COVID-19 (f/k/a "the Coronavirus")

[MU82]

I mean, before mid-April, your hero lied more than most (actually all), including famously predicting that cases would be “close to zero within days” on Feb. 26.

But again, from mid-April on, from the moment he went against his own guidelines and told gun-toting, non-mask-wearing thugs to storm their state capitals and “LIBERATE MINNESOTA!” ... “LIBERATE MICHIGAN!” ... “LIBERATE VIRGINIA!” his response was an unmitigated disaster. 175K American deaths on his watch, blood on his hands, an economy ruined.

If you’re being objective.

[pacearrow02]

I mean, before mid-April, your hero lied more than most (actually all), including famously predicting that cases would be “close to zero within days” on Feb. 26.

But again, from mid-April on, from the moment he went against his own guidelines and told gun-toting, non-mask-wearing thugs to storm their state capitals and “LIBERATE MINNESOTA!” ... “LIBERATE MICHIGAN!” ... “LIBERATE VIRGINIA!” his response was an unmitigated disaster. 175K American deaths on his watch, blood on his hands, an economy ruined.

If you’re being objective.

Yikes, take a breath man. 

I acknowledged it wasn't a perfect response but overall a solid response.  Mistakes were of course made but when initial projections called for 2.2 million American lives to be lost and to be able to limit that total so far to less then 10% of what the experts were fearing I'd say that's pretty good.

Your comments over the last 6 months have proven you are not able to have a reasoned or rational discussion on this as evidenced again by your comments above.

Stay safe and stay sheltered MU82!!

[MU82]

The opposite of “solid.” The projections you stated were if there were no shutdowns, no masks, no social distancing, all of which your hero pushed for.

He was still mocking mask-wearing and calling it nothing more than the flu in June. He got pissed at the NC governor in late June when told he couldn’t have a full arena with no masks. Then he held his deadly Tulsa rally. Herman Cain, RIP. “Solid” for sure.

2 out of 3 Americans, including a lot of Republicans, believe he handled it horrendously.

But yeah ... it’s only me.

You stay safe too, my friend.

“They are dying. That’s right. It is what it is.”

[Hards Alumni]

Yikes, take a breath man. 

I acknowledged it wasn't a perfect response but overall a solid response.  Mistakes were of course made but when initial projections called for 2.2 million American lives to be lost and to be able to limit that total so far to less then 10% of what the experts were fearing I'd say that's pretty good.

Your comments over the last 6 months have proven you are not able to have a reasoned or rational discussion on this as evidenced again by your comments above.

Stay safe and stay sheltered MU82!!

Going to have to strongly disagree here.

[Jockey]

Just one more attempt to kill more people. No more evidence is needed to show that the scientists have been shut out and the politicians are making all decisions based on the election. Make no mistake - this is utterly inhuman.

https://www.cnn.com/2020/08/26/politics/cdc-coronavirus-testing-guidance/index.html

(CNN)A sudden change in federal guidelines on coronavirus testing came this week as a result of pressure from the upper ranks of the Trump administration, a federal health official close to the process tells CNN.

