BBC: China pneumonia outbreak: COVID-19 Global Pandemic

[China]

DeSantis downplays rising Covid-19 numbers

 

Branding — For months and months, Gov. Ron DeSantis touted his brand of Florida exceptionalism when it comes to how the state responded to Covid-19. Now a surge in cases — primarily among those who remain unvaccinated — is creating an inconvenient interruption to that narrative.

 

Spike — Cases in the state more than doubled in the past week and now hospitals around the state are seeing a jump in admissions, forcing some of them to impose restrictions on visitations.

 

Summertime blues — When asked about it on Monday, DeSantis brushed it aside and said he had previously cautioned that this could happen. “It’s a seasonal virus and this is the seasonal pattern it follows in the Sun Belt states,” he told reporters during a Central Florida press conference. DeSantis also predicted that the Covid case numbers would likely fall in August.

 

Yes, but — The governor could be entirely correct. There have been many times where his instincts about how to respond to Covid-19 worked out. But DeSantis also has a habit of not acknowledging problems directly. He changed his vaccination rollout strategy after a bumpy start. DeSantis also admitted that the 2020 summer surge was troubling… but after it had passed.

 

Lather, rinse, repeat — Democrats have also responded with their tried and true formula by blasting the governor, citing his barrage of rhetoric against federal health officials and the ramping down of a campaign that urged people to get vaccinated. DeSantis did on Monday praise the vaccine, saying it helped prevent people from getting seriously ill or dying. But then he scolded federal health officials — "quote unquote experts" — for not understanding why some people may be skeptical of vaccines. 

 

Click on the link for more

[Califan007 The Constipated]

33 minutes ago, Cooked Crack said:

 

 

 

 

[Califan007 The Constipated]

1 hour ago, TryTheBeal! said:

 

 

 

Watching all those clips, I'm half-surprised Fauci didn't drop a few "**** you, bro"s in there lol...

[tshile]

Just real quick on the whole thing inventive to lie because of the cares act:

- in any conspiracy always figure out who must be in on it. You’re talking about tens if not hundreds of thousands of people. And, also other countries. So this grand conspiracy has a hell of a lot of people “in on it” for it to be true/work

 

- a fun exercise is to ask them what percentage this conspiracy accounts for? What percentage of over 600 thousand deaths has to fit your conspiracy to matter? If it was 50%, you’re still talking about over 300k deaths here alone. You’d have to be in the 90%+ range for your stupid conspiracy theory to even matter. 
 

- finally, it’s quite clear people like @tmandoug1have never looked at a hospital budget. They have no idea what is in a hospital budget. They have no idea what hospitals have had to do to support the pandemic. And they sure as hell haven’t seen any hospital budgets in the last 18 months. 
 

hospitals had to shut down non-emergency surgeries. Which is their main revenue driver. So I’m guessing you a) don’t know they had to shut that down, and/or b) don’t understand that’s how they make money. 
 

Because if you knew anything about any of it, then you’d know that this pandemic cost hospitals a ton, a ton, of money. 
 

so for your grand conspiracy to even be fathomable, you’d have to accept that all these people clever enough to pull a large scale conspiracy, were too stupid to understand their own budget and the implications. They’d have to be complete morons to think this was a good idea. 
 

you people don’t even think your own **** through. 

Edited July 20, 2021 by tshile

[Larry]

1 hour ago, Cooked Crack said:

 

 

 

New policy.  Any child who's profound religious beliefs forbid covering of God's image may go maskless, and naked.  

 

Or they can not lie about their religion.  

[tshile]

For what it’s worth within the past few weeks hospitals (in my area) have finally started seeing normal patient flows, pre-pandemic. And it’s not back fully, it’s just finally starting to get back to normal. 
 

and they were shut down in March of 2020. It’s mid july 2021. 
 

Even if you can wrap your head around this many number of healthcare professionals wanting to do this, much less being able to pull it off, you still have this pesky fact that it didn’t actually make them money and they must have been too stupid to understand that shutting down patient flow almost entirely would immensity outweigh whatever government money you think they’re getting by committing fraud. 
 

and as others pointed out, they must have willingly agreed to break the law to do it all. 
 

it’d be one thing if there was some facts to support it. But you’re also missing that. 
 

all you really got is a really stupid idea. 

