(2022-02-15). As COVID-19 surges, Sri Lankan apparel workers support Global Workers Inquest. wsws.org The Rajapakse government's "profits before lives" policy has resulted in thousands of apparel workers being infected with the coronavirus.
(2022-02-15). Anti-vax protesters take over Canberra city. greenleft.org.au Around 10,000 anti-vaccination protesters from around the country converged on Parliament House on February 12. Kerry Smith reports.
(2022-02-15). Sharp swings in Australian by-elections underscore political instability. wsws.org The by-elections were the first electoral test of the government decisions made to scrap most pandemic safety restrictions.
(2022-02-15). Governments across the globe are pressing to declare the pandemic over. wsws.org Since the WHO declared the Omicron strain a variant of concern at the end of November 2021, more than 140 million cases of COVID-19 have been reported with almost 600,000 deaths.
(2022-02-15). Temporary layoffs extended at US Ford auto plants, expand to other automakers. wsws.org Ford and other automakers have cut production in the US due to shortages, while COVID continues to spread through the plants left open.
(2022-02-15). UK schools inspectorate blames COVID-19 "bubble mentality" for pupil absences. wsws.org That the body responsible for maintaining standards in educational facilities expresses no concern whatsoever with the health and wellbeing of those whose welfare it is supposedly supporting is criminal.
(2022-02-15). French COVID-19 deaths reach highest level since the winter of 2021. wsws.org A new rise in daily deaths has not stopped the Macron government from seeking to remove all remaining health measures against COVID-19.
(2022-02-15). Omicron rages in German hospitals and nursing homes. wsws.org Every week there are hundreds of virus outbreaks in hospitals and nursing homes where sick and frail people are cared for.
(2022-02-14). As US COVID-19 deaths continue to surge, corporate media maintains near blackout. wsws.org COVID-19 deaths continue at pandemic highs. However, all efforts are in place to hide these figures and return to a state of normalcy.
(2022-02-14). Headlines for February 14, 2022. democracynow.org High-Level Diplomatic Talks Continue as U.S. Warns Russia Could Invade Ukraine at Any Time, Canadian Police Clear Trucker Convoy from Ambassador Bridge as Protests Spread to More Countries, Pfizer's Vaccine for Under 5s on Hold; Study Finds Even Mild COVID Cases Up Risk of Heart Disease, Afghan Central Bank, Aid Groups Condemn U.S. Move to Seize and Redirect Billions in Afghan Assets, Honduran Court Releases Environmental Activists Who Protested Open-Pit Mining Project, Deforestation in Brazilian Amazon Reached Record Levels Last Month, U.S. Judge Restores Protections for Gray Wolves; Australia Declares Koa…
(2022-02-14). Ottawa Trucker Protests Do Not Represent The Working Class. popularresistance.org Ottawa truckers have been blocking roads, airports, and border crossings from the U.S. to Canada to protest coronavirus restrictions and vaccine requirements. Despite the many illegal activities associated with the right-wing protests, they have not been attacked or sabotaged by police — in stark contrast to the many Indigenous protests over access to ancestral land and water. Q. Anthony Omene, columnist for The Globe and Mail & co-host of TheKulture.TV, joins The Freedom Side to explain more about what's going on.
(2022-02-14). Canada: Ontario To Lift Vaccine Passport Restriction. telesurenglish.net The Canadian province of Ontario moves to end the proof of vaccination system, becoming effective on March 1 according to the statement made by Premier Doug Ford on Monday at a news conference. He also announced that the second phase of the COVID-19 reopening program will crank up on Thursday. | RELATED: | The announcement disclosed that despite the removal of the vaccine passport system, businesses and other setti…
(2022-02-14). Ottawa Under Right-Wing Occupation: Progressives Push Back. popularresistance.org For more than 10 days, truckers opposed to vaccine mandates at the Canadian and U.S. borders have mobilized thousands of supporters to disrupt and terrorize the people of Ottawa. While beginning as a protest against vaccine mandates, the thousands who have poured into Ottawa have escalated the situation into a major occupation threatening the safety and well being of Ottawa residents. Ottawa's mayor and police have finally been forced to declare a state of emergency after refusing to take measures for more than a week to quell the violence that has escalated in the nation's capitol. Here in the United States, rig…
(2022-02-14). Cuban Band Buena Fe Postpones Concerts in Canada Defending Cuban Vaccines. orinocotribune.com Caracas, February 13, 2022 (OrinocoTribune.com)—Kawsachun News posted a video on its YouTube channel from the world renowned Cuban duo Buena Fe (with English subtitles) where the two singers explain the reason behind the cancellation of their concerts that were supposed happen this year across various Canadian cities. | Buena Fe is a Cuban pop band formed in Guantánamo in 1999, with strong Trova influence, which is a style of Cuban popular music dating back to the 19th century. Its core members consist of Israel Rojas and Yoel Martínez Rodríguez, who in just 10 years have released 10 albums, the most recent…
(2022-02-14). COVID World Data -Total: 412,6M -Dead: 5,8M -Death Rate: 0.01%. transcend.org On 14 Feb 2022 (10am GMT): | Total Cases: 412,627,461 | Deaths: 5,836,222 | Active: 73,538,688 | Recovered: 333,252,551 | Cases Closed: 339,088,773 | Total Vaccinated: 4,869,912,010…
(2022-02-14). Report estimates economic and social benefits of booster roll-out in Indonesia. imperial.ac.uk Rolling out a booster vaccination campaign would benefit Indonesia by US$381 billion in the next year according to the latest Imperial report.
