Chron briefs for Aug. 25
World monkeypox cases fall despite America’s spike, supply crunch
Global monkeypox cases declined for the first time in a month, led by a drop in infections across Europe despite growing concerns about a supply crunch for vaccines.
New cases around the world fell 21% in the week ending Sunday from the previous week, as dwindling caseloads in Europe offset a continued spike from the Americas, the World Health Organization said Thursday.
The WHO also noted that 16 countries have not reported new infections for more than three weeks, the maximum incubation period for the disease, although the virus has spread to nearly 100 countries, with the global caseload topping 41,000.
The U.S. saw the heaviest increase in the past week and has reported a total 14,049 cases as of Monday. With a moderating trend in Europe, most of new cases are being reported in the Americas, primarily among men who have sex with men.
The steady climb in cases over the past few months has prompted countries to scramble for vaccines, and surging demand has strained production at Bavarian Nordic A/S, the Danish producer of the only shot thus far approved for the disease.
The company has signed a deal with Grand River Aseptic Manufacturing for shots in the U.S. while health authorities there, in the European Union and in the UK have called on clinics to administer shots at lower doses to stretch supplies.
Putin Orders sharp Increase in Size of Russian Military
President Vladimir Putin on Thursday ordered a sharp increase in the size of his armed forces, a reversal of years of efforts by the Kremlin to slim down a bloated military and the latest sign that the Russian president, despite heavy battlefield losses, is bracing for a long war in Ukraine.
The decree, signed by Putin and posted on the Kremlin website, raised the target number of active-duty service members by about 137,000, to 1.15 million, as of January , and ordered the government to set aside money to pay for the increase. Military analysts puzzled over how such a sharp increase could be managed.
It was the first time in five years that Putin had issued an order changing the overall head count of the Russian armed forces. Officials offered no explanation for the move, and there was little mention of it on state television. U.S. military officials estimate that Russia has suffered up to 80,000 casualties – including both deaths and injuries – during Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
Some analysts described the move as a clear signal that, after a full six months of fighting, Putin had no plans to relent.
“This is not a move that you make when you are anticipating a rapid end to your war,” said Dara Massicot, a senior policy researcher at the RAND Corp. “This is something you do when you are making some kind of plan for a protracted conflict.”
There is mounting evidence that the war in Ukraine could stretch to next winter and beyond. Russia’s offensives in the east and south have slowed to a crawl. And neither side has shown any readiness to negotiate or compromise – not Russia, which had initially moved to topple the Kyiv government and now aims to seize large swaths of Ukraine’s territory, nor Ukraine, whose freedom and sovereignty are at stake.
While enjoying a significant superiority in artillery and in long-distance missiles, Russia’s forces have been unable to capture significant territory since the beginning of July, when the city of Lysychansk in the country’s Luhansk region fell.
Military analysts and reporters on the ground have been attributing the slowing pace of Russia’s offensive to a lack of manpower. Over the past months, Russia has been scrambling to recruit volunteers to serve in Ukraine in what some analysts called a “stealth mobilization.”
Currently, Russia requires men aged 18 to 27 to do one year of active military service, although the precise number called up at any given time fluctuates. But the army also has career soldiers who serve under contract, including women.
That’s Dr. Joni to you: Mitchell’s renaissance revs up with honorary Berklee doctorate
Joni Mitchell is a Grammy winner, Kennedy Center Honors recipient and now? A doctor.
On Tuesday, the beloved singer-songwriter’s renaissance picked up even more speed when Berklee College of Music awarded Mitchell an honorary doctorate.
Berklee President Erica Muhl lauded the 78-year-old musician for “blazing the trail for women in music with an unwavering commitment” and dubbed her “one of the world’s greatest musical artists.”
“Well, luckily I’m too old to get a swelled head,” Mitchell joked in her acceptance speech.
Mitchell – who wore a black beret embroidered with “Dr. Joni Mitchell” – was feted at a private celebration in Santa Monica, California.
Attendees included fellow music greats Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter and a tribute performance by Terri Lyne Carrington.
Just one thing was missing. Mitchell said she wished that her parents were still alive and could have been there to see it.
“My mother in particular would be really proud of this because she wanted me to go to college,” she said. “I went to art school and I quit after a year.
“She thinks of me as a quitter. So to see this achievement would be really impressive to her. I wish I could share it with her.”
Mitchell is the latest legend to accept an honorary doctorate from Berklee. Recent recipients have included Ringo Starr, Celine Dion, John legend and the Neptunes’ Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo.
The Berklee honor caps an already momentous summer for Mitchell. At the Newport Folk Festival in July, she gave her first public performance since her brain aneurysm in 2015. She took the stage alongside Brandi Carlile, Wynonna Judd, Marcus Mumford and others to perform a set of hits including “Carey,” “The Circle Game” and “Help Me.”
The rare appearance sparked a range of emotions from both festivalgoers and fellow musicians. Judd said she was “ugly-crying” through the performance.
”Joni was the soundtrack of my childhood – she’s my hero – and Brandi invited me to come and be a witness to her incredible journey,” she told the L.A. Times.