3:46 AM 9/23/2020 - Michael Novakhov - SharedNewsLinks: Ocean Parkway Cluster of Covid-19 in Brooklyn | SARS-CoV-2: The Growing Case for Potential Transmission in a Building via Wastewater Plumbing Systems
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| Ocean Parkway Cluster of Covid-19 in Brooklyn - Google Search | |||||||||||
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| Four NYC areas have 20 percent of city's COVID-19 cases | |||||||||||
Skip to main content September 22, 2020 | 10:21pm | Updated September 22, 2020 | 11:13pm Six Big Apple neighborhoods now account for 20 percent of all coronavirus cases citywide part of a local surge in the global pandemic that includes a stretch of southern Brooklyn dubbed the Ocean Parkway Cluster, health officials said Tuesday. The cluster, along the thoroughfare in Midwood, Borough Park and Bensonhurst, reported a 4.7 percent rate of positive tests last week alone, well above the citywide average of 1 percent, according to data from the city Department of Health & Mental Hygiene. They werent alone. Nearly 3.7 percent of those tested in Edgemere-Far Rockaway also tested positive, as did 2.2 percent in Kew Gardens. Williamsburg also recorded a 2 percent positive-test rate. The areas Williamsburg, Far Rockaway, Ocean Parkway and Kew Gardens have seen cases double or triple since Aug. 1, and now make up one in every five cases in the city. Health officials called the situation urgent, and said the test results represent a significant concern that will require further action if noncompliance with safety precautions is observed. At this point in time, these increases could potentially evolve into more widespread community transmission and spread to other neighborhoods unless action is taken, the department said in an email. We are monitoring the situation for the need to take further steps in these areas. City and state officials have struggled with large gatherings in largely Hasidic communities that violate social distancing restrictions. The state law prohibits large gatherings and requires masks and social distancing. Gov. Andrew Cuomo vowed last month to crack down on large social events in Brooklyn after The Post reported massive gatherings at three Brough Park banquet halls hosting Hasidic Jewish weddings. Mayor Bill de Blasio has also warned about an uptick in cases this summer, in part due to large Hasidic gatherings. The Orthodox communities were among the hardest hit after the outbreak of the virus in March. More StoriesWould you like to receive desktop browser notifications about breaking news and other major stories?  | |||||||||||
| VEB Russian Bank Linked To Spy Ring | |||||||||||
In 2014, the FBI was in the late stages of an elaborate sting. An undercover agent posing as an energy analyst leaked binders with fake commercial secrets to two Russian spies operating in New York. The spies took the binders back to the Rezidentura, the New York base of operations for the SVR, Russias foreign intelligence agency. Microphones hidden inside the leaked material relayed the spies every word back to American counterintelligence agents. The pair of SVR officers were caught gabbing about their secret roles, from the difficulties of recruiting prospective agents to the disappointment that their day-to-day work was not even close to movies about James Bond. In their free-flowing conversations, they discussed an SVR agent working for them under deep cover in New York: Evgeny Buryakov. Ostensibly, Buryakov was a representative of a Russian bank called VEB. But in reality he worked for the SVR, collecting economic intelligence. FBI transcripts show the two spymasters discussed how Buryakov had traveled the world as a bank employee, spying while he went, and how they wanted him to take on an important task: find out how the US planned to bar Russian firms from its financial system. They didnt need to worry. American authorities allowed the Russian bank whose board used to be chaired by Vladimir Putin to operate in the US despite a paper trail that outlined concerns it was a threat to national security. The FinCEN Files, a collaboration between BuzzFeed News and more than 100 newsrooms associated with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, shows that the US Treasury Department received at least 86 warnings from 2007 to 2016 discussing the bank, its clients, or Buryakov. These warnings are known as suspicious activity reports, or SARs. By law, banks act as crucial sentinels for the US government, looking for signs of financial crimes. When they spot transactions that bear the hallmarks of money laundering or other financial misconduct, they must file SARs to the Treasury Departments Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, or FinCEN. Such reports are not by themselves evidence of a crime but can support investigations and intelligence gathering. Banks are barred from discussing or even acknowledging the existence of SARs, but in a statement to BuzzFeed News, VEB said it has never been involved in any illegal activities or been approached by authorities in relation to the matters raised in this story. The bank said that disclosure of SARs was illegal and that as it cannot verify the authenticity of the documents received by BuzzFeed News, it did not wish to comment further. The SARs filed by other banks relating to VEB and its clients document suspected national security risks. One warned that Buryakov had sent cash to an address linked to a company providing gear that could be of great use to an intelligence agent: video surveillance tools. Others raised the possibility that a VEB subsidiary helped bankroll Bashar al-Assads regime in Syria and facilitated an arms deal to a sanctioned country. But the recurring warnings didnt seem to hurt VEB. It still was allowed to process its dollars through the US, using some of the worlds most prestigious banks. The Spy and His SupervisorEstablished as a not-for-profit, state-financed bank to boost the Russian economy, VEB is controlled by President Putins innermost circle. Igor Shuvalov, former Russian deputy prime minister, oversees the bank as its chair. Its former CEO was Sergey Gorkov, a graduate of Russias intelligence academy. In 2014, responding to Russias invasion of Ukraine, the US forbade companies to lend to VEB. Still, that was the only major restriction that VEB faced. It was allowed to continue to bank in the United States and gain access to the dollar, the worlds most important currency. In January 2015, Buryakov was arrested for espionage. The indictment rang alarm bells at the New York banking giant JPMorgan Chase, where VEB held cash accounts, controlled by Buryakovs supervisor at VEB. A SAR from JPMorgan Chase noted a lawsuit filed by Buryakovs landlord. That suit said that after Buryakov was indicted for spying by US authorities, his family left without paying rent for his apartment in Riverdale, New York. (Buryakov could not be reached for comment for this story.) Afterward, the lawsuit alleges, Buryakovs supervisor at VEB turned up at the property. He allegedly caused structural damage to the apartment, including breaking furniture, and cleared it out. Chases compliance officers, employees