4 minutes ago, Larry said:

 

New policy.  Any child who's profound religious beliefs forbid covering of God's image may go maskless, and naked.  

 

Or they can not lie about their religion.  

Also they cannot participate in Halloween. 

Edited July 20, 2021 by tshile

[Califan007 The Constipated]

2 minutes ago, tshile said:

Just real quick on the whole thing inventive to lie because of the cares act:

 

- a fun exercise is to ask them what percentage this conspiracy accounts for? What percentage of over 600 thousand deaths has to fit your conspiracy to matter? If it was 50%, you’re still talking about over 300k deaths here alone. You’d have to be in the 90%+ range for your stupid conspiracy theory to even matter.

 

you people don’t even think your own **** through. 

 

- Back when we were "only" at 170,000 COVID deaths, I asked that NFL linebacker on twitter that I had debated with how many deaths he thought were mis-attributed to COVID (he believed the conspiracy that hospitals were assigning deaths from car crashes and gun shots to being from COVID for money), and he said "About 70,000". I asked him how he arrived at that figure...crickets.

 

- Another person on twitter was anti-vax due to it not being tested fully (or so they claimed) and that it was an unsafe vaccine rushed to the public. I said "Were you one of the people who said Trump should get the credit for developing the vaccine so quickly through his "Operation:Warp Speed" initiative and that Biden was merely continuing the vaccination roll-out plan that Trump had put in place?"...crickets.

 

When you make some of these people truly think about their conspiracy, it tends to start falling apart on them.

[tshile]

8 minutes ago, Califan007 said:

When you make some of these people truly think about their conspiracy, it tends to start falling apart on them.

How much money did they lose from non-emergency surgeries being canceled?

 

how much money did they lose from patients simply not going to hospital because they were afraid to go to a place housing so many covid patients?

 

how much money did they spend retrofitting Hvac systems, doors, deploying cameras for monitoring, retraining staff, and stocking up on ppp equipment when it was scarce and prices were inflated?

 

how many experienced staff did they lose? How much did it cost to replace them? And how much did they spend on nursing temp agencies to fill the gaps? (Around here a temp nurse can make 150k a year especially if they’re certified in critical care)

 

oh and how much did they get from the government again?

 

of course they can’t answer a single one of those questions. And I’d bet a years salary they aren’t even smart enough to think to ask them. 

Edited July 20, 2021 by tshile

[tshile]

Also have any of you been to a doctors office in the last 18 months? Have you seen how different the process is? How the waiting rooms are set up? The questions they ask?

 

does that seem like something anyone involved in that wanted to do?

[visionary]

 

[Larry]

2 hours ago, visionary said:

 

 

Wisconsin, two weeks from now - just over 300 cases a day.  

[China]

3 GOP House members lose appeals over $500 mask fines

 

Three Republican U.S. House members have lost appeals challenging fines for not wearing face coverings on the House floor earlier this year.

 

On Tuesday, the U.S. House Ethics Committee released statements noting that U.S. Reps. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia, Thomas Massie of Kentucky and Ralph Norman of South Carolina had failed in their appeals of $500 fines issued in May.

 

The Republicans challenged the fines in June, arguing that the mandate was out of sync with recent federal guidance on face coverings during the COVID-19 pandemic. The vote in question happened a week after the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued guidance noting that “fully vaccinated people can resume activities without wearing a mask or physically distancing.”

 

At the time, face coverings were still required on the floor, a mandate put in place by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi in June 2020. Even after the updated CDC guidance in May, Dr. Brian Monahan, Congress’ attending physician, wrote that “mask requirement and other guidelines remain unchanged until all Members and floor staff are fully vaccinated.”

 

“I voted on the House floor without wearing my mask,” Norman wrote. “I did so because I was following the direction of our nation’s top scientists that fully vaccinated individuals do not need to wear a mask.”

 

In her appeal, Greene called the fine “arbitrary and capricious, an abuse of discretion, and otherwise not consistent with law or with principles of fairness.”

