COVID-19 Megathread

[RadiantFlamberge]

43 minutes ago, Dr_Mayus said:

Well the problem is they are all seeing this as a way to get what they want.

 

Republicans want a huge bailout for their companies because it is easy money. And they know democrats won't accept Trump being in charge of 500 billion of bailout money so the Republicans win either way. Either they get the bailout money, make a shit ton of money and can say "they helped during the crisis" OR they don't get the bailout money and they can say "the democrats refused to help the American people when they needed it"

 

Mitch Mcconnell is truly an evil genius. I mean he will go down as one of the most corrupt and evil men in history...but at least he is really good at being evil and corrupt.

 

 

Meanwhile it is the people that suffer.

Money has spoiled politics. This is exactly why I think large business owners should not be allowed to run for Congress. Someone in the House or Senate should be there to represent the people, not the rich. I'm not saying the companies should get zero, just that the people should come first. Those Republicans need to stop being greedy and think of the ones who have been furloughed or laid off, or are suffering from COVID-19.

 

Remember the guy selling hand sanitizer on Amazon for as high as $70 a bottle? Shame on him, that's pretty low. Thankfully, Amazon pulled his listings for those items, and told him to stop it or get his account terminated. Price gougers... fuck them all.

[Z1MZUM]

Here in Australia we have no plan, I felt safer on the Diamond Princess then I do here.

[Bliss]

6 minutes ago, Z1MZUM said:

Here in Australia we have no plan, I felt safer on the Diamond Princess then I do here.

Huh... I always assumed Australia was pretty on the ball when it came to this type of stuff. 

[Z1MZUM]

Just now, Bliss said:

Huh... I always assumed Australia was pretty on the ball when it came to this type of stuff. 

 

We are well behind despite what our leaders say. Basically we let the doors open to several countries who where known to have many confirmed cases, now we are taking no real action. Just recently we've managed to let passengers disembark from a ship in Sydney which has so far had 50 positive cases. 

 

We have no plan, after being bribed into Australian quarantine after completing the Japanese quarantine and then lied to by our own Embassy and exposed to the virus with 6 known cases. It's safe to say we are fucking clueless. Sure it's nice to be part of history, my experience however was more like a part of regret. It's almost as if we are waiting for more people to die before we do anything serious. 

[Litha]

3 hours ago, Bliss said:

Huh... I always assumed Australia was pretty on the ball when it came to this type of stuff. 

The Australian government is fucking retarded at the best of times.

 

Anyway. I just found out that there's been a couple (or a few) confirmed cases in a town a couple of kilometres from where I live. Apparently they've just come back from Bali and have just been walking about outside. They've had to be put under house arrest by the police. If my parents and I have connected the dots well enough one of them might be our landlord. Fucking boomer.

[Feral]

4 hours ago, Z1MZUM said:

Here in Australia we have no plan, I felt safer on the Diamond Princess then I do here.

ScoMo has a plan, throwing money at everyone is a plan. Also tell everyone they should stay home...maybe if they don’t need a 30 minute haircut or a coffee or need to go to Hillsong.

[AJ_Radio]

I'm only going to say a few things about this tragedy for the moment.

 

This virus will be a story you will tell to your fucking grand kids 40 - 60 years from now. I'll bet top dollar on that. Just like when your grand parents told you about their experience with World War II.

 

We're 20 years into the 2000s century and this virus is without question the biggest event to happen. So what do we do? Just hope to god and fucking pray there is going to be a cure... because shit is going to hit the fan if we don't.

 

The 2016 Presidential Elections sunk America to a new low but the way the so called leaders are handling this crisis is already setting record lows. I don't think I've been more ashamed to call myself an American than I do now. The fact the leaders waited too long to quarantine and basically warn people that a catastrophe is happening just proves our inept our government is. We got the wrong people in charge to handle this virus outbreak... and it's scary to think about. The media isn't making it any better, they're just instilling more fear into people that there isn't a cure and we're just sitting in our homes until the situation gets better. 

 

I hate the time period we're living in.

[Venocide]

I suffer with a health condition, so I've managed to get the next 12 weeks off work. It's a huge relief because I work in retail and come in to contact with hundreds of customers a day, 5 days a week, I currently live with my grandmother, she's 87 with dementia, and I've been worried about getting infected and passing it on to her. So I'm on complete lock down for the next 3 months, it's nice having so much time off, but I can't wait to return to work and for life to return to normal.

 

Stay safe out there friends. 

[thepeaguy83]

With respect, I cannot take the sensationalisation of the media too seriously.

Why? Because most of these people are just journalists with no medical background nor experience. Their job is to be panic merchants to make their media companies a lot of money. That's all it's about. 

However, this retired doctor seems to know what he's talking about, as he was dealing with the AIDS hysteria from back in the 1980s and early 1990s.

Check out Vernon Coleman's video on the Coronavirus panic on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbEHEzEEHJ8&t=390s

If I'm seeking information and counsel in the field of epidemiology, I'd rather pay heed to the professionals themselves, retired or not.

Edited March 25, 2020 by thepeaguy83

[Bliss]

59 minutes ago, thepeaguy83 said:

With respect, I cannot take the sensationalisation of the media too seriously.

