(2021-12-02). Why China Succeeded and the U.S. Failed to Beat COVID. liberationnews.org 
What can we learn about how different countries have handled the pandemic, and the radically different outcomes they produced?>
(2021-12-02). Selected Articles: Doctor Who First Discovered Omicron Variant Says It's "Mild," Hasn't Caused Uptick in Hospitalizations. globalresearch.ca 
By For no good reason, the world is cringing at the news of the OMICRON mutation of the Covid-19 coronavirus even though data on its infectiveness …
(2021-12-02). The Covid-19 Omicron Variant: Towards a Fourth Wave Lockdown? Pretext to Introduce New Repressive Policy Measures. globalresearch.ca Global Research is the object of censorship. | Please forward this article to friends and colleagues, post on your blog and on social media. *** | Both the governments and the media in chorus are now engaged in a …
(2021-12-02). Headlines for December 2, 2021. democracynow.org Supreme Court's Conservatives Signal Support for Mississippi Anti-Abortion Law , U.S. Detects Omicron Coronavirus Variant in California, U.N. Chief Blasts "Travel Apartheid" as Nations Deny Entry to Africans Over Omicron Variant, Russia Expels Some US Ambassadors as Blinken Warns Russia Against Invading Ukraine, Burmese Military Helicopters Attack Villagers in Region Where Resistance to Coup Remains Strong, Women's Tennis Association Suspends Tournaments in China Over Peng Shuai Case, 15-Year-Old Suspect in Michigan High School Shooting to be Tried as an Adult, Georgia Democrat Stacey Abrams to Run for Governor i…
(2021-12-02). Omicron COVID-19 variant detected in the United States. wsws.org The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention confirmed an individual residing in San Francisco who recently returned from South Africa was positive for the Omicron variant.
(2021-12-02). àìmicron se desparrama en las principales ciudades brasileñas. cubadebate.cu El secretario de Salud de la Alcaldía de San Pablo, Edson Aparecido, dijo hoy que "no se descarta" la posibilidad de que la variante Omicron haya comenzado a dispersarse por esa metrópolis de 12 millones de habitantes. Ante el riesgo de un rebrote de la pandemia San Pablo determinó que dos hospitales sean preparados para recibir sólo enfermos de coronavirus con esta cepa.
(2021-12-02). Omicron a reminder that global solidarity is needed to overcome COVID-19. greenleft.org.au We are now seeing blowback from global vaccine apartheid in the form of a new COVID-19 variant, writes Peter Boyle, but once again, the world's richest countries are responding by shutting their doors to poorer nations.
(2021-12-02). Sanders Demands WTO Approve Vaccine Patent Waiver. zcomm.org "Let us be clear: to deny lifesaving healthcare anytime, but particularly during a global health crisis, is unacceptable."
(2021-12-02). Greed Is Prolonging the Pandemic. fpif.org Stop me if this sounds familiar. | It's been kind of a hard year, but I felt optimistic about the holidays. My wife and I had just scheduled our COVID-19 boosters. Even better, we'd been able to get our young child vaccinated. | We imagined a cautious return to simple family pleasures like indoor dining — and maybe playdates at indoor play centers during the long Midwestern winter. Maybe we'd even test our kid's appetite for air travel and visit relatives in different parts of the country. | Then — another COVID-19 variant. Possible breakthrough infections. Travel bans and tumbling stock markets. And…
(2021-12-02). Chancellor-designate Olaf Scholz and Germany's federal states reject necessary pandemic restrictions. wsws.org All the parties in the new coalition government to be headed by Scholz are aggressively pursuing the "profits before lives" policies that have already resulted in more than 100,000 deaths in Germany alone and are creating an ever-expanding catastrophe.
(2021-12-02). Victoria's pandemic bill: Better framework, but not faultless. greenleft.org.au Controversy has surrounded Victoria's Public Health and Wellbeing Amendment (Pandemic Management) Bill 2021. Leo Crnogorcevic breaks down the bill and how should progressives respond to it.
