Am 10. August 1961 begannen die Vereinigten Staaten von Amerika, mehrere Jahre bevor sie tatsächlich Truppen entsandten, die Wälder und Ernten Vietnams mit Herbiziden zu vergiften. Der Zweck: unserem erklärten Feind, den Kommunisten von Ho Chi Minh, die Nahrung und den Bodenbewuchs zu entziehen, der es ihnen ermöglichte, ungesehen von Norden nach Süden zu gelangen. Das Ganze lief unter der harmlos klingenden Bezeichnung Operation Ranch Hand.
Daily Archives: 13. August 2021
„For decades, Pakistan has served as a sanctuary for the Afghan Taliban, who have often crossed the countries’ rugged, 1,660-mile border with ease, and has acknowledged that Taliban maintain homes and families in Pakistan, away from the battlefields.1/2
„Former Pakistan officials are publicly cheering for Taliban.
But a collapse in Afghanistan would carry risks for Pakistan, too, including a possible wave of refugees, and a boost to jihadist movements that target Pakistan’s government for attack.“ 2/2
Pakistan NSA, ISI chief likely to visit America next week for talks on Afghanistan, says report
(24.08.2021)
Pakistan‘s National Security Adviser Moeed Yusuf and ISI chief Lt Gen Faiz Hameed are likely to visit the US next week for talks with their American counterparts on the situation in Afghanistan as part of Washington‘s diplomatic efforts aimed at ensuring a peaceful transfer of power in the war-torn nation, according to a media report.
Inter-Services Intelligence activities in Afghanistan
The Taliban were largely founded by Pakistan‘s Interior Ministry under Naseerullah Babar and the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) in 1994.[25][26][27][28][29][30][31][32] In 1999, Naseerullah Babar who was the minister of the interior under Bhutto during the Taliban‘s ascent to power admitted, „we created the Taliban“.[33]
William Maley, Professor at the Australian National University and Director of the Asia-Pacific College, writes on the emergence of the Taliban in Afghanistan:
„In 1994, with the failure of [Gulbuddin Hekmatyar‘s alliance] attempt to oust [the Afghan] Rabbani [administration], Pakistan found itself in an awkward position. Hekmatyar had proved incapable of seizing and controlling defended territory: in this respect he was a bitter disappointment to his patrons. … In October 1994, [Pakistani interior minister] Babar [took] a group of Western ambassadors (including the US Ambassador to Pakistan John C. Monjo) to Kandahar, without even bothering to inform the Kabul government, even though it manned an embassy in Islamabad. … On 29 October 1994, a convoy of trucks, including a notorious ISI officer, Sultan Amir … and two figures who were later to become prominent Taliban leaders, entered Afghanistan.“[22]
All animals are equal, but some animals are more equal than others
A proclamation by the pigs who control the government in the novel Animal Farm, by George Orwell. The sentence is a comment on the hypocrisy of governments that proclaim the absolute equality of their citizens but give power and privileges to a small elite.
Merriam-Webster gives „vaccine“ a new definition
(April 30, 2021)
Prefatory note: In this post, I take the noun „vaccine“ as the basic word under discussion, but also consider other cognate terms („vaccinate“, „vaccination“).
Here‘s a standard dictionary entry for „vaccine“:
n.
1. any preparation of weakened or killed bacteria or viruses introduced into the body to prevent a disease by stimulating antibodies against it.
2. the virus of cowpox, used in vaccination, obtained from pox vesicles of a cow or person.
3. a software program that helps to protect against computer viruses.
[1800–05; < New Latin (variolae)vaccīnae cowpox = vacc(a) cow + -īnae, feminine pl. of -īnus -ine] Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary (cited) Let us compare that with the new M-W entry for "vaccine": : a preparation that is administered (as by injection) to stimulate the body‘s immune response against a specific infectious disease:
When You’ve Been Fully Vaccinated
(27.08.2021)
– If you’ve had close contact with someone who has COVID-19, you should get tested 3-5 days after your exposure, even if you don’t have symptoms. You should also wear a mask indoors in public for 14 days following exposure or until your test result is negative. You should isolate for 10 days if your test result is positive.
(…)
What We Know
– COVID-19 vaccines are safe and effective at preventing COVID-19, including severe illness and death.
– COVID-19 vaccines are effective against severe disease and death from variants of the virus that causes COVID-19 currently circulating in the United States, including the Delta variant.
– Infections happen in only a small proportion of people who are fully vaccinated, even with the Delta variant. When these infections occur among vaccinated people, they tend to be mild.
– If you are fully vaccinated and become infected with the Delta variant, you can spread the virus to others.
– People with weakened immune systems, including people who take immunosuppressive medications, may not be protected even if fully vaccinated.
Covid-19: C.D.C. Reverses Testing Advice for Fully Vaccinated
Published July 28, 2021
Updated Aug. 12, 2021
Anyone who has been potentially exposed to the virus should get tested, the C.D.C. now says. Previous guidance recommended testing only for fully vaccinated people who were symptomatic.
Wann Tests für Geimpfte sinnvoll sind
Die US-Behörde hatte diese erst jüngst aktualisiert: So wird vollständig Geimpften nun geraten, sich bereits testen zu lassen, wenn sie Kontakt mit einer infizierten Person hatten – und zwar auch dann, wenn keine Symptome auftreten. Konkret wird geraten, dass Vollimmunisierte nach dem Kontakt mit einem oder einer Infizierten in Innenräumen Masken tragen und sich drei bis fünf Tage nach dem Kontakt und einer potenziellen Übertragung des Virus testen lassen.
Parlament stimmt für umstrittenes Rundfunkgesetz
Die Änderung sieht vor, dass künftig in Polen Rundfunklizenzen nur noch dann an Ausländer vergeben werden dürfen, wenn diese „ihre Zentrale oder ihren Wohnsitz im Bereich des Europäischen Wirtschaftsraums haben“. Zusätzlich gilt die Bedingung, dass der Lizenznehmer nicht von jemandem abhängig sein darf, der Zentrale oder Wohnsitz außerhalb dieses Wirtschaftsraums hat. Nach Ansicht von Kritikern zielt das Gesetz auf den Privatsender TVN, der über eine in den Niederlanden registrierte Holding Teil des US-Konzerns Discovery ist.