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Comment Burying the lede (Score 1, Informative) 176

The main story here is not the unusually high myocarditis linked to the Pfizer vaccine, but the fact that this was publicly known for at least 1.5 months before the CDC was willing to acknowledge it (see https://www.pecc.org.il/docs/r...).

Indeed, until June 22 at 6:23pm, the WHO was emphatically recommending that "Children should not be vaccinated for the moment" (see https://agile.bu.edu/poc/often), in part as a result of this finding.

Comment Re: Facebook etc are the problem (Score 1) 316

This is rather simplistic understanding of both masks and the science. There are lots of ways that masks could potentially cause damage:
* Give people a false confidence that causes them to do riskier activities (as you mentioned).
* Accumulate bacteria and make you susceptible to disease.
* Reduce immune system stimulation and make you more vulnerable to illness.
* Aerosolize respiratory droplets and make it easier for them to penetrate deeper into the lungs.
* They get wet, reducing their efficacy and potentially hampering breathing.

The whole problem with this Facebook endeavor is that they have no more of an idea of the science than do you.

Submission + - U. of Florida Asks Students to Use App to Report Profs Who Don't Teach In Person (edsurge.com)

Submitted by jyosim
jyosim writes: Professors at U of Florida are outraged that the university essentially put a "tattle" button on a campus safety app that lets students report if professors aren't teaching in person. Apparently more than 100 profs there have asked to teach online for health reasons but have been denied, and administrators worry that they'll just teach online anyway. Profs feel the app is akin to a "police state."

Submission + - China's Leaders Vow Tech 'Self-Reliance,' Military Power and Economic Recovery (nytimes.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: China’s Communist Party emerged from four days of meetings behind closed doors in Beijing declaring the country’s leader, Xi Jinping, a “helmsman” who would lead “the ship of socialism sailing into the wind and waves with determination.” At a time when other world leadersremain consumedby the coronavirus pandemic, China promised an economic revival, greater technological self-reliance and a stronger military to protect the country’s economic and political interests. The meetingunderscoredMr. Xi’s seemingly boundless political control, as well as his ambitions to propel China out of the current crisis into a new phase of growth, less vulnerable to external risks. Here are the main outcomes from the meeting, which outlined policy priorities for the coming years.

Economic revival: After the shock from the coronavirus crisis of the first months of this year, China’s economy returned to4.9 percent growthin the July-to-September quarter, and exports have revived strongly. In its five-year plan, China aims to expand domestic markets and encourage innovation across the economy — from cutting-edge technology to more efficient farming — the party leaders said inan official summaryof their meeting. That summary did not offer specific growth projections from 2021.

Homegrown technology: The meeting of the party’s Central Committee declared that China would make enhanced technological self-reliance a priority over the next 15 years. “Insist on the core status of innovation across all of our national modernization,” the leaders said. “Make technological self-sufficiency a strategic pillar of national development.”

Military modernization and security: The Central Committee declared that China’s military — one of Mr. Xi’s core priorities since taking office in 2012 — had improved greatly, even as it promised to make still more “major steps” to enhance the country’s security. The committee did not detail any new programs but called for “comprehensively strengthening military training and preparedness.”

Submission + - Glenn Greenwald has resigned from the Intercept (substack.com)

Submitted by imAck
imAck writes: Glenn Greenwald announced via Twitter recently that he has resigned from The Intercept (and First Look Media), the former being a media outlet that he co-founded. Purportedly, a recent attempt to constrain his editorial freedom was the incident that pushed him to make the decision.

Submission + - Google and Intel Warn of High-Severity Bluetooth Security Bug In Linux (arstechnica.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Google and Intel are warning of a high-severity Bluetooth flaw in all but the most recent version of the Linux Kernel. While a Google researcher said the bug allows seamless code execution by attackers within Bluetooth range, Intel is characterizing the flaw as providing an escalation of privileges or the disclosure of information. The flaw resides in BlueZ, the software stack that by default implements all Bluetooth core protocols and layers for Linux. Besides Linux laptops, it's used in many consumer or industrial Internet-of-things devices. It works with Linux versions 2.4.6 and later. So far, little is known about BleedingTooth, the name given by Google engineer Andy Nguyen, who said that a blog post will be published “soon.” A Twitter thread and a YouTube video provide the most detail and give the impression that the bug provides a reliable way for nearby attackers to execute malicious code of their choice on vulnerable Linux devices that use BlueZ for Bluetooth.

