Monday Morning Links

Miscellaneous material for your Monday reading.

- Jenna Gettings et al. study the massive effect masking and improved ventilation have in reducing the spread of the coronavirus in elementary schools. But Sheila Wang reports on the outdated assumptions still being used to inform public health advice about COVID-19. And Michael Zennie and Gladys Tsai point out that the pandemic has evolved to the point where countries like Taiwan who successfully stamped out earlier waves are now facing significant spread, while . 

- Meanwhile, Umair Haque writes that after being handed intellectual property rights over publicly-researched vaccines, the pharmaceutical sector is now banking on COVID-19 becoming endemic to provide an ongoing source of profits.

- David Sirota highlights how the U.S. serves as a tax haven for the rich - including by dedicating far more effort to auditing low-income people than the corporations who are actually hiding money. Luke Savage discusses how Wall Street always tends to get its way in Washington even when public opinion is united against it. And David Lawder and Michael Nienaber report that other countries are watering down even the U.S.' modest proposals for international tax standards. 

- Erica Johnson reports that banks are exploiting the pandemic by extracting even more and higher fees from the people who can least afford to pay them.

- Finally, Ian Gill writes that we're far more likely to be able to pursue happiness and well-being if we don't link them to constant consumption and environmental destruction.