Coronavirus 2019-nCov: Political Thread

[Kung Wu]

Obviously this is about how we as a society have reacted to the coronavirus outbreaks of 2020.

Necessary or overreaction? Why?

Warning: Stay away if you have thin skin and cannot participate in a healthy contentious discussion without name calling.

[1979Shocker]

A lot of people have overreacted. The only things that have affected me is not being able to go to the Y or not being able to find something I need at the store because people are overreacting and buying extra things they normally wouldn't need. Then there are those that buy up things like masks and hand sanitizer in order to sell them for a profit.

Other than those inconveniences, I haven't really changed anything. I did spray down my bathroom and kitchen counters and wiped my doorknobs with 409, which I had never done before. I probably won't be doing that again for a while. I have some hand sanitizer in my bathroom which I haven't really used at all, but I've used it a little more since all of this happened.

[MrsHenryLevitt]

Necessary, people the world over are dying from a virus nobody had heard of 6 months ago. Listening to medical experts, hospitals and clinics are already becoming overwhelmed and we are just scratching the surface. Admittedly, some aspects of this pandemic are overreactions, however I believe the general reaction is necessary!

[RoyalShock]

Necessary precautions, overreacting people.

And it will always be that way during a crisis. Those damn humans.

[WuDrWu]

Almost everyone on this fine forum will be capable of navigating this crisis without too much difficulty. Even those of us with vastly different ideas, beliefs, political views and understanding of what's happening will all get through this mess.

The problem is the uneducated and the decision makers (politicians). The uneducated have no clue what's going on and the politicians almost exclusively care more about their own future than ours.

Somebody made the point about folks in Louisiana believing it was a hoax and casually blaming the President (never mind that he didn't say that). I'm sure there ARE some people that think that. I don't know any of them. I don't know anyone that knows anyone like that. I mostly work with front line, entry level, mostly poorly educated but hard working folks. Nearly every one of them is in a panic. I don't want to know how many man hours I've spent trying to calm people down, offer them help, provide them guidance to resources etc. Fully half or more believe infection is imminent and that if they get it they are more likely to die than to live. I'm not making that up. Almost all are scared to leave home. I could name 17 people (employees and members of their families) that are CONVINCED they have it and can't qualify for testing because the Dr says they aren't a candidate to be tested and are nearly in meltdown phase. Comments like "nobody is taking this as serious as they should be" and "none of us should be leaving home" and "can we get hazmat gear" (I'm not making this up at all) I hear every day. Trust me, many many many more of these people that REALLY NEED HELP believe the narrative of the media and have no idea what the President is saying whether you believe him or not.

This is another example of least denominator thinking as I call it. What's the worst thing that can happen? That's how we'll respond. Nobody wants to say it, but if our economy craters, the long term (if not near term) cost to Americans will FAR outweigh the loss of 10 MILLION lives to this virus. There's very little risk assessment going on. It's all about stopping this virus with as little direct expense (loss of life, no matter the condition of the sick) as possible. We have incredible efforts all over this great country. Companies bringing innovation and materials to bear to assist with shortages, medical personnel at all levels sacrificing and succeeding in all kinds of situations. Companies adjusting and giving where they can. Athletes and celebrities giving of themselves and their fortunes. Everyday Joes giving what they can. The American spirit is strong and revving up to be on full display to help our fellow man. It's great to watch.

But we're making a mistake shutting down the economy and too many people are overreacting. AND more importantly, what's needed here in Wichita is clearly not what's needed in other areas. In Hays Kansas it's business as usual for the most part. No large gatherings but general welfare continues. NYC is a totally different animal. So is Kansas City. So is Wichita. We need to be making a lot more local decisions and fewer national ones.

Where I am, here in Wichita, I believe there is an overreaction. Not everything is, but some are. Closing off care facilities for the elderly is an excellent plan given the knowledge we have. Closing all the schools, at the time they did, was not.

[C0|dB|00ded]

Very disappointing what some of the conservatives are saying around here. Many of us are looking like the dumb science-deniers that Libtards routinely call us. I am a conservative, but I am also an intellectual. Guys like Rush Limbaugh who scoff at science warnings regarding tobacco causing lung cancer... then develops said lung cancer should be a lesson to us all. One should not be afraid to call bullshit when it's clearly evident.

