(2020-07-18). [Articles] Urgent endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography with sphincterotomy versus conservative treatment in predicted severe acute gallstone pancreatitis (APEC): a multicentre randomised controlled trial. thelancet.com In patients with predicted severe gallstone pancreatitis but without cholangitis, urgent ERCP with sphincterotomy did not reduce the composite endpoint of major complications or mortality, compared with conservative treatment. Our findings support a conservative strategy in patients with predicted severe acute gallstone pancreatitis with an ERCP indicated only in patients with cholangitis or persistent cholestasis.
(2020-07-18). [Articles] Dexmedetomidine for reduction of atrial fibrillation and delirium after cardiac surgery (DECADE): a randomised placebo-controlled trial. thelancet.com Dexmedetomidine infusion, initiated at anaesthetic induction and continued for 24 h, did not decrease postoperative atrial arrhythmias or delirium in patients recovering from cardiac surgery. Dexmedetomidine should not be infused to reduce atrial fibrillation or delirium in patients having cardiac surgery.
(2020-07-18). Why the Bill Gates Global Health Empire Promises More Empire and Less Public Health. Gates Foundation Owns the WHO! globalresearch.ca Behind a veil of corporate media PR, the Gates Foundation has served as a vehicle for Western capital while exploiting the Global South as a human laboratory. The coronavirus pandemic is likely to intensify this disturbing agenda. | *** | President Donald …
(2020-07-18). 'Putin Hacked Our Coronavirus Vaccine' Is the Dumbest Story Yet. strategic-culture.org 
Caitlin JOHNSTONE | Today mainstream media is reporting what is arguably the single dumbest Russiavape story of all time, against some very stiff competition. | "Russian hackers are targeting health care organizations in the West in an attempt to steal coronavirus vaccine research, the U.S. and Britain said," "Hackers backed by the Russian state are trying to steal COVID-19 vaccine and treatment research from academic and pharmaceutical institutions around the world, Britain's National Cyber…
(2020-07-18). The "Russian Vaccine Hack" Is a 3-for-1 Deal on Propaganda. globalresearch.ca The Guardian, and all the other predictable voices, are currently reporting that Russian At this stage they offer no substantiation, but it does serve as good …
(2020-07-18). The 9 coffin nails of democracy. indybay.org Democracy is an achievement and must be won anew, expanded and defended against attacks in every era… The political conformity of the mainstream press is a sad chapter. "Representative democracy" is a fine word, but who do the representatives actually represent today? Citizens want "representatives of the people."
(2020-07-18). The East-Bound Wind Causes A Storm In The West. popularresistance.org A few months after the publication of his remarkable book, Adam Smith in Beijing, I had an illuminating conversation with Giovanni Arrighi about the significance of China in world history. The late sociologist was interested in knowing more about the subject of my scholarship—modern Iran and the Iranian revolution. When he saw my puzzled face, he told me that he believes that all this apprehension in the west about Iran, is actually rooted in apprehension about China. Arrighi thought that if there were any "mainstream" of world history, it ought to be located in the story of China, the only civilization tha…
(2020-07-17). Padma Lakshmi on Immigration, Food, and Authorship. aclu.org 
Recently, we've seen a reckoning in the culinary world around the whitewashing and co-opting of ethnic food. The industry has long been controlled by a limited number of people — many of them white — who have authored and then profited from the foods we eat and the stories we share. But the tide is turning. And our guest for this episode, Padma Lakshmi, is part of that movement., , You've likely seen her tasting and critiquing some of the best chefs in the U.S. on Top Chef, sharing her favorite recipes across social media and advocating for immigrants rights and women's rights. Pa…
(2020-07-17). The great American firewall: On the question of censorship. mronline.org 
It should not surprise anyone that China would take protective measures against the threat of U.S. imperialism in the realm of cyber technology.
(2020-07-17). "Putin Hacked Our Coronavirus Vaccine" Is The Dumbest Story Yet. thealtworld.com 
Today mainstream media is reporting what is arguably the single dumbest Russiavape story of all time, against some very stiff competition. | "Russian hackers are targeting health care organizations in the West in an attempt to steal coronavirus vaccine research, the U.S. and Britain said," "Hackers backed by the Russian state are trying to steal COVID-19 vaccine and treatment research from academic and pharmaceutical institutions around the world, Britain's National Cyber Security…
(2020-07-17). Amid Sri Lankan elections, YouTube censors Tamil-language WSWS posts. indybay.org Amid national elections, YouTube, the San Bruno, California subsidiary of Google, has been continually removing Sri Lankan World Socialist Web Site and Socialist Equality Party videos at its website.
(2020-07-17). Dems and GOP to Debate Extended Stimulus Benefits Next Week. globalresearch.ca Current federal unemployment benefits expire in days. | In May, House-controlled Dems narrowly passed a new $3 trillion stimulus package. | So-called Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions (HEROES) legislation extends current federal benefits through at least yearend. | Senate Majority Leader …
(2020-07-17). US automakers continue cover-up of COVID-19 outbreaks as workers call for action. wsws.org Fiat Chrysler, with the aid of the United Auto Workers and the corporate media, continues to downplay the uncontrolled spread of the virus at the Toledo North Assembly Complex.
