This Isn't Free Speech. It's Hatred and A Lack of Human Decency

Whatever happened to the concept of respect for the dead?  It's still around -- unless the dead happen to be Jewish Holocaust victims.

I hope this event is stopped and the participants reviled for their antisemitism.

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From Red State:

‘Keffiyehs in Buchenwald’? Protest Planned at Nazi Concentration Camp on Liberation Day
By Ben Smith | 8:50 AM on February 22, 2026 

"A planned protest at the Buchenwald concentration camp memorial on the anniversary of its liberation is igniting backlash in Germany for a simple reason: Activists intend to turn a Holocaust commemoration into a contemporary political demonstration.

"According to reports, radical organizations are organizing a demonstration at the site on April 11 under the slogan “Keffiyehs in Buchenwald,” accusing the memorial’s management of “spreading Israeli propaganda” and not being “hostile enough toward Israel.” Among the groups involved are the student wing of Germany’s Left Party, the anti-Israel group Jewish Voice for a Just Peace in the Middle East, and the German Communist Party.

"The date is not incidental. April 11 marks the liberation of the camp in 1945.

"Buchenwald was liberated by U.S. forces in April 1945. About 56,000 prisoners were killed there, including many Jews. Each year, survivors, families, and public officials gather at the former roll call grounds where prisoners once stood for hours in freezing weather. The purpose of that day is remembrance.

"The protest follows an incident last year in which a woman was denied entry while wearing a keffiyeh during what was described as a protest action. Israel Hayom reports that a German court later upheld the memorial’s decision. Organizers now accuse the site of promoting “historical revisionism” and advancing an “Israeli narrative.”

"German officials have responded directly. Felix Klein, Germany’s commissioner for combating antisemitism, described the initiative as more than a policy disagreement.

"Klein called the planned demonstration “a frontal assault on the dignity of commemoration and on the memory of the victims of the Holocaust.” 

"The Buchenwald Memorial Foundation likewise warned against attempts to repurpose the site for present-day politics.

"The foundation cautioned against efforts “to exploit the memory of the camp for contemporary political purposes,” stressing its commitment to preserving historical memory and opposing antisemitism and incitement.

"Holocaust memorials are not neutral public squares. They mark places where human beings were reduced to numbers, forced into labor, and systematically murdered. The victims commemorated at Buchenwald were not casualties of a modern geopolitical dispute, and memory is not a political prop.

"Political protest has its place in democratic societies. A concentration camp memorial on liberation day should remain devoted to remembrance, not repurposed for contemporary spectacle."

Dr.Ruth's COVID, Flu, and Health News 2/22/26

Here's another information-packed newsletter from Dr. Ruth Ann Crystal. I wouldn't know what was going on without newsletters like this one.

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COVID, Flu, and Health News 2/22/26
Ruth Ann Crystal MD, Feb 22, 2026

"Hi all,

"Wastewater levels of SARS-CoV-2 are still high in the Midwest and Northeast. RSV is high everywhere, but especially in the Northeast. Flu A had a second smaller wave in the Northeast before decreasing, and Influenza B is now increasing in all U.S. regions.

RSV

"Per the CDC, “RSV activity is elevated in many areas of the country, including emergency department visits among infants and children 4 years and younger. Hospitalizations are highest among infants less than 1 year old.”

Flu

"The CDC reported on 2/20/26, “Seasonal influenza activity remains elevated nationally.” There has been an increase in positive lab tests for the flu this week in the United States.

"Influenza A which started off the flu season has peaked and declined, while Influenza B is increasing in many places. “Children younger than 18 years have the highest peak weekly hospitalization rate observed since the 2010-2011 season,” according to the CDC.

"Outpatient visits for Influenza-like Illness (ILI) through 2/14/26:

From: https://www.cdc.gov/fluview/index.html

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COVID

"Per Mike Hoerger using CDC data through 2/14/26 and Biobot data, there are about 850,000 new daily COVID infections in America now, with 1 in every 58 people currently infectious with COVID. About 40% of people infected with COVID are asymptomatic and may not know that they are infectious to others.

Acute COVID infections, General COVID info

"Researchers in France infected mice intranasally with SARS-CoV-2 and found significant gene expression changes in the trigeminal ganglion and brainstem in areas involved in facial pain and headache. These changes included inflammatory and nerve signaling pathways that may help explain why some people experience severe headaches or facial pain during COVID infection.

"In a 2-year study of 4,795 people, researchers compared smartwatch data with self-reported symptoms after COVID-19, Flu, and Group A strep. Wearables showed prolonged physiologic abnormalities, such as elevated heart rate and reduced activity, even after people said that they felt recovered. After moderate to severe COVID infection, heart rate took about 60 days to return to baseline. Wearable devices may detect delayed recovery that patients do not fully recognize.

Pediatrics

"Spanish researchers studied 117 children and adolescents and found that pediatric Long COVID was marked by suppressed CCR6 expression on myeloid cells and broad immune dysregulation. T cells, B cells, and NK cells were overactive, while anti–RBD antibody levels and virus neutralization were reduced. The findings suggest persistent immune imbalance may underlie symptoms in affected children.

"Researchers in Rome reviewed 9 studies of 1,202 children and young adults and identified 41 measurable biomarkers linked to pediatric Long COVID. These markers ranged from inflammatory cytokines to clotting and vascular indicators. The findings support that persistent symptoms in children reflect measurable immune and vascular changes.

"In a U.S. RECOVER cohort of 139,320 children and young adults, higher pre-COVID BMI, especially severe obesity, was tied to increased heart and GI problems after SARS-CoV-2 infection. The data suggest metabolic health before infection may shape the risk of post-COVID sequelae in young people.

"Using RECOVER electronic health record data, University of Pennsylvania researchers looked at 465,717 children and adolescents during the Omicron era and found that SARS-CoV-2 reinfection doubled the risk of Long COVID. Reinfection raised the rates of heart, brain, and immune issues, even after mild illness in children. It is very important to protect children from repeat COVID infections.