whose job is to keep an eye out for any financial transactions that might be linked to criminal activity, examined the records of Buryakovs supervisor. They found that he had been removing cash from VEBs accounts in a highly unusual manner. According to Chases SAR, in 2015 Buryakovs supervisor visited Chase branches across New York and New Jersey, withdrawing $30,000 over three days. Each transaction was for $10,000. The Chase compliance officials sounded the alarm. They warned the US government that the supervisor worked in close proximity to Buryakov, who they noted had been accused of economic espionage. They said that the supervisors unusual cash withdrawals looked like structuring of funds designed to circumvent the automated alert that occurs when more than $10,000 in cash is withdrawn in essence, that Buryakovs supervisor might be trying to avoid government monitoring. The supervisor has since left VEB and runs his own company. He did not respond to requests for comment. Despite one VEB employee being charged with espionage and another being involved in suspicious transactions, the government took no public action against the bank. The Syrian ConnectionChase was not the only major bank to worry about how VEB was moving cash around. In 2012, the Federal Reserve of New York found deficiencies in the way that Commerzbank sold banknotes and ordered it to review all of its former sales. In the process of doing that, the banks compliance officers investigated its dealings with a VEB subsidiary bank. It seemed that between 2010 and 2013, the small bank, which has no offices outside of Russia, had been purchasing vast sums of US dollars $497 million worth from Commerzbank. Over that time, the Syrian conflict had erupted from a small rebellion to a full-blown civil war pitting various factions against the Assad regime, which sparked international outrage for deploying chemical weapons on civilians but was supported by Russia. In a SAR that Commerzbank later filed to the US government, it noted that VEB was publicly tied to Syrian commercial and arms deals and that Russia was supporting the Assad regime by loans of foreign currencies. Commerzbank was concerned that the VEB subsidiary was helping the Syrian regime fund its war. Yet Commerzbank staff in Germany assured their New York counterparts that the sales were simply ordinary competitive business practices. Members of the New York team disagreed. The Americans launched an investigation that showed spikes in activity in the dollar purchases that appear to correspond to sanctions being imposed on Syria, according to the banks SAR. Commerzbank stopped providing it with banknotes in September 2013. It notified the US government of its suspicions in a SAR the following year. Responding to questions from BuzzFeed News, Commerzbank said it was unable to comment on clients due to bank secrecy laws. A spokesperson said the bank has invested heavily in compliance since 2015 and successfully completed audits ordered by US regulators. In 2013 a group of US senators wrote to thenTreasury secretary Jack Lew, warning that Russian banks, including VEB, acted as a financial lifeline to the Assad regime. The banks at the time denied helping Assad. Declaring that there was clear and compelling evidence Assad had used chemical weapons against the Syrian population, the senators urged the government to sanction VEB. The Treasury didnt act. The Payment Appeared UnusualAnother VEB subsidiary, Genetechma Finance Limited, came under scrutiny for its links to possible arms sales. Genetechma had told Barclays Bank that it was buying $34.6 million worth of helicopters from a Russian state-owned defense contractor and intended to sell them to a leasing firm based in Moscow. But in September 2013, it told Barclays that the deal had fallen through at the last minute and the helicopters would instead be sold to a UAE-based aviation company. When Barclays compliance officers later investigated, they found that the UAE company was the general agent for an aviation manufacturing and repair complex in Sudan. That complex was a joint venture between the then-sanctioned North Sudanese government and Russian Helicopters, a defense firm that produces aircraft for both civilian and military use. The Sudanese government was considered a state sponsor of terrorism by the US, and Russia was known to be supporting the Sudanese government in the bloody civil war in South Sudan. In its SAR to the US government, compliance officers at Barclays noted that Genetechma was identified to have sold four (4) dual purpose helicopters that were adaptable for the military to a business with ties to a sanctioned country. Experts told BuzzFeed News that the model of helicopter identified in the SAR was a type used heavily in the South Sudanese War. Barclays was also concerned about signs of money laundering that accompanied the deal. After the deal was done, Genetechma sent a payment of $10.2 million to a Cypriot shell company, telling Barclays that the payment was part of the helicopter leasing contract. Soon after, the company in Cyprus paid the exact same amount, $10.2 million, to yet another shell company, saying that it was a payment for scrap metal. The compliance officers at Barclays believed that the payment appeared unusual; they couldnt identify who owned the second shell company or even where it was based. They were concerned that the deal might be linked to North Sudan. Louise Shelley, an academic who has studied money laundering, said deals this complex should raise red flags. Legitimate supply chains are straight and direct for efficiency purposes, she told BuzzFeed News. Illicit supply chains have to be convoluted so they're not transparent. Barclays, responding to questions for this story, said that under law it could not comment about clients or transactions detailed in SARs, and that the bank believed it had complied with all of its legal and regulatory obligations. Genetechma did not respond to requests for comment. The Spy Pleads GuiltyBuryakov, the spy employed by VEB, found the US government less forgiving. In 2016, he pleaded guilty to covertly working as a Russian agent and was sentenced to 30 months in prison. He was granted an early release after a year. US immigration officers accompanied him to Moscow on a commercial flight. A picture from the plane shows the spy slumped back into his economy-class seat, gazing thoughtfully ahead with his chin in his hand. It was the last known sighting of the spy. His former employer, VEB, continues to operate in the United States. | |||||||||||
| 1:17 PM 9/22/2020 Blogs | |||||||||||
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| Michael Novakhov SharedNewsLinks: Coronavirus may have spread via bathroom drains in Chinese high-rise | |||||||||||
Tue, 22 Sep 2020 11:51:28 -0400
In February, three families in a high-rise building in Guangzhou, China, tested positive for the coronavirus. They didnt know each other, didnt live on the same floor, and hadnt come into contact. | |||||||||||
| 12:14 PM 9/22/2020 - Covid-19 and building vents and plumbing: Coronavirus may have spread via bathroom drains in Chinese high-rise - Business Insider | |||||||||||
