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

[The Hippie Satan of Hyperbole]

  my wife insists i am either immune to it or had a mild case some time ago. 

Based on what exactly?

[The Hippie Satan of Hyperbole]

How you get away with as much blatant in your face politics is beyond...wait...never mind. This overblown crisis is exactly what you liberals needed to try to blow this wide open. So much pent up derangement Being allowed here and I’ m getting dumber by the minute reading it

Ah.  I see you've fallen for the gaslighting.  I'm not surprised.

[TSmith34, Inc.]

Overblown crisis?

Not sure there’s room left for you to get any dumber.

If you need to know what the latest Fox talking point is, he's your man. Pure uncritical regurgitation.

[The Hippie Satan of Hyperbole]

The Covid-19 board quickly became a joke and opportunity for the leftists here to have a free for all to bash Trump at every turn. 

And the mods do nothing. This after banning a political board and the Superbar still having a banner about taking your politics elsewhere.  And I wholeheartedly agree that was the right decision to ban politics here.  There are a zillion other places online to discuss politics and rant on endlessly. 

I do agree that people have gone way too political here.  People like Jockey can't seem to help themselves.

But I think it is fully on topic here to address how the administration handled, and is currently handling this.  Hint: It's bad, inconsistent, poorly communicated, and geared toward deflecting blame.  Those are basic facts, not political opinion.

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

Trump makes claim that he has dictatorial powers today.

Every American should be forced to watch the crazy man at today’s briefing.

I've been socially & physically distancing myself from anything he says or has said since 2016.
Unfortunately, I still hear things despite trying not to.

[TSmith34, Inc.]

Completely different issue. I was referring to issues with polio vaccination, the numbers were much greater than 70,000+ and I admit that I “internetted” and got the good info from an RFK Jr. tweet. The bad info was also “internetted.” GAC. Apparently Gates was summarily dismissed from an Advocacy Board in India after a huge vaccine-strain polio outbreak.

Thanks for the Snopes face-plant.

In addition to not being sued, he is also not kicked out of the country
https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/gates-org-kicked-out-of-india/

Maybe you have different information, but as far as I can find, the only issues with polio vaccine in India relate to a local Indian company that produced an oral version of the vaccine, where the MD was arrested for poor quality control.
https://qz.com/india/1413018/polio-scare-resurfaces-in-india-who-calms-nerves/
"A private pharmaceutical company reportedly reintroduced the virus in at least 150,000 vials of its oral vaccine, which were then administered to children in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Telangana.

The oral method, however, contains live, but less virulent, strains of the virus and can result in vaccine-induced polio. However, it is extremely rare—about one in 750,000 cases.

After the type-2 strain was found in Uttar Pradesh, the virus was traced to the Ghaziabad-based pharmaceutical firm Bio-Med. Its managing director was arrested and further production was halted. "

I also could find zero evidence for tens of thousands of deaths or hundreds of thousands of deaths from vaccinations, and one would think numbers of that magnitude might have gotten a little press.  I found an instance where 124 people died in 2011, but that was about it.  I did, however, find another instance of anti-vaxxers spreading similar false rumors
https://www.politifact.com/factchecks/2016/dec/20/blog-posting/anti-vaccination-blog-revives-debunked-hpv-story/

RFK might very well be a great guy, but I think you've been fed some bad information.

[MU82]

This overblown crisis is exactly what you liberals needed to try to blow this wide open.

The Force is strong with this one.

If The Force = Hannity and Limbaugh.

[The Hippie Satan of Hyperbole]

In addition to not being sued, he is also not kicked out of the country
https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/gates-org-kicked-out-of-india/

Maybe you have different information, but as far as I can find, the only issues with polio vaccine in India relate to a local Indian company that produced an oral version of the vaccine, where the MD was arrested for poor quality control.
https://qz.com/india/1413018/polio-scare-resurfaces-in-india-who-calms-nerves/
"A private pharmaceutical company reportedly reintroduced the virus in at least 150,000 vials of its oral vaccine, which were then administered to children in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Telangana.

The oral method, however, contains live, but less virulent, strains of the virus and can result in vaccine-induced polio. However, it is extremely rare—about one in 750,000 cases.

After the type-2 strain was found in Uttar Pradesh, the virus was traced to the Ghaziabad-based pharmaceutical firm Bio-Med. Its managing director was arrested and further production was halted. "

Good post.

It's really only 50/50 that his tinfoil hat will let him access it however.

[MU Fan in Connecticut]

Just up from The Atlantic from one of their better known writers.

