buzzfeed--2020-08-22--Two Weeks For Joe Biden's 24 Minutes In Wilmington

WILMINGTON , Del .
— The stage where Joe Biden was set to assume the Democratic nomination for president , fulfilling a dream of more than four decades in national politics , was sitting in parts on the backs of trucks , already assembled , waiting to be unloaded in Milwaukee , Wisconsin .
The event was exactly two weeks away when Ricky Kirshner , the producer who has put on every Democratic convention since Bill Clinton 's election in 1992 , had to call his trucks and turn them around .
Hundreds of pounds of equipment — screens , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ already arrived in Wisconsin .
One of his trucks , which came from across the country , was scheduled to depart that morning until Kirshner intercepted it and sent the driver coordinates for their new destination in Wilmington , Delaware .
A small group of Biden and party officials made the call to make the Democratic convention almost entirely virtual in a morning meeting on Aug. 3 , two days before the deadline to begin physically moving equipment into Milwaukee , due to concerns over the coronavirus .
The decision to relocate Biden @ @ @ @ @ @ @ news made public in a short tweet by a Bloomberg News reporter , privately set off an absolute fury of planning , and re-planning , and calls to Milwaukee officials to apologize and explain — and then , of course , there was the matter of the speech .
They had no site , no audience , and two weeks to pull off the size and build of a speech that is supposed to signify the start of a general election , the sweep of a candidate 's political career , and the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that the country projects onto presidential campaigns — all of it captured by the weight of a massive stage , perfectly lit , with balloons and bags of confetti and an arena full of delegates , elected officials , and activists chanting the candidate 's name .
Kirshner 's production team usually leads conventions from a high platform behind the center camera platform , inside the room .
`` So we feel the energy and we call the show from the room , ” he said in an interview on Friday .
What @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ Half our staff wanted to go outside just to see it , to see if it was really happening , because we 're watching it on TV just like everybody else .
We cued it , we ran the music , and then it was like , ‘ Well , we 'll watch it on TV like everybody else.
’ It 's a totally different feeling . ''
Americans saw the finished product on Thursday night as it was made for television — an unprecedented technological feat led by hundreds of people @ @ @ @ @ @ @ team , the convention committee , and Biden ’ s campaign , concluding with the nominee ’ s 24-minute speech .
It was somber and earnest in pitch , the lens trained direct-to-camera on Biden , delivered in the style of an Oval Office or East Room address , followed by a drive-in movie-style fireworks show .
`` The nation needed to see him as president , and the setting matched the moment — well-dressed flags , great lighting , an eloquent but not overdone stage , '' said Greg Hale , a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for nearly every recent Democratic nominee .
`` Mission accomplished . ''
But here in Wilmington , the result was a much stranger scene — a quiet and eerie reminder of the convention that this was not , the one Biden did n't get .
At 77 years old , Biden delivered the most important speech of his life in a darkened room to about 30 members of the press and a skeleton production crew .
By the time they moved the acceptance speech to the Chase Center in Wilmington , there had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ : First , the original setting in Milwaukee 's Fiserv Forum , capacity 18,000 .
Then COVID-19 hit , and they devised a socially distanced convention , also in the Fiserv Forum .
Then COVID got worse , and they moved to a big stage in the Wisconsin Center , a smaller venue in Milwaukee .
The last version , an even tighter room in the Wisconsin Center , was their final attempt to keep the convention in a crucial battleground state for Biden this fall .
Shortly after Aug. 3 , a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — the people who do the meticulous work , often out of sight , of making an event look and feel perfect on television and in photographs — arrived in Wilmington , Biden ’ s hometown , to develop a fifth and final version .
Over the next two weeks , signs of their efforts appeared in and around the Chase Center , a large event venue situated on a tributary of the Delaware River .
Layers of a secure perimeter , consisting of 5,000 feet of bike rack , 5,000 feet of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ feet of concrete jersey barrier , were erected around the parking lot in a matter of days .
Eight giant American flags , ranging in size from 10-by-15 to 30-by-50 feet , were hoisted in the air and affixed to various buildings .
And a little more than 1,300 firework shells were procured in advance of the finale on Thursday .
Earlier this week , a large tree that slightly obscured a Democratic convention sign — a large “ D20 ” banner draped over the west side of the Chase Center — disappeared @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of fresh mulch .
A day later , shrubs and flowering plants appeared in place of the tree .
( Convention staff had only asked landscapers to prune the tree , not remove it , one Democrat familiar with the incident said . )
In Milwaukee , ghosts of the original convention came in the form of a small gift shop bearing such items as Wisconsin pins and `` The Cream City ” t-shirts .
Back in Wilmington , there were echoes of a city 800 miles away .
Nurses on site greeted @ @ @ @ @ @ @ thick , friendly Midwestern accents .
They had been flown in from Wisconsin to set up shop in the `` Health and Safety Testing Center , '' a ballroom in the back of the Westin Hotel in Wilmington where convention participants waited in line every morning for the required three consecutive days of COVID tests , standing on stickers placed six feet apart .
Every afternoon , the cotton swabs were transported back to the original labs in Wisconsin for testing , with results returned less than 24 hours later .
Signs printed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ things got as bad as they did , advised participants to `` Wear A Mask When Possible . ''
When reporters arrived in Wilmington on Monday , the `` When Possible '' had been crossed out with sharpie .
A day later , someone had covered the sharpie with white tape and written in marker : `` At All Times . ''
Reporters tweeted about the sign .
( There was little else to do — no color for their stories , they commiserated . )
By Wednesday , a white board appeared @ @ @ @ @ @ @ NO PHOTOS , '' it read in black marker .

WILMINGTON, Delaware — The stage where Joe Biden was set to assume the Democratic nomination for president, fulfilling a dream of more than four decades in national politics, was sitting in parts on the backs of trucks, already assembled, waiting to be unloaded in Milwaukee.
The event was exactly two weeks away when Ricky Kirshner, the producer who has put on every Democratic convention since Bill Clinton's election in 1992, had to call his trucks and turn them around. Hundreds of pounds of equipment — screens, lights, audio visual hardware — had already arrived in Wisconsin. One of his trucks, which came from across the country, was scheduled to depart that morning until Kirshner intercepted it and sent the driver coordinates for their new destination in Wilmington, Delaware.
A small group of Biden and party officials made the call to make the Democratic convention almost entirely virtual in a morning meeting on Aug. 3, two days before the deadline to begin physically moving equipment into Milwaukee, due to concerns over the coronavirus. The decision to relocate Biden’s acceptance speech to Wilmington, news made public in a short tweet by a Bloomberg News reporter, privately set off an absolute fury of planning, and replanning, and calls to Milwaukee officials to apologize and explain — and then, of course, there was the matter of the speech.
They had no site, no audience, and two weeks to pull off the size and build of a speech that is supposed to signify the start of a general election, the sweep of a candidate's political career, and the mix of religious fervor and high stakes that the country projects onto presidential campaigns — all of it captured by the weight of a massive stage, perfectly lit, with balloons and bags of confetti and an arena full of delegates, elected officials, and activists chanting the candidate's name.
Kirshner's production team usually leads conventions from a high platform behind the center camera platform, inside the room. "So we feel the energy and we call the show from the room,” he said in an interview on Friday. What happened here in Wilmington was different. “Half our staff wanted to go outside just to see it, to see if it was really happening, because we're watching it on TV just like everybody else. We cued it, we ran the music, and then it was like, ‘Well, we'll watch it on TV like everybody else.’ It's a totally different feeling."
Americans saw the finished product on Thursday night as it was made for television — an unprecedented technological feat led by hundreds of people across the country on Ricky Kirshner's team, the convention committee, and Biden’s campaign, concluding with the nominee’s 24-minute speech. It was somber and earnest in pitch, the lens trained direct-to-camera on Biden, delivered in the style of an Oval Office or East Room address, followed by a drive-in movie-style fireworks show.
"The nation needed to see him as president, and the setting matched the moment — well-dressed flags, great lighting, an eloquent but not overdone stage," said Greg Hale, a veteran Democratic operative who has produced events for nearly every recent Democratic nominee. "Mission accomplished."
But here in Wilmington, the result was a much stranger scene — a quiet and eerie reminder of the convention that this was not, the one Biden didn't get.
At 77 years old, Biden delivered the most important speech of his life in a darkened room to about 30 members of the press and a skeleton production crew.
By the time they moved the acceptance speech to the Chase Center in Wilmington, there had been four versions of the stage already: First, the original setting in Milwaukee's Fiserv Forum, capacity 18,000. Then COVID-19 hit, and they devised a socially distanced convention, also in the Fiserv Forum. Then COVID got worse, and they moved to a big stage in the Wisconsin Center, a smaller venue in Milwaukee. The last version, an even tighter room in the Wisconsin Center, was their final attempt to keep the convention in a crucial battleground state for Biden this fall.
Shortly after Aug. 3, a new team of “advance” staffers — the people who do the meticulous work, often out of sight, of making an event look and feel perfect on television and in photographs — arrived in Wilmington, Biden’s hometown, to develop a fifth and final version.
Over the next two weeks, signs of their efforts appeared in and around the Chase Center, a large event venue situated on a tributary of the Delaware River. Layers of a secure perimeter, consisting of 5,000 feet of bike rack, 5,000 feet of tall, black fencing, and 5,000 feet of concrete jersey barrier, were erected around the parking lot in a matter of days. Eight giant American flags, ranging in size from 10-by-15 to 30-by-50 feet, were hoisted in the air and affixed to various buildings. And a little more than 1,300 firework shells were procured in advance of the finale on Thursday.
Earlier this week, a large tree that slightly obscured a Democratic convention sign — a large “D20” banner draped over the west side of the Chase Center — disappeared seemingly overnight, replaced by a pile of fresh mulch. A day later, shrubs and flowering plants appeared in place of the tree. (Convention staff had only asked landscapers to prune the tree, not remove it, one Democrat familiar with the incident said.)
In Milwaukee, ghosts of the original convention came in the form of a small gift shop bearing such items as Wisconsin pins and "The Cream City” T-shirts. Back in Wilmington, there were echoes of a city 800 miles away. Nurses on site greeted reporters and production staff each day with thick, friendly Midwestern accents. They had been flown in from Wisconsin to set up shop in the "Health and Safety Testing Center," a ballroom in the back of the Westin Hotel in Wilmington where convention participants waited in line every morning for the required three consecutive days of COVID tests, standing on stickers placed 6 feet apart. Every afternoon, the cotton swabs were transported back to the original labs in Wisconsin for testing, with results returned less than 24 hours later.
Signs printed with COVID guidelines, presumably made before things got as bad as they did, advised participants to "Wear a Mask When Possible." When reporters arrived in Wilmington on Monday, the "When Possible" had been crossed out with sharpie. A day later, someone had covered the sharpie with white tape and written in marker: "At All Times." Reporters tweeted about the sign. (There was little else to do — no color for their stories, they commiserated.)
By Wednesday, a white board appeared in the COVID testing room. "NO PHOTOS," it read in black marker.


