oregon: ‘It’s Mind-Blowing’ (Maria)</h3>
The author <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2024/apr/29/amateur-birder-oregon-photographs-rare-bird" target="_blank" rel="noopener">writes</a>, “Michael Sanchez was setting up his new camera to capture a waterfall at Oregon’s Hug Point at sunrise when he spotted a little bird hopping around. He snapped a few photos and didn’t think much more of it. A week later, those snapshots have made him the star — and the envy — of the local birding community. Sanchez, who is from Vancouver, Washington, may have inadvertently captured the first images of an extremely rare blue rock-thrush in North America.”
 
<h3>Arizona Highlights Risk of ‘Zombie’ Laws (Dana)</h3>
From <a href="https://statecourtreport.org/our-work/analysis-opinion/arizona-highlights-risk-zombie-laws" target="_blank" rel="noopener">State Court Report</a>: “Earlier this month, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled that an 1864 law that bans virtually all abortions in the state is still operative. The decision upended state and national politics in a key swing state and brought new attention to so-called zombie laws — long-unenforced statutes that remain on the books. … [Zombie laws] highlight an often underappreciated argument for the importance of respecting precedent: generations of Americans expended no political energy to remove inoperative abortion laws from the books, relying on the fact that Roe set a federal floor for abortion rights. Now Dobbs threatens to resurrect those laws, often in political environments that can make repeal an uphill climb.”
 
<h3>He Threatened Marjorie Taylor Greene Amid a Mental Health Crisis. Then Came the Consequences. (Russ)</h3>
The author <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/interactive/2024/marjorie-taylor-greene-threats/?itid=hp_only-from-the-post_p003_f001" target="_blank" rel="noopener">writes</a>, “In a time of rising anger, what happened to one man who threatened Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene.”
 
<h3>I Am a Jewish Student at Columbia. Don’t Believe What You’re Being Told About ‘Campus Antisemitism’ (DonkeyHotey)</h3>
The author <a href="https://zeteo.com/p/i-am-a-jewish-student-at-columbia" target="_blank" rel="noopener">writes</a>, “The White House, Congressional Republicans, and cable news talking heads would have you believe that the Columbia University campus has devolved into a hotbed of antisemitic violence — but the reality on the ground is very different. As a Jewish student at Columbia, it depresses me that I have to correct the record and explain what the real risk to our safety looks like. I still can’t quite believe how the events on campus over the past few days have been so cynically and hysterically misrepresented by the media and by our elected representatives.”
 
<h3>Boeing, Slowed to a Crawl, Bleeds Cash in Wake of Alaska Air Blowout (Reader Steve)</h3>
From <a href="https://www.seattletimes.com/business/boeing-aerospace/boeing-slowed-to-a-crawl-bleeds-cash-in-wake-of-alaska-air-blowout/#:~:text=Boeing%20%26%20Aerospace-,Boeing%2C%20slowed%20to%20a%20crawl%2C%20bleeds%20cash%20in,wake%20of%20Alaska%20Air%20blowout&text=Boeing%20lost%20%24355%20million%20in,Alaska%20Airlines%20jet%20in%20January" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Seattle Times</a>: “Boeing lost $355 million in the first three months of the year, burning through $3.9 billion in cash after the jet manufacturer slowed 737 MAX production to a crawl following the midair blowout of a fuselage panel on an Alaska Airlines jet in January. The first quarter financial results, reported Wednesday, included a charge of $443 million in compensation paid to airlines forced to ground their MAXs for about three weeks after the incident and another $222 million write-off in the defense division for added costs on the KC-46 tanker and T-7 fighter trainer programs.”
 
