COVID-19 Megathread 6: Return of the Omicron

[Green Line]

Cases are crashing.... exactly as they did this time last winter.  Nothing that wasn't anticipated.  They'll start going up again in a couple of months.  It remains to be seen if any of the zero-Covid freaks in power over blue America have actually learned anything.  They'll loosen things up as cases recede.  The actual test will be when the cases start to inevitably go upwards again, what happens.  Nothing has fundamentally changed since vaccines became available last summer, except that Covid now spreads even easier.  Everyone should enjoy their few months of "normalcy" before Dr. Fauci and his ilk start getting restless again.

[compucomp]

This is the future the anti-vaccine, forever-pandemic left wants… really disturbing
https://twitter.com/saitomri/status/1489151047507800064?s=21

Compucomp, MacArthur etc see nothing wrong with this either.. Some people just have no humanity.

That's because there is nothing wrong with it. All the amenities have been provided for the people working the Olympics. You can see it in this photo. That bartender is mixing a drink, so there is a bar, and thus there are people drinking, and thus there are unmasked people milling around and socializing. What's the problem if the bartender is dressed in full PPE? So what? What's the problem if everything is sanitized every hour or whatever? You have your bar, you have your chocolate fountain (!), you have the assurance that every measure possible has been taken to protect you from COVID, and you still complain? Essentially, because it's funny looking and you're not used to seeing it?

Edit: Oh by the way, if you're trying to "both sides" this, it's an insidious false equivalence. You're comparing people who want to protect public health and are maybe a bit overzealous with it to people who lock arms with neo-Nazis and QAnon nutjobs just because they agree on one issue.

[Calthrina950]

This is the future the anti-vaccine, forever-pandemic left wants… really disturbing
https://twitter.com/saitomri/status/1489151047507800064?s=21

Compucomp, MacArthur etc see nothing wrong with this either.. Some people just have no humanity.

You were only partially correct. General MacArthur isn't that extreme, but compucomp sees no problem with it. Would his views be different if all bars and restaurants in the United States required their employees to utilize such gear while on the job?

[Calthrina950]

Cases are crashing.... exactly as they did this time last winter.  Nothing that wasn't anticipated.  They'll start going up again in a couple of months.  It remains to be seen if any of the zero-Covid freaks in power over blue America have actually learned anything.  They'll loosen things up as cases recede.  The actual test will be when the cases start to inevitably go upwards again, what happens.  Nothing has fundamentally changed since vaccines became available last summer, except that Covid now spreads even easier.  Everyone should enjoy their few months of "normalcy" before Dr. Fauci and his ilk start getting restless again.

I'm not sure if you saw my link to the POLITICO article above. The Biden Administration's idea of the "new normal" seems to closely resemble what we are already seeing. They seem to believe that by acclimatizing Americans to these norms, they can reverse the damage which has been inflicted to his approvals, and to those of the Democrats, and position themselves well for the midterms. I'm very skeptical about that.

[compucomp]

This is the future the anti-vaccine, forever-pandemic left wants… really disturbing
https://twitter.com/saitomri/status/1489151047507800064?s=21

Compucomp, MacArthur etc see nothing wrong with this either.. Some people just have no humanity.

You were only partially correct. General MacArthur isn't that extreme, but compucomp sees no problem with it. Would his views be different if all bars and restaurants in the United States required their employees to utilize such gear while on the job?

I'd love to see it. I want my food and drinks to be as sanitary as possible. Honestly there is a case for a mask mandate to be in force for food/drink serving personnel even if there were no COVID. I know some restaurants require the wearing of hair nets for this reason.

[Calthrina950]

This is the future the anti-vaccine, forever-pandemic left wants… really disturbing
https://twitter.com/saitomri/status/1489151047507800064?s=21

Compucomp, MacArthur etc see nothing wrong with this either.. Some people just have no humanity.

You were only partially correct. General MacArthur isn't that extreme, but compucomp sees no problem with it. Would his views be different if all bars and restaurants in the United States required their employees to utilize such gear while on the job?