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Pregnancy

"In the INTERCOVID consortium cohort, COVID vaccination during pregnancy was associated with reduced risk of preeclampsia. Full vaccination lowered risk by about 15%, and receiving a booster reduced risk by approximately 33%. Vaccination was safe and was also associated with lower odds of severe COVID infection, preterm birth, or death.

Vaccines

"Intramuscular vaccines generate strong systemic immunity, but provide limited protection at mucosal surfaces like the nose and mouth where respiratory viruses first enter. In a new review, Yale researchers propose that vaccines delivered nasally or orally could stimulate local IgA antibodies and tissue-resident T and B cells, creating stronger frontline protection. Targeting mucosal immunity may better prevent infection and transmission and reshape future respiratory vaccine design.

"Researchers in China found that using anti-CD25 monoclonal antibodies (mAb) during COVID vaccination of mice improved the breadth and strength of neutralizing antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 by promoting the development of early and robust germinal center responses.

Antiviral treatments

"A study from Invivyd was done to better understand how neutralizing antibody levels from monoclonal antibody treatments relate to real-world protection against COVID. They created a statistical model and found that its predictions closely matched actual results from clinical trials. A 1 to 500 titer after Pemgarda (pemivibart) monoclonal antibody treatment predicted about 70% protection against COVID in non-immunocompromised people and 50% in immunocompromised people. COVID prevention rose with increasing neutralizing antibody titers, but plateaued at high levels.

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Long COVID

"In London, researchers at King’s College London studied 40 people and found altered brain oxygen use in Long COVID. The hippocampus showed increased activity during memory tasks, possibly compensating for dysfunction, while the anterior cingulate cortex had reduced metabolism which was linked to depression and inflammation.

"A very large study from Canada of over 2 million people shows that COVID infection increases the risk of Type 2 Diabetes for up to 3 years, especially in people who were unvaccinated or who had severe COVID infection. People who were vaccinated did not have increased risk for diabetes after COVID.

Measles

"As of February 19, 2026, 982 confirmed measles cases were reported in the United States in 2026, with 4% (38 of 982 cases) reported as requiring hospitalization, according to the CDC.

"As of Feb. 20, 2026, the South Carolina Department of Public Health reported 973 cases of measles in the state since their outbreak started in late 2025.

"Measles infections typically lead to serious complications and hospitalizations in about 20% of patients. But, South Carolina does not require hospitals to report when they admit patients with measles complications, so I anticipate that the actual number of measles hospitalizations this year is much higher. “It’s vast underreporting,” Dr. Paul Offit said. “Measles makes you sick.”

“Utah has confirmed 300 measles cases in an ongoing outbreak, with the virus now spreading in Salt Lake County and new exposures at high schools in that county.

From: https://publichealth.jhu.edu/ivac/resources/us-measles-tracker

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Government Health News

"Jay Bhattacharya, director of the NIH, was also named acting director of the CDC on Wednesday (the agency’s fourth leader change in a year) in an unprecedented move that further concentrates power among a small group of men leading U.S. health agencies. Mallory Harris, an infectious disease researcher at the University of Maryland remarked, “It seems the one qualification for this job is rubber-stamping RFK Jr’s agenda. He [Bhattacharya] has already proven himself very capable of doing so.”

"A new report in Nature reveals that staff at the US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) have been instructed to scrub the terms “biodefense” and “pandemic preparedness” from the NIAID’s web pages as part of a broader shift in focus, according to internal emails obtained by the journal. Experts warn this shift, which is part of a larger NIH restructuring and cuts to the Office of Pandemic Preparedness and Response Policy, could weaken the United States’ capacity to anticipate and respond to emerging infectious threats.

"After leaving the World Health Organization (WHO), the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) now “proposes spending $2 billion a year to re-create systems the U.S. accessed through the WHO [previously] at a fraction of the cost [$680 million].” Only sovereign nations can formally join the WHO, but California, Illinois, New York, and Wisconsin, along with New York City, have joined in the WHO’s Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network.

"Under Vinay Prasad, the FDA refused to review the Moderna mRNA flu vaccine last week, contrary to evidence showing that it is safe and is more effective than current flu vaccines. Now, the FDA has flip-flopped saying that they will review the mRNA flu vaccine.

"Last week, the Trump administration terminated $600 million in CDC grants for HIV and STI prevention and surveillance in California, Colorado, Illinois and Minnesota “because they do not reflect agency priorities.” The four Democratic-led states filed a lawsuit and this week a federal judge has temporarily halted any funding changes while the legal challenges proceed.

"More government health news can be found in this weekly update from CIDRAP & Unbiased Science.

Other news

"Good news! The same mRNA platform used for COVID vaccines is now being used to fight breast cancer. A personalized mRNA vaccine was tested in 14 people with an aggressive, hard-to-treat form of breast cancer called triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC). The vaccine trained the immune system to recognize each patient’s unique tumor mutations and produced strong, lasting immune responses. Ten of the 14 participants remained cancer-free at 5 years, and studying the relapses helped researchers identify resistance mechanisms that may help guide future treatments.

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"Imagine knowing decades in advance when Alzheimer’s symptoms are likely to begin. A new study shows that you can predict when in the future someone will get dementia symptoms from Alzheimer’s disease using a single blood test (%p-tau217) and their age. The calculation can be made 20 years in advance if tested at age 60.

"Researchers at the University of California San Francisco followed 985 adults with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) treated with ublituximab for five years. Relapse rates fell to about 1 per 50 patient years, and 92% of patients remained free from confirmed disability progression.

"A bird in Germany checked himself into the Emergency Department to get a hook that was stuck in his beak removed. He pecked at the glass entryway until someone came out to evaluate him. Firefighters worked with the medical staff to remove the hook successfully.