<h3>She Was Fired After Not Endorsing Splenda-Filled Salads To People With Diabetes. Why? (Gerry)</h3>
From <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/apr/18/splenda-diabetes-lawsuit" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Guardian</a>: “Elizabeth Hanna had a simple job: help people with diabetes figure out what to eat. Anyone with common sense knows this should probably not entail foods that might increase people’s risk of getting diabetes. But that’s not necessarily the thinking at the American Diabetes Association (ADA), the world’s leading diabetes research and patient advocacy group, which also receives millions of dollars from sponsors in the pharmaceutical, food and agricultural industries. According to a lawsuit Hanna recently filed against the ADA, the organization — which endorses recipes and food plans on its website and on the websites of ‘partner’ food brands — tried to get her to greenlight recipes that she believed flew in the face of the ADA’s mission.”
<h3>A Highway in Indiana Could One Day Charge Your EV While You’re Driving It (Laura)</h3>
The author <a href="https://insideclimatenews.org/news/15042024/indiana-highway-ev-charging/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">writes</a>, “Soon, the Indiana Department of Transportation (INDOT) … will install a series of copper coils under the highway’s surface to test a new technology Purdue University researchers developed that can provide power to electric vehicles wirelessly as they drive past.”
]]></content:encoded>
</item>
<item>
<title>Deep in MAGA Pandemic Politics, RFK Jr. Morphs From Asset to Risk for Trump</title>
<link>https://whowhatwhy.org/politics/us-politics/deep-in-maga-pandemic-politics-rfk-jr-morphs-from-asset-to-risk-for-trump/</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Allison Neitzel]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Tue, 30 Apr 2024 11:00:31 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Health & Medicine]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[US Politics]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://whowhatwhy.org/?p=90062</guid>
<description><![CDATA[Trump is nervous that Bannon’s IED “spoiler” candidate may blow up in his face.]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[Shortly following the announcement of<a href="https://www.importantcontext.news/p/kennedy-vp-pick-goes-mask-off-anti"> Nicole Shanahan</a> as Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s running mate, the Kennedy campaign suffered a major blow when New York staffer<a href="https://whowhatwhy.org/elections/whats-brewing-at-djt-industries-inc-rfk-jr-division/"> Rita Palma</a> was captured on video appearing to admit their raison d’etre was to act as a spoiler for the benefit of Trump in the 2024 election. Not long after the footage surfaced earlier this month,<a href="https://www.rollingstone.com/politics/politics-news/rfk-fires-staffer-endorsed-trump-reelection-1235002839/"> Palma was fired</a> from the campaign for getting caught saying what has long been understood about the Kennedy family black sheep’s controversial independent presidential run.
Ties between competing candidates’ teams are, for obvious reasons, ordinarily nonexistent. The Trump and Kennedy campaigns, however, have displayed some peculiar overlap. <a href="https://abc17news.com/politics/national-politics/cnn-us-politics/2024/04/09/rfk-jr-campaign-official-attended-jan-6-stop-the-steal-rally-and-wanted-favorite-president-trump-to-run-for-third-term/">Palma</a> attended Trump’s Stop the Steal rally, while Kennedy campaign communications director<a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-election/rfk-jr-hires-del-bigtree-anti-vaccine-activist-communications-director-rcna131859"> Del Bigtree</a><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/ican-billionaire-funded-antivax-group-trump-fans-ties-2021-8"> appeared</a> at an event ahead of the rally that preceded the January 6 insurrection.
Present at the Shanahan announcement event was<a href="https://www.importantcontext.news/p/covid-contrarian-doctor-scores-big"> Dr. Jay Bhattacharya</a>, a Stanford University health economist who worked to push a “<a href="https://coronavirus-democrats-oversight.house.gov/news/reports/new-select-subcommittee-report-reveals-full-scope-trump-administration-s-embrace">dangerous and discredited herd immunity</a>” anti-lockdown strategy in the Trump White House — a strategy codified as the<a href="https://www.exposedbycmd.org/2021/12/22/how-the-koch-network-hijacked-the-war-on-covid/"> Great Barrington Declaration</a> in October 2020.
And there are the claims that MAGA puppet master<a href="https://whowhatwhy.org/science/health-medicine/rfk-jr-bannon-chaos-candidate-born-on-third-base-and-now-playing-left-field/"> Steve Bannon</a> helped birth Kennedy’s wild-card campaign, and the telling fact that the Trump and Kennedy campaigns share the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/aug/02/robert-f-kennedy-jr-republican-donor-super-pac">same largest donor</a>. Indeed, at one point Trump <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/apr/15/robert-f-kennedy-jr-trump-presidential-running-mate">reportedly</a> sounded Kennedy out about being his 2024 running mate, an overture the latter claims he rejected.