buzzfeed--2020-08-23--I Spent Two Terrifying Days Imprisoned In Belarus

A week of protests has followed a rigged election in Belarus , where President Alexander Lukashenko ’ s security state deployed violence and fear to cling to power .
With those words , the hulking , masked officer slammed the door shut .
Around 20 of us knelt in agony on the steel floor of the troop transport vehicle , our faces pressed against the seats , following his orders , as we began trundling to an unknown destination .
The hot August air was thick with sweat and fear .
I wondered if I ’ d see my parents @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Minsk and other cities around the country , the sound of Alexander Lukashenko ’ s Belarus has now become the roar of crowds demanding his ouster , fair elections , and a freer country .
But for me , and the thousands of others detained last week , it ’ s a combat boot striking the side of a human torso .
Or the cries of a person buckled in pain .
Judging by the horrendous accounts of police abuse trickling out of Belarus , my experience was far from the worst @ @ @ @ @ @ @ enough to understand what kept Belarusians cowed and submissive for years — and why that ’ s now changing .
As anger bubbled across this post-Soviet nation of 9.5 million following last Sunday ’ s clumsily rigged election , which handed the former collective farm boss a sixth term , I was sucked into the dark heart of the brutal security apparatus that ’ s helped keep him in power since 1994 .
Random detentions .
Vicious beatings .
Psychological abuse .
Deployed freely in the days following Lukashenko ’ s deeply flawed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ autocratic security state may actually mark its undoing .
Eager to watch the election unfold , I ’ d hoped to secure accreditation before arriving in Minsk last Saturday .
Like the vast majority of my fellow foreign correspondents , my request was ignored .
But with tickets already in hand , I traveled to Belarus anyway , intent on observing — at a reasonably safe distance , I figured — how events would play out .
I conducted no interviews , published nothing , and stayed mostly off social media .
A @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , I walked its regal boulevards and spotless sidewalks , watching and waiting for signs of unrest .
It finally came Sunday evening .
After preliminary results handed Lukashenko an utterly unbelievable 80 % of the vote , Belarusians flooded the streets of central Minsk , leading to clashes in several places between police and protesters , including outside my building .
After briefly stepping out to watch the feared riot cops tighten their grip on the central boulevard , I quietly retreated back to my apartment .
The following evening was a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an eerie calm had gripped the city , as both residents and authorities anxiously anticipated more turmoil .
Strolling toward a park near the previous night ’ s clashes — with no signs of building protests — I was approached by a group of black-clad riot police , known by their acronym “ OMON.
” With balaclavas pulled over their faces , and their bodies covered by layers of fatigues and armor , their steely , violent eyes were the only sign a human resided underneath .
“ Where are you going ?
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ your hands in your pockets ?
” barked another .
Several more questions were hurled my way .
They weren ’ t interested in answers ; they were fishing for excuses to detain me .
Mere seconds after it emerged that I was an American who ’ d arrived from recently revolutionary Ukraine — a potential propaganda gift for an autocrat obsessed with alleged foreign meddling — I was manhandled into the windowless prisoner transport vehicle parked nearby .
Within half an hour , six or seven of us filled a space the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ bodies awkwardly contorted around one another .
Driven to the Pervomaisk district police station , we were pulled into the courtyard and lined up facing the wall with our heads down , legs spread , and hands behind our backs , asked for our names and dates of birth .
Some of those not standing rigidly enough received a fist to the side , or a kick in the knee .
When my turn came , I calmly stated I was an American citizen .
“ Who fucking cares , ” the officer @ @ @ @ @ @ @ we were stripped of our belongings and cataloged again .
Fate failed the young man who had a can of pepper spray : Riot officers beat him to the ground and continued pummeling him as he groaned in agony , shouting , “ Why the fuck would you need this ?
” His body absorbed the blows like a sandbag bursting at the seams .
Over the next few hours , the crowd inside the gym swelled to several dozen .
As riot police returned to the streets , we were ordered by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ though mostly disinterested in our comfort — to sit on a narrow wooden ledge along the wall , heads down and hands on our knees .
I eventually convinced them to let me lie on the floor , since an old back injury left me grimacing in pain .
Later , I was allowed to stay on a wrestling mat on the other side of the gym .
That helped police keep track of me as the lone American , perhaps sparing me from the beatings that befell others .
Occasionally , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of water among the detainees .
Some requests to visit the bathroom were granted , others ignored .
Throughout the night , we were called one-by-one — many bloodied or limping in pain — to complete our arrest sheets .
All were charged with the administrative offense of participating in an unsanctioned rally , which carries a maximum sentence of 15 days .
Sometime in the middle of the night , OMON burst into the gymnasium , visibly heated and full of hate from what must have been a night of street fights @ @ @ @ @ @ @ state , they are the tip of the spear — violence-craving , brainwashed goons who equate even the slightest dissent with treason .
Their sole purpose is to strike fear into citizens ’ hearts .
That night , they called the shots .
They forced us up , then down on our knees , hands behind our backs and heads pressed to the floor .
We lay in fear as the officers paced around the room , amid a tirade of expletives and threats , like predators sniffing out their prey .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ hardwood court and echoed throughout the frigid gym , its windows agape as the cool air wafted in .
Again , those deemed not submissive enough were beaten or their heads were kicked into the “ proper ” position .
After several more random assaults , they left , and over the next several hours the tension slightly dispersed as we gradually eased into various forms of semi-fetal positions .
Clutching my knees to my chest as tightly I as could , I shivered into a faint slumber .
Around noon the next @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , we were split into two groups .
“ American , go with them , ” the chief officer shouted , pointing to the group assembling by the door and corralled by newly arrived riot police .
With my heart in my stomach , I simply stared at him in denial , pretending not to have understood .
During my booking , I was able to sneak in two calls — to my parents in the US and to a journalist in Kyiv — but if I left that gym , my passport @ @ @ @ @ @ @ never be found .
Dragged outside and into an idling troop carrier , we were again forced onto our knees along the aisle , hands behind our backs and heads against the seats .
Amid endless streams of profanity , including the dire warning to keep our heads down , another beating or two was meted out to a deeply unlucky detainee .
We pulled away , clueless as to where we were going .
The OMON officers taunted us : “ Is this the change you wanted ?
” referring to a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Changes , ” that ’ s become the anthem of the opposition movement .
As we drove , the young man pressed up against my right side — a bespectacled , seemingly harmless nerd — began gasping for air , then quietly crying in pain .
“ Hold on , ” I whispered repeatedly through the side of my mouth .
I told him to focus on breathing deeply , hoping he ’ d follow my lead .
Sitting on my heels , praying the guards wouldn ’ t notice , I ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Bent so far back , my feet felt as if they ’ d snap off .
Between thinking of my parents and trying to picture my friends ’ smiling faces , I mused over how a recent heartbreak seemed absurdly trivial .
So did COVID-19 , which I assumed I ’ d already contracted .
I just wanted to live , and for someone to find me .
An hour and a half later , we arrived at a detention facility in Zhodino , about 40 miles outside Minsk .
As we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ began : “ Welcome to the worst place on Earth , ” one officer said , demonstratively chuckling .
Another said ominously , “ This is where you ’ ll learn.
” Led through dark basement corridors reminiscent of a Cold War spy film , the barking of massive dogs and the crackling chatter of walkie-talkies pierced the dank air .
“ This can ’ t be real , ” I repeated to myself .
After being strip-searched and processed , we were split up further and led toward a cell .
When @ @ @ @ @ @ @ stunned : The 10-bed , 150-square-foot cell was already over capacity — and now there were 27 of us in total .
Still , the men inside erupted into applause and offered their hands .
“ Hey , fellow political prisoners !
” The mood lightened , and for the first time , I understood that something had changed .
I scanned my fellow cellmates .
Beaten faces and shirts stained orange from day-old blood .
Knees split open , oozing from infection .
Baton-shaped bruises across backs .
Yet except for the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 18 and 20 years old , few were visibly afraid .
Over the next day-and-a-half in that musty , oxygen-deprived cell — packed with students , techies , small business owners , and blue-collar workers — inmates traded stories about how their arrest sheets had been fabricated to claim they ’ d been shouting slogans or inciting protests .
Most had been picked off the street like me ; some right front of their homes .
Angry but not radical , they referred to cops in street slang meaning “ trash.
” But @ @ @ @ @ @ @ up with economic stagnation and being treated like cattle .
Vasya , a middle-aged man who owns an auto parts store , complained of the inordinate level of taxes he pays , which finances the security apparatus that snatched him from a bus stop .
For Artyom , a wispy-haired programmer resembling Rasputin , and who was serving a 10-day sentence for participating in an earlier protest , the experience was a turning point : “ I ’ m no longer afraid , ” he said .
“ After this , what ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ short , not a single man believed the Lukashenko regime had any legitimacy left .
We cracked jokes , sang songs , celebrated the rare and sacred deliveries of bread and prison gruel .
When things got too quiet , the more jovial among us would yell , “ Long live Belarus !
” — a long-favored chant of the opposition — which would solicit the bellowing response , “ Live on !
” Human decency ruled : Whenever one man realized he ’ d spent a couple hours in bed , he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ sprawled across the cold floor or hunched over the crooked communal table .
If someone hadn ’ t eaten , he ’ d be implored to do so .
Today , these men are my heroes ; facing the unknown , their priority was to maintain our collective spirit .
But mostly , we waited .
Legally , a judge in Belarus has 72 hours to try a case before the suspect is released from detention .
Those of us who hadn ’ t been sentenced gamed out various scenarios : What if @ @ @ @ @ @ @ freed ?
With a broken pen and tiny scraps of paper snuck in , they traded relatives ’ contact information .
At one point , a guard summoned three of our youngest cellmates and told them they were headed home .
Shortly after , one of them returned saying he was told he ’ d receive a 15-day sentence in the morning .
That sparked jeers .
“ So that ’ s how you sent him home , you fucker ?
” yelled one of my cellmates .
Through a crack in our @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the constant stream of new prisoners overwhelming a system not designed for such mass detentions .
The unnerving clank of prison doors never seemed to cease .
Communicating with our neighbors by banging on the wall and yelling through the window , we tried to feel out the situation by finding out how many had been sentenced .
Around midnight on the third day of my detention , a guard barged in .
“ Peleschuk !
” he shouted .
“ Where is he ?
” I slid off my cot and sauntered @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cellmates — who had begged me to “ tell the world ” about everything I ’ d seen — as they wished me luck .
I had no idea where I was going .
Led through several corridors crammed with prisoners ’ belongings , I was shocked at the disarray : Hundreds of individual black plastic bags strewn across the floor , many torn open .
Belts , phones , wallets , shoelaces scattered everywhere .
Guards , meanwhile , darted back and forth , barely managing the influx of prisoners .
For @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s fearsome police state is simply another part of the country ’ s bloated bureaucracy : mired in paperwork and run by hacks loyal only to a state paycheck .
Except , of course , for OMON : As long as these brutal punishers are patrolling the streets with state support , Belarusians will never truly be safe .
Eventually , I was led to a portly administrator who claimed I was being released with a warning , and that representative from the US Embassy had arrived to pick me up .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ of my greatest fears throughout my detention was becoming a political pawn , my face splashed across state media as an “ agent provocateur ” sent to stir unrest .
It wasn ’ t until I was led through the prison courtyard and into the administrative wing near the entrance that I exhaled .
When I saw the consular officer sitting inside a small office , I knew I was free .
The next day , I picked up my passport from the police precinct ( which required more wheel-greasing by the embassy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ my base in Kyiv .
During my drive to the airport , I watched thousands of cheerful protesters line the city ’ s main boulevard , led by women in white clothing and accessories , such as flowers and flags .
A direct contrast to the evils that mark Lukashenko ’ s police state , those are the faces now filling streets across the country in what amounts to the single biggest challenge to Belarusian authorities since the collapse of the Soviet Union .
Now safe in Kyiv , I have not yet @ @ @ @ @ @ @ smell of prison to linger , to help me remember the much better men left behind , with no embassy to rescue them .
As I was writing this account , a friend from Minsk wrote me a birthday greeting .
“ Just like in a game of survival , ” she said , “ you ’ ve been born again.
” Judging the momentum building by the day against Lukashenko , the same just might be true for the Belarusian people .

