NIAID COVID EMAIL COVER-UP PLEA
A former top NIAID adviser has pleaded guilty in a federal case tied to a scheme to hide COVID-era communications from public view, a stunning fallout from the pandemic’s biggest scientific and political battle. David Morens, 78, admitted conspiring to evade FOIA and federal records laws, with prosecutors saying he and others used personal email to conceal messages about coronavirus research grants after NIH terminated a bat coronavirus project linked to the Wuhan lab debate. The plea lands hard: this wasn’t just paperwork gamesmanship, but an effort to keep potentially explosive government records out of reach.
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Today’s Birthday
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Raymond Poincaré (1860)August 20, 2026
A career statesman, Poincaré ascended to the highest echelons of French government, serving as prime minister on several occasions and as president from 1913 to 1920. In the lead-up to World War I, Poincaré, a conservative and nationalist, worked to prepare France for possible hostilities, strengthening its military and its alliances with Russia and Britain. His efforts paid off, and Germany was defeated by the Allied Powers in 1918. What prompted him to send French troops into Germany in 1923?
A career statesman, Poincaré ascended to the highest echelons of French government, serving as prime minister on several occasions and as president from 1913 to 1920. In the lead-up to World War I, Poincaré, a conservative and nationalist, worked to prepare France for possible hostilities, strengthening its military and its alliances with Russia and Britain. His efforts paid off, and Germany was defeated by the Allied Powers in 1918. What prompted him to send French troops into Germany in 1923?Today’s Holiday
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Estonia Restoration of Independence DayAugust 20, 2026
In the 20th century, Estonia was a sovereign state from 1919 to 1940. At that time, it was forced to become a socialist republic of the Soviet Union. Then, in 1991, the Soviet Union collapsed, and on August 20 of that year, Estonia formally re-established its independence. Throughout 2008, the country celebrated its 90th anniversary as a republic. This is one of three days on which the national flag must be hoisted on state buildings, along with Victory Day (June 23) and Independence Day (February 24).
In the 20th century, ARTICLE OF THE DAY
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K2August 20, 2026
Standing 28,251 ft (8,611 m) high on the border of China and Pakistan, K2 is the second highest mountain in the world. Although the summit of Mt. Everest is at a higher altitude, K2 is considered a more difficult climb, due in part to its severe weather. Part of the Karakorum segment of the Himalayas, the peak was first scaled in 1954, but only a few hundred climbers have ever reached the summit—compared to the thousands who have ascended Everest. Why is the mountain called "K2"?
Standing 28,251 ft (8,611 m) high on the border of China and Pakistan, K2 is the second highest mountain in the world. Although the summit of Mt. Everest is at a higher altitude, K2 is considered a more difficult climb, due in part to its severe weather. Part of the Karakorum segment of the Himalayas, the peak was first scaled in 1954, but only a few hundred climbers have ever reached the summit—compared to the thousands who have ascended Everest. Why is the mountain called "K2"?
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