"Oakland’s 130-year-old Fenton’s Creamery (est. 1894) is celebrating Olympic gold medalist Alysa Liu in the sweetest way- free ice cream for life! I fondly remember riding my bike over to Fenton’s as a college student at Berkeley.

"Have a great week,

"Ruth Ann Crystal MD"

Intruder With Gun & Gas Can Stopped and Killed at Mar-a-Lago.

Here we go again: another anti-Trump attacker, and another breach at Mar-a-Lago.. Will the anti-ICE and F---Trump crowd now hold anti-Secret Service protests because they killed the attacker before he could do anything?  Good work by the Secret Service in the middle of the night.  The intruder had managed to infiltrate the inner perimeter and could have tried to burn down that famous estate. How much more trauma must the Trump family have to deal with?

The constant, vile anti-Trump rhetoric is to blame for this. They're even indoctrinating kindergarten kids, so the public really shouldn't be surprised. I will be watching to see how this latest attack is downplayed by the media and the Democrats.

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CBS News 2-22-26

Man shot and killed after "unauthorized entry" into Mar-a-Lago perimeter, Secret Service says

"Washington — A man in his early 20s was shot and killed early Sunday morning after an "unauthorized entry" into the secure perimeter at President Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate, the U.S. Secret Service said.

"The Secret Service said in a statement that the incident occurred Sunday around 1:30 a.m. Secret Service agents and a deputy from the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office confronted the man, who was carrying what appeared to be a shotgun and a fuel can. Shots were fired at the individual, the Secret Service said, and the individual was pronounced deceased. 

"Speaking at a news conference later Sunday morning, Palm Beach County Sheriff Ric Bradshaw said at 1:30 a.m., the security detail detected that an individual had made his way into the inner perimeter of Mar-a-Lago near a gate on the North side.

"A deputy and two secret service agents on the detail went to that area to investigate," Bradshaw said. "They confronted a white male that was carrying a gas can and a shotgun."

"Bradshaw said the individual was ordered to drop the gas can and shotgun, at which point he put down the gas can and "raised the shotgun to a shooting position." The deputy and Secret Service agents then fired their weapons and "neutralized the threat," Bradshaw said. He said the individual was declared dead at the scene. 

"Secret Service Special Agent in Charge Rafael Barros of the U.S. Secret Service Miami Field Office said no law enforcement personnel were injured during the incident. 

"The Secret Service noted that no protectees were present at the location during the incident. The president remained in Washington this weekend. 

"Bradshaw said the FBI is leading the investigation into the incident, assisted by Secret Service and the Palm Beach County Sheriff's Office."

COVID In The Air

From CIDRAP - Center for Infectious Disease Research & Policy, 2-17-26:

Study: SARS-CoV-2 RNA found in 39% of hospital air samples during outbreaks, despite good ventilation
By Laine Bergeson

"COVID-19 genetic material was frequently detected in hospital air during community outbreaks, even in well-ventilated settings, according to a new study published in Respiratory Medicine.

"A team led by Kirby Institute researchers conducted air and surface sampling in the emergency department (ED) and intensive care unit (ICU) of a large metropolitan hospital in Sydney, Australia, during two COVID-19 waves between November 2023 and July 2024. Their testing found that 39% (20 of 51) of aerosol samples were positive for SARS-CoV-2 RNA.

"Detection was significantly more common in the ED than in the ICU. Of the positive samples, 80% were collected in the ED and 20% in the ICU. 

"Hot spots within the ED included the acute-care area (9 of 13 samples positive), the public waiting room (6 of 12), and a walkway area (1 of 1). In the ICU, positive samples were detected in a staff tearoom (2 of 10), inside a negative-pressure room housing a COVID patient (1 of 1), and immediately outside that room (1 of 8).

“The higher rate of detection in the ED…suggests the ED carries a higher risk than the ICU, especially the public waiting room and acute care area,” write the authors. 

Aerosol testing may lead to early detection

"Notably, four positive aerosol samples were collected in the ED from November 1 to November 7, 2023, which was up to a week before the hospital formally declared a multi-ward outbreak on November 8. These findings point to the potential value of using aerosol sampling to detect outbreaks before they become widespread, write the researchers.

"Surface contamination was less common. Of 28 surface and equipment samples, 2 (7%) were positive. Both samples came from the room of an infected ICU patient.

“During a rising epidemic wave of SARS-CoV-2 in the community, we found that over one-third of the aerosol samples tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 RNA in the ED and ICU environments, regardless of sampling duration and despite good ventilation within the hospital,” write the authors. “Although the presence of viral RNA in the air does not confirm infectiousness, the findings suggest during periods of high community epidemic activity, adequate air changes in the hospital ventilation system alone may not be enough to protect staff and patients from nosocomial [diseases acquired in a health care setting] transmission.”

HEPA filtration may help mitigate transmission

"The findings underscore the importance of using high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filtration and ensuring staff have access to respiratory protection during outbreaks, particularly in high-traffic settings such as emergency departments, write the authors. They add that portable air purifiers and improved ventilation-system maintenance could further reduce the risk of transmission. 

"They also stress the importance of mitigation strategies in ED waiting rooms, where patients and families often gather for hours and in which high-consequence pathogens such as SARS-CoV-2, influenza, and measles may be in high circulation." 

Mamdani: A Disaster Two Months In

Well, the cop-hating Mamdani has equalled expectations and will not be hiring the 5,000 new law enforcement officers that Mayor Eric Adams had wanted.  Just let social workers do the job instead!

And when it comes to saving money, he can help New York City by cutting all benefits to illegal aliens, who shouldn't be receiving them anyway. This makes more sense than wasting $11.5 million on diversity and racial equity nonsense and also punishing residents with an outrageous 9.5% property tax.

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Mayor Zohran Mamdani puts kibosh on Eric Adams' plan to hire 5,000 new NYPD officers

Updated on: February 19, 2026 / 8:23 PM EST / CBS New York

"New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani received blowback on Thursday for killing

"Even though his predecessor's plan was seen as a reach by many, the new mayor is still taking heat for not finding a solution to the NYPD's brain drain.