(2021-12-02). New Zealand opposition picks new right-wing leader. wsws.org The National Party's leadership turmoil reflects pressure from the ruling class to ditch all COVID-19 restrictions and conflicts over how closely to align with US war preparations against China.
(2021-12-02). Philippine government ramps up campaign for "living with the virus" wsws.org Like capitalist governments around the world, the Duterte administration aims to force workers to "live with the virus" and remove all barriers to the profit-making of the capitalist class.
(2021-12-02). Israel Squatter Violence toward Palestinians is Escalating. zcomm.org UN Special Coordinator for the Middle East Peace Process, Tor Wennesland, delivered alarming remarks about the dangers of an outbreak of further violence on the part of the Israeli state…
(2021-12-01). In OtherWords: December 1, 2021. otherwords.org Markets crashed again over the weekend as reports of a new COVID-19 variant cropped up first in South Africa and then in countries all over the world. Already it's been spotted in California. | By now the cycle of relief and uncertainty feels very familiar. We don't yet know how serious the Omicron variant will be, but one thing is for certain: The longer this virus circulates, the more variants we'll see. | In other words, the vast vaccination gaps between richer and poorer countries are putting all of us at risk — even those of us who are already vaccinated. This week, I explain how overcoming corporate g…
(2021-12-01). CDC: Omicron Variant Confirmed In California. moguldom.com The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has identified the first U.S. case of the heavily mutated omicron variant in California. Dr. Anthony Fauci, chief medical advisor to the White House, said a fully vaccinated person had just returned from traveling in South Africa to the San Francisco area on Nov. 22 and tested …
(2021-12-01). As winter wave of COVID-19 infections looms, Canada's political elite plans to let Omicron variant rip through population. wsws.org The travel history of the five Omicron cases in Canada, four of which are in Ontario and one in Quebec, suggests that the variant has been spreading widely throughout Africa for some time. All five, none of whom are related, returned from Nigeria via Montreal.
(2021-12-01). Headlines for December 1, 2021. democracynow.org Omicron Detected in Europe Days Before South Africa Reported Variant; FDA Endorses Merck COVID Pill, Michigan High Schooler Kills 3 Other Students in Shooting Rampage, Mark Meadows to Testify Before House Jan. 6 Cmte, Panel Pursues Jeffrey Clark Contempt Charges | , U.S. Removes FARC From Terror Blacklist, HRW: Taliban Have Killed or Disappeared 100+ Ex-Afghan Security Forces Since August, German Court Convicts Ex-Member of Islamic State For Genocide of Iraq's Yazidi Community, France Inducts Josephine Baker into Pantheon As Far-Right, Racist Pundit Announces Presidential Bid, Rep. Ilhan Omar Shares Violent, Isla…
(2021-12-01). Omicron variant exposes danger of global vaccine apartheid. liberationnews.org 
The pandemic continues to drag on with no end in sight, in large part due to the extreme global inequality in the availability of the vaccine.
(2021-12-01). Yes Folks, Omicron Can be Blamed on Patent Monopolies. cepr.net The development of the new variant, which was first discovered in South Africa, can be attributed to our failure to open-source our vaccines and freely transfer technology, contrary to claims from the pharmaceutical industry and its political allies. Their big talking point is that South Africa currently has more vaccines than it can effectively use …
(2021-12-01). People's movements, trade unions, and left parties join hands demanding TRIPS waiver on COVID-19 medical products. peoplesdispatch.org After the 12th WTO Ministerial Conference was called off following the discovery of the Omicron variant, trade unions, civil society organizations and parties on the left ramped up actions in favor of a TRIPS waiver for Covid-19 medical products…
(2021-12-01). Moderna Vaccine CEO: Omicron Variant Is Much More Infectious Than Delta, Vaccine Efficacy Has Likely Dropped. moguldom.com Vaccine efficacy for the highly contagious omicron variant has likely dropped, but a full review of its impact will not be known for at least two weeks after data has been collected and analyzed, said Moderna CEO Stéphane Bancel in an interview with CNBC's "Squawk Box". The covid omicron variant is on track to become …
(2021-12-01). Cuba tightens restriction on eight South African nations as Omicron spreads. america.cgtn.com 
Cuba has announced a tightening of COVID-19 safety protocols at its airports, particularly on travelers from eight southern African nations following the spread of the new variant Omicron. Find out more.
