2022-02

Wednesday January 19, 2022

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Wednesday January 19, 2022

Athletes to face rigorous tests at Beijing Games with COVID-19 and freedom of expression

August 12, 2021

The Beijing Olympic Committee is using stricter than usual testing for COVID-19, making it harder for Canadian athletes, especially those who have recently recovered from the virus, to pass tests upon arriving in China, CBC Sports has learned.

The cycle threshold (CT) value being used in China to detect an infection is 40, Dr. Mike Wilkinson, chief medical officer for the Canadian Olympic Committee, confirmed Monday. 

The higher the CT value, the less infectious a person with COVID-19 is.

Many places in Canada use a CT value of 35.

The NBA and NHL use 30. The NFL has set its threshold at 35.

“I think what Beijing is doing is that they’re doing everything they can to ensure they don’t have positives coming in,” Wilkinson said. (CBC News) 

Meanwhile, competitors at the Beijing Winter Olympics will face an “Orwellian surveillance state” in China and could put themselves in danger if they speak out in support of the Uyghur Muslims, human rights and athlete advocacy groups have said.

Tuesday January 18, 2022

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Tuesday January 18, 2022

COVID-19 home testing kits: should we be worried about their environmental impact?

March 10, 2021

The highly transmissible Omicron variant has led to renewed interest in home testing kits. The UK is getting through millions of these tests each week, while US president Joe Biden has just ordered 500 million kits to send to Americans.

Along with vaccinations and better medication, the availability of rapid testing has meant that many countries are in a much better place to combat the pandemic than they were a year ago.

As with everything, though, testing has an environmental impact that warrants some investigation. So should we be worried about millions – or billions – of plastic test tubes and swabs?

Saturday January 15, 2022

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Saturday January 15, 2022

Prince Andrew: Ruthless royals move to limit the damage

There was no waiting to see if Prince Andrew, the Duke of York, could clear his name in court. He’s already lost the use of his HRH, and his military links have been severed.

March 9, 2021

“Brutal,” tweeted royal commentator Peter Hunt. “The Windsors have shown that when the institution is under threat, dynastic preservation trumps flesh and blood.”

It could also be seen as inevitable. Rather than facing endless awkward questions about Prince Andrew’s future, Buckingham Palace has made a pre-emptive strike, effectively announcing that he will never return to an official royal role.

The royal statement, in two short sentences, moves him from 61 years as a public figure to a “private citizen”.

Separate to the merits of the civil court case, from a reputational perspective this story has been like a leaking supertanker gushing out bad news, and the Royal Family want to stop any more from washing up on its shores.

Friday January 14, 2022

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Friday January 14, 2022

Ontario students to receive 2 rapid tests as school begins, top doctor’s comments draw fire

January 8, 2022

Ontario students are slated to get two rapid antigen tests when they return to school on Monday, but apart from that, the province is relying mostly on previously announced measures to keep schools safe amid the Omicron wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The province also revealed Wednesday that school officials will monitor absenteeism in classrooms as opposed to reporting individual positive tests.

Officials said parents would be notified when combined student and staff absences hit around 30 per cent, prompting concerns that parents would be left in the dark about their child’s school’s status until it reached that threshold.

By Wednesday evening, the province appeared to say it would provide parents with more specific data about absenteeism.

Thursday January 13, 2022

Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday January 13, 2022

Quebec to impose a tax on people who are unvaccinated from COVID-19

June 17, 2021

Quebec is announcing it will impose a health tax on Quebecers who refuse to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

Quebec Premier François Legault made the announcement in Montreal on Tuesday afternoon, as the number of pandemic-related hospitalizations continues to climb.

“A health contribution will be charged to all adults that don’t want to get vaccinated. We are there now,” he said.

Legault said he felt the ire of the vaccinated towards the unvaccinated, whom he blamed for clogging up the province’s hospitals.

Only 10 per cent of the population is unvaccinated but they make up 50 per cent of patients in intensive care beds, according to the premier.

On Tuesday the province reported an increase of 188 patients with COVID-19 for a total of 2,742. Of those, 255 are in intensive care.