I’m primarily referring to my circles of friends.Quote:
Originally Posted by Tammy
But I still go diving and occasionally socially distanced church services.
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I’m primarily referring to my circles of friends.Quote:
Originally Posted by Tammy
But I still go diving and occasionally socially distanced church services.
Just heard on the radio that 2/3 of recent cases are from gatherings in private homes. Half of the deaths in the state of IL occurred in nursing homes or assisting living facilities.
I heard today on the news there is a big uptick in child marriages in India due to covid. Families are selling off girls as young as 12 because they can no longer afford to feed them.
I imagine many folks here won't give a rat's behind about these poor girls, forced to drop out of school to marry grown men, and with their whole lives ahead of them harmed, so long as the economic restrictions in place prolong the lives of sick older Americans by weeks, months, or a small number of years.
Jesus.
What do the tragic circumstances of child brides in India due to their covid-imposed economic restrictions have to do with the well-being of older Americans. They are on different continents, I believe.Quote:
Originally Posted by Yppej
The US is a huge economic engine for the global economy. Restrictions here impact people around the world, especially the poorest of the poor. Famine is mushrooming since covid lockdowns went into place EVEN IN COUNTRIES WITH NO LOCKDOWNS because of the impact of reduced global trade.Quote:
Originally Posted by razz
If older and other vulnerable Americans guarded their well being voluntarily through social isolation and government restrictions were not put in place there would not be these deadly unintended consequences around the globe.
Do you think a failed state like Somalia can impose covid restrictions effectively? Do you think poor people in a country like Somalia largely survive on remittances from Somalis working in countries with restrictions that led to them losing their jobs?
This is just one example.
I am absolutely not happy with my priest right now. Due to the increasing positivity rate in IL, he’s banned anyone who has traveled elsewhere in the Midwest from services for 14 days after their return. I travel to WI and OH for diving. It’s no secret. He reached out to me directly and told me I’m banned.
There was no mention of people who are holding gatherings and visiting others homes. Other folks in the parish do this. I’ve seen the photos on FB. And some of these have been gatherings of more than 20 people. When I asked my priest what about those folks, I was told it was none of my business. 2/3 of the recent cases in the Chicago area have been from private gatherings. A number of people in the parish have contracted it from private gatherings with family members.
I’m peeved. I don’t eat in restaurants. I get fast food/carryout. I see my diving friends outdoors and socially distanced. No indoor private gatherings. I always wear a mask. I’ve cancelled my usual Thanksgiving and Christmas gatherings. I work at home. I’ve quit going to the gym for the past two weeks.
Tradd I wonder if you sent your priest Tammy's link on covid risks in pictures would he see the danger of home gatherings. Probably not. So many people have tunnel vision.
Denmark has decided to cull their entire population of mink (15 to 17 million animals). I understand that COVID-19 spread from humans to the mink, then mutated and spread from mink to about 12 humans.
I really doubt it. He’s not been handling other situations well. When someone recently had concerns about the way communion was being distributed (priest uses one large spoon under normal circumstances - wine and a bit of bread are fished out of the chalice with spoon. Priest has been using a different spoon for each person. She thought that was too strict), she was told she was “not allowed to have an opinion” on the topic. Which was really stupid for him to say. He could have listened to her concerns and then told her the bishop has stipulated how it’s to be done.Quote:
Originally Posted by Yppej
Is it only women he is dismissive of?
Nope. I understand he’s gone toe to toe with a couple of the guys.Quote:
Originally Posted by Yppej
So we should sacrifice our old people to save people from becoming child brides in India? Fascinating idea.Quote:
Originally Posted by Yppej
In fact, those of us following "Your Money Or Your Life"-style living-below-our-means lifestyles are killing millions of people in 3rd-world countries with every cool must-have widget we don't buy.Quote:
Originally Posted by jp1
Monsters!
Wait. I thought that the evil Foxconn iPhone factory had dozens of workers committing suicide because of our insatiable appetite for them. So was my iPhone 11 purchase a year ago killing people or saving them from death? I’m so confused.Quote:
Originally Posted by bae
The priest needs to stop having in person meetings and services of all types. We are setting new death and illness records each day.Quote:
Originally Posted by Tradd
I’ve read that this is a new threat within the various coronavirus related threats, possibly able to affect the whole world.Quote:
Originally Posted by dado potato
It would be wrong to want to run our own society/country in a way that respects human life and human needs because global economic trade demands human sacrifice and a butterfly flapping it's wings somewhere might generate a hurricane half the world away.
And when people wonder why grandpa or their parents had to die (and an occasional younger person, and well a disproportionate amount of poors and minorities), we can tell them: it was in the best interest of child brides in India.
Can anyone really imagine a decent society coming out of that? Where the actual LIVED experience, not the abstraction, is: human life is cheap, people are to be utterly devalued as they get older (and everyone of every age is perfectly aware they aren't getting any younger).
That’s scary about it spreading to mink and back to people.
What do you propose to do with the people who won’t stop privately gathering?Quote:
Originally Posted by Tammy
The services are max 40 people in a big space meant to hold more than 200. Spread out. People have a less chance of catching it at church than in the private gatherings people keep having.
I find it strange that people keep hammering on public type stuff when the majority of cases are clearly coming from private gatherings, at least in my area. 2/3 of the recent cases are from private gatherings.
Tradd, I agree with you. All the politicians making all the laws and regulations in the world will not stop people gathering in their homes.Quote:
Originally Posted by Tradd
When a butterfly flaps its wings in Costa Rica...Everything we do can have unintended consequences. I'm not willing to give up a million people a year in this country in service to some hypothetical issue.
And don't forget about all the COVID-infected individuals who are still suffering its after-effects.
