Deadly Wuhan Coronavirus

Standingstones

Celestial
My wife and I were out today to get soft ice cream and pretzels. Once more we were the only people to use masks. At the ice cream place there was a sign in the window, “Only four people allowed to sit at the picnic tables outside” and keep your distance. Sure enough there were six people crowded at one particular table. It makes you want to go and just yell at these numbskulls but ultimately nothing would get resolved. You can’t cure stupidity.
 

Standingstones

Celestial
Does anyone else feel that between the Corona virus and the Black lives Matter situation that the country is spiraling towards a possible civil war? I sure get that uneasy feeling in my gut that things are going to get much worse before they get better.
 

pigfarmer

tall, thin, irritable
Around here where masks and distancing and all that have been mandatory for some time there is still a small percentage who refuse to comply. A trend is now to have one hanging off your ear or chin so you can feign compliance. We're in a phased reopening .... and I've lost track of what's what ... yet I see a local barber shop full of people with no masks. That particular place was always filthy to begin with and I avoided it. I guess it's current crop of clientele doesn't mind.

We'll see. Suspect we're all screwed.

No idea about these protests - don't think the virus minds at all and it doesn't discriminate
 

AD1184

Celestial
New highs in many states again today, I went in to town earlier today and saw a few out of state tags, a major highway runs nearby there, many travelers stop in that small town frequently...Fortunately daily deaths have not spiked but new cases sure are jumping...
The trouble is testing capacity and testing activity is increasing, so more cases are discovered regardless of what the virus is doing. The infection is active in the body for two or three weeks but can still potentially result in a positive PCR test months later (to give a prominent example, George Floyd tested positive for SARS-Cov-2 on the third of April, and again at autopsy after his death on the 25th of May). Therefore if someone tests positive, it does not necessarily mean that they have an active infection that they caught recently.

The count of deaths is a better indicator of disease spread, although it is a delayed indicator of the number of new infections by about three weeks. The number of hospitalizations for Covid-19 is perhaps better still, if it is available, as it is delayed about a week less. However, there are reports that the virus may be tending to become less virulent, and so may lead to a lower mortality rate, and thus making the same assumptions about the ratio of deaths or hospitalizations to the number of infections as were made two or three months ago might be incorrect.
 

Sheltie

Fratty and out of touch.
Around here where masks and distancing and all that have been mandatory for some time there is still a small percentage who refuse to comply. A trend is now to have one hanging off your ear or chin so you can feign compliance. We're in a phased reopening .... and I've lost track of what's what ... yet I see a local barber shop full of people with no masks. That particular place was always filthy to begin with and I avoided it. I guess it's current crop of clientele doesn't mind.

We'll see. Suspect we're all screwed.

No idea about these protests - don't think the virus minds at all and it doesn't discriminate
We're still required to wear masks here but many people do not.

Even though I personally question the effectiveness of masks I always wear them when I go to places like the grocery store or hardware store as a courtesy to the people who work there. The folks in retail are on the front lines and they have a very difficult job.
 

Sheltie

Fratty and out of touch.
Does anyone else feel that between the Corona virus and the Black lives Matter situation that the country is spiraling towards a possible civil war? I sure get that uneasy feeling in my gut that things are going to get much worse before they get better.
The real problem is that everyone has a blinders on nowadays. Everyone is convinced their opinion is perfect and no one else's voice matters.

On Facebook I have probably an equal number of conservative and liberal friends. Although I try to avoid getting political there, every once in a while I'll say something that will be construed as political. There will inevitably be people who voice their disagreement yet, there will also be a couple of folks who always jump in to support me. Most people unfriend those they disagree with. This concept is easier but, in the long run, you end up with a limited, slanted perspective on everything.
 

Standingstones

Celestial
I see various parties going to war over wearing face masks. You can just imagine when people start a confrontation over other Corona matters. It doesn’t seem good to me. I guess we will see how matters play out.
 

pigfarmer

tall, thin, irritable
We're still required to wear masks here but many people do not.

Even though I personally question the effectiveness of masks I always wear them when I go to places like the grocery store or hardware store as a courtesy to the people who work there. The folks in retail are on the front lines and they have a very difficult job.

I wonder abut their effectiveness too, but if it's mandatory like here what's the big deal about putting it on for the few minutes you're in the store out of common courtesy to those that work there? Some just have to let you know how very clever they are.
 

nivek

As Above So Below
COVID-19 Will Rage 'Like A Forest Fire' In Unprepared America, Top Doc Warns

COVID-19 will rage “like a forest fire” in a U.S. that has no clear plan to deal with it and has regressed to a dismissive, “pre-pandemic” attitude, a top infectious disease expert said Sunday.

America’s leadership is unfocused, Dr. Michael Osterholm told Chuck Todd on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” unlike other parts of the world that remain vigilant against the pandemic.

The spread of COVID-19 is “like a forest fire,” warned Osterholm, the director of the Center for Infectious Disease Research and Policy at the University of Minnesota.

“I don’t think that this is going to slow down. I think that wherever there is wood to burn, this fire is going to burn. And right now we have a lot of susceptible people,” he said.

“I don’t see this slowing down through the summer or into the fall. I don’t think we’re going to see one, two and three waves. I think we’re going to just see one very, very difficult forest fire of cases.”

Other nations have “done a much better job” of stopping the spread of COVID-19, said Osterholm.

