News Round-Up – The Daily Sceptic

“Italy, the ‘far right’ and the muted opposition to vaccine passes” – Why is it that only the supposedly “fascist” Fratelli d’Italia are opposing Italy’s Green Passes, asks Nicholas Farrell in the Spectator.
“Australia is showing the perils of a zero Covid strategy” – How has it come to the point that Australia needs to call up the military to eradicate a virus that is now endemic in the world, asks this Telegraph editorial.
“All deaths are equal, but some are more equal than others” – Ramesh Thakur in the Spectator Australia worries that lockdown enthusiasts have got their priorities wrong.
“The Republican probe into the Wuhan lab proves conspiracy theories aren’t always wrong” – This is no longer just an argument over the origins of COVID-19, writes Eliot Wilson in the Telegraph. It is becoming a battle over how we deal with scientific inquiry.
“Traveller in Heathrow hotel quarantine reports rats in room” – A musician forced to quarantine in a Government-approved hotel has described having to move room twice because of a “disgusting” rat problem, the Evening Standard reports.
“Guardian: COVID-19 Lockdowns are Driving Up CO2 Emissions” – Ditching the commute might seem an easy climate win, but other factors such as the relative inefficiency of home heating outweigh the CO2 savings, says a story in the Guardian as reported here by WUWT.
“NHS app tweaked to ping fewer Covid contacts and appease business” – Ministers bowed to pressure from business and moved to ease the “pingdemic” by tweaking the NHS COVID-19 app, according to the Times.
“I’m a pingdemic liar. Admit it, you are too” – We are cutting back on social contact – but is it really the pandemic or do some of us just not want to go out, asks Stuart Heritage in the Times.
“Civil servants will continue to work from home despite Sunak’s plea to ‘get on’” – Civil servants are not being ordered back to their desks in Whitehall despite ministers’ praise for office working, reports the Times.
“Americans Are Willing to Take Pay Cuts to Never Go Into the Office Again” – A new survey shows 65% of workers who said their jobs could be done entirely remotely were willing to take a 5% reduction to stay at home, Bloomberg reports.
“The U.S. Economy’s Prospects Looked Bright, Until the Delta Variant Surged” – Gross domestic product grew at a 6.5% annual rate in the second quarter and the economy exceeded its pre-pandemic size, but slower growth is expected in coming months, reports the WSJ.
““I Will Not Be Leaving Quietly” by Five Times August (Music & Lyric Video) 2021” – Dedicated to all those fighting for truth and freedom, courtesy of Oracle Films.
“My own country of Canada just kicked me out because my Covid immunity was acquired naturally and not from a vaccine” – Rachel Marsden in RT writes that when she went home to visit her mother, Canada tried to force her into a Covid detention facility, threatening fines and police action, as they didn’t recognise her natural immunity.
“The Road to Totalitarianism” – A warning from C J Hopkins in OffGuardian.
“We must be free to be ‘grossly offensive’” – The case of the ‘Grenfell Tower effigy’ shows our laws on online speech are wildly authoritarian, writes Andrew Tettenborn in spiked.
“U.K. Asset Owners Pledge to Push Managers on Diversity” – A group of pensions and consultants, totalling $1.5 trillion in assets under management, will require asset managers to disclose information about the gender and racial makeup of their firms, reports Institutional Investor.
“In defence of proselytising” – We should thank religious nuts, especially dissenting Christians, for most of the liberal rights we take for granted, writes Stephen Wigmore in the Critic
“The shame of BBC Sport” – Framing your opponents as hateful is the politics of the kindergarten, write Rob Jessel and Madison Smith in the Critic.
“Brentford end refusal to take the knee ahead of their first Premier League season” – The club confirmed their players would join the other 19 top-flight teams in performing the anti-racism gesture, the Telegraph reports.
“How artists lost their courage” – Keeping silent is the price of a successful career, writes Jess de Wahls in UnHerd.
“Put the animal sentience bill out of its misery” – Lobsters and the like are given no more protection from cruelty under this legislation but bureaucrats will thrive on it, writes Matt Ridley in the Times.