Fear and Loathing, a Rat Flu Odyssey

[XXX-er]

so trump suspended funding to the WHO but apparently its cuz there is > 100million in arrears, so its the same thing one would do if they were building a hotel ... don't pay anybody

https://www.theglobeandmail.com/worl...f-coronavirus/

Eh, we have a decent record with modern viruses and the early containment steps would only have been intrusive only for travelers from impacted regions.
I'm confident there'd at least be good testing and some semblance of a coordinated fed response, which would have done wonders for limiting the spread

just an FYI the eh is suposed to go at he back of the sentance

[old goat]

I don't believe it had to spread out of control here. With a few dozen cases, we'd have plenty of PPE. Several countries have crushed coronavirus so hard as to suggest a vaccine is not needed. Implementing a cultural shift to mask wearing - yes that's speculative. Are masks necessary, were they key to Taiwan's success? idk.

We took care of Y2K despite our political and social problems. I don't think they prevent action so much as make consequences worse when we fail to act. With a small number of cases, Covid quarantines would be no different from existing health practices, e.g. tuberculosis screening/quarantines, STI contact tracing, containing measles outbreaks, etc.

No vaccine? First of all no country has crushed Covid 19. Way, way too soon to say that. And Covid was "crushed" by them means of significant behavioral changes. Americans, and most other people will be unwilling to maintain even the Phase 3 restrictions, the contact tracing, the mandatory quarantines for people exposed--for any length of time. The alternative is a vaccine.

As far as Y2K--did the world beat it, or was it not actually a problem in the first place? IDK--not my field. In any case it was a much simpler problem than controlling a pandemic--it didn't require anyone to account for human behavior, just computer behavior, and it was a 1 dimensional problem. The virus problem has about 6 dimensions.

FWIW, coming back from Zurich through O'Hare March 25th was amazing.

As soon as the narrower corridors widened, there were at least 50 people and a maze handling passengers.

First thing was an infra red temperature aimed at your temple, then splitting the passengers into those with temperatures and those without, recording names and points of origin.

They had at least 10 tents set up inside with cots ready to examine people with fevers.

I got waved through, one more double check about where I had been and then out to pick up my skibag, drag it a couple of hundred feet, go through the usual passport check and drop the bag at luggage to be loaded into the connecting flight.

I was amazed at the preparedness and efficiency, not only of the government employees/contractors but at the O'Hare staff as well.

I grant this may be purely anecdotal and isolated.

Temperature checks are not an adequate screen. The problem is that once people entered the country there was no Federal or State followup or any quarantine imposed, except in a few high profile cases. In the future hopefully there will be a rapid virus antigen test that can be applied to everyone entering the country and for other purposes as well.

News today: Yosemite NP is opening the PCT through the park, for now ONLY for PCT (not JMT) thru-hikers.

Having hiked the JMT in June after one of the worst drought winters in CA history (76-7). No one is missing out by not doing the same--still plenty of snow high not freezing at night--going over Muir Pass at 12K I was sinking in to my mid thighs. Through hikers coming over Forester were making a mile a day. I bailed at Kearsarge pass.

Eh, we have a decent record with modern viruses and the early containment steps would only have been intrusive only for travelers from impacted regions.
I'm confident there'd at least be good testing and some semblance of a coordinated fed response, which would have done wonders for limiting the spread

We haven't had to deal with a virus as lethal, as transmissible, and with as long of a presymptomatic transmissible period. We could have done better. But done wonders? I don't see it. Pandemics are like wars--we are always fighting the last one. Asia did better for a lot of reasons--experience with SARS was a big one. And despite all the lessons learned with Covid 19, people will forget and relax and when the next pandemic hits we won't be ready, and even if we are some of the measures taken with Covid may well not be relevant.

Japan's tsunami stones were intended to teach people not to build in the flood zone; instead what they taught us is that people forget or ignore warnings, even in one of the most safety conscious countries. And some of the stones washed away with the last tsunami, teaching us that disasters cannot always be anticipated or prevented.