Adams takes Mamdani to task

"The so-called "thin blue line" has been put on a diet by Mamdani, after he refused to fund Adams' end-of-term scheme to hire 5,000 new officers. A number of officials slammed Mamdani for it, including Adams, who called it "a serious mistake."

"Five thousand officers is not excess. It is necessary to stabilize the force, reduce crushing overtime, and ensure the health, safety, and well-being of every New Yorker," the former mayor said through spokesman Todd Shapiro.

"Adams' plan would have increased the NYPD headcount to 40,000, which was last seen during Rudy Giuliani's tenure as mayor, which ran from the start of 1994 until the end of 2001. However, Mamdani has bigger problems, like officers leaving the NYPD in droves. There are a little more than 34,000 officers on the beat, about 1,000 fewer than the budgeted headcount.

"My message is, right now, we need to keep our police officers in the department. We are losing 250 to 300 a month. That needs to change right away," Police Benevolent Association President Patrick Hendry said."

Long COVID: Another Reason to Avoid COVID

If you still think that COVID is "just a cold", this first person account should make you think twice.

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By Savannah Brooks at the UK Guardian 2-18-26 

Long Covid is still here. I know – my life came to a stop because of it.
With more than 200 possible symptoms, long Covid isn’t easy to treat and diagnose. Rolled-back federal funding has led longhaulers to ask: is this all in my head? 

"I am 30ft below the surface of the Blue Grotto, a crystalline diving hole in central Florida. Between the water’s embrace and the restriction of my wetsuit, my blood pressure finally stabilizes. The long, deep breaths I pull from my respirator keep my heart rate nice and low.

"I feel lighter than I have since April 2022, when I first contracted long Covid. I feel childlike at the fact that I can do this at all – get scuba certified – when on land I’m often confined to a wheelchair or a walker.

"But when I tuck my fins away for the day, reality crashes back down. I’m a 34-year-old woman who was forced to move back in with her parents, had no choice but to retire from her dream career as a literary agent and a lecturer at the University of Minnesota, and had to cash out her retirement savings to cover the medical expenses that keep her in a chokehold.

"My bodily existence is unpleasant. I wake up every day so nauseated that even the smell of food can make me vomit. I have to stretch for an hour before I can fully move my body. If I don’t sleep for 10–12 hours, my brain and muscles will be too depleted to manage anything beyond the rote tasks of keeping me alive. When I push myself to socialize, fatigue steamrolls my body with flu-like symptoms – but my suicidal ideation blooms like a mushroom cloud when I sequester myself away.

"Each month, I make the four-hour drive from Asheville, North Carolina, where I now live, to Chapel Hill, where I’m a patient in the rehabilitation clinic that was previously the university’s specified long Covid clinic. Federal research funding and coordination for the condition have been rolled back under the current Trump administration, complicating care for patients like me. After I check into my hotel, I nap for an additional four hours, working up the energy to sit down for a 10-minute shower. I can’t stand for that long, not in one place, not without fainting, seizing or becoming short-term paralyzed. Typically, it’ll be a combination of all three.

"The unbearably tricky thing about the condition is that it’s the culmination of a million moving parts. Even though most Covid longhaulers will only ever exhibit a handful, there are more than 200 possible symptoms, and treating one often means off-balancing another. Once one internal system starts to dysregulate, the rest tend to fall out in suit. This domino effect is predictable, but that doesn’t make it easy to treat, prevent or even diagnose.

"When I speak with Dr Michael Osterholm, director of the University of Minnesota’s center for infectious disease research and policy and appointee to Biden’s 2020 transition Covid-19 advisory board, I ask how he’s seen the landscape of long Covid change over the past few years. Though rates of infection are decreasing, primarily due to the effectiveness of getting vaccinated, he highlights the difficulty in collecting research on a disease that’s so societally charged, one people have been incentivized to distrust.

“How much of [long Covid] has actually disappeared due to recovery?” Osterholm asks. “How much of it has disappeared because people just stopped talking about it, tried to move on with their lives? And then how many don’t even recognize what they have? How many people are living a compromised life, but they don’t recognize why?”

"This, Osterholm says, is one of the biggest challenges of long Covid: keeping people informed, especially during a time of rampant fearmongering, misinformation and politicization of the human body.

“In some ways, [the difficulty in diagnosing long Covid is] also about the concept of mental health,” he continues. “Because long-term chronic compromise leaves one to begin to wonder: how much of this is in my head?”

"And when resources are stripped back from studying a disease, instead of layered on, it reinforces the idea that the disease is mild enough to be ignored, making it even more likely that people will doubt what their body is telling them.

"Where Osterholm observes the state of long Covid from a bird’s eye view, Dr Lisa Sanders, medical director of Yale’s long Covid multidisciplinary care center, spends her time one-on-one with patients.

"The good news, she says, is that even if individuals are still struggling to recognize their long Covid symptoms, the medical field isn’t.

"These days, it doesn’t typically take long before doctors and their patients are able to start the trial-and-error process of treating symptoms. It’s hard work, often requiring multiple specialists, because long Covid often affects multiple bodily systems. It’s potentially years-long work, which is why it’s so important to start as early as possible. Because for some patients, long Covid doesn’t resolve – it hardens.

“There is a serious degree of deconditioning that comes with long Covid,” Sanders says. For some patients, “Covid comes in, whacks you, and you’re left with ME/CFS,” a debilitating variation of chronic fatigue syndrome. Other patients are left with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome (POTS), a condition in which your heart rate accelerates when you stand, often leading to a loss of consciousness. Others develop orthostatic hypotension, in which your resting blood pressure falls frighteningly low. Some, like me, are left with a mix of all of the above.