The dangers we face with this virus are incalculable. It's behavior is ideal to cause the maximum disruption and hardship. Had it been more deadly it wouldn't have spread, had it been less deadly, it wouldn't have disrupted society. But what it mutated into was almost hand-crafted to infect with light speed while dealing just enough of a severe blow to scare the hell out of everybody.

In America we have 40% of hospitalized Corona patients under the age of 50.

https://fox8.com/news/is-the-coronavirus-like-the-flu-not-at-all-according-to-doctors-treating-covid-19-patients/

“Reading about it in the news, I knew it was going to be bad, but we deal with the flu every year so I was thinking: Well, it’s probably not that much worse than the flu. But seeing patients with COVID-19 completely changed my perspective, and it’s a lot more frightening.”

The therapist said he’s been running ventilators for the sickest COVID-19 patients. According to him, many of his patients are relatively young, in their 40s and 50s, and have minimal, if any, preexisting conditions in their charts.

“It first struck me how different it was when I saw my first coronavirus patient go bad. I was like, holy s—, this is not the flu. Watching this relatively young guy, gasping for air, pink frothy secretions coming out of his tube and out of his mouth.”

This is not only a "nursing home disease".

Another alarming aspect is that many of those who recover are left with pulmonary fibrosis and need oxygen supplementation. There was a 33 yr old man in perfect health who just "recovered" from Corona and was sent home. Unfortunately he brought with him a large home oxygen machine and a smaller portable unit. Some doctors are saying many patients could have up to 20% diminished lung function for life.

Maybe we get lucky and only have 500,000 deaths in America after it's all said and done. But how many millions will be left disabled - unable to walk out to get the mail without getting winded?

Let's dispense with the overreaction bullshit and help our neighbors and friends to take a break from society for a few weeks so that we can have a chance at stopping this before we makes Italy look like Disney World mmmkay?

https://www.facebook.com/itsokaytobesmart/videos/213119293379367/

I like it when people are thinking I'm overreacting because that means we're doing it just right. - Dr. Anthony Fauci

T

[wufan]

I need to see your arsenal Cold. Get some new pics up here!

[Kung Wu]

Many of us are looking like the dumb science-deniers that Libtards routinely call us. I am a conservative, but I am also an intellectual.

...

Maybe we get lucky and only have 500,000 deaths in America after it's all said and done.

Want to place a small (or even large) wager on your 500,000 U.S. deaths due to coronavirus in one years time from today? Total deaths as reported by the CDC as of end of day March 22, 2021. If greater than or equal to 500,000 you win, if we "get lucky" and it's less than 500,000 I win. We can use escrow.com. Say $1,000?

It's currently a rapidly growing exponential, so this should be easy money for you. Get a 100% return on your money -- you won't get an opportunity like this for a long time!

[ShockerFever]

Is being a moderate or heavy smoker considered "an underlying health condition"? I wonder if being a smoker has any relation to being more susceptible to the disease, particularly to the younger people being reported as seriously ill?

I think there's some middle ground to a lot of this discussion but unfortunately the loudest voices are usually heard with the two extremes. You have the one extreme in shockingbuttrue that clearly is underselling this thing with some weird nonsensical points being made and then you have the other extreme where you have a guy in Cold that hasn't posted in months come surging into here and saying the world is gonna end. I think the actual results will lie somewhere in the middle.

[WstateU]

Is being a moderate or heavy smoker considered "an underlying health condition"? I wonder if being a smoker has any relation to being more susceptible to the disease, particularly to the younger people being reported as seriously ill?

I think there's some middle ground to a lot of this discussion but unfortunately the loudest voices are usually heard with the two extremes. You have the one extreme in shockingbuttrue that clearly is underselling this thing with some weird nonsensical points being made and then you have the other extreme where you have a guy in Cold that hasn't posted in months come surging into here and saying the world is gonna end. I think the actual results will lie somewhere in the middle.

Cold had me shopping on-line for caskets and urns.

[WichitaStateGuy]

Want to place a small (or even large) wager on your 500,000 U.S. deaths due to coronavirus in one years time from today? Total deaths as reported by the CDC as of end of day March 22, 2021. If greater than or equal to 500,000 you win, if we "get lucky" and it's less than 500,000 I win. We can use escrow.com. Say $1,000?

