No Time to Die... from COVID-19

[hazard]

Sorry to say Labster, but looking from the EU at the USA?

The USA is in fact a third world country.

The infrastructure is falling apart, the educational system has no interest in educating (not talking about the teachers here), employees are blatantly exploited by their employers with no recourse other than violence, the crime (and especially the violent crime) rates are extraordinarily high, the incarceration rate and prisoner population are both the highest in the world (higher mind you than flat out dictatorships), the democracy is a mockery with the powerful knowingly and deliberately doing everything they can short of placing thugs at the polling stations to keep the voting public as exclusive to their supporters as possible and the health care service is a for profit industry that doesn't care about healing patients but about making money.

And that's before we get into the sectarian violence, deep seated racism and massive income inequality issues. Although the last one at least is an issue in the EU as well.


These are all not the hallmarks of a well lead first world government.

[robkelk]

Folks, "Politics" is down the hall, and we already have a COVID-19 thread there.

---

Canada's largest chain of grocery stores and drugstores is now on record as promising they will not raise prices due to COVID-19.

[Bob Schroeck]

What Rob said.

[Labster]

The U.S. is, by definition, a first-world country. China is, by definition, a second-world country. It was a silly argument she gave me because viruses don't check the GDP before infecting people, nor do any nations have the capacity to deal with a full-blown pandemic without mobilization.

The non-political point is that we're all too willing to bend our logic or be dismissive of threats based on little to no information -- just as we are willing to overreact to more visible threats that have little chance of affecting us. Well, okay, that is a political point, but a non-partisan one. Everyone makes errors in judgement based on incomplete information, when it would only take a little effort to get more complete information. Everyone except the actuaries. Those guys are cool.

[Dartz]

There is a general sense around Ireland that the government is doing a bangup job.

We have 40,000 volunteers to assist the health-services - most of them retired doctors or those who left the profession for whatever reasons. We have businesses doing their best to keep the lights on - doing kerbside deliveries, or one Chinese takeaway dropping food to customers from an upstairs window with a winch. Most major distilleries have switched to producing sanitary chemicals and the one industry we have in abundance - pharma and medical devices - is doing its thing in a big way.

We've tested 5,000 people for the Virus and caught 600 with it. Within a few days, there'll be capacity enough to test 15,000 a day. A major national stadium has been converted into a drive-through testing centre. There're backlogs, but it's working.

The government is lining up funds to support businesses and those left temporarily unemployed.

Shops are managing queus and maintaining social isolations - the shelves are still well stocked for most critical things .

The government is calmly telling people the next week will be the worst and they'll work out what to do once the effects of current policies start taking hold. If they start taking hold.

We're two weeks behind Italy - but our fatality rate is spuriously low, indicating that our detection rate may be higher.

The Government - which was voted out a week or two before the crisis hit - is doing a bang-up job. Our Taoiseach is a trained Doctor - not a very good Doctor according to some in the profession, but still a white-coat that understands the depth of what's going on. And ministers that spent the last 4 years fucking up are playing a blinder. Even the opposition are doing their part - not blocking emergency legislation over petty things, but tabling sensible and constructive amendments.

So far, the system is working.

My parents self-isolated in a remote part of the country. Which brought them into contact with relatives who're rapidly coming down with 'something'. Oops.

[LynnInDenver]

Our governor is extending open health enrollment for those losing their jobs, ordering law enforcement to suspect assisting in evictions, asking for 90 day deferments in consumer loans, and asked that utility cutoffs be suspended. He's also extending tax payment deadlines by 3 months.

We just ordered in take-out from one of our traditional take-out venues to try to keep supporting our local restaurants. We'd order curbside from another, but they've decided to close up for the duration.

Also, Adam Savage did a live stream from his shop yesterday... I wonder how many times he'll get away with that before San Fran asks him politely that his wife is the only one allowed to walk their dog?

[LynnInDenver]

And they've got a donation drive on Sunday at the big football stadium for PPE for health workers. We're taking a bunch of the 99% alcohol from the model workroom supply - 8 unopened bottles. We're keeping a couple for first aid use, and one for the model workroom supply. That and two opened bottles (99% and a larger 91%) are going to be the sum total of my hobby supply. The way I look at it is that I'm unlikely to go through that amount of alcohol (I've made the decision to suspend the 3d resin printing), and if I run out with the scale modeling, then this crisis will have certainly gone on long enough I'll have bigger problems than continuing to pursue my hobbies.

[robkelk]

From here, here, and here, respectively.