“So a lot of times, the patients I see are reasonably deconditioned because they have learned that when they exert themselves, they feel bad,” Sanders says.

"Unfortunately, being less active further increases a person’s limitations, which can in turn exacerbate symptoms, trapping them in a cycle of physical decline.

"So what do long Covid patients do?

“My advice to them is to partner with your body and figure out how you can integrate some level of activity into your daily life so that your heart and your lungs do not deteriorate,” Sanders says. She emphasizes that some level is often a very low level, otherwise patients risk pushing into post-exertional malaise, an extreme exacerbation of fatigue symptoms that can last for up to a week.

"This advice resonates strongly with my own case. When I first contracted long Covid, I was immediately accepted into the University of Minnesota’s long Covid clinic. For nine months, I was driven to the hospital three times a week to do low-level activity in the form of cardiac physical therapy. As much as my body will allow, I’ve stuck to that regimen every single day for the past four years. Six months before my trip to Florida, I added in buoyancy-assisted swimming. It doesn’t look like much – maybe two laps in a pool using a kickboard twice a week – but, as it turns out, diving doesn’t have to take much.

'As I speak with Osterholm and Sanders, I consider how much worse my case would be without the medical intervention I received early on. I consider how lucky I am that doctors saw my symptoms for what they were and started working with me right away, unlike so many others struggling with the same array of symptoms.

"As Osterholm put it, when thinking about managing a disease like long Covid, “it’s very, very important to look at your community in terms of what you can accomplish together.”

"Getting scuba certified was an achievement I could only accomplish with my medical and dive teams. Honestly, the only way I’m able to make it through each day is because I am surrounded by others – but isn’t that the way it should be? There is a way to live with long Covid – there is a way to dive with it – but no one gets there alone."

Elderly Jewish Women Thrown Out of a Museum for The Crime of Being Jewish

Let me get this straight. Rather than expelling the antisemites from the museum, they kicked out the victims of the harassment?  Once again, the responses to Jew-hatred are absolutely deranged, and of course nobody came to the rescue of these elderly Jews.  

It's as if each country, and each group of antisemitic agitators, are vying with one another for the title of "most insane mistreatment of Jews". One thing's for sure. They're all indoctrinated, and they're all completely shameless.

In response, I'll have to start wearing two Star of Davids rather than just one from now on. 

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By Ailin Vilches Arguello at The Algemeiner, 2-16-26:

Jewish Women Expelled From Madrid Museum After Antisemitic Harassment, Sparking Outrage

"Three elderly Jewish women, including a Holocaust survivor, were forced to leave a national museum in Madrid on Saturday after being verbally harassed for openly displaying Jewish symbols, with officials now facing mounting backlash for shielding the aggressors rather than the victims.

"First reported by the Spanish news outlet Okdiario, the three women were visiting the National Museum Reina Sofía in central Madrid when other visitors spotted them wearing a Star of David necklace and carrying a small Israeli flag.

"At that point, a group of people started attacking them verbally, shouting antisemitic insults and calling them “crazy child killers.”

"Rather than intervening against the instigators, museum officials expelled the Israeli women, telling them to leave because “some visitors were disturbed that they are Jewish.”

"A security guard also told the group to hide their Jewish symbols, insisting they could not be displayed inside the museum.

"Even though one of them pointed out that Spanish law allows people to wear religious symbols and carry national flags in public institutions, they were still forcibly removed from the building despite not breaking any rules.

"The incident has sparked public outrage, with museum personnel leaving the victims even more exposed and vulnerable, and no action taken against those who hurled insults and provoked the disruption.

"As a state-affiliated cultural institution under Spain’s Culture Ministry, the Reina Sofía is internationally recognized as one of the country’s leading contemporary art museums.

"In the past, the museum has also faced criticism for hosting anti-Israel demonstrations and presenting an exhibition titled “From the River to the Sea,” a popular slogan among pro-Palestinian activists that has been widely interpreted as a genocidal call for the destruction of the Jewish state, which is located between the Jordan River and the Mediterranean Sea

"The European Jewish Congress (EJC) strongly condemned the latest incident at the museum, calling it “deeply troubling and unacceptable,” and urged authorities to take immediate steps to protect Jewish visitors and ensure such harassment does not happen again.

“Instead of protecting those subjected to antisemitic abuse, the apparent decision to remove the victims raises serious concerns about discrimination within a public cultural institution,” EJC wrote in a post on X.

“Jewish identity must never become grounds for exclusion. Such conduct demands full clarification, clear accountability, and decisive action to ensure that antisemitism is confronted without ambiguity,” the statement read. 

"The Action and Communication on the Middle East (ACOM) group, a leading pro-Israel organization in Spain, also condemned the incident and announced it will pursue legal action against the Museum Reina Sofía, alleging discrimination and the promotion of hate from a public institution.

“The legal action will be directed both at the institution and its top official, the museum director, Manuel Segade,” ACOM wrote in a post on X, adding that the museum’s actions reflect “a persistent pattern of using political agendas, engaging in discrimination, and promoting narratives of hate against the State of Israel and the Jewish-Israeli community from a publicly funded institution.”

“A public institution should never be used as a platform for sectarian activism,” the statement continued. 

"Like most countries across Europe and the broader Western world, Spain has seen a rise in antisemitic incidents over the last two years, in the wake of the Hamas-led invasion of and massacre across southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.

"Still, Spain stands out as one of the most extreme cases, with experts warning that antisemitic violence and anti-Zionist rhetoric have moved beyond a social phenomenon to, in many instances, being state-promoted and legitimized as a political tool.

"In particular, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and several members of his left-wing party have come under mounting criticism from the country’s political and Jewish leaders, who accuse them of fueling antisemitic hostility.

"Sánchez has repeatedly issued pro-Hamas statements, falsely accusing Israel of “genocide” and of violating international law in its defensive war against the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas.

“Protecting your country and your society is one thing, but bombing hospitals and killing innocent boys and girls with hunger is another thing entirely,” the Spanish leader said during a televised speech last year.