(2021-12-01). Will Omicron be more contagious than Delta? asiatimes.com 
A new variant named Omicron (B.1.1.529) was reported by researchers in South Africa on November 24, 2021, and designated a "variant of concern" by the World Health Organization two days later. Omicron is very unusual in that it is by far the most heavily mutated variant yet of SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes Covid-19. The …
(2021-12-01). WHO Stands with African Nations and Calls for Borders to Remain Open. popularresistance.org Scientists in Southern African nations revealed the presence of the Omicron Covid-19 variant but the good deed was punished with worldwide travel bans. The World Health Organization makes clear that the rationale for the ban is of dubious benefit and needlessly harms the targeted nations. The role of rich nations in hoarding vaccines and the continued patents on vaccines increase harm for Africans who are now the target of blame. Pledges to "follow the science" disappeared when Africa became the focus of attention.
(2021-12-01). Omicron variant exposes "vaccine only" strategy to combat COVID-19. wsws.org The Omicron variant has shattered the lie that the pandemic can be ended without a globally-coordinated strategy aimed at the elimination and eradication of Sars-CoV-2.
(2021-12-01). Amid Overdose Crisis, Public Health Groups Urge Congress To Pass Life-Saving Bills. popularresistance.org Two weeks after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released sobering statistics showing a record-breaking number of drug overdoses in the U.S. in the first year of the coronavirus pandemic, more than 260 advocacy groups called on lawmakers Tuesday to urgently pass public health proposals to mitigate the crisis. | Led by the Drug Policy Alliance, People's Action, the National Harm Reduction Coalition, and VOCAL-NY, the organizations said the unprecedented number of overdoses in the 12-month period ending in April 2021 was "grim, but not unexpected" considering the criminalization of drug use in the Uni…
(2021-12-01). Former OSHA chiefs insist court reinstate anti-virus standards. peoplesworld.org 
CINCINNATI—Three former Occupational Safety and Health Administration chiefs, under both Democratic and Republican administrations, want the federal appeals court in Cincinnati to reinstate the agency's Emergency Temporary Standard that forces firms to protect their workers and customers against the coronavirus. Represented by lawyers for Public Citizen, Dr. David Michaels—Barack Obama's OSHA chief for his whole …
(2021-12-01). Army general to lead Germany's coronavirus crisis response team. wsws.org The decision to put a general in charge of its COVID-19 crisis team permits only one conclusion: the German government in waiting does not regard the pandemic as a medical problem, but rather as a security issue.
(2021-12-01). "The Viral Underclass": COVID-19 and AIDS Show What Happens When Inequality and Disease Collide. democracynow.org 
As December 1 marks World AIDS Day, we look at the pandemic that preceded COVID-19 and how recorded deaths of complications from the coronavirus this year have surpassed those of HIV/AIDS in the United States. The head of UNAIDS has warned the COVID-19 pandemic may result in an increase in infections and deaths from HIV and AIDS. Both viruses disproportionately impacted vulnerable minority communities. Although treatment rollout for HIV/AIDS was uniquely inhibited by homophobia, racism, and sexism, it was also plagued by corporate greed and U.S. exceptionalism. "We're seeing very similar dynamics again now with C…
(2021-12-01). Referendum in Switzerland: A vote for the fight against the coronavirus pandemic. wsws.org Amid an explosive new coronavirus wave, a clear 62 percent majority in Switzerland voted on Sunday to keep the COVID-19 law in place.
(2021-12-01). Rise in coronavirus outbreaks in German workplaces. wsws.org Alongside the health authorities and company managements, the trade unions and their affiliated works councils ensure that infection rates are concealed and business operations continue as workers fall ill.
(2021-12-01). The Heat: China-Africa Forum. america.cgtn.com 
China pledges more vaccine and economic help for Africa.
