Coronavirus COVID-19 Thread

COVID Catharsis Corner - Reports from around the world from today, Monday 21st of September:

- World: 31,110,407 confirmed cases and 961,544 confirmed deaths.

- World: Passes 31 million confirmed cases, with 30 million passed on Friday that's 1 million in just 3/4 days...

- World: Equity markets loose 3% as investors get jitters over fears of second COVID wave, with the DOW falling 600 points.

- World: 156 countries have now signed up to the Covax fair-distribution vaccine scheme for if/when one is finally found.

- US: CDC updates advice to indicate COVID-19 is now considered an aerosol airborne infection which can carry on the air further than six feet, which people release to infect others even just by breathing rather than coughing, sneezing and talking. The country is less than 500 fatalities away from 200,000 deaths from COVID-19. The WHO stated that they have not seen any new evidence to state this is the case, however CDC did also release data from a study where an infected person passed it on to more than 15 other people on a flight.

- UK: Predictions by UK's Chief Medical Officer and Chief Scientific Advisor indicate 50k new cases a day by October and 200 deaths a day by November if urgent action is not taken immediately to lower the current infection rate.

- France: Rules around schools and nurseries changed, from closing a class if one case is discovered, to closing a class only if three cases from different households are discovered.

- Africa: Condition that was causing hundreds of elephants to die found not to be COVID-19, it was found to be a toxic bacteria which was present in standing water the elephants drank.

- India: Taj Mahal reopens after it's longest ever closure caused by the pandemic, with greatly reduced capacity and other restrictions.

- England: Minister for Health announces low-pay workers being placed on an Isolation Order to quarantine at home will receive a £500 payment to help them survive while not able to attend work.

- Greece: Hundreds in a migrant camp on the island of Lesbos have tested positive.

- UK: Rail Franchises scrapped as government takes on further support of rail companies, having supported them to the tune of £3.5 billion so far - they have not been able to shoulder the cost of fewer travelers caused by the pandemic. The companies still exist, however going forward one option has been suggested the government pay a fixed fee for the companies to run the trains rather than being profit centered, whereas others are clearly calling for renationalization. Rail was privatized in the 1990's meaning it has been 25 years since the countries rail network has been solely government owned.

- New Zealand: Everywhere but Auckland reduced to level 1, the lowest level of restrictions.

NaffNaffBobFace said:

- US: CDC updates advice to indicate COVID-19 is now considered an aerosol airborne infection which can carry on the air further than six feet, which people release to infect others even just by breathing rather than coughing, sneezing and talking. The country is less than 500 fatalities away from 200,000 deaths from COVID-19. The WHO stated that they have not seen any new evidence to state this is the case, however CDC did also release data from a study where an infected person passed it on to more than 15 other people on a flight.

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While I am sure WHO has many qualified and passionate medical staff, their track record in regards to cov-sars-2 has so far not been very good.

Bambooza said:

While I am sure WHO has many qualified and passionate medical staff, their track record in regards to cov-sars-2 has so far not been very good.

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As neither has the USA's or most other countries including my own, almost all of Europe etc etc etc aside from New Zealand who have and continue to perform adorably.

On this one, I don't disagree with the CDC's stance - the few recorded instances of where the infection has been spread in confined air-circulated areas such as buses and aircraft (I've seen three so far, one bus and two aircraft where people from all over the vehicle have been infected, not just close to patent zero) points toward the particles people shed being carriers, even if they need artificial circulation to move around. I suspect it will be down to semantics and the distance that is considered seriously transmitable but I don't know, I look forward to hearing more on that discussion when it occurs.

I also think considering the US's unfortunate track record of denial to this point it's due at least one instance of going overboard in the other direction, every little helps.

NaffNaffBobFace said:

As neither has the USA's or most other countries including my own, almost all of Europe etc etc etc aside from New Zealand who have and continue to perform adorably.