“That isn’t defending yourself – that’s not even attacking. It’s exterminating defenseless people. It’s breaking all the rules of humanitarian law,” he said.

"Sánchez has also voiced solidarity with the “Palestinian people and their cause,” while praising anti-Israel demonstrations for championing what he called “just causes.”

"Across the country, political leaders have accused Sánchez of exploiting the war in Gaza to deflect attention from his corruption scandals, recent electoral losses, and growing public dissatisfaction with his government.

"According to the Spanish Observatory of Antisemitism, antisemitic incidents in Spain have surged by 567 percent from 2022 to 2024, with the trend expected to have continued into last year.

"Since the start of the war in Gaza, Spain has launched a fierce anti-Israel campaign aimed at undermining and isolating the Jewish state on the international stage.

"In September, the Spanish government passed a law to take “urgent measures to stop the genocide in Gaza,” banning trade in defense material and dual-use products from Israel, as well as imports and advertising of products originating from Israeli settlements.

"Spanish officials also announced that they would bar entry to individuals involved in what they called a “genocide against Palestinians” and block Israel-bound ships and aircraft carrying weapons from Spanish ports and airspace."

Dr. Ruth's COVID, Flu & Health News 2-15-26

Here's the latest helpful newsletter by Dr Ruth Ann Crystal 2-15-26:

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COVID, Flu, and Health News, 2/15/26
Ruth Ann Crystal MD, Feb 15, 2026 

I hope that you are enjoying the long weekend. Here are some updates on COVID, Flu and other topics.

Flu

According to the CDC, Influenza A activity is still high but is starting to decrease, while Influenza B cases are increasing, particularly in the Midwest. Wastewater levels for flu are especially high in Washington state, Oregon, and Kentucky as of 2/7/26. Outpatient visits for influenza-like illness (ILI) have plateaued although we may see another bump in cases. According to the CDC, children under 18 years have the highest peak weekly influenza-associated hospitalization rate observed since the 2010-2011 season. There were 6 more pediatric flu deaths reported this week which brings the total to 66. According to the CDC, “approximately 90% of reported pediatric deaths this season have occurred in children who were not fully vaccinated against influenza.”

COVID

Through 2/7/26, COVID levels in wastewater are VERY HIGH and HIGH in these states according to the CDC:

From: https://www.cdc.gov/nwss/rv/COVID19-national-data.html

From WastewaterSCAN (which omits 12 states), these are the highest levels of COVID in U.S. wastewater as of 2/14/26:

Bangor ME 2230 PMMoV

Lewiston ME 1527 PMMoV

Kinston NC 1095 PMMoV

Pinson AL 984 PMMoV

Portland ME 846 PMMoV

Birmingham AL 700 PMMoV

Montpellier VT 672 PMMoV

Warren MI 660 PMMoV

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Prevention

Some Olympic athletes, such as the U.S. women’s cross-country ski team, are wearing masks and are self quarantining to protect themselves against getting sick before their events in the 2026 Olympic games. This is in contrast to members of the Finnish women’s hockey team who went out to karaoke and ended up all getting the stomach flu, so their game against Canada had to be postponed.

Social and Advocacy

In advance of Long COVID Awareness Day on March 15th, four European Long COVID and COVID grassroots associations from France and Spain joined to create Long COVID Rise Up. “The Federation will bring together patient groups, allies and whistleblowers to demand urgent research, prevention, and an end to political neglect and inaction” for Long COVID.

Pregnancy

In a pregnant hamster model of SARS-CoV-2 infection, maternal COVID infection caused significant placental inflammation leading to restricted fetal growth (IUGR) without direct infection of the fetus. Placental damage was marked by fibrin deposition, thrombosis, and elevated inflammatory markers. Vaccination and anticoagulant treatment protected the placenta and improved fetal outcomes.

Vaccines

Science magazine just put out an explainer article on the new NEJM article looking at the genetics and the mechanisms behind Vaccine-induced Immune Thrombocytopenia and Thrombosis (VITT). In people with a “double whammy” of both a genetic predisposition and a mutation in antibody-producing B cells, an adenovirus protein from either an adenovirus infection or from adenovirus-based vaccines like AstraZeneca and the Johnson & Johnson COVID vaccines, can rarely trigger “rogue” PF4 antibodies that attack platelets and cause both life-threatening blood clots and bleeding. This does not happen with mRNA vaccines.

Antivirals

Researchers from Madrid found that combination antiviral therapy with Remdesivir plus Paxlovid (nirmatrelvir/ritonavir) and/or triple therapy with the addition of Sotrovimab monoclonal antibodies was important to completely treat persistent SARS-CoV-2 infection in 15 immunocompromised patients. “Early monotherapy treatment in these patients was associated with a high rate of clinical and microbiological failure, with sporadic documentation of resistance mutations that were overcome with combined antiviral therapy.”

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Long COVID

In a small double blind randomized pilot trial in Taiwan involving 39 adults with Long COVID, 20 participants received probiotic treatment and 19 received placebo. Six weeks of the probiotic heat treated Lacticaseibacillus paracasei PS23 (HT-PS23) significantly lowered cortisol levels, improved breathing difficulty and appetite loss, and improved performance on executive function cognitive tests. This study adds to growing evidence that targeting the gut microbiome may help alleviate some Long COVID symptoms.

Researchers from Australia used high resolution fMRI comparing the brains of 19 adults with Long COVID to 16 healthy controls during cognitive tasks. People with Long COVID had abnormal brain network connectivity especially in focus and decision-making networks, and also had slower cognitive task performance. Disrupted brain communication appears to underlie cognitive dysfunction (brain fog) in Long COVID.

