[Intro: Tilian]
Surrender
Surrender
My woes melt in your gaze
Your sunshine clears the haze
Surrender
[Verse 1: Johnny Franck]
Am I good enough for your love?
Make me believe that everything is good
Don’t shoot a hole up in the sun
Dance good and make it happier again
I feel it cut my teeth
Don’t let it shatter all around me
[Chorus: Tilian]
Do you really wanna stay? Do you really wanna stay?
Do you even know you’ve lost yourself, walking cliché?
Do you really wanna stay? Do you really wanna stay?
Do you even know you’ve lost yourself? Are you okay?
[Verse 2: Jon Mess]
Oh, Castle, they’re pimpin’ out the poorest
Forget about some forest, ignore it
We’re either getting saved or getting f*cked
The [?] upset the [?] man
You can’t even understand
The possibility to drop in it
[
[Refrain]: Jon Mess]
Stick around, get stuck
Stick around, get stuck
You’re a clown now, you’re a clown now
Stick around, get stuck
Stick around, get stuck
Stick around, get stuck
You’re a clown now, you’re a clown now
Stick around, get stuck
[Verse 3: Will Swan]
Climb that ladder, ass don’t matter
Drip mad hatter, watch it burn
Put the [?] up, put it in a urn
Light that bitch up, spin it, watch it turn
Feels good to be the last generation
Cutting xans in a space station
I’m not f*cking crying while I’m waiting
Let the world end, nigga, I’m patient
[Chorus: Tilian]
Do you really wanna stay? Do you really wanna stay?
Do you even know you’ve lost yourself, walking cliché?
Do you really wanna stay? Do you really wanna stay?
Do you even know you’ve lost yourself? Are you okay?
[Verse 4: Jon Mess]
In the future, no one’s famous
We’re just a giant ass
Cheeks are made of children
All was just a fad
Shit out all the billions
First, the stupid crap
High night dealing
Don’t you love a nap?
[
[Refrain]: Jon Mess]
Stick around, get stuck
Stick around, get stuck
You’re a clown now, you’re a clown now
Stick around, get stuck
Stick around, get stuck
Stick around, get stuck
You’re a clown now, you’re a clown now
Stick around, get stuck
[Outro: Tilian and Jon Mess]
(Leaving the world behind)
(Happiness is hard to find)
(Leaving the world behind)
You’re a clown now, you’re a clown now
Stick around, get stuck
Real hasta la muerte, ¿oíste, cabrón? (Brr, brr)
Real hasta la muerte
Brr, jeje (Jeje)
Los intocable’, ¿oíste, lambebicho?
Anuel, ¡ah! (ESSKEETIT, uy)
Vestío’ e’ negro, Free Mason
Y la glopeta chipea’ con la mascara ‘e Jason (Brr)
Lo’ peine’ en la correa
Y cuidándome de lo’ del full y la DEA (Amén)
Y te acostamo’ en la brea (¿Ah?)
Lo’ cuatro siete son rápido’ como varea (Two)
Y te matamo’ a ‘onde sea y hacemo’ cien año’, cabrón
Aquí nadie chotea (Loco)
Illuminati (¡Ah!)
Illumi, Illumi, Illuminati (¡Jaja!)
To’ rojo el Ferrari (Skrt)
Y to’a esta’ prepago me chingan de grati’ (Ah)
Illuminati (-lluminati, prr)
Illumi, Illumi, Illuminati (Illuminati)
To’ rojo el Polaris (Polaris)
Y yo cobro cuatrociento’ y quiniento’ por party (Brr, jaja)
Illuminati (Ah, yo’)
Illumi, Illumi, Illuminati (Illuminati)
To’ rojo el Ferrari (Skrt)
Y to’a esta’ prepago me chingan de grati’ (Uy)
Illuminati (-lluminati, prr)
Illumi, Illumi, Illuminati (Amén)
To’ rojo el Polaris (Polaris, brr)
Y yo cobro cuatrociento’ y quiniento’ por party (¡Jaja!)
Te prendemo’ el cartel
Y te hacemo’ la boda, cabrón, con la muerte (Ah)
Y Lucifer va a buscarte
Pero te vas pa’ la morgue, cabrón, pa’ cocerte (Jaja)
Veinte kilo ‘e tecata (Tecata)
Y tenemo’ la vía con la azafata (Con la azafata)
De extensión la culata (La culata)
Y te damo’ un jumpazo y te ponemo’ a mover la bachata (¡Brr!)
Lo’ kilo’, la’ corta’ y lo’ palo’
Las bala’ son real y son Hollow
Coroné como Pablo y Gonzalo (Jaja)
Y yo hago Gucci, yo nunca señaló (Ah)
Yo soy un demonio, y yo soy un diablo
Y en los Billboard, yo soy un rey (Rey)
Y yo soy millonario soy intocable
hijo ‘e puta, como Gucci Mane (Gucci Mane, brr)
Illuminati (¡Ah!, show)
Illumi, Illumi, Illuminati (¡Jaja!)
To’ rojo el Ferrari (Skrt)
Y to’a esta’ prepago me chingan de grati’ (Ah)
Illuminati (-lluminati, prr)
Illumi, Illumi, Illuminati (Illuminati)
To’ rojo el Polaris (Polaris)
Y yo cobro cuatrociento’ y quiniento’ por party (Brr, jaja)
Illuminati (Ah)
Illumi, Illumi, Illuminati (Illuminati, ooh)
To’ rojo el Ferrari (Skrt)
Y to’a esta’ prepago me chingan de grati’ (Uy)
Illuminati (-lluminati)
Illumi, Illumi, Illuminati (Amén), ooh
To’ rojo el Polaris (Polaris)
Y yo cobro cuatrociento’ y quiniento’ por party (¡Jaja!, ooh)
Illuminati (Ouu)
Might wake up tomorrow and buy a Bugatti (Bugatti)
Illuminati (Yeah, sheesh)
Swerve in the rari while I’m on a Oxy (Brr)
Two twin hoes in the lobby (In the lobby, ouu)
Sorry, bitch, I don’t say sorry (Uh-uh, yeah)
f*ck on a bitch from the UK (Yeah)
I put her on molly, now she act retarded (Damn)
Illuminati make a bitch go crazy (Go crazy)
I don’t know which one of these my baby (Uh)
Bust down, AP cost 180 (Bust down)
Thirty-five bullets in your head like KD (Doo, doo, doo, doo, doo, doo)
Buss it, buss it, bitch, go buss it (Go bust it, brr)
And I had ten pipes with me in Russia (Goddamn)
You don’t want to f*ck me? f*ck on my cousin (On my cousin)
Illuminati, bitch, I’m on my f*ck shit (Ooh, brr)
Illuminati (¡Ah!, show)
Illumi, Illumi, Illuminati (¡Jaja!)
To’ rojo el Ferrari (Skrt)
Y to’a esta’ prepago me chingan de grati’ (Ah)
Illuminati (-lluminati, prr)
Illumi, Illumi, Illuminati (Illuminati)
To’ rojo el Polaris (Polaris)
Y yo cobro cuatrociento’ y quiniento’ por party (Brr, jaja)
Illuminati (Ah)
Illumi, Illumi, Illuminati (Illuminati, ooh)
To’ rojo el Ferrari (Skrt)
Y to’a esta’ prepago me chingan de grati’ (Uy)
Illuminati (-lluminati)
Illumi, Illumi, Illuminati (Amén), ooh
To’ rojo el Polaris (Polaris)
Y yo cobro cuatrociento’ y quiniento’ por party (¡Jaja!)
Brr
¿Ah?
Lil Pump
Lo’ intocable’, ¿oíste, cabrón?
Prr
Mera, dime, Lil Pump
Mera, dime, Spiff
Mera, dime, EQ
Real hasta la muerte, ¿oíste, cabrón?
Brr
Yo cobro cuatrociento’ y quiniento’ por party
¿Mera, cuánto?
Quiniento’ por party, jajaja
Man, them kids loud as hell downstairs
This shit crazy as hell, what’s goin’ on on the news
Ayy, bae, pass me that phone
Tray Tray, y’all quit jumpin’ on that couch, bruh
Hello?
(What’s up, Dolph, what you been doin’?)
Shit, listenin’ to the president talkin’ ’bout the Chinese flu and
Just like everybody else, nigga, I been quarantining
With my Biscotti, Lemon Tree, and Promethazine and (Woo)
I know my garbage man sick of seeing empty pint bottles (Wop, wop)
FaceTime every day with my sister, auntie, and mama (I love y’all)
f*ck it, make a Corona baby with baby mama (f*ck it)
Last night I was up four in the morning oilin’ my choppers (f*ck it)
I needed some time off anyway, so it ain’t no problem (f*ck it)
Independent, so I’ma eat anyway, regardless (f*ck it)
Tray Tray happy as f*ck ’cause daddy been home every day (I love y’all)
Ari happy as f*ck ’cause daddy home, she gettin’ her way
Called my nigga and told him, "Man, I’ma finna spend six million on stocks"
He said, "When? Hell yeah, nigga, me too," ’cause that’s how we rock (Uh)
My president is Trump and my Lambo’ blue
This three hundred-fifty thousand dollar Sonic is too (Woo)
I’m enjoying this time right now, so I don’t give a f*ck
I heard Trump ’bout to take us to war
So I went and bought two army trucks (It’s Dolph)
God, please watch over the nurses and doctors on the frontlines (God, please)
I can’t wait ’til the clouds gone and we get sunshine (Sunshine)
Real life shit, nigga, f*ck a punchline (f*ck all that)
‘Bout my guala twenty-four seven, not sometimes (Uh-uh)
That’s why I never signed a deal, nigga, not one time (Uh-uh)
Ayy, Squeeky, stop all the instruments and keep the drum line (Hold up)
Busy workin’ all my life, gave the family no time (Sorry, y’all)
I apologize to the whole family just for bein’ selfish (I love y’all)
But the whole time, I was focused on makin’ the family wealthy (‘Cause I love y’all)
It wasn’t shit you could tell me (Nah, uh-uh)
Guala (Guala), guala (Guala), guala (Guala, hey)
Stack that paper, invest in yourself for times like this (Yeah, yeah)
Straight up out the mud and now I shine like this (Yeah, yeah)
All the real niggas, they gon’ Toosie Slide to this (Uh-huh)
I’m enjoying this time right now, so I don’t give a f*ck
I heard Trump ’bout to take us to war
So I went and bought two army trucks (It’s Dolph)
God, please watch over the nurses and doctors on the frontlines (God, please)
I can’t wait ’til the clouds gone and we get sunshine (Sunshine)
My president is Trump and my Lambo’ blue
This three hundred-fifty thousand dollar Sonic is too
Oh no, no
Oh no, no, yeah
Ooh-ooh, ooh-ooh
Yeah, yeah, yeah
Yeah
Sleepless nights tryna learn how to die in my sleep
‘Cause I don’t wanna be the one to wake up without a heartbeat, mmm
But trust me, you’re gonna love this thing, you’ll see
Baby, just tell me you’re gonna love me and I’ll admit defeat
It ain’t that deep, deep, deep, deep-deep, deep, no
You know I’d kill for some of your real feelings
Oh, no, it ain’t that sweet, sweet, sweet, sweet-sweet, sweet, no
Just as long as you’re the one who kills me
‘Cause I don’t wanna wake up dead, wake up dead, wake up dead
‘Cause I don’t wanna wake up dead, wake up dead, oh-oh-oh
‘Cause I don’t wanna wake up dead
‘Cause I don’t wanna turn up missin’
But I can’t get you out of my head
Baby, I just needed you to listen
I don’t wanna wake up dead, ooh-ooh
If I ain’t got you, then I’m already gone
Baby, don’t leave me alone
‘Cause I don’t wanna wake up dead, ooh-ooh
I’ma take twenty-three shots of Patrón
Just gonna keep comin’ back home
I don’t wanna wake up
Oh my gosh, you tryna kill me in my sleep
Rough sex, makin’ you my enemy, ooh woah-oh
Can I be honest, babe?