I'd love to see it. I want my food and drinks to be as sanitary as possible. Honestly there is a case for a mask mandate to be in force for food/drink serving personnel even if there were no COVID. I know some restaurants require the wearing of hair nets for this reason.

Oh my. You want for bartenders, waiters, attendants, and bouncers to wear full protective gear? Of the kind that would be seen in hospitals? What about retail employees? Cashiers, tellers, lotboys, and the like. Should they be using such gear as well?

[Mr. Illini]

A team of 15 infectious disease experts and pediatricians drafted a statement calling for a full return to normal in public schools by February 15, including rolling back mandated masking. It has been co-signed by nearly 1,000 medical professionals in the 7 days it has been live.

https://twitter.com/drlucymcbride/status/1489236186128392193?s=20&t=h1RySR26...

[Hammy]

This is the future the anti-vaccine, forever-pandemic left wants… really disturbing
https://twitter.com/saitomri/status/1489151047507800064?s=21

Hate to burst your centrist bubble, but it's the establishment centrist Dems who want this, not "the left". You're starting to sound like Trump.

[Lief 🗽]

This is the future the anti-vaccine, forever-pandemic left wants… really disturbing
https://twitter.com/saitomri/status/1489151047507800064?s=21

Hate to burst your centrist bubble, but it's the establishment centrist Dems who want this, not "the left". You're starting to sound like Trump.

Nah, look at the replies to the tweet supporting this kind of security theater, they’re all various sub genres of communist.

[Horus]

This is the future the anti-vaccine, forever-pandemic left wants… really disturbing
https://twitter.com/saitomri/status/1489151047507800064?s=21

Hate to burst your centrist bubble, but it's the establishment centrist Dems who want this, not "the left". You're starting to sound like Trump.

It's honestly a mix and doesn't fit neatly on Hillary/Bernie lines. For example PSOL and MacArthur are both big on restrictions and I'm not, even though I'm in between them politically.

[Calthrina950]

This is the future the anti-vaccine, forever-pandemic left wants… really disturbing
https://twitter.com/saitomri/status/1489151047507800064?s=21

Hate to burst your centrist bubble, but it's the establishment centrist Dems who want this, not "the left". You're starting to sound like Trump.

It's honestly a mix and doesn't fit neatly on Hillary/Bernie lines. For example PSOL and MacArthur are both big on restrictions and I'm not, even though I'm in between them politically.

PSOL is a solid progressive and MacArthur is the epitome of an establishment liberal Democrat. So I think it's fair to say that pro-restriction and pro-mandate advocates can be found in all sectors of the Democratic Party. But it is establishment politicians (i.e., Hochul, Pritzker, Bowser, Newsom, etc.) who have been among the most visible in pushing for restrictions. 

[compucomp]

This is the future the anti-vaccine, forever-pandemic left wants… really disturbing
https://twitter.com/saitomri/status/1489151047507800064?s=21

Compucomp, MacArthur etc see nothing wrong with this either.. Some people just have no humanity.

You were only partially correct. General MacArthur isn't that extreme, but compucomp sees no problem with it. Would his views be different if all bars and restaurants in the United States required their employees to utilize such gear while on the job?

I'd love to see it. I want my food and drinks to be as sanitary as possible. Honestly there is a case for a mask mandate to be in force for food/drink serving personnel even if there were no COVID. I know some restaurants require the wearing of hair nets for this reason.

Oh my. You want for bartenders, waiters, attendants, and bouncers to wear full protective gear? Of the kind that would be seen in hospitals? What about retail employees? Cashiers, tellers, lotboys, and the like. Should they be using such gear as well?

For other retail and public facing service jobs, I'd say it's unnecessary, but I certainly wouldn't react or think negatively if I saw it. To be fair I have been eating restaurant food for the entire pandemic and I haven't caught COVID from it so full PPE is probably not necessary there either. But the fact that chefs are in many restaurants required to wear hair nets means that for restaurant workers a mask mandate is just a matter of degree, not principle.