But what is overlooked is how early Kennedy himself got involved with MAGA’s pandemic-driven assault on public health, carried out for the benefit of <a href="https://foreignpolicy.com/2022/02/08/economists-are-fueling-the-war-against-public-health/">protecting the economy</a> and big business interests, and bolstering Trump’s 2020 reelection campaign. 
In August 2020, long before the vaccines were available,<a href="https://whowhatwhy.org/science/health-medicine/hcq-the-maga-fools-gold-that-turned-rfk-jr-from-gadfly-to-global-threat/"> Kennedy linked up with Dr. Simone Gold</a>, leader of<a href="https://washingtonspectator.org/anatomy-of-deceit/"> America’s Frontline Doctors</a> (AFLDS). Gold was fresh off of her political breakout appearance, a July 2020 press conference on the steps of the Supreme Court, where she and a small group of Trump-aligned physicians promoted hydroxychloroquine (HCQ) as a COVID-19 cure — and argued against lockdowns.
The following month, Kennedy appeared with<a href="https://www.motherjones.com/politics/2021/05/doctor-lawyer-insurrectionist-the-radicalization-of-simone-gold/"> Gold</a> — a physician, attorney, and future insurrectionist — on Marcus Lamb’s Christian talk show Ministry Now to discuss this miracle cure’s “censorship” by the government.
Kennedy <a href="https://www.facebook.com/DaystarTV/videos/3357728570986392/">explained</a> to Lamb that “the pharmaceutical machine” was against HCQ and accused researchers of intentionally overdosing patients on the drug, “killing people,” to obscure its life-saving use for COVID-19. 
Lamb would go on to <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/marcus-lamb-anti-vaccine-christian-broadcaster-dies-covid-battle-rcna7139">die at 64</a> of unvaccinated COVID-19 in 2021, after urging his followers not to get vaccinated. 
The reality, despite<a href="https://whowhatwhy.org/culture/journalism-media/how-musk-sold-maga-on-hcq-and-opened-the-covid-19-disinformation-floodgates/"> Trump and Elon Musk’s endorsement</a> of questionable HCQ research starting in March of that year, is that the drug had already been credibly proven ineffective against the novel virus by the time Gold and Kennedy were promoting it. A major randomized control trial<a href="https://www.wired.com/story/major-hydroxychloroquine-trial-shows-no-prevention-benefits/"> out of the University of Minnesota showed no use for HCQ</a> against COVID-19 in June 2020, weeks before AFLDS’s aforementioned SCOTUS-steps “White Coat Summit,” live-streamed by Breitbart and tweeted out by Trump.
A<a href="https://coronavirus-democrats-oversight.house.gov/sites/democrats.coronavirus.house.gov/files/2022.08.24%20The%20Trump%20White%20House%E2%80%99s%20Relentless%20Attacks%20on%20FDA%E2%80%99s%20Coronavirus%20Response.pdf"> 2022 House report</a> would reveal that while people like Gold and Kennedy went directly to the public to promote HCQ, Trump insiders — including Bannon — were involved through the summer of 2020 in “a knife-fight with the FDA” to try to strong-arm a new emergency use authorization for the drug.
Following the failure of HCQ, AFLDS and Kennedy would endorse the next false COVID-19 cure pushed by the Right, the now infamous antiparasitic <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38431155/">ivermectin</a>. They would, of course, decry the vaccines that<a href="https://www.commonwealthfund.org/blog/2022/two-years-covid-vaccines-prevented-millions-deaths-hospitalizations?fbclid=IwAR354ga2S7dnoFgNBNtZAcxYME1cPCy4qgmMxL8x8pu5c3xtOrRDShzTygE"> actually worked</a> to reduce transmission and severity of COVID-19 disease — which would prove disastrous for public health but <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2024/02/21/covid-misinformation-earnings/">profitable</a> for groups like AFLDS and Kennedy’s Children’s Health Defense (CHD).
It is worth noting that Kennedy attempted to get his<a href="https://www.bmj.com/content/342/bmj.c7452"> debunked</a> vaccines-cause-autism crusade picked up by the Trump administration back in 2017, but was<a href="https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2018/feb/21/trump-vaccination-safety-commission-robert-kennedy-autism"> ultimately blown off</a>. Thanks to his work promoting a false COVID-19 cure to give false confidence in reopening the economy, and helping the Right wage war on the vaccines, he has since managed to worm his way deeply into MAGA World.
Which, in one of life’s little ironies, has not exactly endeared him to <a href="https://www.forbes.com/sites/caileygleeson/2024/03/27/trump-blasts-rfk-jr-and-nicole-shanahan-but-says-his-radical-left-bid-is-great-for-maga/">Trump himself</a>. 
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Trump is sweating RFK Jr <a href="https://t.co/qG3WaK8zOR">pic.twitter.com/qG3WaK8zOR</a>
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) <a href="https://twitter.com/atrupar/status/1784019909288083585?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">April 27, 2024</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
 
