Welcome to Wednesday, where a shooting in Atlanta leaves eight dead, a Japanese court ruling could be a breakthrough for LGBTQ rights and Saint Patrick's Day celebrations are cancelled again. We also travel to Argentine's sea waters where an onslaught of foreign fishing fleets threatens marine life.
Let them have AstraZeneca! The negligence of Europe's leaders
As elsewhere in Europe, the German government's decision to suspend the use of the vaccine makes no logical sense when you weigh up the risks in concrete figures, writes Justus Haucap, Professor of Economics at the University of Düsseldorf, in German daily Die Welt:
Suspending use of the AstraZeneca vaccine is a major blow for Germany's vaccination program. Over the past few weeks, AstraZeneca made up around 40% of vaccines administered in the country.
The vaccination program was already rolling out very slowly, and now the brakes are being slammed on. The promise of every adult being offered at least a first dose of the vaccine before the end of summer is beginning to look quite doubtful indeed.
Even if Germany starts offering the AstraZeneca vaccine again soon, the population may still be reluctant to receive it. But vaccines are our only way out of the pandemic. The collateral damage of suspending use of this specific vaccine could be huge.
The decision to halt all use of the AstraZeneca vaccine will prove to be a grave mistake, with serious consequences. So far in Germany, there have been seven reported cases of blood clots in the brain identified in patients who had received the vaccine.
The European Medicines Agency (EMA) has reported 41 cases of blood clots among the more than five million people who have received the AstraZeneca vaccine. Even if this number is higher than it should be, the risk is still only 0.0008%.
Many other medicines come with significantly higher risks. If every German citizen received the AstraZeneca vaccine — which won't be the case — we would expect to see at most 650 people experiencing complications. If 30 to 40% of the population received it, it would be between 200 and 260 cases.
The risk of unvaccinated people contracting coronavirus and becoming seriously ill is far higher. In the past seven days alone, there have been 110,000 new infections reported in Germany.
If only 1% of infections are fatal, that would still be more than 1,000 people — and that's only one week's worth of infections. With the threat of a third wave fast approaching, it's unthinkable to allow these very low risks to slow down the vaccination programme.
To salvage what we can, the German government should now make it possible for anyone who wishes to receive the AstraZeneca vaccine to do so. I personally would be first in line.
Anyone who would prefer to wait for a different vaccine and run the risk of being infected with coronavirus can do so. But there's no reason to make everyone wait. In fact, it's negligent, given the risk of a third wave.
Without the AstraZeneca vaccine, we may see fewer blood clots, but we will certainly see many more deaths from coronavirus, to say nothing of the continuing restrictions imposed on our basic freedoms and everyday life.
— Justus Haucap / Die Welt
• Same-sex marriage ruling in Japan: A court in Japan has ruled that banning same-sex marriage is unconstitutional, a potential major breakthrough for LGBTQ rights in the Asian nation.
• Uber drivers in UK recognized as employees: After a landmark court ruling, the ride-hailing app is recognizing more than 70,000 drivers as employees, granting them paid holidays, pension, and minimum wage.
• 2020 U.S. election foreign interference: In a detailed report by U.S. intelligence, Russian President Vladimir Putin has been accused of meddling in the 2020 U.S. election in favor of Donald Trump, while Iran used a "multi-pronged covert influence campaign" in an attempt to tilt the election toward Joe Biden.
• Massage parlor shootings: Eight people were killed in three different massage parlors across Atlanta, Georgia within the span of an hour. At least six victims were Asian women. A 21-year-old suspect has been arrested.
• Baby born with COVID-19 antibodies: In a world's first known case, a baby in south Florida was born with antibodies after the mom received a COVID-19 vaccine while pregnant.
• Navalny news: Putin critic Alexei Navalny has shared on Instagram that he has been moved to a "concentration camp" known for strict control, and had his head shaved.
• Saint Patrick's Day: For the second year in a row, the Irish festivities have been cancelled. Pub owners see no end in sight. New York City has also cancelled its annual Saint Patrick's Day parade.
