Wednesday Afternoon Links

Miscellaneous material for your mid-week reading.

- Dean Russell and Jamie Smith Hopkins write about the mental health consequences of the disasters the world is wrestling with at the moment.

- Milan Polk surveys doctors about the need to revise our current reliance on six feet of social distancing as being sufficient. And John Michael McGrath points out how public health is suffering due to the delayed approval of self-testing for COVID-19.

- Jesse Winter reports on British Columbia's tragic number of drug overdoses and deaths, while Alicia Bridges reports on soaring rates in Regina as well. And Tracy Giesz-Ramsey discusses how the coronavirus pandemic has exacerbated the existing overdose crisis - which makes it all the more galling to see Justin Trudeau declare that he isn't interested in decriminalization as a means of reducing harm if it isn't a silver bullet for all possible concerns. 

- Igor Derysh reports on the pharmaceutical executives who turned pandemic contracts from the Trump administration into windfall share sales. PressProgress reports on a push by medical groups to ensure that critical care drugs are available. And Andrew Richter's criticism of the Libs' lack of concrete steps to secure access to COVID-19 vaccines likewise highlights how much we'd stand to gain from a public pharmaceutical manufacturer.

- Josh Eidelson writes about the employers who are endangering everybody by imposing COVID-19 gag orders on their workers, while the Star's editorial board makes the seemingly obvious case to have Ontario's government warn people about workplace outbreaks. Kate Aronoff exposes Tesla's stunning assertion that it can avoid employment standards by labeling its mistreatment of workers as "trade secrets". And Eidelson and Spencer Soper report on Amazon's job posting specifically aimed at trying to impose SLAPP suits on labour organizers, while Lauren Kaori Gurley and Joseph Cox report on its spying on closed Facebook groups.

- Finally, Asher Schechter interviews David Dayen about the harm monopoly corporate power inflicts on the public.