I know the numbers, but at the end of the day we are talking 1500-2000 deaths a day. All more or less needless and I refuse to rationalize or try to justify that in the face of great stupidity and willful ignorance.
Another interesting finding is that fear of COVID doesn't statistically correlate with intelligence or politics or many of the things people might think that it does. But it very strongly correlates with a person's proclivity toward anxiety and depression.
I don’t fear COVID. I respect COVID. I’ve faced COVID. It’s nasty. I protect myself and my community by respecting it enough to stay clear. To wear a mask. To fully PPE at work. To decontaminate when I come home. Don’t mistake my respect of a deadly virus for fear.
And we all know it’s about to get worse cause Americans are hard headed and will travel They asses off for the holiday season.
“To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public.”
Respect the disease, but remain calm and maintain perspective of exactly how life threatening this thing is. We need to balance the risk against the negative social impacts of responding in the wrong way. In terms of impact on life expectancy, it will never compare with vehicle deaths, and soon COVID will begin decreasing as we get the vaccine out and we will still continue to drive around and get into auto accidents.
I think it is important the people go out and live life to it's fullest. Many elderly people have been unable to see their loved ones for months. Many are dying in loneliness, without their loved ones even being allowed to be with them. Children are being deprived of an decent education and a normal social life, many are showing unusual signs of depression, and of course this over exposure to fear porn and seeing parents struggle with stress is taking root in their brains which will lead to a lifetime of increased anxiousness and other mental health consequences and even a lower IQ.
As a person with children in school, I have to balance their mental health with keeping them safe from every threat that can harm them. Right now, their lives are full of mixed messaging from adults that they are supposed to see as authority figures. Unfortunately, we have had the experience that many of these adults, specifically some teachers, are so adamant in their belief that this is extremely dangerous that they are spreading fear to young children. So imagine having a school board and superintendent set the rules for having schools open, and kids are in school and the teacher is telling them that it is dangerous to be in school. This is the current reality. This is the type of frustrating experience that many of us are having to deal with right now. We are having trouble managing the adults that cannot manage their own anxiety about COVID-19.
So wear your masks, respect each other by social distancing. That's all good. But also understand that it is important to be courageous during this time and don't give into the fear porn. A lot of the news out there likes to find a few statistics to scare us or exaggerate things to scare us. Fear leads to clicks.
Respect the disease, but remain calm and maintain perspective of exactly how life threatening this thing is. We need to balance the risk against the negative social impacts of responding in the wrong way. In terms of impact on life expectancy, it will never compare with vehicle deaths, and soon COVID will begin decreasing as we get the vaccine out and we will still continue to drive around and get into auto accidents.
I think it is important the people go out and live life to it's fullest. Many elderly people have been unable to see their loved ones for months. Many are dying in loneliness, without their loved ones even being allowed to be with them. Children are being deprived of an decent education and a normal social life, many are showing unusual signs of depression, and of course this over exposure to fear porn and seeing parents struggle with stress is taking root in their brains which will lead to a lifetime of increased anxiousness and other mental health consequences and even a lower IQ.
As a person with children in school, I have to balance their mental health with keeping them safe from every threat that can harm them. Right now, their lives are full of mixed messaging from adults that they are supposed to see as authority figures. Unfortunately, we have had the experience that many of these adults, specifically some teachers, are so adamant in their belief that this is extremely dangerous that they are spreading fear to young children. So imagine having a school board and superintendent set the rules for having schools open, and kids are in school and the teacher is telling them that it is dangerous to be in school. This is the current reality. This is the type of frustrating experience that many of us are having to deal with right now. We are having trouble managing the adults that cannot manage their own anxiety about COVID-19.
So wear your masks, respect each other by social distancing. That's all good. But also understand that it is important to be courageous during this time and don't give into the fear porn. A lot of the news out there likes to find a few statistics to scare us or exaggerate things to scare us. Fear leads to clicks.
If we weren't in a situation where:
1.) Hospitals literally don't have beds to hold all the sick. 2.) There are miracle vaccines that are only a few months away.
then I might agree with you. But right now is a time to hunker down -- for not very long -- and save tens of thousands of lives.
Not to mention that myself and others with comorbidities and the elderly who are most at risk get overlooked by society in the "numbers" thinking. This is very serious for us and I see comments like "it's only old people that die" or "Oh well, we can't shut down the economy"... Infuriating. But eventually you will all be old and have issues of your own. You should remember that no matter your age now, and think about this from our point of view.