(2020-07-17). Neoliberal discourse on land harms livelihoods and environmental security: Oakland Institute report. peoplesdispatch.org Studying the cases of countries like Ukraine, Zambia, Myanmar, Papua New Guinea, Sri Lanka and Brazil, the Oakland Institute report debunks some of the myths on development and land use propagated by mainstream economics, and calls for the preservation of commons.
(2020-07-17). Chile: Night Of Fury To Demand The Withdrawal Of Pension Funds. popularresistance.org From Tuesday night until early Wednesday morning, Chilean citizens took to the streets to support a pension-related bill and protest against President Sebastian Piñera. | Today the Lower House is expected to vote on a bill that will allow Chileans to withdraw the 10 percent of their savings that remain controlled by the repudiated Pension Fund Insurers (AFP), which are private companies that control pensions in this South American country since that time of the Augusto Pinochet dictatorship (1973-1990). | "This initiative is supported by a large majority of the people, which claims to have the freedom to dispose…
(2020-07-16). Covid-19: Phase 1 of the "Permanent Crisis"? globalresearch.ca Let's assume that the events of the last five months are neither random nor unexpected. | Let's say they're part of an ingenious plan to transform American democracy into a lockdown police state controlled by criminal elites and their puppet governors. …
(2020-07-16). Veterans Go to Washington: So What? counterpunch.org 
If you still follow the mainstream media, you're probably part of the 38% of registered voters who knew something about the op-ed Senator Tom Cotton (R-AR) published in the New York Times early in June, exhorting the president to use the Insurrection Act to "restore order to our streets." This was in response to what
(2020-07-16). Twitch cracks down on US Army's 'fake giveaway' program aimed at teens after activist complains. rt.com 
The streaming platform Twitch has removed a 'bait and switch' ad by the US Army that sought to harvest teenagers' data through a misleading video-game controller giveaway, after complaints from a progressive activist. | "This promotion did not comply with our Terms, and we have required them to remove it," Twitch told the videogame news site Kotaku in an email on Thursday, after the Nation Video gam…
(2020-07-16). Video: Syria Sends Pantsir Air Defense Systems to Counter Turkey in Libya. globalresearch.ca The Syrian government seems to be deploying Pantsir-S1 air defense systems to Libya to assist forces of Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar in their battle against the Turkish-controlled Government of National Accord. | An unusual Pantisr-S1 air defense system was for the …
(2020-07-16). Every Billionaire Is A Predator: Notes From The Edge Of The Narrative Matrix. thealtworld.com Step 2: Buy up all news media. | Step 3: Structure outlets to elevate voices who defend the status quo. | Step 4: Smear non-plutocratic media who don't protect the status quo as crazy conspiracy theorists and Russian propaganda. | Step 5: Dominate the narrative about what's going on in the world. | ~ | Mainstream news is just advertising. You watch advertisements for maintaining the plutocratic status quo, then you watch advertisements between those advertisements for useless crap to make plutocrats even richer. It's all just different layers of marketing. When I was getting my journalism degree they used to talk…
(2020-07-16). Venezuela's Electoral Process Is Legitimate, Fernandez Says. telesurenglish.net Argentina's RELATED: | His statements came after international mainstream media…
(2020-07-15). [Research Paper] Assessing the risk-benefit profile of ramucirumab in patients with advanced solid tumors: A meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. thelancet.com In this meta-analysis of RCTs, use of ramucirumab in patients with advanced cancer was associated with increased risk of treatment related serious and possibly fatal adverse events but the magnitude of clinical benefit from ramucirumab was mostly negligible with no trial reporting an improvement in QOL. These relative risks and benefits should be considered in clinical and regulatory decision making.
(2020-07-15). Let the oil flow: Dakota Access pipeline to continue operation for now, appeals court says as legal battle drags on. rt.com 
A US appeals court has allowed the Dakota Access oil line to stay in operation while legal wrangling continues over the controversial project, overturning a lower court's ruling handed down last week to shutter the pipeline. | The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia ruled on Tuesday that Energy Transfer LP — the firm controlling Dakota Access — could keep the 570,000-barrel-per-day pipeline running as it considers a final decision on whether to delay enforcement of the previous court order. | Last week, the US District Court for the District of Columbia called on Energy Transfer to halt…
(2020-07-15). The End of History lasted 2 Years: I'll give the Great Reset 18 Months. dissidentvoice.org The many similarities in the unfolding narrative of Covid-19 to that of September 11, 2001 — the mass hysteria, the banker bailouts, the insider trading, the censorship of dissent, the apparent foreknowledge (Lockstep, Event 201, PNAC, Catastrophic Terrorism, A Clean Break etc), the rollout of mass surveillance measures and more — make the two seem …