COVID-19 Megathread 6: Return of the Omicron

[Pouring Rain and Blairing Music]

Why can't we get more geologists from Norway?

Because you can't afjord them.

Brilliant. Added to my sig (with only 14 characters to spare)

[Lief 🗽]

Abolish teachers unions.

https://twitter.com/LoriAHiggins/status/1461076205273169925

[Horus]

Abolish teachers unions.

https://twitter.com/LoriAHiggins/status/1461076205273169925

Yeah, they're as bad as cop unions at this point. What lazy, entitled people.

[emailking]

Remote learning once a week sounds ok.

[Horus]

Remote learning once a week sounds ok.

No, it doesn't. Kids do not "learn" remotely until they are at least high school age. Even then it should be used sparingly. You need to be among your peers, because we thankfully are not yet a completely virtual Black Mirror society.

[emailking]

Remote learning once a week sounds ok.

No, it doesn't. Kids do not "learn" remotely until they are at least high school age. Even then it should be used sparingly. You need to be among your peers, because we thankfully are not yet a completely virtual Black Mirror society.

I've read every post in this thread. It's once a week. I'm fine with it, and even think it's probably better for the kids.

[Horus]

Remote learning once a week sounds ok.

No, it doesn't. Kids do not "learn" remotely until they are at least high school age. Even then it should be used sparingly. You need to be among your peers, because we thankfully are not yet a completely virtual Black Mirror society.

I've read every post in this thread. It's once a week. I'm fine with it, and even think it's probably better for the kids.

There have been some studies showing that a four day school week is better, I agree. But they always add on an extra hour and a half on the other four days. That is not happening here. So no, it's not better for the kids. It's less time in the classroom, and more time at home, in one of the most impoverished cities in the country.

[Skunk]

Remote learning once a week sounds ok.

No, it doesn't. Kids do not "learn" remotely until they are at least high school age. Even then it should be used sparingly. You need to be among your peers, because we thankfully are not yet a completely virtual Black Mirror society.

I've read every post in this thread. It's once a week. I'm fine with it, and even think it's probably better for the kids.

Even if you think it's better for kids, which I can't imagine why, it's undoubtedly worse for the parents, many of whom who work in-person jobs where remote work isn't feasible, who will now have to either take time off work, hire a babysitter, or leave their children home alone because a schoolboard somehow thinks showing up in person four times a week instead of five times a week is going to stop the spread of COVID.

[emailking]

Yes I can see the argument it could be harder for some of the parents.

[Sestak]

Abolish teachers unions.

https://twitter.com/LoriAHiggins/status/1461076205273169925

Every person involved with this decision needs to be fired immediately. Absolute horsesh**t.

[It’s so Joever]

This is just the stupidest idea ever.

[Meclazine for Israel]

USA still up around 100,000 cases per day. That is crazy.

800,000 dead and over 1M have lost their sense of smell.

My thoughts with you guys this winter.

[Bandit3 the Worker]

USA still up around 100,000 cases per day. That is crazy.

800,000 dead and over 1M have lost their sense of smell.

My thoughts with you guys this winter.

7-day case average is 87,988. 7-day death average is 905.

But at the same time last year, the 7-day case average was 159,281. 7-day death average was 1,180.

[Inmate Trump]

USA still up around 100,000 cases per day. That is crazy.

800,000 dead and over 1M have lost their sense of smell.

My thoughts with you guys this winter.

If we’d had a president early on in the pandemic who sought to lead and govern and actually be helpful then things would have been different.

[pbrower2a]

Loss of a sense of smell? That could be personally dangerous.

[emailking]

It's not good yeah. Neither is loss of taste. Food isn't enjoyable anymore if you can't taste it.

It's a good enough reason to get the vaccine, even if you are young and healthy.

[emailking]

Fresh look at pandemic origins points straight to food market in Wuhan, scientist says

A fresh look at the possible origins of the Covid-19 pandemic points straight back to the Huanan seafood market in the Chinese city of Wuhan, a scientist who has been studying the pandemic from the beginning asserted Thursday.

The researcher, Michael Worobey of the University of Arizona, has put together a painstaking timeline of all the known cases of SARS-Cov-2 before it was known a pandemic was starting.

He found many were in people who lived or worked near the market, the original suspected source of the pandemic, even if they didn't have direct links to the market.

But as Chinese government officials sought to deflect blame, and as the Trump administration and, later, intelligence officials in the Biden administration, pointed to the possibility of a virology research lab in Wuhan, the picture has become muddled.

https://www.cnn.com/2021/11/18/health/covid-origins-market-theory/index.html

[It’s so Joever]

Fresh look at pandemic origins points straight to food market in Wuhan, scientist says

A fresh look at the possible origins of the Covid-19 pandemic points straight back to the Huanan seafood market in the Chinese city of Wuhan, a scientist who has been studying the pandemic from the beginning asserted Thursday.

