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Yemen (on April 29th of this year) had an outbreak of 5 COVID cases, and an immediate 2-week lockdown was imposed. Though that number seems quite small, the health system was quickly overrun. This is because Yemen's health department has been "devastated by war," and though Saudi Arabia declared a unilateral cease-fire on April 9th, airstrikes by a Saudi-led coalition increased 30% from April 22nd - 29th. Even pre-COVID, Yemen had a cholera outbreak in January, quickly exacerbate by torrential rains and putting 5 million children under the age of 5 at risk.

A coronavirus outbreak in Yemen poses a dire threat that will add to the conditions that have been increased by the war. Yemen's health care system has been devastated by the war and is in no means able to handle a pandemic. Moreover, the increase in airstrikes lead by Saudi Arabia, despite a cease-fire, can and will increase the spread of the virus. Humanitarian efforts will decrease as a result and the already wrecked healthcare system will suffer more. It is clear the U.S and other members of the UN security council need to put pressure on Saudi Arabia to implement a cease fire.

I think that it's also important to mention that the United States is complicit in the crisis in Yemen. We not only provide support to Saudi Arabia but sell them weapons, most importantly bombs, that are used against Yemeni civilians. A bipartisan bill to end US involvement in the war passed the Senate last year, but was vetoed by President Trump. Not many people seem to know about our role in the war, and that needs to change.

This article, from a self proclaimed "unbiased" German media source, explores how Japan was able to limit covid cases so well. Compared to most other countries, Japan has significant risk factors: a dense population with a large concentration of old people and a flow of traffic from neighboring China. Yet, they have wildly low numbers of cases and deaths. Although some political scientists theorize that the government has under tested in order to appear organized and keep their 2020 olympics position, many believe that tests were simply preserved in case of emergency. In either case, Japan's hygienic culture is indisputably helpful. An interviewed citizen said that they "didn't need" covid to "teach" them how to wash their hands or wear a mask. In fact, wearing a mask is seen as a civic duty and is seen as the bare minimum for every person. (Flu rates actually decreased due to such strict mask wearing). As a result, Japanese people are able to continue with many regularly scheduled activities; school, festivals, even amusement parks began to re-open by March.

I think it's really interesting how unspoken rules/cultural norms were able to in some ways make up for the failures of the Japenese government's response in terms of testing.

Hi Cooper! It is so interesting how the different cultures have influenced how much the virus spreads. Seeing how in the US, the government played a huge role in influencing the spread of the virus, I'm curious if any other political factors have also played a role in Japan's success.

This article discussed the plans for reopening college football within the United States amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. I was drawn to the article because I was interested in learning about the guidelines and restrictions the United States was using to reopening recreational activities, such as college football. Through reading the article, I thought it was interesting that there was no coherent reopening plan, like with the NBA, but rather that different states and universities had very differing plans regarding what guidelines and restrictions will be in-place for reopening this activity. I would be interested in taking a deeper look into how other countries have attempted to reopen recreational activities and how their methods were different from those taken here.

Following up to the other comments on this post, I am curious how these universities expect to pull off this bubble, since there have been many outbreaks in colleges due to parties and general disregard for safety. I think this will only make an outbreak within college teams more likely and it is extremely worrying that there is not a unified plan to address these issues.

I agree with what Luke and Aaron have said. I think that attempting to create a "bubble" won't work for such large teams and at the college level. It's irresponsible of the officials to attempt to move forward with the season and risk the lives of the students. In my opinion, they should just scrap the entire season because they have no unified plans.

The Nipah virus has a high fatality rate, and there is no vaccine available currently. I wonder if quarantine efforts against Covid would also help to prevent this virus from spreading.

It's always scary to hear about a new virus, and I wonder how contagious the Nipah virus is, especially since it is more deadly than COVID.

Scary to hear about, especially since the fatality is 40% and 75%. I wonder if previous experience in dealing with the Nipah virus (the 2018 outbreak) will be of assistance.

Amid the nation's worst Covid-19 outbreak, patients are trapped in remote communities and doctors are prioritizing treatment based on who is most likely to survive.

