Canadian preacher arrested for breaking coronavirus ban after which he and dozens of his followers became infected

Published on May 20, 2020 By Agence France-Presse

Myanmar police arrested a Canadian pastor Wednesday for allegedly holding a service in defiance of a coronavirus ban on mass gatherings — after which he and dozens of his followers and their families became infected.

The Southeast Asian nation has so far only confirmed 193 cases and six deaths from the disease, although experts fear low numbers tested mean the true figures could be far higher.

Myanmar-born preacher David Lah, 43, is based out of Toronto, Canada but often visits his motherland to give sermon tours.

Myanmar introduced a ban on mass gatherings in mid-March.

Footage emerged early April showing Lah leading services in which he claimed Christians would be spared from the pandemic.

“If people hold the Bible and Jesus in their hearts, the disease will not come in,” he proclaimed in one video to a roomful of faithful followers.

“The only person who can cure and give peace in this pandemic is Jesus.”

Shortly afterwards Lah tested positive with coronavirus and figures released by the government show dozens of confirmed cases could be traced back to his followers.

Myo Gyi, lead singer of Myanmar’s most famous rock band Iron Cross, was among those infected.

After emerging from quarantine, Lah was arrested Wednesday morning and taken to a Yangon court where he was charged with violating the Natural Disaster and Management Law.

He could face three years behind bars if convicted.

“The police procedure was delayed because he was recovering from the disease,” a police officer told AFP, declining to be named.

Three others will also face charges in connection with the same events when they recuperate, he added.

The scandal even touched Myanmar’s Christian vice president Henry Van Thio and his family, who had attended an earlier service with Lah in February, although they later tested negative.

About six percent of Buddhist-majority Myanmar’s population identifies as one of the various Christian denominations in the country.

Lah is being held in Yangon’s notorious Insein Prison and is due to appear in court again June 3.

© 2020 AFP

BAM! 

Steve Schmidt: ‘Abject idiocy’ of Trump is ‘what matters the most’ during coronavirus pandemic

Published May 19, 2020


Former Republican strategist Steve Schmidt harshly criticized President Donald Trump during a Tuesday appearance on MSNBC.

“Look, President Trump is many things. He’s dishonest, He’s lied to the American people more than 17,000 times. He completely is corrupt,” Schmidt said. “He’s indecent, he’s vile, he’s divisive, but in this moment, the thing that matters the most — and I don’t say this to name call — but he’s an imbecile.

“That’s the precise word we use in the English language to describe his comportment, to describe his behavior.”

“Every day has been the achievement of a new stratosphere of just abject idiocy flowing out from the White House. So it’s the mismanagement of the crisis, we see the continual assault on our democratic institutions, the undermining of the rule of law, the institutionalization of the corruption of this administration, through the attorney general, the firing of the inspector generals, and on and on it goes,” he warned.

“Chris, the most powerful country in the world, supposedly — economically, militarily — we are a basket case,” he added. “You have more likelihood of catching it in the United States than anyplace else. You have more likelihood of not being able to get a test for it than anyplace else.”

“And so when we look at the totality of it, the mismanagement, the incompetence is so epically bad, there’s no comparison to it in the whole of American history,” Schmidt concluded.

VIDEO

https://www.rawstory.com/2020/05/steve-schmidt-abject-idiocy-of-trump-is-what-matters-the-most-during-coronavirus-pandemic/

Trump’s biggest fans are so bent on taking hydroxychloroquine they’re making their own

May 20, 2020


President Donald Trump’s staunchest fans are so bent on taking hydroxychloroquine they’re sharing recipes for making their own.

The president has been hyping the anti-malarial drug as a preventative and treatment for the coronavirus, and claimed this week he’s been taking it himself, and his right-wing allies have promoting it and also taking the drug themselves, reported The Daily Beast.

“Tell everyone you’re taking it,” tweeted Lionel Lebron, a QAnon conspiracy theorist and conservative social media personality who visited Trump at the White House in 2018. “Even if you’re not. Say you’re taking it via enema. A high colonic with a twist of lime.”

#HCQ. Tell everyone you’re taking it. Even if you’re not. Say you’re taking it via enema. A high colonic with a twist of lime. You’re bathing in it. Say you’re having clothes made with fibers soaked in HCQ. Name your dog HCQ. Tattoo it on your forehead. Drive these idiots nuts.

—

Lionel (@LionelMedia) May 19, 2020 

The Food and Drug Administration does not recommend hydroxychloroquine for COVID-19 outside of hospitals or clinical trials, warning the drug can produce “abnormal heart rhythms” in some patients, and a Veterans Affairs study found the drug had no effect on the virus and may lead to death for some patients.