Covid-19 and building vents and plumbing: Coronavirus may have spread via bathroom drains in Chinese high-rise - Business Insider Disease X-19 - <a href="http://diseasex19.org" rel="nofollow">diseasex19.org</a>12:14 PM 9/22/2020 - Tweets by @mikenov | |||||||||||
| Coronavirus may have spread via bathroom drains in Chinese high-rise | |||||||||||
In February, three families in a high-rise building in Guangzhou, China, tested positive for the coronavirus. They didn't know each other, didn't live on the same floor, and hadn't come into contact. So scientists started to suspect that the virus had spread through the building's plumbing. Researchers know live coronavirus can be found in human feces and that the virus can spread via small airborne particles called aerosols. So it's not surprising that flushing a toilet can release "bioaerosols" coronavirus-laden poop particles that could infect other people. What's more surprising is that these particles seemed to travel across a 12-story gap between apartments in Guangzhou. In a study published Tuesday, scientists traced the Guangzhou outbreak to a five-person family living on the 15th floor. Four of the family members had traveled to Wuhan, China, in January, while the coronavirus was spreading across the city. Shortly after the family returned home, two middle-aged couples one on the 25th floor and another on the 27th started feeling sick as well. None of the other high-rise residents tested positive for the virus. Footage showed that the families hadn't shared an elevator while anyone was infectious, and there was no trace of the virus on the elevator button or in air ducts. The scientists did find positive virus samples in the five-person family's apartment, however specifically in the master bathroom. So the researchers released ethane gas down the family's toilet, then checked for that gas in the apartments above. All of the families were under quarantine at the time, so there was no opportunity for the virus to spread through close physical contact. Sure enough, the researchers found ethane in the middle-aged couples' apartments, as well as in two other apartments on the 16th and 21st floors. That's evidence that bioaerosols might have traveled through the plumbing system. Residents on the higher floors may have inhaled the particles directly or touched surfaces where the particles had landed in their bathrooms. Certain apartments were more susceptible than othersThe coronavirus typically spreads via respiratory droplets after an infected person coughs, sneezes, or talks. Researchers aren't sure about the degree to which the virus gets transmitted via aerosols, since the tiny particles are extremely hard to trap and study without killing the virus. But a 2018 study showed that bioaerosols generally could linger in the air for 30 minutes or more after a toilet flush. Researchers think certain environments favor airborne transmission, specifically poorly ventilated rooms. The risk goes down when a space is well-ventilated: According to a May study, the amount of coronavirus aerosol was cut in half after 30 seconds in a well-ventilated room, compared with five minutes in a room with no ventilation. In the Guangzhou building, the middle-aged couples said they never opened the windows to their master bathrooms. That may have allowed exhaust fans to recirculate contaminated air throughout those rooms. Poor ventilation may have also helped the virus survive in high concentrations in drainage pipes as it traveled between floors. The researchers think it was no coincidence that the middle-aged couples who got sick lived on a higher floor than the five-person family, since warm air rises in buildings during winter months. Scientists call it the "chimney effect." To make matters worse, the middle-aged couples said they didn't regularly use their bathtubs, which might have caused the water seals in their tubs to dry out. That could make it easier for bioaerosols to seep through. A striking resemblance to a SARS outbreak in Hong KongThe Guangzhou outbreak isn't the only documented instance of the coronavirus appearing to travel through plumbing pipes. In March, a couple living on the 32nd floor of a public-housing development in Hong Kong seemed to pass the virus to a 59-year-old man living two floors above them. Then in June, a 34-year-old woman, also in Hong Kong public housing, appeared to spread the virus to four other apartments that shared the same vertical drainage pipes. Scientists often point to one past example to show how bioaerosol transmission is possible: In 2003, a patient infected with SARS used the toilet in a housing complex in Hong Kong. The virus then traveled to more than 300 other residents in the complex. Researchers later concluded that virus-laden bioaerosols were to blame. According to a 2004 study, the SARS patient had "extremely high concentrations" of the virus in their feces and urine. After that person flushed the toilet, bioaerosols may have entered the building's air shaft because the exhaust fan was running and the bathroom door was closed. From there, a plume may have traveled to the building's upper apartments. An investigative team from the World Health Organization found that the seals in the floor drains had dried out in many of those apartments. But, like the new Guangzhou research, conclusions about the SARS outbreak in Hong Kong were based on circumstantial evidence: The epidemiologists can't prove bioaerosol transmission occurred. Instead, they deemed it the most plausible explanation after other theories were ruled out. As scientists continue to study coronavirus aerosols, public-health experts have suggested that people in apartments open their bathroom windows, run the tub more frequently, and close their toilet lids. | |||||||||||
| 22/09/20 05:56 from Disease X-19 from Michael_Novakhov (82 sites) And the company's fast spit test could help people live with it more safely. Sullivan is pushing | |||||||||||
22/09/20 05:56 from Disease X-19 from Michael_Novakhov (82 sites) And the company's fast spit test could help people live with it more safely. Sullivan is pushingDisease X-19 News Review In Brief _________________________________________________ » Disease X-19 Epidemiology from Michael_Novakhov (38 sites): Google Alert - saliva coronavirus test: Fast, Frequent And Cheap COVID-19 Tests Hold Promise For Hawaii » Disease X-19 Epidemiology from Michael_Novakhov (38 sites): Google Alert - saliva coronavirus test: University of Florida offers saliva swabs for COVID-19 testing » Disease X-19 Epidemiology from Michael_Novakhov (38 sites): Google Alert - coronavirus vaccine: Coronavirus vaccine update: COVID-19 vaccine could arrive by early 2021, delivery still an issue ... » Disease X-19 Symptoms from Michael_Novakhov (16 sites): Google Alert - coronavirus symptoms: COVID-19 Long-Haulers: 'Infuriated' and Unheard » Disease X-19 Epidemiology from Michael_Novakhov (38 sites): Google Alert - coronavirus in animals: Horseshoe crabs have a vital role in the development of a coronavirus vaccine. Here's why. | |||||||||||
| SARS-CoV-2: The Growing Case for Potential Transmission in a Building via Wastewater Plumbing Systems | |||||||||||
The coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic is a stark reminder of the role people and buildings play in the transmission of viruses. The pandemic has led us to review all building systems, particularly those involving airflow, and all procedures and system phenomena that produce aerosols. There is a growing body of evidence that built environment systems contribute to the spread of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In their current report, Kang and colleagues (1) add wastewater plumbing systems to the catalogue of potential transmission pathways in buildings (1). Viral transmission dynamics fall into 2 main groups: direct contact between an infected and a susceptible person and indirect contact by a susceptible person with virus shed in droplets or aerosols from an infected person. Indirect transmission occurs when a susceptible person touches a surface contaminated by droplets or aerosols containing infectious virus and then touches their mouth or nose, or by inhaling infective droplets or aerosols from environmental systems. Kang and colleagues report a case in which transmission probably occurred by indirect contact in an apartment building: Viral particles seem to have been carried on air streams within the pipe network and entered the interior of the building from the wastewater system. Aerosols, typically less than 5 µm in diameter, are light enough to be carried in air, whereas larger droplets tend to fall out of the air before traveling long distances. Kang and colleagues describe a situation in which infectious aerosols may have been formed as the result of turbulent flows within a wastewater plumbing system containing virus-laden feces. Several studies have investigated the shedding of viral particles in feces (2, 3). Most of these studies looked for evidence of viral RNA in fecal samples; however, the transmission route that Kang and colleagues propose relies on the infectivity of the virus in fecal droplets and aerosols. Although some evidence exists for this, it is weak and based on small studies and case reports. Establishing infectivity is much more complicated than establishing the presence of viral RNA, so more definitive evidence is anticipated to emerge with time. Work by my team identified the mechanisms involved in transmission dynamics between 2 different interconnected yet separate spaces within a building (4, 5). The work was in response to the World Health Organization (WHO) report in 2003 (6) of a SARS outbreak in Amoy Gardens, a housing complex in Hong Kong, which led to the infection of 321 persons and resulted in 42 deaths (7, 8). The WHO hypothesized that empty U-traps in the plumbing system created a pathway for virus-laden droplets and aerosols to enter bathrooms and spread the infection as residents touched contaminated surfaces. The transmission pathway was aided by mechanical bathroom extract fans and favorable outdoor air conditions, which allowed an additional transmission pathway on the outside of the building. The Amoy Gardens case highlights the challenges of epidemiologic studies on transmission in high-rise buildings. Kang and colleagues faced similar issues as they struggled to piece together the transmission between different floors in the building they investigated. One of the challenges highlighted in their article is the presence of evidence after the event. They emphasized that in the apartments where the suspected infections occurred, efforts to disinfect the bathroom may have destroyed the evidence in the U-traps. They verified this in apartments 802, 1602, 2102, and 2702, where tracer gas released into the wastewater drainage stack at apartment 1502 was detected in each unit, thus confirming that no water was present in the U-traps. The authors' use of closed circuit television footage to assess movement of the building's occupants, along with the strict restrictions on movement by the authorities, supports the conclusion that infection spread through the wastewater system. However, the authors cast appropriate caution about their findings and have not overstated the evidence. Although evidence is building, it is not yet strong enough to warrant wide-scale interventionbut does warrant some precautions. The authors and others working in this field highlight the possibility that a virus, such as SARS-CoV-2, may be transmitted in the manner described by Kang and colleagues (1). However, building wastewater systems are a potential reservoir for many other viruses and bacteria; even in the absence of SARS-CoV-2, this is a cause for concern. After the SARS outbreak of 2002 to 2003, efforts to formally regulate wastewater systemssimilar to regulation of water supply systems to control such pathogens as Legionellafailed to gain traction. Other innovations developed at that time to deal with air pressure surges, a common cause of empty U-traps in high-rise buildings, are currently used in some locales but are not common practice (9). In another development, a method was invented to determine whether a system is sealed, but this likewise has not been used widely (10). In conclusion, Kang and colleagues add to the growing body of evidence that wastewater plumbing systems, particularly those in high-rise buildings, deserve closer investigation, both immediately in the context of SARS-CoV-2 and in the long term, because they may be a reservoir for other harmful pathogens. This article was published at <a href="http://Annals.org" rel="nofollow">Annals.org</a> on 1 September 2020 | |||||||||||
| 5:58 AM 9/22/2020 - Tweets: U.S. CDC takes down coronavirus airborne transmission guidance - Reuters | NYPD officer arrested for helping China spy on citys Tibetan community - New York Daily News | Gormley M. SARS-CoV-2: the growing case for potential transmission in a building via wastewater plumbing systems [published online September 1, 2020]. Ann Intern Med... | |||||||||||
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| NYPD officer arrested for helping China spy on citys Tibetan community - New York Daily News | |||||||||||
An NYPD cop was arrested for spying on local Tibetan communities for the Chinese government, federal prosecutors announced Monday. Officer Baimadajie Angwang, 33, a community affairs cop with the 111th Precinct in Queens of Tibetan origin, reported to two Chinese consulate officials in the city since 2014, according to a criminal complaint filed Monday. Baimadajie Angwang violated every oath he took in this country. One to the United States, another to the U.S. Army, and a third to this Police Department, NYPD Commissioner Dermot Shea said in a statement. The investigation into Angwang found that he reported on the activities of ethnic Tibetans, and others, in the New York metropolitan area to the Consulate, and spotted and assessed potential ethnic Tibetan intelligence sources in the New York metropolitan area. Tibet has been occupied by China since 1951, which has created a decades-old independence movement. Since 2018, Angwang was in constant communication with one Chinese consulate official, whom he referred to as boss," according to the feds. The official allegedly was assigned to the China Association for Preservation and Development of Tibetan