How Saxophonist Jimmy Giuffre Taught Me Organizational Theory The Honest Broker
The Overwhelming Case for CBDCs Willem Buiter, Project Syndicate
Return to pandemic hunger levels could signal economic fragility Reuters
Climate
The Challenge of Blue Carbon Nautilus (MT). Who knew that monetizing a swamp would be risky? Today’s must read.
Fire and Ice NPR
EVs Fall Short of EPA Estimates by a Much Larger Margin Than Gas Cars in Our Real-World Highway Testing Car and Driver
Small Towns Chase America’s $3 Trillion Climate Gold Rush WSJ
Water
California to meet 100% of water requests for the first time since 2006 AP
#COVID19
Looking for helpers (1), later today:
I have no idea what a “phone zap action” is, but if it gets Johns Hopkin’s attention, good.
Looking for helpers (2), tomorrow:
*Emergency Notice*
The FDA is holding a surprise meeting to talk about patient led Long COVID treatments.
They announced it yesterday, the event happens on the 25th…That’s in 2 DAYS!
They want public comments & there are only 14.
You know what to do.https://t.co/PmgCjmbfjc
— Don Ford – The People’s Strategist – (@DonEford) April 24, 2023
An old trick. Wiring up a meeting on very short notice!
The heightened risk of autoimmune diseases after Covid Eric Topol, Ground Truths
Lymphocytopenia MSD Manual (via). Definition:
Lymphocytopenia is a total lymphocyte count of < 1000/mcL ( 1 × 109/L) in adults or < 3000/mcL (< 3 × 109/L) in children < 2 years. Sequelae include opportunistic infections and an increased risk of malignant and autoimmune disorders. If the complete blood count reveals lymphocytopenia, testing for immunodeficiency and analysis of lymphocyte subpopulations should follow, usually after the patient has recovered from any acute event. Treatment is directed at the underlying disorder.
Etiology:
Acquired lymphocytopenia can occur with a number of other disorders (see table Causes of Lymphocytopenia).
The most common causes include
- Protein-energy undernutrition
- HIV infection
- COVID-19
- Certain other viral infections
Hmm.
Long-term risk of herpes zoster following COVID-19: A retrospective cohort study of 2 442 686 patients Journal of Medical Virology. “The risk of [herpes zoster (HZ)] within a 12-month follow-up period was significantly higher in patients who had recovered from COVID-19 compared with that in the control group.”
Saliva and Plasma Antibody Levels in Children and Adolescents After Primary Infection With Omicron Variants of SARS-CoV-2 Infection in Germany (letter) JAMA. “SARS-CoV-2 Omicron reinfections within short periods are increasingly reported. Our data suggest that this might be explained by a weak humoral immune response to Omicron. In contrast to pre-Omicron variants, a primary Omicron infection elicited only a poor IgG antibody response, possibly resulting in insufficient infection prevention by salivary IgG. The observed neutralization escape of recurrent Omicron variants may be due to the absence of antibodies rather than reduced binding affinity. As a result, first-time SARS-CoV-2 infections with the Omicron variant may remain also largely undetected by seroprevalence studies.”
Determinants of nurse’s and personal support worker’s adherence to facial protective equipment in a community setting during the COVID-19 pandemic in Ontario, Canada: A pilot study American Journal of Infection Control. From the Abstract: “Adherence rates were relatively high. In this context, with participants reporting high levels of organizational support, individual-level factors were the significant predictors of adherence. Initiatives addressing perceived FPE efficacy, knowledge of recommended use, perception of at-work risk, and personal barriers to use may improve FPE adherence.” Another way of saying this is that masks fail when Hospital Infection Control administrators sabotage mask-wearing efforts (a confounder not included in the infamous Cochrane study). Lawyers: Note the venue. This is a professional journal that Hospital Infection Control administrators should be aware of, and an article they may have chosen to ignore.
China?
Chinese Leaders Highlight Economic Risks as Recovery Takes Hold Blooomberg
Yi Gang: Building a modern central banking system to contribute to Chinese modernization Bank of International Settlements
Why China’s billionaires keep disappearing CNBC. ‘Cause Xi has the right idea?
Why China’s luxury market is stronger than ever after Covid-19 pandemic South China Morning Post. It is? Fancy that.
