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TDHelmick

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Have to feel for all the seniors out there. Baseball, softball, track, etc...not just just basketball and wrestling.

Of course, that is just the tip of the iceberg. All Maryland schools are closed for the next two weeks and possibly beyond that.

Crazy times. I have never seen anything like this in my lifetime. Not even from 9/11, earthquakes, hurricanes or being at war.
 
I am old enough to remember my parents talking about knowing kids not a helluva lot older than I was getting polio. It didn't shut the country down and neither did all the flu epidemics since. Right now about 57 have died in this country with 2,943 confirmed cases. I believe all have been elderly with 40 of those deaths in Washington State.

To me, these actions seem insane. H1N1 from just 10 years ago had about 13k deaths, 275k hospitalized and maybe 60 - 80 million infected. It didn't shut the country down.

So, somebody must know a helluva lot more than I or a whole lot of folks will start dying soon... like suddenly ten thousand will drop over next week from the 'WU FLU' or a stampede in a grocery store.
 
I am old enough to remember my parents talking about knowing kids not a helluva lot older than I was getting polio. It didn't shut the country down and neither did all the flu epidemics since. Right now about 57 have died in this country with 2,943 confirmed cases. I believe all have been elderly with 40 of those deaths in Washington State.

To me, these actions seem insane. H1N1 from just 10 years ago had about 13k deaths, 275k hospitalized and maybe 60 - 80 million infected. It didn't shut the country down.

So, somebody must know a helluva lot more than I or a whole lot of folks will start dying soon... like suddenly ten thousand will drop over next week from the 'WU FLU' or a stampede in a grocery store.


I think the rationale behind it is to stop it before it gains a foot hold. So to keep a "helluva lot more" people from dying.
 
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I think the rationale behind it is to stop it before it gains a foot hold. So to keep a "helluva lot more" people from dying.

I think the rationale is that the bureaucrats are playing one-upmanship with the lock downs and cancellations so when this blows over they can claim it was due to their actions. Plus, there are a bunch of medical types, who would only get camera time if they were arrested, who now are media darlings as long as they espouse a million deaths to come.

If their predictions are correct, we will have carts going down city streets as the procession chants, "Bring out your dead."

Ten years ago, we had a higher proportion of children infected with H1N1and they didn't even close schools. On April 25th in 2009 there were 222 children sickened in a New York city school. I believe they closed that school for a day and the entire system stayed open. By that same time 1,000 had already died nationally. You can go to the CDC website and read all about it.

So, I eschew the projections and follow the number of deceased. As of this morning, totals 58.

Here is a website:

https://ncov2019.live/data
 
To me, these actions seem insane. H1N1 from just 10 years ago had about 13k deaths, 275k hospitalized and maybe 60 - 80 million infected. It didn't shut the country down.

There are a few differences worth pointing out here that make the current situation quite different. First and foremost is the mortality rate. It currently looks like COVID-19 has a mortality rate somewhere between 1% and 3.5%. The flu typically has a mortality rate of about 0.1%. So it appears that COVID-19 is at least 10x more deadly than the flu and just as easily transmissible. Also consider that we have a vaccine against the flu which surely keeps the total number of infections down. There is no vaccine at the present time for COVID-19. So it's not hard to imagine the total number of infections becoming higher than the flu. So whenever you hear about how many people the flu kills each year, multiply that number by 10, or even 20, to see what COVID-19 can do if we are not careful.

Using the numbers you cited, 13,000 deaths out of 70,000,000 (using the middle number of your estimate) results in a mortality rate of about 0.019%. Using a 2% mortality rate for COVID-19, the death total becomes 1,400,000 given the same number of infections.

I think the rationale is that the bureaucrats are playing one-upmanship with the lock downs and cancellations so when this blows over they can claim it was due to their actions.
The flip side of this coin is the more successful the preventive measures are, the easier it becomes for people like you to claim things were blown out of proportion when it's all over.
 
I think the rationale is that the bureaucrats are playing one-upmanship with the lock downs and cancellations so when this blows over they can claim it was due to their actions. Plus, there are a bunch of medical types, who would only get camera time if they were arrested, who now are media darlings as long as they espouse a million deaths to come.

If their predictions are correct, we will have carts going down city streets as the procession chants, "Bring out your dead."

Ten years ago, we had a higher proportion of children infected with H1N1and they didn't even close schools. On April 25th in 2009 there were 222 children sickened in a New York city school. I believe they closed that school for a day and the entire system stayed open. By that same time 1,000 had already died nationally. You can go to the CDC website and read all about it.

So, I eschew the projections and follow the number of deceased. As of this morning, totals 58.

Here is a website:

https://ncov2019.live/data



The flu has been around for thousands of years and entrenched in the population. They're trying to stop this from becoming the flu.. Sure we're doing things differently, treatment is different from 10,20,30 years ago.. We know things now we didnt know then.Its called progress. I'd much rather error on the side of caution. It harkens back to that old saying, "when you know better you do better"
 
There are a few differences worth pointing out here that make the current situation quite different. First and foremost is the mortality rate. It currently looks like COVID-19 has a mortality rate somewhere between 1% and 3.5%. The flu typically has a mortality rate of about 0.1%. So it appears that COVID-19 is at least 10x more deadly than the flu and just as easily transmissible. Also consider that we have a vaccine against the flu which surely keeps the total number of infections down. There is no vaccine at the present time for COVID-19. So it's not hard to imagine the total number of infections becoming higher than the flu. So whenever you hear about how many people the flu kills each year, multiply that number by 10, or even 20, to see what COVID-19 can do if we are not careful.

Using the numbers you cited, 13,000 deaths out of 70,000,000 (using the middle number of your estimate) results in a mortality rate of about 0.019%. Using a 2% mortality rate for COVID-19, the death total becomes 1,400,000 given the same number of infections.