Culture division of Chinas United Front Work Department. The division is responsible for neutralizing sources of potential opposition to the policies and authority of China, according to federal prosecutors. In late October 2018, Angwang told the official about a new Tibetan community center in Queens and said the two should visit it, according to the complaint. If its good or not, you need to know about this for your works sake. They are the biggest venue for activities right now. If they are involved with politics, then in the future more than half of the meetings might take place there, Angwang said during the conversation, the feds claim. Angwang also invited the consulate official to NYPD events to raise our countrys soft power, according to the court filing. He told the official that he could provide non-public information regarding the internal operations of the NYPD, according to the complaint. Between June 2018 and March 2020, Angwang spoke with the consulate official by telephone at least 53 times, according to the feds. In one instance in February 2019, Angwang suggested that a good intelligence source could be a Tibetan-American man who had recently run for political office and lost, the feds said. I think this person, this person has a very good political future, Angwang said, adding that the man did not have "extreme views on China, according to the complaint. The cops alleged spy work for the Chinese Communist Party was all the more shocking because Angwang received asylum in the United States after he claimed he was tortured by China because he was ethnically Tibetan, the feds said in the complaint. In reality, Angwangs parents are both members of the Chinese Communist Party, according to the court filing. His father was in the army in China and his mother worked a government job. Angwang, who was also employed by the U.S. Army Reserves, had a secret level security clearance from the Department of Defense. Pro-independence Tibetan activists in New York were dismayed, but not necessarily surprised by the arrest. The Daily News Flash NewsletterWeekdays Catch up on the days top five stories every weekday afternoon. You are now following this newsletter. See all newsletters. "Tibetans have long known about THE Chinese government trying to infiltrate our communities and with this incident its proof that they not only spy on the Tibetan community but directly hinder and cause problems and try to sabotage our political work, our freedom work, even in the free United States, said Dorjee Tseten, a Queens-based Tibetan activist and executive director of Students for a Free Tibet. Tseten added that though he had never met Angwang, the cop had tried to contact and get in the community and many activists were suspicious of him. Our community had the suspicions earlier than this report coming out, Tseten said. The police officer was ordered held without bail Monday during a brief appearance in Brooklyn Federal Court. His lawyer, John Carman, declined to comment when reached by the Daily News. He is charged with acting as an illegal agent of China, wire fraud and making false statements. Angwang faces up to 55 years in prison on the charges. Noah GoldbergNew York Daily NewsContact Noah Goldberg covers Brooklyn supreme and federal courts for the New York Daily News. He previously covered criminal justice for the Brooklyn Eagle. | |||||||||||
| 7:08 PM 9/21/2020 - Tweets by @mikenov: CDC reverses itself and says guidelines it posted on coronavirus airborne transmission were wrong - The Washington Post | |||||||||||
7:08 PM 9/21/2020 - Tweets by @mikenov: CDC reverses itself and says guidelines it posted on coronavirus airborne transmission were wrong - The Washington Post 
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| 11:38 AM 9/21/2020 - Recent Posts | |||||||||||
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| 11:04 AM 9/21/2020 - M.N.: Finally, it was admitted. Now: connection with rodents and hantaviruses which have the same mode of transmission. COVID-19: SARS-CoV-2 Transmission Probable Through Fecal Aerosols - Infectious Disease Advisor | |||||||||||
M.N.: Finally, it was admitted. Now: connection with rodents and hantaviruses which have the same mode of transmission. COVID-19: SARS-CoV-2 Transmission Probable Through Fecal Aerosols - Infectious Disease Advisor Tweets by @mikenov
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| COVID-19: SARS-CoV-2 Transmission Probable Through Fecal Aerosols | |||||||||||
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) may be transmitted through fecal aerosols, according to both a study and editorial recently published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.1,2 The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has led to a review of all building systems involving airflow and all procedures and systems that produce aerosols. There are 2 main groups of viral transmission: direct contact between an infected and a susceptible person, and indirect contact by a susceptible person with virus shed in droplets or aerosols from an infected person. This indirect transmission occurs when a susceptible person encounters surfaces or air that are contaminated with droplets or aerosols that contain infectious virus, and the virus is transferred to their mouth or nose or inhaled from environmental systems.2 Most authorities state that SARS-CoV-2 is transmitted mainly by close contact and fomites; however, there is increasing evidence that SARS-CoV-2 viral particles may shed in feces. Researchers from China investigated a case in which transmission through indirect contact occurred in an apartment building via particles carried on air streams within the pipe network that entered the interior of the building from the wastewater system.1 This reported case involved an outbreak of 9 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in a high-rise apartment building (3 vertically aligned flats; block X) in Guangzhou, China, during a period of social distancing.1 Block X includes 29 floors with 3 apartment flats on floors 2 through 28, and 2 flats on floor 29, for a total of 83 flats. In total, 9 infected patients, 193 other residents of the building, and 24 building management staff were included in the case. Todays Top Picks for You on Infectious Disease Advisor Respiratory Transmission of SARS-CoV-2: What Do We Really Know? David C. Helfgott, MD 23 April 2020 infectiousdiseaseadvisor.com Although influenza virus and respiratory syncytial virus are considered to be spread by droplets and aerosol transmission, the mode of respiratory transmission of SARS-CoV-2 is not completely understood. COVID-19: Update on the Origin, Transmission, and Clinical Therapies Infectious Disease Advisor Contributing Writer 3 April 2020 infectiousdiseaseadvisor.com A summary of the current knowledge on the epidemiology, pathogenesis, and clinical characteristics of the SARS-CoV-2, which causes COVID-19, has been published. PPE Negative for SARS-CoV-2 After Patient Contact Haymarket Media 31 March 2020 infectiousdiseaseadvisor.com Samples from goggles, N95 respirators, shoes of 30 health care workers were negative for SARS-CoV-2. Testing for Antibodies to SARS-CoV-2: Timing