But other QAnon conspiracy theorists are so sure that Trump’s right about hydroxychloroquine they’re sharing recipes for the drug that consists of steeping various fruit rinds so followers can avoid “big pharmas fillers.”

Others, such as Missouri chiropractor Eric Nepute, are urging their online followers to drink Schweppes Tonic Water for the quinine, falsely claiming its effects “similar-ish” to hydroxychloroquine, but the Snopes website says a person would need to drink 25 liters a day to ingest enough quinine for medicinal purposes.

Talk radio host and former White House adviser Sebastian Gorka claims he’s been taking hydroxychloroquine for a month to prevent COVID-19 infection, and Rep. Roger Marshall (R-KS), a doctor and Kansas Senate candidate, says he and several family members are taking hydroxychloroquine as a prevenative.

“I’m relieved President Trump is taking it,” Marshall said.

Fringe right-wing figure Michael Coudrey, who’s been retweeted by the president in the past, claimed the drug has pleasant side effects.

“My face is also very plush and vibrant,” Coudrey tweeted.

DEFENSE NEWS

Fisher Sand & Gravel awarded $1.28B for border wall construction

A section of border fence on the U.S. - Mexico border is seen in Tecate, California on June 10, 2019. Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo 

IT IS NOT AND NEVER WAS A WALL

May 19 (UPI) -- A North Dakota construction company that drew scrutiny for a previous contract won a $1.28 billion border wall construction contract earlier in May.

Fisher Sand & Gravel's new contract was not announced by the Department of Defense, which has awarded several border wall contracts, or by Customs & Border Patrol, but was reported by the Arizona Daily Star.

It's set to fund about 42 miles of border wall in Arizona, from Nogales to the eastern boundary of the Tohono O'odham Nation.

In December Fisher Sand & Gravel was awarded $400 million to build a wall near Yuma County, Ariz.

The company's CEO, Tommy Fisher, publicly campaigned for wall contracts and paid $145,000 to discuss the border wall with lawmakers and the Army Corps of Engineers.

Fisher's campaign has provoked public admiration from President Donald Trump, but also accusations of undue influence from Democrats -- and an audit from the Pentagon's inspector general, which officials say is still ongoing.

That audit is still ongoing.

Fisher has said he can build a wall more cheaply than other contractors, but the new award to Fisher costs about $30 million per mile of wall, making it more expensive than other contracts for the wall -- and making the wall one of the largest federal infrastructure projects in American history.

About 180 miles have been built since January 2017, and acting Department of Homeland Security Secretary Chad Wolf said last week that he expects to see as many as 400 miles of completed wall this year.

Congressional Democrats called for a halt to border construction projects this spring due to the coronavirus pandemic, but the DoD has awarded numerous contracts for wall construction, including others that have drawn criticism due to high costs and possible undue influence.

RELATED Officials at Tyndall AFB complete environmental assessment for rebuild effort

In April Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Rep. Bennie Thompson (D-Miss.) asked the acting Inspector General of the Department of Defense to review a $569 million border wall contract awarded earlier that month to BFBC, a Montana-based company whose CEO has a history of donations to Trump's campaign as well as other Republican races.

Their letter also points to the high per-mile cost of BFBC's proposed project -- in that case $33 million per mile.

Poll: Americans more liberal socially than economically


Activists demonstrate outside the U.S. Supreme Court on October 8, 2019, as the court hears arguments in three cases that influence lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender protections. File Photo by Kevin Dietsch/UPI | License Photo

May 20 (UPI) -- The gap between Americans who view themselves economically conservative and fiscally liberal is narrower than it's ever been -- but a Gallup survey Wednesday showed that social issues are still where more citizens have a liberal viewpoint.

The poll shows a gap of just 18 points separate the two positions, the closes point in the history of the survey.

Thirty-nine percent of U.S. adults said they are conservative on economic issues while 21 percent said they're liberal. Thirty-eight percent answered they're moderate fiscally.

Over the years, the gap had been as wide as 36 points (2010) and as close as 20, at various times.

The survey showed Americans are closer on social issues. Thirty-five percent said they're socially conservative and 29 percent said they're liberal.

The social gap was also widest in 2010, Gallup said, when conservatives held a 17-point majority.

More than 60 percent of Republicans said they are socially and fiscally conservative -- while about four or five in 10 Democrats said they're liberal in both areas.

Gallup said the figures continue a trend of Americans being more liberal socially than they are economically.

Gallup polled more than 1,000 U.S. adults for the survey, which has a margin of error of 4 points

POT CALLING KETTLE BLACK
Hobby Lobby accuses Christie's of selling ancient artifact fraudulently



The cuneiform tablet in question tells the Epic of Gilgamesh. Photo courtesy of the U.S. Attorney's Office in the Eastern District of New York

May 19 (UPI) -- Hobby Lobby sued Christie's on Tuesday, accusing the auction house of selling it an ancient artifact that had been looted.