Funneled into the gym, we were stripped of our belongings and cataloged again. Fate failed the young man who had a can of pepper spray: Riot officers beat him to the ground and continued pummeling him as he groaned in agony, shouting, “Why the fuck would you need this?”
His body absorbed the blows like a sandbag bursting at the seams.
Over the next few hours, the crowd inside the gym swelled to several dozen. As riot police returned to the streets, we were ordered by local guards — much less severe, though mostly disinterested in our comfort — to sit on a narrow wooden ledge along the wall, heads down and hands on our knees. I eventually convinced them to let me lie on the floor, since an old back injury left me grimacing in pain.
Later, I was allowed to stay on a wrestling mat on the other side of the gym. That helped police keep track of me as the lone American, perhaps sparing me from the beatings that befell others.
Occasionally, the guards would pass around two liter-sized bottles of water among the detainees. Some requests to visit the bathroom were granted, others ignored. Throughout the night, we were called one-by-one — many bloodied or limping in pain — to complete our arrest sheets. All were charged with the administrative offense of participating in an unsanctioned rally, which carries a maximum sentence of 15 days.
Sometime in the middle of the night, OMON burst into the gymnasium, visibly heated and full of hate from what must have been a night of street fights downtown. In Lukashenko’s police state, they are the tip of the spear — violence-craving, brainwashed goons who equate even the slightest dissent with treason. Their sole purpose is to strike fear into citizens’ hearts.
That night, they called the shots.
They forced us up, then down on our knees, hands behind our backs and heads pressed to the floor. We lay in fear as the officers paced around the room, amid a tirade of expletives and threats, like predators sniffing out their prey. The stomping of their boots reverberated across the hardwood court and echoed throughout the frigid gym, its windows agape as the cool air wafted in.
Again, those deemed not submissive enough were beaten or their heads were kicked into the “proper” position. After several more random assaults, they left, and over the next several hours the tension slightly dispersed as we gradually eased into various forms of semi-fetal positions.
Clutching my knees to my chest as tightly I as could, I shivered into a faint slumber.


buzzfeed--2020-08-23--COVID Is Making Younger, Healthy People Debilitatingly Sick For Months. Now They’re Fighting For Rec

COVID Is Making Younger, Healthy People Debilitatingly Sick For Months. Now They’re Fighting For Recognition.