In an article from May 2025 that I had not previously seen, the European Academy of Neurology’s task force issued a position paper highlighting evidence that SARS-CoV-2 infection may trigger neurodegenerative disease, potentially increasing the future incidence of Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases. The paper synthesizes pathological data from global autopsies and registries, identifying microvascular damage, gliosis, demyelination, and neuronal and glial injury and cell death as primary drivers of long-term brain tissue decline. The authors advocate for systematic follow-up and surveillance programs to monitor these emerging neurological risks across the millions of individuals previously infected with COVID.

In a nested study of 228 adults (128 with Long COVID and 100 recovered controls), German researchers assessed circulating cell-free mitochondrial DNA (ccf-mtDNA) and other markers of mitochondrial damage. They found that mitochondrial damage and cellular stress appear to be linked with cognitive impairment in Long COVID, noting that “lower relative ccf-mtDNA in PASC [Long COVID] might indicate altered mitochondrial quality control, potentially leading to mitochondrial dysfunction, accumulation of damaged mitochondria, and increased inflammation.”

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“Despite their therapeutic benefits, inflammatory demyelinating diseases of the central nervous system (CNS) have been reported in association with Janus kinase inhibitors (JAKis) treatment, most previously involving tofacitinib in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.” A new case report from Vanderbilt shows that a CNS inflammatory demyelinating disease may have been exacerbated by JAK inhibitor Baricitinib use. Stopping Baricitinib reduced vision loss and brain and spine lesions. This is important to know since the RECOVER trial is currently testing Baricitinib to treat Long COVID.

A group from the University of Washington investigated the effectiveness of a fully remote study of women from underrepresented, underserved, and underreported (U3) populations who were positive for COVID infection. Over 6 months, participants self-collected blood and nasal swabs at home and shipped them back to the lab for processing. Patient surveys were administered electronically. The study had a 98% retention rate and participants were very satisfied with the remote study design. Authors noted that the study topic, flexibility, and positive interactions with the study team were important factors for participant recruitment and retention of underserved populations.

A recent review in the American Heart Association’s journal Circulation suggested that exercise intolerance in Long COVID may partly reflect deconditioning and that exercise training can be beneficial. Rob Wüst and colleagues cautioned in a new article that in some Long COVID patients, post-exertional malaise and cardiac abnormalities such as preload failure and inflammation-related scarring can occur independently of cardiac deconditioning, and that any exercise recommendations for people with Long COVID should be made with caution. This makes sense since Rob Wust’s lab previously showed muscle atrophy and necrosis in 36% of Long COVID patients after exercise, with amyloid deposits, T cell, and macrophage infiltration noted in their skeletal muscles.

A new systematic review from Taiwan compiled evidence on audiovestibular symptoms in Long COVID, including hearing loss, tinnitus, vertigo, and balance problems, and explores potential mechanisms such as direct viral or immune-mediated effects on the inner ear and neural pathways. It also discusses diagnostic approaches (e.g., audiometry, vestibular testing) and management strategies ranging from corticosteroids to vestibular rehabilitation, highlighting that these manifestations may be underrecognized and can persist long after acute COVID infection.

Measles

As of February 12, 2026, 910 confirmed measles cases were reported in the United States in 2026, with 3% (30 of 910 cases) hospitalized according to the CDC. The outbreak in South Carolina continues to spread, with the South Carolina Department of Public Health reporting 933 measles cases centered around Spartanburg County as of Feb. 10, 2026.

A new measles outbreak has started in Shasta County, California and the California Department of Public Health asks residents to check their MMR vaccine status to see if they need a booster. “As of Feb. 10, 2026, local public health departments have identified measles cases in Los Angeles, Orange, San Bernardino, Riverside and Shasta counties. Nine cases were linked to exposure in Southern California, possibly at Disneyland in Anaheim and at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) as people were traveling on Jan. 22 and 28.”

The New York Times reports “Dr. Mehmet Oz has urged Americans to get vaccinated against measles, one of the strongest endorsements of the vaccine yet from a top health official in the Trump administration, which has repeatedly undermined confidence in vaccine safety…The measles, mumps and rubella vaccine is considered very safe and about 97 percent effective in preventing infection.”

Government News

Despite previously approving Phase 3 testing of their mRNA flu vaccine, the FDA is now declining to review Moderna’s application for its mRNA flu vaccine despite positive study results. The study enrolled more than 40,000 adults ages 50 and older and showed that the mRNA Influenza vaccine was more effective in protecting against the flu than currently licensed influenza vaccines. Moderna’s CEO announced the company will no longer invest in new Phase 3 vaccine trials for infectious diseases, and sadly, mRNA vaccines for Epstein-Barr virus, herpes, and shingles have now been shelved.

The Trump administration terminated $600 million in CDC grants for HIV and STI prevention and surveillance in California, Colorado, Illinois and Minnesota “because they do not reflect agency priorities.” The four Democratic-led states filed a lawsuit on Wednesday to block the Trump administration’s cuts saying that they were being unlawfully subjected to “devastating funding cuts to basic public health infrastructure based on political animus and disagreements about unrelated topics such as federal immigration enforcement.”

Here are some more articles that may interest you:

2/12/26 NY Times: Eyeing the Midterms, Kennedy Pivots Toward Food and Away From Vaccines

2/11/26 The 19th: Without school vaccine mandates, many kids may never see a doctor

2/10/26 Nature: Dozens of researchers [from Columbia University] will move to France from US following high-profile bid to lure talent

2/10/26 Guardian: ‘I saw the writing on the wall’: Austria offers safe haven for US academics as Trump wages war on universities

2/12/26 NY Times: Trump Repeals Key Greenhouse Gas Finding, Erasing EPA’s Power to Fight Climate Change

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Other News

Emory University researchers analyzed data from 114 adults with autism using AI and identified three biologically distinct autism subtypes. One subtype marked by high anxiety and social withdrawal showed brain changes that improved with oxytocin, pointing toward the possibility of personalized treatment approaches.

