Coronavirus ~ COVID-19

[charley]

Originally Posted by theoddz

Dear Wife and I live in central Texas, in an area that is about an hour an and half from any of the sizeable metropolitan cities in Texas. We're not really what you'd call "rural", but we have decent shopping, meaning no Costco nearby, but a couple of Sam's Clubs and the usual chain and Texas grocery stores, like HEB, Aldi's and such. I'm not sure what the population is in this area, but I'm certain that it's much smaller than anywhere else, except Maine and Iowa, that I have ever lived in my life. It's okay. I'm getting used to it!!! LOL

So yesterday, Dear Wife and I had to get out to Jackson Hewitt to sign and file our federal income tax return. The branch where we were going is located right inside the door of a local WalMart supercenter. Now, I have to say that I have not gotten out of the house in the last 2 weeks, except to get the mail at the mailbox cluster in our neighborhood. Dear Wife has made one or two trips to the grocery store to do curbside pickups for our groceries. What I saw on our local roads and in the parking lot of that WalMart supercenter literally floored me!!! It's like frippin' CHRISTMAS at WalMart and on the roads!!!! I mean CROWDS!!! We circled the parking lot and front door area of that WalMart and there were people flooding in and out with their shopping buggies, families, including small children and BABIES!! One guy had a McDonald's fast food bag in his hand, eating hand to mouth!!! No one was wearing a mask, or gloves or practicing social distancing!!! Here we were, she and I, with our industrial sized bottle of hand sanitizer, our boxes of nitrile gloves and our Lysol spray, being so careful to watch everything we touched, and then clean it right away, and these fools were just out there like it was Christmas!! Dear Wife nearly went into a full fledged panic attack and I had to calm her down and assure her that we were NOT NOT NOT going "in there" or anywhere near those dumbass people. I didn't care if our tax returns took until perdition to be signed and filed.

All I could think was........we're fucked. This is exactly how this disease is going to spread and, eventually, consume this nation, I'm sure. Why and how people can possibly be this stupid is just beyond the beyonds to me.

When our nation entered the War on Terrorism, back in the early 2000's (2003), my Pop, who was part of the Greatest Generation, and who lived through both the Great Depression and the bombing of Pearl Harbor, made a very profound observation. He said that he couldn't believe the way that this country, the USA, was acting, and that to a casual observer, it was impossible to tell that we were a "nation at war". He said that there was absolutely no evidence that the average American citizen was "sacrificing" anything.....except the military communities. We are, apparently, now a nation of people who, by and large, refuse to make any kind of sacrifice for our common good, even when it involves our very lives. We won't be inconvenienced, go out of our way or think of anyone but ourselves and our own wants, desires and goals. If it's not in our direct "bubble", it doesn't affect us and does not warrant any direct regard or action on our part. So much for "pulling together", which I'm not so sure that this country remembers how to do.

This is dangerous, folks. I think we're fucked, if this keeps up.

I hope I'm wrong, but I don't think so.

~Theo~

How true - this = on a smaller level (we have less population) = has happened here in Canada as well. Premiers here have gotten angry with their citizens in their news TV briefs about how people are ignoring stay-at-home (at the time) requests), but now have had to institute orders (backed up by criminal fines/penalties).

For example, even though people knew about the pandemic, 99 of the 135 people who had been diagnosed with COVID-19 in St. John's, Newfoundland contracted COVID-19 out of attending wakes at Caul’s Funeral Home, March 15-17.

Unfortunately, this has all turned quite ugly, because:

"The fallout for family and friends who attended the wakes and funerals, including the more than 150 who reportedly packed into a chapel at Caul’s to say goodbye to Ms. Fleming, has been swift and, at times, ugly. They say they’re getting death threats, online harassment and have become scapegoats in a province where little more than two weeks ago there were no cases of COVID-19."

[GeorgiaMa'am]

Originally Posted by charley

Premiers here have gotten angry with their citizens in their news TV briefs about how people are ignoring stay-at-home (at the time) requests), but now have had to institute orders (backed up by criminal fines/penalties).

. . .

They say they’re getting death threats, online harassment and have become scapegoats in a province where little more than two weeks ago there were no cases of COVID-19."

And they're surprised now that they've got COVID-19. I really think the general public is not getting the message that they can carry the disease even if they don't show symptoms of being sick. My sister's family is supposedly sheltering in place and doing all the right things, _except_ my niece and her fiancé went to visit his grandmother the other day. I don't think he would risk his grandmother's life on purpose, I think he just doesn't get it.

I also think a large proportion of the population is purposely ignoring the directives, because (1) an attitude of entitlement ('you can't tell me what to do!') (2) they don't believe there's really a crisis and that the whole thing is a hoax made up by the media.

More information needs to get out to the public from _doctors_ and _health professionals_, not just from politicians, and not just "wash your hands and stay home." It won't solve the problem, but it might make it better.