The flip side of this coin is the more successful the preventive measures are, the easier it becomes for people like you to claim things were blown out of proportion when it's all over.

Thank you for zeroing in on the issue. The Diamond Princess had around 696 infected on a confined cruise ship with about 3700 passengers and crew: 7 died, all elderly with health issues. Four of those critically ill from the cruise were brought back to the US in Washington State. The nursing home in Washington State was a confined area and had quite a few die. For sure, the number of deaths per infected in the nursing home skew the mortality rate immensely. So, we are looking at 40 out of all the deaths in the country (58) .... being from Washington State.

When younger people were also dying from H1N1 you could extrapolate a generalized mortality rate. When the elderly and those with severe health issues are dying from the WU FLU the projections of 1.4 million are - to put it mildly - not very valid.

If the young are merely getting mild cold symptoms and not being tested at all - for sure they ain't currently dying - then we do not know the infection rate and we absolutely then do not know the mortality rate.

The mortality rate is projected higher because we are testing predominately the elderly who are very sick and not the young who appear to have a cold.

Here's something to contemplate: Since January, 58 have been murdered in Baltimore, which is exactly the same number as those who have died of the WU FLU in this country. Where is the concern? The panic? Where's the lock down?

And like I previously posted: it's all about claiming victory by panicking the general population and persecuting the school kids... because, we really don't give a shit. If we cared about people, particularly children, we would have long since done something about the murders in Baltimore
 
The flu has been around for thousands of years and entrenched in the population. They're trying to stop this from becoming the flu.. Sure we're doing things differently, treatment is different from 10,20,30 years ago.. We know things now we didnt know then.Its called progress. I'd much rather error on the side of caution. It harkens back to that old saying, "when you know better you do better"

Sure, destroy the final months of school for the kids and wreck small businesses. Panic folks so the stores are ransacked. Scare people from seeking general medical care for fear they might come in contact with an infected person. And, if we claim victory from this radical procedure, why not do the same for every flu season. You know... shut every damn thing down every damn year because it worked this time..... right?
 
If the young are merely getting mild cold symptoms and not being tested at all - for sure they ain't currently dying - then we do not know the infection rate and we absolutely then do not know the mortality rate.

For sure. Which is why I said what the mortality rate currently looks like, not what it is. But we have to act given the information we have. This is definitely the type of situation where it's far smarter to play it safe rather than hope for a miracle that it will just disappear.

The mortality rate is projected higher because we are testing predominately the elderly who are very sick and not the young who appear to have a cold.

You seem to only be considering what we are doing in the US. We are not able to test everyone because the current administration has proven to be woefully unprepared. But the current mortality estimates are a result of data collected from around the world - and many places are testing thousands of people per day regardless of age/symptoms.

Here's something to contemplate: Since January, 58 have been murdered in Baltimore, which is exactly the same number as those who have died of the WU FLU in this country. Where is the concern? The panic? Where's the lock down?

This is a straw man argument, but I'll play along. The key difference here is that gun violence is not contagious and does not grow exponentially. Just because there have been 58 murders since January does not indicate that there may be 500 murders in April. But this is exactly how pandemics grow if left unchecked.

because, we really don't give a shit.

I don't think the people trying to stop the spread are the ones who don't give a shit. There will certainly be unfortunate side effects to taking drastic measures, but the consequences of not taking action may be far more serious
 
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For sure. Which is why I said what the mortality rate currently looks like, not what it is. But we have to act given the information we have. This is definitely the type of situation where it's far smarter to play it safe rather than hope for a miracle that it will just disappear.



You seem to only be considering what we are doing in the US. We are not able to test everyone because the current administration has proven to be woefully unprepared. But the current mortality estimates are a result of data collected from around the world - and many places are testing thousands of people per day regardless of age/symptoms.



Many people are concerned, and many have tried to do something including sensible gun laws. Many appear to be unconcerned and oppose such measures. But the key difference here is that gun violence is not contagious and does not grow exponentially. Just because there have been 58 murders since January does not indicate that there may be 500 murders in April. But this is exactly how pandemics grow if left unchecked.

I don't think the people trying to stop the spread are the ones who don't give a shit. There will certainly be unfortunate side effects to taking drastic measures, but the consequences of not taking action may be far more serious


You seem to only be considering what we are doing in the US. We are not able to test everyone because the current administration has proven to be woefully unprepared.

I have been waiting for the unmitigated political bullshit. Just so you know: Nobody ever tests everyone... period. Do you actually believe they rushed through Milan and tested every single person... or every single person that had a runny nose? We certainly knew more about H1N1 because when you got sick... you got really sick. Now, children apparently are getting the sniffles.... and what do the highest authorities at the CDC say? Wash your friggin' hands!

Just so you know: there were three countries that shutdown travel from China in early January... only three: Israel, Australia and the US (and our country was slammed as being racist then and now the EU is slamming us for our further restrictions on them.... Oh, yes they are more prepared than we are... sure... right).

Over 1,000 had already died from H1N1 before massive testing... before being a national emergency.... and no school systems were closed despite the fact that the virus mainly effected the young - to steal a vernacular - is this woefully not giving a shit? Oh... sorry... wrong political party and wrong president.

Many people are concerned, and many have tried to do something including sensible gun laws


I would say, "Are you ****ing kidding me?" But no... that's okay... When Baltimore is a Cartel hub for drugs... when only 30% of the murders are solved because witnesses are murdered... when school students - aka drug dealers - waive handguns at street cameras in the middle of the night... when 20 year old men - who are also gang members - are in the country illegally while also in our school system.... you... you think this is about passing sensible gun laws?