I kinda like the fact that you kinda crazy
Yeah, you bipolar just like me
That ain’t a problem, baby, no, no
Girl, you soakin’ wet, ’cause I’m makin’ it rain
Come on, hop in the passenger and swerve in my lane
You gotta back it up for me, three times
I want it all now, baby
Eat you up ’cause it’s dinner time
Girl, you better play nice
Just wait for it, I’ma make you work this time, oh
‘Cause I don’t wanna wake up dead, wake up dead, wake up dead
‘Cause I don’t wanna wake up dead, wake up dead, oh-oh-oh
‘Cause I don’t wanna wake up dead
‘Cause I don’t wanna turn up missin’
But I can’t get you out of my head
Baby, I just needed you to listen
‘Cause I don’t wanna wake up dead, ooh-ooh (Dead, dead, dead)
If I ain’t got you, then I’m already gone
Baby, don’t leave me alone
‘Cause I don’t wanna wake up dead, ooh-ooh (Dead, dead-dead, dead)
I’ma take twenty-three shots of Patrón
Just gonna keep comin’ back home
I don’t wanna wake up
Oh-oh, oh
Ecstacy H, it got me losin’ my brain
She’s my grim reaper, I’m in love with death
It’s only been twenty-four hours, I should probably go and get me some rest
But the way that time’s been movin’ backwards
I’ve been here- *reversed words*
Babe, babe, babe, babe-babe, babe, babe (Yeah)
What the f*ck?
Like what’s up?
How you do me that way?
I can put my heartbeat in my head
You got me stayin’ in this bed
‘Cause I don’t wanna wake up dead, wake up dead, wake up dead
‘Cause I don’t wanna wake up dead, wake up dead, oh-oh-oh
‘Cause I don’t wanna wake up dead
‘Cause I don’t wanna turn up missin’
But I can’t get you out of my head
Baby, I just needed you to listen
‘Cause I don’t wanna wake up dead, ooh-ooh (Dead, dead, dead)
If I ain’t got you, then I’m already gone
Baby, don’t leave me alone
‘Cause I don’t wanna wake up dead, ooh-ooh (Dead, dead-dead, dead)
I’ma take twenty-three shots of Patrón
Just gonna keep comin’ back home
I don’t wanna wake up
[Intro: Jon Mess]
Only bangers from now on
Only angry mental moans
You fool, I’m rich
Splattered the bag
Emptied the crypt
You fool, I’m rich
Flap like a flag
Scripted to flip
[Verse 1: Tilian]
How long could you keep up with all of it?
Before you jacked too many licks
And caught something you couldn’t kick? (Couldn’t kick?)
It’s no surprise you came and begged me for a second chance
Pathetic hat in hand, now that I’m in demand
[Pre-Chorus: Tilian]
Give me substance, give me something
[Chorus: Tilian]
This is the song you wish you’d wrote
Before you proved to the world you’re a f*cking joke
Before you had your chance and f*cking choked
Before you tried to do me over
Honestly you’ve always known I’d prevail
It’s biology and you were born to fail
[Verse 2: Jon Mess and Tilian]
Facts, just say it
No you don’t need to know
Feels, display them
Everyone’s the goat
Now I’m around the world
Shredding for a full ovation
And you can trash my reputation
As you enjoy your long vacation
[Pre-Chorus: Tilian]
Give me substance, give me something
[Chorus: Tilian]
This is the song you wish you’d wrote
Before you proved to the world you’re a f*cking joke
Before you had your chance and f*cking choked
Before you tried to do me over
Honestly you’ve always known I’d prevail
It’s biology and you were born to fail
[Bridge: Jon Mess]
Ditch it fist bastard
Cancel all your fans
They’re passed out in the pasture
Sucking up the spam
You look just like a person
But missing all the man
When life becomes a burden
Just pull a f*cking scam
[Outro: Tilian and Jon Mess]
You were born to fail
God damn
You were born to fail
Just pull a f*cking scam
You were born to fail
God damn
You were born to fail
Just pull a f*cking scam
Agua de la fuente clara
Agua de la fuente fría
Como fue que me olvidaste
Dónde echaste las cenizas…
Yo perdíme entre la bruma
Engáncheme en una rama
Tú subiste a la montaña
Yo bajé a la mar salada
Por un caminín de roses
La mañana de San Juan
Estrenaste aquel vestíu
Con una tira borda
Yo mirábate con fame
En la iglesia comulgar
Ay mamina si yo fuera
Como la ostia consagrá…
Agua de la fuente clara
Agua de la fuente fría
Dí como eran esos labios
Con los que ella me bebía
Por un caminín de roses
La mañana de San Juan
Estrenaste aquel vestíu
Con una tira borda
Yo mirábate con fame
En la iglesia comulgar
Ay mamina si yo fuera
Como la ostia consagrá…
[Intro]
Start off a new beginning
Adamn, bitch, I’m winning
On your ass you sitting
Niggas, stop the bitching
Niggas, stop the quitting
Gotta make good decisions
Cut them off, incision
Use your intuition
[Hook](x2)
Cause the money the only thing I see in my eyes
Wherever I go I know I’m gonna be just fine
Niggas be fool as hell and they know that shit not right
I just slide, get the check and they know that shit all mine
[Verse 1]
You know where I come from
Struggle, bitch, I come from
Niggas hit your line
When they want somethin’
Bitch, you buggin’
You little bird, you little turd
What the f*ck you heard?
That shit’s absurd
Nah, I ain’t do that
Where the f*ck you heard that?
Gettin’ money, hear that
Niggas fools, they be rats
They like dogs but they really be cats
Got a Mercedes but got that bitch with Carfax
I don’t need sleep, bitch, I take my naps
I’m trynna get the guap
I don’t give a f*ck ’bout what you got
Nigga [?] with that
Your mom house where you sleepin’ at
Go and get your sleepy ass
Go and buy a sleeping bag
[Hook](x3)
Cause the money the only thing I see in my eyes
Wherever I go I know I’m gonna be just fine
Niggas be fool as hell and they know that shit not right
I just slide, get check and they know that shit all mine
[Hook: Philippe Heithier]
Oh Jackie, umarm mich, komm’ wir genießen die Zeit
Wir haben so oft schon das selbe Glas geteilt
Ich brauch’ dich, nein wirklich, ich hab’ dich oft unterschätzt
Gab’ dir alles, was du wolltest, doch was ist jetzt?
Oh Jackie, ich lieb’ dich, doch bin fertig mit dir
Du hast ein falsches Spiel gespielt, mich ruiniert
Bin alleine im Nebel und kein Mensch ist mehr da
Oh Jackie, komm zurück in meinen Arm
[Part I: Pillath]
Ich weiß nicht mehr, wie oft ich dich verlassen wollte weil ich keine Treue spür’
Und einen Freitag später hast du mich erneut verführt
Du Schlange wusstest, doch ich kriege nie genug
Von deiner nussbraunen Haut und deinem lieblichen Geruch
Du lässt mich fliegen durch die Luft, fängst mich danach wieder ein
Du sagtest, dass wir zwei zusammen unbesiegbar sein
Wir bräuchten nur uns zwei, keine Freunde, keine Gang
Doch all die Schlägereien hab’ ich jedes Mal allein gekämpft
Jedes Mal allein gelassen mit deinen Intrigen
Alleine mit dem Chaos, das wir beide hinterließen
Dabei hattest du gesagt, wir teilen unser Elend
Doch am nächsten Morgen lief dann Rammstein in meinem Schädel
Aber du warst nicht bei mir, doch bei irgendeinem Affen
Der genauso blöd wie ich war deine Scheiße mitzumachen
Dabei sagtest du, was wir beide ha’m sei hieb- und stichfest
Sagtest jedes Mal, dass du mich nie im Stich lässt
[Hook: Philippe Heithier]
Oh Jackie, umarm mich, komm’ wir genießen die Zeit
Wir haben so oft schon das selbe Glas geteilt
Ich brauch’ dich, nein wirklich, ich hab’ dich oft unterschätzt
Gab’ dir alles, was du wolltest, doch was ist jetzt?
Oh Jackie, ich lieb’ dich, doch bin fertig mit dir
Du hast ein falsches Spiel gespielt, mich ruiniert
Bin alleine im Nebel und kein Mensch ist mehr da
Oh Jackie, komm zurück in meinen Arm
[Part II: Pillath]
Sag, wie viele hast du schon verführt und wie viele von ihn’ mussten dann nach
All den Jahren einsehen, sie sind an dir kaputt gegangen?
Wie viele versetztest du in pure Euphorie
Und wie viele sitzen deshalb jetzt in Gruppentherapie?
Hast du ihnen auch gesagt: “Nur gemeinsam seid ihr stark
Lass’ heut’ nicht mehr drüber reden, morgen ist ein neuer Tag.”
Aber irgendwann kannst du sie zur Klapsmühle begleiten
Erwachsene Männer, die einander Taschentücher reichen
Aber ich bin nicht wie die, ich glaub, dass ich gewinn’
Und lass dich einfach fallen, aus den Augen, aus dem Sinn
Und jetzt sitzt du wieder da, rotzfrech auf meinem Tisch
Aus dein’ Augen lacht der Teufel mir direkt in mein Gesicht
Die Vorzeichen stehen auf Krieg, du warst mein Kryptonit
Jetzt stehen wir zueinander wie ein Feuerstein zu Dynamit
Dabei dachte ich, ich könnt’ mit dir umgehen wie ein Profi
Ruf den Notdienst bevor die Bombe hochfliegt
[Hook: Philippe Heithier]
Oh Jackie, umarm mich, komm’ wir genießen die Zeit
Wir haben so oft schon das selbe Glas geteilt
Ich brauch’ dich, nein wirklich, ich hab’ dich oft unterschätzt
Gab’ dir alles, was du wolltest, doch was ist jetzt?
Oh Jackie, ich lieb’ dich, doch bin fertig mit dir
Du hast ein falsches Spiel gespielt, mich ruiniert
Bin alleine im Nebel und kein Mensch ist mehr da
Oh Jackie, komm zurück in meinen Arm
[Outro: Philippe Heithier]
Oh Jackie, ich lieb’ dich, doch bin fertig mit dir
Du hast ein falsches Spiel gespielt, mich ruiniert
Bin alleine im Nebel und kein Mensch ist mehr da
Oh Jackie, komm zurück in meinen Arm
[Intro]
Do you even know (x6)
[Verse 1]
I only see you low now
Your above the rest now
Lady come up
Lady come in
Just feel good
Take the weight of the world off your shoulders
Because you are Beautiful
And your losing it
(Do you even know (x6))
[Chorus ]
And i know, and i know, and i know that you know you know you are beautiful
And i know, and i know, and i know that you need to smile more
Do you know, do you know, do you know that you’ll always be enough
Yeah i know, you don’t know, you don’t know that you need to Keep your head up
Just keep your head up, just keep your head up
And i know, and i know, and i know that i just want to stay the night
And tomorrow won’t come and tomorrow won’t shine
And i know that i know that i know that i know that you are Gonna make it threw
[Verse 2]
Are you tired of me yet?