It amazed and disgusted me that the people defying the vaccine and the mask mandates in Alaska have been protesting by wearing the Star of David; likening their situation to the holocaust.

Stories like this are a reminder that Covid is still very much an emergency situation. As a vaccinated person in a community with low hospitalization rates, it can be easy to feel distant from the issue at hand.

To contrast with President Bolsonaro's Covid-19 response, this town in Brazil is allowing Pfizer to test the lasting effects of an entirely vaccinated (ages 12 and up) city.

Talking about how zero covid is making it a lot harder for the large portion of migrant laborers to get a good job and move of the socioeconomic ladder. In my opinion, China's zero covid policy, while in part sensible due to their large portion of elderly unvaccinated population, is simply delaying the inevitable opening of borders at a terrible cost.

Agreed, Alec. Also, I am glad to see you reading The Economist!

This article explains government approval and unity throughout the COVID19 pandemic. It acknowledges the large shift in disapproval towards the United States government, as well as the Trump administration in relation to their response to the pandemic.

I find it interesting but not surprising that American citizen's opinions on how the their government has handled the corona virus is split down the political aisle. This split reflects the 82% of surveyed Americans that say the country is less united due to the pandemic. The study discussed in this interview also found that UK and Spanish citizen's answers were split by political party as well, and that those who supported the current government in their country generally thought that COVID-19 is being handled well. I also think it's noticeable that the country with the highest percent of observed unity during the pandemic is a country with universal health care, Denmark.

The CDC changed its Covid-19 testing guidelines this week to include that individuals who have been exposed to the virus and are asymptomatic do not need to be tested. While some speculated this is due to a shortage of tests and long wait times it is unclear why the change has been made. This decision could prove to be dangerous especially because of the reopening of schools across the country.

I think this article highlights people's will to pretend the pandemic is over and try to go back to a normal life. It is very surprising that the CDC, who is generally the voice of conservatism and caution when it comes to outbreaks, is also joining this trend but the idea of it is very dangerous. Even if they had good reason to make the change, not describing it allows people to make their own assumptions about why the change was made. For example, people could think that, as long as they don't show symptoms, they are clear to do whatever they want regarding the virus. This thinking could make the spread of the virus grow even more. Overall, I think that we need more voices of caution and reason in positions of influence to inspire people to continue fighting against the virus.

Similar to what Jalen said, I think the CDC is clearly shaping their advice to optimize the availability of resources where they are most needed. They did this early on when they said people didn't need to wear masks. What they were trying to do was make sure that hospitals and individuals at risk had enough PPE during a shortage, but the unfortunate result was that it undermined their legitimacy when they later said masks were beneficial. It might be possible that a similar thing will occur with asymptomatic testing. When/if testing becomes more available, people might not volunteer to be tested if they don't have symptoms because of previous strategic statements made by the CDC.

We mentioned this in class, but it seems the president of Brazil might be prosecuted for incompetence in handling the pandemic in Brazil. The question in my mind, though, is whether he's being prosecuted for incompetence or malicious intent. If it's the former, what's the line between reasonable and criminal incompetence for public officials? They do also mention, however, that he likely won't be charged because of the government's structure: "Any charges against Bolsonaro, however, would have to be brought by Brazil's prosecutor - a general appointed by Bolsonaro, making it highly unlikely that he will face trial."

Arjun, you commented, "The question in my mind, though, is whether he's being prosecuted for incompetence or malicious intent. If it's the former, what's the line between reasonable and criminal incompetence for public officials?" That is SUCH a good question??? Not sure that criminal incompetence exists. . . anyone know?

Fairly self-explanatory. It seems like Cuba wants approval from the UN to export more vaccines, and that there was a prior agreement for Venezuela to buy some vaccines from Cuba. However, the Venezuelan National Academy of Medicine seems to be concerned about the research that went into these vaccines.

Interesting. For a long time (under Castro) Cuban doctors were held in high respect in the developing world.