[XXX-er]

As far as Y2K--did the world beat it, or was it not actually a problem in the first place? IDK--not my field. In any case it was a much simpler problem than controlling a pandemic--it didn't require anyone to account for human behavior, just computer behavior, and it was a 1 dimensional problem. The virus problem has about 6 dimensions.

...

It involved fixing a bunch of code which is just a lot of ones and zero's so ever body fixed the code and shut down in mid october to prepare for armageden, we had a war room all vaca was canceled, ever body was on deck

I heard a small system went down somewhere on the otherside side of the world otherwise nothing happened

keep in mind that karen hadn't even been invented yet

BC's top doc sez prepare for the 2nd wave, she has really good stats, according to bloomberg the best in NA

https://www.cbc.ca/radio/thecurrent/...onse-1.5577290

[KQ]

If US had started social distancing a week earlier, about 36,000 fewer people would have died, study says

[uglymoney]

Trump sounds high as fuck. Did he just take his adderall?


https://twitter.com/NBCPolitics/stat...045430790?s=19


Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk

[schuss]

Y2K was a big deal, but you had a hard deadline and a defined problem. That result was what we should shoot for: "was it really a problem at all?" Is the goal.
I put eh at the start because I speak American, not Canadian you filthy 2nd rate syrup slurper :P

[XXX-er]

How many million lines of code did they go thru ?

I wish Covid is as nothing as Y2K was, a lot of time and money was spent on prep, all the changes were made all/any change activity was suspended , but I gotta wonder what might have happened if nothing was done?

I rememeber 2000 and 2001 being shitty years for $$$$$$ earning cuz when you shut every thing down it takes a while to get going with people spending money so i'm curious what shutting down & starting up the whole fuckign world is goign to look like ?

I"m wearing plaid so your words bounce off me man

[Ski220]

Subcoming to popular resentment, Connecticut has mostly reopened with 'social distancing' guidelines yesterday 5/20/20. Bars and restaurants with outdoor seating. Hard to drink with a mask on. Popular places in my town were mobbed I am told. People are acting like nothing has happened at all.

I expect we will see a spike in two weeks, 6/7/20. There has been very little real leadership at any level of government.

[Kinnikinnick]

Check these two seemingly at odds articles on NPR right now:

“On Nearly Emptied Roads, Motor Vehicle Fatality Rate Spikes By 14% In March”

“Organ Transplants Down As Stay-At-Home Rules Reduce Fatal Traffic Collisions”

https://www.npr.org/sections/coronav...e-spiked-by-14

https://www.npr.org/sections/health-...fic-collisions

Am I missing something, how can BOTH be true??


Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

[iceman]

The first one is fatality rate per mile driven and the second one is the gross number of fatalities. So many less miles were driven that even though the fatality rate per mile went up the total deaths went down.

[wooley12]

I noticed that even with fewer cars on the road, aggressive diving in town was up. Empty roads brought higher speeds. More reckless driving. YVMV

[Svengali]

The patchwork national response all but guarantees more outbreaks. This analysis is worth your time.

https://www.theatlantic.com/health/a...lities/611866/

[Timberridge]

If all the Swedes die, should we consider annexing Sweden before the Russians do?

[The AD]

If all the Swedes die, should we consider annexing Sweden before the Russians do?

Seems worthwhile if only to gain ownership of the ABBA museum.

[iceman]

Well the Finns won't annex it since they're mythical.

[DougW]

.....

We haven't had to deal with a virus as lethal, as transmissible, and with as long of a presymptomatic transmissible period. We could have done better. But done wonders? I don't see it. Pandemics are like wars--we are always fighting the last one. Asia did better for a lot of reasons--experience with SARS was a big one. And despite all the lessons learned with Covid 19, people will forget and relax and when the next pandemic hits we won't be ready, and even if we are some of the measures taken with Covid may well not be relevant.