Now that anti-vax misinformation has found such a place of honor in the MAGA movement — and given that Operation Warpspeed was carried out under Trump, who was desperate to make the vaccines available <a href="https://twitter.com/AliNeitzelMD/status/1784266914690158806">before the 2020 election</a>, safety testing be damned — there’s a fair chance this Kennedy-as-spoiler-candidate strategy could backfire.
With <a href="https://www.axios.com/2024/04/25/biden-polling-rfk-jr-trump">recent polls</a> showing the rightward-veering Kennedy pulling more votes from Trump than from Biden, Trump is <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/2024-election/trump-says-rfk-jr-will-hurt-biden-private-s-not-sure-rcna148815">reportedly getting very nervous</a> about the <a href="https://whowhatwhy.org/elections/in-hilarious-reversal-trump-now-slams-rfk-jr/">prospect</a> of Bannon’s IED candidate blowing up in his face.
 
Allison Neitzel, MD, is a physician-researcher and founder of the independent research group MisinformationKills, which has aided in her investigation into the dark money and politics behind public health disinformation with a focus on the pandemic. 
<hr />
 
]]></content:encoded>
</item>
<item>
<title>Baker’s Believe It or Not!</title>
<link>https://whowhatwhy.org/politics/bakers-believe-it-or-not/</link>
<dc:creator><![CDATA[Russ Baker]]></dc:creator>
<pubDate>Tue, 30 Apr 2024 11:00:12 +0000</pubDate>
<category><![CDATA[Culture]]></category>
<category><![CDATA[Politics]]></category>
<guid isPermaLink="false">https://whowhatwhy.org/?p=90047</guid>
<description><![CDATA[You may need to have a drink with this. Maybe a double.]]></description>
<content:encoded><![CDATA[Can you imagine? Vladimir Putin’s regime is now in the <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/apr/19/authoritarians-vladimir-putin-propaganda-factchecking-democracy">fact-checking business</a>. Just the people you’d trust to tell us what is true and what isn’t. Of course, he means to turn the concept of fact-checking on its head. Like his explanation for the bodies filmed after a massacre in Ukraine: They were just actors, “arranged” on the ground. Imagine going to Alex Jones for the truth about Sandy Hook. Lewis Carroll, meet George Orwell.
But maybe it would be more productive to do this: Send the facts into a black hole. Apparently, as with other matter entering it, according to new scientific findings, all the information in it would be scrambled, “<a href="https://www.azoquantum.com/News.aspx?newsID=10191#:~:text=Researchers%20have%20demonstrated%20that%20quantum,National%20Academy%20of%20Sciences%20Proceedings">even at the quantum level</a>.”
Of course, when not labeling truth as untruth, Putin is busy attacking, directly, if somewhat discreetly, the US. So are his friends in China. According to FBI Director Christopher Wray, Chinese hackers have <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/apr/19/fbi-china-hack-infrastructure">penetrated critical US infrastructure</a>, and are now waiting “for just the right moment to deal a devastating blow.”
Most people don’t seem to care too much about any of the above. Not when there are crucial sports stats to memorize, or more useless products to be bought via social media. No, for actual consciousness, we may have to turn to other animals. Which is possible, since a bunch of <a href="https://www.quantamagazine.org/insects-and-other-animals-have-consciousness-experts-declare-20240419/#:~:text=Insects%20and%20Other%20Animals%20Have%20Consciousness%2C%20Experts%20Declare,-By%20Dan%20Falk&text=A%20group%20of%20prominent%20biologists,other%20overlooked%20animals%20experience%20consciousness.">biologists</a> and philosophers are kinda leaning into the idea that “insects, octopuses, crustaceans, fish and other overlooked animals experience consciousness.”
Does the idea bug you? I’m sure I will hear about it. 
Speaking of consciousness, did you know Trump is on trial? One of the things that interests me the most about this somewhat technical case is that Trump didn’t seem to actually mind if the public learned about his sexual affairs outside his marriages. Except at election time, when people sometimes won’t vote for someone who is just too randy. 
In fact, my guess is he was thrilled to leak on himself as “a source” to National Enquirer and other outlets and basically brag that he was bedding a porn star. Indeed, true Trump fans are thrilled with just about anything he does, did, or claims he did. As for Melania, she could hardly have been surprised; and, as Trump might say, she has been well compensated to put up with almost anything.
