RationalWiki:What is going on with the coronavirus?/May 2021

May 2021
Boo hoo to all those who are "lovely and fair" but Ireland's famous beauty contest the Rose of Tralee, has been cancelled for a second time due to the pandemic. Religious whackjob Rick Wiles, who's claimed that Covid is a hoax and that Jews spread Covid in their synagogues and that the vaccine is being used to commit genocide, has [https://www.fr24news.com/a/2021/05/pastor-rick-wiles-apparently-has-covid-after-refusing-vaccines-he-called-global-genocide.html ... well, you guessed it.] 14 arrested in Melbourne’s violent anti-vaccination and anti-lockdown protests as restrictions tighten. The fine for breaking lockdown restrictions remains at AUD$1492. Anti-lockdown protesters protest against lockdowns by shutting down a shopping centre. Thousands of protesters across Brazil call for the impeachment of President Jair Bolsonaro because of his mismanagement of the pandemic. A Covid-19 variant is detected in Vietnam that appears to be hybrid of the Indian and UK variants and is more transmissible in the air. [https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-57246914 An offer of vaccines from China puts Taiwan's leaders in a lose-lose situation. Accept and folks will say China takes better care of Taiwan's people than Taiwan does. Refuse and be accused of putting politics above people's health.] Tennessee woman arrested after driving her car through a tent, where Covid vaccines were being administered. The first winners are announced in Ohio's 'vaccine lottery'. To try and boost vaccine take-up, vaccinated Ohio residents can register for the chance to win $1 million in 5 weekly drawings. The 60-year-old scientific screwup that helped Covid-19 kill "Lockdown likely to be at least seven to 10 days long" in Melbourne as total cases rise to 27. Complacency and the sex industry brought Taiwan's Covid-19 success story to an end. Dominic Cummings, the former Chief Advisor to the Prime Minister, answers questions from the MPs Science and Technology committee regarding the UK’s Covid response, alleging many failures. Cummings claimed that the March 2020 lockdown was too late due to civil servants and government scientists using outdated and wrong modelling on the virus’s spread. He also claimed that there was a lack of understanding on asymptomatic transmission, and repeatedly called for the sacking of Health Secretary Matt Hancock. Woohoo! The CDC reports that half of all American adults are now fully vaccinated. Timeline: How the Wuhan lab-leak theory suddenly became credible And here's a non paywall copy of the article. French fact-checkers have found out that a Russian-linked British PR agency was trying to use social media influencers to disparage the American-German Pfizer vaccine, and beef-up the Russian Sputnik vaccine. Even though the US Center for Disease Control advises against all travel to Japan, American Olympic officials say they're confident their athletes will take part in the delayed games and do it safely. Gathering and mask restrictions reintroduced for Melbourne after 4 community cases found. Aussies not waiting for another wave to break out! Lockdown restrictions ease in Northern Ireland in pretty much the same way that they did in England, Scotland and Wales a week earlier. This year's Everest expedition hit by Covid outbreak at Base Camp. A "Yorkshire variant" of Covid-19 has been detected. [https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-57135647 A sudden spike in infections in Taiwan, which has had only 12 Covid-related deaths since the start of the pandemic, leads to the toughest restrictions on the island yet. Movie theaters close. Gatherings of more than 10 people are banned. People are encouraged to work from home and not panic buy toilet paper.] [https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-57136140 Lockdown eases in England, Wales and most of Scotland. Foreign travel is allowed again. Pubs and restaurants can serve customers indoors. Museums, theatres and cinemas reopen. However, Boris Johnson urges people to be cautious and responsible.] Men now have one more compelling reason to get a COVID-19 vaccine — doctors suspect the new coronavirus could cause erectile dysfunction The Indian Covid variant is causing a spike in cases in Bolton. El Salvador's national assembly provides criminal immunity to officials who mismanaged COVID funds, this comes on the heels of President Nayib Bukele firing their national Attorney General for beginning an investigation. The B.1.617.2 Covid variant, currently wreaking havoc in India, has been detected in South Africa. In India’s surge, the Kumbh Mela religious gathering attended by millions helped the virus spread Australia, Brunei, the Falkland Islands, the Faroe Islands, Gibraltar, Iceland, Israel, New Zealand, Portugal, St. Helena, Tristan da Cunha, Ascension Island, Singapore, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands [https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-57026936 are the countries on the "green list" that people in England can visit from 17 May without having to quarantine when they get home. Those countries, however, have their own restrictions on who they allow in.] Bar owner charged with selling fake coronavirus vaccine cards in one of the first cases of its kind From the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists: The origin of COVID: Did people or nature open Pandora’s box at Wuhan? Estimation of total mortality due to COVID-19 New study estimates more than 900,000 people have died of COVID-19 in U.S. G7 meeting of foreign ministers in London hit by Covid scare. Oktoberfest is cancelled for the second year in a row. The 2021 Indian Premier League postponed "indefinitely," as players within supposedly secure "bio-bubbles" start testing positive for Covid. Lockdown restrictions ease in many European countries. As part of the UK's Events Research Programme, 3,000 people with negative Covid-19 tests are allowed to get down on the dance floor at an event in Liverpool with no face masks or social distancing.