Stocks of Anti-WuFlu Drug Looted From French Hospital

Hydroxychloroquine (also called Plaquenil) is a drug that is used to treat malaria, and also to relieve rheumatoid arthritis and lupus. I know it’s been around for a long time, because it was prescribed for me almost fifty years ago to treat my juvenile rheumatoid arthritis of the tendons.

Recent trials have tentatively shown that hydroxychloroquine is effective against the Wuhan Coronavirus. Since it is a long-established drug, it can be immediately prescribed for “off-label” use against the disease.

A few days ago a major hospital in France had its stocks of hydroxychloroquine pilfered by persons unknown. Many thanks to MissPiggy for translating this news report, and to Vlad Tepes for the subtitling:

Video transcript:

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Gates of Vienna News Feed 3/23/2020

After being quarantined for possible infection with the Wuhan Coronavirus, German Chancellor Angela Merkel has tested negative for the disease. Meanwhile, the governor of Sicily has shut off the island by closing the bridge across the Strait of Messina. Also, Michigan, Massachusetts, Indiana, and Wisconsin have become the latest states to issue mandatory stay-at-home orders to residents.

In other news, a tanker carrying 190 migrants ran aground on a Greek island.

To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.

Thanks to Insubria, JD, Reader from Chicago, SS, and all the other tipsters who sent these in.

Notice to tipsters: Please don’t submit extensive excerpts from articles that have been posted behind a subscription firewall, or are otherwise under copyright protection.

Caveat: Articles in the news feed are posted “as is”. Gates of Vienna cannot vouch for the authenticity or accuracy of the contents of any individual item posted here. I check each entry to make sure it is relatively interesting, not patently offensive, and at least superficially plausible. The link to the original is included with each item’s title. Further research and verification are left to the reader.

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Frick and Frack at Sea

To take your mind off the Chinese virus, here’s another inimitable pastiche by JLH.

Frick and Frack at Sea

by JLH (with apologies to Edward Lear)

I

Bernie and Biden were all at sea.
Their faces as green as the kelp.
They brought some money — but it was funny,
They both still needed more help.
Biden looked up at the stars above,
And sang to his mandolin:
“Oh Bernie my friend
You’re insane without end.
What an absolute kook you are.
You are,
What a nutcase from Vermont you are!”

II

Bernie said to old Joe, “It’s too bad that your Id
Is the only thing left of your mind.
If you’d done all the things you said that you did
We wouldn’t be in this bind.”
So they sailed away, for a year and a day,
To the land where the money tree grows.
And there on a hill, a Hillary stood,
With a permanently out-of-joint nose.
A nose.
A permanently out-of-joint nose.

III

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The Utrecht Tram Mujahid Gets Life in Prison

H. Numan reported a couple of weeks ago on the trial of Gökmen Tanis, the “Dutch” tram jihadist of Utrecht. In March of 2019 Mr. Tanis shot and killed four people and wounded six others in a terrorist attack on a tram in the Dutch city of Utrecht (he later confessed to the crime). At the conclusion of his trial, prosecutors recommended that he be sentenced to life in prison.

Last Friday the panel of trial judges took the prosecution’s advice and sentenced the perpetrator to life. Many thanks to FouseSquawk for translating this article from De Telegraaf:

Tram shooter Gökmen T.: Life in prison

by Saskia Belleman

Utrecht: Tears flowed in the hearing room of the Utrecht court where a handful of victims and their family members heard the sentence of life imprisonment for the tram shooter, Gökmen T. (38).

That, according to an audibly cold court president, Ruud Veldhuisen, is the only suitable punishment for Gökmen T., who on March 18 of last year “sowed death and destruction” on a tram at October 24th Square.

The court: “With no other goal other than to take lives, Gökmen T. stepped on the tram that day like a normal passenger. He then drew a pistol with which he shot at unsuspecting passengers in cold blood with calls to his god, Allah. Not once, but several times over the course of two minutes.”

The court spoke of “horrifying acts” by Gökmen T., which he justified by reducing his reality to an unreal rectilinear “we” vs. “you”: We Muslims are being destroyed worldwide by you democrats. That was the finish for him.

The experts in the Pieter Baan Center who examined him think that his acts did not come from a deeply-felt belief, but rather out of frustration over a failed life. The court: “Radicalizing and embracing extremist views as an unconscious strategy of dealing with problems and setbacks in his life.”

[Caption below picture: In one of the court hearings, Gökmen T. spits at his defense lawyer, Andre Seebregts]

The court accepts the conclusions of the experts concerning personality disorders and diminished accountability. But it estimates the danger of recidivism much higher than the experts do.

Despite his diminished accountability, the court finds that a temporary prison sentence in combination with compulsory TBS treatment does not do justice to the actions of Gökmen T. Life imprisonment is the only option from the point of view of punishment and the security of society. Moreover, the court wants to send a clear signal to others who might intend to carry out this type of attack. Then this is what follows: Life imprisonment. “That his crimes can be attributed to Gökmen T. in a lesser degree doesn’t change this judgment,” said the court.

