An open rebellion within Congress
The firestorm in Punjab rages on with the exit of party chief Navjot Singh Sidhu (that drama explained here). As expected, the former Chief Minister is busy cuddling up to the BJP—or specifically Home Minister Amit Shah, paying him a 45-minute visit at his home. What was unexpected: an open rebellion from a group of dissidents who call themselves G-23—and consist mostly of the old party guard. Kapil Sibal chose this moment to hold a press conference—where he raged again at the lack of any official leadership: “In our party at the moment there is no president. So we don’t know who is taking these decisions. We know and yet we don’t know”—which is obviously a dig at Rahul for calling all the shots while refusing the post of president. Then all the Gandhi loyalists fired back calling Sibal and others ungrateful for the generosity of the first family. As Greta Thunberg recently said, blah, blah, blah. (The Telegraph)
Japan gets a new PM
The ruling Liberal Democratic Party has appointed former foreign minister Fumio Kishida as its new leader—and he is guaranteed to replace the outgoing and very unpopular Yoshihide Suga as Prime Minister. Suga only served for a single year. Kishida has many problems—which include the fact that he has a bland image, and just barely beat a far more popular rival Taro Kono to win the post. And his party faces lower house elections in just a few months. Reuters has more on what to expect from Kishida.
Three bits of pandemic news
One: A Oxford university study shows that one in three infected people experience at least one long-haul symptom of Covid—be it breathing problems, abdominal symptoms, fatigue, pain and anxiety or depression. But age, gender etc. often determined which symptom lingered: “older people and men had more breathing difficulties and cognitive problems, whereas young people and women had more headaches, abdominal symptoms and anxiety or depression.” (The Guardian)
Two: Important new data shows that vaccines played a huge role in protecting lives of those who became infected during the brutal second wave. In the 60-plus age category, 121 people per million died per week among the unvaccinated. The number for those who received at least one dose: 2.6. The fully vaccinated: 1.76. (Indian Express)
Three: YouTube is cracking down on any videos that claim that commonly used vaccines are ineffective or dangerous—and not just those related to Covid. Those targeted include high-profile anti-vaxxers like Joseph Mercola and Robert F Kennedy Jr. (YouTube)
Finally, the numbers: Here’s where we are. India reported 23,529 new cases on Wednesday—that’s compared to 84,348 in the US, 34,520 in the UK and 14,423 in Brazil.
Two strange news ‘clarifications’
The New York Times felt obliged to make clear that this hilariously and obviously fake image of its front page is, well, a fake:
The publication huffily tweeted: “This is a completely fabricated image, one of many in circulation featuring Prime Minister Modi.”
Closer to home: Times Now anchor Navika Kumar issued this amusing ‘clarification’ of her use of the “unparliamentary” word ‘bloody’ on air:
A very funny art story
We didn’t know how else to headline this story of a Danish artist—who was asked to recreate two previous works of his conceptual artwork. Jens Haaning had previously framed wads of cash to make a commentary on compensation for labour etc. This time around, the Danish museum gave him $84,000 to do something similar. But when they received the artwork, the money was missing!! Haaning chose to keep the money instead—and titled two blank frames ‘Take the Money and Run’. The museum is upset, but Haaning is unrepentant:
“I saw, from my artistic point of view, that I could create a much better piece for them than what they could imagine. I don’t see that I have stolen money... I have created an art piece, which is maybe 10 or 100 times better than what we had planned. What is the problem?"
What’s even funnier: The two empty frames are hanging in the museum with Haaning’s email next to them. You can see it below just to appreciate the hilarity of this scam. (CNN)
Speaking of expensive things: Back in 1970, a bunch of teenagers interviewed John Lennon and Yoko Ono for their school newspaper—and made a 33-minute cassette recording of the encounter. It sold for $58,300 in an auction. (BBC)
Baby poo has microplastics problem
Microplastics—tiny particles of synthetic materials smaller than 5 mm—are everywhere, including human feces. A new study found that the amount of microplastics in baby poop is ten times higher than that of adults. And that may be because their exposure is higher:
“When babies shove toys or clothing in their mouths, they might end up ingesting tiny fibers or pieces of plastic. Then there are plastic food containers, sippy cups, and baby bottles, which can also shed pieces of PET smaller than the diameter of a pencil eraser. Mixing hot water and formula in a plastic bottle can weaken the plastic and unleash even more tiny pieces of it. Crawling babies are also much more likely than walking adults to get a face full of microfibers from polyester carpeting, which they might ingest or inhale.”
Now, scientists don’t exactly know what effect such exposure has on infants—and the sample size was small—but they are worried. The Verge has lots more details.
James Bond gets rave reviews
Critics finally got a look at ‘No Time to Die’ at its world premiere in London--and they love it. Many called it “magnificent” and praised its “terrific panache.” The Telegraph has a handy roundup of reviews. We were more impressed by Daniel Craig’s pink velvet tuxedo! Consider us shaken and stirred!
A turtle-sized air traffic jam
A turtle delayed five planes at the Tokyo airport as it ambled down the tarmac. One of the planes delayed: All-Nippon Airways Airbus A380, which is decorated with sea turtles. While runway hazards include stray cats, racoon dogs and rabbits, turtle sightings are extremely rare—which explains why it is making headlines around the world lol! The airline, btw, took the incident in the best possible spirit: “In Hawaii, sea turtles are seen as bringing good luck, and we hope this turtle that came to see the flight off signals a bright future.” See the recovered intruder below. (The Guardian)