But right now is a time to hunker down -- for not very long -- and save tens of thousands of lives.
the numbers I've seen were producing 1.3 billion vaccinations by the end of 2021. But people need 2 doses. That vaccinates 650 million people. Thats about 9% of the world population. Assuming they could ramp up production further, we're still looking at 3-5 years to get a majority vaccinated. Do you think it's feasible to keep society locked down for 3-5 years?
It's supposed to be hard! If it wasn't hard, everyone would do it. The hard... is what makes it great!
Oh, and the top disease official in Sweden came out and said they don’t see evidence of herd immunity in the population.
But we still got people pushing that nonsense. Herd mentality? Absolutely. Too bad that doesn’t save lives though.
And since we all know people about to travel for the holiday season, the numbers are only gonna get worse.
Why? Because one thing we do in this country greater than anywhere else is learn lessons the hard way.
Hell, I don’t even know if that’s accurate, because we love to double down on beliefs for no other reason than just because.
“To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public.”
And since we all know people about to travel for the holiday season, the numbers are only gonna get worse.
Including politicians that told people to stay home. Hypocrites. Do as I say, not as I do. I'd like to see politicians make the same sacrifices they expect the American people to make. Including giving up their paycheck.
Wait. He's the mayor of Denver, but his wife and daughter don't even live in Denver?
Sounds odd. Very odd to an old school guy like me.
As to your overall point, about travel, or officials banning or at a minimum discouraging association with others, no going out to eat, etc.....they make the rules/state these things, then go about doing whatever they want anyway. In Michigan, in California, and may other places, Party (political party, that is) does not matter.
I believe many sociopaths are drawn to politics because they have a deep seeded desire to control and hurt other people. For them, the lock down is like a drug. Most leaders, whether we agree with them or not, are legitimately trying to control others out of fear and concern for public safety, but these ones that don't obey their own rules or attempt to destroy the lives and businesses of people that resist them are showing you that they are some very disturbed individuals.
Scott Peterson, Calif. death row inmates got COVID-19 benefits in massive scam: report
By Tamar Lapin
November 24, 2020
California prosecutors say they’ve uncovered a massive scam that allowed convicted killer Scott Peterson and other death row inmates to receive coronavirus unemployment benefits administered by the state, a report said Tuesday.
It is “the most significant fraud on taxpayer funds in California history,” nine local district attorneys said in a letter obtained by the Los Angeles Times, which first reported the allegations.
Investigators found that more than $400,000 in state benefits were paid to death row inmates, including Peterson, who is behind bars at San Quentin State Prison for the 2002 murder of his wife, Laci, and their unborn son, according to the report.
More than $140 million was sent to other inmates in California’s 38 prisons, said Sacramento County DA Anne Marie Schubert, who helped lead a task force that discovered the alleged racket.
The alleged con took many forms: Some claims were submitted directly by inmates or by their family and friends, while other prisoners were unwitting victims, the prosecutors said.
Prison gangs may have also been involved in large-scale organized schemes to game the system. see also
COVID-19 aid program doled out $7.2M for man's fake farming firms: report
In total, nearly $1 billion may have been paid out to people who were ineligible for the benefits due to incarceration in Golden State prisons and jails, the prosecutors claim.
“The murderers and rapists and human traffickers should not be getting this money,” said Schubert. “It needs to stop.”
Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday announced a task force to tackle the alleged abuse.
“Unemployment fraud across local jails and state and federal prisons is absolutely unacceptable,” the governor said in a statement.
When do you think the USA will see 50,000 fans packed into a stadium again?
I think you may not have read precisely what I was writing. I was not writing about the politicians that lock down things out of legitimate public concern. I was writing about the hypocrites that want to lockdown everyone else but themselves. I don't agree with that. You don't either.
When do you think the USA will see 50,000 fans packed into a stadium again?
I think you may not have read precisely what I was writing. I was not writing about the politicians that lock down things out of legitimate public concern. I was writing about the hypocrites that want to lockdown everyone else but themselves. I don't agree with that. You don't either.
So who is it exactly, advocating to lockdown everyone but themselves? Example please.
"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants." Thomas Jefferson.
Gov. Mike DeWine announces plans to veto bill aimed at limiting ODH's ability to issue health orders
COLUMBUS, Ohio — During a press briefing on Thursday, Gov. Mike DeWine announced his plans to veto a bill looking to limit the ability of the Ohio Department of Health to issue health orders during crises like the COVID-19, should it pass in the House.