Intel, meanwhile, has issued this bare-bones advisory that categorizes the flaw as privilege-escalation or information-disclosure vulnerability. The advisory assigned a severity score of 8.3 out of a possible 10 to CVE-2020-12351, one of three distinct bugs that comprise BleedingTooth. “Potential security vulnerabilities in BlueZ may allow escalation of privilege or information disclosure,” the advisory states. “BlueZ is releasing Linux kernel fixes to address these potential vulnerabilities.” Intel, which is a primary contributor to the BlueZ open source project, said that the most effective way to patch the vulnerabilities is to update to Linux kernel version 5.9, which was published on Sunday. Those who can’t upgrade to version 5.9 can install a series of kernel patches the advisory links to. Maintainers of BlueZ didn’t immediately respond to emails asking for additional details about this vulnerability.

Submission + - There's Another Huge Right To Repair Fight Brewing In Massachusetts (thedrive.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Whether or not you live in Massachusetts, you should be paying attention to a very important vote coming up in November's election. Not for president, or senator, or even city council—no, Question 1 is a proposition that could dramatically strengthen or weaken the state's landmark right-to-repair law that previously forced automakers to make it easier for you to get your car fixed. Essentially, Massachusetts voters are deciding on whether or not to add "mechanical" vehicle telematics data—realtime updates from a car's sundry sensors transmitted to an automaker's private servers—to the list of things OEMs have to share with independent mechanics. Telematics data was purposefully excluded from the original 2013 law, but as cars have gotten more computerized over the last decade, that gap in coverage has grown more pronounced.

The full information about what is appearing on the ballot can be found here. Voting "Yes" to Question 1 would expand access to wirelessly transmitted mechanical data regarding vehicle maintenance and repair. But what makes this a big deal for those outside Massachusetts is that the amendment will require automakers who want to do business in the state to make that data accessible through a smartphone app for owners starting in 2022. Remember, it was the 2013 law's passage that forced automakers to adopt a nationwide right-to-repair standard. Could the same happen with open-access telematics data, which will only grow in importance as more cars add on driver-assist features? Pro-Question 1 organization Massachusetts Right to Repair argues the amendment would futureproof the law for consumers and independent repair shops beyond the state's borders.

Comment Re:Celebrating censorship (Score 4, Insightful) 62

by arit (#60604848) Attached to: Facebook Bans Anti-Vaccine Ads, But Not Organic Misinformation

Facebook is more powerful than most governments.

It has no serious competitors in its space, and it has the power to manipulate not only speech but world opinion (better than most governments), either directly or implicitly through the connections it makes.

This is especially true now, when much of the world is stuck at home and can only communicate to other people through the Internet.

Submission + - Harvard, Oxford, Stanford Docs Among Leaders of Global Anti-Lockdown Movement (mercurynews.com)

Submitted by Anonymous Coward
An anonymous reader writes: Doctors at Stanford University are at the forefront of a global movement of health experts who are criticizing lockdowns to control COVID-19 and say schools and businesses should reopen, but with a focus on protecting the elderly and infirm who are most vulnerable to the virus. Called theGreat Barrington Declarationafter the western Massachusetts town where it was hatched this month at an economic policy think tank, their statement of purpose is the handiwork of three principal drafters who include Stanford medical professor Dr. Jay Bhattacharya.

“As infectious disease epidemiologists and public health scientists, we have grave concerns about the damaging physical and mental health impacts of the prevailing COVID-19 policies,” the declaration states. “The most compassionate approach that balances the risks and benefits of reaching herd immunity is to allow those who are at minimal risk of death to live their lives normally to build up immunity to the virus through natural infection, while better protecting those who are at highest risk.” Though the arguments are not new, with more than 18,000 medical, science and public health practitioners among its more than 191,000 worldwide online signatories, it represents the largest public break among health experts from their peers’ prevailing support for lockdowns since the pandemic began early this year.

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