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The irresponsibility of our media.

Discussion in 'The Watercooler' started by Stone, Mar 18, 2020.

  1. MojaveDesertPghFan

    MojaveDesertPghFan

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    There are known treatments and meds to mitigate COVID-19 and a vaccine will be rendered in due time. On the other hand, there is no known cure for the runaway TDS epidemic and it will continue to destroy lives and render minds as nothing more than gobs of gelatinous substrate, at least through 2024. In the meantime, wash your hands, maintain a 6 foot safe space and be sure to double check the batteries in your smoke detectors.
     
    Last edited: Mar 25, 2020
  2. strummerfan

    strummerfan Well-Known Member

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    you can try and label me to your hearts content, but all you’re doing is proving yourself to be a windbag.
     
  3. Stone

    Stone Well-Known Member

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    Hey, I fully understand that many people believe anything and everything they see on CNN, or any news network for that matter, and you and your counterparts are scared to death that you may lose your meal ticket if things don't go a certain way. I'm sure you could easily be convinced that magic is real. Presto; you're not an ******* any more!......ahhh never mind, it was just a magic trick:cool:
     
  4. Stone

    Stone Well-Known Member

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    You couldn't be more correct. But here is a comforting thought, those who suffer from TDS basically already had minds which were nothing more than gobs of gelatinous substrate which is why they contracted TDS. Either way, they will continue to be a drain on society and those of us who work to keep them in the environment to which they have become accustomed will keep doing what we do as well.
     
  5. Blast Furnace

    Blast Furnace Staff Member Mod Team

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    That’s SARS. Covid is new. I know several nurses and we are just at the beginning of this and they don’t know how hospitals will get through this and how they, themselves can keep this pace up.

    I already touched on your last point in a diefferent thread. If the measures that are being put in place to mitigate this are successful, there will be people who will say we overreacted while ignoring that those measures were why it wasn’t as bad as predicted.

    Do you really think China built emergency hospitals because this is over hyped? Do you think FEMA is building 4 hospitals in NY because this is overhyped? That Dr’s have to decide who lives and dies because there aren’t enough ventilators? Do you really think it’s overhyped when nurses and Dr’s have to make their own gear because there aren’t enough masks, shields and gowns.

    Come on man, this media is the devil **** has to stop.
     
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  6. MojaveDesertPghFan

    MojaveDesertPghFan

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    Not denying a thing you're saying Blast, it's the gleam in the media's eyes as they report their stories about the pandemic and corresponding stock market and job loss impacts that is the troubling part for many of us, me included. Many of the talking heads were rooting/hoping for something/anything to be able to rag on further. Sadly they got their wish in the most devastating manner. Don't forget many of them bashed the blocking of flights from China into the U.S. and later from Europe. But, if these policies hadn't been implemented, they'd be ragging about that as well. Again, I'm not denying that there is a crisis in the densely populated cities around the U.S. It's both tragic and scary. I happen to reside in the largest County in the U.S. with tons of older and infirmed folks and we have a total of zero reported deaths from COVID-19. Does that mean we're immune? Better at sequestration? Healthier? Smarter? Luckier? I don't know any of that but different rules and responses for different geographic areas should at least be on the table for consideration vs the economic killing "one size fits all" policies in place right now.
     
  7. Blast Furnace

    Blast Furnace Staff Member Mod Team

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    The death toll is the one positive I can take away from this. Compare the number of cases of infected in Italy to the number of infected of the US and it’s not much different, think its 69,000 to 55,000. Where things change is the cases of death, around 6500 to 800. Italy has a huge senior population which is why they have suffered so bad. I fear Florida will be bad. Densely populated areas are a smorgasborg for this virus, it’s likely only a matter of time before it effects your area so stay safe my friend.
     
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  8. santeesteel

    santeesteel

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    Must be that clean, desert air!
     