I just wanted to stay the night
But that’s alright if your tired
I just miss the days when you still gave a shit
And i know that you still do
Don’t get me wrong
Your still the best at everything you do
(Do you even know (X6))
[Chorus]
And i know, and i know, and i know that you know you know you are beautiful
And i know, and i know, and i know that you need to smile more
Do you know, do you know, do you know that you’ll always be enough
Yeah i know, you don’t know, you don’t know that you need to Keep your head up
Just keep your head up, just keep your head up
And i know, and i know, and i know that i just want to stay the night
And tomorrow won’t come and tomorrow won’t shine
And i know that i know that i know that i know that you are Gonna make it threw
[Bridge]
Just keep your head up (x6)
[Chorus]
And i know, and i know, and i know that you know you know you are beautiful (And i know)
And i know, and i know, and i know that you need to smile more (Know)
Do you know, do you know, do you know that you’ll always be enough (Know)
Yeah i know, you don’t know, you don’t know that you need to Keep your head up
Just keep your head up, just keep your head up
And i know, and i know, and i know that i just want to stay the night
And tomorrow won’t come and tomorrow won’t shine
And i know that i know that i know that i know that you are Gonna make it threw
[Outro]
Just don’t give in, Just don’t give in
Just don’t give in to anything that they say (x4)
[Intro]
D-D-Div don’t do it to em’
[Chorus]
Before I step up out the door I pray that God be with me (Bitch)
But if he not I’ll take a different route that nine stay with me (Bew)
Gallardo Lambo’ in a drop-top speeding (Yeah)
Chameleon Gucci lavender my ride look pretty
Blood bro and passenger that’s a close-by semi (Boom)
I sit back, I relax and get some throat by Demi (Alright)
I can turn psycho if a chump trip with me
Bitch, I feel like Michael went to Jacksons from pennies
[Verse]
Hench Mafia family is tight and were not friendly (No)
Can count on both hands the whole clan, bitch, it’s not many (Yeah)
Niggas wondering and talkin’ about how I’m still winnin’ (Bitch)
Yes bitch, get off my dick, you niggas ride too many
I-I-I put my dick in her face, she say, “Now that’s too much” (Come here)
Put it in anyway, this is how you shut hoes up (Alright)
Rest in peace Pimp C, real niggas, hold your cups up
Heard you can die from Promethazine, but I still pour up (Bitch)
And niggas say they gon’ get me, I guess there’s still no luck (No)
And a dick tucked, XD and I can’t wait ’til I bust (Bew)
[Chorus]
Before I step up out the door I pray that god be with me (Bitch)
But if he not I’ll take a different route that nine stay with me (Bew)
Gallardo Lambo’ in a drop-top speeding (Yeah)
Chameleon Gucci lavender my ride look pretty
Blood bro and passenger that’s a close-by semi (Bew)
I sit back, I relax and get some throat by Demi (Alright)
I can turn psycho if a chump trip with me
Bitch, I feel like Michael went to Jacksons from pennies
[Outro]
Bitch, I feel like Michael went to Jacksons from pennies
Bitch, I feel like Michael went to Jacksons from pennies
Bitch, I feel like Michael went to Jacksons from pennies
[Intro]
They say what don’t break you will make you
My mum used to say
If you don’t hear then you must feel
This one just goes out to all those who helped me get here
And those who were helping me get there
[Verse 1]
From the waters burst
Nurse wasn’t sure at first
Told mum prepare for the worst
She’s headed for a premature birth
Pops stared at his wife
With tears in his eyes
She’s near to sparing her life
Prepare for the cesarean knife
They had to open her up, she did it
That’s why I’m here to show her what’s up, don’t get it
Twisted at all, I know I didn’t always listen at all
But I seen how you given your all, and I
Hope it’s all been worth it
Cause you know me
I wasn’t the easiest child to work with
I know that I was far from perfect
Sometimes you spoke a language of love I found hard to interpret
But I understand now I’m grown
A man can stand on his own
A man’s land is his home
When a man’s fam is his throne
And a real man will handle his own
I learned that from your words and the example you shown
Mum you flown home to Jamaica now
I pray this debut album will make you proud
Dad you wasn’t always around to raise your child
But I’m grateful how you still gave a great amount
I seen my fair share of rough living
Still I gotta give thanks for my upbringing
Cause what life could of been I will never know
But God works all things together for my better so
[Hook]
If you see me on the ends doing fine
Just know I coulda been up in the pen doing time
Though you might see my countenance shine
Know I still got mountains to climb
But thank God that His word is faithful
For this I’m eternally grateful
Now I see
It’s not just where the journey takes you
It’s the man that the journey makes you
[Verse 2]
I wasn’t raised in the church
I was raised on street life
And I seen the ways that it works
I’m no stranger to pains and hurts
Tried to escape the curse by blazing the herbs but
I found out the cycle get high then get low
Keeps going round like vinyl
And it’s going on a downward spiral
Couldn’t find a way out till I found the Bible
Shout to Simon for being a witness
Meeting me at my crib and just reading me Scriptures
And that’s the reason I writ this
Just wanna say bless to all my brothers and peace to my sisters
Cause without these people I wouldn’t be here
Gotta give a shout to the people who couldn’t be here
Like my cousin Carl and my boy Ashley
Mike Griffis Aunt Sharon and lil Alfy
To my grandfather and my girl Marsha
Young or old they made such early departures
It’s hard to express but you passed and the death
Told me to value the time I got left
It’s such a valuable blessing getting practical lessons
At Calvary Chapel from Robert, Patrick and Efrem
In fact big thanks to all of my pastors
Wayne Malcolm .. John Francis
Thanks to Dennis .. shout to Noel and Sharon
For loving me when some loved only my talent
Much love to the mandem in GreenJade
Without them I probably would of never have been saved
At times man I thought I would never see change
But thanks to my wife Nadine cause she prayed
And the names go on and on
I got a list way too long to say in this song
But I gotta stand and pay respect to the fam
That made me the man I am today
Truthfully I’m just fruit from the true Vine
Was blind but now the dude can see
I’m not saying that the truth is me
I’m just saying I’m grateful
Cause I ain’t what I used to be
[Hook:]
They got me on that f*ck shit, banging on that f*ck shit
Pulled over for like no reason ’cause the police will get f*ck shit
The weed man on that f*ck shit, brother got locked up on that f*ck shit
The whole world on that f*ck shit, I’m like f*ck this
I’m a get on that f*ck shit, I’m a get on that f*ck shit
I’m a get on that f*ck shit
f*ck around and there’s gonna be a man down, man down
Man down, man down
[Verse 1:]
Man down, I was raised up on the sound
Case one, no one talkin, no trace on it
f*ck shit, my young niggas with it
Pack it, I’m layin it down
Free soul, imagine what they would do for a couple thou
And for some extra, add pressure
Did you even work so hard and play?
Destruction and all type of murder
Back spazzin, I’m on my Chicago Bullshit
Not here no start some mess, now I gotta hear this shit again
Feds got an involvement but I can’t wait to get it
Been to spendin, I’m by it nigga
When many rich, don’t fly the swisher
Broke niggas envy, sippin lean because I am the SA ChaChi,
Something that they can’t be
The weed man get all my money, he reject me
I know some niggas, young mean, never talk deep
You gon need a f*ck shit
Try my brother now he R.I.P.
For screaming free the homies, f*ck the police
[Hook:]
They got me on that f*ck shit, banging on that f*ck shit
Pulled over for like no reason ’cause the police will get f*ck shit
The weed man on that f*ck shit, brother got locked up on that f*ck shit
The whole world on that f*ck shit, I’m like f*ck this
I’m a get on that f*ck shit, I’m a get on that f*ck shit
I’m a get on that f*ck shit
f*ck around and there’s gonna be a man down, man down
Man down, man down
[Verse 2:]
All I know, stack my dough
Worry bout the curl while I slam my blow
G code nigga, play the game how it go
I’m a pimp, never see me actin lame bout a ho
Young niggas in the game, wouldn’t train them to go
The poor kick door, leave brains on the floor
No bullshit, nigga f*ck the fame, get the dough
Bunch of lean on the plane, cocaine on the boat
Nigga say you wanna smoke when I’m bringin my O
Hear it now, don’t you know I said bells the door?
I don’t break shit now, let’s straighten it now
I’m a rape this trap and I’m a take this town
I got a bunch of niggas on that f*ck shit
Some niggas talk in sleep, they get busted
Hold up, I got something fo yo f*ck ass
Put the 3-57 on yo mustache
And nigga f*ck you’s aye
And nigga f*ck you dawg
Better take that f*ck shit elsewhere
f*ck boy hear you talkin bout
The clique over here then we alright
With some fresh of that loud right
Pissin all over ya’ll pride
Hustle Gang, we got mob ties
[Hook:]
They got me on that f*ck shit, banging on that f*ck shit
Pulled over for like no reason ’cause the police will get f*ck shit
The weed man on that f*ck shit, brother got locked up on that f*ck shit
The whole world on that f*ck shit, I’m like f*ck this
I’m a get on that f*ck shit, I’m a get on that f*ck shit
I’m a get on that f*ck shit
f*ck around and there’s gonna be a man down, man down
Man down, man down
[Verse 3:]
f*ck shit, you’ll get hit in yo bone marrow
Ain’t no gun shit, you get split with bow and arrows
I done told you twice I’m goin poltergeist
You thicker than yo ice, need some more tonight
I’m a fool, red bottle cool, chillin with a bitch
Matter fact man I’m bringin out the Porsche tonight
I got stripes on my back, I’m a goddamn killer
I’m the thrilla in Manilla, dancing lizard
Hoping out that motherf*cker, sippin on Caesar
f*ck what you hizzer, my rich cost bigger
Torpedo, gonna blow over yo car
And you know not to come run up on us
Shot in the face, two to the waist
Three to the knees and one for yo boy in the car
Baby like try it, you takin too long
Workin on white so you take on me
I’m workin I’m workin and now I’m gonna f*ck shit
I’m up in the studio spittin these bars
Tell the f*ck niggas to leave me alone
I’m a put out my pistol and pick up a missile and drop napalm
Take off they arm
Then make yo bitch give me head with her tongue
[Hook:]
They got me on that f*ck shit, banging on that f*ck shit
Pulled over for like no reason ’cause the police will get f*ck shit
The weed man on that f*ck shit, brother got locked up on that f*ck shit
The whole world on that f*ck shit, I’m like f*ck this
I’m a get on that f*ck shit, I’m a get on that f*ck shit
I’m a get on that f*ck shit
f*ck around and there’s gonna be a man down, man down
Man down, man down
Policymakers rush to stave off economic collapse on the African continent
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A health worker checks a man’s temperature during door-to-door screening in an attempt to contain the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Jika Joe informal settlement in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, April 16, 2020.
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Rogan Ward/Reuters
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While African countries were among the last to be hit by the novel coronavirus, the pandemic is already taking a toll on economies. Policymakers and economists are proposing all kinds of solutions to stave off a catastrophe, including large-scale debt relief.
Few industries on the continent have been spared by the epidemic. The region is projected to experience its first recession in 25 years, according to a new report by the World Bank on the economic impact of COVID-19 on African economies.
“The countries that are more dependent on tourism are taking a big hit,” said César Calderón, a lead economist at the World Bank who co-authored the report. “You can think about Botswana or Kenya, Mauritius, South Africa.”
While Africa has some of the fastest-growing economies on the planet, they face unique challenges due to the pandemic.
“In the case of Africa, of course, there’s the challenge of the informal sector being the main source of employment.”
César Calderón, economist, World Bank
“In the case of Africa, of course, there’s the challenge of the informal sector being the main source of employment,” Calderón said. The International Labour Organization estimates Africa’s informal sector accounts for more than 85% of overall employment.
According to Calderón, policymakers should prioritize assisting those workers who will no longer be earning, as well as supporting the micro-, small- and medium-sized businesses that represent the majority of businesses in most African countries.
Related: Trump’s WHO funding cut harms ‘fragile’ health systems, says organization’s Africa head
Policymakers across the continent have already jumped into emergency mode, expanding cash transfer programs, lowering the costs of mobile payments and slashing bank interest rates.
Still, these types of relief efforts take massive fiscal resources.
“The region is not in the same position that it was in 2008,” Calderón said. “Many countries in the region had a healthy fiscal balance, they had higher growth rates, they were enjoying this period of growth [of] about 5%.”
The continent’s strongest economies have been hampered in recent years by low commodity prices, slowing growth rates and ballooning debt — meaning even the most ambitious relief measures could be constrained by the reality of low liquidity.
That dilemma has led many to argue that African countries, among others, require major financial resources to stop the spread of coronavirus.