We shouldn’t be gathering in private either. I don’t have a solution or proposal because 1. I’m not a politician or public health leader and 2. I’m too exhausted with my own covid recovery to run the world.Quote:
Originally Posted by Tradd
I'd suggest public health authorities encourage outdoor gatherings, I mean public health missives (here where winter is barely an issue) never even make the distinction between indoor and outdoor, they just say "all gatherings bad", and for at least 6 months all gatherings with people you don't live with were illegal (but noone was listening, nor could they really enforce it). But there is a real difference in transmission between outdoor distanced gatherings and indoor close proximity gatherings.
If the outbreaks in other small towns are anything like the two counties in western Kansas where my cousin-in-law lives and works we will know soon enough if herd immunity is actually a thing with covid. Both counties have exploding case numbers and are having to airlift anyone needing hospitalization to Denver. A bunch of the teachers at the school where my CIL teaches are obviously sick with it but haven’t been tested and are still coming to school. My cousin, her husband, has likely been exposed so he has to ‘quarantine’ which in western Kansas means he can only go to work. Or if you are a student it means you have to wear a face shield but you still participate in everything including team sports. And masks are entirely optional and not widely worn except in my CIL’s classroom where she won’t let anyone in without one.
I just hope my elderly aunt and uncle are staying far away from everyone, including my cousin and CIL.
encouraging outdoor activities is good! Here is St. Louis region we can go outdoors reliably until January hits. And then even in some of those January and February days we can be outside. Then by March it’s warmed up.Quote:
Originally Posted by ApatheticNoMore
I was listening to NPR and one of the Shows interviewed a well-known cook, I think it was the Barefoot Contessa? Don’t remember for sure but someone who produces a lot of cookbooks. Anyway ...she said that the French and Italians eat outside all year and they wear jackets and scarves. She suggests we adopt that practice.
She talked about a friend of hers who had an outdoor dinner party where he provided electric foot warmers for everyone.
The dictator of my state is pushing schools to open even in red aka high risk communities because he thinks masks and curfews solve everything. Now masks are mandated not just inside buildings but everywhere in public. Here are some of the illegal acts I have seen:
Convenience store worker, not allowed to smoke indoors, standing outside the building smoking. Pretty hard to smoke with a mask on.
Man sitting in his parked convertible with the top down not wearing a mask.
Last week before the law went into effect I went on a walk at lunchtime and did not encounter a single other pedestrian. I plan to do the same next week maskless.
The law is stupid and unenforceable.
I guess I am one of those Covid deniers because I refuse to wear a mask outdoors where I dont encounter other humans.Quote:
Originally Posted by Yppej
i dont know what our state or city mandate is because see above.
I am with you on that. It makes no sense. I am appalled at the number of drivers wearing masks in their cars with no one else in the car! Common sense has left the building!Quote:
Originally Posted by iris lilies
I've been conscientious about wearing a mask and/or social distancing and doing the other recommended behaviors to reduce risk of transmission. I did notice that Charlie Baker said something about the updated mask guidance was in order to "keep it simple." Now I do not have any intention of wearing a mask outdoors if I am not around other people either, and my inference is that this would in fact be fine, but the updated guidance gives the authorities the right to fine someone who is not wearing a masking when they really should be. On our daily walk today, it seems like everyone else is interpreting it similarly.
I am a mosquito magnet. Cannot spend 5 minutes outside even with repellant during bug season. So I do not spend any stationary time outside until after a hard frost. So there is another reason for my isolation.
I am on the infectious disease response team, and even I don't bother with a mask when I am outside far from the madding crowd. I usually wear shoes though.Quote:
Originally Posted by iris lilies
Well now, I have done that when I’m driving from one errand to another. I sometimes forget to take it off my face when I’m darting around the city. I also find that once it’s on me, I need to keep it on because all too often I forget to put on my mask and I am just about ready to step into a store and have to go back to the car and get it. But I do have the kind of mask that hangs around my neck so that’s what I prefer. I can’t get one to fit over my ears.Quote:
Originally Posted by llknp
If you're appalled you're part of the problem. Personally if I have multiple stores to go to I put my mask on as I get out of the car at the first place, and then keep it on until I'm done at the last place. Feel free to be appalled with me as I go to all the intermediate places. I will continue to wear my mask because I don't want to kill you. I'd appreciate if you would do the same.Quote:
Originally Posted by llknp
I too continue to wear my mask as I drive around town completing my errands, places too far apart to walk to in a reasonable amount of time, but close enough to drive within 10 minutes. Early on, I took to heart the notion that the outside of the mask is possibly contaminated during use, so it makes sense to continue wearing it, rather than handle it in between stops.Quote:
Originally Posted by jp1
And the advice to keep moving- rather than “congregate and linger” - Seems very helpful in avoiding exposure to the virus, as are stores that limit the number of concurrent shoppers.
Sadly, dear friends who are sick.... tested positive for COVID.
I hope it is not severe for them and they recover quickly.Quote:
Originally Posted by frugal-one
I saw a Biden aide being interviewed. Over the course of a few minutes 5 times she touched the outside of her mask to tug it up as it slipped down her face. This is something I have seen a lot of in person. Masks are very impractical. I doubt even 1% of people only touch the mask with washed hands and clean the mask between each wearing. The laboratory studies on the efficacy of mask wearing do not match real world experience. The mask doesn't slide down the nose of the test dummy, the dummy does not speak jiggling the mask loose, the dummy does not wear glasses that fog up leading the dummy to slide the mask down so it only covers the mouth not the nose, etc.
And yet they work....
Does the dummy continue to whine about having to wear a mask?Quote:
Originally Posted by Yppej