Dr. Eric Topol had two recent posts that were very interesting. First, Dr. Topol interviewed neurosurgeon Dr. Kevin Tracey discussing how vagus nerve stimulation can modulate immune system responses by dampening inflammatory signaling. A recent study showed that 1 minute of vagal nerve stimulation daily can help treat refractory Rheumatoid Arthritis.

Second, Dr. Topol wrote an article entitled Why All Mammograms Should Incorporate A.I. Using artificial intelligence to help read mammograms leads to more accurate breast cancer detection while reducing the workload for radiologists.

Another study, this time of 65,800 seniors from Kaiser Permanente showed that 2 doses of the recombinant shingles vaccine (RZV) were linked to a 51% lower risk of dementia.

Heads up: Health officials in Minnesota have reported an outbreak of a sexually transmitted form of ringworm infection. The infection is caused by Trichophyton mentagrophytes type VII (TMVII), a fungus that produces round, coin shaped red and irritated rashes on the genitals, arms, buttocks, trunk, and legs.

Nadieh Bremer just released an amazing data visualization site called Searching for Birds. It is an interactive exploration into what humans look for when inquiring about birds. I highly recommend trying it.

From: https://searchingforbirds.visualcinnamon.com/

Have a good week,

Ruth Ann Crystal MD

Melanie Phillips 2-15-26 On Ignoring Antisemitism

Here, the great Melanie Phillips take on Bret Stephens' so-called advice on how Jews should handle antisemitism. I'm glad my parents never told me to "just ignore" it! All that does is embolden the antisemites and make them think they're winning.

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Why Bret Stephens is wrong. The fight against Jew-hatred needs to be harder and smarter
Melanie Phillips, Feb 15, 2026 

"How should the Jewish world respond to the nightmarish onslaught that we’re living through?

"What’s happening is unprecedented. We’re not merely dealing with antisemitism roaring out of control across the west.

"Antizionism is being deployed as an obscene moral prism through which society is being reframed. It’s redefining lies as truth, casting victims as oppressors and defaming Israel’s defensive war against genocidal extermination as a genocide itself.

"It’s attempting to erase the heritage of the Jews in their ancestral homeland, erase the victimisation of Jews in the State of Israel, and even erase the attempt to erase the Jews from the face of the earth in the Holocaust. Antizionism is being deployed to erase reason itself.

"It’s coming mostly from the left but also from the right; from nurses wearing a “Palestine” pin and from a Scout leader wearing a keffiyeh to a Beavers’ meeting for children aged six to eight; from the Encyclopedia Britannica renaming Israel as Palestine on its map.

"It’s coming from thugs abusing diners in Israeli-owned restaurants, abusing Jewish passengers on Tubes and buses and preventing a Jewish MP from visiting a school in his constituency. In short, we’re looking at a collective madness.

"In a lecture to the 92nd Street Y community centre in New York last week, the journalist Bret Stephens addressed the question of what to do about all this. He made many characteristically insightful remarks. But he was also profoundly wrong.

"Rightly observing that antisemitism could never be eradicated and that constantly seeking to prove ourselves worthy to win the world’s love was a fool’s errand, he said: “We need to stop being wounded, aggrieved or indignant. We need to stop caring”. And he recommended that Jews ignore antisemitism because we can’t do anything about it.

"This is misguided on several counts. First, Jews have a duty to speak out and must always care about such terrible wrongdoing.

"Second, while antisemites may be beyond reason, many others who have turned against us are not. Framing the problem as antisemitism misses this point by a mile. That’s because the key issue is antizionism.

"People are being bombarded with what purport to be reliable reports of appalling Israeli behaviour.

"These are all obsessive lies, wild distortions and blood libels which portray Israel as the most evil regime on the planet just for existing as a Jewish state. This demonises in turn all those who support Israel’s existence — which means most Jews.

"The belief that the Jews collectively do terrible things has been given rocket fuel by the belief that Israel is doing terrible things. Antizionism, ludicrously claiming that Jews are oppressive colonisers of their own ancestral homeland, is principally responsible for this tsunami of antisemitism and is therefore an evil in its own right.

"Stephens is absolutely correct that Jewish leadership has failed, not just in America but in Britain too. But it failed not because resistance is hopeless but because the strategy has been totally wrong.

"It’s focused on identifying the evils of antisemitism and on promoting Holocaust education. But great swathes of the west bitterly resent claims of antisemitism and having the Holocaust — as they believe — rammed down their throats.

"That’s largely because they think Jews don’t fit the profile of the world’s victims of oppression or hardship. They think Jews are like themselves but infinitely more successful. They’re jealous and resentful about the Jews’ achievements, they think Jewish power dominates western society, and so they assume that the Jews are claiming to be victims solely to sanitise the presumed crimes of Israel.

"Stephens says the response should be to ignore all such bigotry and focus instead on building up Jewish identity and peoplehood. This is indeed absolutely critical. But turning inwards, as he suggests, simply to produce thriving Jewish communities will do nothing to address the rapidly rising threat to those communities.

"Before the Holocaust, Polish Jewry was a thriving community distinguished by immense learning and Jewish culture. That did nothing to prevent that community from being almost totally wiped out.

"Jews must “thrive” for a purpose. This is to live by Jewish precepts to enable them to fight for truth, justice and their own continued existence — for which their grasp of peoplehood is essential. As my new book being published next month lays out, we need to assert confident Jewish peoplehood in order to fight the hate harder and smarter.

"We should be out-and-proud Zionists. We should be saying loud and clear that the Jews are the indigenous people of the land of Israel, that the Arabs are the colonisers, and that Zionism, the movement for the self-determination of the Jewish people in their ancestral land, is the ultimate anti-colonisation movement.

"We should also be saying that Zionism is an inseparable part of Judaism, and so antizionism is an attempt to destroy not just Israel but Judaism itself.

"Jews have a moral obligation to fight for their survival. We just need to stop playing defence, get onto the front foot and for the first time start taking the fight to the enemy."

Jewish Chronicle