Related: In Senegal, COVID-19 safety measures conflict with cultural traditions
“We can not afford fiscal distancing,” said Akinwumi Adesina, president of the African Development Bank, during a press conference last week. “We must move rapidly and aggressively to give Africa maximum support to contain this epidemic,” he continued.
As part of that effort, the African Development Bank has committed $10 billion to African countries’ emergency response and deferred debt payments for the private sector.
Still, Adesina argued, these types of debt deferments should extend to countries as well.
“It’s time for all of us to work together globally to reprofile debt payments for African countries,” he said.
Related: What the US can learn from West Africa to slow the spread of coronavirus
This month, the African Union appointed special envoys to help mobilize economic support from the international community.
Calls for large-scale debt service or debt relief have grown from outside of the continent as well. During a national address Monday, French President Emmanuel Macron said the world should “help them economically by massively canceling their debts.”
Earlier this week, the International Monetary Fund announced it would pay the debt for 25 countries for next six months, helping them free up money for their emergency responses.
Days later, G20 countries agreed to freeze bilateral debt service payments for some of the world’s poorest countries.
In Japan, a 1,000-year-old cheese recipe makes its comeback
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Amanda McGowan
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“So” is a 1,000-year-old Japanese cheese that recently became popular among people stuck at home due to the coronavirus.
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Courtesy of Makiko Itoh
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While many Americans are spending the pandemic perfecting their homemade sourdough bread, lockdowns elsewhere in the world are pushing people’s culinary creativity even further.
In Japan, people are making a long-forgotten cheese called “so.” The 1,000-year-old recipe became popular recently on Japanese social media as people stuck at home due to the coronavirus pandemic have extra time on their hands, said Makiko Itoh, author of “The Just Bento Cookbook.” They also have more milk on hand after people pitched in to buy an excess from dairy farmers.
“A lot of food producers, including dairy farmers, have a lot of excess milk because they were supplying the school lunch programs,” she told The World’s host Marco Werman. “So some of them called out saying, ‘Please help us, please consume a bit more milk, especially since you have your children home.’ And that’s what a lot of people did.”
So tastes like concentrated milk, Itoh said.
“It’s slightly sweet from the inherent sweetness of the milk, maybe,” she said. “The closest thing that’s not cheese that I would compare it to would be a fudge, except no sugar added.”
To make it, people are slowly cooking milk on low heat until the moisture evaporates from it and forms a mass. Itoh said she recently spent five hours making the cheese, keeping it on a hot plate beside her desk as she worked.
As for how to eat it?
“It goes pretty well with salty crackers,” she said. “It really matches well if you drizzle some honey on it.”
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Pro athletes find creative ways to train from home during coronavirus
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María Elena Romero
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Bianca Hillier
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Alexandra Recchia, five-time karate world champion, trains in the garden of her house near Paris during a lockdown in France aimed at curbing the spread of the novel coronavirus.
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Franck Fife/AFP via Getty Images
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When Alexandra Recchia steps onto the mat, the karate world pays attention. The five-time karate World Champion is chasing her biggest podium yet: winning gold for France at the Tokyo Summer Olympics, now rescheduled to 2021.
Despite stay-at-home orders due to the coronavirus pandemic, Recchia’s dedication to her sport remains the same. What is entirely different is her training setup at her Paris-area home.
“I am training at home, by myself and without a partner,” Recchia told The World. “My boyfriend doesn’t really love karate. So he built me a kind of [training] partner with a lamp.”
He filled a flowerpot with pebbles, stuck a standing lamp inside and attached cushions at head and chest height, sturdy enough to be the sparring buddy for a world-class athlete training at home under coronavirus-mandated quarantine.
“Yea, really,” she said. “I [have trained] with that for four weeks. And it is really perfect.”
COVID-19: The latest from The World
Recchia is just one of many professional athletes around the world who have come up with creative ways to continue their training.
Dutch elite distance swimmer Sharon van Rouwendaal, an Olympic gold medalist, has resorted to swimming in an inflatable kiddie pool in her own backyard after she upset local authorities by swimming in a nearby lake.
“It’s like two meters. So I just fit in. And I have an elastic resistance band and then I put that to a tree,” she told The World. “And then actually, I stay in one place, in the pool. So I can swim for one hour, nonstop, going nowhere.”
A post shared by Sharon van Rouwendaal (@svrouwendaal) on Mar 28, 2020 at 8:54am PDT
Other athletes, like American figure skater Jason Brown, have been sharing fun training tips on social media that non-pro athletes can incorporate into their daily exercise routines.
Brown recently demonstrated how to jump the rope while wearing ice skates, and Norwegian wrestler Stig-André Berge replaced weights with his child during a push-up session.
Of course, professional athletes follow stricter regimens than regular gym-goers, since they are aiming to break a record or win gold. But when it comes to keeping up with exercise during at a time of physical distancing, Recchia says everyone is battling the same obstacle: maintaining their motivation.
Alexandra Recchia trains in the garden of her house near Paris during a lockdown in France.
Credit:
Franck Fife/AFP via Getty Images
“The difficulty is to stay motivated,” Recchia said. “It is so very important to stay in good health. And we cannot stay in good health if we stay on the sofa.”
To get off the sofa, Recchia suggests enlisting quarantine partners or finding virtual training partners to break a sweat without leaving home.
“If you are alone, please, go on Instagram, go on Facebook, and you can see everyday influencers give advice and motivate you to do some sports,” Recchia said. “Move your body and move your mind!”
Detroit needs Canadian nurses. But coronavirus threatens their cross-border travel.
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Amanda McGowan
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A healthcare worker walks outside the DMC Sinai-Grace Hospital amid an outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in Detroit, Michigan, April 14, 2020.
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Emily Elconin/Reuters
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Patients admitted to hospitals in Detroit, Michigan, are often cared for by Canadian nurses. Some 1,600 nurses in Ontario, Canada, cross the border every day to work in the US health care sector. And some nurses work in hospitals on both sides of the border.
But the pandemic could change that. As the number of novel coronavirus cases grows in Michigan, some officials in Ontario are calling for restrictions on where these nurses can work — telling them to essentially pick a side.
Michigan had more than 28,000 confirmed cases of COVID-19 and nearly 2,000 deaths as of Friday. Ontario, by contrast, had some 10,000 cases and 500 deaths.
COVID-19: The latest from The World
Crossing from Detroit, Michigan, to Windsor, Ontario, which lies just across the Detroit River, is a daily communte for some. “We practically are one community when you are looking at Windsor and Detroit. A significant number of people cross every day,” said Dr. Wajid Ahmed, the chief medical officer in Windsor-Essex County, Ontario. “Close to 6,000 people who cross the border and work in Michigan. Close to 1,600 are health care workers who are going there and working there.”
But Ahmed is concerned about transmitting the coronavirus across the border, and has called for stricter restrictions to reduce risk. “What we have seen recently is a significant increase in the number of cases [on the] Michigan side. And [on the] Ontario side, the increase was not as significant,” Ahmed said. “But when we are talking about health care workers, they don’t have any boundaries. They’re working there. They’re working here. So we did feel that there has to be a better measure to contain the virus as much as possible.”
Ahmed spoke with The World’s Marco Werman about the medical relationship between the US and Canada.
Related: How the US-Canada border closure will disrupt life in this Canada border town
Marco Werman: Would you say hospitals in Michigan are pretty dependent on nurses from Canada?
Dr. Wajid Ahmed: I would say so, because I know some of the hospitals, they have a significant proportion of their workforce that are from Canada and they need those workers to keep the operations going. And without these workers, they won’t be able to operate the way they normally do. And this is not even a normal time. So it would be very difficult for them to maintain operations.
Related: Racing to develop a drug to fight COVID-19
So what restrictions are being put on these nurses currently, and what restrictions do you think should be put in place?
What is happening in the Canadian side is, a health care worker needs to restrict their work to one facility and not work in multiple facilities. If you are coming back and you’re still working in Michigan, knowing that your risk is high, when you’re returning to Canada, the moment you enter Canada, you basically go into the self-isolation mode. So you’re coming straight to your home. You’re not going to any grocery store or doing any of the work that you need to do. And you are staying at home and not meeting anyone, and follow[ing] everything that you should. So we are hoping that these measures, if followed appropriately, they won’t be spreading it to our community.
So if you were in charge, doctor, would you make it so that nurses would just stop going to the US altogether?
If in my community, the needs are [that] I need those nurses, then probably, I would say, “Yes, we need those nurses right now because we have a shortage of nurses and we are critically low in nursing supplies.” And right now, that’s not the situation. So we feel that, yeah, we are basically just doing our part as neighbors. They need our support. Can we provide them with our support? Yes, we can. So might as well do it. And if that changes, then that’s a different conversation altogether. Right now, we haven’t seen that at this time.
Related: Mutual aid groups respond to coronavirus and climate change threats
So as you know, earlier this month, President Trump banned the export of N95 masks to Canada. And then Prime Minister Justin Trudeau say Canada would not issue any retaliatory measures in response. And he cited the nurses in Ontario as an example of how close the US and Canada are intertwined. Would restrictions on nurses suddenly change that and raise tensions, do you think?
I don’t think so. I think as Canadians, we do have a better understanding of how we how we should support not only ourselves, but a global fight against this COVID pandemic. And we will continue to do our part, continue to support our neighbors, continue to support the rest of the world as much as possible, up to our capacity. And I think that’s a great thing that being a Canadian means, and supporting others.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
China raises coronavirus death toll; political shakeups in Brazil; restoring Notre Dame's soundscape
A man wearing a face mask is seen under a bridge of Yangtze river in Wuhan after the lockdown was lifted in Wuhan, capital of Hubei province and China’s epicenter of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, April 15, 2020.
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COVID-19 brings new scrutiny to illegal wildlife trafficking
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The novel coronavirus originated in a Wuhan “wet market,” where animals and meats of all kinds are sold in close proximity. Wet markets are hubs of illegal wildlife trafficking.
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The illegal trade of protected species is a highly lucrative form of organized crime — with deadly consequences. In addition to threatening ecosystems and inciting violence, wildlife trafficking plays a key role in spreading diseases, including the novel coronavirus that is now sweeping across the world.
COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, likely jumped from bats to endangered pangolins and then to humans at a wildlife market for bushmeat in Wuhan, China. Three-quarters of new human diseases, such as SARS, Ebola and HIV, come from animals. These are known as zoonotic diseases and wildlife trafficking plays a key role in their transmission from animals to humans. Wildlife trafficking has also led to the dramatic decline of many species, including rhinos, elephants and pangolins.
Related: COVID-19: The latest from The World
Investigative journalist Lindsey Kennedy recently wrote about the problem of zoonotic diseases for Foreign Policy magazine. She spoke with Living on Earth’s Steve Curwood about how the coronavirus outbreak could lead to the end of wildlife trafficking.
Steve Curwood: So, why do you study zoonotic diseases?
Lindsey Kennedy: I don’t specifically study the diseases. I’m part of a journalistic collective. I have spent the last two years with my colleague Nathan Southern, looking into the wildlife trade in Southeast Asia. I think a lot of people don’t realize how big the wildlife trafficking trade is. It’s one of the four biggest illegal trades in the world. It brings in about $26 billion a year. And most of that goes back to China. But the most trafficked mammal in the world is an animal called the pangolin. It kind of looks like a small scaly anteater, and about 10,000 of these are trafficked every year. So when we saw that carcasses of the pangolin — on their way into China, illegally being trafficked — had tested positive for the COVID-19 virus, we started thinking about whether or not this could have been something that triggered the outbreak. So, we came at it from a wildlife perspective rather than a disease studies perspective.
Explain to me how the pangolin might be related to COVID-19.