One thing Trump enjoys even more than bragging about exploits and infidelity is stiffing people. (You should pardon the expression.) We now hear that Trump was thinking he could trick Stormy Daniels into accepting delayed payment, then not pay her at all. 
Another person who likes to stiff people is Trump’s boss, Putin. According to a <a href="https://www.lipstickalley.com/threads/dont-come-its-a-trap-cuban-mercenary-fighting-in-the-russian-army-issues-chilling-warning-to-fellow-countrymen.5592762/">Cuban mercenary</a>, he and other Cubanos were promised $2,000 a month (a fortune in Cuba) to risk their lives doing battle in Ukraine. Not only did they not get paid, but plenty are dying.
Though what we really need to be thinking about, according to the Advertising-Marketing Complex, is how to get thinner and stay that way. Apparently there is some new info that answers the question on whether restricting calories and fasting help you live longer. I read a piece The New York Times <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/04/24/well/eat/calorie-restriction-fasting-longevity.html">hyped prominently</a>, and the answer is… drumroll please… They actually don’t know.
Now that’s honest reporting, and possibly fact-checkable. Even if the marketing is a little misleading and clickbaity. 
And then of course, in case we’re still feeling optimistic, there are the fine folks on the Supreme Court, who have been asked by Trump to confirm that he is immune from prosecution. While completely ignoring the reality of what Trump did, they had a zesty theoretical discussion the other day about whether you get a better president by hanging the threat of prosecution over his head — or by not doing so. 
Some thought that, well, if a president knows that he won’t be prosecuted for anything, he’s more likely to relinquish power if he loses a reelection bid. Others worry the exact opposite: that if he thinks he won’t be prosecuted, he will figure “what the heck” and try to stay in office. 
Trump’s lawyer pretty much admitted his belief that a president can get away with anything — and there’s nothing we can do about it. In this, they were presumably channeling Richard Nixon, who famously said, “Well, <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190417202919/http://landmarkcases.org/united-states-v-nixon/nixons-views-on-presidential-power">when the president does it</a>, that means that it is not illegal.”
And one justice wondered if the president could order the military to carry out a coup. The lawyer thought yes. And Clarence Thomas, sharp bulb that he is, acted like he thought they were talking about the president ordering coups abroad — and recalled US involvement in such foreign adventures.
The legacy media reporting I saw did not even mention this goof — i.e., didn’t point out that this discussion was almost certainly not about that at all. It was about what Trump did: attempt a coup in his own country — which the incandescent justice’s own wife was a part of. 
Small thing, I guess, no time to get into that. 
And finally, in a forthcoming book, prospective Trump running mate Kristi Noem, the South Dakota governor, said she shot and killed her 14-month-old wirehaired pointer, Cricket, because she was “untrainable” and aggressive. However, she is apparently not concerned about Trump’s own similar qualities. 
In her book, Noem <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/books/2024/apr/26/trump-kristi-noem-shot-dog-and-goat-book">explained why </a>she told such a ghastly story: to prove she has what it takes politically, to do whatever needs to be done, even if it’s “difficult, messy and ugly.” 
Now, let’s all get out there and hug some dogs, and smell some flowers. And maybe register a few new voters, too. 
<hr />
 
]]></content:encoded>
</item>
</channel>
</rss>

If you would like to create a banner that links to this page (i.e. this validation result), do the following:

Download the "valid RSS" banner.
Upload the image to your own server. (This step is important. Please do not link directly to the image on this server.)
Add this HTML to your page (change the image src attribute if necessary):

<a href="http://www.feedvalidator.org/check.cgi?url=http%3A//feeds.feedburner.com/whowhatwhy/oIEe"><img src="valid-rss-rogers.png" alt="[Valid RSS]" title="Validate my RSS feed" /></a>

If you would like to create a text link instead, here is the URL you can use:

http://www.feedvalidator.org/check.cgi?url=http%3A//feeds.feedburner.com/whowhatwhy/oIEe

Home · About · News · Docs · Terms