U. K. But the Economic Impact of the pandemic has seen major cities including london become a ghost town. Good morning thanks for joining us here on r. T. International. Condolences are being sent from all around the world to lebanon horror a devastating explosion ripped through the capital on tuesday the nation is in mourning as the catastrophe has claimed the lives of at least 78 people and left another 4000. 00 injured here live pictures from beirut plumes of smoke extend into the sky still above the city there is almost nothing left of the once bustling port area the blast destroyed nearby buildings and cause chaos across the lebanese capital. If. Given the large number of injured people hospitals there are under immense strain facilities already dealing with the coronavirus courses of quickly being filled beyond capacity they shoot pleas for blood donations and for generators to keep the lights going here are some firsthand accounts from people who experienced the shock quite a blast. You might die and all of a sudden we felt a boom everything turned over our heads i was at home and my dinner was the t. V. And movie i learned from over me the wardrobe also from my doesnt. Mean she needs a sitter now. I was. Also. Was. Looking at me it was homeless and heard the sound of the airplane so by our house leaving the opposite floor of the gym the distro was from. Suddenly the song for the next season from its close and Everything Else we could. Have done but it was moving and itself like an earthquake looked around and we saw last shot that everyone. Earlier spoke to journalist has him by rating went to the site of the blast for us. Said the Early Morning hours and throughout last night the Lebanese Army and Fire Fighters have been still trying to put off the fire which is still on till today burning through d the remains of the warehouses the poorest of the city of beirut lebanese president michel own has announced 2 weeks emergency state of emergency in beirut today were expecting an emergency session to be held at the lebanese cabinet were expecting a lot of decisions and sacking of poor officials who are accused of negligence that had a lot to do with cummings had a lot to do with why this entire situation took the turn it did yesterday i ask you workers are still trying to dig through the rubble to find the remainder or the missing individuals as well as if they can find more bodies unfortunately we are expecting that the death toll is going to continue to rise because of how massive the blast was and because at the top of the ports were the ports at the time of the loss or in the time of the explosion. The explosion happened in the densely populated port area of the city the blast level buildings in the surrounding area show it was who reported the photos for a fool to cyprus a number of countries a rush to sunday to the already struggling country the world hopeful that as a show has also sent medical supplies including surgical kits to. Picks up the story. The countrys Prime Minister has said that the cause of the explosion was 2700 tons of Ammonium Nitrate that was stored in a way house he said he would reveal facts soon about the way house but he wouldnt do so now because he did not want to preempt an official investigation thats under way now hospitals continue to report being in the state of chaos we know that theyve been turning people away theyve simply been unable to cope with the huge number of wounded and injured they are calling for blood donations and also for generators to keep the lights going all of this comes as the Lebanese Supreme Defense Council recommended to clearing beirut a disaster stricken city and also calling for 2 weeks of National Emergency the military have now taken control of the security on the streets were also hearing that the lebanese government has made available 100000000000 lebanese pounds in emergency funding to assist those who has been affected the Prime Minister says that they will find that those all those responsible and bring them to book. I will not rest until we find the person responsible for what happened so we can hold them to account and impose the most severe punishment its unacceptable as a shipment of 2750 tons of Ammonium Nitrate has been present for 6 years in a warehouse without any preventative measures now the lebanese government has asked for assistance theres a host of countries who have responded saying that they sending both humanitarian and or medical aid amongst them. The United States the United Kingdom qatar iran and france we are hearing from the american President Donald Trump who says that this looks like a terrible attack which is a statement that contradicts contradicts the official words that we hear coming from lebanese officials let me begin by sending americas deepest sympathies to the people of lebanon where reports indicate that many many people were killed and i met with some of our great generals and they just. Seem to feel that it was this was not a some kind of a manufacturing. Explosion type of event this was a seems to be according to them they would know better than i would but they seem to think it was a attack it was a bomb of some kind yes now and none of those countries who have been offering assistance are as well this is despite the fact that the 2 countries are technically at war we have heard from really the countrys foreign minister been on guns saying that the party mediators have been approached and israel has offered humanitarian assistance no word as of yet what has been of a sponsor from lebanon all of this comes as an Emergency SecurityCabinet Meeting is due to be held in the lebanese capital this morning it comes as both israel and hezbollah deny any kind of involvement there has been speculation as to what caused the blast