But the crux of the matter is this: whether it's necessary or excessive, I'm never offended when other people wear PPE or take other protective measures. Their PPE or physical distancing didn't affect my behavior and also protects me from them, so it's good for me too. But you and others on this forum think that it's bad because it's "dystopian", creates a bad atmosphere, etc. We're going to have to agree to disagree because it's obvious we'll never agree on this.

[Calthrina950]

This is the future the anti-vaccine, forever-pandemic left wants… really disturbing
https://twitter.com/saitomri/status/1489151047507800064?s=21

Compucomp, MacArthur etc see nothing wrong with this either.. Some people just have no humanity.

You were only partially correct. General MacArthur isn't that extreme, but compucomp sees no problem with it. Would his views be different if all bars and restaurants in the United States required their employees to utilize such gear while on the job?

I'd love to see it. I want my food and drinks to be as sanitary as possible. Honestly there is a case for a mask mandate to be in force for food/drink serving personnel even if there were no COVID. I know some restaurants require the wearing of hair nets for this reason.

Oh my. You want for bartenders, waiters, attendants, and bouncers to wear full protective gear? Of the kind that would be seen in hospitals? What about retail employees? Cashiers, tellers, lotboys, and the like. Should they be using such gear as well?

For other retail and public facing service jobs, I'd say it's unnecessary, but I certainly wouldn't react or think negatively if I saw it. To be fair I have been eating restaurant food for the entire pandemic and I haven't caught COVID from it so full PPE is probably not necessary there either. But the fact that chefs are in many restaurants required to wear hair nets means that for restaurant workers a mask mandate is just a matter of degree, not principle.

But the crux of the matter is this: whether it's necessary or excessive, I'm never offended when other people wear PPE or take other protective measures. Their PPE or physical distancing didn't affect my behavior and also protects me from them, so it's good for me too. But you and others on this forum think that it's bad because it's "dystopian", creates a bad atmosphere, etc. We're going to have to agree to disagree because it's obvious we'll never agree on this.

To be clear, I have never advocated for outright mask mandate bans or anything of that kind, such as what DeSantis and some Republicans have implemented. I think that everyone should have the choice of wearing masks or whatever kind of protective equipment is necessary. But you're right that I view masks as being dystopian and that I would rather they be gone. Understand that I don't want to spend the rest of my life living in such a mode. I didn't sign up to permanently alter my personal behaviors in such a way. But you are right. We are never going to agree on this, and I view your positions on this pandemic as being unreasonable and extreme. But you should take comfort that public health officials seem to align more with you, than they do with us.

[Aurelius]

Since posters here seem to be supporting the Canadian "trucker protest", have a look at yet more extremists taking part:



So in this protest, I've now seen flags of
-Nazi Germany
-CSA
-Three Percenters
-QAnon

These are the folks you are siding with now? Are they "very fine people" like Trump used to say? Have you gone crazy? Have COVID restrictions warped your minds to the point that you'll accept any ally in your fight against them?

Every protest movement has its lunatics, so this doesn't phase me. Back in the Occupy days, I remember how 3/4 of the folks involved were normies protesting corporate greed while the other 1/4 were genuine anarchists and communists. I also suspect that the Nazi flags were being used - in EXTREMELY poor taste - to compare Trudeau to Hitler, not to express support for the Nazis.

[President Punxsutawney Phil]

A team of 15 infectious disease experts and pediatricians drafted a statement calling for a full return to normal in public schools by February 15, including rolling back mandated masking. It has been co-signed by nearly 1,000 medical professionals in the 7 days it has been live.

https://twitter.com/drlucymcbride/status/1489236186128392193?s=20&t=h1RySR26...

It'll be great to be able to tar those opposed to this as  ”anti-science". It might not be completely fair, but it's no more unfair than calling those who oppose keeping schools closed nasty names.

[emailking]

Those protocols are pretty standard across most of the federal government right now though. Large gatherings are supposed to be avoided if possible.

What was the point of the vax then?

To not die? I'm not trying to advocate for it, I'm just saying this is what the whole government is doing in the spaces they control.