Sadly, everything today is washed through political kidneys before being pissed on the general public. We will bludgeon and victimize anyone to advance an agenda but blow off everything that doesn't.

sensible gun laws


As an addendum, ask the average guy up in WMD with an AR 15 (.223) that hunts and target shoots with his rifle whether he thinks it is an assault weapon and whether he thinks the previous MD 'sensible' guns laws made us safer and whether confiscation of that rifle is 'sensible' and will make us even safer.


.
 
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I have been waiting for the unmitigated political bullshit. Just so you know: Nobody ever tests everyone... period. Do you actually believe they rushed through Milan and tested every single person... or every single person that had a runny nose?

Nope. And I never claimed they did. Just simply stating the facts that other countries are testing more people.

Just so you know: there were three countries that shutdown travel from China in early January...

That turned out to be a good decision. Too bad we didn't take advantage of that time to prepare.

Over 1,000 had already died from H1N1 before massive testing... before being a national emergency.... and no school systems were closed despite the fact that the virus mainly effected the young - to steal a vernacular - is this woefully not giving a shit? Oh... sorry... wrong political party and wrong president.

I'm not going to refute any of this because I'm not familiar with the facts in this case. But I'll take your word for it. I'm certainly capable of criticizing both sides of the aisle and willing to acknowledge that both instances were handled poorly. The facts for the present situation still stand - we were woefully unprepared. Even the administrations spokespeople are admitting this.

Many people are concerned, and many have tried to do something including sensible gun laws

I edited my post shortly after posting and removed this because I didn't want to be too political. Instead I just responded that your response was a straw man, which it is.
 
That turned out to be a good decision. Too bad we didn't take advantage of that time to prepare.

When the virus first broke out in Wuhan we offered to send scientists and doctors to China. They refused. Decisions on each year's 'flu shot' starts in February of the previous year and it takes a minimum of 6 months to mass produce a vaccine.

Here is a link to the CDC on the subject:

https://www.cdc.gov/flu/prevent/vaccine-selection.htm

When the CDC says we were ill prepared it was not that we were slack it was knowing what it takes to develop and mass produce a vaccine when we were already 3 months in the dark. That, and the previous system of funneling everything through the CDC.

So, had the Chinese let us in back in November we could have been mass producing a vaccine this May... maybe. Still, we didn't have the proper data until the virus broke out of China.

As far as testing, most testing around the world for the general travelers has been checking temperatures and looking for symptoms. No foreign country already had a pile of WU FLU test kits stacked up to check everyone that appeared sick.

And as to the comment about being a straw dog.... well, to me the subject was about concern. We sure as hell have no concern that somebody can be gunned down at noon in the busiest intersection in Baltimore or across the street from a police station. But the governor can limit crowd size and shutter schools when nobody has died from a virus.... in fact 2 of the first three in the state to catch it have already recovered.

We are making definitive decisions to disrupt thousands of lives over a recoverable illness while refusing to do a damn thing over daily murders. Not a straw man to me at least.
 
The only concern with CV is what is happening in Italy and parts of Europe. Many of the elderly and people with underlying medical conditions are not able to get critical care because hospital ICU's are way overloaded. On top of that, tons of people need ICU outside of this coronavirus. I'm not worried about our youth or even people like me at age 52. But if my mom needs ICU I sure would like her to get it. This is what the term flattening the curve is for so as not to overload the system all at once. I'm good with such.

However, I read a great deal on the Italy situation. Based on that, if the government believes 2 weeks or even a month of shutting down will be enough to stop this virus they are sadly mistaken. This combat path will require 3-4 months at least. With that said, at what point do you end the shut down to keep societal structure from collapsing in all directions? Being a small business owner they cannot tell me to shut down but still ask that I pay the banks what is owed to them. Mortgage/rent, utilities, loans, insurance, salaried payroll...they don't stop.

My take is that there will have to be age discrimination in the long run. If you are over 65 or have underlying medical conditions you will need confined and isolated until this blows through. They should have played the NCAA basketball tournaments and all high school winter sports finals, etc. without fans in attendance. I can see where we don't want 15,000 fans crammed into an arena, but if the players test negative for CV let them play a game with only select media there to broadcast it for the masses.

Closing school for 2 weeks in the US won't do much. The peak numbers of people testing positive for CV won't hit for another 10-17 days. They will need them closed for about 3-4 months if that is the approach they want to take.

Again, if the US is to shut down business, they must shut down the banks and utility companies asking for payment. People with jobs in bars and restaurants don't keep a savings account for rainy days. Paying their bills will be impossible with a shut down.
 
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I have been waiting for the unmitigated political bullshit.

.

How can you wait for something you literally started?

You ripped on the government for their response for multiple posts, and then when someone else rips the government you call it "unmitigated political bullshit."

I think the rationale is that the bureaucrats are playing one-upmanship with the lock downs and cancellations so when this blows over they can claim it was due to their actions. Plus, there are a bunch of medical types, who would only get camera time if they were arrested, who now are media darlings as long as they espouse a million deaths to come.

And I do remember the sitting president complaining many times about the previous president dealing with the Ebola outbreak that killed 11 Americans. Are you saying that what is good for the goose is no longer good for the gander.

And ask the average American, which will never touch an AR (because less than 3% own one) if it's a "common use" weapon. I've owned and used guns my entire life. No harm or even inconvenience will come to those who can't use ARs if banned.

You're broken, dude. You're literally the meme of Abe Simpson yelling at a cloud.
 
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And as to the comment about being a straw dog.... well, to me the subject was about concern. We sure as hell have no concern that somebody can be gunned down at noon in the busiest intersection in Baltimore or across the street from a police station. But the governor can limit crowd size and shutter schools when nobody has died from a virus.... in fact 2 of the first three in the state to catch it have already recovered.

We are making definitive decisions to disrupt thousands of lives over a recoverable illness while refusing to do a damn thing over daily murders. Not a straw man to me at least.