This Is How It Looks When You’re Not Afraid
Anthony Fauci is the rare senior government official who seems more devoted to truth than to Trump.

APRIL 13, 2020

James Fallows
National correspondent at The Atlantic

https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/04/fauci-trump/609916/

[pbiflyer]

If you need to know what the latest Fox OAN talking point is, he's your man. Pure uncritical regurgitation.

FIFY

[GooooMarquette]

The Covid-19 board quickly became a joke and opportunity for the leftists here to have a free for all to bash Trump at every turn. 

And the mods do nothing. This after banning a political board and the Superbar still having a banner about taking your politics elsewhere.  And I wholeheartedly agree that was the right decision to ban politics here.  There are a zillion other places online to discuss politics and rant on endlessly.

Then stop ranting about politics and explain why the CDC hasn't been leading the testing process and developing contact tracing mechanisms from the start. Include mention of the fact that CDC was created especially for pandemic management and filled this role in the H1N1 outbreak, but has now been moved to the backseat by a president who seems intent on letting states try to make up for his slow start.

Give us some substance if you think there is too much political fighting.

[jficke13]

Completely different issue. I was referring to issues with polio vaccination, the numbers were much greater than 70,000+ and I admit that I “internetted” and got the good info from an RFK Jr. tweet. The bad info was also “internetted.” GAC. Apparently Gates was summarily dismissed from an Advocacy Board in India after a huge vaccine-strain polio outbreak.

Thanks for the Snopes face-plant.

bro,

bro.

That guy's... uh... not the best source for information about vaccines.

[The Hippie Satan of Hyperbole]

Then stop ranting about politics and explain why the CDC hasn't been leading the testing process and developing contact tracing mechanisms from the start. Include mention of the fact that CDC was created especially for pandemic management and filled this role in the H1N1 outbreak, but has now been moved to the backseat by a president who seems intent on letting states try to make up for his slow start.

Give us some substance if you think there is too much political fighting.

This question, and others like them, have been repeatedly asked and ignored in this topic.  I wouldn't expect a response to this one either.

[Hards Alumni]

Then stop ranting about politics and explain why the CDC hasn't been leading the testing process and developing contact tracing mechanisms from the start. Include mention of the fact that CDC was created especially for pandemic management and filled this role in the H1N1 outbreak, but has now been moved to the backseat by a president who seems intent on letting states try to make up for his slow start.

Give us some substance if you think there is too much political fighting.

That's the thing, if they're out pointing fingers at the liberals on the board, they don't have to objectively look what is happening or accept that just MAYBE the Emperor has no clothes.

[tower912]

  Again, if you feel that one political argument is overrepresented, make the case with facts and data that the federal response has been timely, appropriate, efficient, and effective.

[TSmith34, Inc.]

Overblown crisis?

Not sure there’s room left for you to get any dumber.

And who could have ever have predicted this would become a right-wing talking point? Oh wait...

I mean...last i saw there has been less than 1,000 deaths in the US. Percentage wise, that is incredibly low..like minuscule. yet people are acting like the entire population is dying off from this. It's all about agenda's, that's all it really is.

Ah.

So you're one of those who won't think this is a big deal until millions are dead.

But at the same time the steps being taken are to prevent exactly those types of numbers. So that when millions don't die, you'll think it was all an overreaction

I am absolutely convinced that this is what will happen. "See?  What was the big deal?  I told you it was all a hoax", completely ignoring that the social distancing and stay-at-home orders are what kept the numbers lower.  Wait for it.

[MU82]

Things are getting dicey in Russia after Putin & Co. had spent weeks bragging about the country's preparedness and lack of infections.

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/13/world/europe/coronavirus-russia-putin.html?campaign_id=9&emc=edit_NN_p_20200414&instance_id=17621&nl=morning-briefing&regi_id=108420427&section=topNews&segment_id=25091&te=1&user_id=d36dcf821462fdd16ec3636710a855fa

So confident was the Kremlin that it dispatched planeloads of aid to Italy, Serbia and even Kennedy Airport in New York, signaling that Russia had stockpiled so many masks and ventilators that it was able to share some of them with less fortunate countries.

But it has become clear in recent days that Russia is unlikely to escape a severe hit by the pandemic, presenting an existential test to the country’s teetering health system and a new challenge to the aura of rising confidence and competence projected by Mr. Putin’s Kremlin.

“We have a lot of problems, and we don’t have much to brag about, nor reason to, and we certainly can’t relax,” Mr. Putin told senior officials Monday in a televised video conference. “We are not past the peak of the epidemic, not even in Moscow.”