 

A handful of Republican lawmakers were fined. Greene, Massie and Norman, along with Rep. Mary E. Miller of Illinois, took a maskless selfie on the House floor.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[China]

On 7/16/2021 at 10:01 AM, China said:

 

Fully vaccinated Americans may enter Canada as of mid-August

 

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Thursday Canada could start allowing fully vaccinated Americans into Canada as of mid-August for non-essential travel and should be in a position to welcome fully vaccinated travelers from all countries by early September.

 

Click on the link for the full article

 

U.S. border to remain closed until at least Aug. 21

 

The U.S. land border will remain closed to non-essential travel until at least Aug. 21, according to a renewal order issued by the American government Wednesday.

 

In a notice pre-published in the U.S. Federal Register, the U.S. government says that while vaccination rates have improved, opening the land border to non-essential travel still poses too great a risk.

 

"Given the outbreak and continued transmission and spread of COVID-19 within the United States and globally, the Secretary has determined that the risk of continued transmission and spread of the virus associated with COVID-19 between the United States and Canada poses an ongoing specific threat to human life or national interests," says the U.S. government notice.

The new order expires one minute before midnight on Aug. 21.

 

The Department of Homeland Security issued a statement that offered little additional explanation.

 

"To decrease the spread of COVID-19, including the Delta variant, the United States is extending restrictions on non-essential travel at our land and ferry crossings with Canada and Mexico through August 21, while ensuring the continued flow of essential trade and travel," wrote DHS spokesperson Angelo Fernández Hernández.

 

"DHS is in constant contact with Canadian and Mexican counterparts to identify the conditions under which restrictions may be eased safely and sustainably."

 

The American order comes only a few days after the Canadian government announced its land border would open to fully vaccinated U.S. citizens on Aug. 9 and to fully vaccinated travellers from other countries on Sept. 7.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[tshile]

1 hour ago, China said:

Norman wrote. “I did so because I was following the direction of our nation’s top scientists that fully vaccinated individuals do not need to wear a mask.”

No. You don’t get to use science as an excuse now. **** you. 

[China]

‘My Governor Is an Idiot’ Mask Becoming Very Popular in Missouri

 

As another wave of COVID-19 spreads across our state at a terrifying pace, there’s one face mask, in particular, that is becoming very popular with Missouri residents frustrated by Governor Mike Parson's response to the pandemic.

 

A mask reading “MY GOVERNOR IS AN IDIOT” alongside an outline of Missouri is lighting up Missouri social media outlets. Hundreds (if not thousands) of people across Facebook and Twitter are commenting on posts that they’ve ordered theirs and can’t wait to wear them.

 

Apparel dragging Missouri politicians always seems be a big hit, but this time there is even more urgency to the ever-increasing chorus of pleas for responsible state governing.

 

Missouri has recently been topping lists as the state with the highest rate of new COVID-19 hospitalizations in America. We also had the second-highest rate of new cases per capita. To be a Missourian right now is terrifying.

 

At the time of writing, the latest information from the Missouri Department of Health & Senior Services shows that there were 1,485 patients in Missouri hospitals with COVID. (There is a delay in reporting numbers, so this number reflects the hospitalized patient count as of Sunday, July 18.) Of those hospitalized with COVID in Missouri, 465 were in the ICU.

 

What might be even scarier is that data from the New York Times shows that the case totals in Missouri have jumped 114 percent in just the past two weeks.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[China]

"They Need Someone To Work": Notorious Topeka Frito-Lay Plant Now Has Covid Outbreak

 

A notice posted for Frito-Lay workers in Topeka, Kansas—where a strike is into its second week—shows that the beleaguered factory is now dealing with a Covid outbreak.

The notice posted Wednesday. Source: anonymous

 

According to Senior Site Director Sam Rice and HR Manager Michael Jacobs, at least 10 people of the remaining non-union and temp staffers working in the plant have already tested positive.

 

“Positive employees have come from all different areas of the plant,” the notice reads, “meaning this is more of a community issue than a plant issue, however, it is only a matter of time before this becomes a plant issue.”