(2022-02-14). Researchers examine molecular factors that provide some variants the edge. peoplesdispatch.org One of the worrying aspects of the pandemic is the emergence of new variants with characteristics that sometimes become more threatening. New variants have shown a trend of outnumbering the previous ones. For example, when the Delta variant emerged, it outnumbered the original strain within a short period and became the dominant form worldwide. The Delta led to more disease severity coupled with its rapid spreading. At this moment, Omicron has become the dominant variant worldwide. However, the Omicron is characterized by lesser hospitalization of the infected. | Scientists have been trying to decipher the molecu…
(2022-02-14). With Living Standards Up, Increasing Reports on Struggling Families is a Media Call, not a Reflection of Reality. cepr.net If news outlets are giving more coverage to struggling families today than they did before the pandemic, that is a result of their editorial policy, not a reflection of reality.
(2022-02-14). Conviasa Announces Direct Flights from Tehran to Caracas. orinocotribune.com Venezuela's national airline is ready to start direct flights between Caracas and Tehran in March 2022. The flights will benefit tourists, commerce, and industry. | Ramón Velázquez, Venezuelan vice minister for air transport and president of the Venezuelan national airline, Conviasa, announced direct flights between Tehran, Iran, and Venezuela's capital. The announcement occurs in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, which remains relatively controlled in both countries, due to the approach of each country's government. | In an exclusive interview for HispanTV, Velázquez said that "joining Tehran with Caracas is a…
(2022-02-14). Hedges: Democrats, the More Effective Evil. scheerpost.com 
"Let's Make a Deal," an original work by Mr. Fish. | By Chris Hedges / Original to ScheerPost | When all else fails, when you are clueless about how to halt a 7.5% inflation rate, when your Build Back Better bill is gutted, when you renege on your promise to raise the minimum wage or forgive student debt, when you can't halt the Republican suppression of voting rights, when you have no idea how to handle the pandemic which has claimed 900,000 lives — 16% of the world's total deaths although we are less than 5% of the world's population — when the stock market fluctuates on wild rollercoaster rides…
(2022-02-14). Super Bowl brings in big bucks to LA. america.cgtn.com 
See how the economic benefits of the Super Bowl are helping the region amid COVID pandemic.
(2022-02-14). Young workers in Australia speak on dire working conditions amid pandemic. wsws.org "I guess the government is looking at it as 'We saved enough people, it's time to just move on and whoever suffers now, it's too bad.' It's so depressing."
(2022-02-14). V-Day to Earth Day: How Women in 70+ Countries Are Rising to End Violence Against Women & Our Planet. democracynow.org 
Valentine's Day kicks off a campaign by feminist leaders in 70 countries across the world to celebrate One Billion Rising, an initiative by V-Day to end violence against women — cisgender, transgender and gender nonconforming — girls and the planet. "COVID has ushered in a very strange and perplexing time for women. We are on the frontlines everywhere," says V-Day founder V (formerly Eve Ensler). The campaign seeks to resist "the broken systems of capitalism and neoliberalism," as well as the fascist governments upholding these broken systems, says Monique Wilson, global…
(2022-02-14). Tomgram: Belle Chesler, Teaching in a World No Student Deserves. warisacrime.org This article originally appeared at TomDispatch.com. To receive TomDispatch in your inbox three times a week, click here. Honestly, it's been hell on earth for grown-ups. Thanks largely to Donald Trump and crew, we're in the country with by far the highest Covid-19 death rate of any wealthy nation on earth. The U.S. has already left …