Across the globe , scores of COVID “ long-haulers ” have been fighting for doctors to believe and help them .
On Friday , they finally got a meeting with the World Health Organization .
There were weeks when Hannah Davis couldn ’ t remember how to send a text message .
On top of the extreme fatigue , racing heart rate , and difficulty breathing she experienced daily , the most terrifying part of being sick with COVID-19 for the last 21 weeks , Davis said , has also been one of the hardest to explain : losing her @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have a brain injury .
I have a hard time remembering who I was , ” she said .
“ It was hard to remember I had to feed myself a couple times a day.
” Davis , 32 , is a programmer who spent her days pre-pandemic working on machine learning and artificial intelligence , often presenting to big audiences , including at the Library of Congress .
That all came crashing to a halt in March , when she got sick .
She had to move back in with her mom @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been unable to function normally .
Doctors , even sympathetic ones , had no answers .
Most questioned whether her symptoms , particularly the neurological ones , were linked to COVID at all .
But Davis soon realized that she was not alone .
She ’ s among the thousands of people across the globe — many of whom were young , active , and healthy — who have been debilitated by ongoing , unexplainable symptoms .
These patients , also known as long-haulers , are crushing the popular idea that COVID is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vulnerable people .
And after months of self-organizing on social media to document their symptoms and collect data , Davis is now part of a group that ’ s pushing for the medical establishment to take them seriously too .
On Friday , led by LongCovidSOS , a patient-led advocacy group in the UK , Davis and about 60 other long-haulers had a closed , invite-only meeting with top officials from the World Health Organization in the biggest recognition yet that the medical world is starting to pay attention and figure out solutions @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that this small but significant progress — eight months into the pandemic , with almost 800,000 deaths from COVID-19 worldwide so far — will draw attention to the more than tens of millions who have survived , blurring what we understand as the difference between illness and recovery .
The long-haulers called in to the WHO meeting from places around the world — the US , the UK , India , France , Finland , Senegal , and South Africa — but they all shared largely the same story : I was young @ @ @ @ @ @ @ I can not seem to get better .
I haven ’ t been able to get my doctor to believe me because I do not have a positive test result , and I need a lot of care that does not exist where I live .
Leaders from the WHO , including the director-general , said they were “ very aware ” of and now doing research into “ long COVID , ” people who attended the meeting told BuzzFeed News .
But even top medical specialists acknowledged they didn ’ t know @ @ @ @ @ @ @ happening in younger people whose cases had been initially categorized as “ mild ” — meaning they were sick , but not sick enough to be hospitalized .
While the meeting was a positive , validating step for Davis and the other long-haulers , conversations around testing , antibodies , and the need for rehabilitative care made it clear that there is far more work that needs to be done .
“ This is not just a respiratory illness .
This is a systemic illness that makes you lose connection with the world @ @ @ @ @ @ @ her mom ’ s Rhode Island home , where she is now living .
“ And the most shocking thing to me is how long it has taken for doctors and the general public to realize this basic fact.
” David Putrino , the director of rehabilitation innovation at New York City ’ s Mount Sinai hospital , has been studying and caring for long-haulers at one of the nation ’ s only post-COVID clinics since May .
He said that as important as these grassroots advocacy efforts are , they are far @ @ @ @ @ @ @ WHO need to be throwing their resources behind them , Putrino said , or else millions of people are going to be “ left out in the cold.
” “ It 's not that we do n't have capacity — we do have capacity .
What we need to do is rapidly mobilize and educate people that long COVID is a real thing , and it ’ s going to be around for a while , ” he said .
“ There 's a lot of hurt and we are doing what we @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a lot of people to pick up the torch and run with us.
” Davis had no idea what was happening to her back in March .
She had to stop showering because there were too many steps — it was exhausting .
She would stare at her fingers trying to parse a text message , wondering what they were doing .
It sometimes felt , she said , like someone had suddenly turned a windshield wiper on over her brain — everything would go blank .
For 24 days , she felt @ @ @ @ @ @ @ across an op-ed by Fiona Lowenstein , another woman in New York who had started a support group to talk about recovery .
The group she launched , called Body Politic , now has 7,500 members on Slack .
Davis also joined several Facebook groups , with more than 17,500 long-haulers in one Facebook group and 5,000 in another .
Scrolling through Body Politic ’ s nearly 50 Slack channels , Davis was stunned to keep reading accounts identical to hers , but from yoga instructors in Chicago , college students in Kentucky @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in their forties .
BuzzFeed News spoke with more than 100 of these long-haulers who described a set of similar symptoms : Their hearts would race and palpate .
They got winded walking up stairs and were unable to stand for long periods of time .
Though fatigue was common , many people also said they couldn ’ t sleep .
They had relentless fevers , violent diarrhea , and throbbing headaches .
The tips of their fingers and toes often burned intensely , like they got plugged into an electrical socket .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ — or no periods at all — and having their hair fall out in clumps .
And , like Davis , most of them were trying to figure out what was going on with their bodies while navigating what they call a “ brain fog , ” a mix between short-term memory loss and an inability to focus .
Most notably , the vast majority of long-haulers described visiting doctors with no answers to give — or worse , who suggested that their symptoms could possibly be linked to anxiety or depression instead @ @ @ @ @ @ @ other Body Politic members with backgrounds in data , science , and medicine saw a way to counter that doubt : harnessing the anecdotes in the group to gather data and force change .
They formed their own research group and began organizing patients ’ daily symptoms .
It was a “ coping strategy , ” she said , to sift through information and search for answers .
On May 11 , they published the first extensive report detailing the volatile and often unpredictable recovery process , based on the experiences of 640 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ a huge shock to the narrative of what COVID actually was , ” Davis said , and caught the attention of reporters and prestigious medical journals .
It also made clear that testing systems were failing : Only a quarter of the respondents tested positive — nearly half were never able to get a test — but they still all reported experiencing about 60 of the same persistent symptoms .
They are aiming to publish another report soon highlighting what long-haulers ’ symptoms look like after six months .
“ The group @ @ @ @ @ @ @ history of the virus , ” said Lowenstein , Body Politic ’ s founder .
She calls the group “ a headquarters for patient advocacy efforts.
” “ You can see how the symptoms have morphed over time and how diverse the patient experience is , ” Lowenstein said , describing how people have been joining the group in geographic waves .
“ In the beginning of the summer , a bunch of people from Brazil were messaging me .
Then I started hearing from more people in India and Mexico.
” A @ @ @ @ @ @ @ data on the longer-term effects of COVID too .
A study out of Germany found that 78 out of 100 patients — most of whom recovered at home — had heart complications two months later .
An Italian study found that 87 % of hospitalized patients still had a variety of symptoms after two months .
Putrino has been studying and treating the long COVID cases since May .
He ’ s been in contact with about 90,000 people in almost 100 countries who are all reporting nearly the same spate of serious @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nervous systems out of whack .
Their average age is about 38 , he said , and they ’ re mainly women .
Before COVID , many of them were vibrant , active , “ and breezing through life , ” he said .
Now , they can ’ t work and often need help with basic tasks , like feeding themselves .
“ It feels like your body is rebelling against you and , to add insult to injury , it ’ s an unpredictable war , ” he said .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pause and think , Yeah , I am young and healthy , but can I afford to be out of action for six months ?
Because that is what we are seeing.
” Months into their advocacy efforts , the murky long-term effects of COVID are getting the attention of the biggest health agencies in the world .
In July , the CDC acknowledged that a significant chunk of COVID patients — 35 % — do not recover after three weeks , even if their cases were considered too mild for hospitalization .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ met with the health agency , which hopes to start its own investigation , in a meeting Davis called “ incredibly validating.
” Friday ’ s meeting with the WHO was Davis and the other long-hauler advocates ’ biggest move yet .
For one and a half hours , the long-haulers shared their testimonies with top officials , including Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and the WHO ’ s technical lead for coronavirus response , Maria Van Kerkhove , who asked questions .
The WHO officials agreed to have periodic meetings with the representatives @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a pamphlet on what is known about the long-term effects of COVID-19 .
But , according to Lowenstein , the meeting also made clear there are still fundamental misunderstandings about what COVID looks like .
For example , she said , existing WHO guidelines with health and rehab recommendations for patients are still only targeted at people who ’ ve been hospitalized .
“ There still is not enough understanding that the word ‘ mild ’ in and of itself is extremely misleading , ” she said .
“ There was no real @ @ @ @ @ @ @ case could leave you with disabilities and long-term chronic issues.
” Like many health organizations and doctors across the US , WHO officials also did not understand that the bulk of long-haulers were not testing for antibodies , did not have positive test results for the virus , or even have access to tests .
Body Politic ’ s first report made this problem clear — many long-haulers were unable to get tested in the early days of the pandemic or live in countries with scarce testing supplies .
Others got tested later @ @ @ @ @ @ @ only to come back with negative results .
Those results matter : Many long-haulers described their inability to get treatment and the doubt they felt — from doctors , family , and even themselves — without a positive test in hand .
“ False testing is rampant and widespread , ” Lowenstein said .
“ COVID-19 patients are not testing positive for antibodies , and the WHO didn ’ t seem to understand that was happening in droves .
It didn ’ t seem to be doing a ton of work in this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ meeting feeling hopeful and with promises that this will be part of an “ ongoing and robust conversation that will lead to improved communication and guidelines from the WHO.
” To Putrino and other experts who ’ ve been working with long-haulers , what ’ s really needed are effective rehab services to help recondition and train their systems .
According to Davis and dozens of others still feeling symptoms , there are only a few specialists across the US who are really listening to and working with them .
Desperate for help @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have been circulating their names so avidly in their online support groups that the first available appointment is often a year away .
Davis had been calling a neurologist in Chicago , who was booked out until September 2021 , multiple times a day .
Last week , she got lucky and nabbed a cancellation for March .
“ If medical centers across the country start creating post-COVID centers , we won ’ t have a generation of long-term , chronically ill people .
But if we don ’ t… ” Putrino trailed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ journeys have been , some of them are starting to get better .
Lowenstein has been largely symptom-free since June .
In between messages about strange seizures , bruises , and light sensitivity on their forums , there are success stories and small victories : being able to kick a soccer ball with their kids with no relapse or pain ; carrying groceries up the stairs on their own ; sleeping through the night for the first time in months ; dipping their toes in a lake and marveling at feeling nothing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a little better too .
She doesn ’ t need to take as many naps and conversations aren ’ t as hard for her to follow .
She ’ s slowly choosing how her life will look .
She ’ s considering moving to a city with a post-COVID clinic and using her past skill set , when she can , to research and advocate for long-haulers full-time .
She still feels far away from herself , but has never been more aware of her body and what it can do .
“ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is still intact , ” she said .
“ And I trust myself to take care of myself.
” ●

