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As much as some here would call it "Fake News", I feel an obligation to post this link to an honest and frank essay from a doctor about what is happening in too much of this country. It also suggests why we should all me doing our part in this pandemic. Just as in all the other countries facing this problem, we each have the responsibility of doing our part.
Early Coronavirus Testing Failures... (https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/03/14/815727231/opinion-early-coronavirus-testing-failures-will-cost-lives)
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Will there be a second wave of the virus?
With nearly 20,000 new cases a day, some don't see us even finishing the first wave! At least in the US! Seems many have decided that with most States "opening up" there is no more need to practice distancing or mask wearing, much less staying home! NEWS FLASH!! The virus has not left the room! It is still spreading! It is still killing! What part of serious do these people not understand?
Prominent forecasters are predicting a slow but steady accumulation of additional deaths between now and Oct. 1...
Forecasts range from 56,000 to more than 90,000!
Earlier this year the the reproduction number ("R" value) was above 2. During the "stay at home"/"closing businesses and large gatherings of people" the rate got down to just below 1 ( latest estimates was ~0.91, at its lowest ). But with the push the "open up", it has already exceeded 1 again. Basically, the "R" value indicates the rate at which one individual infects another. At 1, only one new person becomes infected by the another person and the "curve" is fairly flat. At 2, you see an increasing rate; 1 infects 2. Those 2 infect 4. Those 4 infect 16. No math degree is needed to see where this leads. The obituary pages have pointed out the outcome of any rate above 1. The CDC now estimates between 124,000 and 140,000 deaths by July 4, 2020. Those are deaths, not just reported cases! Are you doing your part to stop this increasing number? Many countries have. These figures are easily found by any good search engine. You should have plenty of time to do that.
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Here's a quip that, unfortunately, is all too true:
The spread of COVID-19 is based on two factors:
1. How dense the population is.
2. How dense the population is.
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There's Nothing Contrived About the Death Toll (https://elemental.medium.com/theres-nothing-contrived-about-the-coronavirus-death-toll-b729f2526cec)
“It’s easy to pick and choose and believe what you want,” Hoffman tells Elemental. She’s referring to confirmation bias, a well-known phenomenon in which people — all of us, in fact — readily take in new information that confirms our preconceived notions and ignore anything that goes against our views.
This is a real virus. It’s affecting people in every country,” Mina says, and there’s “nothing contrived” about the death toll. “Anyone who thinks otherwise, I think they need to get out of their social media bubble."
Fortunately, we can get factual info from the daily weekly monthly occasional(?) Task Force doctors. :doh: :blink: :coolio:
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Justice Department Issues Warning About Fake Mask Exempt Cards (https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2020/06/25/covid-scam-alert-department-of-justice-warns-says-theres-no-face-mask-exempt-card/#18cdf6a5d78b)
"A recently issued alert (https://www.ada.gov/covid-19_flyer_alert.html) by the department is urging the public not to heed information printed on the fraudulent cards, which purport to carry the authority of the "Freedom to Breathe Agency," which is neither a federal nor a state agency."
Selfishness knows no limit. :dntknw: :doh: Especially when added to individual stupidity. "Hey! I saw this card on the interweb, so it must be real!" :wallbash: Are these people even graduates of pre-kindergarten?! :coolio: :whoosh:
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Winston Churchill once said, "The biggest argument against democracy is a five minute conversation with the average voter." Although I don't entirely agree, there is some merit to that statement. Of course, I'm much more intelligent than the average voter, but that would only last for ten minutes. :blink:
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Who is "Winston Churchill"? :scram:
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Here's one of the best non-CDC set of goals I've yet to see. Five basic goals, why they matter, how they are measured and which States are reaching them (hint: Very few).
"...states meet these basic criteria to reopen and stay safe" (https://www.vox.com/2020/5/28/21270515/coronavirus-covid-reopen-economy-social-distancing-states-map-data?orgid=467)
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Duning-Kruger Effect (https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/who-you-are/202004/why-you-should-trust-the-scientists-covid-19)? :Thinking:
A bit dated, but this text (sadly) explains a lot. :yes:
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The "Fat Lady" Has Yet to Sing (https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2020/08/11/901304243/new-zealand-on-alert-after-4-cases-of-covid-19-emerge-from-an-unknown-source). Indeed, even with an effective vaccine, this virus may be with us for a very long time. :wallbash:
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Don’t mess with Canada — eh! :nono: Kentucky Man Accused Of Breaking Canada's COVID-19 Rules (https://www.npr.org/2020/08/25/905847150/american-man-accused-of-breaking-canadas-covid-19-rules-faces-560-000-fine?utm_source=npr_newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_content=20200825&utm_term=4778133&utm_campaign=the-new-normal&utm_id=1982930&orgid=467) Faces $569,000 Fine.
Hasn't Canada heard that 'Merican's know what's best for everyone else?!
You 'guys' are still just sore losers after sticking with a KingQueen! :wallbash: :deadhorse:
:scram:
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During her 18 years in the national security and global affairs world, Yaël Eisenstat became increasingly concerned with how the internet was contributing to political polarization, hate and division. She set out to both publicly sound alarm bells and see what role she could play in helping reverse this course.
"Lies are more engaging online than truth," says former CIA analyst and diplomat Yaël Eisenstat. "As long as [social media] algorithms' goals are to keep us engaged, they will feed us the poison that plays to our worst instincts and human weaknesses."