It's currently a rapidly growing exponential, so this should be easy money for you. Get a 100% return on your money -- you won't get an opportunity like this for a long time!

Quite the unscrupulous bet. I'm reminded of Brad Pitt's quote in The Big Short -- "If we're right, people lose homes. People lose jobs. People lose retirement savings, people lose pensions. You know what I hate about f*cking banking? It reduces people to numbers — every 1% unemployment goes up, 40,000 people die, did you know that?"

I think millions will die from this. I'm not willing to place money on it, because I hope I'm wrong.

[C0|dB|00ded]

Want to place a small (or even large) wager on your 500,000 U.S. deaths due to coronavirus in one years time from today? Total deaths as reported by the CDC as of end of day March 22, 2021. If greater than or equal to 500,000 you win, if we "get lucky" and it's less than 500,000 I win. We can use escrow.com. Say $1,000?

It's currently a rapidly growing exponential, so this should be easy money for you. Get a 100% return on your money -- you won't get an opportunity like this for a long time!

Why on earth would you want to make a bet on the lives of dead Americans? I'm going to bet and profit if 500k+ dies in this country? C'mon man... get ahold of yourself. We are ALL wishing the deaths stopped now.

If we lock this country down I'm hopeful we don't get into the hundreds of thousands or millions of deaths. But it's absolutely as real as gravity that this virus is 100% capable of killing more Americans than the common FLU at a factor of 10 to 34x.

Be smart people and follow the guidance of the CDC.

P.S. Kung, did you watch the video I posted?


T


...

[WstateU]

Here’s a story some of you have probably seen already. A K-State Journalism professor in critical condition with Covid-19. Him and his family and several K-State students just returned from a study abroad trip. Watch the video and pay attention to the 1:00 minute mark for the explanation in ‘layman’s terms’ of how the virus spreads.... this is what the ‘average joe’ is missing and doesn’t understand.

http://www.kake.com/story/41925711/k-state-students-react-professor-diagnosed-with-covid-19

[C0|dB|00ded]

Is being a moderate or heavy smoker considered "an underlying health condition"? I wonder if being a smoker has any relation to being more susceptible to the disease, particularly to the younger people being reported as seriously ill?

I think there's some middle ground to a lot of this discussion but unfortunately the loudest voices are usually heard with the two extremes. You have the one extreme in shockingbuttrue that clearly is underselling this thing with some weird nonsensical points being made and then you have the other extreme where you have a guy in Cold that hasn't posted in months come surging into here and saying the world is gonna end. I think the actual results will lie somewhere in the middle.

"Cold... saying the world is gonna end."

I've said nothing of the sort. I merely repeated the guidance of the professionals assigned to this pandemic and offered some VERY REAL possibilities if said guidance isn't followed. This isn't about ego, this isn't about R v. D, this is about one of the greatest threats we will face in our lifetimes. Viral outbreaks such as these are an existential threat and that is not hyperbole.

If we jump on this early and hard (and are successful), some people in here will pound their fists about why we overreacted. "Sensationalists" like myself and Dr. Fauci will just sigh a deep breath of relief and be thankful the masses weren't successful in exterminating themselves this time.

Yes, I'm trying to scare some of you in here. I'm doing so because I know that's the correct bet. I make bets for a living. The risk of being complacent is unlimited while the risk of being vigilant is defined.

I and others who are fully informed on the issue will happily wear the label of overreactor. Thousands of American lives are at stake.

I DO NOT want to be proven right.


T


...

[C0|dB|00ded]

Here’s a story some of you have probably seen already. A K-State Journalism professor in critical condition with Covid-19. Him and his family and several K-State students just returned from a study abroad trip. Watch the video and pay attention to the 1:00 minute mark for the explanation in ‘layman’s terms’ of how the virus spreads.... this is what the ‘average joe’ is missing and doesn’t understand.

http://www.kake.com/story/41925711/k...-with-covid-19

Dammit! I had to watch a 25 second commercial on Amazon Music and I'm a subscriber. No fair!

This link describes the same concept of exponential spread but in very digestible bites. :)

https://www.facebook.com/itsokaytobesmart/videos/213119293379367/

T


...