 

Click on the link for more

[China]

 

[China]

Why The Delta Variant Is Hyper-Contagious: A New Study Sheds Light

 

After months of data collection, scientists agree: The delta variant is the most contagious version of the coronavirus worldwide. It spreads about two to three times faster than the original version of the virus, and it's currently dominating the outbreak in the United States, responsible for more than 80% of COVID cases.

 

A new study, published online this month, sheds light on why. It finds that the variant grows more rapidly inside people's respiratory tracts and to much higher levels, researchers at the Guangdong Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention reported.

 

On average, people infected with the delta variant had about 1,000 times more copies of the virus in their respiratory tracts than those infected with the original strain of the coronavirus, the study reported.

 

In addition, after someone catches the delta variant, the person likely becomes infectious sooner. On average, it took about four days for the delta variant to reach detectable levels inside a person, compared with six days for the original coronavirus variant.

 

In the study, scientists analyzed COVID-19 patients involved in the first outbreak of the delta variant in mainland China, which occurred between May 21 and June 18 in Guangzhou, the capital of Guangdong province. The researchers measured the levels of virus in 62 people involved in that outbreak and compared them with the levels in 63 patients infected in 2020 with an early version of the virus.

 

Their findings suggest that people who have contracted the delta variant are likely spreading the virus earlier in the course of their infection.

 

And the scientists underscore the importance of quarantining immediately for 14 days after coming into contact with someone diagnosed with COVID-19, as the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[China]

Gamma Variant Accounts For 4 Times More Illinois COVID-19 Cases Than Better Known Delta Variant

 

In Illinois while COVID-19 cases continue to rise quickly, the Delta variant is not the variant of most concern.

 

If asked to name a variant, you would probably come up with Delta first. It is easily the most talked about. While it is of concern in Chicago, other variants that are just as concerning are taking hold more quickly.

 

“We are sounding the alarm today because we are starting to see this uptick,” Mayor Lori Lightfoot said at City Hall Tuesday.

 

But the sound of music will still race through Grant Park next week, and so will an expected 100,000 Lollapalooza attendees. Lightfoot said she does not have second thoughts about green-lighting it despite an uptick in COVID cases.

 

As of Monday, Illinois had a total of 10,592 COVID-19 variant cases. That is twice as many as it had on May 11.

 

“I’m a little converned about what the future could hold,” said Dr. Allison Arwady, commissioner of the Chicago Department of Public Health.

 

CBS 2 dug deeper into these numbers to see what the future might hold and discovered that among the six variants tracked by the Illinois Department of Public Health, the Delta variant, which gets the most attention, accounts for just 403 of those cases. The lesser talked about Gamma variant has four times more cases in Illinois — more than 2600 so far.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[Califan007 The Constipated]

 

[Cooked Crack]

 

 

[China]

So now people will ask what they're hiding (whether or not they're actually hiding anything).

 

Covid: China rejects WHO plan for second phase of virus origin probe

 

China has rejected the next stage of a World Health Organization (WHO) plan to investigate the origins of the coronavirus pandemic.

 

The WHO wants to audit laboratories in the area where the virus was first identified.

 

But Zeng Yixin, deputy health minister, said this showed "disrespect for common sense and arrogance toward science".

 

WHO experts said it was very unlikely the virus escaped from a Chinese lab, but the theory has endured.

 

Investigators were able to visit Wuhan - the city where the virus was first detected in December 2019 - in January of this year.

 

But earlier this month, WHO head Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus outlined the terms of the inquiry's next phase. This included looking at certain science research institutions.

 

He has now called on China to be more co-operative about the early stages of the outbreak.

 

He urged Beijing to "be transparent, to be open and co-operate" with investigators and provide raw patient data that had not been shared during the first probe.

Speaking at a press conference on Thursday, Mr Zeng said he was extremely surprised by the WHO proposal because it focused on alleged violations of China's laboratory protocols.

 

He said it was "impossible" for China to accept the terms, adding that the country had submitted its own origins-tracing recommendations.

 

Click on the link for the full article

[Ball Security]

7 day average:

July 8: 12,366

July 22: 45,351

 

That’s two weeks folks.

[skinsmarydu]

 Holy ****. 

Crawling back into the hole I haven't really come out of since last October.

[TradeTheBeal!]

Florida is really having a moment right now.