TORONTO – The fourth wave of the pandemic? It has already begun. And it mainly affects the unvaccinated, even if – in some cases – those who have already received the vaccine get sick as well. This is what emerges from the latest data relating to infections: the daily count of Covid-19 cases in Ontario continues to fluctuate between 300 and 400 new infections per day and infectious disease experts warn that an increase in cases is expected in the next weeks. (more…)
Once, I had a short conversation with a friend who works retail at the Eaton Centre, downtown Toronto. He has varying work shifts. When assigned a closing shift, he observes a resurgence of nocturnal people, mostly behaving oddly, presumably due to drugs. (more…)
TORONTO – Safety plans, guidelines, mask use, physical distance, maximum limit of students, vaccination obligation for school staff. These are some of the issues on which, just over six weeks before the beginning of the school year, our political class should start a serious and constructive debate, incorporating the indications and inputs of the provincial scientific community, trade associations and school provveditorati. In Ontario, at least for now, everything is silent. (more…)
In a hard-hitting new research report, the Nederland based Clean Clothes Campaign finds that H&M, Nike and Primark have driven factory workers in their supply chains in Bangladesh, Cambodia and Indonesia into desperation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Interviews conducted with 49 garment workers in these countries demonstrate that the Coronavirus-induced crisis continues to have a devastating impact on the wages, working conditions, and labor rights of garment workers. (more…)
On June 10, 2021, BBC reported that a new discovery reduces the rate of Dengue infections by 77%. The World Mosquito Programme performed an experiment whereby mosquitoes were infected with the Wolbachia bacteria that outcompeted the Dengue virus (DENV). These Wolbachia-laced mosquitoes and their eggs were re-released into Yogyakarta city in Indonesia. The World Mosquito Program proudly reported that this trial results in an 86% reduction in Dengue hospitalizations. And in a world that has health care systems non the verge of collapse from the COVID-19 pandemic, reducing the overall burden on hospitals makes a big difference. (more…)