"It's coming from the top down," the official said of the new directive from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
The new guidelines raise the bar on who should get tested, advising that some people without symptoms probably don't need it -- even if they've been in close contact with an infected person.
Previously, the CDC said viral testing was appropriate for people with recent or suspected exposure, even if they were asymptomatic.
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CDC would not comment on questions about its own policy change. A CDC spokesperson referred all questions to the Department of Health and Human Services.
Covid-19 child cases in the US have increased by 21% since early August, new data shows
Covid-19 child cases in the US have increased by 21% since early August, new data shows
In a statement to CNN, HHS Assistant Secretary Brett Giroir said: "This Guidance has been updated to reflect current evidence and best public health practices, and to further emphasize using CDC-approved prevention strategies to protect yourself, your family, and the most vulnerable of all ages."
HHS has not specified what change in "current evidence" may have driven the change. In a call with reporters Wednesday afternoon, Giroir said the update to the CDC guidelines on testing was deliberated and approved last week.
"This was discussed at the last task force meeting and approved, I think that was Thursday of last week," Giroir told CNN's Jeremy Diamond on the call. "We posted this on Monday morning."
Yet Thursday was the same day Dr. Anthony Fauci, a member of the task force, was having vocal cord surgery to remove a polyp. He had general anesthesia and doctors advised him to curtail his talking for a while to allow his vocal cords to recover.
Giroir said in the call that the updated CDC guidelines were written by multiple authors, adding that he, Fauci, Dr. Deborah Birx and Dr. Stephen Hahn, the commissioner of the Food and Drug Administration, worked on the updated guidelines.
Giroir said the focus was to do more "appropriate" testing, not "less" testing, and said, "it cannot be interpreted that we are inhibiting local public health."
But the new directive also lines up with a trend in policy and rhetoric from the White House. President Donald Trump has repeatedly suggested the US should do less testing.
Dr. Carlos del Rio, an infectious disease specialist and associate dean of Emory University School of Medicine, said on CNN Newsroom on Wednesday that the CDC has not provided evidence to explain the changes.
"I mean, the evidence that I'm aware of as of today is that close to 40% of the cases of the infections are asymptomatic and asymptomatic people transmit the infection," Del Rio said.
"So, not testing -- I mean, if you have been in contact with somebody for a few minutes, that's okay. But if you have been in contact for 50 minutes and that people doesn't have a mask, I think you need to be tested regardless if you have symptoms or not. We know especially young people going into the house and then transmit inside the household. So, the guidelines baffle me and I really don't understand them."
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo accused the Trump administration of using the CDC as a political tool for the campaign.
"The only plausible rationale is they want fewer people taking tests because, as the president has said, if we don't take tests you won't know that people are covid positive and the number of covid positive people will come down," Cuomo told reporters Wednesday. "It fosters his failed policy of denial," he said of the President.

[MarquetteDano]

Yikes, take a breath man. 

I acknowledged it wasn't a perfect response but overall a solid response.  Mistakes were of course made but when initial projections called for 2.2 million American lives to be lost and to be able to limit that total so far to less then 10% of what the experts were fearing I'd say that's pretty good.

Overall solid response?  If you mean for the economy then maybe?  If you mean from a health care/lives lost perspective I can think of nothing worse in the United States in my nearly 50 years in being alive.

[pacearrow02]

Overall solid response?  If you mean for the economy then maybe?  If you mean from a health care/lives lost perspective I can think of nothing worse in the United States in my nearly 50 years in being alive.

As discussed above, the models showed if we did nothing 2.2 million American deaths.  We prevented over 90% of those predicted deaths by doing things, there was no scenario based in reality that involved zero deaths.  In hindsight could we have kept deaths lower with sooner action from federal and local officials sure. 

The goal from day 1 is how do we limit those predicted 2.2 million deaths and to further complicate the decisions that needed to be made they had to look at not just deaths related to the virus but deaths associated to extended lockdowns with increased mental health challenges, addictions, etc.

[TSmith34, Inc.]

It has been interesting.  It’s easy to forget about everything that was done in the first 30-45 days during the fog and panic of everything but aside from not mandating masks it really is impressive what federal and local officials have been able to do in such a short amount of time.

The field hospitals, navy ships, ramping up ventilators, rapid development of a vaccine, therapeutics, shuttling the economy down to flatten curve, PPP, increased UI and stimulus, testing, etc....not too many stones left unturned

Was it a perfect response to a once in a lifetime pandemic, of course not but hard not to give everyone involved a passing grade if you’re being objective

Ummm, no.

Just no.

JFC.

[The Hippie Satan of Hyperbole]

As discussed above, the models showed if we did nothing 2.2 million American deaths.  We prevented over 90% of those predicted deaths by doing things, there was no scenario based in reality that involved zero deaths.  In hindsight could we have kept deaths lower with sooner action from federal and local officials sure. 

The goal from day 1 is how do we limit those predicted 2.2 million deaths and to further complicate the decisions that needed to be made they had to look at not just deaths related to the virus but deaths associated to extended lockdowns with increased mental health challenges, addictions, etc.

