February 7, 2020
By Cecilia Yap and Jeff Kearns
President Rodrigo Duterte (click here) plans to order the termination of a longstanding military pact with the U.S., the Philippine Daily Inquirer reported, though the U.S. State Department reiterated that relations between the nations remain strong.
The Inquirer report, citing presidential spokesman Salvador Panelo, follows Duterte’s threat in January to end the agreement after Washington canceled a visa for a senator who used to lead his drug war.
Such a move could upend the decades-long alliance as Beijing continues its rise as a military power from the contested waters of the South China Sea to nations across Asia. The threat hasn’t been officially confirmed by the government. The U.S. has been seeking to reassure allies in Southeast Asia of its commitment to the region....
...The U.S. alliance with the Philippines is its oldest in the region and remains as important as ever, the official said, without directly addressing the Inquirer report....
October 7, 2019
By Richard Javad Heydarian
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte (click here) was given the red carpet treatment during a recently concluded five-day visit to Russia, underscoring the two sides’ budding economic and strategic ties.
While counterterrorism, defense and trade all featured prominently on the diplomatic agenda, discussions of possible Russian energy exploration in the South China Sea sent a strong signal to China, while mooted big arms deals aimed a shot across the US’s bow.
By forging closer ties with Russia, Duterte is seeking to recalibrate the Philippines’ diplomacy vis-à-vis China, a maritime rival and threat, and America, a long-time treaty ally which has nonetheless sharply criticized his government’s human rights record....
Since when are deaths not deaths? Duterte claims his death squads are making legitimate progress on drug dealers. Drug dealers? The death penalty is not issued for drug dealers in any First World Country, unless they committed murder. Even "El Chappo" received a life sentence, but, in the Phillipines under Deterte, drug ANYTHING is killed by death squads.
June 10, 2019
By Nick Aspinwall
The body of an alleged drug dealer lies on the ground after he was killed by an unidentified assailant in Manila on March 23, 2018.
Early in the morning of March 30, (click here) Philippine security forces set out to execute dozens of search warrants in the remote towns of Canlaon, Manjuyod, and Santa Catalina on the country’s southern Negros Island. Within hours, the operation had left 14 farmers dead. The Philippine National Police says the “Negros 14,” as they are now known, were communist rebels killed after refusing arrest and firing at police officers. Filipino and international rights groups refute this claim. A fact-finding report by a Philippines rights coalition, based on witness interviews, says that police forced family members to stand outside of their homes before entering and killing their targets, planting firearms as they departed in order to claim they faced armed foes.
The chilling report conjures images of the Philippine drug war, known as Oplan Tokhang—“tokhang” translates to “knock and plead.” Drug war tactics, which the country’s human rights commission says could be responsible for as many as 27,000 extrajudicial killings, have become the foundation of President Rodrigo Duterte’s developing counterinsurgency strategy—and rights groups allege its range of targets is growing to include an expanding list of those whom Duterte and his allies consider their enemies....
There needs to be global sanctions against Duterte and his henchmen.
Trump wants to slash spending on Medicaid and food stamps to pay for his border wall. I am glad there is a US House that can draw up a reasonable budget.
February 9, 2020
By Caitlin Emma and Jennifer Scholtes
President Donald Trump‘s budget (click here) request on Monday will pitch billions of dollars in cuts to non-defense spending despite a budget deal he already negotiated with Congress, in addition to seeking major savings by targeting the federal safety net, a senior administration official told POLITICO on Sunday.
Trump also will ask Congress for a slight spending increase for the Pentagon as he releases his $4.8 trillion budget blueprint for the upcoming fiscal year....
February 10, 2020
By Jessie Yeung
..."To date, (click here) no one has tested positive for novel coronavirus (2019-nCoV) among the 195 in quarantine. Two individuals with symptoms were retested and also found to be negative, and have since recovered," said Public Health Officer Cameron Kaiser, in a statement from the Riverside County Public Health Department....
None of the State Department employees can be accused of spreading the virus.
...The US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has listed 398 people under investigation for the novel coronavirus in 37 states, according to an update posted to the agency's website on Monday. Of them, 12 have tested positive, 318 negative and 68 are still pending...
It is long overdue in getting the passengers off the cruise ship. The air is unfiltered and the chances of it spreading are considerable. However, they should be tested as they exit the ship into New Jersey. Precautions have to be maintained and the testing on the ship may have been inadequate. It is wrong to continue to allow them to stay on the ship. The ship itself will have to be decontaminated, especially sources of food and water.
...After being delayed when four passengers became ill, The Anthem of the Seas will take off today at 3 p.m. ET, according to Royal Caribbean. The ship was docked in New Jersey while the family of four and other passengers were tested for the coronavirus....
This is Hong Kong construction? Like, what?
"As the pipeline that transfers feces is connected to the air pipe, it is very likely for the virus in the feces to be transmitted through the air fan into the toilet," Professor Yuen said.
Hong Kong basically has three sewage treatment plants. (click here)
Two of the latest four coronavirus infections in the UK are healthcare workers, and British authorities are now “working urgently to identify all patients and other healthcare workers who may have come into close contact” with them, Public Health England Medical Director, Yvonne Doyle, said in a statement.
The UK has a real problem if the health workers involved were not exclusively taking care of patients with the virus.
February 10, 2020
By Keith Bradsher
President Xi Jinping of China, center, inspecting a Beijing neighborhood on Monday, in a photo released by the state news agency Xinhua.
Credit...
...More than two week (click here)
after China locked down a major city to stop a dangerous viral outbreak, one of the world’s largest economies remains largely idle. Much of the country was supposed to have reopened by now, but its empty streets, quiet factories and legions of inactive workers suggest that weeks or months could pass before this vital motor of global growth is humming again....
...New figures show the authorities still have a long way to go before the outbreak can be tamed. On Monday, the authorities reported the most deaths from the new coronavirus in a single day, raising the death toll by 97 to 908....
It is extremely sad to see China go through this, but, it is serious. The United Nations needs to consider developing a method to get humanitarian aid to the people. Methods of clean water and food are very important. The idea China can sustain itself without assistance is a bit unrealistic. While other countries contain the virus, China has to maintain its' people. A weak body is a weak immune system and could act as a facilitator to the virus.
China is still an emerging economy and while that is all very interesting it is also a communist country that takes the people seriously. They won't be putting profits before survival, nor should they.