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Praying Muslims Defy the Coronavirus in Bangladesh

Nothing stops salat (Islamic prayer), not even the ChiCom virus. The following video shows more than 10,000 Muslims at prayer in Bangladesh. They know the coronavirus cannot harm them unless Allah wills it.

Many thanks to MissPiggy for the translation, and to Vlad Tepes for the subtitling:

Video transcript:

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Gates of Vienna News Feed 3/22/2020

Senator Rand Paul has tested positive for the Wuhan Coronavirus. And Harvey Weinstein has been put in isolation in prison after being diagnosed with the disease. Meanwhile, Italy is using drones to track down people who violate the mandatory lockdown, so that they can be arrested. Also, the number of the confirmed cases of the ChiCom flu in New York State has risen past 15,000, more than in France or South Korea.

In other news… there is no significant news other than the coronavirus.

To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.

Thanks to AF, Caroline Glick, JD, Reader from Chicago, and all the other tipsters who sent these in.

Notice to tipsters: Please don’t submit extensive excerpts from articles that have been posted behind a subscription firewall, or are otherwise under copyright protection.

Caveat: Articles in the news feed are posted “as is”. Gates of Vienna cannot vouch for the authenticity or accuracy of the contents of any individual item posted here. I check each entry to make sure it is relatively interesting, not patently offensive, and at least superficially plausible. The link to the original is included with each item’s title. Further research and verification are left to the reader.

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Cemetery Employees Work Overtime in Bergamo

I reported a couple of days ago on the situation in the northern Italian province of Bergamo, in Lombardy. Bergamo lies at the epicenter of the Wuhan Coronavirus crisis in Italy, and the crematoria and cemeteries are currently strained by a death rate that is normally seen only in wartime.

Below is the latest news from the cemetery in Bergamo. Many thanks to FouseSquawk for the translation, and to Vlad Tepes for the subtitling:

Video transcript:

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Gates of Vienna News Feed 3/21/2020

Pope Francis has decided that he will not engage in the traditional washing of feet during this year’s Easter observances, due to the Wuhan Coronavirus. Meanwhile, two Italian convents have been hit by the disease, which has infected 59 nuns. Also, Portugal has declared emergency rule because of the coronavirus.

In other news, Austrian commandos helping to patrol the Greek border with Turkey were confronted by Turkish police before an assault by a migrant mob.

To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.

Thanks to Insubria, JH, LN, Reader from Chicago, and all the other tipsters who sent these in.

Notice to tipsters: Please don’t submit extensive excerpts from articles that have been posted behind a subscription firewall, or are otherwise under copyright protection.

Caveat: Articles in the news feed are posted “as is”. Gates of Vienna cannot vouch for the authenticity or accuracy of the contents of any individual item posted here. I check each entry to make sure it is relatively interesting, not patently offensive, and at least superficially plausible. The link to the original is included with each item’s title. Further research and verification are left to the reader.

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Fascists Must Go, But Commies Are OK

The video below features the Finnish politician Ben Zyskowicz. KGS, who translated the clip for subtitling, includes these contextual notes about the video:

Ben Zyskowicz is a long-serving National Coalition politician (Kok) and member of the Finnish parliament. In this video he is addressing a recent situation in which the Finns Party youth wing’s second vice chair, Toni Jalonen, self-identified as a Fascist. The Finns immediately removed him from the party.

The Finnish Left was quick to use Jalonen’s admission to paint the rest of the Finns Party with the wide brush of “Fascists”. Finns party members and their supporters were quick to point out that the Left Alliance, which is currently a member of the newly-formed government, has a member of parliament, Anna Kontula, who has come out as a bonafide Communist.

Serious questions arose as to why she still remains in the Left Alliance, as well as a sitting member of parliament. Why the double standard? Ben Zyskowicz is Finland’s only Jewish lawmaker, and certainly no friend of Fascists or Fascism in general. Here he makes a great many salient points about why Communist and their supporters enjoy a measure of credibility in Finland, as well as why they shouldn’t.

Many thanks to Vlad Tepes for the subtitling:

For more on the sacking of Toni Jalonen, see this English-language article from the Finnish state broadcaster Yle.

Video transcript:

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The Chinese Virus in Thailand

Our Bangkok correspondent H. Numan sends this report on the impact that the Wuhan Coronavirus is having in Thailand.

The Chinese virus in Thailand

by H. Numan

Let’s call the beast by its real name, shall we? Incidentally, this is the second time China has infected the rest of the world. Without taking any responsibility for it. In 2002 we had the SARS virus going viral. In both cases it began in a fresh market. In both cases the Chinese government tried to look the other way for as long as possible. With the Coronavirus especially China does everything it can — that’s a lot! — to disassociate itself. Anyone (especially a man in a white house) who calls this virus by its true name is a racist. The measures China is taking are exactly what you can expect from a ruthless communist regime. Not to be admired, to say the least.