There were weeks when Hannah Davis couldn’t remember how to send a text message. On top of the extreme fatigue, racing heart rate, and difficulty breathing she experienced daily, the most terrifying part of being sick with COVID-19 for the last 21 weeks, Davis said, has also been one of the hardest to explain: losing her mind.
“I feel like I have a brain injury. I have a hard time remembering who I was,” she said. “It was hard to remember I had to feed myself a couple times a day.”
Davis, 32, is a programmer who spent her days pre-pandemic working on machine learning and artificial intelligence, often presenting to big audiences, including at the Library of Congress. That all came crashing to a halt in March, when she got sick. She had to move back in with her mom and, for 150 days, has been unable to function normally. Doctors, even sympathetic ones, had no answers. Most questioned whether her symptoms, particularly the neurological ones, were linked to COVID at all.
But Davis soon realized that she was not alone. She’s among the thousands of people across the globe — many of whom were young, active, and healthy — who have been debilitated by ongoing, unexplainable symptoms. These patients, also known as long-haulers, are crushing the popular idea that COVID is only serious for a small percentage of vulnerable people.
And after months of self-organizing on social media to document their symptoms and collect data, Davis is now part of a group that’s pushing for the medical establishment to take them seriously too.
On Friday, led by LongCovidSOS, a patient-led advocacy group in the UK, Davis and about 60 other long-haulers had a closed, invite-only meeting with top officials from the World Health Organization in the biggest recognition yet that the medical world is starting to pay attention and figure out solutions.
The growing group of long-haulers hopes that this small but significant progress — eight months into the pandemic, with almost 800,000 deaths from COVID-19 worldwide so far — will draw attention to the more than tens of millions who have survived, blurring what we understand as the difference between illness and recovery.
The long-haulers called in to the WHO meeting from places around the world — the US, the UK, India, Italy, Spain, France, Finland, Senegal, and South Africa — but they all shared largely the same story: I was young and active before this, and now I cannot seem to get better. I haven’t been able to get my doctor to believe me because I do not have a positive test result, and I need a lot of care that does not exist where I live.
Leaders from the WHO, including the director-general, said they were “very aware” of and now doing research into “long COVID,” people who attended the meeting told BuzzFeed News. But even top medical specialists acknowledged they didn’t know that so many of these symptoms were happening in younger people whose cases had been initially categorized as “mild” — meaning they were sick, but not sick enough to be hospitalized. While the meeting was a positive, validating step for Davis and the other long-haulers, conversations around testing, antibodies, and the need for rehabilitative care made it clear that there is far more work that needs to be done.
“This is not just a respiratory illness. This is a systemic illness that makes you lose connection with the world,” Davis told BuzzFeed News from her mom’s Rhode Island home, where she is now living. “And the most shocking thing to me is how long it has taken for doctors and the general public to realize this basic fact.”
David Putrino, the director of rehabilitation innovation at New York City’s Mount Sinai hospital, has been studying and caring for long-haulers at one of the nation’s only post-COVID clinics since May. He said that as important as these grassroots advocacy efforts are, they are far from enough. The CDC and the WHO need to be throwing their resources behind them, Putrino said, or else millions of people are going to be “left out in the cold.”
“It's not that we don't have capacity — we do have capacity. What we need to do is rapidly mobilize and educate people that long COVID is a real thing, and it’s going to be around for a while,” he said. “There's a lot of hurt and we are doing what we can to help, but we need a lot of people to pick up the torch and run with us.”


buzzfeed--2020-08-23--This Woman With Down Syndrome Went Viral For Explaining Things About Her Life That Don't Make Sense

Another inequality people with Down syndrome face is their employment wages .
Ashley explained , `` The US Department of @ @ @ @ @ that allow them to pay people with disabilities below minimum wage .
The way it @ @ @ @ @ up is the employers will have an employee without a disability perform a task and @ @ @ @ @ the disability perform the same task .
They will both be timed .
However long @ @ @ @ @ the disability to perform the task is the time that holds minimum wage .
Then @ @ @ @ @ takes the person with the disability to do it , they deduct from minimum wage @ @ @ @ @ .
I would hope that we , as a society , have moved passed that @ @ @ @ @ we have not . ''

Another inequality people with Down syndrome face is their employment wages. Ashley explained, "The US Department of Labor provides employers with certificates that allow them to pay people with disabilities below minimum wage. The way it's supposed to be set up is the employers will have an employee without a disability perform a task and then have the person with the disability perform the same task. They will both be timed. However long it takes the person without the disability to perform the task is the time that holds minimum wage. Then, however much longer it takes the person with the disability to do it, they deduct from minimum wage. It's pretty ridiculous. I would hope that we, as a society, have moved passed that, but, unfortunately, we have not."


buzzfeed--2020-08-24--COVID Is Making Younger, Healthy People Debilitatingly Sick For Months. Now They’re Fighting For Rec


buzzfeed--2020-08-23--Pussies Are The Stars Of The Summer

Pussies Are The Stars Of The Summer

Thanks to songs like `` WAP , '' we 're moving from merely accepting our pussies to celebrating them in their untameable glory .
If last year was Hot Girl Summer , 2020 is the summer of pussy .
Not just any pussy — pussy that ’ s dripping wet and wanting .
Pussy that serves its owner and no one else .
Unruly pussy .
It ’ s “ WAP , ” but it ’ s not only “ WAP.
” It ’ s also “ Pussy Talk ” by City Girls , with close-ups of crotches .
And @ @ @ @ @ @ @ — from nobodies to verified stars — gleefully lip-synching to the words “ I got that good pussy ” along to ppcocaine ’ s “ For That Cash.
” We ’ ve been on our way here for a while , reaching back to ’ 90s women-led rap and even two years ago when Tessa Thompson joyfully popped her head out from between Janelle Monáe ’ s labia pants in the video for “ Pynk.
” Finally , pussy is getting its due .
I used to really hate the word “ pussy.
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Whether to literally describe mine or a partner ’ s vagina and vulva combo , or genitals more generally , or especially as an insult .
It just sounds crude .
The kind of word some idiotic teen boy would use when trying to feel like a big , bad man around his equally idiotic friends .
“ Vagina ” just sounds too clinical so I took to just beating around the bush , even in the absence of actual bush .
You can really get away with a lot by just saying @ @ @ @ @ @ @ or “ me.
” People get it , you know ?
Context clues can go a long way .
And hey , it ’ s not like I stooped to something as juvenile as “ va-jay-jay ” or as awful as being a white lady who says “ yoni.
” And no , it ’ s not fair that these are our only options , but I did my best to work with what I had .
But I was wrong , I was silly , and I was denying myself the absolute @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ pussy.
” “ Pussy ” is fun .
“ Pussy ” is squishy and plump and plush and wet .
“ Pussy ” is a word ideally said with moist lips as you purse them for that initial “ p ” then linger for a moment in the hiss of those S ’ s .
“ Pussy ” is a beautiful word for every reason I was afraid of it .
It ’ s not proper and private the way “ vagina ” is .
It has presence , it demands attention @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
You can ’ t tuck away a pussy .
“ Pussy ” doesn ’ t just describe what we think of as female genitalia — it describes something unruly , and unruly pussy is having a moment .
The phrase “ wet-ass pussy ” is stuck in everyone ’ s heads thanks to Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion , but it didn ’ t start with them .
Rather than the hush-hush attitude society has traditionally reserved for any discussion of female anatomy and its relationship to pleasure , we ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Fat pussies .
Labia that can ’ t be contained by whatever scant strip of lace Victoria ’ s Secret has on offer .
We ’ re talking about FUPAs ( that is , the fat upper-pussy area ) with love and tenderness .
It ’ s in music , it ’ s on TikTok , and it is — importantly !
— coming out of the mouths of people who actually have vaginas .
This is all very exciting because traditionally pussies are supposed to be polite .
That is , small @ @ @ @ @ @ @ neatly tucks away like a little bit of origami .
They can get wet , but only wet enough for the comfort of a penis .
Clits are meant to be present but also not large , and certainly not tucked away in folds so they require actual effort to locate .
The mons pubis should be a flat plane right from belly button to clit hood .
And , importantly , they ’ re all attached to white bodies and come only in shades of blush , bubblegum , and baby pink @ @ @ @ @ @ @ vulva or two in the wild would know that ’ s all bullshit .
Or , at least , you would hope so .
So back to “ WAP.
” Perhaps the funniest response to it , amid a sea of pearl-clutching from cis men , was from right-wing commentator Ben Shapiro .
After a dramatic reading of the lyrics , he tweeted that , according to his doctor wife , any woman that needed a “ bucket and a mop ” for their pussy had “ bacterial vaginosis , yeast infection , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and Megan didn ’ t mean the line literally .
But clearly he finds the image of a sopping wet pussy to be obscene .
And that ’ s probably because vaginal secretion , a thing that comes so naturally your pussy is probably secreting stuff right now , is still taboo .
As Jen Gunter , a gynecologist and author of The Vagina Bible , recently wrote for the New York Times : “ Vaginal wetness , especially during sex , has long been erroneously considered a sign of previous sexual activity @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ To be a woman and to partner with men is to constantly walk the edge of the knife between too wet and too dry , ” Gunter wrote .
“ Gush on command , but not too much because then you ’ re promiscuous or gross or both.
” And that ’ s why “ WAP ” is so important .
Cardi and Megan shot straight past normal vaginal lubrication ( which , by the way , varies a whole bunch — that ’ s why you can buy lube ! )
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ It 's goin ' in dry and it 's comin ' out soggy ” and “ I 'm talkin ' wap , wap , wap , that 's some wet-ass pussy.
” Even the radio-friendly version lyrics , “ wet and gushy , ” are perfect .
When the hell have vagina owners ever gotten to celebrate being not just adequately moist , but gushy ?
“ WAP ” isn ’ t the first song about pussy — not by a long shot .
Black women rappers have been getting poetic about their @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s “ My Neck , My Back ” ?
“ I don ’ t get the controversy hype because I ’ m almost 40 , and I grew up with Trina and Lil ’ Kim and Foxy Brown and Missy rapping and talking about their sexuality , ” said Dirty Lola , a sex educator and sex toy seller I spoke to about this moment of unruly pussy .
“ We ’ ve been doing this before.
” She said Black women , in particular , have led pussy music because many Black @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ashamed of their bodies and their sexuality .
“ It ’ s rebellion .
We grow up being told that you have to be a lady , to put on shorts when you ’ re a little girl around men , ” said Lola .
“ Everyone knows that uncle to keep you away from , but nobody does anything about that uncle .
Like , look at R. Kelly.
” Black women , she said , also get fetishized and hypersexualized in a way other women don ’ t .
Through music @ @ @ @ @ @ @ those messages by reclaiming their sexuality while also saying “ this doesn ’ t mean you get to hurt us or treat us poorly because we are sexual beings , ” she said .
“ WAP ” still hits different , though .
Maybe it ’ s pandemic boredom , or the relative fame of the women who created it , or the fact that we ’ ve come far enough that “ WAP ” isn ’ t being so censored that you can ’ t hear it at all .
But it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in a particular time and place when it comes to how we talk about our bodies .
Body-positive , fat-positive , and sex-positive movements , which have also relied on the work of Black women , have brought us to a place where we can give a hearty fuck-you to pussy ideals that would put us in tiny , pink boxes .
Over on TikTok , I ’ ve noticed a trend of Gen Z ’ ers with vaginas talking not just about pussy generally , but about how their pussies don ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s a viral TikTok of a woman saying , “ So y ’ all trying to tell me that my coochie can fit in that ?
My coochie lips — both of ‘ em .
I ’ ve got two of them now .
Both of them are going to fit in that ?
I don ’ t think so.
” Behind her is a picture of Blac Chyna wearing a very , very high-cut bathing suit that covers her vulva with nothing but a small strip .
Whether due to Photoshop @ @ @ @ @ @ @ no visible labia , hair , or mons pubis .
People have been taking the audio and using it to show off other feats of vagina-adjacent apparel , like a thong with a string of pearls for the crotch , or just Victoria ’ s Secret ’ s general offerings .
“ I remember feeling I was because I ’ m fat , I don ’ t deserve pretty underwear , ” said Lola .
“ Nobody ever said these aren ’ t panties for you .
We just felt bad about our @ @ @ @ @ @ @ just the pussy itself — I ’ ve also seen TikToks celebrating the FUPA , of which I am also a proud owner .
A “ FUPA ” is supposed to be a bad thing , an insult for an area that very naturally accumulates fat .
It is a part of my body that I still take pains to cover , as if the right combination of fabric will make it disappear .
It ’ s why I don ’ t own any pencil skirts and why I ’ m terrified of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cut.cake says , people know it ’ s there .
You can ’ t hide it .
“ I say wear that FUPA with pride .
Tuck that T-shirt in .
Wear that crop top .
Wear that tight skirt .
Give the fuckers something to look at.
” There ’ s also a whole category of TikToks that show people not only accepting their FUPAs , but enjoying them .
Slowly pulling up and zipping their jeans over their glorious mound with pride .
Maybe I ’ ve just been looking @ @ @ @ @ @ @ why did it take until my thirties for someone to tell me I could like my FUPA ?
Clearly something has changed if young people are reaching adulthood knowing that it ’ s okay if their vulvas aren ’ t porn-star perfect .
This too has been a work in progress as we reclaim our FUPAs .
Back in 2018 , Beyoncé talked to Vogue about her post-baby body , saying , “ But right now , my little FUPA and I feel like we are meant to be . ''
While a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ nor temporary nor about to be blasted away by hard-core dieting and exercise , I appreciate the sentiment all the same .
Still , though , if you google “ FUPA , ” you ’ re either going to get said Beyoncé interview or exercise guides to get rid of a FUPA .
Again , it ’ s a work in progress .
If anything is different right now , in this time , it ’ s that it feels like we ’ re moving from merely accepting our unruly pussies to celebrating @ @ @ @ @ @ @ labia that don ’ t stay in , or getting so wet that it gets all over the sheets , or having lips that flush a purple-brown instead of pink .
Look , 2020 has been a big ol ’ garbage fire , but if we come out of this year being able to talk about our big , juicy , untamable pussies , at least that will be something .
●