[An American Tail: Fubart Goes West]

https://deadline.com/2022/02/l-a-mayor-garcetti-says-he-held-his-breath-for-maskless-photo-with-magic-johnson-1234925457/

Garcetti says he "held his breath" while taking a maskless photo. How f**king dumb do these elitist Democrats think we are?

All I have to say is that I’m glad that it gave me a chance to change my username.

[Hammy]

This is the future the anti-vaccine, forever-pandemic left wants… really disturbing
https://twitter.com/saitomri/status/1489151047507800064?s=21

Hate to burst your centrist bubble, but it's the establishment centrist Dems who want this, not "the left". You're starting to sound like Trump.

Nah, look at the replies to the tweet supporting this kind of security theater, they’re all various sub genres of communist.

If you have to go out of your way to find them by resorting to twitter (a notoriously unreliable source as you never know if anyone is what they say they are), then they're a vocal minority at best.

The public figures who are pushing this nonsense are very much the establishment voices, not "the left"

[DINGO Joe]

A pretty good story on why the US is dying at a higher rate than comparable countries

https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2022/02/why-are-so-many-americans-still-dying-of-covid.html

Big shock, it has to do with vaccines.

Still really haven't seen anyone in the media notice that the pandemic has gotten much whiter and younger post vax.

[Absentee Voting Ghost of Ruin]

https://deadline.com/2022/02/l-a-mayor-garcetti-says-he-held-his-breath-for-maskless-photo-with-magic-johnson-1234925457/

Garcetti says he "held his breath" while taking a maskless photo. How f**king dumb do these elitist Democrats think we are?

Republicans belong to a party led by Donald Trump, so it's seems quite reasonable to assume that they're dumb enough to believe this.

That said, this is inexcusable, and he ought to resign for both the blatant hypocrisy and following it up with insulting idiocy.

[Oakvale]

This is the future the anti-vaccine, forever-pandemic left wants… really disturbing
https://twitter.com/saitomri/status/1489151047507800064?s=21

Hate to burst your centrist bubble, but it's the establishment centrist Dems who want this, not "the left". You're starting to sound like Trump.

Nah, look at the replies to the tweet supporting this kind of security theater, they’re all various sub genres of communist.

If you have to go out of your way to find them by resorting to twitter (a notoriously unreliable source as you never know if anyone is what they say they are), then they're a vocal minority at best.

The public figures who are pushing this nonsense are very much the establishment voices, not "the left"

There's an extremely cursed alliance between a certain type of blue tick Warren donating upper income liberal and the far left in this respect. The former group have memed themselves into a state of permanent hysteria because they pay too much attention to the enemy of the people media and, frankly, are capable of remote working forever in their comfortable three-bedroom house and ordering service workers in full hazmat suits to bring them food. These are the kind of people who are obsessed with vaccinating the under-5s and yet will not change their behaviour one iota when this actually happens. A good example of this is Nancy Pelosi declaring that only 25 members of Congress will be allowed at the State of the Union because of social distancing.

The latter group exists because the far left - and this goes doubly for the American left - is a fundamentally unserious, masturbatory endeavour. If you're a middle class self-described 'socialist' in America the path of least resistance is to arbitrarily blame shadowy neoliberalism for the US death toll and jerk yourself silly about how the evil government is forcing people to die for the economy (these people, of course, think that 'the economy' and people's lives are distinct and separable things). To admit that the mass production and free availability of effective vaccines is one of the most impressive examples of state mobilisation in living memory would be to undermine their entire coping mechanism. This is because most of them have debts from Harvard Law School that they can't pay off after choosing to pursue careers in stand-up comedy.

Another point of comparison - both groups are de facto anti-vaxxers. The former group will express this sentiment by purporting to be extremely pro-vaccine but, as discussed, insisting that they will continue to wear masks indefinitely etc. The latter express this through nonsensical pontificating about how actually anti-vaxxers are all marginalised working class people who simply can't afford to get a free vaccine at any pharmacy in the country. Both will shamelessly moralise about how those of us who want our lives back want to murder the disabled, citing statistics based on the premise that people with repetitive strain injury are at risk of death from Covid.

