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DOJ Asks Appeals Court to Allow Travel Mask Mandate
The Justice Department on Tuesday called on a federal appeals court to reinstate the national mask mandate for public transit and airplanes after a U.S. district judge found the requirements to be unlawful in April.
In a brief filed with the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, the Biden administration argued the January 2021 order from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) requiring travelers to wear masks on public transportation and in transit hubs to prevent the spread of COVID-19 “falls easily” within the agency’s statutory authority.
“Taking preventative measures is part of the CDC’s core mission. It is embodied in the name of the agency — Centers for Disease Control and Prevention,” Justice Department lawyers told the 11th Circuit in their filing. “It makes no sense to suggest that the agency would not incorporate preventative measures in the actions it undertakes.”
Air Force Members Denied Religious Exemptions to COVID Vaccine File Lawsuit to Stop Punishment, Terminations
A federal lawsuit has been filed on behalf of multiple Air Force service members seeking protections against punishment by the military after they were denied religious exemptions to the COVID-19 vaccine.
Fist Liberty Institute and law firm Schaerr Jaffe LLP filed the lawsuit against the Department of Defense and the Air Force on Friday afternoon on behalf of the service members, who represent about 2% of the Air Force members who have not been vaccinated against the coronavirus.
The filing alleges that the Department of Defense is violating the First Amendment rights of the service members by imposing a vaccine mandate that “substantially burdens” free exercise of religion, despite granting hundreds of administrative and medical exemptions. In addition, the lawsuit argues that the government does not have a compelling interest and has not provided service members other less restrictive manners in which to stop the spread of COVID-19.
Microsoft Wants to Prove You Exist With Verified ID System, If You’ll Let It
In the decade-spanning conflict between the need for online privacy and efforts to stop fake accounts from accessing sensitive info, the tech monolith that is Microsoft is putting its massive weight behind the creation of standardized online identities.
In its announcement Tuesday, Microsoft talked up its Entra management systems that includes Verified ID, promoting itself as a quick way of giving sensitive identification to entities that need to verify that you are who you say you are.
In its release, the company said that old means of restricting electronic access was “no longer sustainable” because of how digital estates have become “boundary-less.” What that really means is people abusing fake accounts to gain access to sensitive online networks have created a host of issues for private companies, governments and more. Microsoft itself has been targeted by hackers who managed to access company information on Microsoft’s Azure cloud computing platform. The LAPSUS$ group of hackers has previously called on tech company employees to give them sensitive info.
Feds’ Vaccine Mandate Enforcement Could Be Days Away, but Agencies Are Not Yet Prepping
Government Executive reported:
The Biden administration could soon be able to start suspending and firing the remaining federal employees who have yet to receive a COVID-19 vaccine, but agencies are not yet taking steps to prepare for that outcome.
A federal appeals court in April struck down a nationwide injunction that had paused the enforcement of President Biden’s mandate, but enforcement was stalled due to a standard buffer period after the judges’ ruling. The mandate was set to go into effect Tuesday, but a petition from those challenging the mandate for a rehearing from the entire U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has further delayed the Biden administration from taking action on employees out of compliance with the requirement. The Justice Department had asked the court to immediately allow it to resume enforcement, but the court has opted to let the secondary appeal play out.
The court last week asked Justice to respond to the plaintiffs request for an en banc hearing by Thursday, making a ruling likely on Friday at the earliest. The judges could opt to immediately put the mandate back into effect, but typically it would apply another seven-day buffer period. That would make the earliest date the requirement could take effect June 10.
Is 5G Making You Sick? Here’s What Experts Say
If you own a smartphone or similar device, you could be using 5G. Cellular networks worldwide are rolling out the fifth-generation mobile technology, providing high-speed wireless connections.
But it can be unnerving to think about what’s transmitted through the air that we can’t see — particularly if there’s concern 5G may affect your well-being. If you’re worried electromagnetic radiation is connected to cancer or other health problems, find out everything you need to know about how 5G works, according to experts and research.
What is 5G?
Developed in 2019, 5G is associated with the latest version of wireless communications being made available for broad public use, explains Christopher Collins, Ph.D., a professor of radiology at New York University.
When you use your phone to communicate with other devices, cellular data is sent through radio frequencies (RFs). Calls and other functions are connected through a series of base stations called “cells” that cover certain geographic regions, according to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
Moscow Police Break Up Opposition Communist Party Rally Against New ‘Mandatory’ COVID-19 Vaccination Rules for Some Workers
A dozen people were arrested as Moscow police clamped down on an unsanctioned rally in the Russian capital, on Saturday, against compulsory COVID-19 vaccination for certain workers. It was organized by the local Communist Party.
The march was staged near Pushkinskaya Square in central Moscow and — despite the blazing 34 degrees Celsius temperature — a crowd of around a thousand gathered, according to media reports.
Local Communist politician Valery Rashkin had earlier announced that he would hold a meeting at the site. He had pledged to respect COVID-19 related guidelines.
St. Vincent Workers Who Declined COVID Vaccine Sue Hospital for Religious Discrimination
Dozens of St. Vincent Health and Ascension Health workers in Indiana who were suspended without pay for not receiving the COVID-19 vaccine are asking a federal court to open a class action lawsuit.
The 64 workers claim the hospital network discriminated against them because they objected to the vaccine on religious grounds.
“Ascension Health established a coercive process calculated to force healthcare workers and staff to abandon their religious objections to the COVID-19 vaccination and receive the vaccination against their will,” the lawsuit claims. Ascension Health owns St. Vincent Health.
