COVID-19 Megathread 4: Grandma Got Run Over by the Dow Jones

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

Holyoke Soldiers' Home, a well-known and previously well-regarded veterans' nursing home and long-term care hospital here in Western Massachusetts, had a badly mismanaged outbreak and is now being investigated by a Baker-appointed independent counsel. According to the Boston Globe the people running this place didn't isolate a confirmed case, which a friend of mine pointed out to me would be unacceptably negligent even with a normal flu, so hopefully the management of HSH will die in a fire in terms of legal liability.

It's obviously not acceptable to treat any old person this way, but there's something especially sickening when it's done to veterans given the self-congratulatory pieties about THE TROOPS in our society and political rhetoric.

ETA: Apparently HSH had been requesting money from the state to relieve understaffing for the past five years, meaning that there might be state-level budget issues at play, in which case that implicates Baker himself. He may be moderate On The Issues , but when it comes to the nuts and bolts of allocating funds and appointing personnel, he's a cold-harded Scrooge just like the rest of his depraved cult of a party (and more than a few Democrats too).

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

Surprised this hasn't been talked about yet in the thread, but Walmart an Target are rolling out new social distancing measures tomorrow limiting stores to 20% capacity.

https://twitter.com/NPR/status/1246277075100749824

Good, the grocery store seems to be the one place you can't avoid people who don't have a mask & blatantly disregard social distancing protocols.

No.  Bad.  Very, very bad.  This will just lead to more panic buying, which means more people will turn up to shop, which will now translate into long lines outside grocery stores (4 hrs wait for milk and eggs?), which means even *more panic buying.

This is the truly apocalyptic, society-ending stuff.  Not having to share a ventilator.

Get a grip.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

I feel like we can declare that the worst has passed based on today's stats. A week or two to get things in order and then it's time to go back to work.

It's literally one day with a somewhat lower number of confirmed new cases.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

We're not going to know the real number of cases or the real number of deaths for probably some years to come. That's not to say they're being undercounted by orders of magnitude or anything but they are being undercounted at least somewhat. The idea that the current official stats are identical to the actual numbers of people who have or who have died from COVID-19 is wishful thinking.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

I just think it's premature to say that the worst is over or that we're on track for the new cases peak being moved earlier on the basis of one day, especially when we know that mutatis mutandis Sundays have less reporting of cases.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

https://mobile.twitter.com/TheAgeofShoddy/status/1247111328675717120

Too pessimistic.

People will get other jobs again, or ... if their former companies did not go broke - they will get hired again.

Permanent >20% unemployment or whatever does strike me as doomsaying, but considering that we've already in the recent past had a crisis following which millions of mostly-younger people got stuck in really bad jobs and thankless careers with no room for advancement while the already-wealthy cried all the way to the bank, I don't think it's "pessimistic" to suggest that the same dynamic might play out here.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

I wouldn't wish that on anyone. Here's hoping BoJo pulls through.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

https://mobile.twitter.com/MarkLevineNYC/status/1246911781198495745
From a member of the NYC Council health committee.

Could also be people dying at home because....people are being told to stay home?

Irresponsible to attribute these deaths solely to COVID in an effort to inflate numbers and spread panic. 

Or just maybe to get a better idea of how many deaths are actually occurring.  Don't automatically assume a conspiracy.

Can I point out that it’s not a conspiracy to say that people who pushed panic measures have an interest in making the death toll look as high as possible?  A conspiracy is “Xi cooked up COVID-19 in a lab”.   I was trying to make a broader point about the apparent political/social dynamics. 

Cut it out.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

I guess because it's not fair to other stores that sell those products but have to shut down because they don't sell the products that allow Home Depot to remain open.

That seems like tortured logic for what's on its face a pretty silly policy.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

I guess because it's not fair to other stores that sell those products but have to shut down because they don't sell the products that allow Home Depot to remain open.

That seems like tortured logic for what's on its face a pretty silly policy.

That the other stores have to close or that HD can't sell its full inventory?

That HD can't sell its full inventory. I understand the rationale you're laying out but the policy still seems weirdly invasive to me.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

https://twitter.com/annagronewold/status/1249806614837760000

Good. Now time to rope in Mills, Scott, and Hogan (Sununu is probably a lost cause).

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

jimrtex, what happened to you, man? You used to be cool.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

https://twitter.com/CNN/status/1250209491372687360

Of course his first name is "Trey".

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

How are today's new case rates looking.

Nationwide, about the same as yesterday and the day before.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

Midwest Governors Announce Partnership to Reopen Regional Economy

- Illinois
- Indiana
- Kentucky
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Ohio
- Wisconsin

https://twitter.com/MollyBeck/status/1250856108807221248?s=20

They clearly are not on the same page, since Evers just extended the shutdown to May 26th, while DeWine is trying to open up on May 1. DeWine was doing so well, and now he's just doing Trump's dirty work once again. It's simply idiotic to open up such a big state again in 2 weeks, especially when Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, and nearby states, are still not doing well.