If last year was Hot Girl Summer, 2020 is the summer of pussy.
Not just any pussy — pussy that’s dripping wet and wanting. Pussy that serves its owner and no one else. Unruly pussy.
It’s “WAP,” but it’s not only “WAP.” It’s also “Pussy Talk” by City Girls, with close-ups of crotches. And it’s young women on TikTok — from nobodies to verified stars — gleefully lip-synching to the words “I got that good pussy” along to ppcocaine’s “For That Cash.”
We’ve been on our way here for a while, reaching back to ’90s women-led rap and even two years ago when Tessa Thompson joyfully popped her head out from between Janelle Monáe’s labia pants in the video for “Pynk.” Finally, pussy is getting its due.
I used to really hate the word “pussy.” Like, in any context. Whether to literally describe mine or a partner’s vagina and vulva combo, or genitals more generally, or especially as an insult. It just sounds crude. The kind of word some idiotic teen boy would use when trying to feel like a big, bad man around his equally idiotic friends.
“Vagina” just sounds too clinical so I took to just beating around the bush, even in the absence of actual bush. You can really get away with a lot by just saying “you” or “there” or “me.” People get it, you know? Context clues can go a long way. And hey, it’s not like I stooped to something as juvenile as “va-jay-jay” or as awful as being a white lady who says “yoni.” And no, it’s not fair that these are our only options, but I did my best to work with what I had.
But I was wrong, I was silly, and I was denying myself the absolute pleasure of reveling in a word like “pussy.” “Pussy” is fun. “Pussy” is squishy and plump and plush and wet. “Pussy” is a word ideally said with moist lips as you purse them for that initial “p” then linger for a moment in the hiss of those S’s. “Pussy” is a beautiful word for every reason I was afraid of it. It’s not proper and private the way “vagina” is. It has presence, it demands attention, and it refuses to be neat. You can’t tuck away a pussy.
“Pussy” doesn’t just describe what we think of as female genitalia — it describes something unruly, and unruly pussy is having a moment. The phrase “wet-ass pussy” is stuck in everyone’s heads thanks to Cardi B and Megan Thee Stallion, but it didn’t start with them.


buzzfeed--2020-08-24--This Woman’s Skincare Experience Is A Good Reminder To Always Educate Yourself Before Using Products

One way Aurora may have been able to prevent what happened would have been by letting the product sit on @ @ @ @ @ a full 24 hours — not five minutes .
`` I recommend doing a small @ @ @ @ @ new skincare product , especially if it contains potentially irritating ingredients , like acids at @ @ @ @ @ placing a small amount of the product on an area of skin that isn ’ @ @ @ @ @ the side of your face or inside of your wrist .
Then , you have @ @ @ @ @ see if you get a reaction before you start applying it to the rest of @ @ @ @ @ Park explained .

One way Aurora may have been able to prevent what happened would have been by letting the product sit on the area she patch-tested for a full 24 hours — not five minutes. "I recommend doing a small test area when starting a new skincare product, especially if it contains potentially irritating ingredients, like acids at high concentrations. This means placing a small amount of the product on an area of skin that isn’t too noticeable, like the side of your face or inside of your wrist. Then, you have to wait one day to see if you get a reaction before you start applying it to the rest of your skin," Dr. Park explained.


buzzfeed--2020-08-23--The Right Wing Has A New Theory For Why The Pandemic Will End Soon: T Cells