We live in a country where natives commit crimes at twice the rate of immigrants, and the response is to build a wall to keep out the people who commit fewer crimes. Guns kill 10s of thousands, and we ban vaping. We live in a country where you are twice as likely to die from being shot by a toddler than from terrorism, but we ban travel from Muslim countries.

Are you not used to this shit yet?
 
Every world report drives home the fact "elderly people" or people with "underlying conditions" are at risk with CV. The rest NOT. Ding, ding there is a clue. Gov. Hogan (and pretty much every state) has closed all racetracks, casinos, schools, gatherings of so many people and soon to be bars/restaurants and eventually non-essential business. Yet they have not confined and isolated those that are most at risk. Nor has the rest of the world. They just eventually confine and shut down everyone. It's because it would fall under age discrimination. If they told me white males between 50-55 were at the most risk then I would expect them to confine/isolate me for a period of time. But they can't in the name of race/age/gender/religion/etc discrimination. When this first started in China the first thing the media and leaders drove at us was not to discriminate or treat Asians different. Maybe I'm just crazy, well OK I am. But not off base.

Do the math. If we isolate, protect and take care of the people most at risk, this CV has the death rate half that of the common cold. So why is everyone and everything getting shut down? Someone please explain to me why I'm wrong. The only curve that needs flattened is for people at risk of needing critical care.
 
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Ffs you guys can't be this dense all for the sake of sports.... One day the "elderly" are at risk. The next day the "young" may be at risk. If not stopped viruses do tend to mutate. Sure the elderly maybe more at risk but if you don't limit the social interaction of the entire populace including "young" people. Who's to say that "young" person, who is less at risk, who may contract it at a sporting event, wouldn't take it back to that "elderly" person who is at more risk? What is so hard for people to understand that in an effort to keep the virus in check and from becoming established in the human population they are throwing the kitchen sink at it to try and stop it? You're damned if you do you're damned if you don't. You do too much its overkill, you do too little, it wasn't enough response. Please stop all the belly aching over your lack of entertainment and personal enjoyment disguised as emotionally caring for high school seniors missing out on their high school sports memories. The benefit of doing too much is hopefully those same seniors will live past this and move on in life. The consequences of doing too little could have the exact opposite effect. Your near-sightedness, selfishness, and entiltment becomes very transparent and is probably the reason why these plagues are sent to us in the first place. To teach us the selflessness and humility that we've lost along the way.
 
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We live in a country where natives commit crimes at twice the rate of immigrants, and the response is to build a wall to keep out the people who commit fewer crimes. Guns kill 10s of thousands, and we ban vaping. We live in a country where you are twice as likely to die from being shot by a toddler than from terrorism, but we ban travel from Muslim countries.

Are you not used to this shit yet?

Oh goody.... another one of those exchanges... with the misleading talking points. Mkay, here are the facts:

Homeland security and the Justice Department indicate that 30% of the federal prison population are confirmed or suspected illegal immigrants. There were 57,820 immigrants in federal prisons as of Dec. 31, 2018.... and - get this - nearly 20,000 other immigrants were held in pretrial detention. So, do I really have to spell out all the implications for you or can you easily extrapolate why illegals are pretty much not charged (and not turned over to ICE) in the cities and/or dumped (without bail in NY city) back on the streets to victimize the citizenry again and again. Surely, you understand now.... right... Ugh, no... I didn't think so.

Next.... Here is the study directed under the Obama administration on gun violence

INSTITUTE OF MEDICINE AND
NATIONAL RESEARCH COUNCIL
OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES:

https://www.nap.edu/read/18319/chapter/1

Boy.... that study just breaks your heart doesn't it?

Here is just a small snippet:

"Almost all national survey estimates indicate that defensive gun uses by victims are at least as common as offensive uses by criminals, with estimates of annual uses ranging from about 500,000 to more than 3 million per year... in the context of about 300,000 violent crimes involving firearms in 2008."

Wow! up to 3 million defensive use of firearms compared to 300,000 violent crimes with firearms. Looks like guns save lives and prevent crime..... What's that? Oh... wait... Sorry, not right wing Trump stuff... this is an Obama administration study.... I know... you just can't let go of the 'gun violence' meme.

And, I'm a very liberal libertarian... so, no... I would not ban vaping.
 
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Every world report drives home the fact "elderly people" or people with "underlying conditions" are at risk with CV. The rest NOT. Ding, ding there is a clue. Gov. Hogan (and pretty much every state) has closed all racetracks, casinos, schools, gatherings of so many people and soon to be bars/restaurants and eventually non-essential business. Yet they have not confined and isolated those that are most at risk. Nor has the rest of the world. They just eventually confine and shut down everyone. It's because it would fall under age discrimination. If they told me white males between 50-55 were at the most risk then I would expect them to confine/isolate me for a period of time. But they can't in the name of race/age/gender/religion/etc discrimination. When this first started in China the first thing the media and leaders drove at us was not to discriminate or treat Asians different. Maybe I'm just crazy, well OK I am. But not off base.

Do the math. If we isolate, protect and take care of the people most at risk, this CV has the death rate half that of the common cold. So why is everyone and everything getting shut down? Someone please explain to me why I'm wrong. The only curve that needs flattened is for people at risk of needing critical care.

The key sentence in this thread:
The only curve that needs flattened is for people at risk of needing critical care

It's coming to the aged near you. Just watch the death toll in this country get over 1,000 - tiny though that may be - and we will probably go to recommended self quarantine of those over 60.

Look at the UK:

https://www.newsmax.com/newsfront/elderly-uk-isolation-quarantine/2020/03/15/id/958387/


This will be followed by elder abuse of those oldsters not staying home.... then to mandatory quarantine for the protection of the elderly - that, of course, being the excuse. As long as there is an excuse that can pass political muster, it will be administered. So, for their own good is more than sufficient to victimize an age group... as long as they are just old and not of a specific protected race or gender.