The lawsuit comes one day after U.S. Attorney's Office in the Eastern District of New York seized the cuneiform tablet from where it was housed at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C.

Hobby Lobby said Christie's told the company the sale of the cuneiform tablet, which features the Epic of Gilgamesh, was legal. The auction house allegedly said the tablet had been sold by San Francisco firm Butterfield & Butterfield in 1981, meaning it had ownership in the United States prior to a federal ban on cultural imports from Iraq in the 1990s.

The U.S. Attorney's Office said a provenance letter proving the tablet was sold in 1981 was false.

RELATED UPI Archives: Museum of the Bible's Dead Sea Scrolls are fake, analysis shows

"In this case, a major auction house failed to meet its obligations by minimizing its concerns that the provenance of an important Iraqi artifact was fabricated, and withheld from the buyer information that undermined the provenance's reliability," said Richard Donoghue, U.S. attorney for the eastern district of New York.

Christie's denied having knowledge that the item's sale was illegal.

"This filing is linked to new information that has come to light regarding an unidentified dealer's admission to government authorities that he illegally imported this item then falsified documents over a decade ago, in order to perpetrate an illegal sale and exploit the legitimate market for ancient art," a spokesperson said in an email to UPI. 

RELATED UPI Archives: Hobby Lobby-smuggled artifacts return to Iraq

"Now that we are informed of this illicit activity pre-dating Christie's involvement, we are reviewing all representations made to us by prior owners and will reserve our rights in this matter. Any suggestion that Christie's had knowledge of the original fraud or illegal importation is unsubstantiated."

Hobby Lobby purchased the cuneiform tablet with plans for it to go on display at the Museum of the Bible, partly funded by the Green family, which owns Hobby Lobby. The museum opened in 2017 under the shadow of a separate case in which Hobby Lobby agreed to return more than 100 historic artifacts from modern-day Iraq that company President Steve Green purchased in Dubai.

In the lawsuit, Hobby Lobby said it wants the $1.6 million it spent on the tablet back as well as interest on the money since 2014 and attorney's fees.

In addition to Christie's, the lawsuit names the anonymous seller of the cuneiform tablet -- identified as "John Doe" -- as a defendant. 

PDF READER ON THE SITEhttps://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2020/05/20/Hobby-Lobby-accuses-Christies-of-selling-ancient-artifact-fraudulently/3451589923702/?sl=11

A demonstration of ultraviolet disinfecting technology takes place at the Corona Maintenance Facility in New York City on May 19. The Metropolitan Transportation Authority announced an ultraviolet light pilot program proven to kill COVID-19, with the first phase set to launch on subways, buses and other New York City Transit facilities early next week. Photo by Marc A. Hermann/MTA New York City Transit | License Photo

Israeli dig finds 2,000-year-old underground complex near Western Wall

Archaeologist Tehila Sadiel cleans a mosaic floor unearthed by the Israel Antiquities Authority on Tuesday in the Old City of Jerusalem. Photo by Debbie Hill/UPI | License Photo

May 19 (UPI) -- Archaeologists have uncovered a 2,000-year-old underground compound near Jerusalem's Western Wall that hasn't been seen in generations, officials said Tuesday.

The Israeli Antiquities Authorities said the compound -- which has an open courtyard, two rooms and several household objects -- had been sealed during the Byzantine period some 1,400 years ago.

Experts said it's the first time such a system has been uncovered near the Western Wall and could reveal what life was like in Jerusalem before the Second Temple was destroyed in 70 AD.

Researchers say the complex was likely used by Jerusalem residents during the early Roman period. The system was sealed beneath the floor of a large and impressive structure from the Byzantine period, "waiting for some 2,000 years to be discovered," the Western Wall Heritage Foundation said.

RELATED Artifacts at cemetery reveal early multicultural community in Europe

"This is a unique finding," said excavation directors Barak Monnickendam-Givon and Tehila Sadiel. "This is the first time a subterranean system has been uncovered adjacent to the Western Wall."

"You must understand that 2,000 years ago in Jerusalem, like today, it was customary to build out of stone. The question is, why were such efforts and resources invested in hewing rooms underground in the hard bedrock?"

Students from a pre-military preparatory program in Jerusalem working in cooperation with the IAA assisted in uncovering the location under the Beit Strauss complex.

RELATED Ancient cave carving depicts six-legged mantis-man

Mordechai Eliav, director of the Western Wall Heritage Foundation, said the finding should add to what researchers now know about Jerusalem.

"I am excited, on the eve of Jerusalem Day, to reveal to the Jewish nation a new treasure trove of impressive and fascinating findings that shed light on life in Jerusalem throughout the generations," Eliav said.