This is really a dumb argument.  We should be compared to our similarly resourced peer countries, not some absolute.

[MarquetteDano]

As discussed above, the models showed if we did nothing 2.2 million American deaths.  We prevented over 90% of those predicted deaths by doing things, there was no scenario based in reality that involved zero deaths.  In hindsight could we have kept deaths lower with sooner action from federal and local officials sure. 

The goal from day 1 is how do we limit those predicted 2.2 million deaths and to further complicate the decisions that needed to be made they had to look at not just deaths related to the virus but deaths associated to extended lockdowns with increased mental health challenges, addictions, etc.

We have nearly 25% of the total cases and deaths in the world yet are only 5% of the overall population.  This is with supposedly the best health care system in the world.  I will allow that we would never have 5% of the cases/deaths given travel/population density but that allowed our results have been nothing short of disastrous.

The economy has been the only thing that has been on par with the developed world.  The rest,  I will repeat,  is the worst I have seen in my lifetime.  And I pray to the almighty I will never see worse.

[tower912]

How cute.   You think this is somewhere near over.

[pacearrow02]

How cute.   You think this is somewhere near over.

I never once said it was near over....I think it will be around long after the vaccine is made available but from a gov’t response view I’m not sure what else they can do.

Up to us know to protect the vulnerable and stay home when we’re showing symptoms.

[MU82]

As discussed above, the models showed if we did nothing 2.2 million American deaths.  We prevented over 90% of those predicted deaths by doing things, there was no scenario based in reality that involved zero deaths.  In hindsight could we have kept deaths lower with sooner action from federal and local officials sure. 

The goal from day 1 is how do we limit those predicted 2.2 million deaths and to further complicate the decisions that needed to be made they had to look at not just deaths related to the virus but deaths associated to extended lockdowns with increased mental health challenges, addictions, etc.

Ridiculous.

Reminds me of when I was on a jury in downtown Chicago and the plaintiff's lawyer asked early on for $60 million for his client. We ended up giving the client $22 million. But during deliberations, several members of the jury kept asking why we weren't giving the $60 million, or closer to the $60 million or at least half of the $60 million.

A couple of us had to say, "There IS no $60 million. There never was. That's simply what the lawyer wants. Get the $60 million out of your head!"

Similarly, there is no 2.2 million. There never was. It was a theoretical, hypothetical number based on models if we had taken absolutely no mitigation steps as a nation -- you know, kind of what your hero did at his deadly (but thankfully poorly attended) Tulsa rally. That's what he wanted to do the entire time; he didn't give a shyte about anybody's life. He wanted the "church pews filled on Easter." He told thugs to storm state capitals in violation of the guidelines he had set out less than 18 hours earlier. He encouraged the governors of Florida, Texas and Arizona to re-open their states; that sure went swell. He threatened governors who didn't re-open (and who weren't "nice" to him) that he would deny them PPE. He claimed to have absolute power to re-open the country; thank goodness the Constitution said otherwise or we'd have had many, many more dead.

By mid-May, he stopped even mentioning the coronavirus except to bring out his inner racist and call it the Kung Flu. He went to a mask factory, where masks were required to be worn, and he didn't wear a mask. He constantly downplayed the coronavirus, even made fun of it. He could not possibly have given worse leadership, especially once we all know exactly had to be done.

I wonder what you'd be saying had this happened when Obama or Clinton were president. "180K Americans dead (and counting)? Millions and millions unemployed? The economy in tatters? And, as a bonus, racial unrest out the yin-yang? Solid job by Obama, for sure! Really super solid!"

[reinko]

This is just bonkers, that this change in CDC rules happened while Dr. Fauci was in surgery.

https://twitter.com/cnnpolitics/status/1298730671259684875?s=21

[Jockey]

This is just bonkers, that this change in CDC rules happened while Dr. Fauci was in surgery.

https://twitter.com/cnnpolitics/status/1298730671259684875?s=21

Well, Gingrich told his wife he wanted a divorce so he could marry his mistress while his wife was in the hospital for cancer treatment.