at this stage the official word from lebanon is lets wait until the investigation is concluded. With the country already going through tough Economic Times its food the tragedy will aggravate the financial situation we spoke to experts about the possible impact. With the ground shaking turned into all the windows kind of blowing at the same time some sort of pressure and explosion and its like nothing ive ever experienced and since then ive been around the city and everything i mean no building is left untouched the level of devastation is shocking and the best i can come up with and shocking cant even describe to you like everybodys homes are damaged right now the rich and the poor lebanon spend experiencing some of their worst economic crisis in a year or so and this still major port just stare connection to the world and its been largely destroyed apparently there was food shipments also destroyed i mean this is an incredible tragedy a. Lot of Economic Justice they put me this system being built up more quickly i dont see how. You know folks in the government itself. How they will be held accountable. Just see. On fathom. I think that. Theres a lot of conflicting information right now some from the interior ministry have said that it was stored there are moved to africa others including the Prime Minister said it was stored there for 6 years in any case whatever the case may be. The responsible party of course should be held to account what youre likely to see here unfortunately is the game of sort of passing the buck from one official to the next with nobody really wanting to step up and take responsibility for this before this explosion took place logan was in need. Of assistance of aid of a proper Reform Program there are multiple issues built on top of one another and this explosion and the devastation that is wrought in terms of human lives and destruction infrastructure etc is sort of the cherry on top so to speak so ultimately though. Whats lebannon need is a proper Reform Program they need the cash injection from from the outside in order to to release funds to people so that they can actually get the economy moving again so as you can see theres compound issues here much make addressing this particular issue very challenging. The Economic Impact of coronavirus is becoming increasingly apparent in the United Kingdom with london taking a hefty hit from the pandemic with near empty streets workplaces its predicted the capital could lose almost 190000000 pounds a month and 2021 and its feared london will remain a ghost town for some time to come shouted Edwards Daschle has more. So the lockdown in london is easing it certainly doesnt feel like it the financial and Business District the heart of the city is usually overcrowded and bustling but now it looks like a ghost town even though the governments pleas to get people back into the office i want people to go back to where. The people should be. Going back to work you. Over own right after saying that Boris Johnson left downing street and set off a checkers his country retreat so much for leading by example and while the government gave employees the right to order stuff back into the office Many Companies are not rushing into that decision but can you blame them when the u. K. Is the worst hit by the coronavirus in europe and considering the governments mantra for months was strictly to stay at home stay at home folks stayed home stayed home and sorry for being the countrys economic engine pulling in commuters by the millions london is also the capital of entertainment with plenty of things to do and places to eat but this 24 hour city now seems to be in a. Feels like a bit of a ghost town. Has been previously a lot of people i knew very comfortable working at home so they want to go back to work in offices of engineering or get back to normal its going to take a while with london stood in a partial shutdown thats expected to have a devastating impact on the entire economy its business is scared off by this if the potential labor force either doesnt come or goes home if people dont think london is where they want to live and hence fail to attract new businesses the effect on londons g. D. P. Could be a huge multiple of this a huge chunk of the workforce at lloyds h. S. B. C. And barclays are expected to work from home until at least september and google are not west group also allowing employees to work for mostly until 2021 with many other Tech Companies also following suit its now predicted that in 2021. The new normal will be about 30 percent of london based employees still working from home on any one day that would equate to around 178000000 pounds lost on other things like after work drinks cups of tea stationery and other officer equipment each month its pretty staggering stats even despite the governments latest eat out to help out initiative offering discounts on meals to kickstart the hospitality sector. Is unique we to be creative so to get customers back into restaurants cafes and parks and protect the 1800000 people who work in them i can announce today that for the month of august we will give everyone in the country and each town to help out discount its offers diners 50 percent off meals up to a maximum of 10 pounds per head courtesy of the taxpayer and its the latest of a series of government efforts to tackle soaring unemployment but its unclear whether or not popular schemes like this one will be enough to rescue the economy especially when the expected 2nd wave of the coronavirus hits shuttered study arts in london. Employs a new u. K. Are now required to contribution towards covering their furloughed workers salaries stuff are entitled to 80 percent of the normal salary but that doesnt sit well with some employers who offer it in the bill. For