..

agreeing with above....
As much as the US likes to beat itself up over its response and Trump's performance which was at times( mostly) less than useful , being a bunch of Captain Hindsights is in the end not very useful. Canada's current federal leadership which is about the polar opposite as Trump had some policy and reaction failures or lets say in hindsight under reactions. The idea of a travel ban was seen as racist and counterproductive and the experts were in full agreement. Trudeau's wife was going to international conferences in London at the beginning of March which leads one to think that the PM was not taking it seriously.

As much as most would want to say that "our" side would have done better its difficult to get way out front of the public's perception of the problem as there will always be experts available to say overreacting.

[plugboots]

I noticed that even with fewer cars on the road, aggressive diving in town was up. Empty roads brought higher speeds. More reckless driving. YVMV

A RAV4 floored it like it wanted to race as I was trying to pass it yesterday. I just sort of laughed and they gave me the finger.
If you don’t want to get passed, don’t drive 58 miles an hour in a 60 when there’s nobody around.

[Core Shot]

Seems worthwhile if only to gain ownership of the ABBA museum.

My vote was to invade Sweden just to demolish the abba museum.

[bennymac]

We should be doing what Sweden is doing!!

What - you mean high taxes, universal health care, free higher education, socially liberal policies etc?

No no no not all that gay commie bullshit - I mean the freedum part! MAGA!

[MultiVerse]

And so because of ABBA Sweden becomes our Waterloo....

[Core Shot]

And so because of ABBA Sweden becomes our Waterloo....

If only Napoleon were a dancing queen
History might have been different.

[Tri-Ungulate]

I noticed that even with fewer cars on the road, aggressive diving in town was up. Empty roads brought higher speeds. More reckless driving. YVMV

I thought it was 'cuz a the Monster Energy Drinks.

And chicks on the beach.

[old goat]

agreeing with above....
As much as the US likes to beat itself up over its response and Trump's performance which was at times( mostly) less than useful , being a bunch of Captain Hindsights is in the end not very useful. Canada's current federal leadership which is about the polar opposite as Trump had some policy and reaction failures or lets say in hindsight under reactions. The idea of a travel ban was seen as racist and counterproductive and the experts were in full agreement. Trudeau's wife was going to international conferences in London at the beginning of March which leads one to think that the PM was not taking it seriously.

As much as most would want to say that "our" side would have done better its difficult to get way out front of the public's perception of the problem as there will always be experts available to say overreacting.

The difference is that your PM wasn't and isn't being a dick about it.

[riser4]

FWIW, coming back from Zurich through O'Hare March 25th was amazing.

As soon as the narrower corridors widened, there were at least 50 people and a maze handling passengers.

First thing was an infra red temperature aimed at your temple, then splitting the passengers into those with temperatures and those without, recording names and points of origin.

They had at least 10 tents set up inside with cots ready to examine people with fevers.

I got waved through, one more double check about where I had been and then out to pick up my skibag, drag it a couple of hundred feet, go through the usual passport check and drop the bag at luggage to be loaded into the connecting flight.

I was amazed at the preparedness and efficiency, not only of the government employees/contractors but at the O'Hare staff as well.

I grant this may be purely anecdotal and isolated.

Ya, I was one of the people up thread who got the smile and wave in Boston on March 2nd, direct flight from Madrid. A few days later I was posting here in a fever state and couldn't get anyone in VT to test me for covids or even influenza.

[Ottime]

A RAV4 floored it like it wanted to race as I was trying to pass it yesterday. I just sort of laughed and they gave me the finger.
If you don’t want to get passed, don’t drive 58 miles an hour in a 60 when there’s nobody around.

Are you driving a Yaris? Can't think of ay other vehicle that accelerates slower from 58 mph to 65 mph. I imagine just hearing a winning sound coming from that thing.