While developed, western countries are trying to eradicate the actual virus, lockdown measures and global trade disruptions is more dangerous to less developed countries

good find, Cole! I really appreciate that you are looking further than US news outlets!

By Rebecca Solnit

Following Cole's Lead on the Anthony Kwame Appiah article Bout the true cost of COVID in the Global South, I found the Guardian Series on Reconstruction from COVID, and this one is great. Rebecca Solnit is American, a geographer, observer, and generally very interesting person. I think she's from New York.

As many take to the streets in China to protest covid restrictions, the people's dissatisfaction with freedom of expression and democracy resurface. While the effort is valiant and Chinese politicians have made certain promises to satisfy protesters, it remains unclear whether these protest will have any long-term difference. Protests in Hong Kong in 2019 were seemingly larger and had a large impact in the moment, but after the movement was suppressed, the communist party silenced those behind them. Given this past, will these protests create any real change?

I don't any change will come. The government has all the resources needed to prevent the protests and could simply slowly deploy vaccines and lessen the restrictions to stop the protests. The protests haven't been advocating for much change in the structure of Chinese society, so the government still maintains all the power.

And now the Chinese government has softened a bit to accommodate the protestors' demands for vaccines--maybe even fewer lockdowns; but not for free speech. Let's see how that goes with the protestors; will they be appeased? See https://www.nytimes.com/2022/12/01/world/asia/china-covid-protests-restrictions.html

Instead of requiring strict social distancing measures and lockdowns like the United States, France and many other European countries have encouraged citizens to go back to their normal lives. The countries are confident that with widespread testing, medical infrastructure, and mask availability, they will be able to control a surge in cases and limit hospitalizations. This move is still controversial, as many think that letting the virus "run its course" would disproportionately impact immunocompromised and the elderly. Yet, the majority of recent cases have been in young people, likely due to their increased socialization. I think this is interesting and possibly a more practical COVID response than lockdowns, which people rarely follow. I wonder if an approach like this could work in the United States, but the pandemic response remains highly political here.

I feel like this strategy used in Europe is much more likely to succeed than if it was used in the US, as I agree with you that in Europe the coronavirus response is less of a political issue and more of a health crisis. Therefore, in Europe, people more vulnerable to the virus are more likely to stay home and carry out social distancing protocol for their own and others' safety than the US, where coronavirus safety guidelines are sometimes seen as an encroachment on people's individual freedoms. In the US it is much more unclear as to whether this kind of approach would really work, not only because of the pandemic response being politicized but also because of many refusing to wear a mask and US covid-19 testing issues.

Recently, Russia announced that it had created the first Covid-19 vaccine. They were immediately met with skepticism by many Western countries, as well as from doctors around the world. I find it very interesting that Russia named their vaccine "Sputnik V" after Sputnik 1, the first space satellite; it seems like Russia wants to mirror the Space Race by racing to find a vaccine while other countries focus on trials to ensure a potential vaccine's safety and effectiveness.

Although it is obvious that this vaccine has not undergone enough testing for researchers to fully understand its efficiency or possible side effects, I find it interesting that western countries were so quick to dismiss it completely. I recently read an article on Dr. Fauci that explained his time as a health official during the AIDS crisis. Because scientists did not know how the virus spread and the majority of its victims were a part of the gay community, researchers refused to go off the strict track of trials usually regulated. In short, thousands and thousands of ill people were rapidly dying yet being told they could not undergo treatment for fear of bad side effects or results. After lots of protest from the LBGTQ community, Fauci, as the head of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, allowed for more experimental drug treatment due to the deadliness of the virus. Today, he is regarded as a hero and a scientific humanist who did the right thing when it was necessary. Yet when Russia follows a similar track, it is regarded as rushed and faked for nice press or some Cold-War feud against the US. Although the death rate was much higher, and subsequently side effects would matter less if the patient would ultimately die without intervention (whereas with Covid, side effects could be catastrophic by worsening large groups of the population who would have otherwise survived), I find it interesting that Americans still harbor so much resentment towards Russia (or at least assume that everything must be a competition). I wonder how this was reported on in other countries.