Same group of people.

[wadesworld]

Wait, people actually think our response to this has been "solid?"  That we're "not sure what else could be done?"

This has to be a schtick, right?  Right?

[GooooMarquette]

I never once said it was near over....I think it will be around long after the vaccine is made available but from a gov’t response view I’m not sure what else they can do.

Up to us know to protect the vulnerable and stay home when we’re showing symptoms.

Just look North of the border, and it's pretty easy to see what a competent and coordinated response could have looked like, and what it could have achieved.

Cumulative confirmed cases per 100,000 over the past 2 weeks, as of today:

Canada: 14.7
US: 192.7

[tower912]

Tim Horton's stops COVID?

[mu_hilltopper]

Whoa .. this is good news:

https://twitter.com/FayCortez/status/1298751202361069568

BREAKING: Abbott launches $5 coronavirus test that yields results in 15 minutes, without needing any laboratory equipment. This will significantly speed testing efforts. 50 million tests a months, headed our way.

[Hards Alumni]

Whoa .. this is good news:

https://twitter.com/FayCortez/status/1298751202361069568

BREAKING: Abbott launches $5 coronavirus test that yields results in 15 minutes, without needing any laboratory equipment. This will significantly speed testing efforts. 50 million tests a months, headed our way.

Inject this news into my veins!

[pacearrow02]

Just look North of the border, and it's pretty easy to see what a competent and coordinated response could have looked like, and what it could have achieved.

Cumulative confirmed cases per 100,000 over the past 2 weeks, as of today:

Canada: 14.7
US: 192.7

We have done 79 million tests, they’ve done less then 5.

Calm down.

[pacearrow02]

Ridiculous.

Reminds me of when I was on a jury in downtown Chicago and the plaintiff's lawyer asked early on for $60 million for his client. We ended up giving the client $22 million. But during deliberations, several members of the jury kept asking why we weren't giving the $60 million, or closer to the $60 million or at least half of the $60 million.

A couple of us had to say, "There IS no $60 million. There never was. That's simply what the lawyer wants. Get the $60 million out of your head!"

Similarly, there is no 2.2 million. There never was. It was a theoretical, hypothetical number based on models if we had taken absolutely no mitigation steps as a nation -- you know, kind of what your hero did at his deadly (but thankfully poorly attended) Tulsa rally. That's what he wanted to do the entire time; he didn't give a shyte about anybody's life. He wanted the "church pews filled on Easter." He told thugs to storm state capitals in violation of the guidelines he had set out less than 18 hours earlier. He encouraged the governors of Florida, Texas and Arizona to re-open their states; that sure went swell. He threatened governors who didn't re-open (and who weren't "nice" to him) that he would deny them PPE. He claimed to have absolute power to re-open the country; thank goodness the Constitution said otherwise or we'd have had many, many more dead.

By mid-May, he stopped even mentioning the coronavirus except to bring out his inner racist and call it the Kung Flu. He went to a mask factory, where masks were required to be worn, and he didn't wear a mask. He constantly downplayed the coronavirus, even made fun of it. He could not possibly have given worse leadership, especially once we all know exactly had to be done.

I wonder what you'd be saying had this happened when Obama or Clinton were president. "180K Americans dead (and counting)? Millions and millions unemployed? The economy in tatters? And, as a bonus, racial unrest out the yin-yang? Solid job by Obama, for sure! Really super solid!"

You’ve officially gone off the deep end.

[injuryBug]

We have done 79 million tests, they’ve done less then 5.

Calm down.

I would say the 2.2 million that was never actually a real guess was just to scare the public.
Canada also only tests those with symptoms. 

[pacearrow02]

I would say the 2.2 million that was never actually a real guess was just to scare the public.
Canada also only tests those with symptoms.

I’m just using the data the experts came up with, listening to the science right!

[pacearrow02]

I would say the 2.2 million that was never actually a real guess was just to scare the public.
Canada also only tests those with symptoms.

Wait!?!?!?  This whole time Canada has been doing what our CDC is now recommending and they don’t have people dropping dead left and right.