example of the u. K. s largest plumbing for Pimlico Plumbers some of his stuff will be let go for refusing to return to work charlie balances it out of the governments furlough scheme terming some workers are taking advantage of it to collect pay without having to work over half of workers furloughed during coronavirus lock down have been returning to work but millions more have stayed at home so all the millions told us his side of the story. You could look at it as you want to look at it bob just be an all nice people need to get by so well and. Get other people the longer with us all very much the place where the want to come by so well and you know been assigned. A splendid salon when the bates know when to back so should be sincere in their excuse and come up weve you know theyre not ready to go back so well but if were going to stop the 2 percent close to morrow theyd be back the whole indict if you could change anything valid reason not chicagos well then ill go with the commonwealth limply and of course a needle you know and we need to call for an employee the people im talking about a younger people would just go by surely they dont want to come to work because theyve given night she was sent there why just style its the simplest you know im on the question that these are all subsets will be sneezed and unfortunately the system is not just by mom locust ingenue what bad its been. Thrown virus infections on the rise in france many of playmate young people for the social moral not to sound the stories after the break. All across the board trump is down in the polls and not just by a pointer to traditionally incumbency alone is enough to win the election but this time around it is a race trump made and lets be clear this has little to do with joe biden how we. The world is. Shaped by. The day. We ask. Frances top scientific bodies warning a 2nd wave of corona virus will likely hit the country following the some restrictions were recently tied with mosques now obligatory outdoors in worst hit areas young people though are among those whove been flouting the measure being blamed for the cases but theres a lot of explains the fault actually may lie elsewhere. The greek philosopher aristotle once said that young people aha it mind it because they have not yet been humbled by life thousands of years later and little seems to have changed when there is a problem the finger is often pointed at the perceived source the youth as front sees an increase in the number of covert cases and a rise in hospital admissions this age old blame game continues. The boy. Instead of being huddled at home in socially isolated bubbles since lockdown ended in france many young people have decided to party thats shocked some and that the World Health Organization to issue a warning young people you are not invincible young people can be infected young people can die. Only young people can transmit the virus to others so when one french Infectious Disease expert suggested this i believe more and more that they should be allowed to infect each other provided they dont visit parents and grandparents otherwise young people will be a reservoir of contamination and we will end up with an unimaginable epidemic by letting them contaminate themselves they will participate in collective immunity you could almost hear the gospel of horror. Young people go to the bakery the baker is not necessarily the go to the poor mysie they meet people of all kinds so this is really a totally wrong idea but hold your horses after investigating frances clusters of covert that National Health agency has made a rather startling discovery apparently its not the youth and them ask 3 socially packed parties that are the biggest source of contamination here would you believe it its actually the office of the 147. 00 cost is currently under investigation more than a quarter of them can be traced back to the workplace social gatherings and thats all social gatherings and not just parties only account for 13 percent of clusters well just seeing your extended family accounts for almost the same number of clusters with the facts clearly on display what the people in paris make it so its very easy to find your finger do you. But i think its its kind of both ways because now that im hearing this its are easy for me to put my finger at the elderly so i dont think it does matter who does it just like that its happening and we have to be very careful and for me it is really her like if its us or if its them. Fact i think theyre right its. Also fact all the people who are working spies some of them are going to be carrying the virus and so it is going to spread faster even if we young people decide to stay at home and not go to work. So unless you intend to stay in bubble best not to point the finger or the bubble might burst pretty quickly so what do you want skiing r. T. Paris. Honesty International Reports that there were 125. 00 cases of Police Violence against demonstrators during the 1st 10 days of the black lives matter protests in america and the misuse of pepper spray tear gas and projectiles through the protests there been growing calls to defund even dismantle Police Departments a number of americas Largest Companies of expressed solidarity with the p. L. O. Movement but theyre now facing a backlash over their support of the police in the mall but explains. Statements and social media campaigns companies all over the world getting on board with black lives matter but critical observers have smelled hypocrisy from day one. These companies which rely on extraction exploitation to secure their profits have an incentive to form tight bonds with Police Forces which function to up hold and protect their interests in the face of Community Opposition in many states these companies go so far as