COVID Latest: Politicians Claim Black Lives Matter Protesters "Insane", Warning Against Attending Rallies
Friday: JobKeeper could be wound up early; COVID drug trials in chaos
Morning! It’s Friday, June 5. This is today’s ‘5+5: coronavirus edition’ — 5 things to know about COVID-19 today, + 5 non-corona things as well.
Latest AU stats: as of 9pm Thursday, Australia has 7240 reported cases of COVID-19 (that’s +10 since the day before), with 6664 reported as ‘recovered’, and 102 deaths, according to the latest federal Department of Health stats. Full global stats breakdown below.
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5 CORONAVIRUS THINGS
Warnings against attending BLM protests
Huge protests in support of Black Lives Matter, and calling for justice for Indigenous deaths in custody, are planned for this weekend nationwide — but not everyone is happy about it. In NSW, police minister David Elliott called protesters “certifiably insane” (link); in Victoria, chief health officer Brett Sutton and health minister Jenny Mikakos warned against attending, citing fears of virus spread (link). Rally organisers are urging attendees to follow social distancing rules, wear masks, and practise hygiene — with organisers to provide masks and hand sanitiser at events.
The weekend protests are expected to be even larger than those which were held in some cities earlier this week.
JobKeeper payments could end early for some
The $130 billion JobKeeper payment — wait, sorry, no my mistake, I meant $70 billion — could be wound up early for some businesses. The government poured the huge $130b (sorry, sorry, I mean $70b) jump-start into the economy to keep people in jobs, and even after slashing the estimated costs by nearly half due to some kind of paperwork boo-boo, they’re still looking to trim the edges off if possible. The Australian Financial Review reports that businesses which have recovered enough may have their wage subsidies pulled back earlier than planned (link).
Businesses were eligible for the top-up, aimed at keeping workers on the books rather than cut loose, if their earnings tanked by 30% or more. The payments were supposed to be in force for six months, but things could be pulled back if certain businesses recover quicker than anticipated.
Anti-hydroxychloroquine studies revoked
Jeeze this is the story that won’t go away. It’s a miracle cure! It’s dangerous! Donald Trump is taking it! The WHO has paused its study! The WHO has resumed its study! Now, a recent study associating hydroxychloroquine use with higher rates of COVID death has been retracted from a major medical journal, after “a shocking example of research misconduct” (link).
As we outlined yesterday, The Guardian has been reporting on errors in data that several COVID studies relied on. A paper in the Lancet journal used that data to suggest that using the drug could be more dangerous. Now, it’s been retracted, after the data could not be verified, and other studies have now resumed after being paused. It’s very confusing and not at all good. There’s a long read here which explains it all in more detail.
Flights to slowly resume for business, holidays
We still can’t travel very far just yet, but as states look toward relaxing border closures and normal work routines resume, airlines are preparing to scale up the number of flights they offer.
Qantas and Jetstar could be back up to 40% of their pre-pandemic flight schedules by the end of next month, hoping for borders to open up and some level of holiday travel to resume (link). “We can quickly ramp up flying in time for the July school holidays if border restrictions have eased more by then,” CEO Alan Joyce said.
Today’s stats:
The latest stats from the Johns Hopkins University Center for Systems Science and Engineering (as of 9.30am AEST Friday) report 6,595,391 confirmed COVID-19 cases worldwide. There have been 388,710 deaths.
The United States has 1,872,261 confirmed cases; Brazil is next on 584,016, then Russia (440,538). The U.S. has the most deaths (108,120), then the United Kingdom (39,987) and Italy third on 33,689.
In Australia, the latest federal stats (as of 9pm Thursday) show 7240 cases, 6664 people recovered, and 102 deaths.
The latest Australian graph:
5 NON-CORONAVIRUS THINGS
The fallout from mining giant Rio Tinto blasting 46,000 year old culturally significant caves in the Pilbara region continues — with Radio National reporting the company “was alerted six years ago that at least one of the caves… was of ‘the highest archaeological significance in Australia’.” (link)
Korean pop fans are spamming anti-Black Lives Matter hashtags online “with memes and fancams of their favorite stars” (link). The protests in the U.S. and around the world are being waged just as much online as in the physical world, and social media is turning into a battleground — so as white supremacist or anti-BLM groups try to gather their own followers, many others (like the K-Pop fans) are doing their bit to drown out the hate and racism. It’s very funny.
Update on the 7 News team clobbered by police in Washington DC — after the officers involved were placed on “administrative leave” (link), the union representing the Park Police claimed in a statement that “given...the lack of readily identifiable journalist markings, [they] were not readily distinguishable from violent protesters”. Apparently the huge shoulder-mounted TV camera and microphone didn't make it obvious…
The Brisbane Broncos NRL team is under fire for “cowardice” after reportedly refusing to front media after a huge 59-0 drubbing last night by the Sydney Roosters (link). It was one of the Broncos’ biggest-ever losses, and continues a horror run for the proud club.
An asteroid the size of a stadium will ‘relatively close’ to Earth on Saturday (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.
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Signing off — stay safe, be healthy, look after yourself and others.
Josh