When any kind of disease can jump from a species to another species or an animal to a human, that’s called a zoonotic disease. And that’s incredibly dangerous because our immune systems aren’t prepared to deal with them. In the case of COVID-19, we know that it came from wild animals. It’s present in bats and pangolins, and snakes. We don’t know exactly which of these animals provided the link to humans. All of them are trafficked and sold within China. And we don’t know exactly how that virus moved. But what we do know is that when you bring wild animals into contact with humans and livestock, you massively increase the risk of all these different diseases jumping between species and going into the human population and just causing havoc.
And remind us of other diseases that are zoonotic — that come from animals and jumped to humans.
SARS [severe acute respiratory syndrome] is another one that originated in civet cats, actually, back in 2003 in China, and that was a very similar thing. That was wildlife being sold in markets and that’s where it originated. Ebola is another one that comes from bats, similar to COVID-19. There’s just loads of them, to be honest: bird flu, swine flu — these are all zoonotic diseases.
In fact, isn’t HIV zoonotic?
Yes, it is.
To what extent are these diseases getting into the human population because we’re destroying the habitat of these creatures and consuming more and more?
It’s definitely creating more and more risk all the time because the more you have deforestation, the more humans go further into the habitats of animals and are coming into contact with animals they [haven’t had contact] with before — every creature on Earth carries millions of types of bacteria and viruses — every time you come into contact with a new animal, you increase this risk massively. Epidemiologists have been saying for some time that the more contact we have with animals through deforestation or by going into forests and bringing animals back into our world and selling them in markets and that kind of thing, that there would be a pandemic. We just didn’t know when it was going to happen. And now we’re seeing it happen.
Talk to me about the markets where these animals are sold. You call them “wet markets.” What do they look like?
It depends on where you are in the world, because they’re not just in China. But, generally, imagine a big, sprawling market where it’s not necessarily the cleanest, but you’ve got lots of live animals squashed into small spaces in cages — different types of animals in small spaces — and sometimes you’ve got animals being cut up and prepared for sale, even while you’ve got live animals still nearby. If you think about when meat is prepared in factories, how clean that has to be and how many processes an item goes through on a production line to make sure that a virus or a bacteria doesn’t jump from one to another — none of that is happening in a big wet market like that. People are walking around, they’re touching different bits of meat. People are sneezing, animals are touching each other. It’s just chaos, really, in terms of virus prevention.
So why is it that people eat foods that are in these kinds of conditions?
In the case of China, most wildlife that’s trafficked is done so for traditional Chinese medicine. The pangolin…is used in lots of different types of Chinese medicine; Also, its scales are used in the production of meth. Parts of tiger and rhino are used in Chinese medicine. That’s why these kinds of products are brought in and sold in markets. But a lot of animals are also sold just for meats, just because it’s kind of a prestige thing to eat wild meat in a lot of the world.
What steps have China and other countries taken in terms of regulating the wildlife trade, now that we’ve seen yet another instance of how deadly this can be for humans?
It is illegal in China to import endangered animals and it has been for some time. There are a few problems with this. The big one is the fact that all efforts to stop the trade have focused on prosecution [and] haven’t done anything to tackle demand at all over the years. So, the trade hasn’t really reduced, because it doesn’t matter how many poachers you send to prison and it doesn’t really matter how many busts you make of shipments coming into China. If people still want to buy those things, someone’s going to find a way to get them in. The thing about this particular scenario with the coronavirus outbreak is that a lot of conservationists are hoping that this is going to be more effective than any of that regulation because people will be put off eating it and they’ll stop buying it, in case they get sick. So, hopefully, this situation will actually be more effective than regulation has been in the past.
Related: China cracks down on wildlife trade amid coronavirus outbreak
What regulations has China put on it right now? Anything specific in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak?
There has been a ban on selling wildlife in big wet markets. They did the same thing after SARS, though, so it remains to be seen how long that lasts and whether it’s just until it all blows over, and then it comes back. So, again, if people want [the illegal wildlife] enough, it’ll come back. If people decide that actually it’s not healthy for them, hopefully that will stop happening. The younger people in Southeast Asia and in China aren’t as interested in eating wildlife. They don’t see it so much as a social status. It’s something the “weird older people” do. So hopefully, over time, as these people grow up, they’ll maintain those attitudes. You have to hope.
Looking back, what did we learn from the response to SARS and what can we do now to perhaps better prevent another outbreak?
I think with SARS, it was contained relatively quickly. I’m not a clinician; I don’t specialize in epidemics. But SARS was contained relatively quickly and I think we kind of got away with it. And for that reason, there wasn’t a sea change. People kind of forgot about it. They started doing the same things, buying the same animals after a little while, and I think maybe it was seen as a bit of a one-off. Whereas this time, I don’t think anyone realized how far this would spread. I mean, we’ve declared a global pandemic. It’s huge. I think that that has to leave lasting changes; that has to leave lasting attitudes toward eating wildlife and tracking wildlife this time.
This highly lucrative traffic in poaching and hunting dangerous species goes on, as you say, at a very high level. There is a huge market. How could it be stopped?
The only way you can stop the illegal wildlife trade is by reducing demand. Everything else makes it worse. There’s an amazing writer on conservation, Vanda Felbab-Brown, who uses the example of the drug trade. Let’s say you’re bringing in a massive shipment of cocaine into a country. You know that the border control is going to seize, like, 50% of that. So you just get your producers to give you 50% more cocaine in the first place. The problem is, when you apply that to animals, when you apply it to the wildlife trafficking trade, that’s incredibly destructive, because if you kill another 50% of pangolins or tigers…you’re killing more animals as a result. So really, it has to be an education thing, where you persuade people not to buy it. And you also need to remember that the people who are poaching are often in incredibly dire situations, in really poor areas, where there are few employment opportunities. So you have to treat it as a development issue, as well, and work with those people to provide better employment so that they’re not tempted to go and poach something on spec, basically.
Related: Corruption worsens an already devastating illegal wildlife trade in Uganda
What can the international community do to stop this? What has it done so far? And where are the deficits in the approach?
One more popular angle that’s been floated a lot…is to treat the wildlife trade as a serious organized crime problem, and sometimes as [a way] to fund terrorism. … That really gets the government’s attention. … But the problem is, then you start reacting to it with police and with armies, and those things don’t stop a little old lady in China wanting to go and buy her Chinese medicinal stuff in China. It doesn’t stop her. It doesn’t stop the poacher in Namibia, who wants to feed his family. It doesn’t stop either of those things. So even though there have been loads more money thrown at this in recent years, and even though governments are taking it very seriously, they’re kind of just going about it in the wrong way, and it’s making it worse.
It doesn’t help that in the US, a couple of years ago, Trump lifted the ban on importing elephant products, which I’m sure has nothing to do with the fact that his own son is a big trophy hunter abroad. … But as I say, the really effective policies are the ones that work with local communities, help people to shift from poaching to sustainable tourism — going and seeing the wildlife, going out and photographing wildlife instead of killing it and that kind of thing. They’ve been effective. And educating people about why it’s damaging to the environment and to themselves to eat wildlife. These are the effective things, but not so much going in all guns blazing and arresting people.
Talk to me about the broad implications of wildlife trafficking.
We are losing species across the globe faster than at any other time since the dinosaurs. It is kind of an emergency, really, the rate at which we’re losing biodiversity. And that is driven by wildlife trafficking and deforestation. That’s a tragedy in itself, to lose that incredible wealth of ecology. But it is also a tragedy for the human societies that live in these areas. In places like Indonesia, communities have lived the same way for hundreds of years. People who live on the fringes of forests hunt food in a way that is sustainable or they fish or they’re able to build their homes from trees in that area without doing serious damage. But when you have wholesale destruction of an area, you completely disrupt all of the ways those people live and you push them further into poverty. So it’s just a tragedy, kind of all across the board, really.
This interview aired on Living on Earth from PRX. It has been edited and condensed for clarity.
China says nearly 1,300 virus deaths not counted in Wuhan, cites early lapses
A man wearing a face mask is seen, reflected in his electric bike’s rearview mirror, on a street in Wuhan, China’s former epicenter of the novel coronavirus outbreak, April 14, 2020.
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Chinese state media on Friday revised its mortality figures saying 1,290 people who died of the coronavirus in the epicenter city of Wuhan were not counted in death tolls because of lapses. But, Beijing officials have dismissed claims that there had been any kind of cover-up.
The central city where the coronavirus outbreak emerged late last year added the 1,290 fatalities to the 2,579 previously counted as of Thursday, reflecting incorrect reporting, delays and omissions, according to a local government task force in charge of controlling the coronavirus.
Reflecting the additional deaths in Wuhan, China revised its national death toll later on Friday up to 4,632.
The revision follows widespread speculation that Wuhan’s death toll was significantly higher than reported.
Discussion: Coronvirus conversations — taking your questions to the experts
Rumors of more victims were fueled for weeks by pictures of long lines of family members waiting to collect ashes of cremated relatives and reports of thousands of urns stacked at a funeral home waiting to be filled.
“In the early stage, due to limited hospital capacity and the shortage of medical staff, a few medical institutions failed to connect with local disease control and prevention systems in a timely manner, which resulted in delayed reporting of confirmed cases and some failures to count patients accurately,” state media cited an unidentified Wuhan official as saying.
Suspicion that China has not been transparent about the outbreak has risen in recent days as death tolls mount in many countries, including the United States, with President Donald Trump on Wednesday expressing skepticism about China’s previously declared death figure of about 3,000.
“Do you really believe those numbers in this vast country called China, and that they have a certain number of cases and a certain number of deaths; does anybody really believe that?” he said.
‘Responsibility to history’
Foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian said on Friday that while there might have been data collection flaws earlier during the outbreak, China has “a responsibility to history, to the people and to the deceased” to ensure numbers are accurate.
“Medical workers at some facilities might have been preoccupied with saving lives and there existed delayed reporting, underreporting or misreporting, but there has never been any cover-up and we do not allow cover-ups,” he said.
Related: ‘No fast track’ to normal when it comes to reopening economies
Wuhan’s total number of cases was revised up by 325, suggesting that some of the new deaths had been recorded as cases but not confirmed as fatalities, taking the total number of cases in the city of 11 million people to 50,333, or about 60% of mainland China’s total.
The topic “Wuhan revises its death toll” was one of the most read on China’s Weibo microblogging platform, which is heavily moderated.
Many commentators praised the government for admitting its mistakes and correcting them, although some still questioned the numbers and one urged other provinces to reassess their data.
Doctors and government officials in Wuhan have been repeatedly questioned about the accuracy of the death toll by journalists on government-arranged trips.
Chaotic early days
Some of those officials acknowledged that people may have died without being counted in the chaotic early days of the outbreak, before testing was widely available.
“There couldn’t have been many because that was a very short period,” Wang Xinghuan, head of one of two field hospitals built for the outbreak, told reporters in Wuhan on April 12. He stressed that he was not speaking for the government.
It is not unusual in epidemics for case and fatality numbers to be revised after authorities carry out retrospective re-testing or reclassify the cause of infection or death.
The Spanish region of Catalonia on Wednesday announced an additional 3,242 coronavirus deaths since the start of the pandemic, nearly doubling its previous tally, citing a change in methodology to include data from funerary services on suspected and confirmed COVID-19 deaths in nursing homes and private homes.
Before the revised Wuhan numbers were released, China said it had recorded 26 new cases of the coronavirus on Thursday, down from 46 cases a day earlier, according to the National Health Commission.
It brought the total number of cases in mainland China to 82,367.
Of the new cases, 15 were imported infections, the lowest since March 17. The remaining 11 confirmed cases were locally transmitted, down from 12 a day earlier. The number of new asymptomatic cases increased to 66 from 64 a day earlier.
China does not include patients with no clinical symptoms such as a cough or a fever in its tally of confirmed cases.
No new deaths were reported.
By Yawen Chen and Brenda Goh/Reuters
99-year-old's fundraiser for Britain's NHS nets nearly $20 million
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Tom Moore, 99, a retired British army captain, walks to raise money for health workers, by attempting to walk the length of his garden 100 times before his 100th birthday this month as the spread of the coronavirus disease continues, in Marston Moretaine, Britain, on April 15, 2020.