Why? Because most of these people are just journalists with no medical background nor experience. Their job is to be panic merchants to make their media companies a lot of money. That's all it's about. 

However, this retired doctor seems to know what he's talking about, as he was dealing with the AIDS hysteria from back in the 1980s and early 1990s.

Check out Vernon Coleman's video on the Coronavirus panic on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbEHEzEEHJ8&t=390s

If I'm seeking information and counsel in the field of epidemiology, I'd rather pay heed to the professionals themselves, retired or not.

With respect, I would rather listen to the warnings of the Italian doctors and other experts like Michael Osterholm on this matter. COVID-19 is very serious and it just killed a 21 year old woman with no underlying health issues. 

 

If I'm seeking information or advice on deadly pandemics, it won't be from someone who publishes books such as "Anyone Who Tells You Vaccines Are Safe and Effective is Lying"  or "How To Make A Large Penis Seem Smaller" 

Edited March 25, 2020 by Bliss

[Mesopithecus]

15 minutes ago, Bliss said:

With respect, I would rather listen to the warnings of the Italian doctors and other experts like Michael Osterholm on this matter. COVID-19 is very serious and it just killed a 21 year old woman with no underlying health issues. 

 

If I'm seeking information or advice on deadly pandemics, it won't be from someone who publishes books such as "Anyone Who Tells You Vaccines Are Safe and Effective is Lying"  or "How To Make A Large Penis Seem Smaller" 

 

This x1000.

 

I really wish people would listen to CDC and WHO and the other actual experts on this matter, rather than these conspiracy nuts who call this virus a hoax and make other misleading claims.

 

 

Edited March 25, 2020 by Mesopithecus

[Bliss]

On a slightly more positive note, hopefully this whole thing encourages people to be more hygienic once this is over. Perhaps change their eating habits in certain countries as well. 

[Dr_Mayus]

30 minutes ago, Bliss said:

On a slightly more positive note, hopefully this whole thing encourages people to be more hygienic once this is over. Perhaps change their eating habits in certain countries as well. 

I am already blown away that some people don't realize how dirty things like money, door handles, atms, keyboards etc are. It is like "washing your hands" was a new concept.

 

I can say for myself it is teaching me to eat better. Instead of just getting something from a restaurant...I am actually making food on my own. It is cheaper and better...what a concept (I know I am making fun of myself but seriously I am happy I am doing this).

 

That being said, I was at the grocery store today (the first place I have been to in a week) and the guy in front of me was buying nothing but a chocolate bar and a bag of chips, truly essential items. There was also this old lady that seemed to always find me in the store and just have to buy exactly what I was buying. I was thinking "you are the most at risk but are practising 0 distance here...what the fuck have I been self-isolating for a week for"

 

Anyways hopefully more and more people will figure this out soon (seriously surprised at some of the stupidity I am seeing) and we can all get back to normal.

[damon8r351]

Saw this recently and decided to mention it before someone else came running in here with their hair on fire.

 

In your journeys around the internet, because I know at least some of you obtain your news through Facebook memes despite that being the worst place to get it, you may come across a mention of a fatal case of something called "hantavirus" in China. Hantavirus is a real thing and yes, it has a much higher mortality rate than COVID-19. But also its only method of transmission is by breathing in aerosolized droppings from infected rodents, not from human to human contact. So, like, if you're cleaning out your garage and get the one in a million chance of finding an infected mouse who pooped in there, maybe don't start slamming stuff around and kick up a bunch of dust without wearing a bandana on your face.

Edited March 25, 2020 by damon8r351

[RadiantFlamberge]

So, Trump wants to have everything reopened by Easter. That is the mother of all bad ideas. It's way too early! A good president would worry more about getting this thing under control first. I feel that the lockdown should stay in place until May or maybe even into June. Irresponsible people who aren't taking the lockdown seriously need an adjustment to their priorities. Their partying, hip-hop yoga classes, workouts at gyms, etc. can wait. Maybe a several-hundred dollar fine will get them to wake the hell up?

 

14 hours ago, Spaz said:

The 2016 Presidential Elections sunk America to a new low but the way the so called leaders are handling this crisis is already setting record lows. I don't think I've been more ashamed to call myself an American than I do now. The fact the leaders waited too long to quarantine and basically warn people that a catastrophe is happening just proves our inept our government is. We got the wrong people in charge to handle this virus outbreak... and it's scary to think about. The media isn't making it any better, they're just instilling more fear into people that there isn't a cure and we're just sitting in our homes until the situation gets better. 

Very true. They really should have acted a lot sooner. When November comes, we have to get these blockheads out of office. Trump's lack of prior political experience is definitely not working for us... I feel that a Presidential aspirant should not be allowed to run unless they've previously been a state governor, senator, representative, or a high-ranked military officer like a general. Anyone who votes for Trump a second time is a damned fool. Wake up America, where's your pride?