(2021-12-01). My Daughter Was Exposed to COVID. Thank Goodness She Was Vaccinated. truthout.org 
The fear arrived in late February 2020, and has remained, in one form or another, ever since. Remained? It puts its feet up on the coffee table and hogs the comforter so I can't sleep. The mask, the distancing, the hand sanitizer, the bellowing silence of isolation, the lengthening list of restaurants and bars I loved that are gone now and forever, and the sickened, and the dead. Always the dead. Almost a thousand again today, with 86,000 new infections. It must be Wednesday. | I've been quietly waitin…
(2021-12-01). Selected Articles: Trump-Appointed Judge Blocks Biden's Vaccine Mandate for Healthcare Workers in 10 States. globalresearch.ca 
By Finish naturopathic Doctor Ariyana Love s…
(2021-12-01). As COVID-19 cases surge throughout Ohio, Republican-controlled state senate holds a hearing on antivaccine bill. wsws.org Following the trend in the Midwest and Upstate New York, cases are resurging through Ohio after a brief respite, and hospital admissions are once more climbing.
(2021-12-01). Philly 76ers NBA Star: I Didn't Think I Would Make It When I Got Covid. moguldom.com Cameroonian Joel Embiid made his long-awaited return to professional basketball with the Philadelphia 76ers on Saturday, Nov. 27, after coming down with covid-19 and missing nine games, only two of which the Sixers won. Embiid, who is vaccinated, said that that he thought he would not make it when he got sick with covid and …
(2021-12-01). US corporate profits hit new record. wsws.org US corporations are enjoying the largest profit margins since 1950 as the Biden administration pledges to oppose any public health measures in response to the pandemic that might impinge on profits.
(2021-12-01). COVID Europa: The Fourth Wave. scheerpost.com 
By Kenneth Surin / CounterPunch Europe is embarking on a fourth wave in Covid cases. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have placed several European countries in its highest-risk category for travel in recent weeks. On the list are Denmark, Germany, Hungary, Iceland, the Czech Republic, Luxembourg, the Netherlands and Guernsey (Britain has …
(2021-12-01). Indigenous people in Australia twice as likely to be infected with COVID-19. wsws.org The increasing number of infections and deaths in indigenous communities was both predicted and preventable, but the warnings of health experts and community leaders were ignored.
(2021-12-01). Growing outrage among Australian teachers and parents over school COVID infections. wsws.org Opposition to school reopenings is a significant element in the wider hostility toward the political establishment and its callous indifference to the lives and well-being of working people that Australia's new electoral laws are designed to silence.
(2021-12-01). Argentine woman no longer HIV positive. america.cgtn.com 
A 30-year-old Argentine woman's own immune system may have cured her of HIV – without the use of drugs. She was diagnosed in 2013, and now there is no detectable virus in her body. Find out more.
(2021-12-01). Rise in cornonavirus outbreaks in German workplaces. wsws.org Alongside the health authorities and company managements, the trade unions and their affiliated works councils ensure that infection rates are concealed and business operations continue as workers fall ill.
(2021-12-01). Jury Awards $10 Million To Woman Who Stepped On Rusty Nail At Walmart. moguldom.com Back in June 2015, April Jones stepped on a rusty nail while shopping at a Walmart in Florence, South Carolina. She sued and a jury awarded her $10 million on Nov. 30, 2021. Her injury led to multiple surgeries and eventually she had to have her leg amputated as a result of an infection caused …
(2021-12-01). Inequality is set to kill millions—'We have to fight it together.'. nationofchange.org If we take on the inequalities which hold back progress, we can deliver on the promise to end AIDS by 2030.
(2021-12-01). A surprising winner in Biden's infrastructure bill: Biodiversity. peoplesworld.org 
The $1.2 trillion infrastructure package signed by President Joe Biden will not go down in history as a milestone in America's effort to control the climate crisis. A Princeton University analysis of the bill, which President Joe Biden initially hoped would deliver on many of his climate-related promises from the campaign trail, showed the policies in …