COVID-19 Megathread 6: Return of the Omicron

[roxas11]

https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1421576405142355974

The number coming out of Florida is insane
If things keep going this way I wonder if this will actually start to hurt Ron Desantis politically

[Person Man]

https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1421576405142355974

The number coming out of Florida is insane
If things keep going this way I wonder if this will actually start to hurt Ron Desantis politically

What if they actually do end up shutting down emergency rooms?

[ProudModerate2]

https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1421576405142355974

DeSantis seems to be stubborn about even wanting to make the slightest change(s) to help mitigate the spread and hospitalizations.
Florida looks pretty bad right now.

[GeorgiaModerate]

https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1421576405142355974

DeSantis seems to be stubborn about even wanting to make the slightest change(s) to help mitigate the spread and hospitalizations.
Florida looks pretty bad right now.

Politically, he's in a position where he can't back down and admit he's made the wrong choices in handling the pandemic.  All he can do is wait for the surge to run its course and hope that it doesn't get too much worse, and that it will have faded from memory by the time of his next election.  Of course, for the good of his state's people he should start taking measures, but I don't think there's much doubt that he values his personal political fortunes above the state's welfare.

[GeorgiaModerate]

https://twitter.com/JohnSpiroSpero/status/1421315078020902913

The decline of western civilization.

[Inmate Trump]

https://twitter.com/JohnSpiroSpero/status/1421315078020902913

The decline of western civilization.

The decline is almost entirely the fault of Republicans.

[Progressive Pessimist]

https://twitter.com/kylegriffin1/status/1421576405142355974

The number coming out of Florida is insane
If things keep going this way I wonder if this will actually start to hurt Ron Desantis politically

No because it's Florida we're dealing with here. And even if it does somehow, it's also far away enough from the 2022 midterms where they'll forget about this.

[pbrower2a]

https://twitter.com/djane_go/status/1421266538498199554

Reminder: "Fox has quietly implemented its own version of a vaccine passport while its top personalities attack them"

Non-use of the vaccine has proved to not work quite as expected: the results are even worse. Even if COVID-19 does not kill it can cause organ damage, diabetes, cognitive loss, and sexual impotence.

I would not be surprised, in view of the damage that it does, if it should lead to an uptick in cancer. It's not quite as bad as HIV/AIDS because HIV/AIDS could be transmitted only by a small set of behaviors, some of which were easy to stop in the medical profession. Unprotected sex and IV drug use are not stopped in a medical setting.

At this point one can probably get COVID-19 through the toilet seat if a sick person has used it.   

COVID-19 is a fiscal nightmare.

It is going to damage family life and wreck some careers. And what do we get for the refusal to get inoculated?   

[emailking]

At this point one can probably get COVID-19 through the toilet seat if a sick person has used it.   

Surface transmission is low. Wash your hands afterwards of course.

[Hammy]

At this point one can probably get COVID-19 through the toilet seat if a sick person has used it.   

Surface transmission is low. Wash your hands afterwards of course.

There have been studies showing covid can spread through toilets (albeit it's uncommon as you pointed out) but this is through aerosols that go in the air when flushing and not surface. And the guidance I've seen simply says to close the lid when doing so.

[pbrower2a]

At this point one can probably get COVID-19 through the toilet seat if a sick person has used it.   

Surface transmission is low. Wash your hands afterwards of course.

With more virusxes everywhere, surface transmission becomes more possible. The only question that I have is of the durability of COVID-19.

Soap and water still do an excellent job of killing the virus. They literally rip the viral membrane and cause the genetic material to disintegrate.

The "toilet seat" is a reference to VD and AIDS. COVID-19 is far more transmissible than VD or AIDS.   

[GeorgiaModerate]

I’m sure this will surprise no one:

https://mobile.twitter.com/mehdirhasan/status/1421508186058670083

[Hammy]

At this point one can probably get COVID-19 through the toilet seat if a sick person has used it.   

Surface transmission is low. Wash your hands afterwards of course.

With more virusxes everywhere, surface transmission becomes more possible. The only question that I have is of the durability of COVID-19.

Soap and water still do an excellent job of killing the virus. They literally rip the viral membrane and cause the genetic material to disintegrate.