Edited March 26, 2020 by RadiantFlamberge

[MidnightDragon]

7 minutes ago, RadiantFlamberge said:

So, Trump wants to have everything reopened by Easter. That is the mother of all bad ideas. It's way too early! A good president would worry more about getting this thing under control first. I feel that the lockdown should stay in place until May or maybe even into June. Irresponsible people who aren't taking the lockdown seriously need an adjustment to their priorities. Their partying, hip-hop yoga classes, workouts at gyms, etc. can wait. Maybe a several-hundred dollar fine will get them to wake the hell up?

Well, he can say that, but it's really not in his power. States and cities were making those decisions while he was denying it was a problem. So even if he raised the restrictions, the places that are locked down have zero obligation to follow suit. And if that happened and a lot more people got sick and died, that would just make the economy even worse. Still, he changes his mind more than he changes his socks, so who knows what will actually happen. All I know is I'm listening more to my local health officials than the talking orange in the White House.

[RadiantFlamberge]

Just now, MidnightDragon said:

Well, he can say that, but it's really not in his power. States and cities were making those decisions while he was denying it was a problem. So even if he raised the restrictions, the places that are locked down have zero obligation to follow suit. And if that happened and a lot more people got sick and died, that would just make the economy even worse. Still, he changes his mind more than he changes his socks, so who knows what will actually happen. All I know is I'm listening more to my local health officials than the talking orange in the White House.

Good to know this... so glad that state governors and city mayors have the power to make their own calls on this subject. I believe the lockdowns will stay in place, as they should. Any local official who lifts their lockdown too soon does not deserve to be re-elected.

[MidnightDragon]

A big stimulus bill is going through Congress. The Senate approved it, but not before some Republicans tried to weaken the expanded unemployment. They got what they wanted for their rich buddies, but heaven forbid the poor people get more.   It didn’t work, though. Now onto the House.

[Z1MZUM]

22 hours ago, Feral said:

ScoMo has a plan, throwing money at everyone is a plan. Also tell everyone they should stay home...maybe if they don’t need a 30 minute haircut or a coffee or need to go to Hillsong.

 

Scummo is a Grade A moron, our immediate future is questionable. 

[eigen-space]

So, I work for the largest healthcare provider in my state. Because of all the panic-buying, we've had to get creative with some of our most-needed supplies.

 

All employees who have less-pressing work to attend to have been asked to voluntarily redeploy themselves to do critical tasks. The one I got put on is making face masks out of staples, paper tape, pipe cleaners, and surgical drapes. I wish I were kidding, but I'm not.

We've also asked a local brewery for help in making hand sanitizer.

 

Another note, I'm on the data science team. My boss has been tasked with creating a model projecting how many hospital beds we'll need across time... I can't say much as it's not public info, but this is not going to be just a short-term problem. If you're at all interested in how to accurately model something like this (because I'm sure we've all seen some pretty shitty predictions at this point), you can read about the methodology we've built our model on here.

Edited March 26, 2020 by eigen-space

[MidnightDragon]

@eigen-space Stay safe!

[majob]

11 hours ago, MidnightDragon said:

A big stimulus bill is going through Congress. The Senate approved it, but not before some Republicans tried to weaken the expanded unemployment. They got what they wanted for their rich buddies, but heaven forbid the poor people get more.   It didn’t work, though. Now onto the House.

Last I checked all income brackets got a tax cut, not just "the rich". As for the unemployment upgrade, $600 rubs me the wrong way because that will most likely lead to a bump in income tax later on down the line but whatever, I'm blessed to still be working right now

 

Correction: Those "rich buddies" are largely small local businesses though right now everyone is feeling the pressure. I work in advertising and while the company is large, the bulk of our sales comes from local businesses and their money for inserts has dried up which means we've almost lost half of our quarterly revenue just like that. An extra $600 isn't going to mean much if there's no where to spend it

Edited March 26, 2020 by majob

[MidnightDragon]

1 hour ago, majob said:

Last I checked all income brackets got a tax cut, not just "the rich". As for the unemployment upgrade, $600 rubs me the wrong way because that will most likely lead to a bump in income tax later on down the line but whatever, I'm blessed to still be working right now

 

Correction: Those "rich buddies" are largely small local businesses though right now everyone is feeling the pressure. I work in advertising and while the company is large, the bulk of our sales comes from local businesses and their money for inserts has dried up which means we've almost lost half of our quarterly revenue just like that. An extra $600 isn't going to mean much if there's no where to spend it

Sorry to hear that. I wasn’t trying to upset you.

[majob]

1 minute ago, MidnightDragon said:

Sorry to hear that. I wasn’t trying to upset you.

No need, sorry for taking the wrong intent from the post.

[Sifferino]

On 3/25/2020 at 3:18 PM, Spaz said:

This virus will be a story you will tell to your fucking grand kids 40 - 60 years from now. I'll bet top dollar on that. Just like when your grand parents told you about their experience with World War II.

 

We're 20 years into the 2000s century and this virus is without question the biggest event to happen. So what do we do? Just hope to god and fucking pray there is going to be a cure... because shit is going to hit the fan if we don't.

 

I hate the time period we're living in.

Ditto. This is going to permanently change the world as we know it. There won’t be business as usual when this finally ends. I am however hopeful that from all this we’ll get something better. A new, better way. I just fear the chaos that’ll proceed it...