[The Hippie Satan of Hyperbole]

If Putin is publically stating those problems, you gotta know they are much, much worse in actuality.

[WarriorDad]

Pakuni

You are right, I would be pretending to be a liberal Democrat because I am a moderate Democrat and not particularly partisan.  We talked about this here several times a year or two ago and the young liberal guys could not process.  I own a gun, am pro life, believe in strong borders and the working class.  In my formative days that was the Democratic Party.  Both parties have shifted leaving a gaping hole in the middle crying for leadership.  Cannot think of a better point in time in my life than now for someone to fill it.  This crisis calls for that type of response.

For the youngsters here, this was 1972 platform, the first election I voted in.  You can understand that those of us that grew up in that time period and adhere to those philosophies may not fit today’s version of the party. It is one reason my wife is now an independent.  What is tragic in this country is the perceived bullying by both sides to adhere strongly to the far side of each ideology.  It doesn’t have to be.  For the older members here, some of you have changed with your party and some of us have not.  Leave the name calling out of it.

https://thehill.com/opinion/campaign/428559-1972-campaign-reveals-how-much-modern-democrats-have-changed

[WarriorDad]

I don't necessary disagree with some of their points, but let's look at the background of these doctors shall we?

Dr. Jonathan B. Geach is an anesthesiologist in Loma Linda, California
Dr. Ankur J. Patel is a family medicine doctor in Oswego, Illinois
Dr. Jason Friday looks like he is a psychiatrist in Gilbert, AZ
Dr. Lacy M. Windham is an obstetrician-gynecologist in Cleveland, Tennessee
Dr. Ashkan Attaran is a cardiologist in Visalia, California
Jennifer Andjelich, D.N.P. isn't a doctor.  She is a nurse practitioner in psychiatry in Arizona

So no public health background that I can tell.  No epidemiologists.  Just random doctors of various backgrounds they got to sign onto an article.

Or am I missing something?

It was for discussion here.  I find myself supporting some of their views, not all.  We are in agreement on their backgrounds and that is why it would b fascinating to me to do a national survey of doctors on this topic.  Doctors in NYC may have very different opinions than those in Lincoln, NE despite similar educational backgrounds. 

My reason for bringing it here is not all of the medical community is in harmony on what to do next.  There are valid arguments on all sides.  I should have known it would lead to the name calling, but I had hope it would be discussed rather than what it devolved into.

[TSmith34, Inc.]

Pakuni

You are right, I would be pretending to be a liberal Democrat because I am a moderate Democrat and not particularly partisan.  We talked about this here several times a year or two ago and the young liberal guys could not process.  I own a gun, am pro life, believe in strong borders and the working class.  In my formative days that was the Democratic Party.  Both parties have shifted leaving a gaping hole in the middle crying for leadership.  Cannot think of a better point in time in my life than now for someone to fill it.  This crisis calls for that type of response.

For the youngsters here, this was 1972 platform, the first election I voted in.  You can understand that those of us that grew up in that time period and adhere to those philosophies may not fit today’s version of the party. It is one reason my wife is now an independent.  What is tragic in this country is the perceived bullying by both sides to adhere strongly to the far side of each ideology.  It doesn’t have to be.  For the older members here, some of you have changed with your party and some of us have not.  Leave the name calling out of it.

https://thehill.com/opinion/campaign/428559-1972-campaign-reveals-how-much-modern-democrats-have-changed

If the point of that piece was to show how "far left" the Democratic party has moved in 48(!) years, it does a horrible, horrible job. In almost every case it shows the platform addressed similar concerns in similar ways as today. Taxes, Social Security, energy, minimum wage, the list goes on and on. It *tries*, very badly, to parse differences.  For example:

"Although the plan was more left leaning on labor issues and education issues, it would not have satisfied the most ardent proponents of the Green New Deal. While there was a call for a vastly higher minimum wage almost exactly equivalent to $15 adjusted for inflation and a promise to provide a guaranteed government job for everyone, it made no mention of the tuition free college for the upper middle class championed by the likes of liberal New York Governor Andrew Cuomo."

So the platform called for the equivalent of a $15/hr minimum wage and government guaranteed jobs for all, but because it didn't mention free college tuition it proves how far left the Democratic party platform has shifted? Tell me, might college tuition not been much of a concern when in constant dollars the median average cost, all in, for a public university was $8,734? And the necessity of a college education was much, much lower for career success?
https://college-education.procon.org/median-incomes-v-average-college-tuition-rates/

Never stop, Chicos.