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  9. santeesteel

    santeesteel

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    Hopefully, he's safe. There may be a large population in SB county but, there's only about 128 1/2 people in his town! ;)
     
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  10. Steel_Elvis

    Steel_Elvis Staff Member Mod Team

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    @Ray D, you have hit it out of the park in this thread. To me they key thing that makes this disease so difficult to control, and thus so dangerous, is that the outcomes range from zero symptoms to an agonizing death, and it’s highly spreadable by people who have no symptoms and no idea that they have it. Diseases like Ebola and MERS are so virulent that they limit their own spread by quickly killing or incapacitating their hosts, and taking them out of circulation. This one spreads like the common cold, and packs a wallop to a large enough minority of our population to kill a million people in the US if allowed to spread unchecked. Anyone who thinks it’s being overblown should talk to the family that has lost 4 people from two generations so far in about a week. Anyone who thinks it’s being overblown should talk to someone on the front line in a hospital in an affected urban area.
     
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  11. Ray D

    Ray D Staff Member Mod Team

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    Fortunately, we're still early enough in the curve that it could go either way.

    I'm urging caution even if it means going overboard to try to keep us on the low side. Or at least to keep it manageable. That's my only real point. Everything else is bluster as far as I'm concerned.

    I'd love to be so optimistic that I'd believe this will be over in a couple weeks. But I'm a realist. We're in this for the long haul until a very effective treatment is found. The only question is what kind of haul will it be? Health care system collapsing under the weight of huge spikes in infections? Or something to be concerned about, but infection rate is stable and manageable.

    There's always the hope that when it mutates - as all viruses eventually do - it'll mutate into a less virulent strain. But we can't just sit back and expect it to happen.
     
  12. Ray D

    Ray D Staff Member Mod Team

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    Everclear, Four Queens Whiskey, and a dash of vinegar and lemon juice.

    Yes, it sounds nasty. It should. :lolol:
     
  13. Ray D

    Ray D Staff Member Mod Team

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    We're still ahead of the influx of patients. Italy fell way behind. Their death rate is so high in large part due to just not being able to treat everyone that needs it. They literally are having to tell some people that, we're sorry, but your odds of survival are lower than that person's, so we're going to treat them instead. Good luck. Having a much higher percentage of elderly, and heavy smokers doesn't help either.

    Worldwide, the death rate has been 2-2.5%. But with proper medical help, I'll wager it'll be lower than 1% when it's all said and done. Mobilizing that help, and keeping the peak infections low are the issues at hand.

    We stumbled quite a bit out of the gate. But I'm confident we'll get it together. We have no other choice.
     
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  14. Steel_Elvis

    Steel_Elvis Staff Member Mod Team

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    I agree that the true mortality rate will ultimately be under 1%, but it will be tough to measure because there will be millions of people who fight it off with little or no symptoms, and never get tested. I’m not overly fearful for myself. I’m 53, and in relatively good health. My wife is in her late 40’s and healthy. If it hits us, we’ll likely be ok after a week of suffering. However, my parents and in laws are all in their mid to late 70’s, and very active, but with minor pre existing conditions. I also have several close relatives who are in their 70’s and early 80’s in various stages of health. None of them are in a physical state where they’re likely to die in the next 5 years. They’re active, healthy, no known cancer, no known heart disease, etc. However, if this virus hits one of them, particularly if it hits one of them after the local hospitals have been overrun, there’s a very real chance of it being fatal. My concern is played out everywhere. Most of us have a low chance of perishing, but we know and love people who are at high risk.

    In my view, any suggestion that we should prioritize the short term health of the economy over getting the virus completely under control is also a suggestion that the vulnerable people in our population aren’t important enough to protect. That’s cold as hell.
     
  15. Ray D

    Ray D Staff Member Mod Team

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    I think everyone has relatives, and friends that fit that description. This disease is also NOT only killing older or unhealthy people. Young, completely healthy people have died from this, and they really don't know why yet. There's plenty of theories, and there could be multiple reasons. Health care providers seem to be specifically hit hard by this which leads to speculation that perhaps total exposure plays a role in it.

    On your last part, that idea is so reprehensible, I can't believe anyone would even joke about it. Especially since we're not only risking 80+ year olds. But even if we were, shame on anyone encouraging it.
     
  16. Steel_Elvis

    Steel_Elvis Staff Member Mod Team

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    Somewhere, someone is weighing the economy vs. human life, and thinking that the economy is more important...
     
  17. MojaveDesertPghFan

    MojaveDesertPghFan

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    I still think the high desert is relatively safe due to very low density but just saw where SB County has announced 3 dead to COVID-19 in last few days. Probably in the City of SB or Colton/Fontana/Rialto.
     