Senate Bill 311 aims to prohibit mandatory, statewide quarantine orders, like the stay at home orders issued across Ohio, for those who “have not been directly exposed to the disease that is the subject of the health order.”
Instead, the bill would allow quarantine orders to apply only to those who are sick or have been directly exposed to the disease. Senate Bill 311 was co-sponsored by Senate President Larry Obhof, who in September said the bill “restores the proper balance between the legislature and the executive branch.”
DeWine expressed his concern, not only for the COVID-19 pandemic he is currently dealing with but for what limitations the bill could put on future leaders of Ohio under other outbreaks moving forward.
The governor gave an example of if a person came to the state from a country dealing with an Ebola outbreak, the state’s health department could not ask them to quarantine until they were certain they had direct exposure to Ebola or had tested positive for it.
“This would be devastating. These people would be free to shop in our stores, be free to eat in our restaurants. They’d be free to go any place in the state of Ohio possibly spreading a deadly disease to unknowing Ohioans,” DeWine said. “Not good.”
DeWine said if a president doesn’t issue travel bans for a situation like the COVID-19 pandemic or any future outbreaks, the state of Ohio loses its power to protect citizens by enabling mandatory quarantines for incoming individuals.
The governor also gave the hypothetical of a biological agent deployed by a foreign country, stating the state would need to act immediately to quarantine the area, but would not be able to under Senate Bill 311.
“This bill would make Ohio slow to respond to a crisis. It would take tools away from this governor or future governors. It would put the lives of Ohioans in jeopardy,” DeWine said. “This bill is a disaster.”
DeWine said members of the general assembly who created the bill mean well, but when inspected, it is “not a bill that can become law.”
“I have said throughout this pandemic that I would take advice and have been taking advice from medical and health experts. Health experts have told me that this bill cannot become law. They have told me that this bill would be a disaster,” DeWine said. “For that reason, if by chance it would pass, I would veto the bill because I would have a moral obligation to do so.”
DeWine said that he could not object Ohioans to the possibilities the bill would create.
Supreme Court blocks New York coronavirus restrictions on houses of worship
The Supreme Court late on Wednesday sided with religious challengers to New York state’s latest coronavirus pandemic-related restrictions.
In a 5-4 ruling, the court barred New York authorities from enforcing some limits on the number of people attending services in churches and synagogues in an attempt to slow the spread of COVID-19.
The ruling highlighted the court's recent rightward tilt as newly confirmed Justice Amy Coney Barrett sided with four other conservative justices in the ruling. Chief Justice John Roberts joined the three liberal judges in the dissent.
The ruling marked a shift for the court, as earlier this year, before the death of liberal Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, it ruled 5-4 on similar cases out of Nevada and California.
Barrett was quickly confirmed to the bench following Ginsburg's death in September.
In the unsigned majority opinion, the majority ruled for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Brooklyn and Agudath Israel of America, who argued that New York's caps on the number of people who could attend services in designated coronavirus hot spots violated the Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment due to the orders being more restrictive than on other facilities.
In court papers, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) had argued that restrictions on houses of worship were necessary in order to stem the surge of coronavirus cases in the state.
Lower courts had sided with New York in the case.
Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote of his ruling that it seemed contradictory to say it was unsafe to go to church but not to shop for a new bike.
"So, at least according to the Governor, it may be unsafe to go to church, but it is always fine to pick up another bottle of wine, shop for a new bike," Gorsuch wrote.
So the infiltration of radical religious beliefs that will absolutely cost lives is what the GOPers "blessed" us with in ACB. Wow, the party of 'right to life' is so damn fake. It's the party of "ME" and zero responsibility. I hope the GOP goes extinct very soon.
So who is it exactly, advocating to lockdown everyone but themselves? Example please.
Well I was merely commenting on an example of this that Squires posted, so you can just read that article... Is this really a contentious issue? That politicians ought to abide by their own rules and advice that they preach to everyone else? I have to tell you that I am a little shocked to find myself several posts into this defending a position that I would have expected any sane person would agree with.
YouTube temporarily suspends OANN account after spreading coronavirus misinformation
YouTube has suspended the pro-Trump One America News Network from posting new videos for a week, and the outlet has had its old content demonetized after uploading a video containing misinformation about the coronavirus, YouTube spokesperson Ivy Choi confirmed to The Hill on Tuesday.