They will express it in different language, and approach it via a different angle - the liberals might bleat on about the merits of New Zealand whereas the left will do so about China -  but both groups are expressing the same ugly, narcissistic impulse. Neither ever wants this to end.

[Leohendo9]

stealth omicron?

think these names are going to get more scary as we go.

is it the new 'terrorism'?

[Vaccinated Russian Bear]

The rolling average for USA peaked at about 800K in mid-January.  Today it fell under 400K.  And the sharp decline continues.

In New York they're basically back down to zero.  I wouldn't be surprised if New York fully reopens in the next week or two.

Knock on wood but it really does feel like the light at the end of the tunnel is in sight.  The cases are collapsing, we've got a full arsenal to combat severe infections, we've got vaccines to prevent those severe infections and a few on the way to add even more firepower.  Original COVID is completely destroyed.  Delta seems to be mostly gone as well.

I'd be pretty surprised if the Biden administration doesn't start loosening restrictions by the end of the month.

LOL, GMAC Bob, you "attacked" me in deranged manner just 2 days ago for saying this.

Today/yesterday Finland, Sweden and Switzerland (England, more?) followed Denmark. They said they will/aim to remove all the remaining restrictions this month.

If Biden is smart, he'll do something similar in ASAP and "own" going-back-to-normal momentum. It's clear, it's mostly over in a month. I'm afraid, he'll be scared of/sides with idiots forever-restrictioners as he did with Progressives vs Manchin, wait to long and lose BBB momentum.

God knows

He already did this last summer and everyone (including you) pounced as soon as Delta hit, so let's not pretend this is good-faith advice.

[Vaccinated Russian Bear]

Today/yesterday Finland, Sweden and Switzerland (England, more?) followed Denmark. They said they will/aim to remove all the remaining restrictions this month.

If Biden is smart, he'll do something similar in ASAP and "own" going-back-to-normal momentum. It's clear, it's mostly over in a month. I'm afraid, he'll be scared of/sides with idiots forever-restrictioners as he did with Progressives vs Manchin, wait to long and lose BBB momentum.

God knows

Great minds think alike 

https://twitter.com/NateSilver538/status/1489281154549264389


Biden was late on inflation, late on "testing" and now he'll be late on "go-back-to-normal". Gi, perhaps, partially because of people like GMac around him, hehehe.

He'll probably get a back-to-normal bump anyway, but the more he waits, the smaller the bump will be, imo.

[compucomp]

Another point of comparison - both groups are de facto anti-vaxxers. The former group will express this sentiment by purporting to be extremely pro-vaccine but, as discussed, insisting that they will continue to wear masks indefinitely etc. The latter express this through nonsensical pontificating about how actually anti-vaxxers are all marginalised working class people who simply can't afford to get a free vaccine at any pharmacy in the country. Both will shamelessly moralise about how those of us who want our lives back want to murder the disabled, citing statistics based on the premise that people with repetitive strain injury are at risk of death from Covid.

They will express it in different language, and approach it via a different angle - the liberals might bleat on about the merits of New Zealand whereas the left will do so about China -  but both groups are expressing the same ugly, narcissistic impulse. Neither ever wants this to end.

This is a talking point this forum likes to make and it is completely wrong and highly insulting. Poll after poll shows that vaccinated people are more likely to think COVID-19 is a threat, support mask mandates and social distancing, etc. So people who favor restrictions are anti-vaccine by... disproportionately getting the vaccine? We understand the truth, that the vaccine is an important tool and the best we have, but it doesn't offer anything close to sterilizing immunity, and thus it cannot protect us from COVID-19 and we favor additional mitigation measures, particularly low cost, low effort ones like mask mandates. It's the people who continue to insist that the vaccine is an impenetrable COVID repelling shield that's really undermining the vaccine by telling an obvious lie. Anti-vaccine people are by now almost all Alex Jones style conspiratard numbskulls; I can't even call them Trumpist anymore after Trump tried to set them straight and they turned on him. I refuse to be smeared by being associated with these lowlifes.