"This finding epitomizes the deep connection of Jews with Jerusalem, their capital. Even when there were physical limitations, prayer at the foot of the remnant of our Temple never ceased, and this is tangible evidence of this."

Mahmoud Abbas ends Palestinian security deal with U.S., Israel


Israeli opposition leader Benny Gantz looks at the Jordan Valley in the Israeli settlement of Vered Jericho in the West Bank on January 21. Gantz had promised to annex the valley if he was elected prime minister. File Photo by Debbie Hill/UPI | License Photo

BENNY GANTZ IS NOW JOINT PRIME MINISTER OF ISRAEL SHARING POST 

WITH BIBI NETENAHU 

May 20 (UPI) -- Palestinian authorities will end a security agreement with Israel and the United States as a result of plans to annex parts of the West Bank by the new unity government in Jerusalem.

Palestinian authorities voted in 2018 end the security agreement but allowed President Mahmoud Abbas the option of when to end cooperation. Abbas on several prior occasions has threatened to end the agreement.

Abbas said Tuesday the cooperation is over effective immediately.

"The Palestine Liberation Organization and the State of Palestine are absolved, as of today, of all the agreements and understandings with the American and Israeli governments and of all the obligations based on these understandings and agreements, including the security ones," Abbas said in a speech.

Abbas said security in certain zones of the West Bank is now Israel's responsibility.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and opposition leader Benny Gantz have both supported plans to annex parts of the West Bank. Their formation of a new unity government on Sunday ended political deadlock in Jerusalem that lasted for more than a year.

Jordan's King Abdullah II warned last weekend that annexing the West Bank could bring "a massive conflict" between Jordan and Israel and suspend their 1994 peace treaty.

It's not yet clear exactly how Palestinian officials will practically end the security agreement or what logistical steps they might take as a result of its suspension.

Read 
MorePalestinian leaders warn Israel's new gov't against more annexation 

Netanyahu to approve 3,500 Jewish homes on disputed 'E1' land

The U.S., North Korea, and Nuclear Diplomacy

Author: Daniel Wertz

Last Updated October 2018 (Previous Edition: November 2015) 

President Donald Trump meets with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un in Singapore. Photo via White House.

Introduction

For three decades, North Korea’s pursuit of a nuclear arsenal has been the predominant U.S. foreign policy concern on the Korean Peninsula, threatening both regional stability and the global nonproliferation regime. Although multiple countries have a major stake in the issue, the U.S. has been both the most important interlocutor in attempts to resolve it diplomatically and the leader in global efforts to pressure and isolate North Korea. Efforts to address North Korea’s nuclear weapons program through various combinations of diplomacy and pressure have at times slowed or temporarily halted Pyongyang’s progress, but have failed to roll it back or to fundamentally change the dynamics of conflict on the Peninsula.

As North Korea has dramatically accelerated the pace of progress in building its nuclear program in recent years, and as the Trump administration has alternately leveled threats of military action and engaged in high-profile summitry with Kim Jong-un, this issue has risen to the top of the U.S. foreign policy agenda. The current round of U.S. diplomatic engagement with North Korea may hold enormous consequences for the future of the Korean Peninsula, perhaps leading to the denouement of this long saga – or, despite the high stakes, perhaps simply to another round of all sides “muddling through” with no ultimate resolution in sight. The Trump administration has framed negotiations with North Korea in stark binary terms – either leading to North Korea’s denuclearization and prosperity, or to a more intensified confrontation and conflict – but few experts expect North Korea to give up its nuclear arsenal any time soon.

This Issue Brief will review the history of U.S. nuclear negotiations with North Korea, taking a close look at past efforts to realize the denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. It will also examine the persistent questions and themes surrounding how the U.S. has approached the issue of negotiating with Pyongyang, and how foreign analysts have perceived the motivations behind North Korea’s nuclear program.

DOWNLOAD PDF, 

https://www.ncnk.org/sites/default/files/issue-briefs/US_DPRK_Relations.pdf

OR READ ONLINE HERE

https://www.ncnk.org/resources/briefing-papers/all-briefing-papers/history-u.s.-dprk-relations

NCNK

THE NATIONAL COMMITTEE ON NORTH KOREA

ABOUT

The National Committee on North Korea (NCNK) is a non-governmental organization of persons with significant and diverse expertise related to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. NCNK and its members support principled engagement with North Korea as a means to promote peace and security on the Korean Peninsula and to improve the lives of the people of North Korea. NCNK also works to provide policymakers, the academic and think tank community, and the general public with substantive and balanced information about developments in North Korea. NCNK was founded by Mercy Corps, a global aid and development organization, in 2004.