[ECSNorway]

Went out today and stocked up on hobby supplies myself, some paints and such mostly, basing supplies for miniatures, that kind of thing. NY is on total shutdown statewide now, everything but essential services is closed unless it can be done remotely.

[LynnInDenver]

Polis has ordered that non-essential Colorado businesses reduce in-person staffing by 50%, either by teleworking, or staggering schedules, starting tomorrow and going through at least the first week of April. I suspect that what's going to happen is some companies will decide they can just try to do without that half of the their employees completely and lay them off.

I'm not sure where I work is considered "essential" - I work in printing, but we do printing for some of the local hospitals, which may bring us some leeway. I know my husband's work is not an essential industry, but I also suspect that, push come to shove, he is one of the ones that can work from home if need be. Parts of my job, I can't work from home for, and in fact it would require a massive upheaval in the way our systems are configured to even allow for it.

Note: my area we can maintain the 6 foot separation with a little effort; there's only two of us in the department, and if needed we can rearrange some equipment and adjust individual duty loads slightly to guarantee the separation.

We're going back to work after vacation tomorrow. We'll have to see what happens from here.

[robkelk]

The folks on the radio pointed out this morning that this song has taken on a new meaning.

---

Desperate times call for desperate measures:



Source

[robkelk]

Video: Why soap is better than gloves as protection from COVID-19

[LynnInDenver]

So with the downturn in business, my hours have been cut starting today, so we now have no discretionary income in the house whatsoever. For at least 4 weeks, probably at least 8, likely longer.

Denver has now instituted "stay at home" orders. I expect the state to follow by the coming weekend. That could wipe out the rest of the income and I'd then have to file for unemployment.

My husband's work is implementing part-time work from home, he will hopefully be getting a work machine tomorrow to do that with.

At this point, I have to write off at least three months worth of plans, if not six, and retool some home projects or abandon them. It's becoming abundantly clear that I have to more carefully consider projects being added to the queue, and consider they're going to take 3-4 times as long as they should - End of year 2018 my husband was laid off, which disrupted at least two projects planned for the start of 2019, and now, while I have a project done for an event, the attempt to do that event this year has now been disrupted. Basically, any and all projects, I have to consider whether it's worth doing when it might (will) be delayed because of stuff well outside my control.

[Bob Schroeck]

Sorry to hear about that Lynn; here's hoping the relief bill in Congress finally gets through and signed and there's extended unemployment benefits again.

On a different topic, what do people think of setting up a separate "sound off"/"check in" thread, where those who don't post regularly can just drop a "still here" message every week?

[classicdrogn]

Iy sounds like a decent idea to me, Bob. It's your site, bandwidth, and storage space being used anyway, so as long as you don't mind there's no reason not to do it.

[robkelk]

Sorry to hear about that Lynn; here's hoping the relief bill in Congress finally gets through and signed and there's extended unemployment benefits again.

On a different topic, what do people think of setting up a separate "sound off"/"check in" thread, where those who don't post regularly can just drop a "still here" message every week?

I like the idea - it would add to peace of mind all around, assuming people post to it.

[robkelk]

Enough is enough.
Go home.
And stay home.

He's starting to sound like his father sounded just before invoking the Emergency Measures Act (then called the War Measures Act).

[Matrix Dragon]

*Pained Sigh*

Nan's dementia is going to be a problem. She simply can't consistently understand that she has to stay inside at the moment. On top of that, Pa has over 60 years of struggling to say no when she wants something. It's already at the point where Mum is threatening to go and confiscate the car keys.

[robkelk]

Have an earworm:



Source

[Star Ranger4]

*GROANS*

Thanks SO much for sharing that, Rob

*ROFL*

[classicdrogn]

I'll do ya one better: same catchy tune, but they're actually singing about Coronas.

For those who hesitate to follow random YouTube links. that's John Mammoser's 9 Coronas as recorded off the Dr. Demento show, probably in the mid 90s, with lyrics in the video so you can sing along.

In earworm hell.

[Dartz]

Looks like the paren't have it. They're showing symptoms even if they're reassuring me it was a cold. Isolated themselves and one of the people they isolated with brought it in. Oops.

Country's in full closedown. Essential only.

I've gotten everyone working from home. I'm the last in the office as of tomorrow - sticking around to keep the lights on and meet deliveries. And manufacture 300 patch leads.

It's as safe as anywhere now.

[Norgarth]

sorry to hear about your parents, Dartz. hopefully they won't be hit too badly by it.

[Dartz]

sorry to hear about your parents, Dartz.  hopefully they won't be hit too badly by it.

They're in good spirits. Sound god-awful on the phone. We'll know in two weeks.

[Bob Schroeck]

Here's hoping for the best.