On this one, I don't disagree with the CDC's stance - the few recorded instances of where the infection has been spread in confined air-circulated areas such as buses and aircraft (I've seen three so far, one bus and two aircraft where people from all over the vehicle have been infected, not just close to patent zero) points toward the particles people shed being carriers, even if they need artificial circulation to move around. I suspect it will be down to semantics and the distance that is considered seriously transmitable but I don't know, I look forward to hearing more on that discussion when it occurs.

I also think considering the US's unfortunate track record of denial to this point it's due at least one instance of going overboard in the other direction, every little helps.

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Unfortunately, the response has been highly politicized by both major parties in the USA, and in fact, I'd say it's not limited to the USA if the trustworthiness of the news is correct. This is to be expected as there is a balancing act between attempting to prevent everyone from contracting the virus and possibly dying and crashing the economy causing even worse repercussions of homelessness and starvation.

Bambooza said:

Unfortunately, the response has been highly politicized by both major parties in the USA, and in fact, I'd say it's not limited to the USA if the trustworthiness of the news is correct. This is to be expected as there is a balancing act between attempting to prevent everyone from contracting the virus and possibly dying and crashing the economy causing even worse repercussions of homelessness and starvation.

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Apologies, when you say "the response" I am unsure if you are responding to my mention of the denial thing where basic information was not shared with the public and multiple attempts were made to try to stop the public health bodies from sharing factual information on the pandemic with the population? Or if you mean the response to the pandemic as a whole?

If the denial thing, I admit I do see your angle - balancing protecting life and protecting livelihood will have been a razors edge and a narrow path to tread. Although the methods may not have been ideal from a trustworthiness standpoint, it's kind of understandable...

...but as a person outside the US I've only really seen the statement from the president saying his intention of withholding information he'd known since February was to avoid a panic. The economy wasn't mentioned as a factor in that from what I saw over here in the cheap seats...?

As someone within the country, I am sure you will have seen many more statements and reports than I will have done, I'd really appreciate it if you could point me toward some of them which quote the president saying his reasoning being just as much to protect economic stability as avoiding a public panic

I will concede sometimes hearing reports from thousands of miles away doesn't translate even when we speak the same language, we had one earlier in the thread where August was able to clarify a point on the number of daily infected in Australia which the reports I'd seen didn't clarify on. I'd very much appreciate help in comprehending this from the good people who live in the US as this is one of the things most confusing me at the moment. :)

NaffNaffBobFace said:

Apologies, when you say "the response" I am unsure if you are responding to my mention of the denial thing where basic information was not shared with the public and multiple attempts were made to try to stop the public health bodies from sharing factual information on the pandemic with the population? Or if you mean the response to the pandemic as a whole?

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response to the pandemic as a whole.

NaffNaffBobFace said:

If the denial thing, I admit I do see your angle - balancing protecting life and protecting livelihood will have been a razors edge and a narrow path to tread. Although the methods may not have been ideal from a trustworthiness standpoint, it's kind of understandable...

...but as a person outside the US I've only really seen the statement from the president saying his intention of withholding information he'd known since February was to avoid a panic. The economy wasn't mentioned as a factor in that from what I saw over here in the cheap seats...?

As someone within the country, I am sure you will have seen many more statements and reports than I will have done, I'd really appreciate it if you could point me toward some of them which quote the president saying his reasoning being just as much to protect economic stability as avoiding a public panic

I will concede sometimes hearing reports from thousands of miles away doesn't translate even when we speak the same language, we had one earlier in the thread where August was able to clarify a point on the number of daily infected in Australia which the reports I'd seen didn't clarify on. I'd very much appreciate help in comprehending this from the good people who live in the US as this is one of the things most confusing me at the moment. :)

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It's not just thousands of miles away, its even a problem within local news media reporting on local events. It's only more so with in the USA at the moment because we are in an election cycle and it's typically not played out with straight out lies so much as misleading through selective and filtered reporting which leads to different conclusions depending on which media source you go to.

Bambooza said:

response to the pandemic as a whole.



It's not just thousands of miles away, its even a problem within local news media reporting on local events. It's only more so with in the USA at the moment because we are in an election cycle and it's typically not played out with straight out lies so much as misleading through selective and filtered reporting which leads to different conclusions depending on which media source you go to.