I used to say that something would not happen only to find out that it had already happened. To some extent we are all visionaries that didn't see it coming.
 
Ffs you guys can't be this dense all for the sake of sports.... One day the "elderly" are at risk. The next day the "young" may be at risk. If not stopped viruses do tend to mutate. Sure the elderly maybe more at risk but if you don't limit the social interaction of the entire populace including "young" people. Who's to say that "young" person, who is less at risk, who may contract it at a sporting event, wouldn't take it back to that "elderly" person who is at more risk? What is so hard for people to understand that in an effort to keep the virus in check and from becoming established in the human population they are throwing the kitchen sink at it to try and stop it? You're damned if you do you're damned if you don't. You do too much its overkill, you do too little, it wasn't enough response. Please stop all the belly aching over your lack of entertainment and personal enjoyment disguised as emotionally caring for high school seniors missing out on their high school sports memories. The benefit of doing too much is hopefully those same seniors will live past this and move on in life. The consequences of doing too little could have the exact opposite effect. Your near-sightedness, selfishness, and entiltment becomes very transparent and is probably the reason why these plagues are sent to us in the first place. To teach us the selflessness and humility that we've lost along the way.

Letting schools out does not prevent contact with seniors. Letting schools out allows the children freedom to roam the communities and be in contact with seniors. I think the teachers in WV hated knowing the MD teachers were at the 'early stocking' trout streams and demanded their own vacation. Yippee! Kids are out and about. Best quarantine the elderly now to prevent any contact. I doubt though, that those 'at home' teachers are volunteering to run errands and deliver food to the 'at home' elderly.... methinks they are at the trout streams.
 
How can you wait for something you literally started?

You ripped on the government for their response for multiple posts, and then when someone else rips the government you call it "unmitigated political bullshit."

I think the rationale is that the bureaucrats are playing one-upmanship with the lock downs and cancellations so when this blows over they can claim it was due to their actions. Plus, there are a bunch of medical types, who would only get camera time if they were arrested, who now are media darlings as long as they espouse a million deaths to come.

And I do remember the sitting president complaining many times about the previous president dealing with the Ebola outbreak that killed 11 Americans. Are you saying that what is good for the goose is no longer good for the gander.

And ask the average American, which will never touch an AR (because less than 3% own one) if it's a "common use" weapon. I've owned and used guns my entire life. No harm or even inconvenience will come to those who can't use ARs if banned.

You're broken, dude. You're literally the meme of Abe Simpson yelling at a cloud.

No harm or even inconvenience will come to those who can't use ARs if banned.

My God.... the mentality of a despotic pamphleteer.
 
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I haven't been posting on this board recently because I've been in Rome, Italy for work and this site doesn't work over there.

Last week my employer put me on one of the last planes out before the travel ban at their own expense. I was supposed to be there until July and it's work I can't do from home.

There is no measure too extreme the government can take right now. The self containment measures in Italy are extreme. In the last days before I left you needed to fill out a paper declaring your purpose for leaving for every trip out of your home and were subject to being stopped and forced to present those papers at military checkpoints. All the restaurants and shops other than grocery stores, gas stations and pharmacies are closed. All the museums and tourists spots are closed. All the Catholic churches are closed. In Rome, a city that gets in the neighborhood of twenty million tourists a year. This all transpired in the course of a week. Two weeks ago it was life as normal. On Friday they cancelled all sports games and practices through April 3rd. By Sunday they declared Rome a red zone and closed all the museums and tourist attractions. By Monday the restaurants were only allowed to be open from 6-6 and bars were closed. By Wednesday all non-essential businesses were closed. On Thursday I got a call telling me I had to be packed and on a plane in less than four hours.

The containment measures are working. The Italian government waited too late in the north and now they have to chose who to treat and who to let die (the elderly and those with preexisting conditions) because they don't have the hospital capacity to treat them. One of my Italian bosses' wives was refused cancer treatment because they don't have the capacity to treat her right now. It's about flattening the curve so our health system isn't overwhelmed. The higher the number of patients the higher the chance they can't spare the room to treat other people with other medical problems.

The containment measures have kept most of the problems to the north, however. Over 50% of the cases and 66% of the deaths are in one province (Lombardy, where Milan is), Lazio (Rome's province) has a population of six million and less than 550 cases and 25 deaths. So, yeah it'll suck around here for a few weeks/months but it's a hell of a lot better than the alternatives. As I also saw in Italy, Americans won't voluntarily quarantine (look at the crowds at the bars this weekend in cities like Chicago, Nashville and New Orleans) so these governmental measures are necessary.

I'll be happy to answer further questions as I'm in day 4 of my 14 day self quarantine and literally have nothing to do. Even though I came from Italy I don't meet American testing criteria because I'm young, contained my travels to Southern Italy and asymptomatic. I wasn't even asked at customs where I had traveled in Italy. Meanwhile in Italy there's a 24/7 hotline you can call and they will send a doctor to your home to test you so you don't expose yourself to the community. The Maryland hotline is currently open 9-5 on weekdays, one aspect of our response here that definitely worries me.
 
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I haven't been posting on this board recently because I've been in Rome, Italy for work and this site doesn't work over there.

Last week my employer put me on one of the last planes out before the travel ban at their own expense. I was supposed to be there until July and it's work I can't do from home.

There is no measure too extreme the government can take right now. The self containment measures in Italy are extreme. In the last days before I left you needed to fill out a paper declaring your purpose for leaving for every trip out of your home and were subject to being stopped and forced to present those papers at military checkpoints. All the restaurants and shops other than grocery stores, gas stations and pharmacies are closed. All the museums and tourists spots are closed. All the Catholic churches are closed. In Rome, a city that gets in the neighborhood of twenty million tourists a year. This all transpired in the course of a week. Two weeks ago it was life as normal. On Friday they cancelled all sports games and practices through April 3rd. By Sunday they declared Rome a red zone and closed all the museums and tourist attractions. By Monday the restaurants were only allowed to be open from 6-6 and bars were closed. By Wednesday all non-essential businesses were closed. On Thursday I got a call telling me I had to be packed and on a plane in less than four hours.