Important for Accuracy Cassandra Pardini, PharmD 6 July 2020 infectiousdiseaseadvisor.com Serology tests were better at detecting the presence of antibodies to the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) in patients when they were tested 15 to 35 days post-symptom onset, according to the findings of a recently published review on the Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews. Good Prognosis for Patients with Inflammatory Bowel Disease and COVID-19 Jessica Nye, PhD 27 May 2020 infectiousdiseaseadvisor.com Patients with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 had a good overall prognosis, despite IBD maintenance treatment. Invasive Aspergillosis Superinfection Possible in Symptomatic COVID-19 Zahra Masoud 28 July 2020 infectiousdiseaseadvisor.com Critically ill patients hospitalized with COVID-19 particularly those who develop ARDS may also experience an opportunistic aspergillosis superinfection. Symptom onset dates and flat locations of the 9 residents with SARS-CoV-2 infection were obtained. All infections were confirmed via throat swab and RNA test results. Associated environmental variables were examined to verify the role of fecal aerosols, including closed circuit television footage used to assess the movement of the buildings occupants; 237 surface and air samples taken from 11 of the flats, public areas, and building drainage systems; and tracer gas that was released into bathrooms as a surrogate for virus-laden aerosols in the drainage system. Results suggest that fecal aerosol transmission may have caused the community COVID-19 outbreak based on circumstantial evidence. The 9 infected patients included 3 families. The first family had history of travel to Wuhan, China, the epicenter of COVID-19; the other 2 families had no travel history and a later onset of symptoms. The families lived in 3 vertically aligned flats that were connected by drainage pipes in the master bathrooms. The observed infections and the locations of positive environmental samples are consistent with the vertical spread of virus-laden aerosols via these stacks and vents. There was no evidence found for transmission via the elevator or elsewhere. Michael Gormley, PhD, of the Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, pointed out in his accompanying editorial that the study add[s] to the growing body of evidence that wastewater plumbing systems, particularly those in high-rise buildings, deserve closer investigation, both immediately in the context of SARS-CoV-2 and in the long term, because they may be a reservoir for other harmful pathogens.1 References
Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) may be transmitted through fecal aerosols, according to both a study and editorial recently published in the Annals of Internal Medicine.1,2 The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has led to a review of all building systems involving airflow and all procedures and systems that produce aerosols. There are 2 main groups of viral transmission: direct contact between an infected and a susceptible person, and indirect contact by a susceptible person with virus shed in droplets or aerosols from an infected person. This indirect transmission occurs when a susceptible person encounters surfaces or air that are contaminated with droplets or aerosols that contain infectious virus, and the virus is transferred to their mouth or nose or inhaled from environmental systems.2 Most authorities state that SARS-CoV-2 is transmitted mainly by close contact and fomites; however, there is increasing evidence that SARS-CoV-2 viral particles may shed in feces. Researchers from China investigated a case in which transmission through indirect contact occurred in an apartment building via particles carried on air streams within the pipe network that entered the interior of the building from the wastewater system.1 This reported case involved an outbreak of 9 confirmed cases of COVID-19 in a high-rise apartment building (3 vertically aligned flats; block X) in Guangzhou, China, during a period of social distancing.1 Block X includes 29 floors with 3 apartment flats on floors 2 through 28, and 2 flats on floor 29, for a total of 83 flats. In total, 9 infected patients, 193 other residents of the building, and 24 building management staff were included in the case. Symptom onset dates and flat locations of the 9 residents with SARS-CoV-2 infection were obtained. All infections were confirmed via throat swab and RNA test results. Associated environmental variables were examined to verify the role of fecal aerosols, including closed circuit television footage used to assess the movement of the buildings occupants; 237 surface and air samples taken from 11 of the flats, public areas, and building drainage systems; and tracer gas that was released into bathrooms as a surrogate for virus-laden aerosols in the drainage system. Results suggest that fecal aerosol transmission may have caused the community COVID-19 outbreak based on circumstantial evidence. The 9 infected patients included 3 families. The first family had history of travel to Wuhan, China, the epicenter of COVID-19; the other 2 families had no travel history and a later onset of symptoms. The families lived in 3 vertically aligned flats that were connected by drainage pipes in the master bathrooms. The observed infections and the locations of positive environmental samples are consistent with the vertical spread of virus-laden aerosols via these stacks and vents. There was no evidence found for transmission via the elevator or elsewhere. Michael Gormley, PhD, of the Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh, pointed out in his accompanying editorial that the study add[s] to the growing body of evidence that wastewater plumbing systems, particularly those in high-rise buildings, deserve closer investigation, both immediately in the context of SARS-CoV-2 and in the long term, because they may be a reservoir for other harmful pathogens.1 References
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| 9:49 AM 9/21/2020 - NYC branded an 'anarchist jurisdiction,' targeted for defunding: DOJ | |||||||||||
9:49 AM 9/21/2020 - NYC branded an 'anarchist jurisdiction,' targeted for defunding: DOJ "New York City was among three cities labeled anarchist jurisdictions by the Justice Department on Sunday and targeted to lose federal money for failing to control protesters and defunding cops, The Post has learned. Portland, Ore., and Seattle, Wash., were the other two cities on the list, which was approved by US Attorney General William Barr. When state and local leaders impede their own law enforcement officers and agencies from doing their jobs, it endangers innocent citizens who deserve to be protected, including those who are trying to peacefully assemble and protest, Barr said in a statement set to be released Monday. We cannot allow federal tax dollars to be wasted when the safety of the citizenry hangs in the balance, the AG added. It is my hope that the cities identified by the Department of Justice today will reverse course and become serious about performing the basic function of government and start protecting their own citizens."
