Today's News: July 15, 2021

South Africa calls up army reserves to halt unrest

Al Jazeera – South Africa mustered its army reserves in a bid to quell several days of looting that has ravaged supplies of food and other essentials and dealt a crippling blow to its economy.

The disorder slowly began to ebb across most affected provinces on Thusday.

On Wednesday, the government said it would request the deployment of about 25,000 soldiers to tackle the emergency – 10 times the number that it initially deployed.

French president makes COVID-19 vaccination compulsory for healthcare workers

NaturalNews – French President Emmanuel Macron cranked up the pressure on everyone to get vaccinated against the coronavirus (COVID-19).

Macron introduced new measures Monday night, July 12, making vaccination compulsory for all healthcare workers by Sept. 15. He also held out the possibility of extending the requirement to others. Only 42 percent of hospital workers and 49 percent of those working in the care system are completely vaccinated in France.

“The more we vaccinate, the less space we will leave for the virus to spread,” said Macron. “It is a new speed race that is underway. We must move towards the vaccination of all French people.”

Around 41 percent of the French population has been fully vaccinated, but the pace of doses being delivered has waned as summer vacations approached.

According to Doctolib, an app that centralizes France’s vaccine appointments, 1.3 million people signed up for injections after Macron gave the televised address to the nation. It was a daily record since France rolled out coronavirus vaccines in December. People under age 35 made up most of the new appointments.

Special COVID-19 passes will also be required starting August 1 to enter restaurants and shopping malls and to get on trains and planes in France.

“From the beginning of August, the health pass will apply to cafes, restaurants, hospitals, retirement homes, and long-distance transport: planes, trains and coaches for long journeys,” said Macron. “From this week, border controls will be further reinforced for nationals from countries at risk, with forced isolation for unvaccinated travelers. (Related: Vaccine passports were the secret plan behind the totalitarian lockdowns all along.)

UK drug companies fined £260m for inflating prices for NHS

The Guardian – The UK’s competition watchdog has imposed fines totalling more than £260m on pharmaceutical companies after an investigation found that they overcharged the NHS for hydrocortisone tablets for almost a decade.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) found that the drug’s makers Auden Mckenzie and Actavis UK, now known as Accord-UK, used their position as the sole providers of hydrocortisone to inflate the price of the drug. Tens of thousands of people in the UK depend on hydrocortisone tablets to treat adrenal insufficiency, which includes life-threatening conditions such as Addison’s disease, the CMA said.

The investigation found that the companies were able to inflate the price of hydrocortisone tablets by more than 10,000% compared with the original branded version on sale in 2008. This meant the amount the NHS had to pay for a single pack of 10mg tablets rose from 70p in April 2008 to £88 by March 2016.

The companies also paid would-be rivals to stay out of the market, the watchdog found.

“These are without doubt some of the most serious abuses we have uncovered in recent years,” said Andrea Coscelli, the chief executive of the CMA. “The actions of these firms cost the NHS – and therefore taxpayers – hundreds of millions of pounds.”

Before April 2008, the NHS spent about £500,000 a year on hydrocortisone tablets but this had risen to more than £80m by 2016.

The decision to increase the price of de-branded drugs meant that the NHS “had no choice but to pay huge sums of taxpayers’ money for life-saving medicines” and reduce the money available for patient care, Coscelli said.

“Our fine serves as a warning to any other drug firm planning to exploit the NHS.”

Russia accuses US of ‘staging’ anti-government protests in Cuba, saying Washington must now ‘end hypocrisy’ of economic blockade

RT – Wide-scale protests and rioting that have rocked the Caribbean nation of Cuba are, according to the Russian Foreign Ministry, part of an orchestrated campaign by American officials to oust the country’s socialist government.

In a statement issued on Thursday, one of Moscow’s top diplomatic representatives, ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova, blasted American “impudence” for suggesting that the demonstrations were a result of the Cuban government’s own mistakes. Instead, she described the approach a part of “yet another political staging.”

“Washington’s cynicism is shown by the fact that throughout the entire period of the existence of revolutionary Cuba, it purposefully pursued a strategy of strangling the country, discriminating against its people and destroying the economy,” she went on.

Top EU court rules hijab can be banned at work

Al Jazeera – The European Union’s top court has ruled that employers may forbid the wearing of visible symbols of religious or political belief, such as headscarves.

But the Luxembourg-based tribunal said in its ruling on Thursday that courts in the bloc’s 27 member states should weigh up whether the ban corresponded to a “genuine need” on the part of the employer. They must also consider the rights and interests of the employee, including by taking into account national legislation on freedom of religion, it said.

Megyn Kelly: Jan. 6 ‘wasn’t an insurrection’ and ‘media represented this as so much worse than it was’

WND – Conservative journalist Megyn Kelly said that the establishment media portrayed the Jan. 6 incursion into the U.S. Capitol “so much worse than it actually was” in a recent episode of her podcast.

“We’ve all seen the video of people screaming in the face of cops, being totally disparaging, and defecating on the floor of the U.S. Capitol,” she said.