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Thanks for expanding, appreciate it.

In the interest of not falling down a rabbit hole, I don't think I have many other questions - if I have not misinterpreted, I think you've pretty much set out why you think the course of events happens - the balance lives and livelihoods? Would that be correct?

That's the part I am confused about really, if this is indeed the case why has there been no admittance?

Well This has been a very interesting thread .
Perhaps a little fear regardless of validity can be a good thing depending on ones state of mind.
Let me explain in terms most don't wish to know about,..Here goes. 4 years ago I was one of the fast and furious privateers on the race track and one day I noticed a lump in an arm pit. The wife works as a director for a medical organization with PCP offices around the country. In short she got me in and probed. Cancer...
And not a fun and fuzzy sort but aggressive and hard to treat rare blood cancer with and I kid you not a prognosis that was and I quote poor and grim outcome..500hrs of high dose chemo,..4 shots in my spine for CNS,...A bone marrow transplant and radiation, not to mention lots of hardware and plumbing installed to facilitate treatment.
But this is where a little fear of the what if is a good thing. Made me think a little more about those around me and how my impact affects others. Not that its reciprocated but just having a attitude of gratitude helped me get through it all.
You see that once the self pitty and why me is out of your system you realize that the elephant in the room is going to cost you more than your existence. Its going to take away your whole family and that is far more terrifying than thinking its the end,..Unless of course your family is the mansons and then "Happy Thoughts".
So how does these apples and oranges compare?...Good question but a better one is what can I do to live for today and plan for tomorrow without causing harm around me.
I worry about the economic impact that the chicken littles(The sky is falling) are causing but at the same time know the virus is real. But hey,...If I can survive this pandemic with a 4 year old immune system I imagine with a few minor precautions most can as well
So tonight I salute you all with a toast at drink O clock and perhaps we shall see each other safe and sound on the other side of this coin kiddos

GPcustoms said:

Well This has been a very interesting thread .
Perhaps a little fear regardless of validity can be a good thing depending on ones state of mind.
Let me explain in terms most don't wish to know about,..Here goes. 4 years ago I was one of the fast and furious privateers on the race track and one day I noticed a lump in an arm pit. The wife works as a director for a medical organization with PCP offices around the country. In short she got me in and probed. Cancer...
And not a fun and fuzzy sort but aggressive and hard to treat rare blood cancer with and I kid you not a prognosis that was and I quote poor and grim outcome..500hrs of high dose chemo,..4 shots in my spine for CNS,...A bone marrow transplant and radiation, not to mention lots of hardware and plumbing installed to facilitate treatment.
But this is where a little fear of the what if is a good thing. Made me think a little more about those around me and how my impact affects others. Not that its reciprocated but just having a attitude of gratitude helped me get through it all.
You see that once the self pitty and why me is out of your system you realize that the elephant in the room is going to cost you more than your existence. Its going to take away your whole family and that is far more terrifying than thinking its the end,..Unless of course your family is the mansons and then "Happy Thoughts".
So how does these apples and oranges compare?...Good question but a better one is what can I do to live for today and plan for tomorrow without causing harm around me.
I worry about the economic impact that the chicken littles(The sky is falling) are causing but at the same time know the virus is real. But hey,...If I can survive this pandemic with a 4 year old immune system I imagine with a few minor precautions most can as well
So tonight I salute you all with a toast at drink O clock and perhaps we shall see each other safe and sound on the other side of this coin kiddos

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Well said, @GPcustoms

Jolly_Green_Giant said:

Oh man. I’m half way through watching it right now. If I didnt feel like people would think I’m being a ridiculous conspiracy theorist, I’d love to discuss this rabbit hole. I wrote a whole essay but deleted it. I’d rather have a conversation on discord over voice at the very least. This stuff is my life. I’m a slave to my mind. Figuring out the falsehoods in the world, and how it manipulates me is one of the most important things in my life, if I actually want to keep my sanity. It’s that important to me. So when I say all I have is my intuition with these things, there’s no better way to put it if you don’t take the information like what’s in this video very seriously. People have to be willing to entertain certain things as true, and watching this video is a good start. While it may even be obvious to most people, It’s a thought that is easily forgotten as we fall back into our own manufactured reality. I’m not above being manipulated, we’re all in this together, I just don’t want to fall into the long con and lose sight of what’s real.

