WHO warns of 700,000 more COVID deaths in Europe by March 2022

The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that Europe remains “in the firm grip” of the coronavirus pandemic and the continent’s death toll could top 2.2 million this winter if current trends continue.

Another 700,000 Europeans could die by March 1, the WHO said on Tuesday, in addition to the 1.5 million who have already succumbed to the virus.

Read more at WHO warns of 700,000 more COVID deaths in Europe by March | Coronavirus pandemic News | Al Jazeera

Coronavirus: Germany poised to pass 100,000 COVID-19 deaths

Germany is poised to pass the mark of 100,000 deaths from COVID-19 this week, a sombre milestone that several of its neighbours crossed months ago but which Western Europe's most populous nation had hoped to avoid.

Discipline, a robust health-care system and the rollout of multiple vaccines — one of them homegrown — were meant to stave off a winter surge of the kind that hit Germany last year.

Read more at: Germany poised to pass 100,000 COVID-19 deaths | CBC News

USA: COVID-19 deaths eclipse 700,000 in US as delta variant rages across the country

The milestone is deeply frustrating to doctors, public health officials and the American public, who watched a pandemic that had been easing earlier in the summer take a dark turn. Tens of millions of Americans have refused to get vaccinated, allowing the highly contagious delta variant to tear through the country and send the death toll from 600,000 to 700,000 in 3 1/2 months.

Florida suffered by far the most death of any state during that period, with the virus killing about 17,000 residents since the middle of June. Texas was second with 13,000 deaths. The two states account for 15% of the country’s population, but more than 30% of the nation’s deaths since the nation crossed the 600,000 threshold.

Read more at: COVID-19 deaths eclipse 700,000 in US as delta variant rages across the country - South Florida Sun-Sentinel

USA: 'Still in pandemic mode': COVID-19 nowhere near 'under control' in US, warns Anthony Fauci

COVID-19 is “nowhere near under control” in the United States and the cases have surged more than ten times higher than they need to be in order to end the pandemic, US top infectious disease expert Dr. Anthony Fauci said on Friday. His remarks follow the warnings about the upcoming coronavirus mutations that he stated could be even more contagious than the delta of the coronavirus lineage. The director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) told Axios in an interview that the US has a mounting caseload of COVID-19 which is "not even modestly good control". "Until the cases dip to 10,000 a day, we are still in full ‘pandemic mode’," the infectious disease expert said.

Read more at: 'Still in pandemic mode': COVID-19 nowhere near 'under control' in US, warns Anthony Fauci

USA: CDC Reports 2 More Infant DEATHS Following Experimental COVID Injections During Clinical Trials

The CDC released more data in their Vaccine Adverse Event Reporting System (VAERS) today, and it included two new deaths of infants age 2 and age 1.

While none of the COVID injections have emergency use authorization for children under the age of 17 yet, there are ongoing trials with children being injected with the experimental shots as young as 6 months old.

One of the infants who died was apparently in a Pfizer trial, while the other one was apparently in a Moderna trial.

Read more at: CDC Reports 2 More Infant DEATHS Following Experimental COVID Injections During Clinical Trials

USA: Covid-19 - another Biden heritage from Donald Trump: : US tops 25 million coronavirus cases

More than 25 million cases of coronavirus have now been confirmed across the United States. Experts say the true number is likely to be higher. More than 417,500 in the US have died with the virus.

The daily number of deaths has exceeded 4,000 in recent weeks - including on Wednesday when Joe Biden was sworn into office.

President Biden signed a raft of new measures last week, including boosting vaccinations and testing.

Read more at: Covid-19: US tops 25 million coronavirus cases - BBC News

USA: Economy vs. human life is not a moral dilemma - those proposing it are sick in their head

s the coronavirus brings the global economy to a halt, some leaders are seriously suggesting that a few should die so the many can live. Such a suggestion is nothing less than moral bankruptcy, says Martin Gak.

Read more at:
https://www.dw.com/en/opinion-economy-vs-human-life-is-not-a-moral-dilemma/a-52942552

US firearms industry marketing guns to children says report from Violence Policy Center

NRA strikes again: marketing gun sales tochildren

The American firearms industry is targeting children as young as six with brightly colored guns and encouraging parents to let children take up shooting at an early age, according to a new report.

The Violence Policy Center, which aims to stop gun violence, said in its report that gun manufacturers are marketing to the youngest consumers because their primary market -- white men -- is aging.

"The firearms industry has set its sights on America's children. Much like the tobacco industry's search for replacement smokers, the gun industry is seeking replacement shooters," the group said in a statement.

"Along with the hope of increased gun sales, a corollary goal of this effort is the creation of the next generation of pro-gun advocates for future political battles."

Examples of "aggressive efforts" to market to children include rifles made with plastic parts so they are easier to handle, with less weight and recoil, the report said. Some manufacturers sell firearms in a variety of kid-friendly bright colors, including pink for girls.

The report also pointed out that the firearms industry and its lobby want parents to let their children "access guns at the earliest possible age."

The National Rifle Association, the main gun lobby in the US, previously had a website for its junior members, divided into "Under 8" and "8 and Up," the Violence Policy Center said.

Now called "NRA Family," the website's content includes a 2014 article reviewing the Thompson/Center HotShot youth rifle, calling it "a tiny gun intended for the very youngest shooters -- the ultimate first gun."
The article cited the manufacturer as saying the rifle is targeted to kids aged six to 12.

Gun violence is rife in the US, where a third of children live in a household with at least one weapon, according to the group Everytown for Gun Safety. Its statistics show that seven children and teens are killed with guns in the US on an average day.

Read more: Flash - US firearms industry marketing to children: report - France 24