How the immune system responds to the coronavirus is a mystery that scientists are working furiously to unravel — but their findings are being weaponized to make unfounded claims that the pandemic isn ’ t a big threat .
That became clear this week , when President Donald Trump unveiled his newest science adviser on the coronavirus task force , neuroradiologist Scott Atlas .
A senior fellow at Stanford University ’ s Hoover Institution , he has steadily promoted unscientific views about the virus on Fox News and elsewhere , and has said there is “ zero excuse to not @ @ @ @ @ @ @ On Monday , Rush Limbaugh said Atlas was “ countering Fauci ” and cited the new adviser ’ s baseless theory that “ we could well be burned out of COVID ” by October .
The reason : “ prior immunities.
” Also on Monday , an unlicensed ophthalmologist and cryptocurrency investor , James Todaro , went viral on Twitter with a similarly misleading screed .
Todaro , who was in the viral “ America ’ s Frontline Doctors ” video shared by Trump and removed from social media platforms for spreading misinformation @ @ @ @ @ @ @ T cell immunity ” meant many regions were already safe from infection and that lockdowns and mask-wearing were likely useless .
But infectious disease experts say these claims grossly distort the underlying science and what it means for public health guidelines — which , right now , is nothing .
If you have tips related to this story , you can reach this reporter at stephanie.lee @ buzzfeed.com or stephaniemlee @ protonmail.com .
The apparent basis for these statements : a slew of recent studies finding that , in some places , 20 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ immune cells that unexpectedly recognize the coronavirus .
The newest of these studies suggests that these cells exist because they have responded in the past to similar viruses that can cause colds .
But the significance of this finding remains an open question , as it ’ s unclear what role , if any , these cells play in the body ’ s overall response to the coronavirus .
And there is still no evidence that having these cells from a past cold will save you from getting COVID-19 .
As T cells @ @ @ @ @ @ @ say the bottom line is that none of these findings make COVID-19 any less of a threat .
The research should not be used , they warn , to argue against shutdowns and masks or for reopening workplaces and schools in a developed nation that has uniquely failed to control the virus .
Most of all , they reject the leap of logic that the research means society is close to herd immunity — the point at which enough people are immune to a virus that it stops circulating .
“ We ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the country , ” Shane Crotty , an immunologist at the La Jolla Institute for Immunology who has worked on several of the recent T cell studies , told BuzzFeed News .
“ There ’ s no change in what the virus is doing based on what I find out or anybody else finds out .
The virus is doing its thing and we ’ re doing our best to understand it.
” The claim that T cells could mean the pandemic will end in two months , he said , is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ” Since the outset of the pandemic , Crotty and scientists around the world have been racing to untangle how the virus wreaks havoc on the body and how the body fights back .
The immune system employs different mechanisms to recognize and attack intruders .
Perhaps the best-known of the bunch are antibodies , the proteins that latch onto and neutralize viruses and other invading substances .
But in people who recover from the coronavirus , antibodies may only protect against reinfection for three months , recent research suggests .
Another weapon @ @ @ @ @ @ @ is T cells , which come in an assortment of types and functions and are increasingly garnering scientific attention .
In the Netherlands , Germany , Singapore , the United Kingdom , and the US , researchers have discovered that in some people , a specific subset of T cells recognized the new coronavirus , SARS-CoV-2 , when exposed to it .
This was surprising , because these kinds of T cells , by definition , were not expected to recognize a virus they had never encountered before .
In their paper published @ @ @ @ @ @ @ his team reported an explanation for why these cells reacted .
Using human blood samples collected prior to the pandemic , they found cells that reacted to both SARS-CoV-2 and to four other coronaviruses that cause common colds .
These coronaviruses , the researchers said , were apparently similar enough to the new one to make the T cells “ cross-reactive.
” ( Crotty likened SARS-CoV-2 to “ a pretty distantly related evil cousin.
” ) The finding has led scientists to speculate that these cross-reactive T cells could be behind one of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ why the virus causes severe illness in some people but mild or no symptoms in others .
The latter patients might be better equipped to handle an infection , having fought off related viruses before .
Children ’ s immune systems have to fight off a lot of colds , so maybe this is why they seem to be relatively spared by the new virus .
For now , however , this theory is just that : a theory .
“ It could explain everything and it could explain nothing , ” Crotty @ @ @ @ @ @ @ cells may have no impact on the disease at all.
” And even if this theory were borne out , it would have significant limits : As he noted , colds are caused by hundreds of viruses , not just the four identified in the study .
Either way , these cells are still just one piece of the immune system , a highly intricate machine with all kinds of T cells and antibodies working independently and together to stamp out pathogens .
The big , yet-to-be answered questions are which of these @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and for how long .
“ While T cells may offer some protection — and that ’ s not really known — T cells would probably not just prevent a person from being infected altogether , ” said Angie Rasmussen , a virologist at Columbia University who is not involved with this research .
But uncertainty hasn ’ t stopped pundits from twisting the research to make a point .
On July 23 , before he was appointed to the White House ’ s coronavirus task force , Scott Atlas declared on Laura @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not eradicate the virus , that the US outbreak was “ not out of control , ” and that “ there is absolutely no reason to panic , ” arguments he ’ d been making since the spring .
That day , the nation ’ s case count passed 4 million .
“ There ’ s a lot of great data coming out about immunity , ” Atlas went on to say .
“ It ’ s probably not known to the public , but there is a lot of data that shows @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that didn ’ t get the infection.
” He added , “ That ’ s probably due to this T cell immunity , ” and concluded , “ So I think people should be much more optimistic here.
” The Fox News host responded enthusiastically , saying she ’ d been discussing T cells and what they could mean for herd immunity on the show for “ well over six weeks.
” This week , Limbaugh cited Atlas ’ s theory to tell listeners that the pandemic was almost over .
“ We @ @ @ @ @ @ @ inert or dormant largely due to some underappreciated T cell , prior immunities from exposure to coronavirus , meaning colds and so forth , ” the conservative radio host explained .
“ Some people who have come down with a cold over the course of the summer miraculously end up less likely to get COVID-19 , according to Scott Atlas .
And people that get colds , that ’ s a large portion of the population.
” Atlas directed a request for comment to White House spokesperson Judd Deere , who said in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ world renowned physician and scholar of advanced medical care and health care policy ” who , “ like all of the medical experts in the Administration , is working to carry out the President ’ s number one priority : protecting the health and safety of the American people.
” Deere added , “ We are all in this fight together , and only the media would distort and diminish Dr. Atlas ’ highly acclaimed career simply because he has come to serve the President.
” Around the same time Limbaugh was praising @ @ @ @ @ @ @ claim was gaining traction on James Todaro ’ s Twitter account .
Todaro , an early and avid proponent of hydroxychloroquine , is an ophthalmologist who earned his medical degree at Columbia University .
He has not practiced since 2018 , according to his LinkedIn profile , and his Michigan medical license expired last year .
He did not respond to a request for comment .
In his thread , Todaro claimed that Crotty ’ s studies and others were growing evidence of “ T-cell immunity.
” “ All those runny noses from @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to fight COVID-19 , ” he proclaimed .
He calculated that if about “ 50 % of people had T cell immunity prior to SARS-CoV-2 , ” and an additional 10 % to 20 % of people were newly infected , then 60 % to 70 % of the population would be immune — a threshold that he said reached “ herd immunity.
” “ It is likely that many of the hardest hit regions of the world ( e.g .
Lombardy , NYC , Madrid , London , Stockholm ) are now @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
“ Lockdowns & mask ordinances ( mostly coming after the peak ) likely had little effect , with the exception of perhaps prolonging the spread.
” That ’ s not at all what the T cell research suggests , however .
Having these cells still means you can get infected , only maybe — maybe — not as badly as if you didn ’ t have them .
“ Herd immunity implies immunity , not just fewer people getting severe disease , ” said Gideon Meyerowitz-Katz , an epidemiologist at the University @ @ @ @ @ @ @ means they do not catch it , do not spread it , they have this immunity that stops them from getting it in the first place.
” Even if 50 % of the population really were somehow immune to the virus , that wouldn ’ t change the number of people who have been hospitalized and killed by the pandemic .
As of Friday , the death toll in the US had exceeded 167,000 .
“ It doesn ’ t change anything from the public health side of things , ” Meyerowitz-Katz said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ thread has been retweeted more than 48,000 times .
It has circulated among figures on the right , from a Minnesota state senator to an editor at the Conservative Review to an ex-lawyer who has been retweeted by Trump .
Other retweeters included the World Health Organization ’ s director of epidemic and pandemic diseases , and a Scottish historian who shared it with his more than 1 million followers : “ Interesting thread .
And hopeful if true.
” Crotty is not a heavy Twitter user — he checks it about once @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to respond once he saw how far the misinformation was spreading .
“ It was just not understanding the science , ” he said .
He banged out a series of counterpoints , explaining why Todaro ’ s claims were “ dangerous ” and unfounded .
Nothing about his findings , he stressed , should change what the public should already be doing to stem transmission .
“ Wearing a mask is much more effective than hoping you and the people around you have pre-existing T cell memory .
Wearing a mask stops @ @ @ @ @ @ @ than 3,700 times , a mere fraction of Todaro ’ s reach .
Rasmussen , the Columbia virologist , worried that most people watching Fox News or coming across Todaro ’ s tweets would never see Crotty ’ s attempt to correct the record .
As she put it : “ They ’ re just going to look at , ‘ Oh , here ’ s this big thread on T cell immunity .
This sounds great .
We don ’ t even need to worry about waiting for a vaccine.
’ ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ t the first time during the pandemic that seemingly credible sources have injected misinformation into the mainstream .
“ We ’ ve seen this a few times : People essentially using the clout of their credentials or their affiliations with a prestigious university to get them onto TV basically and amplify these messages , ” Rasmussen said .
The overarching message , as she saw it , is “ the standard Trump administration downplaying of the severity of the pandemic , saying that ‘ this is not as a big of a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be.
’ Which , of course , the epidemiological evidence of over 160,000 deaths suggests otherwise.
” During an interview on Wednesday , it was still dawning on Crotty that his research had suddenly , unwittingly , become another political flashpoint .
“ 2020 , ” the immunologist said .
“ The year when all kinds of unexpected things happen .
”

