COVID Latest: AFL To Return June 11
Friday: conspiracy theories as a public health issue; vaccine arguments; brothels claim 'moral discrimination'
Morning! It’s Friday, May 15. Here’s today’s ‘5+5: coronavirus edition’.
Each day I’m bringing you 5 things to know about the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak + 5 non-corona things to start your day off.
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Wash your hands and sneeze into your elbow. Practise physical distancing - at least 1.5 metres of separation. “Stay the fuck at home”.
Latest Australian stats: as of 9pm Thursday, Australia has 6989 reported cases of COVID-19 (that’s +14 since the day before), with 6301 reported as ‘recovered’; there have been 98 deaths; and more than 943,480 tests have been done, according to the latest federal Department of Health stats. Full global stats breakdown below
5 CORONAVIRUS THINGS
You can go to the pub — but be safe
Yes, you can go back to the pub today — depending where you live. Cafes, restaurants, bars and, yes, even pubs will open with very limited capacities this weekend. In NSW, all those are limited to 10 people for food service (though you’ll be able to order a beer with your bistro meal). It comes alongside a raft of other changes, like being allowed to have five friends visit your house, and gather in groups of 10 outside. We’re being warned to keep social distancing and hygiene up — indeed, the deputy chief medical officer said we need to be even more careful, as it can get harder when you’re drunk (link). In Victoria, the pubs are still closed.
It will be a while before offices are back to normal, but planning is well underway. The Sydney Morning Herald reports “The [NSW] state government may be forced to open up more city parking and build temporary bike lanes as commuters avoid public transport when offices in the heart of Sydney start to reopen”, citing limits on buses and trains (link).
And in other reopening news — the AFL will return on June 11 (link).
Should we treat COVID conspiracies as a public health issue?
Regular readers would know that reporting on misinformation, fake news and conspiracy theories is a focus area of mine. This week, I got to speak to a few research experts in those fields, and they yielded some of the most terrifically interesting interviews I’ve done for some time. My story (check it out here) looks at what kind of person believes or shares bizarre claims like ‘5G causes coronavirus’ or ‘it’s all a Bill Gates plot to vaccinate everyone with microchips’.
It’s easy to laugh at this, but information warfare expert Tom Sear told me “Ultimately it’s not helpful to characterise conspiracy theorists as paranoid, deluded and uneducated and a small proportion of the population” and that “Conspiracy beliefs about COVID-19 are likely to be extremely widespread and far more common that we might expect.” He suggested we should adapt measures we are using to battle the virus, to battle misinformation about the virus. Read it here.
France vs USA vaccine battle
There’s outrage in Paris after French drug company Sanofi suggested the United States could get its coronavirus vaccine first, because America “was the first to fund the French company's research” (link). Multiple firms are working to create a COVID vaccine, but fears are already emerging about price, access and availability of any such medical innovation, if and when it emerges. What if a private company comes up with it, and charges exorbitant prices? How long will it take to vaccinate enough people in each country to make a difference? How do you choose who gets it first? How do we manufacture billions of doses? There haven’t been many answers to these questions yet…
‘Moral discrimination’ over strip clubs
Under the three-stage framework unveiled by Scott Morrison last week, businesses like cafes, gyms, cinemas and pubs were given rough estimates on when and how coronavirus restrictions may ease. But among those still in employment limbo are sex workers, who have been specifically left out of the roadmap, and specifically told they must ‘remain closed’ (link). Sex workers and others in the adult industry told me they feel it is “moral discrimination”. Read my story here.
Today’s stats:
The latest stats from the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering (as of 10.30am AEST Friday) report 4,438,371 confirmed COVID-19 cases worldwide. There have been 302,115 deaths.
The United States has 1,417,350 confirmed cases, with Russia next but far behind on 252,245, then the United Kingdom (234,440). The U.S. has the most deaths (85,884), then the United Kingdom (33,693) and Italy third on 31,368.
In Australia, the latest federal stats (as of 9pm Thursday) show 6989 cases, 6301 people recovered, 98 deaths, and 943,480 tests.
The latest Australian graph:
5 NON-CORONAVIRUS THINGS
In non-corona Canberra news, remember the ‘sports rorts’ scandal? The Guardian hasn’t given up on it yet, and is still reporting on who knew what, and when. Their latest podcast goes through the “questions that Scott Morrison still hasn't answered” (link).
Still on Canberra and still on The Guardian, St Vincent de Paul has claimed the government’s grants for people affected by the bushfire crisis are “not enough and take too long to approve. Vinnies said charities are being unfairly criticised over the delays, which they say are not their fault (link).
If you haven’t seen, the entire Powderfinger lineup has reunited for an exclusive YouTube gig called One Night Lonely. It’s in aid of Support Act, a music industry charity which is helping performers, tech crew and more who have been affected by the shutdowns of the performing arts. Bernard Fanning spoke to The Project on Thursday to go through it all (link).
A viral tweet is asking people to list their random encounters with celebrities, and some of the stories are just incredible (link). Mine was one night at the theatre, a guy angrily (and wrongly) claimed my ex-girlfriend and I were in his seats. He made a scene, but even the theatre ushers said he was wrong, and told him to sit in his actual seats. After intermission, we returned to find he had stolen our seats. We gave up and sat somewhere else, but right nearby was… Aussie actor Jack Thompson, who apologised profusely to us.
The NRL flu vaccine drama is still ongoing, but Gold Coast Titans player Bryce Cartwright has been given an exemption to play even without getting a jab (link).
IMPORTANT EVERY DAY
Be hygienic; wash your hands properly, at least 30 seconds with soap and water, multiple times a day (here’s how you need to do it, plus a handy Dr Karl video tutorial); sneeze and cough into your elbows.
Listen to only official information from the World Health Organisation and legitimate health bodies — Don’t share dodgy stuff on Facebook. If it looks too good (or bad) to be true, it often is.
World Health Organisation latest statistics here
Australian government latest statistics here
Signing off - stay safe, be healthy, look after yourself and others
Josh