“And lawmakers were understandably afraid, not like [Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez saying] ‘I need therapy for the rest of my life’ afraid, but I could understand it, and I didn’t like seeing it at all.”

Kelly argued that most of the people who marched to the Capitol were being lumped into the bad behavior of the few who attacked Capitol Police officers and rampaged through the Capitol building.

“But that doesn’t mean that’s what the entire crowd was there for,” she said.

“So they got tarred by the actions of some losers who went a different way.”

She added, “And then the media did what it does, which is any bad behavior gets attributed to the entire group of Trump supporters.”

Kelly made the comments on an episode of “The Megyn Kelly Show” with comedian and independent journalist Chrissie Mayr.

Mayr had been in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 6 covering the rally for then-President Donald Trump outside the White House.

“Anybody who was there on the 6th is blown away with how inaccurate the media coverage is,” Mayr said. “It just so was not a big deal.”

She added that what happened was horrible, but most people didn’t know what happened until hours later.

Rights Coalition Demands US Retailers Reject Use of Facial Recognition

Activist Post – On the heels of a congressional hearing that highlighted concerns about facial recognition, more than 35 civil rights groups on Wednesday collectively called for retailers to reject the technology in their stores “to protect the privacy and rights of shoppers and staff.”

The coalition is spearheaded by Fight for the Future, which last month launched the “Ban Facial Recognition in Stores” campaign and released a scorecard detailing which major retailers won’t use facial recognition technology, might use it, or already are using it. Retailers who said they use it include Apple, Ace Hardware, Albertsons, H.E.B. Grocery, Lowe’s, and Macy’s.

“Your face should not be scanned, stored, or sold just because you walk into or work at a store,” the campaign asserts. “Retailers justify using facial recognition to protect and predict their profits, but this technology puts workers in danger, exacerbates bias, and amasses personal data. Retailers across the country that are exploring this invasive technology should know that prioritizing profit over privacy is wrong.”

People who agree with the campaign can sign a petition that urges stores to refuse to use the controversial technology. The petition also urges elected officials to ban corporations “from using retail surveillance data to profile the public” and retailers that are not using facial recognition to promote that position and collaborate with consumers and legislators to end its use.

Coalition members on Wednesday emphasized the technology’s flaws, privacy concerns, coordination between law enforcement and corporations, and local efforts to outlaw the technology—which have advanced in communities across the country in the absence of federal restrictions.

“Face surveillance in stores is an assault on our human rights,” said Jennifer Brody, U.S. advocacy manager at Access Now. “Corporations’ attempts to determine what demographic ‘box’ we fit into based on our facial features and expressions is a clear invasion of privacy. These surveillance systems perpetuate systemic discrimination, and must be stopped.”

Underscoring the need for comprehensive policies, Albert Fox Cahn, executive director of the Surveillance Technology Oversight Project (S.T.O.P.), pointed out that “more and more, police use private facial recognition partnerships to avoid surveillance bans.”

“In cities that ban government facial recognition, officers turn to corporate partners to run searches for them,” he said. “When we let stores spy on their customers with facial recognition, it puts BIPOC communities in harm’s way. Every time a biased facial recognition search increases the risk that a customer will be arrested just for ‘shopping while black.’ A trip to the grocery store shouldn’t mean losing your privacy and enduring police profiling.”

The coalition’s call came a day after the U.S. House Judiciary Committee’s Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, and Homeland Security held a hearing entitled, “Facial Recognition Technology: Examining Its Use by Law Enforcement.”

Committee Chair Jerry Nadler (D-N.Y.) signaled he would not favor a full ban, saying that “facial recognition technology can be an important crime fighting tool. But like all such tools, we need to ensure that the adoption of this new technology does not further erode trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve, and does not compound the unfairness of a criminal justice system that too often disproportionately impacts people of color.”

During the hearing, Robert Williams, a Black man in Michigan who was misidentified by facial recognition software as a shoplifting suspect, recounted his experience being arrested and detained. “I never thought I would be a cautionary tale,” he said (pdf), urging lawmakers to ban law enforcement use of the technology.

Johnson & Johnson recalling Neutrogena, Aveeno sunscreens because of benzene traces

NBC –Johnson & Johnson said Wednesday that it is recalling five of its sunscreen products after some samples were found to contain low levels of benzene, a chemical that can cause cancer with repeated exposure.

The affected products, packaged in aerosol cans, are Aveeno Protect + Refresh aerosol sunscreen, and four Neutrogena sunscreen versions: Beach Defense aerosol sunscreen, CoolDry Sport aerosol sunscreen, Invisible Daily Defense aerosol sunscreen and UltraSheer aerosol sunscreen.

The recall includes all can sizes and all levels of sun protection factor, or SPF. The products were distributed nationwide through retailers.

The health care giant said the benzene was found after testing by the company and an independent laboratory. It is investigating how the chemical got into the products.

>> Power Mall Product of interest: Astaxanthin with DHA by Good Health Naturally

Astaxanthin prevents the increase in HO-1 that is caused by UV exposure. This supplement can inhibit the formation of the harmful reactive oxygen species induced from UVA.

Are Bananas Good for Your Pets?