Myanmar
Top election official in Myanmar assassinated by guerrillas AP. A junta-run fake election.
India
Covid spreading fast in 8 states; Haryana’s Yamuna Nagar has highest 57% positivity Fortune. Quite an achievement.
The Big Con London Review of Books. Adani.
Q&A: ‘Chilling’: Journalist sued by Adani, cited by Hindenburg Al Jazeera
Adani Group Starts First Bond Buyback After Hindenburg Attack Bloomberg
The Koreas
US urges South Korea not to fill China shortfalls if Beijing bans Micron chips FT. To be a friend is fatal….
Syraqistan
Syria Comes in From the Cold Scott Ritter, Consortium News
The Amazing Story of How Philly Cheesesteaks Became Huge in Lahore, Pakistan Philly Mag (Re Silc).
European Disunion
Travel disruption warning as May Day targeted for latest round of French protests Travel Weekly
Serbian president signals possible referendum for EU-backed deal with Kosovo Anadolu Agency
Dear Old Blighty
Britain wants special Brexit discount to rejoin EU science projects Politico. Chutzpah!
New Not-So-Cold War
The Planning of the Ukraine Invasion from the Russian Point of View (Maybe) Gaius Balter, A Son of the American Revolution. Intriguing!
On the Edge of the War Zone Dimitri Lascaris (jrkrideau).
EU’s Borrell sees deal soon to buy ammunition for Ukraine EU
Unprepared for long war, US Army under gun to make more ammo AP (Rev Kev).
Ukraine’s Longest Day Foreign Policy. The deck: “The first 24 hours of the expected counteroffensive will likely be decisive.”
Opinion Can Ukraine win without Western boots on the ground? (letter) WaPo
Guided bombs — new Russian tactics in the Ukraine war? Deutche Welle
No nuclear strike will happen after Ukraine enters Crimea – Ukraine’s Defence Intelligence Chief Ukrainska Pravda. Oh.
Biden Administration
Record Numbers of Migrants Are Dying at the U.S. Border WSJ
Gunz
When Colorado’s dominant Democrats refuse to pass an assault weapons ban, you have to wonder why Colorado Sun. Because the Democrats are just as much gun fetishists as the gun fetishists who oppose them, and the entire debate quickly generates into “They don’t even know what ‘AR’ stands for [snicker]!”. By focusing on the hardware, all parties refuse to think systemically. Guns should be licensed like cars, with training and insurance. They should also be kept away from children.
A nation rocked by mass shootings goes on an extended gun-buying run CNN
The Bezzle
My High-Flying Life as a Corporate Spy Who Lied His Way to the Top Narratively (MT).
The secret ingredient to hustle culture: A virtual assistant in the Philippines Rest of World. Filed under “Asia/Labor.”
Tech
There Is No A.I. Jaron Lanier, The New Yorker
How we all became AI’s brain donors Axios. Not merely strip-mining, but outright theft (or “original accumulation,” as the Bearded One calls it).
The Future of AI Relies on a High School Teacher’s Free Database Bloomberg. Kropotkin would be proud. Or not?
Supply Chain
‘Russia to boost China pipeline gas supplies by almost 50%’ Anadolu Agency
Militaries, Metals, and Mining RAND Corporation
Zeitgeist Watch
Dragon at Disneyland bursts into flames, no injuries reported ABC
Realigment and Legitimacy
Free Association (map) Lapham’s Quarterly
Imperial Collapse Watch
Concerns grow as US military faces recruitment crisis for second year in a row: ‘Cultural rot’ is spreading FOX
Class Warfare
How it’s done:
I strongly believe that every workplace needs that union battle axe that tells the young whipper snappers what’s what and gives then their first initiation into the concept of solidarity.
— Meghan Waters (@MeghanJMJW) April 22, 2023
East Palestine: “We Basically Nuked a Town with Chemicals So We Could Get a Railroad Open” In These Times
Our View: Still ‘very angry’ and ‘sick.’ Norfolk Southern must do right by East Palestine Columbus Dispatch
Antidote du jour (via):
Bonus antidote:
See yesterday’s Links and Antidote du Jour https://www.nakedcapitalism.com/2023/04/links-4-22-2023.html“>here.