It starts with understanding the simple things from a psych 101 course. You have to find something that incentivizes you to want to learn more, not just about the world around you, but who you are and what you are capable of.

Just be self aware.

I can lead a horse to water...

Anyways, deleting all of my social media accounts was the best place I could have started. Being on Discord makes me uneasy, but the consequences don’t outweigh the benefits right now. They still got me.

I love the ominous music towards the end. They’re trying to scare you. Good on them, because I think everyone should be terrified. We have decades left in our lives potentially, and the situation is rapidly deteriorating, you can only dismiss things as ridiculous for so long. What do we do? Good question. I don’t know how you get sociopaths to not be sociopaths, or stop a train from going down the tracks without a conductor.

oof.

can I get an F in chat for society

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I'd engage in this.

COVID Catharsis Corner - Reports from around the world from today, Tuesday 22nd of September:

- World: 31,374,796 confirmed cases and 965,893 confirmed deaths.

- World: Weekly number of new cases at highest level yet.

- US: Grim milestone reached as Deaths pass 200,000 with the John Hopkins dashboard reading 200,005 at time of writing.

- UK: Passes 400,000 confirmed cases.

- UK: Emergency restrictions bought in as cases climb, no return to hard lockdown is the goal, however wide reaching clamp downs on things such as pubs, resturants and clubs having to close by 10pm are now in place, and pople in England should work from home again if they possibly can in start contrast to a few weeks ago where the push was to get everyone back into the Central Business Districts. Prime Minister advises the measures could last 6 months.

- Japan: Supercomputer modelling indicates plastic face shields are totally ineffective against respiratory aerosols, casting doubt on their ability to defend from the small, light particles sheders of the virus are now known to give off by breathing and talking as well as sneezing and coughing. "
A simulation using Fugaku, the world’s fastest supercomputer, found that almost 100% of airborne droplets of less than 5 micrometres in size escaped through plastic visors of the kind often used by people working in service industries. [...] In addition, about half of larger droplets measuring 50 micrometres found their way into the air".

- Russia: Expects to register second Vaccine candidate by 15th of October with the first under mass public trial with 40,000 subjects.

- Sweden: Early signs COVID cases are on the rise again make themselves apparent prompting discussion of restrictions for the capital city.

- EU: A European Council summit is postponed as its chairman's body guard tests positive, leading him to quarantine as precaution.

- Spain: From almost zero staff working from home a huge percent now do, and legislation is being put in place to ensure workers are reimbursed by their employers for office expenses they incur in the home.

- US: The CDC issues advice on how to Trick-Or-Treat safely this Halloween.

- Netherlands: Sees record rise in cases.

- Iran: Sees record rise in cases.

Bambooza said:

response to the pandemic as a whole.

It's not just thousands of miles away, its even a problem within local news media reporting on local events. It's only more so with in the USA at the moment because we are in an election cycle and it's typically not played out with straight out lies so much as misleading through selective and filtered reporting which leads to different conclusions depending on which media source you go to.

Click to expand...

Jolly_Green_Giant said:

Aside from recent news clips surrounding his interview with this Woodward guy, his language at his previous and recent rallies focuses the attention on the damaging affects the virus and the lockdowns are having on us and the economy as if it’s the bigger concern. By now you must understand Trump is hyperbole personified, so taking his words as concise speech will not yield any positive results, that is of course you can tell he is indeed being concise. Trump has admitted he didn’t want to cause panic and is “ a cheerleader for the country”, yet I don’t believe he will ever directly admit he lied about the severity, which he most certainly did. I don’t believe he will ever say that the deaths Caused directly by Covid aren’t as significant as the damage to the economy either, because It not only sounds bad but I don’t think he believes one outweighs the other either way. That’s just speculation though.