The researcher, Michael Worobey of the University of Arizona, has put together a painstaking timeline of all the known cases of SARS-Cov-2 before it was known a pandemic was starting.

He found many were in people who lived or worked near the market, the original suspected source of the pandemic, even if they didn't have direct links to the market.

But as Chinese government officials sought to deflect blame, and as the Trump administration and, later, intelligence officials in the Biden administration, pointed to the possibility of a virology research lab in Wuhan, the picture has become muddled.

https://www.cnn.com/2021/11/18/health/covid-origins-market-theory/index.html

Going back full circle.

[emailking]

FDA authorizes Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna coronavirus vaccine boosters for all adults

The US Food and Drug Administration on Friday authorized boosters of the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna Covid-19 vaccines for all adults, the companies said.

The agency expanded emergency use authorization for booster doses of both the mRNA vaccines beyond who was eligible previously; boosters had been authorized for anyone 65 and older who was vaccinated with the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines at least six months ago and for certain adults at high risk of infection or of severe disease.

Pfizer and BioNTech requested authorization last week based on results of a Phase 3 trial involving more than 10,000 participants; it found boosters were safe and had an efficacy of 95% against symptomatic Covid-19 compared with the two-dose vaccine schedule in the period when the highly transmissible Delta was the dominant strain. Pfizer released the booster efficacy data last month; it has not yet been peer-reviewed or published.

Moderna requested authorization of its 50-microgram booster dose for all adults on Wednesday.

https://www.cnn.com/2021/11/19/health/covid-vaccine-boosters-fda-cdc/

If you didn't get a booster because you were healthy in a low risk job and under 65, well now you can!

[Vaccinated Russian Bear]

https://twitter.com/AP/status/1461689833919762437

[compucomp]

FDA authorizes Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna coronavirus vaccine boosters for all adults

The US Food and Drug Administration on Friday authorized boosters of the Pfizer/BioNTech and Moderna Covid-19 vaccines for all adults, the companies said.

The agency expanded emergency use authorization for booster doses of both the mRNA vaccines beyond who was eligible previously; boosters had been authorized for anyone 65 and older who was vaccinated with the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines at least six months ago and for certain adults at high risk of infection or of severe disease.

Pfizer and BioNTech requested authorization last week based on results of a Phase 3 trial involving more than 10,000 participants; it found boosters were safe and had an efficacy of 95% against symptomatic Covid-19 compared with the two-dose vaccine schedule in the period when the highly transmissible Delta was the dominant strain. Pfizer released the booster efficacy data last month; it has not yet been peer-reviewed or published.

Moderna requested authorization of its 50-microgram booster dose for all adults on Wednesday.

https://www.cnn.com/2021/11/19/health/covid-vaccine-boosters-fda-cdc/

If you didn't get a booster because you were healthy in a low risk job and under 65, well now you can!

This is great news. Boosters for all should have been the decision from the beginning. This is especially true now looking at the ongoing train wreck in Europe, where countries are seeing record cases and full hospitals despite high vaccination rates. I think that waning immunity is definitely playing a part in that, especially of Pfizer as Moderna is nonexistent over there, and the same could be a problem in the US too since the general population got their vaccines in April and May so now would be when the effectiveness starts to wane.

[BG-NY]

It's not a competition certainly, but the comparison will be drawn - if 64,015 people die (excluding today) from Covid through 1/4, it would mean more people died under Covid under Biden than did under Trump, in the same period of time (measured from the first Covid death until the end of Trump's presidency). That will put us over 855k deaths, sadly. One million deaths will be eclipsed in August through October 2022, by most estimates.

[Fmr. Gov. NickG]

It's not a competition certainly, but the comparison will be drawn - if 64,015 people die (excluding today) from Covid through 1/4, it would mean more people died under Covid under Biden than did under Trump, in the same period of time (measured from the first Covid death until the end of Trump's presidency). That will put us over 855k deaths, sadly. One million deaths will be eclipsed in August through October 2022, by most estimates.

What estimates?  Are there accounting for the anticipated approval of the Pfizer pill?

[_.]

Abolish teachers unions.

https://twitter.com/LoriAHiggins/status/1461076205273169925

Yeah, they're as bad as cop unions at this point. What lazy, entitled people.

Yeah Imma have to agree with this point
Never have met a teacher who remotely* cares about their students who thinks distance "learning" was anything but a massive negative for everyone

Only "teachers" who want this are the ones who don't intend to work.

*pun (?) somewhat intended

[Person Man]

https://twitter.com/AP/status/1461689833919762437

I’ve done it.