The containment measures are working. The Italian government waited too late in the north and now they have to chose who to treat and who to let die (the elderly and those with preexisting conditions) because they don't have the hospital capacity to treat them. One of my Italian bosses' wives was refused cancer treatment because they don't have the capacity to treat her right now. It's about flattening the curve so our health system isn't overwhelmed. The higher the number of patients the higher the chance they can't spare the room to treat other people with other medical problems.

The containment measures have kept most of the problems to the north, however. Over 50% of the cases and 66% of the deaths are in one province (Lombardy, where Milan is), Lazio (Rome's province) has a population of six million and less than 550 cases and 25 deaths. So, yeah it'll suck around here for a few weeks/months but it's a hell of a lot better than the alternatives. As I also saw in Italy, Americans won't voluntarily quarantine (look at the crowds at the bars this weekend in cities like Chicago, Nashville and New Orleans) so these governmental measures are necessary.

I'll be happy to answer further questions as I'm in day 4 of my 14 day self quarantine and literally have nothing to do. Even though I came from Italy I don't meet American testing criteria because I'm young, contained my travels to Southern Italy and asymptomatic. I wasn't even asked at customs where I had traveled in Italy. Meanwhile in Italy there's a 24/7 hotline you can call and they will send a doctor to your home to test you so you don't expose yourself to the community. The Maryland hotline is currently open 9-5 on weekdays, one aspect of our response here that definitely worries me.

Excellent post thank you for your first hand account and perspective. Time and time again people that live sheltered lives prove they have no ability to relate if they haven't lived it and experienced hardship and travesty. Once again thank you for the very sobering post.. Its going to be an eye opening experience for the people who don't realize how serious this can get. The illness and the measures taken to stop it.. At this point sports should be the last thing on people's minds.
 
I haven't been posting on this board recently because I've been in Rome, Italy for work and this site doesn't work over there.

Last week my employer put me on one of the last planes out before the travel ban at their own expense. I was supposed to be there until July and it's work I can't do from home.

There is no measure too extreme the government can take right now. The self containment measures in Italy are extreme. In the last days before I left you needed to fill out a paper declaring your purpose for leaving for every trip out of your home and were subject to being stopped and forced to present those papers at military checkpoints. All the restaurants and shops other than grocery stores, gas stations and pharmacies are closed. All the museums and tourists spots are closed. All the Catholic churches are closed. In Rome, a city that gets in the neighborhood of twenty million tourists a year. This all transpired in the course of a week. Two weeks ago it was life as normal. On Friday they cancelled all sports games and practices through April 3rd. By Sunday they declared Rome a red zone and closed all the museums and tourist attractions. By Monday the restaurants were only allowed to be open from 6-6 and bars were closed. By Wednesday all non-essential businesses were closed. On Thursday I got a call telling me I had to be packed and on a plane in less than four hours.

The containment measures are working. The Italian government waited too late in the north and now they have to chose who to treat and who to let die (the elderly and those with preexisting conditions) because they don't have the hospital capacity to treat them. One of my Italian bosses' wives was refused cancer treatment because they don't have the capacity to treat her right now. It's about flattening the curve so our health system isn't overwhelmed. The higher the number of patients the higher the chance they can't spare the room to treat other people with other medical problems.

The containment measures have kept most of the problems to the north, however. Over 50% of the cases and 66% of the deaths are in one province (Lombardy, where Milan is), Lazio (Rome's province) has a population of six million and less than 550 cases and 25 deaths. So, yeah it'll suck around here for a few weeks/months but it's a hell of a lot better than the alternatives. As I also saw in Italy, Americans won't voluntarily quarantine (look at the crowds at the bars this weekend in cities like Chicago, Nashville and New Orleans) so these governmental measures are necessary.

I'll be happy to answer further questions as I'm in day 4 of my 14 day self quarantine and literally have nothing to do. Even though I came from Italy I don't meet American testing criteria because I'm young, contained my travels to Southern Italy and asymptomatic. I wasn't even asked at customs where I had traveled in Italy. Meanwhile in Italy there's a 24/7 hotline you can call and they will send a doctor to your home to test you so you don't expose yourself to the community. The Maryland hotline is currently open 9-5 on weekdays, one aspect of our response here that definitely worries me.


All you just said about Italy is already in effect in the US now (see Gov. Hogan's emergency Maryland mandates as of today). The only thing we have yet to do is confine everyone to their homes (and that is coming). Which leads me to this and I'm going to keep screaming it until my head pops...

Why are people over 65 or people with underlying medical conditions not already mandated to be confined and isolated?

To most healthy people, CV is less severe than a common cold. The critical people we are trying to protect is being done backwards. It's like trying to keep an ice cube from melting by blocking out the sun for everyone when you should just put the ice cube back in the freezer.

All travel from every country in the world should be shut down now. All cruise ships should be shut down now. But they are not. Instead they just pull everyone's teeth and allow this other shit to fly. If I didn't laugh I would cry.

I'm 100% for being overly cautious. But not while ignoring these other major factors.
 
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Excellent post thank you for your first hand account and perspective. Time and time again people that live sheltered lives prove they have no ability to relate if they haven't lived it and experienced hardship and travesty. Once again thank you for the very sobering post.. Its going to be an eye opening experience for the people who don't realize how serious this can get. The illness and the measures taken to stop it.. At this point sports should be the last thing on people's minds.

Those of us near or over 70 have seen quite a bit and experienced same. Italy is a playbook of what not to do. Of course, anyone coming back from Italy should self quarantine for a couple weeks.
 