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| NYC branded an 'anarchist jurisdiction,' targeted for defunding: DOJ | |||||||||||
Justice Dept. brands NYC an anarchist jurisdiction, targets federal funds1 Vermont grocery store worker fired after apprehending purse snatcher 2 Reality TV couple who won Alaskan lodge say they've been swindled 3 Election-themed toilet display lands homeowner in hot water 4 Massive 'F--k Cuomo and de Blasio' mural painted on Brooklyn street 5 Six accused of starting Oregon blazes amid devastating wildfire season Contact The Author September 21, 2020 | 6:02am | Updated September 21, 2020 | 9:26am More On:justice departmentUS charges two Iranian nationals with stealing American intelUS attorney denies report saying AG mulled charges against Seattle mayorBy destroying evidence, Team Mueller proved they have a lot to hideJustice Department charges five Chinese nationals with hacking over 100 companiesNew York City was among three cities labeled anarchist jurisdictions by the Justice Department on Sunday and targeted to lose federal money for failing to control protesters and defunding cops, The Post has learned. Portland, Ore., and Seattle, Wash., were the other two cities on the list, which was approved by US Attorney General William Barr. When state and local leaders impede their own law enforcement officers and agencies from doing their jobs, it endangers innocent citizens who deserve to be protected, including those who are trying to peacefully assemble and protest, Barr said in a statement set to be released Monday. We cannot allow federal tax dollars to be wasted when the safety of the citizenry hangs in the balance, the AG added. It is my hope that the cities identified by the Department of Justice today will reverse course and become serious about performing the basic function of government and start protecting their own citizens. White House budget director Russ Vought is set to issue guidance to federal agencies on withdrawing funds from the cities in less than two weeks. The list of cities eligible for defunding will be updated periodically, the feds have said. It is not yet clear what funds are likely to be cut, but the amount of money siphoned from New York City could be massive, given the Big Apple gets about $7 billion in annual federal aid. The anarchist designations come after President Trump earlier this month issued a memo ordering financial retribution against cities that have been slashing their police budgets during crime waves, or tolerating violent protests sparked by the May killing of George Floyd by Minnesota police. see alsoAt the time, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo infamously reacted by warning Trump he should watch his step in the state. He better have an army if he thinks hes gonna walk down the street in New York, the Democratic governor said. He cant have enough bodyguards to walk through New York City, people dont want to have anything to do with him. The Big Apple made the Justice Departments list in part because its city council approved a budget in July that cut $1 billion from the NYPDs $6 billion annual budget even as murders and shootings in Gotham soared. In July, the number of shootings in New York City skyrocketed 177 percent over the same period last year, and there was a 59 percent rise in murders. In August, city shootings soared 165 percent, while murders jumped about 50 percent. The Justice Department said it also considered the fact that at least some of the citys district attorneys have declined to prosecute people arrested for disorderly conduct and unlawful assembly during recent protests. Trump, in his Sept. 2 memo, instructed Vought to issue guidance within 30 days to the heads of agencies on restricting eligibility of or otherwise disfavoring, to the maximum extent permitted by law, anarchist jurisdictions in the receipt of Federal grants. Trump administration officials told The Post that reductions to law enforcement efforts are unlikely. Trumps memo twice referenced Big Apple Mayor Bill de Blasio by name as it said, In New York City, city officials have allowed violence to spike. In light of this unconscionable rise in violence, I have offered to provide Federal law enforcement assistance, but both Mayor de Blasio and Governor Andrew Cuomo have rejected my offer, Trump wrote. see alsoWhile violence has surged, arrests have plummeted. In a 28-day period during the months of June and July, [New York City] arrests were down 62 percent from the same period in 2019, the presidential memo said. Amidst the rising violence, Mayor Bill de Blasio and the New York City Council agreed to cut one billion dollars from the New York Police Department (NYPD) budget, including by cancelling the hiring of 1,163 officers. Portland made the anarchist list over its more than 100 consecutive nights of protests and because Mayor Ted Wheeler expressly rejected federal help in a letter to Trump, the feds said. The city has been roiled in violence between Black Lives Matter protesters and cops as well as skirmishes with pro-Trump factions. Aaron Danielson, a supporter of the right-wing group Patriot Prayer, was fatally shot by Antifa activist Michael Reinoehl during one protest there at the end of August, before Reinoehl was killed by authorities days later. The Portland City Council voted to cut its police department budget by at least $15 million in June. Seattle was included on the Justice Departments list because of a long-running protester autonomous zone and associated crime, the administration said. Protesters took over a section of the city for nearly a month during the summer with police told to abandon a precinct in the middle of the area. The citys police chief called the zones occupation lawless and brutal amid a slew of shootings there, including some fatal before the sprawling illegal encampment was finally dismantled. Meanwhile, Seattle voted in August to cut its police budget by about $3 million. Washington, DC, Mayor Muriel Bowser, whose city was on the initial list of targets, skirted at least the first round of federal funding cuts after moving to make peace with Trump in a recent phone call. Shes willing to do whatever is necessary. We had a very good talk with her, Trump told reporters Sept. 4. A federal appeals court earlier this year upheld Trumps attempt to take funding from some sanctuary cities including New York City that try to protect undocumented workers from federal immigration officials. But three other appeals courts came to the opposite conclusion involving other cities. White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany said at a recent press briefing that the federal defunding of cities is legal, pointing to a 1987 US Supreme Court decision, South Dakota v. Dole, involving the establishment of a national drinking age of 21. Trump has said he is making law and order a centerpiece of his re-election campaign. My Administration will not allow Federal tax dollars to fund cities that allow themselves to deteriorate into lawless zones, Trump wrote in his memo. Filed under black lives matter , crime , donald trump , justice department , new york city , William Barr , 9/21/20 | |||||||||||