Mercola Pets – Serving bananas as a treat or as a part of your pet’s nutritionally adequate, species-appropriate diet may benefit their health.

One of the most notable benefits of bananas is that they’re rich in antioxidants, including phenolics, carotenoids, biogenic amines and phytosterols.

Green bananas contain resistant starches and pectins, making them a good whole food source of prebiotics

IT NEVER ENDS: Anthony Fauci says booster dose of coronavirus vaccine will be necessary in the future

NaturalNews – White House Chief Medical Counsel Dr. Anthony Fauci said a “booster” dose of the Wuhan coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine will be necessary in the future. Fauci made the statement after he and other federal health officials met with Pfizer executives.

During a virtual meeting held on Monday, July 12, Pfizer executives presented data to Fauci and other officials on why they believe a third dose of the company’s vaccine is necessary to combat the surge in cases supposedly caused by COVID-19 variants. (Related: Pfizer CEO: People may need to take third coronavirus vaccine shot as “booster dose” … a convenient strategy for an endless revenue stream.)

Pfizer officials said the immunity supposedly provided by the company’s COVID-19 vaccine is already waning. They believe people need to take booster doses of the coronavirus vaccine six months after receiving the second dose.

The Big Pharma company claims real-world data from Israel’s vaccination drive has shown that vaccine efficacy in preventing both infection and symptomatic disease has declined six months post-vaccination. Israel said on Sunday, July 11, that it will begin offering a third dose of Pfizer’s vaccine to adults with weak immune systems.

After the meeting, Fauci appeared on CNN, where he said a third dose of the Pfizer vaccine may be needed.

“The CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention] and the FDA [Food and Drug Administration] said that based on the data we know right now, we don’t need a booster,” he said. “That doesn’t mean that it won’t change, and we might need, as a matter of fact, at some time to give boosters across the board or select groups, such as the elderly or those with underlying health conditions.”

In a separate interview with CBS, Fauci also talked about how booster doses will be necessary in the future. “Certainly, it is entirely conceivable that at some time we will need a boost,” said Fauci.

3 All-natural insect repellents that you can make at home

NaturalNews – Insects can be deadly if they are not taken care of immediately. But many mainstream insect repellents contain toxic chemicals. This is why you should rely instead on homemade herb and essential oil-based insect repellents.

Some of the most common toxic chemicals in insect repellents include pyrethroids, permethrin, cyfluthrin and DEET. These four toxic chemicals can cause a variety of dangerous health conditions including neurotoxicity, nerve damage, learning and memory dysfunction and even seizures. If babies or unborn children are exposed to even low levels of these chemicals it can even cause birth or developmental disorders. (Related: Study reveals coconut oil is a better insect repellent compared to DEET, a harmful chemical ingredient.)

To keep yourself and your family safe from unwanted insects without having to resort to toxic, chemical-based repellents, you need to turn to herbs and essential oils. Here are three kinds of all-natural insect repellents that you can use:

Fresh herbs insect repellent

For this insect repellant, you will need the following:

One cup of water
One cup of rubbing alcohol
Two tablespoons of finely chopped spearmint of peppermint
Six tablespoons of finely chopped lavender, citronella or catnip

Pour the cup of water into a small saucepan and bring it to a boil. Once it starts boiling, remove the heat and add all of your finely chopped herbs. Cover the saucepan and let it cool completely. Once it has cooled, pour the contents into a spray bottle and add your cup of rubbing alcohol.

Store your new fresh herb-based insect repellent in a refrigerator and use it as needed.

Dried herbs insect repellent

One cup of water
One cup of apple cider vinegar
One tablespoon each of thyme, rosemary, spearmint or peppermint, lavender and catnip
One pint canning jar

Place all of your herbs in the canning jar. Pour your cup of apple cider vinegar into the jar, place the lid on the jar and shake well. Store the jar filled with herbs and vinegar in a cool, dark place for at least three weeks. Take out the jar every day to shake the contents.

After the three weeks, strain out the herbs, pour the herb-infused liquid into a spray bottle and add one cup of water. Store your insect repellent in the refrigerator and use it as needed.

Essential oils insect repellent

Half a cup of apple cider vinegar
Half a cup of rubbing alcohol
Fifty drops of at least three essential oils among the following: spearmint, peppermint, lemongrass, lavender, eucalyptus, clove, citronella and catnip

This insect repellent is very easy to make. All you have to do is combine your half cup of apple cider vinegar and rubbing alcohol and the 50 drops of essential oils in a small spray bottle.

The various herbs and essential oils used in the three homemade insect repellants above are known to help protect people against insects.

Catnip, the preferred herb for the fresh and dried herbs insect repellents, is known to be more effective than DEET at keeping mosquitoes away. Lavender, which has been used for centuries to add sweet fragrances to homes, can repel mosquitoes, moths, fleas and flies.

As a bonus, many of the herbs and essential oils in these insect repellents, such as thyme, rosemary, eucalyptus and clove, can also be used to keep unwanted bugs away from your vegetable garden. Many of the herbs can even be grown with ease in your very own herb garden.