“We haven’t done that. ... We just have not really gotten the message across to the public yet that this is a very serious issue. We can’t shut down our economy, but we just can’t suddenly say we’re done with” COVID-19, he added.

A number of states are now dealing with record daily increases of COVID-19 cases because “everybody’s back to a pre-pandemic mindset,” Osterholm pointed out.

He noted the U.S. lacks a national plan that “really puts together what we’re trying to do” — leaving states to impose a patchwork of different responses.

“To hear the fact that we don’t want to do testing is wrong. Absolutely, we should be testing as much as possible,” Osterholm said. “Once we do have these positive tests, what are we doing to make sure that additional transmission isn’t occurring? How do we do contact tracing?”

President Donald Trump said at his campaign rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Saturday that he told his “people” to reduce testing in order to suppress reports of increased cases.

“When you do testing to that extent, you’re going to find ... more cases,” Trump explained. “So I said to my people, ’Slow the testing down, please.’”


(more on the link)

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nivek

As Above So Below
President Donald Trump said at his campaign rally in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on Saturday that he told his “people” to reduce testing in order to suppress reports of increased cases.

“When you do testing to that extent, you’re going to find ... more cases,” Trump explained. “So I said to my people, ’Slow the testing down, please.’”

This is a death sentence for thousands, very unhinged reasoning in my opinion, we must ramp up testing even more to save lives...

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Standingstones

Celestial
The doctor’s offices in our area are all maintaining a strict mask code. Also, no one can join you in the waiting room unless you are elderly and need assistance from a spouse. Otherwise, out in the real world the mask rule is being followed very loosely. There is much grumbling when certain businesses insist on the mask and distancing. I am waiting for a major fight or some such uprising when those who refuse to follow the mask rules finally blow their tops.
 

Standingstones

Celestial
This falls under the category, you think you have it bad sometimes but then you see someone else who is pushing the envelope. My Dad died of prostate cancer so I was in seeing the Urology PA for my checkup. In the waiting room is a very large man in a wheelchair. He has a boot/cast on up to his hip. He is obviously there for a urology problem. He was on his phone making an appointment for a diabetic issue. Yikes! I am quite sure he had other issues as well.
 

nivek

As Above So Below
SEVEN states hit record coronavirus hospitalizations: Texas tells residents to stay home, California and Arizona set new one-day highs while Florida and New Jersey vow to crack down on bars as infections surge across the U.S.
  • Arizona, Arkansas, California, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas are each recording their highest number of hospitalizations
  • California recorded its highest number of daily new COVID-19 cases throughout the entire pandemic Monday, with 5,019 infections in just 24 hours
  • Concerns are building over an outbreak among the San Quentin prison population in Marin County, where 342 have now tested positive
  • Officials also traced a new outbreak in Shasta County back to a man who broke social distancing rules to attend a 'large family gathering' where he infected 12
  • Gov. Newsom said the state could return to lockdown if cases continue to soar
  • Texas, which was one of the first states to start reopening back in April, has reached an all-time high with 5,489 new cases Tuesday
  • Republican Governor Greg Abbott warned Texans the outbreak is now 'rampant' and gave local officials more powers to reduce the size of outdoor gatherings
  • In Florida, Governor Ron DeSantis warned Tuesday he will be cracking down on bars and restaurants that flout social distancing guidelines
  • He said 'the grim reaper for business licenses' will come down hard on violators
  • A similar hard line is being adopted in New Jersey, Governor Phil Murphy said after images circulated on social media of large crowds at reopened bars
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nivek

As Above So Below
Oregon county says non-white people don't need to wear coronavirus face masks if they have 'concerns about racial profiling and harassment'

  • Health officials in Lincoln County, Oregon, announced Tuesday that people of color are exempt from the local order to wear face masks
  • 'People of color who have heightened concerns about racial profiling and harassment due to wearing face coverings in public' are exempt, they said
  • Officials last week issued an order that all residents must wear a face covering if they come within six feet of someone who does not live in their household
  • Concerns have been raised that ordering everyone to wear masks puts people of color at increased risk because of racial stereotyping
  • Ohio State University economic professor Trevor Logan told CNN in April when black men wear masks people perceive it as 'criminal or nefarious'
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nivek

As Above So Below
Countries across world reimpose restrictions due to coronavirus spikes as US remains adamant about avoiding 2nd lockdown

In Germany, more than 1,550 people tested positive for COVID-19 at the Toennies slaughterhouse in Rheda-Wiedenbrueck, forcing two counties to reimpose closures of movie theaters, gyms, and other businesses, while schools and daycare centers remain closed and public social interactions are limited to two people from the same family.

Fearing that large gatherings could usurp any progress made to quell the virus in Australia, officials in the state of Victoria shut down two primary schools where dozens of new cases were reported and limited the number of people allowed to congregate to no more than 10, according to The Washington Post.

Saudia Arabia, which had previously began phased reopenings throughout the kingdom, was forced to clamp down again after new cases swelled. It has had the highest number of coronavirus cases in the Middle East. On Tuesday, officials took decisive action to pare down the usual flock of over 2 million worshippers to Mecca for the Islamic holy pilgrimage Hajj, to a mere 1,000 devotees already inside the country, much to the dismay of Muslims worldwide.

In South Korea, which largely avoided huge swaths of deaths during the initial months of the pandemic and never went into lockdown completely, officials have threatened to reimpose stricter restrictions after Mayor Park Won-soon said residents flouting social distancing precautions were largely responsible for a spike in new cases.


(more on the link)

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