[Kätzchen]

I think the Asymptomatic piece is critical to absorb and fully wrap ones proverbial arms around, and here's how I took action for myself, over the past two years before the Covid-19 crisis erupted across the globe.

Three years ago, after nearly dying in a work related accident which left me in critical health status, which I'm still climbing out from, I needed something to keep me busy at home, while being home bound. So I joined, for a few rounds, in our community arts & crafting group, and one of the really good ideas nursing professionals gave to me (including my mother, who sat in our nursing consults) was that to protect my health and the health of others, was to painstakingly use gloves and find a way to seal all my crafting projects that I would send to the Craft Round Wrangler.

I got a lot of feedback about why I taped up and sealed all my projects, but that is the measure of safety I had to take and still take, to not only protect my own health but the health of others.

There are critical transmission contact points we rarely even think about, in our day to day activities. Surfaces we touch. The air we breath. And if by chance we've been sneezing or coughing into the air directly in proximity to us, no matter where that is, then air borne viruses can often survive in the air and on contact surfaces we (the general we) sometimes take for granted that might not be infected by viral-droplets which caused us to sneeze or cough or even in simpler terms, when we talk.

I seriously hope that one of the outcomes to this particular viral crisis is that people become much more aware of not only hygiene practices but taking into account that the surfaces in our immediate proximity or wherever we might be conducting our lives in day-to-day affairs, will realize how important it is to consider not only our own health but the health of others we are in proximity too.

My mom is sending me something by special delivery via FedEX and it's due to arrive tomorrow, but our area FedEx driver had something to deliver to a resident in our building and it literally made me feel so much better to see them wearing PPE and gloves.

Thanks for letting me share a bit about how I've been dealing with safeguarding my own health, since I was hurt on the job three years ago and how I have been incorporating health conscious practices to not only safeguard my own health, but to limit transmission contact points of interest in my day to day life.

[easygoingfemme]

I was on an all staff Zoom meeting today. First most of us were muted and cameras off. But then one staff asked a question and she came on camera- in her bed, sleep cap on, got unmuted, and we heard her coughing up a lung.

I just worked with her last night.

I called her supervisor to see what's up.

She was tested this morning and we are waiting for results. She has fever, chills, cough, etc. At least because she is essential staff serving a vulnerable population she was able to get tested quickly.

We mostly keep a six foot rule at work but there are things like... we share bathrooms, we share a kitchen, not thinking- we pass each other forms. I don't know if she wore gloves while sorting mail. The list goes on.

I still have to report to work as usual tomorrow and until we get any test results that tell us otherwise.

[Medusa]

Kemp finally issued a shelter in place for Georgia today. A full 2 weeks after the bulk of the infections started.

We are at 4748 cases so far.

[Kätzchen]

I'm actually watching a documentary, over on YouTube, which was filmed by Lisa Laden, narrated by S. Epatha Merkerson, and features Dr. Anthony Fauci.

It originally aired on PBS, back in 2010. Dr. Fauci looks the same as he did in press conferences aired today. It is a documentary about the Influenza pandemic of 1918, shortly after WW1, which claimed over 50 million lives.

Lisa Laden interviews survivors of that era in time, as well as scientists. It's quite informative. Check out the masks worn back then (they look like the cotton homemade masks people are making right now).

Here's the link, for anyone interested in watching it (it's about an hour long):

We Heard The Bells: The Influenza of 1918.

[GeorgiaMa'am]

The Georgia Governor, Brian Kemp, just admitted that he has only just now learned that the COVID-19 virus can be transmitted asymptomatically.

[Kätzchen]

Originally Posted by GeorgiaMa'am

The Georgia Governor, Brian Kemp, just admitted that he has only just now learned that the COVID-19 virus can be transmitted asymptomatically.

I find that hard to believe. I actually think that when this type of claim is made, especially when it's made by someone seated with some sort of executive authority, it's basically (to me) a ploy to distract from the truth of factually communicated evidence by those on the front lines of this devastating crisis. Same for that person of executive authority in Florida.

It's not hard to find out who has your best interest at heart. It is upsetting to watch this go down publicly. Thank heavens for Governor Cuomo. Kemp is not even in the same league as Gov. Cuomo.

I actually worry now that the crisis our nation faces with Covid-19 will leap the proverbial train tracks and be used as a tool to upend the Presidential Election, come November.


<<<<<<~~ super concerned and worried for everyone.

[homoe]

Originally Posted by GeorgiaMa'am

The Georgia Governor, Brian Kemp, just admitted that he has only just now learned that the COVID-19 virus can be transmitted asymptomatically.

I don't know if he's just trying to cover his arse, has been living in a cave, or if he's really telling the truth BUT if he is telling the truth is this really something he would want to admit to?

I mean it makes him appear like a complete idiot and dumbass!

[~ocean]

Originally Posted by GeorgiaMa'am

The Georgia Governor, Brian Kemp, just admitted that he has only just now learned that the COVID-19 virus can be transmitted asymptomatically.

I saw that ~ I don't believe him .