| 8:02 AM 9/21/2020 - FBI Reform fbireform.com | |||||||||||
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| 21/09/20 06:07 from Disease X-19 from Michael_Novakhov (82 sites) Coronavirus : 50,000 new daily cases by mid-October at current rate. Ross McGuinness. ,. Yahoo | |||||||||||
21/09/20 06:07 from Disease X-19 from Michael_Novakhov (82 sites) Coronavirus : 50,000 new daily cases by mid-October at current rate. Ross McGuinness. ,. YahooDisease X-19 News Review In Brief _________________________________________________ » Disease X-19 Publications from Michael_Novakhov (5 sites): Google Alert - Coronavirus on Yahoo News: Coronavirus: 50000 new daily cases by mid-October at current rate » Disease X-19 Epidemiology from Michael_Novakhov (38 sites): Google Alert - covid-19 and pork: Greek PM to visit storm-stricken areas as reconstruction begins » Disease X-19 Epidemiology from Michael_Novakhov (38 sites): Google Alert - coronavirus in animals: An ancient animal off the coast of SC holds a key element for coronavirus vaccine testing » Disease X-19 Epidemiology from Michael_Novakhov (38 sites): Google Alert - covid-19 and pork: Breakfast restaurant Rise & Grind opens in Patchogue » Disease X-19 Epidemiology from Michael_Novakhov (38 sites): Google Alert - Coronavirus super-spreading events: Forget Zoom Kindergarten. Put Kids Back in School. » Disease X-19 Origins from Michael_Novakhov (3 sites): Google Alert - coronavirus origins: In new twist, quick saliva test can help fight against COVID-19 » Disease X-19 Origins from Michael_Novakhov (3 sites): Google Alert - Sars-Cov-2 origins: In new twist, quick saliva test can help fight against COVID-19 » Disease X-19 Symptoms from Michael_Novakhov (16 sites): Google Alert - covid-19 neurological symptoms: He knew. He lied. 200000 people died. | |||||||||||
| 5:44 AM 9/21/2020 - The chronicles of Trumpistan: Was That Ride on the Trump Train Worth It? - NYT | |||||||||||
5:44 AM 9/21/2020 - The chronicles of Trumpistan:Was That Ride on the Trump Train Worth It? - NYT Michael Novakhov - SharedNewsLinks | In Brief | -
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| Opinion | Was That Ride on the Trump Train Worth It? | |||||||||||
Paul Ryan, the former House speaker, had his dash up the career ladder disrupted. Under Mr. Trump, Mr. Ryan oversaw an explosion of the national debt, ruining his image as a fiscally disciplined wonderwonk. He was also constantly beaten up by Mr. Trump, even as he indulged the presidents worst impulses. Rather than wait around for his party to get trounced in the midterms, Mr. Ryan announced in April 2018 that he would not run again. The carnage stretches beyond the government. The National Rifle Association and its longtime frontman, Wayne LaPierre, spent truckloads of cash getting Mr. Trump elected in 2016. In return? The group has spent the Trump era rent by infighting and plagued by possibly existential legal and financial troubles. One of Mr. Trumps most zealous evangelical supporters, Jerry Falwell Jr., was recently nudged out as head of Liberty University following a sex scandal that included his wife and a former pool attendant. The universitys board has announced an investigation of the schools operations under Mr. Falwell. More broadly, the entire white evangelical brand has been soiled as even many people of faith question this demographics unwavering devotion to a president of such moral flexibility. A more personal loss for Mr. Trump may be the defenestration of David Pecker. As the head of American Media, The National Enquirers parent company, Mr. Pecker promoted Mr. Trumps political career: slathering him with praise, denigrating his opponents and doing catch and kill, burying potentially damaging news. Some of Mr. Peckers tactics drew legal scrutiny. Last month, Mr. Pecker was bumped from leadership of American Media, recently renamed A360Media, to the post of executive adviser. Though much of the conservative news media has flourished in the Trump era, a couple of players have overstepped. Trish Regan went so far into coronavirus-response-is-aimed-at-bringing-down-the-president nuttiness that Fox Business put her show on indefinite hiatus. John Solomon, formerly of The Hill newspaper, was once considered a serious journalist. Now, he may be best remembered as a peddler of the Hunter Biden-Ukraine conspiracy. Speaking of reputational harm, no one is exactly sure whats going on with Kanye Wests bizarre presidential bid, which is being aided and abetted by Republicans. But theres a widespread concern that Mr. West, a Trump-loving rap star who suffers from bipolar disorder, is being grossly exploited. | |||||||||||
| 20/09/20 06:52 from Disease X-19 from Michael_Novakhov (82 sites) Depending on the symptoms which a child feeling ill shows to school nurses, the school may call parents to pick up the child and arrange for a COVID | |||||||||||
 Tweets by @mikenov
20/09/20 06:52 - Disease X-19 News Review In Brief _________________________________________________ » Disease X-19 Symptoms from Michael_Novakhov (16 sites): Google Alert - coronavirus symptoms: As schools open, Haverhill has COVID-19 plan » Disease X-19 Epidemiology from Michael_Novakhov (38 sites): Google Alert - Coronavirus super-spreading events: Level 1 lockdown: SA must get used to the 'new normal' » Disease X-19 Symptoms from Michael_Novakhov (16 sites): Google Alert - Covid-19 blood clots: The COVID 'long-haulers' » Disease X-19 Epidemiology from Michael_Novakhov (38 sites): Google Alert - saliva coronavirus test: Britain's biggest Covid testing lab 'is prioritising private work over NHS patients after signing ... » Disease X-19 Symptoms from Michael_Novakhov (16 sites): Google Alert - Covid-19 blood clots: Covid-19 less deadly as medical treatments advance | |||||||||||
| Trump Makes America More Like Russia Every Day | |||||||||||
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| 12:13 PM 9/19/2020 - Civil unrest in America as the political tool: A nation can survive its fools, and even the ambitious. But it cannot survive treason from within. An enemy at the gates is less formidable, for he is known and carries his banner openly. But the traitor moves amongst those within the gate freely, his sly whispers rustling through all the alleys, heard in the very halls of government itself. Marcus Tullius Cicero | M.N.: This is applied equally to both the Left and the Right. | |||||||||||
Saved Stories - News Review 12:13 PM 9/19/2020 - Civil unrest in America as the political tool: A nation can survive its fools, and even the ambitious. But it cannot survive treason from within. An enemy at the gates is less formidable, for he is known and carries his banner openly. But the traitor moves amongst those within the gate freely, his sly whispers rustling through all the alleys, heard in the very halls of government itself. Marcus Tullius Cicero | M.N.: This is applied equally to both the Left and the Right. Saved Stories | Page | Links __________________________________________________
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| Civil unrest in America as the political tool - Google Search google.com/search?q=civil pic.twitter.com/IZ7uV54Wd2 | |||||||||||
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