  18. santeesteel

    santeesteel

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    You're probably right about that. I came very close to buying in Victorville 30 years ago. Who knew it would explode the way it did!
     
  19. MojaveDesertPghFan

    MojaveDesertPghFan

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    And to think you could have shaved off 3 hours on your drive to Lake Sabrina! On my trip list when the plague subsides.
     
  20. MojaveDesertPghFan

    MojaveDesertPghFan

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    Ironically Elvis, economics at the beginning is what triggered NYC now as the deadliest hot spot on the planet when local officials from both the NYC Health Department and the Mayor's office were doing PSA's encouraging New Yorkers to join in the Chinese New Years festival in February as well as to continue attending theaters and performances on into March. This coupled with the ridiculous housing density (aka the highly popular "New Urbanism") has led to the perfect storm. Now they can't find enough body bags.

    Edit: Actually Italy and now Spain have a greater fatality rate than NYC. But NYC is largest in the US., surpassing Seattle.
     
    Last edited: Mar 28, 2020
  21. MojaveDesertPghFan

    MojaveDesertPghFan

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    Me, all prepared to attend an upcoming King Crimson concert at the Greek this summer.......... FB_IMG_1584284856688.jpg
     
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  22. thesteeldeal

    thesteeldeal Well-Known Member

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    Doesn’t help either when they have allowed non- essential employees (construction) to continue to work while everyone else was told to stay home. Only a few hours ago did Cuomo realize how terrible a idea it was to allow this and decided to change his tune. I wonder how much that terrible decision has contributed to this as well. Cuomo screwed up big time! He was saying that Trump shouldn’t put economics above human life and that’s exactly what he did. The damage is done....
     
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  23. santeesteel

    santeesteel

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    Mine too. A friend is fishing the East Walker right now. I declined the trip 'cause of quarantining. Sounds like all the lakes in the Sierra are closed and who knows when the opener will be. Good for the fish though....
     
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  24. steelersrock151

    steelersrock151 Well-Known Member

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    I mentioned in another thread that I have a restaurant in NY, about 200 miles from NYC. We currently have told all of our workers to apply for unemployment. We are doing take out only, with the entire operation being run by me, my partner, and her son. Are sales are down around 75%. If you think this is just the media causing panic, this is how my life has changed.

    I used to shop every day. Now I go out twice a week, and my partner and her son don’t leave the house. When I’ve completed my rounds (using alcohol wipes every time I get into the car). I come in the back door, strip down and put my clothes in the washer, and head straight for the shower. Gargle with the highest alcohol mouthwash I could find (besides everclear). Then get ready for work. Yesterday I scored a pack of sanitary wipes and some toilet paper. Yay.

    At work everything is take out only. Orders are over the phone, credit card only. We have a table outside. When people pull up, they call us, we bring the food out and put it on the table. Then the people can get out of their car, pick up their food, and sign the receipt. They keep the pen. When they are back in the car, the receipt is picked up and put in a plastic bag, then the table is disinfected with Lysol.

    One of our workers may have had it, or it may have been a serious case of the flu. Another one has three people in her apartment who are running fevers and coughing. These are people in their 20s with no health problems. We don’t visit my parents, her dad, or other family. Her son hasn’t been here in weeks, because he’s doing a great job of social distancing. Except when he doesn’t. I’m mid 50s, in pretty good health (give to take 25 pounds). My parents and her dad are mid 80s.

    All I can say is stay healthy, my friends.
     
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  25. Steel_Elvis

    Steel_Elvis Staff Member Mod Team

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    Good luck. I really hope you’re going to be able to stay open. My wife and I are doing our best to support our favorite local restaurants by making big takeout orders and having the food for 3 or 4 meals. We went to a favorite Thai restaurant Thursday night, and I’m eating lunch right now from that visit after having it Thursday night and Friday lunch/dinner. When we get the food home, we unload the bag(s) and wipe down all containers with Clorox or Lysol wipes. We nuke the food before eating, even if it’s hot when we get it home. You never know.


    I get very sad when I think about all of the small businesses that are unlikely to make it.
     

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