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Broadcaster Larry Elder asked Friday “how racist is that” for former President Barack Obama to say he didn’t push for slavery reparations because of “white resistance.” During a podcast with Springsteen, “Renegades: Born in the USA,” Obama said that he believes reparations are “justified.” (RELATED: Biden Supports Slavery Reparations Study, Wants Immediate Action On ‘Institutional Racism’) “Are reparations justified? The answer is yes, the politics of white resistance and resentment made the prospect of actually proposing any kind of coherent meaningful reparation’s program, not only a non-starter but potentially counterproductive,” Obama said. WATCH: Elder defined reparations as “the extraction of money from people who were never slave owners to be given to people who were never slaves,” during the interview. “Four years ago, Obama pretty much said that, he said it would be impractical, divisive and what about the people who felt they never had anything to … [Read more...] about ‘How Racist Is That?’: Larry Elder Slams Obama For Saying ‘White Resistance’ Blocked Slavery Reparations

The U.K. Supreme Court ruled on Friday that a British-born woman who went to Syria as a schoolgirl to join ISIS poses a security risk and will not be allowed to return to Britain to fight for her citizenship. Shamima Begum, now 21, left London in 2015 at the age of 15 and traveled to Syria with two school friends, Reuters reported . She later lived in Raqqa, the caliphate's self-declared capitol, and married an ISIS fighter. She had three children since leaving Britain but all of the infants have since died, the outlet noted. ADVERTISEMENT In 2019, Begum was stripped of her British citizenship over national security concerns. However, a court ruled last year that she could only have a fair appeal if she were allowed back to Britain. Friday’s decision means she will have to pursue her appeal against the citizenship move from abroad. “The right to a fair hearing does not trump all other considerations, such as the safety of the public,” said Robert Reed, the President … [Read more...] about Court rules British woman who joined ISIS as schoolgirl can’t return to UK

When America seeks to address a crisis or achieve preeminence, it looks to science. This is true whether the issue is the economy , climate change , national security or even a pandemic . And yet, today, Americans spend more on potato chips than on energy research . For President Biden and the new Congress, the time is now for new thinking about how we prioritize and fund science, as well as public primary and secondary education. In 2019 we spent one tenth of one percent of the GDP on biomedical basic research but nearly 18 percent of the GDP on health care . And what of overall competitiveness? Mainland China is increasing research and development investment by double digit percentages each year while U.S. investment, as a percentage of GDP, has remained stagnant for nearly half a century. China is close to passing the United States in total R&D investment based on purchasing power parity. China’s entire GDP is … [Read more...] about Chinese innovation is surging — we must fund science to compete

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on Thursday approved storing Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine at standard freezer temperatures, helping ease storage requirements that could make delivery of the vaccine easier. The Pfizer vaccine had previously been required to be stored in ultra-cold freezers at minus 112 degrees Fahrenheit to minus 76 degrees Fahrenheit. That posed a challenge for distribution of the vaccine in places like rural areas or lower income countries that do not have widespread ultra-cold storage capability. The new move will allow the vaccine to be stored at “conventional temperatures commonly found in pharmaceutical freezers for a period of up to two weeks.” ADVERTISEMENT “This alternative temperature for transportation and storage of the undiluted vials is significant and allows the vials to be transported and stored under more flexible conditions,” Peter Marks, a top FDA vaccine official, said in a statement. “The alternative temperature for … [Read more...] about FDA approves storing Pfizer vaccine at standard freezer temperature

The Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine is 85 percent effective 15-28 days after just one dose, according to a new Israeli study, helping bolster the case for possibly delaying the second dose of vaccine to cover more people. The study of health care workers at Sheba Medical Center in Israel, published in the journal The Lancet, found the vaccine was 85 percent effective in preventing symptomatic cases of COVID-19. When asymptomatic cases were included too, the figure was 75 percent. Those are promising results for just one dose of the vaccine. The Pfizer clinical trials were conducted with a two-dose regimen, which found 95 percent effectiveness. ADVERTISEMENT Some experts have been pushing for delaying the second dose in an effort to vaccinate more people faster. The United Kingdom has controversially adopted such a strategy. A limitation of the study, though, is that it does not determine how long the protection from just one dose will last. Some experts are also worried that … [Read more...] about Pfizer vaccine 85 percent effective after first dose, Israeli study finds