All you just said about Italy is already in effect in the US now (see Gov. Hogan's emergency Maryland mandates as of today). The only thing we have yet to do is confine everyone to their homes (and that is coming). Which leads me to this and I'm going to keep screaming it until my head pops...

Why are people over 65 or people with underlying medical conditions not already mandated to be confined and isolated?

To most healthy people, CV is less severe than a common cold. The critical people we are trying to protect is being done backwards. It's like trying to keep an ice cube from melting by blocking out the sun for everyone when you should just put the ice cube back in the freezer.

All travel from every country in the world should be shut down now. All cruise ships should be shut down now. But they are not. Instead they just pull everyone's teeth and allow this other shit to fly. If I didn't laugh I would cry.

I'm 100% for being overly cautious. But not while ignoring these other major factors.

I couldn't have worded it better myself.
 
All you just said about Italy is already in effect in the US now (see Gov. Hogan's emergency Maryland mandates as of today). The only thing we have yet to do is confine everyone to their homes (and that is coming). Which leads me to this and I'm going to keep screaming it until my head pops...

Why are people over 65 or people with underlying medical conditions not already mandated to be confined and isolated?

To most healthy people, CV is less severe than a common cold. The critical people we are trying to protect is being done backwards. It's like trying to keep an ice cube from melting by blocking out the sun for everyone when you should just put the ice cube back in the freezer.

All travel from every country in the world should be shut down now. All cruise ships should be shut down now. But they are not. Instead they just pull everyone's teeth and allow this other shit to fly. If I didn't laugh I would cry.

I'm 100% for being overly cautious. But not while ignoring these other major factors.

As I saw in Italy, people won't voluntarily change their lives even for the good of others. Students were treating the whole thing like a big party, which because it is mild for younger people, increases the chance that they are spreading it among themselves then taking it back to vulnerable populations. You're seeing the same kind of lockdowns in Spain and France now, though Spain left it until way too late. Also, I'm not sure a lot of over-65s are capable of self-isolating. That tends not to be a tech savvy generation so I'm not sure how many can live in total isolation and get their needs delivered to their door using online services.

The real risk isn't in most people getting the virus, it's in hundreds of thousands of the elderly/vulnerable getting the virus all at once and clogging up our healthcare system, which in a lot of the country is worse than the one in Lombardy that got totally overwhelmed.

99% of travel is shut down. All major cruise ship companies have stopped running. You can't get a flight to or from the US to almost anywhere. The US-Canadian border is shut. I would argue that non-essential domestic air service needs to stop too. Too much risk of infections spreading from one community to another.
 
As I saw in Italy, people won't voluntarily change their lives even for the good of others. Students were treating the whole thing like a big party, which because it is mild for younger people, increases the chance that they are spreading it among themselves then taking it back to vulnerable populations. You're seeing the same kind of lockdowns in Spain and France now, though Spain left it until way too late. Also, I'm not sure a lot of over-65s are capable of self-isolating. That tends not to be a tech savvy generation so I'm not sure how many can live in total isolation and get their needs delivered to their door using online services.

The real risk isn't in most people getting the virus, it's in hundreds of thousands of the elderly/vulnerable getting the virus all at once and clogging up our healthcare system, which in a lot of the country is worse than the one in Lombardy that got totally overwhelmed.

99% of travel is shut down. All major cruise ship companies have stopped running. You can't get a flight to or from the US to almost anywhere. The US-Canadian border is shut. I would argue that non-essential domestic air service needs to stop too. Too much risk of infections spreading from one community to another.

When it becomes painfully aware that the elderly are the bulk of the death total, then you are not going to be able to quarantine the rest of the population anyhow. In fact, that just shuts the country down and the entire economy will collapse. Putting the energy and expense behind offering in-home service of food etc for the elderly will save lives and unclog the hospitals. This is how I saw it from the beginning.
 
As I saw in Italy, people won't voluntarily change their lives even for the good of others. Students were treating the whole thing like a big party, which because it is mild for younger people, increases the chance that they are spreading it among themselves then taking it back to vulnerable populations. You're seeing the same kind of lockdowns in Spain and France now, though Spain left it until way too late. Also, I'm not sure a lot of over-65s are capable of self-isolating. That tends not to be a tech savvy generation so I'm not sure how many can live in total isolation and get their needs delivered to their door using online services.

The real risk isn't in most people getting the virus, it's in hundreds of thousands of the elderly/vulnerable getting the virus all at once and clogging up our healthcare system, which in a lot of the country is worse than the one in Lombardy that got totally overwhelmed.

99% of travel is shut down. All major cruise ship companies have stopped running. You can't get a flight to or from the US to almost anywhere. The US-Canadian border is shut. I would argue that non-essential domestic air service needs to stop too. Too much risk of infections spreading from one community to another.

FYI, I just had a good friend return today from a Caribbean 3 day cruise. Another just flew to Hawai'i for his vacation yesterday. Two of my friend's daughters are currently in Mexico on spring break.

The real risk isn't in most people getting the virus, it's in hundreds of thousands of the elderly/vulnerable getting the virus all at once and clogging up our healthcare system, which in a lot of the country is worse than the one in Lombardy that got totally overwhelmed.

Which is why I will keep screaming this until my head pops...and no one seems to be listening or using common sense:

Why are people over 65 or people with underlying medical conditions not already mandated to be confined and isolated?
MIND BLOWING!!!!

After seeing what happened at the nursing home in Seattle I have to ask WTF! Why does the human race not pay attention? Yea, yea...that's great. Visitation at nursing homes are now restricted but I ask yet again...

Why are ALL people over 65 or people with underlying medical conditions not already mandated to be confined and isolated?
 
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FYI, I just had a good friend return today from a Caribbean 3 day cruise. Another just flew to Hawai'i for his vacation yesterday. Two of my friend's daughters are currently in Mexico on spring break.

