White House is not selling commemorative coronavirus coins
A website called the White House Gift Shop has caused anger by selling coins "commemorating" the Covid-19 outbreak for $100 (£80) each.
US Senator Bernie Sanders was one of those infuriated by the coins.
But the White House Gift Shop is a privately run online store with no direct connection to the White House or the Trump administration.
Its own website says it "operates independently of the US government".
The coins, however, do exist and are being sold by the store. They show a coronavirus germ superimposed over a world map, with slogans such as "Together we fought the unseen enemy" and "Everyday heroes suited up". The site says profits will be donated to hospitals.
Set up by President Harry S Truman in 1946, the gift shop was transferred to a private company years ago, which now holds the trademark for "White House Gift Shop".
The site previously came to media attention in 2018 when it sold coins commemorating Donald Trump's Singapore summit meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
Californian doctors' misleading lockdown stats
A video in which two American doctors argue for an end to lockdown measures has sparked controversy.
The video of a press conference, broadcast on a local TV station in California, was viewed millions of times on YouTube and Facebook. It was Tweeted by Elon Musk, who has 33 million followers and is becoming increasingly vocal in his opposition to shutdown measures.
On Monday, as the video garnered more views, two professional medical associations, the American College of Emergency Physicians and the American Academy of Emergency Medicine, issued a joint statement condemning the doctors' "reckless and untested musings".
Bot network exposed
A disinformation campaign against a Chinese businessman who has spoken critically of the Chinese government's response to the coronavirus outbreak has been uncovered.
Fake Nobel Prize winner quote
A viral message attributed to Japanese Nobel Prize laureate Tasuku Honjo claims he believes the new coronavirus was "manufactured" in a lab in the Chinese city of Wuhan. Full Story - Jack Goodman and Flora Carmichael - BBC Reality Check
Beware a Second-Wave Attack on Liberty
The elite who collectively run the social order coordinated around a plan of mass lockdown, come hell or high water
The recent weeks have revealed a failure to engage in constructive dialogue, especially in regard to the meaning of data. Governors locked down entire states. Media has largely been accepting of the premises supporting the lockdown. Institutional actors who consider themselves guardians of the existing order have largely supported this policy and denounced those who would like to have a discussion about the facts. Read More
Coronavirus Color-Revolution: California Declares Nation Statehood as Trump Moves to Quell ‘Mutiny on the Bounty’
This does not mean we should expect an announcement by Governor Newsom that ‘The California Republic is an independent nation-state ’ Yet amazingly, it has been almost verbatim said in this way.
Bloomberg published a stunning piece on April 9th promoting the secession of California from the U.S., in an op-ed by Francis Wilkinson titled Gavin Newsom Declares California a ‘Nation-State’’, which resurrected John C. Calhoun in a neo-confederate argument favoring nullification.
The Bloomberg article details how California Governor Newsom has begun using that term and also related legal constructions in discussing how California will manage the coronavirus response on its own. Read More
General Flynn vs. The Deep State
Flynn's problems arose as a result of the Deep State's efforts to take down Donald Trump
Cardinal Richelieu reportedly said, "If you give me six sentences written by the most innocent of men I will find something in them with which to hang him.
Later, Josef Stalin's director of the NKVD Soviet secret police, Lavrentiy Beria, said, “Show me the man and I’ll find you the crime.” Harvey Silverglate has written a book, Three Felonies a Day, which suggests that anyone can be convicted of a crime if government officials desire it.
General Michael Flynn has pled guilty to lying to the FBI. Pleading guilty is not unusual behavior when confronting the enormous power of the state. During the Soviet purge trials Grigory Zinoviev, Lev Kamenev and many others pled guilty to ridiculous charges. We believe that things like this should not happen in the United States. Read More