One of the first countries to enjoy the new Chinese export was Thailand. That was to be expected, with hindsight of course. About a third of the tourism industry relied (past tense!) on the Chinese market. That’s about twelve million arrivals. Once the virus really took hold the tourism industry effectively died. The one third of the market was forbidden to travel abroad. The remaining two thirds seriously reduced or changed travel plans. That means almost no arrivals at the airport. Empty hotels. Empty tourist attractions. Huge fleets of coaches standing idle. Tour leaders without work. We’re talking here about the livelihood of many millions of people.

Elephants are highly revered in Thailand, and no longer used for hard labor. Quite a lot of elephants are now kept in retirement camps, where they are taken care of and work with tourists. Usually by washing, feeding and interacting with the elephants. To a lesser extent rides on them. Only there are no tourists. An occasional Thai and a few farangs (=foreigners), but not enough to make ends meet. Elephants eat a lot. About 10% of their body weight daily. That’s roughly 360 kg of fodder every day, seven days per week. Many of those camps are in dire straits on how to keep the elephants alive. I have no idea what will happen. Will they be released into the wild? (That’s a horrible thought.) Will the government offer support? No idea.

Thailand is doing what it can to contain the virus. I happen to live in the center of Bangkok, in the diplomatic area (lucky me!). Central Chidlom is the most prestigious mall of Thailand. The guards at the door check everybody now for temperature. The bank next door also has a guard who sprays the doorknob every time a customer enters the bank. If you use the ATM, he cleans it. When I went to the immigration police, same story: everybody’s temperature was taken. From what I hear, roughly the same is done in the whole country.

Last week we had a bit of a stir when the minister of health, Khun Anutin Charnvirakul, tweeted that filthy western foreigners were the cause of the virus, as they never showered. It was because of them the ‘good Chinese tourists’ were now staying away. He had to apologize, which he sort of did. He hadn’t posted this on Twitter, but rather somebody else had. He was too busy to manage his Twitter account. In a Western government he would have had to pack his things immediately. All Western embassies did file complaints about his statement. But this is Thailand. Thus, his apology was accepted.

The country is in a nearly complete lockdown. Within the country you still can travel. There is no curfew. Yet. In many cities entertainment has been closed down completely. Some of it voluntary, some of it on orders of the local government. All borders are closed. New arrivals must show a health certificate not older than 3 days, and have valid health insurance covering at least $ 100,000. All large-scale activities have been postponed or canceled.

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Gates of Vienna News Feed 3/20/2020

The Australian state of Queensland has closed its border with Northern Territory to prevent the spread of the Wuhan Coronavirus. Meanwhile, Turkey has closed its border with Greece because of the disease. Also, Austrian soldiers are being deployed to help keep supermarket shelves stocked in the face of coronavirus-related panic buying.

In other news, the plague of locusts in East Africa continues unabated, especially in Kenya, Ethiopia, and Sudan.

To see the headlines and the articles, click “Continue reading” below.

Thanks to Fjordman, Insubria, JF, Reader from Chicago, SS, and all the other tipsters who sent these in.

Notice to tipsters: Please don’t submit extensive excerpts from articles that have been posted behind a subscription firewall, or are otherwise under copyright protection.

Caveat: Articles in the news feed are posted “as is”. Gates of Vienna cannot vouch for the authenticity or accuracy of the contents of any individual item posted here. I check each entry to make sure it is relatively interesting, not patently offensive, and at least superficially plausible. The link to the original is included with each item’s title. Further research and verification are left to the reader.

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Keep Calm And Obey Orders!

The three videos below are public service announcements broadcast by loudspeaker at various locations in Germany. They concern the new rules imposed on citizens because of the Wuhan Coronavirus.

They remind me of an old joke (for which I can’t remember the exact wording) about getting French people to behave themselves by shouting at them in German.

Many thanks to MissPiggy for the translations, and to Vlad Tepes for the subtitling.

The first clip from Kürnbach is an announcement of a newly-imposed curfew. WARNING: This video opens with VERY loud sirens:

In the second video, visitors to a park are instructed about precautions they must take against the virus:

The third video is from downtown Hannover, and features a police announcement that large public gatherings are prohibited:

Video transcript #1:

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Vehicular Jihad at the Barcelona Airport

Nothing stops the Great Jihad, not even the Wuhan Coronavirus. A couple of a culture-enriching Albanians drove their vehicle through the doors of the airport in Barcelona today, shouting Islamic slogans when they got out of their car. Whatever it was they intended, there wouldn’t have been many victims, because hardly anyone was at the airport, thanks to the ChiCom virus.

Many thanks to FouseSquawk for the translation, and to Vlad Tepes for the subtitling:

Video transcript:

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