[The Hippie Satan of Hyperbole]

It was for discussion here.  I find myself supporting some of their views, not all.  We are in agreement on their backgrounds and that is why it would b fascinating to me to do a national survey of doctors on this topic.  Doctors in NYC may have very different opinions than those in Lincoln, NE despite similar educational backgrounds. 

My reason for bringing it here is not all of the medical community is in harmony on what to do next.  There are valid arguments on all sides.  I should have known it would lead to the name calling, but I had hope it would be discussed rather than what it devolved into.

The point is, I don't really care what an OB/GYN from bumf*ck Tennessee says about how and when to open up the economy.  Her opinion isn't any more valid because she is a doctor.  She has no authority on how to manage pandemics.

[jesmu84]

It was for discussion here.  I find myself supporting some of their views, not all.  We are in agreement on their backgrounds and that is why it would b fascinating to me to do a national survey of doctors on this topic.  Doctors in NYC may have very different opinions than those in Lincoln, NE despite similar educational backgrounds. 

My reason for bringing it here is not all of the medical community is in harmony on what to do next.  There are valid arguments on all sides.  I should have known it would lead to the name calling, but I had hope it would be discussed rather than what it devolved into.

Considering how almost identical this is to a recent memorable presidential quote... This has to be trolling. Has to be.

[Hards Alumni]

Pakuni

You are right, I would be pretending to be a liberal Democrat because I am a moderate Democrat and not particularly partisan.  We talked about this here several times a year or two ago and the young liberal guys could not process.  I own a gun, am pro life, believe in strong borders and the working class.  In my formative days that was the Democratic Party.  Both parties have shifted leaving a gaping hole in the middle crying for leadership.  Cannot think of a better point in time in my life than now for someone to fill it.  This crisis calls for that type of response.

For the youngsters here, this was 1972 platform, the first election I voted in.  You can understand that those of us that grew up in that time period and adhere to those philosophies may not fit today’s version of the party. It is one reason my wife is now an independent.  What is tragic in this country is the perceived bullying by both sides to adhere strongly to the far side of each ideology.  It doesn’t have to be.  For the older members here, some of you have changed with your party and some of us have not.  Leave the name calling out of it.

https://thehill.com/opinion/campaign/428559-1972-campaign-reveals-how-much-modern-democrats-have-changed

Unequivocal bull crap.

Not to mention the author of this article is a hyper-partisan hack

Eli Lehrer

President, R Street

Eli Lehrer is President of R Street, a free-market think tank with offices in Washington, D.C., Columbus, Ohio, Tallahassee, Florida, and Austin, Texas. Prior to heading R Street, Lehrer was a Vice President of the Heartland Institute who, along with his staff, left Heartland to create R Street in May of 2012. He has also worked as a reporter at the Washington Times, a senior editor of the American Enterprise Institute’s magazine, a project manager for the Unisys Corporation, a fellow for the Heritage Foundation, and speechwriter to Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist. His work has appeared in dozens of magazines and newspapers including National Review, USA Today, Miami Herald, and Washington Post. He writes regular articles on arts and public policy for the Weekly Standard and was a regular blogger on frumforum.com. He has lived in the Washington, D.C. metropolitan area for over a decade and currently resides in Herndon, Virginia with his wife, Kari and son, Andrew. In addition to his work, he enjoys running, visiting museums, and riding the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disney World.

Everything I bolded is a conservative entity.  You're so transparent.

In your formative years, Nixon advocated for affordable health care for all.  Just more of your disingenuous arguments that the Democrats somehow moved further left.

What actually happened is Republicans moved so far to the right, that anything moderate at all gets labeled as socialism.  And instead of balancing out over time with fair and balanced journalism, we got people like Rush Limbaugh and his ilk.  Preying on stupid people to achieve their goals, and line their pockets.  And who do we have to thank for all this partisan crap?  Newt Gingrich and Grover Norquist.  They inoculated you against civility back in the mid 90s.  The outright disdain and hyper-partisanship is their doing.

You try to come off as some guru of history and political theory.  But people here see through it.  You convert no one.  Your dog whistles and talking points are so obvious.  Anyone with 5 minutes can do a minuscule amount of research and figure out your slant.

[Lighthouse 84]

Pakuni

For the youngsters here, this was 1972 platform, the first election I voted in. 

  So voting for the first time in 1972 would make WarriorDad around 66-ish.  Is he a liar or does this finally put rest that he's not Chicos?  I'm guessing the latter.