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For those having trouble getting in their 10,000 steps per day lately, Tom Moore may serve as an inspiration.
Earlier this month, the 99-year-old World War II veteran, who lives in the town of Bedfordshire, England, set out to walk the length of his back garden 100 times before his 100th birthday on April 30.
On Thursday morning — using his walker and with an honor guard standing watch from a safe distance — he did it.
But Moore’s goal wasn’t just for recreation. He is also raising money for Britain’s national health service, or NHS. He wanted to say thank you for the care he received while recovering from skin cancer and a broken hip.
Moore started with a goal to raise 1,000 British pounds, or about $1,200. As of Thursday afternoon, he’d raised more than 16 million British pounds, or nearly $20 million.
“I think we must say ‘Well done, National Health Service’.”
Tom Moore, 99-year-old World War II veteran
“The patience and the kindness that I’ve got from all of them from top to bottom was absolutely amazing. So, anybody who is helping with me and the National Health Service, I’d be very pleased, because they’ve done so well for me and they’re doing so well for everybody else at the moment,” he told the BBC on Thursday. “I think we must say ‘Well done, National Health Service.’”
His daughter, Hannah Ingram-Moore, says a celebration for his centennial birthday will be in order.
“We were planning a big party with a singer, a hog roast from the local butcher, the works,” she told the BBC. “Sadly, of course, we cannot do that. So, we will have a much more low key party and unfortunately, it’s up to me to make the cake, but we’ll do the best we can.”
Rohingya women are traditionally kept out of leadership roles. Will the coronavirus change that?
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Rupa Shenoy
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Rohingya refugees walk along the road in the evening at Balukhali camp in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, Nov. 16, 2018.
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While cases of COVID-19 in Bangladesh have surpassed 1,200, none so far have been reported in overcrowded Rohingya refugee camps. Still, one refugee there, a mother named Chekufa Ra, speaking through an interpreter, described a feeling of overwhelming dread about what happens if there’s an outbreak.
Ra said clinics and schools have closed, and many volunteers are gone. It’s difficult to find food. And fear is rampant. The internet has been blocked, so many people don’t have basic information about the disease. There have been lots of rumors and misinformation about how the virus is spread.
Related: Racing to develop a drug to fight COVID-19
If there is an outbreak, the success of the response may depend in part on the status of women in the camps. That’s because women are the main caregivers when people fall ill — but they don’t usually have leadership roles in their communities.
“Within the overall structures in the camps, women are often not in decision-making positions. There are only 10 women police in the whole camp. But then at the same time, we see that there can be disproportionate impacts on women and girls.”
Marie Sophie Pettersson, United Nations Women
“And for that, we’re particularly concerned because the Rohingya community as a whole is quite conservative and patriarchal,” said Marie Sophie Pettersson of United Nations Women. “Within the overall structures in the camps, women are often not in decision-making positions. There are only 10 women police in the whole camp. But then at the same time, we see that there can be disproportionate impacts on women and girls.”
Even before the coronavirus, she said, girls and women were trafficked and forced into marriage. Since the lockdown, levels of domestic violence have spiked. And now, because women are the caregivers, they’ll likely be among the first infected.
“This COVID-19 crisis could have devastating impacts if we don’t prevent or mitigate the risks,” Pettersson said.
Related: Bolsonaro’s denial of coronavirus puts the country at risk
Genocide forced Rohingya to flee Myanmar in 2017. Nearly 900,000 people are packed into camps across Bangladesh. Ra was pregnant when she and her 4-year-old daughter walked for days to reach the camps in neighboring Bangladesh. She’s lived there now for three years with her husband and two daughters.
Ra said that before the genocide, many people in her family served as social workers and government officals, and she learned how to organize from them. Now, those skills have helped her take matters into her own hands. She’s leading a grassroots response to the COVID-19 crisis, building a network of 400 refugee women who are going door to door to educate people about the virus, and recruiting more women to help.
They’ve put together makeshift health clinics, and arranged transportation for people who might get sick. If an outbreak hits, Ra said, her group of women will be prepared to respond, no matter what the men say.
Related: Mutual aid groups respond to double threat of coronavirus and climate change
Humanitarian workers are also working to frantically produce videos and podcasts about how the infection spreads. Louise Donovan, of the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees in Bangladesh, explained, “Not everybody is literate and there isn’t a written Rohingya language, also — so, it’s quite challenging.”
She said they’re also expanding medical and isolation facilities as much as possible, and taking steps to improve hygiene. “So, just huge distributions of soap across the camps, establishing hand-washing facilities at all distribution centers and every communal facility in the camp.”
“Everybody is looking for additional capacities and resources at the moment. I think at this time, it’s very clear that this is a global problem and no population can be excluded from that.”
Louise Donovan, spokesperson, Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees in Bangladesh
There’s some capacity for COVID-19 testing, Donovan said, but more medical equipment and resources are needed. “Everybody is looking for additional capacities and resources at the moment,” she said. “I think at this time, it’s very clear that this is a global problem and no population can be excluded from that.”
This researcher finds hope in ‘bright spots’ among coral reefs
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Corals grow in the shallow waters around a small island in Kimbe Bay, Papua New Guinea.
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Australia’s Great Barrier Reef — one of the natural wonders of the world — is experiencing its third major summer bleaching event in the last five years. New aerial surveys show more than half of the reef system has lost some of its vibrant colors.
Bleaching is caused partly by warming oceans and climate change and can eventually kill a coral reef. This year, the Australian Bureau of Meteorology recorded the highest ocean surface temperatures around the reefs since measurements started in 1900.
Australian social scientist and reef researcher Joshua Cinner is a research fellow at the ARC Centre of Excellence in Coral Reef Studies at James Cook University Townsville. Cinner looks for “bright spots,” or reefs that are doing better than expected, to glean lessons for the rest of the world.
For this week’s installment of The Big Fix, the World’s climate solutions segment, Cinner speaks to host Marco Werman about solutions for the world’s reefs.
Related: What can COVID-19 teach us about the world’s climate crisis?
Marco Werman: How do human activities impact the world’s coral reefs?
Joshua Cinner: Climate change is only one of the drivers of change on coral reefs. Even if we solved climate change tomorrow, many of the world’s coral reefs would still be overfished and suffering from pollution. And so, we need to be thinking about how we can build resilience in coral reefs themselves, but also in the coastal communities whose livelihoods depend on the beauty and bounty of coral reefs.
What attributes make some coral reefs fare better than others? And what can we learn from those reefs that might help sustain other reefs?
That actually speaks directly to a study I did a couple of years ago. We conducted over 6,000 reef surveys across 46 countries and looked for places that for all intents and purposes should have been degraded, but weren’t, and we called those our “bright spots.” Bright spots aren’t necessarily pristine reefs, but rather reefs that are doing better than they should be, given the pressures that they face. They’re reefs that are kind of punching above their weight.
We found that bright spots were associated with having high levels of dependence on fishing. This seems kind of counterintuitive, but decades of research into common property institutions found that where people’s livelihoods depend on resources, they’re willing to develop and invest in creative solutions to environmental problems. We also found strong local traditions with the sea and high levels of participation in management by the local communities.
I would guess you spend a good amount of time in reefs. Remind us of the variety of colors we should see among living coral species and how that contrasts with reefs that are bleached out.
When you dive on an intact reef system, the colors are extraordinary. I mean, the color palette some of these individual fish have, you know, they seem like a Picasso painting. There’s this large mosaic of gorgeous textures with tons of fish swimming everywhere.
Now, if you contrast that, typically degraded reefs get taken over by algae rather than this mosaic of colors and textures. You see a kind of brown or green algal mat. The structural complexity, which provides home to coral reef fish, that breaks down so the texture of it becomes much flatter. It’s one of the sadder things I’ve seen, and unfortunately, that’s a story that’s being repeated throughout the world.
You have a new study out today in the journal Science looking at reef management in 41 different countries. What did you learn in that study about what works and what doesn’t in terms of how people manage the health of coral?
Our study of nearly 1,800 tropical coral reefs identified the reefs that “have it all.” They were like the Hollywood A-listers of the coral reef world. And in short, we wanted to find out how local management efforts such as no-fishing marine reserves could help reefs get on the A-list.
I think there’s two important results from our study. The first is that A-listers are rare, but geographically widespread. The second important result is: location, location, location. Local management efforts can help core reefs sustain multiple goals, but only if they’re placed in the right location. We found that marine reserves can make the biggest difference in locations with low human pressure. However, local management doesn’t make much of a difference where human pressure is most extreme. So, I think these results are important to help determine how managers can maximize certain conservation goals and where they might be wasting their time.
I know that as you move forward, you’re auditing all your previous work, looking for what you call “exceptional responders.” What does that mean?
We’re taking a page from medicine. In oncology, there’s a small minority of patients that have remarkable responses to drug therapy, and these are called the “exceptional responders.” Well, we’re planning to do something analogous with coral reefs to find out which reefs are recovering remarkably, and which are doing worse, and why?
Three weeks ago, one of your colleagues, Terry Hughes, tweeted that bearing witness to the coral bleaching, it made him feel like “an art lover wandering through the Louvre as it burns to the ground.” How does focusing on solutions help you cope personally as the metaphoric museum burns to the ground?
It’s kind of in my veins. I’ve always been drawn to looking for solutions to hard environmental problems. But I also think that finding solutions is much more intellectually interesting than simply pointing out problems. As a social scientist, I think that many of the solutions to environmental problems are decidedly social in nature, and issues such as getting people to cooperate and act collectively are intellectually exciting and very challenging. That’s kind of what keeps me going.
This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.
'No fast track' to normal when it comes to reopening economies
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Elana Gordon
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A customer pays in the book store “Buchhandlung Lerchenfeld” after the Austrian government loosened its lockdown restrictions during the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Vienna, Austria, April 14, 2020.
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Strict physical distancing measures in response to the novel coronavirus have disrupted economies and lives in massive ways. But as shutdown measures stretch into weeks and months, many communities across the globe are now wrestling with when and how to relax those policies.
The United Kingdom has announced it would continue its lockdown for at least three more weeks. Meanwhile, on Thursday evening, US President Donald Trump is slated to lay out his plan and guidelines for when places in the US can get back to work. Though Trump falsely claimed he had “absolute authority” as president to make that call, the power to reopen is largely vested in the states.
There’s no simple transition for countries looking to ease restrictions, said Dr. Hans Henri Kluge, director of the World Health Organization’s regional office in Europe, during a press briefing Thursday.
“Ultimately, the behavior of each of us will determine the behavior of the virus. This will take perseverance and patience. There is no fast track back to normal.”
Dr. Hans Henri Kluge, WHO
“Ultimately, the behavior of each of us will determine the behavior of the virus,” he said. “This will take perseverance and patience. There is no fast track back to normal.”
Health researchers such as Caroline Buckee, associate director of the Center for Communicable Disease Dynamics at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, are wrestling with how to understand the best way to ease restrictions to limit the future spread of COVID-19 and prevent even more harm down the road. For her, critical pieces of this puzzle are still missing.
“In many areas we don’t really know where we are with the epidemic because of the lack of testing,” Buckee told The World during a Facebook Live discussion co-produced with the Forum at Harvard’s Chan School. “So I’d say it’s very variable, geographically, and in terms of timing.”
Related: COVID-19: The latest from The World
Understanding this variability is important, Buckee said, because the pandemic is playing out differently across the globe, depending on where you live and how well those health systems are able to care for patients who are sick with COVID-19.
More than 2 million cases of the disease have been documented. Some parts of the world are just at the beginning of their outbreak, while places like China and Singapore are on the other side of their major peak. The situation is even more unclear in communities that lack necessary testing.
Buckee said in the United States, another important aspect of the pandemic that needs to be understood is how many people have already been infected, and how people who are asymptomatic spread the virus.
To know whether someone has had the new coronavirus requires a specific kind of antibody test that has yet to be fully rolled out in the US. It is also unclear if and how long a person who has had COVID-19 is immune to the disease in the future.