to back laws to criminalize protests of dirty Energy Projects such as pipelines openly weaponized in the police and criminal Justice System to protect the profits of the fossil fuel industry and the banks to fund them the chief of j. P. Morgan took a knee to support the protesters Marathon Petroleum was unequivocal in their words Marathon Petroleum corporation stands firmly against racism intolerance and hate of any kind commemorating the ending of slavery in the us is one way were encouraging learning and empathetic dialogue among our employees as we Work Together to identify meaningful ways we can make progress chevron has spoken up to racism and brutality have no place in america yet these incidents still occur inequality in treatment for no reason other than the color of skin is a stain American Society has not yet a raised we reject systemic racism with support diversity equity and inclusion but one of the key demands of the protesters is defund the police boom boom. Boom boom boom do you see a bear move. Was. A no give me a report from the Public Accountability Initiative reveals that fossil fuel and cilla the companies as well as Financial Institutions have been contributing to Law Enforcement for years j. P. Morgan chase is an official corporate partner of the police the bank has given 4600000. 00 to the new York City Police foundation. Was. Oh. My. God i was released foundations across the country and places like chicago philadelphia and new york city have been showered with corporate money money from the same corporations such as marathon wells fargo and j. P. Morgan that now claim suddenly they are woke. The more these companies sponsor events and dollars that celebrate the police and remind the public that police power is backed up by Corporate Power it looks very good to shell out money in the name of equality but will money speak louder than words when companies claim to support black lives matter but then fund the police i think that theyre placing wagers and bets on all sides that is to say that im sure these Petroleum Companies they feel that Police Departments their products and they believe that black lives matter of go buy their products as well over i think that those of us in the movement see this is hypocritical we see this as inconsistent and i think ultimately it could backfire against these corporations i think its certainly a p. R. Moment and none of us are fooled by it that is just silly it takes more then she months of sympathetic statements and postings on facebook through her and ugly history ok ill be back with more on our top story the explosion in beirut in half an hours time in the meanwhile you can always check out plenty more he had to our website on to dot com whats most or is that. Join me every thursday on the alec simon show and ill be speaking to guest of the world of politics sports business im showbusiness ill see you then. How can you explain love ive been to 82 countries ive given 12 but i came here and on those 3 days i just filled with hope and. Change and he kept pretty isnt it 6 show that. I made my decision to come here because i felt i knew i could build a new life here suited to whos a championship companies and. Goes a free man. God decided that this money is no good to be free. My one dream is that all my children d find the same kind of happiness i do. I love my home i love cold weather i like the culture i like the history i like everything about it almost. Sounds i know that. I am a russian fama. These. Shots seem wrong. When all rolls just dont hold. Me you get to shape out these days comes to agitate and indeed from an equals betrayal. When something you find themselves worlds apart we choose to look for common ground. Greetings and sell you take its boy it was a celebration of political grandstanding partisan hackery and outright lying to the public it was on full display in full swing this week from both democrats and republicans as everybodys favorite befuddled looking president ial bootlicking yes man u. S. Attorney general william barr took the stand in front of the u. S. House Judiciary Committee to answer for a wide range of questionable and possibly political motivated decisions coming out of his Office Decisions like using chemical weapons to clear out protesters in Lafayette Square for Trumps Campaign buyable photo op here in d. C. Or sending in the u. S. Cities to provoke protesters and inflame hostilities to bolster the president s Campaign Theme of law and order you know those kind of all american Decision Making is to come out of an attorney general but while a. G. Barr and the politicians questioning him are definitely wearing their political beliefs an agenda on their sleeves it appears that many u. S. Citizens are actually rolling up their sleeves and never to hide their political opinions according to the Cato Institute a new National Survey about 2000 u. S. Citizens has found that selfcensorship is on the rise in the United States and that nearly 2 thirds 62 percent of americans say the Political Climate these days prevents them from saying things they believe because others might find them offensive. Digging deeper into the institutes findings one discovers that these fears may actually Cross Party Lines with 52 percent of democrats 59 percent of independents and a whopping 77 percent of republicans all agreeing that they are afraid to share in public some of their but most basic political opinions in fact according to cato the only Political Group where a majority feel unafraid to express their beliefs publicly are hardcore major league liberals nearly 6 in 1058 percent of staunch liberals feel they can say what they believe so basically those who believe in free healthcare for all ending systemic racism equality for the l. G. B. T. Q. Community no