On July 23, before he was appointed to the White House’s coronavirus task force, Scott Atlas declared on Laura Ingraham’s show that lockdowns would not eradicate the virus, that the US outbreak was “not out of control,” and that “there is absolutely no reason to panic,” arguments he’d been making since the spring. That day, the nation’s case count passed 4 million.
“There’s a lot of great data coming out about immunity,” Atlas went on to say. “It’s probably not known to the public, but there is a lot of data that shows that people have immunity — even people that didn’t get the infection.” He added, “That’s probably due to this T cell immunity,” and concluded, “So I think people should be much more optimistic here.” The Fox News host responded enthusiastically, saying she’d been discussing T cells and what they could mean for herd immunity on the show for “well over six weeks.”
This week, Limbaugh cited Atlas’s theory to tell listeners that the pandemic was almost over. “We could see by early October COVID-19 turn inert or dormant largely due to some underappreciated T cell, prior immunities from exposure to coronavirus, meaning colds and so forth,” the conservative radio host explained. “Some people who have come down with a cold over the course of the summer miraculously end up less likely to get COVID-19, according to Scott Atlas. And people that get colds, that’s a large portion of the population.”
Atlas directed a request for comment to White House spokesperson Judd Deere, who said in a statement that Atlas is “a world renowned physician and scholar of advanced medical care and health care policy” who, “like all of the medical experts in the Administration, is working to carry out the President’s number one priority: protecting the health and safety of the American people.”
Deere added, “We are all in this fight together, and only the media would distort and diminish Dr. Atlas’ highly acclaimed career simply because he has come to serve the President.”
Around the same time Limbaugh was praising Atlas’s theory, a similar claim was gaining traction on James Todaro’s Twitter account. Todaro, an early and avid proponent of hydroxychloroquine, is an ophthalmologist who earned his medical degree at Columbia University. He has not practiced since 2018, according to his LinkedIn profile, and his Michigan medical license expired last year. He did not respond to a request for comment.
In his thread, Todaro claimed that Crotty’s studies and others were growing evidence of “T-cell immunity.” “All those runny noses from the common cold prepared our T cells to fight COVID-19,” he proclaimed. He calculated that if about “50% of people had T cell immunity prior to SARS-CoV-2,” and an additional 10% to 20% of people were newly infected, then 60% to 70% of the population would be immune — a threshold that he said reached “herd immunity.”
“It is likely that many of the hardest hit regions of the world (e.g. Lombardy, NYC, Madrid, London, Stockholm) are now at herd immunity,” he wrote. “Lockdowns & mask ordinances (mostly coming after the peak) likely had little effect, with the exception of perhaps prolonging the spread.”
That’s not at all what the T cell research suggests, however. Having these cells still means you can get infected, only maybe — maybe — not as badly as if you didn’t have them.
“Herd immunity implies immunity, not just fewer people getting severe disease,” said Gideon Meyerowitz-Katz, an epidemiologist at the University of Wollongong in Australia. “That means they do not catch it, do not spread it, they have this immunity that stops them from getting it in the first place.”
Even if 50% of the population really were somehow immune to the virus, that wouldn’t change the number of people who have been hospitalized and killed by the pandemic. As of Friday, the death toll in the US had exceeded 167,000. “It doesn’t change anything from the public health side of things,” Meyerowitz-Katz said.
Nevertheless, Todaro’s 19-part thread has been retweeted more than 48,000 times. It has circulated among figures on the right, from a Minnesota state senator to an editor at the Conservative Review to an ex-lawyer who has been retweeted by Trump. Other retweeters included the World Health Organization’s director of epidemic and pandemic diseases, and a Scottish historian who shared it with his more than 1 million followers: “Interesting thread. And hopeful if true.”
Crotty is not a heavy Twitter user — he checks it about once a week — but he felt compelled to respond once he saw how far the misinformation was spreading. “It was just not understanding the science,” he said.
He banged out a series of counterpoints, explaining why Todaro’s claims were “dangerous” and unfounded. Nothing about his findings, he stressed, should change what the public should already be doing to stem transmission. “Wearing a mask is much more effective than hoping you and the people around you have pre-existing T cell memory. Wearing a mask stops infections.”
His debunk was retweeted more than 3,700 times, a mere fraction of Todaro’s reach.
Rasmussen, the Columbia virologist, worried that most people watching Fox News or coming across Todaro’s tweets would never see Crotty’s attempt to correct the record. As she put it: “They’re just going to look at, ‘Oh, here’s this big thread on T cell immunity. This sounds great. We don’t even need to worry about waiting for a vaccine.’”
And she pointed out that this isn’t the first time during the pandemic that seemingly credible sources have injected misinformation into the mainstream.
“We’ve seen this a few times: People essentially using the clout of their credentials or their affiliations with a prestigious university to get them onto TV basically and amplify these messages,” Rasmussen said. The overarching message, as she saw it, is “the standard Trump administration downplaying of the severity of the pandemic, saying that ‘this is not as a big of a deal as everybody makes it out to be.’ Which, of course, the epidemiological evidence of over 160,000 deaths suggests otherwise.”
During an interview on Wednesday, it was still dawning on Crotty that his research had suddenly, unwittingly, become another political flashpoint.
“2020,” the immunologist said. “The year when all kinds of unexpected things happen.”


buzzfeed--2020-08-24--Trump Announced The FDA Will Authorize Plasma As A COVID Treatment Without Strong Evidence To Show I

Trump Announced The FDA Will Authorize Plasma As A COVID Treatment Without Strong Evidence To Show It Works

Scientists say plasma collected from the blood of patients who have recovered from COVID-19 may be beneficial , but rigorous trials have not yet proven that it ’ s an effective treatment .
President Donald Trump announced on Sunday evening that convalescent plasma , the antibody-rich portion of blood collected from patients who have recovered from COVID-19 , has received an emergency use authorization from the FDA .
“ To deliver treatments and vaccines , we 're removing unnecessary barriers and delays , not by cutting corners , but by marshaling the full power of the federal government , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the eve of the Republican National Convention .
“ Based on the science and the data the FDA has made the independent determination that the treatment is safe and very effective.
” But scientists caution that plasma has not yet been proven to be effective through the gold standard of evidence-based medicine , randomized controlled trials , which look at the outcomes of patients who are randomly assigned to receive a drug versus those who get a placebo .
And an emergency authorization could further hamper efforts to complete those trials in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ know if it ’ s safe and effective if it ’ s not a decision based on randomized controlled data .
Period .
End of story , ” said Steven Nissen , Chief Academic Officer of the Heart and Vascular Institute at the Cleveland Clinic .
When asked by a reporter if he considered plasma treatment `` safe and effective '' or if it showed `` promising efficacy , '' FDA Commissioner , Stephen Hahn , did not directly answer , but said , `` Under our legal authority — for emergency use @ @ @ @ @ @ @ as an approval , but it 's an authorization . ''
Hahn said the authorization `` allows us to expand access to this . ''
`` We ’ re going to continue to collect data , '' Hahn said .
`` It 's the nuances of the language around the authorization that we use in the legal aspect . ''
Plasma is widely regarded to be safe .
“ There are really large troves of reassuring data suggesting that plasma isn ’ t going to hurt people , ” said Katharine Bar , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of Pennsylvania .
And early data on its use as a treatment has been promising .
A large , non-peer reviewed study of more than 35,000 patients led by the Mayo Clinic found that providing COVID-19 patients with infusions of plasma early on in their illness showed a small benefit in reducing the number of deaths in patients with severe illnesses .
While 8.7 % of patients who received plasma within three days of getting sick , those who got plasma infusions afterwards died at a rate of 11.9 % .
Hospitals across @ @ @ @ @ @ @ desperate patients as well , under compassionate use guidelines .
US hospitals are currently treating around 1,500 COVID-19 patients a day with blood infusions of plasma .
But experts caution that the availability of plasma in hospitals has also made it very difficult to recruit patients to participate in randomized controlled trials , since they could end up getting a placebo , and that the EUA will likely make that even harder .
“ I just think logistically it ’ s going to be very challenging , ” Bar said .
“ If @ @ @ @ @ @ @ family is considering using plasma and they hear that the government just said it ’ s effective , but you want to enroll me into a study where there ’ s a chance I ’ ll get a placebo ?
That makes it really difficult .
We don ’ t do RCTs for things that are shown to be effective.
” Emergency use authorizations do not require the same amount of evidence as a full drug approval , but will make it easier for hospitals to move ahead with doing the infusions .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ House ’ s role in pressuring the FDA to issue such authorizations , particularly after the agency revoked its authorization for hydroxychloroquine , following studies showing that it was not effective as a treatment and could cause heart problems in some patients .
On Friday , the New York Times reported that top federal health officials including National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases chief Anthony Fauci had intervened last week to block the FDA ’ s authorization , citing the need for stronger evidence from rigorous clinical trials .
On Saturday , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , of playing politics by delaying efforts to develop vaccines and therapeutics for the coronavirus and tagged Hahn in the tweet .
“ I think there might have been a holdup , but we broke the logjam in the last week , ” Trump said during Sunday 's press conference .
He once again suggested , without evidence , that there were people in the FDA and the Department of Health who `` can see things be held up and would n't mind so much ... and that 's for political reasons .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ , Peter Navarro , confronted FDA officials in a meeting on Monday , saying , `` You are all Deep State and you need to get on Trump Time , '' according to Axios .
Asked by a reporter after the press conference whether Trump had pressured the FDA to make the emergency authorization for plasma , the FDA commissioner , Stephen Hahn , did not respond .
Scientists have raised similar concerns that Trump could put pressure on the FDA to approve a COVID-19 vaccine ahead of the presidential election .
To @ @ @ @ @ @ @ clear answers about the efficacy of plasma via randomized controlled trials is indicative of the tension between needing to quickly treat very sick patients versus wanting to collect solid evidence before doing so .
`` That ’ s always a tension that exists when we ’ re trying to treat people who are sick and also learn how to treat future people who are sick , '' said Bar .
But the FDA 's emergency authorization makes that tension much more severe .
“ I don ’ t think we have a better @ @ @ @ @ @ @ do basic randomized studies and just have not , ” said Peter Bach , a physician at Memorial Sloan Kettering Hospital in New York .
“ It ’ s a very unfortunate example of where we just did n't handle doing the science of this pandemic well at all .
It should be a source of shame .
”

President Donald Trump announced on Sunday evening that convalescent plasma, the antibody-rich portion of blood collected from patients who have recovered from COVID-19, has received an emergency use authorization from the FDA.
“To deliver treatments and vaccines, we're removing unnecessary barriers and delays, not by cutting corners, but by marshaling the full power of the federal government,” Trump said at a press conference on the eve of the Republican National Convention. “Based on the science and the data the FDA has made the independent determination that the treatment is safe and very effective.”
But scientists caution that plasma has not yet been proven to be effective through the gold standard of evidence-based medicine, randomized controlled trials, which look at the outcomes of patients who are randomly assigned to receive a drug versus those who get a placebo. And an emergency authorization could further hamper efforts to complete those trials in the future.
“We don’t know if it’s safe and effective if it’s not a decision based on randomized controlled data. Period. End of story,” said Steven Nissen, chief academic officer of the Heart and Vascular Institute at the Cleveland Clinic.
When asked by a reporter if he considered plasma treatment "safe and effective" or if it showed "promising efficacy," FDA Commissioner Stephen Hahn did not directly answer, but said, "Under our legal authority — for emergency use authorization — this is not the same as an approval, but it's an authorization."
Hahn said the authorization "allows us to expand access to this."
"We’re going to continue to collect data," Hahn said. "It's the nuances of the language around the authorization that we use in the legal aspect."