“It gives a clearer picture of how far along a community is in the epidemic, when it’s sensible to restart economies and go back to work,” Buckee said.
Robust contact tracing is also key in preventing future spikes, as communities seek to scale back social distancing. Transition policies, said Buckee, must also take into account how to limit coronavirus exposure to those who may be most likely to experience complications, such as the elderly and those with chronic health conditions.
Documenting the toll of coronavirus on New York City's Chinatown
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A person crosses a street in the neighborhood of Chinatown on March, 20, 2020, following the outbreak of COVID-19 in New York City.
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Trump's WHO funding cut harms 'fragile' health systems, organization's Africa head says
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Lucy Martirosyan
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A health care worker who volunteered in the Ebola response decontaminates his colleague after he entered the house of a woman suspected of dying of Ebola, in the eastern Congolese town of Beni in the Democratic Republic of Congo, October 2019.
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There is a global backlash against US President Donald Trump’s decision to halt American funding for the World Health Organization. The move would slash about 10% of the organization’s operating budget during the coronavirus pandemic.
Germany and China are denouncing the president’s plan, as are all the 55 member states of the African Union.
WHO support is critical in many parts of Africa — including countries like the Democratic Republic of Congo, which is not only dealing with the coronavirus outbreak, but with Ebola.
Dr. Michel Yao is WHO’s program manager for emergency response for Africa. He spoke to The World’s host Marco Werman about what it’s like to deal with a pandemic and an epidemic at a time when WHO is overstretched.
Related: COVID-19: The latest from The World
Marco Werman: Dr. Yao, what do you make of Trump’s call to stop US donations to the WHO?
Dr. Michel Yao: I think we acknowledge the support received from the US so far in many different public health interventions. And based on this support, we had many achievements. The comment that I can make is that it’s quite unfortunate that it’s happened at this moment where we need most of the members around us. We are appealing really for more solidarity and being together for this unprecedented crisis.
Related: In Senegal, COVID-19 safety measures conflict with cultural traditions
We’re thinking a lot about the coronavirus, but I know at the beginning of this week, the DR Congo was hoping that it could declare itself Ebola-free. And yet, two people died from Ebola. That’s got to be really disappointing for health workers. What does it mean for the country’s ability to effectively deal with two epidemics at the same time?
In a fragile health system, like the one we have in DR Congo, it means that the resources will be overstretched. You have to deal with Ebola — that is absorbing a lot of resources. If we want to control it, it’s going to require dedicated attention. At the same time, you have another disease that also spreads faster than Ebola. So, it will mean that the resources have to deal with two challenges, and there would be more of a stretch. So, there is a need for our different partners to remain on board and around.
Related: As coronavirus spreads, poor communities in Kenya are left vulnerable
When the Ebola outbreak started in DR Congo in August of 2018 — so nearly two years ago — many people didn’t believe it was real. In fact, as you know, militias shot and killed health workers over it — colleagues of yours. How are people in DR Congo reacting to COVID-19? Are they taking it more seriously?
It’s the same in DR Congo as well as in many countries. You see, this deadly virus has a lot of rumors. So, it’s like in many communicable diseases, it requires a lot of awareness. So, I think we learned a lot from Ebola that we need to share the right information. We need to also engage communities to be on board, to assign them tasks for them to own their response. And that’s what we are doing. Learning from Ebola, we are building on what we did. But these rumors are always there.
Related: What the US can learn from West Africa to slow the spread of coronavirus
With your background, Dr. Yao, in emergency responses to epidemics, how does COVID-19 compare? Is it too soon to compare it to other outbreaks you’ve been through?
COVID-19 is, I think from my experience, it’s one of the things that I’ve never seen, the way it affects many countries at the same time. So, you find all the worldwide resources absorbed by this outbreak, and it leaves less for support for the weakest.
I’m in charge of emergency operations for WHO Africa. And in my experience, we deal with few countries. Major outbreaks never affect more than 10 countries at once. But this time, we have in our region — we cover 47 countries — we have 45 of them in crisis. So, this is what makes it totally different from what we saw in the past.
This interview has been condensed and edited for clarity.
Court blocks oil drilling in Peruvian Amazon
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Adam Wernick
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El Cono is a 1,500-foot inactive volcano in Sierra del Divisor, one of the most important national parks in Peru.
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A judge in Peru has blocked a proposed oil drilling project in the Peruvian Amazon that threatened to damage the ecosystem and the health of isolated Indigenous peoples.
The Sierra del Divisor was set aside as a national park in 2016, but the national oil company, Perupetro, planned to exploit the area for oil extraction. An Indigenous coalition went to court to try to block the project, and they recently won the lawsuit. The suit was filed by the Regional Organization of Indigenous People of the East, or ORPIO.
Sierra del Divisor National Park covers a vast area of the Peru-Brazil border and is one of the most important protected areas in the country, said Beatriz Huertas, an anthropology consultant for Rainforest Foundation Norway.
“This region of the Amazonian rainforest is home to Indigenous groups living in voluntary isolation. … They decided to isolate themselves in order to keep safe from things like disease and aggression, which were brought forth by people exploiting the forest for latex.”
Beatriz Huertas, anthropologist, Rainforest Foundation Norway
“This region of the Amazonian rainforest is home to Indigenous groups living in voluntary isolation,” Huertas said. “They decided to isolate themselves in order to keep safe from things like disease and aggression, which were brought forth by people exploiting the forest for latex.”
The national park also contains enormous biodiversity of mammals, primates and birds, and the fauna is extremely diverse and characteristic of the Amazonian region, Huertas said.
Related: ‘Our wealth is the forest’: Indigenous tribes are the last best hope for the Amazon
The area has already felt the impact of fossil fuel exploration, Huertas said. Reflection seismology studies, the clearing of forests for roadways and installation of heavy equipment have already begun in one section of Sierra del Divisor. And although Sierra del Divisor has as yet seen only exploration, not extraction, oil spills in the future are a real fear.
“In the northern part of the Peruvian jungle, the Selva Norte, oil spills happen all the time, causing a lot of contamination in the rivers, the land and the surrounding environment,” Huertas said. “The impacts are quite horrible, affecting the flora and the fauna in the forest, killing animals, plants and degrading water resources.”
Related: Saving the planet depends on saving its tropical forests. Can we do it?
An extremely sensitive area known as Lot 135, located on the edge of the River Yaquerana, is of particular concern. “It regulates the flow of the whole river,” Huertas said, “but that hasn’t been taken into consideration by the Peruvian government or considered important when it comes to making decisions about exploiting natural resources in the forest.”
Should petroleum extraction begin, the isolated Indigenous communities who live in the national park could face infection from diseases introduced by oil extraction company workers.
“That could result in a massive outbreak of deadly illnesses for Indigenous people,” Huertas said. “They don’t have the immunological defenses that people living in cities and talents have developed throughout the years. And degrading the forest for exploitation would basically damage their main source of subsistence. They don’t depend on mass-produced agriculture, like people in cities. They basically live off the land. … They depend exclusively on the forest and rivers in Sierra del Divisor to keep them alive. The health of the forest could be considered an indicator of their livelihood.”
Since the Indigenous groups living in isolation don’t have any social relationship to the Peruvian people, ORPIO, the Regional Organization of Indigenous People of the East, took on the responsibility of defending and protecting them, Huertas said. In 2016, ORPIO filed a lawsuit against the Peruvian government for violating the communities’ fundamental rights to health and subsistence. The judge handed down the verdict, which Huertas called “extremely favorable,” in December of 2019.
Related: Colombian high court grants personhood to Amazon rainforest in case against country’s government
“It’s the first ruling of its kind in Peru. … The judge said that zoning for oil extraction in Sierra del Divisor must be changed to respect the areas inhabited by Indigenous groups in isolation, and that permits for oil extraction in these areas should never be granted again.”
Beatriz Huertas, anthropologist, Rainforest Foundation Norway
“It’s the first ruling of its kind in Peru,” she said. “The judge said that zoning for oil extraction in Sierra del Divisor must be changed to respect the areas inhabited by Indigenous groups in isolation, and that permits for oil extraction in these areas should never be granted again. It is creating favorable precedents for the rights of Indigenous groups in isolation [and] establishing respect for their subsistence and livelihood above money and economic interest.”
“But we also have to consider that this is the first ruling so far and that the defendants, in this case, have appealed,” Huertas said. “We have to work very hard and keep fighting in order to obtain the same verdict in the second ruling.”
This article is based on an interview by Bobby Bascomb that aired on Living on Earth from PRX.
Denmark reopens schools as experts advise caution globally; IMF warns of second Great Depression; Racing to develop a drug to fight COVID-19
Parents with their children stand in a line waiting to get inside Stengaard School following the coronavirus outbreak north of Copenhagen, Denmark, April 15, 2020.
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Credit: Ritzau Scanpix/Bo Amstrup/via Reuters
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Top of The World — our morning news round up written by editors at The World. Subscribe here.
Denmark’s youngsters are returning to schools this week. The country was among the first in Europe to set restrictions to slow the spread of the coronavirus and has been praised for its swift action. But critics warn that reopening schools is a risky strategy, and some parents refuse to let their children be “guinea pigs.”
US President Donald Trump intends to announce plans Thursday to reopen the American economy. But public health officials and the business leaders the Trump administration haphazardly assembled into advisory groups say that testing in the US is nowhere near the capacity needed to allow people to safely return to work.
Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel has announced some lockdown rollbacks, but urged “extreme caution.” Merkel, who has a doctorate in physics, was also able to clearly explain how the disease transmission works, highlighting the value of politicians who understand science when creating policy.
From The World: Madeleine Albright: ‘Globalization is not a four-letter word’
And: COVID-19: Making sense of all the numbers
IMF warns of second Great Depression
The International Monetary Fund warned the global economy could contract by 3% this year and $9 trillion in output could be lost over two years, according to the organization’s 2020 World Economic Outlook, issued this week. Some experts speculate it’s the end of the world economy as we know it.
Economists estimate that China, the world’s second-largest economy, may have shrunk by 6% in the first quarter. It would be the first quarterly economic contraction for the country since records began. Manufacturers slowly reopening are going to extreme lengths to fend off a resurgence of the virus.
And: California is giving 150,000 undocumented adults $500 each
Also: Japan’s Abe to give blanket cash handouts in coronavirus
Millions of South Korean voters head to the polls amid COVID-19 pandemic
After winning praise from across the globe for mitigating the spread of the novel coronavirus, South Korea has held parliamentary elections despite concerns that rolling back distancing and quarantine measures could expose voters to the disease.
On Wednesday, at least 29 million South Koreans lined up at polling places to cast ballots for the 300-seat National Assembly — a vote that was widely seen as a measure of public support for the government’s response to the pandemic.
Every 30 Seconds: Young Latino voters in Seattle view November election through lens of pandemic
Racing to develop a drug to fight COVID-19
Doctors in China and the US have transfused antibodies from recovered patients directly into the blood of people with severe cases of COVID-19. Dr. Mario Ostrowski and his collaborators want to identify the genes that encode these antibodies and use them to mass produce lab-grown versions — to turn into a drug to treat the infection.
And: India hospital segregates Muslim and Hindu coronavirus patients
A history of the drug that conquered the world
With little evidence, US President Donald Trump has touted chloroquine’s potential for treating the novel coronavirus, and the clamor for the drug has alarmed leading scientists. But the race for chloroquine is far from new. This remedy and its natural derivative, the cinchona plant, have defined world powers and symbolized hope for cures to destructive diseases for centuries.
And: How an anti-malarial drug has become a tool of India’s diplomacy
In a new MoMA audio guide, security guards are the art experts
Museum of Modern Art security guards pose outside the museum with artist Chemi Rosado-Seijo, far right, creator of an audio guide where the guards explain their favorite works of art.