The weeklong suspension is the result of a “strike” issued for saying that there is a guaranteed cure for COVID-19, a claim that runs afoul of YouTube’s coronavirus-specific policy.
The demonetization came as a result of “repeated violations of our COVID-19 misinformation policy and other channel monetization policies,” Choi said. Axios first reported on the suspension and demonetization.
“Early on in this pandemic, we’ve worked to prevent the spread of harmful misinformation associated with COVID-19 on YouTube,” she added.
YouTube did not immediately respond to questions about how many strikes OANN had previously accrued. The channel has been criticized for spreading myriad lies about the pandemic and the election.
False claims about the result of the election are not explicitly banned by the video-sharing platform's policies.
In order to start making money off videos again, the network will have to reapply for the YouTube Partner Program.
President Trump and his allies have escalated their promotion of OANN as an alternative to Fox News in the aftermath of his electoral loss.
"Many great alternatives are forming & exist. Try @OANN & @newsmax, among others!" the president tweeted Sunday, referring to another right-wing network.
YouTube has been under pressure from lawmakers and academics to take more action against misinformation on its platform.
Earlier Tuesday, Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii) and Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) sent a letter to YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki urging her to take down “all election outcome misinformation” and implement prohibitions on that kind of content like other major social media companies have done.
“As you know, on January 5, 2021, Georgia voters will cast their ballots in two runoff elections for Georgia’s U.S. Senate seats,” they wrote. “YouTube and its industry peers must take responsibility and immediately stop the spread of misinformation and manipulated media on their platforms.”
So who is it exactly, advocating to lockdown everyone but themselves? Example please.
Well I was merely commenting on an example of this that Squires posted, so you can just read that article... Is this really a contentious issue? That politicians ought to abide by their own rules and advice that they preach to everyone else? I have to tell you that I am a little shocked to find myself several posts into this defending a position that I would have expected any sane person would agree with.
That was an example of one family member traveling rather than having two family members travel. Plus it hardly shows the level of hypocrisy that you claim. We should be questioning the common sense of our politicians rather than these petty arguments of what some think is hypocrisy.
"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants." Thomas Jefferson.
Meanwhile, Trump was able to con his supporters out of another 150 mill over election fraud.
I use to wonder how people spent their hard earned money on televangelist.
Then Trump came along, and it’s no longer a mystery.
“To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public.”
BY JAMES ALWINE AND FELICIA GOODRUM STERLING, OPINION CONTRIBUTORS — 12/05/20 11:00 AM EST
Our nation’s local, state and national public health agencies have endured constant attack during the COVID-19 pandemic for doing their job to protect the populace.
Politicians dismiss public health and scientific expertise without rationale and discourage simple, yet effective, public health measures such as distancing and wearing a mask. The effectiveness of federal public health agencies, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), has been diminished by political manipulations. Widespread misinformation and rejection of COVID-19 public health measures have eroded trust in public health agencies and licensed individuals to put personal freedom above the wellbeing of their fellow citizens. The result — a pandemic that rages out of control.
With inadequate national pandemic guidance, states have cobbled together a hodgepodge of responses to the pandemic with the responsibility falling largely upon local and state health departments. These departments perform many vital services with the goal of safeguarding public health. They face increasing challenges, not only due to the immense burden of COVID-19, but also seasonal flu, vaccine-preventable disease outbreaks, rising obesity, rising rates of STDs, substance misuse, rising suicide rates and much more. Yet, due to politicization of the COVID-19 pandemic, public health offices have been attacked and personnel threatened or driven from their jobs fearing for their safety.
Unfortunately, Americans have become so accustomed to the services of public health agencies that they are taken for granted. Most citizens are unaware of the fragile nature of the public health infrastructure and how perilously close that places them to serious health risks. This ignorance is borne out by the hostile response of many Americans to COVID-19 mitigation. Wearing a mask is cited as an infringement on personal freedom. Yet, our freedom comes with responsibility. The responsible act of wearing a mask prevents those who are asymptomatically infected from infecting someone for whom infection may be deadly.
But imagine if SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, was more pathogenic. Imagine if it made the majority of those infected fall seriously ill. Imagine that it killed indiscriminately in every age group. Imagine family members, regardless of age, gasping for that last breath. Imagine hospitals so overwhelmed that they were unable to take in the sick. Imagine cold storage trucks driving through neighborhoods, stopping to take away the dead. Imagine the economic collapse that would follow.