The "toilet seat" is a reference to VD and AIDS. COVID-19 is far more transmissible than VD or AIDS.   

Practically all respiratory viruses are more transmissible than VD. Unless you're touching surfaces and then touching your mouth (which generally isn't advisable when in public anyway) surface transmission is low likelihood especially with hand washing.

[Bandit3 the Worker]

Some colleges and workplaces are requiring vaccines, but would it even be technically possible to require all eligible people to get a vaccine?

Someone posted on Twitter that some town in South Carolina required everyone to get a smallpox vaccine back in 1905. Would any city or state be able to do this now?

I'm frustrated with people not getting vaccines, but I'm also not clamoring for a vaccine mandate.

[GeorgiaModerate]

Some colleges and workplaces are requiring vaccines, but would it even be technically possible to require all eligible people to get a vaccine?

Someone posted on Twitter that some town in South Carolina required everyone to get a smallpox vaccine back in 1905. Would any city or state be able to do this now?

I'm frustrated with people not getting vaccines, but I'm also not clamoring for a vaccine mandate.

The legality of a local government establishing a vaccine mandate was upheld by the Supreme Court back in 1905. I think some localities today could be inclined to do the same thing, but they’re probably going to be places where the people are already inclined to get vaccinated. The places that need it the most are the least likely to do it.

[Former Dean Phillips Supporters for Haley (I guess???!?) 👁️]

(climbs on soapbox) Patriots!!!!!! Americans!!! Countrymen!!! Lend me your ears!!!!

So, it turns out that this George Washington fellow has been conspiring with the CCP (Chinese Communist Party, no wait I mean Continental Congress at Philadelphia) to forcibly MANDATE that Americans get inoculated against our virus friends. What is this guy's obsession with mandates? It's like he thinks he's got the mandate of heaven. Who does he think he is, some sort of Chinese Emperor? Get your socialism off my Medicare, George!


George Washington and the First Mass Military Inoculation

George Washington's military genius is undisputed. Yet American independence must be partially attributed to a strategy for which history has given the infamous general little credit: his controversial medical actions. Traditionally, the Battle of Saratoga is credited with tipping the revolutionary scales. Yet the health of the Continental regulars involved in battle was a product of the ambitious initiative Washington began earlier that year at Morristown, close on the heels of the victorious Battle of Princeton. Among the Continental regulars in the American Revolution, 90 percent of deaths were caused by disease, and Variola the small pox virus was the most vicious of them all. (Gabriel and Metz 1992, 107)

On the 6th of January 1777, George Washington wrote to Dr. William Shippen Jr., ordering him to inoculate all of the forces that came through Philadelphia. He explained that: "Necessity not only authorizes but seems to require the measure, for should the disorder infect the Army . . . we should have more to dread from it, than from the Sword of the Enemy." The urgency was real. Troops were scarce and encampments had turned into nomadic hospitals of festering disease, deterring further recruitment. Both Benedict Arnold and Benjamin Franklin, after surveying the havoc wreaked by Variola in the Canadian campaign, expressed fears that the virus would be the army's ultimate downfall. (Fenn 2001, 69)

At the time, the practice of infecting the individual with a less-deadly form of the disease was widespread throughout Europe. Most British troops were immune to Variola, giving them an enormous advantage against the vulnerable colonists. (Fenn 2001, 131) Conversely, the history of inoculation in America (beginning with the efforts of the Reverend Cotton Mather in 1720) was pocked by the fear of the contamination potential of the process. Such fears led the Continental Congress to issue a proclamation in 1776 prohibiting Surgeons of the Army to inoculate.

Washington suspected the only available recourse was inoculation, yet contagion risks aside, he knew that a mass inoculation put the entire army in a precarious position should the British hear of his plans. Moreover, Historians estimate that less than a quarter of the Continental Army had ever had the virus; inoculating the remaining three quarters and every new recruit must have seemed daunting. Yet the high prevalence of disease among the army regulars was a significant deterrent to desperately needed recruits, and a dramatic reform was needed to allay their fears.

Weighing the risks, on February 5th of 1777, Washington finally committed to the unpopular policy of mass inoculation by writing to inform Congress of his plan. Throughout February, Washington, with no precedent for the operation he was about to undertake, covertly communicated to his commanding officers orders to oversee mass inoculations of their troops in the model of Morristown and Philadelphia (Dr. Shippen's Hospital). At least eleven hospitals had been constructed by the year's end.