The real risk isn't in most people getting the virus, it's in hundreds of thousands of the elderly/vulnerable getting the virus all at once and clogging up our healthcare system, which in a lot of the country is worse than the one in Lombardy that got totally overwhelmed.

Which is why I will keep screaming this until my head pops...and no one seems to be listening or using common sense:

Why are people over 65 or people with underlying medical conditions not already mandated to be confined and isolated?
MIND BLOWING!!!!

After seeing what happened at the nursing home in Seattle I have to ask WTF! Why does the human race not pay attention? Yea, yea...that's great. Visitation at nursing homes are now restricted but I ask yet again...

Why are ALL people over 65 or people with underlying medical conditions not already mandated to be confined and isolated?

Just got back from BJ's..... two full display aisles of toilet paper, Charmin no less. Gas was $1.89. The only things wiped out were eggs, package dinners and fresh veggies. Tons of shoppers but the lines were rapid and most folks were just grabbing bottled water (several displays in aisles) and ass-wipe. We went to buy some toilet paper for friends.... meanwhile got some excellent rib eye steaks.

Folks are courteous and, in fact, displaying a sense of humor. But again, you're right about the elderly. If we take action as you say, then the projected hospital situation will not occur. I am reading about the government's fear of mutation among the young.... but that surely isn't happening now. All we are doing is broadening the testing and getting more panicked while the virus is only deadly to the elderly. Bizarre.

From the 2018 flu there were 973 deaths in MD alone.... obviously, we will see how the WU FLU plays out.
 
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Just got back from BJ's..... two full display aisles of toilet paper, Charmin no less. Gas was $1.89. The only things wiped out were eggs, package dinners and fresh veggies. Tons of shoppers but the lines were rapid and most folks were just grabbing bottled water (several displays in aisles) and ass-wipe. We went to buy some toilet paper for friends.... meanwhile got some excellent rib eye steaks.

Folks are courteous and, in fact, displaying a sense of humor. But again, you're right about the elderly. If we take action as you say, then the projected hospital situation will not occur. I am reading about the government's fear of mutation among the young.... but that surely isn't happening now. All we are doing is broadening the testing and getting more panicked while the virus is only deadly to the elderly. Bizarre.

From the 2018 flu there were 973 deaths in MD alone.... obviously, we will see how the WU FLU plays out.

Misinformation keeps trying to scare the masses by saying CV can mutate and kill everyone. Well dah, all flu strains and coronavirus strains can and have mutated thousands of times. Flu strains are even more widely known for their ability to mutate into other strains. For those living in fear, do some true reading while you are confined. There is a tipping point between being over the top cautious and fear mongering.

The most devastating virus ever recorded was the 1918 Spanish Flu. 500 million were affected, 20-50 million died. The problem with this flu strain was it hit a healthy person at 9:00 pm and many were dead by noon the next day.
 
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Misinformation keeps trying to scare the masses by saying CV can mutate and kill everyone. Well dah, all flu strains and coronavirus strains can and have mutated thousands of times. Flu strains are even more widely known for their ability to mutate into other strains. For those living in fear, do some true reading while you are confined. There is a tipping point between being over the top cautious and fear mongering.

The most devastating virus ever recorded was the 1918 Spanish Flu. 500 million were affected, 20-50 million died. The problem with this flu strain was it hit a healthy person at 9:00 pm and many were dead by noon the next day.

The Kung Flu is the Y2K of viruses.
 
Anyone that watches or reads CNN...I feel so sorry for you.

Media competition is fierce. Slant, Shock, Sell !!!!!
 
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170320migrants.jpg


Migrants in Naples roam around the streets, ignoring the lock down. Police write tickets.... and so what. This is the problem in Italy. So, you see.... what can you do but laugh.... crying is worthless. But... will the world collapse like what was predicted with Y2K? No.
 
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Anyone that watches or reads CNN...I feel so sorry for you.

Media competition is fierce. Slant, Shock, Sell !!!!!


I think a lot of people are numb but still heading to the stores because they know others are heading to the stores. But, as I posted, BJ's was stocked and displayed. I think there is going to be a backlash to all this. But, keeping in line to your thinking, I feel really bad for the kids who are losing out in their sports this spring... really bad.
 
If it needs explanation then you don't get the humor based on the worldwide Y2K experience.

It was a simple question. Not sure why you didn't give a straight answer. I don't know you, so I don't know if you're joking or if you think Y2K was some sort of joke. I suspected that latter so I thought I would ask to be sure. If that's the case, it just reinforces the point I made earlier in that the more successful preventive measure are the easier it is to claim things were blown out of proportion.
 
It was a simple question. Not sure why you didn't give a straight answer. I don't know you, so I don't know if you're joking or if you think Y2K was some sort of joke. I suspected that latter so I thought I would ask to be sure. If that's the case, it just reinforces the point I made earlier in that the more successful preventive measure are the easier it is to claim things were blown out of proportion.

I'm sorry. What I see now just doesn't move my concern meter all that much. As a young child I was shot by a drunk... Later, as a child, I spent two weeks in the hospital with a high fever. I have had various sickness over the years, but since I turned 50 I have been in perfect health.

To me, life is what you go through. You do your best and trust very few. I certainly don't trust the same damn scientists that have told us for 40 or so years the Earth is ending - the latest that the Earth is ending in 10 or so years.

The corporation I retired from is a US company that produces everything in this country (there are foreign subsidiaries but the profit centers are here)... and it makes products everybody loves to eat. The stock is up. I'm comfortable.

My joke was a kind of Dennis Miller bit of humor. If you didn't get it... move on. To explain... fuggin' ruins it.

I will sequester myself.... sip some wine.... watch The Thin Man series and ogle Myrna Loy for the umpteenth time. (My wife does not mind.)
 
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