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GPcustoms said:

Well This has been a very interesting thread .
Perhaps a little fear regardless of validity can be a good thing depending on ones state of mind.
Let me explain in terms most don't wish to know about,..Here goes. 4 years ago I was one of the fast and furious privateers on the race track and one day I noticed a lump in an arm pit. The wife works as a director for a medical organization with PCP offices around the country. In short she got me in and probed. Cancer...
And not a fun and fuzzy sort but aggressive and hard to treat rare blood cancer with and I kid you not a prognosis that was and I quote poor and grim outcome..500hrs of high dose chemo,..4 shots in my spine for CNS,...A bone marrow transplant and radiation, not to mention lots of hardware and plumbing installed to facilitate treatment.
But this is where a little fear of the what if is a good thing. Made me think a little more about those around me and how my impact affects others. Not that its reciprocated but just having a attitude of gratitude helped me get through it all.
You see that once the self pitty and why me is out of your system you realize that the elephant in the room is going to cost you more than your existence. Its going to take away your whole family and that is far more terrifying than thinking its the end,..Unless of course your family is the mansons and then "Happy Thoughts".
So how does these apples and oranges compare?...Good question but a better one is what can I do to live for today and plan for tomorrow without causing harm around me.
I worry about the economic impact that the chicken littles(The sky is falling) are causing but at the same time know the virus is real. But hey,...If I can survive this pandemic with a 4 year old immune system I imagine with a few minor precautions most can as well
So tonight I salute you all with a toast at drink O clock and perhaps we shall see each other safe and sound on the other side of this coin kiddos

Click to expand...

Montoya said:

Most will survive.

In fact, in the younger demographic 99.3% will survive.

But dying is not the the only repercussion of getting c19.

There are relatively healthy, younger members here in TEST that got it, and they have permanent lung damage now. The decreased lung capacity requires constant use of inhalers.

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Thanks to one and all for helping my comprehension and the following conversation, TEST really is the most glorious place!

I'm sure I have had a better expiriance than I would have had through this very, very strange world event for having had this oasis of international viewpoints, knowledge and expiriance to retreat to, and can only hope the same for all of my Org mates.

Montoya said:

Congrats on beating cancer! Sounds like you put up one hell of a fight!

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I am better for the experience but not everyone has the same results.
Interesting journey I assure you and one I hope is behind me but fate is a fickle bitch young man,...A fickle bitch indeed
And for the record I was just along for the ride. Its my wife and the team she put together that kicked its ass up to this date. We live in wondrous times when medical advances can achieve almost the impossible. Perhaps we will soon see this pandemic in the same light and wish its happy ass not so fond farewells
Be safe one and all

Hope this does not gross anyone with a sensitive nature.
They say humor is good medicine so I thought I would share something I thought was funny (still do) while documenting my journey for friends and family

"These are called man taps. The red tap is full strength testosterone guaranteed to promote strong will, Independence and hair growth in places God did not intend while the blue tap is a half strength dilution for donation to millennial wife's across the world in search of something that will make their men a little less feminine but not to independent".

Montoya said:

So you own T production is stalled during treatment?

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LOL,...Nahhh,..The lines were installed in addition to a port under the skin at Moffitt for high volume stuff for the BMT and Stem cell recovery etc. Just thought I should have a laugh about it at the time.
I just enjoy having a laugh about stuff some might avoid even thinking about. I just make sure its me I make the humor centered around..
In fact on the 14th it will be my 4th anniversary. Considered my new birthday date by BMT standards,..imagine that!

Happy thoughts Mr. Montoya

So it's about 14 days after Labor Day...I thought I'd check on the latest COVID numbers, and guess what? We have a new winner in the category of "highest number of new cases in a day." Congratulations to Texas! You definitely trounced the previous high, formerly held by New York...



In all seriousness...if COVID-19 is like other coronaviruses, it will likely get *worse* in the Fall and Winter...it was hoped we would see it really taper off during the summer and hit a low point, before we went into the potential worse time of the year, but instead we are heading in with some states reporting their highest numbers about now. I guess we just have to wait and see. Stay safe!