A TedTalk: How Facebook profits from polarization (https://www.ted.com/talks/yael_eisenstat_how_facebook_profits_from_polarization?utm_source=newsletter_daily&utm_campaign=daily&utm_medium=email&utm_content=button__2020-09-08#t-799187)
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Started to put this in the Humor thread, but it is too serious:
Appropriate analogy. "The curve is flattening so we can start lifting restrictions now” is like saying “The parachute has slowed our rate of descent, so we can take it off now.”
:wallbash: :doh:
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Although I don't consider the USA Today much of a newspaper, they usually have some some useful graphics. Here are several ways of comparing the "flu" and the COVID-19 symptoms:
Is it the flu or COVID-19? How to tell the difference. (https://www.usatoday.com/in-depth/graphics/2020/10/13/flu-covid-19-how-tell-difference-seasonal-influenza/5880649002)
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Thanks, Jim! That was a comprehensive article with plain talk information. :)
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What Kris said... :)
Thank you Jim
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Quote of the day from Dr. Deborah Birx, coordinator of the White House coronavirus task force
"We are entering the most concerning and most deadly phase of this pandemic,” Birx wrote in a memo. "This is not about lockdowns. It hasn’t been about lockdowns since March or April. It’s about an aggressive balanced approach that is not being implemented. Cases are rapidly rising in nearly 30 percent of all USA counties, the highest number of county hotspots we have seen with this pandemic. … Half of the United States is in the red or orange zone for cases despite flat or declining testing.”
Quote of the Weekend by Dr. Anthony Fauci
“Right now, the public health aspect of the task force has diminished greatly. We’re in for a whole lot of hurt. It’s not a good situation. All the stars are aligned in the wrong place as you go into the fall and winter season, with people congregating at home indoors. You could not possibly be positioned more poorly.”
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We've learned a lot during this pandemic, despite the disinformation, there is actual scientific knowledge that can help us live safely until it is eradicated through the vaccines.
We are probably wasting time "disinfecting" most objects. (https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2020/12/28/948936133/still-disinfecting-surfaces-it-might-not-be-worth-it)
Bottom line: Health experts emphasize that the most important way to avoid infection is to stay away from crowds and wear a mask whenever you leave the house. Limit the time you spend in any indoor space with people outside of your own household — and wear a mask when you're in those spaces.
When you're out in public, be aware of surfaces you touch, and wash your hands often. [emphasis added]
How much simpler can it be?! What "right" are you being asked to relinquish? :dntknw: Why are so many still acting so selfishly? :wallbash: :whoosh:
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I can't believe I awakened after living through the saddest day of my life.
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From Pew Research:
About half of U.S. adults say they get news from social media often or sometimes. Among 11 social media sites asked about as a regular source of news, Facebook sits at the top, with 36% of Americans getting news there regularly.
That, sadly, explains a lot.
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Some questions you might have or hear and answers from various sources:
- Why do I have to continue with precautions after I've been vaccinated?
- Can I spread the virus to others even if I'm fully vaccinated?
- How can you spread a virus if you've been vaccinated?
- Why didn't the FDA demand information on infectivity before authorizing the first two vaccines?
- So how will we get an answer to whether vaccinated people can infect others?
- Now that I'm vaccinated, can I take my mask off in a crowded room if everyone else has also been vaccinated?
- What about the new variant from the U.K.? Will that make a difference in terms of spreading the virus after vaccination? Note: There is now a second variant.
- So what's the bottom line?
Answer Sources:- NPR (https://www.npr.org/sections/health-shots/2021/01/12/956051995/why-you-should-still-wear-a-mask-and-avoid-crowds-after-getting-the-covid-19-vac) (all questions answered)
- Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (https://www.mskcc.org/coronavirus/why-you-need-wear-mask-even-after-getting-covid-19-vaccine) (some questions answered)
- New York Times (https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/08/health/covid-vaccine-mask.html) (many questions answered + other questions)
- C|NET (https://www.cnet.com/health/heres-why-you-should-wear-a-mask-even-after-getting-covid-19-or-the-vaccine/) (many questions answered + other questions)
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A few words from someone with maybe a deeper understanding of US history:
...Obviously, lies hurt the liar ... hate corrodes the vessel that it's carried in. But lies also hurt the people who hear them. And we are now in a toxic moment that needs a kind of discipline. ... None of us are on the same page. I don't wish to suggest that we all think alike in lockstep; we should not. The beauty of our system is disagreement, but we don't get our information from the same place the way we used to. And that has had a poisonous effect on our democracy. ... We need to see this moment as one of promise and investment in education in rural as well as urban poverty, climate change ... sustainability, infrastructure, and obviously at the very heart, health care and vaccination. ... We cannot leave anybody behind.
[If] you're worried it'll be all doom and gloom – don't fear: History can be a "litany of dark and complicated and challenging moments," Burns says, but it also "makes one, paradoxically, an optimist."
There is "actually ... light that is right in front of us." :)
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Cleaning out some of the (hoarder?) clutter on my drive I came across this text:
A story is not fact,
it may not be true.
A fact is not data,
it may not be representative.
Data is not evidence,
it may not be supportive.
Evidence may not be proof,
it may not be universal.
Practical Tips for finding truth:
Seek Other Viewpoints
Listen to Experts
Pause Before Sharing
I paused several minutes before posting! :toothgrin: :yes:
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A reminder of the simple things: How to wash your hands (https://yourhealth.methodisthealth.org/blog/are-you-washing-your-hands-correctly-here-are-the-do-s-and-don-ts)
Note from Medicare (for those who aren't on their email list). Please see graphic below.
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The Beatles have this song about washing hands (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OxOJ7hh3H-I)
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Washing hands is much older than plumbing! It was one of the first "medical discoveries". Your great Grandparents probably used lye soap (https://frugallysustainable.com/how-to-make-lye-soap/)!