Flattening the curve is not about keeping everyone locked inside forever. It's about making sure hospitals don't get overloaded like they have in Italy or NYC, and clearly DeWine's actions have flattened the curve in Ohio. He's also putting in specific rules about how things can open, and still isn't allowing big gatherings like concerts or sports games. Everyone else will need to open back up at some point, and Ohio can show us how it's done.

I actually agree; if I were a governor I wouldn't be considering opening things back up, but it seems like DeWine's contemplating doing so in a relatively restrained and cautious manner. And it needs to be remembered that Beshear, whose response has garnered universal praise, technically never imposed a lockdown.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

Guys, remember when jimrtex was a respected and knowledgeable poster who mostly focused on the nuts and bolts of redistricting? Me too.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

Let's be real, Whitmer isn't being attacked because of her coronavirus policies (which are completely reasonable), she's being attacked because she's a rising star in the Democratic Party and she pisses off Trump.

Maybe the paleness of her skin is due to her never going outside. Stay at home is normal for her.

Dude, you know that you *can* make an argument without going after her appearance, right?

If you had seen the CNN interview you might have drawn the association between her banning of the selling of lawn care products and using boats with motors. You know how most people are not actually white, but sort of pink? She is white. It is not a healthy color.

I'm...not even sure how to respond to that. 

Check it out yourself. She does not look healthy.

Who cares?

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

Do Fauci and Birx actually expect people to go back to restaurants, bars, clubs, theaters and sporting events anytime soon? Wow they both drank the Trump Kool-Aid

My favorite part is that in Phase *ONE* of this "guidance", it has Gyms and Movie Theaters expected to reopen with "social distancing measures", as if those would actually work at places like those. Yet, Bars remain closed. The entire thing doesn't make any sense.

The fact they helped design this shows both Birx and Fauci have become Trump's loyal minions and they drank the Kool-Aid

I don't think that follows. I highly doubt they're the sources of the stupidest ideas in this plan.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

https://twitter.com/ChangePolls/status/1250901670206242818

Lol, white people privilege

lol libs using a pandemic to further inflame racial tensions

Liberals: Look at these racial disparities that hurt Americans of racial minorities! We should do something!
Hacks: wHY aRe yoU trYiNG to sTOkE rACIal TEnsIon!!11!!111!!!

Do you think everyone is not being hurt right now?

homie the tweet you are responding to is a poll literally demonstrating that some people are being hurt more than others

(it's hard to actually draw inference without any sort of error measurements but those differences between groups are quite large either way)

No it is a poll that demonstrates how ppl FEEL they’re being affected by the pandemic. This ‘poll’ has no error bars or p score. I did not dispute that some ppl may be more affected than others, I disputed that white privilege is what caused that disparity and not pre existing health conditions/money/access to healthcare, etc

What do you think caused the preexisting health conditions/money/access to healthcare, exactly?

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

https://twitter.com/ChangePolls/status/1250901670206242818

Lol, white people privilege

lol libs using a pandemic to further inflame racial tensions

Liberals: Look at these racial disparities that hurt Americans of racial minorities! We should do something!
Hacks: wHY aRe yoU trYiNG to sTOkE rACIal TEnsIon!!11!!111!!!

Do you think everyone is not being hurt right now?

homie the tweet you are responding to is a poll literally demonstrating that some people are being hurt more than others

(it's hard to actually draw inference without any sort of error measurements but those differences between groups are quite large either way)

No it is a poll that demonstrates how ppl FEEL they’re being affected by the pandemic. This ‘poll’ has no error bars or p score. I did not dispute that some ppl may be more affected than others, I disputed that white privilege is what caused that disparity and not pre existing health conditions/money/access to healthcare, etc

What do you think caused the preexisting health conditions/money/access to healthcare, exactly?

Perhaps race, perhaps geographical location, or education level, or age, or other factors that aren’t coming to mind. Are you saying the root cause of all those factors Is race?

I'm saying race contributes to a lot of them. "'The' root cause" is a matter of interpretation.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

Why are case rates rising so much?

While NY has somewhat peaked, other states (particularly in the Midwest now) have begun to exponentially grow. IL alone almost registered a growth of 2,000 cases today.

In two weeks, expect another big spike in the Midwest thanks to those 'wonderful' rallies Trumpets are having.

And that's Altright by me!

I don't think we should be wishing physical infirmity on people, even reckless possibly-bused-in ideologues.

[Okay, maybe Mike Johnson is a competent parliamentarian.]

If Trump is unwilling to do it, why aren’t governor’s seizing control of factories in their states and forcing them to produce covid tests?

Why aren't social deviants rounded up and placed in internment camps?

I'm sorry, but if you think temporary state planning of industrial production is morally or politically equivalent to throwing people in camps, you're out of your mind.