This pandemic scenario is not far from reality. There has been one virus outbreak with pandemic potential approximately every 10 years for the last 100 years. The next influenza virus or coronavirus to emerge might spread better than SARS-CoV-2 and be more deadly. We remain woefully underprepared for such a pandemic. COVID-19 has exposed the fault lines in our response and in our ability to unite in a crisis.
COVID-19 has resulted in 13 million total cases in the US, increasing by 150,000 new cases per day. The over 265,000 deaths suffered in the U.S. increases by 2,000 per day. Thanksgiving day saw a record 90,000 hospitalizations. Yet, these staggering numbers seem insufficient to convince the COVID-19 skeptics to practice simple humanitarian gestures to protect one another and control the spread. This pace in COVID-19 cases will result in collapse of the health care infrastructure in many regions of the country resulting in overwhelmed hospitals unable to care for the sick. And, it will get worse as the Thanksgiving holiday surge appears in the coming days.
The data are clear. Countries, like New Zealand, that implemented public health measures early have fared better. Early implementation of the simple public health mitigation procedures of masking, distancing and hygiene would have allowed the U.S. to control the pandemic with fewer closures and lockdowns and fewer deaths. Where masking has been mandated, case numbers have fallen as cloth masks protect both the wearer and others from infection.
The announcement of potential vaccines, by Pfizer and BioNTech and Moderna, has been mistakenly seen by many as a reason to relax mitigation practices. Unfortunately, months of pandemic remain until enough people are vaccinated to slow community spread in the absence of masking and distancing. If the vaccines are effective and safe, the logistical difficulties of manufacturing and distributing enough to vaccinate the global population to approach communal or herd immunity could take years. And this may never happen if large numbers refuse the vaccine.
We must change the course of COVID-19 and prepare for the coming pandemics. In the short term we must comprehend the perilous situation we are facing with a national mandate for masking in public spaces. In the long term, public health initiatives at all levels, including public health education, must be well-funded and organized so that the public is better prepared. Future pandemic threats must be anticipated. The means to detect them and respond early must be established within a permanent federal agency dedicated to pandemic response and global health security. Above all else, these efforts must be impervious to politics.
James Alwine is a virologist and a fellow of the American Academy for Microbiology and the American Association for the Advancement of Science. Felicia Goodrum Sterling is a 2018 Public Voices Fellow of the OpEd Project, a professor and virologist.
Michigan pastor tells congregation to get COVID to ‘get it over with’
By: Jared Leone, Cox Media Group National Content Desk Updated: December 6, 2020 - 1:35 PM
HOLLAND, Mich. — A Michigan pastor implored his congregation to get infected with the coronavirus in order to “get it over with.”
Bart Spencer, senior pastor at Lighthouse Baptist Church, made the comments Nov. 14, the Holland Sentinel reported. While some congregants wear them, the church does not encourage mask-wearing and has been holding in-person services since the spring.
The comments were made as an off-hand remark after he started coughing while delivering a sermon. The sermon was available on the church website but later removed, WWMT reported.
The comments were shared on social media by a former congregant who was shocked when he heard them.
“I had no intention of posting, but I couldn’t believe what I just saw and heard,” Miguel Medina told the Sentinel.
Spencer said he and several family members have contracted and survived the virus. “It’s not fun, I lost my sense of taste and smell, but my bout with the flu was worse,” he said.
“To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public.”
“To announce that there must be no criticism of the President, or that we are to stand by the President, right or wrong, is not only unpatriotic and servile, but is morally treasonable to the American public.”
I saw this news a couple of days ago about Ivermectin and the really promising results that it is showing for COVID prevention and treatment.
It appears to become a political topic. I am not sure why but I think that people should be concerned that big pharma is squashing cheap treatment alternatives to drugs like Remdesivir which cost about $1000 per pill.
If the studies cited by this medical group are legitimate, then this drug could be saving tens of thousands of lives now by being given to patients immediately after being COVID positive, and being given to family members for prevention.
They're not legit. It's the next hydroxychloroquine, zinc, vitamin D, and whatever other grifts people have tried to peddle to make a quick buck.
Trust respected medical professionals, put your weight in peer-reviewed studies, wear a mask, wash your hands, and see no one outside of your household.
We're almost at the end of this. Just gotta wait for our shots.
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. And they probably believe in the Easter Bunny.