Variola raged throughout the war, devastating the Native American population and slaves who had chosen to fight for the British in exchange for freedom. Yet the isolated infections that sprung up among Continental regulars during the southern campaign failed to incapacitate a single regiment. With few surgeons, fewer medical supplies, and no experience, Washington conducted the first mass inoculation of an army at the height of a war that immeasurably transformed the international system. Defeating the British was impressive, but simultaneously taking on Variola was a risky stroke of genius.

[Inmate Trump]

It’s clear at this point that Republicans are trying to prolong the pandemic in order to gain political points. They want Biden’s term to be as chaotic as possible to win in 2022, and then steal 2024.

[compucomp]

It’s clear at this point that Republicans are trying to prolong the pandemic in order to gain political points. They want Biden’s term to be as chaotic as possible to win in 2022, and then steal 2024.

They're playing a dangerous game there, the narrative has already shifted to blame unvaccinated people, who are primarily Republicans now, and any surge in the pandemic disproportionately affects the unvaccinated which means they are also killing and maiming their own voters.

[roxas11]

It’s clear at this point that Republicans are trying to prolong the pandemic in order to gain political points. They want Biden’s term to be as chaotic as possible to win in 2022, and then steal 2024.

That is a huge mistake on their part, since the red states are being hit the hardest by the current surge of covid

I mean just look at the Covid case spike in a state like Vermont


and compare that to what is currently going on in Florida



It's blatantly obvious whose voters will suffer more from this
if the GOP continues to play political games with peoples lives...

[Mr. Morden]

It’s clear at this point that Republicans are trying to prolong the pandemic in order to gain political points. They want Biden’s term to be as chaotic as possible to win in 2022, and then steal 2024.

That is a huge mistake on their part, since the red states are being hit the hardest by the current surge of covid

I mean just look at the Covid case spike in a state like Vermont


and compare that to what is currently going on in Florida



It's blatantly obvious whose voters will suffer more from this
if the GOP continues to play political games with peoples lives...

The Census has already happened, so assuming that one only cares about elections happening in this coming decade, this would have no impact on how many congressional districts or electoral votes Florida gets until 2032.

[GeorgiaModerate]

I just went to the local Walmart and learned they have reinstated a mask mandate for everyone.  Previously, fully vaccinated people weren't required to wear masks.

[Bandit3 the Worker]

I just went to the local Walmart and learned they have reinstated a mask mandate for everyone.  Previously, fully vaccinated people weren't required to wear masks.

I've seen news articles that said it's just a recommendation. Maybe that particular Walmart is different.

Kroger also issued this recommendation a couple days ago.

[Hammy]

I crunched some numbers and it felt I'd share it here as it's relevent.

There have been about 125k breakthrough cases, and 1500 or so breakthrough deaths. Extrapolating that would be about 250k/3k if the whole country was vaccinated.

Now, lets compare that to a few other things.

The 2019 flu season saw 405k cases, and 22k deaths--twice as many cases per population, and 7x more deaths--so the vaccines are rendering covid significantly less potent than the flu.

Now to the meat: by this point in 2020, we had already seen roughly 5 million cases, and 140k deaths. So the vaccinated population is 28x less likely to get covid compared to before we had vaccines, and almost 50x less likely to die.

[RussFeingoldWasRobbed]

I just went to the local Walmart and learned they have reinstated a mask mandate for everyone.  Previously, fully vaccinated people weren't required to wear masks.

I've seen news articles that said it's just a recommendation. Maybe that particular Walmart is different.

Kroger also issued this recommendation a couple days ago.

Lowes Foods, the grocery store I work at, is requiring masks for everybody starting Monday

[ilikeverin]

The 2019 flu season saw 405k cases, and 22k deaths--twice as many cases per population, and 7x more deaths--so the vaccines are rendering covid significantly less potent than the flu.

This is exactly the kind of point that we need to be hammering home. Delta is "as infectious as the chickenpox" is a good point to make for anyone about my age and older. "Less deadly than the flu" is a good point to make for, well, anyone.