5 ms·

Trump offers 'large sums' for exclusive access to coronavirus vaccine

27 points by mnem 7y ago

mjd 7y ago
This is a really misleading title. The evidence here is extremely thin, and The Guardian has no actual source, just reports from _Die Welt_ that themselves claim only an anonymous source. I suggest something more like: “Anonymous German source claims that Trump offered…”. It's a lot less misleading, and a lot less interesting.
- blimey74 7y ago
  But the German government has not denied anything stated by their officials in the story.
- anigbrowl 7y ago
  Stories on HN have to be in English, and English-language German sources (like DW) are just quoting Die Welt. You seem to have missed the detail that the German government confirmed the veracity of the quotes attributed to sources within it.
  - mjd 7y ago
    According to the article, the German government would only confirm the accuracy of the quotes attributed to its spokespersons: > the German health ministry would only confirm the accuracy of the quotes attributed to one of its spokespersons in the article The health ministry did not confirm the anonymous claim that “Trump was doing everything to secure a vaccine against the coronavirus for the US, ‘but for the US only’.” Spokespersons, by definition, do not speak anonymously. I hope this clears things up for you.
    - anigbrowl 7y ago
      Yes, that's what I said, and no additional clarification from you is required. You may find the following updates to be of interest, including confirmation from the german interior minister: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-germany-usa/germany-tries-to-stop-us-from-luring-away-firm-seeking-coronavirus-vaccine-idUSKBN2120IV https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-german... https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/germany-coronavirus-curevac-vaccine-trump-rights/2020/03/15/8d684c68-6702-11ea-b199-3a9799c54512_story.html https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/germany-coronavi...
anigbrowl 7y ago
While we should absolutely be throwing resources at capable scientists now, attempting to purchase exclusivity rather than maximizing availability by freely distributing validated knowledge as widely as possible is precisely the wrong approach. If this story is true, it suggests that the administration's response to an acute human crisis is to consolidate power at any cost. Whether such a policy is driven by fear or avarice is secondary to the fact of its aggressively zero-sum nature.
stevespang 7y ago
Guardian is rehashing from a FAKE NEWS source, mere propaganda

27 points by mnem 7y ago

mjd 7y ago

This is a really misleading title. The evidence here is extremely thin, and The Guardian has no actual source, just reports from _Die Welt_ that themselves claim only an anonymous source. I suggest something more like: “Anonymous German source claims that Trump offered…”. It's a lot less misleading, and a lot less interesting.

blimey74 7y ago
But the German government has not denied anything stated by their officials in the story.
anigbrowl 7y ago
Stories on HN have to be in English, and English-language German sources (like DW) are just quoting Die Welt. You seem to have missed the detail that the German government confirmed the veracity of the quotes attributed to sources within it.
- mjd 7y ago
  According to the article, the German government would only confirm the accuracy of the quotes attributed to its spokespersons: > the German health ministry would only confirm the accuracy of the quotes attributed to one of its spokespersons in the article The health ministry did not confirm the anonymous claim that “Trump was doing everything to secure a vaccine against the coronavirus for the US, ‘but for the US only’.” Spokespersons, by definition, do not speak anonymously. I hope this clears things up for you.
  - anigbrowl 7y ago
    Yes, that's what I said, and no additional clarification from you is required. You may find the following updates to be of interest, including confirmation from the german interior minister: https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-germany-usa/germany-tries-to-stop-us-from-luring-away-firm-seeking-coronavirus-vaccine-idUSKBN2120IV https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-german... https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/germany-coronavirus-curevac-vaccine-trump-rights/2020/03/15/8d684c68-6702-11ea-b199-3a9799c54512_story.html https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/europe/germany-coronavi...

anigbrowl 7y ago

While we should absolutely be throwing resources at capable scientists now, attempting to purchase exclusivity rather than maximizing availability by freely distributing validated knowledge as widely as possible is precisely the wrong approach. If this story is true, it suggests that the administration's response to an acute human crisis is to consolidate power at any cost. Whether such a policy is driven by fear or avarice is secondary to the fact of its aggressively zero-sum nature.

stevespang 7y ago

Guardian is rehashing from a FAKE NEWS source, mere propaganda