CDC director rebukes DeSantis for telling teens to remove masks: ‘It is absolutely their choice’

‘Those students should have been comfortable wearing a mask’ Dr Rochelle Walensky, the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, has rebuked Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis for scolding a group of teenagers for wearing masks. “Those students should have been comfortable wearing a mask,” Dr Walensky told MSNBC. “It is absolutely their choice.” The high school students were

New Zealand anti-vax protesters inspired by Canada truckers camp outside parliament

New Zealand has seen a second day of demonstrations against pandemic restrictions with protesters camping outside the nation’s parliament. Inspired by large anti- vaccine rallies in Canada, hundreds of Kiwis arrived on Tuesday to stage new protests against vaccine mandates and other Covid rules. Protesters adopted the name “Convoy for Freedom” and blocked streets in

Thousands in India gather for Magh Mela festival amid COVID surge – DW News

In northern India, tens of thousands of Hindu pilgrims have gathered for a festival, despite a huge jump in COVID-19 infections. The Magh Mela festival, which includes bathing in the Ganges river, is one of the holiest pilgrimages in the Hindu faither. Last year’s festival was described as a COVID-19 ‘superspreader’ event. How are pilgrims

US: Supreme Court Blocks Biden’s Covid Vaccine Mandate For Private Companies

The Supreme Court blocked the Biden administration’s Covid-19 vaccine-or-test mandate for private companies, writing that the Occupational Safety and Health Administration didn’t have the power to regulate public health.

This health department stops ‘all COVID-19 related work’ after Missouri AG threat

The local health department of a rural southern Missouri county is halting its COVID-19 response efforts after Attorney General Eric Schmitt wrote agencies this week demanding they drop mitigation measures. The Laclede County Health Department, which serves a 35,000-person county northeast of Springfield, made the announcement in a Facebook post Thursday morning that it was suspending “all

Let’s talk about a letter from Texas – Beau of the Fifth Column

Video mentioned by Beau, talk with Mexie:

Omicron COVID variant was in Europe before South African scientists detected and flagged it to the world

Dutch health authorities announced on Tuesday that they found the new Omicron variant of the coronavirus in cases dating back as long as 11 days, indicating that it was already spreading in western Europe before the first cases were identified in southern Africa. The RIVM health institute said it found Omicron in samples dating from November 19 and 23.

Let’s talk about what we know and don’t about the new variant – Beau of the Fifth Column

The Netherlands and Australia find the omicron variant as curbs spread

The Netherlands confirmed 13 cases of the new omicron variant of the coronavirus on Sunday and Australia found two as the countries half a world apart became the latest to detect it in travelers arriving from southern Africa. A raft of curbs being imposed by nations around the world as they scramble to slow the

Mass protests against Covid restrictions in European cities – BBC News

The Belgian capital Brussels is the latest European city to see mass protests and unrest over tighter coronavirus restrictions. Tens of thousands of people took to the streets, some throwing fireworks and missiles at police who responded with tear gas and water canon. Belgium has brought in new measures in response to a sharp rise