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Catalyst Program, The Museum of Modern Art. Photo: Beatriz Meseguer/onwhitewall.com. © 2020 The Museum of Modern Art, New York
Museum visitors usually don’t acknowledge security guards. But they’re often incredibly knowledgable about the art they keep watch over — and may even be artists themselves. A new MoMA audio guide puts the guards front and center. In a series of 20 audio essays, the guards each choose a piece of art and speak about it.
You can listen online even though the museum is closed as part of countrywide stay-at-home orders to stop the spread of the coronavirus.
Morning meme
Conservationists in Vietnam recently got some good news: A species feared extinct, the Vietnamese silver-backed mouse-deer, was documented for the first time in nearly 30 years.
The silver-backed chevrotain lives in the scrubby forests of Vietnam’s coast. These animals, also known as mouse-deer, are the world’s smallest ungulates, or hooved animals. This photo is the first documentation of its existence in nearly 30 years.
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Courtesy of SIE/GWC / Leibniz-IZW/NCNP
In case you missed it:Listen: Outcry over Trump’s WHO funding cut order
US President Donald Trump addresses the daily coronavirus task force briefing at the White House, April 14, 2020.
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Leah Millis/Reuters
President Donald Trump says he’s halting funding for the World Health Organization pending a review. How would the funding cut affect the WHO’s work? And, there’s a global backlash against Trump’s WHO announcement, especially in places where the organization is vital like in Democratic Republic of Congo, where they are not only dealing with COVID-19 but also Ebola. Also, a priest in Vancouver, Canada, has a social distancing solution for confessionals for his congregation: a drive-through option.
Don’t forget to subscribe to The World’s Latest Edition podcast using your favorite podcast player: RadioPublic, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Soundcloud, RSS.
Trump to push for reopening US as millions more seek unemployment aid
US President Donald Trump addresses the daily coronavirus task force briefing at the White House, April 15, 2020.
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Leah Millis/Reuters
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Despite concerns from health experts, governors and business leaders about a resurgence in cases without more testing and protocols in place, US President Donald Trump is expected to announce new guidelines to reopen the economy after a monthlong shutdown over the coronavirus outbreak.
Trump announced his decision to push states to lift stay-at-home and other restrictions that were imposed last month to halt the spread of the highly contagious coronavirus as the number of deaths in the United States approached 31,000 on Wednesday — more than any other nation.
States’ orders have also crushed the nation’s economy to levels not seen since the Great Depression nearly a century ago as a record more than 20 million Americans have sought unemployment benefits amid shuttered stores and restaurants, including another 5.2 million who filed for aid in the past week, pushing the US unemployment rate to 8.2%.
The president is scheduled to hold a call with the nation’s governors at 3 p.m. and said he would announce his plan at a news conference later on Thursday. The White House coronavirus task force is scheduled to hold its daily public briefing at 5 p.m.
Thursday’s unemployment data comes on the heels of retail data one day earlier showing a record drop in sales and the lowest factory output since the end of the Second World War, further pressuring Trump, who had staked his re-election in November on the strength of the US economy.
Discussion: Coronavirus conversations — taking your questions to the experts
On Wednesday, Trump said data suggested new cases have peaked and that industry leaders in a round of calls offered him good insights into how to safely restart the economy. But the head of a major union warned the president not to reopen unless worker safety can be ensured, and chief executives from some of the nation’s biggest companies told Trump more testing was needed to guarantee safety, according to multiple media reports.
“We’re in a strong place, and I can assure you that the guidance being put out today is in line with what the experts are saying, it’s in line with what the data is showing and it’s a plan to put this economy back on track,” White House press secretary Kayleigh McEnany told Fox News on Thursday.
Related: Racing to develop a drug to fight COVID-19
More than 635,000 total US cases have been reported across all 50 states. But not all states have been struck equally, as New York and others have been hit particularly hard. Even within states disparities are being seen in more urban and poorer areas.
That divide has inflamed political divisions as political leaders debate how and when to begin unwinding unprecedented lockdowns and prompting protests organized by conservative and pro-Trump groups against some state leaders who opted to keep residents at home.
Earlier this week, Trump said he had the power to override state governors who did not move to restart activity, before later saying he would work with them on their efforts to reopen.
States meanwhile are seeking $500 billion more in immediate fiscal relief from Congress to help fight the pandemic as lawmakers weigh a potential fourth coronavirus spending bill.
By Susan Heavey/Reuters
Discussion: On the front lines of the coronavirus crisis
Updated:
April 17, 2020 · 3:00 PM EDT
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US President Donald Trump is expected to announce new guidelines to reopen the economy after a monthlong shutdown over the coronavirus outbreak, while leaders elsewhere are more cautious.
The United Kingdom’s Health Minister Matt Hancock said on Thursday the novel coronavirus outbreak in the country is starting to peak, but it is too early to lift the lockdown because the virus would “run rampant” if the government eased social distancing measures.
And Spain on Thursday reported a rise in its national toll of deaths from the coronavirus in the past day, but figures from the region of Catalonia indicated the real total so far could be several thousand more.
Spain has been one of the countries worst hit by the global epidemic, but it has tentatively started to ease a lockdown imposed on March 14.
Related: Racing to develop a drug to fight COVID-19
As health experts, heads of state and business leaders debate easing restrictions, hospital workers remain under intense pressure trying to combat COVID-19.
What are the challenges facing our medical responders during this unprecedented time?
As part of our weekly series with Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, The World’s Jonathan Dyer moderated a discussion with Dr. Paul Biddinger, director of Massachusetts General Hospital’s Center for Disaster Medicine.
Biddinger, offered a firsthand account of what it’s like to be on the hospital front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic as deaths surge.
Racing to develop a drug to fight COVID-19
By
Ari Daniel
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A team of researchers at the Vanderbilt Vaccine Center selects lead antibody candidates for further screening.
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Rachel Nargi
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Back in early March in Toronto, André Valleteau went out for drinks with his friends over the weekend. On that Sunday, he spent the day at a work event. But by Monday morning, he was feeling exhausted.
On Tuesday, “I was starting to have a bit of itching at the back of my throat,” Valleteau said. “And then, I got a call from public health just letting me know I was in contact with someone who had tested positive” for the coronavirus.
Related: Millions of South Korean voters head to the polls amid COVID-19 pandemic
Valleteau immediately self-quarantined. His fatigue continued, and he developed a persistent cough and a migraine. The most difficult part of the experience was the isolation.
“In my case, I live alone,” he said. “So, it’s not like I have people that I can talk to in person.”
André Valleteau, self-quarantined in Toronto after being exposed to someone diagnosed with COVID-19
“In my case, I live alone,” he said. “So, it’s not like I have people that I can talk to in person.”
Valleteau turned 27 during his quarantine. He celebrated alone, but his aunt and uncle and some friends dropped off two full cakes for him. (Nearly a month later, he still has cake in his fridge.)
One of the two cakes that André Valleteau received for his birthday as he fought off COVID-19 alone in his apartment. The other was chocolate.
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Courtesy of André Valleteau
Gradually, Valleteau made a full recovery and ended his quarantine, though Toronto has been under lockdown since mid-March. His thoughts then turned from his own care to something bigger — as someone in the health care field, he wondered whether there were any researchers in need of blood from people who had successfully defeated COVID-19.
“I really wanted to be able to play my part in this,” he said, “and just help in any way that I possibly could.”
Valleteau didn’t have to go far. Just across town, at the University of Toronto, a research effort led by Mario Ostrowski, an infectious disease doctor, was underway. After a person recovers from a COVID-19 infection, their immune system has likely produced enough antibodies to protect them from subsequent infections.
“And if we can harness these antibodies,” Ostrowski said, “you might be able to use them as an immunotherapy and neutralize the virus.”
Related: COVID-19 Cyber Threat Intelligence League fights cybercrime amid pandemic
Doctors in China and the US have transfused antibodies from recovered patients directly into the blood of people with severe cases of COVID-19. But Ostrowski is talking about something different. He and his collaborators want to identify the genes that encode these antibodies and use them to mass produce lab-grown versions. Those would then be turned into a drug to treat the infection.
This elegant idea has a history. The first Nobel Prize in physiology or medicine was awarded in 1901 for the use of antibodies made in a horse to treat diphtheria in humans. Today, antibodies synthesized in the lab are used in Ebola and cancer treatments, and — if Ostrowski has anything to say about it — they could help win the fight against the coronavirus. But the first step is collecting the right antibodies.
Inside Ostrowski’s research facility a couple of weeks ago, nurse Megan Buchholz scanned André Valleteau’s arm for the right vein.
“So I’ll put it in here,” she said, “so give me one second, just bend your arm.”
Related: Top scientist says he quit research council over poor European response to COVID-19
An intravenous tube draws blood from one arm, routes it into a machine with a tiny centrifuge that removes white blood cells and other immune cells, and then snakes the remaining blood back to the other arm, Ostrowski explained. This procedure, called leukapheresis, is a way of extracting only the immune cells.
André Valleteau undergoes a leukapheresis procedure where several billion of his immune cells are extracted.
Credit:
Courtesy of André Valleteau
“Just a really quick pinch,” Buchholz said. “This is like if you’re donating blood.”
And just like that, the two-hour procedure began. By the end of it, Valleteau had contributed about five tablespoons of plasma, and several billion immune cells. “Because there’s so many,” Ostrowski explained, “we can distribute them to labs all over the world and they can do very extensive analyses on those samples.”
“Your body makes tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of antibodies to a virus. And typically, they do work in concert — it’s almost like a musical orchestra or ensemble.”
Dr. James Crowe, Vanderbilt Vaccine Center
One of those labs is the Vanderbilt Vaccine Center in Nashville, Tennessee. “Your body makes tens of thousands, if not hundreds of thousands of antibodies to a virus,” said Dr. James Crowe, who directs the center. “And typically, they do work in concert — it’s almost like a musical orchestra or ensemble.”
Crowe and his team sifted through several thousand antibodies isolated from the blood of four patients in Toronto, Canada, Seattle, Washington, and Madison, Wisconsin. It’s like searching through an orchestra of thousands of instruments for the one playing just the right melody — one powerful enough that it could be made into a drug to treat COVID-19 by itself.
“What we really want,” Crowe said, “is just one or two antibodies that in and of themselves can do everything needed to prevent infection, and then it’s game over for the virus. We need the antibodies not just to find the virus, but they need to interrupt some part of that virus life cycle.”
Related: Mutual aid groups respond to double threat of coronavirus and climate change
The antibody Crowe is after might block the coronavirus from docking to our cells in the first place. Or even if the virus does manage to attach, the antibody might prevent it from penetrating the cells and replicating. This approach is just one of roughly 200 efforts across the globe to develop drugs or vaccines to thwart COVID-19, which includes everything from the novel RNA vaccine that entered clinical trials last month to more traditional approaches involving inactivated viral particles.
Wendy Wobeser is an infectious disease specialist at Queen’s University in Ontario, Canada. She’s a colleague of Ostrowski, but isn’t involved in the antibody research.
“Whether this will directly result in a therapeutic, I think it’s a bit early for most people. I’d be cautiously optimistic that it will give some benefit. It’s going to be a challenge to actually get it rolled out.”
Wendy Wobeser, Queen’s University
“Whether this will directly result in a therapeutic, I think it’s a bit early for most people,” she said. “I’d be cautiously optimistic that it will give some benefit. It’s going to be a challenge to actually get it rolled out.”
André Valleteau undergoes a leukapheresis procedure where several billion of his immune cells are extracted.
Credit:
Courtesy of André Valleteau
And that’s because only a small number of research efforts like this one actually clear all the hurdles to become an approved drug.
But at Vanderbilt, Crowe has already found a few promising antibodies that his partners are currently preparing for clinical testing. He and his research team should know if one of these antibodies is safe in humans within six to eight months, which is really fast. The people doing this work are moving at a breathtaking pace.
“It’s not even a choice. It’s something that I have to do,” Ostrowski said. “I feel this is a duty to society to use my talents to help solve this [pandemic].”
